Hamilton's accoxtnt of the east indies.

49 8

When we arrived there, we found three European /hips, and a country /hip frheSurat , employed by Sir John Gayer, prefident for the old Eaft-India Company. Tfupercargoes of thofe /hips, on fight of a man of war, fent a compliment of 500 tayels tothe teytock, to diffuade him from giving the Harwich permi/Iion to come into the har-bour, for fear of lofing a feather that they had put in their own caps, of wearing a pen-dent at their top-maft heads ; fo that when I went to pay my compliment to the teytock,and give him an account of our cargo, and to defire liberty for the man of war and myown /hip to come into the harbour; he told me, that my own /hip was welcome, buthe could not, with fafety, admit of the King’s /hip into the harbour, but that /lie mightbe fupplied with what /lie wanted in the road.

I told him, that the King’s /hip’s bottom wanted repair, and that if he would not per-mit her to come into the harbour, both /lie and I mu/t go to Canton, and if the captainof the man of war refented the ill ulage he was like to meet with at Amoy, thofe oughtto anfvver who had given the teytock that ill advice, and fo I took leave very ill fatisfied.

The linguift and I had been acquainted fome years, and, on our way from the citadel,I told him, that if the teytock continued his refolution of denying our King’s /hip thefame civilities that he granted to merchant /hips of our nation, I could not anfwer forthe ill confequences that might attend that a/front, and, if /he had not permi/Iion inthree days to come in, on the fourth we would proceed for Canton.

He then very frankly told me, that it was none of the teytock’s fault, but the Engli/hcaptains and fupercargoes, who had fent him with a melfage to the teytock, to acquainthim, that if the man of war was permitted to come into the harbour, their men wouldbe rude to the merchants, and would be tied up to no rules or laws which the merchantfhips obferved; that the women would be debauched, and many other aggravatingcrimes, they alledged, the man of war’s men w'ould commit, and withal had fent theteytock a prefent of 500 tayels to keep her out of the harbour.

I carried the linguift into a merchant’s houfe that was my acquaintance, to confultwith that merchant about removing that remora that/topped the man of war from enteringinto the harbour, which could be done no other way than my being bound for the goodbehaviour of the people belonging to the man of war, and to give a prefent fuperior totheirs, which I confented to.

Then w r e confulted how the captain of the King’s /hip /hould be received by the tey-tock, when he /hould make his vifit, and we agreed, that all the captains and fuper-cargoes fhould be called to the teytock’s in company with Captain Cock, and that hefhould enter before us, and have an high chair placed a little before the teytock’s chair,on the left hand, which, among them, is the place of honour, and we captains and fuper-cargoes to be fet on felt cu/hions on the floor, and on the right fide of the teytock schair, which was raifed on a platform of deals, with three Heps of afeent.

We had no fooner done with our confultation than I difpatched my friend Shawban,for that was the merchant’s name, with the linguift, to acquaint the teytock ufith whatwe had refolved on, and he approved of all, and two days after fent a fummons for thecaptains and fupercargoes to accompany Captain Cock, and all obeyed but one, whopretended indifpofition ; however he fent his fecond fupercargo to fupply his place.

As foon as we were in the citadel, we were'conduced to the teytock’s palace, andentered the chamber of audience, and were feated according to the method beforeagreed on. The teytock being feated before, he made a fpeech pretty long, whereinhe told how he had been informed of the loofe behaviour of men of war’s men, whichhjjd armed him with caution, but that he knew of-a more convenient place on an ifland

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