The first voyage round the world, by Magellan : $b translated from the accounts of Pigafetta, and other contemporary writersPigafetta, Antonio
History
The first voyage round the world, by Magellan : $b translated from the accounts of Pigafetta, and other contemporary writers
Pigafetta, Antonio
Magalhães, Fernão de, -1521; Voyages around the world -- Early works to 1800
Friday, the 22nd of March, the above-mentioned people, who had
promised us to return, came about midday, with two boats laden with the
said fruit cochi, sweet oranges, a vessel of palm wine, and a cock, to
give us to understand that they had poultry in their country, so that
we bought all that they brought. The lord of these people was old,
and had his face painted, and had gold rings suspended to his ears,
which they name Schione,[279] and the others had many bracelets and
rings of gold on their arms, with a wrapper of linen round their head.
We remained at this place eight days: the captain went there every
day to see his sick men, whom he had placed on this island to refresh
them: and he gave them himself every day the water of this said fruit
the cocho, which comforted them much. Near this isle is another where
there are a kind of people who wear holes[280] in their ears so large
that they can pass their arms through them; these people are Caphre,
that is to say, Gentiles, and they go naked, except that round their
middles they wear cloth made of the bark of trees. But there are some
of the more remarkable of them who wear cotton stuff, and at the end
of it there is some work of silk done with a needle. These people are
tawny,[281] fat, and painted, and they anoint themselves with the
oil of coco nuts and sesame,[282] to preserve them from the sun and
the wind. Their hair is very black and long, reaching to the waist,
and they carry small daggers and knives, ornamented with gold, and
many other things, such as darts,[283] harpoons, and nets to fish,
like...,[284] and their boats are like ours.
The Monday of Passion week, the 25th of March, and feast of our Lady,
in the afternoon, and being ready to depart from this place, I went to
the side of our ship to fish, and putting my feet on a spar to go down
to the store room,[285] my feet slipped, because it had rained, and I
fell into the sea without any one seeing me, and being near drowning
by luck I found at my left hand the sheet of the large sail which was
in the sea, I caught hold of it and began to cry out till they came to
help and pick me up with the boat. I was assisted not by my merits,
but by the mercy and grace of the fountain of pity. That same day we
took the course between west and southwest,[286] and passed amidst four
small islands, that is to say, Cenalo, Huinanghar, Ibusson, and Abarien.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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