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captured three English and one Portuguese ships in the 
Gulf of Persia.^^^ A letter of October 13 from the king to 
Mr. Van Kittenstein was also acknowledged.^^^ 
On November 17 Van der Meyden wrote from Caliture 
that he had received the King's letter of the 2nd idem from 
his encampment at Ancarravanelle,^^^ and His Excellency 
now informed His Majesty that the Portuguese, who during 
the previous month had pitched their camp in Gourbeville, 
Canasture, Attapotti, and Cotagodde,^^^ and also sometimes 
in Alauwa, had now retired from the uplands back to 
Malvane, and that they had there mustered twenty-four 
instantiaSy^^'^ ov companies of white troops, who, in order to 
obtain provisions, were pillaging in the Seven and Four 
Corles but he promised with His Majesty's dessaves to 
make a good firm resistance and assist him faithfully. His 
Excellency also knew well that now and then great hope 
was given to His Majesty as to the captureof Colombo, but this 
all depended upon the great reinforcement from Holland and 
from Batavia, which could not be long in coming now. He 
also informed the King that the Commissary Mr. Ryklof van 
Goens had gone with four ships from Caliture to Suratte,^^^ 
and that the bay of Colombo was once more blockaded 
by three Dutch ships.^^^ His Excellency was also pleased to 
hear that the Dutch soldiers who were with the King gave 
good satisfaction.^^^ 
The Dutch Governor's polite epistles, however, did not 
tend to restrain Raja Sinha's impatience, and Van der Meyden 
himself records^^^ ^j^at " Raja Singa having noticed that the 
Portuguese in Colombo were in September A^ 1653 once 
more supplied with mantimentos [provisions] from Toeto- 
coryn, and that by the first four ships (in which the late 
Governor Mr. Jacob van Kittensteyn was allowed to take his 
departure) we had not received a single soldier for the relief 
of those who had been so long asking for it, nor likewise did 
they obtain it at the end of October, per the Commissary 
Mr. Ryklof van Goens, with four other ships destined for 
Persia and Suratte, His Majesty betook himself, with his 
