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Departing from Antioch we went by land to Damascus, a journey of ten days; but mid-way we came to a city named Aman in the neighbourhood of which there grows a great quantity of gossampine or cotton, and all manner of pleasant fruits. About six miles from Damascus on the declivity of a mountain is a city called Menin, inhabited by Greek christians who are subject to the governor of Damascus.
For the auoiding of which inconuenience, it was granted in the priuiledges, that no Busorman, &c. as there appeareth. In Persia in diuers places oxen and kine beare the tents and houshold stuffe of the poore men of the countrey, which haue neither camels nor horses. Of the tree which beareth Bombasin cotton, or Gossampine.
In war they use round targets of buffaloe hide, strengthened with some light bars of iron, having a wooden handle, and short broad-swords. At other times they use vestures of linen of divers colours, also of gossampine or xylon, otherwise named bomasine . In war every man carries a sling, whence he casts stones, after having whirled them frequently round his head.
He exhibits gold as proofs of the mines in those regions; Gossampine cotton, also, and aromatics, and pepper more pnngent than that from Caucasus. All these things, together with scarlet dye-woods, the earth produces spontaneously.
"Spain," says he, "is spreading her wings, augmenting her empire, and extending her name and glory to the antipodes.... Of eighteen vessels dispatched by my sovereigns with the admiral Columbus, in his second voyage to the western hemisphere, twelve have returned and have brought Gossampine cotton, huge trees of dye-wood, and many other articles held with us as precious, the natural productions of that hitherto hidden world; and besides all other things, no small quantity of gold.
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