One of the merchants of the ship, who had taken me into his
friendship, asked me to go along with him, and took me to a place
appointed as a retreat for foreign merchants. He gave me a great
bag, and having recommended me to some people of the town, who were
used to gather cocoa-nuts, he desired them to take me with them to
do the like: 'Go,' said he, 'follow them, and do as you see them
do, and do not separate from them, otherwise you endanger your
life.' Having thus spoken, he gave me provisions for the journey,
and I went with them.
We came to a great forest of trees, extremely straight and tall,
their trunks so smooth that it was not possible for any man to
climb up to the branches that bore the fruit. All the trees were
cocoa-nut trees, and when we entered the forest we saw a great
number of apes of all sizes, that 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 top of the trees. I did the same, and the apes, out
of revenge, threw cocoa-nuts at us as 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 for us to do otherwise.
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