Travels in India (Tavernier) 151: CHAPTER XXII
Travels in India (Ball) 151
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CHAPTER XXII
151.1.1
Concerning an affair which was raised unseasonably for the Author in the Council at Batavia There are two Councils in Batavia, the Council of the fort, at which the General presides, where the affairs of the Company are discussed ; and the Council that sits in the Town Hall, and deals with the police and the minor disputes which arise among the citizens. M. Faure, one of the members of this Town Council, was among the number of those who came to visit me on my arrival, and during the space of nine or ten days he, together with one of his friends, was with me four times. Both spoke frequently of M. Constant, who had been commander at Gombroon, and was for many years the second person of the factory at Surat, where he had amassed much wealth. He had often trusted me with a part of it, and we had always been good friends. One day, as I was about leaving Surat in order to go to the diamond mine, he asked me to purchase (diamonds) on his account to the extent of 16,000 rupees worth, giving me a letter of credit for that sum at Golconda, where it was paid to me, and I invested it as he desired. I expected on my return to find him at Surat; but during my journey he had received orders to start for Batavia at once, and as soon as he got there he married the widow of General Vandime and went with her to Holland.
151.1.2
I was much surprised on my return to Surat to find that he had left without giving orders to any of his friends, whether Dutch or English, to receive what I had for him, and send it to him by one of the vessels which go to England. Having remained at Surat about two months, and wishing to travel, in order not to risk what M. Constant had entrusted to me I placed the whole in the hands of Sir Francis Breton, who was the second person in the factory of the English Company at Surat, who, at M. Constant’s request, afterwards forwarded it to him in Holland. I had previously asked the Dutch Commander, named Arnebar, to be good enough to take charge of this parcel, he being a friend of M. Constant; but he excused himself altogether, telling me that if the General or Council at Batavia came to know that he had such a thing in his hands they would treat him as a receiver who had not declared, in other words, he would be deposed from his office and all his property confiscated. One day, then, while I was at Batavia, M. Faure, whom I have just mentioned, came to see me with three others, bringing a large bottle of Rheims wine and another of English beer. For my part I had contributed a collation, and as we began to drink they asked me if I had not heard the news of M. Constant which had come by land while I was at Surat; to which I replied that I had not received any, neither by sea nor land, since he had left Batavia.
151.1.3
They expressed surprise at this reply, and told me that they were much astonished, that having been such great friends, and having done such considerable trade together which lasted still, he had not made me acquainted with his news. I saw from the first that they were come with no other design than to seek to discover whether I had with me the parcel of diamonds which I had bought at the mine for M. Constant, or whether I had left it with some Dutchman to send to him. I thought it advisable to remove this doubt from their minds, and that unless I did so they would be unable to drink the wine they had brought, with comfort. Without keeping them longer in suspense, therefore, I told them that I was astonished that they had not spoken to me of this matter on the first occasion when they had done me the honour to visit me, and I perceived clearly that they wished to know if the last time I had been at the diamond mine M. Constant had not given me a commission to buy for him; that they need not have brought wine for that purpose to make me drink, because I was altogether different from the majority of men, who speak much and say more than they know when they have drunk, but, as for me, it is then I talk least; nevertheless, since I desired to satisfy them, so that they might not have any regret for their good wine, I would tell them the truth frankly. It is true, then, I told them, that M.
151.1.4
Constant not only gave me a commission to buy him a parcel of diamonds, but he has also given me money to pay for them, and I purchased them for 16,000 rupees. I had no sooner finished speaking than M. Faure, turning to the three others, “Gentlemen,” said he, “you will bear me witness that M. Tavernier has 16,000 rupees worth of diamonds for M. Constant, which he left me an order to receive when he parted for Holland.” I replied to him without disturbing myself, that if he wished for them he would have to run after them, but that I did not believe he would overtake them; that it was more than six months since I had dispatched them by land, and that I was much surprised at his having taken this commission, and wondered how M. Constant and he could have known that I would go to Batavia. I saw that it annoyed him to find that he had not got what he expected, and as they did not wish to drink any more they all four departed. On the following day, early in the morning, an officer of the Company handed me a summons, which cited me to appear at 11 o’clock before the council of the town, where the Avocat Fiscal was present to take the case in hands on behalf of the Company. I did not fail to be present at the Town Hall at the hour indicated, when, immediately, these gentlemen made me enter, and with great compliments asked me if it was true that M. Constant had asked me to make an investment in diamonds to the amount of 16,000 rupees, and also where they were.
151.1.5
I said that as regards the purchase of the diamonds I had indeed made it, but that I knew not where they were, because more than six months had elapsed since I had forwarded them to him from Surat by land. Upon that these gentlemen of the law delivered sentence, by which it was affirmed that it was not for M. Faure to mix in the matter, but it was for the Avocat Fiscal to follow it up; that at that time M. Constant was in the Company’s service, and that, without having defrauded, he could not out of his wages have amassed so large a sum. At this mention of his having defrauded the Company I was unable to prevent myself from laughing; this astonished them, and the President of the Council asked me why I laughed. I told him that it was at seeing that he was astonished at the fact that M. Constant had defrauded the Company of 16,000 rupees, and that if he had only carried off so much, it would have been a small matter, adding that there was scarcely a servant of the Company who had held the offices which M. Constant had held, and had enjoyed the opportunity of trading, as he had, without fear of the Fiscal, who had not at least made 100,000 écus. There were two or three in the Council, then present, who were uneasy at hearing me talk in this way, as these remarks particularly affected them.
151.1.6
For to say the truth, the commanders and those subordinate to them in authority in the factories know well how to appropriate large sums for their own benefit, to the great detriment of the Company; and as they cannot do so without having an understanding with the broker, he does the same on his own account, those below him also taking what they can. I made an estimate once of all the money of which the Company is defrauded on the trade in each factory, and I ascertained that as they annually defraud it in all the factories taken together to the extent of 1,500,000 or 1,600,000 livres they have abundant opportunity for consoling themselves. For to speak but of Persia alone, I have known commanders who, both by the sale of spices and on the purchase of silks, have placed apart for themselves in one year more than 100,000 piastres. They practice marvellous artifices which it is difficult for the Company, especially the directors and shareholders of the Company, who are in Holland, to discover. For, as regards the commanders in India, the fact must become very patent before the General of Batavia and his council have recourse to law, and most frequently the commanders close the mouth of the Avocat Fiscal, to whom they make a present which amounts to more than the third part which would come to him if all were confiscated, another third belongs to the Company, and the other to the Hospital.
151.1.7
Thus all passes in silence, for there is not one of these commanders who has not his patron at Batavia, to whom he sends valuable presents yearly, joined to which there is not one of these gentlemen of the council who has not done the same himself. Moreover, if any one who is cognisant of an injury done by a commander to the Company reports it to the General, he is certain never to be appointed to any factory, and sooner or later an opportunity is found for removing him from the office which he holds, and he is sent as a soldier to some island to end his life miserably.
151.2.1
As for the trade which these commanders do on their own account, there is no one who knows better about it than the poor sailors, who being sometimes very badly treated by the commanders themselves, or the officers of the vessels, when they go on shore report to the chief of the factory that such an one has so many bales of goods on his private account. Most frequently the chief of the factory, who knows his part, sends to advise the person to whom the goods belong to have them removed, and to arrange to have them carried on shore by night. In order to give him time to discharge all, the informer is so well supplied with drink that he is drunk for one or two days, and when all has been removed the commander goes to the vessel to make an examination, well assured that he will find nothing. Then the poor sailor or soldier, for the falsehood which they force him to believe he has told, is severely punished, his wages are confiscated, and in most cases he is sent for three or four years to work on the galley which goes to load up with stones. There are, then, some of these commanders who have defrauded the Company, and have returned to Holland with great booty, having 400,000 or 500,000 livres' worth of diamonds, pearls, ambergris, and other goods which occupy but small space. For if all is not well concealed, and if the Company is able to discover it, it is lost for them, and their wages are confiscated.
151.2.2
But they have wonderful ways for escaping, even when they have bulky goods, as calicoes and other things which occupy much space, for all cannot go to the places where diamonds are to be purchased, and moreover they more frequently experience loss than gain by carrying them, while on coarse goods there is always much profit to be made.
151.2.3
As the captain and other officers of the vessel strive to do private trade as well as the commanders, knowing that it will be difficult to take their goods out of the vessels without being discovered, they sometimes discharge them on the coast of Norway, making believe that it is bad weather which has driven them thither. Moreover, when the Dutch are at war with the English, they send vessels of war to meet those coming from India, and into these vessels those who wish to defraud the Company tranship their bales of goods, before arriving in Holland. They also have recourse, for the same purpose, to the fleet of herring fishers when they meet them. In short, there is no kind of artifice of which they do not make use. But when the Company entertains a suspicion that any one has exceeded, it orders the commanders to undress and put on other clothes, and more than once diamonds have been found in those which were taken off. In conclusion, it has been remarked that the majority of those who have defrauded the Company and have returned to Holland with great wealth have not left their heirs any the richer; all this wealth being, as it were, evaporated in a few years. This proves that wealth ill-acquired does not profit. Returning to the affair which had been stirred up against me at Batavia.
151.2.4
On the sentence which the members of the Council had given, that the Avocat Fiscal should take the cause in hand on the Company’s behalf, three days afterwards he sent me many pages of paper containing written charges, so that I might reply to each. The first demanded that I should declare to what extent M. Constant and I had traded together since we had known one another. The others were only nonsense, and among others that which ordered me to reply to them at all, I, who was in no wise responsible to the Company, and had only come to Batavia to render it a service, and consequently need trouble myself very little about the Fiscal's order. There was a special query which stated that the General and his council wished to know what M. Constant had done at Bandar Abbás, where he had been sent as commander; that they were aware of the fact that we were together day and night, and that consequently I must be well acquainted with his affairs. They were right in this, but I was not bound to render an account to them. This lasted fully four or five weeks, during which an officer came to summon me several times to accompany him to the Town Hall to give a reply. That which I gave was always the same, that I knew nothing of M. Constant's affairs, and that when he did anything he did not call me in to give him advice. As they saw they could get nothing from me by sweetness, they commenced to threaten me, saying they would arrest me.
151.2.5
I replied boldly that I did not fear them, and that if they arrested me I had the honour to serve a Prince who was the late Monseigneur le Duc d'Orleans, who would get me in safety out of their hands, and would himself resent the affront they had done me. At the same time I departed from their presence without saying another word, and they also said nothing to me. Fifteen days passed without their speaking of this affair, and during this time I went to take exercise and even to dine with some of these gentlemen. One day the Avocat Fiscal, who had read much and liked to hear about foreign countries, asked me to supper; when we had left the table he took me apart and told me that he had to summon me on the following day, having received an order from the General, who wished to know, absolutely, what I had seen M. Constant do at Gombroon. “If it is to say what I have seen,” I replied, “I shall do so willingly, but I desire to be in the presence of the judges.” Morning having come, the officer did not fail to summon me. I followed him forthwith, and having entered the chamber, the President asked me at first if I would tell them something of what I had seen of M. Constant. I said, “I would satisfy him, and that I desired to give the account at full length,” with which the President and the Council told me they were quite content. As they had ordered silence for me, and I saw they awaited what I had to say to them with impatience, I spoke to them in the following manner: —
151.2.6
“The day on which M. Constant disembarked at Gombroon the Khán or Governor of the town and country made much of him, and kept him to supper, together with those who had accompanied him. The repast was magnificent, and the dishes were much better prepared than usual; I have been at many feasts of Kháns or Governors of Provinces in Persia, where they know of nothing but ragouts, not even understanding how to roast a fowl properly. But at this repast all was well arranged, and it had the appearance as if a Frank cook had a hand in it. All the baladines of Gombroon were present, to dance in their own manner according to custom, and the repast was accomplished with much gaiety. On the following day M. Constant had at dinner several Franks, and at the close of the repast the Khán sent one of his officers to present his compliments to Commander Constant, and to tell him that he would come to supper with him; this he received very well, in consequence of his appreciation of the honour which the Khán wished to do him. Compliments being finished, the Commander took a large glass and drank to the health of the Khán, and all those who were at table did likewise. As soon as the officer had left, the Commander asked some of those who were dining with him, in what manner a governor should be treated when he did the honour to a commander of coming to see him at home;
151.2.7
there was one who told him that the first care he should have would be that as soon as night had come he should light numbers of lamps, both out and inside the house. In that country these consist of little saucers full of oil attached to the walls of the house, and at a distance of about one foot from each other. But the Commander desiring to do more honour than that to the Khán and to the Company, instead of these lamps ordered white wax candles to be placed throughout, and both within and without the house there was light everywhere. The Khán declared himself to be highly pleased with this liberal expenditure, which was done to specially honour him; and all the merchants, both Christians and Muhammadans, were also surprised at it. It is true,” said I to these members of the Council, “that you know that this wax does not cost so much to the Company as it does to private persons, because all the Dutch vessels which come from Mocha carry much of it, as it is very cheap there.
151.3.1
baladines present in large numbers at this repast, in order to amuse the company with their dances and their graceful attitudes, for there was money to be earned, as they know that the commanders pay them well, and that it is not with them as with the Khán, who generally considers he has paid liberally when he gives them supper. “On the following day those who were in charge of these baladines (for each troupe had an old woman as guardian and directress, whom the baladines call their mother) came to pay their respects to M. Constant, who showed himself so liberal toward them that there was not one who asked for anything from the guests — this is very contrary to their usual custom. Some of those who had slept there, and had passed all the night in making these women dance, were much surprised, on leaving in the morning, at not being compelled to put their hands in their purses, and took occasion to extol the generosity of the Commander who had so liberally paid for all. Throughout the night the signals which were on the terrace of the lodge were fired, and at each health a dozen were fired to warn the vessels to make a salute.
151.3.2
“Two hours before sunrise the Khán rose from the place where he had seated himself on arrival, which was where they had drunk and eaten, and his officers bore him away, observing that the wine began to heat him. As soon as he had left, a part of the company returned to eat and drink and the others to see the baladines dance, and the debauch lasted till ten o’clock in the morning. Each one, when leaving, remarked to another, ‘It must be admitted that this new Commander is honourable, and does all things with a good grace.’
151.3.3
“When M. Constant,” I continued to these gentlemen of the Council, “arrived at Gombroon, and had to go to the dwelling of the Khán, the finest horses in the Company’s stable were brought to him. That which was for the Commander had rich brocaded trappings, but as the bridle was only of silver he appeared to be surprised at it, and asked why there was not a golden bridle on his horse, considering that he was not inferior to the other commanders who had preceded him at Gombroon. They told him that, by order of the Company, the Commander Vanderlin had sent the two golden bridles which were at Gombroon to Batavia, the gold of one of which weighed 600, and of the other 450 ducats, and that it had been ordered that, for the future, no commander should use one of gold on his horse, but must content himself with one of silver. As I saw that this annoyed M. Constant, I told him privately that it would be easy for him to have a golden bridle on his horse without the Company being able to reproach him. That he had only to send to the Khán the present which he had to make him on behalf of the Company on a little more liberal scale than had the other commanders, his predecessors, and he should see that he would soon have a golden bridle. M. Constant believed me, and made a very handsome present to the Khán.
151.3.4
“These presents consist generally of all kinds of spices, porcelain, Japanese cabinets, Dutch cloths, and other things of that kind. But the best part of the present was a ring of diamonds for which he had paid me 1500 écus and 1000 ducats of gold with which the King caused a golden bridle to be made, which he sent as a present to the Commander; it weighed but 643 ducats of gold, the balance having remained in the Khan's purse. It is the custom in Persia, when a stranger makes a present to a great person, that he gives another in return, but certainly when one makes one to a King he does not ever receive in return nearly the value of that which he has given. The Khán was altogether amazed with so magnificent a present, and although, according to custom, he should have sent his, on the following day, which is usually a valuable horse, and sometimes two, he waited for five or six days, because it required that time to make the bridle. As soon as it was finished the Khán sent two fine horses to the Commander, one with the bridle of gold, and the other with a bridle of silver, the saddles being of the Turkish pattern with brocade of gold and silver. Out of politeness it was necessary that the Commander when mounting his horse had the golden bridle put on, and thus the Company was not able to say anything.”
151.3.5
This was the account which I gave to the Council of Batavia of what I had seen at Gombroon in reference to M. Constant, and it should be remarked, before going further, that all the presents which the kings and great nobles make to the commanders and the other principal officers of the Company ought to be handed over, when they go to Batavia, to the charge of the General of the Council as property belonging to the Company, but they are sometimes allowed to retain them.
151.3.6
After having spoken in this way to these gentlemen of the Council of Batavia, and having told them ingenuously what M. Constant had done during the first days after his arrival at Gombroon, they wished to know what had happened subsequently, and told me that they had already been sufficiently informed of what I had just told them, but wished that I should let them know what trade M. Constant had done. It was then I began to speak to them in a different way, and told them I was not dependent on them and was not their spy. That if they wished to know so much they should have ascertained it when he was at Batavia, or they might write to him in Holland, and would be able by that means to satisfy themselves. The President, who saw that I mocked them, rose from his place to talk with some of the councillors, and then told me that they would give me four days to reflect on my reply to the Council, both in reference to the trade which I had done with M. Constant, and that which I knew of his having done with other persons. Upon this I retired, without replying, and went to dine with one of the councillors without speaking further of the matter. The four days having expired, I waited for them to send for me, but they delayed eight days longer, after which they sent an officer, who told me that the President would expect me at the Council at 11 o’clock.
151.3.7
Having entered the chamber, the Avocat Fiscal delivered a long discourse, referring to my refusal to reply to the questions which had been given me in writing, and as for himself he required that I should be placed in gesselm, i.e. under arrest, until I had replied. I replied to that “that I was not the least astonished at what he said, and that I believed the gentlemen of the Council would think more than once before they carried it into execution; that if he wished me to reply to what he asked, it was necessary to convey it to me in a language which I understood, and not in Dutch.” He replied to this “that he had often heard me speak Dutch,” to which I responded “that in truth I did know something of the language, but did not know enough to enable me to read and understand chicanery.” As I perceived that he was offended by the use of the word chicanery, I said to him again in a firmer tone than before, “that I was not in receipt of wages from the Company, and that I had not been appointed to observe the conduct and actions of M. Constant.” The Council at length ordered the Fiscal to give me his questions in French; this he did, and fixed the period for replying at eight days. I laughed at all these questions, being well assured that I was able to put an end to the proceedings whenever I pleased. I deferred replying for another eight days beyond the eight which they had given me;
151.3.8
but seeing that the Council began to be annoyed, I thought that it was time to put an end to the affair. As soon as the Fiscal had given me his questions in French, I communicated them to M. Potre, the ablest counsel in Batavia, who told me that, not being employed by the Company, I was not obliged to reply to any of these articles, nevertheless, being desirous of putting an end to the affair, I went to the President’s house shortly after sunrise, and he came to receive me in his sleeping garment, “preferring,” he said, “to come to me in that condition rather than make me wait while he dressed.” The reply which I made to this compliment was “that since he wished me absolutely to tell him all that I knew of M. Constant, I would conceal nothing that had come to my knowledge, even were it to the disadvantage of the General himself and many members of the Council, and of you yourself who urge me to speak,” I added, after he had made his guard withdraw, and he and I remained alone. I told him, then, that “when leaving Surat to go to the diamond mine, M. Constant entrusted me with 44,000 rupees, asking me to expend it on diamonds, and especially on large stones, that my services would be well rewarded, and that as this sum belonged to the General he would be glad to have an opportunity of obliging him. Moreover, that the General himself had purchased from M.
151.3.9
Constant, when he visited Batavia, all the parcels I had sold him while he was the second in authority at the factory of Surat. They were all stones which I had had cut, their value being more than 40,000 écus. As for the pearls which the said M. Constant had bought for the General during the time he was at Hormuz, I did not exactly know the value, but I so far knew that they included two pear-shaped pearls which cost 170 tomans. That I had also received somewhat considerable sums to invest for M. Carles Renal, M. Caim, and some others, and that he himself could not have forgotten that when M. Constant left Batavia to go to be Commander in Persia, he entrusted to him 36,000 rupees, “asking him to give it to some of his friends to invest it in a parcel of diamonds. That the said M. Constant expected to find me at Surat in order to place this sum in my hands, but as I had left for Hormuz some days previously on an English vessel, he thought to find me there, where he would place the sum in my hands, supposing that during the same season I should return to India, and to the diamond mine. And in order to make you see,” I further said to the President, “how M. Constant was devoted to your interest, he purchased with the greater part of your money goods of Sironj and Burhanpur, and as soon as he arrived at Gombroon he was offered 30 per cent profit on them.
151.3.10
It is true, I added, that to calculate it at the rate which the other merchants have to pay it would only amount to 5 per cent, but he made all pass as if on the account of the Company, which neither pays the freight of the vessel nor the customs at Gombroon, these two items amounting, in the case of the merchants, to 25 per cent. That when the vessel which had carried him, returned to Batavia, although the goods were not sold, he did not omit to write to you that he had refused 30 per cent profit in the hope of receiving more. That, however, three vessels arrived at Gombroon laden with the same kinds of goods, so that he had difficulty in getting for them what they had cost in India; this compelled him to give those which he had bought for you at the current price. That, nevertheless, M. Constant had been so generous that he never asked anything from you, but that he had told me in private that he had lost more than 15 per cent by the transaction.”
151.3.11
Having given all this detail to the President, he appeared to be very much alarmed, and besought me to make no noise about it, in which he did wisely, for I could have named others, all the addresses of the chiefs of the Company having come to my knowledge, and the principal part of the large sums which they had invested in diamonds having passed through my hands. Observing then that the President did not wish to hear more, I took leave of him and went to tell my counsel all that had passed. His dwelling being near that of the President, I observed that the latter went to the fort, apparently to see the General. Between 11 o’clock and noon I was about to go the Town Hall to know what the Avocat Fiscal would say to me, because I knew that the President had gone there when leaving the fort, and that they had conversed together. But I met him half way, and approaching me with a laughing face he asked me where I was going. I replied that I was going to the Town Hall to reply to some of his questions. “I beg you,” he replied quickly, “let us leave that affair to go and have dinner together. I was presented yesterday with two cases, one of French wine and the other of Rhine wine, we shall see which is the best. All I ask from you is a word written with your own hand, that you have nothing belonging to M. Constant.” This I gave very willingly, and in this way the whole process came to an end.