University of Virginia Library

Chapter XII.
How Captaine Smith was sent prisoner thorowthe
Blacke and Dissabacca Sea

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in Tartaria;
the description of those Seas, and his usage.

THIS Noble Gentlewoman tooke sometime occasion to shew him
to some friends, or rather to speake with him, because shee could
speake Italian, would feigne her selfe sick when she should goe to the
Banians, or weepe over the graves,

to know how Bogall tooke him
prisoner; and if he were as the Bashaw writ to her, a Bohemian Lord
conquered by his hand, as hee had many others, which erelong hee
would present her, whose ransomes should adorne her with the glorie
of his conquests.

But when she heard him protest he knew no such matter, nor
ever saw Bogall till he bought him at Axopolis, and that hee was an
English-man, onely by his adventures made a Captaine in those
Countreyes. To trie the truth, shee found meanes to finde out many
could speake English, French, Dutch, and Italian, to whom relating
most part of these former passages he thought necessarie, which they
so honestly reported to her, she tooke (as it seemed) much compassion
on him; but having no use for him, lest her mother should sell him,
she sent him to her brother, the Tymor Bashaw of Nalbrits, in the
Countrey of Cambia, a Province in Tartaria.

Here now let us remember his passing in this speculative course
from Constantinople by Sander, Screwe, Panassa, Musa, Lastilla, to
Varna, an ancient Citie upon the Blacke Sea. In all which journey,
having little more libertie, than his eyes judgement

since his captivitie,
he might see the Townes with their short Towers, and a most
plaine, fertile, and de- ∥ licate Countrey, especially that most admired
place of Greece, now called Romania, but from Varna,
nothing but the Blacke Sea water, till he came to the two Capes of
Taur and Pergilos, where hee passed the Straight of Niger, which
(as he conjectured) is some ten leagues long, and three broad, betwixt
two low lands, the Channell is deepe, but at the entrance of the
Sea Dissabacca, their are many great Osie-shoulds, and many great
blacke rockes, which the Turkes said were trees, weeds, and mud,
throwen from the in-land Countryes, by the inundations and violence
of the Current, and cast there by the Eddy. They sayled by
many low Iles, and saw many more of those muddy rockes, and nothing
else, but salt water, till they came betwixt Susax and Curuske,
only two white townes at the entrance of the river Bruapo appeared:
In six or seven dayes saile, he saw foure or five seeming strong castles
of stone, with flat tops and battlements about them, but arriving at
Cambia, he was (according to their custome) well used. The river
was there more than halfe a mile broad. The Castle was of a large
circumference, fourteene or fifteene foot thicke, in the foundation
some six foot from the wall, is a Pallizado, and then a Ditch of about
fortie foot broad full of water. On the west side of it, is a Towne all
of low flat houses, which as he conceived could bee of no great
strength, yet it keepes all them barbarous Countreyes about it in
admiration and subjection. After he had stayed there three dayes; it
was two dayes more before his guides brought him to Nalbrits, where
the Tymor then was resident, in a great vast stonie Castle with many
great Courts about it, invironed with high stone wals, where was
quartered their Armes, when they first subjected those Countreyes,
which only live to labour for those tyrannicall Turkes.

To her unkinde brother, this kinde Ladie writ so much for his
good usage, that hee halfe suspected, as much as she intended; for
shee told him, he should there but sojourne to learne the language,
and what it was to be a Turke, till time made her Master of her
selfe.

But the Tymor her brother, diverted all this to the worst of
crueltie, for within an houre after his arrivall, he caused his Drub-
man to strip him naked, and shave his head and beard so bare as his
hand, a great ring of iron, with a long stalke bowed like a sickle,
rivetted about his necke, and a coat made of Ulgries haire, guarded
about with a peece of an undrest skinne. There were many more
Christian slaves, and neere an hundred Forsades of Turkes and
Moores, and he being the last, was slave of slaves to them all. Among
these slavish fortunes there was no great choice; for the best was so
bad, a dog could hardly have lived to endure, and yet for all their
paines and labours no more regarded than a beast.