278	SECOND VISIT TO BANTAM          book iii
	town in their gardens. During these twenty days M. Cant, one of the Councillors of India, died, and was buried with great honour. A company of infantry attended and bore a large standard, upon which were the arms of the deceased, although when he first came to India he held the lowest office in the vessel. A stick, to the end of which spurs were attached, was borne behind, though, to say the truth, I do not believe he had ever mounted a horse save to go for exercise outside the town. One of the captains carried his sword, another his helmet, and his body was borne by eight mili­tary officers. The son-in-law of the deceased followed with the General; after whom walked the gentlemen of the Council; a number of people followed from the fort and town. The four corners of the pall with which the bier was covered were carried by four captains, and all these honours were rendered to him in consideration of the good services which the Company had received from him—as the General and members of the Council proclaimed ; but the people used very different language, and complained bitterly of the great injustice he had done, both to sailors and soldiers. Having passed these twenty days at Batavia, I resolved to carry back the dagger to the King of Bantam, without having looked for the diamonds or other stones, for if I had remained years I should not have found any suitable for these bezels. My brother accompanied me again, and I took with me some jewels which the King had not yet seen. On our arrival at Bantam we intended to go first to visit the English President, but, before we had done so, one of the King's officers came to us, and told us that he had been instructed that we should be lodged in one of the King's houses in the town. These houses are made of bamboos, which are, as I have elsewhere said, hollow canes, and though they are as hard as iron, nevertheless split like our osiers, and it is of them that the Indians make nearly everything. We had not spent more than half an hour in this house when the King sent us some pateches,1 which are very sweet water­melons, and red as scarlet inside. There were also mangoes, 1 More properly pateca, a water-melon, CitrvMus vulgaris (Schrader). The name is from the Arabic al-bittikh. (Yule, Hobwn-Jobaon, 684 f.)