with two towers to secure the town, and lined the sea-shore
with strong palisades; flanked by two bastions, one of which considerably
larger than the other, was mounted with heavy cannon to defend the
entrance of the harbour, which was farther secured by a boom of masts
strongly chained together. Having thus, as he thought, provided a secure
retreat, he continued his uncle's enterprises against the Portuguese
with much success, assisting all their enemies against them, even
robbing the Malabar traders on the coast, and filled his residence with
rich plunder. The viceroy Albuquerque had endeavoured to destroy this
nest of pirates, so prejudicial to the Portuguese trade, and had even
prevailed on the zamorin to concur in the destruction of Cuneale, so
that a treaty had been entered into, by which the zamorin engaged to
besiege Cuneale by land, while the Portuguese fleet attacked him by sea.
Both parties provided according to stipulation for this joint
expedition; but it was postponed for some time, in consequence of the
change in the government by the arrival of the Count of Vidigueyra as
viceroy, and even by the secret concurrence of the zamorin in the
piracies of Cuneale, who communicated to him a share of the plunder.

At length, however, the zamorin became incensed against Cuneale, who
assumed the title of king of the Malabar Moors, and lord of the Indian
Sea; but chiefly because he had caused the tail of one of his elephants
to be cut off, and had used one of his Nayres in a cruel and scandalous
manner. Laying hold of this favourable opportunity, the viceroy, De
Gama, probably in 1598, renewed the league with the zamorin against
Cuneale, and sent some light vessels under Ferdinand de Noronha to
blockade the entrance into the port of Cuneale, till a larger force
could be provided to co-operate with the zamorin, who was marching to
besiege it by land with 20,000 men and some cannon.

That part of the western coast of India, which is properly called the
coast of Malabar, extends from Cananor to Cochin for the space of 42
leagues. From Cananor it is two leagues to the small island of
_Tremapatan_, within which is a good river; thence half a league to the
river of _Sal_, thence one and a half to the river _Maim_; one to the
town of _Comena_, a small distance beyond which are the towns of
_Motangue, Curiare_, and _Baregare_: thence to the river _Pudepatan_;
two leagues farther the town of _Tiracole_; other two leagues the