On Leaving Mozambique, De Gama Sailed For
Quiloa, Having Orders To Reduce The King Of That Place To Become
Tributary, As A Punishment For His Unfriendly Conduct Towards Cabral.
On
his arrival in that port, Ibrahim the king came on board to visit the
admiral, afraid of being called to account for the injuries he had done
to Cabral.
De Gama, knowing that he was not to be trusted, threatened to
make him a prisoner under the hatches, if he did not immediately agree to
pay tribute to the king of Portugal[4]. The king from fear engaged to pay
2000 miticals of gold yearly, and gave one Mehemed Aleones, a principal
man among the Moors whom he hated, as an hostage for the payment. The
reason of his dislike to Mehemed was this: Ibrahim was himself an usurper,
having seized the government in prejudice to the right heir, and was
afraid that Mehemed intended to dethrone him. When the king found himself
at liberty, in consequence of this arrangement, he refused to send the
promised tribute, in hope that De Gama might put the hostage to death, by
which means he might get rid of his enemy: But the Moor, on finding the
tribute did not come, was fain to pay the same himself, by which means he
procured his own liberty. While at Quiloa, the fleet was joined by the
squadron of five ships under Stephen de Gama.
Leaving Quiloa, De Gama proceeded with the whole fleet for Melinda, where
he took in water and visited the king[5]. Going from thence for India,
and being arrived off Mount Dely, to the north of Cananor, he met a ship
belonging to the Moors of Mecca, and bound for Calicut, which was taken
by our men after a stout resistance[6]. When the ship surrendered, De
Gama went on board and commanded the owners and all the principal Moors
to come before him, whom he ordered to produce all their goods on pain of
being thrown overboard.
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