Notwithstanding these friendly meetings, speeches, and assurances, it soon appeared, after the departure of the governor, that the Moors had learned, during their intercourse with our people, that they were Christians, on which the former friendship and good will of the Moors towards them was changed to wrath and fury, and they henceforwards used every endeavour to kill our men, and to take possession of the ships. The governor, therefore, and his people, used every effort for this mischievous purpose, and had certainly succeeded, if the Almighty had not moved the heart of one of the Moorish pilots who had been received into the Portuguese fleet, to reveal the same to the general; who, fearing lest the infidels might suddenly execute their purpose, as being numerous in comparison to his small company, determined to remain no longer in the harbour. Wherefore, on Saturday the 10th March 1498, being seven days after his arrival, he quitted the harbour of Mozambique, and cast anchor close to an island, at the distance of a league from that place; intending, on Sunday, to hear mass on shore, that they might confess and receive the sacrament, which had not been done since leaving Lisbon.
After the ships were come to anchor in this place of safety from being burnt by the Moors, which the general greatly dreaded, he determined to go back to Mozambique in his boat, to demand the other pilot who had been promised, but who still remained on shore. Leaving his brother with the fleet, in readiness to come to his aid if needful, the general went towards Mozambique with his boat, accompanied by Nicholas Coello, and the Moorish pilot. On their way they saw six zambucos or boats, filled with Moors, coming towards them, armed with long bows and arrows, and also with shields and spears. The Moors called to our people to come along with them to the town; and the Moorish pilot, who explained their signals, advised the general to do so, as the governor would not otherwise deliver the other pilot, who still remained on shore. The general was much displeased at this advice, believing the pilot only wished him to approach the shore, that he might be able to run away, and therefore ordered him to be secured as a prisoner. He likewise gave orders to fire at the Moorish boats from his ordnance. When Paulo de la Gama heard the shot, believing the general to be in more danger than he actually was, he immediately came with the ship Berrio under sail to his aid. On seeing this, the Moors fled away in such haste that the general could not overtake them, and therefore returned with his brother to where the other ships were at anchor.
Next day, being Sunday, the general and all his men went on shore, where they heard mass, and received the sacrament very devoutly, having confessed the evening before. After this they re-embarked and set sail the same day. Having no hope of procuring the other pilot, the general ordered to release him whom he had confined, and carried him on the voyage. But he, willing to be revenged for the indignity he had experienced, determined on carrying the Portuguese fleet to the island of Quiloa, which was all peopled with Moors; and, as it seemed, intended to inform the king of that place that our ships belonged to the Christians, that he might destroy them and kill the crews. For this purpose, he craftily persuaded the general not to be in trouble for want of the other pilot, as he would carry him to a great island, on hundred leagues from thence, which was inhabited half by Moors, and half by Christians, who were always in war with each other, and where he might easily find pilots to conduct him to Calicut. Though the general was much pleased with this information, he yet did not give implicit credit to the Moor, but promised him high rewards if he carried him in safety to that country, and so went forward on the voyage with a scant wind.
On the Tuesday the fleet was still in sight of the land from which they took their departure, and remained becalmed all that day and the next. On Wednesday night, a gentle breeze sprung up from the eastward, on which the fleet stood off to seaward, but on Thursday morning, on again making the land, they were four leagues to leeward of Mozambique, whence plying to windward, they came back that evening to the island where they had heard mass on the Sunday before, where they cast anchor and remained eight days waiting for a fair wind. While here at anchor, a white Moor, who was a molah or minister among the Moors of Mozambique, came on board the generals ship, representing that the governor was much grieved at the breach of peace and friendship between them, which he would now gladly renew. To this the general made answer, that he would make no peace with the governor unless he sent him the other pilot whom he had hired and paid. With this answer the molah departed, and never came back. After this, while still waiting for a fair wind, there came another Moor on board, accompanied with his son, a boy, and asked the general to give him a passage to the city of Melinda, which he said was on his way to Calicut. He said that he was a native of the country near Mecca, whence he had piloted a ship to Mozambique, and would gladly go with him, that he might return to his own country; and farther, he counselled the general not to remain in expectation of any answer from the zeque, who he was sure would make no peace with him, on account of his hatred to the Christians. The general was rejoiced at the coming of this Moor, expecting to acquire information from him concerning the straits of the Red Sea, and of the towns on the coast between Mozambique and Melinda, by which he had to sail, and therefore gave orders to receive this Moor and his son on board.
As the ships were rather short of water, the general and the other captains determined upon entering the harbour of Mozambique, to take in what they needed; but ordered strict watch to be kept, lest the Moors should set the ships on fire. They entered therefore again into the harbour on Thursday; and when night came, they went in their boats in search of water, which the Moorish pilot assured them was to be found on the firm land, and offered to guide them to the place. Leaving Paulo de la Gama in charge of the ships, and taking Nicholas Coello and the pilot along with him in the boats, the general went on shore about midnight to the place where the pilot said that water was to be had. But it could not be found; whether that the pilot misled them in hope of escaping, or finding he could not escape, did so out of malice. Having spent the whole night fruitlessly in search of water, and day beginning to dawn, the general returned to the ships for more force, lest the Moors might set upon him and his small company at a disadvantage. Having furnished his boats with a larger force of armed men, he returned to the shore, still accompanied by Coello and the Moorish pilot, who, seeing no means of escaping, now pointed out the watering-place close by the shore. At this place they observed about twenty Moors armed with darts, who shewed as if they meant to prevent them from taking water. The general therefore gave orders to fire three guns, to force them from the shore, that our men might be able to land unopposed. Amazed and frightened by the noise and the effect of the shot, the Moors ran away and hid themselves in the bushes; and our people landed quietly, and took in fresh water, returning to the ships a little before sunset. On arriving, the general found his brother much disquieted, because a Negro, belonging to John Cambrayes, the pilot of Paulo de la Gama, had run away to the Moors, though himself a Christian.407
Upon Saturday the 24th of March, being the eve of the annunciation of our Lady, a Moor appeared early in the morning on the shore, abreast of the ships, calling out in a loud and shrill voice, "that if our men wanted any more water they might now come for it, when they would find such as were ready to force their return." Irritated at this bravado, and remembering the injury done him in withholding the promised pilot, and the loss of the Negro, the general resolved to batter the town with his ordnance in revenge, and the other captains readily agreed to the measure. Wherefore they armed all their boats, and came up before the town, where the Moors had constructed a barricade of boards for their defence on the shore, so thick that our men could not see the Moors behind. Upon the shore, between that defence and the sea, an hundred Moors were drawn up, armed with targets, darts, bows, arrows, and slings, who began to sling stones at the boats as soon as they came within reach. They were immediately answered with shot from our ordnance, on which they retired from the shore behind their barricade, which was soon beaten down, when they ran into the town, leaving two of their men slain. The general and his men now returned to the ships to dinner, and the Moors were seen running from that town to another; and so much were they afraid of the Portuguese, that they abandoned the island, going by water to another place on the opposite side. After dinner, our people went with their captains on shore, to endeavour to take some of the Moors, with the hope of procuring restitution of the Negro belonging to Cambrayes, who had run away from the ships, and they were likewise desirous of recovering two Indians, who were said by the Moorish pilot to be detained as captives in Mozambique.
407
Mr Clarke, Progr. of Marit. Disc. I. 464, strangely misrepresents this story; saying, "that