‘The travels of Ludovico di Varthema in Egypt, Syria, Arabia Deserta and Arabia Felix, in Persia, India, and Ethiopia, A.D. 1503 to 1508’ [‎97] (132/492)

INTRODUCTION.
frequented ports contained many Mnhammedans who
had introduced a superior civilization together with
their religion. Thirdly, because in such localities
fire-arms were well known, while the natives where
our party disembarked were quite ignorant of ar-
tillerv, their only weapons being bows and darts of
cane, and the peculiar Sumpitan, or blow-pipe. And,
lastly, these separate considerations receive general
confirmation from the absence of all mention in Var-
thema's narrative that the place which they visited
was one of trade,—a circumstance which he never
omits to record whenever such was the case.
Before quitting Java, Cazazionor purchased a
couple of young children who had undergone the
cruel operation regarded as desirable for fitting them
to become attendants on a Mussulman harm. The
barbarous practice, which also prevailed in different
parts of India at this period, was most probably in
troduced into these countries with Islam, and many
"Moorish merchants" are said to have made a trade
of buying and preparing these wretched victims for
exportation to foreign markets.
Crossing over to Malacca, steering at first to the
eastward to avoid the surrounding islands, our tra
vellers there took leave of the Sarnau Christians, with
sincere regret on both sides, and from thence proceeded
to " Cioromandel" (Negapatam), where they engaged
a sampan to take them to Quilon. At that place
Varthema found twenty Portuguese, and would gladly
have made his escape to them, " but they were very
few," and the eyes of some Mussulmans who knew
h