Storia do Mogor 265.7
Storia do Mogor (Irvine) 265.7
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265.7.1
Joao Soares Cove returned from his journey. When he landed on the beach, his friends told him of what had passed. Seeing that he had neither strength nor force to obtain satisfaction for the affront, he never entered the house, but started at once for Goa. He presented himself before Dom Phelipe Mascarenha, then viceroy. He put on his head a large bonnet covered with horns, and he made complaint of the injury done to him by Christovao Pexoto. On becoming aware of that man's insolent conduct, the viceroy gave complainant a letter enjoining on the magistrate and the married men of Negapatam that in one way or the other they must deprive the disturber of his life. The man, when he knew of this, withdrew from the town, and settled in the country of a Hindu prince not far from that place.
265.7.2
Finding that they could not carry out their orders, the magistrate and residents sent a present to the prince, and a letter requesting him to make over Christovao Pexoto to them alive. This money, a thing which can effect much among the Indians, caused the prince to make over the insolent fellow in chains into the hands of the citizens. These ordered his delivery to Joao Soares Cove. On reaching his presence, Pexoto, instead of showing repentance and asking pardon, called Cove over and over again a cuckold and other unseemly names. His wrath rising higher and higher, the injured man flung himself on his enemy with a pointed knife and stabbed him to the heart. Instead of commending his soul to God in these his last throes, Pexoto continued his abuse until he expired. Cove filled his two hands with the blood flowing from the wound and drank it, then smeared his whole body, face and head, with the blood, finally mutilating the dead man. After this was over, he hastened home to kill his wife. But, warned in time, she had fled to Trangabar (Tranquebar) in the company of a servant-boy she took to show her the way. On reaching his house Cove found his wife gone, and that the servant had removed her. He left the town and hid near the road, and as the servant was returning he killed him. For several days he went about all bloody, solely to prove that he had wreaked vengeance for his wrongs.
265.7.3
I will recount an extraordinary case which happened in the town of Bassaim (Bassein), when the rector in office was Father da Costa, of the Society of Jesus, a virtuous priest, who was himself my informant. [Story of a child brought up as a girl, who on marriage turned out to be a boy. On the author's passing through Bassein, the priest pointed out the supposed girl to him, and told him the story.] It seems to me also desirable that I should praise certain ladies who gave evidence of their good conduct and patience. It happened in the same town of Bassein that a young and well-born man was desirous of marrying a lady of equal rank. The more efforts he made the less inclined she showed herself, and in the end he sent to say that if she did not marry him, he would not all his life long marry anyone else. This woman married a young man whom she loved, and with him she lived happily for twelve years. The night of the wedding the young man whom she had refused came beneath her window with his friends carrying a number of instruments, and began to sing a doleful ditty which at last came to an end, when he drew a profound sigh, and exclaimed, 'Ah, tyrant! thou knowest not the laws of love.' At the end of the music the instruments were flung on the ground and smashed to bits. The serenaded pair were much put out, and took it as an affront.
265.7.4
After twelve years the husband died, and the serenading young man once more made his proposal of marriage to the widow. She had not forgotten what he had done, and sent word that he should call to mind the affront he had practised when he broke the musical instruments beneath her window. At this final repulse he lost all hope. The widow married another young man whom I knew, but he turned out different from what she expected, for he was a young woman. It was a remarkable fact for a woman of India to endure this patiently, yet she kept it a profound secret for the sake of her husband's honour. This shows how different she was from those others whose story I have told. It happened in Bassein that a well-born lady of good station, and married, was delivered of a girl after a pregnancy of three years. When the child was twelve, she, too, married, and also was with child three years before being delivered. I have noted the fact that in Hindustan some have brought forth after fifteen months or two years, or thereabouts, and the medical men, being inexperienced, thought it was due to some disease or to some accumulated humours. They administered drugs, which brought on premature confinement, and a perfect child was born, although they had not allowed the time fixed by nature to be completed.
265.7.5
When I left the court of the prince Shah 'Alam for Goa, I went via the town of Damao (Daman) in the year eighty-one (1681), and I rested there some forty days. In that interval it happened that the magistrate, who had not long arrived from Goa, fell in love with a widow woman, rich and honoured. She declined his advances, and felt so insulted that she sent word to him not to be overbold, else it would cost him his life. The impatient gentleman [182] continued to trouble her, and, blinded by the purpose he had formed, ignored the answer she had sent. Finding he could not win her by smooth words, he sent her threats. The honoured lady not only had these wrongs inflicted on her, but he also tried to get hold of the farms from which she supported herself. Being a widow, she was at home about ten at night. The official, not foreseeing the evil fate in store for him, clad himself sumptuously, and boldly entered the woman's house. Men were lying in wait for him, and, wringing his neck, put an end to him. Aided by some relations, these men silently dragged the body by a rope to the foot of the city wall, on the outside, towards the sea. Placing the body in a sitting posture, they propped it against the wall, as if seated for a necessary purpose. They covered him with his cape, removed the rope, and cocked his hat on one side, so that he looked as if come to fish.
265.7.6
When morning came, the ouvidor's friends turned up at his house as usual to pay their court, but did not find him, nor could they get any news of him. Making inquiries, they discovered some fishermen who said the ouvidor (they recognising his cloak) was on the seashore attending to his necessities before going to fish. The crowd ran to the spot, and saw him as the fishermen had said. Not aware that he was dead, they made their bow to him. Finding he made no response, they asked him the reason of his coming alone without attendants. Remarking that still there was no reply, they removed the cloak, and found him dead with his tongue hanging out. Upon the unlocking of the city gates the woman moved out to her country house, and thus in a short time got rid of the crime. They told me that three magistrates had died from similar causes in the same town. At the auction of the deceased's effects I bought some cupboards, among them an escritoire. In it was a paper with a heart painted on it pierced by an arrow, which survived him as a mark that he had died for love. But it would have been more correct to paint his portrait with his neck broken, because from scoundrels in office noble deeds cannot be looked for.
265.7.7
Another case was that of a man married to a virtuous woman. The wife took no notice of the misdeeds of the husband with a slave girl, while the latter was eager to make away with her mistress and take her place. She made false accusations, and told her master that his wife had taken to evil ways, receiving a paramour in the house at fixed hours every night. She described the place at which he entered. In saying this, she failed to reflect on what might happen to herself. She imagined that, on seeing this verified, he would return and kill the lady. But it did not turn out as she desired. To carry the thing out [183] she disguised herself as a man, and went at the appointed hour to the place she had mentioned. The master came to find out if it was true, and ascertained that the negress spoke truly. In his anger he let off his matchlock, so that she fell from the wall to the ground, and as she fell she gave a cry. This saved the husband from killing his wife, for he recognised at once both the voice and the maliciousness of the negro woman.