A Voyage to East India, Account of voyage · Section 25
SECT. XXV.
Of his paſtimes at home and abroad, and where ſomething of his quality, and diſpoſition.
NOw what he doth, and how he behaves himſelf amongſt his houſe-full of Wives and Women cannot be known, and therefore not related; but when he ſhews himſelf (as before) thrice openly to his people, every day he had alwayes ſomething▪ or other preſented before him to make him ſport, and to give him preſent content.
As ſometimes he delighted himſelf in ſeeing Horſes ridden, the Natives there (as before) being very excellent in their well managing of them. Sometimes he ſaw his great Elephants fight. And at other times he pleaſed himſelf in ſeeing wreſtling or dauncing, or jugling, and what elſe he liked.
And it happened that (but a few years before our abode there) a Juggler of Bengala (a Kingdom famous for Witches, and men of that profeſſion) brought an Ape before the King (who was ever greedy to pleaſe himſelf with Novelties) profeſſing that he would do many ſtrange feats, the Mogol was ready preſently to make a trial of this, and forthwith called ſome boyes about him (which he was conceived to keep for ſuch a uſe as I dare not name,) & plucking a Ring from his finger gave it one of them to hide, that he might make a trial whither, or no the Ape could finde it out; who preſently went to the boy that had it. The Mogol made ſome further trials like this, where the Ape did his part as before. And before the Ape was taken out of his preſence, this ſtrange, following, and unexpected thing came into the Kings thought. There are (ſaid he) many diſputes in the World about that true Prophet which ſhould come into the World. We ſaid the Mogol are for Mahomet. The Perſians magnifie Mortis Hale (but they are Mahometans for Religion likewiſe.) The Hindoos, or Heathens there, have many whom they highly extol & magnifie, as Bremaw, and Bramon, and Ram, and Permiſſar; The Parſees are for Zerto…ſt, the Jews for Moſes, the Christians for Chriſt, and he added three more whoſe names I have not, who make up the number of twelve, who have all their ſeveral followers in that part of the World, and then he cauſed thoſe twelve Names to be written in twelve ſeveral Scrolls, and put together, to ſee if the Ape could draw out the Name of the true Prophet, this done the Ape put his paw amongſt them, and pull'd forth the Name of Chriſt. The Mogol a ſecond time, cauſed thoſe twelve Names to be written again in twelve other Scrolls, and Characters, and put together, when the Ape as before pull'd forth the name of Chriſt.
Then Mahobet-Chan, a great Noble man of that Court, and in high favour with the King, ſaid, that it was ſome impoſture of the Chriſtians (though there were none that did bear that name there preſent) and deſired that he might make a third trial, which granted, he put but eleven of thoſe names together, reſerving the name of Chriſt in his hand; the Ape ſearching as before, pull'd forth his paw empty, and ſo twice, or thrice together, the King demanding a reaſon for this, was anſwered, that happily the thing he looked for was not there, he was bid to ſearch for it, and then putting out thoſe eleven names one after the other, in a ſeeming indignation rent them, then running to Mahobet-Chan caught him by the hand where the Name of Chriſt was concealed, which delivered, he opened the Scrolle, and ſo held it up to the King, but did not tear it as the former, upon which the Mogol took the Ape, and gave his Keeper a good Penſion for to keep him near about him, calling him the Divining Ape, and this was all that followed upon this admirable thing, except the great wonder and amazement of that people.
There was one ſome years ſince wrote this ſtory (but ſomewhat varied from that I have here related) in a little printed Pamphlet, and told his Reader that I had often ſeen that Ape while I lived in thoſe parts, which particular he ſhould have left out; but for the Relation it ſelf, I believe it was ſo, becauſe it hath been often confirmed there in its report unto me by divers perſons, who knew not one another, and were differing in Religion, yet all agreed in the ſtory, and in all the circumſtances thereof.
This I am ſure of that Almighty God, who can do what he will do (for all things are ſo far from being impoſſible to him, that nothing is hard) can do wonderfull things by the weakeſt means, that the weaker the inſtruments are, the more glory moy be aſcribed unto him while he acts by them.
In the ſacred ſtorie Pharoah had no ſooner asked, who is the Lord? Ex. 5. but preſently ſome of the weakeſt of the Creatures riſe up, and appear (as it were in Arms) to tell him, who the Lord was; ſo that he who formerly thought that there was no power, either in heaven, or earth, to maſter, or contradict him, is preſently confuted, and conquered by Frogs, and Flies, and Lice, and Caterpillars, by thoſe poor, infirm, ſilly, and moſt deſpicable Creatures, who when they had entred the liſts, would not give proud Pharoah over, till they had humbled him, and magnified their maker, virtus Dei in infirmitate. Balaams Aſſe had more diſcovered unto him than unto his Rider, and ſo had this Ape (as it ſhould ſeem) more, than to his beholders, or to his keeper.
Now for the diſpoſition of that King, it ever ſeemed unto me to be compoſed of extreams, for ſometimes he was barbarouſly cruel, and at other times he would ſeem to be exceeding fair, and gentle.
For his cruelties, he put one of his women to a miſerable death, one of his women he had formerly touched and kept Company withall, but now ſhe was ſuperannuated, for neither himſelf nor Nobles (as they ſay) come near their wives, or women, after they exceed the age of thirty years, though they keep them, and allow them ſome maintenance. The fault of that woman, this the Mogol upon a time found her, and one of his Eunuchs kiſſing one another, and for this very thing the King preſently gave command that a round hole ſhould be made in the earth, and that her body ſhould be put into that hole, where ſhe ſhould ſtand with her head onelyonly above ground, and the earth to be put in again unto her cloſe, round about her, that ſo ſhe might ſtand in the parching Sun, till the extream hot beams thereof did kill her, in which torment ſhe lived one whole day, and the night following, and almoſt till the next noon, crying out moſt lamentably while ſhe was able to ſpeak in her language, as the Shunamites Childe did in his 2 King. 4. Ah my head, my head! which horrid execution, or rather murder was acted near our houſe, where the Eunuch by the command of the ſaid King was brought very near the place where this poor Creature was thus buried alive, and there in her ſight cut all into pieces.
That great King would be often overcome by Wine, yet (as if he meant to appropriate that ſin to himſelf) would puniſh others with very much ſeverity, who were thus diſtempered.
I have long ſince heard a ſtory which is ſomewhat pararel to this, that in former times when this land, in which we live, did not ſo much ſtink of that beaſtly ſin of drunkenneſſe, which robs a man of himſelf, and leaves a beaſt in the skin of a man, I ſay, when drunkenneſſe in England was not ſo common: There was a Juſtice of Peace in this Nation (and I believe that the ſtory is very true) which laid a poor Butoher by the heels for preſuming to be drunk, telling him that he was but a poor beggerly fellow, and he preſume to be drunk, and therefore he would puniſh him, ſaying further, that it was enough for his eldeſt Son ſo to be, &c. but this by the way.
Sometimes for little, or no faults, the Mogol would cauſe men to be moſt ſeverely whip't, till they were almoſt ready to dye under the rod, which after they muſt kiſſe in thankfulneſſe.
He cauſed one of his ſervants of the higher ranke, to be very much whipt for breaking a China Cup he was commanded to keep ſafe, and then ſent him into China, (which is a marvelous diſtance from thence) to buy another.
Sometimes in other of his mad diſtempers he would condemne men to ſervitude, or diſmember, or elſe put them to death, as ſacrifices to his will and paſſion, not Juſtice. So that it might be ſaid of him quando male nemo pejus, that when he did wickedly none could do worſe, as if it had been true of him which was ſpoken of that monſter Nero obſerved before, who was called Lutum ſanguine maceratum, dirt ſoaked in bloud.
For his good actions he did relieve continually many poor people; and not ſeldom would ſhew many expreſſions of duty and ſtrong affection to his Mother, then living, ſo that he who eſteemed the whole World as his Vaſſals would help to carry her in a Palankee upon his ſhoulders, and in this he did exceedingly differ from that moſt unnatural and cruel Nero, who moſt barbarouſly killed his own Mother Agrippina, cauſing (as they write) that Bed, in which he was conceived, and from whence born, and wherein he took up his firſt lodging to be ript up and ſpoiled.
The Mogol would often viſite the cells of thoſe he eſteemed religious men, whoſe perſons he eſteemed ſacred, as if they had been Demigods.
And he would ſpeak moſt reſpectively of our bleſſed Saviour Chriſt, but his Parentage, his poverty, and his croſſe did ſo confound his thoughts, that he knew not what to think of them. (As Bernard complained of ſome in his time, that they took offence at the clowts and rags of our bleſſed Saviour, at the humility and meanneſſe of his birth) believing that it could not ſtand with the Majeſty of the Son of God to appear in the World, in ſuch meanneſſe as he did; though he had been told that Chriſt Jeſus came into the World in that low condition that he might beat down the pride thereof. And that at his firſt coming he came for ſinners, and then he came in great humility but at his ſecond coming he ſhall come againſt ſinners, and then will he appear in power, & great glory.
Laſtly, the Mogol is very free and noble unto all thoſe which fall into, and abide in his affection, which brings me now to ſpeak.