Pacheco Anchored With His Own Ship
Off The Harbour Of Cananor, And Dispatched Raphael Along The Coast To
Oblige All Ships Which Passed That Way To Come To Cananor In
Acknowledgment Of Pacheco As Captain-General In The Indies.
Several were
brought in by Raphael, and were constrained to give a full account from
whence they came, whither bound, and what they were laden with.
In case
of their containing any pepper, more especially if bound for Calicut, he
used to take that commodity from them; and carried his command with so
high a hand, that he became the terror of these seas. One night while
thus at anchor, a fleet of twenty-five ships came suddenly to the
anchoring-ground where he lay, which he suspected to have been sent from
Calicut on purpose to attack him. Considering himself in imminent danger,
he immediately slipped his cables, not having time to weigh anchor, and
made sail to gain the windward of this fleet, upon which he directly
commenced firing. They were mostly small ships laden with rice, and made
off with all the haste in their power, though some of them ran aground.
One of the vessels of this fleet was a large ship belonging to the Moors
of Cananor, having nearly 400 men on board, who resisted for some time,
shooting off their arrows, and even endeavoured to take our ship. When
day was near at hand, and after having nine men slain in the action, the
Moorish captain at length submitted, and told Pacheco that he belonged to
Cananor.
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