aliue of them. and in the carouan they vse this order, that the marchants doe lende flesh one to another, because they will not cary raw flesh with them, but pleasure one another by lending one one day and another another day. [sidenote: 36. dayes iourney ouer the wildernes.] from babylon to alepo is 40. dayes iourney, of the which they make 36. dayes ouer the wildernes, in which 36. dayes they neither see house, trees nor people that inhabite it, but onely a plaine, and no signe of any way in the world. the pilots goe before, and the carouan followeth after. and when they sit downe all the carouan vnladeth and sitteth downe, for they know the stations where the wells are. i say, in 36. dayes we pass ouer the wildernesse. for when wee depart from babylon two dayes we passe by villages inhabited vntil we haue passed the riuer euphrates. and then within two dayes of alepo we haue villages inhabited. [sidenote: an order how to prouide for the going to ierusalem.] in this carouan there goeth alway a captaine that doth iustice vnto all men: and euery night they keepe watch about the carouan, and comming to alepo we went to tripoli, whereas master florin, and master andrea polo, and i with a frier, went and hired a barke to goe with vs to ierusalem. departing from tripolie, we arriued at iaffa: from which place in a day and a halfe we went to ierusalem, and we gaue order to our barke to tary for vs vntill our returne. [sidenote: the author returned to venice 1581.] wee stayed in ierusalem 14. dayes, to visite those holy places: from whence we returned to iaffa, and from iaffa to tripolie, and there wee shipped our selues in a ship of venice called the bagazzana: and by the helpe of the deuine power, we arriued safely in venice the fift of nouember 1581. if there be any that hath any desire to goe into those partes of india, let him not be astonied at the troubles that i haue passed: because i was intangled in many things: for that i went very poore from venice with 1200. duckets imployed in marchandize, and when i came to tripolie, i fell sicke in the house of master regaly oratio, and this man sent away my goods with a small carouan that went from tripolie to alepo, and the carouan was robd, and all my goods lost sauing foure chests of glasses which cost me 200. duckets, of which glasses i found many broken: because the theeues thinking it had bene other marchandize, brake them vp, and seeing they were glasses they let them all alone. and with this onely stocke i aduentured to goe into the indies: and thus with change and rechange, and by diligence in my voyage, god did blesse and helpe mee, so that i got a good stocke. i will not be vnmindfull to put them in remembrance, that haue a desire to goe into those parts, how they shall keepe their goods, and giue them to their heires at the time of their death, [marginal note: a very good order that they haue in those countreys for the recouering of the goods of the dead.] and howe this may be done very securely. in all the cities that the portugales haue in the indies, there is a house called the schoole of sancta misericordia comissaria: the gouernours whereof, if you giue them for their paines, will take a coppy of your will and testament, which you must alwayes cary about you; and chiefly when you go into the indies. in the countrey of the moores and gentiles, in those voyages alwayes there goeth a captaine to administer iustice to all christians of the portugales. also this captaine hath authoritie to recouer the goods of those marchants that by chance die in those voyages, and they that haue not made their wills and registred them in the aforesayde schooles, the captaines wil consume their goods in such wise, that litle or nothing will be left for their heires and friends. also there goeth in these same voyages some marchants that are commissaries of the schoole of sancta misericordia, that if any marchant die and haue his will made, and hath giuen order that the schoole of misericordia shall haue his goods and sell them, then they sende the money by exchange to the schoole of misericordia in lisbone, with that copie of his testament, then from lisbon they giue intelligence thereof, into what part of christendome soeuer it be, and the heires of such a one comming thither, with testimoniall that they be heires, they shall receiue there the value of his goods: in such wise that they shall not loose any thing. but they that die in the kingdome of pegu loose the thirde part of their goods by antient custome of the countrey, that if any christian dieth in the kingdome of pegu, the king and his officers rest heires of a thirde of his goods, and there hath neuer bene any deceit or fraude vsed in this matter. i haue knowen many rich men that haue dwelled in pegu, and in their age they haue desired to go into their owne countrey to die there, and haue departed with al their goods and substance without let or troubles. [sidenote: order of apparel in pegu.] in pegu the fashion of their apparel is all one, as well the noble man as the simple: the onely difference is in the finenes of the cloth, which is cloth of bombast one finer then another, and they weare their apparell in this wise: first a white bombast cloth which serueth for a shirt, then they gird another painted bombast cloth of foureteene brases, which they binde vp betwixt their legges, and on their heads they weare a small tock of three braces, made in guize of a myter, and some goe without tocks, and cary (as it were) a hiue on their heades, which doeth not passe the lower part of his eare, when it is lifted vp: they goe all bare footed, but the noble men neuer goe on foote, but are caried by men in a seate with great reputation, with a hat made of the leaues of a tree to keepe him from the raine and sunne, or otherwise they ride on horsebacke with their feete bare in the stirops. [sidenote: the order of the womens apparel in pegu.] all sorts of women whatsoeuer they be, weare a smocke downe to the girdle, and from the girdle downewards to the foote they weare a cloth of three brases, open before; so straite that they cannot goe, but they must shewe their secret as it were aloft, and in their going they faine to hide it with their hand, but they cannot by reason of the straitnes of their cloth. they say that this vse was inuented by a queene to be an occasion that the sight thereof might remoue from men the vices against nature, which they are greatly giuen vnto; which sight should cause them to regard women the more. also the women goe bare footed, their armes laden with hoopes of golde and iewels: and their fingers full of precious rings, with their haire rolled vp about their heads. many of them weare a cloth about their shoulders instead of a cloake. now to finish that which i haue begunne to write, i say, that those parts of the indies are very good, because that a man that hath litle, shall make a great deale thereof; alwayes they must gouerne themselues that they be taken for honest men. for why? to such there shal neuer want helpe to doe wel, but he that is vicious, let him tary at home and not go thither, because he shall alwayes be a beggar, and die a poore man. the money and measures of babylon, balsara, and the indies, with the customes, &c. written from aleppo in syria, an. 1584. by m. will. barret. babylon: the weight, measure, and money currant there, and the customes of marchandize. a mana of babylon is of aleppo 1 roue 5 ounces and a halfe: and 68 manas and three seuenth parts, make a quintall of aleppo, which is 494 li. 8 ounces of london: and 100 manas is a quintall of babylon, which maketh in aleppo 146 roues, and of london 722 li