ABSTRACT

In 1608 English merchants had received permission to settle for trade; they built a factory and in 1618 established the hierarchy and precedence of their community, the chief of the company taking the title of President in imitation of the Dutch. European travellers found the customs examination a tedious ordeal. Every trunk, box and parcel had to be opened and sometimes shoes and hats were removed and peered into. The customs officials wandered about with a retinue of black slaves carrying whips to dissuade intending smugglers. The ocean-going European merchantmen anchored at the port of Swally. The extravagance of European costume, the ruffs "of twelve, yea sixteen lengths, set three or four times double", the slashed silks and heavy folds of lace, always impressed Indians with awe. The English might extend to their Dutch rivals a faint cordiality that they denied to other Europeans but they seldom troubled to learn their language.