The commodities here are few, more being got farther to the eastwards. At certain times of the year, the Portuguese get gold and elephants teeth in exchange for rice, salt, beads, bells, garlick, French bottles, copper kettles, low-priced knives, hats, linen like barber's aprons, latten basins, edge-tools, bars of iron, and sundry kinds of specious trinkets; but they will not give gold for toys, only exchanging victuals for such things. * * * * * "This diligent observer hath taken like pains touching Saldanha bay: But as we touch there often, and have already given many notices of that place, we shall now double the Cape, and take a view along with him of Cape St Augustine."--_Purch_. * * * * * § 2. _Observations made at St Augustine in Madagascar, and at the Island of Socotora_. St Augustine, in the great island of St Lawrence or Madagascar, is rather a bay than a cape or point, as it has no land much bearing out beyond the rest of the coast. It is in 23° 30' S. latitude, the variation here being 15° 40, and may be easily found, as it has breaches[211] on either side some leagues off to the W.S.W. Right from the bay to seaward the water is very deep; but within the bay the ground is so very shelvy, that you may have one anchor to the north in 22 fathoms, and your other anchor in more than 60; while in some places nearer shore you will not have two feet at low water, and deep water still farther in; the whole ground a soft ooze. Within a mile or two of the bay the land is high, barren, and full of rocks and stones, with many small woods. Two rivers run into the bottom of the bay, the land about them being low, sandy, and overflowed; and these rivers pour in so much water into the bay that their currents are never stemmed by the tide, which yet rises two fathoms, by which the water in the bay is very thick and muddy. Great quantities of canes are brought down by these rivers, insomuch that we have seen abundance of them twenty or thirty leagues out at sea. This bay is open to a north-west wind, yet the force of the sea is broken by means of a ledge of rocks. We caught here smelts of a foot long, and shrimps ten inches: The best fishing is near the sandy shore off the low land, where the natives catch many with strong nets. Within the woods we found infinite numbers of water-melons growing on the low lands, which yielded us good refreshment. But we had nothing from the rivers, except that one of our men was hurt by an alligator. The water also was none of the best; but we got wood in plenty. [Footnote 211: Probably meaning breakers.--E.]