A Voyage to East India, Account of voyage · Section 27
SECT. XXVII.
Of the Mogols Leskar, or Camp Royal, &c.
WHich indeed is very glorious, as all muſt confeſſe, who have ſeen the infinite number of Tents, or Pavilions there pitched together which in a plain make a ſhew equal to a moſt ſpacious and glorious Citie. Theſe Tents I ſay, when they are altogether, cover ſuch a great quantity of ground, that I believe it is five Engliſh miles at the leaſt, from one ſide of them to the other, very beautifull to behold from ſome Hill, where they may be all ſeen at once.
They write of Zerxes, that when from ſuch a place he took a view of his very numerous Army, conſiſting at the leaſt of three hundred thouſand men, he wept, ſaying, that in leſs than the compaſſe of one hundred years, not one of that great mighty Hoſt would be alive. And to ſee ſuch company then together of all ſorts of people (and I ſhall give a good reaſon preſently why I believe that mixt company of men, women, and children may make up ſuch an huge number, as before I named, if not exceed it) and to conſider that death will ſeize upon them all, within ſuch a ſpace of time, and that the ſecond death hath ſuch a power over them, is a thing of more ſad conſideration.
Now to make it appear that the number of people of all ſorts is ſo exceeding great, which here get, and keep together in the Mogols Leſkar, or Camp Royal; firſt there are one hundred thouſand Souldiers, which alwayes wait about that King (as before obſerved) and all his Grandees have a very great train of followers and ſervants to attend them there, and ſo have all other men according to their ſeveral qualities, and all theſe carry their Wives and Children, and whole family with them, which muſt needs amount to a very exceeding great number. And further to demonſtrate this, when that King removes from one place to another, for the ſpace of twelve hours, a broad paſſage is continually fill'd with paſſengers, and Elephants, and Horſes, and Dromedaries, and Camels, and Coaches, and Aſſes, and Oxen, (on which the meaner ſort of men and women with their little Children, ride) ſo full as they may well paſſe one by the other. Now in ſuch a broad paſſage, and in ſuch a long time, a very great number of people, the company continually moving on forward, may paſſe.
Thus this people moving on from place to place, it may be ſaid of them, what Salvian ſpeaks of Iſrael, while they were in their journey to the land of promiſe, that it was Ambulans reſpublica, a walking Common-wealth. And therefore that ancient people of God were called Hebrews, which ſignified paſſengers, and their dwelling ſo in Tents, ſignified thus much to all the people of God in all ſucceeding ages, that here they dwell in moveable habitations, having no continuing City here, but they muſt look for one, and that is above.
It is obſerved of Cain, that he (a wicked man) was a tiller of the ground, (though that calling of it ſelf deſerves much commendation) or as a man faſtned to the earth, whereas Abel his brother (a man fearing God) was a Shepheard, which is a moving, rouling occupation, from one place to another, thou telleſt my flittings, ſaith David, Here we often ſhift our places, and our company, and muſt do ſo, our buſineſſes carrying us up and down, to and fro, but our felicity hereafter ſhall conſiſt in reſt, in not changing for ever after, either our company, or place, but when the Godly man ſhall accompliſh, as an hireling his day, when his work, which God hath appointed him here to do, is done and finiſhed, he ſhall lye down in peace, and receive his penny, and enjoy his reward.
The Tents pitch'd in that Leskar, or Camp Royal are for the moſt part white, like the cloathing of thoſe which own them. But the Mogols Tents are red, reared up upon Poles, higher by much than the other. They are placed in the middeſt of the Camp, where they take up a very large compaſſe of ground, and may be ſeen every way, and they muſt needs be very great to afford room in them, for himſelf, his wives, children, women, Eunuchs, &c.
In the ſore-front, or outward part, or Court within his Tent, there is a very large room for acceſſe to him, 'twixt ſeven and nine of the Clock at night, which (as before) is called his Goozulcad.
His Tents are encompaſſed round with Canats, which are like our Screenes to fold up together; thoſe Canats are about ten foot high, made of narrow ſtrong Callico, and lined with the ſame, ſtiffened at every breadth with a Cane, but they are ſtrongeſt lined on their outſide by a very great company of arm'd Souldiers, that keep cloſe about them night and day. The Tents of his great men are likewiſe large, placed round about his. All of them throughout the whole Leskar reared up in ſuch a due and conſtant order, that when we remove from place to place, we can go as directly to thoſe moveable dwellings, as if we continued ſtill in fixed and ſtanding habitations, taking our direction from ſeveral ſtreets and Bazars, or Market places, every one pitched upon every remove alike, upon ſuch, or ſuch a ſide of the Kings Tents, as if they had not been at all removed.
The Mogol (which I ſhould have obſerved before) hath ſo much wealth, and conſequently ſo much power, by reaſon of his marvelous great multitudes of fighting men; which he alwayes keeps in Arms, commanding at all times as many of them as he pleaſe, that as the Moabites truely ſaid of Iſrael, (while they had Almighty God fighting with them, and for them) ſo it may be ſaid of him (if God reſtrain him not) that his huge Companies are able to lick up all that are round about him, as the Oxe licketh up the graſſe of the field, Numb. 22. 4.
When that mighty King, removes from one place to another, he cauſeth Drums to be beat about midnight, which is a ſignal token of his removing. He r…moves not far at one time; ſometimes ten miles, but uſually a leſſe diſtance, according to the beſt convenience he may have for water, there being ſuch an infinite Company of men, and other Creatures, whoſe drink is water, that in a little time it may be as truely ſaid of them, as it was of that mighty hoſt of Sennacherib that Aſſyrian Monarch, Eſ. 37. 25. that they are able to drink up Rivers.
But when the place he removed to afforded plenty of good water, he would uſually ſtay there three, or four dayes, or more, and when he thus reſted in his Progreſſe, would go abroad to finde out paſtimes, to which end he alwayes carried with him divers kindes of Halkes, and Dogs, and Leopards, which (as before) they train up to hunt withall, and being thus provided for variety of ſports, would fly at any thing in the Air, or ſeize on any Creature he deſired to take on the Earth.
The Mogol, when he was at Mandoa (which was invironed with great Woods as before was obſerved) ſometimes with ſome of his Grandees, and a very great company beſide of Perſian and Tartarian horſ-men, his Souldiers (which are ſtout daring men) would attempt to take ſome young wilde Elephants found in theſe Woods, which he took in ſtrong toyls made for that purpoſe, which taken, were ma…'d, and made fit for his ſerv… In which hunting they likewiſe purſued on horſe-back Lions, and other wilde beaſts, and kill'd ſome of them with their Bowes, and Carbanes, and Launces.
An Heroick paſtime, or rather an high and dangerous attempt becoming great perſonages, who, if their honour and greatneſſe balance, will not be taken up with ſmall things, Imperia dura toll…, quid virtus erit, things difficult in their doing make them more honourable when done, Aquila non capit Muſcas, Gnats and Flies are not purſued by Eagles.
In Tauros Lybici r…unt Leones,
Non ſunt Papilionibus moleſti.
Hor.
Thus on chac'd Bulls the Lybian Lion hies,
But troubles▪ not the painted Butter-flies.
I waiting upon my Lord Ambaſſadour two years, and part of a third & traveling with him in Progreſſe with that King, in the moſt temperate moneths there, 'twixt September & April, were in one of our Progreſſes 'twixt Mandoa and Amadavaz nineteen dayes, (making but ſhort journeys in a Wilderneſſe, where (by a very great company ſent before us, to make thoſe paſſages and places fit to receive us) a way was cut out and made even, broad enough for our convenient paſſage, and in the places where we pitche… …ur Tents, a great compaſſe of ground rid, and made plain for them, by grubbing up a number of trees and buſhes, yet there we went as readily to our Tents, the ſame order being ſtill obſerved, in the pitching of them, as we did, when they were ſet up in the plains. But that which here ſeemed unto me to be moſt ſtrange, was, that notwithſtanding our marvelous great company of men, women; and children there together, that muſt all be fed, and the very great number of other Creatures which did eat Corn, as we never there wanted water: ſo, we had ſo many victualers with us, and ſo much proviſion continually brought in unto us, that we never felt there the want of any thing beſide, but had it at as low rates as in other places.
The Mogols wives and women, when as they are removed from place to place are carried in Coaches (ſuch as were before deſcribed) made up cloſe, or in Palanke…s on mens ſhoulders, or elſe on Elephants in pretty receptacles, ſurrounded with curtains which ſtand up like low and little Turrets on their backs, and ſome of the meaner ſort ride in Cradles, hanging on the ſides of Dromedaries, all covered cloſe, and attended by Eunuchs, who have many Souldiers which go before them to clear the way as they paſſe, they taking it very ill, if any (though they cannot ſee them) preſume ſo much as to look towards them, and therefore though I could never ſee any of them, I ſhall here take the liberty to ſpeak ſomewhat I have heard and do believe: