him. It was said, however, that he died of a poisonous herb which was given him; and they say that his symptoms proved it. Whether that is true or not, this land is such that it could be suspected and said that in so short a time they took the life of their prelate. In the temporal government, the death of the good licentiate, Alvaro de Çambrano, was very unfortunate for the poor and for persons of little influence. He was a pious man and one of noble purposes, and he died of grief, as may be deduced from a letter which he wrote me before his death. There is no doubt that the reason we do not die is because we have not grieved over matters with the charity and good zeal which were his.
Something has been done by the governor of these islands, Don Francisco Tello, in which the auditors also must have been concerned. A ship was sent from these islands to China, and, as I understand—your Majesty will learn the facts by other means—it sailed to a port very near to the town of the Portuguese. If God and your Majesty provide no remedy, this expedition will be the total destruction of what is held here by the crowns of Castilla and Portogal, with great offense to the faith, or the destruction of preaching and conversion. It is most difficult of correction, for there are interested in this matter first, the governor; secondly, the auditors; and thirdly, their followers and ministers. I hope, God helping, that all the good works which have been commenced here will not be abandoned for aught but the interest and profit of those who, according to right, should not regard their private welfare, but the common good, and the service of God and their king. In this I do not refer to the
