_ 161 _ coast of El Katiff and Bahrain as far as Julfar, which they would well be able to do. It is said that iron, steel and other harmful materials could be taken from Ormuz, and good care and caution must be taken about this, the more so because if they really want all these things, they will not go short of them, because the road to Damascus and Aleppo is open to them, which is a very much shorter route than that of Ormuz. It is my opinion in this matter that merchandise should be sent to Basra as in the past, and that the merchants should not abandon their trade. Meanwhile, let the fortress of Ormuz be built as strong as possible, and for the greater security of the fortress and the Strait let twenty foists patrol it. With this fleet, fear of those wicked people can be put aside. But do not prevent shipping to Ormuz since the whole of India suffers great losses everywhere, and Our Lord the King many greater ones in his Custom Houses. Each of these reasons is sufficient for such a thing not to be done. Luis Falcão
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