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bottom of the riots. In order to have the necessary manpower, you have my permission to utilise the soldiers from the ships.’ ‘Jose; have you got the name of the Master of the dhow that fired the rocket into the lawless mob? I want to personally thank him for his action, which reversed the attacks from the Sangley.’ ‘His name is Mustafa Khan. This is the second time his action in firing a rocket into a skirmishing mob has reversed a dangerous situation. The first time was when heavily-manned Sumatran boats attacked us while we were approaching the Malacca Strait.’ A short while later Jose introduced Don Diego to Mustafa Khan. ‘I want to thank you for your action in resolving a very dangerous situation, when you fired that rocket into the rioting mob. Your action saved everyone from a very nasty situation. Incidentally where are you from? Your name isn’t Singhalese?’ ‘Your kind comments are gratefully accepted. I am from Ceylon, but not from the south of the Island. I come from the Jaffna Peninsular to the north.’ ‘In view of your courage in enabling the fleet to circumvent two serious enemy incidents, the least we can do for you is to include you and your crew in the share out of the salvage proceeds of the successful venture.’ ‘My crew and I are most grateful for your offer. I should state though we would do anything to enhance an action against the Pirate Chinese. Our families have suffered a lot from their actions in the past.’ ‘If you have such strong feelings against these Chinese, would you and your crew care to join in our maritime actions against them? Also if you and your family would like to migrate to these Islands, we can arrange accommodation for you all.’ There were a few minutes of quiet contemplation before he responded. ‘I shall have to talk to my family when I return to Ceylon, but am most grateful for your kind offer.’ Alvar Suarez returned with the marshalled troop of soldiers and mounted cavalry, and then turning to Don Diego. ‘The ringleaders of the group who tried to steal the cattle have been identified by our spies. We’ll divide up the main areas and then proceed into the Parian in a systematic drive accompanied by the very willing Filipinos. The latter are only too keen to assist, as they are tired of being second-class citizens in the eyes of the Sangley.’ ‘Good I’m glad you’ve managed this so quickly. We’ve got to strike now before the culprits melt into the alleys and safe houses, as has happened previously.’ There was no need for anything else to be said, as the drive into the Parian proceeded according to plan. The area around the slipway was once again returned to normal. In the next few hours all the cattle were landed and driven to the pre-planned paddocks and pens where further armed guards were posted. Shortly after the soldiers and cavalry departed upon their mission, the peaceful scene was punctuated by shouts of command from the troops, accompanied by screams of terror from the citizens of the Parian, as the former forcefully broke into shops, dwellings and other hiding places. The swift incursion into the locality took many of the leaders by surprise, but this was soon altered, as the miscreants mustered their followers and pelted the attackers with stones and other missiles. Many of the projectiles had been massed and stored from previous riots. Now the scenes became more violent as the offenders countered with swords, bows and arrows and guns. Fires were lit in some of the Sangley stores and the contents pilfered by local islanders, seeking to recover their losses as a result of the vastly over-priced trade goods in the past. The dry weather over many months made the wooden structures of the Parian susceptible to fire, which with the lack of adequate water to fight the conflagration, was now fanned by its own storm force winds and rapidly swept throughout the city. The otherwise bright sunlit scene was turned into a false night by the cloud of smoke. Screams of terror from the trapped residents in the burning structures were a hideous backdrop to the scene commensurate to a hell on earth. The fires took days to finally die down, reducing virtually all structures to ashes. Amongst these were charred skeleton remains that indicated the appalling death toll. The aftermath of the terrible incident haunted many of the survivors for a very long time afterwards. There was no realistic way of determining the full death toll, as many of the residents of the Parian were illegal immigrants over many years.