Volume 9, Chapter 11, Section 5 -- Notes, concerning the Proceedings of the Factory at Cranganore, from the Journal of Roger Hawes.[179]

On the 4th of March 1615, we chased a Portuguese frigate, which ran into a creek and escaped. While on our way towards Cape Comorin, a Tony came aboard of us, with messengers from the Zamorin to our general, Captain William Keeling. Next day, the governor sent a present, and entreated the general to proceed to Cranganore, which we did next day, taking with us the messengers sent from the Zamorin, who requested the general to come on shore to speak with him. But while he was doing so, some frigates came and anchored near the shore, by which he was constrained to go on board the Expedition, Captain Walter Peyton. On this occasion some shots were exchanged, but little harm was done. The general went ashore on the 8th, accompanied by Mr. Barclay, the cape merchant, and several others. They were well used, and agreed to settle a factory in the dominions of the Zamorin, the following being the articles agreed upon:--

"UNDERECON CHEETE, Great Zamorin, &c. to JAMES, King of Britain, &c. Whereas your servant and subject, William Keeling, arrived in my kingdom at the port of Cranganore, in March 1615, with three ships, and at my earnest solicitation came ashore to see me; there was concluded by me for my part, and by him for the English nation, as followeth.

"As I have ever been at enmity with the Portuguese, and propose always so to continue, I do hereby faithfully promise to be and to continue in friendship with the English, both for myself and my successors: And if I succeed in taking the fort of Cranganore, I engage to give it to the English, to possess as their own, together with the island belonging to it, which is in length along the sea-coast nine miles, and three in breadth; and I propose to build therein a house for my own people, to the number of one hundred persons.

"I shall hereafter endeavour, with the aid of the English, to conquer the town and fort of Cochin, which formerly belonged to my crown and kingdom, and shall then deliver it to the English as their own. Provided that the charges of its capture be equally borne by both parties, one half by me, and the other half by the English nation; and in that case, the benefit of the plunder thereof, of whatsoever kind, shall belong half to me, and half to the English. And thereafter, I shall claim no right, title, or interest in the said town, precincts, or appurtenances whatsoever."

"I also covenant for myself, my heirs and successors, that the whole trade of the English, in whatsoever commodities, brought in or carried out, shall be entirely free from all custom, imposition, tax, toll, or any other duty, of any quality or description."

"To these covenants, which the shortness of time did not permit to extend in more ample form, I, the Zamorin, have sworn to perform, by the great God whom I serve, and not only for myself but for my successors; and in witness thereof have laid my hand upon this writing.[180] And the said William Keeling promises to acquaint the king his master with the premises, and to endeavour to procure his majesty's consent thereto."

This being agreed upon, a stock was made out for a factory, such as the shortness of time would permit, and three factors were appointed. These were: George Woolman, chief: Peter Needham, second, who was one of the general's servants: and I, Roger Hawes, third; together with a youth named Edward Peake, as our attendant, who was to learn the language. John Stamford, a gunner, was likewise left to assist the Zamorin in his wars. On the 10th the ships departed, leaving us and our goods in a shrambe at the water side, together with a present for the Zamorin.

We continued there till the 13th, at which time the last of our goods were carried to the Zamorin's castle; whose integrity we much suspected, after having thus got possession of our goods. On the 20th, he insisted to see Mr. Woolman's trunk, supposing we had plenty of money. Needham had told him we had 500 rials; but finding little more than fifty, he demanded the loan of that sum, which we could not refuse. He offered us a pawn not worth half; which we refused to accept, hoping he would now allow us to proceed to Calicut, but he put us off with delays. He likewise urged us to give his brother a present.

On the 28th, the Zamorin came into the apartment where we were, and gave Mr. Woolman two gold rings, and one to each of the rest; and next day he invited us to come to his tumbling sports. That same night, Stamford went out with his sword in his hand, telling the boy that he would return presently. The next news we had of him was, that he was in the hands of the Cochin nayres. He had lost his way while drunk, and meeting with some of them, they asked where he wished to go; he said to the Zamorin, to whom they undertook to conduct him, and he knew not that he was a prisoner, till he got to Cochin. This incident put us in great fear, but the Zamorin gave us good words, saying he was better pleased to find him a knave now, than after he had put trust in him.

We had leave in April to depart with our goods to Calicut, where we arrived on the 22nd of that month, and were well received; but had to remain in the custom-house, till we could get a more convenient house, which was made ready for us on the 6th of May, with promise of a better after the rains. We were very desirous, according to our orders from the general, to have sent a messenger with his and our letters to Surat, to acquaint our countrymen that we were here; but the governor would not consent till we had sold all our goods. On the 18th of June, one was sent. On the 26th, part of our goods were sold to the merchants of Calicut, by the governor's procurement, with fair promises of part payment shortly. But it is not the custom of the best or the worst in this country to keep their words, being certain only in dissembling. Mr. Woolman was desirous of going to Nassapore to make sales, but the governor put him off with divers shifts from time to time.

The 3d July, our messenger for Surat returned, reporting that he had been set upon when well forwards on his way, and had his money and letters taken from him, after being well beaten. Among his letters was one from Captain Keeling to the next general, the loss of which gave us much concern; yet we strongly suspected that our messenger had been robbed by his own consent, and had lost nothing but his honesty. A broker of Nassapore told Mr. Needham that our dispatches had been sold to the Portuguese, and when the governor heard of this, he hung down his head, as guilty. We here sold some goods to merchants of Nassapore.

Mr. Woolman died on the 17th of August. We could not procure payment of our promised money, and were told by our broker that some one of our debtors would procure a respite from the governor, by means of a bribe, on which the rest would refuse till they all paid. On the 24th, the Zamorin's sister sent us word that she would both cause our debtors to pay us, and lend us any money we needed; but we found her as false as the rest The queen mother also made us fair promises, and several others made offers to get letters conveyed for us to Surat; but all their words were equally false.

Thus wronged, Mr. Needham farther wronged himself by his indiscretion, threatening, in presence of a nayre who attended us, and who revealed his threats, that he would go to the king of Cochin, making shew of violent revenge to put the governor in fear. He behaved outrageously likewise to a scrivano,[181] who is the same as a justice with us, taking him by the throat, and making as if he would have cut him down with his sword, for detaining some of our money which he had received. Our broker also told Mr. Needham, that it was not becoming to go up and down the streets with a sword and buckler; and indeed his whole conduct and behaviour more resembled those we call roaring-boys,[182] than what became the character of a merchant. For my admonitions, he requited me with ill language, disgracing himself and injuring the affairs of the Company.

A Dutch ship, which had been trading in the Red Sea, arrived here on the 23rd of September, with the intention of settling a factory, and they were referred by the governor to the Zamorin, promising to carry a letter for us, but went without it; so that our delays continued. Mr. Needham went himself to the Zamorin on the 4th November, and returned on the 25th, having got a present of a gold chain, a jewel, and a gold armlet, with orders also from the king to further our purposes; but the performance was as slow as before. The 20th December, a Malabar captain brought in a prize he had taken from the Portuguese, and would have traded with us; but we could not get in any of our money, due long before. We also heard that day of four English ships being at Surat.

The governor and people continued their wonted perfidiousness; the former being more careful in taking, and the latter in giving bribes, than in paying our debts. We used a strange contrivance of policy to get in some of these; for, when we went to their houses, demanding payment, and could get none, we threatened not to leave their house till they paid us. We had heard it reported that, according to their customs, they could neither eat nor wash while we were in their houses; and by this device we sometimes got fifty fanos from one, and an hundred from another. They would on no account permit us to sleep in their houses, except one person, with whom we remained three days and nights, with three or four nayres. They were paid for watching him, but we got nothing. The nayre, who had been appointed by the king to gather in our debts, came to demand a gratuity from us, though he had not recovered any of our money. He would go to the debtor's houses, taking three or four fanos, and then depart without any of our money.

On the 9th of January, 1616, Mr Needham went to demand payment of a debt, and being refused permission to pass by a nayre who struck him, as he says, he gave the nayre a dangerous wound in the head with his sword, of which it is thought he cannot recover, and others of the natives were hurt in the fray. Word was presently brought to us to shut up our doors, lest the nayres should assemble to do us some mischief, as feuds or kindred-quarrels and murders are common among them, having no other law or means of vengeance. Our nayre with his kindred, to the number of thirty or more, with pikes, swords, and bucklers, guarded Mr. Needham home, on which occasion we had to give a gratuity. Our house had to be guarded for three or four days and nights, none of us daring to go out into the streets for money or other business for a week, though before we used to go about in safety. After that, our broker advised us never to go out unless attended by a nayre, as they had sworn to put one of us to death, in revenge for him who was slain.

The 20th, the Portuguese armado of thirty-four sail, passed by from the south, of which fourteen were ships, and the rest frigates or grabs. They put into the harbour, in which three Malabar frigates lay at anchor, and a hot fight ensued, in which the Portuguese were forced to retreat with disgrace, having only cut the hawser of one of the frigates, which drove on shore and was stove in pieces. This belonged to the governor, who was well served, for he remained like a coward in the country, keeping four or five great guns that were in the town locked up, except one, and for it they had only powder and shot for two discharges. Before the fight ended, some 4000 nayres were come in from the country, and several were slain on both sides. Nine or ten Portuguese were driven ashore, and two or three of the chiefs of these were immediately hung up by the heels, and being taken down after two days, were thrown to be devoured by wild beasts.

On the 28th of January, we were told by a Pattemar that the governor was only our friend outwardly, wishing rather to have the Portuguese in our room [[=place]], as we did no good in the country, bringing only goods to sell, whereas the Portuguese did good by making purchases. The 8th of February we had letters from Surat; and on the 4th of March, the Zamorin wrote to us that if our ships came, he wished them to come to Paniany, and that we need not be anxious for our money, as he would pay us, even if he were forced to sell his rings.

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[Footnote 179: Parch. Pilgr. I. 608.--Hawes sailed in the fleet under Keeling, in 1615, which carried out Sir Thomas Roe, already related in Sect. IV. of this chapter; and the present short article almost exclusively relates to the new factory at Cranganore on the Malabar coast, in which Hawes was left as one of the factors. This is a very imperfect and inconclusive article, yet gives some idea of the manners and customs of the Malabars.--E.]
[Footnote 180: This probably alludes to a custom mentioned in one of our earlier volumes, of imprinting the form of the hand, smeared with ink, on the paper, instead of signature or seal.--E.]
[Footnote 181: This term is obviously Portuguese, and cannot be the proper appellation for a judge on the Malabar coast.--E.]
[Footnote 182: This character is now only to be met with in some of our old plays, such as Captain Bobadil in 'Every Man in his Humour'..--E.]