ned their
country, without any other thought than of saving their lives. In order
to which, they threw themselves by heaps into their barks, some of them
escaping into little desart islands, others hiding amongst the rocks and
banks of sand, betwixt Cape Comorin, and the Isle of Ceylon. These were
the places of their retreat, together with their wives and children,
while the Badages overran the coast, and destroyed their country.

But what profits it to have escaped the sword, when, they must die of
hunger? Those miserable creatures, exposed to the burning heats of the
sun, wanted nourishment in their isles, and on their rocks, and numbers
of them daily perished.

In the mean time, the news of this excursion of the robbers, and the
flight of the Christians, was spread about, and Xavier heard it in the
country where he then resided. The misfortunes of his dear Paravas
touched him in the most tender part. He made haste to their relief; and,
having been informed that they were pressed with famine, he passed
speedily to the western coast, and earnestly solicited the Portuguese to
supply them in this their extreme necessity. He obtained twenty barks,
laden with all manner of provision, and himself brought it to their
places of retreat, where the poor Paravas, as many as were left alive of
them, were languishing without hope of comfort, and expecting death to
end their misery.

The sight of the holy man, whom all of them regarded as their common
father, caused them to forget some part of their misfortune, and seemed
to restore them to life. He gave them all imaginable consolation; and,
when they had somewhat recovered their strength, he brought them back to
their habitations, from whence the Badages were retired. Those plunderers
had swept all away, and the Christians were more poor than ever; he
therefore procured alms for them, and wrote a letter earnestly to the
Christians of another coast, to supply their brethren in distress.

The Paravas being resettled by degrees, Xavier left them under the
conduct of the missioners, whom he had brought for them, and turned his
thoughts elsewhere. He was desirous to have carried the sound of the
gospel into the more inland countries, which had never heard of Jesus
Christ; yet he forbore it at that time, upon this account, that in
those kingdoms where there were no Portuguese to protect the new
Christians, the idolaters and Saracens would make war on them, or
constrain them to renou