_ 224 _ Tristan da Cunha took by force of arms a city named Oge, close to Melindi near the Red Sea. Many Moors died and the town was razed to the ground. The King of Xer, a neighbouring town, surrendered to Tristan da Cunha with 2,000 men, when he saw what had happened, and agreed to be our tributary. He paid a tribute for this year in Venetian murcellos. Tristan da Cunha also came across an island called Barawa, with a large Christian population. These were well versed in the Christian faith and its practices: fasting and abstinence in Lent and Advent; monogamy; celebrating Christian festivals; paying the tithe for the upkeep of the church; giving alms to the poor; observing the canonical hours of matins, vespers and compline; and venerating the cross.(A) The island produces and exports dates and other useful foodstuffs for seafarers. Tristan da Cunha arrived at Barawa intending to build a fortress there to impede the entrance of the Red Sea to Moorish merchantmen coming from India. He was surprised to find not only a township (A) (At the top of the page, in contemporary writing) 19 June 1508 (At the end of the page, also in contemporary writing)-news that the King sent to the Archbishop concerning what Tristan da Cunha did in India.
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