The time specified had scarcely elapsed when the bodies of fifty of the prisoners were strung up at the yard-arms of the vessels, where they remained exposed to the view of the town during the whole day. In the evening the feet and hands of these expiatory victims were cut off and taken on shore, with a letter from the admiral, declaring that his vengeance would not be limited to this execution. Accordingly, under cover of the night, the broadsides of the vessels were brought to bear upon the town, which was bombarded for the space of three days. It will never be known what was the exact number of the slain, but it must have been considerable. Without reckoning those killed by the fire of the cannon and the muskets, a great number of Hindoos were buried beneath the ruins of the buildings, or perished in the conflagration, which destroyed a portion of the town of Calicut. The Rajah had been one of the first to take flight, and fortunate was it for him that he had done so, for his palace was amongst the buildings which were demolished. At length, satisfied with having transformed this heretofore rich and populous city into a heap of ruins, and considering his vengeance satiated, and that the lesson so taught would be profitable, Gama set sail for Cochin, leaving behind him Vincent Sodrez, with several ships, to continue the blockade. Triumpara, the sovereign of Cochin, informed the admiral that he had been eagerly solicited by the Zamorin to take advantage of the confidence reposed in him by the Portuguese, to surprise and seize them, in consequence of which intelligence, and to reward the integrity of the king whose loyalty had exposed him to the enmity of the Rajah of Calicut, Gama, when starting for Lisbon with a valuable cargo, left with Triumpara ships sufficient to enable him to await in safety the arrival of another squadron. During Gama's return voyage the only noteworthy incident that occurred was the defeat of another Malabar fleet. The admiral arrived in Europe on the 20th of December, 1503. Once more the eminent services rendered by this great man went unrecognised, or rather they were not appreciated as they deserved. Gama, who had just laid the foundations of the colonial empire of Portugal in India, remained for one and twenty years without employment, and it was only through the intercession of the Duke of Braganza, that he obtained the title of Count de Vidigueyra. A too common instance this of ingratitude, but one which it is never _mal a propos_ to stigmatize as it deserves.