PORTUGUESE HISTORY OF MALACCA. 131 



conquest of Malacca, during all which time he kept up a secret 

 correspondence with the Javan Malays who inhabited that 

 city. Several of his ships were equal in size to the largest 

 Portuguese galleons, and the one destined for himself was 

 larger than any ships then built by the Europeans. Having 

 completed his preparations, he embarked with 12,000 men 

 and a formidable train of artillery, and appeared suddenly 

 before the city. Ferdin\ando Perez immediately embarked 

 with 350 Portuguese and some native troops in seventeen ves- 

 sels, and attacked the Javan fleet, with which he had an 

 obstinate engagement, doing considerable damage to the 

 enemy, but night parted the combatants. Next morning 

 Pati Unus endeavoured to get into the river Muar with 

 his fleet, but Perez pursued him, and penetrating into the 

 midst of the enemy, plied his cannon and fireworks with such 

 success that many of the Javan ships were sunk or set on fire. 

 After a furious battle of some endurance, Unus fled, and was 

 pursued all the way to Java, where he preserved his own vast 

 vessel as a memorial of his escape and of the grandeur of his 

 fleet, and not without reason, as a merchant of Malacca 

 engaged to purchase it of Perez for 10,000 ducats if taken. 

 This victory cost the Portuguese some blood, as several were 

 slain, and few escaped without wounds. From this time for- 

 wards, the natives of Java were for ever banished from 

 Malacca. 



Soon after this brilliant victory, Ferdinando Perez sailed 

 from Malacca to Cochin with a valuable cargo of spice, accom- 

 panied by Lopez de Azevedo and Axtoxio de Abkeu, who 

 came from the discovery of the Molucca islands with three 

 ships. After their arrival at Cochin, Antonio de Miranda 

 arrived there from Siam, to the great joy of Albuquerque, 

 who thus reaped the rich fruits of his care and labour for the 

 acquisition of Malacca, and the happy return of those whom 

 he had sent upon other discoveries. 



King Mahmud had not yet lost ail hope of recoveriug Malac- 

 ca, to which he now drew near ; and having in vain attempted 

 to succeed by force, he had recourse to stratagem. For this 

 purpose he prevailed on a favourite officer named Tuan Maxi- 



