Vasco Martinez.)

(This is the copy of a reply which the very illustrious Miguel Lopez de Leguazpi sent to Goncalo Pereira, captain-general in these regions of the South for the king our lord, which reply I, Pero Bernaldez, notary-public of this fleet, copied from the original at the request of the said Miguel Lopez de Legazpi.)

I, Miguel Lopez de Legaspi, governor and captain-general for his majesty the king Don Felipe, our sovereign, over his people and his royal fleet for the discovery of the islands of the West—­in reply to the rejoinder made by the very illustrious captain-general of the Portuguese fleet, to the response which I made to his first summons, do now confirm my response aforesaid, which is absolutely true, as said and declared therein; and this will be proved and established with true and sufficient evidences and proofs, at any and all times, as it shall prove necessary.  And I do not feel bound to reply to many of the things contained in his rejoinder, inasmuch as they are utterly irrelevant, and have nothing to do with the business here concerned—­tending, as they do, to attribute fault, and cause for slander, where there is none; many of them, also, being untrue, and unworthy of a person in so serious and important a station, and of so illustrious and Christian blood as the said captain-general claims to possess.  And thus denying it, in all and for all, and coming to the essential points, I declare and affirm that my entrance in this island was occasioned by the reasons and causes contained in my response; that it was forced and necessary, and without my knowing that I had passed the line of demarcation.  And this I neither knew nor understood until the said captain-general assured me of it in his letters.  And likewise I affirm that I was detained, and remained here against my will, through my inability to leave in any way for lack of ships and provisions; and not intentionally or purposely to harm, in any way whatsoever, the very illustrious and puissant sovereign, the king of Portugal, or any of his possessions, or to harm any third party.  Nor had I the intention of taking anyone’s property away from him, as may be proved by those principal persons of this camp by whom his grace declares himself to be informed of the contrary; for, if put upon their oaths, they will, as Christians, be unable to escape the necessity of telling the truth.  And, as a man who has desired, and still desires, to depart hence, the first time when Antonio Rumbo da Costa and Baltasar de Soza came here, I informed them that what I needed for that purpose was ships, and that ships were on their way; and so I have informed his grace many times.  In this necessity, however, he has up to the present time given me neither remedy, aid, nor favor—­which I expected from friends and vassals of a sovereign so related by kinship and blood with his majesty; and as I would have done for them, if I had found them in the plight in which they