Page 49 - Early English Adventurers in the Middle East_Neat

HOW LANCASTER INITIATED EASTERN TRADE 49

the men under his command, appealed to the instinctive
love of manliness which exists deep down in the Malay
mind. There was, too, a community of sentiment in sport,
which peeped out when, as often happened, the prince and
his guest foregathered over a display of cock-fighting,
which is the national pastime of the Malays. So that when
the English commander approached the King with a request
that he would take measures to detain the Portuguese
ambassador until the English ships had got well clear of the
port he met with a prompt acquiescence in his scheme.
" Well,” said the King, and laughed, “ thou must bring
me a fair Portugall maiden when thou returnest and then
I am pleased.”
No time was lost by Lancaster in putting his plans into
execution. A few days later he was at sea, on the look-out
for a big Portuguese galleon of whose likely advent he had
news from friends in port. She duly appeared on the scene
on about the day expected, October 3, making a gallant
sight as, with all sails set, she came with a favouring wind
down the Straits. The English fleet, immediately on
sighting her, stood across to her and on getting into range
commenced to fire. The fight was hot until a volley from
the Red Dragon brought down the galleon’s mainmast
and put her out of action. She proved to be an exceedingly
rich prize of 900 tons—one of the largest ships sailing the
seas in those days. Her holds were stuffed full of mer­
chandise of all descriptions, and there was found on her
besides much valuable loot in the shape of jewels and plate
and miscellaneous property. The riches were so extensive,
indeed, as almost to be embarrassing. When the holds of
the four ships had been filled to the last corner there was
still left a residue sufficiently large to cause Lancaster much
D