Fortunately it is unnecessary for me to give your seignory the details of the fighting, as these can be furnished you by Messer Francisco Hammond, who will hand you these despatches.

He was a witness of the action on the Bonito, which had that morning arrived at Antium with some of the stores you despatched me.

I have selected this young gentleman as the bearer of these despatches, because it is to him I entirely owe it that I am not at the present moment a prisoner in Genoa, and to him the republic owes that we yesterday won a victory.
"I was attacked by Fieschi and by another galley, and, in spite of the weather, they cast grapnels on to my ship and boarded me.

I had already lost half of my crew by their missiles, and things were going very badly with us, when the Bonito came up to our assistance, and grappled with one of the galleys.

Her captain was killed, but Messer Hammond--of whom Polani has so high an opinion that he had appointed him second in command--led his men to my rescue.