56 EH. D. Maclagan—Jesuit Missions to the Emperor Akbar. [No. 1, 
It appears that the Provincial at Goa obtained verbally from Mon- 
serrat a less hopeful report, and again recalled Aquaviva, but again without 
success. From March 1582, onwards therefore, Aquaviva was alone at 
the Court. His zeal was thereby only increased. Attempts’were made 
on his life but he refused to have a guard. He set himself to study 
Persian so as to be able to converse freely with the Emperor. He 
prayed long and earnestly for the success of his mission. He fasted 
rigorously and shut himself up in his house, practising the most severe 
austerities. The conduct of. the Emperor meantime’ caused him much 
disappointment, and there seem alsoto have been other special troubles, 
which led the Father to wish more and more for his recall. The follow- 
ing letter,! written on the 27th September 1582, affords the only original 
account of this stage of the mission which we possess. It is addressed 
to Father Ruy Vincente, the Provincial at Goa, and runs as follows :— 
‘You are already informed by other letters of mine that a learned man 
called Mx? (whom Father Monserrat calls by another name), a self-sufficient 
doctor, told me that he wished to become a Christian, and things went so far 
that the Emperor hearing of it gave his permission. But from what I un, 
derstand of him, it was not his intention to embrace Christianity here, but 
if he did so it would be in a Christian country. He said that the Emperor 
in these embroilments with Domingo Pires’ very imprudently betrays all 
those who wish to be Christians, being by nature unable to keep anything 
to himself, but that it might give edification if a man of such consideration 
and follower of Muhammad should desire to embrace Christianity. It 
seems to me much to be regretted that it was ever made public, as he dissim- 
ulates and does not converse with me as formerly. I write nothing fur- 
ther to Your Reverence concerning this man, for I doubt if he has any voca- 
tion, and there are many things about him that do not please me. Time 
will show what is to be expected of him. 
‘A few days after the trouble with the Emperor because of Domingo 
Pires, one of the principal chiefs came from Bengal, a very learned man, a 
follower of the Safis, and knowing something of philosophy. The Emperor 
sent for me and told me in secret to converse with him, as perhaps he might 
become a Christian. The Emperor said I was the Father of whom he had 
spoken, and bade us converse together, which we did. He showed himself 
very conformable to our doctrine, as do all the Safis, but the most of them do 
not believe in Christianity and are hypocrites, who only feign conversion. 
‘The Emperor brings confusion into the Court by the many novelties 
daily introduced: among other things, the giving praise to creatures as the 
1 Marsd. MSS. Brit. Mus. 9854. 
2 Sic in MS. 
3 The interpreter to the mission, see p. 48 above. We do not know what em- 
broilments are referred to, possibly they were connected with the marriage described 
later on in this letter. 
