Travels in India (Tavernier) 21: Route from Agra to Patna and Dacca, towns of the Province of Bengal ; and the quarrel which the author had with Sháistá Khán, uncle of the King.
Travels in India (Ball) 21
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Route from Agra to Patna and Dacca, towns of the Province of Bengal ; and the quarrel which the author had with Sháistá Khán, uncle of the King.
21.1.1
I parted from Agra for Bengal on the 25th of November 1665 and lay the same day at a poor caravansaraï distant from Agra 3 coss. The 26th [Nov.] I reached Beruzabad (Ferozábád), 9 coss. It is a small town, where, on my return, I received 8000 rupees of the balance of the money which Zafar Khán owed me for the goods which he had bought from me at Jahánábád. The 27th [Nov.] to Serail Morlides (?) . 9 coss. 28th „ „ Estanja (Etáwah) . 14 „ 29th „ „ Haii-Mal (Ajit-Mál) . 12 „ 30th „ „ Sekandera (Sikandra) . 13 „ 1st of Dec. to Sanqual (near Musanagar) 14 „ I met on this day 110 waggons, each drawn by 6 oxen, and there was upon each waggon 50,000 rupees. It was the revenue of the Province of Bengal, of which all charges being paid and the purse of the Governor well filled, amounted to 5,500,000 rupees. At one league on this side of Sanqual you cross a river called Sengar, which flows into the Jumna, which is only half a league distant. You cross this river Sengar by a stone bridge, and when you arrive from the Bengal side, to go to Sironj and Surat, if you wish to shorten the journey by ten days, when quitting the road to Agra you must come as far as this bridge, and cross the river Jumna by boat. Nevertheless the route by Agra is generally taken, because by the other there are five or six days’ stony marches, and because one must pass through the territories of Rajas where there is danger of being robbed. The 2d [December] I came to a caravanserai called Cherourabad, 12 coss.
21.1.2
Halfway you pass Jahanabad, (?) a small town near which, about a quarter of a league on this side, you pass a field of millet, where I saw a rhinoceros eating stalks of this millet, which a small boy of nine or ten years presented to him. On my approaching he gave me some stalks of millet, and immediately the rhinoceros came to me, opening his mouth four or five times ; I placed some in it, and when he had eaten them he continued to open his mouth so that I might give him more. The 3d [December] I came to Serrail Chageada (SarAi ShAiizAdA), 10 coss. The 4th, to Serrail Atakan (HutgAon), 13 coss. The 5th, to AurangAbAd, a large town, 9 coss. Formerly this town had another name, and it is the place where Aurangzeb, who reigns at present, gave battle to his brother Sultan SiiujA, who held the government of the whole of Bengal. Aurangzeb having been victorious gave his name to the town, and he built there a handsome house with a garden and a small mosque. The 6th [December] to Alinchan (Alum Chand), 9 coss.
21.1.3
About two leagues on this side of Alum Chand you meet the Ganges. Monsieur Bernier, Physician to the King, and a man named Rachepot, with whom I was, were surprised to see that this river, of which they make so much talk, is not larger than the Seine in front of the Louvre, it being perhaps thought that it equalled in width, at the least, the Danube below Belgrade. There is actually so little water from the month of March to the month of June or July, when the rains commence, that boats are not able to ascend it. On arrival at the Ganges, we each drank a glass of wine which we mixed with water — this caused some internal disturbance; but our attendants who drank it alone were much more tormented than we were. The Dutch, who have a house on the banks of the Ganges, never drink the water of the river, except after it has been boiled; as for the native inhabitants, they have been accustomed to it from their youth; the King even and all his court drink no other. You see every day a large number of camels which do nothing else but fetch water from the Ganges. The 7th [Dec.] we came to Halabas (Allahabad), 8 coss. Allahabad is a large town built on a point of land where the Ganges and the Jumna meet one another. It has a fine castle built of cut stone, with a double ditch, and it is the dwelling of the Governor. He is one of the greatest nobles in India, and as he is troubled with bad health he employs some Persian Physicians, and he then also had in his service M.
21.1.4
Claude Maille of Bourges, who practised both surgery and medicine. It was he who advised us not to drink any of the Ganges water, which would produce disturbance of the stomach, but to drink rather the water from wells. The chief of these Persian Physicians whom this Governor had in his pay, one day threw his wife down from the top of a terrace to the ground, impelled apparently to this cruel action by a freak of jealousy. He thought that she was killed, but she had only two or three ribs broken, and the relations of the woman threw themselves at the feet of the Governor to demand justice. The Governor summoned the Physician, and commanded him to withdraw, not wishing to keep him any longer in his service. He obeyed this order, and, having placed his disabled wife in a pallankeen, he departed with all his family. He was not more than three or four marches from the town when the Governor, finding himself unusually ill, sent to recall him, upon which the Physician stabbed his wife, four of his children, and thirteen female slaves, after which he returned to the Governor, who said nothing to him about it, and took him again into his service.
21.1.5
On the 8th I crossed the Ganges in a large boat, having waited from the morning till mid-day on the bank of the river, till M. Maille brought a letter from the Governor giving us permission to cross. For on each side there is a Darogah, who allows no one to pass without an order; and he takes note also of the kind of merchandise carried, each waggon being charged four rupees, and a chariot paying but one, without counting the boat, for which it is necessary to pay separately. This day the halt was at Sadoul Serail (?) 16 coss. The 9th at Yakedil-sera (Jagdis Sarai) . 10 ,, 10th at Bouraky-sera (Baboo Sarai) . 10 „ 11th at Banarou (Benares) . . 10 ,,
21.1.6
Benares is a large and very well-built town, the majority of the houses being of brick and cut stone, and more lofty than those of other towns of India; but it is very inconvenient that the streets are so narrow. It has several caravansarais, and, among others, one very large and well built. In the middle of the court there are two galleries where they sell cottons, silken stuffs, and other kinds of merchandise. The majority of those who vend the goods are the workers who have made the pieces, and in this manner foreigners obtain them at first hand. These workers, before exposing anything for sale, have to go to him who holds the contract, in order to get the King’s stamp impressed on the pieces of calico or silk, otherwise they are fined and flogged. The town is situated to the north of the Ganges, which runs the whole length of the walls, and two leagues farther down a large river joins it from the west. The idolaters have one of their principal pagodas in Benares, and I shall describe it in Book II, where I shall speak of the religion of the Banians.
21.1.7
About 500 paces from the town, in a north-western direction, there is a mosque where you see several Muhammadan tombs, of which some are of a very beautiful design. The most beautiful are placed each in the middle of a garden enclosed by walls which have openings of half a foot square, through which the passers-by can see them. The most considerable of all is like a great square pedestal, each face of which is about forty paces long. In the middle of this platform you see a column of 32 to 35 feet in height, all of a piece, and which three men could with difficulty embrace. It is of sandstone, so hard that I could not scratch it with my knife. It terminates in a pyramid, and has a great ball on the point, and below the ball it is encircled by large beads. All the sides of this tomb are covered with figures of animals cut in relief in the stone, and it has been higher above the ground than it now appears; several of the old men who guard some of these tombs having assured me that since fifty years it has subsided more than 30 feet. They add that it is the tomb of one of the kings of Bhutan, who was interred there after he had left his country to conquer this kingdom, from which he was subsequently driven by the descendants of Tamerlane. It is from this kingdom of Bhutan that they bring musk, and I shall give a description of it in Book III.
21.2.1
I remained at Benares on the 12th and 13th, and during these two days there was continual rain; but it did not prevent me from resuming my journey, and on the evening of the 13th I crossed the Ganges with the passport of the Governor. They examine all travellers’ baggage before embarking in the boat, personal property pays nothing, and it is only on merchandise that one must pay duty. The 13th [December] I halted at Baterpour (Bahādurpur) . ... 2 coss. 14th at Satragy-sera (Sadrāzā-ki-sarāi on old map) . . 8 „ 15th at Moniaricy-sera (Mohaniā-ki-sarāi) 6 ,, During the morning of this day, after having travelled two coss, I crossed a river called Carnasar sou, and at three coss from thence one crosses another named Saode-sou, and both are crossed by fords. The 16th at Gourmabad (Khurmābād) . 8 coss. It is a town on a river called Goudera-sou, and you cross it by a stone bridge. The 17th at Saseron (Sāsserām) . . 4 coss.
21.2.2
Sāsserām is a town at the foot of the mountains, near to which there is a large tank. You see a small island in the middle, where there is a very beautiful mosque, in which there is the tomb of a Nawāb named Selim-Khān, who had it built during the time he was Governor of the Province. There is a fine stone bridge to cross into the island, which is all flanked and paved with large cut stones. On one of the sides of the tank there is a large garden, in the middle of which is another beautiful tomb of the son of the same Nawāb, Selim-Khān, who succeeded his father in the government of the Province. When you wish to go to the mine of Soulmelpour, of which I shall speak in the last book of this narrative, you leave the main road to Patna, and turn straight southwards by Ekberbourg and the famous fort of Rhodas (Rohtas), as I shall say in the same place. The 18th [December] I crossed, in a boat, the river Sonsou, which comes from the mountains of the south; and, after crossing it, those who have goods have to pay a certain duty. This day my halt was at Daoud-Nagar-Sera (Daudnagar), where there is a fine tomb. 9 coss. The 19th to Halva-sera (Arwal). 10 ,, 20th to Aga-sera (?). . 9 ,, In the morning I met 130 elephants, both large and small, which they were taking to Delhi to the Great Mogul. The 21st to Patna..... 10 coss.
21.2.3
Patna is one of the largest towns in India, on the margin of the Ganges, on its western side, and it is not less than two coss in length. The houses are not better than in the majority of the other towns of India, and they are nearly all roofed with thatch or bamboo. The Dutch company has an establishment there on account of the trade in saltpetre, which it refines at a large village called ChaprA, situated on the right bank of the Ganges, 10 coss above Patna. Arriving at Patna with M. Bernier, we encountered some Dutchmen in the street who were returning to ChaprA, but who halted their carriages in order to salute us. We did not separate before we had emptied together two bottles of ShirAz wine in the open street, regarding which there is nothing to remark upon in this country, where one lives without ceremony, and with perfect liberty.
21.2.4
I remained eight days in Patna, during which time an occurrence happened which will show the reader that unnatural crime does not rest unpunished by the Muhammadans. A Mimbachi who commanded 1000 foot disgraced a young boy who was in his service ; . . . the boy, overwhelmed with grief, chose his time to avenge himself, and being one day out hunting with his master, and removed from the other attendants by about a quarter of a league, he came behind him and cut off his head with his sword. He then rode immediately to the town at full speed, crying aloud that he had slain his master for such a reason, and came at once to the house of the Governor, who placed him in prison. But he left it at the end of six months, and although all the relatives of the defunct did what they could to procure his execution, the Governor did not dare to condemn him, as he feared the people, who protested that the young man had acted rightly. I left Patna in a boat to descend to Dacca on the 29th of January (?), between 11 o’clock and noon. If the river had been strong, as it is after the rains, I should have embarked at Allahabad, or at the least at Benares. The same day I slept at Sera Beconcour, 15 coss. Five coss on this side of Beconcour you meet a river called Pompon sou, which comes from the south and flows into the Ganges. The 30th [December] to Sera D’Eriia (Dariapur ?), 17 coss.
21.2.5
On the 31st, after having gone 4 coss or thereabouts, you meet the river Kaoa, which comes from the south; 3 coss lower you see another called Chanon, which falls from the north; 4 coss farther you discover that called Erguga, which comes from the south; and again, 6 coss below that of Aquera, which comes from the same quarter, and these four rivers lose their names in the Ganges. All that day I beheld lofty mountains on the south side, and at a distance from the Ganges some 10 coss and some 15 coss, and I came to a halt at Monger (Mongir) town, 18 coss. The first day of January 1666, after having sailed two hours I saw the Gandaic enter the Ganges from the north. It is a large navigable river. This evening the halt was at Zangira (Janjira,) 8 coss. But as the Ganges twisted much during the day it is by water fully 22 coss. During the 2d, between 6 o’clock in the morning and about 11 o’clock, I saw three rivers enter the Ganges, and they all three come from the north side. The first is called Ronova, the second Tae, and the third Chanan. I slept at Baquelpour (Bhagalpur), 18 coss. The 3d, after four hours’ travelling on the Ganges, I encountered the river Ivatare, which comes from the north, and slept this day at a village called Pongangel, at the end of the mountains which abut on the Ganges, 13 coss. On the 4th [January], one hour below Pongangel, I met a great river called Mart-nadi (Kalindry?), which comes from the north, and I slept at RAGEMEHALE (RAJMAHAL), 6 coss.
21.2.6
Rajmahal is a town on the right bank of the Ganges, and when you approach it by land you find that for one or two coss the roads are paved with brick up to the town. It was formerly the residence of the Governors of Bengal, because it is a splendid hunting country, and, moreover, the trade there was considerable. But the river having taken another course, and passing only at a distance of a full half league from the town, as much for this reason as for the purpose of restraining the King of Arakan, and many Portuguese bandits who have settled at the mouths of the Ganges, and by whom the inhabitants of Dacca, up to which place they made incursions, were molested, — the Governor and the merchants who dwelt at Rajmahal removed to Dacca, which is to-day a place of considerable trade. On the 6th, having arrived at a great town called Donapour, at 6 coss from Rajmahal, I left M. Bernier, who went to Kasimbazar, and from thence to Hugli by land, because when the river is low one is unable to pass on account of a great bank of sand which is before a town called Soutiqui. I lay this evening at Toutipour, distant from RAJMAHAL 12 coss. At sunrise I beheld a number of crocodiles asleep on the sand.
21.2.7
The 7th I reached Acerat (Hadjrapur), 25 coss. From Acerat to Dacca, by land, there are still 45 coss. All this day I beheld so large a number of crocodiles that, at length, I became desirous to shoot one in order to ascertain if what is commonly said is true, namely, that a shot from a gun does not affect them. The shot struck him in the jaw and the blood flowed, but he did not remain where he was, but went into the river. On the 8th I again saw a great number of these crocodiles lying on the bank of the river, and I fired at two with two shots, each charge having three balls. Immediately they were wounded they turned over on the back, opening the mouth and dying on the spot. This day I slept at Douloudia (?), 17 coss. The crows were the cause of our finding a fine fish which the fishermen had concealed on the bank of the river in the reeds. For when our boatmen observed that there were a great number of crows which cawed and entered the reeds, they concluded that they must contain something unusual, and they searched so well that they found sufficient to make a good meal.
21.3.1
On the 9th [January], at 2 p.m., we encountered a river called Ciiativor(?) which comes from the north, and our halt was at Dampour (?), 16 coss. The 10th we slept on the margin of the river in a place far removed from houses, and made this day 15 coss. On the 11th, having arrived towards evening at the spot where the Ganges divides into three branches, one of which goes to Dacca, we slept at the entrance of this channel, at a large village called Jatrapour (?), 20 coss. Those who have no baggage can proceed by land from Jatrapour to Dacca, and they shorten their journey very much, because the river winds about considerably. On the 12th, at noon, we passed before a large town called Bagamara(?), and slept at Kasiata(?), another large town, 11 coss. On the 13th, at noon, we met a river at 2 coss from Dacca called Laquia, which comes from the north-east. Opposite the point where the two rivers join, there is a fortress with several guns on each side. Half a coss lower down you see another river called Pagalu, over which there is a fine brick bridge, which Mīr Jumla ordered to be built. This river comes from the north-east, and half a coss below you find another called Cadamtali(?), which comes from the north, and which you also cross by a brick bridge; on both sides of the river you see several towers, where there are as it were enshrined many heads of men who have robbed on the high roads. We arrived at Dacca towards evening, and accomplished this day 9 coss.
21.3.2
Dacca is a large town, which is only of extent as regards length, each person being anxious to have his house close to the Ganges. This length exceeds 2 coss; and from the last brick bridge, which I have mentioned above, up to Dacca, there is a succession of houses, separated one from the other, and inhabited for the most part by the carpenters who build galleys and other vessels. These houses are, properly speaking, only miserable huts made of bamboo, and mud which is spread over them. Those of Dacca are scarcely better built, and that which is the residence of the Governor is an enclosure of high walls, in the middle of which is a poor house merely built of wood. He ordinarily resides under tents, which he pitches in a large court in this enclosure. The Dutch, finding that their goods were not sufficiently safe in the common houses of Dacca, have built a very fine house, and the English have also got one which is fairly good. The church of the Rev. Augustin Fathers is all of brick, and the workmanship of it is rather beautiful. On the occasion of my last visit to Dacca, the Nawáb Shaistá Khán, who was then Governor of Bengal, was at war with the King of Arakan, whose navy generally consists of 200 galleys together with several other small boats. These galleys traverse the Gulf of Bengal and enter the Ganges, the tide ascending even beyond Dacca.
21.3.3
Shaistá Khán, uncle of the King Aurangzeb, who reigns at present, and the cleverest man in all his kingdom, found means for bribing many of the officers of the navy of the King of Arakan, and of a sudden forty galleys, which were commanded by Portuguese, joined him. In order to secure these new allies firmly in his service, he gave large pay to each of the Portuguese officers and to the soldiers in proportion, but the natives only received double the ordinary pay. It is a most surprising thing to see with what speed these galleys are propelled by oars. There are some so long that they have up to fifty oars on each side, but there are not more than two men to each oar. You see some which are much decorated, where the gold and azure have not been spared. The Dutch have some of them in their service in which they carry their merchandise, and they also sometimes require to hire some from others, thus affording a means of livelihood to many people. The day following my arrival in Dacca, which was the 14th of January, I went to salute the Nawáb, and presented him with a mantle of gold brocade, with a grand golden lace of “point d’Espagne” round it, and a fine scarf of gold and silver of the same “point,” and a jewel consisting of a very beautiful emerald. During the evening, after I had returned to the Dutch with whom I lodged, the Nawáb sent me pomegranates, China oranges, two Persian melons, and three kinds of apples.
21.3.4
On the 15th [January] I showed him my goods, and presented to the Prince, his son, a watch having a case of enamelled gold, a pair of pistols inlaid with silver, and a telescope. All this which I gave, both to the father and to the young lord of about ten years of age, cost me more than 5000 livres. On the 16th I agreed with him as to the price of my goods, and afterwards I went to his Vizir to receive my bill of exchange payable at Kásimbázár. Not that he was unwilling to pay me at Dacca, but the Dutch, who were more experienced than I, warned me that there was risk in carrying silver to Kásimbázár, where one cannot go except by reascending the Ganges, because the land route is very bad and full of jungle and swamps. The danger consists in this, that the small vessels which one employs are very subject to be upset by the least wind, and when the sailors discover that one carries money, it is not difficult for them to make the boat upset, and to recover the silver afterwards, at the bottom of the river, for the purpose of appropriating it.
21.3.5
On the 20th I took leave of the Nawáb, who invited me to return to see him, and gave me a passport in which he described me as a gentleman of his household; this he had already previously done during the time that he was Governor of Ahmadabad, when I went to the army to meet him in the Province of Deccan, which the Raja Sivaji had entered, as I shall relate elsewhere. In virtue of these passports I was able to go and come throughout all the territories of the Great Mogul as one of his household, and I shall explain their tenor in Book II. On the 21st [January] the Dutch gave a great banquet out of regard for me, to which they invited the English and some Portuguese, with an Augustin friar of the same nation. On the 22d I went to visit the English, who had for Chief or President Mr. Prat (? Pratt), and after that the Reverend Portuguese Father, and some other Franks. Between the 23d and the 29th I made some purchases for 11,000 rupees, and all being embarked I went to bid farewell. On the 29th, in the evening, I parted from Dacca, and all the Dutch accompanied me for two leagues with their small armed boats, and the Spanish wine was not spared on this occasion. Having remained on the river from the 29th of January to the 11th of February, I left my servants and goods in the boat at Hadjrapur, where I hired a boat which carried me to a large village called Mirdapour.(?)
21.3.6
On the 12th [February] I hired a horse to carry myself, and not finding another for my baggage, I was obliged to employ two women, who took charge of it. I arrived the same evening at Kasimbazar, where I was well received by M. Arnoul Van Wachttendonk, Director of all the settlements of the Dutch in Bengal, who invited me to lodge with him. On the 13th I passed the day agreeably with the Dutch gentlemen, who wished to enjoy themselves in honour of my arrival. On the 14th [February] M. Wachttendonk returned to Hugli, where the principal settlement is, and on the same day one of my servants, who had preceded me, came to give me notice that the people whom I had left in the boat with my goods had been in great danger on account of the strong wind, which had lasted two days, and which became stronger during the night. On the 15th [February] the Dutch gave me a pallankeen to go to Murshidābād. It is a great town, 3 coss from Kāsimbāzār, where the Receiver-general of Shāistā Khān resided, to whom I presented my bill of exchange. After having read it he told me that it was good, and that he would have paid me if he had not on the previous evening received an order from the Nawāb not to pay me in case he had not already done so. He did not tell me the reason which caused Shāistā Khān to act in this manner, and I returned to my lodging not a little surprised at this proceeding.
21.4.1
On the 16th I wrote to the Nawāb to know what reason he had for ordering his Receiver not to pay me. On the 17th, in the evening, I left for Hugli in a boat with fourteen oars, which the Dutch lent me, and that night and the following I slept on the river. On the 19th, towards evening, I passed a large town called Nadiyā, and it is the farthest point to which the tide reaches. There arose so furious a wind, and the water was so high, that we were compelled to stop for three or four hours and draw our boat ashore. On the 20th I arrived at Hugli, where I remained till the 2d of March, during which time the Dutch made me welcome, and sought to give me all the amusement which the country could afford. We made several excursions on the river, and we had for food all the delicacies which are found in our European gardens, salads of several kinds, cabbages, asparagus, peas, and principally beans, of which the seed comes from Japan, the Dutch desiring to have all kinds of herbs and pulses in their gardens, which they are most careful to cultivate, without having been able, however, to get artichokes to grow. On the 2d of March I left Hugli and arrived on the 5th at Kāsimbāzār.
21.4.2
The following day I went to Murshidābād to know if the Receiver who had refused to pay me had received another order from the Nawāb. For I have above said that I immediately wrote to Shāistā Khān to complain of his action and to know for what reason he did not wish my bill of exchange to be paid. The Director of the Dutch factories added a letter to mine, and pointed out to the Nawāb that I was too well known to him — having, formerly at Ahmadābād, at the army of the Deccan, and in other places, had many transactions with him — not to deserve favourable treatment; that he ought to remember that I, being the only person who often brought to India the choicest rarities of Europe, it was not the way to make me wish to return as he had invited me, if I should leave discontented; besides which, owing to the credit which I enjoyed, I should be easily able to dissuade those who intended to come to India with rare objects, by making them fear the same treatment as I had received.
21.4.3
Neither my letter nor that of the Director produced the effect we had hoped, and I was in no wise satisfied with the new order which the Nawáb had sent to the Receiver, by which he ordered him to pay me with a rebate of 20,000 rupees from the sum which I ought to receive, and was carried by my bill of exchange, according to the price upon which we had agreed. The Nawáb added that if I was unwilling to content myself with this payment I might come to take back my goods. This action of the Nawáb had its origin in an evil turn played me by three rogues at the court of the Great Mogul. And this is the history of it in a few words.
21.4.4
Aurangzeb, who reigns at present, at the solicitation of two Persians and a Banian, had established a short time ago a custom very injurious to merchants who come from Europe and other places to sell jewels to the court. When they arrive, whether by sea or by land, the governors of the places where they arrive have orders to send them to the King with their goods, either with their consent or by force; this the Governor of Surat did to me in the year 1665, sending me to Delhi or JahAnAbAd where the King was. There are in the employment of his majesty two Persians and a Banian, whose duty it is to see and examine all the jewels which one wishes to sell to the King. One of these two Persians is named Nawdb Aril KhAn, i.e. the prince of wit, and it is he who has charge of all the precious stones of the King. The other is named Mirza-Mauzim(?), whose duty is to tax each piece. The Banian, called Nyalchand, has to see whether the stones are false and if they have any flaw.
21.4.5
These three men have obtained permission from the King that they shall see, before he does, all which the foreign merchants bring to sell to him, and that afterwards they shall present them to him themselves; and although they have sworn to take nothing from the merchant, they do not neglect to extort all they can in order to ruin him. When they see anything beautiful from which there is reason to hope for a large profit, they desire him to sell it to them for half its value, and if he refuses to let them have it, they are malicious enough to estimate the jewels when they are before the King at half their value, besides which the King Aurangzeb cares but little for stones, and loves gold and silver much better. On the day of the King’s festival, of which I shall elsewhere speak, all the princes and nobles of the court make him magnificent presents, and when they are unable to find jewels to buy, they present him with golden rupees, of which the King, as I have said, makes more count than of the precious stones, although precious stones constitute a more honourable present than golden coins. It is at the approach of this festival that he sends out of his treasury numerous diamonds, rubies, emeralds, and pearls, which he who values the jewels entrusts in the hands of several merchants, to sell them to the nobles, who are bound to make presents to the King, and in this manner the King receives back both the money and his jewels together.
21.4.6
There is still another disadvantage for the merchant jeweller. It is that after the King has seen any stones, a prince or other noble who knows of it will never buy them, and besides, while these three men appointed to view the jewels are considering and examining them in their dwellings, where he is obliged to carry them, he meets several Banians who are experts, some for diamonds, others for rubies, for emeralds, and for pearls, who write down the weight, quality, perfection, and colour of each piece. And if the merchant afterwards goes to the Princes and Governors of Provinces, these people send them a memorandum of all that he carries, with the price, which they maliciously place at half the true value of the things. These Banians are in business a thousand times worse than the Jews, and more cunning than they are in all kinds of dodges and in malice when they wish for revenge. Observe then the bad turn which these three personages played me. When I arrived at Jahānābād, one of them came to me and told me that he had the King’s order to see what I brought, before being permitted to exhibit it in his presence. They wished very sincerely that the King was not at Jahānābād, because they would have sought to buy for themselves all that I had, in order to profit by reselling it to the King, and to the Princes when the opportunity should occur — this, nevertheless, they had never been able to obtain from me.
21.4.7
On the following day they all three came to see me, one after the other, and they wished to get from me amongst other things a grand bouquet of nine large pear-shaped pearls, of which the largest was thirty carats and the least sixteen, with another single pear-shaped pearl of fifty-five carats. As for the bouquet, the King took it; but with regard to the pearl, seeing that, notwithstanding all that they could say, I was unwilling to sell them anything, they so managed that before I had shown my jewels to the King, Zafar Khān, uncle of the King, saw it, after which he did not wish to return it, saying that he would pay me as highly for it as the King, asking me not to mention it; for in fact he desired to present it to the King. After the King had selected from among my jewels those which he desired, Zafar Khān bought several pieces from me, and at the same time purchased the great pearl. Some days afterwards he caused my payment to be made according to what had been agreed upon, with the exception of the pearl, upon which he desired me to rebate 10,000 rupees. The two Persians and the Banian had maliciously informed him that on my arrival they might, if they had wished, have had the pearl for 8,000 or 10,000 less than I had sold it to him for ; this was wholly untrue, and Zafar Khan having told me that if I would not accept the money which he offered me I might take it back, I took him at his word, assuring him that during his life he would never see it again.
21.4.8
I kept to my word, and remained firm in my resolve. That which made me so fixed was in part because I desired to carry, if I could, something considerable to Sháistá Khán, and if it had been permitted to me on my arrival at Surat to go to him first, I would not have gone to see the King at Jahánábád, regarding which I had a great dispute with the Governor of Surat. For when I went to salute him, he immediately told me that it would not be as on my other journeys, and that the King wished, absolutely, to be the first to see all that was curious which was brought into his kingdom. I was more than four months disputing in vain with this Governor ; at last I was obliged to go to visit the King, and from fear lest I should take another route they gave me fifteen horsemen to accompany me to Jalor.
21.5.1
Having then started for Bengal, these three inspectors of jewels, incensed with spite, and urged on, no doubt, by Zafar Khán, who was anxious to take his revenge for my refusal, wrote to Sháistá Khán that I was taking some jewels to show to him, and among others a very beautiful pearl which I had sold to Zafar Khán ; but that he had returned it to me subsequently, having ascertained that I wished to make him pay 10,000 rupees more than it was worth. They wrote similarly regarding the other jewels which I carried, and it was upon these false and malicious advices, which Sháistá Khán did not receive till after he had delivered to me my bill of exchange, that this Prince wished to deduct 20,000 rupees from the total sum; this was reduced finally to a rebate of 10,000 rupees, with which I was obliged to content myself. Since I have above spoken of the present which I made to Shaista Khan, I ought not to be silent regarding those which I was also obliged to make to the King, to the Nawab Zafar Khan, to the eunuch of the Grand Begum, sister of Aurangzeb, to the Grand Treasurer, and to the attendants of the treasury. For it should be stated that whoever it may be who desires to have audience of the King, they ask, before everything else, where the present is that he has to offer to him, and they examine it to see if it is worthy of being offered to his majesty. No one ever ventures to show himself with empty hands, and it is an honour obtained at no little cost.
21.5.2
Having arrived at Jahanabad I went to make my reverence to the King on the 12th September 1665, and this is the present which I made him. Firstly, a shield of bronze in high relief thoroughly well gilt, the gilding alone costing 300 ducats of gold, which amount to 1800 livres and the whole piece to 4378 livres. In the middle was represented the history of Curtius, who threw himself, on horseback and fully armed, into the gulf which opened in Rome, and from whence a mephitic vapour emanated. On the circuit of the shield was a clever representation of the siege of Rochelle. It was the chef d'œuvre of one of the most excellent workmen in France, and it had been ordered by M. le Cardinal Richelieu. All the great nobles who were then with the King Aurangzeb were charmed with the beauty of this work of art, and they told him that he should place this rich piece on the grand elephant which carried the standard before his majesty when marching. I also presented the King with a battle mace of rock crystal, all the sides of which were covered with rubies and emeralds inlaid in gold in the crystal. This piece cost 3119 livres. Also a Turkish saddle embroidered with small rubies, pearls, and emeralds, which had cost 2892 livres. Also another horse’s saddle with the housing, the whole covered with an embroidery of gold and silver, costing 1730 livres. The entire present which I made to the King amounted to 12,119 livres.
21.5.3
Present made to Nawáb Zafar Khán, uncle of the Great Mogul. Firstly, a table, with nineteen pieces to make a cabinet, the whole of precious stones of diverse colours representing all kinds of flowers and birds. The work had been done at Florence, and had cost 2150 livres. Also a ring with a perfect ruby which cost 1300 livres. To the Grand Treasurer a watch having a golden case covered with small emeralds, 720 livres. To the attendants of the treasury of the King, and to those who drew the money from the treasury, 200 rupees, which make 300 livres. To the eunuch of the Grand Begum, sister of the King, Aurangzeb, a watch with a painted case which cost 260 livres. All the presents which I made, to the Great Mogul, to Shaista Khan, and to Zafar Khan, uncles of his majesty, as also to the Grand Treasurers of the King, to the stewards of the Khans' houses, to the Captains of the palace gates, and further to those who on two occasions brought me the khilat, or robe of honour, on the part of the King, and as often on the part of the Begum, his sister, and once on the part of Zafar Khan — all these presents, I say, amounted to the sum of 23,187 livres. So true is it that those who desire to do business at the courts of the Princes, in Turkey as well as in Persia and India, should not attempt to commence anything unless they have considerable presents ready prepared, and almost always an open purse for divers officers of trust of whose services they have need.
21.5.4
I have said nothing in the first volume of the present which I also made to him who brought the khil'at on the part of the King of Persia, to whom I presented 200 écus.