[45] Jesuit missionaries had already found their way into the Chinese ports.  Cretineau-Joly states—­Hist.  Comp. de Jesus (third edition, Paris, 1859), i, p. 402—­that in 1556 Melchior Nunez visited Macao and Canton, where he became acquainted with the mandarins; but the repressive Chinese laws prevented him from preaching the Christian faith.  In 1563, three Jesuits visited Pekin; and in 1581-83 three missionaries of that order became established at Macao and Canton—­Michel Ruggieri, Mateo Ricci, and ——­ Pazio.  During 1600-10, Ricci was a missionary at Peking, where he was greatly esteemed by the emperor and other leading Chinese, on account of his scientific and linguistic attainments; he is said to have been the first European to compose works in Chinese.  See sketch of his life in Yule’s Cathay, ii, p. 536.

[46] A somewhat blind allusion to the decline of the Portuguese power in India, which began in the first decade of the sixteenth century, with the conquests of Albuquerque and others (see note 8 ante).  The arbitrary and tyrannical rule of the Portuguese exasperated the natives, many of whom revolted.  It will be remembered that in 1580 Portugal was subjected to the dominion of Spain—­including, of course, its Oriental colonial possessions.  The statement in the text evidently means that, of the Indian states subdued by the Portuguese, many have acquired so much strength that they have been able successfully to resist their conquerors, and little therefore remains for the Spaniards, who are now in possession of the Portuguese domains.

[47] The Sofi are a peculiar sect of Mahometans, organized about 820 A.D.  For account of early relations and intercourse between the Chinese, Persians, and Armenians, see Yule’s Cathay, i, pp. lxxxii-lxxxviii.

[48] A reference to the St. Lawrence River, then little known, but by which, it was conjectured, might be gained a route to the Sea of China, which was generally supposed to lie not far west of the North American coast.

[49] This document forms part of the group “Measures regarding trade with China;” but its subject-matter renders its location at this point more appropriate; consequently it has been transferred hither.  The works printed in italics at the beginning of certain paragraphs in this document are, on the original MS., written as marginal notes—­probably by a clerk of the Council of the Indias.

[50] In the original MS., section 8 does not appear—­probably a mistake in numbering the divisions of the letter.

[51] The phrase foro (an old form of fuero) interior is but another expression for the ecclesiastical forum conscientiae, or forum poenitentiae.  The reference is to cases of conscience, which should in this case be left entirely to the bishop’s decision.

[52] This was Pedro de Moya y Contreras:  see note 10, ante.

[53] A reference to the residencia, or judicial investigation, to which each royal official was liable (vol.  IV, p. 71, note 7).