And now, when we learn of the calamities of all the provinces, when
from all of them we hear news of the great famine being experienced,
and when we see that many renowned mandarins, captains, and soldiers
have been killed in this war, we are well able to understand that this
man was an omen from Heaven, and the whole affair causes fear. If you,
our king, wish to go forth to encounter the Tartars you cannot do so
unless you have several millions of men, and thousands of thousands
of wagon-loads of supplies. We humbly beg that you undertake to
release the above mentioned mandarin, who is so unjustly detained in
prison. We also beg that you shall be pleased to open the treasuries
to raise an army. If you do so, much of the trouble will be removed.
_Of Cochinchina_
The new mission of Cochinchina, near China, where they formerly endured
great hardships, is now prosperous, and there are good prospects that
a splendid Christian community will grow up in that realm. [67] The
people there, induced by their false priests, had rebelled against our
fathers, saying superstitiously that it had failed to rain because of
the presence of preachers of the holy gospel. In this way they forced
the king, against his will, to order the fathers out of the country for
a time. But the fathers, in obedience to an order from their superior,
did not leave until they had almost completely christianized a Japanese
settlement which is there; and they so subdued these Japanese that,
although formerly they had been very rebellious and had given much
trouble to the king, they now became peaceable.
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