He Urged The Zamorins Promise That The Portuguese Ships Were To
Be First Loaded; Whereas He Had Assured Information That
The Moors had
bought up great quantities of spices at lower prices, and sent them to
other places, and begged
The zamorin to consider that it was now time for
the ships to begin their voyage to Portugal, and that he anxiously wished
for dispatch. On receiving this message, the zamorin pretended to be much
surprised that our ships were still unprovided with a loading, and could
not believe that the Moors had secretly bought up and removed the spices,
contrary to his orders; and even gave permission to the general to take
those ships belonging to the Moors which were laden with spices, paying
the same prices for the spices which had been given by the Moors. This
intelligence gave much satisfaction to the Moors, as a favourable
opportunity for drawing on hostilities with the Portuguese; and,
accordingly, one of the principal Moorish merchants began immediately to
load his ship: openly with all kinds of drugs and spices, and suborned
several Moors and Indians, who pretended to be the friends of our factor,
to insinuate that he would never be able to find a sufficient loading for
our fleet, if he did not seize that ship. Correa listened to this
insidious advice, which he communicated to the general, urging him to
take that Moorish ship, as he had license from the zamorin to that effect.
The general was exceedingly unwilling to proceed to this extremity,
afraid of the influence of the Moors with the zamorin, and of producing
hostilities with the natives.
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