We have lately had a great disaster in Cochin-China, to which place we sent a quantity of goods and money, to the value of £730, as it cost in England, under the care of Mr Tempest Peacock and Mr Walter Carwarden, who went as merchants in a Japanese junk, carrying our king's letters and a handsome present for the king of Cochin-China. They arrived at the port called _Quinham_,[59] delivered his majesty's letters and present, and were entertained with kind words and fair promises. The Hollanders, seeing that we adventured to that country, would needs do the same, and were at first kindly entertained; but in the end, Mr Peacock and the chief Dutch merchant going ashore one day in the same boat, to receive payment from the king for broad-cloth and other commodities they had sold him, they were treacherously assailed on the water, their boat overset, and both were killed in the water with harpoons, as if they had been fishes, together with their interpreters and other attendants, who were Japanese. Mr Carwarden being aboard our junk escaped sharing in this massacre, and came away, but neither he nor the junk have ever been since heard of, so that we fear he has been cast away. [Footnote 59: _Turon_ is the port of Cochin-China in the present time, and _Quinham_ is unknown in modern geography; perhaps the old name of some island or village at the port or bay of Turon.--E.] It is commonly reported here, both among the Chinese and Japanese, that this was done by order of the king of Cochin-China in revenge against the Hollanders, who had burnt one of his towns, and had slaughtered his people most unmercifully. The origin of this quarrel was occasioned by a large quantity of false dollars, sent to _Quinham_ by the Hollanders some years ago, and put off in payment for silks and other Chinese goods, to the great injury of the merchants of that country. When the falsehood of the money was discovered, they laid hands upon the Dutch factors, and are said to have put some of them to death. Upon this the Dutch ships came upon the coast, and landed a body of men, who burnt a town, putting man, woman, and child to the sword. This, as reported, was the occasion of our present mischance, and of the slaughter of Mr Peacock, because he was in company with the Hollanders. Along with this letter, I send you a Japanese almanack, by which you will see the manner of their printing, with their figures and characters. And so I leave you to the holy protection of the Almighty, resting always, &c. RICHARD COCKS. No. 3. _Letter from Edmond Sayer, dated Firando, 5th December, 1615. But having no Address_.