Duarte Pacheco Pereira

“E canta como lá se embarcariaEm Belém o remédio deste dano,Sem saber o que em si ao mar traria,O grão Pacheco, Aquiles Lusitano.O peso sentirão, quando entraria,O curvo lenho e o férvido Oceano,Quando mais n' água os troncos que gemeremContra sua natureza se meterem.”

“Whoever enters this river [Rio dos Forcados] will find that it branches to the right and to the left; five leagues up the left branch is a place of barter, which consists chiefly of slaves and cotton cloths, with some panther skins, palm-oil and some blue shells with red stripes which they call "coris." These and other things we buy there for brass and copper bracelets; they are all valuable at the castle of S. Jorze da Mina, where the King's factor sells them to the negro merchants for gold.”

“The kingdom of Beny...is usually at war with its neighbours and takes many captives, whom we buy at twelve or fifteen brass bracelets each, or for copper bracelets which they prize more; from there the slaves are brought to the castle of S. Jorze da Mina where they are sold for gold. The way of life of these people is full of abuses and witchcraft and idolatry, which for brevity's sake I omit.”

“E alem do que dito he, ha experiencia, que he madre das cousas, nos desengana e de toda duuida nos tira.”