success: many attempts have been made, but still frusterated either by the cuning, or vallor, or money of Seuagee: but now of late Kuttup Chawn, an Umbraw, who passed by Surrat since I arriued with 5000 men, and 14 elephants, and had 9000 men more marched another way towards their randevouz, as wee hear hath taken from him a strong castle, and some impression into his country, to deuest wich, ware it is probable he took this resoluetion for inuation of this country of Guzurat. His person is described by them whoe haue seen him to bee of meane stature, lower somewhat then I am erect, and of an excellent proportion. Actual in exercise, and when euer hee speaks seemes to smile a quicke and peercing eye, and whiter then any of his people. Hee is distrustfull, seacret, subtile, cruell, perfidious, insulting over whomsoever he getts into his power. Absolute in his commands, and in his punishments more then severe, death or dismembering being the punishment of every offence, if necessity require, venterous and desperate in execution of his resolues as may appeare by this following instance. The King Vijapore sends downe his vnckell a most accomplished soldier, with 14000 men into Sevagee's country: the knowne vallor and experience of the man made Seuagee conclude that his best way was to assasinate him in his owne armye by a sudden surprise. This conduct of this attempt, how dangerous soever, would haue been vndertaken by many of his men of whose conduct hee might haue assured himselfe, but it seemes he would haue the action wholly his own, hee therefore with 400 as desperate as himselfe enters the army vndiscovered, comes to the generalls tent, falls in upon them, kills the guard, the generalls sonne, wounds the father, whoe hardly escaped, seiseth on his daughter and carries her away prisoner, and forceth his way backe through the whole army, and returnes safe without any considerable loss, and afterward in dispight of all the King of Vijapore could do, hee tooke Rajapore, a great port, plundered it, and seised our English marchants, Mr. Rivington, Mr. Taylor, and digged vp the English house for treasure, and kept the marchants in prison about 8 months.

Wednesday the 6th Janu: about eleven in the morning, Sevagee arriued neere a great garden, without the towne

about a quarter of a mile, and whilst hee was busied in pitching his tents, sent his horsmen into the outward streets of the towne to fire the houses, soe that in less then halfe an houer 'wee might behold from the tops of our house two great pilliers of smoke, the certaine signes of a great dissolation, and soe they continued burning that day and night, Thursday, Friday and Saturday; still new fires raised, and every day neerer and neerer approaching our quarter of the towne, that the terror was great, I know youe will eassly belieue, and upon his first begining of his firing, the remainder of the people fled as thicke as possible, so that on Thursday the streets were almost empty, wich at other tymes are exceeding thicke with people, and we the English in our house, the Duch in theirs and some few marchants of Turkey and Armenia, neighbours to our English house, possessed of a Seraw or place of reception for strangers, were left by the gouernor and his people to make what shift we could to secure ourselves from the enemys: this might the English and Duch have done, leaving the towne and gooing over the riuer to Swalley to our shipps, which were then riding in Swalley hole, but it was thought more like Englishmen to make ourselves ready to defend our liues and goods to the uttermost than by a flight to leaue mony, goods, house, to merciless people, and were confirmd in a resolution that the Duch alsoe determined the same, though there was no possibility of relieuing one another, the Duch house beeing on the other side of towne almost an English mile asunder.

In order therfore to our better defence, the president St. George Oxinden, a most worthy discreet courageous person, sent advice to our ships at Swalley of our condition, with his desires to the Captains to spare him out of their ships what men they could, and wee in the meane tyme endeavoured to 'fitt our house soe well as wee could, sending out for what quantity of prouision of victualls, watter and pouder we could gett, of wich wee gott a competent store. Tow brass guns we procured that day from a marchant in towne, of about three hundred weight a piece, and with old ship carriages mounted them, and made ports in our great gate for them to play out of to scoure a shorte passage to our house; that

afternoone we sent aboard a ship in the riuer for guns and had tow of about six hundred a piece sent up in next morning with shott conuenient; some are sett to melt lead and make bullets, others with chezels to cutt lead into slugs, no hand idle but all imployed to strengthen every place as tyme would give leaue to the best advantage. On Weddensday men arriued to the number of forty odd, and bring with them tow brass guns more, our four smaller guns are then carried vp to the tope of the house and three of them planted to scoure two greet streets, the four was bent vpon a rich churles house (Stogee Said Beeg of whom more by and by) because it was equally of hight and being posesed by the enemy might haue beene dangerous to our house; Captaines are appointed and every man quartered and order taken for relieuing one another vpon necessity; a fresh recrute of men coming of about twenty more, wee than began to consider what houses neere vs might hee most prejudiciall; and on one side wee tooke possession of pagod, or Banian idol temple, which was just vnder our house, wich hauing taken wee were much more secured on that quarter; on the other a Morish Mesecte where seuerall people were harboured, and had windowes into our outward yard, was thought good to bee cleared and shutt vpp, wich accordingly done by a party, all the people sent to seeke some other place to harbour in. Things being thus reasonably well prepared, newes is brought vs that Mr. Anthony Smith, a servant of the companyes, one whoe hath been cheife in severall factoryes, was taken prisoner by Seuagee soulderiers as he came ashore neere the Duch house, and was comeing to the English, an vnfortunate accedent wich made vs all much concerned, knowing Seuagee cruelty, and indeed gaue him ouer as quite lost: hee obtaines leaue some few houers after to send a note to the president, wherin hee aquants him with his condittion, that hee being brought before Sevagee hee was asked what hee was and such like questions, and att last by Sevagee told that he was not come to doe any personall hurte to the English or other marchants, but only to revenge him selfe of Oroin Zeb, (the great Mogol) because hee had invaded his counttry, had killd some of his relations, and that hee would only have the English and Duch give him some treasure and

hee would not medle with their houses, else hee would doe them all mischeefe possible. Mr. Smith desired him to send a guard with him to the English house least hee should finde any mollestation from his men, but hee answers as yet hee must not goe away, but comands him to bee carried to the rest of the marchants, where, when hee came, hee found the embassador from the great king of Ethiopia vnto Oram Zeb prisoner, and pinioned with a great number Banians, and others in the same condition: hauing set there some tyme, about halfe an hower, hee is seised vpon by a cupple of black rogges, and pinioned in that extremety that hee hath brought away the marke in his armes with him; this what hee writt and part of what he related when wee gott him againe. The president by the messenger one of Sevagee men, as we imagined, returned answer that hee wounderd at him, that professing peace hee should detaine an English man prissoner, and that if he would send him home, and not to suffer his people to come so neere his house as to give cause of suspition, hee would hurt none of his men, other wayes hee was vpon his owne defence upon these tearmes; wce were all Wedensday and vntil Thursday about tow at afternoon, when perceiueing tops of lances on the other side of a neighbour house, and haueing called to the men to depart and not come so neere vs, but thay not stirring and intending as wee concluded to sett fier to the house, on the quarter whereby our house would have been in most eminent danger of being fiered alsoe, the president comanded twenty men vnder the comand of Mr. Garrard Aungier, brother to my lord Aungier, to sally forth vpon them, and another party of about soe many more to make good their retreate, they did soe, and when thay facd them, judgd them to bee about twenty-five horsmen well mounted, they discharged at them and wounded one man and one horse, the rest fac'd about and fled but made a shift to carry off their wounded man, but the horse fell, haueing gone a little way; what became of the wounded man we cannot tell, but Mr. Smith saw him brought into the armey upon mens shoulders and shewed there to Sevagee; tow of our men were hurt, one shott slightly into the legg with an arrow, the other rashly parting from the rest and runing on before was

cutt deep ouer the shoulder, but thanks to God in a faire way of recovery.

On Wedensday afternoone a party of the enemy came downe to Hogee Said Begs house, hee then in the castle, one of a prodigous estate, and brake open the vndefended doores, and ther continued all that night long and till next day, that we sallyed out vpon their men on the other quarter of our house, they appeared by tow or three at a tyme vpon the tope of his house, to spye what preparations wee made, but as yet had no order to fier vpon them, we heard them all night long beating and breaking open chests and doores, with great maules, but were not much concerned for him, for had the wretch had soe much heart as to have stood vpon his guard, the 20 part of what they tooke from him, would have hiered soe many men as would haue secured all the rest; when they heard that wee wear abroad in the streets thay imediatly in hast deserted the house, and that as it afterwards appeared, in such hast as to leave tow baggs of mony drop downe behind them, yet with intention as they told the people they mett (such poore wretches as had nothing to loose and knew not whether to flye) to returne next day [to] fier the house, but that was prevented. On Friday morning, the president sent vnto the castle to Hogee Said Beg to know whether he would permitt him to take possession of and secure a great company of warehouses of his adjoyneing to our house, and wich would bee of great consequence to preserve both his goods and our house, hee testified his willingness, and immediately from the tope of our house by help of a ladder we entred it, and haueing found the enemie, haueing beene all Wedensday afternoon and night till past Thursday noone plundering the great house, had likewise entered and begun to plunder his first warehouse, but were scard and that little hurt was done, they had time to carry nothing that is yet knowne of, and only broken open certaine vessells of quickesilver, which there lay spilt about the warehouse in great quantetye; wee locked it vp and put a guard in the roome next the street, wich through help of a belcoone secured by thicke planks tyed to the belcoone pillers, soe close on to another as no more space was left but for a muskett to play out, was

VOL. I.

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