Page 67 - Journal of Asian History_Neat

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TURK. >* I) POKTUOU E3E I'S Til?: I’ KIWI AN OULK

these regions; and that the other Arabs who lived in Basra were of tho
same kind. He assured me also that Mehmed Pasha wanted to mako
friendship only with me and that tho Turks waited in hope until I
arrived in this fortress [of Hormuz], where I would remain for threo
years. And all these matters that Hajji Fay at told mo-ho begged
that I would keep them in great secrecy.
In the time of Luis Falcao, Mehmed Pasha, the beylerbey of Basra,
ordered that a placo called Lahsa (la^aa) [situated] on the coast of
Arabia, not far from Basra, should be taken, and gave it to an Arab
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and made him tho ruler (rey)l* of it.
This Hajji Fayat asked me many times to send a factor (feilor) of
mine to Basra. This was the main thing that Mehmed Pasha had asked
me and it was what ho wished most of all; because the cafdlas and the
merchants did not want to go to Basra until they saw’ that there was a
factor of mine there. To take advice on this matter in order to do what
would be best for the service of the King, Our Lord, I summoned the
most important persons of his town (i.e., Hormuz], who were about
twenty-eight or thirty [in number]. Through the ouvydorli I requested
them to swear on the Holy Gospels that it would be advantageous for
the service of the King, Our Lord, that this factor of mine should go
to Basra and that certain t err ados which were at Hormuz should also
go to Basra. All of them declared on the oath which they took that it
would be well for a trusted man to be in Basra, one who could send me
from there all the news and whatever else might be needful, also for
the terradas to be allowed to go [to Basra]. It seems to me that it
would be [advantageous] for the service of the King, in that [the
Turks] would not be able to make any decision without my knowing
about it. Moreover, it will be possible to get news of [what is happening
at] Suez and all the other regions, for to Basra come the merchants
from all parts, more commonly from Cairo, Damascus, Birejik and
Aleppo; and inevitably there will be means of knowing what [the
Turks] are doing and what they intend to do. In addition, the Arabs
who dwell in Basra will also give me news truthfully about these
matters, because they are the enemies of the Turks.
I am sending to Basra a certain Domingos Barbudo, and he is
taking with him a letter of mine to Mehmed Pasha in response to his

19 Rey-i.opresumably the eanjak bey of Lahsa. This sanjak was latei>-in
1555—to become beyUrbeylik.
14 ouvydor-i.e., the crown judge.

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