A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels, Vol. 7 | Page 6

farther inquiry, a man 90 years of age was
found, who had known the Portuguese that were cast away there, and
could still remember a few detached words of their language.
The Portuguese set all hands to work to build a house and chapel for
the two Jesuits and four Portuguese who were to remain, and when the
work was finished, mass was solemnly said on shore, many of the
natives coming to learn how to make the sign of the cross. One day
while the king was looking on, and saw several men labouring hard to
carry a cross that was meant to be set upon a rock, he went half naked
and bareheaded, and carried it without assistance to the place appointed.
The Portuguese might well say they had found another emperor
Heraclius; for after this pious act of gigantic strength, he became very
wicked; for being ready to sail, De Costa demanded that the king's son
who had been promised should be sent, but he denied having ever made
any such promise, and offered a slave. On this the captain sent the
master and pilot with some men to enforce the demand, and safe
conduct for some Portuguese to go to port St Lucia to see an inscription
said by the natives to be at that place. The peace was thus broken, and a
party of Portuguese soldiers was sent armed against the king, who
endeavoured to resist, and the king's son, a youth of eleven years of age
was brought away, the natives being unable to contend against
fire-arms. Several messages were sent offering a high ransom for the
boy; but on being told by the captain that he would lose his head if he
did not carry him to the viceroy, they went away much grieved. This
happened about the end of 1613; and towards the middle of 1614, de
Costa arrived safe at Goa with the boy, whom the viceroy caused to be
instructed in Christianity by the jesuits, and stood god-father at his
baptism on St Andrews day, when he was named Andrew Azevedo.
The viceroy treated him with much honour and magnificence, in hopes
that when he succeeded to his father, he might encourage the
propagation of the gospel in Madagascar; and when he was supposed to
be sufficiently instructed, he was sent away, accompanied by four
Jesuits. On this occasion a pink and caravel were sent to Madagascar,
commanded by Pedro de Almeyda Cabral, and Juan Cardoso de Pina,

who sailed from Goa on the 17th of September 1616. On the 20th of
March 1617, they discovered a most delightful island, watered with
pure springs, and producing many unknown plants besides others
already known, both aromatic and medicinal. To this island, in which
were two mountains which overtopped the clouds, they gave the name
of Isola del Cisne or swan island, and on it the jesuits planted some
crosses and left inscriptions commemorative of the discovery[15]. The
wreck of two ships of the Hollanders were found on this island. On the
arrival of the two Portuguese ships in the port of St Lucia in
Madagascar, the king and queen of Matacassi received their son with
the strongest demonstrations of joy, and gave back the hostages left on
taking him away. The four jesuits with six soldiers accompanied the
young prince to his father's court at Fansaria, where, and at every place
through which he passed, he was received with demonstrations of joy,
which to the Portuguese seemed ridiculous, as no doubt those used by
the Portuguese on similar occasions would have appeared to them. The
king made a similar agreement with the two commanders on this
voyage with that formerly made with De Costa, which was that the
fathers should inhabit the inland of Santa Cruz and have liberty to
preach the gospel in Madagascar. Upon this the fathers went to the fort
at Santa Cruz, where Don Andrew, the king's son, sent them workmen
and provisions.
[Footnote 15: The text gives no indication by which even to conjecture
the situation of this island, unless that being bound towards the
southern part of the east coast of Madagascar, it may possibly have
been either the isle of France, or that of Bourbon.--E.]
The captain, Pedro de Almeyda, had orders to bring another of the
king's sons to Goa, and if refused to carry one away by force; but the
king declared that he had only one other son, who was too young for
the voyage, on which Almeyda satisfied himself with Anria Sambo, the
king's nephew, who was carried to Goa, and baptized by the name of
Jerome. When sufficiently instructed in the Christian religion, he was
sent back to his country in a pink, commanded by Emanuel de Andrada,
together with