‘The travels of Sig. Pietro della Valle, a noble Roman, into East-India and Arabia Deserta. In which, the several countries, together with the customs, manners, traffique, and rites both religious and civil, of those Oriental princes and nations, are faithfully described: In familiar letters to his friend Signior Mario Schipano. Whereunto is added a relation of Sir Thomas Roe’s voyage into the East-Indies’ [‎464] (485/508)

A Voyage to EAST INDIA,
Son 5 or the Son upon his Father 3 they will do it, rather than
the will ot the King (houldbe difobeyed. . Thus fometting Na-
turej rather than Subjedion.
i • of theirs ^ ra 5 r ) u P on the Kings favour makes all
iusSubjcfts moft fervile flatterers, for they will commend any
ot us actions, though they be nothing but cruelty ^fo any
oi his fpeeches 5 though nothing but folly. And when the
King fits and fptaks to any of his people publickly, there is
not a word falls from him that is not written by fome Scriveners
or Scribes, that ftand round about him.
In the year ^618. when we lived at that Court, there ap
peared at once in the moneth of 'November in their Hemifphear
two great Blazing-ftars, the one of them North, the other
South, which unufual fight appeared there for the fpace of one
moneth. One of thofe lirange Comets in the North, appeared
like a long blazing-torch, or Launce fired at the upper end 5 the
other in the South, was round like a pot boiling out fire. The
Mogol confulted with his flattering Aftrologers, whofpake of
tin lc Comets unto the King, as Daniel fometimes did of Nebu-
chadmwars dre^m, Dan. 4.19. My Lord, the dream is to them
that hate thee, and the interpretation thereof unto thine enemies.
For his Aftrologers told him that he needed not trouble himfelf
with the thought thereof, for it concerned other places and
people, not him nor his. But not long after this, their feafon
ot Rain, (before fpoken of) which was never known to fail till
then, tailed them 3 and this caufed fuch a famine and mortality
in the South parts of his Empire, that it did very much un
people it; and in the Northern part thereof (whither the Mogol
then repaired) his third Son Sultan Caroom railed, and kepttoge-
VI ^ ^ 01 ar,(: ^ ftood upon his guard, and would not
disband, till his Father had delivered his eldeft Son Snltan Coobfe-
ro ° hands. And how, when he had him in his power he
ufedhim, youfhall after hear.
In the mean time, take one admirable example of a very grois
flatterer but a great Favorite of that King, who was noted
above others of that Nation to be a great ,negle6i:er of God, be
lieving it Religion enough to pleafe the Mogol hisMafter. This
man was a Souldier of an approved valour : But upon a time he
Uting in dalliance with one of his women, flie pluckt an hair
from his breaft (which grew about his Nipple) in wantonnefs,
ichout the leaft thought of doing him hurt. But the Jirtle
wound that Imall and unparalle'd inftrument of death made,
preiently began to fefter, and in fliorttime after became a Can-
Ker mcurablej in fine, when he faw that he muft needs dye, he
i WO u whl r ch . are worth the remembringof all
that inall ever hear them, faying,:
Who would not have thought bu Leen
hred a Soddter,Jhould have dyed Enemy,
by a Sword', or a Launce, or an Arr
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