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HISTORY OF THE INDIAN NAVY. 71

and sent an ambassador to Bombay to propose an alliance
against the Imperial Government ; but the negotiations ended
abortively.
Taking advantage of the disturbed state of affairs, pirates
swarmed along the Malabar coast, and even had the temerity to
attack one of the largest ships of the Company, when they met
with so warm a reception as to discourage any attempt at
repetition. Early in 1683, the 'President,' Captain Hyde,
who had commanded her in the action with the Dutch fleet at
Metchlepatam, arrived on the Malabar coast, and, proceeding to
Bombay, was attacked by two ships and four grabs. Three of
the latter grappled, when the crew of one boarded, but were
beaten off, and the grab itself sunk close alongside. On getting
clear of the other grabs, she maintained so hot and well-
directed a fire that one of them blew up so near that the tlasli
scorched many of the ' President's ' men on the lower deck, and
set her on lire in several places. Soon after, the other grab was
also sunk, on which the remainder of the squadron sailed away.
Of the floating men, some cut the ' President's' long-boat from
her stern, and others were received into the ship. ]\lost of thetii
were Arabs, and all the fleet hailed from Muscat ; they pretended
to have mistaken the 'President' for a Portuguese shi[) which they
were waiting for, but it was afterwards discovered at Rajahporc
that they had all been hired by Sambhajee. The ' President'
had eleven men killed and thirt3'-five wounded, and was obliged
to put into Goa to repair her damages. As soon as this affair
was known at Bombay, an envoy was sent to Kairee ;* but
Sambhajee denied any knowledge or complicity in the attaek.f
About this time the Company despatched from England, on
a trading speculation to Mocha, Bussorah, and Gombroon, the
' Dragon,' of 180 tons, carrying eighteen guns ; and, in the
following year, sent a squadron of armed ships to the East under
Sir Thomas Grantham, who was also invested with the king's
commission, with orders to proceed, in the first instance, to
Java, and thence to the l\n-sian Gulf, in order to demand pay-
ment of the arrears of Customs due from the Persian monarch,
computed at thirty thousand tomans, agreeably to the treaty
concluded when the Company's ships expelled the Portuguese
from Ormuz ; and, in default of payment, he was directed to
seize the Persian ships as prize, the amount realised being-
carried to the credit of the treasin-y at Surat.
During this same year(l()8;)) Bombay was cx])osed to danger
from a source where it might least have been expected. Cajitain
Richard Keigwin, commanding the Company's garrison at Bom-
bay, in conjunction with the other military ofiicers, seized Mr.
* The rcniuins of the stroug fort of Rairee, or Raree, still fonu a cou^picuous
object fiom seaward.
t Oriue's " Historical Fragments," p. 120.