Note 70 — Chapter XVI

Father Fray Alvaro left this pleasant town and pursued his voyage to Holanda, and landed at Roterdán, the native place of Desiderius Erasmus;70 and thence he went to Amsterdam, where he remained some time. There he made inquiries to ascertain whether he could print the history that he carried in that great city, on account of the beautiful work done by its famous printers; but he gave up this intention, on account of the numerous errors which they made, being ignorant of our language. Thence he embarked for Bilbao, where he and his companion resumed wearing their habits, which they had laid aside in order to go on shore at Batavia. The rest of the tedious peregrinations of father Fray Alvaro will be related, if we can reach the time when he returned [to Manila] with a mission in the year 1690, when we shall observe his entrance into Madrid and his voyage to Roma, and his negotiations at that court in behalf of the regulars of the China missions.