436 



JOURNAL, R.A.S. (CEYLON). [YOL. XI. 



disastrous defeat of the Portuguese. In March, 1629, we read 

 the Governor resolved to march on Kandy itself, and before 

 setting out he made his last will and testament. The latter 

 part of this chapter is occupied with a description of the 

 terrible hardships which this expedition involved, and which 

 the General shared in common with his soldiers. 



Chapter XIII. describes the " Misfortunes of the war ; the 

 Idolator of Gandia sues for peace ; he sets on foot the Columbo 

 conspiracy ; the General falls ill ; his will and disposition." 



The Kandyan monarch, alarmed at the advance of the 

 Portuguese, made overtures of peace, which the General was 

 glad to agree to, as he was seriously ill, doubtless with 

 malarial fever. He therefore returned to Malvana, the 

 Portuguese sanatorium, where he added a codicil to his will 

 relative to the liquidation of his debts and the carrying on of 

 the war. However, he recovered after a time, but only to 

 fall a victim to treachery at the hands of some of those whom 

 he had most trusted. 



Chapter XIV. describes how "The conspirators prepare 

 their plot in Columbo ; and in what form." 



The authors of the conspiracy were four of the richest and 

 most influential Mudaliyars of Colombo, who had been 

 brought up as Christians, and had been the recipients of many 

 favours at the hands of the Governor. Their names were Bom 

 Cosme, Bom Theodozio, Bom Aleixo, and Bom Balthezar. 

 These men for three years had been in secret negotiation with 

 the King of Kandy and the Prince of Uva ; and they now began 

 to try and win over the Sinhalese in Colombo to their designs. 

 Dom Cosme was the leader, and having assembled those 

 whom he had imbued with his views at the house of Dom 

 Manuel, to whose daughter his son was married, he harangued 

 them at great length in vigorous language, upbraiding them 

 for their lack of courage in consenting to remain slaves to 

 the Portuguese.* This speech had its desired effect ; and the 

 conspirators resolved to send a message to the Prince of Uva 

 to come down and attack the friendly natives, while they 

 formed a plan for betraying Colombo into the hands of the 

 King of Kandy. 



In chapter XV. we are told of " Events which occurred 

 during the rebellion ; the Conde de Linares enters on the 

 government of India ; and the Conde de la Vidigueira is 

 recalled." 



In accordance with the message of the traitor Mudaliyars, 

 the Prince of Uva made a descent upon the Portuguese 



* Our author naively gives what he would have us believe were the 

 i2)sissima verba of this speech, which is an evident imitation of one of the 

 addresses found in the classic writers which he is so fond of quoting. 



