_ 106 _ armada described, in which sailed six hundred Portuguese. On reaching the stopping place where they would await the Moorish ships, he dispersed his fleet in order to cover the greatest area and not allow any naos to pass through without being seen. Whilst waiting he encountered a very large nao of Malabari Moors which he attacked. The Moors defended themselves very well for a good while but then the ship was boarded and all of them killed except for a few from whom Eytor da Silveira learnt that the nao had belonged to the Chatim of Mangalore and was laden with pepper and drugs. It was a great good fortune to have taken this ship because with the guard Eytor da Silveira was maintaining on the Malabar coast the pepper it carried was the only to have gone through that year. After seizing this ship which was a rich capture Martin de Castro came upon another on its way from Diu with cloth from Cambay. It carried two hundred warriors among them many Turks and Martin de Crasto had only about forty. They fought for a good while before grappling and boarding the Moorish ship. Martin de Crasto, a very audacious gentleman, was the first to leap on board and others followed, with the enemy showering them with stones and arrows without numbers.
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