Francisco Tello,
his predecessor, toward the sixteen millions [of maravedis?] which
were still due from the balance which was incurred by him at the
time when he was treasurer of the Sevilla House of Trade; and also
to cause that whatever remained to be paid should be collected from
the said Don Francisco Tello and from his property.

In the course of the execution of this commission by the said Don
Pedro de Acuna, the royal officials certified that the said Don
Francisco Tello had paid them twenty-seven thousand two hundred
pesos of common gold, which should be twenty-eight thousand one
hundred and eighty-four pesos, according to your command by a royal
decree dated in San Lorenco, on the thirteenth of September in the
year one thousand five hundred and ninety-five. The said officials
decided that the eight thousand pesos which were lost in the year
one thousand six hundred in the ship "Santa Margarita" should be
for your Majesty's account--because, since the debt was contracted
in the Sevilla House of Trade, the payment should be there; and
the said Don Francisco Tello must run the risk as far as that. They
also decided that what was ordered in the aforesaid royal decree of
the thirteenth of September, ninety-five, was that each year three
thousand ducados should be deducted from the salary of Don Francisco
Tello, which were to be sent each year; and, as he failed to pay in
the years ninety-six, ninety-seven, and ninety-eight, for the rest
of the time it came about that eight thousand pesos were sent each
year. It was thus that the aforesaid eight thousand pesos were lost
which were going in the said ship "Santa Margarita;" whereas, if the
aforesaid royal decree had been followed and three thousand ducados
sent, no more than that sum would have been lost.

The governor gave me authority to follow up the matter, and I asked
from him an order of execution for the whole sum, with the assurance
that I would receive on account whatever seemed lawfully to have been
paid; it was given to me on the person and goods of the aforesaid
Don Francisco Tello, but property was not found to the value of four
hundred pesos. He opposed the execution, saying that he had paid in
Sevilla with the income of his family estate, together with what he
had paid here, all the balance that was due. I replied to this that
this did not appear, from the aforesaid royal decree of January, one
thousand six hundred, and that a forced sale would have