victory. In the shipyard feverish efforts were made to finish at
least one vessel in time for service this year. Nearly three thousand
men--Spaniards, Indians, Chinese, and others--were employed in this
construction. From this may be gathered what our missions must have
suffered in the Pintados Islands, in the midst of which the ship was
being built, since almost all the Indians who worked there were from
our doctrinas. So large was the equipment, and so great was the zeal
shown in the work, that early in March a very beautiful galleon was
finished, which would mount forty pieces. Then the difficulty arose,
where they could enter to join the other galleons and galleys in the
port of Cabique, for the enemy remained stubbornly in the mouth of
the bay. But as soon as he drew aside a little, notice was quickly
given in order that they might bring in the galleon, and it entered
on the twenty-fifth of April, with four galleys which had gone out
to accompany it in.

On another occasion two other ships came to the enemy with provisions
from the kingdom of Japon. They also carried a goodly number of
Japanese, who left their country secretly. They say that if they [the
Japanese authorities?] had known it they would have killed these men,
because they came to attack us in company with the Hollanders. These
now found themselves with seven warships, or rather with six, since
they left one outside in order to plunder any ship that might come
along. They entered this bay with great ostentation and pomp on the
first of March, the second day of the Easter festival. The governor
ordered that the galleys and the three galleons which were there
(the fourth, the one from the shipyard, had not yet arrived) should
with many pennants and streamers draw a little apart from the fort of
Cabique. When the Hollander turned about to go out he noticed that our
fleet was at hand, with all this bravery. Then he also displayed many
pennants, and came again, signaling that he wished to fight, and then
slowly departed. He went toward the coast of Ilocos, the place to which
they come to attack the ships on their way from China. Now the galleon
from the shipyard entered the bay, and the preparation of the entire
fleet was completed. It consisted of four galleys very well manned,
and four very handsome galleons. The flagship mounted more than forty
pieces, the almiranta more than thirty, the third galleon an equal
number, and the fourth as many as twenty. I