durst not anchor there, but only used to come thither, standing off and on, and sending their boats a-land for such necessaries as they wanted, without coming to anchor.  But now necessity compelled us to this measure, owing to our fears for the three small English ships, also because of the kings orders, and because we understood that the Earl of Cumberland was not far from these islands with sundry ships of war.  We made therefore a virtue of necessity, and entering the road of Tercera, anchored close under the castle, in waiting for orders from the king to pursue our voyage, it being then the 24th of July or St Jameses day.

The 12th of August, the Earl of Cumberland, with six or seven ships of war, sailed past the island of Tercera; and to our great good fortune passed out of sight.  We then set out in all haste, and, for our greater security, took along with us 400 Spaniards of those who were in garrison in the island, and made sail for Lisbon with a favourable wind, so that in eleven days we arrived in the river Tagus with great joy and triumph.  For, had we been one day longer of getting into the river, we had all been taken by Captain Drake, [Sir Francis Drake] who came before Cascais with 40 ships, at the very time when we cast anchor in the Tagus under the guard of several gallies.

While I remained in Tercera, the Earl of Cumberland came to St Marys to take in fresh water and other victuals; but the inhabitants would not suffer him to have it, and wounded both the earl himself and several of his men, so that they were forced to depart without having any thing.  Likewise, while I was at Tercera, the same earl came to the island of Graciosa, where he went to land in person with seven or eight others, demanding certain beasts, poultry, and other victuals, with wine and fresh water, which they willingly gave him, after which he departed without doing any injury, for which the inhabitants were very thankful, praising his courtesy and faithfulness to his promise.  The earl came likewise at that time to Fayal, where at the first they begun to resist him; but by reason of some controversy among themselves, they let him land, when he razed the castle, throwing all the cannon into the sea, and took with him certain caravels and ships that lay in the road, with all such provisions as he wanted, and then departed.  Thereupon, the king caused the principal actors in that transaction to be punished, and went thither a company of soldiers, which went from Tereera, with all kind of warlike ammunition and great shot, rebuilding the cattle the better to defend the island, and no more trusting to the Portuguese inhabitants.