This Night The Viceroy Gained Much Ground Upon Us, And By This
Time We Had Got A Good Way From The Coast, And Had Advanced Well To The
Southwards, So That I Was Now Satisfied The Portuguese Forces Could Not
This Year Give Any Annoyance To Surat.
I considered that my purposes in
these parts, both by the authority of my king, and to fulfil the
Designs
of my employers, were, in merchant ships, fitted indeed for defence, to
seek honest commerce, without striving to injure any; wherefore I held
it fit for me to proceed soberly and discreetly, neither basely to flee
from the enemy, nor to tempt danger by proudly seeking it, if it might
be honourably avoided. The viceroy was quite differently situated. He
had been sent by his master with the principal ships of all India, and
all the gallants and braggarts of these parts, not only to disturb and
intercept the peaceable trade of the English with the subjects of the
Mogul, but to take and burn them in the harbours of that great king. The
viceroy was furnished with abundance of all things the country could
afford, and only wanted an upright cause. He found what he was in search
of, - four poor merchant ships, having few men, many being dead, and more
sick; and these bragadocios, measuring our hearts by their own, thought
we could never stand against what they esteemed so superior a force;
and, seeing their intent, I baited my hook, which the fish presently ran
after.
The Hope, being heavily laden, was in tow of the Hector, and being
sternmost, three of the Portuguese ships, and thirty or forty of their
frigates, as I had expected, boarded her with the flower of all their
chivalry. But, by the hand of God, and to their great amazement, they
received such a blow that few of them escaped, and these by
extraordinary chance, and three of their ships were burnt.[130] Thus it
pleased God to baffle this their first assault. Ever after, though they
beleaguered us round about for many days together, with all sorts of
ships, our people still in action, and sadly worn out with continual
labour, even shifting goods from ship to ship in that time, yet did they
never gain from us even the value of a louse in all that time, except
our bullets, which we most willingly gave them roundly, their fire-boats
always failing, and nothing prospering in all their efforts. For many
days together I sent the viceroy a defiance once every twenty-four
hours, which must needs lie heavy on the stomach of so courageous a
gentleman. Craving pardon for this digression, I now proceed with my
narrative.
[Footnote 130: I strongly suspect this to be a mere recapitulation of
what happened in Swally roads, as already related, as this second attack
on the Hope by the Portuguese is entirely omitted by Elkington and
Dodsworth. - E.]
The 6th, in the morning, I sent for my master, letting him know that I
proposed, when the viceroy should come up near us, to cast about and
charge him suddenly, that we might strike unexpected terror in his
people, who now bragged us, seeing us flee before them.
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