[Footnote 106:  Dabul is on the coast of Canara, in lat. 17 deg. 46’ N. in that part usually called the Pirates coast, which is occupied by a number of half independent Mahratta chieftains, who often plunder defenceless trading ships, by means of armed grabs full of desperadoes.—­E.]

On the 30th of December 1508, the fleet entered the harbour, and the troops immediately landed with the utmost promptitude, dividing into three bodies to attack three several gates at once.  The Moors made a brave resistance at each attack, but the works being high, their shot flew over the heads of the assailants, who were more obstructed by the dead bodies than by the defenders or their works.  Nunno Vaz Pereyra, who was sent with a detachment to force an entrance at another place, put the numerous troops who resisted him to flight after a brave resistance; but they now fled in such haste towards the mountain, though pursued by ten Portuguese only, that they tumbled over each other in their haste, and retarded their own escape.  In this fight, which lasted five hours, fifteen hundred of the enemy were slain with the loss only of sixteen Portuguese.  Having gained possession, Almeyda distributed his men in several quarters of the streets, with orders to keep strict guard, lest the enemy might return; which they accordingly did by stealth in the night, in order to recover their wives, children, and goods.  In the morning, the viceroy gave permission to his troops to plunder the town; but this was speedily prevented by the houses taking fire, which in a few hours reduced the whole to ashes, so that the booty did not exceed 150,000 ducats.  In fact the town was purposely set on fire by the private orders of the viceroy, lest the men might have been so satiated by the riches of the place as to retard his ulterior designs.  The ships in the harbour were likewise destroyed by fire, to the no small risk of the Portuguese ships which were very near.

In fitting out for this expedition, the viceroy had not laid in any considerable store of provisions, as he expected to have got supplies on the coast; but on sending to the neighbouring villages none was to be had, as the last crop had been utterly eaten up by locusts, many of which were found preserved in pots for food by the natives, and being tasted by the Portuguese were found palatable, and not unlike shrimps.  This made them conclude that there were land shrimps, as in some places, particularly in the vineyards about Rome, there are crabs found not unlike those of the sea.  Hence if locusts were not so numerous and destructive, so as to blast the hopes of harvest and to be dreaded like a plague, they might be useful as food; and we know from Scripture that St John fed upon them in the desert.