That He Should Touch At Melinda, To Land
The Ambassador Who Had Been Brought From Thence By De Gama, Together With
A Present For The King Of That Place.
Along with this fleet, the king
sent five friars of the order of St Francis, of whom Fra Henrique was
vicar, who was afterwards bishop _Siebta_, and who was to remain in the
factory to preach the Catholic faith to the Malabars[3].
The fleet being in full readiness, the king went in procession, on Sunday
the 7th of March 1500, to hear mass at the monastery of Belem,
accompanied by the captain-general, whom he took along with himself
behind the curtain in the royal seat, to do him the more honour. After
mass, Don Diego Ortis, bishop of Viseu, preached a sermon, in which he
gave high praise to Cabral for undertaking the command of this expedition,
as serving not only the king his temporal master, but the eternal GOD his
spiritual Lord, drawing many comparisons in his favour from the Grecian
and Roman histories. Mass being ended, a banner of the royal arms of
Portugal was delivered to the bishop, who solemnly blessed it, and
returned it to the king, who delivered it to Cabral, that it might be
displayed at his main-top. The bishop then, gave a bonnet to the general,
which had been blessed by the pope, and placed a rich jewel with his own
hands on his head, and gave him his blessing. When these ceremonies were
ended, the king accompanied the captain-general to the water side, where
he and the other captains of the fleet took leave of the king, kissing
his hands, the king giving them Gods blessing and his own; after which
all went on board, and the whole fleet saluted the king by discharging
all the ordnance of all the ships: But the wind being foul, the fleet
could not depart that day, and the king returned to Lisbon.
Next day, being the 9th of May 1500, having a fair wind, the fleet
weighed by signal from the general, and set sail at eight in the
morning[4]. "_The whole fleete having wayed, did then begin to cut and
spread their sayles with great pleasure and crie, saieng altogether_, Buen
viage, _that is to say, a luckie and prosperous voyage. After all this,
they beganne all to be joyfull, every man to use his severall office: The
gunners in the midst of the ship, hailing the maine sheets with the
capsteine: The mariners and ship boys, some in the forecastell haling
bollings, braces, and martnets: Others belying the sheets both great and
small, and also serving in trimming the sayles, and others the nettings
and foretop sayles: Other some vering the trusses, and also beleying
brases and toppe sayle sheets, and coyling every sort of ropes. It was
wonderful to see such a number of diversities of offices in so small a
roome, as is the bredth and length of a ship_."
Going on their voyage with a quarter wind, they came in sight of the
Canaries on the 14th of March, and passed St Jago on the 22d. On the 24th
of the same month, the caravel commanded by Vasco de Tayde parted company,
and was never seen afterwards[5]. After waiting two days for the missing
ship, the fleet proceeded on its voyage, and on the 24th of April, came
in sight of land.
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