reason why we may not as well trade from place to place as the natives of other countries; for all nations may and do come freely to Ormus, as Frenchmen, Flemings, Germans, Hungarians, Italians, Greeks, Armenians, Nazarenes, Turks, Moors, Jews, and Gentiles, Persians, and Muscovites.  In short, there is no nation they seek to trouble, but only ours; wherefore it were contrary to all justice and reason that they should suffer all nations to trade with them, and forbid us.  Now indeed I have as great liberty as those of any other nation, except it be to leave the country, which as yet I desire not.  But hereafter, and I think ere long, if I shall be desirous to go from hence, that they will not refuse me licence.  Before we were suffered to come out of prison, I was forced to put in sureties for 2000 pardaos, not to depart from hence without licence of the viceroy; and except this, we have now as much liberty as any one, for I have got back our goods, and have taken a house in the chiefest street called the Rue drette, where we sell our goods.

There were two causes which moved the captain of Ormus to imprison us, and afterwards to send us to Goa.  The first was because Michael Stropene had most falsely accused us of many matters.  The other was, because when Mr Drake was at the Molucca islands, he caused two pieces of cannon to be fired at a Portuguese galeon belonging to the king, at least so they allege.  But of these things I did not know when at Ormus.  In the same ship which brought us to Goa, came the chief justice of Ormus, called the veedor general of that place, who had been there three years, so that his time was expired.  This veedor is a great friend to the captain of Ormus, and sent for me into his chamber, one day after coming here to Goa, and began to demand many things at me, to which I made answers.  Among other things, he said that Mr Drake had been sent out of England with many ships, and had gone to Molucca where he loaded cloves, and finding a Portuguese galeon there belonging to the king, had shot two pieces of his great ordnance against her.  Perceiving this grieved them much, I asked if they meant to be revenged on me for what had been done by Mr Drake:  To which he answered no; though his meaning was yes.

He said moreover, that the captain of Ormus had sent me to Goa, that the viceroy might learn the news from me respecting Don Antonio, and whether he were in England or not; and that it might possibly be all for the best my being sent hither; which I trust in God may so fall out, though contrary to his expectation and intention:  For, if it had not pleased God to influence the minds of the archbishop, and two padres or Jesuits of the college of St Paul, to stand our friends, we might have rotted in prison.  The archbishop is a very good man, who has two young men in his service, one called Bernard Borgers born in Hamburgh, and the other named John Linscot[434], a native of Enkhuysen, who did us especial service; for by them the archbishop was often reminded of our case.  The two good fathers who laboured so much for us were padre Mark, a native of Bruges in Flanders, and padre Thomas Stevens[435], born in Wiltshire in England.  I chanced likewise to fall in with here a young man, Francis de Rea, who was born in Antwerp, but was mostly brought up in London, with whom I became acquainted in Aleppo, who also has done me much service.