carry it away.

On first entering the city, the Persian general, named Einam Culi Beg,
placed captains with detachments of soldiers in various quarters,
proclaiming that each officer was to be answerable for the safety of the
quarter assigned to him, and threatening death to all who were found
pillaging. Some infringing these orders were severely punished, some
being hanged, others having their ears or noses cut off, and others
bastinadoed even for trifles. Yet, in two or three days after, the shops
and houses were forced open, and every man so wearied with carrying away
plunder all day long, and sleeping so securely at night without any
proper military precautions, that the Portuguese might easily have slain
many, if they had ventured upon making a sally.

On the night of our landing, I took possession of a very commodious
house for a factory, which, for convenience and goodness of its rooms,
exceeded, as I think, any factory belonging to the Honourable Company.
But it proved too hot for me on the 13th, in the night, as one of the
master's mates of the Whale, with others of his companions, after I was
in bed, by carelessness of candles, while searching for plunder, set a
room on fire in which were some goods given me in charge by the general.
Fortunately the wind favoured us, so that the house was not consumed.
Considering the strength of this city, and that every house was as it
were a little castle, I was astonished the Portuguese should have
abandoned it so soon. But it seems they were afraid of being intercepted
by the Persians in their retreat to the castle, and dreaded that the
Mahometan inhabitants might have betrayed them.

The Persians began presently to throw up trenches, and daily approached
nearer the castle, and, with our help, erected batteries for ordnance,
and sconces or redoubts for securing their men, and protecting the
trenches. With the cannon from our ships, we sore galled the Portuguese
ships, forcing them to haul in as close as possible to the castle. On
the 24th of February, four of our boats set fire to the San Pedro,
formerly admiral of Andrada's fleet, which put all the rest in great
danger, but the tide carried her out to sea, and her relics were towed
on shore at Gambroon by the Arab and other country boats, some iron
ordnance and shot being got out of her burnt carkass. The Khan was much
rejoiced at this exploit.

The Persians having succeeded in constructing a mine under one of the
b