_ 114 _ 30000 pardaus to Your Highness and 5,000 every year to the King of Ormuz. Up until now, Your Highness has still not been fully paid, and the King of Ormuz has received nothing. His two sons were here, as hostages of the Guazil in Bahrain. Two months ago they escaped, on orders from their father. I was not sorry that they left, because it was helpful for what I had decided to do. Here, there are many Emirs who request me to give them Bahrain [but] they will take it at their own cost. Every year they will pay Your Highness 10,000 pardaus, [therefore], two things will be added for taking this fortress from the King Sharaf at this cost. I consider that they are all bad and treacherous [anyway] and 10,000 pardaus will be added to the revenue of this Customs House. A few days ago the King Laza wrote to me that he very much wanted to be friends with Your Highness. [He said] that he had only captured EI Katiff in order to hand it over [to us?] and insisted on the reasons for which Your Highness has for protecting him and helping him [fight] against Basra: he is the rightful King [but] the kingdom has been taken from his by force. I sent a reply to him through a Portuguese, whom I sent there. I told him that I could not reply to his [letter] without his first handing over EI Katiff to me, since it had
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