of the governors who
have been in these islands have taken the trouble to send an armed
galley merely to make this purchase of cinnamon at the port of La
Caldera, until in the time of Doctor Santiago de Vera this trade
was abandoned. Being aware of the profit in it, Guido de Lavezaris
(who governed these islands on the death of the adelantado Miguel
Lopez de Legazpi) prohibited trading and trafficking in spices in
these islands for any person except the officials of your Majesty,
who were to receive, buy, and lade the spices for Mexico, all on the
account of your royal exchequer; this was done. In consequence of this,
he likewise forbade that any island or any province whatsoever where
there were cloves, cinnamon, or other spices should be assigned in
encomiendas. Accordingly, from that time on, the transportation of
spices by private persons to Nueva Espana was cut off. All this with
the lapse of time, and the interest of certain persons, has been
neglected, so that, it is understood, a great quantity of spice is
taken to Nueva Espana every year.

23. The other expedient which occurs to me is that the income from silk
to the kingdom of Granada is registered as seventy-two millions, with
the condition that no twisted or loose silk can be taken to the Yndias,
which does not come from the said kingdom--although, indeed, to fill up
this quantity, there is sometimes added silk from the kingdom of Murcia
and Andalucia; but it passes through the custom-house of Granada, pays
its duties, and is sealed there. In order that there may be no fraud in
this, there is in Sevilla an administrator and a commissioned judge,
who is ordinarily one of the alcaldes of the criminal court of the
royal Audiencia. From the kingdom of China a quantity of crude silk
is brought in bundles to these islands, and is taken to Nueva Espana,
where it is woven into fabrics, and part of it is dyed. This silk
is usually worth in this city a hundred and fifty pesos, although at
present it sells at two hundred and forty pesos a pico.

From the transportation of this silk the royal exchequer suffers
the following losses. In the first place, the silks brought from
Castilla, whether woven or loose, are worth less; and accordingly
the royal duties do not amount to so much. In the second place,
there are not so many silks brought as would come if these were
lacking. Although these pay duties, there is a loss in this, as
duties are not so great as those from Ca