Noble, Honorable, highly Esteemed, Wise and very Prudent Lords:
My Lords, I received your three letters dated 25 and 28 February on the 4th and 7th of this month. I have been paying proper attention to the unloading; I go daily to and from the ship and have the supercargo record what goes ashore in each boat. On shore I once again make a record. I immediately found some parcels marked A.D.H., to Mr. d'Hinojosse. When I received the general manifest, I did not find them there but instead they were [ listed ] in the pilot's records, as you can see by the papers sent.
Along with my account books, I am sending the records given to me by the supercargo concerning each boat [ load ] whereby you can also deduce what had been unloaded before the manifest was delivered. I have noted in the extract of the letter to Mr. d'Hinojossa that you say that I had informed you that mostly City's and private goods had been unloaded before delivery of the manifest; I find in my copy that I had only mentioned private goods. In any case, everything can be seen in the aforesaid records.
After it was reported, the director and council claim not to have known that I did not have a manifest, which is untrue, because on the 6th or 7th of February, while some baggage was being unloaded from the boat, 1 met the schout, van Sweringen, on the beach and told him about it. Shortly thereafter, while talking about the manifest again at Fop Janssen's house, I showed him (in the presence of Domine Aegidius Luyck and Mr. Abraham Pauwels) what my orders were regarding the arrival of City's or other ships and that they could not be carried out without the manifest. He replied that he was surprised about this, saying further that he had declared all his goods and had committed no fraud.
When I was at New Amstel with Claes de Ruyter on the 7th of this month, I learned from Mr. Factoor that last evening Mr. d'Hinojosse told him that he had expected more civility from me because I had not offered him the respect and authority of having his soldiers placed on a ship which came into his roads. I have also learned from various people that the schout, van Sweringen, has said that he had nothing to do with the Company nor with its administration; stomping his foot on the ground at the same time. Also, that they only had to inform their masters in Amsterdam that they needed the entire river and it would be given to them immediately; then the Company would have to desist from everything.
Last Sunday, on the 12th of this month, the precentor announced, by order of the director and council of New Amstel, that a day of prayer and fasting would be held every three months, beginning on the 15th of this month. No mention was made of your ordinance. The aforesaid was also proclaimed by the ringing of the bell in the fort after the first sermon.
There are also rumors here that the governor of Maryland is supposed to come to New Amstel on 5/15 April in order to establish a tobacco trade. I am unable to confirm this.
If any quantity of tobacco is to be shipped from here, it is my opinion that it would be necessary for the Company to have a warehouse and scale or balance at New Amstel.
In the case of the pastor, Domine Laers, nothing has been done yet. I shall take up the matter now.
My Lords, I respectfully request that you send me a Company Negro; I require one to perform various services.
Eight or nine of our soldiers request their discharge this summer.
Commending you to God's protection, I remain, after wishes for a long life, prosperity and a desirable administration,
