lt in the
said island by the encomenderos, to sell to the said Portuguese in
these islands, and which cost about five hundred pesos--two thousand
fanegas of cleaned rice, and six hundred jars [_tinajas_] of wine could
be loaded in them. The rice would be collected for your Majesty from
your royal tributes, at two reals and six maravedis. Each tinaja of
wine, with cask and all, is valued at four reals, on board. Likewise
two hundred pesos of fine Sangley earthenware is sufficient, which is
to be used as follows. These two patages must, while going to Maluco,
of necessity take water at the port of La Caldera, and the earthenware
is to be left in the Spanish camp which is there, so that with it they
may buy from the natives five hundred quintals of cinnamon, taking
care to dry it. In the meantime the two patages resume their voyage,
having left this earthenware, and continue with the rice and wine to
the fortress of the said Malucas. They will deliver to the warden there
half of it, to pay those expenses or quarters to the citizens. With
the other half they will buy four hundred _baxes_ of cloves, making
two thousand four hundred quintals, at six quintals to the bax; [6]
this would be brought on your Majesty's account to these islands. Then
they are obliged to go back to the said port of La Caldera, where they
will take on the cinnamon bought with the earthenware; and all will
be brought to the port of Cavite, to be embarked on the ships which
your Majesty sends on the voyage from here to Nueva Espana. When they
have arrived there, the royal officials at the port of Acapulco will
send a third of the said cloves and cinnamon to Mexico, and two-thirds
to Piru and its provinces. If sold at retail, it would be worth three
hundred pesos a quintal; going to private persons, in quantity, it is
usually worth two hundred pesos; consequently, in this way there would
be a great profit gained. I am ready to say that it would be worth
to your Majesty almost as much as all the income from the customs
of all Portuguese Yndia. For this purpose your Majesty will have
to keep a factor in the said island of Panay, to collect tributes,
despatch the ships to La Caldera and Maluco, and receive them there;
and to correspond with the royal officials in this city so that they
may embark all this spice for Nueva Espana, and with the factor who
must be at Acapulco, so that he may make the distribution.

This transaction is so profitable that several