Your Majesty has ordered that the viceroy of Nueva Espana should each year give licenses to citizens of this state for five hundred thousand pesos, the money to be brought here in return for their merchandise which they export hence.  It happened that this year’s sale of the goods that went over last year was profitable; and the said viceroy, although he was under obligation to execute that order, did not do so.  He assigned to the citizens only two hundred thousand pesos in licenses, and the balance, making the sum of five hundred thousand, to Peruvians, on condition that they should become citizens in these islands for a certain time—­thus keeping back from the citizens three hundred thousand pesos, which has brought about disastrous injury.  For not only were they prevented from availing themselves of their own property, but the Peruvians to whom were given, in their places, the said licenses, being wealthy people, came loaded down with money to be registered—­although the fiscal of your royal Audiencia and another royal official, who went to inspect the ships, could not find any proof, as the money had all been taken out before they arrived at the fort.  When they arrived here, finding much cloth in the possession of the Chinese and not considering its price, they spent their money.  When the citizens came, as they could not lade the share which had been assigned them, since no money had come therefor, the Peruvians freighted the ships; and the profit which, through your Majesty’s gracious aid, the citizens of these islands should have had, was enjoyed by the Peruvians.  May your Majesty order this to be investigated, and direct in regard to it what may be best for your royal service and for the maintenance of this country.  As the licenses to lade their cloth in the ships which are going to Mexico—­being one of the profits and rewards which we have in this country to give to deserving citizens—­is a matter which always gives rise to complaint, no matter how justly the distribution is made, in order to avoid this and to proceed as justly and satisfactorily as is generally possible, I have ordered during the whole time I have spent here that, first of all, the ship should be gauged for its tonnage by persons chosen by the city—­men who are intelligent, conscientious, and disinterested, and otherwise competent for the said gauging.  The allotment has been and is still made as justly as possible.

28. That the persons appointed to lade the ships did not keep the order which was given them, breaking it to the injury of citizens, and were arrested.

This year were appointed, to direct the lading of the new ship “Santo Toma,” Captain Gaspar Perez, the alcalde-ordinary, Captain Juan de Arsega, and Captain Christoval de Asqueta, a regidor of this city.  They were given the usual order to lade according to a list, beginning first with the men who are most deserving and have been longest in the country.  As they did not keep the order which