want of wind.  Next Monday, being the 7th of February, the fleet arrived at Melinda.  The king immediately sent off his congratulations to the general on his arrival, with a present of fresh provisions.  De Gama sent Fernan Martinez on shore to return the compliments of the king, to whom he sent a present.  On account of the great number of sick on board, the fleet stopped here for ten days, during which time he caused a land-mark to be erected on shore, with leave of the king, as a token of friendship.  Having provided provisions and water for the ships at this place, he departed on the morning of Wednesday the 17th of February, taking with him an ambassador from the king of Melinda, to negotiate a treaty of perpetual peace and friendship with the king of Portugal.

Considering that there were not sufficient men remaining for navigating all the ships, the general and the other captains agreed to burn one of them, and the San Rafael was chosen to be sacrificed, because she was all open, and had not been brought aground at Anchediva when the other two were repaired.  Accordingly, after taking out all her stores and merchandize, which employed them during five days, she was burnt at certain shoals, called the Shoals of St Raphael[73].  During these five days, the fleet procured a considerable quantity of hens from a village on the coast called Tangata.  Leaving this place, the two remaining ships came on the 20th February to the island of Zenziber, which is in six degrees of S. latitude, at ten leagues distance from the continent.  This is a considerable island, having other two in its neighbourhood, one called Pemba, and the other Moyfa.  These islands are very fertile, having abundance of provisions, and great quantities of oranges.  The inhabitants are Moors, who are by no means warlike and have few weapons, but are well clothed in silk, and cotton vestments, which they purchase at Mombaza from the merchants of Cambaya.  The women are ornamented with jewels of gold and silver, the former being procured at Sofala, and the latter from the island of St Lawrence, or Madagascar.  Each of these three islands has a separate king, who, with all their subjects, are of the Mahometan religion.

When the king of the island of Zenziber was informed of the arrival of our ships, he sent immediately to compliment the general, accompanied with great presents of the fruits and other productions of the country, and requested his friendship, to which the general gladly agreed and sent suitable answers.  After remaining here eight days for refreshments, the general departed on the 1st of March, and came to anchor beside the isle of St George in the bay of Mozambique.  Next day he caused a mark to be erected on this island, where he went on shore and heard mass; and departed thence without any intercourse with the inhabitants of Mozambique.  On the 3d of March, he came to the island of St Blas, where the ships remained for some time to take in water, and to provide a stock