so
luckily, that he recovered all his losses with great advantage. The
saint, who looked on, took out of the overplus of the winnings, what he
had borrowed for him; and seeing the gamester now returned to a calm
temper, wrought upon him so successfully, that he, who before refused to
hear him, was now overpowered by his discourse, never after handled
cards, and became exemplary in his life.

They arrived at Malacca the 25th of September. As this is one of those
places in the Indies, where the saint, whose life I write, had most
business, and whither he made many voyages, it will not be unprofitable
to say somewhat of it. It is situate beyond the gulph of Bengal, towards
the head of that great peninsula, which, from the mouth of the Ara, is
extended to the south, almost to the equinoctial line; and is of two
degrees and a half of elevation, over against the island of Sumatra,
which the ancients, who had not frequented this channel, believed to be
joined to the continent.

Malacca was under the dominion of the kings of Siam, until the Saracens,
who traded thither, becoming powerful, first made it Mahometan, then
caused it to revolt against the lawful prince, and set up a monarch of
their own sect, called Mahomet. There was not, at that time, any more
famous mart town than this, and where there was a greater concourse of
different nations. For, besides the people of Guzuratte, Aracan, Malabar,
Pegu, Sumatra, Java, and the Moluccas, the Arabs, the Persians, the
Chinese, and the Japonians, trafficked there; and accordingly the town
lay extended all along by the sea side, for the convenience of trade.

Amongst all the nations of Asia there is not any more inclined to
pleasure; and this seems chiefly to proceed from the mild temper of the
air. For there is an eternal spring, notwithstanding the neighbourhood of
the line. The inhabitants follow the natural bent of their complexion;
their whole business is perfumes, feasts, and music; to say nothing of
carnal pleasures, to which they set no bound. Even the language which
they speak participates of the softness of the country: It is called the
Malaya tongue, and, of all the orient, it is the most delicate and sweet
of pronunciation.

Don Alphonso Albuquerque conquered Malacca in the year 1511, and thirty
thousand men, with eight thousand pieces of artillery, and an infinite
number of elephants and ships, were not able to defend it. It was taken
by force, at the second assault