I The King. To the devout father Fray Andres de Urdaneta, of the Order of St. Augustine: I have been informed that, while you were a layman, you accompanied the fleet of Loaysa, and passed through the Strait of Magallanes and the spice region, where you spent eight years in our service. And inasmuch as we have just charged Don Luis de Velasco, our viceroy of that Nueva Espana, to send two ships to discover the Western Islands in the direction of the Molucas, and to give them instructions how to proceed, in accordance with the instructions given to him; and as, on account of the great store of knowledge that you are said to possess of the affairs of that land, and since you understand, as you do, its navigation, and are a good cosmographer, it would be very conducive to excellent results, both in what relates to the said navigation, and to the service of our Lord, for you to accompany the said ships: I, therefore, ask and charge you to accompany the said ships, and to do what shall be ordered you by the said our viceroy. Beside the service that you will thus render to our Lord, I shall be very greatly served, and shall have account taken of this matter, so that you may receive the favors that offer. Valladolid, September 24, 1559. _I The King_ By order of his Majesty: _Francisco de Eraso_ [Of Urdaneta, father Fray Esteban de Salazar remarks that "his devotion and sanctity cannot be briefly told, while a book would be required for his military prowess and deeds." He was the foremost navigator of the time, and "had added the wind called _huracan_ by sailors to the compass. The sailors believe that when this wind blows all the other winds, in number thirty-two, are blowing, and that only one wind results, with a whirling direction from pole to pole." A brief review of Urdaneta's life follows. His youth was largely spent in the Italian wars, and his later years in the South Sea. He accompanied Loaysa's expedition in 1525. "Joined to his so wide experience was the fact that he was a man skilled in cosmography and astrology ... and he was therefore best suited to discover the return passage to Nueva Espana from those islands, a thing regarded as very difficult, and never yet done, although attempted." He had joined the unfortunate Saavedra expedition at the islands in an attempt to find the return passage, but they were forced to put back to the Moluccas. Shortly after his return to Spain, he went again to New Spain, where, in 1542, "Viceroy Don Antonio de Mendoza appointed him general of the fleet" of the new expedition. "He begged off, as he loved his quiet, ... or, because he feared for the success of the expedition.... Therefore Ruy Lopez de Villalobos was appointed in his stead; but his voyage was very unfortunate. Afterward, tired of the world, and disillusioned of it, Urdaneta took the habit of our father St. Augustine in the famous convent of Mexico--where he dedicated himself so thoroughly to matters