_ 482 _ with six oars on each side, as I have already written to tell Your Lordship. There are some barges on which they are carrying the artillery. Their intentions are not good, and if they do not capture Basra this time Your Lordship can be sure that they are not going to leave the matter until they have brought it to a conclusion. For this reason Your Lordship must send help while there is still time. I hope in Our Lord that this will all be for the security of this Strait and for the wider propagation of His name across Turkey. It is my view that Your Lordship should send ships and men with great urgency, for if the Turks capture Basra it is clear that this fortress will be closely observed. If they arrive in time for it not to be taken, it will be a great service to God, to the honour of the King, our Lord, and it will be known worldwide that India went to the aid of these men, for they are requesting it. They wish to give us a fortress and their lands. We shall thereby not only make this Strait safe, but also increase the reputation and estate of our Lord, the King. I am sending Your Lordship a sketch of Basra and of certain islands in which a fortress could be built, and showing where the Turks have built their fortress. You can choose from it what you think best and take the actions which you think most in the service of our Lord, the King.
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