The Portuguese in the Sea of Oman

_ 562 _ crossing over the city and leading his men in single file, since the streets were narrow.He set fire to the houses he passed, which he found empty as everyone had moved away, not wishing to battle with them. The wind was coming off the land and it carried the smoke into the men who were going after the Marshal. Thus, many had to go back to the beach as it was impossible to carry on with the smoke and the heat of the fire. The streets through which the Marshal was passing were very narrow, not much more than passages. On both sides there were walls of stone, the height of half a lance and overhead, blocking out the sky, were the houses and their palm trees. From the street they climb up to the houses by means of stone heads fixed in the walls like the steps inside a well. The Marshal was accompanied by at the most four hundred men, captains, Fidalgos, a splendid company but the smoke prevented the Governor’s force from reaching them. As the Governor was carrying out a reconnaissance, he placed his men in formation and ordered Diogo Fernandes de Beja to return to Dom Antonio and take the men that were with him into the city, setting fire to everything along the way until they reached the route that the Marshal had taken and then to go after them. This they did according

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