Captain Villafaña, Juan de Ybarra, Marcos Diaz, Luys de Vetasco,
Estevan de Marquina, Tomas Bravo de Acuña, besides many others,
both officers and men, among them a number of friars. [26]]




Letter from the Audiencia to Felipe III


Sire:

By the death of Don Pedro de Acuña, governor of these islands, who died
on Saturday, June 24, this Audiencia succeeds to their government. In
it has been considered a new order which your Majesty commands to be
followed in sending out the merchant ships that are to go from these
islands to Nueva España. Since those which are to go this year are
already laded, and must set sail within three or four days, it has not
been possible to put your Majesty's commands into execution for the
present year. Although this city has prayed for this new order and for
the decrees which have been granted in pursuance of it, yet on account
of the many fires which have occurred in this city in recent years,
the wars, the forced return of some ships, and the loss of others,
by which a great amount of property has been lost, the inhabitants of
these islands are burdened with heavy afflictions and necessities,
which render them unable to pay the new duties imposed by the royal
command. Although these necessities are well known, the new order
of your Majesty will be followed next year, in spite of the fact
that some details involve much difficulty, and that some sections
might well be moderated and limited in the form in which each one is