No. 60. — 1908.] oouto : history of ceylon. 



275 



munitions and much money for the soldiers' pay and provisions 

 for that fortress, and dispatched them in the company of that 

 ship, and in one there went as captain the same Tristad 

 Dabreu, and in the other Pedro da Costa, and so they went 

 pursuing their voyage, to whom we shall presently return. 



Dec. X. , Bk. vii. , Chap. xiv. 



Of the events that took place in Ceilao until the arrival of this 

 provision : and of the great victory that our people won over 

 the forces of Eaju on the day of the Invention 1 of the Cross : 

 and of a dreadful fate that befell a nephew of Raju's. 



After JoaoCorreadeBrito, captain of Ceilao, had dispatched 

 TristaS Dabreu with the message to the viceroy, to ask for 

 succour, fearing that it might be delayed, and being positively 

 assured that Rajii would lay siege to him that winter, in order 

 not to risk a disaster through want of food, he sent 2 to Cochim 

 some persons on an errand with his credit, that they might 

 obtain money on terms, some of his own that was there not 

 being enough, and that they might go to the Fishery Coast 

 and buy all the food they could, and return with it as quickly 

 as possible. These men made such haste, that in a few days 

 they came to Cochim, and collected a sum of money ; and 

 going back to the Fishery Coast, they left provisions that they 

 had brought and vessels freighted to convey them, and 

 they themselves made haste and came to Manar, whence in 

 two tones they set out on the way to Ceilao ; and having 

 already come in sight of the fortress 3 , they found themselves 

 in the midst of many ships of Raju's which he had sent out to 

 intercept the provisions that he knew were expected. One of 

 the tones, which was in advance, was so hard pressed by the 

 ships, and so close under their beaks, that it thought itself 

 lost ; but a man whose name we do not know, who was of 

 courage and resource, ordered the sailors to slacken the 



1 The printed edition here and further on (p. 277) has "Exaltacao " — 

 an extraordinary error, since the day of the Exaltation of the Cross is 14 

 September, whereas, as appears, the actual day on which the victory 

 took place was Holy Rood Day, or the day of the Invention of the Cross, 

 that is, 3 May. In both places the manuscript has " enuencao." 

 Faria y Sousa (Asia Port. III. i. iii.) has simply " el dia de la Cruz de 

 Mayo " ; but Stevens (who was a Catholic) expands this to " the day 

 of the Invention of the Holy Cross in May." 



5 In March 1586, apparently. 



3 Perhaps in April 1586. 



T 2 



