_ 90 _ Since all the men in the galley were wounded and in no condition to fight, they cut the cable, without Payo de Sousa’s knowledge, telling him that it had snapped owing to the great efforts of the oarsmen in trying to tow the ship away. As soon as the cable had been cut the galley was dragged down the river at great speed, because the current was very strong. Payo de Sousa ordered his men to eat, so that they might go back to the ship, for he had decided to fight the Arabs, although his men were badly wounded, as I said. However, the galley was unable to turn around, owing to the strength of the current, and it proceeded ahead, until it reached the place where Pero Barreto, Duarte de Melo and Diogo Pires had dropped anchor, for as soon as they realized that Dom Lourenco’s ship was not following behind they had stopped, as had Pero Cao, Francisco da Cunha and Antonio Lobo Teixeira, who were already on the outside of the mouth of the bar. Chapter: 80 After Payo de Sousa’s galley had been cut loose from Dom Lourenco’s ship, Meliquia’s pinnaces began to fire at it. The nobles who accompanied Dom Lourenco saw that it was impossible to free the ship and get away, and some of them told the boatswain to prepare the boat and man it with a few good oarsmen, so that they might save Dom
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