they told me that a father who was praying in the window had been
killed. The father rector of the residence there had a carved image
of the child Jesus asleep in a little gilded bed, which had been
sent him by a pagan Malabar pirate, who stole it from a Portuguese,
believing it to be gold. But when he had carried it to his house,
he found that it was only gilded wood, and gave it to his children
for a toy. The sleeping Child, however, did not allow his owner to
sleep, for according to his account, He kept him awake every night,
and placing Himself in front of him, said to him, "Take me to the
land of the Christians." He communicated the matter to his wife,
and by her counsel sent Him to the father rector of Caranganor. We
went to Vaypicota, a residence of our Society, which formerly had a
greater number of our members. That field of Christendom has become
lessened through the little favor [shown to the Christians by] the
pagan king to whom it is subject. It is a wonder to me that within
a stone's throw of our church is a Moro mosque, a pagan temple, and
a Jewish synagogue, without one harming another, although they annoy
us greatly by their shouting, when they invoke the devil.

From Cochin we went to Goa on April three of this year, one thousand
six hundred and fifteen, in a galley of the fleet. We coasted along
the shore and visited the fortresses of Malabar. We spent Holy Week
in Mangalor. We lodged in the convent of St. Francis, and helped
confess the soldiers. We spent forty days in the voyage, until we
reached Goa, where Father Francisco Vergara, rector of the college,
and all the others received us with great charity. Four of them
took me to visit the viceroy, who showed us great courtesy. After I
had been talking with him for almost an hour, the chief chancellor
entered, who is at the same time auditor for the reports in causes,
and is a knight of the habit. Having given him a seat of honor, such
as we were occupying, the viceroy said to him: "I am surprised, sir,
that all the fathers of the Society are all so much alike; for the
father rector of Manila, whom we have here, is just like the fathers
here, even in speech." He determined immediately what could be done in
accordance with the present state of India, in respect to the aid that
I was come to request--namely, to give four well-equipped galleons,
with as many as four hundred soldiers and ninety pieces of artillery
among them all. As commander of this f