Part 7

However, we were glad we had any Place to run to for Harbour; so we put in under the Lee of a Point of Land that gave us Shelter from the Wind, and where we came to an Anchor, after being all of us almost dead with the Fatigue; and, if our Sloop had not been an extraordinary Sea-boat, she could never have born such a Sea, for twelve Days together, as we were in, the worst I ever saw before or since. We lay here, to refresh ourselves, about twenty Days; and, indeed, the Wind blew so hard all the while, that if we had been dispos'd to go to Sea, we could not have done it; and, being here, about seven of our Men began to repent their Bargain, and left us, which I was not sorry for. It seems, the principal Reason of their looking back, was, their being of those who had left their Money behind them. They did not leave us without our Consent, and therefore our Carpenters built them a Boat, during the three Weeks we stay'd here, and fitted it very handsomely for them, with a Cabin for their Convenience, and a Mast and Sail, with which they might very well sail round to our Settlement, as we suppose they did: We gave them Fire-arms and Ammunition sufficient, and left them furnishing themselves with Provisions; and this, we suppose, was the Boat, tho' with other Men in it, which adventur'd afterwards as far as the _Cape of Good Hope_, and was taken up by a _Portugese_ in Distress, by which Means they got Passage for themselves to _Lisbone_, pretending they had made their Escape from the Pirates at _Madagascar_; but we were told, that the _Portuguese_ Captain took a good deal of their Money from them, under Pretence of keeping it from his own Seamen; and that when they came on Shore, and began to claim it, he threaten'd them with taking them up, and prosecuting them for Pirates, which made them compound with him, and take about 10000 Dollars for above 120000, which they had with them; which, by the Way, was but a scurvy Trick: They had, it seems, a considerable Quantity of Gold among them, which they had the Wit to conceal from the Captain of the Ship, and which was enough for such Fellows as them, and more than they well knew what to do with; so that they were rich enough still, tho' the _Portugal_ Captain was nevertheless a Knave for all that.

We left them here, as I have said, and put to Sea again; and, in about twenty Days Sail, having pretty good Weather, we arriv'd at the Gulph of _Persia_: It would be too long to give you an Account of the particular Fortunes of some of our People after this, the Variety of which would fill a Volume by itself: But, in the first Place, we, who were determin'd to travel, went on Shore at _Bassaro_, leaving the rest of our Men to buy Rice, and load the larger Vessel back to their Comrades, which they promis'd to do; but how far they perform'd I know not.

We were thirteen of us that went on Shore here; from whence we hir'd a kind of Barge, or rather a Bark, which, after much Difficulty, and very unhandy Doings of the Men who we had hir'd, brought us to _Babylon_, or _Bagdat_, as it is now call'd.

Our Treasure was so great, that if it had been known what we had about us, I am of Opinion we should never have troubl'd _Europe_ with our Company: However, we gat safe to _Babylon_ or_ Bagdat_, where we kept ourselves _Incog_ for a while, took a House by ourselves, and lay four or five Days still, till we had got Vests and long Gowns made to appear Abroad in as _Armenian_ Merchants. After we had got Cloaths, and look'd like other People, we began to appear Abroad; and I, that from the Beginning had meditated my Escape by myself, began now to put it into Practice; and, walking one Morning upon the Bank of the River _Euphrates_, I mus'd with myself what Course I should take to make off, and get quite away from the Gang, and let them not so much as suspect me.

While I was walking here, comes up one of my Comrades, and one who I always took for my particular Friend: I know what you are employ'd in, _said he_, while you seem only to be musing, and refreshing yourself with the cool Breeze. Why, _said I_, what am I musing about? Why, _said he_, you are studying how you should get away from us; but, muse upon it as long as you will, _says he_, you shall never go without me, for I am resolv'd to go with you which Way soever you take. 'Tis true, _says I_, I was musing which Way I should go, but not which Way I should go without you; for tho' I would be willing to part Company, yet you cannot think I would go alone; and you know I have chosen you out from all the Company to be the Partner of all my Adventures.

Very well, _says he_, but I am to tell you now, that it is not only necessary that we should not go all together; but, our Men have all concluded, that we should make our Escape every one for himself, and should separate as we could; so that you need make no Secret of your Design any more than of the Way you intend to take.

I was glad enough of this News, and it made me very easy in the Preparations we made for our setting out: And, the first Thing we did, was, to get us more Cloaths, having some made of one Fashion, some of another; but, my Friend and I, who resolv'd to keep together, made us Cloaths after the Fashion of the _Armenian_ Merchants, whose Country we pretended to travel through.

In the mean Time, five of our Men dress'd like Merchants; and, laying out their Money in Raw Silk, and Wrought Silks, and other Goods of the Country, proper for _Europe_, (in which they were directed by an _English_ Merchant there) resolv'd to take the usual Rout, and travel by the Caravans from _Babylon_ to _Alleppo_, and so to _Scanderoon_, and we staid and saw them and their Bales go off in Boats for a great Town on the _Euphrates_, where the Caravans begin to take up the Passengers; the other six divided themselves, one Half of them went for _Agra_, the Country of the Great Mogul, resolving to go down the River _Hoogly_ to _Bengal_; but whither they went afterward or what Course they took, I never knew, neither whether they really went at all or not.

The other three went by Sea, in a _Persian_ Vessel, back from the Red Sea to the Gulf of _Mocca_, and I heard of them all three at _Marseilles_; but whither they went afterwards I never knew, nor could I come to speak with them even there.

As for me and my Friend, we first laid out all the Silver we had in _European_ Ware, such as we knew would vend at _Ispahan_, which we carry'd upon twelve Camels; and hiring some Servants, as well for our Guide as our Guard, we set out.

The Servants we hir'd were a Kind of _Arab_, but rather looking like the Great Mogul's people, than real _Arabians_; and when we came into _Persia_, we found they were look'd upon as no better than Dogs, and were not only used ill, but that we were used ill for their Sakes; and after we were come three Days into the _Persian_ Dominions, we found ourselves oblig'd to part with them; so we gave them three Dollars a Man to go back again.

They understood their Business very well, and knew well enough what was the Reason of it, though we did not. However, we found we had committed a great Mistake in it; for we perceiv'd that they were so exasperated at being turn'd off, that they vowed to be revenged; and, indeed, they had their Revenge to the Full; for the same Day, at Night, they return'd in the Dark, and set eleven Houses on Fire in the Town where we quartered; which, by the Way, had gone near to have cost me my Life, and would certainly have done so, if in the Hurry I had not seiz'd one of the Incendiaries and deliver'd him up to them.

The People were so provok'd at him that was taken that they fell upon him with all possible Fury as the common Incendiary and Burner of the Town, and presently quitted us (for they had before vowed our Destruction) but, as I said, quitted us immediately, and thronged about the Wretch they had taken; and, indeed, I made no Question but that they would have immediately murder'd him (nay, that they would have torn him in Pieces before they parted with him). But after they had vented their Rage at him for some Time with all possible Reproaches and Indignities, they carry'd him before the _Cadi_, or Judge of the Place. The _Cadi_, a wise, grave Man, answered, no, he would not judge him at that Time, for they were too hot and passionate to do Justice; but they should come with him in the Morning, when they were cool, and he would hear them.

It is true this was a most excellent Step of the _Cadi_ as to the right Way of doing Justice; but it did not prove the most expedient in the present Occasion, though that was none of his Fault neither; for in the Night the Fellow got out of their Hands, by what Means or by whose Assistance I never heard to this Day; and the _Cadi_ fined the Town in a considerable Sum for letting a Man accused of a capital Crime make his Escape before he was adjudged, and, as we call it, discharged according to Law.

This was an eminent Instance of the Justice of these People; and though they were doubly enraged at the Escape of the Fellow, who, without Doubt, was guilty, yet they never open'd their Mouths against the _Cadi_; but acquiesc'd in his Judgment, as in that of an Oracle, and submitted to the national Censure, or Censure according to the Custom of their Nation, which he had pass'd upon them in their publick Capacity for the Escape of the Man.

We were willing to get out of this Place as soon as we could; for we found the Peoples Rage, which wanted an Object to vent itself upon, began to threaten us again: So having pack'd up our Goods, and gotten five ordinary Camel-Drivers for our Servants in the Country, we set out again.

The Roads in _Persia_ are not so much frequented, as to be well accommodated with Inns, so that several Times we were oblig'd to lodge upon the Ground in the Way; but our new Servants took Care to furnish us with Lodging; for as soon as we let them know we wanted Rest, and inclin'd to stop, they set up a Tent for us, in so short a Time, that we were scarce able to imagine it possible, and under this we encamp'd, our Camels being just by us, and our Servants and Bales lying all hard by.

Once or twice we lodg'd in publick Inns, built at the King of _Persia_'s Charge: These are fair large Buildings, built square, like a large Inn, they have all of them large Stables, and good Forrage for the Camels and Horses, and Apartments for perhaps two or three hundred People, and they are call'd _Caravansera's_, as being built to entertain whole Caravans of Travellers: On the great Roads to _Tauris_ and the Side of _Turky_ they are all fortify'd, and are able to entertain five or six Thousand People, and have a Stock to furnish what Number of Men can come with Provisions; nay, it has been known, that whole armies of the _Persians_ have on their March been furnish'd with Provisions in one of these _Caravansera's_, and that they have kill'd 2000 Sheep for them in one Night's Time.

In this Manner we travell'd to _Ispahan_, the Capital of _Persia_, where appearing as Merchants, and with several Camels loaden with Merchandize, we pass'd all Possibility of Suspicion, and being perfectly easy, we continu'd here some Time, sold our Cargoes, and would gladly have remitted the Money to other Places, as for _Constantinople_ in particular; but we found the _Turks_ and _Persians_ have no such Thing as an Exchange, by Bills running between them and other Nations, no, nor between one Town and another.

We were invited here by a sudden Accident to have gone Home by the _Caspian_ Sea and _Astracan_, so thro' _Muscovy_; but I had heard so much of the Barbarity of the _Russians_, the dangerous Navigation of the _Caspian_ Sea by Reason of the Calms and Shoals, the Hazard of being robb'd by the _Tartars_ on the River _Wolga_, and the like, that I chose to travel to _Constantinople_, a Journey through Desarts, over Mountains and Wastes, among so many Sorts of Barbarians, that I would run any Kind of Hazards by Sea, before I would attempt such a Thing again.

It would deserve another History to let you into all the different Circumstances of this Journey; how well I was us'd by some, and how ill by others; nay, how well by some _Mahometans_, how ill by some Christians: But it shall suffice to tell you, that I am at present at _Constantinople_; and, tho' I write this here, I do not purpose to send it to you till I come to _Marseilles_ in _France_; from whence I intend to go and live in some inland Town, where, as they have, perhaps, no Notion of the Sea, so they will not be inquisitive after us.

I am, _&c._

_FINIS._