'Collections of travels through Turky into Persia, and the East Indies. Giving an account of the present state of those countries, as also a full relation of the five years wars, between Aureng-Zebe and his brothers in their father's life time, about the succession. And a voyage made by the Great Mogul (Aureng-Zebe) with his Army from Dehli to Lahor, from Lahor to Bember, and from thence to the Kingdom of Kachemire, by the Mogols, call'd, the Paradise of the Indies. Together with a relation of the Kingdom of Japan and Tunkin, and of their particular manners and trade. To which is added a new description of the Grand Seignior's Seraglio, and also of all the Kingdoms that encompass the Euxine and Caspian Seas, being the travels of Monsieur TavernierBernier, and other great men.' [‎141] (812/1024)

The Paradife of Indoftan.
the Commodities of value, there is fuch here of Cottons and £/%, that it may be faid,
that Bengale is as 5 twere the general Magazine thereof, not only for or the
Empire of the great Mogol^ but alfo for all the circumjacent Kingdoms, and for Europe
it felf. I have fometimes hood amazed at the vaft quantity of Cotton-Cloth of all
forts, fine and others, tinged and white, which the Hollanders done, draw from thence
and tranfporu into many places, dpecially into Japan and Europe i not to mention what
the Enghjhj Portingal and Indian Merchants carry away from thofe parts. The like
may be faid of the Silks and Siik-Stufls of all forts : One would not imagine the quan
tity, that is hence tranfported every year i for, this Country furnilhes generally all this
great Empire of Mogol as far as Labor and Cabouf and moft of the other forrain parts,
whither Cotton-Cloth is carriedi 3 Tis true, that thefe Silks are not fo fine as thofe,
of Perjia, Syria, Sayd and Barnt i but then there is alfo a great difference in the price >
and I know from good hands, that whofoever (hall take "care of choofingthcm well,and
of getting them well wrought, may have very good Stuffs made of therm The Hol
landers alone have fometimes (even hundred or eight hundred men of the Natives at
work in their Fa&ory of Kajfem-Bazar j as the Englifh and other Merchants have theirs
in proportion.
It is alfo in Bengalee where that prodigious quantity of Salt-peter is found i which is
fo conveniently carried down the River Ganges from Patna, and where the Englifh and
Dutch load whole Ships full for many places of the Indies and for Europe.
Laftly, 3 tis Bengale, whence the good Lacca, Opium, Wax, Civets long Pepper do
come i and even Butter is to be had there in fo great plenty, that though it be a grofs
Commodity, yet notwithftanding 3 tis thence tranfported into divers places.
It cannot be denied that the Air, in regard of Strangers, is not fo healthy there,
efpecially near the Sea: And when the and Ho/Wcr/firft came to fettle there
many of them dyed i and I have feen in Balafor two very fine Englijh Ships, which
having been obliged, by reafon of the War of the Hollanders^ to flay there above a
year, were not able to go to Sea, becaufe moft of their Men were loft. Yet fincethe
time that they have taken care and made orders, as well as the Hollanders y that their
people (hall not drink fo much Bouleponges, nor go fo often a'fhore to vifit the Sellers of
4 rac and Tobacco, and the Indian Women i and fince they have found, that a little
Wine of Bourdeaux, Canary or Cbiras is a marvellous Antidote againft the ill Air >
there is not fo much ficknefs amongft them, nor do they now lofe fo many men.
is a certain beverage made of Arac, that is, of ftrong water, black Sugar,
with the Juice of Limon water, and a little Mufcadine upon it > which is pleafant
enough to the tafte, but a plague to the Body and to Health. .
As to the Beauty of the Country, you are to know, that all takingitnear
an hundred leagues in length on both (ides of Ganges•, from Kaje-mehale unto the Sea,
is full of great Channels, formerly cut out of the River with vaft labour, r ^ ac |j"
ing far into the Country for the conveniency of tranfporting Commodities, and the
Wate^ it felf, which by the Indians is counted the heft in the world. Thefe Channels
are on both (ides lined with well-peopled Villages and Burroughs of Gentiles, and the
large Fields, lying near them, bear abundance of Rice, Sugar, Corn, Legumes,
Muflard, Sezamum for Oil,/^//Mulberries of two or three foot high, to feed Silk
worms. But then the vaft number of great and fmall Kies, that are in the midft of
Ganges, and fill all that great fpace of fix or feven days journey, ( as there is in lome
places of this Pviver from one fide to the other i) this giveth an incomparable eau ,y
to the Country : For, they are very fertile, filled with fruit-bearing Trees, Ananas s,
and all forts of verdure, and interlaced with a thoufand little Channels, which you
cannot fee the end of as if they were fo many Water-mails all covered with 1 rees. Ine
worft of it is, that many of thefe Kies that are next the Sea, are now abandoned by
rcafon of thofe Corfaires, the Franguys of Rahgn, elfewhere fpoken of*, and that they
have at prefent no other Inhabitants but Tigers ( which fometimes fwim over from one
Kle to the other ) and Gazelles, and Hoggs, and Poultry grown wild. And fis upon
the account of thefe Tigers, that for people travelling between thefe Itttle Kies in
fmall boats, as ufually they do, 3 tis dangerous in many places to land j betides, great
care is to be had, that the boat, which in the night is fattened to Trees, be not too near
the Bank i for there are now and thenfome men furprifed i and I have heard it laid,
that Tigers have been fo bold as to come into the boats, and to carry away men that were
aileep, chufing the biggeft and fattett of them, if one may believe the Watef-men ot
he Country. ‘ , V I