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18 HISTORY OF THE INDIAN NAVY.

near the sands of Swally, for Downton adhered to his resohition
of not commencing hostilities. The fleet crossed the Gulf to
the road of Gogo, where they burnt one hundred and twenty
trading boats, and several ships, of which one was the ' Rehemy,'
at tliis time the largest in the Indian seas ; after this the soldiers
landed and destroyed several villages, but Gogo, being walled,
was safe. The news of this devastation arrived at Surat on
the 16th of December, and renewed the suspicion of Mocrib
Khan that the English were in league with the Portuguese,
because they had not fired on their ships as they passed.
Before their return, Captain Downton weighed from Swally,
and anchored off the bar of Surat, in order to protect the
communication of his boats with the city. The roadstead is
seven miles from the shore ; and everywhere along the coast
are sands, which afford refuge to vessels of light draught
against the approach of heavy ships, of which the "frigates"
availed themselves, anchoring much nearer the shore, from
whence they chased, even into the river, every boat which
appeared, either coming in or going out, whilst others cruised
around without let or hindrance. On several nights some bore
down, as if they intended to set the English ships on fire,
"which," says Orme, " were kept in continual alerts, either of
guard, defence, or chase, with very little detriment done or
received, until the 29th, when Captain Downton, finding that
he could not prevent the cruises of the ' frigates ' at the mouth
of the river, returned to Swally." On the l(5th of January, a
second fleet of nearly forty sail appeared from the south, and,
joining those already at the bar, went in company into the
river to get water, and came out on the following day. Within
forty-eight hours there arrived a further reinforcement of nine
ships, which were followed by two galleys.
The crews of the Portuguese Marine* in India were composed
* What the naval power of the Portuguese in the East was in those days, may
he gathered from the "Life of Albuquerque," and from an interesting record of
a Portuguese expedition to the Eed Sea, which may be found in the " Log-book
of Joao de Castro." This Portuguese admiral sailed, in January, 1541, from
Goa with seventy-two sail, including twelve ships of war of gi'eat size, aud two
tliousand picked soldiers, for the purpose of punishing the Turks who, four years
before, had captured Aden and laid siege to the Portuguese settlement at Diu,
but were repulsed by Governor Silveira. Joao de Castro was completely suc-
cessful, aud having visited Socotra, Aden, Massowah, Suakim, Toro, near Mount
Sinai (which he visited), and Suez, arrived at Goa on the 21st of July, after an
absence of seven months and twenty-one days. The original Log-book was sent
to his family, but a fair copy, accompanied by drawings, he sent to his patron,
tlie Infante Dora Luiz, at Lisbon, and on the accession of Cardinal Henry in
1578, it was deposited as a national heirloom in the library of the University of
Evora. This invaluable work, however, disappeared, but a Portuguese professor.
Dr. Carvalho, in 1828, while examining the catalogue of Cottoniau MSS. in the
British Museum (called after the donor. Sir R. Bruce Cotton), discovered this
copy, consisting of sixty folios with fifteen drawings, of which a transcript was
published in Paris in 1833. The first notice of tlie Red Sea, derived from otlier
than ancient records, made its appearance at Venice in 1538, but it only con-