Martauan a port of the sea in the kingdome of Pegu come many ships from
Malacca laden with Sandall, Porcelanes, and other wares of China, and with
Camphora of Borneo, and Pepper from Achen in Sumatra. [Sidenote: Woollen
cloth and scarlets solde in Pegu.] To Cirion a port of Pegu come ships from
Mecca with woollen cloth, Scarlets, Veluets, Opium, and such like. There
are in Pegu eight Brokers, whom they call Tareghe, which are bound to sell
your goods at the price which they be woorth, and you giue them for their
labour two in the hundred: and they be bound to make your debt good,
because you sell your merchandises vpon their word. If the Broker pay you
not at his day, you may take him home, and keepe him in your house: which
is a great shame for him. And if he pay you not presently, you may take his
wife and children and his slaues, and binde them at your doore, and set
them in the Sunne; for that is the law of the countrey. [Sidenote: The
money of Pegu.] Their current money in these partes is a kinde of brasse
which they call Gansa, wherewith you may buy golde, siluer, rubies, ronske,
and all other things. The golde and siluer is marchandise, and is worth
sometimes more, and sometimes lesse, as other wares be. This brazen money
doeth goe by a weight which they call a biza; and commonly this biza after
our account is worth about halfe a crowne or somewhat lesse. [Sidenote: The
seuerall marchandises of Pegu.] The marchandise which be in Pegu, are
golde, siluer, rubies, saphires, spinelles, muske, beniamin or
frankincense, long pepper, tinne, leade, copper, lacca whereof they make
hard waxe, rice, and wine made of rice, and some sugar. The elephants doe
eate the sugar canes, or els they would make very much. [Sidenote: The
forme of their Temples or Varellaes.] And they consume many canes likewise
in making of their Varellaes or Idole Temples, which are in great number
both great and small. They be made round like a sugar loafe, some are as
high as a Church, very broad beneath, some a quarter of a mile in compasse:
within they be all earth done about with stone. They consume in these
Varellaes great quantity of golde; for that they be all gilded aloft: and