m u o u> >-< o > o m e! u C V E (J a SIX MONTHS AMONG THE MALAYS. CHAPTER I. MALACCA. We had scarcely anchored in the Straits of Ma- lacca, when our ship (the Syren) was surrounded by a crowd of light Malay vessels called pirogues : these little Indian boats are formed from the trunk of a tree, and their crew consisted of small, thin men, well formed, but completely yellow : with the exception of a very scanty garment covering the upper part of the thighs, and passing over the hips, these children of the sea are entire- ly naked ; their harsh, black hair, is either cover- ed with a simple handkerchief, or a bamboo hat as large as a parasol, and their countenances de- note great resolution and intelligence ; although the eyes are small, there is a quick, bold expres- sion about them, which at once prepossesses one in their favour. I could not help feeling a strong sympathy for these brave Malays, who have been represented by some nations, as a malicious and deceitful race of beings. When visiting the Cape of Good Hope, and Bourbon, I had frequently B THE MALAYS. seen some of tlieir tribe ; but at Cape Town, these descendants of the exiles of Java, have, for the most part, become civilized work-people, and no longer retain any traces of the bold pii^ates who were their forefathers ; while at St. Denis, where the unhappy Malays have been reduced to a mis- erable state of slavery by the plantei^s of Bom^bon, they wore a sad and gloomy aspect, like that of a caged lion. I had precisely that knowledge of the Malay which the keeper of a menagerie has of a wild animal, understanding his nature about as well as a ft-equenter of the Jar din des Flantes may do an exotic, and it gave me infinite plea- sure to have an opportunity of seeing him fi'ee and unfettered in the midst of his own splendid country. When they came near the ship, our visitors offered us fruits, vegetables, birds, and various cu- riosities for sale ; indeed, the Malays are, in a man- ner, the merchants of this part of the world, and often make long voyages in search of purchasers for the cocoa-nuts and bananas which they possess in such abundance ; the love of gain, in these courafj-eous men, being always allied with that of adventure and enterprise ; their ideas with regard to property are very peculiar, as they consider it le^atimately acquired, if purcluised at the price of dan<^'-er. On permitting these wandering tra- ders to climl.) on board our vessel, the deck was immediately crowded, and resembled a village on a market day ; to some of the ship's crew, who had long been deprived of fi-esli viands, they offered all the delicious fi*uits of the tropics, and to others, some jacquirs and duriclus, of which 1 shall ha\'e occasion to speak by and by, and BIEDS OF MALACCA. 3 which the sailors, for some unknown reason, called Jesuit's bread. They had also some beautiful paroquets in pretty cages made of rushes, most elegant little prisons resembling fairy dungeons, having no aperture for the captive to escape. These lovely birds, which were not larger than a sparrow, were of a bright emerald-green colom^ ; some had wings shaded with rose-pink, while others bore in front a sort of blue star, like lapis- lazuli, which looked like a mystic sign, marking them as inliabitants of the ethereal rec^ions. As I gazed with admiration on their sportiveness and beauty, I could almost have shared in the poetic creed of the Indians, who believe that the souls of children assume the bright plumage of birds, and under that disguise dwell for ever among the living. The pretty paroquets were accompanied by a talking parrot, the plumage of which was of the glossiest black ; on the head were two excrescences, of a pale yellow shade, which projected at the lateral parts and surround- ed the beak, which was also yellow, with a sort of shining hood. Although in captivity, these birds chattered and skipped about incessantly, and did not seem to pine after liberty, whilst breathing their native air. How often liave I seen these winged children of Malacca behind the glass windows of the Parisian bird-sellers, where, alas ! they were melancholy and morose, scarcely quitting the perch upon which they were seated, to take their food. And how often have I heard the remark — " They are very pretty, but inani- mate, and uninteresting I" In reality, the poor captives were neither sad, nor stupid, but the cold atmosphere chilled their buoyant spirits. B 2 4 CITY OF aiALACCA : We were thus occupied in making observations on all these novel and interesting objects, when we were informed that it would be necessary to remain two days at Malacca. Xavier Reymond, De Montigny, and myself, immediately went on board a Malay vessel, manned by four natives, with whom the light pirogue seemed literally to fly over the calm waters. On advancing up the Straits, we observed on the left hand a row of houses built on stakes, which had a most cui-ious appearance, and looked exactly as if they were walking into the sea. These buildings have but one story, and the roof is sloping, like that of a castle built with cards, while a number of light boats are moored to the stakes which support them above the water. A yellow and muddy river divides Malacca into two parts, united by a bridge ; on the left side is situated the official town, where most of the English authorities re- side, and on the right is the commercial quarter — pirogTies, Malay vessels, and Chinese junks, bearing a strildng resemblance to the antedilu- \T.an arks of Noah, are anchored in the little creek into wliich the river empties itself We landed on the official side, where there is an eminence nearly covered with trees, in the centre of which is the governor's palace, overlooking a large cluster of European houses, which stretch alonsf the sea-shore, and form a most charmini^ picture, shaded by cocoa-trees, and laved by the limpid waters of the Straits. In days of yore, when the Portuguese were all-j)0werl"ul here, this part of Malacca was ])rotected by a fort, and s\u'- rounded with a strong wall, while a very tine church rose in the centre of it ; but at the present ITS ARCHITECTURE. O day, tliese once-splendid buildings are but a mass of ruins — the fort is dismantled, the walls de- stroyed, and a mean-looking chapel replaces the noble edifice erected by the Portuguese ; nothing is left of the holy temple but a part of the entrance which borders on the sea — the fa9ade has given way, the strong roots of the banyan have destroyed the cement which united the stones, and the pillars formed by the branches of that splendid tree have replaced those of gi-anite; We spent some time in examining, with somewhat melancholy feelings, these vestiges of ancient grandeur, and then, crossing the bridge which separates the two parts of the town, found our- selves in the commercial quarters. The street we now entered consists of houses one-story high, which, though they have a tolerably respectable appearance, are rather fantastical-looking ; a sort of fence is formed by the roof which advances towards the fa9ade, and this is invariably used as a shelter for certain massive pieces of house- hold goods, which we shall speak of presently ; mysterious-looking characters, intermixed with gilding and arabesque work, are inscribed on the entrance-door, as well as upon the heavy articles of foi-nitm^e we have named ; upon the latter are seated a number of men engaged in smoking, they are as yellow as a jonquil, with shaven heads, on the crown of which is a single tuft of hak de- scending in a long queue to the calf of the leg ; projecting temples, oblique eyes, and nostrils much dilated, are the characteristic features of these sinoTilar beinojs, whose dress is not the least ex- traordinary part of their appearance. The head is left quite bare, and protected from the rays of 6 CHINESE EMIGRANTS. the sun by a fan ; a kind of loose vest of white silk or cotton reaches to the middle of the thigli, and is fastened above the collar-bone by a button on the right shoulder ; the pantaloons, also white, are attached to the person by blue ribands ; the legs are encased in cotton stockings ; and the costume is completed by black satin shoes, with felt soles two inches thick. Such are the Chinese who reside in these low and gaudily-ornamented houses, and the large pieces of fm-niture covered with gilding, to which we have before alluded, are the coffins which they prepare for their last long rest. Thus, while the liigher orders of these people present, in our eyes, so strange an aspect, they at the same time illus- trate, most forcibly, one universal and character- istic trait of their race, which is not less remark- able than their customs and dress. I mean, their perfect indifference to the idea of death. To us, westerns, the sight of a tomb is sad and gloomy, and forces upon us the iiTCsistable question, " Wliy should we thus torment and harass om'selves about the business of this life, since we camiot, in the end, escape death V To the Chinese, who is less skilled in mystic doctrine, it merely whispers, " Work and strive, that thou may est possess, for death lies here.'' Leaving this street, we turn into one inliabited by Malays ; the houses are all built on stakes, similar to those we have seen in the Straits, but instead of ])rojecting into the water, these are situated in the' midst of large gardens, covered by the thick-leaved branches of the oimnr/ou start ner and durian, and surrounded by palm-treos, wliose tufted foliage is like a palLsade of upright lances. THE ELEPHANTS. 7 The inhabitants of these houses re-called to our minds the wandering visitors we had welcomed on board the Syren ; however, we were glad to observe that they had made certain indispensable additions to the very primitive costume of our old friends, inasmuch as they wore large pantaloons and a belt, through the middle of which was passed a native weapon of defence, called a kriss. In ranging through this singular place, we ob- served, here and there, a few European houses, which were almost lost in the crowd of Malay and Clunese habitations. The shops in the commer- cial part were well furnished with eatables, almost entu-ely unknown to us ; among the rest, a sort of jelly, which is here called agar-agar, sao-fru, san-tra-cfioj, and many others, which we shall have plenty of time to study in China. Elephants are sometimes seen gravely parading the streets, and when in the humour for fr'olic, they will harmlessly salute the passer by with their trunks. We met very few women during our walk, and the Portuguese whom we saw with their faces uncovered, were absolutely frightful ; they go with their heads bare, and wear a carpet-like garment, which sits quite close, and delineates their spare figures distinctly ; over tliis vestment is worn a sort of pellisse, which reaches to the knees, and covers the shoulders ; the Mussulman women are generally veiled, if, indeed, that term can be applied to the cmious manner in which they conceal their whole figm^es fr^om the curious gaze ; they throw their dresses over their heads, in a style which reminded me of the charming description of Virginia sheltering herself from the storm J then, extending their arms something in 8 THE HOTEL : the form of a cross, they bring the lower part of the dress on a level with tlieir eyes, so as to leave only a slit t'hi'ough which they are just able to see. In this strange disguise, these women re- semble those immense bats, wliich have formed the subject for so much popular superstition — the fearfully-celebrated vampkes which inhabit the forests of America. It is easy to see, at a glance, that the influence of Em'opean civilization is nearly extinct here — the Portuguese, Dutch, and English, have from time to time, ruled these people by force of arms ; but the aboriginal manners and opinions predo- minate, at the root, and will, for many a long day, render them rebellious to any new form of govermnent. Having taken a bird's-eye peep at the place, we began to think about finding an hotel, or some place where we could dine comfortably, and re- main all night, and some Malays pointed out to us a handsome European house, where they said we should be treated like princes. So we repaired thither, and knocked at the door, which was opened by an old Malay woman, who ushered us into the presence of the proprietor. Whitlier we would also introduce the reader. The room we now enter is of vast size, and well supplied Avitli easy chairs, and Indian rush couches. On one of these is seated, in state, the master of tlie house, actively employed in fanning himself with a screen made of i)alm leaves, which example is energeti- cally followed by all his family, consisting of his wife, a boy, and three daughters. Our host is a man of about fifty -eight, short, stout, and black, and his costume partiikes of the Em-opean style. HOW FURNISHED. 9 that is to say, lie wears a jacket and white panta- loons. His wife is a large woman, of rather fair complexion, wearing a kind of short chemise, which flows loosely over her petticoats, and the tlu-ee daughters, little tawny creatm^es of from fifteen to eighteen, are attired in a similar man- ner. On onr entrance, oiu* host rises, and ad- di'esses us in Portuguese : — " Gentlemen, to what am I indebted for the honour of this visit V " We have been told,'' answered our friend, De Montigny, " that we could obtain lodgings for the night in your house.'' " Certainly," replied the worthy man ; " and I am bold enough to say that no one else in all Malacca will be able to make you so comfortable as I can : if you will have the goodness to follow me, I will conduct you to your apartment ;" and he took us into an immense room, perfectly destitute of furnitiu^e. " Ah ! this will do," said I ; " when you have provided us with three beds, and some chairs, etc. we shall be very comfortable here." " Three beds and chairs 1" cried our host, open- ing his eyes very wide ; " then have you not brought any ?" " Certainly not," was our reply. The honest Portuguese reflected for a few minutes, and half talking to himself, remarked that a single night was not of very long duration, that a bed was not actually necessary to sleep, and finally proposed that we should pm^chase three mats to lie down upon. " Oh ! don't talk about sleeping on mats," interrupted De Montigny ; " could you not lend us a wrapper of some sort ?" 10 HOW TO GET A DINNER. " For more than a year I have been thinking of purchasing something of that kind for my daughter's bed, and also for that of my little son, who sleeps alone ; but as yet, I have not done so, and my own couch is the only one thus fur- nished/' " Upon my word,'' exclaimed De Montigny, " there is something about you which fascinates me, and let your accommodation be what it may, we will certainly remain here. As you very justly observed, one night is soon over ; so get us something to eat, and we will wave the questions of beds." " To eat I" exclaimed the Portuguese, in great astonishment — " you want something to eat ! But it is impossible I" " What do you mean ? Impossible ! Do you never eat then V " I certainly do eat," he replied, in a crest- fallen manner, " because I cannot live without it — but you " " Oh, I suppose you think we are angels !" I replied, somewhat exasperated. ^' Oh, my God ! far from it," exclaimed the poor man ; " but, my friends, if I gave you any- thing to eat, you would require a plate, a glass, a fork, and I know not what else ; perhaps, even a napkin each ; and before I could procm'e all these tilings, I should have to go and beg of all my neighbours — in sliort, you could not have your dinner before midnight. Now, listen to me, and as I am a man of some experience, take my advice — go and walk about near the Governor's palace ; should you meet him, he will, in all ]>robability, invite you to dinner, and this, I assure you, is AN OFFER OF SERVICE. 11 your only chance of anything to eat this even- ing " This was the finishing stroke — mirth overcame bad humom-, and shaking the honest old fellow by the hand, we took om- departm^e. The Ma- lays, who had accompanied us, were awaiting om- reappearance at the gate, and finding that we had not met with what we wanted, proposed con- ducting us to several other Portuguese and Dutch houses, where the scene we had just acted would probably have been repeated, with divers varia- tions. We inquired of some of our guides if they could give us shelter, but these faithful believers in the Koran, recoiled with horror from the pro - position, and mm-mm^ed something to themselves, in which we caught the word " Christian,'' not very politely mentioned. We were now quite at a loss how to act, and were half in the mind to try the stratagem recommended to us by the Por- tuguese, when a youth, dressed in the European costume of a mariner, with a glazed hat, and blue shirt, stepped up, and addressing us in bad English, said, " Gentlemen, you are probably in search of lodgings, and very likely have but a slight chance of dining this evening, or even of slee]3ing with a roof over yom- heads." We replied that this was exactly our condi- tion, and inquired if he could render us any assistance. " Most assmedly I can,'' he replied, drawing himself up with an important air. " Can you really give us lodgings for the night ?" we inquired. " I should think so, indeed — I am a sailor on board Captain Martin's vessel, which goes from 12 A SHARP BARGAIN. Baliia to Baukok, but am a native of Malacca ; my name is Melo, and my ancestors have resided here for more than three hundred years. I will now conduct you to my mother." We ventured to inquire as to whether he was quite certain that the lady in question could give us lodgings, and likewise provide us with a dinner. " Cooking your dinner is certainly more diffi- cult than giving you beds ; but it is not impossible, provided you will comply with one triiiing ar- rangement.'' We eagerly inquired what this might be. " Merely, that you must pay for your dinner in advance — the truth is, we have everything here but money, and those scoundi^els, the Chi- nese, will not let us have anytliing on credit." We asked our friend how much he would charge us, but he only replied that his mother would arrange all that, and we therefore quietly followed him to her residence, which was biult of stone, but had a very ^vl•etched appearance, the roof being constructed with palm-leaves, and the walls tottering with age. We entered a low, but tolerably neat-looking room, with a narrow table limning the whole length of it, and two benches placed at the sides. This mode of arrangement, so common in small inns all over the world, in- spired us with the hope that Mr. Melo's mother wjis a lady of exj)erience, and that she would be able to make good what her son had promised. We pjissed tln-ough this apartment into another, in wliicli were two women, dressed in the Malay style, with the national a])ron, over which floated the pellisse worn by the Portuguese ; one of them THE ENVIRONS OF THE CITY. 1 3 was very old and hideous, the other rather young- er, but likewise extremely plain ; with the elder of them Melo rapidly exchanged a few words in the Malay tongue, and the result of their conver- sation was, that he demanded of us three Spanish piastres, assm^ing us that we should dine as luxu- riously as the sultan. After receiving the money our friend proposed that as we had now a prospect of dinner, we should take a short stroll in order to promote an appetite for it, which judicious advice we hastened to follow. On gazing over the immense plain on which the City of Malacca is built, where the prospect is clear and uninterrupted, and where nothing meets the eye but millions of cocoa-trees, whose elegant columns seem proudly conscious of their coronets of verdure, it is impossible not to feel that we are looking upon one of those favoured lands in which human labour is supeiiluous, and on treading its rich and verdant soil every step confirms the feeling. On leaving the city we found om^selves in a beautiful kind of orchard, in the midst of which rose numerous small habitations, half hidden with countless specimens of the vegetable kingdom, bending with the weight of their delicious fruits — nowhere could the hand of man be traced be- neath these cupolas, and while feasting the eyes on this lovely scene, one might almost fancy one- self gazing on the fertile home of a people against whom the gates of our ten^estrial Paradise had not yet closed. The lower part of the dwelling is used as a shelter for large numbers of the pret- ty little Indian boats, by means of which consi- derable commerce is carried on in this country, 1 4? TREES AND PLANTS. and a covered balcony forming a kind of veran- dah which is approached by a staircase placed on the outside, completely sm^rounds the house. In this balcony, a woman and two men are stationed, the former occupied in weaving a thick mat constructed from the gi-een leaves just fallen from the palm tree, while the men, with the as- sistance of a little iron instrument, are extracting the kernel from the cocoa-nut ; some pretty little Malay fowls, smaller than ours, are scratching about on the gTound, their plumage is brilliantly variegated, and their eggs are the colour of nankin. In one part, exposed to the rays of the sun and covered with a quantity of manm-e, we observe a number of cocoa-plants, which are beginning to shoot out — the cotyledonous leaf is completely developed, and the little stalk has already burst forth. There are many opportunities, in this country, for studying the various phenomena of germination, but of these the traveller can take but a cursory view ; we may count more than twenty different species of trees in the small space which sm^rounds this hmnble dwelling — among them, the raan- guier, engenia, duvian, ramhoutan, garcinia- Tiiangoustan, jiapayer, jacquier, chospiros, long- hang, and many others, whicli I omit, lest my description should become wearisome. All these trees are in full bearing, and the fruits produced in this favoured land are sweet and high-tiavoiu*- ed, bearing no resemblance to those of America, which are generally sharp and acid in taste. Whilst walking about we discover one miser- able-looking house built of stone, which contrasts forcibly with the pleasiint aspect of the Malay A CHINESE SHOPKEEPER. 15 dwellings ; from it tliere issues an old Portuguese woman, covered with rags, and grumbling as she walks ; in her hand she holds a copper coin smaller than our farthing ; if we follow this poor creature we shall find that she repairs to a shop by the way side, kept by a Chinese : this wi'etched, plank-built hovel contains a small store of wine and other things of a similar kind, with a few heaps of rice and all-spice ; a very fine fish ex- posed for sale upon a tottering table, constitutes the principal shew of the place. The old woman, with a crabbed expression of face, ofiers her tiny coin to the Chinese, who receives it with the peculiarly gracious smile of his class, and in ex- change for it, presents her with a piece of the im- mense fish, as large as his hand. This old woman is, in all probability, descended from the ancient conquerors of the place — perhaps her name may be Albaquerque, Songa, or Vasco ; in her youth she formed one of the aristocracy of her country, but in her old age she finds herself neglected, miserable, and degraded. The subtle Chinese is most likely some poor devil from Fo-kien, who came to Malacca without a half-penny, and with no resource but the persevering, enterprising spirit of his race : by means of industry and persever- ance, he has managed to set up this miserable shop, and he may now consider his fortune as made — he will work upon the Malays with all the obsequious arts of mercantile cunning, until he transfers a small fortune from their pockets to his own ; with this he will live in tranquil comfort at Malacca, and be respectably interred in his predestined bmying-place. Here, as in many other parts of the world, the powerfrd conqueror, 1 6 KITCHEN PIRATES, the hauglity aristocrat, gi'adually disappears, and yields up his place to the sons of labovu\ We ap- proached the old woman and offered lier some money, at the sight of which she rul)bed her eyes, looked cautiously round her, and overwhelming us with benedictions for the gift she accepted, set off as fast as her legs would cany her. A moment afterwards we saw the youncrer of om* hostesses advancino; towards us, utterinsf loud exclamations, and beckoning to us to make haste and come to her — on doing so, she gave us the lamentable information that a party of pirates had attacked om* dinner, and were, at that very moment, actually devoming it. After all we had suffered on the subject, this intelligence wi-ung fi'om us an agonised cry of horror. " But how did it happen V we all inquired in a bi-eath ; " Why did yom* son allow them to touch our dinner ?" " What ! my son !" exclaimed the old woman ; " do you mean the rascal who conducted you ? *' Did that scamp tell you he was my son ? You were wise people to believe him, and give him a demi-piastre for bringing you to my house !" In spite of our distress we could not help laugh- ing, and retraced om- steps with great precipita- tion, feeling convinced that we should find our guide among the marauders ; but he was not there, and the master and mates of the sloop Victorious were the pei-petrators of the illegal act ; they were a little confused on our entrance, but the spokesman of the party, recovering his self-possession, gave us the follo^ving ex})lanati(m. " The inliabitants of tliis country are, you must know, the greatest liars in the world : when we A MALACCA DINNER. 17 entered this room, to which we were attracted by the odour of cooking, these old creatures told us they were preparing dinner for some Frenchmen ; of com^se we did not believe them, and under the impression that it was for the Portuguese or Eng- lish that the frying-pan was in use, sat down to dinner. It is very unfortunate, but these old witches have only told the truth once in their lives, and that once, to us. The best thing you can do, is to sit down, and try to dine off the remains.'' We were about to follow this advice, when a sign from one of the old women induced us to change om^ minds, and following her into a little garden thickly shaded by trees, we found a very respectable dimier served under an' orange tree ; it was composed of a curried chicken, a fine fish, tomatoes, and some bread ; for two piastres extra, we procured some wine, which at the distance of three thousand five hundred leagues from France^ passed very well for Bordeaux ; on the whole, we dined very merrily, making a vow, that should we ever revisit Malacca (where I have since been three times) we would never lose sight of our din- ner, after once having a prospect of obtaining it. We took leave of our hostess at night-fall, and bent our steps towards the streets inhabited by the Chinese. The shops and houses of these inde- fatigable people, presented to our view a most remarkable and unexpected cowp d'oeil, being all illuminated by immense lanterns, made of silken stuff, upon which were painted flowers, birds, and various fabulous animals. Upon some of these light-looking globes are inscribed certain charac- ters, indicating the name and profession of the c 18 MALAY ARTIFICERS. 'Owner of the house ; but although these streets are brilliantly lighted, they seem almost deserted, for we scarcely met any one, except now and then some benighted Malay returning homewards, or perhaps a pedlar, with his wares fastened to the end of a bamboo. Our attention was arrested by some very bright lights, which seemed to issue from a particular quarter of the town, and which, we were told, proceeded fi^om a street exclusively occupied by Chinese blacksmiths. The blade of the kHss, the celebrated cmwpilan, and the iron spears so much in favour among the Malays, are manufactured by these clever artisans : they are naked from the thigh to the foot, and fi'om the crown of the head to the waist, and work with greatest assiduity, and in perfect silence, wliile the glimmer from the flame and red-hot iron, throws a bright light over their gold-colom-ed skins. In the Slalay streets none of this bustle is visible, the houses are perfectly quiet, and not a soimd is to be heard, except perhaps a few notes of some monotonous song, proceeding from one of the perfumed dwelling's, probably the voice of some young girl, endeavom-ing to charm away the tnnui of her lord and master. In one of these streets we met our old friend Melo, who, with the most innocent air in the world, asked us how we had enjoyed our dinner. On receiving a satisfactory reply, that delectable young gentleman oifered to take us to one of the Malay houses, whither we accompanied him. As- cending the wooden staircase which terminates in the verandah, we found the whole family reclining on mats ; they seemed a little surprised at oirr some- what abrupt entry, but after a few words of explanu- A FAMILY PARTY. 19 tion from our guide, hastened to light a sort of lamp placed in a large glass filled with cocoa-nut oil, and we thus made acquaintance with the countenances of these good people. The father of the family would, at Malacca, be considered rather above the middle size, and a beard and moustaches frosted by time, gave an expression of dignity to his features, which were rendered rather remarkable by a very peculiar expression about the eyes, while an aquiline nose gave him a very different appearance from the Malays in general : his dress too was extremely dissimilar from theirs, consist- ing of a turban, very wide pantaloons, and a kind of long printed dressing-gown. His wife was decidedly a Malay by birth, with -lips stained by the betel-nut, and perfectly black teeth, besides, she wore the national costume, and a vest which covered the shoulders. The two daughters, who had much more delicate features than their mother, and were not so sallow in complexion, were attired in the same manner, the only differ- ence in their dress being that they did not wear a vest, but left the shoulders, neck, and arms unco- vered. We had scarcely seated om-selves on the mats which were placed on the ground, when the mas- ter of the house entered into conversation with us, and began to descant on his origin ; from what he said, it appeared that he was descended, by his father's side, fi^om a celebrated Mussulman who came from Arabia more than one hundred years ago, with the view of propagating his religion among the Malays. The old Mussulman gave us this information, in order that we might not only be aware of his high origin, but also of tlie fact C2 20 MALACCA CONFECTIONARY. that lie enjoyed gi-eat ecclesiastical reputation — for our parts, the intelligence was principally in- teresting to us, because it explained the mystery of his having an acquiline nose, and large black eye, exactly parallel. While we were conversing with the father the two young girls took on their laps a small tea- tray of red lacquer- work, upon which were placed some copper cups something hke those in which the village barbers keep their wash-balls. After mixing up several substances in each, they wi'apped them up in gi-een leaves, forming httle packets of confectionary, which they offered to us. As I raised mine to my lips, the mother made a hasty signal for me to desist, exclaiming in Portuguese, " Ardi ! ardi ! it will burn you \" But in spite of her warning I began to masticate the composi- tion, and having become tolerably accustomed to hot condiments when in Brazil and Bom-bon, the burning taste of the betel was not entirely new to me — indeed, I used to be rather fond of this astrin- gent drug. The young girls discovering my taste, offered to give me a lesson on the preparation of this oriental mixtm^e ; the youngest of the two sisters took a leaf of the betel-tree in her liand, then putting a small quantity of pjiste, partly made of lime, into the copper cup, stirred it about with her finger, and covered the upper part of the leaf with it ; after which, she put into the leaf a small piece of arec-nut, and a morsel of r/amhier. Prepared in this manner the hctcl- nut has strong tonic properties, and I have often found it ex- tremely beneficial in stomach comjilaints caused by tlie heat of the climate. On looking roimd the apartment in which we were seated, I was ex- A CONVERSATION ON FASHIONS. 21 ceedingly surprised to find an engraving from the popular fashion-book, known by the name of the " Journal des Modes/' fastened against the wall — I started as if I had seen an apparition. It represented a lady of rank, with immense sleeves, and a bonnet of very elevated form, covered with gaudy bows and ribands. I could not help smiling as I gazed on this absurd carica- tm-e, and one of the young girls, who had been watching me with some curiosity, came up to 'me, and inquired whether this was the dress of the ladies in my country. I replied, that it was so ten years ago ; but that now they had altered the fashion. " And why have they done so V asked the young girl. — " Perhaps they try to imitate the dress of some of the foreign ladies who reside amongst you.'' " On the contrary," I replied, " my countrywomen never imitate other nations, but are themselves considered the models of fashion and elegance." ^' Then, if their dress is so much admired as to be copied by others, why do they change it f I tried to make these simple children of natui^e understand something of the caprices of fashion ; but the elder of the two rephed — " Surely, what was pretty yester- day, cannot be ugly to-day : some like a blue apron, others a red one ; but the article itself is still the same. My sister likes to have her hair tucked up, whilst I prefer allowing mine to fall about my shoulders ; but when we wear hats, they are exactly alike." As she spoke, she unfastened the coils of her long hair, allowing it to fall over her neck and shoulders, which were instantly covered with her black tresses. Whilst doing this, she looked like 22 LODGINGS IN MALACCA. a statue of sandal-wood set in ebony ; and there was a peculiarly animated, ftiiry expression about her, as she passed her small delicate hand over her forehead, while the rings with which her fingers were ornamented, looked like polished gold upon unwrought masses of the same precious metal. We prolonged om- visit as much as possible ; but although it was past midnight when we re- gained our habitation, the Chinese lamps were still- bm-ning ; the greater number of the shops were, however, shut up, except those in the street inhabited by the blacksmiths ; and Melo, who, in his capacity of cicerone, never left us, informed us that these indefatigable artisans never close their establishments, but relieve guard exactly like the sailors on board ship. On entering the residence of our hostess, Mela inquired, with an authoritative air, whether our beds were ready ? One of the old women replied by taking up a large mug, in which a cotton match was bm^ning, and preceding us up the stair- case, led the way to the first floor. Never in my life did I see such a wretched place as that to which the horrible old witch conducted us. The floor was covered with the remains of all the vegetables in the creation ; old spades, and various dilapidated utensils were arranged along the walls, and through the shattered roof the bright rays of the moon enabled us to perceive four mats in the corners of the room. ]Mr. Melo did us the honour to share om' a]iartment, but we soon found, on lying down, that sleep was a ])erfect impossibility ; swarms of rats were scom*- ing about the place — insects innumerable were flying and buzzing over our heads, and the moou- CHINESE RELIGIOUS RITES. 23 beams slione as brightly above us as the mid-day sun in the streets of London or Paris. After endeavouring for some time to endure these annoyances, and go to sleep, I ventured to observe to Mr. Melo, that the apartment of his lady-mother appeared to me somewhat unpleasant, and on receiving a reply from that humourous individual, that he was quite of my opinion, I proposed that we should rise, and take a stroll into the town. " With all my heart,'' was his answer ; and we accordingly went out. As we were walking through the streets occu- pied by the Chinese, we observed several houses, the outer doors of which were left open, and the vestibules brilliantly lighted up. ' I asked Melo if there were a gala of some kind going on within ; but he repUed, that they were probably cele- brating one of the numerous religious rites of their sect. As we stopped for a moment on the threshhold of one of the houses, a young Chinese, of about twenty years of age, dressed in a long dark blue silk robe, ornamented with glass buttons, invited us to enter, which we did. Before a large image, representing one of the household gods of his family, he was burning perfamed matches placed in ashes, contained in a square bronze vessel, covered with arabesque work, and standing on four legs. Two coffins, something like those I have before described, as forming part of the furniture of the Chinese habitations, were placed on each side of this ancestral altar. On being questioned by Melo with regard to their contents, the young man pointed with his finger to one of them — " That," said he, " contains the 24 CHINESE FILIAL PIETY. body of my father, and the other that of my mother. For more than two years I have pre- served these sacred relics in my house, but my goods have increased so much latterly, that I have scarcely room for them ; and to-morrow, it is my intention to have them conveyed to a tomb made for the piu'pose on the mountain/' In translating to me this reply, Melo accom- panied it with some rather amusing, but infidel observations — " What miserly dogs these Chinese are l" he exclaimed ; " they are always afraid of starvation, and they smoke-dry their fathers and mothers in this way, so that they may be available in case of famine : what other motive can they have for thus retaining them in their houses, when they always eject them thence when they become rich ! For instance, this fellow had not a single hal^Denny five years ago, and now he is as rich as a Nabob/' The worthy Chinese gave us an invitation to be present at the ceremony, which was to take place the following day. Upon a shrine, very much like those used on the Continent for the image of Saints, a roasted pig was placed ; others, less ornamented, are filled with ragouts of a very inviting odour, and cakes of difierent forms, lozenge-shaped, square, and round, all inscribed with mystic characteis. He also observed several baskets containing gilded papers, possessing some imaginary value, which are intended to be burnt on the tombs of the dead, to serve instead of money in the next world. The young man afber- waids shewed us the dress he intemled to wear, and also the garments of the mourners, who were to accompany the funeral procession. MALAY WARLIKE WEAPONS. 25 After having partaken of a cup of tea with him, and some betel-nut, we took our departure, and crossing the bridge, followed a long street, border- ing on the sea-shore. The tide was rising, and there, in the deep silence of night, we heard the solemn voice of ocean, lulling the happy inha- bitants of Malacca to rest, with its melancholy sounds. The moon shone brightly over the waves, the movements of which made its rays resemble the shining scales of a phosphorescent fish, a light breeze arose, softly shaking the tops of the palm- trees, every leaf of which sent forth a low but melodious sound. How beautiful was that scene ! The strange aspect of everything around, and the spirit of poetry which breathed through, and over all, made me almost fancy myself dreaming, or living in an enchanted land, inhabited only by fairies and benevolent genii. One morning, during our stay at Malacca, the streets were crowded with iron-merchants, who, on hearing of our arrival, flocked together from all quarters of the colony, armed either with the kriss, with its fine slender blade — cam'pilans as long as those of Roland, and sharp spears orna- mented with red and black horse-tails ; some were almost hidden by large shields made of bufifalo- skin, the hide of the rhinoceros, or wood spotted with red and black, whilst others were armed with bamboo, sarbacans, bows and poisoned arrows. These Malays are not, however, to be trusted in the sale of their merchandize, being considered in a manner usurpers of their trade, and any sensible or experienced traveller will know better than to purchase arms of these wild islanders, although they may, for the moment, 26 THE MALAY DAGGER. ?.ppear tolerably civilized, expatiating on the value of their wares with that plausibility pecu- liar to the Indians. Like Holo and Borneo, Ma- lacca is one of the arsenals of the country, and the more enthusiastic of its inhabitants swear by " the blades of Malacca,'' as the heroes of M. de Mussot do by the sword of Toledo. The kriss, which is made here, is a small, straight, and slender weapon, contained in a scabbard, generally made of wood, but sometimes of metal, the elegance of which depends upon the workmanship of the blade. A real Malay kriss ought never to bend, and should bear the contact of the hardest substances, breaking only with the most violent efforts. In general, the flat side of the blade is engraved with certain mystic charac- ters, in which the sorcerers of the place profess to read the events of the present and the future. At one time, the Malays were the only people who understood the manuficture of these cele- brated weapons, but since Em-opean ciu-iosity has inquired so much into these things, the Chinese have taken advantage of the opportunity for ac- quiring wealth, and for that purpose have col- lected an abimdant supply of them. But, alas ! these instruments, like almost everything in the present day, are admirably counterfeited ; just in the same degi-ee as etruscan vases, Egyptian mummies, and old coins. The campilan bears a great resemblance to the sabres of our hussars, and is shaped like a long tliin latli, with a wooden handle, held by both liands, wliicli like the sword of a kniglit, is with- out a guard ; tlie blade is very long, and straight, and thin, of great strength, and should never THE MALAY SWOED. 27 bend. The instrument I have described, is called the two-handled cam'pilan, but there are other varieties of this weapon, which are more easily wielded ; they are, however, more for ornament than use — the handles of some of them are of coarsely-carved ivory, very often bearing the re- semblance of some fabulous animal, such as a syi^en, or dragon. The blades of these campilans are pierced at certain distances with little holes filled up with pieces of copper. If we could be- lieve the assertions of the Malay merchants, who are ever greater liars than those of Paris, these holes denote the number of trophies possessed by the ancient proprietor of the sword, and also indi- cate the victims sacrificed by those savage war- riors. Thus, we may well imagine how very easy it is for a boasting hero to acquire great celebrity here. I have sometimes seen Malay lances scol- loped all along the edge, so that the murderous weapon easily penetrated the flesh and tore it to rags when withdrawn — an invention truly worthy of these blood-thirsty barbarians, amongst whom war and discord prevail to such a detestable ex- tent. The handles of all their weapons are usual- ly adorned with skins, the hair of which is dyed red — according to the assurances of the vendor, these are the scalps of vanquished enemies, but are in reality torn from the heads of asses, wild- cats, and horses. It is, however, true, that the inhabitants of Borneo, Sumatra, and Holo, very often keep these dreadful trophies in their tents, but they always preserve them with most religi- ous veneration among their families, and never part with them but by force. The knives and the caonpilan are the favorite 28 MALAY ARROWS. arms of the Malays, and in single combat they disdain to use any others ; but in civil war they are generally armed with bows and an-ows, the points of which are plastered over with some kind of poison, which is said to be so venemous as to render the least wound made by it fatal. I confess that I have very little faith in this assertion, for at Malacca I frequently tried expe- riments on various animals with these poisoned arrows, and never found they took any effect. In my opinion, the most dangerous instrument used by these people, is the sarhican of bamboo, which is about two metres in length. By means of a very simple method of using these tubes, sharp ari'ows, which easily pierce through almost any- thing, are shot to an incredible distance. I often made use of this terrible weapon against some unfortunate birds — the silent mes- senger of death struck the ^dctim with an un- erring swiftness, which prevented the compan- ions of the latter from discovering whence the mm'derer had taken his fatal aim, and they were thus unable to fly from the destruction which awaited them. Some pretty white cockatoos, with a tuft of yellow feathers on the head, were the victims of my cruel amusement, upon which I now look back with a feeling of self-reproach, for I do not arrogate to myself the right of com- mitting wanton murders, or of playing with the lives of the pretty creatures with which God has blessed the earth ; and if those poor little crea- tures could hear and understand me, I should not only repent of my crime, but solicit their forgive- ness for it. Every Malay soldier is furnished with a shield, MALAY SHIELDS. 29 made either of leather or wood, upon which he receives the blows of his enemies ; these move- able bucklers are always ornamented with some device, or spotted over with different colours, and the combatants shelter themselves behind them by passing the left arm through a sort of stock placed at the back of the shield. In all countries, and in all periods during the various changes of society, the same necessities have given birth to similar inventions, and the leather disk of rhino- ceros skin is to the poor Malay what the armour of Yulcan was to the demi-gods of Greece. My fellow-travellers were immediately attracted by these barbarous curiosities, and God only knows the prices at which they prnxhased old blunted pikes, pieces of leather full of holes, and rusty broken weapons, with which the cunning Malays endeavoured to fascinate the young Euro- peans ; at the same time dignifying every piece of their rubbish with a long pedigree of lies, ac- cording to which it had all belonged to divers princes and rajahs, some of whom lived in the time of a celebrated King of Malacca, who, more than one thousand years ago, had conquered the island of Ceylon with an army of ourang outangs. This wise prince was of course a much greater man than Napoleon, for he had so great a regard for the human species, that he only instructed animals in the ignoble profession of arms. I had remained quite insensible to the tide of eloquence around me, when a Malay youth offer- ed to my notice a kriss, the copper scabbard of which shone in the sun like a golden sceptre, and begged of me to purchase it. I repKed that I had no use for it. — " No use for it I" he repeated ; 80 ADVICE TO TRAVELLERS. *' but are you not going to visit Meis, Holo, Bor- neo, and Bentham ?" — I answered in the affirma- tive.—" Well then," said the Malay, " how will you present yourself before the chiefs of those countries, if you have not at your side a hand- some instrument, which will at once indicate your rank ; you will be obliged to humble yourself in the dust, while, on the contrary, if you buy my kriss, you can hold up your head and sustain your dignity properly ; every one, on seeing you, will know at once who you are.'' And by way of giving me a practical illustration of his senti- ments, my Malay friend passed the kriss through the red band which fastened his pantaloons, and elevating his head, strutted about with his arms extended and his naked yellow body thrown back in a most amusing manner. He displayed so much humour and \dvacity in his pantomimic dignity, that I could not help laughing, and bought for four piasters a little bauble, which not a Jew in Paris would have been able to sell for ten francs. And here I would offer a word of sage advice to future travellers, and would recommend them, on returning from their travels, to purchase in Paris the kriss, carapilan, helmets, hookas, and nargillahs, with which they may wish to present their friends ; by so doing, they will save thefr pockets considerably, as they will buy the same impostures for half the money. I had scarcely completed my bargain, when I perceived the old Malay, of Arabian origin, to whose house Melo had conducted me the night before, coming towards me. His face, upon which were some European traces of nobility, formed a THE EEEDS OF MOUNT OPHIR. 31 striking contrast to the round visages of his com- panions ; and it was easy to perceive how much he was revered by them, for when he approached me, and extended his hand, the other merchants immediately bowed and retired. As on the pre- ceding evening, he wore a long dressing-gown, and carried in his hand a bundle of rushes, on the subject of which I must say a few words. It is in this part of the Malay peninsula, in the neighbourhood of Mount Ophir, where the soil contains whole beds of gold and diamonds, that this beautiful production is gathered. No idea can be formed of the immense quantities of these beautiful rushes, which are still exported into Europe, although fashion now disdains the use of these elegant canes. Those of the old Malay were very round, of a reddish-brown in colour, and of great length. For the trifling sum of two piasters I bought eight, which would have charmed the -most enthusiastic admirer of the Indian reed. This pretty rush undergoes some preparation be- fore assuming the shining appearance with which it is adorned, and the process is as follows : — The reeds are cut, stripped of their leaves, and left to dry ; when this is nearly accompHshed, they are covered with cocoa-nut oil, and placed before a very hot fire, until they take the colour by which we know them. While being thus heated, they reject all the vegetable matter with which they are filled, and the oil, penetrating the soft network of their inner bark, renders them in- vulnerable to the attacks of insects. The rvish trade is one of the principal branches of industry with the Malays ; and there are very few houses in Malacca which do not contain large 32 MALACCA BIRDS. quantities of these monocotyledons ; but, out of an immense piled-up heap, there are not many perfect enough to find favour in the eyes of a connoisseur, for — " A reed without a fault, is worth a golden sceptre/' I was fortunate enough to meet with a foreign missionary at Malacca, who introduced me to several people who kept wild animals, and were well acquainted with natural history. Om' fii\st visit was to the house of a native of Dutch origin, who had a collection of this kind ; he was a man of about fifty, very tall, and with a pale, canary- colom-ed complexion ; I was delighted with this opportunity of making further acquaintance with the beautiful winged inhabitants of Malacca — the red loriots, blue king-fishers, blue, gi'een, and yel- low paroquets, the toman, witli his gigantic bill, and many others ; but the most interesting ob- ject in the aviary was our host's lovely daughter, about foiu'teen years of age ; she was seated in a corner of the room, with her eyes timidly fixed on the ground, and a profusion of fair hair flowed over her shoulders. The missionary, who had been very much interested in all he saw, turned to the Dutchman, and inquired how many chil- dren he had, to which the latter replied, that his family consisted of three. " But I have noticed,'' said my fi'iend, " that only one young man accompanies your wife when she comes to church." " That is true, holy father, but it is because my son, Vicente de Paulo, is the only one of my children who is a Catholic." The priest in([uired, with some astonishment, as to what religion the others professed. The REASONS FOR RELIGIOUS PREFERENCE. 33 merchant paused a few miimtes before answering tliis question, and then replied, " You see, father, there are reasons for everything — Vicente, the eldest of our children, is, like his parents, a Ca- tholic (for although Dutch, I am Catholic by my mother's side) and it is, of course, necessary that the eldest son should be of our religion ; my second son, John, is a Protestant, as I thought that on account of his embracing that faith, some of the English ministers here, who are very powerful, might probably be of use to him ; as to my daughter, I was in some doubt as to her ecclesi- astical education, but one day, as I was walking with a Mahometan priest, he told me that his religion was decidedly the proper one for a wo- man, and she has, therefore, embraced it/' Dming this speech, my worthy friend worked himself up into a state of holy wrath, which it must be confessed, was very laudable under such circumstances, whilst I had very great difficulty in keeping my countenance ; and on taking leave, the good priest extorted a promise from the Dutch- man, that John and Fatima should be sent to him for the purpose of being baptized, and receiv- ing religious instruction. Leaving the Dutchman's house we turned our steps towards the sea-shore, intending to pay a visit to a Portuguese who had a collection of wild animals. The residence of this man, whose name was Songa, was situated at the bottom of a large garden, planted with shrubs, and embellished with betel trees ; altogether, this little dwelling was not so comfortable as those of the Malays in general, and was built on the ground, containing only three Uttle rooms adjoining each other. In D 34? BRUTE SAGACITY. the first one we entered, there was a very pretty little ape running about quite at liberty, which had no sooner caught sight of us, than it set up the most fearful shriek, and ran away. This little animal was a specimen of that kind of monkey ^vithout a tail, which is called the hylohate, and bears a gi'eater resemblance to man than any other, except the om-ang-outang. The upper part of its head was quite white, and its little black body suiTOunded with soft wool, made it look very much like a yomig negro with a white wig. On hearing its cries, a young girl came rumiing to- wards it, and the ape, rushing into her arms, in- stantly left off crying, while she endeavoured to soothe it with her voice. Under the impression that the pretty little creature had quite overcome its fears, I enquired of the young girl, what price she would take for it : one might have imagined that the clever little ape understood the meaning of my question, for it immediately began to cry more violently than ever, and throwing its arms romid the neck of the young Portuguese, exhibited the most violent signs of despair. Probably these tokens of attach- ment made his mistress more unwilling than ever to part with him, for she turned to me and said in a decided tone — " I will not part witli my favourite for less than thirty piasters ;" and as this sum was rather more than the wliole estiiblish- ment, with all its hiliabitants was worth, I of course concluded that she did not wish to dispose of the ape, feeHng sm-e that I sliould not give tliat price for him. Seeing that I appeared to abandon my designs ui)on liim, the intelligent little animal began to examine me with great BEUTE ATTACHMENT. 35 curiosity, and even permitted me to touch his soft little hand ; but every time I looked very steadily at him, or asked his mistress any ques- tion relative to himself, he instantly took the alarm, and sought refuge in her arms. I really think I never saw so interesting an animal ; and many a time since, have I regretted that I did not purchase him at the required price. As I was leaving the house, a young Malay came up and offered me two monkeys for sale, one of which was an hylobate, that is to say, a monkey without a tail, and the other (a very singular specimen) with a nose exactly like a dog ; both of these I bought ; but the hylobate was not of the same species as the little favourite I so much admired, the top of his head being black, and his body smTomided with a sort of fringe of coarse white hairs ; this pretty animal was known by the name of Manis among my fellow-travellers, and became a great favorite with two of them, some little girls, named Gatrielle and Olga De LagTen^, who treated him something like a live doU, and to whom he took such a strong fancy, that upon one occasion, when one of my com- panions took little Olga, who was about four years old, up in his arms, Manis was so enraged at the liberty, that he threw himself upon the offender, and bit him severely. Although the naturalists of Paris assert that the hylohates go on all fours, Manis, like all others I have seen of his kind, walked upright, balancing himself by carrying liis arms above his head ; he was remarkably agreeable and polished in his manners, never giving way to petulance or buf- foonery like other monkeys, and explaining his d2 36 PRDIITIVE MAX AXD AXDIAL LIFE. wishes in sucli a pleasant manner, that it was universally acknowledged, that his name, which signifies " Siueet/' was extremely well suited to his character. On retm^ning to the ship, I of course took my two lavourites, Manis and Simon, with me, both of them crying di^eadfully as we left the sea-shore. I consoled Manis as well as I could by kind words, but as to Simon, his grief and despair was so violent that I could do nothing with liim, and abandoned him to his sorrow. As soon as we were quite out at sea, M. Fernand Delahante proposed that he should be set at liberty ; but this was no sooner done, than the poor creature, finding himself fi^ee, jumped into the water, and swam back to the sea-shore, where its old master had bid it a most affectionate adieu. In this part of the world, there seems a sort of primitive link existing between, and uniting man and the brute creation ; for the foi-mer speaks a language wonderfully comprehended hy the latter — treats them almost as fiiends and equals, and never, by any chance, persecutes or ill-uses them ; while, on the other hand, the animals seem perfectly to appreciate the kind treatment they receive from man, and submit themselves quietly to his authority, feeling sure, by constant ex- perience, that he will not abuse it. Indeed, a spirit, somewhat resembling that wliich must liave breathed over Eden, seems to cling round all the inhabitants of tliis lovely country, wliich presents to the mind a vivid type of that ha])]\y garden, where those tauQ-ht the lancniaji^e of nature to man wlio read her precepts as an open book, and communed with her as with his own heart. THE POPULATION OF MALACCA. 37 Malacca contains about tliii'ty thousand inhabi- tants — Portuguese, Dutch, English, Mala}^, and Chinese ; the former are by far the most numerous of the European population, and are, principally, the lineal descendants of the ancient conquerors of Malacca. Their forefathers were the com- panions of Yasco de Gama and Alberquerque ; but, like the monuments erected by their ances- tors, which are now levelled to the ground in ruins, the modern Portuguese have sunk into a state of degTadation and insignificance ; indeed, of all the Malay population, (with whom they have been associated for many years) the descen- dants of the ancient Portuguese are not only the plainest in person, but also the most depraved in morals. It is impossible ever to mistake one of them for a Malay, for their countenances and movements are deficient in the savage energy of the latter, and bear more resemblance to the animal features of the Ethiopian race ; indeed, the marks of degeneracy and degradation seem stamped on their foreheads — poor wretches ! They have no knowledge of the deeds of their noble and glorious ancestors, for even tradition, that last sole consolation of fallen man, is unknown among them ; and though the gi-eater number of them bear liigh-sounding illustrious names, they neither know the appellations of their forefathers, nor anything belonging to their history. In the neighbourhood of Malacca, in the direction of Mount Ophir, is situated a little camp, standing in the midst of the jungles, and the inhabitants of this species of hamlet live in a state of frightfal ignorance, paying no attention to the cultivation of the land, or to any social 38 MAX IX HIS DEGRADATION : laws, and having neither priest, cadi, judge, or ruler of any kind whatever — their dwellings are little cabins made of rushes, and thatched with the leaves of the American palm tree, or latanier, while their sole employment consists in scouring the forests in search of the wax produced by the wild bees, or in collecting the resin which drops from the bi-anches of the trees. I had heard a gi-eat deal of these people, and during om* stay at Malacca, a missionary priest proposed that we should pay them a visit ; and we moimted our horses, and after five houi's spent in tmversing rice fields, jungles, and large tracts of land covered with palm trees and saccharine shrubs, an*ived at the foot of a little hill upon which the village stands ; there was not the slightest indication that we were approaching an inhabited place, for the most perfect silence reigned all around, un- broken by a sound of any kind : not even the voice of a child, or the crowing of a cock ; and the usual familiar signs by which we generally recognise the presence of man, seemed totally unknown in this savage region, for no tnice of labour or cultivation could be seen, and we looked in vain for the white wi-eatlis of smoke which are the ordinaiy indications of the liumblest dwelling, while the rude, wandering jxaths which meandered through the forest, seemed rather fitted for the tracks of some wild animal than for the foot of man. I have iriven this sinffukir place tlie name of a village ; but in reality it merely consisted of a mass of dilapidated, wretched-louking huts, all of which seemed to be open to every new comer ; indeed their inhabitants seemed not to practise ITS PHYSICAL RESULTS. 39 any kind of concealment with their neiglil^ours, and the miserable disorder, wliich is always the consequence of having " all things in common/' was manifest in every thing around. When we made our appearance, the women were sitting, huddled together, in front of their huts, most of them quite unoccupied, except in chewing the betel-nut, and others in nursing miserable-looking little infants at their breasts. Two or three men were lying down on one side of the encampment, smoking great cigars of maize, or masticating the betel, like the females, and the whole group, both men and women, were naked, or nearly so. The complexions of the children were almost white, but those of the adults black as night : they were all rather small, and thin in figure, with thick lips, large black eyes, prominent noses, and coarse black hair : two circumstances with regard to these people struck me very forci- bly — they all appeared to be either in a state of infancy, or the helplessness of old age ; the charms and vigour of youth seemed quite unknown amongst them, for, with the grown-up part of the group, every eye was hollow and sunken, and every face dry and shrivelled. There was some- thing very striking and distressing in this strange, silent tableau, as the members of it sat stupidly staring at us without attempting to move ; surely such a state of brutish ignorance and misery, in this beautiful tropical country, must be voluntary, unless indeed it clings, like a malediction to this unhappy race. Our guides, who were natives of Malacca, ad- dressed themselves to the women, and asked them several questions. — " What was the name of their 40 IGXORAXCE. village ? Where were their husbands, &c." But their replies contained so many words which did not belong to the Malay language, that the guides were unable to comprehend them ; so the priest, who accompanied me, alighted from his horse, and approached them. He found that their language consisted of a mixtm-e of Malay and Portuguese, and held a conversation with them something like the following — " Are you Malays, or Portuguese V asked the priest. They smiled — ^looked at each other, and then rephed — " We do not know.'" " But where did yom- forefathei^, I mean the parents of yom* fathers, come from V " From a place down there/' they replied, pointing towards Malacca. " Who told you this V " We do not know.'' " Who lives in that hut V The one-eyed," answered the women. " And in the other V " The strong." It appeared that the men bore no other names but such as had been given them, on account of some remarkable physical quahty, and even family tradition, which, with the savage tribes, is gene- rally preserved to the last, had disappeared amongst them. " Do you understand this sign ?" inquired the missionary, crossing himself The women looked at him — laughed, and tried with both hands to imitate the priest. " Who marries you ?" he continued. Tliere Wiis no re])ly. The question wa.s re- peated both in Malay and Portuguese, but in THE ROMANIST MISSIONARY. 41 vain ; the word was totally unknown amongst these poor wretched animals. During this conversation, the males of the party had retained their recumbent position, and had not appeared to take the least interest in what was going forward ; so we walked up to them, and asked several questions, to which they did not reply. At last the missionary pointed to the sky, and said to one of them — " Do you come from thence, or from below V stamping his foot on the ground. *' We came from the houses down there/"* an- swered the savage. '' How long ago V inquired the priest. But liis ideas of time were very vague and un- informed, for, after a moment's silence, he answer- ed — '' I don't know,'' with an air, which very plainly said, ' '■ I don't understand you." The missionary then told them that he would come and see them again ; but this made no im- pression whatever upon them, for they rolled lazily round on their sides, and took no more notice of us. We tmmed away, saddened by the revolting spectacle, and silently remounting our horses, took the road back to Malacca. My companion was the first to speak ; he was not by any means a ranter or a fanatic, but a well-disposed man, and a sincere Catholic at heart. " You see, doctor," he quietly remarked, '' what a mistake it is to suppose that the savage is the representative of man in his primitive state — on the contrary, he is the type of the human race in its most degraded condition — lost to all notions of morality and religion : before he becomes a 42 A missioxary's hopes. savage, he must have been a civilized being, and such he will again become, when he returns to the creed whose laws he has now ceased to obey. Here we can bear witness to this state of abject degradation, because we have ourselves beheld it, and if we had equal opportunities of examining the condition of some of the tribes of Oceania and America, the result would be the same.'' I felt that I could not hold any argument Avith my companion, and merely expressed my concern for the dreadfully depraved condition of these miserables, who, in the space of perhaps little more than a century, had lost all idea of religion, morality, language, tradition, and indeed every thing relating to civilization, who had substituted habits of extreme and fatal idleness, for the enjoy- ments and comforts, which are acquired by a life of honest labom\ — " You have promised,'' I con- tinued, addressing the missionary, " to go and visit them again. But what good can you do them ? All your efforts in their behalf must be as ineffectual as the administering of medicine to a corpse." " You speak like a physician,'' replied the mis- sionary with a smile, " but men in my profession think differently, and will not readily admit any case to be hopeless. Lazarus left the tomb after his fi-ame had begun to decay ; nor do I despair, by means of perseverance and prayer, of restoring these poor wretches to a state of moral life, and leading them back again to a knowledge of their God, and to the laws of civilization ; and if you were better accpiainted with these countries, you would never be astonished at any wonders which might occur, nor tliinlv any miracle impossible. THE STATELY BEGGAR. 43 This race of unhappy beings has fallen into a state of depravity, which seems quite to appal you, and would do so yet more, did you but know its ex- tent. You have abeady witnessed an extraordi- nary instance of egotistical policy in the case of the Dutchman, who brought up each of his three children in a different faith, regarding only the probable benefit he should thereby reap ; but his pei'versity is nothing to that of some, for the Portuguese But I beg your pardon, doctor, it is not for me to lay bare such dreadful scenes.'' On our return to Malacca, my companion was addressed in rather a mysterious manner by a young man, whose dress and bearing proclaimed him to be a Portuguese — he took the priest aside, and talked to him in a low voice. The latter made no reply, but put his hand into his pocket, and on withdrawing it, extended it to the Por- tuguese, and though this was very quickly done, I was able to perceive that the missionary bes- towed charity upon him, notwitlistanding his youthfal and vigorous appearance. I asked my companion how it was that this youth should con- descend to ask aid of others, and inquired whether he were not able to work. The priest informed me that he was of course perfectly able to do something for his living, but that his dignity would not allow him to employ himself, for it appeared that he was one of the aristocracy of the neighbourhood, and the son of an old merchant, who had once possessed a large fortune, but was now in very reduced circumstances. However, I could not help expressing my opinion, that it would have been much more to his credit to have obtained some useful employment, than to sit and 44; THE ARCHBISHOP OF GOA. fan himself three parts of the day, and live upon charity. " But," said my friend, " so little is required in this country to render man comfortable, that beoforing is soon found to answer better than la- bom' ; besides, the Portuguese have no idea of working : when in tolerably good circmnstances, they manage to carry on a little commerce ; but should a storm arise, and the hand of charity fail, they have no alternative but to starve/' " And is it possible, that the descendants of the illustrious adventm^ers who once reigned over this country with so much power and magnificence, are reduced to such a precarious condition ! " I exclaimed. " With the exception of a few rather rich fami- lies," answered my companion, " the Poi-tuguese live for the present only, and have neither pros- pects nor resources for the morrow. The total absence of all authority has been their ruin, and both physically and morally, they are a race of fallen men." When the Dutch departed from this coimtry, the bonds which had previously existed between the priests of Malacca and the Ai'chbishop of Goa, were severed, and the clerical body was then formed of a class of men, who were mostly of Indian origin, and therefore, but too nearly re- sembled idiots. They adopted the dissolute man- ners of tliose by whom they were surrounded, and the people who ought to have been ]>r(^tected and instructed by them, uuliap])ily shared the ruin of their fall. I in(|uired whether the Archbishop of Goa did not still retain some authority over this THE ENGLISHMAN IN MALACCA. 45 part of India, by means of which he might be able to remedy this state of confusion and disorder ? " The authority of the Archbishop/' was the reply, " is purely nominal. He has now no power whatever over his clergy, for the time has gone by, when the delegates of the Pope could com- mand the ships of His Majesty the King of Por- tugal, direct their movements, and explore un- known seas, for the purpose of spreading abroad the name of God, and the authority of the holy chm^ch. Alas ! in the present day, the fleet of Portugal no longer exists, and if the Archbishop of Goa wishes to visit Achem, Rangoun, Malacca, Macao, Irinor, or any other place, he cannot command a single vessel of any kind, not even a Chinese junk, or a Malay boat/' I quitted my agreeable companion to go and dine with an English gentleman, meditating by the way upon what I had just heard, and what I was about to see, and regretting most sincerely that the ancient authority of the chivalrous and adventm'ous Portuguese, should ever have given way to that of the merchants of London and the Hague. On entering the saloon, I was struck by its very plain and even gloomy appearance — the table was spread in an immense room, very plain- ly furnished, and with white walls ; the chairs were made of some kind of twisted reed, and the windows ornamented with bamboos ; just above the table, was a large puyikah, worked by Malay servants, by means of which the apartment was kept delightfully fresh and cool. I was seated next an old maid, of the Methodist persuasion, very shrivelled in appearance, and as yellow as a citron. This charming creature had attached 46 THE FEMALE MISSIONARY. herself to the steps of a Wesleyan missionary, and liad come to try the effect of her fascinating influence on the Malays of the Peninsula. We were formally introduced to each other, and im- mediately entered into conversation, for I must not forget to mention, that my maiden friend spoke French to perfection. I was very anxious to know the nature of the crime with which my friend the missionary reproached the poor Portu- guese priests, and being convinced that this old harpy woidd not fail to exaggerate all their mis- deeds, introduced the subject. " I have been the witness of a great deal of misery to-day, madam,'' said I ; " for I have been visiting the wilds of a Portuguese colony, and never met with such in- stances of degradation in my life.'"' " That is the result of the Catholic adminLstra- tion,'' replied the lady, sharply ; " they prevent man fr'om using his reason, and endeavour to stifle all his natural inclinations, so that when his spiritual guides abandon him, he nnist of neces- sity fall, being unable to stand by himself " That is to say," I answered, with a smile ; " that t^ie pastors, not their flocks, are always at fault. I am awai'e that the Portuguese priests " " Tlie Portxiguese priests,'' interrupted the dame, witli a venomous little smile, " are the only Oatliolics possessing common sense ; wliat crime can be urged against them, exoe])t tliat of havino- failed to discover that tlie Bible forbids marriage amongst the clergy ; conse(|uently they marry, and have large families of children; and is not that much better than living in crime as many do, and are a re})roach to ci\ilization and CHARACTEK OF THE PORTUGUESE. 47 the religion whose precepts they profess to teach and adorn V I replied — " In your opinion, perhaps, it may be better ; but when people voluntarily take a vow, they should keep it ; and I cannot imagine what answer they can make, when their conduct is inquired into by their spiritual chiefs." " Then I will tell you,'' said the lady, compla- cently : " to the Archbishop of Goa, who has the impudence to dictate to the Queen's subjects, they will reply, that they are answerable only to the Pope — to the Potentate of Rome, or his French envoys, they will profess submission to the autho- rity of Goa ; and so, as Rome is a tolerable dis- tance off, and the delegates of Goa never go there,, they will thus be able to continue to act according to their conscience and their will/' Now if this be a Methodistical calumny, I beg to state, that I am not responsible for it ; and if it be simply a falsehood, I wish it to be still more distinctly understood, that I merely repeat T\^hat I heard ; but, however the case may be, it is certain, that amidst this mixed population, the Portuguese people, whether rich or poor, clergy or laymen, are decidedly the plainest in person, the most depraved in mind. After the Portuguese ceased to rule in Malacca, their place was filled up by the Dutch ; however, the latter have not left behind them so many vestiges of their presence as their predecessors ; for it is a remarkable fact, that in all parts of the world, the Portuguese, like the grasshoppers of Egypt, have always been famed for their nume- rous posterity ; while, on the contrary, the Dutch race increase very slowly in tropical countries. 48 MATRIMONIAL ALLIANCES. Both these colonizing nations have frequently contracted alliances with the tribes under their government, for they do not possess that hypocri- tical horror with w^hich the French, English, and Spanish, pretend to regard the Negroes and In- dians ; and notwithstanding the extreme and proverbial ugliness of one of these two races of men, it is certain that, long after the other ceases to increase, it continues to flourish most prosper- ously ; and the reason for this is plain enough : the Portuguese and Spanish have peopled Sierra Le- one, Manilla, Malacca, Ceylon, and Goa, with a class of inhabitants of African origin, whose con- stitutions and temperament are exactly suited to the blazing climate of the tropics ; while the lym- phatic Dutch, accustomed to fogs and gloom, can- not so easily accustom themselves to the change of atmosphere, and on account of this, there are very few Dutch Creoles at Malacca, and these, for the most part, intermarry with the Portuguese, who are, properly speaking, five parts Malay and the rest European, in their origin. However, the results of these marriao-es are much more satisfoc- tory than those produced by the Malays and Por- tuguese. I have frequently met with young girls, of Dutch origin, with light hair, blue eyes, and com- l)lexions of the most delicate fairness, while their dusky mothers looked, by force of contrast, like the mulatto women who are employed by the co- lony })lanters as nurses to their children. The souvenirs of Bourbon Avere still fresh in my mind, and I could not but regard these creatures, dressed in the Malay savvon and floating chenu^e, as the A Dutchman's koh-i-noir. 49 slaves of the elegant young girls, of whom they were in reality the mothers. The Dutch do not suffer the deOTaclecl and mi- serable condition in which the wretched Portu- guese exist ; but most of them are employed in some branch of commerce, and carry on a trade with the Malays for their native produce. One of them, with whom I was acquainted at Malacca, shewed me a large diamond from Mount Ophir, the size of an immense nut ; it seemed to have been formed in the bed of a torrent, and was much rubbed and knocked about ; indeed, it was difficult, beneath its milky surface, to discover the brilliant featm^es of a precious stone. The possessor of it had pm*chased it of a Malay, at a very low price, and expected, in selling it again, to make a fortune by it ; but the more I exam- ined the stone, the less faith I had in its value ; and when the Dutchman spoke of his glowing ex- pectations with regard to the treasure, I certainly thought he ought to be an alchymist, in order to realize them. The number of the Dutch at Malacca does not amount to more than three or four hundred, and their principal mission in the country seems to be that of preserving a few traits of European beauty, by producing children rather less like apes than the ugly little Malays. The English have a garrison of sepoys at Ma- lacca, in excellent order, well disciplined, and commanded by Hindoo officers. I was one day passing by while these vassals of Great Britain were exercising, when an Englishman stepped up to me and said — " You are probably sm^prised, E 50 " SEPOYS AT MALACCA. Monsieiu', at seeing a sword and epaulettes be- stowed on these natives V " Not in the least,'' I answered. " Why should it be so V " Because the thing ought not, in reality, to be thus, for these people are not gentlemen ; and as the English army acknowledges only gentlemen among its officers, it is absurd to make an excep- tion in favom* of the Hindoos/' " But it is necessary," said I, " that you should allow these poor fellows to imagine that they are of some importance in the Government of their country." " Ah ! exactly," answered the Englishman ; " a strong political interest compels us to act thus condescendingly towards the Bengalee, and, be- sides, it is a fact that the English, whether officers or men, are careful not to mix too much with them." There are not many Englishmen at Malaeca, merely about a score of officers, in various civil stations, and a few merchants ; but the whole of these live as if they intended to pass the whole of their lives in this country, surrounded by all the comfoi-ts and luxuries the place can afford. Their houses are handsome and airy, adorned with verandahs, and situated in the midst of beautiful gardens. Most of these haljitations are built on the borders of the sea, and when the tide is high, the water beats upon tlie threshold with a kind of harmonious murmuring. At one time there was an Anglo- Chinese college at Malacca, foimded both on reli- gious and commercial ])riuciples, like most of the philuntlu'opical establisluiients of the English. THE GOVERNOR. 51 This college has produced some remarkable men, some of whom have distinguished themselves in managing the affairs of the country, as well as those of the Celestial Empire ; but in a religious point of view, it has been of very little use, for I have before spoken of the ill-success of the at- tempts to spread Protestantism amongst the Asiatics, The English Governor of Sincapore, Malacca, and Penang, is affectedly termed by his country- men the " Governor of the Straits," and resides by turns in each of the three countries over which he rules. At Malacca, his house is an old chateau, overlooking the water, and at Sincapore and Penang his palace is built on the most elevated part of the two islands, and it must be confessed, that the dwellings of this functionary, erected, like observatories, on the tops of the very highest points, are not bad emblems of the service he ren- ders his country, for the Governor of the Straits is a vigilant sentinel, whose office it is to give the cry of alarm whenever any other European power attempts to establish itself in this country, and to declare war immediately upon the least appear- ance of sedition at Malacca, or Java ; and when Spanish or Dutch vessels come within sight of Sincapore, Malacca, and Penang, and are per- ceived by the tenants of the sentry-boxes over which float the colours of Great Britain, there must be a sinking at the heart with the faithful servants of the two nations, for they cannot but expect, that the sentinel, who is ever on the watch, will one day surprise them off their guard. The Portuguese and Dutch, by means of con- e2 52 A MALACCA BISHOP BOXXER. stant perseverance and energy, have accustomed the Malays to the Em*opean yoke, and at the present day the English are reaping the fruits of the industry of their predecessors ; but although three hundred years of submission to a foreign power have extinguished all sentiments of national independence in the breasts of the natives, they still retain both their customs and religion. In the gi^eat days of the Portuguese govern- ment, the holy Francois Xavier preached his celebrated sermons to the Malays, and worked many extraordinary miracles among them, l)ut prophecies and wonders were, in this case useless, for the people closed their eyes and ears against ])oth ; and besides, the holy apostle of India had been forestalled at Malacca by active preachers, and the country had been conquered by a people who laughed to scorn all endeavours to convert these Gentiles to the Evangelical fiiith ; and although the natives were compelled to tortm^e themselves in many ways — and when they omitted to do this with the necessary fervour, were roasted before the fire, and rubbed with hot lard or Spanish wax — stiU all this was in vain, for Father Xavier 's miracles and sermons, blows and punishments, failed to produce the desired effect. The Dutch who succeeded the Portuguese, in- terfered less in this respect with their vjissals, and allowed them to believe whatever tliey pleased, but though so lenient and acconmiodating on tliis point, they made up for it by their violent and exacting conduct in other matters, in endeavom*- iug to ol)tain everytliing at the lowest possible price ; but after all, the Dutch yoke ])reased less lieavily upon the Malays, than that of the Portu- ENGLISH SUPEEMACY. 53 guese had done. It cannot be denied that the Malays have much reason to bless the manner in which they are now governed by the English, whose power is so gently wielded, that the na- tives are completely free to do what they please, and consult their own wishes entirely ; and in the year 1852, I knew many countries in Eiu*ope which would have rejoiced had they been governed by an administration so lenient and liberal as that of the Malays : the religious efforts of the English consist merely in distributing Bibles in the Malay language ; the volumes are universally sought ^ after, but I am convinced that they are little read. However, it must not be supposed that the means employed by the Em^opeans for the conversion of these obstinate Mussidmen, have been so badly conducted, as to cause this want of success, for the repugnance manifested by the believers in Islam- ism, to the truths of Christianity, is an inherent trait of character, natural to the Asiatic tribes ; if their opinions had been based on any other foundation than this, the sermons of Father Xa- vier would have converted the most headstrong. The natives of Malacca are mostly labom^ers or artisans of some kind — either in the working of metals, or in making clothes ; the trade of a joiner is very little followed, and these three occupations are the only ones unmolested by the Chinese. The labom-ers live almost entirely in the interior, where the principal cultiu"e is that of rice, the plantations of which are at some distance from the town, and to this circumstance the extreme salu- brity of Malacca may be attributed. It is said that the soil of this country is poor and unpro- ductive ; but this is probably the result of a com- 5i THE EICE HARVEST. parison between it and the provinces of Walesly, Penang and Sincapore. I was at Malacca dui'ing the time of the rice- harvest ; the fields were abundantly covered, and the slender stalk drooped with the weight of the full heavy grain ; the labom-ers seemed to work with spirit, assisted by their wives and children, while their yellow skins were exactly the same colour as the gi'ain ; at this time, there certainly was no appearance of infertility, and all the coun- try people to whom I talked, told me they were perfectly satisfied with the harvest. However, fruit and fish are much more general articles of food with the natives than rice, and aknost all their wants are supplied by the sea^ and the pro- duce of their orchards. There is no such thing at Malacca as a rich Malay, for all the inhabitants work for their living, if indeed, the term " work," can be applied to such fight occupations as theirs ; it is only in the countries of the Old World that labom* is hard and toilsome, for in the favoured lands of the far East, the soil abundantly repays the slightest attention bestowed upon it. The people of the coast look down with con- tempt upon the labom'S of the landsmen — the sea, which smiled on their birth, and cradled them in infancy upon its bosom, becomes, in after life, their scene of action, and they ;ii'e almost all mariners ; unfortunately, they are seldom satisfied with fol- lowing their ])rofession disinterestedly, and some- what deprive it of its practical sim])Hcity, by en- gaging in wild, lawless adventures, the aim of which is to find distant enemies, and victims whom they may rob and spoil with impunity. To speak correctly, the Chinese iU'e the best ofi:' A CHINESE CEMETERY. 55 of any people at Malacca — the most important branches of trade belong to them, and many of them spend considerable sums in commercial ne- gociations in the natural produce of the country — the perfect liberty they enjoy in this town has led them to adopt it almost as their own, and there are several Chinese families who have re- sided there for more than two hundred years. So great, indeed, is their predilection for Malacca, that whenever a Chinese makes a large fortune, and from various circumstances prefers not re- tm^ning to his native country, he invariably makes choice of this city as his final place of residence. I one day asked a merchant if he could assign a reason for tliis universal preference — '' Oh,'' he replied, smiling, "it is because there is such a beautiful cemetery at Malacca.'' And it must be confessed that the Chinese burial place here is both very handsome and in- teresting, situated as it is, on the summit of a high hill, planted with odoriferous arbuscles. The tombs are in the form of a horse shoe, the interior part of which is covered by a tablet of granite, upon which the inscription is engraved, and every year the sons of the deceased repair hither to perform certain rites and ceremonies at his tomb. The monuments are at some distance fr-om each other, and each one is shaded by branches of the ipomea, cystus, and rose, so that it is almost hidden by their graceful festoons. You reach the foot of the hill by following the road which stretches along the sea-shore, which is shaded by cocoa trees, the leaves of which echo the plain- tive and sonorous mm^murs of the waves. After visiting the cemetery at Malacca, one 56 THE CHINESE INHABITANTS. easily comprehends why the Chinese, who, when alive, are so fond of fine clothes, handsome houses, and good food, should have selected such a lovely situation for their last resting place. Tlie fii'st natives of China who arrived at Malacca, inter- married with the Malay women, but now, such alliances are never heai-d of, for the Chinese many only among their own tribe ; and so rigorously is tliis custom observed, that the wives of these singular men have precisely the same appearance as the women of Fo-Kien and Kuan-Tong, except that they do not follow the national fashion of compressing the feet. In short, they have founded at Malacca a sort of miniatui'e China, just as, in their apartments, they make a little imita- tion forest with dwarf trees, and the Chinese colony here is by no means the least interesting part of the country. Altogether, I have a sort of predilection for Malacca, and dming the four different times I have been there, have visited the same place over and over again : this prefer- ence is not very suiprising, for the town of Malacca was the first, in this country, occupied by Em-opeans — by the brave Portuguese, of whom I have, perhaps, spoken in rather disparaging terms, but whom I believe to possess many good qualities, for surely no people on eartli ever gave greater proofs of valour and intrepidity. For more than sixty years, forty thousand of them were able to keep at bay the whole of the neigh- bouring barbarous nations — the Ai'abs, Mame- lukes and Indians, from Onnuz to China ; and when we rememl)er the number of combatants, against whom they were engaged, we must PORTUGUESE MAGNANIMITY. 57 confess that the difficulties these hardy soldiers had to encounter were not few. In 1511, Albuquerque anchored at Malacca for the purpose of revenging the deaths of some Portuguese sailors ; but, on landing, he discovered that one of his dearest friends, named Arunjo, was a prisoner in the hands of the Sultan, and he was hesitating whether to commence the attack, or not, fearing, that if he did so, he might endanger the life of his friend ; but the latter secretly found means to have the following simple, but noble words conveyed to him — " Think only of the glory and welfare of Portugal. If I am unable to render you assistance, and become an instrument in the hands of victory, at least do not let me stand as an obstacle in your path.'' The assault was commenced — the town taken, and for one hundred years, Malacca continued the most flourishing place in the whole country, under the skilfol government of the Poi*tuguese. Even now, in the comparatively silent city of to day, every object is a souvenii* of former times ; the fort, which then protected the town and is now almost in ruins, once resisted the united attack of Patana, Achem, and Sumatra ; the delapidated enclosure has saved from death many of these brave adventurers — these glorious christ- ian demigods, of whom the Indians were wont to say — " They are something more than men ; but, fortunately, God has created but few of them, as he has done of lions and tigers, and therefore they will not be able to destroy the whole human race.'" The thresholds of the now deserted houses have been trodden by the rajahs of the country, reduced 58 THE DUTCH MODE OF CONQUEST. to the condition of humble vassals, and have yielded entrance to all the rich merchants of India, while the solitary streets have once re- sounded with the noise of the hea^y tons of gold which have rolled over their pavements ; every stone, indeed, carries its own peculiar interest along with it, for the wall of which it foi'med a part, was raised at the command of Albuquerque, and has listened to the holy sermons of Francois Xavier. The Portuguese kept possession of Malacca from 1511 to 1641 ; at that time, the Dutch mer- chants managed to corrupt the fidelity of the governor, and the miserable wretch yielded up the town into theii* hands. The Portuguese troops, who had no suspicion of the treason that was going on, flew to arms on the approach of the Dutch, and made a brave resistance, but were overpowered ; during the action, the perfidious Dutchmen treated the miserable wi-etch who had assisted them as might be expected, for they stabbed him to avoid paying the five hundi-ed thou- sand pounds they had promised him. When the principal actor in this ignominious victory found himself in the presence of the Portuguese forces, he insolently demanded of them — " When will your nation regain possession of this country V — " When your sins are greater than oui"s," was the simple reply of the Portuguese. At the present time, the merchants of the Hague have disappeared, and those of Londc>n have taken their ])lace at Malacca, but the expia- tion of Portugal is not yet at iui end ;!':i* m- . 54'l'lliilll''~''J ■'ill 59 CHAPTER II. SINCAPOEE. Thirty years ago Sincapore was not in existence ; a few Malay dwellings, situated upon the shore, and inhabited by pirates and fishermen, alone marked the spot upon which a flourishing town was to rise hereafter. English genius and spirit, and European activity, have founded this great city, and, ^vithout having recourse to any violent measm-es, have compelled the various Indian and Chinese tribes to make this their place of resi- dence, attracted only by the prospect of gain. But without the aid of one powerM auxiliary, the Eno^lish would not have been able, in less than thii^^y years, to establish a city contaimng seventy-five thousand souls, upon what was ahnost a desert place, and the irresistible aid to which they were so much indebted for succour was — liberty. In this place, the merchandize of every country is received free; the "Sincapore Free Press" offers the inhabitants a means of making every thing public ; and in the streets, (which are literally crammed with the produc- tions of ahnost every nation in the world), the Ionian, in his ample turban, the Bonze in his long flowing robe, and the half-naked priest, jostle against the Protestant minister, half strangled in his tight cravat, and the Catholic missionary^ shrouded in his cassock. Liberty in every thing., commercial, civil, and religious, strictly and faith 60 UNCO^mOX HONESTY. fally carried out, has attracted to tliis once unin- liabited spot a greater amount of population and riches, than the Spaniards, Portuguese, and Dutch, have been able to bring together at Goa, Manilla, and Java, with all their jealous laws, violent sys- tems and intolerant religion. As may be expected, the appearance of this town differs materially from that of most of the ancient Em'opean possessions. In former times, when the early navigators disem- barked at some convenient and attractive place, they took it by force, collected materials for build- ing a fort, and those who were the first to take possession of the conquered soil, surrounded the houses with an enclosm-e pierced with loop-holes, and furnished with cannon ; but the English have acted in a very different manner in this country, and have honourably bought the land they wished to possess. This mode of proceeding may be some- what simple and homely ; but it cannot be denied that it is more honest than the other ; indeed, it is strictly conformable to the laws of equity, al- though it seems, nevertheless, somewhat strange to OUT barbarous prejudices, for classical education compels us to consider the spoils of war and ai-ms as just and legitimate. In doing justice to the spirit of the English, I do not forget, that a little time ago, I was loudly singing the })raises of the brave Portuguese, while at tlie same time I nuist admit that they are tlie most lawless pirates that ever infested the seii. But we nuist be j)ardoned these little contradic- tions, in consideration of the bad education we received fi*om oui* forefathers, who were passionate admirers of the imperial epoch ; the rectitude of cm* own reason and connnon sense is often at WiU* COMMERCE OF SINCAPORE. 61 with the detestable prejudices they have trans- mitted us. The Enghsh have not therefore sur- rounded Sincapore with walls and battlements, for the houses are dispersed about in every part in the most independent manner, although they have paid sufficient attention to mihtary preju- dice to erect a small fort on a piece of land, which stretches out into the sea. However, the appear- ance of this building is by no means formidable, for its cannons are half rusty, and managed only by inoffensive Sepoys ; still this trifling military exhibition is sufficient to make the Malays be- lieve that the place is impregnable. The Syren anchored in the bay of Sincapore, just in front of the English part of the town. On visiting this immense port for the first time, nothing astonishes you so much as the incredible number of vessels of various kinds which float on the breast of the calm waters — every species of craft and floating machine invented since the dsiys of Noah, seem to have made this place a rendezvous — Chinese junks, looking hke floating arches — heavy Cochin-China vessels, barbarous imitations of Eiu-opean ships — proahs from Holo, as thin and slender as a graceful fish — light Arab boats — tub-like machines from Siam — steamboats belonging to the Company — the national colours of Holland, Spain, and Portugal, and last but not least, the French flag itself The first sight of Sincapore, fi^om the port, is delightful — its white houses are overshadowed by nutmeg and clove- trees, and each looks as if the builder had consult- ed only his own taste and fancy. The English town, a perfect bird's-nest in the midst of trees and flowers, is separated from the 62 THE LONDON HOTEL. commercial part by a kind of creek, whence issues a river which runs quite to the other end of the island. I stepped into a Malay pirogue for the purpose of gaining the shore ; the rowers struck their oars into the river, the narrow entrance of which is defended by the foi*t I have before mentioned, and landed me on the right bank. As the London Hotel had been pointed out to me as the best boarding-house in the city I im- mediately repaired thither. The master of this hotel, M. de Dutroncoy is a singular character, who pretends to be either French, English, or Dutch, according to the convenience of the mo- ment, and suits his conversation and manners even to the most distinguished linguists. As soon as I made my appearance he advanced to- wards me, hat in hand, and glancing at an enor- mous parcel which I was carrying, said, with a slight smile — '' Ah, Monsieur is undoubtedly a Frenchman.'' I replied in the affirmative, addressing M. Du- troncoy by liis name. " Ah ! does Monsiem^ know my name ? Well, I am not surprised at it though I am not vain ; I myself ought to be considered a Frencliman."' Indeed, are you a fellow-countryman ?" Mon Dieu, no ! I have wandered about the world so much. Monsieur, that upon my word, I liave almost forgotten whence I started ; but as I said before, I ought to be French, for 1 am very fond of coffee, and adore Napoleon.'' I could not contradict such convincing pi'oofs as these, and lield out my hand to my fellow-country- man, wlio led me to a charming little room on the ground-llonr, as humble as the cell of an anchorite, LODGINGS AT SINGAPORE. 63 with white walls ; two bamboo chairs, a large ba- sin of Chinese porcelain, a table and bed, were the only articles of farniture it contained. The beds at Sincapore are worth a few words of description — they consist of a sort of large frame covered with a species of wrapper, and fur- nished with a palm-mat, and two bolsters — upon this you lie down to rest, attired in what is term- ed a moresque (a large pair of pantaloons made of Bengal cloth), while the fresh air which circu- lates freely round the apartment, contributes to the comfort of your repose. M. Dutroncoy's hotel stands in the middle of an immense garden, full of fine tropical trees — the walls are thickly studded with windows, placed very near each other, and filled with ample stores of bamboos, which give the house the appearance of a pigeon-cot. On the evening of my arrival, I went to dine with M. Balestier, the United States Consul, who is celebrated at Sincapore for his universal hospi- tality. His house stands rather to the east of the city, near to a large village called Campon-Glan, situated in the centre of a large sugar-cane plan- tation. The avenues leading to the house are shaded by cotton-trees, bananas, and pine-apples, the golden fruit of which rises from a tuft of beautifrii green leaves. I went to M. Balestier's residence in a palanquin. To those who have never visited Sincapore or Penang, the name of palanquin does not con- vey the idea of a vehicle drawn by a horse ; and persons not acquainted with these parts, are apt to imagine it one of those coffin-like machines in which the living are imprisoned at Calcutta ; one 64 THE couriers' journeys. of the clunxsy imsiglitly boxes canied by porters, in which the Indian Nabobs generally make their long journeys. But in tliis part of the world, the word palanquin is applied to a kind of long chest, placed on four wheels : this car, which will only hold two persons facing each other, is supplied -wdth Venetian blinds, freely admitting the air, and covered with a tissue of very light textm-e. A courier, called here a says, holds the head of the horse to direct its movements, and excite it to speed. These men are generally either miserable Bengalees, or the very poorest of the Malays, and a painfril sight it is to see these poor fellows, who are usually emaciated, debilitated by poverty and A^Tctchedness, running about for hours to- gether, until they are weary and breathless : their costume is of the most simple kind ; their feet and legs are naked, their chests uncovered, and their hair is concealed under a cotton handker- chief, rolled like a turban round the head : the only other garment they wear is a pair of drawers, fastened round the waist, and descending no further than the knees. It was quite dark when I reached M. Balestier's house. Chinese domestics, in white dresses, and witli long queues behind, were passing to and fro with lighted torches ; and an Indian servant, in a long white robe and muslin turban, conduct- ed me to the presence of the master of the liouse. The Americans and English are certainly the only ])eople in the world who know liow to live pr()])erly ; and their love of comfort and luxury suggests to them a thousand refinements, whicli are unknown to us. They have tlie tact t-o ado])t all the most agi'eeable customs of every nation, HIGH LIFE IN SINGAPORE. 65 whilst our fellow-coiintrymen, whether officers or merchants, are afraid to take such deep root in any foreign land. I was conducted to the first-floor, and crossed a splendid verandah, briUiantly lighted up by glass globes filled with cocoa-nut oil, and entered a long gallery containing five immense rooms, separated from each other by light partitions, and lighted with wax candles, contained in glass vessels. Into this gallery, Madame Balestier has collect- ed all the rarities and curiosities of India and China ; not only have the most able artisans of this country contributed their share in works of art, but the natural productions, both of earth and sea, are to be found there. Each of the apartments in this spacious gallery, seemed to be set apart for a different purpose ; in one, was a vast library, composed of valuable books in almost every European language ; in anotlier, a collec- tion of shells, arranged in cabinets of polished ebony ; a third, contained specimens of sculptme, in sandal-wood and Chinese bamboo, Indian cm-iosities, and curious paintings, representing Brahminical ceremonies, and the transformations of Buddha. The English and American guests assembled at M. Balestier's, comprised all the elite of Sincapore, of both sexes. After a sixty days' voyage, the monotony of which had experienced no interrup- tion, except that of a short sojom-n among the barbarians of Malacca, I was not a little delight- ed to find myself once more in European society, and that too, in one of the fairy palaces of the East : the dazzling lights, the Asiatic luxiuy of everything around, the soft perfrimed atmosphere, F 66 DOMESTIC GUNNERS. and the presence of so many delightful persons, almost turned my head ; and these feelings of pleasm'e were by no means diminished, when Madame Balestier requested me to lead to the table a lovely young English girl, who spoke French with all the puiity of a Parisian. The dining-room was on the gi'ound floor, the large windows which opened into the garden, allowed free entrance to the delicious perfmne of the flowers without, and now and then during the evening, the luminous insects of the night flew about the apartment, looking like precious stones gifted with the power of motion and ani- mation. In the four corners of this immense room, stood young Chinese domestics, employed in working very large fixns, painted in various colours, the manufacture of which has been fcilsely ascribed to the Japanese, but they are, in reality, Indian, and are made from the leaves of a paili- cular kind of palm-tree. Each gentleman had an Indian servant behind his chair. They were re- markably attentive, and were di-essed in white tunics, while on their bare feet they wore massive rings of brass, or silver. The ladies were waited upon by Chinese children, of twelve or fifteen. These domestics were extremely cleanly in their appearance, and the queue was also in good order, while their garments were of unsulhed whiteness, and their pantaloons fastened with rose-coloured ribands. Tlieir flices had a mild, intelHgent ex- pression, and they seemed anxious to anticipate every want of their charming mistresses. I ought to remark tliat these children, wlio are so exqui- sitely neat in their appearance, whose manners and air are so pleasing, and who are dressed with A FRIENDLY SHOWER. 67 such elegance, are not exactly servants, as theii^ duties bear a great resemblance to those of the little pages who attended upon the fair ladies of the olden time ; and on examining the one who specially waited upon the charming young lady, seated at my side, I was forcibly reminded of Jehan de Saintre, except that his prototype was of a somewhat yellowish complexion. These lit- tle fellows fill the place of /emmes de chamhre to the English ladies, and are entrusted with the task of lacing their boots, holding up their dresses, &;c. ; but as soon as they attain the age of four- teen, they are dismissed from this agreeable con- dition of servitude, and are replaced by younger children. We dined in the French fashion, that is to say, the gentlemen accompanied the ladies from the dinner-table, and the evening's enter- tainment was prolonged to a late hour. Just as the guests were preparing to depart, there was a vivid flash of lightning, the wind sighed heavily among the trees and canes, and a loud peal of thunder was accompanied, by a tre- mendous shower. This lasted for more than half an hour, and had scarcely ceased, when the poor -says, drenched to the skin, appeared before the door of the mansion, holding the heads of the horses belonging to the palanquins. So obe- diently were these poor wretches trained, that, notwithstanding the heavy rain, they dared not have stopped by the way to take shelter. I was about to return to Sincapore, when Madame Ba- lestier requested to speak to me. ■I^We are very anxious,'' said the good lady, *' to keep you amongst us as long as possible. Do not go back to Sincapore to-night, for M. f2 68 AN INVITATION. Wampou, a neighbour of ours, is desirous you should remain with him. Let me prevail upon you to accept his offer, and to-moiTOw M. Ba- lestier will accompany you in a visit to the Malay town/' Under the impression that M. Wampou must be one of the guests Avhom I had met at dinner, I requested that Madame would introduce me to him, that I might have the opportunity of thank- ing him for his polite invitation. " Oh,'' rephed Madame Balestier, smiling, " our Mend, M. Wampou, is not present ;'' adding, " he is a Chinese merchant.'' That a Chinese merchant should entertain such hospitable feelings towards me, astonished me greatly, and, of com^se, I did not hesitate a mo- ment. So Madame Balestier summoned her little at- tendant, Atay, who conducted me to my palan- quin ; two Indians, with torches, accompanied me, and in about three minutes I found myself at M. Wampou's residence. Scarcely had I alighted from my palanquin, when I was saluted with a most vigorous " Hur- rah !" thrice repeated, and a " France and Old England for ever !" A Hindoo servant now advanced towai'ds me, and bowing profoundly, recjuested me to follow him. I did so, and was presently introduced to a party of three English officers, seated at a table on the terrace, with a bowl of iced i)unch before tlu'in. Tliey rose on my entrance, and after shaking hands, and exchanging the usuid salutations of THE INTERPRETER. 69 — " How d ye do V &c., we tried to carry on a conversation, wliich, however, we soon found ra- ther difficult, as they knew no more of French than I did of English. As this state of affairs was somewhat awkward, we endeavoured to console om-selves by singing " God save the Queen,'' each taking a verse, and giving it in his native tongue, and were proceeding gloriously, by no means for- getting to pay due honour to the bowl of iced punch, when an unexpected succour arrived, in the shape of the Indian who had introduced me to the presence of my companions. With a very low bow he came up to me and said — " You do not understand English, Mon- sieur ? *' Not a word,'' I replied. " Then, if you will allow me, I will act as your interpreter. I do not like these gentlemen should imagine, that because you do not under- stand their language, they may say what they like in your presence." *' But," I inquired, " how is it that you are so well acquainted with French ?" " How is it. Monsieur ! because I am a French- man myself." " Is it possible ! — and where do you come from ?" " From Chandernagor, Monsiem* — my name is Ali ; M. Wampou sent me here to attend upon you ; and as you are a countryman of my own, I shall be happy to do any thing I can for you." The man who stood before me was very tall and thin, with a complexion almost black, large bright eyes, an aquiline nose, and very white teeth. He wore a large gay-coloured tm^ban, two fine dia- 70 THE FRENCH IN INDIA. monds sparkled in his ears, and his figure was concealed by a long robe and pair of pantaloons, which fell over his bare feet. His appearance seemed to amuse the Englishmen very much ; but for my own part, I gi'ew sad as I looked at him, and bitterly lamented the decay of our power and influence in the country in which this man was born ; besides there was something noble and af- fecting in the warm attachment the poor Indian displayed for France, which was not without its effect upon me, particularly when I reflected, that few of my countrymen were aware, that there existed in India such a wreck of their former power there, as Chandernagor and Pondicheiy ; and yet I have no doubt, that if these poor sou- venirs of the past were to be demanded of our nation to-morrow, in exchange for some advan- tage to be conceded to the colonies of the Antillas or Bourbon, the French people would consent to the proposition. The French inhabitants of India are not in the same condition as the degraded negi'oes, but on the contrary, have the misfortune to retain all the feelings and manners of civilization, though the law-givers of France have overlooked them, and treated them with contempt. I should like to impress on my ultra-aboli- tionist friends, that tlie civilized population of India has much more right to the benefits of emancipation than the blacks, who have had no education to fit them for any condition but their ])resent one. It wa.s three in the morning wlien Ali conduct- ed me to my apartment ; on the first day of my sojourn at Malacca, I had been deprived of my DOMESTICS IN SINGAPORE. 71 dinner, but at Sincapore I liad spent four hours at that meal ; at the former place I could not re- tire to rest because I had no bed, but at the latter, two were placed at my disposal — facts which disposed me very decidedly in favour of civiKsation, for however picturesque a country in a state of barbarism mav be, mere attractions of this kind are not substantial enough to satisfy the European. On the following morning, Ali entered my apartment bringing me the real English gentle- man s breakfast — a cup of tea with cream in it : the subdued rays of the bright sun were just straying through the Chinese windows, and the perftimed breeze rendered my charming little cell delightfully fresh. Not knowing the hour, and fearing to keep M. Bales tier waiting, I said to Ali — " How must I manage about getting to M. Balestier's residence, and going thence to Sincapore ?" '' Your palanquin is waiting for you Monsieur," answered the Indian ; " at least it will be ready in a few minutes." " Ah ! that is all right — when did it arrive V " It has been here all night, as we thought you might probably want it very early." " And the horse V ^' Oh, that was let loose, and has been grazing about on the premises." " But where has the says slept ? And who has provided his food V " How anxious Monsieur is about his says — most likely he went to sleep, if he felt tired, and had something to eat if he could find any rice." " But luJiere did he sleep ?" 72 PKEJUDICES OF CASTE. " Where ! perhaps on the door step, on the gi'ound, or in the corridor ; I really do not know. — How is it that Monsieiu* is so anxious to know where the says has slept V As he spoke All opened one of the windows, and added — " There Monsieur is the says about whom you ai'e so much interested — he is walking in the garden." The says was a young Bengalee of about twen- ty, black as a coal, tall, thin, and su})ple, very feeble in appearance, and with a European cast of face ; when he accompanied me with the palan- quin, he was thi^ee-parts naked, but he was now enveloped in a long robe of fine muslin, much the worse for wear ; he was positively shivering be- neath this fragile garment, and seemed to enjoy basking in the rays of the sun. — " Go and ask that man if he is hungiy," said I to the Indian. " That would be quite useless, Monsieur, for the Bengalee is always hungry," replied Ali, briefly ; " and seldom satisfies his appetite com- pletely." However he called the says, who answered, " that he certainly was very liungiy, for he had nothing to eat since noon-tide yesterday." I immediately took up the American biscuit wliicli had been brought me, and ottered it to liim, but to my great astonishment he refused, and Ali who stood by, smiling at my surprise, said, " Monsieur must not touch the biscuit, or tlie Bengalee will not eat it." " Tlien give him a piece of meat, some rice, or anything lie will eat." Ali hjustened to obey me, and offered the says some meat, from which, Iiowever, lie recoiled with evident honor. — '• TliLs man is really a good Ben- MOSLEM PREJUDICES. 73 galee," observed Ali, laughing ; " for he will not eat flesh." " Well then, give him some rice/' But to this offer the says replied — " That he should like it very much indeed, but he had not a vessel to cook it in, and he could not eat any food which had been prepared by one not of his own cast/' " Then let the scrupulous fool go to the devil V I exclaimed, when Ali interpreted this answer, " and tell him to put my horse in the palanquin/' The poor says seemed to understand my re- mark without having it translated to him, for he tiirned away with a sorrowful smile. However, my countryman from Chandernagor was a good- hearted fellow, and offered the Bengalee two bananas, which were joyfully accepted. He tm-ned his back to us — sat down in the sunshine, and devoured the poor pittance with extreme avidity. I watched him with great interest, and then turning to Ali, asked him to what caste he himself belonged. *' I am a Mussulman," he answered proudly, '' and consider all men equal." " Then you eat any thing, and with any body r '* Certainly ; but I would not touch the flesh of any animal that had been killed by a Christian." " Indeed ! well, you see I am not so scrupu- lous, and therefore you must take care to cook me a chicken for my breakfast to-morrow." M. Wampou's establishment was much smaller than that of M. Balestier, but was fitted up with the same elegance and comfort, and the garden, i^hich surrounded the house, was in excellent 74 A SABLE APOLLO BELYIDERE. order, the borders being planted with pine- apples, the sweet perfume of which filled the air around. On my asking Ali how much a pine-apple was worth at Sincaj)ore, he merely repUed, by telling the says that he might gather one by way of finishing his repast, which was, of coui'se, a proof that they were considered of very little value. After he had plucked it, the Indian covered it with salt, and I found that the natives of Sinca- pore never eat it in any other way, on account of its being extremely unwholesome. As soon as I rejoined M. Balestier, we set out for Sincapore, and the Consul requested me to enter the carriage with liim, not wishing any guest of his to follow him in a common palanquin. After we were comfortably seated, and proceeding along the road to Sincapore, I happened, by chance, to look at the says who conducted us, and must confess that I was struck with astonislmient as I did so, for I have scarcely ever seen such a perfect model of beauty as this young Indian : he possessed just that youthful spiritual style of face and figm-e, which the Greek sculptors have immor- talized in their poetical statues of Gan3rmede and Endymion : his long silky hair feU in natural cm'Ls over his weU-formed shoulders, and liis blue eyes, with their long dark lashes, and languid expression, as well as his finely-formed limbs, were as delicate and beautiful Jis those of a woman ; the only drawback to tlie Ganymede of Sincapore was, tliat he w«is ;is black as ebony ; but this Avas of little im})ortance, for let pliilosopliers say what tliey will, no one could have examined this young Bengalee, and doubted for a moment that God SINGAPORE TRADERS. 75 had cast his limbs in the same mould as those of the worshipped divinities of Greece ; and if we had not outlived the age of miracles and fables, I should have imagined that Siva, the god of eter- nal youth, had been expelled the Indian Olympus for some misdemeanor, and compelled to watch over the progress of the Em^opeans in India ; for, in spite of the privations and miseries of his con- dition, oui' handsome guide, who wore no clothing except a pair of loose white pantaloons, fastened with a red scarf, was no bad type of a demi-god swimming in a river of gold, as he ran by our side, enveloped in an atmosphere of sandy dust. In passing out of the European part of Sinca- pore to the commercial quarter, we crossed two bridges built over a very muddy river : the com- mercial town is nothing less than a permanent bazaar, full of great entrepots, and shops, and it is divided into several portions according to the population by which it is inhabited : there are EngUsh, Chinese, Indian, and Malay streets ; ex- traordinary activity and animation reign through- out ; and in this city the useless and ineffectual quarrels of the West, are replaced by the general struggle for commercial wealth and power. The phlegmatic Englishmen, in their immense shops, order everything with almost military precision, and overlook their numerous workmen as they heap up large quantities of pepper, clear away the refuse from the nutmeg, stow away the cloves into sacks, and fold up, or unpack the various stuffs and articles of wearing apparel. The Chi- nese, too, have a very differeint appearance ft-om that which distinguishes them at Malacca — they are no longer to be seen indolently sitting on 76 HINDOO TRADERS. tlieir coffins and smoking, contemplating the pros- pect of a future life, and yet enjoying to the very full, all the comfoi'ts and luxuries of the present ; but here, the sons of the Celestial Empire walk about the streets with a thoroughly business-like air, their sharp eyes on the watch, their necks bent forward — all alike in search of gain of some kind. That part of the city which is inhabited by them, is distinguished by its strong appear- ance, and the numljer of signs and marks they make use of ; indeed, they may be called the very spiders of commerce, extending their nets in every direction, seizing upon every poor stupid fly that passes, and wi-inging from him all he possesses. Even the Hindoos themselves throw off a little of their habitual nonchalence, in the alleys with cloth awnings in which their shops are situated ; their voices may be heard, ciying their different kinds of merchandise, and vaunt- ing forth their superiority in fine speeches taken, most likely, from the pages of their journals. Next to Canton, Sincapore is certainly the first commercial town in the far East, and it gives us an idea of the bustle and motion which once dis- tinguished the European magazines in India and the Spice Islands. The Malays are more rarely seen here than any other people, and it is said that the numerous tribes which have from time to time established themselves in this country, have driven out the primitive possessors of it. M. Balestier now conducted me to the establish- ment of M. Wampou, wliich might really be re- garded as a triumph of human industry, for in all this immense mass, M. Wampou's magazine ([uite put in the shade all the other com|ucsts of in- A CHINESE TRADER. 77 dustry and art. At Brazil I had seen enormous entrepots, in which the most dissimilar articles were all huddled together, in a sort of commercial chaos ; but here, that love of order, which is one great characteristic of the Chinese, has remedied this, and if, for instance, you want a pair of shoes, you are immediately supplied with specimens of every kind, from the thickest boot to the thinnest soled article, with sandals and slippers ; everything indeed was to be found at this shop, not even ex- cepting powder of every kind. The proprietor of the establishment received me in the most gen- tlemanly manner, requested me to make myself quite at home in his house, and in honour of my visit, opened a bottle of champagne, which, con- sidering it did not come fi'om MontebeUo, was really very good. In short, I left the place, en- chanted with M. Wampou, and quite determined to make use of his polite invitation. M. Balestier gave me the history of this rich merchant, which was, in fact, that of aU the Chinese emigrants. He arrived at Sincapore, after visiting Manilla and Java, very poor ; in- deed, without any resources. By means of energy, economy, and perseverance, he first realized a competency, and finally became very rich, for which reason, he was extremely unpopular in the country. M. Balestier took me into a great many shops ; amongst others, into that of an Arab merchant, a very tall man of about sixty-five, with a noble and dignified manner ; with his white beard and calm serene countenance he looked like one of those venerable figures which sometimes appear in the form of good genii, in the fanciftd tales 78 THE HADGI. of the Arabs. His costume consisted of a white garment made in the Turkish fashion, and a green turban, which indicated that he had made a pilgi'image to the tomb of the Great Prophet. I had often heard that the Hadgis were treated with a respect almost approaching to adoration by the Malay Mussulmen, and I had now an op- portunity of witnessing this fact myself, for no one entered this shop, not a workman belonging to it, a customer, or an Indian Mussulman, with- out making a low reverence to the merchant, and humbly kissing his hand ; the Hadgi received all these salutations with perfect dignity, never speaking a word, but contented himself with the slightest possible movement by way of acknow- ledgment, and continued to stroke down his long white beard, and admire his right hand, the fingers of which were loaded with large diamonds. The shop of this Arab was redolent with perfume — the air we breathed was heavy with all the rich scents of Arabia, and the still more enerva- ting ones of India and China — sandal wood and aloes, the precious balms distilled from the East- ern trees, essences from Mecca and Delhi, and musk from Tonquin, combined to form an atmo- sphere so oppressive as to cause an irresistible feeling of di-owsiness : and here I saw, for the first time, the Malay camphor, known by the name of cwpour harous : this precious substance is found in the island of Sumatra, beneath tlie bark of a large tree, which is called by naturalists, the dvyahalanos camphora ; the Chinese attri- bute most astonishing ciuaHties to this ai'ticle, and will exchange an immense quantity of their own cam})hor fur a pound of that of the Malays. I left MALAYS AT SINGAPORE. 79 the- Hadgi mercliant's shop with a violent head-- ache, for its atmosphere was so highly scented with perfumes and odoriferous substances of all kinds, that it was fit for the gods alone. ^ > M. Balestier now proposed that we should visit the Malay houses, wliich stood a little way out of the town in the midst of a muddy river which runs from the upper part of the island, and emp- ties itself into the sea. It seems strange at first, that houses thus situated should not be extreme- ly unhealthy, but on reflection there certainly is . no good reason why tliis should be the case, for the Malay dwellings being elevated on long poles, are prevented fi'om becoming damp, and are merely enveloped sometimes by the mist which rises on the surface of the water, in which there is nothing deleterious, for the tide rises every day and cleanses the bed of the river, carrying away any refuse which may have lodged in it. Besides the mixture of fresh and salt water does not cause insalubrity, unless the former prevail so much as to render it impossible for the living creatures which inhabit the sea to exist therein : in that case, a mass of putrefaction would be ge- nerated, sufficient to taint the whole atmosphere around. But at Sincapore, the river is not large, and the feeble tribute which it pays the sea, has no effect whatever on the finny inhabitants of the latter. This city is built just in the same man- ner as Achem, Holo, and several others in the Malay Archipelago, all of which are extremely healthy, although most of the houses are elevated on the stakes which are daily washed by the tide. In this part of Sincapore are the sago manufac- tories ; this substance, as every body knows, is 80 PREPARATION OF SAGO. obtained from the pith of a kind of palm tree, which grows abundantly in Sumatra, Borneo, and the Celebes. The trunks of these trees are con- veyed to Sincapore, and the mealy sediment is extracted in the following mamier : — they first split the block of wood longitudinally, and with a sharp knife remove the matter which forms the centre ; the latter is then put into a large sieve with some water, the mealy substance is thus drained off, and the ligaments are left ; of course the sediment sinks to the bottom of the vessel in which it is placed, and the water is then removed to allow it to dry ; it is then spread out upon bamboo hurdles, and when the water has nearly evaporated, the mealy paste is put into a copper vessel, placed on a very hot fire ; this operation is rapidly efiected with the hand, and its object is to reduce the paste into Httle globides, rather larger than the nonpareils of the confectioners, but in other respects very similar to them. The preparation of sago is principally managed by Malay women, and when we arrived, they were just in the act of executing this latter opera- tion ; the metal plates were placed on a furnace, and the women, drenched in perspiration, worked with great rapidity ; they were young girls of from fifteen to twenty years of age. After inspecting the whole of the process, I ac- companied M. Balestier to the connnercial town, where we walked about until the evening in wide airy streets, our attention being constantly attracted by the various scenes going on around us ; on one side were gi'oups of children of all shades and colours, black, white, and yellow, form- ing a sort of living embroidery on the soil upon THE SACRED TEMPLES. 81 which they were seated ; Chinese tradespeople, followed by a troop of idle gazers, and carrying, suspended to the end of a bamboo, dangerous- looking prisoners, in the shape of boas, apes, ti- gers, &c., but very well guarded. Sometimes we met English merchants, dealing in birds' eggs, fins of different species of the shark, and those sea worms, known by the name of holothuries, which are considered such dainties by the Chinese ; fur- ther on were some Malay workmen, exposing for sale various little bijoux, cm-iously carved, some made of coloured brass, the gay hues of which made them resemble butterflies' wings. We entered a mean-looking Indian temple, in which a few men, clothed in rags, were spreading flowers around the statues and deserted altar ; their wretched appearance was the living image of the miserable condition of the unhappy Ben- galee. We then turned into a mosque frequented by the Malays and Indian Mussulmen, but it contained nothing remarkable ; a pool of greenish water was pointed out as the place for ablution, but it looked more fit for the abode of frogs, than for any pm^poses of cleansing. Of all these reli- gious edifices, the richest and most elegant is the Chinese Pagoda, the roof of which is indented and ornamented with pieces of coloured porcelain, representing all kinds of fantastical animals, produced by the whimsical brains of the native artisans. At the entrance two dragons in granite are placed as sentinels, each holding in his half- open mouth, a moveable ball, of singular work- manship, made by the patient and industrious artists of Fo-kien. The luxury of this edifice is a proof that the G 82 A MOSLEM SCHOOL. worshippers of the God Fo are the most opulent of the various religious sects at Sincapore, but at the same time, the solitude of the temple tells ua that they are not the most devout. The Chinese, who are the most jealous people on earth, bear some resemblance to the French in one circum- stance ; the French are exceedingly fond of build- ing splendid chm'ches, but they seldom enter them ; so the Chinese pay their bonzes well, but attend very little to what they teach them. The Pagoda of Sincapore is built in imitation of one of those at Amoz, but as I shall so fi^equently have occasion to notice these Bhuddic temples, I will not waste further time in descriljing this one. Whilst walldng about the Malay streets, I heai'd, as I passed the door of a rather good-looking house, the voices of some children, who were ap- parently reciting a lesson. Climbing the Avooden staircase in the front of this dwelling, I found myself in the midst of a large saloon, in which was an old Malay, with a white beard, seated on the floor, and surrounded by a dozen or more children, grouped together in a similar attitude, chanting a kind of psalm, the words of which ap- peared to be wi'itten on a piece of paper. My sudden appearance seemed far fi-om disa- greeable to the young scholars, for they looked at me with great curiosity, and began to laugh and chuckle amongst themselves. Everything ap- peared to be conducted on the same principle a^j that ])ursiu!d with the classes in Em'opean Schools. The old Malay did not rise at my entrance, but made a kind of siilaam, which his pu})ils imitated, ARABIC FAITH. 83 and then, with another bow, called my attention to the book lying before him. " What book is this ?" I asked. " The Koran,'' he replied. "In the Malay language V " No, seigneur, in Arabic."' " Then you understand that tongue f '' I do not understand it, but I can read the characters very well." " But what is the use of reading words, the meaning of which you do not comprehend V " By reading them constantly, my pupils get them by heart, and the believers in the prophet ought to commit these words to memory, and to repeat them often, as they are endowed with very great and remarkable virtues." " But would it not be much better to learn them in your own language ? It appears to me useless to get by heart what you do not under- stand, for the w^ords alone cannot possess any vii-tue." " The prophet wrote his laws in Arabic, and therefore, it is in that tongue that we ought to study it, for, in translating it, much of the origi- nal sense might be lost ; besides, it would be a sacrilege." w Is not this simple faith something like that of our forefathers ? for does the villager understand the prayer which he morning and evening re- peats ? Besides, are there not in Europe many Christians who consider it wrong to translate the Holy Scriptures into the vulgar tongue ? During all this time, I had not seen M. Dutron-^ coy, and when I again made my appearance at his residence, he welcomed me so eagerly, and said so g2 84 AN AFFECTING APPEAL. much about the impatience with which he had awaited my arrival, that I tliought perliaps he might be in want of my professional services, and jocosely asked him whether he wished me to ex- tract a tooth, to cut off his leg or finger, or to bleed him ; but he replied, that he did not require my aid in anjrthing of this kind, although he wanted to speak to me about sometliing quite as important, and on being requested to state his wishes, he proceeded to observe, that he wa.s very anxious I should consent to undertake a work of charity, by adopting a poor orphan whom he knew. " My dear sir,'' I exclaimed, " what can you be thinking of? Do you suppose I have come to Sincapore to play the part of St. Vincent de Paul.'' " Ah, no ! but, rtion Lieu ! Monsiem-, without being a St. Vincent, could you not for once adopt a poor orphan ?" " I do not deny that I could do it, but I have no wish to adopt any one. If, indeed, every poor unfortunate bachelor were to act thus to every child who was said to be an orphan, why, he would soon have at least twenty to suppoi't. Let those who like to adopt children, do so, by all means ; but, pray leave me in peace !" " But, Monsieur, I assure you, that if you knew the history of my "protege, you would be inter- ested in it, and, perhaps " " Well, then, j^ray don't tell me anything about it, for fear I should be softened by the tale ; and do go and get me a l)ottle of ginger-beer." M. Dutroncoy left the room, and presently re- tm'ned with two bottles in his hand. A Malay THE PATHOS INCEEASES. 85 servant placed two glasses upon a table standing underneath a large tree, which completely over- shadowed it, and M. Dutroncoy seated himself opposite me. " Mine host" had, in a general way, a merry, jovial appearance, but just now, there was quite a melancholy expression upon his face, and with a very deep sigh, he remarked — " Then you have really decided that you will have nothing to do with this child. Alas ! there are certainly some people in this world born under an unlucky star ! I had so reckoned upon your compliance with my request." " But, why on earth should you fix on me, ra- ther than any one else. It was marvellously polite of you, to be sure V '^ I did so, because ^but, however, it is of no use talking any more about it, poor child ! How unfortunate it is I Did you ever hear of the Dayaks, doctor V " Yes ; there are some tribes so called in Bor- neo, I believe." " Well, these people are as great cannibals as tigers, I believe. They tried to catch me once, but I escaped them. However, the parents of this unhappy child have not been so fortunate." '' Well, M. Dutroncoy, let us hear all about it." " Oh, it is a very simple tale, as indeed, it must of necessity be, in a country in which everything goes on in such a primitive manner. — The father of this child " " Oh !" I interrupted, " but I wanted to hear about your adventure." " It will be nearly the same thing, and I want to tell you about the child — his Either, a very S6 VAIN PRECAUTIONS. brave man, with whom I was acquainted, lived far away from the haunts of men, in the bosom of the gi'een forest, and had chosen this retired spot that he might lead a contemplative Ufe, accompanied by his wife, to whom he was tender- ly attached ; he constructed a charming little habitation with the intertwined branches of trees, a modest retreat, containing nothing but a couch of fern and soft moss, which was the throne of the idolized wife, whose presence enlivened and embellished eveiything/' '-.o'f^ You are poetical, M. Dutroncoy," I observed. *^' '' Yes, Doctor, like most people who have seen and thought a good deal. To continue : with a degree of prudence, wliich cannot be too much praised, he had built his dwelling in such a man- ner as to prevent, in some measure, the unpleasant incursions of the tigers wliich infested the forest in gi^eat numbers ; the perfamed branches of the beautiful tree descended almost to the grormd, and by managing to support themselves by means of this scale -ladder, the happy couple maintained the secm^ity of their habitation. - :.\,*^ My fi'iend, for by that name I love to dis- tinguish the unfortunate man whose son is under my care, was accustomed to make excm-sions of an acquisitive kind, in the neighbourliood of a Dayak village, the inliabitants of which, already half cormpted by a state of civilisation, made great complaints, that tlie potatoes and bananjis which tliey ])retended to have planted, Avere con- stantly stolen, and my fiiend wtui known to have occasional interviews with some of the natives. " One day,'whilKt canying on a conversation with one of them, a jealous rival shot him in the aide. THE CATASTROPHK 87 and he died immediately. His poor wife, dis- tressed at his prolonged absence, gave way to her gTief for a long time, in useless lamentation, but I need not say in vain, for no voice answered her sad complaint ; however, as one cannot do without dinner, not even when one's husband has departed this life, she went out, sad and dejected, with her child in her arms, to procure some of the bananas, in the search for which her unfortunate husband had met with his death. Alas ! she shared his fate ; for the Dayaks were roused, and on the watch ; and neither the imploring gestures of the miserable creature, nor the beauty of the terrified child, could soften the hearts of these flinty wi'etches : they let fly theii* arrows at the unliappy widow, who died on the spot, com- mending her child to the genius of the forest. A protestant minister took care of it, and placed it under my protection, and I had hoped you would have adopted if M " Then, do you still entertain that hope?" f;'«"' Certainly, doctor — I never give up a good work so easily ; besides, it will not be much trouble to you to come and see my poor frotege, and his infantine grace will be more eloquent than anything I can say about him.'' vm .»; "MWell, then, if you really wish it so very much, I will go and look at liim," I rephed, rising. ^liiiiGod be praised !" exclaimed Dutroncoy, as he preceded me ; " my project will succeed after all — I knew it would be so, for it was written on high, I think I see you abeady, doctor, protect- ing and caressing the innocent creatui^e." , . And so saying, my enthusiastic host conducted 88 THE APPEAL IS SUCCESSFUL. me to a kind of pavilion at the bottom of the court-yard, and pushing open the door, said abruptly, " There, go in — 1 am delighted to introduce you/' " But, where is he ? I don't see him/' " You don't see him ! why — look there I" '' The deuce 1" I exclaimed ; you have })layed me some trick — there is no one in the pa\dlion/' " No one there, do you say V said M. Dutron- coy ; " well, well, you shall see/' And he entered the place, took up a sort of cage made of bamboo, and placing it before me, said — " There is no one in the pavilion, is there ! Well, do you still think so ? I looked at the cage, and descried, through the canework, a poor little being, crouched do^vTi in the bottom of it, turning towards me its melan- choly and supplicating eyes. The Kmbs of the poor little ci-eature were very thin, and the abdomen and lower parts extremely prominent ; the forehead was high, the nose flat, and the mouth very large, wliilst the traces of sorrow were strongly marked upon its dejected coimte- nance. It extended to me its little brown hand, which I pressed affectionately, and contented myself with this mute dialogue, as I did not know in what language to address it, fen- the poor little ori)han was, in reality, a young ourano^-outanrr, about whom I sludl have more to say presently. On the spot, and without a moment's hesitation, I swore, by the bald head of '' mine host," to act JUS a father towards the little orj^han of Borneo, to educate him, according to liis cipacity, and to supply him with food, lodging, raiment, and THE ARISTOCRAT OF THE WOODS. 89 everything he might require, and 'never was a vow more scrupulously ftiliilled, for, from that time, the poor outcast shared freely in my food and shelter, and, if not the confidant of all my inmost thoughts, he was, at least, the witness of all my actions ; in short, I acted the part of Mentor to this hairy Telemachus, who accom- panied me in all my travels through Cliina and India. By general consent of all the Indian nations, the oin-ang-outang is universally allowed to be the king of the forests in this part of the world, and although I have very little respect for the pretensions of high birth and ancient family, I was nevertheless weak enough to bestow upon my young favourite the name of Tuan, a Malay word, which signifies " His Lordship,'' thus, in a manner, recalling the memory of his fore- fathers ; but, alas ! like many other aspirants to family distinction, the poor exile was never destined to sit upon the throne of his ancestors, nor to end his days in the aerial palaces in which his infancy was passed ; this last scion of his house died upon the arid shores of Syiia, sur- rounded by many devoted attendants, whose care and solicitude were all in vain, and thus I became the Blondel of this disinherited monarch. But, although poor Tuan was deprived of many advantages, he had, at least, the good fortune to be universally beloved by all whom he met with during his wandering life, and among the number of his friends, I could not only mention several names celebrated in the Cabinet, the Navy, Commerce and Literature, but of many a fair maiden and stately dame, by whom he was much 90 THE OURANG-OUTANG : noticed and caressed ; however, like most other favourites, he died very young. When Tuan was first placed under my care, he was about three years old, and resembled a child of that age in stature, and had it not been for his prominent abdomen, he would have been very like a young Malay, dressed in the sooty garb of a little chimney-sweep. As he appeared very uneasy in his bamboo prison, I hastened to liberate him fi^om it, and no sooner was he set free, than he seized my hand, and endeavoured to drag me away, just as a Jittle spoilt boy would have done, who wished to fly from some disagi'eeable object. I led him into the room which I occupied at M. Dutroncoy's, in which a little sort of cot had been prepared for liim, and on observing this new cage, which slightly resembled a Malay hut, he seemed at once to comprehend that it was to be his future dwelling, for he immediately let go my hand, and began to collect all the linen he could find in the apartment, and, stowing it away in his little tene- ment, seemed to watch over it with especial care : after having arranged everything to his entire satis- faction, he took up a napkin, and wrapping himself up in this scanty piece of drapery, with as much solemnity and dignity as an Arab in his bunio^is, he lay down to rest on the bed which liad been made for him. Tuan possessed a remarkably mild, gentle disposition, and in order to render him obedient, it was generally quite sufficient to speak to him ; liOAvever, he had occasional fits of passion, which wore extremely amusing. One day he had stolen a mango, and on my taking it from him, he endeavoured to get it back again ; but not succeeding in this, he began to utter plaintive ITS IMITATIVE CAPACITY. 91 cries, and push out liis lips like a pouting cliild : finding that tliis behaviour did not answer the end he anticipated, he threw himself on the floor — struck it violently with his wrist, and cried and howled for more than half-an-hour. At last I began to see that I was not doing quite right in depriving him of the coveted fruit, but rather opposing the decree of Providence, by endeavour- ing to bend to the laws of civilisation, the inde- pendent natm-e which had been placed in the tribes of the deep forest, there to obey its own instincts, and satisfy all its passions; so I ap- proached my protege, and calling him by every tender epithet I could think of, offered him the mango which had been the innocent cause of his wrath ; but no sooner had I placed it witliin his reach, than he seized it, and dealt me a sharp blow on the head. There was something so very human and natural in this, and his manner was so kritated and peevish, that I really did, for the moment, regard Tuan as bearing some relation- sliip to our species, so much did he remind me of certain children of my acquaintance : in this, however, I was wrong, for it was but very sel- dom that he was ill-tempered and intractable. The first time I introduced Tuan at my table, he made use of rather eccentric means for the pur- pose of pointing out the different objects which took his fancy, and stretching out his brown hand, endeavoured to put upon his plate every thing within his reach. I endeavoured to teach him better manners, by giving him a sharp blow, upon which he had recourse to stratagem, and covering his face with one hand, played all sorts of tricks with the other ; however, this ruse was 92 THE sailors' pet. Tinsuccessfiil, for I struck the offending hand witli the h.andle of my knife, and ever after that time, my intelligent pupil understood that he was to wait until he was helped. He very soon learned how to take his soup with a spoon ; a plate of thin soup being put before him, he got upon the table, in the position of a dog, and endeavoiu-ed to lap it up slowly ; but this mode of proceeding being inconvenient, he again sat dowTi, and seized the plate with both hands ; but in carrying it to his lips, spilled a portion of the contents over his chest, so I took up a spoon, and shewed him what to do with it : he immediately imitated me, and from that time always made use of it. When I brouo^ht Tuan with me on board the Cleopatra, he was placed at the foot of the main- mast, and allowed complete liberty, going in and out of his habitation just as he pleased ; the sailors were very kind to him, and took pains to initiate him in all the customs of a maritime life ; they also gave him a little tin basin and si)Oon, which he shut up very carefully in his dwelling, and at the stated hours, went with the rest of the crew to the distribution of victuals. It was most amusing to see him going every morning to have his basin filled with coffee, and then comfortably sitting down to breakfast with his fiiends, the midshipmen. Tuan spent a great part of the day in swinging about among the ropes ; sometimes he came on deck, eitlier for the purpose of holding a little conversation with the different members of the legation, with whom he was on very friendly terms, or of playing with a young negrite from Manilla, who belonged to M. de Lagrene, and was THE WILD BACCHANALIAN., 93 one of his particular friends ; some people professed to believe that the bonds of sympathy which ex- isted between these two creatures, were founded upon some relationship, or consanguinity; but, however true this may have been, there was no doubt that Tuan had a most profound contempt for monkeys of every kind, for he never associated with them in any way, preferring even the com- panionship of a dog or a sheep, to their society. When Tuan had been a little time on board, he became quite an epicm-e, and was not only very fond of wine, but grew quite a learned judge of it ; one day two glasses were offered him, one half filled with champagne, the other with bor- deaux ; as he held one in each hand, some one present endeavoured to take away the one con- taining champagne, but in order to prevent this, he instantly brought his disengaged hand up to the one that had been seized, and with admirable dexterity, poured the contents of one vessel into the other, handing the empty glass to the person who had endeavoured to deprive him of it. This trick, which was extremely good, and difficult to execute, was followed by another, equally amusing : one afternoon, Tuan was perched among the ropes, and would not come down, notwithstanding my repeated commands, so I held out a glass of beer to induce him to descend ; he looked some time at what was offered him, but not trusting alto- gether to appearances, took a rope, and with admirable precision, directed the end of it into the glass, then, drawing it back again, he applied to his mouth the part which had been immersed in the liquid, and after he had tasted it, imme- 94 A ROMANCE OF TRxU^EL. diately came down to share the contents of the glass with me. It is entirely false that onrang-outangs can be taught to smoke, for Tuan, and all the others I have ever seen, have been unable to do so ; and the engi-avings which represent these creatures smoking hookahs with their master, are stereo- typed falsehoods. On my arrival at Manilla, Tuan and myself took up our abode in a Tagal house, and lived in common with the family, which consisted of the father and mother, two young girls of alDOut four- teen and sixteen, and several young cldldren. Tuan was delighted with our new abode, and spent his time either playing with the little Tagal cliildren, or in robbing the mango-sellers who were imprudent enough to leave their merchan- dise within his reach. The constant companion- ship which was established between him and the children, seemed to develope his powers of obser- vation considerably. From the time of oui* arrival at Manilla, Tuan ceased to take his meals in private with me, but adopted the Tagal life entirely. At the a]:)pointed dinner hour, all the fimily collected round a large dish of rice, boiled in water. Each person took it by turns to help himself, with the right liand, to a cei-tain quantity of the grain, which lie kneaded into a sort of lump in the ]ialm of his left hand. After that, he helped himself from another disli, to a piece of fish, or meat, and put the whole in his mouth. Tuan always took his seat in the midst of these good ])('0])le, and conducted himself with a degree of i)olished gravity which quite iiatonished them AWKWARD SUSPICIONS. , 95 all. The Eastern people are extremely kind and considerate towards animals, and those narrow- minded philosophers who foolishly consider intel- ligent beings as automatons, are not to be found amongst them, consequently they treat animals more as companions, than inferiors. Every day the Tagal women came to ask me if they might take Tuan out for a walk, and the young girls brought him fruit, and spent hours in talking to him, just as if he were one of their own species. This reminds me of something which occmTed whilst I was at Bombay, when Tuan and myself lodged with a very agreeable French lady, Ma- dame Costa. One day, I found her talking very energetically to an Indian servant, of very low caste, and on my entrance Madame Costa ex- claimed — " Oh, you are just the person I want. Doctor ! There is quite a commotion about you.'^ I expressed my surprise, and turning to the In- dian woman, inquired what she wanted with me. "I will tell you," said Madame Costa. '' Just now she came to me in great distress, and said, that the child the Doctor brought with him was ill, and that she wished very much I would ask you to let it remain with us, that we might take care of it. I told her I could not think of asking such a thing : when she said — ' But perhaps, Ma- dame, you would be conferring a favour, for this is no doubt the child of some woman whom Mon- sieur has met with in his travels, and when he returns home and marries, perhaps his wife may ill-treat the poor outcast.'' r-^^f'- -"M'T , '' For half-an-hour,'' added Madame, " I have been trying to undeceive the woman, and to make 96 A NURSE AND HER CHARGE. I her understand what Tuan really is, but in vain ; , she will not believe me, and declares, that he will j soon begin to talk, and that he is as much a hu- : man being as we are !" The poor Indian scarcely ever quitted Tuan ; ; and not only lay down by his bedside, but gave : him things to drink during the night, and thought i of all sorts of delicacies for him. One day, when ^ there were some splendid Puna grapes on thej table, she came and begged for some of them, pre- 1 tending that the " poor child" wished for them. I Tuan was extremely fond of his poor nm'se, and ! they were seldom to be seen apaii, sometimes' walking together holding each other by the hand, ' at others, the Indian carrying him as the Malay women do their children, astride on the hips. The leave-taking between Tuan and this poor wo- i man was quite affecting ; she accompanied him to , the shore, and neither of them ceased to exchange i tokens and assurances of affection, until the in- j creasing distance prevented them from seeing each ! other. When we arrived in China, all the members of the legation were installed in a very large house, | and here Tuan was again left quite at libei-ty ; he was very obedient and tractable witli the Europ- 1 eans, particularly with those whom he hadj known on board ship, but weared to entertain aristocratic' ideas about them which he manifested on iill oc-| casions ; several times I entrusted liim to thej care of some coolies to be conducted to different' families in Macao, who ^vished to sec him : whilst j mider my eye, he walked and behaved ])ro]X'rly ; | but the moment I left him, he jumped upon his "Juan was by no means possessed of the virtues of abnearation and unselfislincss, but on the contrary w:is extremely egotistical and sclf-indulgeut."— Pagel)?. HUMAN TENDENCIES IN ANIMALS. 97 conductors, and made them carry him. The pen^ chant for wearing clothes with ourang-outangs is generally considered merely the consequence of the cha.nge of climate, and some moralists pretend that it arises fi'om some innate sentiment of mo- desty. I am aware that they certainly have a fondness for apparel, but am certain that it arises from neither of these causes. Tuan took posses- sion of everything in the way of linen he could lay his hand upon, throwing it across his shoul- ders or wrapping it round his head — napkins, chemises, and mats were all indiscriminately em- ployed in this manner ; now, in this burning climate, it certainly could not have been on ac- count of the cold that he thus enveloped himself But whatever might be the cause of it, Tuan cer- tainly displayed some unknown instinct in wrap^ ping himself up with so much care : however, he never wore garments for any long time together, except that on going to bed he always an^anged his clothing with great precaution. Tuan was by no means possessed of the virtues of abnegation and unselfishness, but on the con- trary was extremely egotistical and self-indulgent, and not at all an admirer of social practices — he was, in fact, quite a conservative in principle, but fond of doing as he pleased with the property of others. Whenever other animals visited his cage, he always drove them away, and one day plucked a poor unhappy pigeon which had unfortunately taken refuge there. Every time we put into harbour, I procured him some bananas, which were kept along with the other fruits belonging to the officers. To this place Tuan had free access, and after being H 98 THE SELF-ArPOIXTED BUTLER. once taught what belonged to him, he paid due respect to the property of others, until his own store was exhausted — after that time, he ceased to go openly and boldly for his fruit, but adopted a kind of serpentine and stealthy movement, and after committing the larceny, retiu:*ned a great deal quicker than he went down. He was perfectly acquainted with the laws of '' mine and thine,"' and althouojh on board the Archimede he had never been scolded or beaten for his numerous thefts, but rather indulged like a spoiled child, still it was always by stealth that he extracted the gi'Og and tea belonging to the officers and passengers on board. When in China, he occupied a httle dwelling adjoining the chamber of Xavier Reymond, and very frequently visited his neighbour. Reymond often breakfasted in his own room, but observed that whenever a bottle of wine was placed on the table, a much larger quantity of it disappeared, than he himself consumed. One day M. de Mac- donald came into my room and perceived that Tuan was completely drenched with some red li(.[uid — " Doctor," he exclaimed ; " come here directly, Tuan is covered with blood \" I flew to the spot, but instantly saw that the drops of blood were as transparent as rubies, and going into Reymond's apartment, I inquired whe- ther he had again been robbed. " What a (piestion to ask !" he exclaimed ; " why, the wine in that decanter is still thick and muddy, })roving that it has but this moment been dLsturbed." " Well, I can tell you who the thief is/' " That scamp of a Tuan, I sui)pose V OLD FRIENDS PREFERRED TO NEW. 99 fii^' Exactly," and so it was: it appeared that while the table was being prepared, he concealed himself in a corner of the apartment, and the mo- ment the domestic disappeared, seized and un- corked the bottle, drank part of its contents, and put it back in its place. This may seem astonish- ing, but it is strictly true ; and so adroitly was the whole trick managed, that even the Chinese serv^ants, who were most anxious to discover the thief, were completely beaten, and no one knows what deep, long-headed fellows those Chinese are. ( He had an excellent memory both for objects and events ; upon one occasion I was compelled to be separated from my pet for three months, during which time I left him under the manage- ment of one of my friends, Dr. Fitter, of Macao ; the doctor took great care of him, but did not treat him with quite the attention and fondness which had been exercised towards him hy those who know that animals are very often worth a great deal more than men, consequently Tuan soon grew tired of his new abode. On returning to Macao, I repaired to Dr. Fitter's to take posses- sion of my "protege ; when I arrived he was at the bottom of a com-t-yard, and on my leaning- out of a very high window to speak to him, he instantly recognised me, and would have tried to climb up the wall to come to me : the instant he was brought into the room, he took hold of my hand, and tried to draw me away : allowing him to do just what he liked, he led me into the street, and took the road leading to the house we had occupied previous to my departure : every look and action spoke for itself, and seemed to h2 100 A LAISIENT FOR THE DEAD. say, " Let us go back to our own home, for this house is not ours/' On another occasion, when we had been on land for a month, and were about to return on board, he instantly recognised, though amidst a forest of masts, the ship to which he belonged ; and at Colombo, when we were returning to the Archimede, we found that steamer so completely smTomided by merchant vessels of all kinds, that we were obliged to wait until a passage had been cleared for us ; but Tuan, who had immediately recognised the vessel, was so anxious to be on board, that he made liis way thither by skipping over the merchant vessels with the skill of a prac- tised sailor. Tuan was always mild, affectionate, and lively — ^very fond of playing with those he knew, par- ticularly with children — his manners, too, were remarkably modest and agi-eeable. When the malady of which he died first seized him, he be- came very melancholy, but never morose or peev- ish, and even at times seemed to regain a little of his former gaiety. I could not help becoming very fond of poor Tuan, and although I com- menced his biogi\aphy witli a smile upon my lips, I close it with a sincere tribute of regret to his memory. The appearance of Sincapore, in the night time, is not so original and striking as that of Malacca, for the commercial quarter is always gloomy and silent, as the Chinese and Malays, obliged by the natm-e of tlieir occupations to conform to English customs, have in a great measure abandoned their nocturnal habits. Tlie moment tlie shops are closed, it seems as if every household retired to THE OPIUM TAVERNS. ' 101 rest — not a light is to be seen, and an occasional note of some monotonous song, is the only thing that reminds you of the presence of the inhabit- ants. The streets themselves are almost deserted, for it is only at long intervals that you meet per- haps a Chinese, with his spherical lantern carried at the end of a long pole — a Malay of the lowest class, going forth in search of the pleasures the place affords — or perchance, some Malay beauties, wandering about in quest of strangers : these wo- men are generally dressed in a long white robe, open in front, and folded back on the chest like a waistcoat ; their feet are bare, and their stiif black hair is rolled round the head, and fastened very low at the back with a gold bodkin — they are somewhat brazen priestesses ; however, the greater number of strangers and mariners seem to admire the Malay beauties, and speak highly of them ; but one might just as well judge of the French ladies from the specimens one meets with on some of the quays of our maritime towns. The only places open to visitors in the evening, are the opium houses — horrible dens, in which the imhappy Malays persist in spending the proceeds of their labour ; all these establishments are near- ly alike — very miserable in appearance, and feebly lighted : in the centre are placed some tables for those who wish to have tea, and at the sides are alcoves formed with bamboos : these mysterious little places contain beds which occupy nearly the whole of the room, and thither two, three, or four persons retire to indulge their favourite vice. In these countries the opium-shops are frequented by women, the latter being the usual accompani- ment to every kind of idleness, and the opium 102 RESULTS OF OPIOI EATING. takers never quite lose sight of reality, for as its narcotic fumes transform everything around them, and invest it with all the charms of luxury and beauty, consequently, it is the custom with these people to surround themselves Avitli all that can flatter and caress their senses, when about to in- hale the fumes of the intoxicating drug. There is, of course, a great difference between the intoxi- cation produced by opium, and that of whiskey, gin, or brandy ; by-and-by I shall have more to say respecting the preparation of opimn, and the manner of using it. In the opimn manufactories of this country, I met with very few Chinese, the greater number of those engaged in the trade being Malays — the fact is, that the Chinese in- habitants of the Indian Archipelago are usually poor devils intent on making money, and they, of course, find it advisable to withstand this ruinous habit. After paying a visit to one of these opium- taverns, and taken a passing glance at the alcoves dedicated to the coarse pleasures of the sailors, I stepped into my palanquin, and returned to the London Hotel. All the delightful habitations of the 'English, erected on the perfumed hill which overlooks the bay, had the appeai-ance of light-houses, for every window displayed a ]:)erfect flood of light ; one might have imagined that these gorgeous palaces 'were under the spell of some capricious fairy, who had lulled all their inhabitants into a deep sleep, 'for not a sound of any kind whatever could be 'heard in these enchanted dwelliun's. When I re- entered the London Hotel, I found the greater num])er of my companions smoking ^Laiiilbi chc- AN ENGLISH FRIEND. ' 103 roots, drinking ale, or ginger-beer, and pouring forth most terrible complaints against the '' far Kast,'' which has been so brilliantly and poetically described by travellers. " I would give five hundred francs for a seat at the opera, at this moment,'' exclaimed one ol them. '^ Weiy said I, taking possession of a comfort- able arm chair, " I am not so ambitious, and de- sire nothing more than to possess the means of passing the evening of my days at Sincapore, in a state of happy celibacy, like some of the English, who have resided here for years.'' I had scarcely finished this remark, when a gentleman, who had been quietly smoking in one corner of the room, approached me, and expressing his supposition that I was staying with M. Wam- pou, observed, that if I wished to return home that evening, he should be most happy to offer me a seat in his carrriage, which was an open one, and much more agreeable than a palanquin, ad- ding, that if I preferred returning on foot, he ..would gladly accompany me, should this be agree- able. , .^rOf course I replied that I should be most happy ,-.to avail myself of the seat in his carriage, and .'that I was entirely at his service, upon which he .proposed that we should take our departure im- ^:, mediately, and we seated ourselves comfortably Qin a very nice carriage, conducted by a Malay .says, and went off* like an arrows : rf,,. r My companion was the first to speak — " Well, ,said he, " you say you would like to spend an r. evening like an old English bachelor, and to-night your wish shall be gratified." 104 A MALAY HOSTESS. I replied, that as there appeared to be no ob- stacle to my doing this, I should place myself quite at his disposal. " Perhaps,'' said my companion, " I ought to see obstacles in the way, for some of my fellow- countr^Tnen would be piTidish enough to do so. But I am partly French, and lumng been brought up at Tours, may, on that account, take a little more license. Besides, the adventm^e of this even- ing will fui'nish you with matter for conversation when you return to France, or you can relate it to the readers of romance, who may possibly find it dull and insipid.'' " But in the meantime, my dear Sir, may I in- quire where we are going ? Is our journey a pil- grimage to our lady of Loretto ?" " I am not acquainted with the place," an- swered my friend ; " our destination is to Campon Glan, and, to do away with all ceremony at once, you can call me James, and I shall address you as doctor." " Then, Mr. James," I replied, " it will be a long time before I forget the kindness of your conduct towards me." I said no more, and Mr. James did not reply further. When we had arrived at a certain part of Campon Glan, my companion addressed a few words to his says, upon which, the carriage stop- ])ed, and we alighted. Campon Glan had not the aj)pearance of the mercantile streets, nor avjis it so mute r.nd silent as the English part of the city. All the windows were lighted uj) like meteors, and the gentle breeze slightly agitated the blinds and discreetly-closed lattices, whilst from every aperture there isaued sounds of soft-sighing nmsic, MALAY BEAUTIES. 105 and a delicious odour prevailed ever5rv\rliere around. My companion, who seemed quite aii-fait in all the mysteries of the place, took me by the arm, opened a door, and introduced me into an apart- ment, in which five or six persons were laying down asleep upon mats. We touched two or^^ three of them as they lay about here and there,' but the slight impression of our European boots drew from them no complaint, so we proceeded to the fii'st floor, where we found a young Malay girl, who bowed to the very ground on seeing my conductor. '^ ^^'^' ^' Kida," said he, presenting me, " this gentle- man is a friend of mine ; he does not speak English, but is better acquainted with the Malay language.'' Kida made me a very low bow. '-^^ ^ " But of what country is the gentleman ; is he Portuguese V she enquired, with some hesitation, as though fearful to offend me. "No, no !'' exclaimed Mr. James, energetically; *' he is a Frenchman.'' " A Frenchman !'' repeated the young girl, with great tokens of delight. After a short interval, she summoned a half- sleepy boy, who after exchanging a few hmTied re- marks with her, immediately disappeared, and I then took the opportunity of scrutinising the beau- ty of Campon Glan : she was not more than four- teen, very small in stature, and rather frill in figure ; her face was very intelligent, and her skin smooth and glossy as mother-of-pearl, whilst her long hair fell in heavy masses upon her shoulders, like a veil of rich black satin. She was simply dressed in an Indian robe, open in the front, and closed at the throat with a gold pin, representing 106 A VOICE FROM FRANCE. a clirysantliimum with beaiitifiil delicate petals : this unique costume, which was very much like a bathing dress, was not in itself particularly grace- ful ; but when the young Malay moved about the apartment, displaying her bare and pretty foot, the effect was by no means unpleasing. I was thus making my observations upon her, when the door opened, and a young woman of about five and twenty, wearing a coronet of Asiatic jessamine, and di'essed in a similar style to the Malay, entered. "This gentleman is a Frenchman \" exclaimed Kida, the moment she perceived her friend. " You are French, sir V asked the new comer, with an excellent accent, and in rather an un- certain mamier. On hearing a Malay woman — a fish-girl of Sin- capore, thus speak my own language in all its native pm'ity, I was exceedingly astonished, and could I have obeyed the first impulse of the mo- ment, should have taken a wet napkin, and tried to asceii/ain whether the saftron tint of the young woman were not the result of some European trick— but she was evidently all real — " Where did you learn French, Madame V I enquired of the Malay, in the most poHte mamier. " At Paris and Brussels,'' wj\s her answer. " Is it possible ! And you have been in France ! Is it a long time ago ? and what induced you to go there V " I must take a little time in order to answer all tliose cpiestions,'' said tlie lady, smiliug ; " and should like to repose a little, before cwmneucii;ig my tale.'' ' - ' ' Mr. James, who had e\idently been as much AN ASIATIC TOILETTE. 107 surprised as myself at hearing pure French from an Asiatic mouth, now turned to me, and re- marked that as the adventure promised to be in- teresting, we had better remain a part of the night there. He then summoned a domestic, who brought some beer and cigars, and we established ourselves very comfortably. The room occupied by Kida was lighted by a large globe, suspended from the ceiling, and the windows frirnished with light blinds, allowed free admission to the refreshing evening breeze ; in the middle of the room stood a table, upon which all the requisites for the toilet of the Malay co- quette were arranged ; there was the box of betel- nut, the saucer of cocoa-nut oil for the hair, in which were generally some blossoms of the jessa- mine or frangipanier ; little vessels containing white and black powders ; yellow, red and blue flasks, filled with aromatic waters, the perforated corks of the bottles permitting the odorous liquid to be fi-eely sprinkled on the head. In the eyes of the Asiatic belles, who are perhaps the least exacting in the world, the chamber of the young girl, with its simple white walls, was one of per- fect elegance, although it contained neither chairs, nor divan. On entering the apartment, James and myself instinctively placed ourselves upon two beds standing opposite each other, the women remain- ing in the other part of the room, until we invited them to take their places at our sides ; they then rolled up betel-leaf, from which we lighted our cigars, and after installing ourselves satisfactorily upon the bamboo frames, covered by a mat, which 108 THE NATIVES AND THE DUTCH. at Sincapore is called a bed, we requested our princess Scheherazade to commence her story. " The Dutch people/' she began, " are the most noted extortionists in the world.'' Here James and myself made a sign of assent. " These misera- ble fellows are the constant oppressors of the Ma- lay race, compelKng them to submit to all kinds of hardships, pm-suing them by sea, as the shark does the dorado, and not content with entrapping them into snares like helpless animals, and treat- ing them as slaves, they pillage theii^ lands, and bm-n their dwellings. I was born near Pulo Nias, in a verdant little island, which floated on the bosom of the water, like a bouquet of cluster- ing foliage, and of this place, my father was one of the chiefs : being an inveterate enemy of the Dutch, he persuaded his fellow-countrymen to as- sist him in equipping a fleet, which was to go forth with the design of compelling the merchants of that nation to make some reparation for their numerous crimes. " Tliis little fleet was composed of six vessels, furnished with swivel-guns, and each of them contained fifty men, armed with lance and kriss. The whole population of the island assisted at the departure of the miniatm'e fleet, which set forth in the night-time ; more than a thoiLsand persons were assembled on the shore, women, children, and old men, aU silent and meditative, with the moon sliining down on their forms, ma- kinor them resemble the orolden statues wliich our forefathers worshii)ped in the temples, wliich are now no more. " Tlie moment of departure arrived — the oars struck into the water, and wlien the vessels were A MALAY EXPEDITION. 109 at a little distance from the shore, they hoisted their sails, and disappeared fr-om view, carrying our good wishes along with them. Om- adven- turers took with them provisions for five days ; and as they intended to add to their store, when visiting the innumerable islands of the Archipel- ago, we did not expect them to return in less than a fortnight ; however, on the tenth day after their departure, several groups established them- selves upon the highest places in the island, look- ing anxiously into the space before them, and ready to give the first signal of the approach of the retui^ning fleet. " You Europeans can have no idea of the in- terest and anxiety with which the Malays look upon the result of expeditions like these — not on account of the value of the booty they may receive, but because of the various useful objects they thus become possessed of; for a country where iron is only made use of in the manufacture of the lance and kriss — where cotton can only be woven by means of very clumsy instruments, and where the smallest household utensil is a ra- rity — pins, needles, thi'ead, bottles, kettles, pans, cloth and knives, are more prized than tons of gold. They call us barbarians, and in truth we are such, for we prefer common articles, such as shining tissues, glass beads for necklaces, and earthenware vases, far above the pearls of our native seas, or the diamonds of om^ mountains. " " A whole month passed away in this state of expectation, and in the minds of many, hope had ^iven place to fear, when we one day descried a strange spectacle in the horizon, in the shape of a most splendid vessel, surrounded by pu'ogues, 110 DUTCH REVENGE. rowed by Malays, while on the deck of the ship we coiild see numbers of oui- countrymen along with many Em'opeans. No one doubted for the moment that the noble vessel was a prize taken by our men, and upon seeing it we uttered loud ex- clamations of joy, while in the space of an horn-, all the inhabitants of the island had assembled on the shore. " The vessel anchored just in front of om- habita- tions — tlie men on board replied to om- shouts by gestm-es — and in their impatience to heai' the whole history of the adventm^e, several of the Malays threw themselves into the water, with the idea of swimming to the ship, but just at this moment, a tremendous explosion was heai'd on board ; balls and bullets flew about the shore, and we suddenly perceived, high above the sails of the horrible vessel, the bodies of more than thirty of our own men, suspended by the neck, and swing- ing to and fro in the air. .^uj rjiij hj,w rni '' All this passed with such rapidity, that at first I could understand nothing of it, and looked around me in helpless amazement. My mother lay dead, shot to the heart by a bullet ; and the whole crowd of persons on the shore, covered with blood and gore, ran about in a state of the great- est confiLsion, uttering shrieks and cries of agony and despair. I turned my eyes to the vessel, and saw that my father wi\s among the number of those who were hanged. My first im]Hilse was to follow those who were flying from the dreiidful scene ; however, I did not go far, but took refuge in a jungle, scarcely conscious of what I did, and liardly knowing wliether I were dead or alive, asleep or waking. Here I remained for some THE FLIGHT. Ill time — ^now fancying that I heard steps approach- ing, or the sound of blows — sometimes catcliing sight of immense tongues of fire, resembling an incendiarism ; but all these ideas occurred to me in so confused a manner, that I was not in reality sure of any thing. • "I was Ipng with my face upon the gi'ound, scarcely daring to breathe, when a man, running by, stumbled over me ; still I remained perfectly motionless ; but the new comer, wishing to ascer- tain whether I were dead or alive, struck me seve- ral times with his musket, and finding that I offered some slight resistance to his attacks, took hold of my arm, and partly pulled me up from the ground. Perceiving that he was a European, I rose immediately, but recoiled with horror, ex- claiming — ' A Dutchman !' ' I am not Dutch,' said the stranger ; * I am a Frenchman.' " This was the first time," said the Malay girl, turning to me, " that I had ever heard of your nation ; and if there were not some less-terrible souvenirs than these associated with it in my mind, I should experience little pleasure in speak- ing yom' language." After a few minutes reflection she continued : — " The assurances of the stranger did not re- store me to composure, for I rushed fr'om liim, and plunged into the wilds of the jungle, still crying out that he was a Dutchman, until he at last pursued and caught me. ' The men you dread so much,' said he, point- ing in the direction I had been following, ' are there ! Do you not hear the noise of their axes, as they hew down the cocoa trees, and see the 112 A DOUBTFUL FRIEND. floods of light which spread around fi'om the houses they have set on fii-e ? Take my advice and remain here. You see I am armed, and if you do not attend to the counsel I give you for youi' own good, I will make you feel the force of my weapons.' " I looked mechanically upon the horizon — we were surrounded by a circle of fii'e, the luminous columns of wliich stretched into the air, almost like the concentrated rays of the sun ; the stems of the cocoa trees trembled beneath the heavy blows of the axe, and the only sounds to be heard were those of the instrument of destruction, as it fell upon the trunks of the trees, and the strange cries of the foreign sailors. It was a sad sight, and after looking upon it, I involuntarily sunk again upon the gTound, without uttering a single word. " The stranger approached, and gently raising me in his arms, said — ' Here, drink sometliing, for your lips are as dry as a stone.' " Until this moment I had been almost imcon- scious of the wants of nature, but the stranger's abrupt invitation recalled my senses, and made me aware of my situation : I eagerly seized the flask which he oflered me, and drank its contents (which consisted of some kind of wine and water) with the greatest avidity ; it was the first thne I had ever tasted this beverage, and so powerful was its effect upon me, that my head almost in- stantly grew heavy, my eyes closed, and I sunk into a deep sleep. On awaking, I found myself alone — the night wi\s very dark, and my senses were so confused, that I could not, for a time, re- member what had liappencd : at first I tried to THE SLAVE. 113 persuade myself that I had been dreaming, but, alas ! the dreadful flames, which were still visible in various directions, dissipated this idea. I rose from the ground with the vague intention of fly- ing fr'om the place — but whither should I go ? for I had not the slightest knowledge of the fate of those of my friends who had escaped the general butchery, nor could I be sm'e what route they had taken ; so I resolved to remain quiet until daybreak, cherishing a sort of hope that the man, who, in the preceding evening had appeared to take an interest in me, would return, and per- haps assist me in escaping ; and I was not mis- taken ; for at break of day he was again at my side — ' The country is entirely destroyed,' said the stranger ; ' most of your people have hastily embarked and quitted the island, and though some of them are still wandering about in the woods, they will most likely die of hunger, for there is not a cocoa tree left, and the fields are completely devastated. You had better put on men's clothes and accompany me on board — I will assert that you are a boy whom 1 have saved, and intend to keep near me, and if yom- countrymen should at any time form another settlement, I will restore you to them/ " According to the laws of war and plunder, I was, of course, the slave of this man, and could not, therefore, hesitate to obey him, so I en- veloped my head in a handkerchief, which con- cealed my hair, after the fashion of the country, and putting on a pair of pantaloons and a waist- coat, which crossed over the chest, connected these two latter garments with a broad red girdle, I 114 THE ONLY SURVIVER. and thus transformed into a boy, I followed my new companion. " On our arrival on board the vessel, he pre- sented me to the captain, and gave him a short history of me, which was somewhat coldly re- ceived ; however, I was allowed to sleep in my master's cabin on a mat spread on the ground. The same day we set out for Batavia, but a strong contrary wind obliged us to shelter in the port of Cheribon ; we had scarcely anchored here, when the vessel was surrounded by a number of ships of all kinds. I had not as yet appeared on deck, but my master now commanded me to repair thither, and upon doing so, I found myself in the midst of a large concourse of visitors, who appear- ed in a very excited state, and were eagerly ask- ing details of the cruel expedition from the ship's crew : as I was the sole living trophy of the bloody victory, I had no sooner appeared on deck, than all eyes were immediately turned upon me, and whilst I was thus the object of universal cm'iosity, I heard a noise made by the pulleys of the ship, and saw the dead bodies of my father and his companions hauled on board : in the pre- sence of so many enemies, I was too })roud to give way to lamentation, and quietly submitting myself to the authority of the conqueror, refrained from shedding a single tear as 1 saw the corpses of my beloved lather and friends thrown into the sea like those of doo-s. " My master took advantage of the delay oc- casioned by our sojourn here, to leave the vessel ; by means of a boat we reached the shore, and some hours afterwards, set out for a place called Rhaja-Gallo, where my maater held some kind of THE MALAY AND HER CAPTOR. 115 office, and occupied a small stone house, which to me appeared a palace, after what I had been accustomed to in my native village, and was situated in the midst of a large garden, com- pletely overshadowed by immense tamarind trees. " But I have not yet told you the name of my preserver, nor given you a description of his per- sonal appearance. I will now repair this error : he was called Prosper de C , and was a young man of about three and twenty, somewhat short in stature, and of rather florid complexion, with blue eyes, and hair so light as to be almost white : with the colour of the latter he always appeared to be very much dissatisfied, though I could never understand why he should be so ; however, I know that he tried every possible means of alter- ing its hue, and making it like mine ; having heard that the Chinese possessed some valuable secret for dyeing hair, he actually condemned himself to the penalty of drinking, for three months, a mixtm*e of horrible drugs which those rogues used to sell him at a very high price ; however, the Chinese cheated him just as they do every one else, for my master's fair locks retained their natm^al colour, after all. If his hair had not been so light, and his eyes so blue, I should have thought Prosper de C very handsome for a European, but in my opinion, eyes of this colour are only fit for apes. '' My usual duties in the service of my master were these — during the day, I always accompa- nied him wherever he went, to wait upon him in the same manner in which a slave attends upon his lord — I held his stirrup when he mounted on horseback — fanned him during his meals with a l2 116 THE DEPAKTURE. plume of peacock's feathers, and supplied him with a light for his pipe or cigar. lu the evening, I assumed the proper dress of my sex, dressed my hair, and fastened it with a gold bodkin, sur- mounting it with a wreath of odorous flowers, wore a dress which left my shoulders bare, covered my arms and wrists with bracelets, and put on a sarron of rich silk, which I festened round the waist with a girdle as brilliant as the wings of the lorist. Thus attired, I opened the windows of the apartment, and crouched myself up in a corner until it pleased my master to call me thence, to execute some of my native dances. " Prosper de C made it a rule that during the day, I sliould address him as Tuan, in token of my respect for him ; but in the evening, when my appearance was so completely transformed, and after dancing in the peculiar style of my country, I lay down near him to rest, he allowed me to call him by the most familiar names. " I led this life for about a year — the slave of a man, who would, perhaps, have been almost all I wished, had his complexion been darker and his eyes black, when one morning, after receiving and peiTising a letter, he abruptly said to me — ' We must set out for France in a week — will you like to accompany me V ' I replied in the affirmative.' ' Wlien we are on board,' he added, ' we sliall very likely be separated, for they will not allow you to remain in my cabin.' ' What does that matter ?' said I, ciirelessly. * What does it matter !' cried my master, turn- ing crimson to tlie very ends of his fingers — ' you take things easily, indeed ! but I tell you, you THE ARRIVAL IN FRANCE. 117 shall not leave me — and moreover, although you may cling to me, cry and exclaim as you will, you shall not contradict anything I may choose to assert concerning you/ " This latter caution was not altogether need- less, for during the year I had spent with him, Prosper had employed a part of his time in the task of teaching me French, so that we might be able to converse in that language, without being understood by the Malay domestics. "So we departed. Prosper de C having first added to my costume that indispensable ac- companiment to the Malay dress, a handsome kriss, from Holo. On board, things went on much as they had always done with us. At first it was arranged that I should sleep along with the sailors ; but I protested so vehemently against this, and exclaimed and gesticulated with such energy, that the captain, who was a good sort of man, decided that I should have a little hammock in my master's cabin. During the whole period of our voyage, which lasted five months, no one suspected that I was a woman, for I climbed amongst the rigging, assisted in hoisting the sails, and displayed a decided taste for labour of the rudest and most fatiguing kind. " We disembarked at Havre, and the next morning set out for Brussels. When within five or six leagues of that place. Prosper repeated the commands he had given me before going on board the vessel. At last we stopped in front of an old chateau, of forbidding appearance, standing in a very isolated situation, with stone walls covered with moss. The mother of Prosper, Avith his two sisters, and his uncle, who was styled the Count, 118 A FREXCH FAMILY. with their servants, were the sole occupants of a house large enough to have accommodated the armies of the Sultan. " Had 1 always remained in my native isle, I should have believed that it was impossible for any one to be handsome who had light hair and blue eyes ; however, the sisters of Prosper, who were as fair and delicate as rice-plants, appeared to me the loveliest creatures I had ever seen. Madame de C was as fresh and blooming as the fruits of Eiu'ope, with a countenance frill of kindness and benevolence ; indeed, I knew almost at a glance that I should soon become much at- tached to all the three ladies. But the person with whose appearjince I was the most astonished, was the Count himself ; an old man, who bore a vivid resemblance to those old ourang-outangs which inhabit the forests of Borneo ; an enormous mouth, and cheekbones so prominent, as to have the appearance of coming through the skin, were the most striking featm-es of his face ; while his arms and legs, which were disproportionately long, seemed to have been formed at the expense of the other parts of his body. I thought at tirst he must be some hermit, who led a life of greater austerity than the faquirs of Calcutta ; but I soon found that this personage was, in a mannei', the good genius of the family, who had sent for Pros- per from Java, with the intention of making him his heir. All tlie family seemed very much de- liglited to see my master ; and as for myself, I was caressed and feted almost as much art of the celestial empire ; and until this end is accom- plished, they allow nothing to interfere witli their exertions to obtain it. The gambler plantations of my friends had really a charming ap])earance : this arl»uscle, to which the botanists have given the name of naudea gamhlr, is not more than two metres hi GAMBIER — HOW MANUFACTUEED. 131 height ; its branches are so flexible and dehcate, that the slightest breeze is sufficient to agitate them, and from the leaves of the shrub, the sub- stance called ganihier is procured, which is also known by the name of terra japonica. During the time for preparing this extract, all the work- men were busily employed with it, some in strip- ping the leaves fr^om the arbuscle — some in carry- ing them away in baskets, fastended to the two ends of a bamboo, whilst others were occupied in making a decoction of them in large copper cal- drons. As soon as the herbaceous parts were dis- colom'ed by boiling, they were removed from the water by means of a fork, and the liquid was al- lowed to remain until it had attained the consist- ency of honey ; the extracted matter was then drained off into wooden vessels, and soon dried up completely. The refuse of this composition serves as manure for the vine-like plant which produces black pepper ; indeed these two branches of agriculture are connected with, and assist each other materially, and like all combined manufac- tures, when managed skilfully, bring in consider- able profits. Among the Malays the extract of the gamhier is highly valued, as they mix it in their preparations of the betel-nut. I remember one day asking some of them why they did not pay some attention to the cultivation of it them- selves ; but they gave me the usual reply to every question of this sort — " It is not the cus- tom ;" consequently the Chinese at Sincapore have entirely monopolized this branch of industry. The plantations of the Chinese, of whom I have been speaking, were surrounded by magnificent forests, and dming my fr^equent visits to them, in k2 132 CRUEL SPORT. which I was always accompanied by two Malays, it was my delight to seat myself beneath the gigantic trees, which dm^ing so many ages have thrown their shadow over a land scarcely ever trodden by hmnan footsteps. I had not, at that time, entirely conquered my penchant for waging war against all kinds of inoffensive animals, and w^ien I went out, was always armed vnih. a mus- ket, ready to attack them. The wild depths of the forest were to me the very road of Damas, and I afterwards abjm-ed for ever my Nimrod- like propensities. One day I had been roaming all over the forest, and had seated myself at the foot of a spreading tree, whilst enjoying the pleasures of rest, and the sweet sounds of solitude — the voice of the breeze among the branches — the carol of the birds — the rustling of the herbs and sluaibs, as the numerous insects fluttered about them, and the mysterious sounds caused by the echoes, an ape made its ap- pearance on a tree opposite me, and began to play about ; I could not, of coiu-se, lose so good an op- portunity of pm^suing my foolish pastime, and seizing my rifle, pulled the trigger ; a cry of agony followed the explosion, and amidst a cloud of smoke, I could perceive the poor animal falling from one branch to another, stretcliing out its arms riglit and left to guide its movements ; for a moment it clung to the rugged bark, but its strength gave way, and it slid to the ground, liolding on by the trunk of a large shrub. I ran to the place where I had seen tlie poor creature fall, but, to my astonishment, could not find it ; however, a bloody track guided me a little further, and there, at a few paces from the HUMANE RESOLUTION. 183 spot, leaning against a shrub, with one hand pres- sed upon its wound, the other raised to its eyes, to wipe away its tears, was my inoffensive and un- happy victim, the sight of which made me tremble from head to foot, for its piteous appearance made me feel like a murderer. One of my guides now approached and ex- amined the wound, the poor animal turning its humid eyes towards him, and allowing him to do what he liked without a struggle. It was mor- tally wounded in the right side, the flesh being, as it were, quite separated, and the intestines protruding through the aperture. Seeing at once that there was no hope of saving the poor crea- ture, I offered the musket to one of the Malays, bidding him despatch it immediately : but the poor fellow refused, with a look of horror, to touch the murderous weapon ; and just at that moment the poor ape turned on its side, and stretching out its limbs, fixed its eyes on me, and expired. I could not bear to look at the wretched corpse, the sight of which filled me with remorse and shame : so I walked sadly back to Sincapore, thinking over my unsatisfactory adventure, and vowing, in my own mind, to respect the lives of all creatures whatsoever for the future. The two Malays who accompanied me were members of the same family — one a young man of about three and twenty, as gentle as a girl — the other a fine old chief, with a somewhat melan- choly aspect. Both were of the Mussulman reli- gion, and therefore grave and silent disciples of the great Prophet. I had formed quite an affec- tion for these two men, and liked to see them near me in my rambles, dressed in their large In- 134 HONEST INSTINCT JUMPS ARIGHT. dian pantaloons, with the kriss passed through their waistbands, and their heads covered with the Malay handkerchief, which peculiar coiffure distinguishes the Mussulmans of the Ai'chipelago from those of the other parts of India. As soon as we arrived at the wooden houses which stand on the shore, shaded by trees, the elder of my guides said to me, as he placed his hand on his chest, and made a low salaam : — " Tuaoi, you must be fatigued — will you rest a little time in our verandah ?" I readily accepted the in^dtation ; and found, in this aerial gallery, a very handsome ape, which, on seeing its master, began to fi'isk about merrily. The young Malay, having replied to its caresses, placed before it the basket in which I generally brought home my game ; plunging its hand into it, the animal drew forth the body of the un- happy creature I had killed. Immediately upon seeing it, the ape seemed struck dumb with as- tonishment, gazing at it intently, while the per- spiration stood on its forehead, and looking like an old man, who in a moment of delirium, fancies he sees a ghost. After the lapse of a few minutes, it flung the corpse on the gi-ound, smelt on the wound, and then, without the least hesitation, threw itself upon me, uttering loud cries, and showing its teeth ; its sagacity had enabled it to discover the murderer of its brother. Pliilosophers and savans have Aviitten a great deal upon the diflferent natures of animals, and have reasoned in various ways upon tlie subject ; but in this Eastern land, in which God originally placed tlie earthly Paradise, in which he fixed tlie first fruits of the creation, the hmublest man A BLACK ADONIS. 135 knows far more of this interesting subject, than all the doctors of the Sorbonne, or any other in- stitution. India is not so much the land of idle fables, as of mysterious realities, and is the only country in which there is a sort of intelligible communication between man and the brute spe- cies ; but the numerous secrets connected with the latter are known only, either to religious enthusiasts, or to poets — and egotists and anato- mists would place little faith in their revela- tions. One year after the events I have just been de- scribing, I found myself at Bombay, and was one day walking about the streets populated by the blacks, accompanied by a dohachi, a species of domestic who acts the part of a guide to strangers, being at the same time an interpreter and com- panion ; he was one of those handsome Indians whose forms are as perfect as the ebony statue of an Adonis, dressed in a robe of white muslin, with his curly hair escaping from his tm-ban and falling upon his floating garments. After my conductor had accompanied me in a visit to some Indian houses almost as much ornamented as the carved ivory models of the Chinese, and pointed out to my notice some immense saloons decked out for some grand fete, covered with a sort of light net-work, bespangled with the blossoms of the jessamine, the rose, and the tube-rose, and sup- ported by columns of flowers, he led the way into a part of the town occupied by the merchants. The inlaid mosaic work of sandal-wood, though executed with so much patience and taste, did not arrest my attention for more than a passing moment ; neither did I stop to examine the rich 136 UNIVERSAL BEXEVOLEXCE. cachemires, heavy with embroideiy and gold ; but I invohmtarily paused to watch the poor men who were employed in feeding wood pigeons — the beautiful birds seemed to flock from all quar- ters, from the tops of houses and high buildings, and from the neighboming fields, to receive the grains of rice and maize, which were liberally distributed amongst them by the benevolent men who appeared to act the pai-t of Vincent de Paul towards the winged inhabitants of the place. Wishing to join them in their humane occupation, I bought a small quantity of grain, and with my own hand, distributed it amongst the pretty un- protected creatures, pondering, whilst engaged in this act of charity, on the numerous victims of my cruelty, and the death and destruction I had so often caused among the gTacefiil inliabitants of the air. After the birds had been fed, and were gone away, my dohacJd came up to me and said, " The natives of Europe do not generally act thus to- wards the birds, or any of our dumb fellow creatures — are you then of some ditferent aiste from the rest of the Europeans, since you practise our customs V " In my own country," I replied, " there are many men who think it their duty to contribute to the happiness of every Hving thing aromid them, and I partake their sentiments/' " Then, if you think thus," answered the In- dian, " follow me, and I will show you some- thing that will ])lease you." 80 we walked for a long time through the nar- row and winding streets of Bombay, till we came to a large building, the outer door of which was HINDOO HOSPITAL. 137 closed ; here my dobachi knocked two or three times, and it was at length opened by a man of saffron complexion, dressed in a loose garment of white stuff, which floated down on the body, passed over the shoulders in the form of a belt, and crossed over the back ; his hair was gathered into a knot at the back of his head, and from his ears were suspended rings, something like those worn by the coxcombs of ancient days. This strange-looking individual led us into a large court surrounded with sheds, in which were assembled, I think, all the animals in the creation — singing, crying, growling, whistling, and screaming, dogs, apes, oxen, horses, elephants, parroquets, swans, and camels. This coiu't formed the entrance into two others of the same kind, similarly inhabited by birds and beasts, and on examining the diffe- rent members of the community rather more mi- nutely, I noticed that almost all of them were either very old and feeble, or quite young and sickly, having the appearance of great weakness and suffering — some jfew, indeed, seemed in the prime of life, and their good looks and activity formed a striking contrast to the debility and de- pression of their companions. My dobachi now approached me — " Mon- sieur,"' said he, " you are now in a house of charity ; in the abode of the orphan, the sick, and the aged ; it is established by some humanely- disposed persons, who go about in search of all the animals that are suffering or unprotected ; the ox here finds the welcome reward of his laborious life, and for the rest of his days, lives and rumi- nates in peace ; the faithful dog, when his master is no longer able to support him, here receives 138 ANDIAL REPOSE. the food and shelter which ai^e so justly due to the truest friend of man ; the poor ass, when he enters this enclosure, is no longer burthened with heavy loads and hard usage, but is fed every day with the fr-eshest and most savomy herbs ; thus do we succour the poor and needy, assuage sorrow and suffering, pay respect to helpless old age, and recompense industry and labour, humbly trusting that when we are no longer fit for the turmoil of the world, we may be treated in hke manner. Who knows, Monsieur, but that the ox which is now gazing affectionately at me with its mild, intelligent eye, may be the spirit of some dear, departed friend, or parent.'' I staid a very long time in this house of refuge, a hospital founded by piety the most simple and touching, and by feehngs, perhaps, the most heavenly of which the human character is ca- pable. Everything was in perfect order ; the whole place was clean ; the nourishment good in quality, and sufficient in quantity ; the most com- plete harmony appeared to reign among the va- rious inhabitants, and I could not help thinking as I looked at them, how much better animals of the brute species were fitted to live together, than the more enlightened members of society. Whilst I was examining with the gi'eatest in- terest every creature in this singular place, there entered a countryman, leading an ass by a halter ; this man was quite young, and just such a figure as one sees in keepsakes and allnuns, a little yel- low, thin Hindoo, with a soft, mild expression of countenance ; the ass was also veiy lean ;ind weak-looking, like his master, whom he followed wherever he went ; the Hindoo conversed for OLD FRIENDS PARTING. 139 a few minutes with the master of the place, and then all three took their way into the thkd court, where the ass was tied up in front of a manger filled with herbs and rice. As he was going away, his master thus ad- di-essed him — " With us, alas ! the manger is empty, for the crops of our pastures are failing, therefore thou wouldst starve at my door, for I should be unable to do more for thee were I to keep thee ; therefore remain here, and when better days shall come, I will retm-n and take thee home again ; and that day shall be one of rejoicing for my family, for my children shall await thy com- ing and give thee food, and the youngest shall climb again upon thy back, and thou shalt return to thy former life/' The ass seemed to Ksten gravely to what his master said, watching him closely to the last, whilst the Hindoo, as he went away, turned back more than once to have one more look at his old friend. When he was quite out of sight, the ass stood motionless for a few minutes, and then com- menced a vigorous attack on the viands before him, of which, poor animal, he seemed to stand in great need. As I stood and gazed on the strange scene before me, I was assailed by many rambling thoughts ; in truth, the wild but poetical ideas of the kind-hearted Indians made a strong impres- sion upon me, for sceptics as we are now-a-days, we are sometimes as credulous as children, and as I stopped before a cage full of pretty birds, I could not help thinking how soon I could per- suade myself, that the spirit of some once-loved being lay concealed beneath that glittering plum- 140 AN ASSAULT. aofe. I could even have believed that the sweet notes which issued from their throats, was an appeal to my remembrance. Whilst I was meditating thus, I felt a heavy hand upon my shoulder ; at the same instant my collar was firmly grasped, and I experienced a violent shaking ; tm-ning round to ascertain the cause, I saw by my side a tall black figiu^e, gTin- ning at me with an air of malicious defiance — it was a large powerful ape, healthy, and as full of mischief as he could be. " Surely it cannot be either on account of po- verty, old age, or suffering, that you keep this di'oll creatm*e,'' said I to the Indian. " We support him for the same great reason as the others,'' he replied, " because he has nowhere else to live. Those of om- countrymen who were wise and learned during their lives," added the dohachi, after a few minutes silence, " are always transformed into beings more resembling our- selves than any others — and this ape is probably some prince who has once reigned over oui- coun- try ;'' and he bowed before him with the gTeatest respect. However erroneous these ideas of the Indians may be, they have certainly had the effect of making them the most humane people in the world. Kindness and reason, the great moral law-givers of the west, have done much towards softening our habits ; and the creed of the In- dians is replaced, in France and England, by laws, sutiiciently ])owerf\d to protect animals agjunst the brutality and ill-treatment of ignorance. As I was. one day lounging, as usual, among the bazaars of Sincapore, I was accosted by a A MALAY PATIENT. 141 Malay, whose noble figure and fine profile be- spoke the purity of his Arab origin — he was a fine young man of about thirty, slender and sup- ple as a reed — his long silken robe was of a red and yellow mixture, but his rich cachemire tur- ban had a somewhat faded and shabby appear- ance, and his girdle was not farnished with a kriss. He walked up to me, and placing his hand upon his heart, said, with a very low bow, " Seigneur, my name is Abdala ; I am in very bad health, and have been advised to apply to you — I trust you will soon restore me." " I will do so most willingly,'' I replied, " if it lies in my power ; but I must remind you that science is not always successful.'' " Nothing is impossible, Seignem-, with the men of the west," replied the Malay. Delighted to meet with a patient who possessed such an unusual stock of faith, I begged him to accompany me to my hotel, and requested him to favour me with the details of his indisposition. *' I am worn out with labour," said he, " for I have a passion for every kind of study — I have read all the books of my country, and know almost everything man can learn. Now that there is no- thing more left for me to study, I am anxious to recover my wasted health." " In that case," I remarked ; " I propose that we make an exchange ; if you will teach me a little of what you know, I will undertake to cure you completely." " The talent of teaching is not bestowed on every man," answered the Malay ; " however, I will do my best — what do you wish to learn ?" " I should like you to reveal to me some of 142 ARAB LEARNING, those secrets which the Malays so carefully conceal fi'om strangers/' " But the westerns, also, have their secrets, Seigneur," interrupted my companion, abruptly ; " will you promise to give me some insight into them r I replied in the affirmative, and my new ac- quaintance, expressing himself quite satisfied with the arrangement, left me, promising to retm'n on the follomng day. The next moi'ning, punctual to his appoint- ment, Abdala made his appearance, carrying a number of manuscripts written in the Ai-ab tongue. " This,'' said he, " treats of medicine ; this of astronomy, and this of chemistry )" placing his hand on each of the manuscripts, which were yellow with time, and much w^orn by the numerous hands through which they had passed. " Let us commence with medicine," said I to the learned professor ; and Abdala accordingly began to read : — " When you are afflicted with a complaint in the eyes, take some rain water." " But what kind of complaint V I asked. A complaint in the eyes," returned Abdala ; for this you must use rain water." Yes, but what sort of disease in the eyes ?" I enquired again. " I tell you, a disease in the eyes," repeated Abdala ; " when you are afflicted thus, you must not use the same remedy as for a pain in the elbow ; presently, I will tell you what to do for the latter com})laint." After some time spent in reading and conver- ge AN ARAB mPOSTOR. 143 sation, I found, that the scientific treatises of my friend Abdala, contained a number of barbarous cures for all kinds of maladies, instructions for the manufacture of watches, and the mariner's compass, and receipts for the preparation of various metallic salts, and for the distillation of alcohol. I had hoped to find in Abdala, a disciple of Avicenne or Averrhoes — a descendant of the illustrious Arabs, who, in the middle ages, devoted themselves to the study of Aristotle and Hippo- crates, and I was quite delighted at the idea of being able to make valuable scientific researches, by cultivating the acquaintance of a savan, who was deeply imbued with the celebrated theories of the eleventh century. Alas ! I was most greviously disappointed at finding myself in the presence of one of those wandering impostors, who scoui- all parts of the country, constructing sun dials on the walls of taverns and cottages, and whose medical knowledge scarcely enabled liim to compete with the quacl^, who distribute drugs and ointment in om^ country villages. The acquirements of the learned Abdala con- sisted solely in being able to read Arabic a little, and he evidently considered this feat one of the greatest man was capable of executing. This little incident will give some idea of the state of civilisation among the Malays ; the traditional science, which was transmitted to them by the Arabs, is now extinct ; it is true that the women still repeat songs, which contain much originality and poetry, but these may be regarded as the last accents of the muse, who is about to take flight before the influence of the people of the west, for the government of the 144 THE PROFESSOR TURNED PUPIL. Europeans has been most fatal to these people, as we shall soon perceive more Mly, when we speak of the island of Java. It has put a stop to the movement of civilisation, which was just begin- ning to take place amongst them. The numerous rajahs, who formerly ruled in the islands of the Ai-chipelago, employed them- selves, not only in the arts of war, but in enter- taining at their courts the principal poets of their time ; and the Europeans, in robbing these princes of their ancient power, have, as it were, destroyed the protecting shelter, beneath which these birds of the east used to sing. As may easily be imagined, I soon grew tired of the scientific revelations which Abdala offered to make to me, and cut liim shoii, by changing the subject, and talking of his health, stating, that I should prefer occup^dng myself with that ; but to this proposition he replied — " Health ceases to be a blessing, if accompanied by ignorance, and since you refuse to learn what I was going to teach you, I presume that you must know more than myself; enlighten me on those subjects of which you find me ignorant.'' " But what shall I teach you V I replied ; " medicine, astronomy, chemistry, or shall I tell you how the world was made, and when it will come to an end V " All these things are perfectly well kno^^^^ to me, for my father instructed me regarding them when I Avas still in infancy ; all I want to know, is, wliat mode of life I sliould adopt, in order to preserve my mind in tranquillity and cheerfulness, and my body in liealth." " To ensiu-e this/' I answered, " I should MAHOMEDAN PARADISE. 145 ^ recommend you to live chastely and soberly, and not to attempt to impose upon others/' " Ah ! that is exactly what all the Westerns say/' exclaimed Abdala ; " and, although they practise their own precepts, yet, I observe, that they invariably die young, and then* spirits and youth seem to abandon them early. Now, the Malays are as gluttonous as sharks, and as sensual as the toad of the rice fields ; while the Chinese, who practise all kinds of deception on the Malays, remain to the end of their days, young and fresh looking, and are active and healthy, even when the long hair, which falls over their backs, has become grey and thin as the coat of a mangy dog." " All this may be true," said I ; " but you must remember, that Mahomet does not receive these men into his Paradise." " Nor you either," answered the Malay, quick- ly, as he scanned me from head to foot. As I felt that my presumptuous remark had not quite succeeded, I changed the subject by enquiring, whether it were true that the Malays poisoned their arrows, and other weapons. " As true," he replied, " as that I am the son of my father." On my enquiring fuu'ther into the subject, he said that he would return on the morrow, and shew me something relative to it ; so, on the following day, Abdala arrived, carrying a number of small paper parcels, which he spread out upon the table, and allowed me to examine. There were several fr-agments of a whitish substance, which I immediately recognised, from its form, to be a species of lime ; another ingredient, reduced L 146 POISONED WEAPONS. to a white powder, some cocoa oil, a citron, and an extract of some kind, of a dark colour, and virous smell. Abdala took u]:) a long thin kriss, touched the sides of it with the lime, then spread it over ^vith the white powder, and squeezed a little of the citron juice upon it : this being done, he exposed it to the heat of the sun, and wdien the blade was quite dry, he took up the black extract, and put a small quantity of it upon the part wdiich had been previously covered with lime, touching- it lastly with the cocoa oil. He then proceeded to prepare the other side of the kriss in the same manner, and to convince me that he perfectly understood the whole affair, he wounded a fowl, which died a short time afterwards. The white substance was, I found, a mixtm^e of arsenic, and the extracted matter was made fi-om the bai'k of the onenispermum coculus ; the poisonous quali- ties of the kriss were, probably, owing principally to the latter ingredient. And this w^'is the only thinef I w^^s able to learn fi'om the learned re- searches of professor Abdala. On the day following that on which I had this conversation with him, I set out for Java, winch, as every one knows, is the very centre of the Dutch possessions in India ; and the cabinet of the Hague lia5i succeeded in establishing in tliis beautifid country, a system of government which is well worth attention. Some day or otlier, I intend to study it more minutely, for, in tJie present day, I think it would be i'ar from useless to be acquainted with the })riiici})les of Dutch socialism. to 147 CHAPTER III. POULO-PINANG. "See Naples and die !" says the Italian, in his wild enthusiasm for that city, which is laved by the waters of an ever-varying sea, the waves of which are continually agitated by cold north winds, while the air is perfumed by a few meager orange-trees, the petals of which are almost al-- ways blighted by the hoar-frost of winter. What then might the Italian poet say of Poulo-Pinang, the island of the Prince de Galles ? — Poulo- Pinang, the centre of Malacca, and the Eden of the world ! On this lovely spot of earth, the dream of perpetual spring is realized, and Provi- dence has placed it alone in the midst of the ocean, as if to shield it from the attacks of the rude and barbarous. The most cultivated of the Indian tribes, the Persians, natives of Java, the Hindoos, the industrious Chinese, a few well- educated Europeans, and some missionary priests from England, all share in the possession of this domain. For their enjoyment and benefit does this privileged soil produce almost all the fruits of the tropics, fr'om the banyan of the old Indian world, to the litdd of Fo-Kien, and Kouanoj- long, as well as the most splendid flowers of all countries ; the odoriferous camelia, the frangi- 'pctnier, the lotus, the rose, and many others ; and, as though all tliese blessings were not sufii- cient for man, it ofters him the delights of a l2 148 THE WEDDING PORTION. climate more appropriate than any other in the world, for the gratification of his wishes and wants. The mountainous cone which overlooks this island is divided into separate parts, with as much regularity as the scale of a thermometer : at the base the temperature is extremely mild, but at the summit it possesses all the bracing freshness of Lagima and Salassy, a delightful variety of climate, which determines the move- ments of the inhabitants, and prevents them from sufiering from the inconveniences occasioned by our cold, ungenial winters. 1 Pi I have never met with any one, who, after spending a few days in this beautiftil oasis, did not wish to spend the rest of his life in the de- licious tranquillity and repose which this climate affords. I have paid three visits to the island of the Prince de Galles, and on each occasion have quitted it with regret, not merely because of losing the society of my esteemed friend there, but because I have always been so much charmed with the calm, lovely face of nature, presenting as it does the image of tranquil happiness ; the sky always without a cloud, the sea never agi- tated, but smilinc: and baskino- in a continual calm — everything soft and gentle as the women of its clime. The English became possessed of this eai-thly paradise in the following manner : the King of Kheda presented it as a wedding portion to his daughter, who married an Englishman, and the hap})y bridegroom, with the consent of his consort, bestowed upon the island the name of the Prince de Galles, and made liis own country a })resent of THE GARDEN OF THE EAST. 149 it. Since this country has been under the domi- nion of England, it has become quite a place of resort for the conquerors of India ; and here the powerful merchants who journey round the world in search of gain and glory, return to recruit the health they have wasted in their commercial la- bours, undertakings far more honourable than the victories boasted of by the hobbling heroes of the Invalides. The healthy influence of this climate is infallible ; constitutions, weakened by the damp unhealthy heat of Calcutta, Madras, and Bombay, recover in this island, as quickly as at Cape Town, or Tenerifle, and regain the energies which they have probably been deprived of for years. The inhabitants suppose, that in the time of the ancients, Hygeia, goddess of health, took up her abode in this charming island, and those who had derived benefit from its climate, blazoned forth the miraculous influence of the benevolent divi- nity in all parts of the world. In the present day, they have ceased to believe in the presence of a supernatiual agency ; still the possessors of this fine country do not fail either to avail them- selves of all the blessings of their beautiful cli- mate, or to live in the most comfortable, and even luxuriant manner. The island of the Prince de Galles is a little larger than Jersey, and I believe that it is possi- ble to travel round it in one day, having the de- licious shade of the fine trees which sm-round it with a belt of verdure the whole of the way. But, although not large, this little spot of earth is, in reahty, a world in itself, ^vith its plains, valleys, creeks, rivers, and mountains — its fertility is so great, that there is not a single little morsel 150 TOWN OF PINANG. of land in the whole place, w^hich is not cultivated like a garden, for the inhabitants never attempt to grow anytliing in this soil but what is pleasing to the senses. On the declivities of the coast, are planted clove-trees, with their brown, starry flowers, cinnamon trees, rich with delicious odour, nutmeg trees, concealing their yellow, apricot- like fruit, beneath leaves, thick and glistening as those of the lam^el, whilst the plains are covered with sugar-canes, the enormous stems of which are as large as the bamboos of Yu-Nan. The town of Pinang is beautifully situated on tlie sea-shore, and inhabited principally by Euro- peans and Chinese ; and the natives of these countries, ambitious and fond of gain, are the only people in this island who immure themselves in neat-looldng white-washed houses, for the In- dians and Malays build themselves delicious little bowers beneath the thick branches of the llower- ing trees ; and never will Her Majesty the Queen of Great Britain (whom God preserve !) inhabit a palace half so lovely as the humblest of her sub- jects at Pinang, even the poor Malay, or the des- pised Bengalee, possesses ; she is, alas, condemned to the fate of not being able to enjoy half her riches ! Were she once to see, even in a dream, the glory and magnificence of her possessions in India, the palaces of Calcutta, the o-jn-dens of Be- nares and Ceylon, the grottoes at Elephanta, the villiis of Pointe-de-Galles, Sincii]wre, and ^lalacca, she would indeed exclaim, with the Italian to wliom I alluded before — " Behold my dominions, and then die !" I resided, during my stay at Pinang, with my friend M. Bigandet, the manager of the foreign CATHOLIC MISSIONAKIES. 151 missions at Malacca ; and his house may, in every sense of the word, be termed the abode of bene- volence, for no one enters it without being re- ceived with a smile of welcome, consoled if he is in affliction, and offered refreshment if hungry or thirsty. My fellow-countrymen, who are more numerous at Pinang than will readily be believed, used to pay frequent visits hither, and generally at the hours of repast. Whilst staying with this worthy priest, I knew a great number of missionaries, for whom I formed quite a friendship, and I entertain a pleasant re- membrance of their various peculiar characteris- tics. For the most part, they were good-hearted, tolerant, amiable men, who treated the marine officers, and the poor sailors belonging to the mer- chant vessels, with great kindness and affability : but I must allow, that my countrymen do not al- ways behave very pohtely towards these men, who are generally very well disposed towards them, and indeed, would be of great use to them in these countries — however, the exactions, or rather, the wishes of the good priests are very reasonable ; they require that the French and Enghsh, the Bengalees, Malays, and Chinese, should, once a-week, make a public avowal of their religious faith, by attending divine service. One Sunday I had been fallilling the wishes of the good priests, and was standing at M. Bigan- det's, being about to dine with my friend, when I saw two French marines, who were weU known to me, enter the dwelling of the missionaries : one of them bore the title of " Captain Martin,'' and the other, of whose name I was ignorant, was his intimate friend, confidant, or whatever he might 152 THE PIKATE. be called. Of course, the former was only called " Captain'' by com-tesy, for, in reality, he was merely the master of a vessel, which occasionally made speculative voyages about these shores. The captain was a little thick-set man, with short, muscular limbs, a ruddy visage, and sharp featm*es, surrounded by a fiery red beard, small grey eyes, which were continually in motion, and glittered exactly like those of a cat. He had acquired great reputation for boldness and intrepidity, and many tales were related of him, which said little either for liis sobriety or prudence. This Captain Mai-tin commanded a little vessel manned by a crew of about ten Malays or Lascars, and carried on a soiii of commerce in wood, for household ar- ticles, which he brought to different parts of the Malay coast, or the little islands of the Archipe- lago. When at sea, it was said that the captain cared very little for wind and storm ; he short- ened the sails only on their approach, and never entirely lowered them except in a tempest. Upon one occasion our hero was pm'suing his voyage in most beautiful weather ; his expedi- tion had been unusually lucrative, and he was re- turning in high spirits to Pinang, when his friend came to inform him that a i)roa, of very suspi- cious aspect, was beai'ing down upon the vessel. He turned his attention to the point indicated, and saw in a moment that it was a Malay vessel, which, from its general ap})earance, could not pos- sess very pacific intentions : it was useless to endea- vom- to escape it, for the breeze being very gentle, the cjiptain's vessel made but slow progi'css, whilst the '[troa seemed to fiy over the waves like an arrow. Without losing a moment, the captain THE COUNCIL OF WAR. 153 summoned his crew — informed them that it was his intention to fight the pirates, who would pre- sently attack t/he ship, and that he was about to make an equal distribution of the arms on board. At this announcement, the Lascars and Malays exclaimed loudly ; they said that they were on board that vessel to assist in commercial under- takings, but that none of them intended to sacri- fice their own lives for the preservation of liis lordship's piasters, and thereupon they all sat down quietly upon deck. Captain Martin did not condescend to dispute the point with his crew, but calling his fi?iend and counsel, he observed to him that every thing they possessed was on board, and that it would be shameful not to en- deavour to defend it — that his own desire was to fight to the last, but he wished for the opi- nion of his companion. " My opinion," replied his friend, " is, that it would be a great pity to lose our lives in fight- ing two against twent}^, even supposing the crew does not join the other side ; if all we have is taken from us, why, we must commence all over again ; besides, even if we loose every tiring, we shall not be poorer than we were when we came to this country." " You argue Hke a lawyer," answered the cap- tain ; " but allow me to make one remark, viz. that in case of having all w^e possess taken from us, you may be quite certain that our lives will share the same fate as our property, and we shall therefore be deprived of the opportunity upon which you seem to calculate, of commencing our labom-s over again ; you may depend upon it, the heroes on yonder deck would much prefer 154 HOW TO MAKE MEN BRAVE. seeing iis hanged, to giving us a chance of treat- ino" them in a similar manner should we return to Pinang." These considerations seemed to have some weight with the captain's friend, who replied, that he would do whatever he was required ; and after a short conversation, descended into his little cabin, while Captain Martin took down a couple of double-barrelled muskets, which he handed to his companion, with a good supply of ammunition, and at the same time armed himself with a heavy bar of iron, and an enormous blud- geon, which had already seen some hard service : thus equipped for action, the two friends returned on deck. " Load both your muskets — stand in the back- ground — and listen to what I am about to say,'' were the first orders issued by the captain to his comrade, by whom they were promptly obeyed : the former then threw his iron bar down upon the deck, and taking the bludgeon in both hands, delivered his sentiments in the following terms — " You refuse to fight — well, to this mode of con- duct you have doubtless a right ; but, on the other hand, / have the power, not merely to command, but to punish you in any manner I please : supposing I order you to dance a minuet — if the music does not suit yt>ur taste, and you climb the mast to avoid hearing it, why, 1 shall be under the necessity of bringing you do^\^l again l)y a few shots from those nuiskets." And witli(jvit waiting for an answer, he threw liim- self u]Km the Malays and Ljuscars, and used his weapon in such good earnest, that the atfrighted victims were comi>letely taken by sm'i)rise, and THE ATTACK. 155 forgetting everything but their own safety, sought to escape the terrible blows menacing them on all sides; some fled for shelter to the sails, others climbed the mast, and one poor fellow jumped overboard, no one attempting to rescue him : in less than ten minutes, every man in the vessel (with the exception of the one who had taken to the water) had thrown himself at the feet of the gallant captain, and kissing the dust off his shoes, swore to defend the vessel to the very death. " It is well, my friends,'' said their commander, coolly ; " I see you require kind treatment to be- come obedient ; but take care not to fail me this time — should you do so, you may find it danger- ous.'' And laying down the bludgeon, he once more resumed the iron bar, having impressed the crew with the opinion that it was decidedly bet- ter to run the risk of an encounter with the pi- rates, than to meet with certain death at the hands of their captain ; so every man armed him- self with axes, spades, irons, in short, with what- ever he could find in the shape of a weapon, and stood prepared to receive the enemy. Scarcely had all this taken place, when the Malay "proa bore down upon the vessel like an arrow cutting through the air — its sails were fold- ed, and its rapid, noiseless motion, scarcely left a trace of its presence on the bosom of the waters — the moment the two vessels came alongside each other, that of the captain was seized by a grap- pling-iron, wielded by the hands of a Malay, and at the same instant six well-armed men sprung upon the deck — " Let no one move," said the commander, who as two Malays set foot on 156 THE VICTORY. board, laid them both dead at his feet with the well-dealt blows of his formidable iron bar. The lieutenant now saw, that the fii'st thing to be effected was the separation of the ship from the grappling-iron of the p^^oa, in order to pre- vent the possibility of the other assailants render- ing any assistance to their companions, and, taking deadly aim with his musket, he split the head of the Malay who wielded the grappling-iron, and thus gave the vessel a better chance against the 'proa. This unexpected blow astounded the pirates, who began to lose their self-command, and thus committed the fatal error of hesitation ; in another moment, two more of their crew were shot dead, and giving up the encounter in despair, they hoisted the sails of the loroa, and took flight, with even greater rapidity than they had used in overtaking the ship, leaving their companions to the mercy of the conqueror. Captain Martin had now only the three Malays to deal with, for out of the six who had leaped on board, two were immediately murdered, and the third was now writhing upon deck with both his legs fractured. Of course the unfortunate prisoners surrendered themselves on beholding the departure of the ^iroa ; and, justly proud of his victory, the captain commanded that the un- happy Malay, whose wounds caused him such agony, should be thrown overboard, to put an end to his tortures, and ordered tlie other three prisoners to be brought before him. He wa.s not long in deciding their fate, for, upon examining their countenances, he decreed that two of them should be hanged by the hands of the thii'd, who AN EXECUTION. 157 was a youth of about nineteen, to whom he gave the benefit of French law, in consideration of his having been led by the others, and incapable of judging for himself So the captain returned to Pinang with the bodies of the two pirates swinging amongst the rigging. Of course the adventure was reported to the English government, and, upon examination, it Avas unfortunately proved, that the Malays on board the captain's vessel, were the accomplices of the pirates by whom they had been attacked : two of them were, therefore, condermied to death ; and, on the day of the execution, Martin and his friend dressed themselves in their best attire, and, taking up their position in front of the spectacle, remained until all was over, when the commander exclaimed — " I felt obliged to be present in person, for I could not have believed, had I not witnessed the proof, that an English- man could be just to a Frenchman \" Such was his blunt manner of expressing his satisfaction, and such the man who presented himself, at the moment of which I have spoken, at the residence of the missionaries. As soon as he perceived me he came up, and offering his hand, exclaimed — " What a country this is, doctor ! there is actually not a single public-house in the island where one may talk and drink as one pleases ! To think that I, who would, when in France, have gone three miles another way, rather than have met a priest, should here, be obliged to come to his house to have the pleasure of meeting with a countryman of my own.'" I remarked, that the manner in which he had 158 THE JONAHS OF THE GULPH. been treated in this country, ought to have re- conciled liim to the sio^ht of the black robes. " True, doctor, I dare say they are not bad friends — true as gold and not vindictive — they treat you hospitably, and never breathe a word hinting at recompense ; but I must confess, that the dislike I have to them is stronger than my reason, and I have cherished it from infancv. When I lived at home in my native village, and wanted some eggs to eat, my mother invariably replied, that she must keep them all for the curate : and when my poor father was lost in the Gulf of Gascony, there were two priests on board the vessel." *' But, sui-ely,'' said I, " Father Bigandet did not eat all yom' mother's eggs, nor was it owing to the evil influence of Father Bouchot that your father met with his untimely fate \" " No, no,'' was the reply ; " and between our- selves, I can hardly believe sometimes that they really are priests : in the first place, M. Bigandet, is as learned as a law}^er," (the captain had a number of favourite phrases, and this was one of them) ; " and you know the old saying amongst us ; and as to Father Bouchot, what a man he is ! a little while ago, he applied for a piece of land from the Governor, who granted it, but being a true-born Englishman, growled out ' Ah, there's another Frenchman o-oiuo- to ruin himself!' but, instead of that, Father Bouchot, tar from getting into difficulties, lias now the finest plantations in Pinang — what a pity it is that such a man can- not many, for what a fortune he could leave liis children. 1 only wish I could (^laim tlie title of his WHEN TO ATTEND MASS. 159 nephew ; but priests never have any relations but pretty nieces — have they Doctor ?" " Captain, your joke will not do — but come in, and have some dinner/' " Ah, no, I never think of visiting the mis- sionaries in that way, for their ' Benedicite' would not suit me at all — besides, what a hypocrite I should be to mingle amongst them and make the sign of the cross, just as if I belonged to their set/^ " But are you then the very Diable himself in person, that you will neither join them at mass, nor exchange a friendly ' Benedicite' with them V " As for the matter of blessing,'' replied Mar- tin, " I never attend mass on a Sunday from superstition, but at the same time, I seldom fail in this duty when about to put to sea ; and re- member Doctor, whenever you are going to make a voyage, never let it be with a captain who omits attending mass, or who sets sail on a Friday." And so saying the Captain shook my hand, and in spite of all my remonstrances, departed. This singular specimen of a marine philosopher was capable of appreciating the kindness and be- nevolence of those of my fellow countrymen, who as servants of God, looked upon his misdemeanors with a charitable eye. I ought moreover to add, that Captain Martin was not at heart, a bad man, or an unbeliever, for in reality, he was a firm friend of the missionaries, and all who were ac- quainted with him knew better than to speak ill of them in his presence. Besides the concourse of sailors who frequent the shores of Pinang, there are also great num- bers of French planters and merchants, most of whom hold an honourable and influential position IGO THE ENGLISH AT PINAXG. in the country. One of these, M. Donadieu, a friend of mine, hjis founded, in the province of Walesley (in the Malay territory), a most splendid establishment, which fully equals any of those belonging to the English. He first set foot on this soil full of confidence in the efficacious pro- tection of the British flag, wherever it is hoisted, as the vigilant guardian of the civil, religious, and commercial liberty, of all over whom it waves, without distinction or partiality. M. Donadieu has long since renounced all the prejudices which are still nomished against " ijer- Jide Albion" in the heart of these provinces, and he seized every opportunity of convincing me, that the English, in this country, are the repre- sentatives of tlie strictest justice, while the tribes under their government are by far tlie happiest in India. I once accompanied him to visit a Chinese mer- chant at Pinang, who, like M. Wampou, of Sinca- pore, carried on a commerce comprising nearly all the objects in the creation. Whilst there, two Malays entered the shop, one a man of about forty, the other many years younger, perhaps five-and-twenty years of age. The former was endeavourino^ to sell a maojnificent skin of the black panther, wliich would have delighted the eyes of Eugene Sue. He was not without some traits of physical resemblance to the animal whose remains he held in his hand ; small in stjiture, and extremely thin, he glided about rather than walked, and at every step turned his quick glit- tering eyes right and left. The other carried one of those pretty sphericiil cages which the Miilays alone can construct, in which were imprisoned THE PANTHER SKIN. 161 two beautiful birds. The two men had nothing in common, save the characteristic traits of their race, for in every other respect they differed stri- kingly, and the nature of their merchandise was not more opposite than the expression of their countenances. The younger one had a firm free step, and walked with his hand on the scabbard of his kriss, while his general mien was cheerful, and expressive of mildness and candour. M. Donadieu requested the Chinese merchant to allow me, as a stranger, to pui^chase the pan- ther's skin, and the two pretty birds, a pro- posal to wliich the son of the celestial empire consented with the air of a man who knew how much tliis act of complaisance would cost him. " Now, Doctor,'' said M. Donadieu, as the two Malays were brought before us, " you have only to listen, in order to have an excellent opportu- nity of forming what the French term an ' iTn- 'pression de voyage :" and the following dialogue took place between my friend and the proprietor of the panther's skin : — " Where did you kill that animal V ^' I can tell you nothing about him, for I did not kill him myself" " Then you bought the skin V " No." " No ! How then did you become possessed of it?" " It was given me to seU." " Where do you come from V " From the provinces, on the other side the water." *' What is the name of your country V M 162 GOVERNMENTS CONTRASTED. " What does that matter ? — Will you buy the skin V " Yes : but supposing I were to visit your pro- vince, with my friends, would you accompany us in our hunting expeditions, if we paid you to do SO i " I never hunt. Will you buy this skin V " How much do you want for it ?" " Six piastres.'' " I shall only give you four.'' " Then I must go and ask the owner whether he will agree to your price." With these words he left tlie shop, and M. Donadieu, turning to the younger man, abruptly enquired whence he came. " From Koulet-Tambon, in the provinces be- longing to the Company," was the reply. " How should you like to see some of my countrymen come amongst you to hunt tigers and elephants along with the natives of your country ?" " Would you furnish me with a musket ?" " Of course." " Oh, then we would hunt elephants, and pur- sue them up to the very borders of Siam." " What do you ask for those two birds ?" " Two piastres." M. Donadieu turned to me, and enquired whether I really wished to become a pm'chaser ; on my replying in the affirmative, he tohl the Malay that he should only give him one piastre for the two ; but the young man without ])aying any further attention to the bargain exclaimed — " You do not speak Englisli, but you seem to be RAJAH GOVERNMENT. 163 from tlie same country. Where is your native land V " A very long way from here — far away over the seas — it is called France."" " You are both dressed in the same manner, and you must be of the same tribe ; but how is it that your companion wears moustaches, while you are without them ? Is he a chief, or are yott of superior rank V " There is no distinction of that kind between us, he merely wears moustaches because he has a fancy for doing so/' " But you are governed by the English, are you not V " By no means.'^ *' Oh, then you are under the dominion of some rajah,'' exclaimed the Malay, gazing on us with an expression of mournful pity. " Nor that either — we have a king, just as the English have." " You are not English, and yet you are not governed by a rajah " and the Malay shook his head incredulously, and seemed to reflect for a few minutes — then suddenly recollecting him- self, he overwhelmed M. Donadieu with a per- fect shower of questions, exhibiting as he did so, that true spirit of curiosity, which is, perhaps, one of the most infallible signs of the first dawn- ings of intellect, and is not often to be met with among tribes so barbarous as the one to which this Malay belonged : as his enquiries would have required quite a long course of geographical and political instruction in order to have been render- ed frilly comprehensible to him, M. Donadieu, pleaded want of time, promising to tell him more M 2 [64i WEALTH DAXGEROUS. at some future time, and after paying him for his birds, we departed. On the thresliold we encountered the proprietor of the panther-skin, which, it appeared, we were to have for four piastres. On handing him the money, he received it in perfect silence, looking cautiously around him all the time, as if to assure himself that the transaction had not been ob- served. " Now, doctor,'' said M. Donadieu, addressing me, " do you understand wdiat you have just seen ? " Perfectly,'' I replied ; " one of these two Ma- lays is a British subject ; the other, some poor vas- sal of the Rajah's, under the dominion of the King 01 oiam. " The owner of the panther's skin," continued my fi'iend, " is most probably a wealthy man, and holding a position of importance in his country, notwithstanding his abject and suffering appear- ance ; yet he clandestinely carries on a little commerce of his own, the profits of which he is careful to guard with the utmost secresy : he knows too well the ruthless principles of his So- vereign on the subject of confiscation, and is con- stantly disquieted and suspicious, because of the incessant surveillance which oppresses his country- men, and the fear he has of meeting the e\'e of his master ; never sure of the intentions of any one he meets, he dare not reply to any (juestions, from a dread of com])romising, or involving him- self in difiiculties ; in short, like all the other sub- jects of a des})otic government, he lives in a state of ])er])etual constraint and misery. As to the young Malay, under the dominion of the English WHAT IS GOOD GOVERNMENT ? 165 flag, he is free from all these harrassing doubts and suspicions, and the bold step, and contented honest air, bespeak in the plainest language, that he stands in no fear of his masters, whose protec- tion enables him to enjoy, in peace and secm-ity, the fruits of his honest labours, and to laugh to scorn the petty tyrants who ruled his forefathers with a rod of iron/' " You may depend upon it, doctor,'' said M. Donadieu, gravely, " it is not of that importance which men suppose, wdiether your opinions are constitutional or absolute — democratic or the re- verse ; this matters comparatively little ; the grand thing required is to be just — to claim for another, whether friend or enemy — inferior or superior, the same protection, liberty, and privileges, which you demand for yourself: with a government in which this principle is fully carried out, you may be confidently certain that little will go amiss." And many times, since that conversation, have I been forcibly reminded of the lesson I then re- ceived in politics. Amongst all my recollections of Pinang, there are none more agreeable than those connected with my delightful walks in its environs — some- times by the side of deUcious streams, listening to the silvery sounds emanating from the large leaves of the lotus — now in beautiful lanes shaded by the bamboo and arequier, and embellished with plants of the lovely nepanthus, the petals of which are perpetually filled with a Hquid more clear and sparkling than the morning dew, and sometimes by the side of the mountain, on the summit of which stands the country residence of the governor. One day, I ordered my palanquin, and repaired to 166 PINANG BOWERS. the foot of this smgular looking cone, which over- looks the whole island, almost like a gigantic obser- vatory : on arriving at the base, I alighted, and took my way along the spmil road wliich runs all round the mountain, and is as green as if covered with a carpet of velvet — for vehicles of any kind, this beautiftd path is quite impassable — and the thick branches of the noble trees rise to the height of one hundred feet into the air, and form an inter- laced dome of the richest verdure, which is perfectly impenetrable, while, beneath its protect- ing shade are innumerable arbuscles and herbaceous plants, mingled with the foliage of the elegant ferns, whose light feathery branches float grace- fully in the gentle breeze ; here and there, the sui'face of the mountain is rent asunder Ijy a deep abyss, in which you can hear the melodious voice of some surrounding cascade, rendered invisible by the mass of vegetation with which it seems as if nature delighted to cover the immense chasms, which volcanic convulsions have, from time to time, made in the soil. The universal silence which reigns around, is occasionally disturbed by the step of a horse, ascending or descending the steep path — the cry of some bird which has become entangled in the flowery meshes woven by the trees, or by the voice of an ape chattering to its young ones. As soon as I had arrived at a certain point, I seated myself at the foot of a tree, the light foliage of which admitted the bi'illiant rays of the sun, like silky threads of gold, while beautiful insects sjwrted alxmt in tlie soft air, enamelling the suiface with the splendid colours of their dazzling wings. 1 was admiring their giaceful and sportive APES IN THEIR NATIVE WILDS. 167 gambols, when a noise of a very animated conver- sation struck upon my ear, and looking up, I be- held, at an immense distance above my head, a group of monkeys, chattering and babbling in the most amusing manner. They were large, black creatures, with beard and whiskers a^ white as snow, and, except for their long tails, might have been mistaken for aged negroes ; presently their conversation seemed to border upon a quarrel, and I expected every moment they would come to blows ; the females and little ones stood at the back of the others, not without joining in the dispute, and now and then gesticulating violently ; the whole scene had the appearance of some caricature, act- ed by mountebanks in the air ; but all of a sudden the combat ceased, and the whole of the noisy troop dispersed themselves among the different boughs, which a few minutes before seemed likely to becom^e the scene of an active dispute ; and no sooner were all these singular creatures distributed about in various parts of the immense tree upon which they had been seated, than they immedi- ately began to strip it of its fruit with such ala- crity, that the ground below was in a few minutes covered with the spoil At first I thought that it must surely be against myself that these missiles were directed, as a great number of them fell upon my head, but I soon perceived that there was no hostility intended by these active workmen, for no sooner was their business finished satisfactorily, than they descended fr-om their aerial perch, to devour the fruit they had scattered. In point of intelligence, animals certainly bear a resemblance to human beings, who have sunk into a state of childishness, and their manners and 168 THE MONARCH APE : instincts, in the midst of their native forests, re- mind us of those of children released fi-om con- straint. The moment these creatm-es leaped to the ground, they began to attack the heap of fruit, manoeuvering^ and strug^oiinn^ to obtain the finest and ripest, plundering and pursuing those of their companions who had been most fortunate in their selection. In proportion as tlieir hunger was satisfied, the general disorder increased — some throwing aside their half-eaten fruit, to com- mence an attack upon one of his neighbom\s — the females robbing their offspring, as if to teach them a lesson of patience, and the whole pai-ty accompan3dng their gestiu'es with exclamations and blows. In the midst of all this confusion, a deep voice was heard to speak in an authoritative manner, which seemed to have the effect of restoring im- mediate silence and order. It proceeded from a colossal figm^e just that moment arrived, in whose grave and serious air I at once recognised the chief of the troop. No sooner had the other apes perceived him, than they surrounded him, keep- ing at a respectfril distance, and remaining in an attitude of the most perfect obedience, allowed him to select from the heap of fruit, everything that seemed to take his fiincy ; when he had done this, and appeased his appetite, he again raised his deep voice, and the whole of the turbulent party dispersed themselves in the quietest manner. " By wliat riglit," I asked myself, " does this venerable-looking cliief exercise this power ? By intellectual or physical superiority V Perhaps by means of both a — they were from Marseilles, and I recognised them in a moment ; for in 1815, I liad often had ])lenty of o])portmiity of becom- ing acquainted with men of their class, having been six montlis in a garrison at Mai-seilles as physician to an English reguiient. " It appeared tluit I had arrived at a most in- THE THRIVING WOOER. 195 teresting turii of the conversation : the sailor, upon whose arm Neiza leaned, spoke the Malay lan- guage with remarkable ease ; but so violent were his gesticulations, and so peculiar the manner in which he pronounced his words, that he made it quite a language of his own, fiery and passionate as his own voice and countenance. Tm^ning tenderly to Neiza, he exclaimed : — * If you should say to yom^self, " well, it is over, Marius will return no more I" you would be very wrong ; when I have once said a thing, I always keep to it, and never break my word. I said to myself at Sumatra, " Marius, whither wilt thou repair ? — to Pinang, to see " la petite,'' or to France V"^^^ i' -ii'^^' As the wind was favourable, I decided upon going to Marseilles, thinking to myself — ' If " la petite" is truthful, I shall retm^n to her ; if not, why, I shall select some one else. And now it is but a question of leaving and taking. I can an- chor here, or I can put to sea ; but if you will accompany me, well ! to-morrow you shaU bid adieu to your fiiends, and sleep on board ; but do not let me hear you afterwards say — ^' I am un- comfortable here, it is so cold." I warn you be- fore hand, that when the wind, of which you can have no idea, but of which I have told you, blows keenly, it wiU cut you in two like a razor ; but you must defend yourself as well as you can, and make the best of things." * I wiU go with you,' replied Neiza, without stopping a moment to consider. * Well said — well said !' exclaimed the Mar-^ seillais, extending his hand to the young ffirl ; who placed hers in it. ^^^il IjyT^oqqB ii 02 196 A maiden's dower. " But after looking at her lover for a moment, she inquired — ' Have you not brought me any- thing V ' I have brought you myself — not a great gift, perhaps ; but what do you want more V • i ' Oh, nothing/ replied Neiza ; ' still I do wish you had brought me something else, were it only to have the pleasure of giving presents to my sis- ters/ ' But, my dearest, I really have nothing,' said the sailor, playing with his compass ; then, as if a sudden idea occurred to him, he exclaimed — ' Mao saya poenja fjintjin Jwepinr/ f which sig- nifies — ' Shall I give you my ear-rings V " At this original idea, I had the greatest diffi- culty in retaining my gravity ; and the young girl, who seemed delighted with her lover, gave free vent to her hilarity. " Until this moment, no more attention had been paid to me than if I had not been present ; but the father now approached, requesting me to wait a little while, as he wished to speak to me, after the departure of the strangers ; to wliicli proposition I willingly consented, being desu'ous of witnessing the termination of this anmsing ad- venture ; besides, I now began to think, that this peculiar individual, bedecked with rings and chains, like a South-Sea islander, would make Neiza a much more suitable husband than I should have done. " The party now separated ; the family with- drawing to discuss their private affairs — the two friends also conversing together ; wliilst I, lK?ing left quite to myself, turned my attention prinoi- A lovee's doubts. 197 pally to the colloquy between tlie two Marseil- lais, whose discourse ran something as follows : — ' Well, Louiset, you see the girl is faithful, after all ; she will go with me/ * But,' replied the other, ' what will your pa- rents, who are so respectable, say to this ? For my part, if she were to die on the passage, I should advise you to throw her overboard, with a weight attached to each foot, and think no more about her. But if she should live to reach Mar- seilles, why, you know your mother will be no Jbetter pleased with her than she was with the ape you brought home last year, which broke nearly every thing in her room. Idiot that you are ! — if you really do mean to act thus, / will not ac- company you to Marseilles, but will renounce cyou altogether V ' Imagine yourself, for a moment, in my place," answered Marius ; ' the child is a brave one — I have said that she should go with me, and she .isluill do so ! no one shall take her from me I' ' The devil !' exclaimed Louiset, in a passion. * I should think not, indeed ! She wiU disgust .other people too much for that !' . ' Disgust, indeed !' said Marius, pettishly. * I only 1-Giow, that as soon as she is seen by the mer- chants and sailors on board, they will all be in love with her ! — besides, I have promised to take her with me, and so that settles the matter.' * An idea has just occurred to me,' said Louiset, striking his chest with his hand. * You see the -Ponantais, who stands yonder ; for any thing he tcan understand of our conversation, we may Ispeak as we should do before a wall. Well, I wiU undertake, in the first place, to have every thing 198 A DIFFICULTY SOLVED. in readiness to set sail to-night. At eleven this evening, we will return here, and, in the course of conversation, assert that the Poiiantais is the lover of the girl, as every one here has told us ; thus we shall create a disturbance both with the father, mother, and " la jyetite" herself Of this we will avail oui^selves, by taking oiu- departure, and who will know any thing about it J^^No one. — Well, what say you to my plan V - ■ '■'^ * It is far from being a bad one/ replied Ma- rius, rubbing his ear ; ' but hush, not a word more V and in another moment he was at the side of Neiza, paying her all sorts of compliments, which he presently interrupted by suddenly ex- claiming — ' And your cousin, Neiza ! what of him V * Oh, he will be here to-night,' she answered. " Then, with that impetuous restlessness pecu- liar to the people of the south, he abruptly turned to his companion, and said — ' With regard to him, my friend — I have already given him a lesson ; he was on board my vessel, and of no more use there than an ape, breaking everything, and doing nothing. I did not speak a word, but took him by the nape of the neck (for these Turks have no hair), and then with a r/arcette, gave him such a shower of blows, that his skin actually smoked under the chastisement, the natives of this country not being very difficult to undress. Since that time, I have not been troubled with liim.' "After a little more time spent in conversa- tion and badinage with tlie father and mother, the two sailors eml)raced Neiza jmd departed. This conversation made one or two thiui^Ts nither more apparent to me ; for instance, I now under- THE DENOUEMENT. 199 stood better how it liappened that Neiza knew what it was to feel cold — why she had delayed so long in giving me an answer ; and also conjectured the motive of the young Malay boy in taking such pains to make me acquainted with his friends. I did not make known to this interesting family the conspiracy I had discovered, and was about to take my departure, when the old mother came up and begged to remind me that she had still another daughter, who might probably suit me as well as the one who was going away, yiij' I will think about it,' said I, and ironically wishing a happy voyage to the fair Neiza, I de- parted. However, I have reason to believe that the plan talked of in my presence by the Marseil- lais sailors, was successful, for about six months afterwards, I espied Neiza leaning on the arm of one of the dirtiest sailors to be found on board any Portuguese vessel, but he was, nevertheless, amply bedizened with rings, bracelets, and ear-rings of silver. And now, my dear friend, you are ac- quainted with the circumstance which has hitherto prevented me from introducing a " Malay Eve into my Eden.'' • The interesting adventm-e of the good doctor amused me greatly, and indeed, taught me a lesson I have always remembered since ; for from that time I have ever looked upon the native princesses of these barbarous countries as mere automatons, worth only of the passing attention of an educated being ; and this impression was further confirmed by a still more serious adven- ture, which some time afterwards shewed me even more plainly the disadvantages of mesalliances of this sort, to Europeans. 200 BRITISH PHILANTROPY. Poulo-Pinang is not only a mere resort of plea- sure to the merchants, Indian nobles, and others who frequent its delightfrd shores, but also the centre of a considerable intellectual movement. Thanks to the civil and religious liberty which ai'e enjoyed in this country, the various creeds re- cognised have founded several establishments of considerable importance, the most flourishing of which is the college of Pulo-Ticoux, belonging to the French Missionaries, and containing two hun- di'ed Chinese, Siamese, and Cochin-Chinese pupils ; the same society hi\s also founded a house of resort for the native orphans, and a preparatory school attended by more than two hundred Portuguese and Malay children. The Protestants of Penang have also an Anglo- Chinese college, whence numerous publiaitions are issued every year ; in short, British philanthi-opy has effected many noble works ; by means of sub- scription, a house of refuge for the aged Chinese, an asylum for the natives, and a hospit;il, have been built here, and yet Pinang does not contain more than twelve hundred Em'opeans ! But on this favoured spot of earth, all the good sentiments and instincts of the human heai't seem to be developed ; innumerable generous and noble actions have distinguished every one of the Chris- tian sects ; and it must be confessed that the English peoj^le, who have ever been tlie guardians of freedom, and who have never emj^loyed any other tlian lemil me<'ins for tlie establishment and maintenance of their rights and institutions, are, of all other nations, the most stanch i)rotectors of human liberty, in the present day. < < 20J CHAPTER lY. BASILAN. And now for a concise account of a most liomble tragedy, tlie particulars of which have never been brought before the authorities, nor found their way into the pages of the Gazette des tribunaux. On repairing to China, M. de Lagi-ene received a special order from His Majesty King Louis Phi- lippe, to select from the Malay Ai^chipelago, some beautiful perfumed oasis, bathed by the waters of the Indian Ocean, upon which it would be pos- sible to found an establishment, the old king having an extreme desire that France should not be destitute of a spice-island, but possess a pearl in the magnificent treasm^es of Oceania, the most precious of which were under the respective do- minion of England, Holland and Spain. In order to fulfil the wishes of his sovereign, the head of the Chinese Mission made it his first care upon his arrival in these parts, to fit out a cutter, which he sent into the Archipelago of Holo, for the purpose of selecting some island, fi:ee from all European power, which could be taken possession of in the name of France. The naval officer to whom this scheme was in- trusted, anchored before the island of Basilan, and under pretext of studying the geography of that place, began to look around for a favourable spot for hoisting the national standard of France. This part of the afiair was conducted with admi- 202 PLAXTIXG A COLONY. rable Scagacity and prudence by M. Guerin, who, whilst he retained his officers and sailors on board, intrusted the engineers who went on shore to proceed in their labours, with the utmost cii'cumspection, at the same time increasing his acquaintance with the natives by means of an agent who bore no official character, but had been invested with the title of interpreter, by the naval commander of the fleet in the Indian Ocean. The expedition of M. Guerin had nearly anived at its termination, when one of his ensigns, a young man of great energy and promise, asked his permission to explore the banks of the river upon which the cutter was sailing. The com- mander was somewhat unwilling to gi'ant this request, but at last yielded to the entreaties of the young officer, on the express condition that the little vessel was never to touch the land, nor to lose sight of the cutter, to which the ensign was to retm-n upon the first signal from his su- perior officer. Gladly accepting the permission upon any terms, the ensign set out, accompanied by the owner of a canoe, two very young sailors, or cabin-boys, and a young Dutchman, who filled tlie same ca]iacity to tlie Parisian interpreter, which tliat officer held under government. Tlie little canoe was under the manafjement of its owner ; the two sailors rowed, while the ensign and the young Dutchman, seated o})posite each otlier, confined their attention to the shores of tlie river ; both of them were provided with muskets, which, however, they had negligently thrf»wn down (^n the benches of the canoe, not MALAY CUNNING. 203 expecting to meet with any occasion for using tliem ; indeed, that belonging to the ensign had not even been removed from its case. On arriving at the mouth of the river, they descried a group of natives, approaching the banks with an appearance of great cmiosity, at the same time making vehement protestations of their pacific intentions. The young officer answer- ed their salutation, upon which a dozen or more of their number leaped towards the canoe, declar- ing their readiness to accompany its crew in their excursion. This my countrymen would not allow, but after some entreaty on the part of the barbarians, permitted two of them, who seemed to be the chiefs of the party, to come on board. These two men had all the distinctive character- istics of the pure Malay race, being small, nervous, and yellow-complexioned, with the dark, restless eye of the hyena or jackal ; both were armed with a kriss, not however of the kind made at Malacca, with a thin fine blade, but of a different species, compared with which those I have mentioned were mere playthings. Their demeanour had that air of confidence and even noblesse which the constant habit of command never fails to give. One was a very young man, but the other wore a grey moustache, and looked about fifty years of age. By means of the Dutch interpreter, the following conversation was carried on between the young officer, and the elder Malay. i, " Are you the chief of this island V r{+" This young man is my son-in-law,'' replied the Malay, pointing to his companion, and wilful- ly misunderstanding the question. 204) SUSPICION AWAKK " Ai'e there a gi^eat number of warriors in this country V " Yes, but they are not well provided with arms for fighting ; it is only the Europeans who have good weapons and plenty of them." " But youi" companion and yourself are both armed with an excellent kriss !" " They are not worth so much as your campi- Ian/' replied the savage, touching the sword of the ofiicer. '' I have a musket,'' said the latter, " which is much more worth attention than my sword — would you like to see it V *' Yes, show it me/' The ensign drew the musket from its case, and presented it to the Malay, who, after examm- ing the precious weapon for a few minutes, exclaimed — " Give me this musket !" " No," replied the officer, " I cannot do that — it is too valuable to give away." " Give one the musket," repeated the other, " and I will do whatever you tell me." *' You are foolish," said the ensign shrugging his shoulders ; " and ask me to do impossibilities." " Give me the musket !" persisted the Mahiy, more earnestly than before ; but the young man only replied l)y taking the weapon, and rephicing it in its case. During this dialogue, the canoe had reached a part of tlie river, the banks of which were over- grown with vegetation, whicli gi-ew tliicker every moment tliey advanced, and the master of the lit- tle boat, liaving been struck with the manner in wliich the savage liad sj)oken, turned to his com- mander, and remarking that they were no longer MALAY TREACHERY. 205 in sight of the cutter, asked whether he did not think it would be prudent to return. " What can we have to fear from these men V replied he ; " we are five against two — by all means go on.>^-; - Scarcely had he pronounced these words, when a violent blow agitated the canoe, and the old Malay, springing on the unfortunate young man, ran him through the body with his kriss, wliile his companion, attacking the master of the canoe, split his head with one blow, and the two French- man fell dead without a struggle. The three smwivors would now have seized their muskets, but the son-in-law of the Rajah, with his legs apart, kept the weapons firmly beneath his feet ; it was he who had, in the first instance given the blow to the canoe, which had been the signal for the double assassination. The whole of the frightful scene had passed with the rapidity of lightning, and the youths, perceiving that all resistance was useless, jumped into the water to save their lives, but were unfortunately pursued and taken pri- soners by the Malays, who carried them in triumph to their village. ; The commander soon received an account of this awful tragedy ft-om several of the island chiefs, who informed him that the mm-derer of the young officer was named Youssouf, and was king of one of the numerous principalities into which Basilan was divided, and whose Machia- vellian character was well known to the rest of those petty monarchs, who were not sorry to take advantage of an occasion by which it might be possible to expel fi^om their shores so powerful and dangerous a rival. 206 REVENGE. Furnished with these details, M. Gu^rin set sail for Mindanao, for the purpose of treating with Youssouf for the ransom of liis three prisoners, re- serving for some favouraljle opportunity the task of reckoning with the blood-thirsty assassin. This negociation was carried on through the me- dium of some Spaniards at Sambaonga, who are intimately connected with these scom-ges of the ocean, and for the sum of tln^ee thousand piastres the captives were finally restored. In the eyes of the Malays, the Sultan of Holo is the legitimate monarch of Basilan and its pro- vinces ; and M. Guerin, with the intention of as- certaining how far the power of this prince ex- tended over Basilan, resolved to ask satisfaction from him for the death of his countr^nnen, and for this purpose fitted out the sloop Victorious, and set sail for Holo. On receivinor the first commimication from the French commander, the Malay Sultan repaired on board the Sabine, and at their first interview, declared that Basilan had long since emancipated itself from his sovereignty ; that he possessed no power whatever of punishing the offenders, but that he would glatlly join any fi-iendly power in an attempt to subdue and chastise them. With this undei-standing, the Sabine and Vic- torious set out for Basilan, where they had no sooner anived than the two cutters entered the river wliicli traversed the dominions of You{ < £ 1 a: < o H K U < Bi H THE COAST OF BASILAN. 207 tained a hostile attitude, and made no indication of a wish for peace. At the time that intelligence of all these trans- actions reached M. de Lagrene, he had quitted the Syren to go on board the Cleopatra, com- manded by Vice-Admiral Cecille, his intention being to visit Java, Sumatra, and several other islands, but postponing the execution of this pro- ject until another time, he at once set out for Basilan, and in anticipation of an encounter with the. Malays, Admiral Cecille staid a short time at Manilla in order to make a few preparations for war, upon the completion of which we set out for that hot-bed of Malay piracy, the Archipelago of Holo, wliich is to the neighbouring shore as much an object of dread, as Tunis, Morocco, and Algiers formerly were to Spain, Italy and Provence. Thanks to a favourable wind, we reached the coast of Basilan in three days, passing by the islands of Mindoro, and the little continent of Mindanao, which is more than thi^ee hundred leagues in extent, and upon wliich Spain possesses the province of Sambaonga. The Cleopatra anchored before the small island of Malamawi, situated to the north-west of Basilan itself, and had scarcely done so when M. Guerin made liis appearance, and after the first exchange of civilities, began to give an account of the late proceedings to the Admiral. The principal officers engaged in the expedition were of opinion that it would be advisable not to run the risk of another immediate attack upon the savages, but were in favour of waiting the result of the negotiations already commenced with the native chiefs, the enemies of Youssouf, and in order to turn the 208 GEMS OF THE OCEAN. intervening time to account, they proposed ex- ploring the boundaries of the island in the steam boat Ai'chimede, which had accompanied the Cleo- patra. From the summit of its high mountains, do^Mi to the very seashore, Basilan is, as I may say, covered Avith tall, thick trees ; the waters which flow at theu' base are limpid and sparkling as dew, and through the azure veil which hangs above them, may be perceived all the wonders of this strange, beautiful world, the marvels and immen- sity of which astonish alike the philosopher and the traveller, who make them the object of his studies. We, children of old Europe, accustomed to her civilization, and the laborious eftbi*ts with which she is constantly endeavouring to extract from her comparatively barren soil, an adequate? supply for her pressing wants, can indeed enjoy and appreciate the delicious freedom of primitive natin-e, where the hand of man has left but feeble traces of its presence, and where the reproductive powers of the earth, exercise themselves without difficulty or restraint. But before imparting to my readers the various impressions I experienced, I will endeavour to make them fully acquainted with the position of the island of which I am about to speak. Basilan is situated in that part of the Malay territories which belongs to the Ai-chii)elago of Holo, in the sixth degree of latitude, to the north-east of Min- danao ; its extent is about twenty-five or thirty leagues, nearly equalling that of our colony, the Isle of Bourl)on, to which it certainly does not yield in i)oint of fertility : it is traveled from east to west, in the centre, by a chain of moim- PORT OF BASILAR. 209 tains, the peaks of which are of great height ; other less important elevations are also spread over its surface — little spherical hills completely covered Avith trees ; the edges of the coast are in- dented and cut up by numerous creeks, some of which serve as outlets to the streams of water, which flow from the upper to the lower parts of the island, finally mingling mth the waves of the ocean. The general aspect of Basilan is that of a per- fect mass of verdm^e, so thick and luxuriant as to hide completely the soil whence it springs ; no bare lofty rocks, or naked barren peaks are to be found here ; the conical tops of the mountains, which have probably been formed by volcanic agency, are covered with the most magnificent specimens of the vegetable creation, and the level parts of the soil are luxuiiant in beautifid trees, loaded with fr-uit and flowers. At present there is no other entrance to Basilan but by the Strait of Maloso, which is a somewhat insecure one, yet preferable to those of Samba- onga, Manilla, and Soulou ; here the sailors have, dui'ing their various excm-sions in these pai^ts, discovered a port of the greatest beauty, which is completely sheltered from the gales which re- gularly blow around these shores, by the eastern part of the island, which protects it fr'om the south-east wind on the one side, and the shel- tering isle of Malamawi on the other. It is not sui^prising that the travellers who have at different times visited Basilan, should never have discovered this magnificent bay, so com- pletely is it concealed from view by the island of Malamawi ; indeed, they might easily have P 210 THE CONTINENTS OF THE FUTURE. mistaken it for a creek, large enough only to admit the proas of the Malays, and other liglit canoes, for certainly no large vessel would ever have ventui-ed into such a narrow passage, the termination of which was totally unkno^ai. Our sailors may therefore claim the merit of having made the very-important discovery, of a poi-t capable of receiving more than two hundred vessels of all sizes, and wliich may easily be entered by two different ways, in either of which the deep waters are capable of sustaining a ship of the largest dimensions, wliile the banks aromid present favourable situations for quays and land- ing places. But besides all these advantages, which are principally valuable in the eyes of the sailoi*s, this locality is also possessed of others, which if not so materially precious, are still no less real. 1 allude to the extreme beauty of a situation, which realizes all that the most vivid fancy could paint, if endeavouring to represent one of those Elysiums, which form the end of almost all men's hopes, in wliich evergTeen shades, a temperatm-e of unvaiying softness, and a deli- cious calm and silence, are to form the i)rincipal of man's enjoyments. Its calm waters are never disturbed by 'the tumultuous gale, and if a liglit breeze ruffles their surface for a moment, their glassy tran(iuillity is innnediately restored. Two or three lovely little islands, at jn-esent without names, are situated in its neighbourhood, looking like beautiful bou<|uets of flowers, rLsing fi'om the bosom of the ocean, sustained by pedestals of coral. These seem to point to some future day, when places, yet unlmowu, will transform this KATURAL BEAUTIES OF BASILAR. 211 arcliipelago of innumerable islands into one grand continent ; when the contrary eifect will perhaps be experienced by the great countries of Eirrope ; however, before this far-distant time arrives, I trust that the bay of Malamawi will bear on its clear waters the vessels of many great nations, whose rise and fall it may witness, while cradling on its bosom the human generations of many years to come. ■' Upon several occasions we visited this splendid bay, and never without being struck by its ex- treme beauty ; the silence of its deep forests was unbroken, except by the soft voice of the doves which inhabited the tops of its noble trees, the chattering of the green, yellow, red and white parroquets, and the cries of the apes which are the veritable monarchs of the sylvan retreat ; now and then beautiful green king-fishers skimmed over the water, and the souiraanga, balancing itself on the flexible branches of the paletuviei^ watched our proceedings from the shore. If we withdrew our eyes from the land and fix:ed them on the waves, the spectacle which met us there was not less attractive ; as far as the glance could wander, we could perceive immense caryophyllees extending their branches, covered with little blue, red and white flowers ; beautiful starry or mean- dering objects, covered with a soft green moss ; little fishes of all colours, and the most singular forms, sported around those living rocks ; while the sea- ranunculus, various kinds of black shell-fish with long sharp horns, spondiles, polypi, and cones, were all fixed in this interesting bed of coral. When night sm-prised us as we gazed on this scene of fairy-land, the sky, earth and sea, seemed alike p2 212 PRIMITIVE GROVES. illuminated ; every twig shone like a spraj' of diamonds, or a body of liquid fire ; and yet it was owing to the appearance of the meanest animals in the creation, mollusks, heroes, 'pyrosoiiieSy and other microscopic clusters of creatures, that this beautiful scene, which almost resembled the work of an incendiary, and which all the riches of the most powerhd monarch on earth could never have imitated, was produced ; and every evening the ej^es of the Malays who sail about these coasts in their little proas, are gladdened by this lovely sight. After wandering through the forests of Brazil, I had imagined that primitive nature had nothing further to reveal to me— that I had experienced all the impressions which could be made b}^ the pro- fund solitude, silence and obscm-ity of the thick interlaced branches above my head ; but I had not seen nature in its savage state, for in Brazil it was always easy to perceive that the Eurojjean race was in possession of the country ; the footstep of man was imprinted on the soil, and the native birds and beasts fled, and were alarmed at his a])proach ; but here, every path was solitary ; or if the parted branches indicated that some living creature had passed through the apei-ture, it Wfvs impossible to know whether the intruding foot- stej) had l^een that of some wild antelope, or of a Malay, who was probably conceided at some little distance. The birds knew nothinor of the ao^a-essions of o on man, and if by chance one of their number fell by the stroke of our murderous weai)on, the rest continued tlieir song .is merrily as ever ; they Avere the offspring of creatm-es which, for innumerable THE EIVERS OF BASILAR. 213 generations, liad lived without restraint or toil, and met with nothing to invade their security. There was not one of our party who did not ex- perience a wish to wander about on these beautiftil shores, but the terrible drama which had so lately been acted by the natives, compelled us to be cir- cumspect ; however, as it seemed probable that our number and strength would awe the Malays, who had now had reason to believe that the smallest offence would be punished with extreme rigour, we began to make little excursions in canoes, well armed, and in such numbers as to be able to offer vigorous resistance in case of an attack. Our first expedition of this kind was to the river Gunambarang, which empties itself into the sea on the eastern coast of Basilan, and is about three miles distant from Malamawi, where we had taken up our quarters. The banks of this river, as well as the sea shore, are covered with paletiiviers, and enormous mangliers, the elongated fruits of which, as they bend in the breeze, and overhang the waves, resemble the sharp darts which the Malays use with then* sarhacanes. The sort of whirlpool formed by the falling of this river into the sea, may be traced for more than a hundred metres from the spot, the waters even at that dis- tance being rendered saltish in consequence ; fifty metres further up the river, is a kind of cascade ; this forms the limit to the progress of the little vessels which ventm-e thus far, and is also the only part in which the water is quite pure, for just in this spot it merely contains the quantity of salt which is almost always to be found in 214 VEGETABLE PRODUCTIONS. streams ; this fact I ascertained by means of analyzing it, whilst on board the Cleopatra. We now stepped on to the banks of the river, but so numerous were the large Ijlocks of basalt, and so thick and spreading the roots of the trees, that we found progress extremely difficult — indeed, almost impossible ; however, by dint of great effort, we at last reached the summit of a little eminence, and turned our attention to the various vegetable specimens with which it was covered ; these consisted chiefly of arequiers, cocoa-nut and bread-fi'uit trees, several different species of palm, nutmeg-trees, oiiangoustaniers and tecks, the latter of wliicli spread their strong protecting iDranches over their more feeble brethren. Everv- tiling we saw convinced us more and more of the fertility of tlie soil in Basilan, which is indeed so productive that without labour or trouble, man may here find everything requisite for his exis- tence ; and yet the inhabitants of this favoured isle, not content with makino- lonef excursions in theii" proas, for the pm^pose of forcibly obtaining some of the productions of civilisation, much more advantageous to some of their Malay brethren than to themselves, are continually at war with each other, and never spend a moment in a condi- tion of peace and security. Although we were not at very great distance from the banks of the river, we nevertlieless deem- ed it prudent to retrace om* ste|)S, content AN'itli hav- ing overcome great obstacles in our progi-ess to the place we had visited. On returning to our canoe we found those in charge of it busily engaged in various ways ; some seeking for shells, others cutting up the branches of palm, to ol)tain the MALAY POULTRY. 215 esculent parts of the stem, whilst some had brought away the wild fruit of the pajMyer, and of another sort of vegetable, which from its thick shell- like leaves, they named the artichoke of Basilan ; each had indeed made a prize of whatever appear- ed to him the most curious or agreeable in ap- pearance. On returning down the river, we saw myriads of apes, quietly playing among the trees, so un- disturbed by our approach, that I almost thought they must imagine us to be of their own tribe, but of a different species, so indifferently and calmly did they look upon us ; but whatever might have been the motive for their conduct, whether it were confidence or disdain, it was cert?inly an unfortunate one, as many of their number paid for their temerity with the price of their lives. We spent the greater part of our sojurn in this island in making little excursions of this kind, and always with the same degree of pleasure and suc- cess, occasionally meeting with some Malay proas manned by two or three of the natives, who did not manifest any desire to make our acquaintance ; but wherever we turned, we invariably observed the same luxuriant vegetation, and infinite variety of the animpJ species ; the little island of Malamawi, for instance, resembles a park in the midst of the waters, filled with deer, wild boars, partridges, fowls, and birds of every kind. The extreme elegance and brilliant plumage of the wild fowl is very remarkable ; it is true that the Malay cock in om- countries has preserved a few of the traits which distinguish his noble forefathers, the free sons of the forests of Malacca, but in many respects he resembles them only as an effeminate king, 216 AX INCONVENIENT APPENDAGE. the descendant of a warlike race, does his an- cestors. The characteristic trait of this bird in its savage state, is an extreme degi'ee of cou- rage ; there is no kind of danger it will not face boldly ; and when siuTOiinded in its native state by a seraglio, kept in excellent order, partly by means of its beak, it permits no one to approach or examine the beauties of its harem, and is indeed so jealous and exacting, as scarcely to suffer the absence of its slaves for a moment, even to attend to then' pro- geny. Whenever I beheld this singular bird in the forests of Basilan, its crest falling on one side of its head, rollmg about its bright, but not very intelli- gent eyes, extending its sharp claws, and proudly displaying the elegance of its plumage, to the ad- miring crowd of slaves around, I was always re- minded of some of the inmates of our gariisons ; however, in spite of all the advantages possess- ed by these animals, their corn-age, confidence, and beauty, a gi-eat many of them fell into the hands of our scullion, although it must be con- fessed, that even in death, their powers of resist- ance were not entirely conquered, as their extreme toughness required the most vigorous efforts of the sharpest teeth. There was also Jinother bird, which frequently arrested our attention — this was tlie calao, which bears a crest on its head, and whose enormous beak is quite a source of inconvenience to its pos- sessor, which after having seized its jn-ey, is oljliged to throw it up in tlie air, receiving it in its narrow throat, and thus devouring it witli more facility. PLANTATIONS IN DANGER. 217 The calao is much prized in the Philippine isles, on account of the beak, which is used by the Chinese in the manufacture of the pretty little cases in which they keep their tobacco, or the small stock of money which they habitually carry , about with them. "^•-^* Some of the other animals of Basilan are not quite so inoffensive as those of which we have just spoken, many of the rivers and streams contain- ing immense crocodiles, which, whatever may have been asserted to the contrary, sometimes de- scend upon the seashore, and wage fearful war with the large fishes and other creatures within their reach ; some of them have been attacked in the island Lanpinig'han by intrepid hunters, for- saking the pursuit of the deer and wild boar, for this sport. In paying a visit to the river Pasang'han, which rises near the interior port, and is in my opinion, more a stream of salt water than of fresh, on alighting upon the right bank of the river, and mounting to the top of a little ele- vation which overlooks it, vast plains covered with immense plantations of cotton-trees, and rice-fields, may be discovered. It will be fortu- nate indeed if this adventurous project of cultiva- tion does not prove fatal to the intrepid men who have undertaken it. At the very time when Ave were stationed upon the hill I have mentioned, ten Malays armed with lances, the kriss stuck in their girdles, and their forms protected by huge black bucklers, which rendered them almost invisible, threw themselves upon the men at work, uttering loud cries, and bearing in their whole demeanour an air of unmistakeable hatred 218 NATRT] MERCANTILE PRODUCTS. and brutality. Happily some other Malays be- longing to the fleet were not far from the spot, and interposing between our countr3rmen and their barbarous aggressors, thus prevented a con- flict, the issue of which could not have failed to have been hazardous, if not fatal. Rice and cotton are, as I have before stated, the most important production of Basilan, for I do not reckon among these the immense quantity of fruit it possesses, consisting chiefly of bananas, and cocoa-nuts of various species. Besides, no- thing would be easier than to cultivate all the native productions of India upon such a soil as this, its I'ich and fertile organization being sufli- ciently moist to aflbrd sustenance for an immense quantity of vegetation. Pepper, cinnamon, and nutmeg, would all flomish well in this verdant land, which is deficient in nothing but the want of intelligent and industrious masters. The geological structure of Basilan, pai-ticu- larly in the upper parts, is partially of volcanic nature — the mountainous elevation I have before named is probably of similar construction, for its highest points have a conical form indicating the existence of the craters, which are so common in Malacca. According to the assertions of some, it would a}>pear that the island is inliabited by di- verse I'aces, the mountainous parts being peojiled by negroes, simiLir to those found in the interior of Lu(;on ; a tribe comparatively Avhite occu]>ying the centre, while the coast is inliabited bv Ma- lays. These latter, whom we saw frequently, are of middle height, and well-formed, with yellowish brown complexions, long black hair, and large brown eyes : the line of face is more MALAY COSTUME. 219 Open, and the head better formed than with the Tagals of Manilla ; the nose is somewhat flat, but the lips are firmly cut. The eyes of some of them were sKghtly drooping and oblique, and wherever this peculiarity is observable, it denotes a onelange of the Chinese and Malay races. In general the physiognomy of these men is very expressive, particularly of artifice and cunning. The first whom I had an opportunity of observ- ing, came on board our vessel for the purpose of exchanging fowls and fruit for a few cotton hand- kercliiefs and articles of household use, of which they are extremely covetous. These people prefer the commerce of exchange to any other, and as they have not the slightest idea of the value of coin, they would fr-equently give for an earthenware vase, or bottle, articles of merchandise for which they would refuse seve- ral piastres. Most of these Malays were naked down to the waist, and indeed their only covering thence consisted of a pair of very short pantaloons ; their heads were decorated with a kerchief of red cot- ton, and the everlasting kriss was, of course, placed at their sides. The commander of the Sabine had established a sort of friendly relation- ship with some of the chiefs in the interior, the most renowned of whom was named Tuan-Baram, and was much respected by his neighbours, more I suspect on account of his well-known cunning than for his sanctity. Day after day were we promised a visit fr-om this august personage, and as often disappointed ; Panglamet-Tiram, the father-in- law of Baram, and chief of the tribe, and Arac, son-in-law to the Iman, always appearing in his 220 NOTABLES OF THE ARCHIPELAGO. • stead, and apoligizing to the Admiral for his absence. The conduct of the Iman was quite in hannony with the rules of savage policy : these barbarians never take any important step ^\athout nicely ba- lancing the probable inconveniences or advantages arising from it. Baram, who was one of the most influential men of liis country, would not enter into any personal communication with the French until well assured of their friendlv intentions to- ft/ wards him, and therefore intrusted two members of his family, his father-in-law and son-in-law, with the task of ascertaining their \dews. Panglamet-Tiram was more than seventy-seven years of age, but nevertheless erect and Arm on his legs ; his appearance had something of the Arab about it, probably from his white mous- taches and beard, the round eminence at the top of his head, and his slightly aquiline nose : when he visited us he Avore a robe and turban as white as snow, and also a pair of sandals ; in walking, he laid his left hand on the scabbard of his ki'iss, and his whole demeanour was indicative of confi- dence and dignity. Arac was the very type of the pure Malay race, small, dark, and admirably formed, A\ath strong limbs, well-opened eyes, and a physiognomy full of energy, and that sort of savage jissurance which belongs to animals that have never been tamed. He wiis di-essed in a rose-colom^ed robe, which had been presented to him by some European, and wliicli rendered tlie tint of his almust-sable complexion still more conspicuous. Wlu'U Tiiaii-Baram, as he was called by his countrymen, did at last visit the deck of the Cleo- MALAY DENTIFRICE. 221 patra, we were all exceedingly disappointed with his appearance ; instead of discovering in this cele- bratecl man any particular traits of distinction from the rest of the natives, we beheld merely a barbarian of repulsive aspect, common-place and rather embarrassed manners, and a disagreeable cunning expression ; his physiognomy had neither the savage energy of Arac, nor the patriarchal dignity of Panglamet-Tiram. In order to appear to advantage, in this his first visit, he wore a light-coloured robe, and a French sabre, which had been a present to him ; his feet were encased in a pair of slippers, great rarities in this part of the world, and his fingers were loaded with heavy rings, containing worth- less pieces of stone of various colours. The appearance of these three men quite reali- zed the most romantic imaginations of the pirates of the isle of Sonde, the archipelago of Holo, and the coast of Borneo ; courageous, cruel, and cun- ning, with the kriss in their waistband, and their lance in hand, they seemed ever ready to face the most imminent danger with indomitable energy. There was something absolutely fearfid in the expression of their naturally-harsh physi- ognomy, when mth then- long hair falling over their faces, one could perceive, fi^om between their blood-stained lips, a row of black teeth, from which the enamel had been removed by means of some preparation of lime. The custom of covering the teeth with this destructive substance, so as to render the exterior quite concave, is practised by all the inhabitants of the archipelago ; they after- wards smear them with the black oily substance I have before described, and this mode of disfigure- 222 NATIVE WAR DANCES. ment constitutes the mark of civil emancipation from control. We had several times an opportunity of seeing the Malays execute their war dances, which com- pletely initiated us in the manners of these people, who, even in their pastimes, seem to delight in scenes of fury and slaughter : two men, aimed with buckler, lance, and kriss, advanced into the arena, while the sound of a tambourine, which was at iii-st played very gently, beciime louder and quicker as they approached each other ; each now endeavoured to strike his antao-onist witli o the lance, while the other either parried the blow with his enormous buckler, or endeavoured U:> save himself by flight. As the conflict proceeded, the faces of the men lighted up, as if excited to the highest pitch ; the tm-ban which conflned their long hair became loosened, the black, tresses thus falhng all over their shoulders, and throwing away their lances, they drew the kiiss and seemed to be preparing to finish the combat hand to hand. We were also present at another kind of Ba- silanese dance, but as it was executed by two Malays, who spoke Spanish fluently, and liad re- sided at Samboanga, we suspected it to be a sort of imitation of the Bolero. Never in my life did I behold such grotesque figures as these two lior- rible demons, who made all kinds of repulsive grimaces, to add, as they imagined, to the gi*ace and expression of their performance, as they heiivily executed their awkward steps. The arts among the Bjisilanese are, of course, in a very rude st;ite. We have seen what their idea of dancing is, and their music is not less barbarous, the principal instruments being the THE TENDER PASSION IN BASILAN. 223 tambourine, a very primitive form of the bucciUj and a sort of wind instrument, of very monotonous and disagreeable sound. Whether there are any poets in Basilan I can- not say ; but however that may be, it is certain that the Malay language, which is simple, forcible, and harmonious, might easily be applied to the purposes of rhyme : of one thing I am very doubtful — viz. whether the poet would be able to commit his thoughts to paper, for even Tuan- Baram, the great intellectual star of the country, could scarcely write his own name. 7/ We had not much opportunity of becoming ac- quainted with the fairer part of the creation of Basilan ; but according to the testimony of the young interpreter, who was taken prisoner by the murderers of the ensign on board the Sabine, there were some among them neither deficient in beauty or feeling. This young man had, by his own account, received substantial proofs of affec- tion fi'om the daughter of Youssouf, in the shape of dried fish and cakes, of which she deprived herself to add to his daily fare ; and when she went to bathe in the river Maloso, it was her great delight to be accompanied by the young European, whom she would doubtless have been willing to instruct further in Malay manners and customs : a young sailor, who was observed by one of the native women in similar circumstances, immediately became the object of a very tender passion, which she did not fail to manifest in the most energetic manner, for, believing that the ap- parent indifference of the poor young man arose merely ft'om fear, she approached him with a drawn kriss in her hand, threatening to wound 224 UNCLAIMED HOSTAGES. him with the weapon if he did not instantly ad- dress her in the language of love : of course the unfortunate youth, intimidated by the sight of impending danger, became eloquent in spite of himself, and made such vehement protestations of his affection, that she insisted upon having them repeated every time they met. Basilan contains about ten thousand inhabi- tants, divided into petty tribes, who are continu- ally at war with each other, the one side robbing the other of property, cattle, and horses, and the injm-ed party taking revenge in the most bloody manner. Panglamet-Tiram frequently offered to sell us two women, whom he had taken fi'om a neighbouring chief, in exchange for two oxen, which had been stolen fi'om him ; he evidently hoped, by means of these two females, to recover his lost property ; but after several intei-views, the affair was amicably settled between the two chiefs, who made a vow to forget all former dis- agreements, and to live henceforward in peace. What would French husbands say to this ? Is there one amongst them who would sell his wife for an ox, or even for two ? We obtained a sight of the females who had caused this quarrel, and, viewed from a distance, they appeared so old and ugly, that I certainly thought Panglamet-Tiram had the worst of the bargain: for my part, I should very much have grudged giving a cat in exchange for the old witches. Ill a situation of six degrees of latitude, Basilan enjoys a temperature which at this seiison, at any rate, was no inconvenience, for during our whole sojourn there, the heat never rose above twenty or thirty degrees ; hi the evening there was SANITARY CONDITION OF BASILAN. 225 always a delicious breeze, and frequent gentle showers added to the coolness of the atmosphere, but I doubt whether this continued the whole of the year ; for if we may judge fr^om the sanitary condition of Basilan, and the appearance of some of the trees on the shore, which seemed to contain a gi'eat quantity of rotten matter, the island can- not boast of great salubrity. But if, on the other hand, we look further into the interior, at the mountains which rise in the centre of the isle, and the valleys which lie between them, and above all, at the robust forms of the Malays inhabiting these parts, we may conclude that the mountainous parts are tolerably healthy, a circumstance which proves, that in deciding matters of this kind, it is necessary to investigate both sides of the question. Q 226 CHAPTER V. HOLO, OR SOULOU. We had made such o^ood use of our time durinor our sojourn at Basilan, that for several days before we left, there really seemed nothing more to see ; so well had we made ourselves acquainted with every navigable river, and explored every part of the island where we could venture A\nth safety, that the whole surface of this beautifid, but some- what monotonous country, seemed perfectly fa- miliar to us, and we now began to be very impa- tient for the termination of the business wliich liad led us thither. This feeling was just at its height, when at about five o'clock on the morning of the 4th February, we were roused from slumber by the harmonious sounds of a sort of fife, which was never played on board the Cleopatra, except on parti- cular occf\sions ; its music was extremely varied, now plaintive, now Hvely, and served for the time to soften the hard labours of the sailors : from this circumstance, we felt quite certain we were about to depart, but were quite ignorant of the place of our destination, and our speculations on the subject reminded me of variations on the old air of " Bo)i voyage, M. Dumollet" Were we to return to Manilla, land of splendid cigars and Ijeaiititul Creoles ? or to visit Java, and make ac(jiiaintaiice with the ])hlegmatic Dutch mer- chants, wlium rej)ort described as rolling in gold, DEPARTUKE FOR HOLO. 227 and surrounded, like the Sultans of Delhi, with numbers of lovely slaves ? — or (what was still more probable) were we about to make prepara- tions for approaching the coast, and commencing an attack upon the Malays ? These and various other suppositions occiu-red to our minds, but Avere all dispelled by the in- formation, that we were about to depai't for Holo, to demand from the Sultan of that place, that he shovdd either make us some handsome reparation for the loss we had sustained, or at once give up all claim upon a country in which his authority was scarcely recognized. Of course, as we thought of the prospect before us, we remembered the terms of horror in which the Tagals, and even the Spaniards at Manilla, spoke of " los MoTos de Jolo," who sometimes descended on their shores, boarded their vessels, and took the crew prisoners, wliile by land they pillaged and set fire to the villages. For my own part, I was by no means sorry to find that we should not at present take leave of this part of Malacca, for the Malay race was, in my estimation, so singular and interesting, and had been the subject of so much sagacious inquiry and observation, that I was delighted to have further opportunity of judging for myself of the various opinions which have arisen as to its ori- gin, and, moreover, was extremely desirous of be- coming acquainted with a country renowned for its daring piracies, and for being the last strong- hold of the perfidious but brave and adventm'ous Malay. The passage from Basilan to Holo, scarcely de- serves the name of a voyage, but is merely a q2 228 THE AREIVAL. change of place, which we easily effected in two days, anchoring in front of the town, on the 6th of February, along with the Victorious and the Ai'chimede, both of which had followed the Cleo- patra. The aspect of Holo, from this point, is gi'and and severe, the centre of the island being traversed by a ridge of high mountains, less thickly wooded than those of Basilan, but interspersed with numerous rivulets, and crowned with lofty peaks, which are almost always covered with snow. The impression produced by our arrival, caused a very singular scene ; on the one side, we perceived numbers of men, apparently in a state of bewil- derment, moving to and fro on the shore, momited on horses, oxen, and buffaloes, all saddled and bridled ; on the other, a startled crowd of people stood at the doors of their habitations, casting restless and uneasy glances at the new comers ; while a whole fleet of little proas glided rapidly over the waters, till they reached the interior of the bay. The whole population seemed excited by our presence, which was accounted for by the fact, that the arrival of a Em^opean vessel in these parts, is always an event of gi^eat importance to the inhabitants, who, whether high or low, rich or poor, have generally committed some illegal deed, which compels them to dread the visit. The spot where tliis scene took place, was ad- mirably situated for allowing us to see the whole of it ; the houses on the shore, stretching almost into the sea, at the base of a tract of per- fectly-cultivated land, while the range of moim- tains in the distance, gi'adually rising liiglier and hiiihcr, formed tlie back-m-ound to tlie tahlnni. The town itself is composed ot a cluster of MALAY " CASTLES IN THE AIR." 229 three or four hundred houses, which, from the humblest cottage to the residence of the Kajah, are all built exactly alike, that is to say, on stakes fixed into the ground, similar to those I have described in speaking of Malacca ; in the space beneath the house, the horse of the owner is lodged, when the dwelling is built on terra fir iina, ajid when it stands in the midst of the waters, the proa, that light traveller of the ocean, which often constitutes the principal property of the oc- cupant, is fastened to the bottom of the stakes. It is a singular circumstance, that all the Ma- lay tribes preserve the custom of erecting their dwellings on stakes, like a bird's nest in a tree ; many authors have sought to explain tliis fact, some pretending that this mode of construction is preferred on account of its forming a protection against the insects which are always to be found in damp places ; others asserting that it is done for the pm-pose of sheltering the domestic ani- mals : neither of these suppositions, however, are correct, for in places sometimes inundated by the sea, there are usually but few insects, and in general, the Malays care Little about keeping any kind of animal, being principally Mussulmen, sailors by profession, and paying little attention to agriculture, especially in the littoral parts of the country. We may rather attribute this cu- rious custom to the fact, that each different spe- cies of the human race, has its own separate style of architectm-e, as peculiar to itself in construc- tion, as the nest of a bird or bee, or the bun'ow of a rabbit, among the inferior animals. The houses at Holo did not appear to us very comfortable, though we had not, perhaps, a very 230 TRADE OF HOLO. fair opportunity of judging as yet, being only able to observe the number of little hovels, inha- bited by the very poorest Malays, or such of the Chinese who lead a similar life among their fel- low-creatures to that of the Jews in the middle ages, and are banished as fixr as possible from the heart of the town. The formidable appearance of oui^ frigates, which presented to the gaze of the astonished Soulouans the unusual spectacle of an aiTay of cannon in excellent order, was by no means calculated to inspire them with confi- dence, and at first they did not seem at all dis- posed to make further acquaintance with us ; however, by degrees, cm^iosity predominated over fear, and they flocked in gi-eat numbers to ofier us the produce of their soil, viz. bananas, cocoa- nuts, onanr/oustans, durians, the sweet potatoe, and fowls of such size and beauty as to remind us of those of Bresse and Mans. Emboldened by the success of their first essay, a gi-eat number of Malay vessels crowded upon us during the first few days after our arrival ; they were manned by vigorous, athletic-looking men, better dressed than the natives of Biisilan (who are in general badly attired), speaking Spanish with gi^eat facility, and appearing quite au fait in the petty commerce of these countries, which requires those who engage in it, to be pos- sessed of much courage and sagacity. Like the other Malay tribes I have mentioned, they seemed to prefer the exchange of their mer- cliandise for ours, to any other kind of ])ayment, a mode of doing business wliich was extremely acce])table to our sailors, wlio souglit U]) eveiy- thing they could find that was likely to tempt NAUTICAL JEWS. 231 the Soulouans, who entertained very exaggerated ideas of the value of such commodities as were of the slightest utility, or which pleased them by their novelty ; and an amusing spectacle it was, to see, issuing forth, as it were from all corners of the vessel, old shoes or bottles, shining glass but- tons, broken razors, the half of what had once been a pair of scissors, old pantaloons, &c., all of which were speedily exchanged for articles much more usefril to our crew, such as frniit and veget- ables, different weapons of war, the sarhacan lance and kriss. At this time there were four ships of war in the bay of Soulou, three French and one English ; the Samarang, the crew of which, having heard of our arrival, came to explore these regions, and thus accidentally gave us a meeting. But notwith- standing this influx of strangers, the fertility of this country is so great, that the constant supply of excellent fowls and fi-uit neither failed nor augmented in price ; we had, moreover, as many oxen and kids for the consumption of the sailors, as could possibly be required, and in addition to these necessaries, the inhabitants were eager to supply us with everything that they thought could be useful or interesting ; among the fii'st of their gifts I must mention the kriss, which as I have before remarked, possesses great reputation throughout Malacca for the excellence of its blade, and the beauty of its workmanship ; the kriss of Holo is quite different fr^om that manufactured at Malacca, being a two-edged weapon of about fif- teen inches long and three wide ; the blade, which is straight and pliable as the body of a serpent, is sometimes inlaid with silver filagree work of the 232 THE ISLAND IDOL. most delicate description, while the handle is either of wood covered with horse hair, ivory, or silver, according to the value of the other part From their earliest infency, the inliabitants of Soulou wear the kriss habitually, and seem to regard it as a ready and faithfid friend, from which they never separate ; by its blade they swear their most solemn oaths ; in its polished sm^face they read the future results of theii' most dangerous en- terprises, and woe to the unhappy stranger who trusts himself in the presence of the island savage, who is induced by anger or revenge, to draw the h'iss from its scabbard, for if the Malay considers himself in the presence of an enemy, he will not hesitate to phmge it, with fatal aim, into the bosom of the latter. To the Soulouan, his Jcriss is his oi'acle — the superior power to which he prays, and which he consults on all occasions ; sometimes he addresses it in verse, and I have now and then seen the scabbards of these weapons inscribed with long wild poems in honour of theii* exploits. At Holo, the blade of this instrument is never poisoned, the least trace of its having ever been subjected to that process, being considered a flaw in its value ; as to the excellence of the weapon, no doubt whatever can be entertained, it being ftir preferable, both for elegance and solidity, to the inferior arms used by the French soldiers. When our enthusiasm on the subject of the kriss had somewhat subsided, the natives began to bring shells, birds, and apes for our inspection : some of the former were not in a very good state of jn-e- servation, a circumstance which caused great dis- appointment to the conchologists on board, ivs it SOULOU OBJECTS OF NATUKAL HISTORY 233 prevented them from accurately determining whe- ther the numerous valves and indentations were natural, or merely the result of accident ; I have sometimes imagined that the little value the Ma- lays attach to the most beautiful shells, arises from an idea that the Europeans are barbarous enough to make use of them in the same manner as themselves, viz. : to break them up for the preparation of the lime with which they mix the betel-nut, for I have often seen them throwing the water out of their vessels with a delicate nau- tilus shell, or a volute crowned with elegant points, which of com'se soon disappeared under their rough usage. The birds they offered us were loriots of the most brilliant colours, red, yellow, and blue, white kakatoes, with yellow crests, green parroquets, and pretty little parrots, of the same kind as those I first saw in the Straits of Malacca ; all these beautiful creatm-es were sporting and chattering together like children, for the gay babbling which belongs to them in their native country bears no re- semblance to the few stiff monotonous words which we Europeans teach them at the expence of so much trouble and punishment ; the jargon of our parroquets soon becomes monotonous, but the wild birds of Malacca speak a lang^aage which though incomprehensible, is pleasant to the ear, just as the music of an Italian song may be agree- able and soothing, though the meaning of its words may be unknown to the listener. I only observed four diiferent species of the ape, at Holo, one of which was not larger than a squirrel, and was really a charming little animal, playful as a puppy, very intelligent and good 234 THE INDIGENOUS APE. tempered : the poor little creature afterwards died at Macao, of a pulmonary affection. It certainly is a species of barbarity to take these poor animals fi'om the wild, noble forests in which Providence has placed them, and we ought to have more con- sideration for beings, which though unable to speak our language, are not less sensitive than ourselves to pain and suffering : when taken pri- soners, they mourn the loss of their liberty, and fret after those left behind ; and I have seen hun- di'eds of them in a foreign land, perish of sorrow and regTet for their native soil. The fourth curiosity brought us by the Malays was a species of ape of the most ridiculous ap- pearance ; if the reader can picture to himself an animal about the size of a child of fom- years old, the back arched, the legs, feet, and arms exces- sively thin, and of immoderate length, the head covered with thin hair, a spare lanky frame, small mouth, and prominent nose overhanging the lips, not much imlike that of a man, he will have some idea of the singular appearance of this creature ; it climbed about the mast and sails of the ship, with its arms crossed on its breast, in the modest attitude of a nun at the confessional ; indeed the sailors liad given it the whimsical name of " Sis- ter Gertrude," which accorded ludicrouslv "vs^th its quaint and melancholy air. Apes of this de- scription, if I may judge from tlie specimen j"ust mentioned, are fitted only to inliabit tlie depths of tlie forest, and to roam amidst the tliic-k som- bre foliage of liigli trees, their long thin limbs en- abling them to spring and climb from branch to brancli with the greatest ra])i(litv ; besides their diet is of a jnirely vegetable kind ; " Sister Ger- PEARL-DIVING. 235 trade/' for instance, would never eat any thing from my hands but fruit or bread. This animal was of an extremely quiet and me- lancholy disposition, always keeping to itself, and never taking any notice of any other creature on board ; when I took it in my arms, it uttered a sort of plaintive cry, and as I saw that it would soon perish if kept in captivity, I endeavoured to save its life by setting it at liberty, and placing it in the midst of a wood which surrounded the re- sidence of one of my friends at Sincapore ; it climbed up the highest trees, and ate a large quantity of the green foliage, but in the evening found its way back to its habitation, where it continued its monotonous life for a few days, and then died. The history of the numerous pet monkies I have kept, would form quite a Book of Martjrrs ! Pearls are sometimes found at Soulou, and the Malays are extremely fond of this kind of fishing, as it affords them ample opportunity for giving proofs of their intrepidity and boldness ; for the oyster which famishes the pearl is found at a great depth below the water, and it is only by descending into this abyss, that it can be obtained. It is not uncommon to meet with a diver among the Malays, who will remain several moments un- der the water, and then return laden with more than a hundred shells. The latter are exposed on the shore, and as soon as they begin to decay, are carefully examined separately, for the purpose of ascertaining whether they contain any of the pre- cious treasure or not. I have often seen at Soulou, what appeared to me to be most beautiful pearls ; but it is not safe 236 MANUFACTUEE OF FALSE PEARLS. to purchase them of the rude merchants here, who although ignorant of the science of chemistry, are nevertheless acquainted with a method of imita- ting these concretions, in which they succeed so well, as to have made many victims of cheatery amongst our crew ; the savans of our party were the most frequently imposed upon, for imagining it impossible that the art of imitation could exist among men so barbarous as these, who had never heard either of a laboratory, or of M. Thenard, and who scarcely knew the use of a common cy- linder, they of com'se fancied themselves quite safe in dealing with them, and consequently be- came the dupes of the ignorant rogues who im- posed upon them. The substance made use of by the Soulouans in this operation is of a white pearly hue ; it effer- vesces on the application of an acid, but retains both its colour and lustre during the operation. What this substance is, I know not, but if we may believe the assertions of the Malays, it is a curious formation, sometimes, but rarely, foimd in the liquid of the cocoa nut ; however, I am of opinion, that very little faith should be placed in the assurances of the natives, as it certainly would not be to their own interest to divnilge the secrets of their dishonest occupation. Besides its Malay population, Holo contains several hundred Chinese, who brave all the bad treatment and extortion of which thoy are the victims, for the sake of being able to cju-ry on tlieu* own connnerce ; they are in fact the Jews of this part of the world, polite, obsetjuious, and de- ceitful ; carrying on a system of peculation, which always ends in bringing them wealth, they sur- THE PIRATES OF SCIENCE. 237 mount all the obstacles thrown in their way, and never fail in the end to oppress the population, who make fierce endeavours to resist their power. At Soulou, where they are not very well received, their great commerce consists in collecting and selling bird's nests and holoturies, two species of trade, which essentially belong to the Chinese. As every one knows, the birds' nests eaten in China are formed by a pretty kind of swallow, the salangane, which inhabits Java, and almost all the islands of the Malay archipelago ; these nests are composed of a jelly-like substance, the purest being of course the best. During my stay at Java, I visited the grottoes in which the sa- langane builds, in order to examine its curious nests, and whilst studying the habits of these birds, I have, I believe, succeeded in discovering the nature of the substance of which they make use, but as I have not room to expatiate here upon this interesting point in natural history, I shall leave it for the subject of future discussion, and then take the opportunity of settKng an ac- count with one of those savans, whose only talent consists in borrowing here and there the disco- veries made by others, thus gathering up, for his own use, a sort of scientific booty, and who, when he dare not arrogate to himself the merit of having made a discovery, pretends to have seen some-' thing like it, either in the ruins of Herculaneum, the inside of an Egyptian mummy, or in China or Japan, rather than yield any praise to the real author of the circumstance. The nests of these birds are becoming more and more rare every year, in the archipelago of Holo, jiot that the salanganes are destroyed, but on 238 DRIED FISH. account of the fact that they are so constantly disturbed during the pairing season, as to take re- fuge in places inaccessible to the visits of man ; they now build on the tops of the highest peaks, and among rocks, which even the daring Malay cannot climb. There is however some prospect of seeing this loss remedied by European industry, by a means which will furnish the Chinese with birds' nests of French manufacture, and make them forget those of Holo and Java ; the thought occurred to me, as I was examining a little cap- sule of gelatine by Mothes, that this substance would probably be one day formed into imitation birds' nests, and find its way to the tables of the sons of the Celestial Empire. The Jtolotitries which the Chinese find at Sou- lou are a most hideous species of fish, resembling a very lai'ge worm ; the Malays have given them the name of tripans, and they are fomid at low water on the rocks whither they have been wash- ed. They are very common at Basilan and Holo, and in the latter place their exportation forms a source of considerable profit, the benefit of which is partly reaped by the Sultan. The manner in which this creature is prepared for the culinaiy uses to which it is appropriated by the Chinese, is very simple ; the disgusting animal is opened longitudinally, the inside is taken out, and it is then dried in the sun ; they feed principally on small shell-fish and other dead creatures found in the j)laces tliey inhabit. In another place I shall be able to describe more fully the culinary pre- paration of birds' nests and trijKUu^, without which the rich Chinese would scarcely think it THE BANYAN TREE. 289 possible to live and discharge ttie numerous duties which polygamy imposes on him. To the east of the town of Soulou is a supply of fresh- water for the accommodation of all the vessels anchored here ; it is formed by two diffe- rent sources, which ascend and flow together, fill- ing an immense reservoir situated amidst the sand of the sea-shore ; the waters of this basin are kept in a continual state of agitation by the influx of the two streams, whose tumultuous murmuring mingles with that of the waves. At a httle distance fr-om this spot, is a high road, in good order, leading from Soulou to an- other town in the interior ; a banyan-tree, of even more gigantic dimensions than the ches- nut of Mount Etna, which is capable of sheltering a hundred men beneath its branches, overshadows both the two sources and the road. This pictu- resque neighbourhood, situated exactly at an equal distance fr'om the two principal towns in the island, has become quite a place of rendezvous, not only for the merchants and tradespeople, but for the unemployed of all classes ; it forms a sort of caravansary for the repose of the traveller, a market for the dealer in cattle, and a kind of cabaret in the open air for the resort of the news- monger ; here business affairs may be settled, and the interests and politics of all Malacca discussed, while it also gives a favom^able opportunity for the idle and dissipated to indulge in the conver- sation wliich generally distinguishes them in all countries. When we visited this singular place, we found a great number of Malays already assembled there ; some on foot, others mounted on oxen or buffaloes, 240 SOULOU CAVALRY. the former of whom appeared to be sellers of fruit, curiosities, &c., while the others seemed to me to be husbandmen, whose cattle were laden with the produce of tlieir land. All tliese men were well dressed, and armed according to the custom of thoir nation, with the lance, the kriss, and the sarhacane. The hump-backed oxen and buffaloes, which have the honour of figuring in the cavalry of the Sultan of Holo, are not bridled like our horses, but are guided by a cord passed through their nostrils, a mode of being dragged about, which cannot but be painful to the poor animal. The sailors who had left om* vessel in order to procure fresh water, divided themselves into gi'oups, and seemed on very good terms with the whole of the picturesque party, who liad at fii'st been so much alarmed by our appearance. As a general ride, the agricultm-al population who in- habit the interior are much less savage and fero- cious than those dwelling nearer tlie coast, and we soon became very familiar with tliese villagei'S (if I may so term them) who were eager to offer us sweetmeats, birds, weapons, and all the mis- cellaneous merchandise in which they dealt ; some of them were most remarkable in their appear- ance ; one old man in particular, whose snow- white beard, noble physiognomy, and regular profile, recalled the pure Ai-ab type : behind him, as a contrast, stood a hideous little being, a dwarf of most repulsive aspect, very much de- formed ; I was scrutinising the appearance of this Malay ^sop, with rather more attention than was perhaps })olite, when he suddeidy fiew into a violent passion, called me every tiling he could WISE SUSPICIONS. 241 think of, accompanying his words with horrible gestures ; the other Malays seemed much diverted by this scene, but nevertheless, appeared to stand in some awe of the dwarf, as they were carefal to hide theu" merriment from his glance ; whether this arose from the fact of his possessing some authority amongst them, or from some supersti- tion connected with liis strange exterior, I am, of course, unable to say. Having now reached the end of the road which runs parallel with the two streams, we struck into a straight path which led to a little emi- nence very weU cultivated, at the foot of which stood several pretty dwellings, sm-rounded by the graceful columns of some beautifril cocoa-trees, the tufted foliage of which mingled with large clusters of immense fruit ; some hedges of pine- apple and bananas formed the boundary of each little tenement, and surrounded the fields which were either planted with cotton trees, or sown with rice ; a gTeat number of oxen, buffaloes, and horses grazed peacefully around, and there was an air of comfort and plenty about the whole place most agreeable to witness. The Malays have, in general, a great objection to having their territories explored by strangers, a proof of which we soon experienced. The beauty of the spot I have been describing had of course attracted numerous visitors, both on ac- count of the fr-eshness of its air, and the amusing scene produced by the assemblage of Malays ; be- sides, as some of the sailors fr'om our vessels, as well as fr'om the English frigate, repaired thither every day for fresh water, the natives thus found themselves suddenly surrounded by Em*opeans, R 242 A CUNNING HINT. and probably finding their continual visits trouble- some, formed a scheme for putting an end to them by throwing into the stream a peculiar species of fruit, which communicated an unpleasant taste to the water. One day when the sailors came, ac- cording to custom, to fill their pitchers at the re- servoir, on putting their feet and hands into the stream, they experienced a sensation both of heat and pain, and looking round to ascertain the cause of this change, discovered that this dis- agreeable feeling increased every time the skin came in contact with the bei-ries of a green herb which was floating about in the reservoir ; some of this fruit they brought back with them to the vessel, and I immediately recognised it to be that of the caryota onusta, a species of palm, described in the herbal of Father Blanco, an Augustine friar, expelled from Manilla, who wrote a very valuable work during the time of his isolation in the cloister ; this learned botanist has been quite my model and guide, and from studying his works, I have obtained many valualde hints upon the natural productions of the Philippine isles. Some of the men who had remained longest in the water, suffered a great deal of pain, which, how- ever, disappeared in a very short time, and with- out the aid of any sort of remedy ; the Malays make use of the Saccharine matter contjiined in this fruit, as a sort of projectile, which, with tlie aid of a bamboo, they fling in the faces of tlieir enemies, thus forming a wound wliicli it would reijuire all the anodynes of M. Puigon to cure. It is an extremely difficult ta.sk to determine the place a\ hich the Malays ought to occupy in the classification of tlic human race, and as the ORIGIN OF THE MALAYS. 243 subject is too lengthy to be discussed here, I sliall content myself with merely repeating the opinions entertained by many of the French anthropolo- gists, and stating my own reasons for agreeing with that of Blumenbach. According to the ma- terialist anthropologists, the Malays constitute one of the numerous distinct species into wliich the human race is divided ; Cuvier and his disci- ples assign them a place among the Mongol tribes, on account of their possessing several of the traits of the Chinese ; but no one who has visited the Malay peninsula, the Philippines, Sincapore, the archipelago of Soulou and Java, and had an op- portunity of observing the Malgaches and Dagates in their native climes, can entertain this opinion. The origin of the Malays is undoubtedly a cross between two races, the one with straight hair and well-opened eyes, the other woolly-headed and probably of that class of negroes inhabiting Borneo, Sumatra, and Lu^on, known by the name of Pelagian negroes ; tliis idea is confirmed by the fact that the negro inhabitant of the upper part of the Malay Archipelago, speak a language simi- lar to that used on the coast, and indeed seem to be acquainted with the mother tongue whence the Malay originated, as they appear to comprehend all the difierent dialects used by the various tribes who compose this division of the human race. The Malays may then be considered a mongrel race of people, who, whilst partly allied to other tribes, have borrowed so much from the circum- stances in which they have been placed, as to have considerably modified the original type ; it is, therefore, false to assert that, as a general rule, the Malay resembles the Chinese, the former being e2 244 MALAY CHARACTERISTICS. small, slender, and supple, whilst the latter are large and heavy in person ; the Chinese women too are weak, sickly, and fragile, with yellowish complexions, and an emaciated appearance, whilst the females among the Malays are straight and robust, with a peculiarly brown shade of the skin : the hair of the two tribes is also very dif- ferent, that of the Chinese being almost as straight as our own, and as to the obliquity of the eyes, this peculiarity is never found in the pure Malay race, and is only discernible with those who have from time immemoricd dwelt among the Chinese, who are a people by no means remarkable for self-denial, and being, moreover, unable to take any females with them when they emigrate, they never fail to ally themselves with the inhabitants of any nation in which they may happen to reside, provided, of coui'se, they are not repulsed. Thus, at Malacca, Sincapore, Java, and sometimes at Holo, there are men to be found whose straight, regular features resemble those of the Arab, whilst some of the Malgaches have thick lips — hair almost like wool, and nearly black complexions ; but the proper way of study- ing the peculiarities of the Malay race, is to ex- amine the natives of those ])arts where the origi- nal tyi^e has not been modified by the conquering race ; in other words, where the Chinese have not been predominant ; for instance, at Borneo,^ Madagjiscar, and throughout the Archipelago of Soulou, the Malay inhabitants have neither the obliquely-placed eye of the Chinese, nor the tic- quiline nose of the Ai'ab ; but at ^Manilla, the Jagals bear a much greater resemblance to the Chinese, not only physically, but mentally, seem- ISLAMISM IN HOLO. 245 ing to combine the passive submission of the lat- ter, with the idleness of the Malay in all matters relating to labour and agriculture. These facts are certainly sufficient to refute the mistake of reckoning the Malays among the Mongol races, their place being the one Blumenbach assigned them, between the Caucasian and Ethiopian tribes. But although it is difficult to ascertain the pre- cise origin of the Malays, there is much less per- plexity in determining the exact epoch at which Islamism first prevailed amongst them, an event which seems to have taken place about the time these shores were discovered by the Em^opeans. On these far-distant shores, Catholicism and Ma- hometanism were once professed, under the fana- tical domination of the Spaniards and Moors ; but Islamism, which is so much better suited to the manners of these barbarians, now promises to convert many to its tenets, and to make the most rapid progress : human fraternity, the equality of man and woman, can never be understood by savages like these, who hunt their slaves, and afready profess polygamy. It may therefore be reasonably inferred, that the inhabitants of Holo are descended from Mussulman zealots ; Soulou in particular boasts of its sanctity, having been the most fruitftil hot-bed of the new fauiih ; the most pious per- sons assembled there in numbers ; and even in the present day, the natives of this island make pilgi'images to certain consecrated parts of the country, which they regard with a degree of veneration quite equal to that which Mecca once inspired. It was about this time that the Sultans of this Archipelago acquired their 246 VESTIGES OF FORMER GREATNESS. power, for the adventurous spirit of the people, excited by their new religion, led them to engage in a war of propagation and conquest ; in this, however, they were faithful to the natural dis- position of their race, for not trusting entirely to the force of their arms, they had frequent resource to cunning and perfidy, not deeming their scimi- tar and the Koran sufficient to ensure success. But times are altered now : when the Soulou- ans conquered a part of Borneo and Mindanao, and entei^^ained the project of subjecting Manilla, they were possessed of power, which would have enabled them to combat with that of the Euro- peans at that time ; but now, alas ! what are their resources ? A few little proas — gi-aceful it is true, and constructed so as to cut throucrh the waves with the swiftness of an arrow ; but these airy skiffs are totally incapal^le of standing an en- counter with our steam ships, which to the Ma- lays are objects of extreme astonishment and terror. They also possess a few misei^able pieces of cannon, vestiges of their former power, but these have become so rusty for wimt of use, and are besides, managed by such inexperienced men, as to be good for nothing, except to terrify the inhabitants of Manilla, who hold them in awe from tradition ; in short, the modern forces of tlie Malays are very insignificant, and should they ever achieve the slightest success in wai-, it will be more on account of their energy, or perfidy, than the result of tlieir power. ' ' A pix)a, when fitted out for any warlike piu'- pose, generally contains forty men, most of whom are carefully concealed fi-om view, it being the object of tlie little vessel cither to inspire its in- MALAY NOBILITY. 247 tended prey with confidence, or to attack it under the shelter of darkness ; when the men are able to accomplish their purpose, and come up with a merchant vessel without being observed, or at least, suspected, the whole crew start into action at a given signal, and endeavour to board the ship, kriss in hand. It is impossible for any vessel, whatever its capabilities may be, to fight very successfully against demons like these, upon whom neither the most dreadful sufferings, nor even the prospect of death, can make the least impression, and who are, moreover, impelled to the utmost exertion by the knowledge, that in case of failure, their lives will be sacrificed ; here- in lies the true secret of the boldness of the Malay in time of conflict ; and if the European nations ever make an effort to suppress their piracies effectually, much discretion and wisdom must be exerted for the purpose- As to the power of the Sultan of Holo, it is now much weakened ; for surrounded as he is by patrician families, called datous, who interfere very much with public affairs, he can only be said to possess the shadow of his former greatness ; the authority he once held over the adjacent is- lands is fast diminishing, the natives refusing to pay the tribute they were ^formerly compelled to yield ; thus his sovereignty is limited to Soulou it- self, it being the interest of the datous in that place to assist Mm in maintaining it. The Sultan himself is the very image of his po- litical position ; not more than nineteen years of age, pale and debilitated, he lives amongst his family not as a king in his palace, but simply as the head of the datous, neither seeking to recover 248 HIS SOULOUAN MAJESTY. his former power, nor to maintain the dignity of his situation. Emaciated in body by the too frequent use of opium, and fettered by the accu- mulation of debts he has contracted in endeavour- ing to fulfil the duties which his empty title of ''king" impose upon him, his life is but a con- tinued scene of precarious pomp, and wilful inac- tivity, a condition which will only last so long as the English su]3ply him with money on the same liberal terms as at present ; when they cease to do this, he will resign his kingdom, rights and pri- vileges, and retire into one of the other states, governed by different laws, where he will live in obscurity upon an income just sufiicient for his wants ; and this illustrates the manner in which the English merchants proceed in this part of the world, now and then possessing themselves of whole kingdoms, to the amazement of the lookers on, and of our nation in particular. During om^ stay at Soulou, M. de Lagi-en(^ had an interview with the monarch of that place, who was not, as may well be supposed, treated with a very great amount of ceremony, his authority being as little recognised in a great portion of his dominions, as that of an English sovereign in France ; no gold -embroidered robes were donned for the occasion, but the French Ambassador re- paired to the Imperial residence attired in his usual moi'ning costume, and accompanied only by two attach(^s of the legation, and some of liis ofiicei's. The Tuileries of Soulou stands in tlie centre of the cn])ital, simply constructed of wood, not (litter- ing tlie least in a])])earance from the most insigni- ficant Malay residence. The French authorities THE INTERPKETER. 249 were received in a large saloon, totally destitute of ornament, and furnished only with divans and arm chairs, covered with horse-hair ; truly the standard colours of La Fayette have given place to the invention of the great Oudinot, which has reached even to this distant part of the world. When I was at the Cape of Good Hope, I re- member one day meeting, just on the frontiers of the Boer country, a la^rge piece of household fur- niture covered with horse-hair, which was being carried over the sands in an immense car, drawn by six oxen, and I was informed that it was to be offered as a present to some Caffre monarch ; it appears that the Sidtan of Soulou also stretches his limbs on a couch of this hard material, and I beheve that the two great powers of these coun- tries, Soulouque and Pomare, follow the same custom ; however, it is a durable manufacture, and will last for ^ve years, a circumstance worth the consideration of royal economy. The conversation between the Ambassador and the Sultan was carried on through the medium of an interpreter, whom M. de Lagrene had engaged at Manilla, the interpreter of the Malay languages who had been sent hither by the Minister of Ma- rine affiairs being at that time occupied in acquir- ing further knowledge of them. This native of Manilla was a fat Tagal, plump and shining as a well-fed child ; his ample visage shone joyously beneath his little straw hat, and the rotundity of his figure caused his calico garments to crack in a fearful manner, at every movement ; the principal occupation of this individual was to fan himself three parts of the day with an immense bunch of palm-leaves, but notwithstanding this system of 250 AN INTERPRETER IN DISTRESS. perpetual ventilation, he still resembled some of those plump statues which ornament the principal squares in some of the villages of Provence, and which are kept in a state of continual humidity by the action of some watery element. No one was ever able to discover the name he bore in his own country, and on board the Cleo- patra he was known by the appellation of Muclio Galor, which was conferred upon him on account of the fact that these two words formed the prin- cipal part of his whole conversation ; it wavS his constant custom to walk about the deck with his fan in one hand, and a pocket-handkerchief in the other, and when the vessel was sailing, he would come up to the passengers twenty times a day with the same invariable phrase : " Hace Tnucho color ; quieii sabe cuando llegaremos V When the ship was lying at anchor, his remarks were slightly varied : '' Hace onucho calor ; quieiisabe cuando saldvemios de aqui T' When M. de Lagrene announced to poor Mucho Calor, his intention of taking him on shore to visit the Sultan of Soulou, that worthy function- ary was visibly distressed at the intelligence, for being a tiTie born Tagal, the chief of los Moras de Jolo was, in his eyes, the most renowned and awful sovereign in creation ; under these circumstances, his habitual tacitm*nity forsook him, and with a very piteous face, he came to me to relate his grievances. " I was very foolish," said he, " ever to enter into ])olitical affairs at all, for should I now resign the elevated position I liokl, and return to my old profession of a sailor, what will become of mo, if i have the misfortune to be cast on these shores? RECEPTION AT COURT. 251 The Sultan will never pardon me for having en- gaged in any service but his own, and will either treat me as a slave, or perhaps cut off my head : people like myself should never meddle with the quarrels of others, for they are sure, sooner or later, to suffer for it/' I assm^ed the distressed interpreter that his fears were quite groundless, for that the Sultan would respect his dignity. " Respect my dignity \" he exclaimed ; " alas ! a man who sets the governor of Manilla at defi- ance, and who is styled Monseigneur I'eveque vieux giraumon, would think nothing of eating me up at a single mouthful/' I endeavoured to represent to MucJio Color that he was much too substantial a person to stand in any danger of meeting with such a fate, but he scarcely paid any attention to my observations, and continually heaved forth dreadful sighs ; how- ever, on the appearance of the boat filled with armed men who were to accompany the ambas- sador, he seemed to take courage, and set out with something like resolution. : The French minister was received by the Sultan smTOunded by his datous, the latter of whom amounted to thirty or forty in number, and repre- sented the senate of the place ; they were, for the most part, extremely well dressed, that is to say they wore slippers and trousers ; pieces of Indian print or calico were rolled in the turban style round their heads, and they had also vests or floating garments either of white or coloured cotton. On the arrival of M. de Lagrene all the datous rose, and conducted him to an arm chair placed by the side of the Sidtan. 252 A FALSE ALARM. The Soulouan public were present at this confe- rence, and occupied the benches placed at the lower end of the hall : this disorderly crowd of men, grouped together in the most gi'otesque manner, all armed with the kHss, and openly- expressing to each other their dissatisfaction that strangers and Christians should be allowed thus to transact business with the dignitaries of their empire, might have struck terror into the heai-ts of braver men than poor Mucho Calor, particularly when a ludicrous accident occurred, which seemed, at first, to give rise to apprehension : one of the benches upon which the natives had climbed, happened to give way, bringing down one or two others in its fall, while the occupants, tumbling in disorder upon each other, expressed their dis- comfiture b}^ loud shrieks and cries ; this noise being overheard by the Malays who had not been able to find room in the hall, and had been standing all this time outside, the latter immedi- ately conjectured that an attack had been made by the French upon their beloved monarch ; whereupon, they instantly rushed into the streets of Holo, announcing the fact, and accompanj^ing the information with all sorts of savage gesticu- lations. Meanwliile, the datous and company assembled inside, not being able to underst-^md the meaning of this sudden call to arms, imagined, tliat the crews of the French vessels liad landed, and that they tliemselves were the victims of treason ; under tliis im])ression, they manifested a very decided intention to sieze both M. de La- grend and his suite, but a seiious contlict was prevented by tlie coolness and self posses.sion of the ambassador, M'ho proposed to the Sultan that THE POLITICS OF SAVAGES. 253 he should immediately show himself to his people, which the monarch had no sooner done, than the excitement of the multitude diminished. With these uncivihsed barbarians, who are always armed and disposed for combat, every little occur- rence is seized as a pretext for a violent conflict, which it generally requires the utmost coolness and presence of mind to prevent. When the general tumult had somewhat sub- sided, cigars and betel nut were oflered to the ambassador, as well as tea and chocolate in cups, after which, business afiairs were introduced. It is an admitted fact in political discussions, that the most subtle diplomatists are to be found amongst savage nations, who, although they have never studied under Talleyrand or Pozzo di Borgo, are generally well versed in their fundamental principles, and after having treated with the inhabitants of Soulou and the adjacent islands, M. de Lagrene used to boast of having been ac- quainted with the most crafty and subtle poli- ticians in the universe. Mucho Calor now proceeded to lay before the assembly, the propositions of the French Ambas- sador, in the following terms : " One of the Chiefs of Basilan,'' said he, " has murdered two French- men, and taken three others prisoners ; we re- quire that you should either deliver up the culprit, or immediately renounce your title to the sovereignty of that island ; if you refuse to make this reparation, the French will attack Basilan, and take their own vengeance upon it, and should they hereafter succeed in subjugating the island, they will take possession of it, as of a country which has been hitherto unclaimed." 254 A TREATY PROPOSED. As soon as tlds speech was ended, a sort of Malay Ulysses rose, amidst a mui'inur of appro- bation, and prepared to answer it ; he was a man of about fifty years of age, small, thin, yellow, and as wrinkled as an old glove ; casting a side-glance upon the crowd assembled round him, he paused for a moment, and then addressed the French party as follows : — " His Highness the Sultan possesses no means of punishing the culprit in this case, but nevertheless, liis rightful claims upon Basilan are indisputable ; they have been recognised as such for a considerable length of time, and will continue so for a much longer period. Why should he be desired to resign his sovereignty entirely merely because it happens to be for the moment weak and powerless i We cannot tell but that to-morrow these rebel sub- jects may be brought to see their error, and return to obedience ; or perhaps our noble armies in Borneo and Holo may subdue the offenders by force of arms ; under these circumstances, we must choose a middle course of proceeding ; let our French brethren, themselves, chastise the ag- gi'essors ; their arms are victorious everywhere, and let them first fix the price to be paid upon Basilan, in case they should in future occu})y that island, and if in six months, the present under- standing which exists between tlie Sultan of Holo, our master, and his subjects in Bjisihin, should undergo no change, the sum of fifty-tliou- sand pitustres paid by the Frencli, AA'ill j)urchase the soverignty of the island." Not a single dissenting voice was raised against the orator, who wiis evidently higlily thought of by his countrymen. In plain language, Jiis ha- THE CONTROVERSY SUSPENDED. 255 rangue was meant to express neither more nor less tlian this : " We are at present the monarchs of Basilan, par la grace de Dieu, and our rights are incontrovertible ; do as you please with your enemies, but do not expect us to espouse your quarrel ; if, when you leave these shores, the rebels become tractable and docile, we will then endeavour to regain om^ authority over them, or at any rate, to treat with them for the payment of tribute ; but should they still continue rebel- lious, and we find ourselves unable to manage them, we will then gladly sell them to you for the sum of fifty thousand piastres, unless we can effect a better bargain with England or Spain/' Poor MucJio CaloT might well fan himself more vigorously than ever, whilst negociating with this wily politician, who remained firm to the proposal he had made, and the assembly separated without having come to any conclusion. Dming the night which followed this meeting, we were suddenly awakened by a great tumult on board our vessel ; the sentinels gave the alarm, and called attention to the mysterious appearance of some individuals who kept swimming round our ships, apparently with the wish of coming on board ; after having conferred with the com- mander, an officer belonging to the Cleopatra gave orders that one of these men who had seized upon the chain of the anchor, should be assisted on board. He was a young Malay of about sixteen or eighteen, of most gentle and interesting appear- ance, and scarcely had he set foot upon the deck of the Cleopatra, than he fell on his knees and made the sign of the cross with apparent fervour 256 THE CAPTIVES DELIVERED. and piety, and having briefly uttered his thanks to God, informed us that he was a poor Christian skive whom the Soulouan pirates had taken pri- soner on the coast of Manilla, and who now sought refuge in the protection of his French brethren. He said that the other men who were swimming about were slaves Hke himself, and that if we refused to take pity upon them, they would undoubtedly be cruelly mm-dered by their masters, who must soon become aware of theii' escape : it is scarcely necessary to add, that ropes were flung to the rest of the poor unfortunates, all of whom were taken on board, and never in my life did I witness a more affecting scene than that which took place when the poor creatures found themselves once more reunited : kneeling at the feet of the officers, they implored in the most moving terms the compassion which was readily yielded them, then embracing and con- gratulating each other upon their good fortune, they gave vent to their feelings in a Hood of tears. In Spanish romances there are always highly- coloured scenes on the deliverance of captives fi'om slavery, and the spectacle we now witnessed carried us Ijack, in imagination, to a period long gone Ijy, and we at once (comprehended the inter- est which attaclies itself to histories of this kind. The coasts of tlie Mediterranean were at this time continually visited by ferocious bandits, who seized remorselessly upon men, women, tind children, and ciirried'them off as slaves ; indeed so frequent were these occurrences, that the religious s})irit of the age was induced to call attention to them, and a man of obscm-e origin, born in the little THE ORDER OF MERCY. 257 village of Foucon, in Provence, began to preach upon the subject of redeeming the captives, which created much excitement among the Christians in all parts ; and Jean de Matha, seconded and en- com'aged by some of the most powerful persons of the age, now founded the Order of Mercy, the aim of which institution was the ransom of the slaves ; large sums of money were bestowed t further the progress of the pious work, and ever' year a number of captives who had been rescue( by the persevering fathers from the dominion o the most barbarous countries in the world, fol lowed their liberators in procession through th( streets of the different towns and villages, anc hung the chains from which they had been de- livered upon the walls of the churches. But oJ late years, the power of the religious party has been considerably weakened, and the officers oi the English and French navy may now lay claim to the title of the real Fathers of Mercy, for nc sooner does the standard of civilization appear in^ the midst of these far-distant regions, where piracy still exist in its most dreadful form, than the poor captives by whom it is perceived, hail it as their signal of deliverance. The history of all our captives was almost exactly the same, all of them being poor Tagals from Manilla, who had been taken prisoners by the pirates of Holo, and had afterwards been sold by their masters to merchants or husbandmen, who subjected them to a rigorous degree of labour which was always augmented when they persisted in refusing to embrace the tenets of Islamism. '^ These poor men informed us, that amongst their companions in misfortune, were some Europeans, S 258 THE CAPTIVES REDEEMED. who liad been sliip^va-eckecl on this coast, and that as soon as our fidgates had appeared in sight, they had been carried oft' by the natives into the inte- rior of the island, so that they might have no communication with us. The next morning at day -break, the main-mast of tlie Cleopatra was decorated with a red flag on which was blazoned a white cross, and a grand salute of cannon hailed the sign of redemption, the sound of which, awakening the silent echoes of the island, must have inspii'ed the hearts of the miserable captives with hope, and doubtless many a gi'ateful eye was raised to Heaven, and many a knee bent to the earth in thanksgiving for the un- expected succour. For several nights following, the number of the fugitives who thronged round the vessel wiis very considerable ; amongst them were a Spaniard, and an Indian from the coast of ]\lalabar, the latter of whom had Ijelonged to an English vessel, shipwrecked on the rocks of Borneo, where he was of course separated from his companions, and knew not what had become of them. The Sjjaniard had lived for fifteen years in the interior of Soidou, where his master treated him very well, and his only reason for escaping, was an unconquerable yearning to behold his native country once again. Notwithstanding the continual desertion of the slaves, the little vessels of the natives fre(iuented our frigates as nuich as ever ; one day I was talk- ing to a Malay, of whom I had just bought some cocoa-nuts, when he informed me that he idso was a captive at Mindaneo, upon which 1 ent^uired THE UNCONSCIOUS PHILOSOPHER. 259 why he did not profit by the opportunity to es- cape, and revisit his country ? " Why should I do so V he replied ; " there is something to regret everywhere ; here I am well enough off, my master treats me as if I were one of his kindred, I am well paid, and could save money if I wished ; in my own country I know I could not do better, and perhaps, should not fare as well ; therefore, I prefer remaining here/' I gave this unconscious philosopher a piastre, which he received with a shower of benedictions on my head. -- We remained a few days longer at Soulou, but finding that the Sultan, who was doubtless dis- pleased at the manner in which we had assisted the captives to escape, would not accede to om* propositions, or assist us in any way, the French ships once more set sail for Basilan. Dming our voyage thither, I one day observed' Mucho Color looking very grave, and casting mournful glances upon the prisoners whom we had saved ; so I approached, and striking him familiarly on the shoulder, enquu-ed what he was thinking about ? " Ah ! what a question, Monsieur, can you not guess ? I was thinking, that unless I have the good fortune to be specially protected by my pa- tron saint, I shall one day be a wretched slave at Holo." " Well,'' said I, briskly, " you must save your- self as these men did, by swimming/' Poor Mucho Color ! he turned as bright a red as a tomato, and replied, in a crest-fallen voice : ■"Ah ! Monsieur, how easy it is to talk ; alas ! I do not know how to swim/' s2 ?M CHAPTER VL ^ THE KETURN TO BASILAN. '^ '.,t The young Ensign, and the party belonging to the Sabine, had been assassinated on the river of Maloso, and it was in the port bearing that name, that the Cleopatra now anchored. Viewed from this point, Basilan presented an aspect so rude and severe, that we scarcely recognised it, for during our visit to the port of Malamawi, the whole surface of the island seemed covered by one vast mass of foliage ; we could perceive no- thing but high mountains clothed with rich vege- tation, whilst om' vessels, gTacefully anchored upon beds of coral, looked like swans reposing in a ■wilderness of flowere ; but here, the immense sheet of azure which surrounded us seemed to know no limits ; nothing was to be seen but a long chain of barren rocks rising fi-om a valley of palm trees and ferns, to mingle in the horizon with the deep Vjlue of the waters, and our gallant ships, tossed about by the tumultuous waves, sug- gested a resemblance to noble steeds impatient to continue their onward course. The first few days after our an*ival were de- voted to the task of making preparations for the contem])lated attack upon Maloso, for, as may easily be imagined, our sailors seemed anxious to leave warlike traces of their presence amongst the unha])]>y Malays ; various man(puvres were ex- ecuted by the ditierent vessels, signals exchanged, PEEPARATIONS FOR THE ATTACK. 261 and as soon as the crew had disembarked, they gave themselves up to all the exercises required in the bloody art of war. A detachment of sailors was sent out for the purpose of clearing a road from the sea-shore to the top of a little island about half a league from the spot where we were anchored ; this island bore the name of the Great Govenen, and was nothing more than an immense block of basalt, rising from the bosom of the earth in the form of an enormous cone, covered from the base to the summit by noble trees, more than a hundred feet in height, the strong roots of which struck deep into the rocky pyramid fr'om which they sprung. Y The road up this mountain was constructed by the sailors in a very original manner ; as they contented themselves with making a sort of ba- lustrade by means of strong ropes passed from one tree to another, so as to be able to ascend to the very summit of this natm^al sugar-loaf I once made an ascent of this kind, but was obliged to descend precipitately, and am of opinion that it is almost as difficult a task as any that can be given to man to execute. The object of the officers in attempting to gain the summit of this elevation, was to be able to explore the vast plain of Maloso throughly, be- fore commencing the action they meditated, and in this project they were materially assisted by a sin- gular vegetable phenomenon in the shape of two immense trees, which crowned the extreme peak of the Great Govenen, growing to a most prodigious height, their interlaced roots resembling limbs twined together ; they were of the calophyllum genus, which furnishes the Indian sailor with 262 AN ELEVATED RECOXNOISANCE. masts similar to those whicli, in Europe, we ob- tain only from Norway. The sailors fastened their ropes to the very top branches of these forest giants, upon which the commanding officers ven- tured for the purpose of studying the position of the future field of battle. Now, I must confess, not only that I myself had the weakness and vanity to make this aerial journey, but also, that upon finding myself raised to such an immense height from the ground by means of ropes, which might possibly break, I instantly demanded in energetic language, that I miorht be assisted down as^ain, and from that time I have solemnly believed the history of AoiUe to be merely that of a man who, under similar circumstances, was seized with vertigo. From the heicrlits of this observatorv, the hii^h- ly-cultivated pastures of Maloso might be per- ceived, i\s well as its peaceful-looking dwellings, scattered about here and there, sun-ounded by trees with splendid foliage, whilst the inhabittmts, with their herds of buftaloes and humped oxen, added to the serene and })e{iceful a^spect of the scene ; for the advantaoje of those Avho were en- gaged in the work of inspection, they were also able to perceive that the line of paWuviers which surrounded Basilan wjis not more than a league in extent. In descending: the Great Govenen, notwith- standing the Jissistance of the ropes, I managed to l)ruise myself a good deal against the hard, sloping edges of this rock, whicli ixMuinded one of the obelisk at Luxor ; I subsequently i)aid a visit to tlie Lesser Govenen, which is an exact miniat\n-e of the larger one, but this time I knew MONEY OF nature's COINING. 263 better than to trust myself upon the hard slippery basalt, and therefore amused myself by collecting the shells which had been borne thither by the tide, thus indulging one of my favourite tastes as a naturalist. In a little creek some distance off, I found hurried amidst the sand a great number of those beautiful productions which are used by the natives of Guinea and Coromandel instead of money ; these elegant little white shells, some- times surrounded by a circle of gold, are known by the name of ccairy, and are certainly not only prettier, but more convenient, than the base coin of our realm, notwithstanding the grotesque figm^es with which the latter is decorated. I was fortunate enough to find many other treasures of this kind, of the most varied and beautifal colours, and though, perhaps, there was nothing particularly valuable in my collection, still I prize each of my pretty shells as a favourite souvenir, and call them by the names of different friends ; Requien, Hoiinorat, Solier, de Christ ol, and many others, respected by science, but un- known to the world in general ; they remind me too, how valuable I used to imagine these inhabi- tants of distant seas, when but a child, and I shall always remember the pleasure with which I dis- played them to some of my old friends, having gathered them myself after a lapse of twenty years, and at a distance of five thousand leagues i from our native country. I was still engaged in peaceful occupations of this sort, when I received the information that, om' ships were about to put to sea and commence the premeditated attack ; our forces were divided into two bodies, the one being ordered to sail up 264 A MILITARY CITL-DE-SAC. the river Maloso,. and the other to disembark on the western coast of the island : M. de Lagren^ and several other members of the Legation took up their station in the vessels belonging to the latter division of the expedition, which I also joined myself, om* little party consisting of about two hundred men with two pieces of small cannon. - > On arri^^ng at the spot at which we intended to disembark, we hastened to establish ourselves on some place whence we could commimicate with the vessels by means of certain signals, and thus prevent much unnecessary trouble. Having selected a spot sheltered by the paletuv^iers on the sea-shore, we now proceeded to phice sentinels at certain distances, to give us timely warning should it be necessary to beat a retreat into the labyiinth by which we were surrounded. ^ ^ After a short time, spent in making these ar-: rangements, we entered an immense swampy fo- rest, which, from the top of the Great Govenen/ we had mistaken for a continuation of the planta- tion of ^-^a/e^itt^tei'S which surrounds the island ; > here we found it impossible to proceed without the gi-eatest exei-tion and dilhculty ; our pieces of cannon constantly sunk into the marshy giound, the shoes of the men clung fast to the clayey soil, and, at last, a large pond, overgrown with reeds, rushes, and herbaceous plants, stopped our pro- gi'ess idtogether. Having assured ourselves that it was an impos- sibility to proceed fruiher, we retniced om- steps to the phice where we hail landed ; and upon reaching the shore, we distinctly heard the report of cannon, and of a loud tiring which a})peared THE TRUCKLE-BED OF HONOUR. 265 to be going on further down on the river ; this of course induced us to lose no time in stepping on board, and repairing to the scene of action, where we found, that the Malays had blocked up the passage of the river, by placing the stems of gi- gantic trees across it, a circumstance which had caused an infinity of trouble to the ships prece- ding us. For our own parts, though not dis- mayed at the prospect, we experienced great dif- ficulty in surmounting these obstacles, being obli- ged to abandon the Sabine, and one or two other vessels, which, fi^om their weight, would have been quite unequal to the task of pushing their way against the massive trunks imbedded in the mud of the river ; however, as the little bark, called a you-you, into which we stepped, required but very shallow water, we managed, by means of our light skifi", to reach the battle-field with- out much delay. On board the first vessel we rejoined, three were already killed, and a fourth so badly woun- ded as to be quite incapable of action. We re- ceived an account of what had happened from one of the officers, who stated, that after they had proceeded up the river, to the distance of about a league, they found their progress completely blocked up by an immense palisade, which they ^ had scarcely attempted to pass, when they en- countered a tremendous fire from the enemy, which had sacrificed the lives of the poor unfor- ^ tunates whom we beheld : this was of course re- tm-ned by our crew, who, at the same time, en- '■■ deavoured to force the blockade ; but finding all their efforts quite insufficient for the purpose, they had decided upon trying to land on the left bank 266 THE VICTORY. of the river, so as to be able to attack Maloso it- self, and preparations for this manoeuvi'e were now in progress. While these particulars were being related to us, we were startled by a loud discharge of fire- arms, mingled with shouts of " Vive le Roi ! Vive la France !" and, at the same instant, beheld one of the officers planting the national standard on the barricade. I must confess (though perhaps the feeling was a wrong one) that upon hearing the voice of tri- umph and success, I joined in the general excite- ment, and springing on the blockade, determined to take a personal share in the action, accompa- nied by several of my companions, each eager to prove that we had true French blood in our veins, and just so much of the old remnant of barbarism in our hearts as to ferment upon the first contact with belligerent powers. The Malays fled in all directions, pursued by the French sailors ; now and then one of the yel- low-skins fell beneath the stroke of the enemy, but on the whole, the slaughter was not gTcat. The barricade formed a sort of angle, the point of which advanced into the bed of the river ; it was built of trunks of wood as thick as a man's body, strengthened by a wall of clay, sustained by a range of stakes, and was moreover defended by two pieces of cannon in very bad order, two curi- ous espi7igoleSj and a few nmskets, all of whicli remained in our possession, as well Jis the ammu- nition, consisting merely of a small quantity of I)Owder, and some singular projectik^ weapons. Instead of using balls for the heading of their cannon, the Malays employed a singular kind of MALAY BAERICADES. 267 ammunition, composed of fragments of coral, in- serted into pieces of cane, something resembling the distaffs of the Provencal spinners ; the two extremities were firmly bound together, and the centre puffed out with pebbles. We also found a great number of bamboos in the barricade, about a metre in length, with one end very much shar- pened. At this time the use of these weapons was unknown to us, but we afterwards discovered from a Malay, that they were used as javelins, hurled by the hand, something in the manner of the ancients. The cannon, espingoles, muskets, &c., were all placed in the embrasures of the barricade, which were filled up with trunks of wood, when the arms were withdrawn for use. . As may be perceived from what I have related, the mihtary policy of the Malays was a mixture of the ancient Greek and the Arab, rather primi- tive, it is true, but in the arts of war, brute cou- rage is often of more use than intelligence, and if the intrepid Malays do not find these means suffi- cient to defend themselves against attack, they must fail in any attempt to surprise and vanquish the well-regulated troops of Europe. This blockade, although so well defended, as far as the river went, was totally unprotected from land attacks, the Malays having never con- sidered the possibility of their being assailed fi^om the coast, consequently, no sooner did they hear the trumpets of the troops, who had landed on the left bank of the river, than they at once under- stood that all further resistance was useless, and took to flight like a flock of scared birds. We left twenty men to guard the barricade, 268 WHICH IS THE SAVAGE ? and sent several detachments into different parts of the surrounding countiy, to set fire to the habi- tations, cut down the cocoa-trees, and pillage the fields, in one of which expeditions I took part. We proceeded along the bank of the river for about half an hour, and then arrived at a deliofht- ful dwelling house, a beautiful edifice, built in the Malay style, but with perfect elegance, the staircase, which led to the verandah, being orna- mented with wooden cai-ving that would have done honour to the middle ages, while its various apartments, though totally destitute of any kind of furniture, betrayed the utmost propriety of taste : noble trees spread their branches over the roof of the house, and the sharp green stems of the palm rose into the air like the spires of the ancient gothic cathedrals, whilst a clear rivulet ran at a little distance by the side of an alley of bananas. Attached to this house was a large shed, thatched with the leaves of the nipjpa, and here we observed that four proas were being constructed ; the deserted work and solitary dwelling had an air of peculiar sadness, which seemed to appeal to the mercy of the foreign conquerors ; and even the soft voice of the little rivulet raised its gentle accents in a prayer for pity. But, alas ! the language of nature was not now to be reecarded ; the blazinoj firebrand descended upon the roof of the gracefrd habitation, the elegant stairciise crashed an«l fell beneath the destroying hand of the incendiary, the sculptured work of the proas crumbled into powder witli the action of the fire, the noble trees yielded to the axe of the sailore, disappear- ing like stubble before the reaper, and in the TIMELY REPENTANCE. ' 269 space of a few hours, not a trace remained of the comfort and elegance thus destroyed. ,' Of course, I could not help sharing in the work of destruction ; and observing in one corner of the garden a little hillock covered with turf and odoriferous plants, it immediately occurred to me, that at the Cape of Good Hope I had noticed similar elevations in the cemetery of the Malay Mussulmans, and imagining the object of my present attention to be a tomb of some kind, I determined to pillage it, in order to find, if possible, some skulls wherewith to enrich my phrenological collection, and calling two of the sailors to my aid, we commenced the work of profanation ; at the depth of about two meters below the surface, we discovered a layer of stones, and underneath this a wooden cofiin, containing the body of a little child of about three years 5)ld ; I could not help regretting that I should thus have disturbed its remains, and gathering some banana leaves and sweet-scented flowers, I covered the poor little creature's body with them, and closing up the aperture with large stones, I walked sadly away from the spot. ' Shortly afterwards, the signal for retreat was sounded, and all retm-ned to the barricade, as had been previously arranged ; the whole of the left bank of the river was on fire, the houses and rice stores blazing furiously, and the fields, which had been but a few hours ago covered with trees and crops, were now as bare as the prairies of our own country at the close of autumn. We proceeded down the river of Maloso, with a view of regaining the ship before nightfall, but the water being very low, our progress was some- 270 THE ATTACK RENEWED. what difficult, and at this time, we were quite at the mercy of any Malays who might be concealed amongst the paletuviers, had they chosen to fire upon us, of which we were somewhat apprehen- sive ; however, it is a fact, that the Malays allow- ed us to proceed onwards without giving us one single shot by way of a souvenir. The following morning, at day-break, the ves- sels again put to sea, and we directed our course towards the village of Maloso ; the pieces of wood with which the barricade had been con- structed, and which had been set on fire the nio-ht before, were still burning, and long wreaths of smoke rose in all directions from the ruins of the houses destroyed by the incendiaries. It was now decided that a party of men should again visit the left bank, in order to ascertain whether anything had escaped the general work of destruction, while the principal body explored the right bank, which had as yet ])een lefb un- molested, and it was further arrano-ed that in case any unforeseen circumstance should occur, or it should be found necessary to give the signal for re- treat, the whole of the party should reassemble at the point which had been occupied on the pre- ceding evening by the barricade. I joined that part of the expedition directed to the right side of the river, and we first liglited upon an extensive plain bounded both by a chain of moimtains, and by the com-se of the watei- ; the soil in this part had evidently undergone an jirtificial inundation, either for some agricultural ])urp()se, or more probably with a view to the o})- jK)sition of our marcli. Some stacks of rice straw which we met w^ith on om* way were set ou fire, THE BOOTY. 271 and we bent oiu- steps towards a hill upon which stood a group of about six little houses, apparent- ly inhabited by a score or so, of Malays ; dividing ourselves into small parties we advanced towards this point, believing the place to be well defended, but on oui' approach all the Malays prepared to make a hasty departure, carrying on their shoul- ders large sacks beneath the weight of which they seemed to bend, the latter probably contained rice for the support of their families. The appearance of these houses was extremely comfortable, and their late occupants must cer- tainly have led tolerably easy lives. The sailors now dispersed themselves in diflerent directions in search of articles v/hich might be useful and worth carrying away, and it was not without some astonishment that we saw them issue from the dwellings which we had imagined totally des- titute of fmniture, laden with all kinds of house- hold utensils, clumsy brazen vessels, musical in- struments, and pieces of stuff and wearing ap- parel ; this search was conducted by our men in a manner which proved that they were accustom- ed to the proceeding, and they afterwards had a sale of the prizes they had brought away, in which old caldrons, stone vases, little silver chains, boxes of betel-nut, tambourines, hautbois, sea shells, old armour and sarrons, shone very conspicuously. As soon as the research was considered com- plete, the men preceded to fell all the trees, and not only to set fire to the mass of wood, but also to the dwelling-houses ; the scene of desolation was soon at its height ; four rice stores were in a blaze, and a few bufialoes which the Malays had 272 THE HUMBLE APPEAL REFUSED. not had time to chase from the mountains, bel- lowed loudly as they rushed round the scene of destruction, while burning splinters from the trees shot forth from the furnace, in the midst of which the immense trunks crackled with the extreme heat. Every house we met with in this plain shared the same £ite ; accompanied by thirty of the sailors, I now proceeded towards a very steep hill, on the opposite side of which we discovered a habitation of very humble appearance, "^dth a thatched roof, and an entrance formed of hurdles without any lock or fastening ; the only apart- ment in tliis primitive dwelling contained merely a sort of coffer, and a kneading trough, the former filled with old clothes, and the latter with a little stock of rice ; a few eggs, fresh cocoa-nuts, and vases of water, were also standing about, and from the general aspect of the place, it seemed as though the proprietor imagined that the extreme poverty of his hut would be the means of sa\4ng it from destruction ; but the trust of the bar- barian in our pity for the unfortunate, was a mis- placed one, for the band of Christians merely raised a shout of " death to the vanquished,'' and the hut was pillaged and bm^nt without mercy. One of the sailors had found two eggs in the hovel, and coming up to me, asked whether I thought it likely they contained any poison ; at which absurd remark I merely shrugged my shoulders, wishing in my heart that the stupid fellow might be punished for his ignorance by a fit of indisposition after eating tliem. For more than eiaying a visit to your friends, is " Khom, quere tclta, que re to- baco T' the latter term refers to a sjiecie of ciga- CHINESE FRUITS IN EUROPE. 289 rette, manufactured by the Chinese with infinite art, and execrable materials. Fruits of every kind are equally esteemed by the Macaists, particularly the banana, figo-caqui, litchi, long-gan, wampi, and orange ; in the South of France, my friend Kequien made an attempt some time ago, to naturahse the figo- caqui, or diospyros-kaki (to speak botanically), but, unfortunately the tree proved a wild one, with very acid fruit ; in Cliina, on the contrary, its flavom^ is more soft and luscious than that of any Em^opean fruit, and its skin exquisitely deli- cate, and as red as the tomato. This effort on the part of the learned manager of the botanical garden at Avignon, ought to en- courage horticultmists to transplant some of the other Chinese fruit into om^ European soil ; the litchi wou]d, it is probable, succeed admirably, and it would be worth a little trouble to cultivate this fr'uit, with its delicately tinted skin, and de- licious flavour, only to be compared to that of the grape ; the same might be said of the wampi, the thick yellow clusters of which bear some resem- blance to the Muscadine grape, with a flavom^ which nothing else can equal. Many of the Por- tuguese houses are furnished with beautifril gar- dens, in which all the fi^uits I have named flourish luxuriantly, orange trees laden with fruit the size of melons, and the delicate mandarine with its beautiful crimson tints. Macao, which may almost be termed a little island, is certainly the Provence of the East, for everything that grows on its arid soil is fr^agrant and delicious ; its numerous hills are richly cover- ed with lovely and brilliant blossoms, and the air V 290 THE PORTUGUESE MACAISTS. seems almost alive with golden-winged butter- flies ; the climate is a happy medium between the burning heat of the tropics, and the sharp cool- ness of the north, and if its vegetation is less ma- jestic than that of some other countries, it is quite as attractive ; it is true that the tall palm, with its sharp lance-sliaped leaves, and the sonorous music they send forth, has disappeared, but it is replaced by the pine, not the wild dark tree, bearing that name, on the Northern shores, but such as grow on the fair coasts of Greece. The Portuguese Macaists can scarcely be said to form a distinct people, although there are some remains of aristocracy amongst them, and their European descent seems to regulate their privi- leges in proportion as it is more or less decided. In the pictm^e I have endeavom-ed to give of the appearance, manners, and customs of the inhabit- ants of La Cidade do Santo-Nome-de-Deos, I have rather sought to convey an idea of the tout ensemble, than to describe individualities. At Macao, as in other places, there are clever, intelligent men, free from the weaknesses of their fellow countrymen, salons in which as much in- tellectual conversation may be heard as in Lon- don or Paris, as well as elegant women and well educated youths ; for instance, I was acquainted with one young lady whose industrious life form- ed a striking contrast to the indolent habits of her conq^anions, as she was so good a linguist as to be able to read tlie French and EngUsh i)oets, Horace and Virgil, all in the original ; nor was she a solitary exanq)le, for I knew many other ladies who spoke several languages, and toolc the gi-eatest interest in all the new literutui-e of Lon- LITER AEY ATTAINMENTS IN MACAO. 291 don, Paris, Lisbon, Madrid, and Calcutta ; can tins be said of Frencli ladies, or their philological talents ? And the same remark applies to the men, for those who have been educated in Europe are perfect gentlemen, and even among those who have been brought up in their own country, some remarkable persons may be found. I remember, in particular, a physician named Fitter, who had received his education at Goa, and was intimate with several of our fellow countrymen, the mis- sionaries of the Rue cle Bac, as well as with the Portuguese Lagaristes ; this intelligent man had become an able and distinguished practitioner entirely by means of his great perserverance, en- ergy, and natural good sense ; he possessed the most accurate knowledge of everything respecting his own country, and were he not of too retiring a disposition to publish all his information on the subject of Chinese medicine, he would be able to render great service to European science. There are many other men at Macao living and labour- ing in tranquil retirement, without even the wish for celebrity, loving art and science for their own sakes alone ; amongst their number I may name an excellent priest, Father Remedios, whose hap- py family was grouped around him in a state of harmony, delightfal to witness ; but as retiring characters are much too modest to intrude upon strangers, they must be sought for in solitude and obscurity. During the period in which my fi-iend Gallery resided at Macao, his house was quite the rendez- vous of the most intelligent and learned men in the Portuguese colony, and was situated on the summit of the mountain of Santo- Antonio, com- u2 292 THE GAEDEN OF CAMOENS. mandinof a fine view of the vast ocean studded ■with little isl^Qds. As we gazed forth on the prospect, oiu' discourse generally tui'ned on the wonders of this strange country, so mysteriously interesting even to those who have always lived in itj and we learned more in a few hours' conver- sation of this sort on the subject of Cliina, than we could have done in a residence of some years in that empire, as every individual present was possessed of some information, which he was delighted to im})art to strangers, or, as the Chi- nese term us, barbarians. And I cannot descend from the summit of Santo- Antonio, without fii'st conducting the reader to the habitation of M. Loren90 Marquez, a charm- ing place, rendered dear to those who have visited it, by the remembrance of the com^teous reception they met with there, and known to the world by the name of the Garden of Camoens ; it adjoins a Chinese village called Patain, which overlooks the sea ; and the ground belonging to it, which is founded upon a granite rock, has been cultivated Avith great care, and is planted with all the most beautiful shrubs and trees of the inter-tropical world ; sapotilles and the guanabana grow there most luxuriantlv, mino-linir their foliage with the strawberry-tree and Euro})ean inico couliers ; on the higliest point of the eminence is situated a grotto, whither the proprietor retii*ed to pm-sue his meditations ; it is partly formed by nature, and is overshadowed by trees, while from the depths of its retirement, the visitor may behold the angry, tempestuous, ever-changing sea, and liear the murmuring of the tide, which beats im patiently upon the hard granite, and which pre GENIUS IN DISTRESS. 293 sents no bad type of the constant adversity which always pursued Camoens, while the unyielding rock is an equally good emblem of his calm, firm impassability. The Macaists have preserved many lively tradi- tional souvenirs of the great Portuguese Homer ; and it may easily be imagined that these wild na- tives regard with devotion the remembrance of the romantic adventurer, half-soldier, half-poet : to this day they are able to repeat the verses with which their illustrious countryman repaid their hospitality ; he was one of those majestic beggars who seem to possess the privilege of paying their debts, like those of great monarchs, with pearls and diamonds ; but although their forefathers have transmitted the verses of the poor exile to their children, they have also recounted the mis- fortunes which befel him, to impress upon them the truth, that genius cannot secm^e happiness, and the most ignorant Macaist is acquainted with the fact, that Camoens, banished by the Vice-roy from the territory of Goa, took refuge in the Por- tuguese city — abandoned by fortune, and oppress- ed by misery — harassed by his efforts to obtain the common necessaries of life, and the misfor- tunes with which his genius was so ill fitted to cope. Upon one occasion, Gallery, Pitter and myself, were seated at the foot of the rock consecrated to the memory of Gamoens ; the sun was obscured by thick clouds, and the sky and ocean seemed to shroud every object in a robe of melancholy — the sombre aspect of everything around us threw a feeling of tristesse over our minds, and led us to reflect upon the destiny of this great man, 294 THE poet's to.mb. whose life commenced with a dream of unfortu- nate love, which triumphed over the ruins of fallacious hope, only to be destroyed at last in obscure despair ; and as these thoughts took pos- session of our minds, the spot upon which we were seated, seemed to us an appropriate emblem of the fatality which attended his career ; it was a high eminence shaped like an obelisk, and the place of his repose was hollowed out like the tomb of Pharaoh at the foot of the Pyramid, whilst gigantic trees, the eugenia and mico coulier overshadow with their branches the monument itself, looking as though the hand of Nature had erected it upon a dais of verdure. However, the grandeur of the mausoleum is completely des- troyed by a winding path which leads u}) to a kiosk on the summit, and the entrance to this poetical sanctuary is protected by a miserable wooden balustrade, frightfully painted with black. In the interior stands a miserable altar, a hor- rible bust of Comoens occupies the centre, while verses of the Lusiad are traced on the dismal- looking walls ; altogether the place is grotesque and fi-ightful, and amid the scene of protanation, I could not help remarking to myself, that in order to preserve the romance connected with Camocns, it would decidedly be better not to pay this rock a visit. Upon the stones of the monument were traced names, dates, and verses, in all the European languages, and in one place tliere is a marble tab- let containing a composition by some Frenchman.^ ►So profoundly is man im])reysed with the idea of his uncertain abode in this world, that instinct itself seems to teach him to leave some memorial THE CHURCHES OF MACAO. 295 of his existence behind him : the powerful do this by their own achievements, and the weak by endeavouring to add something to the works of others ; the child who, with his feeble and uncer- tain hand carves the letters of his name upon the wall — the tourist in France, who does the same with his knife upon the monuments and obelisks — ^and the philosopher, who engraves them upon the stones of the Pyramids, Mont-Blanc, or lung- Frau, are all actuated by the same sentiment, viz. that of perpetuating the remembrance of their names after they themselves shall have passed away. The prominent characteristics of Macao are essentially those of a Catholic city, and it is easy to perceive at the first glance, that its founders had the interest of Heaven more in view than those of commerce ; the spires of fourteen churches may be perceived from the landing place, and there is not a street which does not contain a re- ligious edifice of some description. The cathedral of St. Peter, is a monument which carries us back to the olden time, and makes us marvel how even these enterprising ad- venturers, scarcely settled in the country, could have erected so beautiful a building here ; the same may be said of the archbishop's palace, built in 1575, the architecture of which is quite appropriate to the dignity of the prelate who in- habits it. Macao is, in fact, the Rome of the East, and the spiritual potentate who resides there, the most important clerical power in these far-distant lands. Besides the Archbishop's abode, the chm'ches, chapels, and convents, this extra-oriental colo- 296 MERCANTILE FACILITIES. ny contains other monuments which would not disgi'ace any European city, amongst which we may name the senate-house, a vast edifice, which gives an idea of the gi-andem^ of the Portuguese in their days of prosperity ; upon the gi^anite pilasters of the gi'eat hall are engraved the con- ditions upon which . the island was ceded ; alto- gether there is an air of magnificent simplicity about the building, of which the Macaists are justly proud. In the present day the place bear- ing the name of the palace is almost deserted, and the vast apartments which were thi'onged in former days are now but seldom visited. The massive columns of the governor's residence form an ornament to the Quay of Praia- Grande, and the interior is furnished with gTeat elegance and splendour. The Quay of Praia-Grande, a hasty glance of which we obtained fi^om the landing place, would be considered beautiful in any country ; the houses are extremely well built, and standing as they do, on the sea shore, give an excellent im- pression of the ancient gTandeur and wealth of the colony. Three places for unlading are situated on the sides of the quay, each of them guarded by a number of boats manned by Chinese sailors, of whom we shall have occasion to speak by-and- by, and in the evening, the Quay of Praia- Grande, and that of Praia-la-Guia (which is a continuation of the former) form a delightful jiro- menade, and are quite the rendezvous of the iMa- caists ; the breeze rendei-s it deliciously cool, and wlien t\u) evening closes in, the idionha. that white butterfly of night, frequents the spot ; there are two other Fra'ias on the borders of the sea. CONDUCT OF THE FIRST COLONISTS. 297 the Praia Manduco, and tlie Praia de Patani, but they are now entirely deserted, and I merely mention them because such places actually exist. As early as the sixteenth century, the Portu- guese had founded commercial establishments on the coast of China, but the quarrelsome disposi- tion of some of their countrjnuen, caused them to be expelled from Liampoo and Sancian, and ren- dered them odious to all the inhabitants of the coast ; under these circumstances, their trade was exceedingly retarded, and possessed no territory wherever to disembark their goods, until they cast their eyes on the island of Hiang-Chan. Having ascertained the advantages of this locality, they presented themselves before the Mandarins of Kouanof-Tonof, and made use of such irresistable arguments, that they at last obtained permission to form a temporary establishment on its shores, and from that time to this, they continued to fre- quent that part of the island, of which they had taken possession, giving constant proof of the in- dustrious and enterprising spirit for which they have so justly been celebrated. They commenced by constructing little sheds for the accommodation of their merchandise, which were after a time ex- changed for small huts or cottages, and finally, for substantial dwelling-houses, and from such a com- mencement as this, the great city of Macao has sprung. But, notwithstanding the brave, enterprising conduct of these adventurers, they were looked upon with a somewhat jealous eye by the inha- bitants, and particularly by the Mandarins, who were well paid by the traders, and temporized in a somewhat underhand manner with their 298 PIRATES SUPPRESSED. foreign visitors. However, the time was at hand for the proper position of the new comers to be established on this jealous spot of earth, and the following occurrence probably hastened its ar- rival. The shores of Fo-Kien and Konang-Tong were laid waste by pirates, and the Chinese govern- ment, not being sufficiently powerful to avenge its own wrongs, availed itself of the proffered assistance of the Portuguese, who, with their usual intrepidity, attacked the delinquents, and destroyed their vessels. As a reward for their valuable ser\dces, the reigning Emperor permitted them to make what use they pleased of the Isthmus of Macao, for a yearly acknowledgment of five hundred tiiels. However, succeeding events proved that this concession was not in reality quite so substantial as it might have ap- peared to be from the terms of the Imperial Edict. A Chinese Mandarin was elected governor of the new colony, with the title of Iso-Tang ; the great aim of this man was to bring all the Europeans under liis own jurisdiction, considering tliem merely as vassals of the Cliinese ; after a time, an edict from this son of the Celestial Empue summoned them to fight under his banner against the Tartars, who had menaced some of the north- ern portion of his territories. Various changes of fortune befel the Portuguese during tliese struggles, as well as those with the crown ; by degrees, tliey emancipated themselves from the contrf>l of the Mandarins, asserted and main- tained tlieir own riglits, and thus prevented all the Cliristian po])ulation of tlie adjacent ishmd from falling under the jurisdiction of Iso-Tang. NATIONAL HONOUK. 299 Much censure has fallen upon the court of Lisbon for having submitted, for so many success- ive centuries, to the authority of the over-bearing Mandarins of Konang-Tong, and for allowing the reputation of the European character to sink before that of the Chinese : and this reproach is not wholly undeserved ; for at the time of which I speak, the star of the Portuguese was on the wane, and in this struggle with the Celestial Empire they engaged in a contest totally unworthy of their past glorious deeds, and one, moreover, from which they could not possibly derive any benefit, as far as their politi- cal or commercial interests were concerned. It was to the other portion of the Clnistian popula- tion, the merchants and sailors who visited at Macao, that this struggle was a matter of interest and importance, and it is a theme of astonish- ment, that the representatives of these nations (residing in China), should not have manifested more willingness to assist a feeble power, which had, for many by-gone centuries, borne away the palm of glory from the rest of the Europeans in this part of the world. The English, in parti- cular, who reaped the greatest advantage from the political disasters in Portugal, were bound in honour to proffer their assistance to that nation in its hour of need, for, be it remembered, tlie Portuguese preceded the English in the path of success and glory, and the latter certainly ought not to have forgotten their predecessors. Sir John Davis was the fu'st to call attention to this injustice ; in his valuable work on China, he has rendered himself quite the detractor of the heroes of the sixteenth century ; his observa- 300 FORM OF GOVERNMENT. tions are evidently made in a spirit of chagi^in and ill humour ; and it is quite visible that he is actuated by intense hatred for the first disco- verers of these far-distant shores ; indeed, this spirit is canied so far as to border upon meanness ; but let us not judge harshly of the fallen, since we know not ^vliat destiny may make of us. When the little community of Macao was first established, its government consisted of a presi- dent, nominated by His Majesty the King of Portugal, the bishop, the judge, or gi'eat magis- trate, his representative, and a Senate ; the latter is formed by election, its members being chosen by the most aristocratic persons in the country, according to Fernand Mendez Pinto ; it is com- posed of two judges, three assessors, a solicitor, a treasurer, a notary, and a director of alms ; thus, even in this comparatively small island, there are two rival governments, or rather two contesting powers, perpetually striving to ex- tinguish each other. The Portuguese had scarcely taken possession of their new dominions, when the Chinese com- menced the task of fixing the boundaries to their property with the utmost precision, and to efiect tliis object, proceeded in a manner peculiar to themselves, treating the Lilli])utian establishment at Macao as they would have done Tartary or La Cor(^e, by building a wall of separation betA\'een the conceded territories and the rest of the isLind of Hiang-Chan ; and in order to prevent tlie pos- sibility of encroachment u]K)n their own domains, tliey constructed a gateway in the wall, the management of which was confided to a guard of soldiers, with instructions to allow a free passjige MIGHT ABOVE RIGHT. 301 to the sons of the celestial empire, but to prevent the barbarian Portuguese from ever leaving their own dominions. These orders were executed to the very letter, in such a manner, as to render the Macaists almost prisoners on their own territories ; whilst the Chinese population of Hiang-Chan, attracted by the prospect of wealth, descended in crowds upon the adjacent island — building vil- lages — opening shops, and establishing factories, in such a manner, as to render the subjects of Tso-Tang three times more powerful in the colony than its lawful possessors — the Europeans. Such was the state of affairs in the island, upon the arrival of Governor Amaral ; this brave and energetic man, impressed by the dazzling example of the English, was anxious that Portugal should hold the same position at Macao that Great Bri- tain did at Hong-Kong ; and to effect this object he recalled the cession which the Emperor Kang- Hi had made, by means of a tax, of which we have before spoken. The Mandarins made a vigo- rous resistance, but Amaral paid no attention to their importunities, and soon succeeded in bring- ing the whole of the inhabitants to acknowledge his authority ; he imposed equal restrictions both upon the Chinese and Portuguese merchants and land proprietors, and by his judicious government ensured to his coimtry the undisputed possession of a territory which had been contested for ages. In order to set a boundary to his own domi- nions, he caused a sort of road to be made all round the isthmus, without paying any regard to the various buildings and establishments which the Chinese had erected ; but of course such vio- lent and decisive measures as these, drew upon 302 WILD JUSTICE. him the bitterest hatred of the Chinese inhabi- tants ; and, one day, when he was riding on horseback, on the road he had constructed him- self, a young couli, armed with a long stick, rushed upon him, and committed a bloody assault upon his person. Amaral lost not a moment in pursuing the miserable wretch ; but had scarcely taken a hundred steps, when two men emerged from a wood, knocked him do^vn, and cut off his head and right arm. This atrocious crime was committed in broad daylight, and all the Chinese inhabitants of Hiang-Chan might be termed accomplices in the outrage, for not a single person who witnessed this cruel murder gave the least information of the crime, or attempted its avengement. The annals of the intercourse between the Eu- ropeans and Chinese would furnisli many exam- ples of bloodthirsty assaults and murders, the his- tory of which has been for ever kept a secret by the inhabitants. In the beginning of the sixteenth century, the first establishment at Liompoo was one night sur- prised by a band of insurgents, who fell upon the Portuguese, and massacred them Avitliout mercy ; and this outrage w^as committed without tlie least notice or warninGf. Duringr the late war, the En- glisli at Ning-Po narrowly escaped a similar fate, being only saved by a signal from the sentinels on duty : the contest histed throughout the night, and no one seemed to know whence the marau- ders sprung. The conquests of Amaral over tlie cunning and di])l()matic Chinese, were however of ])ermanent advantage to tlie Portuguese, as they are at this DEPARTED GLORY. 303 present time, masters of the land upon which they once held the mean situation of vassals, affording a proof of that sad truth, that some of our greatest benefits are purchased at the cost of much sorrow, and sometimes by the loss of the dearest and best among us. In the present day, Macao is stripped of all its ancient splendour, and its commerce is almost en- tirely transported to Hong-Kong and Canton. The English merchants have abandoned the city ; and in the Portuguese quarter, only a few French and American traders remain. But although the sons of commerce have deserted Macao, the Chris- tian part of the city still contains a number of soldiers who harass the Celestial Empire inces- santly with their incursions ; some French and Portuguese Lazarists, Italian priests, and Foreign missionaries have also established themselves there, and of course many plots against the superstitious Chinese are formed. I have had but little intercourse with the La- zarists, but have been acquainted with, and much attached to several members of the Missionary Society, and can speak of them as upright men, who would eradicate error with the greatest per- serverance. Besides our own devoted and ener- getic missionaries, there are also many others re- markable for their private virtues, and also several Protestant ministers equally zealous in the pro- pagation of religion, amongst whom may be named one in particular, Yells Williams, the celebrated editor of the Chinese Repository, which curious and valuable encyclopaedia has now ceased to exist. To the continual agitation of former years, and 304 SPECULATIONS FOR THE FUTURE. the excitement of commercial affairs, a condition of perfect silence and inactivity has succeeded, in Macao, and this tranquillity seems well suited to the beautiful city, whose fine monuments conduct one's thoughts to the past ; Macao was, in early times, one of the first hattle-fields of CathoHcism, and therefore ought, by riglit, to belong to it now. Perhaps in after years it may become a sort of haven of rest for fatigued and wounded soldiers, as well as a school for younger European warriors, and may, at the same time, obtain the reputation of being the most learned and religious city of the east ; priests, and teachers both of the European sciences and holy creeds, may, at some fiiture time, meet and mingle here in peace, and the helping hands of literature and religion be once more ex- tended towards this island, for it must never be forgotten that it is entirely to those two great powers that so much has been efiected towards civilization. Up to the present time, I have contented my- self witli merely introducing my reader to that part of the city belonging to the Portuguese, and with allowing him to view only that part of the island which faces the sea ; but I must now abruptly turn my back upon the Praia-Grande, take the path straight before me, wdthout occupy- ing myself much with the streets through which I shall have to pass, and I shall presently arrive in the gi'eat Bazjuir of Macao, which is situated in the Chinese part of the city ; the very antijiodes of la cidade do Santo-Nome-de-Deos, in another world, as it were, and amidst a difierent race of beings. The M'ide but deserted streets, iind white THE BAZAAK. 305 desolate-looking houses are exchanged for narrow, noisy thoroughfares, and low, dark, crowded dwelling houses ; an immense mass of men with long queues, some wearing a large bamboo hat, others with their heads bare, but shaded by a fan, some robed in a sombre black garb, others in a long blue garment, chatter and bustle about in a state of the greatest apparent excitement. At the corner of one house there is a shop for all kinds of iron ware, at the door of another stands a man selling fi-uit, farther on is a mountebank perform- ing tricks with a magic lantern, and in the midst of all this bustle, are a great number of porters rushing about, and swearing at the unfortunate passers-by, \\^ho do not immediately give way to their progress. The first time the traveller leaves the Portu- guese city and visits this bazaar, it would be no matter of surprise if he were seized with a vertigo ; the incessant noise and chattering, in a totally unknown tongue, are bewildering and oppressive in the extreme, but after a little time one be- comes accustomed to the confusion, and able to regain composure. The houses are in general dreadfully shabby and dirty : and have quite the appearance of places in which elegance and utility are sacrificed to business ; they consist of but one story, if that term can be applied to the miserable, low-roofed attics, in which the wretched inhabi- tants all herd together like dogs ; as to the owner of the hovel, he lodges elsewhere ; the fa9ade, when made of bricks, is dirty and discoloured, and when of wood, so broken and disjointed as to resemble wicker work, but the riches of the mer- chandise in these horrible dwellings, in some X 306 A CHINESE TRADER. measure redeems the shabbiness of the exterior ; characteristic signs of the description of wares contained within are ostentatiously emblazoned on the outside, and the large doors are thi-own wide open for the reception of the public. A Chinese tradesman regards a shop simply as a means whereby he may entrap his customers ; and for this purpose he arranges his merchandise with the nicest art, and in such a manner as to attract the eye of the victim whom he intends to ensnare, and as man is flir less quick-sighted than many of the brute species, the shopkeeper acts as a bird-catcher would do towards his game, merely differing in one respect, viz. : that instead of con- cealing his person, he takes care to be always in sight, and standing quietly behind the counter, liis queue in the nicest order, his attire quite comr)ie il faut, and his countenance scliooled for the occasion ; he smiles pleasantly upon the passers- by in the street ; the coidi in liis tattered chaiii^ the youth in white pantaloons, decorated with blue ribbons, the wealthy citizen with blue cloak, and trousers of rich satin, and the newlv-arrived barbarian, are all equally the objects of his vigi- lant, but unobtrusive attention. Not an European arrives in the country with- out paying a visit to the accomplished cheat ! It is true that his merchandise is not of a description likely to prove very useful to the sons of the West, consisting chiefly, as it does, of blue porce- lain ]»lates, satin slippers with soles of felt, glass Ijracc'lets in imitation of jasper, lanterns, fans, purses intended to be worn outside, like the car- toucli-boxes of the hunters of Vincennes, little miirurs as thin and delicate in textm-e as a piece THE CHINESE ROUE. 307 of paper, and a thousand other trifles of which the stranger probably does not know the nse. But then the shopman has such a pleasing manner ; the visitoj begins by stopping to look, then he enters, and finally issues therefrom with all his money exchanged for a host of little useless, worth- less baubles. That part of the town to which the name of Bazaar is given, comprises three or four streets as bewildering as the one I have just described ; for the most part, they run parallel with each other, sometimes crossing at right angels ; from the prin- cipal of these streets, open out narrow alleys, in which are to be found gambling houses, betting- houses, and other establishments of questionable respectability. The approaches to these dens of vice are crowded by dissipated-looking Chinese, with ragged garments, bare feet, and unshaven heads, the miserable habitues of these shocking haunts. During my sojourn at Macao, I also found that the Bazaar-quarter of the city contained the re- sidence of the Chinese functionary to whom be- longs the surveillance of this vast population, an immense building, with a court before it, in front of which rose two tall posts, supporting a sort of pavilion, constituted the dwelling of the police constable. In the very centre of this great concourse of population is the market for vegetables, fish, and butchers' meat, and the immense quantity of pro- visions heaped together in the stalls, may give some idea of the Chinese population of Macao. The vegetables consist, almost entirely, of species unknown in Europe ; the root of the water-lily, x2 308 THE FISHMAEKET. small shoots of bamboo, tlie tubercles of an aquatic plant, called tlie cyperus esculent us, the fi'uit of the trapa hicornis, vulgarly called the water- chesnut, the pe-tsa'i, or cabbage of Nankin, and the sacred tanka-tcho'i The latter is the germ of a small green bean, and is preserved in a state of constant humidity, by keeping the vegetable in a cracked vase. The Chinese are an essentially practical people, but all their proceedings are characterised by ex- treme simplicity ; a proof of this is the manner in which they contrive, by means of a cracked and useless vessel, filled with a few withered leaves, to preserve, by the help of their stoves, a sort of garden, which supplies them all the year round, with a tender and delicious vegetable. Nor is the fish stall in this market less interest- ing than that of the vegetables ; it is an immense place, covered with bamboo, in which are ex- posed to view all the curious inhabitants of the ocean that rolls round the shores of Macao ; the cuttle-fish, pulpy creatui^es of the most extraor- dinary forms, skates of the most brilliant hues, and fishes with long, beak-shaped mouths. The female pait of the population, and the Chinese cooks of the European families, repair hither in great numbers, and the transactions of the mar- ket are as noisily caiTied on liere, as in the stalls of Paris or Marseilles, and in a language which adds not a little to the picturesque scene. As tlie traA'eller ]:)ursues his walk round the bazaar, he will also meet witli various kinds of slioi)s ; some in which are exposed for sale dried fowls, and rats in a similar state of preservation, gi'cat ban-els of sliell fish, vcnulUes, and many other species of THE CHINESE LABOUREK. 309 tiny bivalves ; these little moUusks, when well salted, are eaten by the Chinese with their rice. There are also a number of washing-tubs full of large frogs with green skins and yellow spots, as well as a species of tortoise with a long neck, which is remarkable for displaying in its dying moments a degree of intelligence very extraordi- nary in so stupid an animal. At the time of the rice harvest great number of Chinese labourers are to be met with in the streets, their legs, feet, and arms naked, their costume consisting solely of a pair of demi-trow- sers, and an immense bamboo hat ; at each end of a long pole they carry two earthenware vessels, in which swim a number of little yellow ring- shaped creatures — they are a species of nereis, found in the rice fields when inundated with water, and greatly prized by the Chinese : this worm is not, however, more disgusting in ap- pearance than the jyalmitte, which our fellow countrymen in the American colonies consider such a delicacy. A great number of cats are eaten in China, and in the streets of Canton and Macao one may often meet with men carrying, in little wire cages, poor unfortunate captives, with faces so piteous that they almost seem to be aware of the melancholy destiny that awaits them ; the Chi- nese gourmands use the nicest care in selecting the unfortunate animal destined to grace their table, paying the utmost regard to its colour, age, and condition, examining it attentively, and rais- ing up its head, before making their selection, and finally carrying it away in their arms with 310 THE RABBIT OF THE CHINESE. as miicli cai'e as a fail* lady does her " King Charles." In the Celestial Empire, the poor eat has the unenviable privilege of supplying the place of the rabbit, partaking this honour with another singu- lar animal without teeth, called the pangolin ; but as many of my readers probably may not know what a pangolin is, I will give them a short sketch of the animal. It is a quadruped about the size of a badger, the w^hole body covered with scaly plates lying one over the other like tiles upon a roof; its tail, which is about the length of half its body, makes a singular and metallic noise when in motion ; it has no teeth, and betw^een its hard horny gums is a long round tongue, resembling a red sausage, and covered with a viscous humour ; its fore paws are armed with very strong nails ; when caught, the animal makes but faint efforts to get away, but as its hard sharp claw^s act upon the fingers almost like the blade of a knife, the captor is generally glad to let his prey escape. The Chinese bring up this creature purposely for the table, and the Portuguese, amongst whom it is known by the name of the hicho vergognoso, are extremely fond of its fiesh, which is very white and tender. But it is quite a mystery to me how the animal is ever domesticated. I once procured one, intending to take it back with me to France, and having occasion to be absent from Macao, my friend Callery ofiered to take care of it for me ; on account of its singular nocturnal liabits, the Chinese domestics jilaced it in a little dark habitation wliere it a])])eared very comfort- able — ou the first night of its imprisonment, a PECULIARITY IN THE CHINESE CAT. 311 strange noise was heard in tlie house, but next day nothing unusual could be perceived ; for several succeeding nights the same strange sound was heard, a sort of metallic noise, mingling with loud reports, as if some heavy weight was falling : one might almost have imagined that false coiners were at work — at last, but when too late, the mystery was discoved — it was the pangolin, which had pulled up some of the paving of its cave, overthrown a part of the wall, raised up the stone step, and made its escape, no one knew where. One word more about Chinese cats — a remark- able singularity distinguishes the whole feline race, from Macao to the borders of Malacca ; all the animals, comprised in tliis description, have invariably hair of a sort of fawn colour, shaded with dark brown or white ; their limbs are slender and delicate, and there is also a peculiar confor- mation of the joints of the back, one of the caudal vertebrae crossing the two others at a right angle ; this peculiarity seems to constitute a specific characteristic, and I can affirm with certainty, that it prevails without an exception throughout the whole of Malacca and the Western provinces of Ohina ; in the Northern part of the empire, the deceitful animal returns to its normal form, and wears a tail like its European brethren ; its coat also undergoes a similar change, and it re- appears in the customary black and white livery of all well-dressed cats. An arm of the sea, between the northern bank of the isthmus and the island of Lappa, is called at Macao the inner port, and is situated to the north-west of the Portuguese possessions. Before the reformation made by Governor Amaral, it 312 RELIGIOUS RITES. was exclusively reserved for Chinese vessels, and it was only in cases of extreme danger that Spanish and Portuguese vessels took refuge there ; but in the present day, it is open to all European na- tions : this concession is not, however, of much value, as the port itself is but shallow, and only suited to light vessels ; on account of these incon- veniences, it belongs almost entirely to the Chi- nese, and is the exclusive domain of the fai-ting, the junk, and the tanha. The appearance of the interior port is extremely interesting ; from every part of the landing-place, the adjacent isles, and the numerous little creeks to be found all over the coast, vessels of every form and of all dimen- sions may be descried, sheltering there secm-e fi'om danger. Scarcely are all these vessels an- chored in security, than a most horrible noise is commenced by the sailors, who beat the gong — utter loud cries — rush about, and let off thousands of fire-works, while the frightened females add to the general uproar, by setting up horrible cries, and on shore an immense number of perfumed matches are burnt before the pouss«/i.§. The Chinese, those professed lovers of peace and silence, celebrate all their religious rites with an immoderate display of noise and uproar, this being one of their methods of putting to flight evil spirits, and it must be confessed that the Bouddliic demons nmst have the tym])anum formed of trij)le metal, to be able to resist the in- tolerable noise made to scare them away. Of all the maritiuie p()})ulation of China, the marinuis of Fo-Kieu and Kouang-tong are cer- tainly the most interesting, consisting of women, who manage the small vessels cidlcd tankas ; these THE COASTING-TEADE OF MACAO. 313 little barks are shaped like an egg cut in half, and perform the part of transports along the coast ; the ianka is entirely destitute of keel, and its form renders it, in some degree, incapable of being capsized, although it rolls about on the water like a cork borne onwards by the waves ; it bears some resemblance to the cradle of an infant float- ing on the sea, on account of a sort of dome of twisted bamboo with which it is covered; this awning consists of two parts, and can be shortened or elongated at pleasure ; these httle vessels have a deck, but the floor is moveable, and somewhat resembles the lid of a canister ; the little hold of the vessel is quite a miniature magazine, contain- ing all the family possessions, garments, house- hold necessaries, and mats for sleeping upon, for, be it understood, the tanka is quite a little habi- tation. These female sailors assume the name of their barks, calling themselves tankas, or tankaderes, and this tiny moving edifice is their sole domain : here every scene of thek existence takes place, though of course the drama of their lives must necessarily be a very uneventful one, to admit of being acted upon so narrow a stage. The costume of the tankadere is suited to her laborious life ; the head is covered by a colom^ed handkerchief, tied under the chin, and completely surrounding her yellow visage ; she also wears a long bhie vest, of Nankin cloth, buttoned at the side, and large short drawers of the same mate- rial ; her arms and legs are ornamented with rings, either of silver, toutenague, or some other substance. This costume, though so extremely simple, is 314 FE^IALE SAILORS. far from being ungraceful, particularly for the slender supple figures by whom it is worn ; the round robust forms seem to bound beneath the light drapery. Whole fleets of tankas station themselves before the landing-places in front of the villages, and nothing can be more pleasing and animated than the scene they present. These women never appear to take any rest : some are engaged in preparing rice for the family, in a sort of little plaster furnace, the fire of which, from the movement of the bark, sparkles and crackles incessantly ; some occupy themselves in needlework, or in washing their small stock of linen, whilst others, with the oar in their hands, stand firmly and gracefully upon deck, like the Nereid in her shell, and assail the passer-by with invitations to take a place in their boat. The infants are suspended to the backs of their mothers, in a sort of little pouch, something like a soldier's knapsack ; and this burden is continu- ally attached to the poor woman, whatever work she may be engaged in, never being free from it, except when asleep. The laborious inhabitants of the inner part of Macao, coiffed in their blue or red kerchiefs, and carrying their infants about with them, reminded me of the poor Avomen in the valley of Stura, in Piedmont, who, on tlie approach of winter, tra- verse the region of the Lower Alps, with the hope of obtaining a scanty livelihood in the western part of Provence ; these poor inhabitants of San Dahiiazzio invariably carry their beloved little nursling about with them, making it the insepa- ral)le ('()in])anion of their wanderings and labours ; their heads are covered in the same manner as the A TANKADERE NURSERY. 815 tanlmderes, witli a coloured kerchief, and the re- semblance is completed by their countenances be- ing, like those of the poor women of Kouang- Tong, withered by hardship, and browned from exposm-e to the sun. So it is all over the world — on the shores of China, and in the mountains of Cuneo, the hard necessities of real life impose an almost equal share of labom' and suffering, of some description, upon every member of the human family. The infants of the tankaderes carry on their backs a gourd, fastened to them by a handker- chief ; this is an invention of maternal solicitude, for the purpose of guarding the tender blossom from the various dangers to which it is exposed, fr-om living always amidst the waters ; for in- stance, if the child should by chance fall over- board, the gom'd would at least sustain it above the waves, until assistance could be given. A tanka is generally inhabited by two women, the one quite young, the other somewhat older ; the oar is placed at the stern of the vessel, which is thus steered from behind, this method of row- ing being imitated from fishes, which use their tails for a similar purpose. The younger tanka- deres do not always closely adhere to the usual costume, but exchange the head-kerchief for a coiffure, composed of their own long black hair, and a hat with a very broad brim ; 1 have seen some of them dressed entirely in silk of the thick- est description, and quite adapted to the nature of their labours ; in general the tankaderes are fine-looking girls, the handsomest in China, gay, animated, and possessed of that fearless, confi- dence of manner, which a life of constant peril 316 A EIVER FAIRY. and exposure always gives ; they are consequent- ly great favoui^ites with strangers, between whom and themselves, many little sentimental adven- tures take place. When we were staying at Canton, the mem- bers of the Legation who lived just on the banks of the river, honom^ed with their especial patron- age a certain tankadere, named A-Moun, whose especial privilege it was to convey us to the Itongs, the pagoda of Honan, or the gardens of Fati ; every one was unanimous in selecting A-Moun, on account of her being the prettiest tankadere in Tchou-Kiang, and by means of our spontane- ous and liberal payment, she was soon elected tankadere in chief to the Leo^ation. Nothinor could be more neat and elegant than the bark of A-Moun ; the little shell itself was as polislied as ivory, the deck as clean and smooth as glass ; the benches looked as if they had only just been made, and as to the equipjige of the vessel, it was perfectly enchanting, being com- posed of the lovely A-Moun, who plied the oar, and a little girl of about eight years old, called A-Fay, who managed the helm ; the latter styled A-Moun her sister, she was more probably her mother ; but no matter — it was all the same to us. When we were not in immediate want of our water-fiiiry, she fastened the bark to the ({uay nearest our habitation, until we required her ser- vices again, and during this rest enjoyed herself in tlie true Oriental fashion, liixhtimx her little })ipe witli its copper bowl, and stretching lierself luxuriously on the deck of the ianka. A-Moun was al)out six-and-twenty, tall for a Chinese THE CANAILLE OF CANTON. 317 woman but so slender and pliable, that I should compare her to the stem of a bamboo, were not the metaphor at least three thousand years old ; her eyes were more oblique and her complexion more yellow than the golden-colom-ed Koua-nins, and she might have made a turban of her long black hair, which was rolled round the top of her head and fastened with two long silver pins, and her feet, which were bare like those of the rest of the tankaderes, were ornamented, just above the an- cles, with green bracelets, which looked like the little serpents found in the rice-fields. The open preference which we accorded to A-Moun roused the indignation of the canaille of Canton, the most horrible set of people in the world, who evinced their jealousy by public ex- clamations, and finally by menaces. A-Moun be- ing a true Chinese, was exceedingly prudent, and would not for a moment have thought of facing the storm, so one morning we were inform- ed that A-Moun, accompanied by A-Fay, had re- moved her little vessel, and betaken herself to another part of the shore. The husbands of the tankaderes are almost always sailors or workmen employed in the dif- ferent ports ; I have heard it said that they trace their origin to some Bohemian race, sprung from no one knows where, and for that reason, held in very light estimation. My friend Rondot has somewhere asserted that it is only since 1730 that tankaderes and their husbands have been permitted to reside on shore, for that previous to that time, they were compelled to Kve always in their tankas ; tliis is not at all surprising, for the low-minded, coarse, and ignorant populace would 318 RENEGADOES, AND WHY. most likely treat them as parias, and be quite at a loss to understand the merits of a race whose intelligence, mildness, and industry, presented such a striking contrast to the vices of their own character. The Macaists give the name of Cltristdo de arroz (rice-Cliristians) to certain Chinese fami- lies, whose conversion has been traced to interest- ed motives. This singularly original epithet arose fi'om the following circumstances. When the Portuguese first occupied this part of the country, they displayed more zeal than wisdom in offering high rewards for the encom-agement of religious fervour ; for this purpose, they estab- lished a sort of common fund, by means of which, every Chinese who had been baptized, might receive, weekly, a small present of rice ; as might be expected, conversions now became so very frequent, on account of the inducement offered, that the poor Macaists were obliged to give up their ruinous plan, and no sooner did the supplies begin to fail, than they began to discover tlie extreme frailty of the converted ; almost all the Chinese returned to their old superstitions, and when the renegades were remonstrated with, and asked how it was that they had abandoned their Cluistian ]^ractices, they quietly replied — " You did not continue to supply us with rice !" During my stay at Macao, several more of these conversions were made. It is well known, that according to tlie present administration in tliis city, tlie Claistians of the adjacent islands do not fall under tlie authority of the ^landarins ; conse(iuently, when any one of the Chinese (per- haps totally unlaiown to the Portuguese), is A CHINESE FIGARO. 319 guilty of some misdemeanour which would place him in the power of Tso-Tang, the delinquent immediately cuts oif his queue, doffs his charrij assumes the European garb, becomes baptized, and thus appearing in a new character, braves the penal code of the Celestial Empire. Although Christians thus converted become so from fear of the bamboo, they are styled, like the others, Christdo de arroz, that name being the usual one in Macao, for all Christians of doubtful character. I heard the term applied, for the first time, when making enquiries of a domestic — " Are you a Christian V said I, one day, to a Portuguese. " Sim, senJior, Christdo de arroz ! — Yes, Seigneur, I am a rice-Christian,'" he replied, with a significant smile. My friend Fitter placed at my disposal one of his domestics, who was a veritable Christdo de arroz — an active intelligent, industrious youth, of a very joyous temperament — a perfect Chinese Figaro, clever at everything, and never at a loss about anything. This Sancho Fanza of Macao had been engaged in some dispute with Tso-Tang, about some miserable contraband afiair, the result of which was, that he found himself compelled to part with his dearest possessions, put on the Portuguese jacket, receive baptism, and place himself under the protection of a respectable merchant at Macao ; from that day, he abandon- ed his name of Vo-Long, assumed that of Vicente, and became the zealous servant of every Euro- pean who employed him. Vo-Long, or rather Vicente, soon became quite the regulator of my movements, telling me everything I ought to do, 320 THE PAGODA. reminding me of visits I ought to pay, pointing out places which deserved my attention, and even naming persons whom he thought it advisable I should consult upon divers problematical points in my studies and researches. One morning, Vicente came to me, and said — " Senhor, I should like you to visit a pagoda to-day ; you will dine this evening with M. Fit- ter, and I want you to go with me to my house, to be introduced to my daughter, who is about to be married." According to my usual custom, I made no ob- jection to Vicente's progranune, especially as it seemed to me a very pleasant one ; so, we bent our course towards the west, and by the way, my cicerone gave me a short history of the chapel we were about to visit, in the following words : — " Senhor, the pagoda of La Barre, as it is called by the Portuguese, was in existence when they arrived in this country ; it was the only inhabited part of the island at that time, and there was a little village near the temple, which served as a place of refuge for the pilgrims who came to pray there." " And what is the name of the village ?" I asked. " It is called A-Makao." " I beg your pardon !" said I, not catching the word. " A-Makao," he repeated. '' It is the name given it by the Portuguese. You see they would not be at tlie troultle of inventing a new one." " And liow (.lid it hai)pen that a tenii)le should i: CHINESE SAILOES IN A STOEM. 321 have been built in an uninhabited country ?" I inquired. " It was built by the sailors of Fo-Kien. Upon one occasion, dui'ing a frightful tempest, they were saved by their prayers to the goddess Matsou-Po, of whom they had a statue on board ; thanks to their intercession with this divinity, the vessel stranded gently on the shore, and no one perished. In remembrance of this miraculous protection, they carried the image of the goddess to the island nearest the spot upon which they were .shipwrecked, and then departed into their own country, begging in all the towns and villages, until they had obtained sufficient to build the temple you are now about to see.'' " Are you quite sure of the truth of what you tell me ?" I asked. '' Certainly,'' exclaimed Vicente, " I know it is true, though it happened before I was born ; but if you will ask my mother, whom you will see this evening, and who is nearly ninety years of age, she wUl assure you of the truth of what I have said ; it was related to her when she was i3ut fifteen, by persons then as old as she is now. How can we ever know the certainty of things that are passed, without the assui-ance of old peo- ple like these ?" Discoursing thus, he followed a road stretching the whole length of the mountain upon which the fort of La BaiTC, which overlooks the interior port, is built. At every step we met with gigantic Chinese characters, inscribed on the rocks, and amongst the detached masses of stone were enor- mous trunks of trees sheltering large gi-aves made in the shape of a crescent. Y 322 A PAGODA AXD DEVOTEES. Tliis road conducted us to tlie flat summit, where we perceived, before a portico of granite, two poles of prodigious lieiglit, covered with flags and streamers ; this was the pagoda. There was a great crov/d in the place, resembling tliat gene- rally seen before the doors of a village church on a Sunday, or fete-day ; merchants sheltering themselves under large parasols, and selling trifles,^ used in the form of worship, inside, consisting of little matches, and prepared meats, for the Chinese gods are not content with mere incense. Huddled up on the sand were several men with bare heads, thin queues, brown and soiled chains, and cloth pantaloons reaching to the middle of the leg, play- ing with cards as long and narrow as a finger ; Chinese devotees, very well dressed, were slowly walkinof about, awaitino- the hour of sacrifice, and a few aged women, their heads almost concealed imder their half-shut parasols, pressed onvv^ards with the tottering step occasioned by their de- formed feet, towards the portals of the sanctuary. I sto])ped for a few moments on the shore, to take a glance at the general aspect of this conse- crated place ; it leans against a rugged mountain, and is composed of three diflerent parts, tuTanged something in the manner of an amphitheatre ; it stands in the midst of detached blocks of granite, and high rocks overlooking it, the tops of which, crowned with gigantic procelain monsters, with wide ga])ing mouths, mingle with tlie foliage of wicocouliers and Banians, hundreds of years old, wliilst wide and shady paths wind over the moun- tain in all directions. Before ])assiiig tlirough the portico, wliich is formed uf three blccks of granite; and the liiaze of CHINESE DEITIES. S23 \Yhicli is sculptured with a degree of delicacy worthy of the gothic style, Vicente thus addressed me : " Senhor, allow me to solicit your most scrupu- lous attention to all that you are now about to see ; each of these temples and oratories, is the mi- niature model of one of the most celebrated pagodas in China ; and after having wandered over every part of this sacred place, you may consider your- self perfectly acquainted v^ith the temples of Chan- Tong, Fo-Kien, Tche-Kiang, and in short, with the whole empire/' I visited successively the three temples of A-Makao, or the Pagoda of the Rocks, and upon all the altars, amid the statues of fat unwieldy gods, and oblique-eyed goddesses, with slender figures, like those of the Chinese women, I ob- served fumigating balls with the most delicately prepared viands, odoriferous sticks for burning, and gilded papers. The higher temple is consecrated to the goddess of Misery, the one next to it belongs to the god of universal Benevolence, and the chapel facing the shore contains the celebrated statue of Matsou- Po. I walked for a long time among the micocouliers of A-Makao, never weary of contemplating the singular but gi-aceful architecture before me, vrith its doors and windov/s cut out of a single stone, ^ some perfectly oval, and others round, the roof horned like the head of the buffalo, and the ex- traordinary sculpture scattered around, reminding one of the unnatural creatures seen in a dream. As I ascended the granite staircase, which is decorated with a balustrade, carved with as much ingenuity as if the material had been silver or y2 324 OPINIONS ON DEATH. ivory, I discovered a number of little oratories at every step, concealed either by excavations in the lock, or by the roots of some knotty and twisted tree ; they were perfect little gems of architecture, the beautiful sculptm-e of which would have served as a model for the casket of a queen ; all the immense rocks around were carved with Chi- nese hierogljq^hics^ and turning to Vicente, I asked the meaning of them. '' Senhor,'' he replied, " I am not able to read them to you, but I have been told that they are the work of sage and pious men, who came hither and inscribed their thoughts on stone, a custom which is continued to this verv dav." And as if on purpose to confirm the assertion of Vicente, I just at this moment perceived a vener- able old man, with snow-white moustaches, tra- cing characters on the rock with a pencil. " Ask him,'' said I to Vicente, '' what he is writing V and, upon his doing so, the old man replied : — " I have left the roof of my fathers, and the soil of my native land, to sleep the eternal sleep in these sacred shades.'' This sentiment is singularly characteristic of the Chinese ; the idea of death never inspires them with any terror ; they look upon a cemetery i^ we should upon some traucpiil country residence, as a place of refuge from the toils of the world ; to them, death is but another- word for perfect re- pose. Very numerous were the pilgi'ims among the shades of A-Makao, consistinji^ in general of old uicUj leading children, bonzes with shaven heads LIBERAL WOESHIPPERS. 325 and long robes, and otlier grave and silent indi- viduals, dressed as bazaar merchants. As we came down again, on our way to the road leading to the city, we met with a number of tall, thin, sun-burnt men, their heads enve- loped in a piece of blue stuff, walking in a very quick manner, quite unlike that of the Chinese in general Vicente called my attention to them — " Those,'' said he, " are natives of Fo-Kien ; they are al- ways among the most zealous worshippers of the goddess Matsou-Po, and never set foot on this shore without coming hither to pay their devoirs to her. Some years ago, when this temple stood in need of repair, the merchants of Fo-Kien gave twenty thousand piastres towards the expences of the work. During my walk, I saw a great deal of the va- rious Bouddhic ceremonies ; but as I shall have occasion to describe them frequently in the course of my travels, I abstain from particular mention of them at present. On descending to the shore, we went on board a tanka, for the purpose of returning to the city. As we seated ourselves under the sheltering roof of bamboo, Vicente made an exclamation on the intensity of the heat. " Yes," replied the tankadere, a plump young girl, almost as rosy as a European, '^ it is hot, and we have no means of avoiding it. There,'' she continued, pointing with her finger to an idol, placed in a niche, " we have been burning per- fumed matches before that fat ])oussah these ten days, and not a drop of water has fallen yet ; he i^ too securely shaded from the heat to be incon- S26 REBELLIOUS IDOLS. venienced by it himself, and pays not the slight- est attention to our prayers. I will see whether, if I put him in the blazing sun, he will condes- cend to favour us vdih. a drop of water/' And so saying, she abandoned the oar to her companion, and taking the poussah from its niche, she sprang on sliore, and placed it in the crevice of a rock, where the heat was so intense, that one might, without exaggeration, liave boiled an egg there. " There, good-bye V she exclaimed, as she cjime back and took her place again in the boat ; " now we shall see whether we are to have any rain, or not r And this is the manner in which the Chinese treat their gods ; when they find their prayers ineffectual in obtaining what they wish, they have recom^e to a moi-e austere mode of conduct. I have taken for granted as truth, the various traditions I have heard respecting the Pagoda of the Rocks : the numerous authors who have wi'it- ten on the subject being all completely at variance with each other, I have endeavoured to transcribe that wliich appeared to me most likely to be true. It is somewhat sino'ular, that I never met with two persons who spelled the name of the j)lace in the same nifinner, sonie calling it Ama-Ko, Aman- kao, and others A-Magoa ; for my own part, I can only affirm, that whenever I siiid to a tanka- dere, on entering lier vessel, that I wislied to be conveyed to A-Makao, no matter wlience I start- ed, 1 invariably found myself conduc^ted to the Pagoda of tlie Rocks, from wliich circumstance, it is not very unfair to presume this to be its pvo[)er name. mNERANT TAVERNS. 327 ; At ten o'clock in tlie evening, Dr. Fitter, his brother, and myself, preceded by Vicente carry- ing a spherical lantern at the end of a long pole, went ont to take a promenade in the streets of the bazaar. This part of the city, so bustling and noisy by day, had not entirely lost all ap- pearance of life and animation ; the streets were still crowded, and the shops nearly all open, and those for provisions and tobacco crowded with visitors ; in some of them the masters and clerks were engaged in putting their accounts in order, and finishing up their business for the day ; the pieces of money, which were of copper or zinc, and had a hole in the middle, were all strung to- gether on long strings, and looked something like fruit. Seated on each side of the counter, oppo- site each other, two Chinese were talking over some business matter ; the brother rogues, fi'om time to time, making calculations and setting them down in chalk to facilitate their operations. At the corner of the streets were stationed iti- nerant cooks, cariying both their cooking appara- tus and their different viands at the end of a long bamboo ; there were also an immense number of labourers returning from their work, coulis, tra- velling merchants, and ragged mendicants, who, in exchange for a few sai^eques, bought a small quantity of rice seasoned with tao-fou, which they immediately devom^ed as they stood in the street ; every now and then a woman might be seen traversing this Babel of a place, with a large porcelain bowl, containing a ragout, either of frogs or ducks, while the luminous brilliancy of the lanterns, radiant with all sorts of colours, and agitated by the wind, threw a dazzling effect 328 INTERIOR DOMESTIC ARRAXGEMEXTS. over the whole scene, and gave it the appearance of being lighted up by meteors. However, as we advanced further into this labyrinth of streets, the crowd began to diminish, lanterns became more rare, and it was only at long distances that we could perceive the light of some luminous body, when we suddenly found ourselves in front of a house built on the quay of the interior port, at the door of which Vicente knocked loudly, and we were then ushered into the residence of Vo-Long, the Chinese ; we enter- ed a large apartment on the gi'ound floor, very feebly lighted, in the centre of which stood a table of black wood as polished as steel, upon which were arranged tea cuj)s and confectionary, dried figo-caqui, ginger, and the root of the 7i€- lumbiuim ; gTeen and pink wax candles, not larger than one's finger, were fixed in a little iron stem which issued from a small chandelier. As to furniture, there was none to be seen, ex- cept a few wooden chairs standing against the wall, and a sort of partition of bamboo separated this apartment from an adjoining one, in which some female voices could be hejird lauo'hinjx and talking. The most remarkable ornaments in the habitation of Vo-Long consisted of two niches at the lower end of the apartment, bearing some resemblance to tlie little cribs which are to be seen in some Proven(;al houses, at the apjuoach of Christmas ; they were separateil from each other by a wooden partition ; one of them containing a re])reHentation of the Bouddhic 01ym])us, with Konan-In, Houchi, Chang-Ti, and many other divinities, anil the otiier representing the Chris- tian paradiise, tlie Holy Virgin, iuid a great mul- SUSPICIOUS TOLERATIOK S29 titude of saints ; both these little chapels were lighted by an equal number of wax tapers. With the view of keeping up his character as a true Portuguese subject, Vicente professed to to- lerate a perfect liberty of religious creed in his household, and assured us that the Bouddhic altar was solely the property of the various mem- bers of his family, who had not yet embraced the true faith, but that he himself was the most zealous Christian in Macao ! " Besides," said he, " since I have determined upon the marriage of my daughter, we have made constant use of both altars, for it is impossible, on such a solemn occa- sion, to pray with too much fervour to the Gods of every creed. On entering the house of the Christao de arroz, we had observed no one in the apartment, except his aged mother, his wife and son, and a friend of the family, but we were scarcely seated when Mademoiselle Yo-Long made her appearance, is- suing from the apartment in which we had heard female voices in conversation. No one ever beholds a Chinese woman, with her small feet and curious attire for the first time, without experiencing a sort of feeling of repul- sion, and my friend De Montigny (now Consul at Chang-Hai) will never forget the effect produced upon us, when on our arrival at Macao, we first beheld this extraordinary apparition. A Portu- guese lady, for the purpose of amusing herself with our surprise, conducted us to a Chinese mansion, and introduced us to a woman with ex- ceedingly small feet, wearing the national cos- tume in full perfection — our horror is not be de- scribed, but by degrees the eye became accustomed S30 PORTRAIT FROM LIFE. to the singularity of these striking little figures, and ended by admiring the very appearance we had at first thouG^ht so fiicrhtfuL Whilst I paint the portrait of Mademoiselle Vo-Long, let the reader imagine to himself the astonishment of a European on being first intro- duced to one of these women, the usual pictures of whom are mere caricatures. Mademoiselle Vo- Long was a true Chinese of the South, yellow as the imperial standard, with a large fiat nose, which spread out in the centre of her \dsage like the blossom of a chrysanthemum ; her cheek- bones were very high, and her very small eyes extremely oblique, whilst a pair of very delicately arched eye-brows were pencilled upon a smooth, but narrow forehead, and in order to soften the somewhat metallic hue of her skin. Mademoiselle Vo-Long had made a liberal use of rice powder upon her cheeks. This sino^ular countenance was surmounted bv a coifi'are bearing more resemblance to the crest of some fabulous creatures than to any tiling else ; tlie hair was smoothly gathered into a bundle at the top of the head, and divided into two parts, one turned to the right, the other to the left ; crossing in front, they were then re-united just at the nape of the neck, and twisted into a round flat knot ; above all this scaft'olding were aiTanged, in a most singubir manner, a number of chenille flowers and natural butterflys, and final- ly two long pieces of hair, parted on the temjdes, encircled the ])o\vdered visage of the young girl, and desc(!:Tided to her shoulders. So much for the head-dress of Mademoiselle Vo-Long ; tlie rest of her toilette was not less re- A CHINESE BEAUTY. 331 cherche, consisting of an elegant tnnic of blue silk, closed at the throat, and descending to the middle of the leg, fastened at the right side with a row of carved buttons. The double sleeves of damask were turned back upon the front of the arm, with an embroidery of gold ; beneath this garment was a satin petticoat, the lower part of wliich was black, and the rest canary-colour; upon the yellow stripe a garland of roses was de- licately embroidered in silk ; upon the right arm she wore a silver-gilt br?tcelet, on the other one of jasper. Her fee^t were encased in slippers of the most diminutive size, not more than two in- ches long, at the most, the lower part covered with embroidery and gold twist, the toe resem- bling those of the galoshes v/orn by our gi^and- mothers ; they were fastened to the foot by red silk ribands, and surmounted with large gilt bracelets. To be very minute in my description, I ought to add, that she also wore long ear-rings, and that upon each finger she wore a peculiar kind of ring, formed of three amulets, placed one above ano- ther, the middle one large and highly carved, the two others granulated and having a pearl-like ap- • pearance, except that the material was gold. To finish my description. Mademoiselle Yo-Long was extremely small, slender and delicate, just what a Chinese beauty should be. This curious little figure, with her outlandish yet gi^aceful toilette, was compelled, when mov- ing about, to make use of the same movements with the arms and upper part of the body, as are exercised by the mountebanks, who balance them- selves on poles, or on the backs of chairs ; the 332 THE OFFICE OF THE PRIESTESSES. insufficiency of support afforded by her ridicu- lously small feet, rendered this necessary, and although this method of w;dking does not appear to us attractive, it is highly admired by the Chi- nese, and considered the ver}'- perfection of grace. Mademoiselle Vo-Long now approached us, carrying in her hand a sort of porcelain saucer filled with cigarettes ; each of us accepted one of them, offering in return a little cadean for tlie fair bride, according to the etiquette practised on such occasions : during all this time, we could still hear distinctly the laughing and tidking go- ing on behind the bamboo partition. " Vicente,'' said I to my host, " why do not the persons in the next room join us here ? Are they afraid of us V. " Perhaps so,'' he replied, smiling ; " there are two honzesses and two old women in that room ; the former have been in mv house eioht days, aiid ..1. . '^ ® * it is their business to remain with my daughter until the moment of her marriage, to instruct her in her new duties." '' Indeed !" I exclaimed in great surprise ; " I thouglit these relvjieuses were devoted to celibacy !" " True, senhor," replied Vo-Long ; " but it is ' the custom here, and therefore we must submit to it, particularly as my wife is as fervent a Bud- dist as I am a good Christian ; as to the matrons, it is their office to accompany my daugliter amidst tears and lamentations to the tlnvsliold, on the day u])nii ^\llic]l she bids adieu to her parents ; ah, what a sad day that will l)e I" he arldod, feigning to wipe a tear from his cheek. BUDDIST NUNS. 333 " But my dear friend/'' I persisted, '^ can we not see these ladies V Ni" jWell," said lie hesitatingly, " I will see what I can do, but I know it will be very difficult/" He approached his wife, and after exchanging a few words, the latter rose and went behind the partition, whence we could hear a sort of little debate going on, but as the invisible ladies were in all probability extremely curious to see us, they did not hesitate very long. It was now the turn of the Chinese to intiiide upon the barbarians, and issuing from this mys- terious cabinet came five females, and an equal number of little children. Our attention was un- mediately attracted by the honzesses ; these fair religieuses having renounced the vanities of the world, were very simply attired in a pair of pan- taloons, a blue cham, and men's shoes ; their heads were closely shaven, affording a striking contrast to the elaborate coiffure of Mademoiselle Vo- Long : having saluted them in the most respectful manner, we turned our attention to the matrons, the eldest of whom was accompanied by her daughter a girl of about fourteen ; the other might have served as a representation of the matron of Ephesus, had the latter been Chinese, and was surrounded by a bevy of little children. The company now seated themselves on two rows of chairs, placed opposite each other, and Mademoiselle Vo-Long, having poured boiling water on the tea, and tottered from one to the other offering a cup of the beverage, the conver- sation became general. Toleration, and a total absence of prejudice, are, I think, the characteristics of those who have S34< THE SISTERS OF MERCY. seen a great deal ; before knowing mucl) of the honzcsses, I mii;-t confess that I had but a veiy poor opinion of the sect, but in their presence a great part of my prejudice vanished. The eldest appeared about forty years of age, and had a countenance radiant witli the tranquillity which springs from a good conscience. She conversed in the most easy and pleasant manner, and in spite of myself, I could not help being remindevl of some of those good women who are met with in tlie villages of France, wherever there is any act of charity to be performed. Her companion was a liandsome young girl, with eyes veiled by lono; lashes, which threw an indescribable charm over her countenance ; her nose had the some- what flat appearance which I have mentioned in the countenance of Mademoiselle Vo-Loni:r, but her features were fine and delicate, a pecu- liarit}^ whicli I have observed in all the Chinese females of the higher classes. A long conversation took place between Vo- Long and the young bonzesse, which the former interpreted, and of wliich I would give the i-eader a sketch, were I able to convey an idea of the musical voice of the young girl, or to do justice to the soft flowing language which fell from her lips, as sweetly fis from those of a bird. " How does it happen," inquired Vo-Long, " that you are a bonzesse V " Because I wish to imitate the good example of my companion.'' '"" " But do you not feel great regi*et at leaving your parents and friends V ** It is the destiny of woman to be separated A EEASON FOR CELIBACY. 8S5 from her family, and therefore it is the same thing whether she becomes a honzesse, or a wife/' " But if she marries, she may still keep up in- tercom'se with her friends." " True, but at the same time she draws a great deal of misery upon herself" " But you would have had no difficulty in meeting with some one who would have taken care of you, and made you happy." To this remark the honzesse made no reply, but she blushed deeply, and drew her large hat fur- ther over her face, while the other women in the room directed their glances to the somewhat large feet of the young girl, with an expression that spoke volumes ; their piercing eyes seemed to say as plainly as if they had spoken it : — " How could you expect any man to marry a girl with such feet as those. The idea of such a thing !" The elder honzesse tossed her head, and thought, doubtless, of many a similar case, in which the honzerie had become the refuge of wounded vanity or slighted affection ; so it is in every country all over the world ; manners and customs may change, but the human heart remains unaltered. At this moment, a little child of about six years old, with the charming grace peculiar to Chinese children, came and took me by the hand. She wore a blue cham, with a black border, and her little queue, adorned with red ribands, floated down her back, whilst her hair in front was cut quite short, just reaching to her eye-brows. By way of returning the caresses of the pretty little girl, I took her on my knee, and then perceived, not without indigna^tion, that her poor Kttle feet were akeady imprisoned in bandages ; I could 336 HOW TO MAKE A CHINESE VENUS. not conceal my disgust, and tui^ning to Vicente, exclaimed, in bad Portuguese — " How barbarous it is to torment tliis dear little child in this way I" The pretty matron of whom I have before spo- ken, a gay smiling woman, as fresh-looking as a yellow rose, immediately exclaimed in the same language : '' Senhor, when a particular inconvenience has to be endm-ed for life, we cannot be too early ac- customed to it ; the earlier the better, for when too long delayed, it becomes useless ; besides I do not wish my daughter to become a honzesse." " And how long,'' I enquired of the fair lady, " has your child wore these bandages V " Rather more than a year/' " Will you allow me to see her foot V "Willingly," she replied, and kneeling down before me, she took off the shoe of the little girl ; the slipper had a flat sole, the heel part being formed in exactly the same manner as our o^vn ; the foot was envelo])ed in bandages of red cotton, the flrst fold served to keep the toes together, the second was passed over the heel, and brought I'ound again to the front ; the rest of the bandage was put on in the same manner ; the foot of the child had already undergone some change, foi' the toes, bound down to the sole of tlie foot, were scarcely to be recognized in ft)rm, the other parts still retained their natural shape. Tlie time occupied in my examination of the shou, the bandage, and the foot, had be?n very short, and tlie little girl had at first seemed highly delighted with them, but suddenly she began to cry, and iiii})lore that we would bind up her foot VANITY, AND ITS PENALTIES. S37 again : " If you do not put tliem on again/' she exclaimed, " my foot will become large V I was quite astounded, when Vicente and Dr. Fitter translated her words to me, and still more so, when the pretty mother remarked : "It is better to suffer a little pain in infancy, than to be miserable in after life ; the whole fortune of a young girl depends upon her figm^e, and the shape of her feet" " And in my opinion," said I, " she buys her fortune very dearly by so much suffering." " The pain," she replied, " is not so great as you imagine, for until the age of ten or twelve, little inconvenience is felt ; at that time, it is true, young girls suffer severe pain from the feet, and grow pale and tliin in consequence ; some indeed, die from it, but then, women were born to suffer ; besides, as to our family, we have quite large feet," she continued, displaying her little foot with its ornamental bracelets ; " you should see that lady's daughter ;" and she pointed to the other ma- tron. The young girl indicated put out her foot, and I must confess that it was the smallest I ever saw, not more than an inch and a half long ; the old lady was apparently fearful that we should pursue oui* enquiry too far, for she exclaimed in a very de- cided manner — " No one is to see the foot of my daughter, except her intended husband ; it is lovely as a lotus-flower, but its beauty and sweet- ness are reserved for him alone." About midnight we left the residence of Yo- Long, having offered many thanl<^ to our host and his family for their hospitality. As soon as we were in the street, Dr. Fitter exclaimed : — z 388 CHINESE SOCIEIT. " Well, you have seen more of China this one evening, than Lord Macartney, or Lord Amherst, ever did \" And he was right, for we had penetrated into the very heart of Chinese society, and had been able to remark some characteristic traits of the sons of the Celestial Empire, which the two cele- brated characters I have just mentioned, had not the opportunity of observing, being always under the surveillance of the Mandarins. As we traversed the Bazaar-streets on oiu* way home, we scarcely saw a single soul, except a few watchmen ; the Chinese policemen walk about at night knocking two pieces of bamboo together, and striking them against the wj\L1 ; the noise was very peculiar, harsh and disagi'eeable, and it appeared to me a very appropriate one, to warn the prowlers of night that their enemies were at hand. Before the war with the English, Macao and its environs were the only parts of China open to travellers, and consequently offered the sole op- portunity for strangers to become acquainted with the customs of the Chinese ; on this account, tra- vellers in former times resembled persons who profess to give a description of a })alace, after having seen it only through the key -hole ; some \dllages half concealed among the rocks of tlie Portuguese possessions, a few islands situated in tlie interior port, and three parts of the isle Hiang- Clian, were the only places accessible to European curiosity. We will now take a genenil survey of the neighbouring localities. Exactly in the centre of the Portuguese ])osses- sions, is a mountainous cone, on tlie sunnuit of THE VANQUISHED DUTCHMEN. 339 which is built the fort Bo Monte ; this citadel is a sort of momiment raised to the memory of the Por- tuguese by their vanquished enemies, and its can- nons overlook and defend the great landing-place and the interior port. In former times the Dutch attempted to seize on Macao, but the garrison which defended the place repulsed them heroi- cally, and made a gi-eat number of prisoners ; the unfoi-tunate Dutchmen were then compelled, by their enexorable enemies, to build this citadel, which was destined in after years to be a check upon the aggressions of their fellow-countrjnnen. In the narrow valleys situated between the fort Do Monte, and the great Chinese waU (which latter curiosity is built almost entirely of oyster sheUs), stand the villages of Patani, Mongha, and Moncliion. The Chinese subjects of the sovereign of Portu- gal amount to the number of thirty-thousand, and it is a fortunate circumstance that these native planters have consented to inhabit the sterile tracts of land belonging to the Portuguese hidal- gos, for without their laborious efforts, this part of the country would have remained a perfect wilderness ; to their exertions belong the merit of having constructed, in these narrow valleys, num- berless gardens in which the lit-cJii, the orange, and long-gan mingle their fohage together, and where the potatoe, the gombo, the apple, and the igname flom-ish in perfection. In the middle of these gardens are little houses built of bluish-colom-ed bricks, the cleanly exterior of which bespeak affluence and comfort. A walk in the territories of the Portuguese is the most agreeable recreation a stranger can z2 340 THE TOMBS OF THE NATIVES. procure cat Macao ; fi^om the summit of la Guia or the fort Do Monte, the eye wanders over the wide expanse of Ocean, one moment watching a frail bark buffeting with the waves, or a heavy massive jmik, with bamboo sails, sailing slowly onwards, or some bold " clipper" displaying such a degi-ee of skiU and precision in its motion, as to render it more like a living creatm-e than a work of man. And after contemplating for some time this display of human skill and intelli- gence, we have only to turn our glance to the scene at om- feet, to find something equally wor- thy our attention. Fertile meadows stretch over the plains l>ut a few 3^ears ago covered with gi-eat blocks of stone and granite-dust, while, in some pai-ts, the earth opens her bounteous bosom to unfold treasm-es of stone rivalling those of ancient Eg\^pt ; and as though this scene of industry and activity would be incomplete without some emblem of the end of all things, of repose after labour, of recompense for service, we see, now and then, in the least fi-equented situations, the neat and elegant mau- soleums of the Chinese, and the severe-looking monuments which conttxin the remaiiLs of the fii'e- worshippers, the Farsis, disciples of Zoroaster. In Europe, we have an universal repugnance for everything that reminds us of death, but in this country, on the contrary, the tomb is to be seen everywhere, and these poetical people choose with a smile the spot, where, after an active and labo- rious life, they will rest eternally from the waves of strife, beneath the shade of the hibiscus, and the silvery stems of the palrna-chrisfi. The tombs of the P(Ovs/« are situated on one I FIRE-WORSHIPPERS. 841 | of the sides of tlie mountain of Charil, overlook- ing the sea, and present the appearance of a double row of granite basons, facing the east. I have been assured, at Bombay, that the melan- choly worshippers of the sun never buried their dead, but left them exposed to the air, extended on a sort of iron frame at the bottom of a stone tomb as deep as a pit, and kept them in this manner until the rays of the sacred orb had en- tirely destroyed the body ; but at Macao, this system of slow combustion is not practised ; they simply conceal the corpse in a cavity in the rock, covering it with a large stone, upon which is engraved, in Persian, or sometimes in English, the name and profession of the defanct. ' The descendants of the ancient Guebres have visited China from time immemorial, and the in- habitants of the Celestial empire do them the ho- nour to style them their countrymen ; not, how- ever, that the Parsis claim this distinction on ac- count of any resemblance to the Mongol race, for they belong, on the contrary, to one of the hand- somest races on earth, and are generally of high stature, with complexions of dazzling whiteness ; their beard and hair are of jetty blackness, and their features possess a statue like purity ; but these men, handsome as they are, are attired in the most grotesque manner, wearing in winter a sort of long cloak, reaching to their heels, with the simple variation, that this garment is com- posed of printed cotton in the mild weather, and of brown cloth in winter ; dressed in this man- ner, they bear a great resemblance to clock- cases, and this extraordinary attire, which has been somewhat too poetically termed a floating 342 OBSTINATE FANATICS. robe, is completed by a pair of slippers, and very singular coiffure, consisting of a species of violet- coloiu'ed liead-dress, made of Indian print, very much in the form of a sleeve, folded in a trans- verse manner like a mitre. The Parsis are a proof of the extraordinary ob- stinacy of human nature ; from time immemorial they have persisted in di^essing themselves in the ridiculous manner I have described ; besides which, they still continue to many their own sis- ters, and to retain their own peculiar ideas about fire, which they look upon as the Great Spii'it. If a fii'e breaks out upon their property, they make no effort to arrest the progress of the devouring element, but passively stand by while it consumes their houses, furniture, and merchan- dize. The English merchants, who ai*e excellent judges of the world, have allowed the Parsis a refuge in Bombay, permitting them to live ac- cording to their own ideas, except that when a fire breaks out in any of then- houses, the British police take metism-es to prevent its progress, but the obstinate fjmatics refuse to take possession of any thing wi-ested from the gi-asp of tlie devouring god, to whom they devote themselves. It would only have appeared natural if these idolaters had been great smokei^, and adopted that most de- liglitful and universal mode of fumigation — the pipe and cigar — l)ut nothing of the kind ; tliey have the greatest horror of it, for in tlie hotel in wliich I resided at Bombay, there was a jMirsi waiter, and when, at the close of om* repast, we ordered cigars or the liookah, he always disap- peared with great ra])idity, in order that he might not be present at such a profanation. JEWS OF THE EAST. 343 Like the Israelites, tlie Par sis have been extir- pated from tlieir own country by foreign inva- sion, and have suffered by this fatal dispersion all the miseries which befal a people thus afflicted ; sometimes they have taken refuge at Ormuz, at Diu, Sanjan, or Surate, and have finally found security under the protection of Great Britain. In all their peregrinations, their alimentary sys- tem has been outraged ; whilst receiving the hos - pitality of the Hindoos, they made a solemn pro- mise, in order to satisfy the Brahmins, never to eat beef, and kept their word. These men are, in general, very intelligent and industrious, and quite as honest as any European Jew : like all nations who have been the victims of intolerance, oppression, and the injustice of those with whom they have lived, they practise the law of perfect fraternity among themselves, assisting each other in the noblest manner, so that among these Jews of the East, it is extremely rare to meet with misery or want. The princely fortunes of some of our richest bankers, are far from equalling tliose of several parsi families in Bombay, ancl their munificence equals that of royalty. In India, there are a great number of public monuments and benevolent institutions, which have been erected by the pious disciples of Zoro- aster. They are very proud of their title of Eng- lish citizens, and, upon every opportunity, dis- play their attachment for the great nation by whom they have been adopted. At the time that the colony of Hong-Kong was founded, a parsi merchant, M. Herjibhoi Bustonji spontaneously oifered a sum of a hundred thousand fr-ancs for S4:4f A CHIXESE PEASANT. the erection of a hospital for the English sailors in the new city. The environs of Macao present the best type of the Chinese life and customs in the western pro- vinces. The inhabitants are of inferior stature to the Europeans, extremely thin, muscular, and well-proportioned, with delicately-formed limbs. The tint of the complexion varies from a yellow- ish brown to a clear yellow, some of them look- ing as if they were plastered over with curcuma. In general they are active, laborious, and intelli- gent ; and, moreover, as sober as a Cartliusian friar. During my stay I became very intimate with a labourer of the village of Mong-Ha ; he spoke a little Portuguese, and was rather more than thir- ty years of age ; with his wife and three little children, he inhabited a house built on the road, bordered with bamboos, which leads to the Pago- da of Kouan-in-Tang. A kind of sloping roof overshadowed the door, which opened into a very large apartment, on the left of which was a little mche sacred to tlie paternal Lares ; liere there was very often a display of rice, and sometimes a burning of perfumed matches, which gave more smoke than scent. All the furniture wjis of bam- boo, and consisted of several chairs without backs, a table, and a bed, composed of a mat and a mus- (juito blanket. Ater knowing liim for several montlis, I be- came (juite intimate witli this poor man ; and whenev^t'r I visited liini, the children came run- ning towards me, the wife made a little sign w'liU her head by way of salute, whilst the husband AN INDIGENOUS MACKINTOSH. 34^5 looked up from liis work, and gave me a few words of welcome. The ages of the children differed from four to six years ; their heads were already shaven, but in the younger one, the tresses of hair necessary for the formation of the queue, were represented, or rather replaced, by four knots of hair, which occupied the four cardinal points of its skull. The female dressed something like a tcmkadere, wearing no shoes ; but her feet, which had never been compressed, would have graced the slipper of Cinderella. As to her husband, he wore divers costumes, according to the variations of the weather and his own labours ; his usual attire was a shirt of blue cloth, but when it rained, he threw over his shoulders a mantle of reeds, which gave him a great resemblance to a water god ; in winter he enveloped himself in his over-coat, which, how- ever, was not of very large dimensions. The reed mantle has, no doubt, been invented by the Por- tuguese ; it is a very inexpensive garment, light and waterproof as a Mackintosh, the disagreeable qualities of which it does not possess ; it is formed of lance-shaped leaves, placed one over the other, and the beating rain takes no more effect upon it than upon a roof The meadow belonging to my friend was sur- rounded by a bamboo hedge, the slender stems of which waved about mth the slightest air, and in this little enclosure he cultivated vegetables for the market of the neighbouring town. It was my usual custom to seat myself in the porch of the house, and thence to watch the agri- cultural process by which the Chinese contrive to S4:Q A NATIVE PHILEMOX AND BAUCIS. produce such abundant crops fi^om barren plains, which other labourers would leave as utterly hopeless. The wife and children employed them- selves in training the creeping plants, and water- ing the soil, whilst the husband worked in the land, with a spade made out of a long bamboo. As he thus reigned lord of his own domain, this enthusiastic labourer resembled a magician, occu- pied in some secret operations ; he examined each particular plant, pruned the branches of the trees, and subjected them to a process of immersion ; in short, so great was his care, and so successful his method of culture, he seemed to infuse a sort of life-elixir into his plants. In one corner of the garden was a reservoir of stone-work, about a metre in depth, which exhaled a strong mineral odour, and in this narrow space the enchanter was accustomed to keep the mysterious spiiit, wliicli had such an extraordinary effect on his vegeta- bles. As soon as the germ appeared, he examined it thoroughly, and according to the opinion he formed, drew up from the reservoir (l:)y means of a sort of ladle six feet long), some of this essence of life, and spread it sparingly on those parts which he thought needed a stimulant. This little spot of earth absorbed the whole time of the ftimily, and they existed on the little revenue it produced, in the greatest happiness and contentment. When the hour of repjxst drew near, the father drew u]) some water with a bucket, suspended to a lever, and daslied it over liis slioulders, damp with his liard labours ; this Ijeing done, the wliole family, shading tliemselves undurers of the nei'diboiu'intr isle. 1 hey are very shabily dressed, and their ex- istence being subject to the waves of eucum- • THE SLEEPING SENTINEL. 357 stance, is passed in continual labour and misery ; their countenances, too, bespeak the hardships they have to encounter, for on the energetic and sun-burnt visage we look in vain for the beaming and happy expression which generally character- izes the labourers of the Celestial empire : still these poor adventurers seem satisfied with their condition, for they look disdainfully upon the quiet labom's of the country people, and consider them useless cumberers of the earth. And now we will make a descent upon that part of Hiang-Chan which is forbidden to Euro- peans ; we will undertake and accomplish the ex- pedition without striking a single blow, and will take particular care not to disturb the slumbers of the vigilant guard of the Great Chinese Gate, who is lying down asleep, with his musket at his side, as the chevaliers of old did with their lances : and for the better execution of our project, we will take a tanka from the interior port, and by means of this inofiensive little vessel, we will attack the forbidden land. The Portuguese acted in this manner when they made a party of pleasure, or went on a hunting expedition to the Chinese dominions, for this mode of proceeding is by far the most agree- able, both to the Chinese porters and the Maca- ists ; the former, without molesting any one, re- main faithful to their trust, 'permitting no strange foot to pass the sacred threshold, and the second are glad of a means whereby they may escape the check upon their activity, without contest or dis- pute. Bearing the example of others in mind, my friend Rondot and myself resolved to put this 358 A CHINESE CITY. scheme in practice, and to endeavour to accom- plish a visit to a perfectly Cliinese city, in the environs of Macao, called Casa-Branca by the Portuguese, probably on account of its high grey walls, which are visible from tlie interior port. The name of Tsing-Chan has been given to it by the Chinese, doubtless on account of its being suiTOunded by immense rice fields, which, before the gi^ain arrives at maturity, resemble the prai- ries of Normandy. These names prove, that the two nations observe the most scrupulous exacti- tude in their choice of an appellation. Tsing- Chan, is what the French would call a chef-lieu^ and a military station ; it is also the residence of a magistrate, who represents a sort of dou1:)le power, and is termed Kiun-min-fou ; which cir- cumstance has caused a modem author, of gTeat pretensions to accm^acy, to commit a curious mis- take ; he supposes le FirSe to be a man, and Kiun^iin-fou the name of a place ! I leave the reader to imamne the amusino^ confrision resulting from such a mistake. We embarked for Tsing-Chan at about nine in the morning, and our boatmen landed us upon the shores of Hiang-Chan ; we walked about the environs for some time, and arrived at the gate of the city about noon. It would seem that the sol- diers of the Celestial enn)ire include the siesta in their code of rules for liealth, for there was not a sentinel at liis post ; we therefore walked as qui- etly into Tsing-Chan as we should liave done into a Frencli villnire. Penetrating into its nan'OAV and dirty streets^ we were struck Avith their perfect silence and so- litude, reminding me of some of our own little APATHY OF THE INHABITANTS. 359 towns during the summer months ; some groups of women chattering together in front of their houses, like the matrons in our native villages ; a few tradesmen awaiting customers in the depths of their shops ; some artisans, pursuing their la- bom's, surrounded by idle lookers-on, were the only inhabitants of the streets. Scarcely had we set foot on the uneven pavement of Tsing-Chan — scarcely had we heard the passers-by exclaim the *' Aoh ! " peculiar to the Chinese, when they wish to express astonishment, than from every nook and corner there peeped forth a number of gro- tesque heads, watching our movements with ex- treme sm^prise ; old men, with moustaches as white and long as those of a cat ; and women, whose yellow wiinkled faces resembled a parch- ment mask ; now and then a few members of the curious group honoured us with their escort for a little time, and some of the children called to us familiarly, but no one manifested the least sign of hostility ; certainly, the sudden appearance of an inhabitant of Ghent, in some village in the envi- rons of Marseilles or Toulon, would have produced much more sensation than did our presence appear to cause in this Cliinese city. ] The traveller of whom I spoke a little time ago, pretends that his arrival at Tsing-Chan caused a great display of curiosity : now I would by no means question his veracity on this point, but I cannot help informing the reader (what the tra- veller's modesty concealed), that this display was chiefly on the part of the females, who were im- prudent enough to express their wish of examin- ing the dress, &c., of the European Adonis, who wore the green costume of a French officer ; as to 360 NUMBER OF THE POPULATION. Rondot and myself, we were closely enveloped in our white jackets, and I cannot conscientiously assert that we produced any very remarkable effect on the fair sex at Tsing-Chan. We left the city by a gate opposite to the one by which we had entered, and passing by tlie mansion of Kiun-min-fou, and a pagoda of very shabby exterior, we came to a school for little boys ; the pupils were seated upon benches similar to those used in our public schools, and were all repeating together the same lesson in a very loud voice, whilst the master presided over them, endeavom^inof to distino^uish, amid the di^eadful noise, any mistake that might be made. Tsing-Chan contains about four thousand souls, many of them labom-ei"s on their own ground ; the shops are numerous and well stocked, and the wo- men usually weai" the accustomed dress of the hour- geoise, viz. — a chaTn, and short trousers of blue silk, the hair being fastened by elegant pins either of silver or some other precious material : we observed a few ladies with small feet, but this peculiarity has now descended to the lower classes, and is no longer the distinctive mark whereby the high position of the tortmred i)ossessor may be recognized ; Tsing-Chan is, in short, a complete representation of the dm-k, dirty, narrow allej^s in the Ijazaar of Macao, its houses being all composed of but one story, the only difference is, that there is less bustle and animation in its streets. We made a com])lete tour of the suburbs of the city ; tlie ramparts are made of eartli, |)lastered over Avntli liino, and surmounted by ] )attlcmenis, wliich gi\ e Tsing-Chan a very warhke appeaiauco when THE VISIT RENEWED. 861 seen from a distance ; on a nearer approach, tliis display proves very insignificant. We returned to Macao, accompanied by some Portuguese, who had been snipe-shooting in the rice fields ; Kondot was laden with poussahs, earthenware-vessels, and Chinese stufis ; but as to myself, I brought nothing away with me, except the souvenirs which I now present to the reader. It is dangerous to violate the laws even in China, and in expeditions like the one I have describ- ed, success itself is dangerous, as it merely tempts you on to fiirther and more dangerous attempts. Scarcely had we accomplished the enterprise I have described, in safety, than we began to plan others upon the forbidden territory ; but this time, fortunately, M. TAmbassadeur made himself an accomplice in our designs, and included Rondot, Gallery and myself, in an invitation to accompany him in an excm*sion to the territories of Hiang- Chan. We left Macao some time before sunrise, in a boat rowed by twenty men ; in the centre was a little pavilion, beneath which our party, to the number of fifteen, was comfortably installed ; we steered our course at first towards the bay of the interior port, then turning to the right, we struck into a narrow canal which seemed to extend the whole length of the island. Those persons who have never visited the Ce- lestial empire, can form no idea of its population ; the isle ot Hiang-Chan bears the same comparison to China, that the isles of Lerin do to France ; but the immense number of works of industry upon this space, bafiies imagination ; for more than ten hours occupied in sailing about the nu- 362 CHINESE POETRY. merous canals, which are incessantly crossing each other, we saw almost constant proofs of the in- dustry of the Chinese, in the great number of pavements, banks and reservoirs. During the whole time of this water-excursion, a flight of echassiers, of every colour and form, and a concourse of plovers, snipes, and curlews, seemed to have assembled on the banks, for the pui'pose of watching us pass, and every now and then we met with some of the keepers of these aquatic pastures (if I may use the term), in the shape of the duck-sellers, who pursued their labours in a sort of bamboo-raft, witli a long pole in their hands, which sei'ved to direct their course, whilst they drove their ampliibious flock in front of them. At last we disembarked in a large circular plain, surrounded with high, barren mountains ; this enclosm^e, which, in the geological language of the day, would be termed a credere de souUve- ment, had the appearance of an immense circus destined to be the scene of action for eiant g:\ti- diators and fabulous monsters. In the words of a Chinese poet, the spirits of heat and cold, drought and humidity, are the Attest combatants for this superb arena : " An awful conflict \" he exclaims, " for the rage of the warriors was so great, tliat they did not desist from wm-fiire until the prin- cipal amongst them fell dead on the scene of battle !" Certainly, the Abb(^ Delille would liave han. <}> 6 w Sf A «» %. NJ < <^^ V # 1? > . I ^. \4