The saint replied, "That he gave not to idols the name of gods, because they were unworthy of it; and that so sacred a title was only proper to the Sovereign Lord, who had created heaven and earth. Then he proceeded to discourse of the Divine Being, and described those properties which are known to us by the light of nature; that is to say, his independence, his eternity, his omnipotence, his wisdom, goodness, and justice, without circumscription. He made out, that those infinite perfections could not be comprehended by any created understanding, how refined soever. And thus having filled his auditors with a vast idea of the Deity, he demonstrated, that the idols of Japan, who, according to the Japonians themselves, had been men, subject to the common laws of time and nature, were not to be accounted gods; and, at the most, were only to be reverenced as philosophers, lawgivers, and princes, but not in the least as immortal powers, since the date both of their birth and death was registered in the public monuments: That, if their works were duly considered, they were yet less to be accounted for omnipotent: That having not been able, after their decease, to preserve their stately palaces and magnificent sepulchres from decay, there was no appearance that they had built the fabric of the universe, or could maintain it in its present state. Lastly, that this appertained alone to the true God, who is worshipped by the Christians; and that, considering the beauty of the heavens, the fruitfulness of the earth, and the order of the seasons, we might conclude, that he only, who is a spirit, eternal, all-powerful, and all-wise, could be the creator and absolute commander of the world." As soon as Xavier had concluded, the whole assembly cried out, that he spoke reason; and the judges immediately pronounced, as a manifest truth, that the pagods were not gods. Fucarandono would have replied, but the general cry gave it for a cause decided; and the king imposed silence on the Bonza, according to the articles of agreement.

Thus the Bonza passed on to another question in his own despite; and asked Father Xavier, "Why he allowed not of those bills of exchange which they gave in favour of the dead, since the rich found their account in them, and that they had their return of their money, with usury, in heaven?" The Father answered, "That the right we had to a better world was founded not on those deceitful letters, but on the good works which are practised with the faith and doctrine which he preached: That he who inspired it into our souls was Jesus Christ, the true and only Son of God, who was crucified for the salvation of sinners; and that they who preserved that living faith till death should certainly obtain eternal happiness: That for what remained, this holy law was free from worldly interest, and that it excluded not from heaven either the poor or women; that even poverty, which is patiently endured, was a means of gaining the kingdom of heaven; and that the weaker sex had greater advantages than ours, by reason of that modesty and piety which is almost inherent in their nature." The applause which followed this discourse was general; only Fucarandono and his companions, who had not wherewith to reply, and yet were too obstinate to recant, kept a discontented silence. It was judged that Xavier's opinion was the more reasonable, and the dispute adjourned to the day following.

These ill successes would have driven the Bonza to despair, if his presumption had not kept up his spirits. He returned at the time appointed; but, as if he distrusted his own strength, as presuming as he was, he brought with him six other Bonzas, the most learned amongst them, and chosen out of all their sects, not to be bare spectators of the combat, but to relieve each other, and to charge every one in his turn. At the first they propounded very subtile questions concerning the mysteries of our faith. Father Xavier was surprised at the hearing of them; and as those questions, which are not reported by the Portuguese particularly, were in all likelihood above the knowledge of the Pagans, he was almost induced to think the devil had suggested them; at the least he acknowledged, that to solve them he needed an extraordinary assistance from above, and desired the Portuguese to second him with their prayers during the disputation. Whether he received that supernatural assistance, or that those difficulties did not so much surpass his knowledge as he had thought, he answered to the satisfaction of the whole assembly. When judgment was passed that those questions were fully decided, one of the Bonzas, whose heart was wholly set on riches, and who believed that there was nothing more charming in the world than gold and silver, undertook to prove, that God was an enemy to the poor: "For," said the Bonza, "since he denies them those blessings which he bountifully gives the rich, and, in causing them to be born in a mean condition, exposes them to all the miseries and ignominy of life, is it not a sign, that he has neither kindness nor value for them?"

Xavier denied the consequence of that proposition; and argued both from the principles of morality, which look on riches as false goods, and out of the grounds of Christianity, which, in respect of salvation, count them true evils. He reasoned thereupon so justly, and withal so clearly, that his adversaries were forced to give up the cause, according to the relation of the Portuguese, who were witness of it. After this they advanced such extravagant and mad propositions, that they cost the Father no trouble to confute, for they destroyed themselves. But the most pleasant part of this day's work was, that the seven Bonzas not being able to agree on some points of doctrine, fell foul on each other, and wrangled with so much heat and violence, that at last they came to downright railing, and had proceeded to blows, if the king had not interposed his authority, which frightened them into quiet. This was the end of that day's disputation; and nothing more confirmed the minds of the auditors on the side of Xavier, than to see his adversaries at civil wars amongst themselves.

The king going out of his palace the next morning, with a great attendance, to walk in the town, according to his custom, and passing by the house where the Portuguese lodged, sent a message to the holy man, desiring him to come to his gardens, where he would show him sport, provided he came well armed, for he was to kill, with one blow, two kites or puttocks, at the least, out of those seven which yesterday endeavoured to have pulled out his eyes Xavier, who easily understood his meaning, came out to pay him his respects, and to acknowledge the honour which was done him. The king took him by the hand, and led him to the palace amidst the acclamations of the people. The seven Bonzas, represented by the seven kites, were already in the hall, with a confirmed impudence, and so much the more haughty, as they had the less reason so to be; according to the usual character of vain and self-opinioned men.

The first step they made in order to a new dispute, was to enter a protestation, in writing, against the judgment and proceedings of the former day; wherein they declared void the sentence of the umpires, appealed from them, and set forth new objections and difficulties upon the questions formerly debated. The king answered himself, that those points which had been decided had no need of any farther explanation, and that they were already tied up by the conditions of the conference, which both parties had accepted. He added, that Father Xavier was ready to go on ship-board, and that it was not reasonable to lose time by fruitless repetitions, but if they had any new questions to propose, let them begin, and they should be heard; if not, they had free licence to depart.

This positive answer constrained them to supersede their writing, and to pitch on other matters. Fucarandono affecting an air of devotion and modesty, asked, Why the Christians gave obscene names to the saints in Paradise, whensoever they invoked them in their public prayers; giving him to understand, that sancte, in the Japonian language, signified something too dishonest to be spoken. The Father declared, that the word in Latin had only a pure and pious meaning. Nevertheless, that it might not give scandal, nor pollute the imagination of the Japonians by an equivocal sound, he ordered the new Christians, from thenceforward, to use the word beate instead of it; and to say, Beate Petre, Beate Pauls, in the room of Sancte Petre, Sancte Paule. Concerning the name of God, the Bonzas would also have fastened a quarrel on the Father; because dajus, in their tongue, signifies a lie. He laughed at this ridiculous exception, which was in effect a mere jingle; and the judges and audience concluded it to be no more.

Three other points, on which the Bonzas more insisted, were thought to be more solid, and of greater consequence. The first was proposed in this manner: "Either God foresaw that Lucifer and his accomplices would revolt, and be damned eternally, or he foresaw it not. If he had no foresight of it, his prescience did not extend so far as you would have us to believe; but if he foresaw it, the consequence is worse, that he did not hinder this revolt, which had prevented their damnation. Your God being, as you say, the fountain of all goodness, must now be acknowledged by you for the original cause of so much evil. Thus you are forced," said the Bonza, "to confess, either ignorance or malice in your God."

Xavier was so much amazed to hear a Bonza reasoning like a schoolman, that turning to Edward de Gama, who was by him, "See," says he softly in Portuguese, that he might not be understood by the Japonians, "see how the devil has sharpened the wit of these his advocates." In the mean time, one of the Bonzas coming up to the charge, said, according to the same principle, "That if God had foreknown that Adam would sin, and cast down, together with himself, his whole progeny into an abyss of miseries, why did he create him? At least, when our first father was ready to eat of the forbidden fruit, why did not that omnipotent hand, which gave him being, annihilate him at the same moment?"

A third Bonza, taking the word, urged him with another argument: "If our evil be as ancient as the world," said he, subtilely, "why did God let so many ages pass away without giving it a remedy? Why did he not descend from heaven, and make himself man, to redeem human kind, by his death and sufferings, as soon as ever man was guilty? To what degree did those first men sin, to become unworthy of such a favour? And what has been the merit of their descendants, that they should be more favourably treated than their predecessors?"

These difficulties did not appear new to Xavier, who was very learned, and who had read whatsoever the fathers and school divines had said concerning them. He answered, without doubt, according to their doctrine; but the Portuguese, who relates the objections, durst not undertake to write the solutions of them, if we will believe himself, because they surpassed the understanding of a merchant. The Bonzas made many replies, to all which the Father gave the proper solutions in few words, and according to the rules of the schools. Whether it were that they comprehended not the solutions, or were it out of their hot-headedness, or that they seemed not to understand them to avoid the shame of being baffled, they yielded not, but cried out louder than before. As they disputed more for victory than truth, they denied all things, even to those principles which are self-evident; pretending thereby to encumber their opponent. Xavier knew what use to make of his advantages; he turned the confusion upon them, by reducing them to manifest contradictions, from whence they could never disengage themselves; so that, instead of answering, they gnashed their teeth, foamed at mouth, and stamped and stared about like madmen. The king, whose indignation was raised by seeing the obstinacy of the Bonzas, said to them, in a kind of passion, "As for myself, as far as I am capable of judging, I find that Father Xavier speaks good sense, and that you know not what you say. You should either understand better, or be less violent than you appear, to judge of these truths without prejudice. But, if the divine law be wanting to you, make use of your reason, which, of itself, will let you see, that you are not to deny things which are evident, nor to bark like dogs." After these words he rose from his seat, and, taking Xavier by the hand, brought him back to his own lodging. The people, who followed in great multitudes, made loud acclamations, and the streets rung with the praises of the holy man: While the Bonzas, mad with rage and envy, cried out aloud, "May the fire of heaven fall down upon a prince, who suffers himself to be so easily seduced by this foreign magician!"

Thus concluded the disputations which he had with Fucarandono and the Bonzas. They were very glorious for him, and for the religion which he preached, but brought not forth the expected fruit amongst the idolaters who were present at them; for neither the Portuguese author, whom we have frequently cited, nor other historians of the Father's life, make mention of any new conversions which were made; and it affords great occasion for our wonder, that the lords of the court, who so much approved the doctrine of Christianity, should still continue in the practice of idolatry, and of their vices, if it were not always to be remembered, that, in conversion, the light of the understanding avails nothing unless the heart be also touched, and that the philosophers, of whom St Paul speaks, "having known God, did not glorify him as God." Nevertheless we may probably believe, that these disputations in progress of time failed not of their due; effect; and it is also probable, that they were the seed of those wonderful conversions which were made in following years.

Father Xavier went the next morning to take his last farewell of the king, who was more kind to him than ever, and parted from Japan the same day, which was Nov. 20th, in the year 1551, having continued in that country two years and four months.

Not long before, Clod had made known to his servant, that the town of Malacca was besieged by sea and land; and that the king of Jentana, a Saracen, was personally before it, with an army of twelve thousand men: That neither the conduct of the governor, Don Pedro de Silva, nor the succours of Don Fernandez Carvalio, had been able to defend it against the attempts of the barbarians; that the Javans, a fierce and warlike people, had mastered that place; that of three hundred Portuguese, who were within it, above an hundred had been put to the sword, and the rest of them had only escaped by retiring into the fortress. In short, that Malacca was now become a place of horror, and that the enemy, wearied with the slaughter, had reserved many thousands of the inhabitants for the chain. The saint informed Gama, and the Portuguese of the ship, of these sad tidings, before they left the port, and declared to them, that the sins of that corrupt city had drawn down the curse of God upon it, as he had foretold and threatened; but he desired them, at the same time, to supplicate the Father of all Mercies, for the appeasing of his divine justice, and he himself prayed earnestly in their behalf. Besides the two Japanners, Matthew and Bernard, who had constantly followed the Father, and would never forsake him, an ambassador from the king of Bungo embarked with him in the same vessel. The business of this embassy was to seek the friendship of the viceroy of the Indies, and to obtain a preacher from him, who might finish the conversion of that kingdom, in the room of Father Xavier.

They sailed along the coasts for the space of six days, and the navigation was prosperous till they made an island belonging to the king of Minaco, called Meleitor; from whence, crossing a strait, they put out into the main ocean. At that time the change of the moon altered the weather, and there blew a furious south wind, so that the pilot, with all his art, could not bear up against it. The tempest carried the ship into a sea unknown to the Portuguese; and the face of heaven was so black with clouds, that, during five days and nights, there was no appearance of sun or stars; insomuch that the mariners-were not able to take the elevation of the pole, and consequently not to know whereabouts they were. One day, towards the evening, the wind redoubled with so much fury, that the vessel had not power to break the waves, so high they went, and came on with so much violence. In this terrible conjuncture they thought fit to cut down the forecastle, that the ship might work the better; after which, they bound the sloop which followed with thick cables to the ship: but night coming on while they were thus employed, and being very dark, abundance of rain also falling at the same time, which increased the tempest, they could not draw out of the sloop five Portuguese and ten Indians, as well as slaves and mariners, which were in her.

Those of the ship had neither comfort nor hope remaining, but in the company and assistance of Father Xavier. He exhorted them to lament their sins, thereby to appease the wrath of God; and he himself poured forth whole showers of tears before the face of the Almighty. When night was now at the darkest, a lamentable cry was heard, as of people just upon the brink of perishing, and calling out for succour. The noise came from the sloop, which the violence of the winds had torn off from the vessel, and which the waves were hurrying away. As soon as the captain had notice of it, he ordered the pilot to turn towards those poor creatures, without considering, that, by his endeavour of saving his nephew, Alphonso Calvo, who was one of the five Portuguese in the sloop, the ship must certainly be lost, and himself with her. In effect, as it was difficult to steer the ship, when they would have turned her towards the sloop, she came across betwixt two mountains of water, which locked her up betwixt them; one of those waves fell upon the poop, and washed over the deck; and then it was that the whole company thought their business was done, and nothing but cries and lamentations were heard on every side. Xavier, who was at his prayers in the captain's cabin, ran out towards the noise, and saw a miserable object,—the vessel ready to bulge, the seamen, the soldiers, and the passengers, all tumbling in confusion on each other, deploring their unhappy destiny, and expecting nothing but present death. Then the holy man, lifting up his eyes and hands to heaven, said thus aloud, in the transport of his fervour, "O Jesus, thou love of my soul, succour us, I beseech thee, by those five wounds, which, for our sakes, thou hast suffered on the cross!" At that instant the ship, which already was sinking under water, raised herself aloft, without any visible assistance, and gained the surface of the waves. The mariners, encouraged by so manifest a miracle, so ordered the sails, that they had the wind in poop, and pursued their course.

In the mean time the sloop was vanished out of sight, and no man doubted but she was swallowed by the Waves. The captain lamented for his nephew, the rest shed tears for their lost companions. As for the Father, his greatest affliction was for two Mahometan slaves, whom he could not convert to Christianity: he sighed in thinking of their deplorable condition, but, in the midst of these anxious thoughts, entering into himself, or rather wholly recollecting himself in God, it came into his mind to intercede with Heaven for the protection of the sloop, in case it were not already lost. In this he followed the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, and his prayer was not yet ended when he perceived that it was heard: insomuch, that turning towards Edward de Gama, who was oppressed with sadness, "Afflict not yourself, my brother," said he with a cheerful countenance; "before three days are ended, the daughter will come back and find the mother." The captain was so buried in his grief, that he saw too little probability in what the Father said, to found any strong belief upon it; which notwithstanding, at break of day, he sent one up to the scuttle, to see if any thing were within ken; but nothing was discovered, saving the sea, which was still troubled and white with foam. The Father, who had been in private at his devotions, came out two hours after, with the same cheerfulness upon, his countenance; and having given the good day to the captain and pilot, and six or seven Portuguese who were in company, he enquired "if they had not yet seen the chalop?" they answered they had not: and, because he desired that some one might again get up to the scuttle, one of the Portuguese, called Pedro Veglio, replied thus bluntly, "Yes, Father, the chalop will return, but not until another be lost:" he meant that it was impossible the same chalop should come again.

Xavier mildly reprehended Veglio for his little faith, and told him nothing was impossible to God. "The confidence which I have in the Divine mercy," said he, "gives me hope, that they whom I have put under the protection of the Holy Virgin, and for whose sake I have vowed to say three masses to our Lady of the Mountain, shall not perish." After this he urged Gama to send up to the scuttle for discovery: Gama, to satisfy the man of God, went 'up himself with a seaman, and after having looked round him for the space of half an hour, neither he nor the other could see any thing. In the mean time Xavier, whose stomach was turned with the tossing of the ship, and who had been two days and three nights without eating, was taken with a violent head-ach, and such a giddiness, that he could scarcely stand. One of the Portuguese merchants, called Ferdinand Mendez Pinto, desired him to repose a little while, and offered him his cabin; Xavier, who, by the spirit of mortification, usually lay upon the deck, accepted his courtesy; and desired this further favour, that the servant of this merchant, who was a Chinese, might watch before the door, that none might interrupt his rest.

The intention of the Father was not to give the least refreshment to his body; he set himself again to prayers, and it was affirmed by the Chinese servant, that from seven in the morning, when he retired, he had been constantly on his knees until the evening, groaning in the agony of his spirit, and shedding tears. He came out from his retirement after sunset, and once more enquired of the pilot, if they had not seen the chalop, which could not possibly be far distant. The pilot replied, that it was in vain to think of her, and that it was impossible for her to resist so furious a tempest; but in case that, by some wonderful accident, or rather by some miracle, she had been preserved, she must of necessity be at fifty leagues distance from the ship. It is the propriety of Christian confidence to remain unshaken and secure, when human reason leaves us destitute of hope. The Saint acknowledged the pilot to have spoken judiciously, and yet doubted not but the chalop would return. He constantly maintained that she could not be far off, and pressed him to send up to the scuttle before the dusk. The pilot, less out of complaisance to the Father, than out of his desire to undeceive him, went up himself, and could discover nothing. Xavier, without any regard to the affirmation of the pilot, instantly desired the captain to lower the sails, that the chalop might more easily come up with the ship. The authority of the holy man carried it, above the reasons of the pilot; the sail-yard was lowered, and a stop was made for almost three hours: but at length the passengers grew weary, as not being able any longer to bear the rolling of the ship, and one and all cried out to sail. The Father upbraided them with their impatience; and himself laid hold on the sail-yard, to hinder the seamen from spreading the sails; and leaning his head over it, broke out into sighs and sobbings, and poured out a deluge of tears.

He raised himself a little after, and keeping his eyes fixed on heaven, yet wet with tears, "O Jesus, my Lord and my God," said he, "I beseech thee, by thy holy passion, to have pity on those poor people, who are coming to us, through the midst of so many dangers." He composed himself, after he had uttered this, and continued leaning on the sail-yard, wholly silent for some time, as if he had been sleeping.

Then a little child, who was sitting at the foot of the mast, cried out on the sudden, "A miracle, a miracle, behold the chalop!" All the company gathered together at the cry, and plainly perceived the chalop within musket-shot. Nothing but shouts and exclamations of joy were heard, while she drew still nearer and nearer to the vessel. In the meantime, the greatest part fell down at the feet of Father Xavier, and, confessing they were sinners, unworthy the company of a man so holy, asked him pardon for their unbelief. But the Father, in great confusion for being treated in this manner, escaped out of their hands as soon as possibly he could, and shut himself up within the cabin, in conclusion, the chalop came up with the ship; and it was observed, that though the waves were in great agitation, she came right forward, without the least tossing, and stopped of herself. It was also taken notice of, that she continued without any motion till the fifteen men which she carried were entered the ship, and that the seamen had fastened her behind the poop. When they had embraced those men, whom so lately they had given for lost, every one was desirous of knowing their adventures; and were much surprised to understand, that they were come through the midst of the most horrible tempest which was ever seen, without any apprehension either of drowning or losing of their way; because, said they, Father Francis was our pilot, and his presence freed us even from the shadow of any fear. When the ship's company assured them, that the Father had been always with themselves, those of the chalop, who had beheld him constantly steering it, could not believe what had been told them. After some little dispute on the matter of fact, both sides concluded, that the saint had been at the same time in two places; and this evident miracle made such an impression on the minus of the two Saracen slaves who had been in the chalop, that they abjured their Mahometanism. The impatience of these fifteen men to behold their miraculous steersman, who had so happily brought them to the ship, and who vanished from their eyes at the same moment when they joined her, obliged Xavier to come out and shew himself. They would have saluted him as their protector, by prostrating themselves before him, but he would not suffer it: declaring to them, that it was the hand of the Lord, and not his, which had delivered them from shipwreck. At the same time, he rendered public thanks to God for so eminent a favour, and ordered the pilot to pursue his voyage, assuring him that he should have a good wind immediately. The pilot's experience of the sea did not promise him this sudden change; but this late deliverance of the chalop quickened his belief in the Father's words; and it was not long before he understood, that He, who commands the winds and seas, had authorised the holy man to make that prediction.

The sails were scarcely spread, when a north wind arising, the air cleared up, and the sea was immediately calmed. So that in thirteen days sailing, they arrived at the port of Sancian, where the Portuguese merchants of the ship had traffic. As the season of sailing in those seas was already almost past, there were remaining but two ships of the Indies in port, one of which belonged to James de Pereyra. The ship of Edward de Gama not being in condition to go on directly for Malacca without stopping by the way, and having need of refreshment at Sian, the saint went into the ship of his friend Pereyra. It was wonderful, that at the same moment when he passed into that vessel, the wind, which for the space of fifteen days had blown at north, which was full in their faces who were going for the Indies, came about on the sudden; so that the day following, which was the last of the year 1551, they set sail again. Another ship, which was waiting also for a wind, set out in their company; but that vessel found afterwards to her cost, that she carried not the apostle of the Indies.

Before they put to sea, Xavier discoursing with the pilot concerning the dangers of the ocean, (it was the same pilot who had brought him from Japan, whose name was Francis D'Aghiar,) foretold him, that he should not end his days upon the water; and that no vessel wherein he should be should suffer shipwreck, were the tempest never so outrageous. D'Aghiar was possessed with so firm a belief of what the Father told him, and afterwards found the effect of it so manifest on various occasions, that, without observing either winds or seasons, he often put to sea in an old crazy vessel, ill provided; insomuch, that they who were ignorant of the secret cause of this his confidence, took him for a rash presuming man, and of little understanding in sea affairs.

Once, amongst many other times, he gave a demonstration how much he relied on the promise of the saint, and that was, in going from Tenasserim to the kingdom of Pegu, in a light barque, which was quite decayed, and out of order. A tempest rising in the midst of his voyage, dashed against the rocks, and split in pieces some great vessels, which were following the barque of D'Aghiar. She alone seemed to defy the rocks; and while the sea was in this horrible confusion, the pilot sat singing at his ease, as if the waters had been hushed beneath him. A passenger, who shook with fear, demanded of him, "With what courage he could sing, when he was just upon the brink of death?" "It is because I fear nothing," replied Aghiar: "And I should fear nothing," added he, "though the waves should mount as high again as now we see them, and my barque were also made of glass; for the Father Master Francis has assured me, that I should not die upon the seas, in whatsoever vessel I should go." Some Saracens who were in the barque, and who heard these sayings of the pilot, were so moved with this continued miracle, that they vowed to become Christians so soon as ever they should come on shore; and they complied religiously with their promise. The barque casting anchor at Tanar, they received baptism at that place; so much the more persuaded both of the truth of the miracle, and of the Christian faith, because they saw before their eyes, upon the coast, the wrecks of other vessels, which were floating round about it.

The conversations which Xavier had with Pereyra during all the navigation, were almost wholly relating to Japan and China. The Father told his friend what progress the faith had made in little time in the kingdoms of Saxuma, of Amanguchi, and of Bungo; and what hopes he had conceived, to convert all those islands with great ease, when once the Chinese should be brought to acknowledge Jesus Christ. And on that motive, he had fixed his resolution to go to China; that his return to the Indies was only in order to this intended voyage, after he had regulated the affairs of the Society at Goa; that, on this account, he had brought with him from Japan the translation of his catechism into the Chinese language, by the benefit of which he hoped to overcome the first difficulties, which in matters of conversion are still the greatest. Some Portuguese who were in the same vessel, and were well acquainted with the government of China, thought this proposition of the Father not a little extravagant. They told him, that, besides the ill understanding which was betwixt China and Portugal, it was forbidden to strangers on pain of death, or of perpetual imprisonment, to set a foot upon that kingdom; and that the merchants of their nation, who had stolen thither for the benefit of trade, having been discovered, some of them had lost their heads, others had been put in irons, and cast into dungeons, there to lie and rot for the remainder of their lives. They added, notwithstanding, that there was a safe and certain way of entering into China, provided there was a solemn embassy sent to the emperor of that country from the king of Portugal. But since that could not be compassed without a prodigious expence, if nothing else were to be considered but only the presents for the emperor and his ministers of state, in all probability the viceroy of the Indies would not burden himself with the cost of such an enterprize, at a time when he had enough to do to defray more necessary expences.

These difficulties began to startle Father Xavier, when James Pereyra, who, under the habit of a merchant, had the heart of an emperor, and the zeal of an apostle, made offer of his ship, and all his goods, for the promoting of the expedient which had been mentioned. The Father accepted of his generous proffer with transports of joy, and engaged, on his side, to procure the embassy of China for his friend. Pereyra, who had received intelligence of the siege of Malacca, told the saint, "He apprehended lest an embargo might be put upon his ship, for the immediate service of the town." Xavier, to whom God had revealed the deliverance of Malacca, and to whose prayers that deliverance had perhaps been granted, cheered up his friend, with this assurance, "That when the fortress was just upon the point of yielding, the infidels had been struck with a panic fear, and fled away, so that the town was wholly free."

Percyra had yet another thing which troubled him, concerning the voyage which Father Xavier had to make before that of China. The season being already far spent, he feared there were no vessels at Malacca, which were bound for Goa. He could not carry the Father to Cochin himself, because he was obliged to go on to Sunda, there to unlade his merchandize; but that apprehension was soon at an end, for Xavier, illuminated from heaven, told him positively, "That the ship of Antonio Pereyra was in the port of Malacca, and that they should find it just ready to weigh anchor, and set sail for Cochin."

Xavier discovered these things to his friend during a great calm, which made the navigation pleasing; when suddenly they perceived one of those terrible hurricanes arising, which in a moment sink a vessel. All the company gave themselves for lost; or if they had any hope remaining, it was only in consideration of the saint; and therefore they earnestly desired him to intercede with God in their behalf. The holy man, without replying, retired to his devotions; he returned to them not long after, with his countenance all on fire, and gave his blessing to the ship, pronouncing these following words aloud: "This vessel of the Santa Cruz[1] (for so she was named) shall never perish on the seas; the place where she was built, shall behold her fall in pieces of herself. Might it please Almighty God," continued he, "that the same could be said concerning that vessel which put to sea with us! But we shall be witnesses too soon of her unhappy destiny." At that very instant appeared the signs, which were to begin the verification of the prophecy; the whirlwind was dissipated, and the sea grew calm. Not long afterwards, they beheld the merchandize and dead bodies floating on the waters, and from thence concluded, that the hurricane had destroyed the ship which followed them. Immediately their opinion was confirmed by two mariners, who had gotten on a plank when the ship was foundering; and who, having afterwards struggled with the waves, were driven by them to the board of Pereyra's vessel. The rest of the navigation was prosperous; a calmer season was never known. The ship being landed at the port of Sincapour, Xavier (who knew certainly that Antonio Pereyra was at Malacca, ready to hoist sail towards Cochin, as we have said,) wrote to him by a frigate which went off, to desire that he would wait for him three days longer. He wrote also, by the same conveyance, to Father Francis Perez, superior of the Jesuits at Malacca, and commanded all of them to provide refreshments for the Japonese, who came along with him.

When it was known in the city that Xavier was coming, the joy was so general, that it almost blotted out the remembrance of all they had suffered in the war. The inhabitants ran crowding to the shore; and at the first appearance of the saint, nothing was to be heard, but acclamations and shouts of rejoicing on every side. They received him at his landing with all the tenderness of affection, and all the reverence imaginable. In conducting him to the house of the Society, they shewed him, as he passed along, the ruins of their houses; and told him, sighing, "that if he had not left them, they had been preserved from the fury of the Javans, as they had formerly been protected from the barbarians of Achen." But the Father answered them, "That their crying sins had called down the wrath of heaven upon them; that nothing could divert it but a speedy change of life; and that the only means of reconciling themselves to God, was to receive those chastisements at his hands, with the spirit of humiliation and of penitence." He visited the old governor Don Pedro de Silva, and the new one who succeeded him, Don Alvarez de Atavda, and communicated to them his design concerning an embassy to China Both of them concurred in the opinion, that it would be advantageous to the crown of Portugal, and to the interests of Christianity. James Pereyra not being capable of accompanying the Father to Goa, for the reason above mentioned, furnished him at present with thirty thousand crowns, for the preparatives of that intended voyage; and sent a servant with the Father, with commission to dispose of all things. Xavier having often embraced this faithful friend, entered with his Japonians into the vessel of Antonio Pereyra, who attended but their company to set sail.

The prediction which the man of God had made in favour of the ship called Santa Cruz, gave it the new name of the "Saint's Vessel;" and from Malacca, from whence she departed at the same time when Xavier went on board of Antonio, her reputation was extended over all the East. Wheresoever she arrived, she was received with ceremony, and saluted by all other ships with the honour of their cannon. All merchants were desirous of stowing their goods in her, and willingly paid the carriage of their wares, and the dues of custom, beyond the common price of other vessels. The weight of lading was never considered, but her freight was always as much as they could crowd into her. As she lasted very long, and that thirty years after the decease of the Father she was in being, and was used for the traffic of the Indies, they never failed of lading her with an extraordinary cargo, all worn and worm-eaten as she was. The owners into whose hands she came, during the space of those thirty years, took only this one precaution, which was to keep her off from shore; so that when she was to be refitted, that work was constantly done upon the sea. As to what remains, it is true she met with many ill accidents and hardships: she was often engaged with pirates, and combated by tempests; but she escaped clear of all those dangers, and never any one repented of embarking in her. One time it is acknowledged, sailing from Malacca to Cochin, with an extraordinary lading, she sprung a leak, and took in so much water at the beginning of the voyage, that the passengers, who were very numerous, were of opinion to unlade her of half her burden, and half her men, and to put them upon other ships which were in their company. But those vessels, which had already their whole lading, would not consent to ease the Santa Cruz; so that, fear overpowering the ship's company, they returned speedily into the port. The whole town was surprised to see the ship so suddenly come back; and they were laughed to shame for apprehending shipwreck in the vessel of the saint. Being thus publicly upbraided with their want of faith, to mend their error, they took out nothing of the lading, but put again to sea. And what every one said to them, concerning the good fortune which perpetually attended that ship, for two-and-twenty years together, so much renewed their confidence, that they performed their voyage without farther fear. The Santa Cruz continued in this manner, sailing over all the seas, and to every port of Asia, till she came into the possession of the captain who commanded the port of Diu; who perceiving her to be half-rotten, and opened in divers parts, concluded she could serve no longer, unless she were brought into harbour, and set upon the stocks. For which purpose she was sent to Cochin, and hauled ashore on the same dock where she had been built; but she was no sooner there, than she fell in pieces of herself; nothing remaining of that great bulk, besides planks and beams of timber, unprofitable for any thing but for the fire. The inhabitants of Cochin, who knew the prediction of the saint to every circumstance, came out to behold its accomplishment. An inconsiderable merchant, called George Nugnez, who happened to be there present, began to think within himself, that, there might be yet remaining in those planks somewhat of the virtue, which the blessing of the saint had imprinted in them; and thereupon took one of them, which he caused to be nailed to his own frigate, out of the persuasion he had, that with this assistance he should be secure from shipwreck. Thus being filled with a lively faith, he boldly undertook such long and hazardous voyages, that ships of the greatest burden were afraid to make; and without consideration of the weather, adventured many times to cross the most tempestuous gulphs. When he was told, that it was not the part of a prudent man to endanger himself in that manner, he answered, "That the winds and seas were well acquainted with his frigate, and had a reverence for the plank of the Santa Cruz." In effect, his little vessel was ever fortunate enough to escape the greatest perils; and what was most remarkable, was, that having had the same destiny with the ship in her adventures and deliverances, she ended like her, breaking in pieces of herself, on the shore of Coulan, where she was brought to be refitted.

To return to the navigation of Father Xavier:—he arrived at Cochin, January 24th, in the year 1552. The king of the Maldivias had been there for some months: He was a prince of about twenty years of age, born in the Mahometan religion, and bred up in the hatred of Christians. The revolt of his subjects, who loved him not, or hated the government, forced him, for the safeguard of his life, to abandon his kingdom, and to seek sanctuary amongst the Portuguese, by whom he hoped to be restored. The fathers of the Society received him into their house, and went about to convert him, by letting him see the falsehood of his sect. The ill posture of his affairs made him apt to receive the instructions which were given him by Father Antonio Heredia, who endeavoured his conversion with great zeal. But his fear of farther exasperating his rebellious subjects, in case he changed his religion, caused him to defer that change from time to time; and perhaps he had never forsaken the law of Mahomet, if Father Francis had not arrived to complete that work which Heredia had begun. The holy apostle preached the word with so much efficacy to the king of the Maldivias, that at length he reduced him to the obedience of Christ, notwithstanding all the motives of worldly interest to the contrary. Having instructed him anew in the mysteries of Christianity, he solemnly baptized him. In sequel of which, he excited the Portuguese to replace him on the throne, and nominated some of the fathers to accompany the naval army, which should be sent to the Maldivias. His intention was, that they should labour in the conversion of the whole kingdom, when once the king should be established. But because it was of small importance to the crown of Portugal, that those islands, which produce neither gold, nor spices, nor perfumes, should be made tributary to it, the governors did nothing for that exiled prince; who, despairing to recover his dominions, married a Portuguese, and lived a private life till the day of his death; happy only in this, that the loss of his crown was made up to him, by the gift of faith, and the grace of baptism.

When the holy man was ready to depart, an opportunity was offered him of writing into Europe, which he laid hold on, thereby to render an account of his voyage to Japan, both to the king of Portugal, and to the general of his order. Then embarking for Goa, he had a speedy voyage, and arrived there in the beginning of February.

So soon as he was come on shore, he visited the sick in the town-hospitals; and then went to the college of St Paul, which was the house of the Society. After the ordinary embracements, which were more tender than ever, he enquired if none were sick within the college? He was answered, there was only one, who was lying at the point of death. Immediately Xavier went, and read the gospel over him. At the sight of the Father, the dying man recovered his spirits, and was restored to health. The physicians had given him over, and all things had been ordered for his burial; but he himself had never despaired of his recovery: and the day when Xavier arrived, he said, with a dying voice, "That if God would grant him the favour of beholding their good Father, he should infallibly recover."

The relation which Xavier made to the Fathers of Goa, concerning the church of Japan, was infinitely pleasing to them: and he himself was filled with equal consolation, in learning from them the present condition of Christianity in the Indies. The missioners, whom he had dispersed before his departure, were almost all of them united at his return. Some of them were come by his command, and others of their own motion, concerning urgent business; as if the Holy Spirit had re-assembled them expressly, that the presence of the man of God might redouble in them their apostolic zeal, and religious fervour. God had every where blest their labours. The town of Ormus, which fell to the lot of Father Gaspar Barzaeus, had wholly changed its countenance; idolaters, Saracens, and Jews, ran in multitudes to baptism: the temples of idols were consecrated to Christ; the mosques and synagogues were dispeopled, ill manners were reformed, and ill customs totally abolished. Christianity flourished more than ever in the coast of Fishery, since the death of Father Antonio Criminal, who had cultivated it with care, and in that cultivation was massacred by the Badages. The blood of the martyr seemed to have multiplied the Christians: they were reckoned to be more than five hundred thousand, all zealous, and ready to lay down their lives for their religion. The gospel had not made less progress at Cochin, and at Coulan; at Bazain and at Meliapore, at the Moluccas, and in the Isles del Moro. But it is almost incredible, with what profit the gospel labourers preached at Goa. All the priests of idols have been driven out of the Isle of Goa, by order from the governor, and at the solicitation of one of the Fathers belonging to the college of St Paul. It was also prohibited, under severe penalties, to perform any public action of idolatry within the district of Goa; and those ordinances, by little and little, reduced a multitude of Gentiles. As for the Portuguese, their lives were very regular; amidst the liberty of doing whatsoever pleased them, they refrained from all dishonest actions; and concubines were now as scarce as they had been common. The soldiers lived almost in the nature of men in orders; and even their piety edified the people.

But nothing was more pleasing to Xavier, than the conversion of two princes, who during his absence had been at Goa. The first was king of Tanor, a kingdom situate along the coasts of Malabar, betwixt Cranganor and Calecut. This prince, who was party-per-pale, Mahometan and Idolater, but prudent, a great warrior, of a comely shape, and more polite than was usual for a barbarian, had from his youth a tendency to Christianity, without being well instructed in it. He was enamoured of it, after he had been informed to the full concerning the mysteries of our faith, by a religious of the order of St Francis, who frequented his palace. In the mean time, the wars, which he had with other princes for ten years together, hindered him from receiving baptism. At length he was christened, but very secretly; so that, in appearance, he remained an infidel, to keep the better correspondence with his people. Yet he was not without some scruple concerning the manner of his life; and, in order to satisfy his conscience on so nice a point, he desired the bishop of Goa to send him an apostle; for by that name the Fathers of the Society were called by the Indians, as well as by the Portuguese. Father Gomez, who was sent to the king of Tanor, told him positively, that God would be served in spirit and in truth; that dissembling in religion was worse than, irreligion; and that Jesus would disown before his angels, those who disowned him before me. The king, who preferred his salvation before his crown, believed Gomez, and resolved to declare himself solemnly a Christian, as soon as he had made a treaty with his enemies. Having concluded a peace through the mediation of the Father, who had advised him to it, he came to Goa, in despite of all his subjects, who, not being able to gain upon him, either by their reasons, or their desires, had seized upon his person, and shut him up in one of the strongest citadels of the kingdom. He escaped out of his prison, swam a river, and having found eight foists, or half galleys, belonging to Goa, which were purposely sent to favour his passage, he had the good fortune to arrive safely at the town. The bishop and the viceroy conducted him to the cathedral, amidst the acclamations of the people; and at the foot of the altar, he made a public profession of his faith; with such expressions of true devotion as melted the assistants into tears.

The other prince, whose conversion gave so much joy to Father Xavier, was the king of Trichenamalo, who is one of the sovereigns of Ceylon This king, while he was yet an infant, was set upon the throne, and afterwards dispossessed by an usurper, when he was but eight years old. The tyrant, not content to have taken the crown from him, would also have murdered him, but was prevented by a prince of the blood-royal, who carried him out of his reach, being accompanied by forty lords of the loyal party, and sought sanctuary for him on the coasts of Fishery. The Paravas received him with all the charitable compassion which was due to his illustrious birth, to the tenderness of his years, and to his misfortunes; they also promised his attendants to serve him what was in their power; but, at the same time, advised them, to procure him a more durable and more glorious crown; and withal informed them of what they had been taught, concerning the adoption of the sons of God, the kingdom of heaven, and inheritance of the saints. Whether those considerations prevailed upon the prince of the blood-royal, or that the spirit of God wrought powerfully on his heart, lie consented to what the Paravas desired, and put himself into the hands of Father Henriquez to be instructed. The rest of the lords followed his example, and were all baptised together with the king, who seemed at his baptism to have an understanding much above his years. The rulers of the Christians on the fishing coast having afterwards made up an army, supplied with what ammunitions of war, and other provisions which the country could furnish, passed over into the Isle of Ceylon, under the conduct of the prince and the forty lords; but the usurper was so well established in his possession, that the Paravas were forced to retire with speed into their own country. As for the young king, he was brought to Goa; and the Portuguese, who took the conduct of him into their hands, put him into the college of St Paul, where he was virtuously educated by the Fathers of the Society. Xavier praised Almighty God to see the great men of the earth subjected to the empire of Jesus Christ, by the ministry of the children of Ignatius; and rejoiced with his brethren so much the more, because the bishop of Goa, Don Juan de Albuquerque, was so well satisfied of their conduct.

This wise and holy prelate communicated to the Father a letter, which he had written on that subject during his absence to the general of the Society. The letter was in Portuguese, dated from Cochin, November 28, in the year 1550, and is thus translated into our language: "The great performances of your children and subjects, in all the dominions of the East; the holiness of their lives, the purity of their doctrine, their zeal in labouring the reformation of the Portuguese, by the ministry of God's word, and the sacrament of penance; their unwearied travels through all the kingdoms of India, for the conversion of idolaters and Moors; their continual application to study the tongues of this new world, and to teach the mysteries of faith, and principally at the Cape of Comorin,—all this obliges me to write to your reverence, and to give testimony of what I have beheld with my own eyes. Indeed the fathers of your Society are admirable labourers in our Lord's vineyard; and are so faithfully subservient to the bishops, that their endeavours for the good of those souls with which I am intrusted, give me hope of remaining the fewer years in purgatory. I dare not undertake the relation of all their particular actions; and if I durst adventure it, want time for the performance of it: I will only tell you, that they are here like torches lighted up, to dissipate the thick darkness wherein these barbarous people were benighted; and that already, by their means, many nations of infidels believe one God in three persons: for what remains, I freely grant them all they require of me for the good of souls. Every one of them partakes with me in my power and authority, without appropriating any of it to myself: and I look upon myself as one of the members of that holy body, though my life arises not to their perfection. In one word, I love them all in Jesus Christ, with a fervent and sincere charity."

The rest of the letter is nothing appertaining to our purpose, and therefore is omitted.

The man of God received intelligence, at the same time, that the ministers of Portugal at Goa had sent word to Lisbon of the great progress which the Society had made; and that, in particular, the new viceroy, Don Antonio de Norogna, had written, that the Indies were infinitely satisfied with the Jesuits; that none could look on the good effects of their labours without blessing the name of God for them; and that their lives were correspondent to their calling. The saint also was informed, that the king of Portugal had sent word of all these proceedings to the Pope; especially the conversion of the king of Tanor, and the martyrdom of Father Antonio Criminal: That he had communicated to his Holiness his intentions of founding many colleges for the Society, to the end the East might be filled with apostolical labourers; and that, in the mean time, he had ordained, that all the seminaries established in the Indies, for the education of youth, should be put into the hands of the Society, in case it was not already done: Lastly, it was told to Father Xavier, that the viceroy of the Indies, and the captains of the fortresses, had orders from King John III. to defray the charges of the missioners in all their voyages; and that this most religious prince had discharged his conscience of the care of souls, by imposing it on the Society; obliging the Fathers, in his stead, to provide for the instruction of the infidels, according to the ancient agreement which had been made with the Holy See, when the conquests of the East were granted to the crown of Portugal.

Amidst so many occasions of joy and satisfaction, the ill conduct of Antonio Gomez gave Xavier an exceeding cause of grief. Before his voyage to Japan, he had constituted him rector of the college of St Paul, according to the intention, or rather by the order, of Father Simon Rodriguez, who had sent him to the Indies three years after his noviciate; and who, in relation to these missions, had an absolute authority, as being provincial of Portugal, on which the Indies have their dependence. Gomez was master of many eminent qualities which rarely meet in the same person: He was not only a great philosopher, divine, and canonist, but also an admirable preacher, and as well conversant as any man in the management of affairs; and, besides all this, was kindled with a most fervent zeal for the conversion of souls; always prompt to labour in the most painful employments, and always indefatigable in labour: but wonderfully self-opinioned; never guided by any judgment but his own, and acting rather by the vivacity of his own impetuous fancy, than by the directions of the Holy Spirit, or the rules of right reason. As he was of a confirmed age at his entrance into the Society, so he had not soon enough endeavoured to get the mastery of those headstrong passions which ran away with his understanding. And when he had once taken upon him the charge of rector, he began to govern by the dictates of his own capricious humour, even before the face of Xavier, ere he departed from the Indies for Japan; and the Father, who easily perceived that the government of Gomez was not in the least conformable to the spirit of their Institute, would at that time have withdrawn him from Goa, and sent him to Ormuz: but the viceroy, to whom Gomez had been powerfully recommended by one of the chief ministers of Portugal, would not suffer him to be transplanted, or that his authority should be taken from him: so that all Xavier could do, was to temper and draw off from his jurisdiction, by establishing Father Paul de Camerine superior-general of all the missions of the Indies.

But when once the saint was departed from Goa, Gomez usurped the whole government; alleging, for his own justification, that Father Rodriguez had given him an absolute power; and that Camerine was a poor honest creature, more fit to visit the prisons and hospitals of Goa, than to manage the missions, and govern the colleges, of the Society. He began with prescribing new rules to his inferiors; and declared to them, in express terms, that they must return into their mothers' wombs, that they might be born again into a spiritual life, and transformed into other men. Not that they had any need of reformation, they who were themselves the models of a perfect life; but the business was, that he had brought with him out of Europe, I know not what contrivance of new living, framed according to his own fanciful speculations. He undertook then to change their domestic discipline, and to regulate the studies of the Jesuits by the model of the university of Paris, where he had been a student in his youth. There was nothing but change and innovation every day; and he exercised his power with such haughtiness and magisterial hardness, that it appeared more like the dictates of an absolute monarchy, than the injunction of a religious superior: For, to make himself obeyed and feared, he went so far as to tell them he had received an unlimited power from Father Simon Rodriguez, in virtue of which he could imprison, or remand into Portugal, any person who should presume to oppose his government.

His conduct was not less irregular in respect of the young men who were educated in the seminary, of whom the greatest part were Indians. Though they were yet but novices in the faith, and scarcely to be accounted Christians, he enjoined them the practices of the most perfect interior life, which they could not possibly understand; and as they could not acquit themselves of those exercises, which were too sublime for them, he failed not to punish them severely. From thence arose murmurs and combinations, and even despair began to seize on those young ill-treated Indians; and from thence also it came to pass, that many of them, not able to endure so violent a government, leapt over the walls by night, and fled from out the college. Gomez, who could not bear the least contradiction, upon this became more assuming and fantastical; so that one day he turned out all the remaining scholars of the seminary, as if they had been incapable of discipline, and, receiving into their places seven and-twenty Portuguese, who desired to be of the Society, without having any tincture of human learning, he changed the seminary into a noviciate. As he had gained an absolute ascendant over the mind of George Cabral, at that time viceroy of the Indies, no man durst oppose his mad enterprizes, not so much as the Bishop Don Juan d'Albuquerque, who was unwilling to displease the viceroy, and feared to increase the distemper by endeavouring to cure it. Neither was the rector so confined to Goa, that he made not frequent sallies into the country; whether his natural activity would not suffer him to take repose, or that his zeal required a larger sphere; or that, in fine, he looked upon himself as superior general of the missions, and therefore thought it incumbent on him to have an inspection into all affairs, and to do every thing himself.

The town of Cochin being willing to found a college for the Society, he went thither to receive the offer; but he spoiled a good business by ill management. The captain of the fortress immediately gave him a church, called the Mother of God, against the will of the vicar of Cochin, and in despite of a certain brotherhood to which that church belonged. The donation being disputed in law, Gomez, who had it still about him to make a false step, that is, having much opiniatreté, great credit, good intentions, took upon him to stand the suit, and to get the church upon any terms. This violent procedure exasperated the people, who had been hitherto much edified by the charily of the Fathers; and the public indignation went so high, that they wrote letters of complaint concerning it to the King of Portugal and Father Ignatius.

This was the present face of things when Xavier returned from Japan; and it was partly upon this occasion that the letters which he received at Amanguchi so earnestly pressed his coming back. His first endeavours were to repair the faults committed by the rector; and he began with the business of Cochin: for, in his passage by it, at his return, knowing the violence of Gomez, he assembled in the choir of the cathedral the magistrate of the town, with all the fraternity of the mother of God, and, in the presence of the vicar, falling on his knees before them, he desired their pardon for what had passed, presented to them the keys of the church, which was the cause of the dispute, and yielded it entirely to them. But submission sometimes gains that, which haughty carriage goes without: The fraternity restored the keys into the hands of Xavier, and, of their own free motion, made an authentic deed of gift of their church to the college of the Society. As for what relates to Goa, the saint dismissed those Portuguese whom Gomez had received into the Society; and, having gathered up as many as he could find of those young Indians, who had either been expelled, or were gone out of the college of their own accord, he re-established the seminary, whose dissolution was so prejudicial to the Christianity of the Indies.

It was only remaining to chastise the criminal, who had made such evil use of his authority. Xavier would make an example of him; and so much the rather, because, having told him what punishment his faults had merited, he found him standing on his terms, insolent, and with no disposition to submit. He judged, upon the whole, that a man who was neither humble nor obedient, after such scandalous misdemeanours, was unworthy of the Society of Jesus; which notwithstanding, he was not willing to pull off his habit at Goa, for fear his departure might make too great a noise; but having made the viceroy sensible of the justice of his proceeding, he sent him to the fortress of Diu, towards Cambaya, with orders to the Fathers residing there to give him his dismission, and to use all manner of persuasions with him that he would return into Portugal, by the opportunity of the first ship which went away. All was performed according to the intentions of the holy man. But Gomez embarking on a vessel which was wrecked in the midst of the voyage, was unfortunately drowned; giving us to understand, by so tragical an end, that the talents of nature, and even the gifts of grace itself, serve only to the destruction of a man in religious orders, who is not endued with the spirit of humility and obedience.

BOOK VI.