259 Account of the Ckristiaris on the Malabar Coast. [JuLT 



con's house with bitter cries and cotnpl.iints, whicli brouf;ht top,-e. 

 ther the whole of the inhabitants. They uttiTed a thousand male- 

 dictions on the foil ii;n prelatf, whom they denounced as intending 

 to overthrow the religion of St. Thomas, and loadinj^ with injuries 

 their holy P.itriarchs, under whose ^;overnment tl\ey liad hvcd for 

 more than twolvp centinits. They offered themselves to avcn;j^e 

 these iniiiilts, but the Arohdea-on enrrt ated them to refrain from 

 til violence; he declared that he had signed the paper from IVar, 

 seeing himself completely in the power of the Portuguese, and thi ir 

 ally the Kin<r of Cochin; that dissimulation alone could save them 

 in the present circumstances, but that he was ready to die for the 

 law of St. Thomas, and that he would never admit any other into 

 the Diocese. 



The Archbishop, when his followers ventured to blame his con- 

 duct as bold and imprudent, fearlessly replied. — '* ft is the cause of 

 Gody and He will support it.'' In the mean time, however, he did 

 not disdain to resort to a more secret influence to secure the success 

 of his public measures ; for the same evening, while two Syrian 

 priests were conversing in the room adjoining to the Archbishop's, 

 he overheara them censurin'.; his conduct in the transactions of the 

 morning. He ca'led them to his presence, and at first sharply re- 

 buked their presumption in judging of matters which they under- 

 stood not ; but suddenly changing his tone, he made them sit down, 

 and explained to them with all mildness the supremacy of the 

 Church of Rome, and the necessity of universal submission to its 

 authority. Having consumed a part of the night in instructing 

 them, and made them a present of some silver ornaments, he gain- 

 ed them completely to his cause, and one of them became a most 

 powerful instrument in his hands in the reduction of the Archdea- 

 con, who was his intimate friend. 



From Vaiptcotta he proceeded to Paru, the capital of a small 

 principality ol the same name, the inhabitants of which were the 

 most noble of all the christians of St. Thomas, but most hostile to 

 the Church of Ptome. They had made many preparations for his 

 rece;>tion, but the report which reached them of his conduct at Vai- 

 picotta destroyed every feeling of respect which they might have 

 entertained towards him. He was met by eight or ten persons, 

 who conducted him to the church, which was instantly filled by 

 christians armed with swords, spears, bows and muskets, but not 

 one vvoman or child in the assembly. Menezes fearing some out- 

 rage on the part of his Portuguese followers, sent them to guard 



