The Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques and Discoveries of the English Nation — Volume 09: Asia, Part IIHakluyt, Richard
History
The Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques and Discoveries of the English Nation — Volume 09: Asia, Part II
Hakluyt, Richard
Discoveries in geography -- English; Voyages and travels
[Sidenote: The Guardian of Ierusalem commeth to Iaffa, with the Cady, and
Subassi.] The 27 in the morning, came the Cadi, the Subassi, and the
Meniwe, with the Padre guardian, but they could not come at vs by reason of
the stormy weather: in the afternoone we assayed to send the bote on land,
but the weather would not suffer us. Then againe towards night the bote
went a shore, but it returned not that night. [Sidenote: A cloud called of
the Italians Cion most dangerous.] The same day in the afternoone we sawe
in the element, a cloud with a long tayle, like vnto the tayle of a
serpent, which cloud is called in Italian Cion, the tayle of this cloud did
hang as it were into the sea: and we did see the water vnder the sayde
cloude ascend, as it were like a smoke or myste, the which this Cion drew
vp to it. The Marriners reported to vs that it had this propertie, that if
it should happen to haue lighted on any part of the shippe, that it would
rent and wreth sayles, mast, shroudes and shippe and all in manner like a
wyth: on the land, trees, houses, in whatsoeuer else it lighteth on, it
would rent and wreth. [Sidenote: A coniuration.] These marriners did vse a
certaine coniuration to breake the said tayle, or cut it in two, which as
they say doth preuaile. They did take a blacke hafted knife, and with the
edge of the same did crosse the said taile as if they would cut it in
twain, saying these words, Hold thou Cion, eat this, and then they stucke
the knife on the ship side with the edge towards the said cloude, and I saw
it therewith vanish in lesse than one quarter of an houre. But whether it
was then consumed, or whether by vertue of the Inchantment it did vanish I
knowe not, but it was gone. Hereof let them iudge that know more then I.
This afternoone we had no winde, but the sea very stormy, insomuch that
neither cheste, pot, nor any thing else could stand in the shippe, and wee
were driuen to keepe our meate in one hand, and the pot in the other, and
so sit downe vpon the hatches to eate, for stand we could not, for that the
Seas in the very port at an anker went so high as if wee had bene in the
bay of Portugall with stormy weather. The reason is, as the Mariners said
to me, because that there meete all the waues from all places of the
Straights of Gibralter, and there breake, and that in most calmes there go
greatest seas, whether the winde blow or not.
The 28. the weather growing somewhat calme, we went on land and rested our
selues for that day, and the next day we set forward toward the city of
Ierusalem.
What I did, and what places of deuotion I visited in Ierusalem, and other
parts of the Holy land, from this my departure from Iaffa, vntill my
returne to the said port, may briefly be seene in my Testimoniall, vnder
the hand and seale of the Vicar generall of Mount Sion, which for the
contentment of the Reader I thought good here to interlace.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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