Captain COOK’s Voyage Round the World. In 1768, 1769, 1770 and 1771

The short intercourse which the English gentlemen had with the inhabitants of New Holland, prevented them from obtaining so perfect a knowledge of the language of these people as could have been wished; but, as it is an object too curious to be passed over in silence, we shall give our readers the most particular account that could be procured. They articulated their words very distinctly, though they made a great motion with their lips when they were speaking, and their utterance was rather vociferous, particularly when they intended to shew their disapprobation of any thing. When they were pleased, they would manifest their satisfaction by saying hee, with a long flexion of the voice, in a loud and shril tone. They frequently repeated the word tut, when in company with the English, several times together, which was supposed to be an expression of astonishment and admiration; upon the whole, their language was neither harsh nor inharmonious, as will appear from the following vocabulary.

A Vocabulary of the language of the inhabitants of New Holland.

Wageegee, The head.

Eiyamoac, The crown of the head.

Moree, The hair of the head.

Walloo, The temples.

Peete, The forehead.

Meul, The eyes.

Garbar, The eye-brows.

Melea, The ears.

Bonjoo, The nose.

Yembe, The lips.

Mulere, The teeth.

Unjar, The tongue.

Tacal, The chin.

Waller, The beard.

Doomboo, The neck.

Morcol, The throat.

Coyor, The breast.

Gippa, The belly.

Mocoo, The back.

Aco, The arms.

Mangal, The hands.

Eboorbalga, The thumb.

Nakil, The little finger.

Pongo, The knees.

Peegoorga, The legs.

Edamal, The feet.

Kolke, The nails.

Bamma, A man.

Mootjel, A woman.

Dunjo, A father.

Tumurree, A son.

Tennapuke, The hole made in the nostrils for the reception of the bone ornament.

Cotta, A dog.

Poteea, Fish.

Putai, A turtle.

Tabugga, A fly.

Walboolbool, A butterfly.

Zoocoo, Wood.

Maianang, Fire.

Poorai, Water.

Poapoa, Earth.

Galan, The sun.

Wulgar, The clouds.

Kere, The sky.

Boota, To eat.

Chucula, To drink.

Marra, To go.

Mingoore, To dance.

Mailelel, To swim.

Aibudje, To yawn.

Poona, To sleep.

Wonananio, Asleep.

Tocaya, Sit down.

Eya & ba, That or this.

Te, A, or the.

We shall now proceed to give an account of their passage from New South Wales to New Guinea, with a recital of the incidents which happened on their landing on the last mentioned country.⁠—Early in the morning of the 24th of August 1770, the cable broke near the ring, in the attempt to weigh the anchor; on which another anchor was dropped, which prevented the ship’s driving. As the loss of an anchor might have been attended with future ill consequences, the boats were sent to sweep for it; but their first attempt being unsuccessful, they were dispatched again in the afternoon, when it was found, and the ship being brought up to it, they weighed it; yet, unfortunately, just as they were going to ship it, the hawser slipped, and all their labour was frustrated. Determined, however, not to lose the anchor, they re-applied their endeavours on the following morning, when they were attended with success.

Soon after the anchor was weighed, the ship got under sail, steering north-west, and in a few hours one of the boats, which was a-head, made the signal for shoal-water. The ship instantly brought to, with all her sails standing, and a survey being taken of the sea around her, it was found that she had met with another narrow escape, as she was almost encompassed with shoals; and was likewise so situated between them, that she must have struck before the boat’s crew had made the signal, if she had been half the length of a cable on either side. In the afternoon she made sail with the ebb tide, and got out of danger before sun-set, when she brought to for the night.

The meeting with these shoals having determined the Captain to alter his intended course, he sailed again the next morning (Sunday the 26th) and soon got into deep water. They now steered a westward course, and, as no land was within sight, held it on till the dusk of the evening, when they shortened sail, and made opposite tacks during the night. The next morning they pursued their voyage, again shortening sail at night, and tacking till day-break of the 28th, when they steered due north, in search of New Guinea.

They now observed many parts of the sea covered with a kind of brown scum, to which the sailors gave the name of Spawn. It is formed of an incredible number of minute particles, each of which, when seen through the microscope, was found to consist of a considerable number of tubes, and these tubes were subdivided into little cells. The scum being burnt, and yeilding no smell like what is produced by animal substances, it was concluded that it was of the vegetable kind. This scum, which has been often seen on the coast of Brazil, generally makes its appearance near the land.⁠—A bird, which is called the Noddy, was found this evening among the rigging of the ship. Land having been seen this day from the mast-head, they stood off and on all night, and at day-break they sailed towards it with a brisk gale.

Between six and seven o’clock they had sight of a small island, distant about three miles from the main land, which has already been distinguished by the names of St. Bartholomew, and Whermoysen. It is a very flat island, clothed with trees, among which is the cocoa-nut; and was judged to be inhabited, by the smoke of fires which were seen on several parts of it. The boats were now sent out to sound, as the water was shallow; but as the ship, in sailing two leagues, had found no increase in its depth, signals were made for the boats to return on board, and the vessel stood out to sea till midnight, and then tacked, and stood in for land till the morning. When they were about four leagues distant from it, they had sight of it from the deck, and its appearance was still flat and woody. Abundance of the brown scum was still seen on the surface of the sea, and the Tars, convinced that it was not spawn, gave it the whimsical name of Sea-saw-dust.

The ship now held a northward course, barely within sight of land, till the 3d of September; and as the water was but just deep enough to navigate the vessel, many unsuccessful attempts were made to bring her near enough to get on shore: it was therefore determined to land in one of the boats, while the ship kept plying off and on.

In consequence of this resolution, on the 3d of September, the Captain, accompanied by Messrs. Banks and Solander, and attended by the boat’s crew and Mr. Banks’s servants, set out in the pinnace; but when they came within two hundred yards of the shore the water was so shallow, that they were obliged to leave the boat, in the care of two of the sailors, and wade to land. They were no sooner clear of the water, than they saw several prints of human feet on the sand, below high-water-mark, from whence it was evident, that the natives had been very lately there. About one hundred yards from the water there was a thick wood, along the borders of which they walked till they arrived on the banks of a brook of water, on which was situated a fine grove of cocoa-nut trees, which abounded with fruit.

At a small distance from the trees stood an Indian hut, which had been thatched with their leaves, of which some yet remained; and round the hut were scattered many cocoa-nut-shells, the fruit of which seemed to have been lately gathered. Not far from this grew the bread-fruit tree, and a number of plantains.

Our adventurers were now near a quarter of a mile from the pinnace, when three of the natives ran out of the woods, about one hundred yards beyond them, shouting in the most violent manner. They instantly ran towards our countrymen, the first of the three throwing something out of his hand, which flew on one side of him, burning in the same manner as gunpowder, but making no noise, while the other two threw their lances. The English now fired; when the natives stopped, and cast another lance, on which the muskets were loaded with ball, and again fired.⁠—The poor Indians now ran off with expedition, having, most probably, been wounded in the unequal conflict. Captain Cook and his companions, unwilling farther to injure those who could not originally have intended them any harm, retreated hastily to the boat, while the men, that had been left in the care of her, made signals that more of the natives were advancing towards the coast; several of these were soon seen, and stood still, as if waiting for the main body of their companions. Captain Cook and the party having reached the boat, rowed a-breast of the natives, who by this time were assembled to the number of about eighty. Their stature was nearly the same with that of the inhabitants of New South Wales, but their colour was not quite so dark: but, like them, they wore their hair cropped short. During the survey that was taken of them, they continued letting off their fires, a few at a time, in a kind of regular platoons; they were discharged by means of a piece of stick, almost like a hollow cane, which being swung sideways, produced fire and smoke exactly like that occasioned by the firing of small arms. The crew on board the ship saw this strange phenomenon, and thought the natives had fire-arms. The gentlemen having satisfied their curiosity by attentively looking at these people, fired some musquets above their heads, the balls from which being heard to rattle among the trees, the natives deliberately retired. The lances which had been thrown soon after the gentlemen landed were made of a reed or bamboo cane, and the points were made of hard wood, barbed in several places; it is imagined, that these lances were discharged by means of a throwing stick, as they flew with great swiftness above sixty yards.

When this party returned to the ship, some of the officers entreated the Captain to send men on shore to cut down the cocoa-nut trees, in order to procure the nuts; but this, with equal wisdom and humanity, he refused; sensible that the poor Indians, who could ill brook even the landing of a small party, on their coast, would risk their lives, and of course sacrifice them, in defence of their property. The whole coast of this country is low-land, but cloathed with a richness of trees and herbage, which exceeds all description.

On Monday, the 3d of September, 1770, the ship got under sail, and early in the morning of the 6th passed two small islands, on the latter of which Captain Cook would have landed, but as they had then only ten fathom water, and as the ground was rocky and the wind blew fresh, he might have endangered the safety of the ship. They now sailed at a moderate rate, with various soundings, till three o’clock the next morning, after which they had no ground with one hundred and twenty fathom. Before noon they had sight of land, which was conjectured to be either the Arrou Islands, or Timor Laoet; but they are not accurately laid down in any of the charts hitherto published.

On the evening of the 9th they saw what had the appearance of land, and the next morning were convinced that the first land they had seen was Timor, and the last Timor Laoet. The ship stood off and on during the night, when a number of fires were seen on the island, and the next morning smoke was seen in several places, from whence it was conjectured that the place was well peopled. The land near the shore was covered with high trees, not unlike pines; farther back were cocoa-trees and mangroves: there were many salt-water creeks, and several spots of ground which appeared to have been cleared by art; and the whole country rose, by gradual slopes, into hills of a very considerable height.

As the land and sea breezes were now very slight, they continued in sight of the island for two days, when it was observed that the hills reached, in many places, quite to the sea coast, and where that was not the case, there were large and noble groves of the cocoa-nut tree, which ran about a mile up the country, at which distance great numbers of houses and plantations were seen: the plantations were surrounded with fences, and extended nearly to the summits of the most lofty hills, yet neither the natives nor cattle were seen on any of them, which was thought a very extraordinary circumstance. Fine groves of the fan-palm shaded the houses from the rays of the sun.

On the 16th they had sight of the little island called Rotte; and the same day saw the island Semau, at a distance to the southward of Timor. The island of Rotte is chiefly covered with brushy wood without leaves; but there are a number of fan-palm trees on it, growing near the sandy beaches; and the whole consists of alternate hills and vallies. The island of Semau is not so hilly as Timor, but resembles it greatly in other respects.

At ten o’clock this night a dull reddish light was seen in the air, many parts of which emitted rays of a brighter colour, which soon vanished, and were succeeded by others of the same kind. This phenomenon, which reached about ten degrees above the horizon, bore a considerable resemblance to the Aurora Borealis, only that the rays of light which it emitted had no tremulous motion. It was surveyed for two hours, during which time its brightness continued undiminished.

As the ship was now clear of all the islands which had been laid down in such maps as were on board, they made sail during the night, and were surprized the next morning at the sight of an island to the west south-west, which they flattered themselves was a new discovery. Before noon they had sight of houses, groves of cocoa-nut trees, and large flocks of sheep. This was a welcome sight to people whose health was declining for want of refreshments; and it was instantly resolved to attempt the purchase of what they stood so much in need of. The second Lieutenant was immediately dispatched in the pinnace, in search of a landing-place; and he took with him such things as it was thought might be acceptable to the natives.

During Mr. Gore’s absence, the people on board saw two men on horseback upon the hills, who frequently stopped to take a view of the vessel. The Lieutenant soon returned, with an account that he had entered a little cove, near which stood a few houses: that several men advanced, and invited him to land; and that they conversed together as well as they could by signs. He reported that these people were very like the Malays, both in person and dress; that they had no other arms but a knife, which each of them wore stuck in his girdle.

As the Lieutenant could not find any place in which the ship might come to an anchor, he was dispatched again with money and goods, to buy such necessaries as were immediately wanted for those who were sick. Dr. Solander attended the Lieutenant, and, during their absence, the ship stood on and off the shore. Soon after the boat had put off, two other horsemen were seen from the ship, one of whom had a laced hat on, and was dressed in a coat and waistcoat, of the fashion of Europe. These men rode about on shore, taking little notice of the boat, but regarding the ship with the utmost attention. As soon as the boat reached the shore, some other persons on horseback, and many on foot, hastened to the spot, and it was observed that some cocoa-nuts were put into the boat, from whence it was concluded, that a traffick had commenced with the natives. A signal being made from the boat, that the ship might anchor in a bay at some distance, she immediately bore away for it.

When the Lieutenant came on board, he reported that he could not purchase any cocoa-nuts, as the owner of them was absent, and that what he had brought were given him; in return for which he had presented the natives with some linen. The method by which he learnt that there was a harbour in the neighbourhood, was by the natives drawing a kind of rude map on the sand, in which the harbour, and a town near it were represented; it was likewise hinted to him that fruit, fowls, hogs, and sheep, might be there obtained in great abundance. He saw several of the principal inhabitants of the island, who wore chains of gold about their necks, and were dressed in fine linen. The word Portuguese being frequently repeated by the Indians, it was conjectured, that some natives of Portugal were on the island, and one of the boat’s crew being of that kingdom, he spoke to the islanders in his own language, but he soon found that they had only learnt a few words, of which they did not know the meaning. While the natives were endeavouring to represent the situation of the town near the harbour, one of them, in order to be more particular in directions, informed the English that they would see something, which he endeavoured to describe by placing his fingers across each other; and the Portuguese sailor took it for granted, that he could mean nothing but a cross. When the boat’s crew were on the point of returning to the ship, the gentleman who had been seen on horseback in the dress of Europe came down to the beach; but the Lieutenant did not think it proper to hold a conference with him, because he had left his commission on board the ship.

In the evening, when the ship had entered the bay to which they had been recommended, an Indian town was seen at a small distance; upon which a jack was hoisted on the fore-top-mast head: presently afterwards three guns were fired, and Dutch colours were hoisted in the town: the ship, however, held on her way, and came to an anchor at seven in the evening.

The colours being seen hoisted on the beach the next morning, the Captain concluded, that the Dutch had a settlement on the island: he therefore dispatched the second Lieutenant, to acquaint the Governor, or other principal resident, who they were, and that the ship had put in for necessary refreshments. The Lieutenant having landed, he was received by a kind of guard of something more than twenty Indians, armed with muskets, who having taken down the colours from the beach, proceeded without the least military order; and thus escorted him to the town where the colours had been hoisted the preceding evening.

The Lieutenant was now conducted to the Raja, or King of the island, to whom, by means of a Portuguese interpreter, he made known his business. The Raja said, he was ready to supply the ship with the necessary refreshments; but that he could not trade with any other people but the Dutch, with whom he was in alliance, without having first obtained their consent; but that he would make application to the Dutch Agent, who was the only white man among them. To this Agent, whose name was Lange, and who proved to be the person that was seen from the ship in the European dress, a letter was dispatched; and in a few hours he came to the town, behaved politely to the Lieutenant, and told him, he might buy what he thought proper of the inhabitants of the island.

This offer being freely made, and readily accepted, the Raja and Mr. Lange intimated their wishes to go on board the ship, and that two of the boat’s crew might be left as hostages for their safe return. The Lieutenant gratified both these requests, and took them on board just before dinner was served. It was thought that they would have sat down without ceremony; but, after some hesitation, the Raja intimated his doubts, whether, being a black, they would permit him to sit down with them. The politeness of the officers soon removed his scruples, and the greatest good humour and festivity prevailed among them. As Dr. Solander, and another gentleman on board, were tolerable proficients in Dutch, they acted as interpreters between Mr. Lange and the officers, while some of the sailors, who understood Portuguese, conversed with such of the Raja’s attendants as spoke that language. The chief part of the dinner was mutton, which the Raja having tasted, he begged an English sheep, and the only one which they had left was given him: he then asked for a dog, and Mr. Banks gave him his grey-hound; and a spying-glass was presented to him, on Mr. Lange’s intimating that it would be acceptable.

The visitors now told Captain Cook, that there was great plenty of fowls, hogs, sheep and buffaloes on the island, numbers of which should be conveyed to the sea shore on the following day, that he might purchase what was necessary for the recovery of the sick, and for sea stores. This welcome news gave great spirits to the company, and the bottle went so briskly round, that Mr. Lange and his companions became almost intoxicated: they had, however, the resolution to express a desire to depart, before they were quite drunk. When they came upon deck, the marines were under arms to receive them; and the Raja intimating, that he should be glad to see them exercise, the Captain gave orders that he should be indulged, and three rounds were fired: he was equally pleased and surprized at their manœuvres, and particularly charmed when they cocked their firelocks, exclaiming violently, “that all the locks made but one click.” This being ended, Messrs. Solander and Banks went ashore with the visitors, who were saluted at their departure with nine guns, which they returned with three cheers.

When they came to the town, the English gentlemen tasted their palm wine, which was sweet, and not unpleasant: it is made of the fresh juice of the tree, without being fermented. The houses of the natives consisted of nothing more than a floor of boards, over which was a roof of thatch, supported by pillars about four feet in height.

On the following day the Captain, attended by several gentlemen, went on shore to return the Raja’s visit; but their principal intention was, to buy the refreshments which had been mentioned the preceding day. When they landed, they were chagrined to find, that the cattle had not been driven down to the beach. They went on to the town, where they observed, that the house of assembly, and some few other houses which had been built by the Dutch East India Company, were distinguished from the houses of the natives by having a piece of wood, almost in the shape of cows horns, fixed at each end of the roof; and these they concluded were what the Portuguese sailor had imagined to be crosses, from the Indian having crossed his fingers when he was describing the town.

The Raja was at the house of assembly, surrounded by many of his principal subjects; and Mr. Lange also attended. Captain Cook having informed them, that he had loaded his boat with goods, which he wished to exchange for necessary refreshments, permission was given him to land his effects. The Captain now endeavoured to make an agreement for the hogs, sheep, and buffaloes, which were to be paid for in cash; but this business was no sooner hinted at than Mr. Lange took his leave, having first told the Captain, that he must make his agreement with the natives; and adding, that he had received a letter from the Governor of Concordia, in Timor, the contents of which should be disclosed at his return.

As they had now no fresh provisions on board, the gentlemen were unwilling to return to the ship before they had dined; they therefore requested the Raja’s permission to buy a small hog and some rice, and hoped he would order his people to dress the dinner. To this the Raja very obligingly replied, that if the gentlemen had stomachs to eat of Indian cookery, he would have the honour of considering them as his guests. A dinner being thus procured, the Captain sent off the boat to bring liquors from the ship.

Late in the afternoon the company sat down on mats, which had been spread for them on the floor, having been first conducted to a servant, who had a vessel made of the leaves of the fan-palm, containing water to wash their hands, in which the Indian assisted them. Having waited some time for the Raja, they enquired the reason of his absence, and were informed, that the person who gave the entertainment never partook of it; but that the Raja was ready to come and taste of what was provided, if the gentlemen entertained any idea that the meat was unwholesome: having assured the natives, that they did not harbour any such suspicion, they began their dinner, which consisted of pork and rice, very excellent of their kinds, served up in thirty-six dishes, and three earthen bowls filled with a kind of broth, in which the pork had been boiled: the spoons were formed of leaves, but were so small, that the hunger of the guests would scarcely allow them patience to use them.

When dinner was ended, the Captain invited the Raja to drink wine with him; but this he declined, saying, that the man who entertained company should never get drunk with his guests, and that the only certain way to avoid drunkenness, was to refrain from tasting the liquor. The gentlemen left the remains of their dinner to their servants and the boat’s crew, who not being able to eat it all, the Raja’s female servants, who came to take away the utensils, insisted that they should take with them all that remained.

When the bottle had circulated some time, Captain Cook began to enquire after the cattle that were promised to be driven down to the beach; when Mr. Lange informed him, that in the letter which he had received from the Governor of Concordia, instructions were given, that if the ship should touch at the island, and be in want of provisions, she should be supplied; but that he was not to permit her to remain longer than was absolutely necessary: that no presents were to be made to the natives of low rank, nor even left with their superiors to be divided among them after the ship had sailed: but, he added, that any trifling civilities received from the Indians, might be acknowledged by a present of beads, or other articles of very small value. It is a very probable conjecture, that the whole of this story was of Mr. Lange’s own manufacture, and solely calculated to draw all the presents of any value into his own pocket.

Soon after this the Captain was informed, that some sheep had been driven down to the beach; but had been conveyed away before the men could get money from the ship to pay for them; and that not a single hog or buffaloe had been driven down: but that a small number of fowls, and a quantity of the palm-syrup had been bought. Heartily vexed to be thus disappointed of the chief articles which were wanted, the Captain remonstrated with Mr. Lange, who told him, that if he and his officers had gone to the spot, they might have purchased any thing they pleased; but that the Indians imagined, the seamen would impose on them with counterfeit money.

This story was no more credited than the former; but not to lose more time in a case of such urgency, the Captain instantly repaired to the beach; but there were no cattle to be bought. During his absence Lange informed Mr. Banks, that the Indians were offended, that the seamen had not offered gold for what they had to sell, and that no other metal would purchase their commodities: but Mr. Banks, disdaining to hold farther conversation with a man who had been guilty of such repeated subterfuges, left him abruptly. Some hours before this, the Raja had assigned a much more probable reason for the cattle not being brought to the beach, saying, that the buffaloes were too far up the country to be driven thither in the time. In the evening the gentlemen returned to the ship, not a little displeased at their disappointment.

On the 20th the Captain and doctor Solander went again on shore, and while the latter proceeded to the town in search of Lange, the Captain staid on the beach, with a view to buy cattle. At this place was an old man, who had been distinguished by the name of the prime minister, because he appeared to be invested with considerable authority; and the Captain now presented him with a spying-glass, in order to make a friend of him. At present there was nothing brought for sale but a small buffaloe, for which five guineas were demanded. Tho’ the Captain knew that this was double its value, yet he bid three guineas, as he was willing to begin dealing at any rate: the person who had it to sell said, he could not take the money till the Raja had been informed what was offered; on which a man was sent to him, who soon came back with a message, that five guineas would be the lowest price: this the Captain refused to give; on which a second messenger was dispatched, who staying a long time, Captain Cook was anxiously expecting his return, when he saw Dr. Solander coming towards the beach, escorted by more than a hundred persons, some of whom had lances in their hands, and the rest were armed with muskets. When the Doctor arrived at the marketing-place, he informed the Captain, that Lange had interpreted to him a message from the Raja, the substance of which was, that the natives were averse to all traffick with the English, because they would not give above half the real worth of the things which were offered for sale; and that all trading whatever should be prohibited after that day.

A native of Timor, whose parents were Portuguese, came down with this party, and delivered to the Captain what was pretended to be the order of the Raja, and which was in substance the same as what Lange had told Dr. Solander; but it was afterwards discovered, that this man was a confederate of Lange’s, in the scheme of extortion. The English gentlemen had at the same time no doubt, but that the supposed order of the Raja was a contrivance of these men; and while they were debating how they should act in this critical conjuncture, anxious to bring the affair to a speedy issue, the Portuguese began to drive away such of the natives as had brought palm-syrup and fowls to sell, and others who were now bringing sheep and buffaloes to the market.

Just at this juncture Captain Cook happening to look at the old man who had been distinguished by the name of prime minister, imagined that he saw in his features a disapprobation of the present proceedings; and, willing to improve the advantage, he grasped the Indian’s hand, and gave him an old broad sword. This well-timed present produced all the good effects that could be wished: the prime minister was enraptured at so honourable a mark of distinction, and, brandishing his sword over the head of the impertinent Portuguese, he made both him, and a man who commanded the party, sit down behind him on the ground. The whole business was now accomplished: the natives, eager to supply whatever was wanted, brought their cattle in for sale, and the market was soon stocked. For the first two buffaloes Captain Cook gave ten guineas; but he afterwards purchased them by way of exchange, giving a musket for each; and at this rate he might have bought any number he thought proper. There seems to be no doubt but that Lange had a profit out of the first two that were sold, and that his reason for having said that the natives would take nothing but gold for their cattle, was, that he might the more easily share in the produce. Captain Cook purchased of the natives of this island some hundred gallons of palm-syrup, a small quantity of garlick, a large number of eggs, some limes and cocoa-nuts, thirty dozen of fowls, three hogs, six sheep, and nine buffaloes.

Having at length obtained these necessary refreshments, Captain Cook prepared for sailing from this place; but before we attend him on his voyage, it may be proper to give a description of the island, with an account of its produce, and the customs and manners of its inhabitants.

The island of Savu is situated in 10 degrees 35 minutes south latitude, and 237 degrees 30 minutes west longitude, and has hitherto been very little known, or very imperfectly described. Its length is between twenty and thirty miles; but its breadth could not be ascertained by Captain Cook, who saw only the north side of it. The harbour in which the ship lay was called Seba, from a district of the country so denominated; and there are two other bays on different parts of the island. At the time the Endeavour lay there it was near the end of the dry season, when it had not rained for almost seven months, nor was there a running stream of fresh water to be seen, and the natives were supplied only by small springs, situated at a distance up the country: yet even in this dry season the appearance of the island was enchanting beyond description. Near the coast the land is level, and well clothed with the palm, called Arecas, and cocoa-nut trees: farther off the ground rises in the most gradual ascent, and is covered with fan palm-trees even to the tops of the hills, so as to present a regular grove to the eye. The rains in this country cease in March or April, and fall again in October or November: and these rains produce abundance of indico, millet, and maize, which grow beneath the noblest trees in the universe.

Besides these articles, the island produces tobacco, cotton, betle, tamarinds, limes, oranges, mangoes, Guinea corn, rice, callevances, and water melons. A trifling quantity of cinnamon was seen, and some European herbs, such as garlic, fennel, cellery and marjoram: besides which, there are fruits of various kinds, and particularly the blimbi, which has a sharp taste, and is said to be a very fine pickle, but it is not eaten raw; its length is from three to four inches, it is nearly as thick as a man’s thumb, of an oval form, covered with a very thin skin of a light green, and contains a number of seeds ranged in the shape of a star.

Several buffaloes were seen on this island, which were almost as large as an ox; and from a pair of enormous horns of this animal which Mr. Banks saw, it was conjectured, that some of them were much larger; yet they did not weigh more than half as much as an ox of the same apparent size, having lost the greater part of their flesh through the late dry weather; the meat however was juicy, and of a delicate flavour. The horns of these animals bend backwards, they have no dewlaps, nor scarce any hair on their skins, and their ears are remarkably large. The other tame animals on the island are dogs, cats, pigeons, fowls, hogs, goats, sheep, asses and horses.

Few of the horses are above twelve hands high, yet they are full of mettle, and pace naturally in an expeditious manner: the natives ride them with a halter only. The hogs of this country, are fed on the hulks of rice, and palm-syrup mixed with water, and are remarkably fine and fat. The sheep are not unlike a goat, and are therefore called cabritos; their ears, which are long, hang down under their horns; their noses are arched, and their bodies are covered with hair. The fowls are of the game kind, and though they are rather large, the hen lays a very small egg. The sea-coast furnishes the inhabitants with turtle, but not in any great abundance.

The natives of the island of Savu are rather below the middle stature; their hair is black and strait, and persons of all ranks, as well those that are exposed to the weather, as those that are not, have one general complexion, which is the dark brown. The men are well formed and sprightly, and their features differ much from each other: the women, on the contrary, have all one set of features, and are very short and broad built.

The men have silver pincers hanging by strings round their necks, with which they pluck out the hair of their beards; and both men and women root out the hair that grows under the arms: the hair of the women’s heads is tied in a club behind, while that of the men is fastened by a comb to the top of the head: the men wear a kind of turban on the head, formed of muslin, cotton, or even silk handkerchiefs; but the heads of the women have no covering.

The dress of the men consists of two pieces of cotton cloth, one of which is bound round the middle, and the lower edge of it being drawn pretty tight between the legs, the upper edge is left loose, so as to form a kind of pocket, in which they carry their knives and other things: the other piece being passed under the former, on the back of the wearer, the ends of it are carried over the shoulders, and tucked into the pocket before. The women draw the upper edge of the piece round the waist tight, while the lower edge, dropping to the knees, makes a kind of petticoat: the other piece of cloth is fastened across the breast, and under the arms. This cloth, which is manufactured by the natives, is died blue while in the yarn; and, as it is of various shades, its look when it comes to be worn is very beautiful.

The ornaments of the natives of Savu are very numerous, and consist of rings, beads worn round the neck and on the wrists, and chains of plaited gold wire, likewise worn round the neck: these things were worn by both sexes; but the women had likewise girdles of beads round their waists, which helped to keep up the petticoat. Many of the boys wore brass wire passed several times round the arms, above the elbow: and some of the men, who were said to be the sons of the Rajas, wore rings of ivory, above an inch thick, and two inches broad, on the same part of the arm. One man possessed a silver-headed cane, supposed to have been a present from the Dutch East India Company, as their mark was engraven on the silver. The Raja, and the principal officer of his houshold, were commonly habited in night gowns of ordinary chintz; but one time, when Captain Cook waited on the Raja, he was dressed in a black stuff robe.

Most of the men had their names marked on their arms, and the women a black ornament just under the bend of the elbow, impressed so that it could not be rubbed out. On enquiry it was found, that this practice had been common among the Indians long before they were visited by any Europeans; and it was said, that the necks and breasts of the inhabitants of the adjacent islands were marked with circles.

It could not be certainly known how these black marks were impressed; but the following extract from M. Bossu’s account of some Indians who dwell on the banks of the Akanza, a river in North America, will afford a very probable conjecture how the operation is performed.⁠—“The Akanzas (says this writer) have adopted me, and, as a mark of my privilege, have imprinted the figure of a roe-buck upon my thigh, which was done in this manner: an Indian having burnt some straw, diluted the ashes with water, and, with this mixture, drew the figure upon my skin; he then retraced it by pricking the lines with needles, so as at every juncture just to draw the blood, and the blood mixing with the ashes of the straw, forms a figure which can never be effaced.”

The houses on the island of Savu are of different lengths, from twenty feet to four hundred, according to the rank of the inhabitant, and are fixed on posts about four or five feet from the ground. The houses are generally divided into three rooms of equal size, the center room being set apart for the use of the women; and sometimes smaller rooms are enclosed from the sides of the building, the whole of which is thatched with the leaves of the palm-tree.

The natives eat of all the tame animals which the island produces, but they prefer the hog to all the rest; next to hogs flesh they admire that of the horse, to which succeeds the Buffalo, and then the poultry; and they like the flesh of cats and dogs much better than that of goats and sheep. Fish is not eaten but by the poorer people, nor even by them, but when some business demands their attendance near the sea-coast; and then each man has a small casting net, which he wears tied round his body when he has not occasion to use it.

The fan-palm is the most remarkable, and most useful tree that grows on the island, its uses being equally great and various: soon after the buds put forth the natives cut them, and tying under them little baskets formed of the leaves of the tree, a liquor drops into them, which has the taste of a light wine, and is the common liquor of all the inhabitants. The men climb the trees twice a day to bring down this liquor; but as a great deal more is thus obtained than can be consumed by drinking, a part of the remainder is made into coarse sugar, very excellent of its kind; and the rest is boiled in earthen pots, till it is reduced to a syrup, resembling treacle, but of a much finer flavour; and with this syrup the natives fatten their hogs and dogs. The leaves of the tree are applied to the various uses of making tobacco pipes, umbrellas, cups, baskets, and the thatching of houses. The fruit of this tree is nearly of the size of a full grown turnip; but the natives are not fond of it, nor do they suffer much of it to come to perfection, as they wound the blossoms for the sake of the liquor that distils from them; the kernels of the fruit must be eaten before it is ripe, otherwise they are so hard, that the teeth will not penetrate them.

As wood for firing is very scarce on the island, the natives, by the following method, make a very little of it answer the ends of cookery and distillation. A hollow is dug under ground, in a direct line, about two yards long, with a hole at each end, one of which is large and the other small; the fire is put in at the largest hole, while the smaller one serves for a draught. Circular holes are made through the earth, which covers this cavity; and on these holes are set earthen pots, which being large in the middle, and smaller towards the bottom, the fire acts upon a considerable part of their surface. These pots contain, most commonly, about eight or nine gallons each, and they are kept continually boiling, with a very trifling quantity of fuel, such as a palm-leaf, or a dry stalk; in this manner all their victuals are boiled, as well as their syrup and sugar.

Both the men and women chew betle and areca, mixed with a sort of lime, composed of shells and coral stones; and as they frequently add tobacco to the other ingredients, and acquire this disgustful practice almost in their infancy, there is not a sweet breath, or a sound set of teeth in the whole island. They sometimes smoke tobacco, and the women, particularly, swallow the smoke. Their pipes are made of the palm-leaf, about the size of a goose quill, and half a foot long, in one end of which they put the tobacco designed for smoking.

The island consists of five divisions, each of which has a Raja, or chief Governor, of its own. These divisions are called Timo, Massara, Regeeua, Laai, and Seba. It was on this last division that our English adventurers went on shore: the Raja of which was between thirty and forty years of age, and remarkable for his corpulency. He governs his people with the most absolute authority, but takes on him very little of the parade, or pomp of royalty. The prime minister, who has been heretofore mentioned, appeared to be invested with great power, and almost wholly to direct the actions of the Raja; yet, such were the abilities and integrity of this man, that the people universally adored him. When any dispute happens among the natives, it is instantly settled by the Raja and his counsellors, in the most equitable and satisfactory manner.

The history of this island depends chiefly on the authority of Mr. Lange, the Dutch factor, who informed Captain Cook, that it was able to raise seven thousand three hundred fighting men, on the shortest notice. These are armed with lances, spears, muskets, targets, and pole-axes, which last are not unlike a wood-bill, only that they are much heavier, and have strait edges. The natives are so expert in the use of their lances, that they will throw them with such force and exactness, as to pierce a man through the heart at the distance of sixty or seventy yards. Notwithstanding this skill and disposition for war, it is said, that the Rajas have lived in the most perfect harmony for several ages.

While Captain Cook was on the island he saw a great gun before the town-house, and some swivels and pateraroes; but the great gun, which was almost consumed by rust, lay with the touch-hole to the ground, and the swivels and pateraroes were not in their carriages. In the town-house were a number of spears and targets, of as many different sizes as there were weapons; and with these the natives were armed when they came down with Dr. Solander, with a view to influence the market. The insides of the muskets were almost destroyed by rust, though their outsides were kept clean and bright: the men had very little, if any, powder or ball in their cartridge-boxes; but a piece of paper was put into each hole, as if they had been properly furnished. It has been already mentioned, that they marched in the most irregular manner; and each man brought with him a little tobacco, a fowl, or some other trifle, for sale.

The inhabitants of Savu are divided into five ranks; the Rajas, the land-owners, manufacturers, labourers, and slaves. The land-owners are respected in proportion to the extent of their lands, and the number of their slaves, which last are bought and sold with the estates to which they belong; but when a slave is bought separately, a fat hog is the price of the purchase. Though a man may sell his slave in this manner, or convey him with his lands, yet his power over him extends no farther, for he must not even strike him without the Raja’s permission. The estates of these land-owners are of very different extent; for some of them possess not above five slaves, and some five hundred. When a man of rank goes abroad, one of his slaves follows him, with a silver hilted sword or hanger, ornamented with horse hair tassels; while another is furnished with a little bag, containing tobacco, betle, areca, and lime; and even the Rajas themselves take no farther state upon them.

The natives of Savu entertain a veneration for antiquity, superior, perhaps, to that of any other people in the world. Their principal boast is a long line of venerable ancestors: the houses that have been well tenanted for successive generations are held in the highest esteem; and even the stones, which are worn smooth by having been sat upon for ages, become valuable from that very circumstance: the man whose progenitors have bequeathed him any of these stones, or whose opulence has enabled him to purchase them, causes them to be ranged round his habitation, for his servants and slaves to sit upon.

In the chief town of each district the Raja causes a huge stone to be set up, as a monument of his reign. Thirteen such stones were seen in the province of Seba, and the remains of many others, that have suffered greatly by the wasting hand of time. These stones are all placed on the top of a hill, and some of them are so enormously large, that it is impossible to conceive by what contrivance they could have been placed in such a situation, nor could any information in this respect be obtained from the natives. From these monuments it is evident, that the island has been regularly governed for a series of ages past.

On the death of a Raja, proclamation is made that all his subjects shall hold a solemn festival; on which they proceed to the hill where these stones are erected, and feast for several weeks or months, killing every animal that can be found, to furnish out the treat, which is daily served upon the monumental stones. When the whole stock is exhausted, they are compelled to a severe fast; and when it happens that the feast ends in the dry season, when they cannot get vegetables to eat, they have no other subsistance than the palm syrup and water, till the few animals that escape the general massacre have bred a sufficient number for a fresh supply; except indeed that the adjacent districts may afford some relief. The natives of Savu have an instrument with which they clear the cotton of its seeds, which is only about seven inches in height, and fourteen in length; but is constructed on common mechanical principles. They have likewise a machine, with which they spin by hand, in the same manner as the women of England did, before the use of spinning-wheels was known. The yarn they make is dyed as before-mentioned, and they were once observed to be dying some girdles for the women, of a deep red colour.

The natives in general are robust and healthy, and had the appearance of being long-lived. The small-pox has found its way to this island, and is as much dreaded as the pestilence: when this disorder attacks any person, he is carried to some spot at a great distance from any house, where his food is conveyed to him by means of a long stick, for no one will venture very near the invalid, who is thus left to take his chance of life or death.

The island of Savu having been visited by the Portuguese almost at their first sailing into this part of the world, they established a settlement upon it; but in a little time they were succeeded by the Dutch, who, though they did not formally possess themselves of the island, sent a number of trading vessels to establish a commerce with the natives. It is thought that the Dutch purchases are chiefly confined to provisions for the supply of the Spice Islands, the inhabitants of which, cultivating almost every spot of ground for the spice trade, breed but a small number of cattle. A few years ago the Dutch East India Company made an agreement with the several Rajas of the island, by which it was covenanted, that a quantity of rice, maize, and calevances should be annually furnished to the Dutch, who, in return, supply the Rajas with arrack, cutlery wares, linen, silk, and some other things. Small vessels, each of which is manned by ten Indians, are sent from Timor, to bring away the maize and calevances, and a ship which brings the articles which are furnished by the Dutch, receives the rice on board once a year: and there being three bays on the coast, this vessel anchors in each of them in its turn. The Rajas accept the Dutch articles of commerce as a present; and they and their chief attendants drink incessantly of the arrack till it is all gone. In the agreement abovementioned, the Rajas stipulated, that a Dutch resident should be constantly on the island, to observe that their part of the contract was fulfilled.

The Dutch having thus concluded the treaty, sent Mr. Lange to act as their resident, and a kind of assistant to him, whose father was a Portuguese, and his mother a native of Timor, with one Frederick Craig, whose father was a Dutchman, and his mother an Indian. Once every two months Lange is attended by fifty slaves on horse-back, and in this state visits each of the Rajas, and, if the crops are ripe, orders vessels to convey them immediately to Timor, so that they are not even housed on the island. It is a part of Lange’s business to persuade the land-owners to plant, if he sees that there has been any neglect on their part. He constantly takes with him a quantity of arrack, by the help of which he does not fail of making advantageous bargains with the Rajas.

Lange had been on this island ten years, during all which time he had not seen a white person, except those who came annually in the Dutch ship to carry off the rice. He is married to an Indian woman, a native of the island of Timor, and he lives in the same manner as the inhabitants of Savu, whose language he speaks better than any other; like them too he sits on the ground and chews betle, and has so perfectly adopted their manners, that he is an absolute Indian, except in dress and complexion.

Mr. Craig is employed in teaching the children to write and read, and instructing them in the principles of Christianity. The new testament, a catechism, and some other small books of divinity, have been printed in the language of Savu, and the adjacent islands, at the expence of the Dutch. Mr. Craig said, there were six hundred Christians in the township of Seba only; yet there is neither a church nor a clergyman throughout the island.

The religion of such of the natives of Savu as have not embraced Christianity, is a singular sort of Paganism, as every man makes choice of his own God, and worships him according to his own fancy; so that the variety of Deities, and the methods of adoring them, are scarcely fewer than the number of inhabitants. The morality of these people, however, is of the purest kind. A robbery is scarce ever committed, and a murder is never perpetrated. When any disputes arise between the natives, they instantly submit the point in debate to the decision of the Raja, and rest perfectly satisfied with his determination. No man is permitted to marry more than one wife; yet a violation of the marriage bed, or even the crime of simple fornication, is almost wholly unknown among them. Happy people! the purity of whose morals renders them fit objects of the envy and emulation of the Christian world.

Of the islands in the neighbourhood of Savu, the principal is Timor, which is annually visited by the Dutch residents on the other islands, in order to make up their accounts. Some of the towns on the north side of Timor are in the hands of the Portuguese; but the Dutch possess the far greater proportion of the island, on which they have built a fort, and erected several store-houses.

There are three small islands, called the Solars, which produce a great abundance of the various necessaries of life, that are carried in small vessels to the Dutch settlement on the island of Timor: these islands are low and flat, and one of them has a commodious harbour.

Westward from the Solars lies the little island of Ende, which is yet in the possession of the Portuguese, who have built a considerable town, called Larntuca, on the north east point of it; and close to the town is an harbour where ships may ride in safety.

The island of Rotte has a Dutch resident on it, whose business is similar to that of Mr. Lange on the island of Savu: Rotte produces, besides such things as are common to the other islands, a considerable quantity of sugar, which is now made to a great degree of perfection.

There is likewise a small island lying to the westward of Savu, the chief produce of which is areca-nuts, of which the Dutch receive, in exchange for European commodities, as large a quantity every year as will load two vessels.

A French ship was wrecked on the coast of Timor, about two years before the Endeavour was in these seas. She had been lodged on the rock several days, when the wind tore her to pieces in an instant, and the Captain, with the greater number of the seamen, were drowned; but a Lieutenant and about eighty men having reached the shore, travelled across the country of Concordia, where their immediate necessities were relieved, after which they returned to the wreck, in company with some Dutch and Indians, who assisted them in recovering all their chests of bullion, some of their guns, and other effects: which being done, they returned to Concordia, where they remained several weeks; but, in this interval, death made such havock among them, that not above half their number remained to be sent to their native country, which was done as soon as a vessel could be fitted out for that purpose.

To close the account of the island of Savu, it now only remains to give the following specimen of the language of its inhabitants.

Specimen of the language of the inhabitants of the island of Savu.

Momonne, A man.

Monama, An old man.

Monecopai, A boy.

Anawuneekee, A child.

Madda, The eyes.

Otaile, The temples.

Sivanga, The nose.

Tangarei, The forehead.

Cavarànga, The cheeks.

Vaio, The tongue.

Lacoco, The neck.

Dùloo, The belly.

Pagàvee, The chin.

Càmaccoò, The arms.

Wùlalea, The hand.

Roòtoo, The knees.

Baibo, The legs.

Duneeala, The feet.

Row, Hair.

Gnaca, A dog.

Vavee, A hog.

Doomba, A sheep.

Maio, A cat.

Doleela, A bird.

Dulloo, An egg.

Nudoo, A fish.

Unjoo, A turtle.

Vooe, Fruit.

Nai, Tobacco.

Yirroo, Oranges.

Arre, Rice.

Lodo, The sun.

Wurroo, The moon.

Booro, Bread.

Cova, A coat.

Capa, A ship.

Sooree, Red.

Bulla, Black.

Sao-lodo, The morning.

Munda-lodo, The evening.

O, Yes.

Gnaa, To eat.

Neenawei, To drink.

Ta eaco, To walk.

Ta rai, To run.

Ta mudje, To talk.

Ta bunge, To sneeze.

Isse, or usse, One.

Rooe, Two.

Tulloo, Three.

Uppa, Four.

Lumee, Five.

Unna, Six.

Petoo, Seven.

Aroo, Eight.

Saio, Nine.

Singooroo, Ten.

Singooroo isse, Eleven.

The Endeavour sailed from the island of Savu on the 21st of September 1770, and bent her course westward. In the afternoon of this day a little flat island was discovered in 10 degrees 47 minutes south latitude, and 238 degrees 28 minutes west longitude, which has not been laid down in any of the charts hitherto published.

When the ship got clear of the several islands before-mentioned, there was a continual swell of the sea from the south, which Captain Cook imputed to the position of the coast of New South Wales, imagining it to have determined the sea in that direction.

On the 28th they steered north-west the whole day, in order to get sight of the land of Java; and on the 30th the Captain received from most of the officers and seamen their respective journals of the voyage, regarding which he advised them to observe the most profound secrecy: and he likewise possessed himself of the log-book. In the night following there was a storm of thunder and lightning, when the land of Java was seen to the eastward by the brightness of the lightning. In the morning they had sight of the island of Cracatoa, which is singular for the height of its peak.

Early in the morning of the 2d of October, when the ship was in fifteen fathom water, she was close in with the coast of Java, along which they now steered. As their faithful Indian friend Tupia was at this time extremely ill, the Captain dispatched a boat to the shore, to endeavour to bring him some refreshing fruits, and likewise to procure grass for the buffaloes. As soon as the boat landed, the inhabitants assisted the seamen in cutting grass for the cattle, and in gathering a bunch of plantains and a few cocoa-nuts, for which they received a shilling, and which were brought off to the ship. The land of Java had a delightful appearance, being every where well covered with trees.

This day they had sight of two Dutch vessels, and an officer being dispatched to one of them, to learn any interesting intelligence, he brought word back, that the Swallow had reached the English channel in safety, that disputes were carried to great lengths at home, in regard to the ministers, and in America, on account of taxes; and that the Russians, Poles and Turks, were embroiled in a war. The officer said, that the vessels were Dutch East Indiamen, bound from Batavia, one of them to the coast of Malabar, and the other to the island of Ceylon: he said likewise, that there was a kind of packet-boat, which he had been told, was appointed to carry letters from such Dutch ships as came thither to Batavia; but Captain Cook conjectured, that her business was to examine such ships as should pass the Streight.

The ship had now been some hours at anchor; but a light breeze springing up in the evening, they got under sail, and continued to proceed at a slow rate during the night. On the 3d, in the morning, the Dutch packet-boat was observed sailing after the Endeavour; but she bore away again on the shifting of the wind.

This changing of the wind obliging the Endeavour to come to an anchor, the master of the packet-boat came along-side of her, in one of the boats belonging to the country, bringing with him rice-birds, monkies, parrots, parroquets, ducks, fowls, turtle, and other things, with an intention to sell them; but as the stock which had been laid in at Savu was not yet consumed, and he had fixed very high prices on his commodities, very few articles were purchased: the Captain, however, bought twenty or thirty fowls, and a small turtle.

The master of the packet-boat had brought with him two books, in one of which he wrote down the Captain’s name, and that of the vessel, to be sent to the Governor and Council of the Indies; and in the other book he requested that some of the gentlemen on board would likewise write down the name of the vessel, with that of the Captain; where she came from, to what port she was bound, and as many particulars respecting any person on board, as themselves might think necessary, to satisfy the curiosity of any of their friends who might afterwards enquire for them. In this book many Portuguese vessels, and some of other countries had made entries of the same kind; but a Lieutenant on board the Endeavour having written the ship’s name, added only the words, “from Europe;” yet of this the master of the packet took no other notice, than by saying he was content with whatever they were pleased to write, which was intended solely for the information of their friends.

They now weighed the anchor, and made repeated attempts to sail; but the wind not blowing so as to enable the vessel to stem the current, she lay to till the morning of the 5th, when a Dutch officer came along-side the ship, and sent a printed paper to the Captain, in exceeding bad English; the contents of which were to enquire,

1st, The ship’s name, and to what nation she belonged?

2d, Whether she came from Europe, or any other place?

3d, What place she had last departed from?

4th, To what place she was bound?

5th, How many ships belonging to the Dutch Company had been seen at the last coast the ship had left, and their names?

6th, If one or more of these ships had been in company with the Endeavour, and was or were sailed for that, or any other place?

7th, If, during the voyage, any thing remarkable had happened, or been seen?

8th, If any ships had been seen and hailed at sea, or in the streight of Sunda, and what they were?

9th, If they had brought any other news worthy of attention, from the place whence the ship took her last departure; or if any thing else had happened during the voyage, that was worth communicating.

These questions were undersigned, “Batavia, in the castle. By order of the Governor General, and the Counsellors of India, J. Brander Bungl, Sec.”

It was observed, that the officer had many other papers of the same kind, in French, Dutch, and other languages. Captain Cook did not think proper to answer any of the above questions, except the first and the fourth. When the Dutchman observed this, he said, that answers to the other questions were not material; yet he seemed to contradict what he had just advanced, by saying, that he must dispatch the paper to Batavia, and that it would reach that place by noon on the following day. This incident is particularly recorded, because the examining the ships which sail through the streight, is said to be a piece of Dutch policy of very modern date.

As soon as the Dutch officer was departed, the anchor was weighed; but the ship was obliged to come to an anchor again in about four hours, for want of wind to enable her properly to stem the current. A breeze soon springing up, the vessel held on her way till the following morning, when she was again obliged to be brought to an anchor, owing to the rapidity of the current. This day and the next they weighed the anchor, and brought to several times. On the 8th they weighed, and stood clear of a large ledge of rocks, which they had been near running fowl of the preceding day; but before noon this day they were once more obliged to anchor near a little island, which was not laid down in any chart that they had on board. It is one of those that bear the name of the Milles isles; and Messrs Solander and Banks having landed upon it, collected a few plants, and shot a bat which was a yard long, being measured from the extreme points of the wings; they also killed a few plovers, in all respects like the English golden plover. On this island, the breadth of which does not exceed one hundred yards, and the length five hundred, they found a house, and a little spot of cultivated ground, and on it grew the Palma Christi, from which the West Indians make the castor oil.

In a little time after the gentlemen came back to the snip, some Malays came along-side, in a boat, bringing with them some pumpkins, dried fish, and turtle for sale: one of the turtles, which weighed near one hundred and fifty pounds, they sold for a dollar, and seemed to expect the same piece of money for their pumpkins; but it being hinted to them that a dollar was too much, they desired that one might be cut, and a piece of it given to them: but this not being complied with, they at length sold six and twenty pumpkins for a Portuguese petacka. When they departed they intimated their wishes, that this transaction might not be mentioned at Batavia.

The ship now made but slow way till night, when the land breeze springing up, they sailed to the east south-east, and on the following day, by the assistance of the sea breeze, they came to an anchor in the road of Batavia. At this place they found a number of large Dutch vessels, the Harcourt East Indiaman from England, which had lost her passage to China, and two ships belonging to the private trade of our India Company.

The Endeavour had no sooner anchored, than a ship was observed, with a broad pendant flying, from which a boat was dispatched to demand the name of the vessel, with that of the Commander, &c. To these enquiries Captain Cook gave such answers as he thought proper, and the officer who commanded the boat departed. This gentleman and the crew that attended him were so worn down by the unhealthiness of the climate, that they appeared but as the shadows of men; which the Captain deemed a sad presage of the havock which death would soon make among his crew; yet at present there was not one invalid on board, except the Indian Tupia: the English tars, whose want of foresight and defiance of danger is notorious, seemed not to entertain the least idea that even sickness would attack a set of men so hardened as they were by different climates; but alas! they had very little idea of the fatal contagion which impregnates the air of Batavia.

The Captain now dispatched an officer to the Governor of the town, to apologize for the Endeavour’s not saluting; for he had but three guns proper for the purpose, except swivels, and he was apprehensive that they would not be heard.

The ship was at this time so leaky, that she made about nine inches water an hour, on the average; part of her false keel was gone; one of her pumps was totally useless, and the rest so very much decayed, that they could not last long. The officers and seamen concurring in opinion, that the ship could not safely put to sea again in this condition, the Captain resolved to solicit permission to heave her down; but as he had learnt that this must be done in writing, he drew up a petition, and had it translated into Dutch.

On Wednesday the 10th of October 1770, the Captain and the rest of the gentlemen went on shore, and applied to the only English gentleman then resident at Batavia: this gentleman, whose name was Leith, received his countrymen in the politest manner, and entertained them at dinner with great hospitality. Mr. Leith informed them, that a public hotel was kept in the town, by order of the Dutch government, at which place merchants and other strangers were obliged to lodge, and that the landlord of the hotel was bound to find them warehouses for their goods, on the condition of his receiving ten shillings on every hundred pounds of their value; but that as the Endeavour was a King’s ship, her officers, and the other gentlemen, might reside where they thought proper, only asking leave of the Governor, whose permission would be instantly obtained. Mr. Leith added, that they might live cheaper in this way than at the hotel, if they had any person who spoke the Malay tongue, on whom they could rely in the purchase of their provisions: but as there was no such person among the whole ship’s crew, the gentlemen immediately bespoke beds at the hotel.

In the afternoon Captain Cook attended the Governor General, who received him politely, and told him to wait on the Council the next morning, when his petition should be laid before them, and every thing he solicited would be readily granted.

Late in the evening of this day there happened a most terrible storm of thunder and lightning, accompanied with very heavy rain. In this storm the main-mast of a Dutch East Indiaman was split and carried away by the deck; and the main-top-mast and top-gallant-mast were torn to pieces; it is supposed, that the lightning was attracted by an iron spindle at the main-top-gallant-mast-head. The Endeavour, which was at a small distance from the Dutch ship, escaped without damage, owing, in Captain Cook’s opinion, to an electrical chain, which conducted the lightning over the side of the vessel: and he recommends chains of the same kind to be taken on board all ships, to whatever part of the globe they may be bound. A centinel on board the Endeavour, who was charging his musket at the time of the storm, had it shaken out of his hand, and the rammer-rod was broken in pieces: the electrical chain looked like a stream of fire, and the ship sustained a very violent shock.

On Tuesday the 11th Captain Cook waited on the gentlemen of the Council, who informed him, that all his requests should be complied with. In the interim, the other gentlemen made a contract with the master of the hotel, to furnish them and their friends with as much tea, coffee, punch and tobacco, as they might have occasion for, and to keep them a separate table, for nine shillings a day, English money; but on the condition that every person who should visit them, should pay at the rate of four shillings and six pence for his dinner, and the same sum for his supper and bed, if he chose to sleep at the hotel: they were likewise to pay for every servant that attended them fifteen pence a day.

It was soon discovered, that they had been vilely imposed on; for these charges were above twice as much as would have been demanded at a private house. They appeared to live elegantly, but at the same time were but ill supplied. Their dinner consisted of fifteen dishes, all served up at once; and their supper of thirteen; but of these, nine or ten were of the most ordinary, because the cheapest, poultry, that could be purchased; and even some of these dishes were observed to be served up four times successively: a duck, which was hot at dinner, brought cold in the evening; the next day it appeared in the form of a fricasee, and was converted to forced meat at night. Our countrymen, however, only fared as others had done before them: it was the constant custom of the conscientious master of the hotel, to treat all his guests in the same manner, when they first took up their residence at his house: if they took no notice of it, all was well, for the landlord had the better customers of them; if they remonstrated against such treatment, the table was better and better supplied from time to time, till, in the end, they had no reason to complain.

The gentlemen having found fault with their fare, were afterwards supplied in a better manner; but Mr. Banks, not approving the conduct of the master of the hotel, he hired lodgings for himself and his attendants at the adjoining house, for which he agreed to pay five and forty shillings a month: but here Mr. Banks was disappointed in the hope he had formed of living retired; for scarce a Dutchman had occasion to pass by the house, but he ran in without ceremony, to enquire what was to be sold; for it is a very unusual thing at Batavia, for strangers who are in a private capacity not to be furnished with some articles of traffick. In this house no person was permitted to sleep, as a guest of Mr. Banks, without his bed being separately paid for. It is the universal custom here to hire a carriage; and Mr. Banks engaged two, for which he paid eighteen shillings a day: these carriages are open chaises, in which two persons sit commodiously, and are driven by a man sitting on a kind of coach-box.

Their Indian friend Tupia had been till this time on board very dangerously ill, yet persisted to refuse every medicine that was offered him: Mr. Banks now sent for him to his house, in the hope that he might recover his health. While he was in the ship, and even after he was put into the boat, he was indisposed, and low spirited, in the utmost degree; but the moment he came into the town, his whole frame appeared as if re-animated. The houses, the carriages, the people, and many other objects, were totally new to him and astonishment took possession of his features at sights so wonderful: but if Tupia was astonished at the scene, his boy, Tayota, was perfectly enraptured, dancing along the streets in an extacy of joy, and examining the several objects as they presented themselves, with the most earnest inquisitiveness and curiosity.

Of all the circumstances which engaged the attention of Tupia, nothing struck him so much as the vast variety of dresses worn by the inhabitants of Batavia: he enquired the reason of what appeared so very extraordinary in his eyes, and being informed that the people were of a variety of nations, and that all were dressed according to the mode of their own country, he requested permission to follow the fashion: this request being readily complied with, a person was dispatched to the ship for some South Sea cloth, with which he soon clothed himself in the dress of the inhabitants of Otaheite. The people of Batavia, who had seen an Indian, brought thither in M. Bougainville’s ship, named Otourou, mistook Tupia for that man, and frequently enquired if he was not the same.

As the necessary repairs of the ship were to be made at Ourust, Captain Cook obtained an order to the superintendant of that island to receive her; and he wrote to the Secretary of the Admiralty, an account of the safe arrival of the Endeavour in the road of Batavia, and dispatched his letter by a Dutch ship that was bound to Europe.

Captain Cook now applied to several persons to advance him money sufficient to defray the expence of repairing the ship; but not one could be found in the whole town who had the requisite sum in his possession, or, if he had, was willing to advance it: he therefore made application to the Governor, who issued his orders, that he should be supplied out of the treasury of the Dutch East India Company.

Early in the morning of the 18th of October 1770, the ship got under sail, and proceeded to Ourust; and, in a day or two, the crew began to take out her stores, which were deposited in the wharf on Cooper’s Island; but this business was rendered unavoidably tedious, by several Dutch ships being at the same wharf, taking in their ladings of pepper.

After little more than a week spent at Batavia, the ill effects of the climate began to be severely felt. Dr. Solander and Mr. Banks were indisposed with fevers; Mr. Banks’s two servants were exceedingly ill; the Indian boy, Tayota, had an inflammation on his lungs; and Tupia was so bad, that his life was despaired of. Their indisposition was attributed partly to the heat of the climate, and partly to the swampy situation of the town, and the stench of the dirty canals with which it abounds.

By the 26th of the month, very few of the crew were well enough to do duty; and on this day a tent was erected for their reception. Tupia now requested to be conveyed to the ship, in the hope of breathing a purer air than in the town; but his request could not be granted, as she was unrigged, and preparations were making to lay her down, in order that she might undergo a thorough repair: on the 28th, however, Mr. Banks attended Tupia to Cooper’s Island, where a tent was pitched for him, in such a situation, where he was alternately refreshed by the land and sea breezes; and the poor creature was extremely thankful that he was so agreeably lodged. By this time the Surgeon was so ill, that he could not leave his bed; Mr. Banks’s fever was greatly encreased, and Dr. Solander grew worse every day.

The ship was at length laid down on the 5th of November, on which day died Mr. Monkhouse, the Surgeon, whose loss was the more severely felt, as he was a man of skill in his profession, and fell a sacrifice to the pestiferous air of the country, at a time when his abilities were most wanted. Dr. Solander, though extremely ill, had strength sufficient to see his remains committed to the ground, but Mr. Banks was unable even to pay this last sad duty to a worthy man.

Death now advanced with hasty strides among our adventrous countrymen, who were equally unable to resist his power, or shun his embraces. Several Malay servants were engaged, to wait on those who were ill; but these people were so remiss in their duty, that it was no uncommon thing for the sick man to leave his bed in search of his attendant. The Indian boy, Tayota, paid the debt of Nature on the 9th of this month, and Tupia, whose tender affection for the youth can be equalled only by that of a parent for a favourite child, was so shocked at the loss, that it was evident he could not long survive him.

By this time the ship’s bottom having been carefully surveyed, our countrymen had ample reason to be grateful to that Providence, by which they had been preserved during a passage of several hundred miles, through the most dangerous seas on the face of the globe: for the sheathing in several places was torn from the vessel, the false keel was in a great measure gone, the main keel was damaged in many parts, several of the planks had received great injury, and a part of three of them was thinner than the sole of a shoe!

Messrs. Solander and Banks were now so worn down by their disorders, that the Physician, who attended them, recommended the country air, as the only thing that could possibly restore them to the wishes of their friends. In consequence of this advice, they hired a country-house of the master of the hotel, who engaged to supply them with slaves, and to furnish their table; but as they had sufficiently experienced the worthlessness of these slaves, they bought two Malay women, who soon became excellent nurses, from that tenderness of Nature which does so much honour to the sex. While these gentlemen were taking measures for the recovery of their health, poor Tupia fell a victim to the ravages of his disorder, and to his grief for the deceased Tayota. When Tayota was first seized with the fatal disorder, he seemed sensible of his approaching end, and frequently said to those that were about him, Tyau mate see, “My friends, I am dying:” he was very tractable, and took any medicines that were offered to him; they were both buried in the island of Edam.

Captain Cook bestows great encomiums on the officers and workmen of the Marine Yard at Ourust, by whose skill and diligence the bottom of the ship was perfectly repaired by the 14th of the month; and he warmly recommends the heaving down with two masts, instead of one, which, he says, is undoubtedly the more expeditious, as well as the safer method.

By this time not above ten men, out of the whole ship’s crew, were able to do duty, and these were employed in getting the water and stores aboard, and in putting up the rigging: the water was purchased at Batavia, at the rate of one hundred and fifty gallons for six shillings and eight pence.

Captain Cook was now taken ill, and Mr. Sporing and a sailor, who attended Messrs. Banks and Solander at their country-house, were attacked with intermitting fevers; but those two gentlemen grew something better, though their recovery was very slow. Their house was situated on the borders of a rivulet, which, of course, assisted the circulation of the air; and it was likewise open to the sea breeze.

In the night of the 25th there fell such a shower of rain, for the space of four hours, as even our voyagers had scarce ever remembered. The water poured through every part of Mr. Banks’s house; and the lower apartments admitted a stream sufficient to have turned a mill. As this gentleman was now greatly restored in health, he went to Batavia the following day, and was surprized to see, that the inhabitants had hung out their bedding to dry. The westerly monsoon set in about the 26th of this month: it blows in the day-time from the north, or north-west, and from the south-west during the night: previous to this, there had been violent thunder, and hard showers of rain for several nights.

The musquitos and gnats, whose company had been sufficiently disagreeable in the dry weather, now began to swarm in immense numbers, rising from the puddles of water like bees from a hive: they were extremely troublesome during the night, but the pain arising from their sting, though very severe, seldom lasted more than half an hour; and in the day-time they seldom made their attacks. The frogs kept a perpetual croaking in the ditches; a certain sign that the wet season was commenced, and that daily rain might be expected.

The ship being repaired, the sick people being received on board her, and the greater part of her water and stores taken in, she sailed from Ourust on the 8th of December, and anchored in the road of Batavia. Twelve days were employed in receiving the remainder of her provisions, water, and other necessaries; though this business would have been done in much less time, but that some of the crew died, and the majority of the survivors were so ill, as to be unable to give their assistance.

On the 24th Captain Cook took leave of the Governor, and some other gentlemen, who had distinguished themselves by the civilities they shewed him: but at this juncture an incident occurred, that might have produced consequences by no means desirable. A sailor belonging to one of the Dutch snips in the road of Batavia, deserted from that vessel, and entered himself on board the Endeavour. The Captain of the Dutch ship having made application to the Governor, claiming the delinquent as a subject of the States General, the Governor issued his order for the restoration of the man: Captain Cook had but just taken a formal leave of the Governor when this order was delivered to him; and he said, that the man should be given up, if it appeared that he was a Dutchman. As the Captain was at this time on shore, and did not intend going on board till the following day, he gave the Dutch officer a note to the Lieutenant, who commanded on board the Endeavour, to deliver the deserter on the condition above-mentioned. On the following day the Dutchman waited on Captain Cook, informing him, that the Lieutenant had absolutely refused to give up the seaman; saying, that he was an Irishman, and of course a subject of his Britannick Majesty. Captain Cook applauded the conduct of his officer, and added, that it could not be expected, that he should deliver up an English subject. The Dutch officer then said, he was authorized, by the Governor, to demand the fugitive as a Danish subject, adding, that his name was entered in the ship’s books, as having been born at Elsineur: to this Captain Cook very properly replied, that the Governor must have been mistaken, when he gave this order for delivering the deserter, who had his option whether he would serve the Dutch or the English; but that in compliment to the Governor, the man should be given up, as a favour, if he appeared to be a Dane; but that, in this case, he should by no means be demanded as a right, and that he would certainly keep him, if he appeared to be a subject of the crown of Great Britain. The Dutchman now took his leave, and he had not been long gone, before the Captain received a letter from the commanding officer on board, containing full proof, that the man was an English subject. This letter the Captain carried to the Shebander, desiring him to lay it before the Governor, and to inform him, that the man should not be delivered up on any terms whatever. This spirited conduct on the part of Captain Cook had the proper effect; and thus the matter ended.

This day the Captain, attended by Mr. Banks and the other gentlemen who had hitherto lived in the town, repaired on board the ship, which got under sail the next morning. The Endeavour was saluted by the fort, and by the Elgin East Indiaman, which then lay in the road; but soon after these compliments were returned, the sea breeze setting in, they were obliged to come to an anchor. Since the arrival of the ship in Batavia road, every person belonging to her had been ill, except the sail-maker, who was more than seventy years old, yet this man got drunk every day while they remained there. The Endeavour buried seven of her people at Batavia, viz. Tupia and his boy, three of the sailors, the servant of Mr. Green, the astronomer, and the Surgeon: and at the time of the vessel’s sailing, forty of the crew were sick, and the rest so enfeebled by their late illness, as to be scarcely able to do their duty.

The town of Batavia is situated in six degrees ten minutes south latitude, and one hundred and six degrees fifty minutes east longitude, from the meridian of Greenwich. It is built on the bank of a large bay, something more than twenty miles from the Streight of Sunda, on the north side of the island of Java, in low boggy ground. Several small rivers, which rise forty miles up the country, in the mountains of Blaeuwen Berg, discharge themselves into the sea at this place, having first intersected the town in different directions. There are wide canals of nearly stagnated water in almost every street, and as the banks of these canals are planted with rows of trees, the effect is very agreeable; but these trees and canals combine to render the air pestilential. Some of the rivers are navigable, more than thirty miles up the country; and, indeed, the Dutch appear to have chosen this spot to build the town on, for the sake of water-carriage, in which convenience Batavia exceeds every place in the world, except the towns of Holland.

A writer, who published an account of this place near fifty years ago, makes the number of houses at that time 4760, viz. 1242 Dutch houses, and 1200 Chinese houses, within the walls; and 1066 Dutch houses, and 1240 Chinese houses, without the walls, with twelve houses for the vending of arrack. The streets of Batavia being wide, and the houses large, it stands on more ground than any other place that has only an equal number of houses.

In dry weather a most horrid stench arises from the canals, and taint the air to a great degree; and when the rains have so swelled the canals that they overflow their banks, the ground-floors of the houses, in the lower parts of the town, are filled with stinking water, that leaves behind it dirt and slime in amazing quantities. The running streams are sometimes as offensive as the stagnant canals; for the bodies of dead animals are frequently lodged on the shallow parts, where they are left to putrify, and corrupt the air, except a flood happens to carry them away: this was the case with a dead buffaloe, while the crew of the Endeavour were there, which lay stinking on the shoal of a river, in one of the chief streets, for several days.

They sometimes clean the canals; but this business is performed in such a manner, as scarcely to make them less a nuisance than before; for the bottom being cleared of its black mud, it is left on the side of the canal till it is hard enough to be taken away in boats; and as there are no houses for necessary retirement in the whole town, the filth is thrown into the canals regularly once a day, so that this mud is a compound of every thing that can be imagined disagreeable and offensive.

There is a new church in Batavia, which is a fine piece of building, and the dome of it may be seen far off at sea. This church is illuminated by chandeliers of the most superb workmanship, and has a fine organ: most of the other public buildings are ancient, constructed in an ill taste, and give a very compleat idea of Dutch clumsiness.

Their method of building their houses seems to have been taught them by the climate. On the ground-floor there is no room but a large hall, a corner of which is parted off for the transaction of business: the hall has two doors, which are commonly left open, and are opposite each other, so that the air passes freely through the room, in the middle of which there is a court, which at once encreases the draft of air, and affords light to the hall: the stairs, which are at one corner, lead to large and lofty apartments above. The female slaves are not permitted to sit in any place, but in the alcove formed by the court; and this is the usual dining-place of the family.

The town of Batavia is encompassed by a river of shallow water, the stream of which is very rapid: within this river, which is of different widths in various places, is an old stone wall, much decayed in many places, and within the wall is a canal that is likewise much wider in some places than in others: so that there is no entering the gates of the town but by crossing two draw-bridges: there are but few guns on the ramparts, and no persons are permitted to walk there. There is a kind of citadel, or castle, in the north-east corner of the town, the walls of which are both broader and higher than they are in other parts; it is furnished with a number of large guns, which command the landing-place.

Apartments are provided in this castle for the Governor General and all the Council; and in case of a siege they have orders to retire thither.

In the castle are likewise a number of store-houses, in which the effects belonging to the Company are deposited. The Company have in their possession large quantities of gun-powder, which is kept in different places, that the lightning may not destroy the whole stock at once; a great number of cannon are likewise laid up within the castle.

There are a great many forts built in different parts of the country, several miles distant from Batavia, most probably erected to keep the natives in submission; and besides these there are a number of fortified houses, each mounting eight guns, and these are so stationed as to command the canals, and the roads on their borders. There are houses of this kind in many parts of the island of Java, and the other islands in its neighbourhood, of which the Dutch have obtained the possession. The Chinese having rebelled against the Dutch in the year 1740, all their principal houses were demolished by the cannon of one of these fortified houses, which is in the town of Batavia, where, likewise, there are a few more of them.

The roads of this country are simply banks between the ditches and canals; and the fortified houses being erected among the morasses near these roads, nothing is easier than to destroy them, and consequently to prevent an enemy from bringing any heavy artillery near the town; if, indeed, an enemy be only hindered a short time in his approach, he is effectually ruined, for the climate will preclude the necessity of the use of weapons for his destruction. Before the Endeavour had been a week at Batavia they began to feel the ill effects of the climate; half the crew were rendered incapable of doing their duty before the expiration of a month. They were informed, that it was a very uncommon thing for fifty soldiers, out of a hundred brought from Europe, to be alive at the expiration of the first year, and that of the fifty who might happen to be alive, not ten of those would be in sound health, and, probably, not less than half of them in the hospital. One would imagine that no man of common sense would be tempted to reside at Batavia, for any consideration of interest whatever; yet such is the insatiable thirst of gold, that men will voluntarily risk the loss of life to obtain it, and even ensure the loss of that health, without which the most splendid fortune cannot be enjoyed.

All the white inhabitants of Batavia are soldiers, and, at the expiration of five years service, they are bound to hold themselves in readiness to go to war, if they should be wanted; and the younger inhabitants are frequently mustered; but as they are neither trained nor exercised after the expiration of the five years above-mentioned, the little they have learnt is soon forgotten, and they would probably, if called to action, make as good soldiers as the militia of the city of London. The Portuguese, who live in this country, employ themselves very much in shooting the deer, and the wild hog, whence they become excellent marksmen. The Indians, of whatever nation, who reside here, and have either been made free, or were born so, are called Mardykers; but neither these nor the Chinese are acquainted with the use of fire-arms; yet, as these people are said to possess great personal bravery, much might be expected from their expert use of their daggers, swords and lances.

From what has been above written it is evident, that it would be a laborious task to attack Batavia by land; and it is not possible to make any attack at all by sea, for the shallowness of the water would hinder any vessels from advancing within cannon shot of the walls; indeed there is barely depth of water for a ship’s long-boat, excepting a narrow channel, called the river, which extends about half a mile into the harbour, and is strongly bounded on each side with piers the other end of it being directly under the fire of the castle; while its communication with the canals of the town is prevented by a boom of wood, which is every night shut precisely at six o’clock, and never opened till the following day.

Any number of ships may anchor in the harbour of Batavia, the ground of which is so excellent, that the anchor will never quit its hold. This harbour is sometimes dangerous for boats, when the sea breeze blows fresh; but, upon the whole, it is deemed the best and most commodious in all India.

There are a considerable number of islands which are situated round the outside of the harbour, and all these are in the possession of the Dutch, who destine them to different purposes. On one of them, which is called Purmerent, an hospital is erected, on account of the air being purer than it is at Batavia. In a second, the name of which is Kuyper, are erected a number of warehouses, in which are lodged the rice, and some other commodities, the property of the Dutch East India Company: at this island those ships belonging to different nations, which are to be repaired at Ourust, unlade their cargoes; and it was here that the stores of the Falmouth Man of War were laid up, when she was condemned, on her return from Manilla; her warrant officers, of whom mention has been made in the account of Captain Wallis’s voyage, were sent to Europe in Dutch ships, about half a year before the Endeavour anchored in the road of Batavia. A third of these islands, the name of which is Edam, is appropriated to the reception of such offenders, whose crimes are not deemed worthy of death, and hither they are transported from Holland, and detained from five to forty years, in proportion to the turpitude of the offence they have committed; the making of ropes is the principal part of the employment of these criminals.

The environs of Batavia have a very pleasing appearance, and would, in almost any other country, be an enviable situation. Gardens and houses occupy the country for several miles; but the gardens are so covered with trees, that the advantage of the land having been cleared of the wood that originally covered it, is almost wholly lost; while these gardens, and the fields adjacent to them are surrounded by ditches which yield not the most fragrant smell; and the bogs and morasses in the adjacent fields are still more offensive.

For the space of more than thirty miles beyond the town the land is totally flat, except in two places, on one of which the Governor’s country-seat is built, and on the other they hold a large market but neither of these places are higher than ten yards from the level of the plain. At near forty miles from the town, the land rises into hills, and the air is purified in a great degree; to this distance the invalids are sent by their physicians, when every other prospect of their recovery has failed, and the experiment succeeds in almost every instance, for the sick are soon restored to health; but they no sooner return to the town, than their former disorders visit them. On these hills the most opulent of the inhabitants have country-seats, to which they pay an annual visit. Those who reside constantly on the hills enjoy an almost perpetual flow of health; and most of the vegetables of Europe grow as freely here as in their native ground: the strawberry, in particular, flourishes greatly, which is a sufficient proof of the coolness of the air.

The rice of this country is very plentiful, and, in order to be brought to perfection, should lie under water more than half the time it is growing: but they have a sort which grows on the sides of the hills, which is unknown in the West India Islands; this sort is planted when the wet season commences, and the crop is gathered in soon after the rains are over.

The maize which grows near Batavia is gathered while young, and toasted in the ear. The land likewise produces carrots, pigeon-peas, celery, parsley, asparagus, onions, rhadishes, cabbages, lettuces, cucumbers, lentiles, kidney-beans, hysop, sage, rue, Chinese white rhadishes, which, when boiled, are not unlike a parsnip, common potatoes, sweet potatoes, wet and dry yams, millet, and the egg plant, the fruit of which, when broiled and eaten with salt and pepper, is most exquisite food.

Amazing quantities of sugar are produced here, and, while the quantity is beyond comparison greater, the care of cultivation is inconceivably less than in the West India Islands. White sugar is retailed at two-pence and two-pence half-penny the pound, and arrack is made of the molasses, with a small addition of rice, and the wine of the cocoa-nut. The inhabitants likewise raise a little indigo for their own use, but do not export it.

The fruits of this country are near forty in number, and of some of these there are several kinds. Pine apples grow in such abundance that they may be purchased, at the first hand, for the value of an English farthing; and they bought some very large ones for a half-penny a piece at the fruit shops, though they are excellent eating, it is imagined they are reared to equal perfection in the hot-houses of England. They grow so luxuriantly, that seven or eight suckers have been seen adhering to one stem.

The sweet oranges of Batavia are good of their kind, but very dear at particular times. The shaddocks of the West Indies, called here Pumplemoeses, have an agreeable flavour. Lemons were very scarce when the Endeavour lay in the harbour, but limes were altogether as plentiful, and sold at little more than two-pence the score. There are many kinds of oranges and lemons, but none of them excellent. Of mangos there are plenty, but their taste is far inferior to that of the melting-peach of England, to which they have been compared. It is said that the heat, and extreme dampness of the climate, does not agree with them; yet there are many different kinds of them. Of bananes there is an amazing variety of sorts, some of which, being boiled, are eaten as bread, while others are fried in batter, and are a nutrimental food: but, of the numerous sorts of this fruit, three only are fit to be eaten: one, indeed, is remarkable, because it is filled with seeds, which are not common to the rest. Grapes are sold from one shilling to eighteen-pence the pound, though they are far from being good.

The tamarinds are equally cheap and plentiful; but as the method of preserving them, which is in salt, renders them a mere black lump, they are equally nauseating to the sight and the palate. The water melons are excellent of their kind, and are produced in great abundance. The pumpkins are boiled as turneps, and eaten with salt and pepper. This fruit is admirably adapted to the use of voyagers, as it will keep many months without care, and makes an excellent pye, when mixed with the juice of lemons and sugar. The papaws of this country are superior to turneps, if the cores are extracted, after paring them when they are green. The guava has a strong smell, and a taste not less disagreeable: it is probable, that the guava of the West Indies, which many writers have distinguished by their praises, has a very different flavour. The sweet sop is a fruit that has but little flavour: it abounds in large kernels, from which the pulp is sucked. The taste of the custard-apple very much resembles the dish from which its name is taken. The cashew-apple produces a nut which is not unknown in England; but the fruit has such an astringent quality, that the Batavians seldom eat of it: the nut grows on the top of the apple. The cocoa-nut is plentiful in this country, and there are several kinds of this fruit, the best of which is very red between the shell and the skin. The jamboo is a fruit that has but little taste, but is of a cooling nature: it is considerably less than a common sized apple, and those that have grown to their full size are always the best; its shape is oval, and its colour the deep red. Of the jambu-eyer, there are two kinds, the white and the red: they are shaped like a bell, and are something bigger than a cherry: they have no kind of taste but that of a watery acid. The jambu-eyer mauwar smells like a rose, and its taste is not unlike that of conserve of roses. The mangostan is of a dark red colour, and not larger than a small apple; to the bottom of this fruit adhere several little leaves of the blossom, while on its top are a number of triangles combined in a circle: it contains several kernels ranged in a circular form, within which is the pulp, a fruit of most exquisite taste: it is equally nutritious and agreeable, and is constantly given to persons who are troubled with inflammatory or putrid fevers. The sweet orange of this country is likewise given in the same disorders. The pomgranate of these parts differs in nothing from that generally well known in England. The durion takes its name from the word dure, which, in the language of the country, means prickle; and this name is well adapted to the fruit, the shell of which is covered with sharp points shaped like a sugar-loaf: its contents are nuts, not much smaller than chesnuts, which are surrounded with a kind of juice resembling cream; and of this the inhabitants eat with great avidity: the smell of this fruit is more like that of onions, than any other European vegetable, and its taste is like that of onions, sugar, and cream intermixed: the inside of the durion, when ripe, is parted, lengthways, into several divisions. The nanca is a fruit which smells like garlic and apples mixed together: its size, in the gardens of Batavia, is not greater than that of a middling sized pumpkin, and its shape is nearly the same: it is covered with prickles of an angular form. They were informed that, at a place called Madura, it has been known to grow to such an enormous size, as to require the strength of two men to carry it. The champada is in all respects like the nanca, only that it is not so large. The rambutan contains a fruit, within which is a stone, that is, perhaps, the finest acid in the world: this fruit is not unlike a chesnut with its husk on; and it is covered with small prickles of a dark red colour, and so soft as to yield to the slightest impression. The jambolan resembles a damascen, both in colour and size; and is of a very astringent nature. The boa bidarra tastes like an apple, but is likewise extremely astringent; its size is that of a gooseberry, its form round, and its colour yellow. The nam nam makes an excellent fritter, if fried in batter, but is not esteemed when raw: the rind of it is rough, its length is about three inches, and its shape not unlike that of a kidney. The catappa and the canare are two species of nuts, the kernels of which are like those of an almond, but so hard, that it is almost impossible to break them. The madja contains a pulp of a sharp taste, which is eaten with sugar: this fruit is covered with a very hard shell. The suntal is a fruit scarcely fit to be eaten, being at once astringent, acid, and of a most unpleasant taste, yet it is publickly sold in the streets of Batavia: it contains a number of kernels, which are inclosed in a thick skin. The salack is nearly of the size of a small golden pippin, and contains a few kernels of a yellow colour, the taste of which is not unlike that of a strawberry; but the covering of this fruit is very remarkable, as it consists of a number of scales resembling those of a fish. The cherrema and the blimbing are two sour fruits, exceedingly well adapted to make sour sauce and pickles. The blimbing besse is another fruit of the same kind, but considerably sweeter.

Of the fruits not in season when Captain Cook was at Batavia, he mentions the boa atap, and the kimkit, which he saw preserved in sugar; and there are several other sorts which the Batavians are fond of, but they are never eaten by strangers, among those are the moringa, the guilindina, the kellor, and the soccum, this last has the appearance of the bread-fruit, which is produced in the islands of the South Seas, but it is not near so good; tho’ the tree on which it grows is also exactly like the bread fruit tree.

The fruit sold at the common shops is generally too ripe; but in a street, named Passar Pissang, which is inhabited by Chinese fruiterers only, that which is very good may be obtained, but at a price greatly exceeding its value. The gardens of gentlemen near the town furnish these Chinese fruit-sellers; but the other dealers are supplied from a greater distance up the country, where the inhabitants live by the cultivation of large tracts of land, for the sole purpose of raising fruit.

It is astonishing to conceive what quantities of fruit are eaten at Batavia. Two large markets are held weekly, at distant places, for the accommodation of persons residing in different parts of the country; and at these markets the fruit-sellers of the town meet the gardeners, and purchase their goods at very low rates: but as the markets are held on Mondays and Saturdays, those who wish to be supplied with what is fresh, in the middle of the week, must apply to the Chinese dealers above mentioned, as the heat of the climate renders it unfit for eating in a few days. At these markets it is common to see “fifty or sixty cart-loads of the finest pine-apples carelessly tumbled together.”

The Batavians, and the natives of other parts of the island of Java, strew an immense number of flowers about their houses, and are almost always burning aromatic woods and gums; which, it is imagined, is done by way of purifying the air; the stench that arises from the canals and ditches being exceeding nauseous and disagreeable.

The sweet scented flowers of this country are very numerous, many of which being totally unknown in England, we shall mention a few of the most remarkable.⁠—The combang tonquin, and combang caracnassi, are very fragrant flowers, but unlike any thing seen in the gardens of Europe: they are very small, seem to be of the dog’s-bane kind, and both in smell and shape are very much alike.⁠—The cananga looks more like a bunch of leaves than a flower; its smell is singular, but extremely pleasant.⁠—The bonja tanjong is of a pale yellow colour, and delightful smell; it is about an inch and a half in circumference, and consists of pointed leaves, which give it the form of a star.⁠—The champacka smells somewhat like a jonquil, and is otherwise not unlike it, though rather of a deeper yellow: this flower is produced by a large tree.

The sundal malam is only mentioned on account of its name, which implies, “the intriguer of the night.” This flower has no kind of smell during the day-time, but on the approach of the night its sweets begin to disclose themselves, and its fragrancy is almost unequalled: in other respects it is the same as the tuberose of England.

All the above-mentioned kinds of flowers being made into nosegays of various shapes, or strung on a piece of thread, are carried through the streets of an evening for sale. The gardens of the gentlemen afford many flowers besides those above-mentioned, but they do not grow in numbers sufficient to be offered to sale.

This country produces a plant, called pandang, the leaves of which being shred small, and mixed with a variety of flowers, the natives, both men and women, fill their clothes and hair with this fragrant mixture, which they likewise sprinkle on their beds, and sleep beneath a profusion of sweets; a single sheet of fine chintz being all the other covering of the bed.

Formerly the island of Java produced no kind of spices but pepper, and the quantity which the Dutch bring annually from thence is very considerable; but the quantity that is made use of in the country is very small, as the people there give the preference to Cayan pepper. The inhabitants are extremely fond of nutmegs and cloves, but they bear too high a price to be much in use, as the trees which produce them are all become Dutch property.

Cloves are now grown no where but on the island of Amboina, and some little islands near it; the artful Hollanders having possessed themselves of all the trees, in consequence of several subsequent treaties of peace, with the several kings of the other islands; for at the conclusion of every war, the conquerors left the poor Indians still fewer trees, by way of punishment for their opposition, till, in the end, they have destroyed them all.

There are scarce any nutmegs, except on the island of Banda, where they originally grew; this island, however, produces a plenty, equal to the demand of all the world. On the coast of New Guinea there are a small number of nutmeg-trees.

The island of Java produces goats, sheep, hogs, buffaloes, and horses. The horse, which is said to have been met with here when the country was originally discovered, is a small, but nimble animal, being seldom above thirteen hands high. The horned cattle of this country are different from those of Europe: the flesh is extremely lean, but of a very fine grain. Both the Chinese and the natives of the island feed on the buffaloe; but the Dutch will neither taste the flesh nor the milk, from a ridiculous idea, that they are productive of fevers. The sheep are tough and ill-tasted; their skins are hairy, and they have long hanging-ears. A few sheep from the Cape of Good Hope being at Batavia, Captain Cook bought some of them at the rate of a shilling a pound.

The hogs, especially those of the Chinese breed, are exquisitely fine food, but so extravagantly fat, that the lean is always sold separately. The butchers, who are Chinese, have no kind of objection to taking off the fat, which they melt, and sell to their countrymen, who eat it with their rice: though these hogs are such fine food, yet the Dutch prefer the breed of Holland, which are consequently sold at extravagant rates.

The Portuguese make a practice of shooting the wild hog, and deer of two kinds, with which the neighbourhood of Batavia abounds: these are all good eating, and are purchased at very moderate prices. The goats of this country are as bad food as the sheep. Dogs and cats abound on the island, and wild horses and other cattle are found on the mountains at a considerable distance from Batavia.

Few monkies are seen near the town, but there are many of them on the mountains and desart places, where also are a few rhinoceroses, and great numbers of tygers.

The quantity of fish taken here is astonishingly great, and all the kinds of them are fine food, except a few which are very scarce; yet such is the false pride of the inhabitants, that these few scarce sorts are sold at very high rates, while those that are good are sold for a mere trifle, nor are they eaten but by the slaves. A gentleman with whom Captain Cook dined told him, he could have bought a finer dish of fish for a shilling, than what he had given ten for; but that he should have been the ridicule of all the politer people, if he had gone to so good a market.

The Dutch will not taste of the turtle which are taken here: Captain Cook acknowledges that they are fine eating, though not equal to those catched in the West Indies, even when they are dressed in London. Mr. Banks shot a lizard five feet in length, which was extremely well tasted: our adventurers were informed, that some of these animals had been seen, which were full as thick as the thigh of a man.

This country produces an abundance of poultry, as excellent of their kinds as those of England. The turkies are immoderately dear, and the pigeons not much less so; but the geese, ducks, and fine large fowls are altogether as cheap.

The neighbourhood of Batavia produces snipes of two kinds, one of which was the same as the English: of the Portuguese, who appear to be the only dealers in wild fowl, any number of thrushes might have been purchased. Our adventurers once, and once only, saw a wild duck in the fields, but never observed any of these birds exposed to sale; and, indeed, wild fowl in general are far from being plentiful at Batavia. Captain Cook observes, as a singularity respecting the snipe, that he is to be met with in all the quarters of the globe, and is seen in a greater variety of places than any other of the whole feathered creation.

The liquors of the island of Java, are palm-wine and arrack; of the former they have three sorts, the first of which is drank within a few hours after it is drawn from the tree, and almost in its original state, when it has a moderate sweetness: the second and third sorts are made by fermenting it, and putting various herbs and roots into it: the first of these liquors will not occasion drunkenness, but the two latter will. The arrack is so generally known, as not to demand any description.

The natives of Java profess the religion of Mahomet, and of course do not indulge in wine, at least publickly; but not to be exceeded in the vice of drunkenness by their christian neighbours, they are almost constantly chewing opium, which is well known to intoxicate in a high degree.

Exclusive of the Chinese, and the Indians of many different nations, who inhabit the town of Batavia, and the country in its neighbourhood, the inhabitants are, proportionably, a very small number; and even of these not a fifth part are Dutch, or descended from natives of Holland: the Portuguese are more in number than all the other Europeans.

The troops in the Dutch service are composed of the natives of almost all the kingdoms of Europe; but of these the Germans out-number all the others. When a person of any country goes to reside at Batavia, it is necessary that he first enter as a soldier in the service of the Dutch East India Company, binding himself to serve five years, which being done, he applies to the Council for leave of absence, which being granted of course, he then engages in any business he thinks proper: thus the Dutch have always an army ready to be called forth on any emergency. No foreigner, of whatever nation, has any share in the management of public affairs, all places of power, trust and profit, being held by the Dutch.

Though the men of other countries are bound to the observation of the above-mentioned conditions, women, from any part of the globe, may reside and traffick at Batavia unmolested. Captain Cook was informed that, at the time he was there, the whole place could not furnish fifty women who were natives of Europe, yet the town abounded with white women, who were descended from Europeans, who had settled there at different times, all the men having paid the debt of nature; for so it is, that the climate of Batavia destroys the men much faster than the women. These women follow the delicate custom of chewing betel, after the example of the native Javanese, whose dress they imitate, and whose manners they copy, in all other respects.

Mercantile business is conducted at Batavia with the slightest trouble imaginable: when a merchant receives an order for goods of any kind, he communicates the contents of it to the Chinese, who are the universal manufacturers. The Chinese Agent delivers the effects on board the ship, for which they are bespoke, and taking a receipt for them from the master of the vessel, he delivers it to the merchant, who pays the Chinese for the goods, and reserves a considerable profit, without the least trouble, risk, or anxiety. But when a merchant imports goods of any kind, he receives them himself, and lodges them in his own warehouses. It may be wondered, that the Chinese do not ship the goods on their own account; but from this they are restricted, and compelled to sell them to the merchants only.

The inhabitants of Java distinguish the Portuguese by the name of Oranserane, that is, Nazareen men; but they use the general term of Caper, or Casir, respecting all who do not profess the religion of Mahomet; and in this they include the Portuguese. But the Portuguese of Batavia are so only in name; for they have neither any connection with, or knowledge of, the kingdom of Portugal, and they have changed the religion of the church of Rome, for that of Luther. With the manners of the Javanese, they are wholly familiarized, and they commonly speak their language, though they are able to converse in a corrupt kind of Portuguese. They dress in the habit of the country, with a difference only in the manner of wearing their hair: their noses are more peaked, and their skin of a deeper cast than that of the natives. Some of them are mechanics and artificers, others subsist by washing of linen, and the rest procure a maintenance by hunting.

The Indian inhabitants of Batavia, and the country in its neighbourhood, are not native Javanese, but are either born on the several islands from whence the Dutch bring their slaves, or the offspring of such as have been born on those islands: and these having been made free, either in their own persons, or in the persons of their ancestors, enjoy all the privileges of freemen. They receive the general appellation of Oranslam, which implies, “Believers of the true faith.”

The various other Indian inhabitants of this country attach themselves each to the original customs of that, in which either themselves or their ancestors were born; keeping themselves apart from those of other nations, and practising both the virtues and vices peculiar to their own countries. The cultivation of gardens, and the consequent sale of flowers and fruit, afford subsistence to great numbers of them: these are the people who raise the betel and areca, which being mixed with lime, and a substance which is called gambir, the produce of the Indian continent, is chewed by persons of all ranks, women as well as men: indeed some of the politer ladies make an addition of cardamum, and other aromatics, to take off the disagreeable smell with which the breath would be otherwise tainted. Some of the Indians are very rich, keep a great number of slaves, and live, in all respects, according to the customs of their respective countries; while others are employed to convey goods by water; and others again subsist by fishing.

The Oranslams feed principally on boiled rice, mixed with a small quantity of dried shrimps and other fish, which are imported from China, and a little of the flesh of buffaloes and chicken: they are fond of fruit, of which they eat large quantities; and with the flower of the rice they make several sorts of pastry. They sometimes make very superb entertainments, after the fashion of their respective countries; but, in general, they are a very temperate people: of wine they drink very little, if any, as the religion of Mahomet, which they profess, forbids the use of it.

When a marriage is to be solemnized among the Oranslams, all the gold and silver ornaments that can be procured, are borrowed to deck out the young couple, who on these occasions never fail to make the most splendid appearance. Sumptuous entertainments are given by those who can afford them, which continue twelve or fourteen days, and frequently more, during all which time the women take care that the bridegroom shall not visit his wife privately, though the wedding takes place previous to the festival.

All these Indians, though they come from different countries, speak the Malay language, if it deserves that name. On the island of Java there are two or three different dialects; and there is a language peculiar to every small island; it is conjectured, that the Malay tongue is a corruption of the language of Malacca.

The hair of the people, which is black, without a single exception, grows in great abundance: yet the women make use of oils and other ingredients, to increase the quantity of it: they fasten it to the crown of the head with a bodkin, having first twisted it into a circle, round which circle they place an elegant wreath of flowers, so that the whole head-dress has the most beautiful appearence that imagination can form an idea of.

It is the universal custom, both with the men and women, to bathe in a river once every day, and sometimes oftener, which not only promotes health, but prevents that contraction of filth, which would be otherwise unavoidable in so hot a climate.

The teeth of the Oranslams have some particularities in them well worthy of notice. With a kind of whetstone they rub the ends of them till they are quite flat and even; they then make a deep groove in the teeth of the upper jaw, in the centre between the bottom of each tooth and the gum, and horizontally with the latter; this groove is equal in depth to a quarter of the thickness of the teeth; yet none of these people have a rotten tooth, though, according to the dentists of England and France, such a thing must be unavoidable, as the tooth is pierced much deeper than what we call the enamel. The teeth of these people become very black by the chewing of betel, yet a slight washing will take off this blackness, and the teeth are then perfectly white; but they are very seldom washed, as the depth of the colour is very far from being thought disagreeable.

Almost every person has read or heard of the Mohawks; and these are the people who are so denominated, from a corruption of the word Amock, which will be well explained by the following story and observations. To run a muck is to get drunk with opium, and then seizing some offensive weapon, to sally forth from the house, kill the person or persons supposed to have injured the Amock, and any other person that attempts to impede his passage, till he himself is taken prisoner, or killed on the spot.⁠—While Captain Cook was at Batavia, a person whose circumstances in life were independent becoming jealous of his brother, intoxicated himself with opium, and then murdered his brother, and two other men, who endeavoured to seize him. This man, contrary to the usual custom, did not leave his own house, but made his resistance from within it; yet he had taken such a quantity of the opium, that he was totally delirious, which appeared from his attempting to fire three muskets, neither of which had been loaded, or even primed.

During the time that Captain Cook was at Batavia, several instances of the like kind occurred, and he was informed by an officer, whose duty it was to take such offenders into custody, that hardly a week passed in the year in which he was not obliged to exercise his authority: the Captain was also told, that jealousy of the women is the usual reason of these poor creatures running a muck, and that the first object of their vengeance is always the person whom they suppose to have injured them. The officer, whose business it is to apprehend these unhappy wretches, is furnished with a long pair of tongs, in order to take hold of them at such a distance from the point of their weapons, as to insure his personal safety. When he takes one of them alive he is amply rewarded; but this is not often the case, as they are so desperate as not to be easily apprehended: when they are killed in the attempt to take them, the officer has only the customary gratification. Those who are taken alive are broken on the wheel, as near as possible to the place where the first murder was perpetrated; and, as they are seldom apprehended without being previously wounded, the time of their execution is sooner or later, according to the opinions of the physicians, whether the wounds are, or are not mortal.

The Oranslams believe that the Devil is the author of sickness, and other misfortunes, on which account they make an oblation of meat, money, and other things, to him, when they are either sick or in trouble. When they dream successively for several nights, they have no doubt but that the Devil has enjoined the performance of some act, to discover which they torture their brains in vain, and then apply to the priest, who never fails to interpret the dream in a satisfactory manner. In consequence of this interpretation, by which it appears that the Devil is in want of money and food, a quantity of each is placed in the leaves of the cocoa-nut tree, and being hung on the bough of a tree by the side of a river, is left till some passenger shall find, and take away the money, which is considered not so much an offering to the Devil, as a fine due for some crime committed; with regard to the food, they imagine that the Devil comes and sucks out the nutritious parts of it, without moving it out of its place. From this part of the story it seems reasonable to conclude, that the priest, having previous knowledge where the oblation is to be made, takes the money, and leaves the victuals.

This instance of the superstition of these people may be thought very extraordinary; but the following will appear much more so. They are possessed with an idea, that when one of their wives is brought to bed, a crocodile is born, as a brother to the infant; and they imagine that the midwife conveys the young crocodile to an adjacent river, into which she puts it, with the utmost care and tenderness. Those who suppose themselves honoured by the birth of this new relation, fail not to put food in the river for his subsistence; but this is the peculiar duty of the twin brother, who performs this service regularly, at fixed periods, during the whole course of his life; firmly believing at the same time, that sickness or death would be the consequence of an omission on his part.

In the islands of Boutou and Celebes the natives keep crocodiles in their families; and it is conjectured, that the strange idea of the twin crocodile was first conceived in one of those islands: it extends, however, to Java and Sumatra westward, and among the islands to the eastward as far as Ceram and Timor. It is a matter of perfect astonishment, how even the most ignorant and credulous of the human race, should firmly believe an utter impossibility to occur daily; yet it is certain, that not one of the Indians whom Captain Cook questioned on the subject, entertained the least doubt about the matter. The crocodiles supposed to be thus born are distinguished by the name of Sudaras; and our readers cannot fail of being entertained with the following story respecting them, which Mr. Banks heard from a young woman who was born at Bencoolen, and having lived among the English at that place, had learnt to speak as much of our language as was sufficient to make her story intelligible.

She said that, when her father was on his death-bed, he laid the strongest injunctions on her to feed a crocodile that was his Sudara; that he told her the name by which he might be called up, and the particular part of the river where she would find him. Soon after the death of her father, she hastened to the river, and calling Radja Pouti (which signifies white king) the Sudara crocodile made his appearance, and she fed him with her own hands. She described him as being more beautiful than crocodiles are in general, for he had a red nose, and spots on his body; his ears were adorned with rings, and his feet with ornaments of gold. This story will appear the more extravagantly ridiculous, when it is recollected that crocodiles have not any ears.

A man whose mother was a native of the island of Java, and whose father was a Dutchman, was engaged in the service of Mr. Banks during his residence at Batavia. This man told his master that several Dutchmen, and many Javanese, as well as himself, had seen such a crocodile as was described by the girl who told the preceding story, and that, like her’s, its feet were adorned with gold. On Mr. Banks’s remarking the absurdity of these tales, and saying that crocodiles had not ears, he replied, that the Sudaras differed considerably from other crocodiles; that they had ears, though he acknowledged they were small, that their tongues filled their mouths, and that on each foot they had five toes.

There are three tribes of Indians on the island of Batavia, who are called Boetons, Macassars, and Bougis. These people are firm believers in the existence of the Sudara crocodiles; and they have a custom among them, which, however ridiculous in itself, seems to do honour to their filial and fraternal affections. At fixed periods they assemble together, and having laden a large boat with various sorts of provisions, they launch her at a spot most likely to be frequented by crocodiles; here they row about, sometimes singing and sometimes weeping, while a variety of musical instruments are played on, till they get sight of a crocodile. The moment this happens they throw tobacco, betel and victuals of several sorts, over the side of the boat, as a friendly offering to the Sudara crocodiles of their own country; imagining, that by this means they conciliate the affections and good will of their relations, whom they fail not to invoke during the whole of the ceremony.

The Chinese inhabitants of Batavia are, like those of their own country, some of the most industrious people on the face of the earth. They act as embroiderers, dyers of cotton, taylors, carpenters, joiners, smiths, and makers of slippers: some of them are shop-keepers, and deal largely in the manufactures of Europe and China. A few of these people live within the walls of the town; but the majority of them take up their residence in a district, named Campang China, which is situated without the walls. Those of the Chinese, who live in the country, either keep buffaloes and other cattle, the milk of which they sell daily at Batavia, or they procure a subsistence by the raising of rice and sugar canes, and the cultivation of gardens.

Captain Cook observes, that the danger of being hanged for any crime being excepted, there is nothing, however infamous, which a Chinese will refuse to do for gain; and in this opinion he concurs with every preceding writer; so that these people must have taken no small pains to establish their reputation for knavery. They labour with unwearied diligence, but the moment they have compleated their work they sit down to dice, cards, or some other of the very numerous games which they are expert at; and they follow their sports with such eagerness, that the business of eating and sleeping is frequently suspended.

The cloaths of the Chinese, whether rich or poor, are singularly clean and decent. Their behaviour is civil even to humility. They are such temperate eaters, that gluttony is unknown among them; but as their religion does not command them to refrain from any particular food, they eat a variety of things which are denied to those Indians who profess the Mahometan faith. Exclusive of vegetables and fish of various kinds, their principal food consists of dogs, cats, lizards, frogs, serpents of several sorts, and hogs.

The Chinese have purchased of the Dutch, at a very large expence, several hundred acres of land in the vicinity of Batavia, for the interment of their dead; for it is a rule, from which they never depart, not to open a grave which has once received the body of one of their countrymen: and hence arises an enormous expence in the purchase of land, which greatly distresses the living, to pay an imaginary honour to the dead. In order to preserve the body as long as possible from decay, the coffin consists of a piece of solid timber hollowed out: and this being covered with a kind of mortar several inches thick, petrifies in the ground till it is as hard as a flint. The funeral is attended by the near relations of the deceased, and by a train of women, who are paid for making lamentations.

In these expensive customs, absurd as they are, the Chinese are equalled by the rest of their Batavian neighbours; for every person is buried with a degree of splendour proportioned to the rank he has held in life, and there is a positive law which enjoins the observance of this custom; in consequence of which it frequently happens, that those who have not money sufficient to pay the just demands on them, are buried in a pompous manner, merely because they have lived elegantly. In this case persons are employed to take an account of what the man died worth, and, when the funeral expences are defrayed, the surplus is divided among the creditors.

The various inhabitants of the island of Java, whether Dutch, Portuguese or Indians, are all waited on by slaves, whose number is proportioned to the circumstances of the master; but there are laws in force, that no native of the island shall serve as a slave. These people, the number of which is very great, are bought at Sumatra, and the other eastern islands, at various prices, from ten to twenty pounds; but there have been instances of very beautiful girls being sold at above five times the common market price. They are fed on boiled rice, and such fish as can be purchased at the lowest rates; a little of which satisfies them, nor indeed do they deserve even the little they eat, for they are idle and sluggish in the highest degree.

The negroes of Africa are purchased at a lower price than any other slaves, and indeed any price whatever exceeds their merit, for they are of the most obstinate dispositions, and thieves, without a single exception. Those slaves which are purchased from the island of Celebes are most intolerably lazy, and of so ferocious a disposition, that their employers run the hazard of their personal safety. The island of Bali furnishes the most useful slaves; and the little island Nias, near Sumatra, supplies female slaves of exquisite beauty; but to these ill-fated women death is the almost certain consequence of even a short residence at Batavia.

The masters of any of these slaves may punish them in whatever way they chuse, so as not to deprive them of life; but when it happens that a slave dies of the punishment he has received, the master is tried, and commonly suffers as a murderer. From this circumstance it is reasonable to suppose, that the masters are cautious how they beat the slaves with undue severity: it is not indeed very common for them to strike them at all, but they pay an officer, who is called the Marineu, for inflicting the punishment. The Marineu having heard what is alledged against the delinquent, determines how many stripes he shall receive, and these are given by slaves, whose particular business it is to obey the commands of the Marineu: these strokes are laid on with rods made of rattans split very small. For a severe whipping the Marineu receives a ducatoon, and a rixdollar for a slighter punishment. The women slaves are whipped in the house of the master, but the men publickly in the streets. In order that these slaves may not be under too great temptations to steal, their masters are compelled to allow them seven pence half-penny weekly for pocket-money.

There is something singular in the subordination observed among the inhabitants of Batavia and the adjacent country. The man who has been longest in the Dutch East India Company’s service is permitted to gild his coach, while others are allowed to ride in coaches differently painted, according to the length of their services, and others again ride in those that are quite plain. In like manner the coachmen are dressed in liveries, that have a greater or less quantity of lace on them, or without any lace at all.

The lawyers of Batavia are partial in their administration of justice, to a very reprehensible degree. When an Indian has committed any crime deemed worthy of death, he is impaled, hanged, or broken on the wheel, without ceremony: on the contrary, if a Christian is capitally convicted, execution very seldom follows the sentence: and, what is more extraordinary, no pains are taken to apprehend the offender, till time enough has been allowed him to run away, if he thinks proper.

The civil officers of justice among the Chinese and Malays are called Captains and Lieutenants, but their decisions are not final, if the party against whom they may decide, thinking himself aggrieved, should appeal to the Dutch lawyers, in which case the decision of the latter must be abided by.

The Dutch have laid considerable taxes on these people, among which is one for the permission to wear their hair. When these taxes become due, which is once a month, they hoist a flag on the top of a house, nearly in the center of Batavia, and the man who does not speedily go and pay his money, has reason to repent the omission.

The current money of this country is of different value, from a Dutch doit to a ducat. When Captain Cook was at Batavia, Spanish dollars sold at five shillings and five-pence each, and the price is seldom much lower. The Chinese would give only the value of twenty shillings for an English guinea that was almost new, and for those that were old, and much worn, only seventeen shillings.

The milled ducatoons of Batavia are valued at eighty stivers; those that are unmilled at seventy-two; the ducat at one hundred and thirty-two; the imperial rixdollars at sixty; the rupees at thirty; the schellings at six; the double cheys at two and a half; and the doits at a quarter of a stiver.

We shall now proceed to a recital of the incidents which occurred during their passage from Batavia to the Cape of Good Hope; in which we shall trace them with the utmost fidelity, omitting not a single circumstance that may either entertain or instruct the reader.

Early in the morning of the 27th of December 1770, the Endeavour left the road of Batavia, and, after several hindrances, occasioned by the wind being contrary, she stood over for the shore of Java, on the first day of January 1771. As many of the ship’s crew, who had been very ill while at Batavia, were now become much worse, the vessel was brought to an anchor in the afternoon of the 5th near Princes Island, with a view to get some necessary refreshments, and likewise to take in wood and water.

Messieurs Solander and Banks now went ashore with the Captain, and they were no sooner landed, than some of the natives conducted them to the King of the island, with whom they endeavoured to make a bargain for some turtle, but the price could not be agreed on. As our adventurers had no doubt but that they should purchase on their own terms the following day, they left the Indians, and proceeded in search of a proper place to fill water, which was soon found. As they were about to embark for the ship, they purchased three turtle from some of the natives, but with the strictest injunction, that their Sovereign should not be informed of the transaction.

On Sunday the 6th of January they purchased, at very moderate prices, as many turtle as they had occasion for, and the whole ship’s company fed on this delicious fish. The King was at this time at a house situated in a rice field, where Mr. Banks waited on him, and found him cooking his own victuals.

On Monday the inhabitants brought vegetables, deer, fish, fowls and monkies, for sale; and on the following day they brought down a farther number of turtle.

A servant that Mr. Banks had hired at Batavia having acquainted him, that there was a town on the island, his curiosity determined him to have a view of it, and one of the officers of the ship accompanied him on his visit. As he was apprehensive that the natives would not be pleased at his going to the town, he told such of them as he met, that he was seeking for plants, which, in fact, was a part of the business of the day. Having come to a kind of village, consisting of a very few houses, they asked an Indian the way to the town, and some other particulars respecting it; but he endeavoured to prevent their proceeding, by representing it as at a very great distance. When he saw they were resolved to go forward, he proceeded with them, making frequent attempts to mislead them. When they were within sight of the town, the Indian changed his behaviour at once, and led the way to it.

This place, which contains between three and four hundred houses, is called Samadang, and is parted by a river into the old and the new town. Some of the natives, whom the gentlemen remembered to have seen among those who had brought provisions for sale, agreed to carry them from the old town to the new for a trifling gratification. This was done by means of two little canoes, which were lashed together; and they had no sooner reached the opposite shore, than the Indians shewed them the houses of their Chiefs, and behaved otherwise in the most friendly manner; but as this was the season when the natives live in their rice-grounds, to save their corn from the depredations of the monkies and birds, most of the houses were shut. When the gentlemen had seen every thing that they thought worthy of notice, they hired a sailing-boat, which conveyed them to the ship time enough for dinner; for the town of Samadang, though at a considerable distance from the place where the Endeavour lay at anchor, is situated at only a small distance from the sea-coast.

On the 12th, while the Captain was on shore giving orders to the people who were cutting wood and filling water, he was told, that one of the natives had stolen an ax. The thief was unknown; but the Captain, resolved not to pave the way for future depredations of this kind, by taking no notice of the first offence, immediately applied to the King; and in consequence of this application, the ax was brought down to the watering-place the next day. The Indian who brought it back said, it was left at his house in the night; but it was suspected, that himself was the thief.

Mr. Banks having several times visited on the King of the island, and given him some trifles that were very acceptable, he waited on him for the last time on the 13th of January, and gratified him very much by a present of a small quantity of paper. The King asked the reason why the English ships did not touch at the island, as was formerly their custom; when Mr. Banks attributed the omission to the scarcity of turtle, and advised the King to breed buffaloes, sheep and cattle, for the accommodation of his future visitants.

After a stay of ten days at Princes Island, during which they purchased vegetables of various kinds, fowls, deer, turtle, &c. the anchor was weighed, and the vessel once more put to sea.

We shall now proceed to a description of the island, which lies in the western mouth of the Streight of Sunda. It is a small woody island, and has been cleared only in very few places. Our India ships used to touch at Princes Island to take in water, but they have omitted this practice for some years since, on account, as it is said, of the water being brackish; yet Captain Cook says it is exceeding good, if filled towards the head of the brook.

The fowls which were purchased at this place cost about five-pence each; the turtle three-farthings a pound, and other fish were proportionably cheap; one hundred of the best cocoa-nuts cost only a dollar, and pumpkins, pine-apples and other fruits, were equally cheap and plenty.

The natives profess the religion of Mahomet, and are so strict in the observance of the feast called Ramadan, that they not only abstain from food till the sun is down, but even from the chewing of betel. The manners of these people are not unlike those of the Javanese; but they are much more jealous of their wives: during the ten days that the Endeavour lay here, only one woman was seen, and she ran away the moment she was discovered.

The houses are constructed in the form of an oblong square: they are built on pillars four feet above the ground, and well thatched with palm-leaves, as a defence from the sun and rain: the flooring is of bamboo canes, placed at a distance from each other, to admit the air: these houses consist of four rooms, one of which is destined for the reception of visitants, the children sleep in a second, and the two others are allotted, the one for the purpose of cookery, and the other for the bed-chamber of the owner and his wife. The residence of the King of the island, and that of another person of great authority, has boards on the sides, while the houses of all the inferior people have walls made of the bamboo cane, slit into small sticks, and wrought across the beams of the building, in the manner of a hurdle. The King of the island is subject to the Sultan of Bantam.

Captain Cook represents the natives as very honest in their dealings, with the single exception, of demanding more than double the sum they intended to sell for: the goods of each sort which different persons brought to market were all sold together, and the purchase-money divided among the several contributors, in proportion to the quantity that each had given in to the general stock. When they changed money, they gave two hundred and forty Dutch doits for a Spanish dollar.

The natives speak a language which they call Catta Gunung, that is, the language of the mountains, and they say, that their ancestors came from the mountains of Java, where this language is spoken; that they first settled at New Bay, where the tygers were so numerous, that they could not live in safety, and therefore took up their residence on Prince’s Island: all these people, however, are capable of conversing in the Malay language.

At the time the Endeavour left Princes Island, her crew began to feel, in all its force, the ill effects of the putrid air of Batavia; and soon afterwards the ship was a mere hospital, filled with unhappy wretches, sinking under the rage of fevers and dysenteries. In the space of six weeks twenty-three persons died, exclusive of the seven which had been buried at Batavia: these were nine seamen, the Corporal of the marines, the ship’s Cook, two of the Carpenter’s crew, the Carpenter and his Mate, a Midshipman, the old sail-maker, who was in perfect health when all the rest were ill at Batavia, and his Mate, the Boatswain, Mr. Monkhouse, a Midshipman, Mr. Sporing, who accompanied Mr. Banks, Mr. Parkinson, draughtsman to that gentleman, and Mr. Green, the Astronomer.

After a passage in which nothing remarkable occurred, the ship was brought to an anchor off the Cape of Good Hope, on the 15th of March 1771. The Captain repaired instantly to the Governor, who said, that such refreshments as the country supplied, should be chearfully granted him; on which a house was hired for the sick, who were to have their board and lodging, on the payment of two shillings a day for each man.

At the time the Endeavour lay at anchor here, an English East Indiaman sailed for the port of London, who had buried above thirty of her crew while she was in India; and at that time had many others severely afflicted with the scurvy; so that the sufferings of the crew of the Endeavour, considering her long absence from England, is a circumstance not at all to be wondered at.

We shall now proceed to a description of the Cape of Good Hope, in which we shall only mention such particulars as are either wholly new, or such as have been mis-represented by other writers. The land over the Cape is mountainous, and totally barren; beyond these mountains the country is covered with a light sand, which will not admit of cultivation: there are indeed a few cultivated spots, but they are hardly more than a thousandth part of the whole country. Provisions are brought to the Cape from a distance nine hundred miles up the country, which is an evident proof of its extreme sterility, notwithstanding what has been heretofore written to the contrary. While Captain Cook lay here, a farmer came to the Cape, bringing his young children with him, from a distance that took him fifteen days journey; and on his being asked why he had not left his children with some neighbour, he said, there was no inhabitant within five days journey of his farm. There are no trees that are even two yards in height, except in some plantations in the vicinity of Cape town.

This town consists of near a thousand brick houses, the outsides of which being generally plaistered, they have a very pleasing appearance. There is a canal in the main street, with two rows of oak-trees on its borders, which are in a more flourishing state than the other trees of this country: the streets, which cross each other at right angles, are very spacious and handsome. The inhabitants are chiefly Dutch, or of Dutch extraction: the women are beautiful in a high degree, and possess those blooming countenances which denote the most perfect health: they are most of them mothers of many children, and Captain Cook says, they are the best wives in the world.

The air of the Cape of Good Hope is so pure and salubrious, that a sick person, who goes thither from Europe, whatever be his disorder, almost always recovers his health in a little time; but those who bring diseases with them from the East Indies, have not an equal chance of recovery.

Although this country is naturally so barren, as scarcely to produce any thing, yet the unceasing industry of its inhabitants has so effectually combated the sparing hand of Nature, that there are few places where the necessaries of life are more plentiful, and even what are generally deemed luxuries, are by no means scarce. The constantia wine is known to be excellent, but the genuine sort is made only at one particular vineyard a few miles from the town. The gardens produce many sorts of European and Indian fruits, and almost all the common kinds of vegetables. The cultivated fields yield wheat and barley of equal quality with that of the growth of England. The sheep of this country have tails of a very extraordinary size, many of which weigh upwards of a dozen pounds; the meat of this animal as well as of the ox, is very fine food: the wool of the sheep is rather of the hairy kind, and the horns of the black cattle spread much wider than those of England, while the beast himself is handsomer and lighter made. The cheese has a very indifferent flavour, but the butter is extremely good. The pork of this country is nearly the same as that of Europe, and there are abundance of goats, but the inhabitants do not eat their flesh. The country abounds in hares, altogether like those of England; there are several species of the antelope, a plenty of bustards, and two kinds of quails.

When a stranger arrives at the Cape, it is customary for him to board in a private house, and he pays from two shillings to a crown a day, according to the accommodations he expects. If he appears and behaves as a gentleman, he is invited to the private entertainments which are given by the more opulent of the inhabitants; and this cannot fail of being the more acceptable, as there are no places of public diversion in the country. Horses are here let to hire at six shillings a day, and coaches at one pound four.

The Dutch company have a garden at the extremity of the high street, which is more than half a mile in length, in the center walk of which are a number of fine oak trees. A small part of this garden is covered with botanical plants, but all the rest is allotted to the production of the common vegetables for the kitchen: the whole is divided into squares by the form of its walks, and each square is fenced in by oaks cut into small hedges. There is a menagerie of beasts and birds, many of them known in Europe, at the upper end of this garden; and among the rest is the Coe Doe, a beast not less than a horse, which has those curious spiral horns that have frequently found a place in the cabinets of the curious.

The native inhabitants of this country are usually dressed in a sheep skin thrown across the shoulders, and a little pouch before them, to which is fixed a kind of belt, ornamented with little bits of copper, and beads: round the waists of the women is a broad piece of leather, and rings of the same round their ancles, to protect them from the thorns, which grow in abundance all over the country; a few of them wear a kind of shoe, made of the bark of a tree, but the major part of them go barefooted: both sexes adorn themselves with bracelets and necklaces, made of beads. None of these people reside at a less distance than four days journey from Cape Town, except a number of the poorer sort, who look after the cattle belonging to the Dutch farmers, and are employed in various other menial offices. Their stature is about the same as that of the people of England, from five to six feet in height; but scarce any of them are corpulent: their skins are dark, but this is in a great degree owing to their extreme indelicacy: their hair curls naturally, and falls in ringlets of above six inches in length: they are singular for their strength and agility.

Most of the Hottentots speak the Dutch language, without any thing remarkable in their manner; yet, when they converse in their native language, they frequently stop, and make a clucking with their tongues, which has a most singular and ridiculous effect to the ears of a stranger; and, exclusive of this clucking, their language itself is scarcely sounded articulately.

These people are modest to the utmost degree of bashfulness, and, though they are fond of singing and dancing, can hardly be prevailed on to divert themselves with their favourite amusements before strangers: both their singing and dancing are alternately quick and slow in the utmost extreme.

Some of the Hottentots understand the art of melting and preparing copper, with which they make plates, and wear them on their foreheads, as an article of finery. They are also capable of making knives, superior to those they can purchase of the Dutch, from whom they procure the iron.

They have the art of making butter by shaking milk in the skin of a beast: with this butter they anoint their skins; or, when they cannot procure butter, they use the fat of the sheep. The principal people are owners of immense herds of cattle; and these clothe themselves with the skins of lions and other beasts, which are adorned with fringes, elegantly designed.

The Hottentots are so dextrous in throwing stones, that they will hit a mark not larger than a crown piece, at the distance of an hundred yards. They are likewise expert in the use of arrows, and of the lance called an Assagay, the points of which they poison, sometimes with the venom of a serpent, and sometimes with the juice of particular herbs; so that a wound received from either of these weapons is almost always mortal.

Exclusive of what is above recited, they met with nothing respecting these people, but such particulars as have been previously mentioned by various other voyagers, and which will of course be found in the preceding volumes: we shall therefore accompany the ship in her voyage to England.

On the 14th of April, 1771, the anchor of the Endeavour was weighed, and she once more put to sea, but came to an anchor again before night near Robin island. As a few vegetables were wanted, which they had neglected to take in at the Cape, the Captain sent off a boat to the island; but, when she reached the shore, some Dutch soldiers forbad her crew landing, at the hazard of their lives; and the officer who commanded very prudently returned to the ship. For some time they were puzzled to account for this behaviour on the part of the Dutch; but it was at length recollected, that the Dutch government at the Cape of Good Hope had assigned this island for the reception of such offenders whose crimes were not deemed worthy of death, where their slavery consists in digging lime-stone, for such a number of years as are thought proportionable to the heinousness of their offences: and that a ship belonging to Denmark, which had buried most of her hands, had called at this island, and taken on board a number of these criminals, in order to navigate the vessel to Europe: hence the conduct of the Dutch soldiers was easily accounted for.

The ship sailed again on the following day, when the master of her died, having hastened his death by hard drinking, though, in other respects, he left behind him an excellent character.

On Monday, May-day, they came to an anchor off the island of St. Helena, and, as they proposed to remain three days, Mr. Banks employed the interval in surveying every object that was thought worthy of notice.

The island of St. Helena rises out of the immense Atlantic ocean, is about eighteen hundred miles from the coast of America, and twelve hundred from that of Africa. It has the appearance of a huge mountain, the foundation of which is probably at the center of the globe. It had formerly volcanoes in several parts of it, as is evident from the appearance of the earth and stones in many places; and it looks like a cluster of rocks, bounded by precipices of immense height: as a vessel sails along the coast, the cliffs perpend over her head so as to threaten her instant destruction, and nothing in nature can be conceived more awful than their appearance.

Close to the sea side stands the town, which had formerly a church of very indifferent architecture, but it is now little better than a heap of ruins, nor is the market house in a much better condition: most of the houses are also constructed in a vile taste.

As this island is the property of the English East India Company, the inhabitants are not suffered to carry on any trade for their own emolument, but get their livelihood by selling the productions of the island to the crews of the vessels which anchor there for a supply of refreshments.

St. Helena is so happily situated, with regard to climate, that it would, if properly cultivated, produce the trees, fruits, plants and flowers, of all the different parts of the world. On the summit of the highest ridges the cabbage-tree flourishes; in the parts below these grow the gum-wood and red-wood, and in the vallies many of the plants of the Indies, and almost all those of Europe; yet these several productions will not grow but on the spots of ground peculiarly adapted to each.

The only white inhabitants of the island are subjects of the King of Great Britain: these employ slaves, who transport goods of all kinds from place to place on their heads; and we are sorry to say, that the inhumanity of our countrymen to these slaves is a disgrace to those who profess the christian faith. There are a small number of horses at St. Helena, but they are never employed in draught, there being no such thing as a waggon or cart on the island, though in many places the land is not so steep, but that such carriages might easily be drawn.

Ebony-trees are a natural production of the island of St. Helena, but there have not been many of them within the memory of any person now living there. Snails are found in abundance on the summits of the highest mountains; but the other insects of the island are very few in number.

On Saturday the 4th of May 1771, the Endeavour sailed from the road of St. Helena, together with the Portland man of war, and several sail of Indiamen. They kept company with the man of war and Indiamen till Friday the 10th. But Captain Cook observing, that they were out-sailed by all the other ships, and consequently imagining that some of them would reach England before him, made signals to speak with the Portland, when the Captain of that vessel came on board, and received from Captain Cook a letter to the Lords of the Admiralty, together with a box, in which were deposited the journals of many of the officers, and the ship’s log books.

On the 23d they lost sight of all the ships they sailed in company with from St. Helena, and in the afternoon of the same day, Mr. Hicks, the first Lieutenant, died of a consumption, with which he had been afflicted during the whole voyage.

No single occurrence worth recording happened from this time, till the ship came to an anchor in the Downs, which was on the 12th of June following.

Whoever has carefully read, and duly considered the wonderful protection of this ship, in cases of danger the most imminent and astonishing, particularly when encircled in the wide ocean with rocks of coral, her sheathing beaten off, and her false-keel floating by her side, a hole in her bottom, and the men alternately fainting at the pumps, and will yet deny the existence of a particular Providence, and the most gracious and merciful interposition of the Deity, in behalf of our adventrous countrymen, will deserve some share of that censure, which the thinking part of mankind have so liberally and justly bestowed on the Compiler of the account of the Voyage of the Endeavour. There is a comfort in the reflection that God is good, which can be felt only by those who acknowledge his mercy, and adore his power.