THE PACIFIC OCEAN. 
455 
paper, which he delired us to read. This was a letter fealed, 1780. 
and dire&ed « To the Captains of any European velTels that t 
may touch at Condore.” Although we apprehended that 
this letter was deligned for French fhips in particular, yet 
as the diredtion included all European Captains, and as 
Luco was delirous of our perilling it, we broke the feal, 
and found it to be written by the Bifhop who wrote the 
certificate. Its contents were as follows : “ That haying rea- 
fon to expedl, by fome late intelligence from Europe, that a 
veffel would foon come to Cochin China, he had, in confe- 
quence of this news, got the Court to fend a Mandarin 
(the bearer) to Pulo Condore, to wait its arrival; that if 
the velTel Ihould put in there, the Commander might either 
fend by the bearer an account to him of his arrival, or trull 
himfelf to the Mandarin r who would pilot him into a well- 
fheltered port in Cochin China, not more than a day’s fail 
from Condore; that, Ihould he choofe to remain in Con¬ 
dore till the return of the meffenger, proper interpreters 
would be fent back, and any other afliftance, which a letter 
Ihould point out, be furnilhed ; that it was unnecelfary to 
be more particular, of which the Captain himfelf muft be 
fenfible.” This letter had the fame date as the certificate, 
and was returned to Luco again, without any copy being, 
taken. 
From this letter, and the whole of Luco’s conversion,, 
there remained little doubt, that it was a French fliip he 
was to expedl; at the fame time we found he would be 
glad not to lofe his errand, and had no objedtion to become 
our pilot. We could not difcover from the Mandarin , the 
exadt objedt and bulinefs which the veffel he was waiting 
for, intended to profecute in Cochin China. It is true, that 
our interpreter, the black, was extremely dull and flupid, 
3 and 
