_ 503 _ testimonies those Ormuz and Goa are not to be believed: that wood needed for galleys, masts and oars, passed through Tripoli. Given the rocky (sic) route as far as Bira, it would demand considerable effort and expense and would require a great many people. It was his mission to discover this secret and, come what may, it had to be known here. Nor was it to be believed that the Turk had 24 galleys built in Suez, all rotting in the dockyard, when they could easily sail to Basra, if it was expedient for them to have a fleet there. The idea that they should want to become involved in fresh and additional expense, and in such a difficult, slow and almost impossible task as that of transporting wood to that other location and while failing to make good use of those they had built in Suez, opting to spend more time on those that were to be built in Basra, when it was easier for them to find sailors in Sues and the wherewithal for such an undertaking, transcends the bounds of good sense. Thus, there was no need to open the seven-league canal between the Euphrates and the Tigris. They say that through their skill and industry, the enemy will give greater credibility to their claims, but by doing this they make them ridiculous, because reports of this nature are fibs to be told to children.
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