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TRADE IN CLOVES.
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clamation that whoever had cloves might freely sell them to us. For which reason all that and the following day, we bought cloves like mad.[1]

Friday, in the afternoon, the governor of Machian came with many prahus, but he would not come on shore, because his father and his brother, who had been banished from Machian, had taken refuge here.

The following day the King of Tadore, with his nephew, the governor, named Humai, a man of twenty-five years of age, came on board the ships, and the king, on hearing that we had no more cloth, sent to fetch from his house six ells of red cloth, and gave them to us in order that we might, by adding other objects, make a fitting present to the governor. We made him the present, and he thanked us much, and said that soon he would send us plenty of cloves. At his departure from the ship we fired several bombards.

Sunday the 1st day of December, the above-mentioned governor departed from Tadore; and we were told that the king had made him a present of some silk cloths and drums, for him to send us the cloves sooner. On Monday, the king himself went again out of the island for the same object. Wednesday morning, as it was the day of St. Barbara,[2] and on account of the King's arrival all the artillery was discharged. The king came to the beach to see how we fired rockets and fire balls, and took great pleasure in them.

Thursday and Friday we purchased a good many cloves both in the city and at the ships at a much lower price, as the time of our departure grew nearer. For four ells of riband[3] they gave a bahar of cloves, for two little chains of

  1. "A furia".
  2. S. Barbara is the patroness of powder magazines, which on board French ships are called Sainte Barbe.
  3. "Frixeto,""nastro," or "settuccia," "ribbon" is so called now in Genoese. Note, Milan edition.