Page 32 - History of Portuguese in the Gulf_Neat

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lvi INTRODUCTION.
ships, which he at once recognised, wherefore he turned back
until he sighted the rest of the fleet, when he dispatched a balilox
to Francisco da Silva de Menezes, with a message advising him
that they were the ships of the Hollanders [English.'] The latter,
as soon as they saw the ship of Jo&o Gomes Fayo, went towards
her with great boldness.
On the arrival of the balcLo with the message, Francisco da
Silva de Menezes assembled in his ship all the captains and the
others, and told them the news, and asked them what ought to
be done. The tidings caused great perturbation in some, and
the ships began to get out of hand, and some persons besought
Francisco da Silva de Menezes that they should return to
Malaca, that the wind would serve them to go thither, and that
they should not risk going to India, because the enemy would be
sure to keep following after them and annoying them the whole
way ; and in consequence of our people being disordered, it was
certain that they would go on capturing those ships one by one.
In the midst of this murmuring, which was great, there were not
wanting men who were lovers of honour, who intervened, and
said to Francisco da Silva de Menezes that not only could they I of our ships damaged them in many parts, and made holes in
fight the ships, but with their boats alone could capture and
destroy them: that he should go forward, and God would give
him victory. On this, and weighing well the fact that the enemy
might overtake them before they reached Malaca, they prepared
to fight the enemy.2
Our ships had come to an anchor, and in front of all that of
Joao Gomes Fayo, which had already retired before the bom­
bardings of the enemy, who, seeing our fleet, concluded that it
was all one of merchants, in which they would find much profit
and little danger : they determined therefore to attack them, and
did so, coming on dressed with many white flags and beautiful
banners, and came sailing up to our ships, and cast anchor next
that of Jo2o Gomes Fayo. One of our ships let fly at them with
an espera,s which hit one of the enemy’s ships, and caused it
considerable damage, at which they hauled down their white
1 A kind of rowing boat (see Hobso?i-Jobson, s.v. H Baloon, Balloon”).
The word is in common use in Ceylon under the form “ ballam.”
2 Faria y Sousa, in narrating this incident, says :—“ Although the
two Dutch ships did not have good fortune, their commanders began
with it: for, although our ships were six, they were so afraid of them,
that they almost agreed to return to port: and they would have done
so, if four men, who either were carrying no goods or esteemed them
less than honour, had not opposed it. So much is the holder inspired
with fear by what he guards, or the guardian by what he holds”
(Asia Portuguesa> tom. Ill, Pt. II, cap. i).
3 Correctly, esphera or esferu, which was the name of a kind of
cannon.
INTRODUCTION. Ivn
flags, and hoisted others of silk, as if they were happy to have
that battle: and then began a furious play of bombard-shots, of
which the ship of Joao Gomes Fayo received the greater part,
who, however, answered it with another very fair salvo, remaining
all the time in the waist and directing the working of the guns. •i
The other ships also replied very well to them, and thus a very
stiff engagement was carried on, which lasted from sunset, when
it began, until eight o’clock at night. And from that time until l
morning was spent by our people in making preparations, for ;
they were determined to fight and to board those ships, having
now plucked up more courage; and this they did, sailing in very
good order, and the enemy attacking them here and there on the
flanks; and so for eight days continuously they went on in this j
manner . fighting furiously, the enemy by their lightness escaping
being boarded by our ships. In all the ships there was some
damage, and persons wounded ; and in that of Francisco da
Silva de Menezes, a shot penetrated to the cabin where were his
wife and daughters, and killed one who was the elder and two !
female slaves. The enemy did not go scot-free, for the ordnance
their sides, which gave them much trouble. They determined to
board the ship of Luiz de Mendoza, which seemed best suited
for their purpose, and came at her, but our ships came to her
assistance and fell upon those of the enemy, doing no little
damage, fustigating them with the ordnance and the arquebus
fire in such a way that they made them desist.
At this time there occurred a disaster, which was the catching
fire of the powder that was in the waist of the enemy’s admiral,
which wrought great havoc, burning many, and caused them to
retire, practically demolished. Joao Gomes Fayo wished to advise
those at Malaca of that affair, and dispatched as messenger a
soldier named Antonio Lopes de Almeida, with a letter of his,
and another from Francisco da Silva de Menezes for the captain,
in which they gave him an account of how they had got on, and
of what had happened so far. Our fleet then proceeded on its
way to Cochim.1 The captain of Malaca, as soon as Antonio
Lopes de Almeida arrived with these letters, from which he learnt
what had happened, at once dispatched two very light baldes to find
out in what latitude the Dutch [English] ships lay. These baldes
went as far as Pulobotum2 without obtaining news of them ; and,
1 At the end of the next chapter Couto tells us that at Cannanore
“ D. Diogo Coutinho, captain-major of Cape Comorim, collected the
ships that we have spoken of from Malaca, which fought with the
Hollanders [EfiglisJi], and those from Bengala, and vessels from the
coast of Coromandel, and with a large cafila set out for Goa, where he
arrived safely with all a little after the 15th of May.”
the north-west coast of the Malay Peninsu a.
2 Pulo Butung, on