At the close of the sixteenth century the Portuguese Empire in Asia, the Estado da India, had reached a climax of prosperity. The state balance-sheet showed that expenditure upon the salaries of officials, the stipends of the clergy and the upkeep of guard fleets and garrisons was much more than met by income from customs dues and land revenues. Everyone knew, moreover, that the recorded salaries of captains and factors, weighmen and clerks were more than matched by their income from perquisites, graft and extortion. For the soldier and the sailor life between campaigns might be hard, but he could hope for a prize or sack and, if deserving or fortunate, for a minor office or grant of land. The state had encouraged European colonization by the grant of estates to the casadas, the married men available for local military service, in Goa, in the new conquests northwards to Damão and now in Ceylon. Furthermore, everyone, high or low, lay or cleric, who could raise the capital busily engaged in trade. The crown was only interested in a small number of monopoly products, pepper, cinnamon and the finer spices, destined for Europe and in such grand lines of trade as Goa to Mozambique, or to Malacca and Macau. There was ample scope for local licensed trade and, since control was lax, for infringement of monopoly too. Finally many Portuguese merchants, shipmasters and soldiers of fortune, whose activities might shade through commerce to piracy, were to be found in parts of Asia not under jurisdiction of the crown.