Page 46 - History of Portuguese in the Gulf_Neat

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Ixxxvi INTRODUCTION.
who was there, having completed his time.”1 At the
beginning of May, 1600, we also learn from Couto
(Dec. XII, Liv. IV, cap. xiii), there left Goa “ the galleon
that was going with the provisions for the fortresses of
Amboino and Maluco, as captain of which went Fcrnfto
Pereira de Sande.2 And before this he [the Viceroy] had
sent two galliots as reinforcements to Malaca, on account
of the news that he had had of Dutch ships; and as
captains of these there went Estevao de Albuquerque, a
natural son of Fernflo de Albuquerque, and Trajano
Rodrigues de Castcllo-branco. The Count Admiral also
in this April dispatched Fernao de Albuquerque, to go
and enter on the captaincy of Malaca,3 who went in a ship
of his; and in his company went the ships for Malaca,
China, and other parts, all of which arrived in safety
except only the galleon for Maluco, which was lost, as
I shall relate farther on.”4 Again, in Liv. v, cap. viii, of
the same Decade, Couto says:—“ In the past April the
Count Admiral received word from the parts about Malaca
that there had come to the coasts of Java those ships from
Holland of which we have given an account in the second
chapter ;5 and being fearful of the injuries they might
cause, both to the commerce of India and to the trade of
Portugal, if they should load drugs, as well as by the
capture of the ships of our merchants that might be sailing
1 Again there is some error : as stated above (pp. 52, 55), Francisco
da Silva de Menczes was succeeded at the end of 1597 as captain of
Malacca by Martini Aflfonso de Mello Coutinho. (Valentyn adds to
the confusion by stating, in his Malakka., p. 328, that the captain in
1598 was “ Roch de Mello Pereira.”)
2 He commanded one of the two ships captured by the Dutch at
Tidore in 1605 (see Valentyn, Molukscc Zaaken, pp. 213, 214).
3 He apparently succeeded Martim Afibnso de Mello Coutinho, and
held the post until September 1st, 1603, when he was replaced by
Andre Furtado dc Mendoga (Valentyn, Malakka, p. 329).
4 Death prevented Couto from fulfilling this promise.
3 See supra, p. Ixxvii.
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INTRODUCTION. I xx xv if
for those parts, and above all by the alteration that might
take place in the kings neighbouring to our fortress of
Malaca; because, as they arc Moors, our enemies, and
every time that they deserved it the Portuguese smashed
their snouts for them,1 it was certain they would try a
change ; and the Hollanders, as rebels, would solicit this,
being the first to come out to those parts r therefore he
resolved to send a fleet of two galleons and three galliots
to join there the two that he had sent in the* past May,3
and nominated as captain-major of this fleet Goterrc dc
Monroy de Bdja; and with the preparation of this fleet
the Count ordered great speed to be made, because it was
necessary for it to set sail in September.” Accordingly wc
are told, towards the end of the same chapter, that “ with
much enthusiasm the fleet for Malaca set sail on the day
of S. Jeronymo, which is the last of September, consisting
of two galleons, in one of which went the captain-major,
and in the other D. Alvaro da Costa, son of D. Francisco
da Costa, and three galliots, the captains of which were
Pero Fernandes de Carvalho, Filippe dc Oliveira, and
Maximiliano de Mendoga.”
As we have seen above, Pedro Teixcira left Malacca in
May, 1600, for the Philippines, in a pinnace dispatched by
Martin Affonso de Mello to warn the governor of those
islands of the increasing number of Dutch ships that
continued to arrive in those waters. In addition to those
I have mentioned above, there left Holland, in 1600 and
1601, for the Malay Archipelago, four fleets comprising
1 “ L/ies quebrdram os focinhos.•” a brutal vulgarity of diction
uncommon to Couto.
2 This is not strictly correct, the English having preceded the
Dutch in visiting “ those parts” ; but the latter were the first to
systematise their voyages, and carry them out on a large scale.
3 See supra.