THere are come letters written to certaine Marchants of credite in this towne being strangers , some dated the twentieth of December last , other some the second of Ianuarie , and other on the sixt of the same moneth , wherein are set downe the seuerall accidents hereafter following , the which are worthie to be reade and noted of euerie good Christian , to the end , that with loue one towards an other , and godly feare towards the maiestie of God , wee seeke in all dutifull manner to serue him , who suffereth not such plagues , but by his especiall secret iudgement for the punishment of the vngodly and example of his chosen people .

On the thirtenth of December , 1587. and according to our course o● writing on the third of the same moneth , being Sunday , about two of the clocke in the after noone , the aire being verie thicke and darkish with often lightenings and thunder , that di● beate vpon one of the tower of th● castle of S. Elmo in the citie of Napels , wherein there was thrée thousant barrels of gunne pouder , the which being by this meanes set on fire , made such a terrible noise , that it séemed the whole went topsie turuey , and ouerthrew in like sort all the houses that were within the same castell : Of the which houses there remained not any stone one vpon another , so that , if in some part of the castle the walles had not remained and some rampiers , there woulde haue beene no remembrance of any Castle or Tower that should haue béene there . And there escaped not aboue tenne persons that were within the saide castell , and alreadie there are two hundred bodies deade , being men , women and children : it hath also spoiled many other , as it is thought , houses and churches to the number of one thousand , and hath not left so much as the verie stones that were paued in their places , there is almost not one house in this poore citie , as it now may be termed , but hath felt in some sorte , part of this punishment : and in conclusion , he that hath not séene this miserable act , will hardly belieue it , nor the miserable hurt that was there done . But that , that is more miraculous and worthie to be noted , is that the wife of the Captaine of the saide castell , two dayes before this chaunced , saide often times to her husband , that she woulde not tarrie in the castell , her husband asking her , wherefore , she aunsweared that for thrée seuerall times one after an other , she dreamed , that she should with the castell be blowen vp into the ayre , of the which her spéeches , her husbande for twise or thrise made b●t a Iest , but in the end , his wife was so importunate , that eight dayes before , he was content to house himselfe , with al his whole houshold in the city , somewhat far off from the castell : & by this meanes they auoyded the danger which otherwise might haue fallen vpon them , beings as it should séeme by the speciall fauor of God . And the common opinion of all men is , that if the said tower had stoode towarde the citie , as it was towarde the sea , it had spoiled the most parte of the citie . God the author of all goodnes blesse and defend both them and vs from such like extremities , and giue vs grace so to leade our liues , that we may be readie whensoeuer it shal please him to call vs .

From Genoa the second of Ianuary , 1588. the which is according to our order the xxiii . of December before , they doo write as followeth : Here is arriued from Spaine a ship called Piuma , the which had taken in , in the Ile of Maiorica thrée men that had been taken before by the Turkes and made slaues , the which men told them of the losse of thrée Gallies , in order as followeth .

Signior Giannettino Spinola in the Ile of Euisa , with the Gallies of the prince D'Oria , that came out of Spain , beeing now aduertised , how that there were seuen smal Gallies of Turkish Pirates in the Ile of Spalmadore , from thence seuen or eight miles off , he was desirous to go and fight with them , and presently hee furnished eight Gallies with his best and readiest men to fight , as well of Soldiers and Marriners , as others : and thus they set themselues forwarde towards the saide I le of Spalmadore , but for that the wind was both great , and also contrarie vnto them , the one of the saide Gallies could not passe the point of the saide I le , and so hee turned backe againe , the other seuen with great force went forward , and founde the seuen Turkish Pirates and their Gallies , who looked for nothing lesse than this , notwithstanding they tooke courage vnto them , and foure of those Turkish Gallies gaue themselues to fight , and the other thrée fled . The foure small Gallies of the Turkes hauing ioyned themselues with thrée Gallies of Genoa , and fighting on both sides most valiantly , there arose such a great tempest , that these Gallies beeing intangled togither were driuen vpon a Rocke , and so spoiled their Gallies , and many of their men were drowned , the other who saued themselues being come on land , they fell to fighting afresh .

And the other thrée Gallies that were fled , winding about the Iland , found faire weather , and imagining what chaunced , they landed two hundred fourescore and ten men , the which they sent to finde the other that were a fighting : they adioyning themselues with their other fellowes Turkes fiue the most part of the Spaniardes , and got againe many other Turkes that were slaues to the Spaniards : and it is thought that the Turkes carried away a great quantitie of money , but of this there is no certaintie . The one of the thrée Gallies was of Cigala , the other of Centurione , and the third of Grillo , all marchants of Genoa , who were fraught by Spaniards , the which thing is not to them alone a great hinderance , but also to such others as were interessed in the mony .

He that wrote , wrote to the Lords of Genoa in this order . It is not long since I wrote vnto your Exellencies , how that in this town there haue béene discouered thinges neuer heeretofore heard off . That is , of a sect or schoole of witches , and that many of them being examined of the fact , confessed . Now I write againe vnto you , signifying that after that the Vicars of the Reuerend Signior Albengo , and the Inquisition haue taken this matter in hand , there remained about eightéene or twentie condemned , the greater part of them haue confessed voluntarily , & without any torment at all , besides which there remaineth as yet foure suspected , who haue not yet confessed any thing , and besides , there is in prison a witch , who hath confessed very much . So that the aforesaide Vicars procéede in their busines maruellous well , not respecting rich nor poore , and this day as vpon other daies they sit in counsell for the same purpose . The common people of this place doo shew themselues in such sort destrous of the cutting off of these witches , that they haue taken vp money at interest to helpe the said Vicars . Tomorrow the said Vicars depart hence , to go to Albenga there to consult , with the Reuerend Signior of Albenga , and so they meane presently to turn againe hither to make an end .

And truely ( right honourable Lords ) the dealings of these euil persons are most straunge , in so much that they can cause tempests with thunder and lightnings and such other like euil , all the which seeme them , as they make shew , to bee of account , for that they presume to be able to doe farre greater things : and that is more , they kill their owne children and kinsmen : and euen as it were in a trise , they will leape vpon the backe of the diuel , who shall be in the likenes of a Ram : and goe to their congregation for to conclude vppon the doing of much euil , euen in the presence of the diuel , who sitteth there as chiefe iudge in likenesse of a king , before whom they doe openly deny God , and bequeath them selues to the diuel . These ought to be warnings vnto euerie good Christian to be ready , and prepared against the deceiptful entisements of the diuel , the continuall enimie of mankind , and who ( as saith S. Iohn in his Gospel ) was a murderer euen from the beginning , and as S. Peter saith in his epistle , he goeth about like a roaring Lyon , séeking to deuour , and therefore we haue great néed earnestly to pray vnto almightie God , that he will assist vs with his holy spirite , and so to guide vs , that we be the better able to resist the vile temptations of Sathan , and folowing his holy steps , his name may be in vs glorified , and we in the end made partakers of his heauenly blessing , through Iesus Christ our Lord .