After having informed me of these things, they carried me with them to the ship; the captain received me with great kindness, when they told him what had befallen me.  He put out again to sea, and after some days’ sail, we arrived at the harbour of a great city, the houses of which were built with hewn stone.

One of the merchants who had taken me into his friendship invited me to go along with him, and carried me to a place appointed for the accommodation of foreign merchants.  He gave me a large bag, and having recommended me to some people of the town, who used to gather cocoa-nuts, desired them to take me with them.  “Go,” said he, “follow them, and act as you see them do, but do not separate from them, otherwise you may endanger your life.”  Having thus spoken, he gave me provisions for the journey, and I went with them.

We came to a thick forest of cocoa-trees, very lofty, with trunks so smooth that it was not possible to climb to the branches that bore the fruit.  When we entered the forest we saw a great number of apes of several sizes, who fled as soon as they perceived us, and climbed up to the top of the trees with surprising swiftness.

The merchants with whom I was, gathered stones and threw them at the apes on the trees.  I did the same, and the apes out of revenge threw cocoa-nuts at us so fast, and with such gestures, as sufficiently testified their anger and resentment.  We gathered up the cocoa-nuts, and from time to time threw stones to provoke the apes; so that by this stratagem we filled our bags with cocoa-nuts, which it had been impossible otherwise to have done.

When we had gathered our number, we returned to the city, where the merchant, who had sent me to the forest, gave me the value of the cocoas I brought:  “Go on,” said he, “and do the like every day, until you have got money enough to carry you home.”  I thanked him for his advice, and gradually collected as many cocoa-nuts as produced me a considerable sum.

The vessel in which I had come sailed with some merchants, who loaded her with cocoa-nuts.  I expected the arrival of another, which anchored soon after for the like loading.  I embarked in her all the cocoa-nuts I had, and when she was ready to sail, took leave of the merchant who had been so kind to me; but he could not embark with me, because he had not finished his business at the port.

We sailed towards the islands, where pepper grows in great plenty.  From thence we went to the isle of Comari, where the best species of wood of aloes grows, and whose inhabitants have made it an inviolable law to themselves to drink no wine, and suffer no place of debauch.  I exchanged my cocoa in those two islands for pepper and wood of aloes, and went with other merchants a pearl-fishing.  I hired divers, who brought me up some that were very large and pure.  I embarked in a vessel that happily arrived at Bussorah; from thence I returned to Bagdad, where I made vast sums of my pepper, wood of aloes, and pearls.  I gave the tenth of my gains in alms, as I had done upon my return from my other voyages, and endeavoured to dissipate my fatigues by amusements of different kinds.