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VOYAGE

OF THE

UNITED STATES FRIGATE POTOMAC,

UNDER THE COMMAND OF

COMMODORE JOHN DOWNES,

DURING THE

CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF THE GLOBE,

IN THE

YEARS 1831, 1832, 1833, and 1834;

INCLUDING A PARTICULAR ACCOUNT OP THE ENGAGEMENT AT QUALLAH-EATTOO,
ON THE COAST OF SUMATRA ; WITH ALL THE OFFICIAL DOCU-
MENTS RELATING TO THE SAME.

BY J. N. REYNOLDS.

» • »

“NAVAL POWER IS NATIONAL GLORY.”

ILLUSTRATED BY SEVERAL ENGRAVINGS.

N E W-Y O R K :

PUBLISHED BY HARPER & BROTHERS,

NO. 82 CLIFF-STREET,

AND SOLD BY THE PRINCIPAL BOOKSELLERS THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES.

1 8 35.

Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1835,
By Harper & Brothers,

In the Clerk’s OfEce of the Southern District of New-York.

PS ms

1^35

DEDICATION.

We have been a commercial people from the very germe of our
existence ; we must ever remain so ; and it is the dictate of com^.
mon sense to protect this commerce. This can only be done by
an effective navy. This doctrine was well understood by our an-
cestors, who, nearly one hundred and fifty years ago, made great
exertions to raise a naval force for the purpose of taking Quebec ;
and in all the subsequent wars up to the time of the siege .of
Louisburg, a half a century afterward, they continued to increase
it, and it was to them power and fame. The spirit of their fathers
was then on the wave, and guided them to victory. At this time
the provincial armed vessels became quite formidable, and caused
great destruction to the French commerce and fisheries. In the
war of the revolution our navy crowned itself with glory, in the
number and character of the battles it fought. At the time of
our difficulties with France, in the days of her revolution, the
American navy avenged the insults offered our flag, and gained
new laurels. The spirited efforts of our navy in destroying the
Barbary powers, for their piratical conduct to us, as well as to
other nations, received the highest praise from all the Levant,
which was, by the exertions of our naval force, freed from plun-
der and constant agitation. Even the Pope joined his voice to the
plaudits w'hich rang along the shores of the Mediterranean, for the
service our naval heroes had rendered the commercial world. In
the last war, in which our navy was so efficient and successful.

DEDICATION.

most of the officers now holding a high rank bore an honourable
part. In that contest they not only fought and conquered those

“ Whose flag has braved, a thousand years,

The battle and the breeze

but at the same time achieved a more wondrous victory over the
prejudices of many of their own nation ; and secured to all coming
ages the existence of a n^vy in this country. The importance
of a navy is agreed to by all ; and to sustain it as our pride and
hopes, has become a common sentiment, beyond the mountains as
well as on the seaboard. There breathes not a man in our coun-
try “ of soul so dead,” whose heart is not warmed at the recital
of our naval exploits. The slightest deviation of duty, even on
board a revenue -cutter, would be a wound to our national pride.

The navy has duties to perform in peace as in war ; if not so
arduous and dangerous, still they are not less useful. Our flag
should be borne to every portion of the globe, to give to civilized
and savage man a just impression of the power we possess, and
in what manner we can exercise it when justice demands repara-
tion for insulted dignity. A few instances of prompt retaliation
have alasting effect. The strong man, “knowing his rights, and
knowing, dares maintain,” is seldom ill treated ; the weak and
timid are those who are trampled upon. While impressing on
others our spirit and efficiency, we may learn their ability and
resources. With all the enterprise of our countrymen, their navy
and commercial marine, still we can say, —

“ Of this huge globe, how small a part we know

there is room enough for centuries, with all our zeal, to know
.and to do.

DEDICATION.

I have had an opportunity of observing the devotedness of some
of our naval officers abroad, in the great cause of national honour ;
where they have exerted themselves seriously to impress on the
minds of all, that the United States, as a people, have no appetite
for conquest — ^no desire for monopoly; but wish for peace and re-
ciprocal commerce with every nation under the sun, — offering no
insults, committing no injuries, nor submitting to any offered to
themselves.

With these views and feelings, I take the liberty of respectfully
dedicating this volume, containing an account of the voyage of
the United States «hip Potomac, under the command of Commo-
dore John Downes, in the years eighteen hundred and thirty-one,
two, three, and four, to the Honourable the Secretary and Offi-
cers OF THE United States Navy, — believing that, whatever
is well done by one, among a band of brothers, is done by all in
feeling and principle ; for this is the only way of making up the
treasury of a nation’s glory.

April, 1835.

THE AUTHOR.

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- X

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER I.

Object of the Cruise Selection of the Frigate — Her departure from Washington —
Reflections on passing Mount Vernon — Descending the River — Hampton Roads
—New- York— Additional Orders— Final Departure— Sandy Hook— Dismissing
the Pilot — Tribute of Affecticm XI

CHAPTER II.

Sea-sickness— The Gulf-stream— A Storm at Sea— Cape de Verds— St. Antonio—
A Whale-ship Trial of Speed — Crossing the Equator — ^Rio Janeiro — Courteous
Reception of the Frigate 24

CHAPTER III.

Harbour of Rio Janeiro and surrounding Scenery — Appearance of its entrance from
the Offing— Its works of Defence— City of Rio, or St. Sebastian— Public Square,
Fagade, and Fountain — ^Public Buildings, Houses, and Shops — Paucity of Ac-
commodations for Strangers— Climate, Food, and Health— Arcos de Carioco, or
Grand Aqueduct— Discovery and Settlement of Brazil— Injustice to the Natives
Origin of the African Slq,ve Trade — Discovery and Settlement of Rio Janeiro
—Emigration of the Royal Family— Their Return to Portugal— Civil Revolution
in Brazil— Accession of Don Pedro— War with Buenos Ayres, terminated by an
unpopular Treaty— Abdication of Don Pedro— Insurrectionary Symptoms— Cler-
ical Abuses Population of Rio — Condition of the Slaves — ^Natural Productions
— Theatrical fete on board the-Potomac'

CHAPTER IV.

Departure from Rio Janeiro— Glorious Sunset at Sea— A white Squall— A Man
Overboard— A narrow Escape— Cape of Good Hope— Arrival of the Potomac at
Cape-Town— Table Bay, with Sailing Directions— First Discovery of the Cape
by Diaz— Origin of the Colony— Description of the Tovra— State of the Press,
Literature, and Education — Climate, Clouds, and Vapours . . . 59

CHAPTER V.

Cape of Good Hope — Progress of the Colony— Cape District— Districts of Stellen-
bosch, Worcester, Swellendam, George, Uitenliage, Albany, Somerset, and Graaf
Rainet — Population Table — Imports and Exports — Judiciary Establishment — Post-
office — Humane and Religious Institutions — Revenue, Military, &c. — The Calfres
— Captain Stout’s Character of them— The Hottentots— Progress of Education
among them . , . 73

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER VI.

Particulars of the Seizure of the Ship Friendship by the Malays, and the Massacre
of part of her Crew — Retaking of the Ship, and her Return to Salem—The Po-
tomac’s hospitable Reception at the Cape of Good Hope — Interchange of Civili-
ties— Proceeds on her Cruise — Plan of Operations — St. Paul’s Island — Arrival
on the Coast of Sumatra — Dangerous Navigation ..... 88

CHAPTER VII.

The Potomac, disguised as a Merchantman, anchors off Quallah-Battoo — recon-
noitring party of Americans deterred from landing by the hostile movements of
the Malays — But little hopes of obtaining Indemnification by peaceable measures —
Preparations for Enforcing our just demands — Humane Instructions of the Com-
modore— Landing of the Crew, with strict orders not to commence Hostilities,
unless attacked by the Malays — The latter fire on the Americans, who imme-
diately advance to the Attack, and storm and dismantle all the Forts but one —
The Victorious Party return on board — Loss in the Attack — Funeral Service for
the Slain — Official Documents 104

CHAPTER VIII.

Bombardment of Tuca de Lama — The Malays ask a Truce — Alarm of the inhab-
itants of Soo-soo — The friendly Rajah, Po Adam, relieves their apprehensions —
Embassy of submission from the Malays of Quallah-Battoo — The Commodore’s
admonition to them, interpreted by Po Adam' — The Potomac anchors at Soo-soo
to procure water — Precautions against a surprise — Po Adam’s friendship for the
Americans, and consequent losses — His character, dress, and personal appear-
ance— His allegiance to the King of Acheen — Outrage of the king’s brother — Po
Adam’s retaliation — His wives — Astonishment of the Malays on inspecting the
force of the Potomac — Interchange of presents — Ceremony of killing a buf-
falo ............. 131

CHAPTER IX.

Sumatra, the Ophir of Solomon — Described by Marco Polo — ^Visited by the Arabs
— ^Discovered by the Portuguese — Size and location — Face of the country —
Mountains, rivers, lakes, &c. — Climate and temperature — Monsoons and other
winds — Soil, minerals, metals, organic remains, &c. — Volcanoes and earthquakes
— Origin of the inhabitants — Several distinct races — Description of their persons,
dress, and ornaments— Effects of climate on character — Illustrated by the Esqui-
maux, the Laplander, and the Arab — The useful arts in Sumatra — Villages, houses,
furniture, and food — Productions of the animal kingdom — Manner of cultivating
pepper, trees, spices, gums, &c. . . . . . . . . . 133

CHAPTER X.

The Malays of Sumatra — Difficulty of delineating their Character — Their Language,
Poetry, &c. — Five different Languages spoken in Sumatra — Malay duplicity —
Effects of their intercourse with Foreigners — Conscious Inferiority — Erroneous
Policy formerly exercised towards them — Favourable Traits in their Character —

COJ^TBJNTS

vii

The Rejangs — Their Laws, Customs, and Political Regulations — Their judicial
Proceedings — Manner of taking an Oath — Rights of Inheritance, &c. — Their
secret Hoards — Security for Debts— Punishment for Theft and Murder — Court-
ship, Marriage, and Divorces — Cock-fighting — Use of the Betele-nut — Tobacco
— Early Maturity of Females — Funeral Obsequies — Religious and superstitious
Notions — The Lampoons — Their Hospitality 157

CHAPTER XL

Sumatra — The Kingdom of Menangcabow — Its former Power and Splendour —
Curious Proclamation of the Sultan — Arts and Manufactures of the People —
Fire-arms and Gunpowder — The Battas ; their Religion, Character, Manners,
Customs— The Kingdom of Acheen — Description of the Inhabitants, Govern-
ment, Religion, &c. — Severity of their Punishments — Cruel Sport of the Quallah-
Battooans — Dress and Character of the Achenese — Their Oratory — Revival of
Trade after the late War — Imbecility of the Government — The Jlajah of Trumon
— Islands on the Coast — Pulo Nyas Parents sell their Children for Slaves — The
Pogies — Islands and Inhabitants of Egano — Winds and Currents — Surveys and
Charts, by Captains Endicott and Gillis ....... 173

CHAPTER XII.

Early voyages to Sumatra — Portuguese establishments at Acheen and Pasay — ■
Naval power of Acheen — Portuguese defeated — The English well received at
Acheen — The Dutch suspected — The French neglected — Rivalry and hostilities
between the English and Dutch — English and French — The English at Padang — >
Americans visit the East — Commercial enterprise of Salem — Carnes’s voyage to
Sumatra — Loss of his vessel in returning — Sails in the Rajah — His successful
voyage — Consequent curiosity and excitement — Unsuccessful attempt at compe-
tition— Interesting extracts from the Records of the Salem East India Marine
Society — Ship Friendship, Williams — Fanny, Smith — John.,. Barton — Three
Friends, Stewart — Her accident in the Strait of Bally — Active,'' Nicholas —
Recovery, Dana — and the Putnam — Tribute to the Commercial enterprise of
Salem ............... 196

CHAPTER XIII.

Sumatra — ^Effects of the Potomac’s visit illustrated by facts — Piratical practices of
the Natives previous to that event, and their good conduct since —Their former
frequent attempts and failures proved by their own confessions, and the testimony
of Shipmasters — Their triumphant boasting respecting the Friendship, and threats
of future aggressions — Effect of that event on our Eastern Commerce — Revival
of that Commerce after the attack on Quallah-Battoo — Anecdote of Mahommed
Bundah — His visit to the Potomac — Respect and admiration of the American
character — Hints to Governrnent on the protection of our Commerce . 217

CHAPTER XIV

Passage to the Straits of Sunda — Centennial Anniversary of Washington’s Birthday
— Patriotic Reflections — Enter the Strait — Prince’s Island — Java Head — Flat
Point — Keyser-’s Bay — Lampoon Bay — Rajah Bassa Peak — Hog Point — ^Mew

vni

CaNl’EJNXS,

Bay and Island — Pepper Bay — Anger Roads and Village — Cap and Button — ■
Bantam, or St. Nicholas’ Point — Shores of Bantam — Beautiful Prospect — Bantam
Hill, Bay, Town, and Villages — Traffic with the Natives — Perilous adventure of
the Commodore — The Thousand Islands — Burial of the dead — The Potomac
anchors in Batavia Roads — Beacons in the Strait of Sunda . . . 335

CHAPTER XV.

Java and Sumatra once connected — Origin of the name of Java — Size and location
of the Island — Origin of the inhabitants — Pagans and Idolaters — Java succes-
sively visited by the Siamese, Arabs, Malays, and Chinese — Arab missionaries — ■
Conversion of the inhabitants to the Mahommedan faith — the Portuguese visit
the Island — The English — The Dutch at Bantam — At Batavia — The English at
Bantam — Massacre of Amboyna — Dutch oppressions — Massacre of the Chinese
at Batavia — Americans visit Batavia — Governor Daendel’s Administration — An-
tiquities of Java — Description of the Javans — Their dress — Origin of the kris —
Character, habits, and manners — Early marriages — -Frequent divorces — Cookery
and food — Amusements — ^Useful arts and manufactures — Houses, furniture,
employments, agriculture, and commerce- — Government, literature, &&. . 364

CHAPTER XVI.

Bay and City of Batavia — Former Commerce, Wealth, and Magnificence — Unex-
pected Reverses — Description of the City— Causes of its Unhealthiness — Im-
provements by Marshal Daendels — Beauty of the Environs — Villas and Roads —
Blue Mountains^ — Village of Buitenzorg — Ruins of Pajajaran — Population of Ba-
tavia— Number and Condition of the Slaves — Chinese Industry and Festivals —
Balians, Javans, and other Classes — Dutch Population — Frightful Mortality —
Health of the City improved — Biographical Sketch of Daendels — European Prov-
inces of Java — Native Provinces — Total Population — Face and Appearance of the
Country — Moufitains, Volcanoes, and Minerals — Rivers, Climate, Soil, and Vege-
table Productions — The BohunUpas — Origin of the Fable — Poison made from the
Sap of )the Anchar — Animal Productions — Commerce, Revenue, and Political
State of the Country . . 394

CHAPTER XVII.

Leaving Batavia — Illness of the Commodore’s son — -Once more at Sea — Calms and
opposing currents — Drag the bottom for shells — Augmentation of the sick-list —
Heat of the weather — Gaspar Straits — Tardy progress in the China Sea — Har-
assing duty — Cross the equator — Island of St. Barbe — Pulo Aor — Sickness and
death — Terrific thunder-storm — Death of N. K. G. Oliver, Esq. — Funeral obse-
quies— Contribution for his family — Tedious calms, and oppressive heat — Increas-
ing mortality — Dreary prospects — Cheering sight of a sail — Speak an English
bark — Mutual interchange of courtesies — ^A vertical sun — Coast of China — Canton
Bay — A Chinese pilot — Anchor in Macao Road ..... 323

CHAPTER XVIII.

China — Town of Macao — Lintin Island and Bay — Opium Smugglers — The Com-
modore’s Excursion to Canton — Inhabitants of Lintin — Small Feet of the Chinese

CONTENTS.

Women — Religious ceremonies — The Potomac ordered to Depart by the Chinese
Authorities — Second Excursion to Canton — Passage up the river — Forts, Pago-
das, Scenery, &c. — Wampoa, aquatic Population, &c. — Wonderful Skill of the
Pilots — The Factories at Canton — Hospitable reception of the Party — The great
Temple, or Jos-house — The officiating Priests — The Jos Pigs, clerical Cells,
Gardens, &c. — The great Bazar — Dramatic Performances — Anniversary of the
Snake-boat — Police of Canton — Its Walls and Gates— Forcing an Entrance —
The Hong Merchant’s expedition in Business — Mode of Computation — Description
of Canton — Return of the Party - 336

CHAPTER XIX.

The Empire of China — Unknown to the ancients — Its history involved in fable and
tradition — Founded by Noah — Patriarchal form of government — Location, size,
cities, towns, villages, monuments, libraries, &c. — Immense population — Observa-
tions on acclimating her productions ....... 368

CHAPTER XX.

European rivalry in the east— Formation of the East India Company — Its conquests
in India — First American vessel sails from New-York, and visits Canton — Inter-
esting correspondence — Tabular view of our trade — Expiration of the Company’s
charter — New state of things opening in the east — Increased vigilance necessary
on the part of our government — Free trade with China .... 367

CHAPTER XXI.

The Potomac sails from Canton — The Bashee Straits — The northeast tradewind

Cause and description of the tradewinds — Periodical winds — Monsoons The

sirocco, the simoon, land and seabreezes — Perennial and variable winds — An East
India voyage ; its natural facilities — Period for commencing one — Reflections
arising from the subject — Arrival at the Sandwich Islands . . . 388

CHAPTER XXII.

The Sandwich Islands, their number and location — The Island of Oahu — Indolence
of the natives — Presentment at Court — Town of Honoruru, markets, houses, fur-
niture, food, &c. of the natives — Hospitable reception and entertainment — A
Luau, or barbecue — Arrival of the young king — Dinner on board the frigate —
Honours paid him — His attention to the Americans — Indian war-dance^ — A royal
banquet — Battle-ground of Tamehameha — A supper at the palace— Dramatic
performances — The Commodore’s official interview with the king — Taking leave
— Sailing of the frigate — Reflections on her visit — Missionaries and foreign resi-
dents ■ . . . 399

CHAPTER XXIII.

Passage to the Society Islands — Island of Otaheite, or Tahiti — Matavia Bay — De-
scription of the natives — Dress, houses, food, &c. — Appearance of the country —
A banquet champstre — Divine worship — Increase of temperance among the na-
tives— The queen-dowager — A sprig of royalty — Dinner on board the frigate —
State of the Island — Sail for Valparaiso . . . . . . . 424

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER XXIV.

Valparaiso — Amicable deportment of the inhabitants — Interchange of civilities —
Accumulated documents — Extent and importance of the Pacific station — Illegal
detention of two American whale- ships — Defects in our consular system — Effects
of the revolution — Other ports on the coast — The islands — Sail from Valparaiso
— Arrive at Callao — Meet with the Falmouth and Dolphin — Description of the
harbour — Visit Lima .......... 433

CHAPTER XXV.

City of Lima — Climate and Temperature — View of the City from the summit of San
Christoval — The river Rimac — Cisterns and fountains — Absence of rain, thunder,
and lightning ........... 440

CHAPTER XXVI.

Earthquakes in Lima — Destruction of the city — Callao overflowed and destroyed by
the sea — Visit Valparaiso— Return to Callao, touching at Coquimbo — Falmouth
sails for the United States — Potomac proceeds to the north . . . 447

CHAPTER XXVII.

Galapagos Islands — Charles’s Island, or La Floriana — Governor Vilamil’s Colony
— Its origin and advance — Description of the island — Its productions — ^Pure and
wholesome water — ^Prohibition of spirituous liquors — Fowls, terapins, &c. — Climate
and temperature — Abuses connected with our whale-fisheries — Improvements and
reforms suggested .......... 464

CHAPTER XXVIII.

Sail from the Galapagos — Visit Guayaquil — Touch at the ports of Payta and Lam-
bayeque — Arrival at Callao — Meet the Fairfield — Return to Valparaiso — ^Depart
for the United States — FalkRnd Islands ...... 474

CHAPTER XXIX.

Falkland Islands — Controversy between the United States and the Argentine Re-
public, in reference to our right to a free use of the fisheries in the waters which
surround these islands and their adjacencies 4-80

CHAPTER XXX.

Passage north of the Falkland Islands — Icebergs — Perilous situation of the Potomac
— Arrival at Rio — Naval etiquette — Excursion up the Bay — Island of Paqueta —
National festival — Sail for the United States — Arrival at Boston — Public de-
spatches— Splendid ball on board — End of the voyage . . . .515

INTRODUCTION.

In the month of October, 1829, I sailed from the city of New-
York in the brig Annawan, N. B. Palmer captain, to the South
Seas and Pacific Ocean. The particulars of this voyage, and the
circumstances which led to it, as well as those of my subsequent
travels by land through the Republic of Chili, and the Araucanian
and Indian Territories to the south, will be given to the public in
another volume. Suffice it here, that I was at Valparaiso in
October, 1832, just three years from the commencement of my
voyage, when Commodore Downes arrived at that place, from the
coast of Sumatra and some of the principal ports in the East Indies.

He had been for some time expected on that station ; and
early in the afternoon on the day of his arrival, it had been
announced by telegraph, from the high hill which overlooks the
town, that a large ship was in the offing. An hour passed away,
and the signal announced a man-of-war, southwest from Playa
Ancha, with all sail set, standing directly for the port. The
wind was fresh, and she approached rapidly. The stripes and
stars were seen waving from the mizzen peak of a stately frigate,
which was now pronounced by all to be the Potomac. She
entered the harbour late in the afternoon, making several seaman-
like tacks against a strong southerly breeze. Crowds gathered
upon the beach, and the Americans in port evinced emotions of
pleasure, as each one felt that the strong and protecting arm of
his government was near him.

On the following day I went on board, with the view of
visiting several of the officers with whom I had been pre-
viously acquainted. Here I received an invitation from the
commodore to join the Potomac as his private secretary, the

INTRODUCTION.

gentleman who had previously filled that station having died at
sea. This is a pleasant birth on board a flag-ship, and I accepted
it, as the stay of the commodore on the station promised me a
fine opportunity to improve my knowledge of the institutions,
natural capacities, commercial resources, and political condition
and prospects of so large a portion of South America, which
hitherto I had not been able to visit.

The cruise of the Potomac, thus far, had been one of great
interest, and the services performed by her of high importance
to our commercial interests in the east. News of her arrival at
the Island of Sumatra, and her action with the Malays, reached
the United States in the early part of July, 1832, at which time
Congress was still in session.

Partial statements relative to the occurrences at Quallah-Battoo
had been published in the journals of the day; and those papers
had now reached the Pacific. The attention of Congress had
been called to the subject. Mr. Dearborn, of the House of
Representatives, on the 12th day of July, submitted a resolution
calling on the President for the instructions under which Com-
modore Downes acted, in his attack on the Malays of the Island
of Sumatra. The resolution was adopted without objections
from any quarter; and before the adjournment of the House on
the next day, a communication covering the instructions was
received from the President, recommending that these papers
should not be made public until a full report of the proceedings
at Quallah-Battoo should be received from Commodore Downes;
intimating, that the vague rumours and partial statements before
the public relative to the transactions at that place, when com-
pared with the instructions under which that officer acted, might
create an unfavourable prejudice against him in the public mind,
which ought to be guarded against during his absence firom the
country, and until all the circumstances which influenced his
mind should be authentically known.

On the reception of these papers, the House of Representatives
referred them to the Committee on Foreign Affairs ; and after
being examined by that committee, the latter unanimously con-
curred with the President, that the instructions ought not to be
published until official, full, and accurate information was received,
as to the manner in which the instructions had been executed.

INTRODUCTION.

vii

Without taking any further measures on the subject, Congress
adjourned on the 16th of July.

It seemed evident that the public mind, though always just
when correctly informed, had, in this instance, been misled by
partial statements and publications of irresponsible persons, who
attempted to pronounce upon the merits of the proceedings at
Quallah-Battoo without knowing, or having it in their power to
know, a single motive which had influenced the mind of the
commodore during his stay on the Malay coast.

These circumstances, together with the extent and nature of
the Potomac’s voyage, — ^the direct manner in which the attention
of Congress and the country at large had been thus early called
to it— seemed to require that an authentic record should be pre-
pared ; in which not only the incidents of the voyage, but the
public considerations which led to it, — and the motives which, at
different periods of the cruise, had operated on the mind of its
commander, in carrying into execution the views and instructions
of the government, should be faithfully preserved.

It was at this time, and under- these circumstances, and with
the express sanction of the commodore himself, that I undertook
the task of preparing this record — in the execution of which
every facility was offered me. Though more or less indebted to
most of the officers of the higher grades for some incidents of
the voyage, noted down by them on going below from their
watches on deck, yet I feel it my duty especially to acknowledge
my obligations to Lieutenant R. Pinkham and Acting-lieutenant
S. Godon. The former, an intelligent officer, had kept a copious
record, day by day, as the incidents of the voyage passed before
him, which notes were placed in my hands. The latter, a young
officer of high promise, had been an attentive observer, and
recorded what he saw. For days, and weeks, and even months,
he was ever ready to pore over the charts with me ; and, by a
vivid recollection, to recall the rich tints of a tropical sky, the
phosphorated gleamings of the ocean, or the mellow hues of the
landscape among the “ summer isles.” The commodore’s private
journal was also in my hands; while the daily communication
and unrestrained intercourse which existed between us, enabled
me to speak with knowledge of all the public considerations
which guided the movements of the frigate under his command.

INTRODUCTION.

viii

In comparing what I had written from these authentic sources
with the journal kept by N. K. G. Oliver, Esq., the commodore’s
private secretary during the early part of the voyage, I found
not a line to erase, and scarcely a word to add. In addition to
all these advantages combined, the length of residence on board
of the Potomac, in the midst of those who had been eye-witnesses
and actors, by whom the incidents of the past were so often
brought in review before us, I found no difficulty in filling up
even the lights and shades of the whole picture, up to the period
at which I joined the frigate — some twenty months previous to
her return to the United States. Being thus familiar with the
whole subject, I have found it most convenient to adopt the first
person and present tense in the narrative, from the beginning to
the end of the cruise.

Where I have travelled beyond the record of the voyage, and
say something on our commercial interests jn the east, of its his-
tory, present condition, and means of its further extension; of
sailing directions and the monsoons ; of the Chinese, their pecu-
liarities and pagodas; of the Sandwich and Society Islands,
their population, missionaries, and foreign residents and traders ;
of the great Pacific whale fleet, the present derangement of this
important branch of commerce, and the necessity of some action
on the part of the United States government for the preservation
of this interest; of the people of South America, their political
and social institutions; of the controversy with the Argentine
Republic in relation to the Falkland Islands; or of Rio and the
empire of Brazil — I repeat, that what I say on any of these sub-
jects, or others of a like nature, will be at all times on my own
responsibility.

A short time after the return of the Potomac, I addressed a
line to the Honourable Levi Woodbury, at that time Secretary
of the Navy, requesting permission to examine certain public
documents on file in the department, from our commercial agents
in different parts of the world where the Potomac had touched,
and which might contain matter useful in rendering more perfect
the details of my work. To this request I received the follow-
ing reply : —

INTRODUCTION.

“Navy Department, 9th June, 1834.

“ Sir,

“Your letter of the 5th inst. has been read; I shall be happy
to oblige you with the inspection of any papers in this depart-
ment which are not confidential, and may be useful to you in
your contemplated publication.

“ I am, very respectfully, yours, &c.

(Signed) “Levi Woodbury.

“ To J. N. Reynolds, Esq.”

The same facilities, in answer to a similar request, were
politely proffered me by the Honourable John Forsyth, Secretary
of State.

One important object still remained to be accomplished, and
without which the work would be very defective ; and this was
to obtain a copy of the official and public documents connected
with the cruise. As there had been special, as well as general
instructions from the department to Commodore Downes, I
deemed it my duty to inform the latter of my application to the
department for copies of these papers, and received from him the
following reply ; a copy of which I enclosed to the Secretary of
the Navy : —

“ Charlestown, 26th August, 1834.

“ Dear Sir,

“In answer to your note of the 19th inst., I have to state, that
your having undertaken to prepare a Journal of the Potomac’s
Cruise while on the Pacific station, with my knowledge and appro-
bation, and so often having held free communication with me on
the subject ; and knowing, as you do, my wish, that whatever is
published should be authentic, I can of course have no objection
that my instructions from the Navy Department, under which I
acted while on the coast of Sumatra, with all official papers and
reports made or received during the cruise, should be placed in
your hands, with the sanction of the department, for the illustra-
tion of your book.

“Yours, very sincerely,

(Signed) “John Downes.

“ J. N. Reynolds, Esq., New-York.”

INTRODUCTION.

“ Navy Department, September 1st, 1834.

“ Sir,

“ Your letter of the 27th ultimo has been received, enclosing a
copy of Commodore Downes’ letter to yourself, consenting to
your application for a copy of his instructions.

“ The Secretary of the Navy will be here in a few days, when
your request shall be submitted to him.

“ I am, respectfully, yours,

(Signed) “John Boyle,

“ Acting Secretary of the Navy.

“ J N. Re)molds, Esq., New-York.”

“ Navy Department, 27th September, 1834.

“ Sir,

“Your letter of the 20th inst. has been received; Commodore
Downes has the permission of the department to furnish you
with copies or extracts, as may be most desirable to you, of his
instructions and reports in relation to his operations at Quallah-
Battoo.

“ I am, very respectfully, yours,

“Mahlon Dickerson.

“P. S. Commodore Downes has this day been authorized to
furnish the above papers.

“J. N. Reynolds, Esq., New-York.”

With such credentials in my hands, and the consciousness of
a well intended effort in my heart, I would respectfully make my
dehut before the American public — ^uninfluenced by vain ambi-
tion, unembarrassed by ill-timed diffidence. If my plain narra-
tive of maritime incidents, perils, and achievements —

“ All that occurred, part of which
I was ******^***‘”

has no pretension to the charms of fine writing, it has at least
the honest merit of truth and fidelity in the delineation of such
facts as it purports to record.

VOYAGE

OF THE

UNITED STATES FRIGATE POTOMAC.

CHAPTER I.

Object of the Cruise — Selection of the Frigate — Her departure from Washington

Reflections on passing Mount Vernon — Descending the River — Hampton-Roads

New-York — Additional Orders — Final Departure — Sandy Hook — Dismissing the
Pilot — Tributes of Affection.

The United States frigate Guerriere, under the command of
Commodore Thompson, having nearly fulfilled her term of ser-
vice on the west coast of South America, in the Pacific, it
became necessary to despatch another ship-of-war to relieve her
on that important station. For this purpose, early in the year
1831, the Navy Department selected and for the first time put in
commission the frigate Potomac, then lying at the navy yard in
Washington city. She had been built at the same place ten
years previously, and is of the first class of frigates, a fine model,
and commanding, warlike appearance.

The officers intended for the cruise had received their orders
in the early part of the year ; and in the • month of March a
number of them had repaired on board, and reported themselves
to the first lieutenant as ready for duty. On the 10th of May
Commodore Downes was notified of his appointment to the
command of the P otomac, then fitting for sea at the navy yard
at Washington, for the purpose of joining the squadron in the
Pacific. Being at that period employed on other public duties,
he was only able to visit the frigate once previous, to her re-
moval from the seat of government. He then left her in the

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[June,

charge of the executive officer until she should, arrive in the port
of Ne'w-York.

During the whole naonth of May the most active preparations
were going on aboard, so that by the 31st she was hauled out
from the navy yard wharf, and by the aid of two steg,m-boats
was towed over the bar, and moored head and stern off the mouth
of the eastern branch of the Potomac. Previous to her removal
from the navy yard, she had been visited by the President and
Honourable Secretary of the Navy.

The period from the 1st to the 14th of June was exclusively
occupied in the outfits of the ship, and in getting off stores and
various other articles ; though all the sea-stores could not be
taken in at this place, owing to the want of a sufficient depth of
water in many parts of the Potomac river. In the mean time
the ship had undergone a material change in her appearance and
internal arrangements, and not only began to assume more of the
regularity of a man-of-war among her inmates, but in every other
respect bespoke preparation for a distant voyage. She was at
this time, 15th, again visited and inspected by the Honourable
Secretary of the Navy and Navy Commissioners.

On the following morning, the 16th, orders were issued to the
commanding officer to proceed with the Potomac down the river
to Norfolk. The anchor was immediately weighed, and the
frigate put in motion by the aid of a fine steam-boat selected for
towing her down the river to Hampton-Roads.

The movements of a vessel of such dimensions down the
intricate channel of a river which rises so many leagues from the
ocean, was not only calculated to produce a painful anxiety, but
was, in fact, a matter of no small responsibility. The city of
Washington, it is well known, is that point in the United States
to which the largest vessels can be navigated the farthest into the
interior of the' continent. This single fact evinces the wisdom
and foresight of him whose advice thus located the capital of the
empire which he founded.

Neither sectional partiality nor prejudice, it appears, had the
least influence in determining this important matter ; for the father
of his country did not recommend the spot where the city of
Washington now stands, until he had bestowed great and un-
wearied pains, and made laborious and interesting reconnoissance

1831.]

10CA.TI0N OP THE CAPITAL.

of the country adjacent; and though the conflicting claims of
other states, particularly those of Pennsylvania, were strongly
urged against the measure, yet, fortunately for the nation, the
popularity and influence of Washington surmounted every ob-
stacle, and permanently fixed the seat of the general government
in, perhaps, the best possible position that could be selected in
any part of the United States.

It may be mentioned as a curious coincidence, and a fact not
generally known, that the present permanent seat of our national
legislature is contiguous to the very spot where formerly were
lighted the council-fires of the Powhattans, the most prominent,
nmnerous, and powerful nation of red men in Virginia; and on
the banks of the Potomac, extending from the shores of Chesa-
peake to the Patuxent. These people lived under a royal govern-
ment, their despotic monarch being the father of the celebrated j
Pocahontas. The valley at the foot of Capitol-Hill, washed by '
the Tiber Creek, the Potomac, and the Eastern Branch, was, as
we are informed by tradition, periodically visited by the Indians,
who named it .their fishing-ground^ in contradistinction to their
hunting-ground. Here, the tradition adds, the aborigines assem-
bled in great numbers, in the vernal season, for the double pm-
pose of preserving fish and consulting on the affairs of the nation,
Greenleafe’s Point was their principal camp, and the residence
of the chiefs, where councils were held among the various tribes
thus gathered together. This tradition was doubtless familiar to
Washington.

It has been said above that a more eligible site for the seat of
our national govennnent could not have been selected. It is true
that a hostile fleet has once violated the purity of these waters,
conveying a sufficient military force to invest the capital of the
nation, from which most of its physical strength had been drawn
to defend points which seemed more, exposed to immediate attack.
But we were then a young, weak, and divided people, contending
with a gigantic power. Things have changed since , that period ;
and the waters which have borne the warlike Potomac with her
frowning batteries so many leagues from the interior to her
destined element, can scarcely again, in the course of human
events, be agitated by a hostile keel.

Under the old confederation, by which the states were no mi-

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[June,

nally bound together, Congress was dependant upon the several
sovereignties for “ a local habitation,” and might have been vir-
tually dissolved by the mere refusal to permit the occupation of
public buildings. This inconvenience was provided for, probably
at the suggestion of Washington himself, in the eighth section of
the first article of the Constitution, which gave express power to
Congress “ to exercise exclusive legislation in all cases whatso-
ever, over such district (not exceeding ten miles square) as might
by session of particular states and the acceptance of Congress
become the seat of the government of the United States.”

In accordance with this provision, the states of Virginia and
Maryland ceded to the United States their jurisdiction over a
district of ten miles square, situated on both sides of the Poto-
mac, nearly two hundred miles from its mouth. This cession
was formally accepted by the United States government, in an
act of Congress passed on the 16th of July, 1790 ; and ten years
afterward, during the presidency of John Adams, the government
was removed thither, and permanently established in the infant
city called after the deathless name of its patriotic founder. On
the 3d of May, 1802, Congress passed an act by which the city
of Washington became incorporated ; the appointment of mayor
being vested in the president annually, and the two branches of
the council elected by the people in a general ticket. By a new
charter granted by Congress in 1820, the mayor is now elected
by the people for a term of two years. The city is rapidly
increasing in wealth and population.

Our gallant, though as yet untried frigate, moved gracefully and
majestically upon the waters of the river whose name she bears ;
and passing Mount Vernon with flag half-mast in token of respect
for the sacred relics which were there deposited, she again came
to anchor without accident at India Head.

The reader is doubtless aware that the consecrated spot alluded
to is situated on the Virginia side of the Potomac river, the
course of which at this place is nearly southwest, though its
general course is to the southeast. Mount Vernon, therefore, is
on the western bank of the river, and rises at least two hundred
feet above its surface. It is about fifteen miles below the city
of Washington, and eight miles from Alexandria. It was so
named in honour of Admiral Vernon, in whose celebrated expedition

1831.]

MOUNT VERNON.

against the Spaniards Washington’s brother Lawrence served; 1
and he was the original proprietor of this delightful sylvan
retreat. It afterward passed into the general’s hands, and it was
here that he resided when retired from the cares and labours of
public employment; and it is here that his ashes now repose,
together with those of his connubial partner, and several relatives
of the family. To visit this place is deemed a sort of pious or
rather patriotic pilgrimage, which few would willingly neglect to
make at least once in the course of their lives, should circum-
stances call them to the seat of government.

The mansion in which Washington resided till his death is a
plain edifice of wood, cut in imitation of freestone, two stories
high, surmounted by a cupola, and ninety-six feet in length, with
a portico in the rear, overlooking the river, extending the whole
length of the building. The central part of this edifice was
erected by Lawrence Washington, who named it as before men-
tioned; the two wings were afterward added by the general, who
caused the ground to be planted and beautified in the most taste-
ful manner.

The house ifonts northwest, looking on a beautiful lawn of five
or six acres, with a serpentine walk around it, fringed with shrub-
bery and planted with poplars. The tomb, or family vault, in
which rest the hero’s remains, is about two hundred yards south-
west from the house, and about one hundred and fifty from the
river bank : “ A more romantic and picturesque site for a tomb,”
says a late writer, “can scarcely be imagined. Between it and
the river Potomac is a curtain of forest-trees, covering the steep
declivity to the water’s edge, breaking the glare of the prospect,
and yet affording glimpses of the river even when the foliage is
thickest. The tomb is surrounded by several large native oaks,
which are venerable by their years, and which annually strew the
sepulchre with autumnal leaves, furnishing the most appropriate
drapery for such a place, and giving a still deeper impression to
the memento mori. Interspersed among the rocks, and over-
hanging the tomb, is a copse of red cedar; but whether native or
transplanted is not stated. Its evergreen boughs present a fine
contrast to the hoary and leafless branches of the oak ; and while
the deciduous foliage of the latter indicates the decay of the

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[June,

body, the eternal verdure of the former furnishes a beautiful
emblem of the immortal spirit.”

La Fayette’s visit to the tomb of Washington, as described by
M. Levasseur, is interesting and touching. “ As v/e approached,”
says he, “ the door of the tomb was opened. La Fayette de-
scended alone into the vault, and a few minutes after he re-
appeared with his eyes overflowing with tears. He took his son
and myself by the hand, and led us into the tomb, where by a
sign he indicated the coffin of his paternal friend, alongside of
which was that of his companion in life, united for ever to him
in the grave. We knelt reverently near his coffin, which we
respectfully saluted with our lips; rising, we threw ourselves
into the arms of La Fayette, and mingled our tears with his.”

“Flow gently, Potomac! thou washest away
The sands where he trod, and the turf where he lay,

When youth brush’d his cheek with her wing ;

Breathe softly, ye wild winds, that circle around
That dearest, and purest, and holiest ground.

Ever pressed by the footprints of spring.

Each breeze be a sigh, and each dewdrop a tear.

Each wave be a whispering monitor near.

To remind the sad shore of his story ;

And darker, and softer, and sadder the gloom
Of that evergreen mourner that bends o’er the tomb.

Where Washington sleeps in his glory.”

Brainard.

The subject of this digression will naturally plead its excuse.
While lying in sight of Mount Vernon in a ship-of-war, compri-
sing within her oaken walls more effective force than the whole
American navy could display at the time this beautiful spot first
received the name it bears, such reminiscences occurred too
forcibly to the mind to be passed unnoticed. But the anchor
was again weighed, and our new ship-of-war soon left Mount
Vernon far in the distance.

After a passage of several days, requiring great vigilance, and
without encountering any serious accident, the Potomac came to
anchor on the afternoon of the 23d June in Hampton-Roads,
about eight miles below Norfolk, which is the most commercial
town of Virginia, and is defended by several forts, the most im-

1831.] DEATH OP EX-PRESIDENT MONROE. 17

portant of which is on Craney Island, near the mouth of the
Elizabeth river, about five miles below the town. The United
States commissioners who were appointed in 1818 to survey the
lower part of Chesapeake Bay, reported that Hampton-Roads,
though extensive, were capable of adequate defence, so as to
prevent the entrance of an enemy’s fleet. We therefore trust
that our national metropolis will henceforth be secure from
invasions.

The general instructions of the secretary of the navy to Com-
modore Downes, as commander of the Potomac and of the Pacific
squadron, are dated on the 27th of June, 1831. He was ordered
to proceed to New-York by the 1st of August, if possible ; and
there receive on board the Honourable Martin Van Buren and
suite, the recently-appointed minister to the court of St. James,
who was to be landed at Portsmouth, or some other convenient
port in the British channel. The commodore was then directed to
make the best of his way to the Pacific Ocean by a passage round
Cape Horn, first touching at Brazil. These instructions contain
full and official directions as to the steps to be taken for the pro-
tection of American commerce and sustaining the honour of the
American flag, as well as for increasing the domestic resources
of our own country, by obtaining and preserving such foreign
staple productions as might be naturalized in our own soil.
These instructions, so creditable to the department and to the
character of our country, are given at length in the Appendix.

Our frigate lay in Hampton-Roads until the 15th of July,
during which period all hands were busily employed in taking
on board such necessary stores as could be procured at this
place. Here her officers first received the intelligence of a third
point to a coincidence of a very remarkable character. On the
4th of July, the anniversary of our national independence, James
Monroe, the fifth president of the United States, breathed his last,
in the city of New-York, at the residence of his son-in-law,
Samuel Governeur, Esq. This event had been for some time
expected, and was several days previous to his death momentarily
looked for. His spirit, however, was permitted to linger in the
body until his country’s birthday came round ; and he departed
while a grateful nation, for whose independence he had fought
and bled — a nation which venerated him while living, and which

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[July,

hallows his memory now as in the foremost rank of its benefactors
— was holding its jubilee ! Thus, by a coincidence for which it
would be difhcult to find a parallel in history, three patriots of
the revolution, who had successively graced the presidential
chair, were called away to a more permanent state of existence oit
the glorious anniversary of the independence which they had so
zealously laboured to achieve. The death of James Monroe on
the 4th of July, 1831, completed the threefold miracle that was
doubtless intended to convince the most skeptical of the divine
superintendence of that providence which raised up these three
statesmen and patriots for the purpose of achieving the work of
independence. “ Did this event stand single in our annals,” says
an orator of much deserved celebrity, “were it unconnected in
our memories with the deaths, on a former anniversary of the
same glorious day, of two of his illustrious predecessors, — even
then a similar removal of the deceased would have been deemed
admonitory, and would have commanded a solemn and appropriate
notice. But following, as it does, that signal union in their flight
from this world of the immortal spirits of Adams and Jefferson,
the departure of Monroe must impress us with an awful sense of
a divine interposition, and awaken a lively gratitude for the favour
and protection of an overruling providence.”

On the 15th of July the Potomac, in conformity to orders,
sailed from Hampton-Roads for the port of New-York, for the
purpose of completing her outfits of all kinds, and also to receive
her commander on board ; who, having received his orders from
the department, was nearly ready to take the immediate com-
mand. Nothing material occurred during the passage of the
frigate to New-York. On Wednesday, the 20th of July, she
was announced by telegraph as being anchored outside the bar,
waiting for a fair wind to enter the harbour. On the following
day she proceeded up the bay in gallant style, and came to
anchor off the Battery, in the Hudson river.

Although it was for some time intended that the Potomac
should proceed from New-York to England, in order to convey
our newly-appointed minister, the Honourable Martin Van Buren,
to the court of St. James as before stated, this arrangement, it
will be seen, was ultimately abandoned, and Mr. Van Buren pro-
ceeded to England in the regular packet-ship President, which

1831.]

ADDITIONAL INSTRUCTIONS.

sailed on the 9th of August ; while new and additional orders
were issued from the navy department, which totally changed the
intended course of the Potomac, and sent her round the southern
cape of the opposite continent.

On the 4th of August the United States frigate Hudson, Cap-
tain Cassin, arrived in New-York from Rio Janeiro, via Bahia,
having left the latter place on the 2d of July. There were now
three commanders’ pennants floating over the waters of this port';
viz. the hlue of Commodore Chauncey, who commanded the station;
the red of Commodore Downes, who commanded the Potomac;
and the white of Commodore Cassin, who commanded the Hud-
son ; — blue, red, and white being the order of the navy.

About the middle of July information was received in the
United States of the piratical attack which had been made upon
the ship Friendship, of Salem, on the coast of Sumatra, in the
month of February preceding; the Malays having treacherously
seized that vessel, and massacred part of her crew, who were
receiving on board a cargo of pepper. The particulars of this
unparalleled outrage on the United States flag and the lives and
property of her citizens, will be given in detail in its proper place,
where a chapter shall be devoted exclusively to the subject.
The public were unanimous in calling for a redress of such an
atrocious grievance, and the Potomac was now designated by
government to perform that service instead of proceeding directly
to her original destination. The route of the frigate to her station
in the Pacific, as contemplated in the previous instructions, was
therefore immediately changed, that measures might be promptly
and effectually taken to punish so outrageous an act of piracy ;
Mr. Van Buren having, for this purpose, magnanimously relin-
quished his purpose of taking passage in the frigate, as the land-
ing him in England would delay her arrival at the scene of this
perfidious attack.

Messrs. Silsbee, Pickman, and Stone, of Salem, addressed a
letter to Washington, dated on the 20th July, 1831, requesting
that measures might be adopted by government for the punish-
ment of the offenders in the case of the Friendship ; but before
this letter had reached Washington, arrangements for that purpose
had been put in progress by the secretary of the navy on the 19th
of that month, and a letter written to Salem on the subject on

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[August,

the 22d, of which they were apprized by another letter dated the
25th of July, in reply to that of the 20th before referred to ; in
which they were requested to furnish the department with such
local information relative to the region where the outrage was
committed, as might become essential in seeking indemnity or
inflicting punishment on the perpetrators. A copy of this letter
will also be found in the Appendix. Through the medium of
this correspondence the government obtained the services of a
gentleman of Salem, who had been personally concerned in the
pepper-trade on the coast — was on board the Friendship when
attacked, and was well acquainted with that part of Sumatra.

The preparations being completed, additional instructions on
this branch of the cruise were given to the commander, as before
mentioned, by the secretary of the navy, on the 9th of August.
In order to appreciate the judgment and caution with which these
instructions on so delicate and important a subject were drawn
up, as well as to enable the reader, in the sequel, to judge of the
faithful and ofiicer-like manner in which they were carried into
execution, it will be necessary for him to recur to the copy which
we have been permitted to insert at length in the Appendix. By
these instructions it will be seen he was directed to proceed from
Rio Janeiro to the east by the Cape of Good Hope, to call the
treacherous Malays to an account, and redress our grievances in
that quarter; and from thence, after visiting certain ports in the
Chinese Seas, to cross the vast Pacific, and take command of the
squadron on the west coast of South America.

With reference to the outrage in question, the public press
evinced a sensitiveness which did honour to the editorial corps.
Only a few days previous to the sailing of the Potomac, many
articles on the subject appeared in the daily papers, from one of
which the following extracts are copied : — “ As far as public sen-
timent can be collected from the newspapers and from general
conversation, it appears to be the unanimous wish of the nation
that one or more of our ships-of-war should be despatched to the
western coast of Sumatra, to look after our commercial interests
in that remote sea, and punish the natives for the outrage recently
committed upon the ship Friendship, of Salem.” In the same
article it is added, “ A high-handed outrage has been committed,
and if it be suffered to pass by unavenged, we know not hovv

1831.]

TRIBUTES OF AFFECTION.

many others may occur. The approaching departure of the
Potomac will afford the government an opportunity of intrusting
the expedition to an intelligent, active, and gallant officer, who,
we apprehend, would teach these piratical vagabonds such a les-
son respecting American manners and customs as would hereafter
induce them to mend their own.”

Although Commodore Downes had hoisted his broad pennant
on board of the Potomac on the 24th of July, he was still absent
on business until the 23d of August. During this period the
Potomac lay at anchor off Castle Garden, in the North river,
and every arrangement deemed necessary for a long and distant
voyage was completed.

The wind, which for several days had blown from an unfavour-
able quarter, chopped round on the morning of the 24th of August,*
and gave us a fine light breeze from the northwest. “ All hands
up anchor, ahoy !” was the cheerful cry which passed through
the ship before five o’clock, ere the rising sun had gilded the tall-
est spires of the city. This summons was succeeded by a scene
of bustle and excitement which can only be realized by one who
has witnessed its effects on the officers and crew of a man-of-
war bound on a distant cruise. The Potomac’s canvass wings
were suddenly expanded, as if by magic, and the gallant vessel
moved slowly but gracefully from her anchorage down the bay,
until Sandy Hook lighthouse bore east by south half-south, when
she' was again brought to anchor.

The wind and tide both favoured the departure of the Potomac
on the morning of the 26th, and by eight o’clock she had passed
the bar with a fine leading breeze. The maintopsail was now
laid to the mast, while the pilot made his hasty preparations to
depart. At such a moment most vessels, but, perhaps, especially
a man-of-war, present a busy and interesting scene. There had
been ample leisure for writing during the days of detention by
contrary winds ; but the last moment on such occasions must
always be embraced; and the state-rooms of the officers, the
ward-room, steerage, and cockpit, are occupied by writers pen-
ning hasty adieus, despatching the last little earnest of continued
affection. If this be a mere matter of feeling, be it so ; there is
something sacred in it which the warm heart can always appre-
ciate— for a line written at the moment the noble vessel lies

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[August,

shaking in the wind, and about to bound fearlessly on her destined
track, must always possess a value that under no other circum-
stances can be imparted to it.

The pilot, having taken charge of these sacred scraps, hastened
to his little boat, which had been dancing on the undulating
billows near the Potomac like another nautilus during the whole
of the morning. The ship was now filled away, and every draw^
ing sail set, bearing to the south and east.

There have so often pretty things been said, and so many fine
.changes rung on language in describing the feelings of the heart
on bidding to our “ native land good night,” that we shall attempt
nothing of the kind here. We are well aware, however, that
thousands are daily taking their departure without evincing any
unusual emotions about it ; and yet we do really believe no one
can thus depart without experiencing emotions which do credit to
the human heart.

In four hours, and they were short ones, the last faint lines of
the highlands had vanished, and the active duties to which many
were called seemed to relieve them, from the recollections of
home. But it is the youth, the young reefers,” who have for
the first time left the parental fireside, who are likely to feel
much in moments like these. Though previous to their embarca-
tion they think they have a tolerably correct idea of the privations
and toils of the mariner’s life, and feel their minds well fortified
to combat the most untoward events ; yet, when in the space of
a few hours they find themselves tossing upon the mighty deep,
and that deep begirt only by the open horizon, the ship dashing
with each freshening breeze, with accumulated velocity, from all
their young affections hold dear ; ’tis then that the heart, despond-
ing, shorn of every pride, feels its frailty, and owns how strong is
that cord which binds to country and home.

They now renaember with the liveliest feelings and emotions
of filial affection, that the kind adnaonitions of a father were really
and in truth kind. Bygone hours and days, spent from home
with convivial friends, or in search of some momentary pleasure,
now present themselves to their lively imaginations, shaking their
“ gory locks,” upbraiding them with their time mispent — or, if
not entirely mispent, they feel they might have been much bet-
ter employed in the society of a fond mother or sister— of those

1831.]

FINAL DEPARTURE.

whom they now sensibly feel are and ever must be the truest
objects of their affections and obedience.

Having gained a sufficient offing, the anchors were, as is usual,
securely stowed, cables unbent and coiled in their respective
tiers, and, in the language of a thrifty housewife, as well as of
the sailor, every thing “ made snug.'^

VOYAGE or THE POTOMAC.

[August,

CHAPTER II.

Sea-sickness — The Gulf-stream — A Storm at Sea — Cape de Verds — St. Antonio

— A Whale-ship — Trial of Speed — Crossing the Equator — Rio Janeiro — Cour-
teous Reception of the Frigate.

On the second day following her departure from Sandy Hook,
a tumbling sea caused an irregular pitching and rolling motion of
the vessel, peculiarly unpleasant to those who were unaccustomed
to the turbulent domains of Neptune. The certainty, however,
that sea-sickness is not fatal in its effects, and that, sooner or
later, a restoration to health will ensue, has sometimes encour-
aged others, whose stomachs are proof against this scourge of the
“ fresh man of the sea,” to sport in wanton mood with the de-
jected feelings of the sufferer. Yes, we repeat, sufferer, for
woful experience has taught, that, of all the “ evils which flesh
is heir to,” none is so unpleasant, for the time being, as sea-sick-
ness. The spirits droop, the heart sickens — a total indifference
to life, death, friends, home, country, succeeds — until every thing
seems swallowed up in that nauseating stupor which preys upon
the very spirit itself!

The autumnal equinox was now fast approaching, a season of
the year which frequently introduces itself into the North Atlantic
with storms and tempests, and even violent and destructive hur-
ricanes.

As the Potomac approached the gulf-stream, she underwent
the usual preparation for storms and squalls, so generally met
with in this portion of the Atlantic ; so usual, indeed, that it
has become proverbial —

“ That in the stream
The lightnings gleam,

And Boreas blows his blast.”

The commodore had hoped to escape every thing like a gale,
quite content to try the qualities of his ship for sailing with fine

1831.]

STORM WITH VIVID LIGHTNING.

breezes and clear weather. In this, he was disappointed ; as, on
the twenty-eighth, the wind, which had for some hours prevailed
from the eastward, with rain, partially died away, the sky became
overcast with threatening appearances, which the wary and ex-
perienced seamen very soon recognised as the prelude to the
approaching gale. No light sails were spread to woo the fickle
breeze, but topgallant and royal yards were sent upon deck, and
the flying jib-boom housed. As the night set in, the wind in-
creased.

“ Now, while on high the freshening gale she feels,

The ship beneath her lofty pressure reels.

Th’ auxiliar sails, that court a gentle breeze.

From their high stations sink by slow degrees.”

The courses were hauled up, jib stowed, mizzen-topsail furled,
spanker lowered, and the fore and main-topsails double reefed.
It is at such times, and on such service as this, that the brave
daring, the recklessness of danger, the ambition to be foremost
when duty calls, no matter where, shine most conspicuous in the
character of the thorough-bred and true sailor.

“ ’Tis his the harder toil to share.

To reef, to furl the sail ;

To face the, lightning’s lurid glare.

And brave the sweeping gale.”

Indeed, the true sailor takes pleasure in doing his duty amid
real dangers, when he feels that the “ superior officer set over
him” is competent to judge whether or not that duty is performed
in a seaman-like manner.

The gale, for by eight, P. M.,’ it had the strength of one, in-
creased every moment till ten, when the ship was brought to,
head to the southward and westward, under close-reefed fore and
main-topsails, and courses furled ; when, at the same time, the
foretopmast-staysail was hauled down, and the fore-storm stay-
sail set.

Soon after midnight the gale had increased to almost a perfect
hurricane, and the ship was pressed down by the irresistible
blast, until relieved by furling the close-reefed fore-topsail, and
setting the main and mizzen-storm staysails. From twelve to

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC*

[September.

four, A. M., it blew with a violence seldom witnessed, even in
this region of tempests. The sea, which the evening before had
been comparatively, smooth, now rolled in mountains before the
storm. Seldom had the electric fluid assumed such a variety of
colours in so short a period of time. Though the flashing was
incessant, yet in the space of a few seconds were exhibited, in
the coruscations of the subtile fluid, all the varying colours of the
rainbow ; twice did it pass down the fore-conductor, assuming on
the second descent a most singular appearance. As the fluid fol-
lowed the conductor, at each link of the chain, an electric spark
was thrown off of the deepest red, while the livid line of light
simultaneously marking the direction of the conductor, rendered
it a singular phenomenon.

The rain, at intervals, fell in torrents ; indeed, the roar of
winds, and heavy peals of thunder, the successive and vivid
flashes of lightning, laying bare the angry surface of the troubled
waters, and presenting to the view, masts, ropes, rigging, and
the men toiling upon the yards, and at the next moment all in
darkness, imparted to the night a character of wild and terrific
grandeur seldom sm'passed.

To the green reefers, as the younger midshipmen are some-
times jocosely called on board a man-of-war, this was rather a
rough introduction into the mysteries of their profession. Indeed,
it may be doubted, if any protege of Neptune, even one of his
eldest sons, could view, without concern, the high and soul-stir-
ring sublimity of such a storm at sea ; his stately ship, like a
huge animal struggling with the elements, now poising on the
top of a deeply undulatory wave, now sinking in the trough of
the sea, and again rising and bursting through the phosphoric
gloamings of the crested billow, and dashing the water from her
sides, as the lion shakes the dewdrops from his mane.

As the morning dawned, the gale abated, and moderate breezes
from the north succeeded, with a high and irregular sea. The
latitude was 36“ north, longitude 66“ west.

The metamorphosis which a vessel undergoes, after the abate-
ment of a storm, is always a pleasant sight ; and hence no sound
is heard with more joy, on such occasions, than the vociferation
ef the boatswain, as “ all hands make sail, ahoy !” is repeated by
his mates through all parts of the vessel. To this call officers

1831.J

CAPE DE VERBS.

and men respond with alacrity, as it is the harbinger of fine
weather and clear skies. The stately topmasts of pine soon
bear their flowing sheets, while the unfolding brails of the heavier
sails add apparent dignity and strength to all below. Topgallant
sails, royals, and studding sails, spread, as if by magic, their
white surface to the breeze, and bright eyes, and cheerful glee,
show that the storm has sunk to rest.

Early on the morning of the twenty-first September, St. An-
tonio, one of the Cape de Verd islands, was in sight, bearing
southeast, and about ten miles distant. This is the most west-
ern, or rather northwestern island, of the whole group, being in
latitude 14° north, longitude 25° 30' west. The reefs were
turned out of the topsails, with the view of keeping off, and, if
possible, avoiding the calms which ships are liable to experience
when they pass near this lofty island, some of the mountains of
which are nearly as high as the Peak of Tenerifie. As a gen-
eral remark, all vessels not wishing to touch at the Cape de
Verds, should keep at least thirty miles to the west of St. An-
tonio, and thereby avoid the frequent calms which take place
within ten or fifteen miles of the land.

The voyage of the Potomac, thus far, had not been very favour-
able, as her course had not been facilitated by any winds which
were entitled to the appellation of trade. On the day following,
the commodore stood in close with the island of Brava, the most
southern of the group, and by far the most fruitful. Two boats
were now despatched towards the shore, in charge of Lieutenant
Pinkham, to procure, if possible, fruits and vegetables. The
principal landing-place is on the northeast part of the island,
though hopes were entertained that a landing might be effected
on the west side, in the offing of which the Potomac lay.

After rowing several miles to the southeast, along the shore,
without finding a single spot against which the sea did not break
with violence, the boats were compelled to return to the frigate,
Upon the sides of almost perpendicular mountains and cliffs,
goats and monkeys were seen ; the latter keeping up an incessant
chattering, as if alarmed at the near approach of the boat to-
wards their airy and solitary abode. But no human beings were
visible, save two only, who were seated on a rock, fishing, in a
state of perfect nudity. Thus failing in his intention of procuring

28 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [Octobcr,

refreshments, the commodore shaped Ids course for tlie capital
of the Brazilian empire.

In approaching the equator, a rather unusual share of baffling
winds and showers of rain were thought to prevail. In latitude
of about three, north, on the night of Saturday, the first of Oc-
tober, a brilliant light was seen from the deck, in a northwest
direction. Many believed it a vessel on fire ; but on more atten-
tive examination, it was found to be a whale-ship, “ taking care”
of the successful labours of the preceding day.

On the following morning, which was Sunday, the vessels
were so near each other, that the commodore allowed a boat to be
lowered, to board the whaler. She proved to be the ship Mer-
cury, forty days from New-Bedford, bound to the Pacific ; having
had the good fortune to take a “ hundred barrel” spermaceti, not
a common circumstance ; as, we believe, that of more than ten
thousand a year taken by our ships, only four have been known
to produce more than one hundred and twenty barrels.

This vessel, the Mercury, had been distinguished as the swift-
est sailer in the South Sea fleet; and had gained no little
notoriety in the year 1828, in a trial of speed with the United
States frigate Brandywine, both leaving Payta, on the coast of
Peru, and beating dead against the southerly tradewinds ; in
which contest the Mercury came out in advance. A similar
trial of speed took place between the whaler and our own goodly
ship, as will be seen directly.

At meridian, on the second of October, a sail was reported
from aloft, directly ahead, and standing for us. At half past two,
we had neared the stranger sufficiently to perceive that she was
a clipper brig ; and she, on her part, appeared to be satisfied with
the view she had of the frigate, as she soon tacked, and stood on
the same course as ourselves, which was directly opposite to her
track when first discovered. At three, P. M., beat to quarters,
and,' run in the gun-deck guns, closed up the ports, and otherwise
disguised the Potomac as a merchantman, as much as possible.
It was about a four-knot breeze, and all the sail we could put on
the ship to advantage, had been spread from the first of the chase ;
at dark we lost sight of her, about two points on our weather
bow, and distant about five miles. The Mercury was now near
us, on our weather quarter. We had gained considerably on the

1831.]

CROSSING THE LINE,

chase, but not sufficiently to bring her within range of the eye
after the night , had set in. From that time until daylight, we
tacked four times, endeavouring to get to windward, and inter-
cepting what we had made up in our minds was a slaver ; the
Mercury following our motions, and keeping as near as she
could. .

At daylight on Monday morning, the third, the Mercury was
on our lee-beam, and, as our logbook expresses it, “ the brig on
our weather quarter.” We were on the other tack immediately^
which brought us directly in her wake, and we felt assured that
she could not escape us. Owing to the light wind, it was twelve
o’clock (noon) before we came within hailing distance, when, as
she shovved no disposition to heave to, our colours were hoisted,
and she was ordered by the commodore to do so, when she hoisted
English colours, and immediately complied. Our boat was sent
to board her ; and, in a short time, returned with the information
that she was the English brig Brothers, from Liverpool, bound to
Pernambuco. Great was our surprise to learn from the captain,
that that morning was the first of his seeing us ! The chase of
yesterday had escaped.

After several days of light winds and calms, a fine breeze from
the southeast sprang up on Wednesday, the fifth. .Our friend
the whaler, who was still near us, stood his ground for some time
with the Potomac ; while the speed of the latter did not exceed
seven or eight miles an hour. But as the wind increased, the
frigate began to draw ahead ; and, from being, at nine o’clock,
A. M., within gunshot, at three in the afternoon, he could only
be seen, indistinctly, from the mast-head, astern ! From this fact,
something could be inferred as to the good qualities of the
Potomac.

On crossing the equator, there was nothing seen of Neptune or
Amphitrite, in the process of inducting those of the crew who
had never crossed the line, or been initiated into the mysteries
of his marine highness. Commanders differ in opinion as to the
propriety of permitting the “ old sea-dog'' to exercise his rough
jokes upon those who are about to pass, for the first time, into
the southern hemisphere.

We are not of that school who foresee ruin to the navy, and
annihilation to commerce, because sailors have cut off their long

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[October,

queues, and, in a thousand other respects, are different from what
they were an age ago ; and the antique custom just alluded to, a
relic of heathen superstition, without even the merit of classical
embellishment to recommend it, may be well dispensed with, as it
must often do harm, and cannot, in any possible instance, be pro-
ductive of good.

In an age like the present, distinguished for the march of im-
provement, and replete with discovery and advancement in every
department of human science and knowledge ; when a single day
produces results which years could not have formerly effected, it
cannot be expected that the sailor alone should remain uninflu-
enced by the revolutions which every thing else in the moral
universe is perpetually undergoing. The changes which have
been wrought in his manners and customs, have been most un-
questionably for the better.

In illustration of this remark, it may be here mentioned, that,
during the passage from New-York, great attention had been paid
to drill the men in the exercise of the great guns. Every day,
when the weather would permit, these exercises were performed ;
and, once a week, all went to general quarters, when all the exer-
cises and manoeuvring of a regular attack and defence were car-
ried through with the same precision as if the frigate were en-
gaged in a real action with an enemy. A division of one hundred
and fifty men, at this time, also, were being drilled to the use of
the musket ; and they evinced a readiness in the acquisition of
this new species of seamanship, not to have been expected, from
the generally supposed repugnance, on the part of Jack Tar, to
the use of small arms ; or to the acquirement of any accomplish-
ment which more properly appertains to the soldier.

It is not strange, that, in the olden time, when sailors were
dragged by force into involuntary servitude on board ships-of-
war, and performed their allotted duties only at the point of the
bayonet, that strong dislike should have been engendered against
those who were mere tools in the hands of others, to enforce the
observance of regulations to which they had never willingly sub-
scribed. Shipping articles, in those days, were mere mockeries,
and the marines were relied on to hold the sailors in bondage. It
required time to smooth such asperities in the human breast, and
hence, no doubt, arose the prejudice of the sailor to the life, char-

1831.]

LAND IN SIGHT,

acter, and profession of the soldier. On board of the Potomac,
this animosity did not seem to exist ; or, if it did exist, its influ-
ence was but weak, as sailor and marine appeared to mingle
together in peace and good-will, as men who might be required
mutually to stand by and support each other.

Nothing material occurred until the morning of Sunday, the
sixteenth, when the exhilarating announcement of “ Land, ho !”
from the mast-head, produced a new excitement through every
part of the ship. It proved to be Cape Frio, or Cold Cape, as it
is called, which bore west-northwest, forty -five miles distant; and
at six, P. M., the same cape bore north by east, twenty-five miles
distant. This cape is in latitude 23° 30', longitude 42° 2', about
twenty leagues east of Rio Janeiro. The ship was hoven to,
during the night, with her head to the south-and-east ; the weather
being cloudy, and the wind fresh. At about midnight, a vessel
was seen to the eastward, but not near enough to be spoken.

In the morning, it was found that the current, which uniformly
sets to the southward and westward along this part of the coast,
together with a high sea, at this time heaving in the same direc-
tion, had borne the Potomac to the leeward of the entrance
of the harbour of Rio Janeiro. While in the act of wearing
ship, in the midst of a squall. Razor Island was discovered ; and,
immediately afterward, the breakers on Baga Island, while the
thickness of the weather hid from view every other part of the
coast. The instant these landmarks were recognised, the com-
modore ordered the ship brought upon the wind, on the star-
board tack; and such confidence had he in her qualities to
weather the island and enter the harbour, that he directed
the mainsail, jib, and spanker to be set, in addition to the single-
reefed topsails and foresail. It was a moment of some anxiety ;
and the Potomac, by occasionally immerging the muzzles of
her gun-deck guns in the water, gave evidence of the pow-
erful exertions she was making; though a strong weather-bow
current was running, together with a heavy head sea. Still,
her wake was as straight, apparently, as a clipper’s ; and, in an
hour, the island was weathered, and, with square yards, she was
brought to her anchorage in fine style. The maritime community
were not a little surprised to see a frigate enter the harbour on
such a morning, and in a living gale of wind.

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[October,

There were lying in the harbour at this time, his Britannic
majesty’s ship Dublin, a razee of fifty guns, thirty-two-pounders,
Lord James Townsend in command ; the Druid frigate. Captain
Hamilton, and two sloops of war ; a small Swedish frigate, and
the French commodore, in a double banked frigate. Also, the
Brazilian frigate Constitution, the only one in commission, bear-
ing the broad pennant of Commodore Jewett.

From each of these vessels, officers were sent to the Potomac,
offering to Commodore Downes, in the name of their command-
ers, such assistance as he might stand in need of. The Brazilian
government, through an officer despatched to the proper authori-
ties, immediately on the Potomac coming to anchor, congratulated
the commodore on his safe arrival, and expressed their willingness
to return the salute customary to be interchanged between
nations at peace with each other. For the seventeen guns of the
Potomac, nineteen were returned from the Brazilian fort. This
was probably an error ; if not, it was highly complimentary to
our flag. Be this as it may, instances are not wanting, where the
friendly feeling of these people has been made manifest towards
the star-spangled banner of the United States. So far as our
country had been represented at Rio by the lamented Tudor, the
Brazilians could not be at a loss for a motive to pay the highest
respect to our national flag. In the successor to this worthy
man, we have been fortunate in having secured the services of
the Honourable E. A. Brown, a ripe scholar, possessing every
requisite qualification for usefulness in such a station.

Mr. Brown visited the Potomac during her stay at Rio, and
was received with the salute usually given to the foreign repre-
sentatives of our country. The hospitality of our consul, Mr.
Wright, and of other American citizens resident in Rio, is grate-
fully recollected'by the officers of the Potomac; and Mr. Brown,
our charge d’affaires, seems to have made many friends by his
urbanity and gentlemanly deportment. With these, the house of
the Messrs. Burkitts was often visited with pleasure, and added not
a little to the enjoyment of our officers during their stay at
Rio.

The United States ship Lexington, Master-commandant Dun-
can, had arrived at Rio some time before the Potomac, in sixty-
two days from Norfolk. Like the frigate, she had been disap-

CLAIMS ON BRAZIL.

tSSl.]

pointed in meeting with the northeast trades ; and had, also, ex-
perienced much calm weather near the equator.

Our claims on the Brazilian government have been adjusted.
These claims were founded on a “few mistakes'^ which had
occurred during the late war with Buenos Ayres, when the
blockading squadron of the La Plata had appropriated to their
own use and behoof sundry vessels and cargoes, belonging to
sundry good citizens of the United States, who were navigating
the high seas upon “their lawful occasions.”

The British government was at this time urging its claims to
indemnity for spoliations upon her commerce, committed under
similar circumstances with those upon our own vessels ; but, it
Would appear, with less success. Both parties were evidently-
growing warm upon the subject, and, but a short time previously,
the commander of the British squadron threatened that he would
blockade the port, and make reprisals. Whether the threat was
officially communicated to the Brazilian government or not, we
do not pretend to know; but the fleet did get imder way, and
proceed off the harbour ; and, after backing and filling for a day
or two in a rather menacing manner, returned to its original
anchorage.

There were those who were ready, of course, to indulge in a
sarcastic smile at this manoeuvre of Admiral Baker, which, it ap-
pears, had not the desired effect, if it had been done for that pur-
pose. The Cortez Avas at this time in session ; and the claims
preferred by the British government seemed to give rise to much
excitement between the two parties.

We have stated above, that our claims on the Brazilian govern-
ment were adjusted ; that is, the principle of settlement had been

agreed on, though much in detail remained to be done.

€

VOYAGE OF THE POTOltfAC. [OctoBOfV

CHAPTER IIL

Harbour of Rio Janeiro and surrounding Scenery — Appearance of its entrance from
the Offing — Its works of Defence — City of Rio, or St. Sebastian — Public Square)
Faqade, and Fountain — Public Buildings, Houses, and Shops — Paucity of Accom-
modations for Strangers — Climate, Food, and Health — Arcos de Carioco, or
Grand Aqueduct — Discovery and Settlement of Brazil — Injustice to the Natives
— Origin of the African Slave Trade — Discovery and settlement of Rio Janeiro —
Emigration of the Royal Family — Their Return to Portugal — Civil Revolution in
Brazil — Accession of Don Pedro — War with Buenos Ayres, terminated by an
unpopular Treaty — Abdication of Don Pedro — Insurrectionary Symptoms — Cler-
ical Abuses — Population of Rio— Condition of the Slaves — Natural Productions
— Theatrical /e^e on board- the Potomac.

Had human agency'been exercised in planning and' Constructing,
for human use, the harhom.' of Rio Janeiro, it would be impossible
to conceive a more felicitous result. It is a beautiful and capa-
cious basin, imbosomed among elevated mountains, whose conical
summits are reflected from the translucent surface of its quiet
waters. The entrance is so narrow, and its granite barriers so
bold, that it was, doubtless, often passed by early navigators, be-
fore it was suspected that such a retired and hidden inlet existed.
To the aborigines of the country, it was known by a name corre-
sponding to its character ; for they called it “ Hidden water,”
which, in their language, is expressed by the term Nithero-hy .

As this part of the Brazilian coast runs nearly east and west,
the entrance of the harbour opens to the south, a few miles, of
the tropic of Capricorn. It is defended by the Fort of Santa
Cruz on the east, opposite to which are others of suitable
strength, in vicinity of a high conical hill, called the “ Sugar-
loaf,” which some modern travellers have compared to the “ lean-
ing tower of Pisa.”^

The entrance to this celebrated estuary, when seen from the
offing, presents the appearance of a gap, or chasm, in the high
ridge of mountains which skirt this part of the coast ; and which,-
doubtless, once dammed up the waters within, until their con-
tinually accumulating weiglit burst the adamantine barrier which

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1831.'}

RIO DE JANEIRO.

had hitherto held them in confinement, and, spurning farther re-
straint, forced a passage to the ocean. In the same manner, the
Blue Ridge of Virginia was evidently rent in twain by the two
united rivers, whose mingled waters now form the Potomac ; and
some suppose that the highlands of the Hudson once exhibited
the same phenomenon. The fragments created by this con
vulsion of nature at Rio, are supposed to have been thrown into
the sea, where they still remain, before the entrance of the har-
bour, in the form of a bar, on which there is never more than ten
fathoms of water, while, just within it, there is not less than
eighteen. However this may be, the chasm itself, as it now
exists, presents a most picturesque appearance, opening as it
does between two lofty mountains — Signal Hill on the right, the
Sugarloaf cone on the left. These two remarkable piles of
almost naked granite, present a striking contrast with the rest of
the broken ridge, to which they now form abutments, as every
other prominent part is covered with luxuriant vegetation.

On extending the view a little farther inland, the frowning bat-
teries of Santa Cruz castle, tvith the Brazilian banner floating
above them, are seen on the right, based on a solid rock of gran-
ite, thirty feet in height, projecting westwardly from the foot of
Signal Hill. Opposite to this, on the left, eastwardly of Sugar-
loaf cone, . another fortress is discovered, of inferior strength}
while between the two, but nearest to the latter, is a little island,
strongly fortified, known by the appellation of Fort Lucia, which
reduces the width of the passage to about three quarters of a
mile; The Sugarloaf is said to be nearly seven hundred feet in
height, and every accessible spot on that side the entrance is oc->
eupied by batteries, lines, and forts, or rather bears the evidence'
of having thus been occupied.

After passing all these natmally strong-holds, the harbour sud^
denly expands, and extends itself into a circular, or rather ellip-
tical, inland lake, which is sprinkled over with islands which

“ Stand dress’d in living green

and surrounded by mountains rising in many ridges behind each
other, like a vast natural amphitheatre. The tide rises in the
harbour between four and five feet, and there is always sufficient
' depth of water to float vessels of the largest size;

c 2

26 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [Octobef,

The natural scenery which surrounds the harbour and city of
Rio, has been frequently described, and often highly coloured by
travellers. It is, indeed, beautiful to the eye ; but, for our own
part, we do not think that the meandering streams and gently
murmuring rivulets of Brazil, pursue a more tortuous or fanciful
course than those of the United States ; nor can we perceive
that their murmurings are, in the least degree, more “ musically
plaintive,” or excite more tender emotions of the heart, than a
creek of the Alleghany, or a small stream at the foot of the Stony
Mountains, gurgling over the limestone pebbles, to pay its trib-
utary mite to the majestic Missouri. Yet, among the objects that
must arrest the attention on entering this majestic harbour, is the
noble sheet of water, filling an oval basin of thirty miles in
length and nearly fifteen in breadth, sufficiently capacious to con-
tain all the fleets in the world — protected by a chain of moun-
tains rising from its narrow mouth, and extending back, one
above another, until the eye loses them amid white and fleecy
clouds, which play in graceful curls around their airy summits.
This view is certainly pleasing and exhilarating, and it is diver-
sified, in many places, by cultivated spots, even to the highest
elevation ; while the valleys beneath are filled with the rich and
rare fruits, peculiar to the tropics. The shores of this “emerald
gemm’d” basin are also indented with numerous inlets, many of
which are the mouths of rivulets that dash down the declivities
of the mountains, as if eager to mingle with the tranquil waters
of this great bay. Almost every eminence around it, as well as
many of its islands, is crowned with a fort or a castellated parapet
— a church — a convent — or a picturesque ruin.

Although the fortifications already alluded to completely pro-
tect, by their positions, the entrance of the harbour, the whole
of which is commanded from within, by works long since erected
on nearly all the smuounding heights and many of the islands^
but now in ruins or ill repair ; still, the defence of the place is
thought to depend principally on a very strong fort, on the Illia
dos Cobras, or Snake Island, directly in front and near the nortb
angle of the city, from which it is separated only by a deep chan-
nel of moderate width. This island is a solid rock, of about nine
hundred feet in length, three hundred in breadth, and, at the point
where the citadel stands, eighteen feet in height. 'All around, and

i831.]

RIO DE JANEIRO.

close alongside of this strongly-fortified rock, which gradually
declines, at one end, to within a few feet of the water, vessels of
the largest burden may lie in perfect security. Here, also, are
found wharves, dock-yards, magazines, arsenals, naval stores, a
sheer-hulk, and many facilities for heaving down and careening
vessels. Between Fort Lucia and the citadel is another fort,
which commands the anchorage.

The site selected for the town by the early settlers, is, perhaps,
the best that could have been chosen out of many excellent ones
that everywhere present themselves. The city of Rio, otherwise
called St. Sebastian, is situated on the southwest side of the har-
bour, or basin, about four miles from its entrance, and stands on a
quadrangular peninsula, or square tongue of land, extending, on an
inclined plane, a short distance into the bay. The towp itself,
which also exhibits the form of a parallelogram, and rises between
four fortified eminences, which flank it at each comer, presents a
northeast aspect of the basin, whose waters wash three sides of
the square promontory on which it is built-

On a height flanking its eastern angle is a square fort, com-
manding and protecting stores of light ordnance, when deposited
on the point below. Between this and the north angle of the
peninsula, is a beautiful quay, built of solid blocks of chiselled
granite, and forming an elegant fa9ade in front of the city, and an
eligible line for musketry and light cannon, to oppose the landing
of an enemy’s force, in case they should get possession of the
harbour. On the north angle is another conspicuous eminence,
on which stands the Benedictine convent, overloolung the island
Dos Cobras on its east, from which it is separated only by a deep
narrow channel, as before mentioned. On this side of the penin-
sula, near the water’s edge, is a range of storehouses, overlooked
by another square fort, flanking the west angle of the city, and
commanding the imperial dock-yard beyond it. On the south
angle of the town is the fourth eminence alluded to, on which is
built the reservoir for receiving from the great aqueduct the water
which supplies the city, and of which we shall speak presently.
Between the last-mentioned eminence and the waters of the
basin which wash the southeast side of the peninsula, is a public
garden called the Passeo Publico, which is handsomely laid out
in shrubberies, lawns, walks, and parterres.

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[October,

The city is well built, most of the houses being of stone, and
the whole laid out in squares, the streets crossing each other at
right angles. The palace, or imperial residence, faces the water;
and with the open capacious square in front of it, one entire side
of which it occupies, is in full view from the anchorage. This
square, which is the first object that catches the attention of
strangers, is surrounded on three of its sides with, buildings, while
the fourth, which is bounded and lined by the stone qua)?-, is open
to the water. On the quay itself, near its central flight of stairs,
which is the principal landingrplace, in front of the square, is a
beautiful fountain in the form of an obelisk, constructed, like the
pier, of hewn granite; and from each of its four sides is con-
stantly ejected a stream of pure limpid water, for the use of the
lower part of the town, and the shipping in the harbour,

On advancing up the square from the landing, the visiter finds
it paved with a smooth, solid surface, of the same kind of grajrite
of which the obelisk and quay are constructed, and copiously
sprinkled over with quartzose sand, which, together with the
glistening mica of the Rio granite, is very trying to the eyes
under the fervid rays of a tropical and sometimes vertical sun.
The palace,, which occupies the upper side of the square, though
extensive in its dimensions, has nothing particularly magnificent
in its appearance. The other public buildings, including the im-
perial chapel, a cathedral, churches, convents, nunneries, theatre,
opera-house, &c., do not exhibit any imposing views of elegant
architecture. Though originally built with much post and labour,
no pains have been taken to keep them in repair. The streets are
generally straight, but the most of them are narrow and dirty.
The houses are commonly two stories high, with little wooden
balconies in front of the upper windows, where the ladies some-
times present themselves, but not so frequently as in olden time,
to throw flowers and nosegays at the foot passengers, or to listen
to the nocturnal serenades of their lovers. But whether in Italy,
Portugal, or Rio, latticed windows, without glass, always wear a
dull and gloomy aspect to a traveller from England or the United
States. The principal streets of Rio have flagged sidewalks,
like those of our own cities.

The shops are generally large and commodious, and welb sup-
plied with English goods, and various other kinds of merchandise.

Rio RE JANEIRO.

imi.]

Chinese goods eaii also be purchased here at a reasonable rate.
There are many American and English merchants in the city,
who, it is said, are doing a lucrative business ; the export trade
being almost entirely monopolized by them. The jewellers and
lapidaries are principally found in Gold-street, which is the gen-
eral resort of strangers who wish to procure articles in that line..

Although the city of Rio is the capital, and commercial em-
porium of the Brazilian empire, with a population of less than
two hundred thousand souls, including slaves ; and although it is
constantly visited by merchants, traders, and travellers, from Asia,
Europe, and the United States, speckling its harbours with the
flags of almost every nation ; yet it cannot boast of a hotel,
coffee-house, inn, tavern, restaurateur, refectory, boarding-house,
or any decent resort, at which strangers can procure refreshment,
and a comfortable night’s lodging. Comfort, indeed, even in the
imperial palace, must be entirely out of the question, unless roy-
alty enjoy some better protection from the attack of mosquitoes
than the common republican curtains of network can afford ; for
if, by any accident, a single intruder find his way beneath the
netting, wo betide the helpless sufferer within ! Its rascally hum
throughout the night, sometimes within a most threatening vicinity
of the ear, is even worse than the puncture made in the skin with
its sharp proboscis ; for the latter will, at the most, but cause an
irritating titillation, accompanied with a slight degree of swelling
and some inflammation ; but its tuneful serenade is a perpetual
menace, that cannot fail to drive sleep from the pillow of one who
is not drugged with poppies, or worn out with fatigue. These
insects are troublesome enough in some portions of oru own
country, but here we console ourselves with the hope, that they
will dearly pay for their temerity on the first appearance of an
autumnal frost. But between the tropics they are immortal ; or,
at least, a new generation is constantly springing up to take the
places of their progenitors ; and, as with the fruits of the same
climate, their existence is perennial.

With regard to the character, manners, and habits of the Por-
tuguese Brazilians, we are not in this place prepared to say much;
for they seem determined that the eye . of foreign curiosity shall
never penetrate the sanctity of the domestic circle ; and that
strangers shall know but little of them in the private walks and

40 VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC. [Octobef,

social relations of life. They are, in fact, as suspicious and jeal-
ous of foreigners as their ancestors were before them; and so
politely forbidding, generally, are their manners towards visit-
ers, that no traveller, or temporary sojourner, can penetrate the
mystery of their domestic economy.

All travellers agree in charging the Brazilians with the want
of hospitality to strangers, and many futile reasons have been
adduced as the cause of this peculiar trait in their national char-
acter. It is said that they were not always so ; but having
found their hospitality so frequently requited by ingratitude and rid-
icule on the part of their guests, they have of late years assumed
this reserve. This explanation, however, is not satisfactory.
The effect seems to be too disproportioned to the cause ; and, on
looking further for the solution, it is thought that it may be found
deeply rooted in their feelings and prejudices, and strongly mark-
ing their national character. Yet still, as a people, they are cer-
tainly entitled to the appellation of polite; and many of our
officers while on shore, and visiting some of their finest gardens,
were very civilly treated by the owners, who not only seemed to
take a pleasure in showing their visiters all that was interesting,
but in treating them to fruits and flowers, which were tastefully
arranged'in the gardens.

The lower classes, however, the filthiness of whose exteriors
is thought to be a correct indication of the pollutions within,
are said to be revengeful in the extreme ; and assassinations
sometimes occur among them. This is often the case in most
countries where the protection of the church is paramount to
secular power, and where offenders find, or think they find, if not
sanction, at least acquittal, in the forms of their religion ; and
believe that clerical absolution is divine justification. In its true
spirit, we know that they do not. In Rio, many of their priests
are not what they ought to be, and most of them follow but slowly
in the moral and scientific improvements of the age. For, often
hypocrites themselves, they are prone to practise on the credulity
and superstitions of their ignorant followers ; and, in the support
of their dominion over the minds of the lower orders, they hesi^
tate not to commit acts, which, under laws human and divine, rem
der the laity obnoxious to punishment. But more of this anon.

With respect to a majority of the higher classes, persons of

1831.]

RIO DE JANEIRO.

rank and merchants of affluence, we might appropriately apply
part of the epitaph of Lord Lyttleton —

“ Gayly I lived, as ease and nature taught,

And spent my little life without a thought.”

With them, sleeping, eating, and heartless ceremonies, consume
the four-and-twenty hours ; the same dull and unprofitable routine
alternately succeeding with each revolving day, without variety
and without pleasure. The unnatural restraint and undue se-
clusion imposed upon the fair sex, render the ebullitions of their
heartfelt vivacity, when suffered to mingle with society, more
conspicuous and more fascinating. But even in their public
amusements, of which there are not many, the ladies seem to be
watched with a jealous care, by husbands, fathers, or brothers ;
but when they venture to steal a glance at a stranger, their elo-
quent black eyes speak volumes of interesting matter. There is
a theatre and an opera-house here ; but we witnessed the per-
formance of neither. The former, it is said, droops from a
paucity of talent ; and the latter, though more worthy of it, meets
with but little encoiuagement. Concerts and balls occur occa-
sionally, but the climate is not favourable to dancing. The Passeo
Publico is frequented in the evening by small parties, to enjoy the
promenade, the music, and the fireworks. But there can be but
little taste for rational amusements among a people proverbially
indolent, superstitious, and jealous of each other.

The Passeo Publico affords a pleasant promenade, and contains
many native plants and flowers of exquisite beauty. At the lower
end of this garden is a broad terrace walk, from which the com-
pany have a delightful view of the bay and its rising shores,
which are everywhere fringed with coppices. On looking south
a little promontory is seen projecting into the water, on the castel-
lated brow of which stands a monastery, and immediately beyond
it an arm of the harbour, extending westwardly into the land. On
extending the view further south, the beautiful eminence of
Flamingo appears, covered with verdure ; beyond which is another
hill, on the declivity of which stands a religious edifice, called
Gloria Church, and in the extreme distance are seen the Sugar-
loaf and Signal Hill, lifting their aspiring heads to the clouds, and

VOYAGE DP THE POTOMAC.

[Octobor,

overlooking the castle Santa Cruz. At the distance of about a
mile from the city, another fort is seen, emerging, as it were,
from the water, and occupying a position just half way between
Fort Lucia and the citadel on Dos Cobras. Still further north,
on the eastern shore of the basin, appear romantic little villages,
hamlets, gardens, orange-groves, and rustic cottages, without
number ; giving a beautifully picturesque finish to the whole
picture.

At the time of the Potomac’s arrival at Rio, it being their first
summer month, rains were very frequent, and the clouds hung
heavy around the summits of the neighbouring mountains, giving
to their spiral points, peering above this misty covering, the ap-
pearance of immense rocks suspended in the air. The city
itself looked dismal and gloomy, as if to be in keeping with the
unsocial manners of its inhabitants. The climate here, however,
is perhaps as favourable to health, comfort, and even to longevity,
as that of any other place between the tropics. Situated under
the extreme edge of the celestial belt, they have the sun nearly
vertical for a few weeks in December, when the heat is oppres-
sive, particularly during the Christmas holydays, which is their
midsummer. At this season a monsoon regularly sets d9wn the
coast to the southwest, and refreshing seabreezes seldom fail to
visit the inhabitants at about ten o’clock in the morning, invigor-
ating them with new life and spirits.

During all the summer months, say from October to April, they
also suffer considerable inconvenience from heavy rains, to which
they are seldom subject in the months of May, June, July,
August, and September, when the monsoon blows in an opposite
or contrary direction. Both climate and soil are favourable to
the growth of wheat and other grains of the United States, to-
gether with vegetables and fruits of almost every description.
Industry and enterprise are all that is necessary to render this
region the garden of the world ; but these are qualities seldom
found beneath a tropical sky, or in any climate where all the
necessaries, and many of the luxuries of life, are produced spon-
taneously, and where lassitude and indolence are constitutional
maladies.

The food served up at their meals is not such as would gener-
ally please a guest from the United States, the principal part of

RIO RE JANEIRO.

their diet consisting of fish, vegetables, fruit, and a dish oi far inlia
de pao^ or flour of the maniota root. Almost every thing they
put in their mouths is first dipped in oil, and then rolled in the
flour just named, and made up into little balls in the palm of the
hand. Beef, butter, cheese, and milk, are very scarce in Rio, and
of very indifferent quality. Of mutton, we saw none that was
good. The fertile and extensive plains of the southern provinces
abound with innumerable herds of horned cattle, which are
slaughtered principally for the sake of their hides, while the car-
casses are left as a banquet for the tiger, panther, condor, and
eagle, who share it between them. The richness of the soil ren-
ders the grasses too luxuriant, rank, and acrid, for the sustenance
of sheep.

It is believed that there are very few diseases peculiar to this
part of Brazil, except such as necessarily arise in all low lati-
tudes, from bad diet, the neglect of personal cleanliness, and the
indulgence of various propensities. During the rainy seasons,
however, and for a month or six weeks afterward, dysenteries
and intermittent fevers are said to be prevalent. Cutaneous erup-
tions are common among all classes, particularly those of the
lower order, and among the coloured population especially. Lep-
rosy and elephantiasis are among the afflictions of the latter.

But if the diet of the inhabitants of Rio be not always the
most favourable to health, they enjoy one blessing which will
counterbalance a thousand trivial evils, — a supply of pure and
wholesome water. We have already alluded to the reservoir
from which the city is supplied with this indispensable article,
and which is fed by a splendid stone aqueduct, leading from the
mountains, built, it is said, after the manner of similar works in
Rome. This work, which is called Areas de Cariaco, extends
across a deep valley, resting on a double tier of lofty arches, one
above another, and- the water is conducted to the reservoir by a
succession of stone troughs, laid on the top of this two story
bridge, under an arched covering of brickwork. Each tier com-
prises more than forty arches, and the whole of this great work
of utility is highly ornamental to the city, and reflects lasting hon-
our on the name of Vasconcellas, the viceroy under whose admin-
istration it was constructed. All the fountains of Rio are supplied
from this source ; and the name of the public-spirited projector.

44 \roYAGE OP THE POTOMAC. [Octobcr,

Vasconcellas, is recorded on one side of the obelisk before men-
tioned, with an appropriate inscription in Latin.

The Brazilian empire, of which the city of Rio Janeiro is the
capital, lies on the eastern coast of South America, and spreads
to the west, until it covers more than thirty degrees of longi-
tude ; its eastern extremity being on the thirty-fourth, and its
western on the sixty-fifth meridian, west from Greenwich. Its
extent from north to south, where it tapers off to a point, is about
three thousand miles, being from latitude 4° north, to 34° south,
including a debatable region called Banda Oriental, on the north
side of the Rio de la Plata. The entire territory of Brazil is
therefore bounded on the north by Guyana; on the west by
Bolivia and Peru ; on the south by Banda Oriental ; and every-
where else by the North and South Atlantic Oceans,

This country was first discovered by accident, in the year 1500,
by the Portuguese Admiral Pierre Alvazez Cabral, who was on
his way to India, via the Cape of Good Hope, with a squadron
of thirteen ships, manned by twelve hundred men. In order to
avoid the tedious calms and baffling winds which had so much
retarded the progress of all his predecessors in running down the
western coast of Africa, he made a more circuitous route, and
crossed the equator several degrees farther west than any other
navigator had done before him. The consequence was, a brisk
southeast tradewind carried him directly to the coast of South
America, in latitude about sixteen south, where he found a con-
venient bay, in which he could anchor his squadron with safety.
To this inlet, which is some five hundred miles north of Rio Ja-
neiro, he gave the name of Porto Seguro; and, naturally con-
cluding that he had thus discovered a more southern part of the
same continent which had but recently been made known by
Columbus, he took possession of it in the name of his sovereign,
under the appellation of Santa Cruz, or the Holy Cross. The
mouth of the Orinoco, in latitude nine north, was the southern
limit of the discoveries made by Columbus.

The natives were at first much alarmed at this unexpected visit
of the Portuguese, and incontinently fled to their hills and woods.
But having secured two of their number, the admiral presented
them with mirrors, brass rings, bells, and other trinkets, and then
set them at liberty to rejoin their fugitive companions, whose ter-

1831.]

mo DE JANEIRO.

rors were soon appeased, and their confidence restored, A mutual
good understanding now prevailed between the natives and the
Portuguese, who found the country to be extensive, fertile, and
finely wooded, particularly with that valuable species now known
by the name of Brazil wood. Cabral immediately despatched
one of his vessels back to Portugal to communicate the news
of his discovery, and then proceeded to the Cape of Good Hope,
and to his original destination.

Don Emanuel, the King of Portugal, immediately sent out
ships to explore the coasts of this new country, and to plant colo-
nies in several places, for the avowed purpose of converting the
natives to the Christian faith. These new settlements, however,
soon dwindled away, and were finally broken up. The zealous
monarch, still anxiously solicitous for the salvation of the heathen,
and willing to relieve them of some of the mineral treasures with
which it was expected their country abounded, hit upon a new
plan of colonization. He decreed that all convicted felons under
sentence of death, should be banished thither — all who were ob-
noxious to the Holy Inquisition — all who were suspected of her-
esy, sorcery, witchcraft, and, above all, of Judaism; — in short, all
the outcasts and dregs of society, were doomed to perpetual exile
on the shores of Brazil. To the Jews, indeed, banishment was
a welcome sanctuary from the injustice and rapacity they con-
stantly experienced at home ; and neither they nor their compan-
ions in exile had any reason to complain of the arrangement. To
all of them, emigration was emancipation from tyranny and op-
pression.

As these new settlers treated the natives kindly, they were well
received, and soon found their situation much improved. The
fame of the new colony, as being productive of excellent sugar,^
and several other valuable articles, gradually attracted to its coast
many adventurers from Portugal and elsewhere, and several settle-
ments were soon formed in its vicinity. So rapidly did it increase
under the good management of these banished outlaws, these
dregs of humanity, as they were considered, that in less than fifty
years from its commencement, the mother country began to yearn
with tenderness towards her transatlantic children, and she at
length resolved to take them under her own protection, and into
her own especial keeping. For this purpose, Thomas de Souss

46 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [October,

was sent over to superintend the colony as governor-genera] to
make war upon the hospitable and unoffending Indians,^ in order
to reduce them at once to slavery and the true faith ; and to com-
pel them to cultivate the ground for the colonists, on such terms
as he chose to dictate.

This outrageous course of conduct, as might naturally have
been expected,, quickly roused the free independent spirit of the
natives, whose courage and numbers would have soon swept the
intruders from their soil, had it not been for the interference
of some Jesuit missionaries, who had already acquired great
influence over the Indians near the coast, whom they endeav-
oured to persuade to accede to terms of reconciliation with the
colonists. Some consented, and thus became subservient to their
invaders ; but the great mass of the original population, having
lost confidence in their double-dealing neighbours, refused to hold
any further intercourse with such monsters of injustice, but indig-
nantly retired into the interior, resolved, as afterward did the
Araucanians on the western side of the same continent, to maintain
their independence at all hazards. Thus failing in the nefarious
attempt to make slaves of the natives, and being too indolent to
perform their own agricultural labours, they turned their eyes
towards ill-fated Africa, and were the first to commence that
horrible traffic in human flesh, which, for three hundred years
since, has been the disgrace of humanity !

The proscribed outlaws who formed the nucleus of this colony,
which has since grown to a mighty empire, and is now an inde-
pendent nation, originally sealjed themselves at Porto Seguro,
from whence they gradually extended themselves to Bahia de
Todas Santos, or the Bay of All Saints, in latitude 13° 13' south,
longitude 38° 24' west, where they founded the city of St. Salvador.
Here, for many years, was the seat of the colonial^ government,
and the emporium of Brazilian commerce ; the principal articles
of importation being African slaves, twenty thousand of which
were, but a few years ago, imported annually into the different
ports of BraziL

Fifteen years after Cabral’s first landing in Brazil, during which
period the Portuguese navigators had explored a great portion
of the Southern American coast north of the La Plata, the har^
hour of, Rio Janeiro was first discovered by Solis. This hap-

1831.]

mo DE JANEIRO^

pened on the first day of January, being the feast of St.- Janua-
rius. In honour of the day, he conferred the saint’s name on those
waters which had hitherto remained concealed from every eye but
those of the natives ; who, as before stated, had given to this
tranquil basin the significant appellation of Hidden Water. A
thriving colony, in due course of time, surrounded the safe and
capacious harbour, on the banks of which a city was founded,
which grew rapidly in wealth and splendour.

Still, however, for a long period, the seat of government and
of commerce remained at Idaliia de Todas Santos ; which, though
one of the smallest provinces of Brazil, was yet one of the most
fertile, populous, and luxuriant ; St. Salvador would probably have
still been the capital of the empire, but for the fortuitous (we will
not say fortunate) discovery of the rich gold and diamond mines
within three hundred miles of Rio Janeiro, which gave a decided
preponderance to the latter. The viceroy removed thither, and
Rio became the seat of government. It now grew more rapidly ;
and had it not been for the unjust and impolitic restrictions of the
mother country, it would have still increased in trade, industry, and
opulence, and in time become one of the largest and most wealthy
cities of the world. But Portugal thought to retain her colonies
by oppressing them. So thought England, thirty years before
her. Both of these acted under this impression, and both of them
lost the brightest jewels of their crowns.

For a commercial city, a better location can scarcely be ima-
gined ; surrounded as it is by a country, whose natural capacities
and resources are equal to the highest expectations. The har-
bour, as we have stated, is among the best on the whole surface
of the globe. Vessels are never detained in the offiug,- as the
regular tradewinds facilitate their entrance ; while the land
breezes of the morning favour their standing out from the anchor-
age ; nor is a pilot needed, as seven fathoms is the shoalest water
in the entrance to the harbour. The facilities for watering vessels
are great, while provisions of all kinds may be had in abundance.
But with all its natural advantages, capabilities, and resources,
Rio still drooped wider the mistaken policy of the mother country,
until one political event gave it a fresh impulse, and a new start on
the race-course of commercial prosperity.

The event here alluded to,- which proved indirectly and inci-

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[October,

dentally the very means ’which enabled Brazil to assume the
standing which, at this early period of her political existence, she
now holds among the nations of the earth, was the removal of the
royal family and court from the capital of Portugal to the shores
of America. The people, delighted at any change which might
improve the condition of their country, and especially one that
raised them from a colony to a kingdom, received the royal emi-
grants with a respect bordering on adoration. This event took
place in the year 1803, and the city of Rio Janeiro was determined
on as the seat of government and the location of the royal court.-

From this period, Brazil improved with almost unparalleled
rapidity ; for with the court came numerous wealthy and respect-
able families, together with numberless merchants and artisans
of all descriptions. The face of the whole country changed, and
Rio began to assume the appearance of a city; Portugal gradu-
ally becoming the colony, and Brazil assuming the functions of a
mother country.

Indeed, the necessary consequence of the removal of the court
from Portugal, was that 'of the whole importance of the country
going with it ; while the disturbances of Europe also contributed
to advance this new state of things in Brazil, whose ports were
open to receive emigrants and imports from every part of the
world. Rio was made a free port, and the whole coast was
opened to foreign commerce. Vessels of all nations flocked to
her ports ; mercantile houses were established ; trade went on'
briskly ; and a few more years of such a wise and liberal policy
must have made the country rich indeed.

But disturbances broke out. The Brazilians, dissatisfied, be-
came jealous of the strangers, as they now regarded the royal
family. Quarrels ensued, difficulties were created, and the old
and weak monarch, Don John, who had left Europe to seek
quiet in his colonies, was now compelled reluctantly to return.-
And thus, in the year 1823, the king embarked for Lisbon with
all his family, except Don Pedro, his son, who was left as regent.
The latter, however. Was soon recalled by his father, which deter-
mined the Brazilians to shake off the yoke of Portugal altogether.
To the wishes of his father, Don Pedro had promised implicit
obedience. On several occasions, however, he had been sus-
pected of creating disturbances,- although he always had the

1831.]

Rio DE JANEIRO.

, address to remove these impressions, and again to establish him-
self in favour.

He now, however, went with the people, and declared himself
in favour of the disaffected Brazilians. The yoke of provincial-
ism was shaken off ; Brazil was declared free and independent.
A new form of government was established, under the title of
“ Empire of Brazil,” of which Don Pedro was declared emperor
and perpetual defender ; the country became quiet ; commerce
flourished ; emigration increased ; good faith was restored ; and
every thing seemed to promise a bright and prosperous future.

Unfortunately, this state of things was not allowed to continue.
A war broke out about this time, between Brazil and Buenos
Ayres. The question in dispute was that tract of country bor-
dering on the La Plata, and known by the name of Banda Ori-
ental. A war of three years was the consequence, which reduced
and deranged the finances of the country, and added nothing to the
credit of the Brazilian arms ; but, on the contrary, had the ten-
dency to betray her weakness, and the folly of her ruler. Fi-
nally, the war was terminated by a treaty, declaring the Banda
Oriental an independent province for the term of five years, after
which the inhabitants should be left free to unite with either of the
contending powers.

This termination of the war displeased the Brazilians, and
doubtless gave inipulse to the dislike which at this time began to
manifest itself towards the emperor. But no one could have
supposed that, in the short space of two years, Don Pedro would
be compelled to abdicate his throne in favour of his infant
son. Such, however, was the case. The ministry became unpop-
ular, and the emperor was requested to change it. This he re-
fused to do; when the bold language was used, that “the minis-
try must be changed, or himself leave the throne.”

It was now evident that the imperial days of Brazil were num-
bered; and as he daily saw the royal authority falling into disre-
pute, he determined to abdicate the throne in favour of his infant
son, only five years of age. This happened in the year 1831; and
he immediately embarked in an English seventy-four, bearing with
him the whole resources of the treasury, and all the moveable
wealth of the country, together with the hatred and curses of his
former subjects.

VOYAGE OE THE POTOMAC.

[Octobev,

For several months after his departure, the country Was in a
most unsettled state. Commerce came to a stand ; confidence
Was again destroyed ; revolts took place daily ; and quiet and se-
curity seemed banished from the land. The regency was put into
the hands of General Lima and the Marquis of Barbecina, while
great efforts were made for the restoration of peace and tranquil-
lity. A new form of government was again discussed ; and, after
some time, public affairs seemed gradually to assume a more fa-
vourable appearance.

Still, however, at the period of the Potomac’s arrival at Rio, the
Brazilian government could not be said to be in a settled or tran-
quil condition, and many disorders in the state seemed to threaten
other and still greater changes. But a short time had elapsed
since a number of convicts joined with a party of disbanded sol-
diers, to the number of about three hundred, the greater part
of whom were negroes. This rabble had the temerity to fire
upon the city, from a small island of which they had obtained
possession, and directed their shots from six and nine pounders
towards the palace square, to the manifest annoyance of those
loyal subjects of the empire who were promenading very lei-
surely this beautiful area. A volunteer corps was soon formed,
consisting principally of citizens, by whom the insurgents’ works
were stormed, and the greater part of them made prisoners.

A national guard of citizens, of about five thousand men, has
been recently formed. They have an appropriate uniform, and
nothing was more common than to see respectable citizens doing
the duty of vigilant sentinels at the numerous posts, throughout
the city — marching and countermarching, and suffering a fatigue
which evinced how much they were ready to encounter before
they would again submit to the yoke which Don Pedro had so
very obligingly taken under his arm, and with which he had
departed.

Liberal principles are certainly on a rapid advance in Brazil ;
and bigoted opinions, both in politics and religion, which have been
handed down from their forefathers, and which are inseparable
from despotism, are being fast exploded from among the laity. The
clergy, as before intimated, are far behind thd age they live in, as
respects moral or scientific improvement. They were originally
sent over here for the avowed object of converting the native In-

1831.] illO DE JANEIRO. 51

dians to the Christian faith ; and for this purpose they have been
plentifully provided with churches, convents, and colleges, all am-
ply endowed by the government of the mother country from
coffers which were supplied from the colony itself ; the bowels
of whose territory were teeming with treasures, which they were
forbid to touch on pain of death. But whatever might have been
the zeal and fidelity of their predecessors, a portion of the mem-
bers of the clerical body now resident at Rio, evidently prefer the
ease and luxury of a monastic life, to the labours and privations
attending the office of a missionary. If a native should come to
them and pay for a prayer or a shrift, be would no doubt be ac-
commodated. But they have no idea of carrying out such pre-
cious goods to scatter gratis in the wilderness !

In alluding to the subject in a former part of this chapter, we
intimated that they often winked at transgressions of the lower
orders, most of whom arp said to be very revengeful. As an
illustration of that remark, we shall here record the following
incident which occurred at Rio, and was related to us by an eye-
witness of the facts. A murder was committed under circum-
stances peculiarly aggravating. The assassin, closely pursued by
the relatives of the deceased and the officers of justice, sought
shelter from the threatening arm of the civil law beneath what
proved, at least in this instance, the more powerful arm of the eccle-
siastical law. Having attained the sanctuary which is ever found
beneath the vaulted roof of a religious edifice, the murderer, his
hands still reeking with blood, kneeled and most piously invoked
the protection of the saint to whom the church had been dedi-
cated. As a matter of superstition, the pursuit was abandoned
for the moment ; which allowed the culprit time to make his es-
cape, after paying the priest, the immediate representative and
accounting agent of the saint to whom the church belonged,
the amount exacted for his protection, and the preservation of
his life.

Indeed, the influence which such drones in the Community ex-
ercise over the poorer orders of the flock, is almost incredible.
Their deceptions and religious exactions, and the ingenious meth-
ods frequently adopted to carry on their systems of extortion, are
often amusing, and always instructive, as affording to the curious-
sufficient data, within a very short compass, from which to draw a-

D-2

53 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [October,

fair estimate of the true moral and religious condition of this por-
tion of the community.

We cannot refrain from recounting one of these scenes, which
took place in the same city. Walking with a friend, in rather a
remote part of the town, our attention was attracted by the ap-
proach of two clerical personages. One of them was seated on
a fine charger, that would not have disgraced the rich valleys
of Andalusia, and the other on a sleek mule ! And yet they were
both mendicants, as could readily be perceived from the baskets
of the one, and the alforjas (saddle-bags) of the other. As they
approached leisurely along, keeping a “ bright lookout ” on either
side, we asked an old woman, who was seated near the door
of her humble rancho, who they were ? “ Signiors,” said she,

“they are of the church of St. Augustine, dispensing grace to
poor sinners.” They had by this time passed us at a short dis-
tance, and we began to despair of witnessing any of this singular
dispensation. Just as they approached the termination of the
street, we saw a woman, about the middle age, rush from her
hovel, nearly opposite to where we were, standing and calling out
to them vehemently, “ Stop ! stop ! and give me a little grace

The horse and mule were brought to a stand, while we followed
close to the woman, who now approached the man on horseback,
hurrying along with her a child of perhaps ten years of age, sal-
low, and evidently in extremely bad health. We now saw that
within the basket was a waxen image of the Virgin, having m her
arms another waxen image of the infant Saviour.

The poor woman insisted upon having some grace, “ without
money and without price,” for the benefit of her sick child, in
consideration of not having a single copper, and having never
failed to pay the priest, for whom he was selling grace, punctually
for confessing her. He was, however, inexorable ; and would
have gone off had the poor woman not implored him to wait for
another moment, to see if she could procure any thing with
which to buy a little grace for her sick child ; and stepping into a
neighbouring hut, returned with a single egg. When the egg
was deposited in the basket, in despite of frowning, we took a
look within, where were to be seen, carefully deposited in their
proper places, some fowls ready for the spit, eggs, vegetables,
&c. All was fish, it appeared, which came to this net. The

1831.]

mo DE JANEIRO.

child was raised up, and imprinted upon the feet of the saint a
feeble kiss ; and the saintly one moved on, seeking farther
“ whom he might devour.”

We felt for a moment as though we could have cut off the fel-
low’s ears, together with those of his employer ; and he looked
at us as if he could have willingly served us in the same manner.

There may be those who will deem the relation of this in-
cident an attack on the Roman Catholic religion ; but, gentle
reader, it is not so intended ; no, not even as we find that religion
in the Brazilian empire. We have travelled some in Catholic
countries, and shall have something to say on the moral and reli-
gious condition of these countries in another place, perhaps in
another volume. We shall state abuses where we have seen
them, fearlessly, independently ; but, if we shall trace the causes
of these abuses to sources different from many writers, it is be-
cause we have seen differently. Yet in these days, even the
abuses of religion cannot always be adverted to with safety, or
its professors named, unless it be indiscriminately to praise. Of
this timeserving timidity we have none ; believing that there is
much truth in the appropriate language of the poet who has
said —

“ All hail, religion ! maid divine,

Pardon a muse so mean as mine.

Who, in his rough, imperfect line.

Thus dares to name thee ;

To stigmatize false friends of thine.

Can ne’er defame thee.”

On no subject have we heard such contrariety of opinions, as in
relation to the population of Rio; the various estimates not
agreeing with each other by one hundred thousand. We will
also give our opinion. The city of Rio has been divided into
seven parishes ; and it has, of late, been ascertained with con-
siderable accuracy that each of these sections contains, on an
average, twenty thousand inhabitants, giving an aggregate of one
hundred and forty thousand souls ; and allowing for slaves whose
masters did not give them in, from fear of taxation or some other
motive, we may say, with the utmost confidence, that Rio does
not contain less than the number just stated, nor more than one
hundred and sixty thousand inhabitants.

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[October,

Whatever may be the condition of the slaves in the interior
provinces of Brazil, they do not seem in general to be cruelly
treated in Rio, and we saw but few instances in which they seemed
to be overworked. In fact, from our own observations we are
inclined to believe, that the Brazilian slaves, generally speaking,
need not wish to exchange places with those of any other country
in the world. The master requires of them only four days’ labour
in the week ; on the other two workingdays they must labour
for themselves, to earn their own food and raiment for the week;
and so little do the latter cost, that in the course of a few years
they frequently lay by a sufficient sum to purchase their own
freedom. The human frame feels fewer wants, and consequently
is not exposed to so many evils, in a warm as in a cold climate.
The general abundance of fruits within the tropics, and the
limited necessity for clothes and winter quarters, tend greatly to
ameliorate the condition of slaves in warm countries like Brazil.
In and about Rio, they appear to be cheerful and happy.

Previous to taking leave of Brazil for the present (as our
second visit to Rio will be found in a subsequent part of this nar-
rative), it may be expected that we should say something of the
natural productions of this part of South America. In doing so,
we shall at this time confine ourselves to such only as came under
our own immediate observation. Almost every traveller has so
enlarged upon this theme, that there is little of novelty to be ex-
hibited.

Among the most useful vegetable productions which a benefi-
cent Providence has wisely caused to abound in every tropical
region, are the banana, the plantain, the cocoanut, and the bread-
fruit-tree. The three last named are, perhaps, more peculiar to
the islands of the Pacific than to either continent ; but the first is
unquestionably the me -it useful and important production of
Brazil. A single banana daily, has been known to sustain the
life of an individual for months. The fruit is from ten to twelve
inches in length, ana about two in diameter ; at first green, and
afterward of a pale yellow. They are generally cut, for use
before they are fully ripe ; the green envelope is then peeled off,
and the fruit roasted, forming an excellent substitute for bread.
The negroes live almost entirely upon them, and they likewise
serve to fatten all domestic animals. Every part of the tree,

1831.]

RIO DE JANEIRO.

which grows to the height of from fifteen to twenty feet, is converted
to some useful purpose ; fans, for instance, being made of the
leaves. There are two kinds of this fruit cultivated at Rio ; one
, small and sweet, the other somewhat larger, and of coarser
grains. The tree bears in a few months after being planted ;
and, as before intimated, the quantity of nutriment in the fruit is
very considerable.

Next to this, in quality, quantity, and importance, is the
Brazilian orange, of which there are several varieties ; and the
orchards or groves in which they are cultivated are replete with
beauty and redolent of fragrance. Pineapples, in their season,
are extremely plentiful. The custard-apple, the guava, the fruit
of the passion-flower, and the rich pulpy tamarind, are also very
abundant, and of delicious flavour. The cashewnut, so well
known in Jamaica and Barbadoes, abounds in Brazil, and yields
a juice which is easily converted into a pleasant wine. The
cocoanut-tree, which flourishes luxuriantly on the very margin of
the sea, often exceeds the height of fifty feet, with leaves or
branches from twelve to fourteen feet in length. Its fruit is de-
licious, and too well known to require a description. Besides
these just enumerated, are melons of all kinds, mangoes, and
many different species of northern fruits, which are cultivated
with much success. Cabbages, yams, sweet potatoes, brinjals,
peas, and cucumbers, are plentiful, and grow very rapidly.

In addition to these, wheat, barley, guinea-corn, millet, rice,
coffee, sugar, manhiot, pepper, honey, wax, tobacco, cotton, and
hemp, may be raised in any quantity, and of superior quality.
Of die-stuffs, there are logwood, redwood, fustic, indigo, cochin-
eal, and a variety of others ; and of drugs, Peruvian bark, jalap,
ipecacuanha, the Palma Christi, &c. In short, medical and
odoriferous shrubs are without number. Timber of the finest
quality, suitable for civil or naval architecture, is apparently inex-
haustible. Satinwood, rosewood, and several other precious
sorts, suitable for ornamental cabinet-work, are found in all the
forests. Flovvers of the most beautiful teints and delicious fra-
grance, surround the traveller on every side, whether he be on the
open plain or the mountain — in the secluded vale, or beneath the
umbrageous canopy of the forest. In one word, the vegetable
riches of Brazil are, perhaps, unequalled in any section of the

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC,

[October,

globe ; and tliough they cannot, of course, claim the same in-
trinsic value, they are infinitely more various, more beautiful to
the eye, and of more real utility to the nation, than the glittering

productions of boasted mines, —

“ Let her the golden mine despise,

For deep in earth it better lies,

Than when, by hands profan’d, from nature’s store,

To human use compell’d, flames forth the saered ore.”

Of natural productions in the animal kingdom, Brazil can
doubtless boast her share, though of far less variety than is found
on the opposite continent. Their horses are mostly brought from
the south, descendants of the wild herds which roam in a state of
unrestrained freedom over the extensive pampas or prairies of
Argentine and Patagonia. The original stock, it is said, was
brought from Europe, at an early period of the discovery, to-
gether with that of the black cattle which now overrun the more
southern regions of the continent. Among the wild animals, the
largest is probably the tapir, or land hippopotamus ; but the most
formidable is the jaguar, or South American tiger, which seldom,
however, approaches the haunts of man. Sloths and wild dogs
are numerous, besides several species of quadrupeds that burrow
in the earth. Among the latter is the seven-handed, armadillo, a
curious little animal, well known in all our museums, and other
depositories of natural history ; having the snout of a pig, the tail
of a lizard, and the feet of a hedgehog. He is armed with a coat
of impenetrable scales, burrows in the earth during the daytime,
and sometimes grows to the length of three feet. The Brazilians
use it as an article of food, the flesh being white, tender, and well
tasted. Bats are numerous, of a large size, and very sanguinary.
The blood of cattle is their favourite food, on which, at night,
they take the liberty to banquet, without invitation or license.

Of the feathered tribe, Brazil can count great numbers, and
many varieties. The great imperial condor of Peru is some-
times seen descending on her plains, to prey upon the fragments
of the jaguar’s meal, or to bear away some living quadruped to
his aerial retreat on the highest pinnacle of the Andes. The
royal eagle, and the bandit vulture, make similar and more fre-
quent incursions ; while fowls and birds of various descriptions

1831.]

RIO DB JANEIRO.

pursue their instinctive habits as nature dictates. The smaller
tribes are numerous, and are more distinguished for brilliancy of
plumage than for sweetness of melody. Many varieties of par-
rots and paroquets are found in the woods, and the orange gar-
dens are peopled with hummingbirds.

Of reptiles and insects peculiar to Brazil, the enumeration
would be endless. Venomous snakes, together with toads and
spiders of enormous magnitude, exist in formidable numbers ; as
also do scorpions, centipedes, scalopendras, &c. But the great-
est pest of all is the ant, whose numbers are literally infinite, and
whose depredations are so serious, that villages and hamlets have
been nearly undermined by them. Mosquitoes, as we have seen
and felt, are also numerous, and intolerably annoying ; but the
butterflies are beautiful beyond description, and of great variety.

With these brief, excursive, and somewhat desultory remarks,
we will now return to the Potomac, on whose busy decks every
preparation was on foot for resuming her course to the “ far east.”
Wood, water, and other requisites for so long a voyage, were daily
being received on board, where every thing presented diligence,
activity, and order.

Nearly a fortnight had elapsed since the Potomac first came to
anchor in the harbour of Rio, when her officers, in return for the
civilities which they had received from a number of ladies and
gentlemen on shore, determined to get up a fHe for their enter-
tainment on board the frigate. During her passage from New-
York, some encouragement had been given to the men in favour
of forming a small Thespian corps, which might afford occasional
amusement during the long cruise of circumnavigating the globe.
To many, it might appear difficult to procure proper materials for
such a company among a crew of hardy sailors. But such is not
the fact. On board of a man-of-war of the, size of the Potomac,
there are perhaps more men of different avocations, than in any
village of even twice the number of inhabitants. Indeed, when
we consider that the crew of such a ship is mostly composed
of persons who, from desperate circumstances, a roving inclina-
tion, or from a desire to see the world, as they term it, enlist in
such an expedition, it is not to be wondered that they comprise
men of almost every attainment. The profession of an actor is
always one of doubtful success. Even with the most gifted

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[October,

genius, years of toil and repeated efforts are necessary to attain
eminence. In the many attempts some must fail, and are
thrown out of the vocation by dissipation, and find themselves
from necessity on board a man-of-war. On board the Potomac
there were one or two rather above mediocrity ; who, being well
qualified to take the management, as a matter of course, entered
into the subject with great spirit.

On Saturday, the twenty-ninth of October, the theatre was
rigged on the quarterdeck, and invitations were sent on shore, to
the ladies and gentlemen with whom the officers had become
acquainted ; and, among these, several natives of the country.
The piece selected for the evening had been frequently rehearsed ;
and, as the performers improved and acquired confidence in every
new attempt, it was hoped that the evening’s amusement would
pass off well. At eight o’clock, the deck was thronged with the
officers of the Warren and Lexington, the former having just ar-
rived. It was indeed pleasant to meet thus, on a foreign station,
so many acquaintances and former shipmates; and memory, ac-
tive in the reminiscences of other days and bygone times, brought
up incidents again to be talked over and enjoyed anew. ;

But our brightest anticipations are often subject to disappoint-
ment, and the sunny smile of beauty was doomed to be lacking
on this occasion. The weather suddenly changed, the heavens
became overcast, and the prospect of the attendance of the ladies
from on shore every moment grew more faint. The perform-
ance was finally opened without them ; but still it contributed
greatly to the amusement of all who were present.

Matters, however, were not allowed to terminate thus. Another
evening was set apart for the purpose ; the theatre was again
opened ; and all who had not been able to attend on the preceding
evening, were now present. The performance went off with
spirit ; a dance followed, and the ladies and gentlemen from the
city seemed much pleased with their visit on board, and the enter-
tainments prepared for the occasion. But the time had now come
for the Potomac 'to depart, and pm'sue the objects of her destination.

“ Her massive anchors, near this Eden land,

For twenty days had bit the golden sand ;

But duty calls, new perils to endure.

And the hoarse boatswain pipes — ‘ All hands, unmoor V ”

1831.]

DEPARTURE FROM RIO.

CHAPTER IV.

Departure from Rio Janeiro — Glorious Sunset at Sea — A white Squall — A Man
Overboard — A narrow Escape — Cape of Good Hope — Arrival of the Potomac at
Cape-Town — Table Bay, with Sailing Directions — First Discovery of the Cape
by Diaz — Origin of the Colony — ^Description of the Town — State of the Press,
Literature, and Education — Climate, Clouds, and Vapours.

On Saturday, the fifth of November, the stores of the Potomac
having been completely replenished, and time not permitting
longer delay, orders vt^ere given to get under way early in the
morning. The anchor was weighed at daylight ; but as the
breeze continued light and baffling, the harbour was not cleared
until late in the forenoon.

In addition to the boats of the Potomac, which were sent
ahead to tow the ship, others from the several men-of-war in the
harbour were sent to proffer their assistance ; and among these,
one from his Britannic Majesty’s frigate Druid. Her commander,
Captain Hamilton, has been long known in naval life, in which
he ranks high for nautical skill, and for his urbanity of manners
and gentlemanly deportment.

The bows of the Potomac were now laid close to the wind, to
the east ; and conjecture, even among the crew, as to her desti-
nation, seemed at an end. The Cape of Good Hope, Sumatra,
East Indies, and round the world, to South America, were in the
mouth of every one ; while the prospect of passing through new
scenes, and encountering new adventures, a little out of the beaten
track, gave rise to feelings which seemed to pervade and animate
all on board.

A passage from Rio Janeiro to the Cape of Good Hope, how-
ever, over a track of ocean which has for centuries been the
common highway of nations, cannot be expected to abound with
novelty or interest. The logbook tells of continued headwinds
— irregular head and cross seas — and, south of latitude 29°, of
falling in with whale-ships, and every day encountering the right,
or black whale, so called in contradistinction to the spermaceti
whale, which is so much more highly prized, on account of its

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[November,

yielding the valuable article from which its name is derived. But,
so changeable are the scenes of a sailor’s life, so fickle and
treacherous the elements above and beneath him, that even this
passage was not without its soul-touching and heart-thrilling inci-
dents, embracing in their extremes, and in the highest possible
degree, the essential qualities of the beautiful and the sublime.

There are but few, perhaps, who have not experienced and/eZi
the charms of evening, as the last golden beams of the setting
sun cast a milder glow of mellowing light and shade on all
around. It is not romance : — there is a high-wrought sympathy
— a pure and holy feeling, which often passes over the mind
in contemplation of such a scene. We had enjoyed it on
shore ; but never dreamed that the ocean-tossed mariner was
favoured with aught so lovely. It was an evening when the
troubled waters of the ocean had not wholly subsided from the
effects produced by a heavy blow of several days. The sun was
slowly declining in the west, making his passage through numer-
ous silvery and golden clouds, which threw upon a bank of other
dark vapours which were still hovering in the east, an appearance
not unlike billows of fire, undulating like the sea beneath them.

The sun’s bright orb, declining all serene,

Nowi glanced obliquely o’er the watery scene :

Its heaving surface, lovely to behold,

Glows in the west, a sea of living gold.”

Falconee.

To the north and to the south rose masses of beautiful clouds
of snowy whiteness, whose upper edges were tinged with gold ;
these changing into every form above, while the dark red tinge
upon the water, or sparkling sea beneath, presented, altogether, a
picture so beautiful, that language has not power to describe it;
nor could the pencil command sufiiciently varied colours, though
dipped in the teints of the rainbow, and touched by the hand of a
Raphael, to delineate the scene, or impart its beauties to the
glowing canvass. None will call this language too strong except
such as have not seen, and of course cannot appreciate, the
grandeur of ocean’s landscape, upon which the oldest and roughest
sailor cannot look without a brighter countenance, and a silent but
heartfelt acknowledgment of that Being “ who stretcheth out the
firmament, and holdeth the ocean in the hollow of his hand i”

1831.]

STOEM AT SEA.

In approaching the Cape of Good Hope, but more frequently
to the south and east of that promontory, navigators have often to
encounter storms from the northward, which rage with great vio-
lence. With these winds, the sea always runs high, and one of
the most dangerous features in the character of such gales, is the
sudden, and often instantaneous, change which occurs from the
wind breaking out, with equal or even augmented fury, from
another and nearly opposite quarter. The experienced navigator
of these seas, therefore, always keeps a bright lookout during the
prevalence of such gales, to the southwest. However strong the
squall may be raging, however rough the sea may be rolling, or
copiously the rain may be falling, yet, a bright spot in the west,
or southwest, is a sure indication of a sudden change of wind.

It was on Tuesday, the fifteenth of November, in latitude 34°
south, and longitude 30° east. The morning opened with strong
gales from the northwest, which increased in violence until the
afternoon. Sail after sail was taken in, or reefed, until the Po-
tomac wore little else than a storm dress. The sea was exceed-
ingly high, roughs and unpleasant ; and the ship rolled and
laboured heavily. The white spot was seen in the south, but
experience alone could tell the power it contained.* In an instant
the gale from the north “ let go its hold the little canvass that
remained spread flapped loosely on the yards ; and, ere there was
time for thought or action, a gale from the southwest struck the
vessel with such power, and with a change so sudden, that it
required the utmost exertion of professional skill to prepare her
to meet the fierce encounter.

“ It comes resistless, and with foaming sweep
Upturns the whit’ning surface of the deep ;

In such a tempest, borne to deeds of death.

The wayward sisters scour the blasted heath.”

Falconee.

The high and combing waves, running quick from the north-
east, thus met and arrested in their course by*" violent gusts from
the southwest, created upon the whole extent of the ocean’s
. surface, at least as far as the eye could reach, sheets of flying
foam, as the water was carried from the cap of each rolling

billow in masses to leeward. This sudden encounter of the

62 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [Novomber,

winds and the waves caused the latter to mount up into vast and
moving pyramids of angry foam.

It is in such a moment as this that the profession of a sailor
becomes really sublime ! It is a contest for mastery between the
elements and the mtellectual daring of man ! At such a moment
all hands are called; and, fore and aft — from the fore, main, and
mizzentops — each officer and sailor stands in deathlike silence, to
receive and execute whatever orders the commander in a low and
subdued tone, through the officer of the deck, may see fit to give.
He is the master-spirit whose coolness, experience, and intellec-
tual energies alone can control the demon of the tempest.

“ True to his trust, when sacred duty calls,

No howling storm the master’s soul appals.”

Falconer.

On the present occasion, every requisite order had been given^
and each of them had been executed with a prompt and fearless
obedience. The gallant Potomac, recovering from the unexpected
shock she had received in the sudden change of the wind, and
raising herself with a graceful majesty from the sullen and involun-
tary obeisance which she had paid to the blast, began to obey the
impulse of her helm, when the appalling and terrific cry of “ a
man overboard !” resounded fore and aft.

The usual orders in such an emergency are — “ Hard down the,
helm ! Cut away the life-buoy ! and stand by to lower the life-
boat !” which is always suspended from the ship’s quarters, with
suitable and appropriate lashings. But the commodore very
properly hesitated to give such orders on the present occasion ;
for it was but too evident that no boat could live, for a single mo-
ment, among the turbulent billows which were beating round and
climbing up the sides of the frigate. The feeling that pervades-
one at such a crisis is painfully intense ; — we know of no excite-
ment on shore that can possibly be compared with it. It is in
such emergencies that the thorough-bred sailor exhibits traits of
character which should cove^a multitude of sins. The fury of
the storm — the tempest-tost ocean — the certainty of death before
them, could not restrain the generous impetuosity of the crew.
They had gathered en masse on the ship’s quarter, with hands upon
the ratlins, ready to leap into the boats on either side, to rescue
a shipmate from destruction, or share with him a watery grave.

1831.]

CAPE OP GOOD HOPE.

The suspense, which had now become insuperable, was soon
relieved by the cheerful exclamation from the larboard gangway,
of “ there he is ! there he is !” and the man was borne aft as one
snatched from the very portals of death. It appears that he had
been sent into the forechains, to clear the foresheet, as the sudden
change of wind came on ; and the ship rolling at the time very
deep, he was washed from thence into the sea. Fortunately, he
had done his work so well, by overhauling the sheet, that a bite
had fallen near the water ; so that when the ship rolled again
towards him he succeeded in seizing it, and but a moment elapsed
before the welcome exclamation of “ here he is ! here he is !”
relieved the feelings of all.

On the sixth of December, land was seen ; and, before night,
made out to be Table Mountain. On the following day, after a
passage of thirty-one days from Rio, the Potomac came safely to
anchor at Cape Town, near the southern extremity of the African
continent, which stretches out into the sea, as if to interrupt all
further progress to the east. The breeze, which had promised an
anchorage on the evening of the preceding day, had died away
with the setting sun ; and during the night, the restless clouds
flitting swiftly in different directions, indicated that the spirit of
the tempest still resided in the neighbourhood of the cape. On
the same afternoon salutes were exchanged between the' Potomac
and the fort on shore, and all hands seemed much delighted with
their arrival once more in port.

The peninsula of the Cape of Good Hope is a mountainous
ridge, stretching nearly north and south for fifty or sixty miles, and
connected on the east side, and near its northern extremity, with
the main body of Africa, by a flat, sandy isthmus about ten miles
broad, having Table Bay on the north of it, and False Bay on the
south. The southern extremity of this peninsula, extending into
the sea, with False Bay on the east, and the ocean on the south
and west, is properly the “ Cape of Good Hope,” and is nearly
the most southern point of Africa. We say nearly, because after
doubling the cape from the Atlantic, the coast is found to incline
southeasterly for about one hundred miles, when it suddenly
changes to a northeasterly direction. The most southerly point
of Africa is, therefore, a projection of the coast called Cape
Agullus, extending a few leagues further into the Indian Ocean

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[December,

than the Cape of Good Hope itself, being in latitude 34° 40' south,
longitude 18° 26' east; whereas the latter is in latitude 34° 20'
south, longitude 20° 20' east. At this point, the chain of moun-
tains which forms the peninsula, though rugged, is lower than it is
at the northern end, where it is terminated by Table Mountain
and two others, which form an amphitheatre overlooking Table
Bay, and opening at the north like the bay itself. The ridges of
the mountains extending from the cape to the termination of the
peninsula on the north vary in shape, but the most frequent forms
incline more or less to sharp conical points. The three moun-
tains that terminate the peninsula on the north are, the Table
Mountain in the middle ; the Lion’s Head, sometimes called the
Sugarloaf, on the west side ; and the Devil’s Peak on the east.
The Lion’s Head, which is about 2160 feet above the level of the
sea, is separated from Table Mountain by a valley that descends
to the depth of 1500 or 2000 feet below the summit of Table
Mountain, which is itself 3582 feet above the level of the sea.
On the west of the Lion’s Head there is a lower eminence, named
the Lion’s Rump, 1142 feet high, from which the ground grad-
ually declines to the sea. The amphitheatre formed by these
three mountains is about five or six miles in diameter, in the
centre of which is placed Cape Town, before which the gallant
Potomac now lay safely moored, sheltered from every annoying
blast that might, at this season of the year, threaten to disturb the
placidity of her repose. Between May and October, this remark
would not be applicable.

On the arrival of vessels in Table Bay, as in most other places,
a proper anchorage is pointed out for them by the captain of the
port. When discharging their cargoes, they are to be moored as
near the jetty as safety will permit. Vessels touching for refresh-
ments are allowed to ride at single anchor, with a long scope of
ninety fathoms of chain, as they run less risk of parting or fouling.
It is recommended that ships be kept as snug as possible, to
counteract the effect of periodical winds, which at times blow
with considerable violence. Too much praise cannot be be-
stowed upon the local authorities for the wise measures they have
adopted to counteract the occasional violence of the winds, sudden
and destructive in their effects. Certain signals have been adopted
by the postoffice, from which vessels ih port may receive timely

iSBL]

CAPE OP GOOD HOPE.

warning of the approach of winds, as indicated by the barometer ;
and long and careful observations and experience have left no
room to doubt the correctness of these observations. •

Though these regulations, in a commercial point of view,
cannot be of much moment to us, yet they are interesting ; and
as our vessels are in all seas and climes, chance may render them
valuable to our own flag.

While in Table Bay, all vessels are strongly enjoined to observe
the following signals from the postoflice, founded on unerring
barometrical observations ; —

“ Union Jack, over white pierced blue, — Veer to a whole cable.

“ Union Jack, over blue white, blue, — Strike lower yards and
topmasts, and rig in jihboom.”

Through the same ofiice, it is arranged, that vessels can make
their wants known in rough and stormy weather ; when any as-
sisjance required will be strictly attended to, so far as is practica-
ble. A vessel not supplied with Maryott’s code of signals, may
communicate in the following manner with her ensign ; —

“ 1st. Ensign in the foretopmast rigging,—/ am in loant of
a cable.

“ 2d. Ensign in the maintopmast rigging, — I am in want of an
anchor,

“3d. Ensign in fore rigging,—/ have parted abower cable.

“ 4th. Ensign in main rigging,— / am in want of cable and
anchor.

“5th. White, where best seen, — I am in want of a boat.

To enter Table Bay at night, from the north, and meaning to
pass north of Robben Island, a ship should keep the light east-
ward of south nine degrees east, or about south-by-east, until she
gets soundings under twenty fathoms, at a little more than a mile
from the lighthouse. She may then steer E. S. E., or E. by S.,
not to come under ten fathoms, until the light bears W. S. W.
She may then steer for the anchorage, and anchor as soon as the
lights are shutting in behind the Lion’s Tail. This track leads
almost a mile clear of danger, on. Green Point ; but a ship need not
approach so near, if she have, by seeing Robben Island, ascer-
tained by its bearings that she is clear of rocks, in which case
she may round it at a greater distance from Green* Point if desira-
ble, but the soundings in that case will not be a safe guide.

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[DeCetobeT,

In coming from the southwest, a ship should not get less than
forty fathoms before the light bears southeast, or east-southeast,
nor less dian twenty fathoms before it bears south-by-east ; when
the preceding directions maybe followed. From the north, inside
of Robben Island, the light should be kept about southwest-by-
south, until the ship has passed that island, in doing which she may
have in some cases from six to eight fathoms ; and when on that
course the water deepens to eleven or twelve fathoms, she may
steer for the anchorage by the plan as before stated.

On beating around Green Point, a ship should never shoal her
water rmder eleven or twelve fathoms, until she has brought the
light to bear west-southwest, as before directed.

In beating between Robben Island and the main, to enter Table
Bay, the soundings may be taken from the island, as it shoals very
regularly. In standing towards the main, it appears prudent to
look at the first cast of the lead after the water shoals, and
all cases it is taken for granted that a vessel will keep her lead
agoing. By day, or when the shore or surf can be seen, or indeed
under any circumstances, the plan ought to be a sufficient guide.

Europe was totally unacquainted with this country, and even
ignorant of its existence, anterior to the year 1493, when it was
discovered by Bartholomew Diaz, a Portuguese navigator, who,
under the immediate auspices of his sovereign, John II., had ex-
tended the Portuguese discoveries along the whole western coast
of Africa. When near the southern extremity of the continent,
he was driven out of sight of land, and hurried by a violent storm
far into the Indian t)cean. The Portuguese sailors now gaye
themselves up as lost, while for thirteen days they were buffeted
about by the relentless tempest. After being partially acclimated
to the sultry gales of Africa, they found the damp cold blast of the
Antarctic seas almost intolerably severe. When the storm abated,
ignorant of their real situation, they steered eastward to regain
the coast from which they had been driven, but nothing but the
rmbounded ocean was to be seen. Surprised and bewildered, they
steered to the north, and finally made a point of Africa, consider-
ably to the eastward of that which we now call the Cape of Good
Hope. As numerous herds were seen feeding on the shore, Diaz
called his new discovery “ the Bay of Cows.” He then steered
westward until he came to a small island, on which he planted a

1S3L]

CAPE OF GOOD HOPE.

pillar, as he had previously done on the western coast of the same
continent, for an ensign of the Portuguese dominion.

A general murmur, however, amounting to a mutinous' move-
ment, now arose among his exhausted and dispirited crew. They
urged that they had already discovered enough of land for one
voyage, that their vessel was shattered, and their provisions draw-
ing to a close ; in a word, they positively insisted on returning
home. Diaz called a council of his officers, who all concurred
in the wishes of the men ; so that the enterprising and indefatiga-
ble navigator was here compelled to relinquish a still brighter
chaplet than he had already acquired ; one which was in full
view; and almost within his 'reach. He yielded, it is said, with
deep reluctance, and parted with the island where he had planted
his last ensign, “ as a father parts from an exiled son.” In re-
gaining the Atlantic, they for- the first time doubled, in full view,
the long sought-for cape or promontory, to which Diaz, tortured
by his feelings of mortification mid chagrin, gave the name of
“ Colas totas Tormentas” — “ the Cape of all Torments but his
joyful sovereign, on his return to Portugal, inspired with a well-
grounded hope that the long sought-for passage to India was at
length discovered, changed the appellation to that which it now
bears, the “ Cape of Good Hope.” In 1497 this hope was fully
realized by Vasco de Gama, another Portuguese discoverer, who
doubled the cape, and explored his way to India, landing at Colicut
on the twenty -second of May in the following year.

A pathway for all nations was novv opened to the “land of
promise,” whose precious merchandise soon began to be poured
into the lap of every European country with profuse abundance.
But notwithstanding their constant passing and repassing the
Cape of Good Hope, its admirable locality for furnishing refresh-
ments, and the inviting aspect of the country, none conceived the
idea of planting a civilized colony among its sable native residents^
But in 1650, one hundred and fifty-seven years after its first dis-
covery, Van Riebeck, a surgeon of one of the Dutch East India
Company’s ships, pointed out to the directors the great advantages
which would be derived from establishing a settlement on the
southern extremity of Africa, and they listened to the suggestion.
In two years afterward his views were carried into effect, and he
himself appointed governor of the new colony. From thattime^-

E 2

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[December,

to the year 1795, it remained in the hands of the Dutch, gradually
improving. In the meantime, the English possessions in the east
had greatly increased ; and John Bull had not passed so often
round the cape without casting a wishful eye oh this thriving
establishment, which he thought might answer so well to refresh
his vessels at. In 1795, the state of Europe and the fortunes of
war gave him the power ; and as he is an old gentleman who is
not remarkable for being ' over fastidious in respecting the rights
of his neighbours, and having just suffered the loss of his best
transatlantic dependances, he proceeded to take possession of the
colony of the Cape of Good Hope ; and it has, with the exception
of a few years (during which the Dutch held it under the treaty
of Amiens), remained in the hands of the British, much to the dis-
content of the descendants of the old governor, Pietr Van Roode
Van Oudtshoorn.

Cape Town itself is beautifully situated on a plain, and is over-
shadowed by a stupendous rock or mountain.* The streets are
spacious, and intersect each other at right angles with great ex-
actness, The houses are mostly of stone, and whitewashed with-
out, which gives them a neat and , cleanly appearance there are
few built over two stories, on account of the winds, which blow
sometimes excessively strong. The residence of the governor, and
the public buildings, are suitable to the purposes for which they
are used, but possess nothing which deserves particular descrip-
tion. The public square presents a neat appearance, and is kept
in fine order ; and there are some pleasant promenades in the en-
virons, tastefully overshadowed with spreading branches of oak.

The progress of literature at Cape Town is very promising,
and the cause of education has numerous and powerful adherents.
A newspaper, called the South African Commercial Advertiser,
has been established for several years, and is said to be well sup-
ported,. notwithstanding all the obstacles thrown in its way by the
jealousy and cupidity of the Dutch residents. It has uniformly
and strenuously advocated the cause of ameliorating the condition

* The rocks of which this peninsula is composed are few in number and of simple
structure. They are gi-anite, gneiss, clay-slate, graywacke, quartz-rock, sandstone,
and dolerite. Of these the most abundant are granite and sandstone : the next in
frequency are graywacke and clay-slate ; and the least frequent are gneiss and dolerite.
In some places, the sandstone is traversed by veins of red iron ore.

£831.]

CAPE OF GOOD HOPE,

of the slaves, as respects their food, clothing, hours of labour
punishment, marriages, &c. This was wormwood to the Dutch,
who consider their slaves in the same light as some teamsters do
their horses : — “ If there be any work in the animal,” say they,
“ we must bring out our money’s worth by the lash of the whip.”
They therefore convened a meeting, and passed resolutions to de-
nounce the Commercial Advertiser, as unworthy their patronage
and support ; and, as a joint-stock company, to establish an oppo-
sition paper, called the Zuid Afrikain, which maintains a policy
diametrically opposed to that advocated by the other. Whether
this, competition of clashing interests is calculated to produce
beneficial effects, is a question that time will determine. There
is also another periodical published here, called the Literary
Gazette, which, is said to be entitled to no inconsiderable share of
praise for the liberality of its doctrines, and the literary merit of
its original articles.

The public library is an honour to the colony, having, in the
course of five or six years, increased in books and subscribers
until it has attained to a degree of prosperity unrivalled in any
colonial annals. Its shelves present a brilliant display of the besf^
works on all subjects and in divers languages. The librarian,
who is also secretary to the institution, and the editor of the Lit-
erary Gazette, is distinguished for his affable deportment, urbanity
of manners, and polite attention to visiters. A museum has also
been established, which, is rich in specimens of natural history,
especially in those branches of it which are so numerous in
Southern Africa. A very large and interesting menagerie of wild
beasts likewise, as we were informed, once existed in this place,
and was a great object of attraction to strangers ; but it has since
dwindled away to a “ beggarly account of empty” cages, there
being not at present half a dozen subjects in the enclosm-e.

Two infant schools have been established here, which appear
to be conducted on excellent principles, and meet a very general
support. Schools and academies for the higher branches are also
in a flourishing condition. But the institution which merits the
most attention, is the South African College, which embraces all
the advantages of an English seminary and university, — admitting
pupils with the slightest possible preparation, and instructing them
in the highest branches of science, and the widest range of liter-

70 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [December,

ature, at a trifling cost. Most of the professors are stated to be
men of the first scientific attainments ; and many of the pupils
have evinced a vigour of understanding and an extent of acquire-^-
meats which convey indubitable testimony of the value of the in-
stitution.

This college was founded on the first of October, 1829, having
been in existence but a little more than two years when the Poto-
mac arrived at the cape, at which period the number of pupils
amounted to one hundred and fifty. The branches taught here,
as we understand, are Hebrew, Greek, Latin, Dutch, English,
writing, drawing, French, logic, rhetoric, mathematics, algebra,
geometry, trigonometry, the principles of geography, p,nd as-
tronomy, The qualifications of a student for admission are, read-
ing, writing, and a knowledge of the first rules of arithmetic. No
distinction exists as to rank or religion. The building contains a
number of spacious- and airy apartments, extremely well adapted
to the purpose of tuition.

The climate of the cape is healthy, judging either from the
temperature, or from the ruddy countenances of its inhabitants.
From a meteorological journal kept for a number of years at the
cape, the mean temperature of the year is 671° Fahrenheit ; while
the mean of the coldest month is 57°, and that of the hottest 79°.
This temperature seems to vary but little in the other districts of
the colony ; that of Stellenbosch gives the mean of one year 66°,
extremes 87° and 50°; while that of Zwartland appears to be
661°, extremes 89° and 54°. At Zulbagh, situated in the valley of
the great chain of mountains which divide the western from the
eastern provinces of the colony, the mean temperature of the year
is 66|°, that of the coldest month 55i°, of the hottest 80i°, ex-
tremes 95° and 52° ; mean of their winter 56^°, of their summer
months 79°, least heat in summer 60°. Here, as in the south of
Europe; and most warm climates of a temperate zone, the wind
commonly blows cold in summer, at the same time that the sun
shines with great power ; and this is the circumstance which dis-
tinguishes a warm from a hot climate.

At the foot of the cape mountains, and within the range of their
influence, the heat of the atmosphere over the valleys and the
plains is mitigated by a cool wind descending from the mountains,
and the coldness of the blast is tempered by the reflected heat of

1831.]

CAPE OF GOOD HOPE.

the earth’s surface. Hence a mo3erate temperature, where the
wind has free progress, is the result in summer at the Cape of
Good Hope. During the warm season, although the southeast
monsoon predominates, westerly winds are not unfrequent, and
they are always moist ; when southeasterly winds blow, they bring
from the shallow sea, over La Guillas’ bank, humidity, which is
condensed upon the summits of the mountains.; it is seen rolling
down the western cliffs in volumes of thick vapour, and the eleva-
tion at which this is dissipated, as it descends, answers precisely
to the hygrometric state of the air.

Few have visited the cape without' having cause to admire the
peculiarity of the clouds and vapours. The mountain being colder
than the plain below, condenses and renders visible the passing
vapour, whenever the dryness of the wind is less than the differ-
ence of temperature between its summit and base. Owing to ra-
diation, the influence of the mountain’s summit extends to a column
of air near it, and a cloud at rest is accordingly seen suspended
high above, which, from its white fleecy appearance, is called the
Table-cloth. The heat of the plain has a like influence on the
atmosphere over it, and affects the temperature immediately above.
The vapour there, as it quits the mountain, passes into a warmer
region, when it is dissolved, and thus it traverses, transparent and
invisible, to be again condensed and made apparent on approach-
ing another mountain. This is a simple explanation of the ap-
pearances which are so commonly seen during the continuance
of the southeast wind at the cape.

Volumes of vapour are seen rolling over the summit and down
the sides of Hanglip, Hottentots, Holland, and the rest of the
chain of high mountains ; while above the valleys and over the
isthmus scarcely a passing cloud is seen. But the vapour is
thickly condensed on the peninsular group of mountains, rolls
over their summits, descends to a certain distance down the cliff,

and is dissipated and becomes transparent as it passes onwards.
Clouds at rest, while the wind is blowing with violence, are fre-
quently to be seen over Table Bay, and likewise over Cape Downs,
precisely similar to clouds suspended over peaks. Generally
during a southeast wind, the sky is clear on Hanglip and Table
Mountains.

But, now and then, a small silvery cloud suddenly appears

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC,

[December,

above the sea, on the shore ; grows, changes shape without change
of place (although the wind, meantime, continues to blow most
violently), wastes, and vanishes. Dr. Arnott, in his elements of
physics or natural philosophy, thus accounts for the singular
beauty and density of the clouds which frequently envelop Table
Mountain : — “ The reason of the phenomena is, that the air con-
stituting the wind from the southeast having passed over the vast
Southern Ocean, comes charged with as much invisible moisture
as the temperature can sustain, In rising up the sides of the
mountain it is rising in the atmosphere, and is therefore gradually
escaping from a part of the former pressure ; and on attaining the
summit, it has dilated so much, and has consequently become so
much colder, that it has let go part of its moisture; and it no
sooner falls over the edge of the mountain, and again descends in
the atmosphere, where it is pressed, and condensed, and heated as
before, than it is re-dissolved and disappears, the magnificent ap-^
parition dwelling only op the mountain top.”

1831.]

CAPE OF GOOD HOPE.

CHAPTER V.

Cape of Good Hope — Progress of the Colony — Cape District — Districts of Stellen-
bosch, Worcester, Swellendam, George, Uitehhage, Albany,' Somerset, and Graaf
Rainet— Population Table — Imports and Exports — Judiciary Establishment — Post-
office — Humane and Religious Institutions — Revenue, Military, &c. — The Caffres
— Captain Stout’s Character of them — The Hottentots — Progress of Education
among them.

The British colonial establishment at the Cape of Good Hope
is rapidly improving, and is unquestionably destined, at no very
late period, to become of much importance to the mother country, '
and collaterally, to the commercial world. The settlements are
rapidly extending towards the interior, there being no less than
ten districts at this time composing the colony.

The Cape District has been much extended of late, embracing ^
the Residency of Simon’s Town. The north point of the district
extends to Verlone Valley, one hundred and ninety miles from
Cape Point, but in no part does the district exceed thirty miles in
breadth. This district is divided into eleven divisions, one
of which is Constantia, so celebrated for its wines. There are
no streams which serve for irrigation, and the crops depend al-
most wholly on the periodical rains. In this district there are
several fine tunipike-roads, the tolls on which, in the year 1830,
amounted to 1863/., while the repairs during the same period
amounted to 1400/. In this district is Saldanha Bay, in 33° 8'
south latitude, which is one of the finest in the whole colony, and
will in time become the anchorage to the seat of justice for
another district. Captain Morrell was in this bay in 1829, in the
schooner Antarctic, and is quite full in his description.

There are thirty thousand acres cultivated, seven hundred and
forty thousand- waste, and two thousand acres planted with vines,
giving two millions six hundred and one thousand six hundred and
fifty plants, yielding one thousand four hundred and sixty leaguers,*

A leaguer of wine is one hundred and fifty-two gallons

'T'4 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [December,

or two hundred and twenty-two thousand and seventy-two gallons
of wine.

The district of Stellenbosch contains four thousand six hun-
dred square miles, and is situated in the western division of the
Cape of Good Hope, and about twenty-five miles from Table Bay
The chief produce of Stellenbosch is wine, and the average quan- f;,,,
tity made is twelve thousand five hundred leaguers, and six hun- ' "
dred leaguers of brandy, per annum grain and fruits are abundant,
when the season is favourable to farmers, though the district is
not adapted for grazing.

The district of Worcester, also, on the western part of the cape,
is one of the most extensive in the colony, being two hundred and
sixty miles long, and, in one place, one hundred and thirty in
width. It is divided into no less than twenty divisions ; the six
first produce wine, grain, and cattle, and the remainder are only
grazing farms. The cedar is found only in this district, and is
procured from the mountains with great labour.

The district of Swellendam once belonged to Stellenbosch, and
was separated from it in the year 1745. It is estimated to con-
tain nearly nine thousand square miles. The chief products are
butter, tallow, soap, aloes, cattle, and a small quantity of grain
and wine. The horses of this section of the country are cele-
brated for draught and saddle, and some of the finest wool of the
colony has been produced at Joetendal’s Valley. But the capaci-
ties of this district seem best adapted to grain ; and, by proper
industry and labourers, immense quantities might be produced for
exportation. At this time, it is said, there are not less than eigh^
teen thousand five hundred acres under cultivation ; one hundred
only in vines, one million four hundred and sixteen thousand in
pasturage, and four millions two hundred and forty-eight thousand
five hundred and twenty-nine uncultivated. At a village called
Caledon, there are two warm medicinal springs, and their heat is
92“. These baths have been found useful in chronic rheumatism,
diseases of the skin, and scorbutic ulcers.

On the southeastern coast of the colony is situated the district
of George, adapted only to th,e raising of grain and cattle. Near
the mouth of Courits and Small Brak rivers are a few small salt
lakes, though not very productive in this useful article. Spanish
sheep succeed well, and Small Brak river abounds in the greatest

183L]

CAPE OF GOOD HOPE.

variety of choice fish, near its confluence with Mossel Bay;
next to Simon’s, this is the best and safest bay on the east coast
of the colony, and is suited to vessels of all descriptions. A
whale-fishery is carried on in this place with tolerable success. A
few small divisions of this district are productive in wheat of the
best quality ; also wine, brandy, and tobacco, are cultivated to a
limited extent ; there are fine groves of timber in the mountains,
and many of the border settlers are employed in getting it out.
There are ten thousand acres under cultivation, embracing all
kinds of productions. This district is large, embracing one
million four hundred and twenty-four thousand one hundred and
thirty- three acres.

The district of Uitenhage is situated on the east coast of South
Africa, and is skirted on the south by the Southern Ocean. It has
two bays and several fine rivers, and is about five hundred miles
from Cape Town. Algoa Bay is the principal port, and its trade is
rapidly increasing ; vessels from the east, in the winter season,
often stop in this bay, though Port Elizabeth may be considered
the principal.on the east part of the colony. Uitenhage, the' capi-
tal of the district, is one of the most flourishing towns of the
colony, and was formerly the headquarters of the frontier; but
the Caffres having made frequent incursions into the district, it
was found necessary to remove the troops to Graham’s Town, up-
wards of a hundred miles further in advance.

The town of Uitenhage affords a number of spacious buildings,
public and private; agricultural societies, reading-rooms, and a
turf-club are established, and managed with spirit. ' A seminary
was established in 1822, and has at present one hundred and
thirty pupils. There are lead mines near this place, though
not worked. About seven miles northeast of Uitenhage are im-
mense beds of seashells and seashellfish, particularly oysters ;
these beds are about ten miles from the sea, and many hundred
feet above its level. '

The local advantages of the district consist in its supply of wa-
ter, and great capabilities for raising black cattle. A large portion
of the butter, soap, and tallow exported from Algoa Bay, is from
this district, whose main resources will always arise from its gra-'
zing qualities. The value of a fat ox is about two pounds ster-
ling, and the amount of the black and breeding cattle in the

76 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [December,

district is estimated at sixty-four thousand two hundred and fifty-
two. In June, 1829, eighteen whales were killed in Algoa Bay,
the value of which was estimated at near four thousand pounds
sterling; and, in the year 1830, fifteen were taken of propor-
tionate value.

The appearance of the district of Albany is highly pleasing,
and is romantically diversified by gentle undulations, by precipi-
tous woody ravines or kloofs, by stupendous ports or passes
through the mountains, and by clumps of elegant evergreens ;
while the whole face of the country, with slight exceptions, is
adorned by a covering of verdant pasturage, and the soil is gen-
erally of an excellent quality. It is bounded on the east by the
Great Fish river, on the south by the Southern Ocean ; it is sixty-
six miles in extent, and from thirty to forty-six in breadth ; pro-
ducing wheat, barley, oats, Indian corn, potatoes, peas, beans,
and lentils. The animals, in 1829, amounted to one thousand
seven Imndred and ninety horses, three thousand and seventy
horned cattle, sixty-seven thousand four hundred cape sheep, ten
thousand Spanish. sheep, and fourteen thousand nine hundred and
fifty goats. In no part of .the colony have the inhabitants mani-
fested more zeal in the establishment of schools, than in this dis-
trict. This laudable spirit is not only manifest in the establish-
ment of common schools for the children of the settlers, of Sun-
day schools for the indigent, and an academy for the higher
branches ; but-its benevolence extends to the improvement of the
intellectual condition of the CafFres — the poor, degraded, and long-
misrepresented Hottentot. The missionaries have laboured in-
cessantly to improve the moral degradation and horrid barbarity
of these savages, and the result has been found most encouraging.
Schools have been established among them, and the number of
children of the CafFres now under instruction, amounts to more
than six hundred; and it is said, but for the want of teachers,
the number might have been greatly increased. They are taught
in the CafFre and English languages, and many of them speak the
latter with, considerable fluency.

The exports of this district for the year 1830, in hides, horns,
sheep-skins, tallow, butter, soap, gums, ivory, ostrich feathers, and
salted beef and pork, arnounted to about one hundred and fifty
thousand dollars ; which, for the number of inhabitants in a set

1831.]

CAPE OF GOOD HOPE,

tlement of ten years’ standing, certainly bespeaks great pros-
perity.

In the neighbouring district of Graaf Rainet, the number of in-
habitants is fourteen thousand five hundred. The climate is equal
in salubrity to any part of the colony ; and, like Albany, is most
favourable to grazing. In the year 1830, it had three thousand
nine hundred and forty-one saddle and wagon horses; five thou-
sand four hundred and forty-four breeding mares ; eleven thou-
sand five hundred and ninety-three oxen ; fifty-two thousand one
hundred and fifteen breeding cattle ; three thousand Spanish
sheep ; nine hundred and seven thousand two hundred and sixty-
seven colonial sheep ; and fifteen thousand goats.

Such are the features presented by the several districts com-
posing the present colony of the Cape of Good Hope. We have
given this sketch somewhat more in detail, because the subjects
appeared to possess much interest, and will at least be new to
the generality of American readers. The delay of the Potomac
at the Cape did not allow these remarks to be made from personal
observation ; but it did allow time to see much evidence of the
prosperity here spoken of, and of acquiring the materials from
which the picture has been drawn.

By casting an eye over the map of the world, it will be seen
that the Cape of Good Hope occupies a commanding position.
From Brazil and Buenos Ayres, the distance may be run in a
month ; while to the Hutch colonies of Surinam, Berbice, and
Essequibo, it will not occupy more than six weeks. To the Red
Sea, Coromandel, and Malabar, the voyage may be performed in
two months.

Halfway from Europe to India, it forms a fine refreshing point
for vessels engaged in the commerce of the east. During the
year 1829, no less than two hundred and fifty-one vessels had
entered the ports of the colony, the greater portion in Table Bay;
amormting to seventy-three thousand two hundred and sixteen
tons of shipping, and giving employment to five thousand and
sixty-two seamen. The trade from the colony itself to England
is important, considering that it does not contain more than one
hundred and forty thousand free inhabitants. The following
■table shows how this population is distributed among the several
districts : —

78 votAGfE OP THE POTOMAC. [Dec'Omber

POPULATION OF 'THE CAPE OF GOOD HOPE, 1829-30.

DISTRICT.

Free persons,
whether black
or white.

SLAVES.

TOTAL.

Births.

Marri-

ages.

Deaths.

Cape Town...

6,326

6,777

2,963

2,875

9,289

9,652

639

120

403

Cape District.

3,246

2,688

2,632

1,400

5,878

4,088

109

137

Stellenbosch..

4,403

3,966

5,067

3,313

9,470

7,279

357

324

Worcester

5,319

5,054

2,306

1,971

7,625

7,025

353

256

Swellendam...

5,534

5,309

1,602

1,370

7,136

6,679

360

184

George

2,976

2,669

1,064

996

4,040

3,665

144

Uitenhage

3,595

3,199

633

548

4,228

3,747

183

125

Albany

3,501

2,652

3,554

2,700

339

Somerset

4,449

4,292

771

605

5,220

4,897

439

Graaf Rainet.

5,674

4,820

1,221

628

6,895

5,448

553

149

45,023

41,426

18,312

13,754

63,335

55,180

3,476

607

1,852

Total, . 118,515

Add for the army, about 2,500

Total, . 118,515

Add for the army, about 2,500

Grand total, . 121,015

Note. — This total must be considerably below the actual population of the colony,
as it shows a smaller aggregate than the statistical details of the several districts ex-
hibit. Several well-informed men estimate the population of the colony at about
I 140,000. ' '

Great Britain requires the colony to pay all the expenses of its
establishment, except the army and navy. For the purposes of
revenue, 3f per cent, is levied by the colony on all British goods,
and ten per cent, on all foreign goods, though introduced in British
bottoms ; and ten per cent, on goods imported from the east. On
the subject of commerce, figures are always most valuable ; and
from the following table it will be seen that the commerce of the
cape has assumed an importance not to be expected from the pro-
ductions of the colony and number of its inhabitants.

1824,

Imports

Exports

£;346,615

218,587

Excess of imports

£128,028

1825,

Imports
. Exports

295,792

240,035

Excess of imports

55,757

1826,

Imports

Exports

269,424

173,023

Excess of imports

96,401

1827,

Imports

Exports

286,052

211,499

Excess of imports

74,653

1828,

Imports

Exports

260,962

253,903

Excess ot imports

7,059

1829, Imports

Exports

Not colonial, do.

356,523

260,376

18,264

• Excess of imports

77,524

1831.]

CAPE OP GOOD hope-

Here we have a commercial view of the trade carried oh to
South Africa,. and the evidence of no small share of enterprise on
the part of its resident merchants, in order to sustain, so well as
they appear to do, the balance of trade against the heavy impor-
tations from the mother country. The affairs of the colony seem
to be Well managed by his excellency general, the honourable Sir
G. L. Cole, governor of the colony,' president of the council, and
commander-in-chief of the forces.

In each district there is a civil commissioner, magistrate, pro-
tector of slaves, and other subordinate officers, for the preserva-
tion of peace, and the discharge of all the subordinate duties of.
the civil govermuent. The duties of the protector are various,
and are intended to ameliorate the condition of the slave, as much
as is compatible. He is bound to inquire into all abuses, to re-
dress all wrongs, to restrain the strong, protect the weak ; in a word,
to be what his office would indicate, the protector of slaves. There
is but one in the colony, but he has his agents in all the districts
where they are needed.

In the judicial establishment there is a supreme court, with a
chief-justice and three associate judges, who hold four terms in
the year, in March, June, September, and December. Besides,
the associate judges hold their separate courts at appointed
periods, for hearing minor causes.

In the year 1 827, a charter was granted by the king of England,
conceding to the colony the right of trial by jury in criminal cases ;
and the council have taken the proper measures to can’y this ar-
rangement into execution, by issuing an ordinance declaring the
qualification of jurors, nine being the number agreed upon, and,
under certain circumstances, six are to constitute a legal tribunal.
Attached to the supreme court is the office of high sheriff of the
colony, which office was created in the year 1828. His duty is
to carry into execution all the sentences and decrees of the su-
preme or circuit courts ; and, for this purpose, he is authorized to
appoint deputies in all the districts.

The energy of the colonial government pervades every part of the
settlement ; and the communications kept up with remote districts
are regular through the postoffice establishment, which has no less
than twenty branches distributed throughout the colony.

The number of humane and religious institutions, which may

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. .

[December^

be placed under the head of the church establishment, would seem
to be greatly disproportioned to the number and even the wealth
of the inhabitants. The true spirit of toleration prevails in the
colony among the members of the Church of England, Dutch
Reformed, Presbyterian, Roman Catholic, Wesleyan, Lutheran,
&c. It is pleasant to see the harmony and good feeling which
pervade these societies, and their co-operation in doing good ;
under their separate or united direction, are .Bible and School
Commissions, Orphans’ Houses, Philanthropic Society, Bible
African Union, Infant School, African Mission Society, Branch of
London ditto, with numerous schools and teachers, and missions
among the Hottentots, Caffres, and neighbouring tribes.

While on the subject of societies, there is one which deserves
particular attention, — the Cape of Good Hope Philanthropic So-^
ciety, for aiding deserving slaves and slave children to purchase
their freedom. This society, with his excellency the governor at
its head, and his lady as principal patroness, appears to deem the
emancipation of female slave children as the best method of em-
ploying its limited funds for the present.

The children manumitted are to be apprenticed, under judicious
regulations, until they are sixteen .years of age. The society, in
all its acts, declares its intention of proceeding without injury to
the property, or interference in any respect with the claims, of the
proprietor ; a precaution founded in justice, which can never be
too scrupulously observed by those who attempt to ameliorate, or
even touch upon the subject of slavery.

It has been said that the colony defrays the expenses of its
own establishment, except the army and navy. Its revenue can-
not be accurately known from any published returns, but maybe
estimated at one hundred and twenty thousand pounds. About
seventy-five per cent, of this amount is expended in salaries, and
the remainder in the civil and military pension list, in support of
the judiciary, hospitals, postoffice expenditure, and a thousand
other objects in the civil administration.

The military establishment is chiefly intended for the defence
of the colony from the incursions of the hostile tribes of the fron-
tier. Included in this force is a fine mounted rifle corps, and the
72d regiment of Highlanders, whose national dress of tartan
plaid, Scotch bonnet, and waving plume, gives them a highly

1831.]

CAPE OF GOOD HOPE.

beautiful and martial air. The seventy-fifth regiment, called the
Duke of Albany’s own guard, was also on the station, and is a
good looking corps. The appearance of all the troops is remark-
ably fine, and their movements in the morning and evening drills,
in the public square, show them to be in a high state of discipline.

In our remarks on the district of Albany, an allusion was made to
the laudable efforts, now in successful operation, to introduce the
light of education among the children of the native Caffres and
Hottentots. This is a subject of so much interest to the philos-
opher and the philanthropist, that we shall be excused for recal-
ling to it the particular attention of the reader.

That portion of South Africa which has long been known under
the general appellation of Cafifaria, lies between latitude 30° and
34 , south, on the eastern coast ; it is bounded by Great Fish river
on the southeast, which separates it from the country of the Hot-
tentots, and by Natal Bay on the north. Its western boundaries
are not yet ascertained. The Caffres are tall and well propor-
tioned, and in general evince great courage in attacking lions and
other wild beasts. Their skin is jet black, their teeth whiter than
polished ivory, and their eyes large and intelligent. The dress
of both sexes is nearly the same, consisting almost entirely of the
hides of cattle, which, by a peculiar mode of preparing, are ren-
dered as soft and pliant as cloth. They are very industrious, and
fond of agricultural pursuits, particularly the breeding of cattle,
in which the valuable part of their worldly wealth consists.
Their huts are more elevated, and far more commodious, than
those of the Hottentots.

But oppression and wrongs have driven them to predatory acts
of retaliation, which amount to robbery, and have involved them in
numerous conflicts with the colonists, steeping their native soil in
blood, which only enriches it for the benefit of the ever-encroach-
ing whites. The pioneers of all colonial settlements in a foreign
land are generally composed of adventurers ; hardy, courageous,
and enterprising, indeed, but destitute of those gentler virtues •
which constitute the refinement and happiness of older and more
permanent communities. Hence it has happened, that in almost
every instance, the kind reception and hospitality of the natives
have been requited by acts of rapine, cruelty, and oppression, on
the part of the colonists, which are naturally followed by some

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[December,

dreadful reaction. Such was too often the case, even with the
pious and enlightened founders of our own nation ; and acts origi-
nating in a similar mistaken policy have stained the annals of the
Cape colony. The true character of the natives in both coun-
tries has been but little understood, and much misrepresented.

Captain Benjamin Stout, a relative of our elder Adams, the
second president of the United States, was shipwrecked in the
year 1796, on the southeastern coast of Africa, near the river
Infanta, in the country of Caffraria ; and he was perhaps the first
writer who described these people according to their real charac-
ter. In a letter to his illustrious relative, the.n chief magistrate
of the nation, he speaks of them in the following terms : —

“ Cast, with sixty of my people, on the shores of Caffraria,
after combating the horrors of a tempest, which, I believe, has
but few parallels in the history of naval misfortune, I found in
the natives a hospitality, and received from them a protection,
which, on many of the shores that belong to the polished nations
of Europe, I might have sought for in vain. These unfortunate
inhabitants of Caffraria, who have been so ofen and so wickedly
denominated savages that delight and revel in human slaughter, I
found possessed of all those compassionate feelings that alone
give a lustre to and adorn humanity living in a state of per-
petual alarm from the persecuting and avaricious disposition of
the colonists, and instructed by their fathers to consider a white
man as a being who never hesitates to murder when plunder is in
view, still a justifiable revenge yielded to the virtuous impulse of
compassion, and our necessities were generously relieved, without
even the prospect of recompense. When thrown, by the raging
of the elements, on the sandy shores of their country, we were all
unarmed, not having saved from the wreck a single article, either
for our defence, clothing, or subsistence. In this situation we
were completely at the mercy of the natives ; but, instead of re-
membering and revenging the wrongs they and their predecessors
had endured from the savage white, they made a fire to dry and
refresh us ; they slaughtered a bullock, which they gave us for our
subsistence ; they conducted us to a spring of the most limpid
and wholesome water ; and, when we were enabled to travel, fur-
nished us with guides through the deserts of their country.
Such was the conduct of a people who have been described as

1831.]

CAPE OF GOOD HOPE.

barbarians, possessing no other semblance of the human charac-
ter than what they derive from their formation.”

The captain then, with a feeling truly national, recommends
that measures be taken for planting a colony of Americans among
these people. This project, however, being foreign to the policy
of our new government, was, of course, never acted upon. But,
after our late war with England, in the year 1819, the British
ministry held out such flattering inducements to those who felt
willing to abandon their country and their home, and become res-
idents in the wild but delightful region of southern Africa, that
large numbers in the following winter embarked for the Cape of
Good Hope, for the express purpose of settling in Cafiraria.
Among the number Avere several families of various religious
denominations, who were warmly in favour of extending the ad-
vantages of education to the rising generation of the natives.
Among these, some of the Methodist persuasion took the most
conspicuous part. Their numbers were sufficiently large to en-
title them to the promised annual stipend of seventy-flve pounds
sterling, for the support of a clergyman. Application was ac-
cordingly made, previous to embarking, to the Wesleyan Mission-
ary Committee in London, for a suitable person to fulfil the duties
of that station, and the Reverend William Show was appointed
to accompany the emigrants in that capacity. It was thus that the
district of Albany first became a missionary station, the beneficial
influence of which arrangement is now felt and acknowledged
with gratitude by hundreds of enlightened and partially civilized
natives.

The Caffres were always a warlike people, whereas their neigh-
bours, the Hottentots, in general, a,nd those near the Cape in par-
ticular, are described as a mild, simple, affectionate, and inoffen-
sive race ; but as extremely indolent in their habits, and limited
in their intellectual faculties. But, wherever any sort of effort has
been made to cultivate their powers, and give them a feeling of
hope and liberty in their occupations, they have proved active, in-
telligent, and useful. They are of common stature, but not so
short as the whites in general, while their hands and feet are re-
markably small. Their skin is of a yellowish-brown hue, resem-
bling that of a white man severely affected with the jaundice.
Their appearance, however, indicates health and contentment:

F 2

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[December,

they are excellent swimmers, and bathe three or four times a day..
The females have a mode of braiding or plaiting their woolly hair,
and adorn themselves with necklaces of shells. Both sexes gen-
erally go bareheaded, and without shoes. There are other tribes
of Hottentots at a greater distance from the cape, whose appear-
ance indicates the last degree of wretchedness. But very few
attempts, we believe, have been made to civilize or even to human-
ize them. Our present concern is with those in the immediate
vicinity of the Cape colony (we mean the children). Both Hot-
tentots and CafFres enjoy the privileges of the school in Albany
district, where, notwithstanding all those complicated obstacles
which invariably attend the first settlers in a new country, there
are no less than nine chapels ; seven of which are Methodist, one
Congregational, and one Baptist, in particular parts of the district,
all erected by voluntary contributions. Another was contemplated
to be erected in Graham’s Town some time in the course of 1831.
Most of these places of worship have Sunday schools connected
with them, affording to the rising generation, black as well as
white, regular instruction in the rudiments of learning, as well as
the first plain principles of practical religion.

In treating of this interesting subject, the Graham's Town
Journal, a weekly paper of much merit, says, “ Government has
also done much to foster and promote the progress of education,
by the appointment of schoolmasters at different stations, with
suitable allowances ; providing eligible school-rooms, and furnish-
ing them with the necessary materials for conducting the several
schools on the Lancasterian system. These schools, though un-
questionably productive of much good, are not so popular, nor so
well suited to the circumstances of the people, as Sunday and
evening schools, which have been established, and are supported
by private individuals. The children of the poorer inhabitants
are compelled to tend cattle, or afford other assistance, from a very
early age ; and so indispensable are their services, that it is only
on Sundays, or after the close of their daily labour, that they are
disengaged, or that time can possibly be spared for the acquire-
ment of more useful knowledge. The total number under in-
struction in the district cannot, at a moderate computation, be less
than one thousand, which gives the unexampled ratio of rather
more than one to every seven of the entire population.

CAPE OF GOOD HOPE^

1831.]

“ The progress made by many of the children at Sunday schools
is generally encouraging, and in some instances extraordinary.
At the late annual public examination of the scholars, such mani-
fest indications of improvement are often exhibited, and such in-
tellectual acuteness displayed, as afford the greatest encourage-
ment to the patrons of the several institutions ; and it is almost
impossible to form too high an estimate of the vast benefit which
must be derived by- the next generation from the diffusion, through
so many different channels, of religious and other knowledge
among the youth of this district. Several of the Smiday schools
have juvenile libraries, from which the more advanced scholars
obtain the loan of various publications, not only of a moral and
religious tendency, but also on general subjects. The good effect
of these institutions has been remarkable : many who were for-
merly scholars, are no\4’ gratuitous teachers ; and numbers have
become exemplary characters, merely in consequence of the in-
struction they received, and the habits they imbibed, while at-
tending these schools.”

An infant school was established at Graham’s Town a few
months only subsequent to the visit of the Potomac, the rapid
progress of which we learn has been truly astonishing ; a tem-
perance society, and also a savings’ bank, are in “.the full tide of
successful experiment.” A press has likewise been established,
from which is issued the journal above named.

Immediately adjoining Albany, to the northwest, lies a tract of
country which was, about four years before our frigate made her
appearance at Cape Town, allotted to the scattered Hottentots
within the colony. It is located near the confluence of the Man-
hazana and Kat rivers, and is, in fact, an extensive valley or glen,
surrounded on all sides by mountains, except where it opens to
the colony on the south. The number of Hottentots who are
here collected from different parts of the country, is about five
thousand.. Very little encouragement was offered them, with the
exception of the location itself. No actual assistance, indeed, was
ever promised them, nor have they received any, with the single
exception of fire-arms for self-defence ; no preparations were made
for their reception, and neither rations, implements, nor money
were provided for them. But they carried their greatest and only
treasures with them, viz., industry, temperance, and perseverance ;

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[December,

and their success has been every way equal to their diligence
and good conduct, neither of which has ever been surpassed.
The former desert, under their management, in the short space
of three years, has become a delightful garden, and “ blossoms
like the rose.”

During the season previous to the arrival of the Potomac,
there were produced in this settlement four hundred and fifty
muids of wheat, fifteen hundred muids of barley, and four hun-
dred muids of Indian corn, besides large quantities of Kaffer corn,
potatoes, pumpkins, sweet cane, and. other provisions. . Inde-
pendently of the labour required in the cultivation of the soil,
instances of uncommon exertion are manifested in the construc-
tion of canals, which convey water to irrigate their fields and gar-
dens. In some places, these have been carried through the solid
rock; in others it has been necessary to cut to the depth of twelve
feet to preserve the level, while their entire length, throughout all
the locations, is upwards of twenty thousand yards.

There are two missionaries in this settlement, both of whose
chapels are always filled, and several schools crowded with or-
derly and intelligent children. There is not a single magistrate,
lawyer, or physician in the village ; and, as a natural consequence,
they have had no strifes, divisions, discontents, or diseases among
them. And yet, with this picture of rural happiness before
their eyes, there were men in the colony who, from mere motives
of cupidity, were base, enough to join in a conspiracy for attack-
ing and destroying this peaceful little settlement. While the
Potomac was lying at Cape Town, near the close of the year
1831, this diabolical plan was in agitation. The following account
of it was published in the Cape Literary Ga;zette the very day be-
fore the frigate sailed.

“ The overt facts of this conspiracy are briefly these : About
the close of 1831, rumours were industriously circulated, by per-
sons unknown, among the Dutch African boors of the eastern
frontier, to the effect that the Hottentots of Kat river were pre-
paring to attack them on New-Year’s day. The boors promptly
assembled in arms under their veld-cornets ; and these local
functionaries, instead of communicating the information to the
government, immediately led their rude militia to attack the Hot-
tentots. Fortunately, the frontier commandant. Colonel Somerset,

1831.]

CAPE OF GOOD HOPE.

got information of their designs, and marched with rapidity to
Kat river. He reached the settlement before them, on New-
Year’s day. It was Sunday, and he found the Hottentots quietly
congregated, unarmed, in their different places of worship. In
one place there was a congregation of about five hundred souls,
one hundred and nine of whom had just taken the sacrament.
He informed the people of the rumours that had been spread
against them ; assured them of his perfect conviction of their
entire innocence ; and, taking with him three of their veld-cornets,
Groepe, Valentyn, and Stoppels (religious and quiet men, all well
known to the author), he rode to meet the troop of colonial militia,
who had by this time approached within view of the settlement.
By energetic remonstrances and threats, he prevailed on these
violent and vindictive men to return quietly to their homes ; and
on the 11th of January, 1832, a strong proclamation was issued by
the governor, reprehending in the severest terms the mischievous
and irrational conduct of the colonists and their local officers.
Had Colonel Somerset acted with less promptitude and energy,
this Hottentot settlement would, in all human probability, have
been deluged with innocent blood, and a bitter feud begun between
the white and coloured classes, which might have lasted for gen-
erations.”

Brighter prospects are evidently opening for this long oppressed
and benighted region of the globe. “ Long indeed has Africa been
neglected, and suffered to remain the devoted victim of cruelty and
oppression | we cannot, therefore, but hail many recent and highly
important events, which go far to prove that her ‘day of visitation’
has arrived. Now is stirred up the philanthropist to plead her
cause, and unweariedly to exert himself in behalf of her fettered
millions ; the traveller and man of science to explore her unknown
deserts ; the missionary to establish himself in the most pestilen-
tial of her climes ; and the Christian colonist to fix his habitation
in the very neighbourhood of her warlike tribes.”

“ Let proud oppression’s pallid sons go weep !

Let Afric. with her hundred thrones, rejoice !”

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[December,

CHAPTER VI.

Particulars of the Seizure of the Ship Friendship by the Malays, and the Massacre
of part of her Crew — Retaking of the Ship, and her Return to Salem — The Po-
tomac’s hospitable Reception at the Cape of Good Hope — Interchange of Civili-
ties— Proceeds on her Cruise — Plan of Operations — St. Paul’s Island — Arrival
' on the Coast of Sumatra — Dangerous Navigation.

As the Potomac was to proceed from Cape Town direct to the
coast of Sumatra, and in order that the policy of our government
in sending her thither may be fully understood, it will now be
proper (and cannot fail to be interesting) in this place to give a
plain statement of the treachery and cruelty of the Malays, which
called down upon their heads a severe, though unavoidable and
just punishment.

It appears that the ship Friendship, of Salem (Massachusetts),
Captain Charles M. Endicott, arrived upon the coast of Sumatra
in September, 1830, for the purpose of purchasing a cargo of
pepper. Finding, the old crop nearly disposed of, he was com-
pelled to wait the coming in of the new one, which generally be-
gins to arrive from the interior about the last of April. In the
meantime. Captain Endicott visited some of the other pepper
ports on the adjacent coast, and succeeded in obtaining about two
thousand (the picul of Sumatra being about 133|- pounds),

with which he returned to his former anchorage, off the town of
Quallah-Battoo.

In the latter part of January, 1831, he made a contract with
the rajahs and principal merchants of the place for the comple-
tion of his cargo, at a stated price per picul, which they agreed
to furnish in fifteen days, all to be of the old crop.

From this period up to the time of the assault upon the ship,
the Malays had never betrayed the least signs of treachery. But
Captain Endicott was too well acquainted with the reckless and
treacherous character of these people, to be lulled into security ;
the usual vigilance was observed, and no boat was allowed to

1831.]

CAPTURE OF THE FRIENDSHIP,

come near the ship at night; nor even in the daytime were any
except in small numbers, allowed to come on board, and not even
then, until they had divested themselves of their arms. The
arms of a Malay usually consist of a kris, or dagger, secured to
the left side by the fold of a long sash wrapped several times
around the loins, and a knife, the blade of which and handle are
generally _ about eighteen inches long. The blades of these
knives are kept extremely sharp.

On the morning of the fatal ninth of February following his ar-
rival, Captain Endicott went on shore, as usual, in one of his
boats, taking with him Mr. John Barry, of Salem, second officer,
and four of the crew, to assist in weighing and despatching the
pepper. The pepper, as soon as weighed, was placed in the
large boats of the Malays, and by them rowed off to the ship, and
passed on board, when the bags were started and returned, as is
done till all is thus embarked.

In the afternoon of the day abovementioned, one of the boats,
having been loaded near the banks of the river, from which the
place takes its name (river of Stones, or Stone river), and about
one fourth of a mile from its mouth, was despatched with her
Malay crew for the ship. Observing that the boat did not pro-
ceed directly to the ship, but made a halt near the mouth of the
river, and near the opposite shore, two of the four men were
despatched to observe her motions, and see that the Malays W'ere
not stealing pepper from the boat, a trick' of which they are fre-
quently guilty. Before, however, these men had arrived near
enough to perceive what had actually been going on, the boat was
pushing off towards the ship ; when they returned and reported
accordingly, that they had seen nothing suspicious, and that the
boat had her usual complement of men. Captain Endicott was
not satisfied, as he thought that he perceived in the boat, while
rowing off, a rather unusual number of Malays.

. The facts were these : In pursuance of a preconcerted plan,
made days before by the rajahs, and the very men who had en-
gaged to furnish the cargo, and which a majority of the inhabi-
tants were privy to, the boat had stopped at the mouth of the river
to exchange crews, the hired boatmen leaving her, and the assas-
sins, eleven in number, who vvere to be liberally paid if successful
in their enterprise, carried the boat alongside of the ship, and be-

90 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [December,

gan passing up the pepper to two of the crew upon a stage made
fast to the outside.

' As but a few hands could work at a time in the pepper-boat,
numbers of the Malays came on board ; and, on being questioned
by Mr. Knight, the first officer, who was in the gangway, taking
an account of the pepper, as to their business, their reply was,
that they had come to see the vessel. Mr. Knight ordered them
into their boat 'again, and some of them obeyed ; but only to re-
turn immediately to assist in the work of death, which was now
commenced by attacking Mr. Knight and the rest of the crew on
board. The crew of the vessel being so scattered, it was impos-
sible to concentrate their force so as to make a successful resist-
ance. Some fell on the forecastle, one in the gangway, and Mr.
Knight fell upon the quarterdeck, severely wounded by a stab in
the back, while in the act of snatching from the bulwarks a board-
ing-pike, with which to defend himself.

The two men on the stage having vainly attempted to get on
board to the assistance of their comrades, were compelled to leap
into the sea. One of them, Charles Converse, of Salem, being
very severely wounded, succeeded in swimming to the bobstays,
to which he clung until taken on board by the Malays ; and, from
some cause, he was not afterward molested. His companion,
John Davis, being unable to swim, drifted with the tide near the
hoat tackle, or davit falls, the blocks being overhauled down near
the water ; one of these he laid hold of, which the Malays per-
ceiving, dropped their boat astern, and despatched him ! The
cook sprang into a canoe alongside, and in attempting to push off,
she capsized ; and, being unable to swim, he got on the bottom,
and paddled ashore with his hands, where he was made prisoner.
Gregory, an Italian, sought shelter in the foretopgallant-crosstrees,
where he was fired at several times by the Malays, with the mus-
kets of the Friendship, which were always kept loaded and ready
for use, while on the coast.

Joseph Powell, John Muzzy, William , and a Swede,

leaped into the sea, and swam to a point of land near a mile dis-
tant, to the northward of the town ; and, unperceived by the Ma-
lays on shore, pursued their com’se to the northward, towards
Cape Felix, intending to go to the port of Annalaboo, about forty-
five miles distant. Having walked all night, they found them-

1831.] CAPTURE OF THE PRIENESHIP. 91 i

selves on the following morning near the promontory, and still
twenty-five miles distant from Annalaboo.

Leaving these unfortunate men in consultation on what was
best to be done for their safety, for the present, let us return to
the banks of the river, where were left Captain Endicott, Mr.
Barry, and the four seamen. A brig having been standing in from
sea. Captain Endicott requested Mr. Barry to go to the beach and
ascertain, if possible, what colours she had. Having arrived at
the beach, and happening to cast his eyes towards the Friendship,
he saw the persons already named jumping into the sea. The
truth now, with all its horrors, flashed upon his mind, that the
vessel was attacked; and this seemed to account for the unusual
number of Malays which had been observed, during the afternoon,
hovering around. Believing that the whole town was privy to
this inhuman outrage, as a majority of them unquestionably were,
Mr. Barry, with a prudence which showed his presence of mind,
walked leisurely back, and, with apparent unconcern, passed
through among the armed crowd ; and, unperceived by them, or,
at least, not understood, and in a low tone of voice, said to Captain
Endicott, “ There is trouble on board, sir !” Captain Endicott,
following the same prudent manner, and without evincing the least
excitement, directed Mr. Barry and the four men to get into the
boat ; and, having followed them, the boat was about to put off
into the stream, when a rajah, a man of considerable wealth, sprang
into the boat.

This rajah, named Po Adam, was the proprietor of a fort and
considerable property at a place dalled Pulo Kio, but three miles
distant from the mouth of the river Quallah-Battoo. More busi-
ness had been done by this rajah during the eight years past than
by any other on the pepper coast he had uniformly professed
himself friendly to the Americans, and he has generally received
the character of being honest. At all events, in this instance he
gave the most unequivocal evidence of his friendship, and evinced,
by his conduct, the most unqualified disapprobation and abhorrence
at the villany of his countrymen.. Speaking a little English, as
he sprang into the boat he exclaimed, “ Captain, you get trouble ;
Malay kill you, he kill Po Adam too !”

Part of the plan was, 'that if the piratical wretches succeeded in
taking the ship, notice was to be given of their triumph, by hang-

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[December,

ing or suspending their sashes from the rigging, at which time
those on shore were to be massacred. The boat had scarcely
gained her length from the bank of the river, when the wished-for
signal was seen, and answered by a savage shout of exultation
from the shore, the Malays at the same time making a rush into
the water to seize the boat ! In this they were unsuccessful, as
the boat "was now in the middle of the stream, which was about
one hundred yards wide, and was gliding swiftly, with the help of
the current and hard rowing, towards the sea. But the alarm of
the probability of the boat’s escape having been communicated by
the shouting savages who were collected in great numbers about
the mouth of the river, and enjoying the spectacle of the victorious
signals hanging about the rigging of the captured ship, a large
canoe, or sampan, was instantly manned by the. Malays, and in
the next moment was in the mouth of the river, to intercept the
retreating party. This, however, had not been anticipated in their
matured plan of attack. The captain and those with him were
to have been murdered on shore ; and the instant manning of this
boat only showed the general co-operation, and the eagerness with
which they pursued their murderous purposes. The little party
sa.w that escape by flight was impossible, and determined either
to intimidate their assailants in the sampan, or to sell their lives
as dearly as possible. At the same instant they steered directly
for the hostile boat, while Mr. Barry, in the bows, flourished in a
menacing manner at them the cutlass of Po Adam, in fact the
only weapon of defence in the boat.- It had the desired effect ;
and the Malays, alarmed at this bold bearing of their intended
victims, retreated at once to the shore.

Captain Endicott now continued to row towards his ship, to re-
connoitre ; and intensely painful indeed must have been his feel-
ings to see her in the hands of the Malays. As soon as they ap-
proached near enough, the pirates commenced a fire from the ship
with muskets, which Captain Endicott disregarded, until he saw
them clearing away one of his six-pounders, which he knew to
be shotted with round and grape, when he deemed it prudent to
seek a place of safety. They then rowed for the little town of
Soo-soo, distant, to the southward, about nine miles from Quallah-
Battoo. Here a fine stream of fresh water throws itself rapidly
into the sea, on the banks of which is a small village, to which

1831.] CAPTURE OF THE FRIENDSHIP. 93

village, however, the captain did not proceed, fearing lest its in-
habitants might be in some way leagued with those of Quallah-
Battoo. Po Adam’s estate and fort, which he keeps well armed,
lay nearly equidistant from these two places. It being now dark,
and a keg of fresh water having been procured from the stream, it
was determined to row to Muckie, another town of considerable
importance in trade, and situated twenty-five miles further south.
During this fatiguing pull, Po Adam took his turn at the oar with
the rest. They arrived, early on the morning of the tenth of Feb-
ruary, at Muckie, where they found the ship James Monroe, of
New- York, brig Governor Endicott, of Salem, and brig Palmer,
of Boston.

After a short consultation, it was determined on the part of the
captains of these vessels to get immediately under way, and pro-
ceed to Quallah-Battoo, with the intention of retaking the Friend-
ship. The cheerfulness and promptitude with which the com-
mmders, and officers, and crews espoused the cause of their coun-
trymen, do them great honour ; for, in little more than an hour
after Captain Endicott had communicated the distressing intelli-
gence, the little fleet was under way, standing to the northward
under a crowd of sail.

By four o’clock on the same day, they gained an anchorage off
Quallah-Battoo, though not sufficiently near to attempt a recap-
ture. The Malays, in the meantime, had removed on shore every
moveable article belonging to the vessel, including specie, besides-
several cases of opium, amounting, in all, to upwards of thirty
thousand dollars. This was done on the night of the ninth; and,
on the morning of the tenth, they contrived to heave in the chain
cable, and get the anchor up to the bows ; and the ship was drift-
ing finely towards the beach, when the cable, not being stopped
abaft the bitts, began suddenly to run out with great velocity ; but
a bight having by accident been thrown forward of the windlass,
a riding turn was the consequence, and the anchor, in its descent,
was suddenly checked, about fifteen fathoms from the hawse.
A squall soon after coming on, the vessel drifted obliquely towards
the shore, and grounded upon a coral reef, near half a mile to the
southward of the town.

On the eleventh, having obtained a convenient anchorage, a
message was sent by a friendly Malay, who came on board at

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC*

[December,

Soo-soo, demanding the restoration of the ship. The rajah re-
plied that he would not give her up, but that they were welcome
to take her, if they could ! A fire was now opened from the ves-
sels on the Friendship, whose decks were crowded with Malays,
who promptly returned the fire, as did also the forts on shore.
This mode of warfare appeared undecisive, and it was determined
to decide the contest by a close action. A number of boats being
manned and armed, with about thirty officers and men, a move-
ment was made to carry the Friendship by boarding. The Ma-
lays did not wait the approach of this well-armed and determined
attack, but all deserted the vessel to her lawful owners ; when
she was taken possession of, and soon warped out into deep
water.

The poor fellows whom we left at Cape Felix soon came to a
determination to turn back, pass Quallah-Battoo in the night, if
possible, and proceed to Muckie ; on Wednesday, the eleventh, at
midnight, they found themselves in the neighbourhood of Quallah-
Battoo, and, taking a canoe, they passed safely to Pulo Kio. At
daylight in the morning, Po Adam discovered them from his fort,
and took them in. They were in a wretched arid suffering con-
dition, having swum ashore with but few clothes, and were se-
verely blistered by the sun. In the course of the day they joined
their ship._ The wounded men, together with the Italian, Gregory,
who gave himself up from the crosstrees, were afterward ran-
somed for ten dollars each. 'The killed were Mr. Knight, George
Chester, and John Davis. The voyage was of course abandoned,
and the Friendship returned to Salem.

Who cannot see, from the perusal of these incidents, that this
piracy was the deliberate act of the rajahs, principal traders, and
inhabitants of Quallah-Battoo ? The manner of changing the
boat’s crew at the mouth of the river ; the signals concerted be-
tween the assassins and the chiefs and populace on shore ; the
ready attack made by the sampmi to cut off the retreat of Captain
Endicott ; the corresponding shouts and exultations when the flags
or signals of success were seen from the vessel ; the robbing the
Friendship ; the refusal of the rajah to deliver her up, and the at-
tempt to defend her, by firing from the forts on shore, all stamp
their proceedings with the character of outlaws, meriting the most
summary chastisement.

.1831.]

CHARACTER OF THE MALAYS.

Under such circumstances, were the inhabitants of Quallah-Bat-
too to be considered and treated as a part of a body politic, when
it is notorious that the inhabitants of Sumatra are divided into as
many petty sovereignties as there are large rivers or ports in the
island ? Are they united together for the purpose of promoting
each other’s welfare, mutual safety, and advantage, by joint efforts
of their own strength ? Have they a common government, com-
mon rules, to which they hold themselves responsible, and whose
authority they obey ? Have they been careful to avoid the vio-
lation of their duties, in order that they may, consistently with
moral justice, demand the observance of those rules at the hands
of other nations and people visiting and trading on their coast ?

It will be seen, in the following pages, that they have scarcely
one of these essential requisites to constitute them a sovereignty,
and entitle them to any of the formalities observed between na-
tions. Indeed, at Soo-soo, but a few miles from Quallah-Battoo,
there are other independent chiefs, who are often at war with their
perfidious neighbours, in relation to whose character Horsburgh,
in his valuable East India Directory, says, “ Small ships frequent
Quallah-Battoo*, to procure pepper and other articles of trade ; but
it is prudent to be always guarded against the perfidy of the na-
tives, who have been several times successful in assaulting and
taking possession of ships which came to trade with them.” In
one word, had the perpetrators of the outrage on the Friendship
any plea to exempt them from the summary chastisement due to
those whose crimes have placed them without the pale of the civil
law 1 A milder method was, however, adopted, and would have
been carried into effect, had their consciousness of guilt permitted
them to listen to conditions, as will be seen in the sequel.

To be fully prepared for either alternative. Commodore Downes,
in compliance with his instructions, had been diligently assiduous
to gain all the information it was possible to acquire,, both at Rio
and Cape Town, respecting their national character, strength, and
military resources. At the latter place in particular, he obtained
such intelligence as left no doubt on his mind of the piratical char-
acter of the Quallah-Battooans, and the probable necessity of
strong measures in procuring indemnification for the outrages com-
mitted on the Friendship. He was also assured at the Cape, by
British ofEcers high in command, both in the army and navy ;

96 VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC. [December,

officers, too, who had themselves been much in India, and among
the islands, and on the pepper coast, that the natives against whom
he was sent to act were by no means to be despised as enemies ;
that they were notorious for their treachery; and, in their own
manner of fighting, were not at all deficient in courage. Thus
furnished and armed with the necessary knowledge, for conduct-
ing this untried enterprise, the commodore felt anxious to reach
the spot, and settle the account at once — ^peaceably if he could —
forcibly if necessary.

In the meantime, the few days spent at Cape Town had been
rendered exceedingly pleasant by the interchange of civilities be-
tween the officers of the Potomac and the inhabitants. Soon after
the ceremonies and visits which would be deemed usual on such
occasions, the commodore was invited to dine at the country seat
of his excellency Sir Lowry Cole, a few miles from the town ;
the excursion, occupying about an hour’s ride, was over a fine
Macadamized turnpike.

The governor’s palace, though not magnificent, was spacious
and convenient, and every thing about it indicated good taste.
On the same day, the commodore and his officers had been in-
vited to partake of a dinner by the colonel and officers of the
seventy-second regiment of Scotch Highlanders, then stationed at
Cape Town, and forming a part of the regular force of the colony.
But, as the governor was about to depart on a visit of inspection
to some of the interior stations, the colonel’s dinner was politely
postponed- until the day following. Both were served up in a
style of excellence that evinced the finest taste. Indeed, the in-
habitants generally seemed to emulate each other in extending the
rights of hospitality to their republican visiters, which they evinced
by their proffered civilities, and frequent visits on board the frig-
ate. Numerous excursions were made on shore by the officers of
the frigate, some as far as the farms of Constantia, so celebrated
for the fine qualities of their wine. This exquisite article is
made from a grape which is only found to flourish in a few locali-
ties, and the wine of which cannot be procured at the vintage for
less than five dollars per gallon. In short, so delightfully had the
time passed, and so much were all pleased with Cape Town, that
it was with no little reluctance they took leave of that place on
the twelfth of December.

1831.]

PLAN OF OPERATIONS.

A. hoRvy sGRj with, strong currents, and. unfavourable winds, did
not permit the Potomac to double the cape until the fourteenth;
when, on the afternoon of that day, the wind, which had been
blowing fresh from the south-southwest, requiring double-reefed
topsails, veered to the west, and afforded a pleasant run for the
distance of one hundred and fifty miles. This respite from ele-
mental opposition, however, was of short duration, as the wind
soon hauled round to the southward and eastward, so that but little
headway was made for the space of eight or nine days.

The time had now arrived when it was necessary to make pro-
visions for the attack, if hostilities should be found necessary on
leaching the coast of Sumatra. Dispositions were therefore made ”
of a portion of the crew, by forming them into divisions of sixty,
each to be placed under the immediate command of one of the
several lieutenants detailed to accompany the expedition on shore.
The marines were to act under their own officers.

The object of equipping so large a force was, to be prepared
for a vigorous attack, if such were found necessary ; but more
especially to be able to effect the object of the disembarcation,
by surrounding the forts, and preventing the escape of the prin-
cipal rajahs, who had notoriously been the instigators and prin-
cipal actors in the capture of the Friendship, and the murder of
her crew. This seemed to be the only plan that promised the
least hopes of success, by which the rajahs could be brought to
punishment, if not compelled to make indemnification for the loss
sustained by the Friendship.

Other plans were thought of, but they seemed liable to many
and serious objections. By means of threats or promises, a por-
tion of the pirated property might possibly be recovered, but
would this give any security for the future ? Would the Malays,
be deterred from committing like abuses, when they saw that the
only punishment which followed their depredations, was that of
yielding a moiety of the property plundered ? The object of a
just war, or hostility, is to avenge or prevent injury ; to punish the
offender, with the view of providing for our future safety; to ob-
tain justice by force, when it cannot be attained by other and
milder means. The sword drawn in a good cause, and used only
for the purposes of self-preservation, may itself become an in-
strument of humanity.

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC

[December^

In one respect, we are not without our sympathy for the Ma-
lays. We know the wrongs they have suffered, in common with
the other natives of India, and we may speak of these wrongs in
another place ; but whatever injustice they may have received, it
has not been from our hands. We have made no conquests, de-
throned no sultans, oppressed and enslaved no inhabitants of the
eastern world. We have to do with the Malays as we find
them, without stopping to inquire how they became so ; or w’hat,
under more favourable circumstances, they might have been.

The information already obtained seemed to leave no doubt,
that neither the character of the people on the coast of Sumatra,
particularly at Quallah-Battoo, nor the government under which
they nominally lived, and under whose sanction piracies had fre-
quently been committed on commerce, promised the least hopes
of success from a mere formal demand for restitution, unless that
demand was accompanied, at the same time, by a force sufficient
to carry it into effect. If a mawkish sensibility, a timid and
shrinking fear of responsibility, should say that this was a depar-
ture from the usages of nations, in seeking indemnification from
each other, let it be remembered, that the question at issue was
not one of a mere commercial character, where a treaty had
been violated, or a seizure made on illegal grounds, by a govern-
ment possessing the requisites of sovereignty ; but a rapacious, a
piratical attack, on the lives as well as the property of our citizens,
under the most aggravated circumstances, and that, too, by the
chiefs of a people who have openly trampled justice under foot ;
despised and violated the rights of others whenever they found
an opportunity ; acknowledging no superior ; at least, for whose acts
no other, or superior chiefs, would hold themselves responsible.

Under these circumstances, feeling the full weight of responsi-
bility, and justly fearing the ruinous consequences which would
inevitably follow an unsuccessful demonstration of our force in a
part of the world where it had never been displayed, and among a
people who hitherto had treated the very idea of our strength with
derision, the commodore felt compelled to prepare for eflficient
measures ; and, under any circumstances, to bring the guilty to
punishment, and to leave an impression of our sense of justice,
power, and readiness to punish aggressors, that should extend and
pervade every inhabitant of the whole pepper coast.

1831.] ISLAND OF ST. PAUL. 99

From this period, the decks of the Potomac almost daily pre-
sented the novel spectacle of two hundred and fifty men under
arms, learning the use of the musket ; to march and counter-
march, load, prime, and take aim, who probably never before, in
all their lives, had handled a piece of less calibre than a thirty-two-
pounder. These exercises, and the object to which they led,
seemed now to engross the minds and feelings of the whole crew;
so that the ordinary tediousness of headwinds and cross seas was
but partially felt. In these exercises the 7narines on board were
of great service, and served as a nucleus upon which to form and
drill the other divisions.

On the afternoon of Friday, the fifth of January, the island of
St. Paul was seen, bearing by compass east-half-south. On the
morning of the following day, the wind hauling ahead, the island
could not be reached by several tacks ; a boat was then sent on
shore to procure some fish, of which there is a great abundance,
and of the finest quality, in the waters surrounding this “ barren
little isle of the ocean.”

The island of St. Paul, which was first discovered by the
Dutch navigator Vlaming, in 1697, is in the Indian Ocean, lati-
tude 38° 42' south, longitude 76° 54' east. Its dimensions are va-
riously estimated by navigators ; some giving it only four miles in
length, and two and a half in breadth, while others allow it a length
of eight or ten miles, with a breadth of five. The truth, probably,
lies between the two. When bearing northeast from the observer,
the island presents an elevated and somewhat level aspect, sloping
down to the sea at each extremity. It is evidently of volcanic ■
origin, as cones, with regular-formed craters, are to be found in
several parts of it. The soil, being formed of decomposed lava,
is a rich mould, that produces grass, but no trees. It contains
several hot springs, in some of which fish could be cooked fit for
the table. These, together with the constant rising of vapour and
steam, plainly indicate the existence of internal fires.

This island is inaccessible except on its eastern side, where is
an indentation, cove, or basin, formed by the sea’s forcing a lateral
breach through that side of the principal crater ; through which
the tide flows in and out, at the rate of three miles an hour, rising
and falling eight or nine feet, at the full and change of the moon.
The shape of this basin is that of an ellipsis, about a mile and a

G 2

100

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[January,

half in circumference, opening eastwardly, with a prominent head-
land on each side of the entrance, abreast of which vessels may
find anchorage in from twenty to twenty-three fathoms ; bottom
of black sand. The depth of water in the centre of the crater is
about thirty fathoms. From the northeast point of this island, a
low rocky reef “ makes out” about half a mile into the sea, on which
the kelp may be seen growing to a great length, and rising to the
surface of the water. From the north and west points of the isl-
and, breakers project about a quarter of a mile into the sea. From
its western extremity, also, a reef makes out some distance, on
which the sea breaks. Here, in an east wind, a sealing vessel
was lost, and usually ships are not safe with the wind from that
quarter.

The waters around this island abound with fish, among which
is a species of the cod, bream, striped perch, red perch, and rock
cod, with crawfish in myriads ; dogfish and sharks are also found
here in formidable numbers, together with whales, grampuses,
porpoises, sealions, and seals. Indeed, so abundant are the fish,
that almost every year the island is visited to procure and salt
them, for the market of the island of Mauritius. As respects
climate, sealers who have resided long upon this desolate spot
say, that the weather is very fine in summer, but stormy in the
winter, when the rains descend in torrents upon the island, and
its surface is often swept with resistless tornadoes and whirlwinds.
Numerous birds, such as the albatross, penguin, putfin, seaswal-
low, large black peterel, blue peterel, gray peterel, stormy peterel,
and Mother Carey’s chickens, abound on the island, and eggs
are plenty.

The variation of the needle here, in 1747, was 17° 55' west;
in 1764, it was 18° 45' west ; and in 1789, it was 19° 45' west.

In sight of this island, to the north, is Amsterdam island, which
is not high, but contains more Vegetation, and also fresh water.
The Dutch navigators, who first discovered these islands, gave
their favourite name of Amsterdam to the northern, and that of
St. Paul to the southern. Captain Cook designated them in the
same manner. But later navigators, it appears, have transversed
these cognomens, and christened each anew. We adhere to the
original appellation, and recognise St Paul’s as the southern
island.

1832.]

ISLAND OD Si-. DaDL.

lOl

When the British embassy to China, in 1792, with his excel-
lency Earl Macartney as ambassador, touched at this island, they
were not a little astonished to find it inhabited at the time by a
small party, whom, on first sight, they supposed must be some
unfortunate shipwrecked sailors. Such, however, was not the
case. Though on so small an island, located in so vast a waste
of waters, their exile was voluntary, nay, cheerful and lucrative —
for they were busily engaged in the common prosecution of a
voyage. It appears that they had come last from the Isle of
France, being part of the crew of a sealing vessel, the joint prop-
erty of Americans and Frenchmen, and landed on St. Paul’s for
the purpose of remaining long enough to procure a cargo of
twenty-five thousand sealskins for the Canton market. At the
time the embassy touched at the island, they had resided there
about four months ; and had already collected eight thousand
skins, and were in hopes that in ten months more their whole
cargo would be completed.

This vessel, it seems, had been fitted out in the Isle of France,
in the Indian Ocean, and had now gone to Nootka Sound, on the
northwest coast of America, with the view of buying some sea-
otterskins for the same market, intending to touch at St. Paul’s
on her return, for the skins collected during her absence. Thus
it was intended to ply alternately between Nootka' Sound, St.
Paul’s, and Canton, so long as the owners found the business
lucrative.

While our boat was absent at St. Paul’s island, a strange sail
was seen to the northward. A gun was immediately fired, and
signal made for the return of the fishing party, who, in a short
time, were alongside, with a plentiful supply of fish. The boat
was instantly run up, and all sail set to come up with and speak
the stranger, who proved to be the French brig Naide, Captain
De Allens, from Nantz, and bound to Batavia.

From this date to the seventeenth, nothing occurred at all de-
serving note. The wind had been variable, and the passage
regular. After some squalls and flying clouds, the weather grad-
ually cleared up, giving every indication of our being in the regu-
lar tradewinds. This expectation, however, was not finally re-
alized ; as the winds continued, for many days, exceedingly
variable, rendering the passage more tedious than we could have

102

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[January,

wished ; so that Hog Island, on the coast of Sumatra, was not
made until Jamiary the twenty-ninth. The wind was light and
baffling ; indeed, perplexing would be a better term ; and, after
succeeding in doubling the small islands called Cocoas, off the
northwest extremity of Hog Island, the long-looked-for coast of
Sumatra hove in sight. This land can be seen at a great dis-
tance, sometimes as far as thirty leagues at sea. The range of
mountains extending from one end of this immense island to the
other, are some of them very high, and vary in distance from the
southwestern shore, from fifteen to twenty-five miles.

The approach to the coast of Sumatra by a vessel of the
Potomac’s dimensions, is attended with much danger ; and the re-
sponsibility- of such a command, when unaided and unattended
by a consort, to ensure safety to life in case of accident, must
ever be accompanied with feelings of anxiety painfully intense.

Coral reefs are numerous ; and in light weather, when the sea
is smooth, there are no breakers to indicate their position, which
renders it indispensable for a ship with a heavy draught of water
to proceed with the greatest caution. The leads, which were
kept constantly going, indicated the most irregular soundings,
varying more than one hundred fathoms in the course of a few
rods.

It is to be remembered that the northwest monsoon, sometimes
called the little monsoon, which some authors say blows from
November to May, does not always do so ; and though the prevail-
ing winds within one or two hundred miles of the coast of Suma-
tra may be from the northwest, yet there are many intervals of
calms, thick, cloudy weather, and sometimes heavy squalls, which,
though generally of short duration, may frequently be entitled to
the appellation of gales. The rise and fall of the tides appears
to be governed by no laws, except those of the winds ; indeed,
the currents in these seas will be found to depend, principally, on
the prevailing winds.

More than one hundred and fifty miles from this coast, a cur-
rent had been found to run from west to northwest, and varying
very much in velocity. On approaching the coast it became
very irregular, sometimes from north-northwest, and then chang-
ing more to the westward, the intervals being quite uncertain.
From these causes it will be perceived, that the Potomac’s ap-

1832.]

QUA.LLAH-BATTOO,

103

proach to this coast must have required the utmost vigilance to
avoid the reefs, so common and so little explored.

Hog Island was made on the lee bow, about forty miles distant;
yet so light and so variable was the wind, with occasional calms,
that, in despite of every effort, but little headway could be made ;
and it was ascertained by observation, as well as from the bearing
of the land, that the vessel was drifted not less than twenty miles
in twenty-four hours, to the southward and westward, by quite a
contrary current from the one named before. At this time the
wind hauled ahead to the northeast, and it was not for seven
days after making Hog Island, that the Potomac was brought to
her anchorage off Quallah-Battoo.

In relation to the approach to this place. Lieutenant Pinkham,
in his notes, says ; “ From what I myself felt, with others of my
watch officers upon the occasion, I think I can judge somewhat
of the intense anxiety felt by the commodore upon approaching
a coast so little known ; the lead constantly indicating the most
alarming changes. I remember upon one occasion, the ship not
moving at a rate of more than half a mile an hour, the lead sud-
denly indicated a change from thirty-five to twenty fathoms ;
another cast was immediately made, and before the ship had pro-
ceeded more than once her length, no bottom could be found with
a hundred and ten fathom line !”

The commodore was often heard to speak of this part of his
cruise in the east as having been one of great solicitude and
sleepless nights ; and well might he thus speak, when it is recol-
lected the value of the cargo intrusted to his care, of not less
than five hundred souls, that must have perished had the Potomac
struck upon, as she must have passed near to, some of these hid-
den and dangerous coral reefs.

By vigilance, however (in such seas the sailor’s only chart),
perseverance, and the blessings of Divine Providence, the Poto-
mac had now reached in safety her first anchorage in the east ;
when the plan of operations on Quallah-Battoo was to be put
into immediate execution.

104

VOVAGB OF THE POTOMAC.

[February,

CHAPTER VII.

I'lie Potomac, disguised as a Merchantman, anchors off Quallah-Battoo — A recon-
noitring party of Americans deterred from landing by the hostile movements of
the Malays — But little hopes of obtaining Indemnification by peaceable measures — ■
Preparations for Enforcing our just demands — Humane Instructions of the Com-
modore— Landing of the Crew, with strict orders not to commence Hostilities,
unless attacked by the Malays — The latter fire on the Americans, who imme-
diately advance to the Attack, and storm and dismantle all the Ports but one —
The Victorious Party return on board — Loss in the Attack — Funeral Service for
the Slain — Official Documents.

In order that the Malays might not comprehend the real designs
and character of the Potomac, the stump topgallant masts were
got up, the maindeck guns run in and ranged fore and aft, the
half ports shut in, and the white streak so altered as to show only
ten ports on a side. The frigate was thus made to assume the
appearance of a merchant ship of great burden and capacity, like
many of the East India traders. When all was prepared, the
commodore, on the fifth of February, stood in, and came to
anchor about five miles from the land.

From a manuscript chart, which had previously been taken by
Captain Endicott, a tolerably correct idea could be formed of the
local situations of the forts. The commodore, however, deemed
it important that still more accurate information should be pro-
cured, if practicable, of their true positions ; at least, that those
intended to lead the several divisions should, previous to their
landing with the forces which were intended for the settlement of
accounts with these people, be fully aware of what they had to
encounter, in effecting this object.

Voluntary justice on the part of the Malays, for the piratical
act of which we complained, was not to be looked for, and was en-
tirely out of the question. It was the act of a whole community,
with at least the connivance of their rulers the rajahs. The
only plan, therefore, that promised success in compelling them
to do us justice, was that of securing the persons of some of

1832.]

RECONNOITRING PARTY.

105

their principal rajahs, and retaining them as hostages until the
actual perpetrators of this atrocious act of piracy were brought to
condign punishment, and ample restitution of property made to
the owners of the ship Friendship, and her unfortunate officers
and crew. When similar acts of aggression are perpetrated by
the primitive proprietors of the American soil — when a robbery
or murder has been committed by one or more individuals of a
tribe on our western frontiers — the nearest local authority imme-
diately makes a demand that the culprits be forthwith given up to
abide the penalties of our own laws ; and, if refused, the demand
is quickly enforced by the arm of military power; and chiefs,
like Black Hawk, have been retained in custody as hostages for
the future good behaviour of then: tribes. Ought the bloodthirsty
inhabitants of Sumatra to be treated with any more lenity than
the much wronged and oppressed aborigines of our own country ?
Let justice and humanity answer the question.

In order, then, to secure the persons of the rajahs without
bloodshed, it was desuable, as before intimated, to gain more ac-
curate information than the commodore possessed, respecting the
exact position of the several fortresses in which these oriental
princes were to be found. To effect this object, the commodore
directed that the following system of espionage be adopted : — a
boat was prepared to visit the shore, and Lieutenant Shubrick,
in citizen’s dress, was to represent the captain of the Potomac as
a merchantman; while Lieutenant Edson was to represent the
supercargo, anxious to procure a supply of- pepper. Lieutenants
Pinkham, Hoff, Ingersoll, and Acting-sailing-master Totten,
dressed as sailors, rowed the boat; and it was intended that they
should stroll about the village ground, and pick up what informa-
tion they could in relation to the state of defence of the Malay
forts, while the mock captain and supercargo should open nego-
tiations in relation to a cargo of pepper.. These officers having
received the necessary instructions from Mr. Barry, as to the plan
of opening negotiations with the rajahs, the boat put off from
the ship.

The Potomac had anchored in twenty fathoms, soft bottom, the
town bearing north five miles distant. The boat had not pro-
ceeded beyond hail of the frigate, when the bottom was per-
ceived under her ; which induced Lieutenant Shubrick to hail the

106 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC, [February

ship, and communicate the fact. A boat was immediately sent
to sound, and found a coral reef, of two or three acres in extent,
with but five fathoms of water upon the shoalest part.

In the meantime, as the other boat approached the beach, the
Malays began to collect in considerable force. There was much
surf on the shore at the time ; and of the number collected
around the boat, not less than two hundred were armed, some
with krisses and knives, and others with blunderbusses. It
seemed evident that they had some suspicion of the character and
object of their visiters ; and appeared so formidable in numbers
and weapons, that the party deemed it imprudent to land ; which
caution was approved by the commodore, who had watched with
great anxiety the boat’s approach to the beach, with the great
number of Malays which were seen gathered round the spot
where it was expected she would land. The party, of course,
returned to the frigate.

From all that had thus far been witnessed, there was nothing
that seemed to require the least alteration in the mind of the com-
modore, as to the correctness of the plans he had previously
matured ; on the contrary, every thing seemed to confirm and
strengthen them. The physical force of the Malays was by no
means inconsiderable ; and their fastnesses in the jungle rendered
them exceedingly formidable. Prompt measures, and such as
were calculated, if possible, to effect a surprise, were evidently
indicated as the only course compatible with humanity and sound
policy. As soon as it was dark the boats were hoisted out, and
during the night every preparation was made for landing.

The several divisions were now, to a man, impatient to be un-
der way. Indeed, the spirit of the enterprise pervaded the whole
ship’s company to such a degree, that even the sick-list was re-
duced lower than it had previously or has since been known ; so
eager was every one to be ranked among the combatants. Men
who could not be detailed for this service were found stowed
away and concealed in the boats, with the hope of joining their
companions on shore. The very uncertainty of the character, or
final result of the enterprise, seemed to give it anew and irre-
sistible charm in the eyes of every genuine sailor.

The rules of the service not permitting the commodore to
leave the ship in person, the command of the expedition devolved

1832.]

INSTRUCTIONS.

107

Upon Lieutenant Shubrick, to whom the commodore had very
fully imparted his instructions, and explained his views in gen-
eral, for the whole management of the enterprise. Foreseeing,
however, that the plan of operations on shore would inevitably
lead to a separation of the several divisions, the commodore took
occasion, while the whole party stood under arms on the spar-
deck, to explain to the officers at the head of their respective
divisions, as well as to the men, the nature and objects of the
service upon which they were about to engage, and for which
they had been ordered by their government to this distant part
of the world ; and that, however few in numbers, or humble the
enterprisCj that much good or evil to the future safety of American
interest, and the lives of their countrymen engaged in com-
mercial pursuits in these seas, might depend on their good con-
duct that night.

He then explained to them that their first object on landing
should be to surround the several forts, so as to intercept the
flight of the rajahs, as the first and all important preliminary
step towards opening a successful parley, and, final investigation
in relation to the Friendship, the outrages committed upon which
vessel had alone led to their present visit to this island ; and that
in no instance, and on no account whatever, were they to com-
mence hostilities, nor fire a gun upon the Malays, unless the
attack first came from them ; in which case, they were not only
to defend themselves, but should rush at once to the assault ; and
at every hazard carry the forts which had thus refused to hold
conference. Should the conflict become warm, he trusted they
would bear in mind that humanity to the vanquished was ever
more honourable to the victor than valour ; and, above all, he
charged them to lessen, by every means in their power, the suf-
ferings and alarm of the unarmed and defenceless.

He next reminded them, and earnestly urged the fact on their
attention, that but little was known respecting the localities of the
place where they were about to land, and still less of the strength of
the forts they were to invest, the number and arms of the enemy, or
the resistance they might make. He charged them not to forget
that the honour of their country, so far as committed to their
keeping, as well as their own honour and safety, might, and most
probably would, depend upon their steadiness, and the alacrity

108

VOYAGE OE THE POTOMAC.

[February^

with which they supported each other in the impetuosity of their
attack, should such become the unpleasant alternative. In a
word, they were to look to Lieutenant Shubrick as their leader ;
and to execute, with implicit obedience, his orders in the general
movements, as well as the commands of officers in charge of the
several divisions, while separated from each other.

Orders were now given to pass over the side of the ship, and
take their places, as arranged, in the several boats. These
orders were obeyed with a half suppressed and willing ardour
which gave confidence as to the result of the enterprise, as well
as an earnest of what still might be expected from American sea-
men when their country shall require their services on a more
important theatre, and on a larger scale. One of the sections of
each division was armed with pistols and boarding-pikes, the
rest with muskets. The boats in which the whole embarked
were, the launch, four cutters, and the life-boat.

The six-pounder, familiarly known to the officers and men by
the cognomen of “ Betsey Baker was placed in the launch, to
which a small stage had been fitted, and towed astern, for the
purpose of facilitating the landing of the gun and the men, in
case the surf should be found so high as to endanger the arms
and ammunition. Every thing being now ready, and the men at
their oars, the little flotilla left the frigate, led by Lieutenant
Shubrick in the whale-boat, to indicate the place of landing.
The other boats, with the largest ahead, followed in line, all with
muffled oars, and silent as the grave.

It was now about two o’clock, A. M., on the morning of Mon-
day, the sixth of February. The night was still — the stars bright
— but no moon. Not a word was spoken above the low, sup-
pressed whisper, as the boats glided swiftly on towards the shore.
The place of landing having been selected previously to leaving
the ship, no difficulty was found in steering the boats to the
designated spot, which was not far from the fort of the powerful
rajah, Muley Mahomet. This place is almost a mile to the north
of the town, and was selected as promising the most convenient
spot for the men to land on, and /orw in their respective divisions,;
and as being in some measure protected from a view of the town
by a projecting point of land.

On approaching the shore, two lights were seen moving in dif-

1832.]

LANDING OF THE DIVISIONS,

109

ferent parts of the town ; but they soon disappeared. A moment
more, and the order, “ Oars,” was given. The boats immediately
“ backed in,” when the launch let go her hedge ; and, as the surf
was high, rigged out her stage, over which the division in her
passed on shore, without difficulty or accident — scarcely wetting
a single piece. The six-pounder, by the same means, was also
landed in safety. By this time, the other boats had also com-
menced disembarking their respective divisions ; and, in fifteen
minutes, all were safely landed, formed, and in order of march ;;
each man having found his place, according to the position he
occupied while being drilled on the decks of the Potomac. Thu
marines formed in front, facing to the south ; the other divisions
in like manner, the right of each being near the water’s edge ;
the left but a few yards from the groves of cocoanut-trees and
jungle.

While this little force stood thus under arms on the beach, be-
fore receiving orders to advance, what an interesting spectacle
must they have presented to an American eye ! Who could be-
hold, without feelings of the deepest interest, so small a body of
men, thus paraded on a foreign and hostile shore, armed, and
eager to march whithersoever led, in the stern demand for justice,,
on account of wrongs suffered by their unoffending and unpro-
tected countrymen ! Rough, hardy sailors, as most of them,
were, they presented a picture that was by no means deficient iu
those exquisite touches which constitute the “moral sublime.”

The morning star had shone some time above the horizon, and
the streaks of light began to make their appearance.. The
matches were now lighted, and all was expectation and eagerness.
At the moment, some hesitation was felt as to the exact course to
take ; a Malay, who had probably been placed as a sentinel, was
observed to run some distance ahead, from the beach towards the
jungle, and the instant Avas seized to move forward.

The town of Quallah-Battoo does not contain less than two-
thousand inhabitants, and nearly five hundred fighting men.. It
is situated on a small bight about two miles long; a small stream,
passing through the rear of the town, divides it into two very un-
equal portions, the main part being on the northwest side, where
the divisions landed. It is regularly laid out into streets, inter-
spersed with jungle and cocoanut-trees, and contains five forts,

110 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [February,

owned and commanded by different rajahs or chiefs. The natives
and their leaders rely exclusively on these forts and their cita-
dels for defence at all times, when engaged in their numerous
petty wars with each other, or when expecting an attack from an
enemy without ; and long have they believed that within these
walls no enemy, however formidable, could ever be able to reach
them.

Through Mr. Barry, an outline of the situation of the forts had
been obtained, and the attack accordingly planned as follows, by
the commodore, previously to the divisions’ leaving the ship :
Lieutenant Hoff, who commanded the second division, was to in-
vest the fort belonging to Muley Mahomet (or Poloa-en-Yamet),
situated at the northwest extremity of the town, and about sixty
yards from the water’s edge. Lieutenants Edson and Terrett, at
the head of the marines, were ordered to proceed to the invest-
ment of the fort belonging to Tuko de Lama, about five hundred
yards in the rear of Mahomet’s fort, while about six hundred
yards to the right of these stood the fort of Catchey Duraman,
directly in the rear of the town, to which Lieutenant Pinkham
was ordered with the first division ; while Lieutenant Ingersoll,
commanding the third division, with “ Betsey Baker” in the rear,
and in front the boats under Passed-midshipman Godon, should
invest the main fort, commanded by the powerful rajah Chedula,
situated within thirty yards of the beach, and directly in front of
the town. The fifth fort is situated to the east of the rest, and
across the stream alluded to, and is surrounded by an inaccessible
jungle.

These forts, and particularly the citadels, were generally bedded
deep in the jungle, which prevents them from sudden surprise
and abrupt attacks, and gives to the defenders the means of hold-
ing out longer and to better advantage. As the small column pro-
ceeded onwards, the boats kept up with them to the point of land
where the town and the nearest forts were in clear view, when the
party moved to the left and entered the path cut through the jun-
gle. As yet, no movement had been seen on the part of the na-
tives ; but a moment more, and a shot from the fort of Muley Ma-
homet announced their vigilance and readiness to receive their
morning visiters.

Lieutenant HofPs division now filed off to this point of attack,

1832.]

ACTION COMMENCED.

Ill

while the main body still moved onward, up a little steep ; when
Lieutenants Pinkham and Edson both marched off to their re-
spective forts ; while the third division and Betsey Baker, accom-
panied by Lieutenant Shubrick, still passed through the town. In
a few moments the attack became general, the Malays in no in-
stance allowing time iox parley ; but received each division with
an unexpectedly spirited fire from their small cannon, muskets,
and blunderbusses. Lieutenant Hoff, as the nearest division, was
the first engaged, and a spirited fire was kept up, while a part of
his division attempted to breakdown a heavy gate which appeared
to form the only or principal barrier to coming within close quar-
ters. This being forced, a part of the division entered, but still
found themselves distant from the citadel within, on account of a
barrier of close jungle which surrounded it. Here, however, the
men were partially protected from the fire of the Malays, which ■
was now idly directed. At this time Lieutenant Hoff called to
them to desist, by a few words he had learned for the purpose
from Mr. Barry, and the attack should cease ; but they only an-
swered with shouts, and redoubling their exertions, by hurling
javelins and firing down upon them. Two men were wounded.

This put a stop to all further conference, and the men were or-
dered to prepare for storming, which they did by throwing up a
platform of brush and other loose materials found lying on the
beach, but a short distance from the fort. Having literally built
themselves up to a level with the top of the wall, an effort was
made to reach its summit, where they were met by the Malays,
hand to hand, when several of the assailing party were severely
wounded ; but Mahomet and the principal leaders having fallen,
but feeble resistance was made by the rest, and the fort was in-
stantly carried.

Lieutenants Edson and Terrett, with the marines, with equal
success, had forced their way into the fort destined for their attack.
The Malays met them with firmness, but could not stand before
the superior discipline of the marines, whose ardour seemed fully
to compensate for their want of numbers. Lieutenant Terrett,
with a guard, being left in charge of the fort. Lieutenant Edson,
with the remainder of his men, proceeded through the town to
join Lieutenant Shubrick, and receive his further orders.

In the meantime Mr. Barry, who had been sent to point out

112

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC,

[February,

the fort destined to the attack of the first division, not being able
to discover it, from recent alterations made in the general dispo-
sitions of the place. Lieutenant Pinkham turned his division to
the right, and joined in the attack of the third division on the fort
of Chedulah. The gateway having been forced, with great diffi-
culty, by the pioneers, parts of the two divisions entered, under a
brisk fire from a high platform situated at the southwestern ex-
tremity of the fort, and enclosed with lofty palisades. To this
spot the enemy had retreated, followed by the divisions, which
were now partly screened by the walls of the fort, and the brisk
and well-directed fire kept up by Betsey Baker, under the direction
of Passed-midshipman Totten.

Finding this spot no longer tenable, the Malays retreated to
within the walls of the fort, which was now being attacked in front
by the boats. The outer walls were fired, and the flames, spread-
ing with great rapidity, soon communicated to the inner apart-
ments, and in a few minutes an explosion took place, from a large
quantity of powder, which fortunately did no injury to the attack-
ing party ; when another effort was made, headed by Lieutenant
Ingersoll, for the main fortress. In this assault, William P. Smith,
seaman, was killed ; Midshipman Taylor and three men wounded,
one dangerously.

The firing from the fort now began to slacken ; the Malays not
being able to stand the cross fire from the boats and the two di-
visions ; but still they held out. The men from the boats were
now called on shore ; Lieutenant Edson had arrived, and Lieuten-
ant Hoff at the same moment came up with a part of his division,
having left the remainder with an officer in charge of his fort. A
general attack was ordered, and the fort was instantly taken by
assault, the Malays making precipitate retreat through their secret
avenues into the jungle. The guns were dismounted, spiked, and
thrown from the walls ; the small arms taken and sent to the boats.

At this time the Malays, collecting in numbers, began to rally
at the back of the town, and to advance. The fort of Duraman
had commenced firing upon the small body of marines under Lieu-
tenant Terrett, left in charge of the fort they had captured. This
was the fort the first division had been unable to find ; but being
now discovered. Lieutenants Pinkham and Edson, with parts of
their divisions, were ordered to attack it ; while the remainder

1832.]

FORTS CAPTURED.

113

forced the Malays, with some loss, to fall, back into their jungle.
The fort was instantly taken, with the loss of one man killed, and
three more severely wounded.

Nothing now remained to be done. The Malays had been
beaten at all points, and forced to retreat ; their forts dismantled,
and the outworks consumed, from which the fire had spread to
many other buildings in the town. The surf was rising rapidly,
when from two kent-bugles the air of Yankee-doodle was sounded,
which, as previously agreed on, brought all the scattered divisions
to headquarters, when they commenced embarking, under cover
of a guard of marines.

The services performed by the guard did them great credit. By
this we mean nothing exclusive. Where all performed their duty
so promptly, so fearlessly, and with so much effect, it would be
equally invidious and unjust to draw distinctions or make com-
parisons, The whole manner of attack had been conceived in
judgment, and executed with a sailor’s natural impetuosity;
but had the assault been less skilfully or successfully made, or the
re-embarking divisions pressed by an advancing enemy in their
rear, the marines, still unbroken in line, would probably have
rendered a service, and given an argument of their importance, as
a constituent of our navy, thqt might not be easily refuted.

Every attention had been paid to the wounded by Assistant-
surgeons Foltz and Pawling, who were at all points, as their pro-
fessional services were needed.

As the boats pulled off from the shore, a shot, from the still
unsubdued fort across the stream, struck close to the launch,
ricochetting over several of the boats, but without doing any in-
jury ; and at ten, A. M., the whole party had arrived on board,
receiving the commendations of their commander, whose mind
had been kept so long in the most painful suspense. From the
commencement, he had witnessed the constant firing of small
arms, the frequent discharge of cannon, the explosion of the forts,
the movement of men to and fro, without being able to distinguish
who they were, or what fortune was attending them, until thus so
happily relieved, by beholding his crew once more within the
strong walls of the Potomac, and that so few had suffered during
the morning’s excursion. In the afternoon, the burial service

114 VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC. [February,

was witnessed by all hands, over the bodies of their deceased
shipmates, who had fallen before the forts on shore.

The following are the official reports from Commodore Downes
to the secretary of the navy, in relation to this transaction.

“ United States frigate Potomac, ^
'‘off Soo-soo, Coast of Sumatra, February 17th, 1832. j

“ Sir,

“ I have the honour to acquaint you with the arrival of the
Potomac on this coast upon the fifth inst. ; I anchored off Quallah-
Battoo, distant about three miles ; my object in so doing being to
prevent discovery of the character of the ship, which I had taken
care previously to disguise, and so effectually, that a number of
fishermen who came on board after I had anchored, did not dis-
cover that she was other than a merchant ship, until they came
over the side. They were detained on board till after the capture
of Quallah-Battoo.

“ Finding no vessels on the coast, I could obtain no information
in addition to that already possessed respecting the nature of the
government, the piratical character of the population, or the fla-
grant circumstances of the injury done to the Friendship.

“No demand of satisfaction was made previous to my attack,
because I was satisfied, from what knowledge I had already of
the character of the people, that no such demand would be an-
swered, except by refusals, and that such refusals would proceed
from want of ability, as well as from inclination,, it being a habit
generally among this people to spend their money as soon as ob-
tained.

“ Soon after anchoring, Lieutenants Shubrick, Pinkham, Hoff,
Ingersoll, and Edson of marines, together with Passed-midship-
man Totten, went on shore in the whale-boat, for the purpose
of learning the situation of the town and forts ; but every thing
being built in close concealment, they were unable to arrive at any
satisfactory result, except as to one of the forts erected immedi-
ately at the place of landing.

“No precautions were taken to cut off* the opportunity of es-
cape from any inhabitants of the town, the nature of the place
rendering it absolutely impossible, situated as it is, in the midst

1832.]

OFFICIAL DOCUMENTS.

115

of wood and jungle, impenetrable, except by private passages,
known only to the natives. •

“ As soon as it became sufficiently dark to prevent our move-
ments from discovery by the people on shore, the boats were
hoisted out, and every preparation made for landing, which was
effected about daybreak of the sixth inst. The party under the
command of Lieutenant Shubrick consisted of two hundred and
fifty men.

‘‘ I adopted this mode of enforcing our demands, in hopes of
getting possession of the rajahs, by surrounding and surprising
the forts in which they usually reside, and thus, most probably, in-
ducing the payment of money for their ransom. I regret to say,
however, that in consequence of their desperate fighting, neither
giving nor receiving quarter, no prisoners were made, nor was
any property found belonging to the Friendship, save the medicine
chest.

“ Lieutenant Shubrick has my warmest acknowledgmeqts for
the able and gallant manner in which he conducted the expedition,
and I enclose herewith that gentleman’s report, wherein he gives
a detailed account of the attack, togkher with other particulars.
[/See Appendix. 'I

“ The midshipmen who were on shore and engaged in the ac-
tion, but named by Lieutenant Shubrick, were W^illiam May, in
the first division under Lieutenant Pinkham; Messrs. Alonzo B.
Davis, James G. Stanley, and Charles W. Morris, of the second
division, commanded by Lieutenant Hoff ; and of the third di-
vision under command of Lieutenant Ingersoll, Messrs. Charles
Hunter, Eugene Boyle, and James L. Parker, with Midshipman
George T. Sinclair in the launch.

“ Their gallantry and good conduct in the action are spoken of
as deserving the highest praise. Inconsequence of the fort situ-
ated south of the river having fired upon our men while attacking
Quallah-Battoo, I ran in with the ship and fired about three broad-
sides into it, when a white flag was hoisted ; upon this I ceased
firing, soon after got under way, and stood for this anchorage, where
I am taking on board wood and water.

“ While lying here, a flag of truce has been sent off from
Quallah-Battoo ; and I was informed by the bearer of the same,
that a great many had been killed on shore, and that all the prop-

H 2

116 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [FeBraaij,

erty had been destroyed. He begged that I would grant them
peace. I stated to him that I had been sent to demand restitution
of the property taken from the Friendship, and to insist on the
punishment of those persons who were concerned in the outrage
committed on the individuals of that ship.

“ Finding it impossible to effect either object, I said to him, that
I was satisfied with what had already been done, and I granted
them the peace for which they begged. I at the same time as-
sured him, that if forbearance should not be exercised hereafter
from committing piracies and murders upon American citizens,
other ships of war would be despatched to inflict upon them fur-
ther punishment.

“ Several rajahs, from towns in the vicinity, have visited my
ship, and others who are distant have sent deputations to me. All
of them have declared their friendly disposition towards the
Americans, and their desire to obtain our friendship. Corre-
sponding assurances were given on my part, and they left the ship
apparently well satisfied.

“ Having wood and water, and refreshed my crew, I shall leave
here to-morrow for Batavia.

“ I have the honom- to be, very respectfully,

“ Your obdient servant,

(Signed) “John Downes.

“ The Honourable Levi Woodbury, Secretary of the Navy.”

Though deviating from the chronological course of events, still
it seems more proper, in this place, to insert the following corre-
spondence : —

“Navy Department, July 16th, 1832.

“ Sir,

“ Your letters, dated twenty-sixth of August, sixteenth of Sep-
tember, twentieth, twenty-ninth, and thirty-first of October, and
eleventh of December, 1831 ; seventeenth of February, and eleventh
and twelfth of March, 1832, have all been received.

“ The president regrets that you were not able, before attacking
the Malays at Quallah-Battoo, to obtain there, or near, fuller in-
formation of the particulars of their outrage on the Friendship,
and of the character and political relations of the aggressors.

1832.]

OFFICIAL DOCUMENTS.

“ It was desirable, also, that a previous demand should have
been made for restitution and indemnification ; as, whether neces-
sary or not on principles of national law, it would have furnished
the most favourable opportunity for success in obtaining redress,
and would have tended to remove any complaint in any quarter,
on account of the nature and consequences of the attack.

“ On every circumstance, influencing your judgment to dispense
with these, he wishes the fullest information, since it may here-
after become material.

“ At the same time, the president wishes me to express his
highest commendation for the coolness, firmness, and skill, evinced
by yourself, officers, and men, in the whole attack ; and hopes that
the best consequences to our trade and national character will re-
sult from it, in that region of the world.

Respectfully, your obedient servant,

“ Levi Woodbury.

“ Commodore John Downes,

“ Commanding U. S. Squadron, Pacific Ocean.”

“U. S. Frigate Potomac, Callao, 13th Feb., 1833.

‘‘ Sir,

“ I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your letter,
bearing date the sixteenth of July, 1832; containing the wish of
the president, that I would communicate all the circumstances
which influenced my judgment in directing the manner of attack
on the town of Quallah-Battoo.

“ I was directed in my instructions, on arriving at the island of
Sumatra, to obtain from the intelligent shipmasters, supercargoes,
and others engaged in American trade in that neighbourhood,
such information as they possessed in relation to the nature of the
government there, the piratical character of the population, and
the flagrant circumstances of the injuries. before-mentioned.

“ The above were the only sources of information to which I
was referred in my instructions, and in reference to which I stated,
in my communication to the department dated February seven-
teenth, 1832, that finding no vessel on the coast, I could obtain
no information in addition to that already possessed respecting
the nature of the government, &c. &c.

“ There were other sources of information, however, to which

118 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [February, ■

I had access ; but, not coming within the range of those pointed
out in my instructions, I did not deem it necessary to refer to them
in my official report above alluded to ; at present, however, it
may be proper to do so. :

“ At Rio de Janeiro, I obtained such information relative to r
the character of the people of Quallah-Battoo as went strongly
to impress me with the opinion, that a demand made on the rajahs, i
previous to my getting them into my power, or to taking any steps ‘
towards cutting off the retreat of the participators in the outrage
committed on the Friendship, must have led to an utter defeat of
the expedition.

“ At the Cape of Good Hope I made known the object of my
visit to the island of Sumatra, to the officers highest in rank, both
in the army and in the navy. These officers had resided a long
time in India, and several of them had been on the coast of Su-
matra, and were well acquainted with the Malay character.

“ By the representations of these gentlemen, the natives were
cruel and treacherous on all parts of the coast, and by no means
to be trusted ; they represented Quallah-Battoo as independent
of, and not subject to, any regular government ; and as to indem-
nification, it seemed quite out of the question ; as the inhabitants
could, on the slightest alarm, or from motives of policy, retire and
conceal themselves, and what tangible treasure they possessed,
beyond the reach of our guns, and beyond the possibility of pur-
suit ; as the whole country bordering the seashore, and a few
miles inland, is covered by a close, and, except to themselves,
an impenetrable jungle. .

“ I was advised to proceed with the greatest caution, as they
assmed me that the character *of the Malays of Sumatra was
generally but little understood ; that they were cunning and brave,
and by no means to be despised as enemies.

“ In confirmation of all this, they communicated to me the
particulars of the British expedition, which had been sent against
a tribe on the west coast of Sumatra, but a short distance south
of Quallah-Battoo. The squadron approached the anchorage,
the object and force of the expedition were known to the natives,
and they as soon retired, leaving the place to be taken and burned
by the disembarking force without opposition. The attacking
party, holding their enemies in too much contempt, did not take

119

1832.] OFFICIAL DOCUMENTS.

the necessary precaution to prevent surprise ; and the conse-
(^uence was, that the ]\dalays sallied from their secret placeSj and
cut off and destroyed the English divisions to a man.

“ In addition to this, I learned that the natives had made several
recent attempts to cut off vessels, and that the Quallah-Battooans,
in particular, were notoriously the greatest pirates on the coast of
Sumatra ; . that they even extended their depredations to the coast
of Java, where they were never known to spare man, woman, or
child, which.had unfortunately fallen into their hands.

“ Such was the character of these people, as derived from sources
entitled to my highest confidence ; such it was represented to me,
at a subsequent period, while in Batavia ; and such the whole of
my own personal observations have confirmed it to be.

“ In addition to my instructions, these were the lights I had to
guide me in my operations, on the still imperfectly known coast
of Sumatra, and its still less perfectly known inhabitants. I felt
the full weight of my responsibility, and even a painful anxiety to
merit the approbation and meet the reasonable expectations of
my country. I could not believe, for a moment, that my govern-
ment despatched a vessel of such dimensions, to a point so dis-
tant, and through seas so dangerous, without attaching to her
movements expectations of national importance.

“ The knowledge I had acquired of the character of the people
against whom I had to operate, left me no room to doubt, that a
movement prompt and efficient in its character could alone carry
with it the least possible hopes of success ; to approach that
coast, and to make that movement, was a task neither light -nor
easy of execution ; what I had to do I knew must be done quickly.
The coast was to be made, the town approached, and the charac-
ter of the vessel concealed ; a landing effected through a danger-
ous surf, and the place surrounded, before the Malays could pene-
trate our true character, or know the object of our visit.

“ The intelligence brought by the party sent to reconnoitre,
showed but too clearly what must have been the result of a dis-
embarcation in the day. It must have ended in one of two ways ;
either the natives would have fled, leaving their empty huts,
which, if destroyed, could have been in short time rebuilt ; or
they would from forts, and from their jungles, have severely an-
noyed, if not totally defeated, our light divisions. In either case

120 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [February,

we must have been virtually defeated, and an impression left on
the inhabitants that we had not the power to punish them for out-
rages committed on our commerce,

“ In such a case the defeat would have been more complete, as
there was no higher authority or government to which we could
make our appeal, and from which we could expect indemnification.
Indeed, within a short distance, there were other tribes and chiefs
separate and independent of those of Quallah-Battoo,

“ While making arrangements to open a communication with the
chiefs, and to make a formal demand of indemnification, I felt it
to be my imperative duty to take such steps at the same time as
would cut off the retreat of those who had participated in the pi-
racy of the Friendship ; and while in the execution of the only
feasible plan by which these objects could be effected, our di-
' visions were fired on, and our strength put at defiance ; the action
was thus unavoidably commenced ; and, as to its result, I need only
refer you to my previous communication.

“ I ascertained, after the attack, that the whole inhabitants of
Quallah-Battoo were concerned in the plunder of the Friendship,
and that the character of the transaction agreed substantially with
that furnished by the department, marked A and B. The specie
and opium had been divided between the four principal rajahs ;
and all the other articles taken from the ship were distributed
among the people of Quallah-Battoo.

“ All the intercourse I had with the natives while lying at Soo-
soo, confirmed me in the correctness of the course adopted ; and
also that the chastisement inflicted on Quallah-Battoo, though
severe, was unavoidable and just ; and that it will be the means
of giving a permanent security to our commerce for a long time
to come.

“ I am, sir, with the greatest respect,

“Your obedient servant,

(Signed) “John Downes.

“The Honourable Levi Woodbury, Secretary of the Navy.”

^iquaJinte-d &.(^.S777ith 3ost<rn

^■/tJ7/atlJ7tiU^ ~h7J {^.fr.s?7!it^ 3’-’-"’

ACTION OF QUAIIJlHBAITOO.AS SEEN FROM TEE POTOMAC AT ANCHOR IN THE OFFING: JDOWNES ESQ. COFTMANDJ-CR. FEE .SASOO .

1832.]

BOMBARDMENT.

121

CHAPTER VIII.

Bombardment of Tuca de Lama — The Malays ask a Truce — Alarm- of the in-
habitants of S00.SO0 — The friendly Rajah, Po Adam, relieves their apprehensions
— Embassy of submission from the Malays of Quallah-Battoo — The Commodore’s
admonition to them, interpreted by Po Adam — The Potomac anchors at Soo-soo
to procure water — Precautions against a surprise — Po Adam’s friendship for the
Americans, and consequent losses — His character, dress, and personal appearance
— His allegiance to the King of Acheen — Outrage of the king’s brother — Po
Adam’s retaliation — His wives — Astonishment of the Malays on inspecting the
force of the Potomac — Interchange of presents — Ceremony of killing a buffalo.

That nothing should be left undone to leave an indelible im-
pression on the minds of these people, of the power of the United
States to inflict punishment for aggressions corrimitted on her
commerce, in seas however distant, the ship was got under way
the following morning, and brought to,- with a spring on her cable,
within less than a mile of the shore, when the larboard side was
brought to bear nearly upon the site of the town.

The object of the conamodore, in this movement, was not to
open an •indiscriminate or destructive fire upon the town and in-
habitants of Quallah-Battoo, but to show them the irresistible
power of thirty-two pound shot, and to reduce the fort of Tuca
de Lama, which could not be reached on account of the jungle
and stream of water, on the morning before ; and from which a
fire had been opened and continued during the embarcation of the
men into their boats, on their return to the ship.

The policy of this measure cannot be too highly appreciated,
when it is remembered that these people, while practising their
piracies, or watching every favourable opportunity to capture ships
trading with them, were frequently told by our captains that out-
breakings or violence on their part would most assuredly cause
the government of America to send out an adequate force to pun-
ish them ; and that there was always a disposable one, ready to
perform such service. At this idea they always tossed their heads
in a contemptuous manner, exclaiming with a loud laugh, “ Ameri-

122, VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [February,

can ship big gun ! no have got big gun American ship.” One of
the rajahs, when Mr. Barry was endeavouring to convince him
that the people, and the great rajah of his country, possessed large
ships, loaded with nothing but guns, powder, and shot, and having
hmrdreds of men on* board, for the purpose of redressing the
wrongs done to his people abroad, laughed in his face most heartily,
and replied, that he had spoken a falsehood. Mr. Barry insisted
that what he had stated was true ; when the rajah again replied,
that it could not be so. If we had ships which he could not take
with his sampans and proas, “ why had they never been on the
coast?” The prevalence of this belief is not to be wondered at.
American trade on that coast had been carried on for nearly forty
years, without the shadow of protection from the arm of govern-
ment ; while other nations, whose trade did not amount to one
tenth of our own, had sent armed vessels to look after it.

From the manner in which the Potomac was disguised, and her
previous distance from the shore, the natives could not, until her
firing had actually commenced, have formed the most distant idea
of the tremendous effect of thirty-two pound shot, when discharged
from a gun of that calibre. '

The fort of Tuca de Lama was very soon deserted, while the
shot was cutting it to pieces, and tearing up whole cocoa-trees
around it by the roots.

In performing this service, there was a fine opportunity of ob-
serving the great proficiency the crews of the guns had made in that
highly important part of their profession, loading and firing. Though
the cannonade was brisk and constant for more than half an hour,
not the most trifling accident occurred, . and the shots were directed
against De Lama’s fort with great precision. When silence had
been commanded, and the firing ceased, the Malays embraced the
opportunity to exhibit, in conspicuous places along the shore, white
flags ; that colour being considered among them a signal for
peace.

The commodore was pleased to see this movement on their
part ; and, believing that they would not very soon deny “ that the
Americans had big ships and large guns,” directed an answer-
ing flag of white to be hoisted at the mainmast head, and the
batteries to be secured.

It appears that the rajahs of Quallah-Battoo had some diffi-

1S32.J INTERVIEW WITH THE RAJAHS. 123

culty of a serious nature with the people of Soo-soo or Pulo Kio,
and that both parties were ready to commence hostilities at the
slightest provocation ; and we have since learned that it was
principally owing to this cause, that the forts were in so good a
state of defence, and had so many well-armed Malays to defend
them, at the time of the attack by the divisions from the Potomac.

In, a former chapter it has been mentioned that Soo-soo was
but a few miles to the southward and eastward of Quallah-Battoo
and the establishments and fort of the friendly rajah, Po Adam,
at the head of a small cove called P.ulo Kio, or Woody Island;
the little promontory resembling an island when viewed from
the sea.

These people, dreading lest they might be considered as hav-
ing been participators in the late offence of their neighbours,
would probably have fled to their forts and 'their jungles, had
not Po Adam assured them that his prediction, the fulfilment of
which they had so long doubted, was nov/ in truth coming to pass ;
that the great rajah of America had now sent a big ship to punish
those who had robbed and murdered his people.

So much influence over their minds and feelings did he exer-
cise, that they witnessed the cannonade without the slightest ap-
prehension of the guns being turned in their direction ; indeed,
many of ' them came out some distance in their proas around a
point, in order to have a better vi^w of the bombardment of De
Lama’s fort.

In the course of the afternoon, a boat came off from the shore
bearing a flag of truce to the commodore, beseeching him, in all
the practised forms of submission common to the east, that he
would- grant them peace, and cease to fire his big guns. He
seemed to be fully aware, of the object of his visit, and of the
enormity of their offence, as they not only asked to be forgiven
for past errors and offences, but most solemnly promised, in the
name of the people who had sent them, that no 'further outrages
should ever be committed by them on our commerce.

In bidding them be more at their ease, and giving them assu-
rance that hostilities had now ceased, the commodore directed them
to say to the remaining rajahs and people of Quallah-Battoo, and
all others with whom they had any intercourse on the whole coast,
that the object of his government in sending him to their shores

124

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[February,

had now been consummated in the punishment of the guilty, who
had committed their piracies on the Friendship ; that they must
now be cautious of the misconceptions they had formed of the
naval power of his country, and how reckless and inconsiderate they
must be ever again to provoke that power. Though he had taken
their town, it was instantly restored to them ; as it formed no part
of the policy of his government to make conquest, and form estab-
lishments in foreign ports. That his countrymen would still con-
tinue to visit their ports, and trade with them, as they had done
before ; and that, while they Conducted themselves with justice
and humanity, they need be under no apprehension of future
attacks from the big ships of his country ; but in case they
should, either here, or .at any other port on the coast, be guilty of
cutting off another of the merchant ships of his country, they
might rest perfectly assured that punishment, though for a, time
delayed, would fall upon them at a moment perhaps when they
least expected it.

Po Adam was the interpreter during this interview, which was
conducted with the greatest solemnity, and seemed to sink deeply
into the minds of these ambassadors of peace. It is hoped the
effect may be for good. Their astonishment on getting a view of
the ship’s batteries, masts, and rigging, seemed very great ; and
no doubt, the account they bore to their companions on shore of
the wonderful engines of destruction they had seen, will have a
salutary influence in preventing outbreakings among them; as
fear is the only restraint to a people who acknowledge no moral
obligations.

By way of a peace-offering, they had brought off a number of
cocoanuts, a quantity of sugarcane, and fruits of various kinds;
which, being received by the commodore, they were dismissed to
return on shore.

At six A. M., on the morning of the eighth, the Potomac was
under way from the place where she had come to anchor on the
evening before, and stood for Soo-soo, with a light wind from the
northward and eastward. This distance, like other portions of
the coast, was run entirely by the guidance of the lead ; the
numerous and dangerous coral reefs making this precaution ne-
cessary for a vessel drawing so great a depth of water. At eight
A. M., the anchor was let go in twenty-seven fathoms, Quallah-

1832.] WATERING PARTY. 125

Battoo bearing north-by-west-half-west ; Pulo Kio, northeast-by-
north ; and Soo-soo, northeast-by-east-half-east.

Lieutenant Wilson was immediately despatched on shore in the
launch, attended by a suitable guard, to make arrangements for
watering the ship ; bearing with him a flag of truce. He found
coiTesponding white flags flying in several places along the shore ;
and having met with no difficulties in making arrangements for
getting off water, before noon he returned on board.

At the place of watering, the river is enclosed between two^
abrupt banks of sand ; the northwest side answering the double
purpose of confining the river to its bed, and of forming the little
bay of Soo-soo upon the other. The launch and third cutter
were the boats put in requisition for this service ; the superior
officers, in turn, taking charge of them, protected at all times by
an armed guard, besides the launch, bearing in her a six-pounder^
which the sailors declared was own cousin to Betsey Baker, that
had behaved so well a morning or two before, at Quallah, and to
which they had given the name of Miss Polly Hopkins. The
boats, as there was some surf upon the beach, more particularly
when the seabreeze sets in, were necessarily moored, with a
grapnel seaward and a rope upon the shore. The distance from
the shore of the bay across to the river is about thirty yards..
Elevated upon some casks, the hose-tube was placed securely^
and the hose led to the boats, which were moored outside the
surf ; a few hands being left in the boats to attend to the filling.
The party on shore waded into the river, carrying the water in
buckets and pouring it into the hose-tube, which being elevated
five or six feet in the distance of twenty yards, the water glided
rapidly into the casks in the boats.

While this duty was going on, the' Malays collected in large
numbers on the banks of the river, armed, as usual, with krisses
and long knives, and watching with much apparent curiosity this
method of watering.

It was soon ascertained that many of these spectators were from
Quallah-Battoo ; and as the natives of Sumatra are so famed for
cunning, fickleness, and treachery, it was thought they might
possibly, under present excitement, seek any favourable opportu-
nity that might offer to renew hostilities with any unguarded
portion of the watering party. This, however, was not probable,

126 VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC. [February,

as they must have observed the party well armed for defence ;
for, besides a guard of marines, there was Miss Polly Hopkins
keeping a steady eye upon the multitude, under the immediate
direction of a midshipman.

Po Adam, the friendly rajah, was, during this time, nearly a
constant visiter on board ; distinguished at all times for an inde-
pendent bearing and manly deportment. He seemed not the least
elevated on account of his present reception on board the frigate ;
though he could not conceal, and indeed often expressed, the
satisfaction he felt at her arrival, “ authorized by what he had long
considered to be a powerful nation, a part of whose duty he, Po
Adam, felt assured, was to do justice to his motives ; and that his
acts with regard to the Friendship had been approved by the gov-
ernment and people from whom she came. His fort at Kio is
strong, and well manned by his vasgals and hired adherents, who,
for a small stipend in money, some dried fish and rice, with an
occasional quid of opium, were always to stand by and defend
him.” •

Po Adam, in stature, is rather below the middle, size, and though
his forehead is rather retiring, his eyes bespeak a mind ever
awake to all that is passing around him. One feature in the face
of this intelligent and high-minded rajah is very peculiar, as being
so materially different from that of the generality of his country-
men ; and that is, a finely formed aquiline nose ; a feature which
most of his countrymen have so clumsily wrought upon their faces,
that any beauties they may otherwise possess, are, in most in-
stances, thrown into the shade. Though his mouth is rather wide,
his lips are thin, teeth strong and regular, and of shining ebony
blackness, produced by a constant chewing of the betele-nut ; a
practice to which all his countrymen are inveterately addicted,
and of which they are very fond, on account of the slight exhil-
arating effect it produces. Their principal stimulus (never using
spirits) is opium, an article of trade which has entered largely into
the transactions of the coast in the purchase of pepper. Like the
rest of his countrymen, he always went barefoot, and his dress
consisted merely of a pair of short white cotton trowsers, put on
over a pair of drawers ; a shirt without a collar, made of the
same texture ; and a long, rich silk sash around his loins, which
not only supplied the place of suspenders, but also that of a belt

1832.]

PO ADAM.

127

for an enormous kris, the blade of which was of the finest polished
steel, and the handle and scabbard of the finest gold, bespangled
with diamonds.

This intelligent, and, in all respects, remarkable rajah, seemed
to pride himself that he was a native of the city of Acheen. The
king of this city considers many of the tribes and inhabitants of
the island, particularly of the west coast, tributary to him, and
liege subjects of his crown ; but this pretension and this power,
as will be seen hereafter, are but the shadow without the sub-
stance. No one respects his power, nor holds himself tributary
when he can, by any means, even by force, resist the collection
of- revenue, which is occasionally demanded and enforced in
proportion to the power of the crown ; the principal revenue or
tribute to the crown being, however, by one means or another,
collected from the pepper coast. The king has several vessels
of war carrying guns of small calibre, which are sent, along ihe
coast every year to receive the per centage on the sales of pepper.
The system of administering the revenue laws naay be inferred
from the following circumstance of an interesting character, which
we received from an authentic source.

During the month of August, following the capture of the
Friendship, the brother of the King of Acheen visited, among
other places, the port of Quallah-Battoo, for the annual collection
of dues ; intending, of course, to dem.and of Po Adam his tax,
when matters should be settled with the Rajah of Quallah. The
vice-king, however, had scarcely arrived, when the rajah and people
of that place hastened to inform him of the part Po Adam had
taken in the late affair of the captured ship ; stating, that had it not
been for his interference, they would have had it in their power
to have presented their sovereign, the King of Acheen, with a fine
vessel, taken from the Americans. The vice-king, for so he was
called, was there in command of a schooner of one hundred
tons, carrying twelve six-pounders, and a crew of sixty men. He
appeared greatly incensed at the loss his brother had sustained,
and threatened immediate vengeance on Adam, as the author of
this disappointment. He seized the moment when Adam was
absent as an agent for a French brig, seeking a cargo of pepper
(he would hardly have dared so much had this gallant rajah been
at home ; but now there was no danger), and proceeded, with his

128

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[February,

vessel, to Pulo Kio; came to an anchor within pistol-shot of
Adam’s fort, and inquired of the persons left in charge, amounting
to not more than ten or twelve effective men, if they intended any
resistance ; and having been answered in the negative, this chival-
rous representative of his royal brother landed without opposition,
and commenced an indiscriminate plunder of goods and chattels
of all kinds that came within his reach. Indeed, he stripped the
fort and dwelling of Adam of every thing valuable ; the whole
amounting to not less than four thousand dollars. From such
conduct on the part of the vice-king, may be judged with what
hopes of success a demand might have been made of the King
of Acheen himself, for indemnification for the robbery of the
Friendship ; with what hopes that the assassins of her crew
might have been brought to punishment.

On the return of Po Adam, which happened a few days after
this event, he lost no time in useless repining, but at once set
about putting his fort in the best possible order of defence, and
quietly awaited the return of the schooner. This happened in
the course of a few weeks, when she was allowed peaceably to
come to anchor within musket-shot of his fort. Adam had every
thing prepared, and not having the fear of royalty before his eyes,
opened a fire from four iron six-pounders, the only guns which
had been left liim. This attack was so unexpected, that the vice-
king instantly deserted his vessel, and. fled in his boat, and the
remainder of his ofiieers and men followed his example ; some
took to their boats, while others jumped overboard and swam to
the shore. Adam continued his fire until all hands were clear of
her, and then going on board and cutting her cable, allowed her to
drift on a coral reef not far from the shore, where she was stripped
of many artieles, and afterward went to pieces on the rocks. He
seemed to be under no apprehension that the King of Acheen
would ever molest him for the opposition he had so suceessfully
made to resist his authority.

It being remarked to him one day, that in consequence of the
friendly manifestations he had evinced towards the Americans,
the rajah of the adjacent ports might be induced to combine in a
crusade for the purpose of destroying him, his reply was in broken
English ; “ Suppose he come, me make fight ; suppose he kill
Po Adam now, one no can die morrow morning.”

1832.]

PO ADAM.

129

In common with the custom of the country, among those who
can afford it, it appears Adam had indulged in a plurality of wives ;
but had it not been for Mr. Barry, who knew the fact, he would
have impressed all present with the belief that he had but one.
Within a twelvemonth past one of his wives had died, and instead
of contracting other alliances, he pretended that the only one now
remaining lived with him in the fort. When questioned how this
could be possible, as he had frequently been seen putting up little
packages with great care, and sending them to a female in Acheen
by the coasting vessels — this was bringing the subject too close
for Adam to escape, and he frankly acknowledged that such was
the fact, and that he had another wife in the Imperial City. He
laughingly admitted that it was a very impolite and bad custom, =
and that if one or two more were to die, he would most assmedly
adopt the American system, and have but one.

The reason, philosophy, and religion of Po Adam on this sub-
ject, differed nothing from his whole sect, judging the plurality of
wives a matter to be decided entirely by the rank of the person
and his means to maintain them* Many of their marriage cus^
toms, laws, and festivities are curious, and worthy of being re-
curred to in another chapter. For instance : “ If a ^munger sister
be first married, the husband pays six dollars, add at pelillooi
for passing over the elder.” Thus it would appear, that the cus-
toms of occasionally selecting the younger, as practised in Chris-
tian countries, is discouraged among the Sumatrans by a protect-
ing duty in favour of the elder.

Upon the whole, taking all things into consideration, there
seems to be much to interest one in the character of Po Adam ;
and when we reflect, that besides his recent losses, he had not less
than two thousand dollars worth of property on board the Friend-
ship when captured, it would seem a matter of some regret that
our government had not made him a present, though it had only
been a gilded toy, as a testimony of their approbation of his
conduct.

It was thought he felt this, though he expressed no dissatisfac-
tion, and seemed much pleased with his reception and treatment
on board the Potomac. He received, however, a number of
presents from the commodore and officers ; and there is no doubt
that his feelings of friendship for the Americans were much

130 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC, [Fobruafy,

slrengthened, and will continue to be useful to our countrymen
trading on that part of the pepper coast.

Through his agency buffaloes, the only species of cattle they
rear, were procured, together with vegetables,- — such as pumpkins,
yams, and sweet-potatoes, in sufficient quantities for the whole
crew ; fowls were also procured for about eight cents apiece.

All these were embarked from Soo-soo, the watering-place ;
besides, sampans were constantly going and coming, loaded with
fowls, cocoanuts, pumpkins, squashes, sugarcane, and every
variety of tropical fruit.

It is difficult to describe the apparent astonishment of these
people on first passing over the ship’s sides onboard ; every thing
was new to them, and on a scale of which they had no previous
adequate conception. They were permitted to roam at will over
all parts of the vessel ; but the tremendous batteries seemed to
be the objects of their greatest wonderment, and on them they
fixed their eyes with unwavering attention ; and well might they
be astonished, for here they saw within a small compass a mighty
engine of destruction, before which all the armed proas, schooners,
and brigs of the whole coast and Acheen, might be scattered as
the dry sand before the fierce Echnephia.

At this time the brig Olive, of Boston, arrived, seeking a cargo
of pepper, which, to Po A dam, was very exhilarating news, as she
had with her for sale guns, ammunition, and long knives. He ac-
knowledged the probability that serious allegations might be
brought against him after the departure of the Potomac, and felt,
the necessity of being prepared to meet them. Of the same ves-
sel he purchased a quantity of opium.

But Po Adam, besides being a rajah, had been considered a
priest. At his request the commodore consented that the buffalo'es
furnished for the vessel might be slaughtered on shore, in order
that the poor of his dependants should avail themselves of the
offal, which would not be used if the animal were dressed on
board.

When the boats went on shore at daylight in the morning for
water, a buffalo was found, tied to a cocoanut-tree, and Adam in
attendance, ready to perform the part of executioner.

The animal was so restive and wild, that the Malays were afraid
to approach it. The officer in charge growing weary of the de-

1832.] PO ADAM. 131

lay occasioned by the awkwardness and timidity of the natives,
ordered the animal to be shot in the head, and dressed by the men
of his own party. The head, feet, and offal were left on shore ;
but the Malays would not touch an article of them, because, as it
afterward appeared, the animal had been put to death by the “ un-
faithful.” On the following morning, Adam was indulged in his
own way of managing this business. The animal was made fast,
as the day previous, and much time was taken in getting the head
in a right direction. The animal moved, and again he was seized,
and his head carefully pointed towards Mecca, when it was deemed
lawful to kill him. These superstitions being thus far complied
with, there was no further scruple manifested in appropriating to
themselves, with keen appetites, such parts as had been allotted to
them.

133

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC,

[Febrnar}*',

CHAPTER IX,

Sumatra, the Ophir of Solomon — Described by Marco Polo — Visited by the Arabs
— Discovered by the Portuguese — Size and location — Face of the country —
Mountains, rivers, lakes, &c. — Climate and temperature — Monsoons and other
winds — Soil, minerals, metals, organic remains, &c. — Volcanoes and earthquakes
— Origin of the inhabitants — Several distinct races — Description of their persons,
dress, and ornaments — Effects of climate on character — Illustrated by the Esqui-
maux, the Laplander, and the Arab — The useful arts in Sumatra — ^Villages,
houses, furniture, and food — Productions of the animal kingdom — Manner of cul-
tivating pepper, trees, spices, gums, &c. ^

There is, perhaps, on no part of the globe, a spot of equal di-
mensions and geographical importance, which is so little known
to Americans as the Island of Sumatra ; and yet this island was
once the seat of a powerful empire, and here was held the court
of one of the most wealthy monarchs of the east. On the north-
western extremity of the island is situated the capital of Acheen,
at that time the great emporium of oriental commerce and riches ;
and here met the enterprising merchants of the then western world,
to barter and traffic for the precious merchandise of the Indian
Archipelago. Here the all-grasping Portuguese, whose conquests
in the Indian Ocean had lent a terror to their name, were bravely
met, and frequently repulsed by the powerful monarch of Acheen,
and made to tremble in their turn. The Dutch followed the Por-
tuguese, and fought hard for a monopoly in the valuable trade of
the island. But from neither of these nations has the world ever
derived much information of the interior of the island, or of its
history. Even the English had traded nearly a century with its
inhabitants, before any tolerably correct account of them had been
published.

There is no positive evidence that Sumatra was known to the
ancients ; as the knowledge of the Roman geographers did not,
probably, carry them beyond the island of Ceylon, The idea of
Sumatra being the land of Ophir, whither Solomon sent his fleets
for the precious metals, is too vague even for conjecture ; and the
mountain bearing the name on the island was doubtless given to

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

133

it by modern writers. In the original Hebrew, the word signifies
ashes* It is generally supposed that the Arabians first discovered
Sumatra, about the year 1173, and gave to it the name of
Ramni. The waitings of the great Venetian traveller, Marco
Paulo, published in the year 1269, and so long looked upon as
fabulous, do, nevertheless, bear many internal evidences of being
descriptive of this island. It was the Portuguese, however, in
their expedition to the east, under the command of Alphonso de
Albuquerque, in the year 1510, who first gave to Sumatra its
place upon the charts, and made its actual existence known to the
rest of the world.

Sumatra, which is one of the largest islands on the globe, is the
most westerly of that group called by geographers Sunda Islands.
It is computed to be more than nine hundred miles in length, and
from one hundred to one hundred and fifty in breadth. But though
this island, as we have said, was known to the Arabian voyagers
before the completion of the twelfth century, and has since that
period been so much frequented by the Portuguese, Dutch, Eng-

* Among other arguments which have been adduced in favour of Sumatra and
Ophir being the same, we recollect the following : — In the days of Peleg, the sixth
from Noah, “ the earth was divided” between the patriarch’s then numerous de-
scendants. Among the divisions, it is written, speaking of the sons of Javan or
Java, “ By these were the isles of the Gentiles divided in their lands ; every one
after his tongue, after their families in the nations.” From this passage some
writers infer, that the islands of Java and Sumatra might have fallen to the lot of
“ the sons of JavanJ They say that Peleg’s brother Jocktan had thirteen sons,
one of whom he called Ophir, and another Havilah and their dwelling was from
Mesha, as thou goest unto Sephar, a mount of the east” Whether this may be
Mount Ophir, in Shmatra, is of course a mere matter of conjecture. The same
sacred historian, in speaking of Havilah, adds — “ where there is gold, and the gold
of that land is good; there is bdellium and the onyx stone.” It was to Ophir that
King Solomon sent a navy, built expressly for that purpose, on the shores of the
Red Sea, which is an estuary of the Indian Ocean. This navy was manned by
Hiram’s servants, shipmen that had knowledge of the sea,” who were accom-
panied by the servants of Solomon. “ And they came to Ophir, and fetched from
thence gold, four hundred and twenty talents, and brought it to King Solomon.”
“ And the navy also of Hiram that brought gold from Ophir, brought in from Ophir
great plenty of almug-trees and precious stones.” But notwithstanding this navy
was manned by “ shipmen that had knowledge of the sea,” the voyage to Ophir,
wherever that country might be, occupied nearly three years ; — “ once in three years
came the navy of Tharshish, bringing gold and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks.”
Sumatra, it will be seen, abounds with valuable trees, gold, ivory, apes, and the argos
pheasant, far exceeding the peacock in the beauty of its plumage.

134 VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC. [February,

lish, and latterly by our own countrymen ; yet its breadth in par-
ticular has not been ascertained with that degree of accuracy, and
in a sufficient number of places, to afford data from which the su-
perficies of the island may be computed. As it is delineated on
Blackford’s chart of the China Sea, published in 1816, and which,
he says, is “ drawn from the best and latest authorities,” its di-
mensions far exceed those above-mentioned ; for its greatest
breadth, as there represented, being from Indrapoor Point on its
southwest coast, across to the mouth of Dancer river on its
southeast side, covers more than two hundred and fifty miles, ac-
cording to his scale of degrees ; while its length, by the same
computation, exceeds one thousand.

The general direction of this elongated and comparatively at-
tenuated island, is from northwest to southeast, extending across
the equator, which divides it into two nearly equal parts : its north-
western extremity, which is Acheen Head, being in latitude 5° 53'
north, and its southeastern extremity, which is Hog Point, bound-
ing the Strait of Sunda, in latitude 5° 56' south. Acheen Head
is in longitude 95° 34' east, and Hog Point in 105° 50' east. Thus
it appears that the Island of Sumatra extends across more than
eleven parallels of latitude, and more than ten meridians of lon-
gitude. Its central point, which is directly on the equator, and
is that of its greatest breadth, is in longitude 102° east. Quallah-
Battoo is in latitude 3° 20' north, longitude 96° 30' east.

The whole of the southwest coast of Sumatra is washed by
the waters of the great Indian Ocean ; the northwestern point
of the island stretching into the Bay of Bengal. Its opposite or
northeastern shore, or so much of it as lies in the* northern hemi-
sphere, forms one side of the Strait of Malacca, which separates
the island from the Malay peninsula on the east ; while that por-
tion of the same coast which extends into the southern hemi-
sphere, is washed by waters flowdng through the Straits of Sab on,
Lingin, and Banca, The Strait of Malacca, at its northern en-
trance, is abput one hundred and fifty miles in width, but gradually
contracts as it extends to the southeast, until the distance across,
at its southern entrance, a little north of the equator, is less than
forty miles. Two degrees south of the equator, on the northeast
of Sumatra.,' is the Island of Banca, and the strait of the same
name. This island was ceded to the British in the year 1812,

1832,]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

135

l)y the now Sult3.ii of Pulombsiig} uiid. W3S tlicn cullod tlio Duke
of York’s Island ; the tin of which has long been a source of much
profit in the Japan market. The Malay peninsula, being the ex-
treme southeast point of the Birman empire and of continental
Asia, is the western boundary of the Gulf of Siam, east and north
of which is the China Sea.

The face of the country is very unequal, broken, and irregular ;
and along its- western coast, within twenty or thirty miles of the
shore, a chain of lofty mountains stretches from one end of the
island to the other, like the cordilleras of the South American
Andes. This chain is in some places separated into parallel
ridges, and though not sufficiently elevated to be covered with
indissoluble snow, often shoots up into aspiring volcanic cones,
whose craters are continually breathing clouds of smoke, and
at times vomit forth rivers of burning and consuming lava.
Mount Ophir, situated immediately under the equator, is the
highest on the island, and has been ascertained, by actual meas-
urement, to be thirteen thousand eight hundred and fifty-two feet
above the level of the sea, which is about two thirds the height
which IS ascribed to the most elevated of the Andes, and* some-
what exceeding the Peak of Teneriffe.

Between these ridges and mountains are many extensive and
rich plains, so far elevated above the low lands of the coast as to
give them a comparatively fine, cool, and healthy climate. These
plains are esteemed the most eligible portions of the country, and
are by far the best improved and most thickly inhabited. Many ex-
tensive and beautiful lakes are reported by the natives to exist in
the interior of these extensive plains, which serve greatly to facil-
itate their intercourse with each other. We say, “reported to
exist for even at this day but little is known of the interior of
the island, from the actual observations of foreigners. These lakes
doubtless form the sources of the numerous rivers of the island,
particularly those which discharge themselves into the straits on
the eastern coast, and which are larger than those on the west
side of the mountains, in proportion to the more extensive range
of country through which they flow. Of these, Palembang,
Jambi, Indergeree, Bakan and Battoo, Barra or Barroo, are the
largest, rising on the east of the mountains, and receiving in their
course the waters of many tributary streams and subsidiary rivu^'

136

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC,

[Febritary^

lets. They are also augmented by the aid of more extensive
vapours and rains, which prevail on the east of the mountains j
while their course is rendered more steady and uniform by the less
undulating face of the regions through which they find their way
to the ocean. They also derive great advantages from the shelter
and protection afforded them by the Island of Borneo, which,
breaking the force of the ocean’s swell, guards their mouth from
that accumulation of sand, which, in the form of bars, too fre-
quently obstructs the navigation of rivers not thus protected.

The rivers of the west, however, are by no means inconsider-
able, particularly the Cattown, Indrapoor, Tabooyong, and Sinkell.
The mouths of these rivers, however, lying exposed to the whole
strength of the winds and ocean on the west, which create a con-
tinued action of the surf, more powerful than the current of the
streams, renders them inaccessible to vessels of any size, and
often dangerous even to boats.

From what has been said respecting the location of Sumatra,
in the very centre of the tropics, it may be inferred that an
atmosphere of very high temperature must be the necessary con-
sequence. Such, however, is not the fact, Experience has
shown that it is more temperate than many regions beyond the
torrid zone, The hour of greatest heat is about two o’clock in
the afternoon, when the thermometer fluctuates between eighty-
two and eighty-five degrees of Fahrenheit, and seldom rises above
eighty-six in the shade. Some few localities, influenced by pe-
culiar circumstances, may perhaps form exceptions ; but the
above is correct as a general remark applied to the coast. Fur-
ther inland, beyond the first range of hills, the air is quite cool,
so that even fires are not unpleasant in the morning, but often
desirable. The thermometer there stands at about seventy, which
in our country would not be deemed a low temperature, although
the system, relaxed in a warm climate, is sensibly affected by it ;
as are also the fruits of the island, more especially the cocoanut,
which comes more tardily to perfection in the more elevated
situations.

The formation and shape of the island naturally produce these
results. Being a long narrow strip of land, rising from the bosom
of the ocean, the bteezes that play over its surface carry with
them the coolness and freshness of the sea. There are no sandy

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

137

deserts or plains to reflect back the rays of a vertical sun, as in
the equatorial regions of Africa and South America, while the
clayey qualities of the soil, and the thick luxuriant growth of
verdure and forest, tend greatly to ameliorate the temperament of
the atmosphere. Frost, snow, and hail are unknown ; but the
Vapours on the island are frequently dense, and clouds descend
loAV ; while the morning fogs, which it requires several hours sun
to dispel, lie between the hills, with outlines well defined.

All writers, from the earliest Portuguese voyagers, agree that
this island and its vicinity are often visited, during the northwest
monsoon, with most terrific tempests of thunder and lightning,
scarcely surpassed in any other part of the world ; the whole
appearing to tremble from the reiterated explosions; and the
heavens, for hours at a time, presenting an expansive sheet of
vivid fire.

On the west coast of Sumatra, the southeast monsoon, or dry
season, begins about May, and continues until about September.
The northwest monsoon begins about November, and the heavy
rains cease about March ; while the months of April and May, as
well as October and November, are .generally distinguished on the
coast by light and variable winds. The causes of 'these periodical
winds, which are known by the appellation of monsoons, as well
as their influence on commercial operations, have often been
alluded to by many able writers ; and they are of so much im-
portance, and so necessary to be understood by the intelligent
merchant, in selecting the seasons for sending his vessels into
these seas, that we shall devote a chapter exclusively to this
subject in another part of the work.

The soil of Sumatra, generally speaking, is of a reddish stiff
clay, covered in most places with a dark rich mould, from which
springs, spontaneously, a strong luxuriant vegetation of perpetual
verdure. This manifests itself in various species of grass, shmb-
bery, jungle, fruit-trees, and forests of timber, proportioned to
the length of time the surface of the ground has remained undis
turbed by agricultural or mining operations. In many places
along the western coast of the island, are also extensive marshes,
bogs, fens, or swamps, whose irregular and winding course may
sometimes be traced, in a continuous chain, for many miles, until
they terminate on the low margin of a river, a lake, or the sea

138

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[February,

shore. The more elevated spots which these marshes partially or
wholly encompass, in the course of their extensive range, appear
like so many peninsulas, promontories, capes, islands, isthmuses,
and ridges 5 presenting in some places gentle declivities, and m
others high and precipitous cliffs.

In mineral and metallic productions, the island is very rich ; and
it also abounds with fossil animal remains. In all ages it has
been celebrated for its gold, of which it is still productive, and
might be made abundantly more so, were the inhabitants industri-
ous, and better versed in the sciences of mineralogy and metal-
lurgy. The copper mines are also rich | and the ore, like that of
Japan, is impregnated with gold. Iron is found in abundance,
and the steel produced from it possesses a brilliancy, acuteness,
and durity, which have never been equalled in any other part of
the world. Tin, called by the natives ^emar, has always been
one of the export commodities of the island, and has generally
been procured near Palembang ; though it is also found in other
places, especially near Pedattee, in the vicinity of the English
settlement of Bencoolen.

The soil is also impregnated with nitre, or saltpetre, of which
the natives extract large quantities, by a process peculiar to them-
selves. Coal, rock-crystal, and mineral and hot springs, have been
discovered in many districts ; and the oleum terra, or oil of earth,
is found in several places, being probably the same as the foun-
tain of naptha, at Pedir, a town on the north end of the island,
about forty miles east-southeast of Acheen, and which is so
much celebrated by the Portuguese. Petrifications of shells of
various kinds, and also of wood, are often found fifty feet above
the level of the sea, and sometimes as many feet below the same
level. These objects, deposited in situations so far beyond the
reach of any assignable agency, may be admitted as corroborative
testimony in favour of the hypothesis which supposes this globe
of ours, at some remote period, to have writhed and shaken
under some terrific convulsion.

The island under consideration, at all events, has been, and
probably still is, subject to those feverish throes of nature which
have been known to produce results not less singular than the
phenomena just alluded to. In fact, there are few islands in the
eastern Archipelago that do not exhibit irresistible evidence of

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

139

volcanic action. We have already alluded to the occasional erup-
tions of burning mountains, of which there are several, generally
quiescent, on the island. Earthquakes are frequent, though not
often violent or destructive in their effects, when compared with
those which have successively shaken the western coast of South
America. Writers have alluded to one which occurred in the dis-
trict of Manna, on the southwest coast of Sumatra, about one ^
hundred and fifty miles northwest from the Strait of Sunda, in the
year 1770 ; when a village was destroyed by the houses falling
and taking fire, with the loss of some lives. The ground was
rent for some distance, presenting a yawning chasm or fissure of
several fathoms in depth, from the sides of which issued a bitu-
minous matter, and the earth was observed alternately to contract
and dilate for many days. The hills in the interior seemed to nod,
as in obeisance to each other ; and new formations were produced
on the seashore. Another, still more disastrous in its effects, oc-
curred at Padang, in 1097, when more than three hundred lives
were lost.

The origin of the inhabitants of Sumatra is a question of diffi-
cult solution, being involved in as much doubt and conjecture as
is that of the aborigines of our own country. The term Malay
cannot be indiscriminately applied to the Sumatrans en masse, as
they evidently comprise several other very distinct races of people,
both as to origin, language, religion, &c. viz : — the Acheens of the
north, with a mixture of Moorish blood, from western India — the
Battas, the Rejangs, and the Lampoons. It is true that the dis-
tinctive traits which marked those various tribes, at the com-
mencement of the sixteenth century, have in some measure dis-
appeared ; owing to a more general intercourse between them, by
the breaking up of various monarchies and petty kingdoms,
whereby something analogous to a. national character has been
given to the whole accessible population, at least on the seaboard.

Still, however, it must be conceded that the inhabitants of the
interior cannot be included in this general remark. They have
either kept aloof from the supposed amalgamation, or their moral
as well as personal features are too strongly marked to be readily
changed by a mixture of blood ; for they still remain a dis-
tinct people. This remark is perhaps applicable to every island
in the Archipelago, and tends to prove that the Malays were not

140

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[February,

the original possessors of the soil on which they are now found.
Several writers on this subject maintain that all the oriental nations
have sprung from two grand stocks, viz. : — the Hindoos and the
Tartars. The people of the interior evidently derive their ori-
gin from the former, and the Malays as obviously from the latter.

In Marsden’s History of Sumatra, with which island the author
had every opportunity of being well acquainted, having resided on
it for several years in the capacity of “ Secretary to the President
and Council of Fort Marlborough,” near Bencoolen, a settlement
of the English East India Company, he says, that the Malays,
now so called, are, in comparison with the natives of the interior,
“ but as people of yesterday.” In the course of his inquiries
among the natives concerning the aborigines of the island, he was
informed of two different species of people dispersed in the woods,
and avoiding all communication with the inhabitants nearer the
coast. These they called Orang Coohoo and Orang Coogoo.
The former, he was informed, were quite numerous, especially in
that part of the country lying between Palembang and Jambee.
He adds, that some of these interior natives have been caught,
and kept as slaves in Laboon, and that a man of that place was
actually married to a tolerably handsome Cooboo girl, who was
carried off by a party who discovered their huts. He says they
have a language quite peculiar to themselves, and that they eat
promiscuously whatever the woods afford, — as deer, elephant,
rhinoceros, wild hog, snakes, or monkeys. The Coogoos, he
says, are by far less numerous ; and that, excepting the use of
speech, they differ but little from the orang-outang of Borneo,
their bodies being covered with long hair. Mr. Marsden does not
vouch for these facts, but gives them as they were communicated
to him by the Malays, who have more than once caught, domesti-
cated, and intermarried with them. The immediate fruits of such
marriages are said to be somewhat of the Esau species ; but this
peculiarity disappears in the third generation. The natives of
Java, according to Barrow, have also a tradition, that their an-
cestors originally sprang from a species of ape, called the wow-
wow.

As a general description, the Sumatrans are rather below the
middle stature, but well-proportioned. Their limbs are light and
finely shaped, with small wrists and ankles ; their figures, though

141

I 1832.] ISLAND OF SUMATKA.

not commanding, are not deficient in grace and symmetry. Their
completion, which is lighter than the natives of India, is properly
yellow, wanting the red tinge that constitutes a tawny or copper-
colour. Some of the women of the higher classes approach to
a degree of northern fairness ; and would pass in any part of the
, world for beautiful brunetts. But the great mass of the females
are so entirely destitute of personal charms, as even to be dis-
gusting in their appearance. Like the Chinese, the men of supe-
rior rank in Sumatra allow the nails of their fingers, and even
those of their toes, to grow to an extraordinary length.

I When this island was first visited by Europeans, the natives
: were dressed in garments made of the same kind of cloth as that
I which now is usually worn on most of the islands of the Pacific
I Ocean, and which has received the general cognomen of Ota-
heitean cloth. It is still used in Sumatra by some tribes of the
interior.

^ The usual dress of the men consists of a close waistcoat, with
a pair of short drawers next the skin. The former is without
: sleeves, fastened round the throat like a shirt, with a metallic
: button, the intrinsic value of which depends upon the rank or pe-
: cuniary circumstances of the wearer — it is often of gold filigree.

I Over this they wear the hadjoo, which resembles a morning-gown,

^ open at the neck, but fastened close at the wrists, and buttoned
half-way up the arm. The young men, who in all countries are
; prone more or less to affect the dandy, wear the hadjoo much
shorter than those of riper years, which sometimes descend as
low as the ankles. They are usually made of blue or white
: cotton ; while the better sort wear them of chints, and the
; rajahs of flowered silk. Over the right shoulder is often thrown
a scarf, which hangs down on the left side, not unlike a Scotch
^ Highlander’s plaid, and is called the cayen-sarong. It is simply
i a long piece of variegated cloth, of a yard or more in width, sewed
- together at the ends. It is frequently permitted to fall from the
shoulders, to be gathered in plaits around the waist and hips, where,
in full dress, it is closely belted by the girdle or sash in which the
' kris, or dagger, is worn. This sash, which is of crimson silk,
j passes several times around the body, and has a loop at the end
in which the sheath of the kris is suspended. Their drawers,
which are often of taffeta, seldom reach lower than half-way

142

VOYAGE OF THE TOTOMAC.

[February,

down the thigh, leaving no covering for the legs or feet. On their
heads is fastened a coloured handkerchief, in a form somewhat
resembling a turban ; the country people substitute a piece of
white or blue muslin. This head-dress, on ordinary occasions,
leaves the crown exposed ; but when they are proceeding on a
journey they wear a toodong, or umbrella-shaped hat, of such
dimensions as completely to protect them from the weather.

The females, though not accustomed to waste much time in
the arrangement of their toilet, dress, of course, more tastefully
than the other sex. They also wear a short waistcoat, which
conceals and defends the breast, and reaches to the hips ; all
below which is enveloped with the cayen-sarong, which comes
up as high as the arm-pits, where it is kept in its place simply by
folding and tucking it over at the bosom. As an additional secu-
rity, it is frequently confined about the waist by a girdle or zone,
which is usually made of embroidered cloth, but is sometimes a
hoop of gold or silver about two inches in breadth, fastening in
front with a large clasp of filigree or chased work, in the centre
of which is set some kind of precious stone, or, at least, an im-
itation of one. Their badjoo, or upper gown, differs little from
that of the men, buttoning in the same manner at the wrists.
Around the neck is thrown a piece of fine blue cloth, of nearly
two yards in length, neatly fringed at the ends, which hang down
before ; this not only serves as a shawl, but also as a veil, for
females of rank, when they make their appearance abroad.

They permit their hair to grow luxuriantly long, both before
and behind ; and the whole of it is carefully combed back
together, ready for its final adjustment. This is performed in two
ways ; one of which is, by winding the hair circularly, or, in nau-
tical parlance, coiling it on the top of the head, where it is fastened
by a silver bodkin or pin. This fashion is similar to that of the
Chinese ladies, from whom it was probably borrowed. The
other, and by far the most common mode of disposing the hair,
after combing it back, is that of giving it a twist or two with the
hands, and then doubling it, and passing the bight through a lock
or tuft raised from the mass for that purpose on the back of the
head. As an additional security, tortoise-shell combs are used,
sometimes highly ornamented with gold or silver. Among the
poorer classes, the hair is always kept moist by a free use of the

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA-

143

oil of cocoanut; while those whose circumstances will permit^
make use of an aromatic oil, extracted from gum benjamin, as a
very pleasant perfume. The females wear no covering on their
heads, either for protection or ornament, with the exception of a
modest wreath of flowers ; their hair, in the language of St. Paul,
being their “ covering and their glory.” The flowers which com-
pose this wreath are generally white, or of a pale yellow, and
are always selected when only half blown, and strung with neat-
ness and simplicity, without the least indication of show or
gaudiness.

Among the country people, and more especially in the southern
districts, the young and unmarried females are distinguished by a
narrow fillet, which, passing round the forehead and over the hair,
is fastened at the back of the head. Among the wealthy, this
fillet is generally of gold or silver, to match the zone ; while the
poorer classes substitute a single leaf of the neepah-tvee. Their
maiden state is also denoted by bracelets of silver or gold on the
wrists. The young women in the country villages manufacture
the cloth for their own cayen-sarong, which, with them only,
reaches from the breast to the knees. Those worn by the Malay
ladies nearer the coast, are of greater length, and more showy and
expensive ; and yet the rural maids, with their shorter dress, evince
more innocent simplicity and genuine modesty, than their metro-
politan neighbours.

Both sexes practise the unaccountable custom of filing, black-
ing, and otherwise disfiguring their teeth, especially by an inordi-
nate use of the betele-nut. The women in the Lampoon district
actually file their teeth nearly down even with the gums ; and never
seem to be satisfied while a single natural beauty is retained in their
mouths ; thus evincing the greatest ingratitude to nature, from
whom they each originally derived two beautiful rows of pearls,
set in coral arches of the brightest red. Their teeth naturally
are regularly set, and of the most exquisite whiteness.

Having thus very cursorily touched upon the geographical loca-
tion and geological features of the Island of Sumatra, together
with its climate, winds, mountains, rivers, lakes, soil, minerals,
and inhabitants, including a brief description of the persons and
dress of the latter, we shall now proceed to drop a few words on
their villages, buildings, and domestic arts.

144 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [February,

It has been justly observed, tliat in proportion as the arts in use
with any people are connected with the primary demands of
nature, they carry the greater likelihood of originality ; because
those demands must have been administered to from a period
coeval with the existence of the people themselves.

The arts of a primitive people, like their wants, are generally
few, confined principally to the protection and sustenance of the
mere animal body — to the construction of such abodes as are re-
quired to defend them from the inclemencies of the elements, and
external assaults of every description, and to the numerous in-
genious expedients for procuring food, as climate or circumstances
may require it to be sought, either from the plain or the forest,
the mountain or the seashore. Man’s earliest effort is to avoid
pain, and his second to procure pleasure. The two requisites
just named, of shelter and sustenance, are so simple in themselves,
and act so immediately on the external senses of the most wild
or uncultivated of the human species, that the efforts made to
supply them are little else than an instinctive obedience to the
mandates of nature, as both of them are essential to the continu--
ance of life.

In a country like Sumatra, generally rich in soil. Warm in cli-
mate, and abundant in a vast variety of nourishing and delicious
fruits, which grow and ripen without the labour of man, and
almost drop into his mouth as he indolently stretches him-^
self in the shade of teeming boughs, on which blossoms and ma-
turity are promiscuously mingled, — the springs of necessity, which
are the primum mobile of invention, soon lose their power and
elasticity. As a natural consequence, the intellectual machine
will perform fewer and more simple revolutions, than where a more
rigorous climate, producing more complicated wants, imparts
health and vigour to the body, fresh incentives to the mind, and
new activities to ingenuity.

Roused to action by the rude necessities of his arctic climate,
the feeble Esquimaux has invented comforts which do honour to
his race. With no other materials than the frozen snow around
him, he constructs a neat and commodious habitation, perfectly
adapted in form and capacity to the nature of the region he im
habits. The rapidity and neatness with which he raises this edi-
fice, and renders it impervious to the rigorous atmosphere around

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

145

it, is truly admirable. Its shape is that of a hemispherical bee-
hive, and he enters it on his belly, when it affords him a similar
protection to that which the vegetable kingdom receives from a
covering of snow, and hence the contrivance doubtless originated.
He has also invented arts and stratagems to capture the wah’us
and seal on the edge of the ice. The skin of the seacalf forms
his swift-sailing canoe, while its carcass furnishes him with fuel
and light ; and he patiently^-works a gray porous stone into the
shape of kettles and pitchers, the brims and edges of which he
tastefully ornaments.

The Laplander, in obedience to similar calls of necessity, -
has invented methods by which he can catch the raindeer, and
train it for domestic use, to convey him on distant journeys, of
to supply his little dairy with luxuries. His boat-shaped sledge,
in which he travels, is invented and constructed by himself, while
his wife or daughter draws milk from the deer’s distended udder,
and converts it to butter and cheese. He has learned to make
garments of its skin, and to preserve its flesh for food ; to
draw forth the finny tribes from the sea ; and to build conical
habitations of poles, with their tops united and covered with
skins. He is ever active in his fishing or the chase ; in at-
tending to his raindeer, or in constructing canoes, sledges, harness,
cups, bowls, &c., while his wife is equally busy in making nets,
curing the fish, drying the venison, and tanning hides. The Being
from whom he derived his inventive faculty, ‘‘ knoweth that he
hath need of all these things ”

The lawless Arab of the desert, like the wild and independent
Indian of the Argentine pampas, glories in the fleetness of his
horse, and constructs portable habitations, well adapted to his
itinerant life and habits ; but it is the latter that invented the lasso,-
with which he captures wild cattle, and animals of various kinds j
it is he who, far less tame himself than the snorting wild-horse
which he with inimitable grace bestrides, collects, and folds, and
leads to fertile pastures, the bullocks of the pampas ; it is he

“ Who, like the active African, instructs
The fiery steed and trains him to his hand.”

Thus it appears, that it is the call of necessity which bring®
into action the intellectual and physical energies of man ; and
that the inhabitants of more rigorous climates make more rapid

146 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [February,

advancements in improvement ; while those within the tropics,
feeling less necessity for exertion, remain much longer in their
primitive state. The happy medium, as usual, lies between the
two, for it needs no argument to prove that the arts and sciences
have always flourished with the most vigour under the temperate
zone. We may thus, in some measure, account for the fact, that
the Asiatic nations, though of great antiquity, have made far less
rapid advances in the arts and sciences, and every species of im-
provement, than modern nations in more northern latitudes, who
sprang into existence, as it were, but yesterday.

This proposition will be more fully illustrated when we come
to speak of the Chinese, who appear to have stuck at a certain
point in the scale of improvement, above which -they have not
risen since the days of Confucius.

The Sumatrans, however, without; being impelled by keen ne-
cessity in the construction of their habitations, have advanced
many degrees beyond most other islanders in the luxurious and
effeminating climate of the eastern world. Their doosoons, or
villages, are generally erected on some commanding site, near a
river or lake, which not only affords them facilities for bathing, —
a recreation of which they are very fond, and which is required
by health, as well as enjoined by the Mahometan faith ; but serves
also as a channel of communication for personal intercourse and
the transportation of merchandise. The frames of their houses
are of wood, resting on tall upright posts, sunk a few feet in the
ground. The roofs are variously covered, but most generally with
the leaf of the neepah, or palm-tree. The floor consists of bam-
boos, placed across in form of sleepers, which are covered with
laths of the same material, each of which is about an inch in
breadth, and over these is spread a carpet of mats, rendering the
apartments quite comfortable, as there is no cold to be excluded.
The lightness of the materials yrhich form such an edifice, and the
simplicity of its construction, are admirably adapted to a country
liable to be frequently shaken to its centre by earthquakes and
volcanic eruptions ; being less perilous to the inhabitants than if
built of clay, or even of mud. Necessity has taught them this
fact ; but yet, as an art or a science, the Sumatrans know nothing
of architecture.

The furniture of these dwellings comprises but few articles, and

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

147

is quite plain^ corresponding to the simplicity of manners which
characterizes the people. In the article of bedding, they evince
considerable taste. Each bed is furnished with several piUows,
neatly fringed at the ends with a light substance resembling foil.
For chairs and stools they have, of course, no use, as they always
sit upon mats on the floor, and generally cross-legged, like the
Turks. Rice is always a leading dish at their meals. In their
various kinds of curry, the knife and spoon are generally dis-
pensed with, and the thumb and finger substituted, which are
frequently immersed in water during the repast.

Rice is a great article of consumption in all countries that lie
near the equator. Like wheat in our own temperate latitudes, it
is the tropical “ staff of life.” It is probable that not less than
fifty millions of the human family depend for their sustenance
almost exclusively upon this farinaceous and esculent article of
food. In India, rice is called, while yet in the husk, paddee ; but
acquires a different appellation from every process through which
it passes. In Sumatra and the adjacent islands, this article is
distinguished by the Malays as “ upland and lowland paddee,”
a distinction, we believe, not unknown among the rice-planters of
our own country. The upland rice, being of a superior quality *
and more durable, always commands a higher price ; while the
other, or lowland, is more productive, yielding a greater return ;
and though not so durable, or by any means so nutricious, is yet
in more general use.

The plantations, or paddee-fieMs, are often prepared with great
labour, in clearing away the aquatic shrubs with which the
marshes or lowlands are generally overrun ; while even greater
efforts are required in removing the venerable groves which have
shaded the mountains for ages. The fields are sowed in Sep-
tember or October, about the commencement of the periodical
rains. When additional moisture becomes necessary, artificial
irrigation is resorted to, which is easily effected, from the numer-
ous little streams which intersect the interior of the island in
every direction. When the rice begins to blossom and form into
ears, “ sweet bashful pledges of delicious harvest, wafting their
influence to the ripening sun,” the water is carefully drained off;
after which the crop rapidly advances to a state for the gatherer..
In the district of Manna, and that occupied by the Battoos, the

K 2

148 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [February,

arts of cultivation are exercised in much greater perfection than
in any other parts of the island ; owing probably to the greater
density of population, and the consequent necessity of industry.
The crops yield variously in different parts of the island, but in
none are they more productive than in the interior from Quallah-
Battoo.

The cocoanut, nature’s most bountiful gift to her rude children
throughout the tropical xvorld, is found in all parts of Sumatra ;
and, in one way or another, is extensively used by the inhabitants
as an article of food ; though, from the great variety of other pro-
ductions, it is not actually indispensable, as is the case in some
islands. Oil is extracted from it for moistening the hair, and
also for burning in lamps ; though in the interior of the island,
lights are procured from a species of turpentine called dammar.
From this and other species of palm, is also extracted a liquor
used in the manufacture of arrack ; while from the head of the
same tree is procured a kind of cabbage. The villages are care-
fully surrounded and adorned with cocoanut- trees wherever the
air and soil are favourable ; while in the seaport towns, where the
demand is greater, the groves are proportionably larger. The soil
best adapted to their growth is low and sandy, and near the sea-
shore, where they come to maturity and bear fruit in the course
of a few years.

“ Here, stretched beneath these orchards of the sun,

Give me to drain the cocoa’s milky bowl ;

And from the palm to draw its fresh’ning wine,

More bounteous far than all the frantic juice
Which Bacchus pours.” — Thomson.

The betele-nut-tree, greatly resembling in its appearance the
cocoanut, is cultivated by the natives in large plantations, and is
eaten with see-see, a creeping plant of a pleasant aromatic odour.
Ginger and tobacco are raised in small quantities. The palma-
christi, of which the best of castor-oil is made, grows here in
great abundance, and without any trouble.. Sugar is extracted
from anou, a species of the palm. The natives plant a dwarf
kind of mulberry for the use of the silkworm, but their silk is
of an inferior quality. Sugarcane is cultivated, though not to
any great extent, and is chewed as a delicacy. They plant yams

1832.] ISLAND OF SUMATRA. 149

of various kinds, to the culture of which the soil is well adapted;
likewise sweet potatoes and pulse, a species of French bean, as
well as the egg-plant, ' probably introduced from China, all of
which are much used for food. Maize is planted, and much eaten
while green, but not relied on as an essential article of subsistence.
The indigo, taroom, found on all their plantations, is used as a
die-stuff ; but is not in general prepared in solid pieces as we
see in the southern ceroons. , Diewoods of various kinds, some
of which are very valuable, are found on the island, with the
virtues and qualities of which the natives appear to be well ac-
quainted.

No portion of the globe can probably boast of so many indige-
nous fruits as the Malay islands. Here nature, in liberal profu-
sion, has poured forth her most delicious productions. The man-
gusteen — how shall we describe it ? The pride and boast of
India ! Where shall we find language that will convey to those
who never tasted it, an idea of its inexpressible delicacy; — unlike,
as it is unequalled by, any fruit in the world. It is a drupe, con-
sisting of a soft, succulent, and thick rind, encompassing kernels,
which are covered with a juicy and perfectly white substance,
that dissolves ip the mouth. It .is so innocent in its effects, that
it may be partaken in any quantity, without danger.

There is another fruit, called the doosean, of which the natives
are extremely fond, and subsist on it almost entirely during its
season. This is a rich fruit, grows on high trees, and not pleasant,
either in flavour or odour, to those who are unaccustomed to it.
Besides those already mentioned, and various other fruits found
on the vine, the shrub, or the trees of the forest, there are man-
goes, Indian figs, bananas, pineapples, oranges, limes, and lemons,
in abundance ; also, pomegranates, melons, watermelons, tama-
rinds, and grapes, though in limited extent ; the latter grow wild,
and are scarcely cultivated at all.

But prolific nature has by no means exhausted all her energies
on the vegetable kingdom in Sumatra. The island not only
abounds with plants, flowers, fruits, and gigantic forests, but also
in beasts, birds, reptiles, and insects ; which, though extremely
numerous, being similar to those found in other portions of India,
can receive but a partial notice at our hand. Those of most
note are the following, distinguished by their native and foreign

150

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[Februaryj

names : — horse, coodo; small, well made, and hardy; cow, sappee ;
small breed ; sheep, heeree-heeree ; small, probably introduced
from Bengal ; goat, ca?nbing ; goat of the woods, cambingrootan ;
resembling the gazelle ; hog, habee ; Chinese breed ; dog, angin ;
cat, cochin; rat, teecoose ; elephant, gaja ; rhinoceros, huddah;
hippopotamus, coodoo-ayer ; tiger, reemow, or macliang ; very
ferocious and destructive to human life ; bear, broorong (Latin,
bruin) ; otter, angin-ayer ; sloth, telleggo ; porcupine, landa ;
armadillo, tangeeling ; very rare, and much esteemed by the
natives ; deer, rooso-keejang ; many species, some of which are
very large ; monkey, moonia ; prodigious variety , squirrel, toopye ;
bat, boorong-tecoose, &c. &c.

The buffalo, though obstinate, dull, and capricious, is still sub-
dued to the yoke, and performs with great patience all the do-
mestic labours of the Sumatrans, and constitutes a great part of
their food. There are two species, the black and the white, and
both are domesticated. The forests abound with elephants, which
sometimes commit great depredations on the plantations of the
natives.

The birds are very numerous, and of great variety in their
plumage. We cannot even attempt to name even the few that
have been described. It is here that the famous Sumatran, or
Argos pheasant is found ; a specimen of which, we presume, is
not contained in any of our public collections. The natives call
it the coo-ow. It is a bird of uncommon beauty ; perhaps the
most delicately rich, without any gaudiness, of all the feathered
tribe. Like the quail of our own country, it cannot be domesti-
cated, and seldom lives more than a month when deprived of its
liberty. It is said to have a great antipathy to light ; but when
kept in a moderate degree of darkness, it is more cheerful, and
then sometimes makes use of the notes from which its name is
derived, coo-ow, coo-ow, in a plaintive style, and not harsh like
the peacock’s. There are many species of the stork, some of
which are very large ; and parrots are without number. Doves
are also numerous, and the domestic fowl is found in great per-
fection, far surpassing in size and flavour their puny 4escendants
jn any other part of the world.

■Of all the productions of the island, regarded as articles
of commerce, theij: pepper has held, and deservedly too, the

1832.]

ISLAND OP SUMATRA.

151

fivst icink I Slid, hss added Dot a little to tlie value of our coni-
mercial intercourse with the natives of the Malay coast. Every
effort has been secretly made by the East India Companies of
Europe, to get this valuable trade into their own exclusive power.
It was for the monopoly of this single article that the Dutch
maintained so long, and at so great a sacrifice of human life, their
factory at the productive but sickly port of Padang, on the west
coast of Sumatra, about fifty miles south of the equator, grasping
at the whole traffic on that coast. Actuated by a similar policy,
the British East India Company exerted their whole strength,
and finally succeeded in getting the ascendency ; so that in the
year 1774, a short time before her American colonies declared
their independence, their exports of pepper alone, from the west
coast of Sumatra, amounted to no less than twelve hundred tons
per annum. It is not our present purpose, however, to go into
the statistics of this valuable trade ; but rather to show the natural
capacities of the island, and the articles of commerce which are
indigenous to the soil. It may not be improper, however, to add,
that Padang has been alternately in the possession of the English
and Dutch several times ; but finally surrendered to the latter in
18 PI. In 1797, while in possession of the British, it was almost
totally destroyed by an earthquake, when upwards of three hun-
dred lives were lost.

The pepper grows on a vine, or creeping plant, with a ligneous
stalk, and leaves of a dark green, heart-shaped, pointed, and not
poignant to the taste, and having little or no smell. The blossom
is small and white, and the fruit hangs in bunches, or clusters,
resembling those of the currant-tree, but larger and less pliant.
It is from four to five months in coming to maturity. The berries
are at first green, and gradually become a bright red when ripe,
and soon fall off if not gathered. All the bunches on the stems
do not become ripe at the same time, and the natives frequently
go through their little farms with small baskets, plucking off each
bunch as they become ripe. When gathered, it is spread out on
mats, or clean places, to dry. That which has been gathered at
a proper age will shrink least ; while those skilled in the trade
will readily distinguish that which has been plucked prematurely,
by rubbing it in the hand, when it -will impart much dust, and even
crumble to pieces.

152

yOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[Febraary,

The pepper vine runs up on poles, like our beanpoles, previously
planted for that purpose, six feet apart, as our farmers plant their
Indian corn. The culture of one thousand such plants is occu-
pation sufficient for a man and his wife ; while five hundred is the
amount allotted to a single person, But these allotments carry
us back to times when the natives were more severely dealt by
than they are at present ; when grasping monopolies laid heavy
exactions on the petty chiefs, who in their turn tyrannised over
their harmless and unresisting subjects.

There are said to be three species of pepper, and known in
different sections of the country by different names. That which
is raised in the Rajang district, is called lado caiooor ; is strong,
bears a large leaf and fruit, and is slow in coming to perfection.
The leaf and fruit of the lado manna are smaller, but the vine
bears sooner, and in much greater quantities. The Jamhee is
small in leaf and fruit, and has long since fallen into disrepute.
It is probable that the different qualities of the soil have an agency
in producing these varieties.

The pepper season, as well as the ripening of other fruits in
Sumatra, are liable to great irregularities from the uncertainty of
the monsoons, which are not always so exactly periodical as they
are in some other parts of India. In ordinary seasons, the pepper
vine produces two crops in the year. The first is a large one, called
poopool-augoong, about the month of September, when the sun is
crossing the equator, in his declination towards the south ; the
other, called the lesser or half crop, hooalello, in the month of
March, when the sun is returning across the equator, towards the
north. For on every spot between the tropics, the sun is vertical
twice in each year, so that each experiences a double season. In
fhe beautiful language of Thomson—

Great are the scenes, with dreadful beauty crowned,

And barbarous wealth, that see each circling year
Returning suns and double seasons pass.”

These different crops are generally brought from the interior to
the seashores by rafts of bamboo or other timber, floated on the
current of rapid streams.

Among the indigenous productions of the island is the cam-
phire-tree, producing a gum, or resin, so celebrated and valuable

1832.] ISLAND OF SUMATRA. 153

as an article of commerce. Campliire was long known and ap-
preciated by the Arabians before a European flag had been
unfolded in the eastern seas. The camphire-tree is found only
on the southern parts of the island ; it grows without culture, and
sometimes attains to an immense magnitude, measuring no less
than fifteen feet in circumference. The wood of this tree is highly
esteemed for many purposes, particularly by the trunk-makers, as
the camphorated odour of the wood prevents the inroads of moths
and other insects. From the interstices of the timber, when split
open, the camphire is often taken in a dry concrete state ; while
there is another tree, of a different species, which produces it in a
liquid form. The camphire of this island has always commanded
a high price, but is seldom met with in our country in an unadul-
terated state. A great portion of that which is brought from India
is, we believe, procured at Japan, of an inferior quality, being
from a tree which abounds in all parts of that country, and known
to naturalists by the name of laurus camphora. The camphire-oil,
or rather liquid, as it is destitute of every oleaginous quality, is
highly esteemed as a medicine by the natives, who use it as we
do, for strains, swellings, and inflammations ; its extreme subtilty
rendering jt very penetrating to whatever part applied. It is not
manufactured, nor does it undergo any preparation ; but is distilled
as a volatile resin, from a species of the camphire-tree.

Benjamin, or benzoin — caminyan — is also found in Sumatra,
on the more northern parts of the island. It is generally denomi-
nated a gum, although from its ready solubility in alcohol, it is
more properly a resin. The tree is small, and not suitable for me-
chanical purposes. In some parts near the seacoast, the natives
have been in the habit of cultivating large groves of it, its growth
being rapid, and affording a quick return for their labour. Much
of this odoriferous resin is used in Catholic countries, where it is
burnt as incense in their religious ceremonies. It is also used,
we believe, in medicine ; and the ladies of wealth in Sumatra
anoint their heads with a fragrant oil extracted from it.

Cassia — covleet-manees . This species of cinnamon is found
in the interior of the island, and is mostly procured in those dis-
tricts which lie inland from Tappannoly ; it abounds also in
Moosee, the country where the Palembang river takes its rise.
The trees grow to the height of forty or fifty feet, with wide-

154 VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC. [February,

spreading, horizontal branches, reaching nearly to the ground. No
pains are taken in cultivating it by the natives, or the sale of its
bark might be turned to good account.

In addition to the productions already enumerated, there are —
rattans, cotton, betele-nut, coffee, turpentine, gums, &c. ; while the
forests abound with a great variety of valuable woods, such as
ebony, pine, sandal, eagle or aloes, teak, manchineel, iron-wood,
and the far-famed hanyan-tree — more properly named by the Por-
tuguese, arhor de raiis, and by the Malays, jawee-jawee. This
tree, as is well known, possesses the singular property of dropping
fibres from such parts of its boughs as incline to the earth, which
take root, and become new stems or trunks. It thus goes on
increasing, until one has been known to measure in circumference
upwards of one thousand feet — to cast a shade at noon of more
than eleven hundred feet — and to afford abundant shelter for a
troop of horse. We have seen an account of one of these trees,
which waved its boughs at the height of two hundred feet ; rising
from, or rather resting on, roots, if they may be so called, occu-
pying at least one hundred feet, forming, by the close and singular
combination, the appearance of a venerated Gothic pillar. It stood
near the plains of Crocup ; and, like other monuments of an-
tiquity, has had its period of existence, and has long since been
no more !

Besides the many articles of commerce afforded by the varied
vegetable kingdom of Sumatra, there are productions appertain-
ing to another kingdom which claim to be enumerated among the
riches of this island. We have already, in a previous part of this
article, very briefly alluded to the various metals which are found
blended with, or lying beneath, the soil. Gold abounds in some
parts of the island, but principally in the centre ; south of the
Leemoon, a branch of the Iambi river, and to the north of Na-
lohoo, from whence Acheen is principally supplied. It was the
vicinity of these treasures which probably, in the first instance,
induced the Dutch to establish themselves at Padang. The Ma-
lays are the only class of inhabitants who make a business of
procuring the precious metal, either from the beds of rivers,
mingled with the sand, or sometimes by loosening the adjacent
banks. In a few instances they have attempted digging ; but
their excavations have never extended deep. The metal is pro-

1832.]

ISLAND OP SUMATRA.

155

cured in a malleable state, and seldom undergoes any process of
refining to purify it for the market, where opium and fine goods
are expected in return. Mines of copper and tin, as before stated,
abound in the island and its neighbour Banca, where it is said to
have been accidentally discovered by the burning of a house in
1710, and was long worked by a colony of Chinese, under the con-
trol of the Dutch, at Palembang, who grasped at the whole trade.
We have already stated that the island of Banca was ceded to
the British by the Sultan of Palembang, in the year 1812;
Billeton Isle, which lies about s^xty miles east of Banca, was
ceded at the same time. This last named island, which is almost
a perfect quadrangle, with a coast facing the four cardinal points
of the horizon, is about fifty miles in extent each way, and has
long been celebrated for producing the fine steel of which the
Malays manufacture their arms. Banca had, for many years,
been the resort of a numerous horde of pirates, who acted under
the immediate protection of the sultan and court of Palembang.
Minto, the capital of the island, is situated near the sea, towards
the west, at the foot of the mountain called Monophin. There is
anchorage in from six to twelve fathoms ; a sandy point at the
northwest affording shelter to ships from the boisterous waves
which roll into the straits from the JavR Sea, as well as from the
northwest winds, which often blow very hard along the coast of
, Sumatra during the monsoons. At the pacification of Europe in
1814, Banca was again ceded to the Dutch by treaty.

We have thus taken a hasty and excursive view of the Island
of Sumatra, and trust that the reader has accompanied us. We
have seen the capacities of its soil, and the varied richness of its
vegetable and animal kingdom. How rich, in point of external
appearance and grandeur, is the inheritance of the Malay ! In
the soft and rich teints of its mountains, the velvet covering of its
hills, — its wild cascades, placid lakes, rapid streams, — Sumatra
may challenge comparison with the world ! Why has nature
been so extravagant 1 Why bestow in many parts where human
footsteps seldom tread, all that is sublime — all that is beautiful —
all that is calculated to elevate the mind which is susceptible of
noble impressions !

Is it solely for the Malay, the living Ishmaelite of the world,
that prolific nature has been thus bountiful ? The Malay —

156

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[February,

treacherous, cruel, and vindictive as he is — fierce and unrelenting
as the tiger of his own mountains, by which he is often destroyed,
— is still a being entitled to the sympathy and compassion of the
civilized world ; and we cannot but pity his condition, even when
his vices demand a measure of punishment at our hands. How
black and damning would be the page containing an account of
his wrongs from boasted Christians, since the year 1510, when
Albuquerque landed on his shores. For three centuries, what
has been the history of Europeans trading on his coast, under
the direction of heartless, grasping monopolies, but a record of
oppressions, cruel exactions, and abominable injustice! To the
honour of the British name, though her track in the east has, in
all directions, been stained with blood, she has ever shown more
humanity than either of her former powerful competitors ; whose
every thought, impulse, and action, appear to have been concen-
trated in one festering canker — insatiable avarice I

But we leave this picture to be resumed in another place ; and
from the leafy groves, .rich plains, and varied productions, shall
attempt a more close analysis of the Malay himself ; and trust
that the reader will find something to repay him for his trouble
in turning our pages.

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

157

CHAPTER X.

The Malays of Sumatra — Difficulty of delineating their Character — Their Language,
Poetry, &c. — Five different Languages spoken in Sumatra — Malay Duplicity — ■
Effects of their intercourse with Foreigners^ — Conscious Inferiority — Erroneous
Policy formerly exercised towards them— Favourable Traits in their Character —
The Rejangs — Their Laws, Customs, and Political Regulations — Their judicial
Proceedings — Manner of taking an Oath — Rights of Inheritance, &c. — Their
secret Hoards — Security for Debts — Punishment for Theft and Murder — Court'
.ship. Marriage, and Divorces — Cock-fighting — Use of the Betele-nut — Tobacco — ■
Early Maturity of Females — Funeral Obsequies — Religious and superstitious
Notions — The Lampoons — Their Hospitality.

Agreeably to our promise made in the conclusion of the last
chapter, we now proceed to a closer analysis of the character of
the inhabitants of Sumatra. This is not a very easy task to
perform, as we find in many places but little indigenous among
them. There is also some difficulty in adopting a standard with
which to compare them, divided, as they are, into numerous tribes,
and presenting, as they do, at each step, in the same tribe, so
many lights and shades, vices mingled with some virtues, forming
an endless chain of perplexing contradictions.

Perhaps the standard adopted by Le Poivre, Robinson, Rich-
ardson, and other writers of reputed learning, is the best that can
be given. They agree in .assigning to nations various grades
giving to Greece and Rome, in the days of their ancient splendour^
the first rank, with which rmay now be classed England, France,
some of the other nations of Europe, and the United States,
The second will include the Asiatic empires and Turks, in the
days of their dominion, magnificence, and grandeur ; while in the
third, fourth, and fifth classes, as they are distinguished by the
degree of perfection of their agriculture, progress in the arts,
science of numbers, and use of abstract terms, may be classed
the Sumatrans, in common with the Holoans, and other states of
the eastern Archipelago; the nations on the northern coast of
Africa ; Mexicans and Peruvians before the conquest ; together
with the Carribs, New-Hollanders, Laplanders, and Hottentots,
Possessing shades of character in common with all these will be

158

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[February,

found the Sumatrans, and we leave the reader to make his own
distinctions, and form his own comparisons, as we proceed.

The Malay language, long and justly celebrated for its smooth-
ness and softness, like the Malays themselves, has partially
extended itself over the whole island ; at least, there are few parts
of the island where it is not understood by some, while in other
districts it forms the lingua franca of all classes.

They devote many of their leisure hours to singing extempo-
raneous sonnets, which are more remarkable for sententious
qualities than truly poetic spirit, if the following may be consid-
ered a fair sample : —

“ Apo goono passang paleeto,

Callo teedah dangan soomboonia 1
Apo goono bermine matto,

Callo teeda dangan soongoonial”

“ What signifies attempting to light a lamp,

If the wick be wanting '!

What signifies making love with the eyes,

If nothing in earnest be intended 1”

A wickless lamp can show no flame,

To light it baffles human art ;

Then why should lying eyes proclaim
A love, that dwells not in the heart 1

The city of Palembang, so long the emporium of the inland
commerce of the island, is the point which has always been con-
sidered as taking the lead, and fixing the court etiquette among
the Malay princes, and the language spoken there as the standard
of the Malay tongue. In writing, the Arabic characters are used,
introduced at the time of the dissemination of the Mahometan
religion. They have paper and ink of their own composition,
and write with the pen of the ancfu-tree. We believe it has
never been ascertained that even the Malays of the Peninsula of
Malacca had any original written language peculiar to themselves,
previous to the country being overrun by Mussulmen during the
thirteenth century.

There are several languages, hoAvever, besides the Malay,
spoken on the island, especially in the interior. And what appears
to be most remarkable is, that two tribes, the Battas and Rejangs,

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA,

159

both possessing equal and undisputed claims of being the original
inhabitants, not only speak languages different from each other,
but employ charactefs essentially different. All this has oc-
curred among tribes residing but a comparatively short distance
apart, and bearing unquestionable evidence of having descended
from the same original stock. The language of the Lampoons
bears a close affinity to that spoken by the Rejangs, while the
Achenese, using the Arabic characters in considerable purity, has
less claim to originality.

The inner bark of a tree, or pieces of bamboo, split and shaped
for the purpose, serve as tablets for the preservation of their
records. In writing, they move the hand and form the line from
left to right, as we do ; while the Malays and Arabs practise the
contrary. In harmony, these languages are far inferior to the
Malay, as will be seen by the following table from Marsden,
which we introduce for the gratification of the curious.

Specimens of Languages spoken in Sumatra.

Malay.

Acheen.

Batta.

Rejang.

Lampoon.

One,

Satoo,

Sah,

Sadah,

Do,

Sye.

Two,

Duo,

Dua,

Duo,

Dooy,

Rowah.

Three,

Teego,

Tloo,

Toloo,

Tellou,

T ulloo.

Four,

Ampat,

Paat,

Opat,

’Mpat,

Ampah.

Five,

Leemo,

Leemung,

Leemah,

Lemo,

Leemah.

Six,

Anam,

’Nam,

Onam,

Noom,

Annam.

Seven,

Toojoo,

Paitoo,

Toojooa,

Peetoo.

Eight,

Slappan,

D’lappan,

Ooalloo,

Delapoon,

Ooalloo.

Nine,

Sambilan,

Sakoorang,

Seeah,

Sembilan,

Seewah.

Ten^

Sapooloo,

Saploo,

Sapooloo,

Depooloo,

Pooloo.

Husband,

Lackee,

Lackaye,

Morah,

Lackye,

Cadjoon.

Wife,

Beenee,

Beenaye,

Aboo,

Sooma,

Cadjoon.

F ather.

Bapa,

Bah,

Ammah,

Bapa,

Bapa.

Mother,

Mau,

Enang,

Indo,

Eenah.

Head,

Capallo,

Oolou,

Ooloo,

Oolou,

Oolooh,

Eyes,

Matto,

Matta,

Mahtah,

Matty,

Mattah.

Nose,

Eedong, ^

Eedoon,

Aygong,

Eeoong,

Eerong.

Hair,

R.amboot,

Oh,.

Oboo,

Boo,

Booho.

Teeth,

Gseggee,

Geguy,

Ningee,

Aypen,

Eepan.

Hand,

Ta.ngan,

Jarrooay,

Tangan,

Tangoon,

Chooloo.

Day,

Haree,

Ooraye,

Torang-haree,

Beely-looeng,

Rannee.

Night,

Mallam,

Borgning,

B.-calemmoon,

Beenghee.

White,

Pootee,

Nabottar,

Pooteah,

Mandack.

Black,

Etam,

Hetam,

Nabeerong,

Meloo,

Malloom.

Good,

Baye,

Gaet,

Dengan,

Baye,

Buttie.

Die,

Mattee,

Mattay,

Mahtay,

Mattoee,

Jahal.

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VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[February,

Malay.

Acheen.

Batta.

Rejang.

Lampoon^

Fire,

Appee,

Appooy,

Ahpee,

Opoay,

Aphooy.

Water,

Ayer,

Eer,

Ay'ck,

Beole,

Wye.

Earth,

Tana,

Tano,

Tana,

Peeta,

Tanno.

Cocoanut,

Clappo,

Oo,

Crambee,

Neole,

Clappah.

Rice,

Bras,

Breeagh,

Dahano,

Bias,

B’eeas.

Fish,

Eecun,

Incoor,

Dakkay,

’Conn,

Ewah.

Hog,

Babee,

Booy,

Babee,

Sooeetemba,

Babooye.

Sun,

Matto-haree, Mattowraye,

Mahtah-haree,

Matty-beely,

Mata-rannee.

Moon,

Boolan,

Booloon,

Boolan,

Booloon,

Boolan.

Ambo-Sayo,

Ooloon,

Apoo,

Ookoo,

Gniah.

God,

Allah-tall ah.

Allah,

Daibattah,

Oola-tallo,

Alla-talla.

In personal appearance, the Malays do not differ so much from
the other and original inhabitants of the island, as in the qualities
of their minds. They possess the semblance of more pride, but
it is not that laudable pride which restrains from the commission
of dishonourable and mean acts. Under the most subdued and
studied composure of countenance, with cunning and plausible
duplicity, they will dissemble the most violent passions and
inveterate hatred, until a favourable moment of wreaking their
vengeance on the object of their dislike shall arrive. Veracity,
gratitude, and integrity, cannot be said to belong to the list of their
virtues, while sentiments of honour and infamy, as a general
remark, are scarcely distinguishable among them. In courage, a
thousand examples of desperate conflicts with the Portuguese,
Dutch, and English, to say nothing of the recent combat at Qual-
lah-Battoo, might be adduced to show they are not wanting. But
it is generally the effect of momentary enthusiasm, rather than
that cool and deliberate bravery which bears up under reverses,
and is at all times superior to misfortune.

Indeed, the tout ensemble of their character seems strongly
marked by degeneracy, and they give but little promise of any
immediate improvement. The influence of the age has effected
them but little, nor have they gained much by three hundred years’
communion with the Christian world. This is not to be wondered
at. That intercourse has not been of a character to do them
good. In point of example, they have too often witnessed licen-
tiousness in the foreign establishments on their shores ; pleasures
of the table, excessive use of wine, boisterous mirth, and puerile
amusements. These things could not pass before their eyes
without exciting contemptuous animadversions.

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA,

161

They have seen foreign manufactures brought ready for their
use, in exchange for the productions of their soil, but they have
not witnessed the process by which these articles were made.
How, then, could they improve by their intercourse with the
boasted Christianizers of the heathen world ? They feel, and
often acknowledge, their inferiority. It is mentioned by Marsden,
that a native had been heard to exclaim, after contemplating the
structure and use of a house clock, “ Is it not fitting that such
as we should be slaves to people \vho have the ingenuity to invent,
and the skill to construct, so wonderful a machine as this ?” —

The sun,” he added, “ is a machine of this nature.” — “ But who
winds it up ?” said his companion. “ Who but Allah ?” replied he.

It is to be hoped, however, that the more humane and liberal
spirit which so happily begins to mark the intercourse of Chris-
tian nations in their commercial transactions with the east, will
ultimately produce happier results upon the moral condition of its
inhabitants. The period of subjugation, of dethroning and setting
up sultans, as the sordid interests of heartless and almost irre-
sponsible companies may require, it is hoped, is drawing rapidly
to a close. England, with her immense wealth and extended
influence, has an awful responsibility in this great work; the
independent and probing spirit which has marked her recent par-
liamentary proceedings and investigations into the abuses and
condition of her East India Company concerns, promises much
that is favourable in coming time ; while the noble and really true
commercial spirit of our own country, carrying on trade to all
parts of the world, without caring for or wanting possessions in
foreign soil, is destined to have its full share of influence ; and
may, if properly looked to by our government, be turned greatly
to our advantage, as it has already, in many places, attracted the
attention of the natives, and rendered them friendly disposed
towards us.

But this is a digression, and we return to the native inhabitants
of the island, who, from long intercourse with the Malays, appear
to have imbibed many of their vices ; so that the virtues they
still retain are rather negative in character. They are mild,
peaceable, and forbearing, except when roused by some sudden
and violent provocation, when they too can show a full share of
implacability in their resentments. They are temperate and

162

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[February,

sober, living principally on vegetables, while their only beverage
is water, taken in cocoanut-shells from the limpid stream ; and
though they will kill a fowl or a goat for a stranger, whom per-
haps they never saw before, nor ever expect to see again, they
are seldom known to indulge in such luxuries themselves ; not
even at their festivals, where the entertainment is prepared with
meats in abundance, are they known to indulge to excess. In
manners they are simple, in apprehension quick, and by no
means wanting in sagacity. Their women are modest, and
evince a good share of sensibility. In deportment they are grave,
and always courteous and guarded in their expressions. This is
the bright side of the picture. On the other side are represented
litigations, indolence, incorrigible gambling, dishonesty in their
dealings with strangers — deemed among them no moral defect —
suspiciousness, want of regard for truth, meanness in their trans-
actions, and improvidence of the future. The latter can scarcely be
charged as a crime to them, for the climate in a great measure has
made them improvident, as it makes all people, more or less, when
nature, with wonderful facility, supplies all that is essential to
existence.

South of Indrapoor, once the seat of a considerable monarchy
iti the southern portion of the island, is the country of the Rejangs,
who live in villages, or doosoons, each under the government of
a magistrate called dupatty ; while the chief, who presides over
and governs all, is cdXlQd pangeran. But among a people without
arts, without industry, and above all, without property, the au-
thority of the prince must be limited, and his government founded
on opinion, and the obedience and submission of his subjects
voluntary. So it is with the Rejangs ; so it has ever been with
primitive man ; and so it is with other governments throughout
the island. Where the natives have been subjugated by foreign
powers, held by the spirit of conquest long in subjection, the
feudal maxims may be seen to prevail ; while those who have
occupied remote situations, from disposition, or no matter from
what cause, have remained undisturbed and unaffected by the
various changes which have been going on around them : there
may still be seen the rules, the simplicity, of patriarchal life.

In appointing the heads of the doosoons, ihepangeran does little
else than confirm the nominations of the people themselves. The

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

163

line of descent is hereditary from father to son ; though in case
of minority, or other defect, a brother or near relation may take
upon himself the supreme authority, not as regent, for the minor,
if there be one, can only come in at the next vacancy.

Until about one hundred and fifty years ago, the southern part
of Sumatra, including the Rejang country, and as far north as the
river Oori, was dependant on the King of Bantam, and annually
received a commissioner from him to superintend the collection of
revenue and confirm the deputed authority. In the districts bor-
dering on the coasts, extensive pepper plantations were formerly
cultivated, and it was these people who acted so enthusiastically
and bravely in expelling the English from Fort Marlborough in the
year seventeen hundred and nineteen.

Custom, among the Rejangs, constitutes the supreme law of
the land, the authority consulted on all occasions in the settlement
of their disputes, and from which none claim exemption. In-
deed, there has been discovered no word among any of the native
languages on the island, which may be said properly to - signify
law ; nor are there any individuals among them regularly clothed
with legislative powers. The chiefs, when pronouncing their
sentences in the most important cases, accompany their verdict
with the expression, “ such is the custom.” When a new case
arises, for the decision of which there appears to be no precedent,
great formality and deliberation are observed in coming to a con-
clusion. The pangeran himself cannot decide the question ; he
must consult the proatteens^ox inferior chiefs, who, upon their
part, frequently ask time to reflect and to consult with the inhabi-
tants of the doosoons ; but when a point has thus been delib-
erately considered and acted on, it takes rank with the customs
which have been handed down from time immemorial, and its
authority cannot be called in question.

On these principles, at certain appointed times, the chiefs
of the district assemble together and form a sort of court for
hearing and deciding on all disputed questions brought before
them.

Their customs, which may be said to constitute their common
law, under another name, after having been long preserved and
handed down from one generation to another, were, during the last
century, formed into a written code, as it appears, at the instance

L 2

164 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [February,

of the British resident residing in their country, and exercising no
small degree of influence over them.

In the prosecution of all suits under these rules, the plaintiff
and defendant are allowed to make their own statements before
the chiefs of the doosoons, or they may employ a proatteen, or
any other person to appear for them, which in their language is
called “ pinj am mooloot, to borrow a mouth.” Their rule§ of
evidence are peculiar to themselves, as they do not admit testimony
on both sides of any disputed point. He who brings a suit against
another, is asked in the commencement by whom he intends to
prove his allegation. His witness must not be his relation ; he
must not be a party concerned,; and, in some instances, he must
not even reside in the same village. The point to which he is ex-
pected to give testimony is then mentioned to him, when, if he
confirm the statement, the question at issue is established.

Their oaths are appeals to superior powers, to whom alone
they are answerable ; a false swearer not being amenable to pun-
ishment by the usages of the Rejangs. A general and deeply per-
vading sentiment, however, prevails, that the unseen powers pun-
ish the perjured, either in person, in his children, or in his great-
grandchildren. Nor has this superstitious belief been slow to re-
cord many instances, when the most direful judgments have fallen
upon the person or family of the false swearer. They are solem-n,
superstitious, and gravely ceremonious in their forms of adminis-
tering an oath ; often visiting the graves of their ancestors, for
the sake of greater solemnity. Thre only takes place far in the
interior ; while along the coast, the Malay customs and Koran
prevail. They sometimes swear by placing their hands upon the
earth, and wishing it may never again bring forth nourishment to
them if they bear false witness. Sometimes they lay their hands
upon bullets, krisses, gun-barrels, &c. ; these being instruments
of destruction. It is then the Rejang, who trembles with fear at
the idea of the harm he may receive from an invisible power, in
which he believes, without having any just conception of his own
immortality, is restrained from the crime of bearing false witness
against his neighbour. “ For when the gentiles, who have not the
law, do by nature the things contained in the law ; these having
not the law, are a law unto themselves.”

On the death of a Rejang, his male children inherit his property

1832.]

ISLAND OP SUMATRA.

165

in equal shares ; the widow and daughters being dependant on the
sons. In these divisions, the paternal residence, as a general rule,
falls to the lot of the eldest : the exception is, when a younger
member of the family is more talented or worthy, he may take
precedence of the elder, and succeed to the patrimony of the
doosoon.

For a long time, the custom has prevailed among them of set-
ting apart a portion of their money to be deposited in some secret
place, known to themselves only. To this hidden treasure they
are accustomed to look for consolation, when overtaken by any
unforeseen misfortune. This is probably a borrowed custom, as it
is practised by the Malays at the present time, along the whole
pepper coast. Whatever may be the motive, or its origin among
the Rejangs, it is not adopted by the Malays from motives of pru-
dential foresight, but from a feeling of universal distrust, as well
of each other as^ of strangers. A Malay, generally speaking,
has confidence neither in his father nor his mother ; nor is his
wife intrusted with his confidence, for his money is usually buried
where no one can approach the spot but himself. Almost every
Malay, therefore, on his deathbed, has some important secret to
impart to his family or his immediate friends : when sudden death
overtakes him, the treasure is irredeemably lost.

A person unwilling to be answerable for the debts or actions of
his son, or other relations under his charge, may outlaw him, by
which, from that period, all family connexion is relinquished, and
he is no longer responsible for his conduct. All debts, however,
must be paid up to the period when the individual is outlawed.

The Saxons had a custom very similar to this among them, but
it related more particularly to the murderer. The family became
exempt from feuds when they abandoned the culprit to his fate,
binding themselves neither to hold communion with him, nor afford
him assistance.

In order to convict, in all cases of theft, the article stolen must
either be found on the thief, or he must be taken in the act. The
punishment is, to pay double the value of the goods stolen, a fine
of twenty dollars, and a buffalo ; for smaller offences, a fine of
five dollars and a goat.

If any person shall pass the night in the house of another, and
leave it in the morning before daybreak without giving notice to

166

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC,

[February,

the family, he shall be held responsible for whatever may be lost
during the night : but if he commit any thing in keeping to the
care of his host, then, if his effects be lost, he must be made good.
When the owner and his guest both lose property, then they shall
make oath to each other of their mutual innocence. As stated be-
fore, where the Mahometan religion prevails, the Koran is used
for administering oaths.

Among the Rejangs, murder, the greatest of all crimes, may
be expiated by the payment of a fine ; the amount is not propor-
tioned in any case to the rank and condition of the murderer, but
according to the importance of the person whose life has been
sacrificed. The value of mens’ lives, therefore, is not esteemed
equal. If a murderer have not property sufi&cient to pay the fine
imposed on him by the authorities, then his nearest family rela-
tions are held responsible, and even the village where he lives, or
he may be sold as a slave.

In this, as in many other respects, there is a striking resemblance
between their customs and those of the Araucanian Indians of
South America. We once travelled twenty leagues in company
with a cacique, or chief, who was on his journey to receive a
number of horses and cattle from a distant settlement, where one
of his relatives had been murdered ; and the atonement, in this
instance, had been assumed by the family of the murderer, who
was himself too poor to pay. It does not appear, therefore, from
the spirit of their customs, that fines are imposed so much for the
punishment of the guilty, as for an atonement or compensation to
the family of the deceased. This is confirmed by the fact, that
they make no distinction between wilful murder and manslaugh-
ter : the loss to the living being the same, the fines are equal.

This custom comes down by tradition from a remote period,
beyond the introduction of Mahometanism upon the island.
Among our Saxon ancestors, and northern nations, a compensa-
tion was admitted for murder : it is the “ eric of Ireland, and the
aponai of the Greeks.” Among the Rejangs, corporeal punish-
ments are rare, and confinement in chains unknown ; the danger-
ous persons are sometimes enclosed in small houses prepared for
the purpose, or, in their own significant language, “We pen him
up as we would a bear.” The right of holding persons in slavery

1S32.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

167

is admitted, though not much practised, except by the Malays along
the coast.

As respects courtship and marriage, the Rejangs have several
curious observances not undeserving of notice. They practise
but little ceremony in their courtships ; their characters and man-
ners do not admit of it. The lover and his mistress are carefully
kept separated as soon as the old folks have an inkling that there
is such a thing in agitation. Indeed, the fair one is seldom per-
mitted to leave the shelter of her mother’s wing..

The young Rejangs, however, are not to be considered as
wanting in gallantry ; for it is said that they often evince a degree of
delicacy towards the sex which might, perhaps, be emulated with
advantage by people of higher pretensions to refinement. This
trait, however, must not be considered as applicable to every indi-
vidual. Months and years are not wasted in wooing a coy and
fickle fair one. He does not assail her with a volley of darts,
flames, and raptures. When he has selected a female as the
object of his choice, he knows exactly what she is to cost him ;
not in sighs and tears, and doubts and fears, but in good hard
cash, the amount of which is probably all he is worth in the
world, and which, once paid, places the obligation in his favour.

The principal intercourse of the young people takes place at
their dances, festivals, and other amusements, where they are not
backward in making their own selections ; for old maids and old
bachelors are by no means so plenty in Sumatra as catamounts
and tigers. As soon as his choice is fixed, the lover, or boojong,
employs an old woman to communicate his sentiments to the
mistress of his affections, or gaddees, whose parents then take the
affair into their own hands, and if no obstacle intervene, bring it
to a final consummation.

There are several modes of marriage practised among them.
The joojoor is a fixed sum of money paid down by the man to
the father as a compensation for his daughter. In a marriage of
this sort, the relation which is established between the husband
and wife can differ but little from that which exists between a
master and his slave. The relation may be one of great kind-
ness ; but if so, it must be from condescension on the one part,
and not from equality of the parties. By leaving a part of the
price unpaid, which is generally done from a sense of delicacy,

168 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [February,

though it be only five dollars, the relationship is still preserved
between the families, and the parents of the female can interfere
in her behalf in case of ill treatment. But if from any cause
the balance be finally paid, then the right of the husband becomes
absolute, and the woman is to all intents and purposes his slave ;
when her power to claim a divorce ceases, and she may be dis-
posed of at the will of her husband ; provided, that in all instances
the offer be first made to her relations.

It very often happens, however, as before stated, that marriages
take place without the whole of the money being paid down ;
and that years are allowed to roll on without any demand being
made. The debt, however, is deemed sacred, and can never be
outlawed by time, and is sometimes collected by the second and
third generations .

There is a form of marriage called sehage, in which exchanges
are made ; the daughter of one neighbour for the son of another ;
and a brother will give a sister in exchange for a wife for himself.
The prices paid vary often according to contract ; though when
suits arise, and the amount has to be fixed by law, or the decisions
of the authorities, the sum of one hundred and twenty dollars is
always awarded.

So completely is the marriage contract a matter of commercial
arrangement among these people, that it not unfrequently occurs
that friends and neighbours borrow a girl from each other to effect
some matrimonial arrangement, binding themselves at the same
time to return another in her place when needed, or to pay the
joojoor when required. If the parents or relations of a youth go
to the parents of a girl to make a contract, the sum of six dollars
is usually paid as an earnest of the compact ; after which, the girl
cannot be disposed of to another without incurring upon the
parents a fine for failing to comply with the first agreement.
This fine, however, is often incurred ; for while the old people
are arranging their family affairs in reference to the approaching
nuptials between their children, miss takes it into her head to
love some other youth, and very naughtily determines to form
a match of her own choice by eloping with her favourite swain;
and the law, breathing a spirit of indulgence and humanity, sanc-
tions the act.

By the Mosaic law, if a man left a widow without children,

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA,

169

his brother was to marry her with or without children— so
among the Rejangs and Malays, a brother or near relation
marries the widow, and assumes all the legal responsibilities of
the deceased.

There is another mode of marriage practised, though growing
out of use in late years, called amhelana ; by which a young man,
by marrying into a family, becomes, in fact, the property of his
wife’s parents, and occupies a place between that of a son and a
debtor. He partakes in the use of all the property of the family,
but has no right or title in it. His plantation, his pepper gardens,
are all the property of his newly-made parents, who in turn be-
come responsible for him and all the debts he may contract ; hold-
ing also a power of divorcing him at will, and of sending him back,
poor and naked, to his family, or as an outlaw upon, the community.

The mode of marriage, however, most common, is the semundo,
introduced by the Malays, which is much more simple and just,
as the parties meet and treat with each other on the principle of
equality. All the effects, gains, and earnings become joint
property ; and should a divorce take place at any subsequent
period by the mutual consent of the parties, the property shall, in
all such cases, be equally divided between them. By the influ-
ence and authority of the Rejang chiefs and Malay padres, this
custom by semundo has become very generally adopted.

But by whatever mode the nuptial ceremonies are consummated,
joy and hilarity, dances, feasting, and song, are the usual attend-
ants ; nor do these amusements cease for several days, unless the
whole supplies prepared for the occasion are exhausted. The
young women, gaddees, or goddesses, are dressed in their finest
attire, and not only mingle with sprightliness in the dance, but
sing in low, sweet, and plaintive airs the outpourings of their
hearts, in the soft suffusions of their loves ; which, as a point of
the utmost gallantry and fashion, is responded to by the hoojongs,
or young men, who gain credit in proportion to their adroitness in
this indispensable accomplishment.

Among the amusements of the men, there is nothing of which
they are so fond as of cock-fighting. This is a vice common to
the whole island ; it is, indeed, their master passion. Their bets
often run high, staking all they are worth ; and instances have
occurred of a father staking his children, his wife, or a sister, on

170

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[February,

the issue of a fight. They have regular rules adopted for the
government of these feathered tournaments, and observe them
with great scrupulosity. Besides this, they pit and fight quails ;
practise the amusement of fencing, a rude sport, in which they
practise strange antics and contortions of the body, resembling
in some respects the pyric, or war-dance, of the ancients. They
have also a diversion among them of tossing a ball, in which they
show a great deal of dexterity, receiving or tossing it with equal
agility from the hand, toe, or heel of the foot, either into the air,
or obliquely from one place to another. The Phoenicians practised
a similar amusement, as described by Homer.

The use of the betele-nut pervades all ranks, and both sexes
learn to chew it at an early age. No one goes abroad without
the article with him ; the wealthy carrying it in gold or silver
boxes, and the poor in brass boxes or mat bags. It enters into all
their little courtesies and civilities of life ; is always offered on
meeting, and as a matter of politeness is never refused. When
the first salutation is over, the betele is offered as a token of hos-
pitality. Of tobacco they are also fond, and use it of their own
raising, as well as the importations of that article from China.

Oratory is highly esteemed, and there are many fluent speakers
among them. This is natural among people in whose deliber-
ations all are allowed to speak, and where superior talents are
sure to give a corresponding degree of influence and importance
to the possessor.

The women among the Rejangs, like the fruits of their coun-
try, are soon ripe, and soon decay ; they are mothers at fifteen,
look old at thirty, and are gray-headed and shrivelled at forty.
They keep no record of their ages, though fifty maybe considered
old, and few live beyond the period of sixty years.

In the villages a broad plank is kept, sometimes for generations,
upon which, at their funerals, the corpse is carried to the burial-
grounds. No coffin is used, and the subject is interred at a decent
depth, wrapped round with a white piece of cloth. The women
who attend the funeral keep up a hideous howl. At the head of
the grave, a little shrub, or white flower, is always planted with
care, and at the end of twelve months, a visit to the grave is
performed by surviving friends ; at which time a buffalo is killed,
and a feast takes place, in honour of the deceased. All their

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

171

burial-places are regarded with an extraordinary degree of rev-
erence.

Beyond the influence of Mahometanism, the Rejangs have
not, and probably never have had any religion of their own. None
at least has ever been discovered among them. They have no
form of prayers, no processions, no meetings, no images, no
priests. They believe, however, in the existence of invisible
spirits of some kind, and attribute to them the power of influencing
their destinies for good or for evil while in this world ; and it is to
these powers they are accustomed to make their appeals in their
forms of taking an oath. They are said to have no idea of a
future state, except such dim glimmerings as have been shed
upon them by the Mahometan religion. Our own observations,
however limited, on savage life, have gone far to impress us with
the belief, that the eternal principle, the vital spark, which is in-
cased in every human body, however remote from civilization, or
low and degraded in the scale of human beings, will, under one
form or another, if rightly understood, give evidence of its own
consciousness of immortality.

“ ’Tis the divinity which stirs within us,

’Tis Heaven itself that points out an hereafter.

And intimates eternity toman !”

If it be not so, why does the Laplander picture to himself that
after this life he shall traverse verdant plains, ever blooming in
spring, and abounding with herds of fat raindeer, as a reward for
his good deeds in this world, or bleak, desolate mountains, as
a punishment for his bad actions ? Why does the Hindoo believe
in the transmigration of the souls of men into animals ; why the
Araucanians bury their dead in rude canoes, with provisions to
last during the unknown passage across the great water, whose
tranquil waves, as they believe, wash the confines of another
world ? These are the dim lights of immortality in the breast
of rude man. To mark these gleamings of the spirit, and trace
out their existence, constitute one of the most pleasing inquiries
of the Christian philosopher.

Nor will the Rejangs be found an exception ; for they believe
that tigers are end owed with the spirits of departed men ; and so
strong' is this superstition, that they will not put one of these ani-
mals to death, except in actual self-defence. Indeed, the very

172 VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC. [February,

name of the tiger inspires them with awe, and they have a belief
among them, that in some remote and hitherto unfrequented por-
tion of the island, these animals have a village, a court, and live
in huts, thatched with women’s hair. The destruction committed
by these ferocious beasts upon the inhabitants is almost incredible ;
for whole villages are said to have been nearly depopulated by
them. When attacked, they often show great courage in defend-
ing themselves and each other.

It was related to us by one of our most intelligent shipmasters,
who had frequented the coast, that while lying at anchor in one
of their small ports, a native was brought in shockingly lacerated
in the hip and side by the fangs of the tiger. He had been visit-
ing his pepper garden, but a short distance from the village, and
on his return, fortunately with a companion, the animal lay couched
in a secret spot, and springing out, suddenly seized him, before he
had warning that danger was nigh. His companion, who had
passed a few rods ahead, heard his screams, and though armed
with nothing but a /cm, he returned, and attacked the monster with
such courage and effect, that he was soon glad to let go his hold ;
and with the blood streaming from his wounds, bounded off, and
was soon hid from sight amid impenetrable jungle. The wounds
of the native were seared over with a hot iron, and by other arts
peculiar to themselves, he was soon restored to perfect health.

They believe that trees, especially such as have an antiquated
or venerable appearance, are the residence of the immaterial
spirits of the woods, which, with a little poetic license, might be
called the classic Dryades of Sumatra !

The country of the Lampoons, a people different in many,
though no essential particulars, from the Rejangs, is situated on
the southern extremity of the island. The Lampoons, of all
the tribes on the island, most resemble the Chinese in appear-
ance. Their complexion is fairer than that of the Rejangs,
and their women are taller, more graceful, and mor- comely.
In the reception of strangers, they are sumptuous and free in
their manners. The Mahometan religion prevails, and in most
villages mosques may be seen; though they still entertain a super-
stitious veneration for the crammats or burying-grounds of their
ancestors, piously adorning and excluding them, by enclosures,
from the inclemency of the weather.

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA,

173

CHAPTER XL

Sumatra — The Kingdom of Menangcabow — Its forriier Power and Splendour — ■
Curious Proclamation of the Sultan — Arts and Manufactures of the People —
Fire-arms and Gunpowder — The Battas ; their Religion, Character, Manners^
Customs — The Kingdom of Acheen — Description of the Inhabitants, Govern-
ment, Religion, &c. — Severity of their Punishments — Cruel Sport of the Qual-
lah-Battooans — Dress and Character of the Achenese — Their Oratory — Revival
of Trade after the late War — Imbecility of the Government — The Rajah of
Trumon — Islands on the Coast — Pulo Nyas Parents sell their Children for Slaves
— The Pogies — Islands and Inhabitants of Egano — Winds and Currents— Sur-
veys and Charts, by Captains Endicott and Gillis.

The ancient and comparatively poMrerful empire of Menang-
cabow, comprises an extensive tract in the centre of the Island of
Sumatra, reaching several leagues to the north, and nearly one
hundred miles to the south of the equator. It also communicates,,
by several rivers, with the seacoast on each side of the island..
The seat, or capital of this monarchy, is called Paggarooyoong,.
where the sultan or emperor holds his court, from whencd" hiS'
power and influence were formerly felt in almost every part of the
island. Even the sultans and kings of Acheen, Indrapoor, Moco-
Moco, Palembang, and Jambee, confessed his supremacy, and
paid him an annual tribute ; while his name and power were ac-
knowledged and respected b}r the neighbouring princes of the east.

But the period of this greatness and splendour is lost in the
mists of antiquity, and only known to us by tradition ; for when
Sumatra was first visited by Europeans, as has been seen in
preceding pages, the sultans of Acheen, Pasay, &c., were all
independent of the monarch of Menangcabow ; although some
of them still paid him a complimentary tribute. For centuries
past there has been a great deal of mystery thrown around the
history and character of this inland’ imperial court by Mahometan
priests, who affect to regard the sultan as the sovereign head of
their faith, on the island ; although his present power is in fact but
little more, if any, than that of a common rajah.

The proclamations and imperial edicts which have emanated

174

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[February,

from this court are generally ridiculously pompous, as those of
weak monarchs most generally are ; carrying terror to the igno-
rant and imbecile, while they are contemned by the intelligent
and the strong. The titles and epithets applied to this inland
potentate, and adopted by himself, are the most extravagant and
absurd ; far surpassing those assumed by the emperors of Persia
and Tartary, or even by the head of the Celestial Empire himself,
the “Father of ten thousand years.” The reading world is
indebted to Alexander Dalrymple, Esq., for rescuing from oblivion
one of these curious productions, written by the Sultan of Me-
nangcabow about a century since, and addressed to the Sultan of
Moco-Moco.

In style, this imperial document is far more rational than many
similar effusions we have seen ; and is, taking it altogether, a
production so remarkable, especially when the magnitude of its
object is taken into view, that it forcibly reminds us of the well-
known comparison of

“ Ocean into tempest tost,

To waft a feather, or to drown a fly.”

The reader, therefore, we feel assured, will not regret its intro-
duction in this place.

“ Praised be Almighty God ! Sultan Gaggar Allum, the great
and noble king, whose extensive power reacheth unto the limits
of the wide ocean ; unto whom God grants whatever he desires,
and over whom no evil spirit, nor even Satan himself, has any influ-
ence ; who is invested with an authority to punish evil-doers,
and has the most tender heart in the support of the innocent ; has
no malice in his mind, but preserveth the righteous with the
greatest reverence, and nourisheth the poor and needy, feeding
them daily from his own table. His authority reacheth over the
whole universe, and his candour and goodness are known to all
men. (Mention made of the three brothers.) The ambassador
of God, and his prophet Mahomet ; the beloved of mankind ; and
ruler of the island called Perclio. At the time God made the
heavens, the earth, the sun, the moon, and even before evil spirits
were created, this Sultan Gaggar Allum had his residence in the
clouds ; but when the world was habitable, God gave him a bird
called Hocinet, that had the gift of speech ; this he sent down on

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA. '

175

earth to look out for a spot where he might establish an inher-
itance, and the first place he alighted upon was the fertile island
of Lancapore, situated between Palimban and Jambee^ and from
thence sprang the famous kingdom of Menangcabow, which will
be renowned and mighty until the judgment day.

“ This Maha Rajah Doorja is blessed with a long life, and an
uninterrupted course of prosperity, which he will maintain in the
name, and through the grace of the holy prophet, to the end that
God’s divine will may be fulfilled upon earth. He is endowed with
the highest abilities, and the most profound wisdom and circum-
spection in the governing the many tributary kings and subjects.
He is righteous and charitable, and preserveth the honour and
glory of his ancestors. His justice and clemency are felt in
distant regions, and his- name will be revered until the last day.
When he openeth his mouth he is full of goodness, and his words
are as grateful as rose-water to the thirsty. His breath is like the
soft wind of the heavens {janatecool ferdoors), and his lips are
the instruments of truth ; sending forth perfumes more delightful
than benjamin or myrrh. His nostrils breath ambergris and
musk ; and his countenance has the lustre of diamonds. He is
dreadful in battle, and not to be conquered, his courage and valour
being matchless. He, the Sultan Maha Rajah Doorja, was-
crowned with a sacred crown from God ; and possesses the wood
called kainat, in conjunction with the emperors of Rome and
China. He is the sultan that keeps the cloth called sansista
/caZ/aA, which weaves itself, and adds one thread yearly of fine
pearls ; and when that cloth shall be finished, the world will be no
more. He also possesses the true negataroona, and a kind of
gold called jatta, jattee, which is so heavy that a small lump will
snap the datte wood. This is the sultan that enjoys the sword
se mandang gerey, which has one hundred and ninety wide
notches in the field of battle, and is the weapon that killed the
spirit of kattee moone ; the dagger, known by the name of hangin
singa, is also his,- and will, at his command, fight for itself, with
which he has vanquished many nations. He also possesses the
lance lambing Jamboora, the blade of which, called segar, was
given him by an inhabitant of the sea. He likewise has horses
of infinite strength and courage ; and mountains of spontaneous
fire. This is the sultan who keeps the flower ckampaka, that is

176

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[February,

blue, and to be found in no other country but his (being yellow
elsewhere). He possesses the shrub sera mangeree, and the reed
arver priendue, to which birds of all countries come at the time
of their death. He has also drums made of the tree silagooree,
and another instrument of the like nature of the wood called
pooloot-pooloot, which send their sound through his whole domin-
ions whenever they are beat. He has a hechar house, built of
the hallowed wood jylatong, and each beam in it, though strong
and large, is yet as light as bamboo. He also possesses a carpet
made of grass, and a lump of gold in the shape of a man, given
him by a god of the woods.

“ After this salutation, and the information I have given of my
greatness and power, which I attribute to the good and holy
prophet Mahomet, I am to acquaint you with the commands of
the sultan, whose presence bringeth death to all who attempt to
approach him without permission ; and also those of the Sultan
of Indrapoor, who has four breasts. This friendly sheet of paper
is brought from the two sultans above named, by their bird ongas,
unto their son Sultan Condam Shah, to acquaint him with their
intention, under this great seal, which is, that they order their son,
Sultan Condam Shah, to oblige the English Company to settle
in the district called Biangnobr, at a place called ‘ field of sheep,’
that they may not have occasion to be ashamed at their frequent
refusal of our goodness in permitting them to trade with us and with
our subjects ; and that in case he cannot succeed in this affair, we
hereby advise him that the ties of friendship subsisting between us
and our son are broken ; and we direct that he send us an answer
immediately, that we may know the result, and take our measures
accordingly — for all this island is our own.”

The Malays of Menangcabow are expert in the use of the
Arabic characters ; but their writing is confined almost exclusively
to transcribing portions of the Alcoran, and never extended to the
more important use of preserving records connected with the his-
tory of their country. They have, however, acquired no little
celebrity in composing cabars, or historical tales, which are gen-
erally a mixture of truth with fiction, written in a style not unlike
the romances of Arabia, highly poetical, and abounding with the
marvellous. The recitation of these stories is a common amuse-
ment in all parts of the island.

ISLAND OP SUMATRA

177

1832.]

In the useful arts, they excel the natives of every other section
of Sumatra ; displaying no inconsiderable skill and ingenuity in
their handicrafts, particularly in filigree-work of gold and silver.
In the working of iron, steel, and other metals, many of these Ma-
lays are firstrate artists ; and it is from their factories and
armories that the more warlike tribes of the north have been ac-
customed to procure their fire-arms and other martial weapons
from time immemorial; The arts of smelting iron, casting can-
non, and manufacturing firelocks, have been practised by them
from a very remote period ; as appears from the fact, that such
weapons were adroitly used by the Sumatrans, in their earliest
conflicts with the Portuguese.

The delicate and difficult process of preparing steel from iron,
has also been long familiar to them, as has been already intimated
in another place. The quality of their swords and hris blades^
has never been equalled in any other part of the world ;■ the steel
of which they are composed appearing entirely different from
that which we are accustomed to handle, and exhibiting veins of
different colours; The shape of the blade is peculiar, it being
neither straight like a dagger or dirk, nor uniformly curved like a
cutlass or sabre ; but it is waving, like the attenuated flame of a
torch, which gives an increased magnitude to the wounds they in-
flict, and render them more difficult to heal. The hafts or handles
of these weapons are curiously wrought and ornamented, generally
embellished with the carved head and beak of a bird, with human
arms, like the Isis of the Egyptians.

T|ie art of making gunpowder with them is of course coeval
with, if not anterior to, that of constructing engines for its use. If
was no doubt brought from the continent by the first emigrants
for fire-arms of some description were used in India, even before
its invasion by Alexander the Great, as appears from the writings
of Philostratus. This celebrated historian, in his life of Apollonus
Typhaneus, tells us that the cities of Oxydracia, in farther India,
could never have been taken by Alexander, “ for they come not
out into the field (says he) to fight those who attack them ; but
these holy men, beloved by the gods, overthrow their enemies
with lightnings and thunderbolts, shot from their walls.”

The military forces of Menangeabow, in addition to their fire-
arms, are provided with ranjows, or sharp-pointed spears of bam-

178

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[December,

boo, which they use on a hasty retreat by planting them obliqtiely
in the pathways, and among the high grass, to annoy and retard
their pursuers.

These people are frequently engaged in hostilities to support
the tottering throne of their chief ; and a part of their forces are
sometimes mounted on horseback, although the troops of this de-
scription do not deserve the name of cavalry. The spoils, or
plunder taken from the enemy is always divided among the com-
mon soldiers, and this is the only pay they receive ; so that, pa-
triotism apart, they are sure to annoy the enemy, at least in his
property, as much as possible. But they have never been so
much distinguished for bravery as the people of some other dis-
tricts, particularly in the north ; though the Dutch at Padang
have often found them not only too restive for control, but in
more than one instance, have found their only safety in the strength
and height of their fortresses, and the means of enduring a siege.

There is no part of the island where the Mahometan faith so
exclusively prevails, as in the central principality of Menangca-
bow ; which may, perhaps, be accounted for by the fact, that this
region is the very Potosi of Sumatra, whether it be the Ophir of
Solomon or not. It abounds with gold, “the white man’s god;”
and so far as it can purchase sensual gratification, the Moslem’s
Allah. This was, doubtless, the grand inducement which led the
prophet’s missionaries to locate themselves in the golden region
of Menangcabow.

The natives, however, not only embraced a new religion, but it
appears that an entire revolution took place in their language,
manners, and customs, which could only have been effected by
the Malays from the peninsula having settled among them. The
natives of Menangcabow so much resemble, in personal appear-
ance, the natives of the peninsula, that they are generally consid-
ered, on the Island of Sumatra, as one and the same people.
Indeed, the term Malay has long ceased, in most parts of the
east, to signify strictly an inhabitant of Malaya ; but generally
denotes such as have adopted the Malay language and religion ;
and hence, as a general remark, in speaking of the inhabitants of
Sumatra, we call them Malays.

In proceeding from the Menangcabow country to the north, the
next considerable tribe, or clan, is that of the B atlas ; whose

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

179

district is bounded on the north by the kingdom of Acheen, and
on the southwest by Passumman. This is a populous region ;
and from the great Bay of Tappanooly, which penetrates deeply
into the country, a considerable trade was once carried on, and
monopolized for a long time by the English, who took it from the
Achenese.

In personal appearance, the Battas are smaller and fairer than
the Malays, which may be owing to their distance from the sea.
Their dress is plain, consisting of common cotton cloth of their
own manufacture, died of a brown colour, or a deep blue. The
young women are fond of ornaments, wearing occasionally not
less than fifty tin rings in their ears at the same time.

The food of the lower orders is principally maize and sweet-
potatoes ; while the rajah, and people of rank and wealth, indulge
in the greater luxury of rice. They are fond of horse flesh, and
feed these animals with great care for the express purpose of food.

In their domestic relations, there is no striking difference be-
tween them and other tribes already noticed. Polygamy prevails ;
and in their marriage contracts, the parents of the bride always
receive a valuable consideration in buffaloes in exchange for their
daughter. The women labour in the fields, while the men, when
not engaged in war, pass their time in idleness and gaming ; the
latter being a vice which prevails among them wuthout limit or
restriction, and is generally prosecuted with an ardour that termi-^
nates only in the ruin of one of the parties, who is perhaps sold
as a- slave to pay his debts of honour !

That trait in the character of the Battas which has gii^en them
most notoriety among the inhabitants of Sumatra, is the custom,
attributed to them by all early writers, of eating human flesh.
HoW far they may have been the real anthropophagi of the an-
cients, is not known ; but all modern accounts agree, that when
human flesh is now eaten among them, it is not from any un-
natural, sensual appetite; but the very natural moral appetite
of barbarians for savage triumph and revenge ; to manifest the
utter detestation in which they hold their enemies ; or their abhor-
rence of the crimes for which their malefactors may have suf-
fered death.

The country of the Battas is divided into numerous petty dis-
tricts, each of which is headed by a rajah, who extends his power

M 2

180

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[Febraarjy

in proportion to the means and arms he can get in his possession.
Their chiefs are extremely jealous of each other, and never unite?
except in common defence against some external enemy. The
political relations between the rajahs and their vassals, are quite
feudal in their character. Their standard, in war, is a horse’s
head, and their arms such as are used in other parts of the island.
They fortify their villages by ramparts of earth \ together with
ditches, brushwood, and palisades of camphire timber.

They have priests among them who perform certain ceremo-
nies on the occasion of burying the dead ; and their ideas of a
Supreme Being and an hereafter, are more clearly manifested
than among the Rejangs. The funeral obsequies of a deceased
rajah, or any man of superior consequence, are performed with
much ceremony, and months are consumed in their consum-
mation. The corpse is deposited in a coffin of the anou-txee,
which is covered with rosin, and from the end of which a bamboo
tube extends into the ground, to carry off all disagreeable effluvia.

When the coffin is brought out for burial, baskets of rice are
placed by the women near the corpse. A buffalo or horse is then
killed, and a feast takes place ; after which, the attending pries!
kills a fowl, and allows its blood to run upon the coffin, as a charm
to drive away evil spirits. When the ceremonies and several
other rites have been all strictly observed, the coffin is buried in
the earth, and the people retire peaceably to their homes.

The Battas, perhaps more than any other people in the northern
part of the island, have preserved their original character, man-
ners, habits, and customs, to the present day.

The next and last nation of Sumatra which our prescribed
limits will permit us to notice, is that of Acheen, at the northern
extremity of the island ; a people to whom we have already so
frequently alluded, that but little more remains to be said of them.
It may here,, however, be observed in brief, that Acheen is the only
kingdom on the island which ever reached such a state of political
importance as to become a subject of general history. But at
the period when the forces of this government drove the Portu-
guese from the island, the extent of its territory was far greater
than it is at present. The king then claimed dominion as far
down on the western coast as Indrapoor, two degrees south of
the equator whereas his present jurisdiction only reaches to

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

181

Baroos, comprising about half that distance on the west ; while
on the east it scarcely extends forty miles.

The city of Acheen, the capital, is built on a river, which
empties itself into the sea near the northwest point of the island,
commonly called Acheen Head. This city, which was once a
place of great trade, and frequented by vessels from all the coun-
tries of Europe, as well as from China, and all parts of India,
has greatly fallen off from its former importance, especially since
the king removed his court to Tulisamaway., It is, however, a con-
siderable town, containing a great number of public edifices, but
without any pretensions to magnificence. There appear to be
no regular streets, each house being separate, and surrounded
with trees, communicating with each other by foot-paths. The
houses are of one story, meanly built of bamboo, and thatched
with cocoanut leaves, and raised some ' feet from the ground on
account of the overflowing of the river.

The town is situated on an extensive plain, between two high
ridges ; ' it is about five or six miles wide on the seacoast, and ex-
tends a long distance, in a southeast direction, into the interior.

The main river, which traverses the plain near its centre, is
forty fathoms wide opposite the custom-house, which stands about
three miles from its mouth ; and is elevated about two feet above
the surface of the water. It is very shallow at the bar, and in
the dry monsoon, will not admit vessels of any burden, which
must anchor without, in the road formed by the islands of the
point. This is the common anchorage, with from eight to four-
teen fathoms of water, the town bearing south-half-east to
southeast.

This people differ extremely in their persons from every other
class on the island ; being taller, stouter, and of darker complexion ;
supposed to be a mixture of Moors, Malays, and Battas. In their
character and dispositions, they are also unlike their neighbours ;
being more active, industrious, and penetrating, and possessing a
greater share of sagacity and general knowledge. They are all
Mahometans, and having a great number of mosques and priests,
the rites and ceremonies of that faith are observed with much
greater strictness. Manufactures are here carried on to more
perfection than in any other part of Sumatra. This remark will
apply to trade, commerce, and navigation.

182 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [February/

It bas been observed by an intelligent traveller, vrhora we are
proud to claim as a highly valued friend, that the proas of the
Malays are, in form, construction, rigging, and even to the most
minute particular as respects the hull, precisely similar to the
vessels of the Mediterranean which are represented in the paint-
ings of Salvator Rosa, in the Pitti Palace at Florence. This
artist, we believe, flourished in the fifteenth century.

The punishment of crimes has ever been severe and rigorous
in this country ; and there is no commutation admitted, as we
have seen to be the case among the natives farther south. Petty
thefts are punished by torturing the culprit in various ways, such as
maiming, amputating, and other kinds of mutilation. Highway
robbery and burglary, by drowning, and afterward suspending the
body on a stake for a few days ; but if the robbery has been
committed on a priest, the criminal is burnt alive ! The adulterer
is cut to pieces by a mob of the injured husband’s friends, and the
mutilated corpse refused the rights of sepulture.

At Quallah-Battoo, one of the nominal dependances of Acheen,
the same rigour is exercised towards offenders. A highly intellec-'
tual friend has related to us an instance of this severity and cold-
blooded cruelty, which fell under his own observation, and was
also witnessed by several other Americans present. A slave, who
had been condemned to death for a trifling offence, was bound to
a stake driven in the ground, as a mark for sportsmen to shoot at
for several hours. The whole village was assembled to witness the
sport ; laughing, shouting, joking, and betting, on the chances of
every shot ! The instinctive shrinking of the poor wretch, when
a musket was levelled at him, and his agonizing supplications for
mercy, were either unheeded or mocked and ridiculed ! He was
eventually, after receiving sundry wounds, thrown into the sea,
where his sufferings were terminated in a watery grave !

Such are the pastimes of the inhabitants of Quallah-Battoo !
the just punishment of whose outrage on our own flag, and the lives
of our fellow-citizens, called forth the premature and misplaced
sympathies of philanthropists, who only erred in permitting their
feelings to outrun their knowledge of facts, being not fully ac-
quainted with those peculiar circumstances which imperiously
demanded the prompt interference of a protecting government.

The government of Acheen is an hereditary monarchy, and

1832.]

ISL.4.ND OF S^UMATRA.

183

more or less absolute, in proportion to the talents of the reigning
prince. For the last half century, to go no further back, the
sceptre of Acheen has been merely the symbol of sovereignty,
without its potency ; sustained by a feeble arm, though with a
title ancient and undisputed. The throne has been surrounded ■
by chiefs, all of whom acknowledged the sovereign’s authority,
though none of them submitted to his control. Too feeble to
reduce revolters, he has only been able to keep up a state of con-
tinual alarm and warfare, bordering on that of actual rebellion.

Prohibited by European interference from levying a duty on his
own subjects, he was compelled by the mandate of strangers to
forego the only means by which he could have preserved his do-
minions from the anarchy and confusion which followed. In
short, we must add, on the authority of Sir Thomas Raffles, that
the last of the ancient dynasty of Acheen has been compelled to
abdicate his throne in favour of the son of a Pinang merchant !

Of the personal appearance and dress of the Achenese, a few
additional particulars may not.be deemed inappropriate. We
have already stated, that in size and stature they surpass the other
inhabitants of Sumatra. Their heads are somewhat flat, or com-
pressed, the face broad and open, with high cheek bones, flattened
nose, and large mouth ; though many of them have features similar
in form and expression to Europeans. Their complexion may be
called a dark copper-colour ; their chest is broad and full, their
position erect, and their height generally is about five feet ten
inches. When several are walking together, they always proceed
in single file, taking precedence according to rank, age, or conse-
quence. They generally walk well, quite erect, and are easy in
their movements. They wear their hair very closety cut or shaved ;
but instead of shaving their beards, they pluck it out, reserving

their mustaches in the Turkish fashion.

Their dress, also, differs in many respects from that of other
Sumatrans. The men have recently adopted the European jacket,
with or without a collar, of blue or black broadcloth, which are
the most common colours. This is frequently seen embroidered
with fine gold thread, and a stripe of embroidery, about an inch
wide round the border, neatly wrought with a needle. But that
which we consider a genuine Achenese dress, is a jacket or
frock, somewhat similar to a shirt without a collar. This is gen-

184 VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC. [Febraaij,

erally richly embroidered with gold thread, according to the taste
or fancy of the wearer. Also, a pair of loose trowsers, which
reach to the calf of the leg. Another article of their wardrobe
is a garment, the name of which we do not recollect, about a yard
in width, long enough to pass once or twice round the waist, the
lower edge hanging below the knees 5 forcibly reminding one of
the Highland kilt. A silken belt closely embraces the loins, con-
cealing the upper edge of the nameless garment just mentioned,
and also securing the trowsers. A turban, which is usually a
shawl or handherchief, embroidered with gold thread, completes
the dress.

They also frequently wear another article of dress, formed of
a piece of cloth fwo yards and a half in width, sewed together at
the ends, This garment, which we have already alluded to in a
previous chapter, as the sarong of the Sumatrans, has generally
a graceful appearance, and is worn by the Achenese as an out-
side garment, to protect them from the weather, This description
refers to a dress of the best kind ; but there are few who do not
wear such as a holyday suit. Their common dress is similar in
fashion, but made of less costly materials, Sometimes the jacket
is omitted, leaving the chest naked from the waist up, with only a
small scullcap ; the latter, however, is always worn with a turban.

An Achenese, in full dress, presents a martial and picturesque
appearance, that would well become the stage ; and reminds one
of the Highland uniform in the British army. We think that a
regiment in such costume would present a brilliant spectacle.
But let us not forget the hris, which is always worn, and is often
of great value. Its sheath is sometimes of pure wrought gold, as
is also the handle. Another indispensable appendage is a hand-
kerchief of silk, embroidered with gold thread ; and among higher
classes, with gold ornaments on the corners ; together with a gold
chenam-box, tweezers, toothpick, &c. This is usually thrown
over the shoulders, Their feet are never covered.

In speaking of the beauty of the Achenese dress, we mean
when it is clean, which is seldom the Case, unless it be new.
Cleanliness of apparel is not considered by these people as one
of the requisites of a gentleman. They frequently wear a light-
coloured cotton garment until it is worn out, without having it
washed! Fortunately, however, for those who approach them,

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

185

they perform their ablutions like good Mussulmen, washing their
bodies several times a day ; particularly when they repeat their
prayers.

The Achenese, in general, are grave and decorous in their
deportment, considering it beneath the dignity of a man of con-
sequence to laugh and talk much ; and they have often been heard
to express the same idea. They are not, however, unsocial in
their manners ; but are in the habit of assembling in groups for
conversation. Their mode of salutation is extremely courteous
and ceremonious. When equals meet, they exchange handker-
chiefs with a graceful inclination of the body. The object of
this is, that they may prepare a serah for chewing, for which each
has the materials in his handkerchief. They seldom commence
conversing on these occasions, until the handkerchiefs are returned
in the same graceful manner, the whole ceremony occupying two
or three minutes. Their salutation generally on presenting the
handkerchief is, “ Ah-sah-lah-moo, alin, loo-coom /” expressing
a sentiment analogous to “ Peace be with you,” corresponding to
our familiar “ How do you do V’ But this short sentence is
uttered with so much rapidity, that to an unpractised ear it sounds
exactly like - “ Salam ali cume

When an inferior meets his superior, the former very respect-
fully takes the other’s hand, bowing gracefully over it, until his
forehead touches it. As he raises his head, the other carries the
hand of his inferior towards his own forehead, and frequently
gives him his handkerchief, without taking one in return. When
an individual of very humble station approaches one of elevated
rank, the former bends very low, as if he would throw himself at
his feet, the other merely making a condescending gesture with
the hand. We believe that a man of rank and station never
neglects to return the salutation of another.

When the Achenese assemble to deliberate or confer on any
particular subject, they sit cross-legged in a circle. The speaker
joins his open hands, and extends them, with a bow, to the indi-
vidual he is about to address, who offers his attention by a similar
action. If the whole company is to be addressed, the same cere-
mony is observed to each. The orator then pitches his voice in
a peculiar monotonous tone, evidently studied and acquired for
the sole purpose of public speaking, and this tone is seldom

186

VOYAGE OE THE POTOMAC.

[February,

changed until his speech is concluded. Another succeeds, ob-
serving the same preliminary ceremonies. They appear to think
that monotony of tone, combined with a rapid but uniform flow
of words, is the perfection of eloquence. Nearly all their public
discourses commence with “ Tookoo, sTiallah te Allah that
is, “ Sir, with the blessing of God,” or, “ by Divine permission.”

The commerce of Acheen, which was once so flourishing, has
dwindled away to almost nothing. The kingdom having been
shaken and rent by internal factions and insurrections, too pow-
erful to be suppressed by so weak a government, the interests of
trade were almost totally neglected.

But it is with the pepper trade, and those ports on the western
coast of the island which are nominally appertaining to this
sovereignty, that we, as Americans, have the most immediate
concern ; and on this subject, in addition to what we have already
said, a few facts and remarks may not be inapplicable.

During the suspension or interruption of our commerce, by
the last war between the United States and Great Britain, the
pepper-growers, having little demand for the article, greatly neg-
lected its cultivation ; although it is known to be their principal,
not to say only, article of export. The natural consequence was,'^
that in the first pepper season subsequent to the restoration of
peace, in eighteen hundred and fifteen, not more than two or
three vessels were enabled to procure cargoes.

On the revival of our commerce at that period, the satisfaction
which these people evinced and expressed on seeing their former
profitable customers once more among them, was the subject of
remark by every American on the coast. They looked upon the
event as the precursor of more prosperous times ; and, with an
alacrity and industry indicating a correct estimation of their pe-
cuniary interest, they immediately began to extend their planta-
tions, on a scale corresponding to the anticipated demand for this
staple of the island.

As the pepper vine, however, occupies three or four years in
coming to maturity, there was no material increase in the quantity
produced until the year eighteen hundred and eighteen, when
we had from four to five thousand tons of shipping upon that
coast, a great portion of which obtained cargoes. From this
period to eighteen hundred and twenty-three, the high price which

i832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA,

187

this article maintained, both in Europe and India, held out so
much encouragement to the pepper planters of Sumatra to in-
crease its cultivation, that the quantity produced in that one year
was from one hundred to one hundred and twenty thousand
piculs of one hundred and thirty-seven and a half American
pounds each; employing, at the least calculation, six thousand
tons of shipping, and a capital of one million two hundred
thousand dollars ! Nearly the whole crop of that year, to-
gether with the crop of several preceding years, were taken olf
in American vessels ! Since that period, this trade has been very
fluctuating ; and the low price to which pepper has been reduced
in America, has tended much to discourage the natives from in-
creasing their crops.

There are few other articles of trade to be procured on the
pepper coast; but in its neighbourhood, and immediately south
of it, at the ports of Tappoose, Sinkel, and Barroos, gum-benzoin
and crude camphire are produced in considerable quantities. The
last named article is bought by the coasting craft at the rate of
about twelve dollars per pound ! In all the pepper plantations, ‘
the soil appears to be perfectly congenial to the coffee-plant,
which in many places seems to grow spontaneously. This, to-
gether with the sugarcane, which grows here profusely, is, no
doubt, indigenous to the island.

The present monarch of Acheen appears to exercise little or
no authority over those rajahs who are situated at any distance
from the capital ; and nothing but his presence and actual force,
which he has heretofore frequently employed, will compel them
to pay him his lawful tribute. The probability is, that at this
time, out of forty or fifty thousand dollars, his annual revenue
from the exports of pepper, he is not able to collect more than
five or six thousand. The rajahs, therefore, of the different forts,
although they nominally acknowledge allegiance to the king, are
virtually so many independent rulers, exercising individual au-
thority, waging and carrying on war with each other, -deceiving
and cheating the king in every possible manner. They appear,
however, to exercise very little authority over their own subjects,
and in many cases it seems merely nominal. The king is fre-
quently at war with the rajahs ; and the latter, in their turn, are
frequently at war with the different factions which beset their

188 VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC, [Fcbraaiy,

territory; while an almost universal state of anarchy appears
to prevail among them.

We have said that the sovereignty of Acheen once extended to
Indrapoor, on the west coast of Sumatra, two degrees south of
the equator. Of course, it included the seaport of Troumon, in
latitude 2° 47' north. This is, perhaps, the only place on the
pepper coast, where any faith can be safely placed in a verbal or
written contract. The former rajah, who died about the year
eighteen hundred and twenty-two, left his dominions to two sons ;
one of whom was by his lawful wife, and the other by a concu-
bine from Pulo Nyas, who was, as a matter of course, first pur-
chased as a slave. The son of the bond-woman governs Trou-
mon, and is highly respected, both by his own people, and such
foreigners as visit the place for pepper.

The other son governs a more southern district ; where he is
almost universally despised by his own people, and is too well
known to be trusted by strangers. There was, for a time, much
difficulty, and some bloodshed, in consequence of the enmity of
these brothers ; but the quarrel was finally adjusted to the satis-
faction of all parties, and the reconciliation was duly ratified,
according to the custom of the country, by a grand feast over the
graves of their fathers.

This incident occurred in eighteen hundred and twenty-four,
when the amount of pepper collected by both governments was
thirty-five thousand piculs. This is the only article of export to
be procured at this place, and this they cultivate to the entire
neglect of every thing else; and notwithstanding it frequently
happened that they were almost starving for rice, they never
attended to its cultivation until very lately, although the soil is
excellent for that purpose. And yet they have frequently been
compelled to give a picul of pepper for a picul of rice. They
even neglect to raise vegetables, and fowls are very scarce ; so
much so, that it is very difficult for a vessel to procure sufficient
for the cabin.

The rajah’s house, bazaar, &c., are situated on the south side
of the river, which, after extending some distance inland, becomes
two separate rivers, one flowing from the north, and the other from
the south, all the banks thickly covered with trees. But like
most of the rivers on the west coast of Sumatra, it is obstructed

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

189

by a sand-bar, which is shifted by the heavy northwest gales that
frequently occur on this coast during the stormy monsoon. The
water of this river is not good, but vessels can be supplied with
excellent water from wells in the village. The imports to this
place are similar to those of other ports on the coast, consisting
of opium, cloths, muskets, powder, and slaves, principally females,
which are brought from Pulo Nyas, and sold for concubines.

The Rajah of Troumon is the only one on the coast that
carries on trade to any distance. He owns two or three brigs,
which are navigated by Englishmen, or half-caste ; and perform
voyages to Madras and other places. He sometimes declares
war against the other rajahs, and has a great desire to enlarge his
territories and increase his power.

The Achenese appear to be very inimical to the Dutch, and
manifest much jealousy of that nation ; probably from a fear that
they may, at some future period, attempt to colonize among them.
The Dutch trade to this coast is very limited ; and at least two thirds
or three fourths of the whole is in our hands. The natives very
readily distinguish between people of different nations ; and the
conduct and deportment of Americans towards them is always a
subject of high commendation ; and they are ever ready with ex-
pressions of kindness, friendship, and good feeling for us. That
they are prompted to this, in most instances, by motives of interest,
there can be no doubt ; and this species of flattery has been fre-
quently employed to allay any suspicions which we might enter-
tain in our intercourse with them, to enable them the more readily
to accomplish any base or sinister purpose they may have in view.
It is difficult to ascertain the real state of feeling of a people so
wholly rude and treacherous.

Such diseases as are incident to other portions of the east are
also found to prevail here ; such as bilious fever, ague and fever,
diarrhoea, cholera, spotted and scaly leprosy, &c. These people
are likewise subject to a peculiar cutaneous disease, much re-
sembling the itch in appearance, attended with a constant irritation
of the skin. This is said to be produced by unwholesome diet,
such as salted fish in an almost putrid state, and other things
equally repugnant to a delicate stomach.

It is common to see among them the most loathsome-looking
objects, covered with offensive ulcers and incurable sores Some

190

VOYAaE OF THE POTOMAC.

[February^

unfortunate wretches are afflicted with the elephantiasis, a dreadful
disease, in which the skin comes off in flakes, and the flesh falls
from the bones. This disease being deemed highly infectious, the
hapless sufferer is driven from society into the woods, where food
is conveyed to him by his relations, until death puts a termination
to his misery. They are almost totally ignorant of the science
of medicine or surgery, and are frequently annoying in their
solicitations for remedies and medical advice ; so that visiters
frequently resort to quackery to get rid of their importunities.

The face of the country, a short distance from the seacoast, is
distinguished by a bold outline of prominent features, sometimes
rising into lofty mountains, like most other parts of the western
side of the island. The mountains abound with wild beasts of
various species. Here are found the elephant, the black and
striped tiger, rhinoceros, deer, antelope, wild-hog, &c. Reptiles
are numerous, and many of them venomous. Among those of
the serpent kind is a snake which possesses the chamelion’.s
faculty of assuming the colour of any object with which it comes
in contact. Though small in size, its bite is almost instant death.-
Alligators abound in the rivers, and the guana is also found here.
The boa-constrictor is said to be a formidable tenant of the in-
terior forests.

Having thus given as full a description of the island and inhab-
itants of Sumatra as our limits will permit, we cannot, perhaps,
make a more appropriate conclusion to this chapter than by briefly
describing a number of smaller islands which line its western
coast in a parallel chain, lying about sixty miles distant, and ex-
tending nearly the whole length of the parent island, for in that
relation we consider them. These islets, for such they are, com-
pared with Sumatra, are at present very imperfectly known;
except that several of them are from seventy to eighty miles in
length, and that the inhabitants of those which have been visited
differ materially from each other in appearance, language, and
character. On the charts, with few exceptions, the outlines of
these islands are drawn wholly from imagination. As there
has never been any actual survey, a few only of the points are
known with much precision, although the passages between them
are much frequented by our vessels.

The channels along the west coast of Sumatra are three in

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

191

nunlbef. The outer one, west of all the islands, should always
be adopted, if practicable, being far more safe and pleasant for
vessels that do not wish to anchor. The middle passage within
the chain of islands just mentioned, but outside a range of smaller
ones, which are nearer the Sumatra shore, should never be selected
from choice ; as vessels are liable to be driven about by currents,
and tantalized with light and baffling winds. There is no safe
anchorage in this passage ; while in many places towards the
main coast are dangerous shoals and reefs, from one to two and
three fathoms under water. The inner channel, close along the
shores of Sumatra, having in most places anchorage, is prefera-
ble to the middle passage ; but from the numerous islands and
reefs, either unknown or not marked on the charts (except that
portion which is embraced in some recent surveys), it is both
intricate and perplexing.

It is not improbable that this chain of islands, which runs par-
allel with the coast of Sumatra, once formed a part of that island ;
they have been separated from it either by the attrition of the
sea, or by some more sudden and violent effort of nature. This
supposition derives strength from the fact, that in several places,
particularly about Pally, detached pieces of land, in the form
of islands, stand several hundred yards from the shore, and
evidently once formed points of headland ; their surface still
remaining covered with trees, while their sides are bare, abrupt,
and perpendicular. The northwest and southeast position of
Sumatra, the similarity of soil, the regularity of the soundings
within the range of the large islands, and the unfathomable depth
of water without, add still further confirmation to the hypothesis.

Hog Island, or Pulo Oo, the most northerly of the range, is
moderately hilly, covered with trees, and may be seen twelve or
fifteen leagues in clear weather. It is thinly inhabited by emi-
grants from Acheen, who carry on a small trade in cocoanut oil
and cocoanuts. As vessels have always given this island a wide
birth, such dangers as may exist in its immediate vicinity are but
little known. Between its southern extremity and two small
islands, several leagues to the south, there is a safe passage.
The Cocoas, about twenty miles to the westward of Hog Island,
are in latitude 3° 1' north.

Pulo Nyas is the largest of all the islands on this coast, and is

192 VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC. [February,-

surrounded by numerous smaller ones. It has a fine river, good
anchorage, and refreshments of various descriptions, including
excellent water. The inhabitants are mild and inoifensive, very
different from their neighbours on the main, or on any other island
in the range. The inhabitants sell their daughters to the slave-
dealers, who convey them to Batavia, and other markets, where
they are purchased for wives or slaves, as the case may be.
The reason assigned for this unnatural conduct is, in some in-
stances, that the inhabitants of Pulo Nyas have become so deeply
involved in debt by gaming, that they cannot extricate themselves
but by selling their children, if they have any ; if not, by giving
up themselves for slaves for a certain period. The consequence
is, that several hundred girls and boys are exported annually.

Our informant was at Troumon, azrd present at the landing of
one cargo of these unfortunate beings. They were principally
females and boys of about sixteen years of age, who, after being
counted, were marched up to the slave-market. These females,
like all who come from this island, were beautifully formed, with
complexions much lighter than those of the natives of Sumatra.
The captain of the vessel which brought them to Troumon was
the son of a Scotchman, by a Nyas woman, while his own wife'
was daughter to the King of Nyas.

About ninety miles south of the equator is another of the islands,
of considerable size, known by the name of Pulo Pogy, with a
companion of smaller dimensions on the south. The north Pogy
is of very irregular shape, and thickly indented with bays and
coves, particularly on its western side. The south Pogy is narrow,-
and tapering towards its southern extremity. Both of them are
inhabited, but very little is known of their history or character,
except that they are tattooed like the natives of most islands in
the South Sea and Pacific Ocean.

The most southerly of these islands is Engano, situated in lati-
tude 5° 20' south. It is about eight leagues in extent, of a trian-
gular form, and presents a level appearance when viewed at the
distance of ten or twelve miles. It is about sixty miles from the
coast, and has an iron-bound shore, surrounded by rocks and break-
ers. The only account which we have ever seen of the inhabitants
is contained in the sixty-eighth volume of Philosophical Transac-
tions, for the year seventeen hundred and seventy-eight. The

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

193

writer describes them as large, well made, naked savages ; very
numerous, and extremely ill-disposed. The men in general are
represented as about five feet eight or ten inches in height, and
well-proportioned. The women are shorter, and not well shaped.
Their complexion is of a deep red, with straight black hair, which
the women very neatly roll up on the top of their heads. The
men always go armed with lances of the cabbage-tree, which is
extremely hard. They have no iron tools that the writer could
discover, yet they construct canoes, and erect houses of a circular
form, resting on ten or twelve iron-wood piles about six feet long,
planted in the ground. These humble habitations are floored with
rough planks, the roof rising immediately from the base in a
conical form, like a straw beehive. They have neither cattle,
fowls, nor even rice ; but appear to subsist altogether on cocoa-
nuts, sugarcane, sweet-potatoes, and fish. They speak a lan-
guage peculiarly their Own ; do not chew betele-nut, and have
white teeth.

The prevailing winds on this coast of Suihatra, north of the'
equator, are from northwest and southwest, with land breezes
during the night. The regular monsoons are subject to many
variations and interruptions, not only on account of the surround-
ing islands, but by the very shape and location of Sumatra itself,
extending, as it does, across the equator in a northwest and south-
east direction.

The dry season generally begins in May, and continues until
October. From June until late in September, while the southerly
winds blow more steadily, the land-breezes are very light, and
sometimes scarcely perceptible. At other times, brisk sea-
breezes prevail from the southwest during the day, and land or
variable winds during the night. Vessels, therefore, intending
to touch upon the west coast during this season, should never fall
in with the land north of their port of destination. Although the
southeast or southerly monsoons mostly prevail on this coast south
of the equator, yet northwesters are liable to blow for days at R
time, particularly about the change of the moon.

The northwest monsooq prevails on the same coast, particularly
south of the equinoctial line, from October to April ; not unfire-
quently attended with rain, thrmder, and lightning. During this
northwest monsoon, unsettled land-winds, squally weather, and

194 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [February,

rain, prevail during the night. In March, the heavy rains abate,
and the land and sea-breezes become more regular.

It is to be observed, that in most parts of India north of the equa-
tor, the northeast monsoons prevail when the sun is in the south-
ern hemisphere ; but on the Island of Sumatra they are changed
to a northwest monsoon, by the direction of the land. From De-
cember to April, and even May, the weather is often settled and
pleasant in north latitude, with land and sea-breezes ; but at other
times this wind blows strong, producing high seas, breaking in
heavy surf along the coast, rendering it dangerous to lie in any of
the open roadsteads.

The currents on the west coast of Sumatra are greatly influ-
enced by the winds, but seldom set to the north in either monsoon,
except when the wind continues for some time to blow strongly
from the south. When the northwesters prevail, the current sets
to the southeast, particularly along that part of the coast which
lies north of the equator ; while it frequently happens that another
current in the open sea, westward of the neighbouring islands, is
setting in an opposite direction.

During the months of October, November, and December, it is
often difficult to sail north along the coast from the equator to
Acheen Head, on account of baffling northwest winds and south-
erly currents, which sometimes extend to a great distance from
the island. On the south of the equator, from June to October,
while the southerly winds blow with considerable strength, a cur-
rent is impelled to the northward, rendering it very difficult to
work to the south. The tides do not rise more than two or
three feet.

While thus feeling our way among these islands and shoals,
with the extensive coast of Sumatra in view, the reader may
possibly expect something in the shape of “ Sailing Directions,”
for the guide of other mariners.. Such was, indeed, our original
intention, and we had actually prepared an article for the purpose.
This duty, however, has since been much more ably performed
than it could have been with our present limited space and
materials.

For this important service, our country is indebted to Captains
Charles M. Endicott and James D. Gillis, of Salem, Massachu-
setts. The former, who was master of the Friendship when she

183S.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

195

was seized by the Malays at Quallah-Battoo, has been trading on
this coast for more than fifteen years, during -which period he has,
profitably for his country, filled up all the tedious and vexatious
delays incidental to a pepper voyage, by a laborious and careful
survey of the coast, of which no chart was previously extant
which could be relied on. Captain Endieott has since published
the result of his labours in a neat, well-executed chart, on a large
scale, accompanied with sailing directions, comprising almost
every item of information requisite for navigators in these waters.
This chart comprises all that portion' of coast which is included
between Sinkel, in 2° 18' and 4° 15' north.

Actuated by a like commendable zeal for the commercial inter-
ests of his native country. Captain Gillis has extended the surveys
to latitude 5° north, and published an excellent chart, accompanied
also with sailing directions.

These are important acquisitions to our knowledge of this-
coast, and will increase the security of our merchants and mari-
ners. When, in pursuance of the present wisely-adopted policy
of our government, she shall send another armed vessel in the
track of the Potomac, to visit this coast and look after our com-
mercial interests there, it is hoped that she may be supplied with
copies of these charts, on which reliance may be placed as far as
they go ; and that she will not, as was the case with the Potomac,
run up into the mountains by chart, before in fact she reaches the
shore ! We gladly embrace this opportunity to acknowledge our
obligations to both these gentlemen for much valuable information
and many interesting facts.

N 2

196

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[Februaiy,

CHAPTER XII.

Early voyages to Sumatra — Portuguese establishments at Acheen and Pasay-— Naval
power of Acheen — Portuguese defeated — The English well received at Acheen —
The Dutch suspected — The French neglected — Rivalry and hostilities between the
English and Dutch — English and French — The English at Padang — Americans
visit the east — Commercial enterprise of Salem — Carnes’s voyage to Sumatra — ■
Loss of his vessel in returning — Sails in the Rajah — His successful voyage — Con-
sequent curiosity and excitement — Unsuccessful attempt at competition — Inter-
esting extracts from the Records of the Salem East India Marine Society — Ship
Friendship, Williams — Fanny, Smith — John, Barton — Three Friends, Stewart —
Her accident in the Strait of Bally — Active, Nicholas — Recovery, Dana — and the
Putnam — Tribute to the Commercial enterprise of Salem.

The earliest account we have seen of pepper having been ex-
ported from any part of the Island of Sumatra, was in 1509, in a
few Portuguese vessels which touched at Pasay, a port of no
little importance at that time, situated about twenty leagues from
Acheen to the east. These vessels were on their way to China.
The spirit of glory, of plunder, and of commerce, which burned
so ardently in the Portuguese at this period, received a new im-
pulse, as new expectations were suddenly raised of the importance
of this trade, and the resources of the island. As early as 1520,
Diego Pacheco, an experienced commander, was despatched to
the southwest coast to search for a certain island, of which ru-
mour had spoken much of its treasures in gold. Having pro-
ceeded as far as Paya, he was astonished to meet in that port
many native vessels from other parts of the island, as well as
several from India, which brought with them cotton manufactured
goods, for the supply of the inhabitants. Near this port, he was
so unfortunate as to lose one of his best vessels ; which circum-
stance put an end to further search of the Isla d^Ouro, which the
natives represented to be one hundred leagues off, amid labyrinths
of shoals and reefs, where none but small vessels or boats could
steer with safety.

On his return to Malacca, Pacheco passed through the Strait of

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

197

Sunda, and was thus the first European navigator to sail round
the Island of Sumatra. But here, as elsewhere, they had scarcely
set foot upon the island, before contentions and bloody feuds took
place between them and the Sultans of Acheen and Pasay. It
was at the latter place, in 1521, they made an attack on the town
and ruling prince Geinal, with the ostensible object of setting up
the legal heir to the throne; but which was no sooner accom-
plished, than they required of this prince, as the reward of their
magnanimous interference, the whole monopoly of the pepper
trade within his territory, the expenses of the enterprise, and
permission to erect forts and establish themselves on his soil.
Protection it was : but it was that protection the tiger gives to the
kid, when left alone upon the mountains !

Flushed with success, and urged on by cold, heartless, insatiate,
all-grasping avarice, during the same year, an expedition under
Brito, three hundred strong, and without the slightest provocation,
was directed against Acheen. But here a different destiny awaited
them. . At the moment of landing, other vessels entered the port
and proffered their assistance. This was not accepted, as it
would increase the number among whom the gold must be divided.
The Achenese waited their arrival, couched as the tiger of their
own native mountains, and at a concerted signal, rushed upon them
with all the tiger’s fierceness. The slaughter was terrible, and
scarcely a Portuguese escaped.

In less than two years they were driven from their establish-
ment at Pasay, by the same Sultan Abraham, who, having thrown
off his allegiance to the King of Pedeer, now reigned at Acheen.
This warlike monarch for years not only kept the Portuguese in
check, but often, with large armaments, carried on offensive oper-
ations against their principal establishment on the coast of Malacca.

In fifteen hundred and thirty-seven, he was succeeded by Alnadin,
who followed in his footsteps, and waged perpetual war against their
treacherous invaders, whom, in derision, they called “ CaffresT The
force called into existence by these people is astonishing ! Ex-
pedition after expedition sailed from Acheen. At one time, no less
than one hundred and fifty sail, with seven thousand men, crossed
the channel for the destruction of their enemies. At this period
arose the great warrior Lacsemanna, whose deeds are still re-
membered among the Malays. For forty years did he contend

198 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [February,

against the Portuguese with various success, but always with a
spirit above misfortune.

In fifteen hundred and seventy-five, the King of Acheen, after
several years preparations, covered the straits with his forces and
armed vessels. These vessels were mostly small, though there
were a few junks which carried six hundred men each. In this
enterprise were nearly twenty thousand men. The Portuguese
were made to tremble for their establishments on the opposite
coast, where they were soon besieged. The conflict was bloody
and lasted long ; several Portuguese frigates were destroyed, and
the garrisons were only saved by a timely reinforcement.

In fifteen hundred and eighty-six, the kingdom of Acheen was
in the greatest splendour ; its friendship was courted by all the
Indies, and its ports frequented by the trading vessels from Mecca
in the west, to Japan in the east.

It was the close of the sixteenth century before the Hollanders
made their appearance in the eastern world ; and not until the
year sixteen hundred did they touch upon the coast of Sumatra.
The English followed close upon their track, and only two years
afterward visited the city of Acheen, with a respectable force
under the command of Lancaster, who bore a letter from Queen
Elizabeth to her “ royal and puissant brother,” the King of Acheen.
In despite of the jealousy of the Portuguese and Spaniards (at that
period indeed the same people), Lancaster was most “ graciously”
received ; was banqueted and entertained by “ singing and dancing
damsels,” and, what was more important, succeeded in making a
very advantageous commercial treaty. The sultan extended great
favour to the English ; allowed them to establish a factory ;
showed them many indulgences ; and not far from this time, even
condescended to send a message to King James, with the request
that a lovely English woman might be sent out to him for a wife ;
holding out at the same time, as an inducement to the fair one
who should become the object of his royal affections and star-
ascendant of his harem, that her first son should be made his
heir, and succeed him to the throne of all the Sumatras ! Neither
history nor any oral tradition that has come to our knowledge in-
forms us how this intended honour was received by our fair ances-
tors ! but we shrewdly suspect that such an overture from an
oriental sovereign could not fail to inspire them with glow-

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

199

ing ambition, at the thoughts of crowns and diadems, and of be-
coming mothers to a long race of pepper monarchs and spicy
kings. How such a proposition would be received at the present
day by our own republican fair ones ; how far it might inspire
them with the desire to depart from the simplicity of their grand-
motheis,we would not for the world even hazard an opinion !

The Dutch were also viewed with favour by this prince, who
appears to have been more mild and humane than some of his
immediate predecessors. This harmony, however, was not des-
tined to last long. News of the cruelty and oppression of the
Dutch over their neighbours the Javanese was now daily reaching
him, and could not but produce in his mind sentiments unfavour-
able to their characters, as well as create well-grounded fears,
that the time might not be far distant when he and his people
might become victims to the same policy ; and these w'ell-grounded
apprehensions on his part led to the interruption of that harmony,
which, for several years, had so happily existed.

In sixteen hundred and twenty-one, the French sent out a fleet
with magnificent presents to the Sultan of Acheen, the importance
of whose trade was greatly exaggerated, and which, in fact, never
had been commensurate with his military power and resources.
They were by no means successful in their negotiations, and re-
ceived from the king but little encouragement.

In sixteen hundred and forty-one, a new sultan had ascended
the throne, with whom the Dutch concerted a joint expedition
against the Portuguese establishments on the coast of Malacca.
The Achenese entered with spirit into this campaign, as it was a
conquest their ancestors had long, though unsuccessfully, attempted
to achieve by their own strength. The Portuguese could not
withstand the combined forces of the allies, and were, after a short
though desperate struggle, compelled to yield to the fortunes of
war. It was the long contest with this power that had raised the
Achenese monarchy to so great a height, and with the overthrow
of this enemy, its power and splendour began rapidly to decline.

In sixteen hundred and eighty-four, the English turned their
attention to Sumatra again, having recently lost their possessions
at Bantam, after having had a foothold there for more than eighty
years. A deputation was sent to Acheen, to effect such arrange-
ments as would continue to secure them in a share of the pepper

200 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [Februaiyy

trade. Here they met certain rajahs from Priaman and other ports
on the west coast, who had visited the seat of government to
seek protection from the Dutch, who had begun to make encroach-
ments in that quarter. These rajahs applied to the English for
protection, and proposed to give them not only the profits of an
exclusive trade, but to allow them soil, and the privilege of estab-
lishing forts. So eager were the rajahs to effect this arrangement,
that they embarked for Madras, formally to effect this object
with the governor. An expedition was immediately put in prep-
aration, intended to sail for the country of Priaman ; but which
was diverted for a time from this object, by a similar request
having, on the eve of departure, been received from the rajahs of
Bencoolen; to which place the English at once made sail, in-
tending afterward to visit Priaman, and complete their establish-
ments in that quarter. The Dutch, in the meantime, had pene-
trated the designs of the English, and hastened to anticipate
them in their establishments in Priaman. The contest between
the English and Dutch was severe ; the latter continuing to annoy
their rivals by every means in their power ; often joining with the
natives, and compelling the English to leave some of their less
considerable establishments — ^but not Bencoolen, which improved
rapidly, and by sixteen hundred and eighty-nine had acquired
much strength and respectability, and numbered among its inhabi-
tants many industrious and useful Chinese colonists. By sixteen
hundred and ninety-one, the Dutch power was greatly reduced,
and that of the English and their trade proportionably increased.
The settlement of Natal was established in seventeen hundred
and fifty-two, and that of Tappanooly shortly afterward, which
involved the English again in fresh disputes with the Dutch, who
laid claim to the whole of the country where these forts were
situated.

In seventeen hundred and sixty, the French, under Count
d’Estaigne, destroyed all the English settlements on the coast of
Sumatra, but which were all re-established again under the treaty
of Paris in seventeen hundred and sixty-three. In seventeen
hundred and eighty-one, the British in their turn took possession
of Padang and other Dutch factories, in consequence of war with
that nation ; and again in seventeen hundred and ninety-four.

We have now arrived at that period in the commercial history

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

201

of Sumatxa, when it becomes necessary to introduce upon the
theatre of eastern competition another actor ; a people whose
very existence in that part of the world was scarcely known. On
the thirtieth of August, seventeen hundred and eighty-four, the
stripes and stars of our beloved republic, which Heaven in
its mercy long preserve, the “ home of the free,” were first un-
folded in Canton. An incident of so much importance in our
history shall not pass without due notice, in its proper place.

The first American vessel that ever procured pepper from the
Island of Sumatra, was a schooner, Jonathan Carnes master.
She had been fitted out from Salem for the East Indies, in the
year seventeen hundred and ninety-three. While in Bencoolen,
the captain learned something of the pepper trade, at that period
confined principally on the west coast to the single port of Padang.
To this point he shaped his course, without any other knowledge
'or directions than such as he had by accident been enabled to pro-
cure from a pilot, whose services he secured to accompany him.
On arriving at Padang, he found that but little pepper was raised
there, but was brought in small quantities by the natives, in their
proas, from other ports further to the north. These ports he
did not visit at this time, but after some considerable delay, was
successful in procuring a cargo, when he sailed for the United
States ; but while touching at some of the West India islands,
was so unfortunate as to lose his vessel on a reef, and with her
the whole of his cargo. On arriving in Salem, he made his
owners acquainted with the new channel of trade he had opened.
The whole matter, however, was kept a profound secret. A vessel
of one hundred and fifty tons, called the Rajah, was built by Mr.
Peale, and the captain in seventeen hundred and ninety-five set
out for Sumatra ; and this was the first vessel that ever sailed di-
rect from this country to that island, for the purpose of procuring
pepper. After arriving at Padang, he procured such further in-
formation of the coast as induced him to make sail for other ports
further to the north. Without chart or guide of any kind, he made
his way amid numerous coral reefs, of which navigators have so
much to dread even at the present day, as far as the port of An-
alaboo, touching also at Soo-soo, where he succeeded in procuring
a large portion of his cargo.

On the arrival of Captain Carnes at Salem, which happened

202' VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC. [February,

without accident on his passage, great excitement and curiosity
were produced, to learn in what part of the eastern world he had
been so successful in loading his vessel in so short a time with
pepper.

There had never been so much of this article brought in one
vessel to the United States ; and we have heard it amusingly re-
lated, that there were not wanting, at that time, very intelligent
persons, who went into minute calculations to show that the amount
of stock on hand would be found greatly beyond the immediate
demand. It is worthy of remark, also, that at this period a
vessel of one hundred and fifty tons was deemed quite large
enough to bring the whole crop raised on the west coast of Su-
matra ! The cost of that cargo was about eighteen thousand
dollars, and sold at a profit of seven hundred per cent. At this
early period of our commercial history, while our merchants, with
little else than true enterprise for capital, were extending their’
trade to remote parts of the world, and opening new channels
through which so much individual and national prosperity was to
flow into our country in after years, it is easy to imagine the
new feelings of competition called into existence by so extraordi-
nary a voyage as that of the Rajah, which had now just returned
with so much profit to her owners. But still the matter was a
secret. No one had been able to penetrate the mystery ; while
evident preparations for another voyage showed the owners had
confidence that the new stream of their prosperity might still flow
on. It was known, however, that Captain Carnes had received
his first knowledge of the trade while at the port of Bencoolen.
What he had accomplished, others felt themselves able to do ; so
that in a very short time vessels were fitted out from Salem and
Beverly, directed to Bencoolen, with instructions to find out, if
possible, the directions which had been given to Captain Carnes.
In this they were not successful. The jealousy of the European
colonists became awakened, though little did they dream of the
young Hercules who had just set foot upon their shore, whose
youthful vigour was so soon to gain an entire and undisputed
ascendency in the pepper trade of that coast ! Of the west coast,
north of Padang, nothing was known ; no charts, no sailing direc-
tions were to be found ; while the most unfavourable accounts
of the danger of the navigation were pointed out, and were exag-

1S32.]

rSLAND OF SUMATRA.

203

gerated by the English, but more particularly by the Dutch,' in
order to deter the new adventurers. These vessels, therefore,
failing to procure the requisite information, and being unable to
get on the track of their more successful pioneer, proceeded on,
and made up their voyages in some of the other ports of India.

We have been greatly interested in looking over the record of
our mercantile enterprise to the east, about this period, as pre-
served in the port-folios of the Salem East India Marine Society,
The time may come when these documents will be referred to,
and written up, as interesting items belonging to the history of
our country. In turning over the pages of this record we have
made a few hasty abstracts, which may properly be introduced in
this place, for the purpose of showing how rapidly our trade had
extended at the period of which we are speaking.

The secret voyages to Sumatra did not continue long. By the
first of the present century the mystery was penetrated, and the
whole ground occupied by enlightened competition.

The ship Friendship, J. Williams master, sailed from Salem
for Batavia, August first, seventeen hundred and ninety-seven ;
made St. Paul’s Island, and reached the coast of Sumatra, passing
near Egano Island. When in latitude 5° 25' south. Little Fortune
Island bore southeast, and Mount Pangong, on the Sumatra
shore, northeast, distant eight leagues. Left Batavia for the
United States, March fourth, seventeen hundred and ninety-eight.
This was among the first American vessels at Batavia. While
passing through the straits, made observations to ascertain the
variation of the needle ; found considerable difference between
the morning and evening observations ; discrepances which have
been noticed by many navigators, particularly, if we remember
light, by Captain Cook, in one of his voyages. While in the Strait
of Sunda, Little Cambuys bearing northwest-by-west, the leads-
man in the chain, and heaving the line ; he had just cried nine
fathoms ; but while drawing in the line the ship struck, and re-
mained for a minute on a coral patch of only two fathoms water.
These dangers are now noted on the charts, but they go to show
the dangerous navigation in coral seas.

On the fourteenth of January, eighteen hundred and two, the
ship Fanny, E. Smith master, sailed from Boston for New-Hol-
land, Batavia^ Tranguebar, Hindostan ; passed through Brass’s

204

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[February,

Straits, discovered rocks not laid down on any chart then in use ;
passed through the Straits of Sunda, touched at Batavia, and.
from thence to Tranguebar ; and finally making Flog Island, coast
of Sumatra, and touching at the Isle of France, returned in safety
and with profit to the United States.

Ship John, J. Barton master, sailed from the United States for
the east in eighteen hundred and two ; made the coast of Su-
matra, and came to anchor at South Tally ninth of May, eighteen
hundred and three. From thence sailed to Acheen, and afterward
to Manilla, passing near Puloway, the largest of the Acheen
islands ; high and uneven ; may be seen^twelve leagues ; and along
the south side of it, in some parts, there is said to be soundings
near the shore. Passed Diamond Point, forming the eastern ex-
tremity of the coast of Pedir, or, as old authors spell it, Pedeer.
When sailing from Acheen, along this part of -the coast, kept
near it, where in most parts anchorage may be found if necessary.
The golden mountain was visible, rising like a cone seven thou-
sand feet above the level of the sea ; and may be seen ninety
miles from deck in a clear day, forming a soft outline above the
horizon. In fine weather, this beautiful mountain, rising only
about eight leagues from Acheen in the interior, forms a good
mark for pointing out a ship’s situation, when wishing to pass
through Malacca Strait, particularly when the distance is so great
that the land near King’s Point cannot be seen. Pulo Verella
was the next island made ; is not more than six leagues from the
Sumatra shore, high, and may be seen eight or ten leagues dis-
tant. At the south end water may be procured, and at the south-
east end anchorage in twelve or eighteen fathoms, about one mile
from shore. Boats landing here are cautioned, even at the present
day, to look out for the Battoo-bara people from the adjacent
coast, who are often lurking about these places in their proas, and
never fail to attack boats when within their power. Having
passed along the Sumatra coast from Diamond Point, a vessel
may go on either side of Pulo Verella; if on the outside, give a
birth to the reef ; if you pass inside, steer towards, and pass to
the east of the Brothers, two islands lying five or six miles from
each other. The channel between these islands and the coast is
not well known ; besides, the outside channel is more frequented.

In 1 ° 28' north, 103° 1 0' east, made Pulo Pisang, not high, covered

1832,]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

205

with wood, and may be seen eight leagues. Both to the east and
west sides of Pisang, are small islets. From Mount Formosa to
this island, it is low and woody, except a small mount near the sea,
half way from Formosa towards Pisang. It has long been ob-
served, as a general rule, that on the edges of the shore-banks
throughout the straits, the depths decrease suddenly; and in like
manner on the edges of those in the offing.

Having sailed near to, or within sight of, Carimou, Red Island,
Pedra Branca, Pulo Tingy, Pulo Timor, Pulo Sapata, and Goat
Island, the ship John came to anchor at Canite, west side of the
Island of Luconia. — Sailed from Manilla, passed Corrigidor, cor-
rected the longitude of High Island ; and after touching at nu-
merous islands, among the rest Celebes, where the Dutch have
an establishment, next at the Isle of France,* sailed from thence,
without accident, to the United States.

On the eighteenth of January, eighteen hundred and three,
the ship Fame, Briggs master, sailed from Salem to Cochin
China, Manilla, and back. The details of this voyage show
much perseverance on the part of the captain. The natives do
not appear to have been unfriendly, and the vice-king showed no

* This is an island in the Indian Ocean, four hundred miles east of Madagascar.
It was discovered by the Portuguese ; but the first who settled here were the Dutch,
in 1598. They called it Mauritius, in honour of Prince Maurice, their Stadtholder f
but on their acquisition of the Cape of Good Hope, they deserted it ; and- it con-
tinued unsettled till the French landed here in 1720, and gave it the name of one of
the finest provinces in France. It is one hundred and fifty miles in circumference
The climate is healthy, but the soil not very fertile. There are many mountains,
some of which are so high that their tops are covered with snow ; they produce the
best ebony in the world. The valleys are well watered with rivers, and are made
very productive by cultivation, of which sugar is the principal object. The town and
harbour, called Port Louis, are strongly fortified ; but in the hurricane months, the
harbour cannot afford shelter for more than eight vessels. Here are large store-
houses, and every thing necessary for the equipment of fleets. ' This island was
taken by the British in 1801, and confirmed to them by the treaty of Paris, in 1814..
In 1819, the pestilential cholera was introduced into this island from India, and car-
ried off seven thousand of the inhabitants. According to an account presented by
tke colonial department to the British parliament in the session of 1825, the island
was divided into eight districts, containing a population of 87,503, in the proportion
of 65,769 slaves, 13,475 free blacks, and 10,359 whites, exclusive of 1310 troops.
Port Louis, on the northwest coast of the island, is in latitude 20° 10' north, and
57° 29' of east longitude. — Brookes’’ s Universal Gazetteer.

200 voYAaE OP THE POTOMAC. [February^

repugnance to trade, and gave, without much apparent suspicionj
license for the captain to enter and trade in other ports.

The ship Three Friends, Stewart master, made a voyage from
Salem to Batavia in the year eighteen hundred and one. Bally
Strait, situated between an island of the same name and the east
end of Java, is about six leagues wide. On the sixteenth of Jan-
uary, eighteen hundred and two, the Three Friends was accom-
panied by a ship called the Margaret. The morning began with
fresh contrary winds; while beating into the Strait of Bally.
Having got part way in, the wind fell off, and the current being
ahead, brought to an anchor in twenty fathoms sandy bottom, the
Java shore distant half a mile. At half past six in the evening,,
the current having shifted, weighed, and drove with the stream —
light airs from the Java coast — and at dark lost sight of the Mar-
garet. The wind being from the western quarter, carried quite
over to the Bally side ; the current carrying the vessel around a
point, and shortly afterward, within a cable’s length of the shore,
drove along for a few minutes, found soundings in thirty fathoms,
let go the sheet-anchor, and brought her up at about one hundred
and fifty feet from the rocks, where she rode a few minutes. At
nine P. M., light air came off the land ; a boat being ahead, the
cable was cut, time not permitting to heave it up ; in a moment
the wind died away, and the next, came right on shore, all sail
being set, she took aback and struck ! The after-guns were im-
mediately thrown overboard, water started, and the decks cleared
of wood ; in short, every thing that could be done to lighten her,-
but all to no effect. The captain and officers supposing little on
their part could be done, the current running five knots per hour,
the wind, what there was, directly on shore, four men sick —
minute-guns were fired, and fortunately answered by the Margaret,
whose superiority in sailing had enabled her to gain safe anchorage
in Palembang Bay on the Java shore: and answering minute-
guns were now heard from the Dutch forts at Palembang. The
situation of the captain and his crew was now deplorable. Driven
on shore, on the savage and inhuman coast of Bally, the vessel
on her beam-ends, four men sick, not able to work a single re-
maining gun, the idea of losing the ship and cargo, and of being,
themselves massacred by the savages, presented a picture gloomy
enough ; when they were somewhat relieved by the appearance

1832.]

ISLAND OP SUMATRA,

207

of Captain Derby, of the Margaret, in a boat with six. men, who
immediately set off to the Dutch settlement to procure proas to
lighten the vessel of her cargo. At three A. M., saw proas ap-
proaching fast and full of men, whom the captain concluded were
savages ; and deeming it impossible in his weak state to defend his
vessel against a force apparently so unequal, ordered all the arms
and powder down into the forecastle, where he felt he could de-
fend himself to the last, that point being accessible in one place
only. He naturally supposed that they would not fire the vessel,
on account of the plunder she contained ; and if they did, it was
only a choice of evils to remain on board and share her fate.
Every thing being in this train, and the proas within hail, he
ordered one alongside ; when, greatly to his relief, he found they
were Dutch soldiers, sent by the governor of the Dutch forts to
defend him from the savages. The officer came on board, and
ordered all the soldiers to pitch their tents on the shore opposite
to the vessel. On the following morning Captain Derby returned,
when the vessel was lightened by taking out two proas loads of
coffee. At 8 A. M ., an anchor having been carried out, and the tide
serving, they succeeded in heaving her off ; but there being no wind,
they lay at anchor until the next day ; when, getting the light
spars on board, got under way, and in the evening came safe to
anchor alongside the Margaret. On the eighteenth, the two cap-
tains went on shore to wait on the governor, and thank him for
the great assistance he had rendered them. They found his car-
riage in waiting to carry them to his residence in the fort, having a
drawbridge, over which they had to pass. On being presented
to the governor, the captains were very much pleased with his
manners, and astonished with his open and generous behaviour.
The pleasure he evinced on seeing them safe, and the hospitality
with which he treated them, did great credit to the goodness of
his heart. During the whole of their stay there, they had the
satisfaction to see his friendship increase towards them, and he
even loaded them with presents on the day of their departure.

Bally Strait, as has been observed, is between the southeast
end of Java on the west, and Bally on the east. The land on the
island is more elevated than on the east end of Java, which is
even, sloping down at each end, resembling, when seen at the
distance of six or seven leagues, the Island of Banditti. The

208 VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC. [February,

southerly winds generally prevail near the south coast of the
islands which form this strait, from February to September ; while
from November to March, strong westerly winds are frequent,
producing a westerly current, setting along the coast of Java and
the islands to the east. On most parts of this coast are sound-
ings near shore, and good anchorage in several bays, frequented
but little, however, by strangers. Vessels should keep mid-
channel, with boats ahead in light winds, as the passage is dan-
gerous, tides strong, with numerous eddies, which are liable to
horse a ship on the rocky shore of Java. On Bally there is a
burning mountain.

On the ninth of May eighteen hundred and one, the ship
Active, G. Nichols master, arrived on the coast of Sumatra,
making, as is now usual among ships. Hog Island, as the first
point. In coasting along the western side, there appeared to be
a great many breakers, some of which lay at a considerable , dis-
tance, particularly from the western ’ extreme ; where, by the
charts, there is a shoal eight or ten miles off, though they did not
appear to the captain to be more than four or five miles from the
shore. He sailed along from two and a half to three leagues
from the coast, but did not see breakers which appeared to extend
more than a mile from shore.

He passed between this island and the Cocoas, which he found
to be very erroneously laid down on the charts, which place
them northeast six or seven leagues from the northern extremity
of Hog Island ; instead of which, they lay nearly west from said
extremity at the distance of about six leagues.

His destination was the Port of Muckie, which not being
laid down on any chart, or noticed in any sailing directions, and
the accounts of persons differing no less than twelve miles in the
latitude assigned to it, he had to proceed with the utmost caution.
The charts he had were English, of the latest date at that time ;
but still he found no reliance could be placed on them. The
country around Muckie was very inaccurately delineated, and the
winds and weather still more imperfectly described in the East
India Directory.

On the fourteenth of May, eighteen hundred and thirty-two,
after many days of anxiety and fatigue, he came to anchor, with-
out accident, at Muckie. During the whole of the time while

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

209

making the coast and harbour, light winds and rain occasionally
prevailed, with the set of the current to the north, but not strong,
Muckie he placed in 3” 24' north, but it has since been ascer-
tained, by repeated observations, to lie in 3° 28'. The harbour is
small ; only three miles deep, and one fourth of a ihile wide at
the entrance. The anchorage is in from seventeen and a half to
eighteen fathoms. Six or eight vessels might lie here in perfect
safety. The shore is coral, except a small place where the
pepper is taken off; this is sand, on which the surf breaks, but
not so as to prevent getting off cargoes ; indeed, it is said there
is not a better place to load on the whole coast. While in this
bay, from the fourteenth of May to the sixth of June, the land
and sea-breezes were regular ; the weather was generally pleasant,
though once in two or three days there was commonly a squall
from the northward and westward, which lasted about an hour,
and sometimes blew quite fresh.

Pepper, the only article of export, amounted at this time to
about ten thousand piculs annually, though this year there was
nearly double that quantity raised and exported, A portion of
this, however, is brought from other small ports in the neighbour-
hood ; such as Laboan Hadjee, only a few miles to the north,
where there is also good anchorage.

Respecting the natives, the captain says he always found them
friendly, though he acknowledges that it was dangerous to irritate
them, or to permit many of them to come on board at the same
time. He says they always carried their knives with them ; that
there had been instances of their taking vessels ; and, from what
he saw, he imagined they were always willing to take advantage
of a favourable opportunity to do a like act upon an unguarded
vessel ; still there appeared not to be the least danger to go on
shore among them, and not to irritate them ; a line of conduct
which he appears constantly to inculcate. He describes them as
lazy, a point in their character about which there has never been
room for more than one opinion. Respecting their government,
he knew but little. In that part of the country there appeared to
be but two men in authority among them, who made the bargains
and controlled the trade. He met with several who could speak a
little of the English language, and that of the Malay did not appear
to him difficult to acquire. The inhabitants were estimated at

210 VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC. [February,

three thousand of all descriptions of natives. The Malays and
Achenese, though called by the same general name Malay, are
not in fact of the same origin.

The ship Recovery, Luther Dana master, sailed from Salem
for the Island of Sumatra on the fifteenth of June, eighteen hun-
dred and two, and came to anchor in Muckie on the nineteenth of
May following. Dana was an intelligent master, and noted with
a practical eye all he saw. He describes Lamboan Hadjee Bay
as being formed by Point Mangin on the north, and Jampatnan on
the south, comprehending within it Jampatnan, Muckie, Pulo
Matt, Lamboan Hadjee Point, Pulo Cann, and Mangin, with some
other places of less note. Muckie at that time was the residence
of a powerful rajah, who owned a number of large proas. Lam-
boan Hadjee was much larger than Muckie, but its rajah was by
no means so powerful or rich. At the southern part of the dis-
trict is Pulo Matt, Pulo Cann at the northern, and Lamboan
Hadjee in the centre, forming in all the district of the same name.

Proas and small craft commonly lie within a shoal bay, bor-
dered on the southerly side by Lamboan Hadjee town ; near
which is the landing, and the only place allowed for trade in the
district. To the east of Lamboan Hadjee Point, the land is low,
and covered with trees, while from the northerly side of the bay
there were but a few houses, the place having been lately burnt.

A low, small, sandy island, which is formed on a coral bank,
nearly covered at high water, lies between Pulo Matt and Lam-
boan Hadjee Point. This small island is not much or any more
than a hundred rods from the mainland, and cannot be seen more
than two or three miles from a ship’s deck. Between this and
the main shore is safe anchorage and smooth water, while the
surf breaks high and continually on the outside of the island;
the shore where the surf is formed may be half a mile or more
in length, and at low water is nearly bare, while the soundings are
deep close aboard, and all around it. Turtles resort here in great
numbers at certain seasons. To the southward and eastward of
the island, near to the main, there are several dangerous shoals,
and within a mile and a half of the island, which serve to defend
the landing of Pulo Matt in front from the western swell, and
from the south part of the bay within the island.

The passage to the anchoring ground or harbour within the island

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

211

is at the northern end, at the distance of two cable lengths from
a coral shoal, over which the swell sometimes breaks. Vessels
intending to anchor within this little island must round the north
end near to ; when between it and the main, moor where it suits,
laying the heaviest anchor to the northwest, on account of the
heavy swell from that quarter. The soundings are three or four
fathoms near the shore on either side, and the channel is clear,
with ten or fifteen fathoms Avater, muddy bottom. The tides ebb
and flow from two and a half to three feet. At low water it is not
convenient to land at the beach in a common boat, on account of
the coral reef and shoals that extend some way from the landing-
place. Here were found small wells of excellent water. The
rajah of Lamboan Hadjee claimed jurisdiction at the island and
harbour, and together with the rajah of Soo-soo, appeared anx-
ious to trade and hold friendly communication with Americans
visiting the coast. He found head men at all the landing-places
within the districts, but says instances have occurred, when they
can get arms and a few vagabonds about them, that they have
declared their independence of the principal rajahs ; but not being
supported by any force that can be relied on, they are generally
soon overcome. A surprise from these fellows, he says, is chiefly
to be guarded against on the coast at first landing, or at any of
the small unfrequented places.

The captain remarks, that he was at some pains to inquire into
the truth of the many frightful reports of vessels being cut ofif,
plundered, men murdered, &c., but could not learn that any thing
of the kind had ever taken place on the west coast under the au-
thority of any of the legal governments, except against vessels
which had committed acts of piracy by seizing coasting proas,
and forcibly taking away their cargoes. Occurrences of this kind
had taken place even in Lamboan Hadjee Bay, by vessels from
some of the European settlements. When any thing of this kind
happens, the rajahs unite forces and take the vessels by storm,
stratagem, or any means in their power. The natives do not
easily forget such wrongs, but embrace the first opportunity of
doing themselves, as they deem, justice, by retaliation upon the
first aggressors.

At this period, the King of Acheen had several armed brigs
and proas, which he frequently sent along the coast to enforce the

o 2

212

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[February,

laws and collect the revenue, as well as to prevent traders from
going into ports not approved of or licensed to trade. “We were
frequently,” says the captain, “ on shore at Lamboan Hadjee, a mile
or two from the vessel, with large quantities of pepper, which could
not be got off till a late hour at night, but had no cause to com-
plain for the want of protection, or of having any of it stolen,
though only one or two hands were left in charge of it. Several
of the ship’s company went back into the country as far as the
settlements, and even to the mountains, either out of curiosity or
to shoot hogs, which were very plenty ; and always met with the
utmost civility and kindness from the natives. Probably if we
had treated them,” he continues, “ as the Europeans are generally
disposed to act towards the meaner castes of India, these privileges
might not have been allowed, or at least would have been attended
with more danger.” From observations made during his stay, it
was found that a trifle, with friendly manners, would always secure
their friendship. He saw but little quarrelling among themselves ;
robberies and other crimes were severely punished among them,
and that too in the most summary manner. For theft, the criminal
is secured to a kind of wooden cross, by order of the rajah, who
constitutes the whole court, and 'thrown into the water of a pit or
some other dirty place, and is there held until strangled to death.
There is no delay between trial and execution, no irons, no
prisons !

When the vessel was ready to depart, the rajah and many of
his people came down to the beach, not as beggars, but with evi-
dent signs of friendship, bringing and putting into the boats sugar-
cane, a few fowls, cocoanuts, with other trifles ; and when a short
distance from the shore, two six-pounders were fired from the
rajah’s fort in compliment to the captain. They had more pepper
on the beach for sale, but as his accounts were closed he could
not take it, and it seemed to be a matter of perfect indifference to
them whether he did or not.

Such is the interesting picture drawn by Dana of his visit
among these people, in the year eighteen hundred and two. How
much of human suffering had been prevented throughout agonized
and bleeding India, had the early European voyagers to the east
been governed by principles so just and so humane ! But while
he noted the favourable incidents of his visit, he seems not to

1832.]

ISLAND OP SUMATRA.

213

have been without some misgivings, and has left a Avarning to
other navigators, which shows, notwithstanding all he had pre-
viously said, an entire want of confidence in the general character
of the people ; for he would not feel safe doing business at any of
the outports, without a suflicient number of men and arms on board
to defend his vessel in case of any attempt to surprise. A strong
and vigilant watch was at all times necessary. He recommended,
as highly prudent in vessels procuring cargoes of pepper, to
have strong crews, notwithstanding the additional expense ; for
it is not possible always to make despatch, if doing business on
shore. While some of the men are on land, others in the boats,
there should always be a sufficient force on board to manage or
defend the vessel, as emergences required. If there should be
any of the crew sick, as often happens, and generally from im-
prudence, without a strong crew business would go on but slowly ;
as there is no getting the Malays to work when they can possibly
avoid it.

Within Lamboan Hadjee Bay are many coral shoals, and a
long heavy swell sometimes heaves in from the westward, often
breaking high, and should not be too carelessly encountered, either
in boats or by a vessel. A coral shoal, over which the waves
sometimes break, bears from Sandy Island southwest or south-
west-by-west, distant four or five miles. Point Mangin is low
land, covered with lofty trees, with the little huts of the inhabi-
tants interspersed among them. There are many corals about
this point, and it is difficult, at all times, to land, on account of
the rollers that break upon the beach. At the distance of about
two miles north of Point Mangin is Tally Pow,from which Soo-
soo, eight or nine miles further north, may be seen. Abreast of
these places. Tally Pow and Mangin, there is good anchorage in
from seven to seventeen fathoms, clay bottom, which is convenient
to the beach of either place. In Soo-soo Bay, about a mile north
of Tally Pow, there is a large shoal, over which the sea contin-
ually breaks, which serves, however, as a defence to the landing
at Tally Pow, and affords inside of it smooth water and sandy
bottom. When in the offing, a league or two from shore, the
mountains in the interior have a broken and rugged appearance.
Between the shore and foot of the mountains is a large tract of

214 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [February,

low land, over which are spread out, in extensive cultivation, the
pepper plantations.

On the twenty-sixth of April, seventeen hundred and ninety-
eight, Captain Joseph Ropes, in the ship Recovery, left Salem,
bound direct for Mocha, Arabia Felix, and arrived in that port on
the ninth of September. This was the first American vessel that
ever displayed the stripes and stars in that part of the world.
The captain, who is still living, informed us that the arrival of
the strange ship was viewed with great interest by the authorities,
who could not divine from whence she came, and made frequent
inquiries to know how many moons she had been coming. The
same captain visited Padang, Sumatra, in eighteen hundred;
found the natives well disposed, and was very successful in pro-
curing a cargo of pepper.

We shall notice but one more of these early voyages, as the
trade had already assumed much importance, and many vessels
were now in the business. The ship Putnam sailed from Salem,
November twenty-first, eighteen hundred and two. An idea of
the rapid growth of the trade may be inferred from the fact, that
during the same year, no less than thirty American vessels,
generally small, visited the coast, seeking cargoes of pepper.
The range of ports on the west side had proportionably increased,
such as Analaboo, Soo-soo, Tangar, North Tally Pow, besides
several smaller ports. From Analaboo were shipped a thousand
piculs ; Soo-soo, eighteenhundred piculs ; Tangar, fifteen hundred
piculs; North Tally Pow, five thousand six hundred piculs;
Laboan Hadjee, eight thousand piculs ; Muckie, eighteenhundred
piculs. Soo-soo and Muckie were at that time the most important
ports on the coast.

From this period up to the time of the interruptions occasioned
by the late war with Great Britain, the trade on the coast of Su-
matra was regularly prosecuted by our merchants, from several
ports of the United States, Salem always taking the lead. We
cannot conclude this chapter, therefore, without again recurring to
the space this latter place has filled in the commercial history of
our country. In the revolutionary struggles, Salem took a decided
and early stand. When the port of Boston was shut by an act
of the British parliament, in retaliation for the destruction of the
tea which the Bostonians had thrown overboard, the merchants of

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

215

Salem offered their friends of Boston the free use of their wharves
and stores until the act should be repealed, or the dispute settled.

Salem, with the neighbouring towns, Marblehead and Beverly,
were foremost in taking out letters of marque and reprisal, and
were wonderfully successful. The records of these early times
show that the bravery of these hardy adventurers was a theme
of praise throughout the colonies, and also among their enemies.
When peace arrived, and our independence was acknowledged,
the merchants of Salem, as has appeared in this chapter, were
among the first to explore new channels of trade, disdaining to
confine themselves to the narrow track of a colonial commerce,
such as they had been restricted to when under Great Britain.
With a few erroneous maps and charts, a sextant, and “ Guthrie’s
Grammar,” they swept round the Cape of Good Hope, exhausted
the markets of the Isles of France and Bourbon, and pushing on-
ward, entered the Straits of Babelmandel, and secured the trade
of the Red Sea. They brought from Madras, Calcutta, and Bom-
bay, the best of their staples, and had their choice of the products
of Ceylon and Sumatra.

They had also a double share of the Canton trade ; in fact, their
ships were seen in every part of the Indian Seas, and were held
in respect by all commercial nations. Much credit is due to the fore-
most in these enterprises. Derby, Gray, Crowningshield, Peale,
White, Forrester, and others, were followed by Thorndike, Pea-
body, Pickman, West, Silsbee, the sons of the elder Derby and
of Crowningshield, and many other enterprising merchants.

While engaged in this profitable commerce, they were assidu-
ous in gaining a knowledge of the countries they visited, and
gathered many curiosities and antiquities of the east, of which
they have formed a splendid museum for the benefit of science
and the arts, and the gratification of the curious who visit their
town.

“ The Salem East India Marine Society is composed of per-
sons who have actually navigated the seas beyond the Cape of
Good Hope or Cape Florn, as masters or supercargoes of vessels
belonging to Salem. It was founded in October, seventeen hun-
dred and ninety-nine, and obtained an act of incorporation in
eighteen hundred and one. Two hundred and eighty-two members
have been admitted, ninety-one have died, and seven have retired

216

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[February,

from the society ; so that at present it consists of one hundred
and eighty-four members, of whom one hundred and thirty-two
still reside in Salem.”

The chief objects of the institution are, to assist the widows and
children of its members, when they need it, from the funds of the
society ; to collect facts and make observations, which may tend
to the improvement and security of navigation ; and to form a
museum of natural and artificial curiosities, to consist chiefly of
such as are brought from beyond the Cape of Good Hope and
Cape Horn.

The very nature of these voyages gave a peculiar character to
the people. The length of time they passed on the ocean, gave
the officers in these ships fine opportunities to improve their
minds in various branches of knowledge. From among the masters,
supercargoes, and other officers of these Indiamen, it is said there
have been, from the town of Salem, a great number of the members
of each branch of the legislature of the state : we know there
have been three members of congress, two secretaries of the
navy, a United States senator, and a great mathematician, second to
no one in ancient or modern times ; one who has corrected the
works of Newton, and enlarged the heavens of La Place ; and, in
fine, many distinguished minds in every walk of life. Whatever
our success in commerce hereafter may be, the enterprise of
Salem will still continue an era in our annals, worthy the pen of
the first commercial historian.

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

217

CHAPTER XIII.

Sumatra — Effects of the Potomac’s visit illustrated by facts — Piratical practice’s of
the Natives previous to that event, and their good conduct since — Their former
frequent attempts and failures proved by their own confessions, and the testimony
of Shipmasters — Their triumphant boasting respecting the Friendship, and threats
of future aggressions — Effect of that event on our eastern commerce — Revival
of that commerce after the attack on Quallah-Battoo — Anecdote of Mahommed
Bundah — His visit to the Potomac — Respect and admiration of the American
character — Hints to Government on the protection of our commerce.

Before we take a final leave of Sumatra, it may be well to
pause a moment and to inquire, what will be the effect of the
Potomac’s visit to the pepper coast, and whether it will tend to
the security of our commercial interests, and to the personal
safety of our countrymen, in their future intercourse with the
natives of that place. These are momentous inquiries, and they
not only deserve to be treated with the greatest attention, care, and
frankness, but also to be illustrated by every fact that can throw a
single ray of light upon a subject of such paramount importance.

We are now ready to meet these questions promptly and fairly;
for up to the present ’ moment - we have reason to believe that the
minds of no inconsiderable portion of the American people, who
take an interest in such matters, have been misled with regard to
the true merits of the case and the inevitable result of this highly
important enterprise. We are now prepared to determine the
point, and to prove by the strongest testimony of which the case
is susceptible, that the Potomac’s visit to the western coast of Su-
matra has resulted decidedly and unequivocally in the complete
attainment of the objects contemplated by our government ; and
that the enterprise was not only wisely conceived, and faithfully
and ably executed, but that any deviation from the course actually
pursued, must have been followed by an almost inconceivable
train of evils. The time has arrived when we can speak know-
ingly on the subject.

While in the Pacific Ocean, we fell in with a vessel which had
visited Quallah-Battoo after the departure of the Potomac. Since

218

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC,

[February,

our return to the United States we have made it a point to go
any distance, and in almost every direction, for the purpose of
seeing, conversing with, and closely examining the intelligent mas-
ters, supercargoes, and officers of such American vessels as have
been in the habit of trading and holding intercourse with the in-
habitants, both previous and subsequent to our attack on Quallah-
Battoo, on the sixth of February, eighteen hundred and thirty-two.

In prosecuting this investigation, the points to which our in-
quiries have been especially directed are, the general deportment
of the Malays before the outrage on the Friendship ; the effect
of that successful act of piracy along the coast, previously to tho
arrival of the Potomac; and the apparent feelings and deport-
ment of the same people since the occurrence of that event.

To all these respectable and intelligent individuals we have
uniformly propounded the same questions, and have received
their distinct, separate, and individual replies, without the knowl-
edge or possibility of concert with each other. These answers
have afterward been carefully compared ; and from more than
twenty written documents, taken from the mouths of our inform-
ants, it is scarcely possible to select the least item of discrepance ;
a very material fact, which goes far to confirm the following views,
which we now give as the abstract and substance of their united
testimony. Of the fidelity of our statements they will be able to
judge.

It is agreed that piracy had become a system with many petty
chiefs on the coast, and particularly at Quallah-Battoo, Three or
four years previous to the capture of the Friendship, they had
attempted to cut off, or manifested evident intentions to do so, al-
most every vessel that had entered their ports. We shall only
mention a few, out of many cases that might be cited.

A Salem brig was on the coast with specie, but had not com-
menced loading : the captain had never traded with the Malays,
and was a stranger to most of the inhabitants of Quallah-Battoo.
A proa was fitted out by them, for the express purpose of cap-
turing his vessel while she lay at anchor ; but he most fortunately
suspected their designs, and would not permit them to come along-
side. On their return to Battoo, they made no secret of the ob-
ject of their unsuccessful expedition; the leader of which has
lately been executed by the Dutch for piracy.

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA,

219

Another American brig was trading at Quallah-Battoo, a few
weeks before the disaster of the Friendship, with weights so much
lighter than are required for a Malay picul, that several of them
who owned no pepper, and who saw that the captain was entirely
ignorant of trade, advised him to make them heavier. A plan
was also projected to take this vessel in the same manner they
afterward did the Friendship, by sending a greater number.of Ma-
lays with the pepper to the vessel. This was prevented by one
of the native clerks, who takes an account of the pepper ; and
who knew that if they succeeded, his only means of support
would be cut off, in consequence of vessels avoiding the port ;
and embracing a moment when no one was observing him, said
to the captain, “ Twenty bags pepper — twenty-five men— take
care !” A boat usually carries one hundred bags and seven men.

The clerk had good reasons to be cautious ; as, not long before,
it is said another had been poisoned for giving a similar intimation
of an intended act of piracy ; and it is often owing to the clerks
that so many projected schemes of villany have been frustrated.
In the present instance, the captain being thus apprized of his
danger, took immediate measures to defeat the nefarious intentions
of the conspirators ; who, in this instance, had certainly no provo-
cation. The same captain afterward went to Soo-soo ; where
they detained him on shore, under some frivolous pretext, and he
was finally compelled to pay two hundred dollars for his release or
ransom.

These unsuccessful attempts at cutting off vessels on the
coast had become so common, that the utmost vigilance was
necessary on the part of every shipmaster engaged in the trade.
One of our intelligent informants was marked as the prey of the
pirates, on his first voyage to Sumatra. Soon after his arrival on
the coast, before he had opened any dealings with them, a large
froa was sent from Quallah-Battoo to capture his vessel. Quick
in their discrimination of strangers, they presumed upon his sup-
posed ignorance of their character, and had made powerful ar-
rangements for carrying their nefarious design into execution.

The captain, however, had not come upon the coast without
his precautionary lesson ; and, therefore, suspecting mischief,
instead of permitting the well-manned proa to lie alongside, he
compelled them to anchor at a distance. He had but eight men

220

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[February

on board, and had the well-armed Malays resolutely sprang among
them, nothing could have saved the vessel. The captain after-
ward ascertained to a certainty, that the intended assailants were
well prepared with loaded blunderbusses, concealed in the hold,
of which fact they openly boasted at Quallah-Battoo, and ex-
pressed the bitterest chagrin at failing in the avowed object of
their expedition.

The leader of this lawless gang, whose name is Mattavee,
afterward armed a proa, and commenced a system of piracy
against his own countrymen. Indeed, the instances of their
piracy on each other are very common ; and they often display as
much treachery in their intercourse with each other, as they ex-
ercise towards strangers. Every Achenese who has the means,
resides in a fort, with swivels pointed out of the room in which
he sleeps, and guns mounted over the gate, which is seldom
opened, a small hole being cut in it, just sufficiently large to admit
one man at a time. Though always armed, a single man rarely
ventures to pass from one village to another, particularly in the
night. In one word, such a thing as mutual confidence does not
exist among them.

Every advantage which accident or the misfortune of a ship-
master may give these people, is sure to be improved in extorting
money from him ; and often without the least shadow of justice,
as the following incident will show.

The master of an American vessel, who took in a part of his
cargo at Muckie, had promised, on certain conditions, to give the
chief fifty dollars. Something, however, occurring to prevent the
latter fulfilling his part of the contract, it was mutually agreed
between them that the promise of the captain was null and void,
and that the chief had no claim upon him. Nothing further was
said on the subject until the vessel had completed her loading,
when the captain was decoyed into a room on shore by several
Achenese, where the chief before mentioned advanced with a
drawn kris, and demanded of him fifty dollars !

The captain reminded him of their mutual arrangement on
this subject, and the clear understanding that the money was not to
be paid ; and that there were witnesses present who could testify to
the fact. The chief replied, that the captain had met with a gi'eat
misfortune in losing his memory, and that the money must and

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

221

should be paid ! A compromise was finally effected, and the
vessel sailed. The next season, this same chief acknowledged,
in the presence of several Americans, that the money was not
due ; and this happened at a place where the people were justly
esteemed to be the best on the coast.

While the brig Thule, of New-York, was lying at Quallah-
Battoo, several of her men deserted, whom the rajah took under
his protection, gave them arms, and told them to shoot the captain
if he attempted to molest them. He then negotiated with the
captain to restore the men at a certain stipulated price. The
men, however, were never given up ; and the captain, having lost
several others by sickness, was compelled to leave the port with
only seven hands, including himself, being about half her
complement.

Po Quallah, while at Joo-Joo, boasted of his success in taking,
the Friendship ; and observed, to adopt his own expression — “ My
feet are now stained with blood ; and if I dip my whole body, it
will be no worse for me in this world or the next. I will now
cut off every American vessel that falls in my power.” This
remark implies a consciousness of wrong, even in a religious
point of view, and the Malays, at other ports, have frequently
admitted that the people at Quallah-Battoo deserved punishment.
Yet it is a well-known fact, that after the piratical capture of
the Friendship, almost every Malay on the coast exulted, consid-
ering it a national triumph over “ the invincible white man.” In
fact, on every part of the coast, as can be testified by many re-
spectable, witnesses, they boastingly threatened that if the Amer-
ican government did not notice the outrage at Quallah-Battoo,
every American vessel that visited the coast on the following
season would suffer the fate of the Friendship. This was re-
peatedly uttered, at ports so distant from each other, and so soon
after the event, that it goes far to prove the piratical propensities
of these people ; and that if they could rob and murder with im-
punity, neither moral considerations, nor their allegiance to any
superior power, should restrain them.

Willing and anxious as we are to meet the whole question, let
it be admitted, for a moment, that among the victims of our
justice at Quallah-Battoo, there were some innocent individuals.
If such be the fact, no one can regret it more than ourselves, as

222 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [February,

one of the inseparable evils to a state of warfare. But let us be
permitted to abk, how many innocent persons there could have
been in the place, when almost the whole population poured out
from the village, and rushed down to the water’s edge — nay, even
waded into the surf, flourishing their weapons, to prevent the
escape of Captain Endicott to his ship, on board of which the
massacre of his crew had already commenced ? Who will say
that all did not participate in the outrage, when every one ex-
claimed, as he saw the preconcerted signal of success waving
from the tafiferel, “ The ship is taken ! — the ship is ours !”

We freely admit the justice and humanity of that legal maxim
which allows ninety and nine guilty persons to go “ unwhipped
of justice,” rather than one innocent being should suffer ; for it is
perfectly applicable to that state of society in which are vigilant
guardians of the peace, and where the strong arm of the law
arrests the culprit almost as soon as the offence is committed.
But it cannot be appropriately applied to the present case, where,
as we have abundantly shown, every shadow of law and justice
is recklessly trampled under foot ; where the lives and property
of our citizens, while engaged in their peaceful and lawful pur-
suits, can receive no protection from the nominal rulers ; where
the elevation of rank and station is seldom accompanied by the
elevation of moral character; and where the rajahs themselves
descend to the same petty tricks that are practised by their
meanest subjects. Lenity to such people is inhumanity to the
honest and deserving.

Knowing, as we do, the character of this people, the length of
time which has elapsed since the commencement of our inter-
course with them, and the number of vessels trading on the coast,
the only matter of astonishment is, that they should have es-
caped so long ! It is, doubtless, owing in part to the unceasing
vigilance of the masters of vessels trading on the coast, and partly
from an exaggerated idea of the physical superiority of the
Americans, and the apprehension of the more wealthy of losing
our trade, which to them is a matter of the utmost importance.
But their diminished resources, in consequence of the present
depreciation in the value of pepper, and their additional wants,
arising from the increased consumption of opium, have of late years
rendered many so desperate, that they are ripe for the commission

1832.]

ISLAND OP SUMATRA.

223

of any crime, from which they are not restrained by the fear of
punishment. In confirmation of this fact we have numerous
incidents before us, with one of which only we shall trouble the
reader.

Soon after the affair of the Friendship, the brig Homer, Captain
Loveitt, came to anchor off Quallah-Battoo ; and though he hap-
pened to be, from vague rumour, aware that something wrong had
occurred, he was not exactly acquainted with what it was ; and,
in consequence, went directly and confidently on shore in his
boat with two men. He had the precaution, however, to order
his men in the boat to shove off to some distance from the beach,
while he advanced to communicate with the rajahs.

It was not many minutes before he found himself a prisoner,
and surrounded by a vast number of armed Malays, determined
to despatch him. They held a solemn debate among themselves
on the policy of the measure ; the amount of which, together
with their fatal determination, was communicated to the captain
by one of the minority, in broken English. Expostulations he
knew would be fruitless, and he was about resigning himself >to
the dreadful fate which appeared inevitably to await him, when
an aged Achenese arose, and with the usual salutatory gesture,
spoke on the unpopular side of the question. His arguments in
favour of the prisoner were not appeals to their justice or humanity,
but to their self-interest. He maintained that if they laid violent
hands on the captain, the getting possession of his vessel was
still a very doubtful matter ; while, in either case, the loss of the
American trade was equally certain. Here was much to lose
and nothing to gain. This argument was deemed unanswerable,
and the captain was finally restored to liberty.

The same kind of feeling at that time pervaded the natives
along the whole coast, and the same sentiments were boldly and
hourly expressed up to the period of the Potomac’s arrival. The
Malays daily became more insolent and presuming, and without
the most incessant vigilance and wary precaution, no American’s
life was safe. Many of the pepper planters, who had become
ruined by the indulgence of their extravagant and dissipated pro-
pensities, sometimes staking a whole crop on a single cock-fight,
w'ere no better than reckless desperadoes, inciting and urging each
other to acts of piracy and murder ; while others, of more power

224

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[February,

and influence, were not only restrained by motives of policy and
self-interest, but they recollected that twelve moons had not
yet passed away, and that the big ship, with whose visit they had
been threatened, might yet come to their shores.*

Hence it appears evident, that a regular system of piracy on our
commerce with Sumatra was only prevented by the conflicting
passions of fear and cupidity on one part, and the increased cau-
tion and vigilance of shipmasters on the other. From the con-
current testimony of every person familiar with the Malay char-
acter, and who happened to be on the coast at the period alluded
to, we are fully convinced, that had not our government sent an
armed vessel to redress our grievances, or had the commander
of that vessel acted with indecision and want of energy, the
United States’ commerce on that coast would, in a very short
time, have been totally annihilated.

To what extent the commercial interests of our country were
actually affected by the piratical capture of the Friendship, we
are not prepared to say, with any degree of precision ; but official
records show that our imports from and exports to India and China,
were, for the years 1830, 1831, and 1832, as follows : —

1830,

1831,

1832,

Imports from, —

Exports to —

China

$3,878,141

$156,290

domestic produce

585,903

foreign

do.

Asia generally

94,451

56,318

domestic

do.

229,290

foreign

do.

China

3,083,205

244,790

domestic

do.

1,046,045

foreign

do.

Asia generally

77,861

48,268

domestic

do.

251,126

foreign

do.

China

5,344,907

336,162

domestic

do.

924,360

foreign

do.

Arabia

24,025

Asia generally

111,180

42,838

domestic

do.

469,489

foreign

do.

Cape of Good Hope 12,015

From the above it will be seen, that in the year eighteen hun-
dred and thirty-one, the commencement of which was distinguished
by the piratical capture of the. Friendship, mercantile confidence
was impaired ; or, from some cause or other, our imports from the
east were much reduced in amount from those of the preceding year.
But after the visit of the Potomac, and the punishment of the

* See page 226.

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

225

pirates, an event which marked the commencement of eighteen
hundred and thirty-two, our imports from the east were augmented
more than^one third, while our exports of domestic produce were
increased in the same ratio. The increase was still greater in the
year eighteen hundred and thirty-three,- up to the month of
September. To China, the exports of domestic produce were
$537,774 ; foreign produce, $895,774 ; and to Asia generally
domestic produce, $60,152; foreign, $477,042. Imports from
China, $7,541,570 ; Asia generally, $269,425.

Along the whole pepper coast, since the visit of the Potomac,
a remarkable change has taken place in the deportment of the
natives. Ever since that (to them) memorable event, they have
been far less presuming and insolent ; are guilty of fewer unjust
exactions ; acknowledge on all hands that they have received new
lights on the subject of our national character, and confess that,
contrary to their former opinion of our being “merely a nation
of traders,” they now own the superiority of our power, and sen-
sibly feel that we have both the will and the means to redress our
grievances.

The port of Muckie, as we have already stated, is a place of
considerable trade, about twenty-five miles south of Quallah-Bat-
too. Here resides a young native of some consequence and no-
toriety, both as a pilot and pepper trader, by the name of Mahom-
med Bundah. He is shrewd, intelligent, and enterprising, and is -
respected by his countrymen as second only to the rajah. He is
well acquainted on the coast, particularly at Laboan Hadjee, a
port but a few miles further north, occasionally visited by Amer-
ican traders.

Previous to the capture of the Friendship, a similar project was
in agitation, by a gang of young desperadoes at Laboan Hadjee, for
seizing an American vessel then lying at that port ; and as they
wished for a bold and active leader, they sent a message to Ma-
hommed Bundah, at Muckie, stating that they wished to see him
on business of importance. Ignorant of their intentions, the young
man repaired to Laboan Hadjee, where they let him into the secret
of their conspiracy, and solicited him to join the expedition, with
a promise of one half the booty which might accrue from the ad-
venture, in case of success.

Young Bundah resisted the temptation, as he says, on the

226

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[February,

grounds that if they were even successful, which was extremely
doubtfnl, the sum of money which would fall to his share would
be no compensation for the loss he should sustain in mercantile
reputation, together with the confidence and trade of the Amer-
icans; while the attempt, without succeeding, would be all loss
and no gain. Fie would therefore have nothing to do with it.

After the disaster of the Friendship, her commander, Captain
Endicott, told Mahommed Bundah that within the space of twelve
months from the perpetration of that piratical act, a big ship from
the United States would most assuredly visit Quallah-Battoo,- and
severely punish the aggressors. Young Bundah was seriously
struck with this solemn assurance, and expressed strong feelings
of alarm for the result. Captain Endicott therefore assured him
that no one would suffer but the guilty, as Americans never in-
jured the unoffending; and that he and his friends need be under
no apprehensions on account of their property or personal safety.
As a pledge of his sincerity, the captain gave Mahommed a letter
of introduction and recommendation to the commander of the
hostile force, whoever he might be, that should visit the coast.

Bundah was not alone in being affected by this menace of na-
tional vengeance, so solemnly predicted by Captain Endicott., It
was circulated and talked of all along the coast. Some, like
their friends in another quarter, “ believed and trembled.” Many
reckless spirits heard it with indifference ; and the great majority
ridiculed it as an impossibility.

In the mean time, “ moons waxed and waned,” time rolled on,
and the first influence of the prediction became gradually weak-
ened in the minds of all. Like the Jews of old, they began to
doubt the veracity of the prophet, and to mock at the tardiness
of justice.

Twelve months had nearly elapsed — the thirteenth moon was at
hand, and they still reposed in fancied security, continually project-
ing new acts of piracy, in the execution of which they were so often
defeated. In two days more, they would hail the anniversary of
the Friendship’s capture, which would occur on Friday, the ninth
of February, eighteen hundred and thirty-two, and all were de-
riding the idea of the threatened visitation of the “big ship.”

But on Monday the sixth, the inhabitants of Muckie were
thrown into a paroxysm of terror and alarm, by the fatal tidings

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

227

of the entire destruction of Quallah-Battoo, with an exaggerated
account of the slaughter of the Malays — that “ the big ship” had
indeed come, within two days of the specified period ! that the
arm of vengeance had fallen upon them in an hour when they
looked not for it ; and that the smouldering ruins of Quallah-
Battoo might be gazed upon as a monument of American justice.

Young Bundah was powerfully affected by this intelligence ;
but he also recollected his letter to the commanding officer, and
resolved, at all hazards, ^ to visit the big ship, and to deliver it
himself.

The frigate was lying at anchor at Soo-soo, where he detef^'
mined to visit her, and, if possible, appease the just wrath of her
commander, according to oriental usage, by the choicest presents
he could command. He accordingly freighted his canoe with
fowls, together with all such fruits of the island as he thought
would prove acceptable to the American chief. But just as he was
on the point of starting, his mother heard of his desperate inten-
tions ; and, with the amiable tenderness of a fond and anxious
parent, was so much alarmed for the safety of her only son, that
she begged him, with tears, to desist from a purpose which to her
excited imagination was so fraught with peril, if not leading to
certain death. The chiefs and principal men of the place united
their entreaties with hers, in endeavouring to dissuade the young
man from his rash enterprise, which they considered as' running
voluntarily into the tiger’s mouth. As he still persisted in his pur-
pose, the superior rajah, at the instigation of his mother, peremp^
torily forbade him to proceed.

Silenced, but not convinced, young Bundah affected to acquit
esce and conform to their wishes. He unloaded his canoe, and
professed to have abandoned his intentions. But no sooner had
night drawn a veil over his proceedings, than his ready bark was
cautiously reladen j and, accompanied with only one Malay, he
pushed his little vessel from the shore, and both laying their mus-*
cular arms to the oars, directed their course for Soo-soo.

They had no light of the moon to cheer their lonely passage,
and having now sufficient time for reflection, the young advem
turer began to feel some serious apprehensions for the effect of
his rashness. Parental authority and affection had been requited
by filial disobedience, which is almost the only crime that re-^

228 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [February,

ceives universal reprehension among these people. But believ-
ing that he had advanced too far to recede, he resolved to go on
with firmness, but with every requisite caution. He therefore
changed his plan so far as to land at Soo-soo, to reconnoitre and
make inquiries. He did so, and the next morning’s sun lighted
his little well-freighted bark on her way to the frigate.

His feelings, on thus approximating to the big ship, which had
just poured such a cataract of ruin on the pirates of Quallah-
Battoo, can more -easily be conceived than described. He him-
self describes them in a style of frank simplicity that is highly
amusing. His first idea, on becoming sensible of the vessel’s
actual magnitude, was, “ No enough piculs of pepper to load
such big ship !” On rowing alongside, he was instantly recog-
nised by Mr. Barry, second officer of the unfortunate Friendship,
who invited him on board, and pledged himself for his protection
and kind treatment.

Reassured by this unexpected welcome by an old acquaint-
ance, Mahommed was soon on the spardeck of the Potomac,
where the first thing that arrested his attention was the splendid
naval uniform of the officers ; a costume which he had never
seen before. But from the commanding deportment and golden
epaulets which distinguished one individual on the quarterdeck,
he was at no loss as to where his respects were first due. Con-
ducted by Mr., Barry, he timidly proceeded aft, and uncovering
his head, made a low and almost reverential salam to the com-
modore ; while the latter, with a smile of welcome, took him by
the hand, and assured him of his friendship and protection.
Nearly bewildered with joy at this unlooked-for reception, Ma-
hommed produced the letter of Captain Endicott, which the com-
modore perused, and again bid him welcome. The young rajah
then pointed to his canoe, and spoke of the refreshments it con-
tained ; on which the commodore ordered them to be passed on
board, and presented his visiter with twenty dollars as a compen-
sation. By this time, Mahommed was almost beside himself witli
pleasure, not unmingled with pride, as he said to himself, “ What
the rajah and my mother say to this ?”

The commodore then assigned Mahommed to the care and pro-
tection of a middy, who conducted him through various parts of
the ship, and explained every thing which his wondering inquisi-

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

229

•I

tiveness required. On descending to tlie gundeck, which was
somewhat obscured by the closed ports, he started with surprise
and alarm at the formidable appearance of what he at first mis-
took for a range of wild buffaloes, lying on each side of the ship ;
but he was soon given to understand, that these thirty-two-
pounders were far more dangerous to pirates and murderers than
all the buffaloes in the wilds of Sumatra.

After feasting his eyes until he was satisfied, Mahommed took
his leave, and soon filled with joy and admiration the bosoms of
his mother and friends at Muckie, who had all given him up for
lost. From that day forward this young man has been looked up
to with more admiration and respect, on account of this perilous
achievement, than Columbus was ever honoured with while living,
for the discovery of a new world !*

Nor was Mahommed Bundah alone in his feelings of increased
admiration and respect for the American character, after the at-
tack on Quallah-Battoo. The powerful rajah of Troumon, whose
character we have already had occasion to mention in a favour-
able light, has often been heard to express his astonishment, that
after he, with all his armed brigs, had vainly endeavoured for two
years to reduce Quallah-Battoo, the Americans, with the crew of
a single vessel, had destroyed it in two hours.

The lust of cupidity and thirst for plunder, which, after the
capture of the Friendship, spread like a contagion along the coast
from one port to another, has measurably passed away ; and even
the surviving rajahs of Quallah-Battoo now frequently express ’
their wishes to be visited by our merchant vessels for the pur-
poses of trade ; and profess that they intend hereafter so to de-
mean themselves, as never again to provoke the visit of the big
ships of war.

In another point of view, they now behold our national char-
acter in a new light. In the history of the past, the investment
and capture of a native town was always followed, as a matter
of course, by the possession and occupation on the part of the
conquerors. When Quallah-Battoo was taken by the forces under

* Such are the particulars, as often related by Bundah himself to Captain C.
Williams, to whom we are indebted for many useful facts ; for he not only traded,
but noted with an intelligent eye what he saw on the coast of Sumatra.

230

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[February,

Commodore Downes, not only its inhabitants, but every one else
in the neighbourhood, supposed that the Americans intended to
establish themselves at that place, and erect fortifications' for its
defence. They are now beginning to learn the important lesson,
that conquest forms no part of our national policy ; and the good
effects of this lesson are already strikingly apparent.

“ For Columbia never fights
For conquest or for plunder ;

Nothing but insulted rights
Can vrake her martial thunder.”

Woodworth.

But the work has only been fairly commenced — much still re-
mains to be accomplished. At intervals, but not too remote from
each other, our armed vessels should visit this coast. A sloop-
of war and a schooner would be amply sufficient, if conducted
by a judicious commander. They should arrive on the coast in
March, and remain until October. Every pepper port should be
visited, and conferences should be held with all the principal ra-
jahs, explaining to them the nature of our commerce, and the
principles on which we always conduct our trade ; impressing on
them the necessity of acting with justice, and of restraining their
dependants from acts of outrage. It should be particularly and
emphatically represented to them, that an awful responsibility
rests upon those in authority for any act of piracy that may
be hereafter committed on the coast ; and that an adequate pun-
ishment will assuredly tread , close upon the heels of the of-
fenders.

The officers of our vessel, while engaged in this service, might
also devote a share of their tim.e and attention in making additional
surveys on the coast ; while much useful information in other de-
partments of knowledge might be collected,. Something might
thus be done towards removing the reproach, that we have con-
tributed nothing to improve the hydrography of the Indian Seas.
In the event of a war, to which contingency, in common with
other nations, our country is ever liable, we shall feel the want
of a more perfect knowledge of those remote places to which our
commerce is extended.

As it respects climate at the pepper ports on the west coast of
Sumatra, we have an interesting fact before us : that of one hun-

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

231

dred and fifty seamen employed in that trade during the year
eighteen hundred and thirty, in ten vessels, very much exposed as
they usually are on the coast, only one died in the space of four
months ; and his disease was not malignant in its character. In
selecting an anchorage, a close harbour should be avoided. Rigas
Bay should not be entered unless from necessity. As a general
rule, it would be imprudent to anchor where the breezes blow
over low land, and water from the wells is generally brackish and
unwholesome. That article, however, can be procured, of an ex-
cellent quality, from streams which flow from the mountains.

" Again we repeat, that the result of the most patient inquiry, from
sources which we believe could not lead us astray, has left no
doubt on our mind, that our interests on the coast of Sumatra have
been placed on a footing of security hitherto unknown. The
policy which directed the Potomac to that coast, to be lasting in
its effects, must be followed up at all hazards and at any expense ;
though there exists no reason why either the one or the other
should be formidable.

In every port of India to which our commerce has extended,
our vessels of war should occasionally make their appearance ^
for it is always better by a wise policy and timely foresight to
prevent the effusion of blood, than to be under the painful neces-
sity of avenging it !

Let our intelligent shipmasters, supercargoes, and officers,
whose adventurous spirits lead them to visit the ports of semi-
barbarians, reflect that they too have an important part to perform.
They should never forget that they are American citizens ; and
in those remote situations, often the only representatives of our
national character. Let them study lo elevate that character in
the estimation of the natives by an honourable intercourse, a just
and fair competition in trade. For while our government shall
continue ever vigilant and ready to protect its citizens in their
lawful trade, and to avenge their wrongs at the most distant points
of the globe, however difficult and hazardous to approach by
heavy-armed vessels, considerations of honour, justice, and hu-
manity require that we should always be in the right.

An evil still exists on the pepper coast of Sumatra which re-
quires correction, while we confess ourselves at a loss to propose

232

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[Februar}*),

a proper remedy. We allude to the want of a regular standard
of weights. The Malay picul is one hundred and thirty-three and
a third pounds ; but so far is this from prevailing in all the ports,
that the standard of weight is as much a matter to be regulated
by contract, as the price of the pepper itself. The consequence
must be obvious ; the Malay will sand or wet his pepper, and the
trader will provide against loss by endeavouring to procure greater
weight. The trader in a neighbouring port, fearing that his com-
petitor will get better measure' than himself, and thus enter the
home market to better advantage, will exert himself in his con-
tract, so as to guard against such a contingency. While this
state of things exists, difficulties will occasionally occur; and
though not of great importance, they are still annoying and per-
plexing, without bringing profit or advantage to any one.

We have conversed with no one interested in this subject, who
does not feel anxious that this difficulty should be removed by
the establishment of some standard ; and it can make but little
difference what that standard is, so that it be uniform. By con-
cert of action, in one season the difficulty might be settled. This
concert, however, is hard to bring about ; for while all feel the
necessity, who shall begin the reform 1

There can be no impropriety in having this question decided
and put to rest by government. An armed vessel, visiting the
coast, might be provided with a standard of one hundred and
thirty-three and one third pounds weight, to be left with the rajahs
of the principal ports, with a plain explanation of its object, and
every cause for cavil or dispute would be immediately removed.
We. offer this as a suggestion, in the adoption of which our mer-
chants and traders would, we have no doubt, most cheerfully
acquiesce.

But we have lingered long — perhaps the reader may think too
long— -upon the Island of Sumatra. If there be any of this
opinion, we beg them to reflect that forty years — a large portion
of our national existence — have now passed away since the com-
mencement of our trade on that coast ; that as early as eighteen
hundred and three, thirty vessels, small ones it is true, were in
the trade ; that it has been continued with varied success and oc-
casional interruptions to the present time ; employing from six

1832.]

ISLAND OF SUMATRA.

233

hundred to twelve hundred thousand dollars capital annually ;
that the direct and circuitous trade springing from this island, has
formed no inconsiderable item of our commercial prosperity;
that if the aggregate of the whole trade could be ascertained, it
would probably not fall far, if any, short of a sum equal to the
entire capital of the Bank of the United States ; and yet, only a
short time since, when it became necessary to despatch an armed
vessel to that point, a chart of the coast was not to be found in
the possession of our government ! And though the inquiry was
not actually to be made, in what part of the world Sumatra was
located, yet almost every thing that was known of it beyond the
circle of those who were engaged in the trade, will be found in
the Appendix marked A. and B.

This is not the only point to which these remarks might be
applied ; for many others could be named, were it our present
purpose to do so. The genius of our people is strongly and de-
cidedly imbued with the spirit of maritime adventure ; and it is
hoped, for the honour of our country and the American name,
that the time has at length come, when the knowledge and pro-
tection of our government shall at least keep pace with, if not
lead in, the enterprise of its citizens.

, Previous to the Potomac, no public vessel had visited India
and China for the special protection of our commerce, since the
Congress frigate in eighteen hundred and twenty- two ; and none
had passed through these seas since, except the Vincennes, on
her return from the Pacific in eighteen hundred and thirty. Fol-
lowing in the track of the Potomac, the Peacock and Boxer
have both been in the east, and through a commercial agent, who
went in the Peacock, we have understood that some new chan-
nels of trade have been opened, and obstructions in old ones
removed. There is still room for further action ; while further
comment is reserved for another place.

An ample supply of wood and water, and fresh provisions
from Soo-soo, had now been taken on board ; and the rajahs of
the neighbourhood continued to pay their visits to the commo-
dore, or to send their deputations with professions of peace, and
the promise of their future good deportment towards the Ameri-
cans. It might have been well, had time permitted further con-

234

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[February,

ference ; but that was impossible. Other places in the east were
to be visited, and the wide Pacific was to be crossed, ere the
Potomac could reach the place of her original destination ; so
that on the morning of the eighteenth of February, the word was
given to get under way.

“ The anchor npheaves, the sails nnfarl,

The pennons of silk in the breezes curl ;

And the crest of the billows before her flung.”

TWENTY-SECOND OF FEBRUARY.

235

CHAPTER XIV.

Passage to the Strait of Sunda — Centennial Anniversary of Washington’s Birthday
— Patriotic Reflections — Enter the Strait — Prince’s Island — Java Head — Flat
Point — Keyser’s Bay — Lampoon Bay — Rajah Bassa Peak — Hog Point — Mew
Bay and Island — Pepper Bay — Anger Roads and village — Cap and Button —
Bantam, or St. Nicholas’ Point — Shores of Bantam — Beautiful Prospect — Bantam
Hill, bay, town, and villages — TrafSc with the natives — Perilous adventure of
the Commodore — The Thousand Islands — Burial of the dead — The Potomac
■anchors in Batavia Roads — Beacons in the Strait of Sunda.

As Stated at the conclusion of the preceding chapter, the Poto-
mac left the coast of Sumatra on Saturday, the eighteenth day of
February, eighteen hundred and thirty-two, and for four days after-
ward was constantly tantalized with light and variable winds. Al-
though at considerable distance from land, on the morning of
Wednesday, the twenty-second, and within the usual range of the
regular monsoon, the latter was found to be so much affected by
the influence of alternate land and seabreezes, that the frigate
was virtually deprived of the benefit of both. Hence, she was
almost constantly becalmed, and the slightest breeze was hailed
as a welcome visiter — all hands running on deck to meet it.

Besides, this day, the twenty-second of February, eighteen
hundred and thirty-two, was the centennial anniversary of the
birth of Washington ! How many manly and patriotic hearts on
board that gallant ship, were throbbing with fervid emotion, re-
sponsive to the reflections which naturally suggested themselves !
— “ What a glorious day is this, in our own country, where it is
consecrated by patriotisrh, and hallowed by the gratitude of millions
of independent freemen ! What multitudes are now met together,
indulging in pleasing recollections of the past, and in fond anticipa-
tions of the future ! A century ! One hundred years ! What a little
point in the annals of time ! — what a small space in the age of a
nation ! What was our country, and what were we as a people one
hundred years ago ! What changes — what eventful vicissitudes
have we passed through ! If true to ourselves, what high des-
tinies await us !

236

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[March,

“ ‘ 0 Washington ! dearest and best of our race,

Thy deeds through the night-cloud of ages shall lighten ;

Thy name on his banner the soldier shall trace,

To hallow his death, or his triumph to brighten.’ ” — Speague.

“ Insulated and distant as we are from our homes and the soul-
exciting ceremonies and festivities of the day , — with nearly the
whole diameter of the globe between us — still we exult in the
proud name and privileges of American citizens, and feel that the
national tie which binds us to that beloved region, strengthens by
distance. Though antipodes to those of our joyful countrymen
who are now united in celebrating the birthday of Washington,
we are with them in heart, and warmly embrace them with the
arms of affection, gratitude, and patriotism. We pledge them in
the deep musings of the silent heart ; and between the change of
watch, and the pressure of a tropical sun, we honour the day as
well as our nautical duties will permit.”

Such doubtless were the unexpressed feelings of many on this
interesting occasion ; neither were the brave tars forgotten, on
whose valour and steadiness the efficacy and glory of our navy
depend. They were treated by the commodore to an extra ex-
hilarating draught ; or, in language more technically correct, they
were all called to “ splice the main brace.”

But they were recalled from the pleasing visions of their distant
homes and national festivities, by the sadder duties incidental to
their present situation. The sick-list had begun to swell on
board the Potomac, and now comprised more invalids than it had
at any former period since she left the United States. Some of
these new cases were dysentery, — that ruthless scourge of sea-
men in the East Indies, and brought on, perhaps, in this instance,
by change of diet, and drinking the river-water of Sumatra ; but
all things considered, the ship’s crew might even then be termed
very healthy.

From the last-mentioned date until the first of March, the
Potomac stood along the outer channel, from the north, almost
constantly beset by squalls, particularly for the last two or three
days. But even these changes were acceptable, as they cooled
the air, and relieved the redundant pulse and throbbing temple.
On Thursday, the first of March, the wind was again fresh and
steady, so that the ship was once more throwing the spray and

1832.]

STRAIT OP SUNDA.

237

curling the water under her bows, in the fine style of ten knots
an hour. In the evening, land was again announced from aloft,
which proved to be the Island of Engano, the most southerly of
the large islands on the west side of Sumatra. We lay to
during the night with the maintopsail to the mast. On the follow-
ing morning we again made sail, and stood for the Strait of Sunda,
which, has two channels leading into it from the northward : —
viz., the small channel between the west end of Java and Prince’s
Island, and the great channel to the north of this island, between
it and the south coast of Sumatra.

The channel between Prince’s Island and Java Head is about
four miles wide. This island, which is called by the natives
Pulo Poutaugli, is the largest of any at the mouth of the strait,
and yet not more than five leagues in extent, lying in latitude 6°
30' south, and longitude 105° 10' east. Near its centre are some
hills of moderate elevation, but near the shores the land is low,
particularly on the west side, fronting the open sea. The Dutch
were formerly in the habit of traversing this narrow channel, con-
sidering it the safer passage of the two. Many ships continue to
do the same, although the other and wider channel between Prince’s
Island and Crockatoa is most generally frequented.

At eight o’clock on the morning of Friday, the second of
March, Java Head was in sight ; but did not present, as was ex-
pected, the appearance of a high bluff or promontory, although
elevated land was seen over it, which may have been often taken for
Java Head itself. A little to the eastward of it the land is also
high, with steep cliffs facing the sea.

Java Head lies in latitude 6° 48' south, and longitude 105° 11' east,
and 1° 41' west from the city of Batavia. The coast of Sumatra,
in a soft blue mist, was visible on the west, and the strait was ex-
panding directly ahead, to the northeast. At this moment a wreck
was reported, which brought all hands on deck. The unfortunate
stranger could be distinctly seen lying on her beam ends, with
stump-topmasts extending out horizontally. Even the suffering
survivers could be distinctly discerned clinging to the helmless
hull, and the sympathies of all were quite awakened, as the Poto-
mac’s course was altered to bear down upon it. This amiable
excitement, however, was but of short duration ; as, on nearing
the object of solicitude, it proved to be the trunk of a large pal-

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

238

[Marcfe,

metto-tree, whicli had loomed so largely that all were astonished
at the deception.

A most beautiful and perfectly-defined circle appeared round
the sun this morning, of a dark cloudy colour, with its edges
tinged with the brightest yellow and pink. Some say that this
phenomenon is indicative of a gale. Such an appearance around
the moon, we believe, is always considered, both by seamen and
landsmen, as the precursor or premonitory symptom of an im-
pending storm. Thus Falconer, in his beautiful nautical poem
of the Shipwreck — (a dreadful disaster, in which the poet himself-
was a participator and one of the few survivers) — describes the^
phenomenon alluded to in the following lines : —

“ The waning moon, behind a watery shroud,

Pale glimmered o’er the long protracted cloud J
A mighty ring around her silver throne,

With parting meteors cross’d, portentous shone ;

This in the troubled sky full oft prevails.

Oft deemed a signal of tempestuous gales.”

By noon. Prince’s Island was close aboard, and the Island of
Crockatoa began faintly to pencil its outlines on the distant
horizon. About four P. M., the wind hauled aft, and directly into
the strait. The frigate was now standing up the passage, before
the wind, with yards across, and the breeze fresh, moving at the
rate of twelve knots, all steering sails set, and the water foaming
and curling around her bows. The ship’s band was playing in a
lively and animating style. Every officer and man was at his
post on deck, land was in view on every side, comprising some
of the most picturesque landscapes in nature. On the left, the
great Island of Sumatra was- expanding her arms as if to meet the
similar advances of her neighbour Java, while a numerous progeny
of lovely little islands were smiling between them — the clouds
above, at the same time, arched with several rainbows, the effect
of different squalls. In one word, the coup-d^ceil of ihe picture
was beautiful beyond description ; and though perhaps not equal
in grandeur and sublimity to the mountain scenery which sur-
rounds and enriches the view at Rio Janeiro, yet in softness,
gayety, and mellowness of appearance, it is not inferior to that
or any other in the world.

Our frigate had now fairly entered this highly interesting pas-

1832.]

STRAIT OF SUNDA,

239

sage, called the Strait of Sunda, which is formed by the near
approximation of Java to Sumatra, the western extremity of the
one approaching to within a few leagues of the southeastern ex-
tremity of the other. These two extensive, but comparatively
narrow islands, were probably once united at the point where this
very passage now exists ; and this supposition is strengthened by
the fact, that the channel between them is speckled with numer-
ous little islands of various dimensions. This strait is betweed
fifty and sixty miles in length, and varying from twenty to four-
teen in breadth. The features of the two grand islands are
presented to the spectator while passing between them, and dis-
tinguished by the peculiar luxuriance, softness, and amenity of
their native teints of verdure. On both these great islands, and
particularly on Sumatra, which forms the western boundary of
the strait, all is vegetation and verdure — all repose — all silent,
monotonous, .and unvarying ; there is no particular point for the
eye to rest on. Like the new and virgin isles of the west, when
first discovered by Columbus, the prospect presents one continued
extent of soft and luxuriant green — communicating refreshment
to the eye, but conveying no cheering sentiment to the heart.
Such to the first man might have been the aspect of the earth
prior to the formation of his helpmate. It is associated with such
a cheerless idea of solitude, of loneliness, and of the total ab-
sence of social affections and intercourse, that one might well
exclaim with the poet —

* * * * Woman — oh woman ! whose form and whose soul,

Are the spell and the light of each path we pursue ;

Whether sunned in the tropic, or chilled at the pole,

If woman be there, there is happiness too.”

On directing the eye to the east side of the strait, the coast of
Java (particularly the shore of Bantam) presents a different as-
pect. The forests have been broken in upon by the arts of civili-
zation, and the intermediate patches of cleared ground exhibit
evident testimony of the progress of agriculture, imparting variety
and beauty to the prospect, and teaching the wanderer to feel that
civilized beings are near him, ready to participate with him in
those social enjoyments, debarred from which every place is a
desert.

The wind had slackened some, but still our well-trimmed vessel

'<‘40 VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC. [March,

moved on at the rate of eight knots, and every one expected to
reach Lampoon Bay, which is situated on the Sumatra side of the
strait, on the following day. At ten o’clock, P. M., however, the
wind had become so light that it was necessary to come to anchor,
which was done in sixty-two fathoms of water, and about five
miles distant from the Island of Crockatoa. At daylight the next
morning, Saturday, March the third, our ship was again got under
way, and as the wind was dead ahead from, the northeast, the
whole day was employed in beating up towards Lampoon Bay.
As this process afforded an excellent opportunity for examining
both sides of the strait, we shall here give a short description of
that interesting avenue, which leads from the Indian Ocean into
the China Sea.

The southwesternmost extremity of Sumatra, which bounds
the west entrance to the Strait of Sunda on that side, is called
Flat Point, and is in latitude 104“ 40' east, distant about three
leagues southeast from Fortune Island. Flat Point is a long
neck of land, jutting out and projecting several leagues from the
mainland of Sumatra, and forming the southwest side of Key-
ser’s Bay. The south part of this neck of land is low and woody,
and its extreme point is sometimes called Tanjong Chinna.
Vessels have anchored on the east side of this point in seventeen
fathoms, where they were sheltered from northwest winds, and
procured a supply of water.

On proceeding further up the strait, the coast of Sumatra is
found to be indented by two large bays ; one of which is Keyser’s,
just mentioned, and the other, further north. Lampoon Bay,
There are also, along this side of the strait, several islands and
rocks of various dimensions. Keyser’s Bay projects into the-
land about five leagues, in a northwesterly direction, and is about
three leagues wide, having water of various depths, from fifty to
one hundred fathoms, inside along the western shore, and at the
upper part, where the anchorage is good, over a muddy bottom.
The village of Borne stands close to the northwest end of the
bay, where there are some shoal rivulets. The shores are gen-
erally low, and the lands marshy near the sea ; but in some places
there are pepper plantations. A little inland from the northwest
angle of the bay, rises a high conical mountain, called Samanca,
or Semanco Peak, also Keyser’s Peak, There are other moun-

1832.]

STRAIT OF SUNDA.

241

tains eastward, between this peak and Lampoon Bay, the most
elevated of which is called Lampoon Peak. These mountains
can be seen a great way at sea in clear weather, by vessels run-
ning for the Strait of Sunda.

In the middle of the entrance to Keyser’s Bay is Tubooan, or
Keyser’s Island, which is high, bold, and safe to approach, the
channel on either side being spacious and clear of danger ; but
the water is deep, and the bottom rocky in some places. On the
northeast side of the island, there is anchorage in fifteen or six-
teen fathoms, sandy bottom, about a mile from the shore. Near
the east point there is a salt water creek, six feet deep at the
entrance, with fresh water at the head, where a supply may be
procured. There are some pepper plantations on the island ; and
at the east end are tall trees, fit for masts. There is an excellent
harbour, with five, six, and seven fathoms water in it near the east
point of Keyser’s Bay, which may be known by some islets close
to the entrance, one of them resembling a sugarloaf.

Lampoon Bay, which the Potomac was now endeavouring to
reach, is further up the strait, on the same coast, about thirty
miles from Flat Point and Keyser’s Bay. It is formed between
Tanjong Tekoos on its west, and Rajah Bassa on its east side ;
and is not less than twenty miles wide at its entrance, and ex-
tends northward into the land nearly the same distance. From
Tanjong Tekoos, the west point of the bay, a chain of islands
extends a considerable way to the eastward, having channels be-
tween some of them, and also between them and the point, with
soundings from forty to twenty fathoms. Other islands line the
western shore of the bay inside, between which and the main
there are several good roads or places of shelter, formed by the
adjoining islands and shoals, with small villages opposite to them
on the main.

The outermost and largest island near the entrance of tlie bay,
is called Pulo Lagoondy, and is separated from Tanjong Tekoos
by a channel about half or three fourths of a mile wide, with
thirty or forty fathoms water in it, and no soundings outside in
the entrance, which seems to render it rather intricate for large
ships, as it is formed by high land, liable to produce eddy winds,
accompanied at times by strong currents. But with a leading land-
breeze in the morning, a ship may run out through it with safety.

242

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[March,

On the north side of Pulo Lagoondy is a small bay called
Naanga Harbour, with the small island of Pulo Patappan in the
middle of its entrance, on the east side of which is the best pas-
sage into the harbour, by borrowing near the shore of Pulo La-
goondy. The depths are here from fifteen to ten fathoms, and
inside the harbour from twelve to seven fathoms, where a ship
may moor secure from all winds, and careen, if necessary.

Rajah Bassa Road, situated directly under the highland called
Refreshment Head, which forms the east side of Lampoon Bay,
is an excellent place for procuring good water with facility ; to-
gether with refreshments, such as turtle, fowls, buffaloes, oranges,
plantains, &c. But the purchaser must always be on his guard
against treachery. Large vessels ought not to anchor in less
than ten fathoms ; for although the soundings decrease regularly
over a soft bottom to six or seven fathoms in general, yet the
shore is fronted by a rocky bank, which projects out to five or sis
fathoms in some places,, and is also quite steep.

Rajah Bassa Peak, also called Ejow Peak, is about one thou-
sand six hundred feet in height. The anchorage of the road op-
posite is in latitude 5° 50' south, and it is about seven miles east
of Crockatoa Peak, or in longitude 105° 32' east. The water
deepens to twenty-five and twenty-seven fathoms towards the
Three Brothers, three isles which are situated about four miles
west-by-north from Cocoanut Point, which is the south extremity
of Rajah Bassa Road. There is a depth of eighteen fathoms in
the gut between the middle and south Brothers. In coming from
the eastward, these three islands appear as one, and do not begin
to open until the vessel approaches Rajah Bassa Road. The
depths in crossing Lampoon Bay to Pulo Lagoondy are from
thirteen to nineteen fathoms, regular soundings and good an-
chorage.

Cocoanut Point is low, overhung by cocoanut-trees, from
whence the coast tends easterly, forming a concavity between it
and Hog Point. The land is rather low near the latter, but rises
gradually to an elevated peak, about a league eastward of Cocoa-
nut Point.

The northeastern boundary of the Sunda Strait, on the Suma-
tra side, is a sharp projection of land, called Tanjong Toca, or
Hog Point, which is situated about four leagues to the southeast

1832.] STRAIT OF SUNDA. 243

of Lampoon Bay, in latitude 5° 54' south, longitude 105° 43' 30"
east, or r 8' 30" west from Batavia, by chronometer. This point
forms the southeast extremity of Sumatra, and here is the nar-
rowest part of the strait, it being only fourteeen miles across
to Java.

There is a rock six or seven feet above water, two miles north-
west from Hog Point, called Collier’s Rock, being about fifty feet
in circuit, and fifty distant from it lies a coral rock under water.
These two dangers are about a mile distant from the shore, with
fifty or fifty-five fathoms close to them on the outside. There is
another rock above water bearing south from Hog Point, distant
two thirds of a mile, with sixty-five or seventy fathoms outside
of it, and deep water between it and the point, which is very bold,
and surrounded by deep water.

Fronting the Sumatran shore to the northeast of Hog Point, are
Zutphen Islands, which are sometimes called Hog Islands, and
sometimes the Hounds. Between them and the main are several
shoals and islets, with anchorage among them in some places.
The largest of these islands, and part of the coast adjacent, are
high land, mostly covered with wood ; to the southward they are
very steep, having from forty to fifty fathoms of water very near
them, where they ought not to be closely approached ; but towards
the northernmost of the group there are from twenty-three to thirty
fathoms, and here ships might occasionally anchor, particularly
olf the north end of this island, which lies in latitude 5° 50'
south. A river empties its waters near this place, and about a
mile and. a half from its mouth stands a village called Tangrea,
with rice-fields around it, cattle, poultry, and plenty of cocoanuts.
But the natives are not to be trusted.

Having thus taken a brief look at the Sumatran shore on the
northwest side of the Strait of Sunda, we now beg the reader to
accompany us “ on the other tack,” and take a peep at the Java
coast, which lines the southeast side of the same strait.

We have already stated that there are two channels to enter the
Strait of Sunda from the Indian Ocean, one between Java Head
and Prince’s Island, and the other outside of Prince’s Island, the
latter being the one selected by the Potomac. The channel between
this island and the shores of Java is about four miles broad. It
is called Prince’s Strait, and sometimes the Behouden, or Safe Pas-

Q 2

244

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[March,

sage of the Dutch. "It is not so much frequented as the other,
but is always adopted if a ship intends to water at Mew Bay, which
is more convenient for that purpose than Prince’s Island.

Java Head, which bounds the southwestern entrance to the
Strait of Sunda on the Java side, is a projection of land, not
pointed, but about twelve mules wide at its extremity. It is
generally high and steep, projecting a little in the middle.

About six miles north of Java Head is a projection of land
knowm by the name of “ First Point of Java,” otherwise called
Taujong Jungkulan; and this is the south point of the entrance
of Prince’s Strait. It is easily known by a remarkable rock off
it, called the Friar, which lies nearly southeast-by-south, about
five miles from the Carpenters, which bound the other side of
Prince’s Strait. The First Point is in latitude 6° 44' south, about
two leagues north of the Head, and the coast between them,
which forms a bight, is fronted by high rocks, in some places
stretching out about a mile. On these rocks, as also on the Friar
and Carpenters, the sea beats high during westerly winds or in
bad weather. Ships proceeding through Prince’s Strait during
the northwest monsoon, should keep near to Prince’s Island and
the Carpenters, particularly in working out against westerly
winds ; for a current will then generally be found setting out in
their favour. During the other monsoon, when winds prevail
from the southeast and south, vessels ought to keep nearest to the
Java shore and the Friar; which rock may be approached within
one or two cables’ length.

About a league northeast of First Point is Mew Island, situ-
ated in a bay of the same name. This island, which is also some-
times called Cantos, lies in latitude 6“ 43' south, and is small and
hilly, abounding with wood. Between it and First Point there is an
islet near the Java shore, and regular soundings over a sandy
bottom are found to stretch along the side of Prince’s Strait.
There is a safe but narrow channel between Mew Island and
Java, with various soundings from five to eight and ten fathoms,
in mid-channel, over a sandy bottom, where a ship may lie land-
locked, sheltered from all winds.

Second Point, or Tanjong Along-along, is in about latitude 6°
36' south, and three leagues to the northeast of Mew Island. It
may be approached to fifteen or sixteen fathoms, about one and a

1832.]

STRAIT OF SUNDA..

245

half or^ two miles distant. On the east side of the point lies
Welcome Bay, extending a great way into the land, and containing
several islets and shoals, particularly on the west side. The
eastern side is more clear, with good shelter in the southeast mon-
soon ; but in the westerly monsoon this bay ought to be avoided.

Third Point, or Tanjong Lussong, is in latitude 6° 27' south,
separating Welcome Bay from Pepper Bay, the latter being situ-
ated on the east side of this point, and it bears nearly northeast-
by-east-half-east, five or six leagues from Second Point. To the
eastward of the point there is an islet inside of Pepper Bay, with a
shoal to the northwest, rendering the approach to it dangerous,
which is the case throughout Pepper Bay, the water being generally
shoal. When a ship is abreast of Third Point, about a league
distant, a small island is seen at the northeast part of Pepper
Bay, bearing about east-by-north, but will then be confounded
with the contiguous coast. If intending to touch there, it will be
prudent to steer across the bay, keeping the island on the star-
board bow, and not borrow towards the shoal water near the Java
shore. This little island is called Seriguy, or Paulo Papapale.

Fourth Point, or Tanjong Cicorang, is situated about four and a
half leagues north-by-east from Seriguy. This point is low to sea-
ward ; and most of the coast between it and Welcome Bay is
low, interspersed with hills in some places, and abounding with
cocoanuts. On coasting along between Seriguy and Fourth
P oint, a ship should keep a league or more from the shore, in
soundings from twenty to thirty fathoms, in order that she may
be enabled to come to anchor, if calms and contrary currents
should render it necessary. If a ship, having entered Prince’s
Strait, be abreast of Second Point, she ought to steer a direct
course for Fourth Point, bearing nearly northeast from the former,
distant about thirteen leagues ; or, having entered by the great
channel to the north of Prince’s Island, she should run for the
same point if she intend to stop at Anger Road, or is bound to
Batavia, — for it will be prudent to keep near the Java coast during
the monthly monsoon, and to pass between it and Thwart-the-
Way, whether bound to Batavia or Banca Strait. From Second
Point to Fourth Point there is generally good ground for anchor-
ing, occasionally in eighteen to twenty fathoms.

Anger, or Angere Village, is in latitude 6“ 3' 30" south, longitude

246

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[March,

105° 54' east, about two leagues eastward of Fourth Point. It is not
easily perceived in coming from the westward, being situated in a
bay where the houses or huts are scattered among the cocoanut-trees,
and nearly obscured by them, and by an elevated chain of inland
hills. The most easterly of these is a sharp-peaked hill, called
Anger Peak, directly over the village. Ships frequently touch at
this place in the southerly monsoon, to procure refreshments ;
but the road is not considered safe or convenient in the opposite
season, for it is ‘then dangerous landing, on account of the high
surf. Here may be procured buffaloes, hogs, poultry, vegetables,
and sometimes turtle. The common anchorage is in Anger Road,
in from nine to fourteen fathoms, abreast of the village, and water
may be had by employing boats for that purpose.

John Barrow, Esq., who was here with the English embassy to
Cochin China in February, 1793, very warmly recommends
this place, in preference to any other in the strait, for procuring
water and refreshments. After mentioning the low prices at
whieh they procured fowls, capons, and buffaloes, he adds — “ The
natives usually come off in their canoes, to ships which may
anchor here, with plentiful supplies of the fruits peculiar to the
island, and other vegetables that may be in season. The air is
dry and pleasant ; and a cool refreshing breeze descends from the
high lands of Java, spreading its fragrance to a distance much
beyond the anchorage of the ships. Yet because this side of the
strait is occasionally subject to calms, which may sometimes have
caused the delay of two or three days at the utmost, few of the
outward-bound China ships touch at Anjerie, preferring to take
in a fresh supply of wood and water at North Island, or rather on
the Sumatra shore opposite to this island, where only wood and
water are procurable, and where numbers of seamen yearly fall
a sacrifice, either to Malay treachery, from the plunderers who are
always lurking among the forests on this part of the coast, or to
the unhealthiness of the place, occasioned by the heavy nightly
fogs that hang over this low marshy shore, and the noxious vapours
arising from the putrefactive fermentation of vegetable matter;
an operation which, in this region of the world, is incessantly
carrying on.” These observations were made many years ago ;
and whether they be applicable now, we are not prepared to
say, as the Potomac did not touch on either side to procure

1832.J

STRAIT OP SUNDA.

247

refreshments. We hope, however, to be excused for making
another short extract from this close observer and elegant writer.

“ Of the many little islands scattered over the surface of the
strait we visited only two, that are situated at. no great distance
from the shore of Java. They are known to seamen by the
names of the Cap and the Button. In a deep cavern, worked by
the sea into the side of the former, we disturbed such a multitude
of bats and swallows, that we were literally driven back by the
successive volleys in which they assailed us. The bats, in par-
ticular, were excessively troublesome, by flying entirely at ran-
dom, owing to their imperfect- vision on encountering the light at
the mouth of the cave. The swallows were of that species which,
in the Sy sterna Naturae, is called esculenta, from the abundant use
made of their nests in Chinese cookery. We found some thou-
sands of these nests attached to the sides of the cavern, some
containing young birds, and others eggs. The nests were of an
oval shape, slightly joined to each other at the extremities of the
longest diameter. Their external coating appeared to be the
filaments of some species of seaweed, cemented together by a
viscous substance, which was collected probably on the seashore ;
stripped of this coating, they were about the eighth of an inch in
thickness, had much the appearance of a piece of hard glue,
semi-transparent, and evidently composed of the same kind of
gelatinous matter which kept together the interior fibres, and
with which the stones and marine plants on the shores of the
island were covered. On the Button Island we shot an inguana,
which measured four feet in length, and the flesh of which, when
roasted, was as white and delicate as that of a chicken.”

Cap and Button Islands are about six miles from each other.
The first is called by the Malays Pulo Oolar, or Snake Island,
which bears north-northeast from Anger village, distant about
four or five miles, and nearly east-southeast from the south part
of Thwart- the -Way, between which and the Cap is the channel,
having various depths of water, from twenty to fifty fathoms, over
an uneven and generally rocky bottom. The Button, or Great
Cap, as it is sometimes called, is situated in latitude 5° 53' south,
and two leagues north from the Small Cap, of similar appear-
ance, but larger and higher, steep, and covered with small trees.

Seven miles east-by-north from the Button is Bantam, or St

248

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[Marchj^

Nicholas’s Point, in latitude 5“ 52' south, longitude 106° 2' east, or
fifty miles west from Batavia by chronometer. It is a high, bold
headland, and on each side of it, close to the shore, are some
small islands. The soundings of this part of the coast are gen-
erally regular, and ships may anchor in some places in twenty
fathoms, clay or sand, about two or three miles from the point.
The coast is high between St. Nicholas or Bantam Point, with
indifferent anchorage in the channel, until the latter is approached.
This point is the northern boundary of the Strait of Sunda.

On Saturday, the third of March, as before mentioned, the
Potomac was beating up the strait, against a head wind and op-
posing current. She passed Crockatoa Island on its eastern side,
enjoying a beautiful prospect of the Java shore. This island,
which is about six or seven miles in length, and four or five in
breadth, 'extending nearly northwest and southeast, is elevated
and imposing in its appearance, steep on the south side, but
sloping gradually to the water’s edge on the north and western
sides. Although every one had been enraptured with the scenery
on the preceding day, all were still more delighted with the pros-
pect which presented itself on Saturday evening, about sunset,
which was far more soft, rich, and lovely, than any which had yet
been seen in these waters. The atmosphere was now clear and
transparent, while numerous high, various, and fancifully-shaped
peaks, tinged by the setting sun, whose parting beams were fading
away on the richest vegetation, displayed a landscape not to be
equalled by the pencil of art.

A new-invented apparatus was this day completed and put in
successful operation, for pumping the foul air from the hold of
the ship. It is a very ingenious contrivance of Lieutenant B.
Wilson, and perfectly answers the purpose for which it was in-
tended. But little headway was made by the Potomac this day,
owing to the lightness of the wind, and an opposing current, which
set about west by south, at the rate of two miles an hour ; and
the frigate was again compelled to come to anchor. The tides
in this strait seemed to be so much influenced by the wind as to
resemble currents.

The whole of the following day, which was Sunday, the fourth,
was exhausted in a vain attempt to beat up to the frigate’s an-
chorage in Lampoon Bay. Not being able, however, to stem the

1832.]

STRAIT OF SUNDA.

249

current with a light northeast wind, she at last came to an anchor
in a bight formed by a low flat island and Crockatoa, about a
league distant from them.

The frigate did not leave her anchorage on Monday, the fifth,
as there was no prospect of making any headway. A boat was
lowered, however, and several officers went to try their luck in
fishing, but were not rewarded with any very flattering success.
They afterward attempted to land, but found it very difficult, as
the whole island was surrounded by a coral rock. They at length
reached the shore on a small sandy beach, where they procured
some shells ; but the jungle was so thick that they could not
penetrate twenty yards from the water’s edge. Birds of ex-
quisitely rich plumage were seen in great numbers ; and on firing
a gun, the growling of tigers was thought to be heard but a short
distance from the party. The weather was pleasant on the
frigate’s deck, while over the shores the clouds hung low, and the
rain fell in copious showers.

The wind blowing fresh and fair on Tuesday morning, March
the sixth, the Potomac once more weighed anchor, and “ spread-
ing her bellying canvass” to its impulse, stood to the northeast,
passing Lampoon Bay at about ten o’clock, with a fine leading
breeze, which came up the strait, and wafted her onward at the
rate of nine miles per hour. She soon came up with and passed
Thwart-the-Way, an island which the Malays callPulo Renyang,
lying in the nearest part of the strait, but somewhat nearer to
Hog Point on its western side than fo the Java shore. This
island is moderately elevated, and. about four miles in extent.
Not far from this island, near the Java shore, are the Cap and
Button before mentioned.

As the frigate moved gracefully along the shores of Bantam,
the western aspect of Java, as far as the eye could reach, opened
on the view with a richness beyond conception, the land stretch-
ing in the distance in alternate hills and valleys, clothed with
luxuriant and variegated verdure. Numerous hamlets, surrounded
by shadowing groves, appeared scattered over the undulating sur-
face ; while tangled vines and creepers, laving their tendrils in
the crystal stream, added new charms to the exhilarating picture.
The hand of man had been here — of civilized, social man. The
features of the country proclaimed the fact — divided into square

250

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[March,

fields, and neatly hedged around. At length, after sailing along
this coast for some time with a smart breeze, the frigate emerged
from the strait, doubled Bantam Point, and came to anchor on its
eastern side, about two miles from the shore, and not far from
Bantam Bay, where she anchored on the day following, about two
and a half leagues southeast from St. Nicholas or Bantam Point.

Bantam Bay is extensive, containing several islands, the largest
of which is Pulo Panjang, covered with trees, and situated in the
west part of the entrance. A ship intending to anchor here may
pass on either side of this island ; but the eastern channel is
greatly to be preferred. On the following day, the vessel’s birth
was changed for Pangoriang, as being a convenient place to obtain
a supply of fresh water, and only four miles east of Point St.
Nicholas. The anchorage in this spot is in fourteen to sixteen
fathoms, and was much frequented by the English vessels during
the short period that Batavia was in their possession. There is a
passage of four fathoms within two small islands called Pulo
Kaly, and safe anchorage for small vessels. These islands lie
about half way between Pangoriang and the red bluff which forms
the extreme west side of Bantam Bay, which the reader will bear
in mind is situated on the north side of Java, a few miles east of
the strait.

Here the surrounding scenery continued to be an inexhaustible
source of enjoyment, in its endless variety of features, and the
mingled softness and brilliancy which enriched its ever-varying
hues. The land of Java,. as it recedes from the shore, gently
ascends with a billowy, undulating surface of hill and dale, to the
distance of about a mile, all divided into fields, and cultivated to
the hill-tops. Towering its foliage-crested head proudly above
the rest, rises Bantam Hill, cultivated like the humbler eminences
around it, with the exception of its summit, which is surmounted
with a coronet of majestic trees, like a forest in the air. Between
the foot of the hill and the shore are human habitations, almost
entirely hid in a grove of cocoanut, plantain, and banana-trees,
which are also scattered in clumps over all the landscape. The
fields of rice and gardens of pepper vines which climb the hill-
sides or checker the flats and bottoms, present the changing aspects
of the young and green blade, just sprouting through the varie-
gated soil, to the yellow and matured crop, ready for the hands

1832.]

BANTAM BAY.

251

of the gatherer, while the borders of the beach were lined and
fringed with bamboos and shrubbery to the water’s edge.'

On the following morning, which was Thursday, the eighth, some
of our boats visited a couple of islands to look for curious shells,
in which pursuit they were quite successful, bringing off with
them a large and well-assorted collection. During the whole
day the frigate was only visited from the shore by one canoe,
which only brought off a few fish of an indifferent quality. The
natives seemed to feel, and they certainly evinced, but little cu-
riosity on account of the Potomac’s first appearance on their
coast ; but rather seemed disposed to keep aloof from holding
any intercourse with their strange visiters.

The town of Bantam, which was formerly the capital of the
kingdom and the seat of royalty, is situated on the bank of a
small river which empties into the bay. The English and Danes
had factories here until 1682, when they were expelled by the
Dutch, who deposed the native monarch, erected two forts to
defend it against any subsequent intruder, and soon monopolized
the entire traffic of the country. It was then populous and flour-
ishing— it is now a poor place, and its commerce is transferred to
Batavia. It is in latitude 6° 20' south, longitude 105° 26' east.

An officer of the frigate was sent next day to wait on the
rajah, and to inquire if a supply of wood and water could be fur-
nished for the ship. The chief not only willingly acceded to this
request, but treated the messenger and his companions with great
politeness, and even kindness. On the same day the boats were
hoisted out, and this service was commenced under the charge of
proper officers. Wood of a good quality and in great abundance
was easily procured on the beach, and the carpenters were all set
to vvork at cutting it up, ready for passing it on board ; while
another party was successfully occupied in procuring water from
some of the numerous little streams which came tumbling down
the sides of the hills, to the water’s edge, rendering the operation
convenient and easy by the application of a hose. While this
was going on, the officers embraced every opportunity to extend '
their perambulations, and observe whatever was interesting, for
some distance in the interior.

From fifty to one hundred yards from the beach, the soil was
thickly covered with underbrush and trees of various kinds. Be-

252

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[March,

yond this, for about the distance of a mile, there was nothing but
rice-fields, accommodated to the rising ground, surrounded and
intersected by numerous little canals, adapted to the purpose of
irrigation, as the different stages of the crops required. The rice
looked well, some of it being nearly matured, and' other portions
just springing from the soil. Beyond the lowland rice-fields the
land began to swell into hills, the sides of which were partially
covered with fine groves of cocoanut-trees. Numerous paths
were seen leading back from the shore, each of which terminated
in a small Malay village, built of bamboos, and containing frojn
fifty to two hundred inhabitants. The huts were miserably con-
structed, each containing two or three sleeping apartments, and a
■substitute for a kitchen, in one corner of which were the fire and
some cooking utensils, but no chimney, the smoke being allowed
to escape as it could through the loose texture of the bamboos,
imparting to the whole establishment a sooty and filthy appear-
ance. It will be seen, in the sequel, that there is a striking
difference between the Malays and the Javans, who are cleanly,
neat, and industrious.

The Malays in the villages, if they did not actually resent
their intrusion, were evidently not very highly delighted with our
officers’ visits ; and all the women immediately deserted their
houses on the appearance of the strangers. When welcomed by
woman, “ dear woman, the manifested form of love and hospi-
tality,” the wanderer is ever perfectly at home ; but if her cheering
smile be lacking, he feels too sensibly that he is an intruder in-
deed ! The features of these people are by no means displeasing
in the young, but extremely so in those who are far advanced in
life. Their complexion is a yellowish brown, with black hair,
some of which is of the finest texture; their eyes are black,
quick, and penetrating. Their teeth are regular, well set, and
carefully filed, but generally black, from the nauseous habit of
chewing the betele-nut, as in Sumatra.

Their dress, in the villages above alluded to, consisted of the
coarsest materials, and was quite indifferent ; and in no respect are
these Malays to be compared in appearance with those of Su-
matra. The children were entirely naked ; and the men carried
no arms, nor did they appear to be in possession of any, except
■a large curved knife, for cutting rice and bamboos, trimming

1832.]

BANTAM BAY.

253

cocoanut-trees, and such other uses as are required in their hus-
bandry. This implement in several instances was suspended
from the neck, hanging down the back ; in others, guarded by a
sheath, and attached to a belt. But though behind their neigh-
bours of Sumatra in personal appearance, they are certainly
superior to them, in temper and character ; being more mild and
honest, and far less savage, vindictive, and treacherous in their dis-
positions. They seemed rather inclined to be courteous and
amiable ; and where they did form attachments for any of our
ofScers, evinced no little degree of liberality.

But industry is not one of their virtues ; for no people can be
more lazy, if general report be true, than the Malays of Bantam.
This trait in their character is doubtless the result of local cir-
cumstances. The climate and soil itself may tend to produce it,,
as there is little inducement to labour where all the necessaries-
of life are spontaneously produced. All their movements are
slow, and they appeared to our officers to be incapable of deep
emotion or great excitement of any kind, either of curiosity, fear,,
or revenge. Nominally Mahommedans, they yet appear to pay
very little attention to the rites and ceremonies of that persuasion,,
or indeed of any other, being probably infidels at heart, and giving:
themselves no concern whatever on the subject of religion, or a-
future state of existence. They resemble the Turks in an aver-
sion to have their women exposed to the view of strangers. Few
of them were ever to be seen during the period of the Potomac’s-
visit, and those few were dressed very similar to the men, and
were not much better looking, excepting that their complexion was
somewhat lighter.

Though shrinking from exertion on ordinary occasions, some
of them have taken considerable pains to perform good offices
and acts of courtesy to such of our ship’s company as they hap-
pened to take a fancy to. While on shore with his fowling-
piece, one of the officers was met by a native who appeared to
take great pleasure in showing him the birds, and who was anx-
ious to have him shoot them. He also climbed a cocoanut-tree,
more than fifty feet in height, and procured a nut for him, the milk of
which is very refreshing in so warm a climate, being only six de-
grees south of the equator. This polite and attentive native adhered
to the side of his new acquaintance while passing through the

254

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[March,

villages, talking and chatting all the time, and assiduously direct-
ing the attention of his visiter to^ whatever he thought would be
deemed worthy of notice. He finally accompanied the officer to
the water’s edge, lingering and delaying his departure to the last
moment. All this friendly attention was voluntarily bestowed,
apparently without any interested motive or expectation of re-
ward, as he appeared to experience unanticipated pleasure on re-
ceiving a few toys in requital for his kindness. They all appear
very fond of trinkets, though possessing very few.

At our watering-place on shore, and also on board the ship, we
were daily visited by small parties from the neighbouring villages,
with fruits and other articles for sale or barter. In exchange they
received knives, handkerchiefs, and naval buttons ; some of our
middies stripping their jackets to buy cocoanuts, chickens, and
other palatable productions. These natives seem to have some,
though very imperfect, knowledge of the value of money. If
one of them with half a dozen fowls was asked the price of the
lot, his reply was, invariably, “ dollar,” and precisely the same
answer would be made by another with a lot of double the num-
ber. Though very shy at first, their boats were now almost con-
stantly alongside the frigate, with every kind of refreshment that
this part of the island could furnish.

Independent of a great variety of fruits and vegetables, they
have the flesh of buffaloes, goats, and sheep ; pork of course is
forbidden in the Mahommedan code. Their buffaloes are large
and fat, and are kept tied by small cords, passed through a per-
foration made between the animals’ nostrils. They are tame and
docile to the natives, but wild and restiff whenever any of our
countrymen approached them.

The canoes of the natives are constructed of a single piece
of timber, the trunk of a large tree, cut or burned out, and ele-
vated at the head and stern. The mast, yard, and paddles are
made of bamboo, and the sail of matting ; they will carry two or
three, and sometimes four persons. They have also larger boats,
ox proas, some of which were daily seen passing along the coast,
probably from Bantam, filled with Malays, and bearing the Dutch
flag.

On Tuesday, the thirteenth of March, not having yet completed
her supply of wood and water, the Potomac still lay at her an-

1832.]

BANTAM BAY. .

255>

chorage in Bantam Bay. At five o’clock in the morning the com-
modore, accompanied by an officer, left the frigate on a boat-ex-
cursion to a small island about four leagues distant, in search of
shells, with which the waters and shores of these islands abound.
Indeed, conchology appeared to be the favourite study of all the
officers when off duty ; and the commodore, ever since his ar-
rival in the eastern Archipelago, had evinced much interest, taste,
and industry, in adding to his already valuable collection.

In the afternoon a smart little squall occurred, which termi-
nated in a breeze so fresh that it was found necessary to give the
ship more cable. As night set in, there was no appearance of the
commodore’s boat returning to the vessel, which occasioned much
solicitude on board on account of his safety. The squall had
been sudden and severe, and it was feared that his boat had been
capsized, or that some other accident had befallen him. Rockets
were let off, and blue-lights burned during the whole night, to
point out the situation of the ship.

It appears, that after having landed and been successful in pro-
curing some rare and beautiful specimens of conchology on the
Island of Pulo Baby, the commodore left, at about five o’clock in
the evening, with the view of returning on board the frigate ; but
had not proceeded far, when he found that there was not only a
strong current, but a fresh wind directly against him : so much
so, that in three hours of hard pulling, not more than two miles
of headway had been made. At this time a squall struck the
boat with such violence, that it was found impossible to keep
her head to the wind by the utmost exertions of the men tugging
at their oars ; and in falling off she was several times on the point
of being swamped, and was, with the utmost difficulty, kept afloat.
Fortunately, the squall subsided in less than half an hour, though
the wind still continued fresh, with an ugly, sharp sea, so that it
was still impossible to pull to windward.

The commodore’s situation now became exceedingly uncom-
fortable ; exposed as he was in an open boat to the rain, which
fell in torrents, in a climate where such exposure is deemed fatal
to the unclimated stranger. A return to the Island of Pulo Baby
seemed to offer no safety, as the ocean, broken by the numerous
rocks and coral reefs surrounding the island, was now white with
foam. Sail was then made on the boat, in the hope of being able

256

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[March,

to weather the reef, which makes out about five miles north from
the cape, forming the east side of Bantam Bay, and, if possible,
find shelter under the lee of some of the small islands lying in
that direction. The run across the bay was one of fearful un-
certainty ; the land was hid from view by the rain and thick wea-
ther, so that the boat, close-hauled on the wind, was the only guide.

Thus he continued for several hours, relieving the boat by
bailing, as she'took in water. At length, land was seen ; and a
moment after, the breakers on it, by which the commodore knew
that he had either gone to windward, or fallen sufficiently to
leeward to escape the extensive and dangerous reef. About one
o’clock in the morning, the land seen turned out to be a small
island, the lee of which furnished a neat little bay, into which the
boat was run, and, greatly to his relief, he found her completely
protected from the storm, though the rain still continued to fall in
drenching showers. At seven in the morning he left the little
harbour, which the boat’s crew insisted upon calling “ Ariel Bay,”
after their boat, which had behaved so well the night before.
About nine he returned on board the frigate, greatly exhausted
from fatigue, having been wet to the skin for more than twelve
hours ; from which, and even sleeping a short time in the boat, he
fortunately suffered no bad effects.

On Friday, the sixteenth, the Potomac still remained at her
anchorage near the watering-place. Although the wind was this
day very strong from the south and south-by-east, which some-
times increased into powerful puffs, yet so strong was the current,
that the ship at no time rode by the wind. The natives this day
continued to visit the ship for traffic, and in greater numbers than
on any former occasion ; bringing such supplies, and selling so
reasonable, that the finest poultry was to be seen on the tables of
all the messes. No buffaloes, however, were procured, though
no doubt sucb an arrangement might have easily been made, as
all the villages abound with them. Numerous monkeys, procured
by the sailors, were now on board, affording great diversion to all
hands by their endless chatter and amusing antics.

News came on board this day, from some of the natives, that
there was a pirate in the strait, and that two Dutch men-of-war
were in pursuit of her. The subsequent report of distant cannon,
rendered the rumour quite probable.

1832.]

BANTAM BAY.

257

On Sunday, the eighteenth, there was a little improvement in
the weather, which for the two preceding days had presented little
else than a succession of squalls, attended with considerable rain,
thunder, and lightning, while the height of the surf on the shore
had much retarded the progress of procuring a supply of water.
But little rain, however, had fallen near the anchorage of the
frigate, as the clouds appeared to be attracted by the lofty summits
and peaks of the neighbouring mountains. In the meantime, our
officers had been much on shore, and seen considerable of the
natives, visited the villages, and rambled over an interesting sec-
tion of the ancient kingdom of Bantam. It was easy to perceive
that the Dutch had much power over the natives, and exercised
it with no little rigour. No inducements are held out to encourage
their advance in knowledge, refinement, and the arts of civilized
life ; but they appear to be kept in such a state of servile degra-
dation, that they still remain almost as wild and uncultivated as
they did before the island was first visited by Europeans, They
are slaves to their own rajahs, who are, in their turn, slaves to the
Dutch colonists.

The town of Bantam, at the head of the bay, would perhaps
have afforded good anchorage for the frigate, had not the com-
modore preferred to remain in an open position, in order that he
might more readily get under way in case of a typhoon.* In

* Typhoon, from the Chinese word Ty-foong, signifying great wind. Ty, is great
or mighty, and Foong, signifies wind. They are dangerous tempests which often
happen at the equinox, in the northern part of the China Sea, near Formosa, Bashee
Islands, also the north of Luconia, and sometimes between Formosa and the Japan
Archipelago. They are liable to happen in either monsoon. September is a month
much dreaded by sailors in these seas, particularly if the change or perigee of the
moon coincide with the equinox.

To be able to' prognosticate The approach of these winds would be very favourable
to navigators, but this cannot be done with certainty, for they frequently commence
without giving much evidence of their proximity. The clouds’ having a red aspect is
not a certain warning of the approach of a typhoon ; for at the rising, but more par-
ticularly at the setting of the ^un, the clouds, in settled weather, are sometimes tinged
with a red colour, by the-reflected light, especially those opposite the luminary. A
hazy atmosphere, preventing land from being seen at a great distance, is no unfavour-
able sign on the coast of China, for this is generally its state in medium or unsettled
weather. Neither is an irregular swell a good criterion to judge of the approach of a
typhoon ; for, near the coast of China, a cross swell frequently prevails during steady,
settled weather. A serene sky, with the horizon remarkably clear, should not be
considered as an indication of a continuation of favourable weather ; for a series of

258

VOYAGB OF THE POTOMAC.

[March,

addition to this, it was requisite to lie in a situation where were
greater facilities for taking in wood and water than the town could
afford, and a more favourable spot for that purpose than the one
selected could hardly be desired. At any rate, it was decidedly
preferable to Batavia, where such duty must have greatly exposed
both officers and men to the baleful effects of insalubrious exha-
lations which surround the Dutch capital ; besides the gratification
derived from an opportunity of seeing so much of this out-of-the-
way portion of the island. It is even doubtful whether the water
in the vicinity of Batavia be wholesome for a ship’s use. Mr.
Barrow, before quoted, says, that “a glass of water taken out of
the canal of Batavia, becomes, in the course of a few hours, a
mass of animated matter, the minute portions of which, multiply-
ing by division and subdivision, move about with astonishing
rapidity. The bay (of Batavia), swarming with myriads of
living creatures, exhibits, in the night-time, a phosphorescent light
like a sheet of fire. The stream of fresh water which falls into
it, being more highly charged with animal life, is distinctly traced
in the bay, by a train more luminous and brilliant than the rest of
the surface, appearing like another milky-way in the midst of a
firmament of stars.”

Having now completed her supply of wood and water, the Po-
tomac got under way on the morning of Monday, the nineteenth,
and shaped her course for Batavia Roads,-a distance of more than
twenty leagues east from her recent anchorage. This was a pas-
sage of unusual beauty and interest, the surface of the sea being
thickly studded with little evergreen islands, of almost every
shape and variety. The indolent Dutch colonists, despairing of
ever furnishing a name for each, have lumped the whole group,
and given it the name of the Thousand Islands. The French
did the same at the head of the St. Lawrence. The sea here,

fine weather and calms, favouring an increase of heat above the mean temperature,
fs liable to be succeeded by a typhoon.

When the horizon is very clear in sonie parts, and the summits of the hills or
islands obscured by dense black clouds, there is some irregularity in the atmosphere,
and stormy weather may be apprehended ; but in reality typhoons are seldom pre-
ceded by any certain sign or indication. Marine barometers, if well constructed,
seem to afford the best means to anticipate these tempests ; for the mercury is
sometimes liable to a greater fall on the south coast of 'China, than might be expected
within the tropics.

1832.]:

APPllOACPI BATAAaA.

259

on the northern coast of Java, when calm and unruffled, resem-
bles a sheet of silver on which have been promiscuously scattered
emeralds of different sizes, every one of these numerous islets
being completely clothed wbth an ever-varying teint of the liveliest
verdure. They are all based on a calcareous foundation,- and owe
their origin to the zoophites of Linnseus. The weather was
pleasant, and moderate breezes from the north and west wafted
the frigate gently along her sinuous com'se among the Thousand
Islands ; around which were dangerous shoals, which rendered it
necessary to keep a boat out ahead, feeling the way for the frigate.
The lead was kept going in from fifteen to twenty-two fathoms.
At three P.M., took in the rojmls and hauled up the foresail.
The coast of Java, from Bantam Mountain to Batavia, is flat and
low ; and though ever changing, ever new, and ever beautiful, ex-
hibits few of those remarkable outlines which form points of re-
membrance, until the frigate approached Lampoon Island ; a small
and solitary spot, but beautiful in its solitude, near which she
anchored about sunset, in fifteen fathoms, and veered out forty-
five fathoms of chain cable. Several villages were now seen
lining the shore, and paddee fields extending as far as the eye
could reach, all gilded by the oblique rays of the setting sun.

The passage selected by the commodore in approaching the
anchorage was not the one generally adopted. When Maneater
Island bore southeast-by-east, instead of pursuing the track north,
between the Great Cambuys and Angenilla, he bore off more to
the south, and ran between the former and Maneater Island, pas-
sing within half a mile of Little Cambuys, and discovering a
shoal southeast of it, not laid down or noted in any of the most
recent charts. Soundings vary in the passage from a quarter less
nine to eleven fathoms. He then ran for the Island Dapour,
soundings thirteen fathoms, At seven P, M., shortened sail and
came to anchor as before stated, with Dapour Island bearing north-
west-half-north ; Amsterdam Island, southwest-by-west, and Edam
Island, east-by-south-quarter-south.

The weather continued pleasant throughout the night, with gentle
breezes from the north and west. On Tuesday morning, the
twentieth, at five A. M., just as the call of “ All hands, up an-
chor !” res,ounded through the ship, a report was made that one of
the seamen had just departed this life, so that the order te gel^

R 2

260

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[March,

under way was countermanded. At nine o’clock the body of the
deceased was committed to the deep, with the usual religious
ceremonies. It was a source of deep regret to all, and of gloomy
forebodings to some, thus to lose one of our best men at this time,
and in such a place, by a disease which has often been so fatal in
this part of the world ; though thus far we had certainly been
more healthy than has often fallen to the lot of many ships’ crews
of equal numbers.

Immediately after the performance of this melancholy duty,
the frigate was again got under way, with a fine breeze, and stood
for Batavia Roads. At eleven she once more came to anchor,
about seven miles from the city, outside of all the shipping, in
nine and a half fathoms of water, and veered out forty-five fathoms
of chain cable ; Batavia bearing south-by-east ; Leyden Island,
east-by-north-half-north ; Enkhuysen Island, northeast-quarter-
north ; and Edam Island, northeast-by-north. The commodore
was induced to anchor thus far from the city, to avoid the pesti-
lential atmosphere generated by the stagnant water, in and ad-
jacent to the marshy site of that Dutch Venice, which, if con-
flagrated, would “ hiss in its foundations so low indeed is it, and
so thickly planted with cocoanut, tamarind, canary, and a variety
of other trees, that no part of it except the cupola of the great
church could be seen from the deck of the Potomac.

Before she reached her anchorage, the frigate was boarded
by a boat from the city, bringing several American gentlemen, who
communicated the agreeable intelligence that Batavia was un-
usually healthy. News of the Potomac’s intended visit had
reached the city, and “ rumour with her hundred tongues” had
blazoned far and near the account of her exploit at Quallah-Bat-
too ; all had been in daily expectation of her arrival. There was
only one American vessel here ; the French brig which the Poto-
mac spoke off St. Pauls had arrived, and again left the harbour;
of Dutch vessels there were about twenty of all descriptions, in-
cluding one or two men-of-war. As is usual and always advisa-
ble for foreign vessels at this port, a number of Malays were en-
gaged to man the frigate’s boats, intended to ply between the ship
and the shore ; thus saving our men from exposure and probable
sickness.

A boat was sent on shore with an officer to wait on the au-

1832.]

BATAVIA.

261

thorities and regulate the salute ; and on her return, the first intel-
ligence was confirmed of the present health of the city ; so that
the commodore changed his anchorage by moving to a more
pleasant birth, within about four miles of the commercial capital
of Java.

As this chapter has been principally devoted to a description
of the Strait of Sunda, and the Potomac’s passage through it on
the second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh of March, eigh-
teen hundred and thirty-two, we cannot more appropriately con-
clude it than by adding the following document, containing a table
of the beacons, twenty-two in number, on the shoals in the navi-
gable waters of the Strait of Sunda, to and from Batavia Roads,
replaced by order of the Dutch government, June sixth, eigh-
teen hundred and thirty-two, three months after the Potomac’s
visit. The names of the shoals marked with an asterisk{*) have
a beacon with a cross ; those marked thus (t) have only a cross.

The beacons with crosses, are beams, with a crosstree painted
white ; those without are single beams, painted white, both kinds
extending twelve feet above water. In case one or more of the
beacons should be removed by violence of the weather or other-
wise, bamboo stakes, fifteen or twenty feet above water, with
baskets covered with cloth painted black and white, will be placed
in their stead, until they can be replaced by proper wooden pillars.
Beacon number eleven stands upon a rock not laid down on any
chart, to which the name of Mathilda Rock has been given, it
being known in Malay language by the name of Karang Prol.
The rocks on which beacons eighteen and twenty are placed, have
hitherto had no Dutch names, they are now called the Wrange
and the Midden Rock. The native names are in parentheses.
The number of feet mentioned after the situation of the beacon,
shows the depth at low water.

Father Smit’s Bankf (Poeloe Poetrie), situated on the northeast
point, nine feet; Leyden bearing north-northwest-half-west, and
the beacon on Neptune’s Shoal bearing west-quarter-south. Nep-
tune’s Shoalf (Karang Passier), on northwest point, twelve feet ;
Leyden northeast-quarter-north ; eastern point of Hoorn north-
northwest-three-quarters-west. The Pasopt (Karang Tanglam),
on northeast point, twelve feet ; Leyden northeast-half-north ;
eastern point of Hoorn north-northwest-quarter-west. Rhynland

262

VOYAGE OF 7HE POTOMAC.

{Marcli,

Shoalf (Karang Tahan), on east point, twelve feet ; Hoorn north-
by-west-quarter-west ; Kuiper northwest-by-west-balf-west. Ryr
gersdaal Bankf (Karang Carnal), on east point, nine feet ; Hoorn
north-northeast-quarter-east ; Kuiper north-northwest. The Arms
of Purmerendt (Karang Djalan), on east point, thirteen feet ;
eastern point of Hoorn north-by-east ; Rotterdam northwest.
The rocks bearing west of the Island of Hoornf (Karang Poeloe
Ayer), in the centre, twelve feet ; northern point of Hoorn east-
half-south ; Rotterdam west-quarter-north. The Reef of Rotter-
damt (Karang Poeloe Obie), in the centre, fifteen feet ; southern
point of Hoorn east-three-quarters south ; western point of Onrust
Kerkhof south-half-west. The Reef of Purmerendt (Karang
Poeloe Sakiet), on southwest point, nine feet ; southern point of
Purmerend north ; Kuiper westmorthwest-quarter-west. The
Stone of Onrustf (Karang Poeloe Kelor), on west point, nine
feet ; Rotterdam north-northeast-quarter-east ; Kuiper southeast^
by-south. The Mathilda Rock* (Karang Prol), on northeast
point, twelve feet ; southwestern point of the Kuiper southeast ;
eastern point of Rotterdam northeast-three-quarters-north. The
Reef of Onrust* (Karang Poeloe Kapal), on west point, nine
feet. The two points of the reef bearing northwest of the Island
of Kuiper* (Karang Poeloe Kuiper), on northwest point, nine
feet; the Reefs- of Onrust, and the two points of that bearing
northwest of the Island of Kuiper, extend to the Islands of On-
rust and Kuiper. The Reef of Ontong Javaf (Tanjong Ontong
Java), on north point, thirteen feet ; Haarlem east ; western point
of Middeiburg north-by-west. The Reef of Middelbnrgt (Ka-
rang Poeloe Ramboet), on southeast point, fifteen feet; and the
same Reeff (Karang Poeloe Ramboet), on southeast point, fifteen
feet; the coral reef on which these beacons are placed is connected
with the island. The Wrange Rockf (Karang Sepat), on west point,
twelve feet ; south point of Middeiburg southeast-by-east-half-
east ; Poeloe Dapoor northeast-half-north ; at a cable’s length to
the westward from this is another rock, eleven feet below the
surface. The Myndert’s Shoalf (Karang Gosson), in the centre,
twelve feet ; Klein Kombuis northwest-quarter-west ; Poeloe
Dapoor northeast-by-east. The Middle Rockf (Karang Loem-
boeng), on southwest point, twelve feet ; Klein Kombuis northeast-
by-north-half-east ; south point of the Great Kombuis northwest-

1832.]

BATAVIA.

263

by-west-three-quarters-west. The Reef of the Great Kombuisf
(Karang Poeloe Lantjang, or Karang Papedjie), on west point,
fourteen feet ; south point of the Great Kombuis east-southeast-
half-east ; eastern point of Maneater Island southwest-three-quar-
ters-west. The Southeast Rockt in the centre, fifteen feet;
eastern point of Maneater Island south-half-west ; northern point
of the Great Kombuis northeast-three-quarters east ; beacon on
the Great Kombuis southeast-by-east-three-quarters-east.

The Potomac passed the Strait of Sunda in March, eighteen
hundred and thirty two. The following is a list of the whole
number of vessels which were reported at Anger, or Anjere, a
village on the Java shore, as having passed the strait in the
same year, viz : — Dutch, fifty-eight out, fifty-four home ; English,
twenty-eight out, twenty-seven home ; American, twenty-nine
out, twenty-nine home ; French, two out, one home ; Hamburgh,
two out, one home ; Russian, one out ; Swedish, one out ; Danish,
one home. Total reported, two hundred and thirty-eight. This
list is doubtless imperfect, as many that passed without touching
at Anger could not have been reported ; but it shows the great
proportion of American vessels trading in these seas.

264

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[March,

CHAPTER XV.

Java and Sumatra once connected — Origin of the name of Java — Size and location
of the island — Origin of the inhabitants — Pagans and Idolaters — Java successively
visited by the Siamese, Arabs, Malays, and Chinese — Arab missionaries — Conversion
of the inhabitants to the Mahommedan faith — The Portuguese visit the island — The
English — The Dutch at Bantam — At Batavia — The English at Bantam — Massacre
of Amboyna — Dutch oppressions — Massacre of the Chinese at Batavia — Ameri-
cans visit Batavia — Governor Daendel’s Administration — Antiquities of Java —
Description of the Javans — Their dress — Origin of the Atjs — Character, habits,
and manners — Early marriages — Frequent divorces — Cookery and food — Amuse-
ments— Useful arts and manufactures — Houses, furniture, employments, agriculture,
and commerce — Government, literature, &c,

In our description of the Strait of Sunda, in the preceding
chapter, an idea was suggested that the islands of Sumatra and
Java had probably once been united at some very remote period,
and formed but one island. Indeed, there is a tradition recorded
in the annals of Java, which says— “It is related that in former
times the islands of Sumatra, Java, Bali, and Sumbava were
united, and afterward separated into nine different parts ; and it is
also said, that when three thousand rainy seasons have passed
away, they will be reunited.”' Admitting for a moment the fact
of their former union, the hypothesis might very naturally be ex-
tended still further, including in the same semicircular range the
Malay Peninsula on the northwest, together with the islands on
the east, including Lombok, Flores, Timor, Timorlant, Arroo, and
New Guinea. By those are formed that great chain or barrier,
which locks up the China Sea on the south and west, and proba-
bly once completely separated it from the great Indian Ocean.
The waters of the latter have in divers places either forced or in-
sinuated themselves through this circling arm of continental
Asia, or the mighty ridge has been severed and shivered by some
terrible convulsion of nature, — forming those numerous straits
which are now the avenues of communication and commercial
intercourse between the Atlantic ports and the Celestial Empire.
Thus, that elongated portion of the broken ridge which bears the

1832.]

ISLAND OF JAVA.

265

name of Java, is washed on its western end by the Strait of Sunda,
which is at one point only fourteen miles in width ; and by the
Strait of Bali, on its eastern extremity.

This division, or breaking up of the great eastern peninsula, is
supposed by some writers to be alluded to in the book of Genesis,
where the sacred penman, in his account of Noah’s descendants,
and their various locations in the postdiluvian world, says —
“ And unto Eber were born two sons ; the name of one was
Peleg; for in his days was the earth divided.” Speaking of the
sons of Javan, it is written — “ By these were the isles of the
gentiles divided in their lands ; every one after his tongue, after
their families, in their nations.” From this passage it has been in-
ferred, that the island under consideration was named “ after the
family” of Javan, or Java. That caravans of merchants once
traded and held intercourse with a rich country in the east called
Javan, appears from Ezekiel, who describes them as traders in
“ the persons of men, and vessels of brass, to the market of Tyre,
and who, going to and fro, occn^ied in her fairs, brought bright
iron [steel], cassia, and calamus.” One of the sons of Javan was
called Elishah ; and the prophet speaks of “ blue and purple from
the isles of Elishah.” His brother’s name was Tarshish ; — “ Tar-
shish was thy merchant by the reason of the multitude of all kinds
of riches, with silver, iron, tin, and lead, they all traded in thy
fairs.” The brothers of Javan were called Mecheck and Tu-
bal:— “ Jauan, Tubal, and Mecheck, they were thy merchants ;
they traded the persons of men and vessels of brass, in thy
market.” A nephew of Javan was called Togarmah : — “ They
of the house of Togarmah traded in thy fairs with horses and
horsemen, and mules.”

In all these passages, some writers see, or think they see, a
direct allusion to the extensive caravan-routes, formed at an early
period, for conveying the fine manufactures of the east into the
kingdoms of the west. Although “ the embroidered work and
chests of rich apparel bound with cords,” mentioned by Ezekiel,
are said to have been brought from depots on the banks of the
Euphrates, yet it is not supposed that they were manufactured
there, but drawn from more distant countries of eastern Asia ;
probably from the great chain of islands now under consideration.

But all this is curious and amusing speculation ; and we shall

266

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[Marcli,

leave it to those who are better versed in the subject to trace the
connexion between the Javan of Holy Writ, and the Java of mod-
ern times, the location of which we now proceed to describe.

The whole Island of Java extends in a direction nearly east
and west, with only a slight deviation to the north and south ; its
western extremity being in longitude 105° 11', and its eastern
in longitude 114° 33' east. The length of the island is about
seven hundred miles, while its breadth varies from sixty to one
hundred and forty miles ; and it is estimated to contain an area
of about fifty thousand miles, with a population of five millions ;
including Javans, Chinese, Arabs, Moors, Bugis, Malays, and the
Dutch colonists.

The Island of Java occupies a considerable space in the history
of commerce. Three centuries before the Dutch had penetrated
to the east, Java had been visited by the celebrated Venetian trav-
eller Marco Polo. Tradition says that about eight hundred years
after the Christian era, a vessel was cast away on the coast of
Java, while attempting to cross from Siam to the Straits of Ma-
cassar, the crew of which travelled over much of the island. These
people, on their return to Siam, gave such a glowdng account of
the countries they had seen, that the son of the King of Siam
was induced to visit Java, and soon after colonized it. Since then,
many other tribes from India came and settled on it, particularly
Arabs, as Marco Polo, who visited both Java and Sumatra in
twelve hundred and ninety-six, mentions several of them. Another
tradition says that the first inhabitants came in vessels from the
Red Sea, and that in their passage they coasted along the shores
of Hundustan ; that peninsula then forming an unbroken conti-
nent with the land in the Indian Archipelago. These people are
supposed to have been banished from Egypt, and to have been
idolaters of various descriptions.

But whatever might have been the origin of the inhabitants, it
is pretty generally conceded, that they were all idolaters until
about the year thirteen hundred and seventy, when the Arab mis-
sionaries came among them, and commenced the work of con-
version with their usual zeal, but with less violence than had here-
tofore marked the rapid spread of the Mahommedan faith. They
possessed a knowledge of medicine, which enabled them to effect
several cures of persons of high rank, as well as many of the

18.32.]

ISLAND OF JAVA.

267

common people, of dangerous and what were then considered
fatal disorders. This gained them a reputation for superior and
supernatural attainments, which furthered their missionary projects
to the extent of their wishes.

About the year fourteen hundred and twelve, according to the
Javan records, a considerable number of Chinese emigrants ob-
tained a settlement in the island. Mild and inoffensive in their
manners, and backward to resent acts of oppression, they were
subject to many restrictions and exactions from which the natives
were exempt. They often intermarried with the Javans, how-
ever, and thus introduced a mixed breed, which are called by the
Dutch Pernakans. The Chinese still remained distinct from the
natives, from whom they were distinguished by being more intel-
ligent, more laborious, and more luxurious. They were, in fact,
the life and soul of the commerce of the country. The Malays
obtained a footing much earlier than the Chinese, though we can-
not refer to the exact date. They were from the Malayan pen-
insula, which was then overrun with pirates and Arabian free-
booters. These were viewed as honourable occupations, worthy
of being followed by young princes and nobles. No wonder that
their descendants are fond of navigation, war, plunder, emigra-
tion, adventures, and gallantry ; talk incessa:ntly of their honour
and bravery, while in their habits and conduct they are the most
treacherous and ferocious people on the face of the globe.

After the Portuguese had discovered a new route to India, by
the Cape of Good Hope, they soon visited all the principal islands
of the Indian Archipelago, for the ostensible purpose of opening
a commercial intercourse with the inhabitants, but with the ulterior
view of obtaining territorial jurisdiction for their sovereign in the
east. Success attended their measures, though blood and deso-
lation too often tracked their progress. In fifteen hundred and
eleven, the enterprising and victorious Alphonso de Albuquerque,
having conquered the city of Malacca, on the western coast of
the Malay peninsula, opposite Sumatra, which island he had pre-
viously visited, sent envoys to announce to such islanders as had
been in the habit of trading with Malacca, inviting them to con-
tinue their intercourse, and making liberal promises of encourage-
ment and fair dealing. To Java he sent Antonio de Abrew, who
landed, it is supposed, at Gresik, on the northeast coast, in the

268

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[March,

Strait of Madura, After delivering his message, and obtaining a
favourable reply, Abrew sailed on the same errand to the Mo-
luccas, or Spice Islands, lying further east. The final result of
this embassy was the erection of a Portuguese factory at Bantam,
where then reigned a Hindoo prince, although Mahommedanism
was rapidly spreading over the whole island.

In fifteen hundred and thirteen, Joan Lopez Alvrin was sent to
Java by the Governor of Malacca, on commercial business, and
was well received at every port where he touched, but particularly
at Sidaye, which lies north of Gresik, then belonging to a prince
who had been defeated at Malacca. About this time Albuquerque
was superseded in his command, which disgrace broke his heart,
and he died on his passage to Goa, on the sixteenth of December,
fifteen hundred and fifteen. About six years afterward, Antonio
de Brito, a Portuguese, with six vessels under his command,
bound to the Spice Islands, touched at Gresik, in the Strait of
Madura, where he remained seventeen days ; during which time
he sent a boat across the strait to the Island of Madura, for the
purpose of exploring it; but the men landing incautiously, were
surprised and made prisoners. They were subsequently ransomed
with much difficulty.

The first notice with which Java was honoured by the British,
was in fifteen hundred and seventy-nine ; and that was merely a
flying visit, as Sir Francis Drake only sailed along the coast, with-
out holding any intercourse with the inhabitants. But eight years
afterward, in fifteen hundred and eighty-seven, Cavendish coasted
the island, and opened a friendly communication with some of the
chiefs. This event occurred subsequently to the reign of a sove-
reign in Java, called Pananbaham Senapati, who reduced the
provinces of Madion and Branaraga, and built a palace, the walls
of which are still standing at Krapiac, a place at the foot of a
range of hills lying along the South Sea, a short distance from
Matarem. He died after a reign of twelve years, esteemed on
account of the general tranquillity which prevailed after the firm
establishment of his government.

His successor, who was distinguished by the title of Agung,
or the great, commenced a flourishing reign by a victory which
brought all the eastern provinces under his subjection ; and shortly
afterward brought the whole of the western chiefs to acknowl-

1832.]

ISLAND OF JAVA,

269

edge his supremacy. Thus the whole island was now under his
dominion, to which he soon after united the Island of Madura.

In the meantime, while the victorious monarch was pursuing
this career of success, a new and more insidious enemy had ob-
tained a footing on the island. The Dutch, after having driven
the Portuguese from Ceylon, and other places where they had
settled, availed themselves of the divisions and convulsions by
which the empire of Java was distracted, and established them-
selves at Bantam, with whose prince the Portuguese were then
at war. Admiral Houghton, who commanded the Dutch fleet,
offered his assistance to the king, and obtained, in return, per-
mission to establish a factory, which was erected in sixteen hun-
dred and two, being the first Dutch settlement in the east. They
subsequently subdued, by force of arms, the neighbouring province
of Jacatra ; and having a powerful force at their command, they
determined to build a city, which should become the capital of
their Asiatic possessions, and the centre of their political and
commercial transactions. They fixed upon their newly-con-
quered province of Jacatra, on the north side of the island, about
ninety miles from the Strait of Sunda, where they founded a city
in sixteen hundred and nineteen, which they called Batavia, from
the ancient appellation of their own country, and soon rendered
it a great and flourishing station.*

The Javans at Jacatra say that the Dutch played off a foul stratagem on them.
In order to ascertain the strength and resources of the placp, the captain of a
Dutch ship landed with his officers,, disguised with turbans, &c., and after making
their observations, entered upon trade, offering astonishing liberal terms, and making
many presents. Intimacy was soon established with the prince, who granted them
leave to bring their vessel up the river, where she was privately scuttled and sunk,
a pretence for further delay. They then asked for a small piece of ground, on
which to erect a shed to store the sails and other property, until they could raise the
sunken vessel. This was also granted. They then raised a mud wall around the
piece of ground, so that no one might see what they were about, all the while
courting the friendship of the prince, of whom the captain requested as much land
as could be covered with a buffaloe’s hide, on which he might build a small pondok ;
this being complied with, he cut the hide into strips, and claimed all the land he
could enclose with them. To this, also, the prince, after some hesitation, consented.
The captain then went on with his buildings, engaging that he would pay all ex-
penses. When all was ready, the mud wall was removed, batteries were unex-
pectedly displayed, and, under their protection, the Dutch refused to pay a dollar.
War was the consequence, and the Dutch, after slaughtering thousands of the
natives, remained masters of the field. Having thus secured a foothold at Jacatra,

270

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[March,

Previously to this, however, the English East India Company,
following the example of the Dutch, fitted out a fleet for the eastj
the command of which was given to Captain Lancaster, who sailed
from London in sixteen hundred and one ; first to Acheen, in . Su-
matra, as stated in a preceding chapter, where he procured part
of his cargo, and entered into a treaty with the king, of which a
copy is yet in existence. From Acheen he proceeded to Bantam,
where he established a factory, which was the first possession of
the English in the East Indies. Captain Lancaster took home a
letter from the King of Bantam, addressed to Queen Elizabeth, in
sixteen hundred and two, which is said to be still on file in the
English State-paper office, and to which the virgin queen made
a most gracious reply.

Another English fleet of four ships, commanded by Captain,
afterward Sir Henry Middleton, arrived in Bantam Roads near
the close of December, sixteen hundred and four. Here the ves-
sels separated, two of them remaining to take in a cargo of pep-
per, one going to Banda, while Middleton himself proceeded to the
Spice Islands. He found the Moluccas the seat of a most fero-
cious war between the Dutch and Portuguese ; the former as-
sisted by the King of Ternate, and the latter by the King of Ti-
dore. The King of Ternate was prevailed upon by the Dutch
not to permit any commercial intercourse with the English, whom
they represented as a mere band of pirates, and boasted that the
King of Holland v/as more powerful at sea than all Europe be^
side. Of course Middleton effected no trade at the Moluccas.

In October, sixteen hundred and twelve. Captain John Saris,
commanding a fleet in the service of the East India Company,
arrived at Bantam, which was still considered as the chief Eng-
lish factory in the east. But as he could not procure cargoes, he
steered for the Moluccas ; where the dreadful tragedy was soon
after enacted by the jealous and envious Dutch, celebrated by the
name of “ the Massacre of Amboyna,” in which the English Cap-
tain Towerson and nine others, after being most cruelly tortured,
were put to death. The news of this ruthless and bloody catas-
trophe caused great excitement in England, who made reprisals

they prepared to build a city, and called it Batavia : this story, at least, has the
recommendation of classical allusion !

1832.]

ISLAND OF JAVA.

271

on the Dutch ships in her ports, and it was many years before
the aggression was atoned for. The English, however, still main-
tained their settlement at Bantam, which they had even made the
capital of their eastern possessions. But the constantly increasing
power of the Dutch, and the greater attractions presented to the
English on the continent of India, induced them gradually to re-
linquish their insular stations, with the exception of a few on the
coast of Sumatra. They finally withdrew their establishment
from Bantam, in sixteen hundred and eighty-three.

The Dutch, now without a rival on the island, monopolized the
whole trade, and became more insolent than ever. They had
always assumed a high tone from their first landing, which was
the cause of all the quarrels, massacres, and other acts of atrocity
of which they were perpetually guilty. Such is ever the case
with colonial rulers situated so far from the immediate reach or
control of the mother country. But there was a period when the
government of Holland seriously contemplated the project of
transporting its wealth, its enterprise, and its subjects to another
hemisphere, and fixed upon Batavia, already the seat of its eastern
commerce, as the capital of its new empire. This plan was in
agitation in the summer of sixteen hundred and seventy-two, when
the French troops under Louis the Fourteenth had overrun the
territory of Holland. But what that republic only contemplated,,
the King of Portugal afterward put in practice. Had the gov-
ernment of Holland removed to Java, it is probable there would
not have been so much cause of complaint against the cruelty
and injustice of itheir Batavian governors, as now stains the page
of their colonial history.

The Chinese emigrants and their descendants in Java, have
been and still are subject to restraints and extortions from the
Dutch government at Batavia, as unnecessary and impolitic as they
are unjust ; for this class of inhabitants are the most inoffensive
and the most industrious on the island. And yet the Dutch affect
to be suspicious of them, and often punish them without a cause,
on pretence of their being concerned in some conspiracy against
the government. Such an event, says Barrow, occurred in the
year seventeen hundred and seventy-two, when the supposed
chief of such a conspiracy, who we believe was a Dutchman,
with twenty of his alleged adherents, were condemned to suffer

272

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[March,

death “ by being stretched on a cross, — the flesh of their legs,
arms, and breast torn a^way with redhot pincers, — their bellies
rippfed up, and their hearts thrown in their faces, — their heads cut
off, and stuck upon poles ; and their mangled carcasses exposed
to be devoured by the fowls of the air, &c. &c. And after this-
sentence was put in execution, a solemn thanksgiving was pro-
claimed ; and the following day thirty more were broken on the
wheel.”

In seventeen hundred and forty, as we find by a reference to
the same author, the Governor of Batavia, Valkanier, was guilty
of a still greater outrage, in order to get rid of a redundance of
population, which had begun to create suspicion and alarm. Dis-
appointed in not being able to extort a large sum of money from
the Chinese chiefs for permission to celebrate some particular
feast, the governor accused them of a treasonable plot against his
authority and life. The Chinese chief, whom he chose to desig-
nate as the leader of the conspiracy, was dragged to the stadt-
house, where the most horrid torture was employed for the pur-
pose of extorting from him the confession of a crime which he
never thought of ; and at the same time five hundred of his coun-
trymen were cast into prison, where they were most inhumanly
butchered. About four hundred who fled to the hospital, a build-
ing of their own construction, shared the same fate. An indis-
criminate slaughter of the Chinese was' at the same time going on
in the streets, which literally ran with blood. Escape was im-
possible, as the gates were doubly guarded, and all the sailors had
been landed from the ships in the road, to assist in this horrid
tragedy ; in which neither age nor sex was spared. The timid
Chinese made no resistance, but, according to the Dutch account,
in their public records, “ suffered themselves to be led as sheep to
the slaughter.” The number stated to have perished is com-
puted in the same records to be twelve thousand souls ! A day
was immediately set apart by the governor as a public thanks-
giving to the God of mercy, for their happy deliverance from the
hands of the heathen !

In seventeen hundred and ninety-two, the English embassy to
Cochin China stopped at Batavia for several days. Mr. Barrow
was of the party, and he gives a melancholy account of the broken
spirit of the Javan chiefs and people, the native lords of the island.

1832.]

ISLAND OP JAVA.

273

He represents their state and condition as by no means enviable.
Sunk into the lowest stage of apathy, they seemed to be utterly
incapable of any great exertions. “ Their princes are prisoners
to a handful of Dutchmen, and the landholders are slaves to the
princes.” The ambassador and suite endeavoured to pay a visit
to the King of Bantam, but were prevented by a Dutch officer,
who commanded the fort in which he resided.

In seventeen hundred and ninety-seven the Americans began
to frequent the market of Batavia, and it was principally through
them that the trade was carried on till the conquest of the island
by the British, except during the short interval of the peace of
Amiens. From that time until eighteen hundred and fourteen,
during the existence of the odious “ orders in council,” and the
retaliating decrees of Milan and Berlin, the American trade was
carried on with Batavia to the greatest extent. Our adventurers
then purchased the Java coffee at a very low rate, and by a cir-
cuitous route carried it into the French ports, where they found a
ready market for it at an advance of one hundred per cent.

After Louis Bonaparte ascended the throne of Holland, in
eighteen hundred and six, he appointed Lieutenant-general Daen-
dels, whom he had previously loaded with well-deserved honours,
Governor-general of Batavia, who held that important office until
Java was taken by the British, in eighteen hundred and eleven.
During the administration of Daendels, whose liberal and en-
lightened policy did much for the moral regeneration of Batavia,
justice was distributed with a milder and more impartial hand ;
and if slavery was not abolished, through respect for private
property, the condition of that unfortunate class was greatly ame-
liorated. If commercial prosperity was not restored, the health
of the city was greatly improved, to the salvation of thousands of
human lives. That prisonhouse of contagion and pestilence,
which had been locked up for nearly two centuries, was now
thrown open to a free circulation of air ; and all such nuisances
removed, as were the obvious causes of disease. But more of
this in another chapter.

In the year eighteen hundred and eleven, Holland was united to
France, and the French flag was hoisted at Batavia ; and on the
eleventh of September, in the same year, the British government
was declared supreme in the Island of Java, by a proclamation

274

VOYAGE OF THE FOTOMAC.

[March,

of that date signed by the Earl of Minto, Governor-general of
Bengal. On the seventeenth of the same month a capitulation
was entered into, by which all the dependances fell into the bands
of Great Britain. But on the thirteenth of August, eighteen hun-
dred and fourteen, the whole were restored to the Dutch by treaty,
at the general pacification of Europe. The flag of the Nether-
lands was hoisted again at Batavia, on the nineteenth of August,
eighteen hundred and sixteen.

The Javans, as we have already stated, are Mahommedans.
Indeed, as early as the year fourteen hundred and twenty, during
the reign of Pangeran Trangana, the Moslem faith so far pre-
vailed, that a mosque had been completed, and the Hindoo idola-
tries almost entirely exploded. But the ruins of their ancient
temples are still to be seen, with thousands of antiquities and
inscriptions, which, no doubt, if correctly understood, would throw
much light on the early history of Java.

Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, who was for some time lieuten-
ant-governor of tlrat island and its dependances, and president of
the Society of Arts and Sciences at Batavia, published an excel-
lent history of that country in eighteen hundred and seventeen,
accompanied with a complete map and a quarto volume of plates,
illustrating the antiquities of the island, consisting of curious
specimens of sculpture on stone, and casts in brass ; the ruins of
temples, images, figures, inscriptions on stone and copper, tombs,
coins, &c., with copious scientific and plausible remarks on their
origin and purpose. We acknowledge ourselves indebted to this
work for many valuable facts, which could be obtained from no
other source.

On the whole there can be no doubt that the original inhab-
itants were of Hindoo origin, and that the religion of Mahom-
med was induced or forced upon them by the Arabs at the time
they carried their conquests to the eastern shores and islands of
Asia, overspreading those delightful regions like the locusts of
their own deserts. But notwithstanding they were compelled to
embrace a new religious faith, the Javans even to this day are
still devotedly attached to their ancient institutions, and retain a
high respect for the laws, usages, and national observances, which
prevailed before the introduction of Mahommedanism. And
though the Javans, in general, acknowledge that “ there is on©

1832.]

ISLAND OF JAVA.

275

God, and Mahommed was his prophet,” they are not much
acquainted with the tenets of the Moslem faith, and in fact care
very little about them. Although they practise the rites of the
faithful, yet all classes drink wine, and other inebriating liquors,
whenever they feel disposed ; and those who abstain are not ac-
tuated by any religious motives.

Not only the features, the manners, and the remains of the
civil and religious institutions of the Hindoos are still apparent
among the Javanese, but it is said that they have preserved the
fragments of a history, according to which they derive, their ori-
gin from Vishnoo. This history terminates with the account of
a dreadful deluge which swept away a vast portion of mankind.
In the interior of the island, it is well known that they still observe
a scrupulous abstinence from every kind of animal food, under
the old Hindoo idea of a transmigration of souls. They are in no
respects so strict in the religious observances of Mahommed as
they appeared to be when the Dutch first established themselves
on Java ; at that time the natives, including their princes, were in
the habit of making pilgrimages to Mecca, the birthplace of the
prophet. But this practice was kept in check as much as possi-
ble by the Dutch, as was also the admission of Arab mission-
aries ; not so much from any pious desire to promote Christianity
in opposition to the Mahommedan faith, but to prevent the natives’
acquiring a character for sanctity, that might give them an im-
portance among themselves dangerous to the power and tranquillity
of the Dutch.*

But from whatever stock the Javans may have originally sprung

whether from the Hindoos, the Tartars, or, according to one of
their traditions, from a species of ape, their personal appearance

* “' The religion of the Javans is in general Mahommedan, but mingled with super-
stitious doctrines derived from the ancient pagan worship. The Javans, however,
are far from bigots to their religion, as other Mahommedans generally are. They
are mild and tractable by nature, and although they do not easily forget or forgive an
injury, they would be a quiet, well-disposed people under good laws and a mild gov-
ernment. The murders and other crimes which are now committed in some places,
are to be attributed more to the present faulty administration than to any bad dispo-
sitions m the people. The same may be remarked of the indolence and indilference
which now characterize them. Property in the land, with personal and commercial
freedom and security, would soon render them industrious.'” — Hogendorp’s Memoir
m Java, 1800.

270

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[March,

may be stated in a few words. In stature they are rather below
the middle size, well shaped, and erect in their figures ; with
hands, feet, wrists, and ankles remarkably small. An instance
of deformity is scarcely known among them ; though females, in
the arrangement of their toilet, often injure the luxuriant symmetry
of the bust, by drawing that part of the dress too tightly over the
bosom. The colour of their skin is a deep brown, inclining to
yellow. Their bards and lyric poets compliment their mistresses
as having complexions of “ virgin gold.” The forehead is high
and smooth ; the eyebrows well defined and arched, and not too
near to the eyes, which are generally black and prominent. The
nose is not very protuberant, but rather broad and somewhat flat-
tened ; the cheek bones are unusually prominent. The mouth is
well formed, the upper lip a little projecting, not much thickened,
but highly arched. They have but little beard, and the hair of
their head is generally lank and black ; though it is sometimes
seen waving in curls, and partially tinged with a deep reddish
brown. The tout-ensemble of the person is pleasing, and the
countenance is mild, placid, and thoughtful ; easily varying to ex-
press respect, gayety, earnestness, indifference, bashfulness, or
anxiety. They have a firm steady gait, and seem to feel, at least
to affect, a superiority over the other inhabitants of the island.
They anoint the head, face, and other parts of the body which
are exposed to the view, with a composition of cocoanut oil and
sandal-wood dust, as a preventive against a too copious perspira-
tion, and the biting of moschetoes and other annoying insects.

The women, as usual among demi-barbarians, in general are
not so good looking as the men ; and when advanced in years,
are actually ugly, according to our standard of female beauty.
This circumstance, however, as regards the lower classes, is in a
great measure owing to the severe duties which they have to
perform in the field, exposed to a sultry climate, carrying heavy
burdens, &c. The higher orders, who are exempt from such
drudgery, and kept within doors, are often beautiful in youth, and
comely at all periods of life.

The dress of the Javanese is like that we have already de-
scribed in our account of Sumatra, and is, in fact, common to all
classes in the Archipelago. The same kind of short drawers,
a close waistcoat without sleeves, the loose gown, and the sarongs

1832.]

ISLAND OF JAVA,

277

which is either worn slung over the shoulders as a sash, or tucked
round the waist and descending to the ankles, so as to enclose
the legs like a petticoat. The higher ranks sometimes display,
on particular occasions, an article somewhat like the sarong, but
much larger, and not united at the ends, which is worn in the
same way ; but from its size, and the manner of its being tucked
up, it assumes the form of drapery, which is peculiar to Java.
The females, also, vary very little in their dress from those of the
same rank in Sumatra. Both sexes, of all classes, wear rings on
their fingers.

But like the Sumatrans, a Javan is not considered dressed
without his hris, or dagger. This weapon is believed to have
been first introduced into the oriental islands by Panji, a Javanese
prince, who is supposed to have flourished about A. D. eight
hundred and twenty, and for whose name the Javanese have such
a reverence, that they represent him as an incarnation of Vishnoo ;
and some maintain that all the countries in which the kris is
now worn, acknowledged his supremacy. Another tradition
attributes the introduction of this weapon to Sa Putram, one of
the early Hindoo sovereigns, who is said to have come into the
world with a kris by his side. At all events, the Javans appear
to have a great reverence for this ancient weapon, and many un-
thinking writers have condemned them unheard, because “ they
invariably use the deadly kris." But the fact is, though sometimes
resorted to by the Javans, this weapon is worn by them almost
exclusively as a personal ornament, especially when in full dress,
as small swords are worn at every court in Christendom.

The children of the lower orders go naked, from the age of
fifteen or eighteen months to six or seven years. Females some-
times wear rings or bracelets round the w'rist, chains about the
neck, and chaplets of flowers in the hair, which is generally done
up in a knot, with an appendage of large studs, either of buffalo-
horn or brass, which they use for ear-rings. The dress of females
of rank does not in fashion differ essentially from that of the
lower orders ; but the fabrics are of finer texture and richer qual-
ity ; gold studs and rings, and ornamented precious stones, being
substituted for those of inferior metals. Both sexes of the higher
classes wear sandals, shoes, or slippers, in the house. Neither
sex cut their hair, but allow it to grow to its natural length;

278

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[Marclij

whereas, the Malays and Bugis always wear it short. The men
generally gather it up on the crown of the head, twist it round,
and fasten it by means of a semicircular tortoise-shell comb fixed
in front ; but among the higher classes it generally flows in curls,
which is considered as a mark of respect in presence of a su-
perior. All classes anoint their hair with oils and “ precious
ointments,” as is the custom with all oriental nations ; they also
perfume their dresses, and are addicted to the use of musk. In
the houses of the higher orders, they are in the habit of burning
incense of benjamin and other odoriferous gums. The dress of
the priests is white, with turbans on their heads, after the fashion
of the Arabs. The court-dress and war-dress vary in many
respects from that of the common inhabitants.

In common with the Sumatrans and other inhabitants of the
Archipelago, both sexes of all ranks adhere to the singular and
painful custom of filing and blackening the teeth, as they consider
it disgraceful to have white teeth like dogs and monkeys. The
object of filing, it seems, is to make the front teeth concave, and
more susceptible of the black die. This cruel and barbarous
custom, which generally takes place at the age of eight or nine
years, tends to destroy the teeth at a very early period of life,
although it is said that their rapid decay is not attended with
any pain.

The character of the Javans is generally amiable ; we allude to
the middling classes, who have not been corrupted by indulgence
on the one hand, or spirit-broken and stripped by oppression on
the other. They are a generous and warm-hearted people. In
their domestic relations they are said to be kind, affectionate,
gentle, and contented ; in their public ones they are obedient,
honest, and faithful. In their intercourse with society they dis-
play, in a high degree, the virtues of honesty, plain dealing, and
candour. They are ingenuous almost to a fault, and their sim-
plicity and credulity are proverbial. Had this not been a promi-
nent feature in their character, the Arabs would not so easily have
laid the yoke of Mahommed upon their necks. They easily be-
come the dupes of any religious fanatic, and credit, without
scruple or examination, his claim to superior powers. They are
ever prone to be influenced by omens, to prognostics, to prophets,
and to quacks. They are great observers of lucky or unlucky

1832.]

ISLAND OF JAVA.

279

days, and regulate the time of an enterprise or a journey accord-
ingly. Eclipses, earthquakes, and other phenomena of nature,
fill them continually with superstitious fears and unnecessary
alarms.

The Javans are conspicuous for the amiable qualities of social
order, politeness, hospitality, and temperance. They are a sort
of patriarchal people, still retaining many of the virtues, and all
the simplicity, which distinguish that state of society. Their
village settlements constitute detached societies, in which the
greatest internal concord prevails, all its members paying due
respect and deference to their local chief and priest. This patri-
archal spirit is further manifested in the almost instinctive venera-
tion which they pay to age, experience, rank, and superior attain-
ments. In manners they are easy and courteous, and respectful
even to timidity ; but they have a great sense of propriety, and
are never rude or abrupt. In their deportment they are pliant and
graceful, the higher ranks carrying with them a considerable air
of fashion and elegance.

Hospitality has always been celebrated as an oriental virtue,
some affecting instances of which are recorded in sacred as well
as profane history. But in no country are its rites and duties
more strictly enjoined by institutions, or more conscientiously and
religiously observed by custom and practice, than by the Javans.
By the custom of the country, good food and lodging are ordered
to be provided for all strangers and travellers arriving at a village.
But the Javan institutions go still further. “ It is not sufficient,”
say they, “ that a man should place good food before his guest;
he is bound to do more ; he should render the meal palatable by
kind words and treatment, to sooth him after his journey, and to
make his heart glad while he partakes of the refreshment.” This
is the refinement of hospitality.

The Javans are remarkably temperate in their diet, which forms
a great contrast with that of their oppressors, the indolent and
luxurious Dutch. A principal part of their food consists of rice,
sometimes fried in oil, and sometimes boiled in plain water, with
which are used a few capsules or heads of capsicum or cayenne
pepper, . and some salt, to render it a little more palatable.
With animal food the Javans are generally unacquainted, and of
milk they are very sparing, except the vegetable milk of the cocoa-

280 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [Marcllj

nut. They are a sober people, although Europeans, in order to
serve their own purposes, by inducing some of the chiefs- to drink
wine to excess, have partially succeeded in corrupting the habits
of some individuals in this respect. The use of opium, it must
be confessed with regret, is too prevalent among them.

Though not much addicted to excess, and of rather a moderate
temperament, they are, in general, expensive according to their
means, seldom hoarding their wealth, or betraying a penurious
disposition. Fond of show and pomp, they lay out all their spare
money in dress and equipage. They are proud to a fault, if we
may take the Dutch testimony for the fact ; and not only so, but
if one be a person of rank, or in affluent circumstances, he is, on
such testimony, “ superstitious, proud, jealous, vindictive, mean,
and slavish towards his superiors — but haughty and despotic
towards his inferiors.” We have reason to dissent from this
opinion ; and also from that expressed by Jono de Barros, who
says, the “Javans are so proud, that they think all mankind their
inferiors ; so that if a Javan were passing along the street, and
saw a native of any other country standing on any hillock or place
raised higher than the ground on which he was walking, if any
such person did not immediately come down until he should have
passed, the Javan would kill him, for he will permit no person to
stand above him ; nor would a Javan carry any weight or burden
on his head, even if they should threaten him with death.”

This we take to be the romance of early travellers and wonder-
makers. That the Javans have pride, we are sensible ; but we
must have stronger evidence than we yet possess, to believe that
it was ever carried to such ridiculous excess. “ Their nation-
ality,” says Raffles, “ which is very strong, although it delights in
the traditionary narratives of ancient Javan exploits, and supports
a hope of future independence, which they are not backward to
express, does not lead them to despise the character, or to under-
value the acts of strangers.” It is true, that those of the higher
ranks esteem it disgraceful to be engaged in trade ; but the com-
mon people are industrious in their several callings, and the chiefs
are ever ready to encourage the labours of agriculture.

On the whole, the Javans are a mild, quiet, and domestic
people, justly proud of their ancestors, and, like the Jews, are
confidently looking forward to the fulfilment of some traditionary

1832.]

ISLAND OF JAVA.

281

expectation of being restored to their former magnificence and
power. They are, however, very little given to adventure or
foreign enterprise, not easily roused to violence or bloodshed, and
little disposed to irregularities of any kind. The character of ,
treachery and revenge, so justly applicable to the Malays, by no
means applies to the Javans.

The character of Javanese females has been represented in a
highly favourable light, as daughters, wives,, and mothers — alike
amiable and exemplary in all their domestic and social relations.
Raffles assures us that it is part of their domestic economy, that the
women of every family should spin and weave all the cloth neces-
sary for the apparel of the men ; and that this rule prevails, from
the first consort of the sovereign to the wife of the humblest.

“ Royal Penelopes each day resume
The curious labours of the mystic loom.”

In every cottage there is a spinning-wheel and a loom, and in
all ranks a man is accounted to pride himself on the beauty of a
cloth woven either by his wife, mistress, or daughter. These
occupations of the women are performed on an elevated veranda,
or kind of open portico, in front of their dwellings, where they
are protected from the rays of a vertical sun by an extended pro-
jection of the pitch of the roof, like many of the Dutch houses
in the United States.

The females of Java soon arrive at maturity, and entbr early
into the married state. They are considered marriageable at the
age of ten or twelve, and the. other sex at sixteen. There are
no pecuniary obstacles to these early conjugal connexions. The
conveniences which the young married couple require are few and.
easily procured. Subsistence is easily obtained, and even com-
forts are not wanting. If they be blessed with children, and we
have never heard of any exception, the latter are not long a
burden, but soon become the means of assistance, and ultimately
the source of wealth. Their food, clothing, and education, cost
them comparatively nothing. The women of all classes nurse
their own offspring, if we except the wives of the regents or the
sovereign. So that each fair Javanese matron, even in a pecuniary
point of view, may point to her children, and say with the mother
of the Gracchi — “ Behold my jewels !”

282

VOYAGE pF THE POTOMAC.

[March,

Marriage contracts are all made by the parents, relations, or
guardians, apparently without much respect to the inclinatipns or
tastes of the parties most immediately concerned. After the ne-
gotiation has advanced to a certain stage, the intended bridegroom
sends a present corresponding to his means to the bride elect, and
her acceptance of it renders the contract binding. Should the
lover, however, afterward evince any reluctance to fulfil his en-
gagement, the present is forfeited to his betrothed; but if she
express a similar disinclination, she is bound to return it to the
donor. A period of several weeks generally elapses between the
betrothing and the marriage, for which all parties are very careful
to select a lucky day. The marriage ceremony appears to be a
mere civil contract, liable to be dissolved on certain specified
contingences. After leaving the mosque, not forgetting to pay
the priest the marriage fees,* a procession is generally formed,
consisting of the new-married couple, with their parents and
relations, which moves through the town, attended by a band of
music and accompanied by the firing of cannon. A feast is given
in the evening at the house of the brides’ parents. Such festivi-
ties last sometimes for several days.

Notwithstanding the Javanese females marry at so early an
age, they generally continue to bear children until a late period
of life ; so that it is not uncommon for a mother to attend the ac-
couchement of her own grandmother. The wives of the Javans,
however, are not so prolific as many women of other countries ;
though instances are not wanting of one of them being the mother
of thirteen or fourteen. Half a dozen may be taken as an aver-
age ; but the early formation of new families is a continual check
to" the numerical increase of the parental household. An un-
married man, past the age of twenty, is seldom to be met with,
and an old maid is considered a rara avis in terra. The labour
of the women in Java is estimated almost as highly as that of the
men, and thus a married couple can maintain eight or ten persons ;
and as a family seldom exceeds half that number, they have com-

* According to strict Mahommedans, the priest’s marriage fee ought not to exceed
fifteen stivers. In most instances, however, they are raised to five times that sum
in money ; besides a fowl, a hank of cotton-yarn, four katis of rice, two cocoanuts,
fruit, &c. ’ There is very little in the ceremony conformable to the Mahommedaa
precepts. — Raffles' Java.

1832.]

ISLAND OF JAVAk

283

monly half of their earnings applicable for the purchase of little
comforts, for implements of agriculture, for clothing, and lodging.

We have said that the marriage contract was liable to be dis-
solved by certain contingences ; and perhaps there is no part of
the world where divorces are more frequent than on the Island
of Java. Whenever a woman becomes dissatisfied with her hus-
band, she may demand a dissolution of the marriage contract, by
paying him a sum established by custom, according to the rank of
the parties ; say from twenty to fifty dollars. It is true, the hus-
band is not bound to accept it ; but he is generally induced to do
so from a consideration that the opinions and customs of the
country require it ; that he could not be happy with a wife who
disliked him, &c. &c. A widow may marry again* at the expira-
tion of three months and ten days after the death of her husband.
Polygamy is of course permitted in Java by their religion, but is
not practised to any great extent. Public opinion is opposed to
it, and were it not, it is very seldom convenient for a man to have
more than one wife at a time.

The food of the Javans is very simple, being principally of a
vegetable character, of which rice is the most prominent article.
Still, however, fish, flesh, and fowl, are daily served up at their
meals, according to the circumstances of the parties. They eat
no amphibious animals, and abstain from pork, milk, butter, cheese,
and spirituous liquors. They eat the flesh of the buffalo, the
ox, the deer, the goat, and even the horse, when maimed or unfit
for service. Salt is obtained in abundance throughout every part
of the island, and sugar is made from the sap" of the palm-trees,
like the maple-sugar of our own country. In addition to these,
they eat salted eggs, white ants, and various species of those
worms which are so much esteemed by the Chinese, and are found
in teak and other trees. The cooking utensils are of the most
simple kind, being either of coarse pottery or copper. Rice is
boiled or steamed ; Indian corn is roasted in the ear; and they
have pastry and sweetmeats in profusion. They eat all their
meals on the ground, which is covered with a mat for that pur-
pose. They have but two meals a day, and sometimes a slight
lunch in the morning.

The amusements of the Javans are various, and all partake
more or less of their national characteristic simplicity. They

284

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[March,

consist principally of stated religious festivals, . and occasional
civic feasts, musical concerts, dancing, dramatic exhibitions, eques-
trian exercises, chivalry, tilting and tournaments, tiger-fighting,
together with a variety of games of skill and chance.

The musical instruments of the Javans, together with the va-
rious exhibitions which still form so essential a part of the popu-
lar amusements, are all supposed to have been introduced by
Panji, to whom is also attributed the introduction of the kris, as
before mentioned. These instruments' are peculiar in themselves,
and it requires from ten to fifteen to form a band. The general
principle on which the sounds are generated, is the vibration of
metallic bars, when, as manifested on a small scale in our music-
boxes, struck' with hammers. Among the tones produced are
some corresponding to those of the guitar, harmonica, musical
glasses, the spinet, and other stringed instruments ; the flagelet,
and the pandean reeds; together with tambarines, bells, trian-
gles, and the Chinese gong.

Many of the Javanese musical instruments, when played sep-
arately, produce very sweet, soft, and melodious sounds ; but it is
the unison and harmony of the whole united which gives to the
music of Java its peculiar character among Asiatics. However
■simple and monotonous their airs may appear when played by
themselves, with no accompaniment, they never tire on the ear
when performed by a full band ; and it is not unusual, on some
■occasions, for a band to continue their performances for days and
nights in succession. They have no written music, but play alto-
gether by the ear. The Javans say that the first music of yrhich
they have an idea was produced by the accidental admission of
the wind into a bamboo tube which was left hanging on a tree ;
the idea is poetical at least.

Dancing, with the Javans, as it is with the Asiatics in general,
•consists principally in graceful attitudes of the .body, and in the
slow movement of the limbs, particularly of the arms, even to the
hands and fingers. It is emphatically the “ poetry of motion.”
Feats of agility and muscular activity form no part of a Javanese
dance, which is a total stranger to pirouettes, and every other
caprice of the modern French school. The music is slow and
solemn, to which every motion of the dancer exactly corresponds,
and such movements as might become a holy oriental monarch

1832.]

ISLAND OF JAVA.

285

in dancing before the ark of his faith. To dance gracefully is
an accomplishment expected in every Javan of rank; and on days
of festivity, all the chiefs are accustomed to join in the exercise
alternately, commencing with the youngest.

Their dramatic entertainments are of two kinds ; the topeng,
wherein the characters are represented by men who generally
wear masks like the ancient Greek performers ; and the wayang,
in which they are represented by shadows, something like the
spectacular entertainments exhibited by Professor Martin. The
subject of the topeng is invariably taken from the life and adven-
tures of the celebrated Panji, the favourite hero of Javan story.
In the performances before the sovereign, where masks are not
worn by the actors, the several characters themselves rehearse
their parts ; but in general, the manager recites the speeches,
while the players have only to suit the action to the word. These
performances are somewhat melo-dramatic, as the music of a band
accompanies the piece, and varies in expression, according to the
nature of the action, or the kind of emotion to be executed. Buf-
foonery is sometimes introduced, as it is on our own stage, for the
sole purpose of raising a laugh ; but in Java, it is never suffered
to interfere with the regular course of the performance. The
actors are engaged by the night, for about ten rupees and a supper.

Jousts, tilts, or tournaments, constitute another favourite amuse-
ment of the Javans. They are generally exhibited before the sove-
reign on the great square fronting the palace, on which occasions all
the princes, nobles, and public officers are present, and the assem-
blage of the people is generally very great. The weapons with
which the champions perform their shamfights are blunted spears
and they themselves are mounted on horses richly caparisoned,,
with splendid trappings and housings, and go through their exer-
cises and feats with no little address and dexterity.

There are several other manly exercises to which the Javans-
are addicted ; among which we will 'merely name (our limits will
not permit a description) that of hunting the stag, which they pur-
sue on horseback, and kill with a spear and cutlass. They have
also a favourite national spectacle, often exhibited — which is a
combat between the buffalo and the tiger, in a large cage expressly
prepared for the purpose. It seldom fails that the buffalo is tri-
umphant ; and one buffalo has been known to destroy several full-

286

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC,

[March,

grown tigers in succession. A combat between two bulls is a
common amusement, as is also a contest between the ram and
wild-hog. Cockfighting, and other similar amusements, are
principally confined to the Malays, of whose character they are
certainly characteristic.

Among the games of skill in which the Javans indulge them-
selves, may be mentioned those of chess, backgammon, and
draughts, besides several minor ones, played on boards of a similar
construction. The throwing of dice and other games of chance
are numerous ; and betting is very common.

But though the Javans are fond of amusements, they seldom
permit them to interfere with the calls of duty and industry. The
Javans, by their ingenuity, application, and docility in working
under European direction, have made no inconsiderable progress
in many of the common arts and handicrafts appertaining to
civil life.

In Rafiles’s History of Java we find a list of thirty, for which
they have terms in their language, and in many of which they
are highly proficient : — viz., ironsmith and cutler, carpenter, kris-
sheath-maker, carver, spear-shaft-maker, mat-maker, turner, brush-
maker, stone-cutter, lime-maker, wayang-maker, musical instru-
ment-maker, brazier, coppersmith, goldsmith, potter, distiller,
bookbinder, weaver, cott "i-printer, dier, oil-maker, diamond-cut-
ter, paper-maker, tailor, embroiderer, seamstress, draftsman, painter,
and tooth-filer.

In constructing a habitation for himself and family, the Javan
is sufficiently expert for all the purposes required to accommodate
every rank, from the peasant to the prince. The cottage or hut
of the poor man, is invariably built on the ground, with the sleep-
ing-places a little elevated above the level of the floor, and accord
in simplicity with other parts of the dwelling. The sides or
walls are generally formed of bamboo, flattened and interwoven,
which also forms the partitions, if any such there be. The roof
is thatched, either with grass or palm-leaves. In the western
districts, where the materials are more easily obtained, the frames
are generally made of timber instead of bamboo, and the interior
of the building, as well as the front veranda, are raised about two
feet from the ground. They require no other light than what is
admitted by the door, as all their domestic operations are carried

1832.]

ISLAND OF JAVA.

287

on in the open air, and in that climate shade is more requisite than
shelter. In short, the cottage of the humblest Javanese peasant
presents a greater degree of convenience and comfort than those
of a similar class on continental India.

The dwellings of the petty chiefs are distinguished by having
eight slopes, or roofs ; four superior, and four secondary ; and
those in which the chiefs and nobles reside are of larger size,
with supporters and beams of timber. Such light structures as
those just described, are well adapted to the climate and the
means of the lower orders ; but they do not necessarily imply an
ignorance of more durable materials ; for bricks are manufactured
in almost every part of the island ; while the ruins of temples,
and other antiquities of the country, afford abundant testimony
that the arts of architecture, sculpture, and statuary in stone, at
one period reached a very high pitch in Java.

The palace of a Javanese prince or sultan, which is in fact a
rectangular fort or castle, comprises an extensive square, sur-
rounded by a high wall, lined on the top with cannon, outside of
which there is generally a moat or ditch. Both in front and rear
there is a large open square for promenades, and the exercise of
feats of arms and horsemanship. Its interior is handsomely
finished and tastefully furnished.

The furniture of the houses or cottages of the lower orders is
of course simple, and comprises but few pieces, and those such as
necessity demands. Like the Sumatrans, they attach more im-
portance to the bed than to any other article of convenience, com-
fort, or luxury. W e like their taste ; for the couch of repose ' is
the sweet requiter of the toils and the sorrows of the day : “ let
that give peace, and we forget the rest.”

“ Impartial as the grave,

Sleep robs the cruel tyrant of his power,

Gives rest and freedom to the o’erwrought slave.

And steals the wretched beggar from his want.” — Linno.

If the spirit of ornament enter the cot of a Javan at all, it lights
first on his bed — for the hand of fond, confiding, and devoted
woman, can always there be traced. The bed of a Javan, what-
ever be his pecuniary circumstances, is a fine mat (and sometimes
several piled upon each other), with a number of pillows, taste-
fully fringed at the ends, together with a kind of canopy and val-

288 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [March,

ance of variegated colours over the head. Such a bed is fit for
a prince. Tables, chairs, &c., are not wanted, as they always sit
cross-legged on a mat like’ the Turks, and generally convey the
food to their mouths with the thumb and finger. Knives are un-
necessary, except for carving. The houses of the higher classes
are furnished more conveniently, and, of course, more expensively.
Some even indulge in the luxury of tables, chairs, and looking-
glasses, in imitation of the European settlers on the island.

But the Javans not only knowhow to build habitations suitable
to their wants, and to furnish them comfortably, but they also
know how to manufacture many conveniences and luxuries, for
which they are indebted to their own ingenuity and industry ; —
such, for instance, as cutlery, bricks, thatch, mats, cotton, cloths,
dies, leather, cordage, paper, salt, saltpetre, gunpowder, &c.
They likewise fell trees, hew timber, make boats, build ships, and
work in various kinds of metals. . Their fisheries are very in-
geniously and profitably conducted ; and their markets are well
supplied with these treasures of the deep, both fresh and salt ; as
they are also with poultry, meat, vegetables, &c.

Agriculture is an art in which the Javans are all, more or less,
interested ; as rice is not only their principal diet, but a conspic-
uous article in the export commerce of the island. They have
been called, and are emphatically, “ a nation of husbandmen
and the whole island is a great agricultural garden. All its wealth
is drawn from its soil, the produce of which answers every pur-
pose in Java that money does in other countries. Rice, however,
is the grand staple of the island, and to the cultivation of this,
every other species of husbandry is subordinate. It is seen in
vast fields gilding the slopes of mountains, smiling on level plains,
and lining most valleys with the freshest verdure — gracefully
waving to the fragrant breeze —

“ Blushing and shrinking, like a bashful nymph,

From fickle Zephyr’s soft and amorous sighs,

But blessing, with the sweetest snlile, the god
Who WOOS her in the shape of mountain rill.”

Rice cannot flourish without water, and the hill-sides of Java
generally furnish it with a plentiful supply ; and where this is not
the case, artificial irrigation is easily substituted at very little

1832.]

I.SLAND OF JAVA

289

labour or expense. But the prospect is not confined to, or
limited by, rice-fields alone ; it is occasionally relieved by corn-
fields of yellow maize, and enclosures of palma christi, cotton,
tobacco, indigo, sugarcane, coffee-plants, pepper-vines, and wheat ;
frequently interspersed with gardens rich in vegetables of almost
every description.*

A cultivator requires but little farming stock ; a pair of buffa-»-
loes, or a yoke of oxen ; a number of sheep, goats, fowls, &c.,-
with a few rude implements of husbandry, comprise the whole.
The buffalo, like the ox,- “ lends his patient shoulder to the yoke,”
and becomes very useful in ploughing and other agricultural ex-
ercises where strength is requisite. He is of smaller size than
the buffalo of Sumatra, but he is also a strong, tractable animal, -
capable of long and continued exertion when not unreasonably
exposed to the heat of the mid-day sun. Though sensitively shy
of Europeans — and we do not wonder at it — he submits to be
managed by the smallest child of the family in which he is do-
mesticated. He is instinctively partial to the golden teint of a
Javan’s skin, though he himself is either white or black ; those of
the latter hue, being of larger size, are generally considered supe-
rior to the other. Either from the luxuriance of the pastures, the
greater care of the keepers, or a climate more congenial to their
nature, both the buffalo and the ox appear in much better condition
on the Island of Java, than they do in Sumatra or any other part
of India. But though the ox thrives well, the cows do not, being
a degenerate breed, affording little or no milk beyond what is
barely sufficient for the nourishment of the calf. They also boW
their necks to the yoke of labour, in imitation of their oppressed
masters.

With respect to commerce, the Javans, like every other half

*■ “ Nothing can be conceived more beautiful to the eye, or more gratifying to the'
imagination, than the prospect of hill and dale, of rich plantations and fruit-trees
or forests, of natural streams and artificial currents, which presents itself to the eye'
in several of the eastern and middle provinces, at some distance from the coast. In
some parts of Kedu, Banywmas, Semarang, Pasuruan, and Malang, it is difficult to
say whether the admirer of landscapes or the cultivator of the ground will be most
gratified by the view. The whole country, as seen from mountains of considerable
elevation, appears a rich, diversified, and well-watered garden, animated with
villages, interspersed with the most luxuriant fields, and covered with the freshest
verdure.”— Java.

290

VOYAGE OE THE POTOMAC.

[March,

civilized, half savage people, are limited in their knowledge of
those arcana on which alone its success and prosperity generally
depend ; and were this not the case, they would stand but little
chance in competition with the Dutch colonists, who directly or
indirectly command all the resources of the island. The Javans
were by nature intended for a mercantile people ; and, in obedi-
ence to her dictates, they opened, at a very early period, a com-
mercial intercourse with merchants of the continent for the inter-
change of articles, to supply their mutual wants ; the manufactures
of India and China being received in payment for the natural
productions of Java. To this intercourse, and to the fertility of
the soil, which soon rendered the island an agricultural country,
may be attributed the high degree of civilization and of advance-
ment in the arts, which it is evident it once attained ; for the arts
and sciences ever follow in the train of commerce.

“ Gay commerce waved her flag, her sails unfurled,

And dove-eyed science civilized the world.” — Fay.

Japora, a seaport on the northeast of the island, with a good
harbour, was the capital of a considerable kingdom when the
Dutch first established themselves at Java. At that time three
hundred merchant vessels, none of which were less than two
hundred tons, were accustomed to sail to and from that port alone.
Like every thing else, this trade also fell into the hands of the
all-grasping Dutch colonists ; and from that period may be dated
the decline and fall of Javanese commerce. No doubt that it had
been carried on principally in foreign bottoms, and under different
fliags. So much the better; the Javans were never intended for
daring maritime adventurers, but for a quiet agricultural people ;
and their country has long been considered as the granary of the
eastern islands.*

The native internal and coasting trade of the Javans is still
considerable. The produce and manufactures of the country are
conveyed from one district to another, and to the principal sea-

* “ They contented themselves with enjoying all the advantages of a trade in which
they incurred no chance of loss ; and thus, though their own country yielded neither
gold nor jewels, they are said to have been plentifully supplied with these and other
valuable articles on their own shores, in exchange for the produce of their tranqufl
industiy and their fertile soil.” — Raffles' History of Java.

1832.]

ISLAND OF JAVA.

291

ports, both by water and land-carriage, as good roads and navi-
gable streams intersect each other throughout the island in many
and various directionsi Bazaars, or public markets, are estab*-
lished at convenient sites in every district, and are held several
times a week. At these markets, which in Europe would be
called fairs, are frequently assembled some thousands of people,
chiefly of the softer sex, on whom devolves the duty — would it
were not so— of conveying thither the various productions of the
country < Sheds, shanties, and other temporary coverings of
bamboo or thatch, are generally prepared for the accommodation
of the people, to protect them from the rays of the sun. Re*
freshments of every kind, including victuals ready cooked, and
comprising most of the fruits and vegetables of the country,
occupy a considerable space in the fair, and find a ready sale.

There are many articles imported into Java from other islands in
the Archipelago, among which are — camphire, tortoise-shell, edible
birds’-nests, hiche de mer, bees’-wax, and gold-dust. These are
exchanged for opium, iron, steel, tobacco, rice, salt, European and
India goods, &c. Here are also collected, at the principal ports,
for re-exportation, Banca tin, gold-dust, diamonds, camphire, gum-
benjamin, and other drugs, birds’-nests, hiche de mer, rattans, bees’-
wax, tortoise-shell, dying woods, sandal-wood, nutmegs, cloves,
mace, and other spices.

The government of the Javans, when administered on its origh
nal principles, is a pure, unmixed, and absolute despotism. The
sovereign, or sultan, appoints subordinate and delegated governors
to preside aver the several provinces ; and these, like their master,
though tenacious of power, are ever willing to surrender it for
ease and pleasure. Their prime minister, or vizier, is the actual
ruler of the country, while the sultan is satisfied with flattery,
pomp, and the seraglio. The same remark will apply to the pro*
vincial governors, who all have their subordinates on a small scale.
The people and the soil are in fact the property of the sovereign,
but his right in this respect is not generally exercised and there
are customs of the country, of which the people are very tenacious',
and which the sultan seldom invades. Yet he being considered as
the sole proprietor of the soil, all lands are held of him, under
the tenure of military service, and a certain proportion of their

T 2

292

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[March,

produce. But since the sultan and his delegates are all more or
less subordinate to the Dutch colonial government, the cultivators
of the soil are made to feel the evil of a multiplicity of masters.
The several chiefs not only oblige the peasantry to cultivate par-
ticular articles suitable for exportation, but take from them such
portion af the produce as will not only liquidate their own tribute,
but also meet the terms of their agreement with the Dutch.
Formerly they exacted one half of the produce, byway of rent,
but they are now said to demand at least two thirds of the crop.
Pepper and coffee are the two principal articles that are required
to be cultivated, as best suiting the purpose of the Dutch, to whom
they are delivered by the Javanese princes at a low rate. The
doctrines of the Koran are the laws of the land ; while the
executive and judicial powers are exercised by the same indi-
vidual.

Since the whole island has submitted to the Dutch supremacy,
the military spirit which formerly characterized the Javans has
gradually subsided. By the existing treaties between the Dutch
and the native princes, the latter are restricted to the number of
troops which they may maintain. Those of the sultan are limited
to a body-guard of one thousand men. Such further number as
may be requisite for the tranquillity of the country, the European
government undertakes to furnish. Before the sultan was under
this restriction, he used to raise such force as he wanted by a
requisition upon the government of each province, for a specified
quota ; in the same manner as the President of the United States
calls on the several states when the militia are required to act in
the defence of the nation. Thus, in a country like Java, where
every man wears a hris, or dagger, and where the spear or pike
is the principal military weapon, an army was easily collected in
a few days. The gatherings of the Highland . clans in Scotland
were never effected with much greater facility.

The naval power of the Javans was at one period quite formi-
dable. Previous to the arrival of the Dutch, warlike expeditions,
consisting of many hundred vessels, are often reported to have
been fitted out against Borneo, Sumatra, and the peninsula. But
the sun of her naval glory is eclipsed.

Of the literature of the Javans, our limits will not permit us

1832.]

ISLAND OF JAVA.

293

to say much. Like most of the orientals, they think in poetry,
and consequently cannot fail to speak and act it. Their prog-
ress in the hne arts has been limited and retarded by obvious
circumstances ; but with proper culture. Heaven has endowed
them with sufficient mental faculties for any thing. Our allotted
course, however, compels us to leave this interesting people, and
pay our respects to the citizens of civilized Batavia.

294

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[March,

CHAPTER XVI.

Bay and City of Batavia^Eorrner Commerce, Wealth, and Magnificence — Unex-
pected Reverses — Description of the City — Cause of its Unhealthiness — Im-
provements by Marshal Daendels — Beauty of the Environs — ^Villas and Roads —
Blue Mountains — Village of Buitenzorg — Ruins of Pajajaran — Population of Ba-
tavia— Number and Condition of the Slaves — Chinese Industry and Festivals —
Balians, Javans, and other Classes — Dutch Population — Frightful Mortality —
Health of the City improved — Biographical Sketch of Daendels — European Prov-
inces of Java — Native Provinces — Total Population — Face and Appearance of the
Country — Mountains, Volcanoes, and Minerals — Rivers, Climate, Soil, and vege-
table Productions — The Bohun Upas — Origin of the Fable — Poison made from the
Sap of the Anchar— Animal Productions — Commerce, Revenue, and Political
State of the Country.

The city of Batavia stands at the head of the spacious bay in
which the Potomac now lay at anchor ; the numerous islands by
which the shipping is sheltered, rendering it one of the finest
harbours in the world. It is a remarkable fact, that during the.
long period it has been in the possession of the Dutch, not a vessel
has ever been lost in the roads. The capacity of Batavia Bay is
sufficient to contain almost any number of vessels ; and its waters
have often supported, at one time, an almost impenetrable forest
of foreign masts. The principal islands that surround it are
those which bear the names of Onrust, Purmerent, Kuiper, and
Edam ; most of which are clothed with trees. On the first are
the naval arsenal, dock-yard, storehouses, saw-mills, and workr
shops of the artificers. This is the great marine depot, where
ships, when they require repairs, are hove down by cranes erected
on the wharves, It is a busy, bustling place, and abounds with
inhabitants.

Batavia, as before mentioned, was founded in the year sixteen
hundred and nineteen, and rose rapidly into importance on account
,of its excellent harbour, and its advantageous position for Euro-
pean and oriental commerce. Nor was it without reason that the
Dutch selected this spot for the capital of their new empire in
the east. In adverting to this subject, Adam Smith thus expresses
himself : — “ What the Cape of Good Hope is between Europe

1832.]

ISLAND OF JAVA.

295

and every part of the East Indies, Batavia is between the principal
countries of the East Indies. It lies upon the most frequented
road from Hindostan to China and Japan, and is nearly about
midway on that road. Almost all the ships, too, that sail between
Europe and China, touch at Batavia ; and it is, over and above all
this, the centre and principal resort of what is called the country
trade of the East Indies ; not only of that part of it which is
carried on by Europeans, but of that which is carried on by the
native Indians ; and vessels navigated by the inhabitants of China
and Japan, of Tonquin, of Malacca, of Cochin China, and the
Island of Celebes, are frequently to be seen in its port. Such
advantageous situations have enabled these (wo colonies to sur-
mount all the obstacles which the oppressive genius of an exclu-
sive company may have occasionally opposed to their growth ;
they have enabled Batavia to surmount the additional disadvantage
of, perhaps, the most unwholesome climate in the world.”

During the eighteenth century, Batavia was deemed the finest
European settlement in all Asia ; and although justly considered
unhealthy, from circumstances purely local, its wealth, trade, and
commercial splendour procured for it the titles of “ Queen of
the East,” and the “ Tyre of the Oriental Archipelago.” It was
doubtless at the climax of its glory at the breaking out of the
French revolution; and continued to retain that pre-eminence
until nearly the close of the century. But the various European
wars which successively grew out of, or flowed from that tremen-
dous event, produced effects which were ultimately felt at the
remotest corners of the globe.

The same extraordinary state of things which gave such an
unparalleled onward impulse to the mercantile enterprise of the
United States, partially paralyzed that of every foreign competitor.
Those were the “ golden days” of our commercial prosperity ;
and Columbia might have exclaimed, with Lady Macbeth —

“ That which hath made them drunk, hath made me bold,

What hath quenched them hath given me fire.”

Batavia, however, had not very sensibly felt the effects of those
devastating conflicts in seventeen hundred and ninety-three. But
soon after the invasion of Holland by the French, in the begin-
ning of seventeen hundred and ninety-five, when the stadtholder

296 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [March,

and his family took refuge in England, it was plainly perceived
in Europe that the political troubles of the mother country must
sooner or later very sensibly affect the commercial interests of
her colonies in the east. But they, luxurious and indolent, were
the last to perceive the impending evil ; they forgot that the sun of
their prosperity might not always remain unobscured by a cloud ;
while their proud city seemed to say in her heart, “ I sit as a
queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow” — until it came
upon them like the suffocating sirocco of Syria, to the sudden
prostration and almost total annihilation of their commerce. The
roads of Batavia became nearly deserted by shipping, while trade
and business of all kinds were at a complete stand. Population
declined in a corresponding ratio; of which some idea may be
formed from the fact, that in seventeen hundred and ninety-three,
the city and immediate suburbs of Batavia contained, of all
classes, a grand total of one hundred and fifteen thousand nine
hundred and sixty souls ; while, by a census of eighteen hundred
and fifteen, the whole population was less than sixty thousand.

A more eligible site, in a commercial point of view, could not
have been selected for the city of Batavia, than the one on which
it stands ; nor could a worse one have been chosen on account
of health. Towhg.tever section of the globe the Dutch emigrate,
it has always been their endeavour to make the tastes and preju-
dices of their faderland assimilate with the soil and climate of
their new location. There were certainly some insurmountable
obstacles to the indulgence of this propensity on the elevated
banks of the Hudson ; but the temptation which presented itself
on the low marshy shores of the Jacatra, in Java, proved to be
irresistible. Here was a glorious opportunity for the display of
dikes and canals, and they eagerly seized upon the facilities. It
was an extended level of rich alluvions land, with a copious river
serpentining through it, with so indolent a current that it could be
diverted from its original course, and conducted in any direction
at pleasure. This river has its rise in the Blue Mountains, about
fifty miles south of the bay, into w'hich it empties ; its mouth
abounding with sharks and alligators, the latter having been known
to upset boats, and devour the unfortunate inmates.

The first operation of the colonists appears to have been to
divide the stream of the Jacatra into two branches, sufficiently

1832.]

ISLAND OP JAVA.

297

separated to leave a spot of ground between them large enough
for the site of their projected city. These branches were again
united below, and the insulated space enclosed with a quadran-
gular wall of coral rock, twenty feet in height, flanked with twenty
redoubts for the mounting of cannon. Four great gates on each
side opened upon drawbridges, which led to the suburbs. The
citadel, or castle, was erected on the north side of the city, with-
out the walls, but surrounded by a wall of its own about thirty
feet in height. This fortress was flanked by four bastions, the
names of which are indicative of the vain-glorious affectation of
their sponsors — ^the Diamond, the Pearl, the Sapphire, and the
Ruby. But let it not be inferred that these precious appellations
corresponded with the building materials, which were nothing but
calcareous coral rock, and the indurated lava of some crater
among the mountains. The walls of the citadel included the
residence of the governor-general, the chapel, and most of the
public offices.

The coral rock for these works was brought from some of the
neighbouring islands, as there is no stone of any kind to be found
for many miles or in any direction around the city. The marble
and granite used in the public edifices, were brought hither from
China. But the patient Dutch think nothing of such importations.
New-York was first built with bricks from Holland. Bricks also
are liberally used in Batavia, but they are manufactured on the
island. A part of the town wall is built of dense lava, from the
central mountains of Java.

Many of these useless high walls, enclosing natural laboratories
of pestilential miasmata, have been removed by orders of the late
Governor-general Daendels ; who, during his short administration,
did much and projected more for improving the health of Batavia,
as well as facilitating internal intercourse and native* trade throughi.
out the whole island. That the health of Batavia at the period
of the Potomac’s visit was such ks to warrant the commodore’s
removing the frigate to an anchorage nearer to the city, and himself
and officers daily visiting their friends on shore, is mainly attribu-
table to the changes and alterations effected by the liberal policy
of Marshal Daendels ; and had his administration continued until
his great conceptions had all been realized, Java would have had
reason to honour him as a philanthropist and a public benefactor.

298

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[March,

It was he who established the new cantonment at Weltervreden,
about three miles east of the city, and removed the troops thither,
being convinced that the great labour and vast wealth which had
been expended on the castle of Batavia were worse than thrown
away, as far as health and life are concerned. The large and
commodious citadel was therefore abandoned ; and the health of
the troops at Weltervreden, where they have since continued,
honours the sagacity of the governor.

But notwithstanding these heterodox innovations in the costume
of the “ Queen of the East,” the city of Batavia still greets the
eye of a stranger with many attractive beauties, which become
more pleasing as he approaches it. Its form, we mean the ground
plan, is an oblong square, and the streets are laid out in a corre-
sponding manner, crossing each other at right angles. Each street
has its canal in the centre, the sides of which are faced with
smooth stone walls, rising in parapets on the two .margins, eighteen
inches or two feet above the level of the street. A row of trees,
dressed in perpetual verdure, which is in most cases mingled with
fragrant blossoms and odoriferous flowers, runs parallel with the
canal on each side of it, and about six feet from its margin. Along
this shady promenade of two yards in width, there formerly stood,
“ in olden time” as we are informed, pleasant little arbours or
pavilions, at convenient distances, where the luxurious burghers
used to sit with their friends in the cool of the evening to enjoy
their pipes, drink their beer, and muse upon the wealth, strength,
and magnificence of their high-walled city ; each one at the same
time inhaling a sufficient quantity of marsh miasmata to send
■AX\unaclimoted American to his long home.

The street on each side of the canal is from thirty to sixty feet
in width, and is a fine gravelled road, lined on the opposite side
near the footpath with a corresponding row of shady and flowering
trees. This is the general carriage-way for wheeled vehicles of
every description, horses, cattle, &c. The flagged sidewalk, or
trottoir, is about six feet in breadth ; so that the whole width of
the Batavian streets, including the canal, carriage-ways, and side-
walks, varies from thirty-eight to sixty-eight yards. There were
said to be twenty such streets in the city in seventeen hundred
and ninety-three, with about thirty stone bridges over the canals.
The style of architecture is, generally speaking, that of the Nether-

1832.]

ISLAND OP JAVA.

299

lands, the houses being principally of one story, with high walls.
But there are some pleasing exceptions 5 as Batavia contains
many buildings which may lay claim to' architectural taste and
elegance. The stadt-house, churches, Mahommedan mosque,
and Chinese temple, are all worthy of a stranger’s inspection.

We wonder not that the Dutch were prone to boast of Batavia,
in the brightest days of its commercial prosperity. They were
just the people to be proud of such a city. With what conde-
scending self-complacency would a high born-burgher then act as
a chaperon to his European guest! He would point out as a
master-piece of elegance in its design, the large octagon church,
with its magnificent and fine-toned organ ; its pulpit of teak-
wood ; its curious carving and laborious workmanship ; and with
affected nonchalance mention that it cost a mere trifle, eighty
thousand pounds 1 Then would follow the citadel, the stadt-
house, the governor’s mansion and chapel, the Lutheran and Por-
tuguese churches, the mosque, the pagoda, the spin-house, the
infirmary, the orphan-house, the market, and some of the burghers
dwellings, the canals, the city gates, the drawbridges, and the
suburbs. The European would doubtless be dazzled, and in-
clined to envy his hospitable host, the luxurious Batavian.

But a very few days’ experience, and a more critical inves-
tigation would convince the startled stranger that this fair city
—this boasted mart of the world — this great emporium of ori-
ental commerce — was but a garnished sepulchre, — a splendid
iazar-house, teeming with contagion, pestilence, and death. Such
was pre-eminently the case in the days of its brightest glory
and proudest magnificence! How could it be otherwise?

Look at its position ! So near the equator, — surrounded on all
sides by stagnant waters, fens, bogs, and oozy ditches— every
street intersected by canals, bordered with trees, into which every
description of filth was thrown, with vegetable and animal re-
mains, there to undergo decomposition in the sun, or find their
tardy way to the sea, by channels which had scarcely any current !*

* Independent of their noxious and unwholesome effluvia, these canals were also
sources of danger of a different and still more appalling character. Captain Amasa
Delano, of Boston, who visited Batavia in seventeen hundred and ninety-two, has re-
corded the following incident “ I was standing, at noonday, in the door of the
principal hotel, on one side of a canal seventy or eighty yards from the spot, and saw
an alligator take A child off from the steps, the opposite side, and eat it !

300

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[March,

Such circumstances might possibly exist with impunity in the
latitude of European Amsterdam, but never between the tropics.
Add to these, — the country, for miles around Batavia, was one
complete sheet of tope and rice-fields, which could not fail to
produce unwholesome exhalations. Many of these nuisances
have been corrected or abated.

Nothing, perhaps, can be more gratifying to the eye, than the
general appearance of the fertile country which surrounds the
city of Batavia ; diversified with plantations, fields, and gardens,
and embellished with villas in the oriental style, which are sur-
rounded by trees loaded with the most delicious fruits, and shrubs
covered with the most fragrant flowers. The roads in the envi-
rons are very numerous, and invariably lined with trees on each
side, which not only give them a beautiful appearance, but render
them very refreshing to those who make rural excursions twenty
or thirty miles from the city. Our officers frequently extended
theirs to the distance of forty miles.

Besides the several lesser roads intersecting each other at
various points, and interspersed with several little villages and
country-seats, there is one which was commenced by Marshal
Daendels, and afterward carried to completion by the English, for
many miles from Batavia, through the low country of Krawang,
intersecting, near Cheribon, the great military road, which crosses
the Blue Mountai?is from Buitenzorg to Cheribon, and from
thence along the north side of the island to its eastern extremity.
Along this road, at intervals of less than five miles, are regular
post stations and relays of carriage-horses.

On the Jacatra road, which runs directly south from the city
to Buitenzorg, near the Blue Mountains, there is, besides other
elegant buildings, that of Goonong Sarie, the former residence of
the old Dutch governors. The building, and the grounds belong-
ing to it, are spacious. To the east, the eye is gratified by fertile
plains and luxuriant rice-fields, exhibiting all that is cheerful and
pleasant to the senses for administering to the comforts of human
life ; while, on the opposite side, a dismal contrast presents itself
in the vast cemetery filled with Chinese sepulchres, spreading to
a great and melancholy extent. Numerous villas and country-
seats also adorn the environs of Batavia in every direction ; — to
the east, as far as Chillingchug ; and to the west, as far as Tan-

1832.]

ISLAND OF JAVA.

301

gerang, which is the boundary of the kingdom of Bantam ; while
to the south of the city, they are scattered over a distance of forty
or fifty miles.

The village of Buitenzorg, on the Jacatra road, is about five
miles northeast of Mount Salak, which is more than half way
across the island, from Batavia on the north, to Wyn Cooper’s
Bay on the south. It was formerly an active volcano, and its
last eruption was in seventeen hundred and sixty-one. The
southeastern foot of Mount Salak is connected with Mount Cede,
over the northeastern limb of which the great road was originally
made. This laborious pass, however, occasioned great delay and
inconvenience to the passengers, which induced Governor Daen-
dels to project the new road, along the lowlands, from Batavia to
Cheribon, by which the former inequalities are all avoided, and a
distance saved of fifty miles. The route is now so level that it
might be converted into a railroad, or be accompanied with a
canal by the side of it.*

Mount Salak and Mount Gede are plainly to be seen from the
shipping in Batavia Roads ; and from the appearance they exhibit,
are usually termed the Blue Mountains, where the Jacatra takes
its rise, about sixty miles south of Batavia. Near the village of
Buitenzorg are the celebrated ruins of the ancient capital of
Pajajaran, among which, several curious antiquities have been
found. This city, according to Javanese tradition, was founded
about the year thirteen hundred, and soon became the capital of
the kingdom and seat of the royal court. It was overthrown by
the Mahommedans, in their conquest of Java, and many of the
inhabitants fled to Cheribon. Among the curious relics which
have been discovered among its ruins, were several rude images
and inscriptions on stone. Sir Thomas Raffles mentions, also, an
ancient manuscript, a copy of which he took home to England,
containing drawings of pagan deities, the twelve signs of the
zodiac, and numerous other astronomical (or astrological) devices.

* This line of roads now extends from; Anyer, on the west side of Bantam,- to
Batavia, from thence to Cheribon, and thence to within twenty miles of Banym*
wangi, the eastern extremity of the island, being a distance of not less than eight
hundred statute miles. But we regret to add, that twelve thousand natives are said
to have perished in the construction of this great work, from the unhealthiness
of marshes and forests through which it passed !

302

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[March,

He also mentions the remains of intrenchments by which the city
was defended, and which are still plainly to be seen near the
ruins. The Jacatra road is cut through several of them.

The population of Batavia and its immediate vicinity, .accord-
ing to a census taken by the British government, in the year eigh“
teen hundred and fifteen, is computed at sixty thousand. At the
period of the Potomac’s visit, in eighteen hundred and thirty-two,
it was said to amount to ten thousand more, but probably overran
that number. We will therefore proceed on the supposition that
Batavia and its suburbs contain seventy thousand souls. This
population is divided, or divisible, into several different classes,
of which the slaves are by far the most numerous, and therefore
deserve to be first noticed.

The slaves on the Island of Java are either foreigners them-
selves, or the immediate descendants of foreigners ; as the native
Javans are never reduced to this condition; or, if they should
happen to be seized and sold by pirates, a satisfactory proof of
their origin would be sufficient to procure their enfranchisement.
The slave-merchants have, therefore, been under the necessity of
resorting to the neighbouring islands for a supply, and the greatest
number has been procured from Bali* and Celebes. These
slaves are the property of the Europeans and Chinese alone ; the
native chiefs never require the service of slaves, nor engage in
the traffic of slavery. There are not less than twenty thousand
of these unfortunate beings in Batavia.

The next class of foreigners which claim our notice, both for
numbers and industry, is composed of Chinese, either emigrants
or their mixed descendants, as they are not allowed to bring any
Chinese women with them. About a thousand or more used to
arrive annually at Batavia, from China, in Chinese junks, carrying
from three to five hundred each, without money or resources, who
by dint of their industry, soon acquired' comparative opulence.

* “ This disgraceful traffic, it may be hoped, will soon be entirely annihilated.
While it existed in its full vigour, all prisoners taken in war, all who attempted to
evade the laws by emigration, all insolvent debtors, and a certain class of thieves,
were subjected to the sad condition of slavery. These laws still subsist, and are
enforced, as formerly, for the purpose of procuring the home supply ; but the dimi-
nution of the foreign demand must limit exceedingly their exercise, and in a short
time ameliorate the state of the unhappy individuals who have suffered by them.” — •
Raffles' Java.

1832.]

ISLAND OF JAVA,

303

From the city, many of them dispersed over the whole island,
which possibly now contains more than one hundred and fifty
thousand of them. Many return to China annually in the junks,
but comparatively a small proportion. There are at least sixteen
thousand of this class in Batavia, who live in a separate compong,
under a chief of their own nation. They are among the most
useful and industrious of the inhabitants ; indefatigable in their
pursuits, and eagerly bent on making money. In their hands are
all the manufactures, and nearly all the retail trade of the city,
or of every other place where they are located ; and their labours
contribute largely to the prosperity of the island. They are
hated by the Javans and Malays, because they are constantly
overreaching their less industrious and unsuspecting neighbours ;
and hence it is not to be wondered at that these tribes should
seize every opportunity to inflict wrong and even outrage upon
them. From the Dutch they have suffered many unjust exac-
tions and cruel oppressions, which have more than once goaded
them into acts of insurrection and rebellion, for which they w'ere
dreadfully punished. Witness the massacre of seventeen hundred
and forty.

The Chinese compOng comprises the whole of the southwest-
ern suburbs, and is very extensive. Among them, every house
is a shop, and the streets exhibit a constant scene of noise and
bustle. Their captain, or hingho, has a number of lieutenants
under him, who assist in regulating the police of this numerous
population. As the emigration of Chinese females is expressly
prohibited by the government, they either marry among the na-
tives, or purchase slaves for their wives. They are called great
cheats by the natives, although in their intercourse with foreigners
they are polite and wellbred. Among the colonists they are not
usually employed as servants. They are distinct from the natives ;
and are, in a high degree, more intelligent, more industrious, more
enterprising, and much more luxurious than the Javans or Malays.
They are, in fact, refined epicures in their way ; and their tables,
three times in a day, are loaded with rice, curry, fish, pork, fowls,
ducks, together with all kinds of vegetables. The higher orders,
especially, indulge in every luxury, and spare no expense iu pro-
curing any thing calculated to please the palate. Edible birds’-
nests, hiche de vier, and other luxuries, however costly, are always

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

304

[March,

found on the table of a wealthy Chinese voluptuary ; and they
are acknowledged to be hospitable.

Their festivals are very grand and. imposing, especially the one
in celebration of the new year, which continues from the first to
the twentieth of February. On this occasion, the streets in the
Chinese compong are thronged with carriages and crowds of
men, women, and children, of all classes, countries, colours, and
denominations, who parade the illuminated streets until late at
night. For eight or ten days during this festival, business is at
a stand, and every house is a scene of festivity. The wealthy
spread richly-furnished tables, at which the Europeans frequently
partake ; while the hosts, by every means in their power, try to
show how much they are pleased with the attendance of their
guests. Various mountebank exhibitions are performed on large
stages erected for the purpose. Their marriage ceremonies are
conducted with great splendour ; and though the most of them
have been colonized in the island for centuries, they retain, in all
respects, their national customs.

Next to the new year, the burials are the greatest festivals'
among the Chinese in Java ; and these are solemnized according
to the rank of the individual deceased. Ah immense multitude
attend the interment, carrying images of men and women resem-
bling the deceased members of the same family, while a numerous
procession of priests, accompanied by musical instruments, pre-
cede the corpse. The cemetery of the Chinese extends over an
immense surface of soil on the southeast side of the city.
They allot a separate piece of ground for each subject, and raise
over it a mound of earth in shape of a crescent, carved and orna-
mented according to the wealth and importance of the deceased.

To these sacred repositories, the Chinese, as an indispensable
duty, pay an annual visit ; which mournful ceremony takes place
in April. Stages are erected, from which the priests deliver their
funeral orations in honour of the dead ; and the neighbourhood
of Jacatra, over which their cemetery extends, exhibits the alfect-
ing spectacle of multitudes of people prostrate before the nu-
merous tombs, which are decorated with flowers; spreading
viands and fruits as offerings, and bowing their faces to the earth.
Although they have a temple, in which are placed images and
burning tapers, they do not appear to attend to any particular

18;i2.] ISLAND OF JAVA. 305

form of worship. Every house has, probably, its own altar, and
its own collection of idols, as in China ; the form, number, and
quality of which are generally in proportion to the taste 6f the
head of the family to select, and his ability to purchase.

The third class of aliens, adhering to the same numerical de-
crease in numbers, is composed oi Balians, or Bdliers, who
originally sprang from the inhabitants of Bali, a small island on
the east of Java. They are very different from those of their
unfortunate countrymen who have been sold to slavery, which
condition ever, more or less, degrades the human character. In
their native state of freedom, they are active and enterprising,-
and free from that listlessness and indolence which are observable-
in the Javans. Although of the same original stock, they exhibit
several striking differences in their characters, features, and per-
sonal appearance. Their manners are said to appear abfupt, un-
ceremonious, coarse, and repulsive to a stranger ; but upon further
acquaintance this becomes less perceptible ; and their undisguised
frankness commands reciprocal confidence and respect.

In their domestic relations they are amiable, respectful, and
decorous. Their wives are treated with tenderness and respect,
and their children with mildness and gentleness, and they are
strangers to the vices of drunkenness, libertinism, and conju-
gal infidelity. In a word, they are distinguished for energy,
honesty, and an irrepressible love of independence. There are
probably above ten thousand of this class in the city of Batavia
and its suburbs, who are divided into’ compongs, under their re-
spective overseers. The Balian slaves are valued highly in Ba-
tavia, on account of being considered more trustworthy than
others, particularly the females, from among whom the Chinese
of note generally choose their wives.

The Javans, of whom there are about four thousand five hun-
dred in the city of Batavia, occupy two co?npongs, each under
the immediate control of separate and independent chiefs. Some'
of them are fishermen 5 but in general they are cultivators of the
soil.

There are probably near four thousand Malays in Batavia, who'
are generally traders, navigators, and builders of small proas, in
the construction of which they are said to be very expert. As
before intimated, they are passionately fond of cockfighting, and

306

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC,

[March,

almost every other species of gambling, and do not hesitate to
risk their last possession on a single bet ; being often driven by
their losses to acts of desperation and horror. Gambling-houses
are licensed by the Dutch, from which they derive considerable
revenue ; thus tolerating these nurseries of vice, and then sitting
in judgment, and punishing with torture the victims of crime
and guilt. The Malays have their quarter of the town allotted to
them in the same manner as the Chinese, and are subject to the
immediate authority of their respective captains.

The Macassars, originally from the Island of Celebes, where
the Dutch have a considerable settlement called Fort Rotterdam,
are another class in the city of Batavia, amounting to more than
two thousand of both sexes. Their countenances, particularly
those of the females, more nearly resemble the Tartar features
than any other. The intercourse of these islanders with the na-
tives of Java -»seems to have been ancient and frequent; and they
are represented as active and enterprising traders.

The Buggis, or Bugges, are from part of the same island, and
their number in Batavia is supposed to be about equal to that of
the Macassars. They are represented as a treacherous, quarrel-
some, and revengeful race ; the same may be said of the Macas-
sars, whom they in many respects resemble. Their valour has
been often tested, and the reputation which they hold in the east
is a parallel to that which the Swiss formerly held in Europe ; on
which account the Dutch formerly enlisted many of them into
their army.

The Arabs are not numerous in Batavia — perhaps not over five
hundred; and there are numbers of them also in Palembang, or
Balambuan, at the eastern extremity of the island, on the Strait
of Bali. They are generally engaged in the coasting trade, and
are represented as by no means deficient in commercial intelli-
gence.

There are also here about two hundred and fifty Sumhdiaas,
from an island of that name on the east of Java, the third from
Bali ; about the same number of MandJiarese, from the district
of Mandar, in the Island of Celebes ; perhaps one hundred Am-
bonese and Bandas, from Amboyna and Banda; and a few Ti-
morese and Butanese, from the Island of Timor, &c. The num-
ber of Moors in Batavia is not supposed to exceed one hundred

1832.]

ISLAND OF JAVA.

307

and fifty. These are natives of the Coromandel and Malabar
coast. They appear to be the remnant of a once extensive class
of settlers ; but their numbers have considerably decreased since
the' establishment of the Dutch monopoly. The Amboynese oc-
cupy a compong on the left of the Jacatra road ; some of them
are Christians, — are less stubborn than the Bugges, and have in
modern times been found to make better soldiers. The Mardy-
kers are natives of different nations or tribes, who, having obtained
their freedom, live in the city. Many of them are employed in
the coasting trade, and others are successful cultivators of the soil.

The burgher class comprehends the Dutch population at Ba-
tavia, but is so much mixed np with Portuguese and Malay coD
onists, that, as a mass, they can scarcely be called Europeans.
The same may be said of other towns on the coast, indeed of
the Dutch settlements in general throughout the east. To a large'
proportion of these residents the mother country is only known
by name ; particularly to the ladies, few of whom have ever been
in Europe. Their features, and the contour of their faces, be-
speak European origin ; while their complexion, character, and
mode of life approach nearer to those of the natives. Though?
fair, they have none of that healthful ruddy hue seen in Europe-
and the United States ; but a pale sickly languor overspreads their'
countenances. The number of this class in Batavia, always in-
cluding the suburbs, is probably now not more than three thou-
sand, though in seventeen hundred and ninety-three it exceeded
six thousand, at which period the whole population was estimated
at one hundred and sixteen thousand ; out of which died annually
four thousand.

The fatality of the Batavian climate has been without a par-
allel in history, This city has been designated the storehouse'
of disease ; with how much justice, a few melancholy but aii-
thentic facts -will clearly demonstrate. Between the years seven-
teen hundred and fourteen and seventeen hundred and seventy-
six, a period of fifty-two years, there perished in the hospitals of
Batavia above eighty-five thousand sailors and soldiers ; and from
the year seventeen hundred and thirty to seventeen hundred and
fifty-two, a period of twenty-t-yvo years, the total amount of deaths
was more than a million !

The physical and immediate causes of this mortality are ob^^

308

> VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[March,

vious, and have already been alluded to ; but the more remote
moral and political causes must be sought for in that mistaken
policy of the colonial government, which, in order to maintain its
commercial monopoly, kept the European population confined
within the narrow walls of this unhealthy city — where they were
compelled to reside as prisoners in a pesthouse. But from the
moment that a more liberal and humane policy was introduced
under the administration of Governor Daendels, when the walls
of the city were demolished, the drawbridges let down, and free
egress and ingress to and from the country permitted, the popula-
tion began to migrate to a more healthy spot ; and they had not
to go above one or two miles beyond the precincts before they
found themselves in a different climate.

Since the date of these changes and the clearing of the coun-
try in the vicinity, together with the draining off the surrounding
stagnant waters, Batavia has been, and still is, a comparatively
healthy city ; completely so in the daytime, and all persons of
respectability get through their business and retire to their villas
in the neighbourhood before the heavy dews of evening begin to
descend, and meet and mingle with the rising vapours of the
city’s marshy foundation. Few places in the east, or between the
tropics in any part of the world, are more healthy and beautiful
than the neighbouring villas and country-seats. Had the Dutch
adopted this plan in season, how many thousands of human lives
had been preserved or prolonged ! But we will dismiss this sub-
ject with a few words respecting Governor Daendels.

William Herman Daendels was born in the year seventeen
hundred and sixty-two, at Hattem, a town of Holland, in Guelder-
land, seated on the Issel, four miles southwest of Zwoll. At the
age of twenty-five, he took an active and important part in the
troubles which began in Holland in seventeen hundred and eighty-
seven, on the side of the patriots, with a number of whom he was
compelled tO' take refuge in France. In seventeen hundred and
ninety-three, he was appointed to the new legion of volunteers,
and was of great service to Dumourier, in his expedition against
Holland. He rendered still greater service to Pichegru, in the
campaign of seventeen hundred and ninety-four, which made the
French commander master of all Holland. He now became
lieutenant-general in the service of the new Batavian republic,

1832.]

ISLAND OP JAVA,

309

and took an important part in the change of the government.
When Louis Bonaparte became King of Holland, in eighteen
hundred and six, at the age of forty-four, he was appointed Gov-
ernor-general of Batavia, as before stated. He was recalled by
Bonaparte in eighteen hundred and eleven, and afterward pub-
lished a history of his colonial administration in two volumes,
quarto,' which we believe has never been translated into English.

The next subject which naturally presents itself for our con-
sideration is the manner in which the Island of Java has been
divided.

The two natural and grand divisions of Java are the eastern
and western, which are nearly two equal portions of the island ;
separated by the river Losari on the north side, and the river
Chitandui on the south, in long. 108° 52' east, about two hun-
dred and forty miles from Java Head, in the Strait of Sunda.
That part of the island which lies east of the Losari is called
Java by the natives, who designate the western division by the
name of Sunda. Such was the division when the whole island
comprised only two distinct kingdoms, each governed by a power-
ful and independent sovereign ; and between the descendants of
those two nations there is still a marked and striking distinction.
Those provinces which are now under the immediate authority
and administration of the European government, are the western,
the northern, a few inland districts, and the Island of Madura, on
its northeast coast ; the rest of Java, comprising the southeastern
provinces, is still subject to the native princes.

Those portions of the island which are under European au-
thority, are divided into sixteen residences, or separate adminis-
trations, including the seat of the colonial government.

1st. Bantam, comprising three thousand four hundred and
twenty-eight square miles, and containing two hundred and thirty-
one thousand six hundred and four inhabitants, This division
comprises the northwestern section of the island, being washed
on three sides by the sea and the Strait of Sunda, including
several dependant islands scattered along its shores, with bays and
harbours. The town has been deserted by the European estab-
lishment, which has removed about seven miles inland, to a more
elevated and healthy station, called Strang, or Ceram.

2d. Batavia and its environs, including Buitenzorg, comprising

310

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[March,

two thousand four hundred and eleven square miles, and four hun-
dred and eight thousand three hundred and twenty-seven inhab-
itants. This division comprises what formerly constituted the
native province of Jacatra. The city of Batavia is the capital,
and the seat of the colonial government.

3d. Batavian and Priangen Regencies, comprising ten thou-
sand square miles, and two hundred and forty -three thousand six
hundred and twenty-eight inhabitants. This division, which is
extremely mountainous, lies southeast of that just mentioned, and
extends from the Blue Mountain ridge to Wyn Cooper’s Bay on
the south coast, and from thence eastw,ardly to the river Chiwulan.

4th. Cheribon, comprising thirteen hundred and thirty-four
square miles, and two hundred and sixteen thousand inhabitants.
This division extends across the island from north to south, at the
point where its breadth, by an abrupt indentation of both .coasts, is
suddenly reduced from one hundred to fifty miles, its narrovyest
part, except one across the province of Probolingo, near the east
end of the island. Cheribon, on the north coast, is the capital.

5th. Tegal, comprising twelve hundred and ninety-seven square
miles, and one hundred and seventy-eight thousand four hundred
and fifteen inhabitants. This division, which is bounded on the
north by about fifty miles of seacoast, extends southwardly to
the centre of the island, with Cheribon on its west and Pakalon-
gan ou its east. The town of Tegal, on the north, is the capital.

6th. Pakalongan, comprising six hundred and fifty square miles,
and one hundred and fifteen thousand four hundred and forty-
two inhabitants. This division, which is also bounded on the
north by the Sea of Borneo, extends southwardly between Tegal
on the west and Semarang on the east. Ulujami, on a river of
the same name, is the capital.

7th. Semarang, comprising eleven hundred and sixty-six square
miles, and three hundred and twenty-seven thousand six hundred
and ten inhabitants. This division is bounded by Japara and the
sea on the north, Pakalongan on the west, Kedu on the south,
and Grobogan on the east. Kandal, on the river Bodri, is the
capital.

8th. Kedu, comprising eight hundred and twenty-six square
miles, and one hundred and ninety-seven thousand three hundred
and ten inhabitants. This division is bounded by Sem^irang on

1832.]

ISLAND OF JAVA.

311

the north, Kertasura on the east, and the native provinces on the
south and west. Probolingo is the capital.

9 th. Grobogan arid Jipang, comprising twelve hundred and
nineteen square miles, and sixty-six thousand five hundred and
twenty-two inhabitants. This division is bounded by Japara on
the north, Gresik and Surabaya on the east, Kerta Sura on the
south, and Semarang on the west. Grobogan is the capital.

10th. Japara, comprising one thousand and twenty-five square
miles, and one hundred and three thousand two hundred and
ninety inhabitants. This division comprehends a peninsula which
juts out on the north side of the island, at the point of its greatest
breadth ; it being here one hundred and thirty-five and a half
miles wide, between the southwest point of Pachitan Bay and
the north point of Japara. Japara is, of course, washed on three
sides by the sea ; which, with Rembang, bounds it on the east,
Grobogan being on its south, and Semarang and the sea on its
west. Jawana, on its northwest, is the capital.

1 1th. Rembang, comprising fourteen hundred square miles, and
one hundred and fifty-eight thousand five hundred and thirty in-
habitants. This division is bounded by the sea on its north, by
Gresik on the east, by Jipang on the south, and Japara on the
west; Rembang, on a river of the same name, is the capital.

12X\x. Go'esik, comprising seven hundred and seventy-eight
square miles, and one hundred and fifteen thousand four hundred
and forty-two inhabitants. This division includes Point Panka,
the northeastern extremity of the island, at the entrance of Ma-
dura Strait. It is, of course, bounded on the north by the sea, on
the east by the strait, on the south by Surabaya, and on the west
by Rembang. The town qf Gresik, on the strait, is the capital.

13th. Surabaya, comprising tw^elve hundred and eighteen
square miles, and one hundred and fifty-four thousand five hun-
dred and twelve inhabitants. This division is bounded on the
north by Gresik, on the east by the Strait of Madura and the sea,
on the south by Pasuruan and the native provinces, and on the
west by Jipang. The town of Surabaya, which has an excellent
harbour, is the capital. It is near the principal mouth of a river
of the same name, the second in magnitude of the whole island,
which discharges itself into the Strait of Badua by five outlets,
which form as many separate rivers.

312

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC,

[March,

14th. Pasuruan, comprising nineteen hundred and fifty-two
square miles, and one hundred and eight thousand eight hundred
and twelve inhabitants. This division is bounded on the north
by Surabaya and the sea, on the east by Probolingo, on the south
by mountains, and on the west by the native provinces. The
town of Pasuruan, near the coast, is the capital.

15th. Probolingo, comprising two thousand eight hundred and
fifty-four square miles, and one hundred and four thousand three
hundred and fifty-niue inhabitants. This division is bounded on
the north by the sea, on the east by Banyuwangi, on the south by
the Indian Ocean, and on the west by Pasuruan. The town of
Probolingo, on a river of the same name, is the capital.

16th. Banyuwangi, comprising twelve hundred and seventy-
four square miles, and eight thousand eight hundred and seventy-
three inhabitants. This is the last European division, and is the
eastern extremity of the island; bounded on the north by the sea,
on the east by the Strait of Bali, on the south by the Indian
Ocean, and on the west by Probolingo, The capital is a town
of the same name, on the strait.

The native provinces contain eleven thousand three hundred
and thirteen square miles, and one million six hundred and fifty-
seven thousand nine hundred and thirty-four inhabitants ; and the
Island of Madura, comprising two residences, has twelve hundred
and sixty square miles, and two hundred and eighteen thousand
six hundred and fifty-nine inhabitants. Total number of square
miles in Java and Madura, forty -five thousand seven hundred and
twenty-four. Total population, four million six hundred and
fifteen thousand two hundred and seventy.

The face of the country presents a bold outline of prominent
features. The same series, or range of mountains, which char-
acterize Sunaatra, is continued through the whole length of the
Island of J ava ; varying in their height from five to twelve thou-
sand feet above the level of the sea. The round bases and pointed
conic tops of these gigantic elevations indicate their volcanic
origin ; and some of their craters are still in a state of partial
inflammation, breathing sulphureous vapours and smoke ; others
are extinct. The last eruption of Mount Salak was in seventeen
hundred and sixty-one ; that of Chermai, in Cheribon, in eighteen
hundred and twenty-five; that of Lomongon, in Probolingo, in

1832.]

ISLAND OF JAVA.

313

eighteen hundred and six ; that of Gunter, in Priangin, in eigh-
teen hundred and seven. The Papondayang, in the western part
of Cheribon, was formerly one of the largest volcanoes in the
island ; but the greatest part of it, according to Dr. Horse-
field, was swallowed up in the earth, after a short but very
severe combustion. Many of the flying inhabitants were in-
gulfed with it.

There are, likewise, extensive ranges of mountains of an infe-
rior elevation, sometimes connected with the larger series, and
sometimes not, which are also volcanic. The whole country is
traversed by ridges of hills, in various directions ; and is every-
where undulating and uneven.

Although the width of the island does not admit the formation
of very large rivers, still Java can boast of some of respectable
magnitude. There are as many as fifty, on which, in the wet
season, rafts of timber, and other rough produce of the country,
are floated to the coast ; and not less than half a dozen of these
are navigable several miles into the interior. There are no lakes
of any considerable size on the island, although in the wet season
many extensive swamps assume that appearance. Although the
northern coast is in many parts flat and uninteresting, the interior
and southern provinces are mountainous, and present a picture
of much diversified and romantic scenery. The prospects from
the highlands, in many places, may challenge the world to pro-
duce any equally sublime and beautiful.

Unlike her divorced partner, Sumatra, the constitution of Java
is unfavourable to metals, and neither diamonds nor precious
stones of any description are to be found on the island. Many
minerals of the schorl, quartz, potstone, feldspar, and trap kind,
however, exist in the mountains of secondary elevation, towards
the southern shores of the islands, sometimes in extensive veins.
Prase, hornstone, flint, chalcedony, hyalite, jasper, jasper-agate,
obsidian, and porphyry, are found in various situations.

The climate of Java is various ; being hot and sultry along the
seacoast, but cool and pleasant further inland. In penetrating the
interior from the city of Batavia, we feel, at the end of every five
miles we advance, a sensible improvement in the atmosphere and
climate ; at every step, we breathe a purer air and survey a
brighter scene. On reaching the highlands in the neighbourhood

314 VOYAGE or THE POTOMAC. [March,

of Buitenzorg, we find an atmosphere that retains its freshness
in the hottest season. Here the boldest features of nature are
softened by the rural arts of man ; for the labours of the moun-
tain farmer have clothed the scene with the variegated garb of
enchantment.

At Salatiga, in Semarang, the seventh division, and in many
other inland towns, the air is said to be sometimes uncomfortably
cool, and ice as thick as window-glass has been seen in the
mountains. At Weltervreden, a short distance east of Batavia,
the thermometer is generally at 86° during the dry season, or
southeast monsoon, which extends from April to October ; and
from 83“ to 90“ during the wet monsoon, from November to March.
In the mountains about Chipanas, south of Buitenzorg, and only
sixty miles from Batavia, the thermometer generally stands at 65”,
sometimes, less, but seldom exceeding 70”. There is a constant
succession of sea and landbreezes. The first prevail from ten
in the morning until four or five in the afternoon, after which it is
calm for two or three hours, when the landbreezes commence,
and continue until near morning. The seabreezes are fresh and
healthy; but not so the landbreeze, when it comes over exten-
sive marshes and swamps, of which there are many on the north
side of the island. The most pleasant and healthy season is from
May until October.

The monsoons are not regular. Heavy rains do not set in, in
some seasons, until December, in which case the heaviest are in
the months of February and March. The wet season is naturally
the period of germination, and the dry season that of fructifica-
tion ; and wherever there is suflSicient moisture, the sun is, at all
times, powerful enough to quicken vegetable life. During the
rainy season there are many days free from showers, when the
mornings are generally clear, as during the dry season, the atmo-
sphere is refreshed by occasional showers, and the landscape is,
at all times, covered with the brightest verdure. From all that
has been said on the subject of climate and health in the Island
of Java, the general inference which has been drawn by profes-
sional men is, that the country at large “ stands on a level, in
point of salubrity, with the healthiest parts of British India, or of
any tropical country in the world.” The term of life among the
natives is nearly as long as it is in the United States. Many

1832.]

ISLAND OF JAVA.

315

persons, of both sexes, attain the advanced age of seventy or
eighty, and some complete a century and upwards.

The soil of Java is as remarkable for its richness and its depth,
as it is for the great abundance and almost 'infinite variety of its
productions. It generally resembles the richest garden mould,
and but little labour is required to cover it with a luxuriant crop
of whatever the cultivator pleases. The deepest and richest
moulds of Java are alluvial soils of the valleys, near the bases
of the loftier mountains. In such spots they are found from ten to
twenty, and sometimes to even fifty feet deep. It is scarcely ne-
cessary to observe that mountains of great height, being colder
than the atmosphere at the same elevation, attract the passing
clouds, abstract from them their caloric, and so cause them to
descend in showers.* Thus, in these equatorial regions, perennial
streams are continually pouring down the mountains’ sides, teem-
ing with the causes of fertility, by being impregnated with the
mountain soil, and furnishing ample means for irrigating the plains
below. To the concurrence of these causes the Island of Java
is indebted for its peculiar fecundity. The richest mould is of
an ash colour, and is found, as before intimated, at the bottom of
valleys, between lofty mountains. On the plains and gentle de-
clivities, the soil is of a darker hue, probably containing too great
a proportion of vegetable matter, and is of an inferior quality.
Everywhere, the plains and mountains are covered with gigantic
forests, fruit trees, or luxuriant herbage.

The vegetable productions of Java are too multifarious for
even an attempt to enumerate the whole; and we must, there-
fore, content ourselves with mentioning a few of the most useful
and abundant, viz Rice, upland and lowland ; maize, or Indian
corn ; wheat, beans, potatoes, coffee, sugar, pepper, indigo, cotton,
hemp, tobacco, ginger, anise, cummin, cubebs, socha-delicious,
kachang-goring, or catjang, palma christi, &c. Of fruits, we will
name the mangusteen, or mangoostan, the most fascinating to the
eye and gratifying to the taste of all the fruits in the east, or per-
haps the world. t The mango, which grows on a large spreading

See Dr. Metcalf’s New Theory of Terrestrial Magnetism, pages 11, 12.

t The inangusteen [garcinia mangostana] is the peculiar production of the Indian
Islands, and all attempts to propagate it elsewhere have proved unsuccessful. It has
been of late years tried at Madras and Calcutta ; and attempts to cultivate it in

316

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[March,

tree somewhat like the English walnutj and has a delicious
flavour. The rambootan and the poolasang, or red fruit, which
are cool and agreeable, of a delicate subacid flavour, and quite
refreshing in a tropical climate. The cocoanut, tamarind, pome-
granate, roseapple, guava, annona, date, banana, jack-fruit, doorian,
durian, or duren, boa-lansa, pineapple, lanseb, papaw, custard-
apple, &c. Oranges, citrons, shaddocks, lemons, and limes, are
plenty; and in some provinces, peaches, Chinese pairs, and rasp-
berries.

The flowers of Java are celebrated for their beauty and fra-
grance. There is a tree called the mitchelia tchampaca, of two
varieties, one of which bears white and the other yellow flowers,
of exquisite odour. The coral-tree puts forth large clusters of
scarlet flowers ; while the magnolia, the melia, and bignonia, pre-
sent a showy and elegant appearance. Among the innumerable
flowers which bloom in perpetual succession, are the champaka,
tanjong melati-kananga, and nagasari, which are used by the
natives as ornaments, and are remarkable for their fragrance. The
myrtle and rose are found in the gardens of the Europeans.

Large tracts of the island, particularly in the eastern provinces,
are covered with forests of that excellent timber called teak,
which has long been celebrated for its strength and durability in
ship-building, &c. It is said to be in these respects every way
equal to Iwe oak, and even superior in the fineness of its grain
and beauty of its colour. It is of different shades, from light to
intense brown, with a cast of violet, verging sometimes to red or
black ; and furnishes excellent materials for handsome cabinet-
work. This tree is slender and erect ; shoots up with consider-
able vigour and rapidity, but increases in diameter very slowly,
and is many years, at least a century, in arriving at maturity. It

the Isle of France were made as early as the year seventeen hundred and fifty-four.
A wild variety of the mangusteen is found in the wood of Java and Celebes, but the
true mangusteen appears to be a native of the western portion of the Archipelago only.
It refuses to grow in some of the Spice Islands, and thrives but indifferently in others.
The latitude of Lusong, in the Philippines, is the highest in which it is brought to
grow. Like the more useful plants of rare occurrence in the state of nature, the
mangusteen is universally, or very nearly so ; having no other than manggis, mang-
gisi, or manggusta, evidently modifications of one term. The wild fruit is known
by different names from the cultivated, and those names differ in each language. —
Crawford's Eastern ArrMpelago.

1832.]

ISLAND OF JAVA.

317

neither loves the mountain nor the vale, but grows at a moderate
elevation above the level of the ocean.

There are several other kinds of timber-trees employed for
various domestic purposes, many of which bear beautiful flowers
of delicious fragrance. There are some resembling our red
cedar, pitch-pine, white-wood, larch, hickory, ash, &c. There are
others which resemble rose-wood and satin-wood. There are
several which furnish excellent masts and spars for shipping. The
kusambi is heavy, hard, and close, and is suitable for vessels’
blocks, pestles, &c. The sawur resembles mahogany, but has a
closer grain. The pilang is another very hard wood, and is em-
ployed instead of lignumvitse. The pung, equally hard, is used
by builders for pegs, pins, and treenails. The janglot is considered
by the natives as the toughest wood produced in the island, and
is always employed for bows when procurable. In short, Java
produces wood of nearly every texture, weight, and colour, and
suitable for all purposes. There are but few resinous trees in
Java, and the camphire-tree, which abounds in Sumatra, is here
unknown. The bamboo, or bambu, or pring, found in all tropical
countries, grows here in great abundance ; and from the greater
luxuriance and variety by which it is here distinguished, no doubt
finds a soil peculiarly congenial to its growth. The rattans are
said to be inferior to those of Sumatra.

Besides the trees already alluded to, we would name the palm
of numerous kinds, the mimosa of many varieties, the bread-
fruit, the aren, the plantain, and the soap-tree. The fruit of the
latter is used to a great extent in washing. The kasemak, which
produces a varnish for umbrellas ; the sampang, from the resin of
which the natives also make a transparent varnish ; the bombax,
or cotton-tree, which bears a long pod, containing a silky substance,
which is much used in stuffing pillows, mattresses, cushions, otto-
mans, &c. The wax-tree produces an oil resembling wax, which
may be either burned in lamps, or converted into candles, as it be-
comes hard by age. The bendud is a shrub, and produces the
substance of which the elastic gum is made, commonly called
India-rubber; the art of preparing it, however, is unknown in
Java. It makes excellent torches, and is used in that way by
those who explore caverns to hunt for edible birds’-nests. The
tallow-tree grows abundantly in some parts of the island. There

318

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[March,

is no doubt that Java would produce many of the spices which
abound in the Moluccas, particularly the nutmeg and clove. The
vine was once extensively cultivated in some of the eastern prov-
inces of the island; but the Dutch East India Company discour-
aged it, because they then possessed the Cape of Good Hope,
where the business would be more profitable.

It is doubtless expected that before we leave this subject, a word
should be said respecting the far-famed Upas-tree, of Java ; for
though ihefahle, for such it was, in detail, has long been exploded,
it is not every reader that knows on what basis the romantic fic-
tion was erected. A Dutch surgeon, by the name of N. P. Foersch,
was, according to his own account, in the service of the Dutch
East India Company, at Batavia, in the year seventeen hundred and
seventy-six, and having heard much of the terrible effects of the poi-
son of the holiun upas, resolved to ascertain the fact whether there
was such a tree or not. The result of his alleged investigation was
first published in an English dress, in a very popular London
periodica], called the Gentleman’s Magazine, in seventeen hun-
dred and eighty-three, from which it was copied into almost every
similar publication on both sides of the Atlantic. He professes
to relate nothing but facts of which he was an eyewitness, as
“I was resolved (says he) to trust only to my own observations.”

Foersch describes the very location of this “ hydra-tree of
death” as being only eighty miles from Batavia, and sixty from
Tinkjoe, which would place it on the map of Java in the area of
a triangle formed by Mount Tankuban, Mount Maruyung, and
Mount Tilo, — near the line of the great military road, occupying
about the centre of our third division of Java. He says, “ I have
made the tour all around this dangerous spot at about eighteen
miles from the centre, and I found the aspect of the country on
all sides equally dreary.” He conversed with the old Malayan
priest who prepared the criminals to go on their perilous embassy
after the poison, and was assured by him that out of great num-
bers he had sent, not more than one out of ten survived to return ;
with some of these the surgeon also conversed. He describes
the upas-tree as the sole individual of its species, standing alone,
in a scene of solitary horror, on the middle of a naked blasted
plain, surrounded by a circle of mountains, the whole area of
which is covered with the skeletons of birds, beasts, and men.

1832.]

ISLAND OP JAVA.

319

Not a vestige of vegetable life is to be seen within the contami-
nated atmosphere ; not even a solitary spear of grass ; and that
even the fishes die in the water. But even of the progenitors of
this finny tribe he gives us no information. The divinity of
Darwin’s muse has consecrated this fable in the following beauti-
ful lines : —

“ Fierce, in dread silence, on the blasted heath,

Fell Upas sits, the hydra-tree of death !

Lo, from one root, the envenomed soil belo'w,

A thousand vegetative serpents grow !

In shining rays, the scaly rnonster spreads
O’er ten square leagues his far diverging heads ;

Or in one trunk entwists his tangled form.

Looks o’er the clouds, and hisses in the storm ;

Steep’d in fell poison, as his sharp teeth part,

A thousand tongues in quick vibration dart ;

Snatch the proud eagle, towering o’er the heath,

Or pounce the lion as he stalks beneath ;

Or strew, as martial hosts contend in vain,

■' With human skeletons the whitened plain.”

But as even the classic fictions of antiquity, when figuratively
and rightly understood, have their origin in truth, so has this more
modern Dutch fable of the bohunupas. Vegetable poisons, it is
well known, exist in almost every part of the world, particularly
in the tropical regions. On the Island of Java there are several
different species of shrubs and plants which exude matter delete-
rious to animal life. To each of these the natives have applied
the appellative upas, which is a word in their language signifying
poisonous. Thus the uhi upas, means a poisonous potato ; and
the seed of a certain tree is called hidjee, in English, j?owow-
ous seed. But there is a tree, says Dr. Horsefield, common to
the eastern provinces, and one of the largest trees in the forests
of Java, from the sap of which a poison is made, “ equal in fa-
tality, when thrown into the circulation, to the strongest animal
poisons hitherto known. The tree which produces this poison is
the anchar, and grows in the eastern extremity of the island.
The anchar belongs to the twenty-first class of Linnaeus, the
monoRcia. The stem is cylindrical, perpendicular, and rises com-
pletely naked to the height of sixty, seventy, or eighty feet ; at
which height it sends off a few stout branches, which, spreading

320 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC, [March,

nearly horizontally, with several irregular curves, divided into
smaller branches, and form a hemispherical, not very regular,
crown. It delights in a fertile, not very elevated soil, and is only
found in the largest forests. One of the experiments to be related
below was made with the upas prepared by myself. In the
collection of the juice I had some difficulty in inducing the in-
habitants to assist me ; they feared a cutaneous eruption and in-
flammation, resembling (according to the account they gave of it)
that produced by the ingas of this island, the rhus vernix of Japan,
and the rhus radicans of North America, The anchar, like the
trees in its neighbourhood, is on all sides surrounded by shrubs
and plants : in no instance have I observed the ground naked or
barren in its immediate circumference. The largest tree I met
with in Balambangan was so closely environed by the common
trees and shrubs of the forest in which it grew, that it was with
difficulty I could approach it. Several vines and climbing shrubs,
in complete health and vigour, adhered to it, and ascended to nearly
half its height ; and at the time I visited the tree and collected
the juice, I was forcibly struck with the egregious misrepresenta-
tion of F oersch. Several young trees, spontaneously sprung from
seeds that had fallen from the parent, put me in mind of a line in
Darwin’s Botanic Garden : —

“ ‘ Chained at his root two scion-demons dwell

while in recalling his beautiful description of the upas, my
vicinity to the tree gave me reason to rejoice that it was founded
in fiction.”

Of the animal kingdom, Java has her full share, proportioned
to the size of the island. Among the beasts of prey are found
several species of tiger, the leopard, the wild-cat, the jackal, and
several varieties of the wild-dog. Also, the rhinoceros, and enor-
mous large alligators, which deserve the name of crocodiles,
These abound in the rivers, and are such objects of terror to the
natives, that like their reputed progenitors, the Egyptians, they
pay them adoration. That species of the boa-constrictor called
the anaconda is also said to be found in the forests, some of them
thirty feet in length, which suspend themselves from trees and
swallow young buffaloes and wild-dogs whole. The woods also
abound with hedgehogs, squirrels, weasels, lizards, and various

1832.J

ISLAND OP JAVA.

321

species of the monkey ; among -which are the orang-outang and
wow-wow. Here are also found the stag, deer, wild-hog, wild-
ox, and buffalo ; the rase, which produces musk, and the bezoor.

Among the useful and domestic animals are the horse, thb
cow, and the ox. Neither the elephant nor the camel is a native
of Java;* the former is rarely imported, the latter unknown.
Neither the ass nor mule is found ; the island has a fine breed of
small horses, strong, fleet, and well made. Bulls, cows, buffaloes,
goats, sheep, and hogs, are plenty. Turkeys, geese, ducks, com-
mon fowls, and pigeons, abound on every farm. Here are also
herons, falcons, crows, owls, peacocks, &c. The woodlands are
tenanted with upwards of two hundred different species of birds,
from the tiny hummingbird to the large errcen, or cassowary, with
every intermediate size ; many of them are of beautiful plumage,
and some of exquisite song. Here are found parrots, paroquets,
Argos pheasants, crested pigeons, and \hs, fulica 'pauplirio ; also,
the oriolus, or golden thrush ; the alcedo, or kingfisher, the Java
sparrow, or rice-bird ; and several sorts of the bird of paradise.
Likewise, the swallow, which builds the edible nests so highly
valued by the Chinese. Besides the reptiles already mentioned,
here are twenty different kinds of poisonous serpents ; together
with scorpions, centipedes, toads, and frogs.

The exports of the island are rice, sugar, coffee, pepper,
indigo, teak, timber and plank ; spices, which are brought from
the Moluccas, tin from Banca, cotton, yarn, salt, edible bird’s-
nests, which are produced in abundance, particularly in the hilly
districts stretching through the Bantam country, and in the do-
minions of the emperor and- sultan.

The imports are European articles of every description, chintses,
silks, hats, tea, Japan goods, and China-ware, opium from Bengal,
tin from Banca, &c. &c. On the establishment of the British
authority in Java, great changes were made ip the internal policy
of the country, particularly in the mode of collecting the revenues,
tenure of lands, &c. The delivery of goods at an inadequate
rate, and all feudal services, were abolished ; and lands, according
to local circumstances, were leased out for a moderate term
of years.

According to these rates, the land rental, exclusive of Batavia,
on the kingdom of Jacatra, amounted, in eighteen hundred and

322

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[March,

fourteen, to three millions eight hundred and eighty-three thou-
sand six hundred and fifty-one rupees; and after deducting the
amount of lands provisionally granted to chiefs, there remained a
net land rental of three millions six hundred and sixty-three thou-
sand six hundred and eleven rupees ; add to the proceeds of farms
and fixed taxes, provisionally continued, and the territorial revenue
of the eastern provinces alone, will amount to four millions two
hundred and six thousand three hundred and forty-one rupees ;
in addition to this, salt, opium, and customs, including towm-duties
in these provinces, and the total will be five millions three hun-
dred and sixty-eight thousand and eighty-five rupees. The other
great branches of revenue of Java are the teak forests, which are
extensive and valuable. Those in the central districts, ceded on
the fall of Djoejocarta, afford employment to no less than two
hundred thousand labourers.

The political state of Java, after all the changes and revolu-
tions it had experienced, had settled into a quiet calm previous to
the arrival of the Potomac. Since its last cession to the Dutch,
in eighteen hundred and fifteen, the insurrectionary movements
of one of the native princes had occasioned an intestine war,
which had been, in some instances, very sanguinary. In quelling
this insurrection, the Dutch are said to have lost not less than
thirty thousand well-disciplined European troops. The native
chief who raised this disturbance is represented as an able
warrior and a desperate man ; and so much Y^as he feared by the
Dutch, that they set a price on his head. Despairing of success,
he finally surrendered himself with all his force, and was honour-
ably treated by the Dutch.

1832.]

LEAVE BATAVIA.

323

CHAPTER XVII.

Leaving Batavia — Illness of the Commodore’s son — Once more at sea — Calms and
opposing currents — Drag the bottom for shells — Augmentation of the sick-list —
Heat of the weather — Caspar Straits — Tardy progress in the China Sea — Har-
assing duty — Cross the equator — Island of St. Barbe — Pulo Aor — Sickness and
death — Terrific thunder-storm — Death of N. K. G. Oliver, Esq. — Funeral obse- '
quies — Contribution for his family — Tedious calms, and oppressive heat — In-
creasing mortality — Dreary prospects — Cheering sight of a sail — Speak an English
bark — Mutual interchange of courtesies — A vertical sun — Coast of China —
Canton Bay — A Chinese pilot — Anchor in Macao Road.

The Potomac lay anchored at Batavia, fronl the twentieth of
March until the tenth of April, a period of twenty-one days ;
during which time the commodore and officers had an opportu-
nity of seeing much of the inhabitants and of the adjacent coun-
try. They had shared the hospitality of their own countrymen,
of Europeans, and of the colonists ; visited all the places of in-
terest and curiosity, and taken notes of whatever they thought
worth remembering. They had witnessed the curious religious
ceremony of the Chinese, in walking barefooted over coals of fire ;
they had made many excursions into the country, to the distance
of forty miles ; had visited the governor at his palace, and en-
joyed the wild, rich, and luxuriant scenery of its neighbourhood.
In one word, they had luxuriated on every innocent and rational
enjoyment which this “ garden of the east” could bestow ; and
yet every bosom experienced a thrill of delight when the inspiring
word was. given — “ all hands, unmoor !” For every one felt sus-
picious of the land breezes of Batavia, and ardently panted once
more to inhale the pure air of the ocean.

The commodore’s little son, a fine lad, in the tenth year of his
age, who accompanied his father on the present expedition, was
seized with the Batavia fever on the first of April, having fallen
asleep in a draught of air while in a state of perspiration on shore,
at a villa some distance from the city. For several days the
youthful sufferer was not expected to recover, and during this
painful suspense, the commodore, who was constantly with him

X 2

324

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[April,

on shore, delayed naming a day for the sailing of the frigate.
The crisis at length took place, which was succeeded by a favour-
able change, so that on Monday, the ninth of April, the lad was
so far convalescent as to be conveyed on board the Potomac,
which sailed on the following morning.

During her stay at Batavia, the sick-list had increased to forty-
one, and two had died, who were buried on a neighbouring island.
I'lie invalids on board were principally afflicted with dysentery,
and young Downes, the commodore’s son, was the only individual
who experienced an attack of the Batavia fever, which finally,
on the passage across the Pacific, changed to an intermittent, from
which he did not recover until he passed through the process of
having the smallpox, on the coast of Chili,

On Tuesday morning, the tenth of April, a little after daylight,
the anchor was weighed and the frigate got under way. The
wind being light, every sail was spread to catch its soft breathings,
as the gallant ship moved slowly on the glassy bosom of Batavia
Bay, standing directly north. At meridian, the South Watcher
Island bore north-by-west-half-west. This island is about twenty-
seven miles from our recent anchorage.

On leaving Batavia, the Strait of Sunda, or Malacca, during
the months of March, April, or May, the navigator will most prob-
ably be doomed to experience a long and unpleasant passage to
China, Though the strength of the northeast monsoon may have
greatly relaxed in its force, the currents may still be unfavourable,
and the calms which are liable to happen between the two mon-
soons often render a passage most perplexingly tedious. Had
not the various incidents of the voyage delayed the Potomac in
her departure from the Sunda Isles, the commodore would have
been compelled to take another and very different route- than that
through the China Sea. During the months of January or Feb-
ruary, it would have been almost impossible to make way against
the northeast monsoon, either by the inner route, along the
coast of Cochin China, or by Macclesfield Bank through the
China Sea, so that he would have been compelled to go through
the Straits of Macassar, and leaving the great Island of Borneo,
as well as Luconia, to the west, again stood in to the north-
west, through the channel of Formosa, and from thence to Lintin
and Canton river. The lateness of the season, however, did not

325

1832.] STRAITS OF CASPAR.

make this route necessary ; and though many prefer the inner
passage between the Islands of Banca and Sumatra, the commo-
dore determined to proceed through the Straits of Caspar, and
the middle of the China Sea.

On Wednesday, the eleventh, the Potomac made but little
headway ; the wind was light, varying from northwest to northeast :
at seven in the evening she came to anchor in twenty -four
fathoms water, and veered to fifty fathoms chain cable. The
next morning she was under way at an early hour ; wind light, but
fair, and at seven o’clock A. M., passed the South Watcher
Island, about three miles distant. A short distance to the north-
west of the South Watcher Island lie the Thousand Islands; a
group or chain of numerous small islands extending from north-
west to southeast, that bound the west side of the passage be-
tween the North and South Watcher Islands. There are many
dangerous shoals around them, to which a good birth should be
given. Pulo Etau is the most westerly, and is separated from the
other islands. A squall, with heavy rain, occurred on Wednes-
day night.

On Thursday, the twelfth, two Chinese junks were seen stand-
ing to the soutWard and eastward. The lead was now kept con-
stantly going, finding scarcely any variation from thirteen to fifteen
fathoms water. The northeast monsoon was now entirely gone,
being succeeded by light winds, with sultry and enervating weather.
The current too, which had been put in motion by the wind blow-
ing several months in the same direction, still continued its op-
posing course at the rate of half a mile an hour. Even light
showers, attended with thunder and lightning, scarcely seemed to
give any relief to the oppressive influence of the sultry atmo-
sphere. On this and the following day the frigate’s drag was put
in requisition, for the purpose of getting possession of such curi-
ous shells as might be found on the bottom. The experiment
was successful, and many beautiful specimens of conchology
were added to the collections of the commodore and his officers.

The fourteenth and fifteenth passed heavily ; the frigate being
most of the time anchored with a kedge, waiting to catch the first
puff of air that could move her through the water. The sick-list
had now swollen to the number of fifty-one, being every tenth

326

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[April,

man on board, and one poor fellow had just been consigned to
his watery sepulchre, after an illness of only twenty-four hours.

On Sunday, the fifteenth, at three o’clock in the morning, the
frigate encountered a strong squall from the northwest. The
heavy waters seemed to be once more in motion ; but in less
than three hours it was calm again ; and at noon it was found, by
observation, that she had only made four miles in the last twenty-
four hours ; that she was in latitude 4“ 20' south, and was less
than one hundred and twenty miles from her starting-place at
Batavia. The weather this day was excessively warm, the ther-
mometer in the shade standing at 84°.

On Monday, the sixteenth, the frigate’s progress was accel-
erated by what the sailors call cat's-paws, light puffs of v/ind,
which pushed her forward to within ten miles of Entrance Point,
which is the southeast angle of the island called Pulo Leat, or
Middle Island, separating Macclesfield’s Strait from Clement’s
Strait. These two straits, generally known under the single ap-
pellation of Caspar, the name of the Spanish captain who made
the passage in seventeen hundred and twenty-four, are formed by
the Island of Banca on the west, and Billiton Island on the east.
These two islands are about fifty miles apart, and between them
are two smaller ones, called Long Island and fiddle Island, the
first being near Billiton, and the other near Banca. Caspar Island
is about twenty-five miles further north. The passage between
Banca and Pulo Leat, or Middle Island, is the one which is gen-
erally called Macclesfield’s Strait, and the one through which the
Potomac passed into the China Sea. She entered this strait on
Tuesday, the seventeenth, which placed a distance of only two
hundred and twenty-five miles between her and Batavia. The
passage between Middle Island and Long Island is called Clem-
ent’s Strait ; and both together form Caspar Straits, in the plural
number.

!- On Wednesday, the eighteenth, the frigate had so fine a run as
to pass sixty miles to the north of Caspar Island, which is in
latitude 2° 25' 30" south, and is the principal landmark in passing
this strait ; as it has a high peaked hill rising from its surface,
which may be seen at the distance of thirty miles. The Potomac
was now about three hundred miles north of Batavia.

On Friday, the twentieth, it was a perfect calm ; and the sea

1832.]

SLOW PROGRESS.

327

was so utterly motionless, and at the same time so clear and
glassy, that it had the appearance of an immense circular mirror,
or a huge girandole, bounded by the horizon. It reflected the
rays of the sun with a fervour painfully intense .to the eyes, when
they chanced to encounter the angle of incidence. A number of
sea-snakes were seen playing round the ship, and pursuing their
gambols, regardless of the mighty mass of spars and canvass
which was towering above them. During four tedious days, the
ship’s headway did not average one knoh; per hour. The heat
was oppressive ; no variety to relieve the dull monotony ; the
sick-list was large, and still increasing. The history of one day
is a specimen of the rest.

From one to three A. M., calm ; the ship riding by her kedge-
anchor. The day advances — the sun attains his meridian, and
passes over — no intervening cloud to avert or intercept his direct
and scorching rays — no curl, no ripple on the water — a wide-
spreading, glassy surface appears to reflect back the heat — no part
of the ship seems to offer a cool retreat. The sick are swung in
cots on the gundeck — the surgeon and his assistants constantly
employed. At half past five, a light breeze springs up ; all hands
are called to “ up anchor /” — all sail is set to the dry and feeble
breeze. At six, calm — let go the kedge, to hold our own, and
prevent the current’s cheating us of the little we had gained. At
half past seven, light airs again from the northeast ; and again the
boatswain calls, “ all hands, up anchor Until three A. M., the
light airs continue. At half past three, came too with the kedge
— not a breath of air. At half past seven, the breeze sets in,
when the oft-repeated call resounds through the ship — “ AZZ hands,
up anchor ! and make sail The lead constantly going in from
seventeen to twenty-two fathoms, muddy bottom.

Thus it continued, hour after hour, and day after day, while the
gallant Potomac lingered near the equator, as if unwilling to re-
enter the northern hemisphere on a meridian so far from that of
her mountain home — her towering spars being antipodes to the
Virginia forests, in which they grew. She finally crossed the
equinox, on Sunday, the twenty-second of April, in longitude
107° 7' east. The same kind of weather continued until the first
of May, when the Potomac was in latitude 6° 33' north, being
seven hundred and sixty-two geographical miles north of Batavia,

328 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [Majj

equal to eight hundred and seventy-five statute miles, averaging
less than two miles an hour for twenty days ! At times, the very
atmosphere seemed to be a sheet of fire, and the little sparrows,
in their migrations from one island to another, would perch upon
the frigate’s rigging, panting for breath. A current generally set
against the course of the frigate, which rendered it necessary to
come to anchor so often, in order to hold on, and cling with a
miser-like tenacity to every inch attained by the little cap’s-full
of wind which occasionally passed. This, rendered the ship’s
duty very arduous and harassing, both to otficers and men.

During this run., if a snail’s pace may be so called, several
islands were passed, which only deserve notice as landmarks to
the mariner. St. Barbe is seven miles north of the equator, in
longitude 107° 15' east; it is about three miles in length, high,
bold, and of triangular form. When viewed at a distance, it as-
sumes the appearance of three small islands, on account of two
depressions on its surface. There is said to be anchorage on
its east side, where water maybe procured, and occasionally some
fine green turtle. The St. Esprit group of islands lies in about
0° 34' north, to which the frigate gave a wide birth, as no accurate
surveys have been taken of them. In passing the north, middle,
and south Anambas Islands, she kept about midway between them
and Singapore Straits on the west.

The Island of Pulo Aor, in latitude 2° 30' north, longitude
104° 34' east, has attained some notoriety as a point of departure
for ships bound to Canton, and for which vessels generally steer
on their homeward-bound passages. The island is small, but
high, and covered with trees. The bay, on the northwest side,
affords good shelter and anchorage during the northeast monsoon,
and vessels often stop there when unwilling to enter the Strait
of Singapore during dark weather. In passing Pulo Aor, the
Potomac stood farther to the east than the usual track of vessels.

On Wednesday, the second of May, the frigate was in latitude
7° 10' north, longitude 105° 16' east, more than one hundred miles
farther west than when she crossed the equator. The sick-list
had not increased, but several cases of dysentery were rapidly
approaching a fatal termination. The untiring and indefatigable
assiduity of the gentlemen composing the medical department,
tended to check, so far as human agency could produce that

1832.]

DEATH OF MR. OLIVER.

329

effect, the ravages and fatal consequences of the disease. One
seaman expired at half past nine o’clock that morning, and was
consigned to a watery grave at half past five the same afternoon,
with all appropriate ceremonies. Had the frigate, during this
period, been in the midst of a “ dead sea,” she could scarcely
have remained more sluggishly on the water. All the elasticity
of the air seemed to be gone, and every one suffered from the
extreme lassitude produced by the heat ; and the sick were par-
ticularly affected by it.

The scene was soon changed ; for in the early part of the night
clouds began to gather and thicken ; and before midnight, the
elements above and around seemed on fire ; so terrific a thunder-
storm had not been witnessed during the whole cruise. The air
was overcharged with electricity ; and flash after flash poured
forth, illuminating the whole ocean for miles around, while the
rain fell in torrents — and this continued, with but little intermis-
sion, until morning.

“ Loud, and more loud, the rolling peals enlarge.

And blue on deck their blazing sides discharge.

Now in a deluge bursts the living flame,

And dread concussion rends the ethereal frame ;

The skies asunder torn, a deluge pour.

Amid the electric blaze, and thunder’s roar.” — Falconer.

It was a night long to be remembered ! Not that the frigate
had encountered a typhoon, or run upon rocks or shoals, but that
the grim messenger, death, had been among her inmates ! At
about nine o’clock in the evening, the commodore’s private sec-
retary, a man much respected and beloved by all who knew him,
N. K. G. Oliver, Esq., breathed his last ! — far from his home —
his wife — his children — and all that he held dear ! For a long
time before leaving the United States his health had been delicate,
and the hope of improving it was the principal inducement which
caused him to abandon his domestic enjoyments for a voyage round
the world. Consumption, that insidious foe of human hopes and
pleasing anticipations, had been wearing and frittering away his
constitution. His strong and highly-cultivated mind refused to
participate in the weakness of his body, but retained its vigour
and cheerfulness until the last moment of his existence.

Among the loose papers of the deceased was found a scrap, on

S30

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[May,

which was written the following memorandum, dated Friday, the
twenty-seventh day of April, only five days before his death : —
“ To-day we are passing the Middle, or Great Anambas, with a
pleasant little breeze, which we consider to be the southwest
monsoon. If so, our run to the Celestial Em.pire toill he com-
paratively shortC His run to that empire was indeed short ! —
and for a long time previous to the fatal event, he seemed to have
a presentiment of the final result of his disorder. On another
loose paper was written the following, dated November the
eleventh, eighteen hundred and thirty-one : — “ My disease in the
throat is in a dangerous state ; I begin to fear for the conse-
quences. We have a tiresome and almost hopeless calm. One
thing, however, makes me happy. It is the birthday of my little
Billy. God bless my poor Willy ! When shall I see him again !
Far — far away is he — and I, all alone on the ocean billow, yes —
all alone, though surrounded by half a thousand.”

Although this melancholy event had been long expected by his
friends on board, yet when the moment did come, they felt, se-
verely felt, how little they were prepared for it ! Indeed, when
it was publicly announced, the gloom which settled upon the
countenances of all, together with the solemn gaze of the crowd
of officers and men collected around the bed of death, spoke in a
language which needed no utterance, to show in what high esti-
mation he was held by all on board.

On the following day, which was Thursday, the third of May,
at eleven o’clock in the forenoon, his mortal remains were sunk
beneath the billows of the China Sea — receiving a sailor’s burial
and a sailor’s grave, in latitude 7“ 32' north, longitude 105° 52'
east. The corpse was borne to the gangway by the officers, who
formed in procession on the maindeck, while the men gathered
in groups to witness and to hear the funeral ceremony. While
the procession was ascending from the gundeck to the spardeck,
the band, with muffled drums, played a mournful and solemn dirge.
The marines had been drawn up on the side of the quarterdeck,
and during the solemnities of the funeral service, remained at a
“rest on arms reversed.” The service was performed by the
chaplain, Mr. Grier, in the most impressive and solemn manner.
After the ceremonies were over, and the body committed to the
deep, three volleys were fired by the marines.

1832.]

BURIAL.

331

There is something connected with a funeral at sea that calls
forth all the fine sensibilities of the heart. When, on shore, we
consign the remains of some loved one to their narrow clay-made
couch, and turn from the place made for all living, we do not feel
the separation so severely. We can return to the spot, and the
very scene around will awaken the slumbering memory, as the
many virtues of the deceased will again pass in revision before
us ; and it is then, if the departed possessed any foibles, we can
so easily forgive them.

“ Pensive memory then retraces
Scenes of bliss for ever fled,

Lives in former times and places,

Holds communion vs^ith the dead.”

Not SO as regards the sea-buried mariner. Beneath the ever-
restless waves, cradled in some “ oozy corner of the deep,” he
finds his long resting-place. Though his memory may be cher-
ished most fondly by relations and friends, yet his grave is far
distant and unknown. The spot cannot be designated, much less
can we watch the early progress of the spring flowers, so em-
blematic of another spring of life, or watch their decay beneath
the chilly frosts of premature autumn, reminding us that we too
must die. The very nature of the burial-place is calculated to
impress every one with the deepest feelings of awe ; the ship,
tossing on amid high and faithless billows, agitated by winds still
more fickle. But what matters it whether his requiem he chanted
amid the thick foliage of the cypress, or by the harsh-sounding
gale, since the promise has gone forth — “ I am the resurrection,
and the life,” and, “ The sea shall give up her dead.”

“ Give back the lost and lovely — those for whom

The place was kept, at board and hearth, so long ;

The prayer went up through midnight’s breathless gloom,

And the vain yearning woke midst festal song.

Hold fast thy buried isles — thy towers o’erthrown —

But all is not thine own.

“To thee the love of woman hath gone down —

Dark flow thy tides o’er manhood’s noble head.

O’er youth’s bright locks, and beauty’s flowery crown ;

Yet must thou hear a voice — ‘ Restore the dead !’

Earth shall reclaim her precious things from thee —

‘ Restore the dead, thou sea !’ ”

332 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [May,

It was known that the deceased left a wife and several small
children to mourn his loss, and that they were in a comparatively
helpless condition. The commodore, who had long been ac-
quainted with his late secretary, and holding him deservedly in high
-estimation, felt disposed, if possible, to do something on board for
the relief of the widow and orphans at home, w'ho had suffered this
recent and irreparable loss. The officers and crew being assem-
bled on the quarterdeck, the commodore, whose feelings were
full to overflowing, explained to them the condition of the family
of the deceased, and that those who felt disposed might contribute
something to be forwarded to them. Many tears were seen
trickling down weather-worn cheeks ; and on a paper carried
around among themselves, about two thousand dollars were sub-
scribed for this purpose.

On the same evening that Mr. Oliver breathed his last, in about
an hour afterward, another of the crew was also relieved from his
sufferings by death. But it would be an unpleasant task to follow
the movements of the Potomac, or to record the bodily or mental
sufferings of her inmates, in this part of her passage through the
China Sea. Let it suffice that there still followed, in regular
routine, the ever-tiring calm ; the light baffling wind ; the sudden,
but momentary squall ; the hot scorching sun ; the clear and
glassy sea, &c. ; for of such were the days composed in un-
varying succession. Perhaps, for a few moments, four or five
knots were marked on the line. In the next, the frigate was
lying motionless — her long and tapering spars reflected in beau-
tiful outline on the mirror-like ocean — so still — so smooth — that
she resembled some spectre hanging in the centre of an immense
crystalline sphere !

On Saturday, the fifth of May, the Potomac was in latitude T
42', longitude 105° 59'. The heat still continued intense ; and
the thinnest clothes were worn, even on duty. The lightest curl
upon the water was hailed as the harbinger of the coming breeze ;
and when the lofty sails did fill, joy beamed from every counte-
nance, animation in every eye, from the slight impulse of onward
motion ! A few moments, and all was still again ; the sails, with
scarce a tremour, hung flat against the masts. Then might be
seen the officers and the men, lying listlessly here and there —
sighing for the breeze that would not come.

1832.]

A SAIL IN SIGHT.

333

Still, little by little, the Potomac crept towards the north, until
Saturday, the twelfth, when a brisk breeze from the southwest
came curling along the ocean’s surface, and the water was once
more seen foaming around the bows of the Potomac. Hitherto,
the sick-list had continued on the increase, and dreary indeed was
the prospect which the gundeck presented, with its double row of
cots. Few that have not been on the lone ocean, with a malig-
nant disease raging on board, can form any just conception of the
scene of misery that five hundred souls, cooped up in the narrow
limits of a ship, in such a climate, presents ! Ever and anon,
the dreary sound of the boatswain’s voice could be heard, calling
all hands to bury the dead. This at-all-times-melancholy note,
was dreadfully so, when each day another and another was added
to the list of those who had already fallen victims to the relent-
less disease.

The Potomac was this day in latitude 10° 45' north, and, for
the first time on this lingering passage, the tedious monotony
under which every one languished was relieved by the exhilara-
ting announcement from the mast-head, of. “ Sail, ho !” A sail is
always a grateful sight at sea ; and, at this time, it w^as rendered
doubly so from the dreariness of the Potomac’s passage. “A
sail !” — What emotions are called forth at the sound ! — what a
tumult of feeling ! A fellow^'-pilgrim on the great highway of
nations — perhaps from home — from our own dear native land..
May she not be the bearer of letters — news — something to excite,.,
to relieve the mind? But there was nothing of this to call up
our softer feelings at this time. She was a stranger — but a
stranger on a weary voyage, like that of the Potomac — and this
alone was sufficient to.call forth the kindred feelings of fellowship.

Reader, in order to appreciate the feeling, it is necessary to be
placed, at least in imagination, in a similar situation. Seest thou
that small white speck on the distant horizon, rising and falling
like some small sea-bird ? — It is the bark of the daring sailor ! —
Mark the white folds of her upper canvass ! The breeze is fair,
and on we dash to greet her. Now, her topsails, courses, and all
her high and tapering spars, stand forth in perfect symmetry !
From her peak flutters, in deep red folds, her brightly-gleaming
ensign ! It bears the cross of St. George ! It is the flag of Old
England.

334

VOYAGE OE THE POTOMAC.

[May,

The Potomac approached the stranger in a gallant and cour-
teous style, and the customary salutations were mutually inter-
changed. She was a fine, fast-sailing bark, built in Calcutta, and
expressly intended to encounter the contrary currents and mon-
soons of these seas. Again were the sails of the Potomac filled
by the freshening breeze, and as she waved a graceful adieu, her
band on deck saluted the stranger with “ God save the King.”
This passing compliment was received with an enthusiastic burst
of feeling. In an instant the bark’s numerous passengers swarmed
upon deck — every hat was off — her topsails were lowered, as a
mark of reciprocal courtesy — as the stars and stripes waved
closely past her, the music ceased, and three hearty cheers from
the stranger were as cordially reciprocated from the American
frigate.

These little incidents and nautical civilities, though trifling in
themselves, are not unimportant in their effects ; as they tend to
smooth down the rough edges of national prejudice. In addition
to this, the excitement was highly pleasing, and a great relief to
that apathy of feeling which was so generally experienced by all
on board the Potomac.

The breeze continued faithful, so that on Wednesday, the six-
teenth, the Potomac was in latitude 19“ 3' north, longitude 115°
east. As the sun’s north declination was also this day 19“ 3', at
twelve meridian, the Potomac was under a vertical sun. On the
following day she made that point of land which is generally the
first seen on a passage to Canton, known by the name of the
Ass’s Ears ; it derives that appellation from two peaks rising from
a small island, which, seen at a distance, bear a strong resem-
blance to the ears of a donkey.

On Friday, the eighteenth, the Potomac passed near the La-
drone Islands, in front of Canton Bay, that celebrated haunt of
robbers and pirates, so long the dread of merchant vessels bound
to Canton. Soon after, a boat came alongside with a Chinese
pilot, to whose professional guidance the charge of the ship was
partially given up. He could speak English, and called his name
Jemmy Thompson.

The entrance into Macao Roads is neither dangerous nor diffi-
cult. As the frigate advanced, numerous islands opened to view,
not elevated, and mostly barren, with only here and there a few

1832.]

ANCHOR AT MACAO.

335

green patches, which afforded a great relief to eyes that had so
long no object on which to rest, save the smooth deep or the rol-
ling billow. Numerous boats were now seen lying on the water,
or moving from one island to another, and crossing each other’s
tracks in a thousand directions. Long before midnight, the Po-
tomac was in the midst of a numerous fleet of boats ; and as they
were constantly in motion, it required the utmost attention from
the lookout and helmsman to avoid running them down. Indeed,
such an accident could not have been prevented, had the night
been obscure or dark, instead of a brilliant moonlight. It was
twelve at night before the frigate came to anchor in Macao Roads.

336

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [May,

CHAPTER XVIII.

China — Town of Macao — Lintin Island and Bay — Opium Smugglers — The Com-
modore’s Excursion to Canton — Inhabitants of Lintin — Small Feet of the Chinese
Women — Religious Ceremonies — The Potomac ordered to Depart by the Chinese
Authorities — Second Excursion to Canton — Passage up the River — Forts, Pa-
godas, Scenery, &c. — Wampoa, aquatic Population, &c. — Wonderful Skill of the
Pilots — The Factories at Canton — Hospitable reception of the Party — The great
Temple, or Jos-house — The officiating Priests — The Jos Pigs, clerical Cells,
Gardens, &c.— -The great Bazar — Dramatic Performances — Anniversary of the
Snake-boat — Police of Canton — Its Walls and Gates — Forcing an Entrance —
The Hong Merchant’s expedition in Business — Mode of Computation — Descrip-
tion of Canton — Return of the Party.

The town of Macao is in latitude 22° 13' north, longitude 113°
46' east. The city of Canton is about sixty miles further inland,
in the direction of north-northwest. The whole bay, or estuary,
is thickly studded with rugged and barren islands. Macao is on
the west side of the entrance ; built on a peninsula, which is
almost an island, being joined to the main by a very narrow
isthmus, across which is erected a barrier or wall, about two miles
north of the town, being the limit prescribed to the ceded terri-
tory, to prevent any intercourse between the Portuguese and the
liege subjects and citizens of the Celestial Empire. This barrier
was constructed in fifteen hundred and seventy-three, and the
heaviest penalties were threatened to those who passed it in either
direction. These restrictions, however, have gradually fallen into
disuse, and are not at all regarded at present.

This site, for a commercial establishment, was ceded to the
Portuguese as a recompense for an essential service they had
rendered the Emperor of China. About the year fifteen hundred
and thirty-eight, a pirate of notorious daring and success, having
under his command a considerable naval force, took possession of
this peninsula, and was thereby enabled to block up the southern
ports of China, and even extended his audacity so far as to lay
siege to Canton !

In this extremity, the neighbouring Mandarins applied for as-

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1832.]

MACAO.

337

sistance to the Portuguese, who had an establishment at Sancian,
an island on the coast, with several ships of war in the harbour ■
which were instantly despatched against the pirates. The Portu-
guese proved victorious, and raised the siege, and pursued the
piratical chief as far as Macao, where he put a termination to his
own existence. His band, however, or a nautical banditti of a
simdar^ class, long continued to infest the islands, coasts, and

rivers in the neighbourhood, even untd the year eighteen hundred

and ten, when they were effectually subdued by the joint efforts
of the Portuguese, English, and Chinese.

When the Emperor of China was informed of the service
which the Portuguese had rendered him On this occasion, he be-
stowed on them the Peninsula of Macao, as a mark of his grati-
tude. They had long wished to establish themselves upon a
footing more solid than the one they had at Sancian;* and now
proceeded with avidity to build a town on their new territory,
which soon became very flourishing, being most advantageously
situated for prosecuting a trade with Japan. It is defended by
three forts.

The approach to Macao, from the sea, is very beautiful in the
daytime, and is not without its charms by a brilliant moonlight.
It was midnight when the frigate came to anchor in the road.
The following morning brought with it novelty, if nothing more.
The fleet of little boats were all in motion. The land around
seemed broken into a thousand hills, covered with stinted verdure.
Macao, though distant, looked beautiful and highly picturesque.'
Every thing was new to the beholder, and strikingly characteristic
of a foreign land. One reason, perhaps, why China, and every
thing connected with it, imparts the idea of ivonderful, is, that
each stranger who visits this country is previously determined tO'
be astonished at every thing he sees and hears ; nor will strange
things be wanting !

Early in the morning, an ofEcer was sent to communicate with
the authorities of the town of Macao; and while he wak still
absent on that duty, the P otomac’s anchor was weighed, and her
sails loosed. On the boat’s return with the officer, the frigate was

* Sancian is an island of China, on the coast of Quang-tong (Canton), forty miles
m circumference, famous for being the burial-place of Francis Xavier, whose tomb
is to be seen on a small hill.

338 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [May,

' immediately got under way, and with a fine breeze stood up the
channel for the Island of Lintin, on the southwest side of which
is a bay, with good anchorage. This island rises into a peak,
which can be seen at a distance of forty miles in clear weather, and
is said to be about seven hundred feet above the level of the water.
It is seldom ascended, being very difficult of access ; although
our countryman, W. W. Wood, Esq., of Philadelphia, with two
other gentlemen, succeeded in reaching the summit, in May, eigh-
teen hundred and twenty-seven, just five years previous to the
Potomac’s visit. He represents the view from the peak to be
“really magnificent, embracing the islands on the coast, the
neighbouring highlands of Lantao, and the shores of the river
above Lintin.”*

The Island of Lintin derives its principal importance, and all
its celebrity, from the circumstance of its alfording a safe anchor-
age for ships while waiting for pilots, and its being the station of
the opium fleet. The Bay of Lintin, as it is called, where the
Potomac now lay at anchor, is between the island and the main-
land. Here were a number of vessels, mostly engaged in the
smuggling trade ; one of them, a very fine large American ship,
called the Lintin, being stationed here to receive and dispose of
opium, of which article most of the contraband trade consists.
Such is the manner of carrying on this business, that it is divested
of most, if not all the odium still attached to smuggling in other
countries.

The quantity of opium consumed throughout the Chinese em-
pire is known to be immense. It is not used as a medicine, but
chewed and smoked as an exhilarating stimulant. Its importation
into the country is, and long has been, prohibited by imperial de-
crees, threatening heavy penalties. These, however, are con-
stantly evaded, and this ruinous drug finds its way into every
part of this immense empire ; there being few who can afibrd it
that do not indulge in its use.

The smuggling boats are long, narrow,, and swift-sailing vessels,
constructed expressly for the purpose, and manned with about fifty
rowers. They have, generally, two long masts, on which mat-
sails are hoisted when the wind will serve. These boats, at all

See Wood’s Sketches of China, Phifedelphia, 1830.

1832.]

LINTIN BAY.

339

hours of the day, go alongside the vessels which contain the
opium, prepared to pay for it in specie or otherwise. So inge-
niously and discreetly are these transactions conducted, that
neither the vessel or the smuggler run much or any risk ; as
chops, or custom-house permits, are always ready to he produced
should the contraband articles be found on board. Opium, how-
ever, is always liable to seizure, as its entrance into the empire,
under any shape, is prohibited. But the smuggling boats are
generally manned by desperate men, so that captures are seldom
made ; and are never effected, under any circumstances, without
a severe fight with pikes and stones, whole boxes of which are
ranged along the boats in readiness for defence.

Chinese junks are constantly anchored off the northeast side
of the island, for the purpose of preventing this prohibited article
from finding its way into the empire. But these officers, who are
paid for enforcing the laws, wink upon their constant violation
with the greatest indifference and complacency. They some-
times make a show of chasing the smugglers, and there the matter
ends. The latter, however, are seldom seriously molested except
when a mandarin boat of one of the provinces visits another ; on
which occasion, in order to show his zeal and fidelity in the ex-
ecution of the revenue laws, the visiter insists upon examining
every boat that comes within- his reach. The consequence is,
that a battle sometimes occurs, in which the smugglers generally
succeed, in either beating off the boat of the mandarin, effecting
their escape, or concealing by some means the opium in their
possession.

Whatever be the result, the mandarin, as soon as the affair is
over, sends a despatch to government, announcing a glorious vic-
tory over, and the total destruction of the foreign barbarians, who
had attempted to poison the subjects of his celestial majesty by
introducing this filthy drug into the empire. With all its pro-
hibitions, however, opium appears to be one of the chief articles
of import into the country ; and the emperor himself so far en-
courages the trade as the confirmed habit of using it will go and
which ought to convince his imperial highness of the insufficiency
of his prohibitory system. Only a short time previous to the ar-
rival of the Potomac, one of the princes of the royal family died
by excessive indulgence in the use of opium. No wonder theu

340 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [May,

that this illicit trade is still carried on. The local revenue officers
are generally bribed by the Chinese merchants, so that no trouble
is apprehended from that quarter.

Soon after the arrival of the Potomac, the commodore caused
to be procured a small schooner, of about thirty tons, for the use
of the frigate during her stay. She was called the Sylph, being
one of that class of vessels which ply between Macao and Canton.
In this he embarked, with a party of his officers, to make a visit
to Canton, while the duty of watering the ship was going on at
Lintin. This often tedious operation was soon performed at this
time by the aid of some large Chinese junks, procured for the
purpose of bringing off the water. They were only occupied
three days in this service ; after which, the interval previous to the
frigate’s departure was employed in seeing whatever was per-
mitted to be examined and inspected by the extraordinary people
who inhabit this celebrated region.

The Island of Lintin is generally barren, being formed of
masses of granite rock, piled one upon another ; the low grounds,
however, are not unproductive, and are laid out in rice-fields and
vegetable patches. It contains several small villages; but the
principal one is on the west side of the island, in view of the
anchorage ; consisting of a few miserably constructed bamboo
huts, which are tenanted by still more miserable looking fisher-
men, boatmen, or cultivators of the little rice-fields. The interior
of these .habitations, if they deserve so respectable a name, are
most wretchedly filthy ; and destitute, according to our ideas of
comfort, of every convenience of life. The first visit of our offi-
cers was met by a cold reception ; the women 'flying from them
with terror, and the men motioning the strangers to begone, and
not to approach their dwellings. These symptoms of inhospi-
tality and distrust, so marked at first, gradually wore off, however,
and our countrymen were suffered to ramble about without much
restraint.

Here, for the first time, they witnessed the incredible small feet
of the Chinese females, while in other parts of the same island
there were none such to be seen. A small present to the mother
of one of these suffering objects of torture, procured permission
to examine it ; and it seemed almost incredible how any human
being could endure such torture — such mutilation. The child

1832.]

LINTIN ISLAND,

341

might be about eleven years of age ; the toes were turned under
the foot, the great toe forming the front part of the foot, and the
only part preserving its original form. This distortion in shape,
and depression in growth, are not effected, as many have been led
to believe, from the use of iron or metal shoes, for such are not
used by the Chinese ; but from the use of bandages, wrapped around
to an intolerable tightness, the child during this time being kept
in a sitting posture ; and so excruciating is said to be the pain, that
the little sufferer for several months requires constant attendance ;
during which time she cannot walk a single step, and afterward
can only hobble. The foot of one child was only four inches,
and that of another only measured three inches in length. Their
shoes are often fantastically ornamented.

The origin of this custom is traced to a very remote period,
and is said to have been introduced by some celebrated queen,
who was required by the fancy of her husband to bind up her feet
into as small a compass as possible ; this was followed by the
women of her court, and from that time it has been practised by
the higher order of the Chinese, and is not only looked upon as a
valuable ornament in a female, but gives to the fair one thus
mangled a decided superiority in her family.

These people worship an idol, which they call Jos, supposed to
be a corrupt pronunciation of the Portuguese Dios, God. The
house consecrated to this service is a neat little stone building, in
the large village, containing a gilt image, supposed to represent
the “unknown deity whom they ignorantly, worship.” The
boatmen in the river pay evening sacrifices or burnt-offerings to
the same deity, by throwing pieces of flaming paper into the water,
which ceremony is called, in the Anglo-Chinese slang of the boat-
men, Chin-chin Jos, meaning a compliment to the divinity. Our
officers found no difficulty in obtaining admission to the Jos-house,
as they call it, in the village of Lintin. The idol has an altar, or
stand, in front of him, for burning the morning and evening sacri-
fices. But his devotees seemed to pay very little reverence or
even common respect to his godship, but rather treated him with
a familiarity bordering on impertinence ; although he is one of
their household gods, as almost every family has an image of him.

The first thing they do in the morning is to light one of the
small wooden sticks prepared expressly for the oblation, and

342 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. I^aj,

plant it down before him on the altar ; they then pour out a cup of
tea, and place near the burning stick. On one of them being
asked why he offered tea to Jos, he replied, “ Chin-chin Jos — he
like him very much.” On being again interrogated, “ How do
you know that Jos likes tea, when he never drinks any ?” he
answered, “ Oh, yes, Jos will drink it presently.” Feeling some
curiosity to witness the end of this superstitious rite, the officers
remained for some time, looking on ; but the cunning rascal con-
trived to divert their attention for a moment, and seizing the
cup, he threw a portion of the tea towards the image, and then
called on them to see how much his god had drunk ! This cere-r
mony is performed every morning and evening ; but whether any
particular days are set apart for the public worship of Jos, could
not be ascertained from their evasive answers, in which they
excel the shrewdest Scotch peasant of whom we have ever read.

These people were generally very civil, and are mostly of
dark complexion, with iriore of the Tartar than the Chinese in
their physiognomy. They live chiefly on small fish, taken daily
with an apparatus of truly a novel construction. It comprises a
net, perhaps forty feet square, attached by cords to the upper ends
of four long poles, planted obliquely in the water, inclining from
the shore. To the summit of these poles are also fastened land-
ropes, which pass around a windlass on the shore, by heaving on
which the poles bend from their oblique to an upright position.
This simple process raises the net out of the river, when a boat
passes under and takes care of the fish, which are thus drawn up
iu great multitudes,

These fish are very small, but of great importance to the poor
wretches, who scarcely have it in their power to taste other food.
The few vegetables and small portions of fruit raised on the
island, are generally disposed of to the foreign vessels lying in
the bay. Provisions for such ships, however, are mostly procured
from Macao. Lintin Island contains buffaloes, and numerous goats.
Here also were seen many monkeys of a large size, scampering
from rock to rock, on the upper part of the island. Excellent
fresh water is plenty here, and very easily procured.

The pilot, Jemmy Thompson, was now the constant companion
of the inferior officers remaining on board the Potomac; he being
ship purveyor. To perfonp th,e duties ,of this office, and enjoy

1.832.J

VISIT TO CANTON.

. 343

its profits, it is necessary to have a license from the mandarin.
But Jemmy Thompson, and his partner, Sam Cock, spurning the
trammels imposed on them by government, and despising the pil-
fering of the mandarins, are what are termed outlaws, or hold
smugglers ; and they manage to live very well, by bribing some,
and bullying others ; and having no license, their profits on trade
are all their own.

These worthies contracted for watering the tanks, and for sup-
plying the frigate with many articles ; but it was found necessary
to employ a regular comprador from Macao, as neither of these
executive characters could visit that place or Canton. They live,
in fact, in their boats, and are occasionally on the Island of Lintin ;
always starting in alarm at hearing the word mandarin.

One day, when Jemmy was down in the steerage, loquaciously
gabbling to the middies, a wag among the latter came down, and,
with an air of the utmost seriousness, remarked — “ What a beau-
tiful mandarin boat is now coming alongside.” Jemmy caught
the sound, and without stopping to hear another word, or even to
finish the sentence which he himself was uttering, darted like a
terrified monkey up the companion-way, and in the next instant
was over the ship’s side into his boat ; and had already proceeded
some distance before he perceived the joke which had been
played upon him.

The commodore and his party returned after an absence of
about a week : during this time he had, through the facilities and
kindness of pur countrymen located in Canton, seen all that is
permitted to pass before the eye of a foreigner. The season of
Wsiness had passed ; the English factory was closed ; their colours,
as well as those of the Dutch and French, were down ; the Ameri-
can was the only one seen up at the time. The late and serious
difficulties between the English East India Company and the au-
thorities of Canton, and which for a time threatened the most dis-
astrous consequences to the company’s interest, had been in some
measure arranged, but how far the conditions of that arrangement
will tend to prevent the repetition of such difficulties in future,
may not perhaps be so easily determined at this time.

While the commodore was in Canton, a proclamation was
handed to him, of which the following is a translation : —

“ Ching, imperial commissioner at the port of Canton, &c. &c.,

344

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[May,

issues this order to the Hong merchants, requiring them fully to
understand it. It is authenticated that the Weigune of Macao
has reported as follows : on the twenty-first of the present moon,
the pilot Ho-Ching-Kwang reported that the American ship Po-
tomac (in Chinese, Tang) arrived and anchored off Lintin. He
went immediately to inquire the reason of her doing so. And it
is authenticated, that the commodore of the said ship said that his
ship had sailed from his own country on a cruise to other ports,
and driven on by the wind, had come and anchored here for a
time, and that when the wind should become fair, he would im-
mediately get under way. The pilot also ascertained that there
were on board five hundred men, sixty-four great guns, two hun-
dred and fifty muskets, two hundred swords, twelve hundred cattys
of gunpowder, and twelve hundred shot. This is the pilot’s report.

“ This coming before me, the Hoppo, and being authenticated, I
have examined. Since the said ship is not a merchant ship, nor a
convoy of merchant ships, and has so many men, &c., it is inex-
pedient that she should be allowed under assumed pretexts to
anchor there (at Lintin), and so create disturbances.

“Writing these circumstances, I issue this order for her expul-
sion. When the order comes to the said Hong merchants, let them,
in obedience to it, enjoin the order on the said nation’s chief, that
he compel her to set sail and return to her own country. Let
her not, under any pretexts, loiter and create disturbances which
will involve scrutiny and examination. Let the day of her de-
parture be reported. Haste ! Haste ! a special order.

“ Taonkwang, twelfth year, fourth moon, twenty-sixth day.”

This order is always made to every armed vessel, though not
the least attention is paid to the mandate of his celestial majesty’s
commissioner. Formerly men-of-war-junks were sent to watch,
and order off vessels of war ; which custom we believe has been
discontinued of late, on account of a number that were sunk by
the British.

On the commodore’s return from Canton, a second party pre-
pared to ascend the river in the same boat. It was nearly dark
when they started ; but as the wind was fresh and fair, our little
Sylph had, by twelve at night, reached the entrance of Canton
river, which is formed by two points of land ; that on the west
called Ty -cock-ton, and the one on the east called Anunghoy.

1832.]

CANTON RIVER.

345

The Portuguese call this narrow pass the Boc'ca Tigris, the
Tiger’s Mouth ; but the Chinese name is Hoo-mun, or Hoo-tow-
moon. There are two channels through this pass, formed by a
fortified island in the centre. The eastern channel is most gen-
erally used by Europeans.

In the morning, the Sylph felt the influence of a young breeze,
and flitted along the crystal stream with a celerity that honoured
her aerial cognomen. The entrance of this river is really beau-
tiful, and might, with a moderate share of military skill, be ren-
dered impassable to vessels of any force, its location being most
favourable for works of defence. The channel being very narrow,
might be easily commanded by redoubts of proper construction
on each side. There are, however, but three forts,’ and these in
such ill-selected positions, being lower than a frigate’s spardeck,
as to offer no serious impediment to an armed force determined to
ascend the river. Indeed, a single sloop-of-war might either
silence or pass them without much risk. The guns do not appear
to be of more than twelve pound calibre, and the most formidable
thing about them is the hideous paintings of the heads of tigers
on the potlids and sills of the embrasures. Should the assailants
be amateurs in painting, no doubt they would be as much ap-
palled as if so many Gorgon’s heads were presented as shields.
The fort on the left hand side of the channel is situated at the
foot of a very high hill, whereas it ought to be on its summit.
The rapidity, however, with which the Sylph passed along, gave
no opportunity for minute investigation.

In proceeding up the river, the land on the left was found to
be, in some places, considerably elevated, and often covered with
trees. On the summit of one of these heights, called See-chee-
tow, is a small pagoda, the first one to be seen in ascending the
river. A short distance beyond, at a place called See-chee-top, is
another pagoda, nine stories in height, and very much decayed.
The country around it is well cultivated, and is scattered with
farmhouses and sugar-mills of Chinese construction. The nine
stories of this lofty edifice are divided, or separated, by projecting
cornices ; from many of which, owing to the decomposition of the
materials, shrubs, and even small trees, are seen growing. On the
right, the land was lower, and divided into rice-fields.

As our winged Sylph flew along, the thick clustering novelties

346

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[May,

around us kept continually changing with an almost bewildering
velocity — like the almost magical variations of a kaleidoscope.
No sameness — all variety. As far as the eye could reach, green
fields appeared in endless succession ; intersected in every direc-
tion by small canals, up which, and far into the interior, might be
seen the lofty masts and sails of the sampans, wending their
way onward ; while small villages, each with a dense and bus-
tling population, were momentarily passing before the eye like a
moving diorama. Adjoining these might be seen large tracts of
the beautiful and useful bamboo. The shady and rich foliage of
the bananas and orange-trees, seemed to be ranged in hedges
round the cultivated fields. The river appeared to be alive with
boats ; some fishing — others passing up and down — across — in
every direction. Here, too, were the duck-boats, from which
neither the duckling nor their owners ever step foot on shore.

On approaching Whampoa, the Sylph was overtaken by a
thunder-gust ; and as she still continued her course on the still
unruffled surface of the stream, a crowd was seen in a village on
the right assembling at the sound of the gong, probably for the
performance of some religious ceremony. They were soon left
behind, for our httle party’s approach to Canton was now rapid
indeed. In a moment, as it were, they found themselves in the
midst of innumerable war-junks and merchant-proas, with ten
thousand fancifully painted and gay streamers floating in the
breeze.

Myriads of boats, on each side, were moored in long and
regular rows, forming channels, through which countless smaller
boats were plying to and fro. The noise and bustle of business,
combined with the low heavy hum of a million of human voices,
dwelt with an eternal vibration on the ear. Here was a junk dis-
charging her cargo — there, a raft of timber was gliding along —
another crosses the Sylph’s bows — everywhere are boats of all
sizes and colours, and of every description — so numerous, that
the surface of the water on which they rested could scarcely be
seen between them.

How wonderful the skill of their conductors ! The pilot who
steered our little Sylph amid all this crowd, business, bustle,
noise, confusion, and the din of a thousand gongs, seemed to
thread the mazy labyrinth with the utmost coolness, ease, and

1832.] CANTON. 347

security. There is nothing in the known world that can vie with
the novel, spirit-stirring interest which this river presents. The
very fact that millions are born, and live (perhaps to an old age),
and die, without ever having touched foot on dry land, and that
their ancestors before them, for many generations, were all ampJiihii
like themselves, is enough, not only to excite our wonder, but to
bewilder the mind with astonishment ! We speak of mother
earth, from whose bosom we derive our sustenance — “ dust we
are, and to dust we shall return.” They are children of the
water, the only source from which they derive their miserable
nourishment — and beneath the water they find their final' resting-
place ! -

At length, our little party landed at Canton — outside the walls
of course — where they were politely and kindly received by our
countrymen and resident merchants, Messrs. Heard and Lattimer ;
and to these gentlemen they were indebted for a most agreeable
and introductive visit. Nothing was omitted on the part of their
entertainers that could yield them pleasure or information. Their
hospitable mansions were thrown open for the reception of their
American visiters, who found themselves, by these easy, agree-
able, and polite attentions, comfortably situated and entirely “ at
home.”

Their visit being necessarily limited to a very short time, they
felt the necessity of seeing, at once, all that was deemed worthy
of a stranger’s notice. Where every thing was new, little more
could be done than to give a cursory view to matters of least mo-
ment, allowing themselves greater latitude as things of deeper
moment were pointed out to them deserving greater attention.
Under the guidance of Dr. Bradford, of Philadelphia, they set
out, among their first excursions, to see the great Jos-house, situ-
ated on the opposite bank of the river. The ferry-boats were
manned altogether by women, who make their living by, and live
in their boats ; and whose skill in conducting their little craft
amid numerous junks, and a thousand other impediments, is
truly astonishing. The current is strong, and the numerous ed-
dies created by the proximity of so many boats, render it almost
certain death to any one who is so unfortunate, as. to fall in the
water ; hence dead bodies may almost daily be seen floating down
the stream.

348

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[May,

The traveller who does not visit that great monastery belonging
to the sect called Fuh, or Buddha, in Chinese, Hoe-chong-sze, or
Ho-nam- Jos-house, may be said to have scarcely seen Canton.
The building is immense, occupying a large space of ground;,
fine gravel-walks extending from one wing to another. Our party |
passed through four or five buildings, each containing from two to ;
four uncommon figures of Jos, with other good and evil spirits, I
Some of these figures were not less than twenty feet in height, '
gilt, or painted in the most grotesque manner ; one was repre-
sented playing on a musical instrument; others frowning, with
their immense eyeballs projecting from their sockets ; while
another was holding large balls between the thumb and finger, in
a threatening attitude of throwing them. In the last of these
buildings, which was much larger than the rest, the priests were
performing their devotions, standing on each side of the altar, on
which was placed an immense image of his Josship, made of
clay, and richly gilt ; one hand was resting on a sabre, the other
raised ready for executing vengeance. On the altar were several
candles burning, and numerous bundles of Jos-sticks, made from the
sandal-wood, lighted, and filling the apartment with sweet odour.

The priests, about sixty in number, were chanting in a rapid
manner some religious strain, and seemed constantly repeating
the same words. In an adjoining part of the room were other
priests, standing with their heads bowed down upon their breasts,
and at each sound of the gong, by the high-priest, they would
change their position, holding up their hands as in supplication,
and chanting all the time, till the gong sounded, when they would
again change their position.

While our little party were standing at the porch, looking on,
there were a number of Chinese near, who were laughing, talk-
ing, smoking, and apparently ridiculing the ceremonies; this,
however, we eould not positively ascertain. The most of the
images worshipped are said to be of evil spirits, and for which they
give this single reason, — that the good spirits will not injure them ;
and the evil, or bad ones, by this attention and devotion, may be
prevented from doing so ; certainly, for such a people, such a
reason is not a bad one. Religion ! it does not deserve the name ;
as there is not a virtue held sacred among them, nor a vice they
do not practise.

1832.]

CHINESE PRIESTS.

349

We next visited the Jos-pigs, ten or twelve in number, the
most gouty squeaks, perhaps, the whole empire could produce.
These were mostly presents from devotees, and supported by the
church, and fed most enormously. They had become so fat that
many of them could not rise, and seemed to breathe with difficulty ;
some were so old that their faces were covered with immense
wrinkles, and blotches of fat. They are never eaten, and of
course die a natural death. During the past year there had been
a great mortality among them, and many are said to have died of
dropsy and liver complaint !

From this disgusting spectacle our curious visiters passed to the
cells, where were several priests partaking of their scanty meal of
rice and vegetables, their religion not allowing them to indulge in
the use of meat. The cells are narrow, low, dirty little habita-
tions, ranged along on one side of the building.

Interspersed throughout the garden are numerous small and
neat little buildings, one of which was pointed out as being ap-
propriated to women who came to pray for offspring ; and in
another were the urns containing the ashes of the priests, who
are always burned after death. One had been burned only the
day before ; and our officers were permitted, to raise the cover of
the jar that contained his ashes. There were about sixty urns in
the building. At the end of each year these urns were emptied
of their contents into a vault beneath the building, and the jars
reserved for the same purpose during the coming year. The
garden, in which these small buildings are arranged, has but little
to recommend it ; there are, however, a number of large and shady
trees, whose branches are thronged with birds, which, if not held
sacred like the Jos-pigs, are nevertheless secure from molestation,
or being put to death. Add to these a duck-pond, a few flowers
and vegetables, and you have a picture of the garden. The trees
are mostly willows, whose branches hung down to the ground.

On returning to the river, they passed through the great bazar,
or market-place. Here was to be seen a sample of all the
country produce, and in general requiring no particular descrip-
tion ; there were, however, some articles exposed for sale, which,
to an American palate, were not very inviting. In neat little par-
cels was to be seen the large grub-worm, preserved in sugar and
nicely dried. The first salmon brought in the spring to the Boston

350

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[May,;

market, or the first plate of strawberries, nay, not even the]
luscious and savoury canvass-back duck of the Potomac, can- be
more highly prized than those sweetened grub-worms, which,
owing to their cost, can only find a place on the table of the.
wealthy.

There are no people in the world who appear to have acquired-
more singular tastes in exotics for the table, than the Chinese.
The edible birds’-nests, from Java and other islands, are in great
demand, and find a place on their tables, at least, on feast-days.
This luxury forms no inconsiderable article of trade. Sharks’
fins, another article highly prized, may be found on their table,
on all great occasions. There is scarcely any exotic, however,-
of which they are more fond, than hiclie de mer, a gelatinous sub-
stance procured from the rocks of the islands in the East Indies,
and of late years found, we believe, in considerable quantities,
among some of the islands of the Pacific. Many of our small
vessels have found a good business in procuring and carrying this-
article to Canton.

Ascending the river on their return, our party passed by a larg&
theatre, where a Chinese play was being acted in all the noise and
grotesque buffoonery for which those amusements are so notorious
among them. But from this their attention was soon called to a-
spectacle far more interesting : — a long, low, narrow, and beauti-
fully-modelled boat, the head fashioned and painted in resem-
blance of a large snake, and the tail projecting from the stern, re-
sembling that of the same animal. It was manned with about
fifty rowers on each side, with paddles ; while in the centre, and
at each end, were groups of men, dressed in all the fantastic
colours imaginable. From all parts, variegated streamers were fly-
ing in the breeze. At the sound of a gong and drum, shouts,
clapping of hands, and voices, they dipped their paddles, and the
boat moved through the water with incredible velocity, every one
keeping time to the gongs. Again they ceased, and at a given
signal every oar was raised ; and the rowers wheeling on their
seats, the boat, without turning, was impelled again with incredible
celerity in the opposite direction. This was repeated amid loud
shouts and sound of gongs, calling and attracting the attention of
the world of China around.

The anniversary of the snake-boats is religiously observed

1832-]

CANTON POLICE,

351

every year. It appears to be founded on a tradition handed
down almost from time immemorial. It appears that once upon
a time, as our nursery stories begin, a Chinese of great rank, who
had distinguished himself by his wonderful talents and exploits,
among which he is said to have confined the river Tigris to its
banks ; after conferring many benefits upon the nation, and achiev-
ing many wonders, scarcely inferior to Hercules himself ; from
some cause (which he never made known, or if he did, it has
been lost in travelling down the mist of past ages) he leaped into
the river, and was never more seen. He promised, however, to
return on the anniversary of that day, but unfortunately neglected
to mention the year of his intended resurrection. In order to
meet him on his return, each year these snake-boats commence
their research three days beforehand ; during two of these days
our officers were in Canton, and were not a little amused in wit-
nessing the effect of this singular superstition ! The first of June
is the anniversary, and the boats are said to be patronised by the
government. Numerous flower-boats, richly gilt and painted,
covered with beautiful mats, and filled with ladies and gentlemen,
were plying about the river at the same time, giving additional
life and variety to the scene.

The police of Canton cannot but strike the attention of every
one, as it is unquestionably among the best regulated in the world.
Spies are distributed in every part, and watch the actions of every
one ; particularly, the foreign residents. In every square, at every
hour of the night, may be heard the watchmen with their heavy
bamboo clubs, striking the pavement. The streets are very
narrow j and the houses being lofty in many parts, make them
appear like narrow lanes ; some exceedingly filthy, even to offen-
siveness, while others are kept in better order. At every square
there is a gate, which is closed every night at ten o’clock, and
guarded by a watchman ; and every individual foreigner passing
after this hour, must carry with him a lighted lantern, with his
name in legible characters painted on it. Should any alarm be
given, these gates are instantly secured, enclosing all offenders, so
that any one guilty of breaking the peace, or of any crime what-
ever, may easily be taken ; indeed, escape is utterly impossible.

The residence of foreign merchants, or, as more generally
termed, factories, are mostly very splendid buildings, and form by

352

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[May,

far the finest looking part of the town ; they face and extend
along the river the distance of six or eight hundred yards. Each
merchant lives in his own factory. The English East India
Company occupy an extensive establishment : the hongs, or build-
ings containing the teas, are extensive, and face along the river,
and the entrance to them is secured by strong iron gates. The
houses of the Chinese are generally meanly built, of cedar and
camphire timber.

The wall of Canton is low, of mud and stone construction.
To strangers it is the boundary, “ Thus far shalt-thou come, and
no farther.” At one time our inquisitive party passed a short
distance within, but were instantly stopped by the guards, and the
multitude all shouted as if something were wrong. Canton within
was, to all appearance, just what Canton was without. ' The
foreign residents have, on several occasions, been a short distance
within the gates. To do this, however, requires some resolution,
and numbers united, and has generally been done when some
representation had to be made to the vice-king, which the Hong,
merchants had refused to present ; the grievance to be redressed
being against their interest. Under these circumstances, the
communication to be presented is prepared with the utmost se-^
crecy, and the hour of entry fixed ; when some dozen or twenty
meet, and with clubs in their hands, move directly for the gate,
pushing over and knocking down every thing which comes in their
way. They then boldly enter the gate, the guard protesting to
the contrary notwithstanding. A tremendous tumult is now
created;, and every Chinese presents himself as a barrier to their
progress. The party then come to a stand, their object being
attained; for the authorities hearing that strangers are within
the walls, send a messenger to demand the cause, when they pre--
sent their memorial, certain of its reaching the proper hands.
Having thus, by violence and real bravado, effected the object of
their visit, they retire from within the wall, and immediately the
tumult ceases. On several occasions they have been obliged to
resort to this method, which was always successful without a
serious accident.

We have stated that the police without the walls is most rigidly
kept up ; of its character within we know nothing. The man-
darins, holding office from government, have the power of instant

1832.]

CHINESE MERCHANTS.

353

and summary punishment on their own people. The foreigners
can generally, though it is attended with much trouble, gain redress
for any injury ; and petitions presented for the removal of any
grievance, or asking for any privilege of trade, if customary, are
granted. But their walks are limited to certain bounds; nor are
they allowed the privilege of riding at all on horseback, or of in-
troducing their wives or ladies into the province. Those who
have wives are obliged to keep them at Macao, and visit them as
their business will permit. The curiosity of one lady (or was it
her attachment to her husband ?) some time since, tempted her,
and her influence over her husband (or was it his amiable and
submissive disposition?) induced him, in a moment of folly, to
forget himself, and allow her to accompany him in the costume
of an attendant, male, of course, to Canton. Before landing, her
disguise was discovered, and she was obliged to fly to Macao in
a boat. She was pursued, and barely escaped with her life, and
her husband, foolish man, was mulcted in a heavy fine !

While our ofiicers were at dinner with Mr. Lattimer, Mr. L.
left the table for a moment, and returned so soon that he was
scarcely missed. He informed his guests that he had made a
sale while absent, of opium, to the amount of two thousand
dollars, and assured them that the Chinese are remarkably expert
in business. Shopkeepers, from whom you may buy the most
trifling article, supply ships with cargoes, worth two hundred thou-
sand dollars, and will contract to do so with all the necessary
security, in the length of time he had been absent from the table.
They will manage all the smuggling, if any be necessary ; get
all the chops for duties ; and deliver the articles on board the ship
at Lintin, Whampoa, or Macao !

In buying any article, however small or trifling, at Canton, the
seller will furnish you with a small paper containing some Chi-
nese characters, and these are called chops. If called on by the
custom-house officers, or mandarin, to pay duty on these articles,
you simply present them with chops, and it is their business to
find the merchant who sold the article, and collect the revenue
from him.

Their fancy articles, in imitation of Japan ware, carved boxes,
and other articles of ivory, with a thousand fancy gewgaws, are
sold here for a mere song. They are most faithful copyists of

354

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[May,

paintings, though they cannot draw, having no idea of perspective.
Our party saw an excellent likeness of Stewart’s Washington,
most faithfully copied by a Chinese ; indeed, with a good copy
before them, they can execute in a masterly manner. In tailoring
they are equally correct. One of the middies sent a pair of
pantaloons as a pattern, to have a dozen made by ; each pair that
was returned came true to the pattern, even to a patch on the seat,
and a button wanting !

They are said to be very acute accountants, and their method of
computing is certainly singular. The process is by a kind of
abacus, which they call swan-pwan, or counting boards ; which
consists of a frame of wood, of various sizes, divided into two
unequal compartments, by a bar placed crosswise at about one
third the length from the top. Through the bar at right angles
are inserted a number of parallel wires, and on each wire in the
lower compartment are five moveable balls, and in the upper two :
these wires may be considered as the ascending or descending
powers of a numeration table, proceeding in a decimal proportion ;
so that if a ball on any of the wires in the larger compartment
be placed against the middle part and called unit, or one, a ball on
the next wire above it will represent ten, and one on the next one
hundred : so also a ball on the next wire below that representing
units will be one tenth, next lower one hundredth, and the ball on
the corresponding wires in the smaller compartment will in the
same manner represent five, fifty, five hundred ; ten, tenths, five
hundredths, &Cc., the value or power of each of these in the
smaller division being always five times as much as those in the
larger. It is wonderful the facility with which they will calcu-
late by this process, and what is remarkable, they are scarcely
ever known to be wrong, even in the most complicated accounts.

The city of Canton, as before stated, our officers were not per-
mitted to enter, as no foreigners are. But the Chinese Reposi-
tory, an English magazine, published in the suburbs, contains
many interesting facts respecting the interior of this ancient city,
from which the following have been taken : — .

“ That part of the city which is surrounded by a wall, is built
nearly in the form of a square, and is divided by a wall running
from east to west in two parts. Thei northern, which is much the
largest part, is called the old city ; the southern part is called the

1832.]

CANTON, DESCRIPTION OF,

355

new city. According to some foreign, as well as native books,
the northern part was once ‘ composed, as it were, of three differ-
ent towns, separated by very fine high walls, but so conjoined, that
the same gate served to go out from the one and enter the other.’
These divisions ceased long ago to exist. The new city was
built at a much later period than the old. The entire circuit of
the wall, which now includes both divisions of the city, is vari-
ously estimated by the Chinese. At a quick step we have walked
the whole distance in little less than two hours, and think it can-
not exceed six English miles. On the south side the wall runs
nearly due east and west, parallel to the river, and distant from it
perhaps fifteen or twenty rods. On the north, where ‘ the city
rests on the brow of the hill,’ the wall takes a serpentine course ;
and its base at the highest point on the hill is perhaps two hun-
dred or three hundred feet above the surface of the river.

“ The walls are composed partly of stone and partly of bricks :
the former is chiefly coarse sandstone, and forms the foundation
and the lower part of the walls and the arches of the gates ; the
latter are small and of a soft texture. In several places, particu-
larly along the east side of the city, the elements have made such
inroads on the walls as to afford satisfactory evidence, that be-
fore the prowess of a modern foe, they would present but a feeble
resistance. They rise nearly perpendicular, and vary in height
from twenty-five to thirty-five or forty feet. In thickness they are
twenty or twenty-five feet. They are the highest and the most
substantial on the north side, evidently so built because in that
direction hostile bands would be the most likely to make an attack.
A line of battlements, with embrasures at intervals of a few feet,
are raised on the top of the wall around the whole city ; these
the Chinese call ching-jin, literally, city -men ; and in the rear of
them there is a broad pathway. There are two ‘ wings,’ or short
walls, one at the southeast and the other at the southwest corner
of the city, which stretch out from the main walls ; these were
designed to block up the narrow space between the walls and the
ditches of the city. Through each of these there is a gate, in
every respect similar to those of the city.

“ The gates of the city are sixteen in number ; four of these
lead through the wall which separates the old from the new city ;
so that there are only twelve outer gates — commencing on the

z 2

356

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC

[May,

north, and passing round to the west, south, and east. One of
these gates is fifteen feet wide and twelve high ! A few soldiers
are stationed at each of the gates to watch them by day, and to
close and guard them by night. They are shut at an early, hour
in the evening, and opened at dawn of day. Except on special
occasions, no one is allowed to pass in or out during the night-
watches ; but a small fee will usually open the way, yet always
exposes the keepers to punishment.

“ We must now extend our description so as to include the sub-
urbs ; the streets and buildings of which differ very little, if at
all, from those within the walls. On the west they spread out
nearly in the form of an isosceles right-angled triangle, opening
to the northwest, having the river on the south, and the western
wall of the city for its two equal sides. On the south they occupy
the whole space between the wall and the river. On the east
they are much less extensive than on the west. There are no
buildings on the north, except a few small huts near the principal
gate. Taken collectively, the suburbs are scarcely less exten-
sive or less populous than the city within the walls.

“ The streets of Canton are numerous — we have before us a
catalogue containing the names of more than six hundred, among
which we find the ‘Dragon-street,’ the ‘Flying dragon-street,’
the ‘Martial dragon-street,’ the ‘Flower-street,’ the ‘Golden-
street,’ the ‘ Golden flower-street and among many more of a
similar kind, we meet with a few which we should not wish to
translate. There are several long streets, but most of them are
short and crooked ; they vary in width, from two to sixteen feet
wide, and they are everywhere flagged with large stones, chiefly
granite. The motley crowd that often throng these streets is very
great indeed. At a busy hour of the day, the stout, half naked,
vociferating porters, carrying every description of merchandise,
and the nimble sedan-bearers, in noise and bustle, make up for
the deficiency of carts and carriages ; these, together with the
numerous travellers, various kinds of retailers, pedlers, beggars,
&c., present before the spectator a scene which we will not at-
tempt to describe.

“Not a few of the visiters, and not a little of the merchandise,
brought together here, are conveyed into the city by means of
canals or ditches. There are several of these ; one of the largest

1832.]

CANTON.

357

of them extends along the whole length of the wall on the east
of the city, and another on the west side. Between these two,
and communicating with them, there is a third canal, which runs
along near the wall on the north side of the new city, so that
boats can enter on the west, pass through the city, and out at the
eastern side ; and vice versa. There are other canals in the
eastern and western suburbs ; and one in the southern. Into
these large channels a great number of smaller ones flow : these
the Chinese call the ‘ veins of the city.’ There are also several
reservoirs, but none of them are of great extent. Much of the
water for the use of the inhabitants is supplied from the river and
canals ; wells are frequent ; rain-water is employed also ; and for
tea, &c., fine wholesome water is plentifully furnished from
several springs, which break out on the north of the city, both
within and without the walls. There are several bridges, some
built of stone, thrown over these canals.”

358

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[May,

CHAPTER XIX.

The empire of China — ^Unknown to the ancients — Its history involved in fable and
tradition — Founded by Noah — Patriarchal form of government — Location, size,
cities, towns, villages, monuments, libraries, &c. — Immense population — Obser-
vations on acclimating her productions.

The Chinese empire, -which, including its tributary states and
those under its protection, is said to cover more than five millions
of square miles, and is computed to contain more than three hun-
dred millions of inhabitants — is, perhaps, less accurately known
than any other kingdom of the earth. To the ancient historians,
both sacred and profane, China was either entirely unknown, or
she was, as it were, a “ sealed book,” into the contents of which
the eye of curoisity was not permitted to pry ; and though modern
enterprise, with a freer and bolder spirit of commerce and in-
quiry, has been more successful in seeking to penetrate the
mysteries of the “ Celestial Empire,” comparatively little additional
light has been thrown upon the subject ; or, at least, much still
remains to be known. The Portuguese navigators, who followed
Vasco de Gama round the Cape of Good Hope, after its dis-
covery by Dias, were the first from whom the Europeans attained
any tolerably correct ideas of the situation, extent, and character
of this interesting country. And several subsequent embassies
from Europe, though all of them failing in the grand object of
•their respective missions, together with the more recent and
successful labours of the intelligent and enterprising missionary
Gutzlaff, have tended in some measure to throw down the myste-
rious screen of national pride and jealousy, behind which the
Chinese have ensconced themselves for so many centuries. Other
Christian missionaries, also, so far as they have been permitted,
have laboured hard, and somewhat successfully, in the same cause.

Although Alexander the Great, who flourished three hundred
and fifty years before the Christian era, is stated to have subdued
all the then known world, and to have lamented that there were
no more nations to conquer, we now know that the vast regions

1832.]

CHINA.

359

of northern Tartary, China proper, and even further India, were
not included in his conquests. This exception in favour of thq
countries just named, is supposed by some writers to be attributa-
ble to their early knowledge of gunpowder, and the use of artil-
lery. Philostratus, as we have stated in a previous chapter, wrote
under this impression in his Life of Apollonius Thyanasus.

But whatever credit may be attached to this historian, there are
strong reasons for believing that the empire of China was totally
unknown to the ancient Greeks, as it is not mentioned or even
alluded to by Homer, or Herodotus, the great father of history.
It has been conjectured, however, from a passage in Quintius Cur-
tins, the Latin historian, who wrote the Life of Alexander the
Great, that the Macedonian hero had attained some knowledge of
the Chinese during his conquests in India, about three hundred
and twenty years before Christ, and that it is to them the historian
refers in these words — hinc in regnuni Sophitis perventum est.
Gens ut harhari sapientia excellit, honisque morihus regitur. In
confirmation of this conjecture, it is added that Strabo, the great
Latin geographer, calls this kingdom of Sophites, Cathea, a word
which is supposed to bear a resemblance to Cathay, the name
given to China by the Tartars. The Jews are supposed to have
found their way into China, after Alexander, by his conquests in
the east, had opened a communication with India ; and their ar-
rival in the country is said to be noticed in the historical records
of China. The date of that event is fixed by some in the year
two hundred and six, and by others in the year two hundred and
fifty-eight before Christ. They abound chiefly in the silk provinces.

The ancient history of China is too much enveloped in dark-
ness, fable, and extravagant tradition, to furnish us .with any data
on v/hich to erect a plausible hypothesis respecting its origin.
Some of their writers have claimed an antiquity for the nation of
more than ninety millions of years ! The more moderate and
reasonable of them, however, are content to ascribe their origin to
the immediate survivers of the general deluge, and suppose that
Noah himself was the actual founder of the empire !

This supposition has been ingeniously sustained by some
European writers, particularly by the authors of the “ English
Universal History.” It is suggested that the patriarch Noah,
whom the Chinese call Foliee, and whose ark they suppose may

S60

TOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[May,

have rested on some mountain in Great Tartary,* becoming justly
offended at the impiety of his degenerate descendants, about two
hundred and thirty years after the flood, separated himself from
them ; and with a select number of adherents, travelled eastward,
where he planted a colony which ultimately became the foundation
of the Chinese empire.

In the meantime, his disobedient and refractory descendants,
who, with those that accompanied him, comprised all the
human race, took an opposite direction, and travelled to the
west until they reached the banks of the Euphrates. Here a
striking analogy is obvious between the tradition and that pas-
sage in Genesis which says — “ And the whole earth was of
one language and of one speech. And it came to pass, as they
journeyed /y'om the east, that they found a plain in the land of
Shinar, and dwelt there.” Here they attempted to “ build a tower,
whose top should reach to heaven,” which impious enterprise
was defeated by the miraculous confusion of tongues, which led
to their dispersion over all the earth.

Another argument, which has been adduced in favour of this-
hypothesis, is derived from the fact that there is a striking resem-
blance between the Chinese government and that which has been
generally called the “ patriarchal form,” from which it is supposed
to have originated.!

But after all that has been conjectured and written on the sub-
ject, the knowledge of the origin, history, and condition of this
extensive and extraordinary empire, is still extremely imperfect
and uncertain. It was only at a late period that the nations of
Europe became acquainted even with the existence of the coun-
try ; and even then the peculiar nature of the language, and the
careful exclusion of foreigners by the government, prevented, and
still in a great measure prevents, that degree of intercourse with

* It is a curious fact, that the celebrated Swedish theologian, Swedenborg, asserts
in his writings, that the ■“ Book of Enoch,” quoted by Moses, still exists in Tartary.
This he says was a divine revelation made to the antediluvians.

t “ The Emperor of China possesses the rnost unlimited authority, and can issue
new laws, or abrogate old ones, as he pleases. _ He is the undisputed master of the
lives of his subjects. To his revision every verdict is subject, and is of no force un-
til it receives bis confirmation. All his own sentences are executed without delay ;
and all his edicts are acknowledged throughout the e.mpire, as if they were the man-
dates of Deity,” — Ed, Enc. '

1832.]

CHINA.

361

the people which is necessary to procure correcf information of
their manners, and free access to their historical records.

So little indeed was known of China, or any part of the eastern
extremity of Asia, as late as the fifteenth century, that Columbus
lived and died under the impression that all his discoveries were
on that coast ; little dreaming that a vast continent, and an ocean
beyond it of ten thousand miles in width, intervened between
them. The opinions of Aristotle, Seneca, and Pliny, that by
sailing west from Cadiz, -a navigator might arrive at the Indies in
a few days, served to strengthen this impression. Strabo, also,
the celebrated ancient geographer, had asserted that the ocean
surrounded the earth, washing the shores of India on the one
side, and the western coast of Spain and Mauritania on the other ;
so that it was easy to navigate from one to the other, on the same
parallel.

By reference to the map of Asia, it will be seen that “ China
proper,” which is the subject of our immediate consideration, ex-
tends more than twelve hundred geographical miles from north to
south, and not much short of that distance from east to west; It
stretches from latitude 21° to 42° north, covering twenty-one de-
grees of latitude, and about twenty-five of longitude. The limits
of the United States include twenty-three degrees of latitude, or one
hundred and twenty geographical miles more seacoast than China ;
but the latter extends westward from the coast to such a distance
as to include more than a million and a quarter of square miles,
while the whole extent of our own country, including the Oregon
territory, is only a little more than two millions of square miles. It
is bounded on the north by the vast regions of Tartary, from which
it is separated by an artificial barrier fifteen hundred miles in length,
said to have been erected in the year one thousand one hundred and
sixty, as a work of defence, and is known by the appellation of
the “ Great wall of China.” The eastern boundary of the em-
pire is the Yellow and China Sea, forming an extensive coast of
almost every variety of climate. On the south, it is bounded
partly by the ocean, and partly by the kingdom of Tonquin and
Cochin-China. Its western boundary consists of lofty mountains
and extensive deserts, which separate it from Bucharia, Thibet, &c.

This vast empire is divided into fifteen provinces, which, ac-
cording to Chinese statements, contain four thousand four hundred

362

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[May,

and two walled cities, divided into two classes, the civil and the
military ; the first comprising two thousand and forty-five, and the
second two thousand three hundred and fifty-seven cities. The
frontiers and seacoasts are defended by four hundred and thirty-
nine castles, fortified and covered by two thousand nine hundred
and twenty towns, many of which are equal in population and
extent to the walled cities themselves ; while the villages scattered
over the interior are declared to be innumerable.

There are also, according to the same authorities, eleven hun-
dred and forty-five royal hospitals, or lodging-places for the offi-
cers and servants of the court ; eleven hundred and fifty-nine
triumphal arches, erected in honour of kings and heroes ; two
hundred and eight monuments, dedicated to the memory of
females who have been distinguished by the virtues of their sex;
two hundred and seventy-two libraries, continually open to the
learned ; and in almost every city or town, schools and colleges
established by their great philosopher Confucius, or founded in
honour of his name. How near to the actual truth these flaming
and probably exaggerated accounts approximate, it is impossible
for strangers to determine. We know that this people possess
an extraordinary share of national pride and vanity ; despising all
the rest of the W'-orld, and believing, or affecting to believe, that
every other nation of the earth is bound to pay them homage and
obeisance.

By the Chinese themselves, their country is called Tehong-
Kaoue, or the middle kingdom ; because they formerly imagined
that it was situated in the middle of the earth, and that all other
countries lay scattered around their empire in the form of small
islands. In latter times they have indeed acquired a more correct
geography ; but so inveterately do they adhere to ancient opinions,
and especially to whatever flatters their national vanity, that they
still continue to express themselves in this erroneous manner, and
to preserve unaltered every sentiment and expression of their
great philosopher Confucius. In their hyperbolical jargon, China
is the “ Celestial Empire,” and their emperor the “Father of
ten thousand years,” and the “ Brother of the sun and moon.”

But, after making all due allowances for hyperbole and exag-
geration, the country in question is emphatically one of the
wonders of the world ; for the whole geography and history of

1832.]

CHINA,

363

the terraqueous globe, afford no other object more sublimely
great than this immense sovereignty, the most numerous, and, it
is probable, the most anciently civilized nation. “ As a whole, the
Chinese empire fronts on the Pacific Ocean, from the head of
the Gulf of Tung-Quin to the mouth of Amur, five thousand
miles ; upon Asiatic Russia, from the Sea of Ochotsk to the
Irtish river, three thousand miles ; along the Altaian and Imaus
Mountains, fifteen hundred miles ; and skirting the two Indies,
two thousand five hundred miles; having an entire outline of
more than twelve thousand miles. Within this perimeter is
included the orle thirteenth part of the land area of our planet ;
every variety of soil, and almost every diversity of climate. It
includes the most elevated of all mountains, the Himalaya ; the
high, cold, and desolate plains of Thibet and Mongolia, and also
the rich alluvial deltas of the Amur, Hoanho, and Kianku.*” An
immense population of two hundred millions — a wary, cunning,
politic, keen, and observant race.

Such is a hasty sketch of the “ Celestial Empire.” What a
field is here presented for the labours of the devoted missionary !

what a prospect for the merchant ! — apd how much to occupy
the attention of the wise statesman ! Of its commerce we shall
speak in the next chapter, while we shall conclude the present
with a few suggestions on a subject which has not received atten-
tion proportioned to its importance in this country ; but with the
opening of the trade to China, cannot be too soon attended to by
our government. By the way, however, we must observe, that
though China was once far in advance of every other nation on
the globe, as to civilization, literature, refinement, and the arts and
sciences, she is now as far in the rear of the most unenlightened
nations of Europe. Still, China has not retrograded, but only
stood still, while other nations, who were far behind her, have
caught her up and pushed far ahead of her. Her arts are still in
the same state that they were when that country was visited by
Marco Polo, so many years ago; her modern literature is still. a
servile imitation of ancient models ; and science has not advanced
a single step.

A proper estimation, in this country, has never been placed

* Derby’s Geographical Lectures.

364

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[May,

upon the benefits which might result to agriculture, and particu-
larly to horticulture, from an expedition to the coast of China.
That country has a climate very similar to our own, arising from
its similar position on the eastern edge of a great continent. Both
are dry, and subject to greater vicissitudes of heat and cold than
countries in the interior, or on the other side of the great conti-
nent. This being the case, the vegetable productions suitable to
the one, cannot but thrive well in the other.

China has been a long time civilized, and the whole extent of
its coast been for ages under a government which has paid more
attention to agriculture than any other government that has ever
existed. Under such circumstances, it is impossible to be other-
wise, but that the vegetables and fruits of the various climates
have been acclimated to a degree much beyond what they have
with us, or in Europe, from whence we derive our fruits and
vegetables.

The territories of China embracing both sides of the tropic,
we have every reason to believe that the productions of the south
have been extended as far as possible to the north, and those of
the north to the south.

By getting, therefore, fruits and vegetables from a country thus
situated, we get the advantage of a thousand or more years of
acclimation.

For instance, we get our apples and pears from England and
France. The apple we have not yet acclimated as far south as
Oeorgia. There are, we believe, only one or two varieties, which,
in the upper part of that state, prove fruitful in some years. Their
flavour is very indifferent. So with the pear. Coming from the
latitude of from forty-two to fifty, it is unproductive south of Bal-
timore ; and so with other fruits.

Who can doubt but that, in a country in which the extension
and prosperity of agriculture have been the great object of govern-
ment, their fruits and other vegetables have, in the course of
fifteen hundred years, been extending gradually to the south, so
as to become used to a climate which it will take us nearly the
same period to reach with the varieties of fruits which we now
have. It is the same with the fruits and vegetable productions
of the south. The tropical fruits and vegetables must have been
brought as far north as they can be profitably cultivated. From

1832.]

CHINA.

365

fifteen hundred to two thousand years have been passed in this
process of acclimation.

Why should we undergo this long process, when a few thou-
sand dollars may introduce them among us ?

It is well known, that among other plants, the sugarcane may
be gradually introduced into a climate which was at one time in-
congenial to it. The Otaheite has been introduced into Louisiana.
What a gain it would be to our country if a variety could be
procured which could be raised one degree farther north than
the Otaheite ! The advantages from this single plant alone would
a thousand times compensate for all the expenses of such an ex-
periment. For the introduction into this country of the various
fruits and vegetables which such a country as China must pro-
duce, might be attended with advantages almost incalculable.

We have already received from China one animal, the benefits
of which to our country surpass a thousand times the expenses
which might accrue in setting on foot the proper inquiry in rela-
tion to this matter. The Chinese hog is the animal to which we
allude. A long series of years devoted to the selection of animals
having a propensity to fatten, could alone have produced the breed,,
which has added so much to the wealth of our farmers, and to
the pleasure of our epicures who admire a nice ham. What
would our gardeners think of the immense piles of headed lettuce,
described by travellers in China as heaped up at the gates of the
cities, preparatory to entering and being distributed among the
morning markets ? We have nothing of the kind in the United
States or Europe. We cannot have, unless by hundreds of years
of persevering industry and care.

These things are more particularly of importance, because they
are those in which the great mass of the community are directly
and principally interested. They add to the comfort of the poorest
as much as they do to that of the richest. All are benefited, and
none could complain of any expenditure which all acknowledge
is for the benefit of all classes, and all sections. If there be any
section that may be more benefited than another, it is from lati-
tude 32° south.

The introduction of one single vegetable, the turnip, into Eng-
land, changed the whole face of a large district of country, and

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

366

[May,

rendered it, from being almost barren, one of the most fertile in the
kingdom.

As to the commercial advantages, independent of other articles
of commerce, which might be brought into view by means of such
inquiries, we have no doubt that the intruduction alone of the iron
of Formosa into our country, would be found in ready demand.
That iron is of so superior a quality, that, for some particular
purposes, it would be invaluable. Such is the temper that can
be given to it, it is stated, that swords made of it will sever
with ease those made of ordinary steel. What a desideratum to
all the mechanic arts would be a sufficient quantity of it to make
our finest edgetools, and most delicately constructed instru-
ments !

1832.J

COMMERCIAL RIVALRY.

367

CHAPTER XX.

European rivalry in the east — Formation of the East India Company — Its conquests
in India — First American vessel sails from New-York, and visits Canton — Inter-
esting correspondence — Tabular view of our trade — Expiration of the company’s
charter — New state of things opening in the east — Increased vigilance necessary on
the part of our government — Free trade with China.

For a century after Vasco de Gama had reflected so much glory
upon his nation, by discovering the passage aroi^nd the Cape of
Good Hope, the Portuguese had enjoyed, as well as greatly
abused, the advantages of superior knowledge and art, amid a
feeble and half-civilized people. They explored the Indian Ocean
as far as Japan ; visited islands rich in some of the favourite pro-
ductions of nature ; had achieved the most brilliant conquests ;
and, by their commerce, poured into Europe, in unexampled pro-
fusion, those rare commodities of the east, on which the nations
of the old vs*orld, at that time, set an extraordinary value.

These new sources of wealth could not fail to attract the atten-
tion of the other powers of Europe. For even when confined
to the narrow limits which a carriage by land had prescribed, this
trade was supposed to have elevated feeble states into powerful
ones. History bears abundant proof that it contributed largely
to the support of the Grecian monarchies, both in Syria and in
Egypt ; for a long succession of years retarded the downfall of
Constantinople ; and raised the otherwise obscure republic of
Venice to the rank and influence of the most potent of kingdoms.
No wonder, therefore, that the new channel opened by the Portu-
guese to the east, should have aroused the cupidity of all the
maritime powers of Europe.

England had shared largely in the improvements of Europe at
that period ; and that active spirit of commerce, which was des-
tined to encompass the whole globe, had gone boldly forth ; while
the felicitous reign of Elizabeth was highly favourable to the
accumulation of capital, and all of those projects on which the
life of commerce depends.

368

VOYAGK OF THE POTOMAC.

[May,

During the sixteenth century, the merchants of Bristol had ex-
tended their trade to the Canary Islands ; those of Plymouth to
the coast of Guinea and Brazil ; the fisheries were prosecuted
on the banks of Newfoundland ; the exclusive trade of Russia
was in their hands ; while to the Mediterranean, Germany, and
the central ports of Europe, their trade was prosecuted with such
vigour as to elicit the open jealousy of the Hanse Towns.

The Protestant inhabitants of France and the Netherlands, fly-
ing at that time from the persecutions of their bigoted govern-
ments, contributed largely to the commercial resources of Eng-
land, not more by the introduction of capital than of mechanical
skill.

Spain was followed to the new world, and Cabot, in fourteen
hundred and ninety-seven, traced these shores from Labrador to
Virginia. In fifteen hundred and twenty-seven, a project was pre-
sented to Henry the Eighth, which was intended to put England
on a footing with Portugal, at that time claiming an exclusive
privilege, and defending, by an armed force, the passage to the
east by the Cape of Good Hope. And this project was a north-
west passage. Two efforts were made during the reign of that
prince, and though unsuccessful, reflected the highest credit on
the nautical skill of the English. Indeed, so ardent was the desire
of England to share in the trade of the east, and so anxious to
find a channel to which the monopolizing Portuguese could have
no claim, that repeated efforts were made to make voyages to
India, by the northwest, and also by the northeast passage.
These voyages, though they extended the limits of geographical
knowledge, and opened new channels of trade with the north of
Russia, were unsuccessful, and several of them tragical in their
results.

During the many years spent in these unsuccessful projects,
England had steadily increased in wealth and naval power ; so that
in fifteen hundred and eighty-two, throwing aside all disguise, ves-
sels to India were despatched by way of the Cape of Good Hope.
Others followed, with a letter from Elizabeth to the Emperor of
China. These voyages, though far from being profitable, did not
in the least damp the commercial spirit of the people ; which, in
fact, at this time, received a new impulse from the remarkable
voyage of Drake, who returned to Plymouth in fifteen hundred

1832.]

COMMERCIAL RIVALRY.,

369

and eighty, and exhibited to the wondering eyes of the spectators,
the first ship in England, and the second in the world, that had
circumnavigated the globe. An ardour for maritime exploits per-
vaded the highest ranks. The Earls of Cumberland and Essex,
Sir R. Grenville and Raleigh, Gilbert and Dudley, prepared
squadrons at their own expense, and sailed in them to different
parts of the world.

In fifteen hundred and eighty-six, followed the celebrated voyage
of Cavendish, which, like that of Drake, was eminently suc-
cessful. On the day of his arrival, he wrote to the chamberlain
of Elizabeth as follows : — “ I navigated to the Islands of Philip-
pines, hard upon the coast of China, of which country I have
brought such intelligence as hath not been heard of in these parts
a country, the stateliness and riches of which I fear to make re-
port of, lest I should not be credited. I sailed along the islands
of Molucca, where, among some of the heathen people, I was
well entreated, and where our countrymen may have trade as free
as the Portugals, if they themselves will.”

The tide of maritime adventure, so much augmented by the
return of these splendid voyages, now flowed naturally and steadily
to the east. •'

In fifteen hundred and eighty-nine, “ divers merchants” pe-'
titioned the lords of council for permission to send ships on a
voyage to India ; which, in fifteen hundred and ninety-one, was
followed by another expedition, set on foot, not so much with the
view of trade, as to harass the Portuguese ; a species of com-
mercial enterprise which our worthy ancestors appear to have un-
derstood from a very early period of their history.

The Dutch at this time ventured boldly, and sent vessels by
the East Cape to India. This spurred on the English, and in
fifteen hundred and ninety-nine, an association was formed, and
thirty thousand pounds subscribed. Political relations with Spain
greatly retarded, but could not defeat the commercial spirit of the
people ; so that in sixteen hundred, a charter of privileges was'
obtained, vessels were again prepared for the east, and thus was
laid the foundation of a power so anomalous, and which, in the
hands of the East India Company, has exercised so much influ-
ence in distributing the wealth of the world ! By repeated efibrts,
sharp .and hazardous conflicts with her more powerful competitors^

A a

370

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[May,

in sixteen hundred and twelve, England succeeded in getting a
firm foothold in India ; and by imperial permission, established a
factory on the soil, at that time, of one of the most extensive and
splendid monarchies in the world.

The Portuguese, solely on the pretence of discovery, continued
to claim an exclusive right to the passage around the Cape of
Good Hope, nor were they wanting in power vigorously to en-
force that right. Their possessions in the east, at this period,
were immense. By conquest or by agreement, they had made
themselves masters of Goa, Bombay ; of Aden, at the entrance of
the Red Sea ; of Ormus, in the Persian Gulf ; of part of the Ma-
lay coast, in the Straits of Malacca ; of the Molucca Islands ;
and of the coast of Ceylon, the very spice of all the eastern
islands. They were possessed of fact»ries in Bengal and in
Siam ; and they had erected the city of Macao on the coast of
China.

The Dutch, after having shaken off the trammels of Spain,
had opened an extensive and active trade direct with India. With
both of these powerful competitors the English had to contend ;
and with such vigour did they push their eastern enterprises, that
in despite of superior power and much bad management on the
part of directors, previous to the year sixteen hundred and six-
teen, factories were established at Java, Sumatra, Borneo, the
Banda Islands, Celebes, Malacca, Siam, the coasts of Malabar
and Coromandel, but especially in the territories of the Great
Mogul. On this success, a new subscription of one million . six
hundred thousand pounds was raised.

The power of Portugal in the east began to fall off, from the
union of that country with Spain, whose monarch was wholly
occupied with his golden schemes of aggrandizement in Spanish
America ; while the Dutch now pursued their trade to the east
with the utmost ardour, and were soon able to supplant the Portu-
guese in the spice trade, and to expel them entirely from the
Moluccas. The augmentation of capital in Holland was rapid
beyond any previous example in any other country ; and a large
portion of it was put into the trade of the east. England, mis-
governed and oppressed, struggled hard, but with unequal power.
Indeed, from this period, sixteen hundred and eighteen, up to six-
teen hundred and fifty-eight, several conflicting companies existed,

1832.]

COMMEUCIAL RIVALRV.

371

as merchant adventurers, when the charter of the company was
remodelled.

In sixteen hundred and sixty-one, after the death of Cromwell
and accession of Charles the Second, a petition was presented to
him for the renewal of the charter, which was granted, confirming the
ancient privileges of the company, and vesting in them authority
to make peace or war with any prince or people not being
Christians, and to seize unlicensed persons and send them to Eng-
land. This consigned almost the whole power of government to
the directors and the servants. With all this increase of power,
the operations of the company were still languid,' and many of the
out-factories and agencies were suppressed. The wars on the
Coromandel coast, and the overbearing influence of the Dutch,
seemed to threaten the extinction of the English trade. In six-
teen hundred and sixty-four, the French entered into this trade by
the formation of a company. The Dutch still maintained the
lead, and the English appear at this time to have made the dis-
covery, that the numerous factories they supported consumed all
their profits,— while the Dutch, more economical, traded at various
points with the natives without the expense of heavy establish-
ments. The Dutch established a regency at Batavia and Co-
lumbo. The English aimed at equal grandeur, and in sixteen hmi-
dred and eighty-seven, Bombay was elevated into the dignity of
a regency, with unlimited power over the rest of the company’s
settlements.

In seventeen hundred and eight, a union between all contend-
ing parties, was effected, by the decision of Godolphin as um-
pire ; and the privileges of exclusive trade founded on legislative
authority ; and thus terminated the rivalship of contending com-
panies, which gave additional strength and effect to British inter-
ests in the east.

Seventeen hundred and forty-nine opened a new scene in the
affairs of the company. The powers of Europe had been con-
tending with each other, — particularly Spain and England ; and
their respective colonies and distant establishments had suffered
severely.

Until this period, the company had maintained the mere character
of traders. By humility and submission, they had sustained
their interests, under the protection, and often the oppression of

A a 2

372

VOYAGE OE THE POTOMAC.

[Mays

the native princes. They now assumed a new attitude, and pre-
pared to mix in the wars of the native powers. The French, also,
were- now very active, and attempted great things. The English
were the first to draw the sword, for the poor motive of a trifling
settlement on the Coromandel coast. But when have power and
cupidity stood for rights, or regarded the interests of the weak ?
Seldom, at any period ; much less at the one of which we are
speaking. > .

In seventeen hundred and fifty-one, the French, under that
able commander, Dupleix, had made extensive conquests ; their
arms had generally been successful ; and that portion of the Mo-
gul’s dominions, from the Coromandel coast, and the river Kisna
to Cape Comorin, was in their possession. The natives were
astonished and panic-struck to behold a handful of foreigners, who
had so recently been at the feet of petty governors, so suddenly
extending their power, until .the Mogul himself seemed scarcely
secure on his throne.

Even the English seemed to have sunk for a time into apathy
and despair before the superior energy of Dupleix. But in seven-
teen hundred and fifty-four, the French and English governments
at home became anxious for the restoration of peace among their
subjects in India; new commissioners were appointed; Dupleix
was superseded in the command by Goodheu, and an amnesty at
once agreed upon. In this treaty, the English gained all by ne-
gotiation which they had contended for with their arms ; while
the French, in their desire for peace, made great sacrifices and al-
most unlimited concessions.

It was this treaty which led to the ascendency of the English
East India Company, and they did not fail to take advantage of it,
by pushing their conquests, as the French averred, in direct viola-
tion of the sacred stipulations of the treaty ; and the consequence
was, that the French found themselves again engaged in the war,
with every advantage ceded in the treaty turned against them.
They saw, when too late, the oversight in not having sustained
Dupleix, who, more than any other man, was capable of extend-
ing their interests in the east.

In seventeen hundred and fifty-six, war again broke out between
the English and French : the latter exerted all their efforts to re-
gain what they had lost by the treaty. The talented and unfor-

1832.]

COMMERCIAL RIVALRY.

373

tunate Count Lally was commissioned in charge of the French
interest, and, for a time, every thing seemed to promise a complete
ascendency. But the English, like certain colonies once in their
possession, “ the more they were whipped, the more they would
not stay whipped,” being now guided in their councils by the
transcendent genius of the elder Pitt, soon regained what they
had lost, and carried their victorious arms to all parts of the
world. The dark intrigues of the Carnatic now followed in
quick succession. New sultans were set up, and old nabobs put
down, as these movements promised a profitable entry on the
company’s leger. From seventeen hundred and sixty to seven-
teen hundred and eighty-four, the English power, under the man-
agement of the East India Company, increased rapidly. Though
the history of her conquests in India, like all other European
nations, is little else than a history of continued aggression, full
of injustice and sickening detail : and it is a matter of astonish-
ment, that a nation like Great Britain, so watchfully jealous of
her commercial rights, should so long have permitted her honour
and her true interests to remain in the keeping of a heartless,
grasping, and almost irresponsible company ; a company which
has extended its power among a disunited and feeble people,
until it embracesprearly the whole of that vast region, which ex-
tends from Cape Comorin to the mountains of Tibet, and from
the mouth of the river Bohmapootra to the Indus.

How often has the British nation been called on to sustain, with
her best blood, the military operations and schemes of conquest
of this company, among the imbecile princes of India ? And all
for what purpose, except to raise up an anomalous power, which
has shackled for so many years the enterprise of British mer-
chants, and been a heavy tax on the British nation ?

It was at this period, seventeen hundred and eighty-four, when
the war of our revolution had been so gloriously terminated in the
establishment of our independence, that the maritime spirit and
intelligence of our own merchants, no longer shackled by op-
pressive colonial restrictions, looked abroad to all parts of the
globe ; and, though with limited capital, soon gave an earnest of
that expansive enterprise, which has added so much to our national
prosperity and power, and from which such high destinies may
await us in all coming time.

374

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[May,

The city of New-York has the honour of having sent the first
vessel to Canton, and the particulars of the voyage, as given by
her supercargo to the Hon. John Jay, at that time secretary of
state, is so full of interest, and so dilferent from the first voyages
of other nations to that part of the world, that we cannot refuse
to our readers the gratification of its perusal.

Letter from Samuel Shaw to John Jay,

“New-York, May 19, 1785.

Sir, —

“ The first vessel that has been fitted out by the inhabitants of
the United States of America, for essaying a commerce with
those of the empire of China, being by the favour of Heaven safe
returned to this port, it becomes my duty to communicate to you,
for the information of the fathers of the country, an account of
the reception their subjects have met/with, and the respect with
which their flag has been treated in that distant region ; especially
as some circumstances have occurred which had a tendency to
attract the attention of the Chinese towards a people of whom
they have hitherto had but very confused ideas ; and which
served, in a peculiar manner, to place the Americans in a more
conspicuous point of view than has commonly attended the intro-
duction of other nations into that ancient and extensive empire.

“ The ship employed on this occasion is ^bout three hundred
and sixty tons burden, built in America, and equipped with forty-
three persons, under the command of John Green, Esquire. The
subscriber had the honour of being appointed agent for their
commerce, by the gentlemen at whose risk this first experiment
has been undertaken.

“On the twenty-second of February, seventeen hundred and
eighty-four, the ship sailed from New-York, and arrived on the
twenty-first March at St, Jago, the principal of the Cape de Verd
Islands. Having paid our respects to the Portuguese viceroy, and
with his permission taken such refreshments as were necessary,
we left those islands on the twenty-seventh, and pursued our voyage.
After a pleasant passage, in which nothing extraordinary occurred,
we came to anchor in the Straits of Sunda on the eighteenth July,
It was no small addition to our happiness on this occasion, to meet
there two ships belonging to our good allies the French. The com-

1832.]

COMMERCIAL RIVALRY.

375

modore.. Monsieur Dordelin, and his officers, welcomed us in the most
affectionate manner ; and as his own ship was immediately bound
to Canton, gave us an invitation to go in company with him. This
friendly , offer we most cheerfully accepted, and the commodore
furnished us with his signals by day and night, and added such
instructions for our passage through the Chinese Seas, as would
have been exceedingly beneficial had any unfortunate accident
occasioned our separation. Happily, we pursued our route to-
gether. On our arrival at the Island of Macao, the French consul
for China, Monsieur Vieillard, with some other gentlemen of his
nation, came on board to congratulate and welcome us to that part
of the world, and kindly undertook the introduction of the Ameri-
cans to the Portuguese governor. The little time that we were
there was entirely taken up by the good offices of the consul, the
gentlemen of his nation, and those of the Swedes and Imperial-
ists who still remained at Macao. The other Europeans had
repaired to Canton. Three days afterward, we finished our out-
ward-bound voyage. Previous to coming to anchor, we saluted
the shipping in the river with thirteen guns, which were answered
by the several commodores of the European nations, each of
whom sent an officer to compliment us on our arrival. These
visits were returned by the captain and supercargoes, in the after-
noon, who were again saluted by the respective ships as they
finished their visit. When the French sent their officers to con-
gratulate us, they added to the obligations we were already under
to them, by furnishing men, boats, and anchors, to assist us in
coming to safe and convenient moorings. Nor did their' good
offices stop here ; they furnished us with part of their own
banksall, and insisted further, that until we were settled, we should
take up our quarters with them at Canton.

“ The day of our arrival at Canton, August thirtieth, and the
two following days, we were visited by the Chinese merchants,
and the chiefs and gentlemen of the several European establish-
ments, and treated by them in all respects as a free and indepen-
dent nation. As such, during our stay, we were universally con-
sidered. The Chinese themselves were very indulgent towards
us, though our being the first American ship that had ever visited
China, it was some time before they could fully comprehend the
distinction between Englishmen and us. They styled us the

376

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[May,

new people; and when, by the map, we conveyed to them an
idea of the extent of our country, with its present and increasing
population, they were highly pleased at the prospect of so con-
siderable a market for the productions of theirs.

“ The situation of the Europeans at Canton is so well known as
to render a detail unnecessary. The good understanding com-
monly subsisting between them and the Chinese, was, in some
degree, interrupted by two occurrences, of which, as they were-
extraordinary in themselves, and led to a more full investigation
of the American character, by both parties, than might otherwise
have taken place, I will, with your permission, give a particular
account.

“ The police at Canton is at all times extremely strict, and the
Europeans there are circumscribed within very narrow limits.
The latter had observed, with concern, some circumstances which
they deemed an encroachment upon their rights. On this con-
sideration, they determined to apply for redress to the hoppo, who
is the head officer of the customs, the next time he should visit the
shipping. Deputies accordingly attended from every nation, and
I was desired to represent ours. We met the hoppo on board an
English ship, and the causes of complaint were soon after re-
moved.

“ The other occurrence, of which I beg leave to take notice, gave
rise to what was commonly called the Canton war, which threatened
to be productive of very serious consequences. .On the twenty-
fifth of November, an English ship, in saluting some company that
had dined on board, killed a Chinese, and wounded two others in
the mandarin’s boat alongside. It is a maxim of the Chinese law,
that blood must answer for blood ; in pursuance of which, they
demanded the unfortunate gunner. To give up this poor man
was to consign him to certain death. Humanity pleaded power-
fully against the measure. After repeated conferences between
the English and the Chinese, the latter declared themselves
satisfied, and the affair was supposed to be entirely settled. Not-
withstanding this, on the morning after the last conference (the
twenty-seventh), the supercargo of the ship was seized while
attending his business, thrown into a sedan-chair, hurried into the
city, and committed to prison. Such an outrage on personal
liberty spread a general alarm ; and the Europeans unanimously

1832.]

COMMERCIAL RIVALRY.

377

agreed to send for their boats, with armed men from the shipping,
for the security of themselves and property, until the matter
should be brought to a conclusion. The boats accordingly came,
and ours among the number ; one of which was fired on, and a
man wounded. All trade was stopped, and the Chinese men-of-
war drawn up opposite the factories. The Europeans demanded
the restoration of Mr. Smith, which the Chinese refused, until
the gunner should be given up. In the meanwhile, the troops of
the province were collecting in the neighbourhood of Canton ; the
Chinese servants were ordered by the magistrates to leave the
factories ; the gates of the suburbs were shut ; all intercourse
was at an end ; the naval force was increased ; many troops were
embarked in boats, ready for landing ; and every thing wore the
appearance of war. To what extremities matters might have
been carried, had not a negotiation taken place, no one can say.
The Chinese asked a conference with all the nations, except the
English. A deputation, in which I was included for America,
met the fuen, who is the head magistrate of Canton, with the
principal olficers of the province. After setting forth, by an
interpreter, the power of the emperor, and his own determination
to support the laws, he demanded that the gunner should be given
up within three days ; declaring that he should have an impartial
examination before their tribunal, and if it appeared that the affair
was accidental, he should be released unhurt. In the meantime
he gave permission for the trade, excepting that of the English,
to go on as usual ; and dismissed us with a present of two pieces
of silk to each, as a mark of his. friendly disposition. The other
nations, one after another, sent away their boats, under protection
of a Chinese flag, and pursued their business as before. The
English were obliged to submit ; the gunner was given up ; Mr.
Smith was released ; and the English, after being forced to ask
pardon of the magistracy of Canton in the presence of the other
nations, had their commerce restored. On this occasion, I am
happy that we were the last who sent off our boat, which was not
disgraced with a Chinese flag ; nor did she go until the English
themselves thanked us for our concurrence with them, and ad-
vised to the sending her away. After peace was restored, the
chief, and four English gentlemen, visited the several nations,
among whom we were included, and thanked them for their as-

378 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [May,

sistance during the troubles. The gunner remained with the
Chinese — his fate undetermined.

“Notwithstanding the treatment we received from all parties was
perfectly civil and respectful, yet it was with peculiar satisfaction
that we experienced, on every occasion, from our good allies the
French, the most flattering and substantial proofs of their friend-
ship. ‘ If,’ said they, ‘ we have, in any instance, been service-
able to you, we are happy ; and we desire nothing more ardently
than further opportunities to convince you of our affection.’ The
harmony maintained between them and us was particularly
noticed by the English, who more than once observed, that it was
matter of astonishment to them that the descendants of Britons
would so soon divest themselves of prejudices which they had
thought to be not only hereditary, but inherent in our nature.

“We left Canton the twenty- seventh December, and on our
return, refreshed at the Cape of Good Hope, where we found a
most friendly reception. After remaining there five days, we
sailed for America, and arrived in this port on the eleventh instant.

“ To every lover of his country, as well as to those more imme-
diately concerned in commerce, it must be a pleasing reflection
that a communication is thus happily opened between us and the
eastern extreme of the globe ; and it adds very sensibly to the
pleasure of this reflection, that the voyage has been performed in
so short a space of time, and attended with the loss of only one
man. To Captain Greene and his officers, every commendation
is due, for their unwearied and successful endeavours in bringing
it to this most fortunate issue, which fully justifies the confidence
reposed in them by the gentlemen concerned in the enterprise.

“ Permit me, sir, to accompany this letter with the two pieces
of silk presented to me by the Fuen of Canton, as a mark of his
good disposition towards the American nation. In that view, I
consider myself as peculiarly honoured in being charged with this
testimony of the friendship of the Chinese, for a people who may,
in a few years, prosecute a commerce with the subjects of that
empire under advantages equal, if not superior, to those enjoyed
by any other nation whatever.

“ I have the honour to be, &c.,

“ Samuel Shaw.

“ Hon. John Jay, Secretary of State.”

1832.]

COMMEKCIAL RIVALRY.

379

Such was the felicitous commencement of our commercial
intercourse with the “ Celestial Empire a commencement that
will form an epoch in the history of our foreign trade, to which
the p*en of the commercial historian must ever recur with feelings
of national pride. Our trade from that period increased rapidly, -
and we regret that our limits compel us to pass on, without being
able to notice many incidents full of interest, which we had
collected for the embellishment of this part of our work.

By seventeen hundred and ninety-five, our exports to China and
the East Indies generally, amounted to one million twenty-three
thousand two hundred and forty-two dollars ; while our imports
were one million one hundred and forty-four thousand one hundred
and three dollars. By the year seventeen hundred and ninety-
nine, our imports had increased to the astonishing amount of three
millions two hundred and nineteen thousand two hundred and
sixty-two dollars. Java, Sumatra, Ceylon, indeed, every accessi-
ble part of India, had now seen the flag of the new people who
had so recently sprung into existence in the far west. Canton
was the point of greatest attraction, for there was centred the
heaviest portion of our commercial operations in the east ; and
there it has continued, as will be seen by the following table,
showing the number of vessels, amount of tonnage, quantity of
specie imported into, as well as the value of merchandise ex-
ported from Canton, in American vessels, from the years eighteen
hundred and four and five, to eighteen hundred and thirty-two and
thirty-three, inclusive.

380

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[May,

Seasons.

Vessels.

Tonnage.

Dollars.

Total Value.

1804- 6

10,159

2,902,000

$3,555,818

1805- 6

12,480

4,176,000

5,326,358

1806- 7

11,268

2,895,000

3,877,362

1807- 8

8,805

3,032,000

3,940,090

1808- 9

2,215

70,000

479,850

1809-10

12,512

4,723,000

5,744,600

1810-11

4,748

2,330,000

2,898,800

1811-12

7,406

1,876,000

3,132,810

1812-13

1,816

616,000

1,453,000

1813-14 1

2,854

451,500

1814- 15 5

1815- 16

10,208

1,922,000

2,527,500

1816-17

13,096

4,545,000

5,609,600

1817-18

14,325

5,601,000

7,076,828

1818-19

16,377

7,369,000

9,867,208

1819-20

1.5,145

6,259,300

8,185,800

1820-21

8,663

2,569,500

4,035,000

1821-22

15,597

5,125,000

8,199,741

1822-23

14,557

6,292,840

8,339,389

1823-24

13,069

4,096,000

6,315,127

1824-25

16,262

6,524,500

8,962,045

1825-26

42 -.

16,431

5,725,200

7,776,301

1826-27

9,566

1,841,168

4,243,617

1827-28

12,090

2,640,300

5,394,897

1828-29

8,613

1,388,500

4,030,865

1829-30

11,670

1,123,644

4,311,282

1830-31

6,995

183,6.55

4,223,475 45

1831-32

11,357

Bills of Exch.
2,480,871
667,252

5,531,807 53

1832-33

20,621

Bills of Exch.
4,772,516
682,519

8,362,971 35

During the last two years, this important trade has continued
to increase. The whole number of vessels which arrived in
China, and departed therefrom, under the American flag, during
the year ending June thirtieth, eighteen hundred and thirty-four,
was seventy-nine. Of these, thirty-three sailed for the city of
New-York, thirteen for Manilla, nine for Batavia, six for Phila-
delphia, four for Boston, three for Valparaiso, four for Cowes,
one for Lima, one for Baltimore, one for Salem, one for the
Texel, one for Hamburgh, one for Kamtschatka, one for Norfolk
Sound, one for the United States, port not specified, and one for
South America, port not designated. Thus do we stand, second
only to Great Britain, in the extent and importance of our com-
mercial interests in the east ; and it is not easy to estimate the
vast field which will be opened to the . commercial enterprise of
our merchants, should a freer and more extended trade be effected

1832.]

COMMERCIAL RIVALRY.

381

with the industrious and numerous population of China, exceed-
ing in respect to numbers, extent, and natural resources, the ag-
gregate amount of all the nations of civilized Europe,

That the ports will ultimately be opened, that trade is now ex-
tended, in some degree, in despite of imperial edicts, to other ports
besides Canton, cannot be denied. We have examined with great
interest most of the late parliamentary proceedings connected
with British interests in this quarter. The numerous highly
respectable and intelligent witnesses examined by order of the
House of Commons, have thrown more light on the true condition
of China, and the nature and prospect of trade there, than has
been given to the world for a century 'before. All agree in repre-
senting the Chinese as decidedly one of the most commercial
nations on the globe ; mechanically steady in the attainment of
the objects of their pursuit, and ever ready to trade with any and
every one who visits their country. We speak now of the people.-
The government, or present reigning family, has not occupied
the throne more than two hundred years ; is weak, not only on
account of its foreign origin, but from its extended empire ; its
only strength being in the ignorance and weakness of its subjects.
The government, therefore, is averse to trade, and jealous of for-
eigners, knowing what has been done by them in India. Take
away all apprehension of obtrusion, and the emperor will be as
desirous of carrying on trade as the people themselves.

This jealousy has doubtless led in a great part, but not wholly,
to the many annoying and humiliating restrictions in Gommerccy
to which all nations have submitted. Keen, sagacious, and ob-
serving, the Chinese were not long in perceiving that foreigners
would submit to any indignity for motives of gain. Does any
one doubt it ? Let him take the trouble to examine the reports
of the East India Company for the last fifty years, and he will
find abundant evidence of the humiliating and subservient
spirit in which the company has submitted to all kinds of
insults and impositions from the Chinese, rather than hazard even
a partial interruption in their trade. To allow one of his majesty’s
ships-of-war, with a flag at the mizzen-peak, “ which we respect,
though we do not fear,” that has been so often victorious on every
sea, to be measured and pay duty as a merchant vessel, is only
one of the degradations which might be named. From this un-

382

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[May,

becoming and highly impolitic subserviency, no nation can claim
entire exemption, though the English may thank their company
for having gone further than any other in running the race of dis-
honour.

It was the same miserable gain-saving policy which permitted
the unfortunate gunner of the Lady Hughes to be delivered up
and strangled by the Chinese, in seventeen hundred and eighty-
four. From that moment they became more imperious ; for in
that act they saw the company would submit to any thing, even
to the sacrifice of human life, rather than hazard a small deficit
in their leger ; that their trade was secure, whatever insults they
might heap on the “ barbarians,” or however immoderately indulge
in their affected superiority in publishing such edicts as the fol-
lowing ; —

“Foreigners are not permitted voluntarily to present state-
ments to government; they are indebted to the clemency of the
emperor for their trade, as also for the permission to tread the
ground and to eat the herbs in common with the Chinese. If,
after the publication of this edict, it occurs, that foreigners pre-
sume, of their own account, to make application, the viceroy will,
on discovery, request his majesty’s permission to punish them
severely.”

What insufferable insolence ! Indebted to the clemency of the
emperor for the trade ! and how long have foreigners acquiesced
in this preposterous assumption ! Why, the truth is, the tea-
trade has always been of equal or more importance to the Chinese
than to any other people, indispensable as it has become. A trade
which yields to the emperor at least one third of his revenue, —
nearly all his circulating medium, and supports, directly or indi-
rectly, millions of his subjects. — He stop the trade ! he cannot do-
it if he would, for any considerable length of time, at a less price
than the cost of his throne !

“ A man is needed in India,” said Napoleon. A man has been
there in the person of the late lamented Lord Napier, who has
recently died amid the discharge of arduous duties at Canton.
His name will be remembered as a benefactor to the commercial
world. The English have made a good beginning, in battering
down the Chinese forts on the river Canton ; we hope they will
follow it up, and with increased forces teach the Chinese a still

1832.]

COMMERCIAL RIVALRY.

383

more impressive lesson “ of barbarian justice and prowess.” A
certain amount of fighting* is necessary, and the sooner it is done
the better ; it will be worth a dozen embassies to the Celestial
throne, though the ambassador should again do, as M'Cartney
did, allow a flag to' wave over his head, with the motto, “ the
ambassador of the King mf England bearing tribute to the Em-
peror of China or, as the Dutch ambassador Jitzing, crawl on
his all-fours, and butt his head nine times on the ground when he
came in presence of the “ son of ten thousand years.” We want
at present no embassies to Pekin, unless backed by armed ships,
with orders to frighten the mandarins by a show of power, and
to use it too, if necessary. This is the only suitable diplomacy
for the Chinese, and would be worth a hundred embassies of Lord
Amherst, who was instructed to say, that he had no commercial
objects in view ; that he had been sent half round the world to
manifest the regard of his Britannic majesty for his Imperial majesty,
and to improve the relations of amity that so happily subsisted
between their illustrious parents — Kien-lung and George the
Third.

It is time this puerile policy should be abandoned, since “ the
experience of centuries has taught Europeans that the Chinese
authorities will heap insult on insult upon them, when it can be
done with impunity to themselves and their interests ; but, when
an opponent supports his arguments with physical force, or their
interests demand it, they can be crouching, gentle, and even
kind.”

If the legal trade should be stopped, the contraband will take
its place ; for those who are now engaged in it, buy and sell of
whom and to whom they please, without the least regard to the
imperial edicts, which aim to restrict all trade to the seven Hong
merchants of Canton. Does any one doubt this, let him reflect,
that the laws of the empire make it death to smuggle opium, and
yet no less than ten millions, and some years as high as fourteen mill-
ions worth of this drug is introduced into the kingdom ! The govern-

* The English, who have so often fought the battles of their continental neigh-
bours, will, most probably, perform this service, from which we shall be equally bene-
fited ; and should they now, as formerly, be content with the glory they may ac-
quire for their pay, — we cannot object, provided we increase our trade, and increase
it we will. ’

384

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[May,

merit has not the power, if it have the inclination, to put down this
trade. Smuggling vessels have been up the coast as far as Kingpo,
and disposed of their cargoes for the “ precious metals.” Much
has been smuggled into the ports of Chingchoo, in the province
of Fokien, and the traders were “well entreated” by the inhab-
itants. The northern districts will, ere long, offer a fine market ;
long ells, fine broadcloth, blankets, and camlets, are among the
articles in demand.

Speckled along the whole coast of China lie not less than one
thousand islands, many of them possessing all the requisites for
trading stations ; and whether situated near to, or at some dis-
tance from the main, they are all beyond the influence and com
trol of the emperor, with all his affectation of power ! What shall
prevent one of the Ladrone Islands from being used as a market-
place for the trade of all nations ? All grounds for dispute be-
tween the Chinese and foreigners would thus be happily removed-
Other stations further north should be selected, so as to embrace
the business of the northern provinces, and thus may ultimately
be opened one of the most extensive trades in the world.

Our grand competitors,* the English, are looking out for every

* American merchants feel superior to the competition of other nations. But in
the now open trade with the east, who is it they are to compete with 1 They will
find one of their competitors to be the house of Baring, Brothers, & Co,, the active
partner in which great establishment is an American, whose command of capital at
low rates of interest is unlimited, and whose ships, built on the latest American
model, are already east of the Cape, navigated with small and selected crews, under:
TEMPERANCE RESULATioNs. Nor is this all. The eastern voyages out and home
are one operation, and an advantage on one part is a superiority on the whole. Be-
yond a perfect equality, as equally able, merchants, in English competitors, have a
great superiority given in some respects by the blunders in our tariff law. For in-
stance, in the great Chinese staple, silk, second only to teas in value. We cannot
import on fair terms of competition, either the raw material or the manufacture.
The raw silk is taxed 12^ per cent., while the same material is carried free to England,
and thence imported, manufactured, and free also. Take, again, a great article in
silk goods, the white goods for printing ; these are manufactured low in China. But
if imported direct for printing at home they pay the 10 per cent, duty, while the same
goods are carried to England, entered in bond, printed, and exported to America, to
come in duty free, and without the possibility of being verified as a Chinese manu-
facture. Such legislation prostrates two great interests ; that of the honest importer,
who will not, though his government tempt him, import his Chinese silks as English^
and that of the American proprietor of print-works. We would add a third, the
silk- weaver, but such regulations will never permit him to come into existence.

1832.] COMMERCIAL RIVALRY. 385

advantage which the new state of things may offer in China, — we
cannot be idle or indifferent spectators. It is time our public
vessels were on the ground, under judicious instructors, that our
knowledge may keep pace with the events as they transpire. Com
merce has constantly increased with the knowledge of man, yet
it has been undergoing perpetual revolutions ? These changes
and revolutions have often mocked the vigilance of the wary and
the calculations of the sagacious ; but there is now a fundamental
principle in commerce, which will enable the intelligent merchant
and wise government to foresee and provide for most of these
changes, — and that is, a thorough and extended knowledge of the
dispositions, habits, and necessities of the people, and of the natural
capacities and resources of the country where we have commer-
cial intercourse. At no period of our history has this knowledge
of China been so essential to our interests as at the present mo-
ment.

Thus speaks an English writer : — ■“ Let us evidence in the
strongest manner, along the whole coast and in every port of Chinaj
our naval power, and manifest the ease with which that power^
when duly exerted, could cut off the internal and external sup-
, plies of the empire. Let us add to. science by a complete survey
of the coasts of China, Japan, and Corea, and of the Loo-choo
islands. The prosecution of these surveys would necessarily de-
tain H. M. ships frequently in the waters of China, where they
.should insist on paying and receiving such courtesies as are be-
coming and customary between civilized nations at peace with
each other ; demanding supplies of provisions and water as a •
matter of course, and in the usual way these affairs are managed
in other countries ; at the same time the merchants of Great
Britain would be pushing their enterprises in all quarters, under
the constant protection and frequent presence of H. M. ships.”

Here, indeed, is “a new world of matter for a world of mind.’^
We, too, must be on the alert, to show the Chinese that we have
naval power to any extent we please ; but, at the same time, that
we are content with our own extent of territory, and would not ac-
cept of any portion of another country if it were freely offered
us. The Island of Pulo Condore, in 8° north latitude, and almost
within sight of the coast of Cambodia, should be examined by

B b

886

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[May,

our public vessels ; and let them look to, and report on, the
islands in the neighbourhood of Amoy, in 24° north. Is there not
one near Wampoa, to which prohibited goods and other articles are
now brought, and freely exchanged with foreigners, without the
slightest impediments from the mandarins ? Let this matter be
looked into , away with all secrecy, all monopoly — give us open
and fair competition, however the odds may be against us !

The teas consumed in Cochin China are brought from Tchot-
chen and Fokien, and with equal facility might soon be transferred
to a neighbouring island, and shipped from thence to any part of
the world. To these free depositories of trade, the Chinese
would flock and settle in great numbers, as they have done at
Batavia, Sincapore, Penang, &c., and through them the trade would
be carried on. No one well acquainted with the Chinese char-
acter can doubt that such would be the case, particularly when
informed that trading vessels have recently touched at many of
the nominally sealed ports north of Canton, and disposed of large
cargoes, for specie, to the Chinese merchants residing in Amoy,
Tato, Namo, and at the port of the great city of Tyho ; while
other articles, such as tea, cassia, tortoise-shell, nankeens, &c.
were freely offered.

They have abundant craft for this trade ; no less than eighty
junks have been seen at a time at Siam ; some as large as eight
hundred tons, and bearing large quantities of tea. Indeed, they
carry on a coasting trade from Canton to Souchon, in the district
of Kiannan, and as far as 37° north, within the Yellow Sea.

. Who then can doubt that they would come with these junks
to a commercial station, bringing with them the products of their
own labour and skill, to be exchanged for foreign merchandise ?
The emperor, his viceroy, and mandarins, have no power to pre-
vent the people and outside merchants from carrying on contra-
band trade in the river and very vicinity of Canton ; much less,
therefore, can they interfere with, or prevent a trade conducted
at a short distance from the main.

Sincapore, though twenty degrees too far south, must by a free
trade become a place of increased importance. Its insular po-
sition in the great thoroughfare of eastern trafflc, in the midst of
seas navigable at all seasons, and studded with islands presenting
every variety of production ; the salubrity of its climate, and its

1832.]

COMMERCIAL RIVALRY.

387

great capability for naval and mercantile purposes, will make it
a point interesting to the commercial world.

Again, then, we repeat, let our government look to the east ;
let our flag be seen at the different ports of China, Corea, For-
mosa, Loo-Choo, &c. &c. These ports and islands afford an
ample field for us at the present time, nor should a day be lost.
The expense must be incurred : suitable agents and linguists
employed to co-operate with our commanders of public vessels ;
not in coaxing, and flattery, and prayers, and humiliating petitions ;
but in the spirit of that steady, firm, judicious policy, which a
wise council should know how to give, and the intelligent merchant
be able to turn to good account.

For three centuries has the commerce of the east been shackled
by ill-advised companies and monopolies, while an impenetrable
veil has been spread out, to hide from the rest of the world the
true condition of those countries. These abuses are slowly,
but surely drawing to a close. Great Britain is our great com-
petitor in the new and glorious competition for free trade in that
quarter of the world ; and great and decidedly as are the advan-
tages in her favour, we must, in the spirit of generous rivalry, nailto
the mast-head our motto, “ free trade and sailors’ rights,” and leave
the result to time.

The ports of India will become free — Calcutta, Goa, Manilla,
and Macao must follow, should Bombay lead ; and then, with the
spirit of free cornmercial zeal animating the English, French,
Spanish, and Portuguese, and w'e continuing our own system, which
knows not the word restriction, who shall say, that the ports of
the Chinese shall continue closed against the persevering enter-
prise of the Old and the New world !

B b 2

388

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[May,

CHAPTER XXL

The Potomac sails from Canton — The Bashee Straits — The northeast tradewintl —
Cause and description of the tradewinds — Periodical winds — Monsoons — The
sirocco, the simoon, land and seabreezes — Perennial and variable winds — An East
India voyage ; its natural facilities — Period for commencing one — Reflections
arising from the subject — Arrival at the Sandwich Islairds.

A FEW days after the return of our officers from Canton, the
frigate having, in the meantime, been completely supplied with
water, provisions, &c., got under way at Lintin Bay, and pro-
ceeded to her former anchorage off Macao, from whence she
proceeded to sea on the following day, with a light breeze and
pleasant weather. The breeze freshened as she cleared the land,
and long before nightfall, the sky had become overcast with thick
black clouds. The Potomac was now dashing along at the rate
of eleven knots, with her yards nearly square, when a light was
discovered almost directly ahead, and in the next moment the
frigate was alongside of a large vessel, moving with almost equal
rapidity towards the bay we had just left. The thickness of the
atmosphere had concealed the two vessels from each other until
their proximity had become somewhat perilous to both, for a few
feet more would have brought them in contact ; and such was the
velocity with which , they passed each other, that the hurried
inquiry of “What vessel is that?” was lost to the ear of all
but the interrogator.

Onward flew the stranger, and with equal speed forward dhshed
the Potomac, as if ambitious of redeeming the time she had
spent in the waters of the “ Celestial Empire.” Her comse
was laid for what is called the Bashee Passage, a well-known
outlet from the Chinese Sea into the mighty Pacific, formed by a
chain or cluster of numerous islands lying to the south of For-
mosa, about ninety miles east of Canton. The island which
gives its name to the whole cluster, of which it is the most eastern,
is of a circular form, six miles in diameter, and has a town on it
of the same name. Its productions are plantains, bananas, pine-

1832.]

WINDS.

389

apples, sugarcane, potatoes, yams,, and cotton, with numerous
goats and hogs. Most of the islands in the cluster are consider-
ably elevated, and vessels can run between them with safety if
the weather be clear ; as it is supposed that there are no hidden
dangers around them, though breakers are visible at a considerable
distance.

The morning when these islands were expected to be seen
from the deck of the Potomac, was too thick for that purpose,
though the wind was blowing fresh. The frigate entered the
passage at the rate of ten knots ; when the'wind suddenly came
out ahead, and took the ship aback. She was got off with diffi-
culty, and filled away, when the wind had increased to almost a
gale. On she dashed, without making either of the islands,
though but a short distance from them, and entered the great
Pacific with increasing velocity.

The threatening appearances, which had disfigured the atmo-
sphere, softened in their aspect, and passed away, as the Potomac
left the Chinese Sea behind her ; and her sails in due time were
filled with the welcome northeast tradewind, favoured by whose
friendly influence the frigate now shaped her course across the
broad Pacific, towards the well-known Sandwich Islands. As
nothing of interest occurred to relieve the tedious monotony of
this passage of fifty days, we cannot, perhaps, better beguile the
time than by recording the result of our observations on the pre-
vailing winds of this interesting region of the globe ; especially
as we have just attached some importance to the northeast trade-
wind, which was expected to accompany the Potomac on her
long and lonely route of ten thousand miles !

Those aerial currents which are called winds, are naturally
distinguished into two kinds, constant and variable. The former,
which are better known by the name of tradewinds, prevail, with
little exception, between the tropics ; and, like the great equato-
rial current of the ocean, circulate round the globe from east to
west. They extend to about thirty degrees on each side of the
equator, and blow with a steady breeze, almost the whole year,
from an eastern to a western quarter of the heavens, where their
course is not interrupted by land. Their direction, however, de-
clines several degrees from due east and west, corresponding to
the declination of the sun, either north or south.

390 VOYA.GE OP THE POTOMAC. [May,

The cause of the tradewind, so remarkable on account of its
general uniformity everywhere between the tropics, is principally
owing to the joint influence of the superior temperature of the
torrid zone, and the rotation of the earth on its own axis. The
air at the surface of the earth being highly rarefied between the
tropics, naturally ascends by its acquired levity into the higher
regions of the atmosphere ; while its place is supplied by the
colder air rushing from the poles towards the equator. This new-
comer soon becomes rarefied like its predecessor, and ascends in
its turn, and is ultimately carried towards the two poles, to
supply the deficiency caused by the continual stream from these
points.

An aerial current is thus established, constantly proceeding
from the poles towards the equator, in the lower regions. Each
of these polar currents, moving in its progress towards the equator,
from zones where the earth’s motion on its axis is slower, to others
where it is more rapid, cannot have the same velocity eastward
as the solid parts of the globe ; and, therefore, the aerial parti-
cles of which it is composed, gradually acquire a relative motion
in an opposite direction. The currents from the two hemispheres
meeting near the equator, and verging, each of them, towards the
west, the meridional motions are destroyed by being in opposite
directions ; and they therefore advance together, with the remain-
ing motion from the eastward, all round the globe. >

But there are certain situations, where the tradewind is not
only interrupted in its general course towards the west, but is ac-
tually suspended, and succeeded by a wind blowing in an opposite
direction, which continues with great regularity for several months.
This is classed under the general term of periodical winds ,• and
is called a monsoon, from the Persian word monsum, which sig-
nifies season. In the East Indies, there are two of these peri-
odical winds, distinguished by the names of the northeast and the
southwest monsoons; which may be said to change every six
months, according to the sun’s place in the ecliptic. In the same
class are also included the sirocco, the simoon, land and sea-
breezes, and long-shore winds. The sirocco is a periodical wind,
which prevails in Italy about Easter; and the simoon is a hot,
suffocating wind, which prevails at certain seasons on the deserts
of Arabia and Africa. Both of these winds are supposed to be

WINDS.

391

1832.]

highly charged with carbonic acid gas, mixed with some other
noxious exhalations, unsuitable for respiration.

Perennial winds are those which blow the whole year in one
direction 5 while those which are called va') tahle, are those which
prevail in all parts of the world beyond the tropics. In the middle
of the Atlantic Ocean, between the two great continents, Africa
and America (and a very few degrees east and west of that
central meridian), the regular perennial winds constantly prevail,
subject only to slight variations from the position of the sun.

While the sun is passing over the equator, it is often difficult
for vessels to cross the line ; and such is the influence of that
luminary, that they are sometimes becalmed until his declination
increases to seven or eight degrees. But when at fifteen degrees,
particularly if near either of the tropics, they generally pass the
line with a fresh breeze. At these times, the tradewind also
varies. When the sun is in Cancer, the southeast perennial
extends from four to six degrees across the line to the northward,
and inclining more to the south than to the east , and the contrary
takes place when the sun is in Capricorn. This is a natural con-
sequence. The lower current of air being rarefied by the reflected
heat -of the sun, ascends, and the equilibrium is restored by a
larger body of dense air, which rushes forward in a right line, and
with a strong current, to fill up the vacuum.

The ancient Portuguese, not being aequainted with these cir-
cumstances, thought to shorten the route of their East India
voyages by hugging the continent of Africa ; an error which
inevitably exposed them to calms and storms, and sometimes
prolonged their voyages to an extent of two and three years.
Long and dear-bought experience, however, has since taught
navigators to hold nearly a middle course between the two conti-
nents, in which they are favoured by constant tradewinds, and
where they may allow some leeway in the southern tropics, a
precaution necessary when the sun is in or near the tropic of
Cancer ; for at that time the southeast wind inclines very much to
the south. Both outward and homeward bound ships, engaged
in the India trade, should therefore cross the equator in about
eighteen or twenty degrees of west longitude ; by which means
they will not fall in with the American continent, and, at the same
time, will avoid the calms on the coast of Africa.

392 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [June,'

Ships sailing from the United States or Europe, between the
months of February and May, after having passed three or four
degrees beyond the southern tropic, seldom find themselves more
than 26° or 28° west ; which, considering the trending away of
the American coast, may still be considered about midway between
the two continents-

The wind, in these latitudes, in the month of May, will generally
be found variable, as if equally attracted by land on each side ;
but, as vessels advance farther south, in the months of May and
June, say between 28° and 35°, the wind hauls round more from
the westward, and is generally fresh from the northwest until the
passage around the Cape of Good Hope can be effected.

East of the Cape, in the winter,- the southeast winds frequently
blow fresh for several days successively ; but the southerly winds,
in this quarter, blow with most violence when the sun is in the
tropic of Capricorn. As the land on the southerly extremity of
the African continent becomes warmed by the presence of the
sun, the heavy body of cold air, from the antarctic seas, rushes
north, with strong currents.

Proceeding on a few degrees from the coast of Madagascar, the
southeast tradewind blows at all seasons of the year as far nearly
as the Island of Java, where it comes in reach of the monsoons.
Within the Mosambique channel, owing to the proximity of the
two great bodies of land, the winds partake of the nature of mon
soons.

The seasons in Hindostan are distinguished by the northeast
and southwest monsoons ; but farther to the eastward and south-
ward of the line, and in the Gulf of Bengal, the monsoons blow
from different quarters. The northeast becomes in those parts
the northwest, and the southwest becomes the southeast. These
changes are owing to local circumstances ; the position of large
bodies of land and water.

In speaking of the Indian Ocean, we mean that portion of the
globe contained between the Gulf of Sinde and Bengal on the
north, to the tropic of Capricorn, south ; and from the east of
Africa, to the west shores of New-Holland: from that parallel
of latitude to the south pole, containing the ocean between Africa
and New-Holland, as the great Southern Ocean.

In the Gulf of Bengal, the wind may be said to blow six months

1832.]

WINDS.

393

from the northeast, and six from the southwest ; though this is
not true in every part of India. The northeast monsoon is said
to begin, near the coast of Coromandel, early in October ; but, in
fact, between the two monsoons (the expiration of the one' and the
commencement of the other), the winds and currents are variable
on this coast ; calms frequently prevail during the whole month of
September, and even in October, with strong currents from the
northeast to the southwest. At this season the sun is fast ap-
proaching the equinox, which he crosses about the twenty-second
of September. As his declination increases from seven to fifteen
degrees south, which is from the tenth to the thirty-first October,
his absence from the northern hemisphere begins to be felt ; and as
the air becomes rarefied to the south, the warm air over the Indian
Ocean ascends, particularly over the eastern side of the continent
of Africa ; and the cold air from the north meeting the east trade-
wind, they press forward progressively, beginning where the rare-
faction takes place, and continuing to an immense distance---thus
forming the northeast monsoon.

The Natal mountains, separating India from China, are always,
in winter, covered with snow. From this frozen eminence a
current of cold air will move with considerable velocity towards
the tropic, on the approach of the sun, until the equilibrium is re-
stored. At the latter end of January, the sun again begins to re-
turn towards the north ; and as he approaches the equator, the
wind in the Gulf of Bengal, near the land, takes a different di-
rection. The wind on the coast of Coromandel no longer blows
violently, or regularly, from the northeast, as in the commence-
ment of the monsoon, and soon dies away to a regular land and
Seabreeze. But these land and seabreezes do not take place un-
til some time after the change of each monsoon ; for, at the com-
mencement of each, the monsoon blows regularly, for a month or
six weeks, immediately on the coast, with trifling variation from
the northeast or southwest, according to the season.

The wind blows constantly every year on the coast of Coro-
mandel, to the latter end of January ; continues during February,
and to the beginning of March, subject to very slight variations ;
but, as the sun approaches towards the vernal equinox, the winds
again become variable for some days, as they were about the au-
tumnal equinox, until his declination is upwards of seven degrees

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

394

[June,

north, when the southwest monsoon sets in; and often, on the
south part of the coast, with great violence.

This change, or reflux of air, appears to be put in motion by
the same means as that which comes from the opposite quarter —
for as the sun’s altitude increases daily in the northern hemisphere,
the extensive body of land in the northeast part of Asia becomes
hotter than the ocean ; and, consequently, a degree of rarefaction
will be produced over that portion of the continent, while, at the
same season, an immense body of cold air will come from the In-
dian Ocean and the continent of Africa, in the southern hemi-
sphere, to restore the equilibrium.

The principal tracts of land of different temperatures on the
two continents, bearing very nearly northeast and southwest from
each other, will therefore become the two opposite extreme points
of rarefaction and condensation ; and necessarily be the imme-
diate causes of the northeast and southwest monsoons.

The southwest monsoon blows with great strength on the Mal-
abar coast, in April, May, June, and July ; but owing to a range
of mountains, it is not felt with much violence on that of Coro-
mandel, except far south. Both the northeast and southwest
monsoons blow at first in fresh gales ; but neither of them in-
creases to a hurricane. From natural causes, the one must die
away before the other sets in. Hurricanes most frequently,
indeed, it might be said always, occur near large bodies of land.

In the Mosambique Channel, the monsoons correspond nearly
with those on the Malabar coast ; if not in their commencement,
at least in their duration. The southwest beginning in April, and
continuing till November: the northeast then succeeding, and
continuing until April. But the southwest monsoon in this
channel is the fair season, and the wind varies sometimes towards
the southeast and east-southeast on either coast, about the middle
of November, when there are also generally regular land and
seabreezes.

The northeast monsoon begins early in November, near the
Comoro Islands and the north end of Madagascar; but seldom
extends beyond San Augustine Bay, which is near the south
tropic. Towards the Eastern Isles, the tradevoind prevails over
the Indian Ocean, from latitude eleven to twenty-eight south;
while to the south and east of Java and Sumatra, northwest and

1832.]

WINDS,

395

southeast monsoons prevail at the different seasons. The south-
east monsoon commences in the month of April, and continues
till November, when it changes to the northwest. But between
the monsoons, the winds and currents are light and variable.

Throughout the whole extent of the Eastern Isles, as far as
Timor and Solor, tlie northwest monsoon brings foul weather, ac-
companied with violent wind and rain. The stormy weather
continues all January, and until the middle of February ; but
entirely ceases about the end of March, In April, the variable
winds render the weather mild. In May, the southeast wind be-
comes settled, and blows steadily during the months of June and
July; and the weather continues fine until the end of September.
In the month of October, the southeast monsoon dies away, and
the wind again becomes variable until the northwest again sets in.

Now, if we refer to the map, we shall find New-Holland, an
immense tract of land to the southeast of the Sunda Islands and
the Moluccas, situated partly within and partly without the tropics.
When, therefore, the sun is nearest his highest declination north,
which of course is the winter of the southern hemisphere, and
rarefies the air over the continent of Asia, the current of air in the
southern hemisphere, independently of the tradewind, will move
from the southeast, to restore the equilibrium to the northwest.
On the contrary, in the months of November, December, and
January, while the sun is nearly vertical over a part of New-Hol-
land, the current of air through the Sunda Islands and the Mo-
luccas will come from the northwest, to fill up the vacuum made
by the rarefaction, and thus cause an alternate monsoon of south-
east and northwest.*

: . It should be borne in mind by navigators in the eastern seas,
that in the Gulf of Siam, on the coast of Cambodia, of Cochin
China, and in the Gulf of Tonquin and China, the southwest
monsoon commences on the coast m the month of April , but out
at sea in those parts, it does not change until a month later. It
is for this reason, that on the north part of Borneo to the Islands
of Paragoa and Luconia, it is seldom known to blow constantly
before from the fifteenth to the twentieth of May. As the south-
west monsoon continues only about six months, and commences

* Clapper on the Monsoons.

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

396

[June,

near the coast, it there ceases first in like manner, and is suc-
ceeded by the northeast.

Thus, it is evident, that the northeast and southwest monsoons
reign constantly to the north of the line, to the eastward as well
as in the Gulf of Bengal and Sinde ; while the northwest and
southeast monsoons to the east are confined to the south of the
line, within the reach of the influence of New-Holland.

In the present improved state of navigation, when not only the
mariners are more skilful, but vessels better constructed and found
than formerly ; furnished with chronometers, and other well-con-
structed instruments, the merchant may undertake his voyage to
India at almost any season of the year. But if he consider the
expense incurred by delay, and the wear and tear of his ship, and
wishes to avoid all the difficulties, inconveniences, and dangers
' of contrary winds, let him keep in mind, that by sailing from the
United States in the spring, and with good management, a voyage
may be made in twelve weeks ; and that by embarking either
much later or earlier, he may not arrive in less than four or flve
months !

By skilful navigators, a return voyage from India, in well-found
ships, may be undertaken, in like manner, at nearly any season
of the year ; but the most favourable time is from the beginning
of October to the first of March.

At the commencement of the northeast monsoon, favoured by
both winds and currents, vessels will soon get clear of the Gulf
of Sinde or the Gulf of Bengal, very probably cross the line
with a fresh breeze, and not be detained by calms, between the
monsoons and the southeast trade. December will be a good
month to double the Cape of Good Hope ; and prevailing winds
will be from the southeast, the fairest that can blow. To the west
of the Cape, the wind will generally be light, but fair ; and in a
few days, a vessel may gain the regular trade ; and crossing the
equator in the latter part of January, the sun still far to the south-
ward, the vessel is not likely to be detained by calms, provided
she keeps about eighteen or twenty degrees west longitude from
Greenwich.

Such are the remarkable effects of some of those aerial cur-
rents which distinguish the different hemispheres of our globe.
Who can contemplate the subject without giving utterance to

1832.]

WINDS,

397

sentiments of wonder and veneration? What mighty agencies
are the winds — “ the many-voiced and viewless winds !” What
powerful and universal agents they are on the surface of this re ■
volving sphere ! How they roam in the woods, compelling the
giants of the forest to tremble with fear, and humbly bow to their
influence ! How mightily they rush down the hill-sides, and sweep
over the plains, singing their wild and solemn notes of triumph as
they pass ! How they career over the wide waters, exciting them
to tumult, and driving on the waves till they fall thundering, but
exhausted, on the shore !

“ Nothing,” says a modern writer, “ can illustrate so livingly
our idea of a spirit, as a mighty wind, present in its amazing
power and sublimity, yet seen only in its effects.” It may be
added, that the illustration holds good in case of a gentle as well
as a mighty wind. What is more like the ministry of a gra
. cious and soothing spirit, than the soft breathings of a gentle
wind, bringing coolness to the fevered brow, and peace to the
panting heart ! May it not be said that the winds, in their dif-
ferent manifestations, suggest no faint or unworthy idea of the
majesty and the mercy of the one Supreme Spirit ?

How indispensable to the salubrity of our earthly dwelling-
place, are the ever-moving and changing winds. They may be
called the exercise of our atmosphere, by which it preserves its
healthful principles, and shakes off the terrible evils of stagna-
tion. The heat and cold of the several zones of the earth are
efficiently tempered by means of the winds, which convey
grateful coolness to heated climes, and no less grateful warmth
to frozen ones. And how could those floating cisterns, the
clouds, be borne from land to land, to replenish the fountains, and
refresh and fertilize the grounds, were they not propelled and
guided by the winds ?. “ He maketh the winds his messengers.”'

Where would be the commerce between distant countries,
without the winds ? Inconstant as they are said to be, yet how
much of the business of the world depends upon their constancy !'
What is the mariner without the winds ? And his goodly ship,
what is it? It seems, indeed, to be “a thing of life,” as it
dashes aside the foam, and rides over the billows. But a calm
soon convinces us that it is not ;■ and as it rolls heavily and un-
easily on the waters, we cannot but feel how helpless and useless-

398

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[July,

a machine it is, without the winds. And the same power which
propels the noble frigate, or with equal ease a nation’s fleet,
disdains not to waft the fisherman’s boat to the scene of his pa-
tient toil, and back to his humble dwelling; and refuses not its
aid to the savage, as he plies his light canoe among the ever-green
islands of the tropic seas !

Thus widely connected with human business and interests,
how deeply are the winds united with human affections and sym-
pathies ! How sinks the heart of maid or wife as the wind sets
in, which is to bear brother, lover, or husband, farther, and still
farther from her presence ; and how beats the same true heart
while the wind is blowing which is bearing brother, lover, of
husband, nearer, and still nearer, to the fond hearts that sigh for
his return ! The tender, affectionate, and anxious wife, whose
husband is tossed on the far-distant billow, how swells and throbs
her fond and gentle heart, when the hoarse singing of the midnight
blast salutes her ear ! Oh, bless and protect him, gracious
Heaven, and in thine own good time restore him ! The virtuous
affection which glows in her bosom, is but an emanation from
Thee, the fountain of light and love.

Every breeze that passes over the land is commissioned with
a thousand kind and tender wishes to the sea ; and every loud
blast is burdened with anxious fears and earnest prayers. The
storm that rises at night aw'akes many a parent to think, till the
day dawns, of the son who is perhaps exposed to its fury, and to
commend his keeping to One “ whom the wmds and seas obey.”
Are there not friends, in our own loved homes, thus thinking of us ?
Blessings on their heads ! And may every zephyr that breathes,
and every wind that blows, bear to them only health, good tidings,
and peace !

Winged onward by the same great moving agent of which we
have been speaking, the Potomac, after having passed through
the Bashee Straits and gained the northeast trade, as before men-
tioned, shaped her course across the vast Pacific. Nothing of
interest or importance occurred during a rather unpleasant passage
of fifty days, when she approached the Sandwich Islands, on the
evening of the twenty-third July. “ Land on the weather-bow,”
'Shouted a hoarse voice from the mast-head. It was the Island of
Oahu.

1832.]

SANDWICH ISLANDS.

399

CHAPTER XXIL

The Sandwich Islands, their number and location — The Island of Oahu — Indolence
of the natives — Presentment at Court — Town of Honoruru, markets, houses, fur-
niture, food, &c. of the natives — Hospitable reception and entertainment — A
Luau, or barbecue — Arrival of the young king — Dinner on board the frigate — •
Honours paid him — His attention to the Americans — Indian war-dance — A royal
banquet — Battle-ground of Tamehameha — A supper at the palace — Dramatic per-
formances— The commodore’s official interview with the king — Taking leave

Sailing of the frigate — Reflections on her visit — Missionaries and foreign residents.

That celebrated group of islands in the Pacific Ocean, which
Cooke named in honour of his patron, the Earl of Sandwich,
comprises ten in number, which are situated just south of the
tropic of Cancer, in longitude from 154“ 50' to 160“ 24' east.
These islands are about five thousand miles east ofXanton, in
China ; and about two thousand eight hundred miles west of the
American coast.

The four principal islands of the group are called Hawaii, Mowee,
Oahu, and Tauai ; which were once governed by separate and in-
dependent kings ; but the whole are now under one monarch, a
young prince called Kauilieaouli, who is grandson of the cele-
brated Tamehameha, whose wisdom and prowess first subdued
and united them under one government. 'The young king is not
yet of age ; but acts under the advice and direction of his aunt,
the queen regent, daughter of the great conqueror just mentioned.
An amicable visit to this court (which is located at the Island of
Oahu) for the purpose of improving our commercial relations, was
comprised in the instructions of our government to Commodore
Downes, when he sailed in the frigate Potomac, on her present
voyage around the world.

The first sight of the Island of Oahu, which she made on the
morning of the twenty-third of July, was far from interesting.
In the evening previous. Diamond Hill was seen at the north-
eastern extremity of the roads, in which it was intended to anchor.
At sundown, the wind hauled, and compelled the frigate to stand

400

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[July

oif all that night; but the next day, about sundown, she canoe to'
anchor in the Bay of Waititi. Previous to conoing to, however,
she was boarded by some of the American and English residents ;
and, at some distance outside the harbour, a boat came along-
side with a pilot.

The Potomac finally anchored in twenty-one fathoms of water,
about one mile from a reef of coral rocks that stretches across
what is called the inner harbour, leaving but a very narrow pas-
sage for vessels to enter and depart, and forming a complete
natural breakwater to the anchorage within. Abreast of her was
the village of Waititi, consisting of a few huts, and two or three
cocoanut groves. From this point of view, the island appeared
handsomely distributed into valley and hill, extending far back, and
rising into lofty mountains. The low land, near the water, was
sprinkled with habitations ; but no great beauty was visible — no
cultivation apparent. The mountains in the back ground relieved
the eye by a show of verdure ; but in the vicinity of the town of
Honoruru, and almost everywhere within view of the ship, a
bleak and barren aspect characterized the picture.

On the following day, the American and English consuls, being
the only foreign public characters on the island, paid their respects
to the commodore on board the frigate ; which also fired a salute
in honour of the port and government. This customary mark of
respect was promptly returned by the fort on shore. Several
canoes came alongside, manned by natives ; some of them par-
tially clothed with sailors’ frocks and trousers ; but mostly either
in a state of nudity, or with nothing but a piece of tajpa^ or native
cloth, thrown over their shoulders.

Among the numerous visiters of this character, was the brother
of one of our men, who had been taken to the United States
some years ago, by the Peacock. The meeting of these two
near and long-separated relatives, was singular indeed. As the
visiter came up the ship’s side, our man waited in the gangway
to receive him. He was almost naked, having nothing but the
maro, or girdle, around his loins. They both stood for some
time, looking each other full in the face, without uttering a word,
but appearing to force upon themselves the recollections of each
other’s countenance. After fully satisfying themselves on this
point, our man extended his hand, caught the other by the arm.

1832.]

SANDWICH ISLANDS.

401

and led him below, in silence. Not a word was spoken by either
— no greeting, no salutation passed— off they went together. But
the stranger soon- afterward returned, dressed in some of his
brother’s clothes ; and with some under his arm, he got into his
boat and pulled ashore. They did not publicly manifest the least
sign of affection for each other. Perhaps, indeed, the one was
ashamed of the other’s nakedness ; and the other felt his own in-
feriority. They were afterward often seen together ; and the
poor fellow’s altered and improved habiliments, proclaimed the
liberality of his more fortunate relative.

Through the hearty welcome of the foreign residents, almost
every house was open to the officers, and horses always at their
service. Equestrian recreations are much enjoyed by the for-
eigners, and such natives as can afford to keep horses. There are
a great many of these useful animals on the island, brought from
the Spanish Main. Very few, if any, have been raised here.
The natives ride hard, and their horses are not well kept.

Notwithstanding Mr. Stewart’s high encomium on the roads, we
feel compelled to say that they are far from good ; and that the
one leading to the village of Waititi, opposite the frigate, is the
only one that deserves the name. This is hard and smooth, about
two miles in length, and affords quite a pleasant ride.. The sea-
breeze here renders the air fresh and agreeable, and the prospect
is not without its charms. Far as the eye can reach, extends the
ocean ; and there rides the gallant Potomac, heaving in the long
swell, and almost within the tremendous surf that breaks and
combs in immense rollers over the coral reef. Here and there a
few cocoanut groves, on one side the little village of Waititi,
and just back the higher peaks — and the scene is complete.

Immediately on our arrival, an express w'as sent off for the
young King Kauikeaouli, who had but a few days before left this
island for that of Mowee, where he attends the missionary school.
In the meantime, the commodore and a party of officers called
upon the authorities of the place, the queen regent, the gov-
ernor, and the remainder of the royal family and household. The
commodore was attended, on this occasion, by the American and
English consuls, and many of the merchants, all in full dress.
They were received in due form, at the palace of the Queen
Regent Kinau. As they walked in procession, it required the

c c

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

402

[July,

utmost vigilance of several police officers to keep off the crowd,
such was their curiosity to see the strangers.

The presentation, which was very ceremonious, was performed
by the American consul. The queen regent is the niece of the
celebrated Karaimoku, or Billy Pitt, as he is generally called,
and daughter to the great Tajnehameha, the Napoleon of the
Sandwich Islands. Her husband is colonel of the troops. He
is not by birth a chief ; but being possessed of rather more intel-
ligence than some others of his countrymen, was chosen as a
companion to the late King Rilio-Riho, on his visit to England;
and on the death of Kinaii’s husband (Governor Boki), was
chosen by her as partner for life ; owing, in all probability, to his
having been a favourite of Riho-Riho. He is not a man of much
authority, having no voice in the council of the state ; but may,
of course, do much in advising the queen regent in secret. The
present queen regent has not long been so ; her predecessor
having died but a few weeks before the arrival of the Potomac.

The most remarkable circumstance in the history of the royal
family, is the immense size of the persons who compose it ; that
of Kincm, the queen regent, in particular. The w'eight of Kua-
kini, or governor, or John Adams, as he chooses to be called, is now
only three hundred and fifty, as he informed our officers ; although
some months previously he weighed somewhat more. That of
Kinau is two hundred and fifty ; and this, for a lady, is no small
quantity !

The reader has doubtless already a correct idea of the town of
Honoruru, from the description of the Rev. Mr. Stewart, a journal
of whose residence in the Sandwich Islands is before the public.
Honoruru is not regularly laid out, although many of the streets
run at right angles. The houses, at some distance, look much
like hay -mounds, the r*ofs angling almost down to the ground,
and covered with a particular kind of thatch. The only differ-
ence in the external appearance of these edifices consists in their
size, many of them being extremely large. The royal palace
and the churches are the 'largest. The dwellings of the foreign
residents are built of stone or frame-work. The mission-house
is at the extremity of the town ; it is large, and to all appearances
the most comfortable on the island. It is certainly the most ca-
pacious, and the best built, being of stone, and well whitewashed.

1832.]

403

SANDWICH ISLxVNDS.

The interior of the houses vary much, of course, as to comfort,
convenience, and elegance, in proportion to the respectability of
the owners, and their means to support it. Those of the poorer
class are extremely filthy ; while those of the better sort are
neat and airy. The floor, or rather the ground, is covered with
mats, three or four deep. In one corner is a platform of boards,
rising five to ten inches from the ground, and covered with six,
eight, or ten mats, or even more, if the means of the possessor
will allow it ; the upper ones being very fine, and handsomely
made. This is the native bed. The apartment — for there is but
one in each house — has generally a screen across, behind which
is seen a bed of our own kind. They have few articles of furni-
ture ; no chairs — no tables — for they are not wanted ; as the na-
tives are accustomed to sit upon mats, after the fashion of the
Turks.

In their food they are extremely temperate. Fish they cut
up in small pieces, and eat with poe, made of the taro plant ;
which is one of the finest vegetables we ever ate. It is the arum
esculentum of botanists, and is generally known by the names of
the wild Indian and French turnip. It grows in the marshes, and
is the principal food of these islanders. That preparation of it
which is called poe, is made by boiling these roots twice, and then
keeping it some time. It much resembles starch, and is eaten,
or rather conveyed to the mouth, with the two first fingers of the
right hand. ' These islanders do not eat much meat of any kind ;
their principal diet being vegetables. There are but few domestic
utensils of any kind in their dwellings, and such as they have are
principally of native production.

In dress they vary as much as in their style of housekeeping ;
some wearing silk, others cotton, but most of them the native
dress only. We think that the men are better off in this respect
than the women ; for many of the former dress neatly in the Eu-
ropean fashion ; although it is far from an uncommon sight to see
them in groups, nearly naked ; and the wdmen with the tapa
rolled round their forms as their only covering.

They have no regular market-houses ; but near to the watering-
place are some dirty huts, and a large open space, where meats,
fish, and vegetables, are sold in the morning. This is, of course,
considered and called the market ; and here may be bought fish,

c c 2

404 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [July,

flesh, fowls, fruit's, and vegetables in abundance, and not dear by any
means. The vegetables comprise almost every species ; and the
fruits are generally of the tropical kind. ■ •

From the moment of the frigate’s arrival, the hospitality of the
foreign residents was kindly extended to the commodore and offi-
cers of the Potomac, and continued with the most untiring con-
stancy. Every house was open to the strangers, and several of
our officers resided on shore, at the hospitable mansions of their
kind entertainers. Among other entertainments, they were in-
vited by the foreign residents to attend a luau, at the valley so
highly spoken of by Mr. Stewart. This excursion is very far
from equalling the idea which former descriptions would lead
one to expect. The road in many places is covered with brush,
and the valley is little more than ■ a collection of small trees,
rocks, and mud. This was owing, however, in a great measure,
to the heavy rains which had fallen shortly before the arrival of
the Potomac. The idea of turnpikes, or roads, is really most
ridiculous, and is calculated to mislead very much as to the
extent and true nature of the advancement of this island in such
improvements. And the splendid descriptions which have been
given of the numerous handsome vehicles and carriages, are more
in the poetical workings of the imagination than a drawing from
reality. Few of these articles are on the islands ; and if there
were, they could not be used : — for, excepting the ride of which
we have already spoken, of about two miles or more, there
is no part of the island, at least as far as our observation ex-
tended, where they could be used : and as for roads, we again
repeat, that there are no such things. The island, in this par-
ticular, is as much in a state of nature, with the exceptions just
mentioned, as when first discovered by Captain Cooke.

A luau, the festival alluded to above, is somewhat analogous to
what is called a barbecue, or a pic-nic. The word luau, of itself,
is nothing more than the name of the taro-tops boiled ; and any
thing is said to be luaued when it is cooked with these greens.
At these luaus, every thing is cooked in the native style. A large
hole is dug in the ground, fire is placed at the bottom, and
covered with small pieces of wood ; and, when well ignited,
stones are heaped upon it. When the whole becomes heated, the
green leaf of the taro is placed upon them, and then the articles

1832.]

SANDWICH ISLANDS.

405

to be cooked — such as pigs, turkeys, dogs, mutton, &c., with all
kinds of vegetables, not forgetting the taro itself. These are
then covered with taro leaves once more, and heated stones, with
leaves and grass, and finally earth is thrown over the whole mass,
so as not to allow any of the heat or steam to escape. When thus
cooked, the meats preserve all their juices, and the flavour is su-
perior to any thing of the kind cooked in any other form. It takes
considerable time 'for a meal to .be prepared, as the process of
cooking is slow. The taro-tops make a most pleasant addition
to meats, and a very favourite dish, eaten as our spinage.

In about a week after the Potomac’s arrival at Oahu, the young
king, KauikeaouU, arrived from Mowee, a small island to wind-
ward, with all his suite, in a small schooner belonging to his
majesty. And two days afterward the commodore gave an enter-
tainment to him and all the royal family, at which the residents
of the place were present. At ten o’clock all the boats, from the
launch down, were fitted up, and started for the shore, to bring off
the company. The king diXid nobles were to come off in the com-
modore’s boat ; the ladies of the mission in the next boat ; and
the rest of the boats were filled as they arrived. The ship had
been put in the most complete order for this occasion, and the
white dresses of the sailors contrasted well with the full dress of
the officers.

As the young king, KauikeaouU, came over the side, the yards
were manned ; while the marines, who were drawn up oh the op-
posite side of the deck, presented arms. As his majesty walked
aft, a salute of twenty-one guns was fired; thus paying him all
the honours due to the President of the United States himself. At
the discharge of the last gun, the frigate’s band, on the quarter-
deck, struck up the animating strain of “ God save the king.”

The King KauikeaouU, or Tamehameha III., is about twenty
years of age, of middling size, and well made. His colour is
very dark, but not black ; his hair is thick and black ; his form
good ; but his foot bespeaks him no European. His features are
large, but not bad, and his countenance is rather agreeable. He
wore a full dress of the Windsor uniform, with two gold epaulets ;
a star on his left breast, cocked hat, and sword. He did not ap-
pear abashed by the parade made for him ; but there was no super-
abundance of dignity in his appearance or bearing, though his

406 VOYAGE OP' THE POTOMAC. [AugUSt,

manners were tolerably easy and graceful. The colonel was
also attired in a very neat, full-dress uniform, and several others
were equally well apparelled for the occasion. Soon after the
king came the queen regent, and other fair ones of the royal
household.

As the sea is heavy where our ship had to lie, our usual ac-
commodation-ladder was not rigged, and we were compelled to
hoist our royal visiters on board, by means of a' “ whip and chair,”
suspended from the mainyard. The chair being lowered into the
boat, the lady was placed in it ; and, at the sound of the boat-
swain’s pipe, she soon swung between heaven and the billows,
hoisted up by about fifty of our trusty lads in white jackets, and
landed safely on deck.

This feat being performed with characteristic address, and each
visiter disposed of in the same manner, the ladies were led to the
cabin by the officers. They were all dressed in black silk frocks
and bonnets ; not peculiarly elegant, but neat and lady-like. The
daughter of Kuahini, or Governor Adams, being younger, was
more gaudily attired in blue satin and a handsome gauze bonnet.
These ladies were all conspicuous for their size, with the excep-
tion of the one last mentioned, and were proportionably beautiful,
as beauty goes here altogether by dimensions.

Another boat brought off the king’s suite. These were gen-
erally dressed in citizen’s coats of blue, with gilt buttons, on
which was stamped Tamehameha III. They were all fine look-
ing men, well made, and well proportioned as to size. His ma-
jesty’s armour-bearer was also a sort of chief, and wore a native
helmet of the yellow feathers of a rare bird, together with a large
cloak over his shoulders of the same kind. These were two of
the most beautiful native ornaments we ever saw, and are pecu-
liarly valuable on account of there being but few of them now on
the islands among the chiefs. Of these feathers are also made
ornaments for the necks and heads of females. Some of them
are partly green, red, and black ; but these colours are taken from
other birds ; the yellow alone being peculiarly rare, and so highly
appreciated. Two or three body-servants carried the feather or-
naments, spoken of by Mr. Stewart as being the grand insignia
of royalty among the islands. It consists of the long and bright
feathers of the chicken-cock. The handles are neatly wrought

1832.] SANDWICH ISLANDS. 407

of the white and black whalebone, combined alternately ; and for
a native piece of work, is unusually neat.

The missionaries soon after arrived, and the party being col--
lected, they were conducted to every part of the vessel. The
king was 'observant, as were also many of the chiefs, some of
whom spoke very good English, and most of them sufficiently to
make themselves understood. These courtly personages were,
of course, treated with all the respect that coaid be desired by
them ; but they did not look for any unusual degree, and com-
ported themselves in a very friendly and agreeable manner.

After having been shown every part of the ship, which is by
far the largest that had ever appeared in these waters, they sat
down to a very splendid dinner-table, spread on the gundeck. A
blessing was invoked on the repast by Mr. Bingham, the principal
of the missionary establishment among these islands. In seating
them at table, the great difficulty was to ascertain the ranks of the
different chiefs forming the king’s suite. It seems that this dis-
tinction of rank and claims of precedence are carefully respected,
not so much by the individuals themselves as by their sovereign.
But no sooner was this important matter amicably arranged, and
a blessing invoked, than a brisk operation commenced with the
knives and forks, in which every one appeared to contend for
precedence.

At the first suitable cessation of this amicable contention, the
commodore drank the king’s health and that of the ladies. After
this, every one eagerly aspired to the same honour, of drinking
the health of his royal highness ; and the cry of “ King, a glass
of wine with you, if you please,” resounding from all quarters,
was really amusing. This is the manner in which he is always
addressed.

While the party were yet at dinner, a large ship, commanded
by an English half-pay lieutenant, came under the Potomac’s
stern, and letting fly his “ topgallant-halliards,” fired a salute of
thirteen guns in a very handsome style, which was of course re-
turned by the frigate. This was an act of courtesy so handsomely
performed, that it drew every one from the table. The English
ship then filled away, and stood to sea.

Upon the whole, the day was one of great interest, novelty,
merriment, and excitement. The missionaries, of course, par-

408

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[August,

took but sparingly of the two last; but appeared not displeased
to witness the enjoyment of others ; although the motion of the
vessel must have been to them a little unpleasant. They retired,
as usual, at an early hour. Before they left the table, however,
our band performed several pieces of sacred music ; but after they
had retired, airs of a more lively character, and perhaps better
adapted to the hilarity of the occasion, were tastefully executed.

The company were landed in the same style which distinguished
their reception ; the marines on deck, and the men on the yards,
still paying compliment to his majesty’s departure ! Certainly, a
few years ago, the King of the Sandwich Islands little thought of
ever being thus honoured by a power so peculiarly situated as
ours ; and whose very political existence was not thought of ! It
is certainly a singular and rare occurrence, to see a power (or the
agent of a power) just risen into political importance in the great
world of nations, stretching out the helping hand, and, by its
countenance, bringing forward a little nation of islands ; adding
importance to its government, even in their own eyes, by the
complimentary ceremonies paid to them. It seems like the
strong arm of vigorous youth leading the weak and tottering child.

From the time of the king’s arrival at Honoruru to the last
moment of the frigate’s stay at the islands, his majesty was almost
constantly on board, and associated much with the officers. He
was alternately in every part of the ship, from one end to the
other ; now forward, smoking ; then, in the ward-room ; next in
the cabin, with the commodore ; conversing on the affairs of his
island, and receiving much good advice to guide him in the ad-
ministration of it ; ever asking questions, and always apparently
interested. On these occasions he was always dressed en citoyen.
Our tailors made one or two coats for him'; and his appearance
was always very genteel.

On one occasion, about twenty Northwest Indians, belonging to
one of the vessels, came on board the frigate by the commodore’s
invitation ; they were dressed in their native costume, with their
blankets, bows and arrows, &c., and performed one of their na-
tional war-dances. Their gesticulations were often wild, and the
expression of their countenance ultra savage, while their howls
and shrieks were astounding and piercing in the extreme. The
king gazed upon their performances with an interest bordering on

1832.] SANDWICH ISLANDS. 409

wonder, and was evidently a good deal excited. We were not a
little amused at the interest his majesty evidently took in all their
different turns and motions, as he seemed half inclined to join
them. We were actually afraid, at one time, that the Indian in
his majesty would preponderate, and that he would break out in
earnest. Whether, however, he really restrained himself, or that
it was only the excitement of the scene, he soon got over it.

This war-dance was certainly one of the best executed per-
formances of the kind we remember ever to have witnessed.
When their glaring eyeballs were fixed upon us, the bow drawn,
and the arrow pointed at our bosom — with that regular, monoto-
nous, forward Indian motion — we could not resist the impulse to
move out of the way, and continually changed our position.
These Indians were from the northwest coast, to which our ships
resort for furs ; and were taken on board for the purpose of shoot-
ing the sea-otter and fur-seal. They are often thus engaged for
a certain specified time, and the commodore extended this act
of courtesy towards them, thinking it might be of service to
our vessels trading on that coast, to let them know that such
formidable ships as the Potomac were near at hand, to punish
any injury or aggression which our enterprising navigators might
receive in that quarter. They appeared much struck with the
immense effect of our great guns ; and seemed impressed with a
degree of astonishment on contemplating the power of such a
ship. The effect was doubtless a good one, and may produce
good results.

Three days after this dinner on board the frigate, the king
invited the commodore and his officers to a luau, to be given in
the valley of the Pari, near the precipice of Kolau. This was
one of the most delightful excursions we remember ever to have
enjoyed, and lament our want of powers to give an adequate
description of it. The distance was about nine miles, and directly
in the interior, or rather across the eastern extremity of the island.

At about ten, the commodore and his party went on shore, and
found that the king had ordered all his horses, of which he has
a great number, to be in readiness for those who had not otherwise
provided themselves. Each one having selected his animal, the
whole mustered at the house of the American consul, Mr. Jones,
all in high spirits and well mounted. Here they were soon joined

410

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[August,

by the king, when all put spurs to their steeds, and away they
went at a good hand-gallop through the town of Honoruru,
Winding round the base of Fort Hill, just opposite the frigate,
the party struck off into a beaten track, in the rear of the town,
which Mr. Stewart calls the turnpike. Here they separated, and
began scattering, each one choosing his companion ; some riding
fast, and others leisurely along. After crossing the plain back of
the town, they entered into a somewhat cultivated region. Here
a stream running from the mountains supplied the taro-patches
with water; and these formed a handsome scene, rising one
above another in the different stages of advancement, from the
light yellow to the dark green tops, forming a picture like the
variegated beds of a rich garden plantation. On the land around,
running vines, and many valuable vegetables, were growing ; and
the country on all sides looked delightfully green.

In this way our joyous party moved along; now jumping a
small stream, or picking their way through the narrow path, and
anon galloping over the grass, where the evenness of the ground
would permit. They soon reached the battle-ground, as described
by Mr. Stewart ; where, some forty years before, Tamehameha,
the grandfather of the present king, overcame the last of his
enemies. The scene was truly grand, beautiful, and, with all its
historical associations, intensely sublime. For beauty, it is inimi-
table ; the day was delightful ; and the seabreeze fresh and
pleasant. On one side, the lofty mountains, crowned to the very
summit with the richest and most beautiful green ; here and there
a group of horsemen ; the sea far in the distance, and a beauti-
ful verdant plain on the other side ; while a short distance ahead
a small waterfall leaped from the mountain’s summit, in thin and
graceful curves to the bottom of the valley.

Such was the scene — such is the spot — where the great Sand-
wich king fought his last and decisive battle — triumphing over the
last of his implacable foes ! Stewart himself, with all his talent
for description, could not do more than justice to such a scene !
Agaiir our party started off ; and now the path was often choked
up by bushes and brushwood. Many parts of it had the day be-
fore beeh cleared for the present occasion.

At length we arrived at the spot consecrated to the festive rites
of the contemplated banquet. It was a handsome green, sur-

1832.]

SANDWICH ISLANDS.

411

rounded by thick groves, at the foot of two high peaks. Up to
these we rode, through a narrow .ravine. On reaching the sum-
mit, one of the most sublime prospects that can be imagined
presented itself. The mountains here appear to break olf abruptly,
and you stand at the very extremity,* while, nearly a thousand
feet perpendicularly below, spreads out a splendid plain of many
miles in circumference. There heaves the ocean, in all its sub-
limity ; and far, far beyond, rises the light blue form of some
beautiful sea-girt island.

From this immense height, the panic-struck enemies of the
victorious Tamehameha were compelled to leap, in order to escape
the enraged victors, and perished in their fall, by being dashed to
pieces on the rocks below ! It was an awful reflection not one
escaped ! Although the side is almost perpendicular to appear-
ance, the natives from below sometimes ascend the mountain.
The valley below is that of the Pari.

After having gazed upon and enjoyed this glorious prospect,
and the freshness of a delightful seabreeze, our delighted party
repaired to the dining, spot. On the beautiful greensward were
erected four or five temporary huts, constructed of the boughs of
trees, recently cut, and thatched with grass. Under one of con-
siderable length was the table already spread ; others were occu-
pied by several ladies of the royal family, to whom each paid his
respects on dismounting, and was received by them, seated on
the grass, and treated with wreaths of evergreens and flowers.
Here and there lay scattered, over the rich green, the king and the
different chiefs and individuals of the party, refreshing themselves
after their ride. The scene was a most animated one of rural
luxury, and one that will not be soon forgotten.

The whole party soon set down to a most abundantly-furnished
table, loaded with savoury viands, cooked after the native fashion —
or luaued. At one end was a dog ; which, in order to induce us

* The battle that decided the fate of Oahu, in the conquests of Tamehameha, and
was crowned by "victory, in which he became sole monarch of the group, was fought in
the valley leading from Honoruru to this pass. The King of Oahu, after a despe-
rate conflict, fell bravely at the head of his army ; upon which a complete route en-
sued. One party, of more than three hundred warriors, fled towards this precipice,
and were pursued so closely, and with such relentless purpose, as to be plunged,
without an exception, from the tremendous offset to the depths below !

412

VOYAGE OE THE POTOMAC.

[August,

to eat, had the head and feet of a pig sewed on, instead of its own.
But without this stratagena, all would have eaten of it, as we had
heard so much said about this animal. It was difficult to tell it
from pig, so much did the taste, resemble the flavour of that ani-
mal. These dogs are a peculiar kind, and are fed for the pur-
pose on nothing but vegetables ; and- though not numerous, are
always eaten on great occasions of this kind.

The dinner was served up in a very handsome style ; but
nothing of rich silver covers was to be seen. The table-furni-
ture was all substantial, and in good keeping.

After dinner, the well-satisfied guests rambled about to enjoy
the prospect — then mounted their horses, and off again the whole
company started for Honoruru. Some of them, on their way
back, took a ride up Fort Hill, from which a most splendid pros-
pect was enjoyed. Over the level plain at the foot of the hill, the
town lay scattered, into which the whole cavalcade were seen gal-
loping ; while the taro-beds, distant mountains, the sea, and the
shipping in the harbour, presented a most beautiful and variega-
ted picture. We have seldom spent a day more peculiarly inter-
esting, from the novelty of the incidents and scenery.

On Fort Hill are a few old guns mounted, from which it de-
rives its name. It is some seven or eight hundred feet high, and
the ascent regular. The top is somewhat of a plain, gently sink-
ing towards the centre, and is supposed to have been the crater
of the volcano while the island was forming. It certainly has
somewhat the appearance. There is but a slight coat of verdure
or grass on the plain, and the sides are hard, barren, and sandy.
The few guns before mentioned, command the whole bay and
town ; but can be of no use, and must have cost some considera-
ble labour to raise them to their present situation.

Some evenings after our trip to the Pari, we were invited to
attend a supper at the king’s palace. We all attended in full
dress. Our band was also sent on shore. On our arrival, we
found the missionary ladies seated among the ladies of the royal
family, and we paid our respects individually to them all. After
this we had time to look around us. The palace was certainly
the finest native building we had seen ; and though its interior
was not void of elegance, we saw no “ glass folding-doors.” The
frame, or wicker-work lining of the inner house, was very neat.

1832.]

SANDWICH ISLANDS.

413

The floor was covered with mats, of the finest texture, and beau-
tifully figured, brought from some neighbouring island, and sent
as taxes. The supper-table was also covered with a mat, and
extended from one end of the room to the other. The usual cur-
tain ran across the apartment, and enclosed the bed, forming a
sitting-room. The walls were lined with paintings of the differ-
ent soldiers and officers of the Prussian army, sent by the King
of Prussia. The portraits of the king, Riho-Riho, of the former
queen, and also of George IV., were set in rich gilt frames, giving
a handsome finish to’ the apartment. The Declaration of Inde--
pendence, at the head of the room, was a glorious sight to look
upon.

In due time, we sat down to a sumptuous repast of cold meats.
No wine, however, was presented; for which deficiency the king
took occasion to apologize in a whisper, saying that “the mis-
sionaries did not like it.” We mention this anecdote, to give
some idea of the influence Which these pious labourers hold over
the king and government ; and which, wisely exercised, may be
greatly for their good. Some of the ladies of the mission are
young and interesting, and all of them are very agreeable. They
retired early, after our band had played several pieces of sacred
music ; and no sooner were they gone, than the king moved
among us with all the gayety of youth, entirely throwing off the
restraints imposed upon him by the presence of the missionaries..
After looking around the palace and grounds, we retired much
pleased, indeed, highly gratified with the entertainment.

Some nights after this, our corps dramatique, with our band,,
made a display at the Theatre Royal Honoruru. The king was,
desirous of seeing them perform, and offered his palace for the
occasion. The scenery was all taken on shore, and the palace,
fitted up for the occasion. At the usual hour for such enter-
tainments, the performance commenced. Every thing went on
remarkably well ; the pieces having been rehearsed on board ship,
and the actors did their utmost to gratify the audience. The
king and suite formed the most interesting portion of the audi-
ence, and his majesty seemed highly delighted at the efforts of the
corps, frequently indulging in the most boisterous and immoderate
fits of laughter.

414

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[August,

The next day, an official interview took place between the
reigning powers of Oahu and Commodore Downes ; in which the
claims of some of our merchants at the island were introduced
and adjusted. The commodore embraced this opportunity to give
the king much good advice as to his behaviour towards American
residents on the island, and many hints as to his govermnent. Mr.
Bingham was there as interpreter. Every thing appeared very sat-
isfactory on the part of the king and queen regent. The commo-
dore was a great favourite with the king, who took every occasion to
•show his feeling. Indeed, he appeared, when we talked of going,
to evince the greatest regret, and we have no reason to doubt his
sincerity. The evening before we sailed, he sent on board a
large number of fine hogs, as a present to the officers and crew.
Thus, after spending a longer time than we had remained at any
place during the cruise, and enjoying the hospitality of the natives
and foreign residents of Oahu, on the 16th of August we weighed
our anchor, and got under way. The king, and many of his no-
hles, with the American merchants, came off to see us depart.
The breeze was fresh and pleasant ; and, after performing the
evolution of tacking once or twice, and astonishing his majesty
with the rapidity of our movements, and the regularity of every
thing, where all appeared “ confusion worse confounded,” we
hove to — took leave of our friends — who, after giving us three
cheers from their little vessel, which we returned, stood for the
harbour ; while we, crowding sail on sail, hurried the Potomac
from the island and its hospitable inhabitants.

That the island is growing poorer, is indisputably the case ;
and considering the amount of labour- employed, it is surprising
the quantity produced. This goes far to prove the natural capa-
cities and resources of the island ; and yet want must be felt, un-
less more attention be paid to agricultural pursuits. The taro-
patches require little labour; but other articles require much.
There is no species of manufacture on the island, save the tapjpa
cloths. The most beautiful mats are made on other islands, and
are brought hither, generally, as taxes to the government.

The government is in the hands of the queen regent. Kauike-
aouli is yet too young, being a minor ; but still he begins to take
some hand in state affairs ; official documents are signed by him,

1832,]

SANDWICH ISLANDS.

415

and all proclamations are issued in liis name. Of course, the
queen regent has her sway over him, and always will. But it is
to be hoped that he will rule with more wisdom, in some things,
when he assumes the affairs of government altogether.

The government is not, by any means, complicated in its forms ;
every thing is plain and consistent. Taxes are paid in money, mats,
articles of food, or sandal-wood. The public treasury is very low.
The king pays for what he obtains from merchants in mats, &c.,
which are sold on the coast of Chili and Peru. The revenue amounts
to something considerable in port charges, when the whalers
come in after their cruise. Some months, sixty and seventy ves-
sels are at anchor at the same time. But the government ac-
knowledges a very heavy debt to our merchants, which it is de-
sirous of paying. Some months before the arrival of the Potomac,
Governor Boki, with many other chiefs, and about eighty natives,
in the brig Tamehameha, sailed for an island where it was said
much sandal-wood was to be had. They never returned, nor
have they been heard of ; and it has been supposed that they blew
Up the vessel, as there was a considerable quantity of powder on
board, and the natives smoke at all times. By some carelessness
of this kind it must have happened. Thus they lost the vessel,
for which they have not yet paid, and the means of obtaining
wherewith to pay most of their debts.

The king owns one or two small vessels, but no men-of-war.
There is little export among the islands, save the sandal-wood, and
that is becoming very scarce, and the price much reduced in the
Canton market. Many of the natives go on board whalers, and
other vessels stopping at the island ; so that the Sandwich Islands
will have many sailors, in course of time ; . and they are said to
make remarkably good ones, and active ones too, though they
have not that appearance. But they have no vessels of their- own
to go in, and but one or two are owned by merchants at the island.

These islands must always be places of interest in the Pacific
Ocean, lying, as they do, between the tracks of vessels bound to
China and the East Indies, from the coast of California, and the
whole of South America. They are also important as places of
refreshment for whalers, after their long and hazardous cruise to
capture the leviathan of the ocean. All these circumstances tend
to render the Sandwich Islands of peculiar interest to the naviga-

416 VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC. [AugUSt,

tor of the Pacific.* What would the laborious whaleman do,
after toiling five or six long months upon the boisterous Japaii
Sea, in his daring pursuit, fatigued, and out of- fresh provisions,
had he to toil his way to the coast of South America for refresh-
ments and necessaries ? At the Sandwich Islands they muster
in numbers, and find wherewith to refit them once more for the
dangers of their hazardous profession. Once more they take the
sea, revived and refreshed ; and in a few days find themselves
again on the ground, where the persecuted monsters of the deep,
driven from clime to clime by these persevering adventurers, have
now taken up their abode. Here, too, the northwest trader, after
toiling and chasing the otter and seal on the bleak coast of Amer-
ica, finds a pleasant retreat for the winter months, near at hand ;
and from whence, in a short time, they may return to their sport.
Vessels bound across the Pacific, now a track so common, can
often find the means to repair the disasters of the seas, without
being compelled to put back, perhaps thousands of miles, or pros-
ecute a voyage rendered dangerous by unforeseen events. Du-
ring a war, what interest would not these islands hold out to us,
as sources of refreshment for our men-of-war, while protecting
our commerce, whaling, and other interests in these seas ?

But, independent of all these general views, which must of
course be strong in the eyes of every one, and, in a national point
of view, paramount, to induce a cultivation of a proper understand-
ing with the natives ; we say, independent of all these grand ob-

*■ A writer in a late number of the London Metropolitan Magazine, proposes the
taking possession of these fertile islands by the British government. He speaks
not on the subject of right, but merely of expediency. We are willing to concede
to our ancestors all praise for their masterly enterprise and courage in the discovery
and settlement of new lands. But the British standard is no longer the undisputed
master of the seas ; other nations have some claims, and some power too, on the
great highway of nations. To sum up the matter, have any nation the right to lay
violent hands on that which does not belong to them! ,The writer, in his fruitful
imagination, has already fortified Honoruru, as he thinks it would be a good place
from which to watch ours and the Russian trade to China, Mexico, and the north-
west coast of America, in sandal-wood, opium, turtle, furs, &c. England will find
enough to do to take care of her interests in India, New-Holland, Canada, &c.,
without stopping to worry her mind about such trifling matters as planting new colo-
nies in the Pacific. Leave to the peaceful labours of our missionaries the introduc-
tion of civilization and Christianity, and in time they may grow up to be little, but
independent communities, of their own election.

1832.]

SANDWICH ISLANDS.

417

jects, they present an interesting appearance, as a body of island-
ers springing into existence. To watch the changes in their prog-
ress— to see how, step by step, they advance, or why they are
retarded — to watch the heathen mind opening into civilized im-
provement, will always be a matter of deep interest to every phil-
anthropic mind.

We have already said that we. thought the improvement and ad-
vancement of these islanders had been considerably exaggerated ;
and we still feel convinced that no just or true idea of the state
of these people can be obtained from the works generally referred
to as authority on the subject.

The advancement in inculcating upon these people the genuine
doctrines of Christianity, has been by far too highly coloured, ex-
cept in a very few instances. The old queen, before her death,
and the present queen regent, have been considered among the
converts. The number of converts we do not know,, and pre-
sume that nobody else does. Their ancient religion, whatever it
was, has been abolished ; and we believe that a bonfire of wooden
idols was made before a missionary ever set foot on the island !
Christianity is the religion now established among them, in which
all believe, so far as they have any ideas of religion at all.

Some time . before the arrival of the Potomac, a few Spanish
missionaries of the Catholic faith came from the coast of Cali-
fornia, with the view of establishing a school and church for the
benefit of the heathen islanders. They were men of learning, and
agreeable manners and conversation ; and, in all their acts and be-
haviour, appeared sincerely pious. They brought with them funds
enough to raise suitable houses, and soon learned the language so
as to converse with the natives.

Pleased with their manners and instructions, the natives came
in numbers to be taught by them ; so that the school and place
of worship began to be crowded. They followed the course of
instruction, in some degree, laid down by the American mission-
aries ; and never attempted to draw the natives to themselves, ex-
cept by amiable and kind deportment. Indeed, they were exem-
plary in all their actions. But their success was too great, and
they were ordered to discontinue their worship. At first they re-
fused, and informed the authorities that theirs was also the worship
of the same God with the American missionaries, — the forms

D d

418

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[June,

alone were different. But all this was of no avail. The natives
were forced from their houses of worship by native soldiers, ordered
by authority !

Things became serious. The natives wished still to attend the
new-comers ; but this was prohibited. The missionaries were
ordered to depart ; and finally were compelled, with threats of
personal violence, to leave their labours and the island, and go on
board a little rickety vessel, belonging to one of the chiefs, in
which they were conveyed to the coast of California, and there
inhumanly set on shore, in a barren spot, and distant from any
settlement !

Is this, then, the fruit of Christianity, in a place where we had
reason to believe so much good had been done by the mild in-
fluence of missionary labours — where religion, and freedom, and
knowledge had taken such deep root? where the gospel trumpet
had been sounded, and the heathen had listened to its joyful notes ?

This is not all. The California missionaries were not only
forcibly compelled to forego all their benevolent intentions and
labours of love, but, at the time of the Potomac’s arrival at
Oahu, some forty natives, men, women, and children, were con-
fined at hard labour, on a coral wall which was then erecting,
of several miles in extent, in the country, and were not allowed
to visit the town. One woman was seen, with an infant on her
back, bearing large stones in her arms for building this wall !
And this punishment was inflicted because they were Catholics,
and would not change their religion for that of the missionaries of
the island ! “We saw a man casting out devils in thy name, and
we forbade him, because he follow eth not us !”

At the conference previously alluded to between Commodore
Downes and the authorities, this subject was introduced ; when
the commodore, in a mild, though decisive tone, explained to the
chiefs and queen regent, that in England, in the United States,
and other countries, persons were not punished for their religious
opinions ; and that Catholic countries might not view with indif-
ference such cruel treatment of Catholics ; that a bitter spirit of
persecution was not sanctioned in any enlightened country, and
ought at once to be abolished.

There were few present at this interesting conference who will
soon forget the apparent reluctance with which Mr. Bingham,

1832.]

SANDWICH ISLANDS.

419

head of the mission, interpreted this liberal and truly Christian
advice ; and that, in apparent justification of the authorities, he
instanced Spain as a country that would not admit of toleration *
The commodore’s remarks seemed to break, like new light, upon
the minds of the chiefs ; and the release of the unhappy sufferers
for “ conscience’ sake,” followed immediately afterward.

The missionaries say they had no hand in this matter. Be it
so. Then from whom did the natives derive the knowledge
that to persecute, to punish, and to excommunicate, even from
the island, such as did not believe exactly as the missionaries
did, formed a part of their Christian duty ? Has the Christian
religion, whose very essence is love and charity, been so taught
as to implant into the minds of these natives a spirit of cruelty
and intolerance, foreign to their natures on every other subject ?

In the sincerity of our heart, we hope not. The missionaries
say they took no part in this matter. When sectarian zeal has
once taken full possession of the human heart, men scarcely know
what they do ; and one record at least has been made and left,
which, if it do not show interference, by raising unworthy preju-
dices against the Catholics, is unfortunate in having the sem-
blance of such a motive.

We allude to the celebrated missionary hymn of Bishop Heber.
The intelligence possessed by this great and good man, his high
standing as an exemplary Christian, had no doubt been often
explained to the most intelligent of the natives ; and any thing
coming from his pen would be looked upon as deserving great
respect, and receive from them more than ordinary attention. The
hymn runs thus ; —

1. “From Greenland’s icy mountains,

From India’s coral strand,

AVhere Afric’s sunny fountains
Roll down their golden sands ;

From many an ancient river,

From many a palmy plain,

They call us to deliver

Their land from error’s chain.

2. “ What though the spicy Ireezes,

Blow soft o'er Ceylon's isle.

Though every prospect pleases,

And only wan is vile ;

D d 2

420

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[August,

In vain with lavish kindness,

The gifts of God are strewn,

The heathen, in his hlindness.

Bows down to wood and stone.

3. “ Shall we, whose souls are lighted
With wisdom from on high,

Shall we, to men benighted.

The lamp of life deny 1
Salvation ! oh, salvation !

The joyful sound proclaim ;

Till each remotest nation.

Has learn’d Messiah’s name.”

The missionaries at Oahu translated this hymn for the benefit
of the heathen, and published it in a tract, containing other
religious matters, in the following words of the Hawaiian
tongue : —

“ HIMENI MISIONARI.

“iVb ka hooulu ana i ka olelo a ke Akua i na aina a pau loa.*

1. “Aloha ko na mauna,

I paa mau i ka hau,

A me ko Aitiopa,

Ko Inia me Makao,

Na muliwai kahiko,

Na moku, na papu ;

Kii mai ko laila pio,

I ola no lakou.

2. “ Auwe na lahuiaina

0 na akua e !

Ka make o na aina

1 kulou i ke kii ;

Ko Aferika pouli !

Ko Asia naaupo !

Ko Mahomeda pule !

Ko Roma hewa hou !

3. “ Pehea la ke hoole

Kakou i aoia mai
I kanaka pouli,
la lama e ola’i 1
Ke ola ! O ke ola '

Hoolaha ae kakou,

I lohe i ka Mesia,

' A e hull ko ke ao.”

* Ha hooleaia’ku ia lehova. mahope iho o ka ke Alii olelo ma M^aimea a me
Kailua, Hawaii

1832.]

SANDWICH ISLANDS.

421

This hymn, faithfully and correctly rendered back into English,
will, we are assured, be found to read as follows : —

1. “ Hail, inhabitants of the mountains
Still covered with snow —

With those of Ethiopia,

India, and China ;

Old rivers.

Isles, and mainlands,

Your captives are
Invited to freedom.

2 “ Wo to the 'people
Of strange gods,

Who adore idols ;

The perdition of nations,

The Africans in darkness.

The Asiatics in ignorance.

The Mahometans, and

The Romans returned to their uoickedness.

3. “ How can we.

Who are enlightened,

Refuse men in darkness
The light of life !

The life ! the life !

Let us diffuse -it —

That the world may hear the Messiah
And be converted.”

We have endeavoured to find, particularly in the second verse,
something corresponding to the original of the eminent divine, of
whose celebrated hymn it is said to be a translation. But admitting
it as having been intended as a mere imitation of the original, the
blending of the Mahometans and the Romans together, as having
returned to their wickedness, may, for aught we know, be highly
poetic, but is certainly no imitation of the spirit which actuated the
benevolent author of the original production, or of that charity, and
forbearance, and brotherly love, which are ever warm in the heart
of the truly pious, no matter to what sect or denomination he
may belong. We honour the labours of the missionary, who, in
singleness of heart, and with rational and pious zeal, goes forth to
labour in the vineyard of his Divine Master, whether it be among
the ignorant and,needy in his own country, or among the heathen
in far distant isles ; for good may come from his labours in the one
instance, if not in the other.

422

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[xlugust,

At Oahu, it is not to be disguised, that a most unhappy state of
things exists between the missionaries and other foreigners and
resident traders on the island. They are constantly arrayed
against each other. The missionaries complain that they have
been opposed in their views and endeavours to introduce the
Christian doctrine among the natives, and we have no doubt their
complaints are but too well founded ; that every act of theirs is
viewed in an unfavourable light ; and that they would have pro-
ceeded faster and farther, had it not been for the influence of
the traders, who were generally devoid of all religious principle,
and practised the greatest frauds upon the natives in their dealings
with them ; which tends to corrupt their morals, and to preclude
all hope of fairness of trade among them !

The foreign residents, as may well be supposed, are composed of
people of all nations, the English and American predominating;
and though there are a number of very respectable individuals set-
tled at Oahu with commercial views, yet it is not to be denied, and
no one can regret it more than we do, that the white population, gen-
erally speaking, are of the very worst order ; among whom every
thing like that decent restraint which civilized society imposes
upon its members is at war with their vicious propensities, and of
course resisted by them to the extent of their power.

What then ? Shall the missionary sanction their evil deeds ?
Certainly not. But let him mingle with them — not in austerity,
but in mildness — reprove and reason with them. Let him reflect
that commerce, though it carry evils in its train, is indispensable
as a helpmate in the work of civilization, without which, four
hundred years’ experience, in all parts of the world, prove how
little can be done by the missionary ! Let him be careful to ab-
stain from all unbecoming interference in the civil affairs of the
island. Of such interference he should not only be innocent, but
above suspicion. Let him give no cause of complaint, that he
exercises, or attempts to exercise, any control over the natives in
matters of trade ; these things will regulate themselves. There
is no reason that he should not provide for himself and his family ;
but in doing so, he should be cautious that he gives no cause for
belief that he looks for the reward of his labours in the good things
of this world. Let him be foremost in teaching- the natives the
arts of civilization; let him even join in their labours, and not

1832.]

SANDWICH ISLANDS.

423

frown on their innocent amusements ; teach the industrious how
to improve his taro patch — how to make two blades grow where
only one had grown before. Let him offer rewards to the most
successful cultivator of his little farm — as well as to the one who
shall best get his lesson at school, or be most regular in his at-
tendance at church.

Should missionaries of any other denomination come to the
island, go forth to meet them — extend the hand ere they have
touched the shore — bid them welcome. Differ they may in many
things ; but what of that ? The harvest is great, and the labour-
ers are few. Let them live in peace.

Let us be distinctly understood in the remarks we have made,
in reference to the foreign residents and missionaries on this island.
As to the question, which party is on the right side of virtue and
good order, there can be but one opinion, where there is not even
room for comparison ; we are not the advocate nor the apolo-
gist of the improprieties of the former ; and we have been free
in our remarks of what we deem the errors of the latter, because
all should rejoice to see the great objects of the benevolent and
Christian world realized, in the extension of civilization and the
gospel to earth’s remotest bound. The very efforts made in such
a cause assist to keep alive the charities of the world.

When will our government become sensible of the necessity
of placing at these islands a consular agent, on a salary which
shall render him independent of trade, and who might be enabled,
at all times, to exercise his influence for good 1

424

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[September,

CHAPTER XXIII.

Passage to the Society Islands — Island of Otaheite, or Tahiti — Matavia Bay — De-
scription of the natives — Dress, houses, food, &c. — Appearance of the country — •
A banquet chainpetre — Divine worship— Increase of temperance among the na-
tives— The queen-dowager — A sprig of royalty — Dinner on board the frigate —
State of the Island — ^Sail for Valparaiso.

The day after leaving Honoruru and the Island Oahu, found
the Potomac bounding on her way to the south and east, with a
fresh northeast tradewind. Although a month- had been spent,
and happily spent too, at the lovely island we were now leaving
far behind us, we were not displeased at finding ourselves once
more upon the ocean. A month is a long time for a sailor to be
cooped up in port; he pants for the exhilarating, darting spring of
the ship, when met by the high rolling swell — the spirit-stirring,
onward motion. Even the passing squall has its charms and its
attractions. But these again soon tire ; and we look forward,
with new interest, to the coming port.

In fact, there is nothing like variety ; it has been aptly called
the spice of life — of a sailor’s life, we are sure that it is so — ■
though replete with hardships, dangers, and privations ; for, after
all, his life is a merry one. It is not only a useful life, but a
pleasant one, to all who choose to make it so.

As long as the northeast tradewind lasted, we looked forward
with pleasure at the prospect of stopping at the Marquesas Islands ;
of which the most considerable are St. Christiana and St. Pedro,
the first of which is situated in latitude 9° 55' south, longitude
139° 9' west. We had already gained the longitude; and a
few days more would take us so far to the east as to reach them
on the other tack, or with the southeast wind. Unfortunately, on
the twenty-third of August, the wind died away; it then became
calm ; variables followed ; nor did we get the northeast trade,
until the third of September ; when, close upon the larboard tack,
and standing to the south and west, we found ourselyes only able
to fetch the Society Islands.

kruzenstern’s island.

425

1832.]

This group of islands, which is very numerous, was visited
by Captain Cook in seventeen hundred and sixty-nine. They
are situated between latitude 16“ 10' and 16“ 55' south; and be-
tween longitude 150“ 57' and 152“ west. The principal island
of the group was called Otaheite by Captain Cook, but the na-
tives pronounce it Tahiti. No authentic knowledge of this island,
however, was obtained, until Captain W allis, in the Dolphin, crossed
the Pacific, about sixty years ago. He anchored in Matavia Bay,
on the nineteenth of June, seventeen hundred and sixty-seven ;
gave to the harbour the name of P ort Royal, and to. the land,
“ King George the Third’s Island.” The adjacent island of Eimeo,
or Moorea, situated about fourteen miles west of Tahiti, was seen
by Captain Wallis, who called it the Duke of York’s Island.

On the evening of the twelfth we were near to Dean’s Island,
and stood off for the night under easy sail; and in the morning,
again filled away. The night had been boisterous and rainy, and
the wind strong. We now looked out for land, as we moved on
at the rate of ten knots. At eight o’clock land was reported, which
• was supposed to be Dean’s Island ; but by our observation, soon
after taken, it appeared that we had drifted by in the night, and
were now rapidly approaching Kruzenstern’s Island, discovered
by, and named after, that indefatigable commander of the Russian
discovery ship.

It is one of the most singular islands imaginable ; appearing
like a long low green patch, thickly covered with beautiful trees
and evergreens on the side next to us. Part of the island was
broken off into inlets, through which a heavy surf rolled in from
the ocean, foaming and breaking into the lagoon. The latter
might be seen from the foreyard, clear, calm, and placid, reflect-
ing the rays of the sun as from a glassy mirror; contrasting
strangely with the wild swell of the ocean without. Indeed, the
whole island seemed to form a mere emerald frame to this beau-
tiful sheet of crystal, which appeared set within its bosom.

As we passed along, at the distance of a mile or two, the na-
tives came upon the beach, displaying their white flags, and
making fires along the water’s edge, to attract our attention, and
invite us on shore. Cheerfully had we accepted this hospitable
invitation, had the roughness of the sea afforded the least pros-
pect of landing in safety. But what must have been the feelings

426

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[September,

of these islanders on beholding our noble ship, rising as it were
from the bosom of the waters in the distance, and increasing in
magnitude as she approached ; then dashing by them like some
giant spectre, and again burying herself in the ocean from which
she at first appeared to emerge ; leaving nothing behind but a
vague, indefinite remembrance of an indescribable vision ! A
visit by us would have been an era in their annals. But it was
impracticable to land, and we had to treat their tokens of amity
and good-will with apparent neglect. Is it not strange that the
white flag, among “ all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people,”
should be adopted as the emblem of peace and good-will ? Like
Noah’s white-winged dove, if it fail to find a resting-place, it
must return again to the ark.

Early on the morning of Thursday, September thirteenth, the
Island of Otaheite, or Tahiti, was seen from the deck ; although,
according to our observation at noon, we could not have been less
than sixty miles distant from it ! After standing on till late in
the afternoon, we found ourselves still eight or ten miles distant,
and not being able to make the anchorage, we stood on under easy
sail. The Island of Otaheite is very high ; but being surrounded
with clouds, could not be distinctly seen, as we neared it on the
first day. The Island of Eimeo, or Moorea, to the west, has a
peculiarly rugged appearance, one peak rising in naked grandeur
above another, and looking down upon the ocean. Numerous
other islands to the northward and westward, just pencilled their
light-blue outlines on the distant horizon.

Our navigation for a few days past had been very dangerous,
and of course the cause of great anxiety to the mind of the com-
modore. Many of the small islands are very low, surrounded by
coral beds and reefs, and difficult to be seen until very nearly ap-
proached. These dangers are greatly increased by night, render-
ing a ship of the Potomac’s dimensions exceedingly unsafe,
through most parts of this extensive and deeply-interesting archi-
pelago. During the night we stood slowly to windward ; but in
the morning we squared away, and made all sail for the southern
extremity of the. island ; then coasted along at the distance of three
miles from it, so that by ten o’clock we had passed along nearly
the whole of the northwest part of it. A number of white houses

1832.]

SOCIETY ISLANDS.

427

were seen on the shore, but we could see nothing that looked like
a harbour.

After firing a gun, several canoes came off, in one of which
was a man who spoke tolerable English, and called himself a
pilot. It appeared that we had passed Point Venus, forming
Matavia Bay, and were at this time near to Pu-pu-te harbour,
which he represented as being not only safe, but preferable to the
ether. A boat was sent to examine it, while we feasted our eyes
in contemplating one of the most lovely isles that dot the vast
blue bosom of the Pacific Ocean. Every part seemed clothed
with verdure, of apparently impenetrable thickness. Large patches
of ploughed land could be seen in different directions, while here
and there grazing cattle, and other indications of agricultural im-
provements, met the eye. The whole island was far superior, in
every point of external appearance, to that of Oahu.

In about two hours the boat returned, bringing a favourable ac-
count of the bay in question, especially as to its beauty ; but as
the entrance to it is very narrow, the commodore determined at
once to stand for Matavia, which was wider and more easy of ac-
cess ; and in the course of a very short time we found ourselves
safely anchored within the harbour, in fourteen fathoms of water ;
Point Venus bearing northeast-by-north; the centre building on
shore, east-northeast; west point, southwest-half-west; tail of
the reef, northwest-by-north. Abreast of the frigate were two or
three houses belonging to the missionaries ; some short distance
6ack, a few native huts might be seen, partially buried in the co-
coanut and orange-groves ; while all beyond was nature’s own
wild production.

On Friday, the fourteenth, we w^ent on shore, in company with
the missionary, Mr. Wilson, who had come off to pay his respects
to the commodore ; and were, on landing, invited to his house.
We had brought with us some handkerchiefs, and such toys as
the purser had to sell ; and which we found, in buying , fruit,
or something to eat, answered equally as well, or better than
money.

Almost the first thing that struck us, was the vast difference
between the natives of this island and those of Oahu, which we
had just left. In every thing they seemed superior ; in colour
much lighter ; in many instances their features approaching al-

428 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [September,

most to European. Both men and women are better iooking ;
their teeth are remarkably white and regular ; their hair is worn
short, and alike by both sexes. All use cocoanut-oil upon their
persons, particularly the females — imparting to them an unpleasant
odour. They are neat in their appearance : some dressed in
frocks, and others in the tapa, worn as in the Sandwich Islands.
They have but few ornaments ; occasionally a string of shells may
be seen around the neck, or a single flower stuck through a hole
with -which the ears of the females are perforated.

Their houses are by no means so neat as those of the Sand-
wich Islands, neither inside nor out ; and their construction is
different, — being flat-roofed, and quite open all round. In the
manufacture of the native cloth they also display less ingenuity.
Nature has been bountiful to them in the spontaneous production
of every necessary to sustain life ; hence, feeling nothing of that
keen necessity which is the parent of industry and the great in-
centive to invention, it is not to be wondered at that they should
be excessively idle and averse to labour. What inducement is
there for them to cultivate the soil, when the bread-fruit, cocoa-
nut, wild plantain, banana, orange, taro-root, and other vegetables
and fruits, are constantly blooming into spring, and ripening
into autumn, in an endless succession of the tropical seasons ?

The country is finely wooded, in appearance resembling an ex-
tensive and beautiful grove. There is nothing like a village ; but
the huts are scattered here and there, beneath the cool and shady
branches of some spreading tree; where the natives were mostly
seated in little family groups, as happy as they were ignorant of
the world beyond the limits of their own little isle. They were
always ready to barter whatever they had to spare, though totally
ignorant of the comparative value of things. There was positive
enjoyment in our, unrestrained rambles “where fancy led,” amid
this new, this virgin scenery,

“ Where every trifle could a theme impart
To instruct the mind, and captivate the heart

the spirit found ample food, while wearied nature required some-
thing a little more substantial. Meeting some natives with a dressed
pig, ready for the spit, we struck a bargain for it ; and with a na-
tive for our major domo, prepared for a feast d la Tahitian. A

1832.]

SOCIETY ISLANDS.

429

short walk brought us to the spot where some islanders had been
cooking. By our native cook, no time was to be lost ; a hole
was made in the ground ; fire was then produced by the friction
of two hard pieces of wood ; and every thing dry and combusti-
ble was collected around, of which a large fire was constructed,
and ample preparations made to luau our pig — bread-fruit and
bananas, as already described in our account of the Sandwich
Islands. Here was no richly furnished table; but our savoury
banquet was spread upon large plantain-leaves, on the verdant
carpet of nature, beneath the green boughs of spreading cocoanut
trees ; the orange, citron, and lemon around, bending to the earth
with the weight of their rich golden fruits. In this rural spot,
with none but the wild islanders for our guests, we enjoyed a most
delicious repast.

These natives had formerly the reputation of being great
thieves ; but at present evinced no disposition to reduce that pro
pensity to practice. If this change have been brought about by
the labours of the missionaries, they have done good in this, as in
other things.

At this part of the island there is a large church, of which Mr.
Wilson is the pastor. The Sunday after our arrival, we attended
Divine worship. There were about two hundred natives present,
all of whom were well dressed ; and during the sermon, which
r was delivered in the native language, many of them appeared at-
tentive and devout. Their language is much more soft and har-
^ monious than that spoken by the natives of the Sandwich Islands.
The hymns sung by the females were quite harmonious ; and
some of them, in a low, soft, and subdued tone, might be called
musical.

There is a small town about nine miles distant from Matavia
Bay ; and the road leading to it is not less than forty feet wide,
level, and well made. In fact, this road is the best specimen of
internal improvement to be met with in any of these islands ; it
seems, indeed, almost out of keeping with the still rude simplicity
of the natives. This town is the headquarters of the foreign mis-
sionaries. Here are undoubtedly the greatest improvements ; but
they seem small when measured by the long period they have been
in making. The sugarcane and cotton grow well here, and might
be cultivated to any extent. But when will these natural canacities

430 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [September,

of the island be called into action 1 When will the natives, of
their own accord, become industrious ? Tell us when the ocean
will refuse its tribute of fish, and their rich groves no longer
yield their tropical fruits — and we will answer.

The water obtained at this place we deemed of better quality
than any we had got during the whole cruise, and may be obtained
with great facility. Refreshments of all kinds, common to the
island, including good beef, were procured in abundance, and on
the most reasonable terms.

It has been said, and we have reason to believe with much
truth, that the propensity of indulging to excess in the use of ar-
dent spirits, when in their power, has greatly decreased within a
few years past ; while other vices, common to the condition of
such people, are still practised.

We had not the pleasure of seeing her royal highness, the
queen, as she was absent with her retinue of attendants at another
part of the island, and at such a distance, that our short stay would
not allow of her return. The day before we sailed, however, we
received a visit from the queen-dowager, or mother of Pomare,
the present queen. She was accompanied by her nephew, a
youth of about ten years of age, and king of some of the neigh-
bouring islands. The queen-mother might be forty years of age ;
she was dressed in a striped blue silk frock, and wore a yellow
shawl ; and was, in fact, not a bad specimen of royalty. Her
bonnet was of Otaheitan manufacture ; but what shall we say of
the other extremity ? Instead of the small ankle, and little foot
peeping out from beneath — there stood two naked feet, both of
them fantastically tattooed. The little king wore a short bob-tail-
ed coat, thickly covered with little bell-buttons, and pantaloons,
which descended but a little below his knees !

Accompanied by several of the missionaries, they dined on
board the frigate ; partaking of an entertainment given to them by
the commodore. The attendants in this train of royalty were
mostly dressed in native costume, presenting a striking contrast
to the display made by the authorities at the Sandwich Islands.

In fact, though considerable advancement has unquestionably
been made in some respects ; though churches have been estab-
lished, schools kept up, and the ground partially cultivated — yet,
when we consider the length of time permanent instructers have

1832.]

SOCIETY ISLANDS.

431

been located on the island, we cannot but feel, that the harvest
has not been in proportion to the labours of the husbandmen.
There are many causes which must ever render their advance-
ment in civilization slow, and of doubtful issue.

In the first place, they are happy in their own shady groves,
and delight in their wild and unrestrained mode of life. Their
geographical position is unfavourable to much foreign intercourse
— an intercourse which, though strewing vices in its train, is
nevertheless necessary to a people who would change from sav-
age to civilized life. The island, however, is one of great inter-
est ; and the time may come, when it will enter largely into the
concerns of the Pacific.

On Wednesday, September nineteenth, we unmoored ship, and
made ready for sea ; and on the following day we bade farewell to
Matavia Bay — its lofty hills and shady groves, with their spirit-
bewitching enchantments, and directed our course towards Val-
paraiso, at which port we arrived on the twenty-third of October,
as stated in our introduction.

432

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[November,

CHAPTER XXIV.

Valparaiso — Amicable deportment of the inhabitants — Interchange of civilities —
Accumulated documents — Extent and importance of the Pacific station — Illegal
detention of two American whale-ships — Defects in our consular system — Effects
of the revolution — Other ports on the coast — The islands — Sail from Valparaiso
— Arrive at Callao — Meet with the Falmouth and Dolphin — Description of the
harbour — Visit Lima.

The Potomac having winged her way around the world (New-
York and Valparaiso being nearly on the same meridian*) had
now arrived in safety on the station for which she had been
originally selected by the navy department, as relief of the United
States’ ship Guerriere. The circumstances which led her to the
east, and the services performed there, have already been detailed.
For many months, her arrival on the station had been anxiously
looked for by her officers and men, who were now delighted,
refreshed, and invigorated, by the fine and healthy climate of
Chili. A few days were now happily spent in recreation, and
the interchange of civilities, not only with the citizens of Valpa-
raiso, but also with a few agreeable families from our own country,
settled in Chili for purposes of commerce.

Time, however, admitted but of short respite. The interests
of an extensive coast were to be looked after. Communications
and official despatches, which had been accumulating for more
than twelve months, in anticipation of the commodore’s arrival,
had now to be examined and answered ; while new dispositions
were to be made of the other public vessels under his command.

The Pacific station is an extensive one, the several ports being
distant from each other. On doubling Cape Horn, and entering
the Pacific Ocean from the South Atlantic, the first port of entry
is Chiloe, in latitude 42° south. The second is Valdivia, one
degree further north. The third is Conception, in latitude 37°

* The Potomac had more than circumnavigated the globe ; as Valparaiso is one
decree and forty-six minutes further east than New-York, and four degrees and
forty-six minutes further east than Washington city, from whence she first started.

1832.]

PACIFIC STATION.

433

south, where the Potomac now lay at anchor, some distance
from the shore, throwing the rest of the shipping and town,
with the surrounding hills, in the rear, as has been faithfully rep-
resented by the artist in the accompanying engraving. Proceed-
ing north, Coquimbo, Copiapo, and Huasco, comprise the re-
maining part of the Republic of Chili.

The two first named, Chiloe and Valdivia, are seldom visited
by our vessels, though time may render them more important,
especially Valdivia, to our whale-ships, while cruising for the
spermaceti off shore, or for the right whale along the coast, as is
frequently and successfully done. The harbour is certainly
among the best on the coast of Chili ; and generally, such
refreshments as are needed by whalemen in the midst of a cruise,
or in preparing to double the Cape, may be procured in great
abundance, and on the most reasonable terms.

Talcahuano, the port of Conception, has been much visited by
our whale-ships ; and from its many advantages, would be more
so, particularly as the last port preparatory to their return to the
United States, could they but find in that place adequate protec-
tion in a resident consul. The natural resources of this province,
lying as it does on the borders of the Araucanian country, and
extending from the ocean to the Cordilleras, will in time make
it one of the richest departments of Chili.

Of Valparaiso it is scarcely necessary for us to speak — cer-
tainly not in detail, as the importance of the harbour has long
been known. It is a point where all our merchant vessels touch,
whatever may be their destination, on or from the coast. But
our whale-ships seldom enter the harbour — in winter, never — as
it lies exposed to the ocean from the north ; and, during the winter
months, the wind is sometimes strong from that quarter. The
sea rolls in with great power, and the anchorage there is not
only exceedingly unpleasant, but highly dangerous. Many ves-
sels, and some lives, have been lost at such times.

The town contains about twenty thousand inhabitants, and to
the eye of a stranger presents but a very imperfect idea of its
extent and importance. Here is centred nearly the whole foreign
commerce of Chili ; and as a commercial depot, it will be ren-
dered still more important, as the government has wisely deter-

B e

434

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[November,

mined on making it a free port of entry ; and a fine building for
the facilities of storage has recently been erected by the govern-
ment.

The inhabitants of Valparaiso are exceedingly courteous and
amicably disposed. The great number of visiters of all classes
who frequented the frigate’s decks, to view the vessel and enjoy
the music of a fine band ; the several hospitable entertainments
given them ; and the corresponding courtesies received from the
residents on shore, were such as to render our stay in port most
agreeable ; and the tendency was such as to increase the friendly
disposition of the inhabitants towards their elder sister republic
of the north.

What a change has been wrought by the revolution ! But a
short period has elapsed since this port was only visited by a few
Spanish galleons ; and one or two vessels annually sailed from
thence to Callao ! Now, we meet in the same port the flags of
all nations, engaged in a busy commerce ; and the people of the
country throwing olf old prejudices, partaking of the improve-
ments, and advancing with the spirit of the age in which they live.

Coquimbo, Huasco, and Copiapo, mentioned as the three
remaining ports to the north, are places of importance, as being
the ports of the great mining districts of the country, from which
the article of copper alone enters largely into our commercial
transactions, not only in return cargoes, but in shipments made
from the coast to Canton, in American bottoms. The American
merchants will have to contend with new competitors in the direct
trade between these countries and China, now that the East India
Company’s charter no longer prevents British merchants from en-
gaging in this trade under the British flag.

The crew having been allowed liberty on shore, and the Po-
tomac being replenished with water and provisions, the commo-
dore had prepared to sail for Talcahuano, for the purpose of
inquiring into the cause of the detention of two of our whale-
ships, which had several months previously been illegally seized
and detained by the local authorities of that place ; showing great
defects in our present consular system, or neglect of our consul
at the nearest port — probably both.

On the morning of the day set for our departure to that port,
his Britannic majesty’s ship Dublin, Lord James Townsend in

1832.]

PACIFIC STATION.

435

command, arrived from Talcahuano, bringing the agreeable intel-
ligence that the vessels in question had been released, and had,
by that time, probably sailed for the United States. The amount
of damages sustained by these vessels, with full cargoes of oil,
lying so long, and subject to leakage, besides creating a subject
for adjustment between the two countries, is probably greater
than would be required to support an independent consul in that
place for ten years. When will our government look to and
reform the defects in our consular system ?

Proceeding to the north, the next port after leaving Chili is
Cobija, recently risen in importance from having been made a free
port of entry for the Republic of Bolivia. This country,, contain-
ing, as it does, twelve hundred thousand inhabitants, connected
on the northwest with Peru, on the northeast and east with Brazil,
on the south with the Argentine Republic, and washed by the
Pacific Ocean on the west, opens a commercial field of consider-
able importance to the enterprise of our merchants. The country,
though mountainous, is in many places exceedingly productive.
Many of its silver mines are among the richest in South America ;
those of Potosi have been long celebrated.

It was on this soil the Spaniards made their last effort, under
the Viceroy la Serna, and suffered a signal defeat by the Patriot
forces under Sucre, on the battle-gi'ound of Ayacucho, on the
ninth December, eighteen hundred and twenty-four. This is now
one of the best regulated republics of South ximerica ; its resour-
ces are certainly less exhausted, and its government presents the
anomaly of a surplus in the treasury ! The port o? Cobija, there-
fore, is not only important on these accounts, but would be ren-
dered more so, at any moment, should something occur to inter-
rupt our friendly relations with Chili or Peru ; as it would, in
such case, become the port of deposite for our merchandise.

The several ports of entry along the extensive coast of Peru
will be noticed more in detail as we pass along. American inter-
ests are extensive with them all, and require constant looking
after.

Leaving the coast of Peru, Guayaquil is the principal port of
the Equador ; and then follows the port of Panama, the emporium
of the old Spanish galleons, where were collected the treasures
of Peru and Chili before they were sent to the mother country,

E e 2

436 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [December,

Still advancing to the north, we find the ports of Mexico, up the
Gulf of California.

Thus does the Pacific station present one continued line of
coast, of not less than seventy degrees of latitude, interspersed
with numerous ports of entry, and under the fluctuating commer-
cial regulations and restrictions of new and distinct governments.

It might, indeed, be said, that the station extended north as far as
the mouth of Columbia river ; which would make it more than
eighty degrees of latitude, embracing about forty on each side of
the equator.

But even this extensive coast does not embrace the whole of
the Pacific station. Stretching olf from the coast, a new and ex-
tensive world is opened to the west, among the islands. The
present important and daily increasing interests of the fisheries
and other traffic ; the nature of the business ; the amount of ton-
nage and capital employed ; all render this part of the station
especially deserving the national care. No one can behold the
hardy, silent, and persevering efforts of our countrymen in this
quarter, without a feeling of exultation and pride ! They are con-
fined to no sea or clime, and often perform the circumnavigation
of the globe in making up a single voyage. The numerous diffi-
culties they encounter, and the daily complaints among them,
show that they have not been sufficiently protected ; and that the
islands forming a part of the station, require at least one vessel
from the squadron to be constantly among them.

Every thing conspires to render the Pacific a place of great
interest to the people of the United States at the present time.
Our future sea-fights are as likely to take place here as on the
Atlantic Ocean ; for where we are acquiring a preponderating
commercial interest, there must be our navy also.

Such is the extent and importance of the Pacific station — a
station which cannot be well protected with a less force than one
frigate, two sloops-of-war, and a schooner. The coast of Chili
should never be without one, and the same may be said of Peru
while the ports to the north, Panama, and in the Gulf of Califor- J
nia, to the northwest, and the islands, will afford sufficient active
employment for two more.

Anxious to fall in with the other vessels, now to the north, the
commodore determined on leaving Valparaiso on the second of

1832.]

PACIFIC STATION.

437

December ; and after a passage of thirteen days, arrived at Callao
on the fifteenth, where the sloop-of-war Falmouth, Master-com-
mandant F. H. Gregory, just from Guayaquil and the intermedi-
ate ports, was awaiting our arrival. The Falmouth had sailed
from the United States on the fifth of July, eighteen hundred and
thirty-ong, and arrived at Valparaiso on the twenty-ninth of Oc-
tober. This sloop, and the schooner Dolphin, Lieutenant-com-
mandant Long, were the only vessels we had on the coast from
that period to the arrival of the Potomac,

Long before we made the anchorage, the Dolphin got under
way and stood out to meet us ; and as the broad pennant was
recognised by her and the Falmouth, each saluted the commo-
dore, and was answered by the Potomac, as she rounded the
Island of San Lorenzo, and stood slowly in to the anchorage.

The Island of San Lorenzo, four or five leagues in circumfer-
ence, may be said to form the harbour on the west, while the
shores of Boca Negra and Lancon are on the southeast; beyond,
the high lands which form the ridges and mountains rise one above
another, until lost to the sight. This bay is from fourteen to six-
teen leagues in circuit, formed by the island into the shape of a
horseshoe, whose centre affords one of the safest anchorages in
the world ; and where, at any hour of the day or night, vessels
may enter or depart without apprehension of danger of any kind.
When vessels are once at anchor, they remain without being ex-
posed to storms, or hurricanes, or winds to molest them, being
under cover of the island ; so that some have remained at anchor
for five, or six, or more years, with weak cables. The north
winds are felt sometimes in June and November, but without
violence.

The most favourable circumstance of this port, perhaps unique
in its kind, is that the sailing of vessels can be fixed for a certain
day with the utmost certainty, as the wind regularly blows from
the south ; and it is very seldom that there is not a sufficient
breeze for this purpose. So that when the day of sailing is an-
nounced, even the hour and minute can be stated, without the risk
of disappointment. To this advantage is added, that vessels may
enter the bay and leave it with the same wind, facilitated by the
ample space afforded them for manoeuvring, and the safe depend-
ance to be placed on the bottom.

438 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [December,

From the observations and analysis made by Baron de Hum-
boldt, the water of this bay was found to be two degrees colder
than any other on the coast ; and this is not only verified by the
testimony of those who bathe in it, but also by its protecting ves-
sels from the corroding effects of worms and marine insects, so
destructive to them in almost every other port.

At the distance of a league to the east is the famous Rimac, the
principal stream of the valley of Lima, by the side of which it
runs, meandering and beautifying its banks. Next follow, in the
view, the ports of Lancon and Chancay, on whose fertile shores
were formerly the celebrated cane plantations, and where, since
the revolution, they again begin to assume importance.

On the opposite side is presented a sandy, uninhabited coast,
which goes off diminishing from the port of Callao, for half a
league, to the point of the island called la Mar hrava. The
island is now some distance from the main ; but according to the
accounts of those who existed previous to the last inundation of
Callao, the channel between them was so narrow as to admit of
a verbal communication from one beach to the other, But since
the inundation, from some cause or other, the water has been evi-
dently gaining on the land.

For a long time after the destruction of Callao, no other build-
ings were erected in it except the castle and custom-house. Bella-
vista having been selected, and large hodegas, or store-houses,
built for the deposite of the grains, liquors, fruits, and other effects
of the trade with Chili and Guayaquil, Bellavista soon sprang up
into a flourishing village, while Callao lay in its mouldering ruins,
almost neglected. The famous stone mole, which had been erected
at so much cost for the security and facility of commerce, had
disappeared in the general ruin — the particulars of which we shall
give hereafter.

Time and the revolution have produced another change. Bel-
lavista has fallen into decay, and Callao is rapidly rebuilding.
Foreign merchants, who have the entire control of the foreign
commerce of the country, reside in Lima, but have their agencies
established in the port.

Soon as the usual courtesies were interchanged between the
Potomac and the authorities on shore, as well as the performance
of many duties connected with the protection of ,ouf interests on

HARPED 6. BROTHERS

1832.]

PACIFIC STATION.

439

the coasts, the commodore and many of the officers took the oc-
casion to visit Lima, distant tivo leagues. Of this city and Peru,
our note-book is full ; and in another place we shall again draw
upon its contents.

On entering the city of Lima, the stranger will for a while
forget that he is in the “ city of kings” — that here Pizarro
founded an empire — that here has been the seat of wealth —
of the inquisition of luxury — of revolution and of war — in the
single but novel contemplation of the Say a y Manto, or walk-
ing-dress of the Limaian ladies ! The lower part of this dress,
or the saya, is, in fact, an elastic silk petticoat, laid in vertical
folds or plaits, sitting close to the figure, the contour of which
it gracefully exhibits at every step and inovement.- The Manto
is a kind of hood of black silk, reaching low enough to con-
ceal the-top of the saya, and is drawn up from behind over the
head and shoulders, concealing the elbows and arms, and all the
face except one eye, which just peeps out as a sample. The
fold in front is held in its place by one hand, while the other is
extended across the bust, holding a rosary or a pocket handker-
chief. In this dress the ladies go to mass at early dawn, and a
shopping in the forenoon ; indeed, it is the common walking-dress
through the day, but not worn by ladies at night.

440

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[December,

CHAPTER XXV.

City of Lima — Climate and Temperature — ^View of the City from the Summit of
San Christoval — The river Rimac — Cisterns and fountains — Absence of rain, thun-
der, and lightning.

For the facts which we have now to offer in regard to the
climate of this country, and other incidental topics, we are prin-
cipally indebted to the work of Dr. Unanue on the “ Climate of
Lima.” Our remarks, indeed, will mostly have reference to that
city.

Dr. Unanue divides the Cordilleras, or Andes, into four zones, —
the torrid, temperate, frigid, and frozen. The first, which is at
their base, commences at an elevation of about four thousand feet
above the level of the ocean, and where the thermometer of Reau-
mur ranges from 16° to 24°. Here there are woods and flowers, and
aromatic gums : nature is always in action, and these are regions
of extreme fertility.

The second zone extends from four to twelve thousand feet
above the same level, the medium degree of heat being 13° R.,
and the range from 9° to 16°. The two extremes of this zone are
spring and autumn : the climate is most benignant, and the pro-
ductions are grain and European fruits. This is the terrestrial
paradise of Peru, and nature is liberal in her productions, even to
profusion.

The third zone extends from twelve to fifteen thousand feet
above the same level. Here the aspect of the country becomes
entirely different ; every thing is stinted and miserable ; it has been
said with truth, that Siberia and Kamtschatka have as amiable a
climate as the inhabitants of these summits.

They are of small stature, with a complexion brown and parched,
and literally “ toasted by the cold foreheads low, and covered
with hair, eyes small and sunk in the head, and thus defended
from the piercing reflection of the solar rays upon the snow. The
thermometer ranges here at about 4° R. in the months of May,
June, and July, which is at the freezing point ; during the rainy

1832.]

CITY OF LIMA.

441

months it is generally at 8° R. . There is here to be found a little
stinted shrubbery and moss.

The fourth zone extends from fifteen to twenty-one thousand
feet in elevation ; this is what Dr. Unanue calls the frozen zone
Its summit is under the line, and it gradually slopes olf towards
either pole. It crosses the tropics at an elevation of about thirteen
thousand feet, and at about 45° of south latitude it falls to eight
or nine thousand feet, and to a level with the superficies of the
globe : and throughout its whole progress in Peru, it marks the
boundary of vegetation and life. In this region reign tempestuous
winds, as at the poles : so that in giving a general description
of Peru, it may be said that its summits are crowned with ever-
lasting winter, and rocked with whirlwinds and storms ; its sides
adorned with everlasting spring : that autumn reposes in its bosom,
while summer, with its torrid heat, slumbers at its feet.

There is a perpetual canopy of clouds resting upon the sum-
mits of' the Andes, and burying themselves in the ocean. These,
for a considerable part of the year, shield the valleys from the
heat of the sun. South winds always blow, loaded with fresh-
ness and vapour. Here are situated the beautiful valleys of Lima,
of which one of her own poets has sung : —

“ En su horizonte el Sol todo es Aurora,

Eterna el tiempo todo es Primavera ;

Sola es risa del Cielo cada hora,

Cada mes es cuenta de la Esfera.

Son cada alienta un halito de Flora,

Cada aroyo una Musa lisonjera ;

Y los vergeles, que el confin le debe
Nubes fragrantes con que al Cielo llu^ve. ”

Lima, which has been decidedly the richest and most celebrated
city of Southern America, is situated in 12° 2' 51" of south lati-
tude, and 70° 50' 51" of west longitude from Cadiz, Its aspect
is sloping to the southward and westward, and from these quar-
ters only is it exposed to the wind, while to the north it is pro-
tected by high hills. All the hills around Lima are branches of
the great Cordilleras of the Andes, the principal chain of which
passes about twenty leagues inland from the city. The spurs
which pass to the east descend from north to south, in regular
gradation, forming delightful valleys, and approaching near to the

442

VOYAGE OF THE TOTOMAC.

[December,

walls on the upper side of the city ; while those on the north pro-
ject along either side of the river Rimac, till at last they diverge and
form the valley of Lurigancho, a spacious semicircle in front of
the upper part of the city. The most elevated of the hills in the
vicinity of Lima, are San Christoval and Amancaes ; the first be-
ing four hundred and seventy, and the second nine hundred and
sixty yards above the level of the sea. The view from the sum-
mit of San Christoval is extensive, and more than compensates
for the labour of ascending it. There is the city quite at your
feet, with its numerous towers ; the magnificent Pantheon, or pub-
lic burial-ground, some distance in the rear ; with Indian ruins
here and there, and in front the beautiful Bay of Callao, with its
castle and shipping ; the lofty and desert Island of San Lorenzo
in the distance ; and beyond, the broad Pacific Ocean. Placed on
the summit of San Christoval, the imagination leaps its ordinary
bounds when the eye has mastered the many enchanting objects
that are clustered around, and but a few of which we have enu-
merated ; for we have omitted the avenues planted with trees,
the public promenade, the orange-groves, the fountains, and the
fields of the husbandmen, extending up the valley. Directly
south, along the coast, lies Chorrillas, about eight and a quarter
miles from the plaza of Lima. Towards the east numerous sand-
hills appear, which gradually increase in height as they recede,
until they finally unite with the spurs of the Cordilleras. Such
are the boundaries which limit the prospect, as the eye is cast
over the beautiful and spacious valley of Lima.

The plaza, in the centre of Lima, is one hundred and seventy
yards above the level of the ocean, towards which the plain in-
clines so gradually, that the ascent to the city is scarcely percep-
tible. On examining the qualities of the soil of this inclined plane?
it will be found that at a certain depth there is a stratum of more
compact and solid earth, over which are layers of sand and gravel,
or smooth pebbles, precisely the same as found all along the coast
at the bed of the ocean. This would lead to the belief, that at
some former period the waters of the ocean were admitted into
this basin, and extended two or three leagues farther inland than
they do at present. One thing is certain, that there is now a gra-
dual, though imperceptible diminution of the waters along the
coast. Over these layers of sand and pebbles lies a stratum of

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<•7//^/ ./Lirl'C'ur r-r'

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1832.]

CITY OF LIBIA,

443

Yegetable mould, two feet in depth, more or less, the prodigious
fertility of which amply repays the toils of the agriculturist.

Lima is supplied with water from the Rimac. This river
takes its rise in the province of Huarochiri, where it is formed
from numerous torrents of melted snow, which precipitate them-
selves from the Cordillera of the Andes. It runs a westerly
course, over a sandy and stony bed. In its progress, it is used to
irrigate the farms which lie along either of its banks, A short
distance before it arrives at the city, a large aqueduct branches
off to the south, from which the streets of the city are profusely
watered, there being a stream of water running through every
street from east to west. The waters which have been employed
in fertilizing the fields along the rivers’ banks are collected into
two reservoirs : the one to the east of San Christoval they call
-puquios, and it supplies the suburbs of San Lazaro ; the other, to
the east of the city, is called the targea, and it is from this that the
cisterns and fountains of the city are supplied.

The water of Lima is reputed to be unhealthy, and produc-
tive of derangements of the digestive organs. By analysis it ap-
pears to contain an unusual quantity of selenite, a large amount
of chalk or marl, and various oily earths ; and these foreign mat-
ters are found to increase as the river advances, until finally an
immense quantity of gross and oily earths, and mephitic airs, are
found in the solution. Whoever reflects on the source of the wa-
ters, and the soil over which they pass, would infer that their bad
qualities were rather to be ascribed to want of proper care in
their conveyance, than to any inherent want of purity. In the
reservoh’ which supplies the pipes and fountains, there are water-
plants growing, and depositions of decaying vegetable matter ; and
it is not uncommon to find even dead animals there also. The
conduits, as they enter the city, pass through .the midst of ceme-
teries and sepulchres, and under bogs and pools of standing water
from the dirty streets ; and the incessant rolling of carriages over
them, as they lie near the surface, is constantly impairing them ;
so that the waters they convey are impregnated with every im-
purity, and with the common filthy waters which run in the
streets.

The river Rimac separates the city from the suburbs of San
Lazaro on the north ; and over it there is a beautiful stone bridge,

444 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC, [December,

with five lofty arches. The bridge is provided with seats, and is
a fine lounging-place in summer evenings.

There are numerous small fountains ; a principal one in the
Plaza throws up the water many feet above the surface of the
ground.

The atmosphere of Lima is almost uniformly dark and murky.
The smoke of the city, the vapour from the coast, and the exha-
lations from a rich vegetation, perpetually overhang the city like
a wide-spread awning, which the gentle force of the south wind,
the only one to which it is exposed, is not able to raise above the
summits of the surrounding hills. Even in the season of greatest
heat, when the sun approaches the zenith, rarefying the air and
dispelling the vapours, the mist still shrouds the city, while the
surrounding country, at no great distance, enjoys a clear and
beautiful sky. If, during the clearest weather, a passing cloud
intercepts the rays of the sun, a condensation of the vapours
immediately takes place, and the sky is at once overcast, showing
the great amount of moisture in the atmosphere. Throughout
the day, in the winter season, the atmosphere is in continual com-
motion. In the morning the horizon is covered with dense fogs :
these soon rise and disperse as the sun advances ; and at noon it
is clear, and the sun can be seen : in the evening the fogs return
again and settle on the earth. In the winter there are some clear
days and moonlight nights, but these are rare. These nights,
however, present the heavens among the most beautiful in the
world. There are found above the horizon, Orion, the Dogs, the
Ship of Argo, and the beautiful constellation of the southern
Centaur. If we except those days at the end of the warm season
when the sun is most powerful, and' others in the winter when he
is most obscured by clouds, every day for the rest of the year
will be little else than an alternation of light and shade : the pro-
portion between the two varying according as the sun approaches
or departs from the southern tropic. In the first instance, the
rays of the sun being more direct, have more force, and efficacy
in dispelling the clouds; while their obliquity in the latter case
renders them less efficient. Hence, this perpetual conflict and
alternate ascendency of the vapours and the rays of the sun,
gives Lima a hot and humid climate, without any of the extremes
of these temperaments.

1832.]

CITY OF LIMA.

445

The annual variation of the thermometer is about 9° Reaumur
— that is, from 13°, which marks the greatest degree of cold, to 22“,
which is the register of the greatest heat. In addition to this, there
is a diurnal variation, which is governed entirely by temperature
induced by the fluctuation of sunshine and clouds. It ascends,
according to the number of clear hours in a day, from half a de-
gree to a degree ; and again, from a space of cloudy weather, it
descends an equal amount. This diurnal variation of course does
not take place in days that are entirely cloudy. In the variable or
clear days, the thermometer rises about two thirds of a degree by
one in the afternoon, and one third more by four o’clock, which is
the period of greatest heat. In the night, it descends to the same
lines from whence it rose in the day.

The heat which is felt in Lima is generally proportioned to the
indications of the thermometer, corresponding to the changes pro-
duced by the winds and clouds. The winds are always refresh-
ing, so that during the days of greatest heat, the thermometer does
not rise when they blow ; but in calms, the heat is oppressive.

The barometer regularly maintains the height of twenty-
seven inches four lines ; varying no more than 2° 4', without any
fixed rule, according to the Peruvian observations. But the learned
Humboldt discovered a daily flux and reflux. From five to nine
o’clock A. M., it ascends to its greatest height ; from nine to twelve
it is stationary: soon it descends, until four P.M. : at seven it
begins to rise, and continues to do so till eleven, and remains
stationary till twelve : then again it descends till half past four in
the morning. These observations were made by Humboldt, in the
city of Lima, in eighteen hundred and two.

It may be said that there are but two seasons in Lima. The
one of summer, in which the heat requires all to put on clothes
of the lightest kind ; and the other of winter, in which a total
change of clothing is required. But to a more close observer, it
is manifest that the changes of the four seasons are distinctly
marked. The most notable of these changes is the equinox of
September, which marks the commencement of the southern
spring. Every thing then indicates that the god of day has re-
turned from the north to gladden and warm the southern climes.
Nature is put more actively in motion, and every thing seems to
augment in volume and power. Even the animal creation, by its

446 VOYAGE OE THE POTOMAC. [December,

animation and energy, shows that the benign and invigorating in-
fluence of spring is fully felt. The thermometer gradually rises
from 13“ Reaum. to 17“, when a sensible change in the temperature
is felt : and between this and 1 8“ commences the summer solstice,
and marks the heat of the twenty-first December. The southern
winds now blow with greater force during the month of January :
and soon after succeed those calms common to this season of the
year. During the summer solstice, the thermometer rises to 22° ;
and the gardens and fields fill the air with the fragrance of their
flowers. The wheat becomes ripe, and the season abounds with
all the sweet and luscious fruits of a tropical summer.

As soon as the sun passes the equator to the north, a distinct
change in the warm season is felt. The nights still continue clear,
while the days gradually become obscure. In April, the vapours
become condensed, fogs cover the heavens night and day, and the
mist commences. In the latter part of April or the beginning of
May, the mists begin to fall profusely, and continue until the fol-
lowing spring ; and an exposure of two or three hours will wet you
to the skin. It is a common saying among the Limaians, “ Man-
anitas de Mayo y Avril nadie las puede sufrir.”

The only records of rain in Lima are in the years seventeen
hundred and one, seventeen hundred and twenty, seventeen hun-
dred ninety-one, and eighteen hundred and six : and of thunder
and lightning in fifteen hundred and fifty-two, seventeen hundred
and twenty, seventeen hundred and forty-seven, and eighteen
hundred and four ; and during the latter year, it is said that the
fruits were ripe in the spring two months before the usual time.
In the Serrania, the atmosphere is very electrical, and to the want
of electricity on the coast we may perhaps attribute the want of
rain, though this striking peculiarity is generally attributed to the
course of the winds bearing vapour, and the attraction of the clouds
to the neighbouring Cordilleras, where the rains fall in torrents.

1832,]

EARTHQUAKES.

447

CHAPTER XXVI.

Earthquakes in Lima — Destruction of the city — Callao overflowed and destroyed by
the sea — Visit Valparaiso — Return to Callao, touching at Coquimbo — Falmouth
sails for the United States — Potomac proceeds to the north.

Those who dwell in a tranquil country, seldom visited by the
slightest terrestrial vibrations, can with difficulty form an adequate
idea of those terrible convulsions of the earth which ravage
and lay waste the largest and most splendid cities, and overturn
the very mountains, in countries less favoured by nature in this
respect.

We are accustomed to look upon the earth with a conviction
that it is solid and fixed beneath our feet, and few of us can re-
alize that it has been, and is still, in some parts of the world, sub-
ject to undulations more terrific than the mightiest surges of the
rolling ocean.

Geologists were formerly in the habit of accounting for all the
great revolutions the surface of our planet has undergone, by re-
ferring them entirely to an aqueous origin. The ocean, from some
causes, was supposed to have overwhelmed the land, and to have
buried beneath its waves the loftiest mountains— the fossil shells
and other marine animal remains upon them were triumphantly
pointed at as proofs that the sea had risen to their summits. It
was their opinion that the sea alone was liable to change of level,
and it never entered' into their minds to conceive that the solid
earth was also subject to these changes. It is now satisfactorily
ascertained that the land is not always terra firma, but is liable to
sudden elevation from subterranean causes. That the bottom of
the mighty deep has been broken up, and its sedimentary de-
posites, with all the various organized beings it contained imbed-
ded, were solidified into rocks, and elevated above the surface by
powerful causes acting beneath the crust of the globe !

In Europe, the countries most subject to earthquakes are those
situated near active or extinct volcanoes. Calabria has been rav-
aged by them from one extreme to the other. Sicily and Naples

448

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[December,

aie subject to them ; and the force of the shocks depends on the
length of time that may have elapsed since the eruption preceding
took place, in the neighbouring volcanoes. The cause of this
energy in the shocks is supposed to be dependant on the thickness
which the crust of cold and solid lava has obtained, and the re-
sistance required to overcome it.

One of the most remarkable earthquakes in Portugal, which
took place in seventeen hundred and fifty-five, suddenly destroyed
the city of Lisbon ; and in the course of six minutes crushed
more than sixty thousand persons to death. The quay, con-
structed of solid marble, sunk down into an enormous chasm,
bearing with it all the crowd of people who had assembled upon
it to save themselves from their falling houses. The sea now
stands one hundred fathoms deep over this spot.

There is no country on the surface of the globe more subject
to earthquakes than South America, especially on its western
coast, at the base of those gigantic mountains which extend
through the country from north to south, and closely approximate
the Pacific Ocean. Peru has been most frequently visited by
these convulsions; and its capital, Lima, has been often shaken
to its foundations. The great earthquake of seventeen hundred
and forty-six entirely overturned that city, and clnshed many of its
inhabitants beneath the ruins of their houses.

But the daring energy of man again rebuilt the city, which, al-
though now better calculated to withstand the shocks of the un-
dulating earth, is still frequently in part laid in ruins ; and the in-
habitants rush from their homes, and seek refuge in the open plain,
if om their tottering tenements, which threaten to crush them be-
neath their walls.

It is surprising to observe how far the human mind can accus-
tom itself to dangers, however imminent, and people can sleep
with a feeling of security, when in a moment their dwellings may
be tumbled in ruins o.ver their heads, — their houses serving them
for tombs. The people who dwell on the flanks of Vesuvius,
Etna, or Teneriffe, have become so accustomed to volcanic phe-
nomena, that they view them with little apprehension, although
history, as well as their own observation and experience, shows
them on what a treacherous soil they live : they still live on, ap-
parently unmindful of their danger ; and when their houses are

1832.]

E.4.KTH QUAKES,

449

overturned by an earthquake, or their vineyards are overwhelmed
by lava, showers of stone, or volcanic ashes, the)r return to the
very spot, rebuild their fallen houses, and cultivate the new vol-
canic soil, which in time repays their labour by an abundant har-
vest or vintage.

So in Lima, earthquakes are of such frequent occurrence, that
the ordinary ones excite alarm but for the moment among the in-
habitants. There have been, however, commotions of such vio-
lence as to overturn extensive districts, and to destroy whole
cities, burying their inhabitants in their ruins. In the course of
one hundred and twelve days, the city of Lima experienced no
less than four hundred and thirty earthquakes.

The history of that event, and the sufferings of the people, are
recorded by Father Eusebio, who was not only an eyewitness
of the scene, but a sufferer in the catastrophe. We may readily
excuse Eusebio for giving free vent to his feelings, in descri-
bing such a mournful spectacle, as the horror of the tragedy must
have unfitted him for critical observations on the natural phenom-
ena of such an event, and fixed his attention chiefly on human
suffering. Notwithstanding the lapse of almost a century, the
account of Eusebio contains a freshness and interest which we
do not remember ever to have seen given in any account of this
wonderful event ; and such portions as oun limits will permit,
cannot fail of being highly interesting to our readers.

It was on the night of the twenty-eighth October, in the
year seventeen hundred and forty-six, while the churches in
Lima were celebrating, with great pomp and holy zeal, the fes-
tivity of those two apostolic saints, Simon and Judas (not Is-
cariot)—a night when the moon seemed blending only benevo-
lence and loveliness in the brightness of her beams- — it was on
such a night, and on such an occasion, that the dreadful tragedy
occurred alluded to above. Beneath that beauty and brightness
were concealed deception and ruin ! The heavens were serene,
the ocean was tranquil, and the earth slept in quiet; — but it
was the awful stillness which precedes the earthquake’s birth.

It was at half past ten at night, five hours and forty-five min-
utes before the full moon ; when a sudden and terrible concussion
of the earth took place, as if the subterranean caverns Avere bro-
ken up, and the elements of water, and fire, and air, were bursting

F f

450 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [December,

forth ; each, in its violence, struggling to destroy that which had
been spared from the voracity of the other !

Nothing was able to resist an impulse so sudden and so terri-
ble, where the small as well as the great edifices of the city
served only for the sepulchres of many of the inhabitants ; and
where those who were arrested by fright, or unmindful of the
event, were crushed by the falling houses, or suffocated by the
dust which arose from their ruins !

The duration of this first and terrible movement of the earth
lasted a little more than three minutes ; but that time, though
short, was sufficient for the destruction of what had cost the la-
bour of two hundred and eleven years in the construction ! Mag-
nificent temples and sumptuous palaces — edifices of the most
splendid and costly character — were tumbled into heaps of pro-
miscuous ruins !

The following day dawned on immeasurable sorrow. Here
was the father grieving for his son ; — there, the son mourning for
the loss of his mother ! Relations lamenting the death of their
kindred, and friends weeping for the destruction of their friends
and acquaintances ! All was consternation — all lamentation !
Men talked — but their words conveyed no meaning; their thoughts
and feelings were read in their looks ! Volumes of grief were
expressed in convulsive sighs! Indeed, it was not a Zzye which
they lived — but worse than death which they suffered. Devotion
alone found a seat in their hearts, directing their prayers in fervour
and in silence to the Most High !

The streets were little else than mountains of earth and rub-
bish, impeding the movements of the inhabitants, and causing the
greatest fatigue to those who attempted to pass. In many places
they were inaccessible and insurmountable ; — so much so, that in
the most approachable of the different squares, it was impossible
to distinguish the paths and the most familiar situations ; and
such was the wilderness of ruins around, that one house could
scarcely be distinguished from another.

The consternation continued — every moment augmenting in
horror, from the incessant repetition of shocks, which amounted
to nearly two hundred in twenty-four hours — from half past ten
o’clock on Friday evening, imtil the same hour on Saturday — when
the inhabitants passed out into the free air of the Plazas Cam-

1832.]

EARTHQUAKES.

451

panas (open places), expecting no less, at every concussion of the
earth, than a mournful termination of their existence. And well
might they think so ; as not only the moon, and the spangled fir-
mament in which she rode, were suddenly obscured, but the at-
mosphere thickened with the heavy volume of dust, thrown off
by the continued and terrible movements of the earth !

The morning of the thirtieth arrived, adding sorrow to sorrow,
and grief to grief! At four in the afternoon the whole city was
again thrown into consternation, at the appalling news that the
ocean was bursting from its confines — had overleaped its bounds —
and was rolling in with such power as soon to overwhelm and de-
stroy every thing that had life in the city ! Here language must
fail ; nor can the most vivid imagination conceive the confusion of
the terror-stricken inhabitants of Tima ! AVho can wonder, if many
of them thought the day of doom was at hand ? The moon and
stars obscured ! — earthquakes in quick succession ! — “ distress
and perplexity ! — the sea and waves roaring — men’s hearts fail-
ing them for fear !”*

One tumultuous and simultaneous rush was made for the neigh-
bouring mountains, with the hope of finding on their summits
some safety from the approaching waters ! The crowd moved
on, some shouting in wild and unnatural accents, and others seek-
ing among, those whom they met for priests, to whom they might
confess their sins, and from whom they might receive absolution
for their souls ! Indeed, every mortal in the city appeared to be
an actor in the general tragedy ! The nuns and hiatus, and las
Esposas de Jesu Christo, accustomed to live in retirement within
the cells of their cloisters— were seen leaving the ruins of their
convents, and, with the multitude, seeking in flight security for
their lives !

Until after five o’clock in the evening, did the flight and con-
sternation of the citizens continue ; when it became known that
the sea was still confined within its usual boundaries. But no
one can be surprised that the population should have believed the
report of its heaving in ; not only because evil news seldom proves
false, but on account of the recent destruction of the castle of
Callao, and that of its inhabitants, by the waves of the sea, only

* Luke xxi. 25.

F f 2

452 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [December,

two leagues distant; and which happened on the night of the
first earthquake, as will be seen in the sequel.

On the first night of the earthquake, a woman with a child, only
a few months old, was left buried beneath the ruins of an edifice,
where she remained in security ; and, four days afterward, was
taken out free from injury, and her child living. The latter had
derived subsistence from the breast of its mother, whose exist-
ence was thus preserved, as Eusebio prefers to call it, by a
“miracle.”

On the thirtieth, new afflictions threatened the city from the
odour of the unburied dead, of whom, at this time, there were
probably more than thirteen hundred lying mangled and moulder-*
ing amid the ruins, and impregnating the air with worse than
pestilence ! As companions in these charnel-houses of the dead,
might be found horses, and mules, and dogs — all kinds of domestic
animals, which had experienced the fate of their owners, and con-
tributed greatly to fill the air with the most offensive exhalations !
Added to these were a multitude of men, and women, and chil-
dren, thrown into the streets, and squares, and gardens — some
without arms — others without legs, and severely wounded — oth-
ers beyond the reach of aid, finishing their lives in fruitless lamen-
tations, and feeling the only cure for their sufferings to be in
death !

Prostrated as was the city by these unparalleled sufferings, it
was doomed still farther to endure a partial famine, through the
destruction of edifices, of mills, and ovens, and every building
connected with the manufacture of bread ; while provisions of all
kinds were buried in the general ruins. People of all classes
were doomed to suffer from hunger, before repairs could be made
and their wants supplied !

Eusebio dwells, in terms of the severest reprehension, on the
conduct of those who could practise extortions on the wants and
necessities of their fellow-citizens at such a time ! when gold,
and silver, and pearls, and precious stones, were given to these
infamous usurers for food for a few days, which in other limes
would have procured abundance for more than a year !

Thus terminated October, that month so unfortunate to the
inhabitants of Lima. November presented, on the first night, the
heavens bespangled with stars, which had been obscured for some

1832.]

EARTHQUAKES.

453

time before by clouds — dense and heavy vapours. But notvrith-
standing the favourable aspect of the weather, an earthquake was
felt on that day, different from any that had preceded it.

The earth seemed to sink down, without moving violently from
one side to the other — again to move itself, without materially
altering its position ; wanting the sounds and concussions of the
other movements, it seemed as if it were swimming in some liquid
element ! This new movement occasioned the greatest conster-
nation among the inhabitants, as they feared that the earth was
about to open its deep caverns and swallow them up ; as is said
in Tacitus to have been the fate of several cities in Africa.

This motion is a species of earthquake which may be called
inclination — it being similar to that of a ship when exposed to
the movements of the waves of the ocean. The subterranean
winds being collected into a tempest, such earthquakes are likely
to burst forth with great violence, as was actually the case near
Callao, where a considerable portion of earth was cast off to some
distance on the plains. A similar phenomenon is said to have
happened at New Granada.

At ten o’clock on the same night the clouds yielded a light
rain, which continued falling until seven o’clock on the morning
of the following day. It seemed as if this rain had opened the
subterranean channels and pores with such rapid movement, that
currents of exhalations, their particles mixed with nitric, sulphu-
reous, and oleaginous substances, having been cooled and con-
densed into malignant drops, returned to seek their place again
in the centre of the earth ; destroying the vegetation of the fields,
consuming the labours of the husbandman, and leaving the inhab-
itants to breathe a pestiferous air — while they were exposed to
colds, pleurisies, and dropsies, such as occurred in Lima after the
great earthquake which happened in the year sixteen hundred
and eighty-seven. At four o’clock in the morning a severe shock
was felt — at seven o’clock another occurred, which finished the
destruction that the first only fairly begun ! The poet Peralta, in
his “ Lima Fundada,” has the following poetical allusion to these
two shocks : —

“ Dara el orbe mayor baylen segundo,

Y acabara quanto dexo el primero :

No Fabricas, la Fabrica del mundo —

Teme al impulse vicilar severe ;

454

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[December,

No las ruinas, el seno si profundo
De la Tierra se amaga horror postrero ;

Pues rompiendose en abras, podra creerse ;

Que ya hasta el mismo suelo va a caerse.”

On the second of the month, the first ne-ws from the surround-
ing country was received in Lima, from which it would appear,
that in some places the sound was not heard ; in others, the shock
but lightly felt ; and others again suffered a total ruin, in common
with the capital. From the twenty-eighth of October, at half
past ten at night, until the first of November, the earth shook two
hundred and twenty times ; and from the first to the tenth, there
were no less than forty-six more distinct movements !

But notwithstanding this almost incessant motion or trembling
of the earth beneath the city, the minds of men had gradually as-
sumed more composure; for though the danger was not less, it
had become in a degree familiar to the people. The Cabildo, or
City Council, resumed its meetings, and began to take the most
active measures for the restoration of order, and for repairing the
damages done to the city. The hydrographer to the vice-king
was called on to give his plans and opinions as to the rebuilding
of the edifices of the city ; and the report of the engineer was
highly extolled. He maintained that the country would not per-
mit the erection of elevated or heavy buildings ; that the tem-
ples, and palaces, and tribunals of justice, should be built , with
strict reference to the trials they might have to encounter ; that
balconies, galleries, arches, and towers, should be discontinued,
as altogether unadapted to the country.

We know not if it were then recommended for the first time,
but certainly it has now gained general use : the dwelling-houses
in a great measure are more insulated from each other, with an
open square in the centre, as a place of retreat and security to the
inhabitants from the falling of the materials around them.

From the tenth to the twenty-eighth, no less than seventy-four
distinct shocks were felt, some being very heavy, and others quite
light. Including the first days of the month, this calculation gives
one hundred and twelve distinct vibrations, happening at intervals
more or less distant from each other ! How wonderful — how in-
exhaustibly great must be the combustible materials confined in
the deep caverns beneath this country !

1832.]

EARTHQUAKES.

455

On this night, the twenty-eighth, at about eleven o’clock, the
greater portion of the inhabitants of Lima were again thrown
into commotion, by the repetition of the news that the sea was
bursting again from its boundaries ! It is certain that so heavy
was the sound of the waves, as they lashed the shore, it might
well have been apprehended as an inundation and overflowing of
the sea !

Unfortunate Lima ! The elements seemed leagued for her de-
struction ! — for at twelve o’clock, while the flight, confusion, and
consternation still reigned, the windows of the clouds were thrown
open, and the rain descended in such torrents, for the space of a
quarter of an hour, that, had it continued, it must have completed
the destruction already but too far advanced by the feverish throes
of the earth. At four o’clock in the afternoon, on the thirtieth, the
earth shook. On the same night, from seven o’clock to forty-five
minutes past nine, a light rain fell, of a quality so rare that it acted
as a caustic on every thing sensitive which it touched ! — burning up
the green pastures like a consuming fire, and causing among the in-
habitants sickness and disease. At twelve o’clock at night the wind
blew strong from the north ; and increased with such violence, that
it seemed as if it would bear off houses and mortals in its fierce em-
brace ! This effect, and the bad qualities which impregnated the
air, arose from the infection of vapours issuing from the pores of
the earth ! On the second of December, at three in the afternoon,
from the Dominican church moved a large procession, with the
image of Rosario and Santo Rosa Peruana; all of which were
borne by the venerable community of religionists, and by a great
many penitents of both sexes ; and following these the greater part
of the ladies of Lima, singing in voices so plaintive, so touching,
and so sweet, that it appeared like a holy emulation among this illus-
trious band. Some with hair cut, feet bare, and besprinkled with
ashes, who, in other times, might have been seen decked with
much splendour in the magnificence of their equipage, were now
dressed in coarse woollens, and in the public streets, to be seen
asking pardon for their transgressions ; and, in fervent prayer, im-
ploring Heaven to spare their devoted city !

On the sixth, the earth trembled at four o’clock in the morning,
when it began to rain, and continued until six ; which produced a
general catarrh and coughs, and, moreover, innumerable quantities

456

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[DecembeTj

of tormenting insects ! The whole day was obscure and tempes-
tuous; but the night was serene and clear, wanting only the ap-
pearance of the stars ; which, however, are but seldom seen at
this season. On the eighth, a very tempestuous and dark day —
the earth had three great movements ; the first, at two in the
afternoon at three and three quarters, another ; and at four
o’clock and six minutes the other, and the last during the day.
As with December terminated the fatal year of seventeen hundred
and forty-six, so Avith January commenced one still to be dreaded.
On the first, every thing was quiet ; the earth still wore its general
and natural appearance ; though this was in fact a mere truce be-
fore the renewal of convulsions about to take place ; as on the
second, at about twelve o’clock in the day, there was a shock so
sudden and so violent, that it might have produced anew the ruin
and destruction of the past, had its duration continued for a few
seconds longer.

Amid the general excitement of this and the following days,
the vice-king still thought of human glory ; and in the ruined cas-
tle of Callao, at seven in the morning of the sixteenth, laid the
foundation of a work of the Pentagon, according to the plan
which had been marked out by the royal hydrographer. During
this day, also, there was a voice abroad, that the fire of heaven
was about to consume what the movements of the earth had left
uninjured. The fright appears to have been terrible ; depriving
some of their lives, others of their reason, and affecting the re-
mainder with such fears of a fatal calamity, that some expected a
Vesuvius to overwhelm them — and others, to be consumed by
the bursting forth of a new Etna !

“ Sera el Cielo un Abysmo levantado,

En que las negras Nubes imminentes,

Pareceran al Orbe consternado
Volantes Etnas, L)rparis pendientes ;

Caeran luego de un Cielo imaginado
Falsas revelationes, tan frequentes,

Que Cometas se haran aprehendidos,

Mas eficaces mientras mas fingidos.”

From the seventh to the twentieth, the earth shook at eight
different times, attended with sulphureous exhalations. On the
twenty-first, a trembling was felt at half past one in the morn-

i - of JRn^s leroroj its d&struotiaiL - dj
tJw (/reat Earfi/fuahj of lJ4d.

tfe^dio ptuicvitio cuzStc^Ti
Ohra.^ cju^Aieync TTias de4rece
nitt ucotcLS erhdrcifvtc^ qn-of
ira-ltxcurt^s^

^SC^tO CLCOJit.Ct(day-''^^

t6* S''i

ba/rtij' dwteMimiiLr

ioleS f-J P~ecolits^cL Conc-pE
4.9 El Ca-rtn&n

10 S Clcura M o rv
ecct S'T DescaAsctsf/[on>

5 1 e4 P T Ctdo T/Ion,

5^3 Cote dct CeTCocdo
L*;eUa! SP Ajcocrilarot '

1 1 P^e^i^-io dx, IicicviroilX
Sb conuale.Sctncioi,'de,Sa,c

5 7 Bc.cdeyto deloL Mercsi

6 S SPoscc deVid^^fho \

5^5 CafO'iieMonedoL I

S 0 Sf d-elB6odTovilio [

Hos ' 6l MS' d& CoctLOcrcacS

19 SMarUtb
3o Co'yvcepcion-
3 I Inqiusldo ^

lo-l/LcxceS^
lesus McLtici
XlttO/n- de Dios
B ele^Rje,coL
5D o^nir^oRecol
E ucam-ac-iortMoTV
Trirtida-cLyio ^

O3S a, deOivofcio
C CLta.

TOunCLSCO
i defoyiS'o

pa.La.cvo
Mctrop oil
CcLSaS de. Cmitdi

D ts an?np ccira.d.t

fD 0 minr^ 0
S IfaS a. Co nl
SRosccjB oai
S'pirituP Hos
MonJe^pctte
eb afUcm-i
SAiyuftin.

MA Qott^h rtifono d&{ j/m^eyf io a.e,v
m, ocjrHda/y J'ort^ica.ia con mnrosv Ba
irte/9- conJotrntfccrnodco'na.m'oiuiA&ciiM'Oo^

ueAi&neAi de. oVcontKz.iac.iow 'nuem/rniU^M

POREiEXTSEN'O R.D? /2

?«sr^5^fclch,or ie NauarrccyRocc^nUca/

Jv, ^JiUcUcYO deAaOvaXSiieJUcauutci’raE
dtSo/PoldtaPsincipe.

0.46^(55 ans^'os dk Es im ■.,/ ' ij

'^dqy^u.e.vvade-su VtY^y I JM

cteS j
Nottcciccdo delccCO
Gtta.dal«,pe
HvLt^anof

^Mo-t'celo
f'Fx de.p o-u-ta,
S Cihiristo

CartneUt(M defcedf
Co -m-p otma die lem/

Tfe^oicLf.ccotdtjBtM^

'"AgM.CtCal deiimCLVttit a

I832.J

EARTHQUAKES.

457

ing ; the heavens became obscure, cloaking the neighbouring hills
and mountains, nor did the day recover its brightness until two
in the afternoon, when the clouds passed away, but not until a
heavy dew had fallen for the space of two hours — which would
not have been a small matter in moistening the earth, had the
rains not already sufficiently saturated the hills of Chapa, los
Zoros, Cabeza de Baca, las Minas, Pena Pobre, Mata Covallos,
y las Laderas de Arce — which overlook the valley of Guanchi
Guaylas — an irregular event, at a time when the sun is most
powerful ; nor did the wind moderate in its force or in its heat,
though it passed over the summits of the Cordilleras ; but de-
stroyed the vegetation and consumed the productions of the earth !

The twenty-sixth was in all respects favourable. On the twenty-
seventh, an earthquake was felt at three quarters past one A. M.,
and at ten in the day. The alarming sounds which were supposed
to accompany the earthquakes, were found to be nothing but re-
peated claps of thunder from among the neighbouring mountains.
A thing so unusual as heavy thunder at Lima, tended to confirm
the general impression, that these repeated sounds came from the
earth ; and the result was, an unusual degree of terror and dismay
throughout the whole city.

There had now been experienced in Lima, in the space of one
hundred and twelve days, commencing on the twenty-eighth of
October, seventeen hundred and forty-six, and terminating on the
sixteenth of February, seventeen hundred and forty-seven, the
astonishing number of four hundred and thirty earthquakes, the
occurrence of which have been observed with the greatest care
and accuracy.*

A Tabular Exhibit of the several Shocks which followed the Great Earthquake of
October 28, 1746, at Lima, from that date to February 16, 1747.

1746.

Oct. 29.

Three shocks. Great wind, and

Oct. 28.

The great earthquake : half past

motion of the sea.

10 at night.

30.

Shock. Rain at night, wither-

29.

Continued shocks. Nearly 200

ing and sickening.

by half past 10 at night.

Dec. 1.

Earth quiet and air serene.

30.

Shocks incessant. Fear of a

2-5.

Clear and still. Shock at 12 at

breaking in of the sea.

night of 5th.

31.

Do. do.

Shock. Rainy. Day stormy —

Nov. 1.

Inclination earthquake. Night

night serene.

preceding, rainy.

Do. do.

2-10.

Forty-six distinct movements.

Three great shocks. Tempes-

10-28.

Seventy-four distinct shocks.

tuous.

458

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[December,

On tlie night of the great earthquake, as was afterward learned
by letter, a volcano burst forth in Lucanas, which inundated the
tops of the mountains and the valley below with floods of boiling
water. In the mountains del Cerro de la Sal, there were also im-
mense effects produced by this volcano. Some days before the
earthquake, there were heard subterranean sounds, like the
lowing of immense herds of cattle ; which occasionally changed,
and seemed like those resembling repeated discharges of heavy

1746.

Jan. 12.

Shocks.

Dec. 9.

Quiet.

13.

Do.

10.

Two shocks.

14.

Do.

11.

Quiet.

15.

Do., and rainy.

12.

Violent shock.

16.

Three shocks.

13.

Two shocks — ^slight.

17.

Two shocks.

14.

Quiet, but rainy.

18.

Do., and heavy wind.

15.

Various shocks. Night very se-

19.

Quiet.

rene.

20.

Shocks at early morning, but

16, 17.

Quiet.

quiet day.

18.

Shock at night.

21.

One shock.

19.

Shock in the afternoon.

22.

Quiet, but gloomy air.

20.

Shocks early in the morning.

\ 23.

Quiet.

21.

Three shocks.

24.

Slight shock.

. 22.

Two shocks.

25.

Do.

23.

One shock.

26.

Quiet.

24.

One shock.

27.

Shocks, with sounds of thunder.

25.

Three shocks.

28.

Shock.

26.

One shock.

29.

Quiet.

27.

One shock — night extremely

30.

Ten shocks.

rainy.

31.

Two shocks.

28.

One shock.

Feb. 1.

Three shocks.

30.

Three shocks — two severe.

Quiet.

31.

One shock.

Shocks.

1747.

Shocks, with high wind.

Jan. 1.

Quiet.

Do.

Shocks violent.

Do.

Shocks, and rainy.

Quiet.

Two shocks.

Shocks, with tempest.

Quiet, but heavy rains.

10.

Do.

Shocks heavy.

11.

Do., with thick clouds.

Do. do.

12.

Quiet. Public religious services.

Shocks.

13.

Quiet.

Do.

14.

One slight shock.

10.

Do.

15.

Quiet.

11.

Do.

1 Do.

This Table gives

io each month

as follows : —

Months.

Days.

Earthquakes.

October

... 4

220

November

... 30

113

December

... 31

January

... 31

February

... 16

112

430

1832.]

EARTHQUAKES.

459

artillery. These phenomena have also been observed, previous
to great earthquakes, in other parts of the world,

A short time after the earthquakes, more than two thousand of
the inhabitants of Lima died of the epidemic scarlet fever, pleu-
ritic pains, and liver complaints ; the same diseases which were ex-
perienced after the earthquake of sixteen hundred and eighty-seven.

At the same hour that the earthquake was felt in Lima, it was
experienced in Callao ; overwhelming, consuming, and destroy-
ing every thing within its reach. There was not an edifice left
in the place — not a street that was not filled by the relics of the
ruin ! Many of the walls and porticoes seemed to resist the first
movements of the earth ; but they could not withstand the over-
whelming force of the ocean, which came pouring in with mad-
dening fury, piled up in mountainous waves, and destroying every
thing which the earthquake had spared ! Recoiling, as if to
gather new power, it again rushed forward, still more elevated,
from the increased vibrations of the earth, overthrowing castel-
lated walls and turrets, which wealth in its pride had erected ;
tearing them up from their deep foundations, and burying them
in the dark caverns beneath, leaving scarce a mournful record to
show that here was once a garrison of soldiers !

Of four thousand eight hundred inhabitants who resided in
Callao, the lives of little more than two hundred were spared. Of
these, twenty-two were saved on the bastion of a rampart, which
was formerly called the strength of Santa Cruz. Of the rest,
some were, thrown, upon the Island of San Lorenzo, situated two
leagues from the castle of Callao ; others on different beaches
and forts !

At the same time the sea overwhelmed Callao, it destroyed
many other places on the coast. Pisco suffered again, in like
manner as it had done in the previous great earthquake, which
happened on the twentieth October, sixteen hundred and eighty-
seven ; and was thus alluded to by the poet : —

“ El man farioso salle,

Sin que el impulso sufra,” &c.

The sea also covered the road called Perdices, and destroyed
everything found in it, overwhelming in its waves whole cargoes.

460 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [December,

litters, and mules and muleteers, in the extent of the pass called
Salinas de Guaura.

. But the most affecting of all the sights was presented by the
shorCj along which the sea was constantly throwing up dead
bodies on every successive wave. There also were seen frag-
ments of dead bodies, which the terrible action of the sea, and ji
the materials commingling with the waters, had separated in the |
most shocking manner. ;

Of the twenty-three ships, large and small, which were an-
chored in the port, there were foundered nineteen ; and as they
were driven over the town, their anchors caught in the houses,
dragging parts of them along to where all were dashed to pieces,
far up the road to Lima ! The ships-of-war San Fermin, el San
Antonio, el Michelot, and the Succoro, shared the general fate !
The spot to which the San Fermin was driven is pointed out at
the present day, and is designated by the erection of a cross, a
little to the right of the road which leads to Lima, and about half
a mile from the beach !

By inspecting the records of that period it has been ascertained,
that on the same night, and but a short time before the shock was
felt in Lima and Callao, the sea rose and extended in about six
hundred yards from its usual boundary at Conception, latitude
37° south, in Chili. A few days before this, a hot and scorching
wind was felt in Santiago, which seemed to wither and consume
every thing over which it passed.

What a field is here presented for philosophical speculation !
Is the whole range of South America, west of the Andes, resting
on and slumbering over unfathomable caverns of combustible ma-
terials? And are not these connected beneath? — or how else
could they communicate with each other, with almost the same
rapidity that sound passes through the air ?

It has been ascertained, that the phenomena of earthquakes
are more frequent between the spring and summer; and that
when they do happen during other portions of the year, they are
most frequent in autumn. The hours are generally those of dark-
ness ; two or three hours after sunset ; or at the close of the zo-
diacal light ; but perhaps more frequently about the first dawn
of day.

1832.J

EARTHQUAKES.

461

The direction which earthquakes pursue is from south to north,
along the chains of the Cordilleras.

Mournful experience has s.hown, that the most violent concus-
sions occur after an interval of about half a century, in that region
included between the equator and the tropic of Capricorn ; and
which seem to follow a certain order, from the extremes to the
centre. These are the periods which- have marked the great
earthquakes experienced since the conquest of Quito, Ariquipa,
and Lima. The fatal period had arrived at the end of the last
century ; and Ariquipa and the provinces of Quito were laid in
ruins. Lima had passed the fatal period which nature appears
to have established, but suffered in the year eighteen hundred and
twenty-eight.

The great earthquakes have generally been preceded by copi-
ous rains ; the earth becoming saturated, the water penetrates into
the interior. Hot days succeeding to these wet ones, necessarily
form an enormous quantity of vapour, which, not being able to
escape, or become rarefied beneath the surface of the globe, is
exposed to the electric shock, or to become ignited from the vol-
. canoes ; when, acquiring greater expansion, it produces those
violent convulsions of the earth, which in their effects are so ter-
rific. Obscure exhalations rise from the earth at night, clothing
the heavens and the stars with the most sombre pall !

The frequency of the earthquakes in the spring is deemed a
good sign; as it shows the combustibles beneath are wasting
their strength by degrees. But if these concussions are very fre-
quent, following each other in quick succession, they indicate a
large quantity of combustible matter, from which a violent shock
may at any moment be expected.

Vegetation suffers much in these gloomy epochs. The earth-
quake of sixteen hundred and seventy-eight rendered an immense
proportion of the soil of Peru incapable of producing wheat. The
stalks grew luxuriantly until the head began to form, when the
grains became affected with rust, which converted the substance
into a black powder, and the crop was destroyed. Twenty years
did not restore the soil to its former productiveness. Indeed, the
injury to the agriculture of the country was fatal. In this scar-
city, recourse was had to Chili for wheat, and that country soon

462 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [March,

became the Sicily of Peru, to the destruction of its own agricul-
tural interests !

We have devoted a long chapter to the earthquake of seventeen
hundred and forty-six. The subject seemed to us as one of great
interest, in which the reader cannot fail to participate with us,
when he reflects that our- goodly frigate now lay at anchor in the
same port where the catastrophe occurred; that here “the sure
and firm set earth” reeled to and fro as a drunken man ; that the
waters of the great deep .burst from their limits, overwhelming
and destroying a whole people, w^hose ruined edifices still lie par-
tially visible, amid heaps of sand, over which we have often walked ;
and that, though tranquil now, no human being can foresee, or
human power prevent, at any moment, the recurrence of another
and similar tragedy ; that here, among a people not devoid of
superstition, as the anniversary of the' twenty-eighth of October
rolls round, a numerous procession moves through the streets of
Callao, bearing and escorting the image of old Neptune, as figured
by mythologists, with a long and flowing beard, a crown on his
head, enriched and bespangled with the gems of the ocean, the
three-forked sceptre in his hand, and supported on each side by a
Triton, bearing anchors in theirs. Moving along, to the anima-
ting strains of music, this pageantry attracts universal attention,
and formerly excited the most thrilling interest. The house-tops
are lined with spectators, who cannot avoid the reflection, that
over other edifices of equal elevation, on that day eighty-odd
years ago, had passed heavy men-of-war, borne on the swelling
surges of the ocean !

The procession moves to the water’s edge, and the old sea-god
is made to smite the ocean with his trident ; while the Most
High, “who holds the ocean in the hollow of his hand,” is im-
plored never to permit the ocean again to pass beyond its present
bounds !

Turn we again to our goodly ship, which had now been com-
pletely overhauled and painted anew. The Falmouth had been
despatched to the ports of the north, and the Dolphin was actively
employed. The interests of the station required the presence of
the commodore in Valparaiso ; and on the fifteenth of March, the

1833.]

PORTS OF CHILI.

463

Potomac lay snugly at anchor in that port. On our return to the
north we made Coquimbo in the way, where we lay more than
a month in quarantine, all hands being inoculated with the small-
pox.* The cornmodore during this time remained at Coquimbo,
a town founded by Valdivia, in fifteen hundred and forty-four,
■ and about three leagues from the port. The purser, Slacum,
also remained on shore, to look out for the fresh provisions of the
ship ; which was now canopied with an awning, the decks sanded,
and in all respects turned into a great fighting hospital.

The port of Coquimbo, in latitude 30° south, longitude 71° 16'
west, is among the very best on the coast ; the water shoaling
gradually, so that anchorage may be selected at pleasure on the
southwest side. The hills around are barren and rocky, while to
the east, the towering snow-crowned Andes overlook the whole
country. For three years had this province suffered with drought ;
vegetation had dried up, and the loss of animals had been im-
mense. But Avhile we lay here, the aerial cisterns were opened,
and the rain descended in torrents. Numerous bonfires soon
proclaimed the joy of the inhabitants, and shouts of gratitude
were heard from every side, for the good that had been showered
upon them. Vegetation, with astonishing rapidity, sprang up,
and the hills and surrounding country were soon re-clothed in
green.

Leaving Coquimbo on the ninth, we arrived at Callao on the
fifteenth July. Between the commanders and officers of the
English and French men-of-war, such interchange of civilities
took place as should always mark the intercourse of free na-
tions, who, in spite of national predilection, have in truth so much
cause to respect each other.

The time had now come for the return of the Falmouth to the
United States ; and Captain Gregory having received his orders
on this point from the commodore, and the Dolphin being sta-
tioned in the port to look out for our interests during the present
disturbed state of Peru, on the twenty-second of August we set
sail for the ports of the north, intending to go as far as the Gala-
pagos Islands, making Payta in our way.

* See Report of Dr. Foltz — Appendix.

464

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[September,

CHAPTER XXVII.

Galapagos Islands — Charles’s Island, or La Floriana — Governor Vilamil’s Colony
— Its origin and advance — Description of the island — Its productions — Pure and
wholesome water — Prohibition of spirituous liquors — Fowls, terapins, &c. —
Climate and temperature — Abuses connected with our whale-fisheries — Improve-
ments and reforms suggested.

On Monday, the twenty-sixth of August, we sailed from Payta
for the Galapagos, and arrived at Charles’s Island on the thirty-
first. We came to anchor in Essex Bay, on the north eijd of the
island, a place rendered somewhat famous as the anchorage of
the old Essex, Commodore Porter, during the late war with
Great Britain. Commodore Downes was then first lieutenant of
that frigate, but commanded an armed prize, called the Essex,
junior, during Porter’s glorious but unfortunate action with the
Phoebe and Cherab. We remained at Charles’s Island, which
the new colonists call La Floriana, for the period of ten or twelve
days ; and every one on board was agreeably disappointed with
the visit.

During the frigate’s stay, we passed the time very pleasantly at
the residence of Governor J. Yilamil, a native of Louisiana, in
the United States, but for many years a resident of Guayaquil.
Believing that some account of this infant establishment may be
interesting to the reader, we shall particularly allude to it, in a
very short and hasty description of the Galapagos Islands.

This, in some respects, interesting group, which comprises a
large number of small islands, is situated nearly under the equa-
tor, between the eighty-ninth and ninety-second degrees of west
longitude — about two hundred and forty leagues west of the
American continent. A majority of these islands are situated a
little south of the equinoctial line, though a few scattering islands
are found north of it. Albemarle Island, which is the largest of
the cluster, is more than seventy miles in length, and stretches
north and south, with an eastern coast that is nearly straight ; but
its western side is deeply concave, embracing the volcanic Island

1833.]

GALAl'AGOS ISLANDS.

465

of Narborough. The north head of Albemarle terminates west-
wardly in Cape Berkley, which is exactly on the line. South
and east of Albemarle are Charles’s Island, Hood’s, Chatham’s,
Barrington’s, Downes’s, Porter’s, and James’s Islands.

The name of this group is derived from the Spanish word
galapago, a fresh water to7~toise ; and it was given to these islands
because they abound with the largest class of these animals,
a species of terapin, to which Commodore Porter has given the
name of elephant tortoise, as their legs, feet, and clumsy move-
ments strongly resemble those_ of the elephant. Their flesh is
most excellent food, and they seem to have been placed here, in
these lonely regions, for the sole purpose of refreshing the ad-
venturous mariner, whose hazardous calling is the pursuit of the
great leviathan of the deep. Many of them weigh from three to
four hundred pounds, and they will live in the hold of a vessel a
remarkable length of time without sustenance, and still retain
much of their original fatness and richness of flavour. Their
drink is pure water, which they carry with them in a vessel pro-
vided by nature for that purpose, containing about two gallons,
which remains cool, fresh, and sweet for a long time after they
are made prisoners.

The hill-sides of these islands, near the shore, are covered
with prickly pear-trees, upon which these terapin feed, and thrive
in a most wonderful manner. These animals have doubtless saved
the lives of many seamen employed in the whale-fisheries in those
seas, who would otherwise have perished or suffered much with
the scurvy. They sometimes take from six to nine hundred of
the smallest of these tortoises on board, when about leaving the
islands for their cruising grounds ; thus providing themselves with
fresh and wholesome provisions for six or eight months, and se-
curing the men from the attacks of scurvy.

Charles’s Island, or Floriana, at the northern end of which is
Essex Bay, in which the Potomac lay at anchor, is about eighteen
or twenty miles southeast of Cape Woodford, which projects
from the south head of Albemarle Island. The centre of Charles’s
Island is in latitude TIT' south, longitude 90° 30' west ; and is
about twenty miles in length from north to south, and fifteen in
breadth from east to west ; giving a superficial area of more than

468

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[September,

three hundred miles. Like every other island in the Galapagos
group, it was uninhabited until eighteen hundred and thirty-two,
when Yilamil first established his long-projected colony. He in-
formed us that he had this enterprise in view as long ago as the
year eighteen hundred and eleven ; two years previous to the
appearance of Commodore Porter in these seas, during the late
war with Great Britain.

At this early period, the information Avhich Vilamil had ac-
quired of the Galapagos Islands was so interesting, that at one
time he thought of applying to the government of Spain for per- '
mission to make a settlement on one of them ; but was deterred
from this design, being assured by the Spanish authorities in
Peru, that the court of Seville would never permit a settlement to
be made on this group of islands.

On the establishment of the government of Colombia, and its
entire independence of the dominion of Spain, his attention was
again tmiied to an enterprise he had had so long in contemplation.
His friends at this time did every thing to dissuade him, pro-
nouncing the plan to be chimerical and rash. Though not entirely
discouraged, he remained inactive until the year eighteen hundred
and twenty, when he suffered severe misfortunes in his family, in
the death of his wife and two children, in the short space of
twenty-one days. Tired of society, and worn down with afflic-
tions, he turned his whole mind and energies towards his favourite
scheme, — the establishment of a colony. The government of the
equator was at once petitioned, and in the year eighteen hundred
and thirty-one, a charter in due form was gi-anted, conceding the
possession of the islands, and authorizing the establishment of a
colony.

In January, eighteen hundred and thirty-two. Colonel Hernan-
dez, with only twelve colonists, was despatched to take formal
possession of Charles’s Island ; and in April and June, settlers of
both sexes followed the first. Vilamil, in person, accompanied
by eighty colonists, arrived in October, and at once assumed his
station as proprietor and governor of the island. Previous to his
arrival, little or no improvement had been made ; but with this ac-
cession, all took greater courage, and began to labour with much
zeal j more especially when they found that the whale-ships would

1833.]

GALAPAGOS ISLANDS.

467

be likely to consume their surplus produce ; and, taking all cir-
cumstances into consideration, their labours have been really suc-
cessful. Nor do we deem the remark extravagant, that at this
time [September, eighteen hundred and thirty-three] the produc-
tions of the island are sufficient for several hundred additional in-
habitants ; and during the coming year, many of our whale-ships
may receive an abundance of vegetable supplies.

This island is not fertile near the shore ; for the space of
three miles towards the interior, the soil is steril in the summer,
or dry season ; but capable of yielding one good crop in the win-
ter, or wet season; and during the whole year, this portioi^ of
the island is good for raising hogs, goats, &c., as the ground
abounds with the carib-tree, the fruit of which, with the tree and
juice of the prickly pear, form for these animals an excellent nu-
triment.

Penetrating towards the interior, there is a beautiful upland
valley, spreading from northeast to southwest, in the form of a
parallelogram, about five miles in length and three in breadth.
From the middle of the valley, another opens to the southeast
and inclines gradually to the south, and is nearly equal in ex-
tent to the first. In both, the soil is of a superior mould, and is
covered with a rich carpet of luxuriant vegetation, shrubbery, and
trees. The formation of the island is exclusively volcanic ;
there is not a rock that does not bear the evidence of fire, and the
soil, in all parts, is composed of the decomposition of lava and
vegetable matter.

Not only these valleys, but the sides of the higher mountains,
may be cultivated from January to December, one crop following
another in rapid succession ; moistened in summer by continued
and heavy dews, and by rains in winter. From the black beach,
the place of disembarcation, and so named from immense quan-
tities of lava forming the shore, like massive pot-metal, the road,
by continued ascent, leads to the main settlement, at the distance
of about five miles ; and on the same road there is a fine spring
of fresh water, which the governor contemplates conveying to the
beach, where he believes it will yield seventy or eighty gallons
per hour, for the use of ships.

The eastern skirts -of the high hills produce the paja, a long
coarse grass, used by the inhabitants for covering their houses ;

G g 2

468

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[September,

and for which reason they have named it the Serra de la Paja.
Here a fine view of the first valley is presented, and rising from
the steril parts of the coast, the eye dwells with pleasure on the
prospect, embracing no less than fifty little diacras, or farms, with
nearly an equal number of houses ; small and rude, it is true, yet
not unfit for the climate, and surrounded with plenty, which the
fertility of the soil produces at a small expense of labour on the
part of man.

On the southeastern extremity of the first valley, a magnificent
volcanic mountain rises, around the summit of which, and others
of less elevation, the clouds may be constantly seen gathering in
mist, which impart to the higher portions of the island a degree
of humidity not to be expected from a view of the coast, and cer-
tainly in direct contradiction to all previous accounts given of this
archipelago.

From one side of this mountain the water, delicious, and of
crystal purity, may be seen trickling down from the rocks. One
of these destiladeras is a real curiosity. That part of the rock
yielding most water, presents an exterior entirely dry, and is sur-
rounded and clothed by shrubbery, flowers, and aromatic herbs ;
and the water, which issues by numerous little filtering streams,
is as pure as that which gushed from the rock of old, when smit-
ten by the rod of the prophet.

The governor, who may with great justice be called the father
and founder of the colony, has adopted, certainly, one wise meas-
ure. He has prohibited, under the severest penalties, the intro-
duction of all kinds of liquor into the island ; and this measure is
no doubt the secret cause of the successful experiment already
made by the Florianas. At a small party given by the governor
to Commodore Downes, water was the only beverage to be seen
on the table. He apologized for the want of wine, and remarked,
that he adopted it as a rule, not to partake of any luxury that
policy required him to prohibit in the island ; which apology was
deemed good by the commodore and all present. It was very
easy, however, to perceive that our host had not spent his whole
life in such society ; as the number and variety of the dishes
brought to the table, formed exclusively of the productions of the
island, would have done credit to the good taste of a person sur-
rounded by many more advantages.

1833.]

GALAPAGOS ISLANDS.

469

In the valleys there have been found nine small lakes of sweet
water, which fail not the whole year ; and others which dry up
from August to October. In November they again commence
filling with water. In these lakes are found many varieties of
ducks, gallenetas del monte, and also one species of the snipe.
Other lakes are also met with, near the ocean, of much greater
extent ; but the water is brackish to the taste, and these abound
with ducks and flamingoes. The number of doves on the island
is almost incredible, and their flesh is sweet and very tender.
They are so tame, that any number may be knocked over with a
pole, without trouble. Nearly two hundred were brought on board
by the men and officers of a single boat, from an afternoon’s ex-
cursion on shore ; and we have heard the governor, when sending
out a servant to procure a few dozen for dinner, direct him to
select only the fat ones ; and the boy went and did accordingly.

The temperature of the island, from the end of May to Decem-
ber, is from fifty -two to seventy-four degrees of Fahrenheit, which
gives a medium of sixty-eight degrees, rendering woollen clothes
the most agreeable. From January to the first of May, the ther-
mometer stands from seventy-four to eighty-four degrees, giving
a medium of seventy-nine degrees, and the heat is consequently
rather oppressive. During the ten days we lay in Essex Bay, in
September, the thermometer ranged from seventy-one to seventy-
eight degrees in the shade, on board ship ; and the barometer
stood from 29° 70' to 29° 78'.

The climate we should deem healthy ; as during the nineteen
months since the arrival of the first colonists, there have been
only five deaths. Three of these came sick from Guayaquil ; one
died of a disease difficult to cure in any clime — that of eighty
years of age ! and the fifth was shot, on account of an outrageous
attack he had made on the life of the captain of an American
whale-ship. This severity was of indispensable necessity in an
establishment of so recent origin, and which can be sustained by
nioral force alone. It has done much to teach the colonists their
true interests ; that peace among themselves, justice and good
faith towards the vessels which may visit the islands for the pur-
chase of their surplus produce, will alone promote their prosperity.
At the present time, on the arrival of a whale-ship (which the
Florianas call their ships), the whole settlement is filled with de-

470 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [September,

light ; and the captains and crews, when on shore, often partici-
pate in the labours and amusements of the inhabitants.

It is easy to perceive, that this island may at no distant day
become a place of importance, at least to the whaling interests
of the United States. By referring to this group of islands on
the chart, it will be found to lie immediately in the neighbourhood
of what is called the off-shore whaling ground ; indeed, to occupy
the centre of a circle, around which the hardy wights of the har-
poon are fishing up individual wealth, and adding to our national
prosperity, by treasures procured from the depths of the sea.

The freedom of the port, and the productions of the island, as
well as the ab.senr.e of all grog-shops, and that miserable gang of
worthless keepers, who first intoxicate the sailor and afterward
induce him to desert from his ship, seem strongly to recommend
this place, at least to the trial of our whalers ; to say nothing of
terapin, the best of all sea-stores, and which would almost repay
the voyage of an alderman to the South Sea.*

The amount of tonnage and capital employed in the South Sea
fisheries has so much augmented within a few years past, that
the general impression in the United States is, that every thing
connected with this great interest is going on prosperously and
well. But such, unfortunately, is not the case. Abuses of the
most serious nature not only exist, but are of daily occurrence in
the whale fleet. The cause of some of these abuses can be cor-
rected by the owners, and others can only be reached by the
strong arm of our government.

Our public vessels do all in their power to redress these disor-
ders ; but, having the- interests of an extensive coast to look after,
are often distant from the ports frequented by whalers. Hence

From the thirteenth of October, eighteen hundred and thirty-two, to the twen-
tieth of August in the following year, thirty-one whale-ships touched, or were re-
ported at La Floriana, with more than nineteen thousand barrels of oil. These ves-
sels were all from the United States, with the exception of two, and belonged to
the following places ; — one to Hudson ; one to Poughkeepsie ; three to Newport,
R, I. ; three to Bristol, and one to Warren, R. I. ; thirteen to New-Bedford ; six
to Nantucket ; one to New-London, and two to London. These had been out from
six months to two and a half years ; and one of them had two thousand four hun-
dred and fifty barrels of oil ; one nineteen hundred and fifty ; one sixteen hundred,
one fourteen hundred, one thirteen hundred, and several from seven hundred to one
thousand barrels.

1833.] GALAPAGOS ISLANDS. 471

the nuniber of disordered ships, and of protracted, if not broken
voyages, with which some of our readers are but -too well acc^uaint”
ed. The few consuls we have or have had on the coast are mer-
chants, who probably hold their commissions for the security
they yield to their own interests, and to consignments made to
their respective houses ; while the whaler, who brings them no
profit, can receive but little of their attention. Their own occu-
pations do not allow them to look after his interests, or very par-
ticularly to inquire into his diflS.culties ; and yet, in a national
point of view, the mercantile transactions of our citizens on this
coast, and in these seas, are greatly inferior to the interest of
those engaged in the fisheries.

The amount of tonnage of our whale-ships which entered the
single port of Payta in the year eighteen hundred, and thirty-one,
was twenty-four thousand four hundred and thirty-nine ; having on
board forty-six thousand two hundred and ten barrels of oil. For
the year eighteen hundred and thirty-two, twenty-seven thousand
one hundred tons of shipping, and forty thousand eight hundred
and ninety -five barrels of oil. For the year eighteen hundred and
thirty-three, up to October, twenty thousand two hundred and
seventy-six tons, and thirty-six thousand four hundred and fifty-
five barrels of oil. And yet, at a point that is and ever must be
of so much .importance, so often the seat of abuse and irregular-
ity, as wmll on the part of the local authorities as among our own
shipping, we have never had, up to this day (October, 1833),
even an accredited agent to look after theso immense interests !

J. C. Jones, Esq., the. United States consul at Oahu, in a letter
to Commodore Downes, says— “ I have never before seen so
much the importance of having a vessel of war stationed at these
islands, for the protection of the whale-fishery ; there has hardly
been one vessel in the harbour that has not had more or less diffi-
culties. I have at one time had sixty Americans confined in irons
at the fort ; and hardly a day has passed that I have not been
compelled to visit one or more ships to quell a mutiny, or compel
by force whole crews to their duty, who had united to work no
longer. I should say, too, that there were over one hundred de-
serters now on shore from the American ships this season, regu-
lar outlaws, ready to embark in any adventure. Had we a ship-
'Of-war here, at the season the whale-ships visit the islands, much

472

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[September,

trouble could be avoided. In fact, I think it almost indispensably
required. I hope you will be disposed to send us one of your
squadron the next spring, as I feel assured that a vessel of war
will then be required more than ever.”

The commodore received a similar request from J. Lenox
Kennedy, United States consul at the port of Mazatlan, dated the
sixteenth of May, eighteen hundred and thirty-three, on account
of the frequent revolutions which were at that time taking place
in the country. He also received a pressing letter, signed by five
American ship-masters, in the port of Callao, complaining of the
abuses they suffer “ from a class of worthless keepers of grog-
shops, who entice away and conceal their men, to the great haz-
ard, and even ruin of their voyages.”

Immediately on the receipt of this letter from the masters of
the whale-ships. Commodore Downes made a communication to
the commandant of marines at Callao, which was by him trans-
mitted to the government at Lima ; and in the course of a few
days, such regulations were introduced, under the superintend-
ence of the captain of the port, as effectually checked for the
time the abuses complained of. The readiness with which the
local authorities interfered in this matter on the representation
of Commodore Downes, is an evidence of what might be effected,
if we had commercial agents who attended to their duties.

The mere appointment of a consul, as our consuls are appointed
and supported in other places, will not answer for our extended
commercial operations of these seas. We require a consul at
the islands, one in Payta, and another in Talcuahana, Chili, on
salaries which shall command the services of able men, and make
them independent in action ; to which add one more sloop-of-war
to our present squadron, to cruise among the islands ; and then, and
not till then, will our interests be properly protected in the Pacific.

In Payta we should have an hospital, on a simple and economi-
cal plan : there is not a foreign port on the globe which needs one
so much. Let it be remembered, that there are more than six
thousand seamen traversing the ocean from Japan to this coast,
visiting each, in the alternate changes of season, engaged in a
business at all times adventurous, and often exceedingly hazard-
ous ; and yet, within this mighty range, there is not a spot where
the disabled or infirm sailor can be placed, with perfect assurance

1833.]

GALAPAGOS ISLANDS.

473

of being well attended to. The consequence is, frequent instances
of suffering and death, under the most melancholy circumstances,
but for which neither the owners nor the captains are responsible.
The mild and healthy climate of Payta would be in its favour ;
and the expense would be very small, as could easily be shown.
We could say much more on this subject, but think it high time
to return to La Floriana.

The arrival of the Potomac brought the first intelligence to
Governor Vilamil, that he had been appointed United States con-
sul for the port of Guayaquil. He remarked, that under any other
circumstances, he would have received with pride this mark of
confidence on the part of his native country ; but having engaged
in his present enterprise, nothing could induce him to abandon it ;
and seated, as it were, upon a rock, separated from all the world,
he hoped he should be able to render more important services, at
least to one branch of our commerce, than he could in the con-
sulate of Guayaquil.

As governor of the island his power is absolute, and his right
in the soil is without limit of time. Crimes are punished severely,
and minor offences by sending the delinquent six, eight, or ten
months on board any whaler in need of men, to be returned to the
island previously to the departure of the ship for the United States.
By this policy the whaler is benefited, the offender punished, and
also improved by a knowledge of a new business, and by earning
something for himself.

474

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[October,

CHAPTER XXVIII. '

Sail from the Galapagos — ^Visit Guayaquil — Touch at the ports of Payta and Lam-
bayeque — Arrival at Callao — ^Meet the Fairfield — Return to Valparaiso — ^Depart
for the United States — Falkland Islands.

We left Charles’s Island on Tuesday, the tenth of September,
and after a passage of seven days made the Main, and came to
anchor at Puna Island, Bay of Guayaquil, about forty miles below
the town. Guayaquil has been a flourishing commercial city,
and the principal port of entry in that portion of the republic of
Colombia which, since its dismemberment, forms the republic of
the Equador. It is situated about seventy-five miles from the sea,
on the north bank of the river whose name it bears, in latitude 2°
12' south, and about one hundred and forty miles north of Payta.
It is built partly on the side and partly at the foot of a hill, which
gently descends towards the river. Quito is the capital, once a
place of great wealth and splendour, and acknowledged to be the
first-born of the independence.

The commodore, with a party of officers, spent a week in
Guayaquil, and very agreeably too ; for on no part of the coast is
there more improved and refined society, or a people who better-
know how to practise the rites of hospitality. Besides, Guaya-
•quil has long been celebrated for its female beauty. The country,
however, is growing poor, from the effects of almost constant rev-
olution with which it has been afflicted.

We sailed from Puna on Sunday, the twenty-ninth of Sep-
tember, and touching at the ports of Payta and Lambayeque, ar-
rived at Callao on Sunday, the twenty-seventh of October. The
Falmouth had departed long since for the United States, and in
her place was found one of our squadron, the sloop-of-war Fair-
field, Master-commandant Vallette. In her first lieutenant, James
P. Wilson, we were happy to meet an old acquaintance, a long-
tried friend, an able officer, and a worthy man. During all the
month of January, Commodore Wadsworth was expected to arrive
at Valparaiso, when the Potomac, in course, would depart for the

1833.]

POLITICAL,

475

United States, and every requisite arrangement was made at Cal-
lao for our departure. Peru was unsettled, and the afflicted
Equador was convulsed with revolution. The Fairfield was de-
spatched to Guayaquil to protect our trade, and the Dolphin, now
commanded by Lieutenant-commandant Vorheese, was stationed at
Callao for the protection of American interests in that quarter,

' while we took our final leave of Peru, and arrived at Valparaiso
on Monday, the sixteenth of December.

The Potomac had now been fourteen months on the coast, ac-
tively employed wherever our commercial interests seemed to re-
quire her presence. She had boarded, on the station, seventy-one
I American vessels, amounting to nearly twenty thousand tons of
I shipping, and manned by eleven hundred men. In all the ports,
I; the commodore had held official intercourse with the authorities ;
‘ preserving throughout a strict national character, impressing on the
minds of all, that the United States wished for peace and recip-
rocal commerce with her sister republics of the south.

A word on the political condition and prospects of these coun-
tries, and a word only can be given at a moment like the present,
when home is on every tongue, until the very Potomac herself
almost indicates her impatience of delay. The true condition of
these countries, it appears to us, has of late been but too gener-
I ally misunderstood, and, by superficial observers, but too fre-
' quently misrepresented. We allude to the opinion becoming
prevalent, that these people are unfit for free institutions and self-
, government ; and their frequent disturbances are referred to as
conclusive evidence in support of this opinion.

Now we not only maintain that this opinion is unjust, and un-
founded in truth ; impolitic, so far as it shall mislead the people
of the United States, and render our government less watchful
of what is going on in these countries ; where, by-the-by, every
thing is not always turned to the best account ; — but, that the
very reverse of the proposition is true — viz., that these people,
notwithstanding all their internal convulsions, are nevertheless
working out their political salvation, and that they will ultimately
succeed in the consolidation of their liberty.

Did not the people of these countries, immediately on achieving
their independence, establish governments the most free ? — adopt-
ing, almost without an exception, the very spirit, and often the

476

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[December,

forms of our own hallowed institutions ? From that moment to
the present, who can point out a single instance in which they
have wavered from their determination to establish and maintain
their independence, notwithstanding all their sacrifices, civil com-
motions, and abuses of men trusted too implicitly with power ?

If they had not resolved on the establishment of free institu-
tions, why did they not adopt a despotism, or some government
more analogous than a republic to the one they had lived under ?
The answer is easy, and at hand. A despotism can only exist,
where the people are ignorant and superstitious ; but these peo-
ple, in bursting their political bonds, in a good measure got rid
of many deceptions, and greatly weakened the force of numerous
superstitions. The elements for the establishment of a perma-
nent despotic government, therefore, do not exist in these states.

If the numerous instances in which men intrusted with the
administration of affairs in these countries, through misguided
views or bad motives, have tyrannised over the people for a time,
be brought against this assertion, then we refer to the discontent of
the people which followed, revolts in the districts, and the final
overthrow of their oppressors, as a triumphant reply !

We have travelled sorne in these countries, from the ocean to
the Cordilleras — in their capitals, principal towns, and remote
districts ; have witnessed the celebration of their national jubilees,
and days rendered memorable, on which signal victories have
been won by an armed peasantry against superior numbers and
discipline ; have seen the multitude rejoice, and the serious appear
full of hope in the prospect of better times ; and following and min-
gling in the train the youth of the country, chanting their patri-
otic songs ; — and we could not doubt that these people would
ultimately succeed in the establishment of their liberty. The
soil that has drunk so much blood, shed in the cause of freedom,
cannot for ever maintain a race of slaves ! Indeed, the love of
liberty was scarcely more deeply rooted in the sequestered dells
of Switzerland, than it is in these countries. Of this liberty, their
ideas, we confess, are often rude and ill-defined ; but still the
germe is here.

Of the bold assertors of the ignorance and incapacity of these
people, who see so much cause of alarm, and are for ever draw-
ing sinister conclusions from their frequent internal convulsions,

1833.]

POLITICAL.

477

we would ask, if any philosopher or statesman has ever been able
to reduce to system the process by which a people advance to
freedom ; or to graduate the precise degree of information neces-
sary, before they commence the work of reform ?

Will those persons who maintain that the South Americans are
as yet too ignorant or unfit for self-government, have the good-
ness to state the period when it would have been more wise in
them to have made the effort ? Ought they to have waited until
their country abounded with statesmen and experienced legisla-
tors; but which, in truth, never could have been found, except in
the very struggles through which they are now passing? Or
when should a people resist oppression ? There can be but one
answer to this question ; and that is — the very day when they
know their rights !

Now we believe that no one who is acquainted with the his-
tory of South America will venture the assertion, that its inhabi-
tants are ignorant of their rights ; and if not, we appeal to the
records of history, if any people ever retrograded after having
made such progress, unless overwhelmed and crushed by a supe-
rior power, interested in the suppression of liberal principles ?

Their frequent commotions make nothing against this proposi-
tion ; for these commotions are not carried on between the friends
of monarchies and republics ; nor of a privileged few against the
many. But these commotions occur between an enthusiastic
love of liberty on the one hand, and political inexperience on the
other; between the ambition of men too confidently trusted by a
confiding people, whom experience has not even yet taught to be
sufficiently wary and distrustful. But mark !— whatever these
abuses may have been, no one has ever yet been able to perpet-
uate them, nor ever can !

In shaking off the yoke of Spain, these people achieved, and
nobly achieved, their independence. But did that achievement
give them the requisite knowledge for managing their civil insti-
tutions ? Certainly not ; — for this experience is only to be ac-
quired by repeated struggles ; — and hence their internal commo-
tions have been, and for a time may continue to be, absolutely
unavoidable. It is the price, the passage-money, which they are
doomed from, the very nature of things to pay, in their progress
towards the consolidation of their liberty, and has grown out of

478

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAG.

[Decembei;,

causes which have taken place since the revolution ; and which
have not, and never have had, connexion with any party in the
country unfavourable to liberty, and the establishment of republi-
can institutions,.

We must give these republics time. The birth and maturity
df a nation are not the work of a day ; and low indeed must be
his estimate of the blessings of liberty, who considers that these
people, with all their toils, sacrifices, and sufferings, are paying
a price too dear !

But what have they not done already ? Who worked the
mines, guarded the flocks, and tilled the soil of Spanish America ?
The Indian ! From whence issued those immense streams of
wealth which flowed from the colonies into the lap of the mother
country, during the three hundred years of her tyranny and do-
minion, but from the poor and subjugated Indian? Who can
reflect, without horror, on the destruction of eight millions of
these wretched beings, who, in Peru alone, perished under the
cruel and unjust exactions of the Mita 1 What excesses and ex-
tortions were not committed — civil and ecclesiastical, under the
well intended, but much abused, regulation of the Ripartimiento !

Does the total abolition of these abuses — of slavery, the Inqui-
sition, and a hundred others,* on the ruins of the Spanish system,
argue unfitness for self-government in these people ? Indeed, it
appears to us, that if we reflect on what these countries were
under the Spanish dominion, the restrictions of commerce, of sci-
ence and the arts, the political deceptions and superstitions which
were constantly practised, and then reflect on the spectacle they
now present (disturbed as they are), the only matter of aston^
ishment will be, that they have done so much in the short space
of twenty years !

If these views be not deceptive, and a vast deal more might
be advanced to show that they are not, how deeply interesting to
the friends of liberty in our own country, in Europe, and through-

* Though actual toleration has not been extended in these countries, the friends
of such a measure are neither few nor without influence. The rising generation
will regulate this matter. We have never seen a young man of intelligence, in any
of these countries, who was not ultra liberal on this point. The power of the clergy
has been overthrown, and they are now, comparatively, the humble pensioners, in-
stead of the haughty and bigoted rulers, of the state.

2833.]

POLITICAL.

479

out the world, to behold these states, containing no less than twelve
millions of inhabitants, moving on “ through good and through
evil report,” through heavy sacrifices, oft-repeated and severe trials
and conflicts, but without for a moment losing sight of or waver-
ing in their first determination to establish free institutions ! They
must succeed; though they commit errors, they will correct them
again, and at some perhaps distant day, the hopes of the philan-
thropist and patriot will be realized. Liberty can only be attained
by great sacrifices, and preserved only by eternal vigilance !

The period for the return of the P otomac to the United States
had now arrived ; indeed, it had passed some time, from a desire
to meet with our relief, Commodore Wadsworth, before leaving
the station. The public interest, however, not making it neces-
sary to remain longer, every thing was put in readiness for the
homeward-bound passage ; and on the morning of the ninth of
February, eighteen hundred and thirty-four, the Potomac was
ready for sea. Joyous was the impulse that throbbed in every
bosom, as her hardy tars heaved up the heavy anchors to her bows,
while the parting salute was exchanged with the Chilian flag on
shore. The wind was fresh, and in a short time Valparaiso faded
in the distance. The aspiring hills, and even the lofty mountains
in their rear, sunk by degrees, until they at last could be seen no
longer.

In three days we passed beyond the Island of Juan Fernandez,
and then, changing our course, stood for the stormy Cape, the
passing of which was rendered tedious by light, baffling, and often

contrary winds.

On the morning of the ninth March, we came in sight of one
of the Falkland Islands, in latitude 52” 55' south— -a low island
of about five miles in length. The day was pleasant and clear ;
and we began to enjoy, by anticipation, the pleasure of visiting the
main group, which was now hid from our view by white fleecy
clouds suspended over them.

We stood around to the east end of the island, with the inten-
tion of going into Berkley Sound, in compliance with discretion-
ary instructions which the commodore had received from the de-
partment to that effect.

480

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[Maxell,

CHAPTER XXIX.

Towards the conclusion of our last chapter, among other
things we mentioned the arrival of the Potomac at the Falkland
Islands, and that it was the intention uf the commodore to have
stopped at Port Egmont, agreeably to his conditional instructions
from the department, had not the thick fogs, contrary winds, and
exceedingly rough weather, rendered it impracticable to do so.

While in the Pacific we had occasionally seen, through the
medium of the Buenos Ayrean press, some accounts of the late
controversy between the United States and the Argentine Re-
public, in relation to the sovereignty of these islands, and of our
rights to a free use of the fisheries there. The subject struck us
at the time as one of deep interest, because there are a thousand
other points on the globe where similar questions affecting our
rights might be set up with equal pretensions.

We have taken a great deal of pains to inform ourselves of the
merits of this controversy, and we have now before us a quarto
pamphlet of about one hundred and twenty pages, in Spanish,
purporting to be “ A collection of Official Documents, showing
the origin and present state of the question between the two
countries.”

This publication, however, is not the best source for obtaining
accurate and exact information of the state of the controversy
between the United States and the Argentine Republic ; but, as
yet, it is the only source ; for on the ground that the negotiation
is still pending, the president did not communicate the corre-
spondence relating to it when called for by the House of Repre-
sentatives, on the motion of the Honourable John Quincy
Adams.

The correspondence contained in the pamphlet to which we
have alluded, was published by order of the government of

FALKLAND ISLANDS.

481

1834.]

Buenos Ayres, soon after Mr. Baylies, the late charge d’affaires
of the United States, left that country ; and his part of the cor-
respondence, as well as that of the Consul Slacum, as yet, can be
seen only -through the medium of two translations, first from the
English into Spanish, and then from the Spanish into English.
Of the instructions to Mr. Baylies, and his correspondence with
his own government, we, of course, can have no knowledge , and we
have been obliged to rely on this foreign publication, and on infor-
mation from sources which we believe to be accurate, for the
following account of the negotiations.

The attention of the public within a few years has been at-
tracted to the Falkland Islands; and controversies have been
revived, with a change of parties indeed, like those which once
employed the pens of Junius and Johnson, and called out the
eloquence of Lord Chatham! One of the Hispano-American
colonies has endeavoured to maintain, in its own behalf, those
rights of sovereignty and jurisdiction once claimed by Spain ;
and a new element has been infused into the existing controversy,
which embraces the right of the people of the United States to a
free fishery at those islands, and those adjacent.

The steril soil and inhospitable climate of the Falkland
Islands, have hitherto prevented their occupation ; they were un-
inhabited when discovered, and, with the exception of occasional
and transient residents, have so remained. Yet their position will
always render them important in the estimation of commercial
nations.

This group, consisting of two large islands and many smaller
ones, some of which are mere rocks, is situated for the most part
between the fifty-first and fifty-second degrees of south latitude,
and nearly opposite the southern extremity of Patagonia, which
is the nearest land. The islands lie near the track of all the
navigation which passes around Cape Horn, and at no inconve-
nient distance from the Cape of Good Hope, the harbour of Rio
Janeiro, and the Rio de la Plata.

In the long voyages around Cape Horn, into the Pacific Ocean
and back, ships are frequently in want of provisions : if a depot
were established at the Falklands, supplies might be obtained
without any great deviation from a direct course ; and this depot
might sometimes be of service to the crews of vessels, when,

H h

482 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [Marcbj

baffled in the attempt to double the Cape of Good Hope, they
have been brought upon short allowance. If there were also a
depot of naval stores, vessels which had been crippled by the
furious winds and storms of the southern seas, would-find these
islands a convenient place for refitting ; such a depot might also
be of service to the vessels engaged in the whale-fishery on the
Brazil Banks.

Considered in a military view, the Falkland’s are a commanding
position, from their proximity to the track of navigation in pass-
ing around Cape Horn, or through the Strait of Magellan. All
the vessels engaged in the seal-fisheries at these and the adjacent
islands would be exposed to the depredations of armed cruisers
issuing from their various harbours, whose cruises could be easily
extended, to the great annoyance of that rich trade which is
carried on between Europe and the United States, and India and
China. It is true, there is no timber or materials for ship-
building on the islands, but a maritime people can always provide
themselves with vessels. A piratical people^ in possession of this
station, could annoy the commerce of the world more effectually
than all the piratical states of Barbary, and this evil the people
of the United States, in some degree', have already experienced.

Before the revolution, the North Americans, as they were termed
in South America, had extended their voyages so far, that, in the
language of Burke, the Falkland Islands were but a stage in the
progress of their victorious industry. Soon after the peace' of
seventeen hundred and eighty-three, these voyages were resumed.
The fisheries on the Brazil Banks and in the Pacific Ocean em-
ployed a great number of vessels, many seamen, and much capital.
The seal-fishery also became important, and our mariners fre-
quented these desolate islands and coasts during the period of the
Spanish domination without interruption, and their right to pursue
this fishery there was never questioned by Spain : nothing was
done to impeach or deny -it until June tenth, eighteen hundred and
twenty-nine, when, during the temporary existence of a govern-
ment at Buenos Ayres, originating in a mutiny, and disgraced by
the murder of the chief magistrate, one Louis Vernet, a German
adventurer and a naturalized citizen of the United States, obtained
a decree by which he was constituted civil and military gov-
ernor of the Falkland Islands, Terra del Fuego, and the adjacent
islands.

1834.]

483

: ?g FALKLAND ISLANDS.

The decree asserted the right of Buenos Ayres to the Falkland
Islands and all the others, on the ground of having been formerly
occupied by Spanish subjects, and of having been incorporated in
the viceroyalty of the Rio de la Plata, when under the Spanish
monarchy, whose successors the government of Buenos Ayres
claimed to be, by virtue of the revolution of the twenty-fifth of
May, eighteen hundred and ten.

It is proper to state here, that by this revolution the dominion
of the Spanish nation was thrown off at Buenos Ayres, but not that
of the Spanish king. Ferdinand VII. was acknowledged there
until eighteen hundred and sixteen, and, in some parts of the vice-
royalty, several years longer.

This decree was never communicated to the government of the
United States, nor to Mr. Forbes, our resident at Buenos Ayres,
nor does it appear that he protested against it. Mr. Parish, the
British resident, under instructions from his government, formally
protested against it as early as the nineteenth of November,
eighteen hundred and twenty-nine, on the ground that the Argen-
tine Republic had assumed authority over the Falkland Islands
incompatible with his Britannic majesty’s rights of sovereignty^
which were founded on original discovery and occupation, and
sanctioned by the King of Spain, who, on the requisition of the
King of Great Britain, had foribally restored them after a military
occupation ; and when they were abandoned by the British forces,
in seventeen hundred and seventy-four, there was no intention of
abandoning the sovereign jurisdiction, and therefore “ the marks
and signals of possession and property were left upon the islands,
indicating an intention of resuming possession at a more con-
venient period.

Vernet had resided at the islands previous to his appointment.
Soon afterward he issued a circular, which fell into the hands of
some of the Americans who were in that region, in which all
persons were required to desist from the use of the whale and
seal-fisheries in the waters and on the coasts of the islands in-
cluded in the decree. Considering these waters and" coasts as
free to all nations, and the exclusive property of aione, our country-
men continued their fisheries as usual.

Vernet did not commit any violences until after the death of
Mr. Forbes, which happened on the fourteenth of June, eighteen

H h 2

484

V^OYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[March,.

hundred and thirty-one. On the thirtieth of July following, the
Harriet, Captain Davison, of Stonington, was taken while in har-
bour. On the seventeenth of August, Captain Carew, com-
mander of the schooner Breakwater, also of Stonington, while on
shore, was arrested and confined, and on the next day his vessel
was seized : he was compelled, against his wishes, to embark in a
British vessel bound to Rio Janeiro, but his vessel was recaptured
by the crew. On the nineteenth of August, Captain Stephen
Congar, of the schooner Superior, belonging to the city of New-
York, was arrested and imprisoned — his vessel seized, and his
crew confined.

The seizures were attended with many outrages of a piratical
character. The crew of the Harriet were put in close confine-
ment ; her papers were seized, and a part of the cargo was sold,
without condemnation or legal' process. While Davison and
Congar were in confinement, this civil and military governor com-
pelled them to sign a contract, by which they became obligated to
proceed with one of the vessels to the western coast of South
America, to catch seals on his account : without condemnation,
he substituted himself forcibly in place of the owners, and com-
pelled the imprisoned shipmates to obligate themselves, by oaths,
“ not to do any thing to prejudice his interests and to agree that
any deviation from this compulsory contract should be considered
“ as a breach of faith,” and that no law should liberate them from
such penalties and forfeitures as he should impose upon them ;
“ thus attempting (in the words of Mr. Baylies) to secure his own
piratical interests from the operation of the laws, by oaths of his
own devising.” Without bringing them to trial for their alleged
offences, he compelled them to agree to enter his service for his
private and personal benefit, using his civic and military powers
to extort from them a written obligation in the shape of a mer-
cantile contract, to go beyond his pretended jurisdiction to catch
seals on his account. The Superior and Captain Congar were
selected for this service.

Seven of the crew of the Superior had been left on Staten-land,
who were engaged in taking seals there, and were to be taken off
at the end of six months, for which time they were supplied with
provisions. Congar was prevented from relieving them, by being
compelled to go directly through the Strait of Magellan to the

.1834.]

FALKLAND ISLANDS.

485

western, coast of South America, and by being interdicted from
all communication with the sealers by the terms of the contract.

Vernet attempted to entice American seamen into his service
by the promise of extravagant wages.

He arrested and imprisoned four seamen, ^a part of the crew of
the schooner Belville, wrecked on the coast of Terra del Fuego :
he took from them a quantity of sealskins- and whalebone, which he
converted to his own use : he compelled them, under threats of
being sent to Buenos Ayres to be tried as pirates, to sign an
agreement in behalf of themselves and five shipmates then on
Eagle Island engaged in building a shallop, stipulating that the
shallop, when completed, should be employed in the seal-fishery
on his account ; and he engaged to share with them the plunder
of vessels which they should capture, — thus inciting them to en-
gage in a piratical warfare against their own countrymen. One
seaman he endeavoured to force into his service, by depriving
him of food while in prison. He declared to Davison that it was
his determination to capture all American vessels, including wha-
ling as well as sealing vessels, on the arrival of an armed vessel
for which he had contracted. While he was pursuing this sys-
tem of depredation and outrage against American commerce, he
spared the Adeona, a British vessel, whose crew were taking
seals at the mouth of the harbour, declaring that he could not
take an English vessel with the same propriety that he could an
American ! These outrages of Vernet are set forth at length in a
communication of Mr. Baylies, addressed to the minister of
foreign affairs at Buenos Ayres, dated June twentieth, eighteen
hundred and thirty-two.

The government of the United States having obtained knowl-
edge of the existence of the decree of the tenth of June, eighteen
hundred and twenty-nine, formally instructed Mr. Forbes, the
agent at Buenos Ayres, to address to the government of the
Argentine Republic an earnest remonstrance “ against any meas-
ures that may have been adopted by it, including the decree and
circular letter referred to, if they be genuine, which are calculated
in the remotest degree to impose any restraints whatever upon
the enterprise of the citizens of the United States, engaged in the
fisheries in question, or to impair their undoubted right to the
freest use of them.”

486

[March,

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

The president called the attention of congress to this subject, in
his annual message of December, eighteen hundred and thirty-one.*

Soon after the capture of the vessels, Vernet left the Falklands
in the Harriet, taking Captain Davison with him, and on the
twentieth of November arrived at Buenos Ayres, and immedi-
ately caused a process to be issued from one of the judicial tribu-
nals against the vessel, under which she was held for trial.

Mr. Forbes at this time was dead ; no successor was appointed ;
and George W. Slacum, Esq, was the consul of the United States
at that port.

On the twenty-first of November, Mr. Slacum addressed a
note to the minister of foreign affairs, Don Thomas Manuel de
Anchorena, inquiring why “ a honajide American vessel, engaged
in lawful trade, should be captured by an officer of a friendly
government.”

On the twenty-fifth the minister replied, informing him that the
affair was before the minister of war and marine ; and after the
customary forms had been passed through, the affair would be
laid before the government for its consideration, whose resolution
thereon would be conformable to the laws of the country.

On the twenty-sixth, Mr. Slacum, in another note, informed the
minister of foreign affairs that he considered his reply as a virtual
avowal of Vernet’s right to capture American vessels, engaged in
the fisheries at the Falkland Islands, &c. He denied the right
in toto, and protested against its exercise — the decree of June

• * “I should (says the president) have placed Buenos Ayres in the list of South
American powers, in respect to which, nothing of importance affecting us was to be
communicated ; but for occurrences which have lately taken place at the Falkland
Islands, in which the name of that republic has been used to cover, with a show of
authority, acts injurious to our commerce, and to the property and liberty of our fel-
low-citizens. In the course of the present year, one of our vessels, engaged in the
pursuit of a trade which we have always enjoyed without molestation, has been cap-
tured by a band acting, as they pretend, under the authority of the government of
Buenos Ayres. I have therefore given orders for the despatch of an armed vessel, to
join our squadron in those seas, and aid in affording all lawful protection to our trade
which shall be necessary ; and shall, without delay, send a minister to inquire into
the nature of the circumstances, and also of the claim, if any, that is. set up by that
government to those islands. In the meantime I submit the case to the consider-
ation of congress, to the end that they may clothe the executive with such authority
and means as they may deem necessary for providing a force adequate to the com-
plete protection of our fellow-citizens fishing and trading in those seas.”

1'834.J

, FAUa-AffD ISLANDS.

• •

487

tenth, eighteen hundred and twenty-nine — the circular of Vernet

the seizure of the vessels, and the imprisonment of American

citizens, &c.

A few days after the date of this last note. Captain Silas Dun
can arrived at Buenos Ayres, in the United States sloop-of-war
Lexington, and, as it would seem, addressed a note to the consul,
with a view to obtain information respecting the transactions at
the Falklands. The evidence and documents were furnished, and
Duncan then determined to proceed there “ to protect the citizens
and commerce of the United States engaged in the fisheries, and
particularly to relieve the seven men who had been left on Staten
land without the means of subsistence : this intention he commu-.
nicated to the consul by note, and requested him to transmit a
copy of the note to the government of Buenos Ayres, to prevent
misunderstanding with respect to his visit to the islands, “ and in
conformity to the open and candid mode in which the affairs of
the United States were conducted.” This communication was
dated December first.

On the third of December, the minister of foreign affairs re-
plied to the consul’s communication which contained the protest,
refusing to receive it, inasmuch as the authority from his govern-
ment to offer it was not shown, and the governor did not consider
that a consul was authorized to protest against any act of the gov-
ernment ex officio, “ much less when it was indubitable that the
government of the United States had no right whatever to the
aforesaid islands, or to fish upon them ; while that which upheld
the republic of Buenos Ayres was unquestionable.”

On the sixth of December, the minister of foreign affairs ac-
knowledged to the consul the receipt of the copy of Captain Dun-
can’s letter of the first.

On the same day, the consul addressed another communication
to the minister, informing him that Captain Duncan would delay
his departure until the ninth, to receive communications from the
government of Buenos Ayres, having reference to the suspension
“ of the exercise of the right to capture” the fishing-vessels, and
the restoration of the Harriet and her cargo, and to place things
as they were previous to the seizure of the vessels. He informed
him, that the anxiety of Captain Duncan to relieve the seamen on
Staten-land, and to prevent future captures, was the cause of

488

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[Marchj

his haste : — that the proposition was based on a suggestion in
one of the minister’s communications, of a desire on the part of
the government of Buenos Ayres to settle the question as to the
right of fishery, by a direct understanding with the government
of the United States ; and he urged the propriety of suspending
the, seizures, and placing things on their former ground, until an
attempt should have been made to settle the question amicably.

In the same note the consul contended for his right to protest,
when the interest of American citizens was concerned ; and he
averred, that in doing so he acted by the authority of his own
government — and that he had been considered and treated with as'
the representative of the government of the United States, since
the death of Mr. Forbes, the charge d’affaires.

On the seventh of December, Captain Duncan addressed a note
directly to the minister of foreign affairs, declaring that he had it
fn proof that Vernet did plunder the schooner Harriet; and re-
quested, that inasmuch as he had been guilty of piracy and rob-
bery, he should be surrendered to the United States for trial, “ or
that he be . arrested and punished by the laws of Buenos Ayres.”

On the ninth of December, the minister of foreign affairs ad-
dressed another note to the consul, complaining of the impropri-
ety and indecorum of pressing the government to a decision on
“ an affair of a private litigious nature,” in which he had no right
to interfere, “ it being a private contentious affair especially
when he could not be ignorant “ of the weighty and urgent atten-
tions which notoriously surrounded the government.” The con-
sul was informed, that if the commander of the Lexington “ should
commit any act, or use any measure, which might tend to a de-
nial of the right which the republic had to the Falkland Islands,
and coasts adjacent to Cape Horn,” or to impede the seal-fishery,
the government would address a formal complaint to the gov-
ernment of the United States, “ and would cause to make valid
and respected its rights, by all the means it might esteem con-
venient.” The minister also informed the consul, that he laboured
under a remarkable error in supposing himself as being consid-
ered the representative of the United States, when he was con-
sidered in no other light than as consul of the United States for
the city of Buenos Ayres ; and expressed the hope that he would
confine himself to his particular function, “ and refrain from per-

FALKLAND ISLANDS?.

489

1834.]

sisting in the protest which he had made against rights which had
been and were in possession of the government , and which, until
this time,” says the minister, “ nobody has questioned.”

Another note of the same date was addressed by the minister
to the consul, informing him, that on a memorial or “ solicitude”
of Don Louis Vernet, a process had been issued against Captain
Davison, of the Harriet, for the purpose of holding him in arrest,
and preventing his departure, until he should appoint an attorney ,
but that Davison had gone on board the Lexington. The consul
was requested to inform him of the pains and penalties of his
evasion.

Both notes were answered by the consul on the fifteenth of
December. The consul could not see on what principles the
government could detain Davison, already the victim of a pro-
tracted incarceration,” to coerce him to execute a power of attor-
ney on the requisition of Vernet, when Davison had already de-
clined to litigate the questions growing out of the seizure of the
Harriet before any of the local tribunals | and had denied to the
government their right to seize his vessel.

With respect to his authority, he quoted the instructions to Mr.
Forbes, and contended that the fisheries were free to all nations,
and the exclusive property of none. He defended himself against
the charge of indecorum ; maintained the propriety of his conduct,
and his right to interfere by protest for the protection of his coun-
trymen, with becoming spirit and force. This communication
closed the correspondence between the minister of foreign affairs
and the American consul.

We are not prepared to say how far a consul is authorized to
act, in case of the death or absence of 'a minister. The secreta-
ries of legation are generally considered as temporary charges
d’affaires on such occasions ; but at Buenos Ayres there was no
secretary of legation. If a minister or charge of the United
States should die in a country so remote as Buenos Ayres, nearly
i year from the time of his death would elapse before he could
ce replaced. The voyage back, and forth would consume four or
five months : the appointment of a minister would require inquiry
and deliberation, and some time would necessarily elapse before
the person appointed could prepare himself for a voyage so long,
and for a residence in a country so remote. In the meantime it

490

tOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[Marcii,

would seem, that some person should be charged with the inter-
ests of the United States ex necessitate rei ; and if there be no
secretary of legation, none would seem so proper for such service
as the consul residing at the seat of government ; we mean, espe-
cially, in all matters relating to commerce.

Dignity is never to be trifled with — it is sometimes extremely
troublesome to those who assume it and still wish to do business,
and it is better to wave its punctilios, even in diplomatic inter-
course : but being once assumed, it is a derogation to abandon it :
the consul’s notes should have been rejected in the outset, or at
least after the first intimation that he had transcended his authority,
or not at all.

While the consul and the minister were engaged in these dis-
cussions, Captain Duncan, with Davison for a pilot, sailed on the
ninth of December for the Falklands, where he arrived on the thirty-
first. He did no more than spike some guns which were lying on
the beach, and which he had good reason to suppose were to be
used in vessels which were to be employed in the capture of
American sealers and whalers ; as much of the plundered property
as he could find he restored to the right owners : he arrested
seven men who were proved to have been concerned in the cap-
ture of the vessels, among whom was one Brisbane, a British sub-
ject, who had been the chief agent in the atrocities of Vernet :
the remainder of the settlers he brought away at their own re-
quest, who complained much of the deceptions which had been
practised upon them by Vernet: some of the Guachos, who
formed a part of this settlement, fled to the interior : he seized no
hona-fide property of Vernet’s, and scrupulously respected all
private property : after despatching the Shallop (whose flag was
changed) with its crew to Staten-land, to relieve the seamen there,
he left the Falklands, returned to the river, and anchored at
Montevideo on the seventh of February, eighteen hundred and
thirty-two, from whence he addressed a note to the government,
offering to surrender his prisoners if they would give an assurance
that they acted under their authority. :

Commodore George W. Rogers, who had been appointed to
the command of the Brazil squadron, arrived at the river, in the
United States schooner Enterprise, and hoisted his flag on board
the Warren, Captain Cooper. The -commodore found himself in

FALKLAND ISLANDS.

491

1834.]

a situation which presented only a choice of difficulties. The honour
or the peace of the American nation might be affected by his com
duct. It was his desire to maintain friendly relations with the
wayward government of Buenos Ayres, but he was not disposed
to make unreasonable or humiliating concessions to sooth their
rage or gratify their caprices. After weighing all the circum-
stances, he resolved to proceed to Buenos Ayres.

In the meantime the news of Duncan’s transactions had reached
the city, and the community there were thrown into a paroxysm
of rage. The consul was suspended. The newspapers were
filled with inflammatory publications.. On the fourteenth of Feb-
ruary a proclamation was issued by the delegate government,
signed by Don Juan Ramon Balcarse and Don Manuel I. Garcia,
two of the ministry, in which the conduct of Duncan was de-
nounced in language of the most violent and inflammatory char-
acter ; and while magnifying their own magnanimity and forbear-
ance, and duly eulogizing their own honour, they could find no
greater indulgence for Duncan than to stigmatize him as a public
robber, who had invaded, “ with rancorous fury, their ancient col-
ony, in the midst of profound peace 5” and they declared that the
unanimous explosion of indignation at this odious outrage was
fully justified, &c. &c. At the same time a circular letter, signed
by the same ministers, was issued to the governors of the several
provinces, composing, according to their denomination, the Argen-
tine Republic, repeating the same denunciations of the American
commander. In this paroxysm the government admitted what
they had carefully abstained from admitting before, — that Vernet
was the civil and military governor of the Falkland Islands. The
consul was suspended on the alleged ground of “ a notable ir-
regularity in his ideas and language” in his official correspond-
ence, which had been closed two months before, and was held
with an individual not then a member of the government.

To the note in which he was informed that his functions were
suspended, the consul replied that he had received no intimation
from his own government to suspend his functions, neither had he
any authority to appoint a substitute (a course suggested by the
government of Buenos Ayres). He concluded by declaring, that
the responsibility of the act of suspension rested on the govern-

492 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [Marcll,

merit of Buenos Ayres, as well as every other step which they
saw fit to take.

On the twenty-seventh of February Don Manuel I. Garcia re-
signed' his place in the ministry, and on the seventh of March
Don Juan Manuel de Rosas resumed the command of the prov-
inces, as governor, with dictatorial powers. Garcia, previous to
his resignation, informed Slacum (then divested of office, and un-
acknowledged) by note, that Vernet, under decrees of the first
and thirteenth of June, was the civil and military governor of the
Falkland Islands, &c.

Commodore Rogers arrived before the eity, bearing the olive-
branch : a reciprocation of civilities took place — mutual salutes
were fired, and the seven men, arrested by Duncan at the Falklands,
were surrendered on the ground that they had acted under the
orders of Vernet, now acknowledged to be an officer of high civil
and military rank under the republic. This “ era of good feelings,”
however, continued but a short time ; the peace-offering was not
sufficient to appease the angry gods of Argentum. When the
chamber of deputies met, which was about the middle of May,
the governor, in his public message, again alluded to the “ scan-
dalous” acts of Duncan, and assured the deputies that a minister
was daily expected from the United States, who would doubtless
foe instructed to offer reparation for his outrages. This public
manifestation of the governor convinced Commodore Rogers
that no amicable feeling existed towards the United States on the
part of the government. He had pursued a course of conduct
of the most conciliatory character'; but the governor, without
waiting the arrival of the minister, who was momentarily ex-
pected, and who, according to his belief, was authorized to offer
reparation, renewed, in an official document of the highest char-
acter, the insolent and irritating language of subordinates, and ap-
plied it again to the sfecond officer of the squadron. The commo-
dore ordered his officers on board their ships, which then lay in
the outer roads ; returned to his own, where he was taken sick,
and soon after died.

It is proper to pause here and examine the conduct of Captain
Duncan, with a view to ascertain whether the violent reproaches
which have been cast upon him by the government of Buenos
Ayres are founded on justice. This gallant and patriotic com-

1834.]

FALKLAND ISLANDS.

493

mander is dead, and he bore to his grave the scars of wounds
which were received in fighting the battles of his country : — that
country must honour his memory, unless his fame has been tar-
nished by his memorable transactions at the Falkland Islands.
What he did there has been related already : — he resorted to force,
and it remains to be seen whether the circumstances would war-
rant its application,

Louis Vernet, by virtue of the decree of June tenth, eighteen
hundred and twenty-nine, claimed the right of capturing Ameri-
can vessels engaged in the fisheries at the Falkland Islands and
their adjacencies. He did capture such vessels, and discovered
in his proceedings more of the character of a pirate than of a
high officer of a regular government, by disposing of their cargoes
without adjudication, and imprisoning and maltreating the seamen.
Previous to his interference, we had been accustomed to use the
waters there for the purposes of fishery as freely as the waters on
our own coasts. The decree under which he pretended to act,,
and from which he derived his authority, had never been commu-
nicated or made known to the American government or their rep-
resentative at Buenos Ayres. It was issued by a government, de-
nominated by the existing government, a mutiny. A government
never acknowledged by them to be legitimate, — not existing ac-
cording to constitutional forms or popular election, but usurped m
a military sedition, which was signalized by the murder of the
chief magistrate of the republic : resisted in arms from its com-
mencement : the resistance continued until it was overthrown, and
all its acts declared void by a decree, signed by Governor Rosas-:
himself, and the very persons whose names were affixed to the
decree of the tenth of June had been banished as political male-
factors. The government, in their correspondence with the consul,,
had evaded the avowal of Vernet as their officer : the capture of
the Harriet they had denominated “an affair of a private litigious
nature,” as “ a private contentious affair and no presumptions
arising from the circumstances could have warranted a belief that
the captures were authorized originally by them. On his arrival
at the islands. Captain Duncan found none of the outward marks
which indicate sovereign jurisdiction : none of the badges and
emblems of national authority : neither soldiers, flags, fortresses,
nor national vessels. The colony was composed of Germans,

494

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[March,

Englishmen, North Americans, Montevideans, and Buenos Ayreans
— the two last, for the most part (as it is said), were the sweepings
of the prisons at Montevideo and Buenos Ayres. There were no
indications of a national colony authorized by law, nothing but a
band of wild and lawless adventurers. A German, naturalized in
North America, had delegated his powers to a citizen of the United
States (one Metcalf, from Portland, in Maine), and directed him
to seize the vessels, and imprison the persons of his own country-
men ; and the principal agent in his outrages against the fisher-
men was one Matthew Brisbane, a British subject. Duncan in-
tended no insult to the authorities of Buenos Ayres ; but under his
general instructions to protect American commerce and American
citizens, he did his duty.

While things were in this unsettled state, and early in June,
eighteen hundred and thirty-two, the Honourable Francis Baylies,
who had been appointed charge d’affaires from the United States
to the Argentine Republic, arrived at Buenos Ayres in the sloop-
of-war Peacock. Mr. Baylies had left the United States before
the news of Captain Duncan’s transactions at the Falklands had
reached this country ; and instead of being instructed, according
to the suggestions of the governor of the chamber of deputies, to
offer reparation and indemnity for Duncan’s act, he was instructed
to demand reparation and indemnity for Vernet’s acts ; which in-
structions, when he had ascertained that every attempt at honour-
able conciliation had failed, he carried into effect, by addressing
the communication of June twentieth to the minister of grace
and justice then charged with the department of foreign affairs,
Don Manuel Vicente de Maza. In this communication the acts
of Vernet were set forth at large, which were followed with sun-
dry comments. With respect to the discrimination made by Ver-
net between English and American vessels, Mr. Baylies said
“ that it might happen that nations would sometimes mistake their
^ rights and attempt to establish sovereign jurisdiction over territo-
ries not clearly their own, or to which their title might be dis-
puted ; and that other nations, whose rights might be affected by
such assumptions, were not necessarily obliged, in the first instance,
perhaps, to regard acts enforcing such jurisdiction as intrinsically
and absolutely hostile, if their operation were equal and indiscrimi-
nating. But if the citizens or subjects of one nation only are sub-

1834.]

FALKLAND ISLANDS.

495

jected to penalties and punishments for violations of sovereign
jurisdiction so assumed, while the subjects or citizens of' other
nations, committing the same violations, are unmolested, such par-
tial selection is evidence of hostile feeling, at least, in the officer
to whom the authority to punish is delegated ; and- the government
which justifies an officer who thus favours and spares the one, and
punishes the other, when both are in pari delictu, must be con-
sidered as avowing a preference injurious and hostile to the nation
which suffers.”

He also called the attention of the government to the period
when Vernet commenced his system of depredation, which was
soon after the death of Mr. Forbes, “choosing a time for the ex-
ercise of his powers in acts of despotism, when no high diplo-
matic functionary was there to advocate and protect the interests
and rights of his countrymen.”

He utterly denied the right of the Argentine Republic “ to in-
terrupt, molest, detain, or capture any vessels belonging to citi-
zens of the United States, or any persons being citizens of those
states, engaged in taking seals, or whales, or any species of fish
or marine animals, in any of the waters, or on any of the shores
or lands' of the Falkland Islands,” or the other islands mentioned
in the decree of the tenth of June, and claimed a restitution of all
the captured vessels and property, and indemnity for all Ameri-
can citizens who had been aggrieved ; and he respectfully sug-
gested the restoration of the consul to his functions, until the
views of the government of the United States could be ascer
tained, declaring that the American government had always re-
spected the feelings of the people among whom their consuls
resided.

This communication was answered by the minister of foreign
affairs on the twenty-fifth of June, stating merely that explanations
would be sought from Vernet, on which the governor would form
his judgment 'and pronounce, “without pretending to impair the
private rights of the citizens of the United States who might be
aggrieved or injured, or to sacrifice either to exorbitant preten-
sions those of Don Louis Vernet, and much less those public
rights which, by the common law of nations, belonged to the Ar-
gentine Republic as a sovereign and independent state.” No

496 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC- [March,

answer was given to the intimation respecting the restoration of
the consul.

On the next day Mr. Baylies answered this note. He denied
the necessity of delay for further explanations, inasmuch as Ver-
net had admitted, under his own signature, in the public news-
papers of the city, that he had captured American vessels, and
the Harriet was then detained in the port by virtue of a process
from a tribunal under the jurisdiction of the government. “ The
aggravations with which the injuries on the persons and property
of American citizens were accompanied, could not affect the
principle assumed by the government of the United States, but
were only important in ascertaining the measure and magnitude
of those injuries,” inasmuch as that government not only denied
the right to Vernet, but the right of the Argentine Republic to
inflict them. “ His excellency has been pleased to say (he con-
tinued) that the public rights, which, by ihe common law of nations,
belong to the Argentine Republic, as a sovereign and independent
state, he will not pretend to sacrifice ; to this he could only say,
that the government which he represented had neither the inten-
tion or the disposition to bring into question any of the rights of the
Argentine Republic, but they wished distinctly to know from the
government whether it claimed any right or authority to detain,
or capture, or in any way to molest, interrupt, or impede the ves
sels or the citizens of the United States, while engaged in fish-
ing in the waters, or on the shores of the Falkland Islands, and
the other places already mentioned.”

To this note a reply was made on the tenth of July, stating
the determination of the governor “not to surrender questions
which had immediate connexion, in order to anticipate an answer,
which appeared to be the desire of the charge” — “ and not to
venture his judgment in any case.”

It would seem that the government, although they had probably
determined on their course, were puzzled as to the mode of pro-
ceeding, and the nature of the questions, not knowing exactly
whether they should consider them as public or private questions.
They ‘were anxious for a delay, and probably supposed that they
might mystify the negotiation by blending the questions, and
evading a direct answer to his plain and direct inquiries. The

1834.]

FALKLAND ISLANDS,

497

charge probably perceived their drift, and pressed the negotiation
forward.

On the eleventh of July he addressed a cool and dispassionate
note to the minister of foreign affairs, accompanied by an argu-
ment which embraced, in extenso, all the topics in dispute.

He commenced by saying, that as the plain inquiry, which he
had submitted in his note of the twenty-sixth , of June, had not
been answered, he must take it for granted that the inquiry was
considered futile, inasmuch as the rights of the Argentine Repub-
lic to the exclusive fishery at the islands had been asserted in
the decree of June tenth, eighteen hundred and twenty-nine, and
in the correspondence between Mr. Slacum, the consul, and Don
Tomas Manuel de Anchorena, and in the proclamation of the
fourteenth of February, and in the circular of the delegate
government in which Vernet was styled the civil and military
governor of the Falkland Islands, &c. : but inasmuch as the de-
cree, the proclamation, and the circular had never been commu-
nicated to his government, and inasmuch as the diplomatic char-
acter of the consul was positively denied, and his functions sub-
sequently suspended, “ he felt some solicitude to obtain an avov/al
of the claim made distinctly to himself, as the accredited repre-
sentative of the United States — but as the inquiry had not been
answered, he should act on the presumption of its having been
maintained by the Argentine government, and would, therefore,
lay before the minister the views which his government had taken
of the questions in issue, which, being well considered, he hoped
would produce a happy termination of the unpleasant controversy
which had arisen. Although the Argentine Republic had been
the aggressors, having first employed force, and therefore it was
incumbent on them to prove their rights before their justification
could be made good, yet the charge waved the advantage, and
undertook to prove — that they had no such rights. With what
success remains to be seen. The question was stated by him
in this manner :

“The Argentine Republic claims sovereignty and jurisdiction
over the Falkland Islands, Terra del Fuego, Cape Horn, and
the islands adjacent in the Atlantic Ocean, by virtue of having
succeeded to the sovereign rights of Spain over these regions.

“ As these sovereign rights, thus claimed, are altogether deriva-

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

498

[March,

live from Spain, the first inquiry naturally divides itself into two
branches.

“ First — Had Spain any sovereign rights over the above-men-
tioned places ?

“ Second — Did the Argentine Republic succeed to those rights ?

“ If it can be shown that Spain had no such rights, the ques-
tion is terminated, unless the Argentine Republic should abandon
all title under Spain, and claim an absolute vested sovereignty,
original in itself.

“ If it should be shown affirmatively that Spain had such
rights, then it must be as clearly shown that the Argentine Re-
public succeeded to them ; and if that can be shown, then it
must also be shown that the Argentine Republic had authority to
capture and detain American vessels and American citizens en-
gaged in the fisheries at those places, without notifying the
American government, or its representative here, officially, of such
assumptions and such claims.”

The charge further stated, that the United States claimed no
more than the privileges “ which they had been accustomed to
exercise iu,conQmon with other maritime nations.”

He then proceeded to discuss the nature of the title which
civilized nations acquired over countries not inhabited, or inhabit-
ed only by savages, by prior discovery, taking formal posses-
sion, and by prior occupation. This branch of the argument was
extended to a considerable length, but our limits forbid us from
saying more than he admitted, that conditional rights accrued from
discovery and taking formal possession, and positive rights from
occupation.

He then carefully traced the progressive discovery of these
islands.

Ferdinand Magellan, a Portuguese in the service of the Em-
peror Charles V., entered the strait which bears his name in
October, fifteen hundred and twenty, and was probably the origi-
nal discoverer of the southern coast of Patagonia, and the northern
coast of Terra del Fuego : — “ More fortunate (says Mr. Baylies)
than Columbus, he not only left an undying name to the strait
which he traversed, but he has fixed it eternally in the celestial
regions of the southern hemisphere.” Magellan made the first
attempt to circumnavigate the world ; but, before the voyage was

1834.]

FALKLAND ISLANDS.

499

completed, he was killed at the Ladrones, in fifteen hundred and
twenty-one. In fifteen hundred and twenty-seven, Groaca de
Loaisa, a knight of Malta, in the service of Spain, passed the
strait, but his squadron of seven ships was lost, and he, with all
his men, perished. Sebastian Cabot, Amerigo Vespucci, and
Simon de Alcazara, made abortive attempts to pursue the same
route. Cabot was the first person who explored the Rio de la
Plata. “ These repeated failures disheartened the Spaniards, and
they gave over all attempts at discovery for many years.”

Sir Francis Drake, the great English circumnavigator, passed
the Strait of Magellan in fifteen hundred and seventy-eight, and
was driven by storms beyond fifty-seven degrees of south latitude,
“ where (says the writer of his voyage) we beheld the extremity
of the American coast, and the confluence of the Atlantic and
Southern Oceans.” Mr. Baylies is correct in supposing that
Drake discovered Cape Horn, and the western and southwestern
coast of Terra del Fuego.

So little was known of the southeastern coast of Terra del
Fuego, as late as seventeen hundred and seventy -four, that Cooke,
when actually in sight of Cape Horn, was unable to decide
whether it was a detached island, or a part of the great island of
Terra del Fuego. He laid down with much accuracy the head-
lands, bays, and harbours of the southeastern coast of the latter
island.

The discovery of Cape Horn has generally been ascribed
to Jacob Le Maire, a Dutchman in the service of the States of
Holland, who was the fir,st who doubled that terminus of South
America, in sixteen hundred and sixteen. He called it Cape
Hoorn, from a village in Holland. To the strait between Terra
del Fuego and Staten-land Le Maire has attached his own name.
Staten-land was so called in honour of the States of Holland.

It is supposed that Davies, an Englishman, and a companion of
Cavendish in his voyage to the South Seas in fifteen hundred
and ninety-two, was the first person who saw the Falkland
Islands.

In fifteen hundred and ninety-four, Sir Richard Hawkins dis-
covered these islands, and called them, in honour of his queen
and himself, Hawkins’ Maiden-land.

In fifteen hundred and ninety-eight, they were seen by a Dutch

I i 2

500

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[March,

squadron under the command of Admiral Verhagen and Sebald
de Wert, and were called by them Sebald’s Islands. This name
appears in the ancient Dutch charts ; and Dampier, who visited
them in sixteen hundred and eighty-three, calls the islands the
Sibbet de Wards. They were called the Falkland Islands by
Strong, an English navigator, in sixteen hundred and eighty-nine,
and that name has been adopted by the English geographers and
men of science, particularly by Dr. Halley. The journal of
Strong yet exists, unprinted, in the British Museum.

The French, who visited these islands between the years seven-
teen hundred and seventeen hundred and eight, called them
Malouines, which name the Spaniards have adopted. The honour
of the discovery was claimed by the French ; but Frezier, a French
voyager to these seas, admits them to have been discovered by
Sir Richard Hawkins, and such is the opinion of the great French
geographer Malte Brun.

If this relation of the progress of discovery in these regions
be correct, and we see no reason for doubt, Spain could have
gained but a feeble title on the ground of priority of discovery :
certainly none that would apply to the southern, eastern, and
western coasts of Terra del Fuego, Cape Horn, Staten-land, and
the Falkland Islands ; the honours of discovery there being divi-
ded between the English and the Dutch.

If the title of Spain was ever valid, Mr. Baylies contended
that its validity was unimpaired — that Spain had never renounced
it, and had not even then acknowledged the independence of the
Argentine Republic : that it was as perfect and’ entire then as it
was previous to the independence of the South American repub-
lics. The rights of Spain, if dormant, were not extinct, and she
had the ability to maintain them.

Following a suggestion of Mr. Baylies, we have viewed this
question in another light. Buenos Ayres, or the Argentine Repub-
lic, claimed sovereignty over the islands by virtue of the revolution
of May twenty-fifth, eighteen hundred and ten, when the authority
of Spain was renounced : while the authority of the king was
acknowledged until eighteen hundred and sixteen. If, during the
period between eighteen hundred and ten and eighteen hun-
dred and sixteen, Ferdinand VII. had undertaken to occupy
-the islands in question, according to the manner of sovereigns,

1834.]

FALKLAND ISLANDS.

501

with garrisons and colonies, would Ferdinand VII., King of
Buenos Ayres, have declared war against Ferdinand VII., King
of Spain and the Indies, for an invasion of sovereignty and juris-
diction ? And would Buenos Ayres, like the long parliament of
England, have fought against the king in the name of the king ?

The charge also contended, that if it were admitted that the
sovereign rights of Spain were vested in the ancient viceroyalty
of Rio de la Plata, by virtue of the revolution of May twenty-
fifth, eighteen hundred and ten, those rights could not have been
vested in the Argentine Republic, because that republic constituted
only one of the four nations into which the viceroyalty was di-
vided, and could not show the releases of the others ; and that
the Oriental Republic of Yruquay, commonly called the Banda
Oriental, Paraguay, and Bolivia, all independent nations, had
equal rights to the possession of the islands in question with the
Argentine Republic. The charge might have pushed the argu-
ment on this ground still further ; there is no Argentine.Republic .
a number of provinces, once connected by a very feeble and im-
perfect tie, assumed that name, and did, for a short period, ac-
knowledge a common government ; but that confederation was
dissolved, and each province became independent : before the
dissolution, however, a quasi power to manage the foreign rela-
tions was conferred on Buenos Ayres ; but the other provinces
regard no stipulations with foreign nations, made by Buenos
Ayres, as obligatory on them, unless they are pleased to make
them so. Between these provinces, being twelve ot fifteen in
number, there is no existing political dependant connexion ; and
they are all independent nations, with all the attributes of sov-
ereignty ; and each one as much entitled to the possession of the
Falklands and the adjacent islands as Buenos Ayres : and yet, in
fact, Buenos Ayres is the only party in interest ; and on this mere
fragment of a right, according to their own showing, have all these
overweening pretensions to sovereign power, over islands distant
a thousand miles from their continental possessions, been set up.

Mr. Baylies asks “if the Argentine Republic, claiming no ori-
ginal title or rights but such only as were derivative from Spain,
could assume any higher title than that which Spain assumed ;
and Spain certainly never assumed any right to capture or
detain American vessels or American citizens engaged in the

502

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[March,

fisheries at these islands.” He quoted a provision in the treaty
of San Lorenzo el Real, made between Spain and Great Britain
on the twenty-eighth of October, seventeen hundred and ninety,
in which it was stipulated mutually, that no settlements should be
made on the islands in question by either party ; but that the
waters and the shores might be used by the subjects of each
for the purposes of the fishery. Can it be supposed that Spain,
a nation jealous of her rights and sovereignty, and peculiarly
sensitive on the subject of her South American dominions,
would have virtually abandoned her sovereign rights over these
wide regions, if she supposed her title to be well founded, and free
from doubt ? There could be no dispute as to the real object of
the treaty, which was to leave an open fishery in these regions.

In the year seventeen hundred and sixty-four, a squadron was
ordered to the South Seas by the King of Great Britain, Geqrge
III., which was placed under the command of the Honourable
John Byron. In his instructions it is asserted, that the Falkland.
Islands were first discovered by English navigators ; and he was
directed to survey them. On the twenty -third of January, seven-
teen hundred and sixty-five. Commodore Byron took poJssession
of the Falkland Islands, with all the usual solemnities, in the
name of the King of Great Britain.

On the eighth of January, seventeen hundred and sixty-six.
Captain Macbride arrived at Port Egmont with a military force,
erected a block-house, and stationed a garrison, under the au-
thority of Great Britain. Some attempts at cultivation were made,
and several thousand young trees, with the mould about their roots,
were brought from Port Famine Bay for the purpose of being re-
set at the Falklands. All these proceedings were had by order
of the King of Great Britain, “ and as to all consequent rights
the occupation was complete.”

It is a well-known fact, however, that some Frenchmen
had made a temporary establishment on one of the Falkland
Islands about this period, and that in consequence of a remon-
strance made by Spain, the King of France ceded all his right to
those islands to his Catholic majesty. If the doctrine assumed
by Spain was correct, — that France had not even a colourable
title — the cession was a nullity ; and it is a fact that Spain so re-

1834.]

FALKLAND ISLANDS.

503

garded it, and relied on her prior rights alone in her subsequent
controversy with Great Britain.

On the tenth of June, seventeen hundred and seventy, the
British were dispossessed by a Spanish force, when their title had
been placed on the triple ground of prior discovery, formal pos-
session, and actual occupation ; and the islands being uninhabited,
there was no aboriginal title to be extinguished.

The act of dispossession was disavowed by Spain, and the
islands restored. Great Britain resumed possession, and then vol-
untarily abandoned the islands ; but avers that she did not relin-
quish them. ■

“ It is true (says Mr. Baylies) that many years have elapsed,
since, under these circumstances, she ceased to occupy the Falk-
land Islands : but the lapse of time cannot prevent her from re-
suming possession, if her own maxim of law be well founded,
nullum tempus occurit regi‘^ — and that she persisted in her claim
was evident, from the protest of November, eighteen hundred and
twenty-nine, a copy of which had been communicated to him
officially by his excellency Henry S. Fox, her minister near that
government. Mr. Baylies thought this protest must have been
overlooked, when Don Tomas Manuel de Ancherona, the former
minister of foreign affairs, had asserted, in his correspondence
with the American consul, that, until then, nobody had questioned
the rights of the Argentine Republic ; for he had in his possession
a copy of the official acknowledgment of its receipt, also com-
municated to him officially by the British envoy.

We have always thought that it was a silly and unfounded
censure cast upon our charge, in the government newspapers of
Buenos Ayres, for this expose of the British title. He stated
nothing, as we can perceive, but historical facts, of such notoiiety
that no British statesman could have been presumed to be igno-
rant of them. It seems his object was to persuade the govern-
ment of Buenos Ayres, that their title to the Falklands was not
so indubitable as they supposed, for the purpose of inducing them
to relinquish the high ground which they had taken against Ins
country, and therefore he gave them a view of the strength of
the British title ; and they, in their wisdom, instead of placing his
argument with the British protest in the secret places of their

archives, thought proper to publish it; and then, through the me-

(

504 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [Maich,

dium of their newspapers, charged their own imprudence upon
him !

Our charge contended further, that if the Argentine Republic
had even acquired the entire rights of sovereignty over the islands
in question, yet even those rights were not such as to justify the
republic in excluding citizens of the United States from the use
of the fisheries. On this point he brought the argument to the
following conclusions :

“ First — That the right of the United States to the ocean fish-
ery, and in the bays, arms of the sea, gulfs, and other inlets in-
capable of being fortified — is perfect and entire.

“ Second — That the right on the ocean within a marine league
of the shore, where the approach cannot be injurious to the sov-
ereign of the country, as it cannot be on uninhabited regions, or
such as are occupied by savages — is equally perfect.

“ Third — That the shores of such regions can be used as freely
as the waters : a right arising from the same principles.

“ Fourth — That a constant and uninterrupted use of the shores
for the purposes of a fishery, would give the right perfect and
entire — although settlements on such shores should be subse-
quently formed or established.”

He contended, that if long and uninterrupted use could impart
a right, the right of the United States was unimpeachable ; and
to prove that the right may be so acquired, he cited Vattel, book
i., ch. xxiii., ^ 287, where it is laid down as a rule, that if a nation
has once acknowledged the common right of other nations to use
fisheries on its own coasts, it cannot afterward exclude them :
the fishery was then left in its primitive freedom, at least, with
respect to those who had been accustomed to take advantage of
it ; and so the English not having originally taken exclusive pos-
session of the herring-fisheries on their coasts, it has become
common to them with other nations.

The acknowledgment spoken of in such cases may be ex-
press or implied. A long-continued use, without interruption,
is a virtual acknowledgment of the right to use ; and in the in-
stance cited — the herring-fisheries on the English coasts — there
has been no formal acknowledgment on the part of England, that
other nations have a right to use that fishery : from the acquies-
cence of England, the acknowledgment is inferred.

1834.]

FALKLAND ISLANDS.

505

He then examined the question on the hypothesis of a sov-
ereignty so perfect, that all the rights claimed by the Argentine
Republic would spring from it — yet he contended that there were
preliminary acts to be performed before -the capture and deten-
tion of the persons or property of American citizens could be
justified. If regions (said he) not occupied, or brought under
any positive jurisdiction, without garrisons, or naval forces, or
inhabitants — are to be occupied and brought under civil or military
rule, and those who have enjoyed the privilege of a free fishery
there are to be excluded from that privilege, it is incumbent on
the nations assuming such powers to give official notice to the
resident representatives, or to the governments of all nations with
whom relations of amity are maintained, before any acts of vio-
lence, in assertion of such sovereign rights, can be justified. A
warning to individuals was not enough, for that was not a general
notice ; and individuals not warned might incur forfeitures and
penalties without any knowledge of their liabilities, and their
governments, equally ignorant, could take no preventive means for
their security; and that laws or decrees enforcing penalties for
such offences, not made known to the nations whose citizens or
subjects were liable to fall under their operation, were in the
nature of ex post facto laws.

This long communication was concluded by professions of the
most amicable and conciliatory character. The charge said, the
questions in controversy extended far beyond the South American
regions, and affected in a serious manner the most important in-
terests of his nation ; and that it was a cause of deep regret to the
American people to be compelled to contend for these vital princi-
ples with a nation for whom they had ever cherished the most
amicable sentiments— whose independence they had recognised
at an early period of their national existence, — a recognition
springing from sympathies excited to enthusiasm in favour of a
gallant people, who had won their freedom by their prowess and
valour.

He informed the minister that he was instructed to say, “ that
the President of the United States was fully sensible of the diffi-
cult situation in which the internal troubles of the republic had
placed its government, and did not attribute to any unfriendly dis-
position acts that, in ordinary times, might wear such an aspect ;

506

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[March,

but he expected, from the similarity of the republican forms of the
governments of both nations, and from a recollection of the early
recognition of the independence of their republic by the govern-
ment of the United States, and their uniformly amicable dispo-
sitions since, that, on consideration of their complaints, full justice
■would be done.”

He concluded by informing the minister that he -was authorized
to conclude a commercial treaty “ on free and reciprocal terms.”

The correspondence between the American charge d’affaires
and the Argentine minister appears at this period to have been
suspended for some days. The former, however, appears to have
kept his main object steadily in view, and persevered in his em
deavours to bring the government of Buenos Ayres to a distinct
avowal or disavowal of their right to capture American vessels
or American citizens engaged in the fisheries, and thus to reduce
the questions in issue to a single point. After waiting a reason-
able time for the minister to answer the inquiry in the note of
the twenty-sixth of June or the sixth of August, he addressed to
him another note, recalling his attention to the subject, and re-
newing the inquiry.

On the fourteenth of August the minister transmitted to Mr.
Baylies a long memorial of Vernet, who was then for the first
time styled ‘‘Political and Military Commandante of the Falk-
land Islands,” accompanied with a communication of an extra-
ordinary character, in which the charge was accused of attempt-
ing to change, by a violent effort, the ground of negotiation, for the
purpose of keeping out of view “the daring and cruel outrage
committed at the islands by Mr. Duncan and then followed a
long train of abusive epithets, in which Duncan was berated in
the most exaggerated and hyperbolical style. The minister
declared that the perfidy, ferocity, black anger, and barbarity of the
American commander, and the enormity of his outrage, attacking
the settlement by surprise and with deception, like a highway
robber or pirate, had excited universal astonishment, wounded
intensely the honour and dignity of the two republics, outraging
and insulting the Argentine nation, and tarnishing the credit and
reputation of the United States. Vernet was likened to one who
had been robbed, and had caught the robber with the booty in his
hands. The minister, in an awkward attempt to identify Duncan

FALKLAND ISLANDS.

507

1834.]

with his country said, “ such conduct would not have been practised
by respectable nations, as England and France : it could only have
taken place by an ignoble abuse on the part of the powerful
against the weak, or among barbarous people, who know no law
but the dictates of their passions, nor resort to other means of
obtaining reparation of real or feigned wrongs than those of a
blind and ferocious vengeance.” To complete the catalogue of
Duncan’s offences — “ he had the audacity to address an official
note to the minister in an uncivil and impolite manner. The
consul was complained of “ for occupying himself in extempo-
raneous and unresonaable matters greatly above his authority and
of adopting a tone which did not comport with the respect and
modesty with which the government of a sovereign state ought
to be addressed. Disorder, therefore (says the minister), injus-
tice, insult, and violence, have been on the side of Messrs. Slacum
and Duncan, but especially on that of the latter, he having carried
his turpitude and ferocity to the last extremity— destroying, with
unspeakable inhumanity and perfidy, the Falkland Island colony.
They have openly contemned, depressed, and outraged the dignity
of the Argentine people — with a manifest stain upon their own
nation and government.” The minister then proceeded to de-
mand, “ before any thing else, prompt and complete satisfaction,
reparation, and indemnification for these outrages, not only for the
Argentine Republic, but Commandante V ernet and the colonists

and until such satisfaction, reparation, and indemnification were

obtained, he assured the charge that the government would not
enter on the discussion of any of the points comprehended in his

j^otes “ and, in the meantime, would exercise their rights in such

manner as they might esteem convenient.”

In reply to this communication, our charge, on the eighteenth
of August, sent a short and emphatic note to the minister.*

* “ Legation of the United States of America, )
“Buenos Ayres, August 18th, 1832. (

(( 'j'^0 "midersigned has the honour to acknowledge the receipt of the note of his
excellency the provisional minister of foreign affairs, dated the fourteenth instant.

“ A communication, addressed to his excellency, appearing to be a memorial of
Louis Vernet, is returned.

“ Having no authority to stipulate that reparation shall be made to Louis Vernet,
or to the Argentine Republic, for the acts of the commander of the Lexington at
the Falkland Islands, and, being expressly directed by his own government to justify

508 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [March,

In this manner terminated the mission of Ffancis Baylies to the
Argentine Republic.

It appears to us, that the attempt of Mr, Baylies’ negotiation to
bring the Argentine government to a direct avowal or disavowal
of the right of Vernet, or their own right, to seize the vessels and
citizens of the United States, was based on sound policy. If a
disavowal was obtained^ the main object was effected ; the question
as to the amount of indemnity was of minor consequence, for in
the disordered state of the Argentine finances, a treaty or stipulation
covering the whole amount would be no more than a “ promise
to pay” at some indefinite period. The principle in question
affected interests of the first importance to the United States —
interests existing in other places besides these regions. If the
government of Buenos Ayres avowed the acts of Vernet, and
claimed the right of excluding all nations from the fisheries, — then
every maritime nation would justify the proceedings of the United
States. Great Britain, France, Spain, Portugal, and, we believe,
Russia and Holland, have used these fisheries freely. The United
States, instead of incurring the odium of aiming at a monopoly,
would have been regarded as the champions of a common right.

Some have thought our charge too precipitate, and that he did
not make sufficient allowance for that tendency in all nations of
Spanish descent to procrastinate ; we think the reflection unjust,
for one of less sagacity must have known, that delay would have
been sought for no purposes of ultimate benefit to the United
States, Avhose plain and obvious interest it was to have the ques-
tion settled ; it not being of material consequence to them how it
was settled. In one alternative, their citizens would have been
relieved from depredations on their commerce — in the other, meas-

those acts, the undersigned must yield to that alternative which his excellency has
made imperative : — and as his continuance here would be useless to his country, he
asks passports for himself and for his family. He relies on his excellency for the
necessary and usual facilities for embarking his personal effects, and the library and
archives of the legation.

“ In closing his correspondence, the undersigned tenders to his excellency the
assurance of his respect and consideration.

“Francis Baylies.

■“ His Excellency D. Don Manuel de Maza, Minister of

Grace and Justice, charged provisionally with the

Department of Foreign Affairs.”

1834.]

FALKLAND ISLANDS.

509

ures would have been taken for its effectual protection. As the
Argentine government had gone so far, previous to the arrival of
Mr. Baylies, the question would seem to have been deliberately
considered, so far as deliberation can be predicated of the charac-
ter of a people under such circumstances.

With respect to the charges contained in the informe of Ver-
net, it appears to be confined principally to extenuations and cen-
sures of the charge. Mr. Baylies did wisely in returning it, aud
declining, in behalf of the United States, the honour and the privi-
lege of presenting them as a party versus Louis Vernet, before
the Argentine government, acting as judges and umpires, especially
as that government had called Vernet into their councils, and sub-
mitted the correspondence of the department of foreign affairs to
his inspection.

We will state, however, that Vernet admitted the material facts
set forth in the note of the twentieth of June. He admitted the
capture of the Harriet, the Breakwater, and the Superior. He
admitted that he seized their papers. He admitted that he took a
part of the cargo of the Harriet for his own use, and the use of
the colony, before adjudication. He admitted that he imprisoned the
captains and the seamen ; but he calls the imprisonment a pre-
cautionary measure of police, because the colony was in a mutin-
ous state, and there were only twenty persons in whom he could
confide. He admitted the contract with Davison and Congar, and,
although these captains were under duresse, he denied that it was
compulsory : he declared that he was sure both vessels would be
condemned at Buenos Ayres, and therefore he thought it best, for
the interests of the American owners, that one should be profita-
bly employed while the other was awaiting her trial ; — a very
honest desire indeed to promote the interests of the owners, when
he was sure both would be condemned ! He admitted the stipu-
lation respecting his personal interests. He admitted the oaths.
He admitted that he made the contract as a private individual : he
acted in a double capacity it seems : when acts of violence and
piracy were to be committed, the criminality was hidden under the
gubernatorial shield : when that well-known law, by which a con-
demnation by a judicial tribunal is made necessary before the
original owners of vessels can be divested of their property in
them, was to be violated, and a swindling contract effected, the

510

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[March,

governor was sunk in the director : the civil and military escutch-
eon was removed, and the trader’s sign appeared : the sword of
state was sheathed, and the ruler of boundless regions betook him-
self to retailing rum, and biscuit, and molasses ! He prides him-
self on his generosity in suffering the Superior to sail without a
guarantee ; but he forgets the sealskins in his possession uncon-
demned, and the penalty of five hundred dollars in the contract.
He admitted that seven of the crew of the Superior were left on
Staten-land, but avers that they were provisioned for nine months
instead of six ; the difference was wholly immaterial, if they were
not to be relieved at all. He admitted that he arrested five sea-
men at Eagle Island, instead of four, as alleged by Mr. Baylies ;
but avers that only two of them belonged to the shipwrecked crew
of the Belville. He arrested them (he says) because other Ameri-
cans, including Davison, had informed him that they were “ dan-
gerous persons, of a disposition to piracy.” He found them use-
ful, and admitted them members of the colony, — whether from
their- “ disposition to piracy” or not, does not appear. He ad-
mitted the contract respecting the shallop. He admitted that he
took from these men the sealskins and whalebone ; but says they
were to be indemnified from their future earnings in his service !
He denied that he induced or obliged American citizens to cap-
ture the vessels and persons of their countrymen — “ To effect the
detention of the Harriet, Superior, and Breakwater (he says), no-
body was induced or forced, nor was I under the necessity of
doing it. All the individuals, Americans and of other nations, who
united in the capture of these vessels, did it because they de-
sired it, and because it was agreeable to them. All were mem-
bers of the colony, and, as such, participated in the prizes.” This
is a curious avowal of this civil and military governor. His col-
ony must have been somewhat like Morton’s at Merry-Mount :
every man did what seemed right in his own eyes — captured and
plundered vessels, and imprisoned their crews, not in pursuance
of law and just authority, but because it was agreeable to them !
“Well, then (continues the governor), the fishery was the property
of the colony ; and if all those who composed it had a right to
sequestered goods, to make those Americans participators of them
who were on the roll of the colonists was not to induce them to
rob their countrymen, but to exercise an act of rigorous justice.

1834.]

FALKLAND ISLANDS.

511

which would not be denied to them, since they were members of
the colony.”

The ethics of the governor are singular — ^lie takes credit to
himself for his rigorous justice in sharing the plunder with the
robber, and denies that the prospect of plunder was any induce-
ment to robbery ! He denied that he practised any cruelty on the
seaman Crawford, or that the declarations which were imputed to
him by Captain Davison, of an intention to discriminate between
the English and the Americans, in favour of the former, and to
interrupt the American whale-fishery with an armed vessel. As
to these facts, Mr. Baylies quotes his authority, and at present
those charges are to be viewed with reference to the superior
credibility of Vernet or Davison. With the exception of the
three last, almost every important allegation embraced in the note
of the twentieth of June is admitted, and extenuated in the man-
ner as related above.

What a picture does this governor exhibit of himself and his
colony — a picture drawn by his own hand ! In a period of pro-
found peace, the vessels and the property of the nation which had
first stretched forth the hand of fellowship to the infant Argentines,
and greeted them as equals in the family of nations, were forcibly
seized and appropriated without legal adjudication. American
seamen were imprisoned: shipwrecked mariners, first plundered
of the scanty earnings of their hours of desolation, were converted
into Argentines for the purpose of plundering their own country-
men. Argentines and Montevideans, Germans, Old Englishmen
and New Englanders, were conglomerated in one foul mass, and
fashioned into a lawless colony under a reckless governor !

As to the remainder of Vernet’s communication respecting the
title, &c., we shall content ourselves with saying, that the govern-
ment of Buenos Ayres must have been sadly in want of materiel
when they fashioned this vagabond into a quasi minister of foreign
affairs.

There is, however, one fact mentioned in the “ informe” which
deserves a passing notice. “ In eighteen hundred and twenty
(says Vernet) the government of Buenos Ayres entered on the
formal possession of the Malvinas (Falklands), by means of the
Colonel of Marine, Don David Jewett the act was solemnized
by a salute of cannon, &c., in presence of the officers and crews
of several English and American vessels. From this account it

512

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[March,

would appear, ( that the act was not performed in behalf of the
Argentine Republic, but for the government of Buenos Ayres.

If Don David Jewett took possession under a salute, from
whence came the guns? Vernet says he landed them. If so,
they must have been taken from a vessel — why is the name of
the vessel suppressed ?

We have some rec ollection of having heard of a vessel called the
Heroine, which, in some publication of Governor V ernet, was digni-
fied by the name and style of the national corvette Heroine. This
vessel sailed from Buenos Ayres in eighteen hundred and twenty,
and in the same year visited the Falkland Islands, being under
the command of one David Jewett. She was unfortunate — hav-
ing been captured^ by the Portuguese frigate Perola, off Cape
Spartel, on the twentieth of March, eighteen hundred and twenty-
two, — the kingdom of Portugal and the Argentine Republic, as
to each other, then being in a state of profound peace. Notwith-
standing, the Heroine was condemned in the court of admiralty
at Lisbon, as a lawful prize to the captors, her officers and crew
having been found guilty of many aggravated acts of piracy.
Jewett was not the commander at the time of the capture.* Did
he abandon her at the Falklands ? Was the plunder of the first
cruise shared there ? If the Heroine was a national corvette,
the national loss was greater in amount than the damages done
Vernet’s colony by Captain Duncan. We have heard of no rec-
lamations— ^no denunciations of the Portuguese for this “Vandal”
outrage on the Argentine flag : this capture of “ a national cor-
vette,” in a period of profound peace : — this seizure of the very
guns which (if it was the vessel commanded by David Jewett)
had solemnized the great act by which a nation proclaimed her
sovereignty over a great region. If the David Jewett, CoroneZ de
Marina of Vernet, are identical, there would seem to be a won-
derful congruity in all things relating to this celebrated settle-
ment. A symmetry, fitness, and adaptation of parts, disclosing
the perfection of the original design. The guns of a pirate an-
nounced the sovereign rights of the — Argentine Republic ! The
ceremonies might have been rendered more appropriate and ex-
act, by burying a chest of money with its usual accompaniments !

* She was then under command of one Mason, an Englishman, who took
charge of her at the Falkland Islands.

1834.]

FALKLAND ISLANDS.

513

After the rupture of the negotiations, one Mestivier, a French-
man, was appointed civil and military commandant of the Falk-
land Islands and their dependances in the Atlantic Ocean ; on
the tenth of September, the appointment was promulgated by a
decree, signed by Rosas, the governor, and Balcarse, the minister
of war and marine. The whole naval force of this maritime
republic, which claimed to hold so many remote islands as colo-
nies, beipg the Sarandi, a schooner of six or eight guns, was put
in requisition to convey the governor, his suite, garrison, and col-
ony, to the islands. A bloody mutiny broke out soon after his

arrival, and the governor was assassinated.

Notwithstanding the form, parade, and publicity which attended
this new demonstration of the claim of sovereignty, the settlement
was again broken up by Captain Onslow,^ of the British s^ip-of-
war Clio, who rivalled Duncan in deeds of violence. John Bull
had ships, and seamen, and commerce, and had no greater love
for pirates than Jonathan. The wrath of the Argentine govern-
ment was turned against that respectable nation, which had been
represented by them, in their correspondence with Mr. Baylies,
as incapable of such acts. The captain of the Clio resumed the
possession of the islands in the name of William IV . No regular
military garrison has as yet been placed there by Great Britain.
Some of the settlers were left, among whom was Brisbane, the
Scotchman, the agent of Vernet. To complete the melodrame
or rather the mingled farce and tragedy of the Falkland Island

settlement, Brisbane has been murdered. (

Though a person by the name of Smith, of whose office or
character nothing is known, has lately warned sealers not to visit
these islands,— still it is presumed they can do so with perfect
safety. If they are molested, it is an easy sail for one of our
sloops-of war on the Brazil station to run down there and break

up Mr. Smith.

Buenos Ayres has been in trouble too. Rosas, the governor,

same time the uuenos Ayieau uag,
with a message, that it was a foreign
government, through an agent at .
without having, as yet, received any
intentions to abandon the islands.

rean flag, and sending it on board, the schooner Sarandi,
s a foreign flag, found on British soil. The Buenos Ayrean
agent at London, has protested against this occupation,

assurance, on the part of Great Britain, of hei

614

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[March,

resigned, not long after the rupture of the negotiations, and took
the command of the army of the interior, as it -is called. The
office of governor was conferred on Don Juan Ramon Balcarse.
A revolution was enacted, Balcarse was overthrown and exiled,
and escaped to the Banda Oriental. Viamonte, who is the locum
tenens in all changes, was appointed governor. The people were
not satisfied, and three times was the government tendered to the
real Caesar, Don Juan Manuel de Rosas, “ which he did thrice
refuse.” Twice has it been offered to Don Tomas Manuel de
Ancherona and refused. It was finally accepted by De Maza,
the former minister of grace and justice. The civil government
has the mere shadow of authority ; the treasury is empty — feuds and
factions distract this unhappy country. Good men — enlightened
and patriotic men, there are in this country, but they have no
affinity with the moral elements which surround them. The
seminal principle of free institutions is there, but it is like the
roots of the trees in the Pampas, as soon as it shoots above the
earth, the pamparo of a revolution stops its growth, — the hopes
of the better people are constantly blasted ; time alone can bring
a remedy !

The government of Buenos Ayres have repeatedly assured
the government of the United States that they would send a min-
ister to this country, but none has appeared. It is not probable
that any new outrages will be committed on our commerce or
citizens. Should any be attempted, the cannon of our ships will
negotiate a settlement more effectually than the most accomplished
diplonaatist.

If Great Britain should advance any pretensions to the ex-
clusive use of the fisheries at the Falklands, it is to be hoped
that such pretensions will be as strenuously resisted as were
those of the Argentine Republic — indeed, more strenuously —
for we could afford to laugh at the empty bluster and sounding
bravadoes of the Argentines, and smile at the pompous preten-
sions of a province with a population of less than two hundred
thousand — but should the empress of islands come into the field
of controversy with the same pretensions, she must be met as
an equal in the family of nations ; and while we carefully abstain
from all encroachments on her rights, our own should be defended
with unflinching vigo_ur and firmness.

1834.]

ICEBERGS.

516

CHAPTER XXX.

Passage north of the Falkland Islands — Icebergs — Perilous situation of the Potomac'
— Arrival at Rio — Naval etiquette — Excursion up the Bay — Island of Paqueta —
National festival — Sail for the United States — Arrival at Boston — Public de-
spatches— Splendid ball on board — End of the voyage.

After passing the Falkland Islands we stood on to the north,
shaping our course for Rio de Janeiro. On the morning of the
seventeenth of March, at an early hour, land was reported from
the look-out aloft. The commodore was on deck, and though the
outlines of the object ahead could be clearly seen, in despite of
the mist, no one believed that an island was to be met with north
of the Falklands, which had for centuries remained undiscovered,
in the common highway of nations. A short time removed all
uncertainty ; as we bore down under a heavy press of sail, , a
towering iceberg, shrouded in a cold mist and fog, was moving
slowly on, by the power of deep currents, from the gloomy and
cheerless regions of the south.

“ Thus in the Atlantic, oft the sailor eyes,

While melting in the reign of softer skies,

Some Alp of ice, from polar region blown, —

Hail the glad influence of a warmer zone.”

It moved along with awful, but not solitary grandeur, being but
one of a squadron which successively rose to the view ; so that
in sailing more than two degrees, we occasionally encountered
these floating pyramids — now clothed in vapour, and again show-
ing forth in a pure, cold, and silvery brightness. On the morning
of the nineteenth the Potomac was for a moment in imminent
peril, as she dashed through between two of these crystal towers,
the large hummucks grating along her sides with a force that
showed the power of their resistance. “Hard down the helm !”
resounded on deck, and the order was instantly obeyed, followed
again by the harsh grating of the ice along the sides and copper
of the vessel. For a moment, the frigate bore off in perfect

K k 2

516

VOYAGE OP THE POTOMAC.

[March,

obedience to her helm ; when an iceberg on the other bow requi-
red the counter order, “ hard up the helm ! steady ! steady ! she
will now go clear !” and our noble ship passed out unscathed ! —
To manage a vessel under such circumstances requires the highest
exertion of nautical skill.

It is not easy to do justice to the profession of the sailor. His
noblest efforts are witnessed only by the few hardy spirits who
are themselves actors along with him. Not so in other professions.
The persuasive accents of the pulpit orator fall upon the ears of
an attentive and tranquil audience, and by the numerous chords
of human sympathies are preserved and extended to a crowded cir-
cle ; the resistless advocate, while in the courts of justice he pleads
the cause of injured innocence, or stays the strong arm of the
proud oppressor, is surrounded by multitudes, who can pay hom-
age to his eloquence ; the erudite judge records his opinions, and
his name will be referred to in the coming time ; while the vener-
able senator, it may be said, by means of the press, speaks to a
listening nation, and not unfrequently to an admiring world ; the
artist, whose pencil imparts life to the “ glowing canvass,” leaves
the impress of his genius to mellow and improve with time ; the
writer of romance creates and peoples realms of his own, and
keeps alive a world of ideal sympathy and passion in the human
heart !

Not so the sailor. Much of the grandeur, we might say sub-
limity, of his profession, is lost to the rest of the world : nor can
any language breathe into description the imbodied spirit of his
experience ! While we admire the noble bark, that breasts the
billows, and moves on battling with the elements until she reaches
the point of her destination, though it be the farthermost port in the
known world, yet how much more sublime to our contemplation
is the intelligence which directs her movements with such unerring
certainty ! And how often, amid the wide waste of ocean, is that
intelligence brought to contend with the wild spirit of the storm,
the goodly ship writhing beneath the angry tempest, while a single
error in command, or the mind unpoised for an instant, would be
fatal to all on board. How the good ship, among the proudest
monuments of the genius of man, still rides on, till the -very ele-
ments have wasted their strength, and wearied themselves into
repose, in vain attempts for the mastery ! But of this mighty

TlieU.S.Zxigate Potomac "passiag thicfugiL a iielcL of Ice
Petweentwo icePexgs.Pefore dayltgPL.PTaTcli.lSSt.

” " -*' *’‘ -,' *”«v. . •*” ■ ■

iiiO' r^- -»

{

\ {

1834.]

arrival at RIO.

517

struggle, no record is left ; for the sailor, child of the tempest-
tossed ocean, forgets the grandeur of the scene almost as soon as
the white caps have ceased to run, or the waters become smooth
in the wake of his vessel !

The dangers of the icebergs passed ; we continued our course
to the north until the morning of Wednesday, the twenty-sixth
of March, when land was again announced, and the towering
sugar-loaf of Rio was soon after visible from the frigate’s deck;
and, favoured by the seabreeze, we succeeded in coming to
anchor at an early hour. The sloop-of-war Peacock, Captain
Geisinger, late from her cruise to the East Indies, was lying at
anchor, and on recognising the Potomac, saluted the broad pennant
of Commodore Downes, which compliment was returned by the
usual number of guns. The schooner Boxer, Lieutenant-com-
mandant Farragut, was also at Rio. On the same day. Commo-
dore Wolsey came from Montevideo, his broad pennant flying on
the sloop-of-war Natchez. Salutes with the forts, and the other
men-of-war in the harbour, were exchanged during the afternoon
and the following day, Rio being a station of much naval etiquette.

In addition to our former remarks on this interesting portion of
South America we would here observe, that the whole empire of
Brazil contains a population of not far from five millions. Of
these, three millions are slaves; one million are free people
of colour; and one million are whites, or descendants of the
Portuguese ; and even of this number we have heard it stated, on
the best authority, that there were in reality not more than two
hundred thousand in all Brazil, of unmixed blood ! — Our authority
is Sylvester Rebelo, formerly minister from Brazil to the United
States, to whom we are indebted for other valuable information^
which, we regret, our limits will not permit us to imbody.

An interesting celebration occurred at Rio on the twelfth day
after our arrival, it being Monday, the seventh of April. This
day is celebrated as the anniversay of the departure of Don Pedro,
on which occasion the young emperor, 'attended by the regents,
receives visits from all the public functionaries. All our com-
manders, and a suitable number of officers, were presented to his
imperial majesty by our minister, Mr. Brown who, being the
oldest diplomatic agent in Brazil, had the precedence ; and from
him, also, custom required a short speech. In the evening, a

'518

VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC.

[April,

splendid, imperial ball was given by the members of a society*
who commemorate the, day, ostensibly in anticipation of the cor-
onation of the young emperor ; but, in fact, to keep alive the spirit
of hostility to his father and the mother country. His young
imperial majesty and his august sisters, together with theuegency,
ministers, and diplomatic corps, attended, as usual, this annual
gala.

To be relieved from the bustle of the ship, we embraced an
opportunity of visiting the upper part of the bay, in one of the
fine ferry-boats which ply between Rio and Praya Grande. Mag-
nificent as is the harbour at the city, no one can form any con-
ception of its extent and beauty, unless by taking a wider excur-
sion for that purpose. Starting early in the morning, the land-
breeze compelled us to stand over to the opposite side, and make
our way to the southeast shore. As one advances, numerous
islands are scattered along at intervals, thickly clothed with orange
and coffee-trees, with here and there a neat little hut or cot, peer-
ing above the shrubbery, with gardens attached, filled with the
richest flowers, and breathing the most delicious odours.

At about ten miles from the city is the Island of Paqueta, one
of the largest and most important in the bay. "Here are to be
seen elegant country-seats, and quite a dense population. The
soil is very rich, producing the sugarcane, plantain, orange, choco-
late, coffee, and lime-trees, all huddled together ; and sometimes
apparently from spontaneous growth.

From this point you have the view of other islands, and the still
vast expansion of the bay. What a delightful spot — clothed with
the richest verdure, with various walks among the trees of delicious
fruits, and flowers of the most delicate and richest hues. No
noise — no tumult. We had almost said, no motion ! Quiet still-
ness reigned undisturbed. After having been so long confined to
the ship, tossed and buffeted about in doubling the stormy Cape,
and tired with the noise of sailors, and still more with the songs
and din of the narrow streets of Rio — what a relief — what sweet
repose !

Yes — and then a night away from the dull, but deafening tattoo
— the sharp discharge of the evening and morning gun — the
change of watch — the passing of lanterns — the hum of partially-
* Called the “ Defenders of the National Liberty and Independence.”

1834.] ARRIVAL AT BOSTON. 519

suppressed voices — the incessant tramp of the lonely watch-
officer — and the call through the trumpet to the look-out aloft —
we repeat, to be free from all these, with a thousand other annoy-
ances— and to find one’s self alone in a peaceful, paradisiacal re-
treat— why, what luxury of solitude ! — what a heaven of rest !
To sleep in. quiet — dream in peace — and wake at pleasure; un-
disturbed by the sudden and tremendous burst of the reveille — this
is what we experienced at the sweet little Island of Paqueta !

On the morning of Wednesday, the ninth of April, at an early
hour, we got under way, and, by the aid of boats and a landbreeze,
soon cleared the harbour. Our passage to the line was tedious,
nor was there aught of intei'est until Thursday, the twenty-second
of May, when we made the land at the entrance of Boston harbour,
and with a fine breeze ran in, and came to anchor ofi" Boston light-
house. On the following morning, the tide serving, we stood up
the isle-speckled bay, and soon came to anchor off the navy-yard,
at Charlestown. It was a joyous morning — for the hardships and
perils of the cruise were over.

In his official despatch to the secretary of the navy of this
date. May twenty-third, the commodore says : “ During the cruise
of the Potomac, she has touched at Rio de Janeiro twice ; Cape
of Good Hope, Africa ; Quallah-Battoo and Soo-soo, coast of Su-
matra; Bantam Bay and Batavia, Island of Java; Macao and
Lintin, China; Sandwich and Society Islands ; Valparaiso, three
times, Callao, the same ; Coquimbo, Payta, Galapagos Islands,
and Puna, Bay of Guayaquil ; has sailed over sixty-one thousand
miles, and been at sea five hundred and fourteen days, crossing
the equator sixtimes, and varying from 40” north to 57” south
latitude, while circumnavigating the globe ; and during this time,
she has not had a spar carried away, or lost a man by casualty, or
had one seriously injured.”

During the interval which elapsed in waiting the return of
despatches from Washington, a party was given by the commo-
dore and his lady, on board the Potomac, to the circle of their
numerous friends. It was allowed on all hands to be a beautiful
and brilliant affair ; every circumstance combined to render it in-
teresting and delightful, — the frigate had just returned from a long
voyage, of which it formed the closing scenpy the season was that

520 VOYAGE OF THE POTOMAC. [May,

joyous one in which the highest zest is given to a party of ani-
mated and elegant enjoyment — the flowery month of May,

“ When eyes are bright with pleasure,

And brows with wreaths are crowned.”

At an early hour on the appointed evening, barges were in waiting,
at the steps of the granite dock, to convey the company on
board the Potomac, which lay but a short distance from the
shore, so that the passages were made with ease and rapidity.
The guests were received, as they stepped upon the frigate’s deck,
by an officer, who escorted them from the spar to the gun-deck,
when another presented them to the commodore and his lady, in
the after-cabin. This portion of the ship was a place of general
promenade; while the spar-deck, from the mainmast to the taf-
ferel, covered with a spacious awning, constituted the extensive
and brilliant ball-room, lined and festooned with a beautiful cluster
of national flags.

One extremity of this fairy saloon might well have attracted the
attention and envy of those classical creations of fancy alluded to
by one of our best poets, Woodworth :

“ Sea-nymphs leave their coral caves,

Deep beneath the ocean waves.

Where they string, with tasteful care.

Pearls upon their sea-green hair ;

Thetis’ virgin train advances.

Mingling with our joyous dances !”

The other extremity of it was admirably illuminated by a
pyramid of light, arranged with singular effect, and with taste un-
questionable. A circle of muskets constituted its base, their
barrels being devoted to the office of candlesticks, while the
upper portions of the novel chandelier were formed, by a sim-
ilar necromancy, from a multitude of flower-encompassed bay-
onets. Wreathed about the whole hung, roses and tulips of every
colour the poet could dream of, with every description of leaf
and evergreen that is composed and arrayed in the ideal triumph
of beauty.

Far away, in the other extremity of the saloon, rendering still
more striking the beautiful perspective, hung a transparency of

1834.]

CONCLUSION.

621

Washington; which, as the eye glanced along the illuminated
distance, glowing with lesser pyramids of light, rose with a new
lustre upon the view.

The supper-table was arranged on the starboard side of the
gun-deck, and light was profusely scattered from its numerous
fanciful centres, radiating from among banners tastefully fes-
tooned, and illuminating a scene of various and elegant bounty.

But who would dwell upon the luxuries of the banquet, when
such loveliness was nigh to engross senses more exalted and re-
fined ? It would be idle to say that this aquatic gala was not to
be surpassed for its brilliant display of female grace and attrac-
tion, under their thousand forms of witchery, when it is re-
membered that on board that noble frigate was concentrated so
much of the beauty of Boston. Fashion never glittered in
more perfect communion with taste, and wit and intellect never
sparkled from eyes, or fell from lips, that more admirably told
their stories !

Again the dance went forward; and the revelry of music,
and glee, and light hearts, was resumed. Again fairy forms
floated among the banners, and again gayety and brigh,tness
flashed from the mazes of the cotillon. And thus the scene con-
tinued until an hour of which few took note, for all time was
then centred in the present. But, late or early as may have
been the “ breaking Up,” the scene was one that cannot be for-
gotten! It was deep night — and thick clouds were pouring in
from the sea, filling the bay ^^ith a still deeper gloom ; while the
thousand lights from the yet resounding frigate, rendered still
more striking the “ darkness visible” about her, and threw into a
wild and strange relief the towering outline of her masts and
spars, against the shifting and lurid heavens.

And thus the curtain fell, on this scene of new and elegant fes-
tivity. But it will be long, indeed, ere the splendour of the
Potomac’s decks, or the unsurpassed beauty which swept them
on that night, will be found among the dim things of memory.

APPENDIX.

Navy Department, June %lih, 1831.

Sib

When the frigate Potomac is in readiness to leave Norfolk, you will
proceed to New-York without delay, that her complete preparation and
equipment may be effected at the navy-yard there.

When she is in every respect ready for sea, which must certainly be
accomplished by the first day of August next, you will receive on board
the Honourable Martin Van Buren, minister from the United States to
England, and his suite, and immediately make sail, shaping your course -
for Portsmouth, on the southern coast of England, or for any other port
within the British Channel which you may find to be more safe and con-
venient, where you will land Mr. Van Buren and suite.

After fulfilling this part of your instructions, you will, with all practi-
cable despatch, direct your course for the Pacific Ocean, and assume the
command of the naval forces on that station. You will touch on your way
out at Porto Praya of the Cape de Verd Islands, if not inconvenient, and
also at Pernambuco, St. Salvador, and Rio de Janeiro, on the coast of
Brazil ; and communicating with the consuls or commercial agents of the
United States at these ports, and rendering every lawful aid and protec-
tion to the persons and property of our citizens which may be needed ;
not, however, making any unnecessary delay at either of these places.

On your arrival in the Pacific, you will obtain from Master-commandant
Gregory all necessary information relating to our commerce and squadron,
and adopt suitable measures for executing and accomplishing the instruc-
tions and objects which he has not had it in his power to fulfil previous
to your arrival. A copy of his orders is furnished.

The force under your command will consist of the Potomac, as flag-
ship, the sloop-of-war Falmouth, Master-commandant Gregory, and the
schooner Dolphin, Lieutenant John C. Long.

It is hoped that this force will be competent to afford efficient protec-
tion to our extensive and important interests in that region of the world ;
and placing every confidence in your skill, intelligence, and judgment, no
doubt is entertained of your using every exertion in your power fully to
accomplish the objects of your command.

You will, on all occasions, render to our citizens, vessels, commerce,
and interests, that assistance and protection to which they are lawfully
entitled. '

For your information and government in the execution of the duties
assigned to you, I transmit a volume containing the treaties concluded

524

APPENDIX.

between the United States and foreign powers, a compilation of the laws
of the United States relating to the navy, a circular respecting the dis-
charge of our seamen in foreign ports, another directing a quarterly report
to be made of American vessels boarded, and a third regulating the official
intercourse between the commanders of our ships-of-war and the consuls
of the United States in foreign ports.

It is important that you should keep yourself always correctly advised
of passing events ; and it is therefore advisable that you commence and
continue a regular correspondence with our public and commercial agents
within the limits of your station.

Cases may arise which it is impossible to foresee, and to meet which
definite instructions cannot be given ; should such occur out of the ordi-
nary way, you must be left to the exercise of a sound discretion.

Our relations with the governments of the southern continent of
America, as well as with Mexico, are on the most friendly footing ; and
care should be taken to abstain from any act which may impair their
present character, so far as this can be done consistently with the main-
tenance of our own just rights.

You will be careful, on entering any harbour, or meeting a public vessel
of another nation, to ihanifest the accustomed civilities ; as we confidently
expect them to be paid to us, it becomes us to be prompt in tendering
them to others.

At all places you may visit, you will encourage the best feelings to-
wards our government, nation, citizens, and interests ; exhibiting, wherever
an opportunity offers, that moderation and urbanity which become your
own character and that of the government you represent.

Should war arise on the western coast of America, it will be recollected
that the belligerant parties are entitled to equal rights ; and the utmost
caution must be observed to refrain from all acts towards either of them,
that might have a tendency to affect or compromise our neutral character.
Acts of kindness to either, although equally extended to the others, might
be misconceived or misconstrued to our prejudice. You will, therefore,
to avoid all causes of complaint, decline, if requested, taking on board the
vessels of your squadron, for either party, men, money, provisions, or sup-
plies, to be carried from such party to any port or country whatever.

If hostilities should take place, it is probable that the parties will resort,
as formerly, to the system of blockades, without an adequate force to
maintain that mode of annoyance, and to the great injury and inconvenience
of neutral vessels and commerce.

In the event of such a state of things, you will use your best efforts
to protect our citizens and their property from the illegal exercise of power ;
claiming for them all the rights and privileges to which they are entitled
by the laws of nations. At the same time you will avoid, as much as pos-
sible, all collision with either party, without compromitting in any manner
our own just rights and national honour.

It is to be feared that some of the freebooters, whose depredations have
been so successfully checked in the West Indies, and some of the priva-
teers and parties employed during the wars which have existed in that
quarter, may change the scene and character of their operations, in hopes
of finding our commerce in a defenceless state. To guard against such

APPENDIX.

525

an occurrence will require, on the part of the vessels under your command,
the utmost vigilance.

Among the accompanying papers, you will find a copy of the General
Instructions issued in relation to piracy and the slave-trade ; they may
be applicable to cases which may arise within the range of your command,
although specially designed for another station.

Misrepresentations, arising, no doubt, in most instances, from misappre-
hension and partial information, have often found their way to the public
papers, to the injury of the service and the prejudice of our government.
This renders it proper that you should endeavour to prevent communica-
tions from those under your command, respecting the. movements of the
squadron and your official transactions, which may possibly reach the
public in such a manner.

The propriety of such publications must be left to the government,
which will take care to afford full information, from the authentic means
in its possession, of whatever the interests of the nation will permit to be
made known.

You may receive on board the vessels of your squadron specie and
other articles, permitted by the act of Congress for the better government
of the navy, belonging exclusively to our own citizens, and carry them from
one port or place to another, when it does not interfere in any degvee with
your other more important duties, or infringe the laws of the country
where such articles are to be received or carried ; and, also, on your return
to the United States, you may bring with you gold, silver, and jewels, the
property of our own citizens. But our national vessels ought not, and
must- not, be used for purposes of commercial adventure; and you are^
in no case, to allow any thing in the shape of a public advertisement,
giving information that you will carry such articles. So many complaints
have been made on this subject, that I must impress upon you the necessity
of avoiding every thing which may give rise to unfriendly comments. In
order that the government may be informed of the extent to which the
commercial interests of our citizens have been benefited on this point,
and be prepared to answer any inquiries on this subject, you will, from
time to time, make reports of all the specie, &c. carried, the places to and
from which it may be taken, and the circumstances and conditions under
which you do it.

The health of your officers and crews will demand unceasing attention ;
the moral conduct and professional acquirements of the junior officers,
the exercise of constant watchfulness.

Rigid discipline, exactly enforced, is essential to maintain the reputa-
tion of the navy, and it must not for one moment be neglected. You are
perfectly aware, that a firm and energetic course on the part of the supe-
rior, accompanied by mild, humane, and gentlemanly deportment, is the
best mode of accomplishing, in a satisfactory manner, the various objects
intrusted to your command.

It is also especially necessary that commanding officers should guard
against the influence of feelings of partiality or prejudice in the treatment
of inferiors. Every officer is entitled to, and must enjoy, all the privi-
leges of rank and station. Whenever these are permitted to one and

.626

APPENDIX.

denied to another, or preferences are shown, insubordination and unkind
feelings are immediately engendered, to the lasting injury of the service.

I am well persuaded that you do not require to be urged upon this
subject, and shall not therefore press further arguments upon your
attention.

You will transmit, semi-annually, on the first of January and July,
confidential reports of the character, conduct, skill, and acquirements, of
all the officers under your command. In making them, it is proper that
strict impartiality should be used, and all personal prejudices or predilec-
tions avoided.

The blank monthly returns, forwarded to you herewith, for the use of
the squadron, are to be regularly and carefully filled up, and transmitted
through you to this department. The books ordered to be purchased for
the use of all our ships in commission, are to be placed in charge of the
schoolmaster, and on your return carefully packed in boxes, which must
be labelled, and deposited in the public store.

It is intended to send out, from time to time, ample supplies for the
squadron, which will render it unnecessary for the purser, acting as agent
for the squadron, to make purchases, unless on urgent occasions, when
special instructions shall be given by you to him.

You will obtain from this officer the funds required for the pay of the
officers and men, and the general uses of the squadron ; and to enable him
to be at all times ready to meet those demands . and fulfil the injunctions
of the department, you will furnish him, from time to time, with estimates
in detail of the wants of the squadron, six months in advance, particular-
izing the various heads of appropriation under which the money should be
drawn, and forward the duplicates thereof to this department.

It may be in your power, while protecting the commercial, to add some-
thing to the agricultural interests of our country, by obtaining information
respecting valuable animals, seeds, plants, &c. ; and by importing such
as you can conveniently, without expense to the government, or neglecting
the more immediate and appropriate duties assigned you.

The cultivation of the sugarcane has become an object of increasing
importance and value, and you may be able to meet with different varie-
ties in the course of your cruise, and procure directions as to the mode of
culture. It is very desirable that this branch of agriculture should not be
lost sight of in your inquiries.

The copy of a resolution of Congress, of the twenty-fifth of January,
eighteen hundred and thirty, upon this subject, and the collection of veg-
etables, grain, &c., is enclosed fbr your information and attention.

There are many scientific, botanical, and agricultural institutions, to
which your collections might be profitably intrusted, and by which, what-
ever you procure, would be applied to the greatest advantage ; among
them is the Columbian Institute of the city of Washington.

This society, as well as the Treasury Department, has prepared direc-
tions for the preservation of articles, and requested that they might be
distributed among our naval commanders. In compliance with their
wishes, I send you a few copies.

As frequently as opportunities offer, you will report your proceedings
to the department, transmitting copies of your official correspondence

APPENDIX.

627

with the authorities of Chili and Peru, and with other powers and persons,
and carefully numbering your despatches, of which it would be prudent
to send duplicates by different conveyances.

You will also be the medium of communication to the department from
the officers and men under your command.

Previously to sailing from the United States, you will cause complete
muster-rolls of all persons on board of the Potomac to be made out and
forwarded to the department.

I am respectfully, sir,

Your obedient servant,

Commodore John Downes, LEVI WOODBURY.

Commanding U. S. Frigate Potomac,

• Norfolk, Yirginia.

Navy Department, July 25th, 1831,

Messrs. Nathaniel Silsbee, Dudley L. Pickman, and Robert Stone.

Gentlemen — Your communication to the President of the 20th instant
has this day been received and referred to this department.

I feel happy in assuring you that, since the 19th instant, every neces-
sary preparation has been making to demand immediate redress for the
outrage committed.

On the 22d instant, not hearing from Salem but through the news-
papers, I addressed a letter to one of your number, as a personal friend,
asking further information on this subject ; and which letter, ere the arrival
of this, will doubtless have been received by him. Though it was then
confidential, he is hereby authorized to conununicate it to the parties
interested.

The department would now invite attention to procuring and forwarding
here a few particulars not contained in the communication received to-day.

1st. It is desirable to have the originals or authenticated copies of all
protests made in relation to the loss, and of affidavits by any persons who
witnessed the outrage, detailing its origin and progress.

2d. Any special information, as to the character of the rulers and the
population, and* the part of the country where the injury occurred, which
the owners may have, and which is not to be found in the books treating
of those regions, would be acceptable.

3d. Intelligence is asked as to the political relations, if any, existing
between those rulers, &c., and the English or the Dutch ; whether useful
hints can be given as to the draught of water, dangerous reefs, or circum-
stances connected with the navigation in that region, and thence to Macao,
by a frigate of the largest class.

Your early attention to these subjects will greatly oblige the
department.

With sentiments of respect,

I am, gentlemen, your obedient servant,

(Signed) LEVI WOODBURY.

528

APPENDIX.

Navy Department, August 9iA, 1831.

Sir,

Circumstances have occurred since the last instructions to you, vv^hich
require a change in your route to the Pacific, and which may impose on
you some new duties of a character highly delicate and important. A most
wanton outrage was committed on the lives and property of certain Ameri-
can citizens at Quallah-Battoo, a place on the western side of the Island
of Sumatra, on the 7th of February last ; the particulars of which are con-
tained in the document annexed, marked A and B.

You are therefore directed to repair at once to Sumatra, by the way of
the Cape of Good Hope, touching on the .voyage thither only at such
places as the convenience and necessities of your vessel may render
proper. On your arrival at Quallah-Battoo, you will obtain from the.in-
telhgent shipmasters, supercargoes, and others, engaged in the American
trade in that neighbourhood, such information as they possess in respect
to the nature of the government there, the piratical character of the popu-
lation, and the flagrant circumstances of the injury before mentioned.
Should that information substantially correspond with what is given to
you in the documents marked A and B, the President of the United States,
in order that prompt redress may be obtained for these wrongs, or the
guilty perpetrators made to feel that the flag of the. Union is not to be in-
sulted with impunity, directs that you proceed to demand of the rajah, or
other authorities at Quallah-Battoo, restitution of the property plundered,
or indemnity therefor, as well as for the injury done to the vessel ; satis-
faction for any other depredations committed there on our commerce, and
the immediate punishment of those concerned in the murder of the Ameri-
can citizens, Charles Knight, chief officer, and John Davis and George
Chester, seamen, of the ship Friendship.

If a compliance of this demand be delayed beyond a reasonable time,
you are authorized, in the following manner, to vindicate our wrongs ; —
Firstly, having taken precautions, while making the demand, to cut off all
opportunity of escape, from the individuals either concerned in that savage
outrage, or protecting the offenders, or participating in the plunder, you
will proceed to seize the actual murderers, if they are known, and send
them hither for trial as pirates by the first convenient opportunity ; to re-
take such part of the stolen property as can there be found and identified ;
to destroy the boats and vessels of any kind engaged in the piracy, and
the forts and dwellings near the scene of aggression, used for shelter or
defence ; and to give public information to the population there collected,
that if full restitution is not speedily made, and forbearance exercised
hereafter from like piracies and murders upon American citizens, other
ships-of-war will soon be despatched thither to inflict more ample
punishment.

Any property restored, or indemnity given, you will deliver to the owners
of the ship Friendship, or their agents, taking receipts therefor. Should
the information obtained on the spot give a different character to the
transaction from that furnished by the department, marked A and B,
showing any real disapprobation of the plunder and murder by the popu-
lation at large or by their rulers, or any provocation given on the part of
our citizCTis, or the existence of a regular responsible government, acting

APPENDIX.

529

on principles recognised by civilized nations in their conduct towards
strangers, you will confine your operations to a regular demand for satis-
faction on the existing authorities at Quallah-Battoo ; to be rendered by a
restoration of the property, indemnity for the other injuries, and a punish-
ment of the offenders. If referred by them to the King of Acheen,^ you
will cause a like demand to be made on him. Should such satisfaction
be not speedily given by either, you will inform them that future measures
will be taken by the United States effectually to enforce it, and to vindi-
cate the violated rights of their citizens.

At the same time, in this latter event, assure the rajah or other respon-
sible authorities, that this government entertains no hostile feelings to-
wards the people of Quallah-Battoo, or their governors, rajahs, or rulers
of any kind ; and if the assaults, plundering, and murders, were unautho-
rized, and not afterward countenanced, that it will be peculiarly gratifying
to discover, on the part of the authorities of those places, a disposition to
redress, as far as may be in their power, the wrongs wantonly inflicted on
the citizens of the United States.

You will forthwith report to the department the result of your expedi-
tion to Sumatra, forwarding the report by the first convenient opportunity,
from that island or from China.

Leaving Quallah-Battoo, or the dominions of the King of Acheen,
you will proceed to Macao, where disturbances to our commerce are said
to have, recently occurred ; touching at Batavia, if convenient, and at all
events conferring with our consul there, in person or by letter, on the
interests and condition of American commerce in that quarter. To our
consul resident in Macao or Canton, and to the American merchants there,
you will apply for information, and give any temporary aid or relief in
your power, without involving this country in any hostilities with the
regular and authorized authorities of China.

After a short stay there for the above objects, and for taking in neces-
sary supplies and refreshments, to obtain which, if indispensable, in addi-
tion to the funds placed in your hands already, you are empowered to
draw on this department to the amount of five thousand dollars, you
will proceed directly to your station in the Pacific, stopping only at such
islands in your way as may be in the usual track, and interesting to our
commerce in that region of the world.

Your former instructions will be your guide, after reaching the rest of
your squadron ; except that, whenever a vessel can be spared from it to
visit any of the islands in the Pacific, resorted to by our merchantmen
and whalers, you are directed to detach one for that purpose.

Great care must be taken to have such vessel conduct with caution,
forbearance, and good faith towards the natives ; to render any assistance
in its power to American citizens ; to make as favourable an impression
as possible on the population, of the justice and strength of our govern-
ment ; apd to collect and report to this department all valuable informa-
tion, of every kind, connected with the places visited.

With much consideration.

Your obedient servant,

LEVI WOODBURY.

Commodore John Downes, on board the U. S. frigate Potomac.

L 1

#30

APPENDIX.

Monday, February 7th, 1831., — At eight A. M., the captain, second
officer, and four men, went on shore to weigh pepper ; at half past three
P. M., succeeded in procuring one boat-load ; saw her leave the bank of
the river, opposite the scale-house, with the usual complement of men in
her, that is to say, one steersman and six oarsmen ; the natives still bring-
ing pepper to the scales, with the promise of giving us another boat-load
to-day. The first boat was observed to make considerable delay in getting
out of the river, and we supposed her crew might be stealing pepper from
her, and secreting it among some neighbouring high grass. Two of the
ship’s men were accordingly sent down to watch them ; and upon then-
approaching the boat, five or six Malays were seen to jump up from the
grass, and hurry on board her : the ship’s people supposed them to be the
boat’s crew, as they had seen about the same number quit her previous
to their being observed by the Malays. At this time there was a brig
standing into Soo-Soo. While waiting for the natives to complete our other
boat-load of pepper. Captain Endicott went to the beach to ascertain if
the brig approaching had hoisted any colours. He then saw that the
pepper-boat, which at this time was within a few yards of the ship, had at
least double the number of men in her that she had when she left the
scales. He immediately returned, and inquired into this circumstance.
The men who were sent down to watch the boat in the river then informed
him, that they had seen her take in several men out of a ferry-boat at the
mouth of the river ; but, as they all appeared to be “ youngsters,” they did
not think the circumstance of sufficient importance to report it. Our sus-
picions were immediately excited that all was not right ; yet trusting they
would not be permitted to go on board — it being contrary to the estab-
lished regulations of the ship, in the absence of the captain, to admit more
than two Malays on board her at a time, — and deeming it too late to ren-
der any assistance if they w’ere, the second officer and two men were
sent to the beach to observe the movements on board ; who almost in-
stantly returned with the information that there was trouble on board, and
that men were seen jumping overboard from her. Convinced from this
circumstance that we on shore had no time to lose, we immediately sprang
into the ship’s boat, and pushed off. Almost instantaneously crowds of
Malays began to assemble on the banks of the river, which are about sixty
yards asunder, brandishing their weapons and otherwise menacing us ; at
the same moment a ferry-boat, with eight or ten men in her, armed with
spears and krises, pushed off to intercept our passage out of the river ; but
by pulling directly for her, and presenting a Malay sword, our only weapon,
we succeeded in keeping them off. When we had cleared the river and
came in full sight of the ship, we found the Malays had full possession of
her ; some of them walking about the deck, while others were making
signals of success to the people on shore ; none of the ship’s crew, except
one man aloft, was to be seen. At this moment three Malay boats, with
forty or fifty men each, came out of the river, and pulled towards the ship
and us. We then concluded, our only chance to recover the ship was by
obtaining assistance from some other vessel ; and for this purpose we
made the best of our way to Muckie, where we knew two or three Ameri-

APPENDIX.

531

can vessels were lying. At one A. M. we reached Muckie, which lies
twenty-five miles distant from Quallah-Battoo, and found there ship James
Monroe, Porter, of New-York; brigs Governor Endicott, H. H. Jenks, of
Salem, and Palmer, Powers, of Boston ; who determined, on hearing our
misfortune, to proceed to Quallah-Battoo, and endeavour to recover the
ship. They accordingly got under way, but, owing to the lightness of the
wind, did not reach Quallah-Battoo in season to effect any thing that day ;
but on the morning of the 9th, a Malay was sent on shore to demand the
ship of the rajah, accompanied with the threat, that if the Malays did not
immediately desert her, we should fire upon them and the town. The
rajah, however, positively refused to give her up, and sent word we might
take her if we could. The three vessels then commenced firing upon the
ship and the boats which were passing with plunder, and were answered
by the forts on shore, the Malays also firing the ship’s guns at us. In
their attempts to get her on shore, she had become entangled among a
large cluster of shoals, which rendered it extremely dangerous for either
of the vessels to attempt to lay her alongside.

The Malays, however, after blowing themselves up with an open keg
of powder, out of which they were loading the guns, soon ceased firing
on board the ship ; when a boat from each vessel was discharged to board
her, under cover of the guns from the vessels, and which we did without
opposition ; the Malays deserting her on the approach of the boats. We
found her within pistol-shot of the shore ; and, on examination, ascertained
that she was plundered of every thing valuable, and scarcely any thing but
her pepper remaining.

The appearance of the ship, at the time we boarded her, beggars all
description ; every part of her bore ample testimony of the scene of vio-
lence and destruction with which she had been visited. We subsequently
learned that the pepper-boat exchanged her crew of fishermen at the
river’s mouth for a set of opium-smokers, rendered desperate by their
habits ; and to these men added also others of the same class, taken from
the ferry-boat ; that when she came alongside, not one of them was recog-
nised by the ship’s company as having been otf to her before. They
were all, however, indiscriminately permitted to go on board ; and the
attack was commenced simultaneously at diiferent parts of the ship by
some concerted signal. Three or four men, with the first officer, were
instantly krised ; and the crew being taken by surprise, and unprepared,
the ship fell an easy prey to them.

Killed on board the Friendship, Mr. Charles Knight, chief officer ; John
Davis and George Chester, seamen, wounded ; Charles Converse, seaman,
badly ; JohnMussey, seaman, and William Francis, steward.

Captain Endicott informs us, in addition to the particulars before given,
that just as he had pushed off from tlie shore at Quallah-Battoo, half the
boat’s length (after learning his ship had been attacked), Po Adam,
formerly of Quallah-Battoo, but for the last two or three years a
resident at Pulo Kio, a man of considerable property ariid influence,
sprang into the boat, bringing with him his sword and other arms. Cap-
tain Endicott said to him, at the moment of his reaching the boat, “ What,
do you come too, Adam 1” — “ Yes,” was his reply ; “ if they kill you, they
must kill me first, captain.” To this man. Captain Endicott and the

l1 2

532

APPENDIX.

boat’s crew felt that they principally owed, under Providence^ their escape,
as the appearance of his weapons, no doubt, gave the Malays in the ferry-
boat the impression that all on board the Friendship’s boat were armed,
and they in consequence suffered the latter to pass almost without
molestation.

After having thus cleared the river. Captain Endicott submitted himself
much to the counsel and advice of Adam ; and when he concluded to
proceed with all despatch to Muckie for assistance, this man not only
piloted the boat in the night, but pulled an oar nearly the whole distance ;
and discovered as much anxiety that every possible despatch should be
made in procuring assistance, as if he was to be personally benefited by
the recapture of the ship. To his exertions Captain Endicott also owed
the recovery of some of his nautical instruments. For the interest Po
Adam took in this affair, the Malays at Quallah-Battoo confiscated all his
property which they could get hold of at that place, amounting to several
thousand dollars, and even set a price upon his life. The conduct of this
generous and noble-hearted Malay should entitle him to the gratitude of
every American, and we hope he will not go unrewarded.. Four of the
Friendship’s crew, who jumped overboard at the time of the attack, swam
the distance of two miles before they could find a safe place to land, as
the Malays lined the shore for some distance around Quallah-Battoo. As
soon as they reached the shore they fled into the bushes, where, almost
without clothing, and having nothing to subsist on, they remained for three
days — at night walking to and fro in hopes of finding some means of
escape. The third night they discovered a canoe, which they took pos-
session of, and proceeded for Pulo Kio (the residence of Po Adam), know-
ing that they should be safe if they put themselves under his protection.
On their arrival they were informed of the recapture of the ship, and the
benevolent Adam not only furnished them clothing, but, with two of his
men, proceeded with them himself in their canoe, and put them on board
the ship James Monroe, ofNew-York.

At the time of the attack upon the crew of the Friendship, Mr. Knight,
the chief mate, was busily engaged in taking an account of pepper. The
Malays had placed themselves in the best manner for making the attack.
All the men who were killed or wounded (seven in number) were struck
at the same moment. Two of the Malays stabbed Mr. Knight — one at his
side and the . other at his back. He ran to the starboard side of the quarter-
deck, and seized a boarding-pike, after he was wounded ; he was there
met by one of the ship’s crew, who heard him exclaim, “ Do your duty.”
He was immediately after seen lying dead near the same place, with
the boarding-pike under him, the Malays having rushed upon and de-
spatehed him.

The e.xultation of the natives at this achievement was unbounded, and
their insolence insufferable. When Captain Endicott and the other
American masters and supercargoes landed at South Tallapow, after the
recapture of the ship, the natives followed them through the streets in
great crowds, exulting and hooting with exclamations similar to these : — ■
“ Who great man now, Malay or American 1” — “ How many man Ameri-
can dead T How many man Malay dead 1” &c. &c. What the conse-
quence of such a feeling will be, it is impossible to foretel. May the

APPENDIX.

533

mistake under which they rest, that the Americans have not the power to
chastise them, be corrected with all convenient despatch.

Amount of Injury.

Specie, twelve thousand five hundred and thirty-six dollars.

Opium, eight thousand eight hundred and eighteen dollars.

Stores and provisions, two thousand five hundred dollars.

Instruments and clothes, one thousand two hundred dollars.

Loss of voyage, freight, &c., fourteen thousand dollars.

Salvage, &c., two thousand dollars.

The attack was evidently concerted some time before hand, and one
of the acting rajahs aided in the combination. The Achenese rajah.
Chute Dulah, received the specie and opium into his possession, and
refused the restoration of that as well as of the ship. Others of distinc-
tion united, and hired persons of less note to go on board and commit the
outrage and murders.

Character and Condition of the Population and Country at Quallah-Battoo

in the Island' of Sumatra.

Quallah-Battoo is situated in about 3° 44' north latitude, and 96° 56'
east longitude, on the western side of the Island of Sumatra.

That part of the island is called the Battas, and is in the possession of
the natives, who owe no particular allegiance to any foreign power, and a
very slight one,, if any, to the King of Acheen, whose country is north-
west of the Battas ; and who does not hold himself responsible for their
outrages.

The different tribes have rajahs or chiefs, sometimes two each, and
often wantonly plunder and kill strangers, without possessing any civilized
principles of government conforming to national law, so as to permit or
open regular diplomatic relations with the rest of the world. They fre-
quently war with each other and with the King of Acheen, wdth much
perfidy and barbarity. Neither the British nor Dutch claim any control
over that part of Sumatra; and the nearest fort of the former is at
Tappanooly. .

Many American vessels resort to that coast, and are in danger of -cap-
ture, and of having their crews murdered, from the savage and piratical
conduct and principles of the population. The arrogance and treachery
of the natives, especially towards Americans, have of late years increased ;
and in this instance, their aggressions were countenanced beforehand by
some of those in authority, and all relief and restoration, when demanded,
were refused.

Quallah-Battoo lies entirely open to the sea, defended by only two or
three small forts, of three or four guns each, having a population, including
the pepper-plantations, four or five miles in the interior, of about four
thousand. The depth of water in the roads, within a quarter and half a
mile of the shore, is from eighteen to twenty fathoms, muddy bottom ; but
much stone, flung in from ballast, rendering chain cables expedient when
at anchor.

534

APPENDIX.

TJ. S. Ship Potomac, off the Town of Quallah-Battoo,
February Qth, 1832.

Sir,

I have the honour to inform you, that, according to your orders hereto-
fore received, I effected a landing with the several divisions under my
command, about one mile and a half to the northward of the town. Al-
though there was a heavy surf upon the shore, the divisions were landed
and formed without the slightest accident. The following was the order
observed ; — -First, the marines under Lieutenant Edson ; then the different
divisions under the command of Lieutenants Pinkham, Hoff, and Ingersoll,
and the six-pounder in charge of Acting-sailingmaster Totten ; the boats
being left under the command of Passed-midshipman Godon, with orders
to follow to the town as soon as the attack commenced. I feel much
indebted to Lieutenants Edson and Terret for the promptness displayed
by them in forming the marines, and in assisting and forming the other
divisions ; all of which was effected with coolness in fifteen minutes.
As soon as the day dawned we proceeded along the beach towards the
town, undiscovered by the enemy until within a short distance of the
northernmost fort, when I immediately despatched Lieutenant Hoff with
his division to surround it ; and in the event of the enemy’s firing upon him,
to carry it by storm. As soon as he approached the gateway, he was fired
on ; when, after a close action of nearly two hours, the American flag was
hoisted ; the enemy carrying off his wounded, and leaving behind him
his dead — twelve in number, and the women. Lieutenant Hoff had to
surmount great difficulties in the capture of his fort ; he tore up the pali-
sades which surrounded it, and formed a bridge, upon which he entered,
and drove the enemy from their almost impregnable position ; during the
whole of which time an incessant fire was kept up upon him.

After leaving Lieutenant Hoff, I proceeded with the remaining forces ;
and at the northern end of the town. Lieutenants Pinkham and Edson,
with their respective divisions, filed off to the left, to the attack of the two
forts assigned to them, in the rear of the town ; while, with the third
division under Lieutenant Ingersoll, and the six-pounder, — Acting-sailing-
master Totten, I pushed on to attack the principal and strongest fort,
situated at the southern end of the town. At the distance of fifty yards
from the fort, perceiving the enemy preparing to receive us, I directed the
six-pounder, loaded with round and grape, to be discharged, which threw
them into confusion. The coolness and precision with which Acting-
sailingmaster Totten worked the six-pounder, did great execution during
the action. Lieutenant Ingersoll at this time rushed on to the attack.
At this juncture Lieutenant Pinkham, with the first division, rejoined me ;
Sailingmaster Barry, the guide, having been unable, from material altera-
tions in and about the fort assigned to Lieutenant Pinkham, to point it
out. The pioneers, with their crows and axes, having forced the gate,
portions of the first and third divisions, under the direction of their respect-
ive officers, rushed into the area, and took possession with little resist-
ance ; but few Malays appearing, two of whom were killed on the spot. A
charge was then made at the inner gate, which communicated with a narrow
passage leading to the stronghold of the enemy (which was a strong plat-

APPENDIX.

535

form considerably elevated, upon which were mounted several cannon,
protected by a thick wall), which being forced, it was discovered, to the
disappointment of the officers and men there engaged, that the ladder
leading to the platform had been drawn up ; and, in an ineffectual attempt
to climb the parapet, I regret to say, that William P. Smith, seaman, was
killed ; Henry Butcher, ordinary seaman, and Levi M‘Cabe, quarter-
gunner, of the third division, were wounded ; and Midshipman J. W.
Taylor, and Peter Walsh, ordinary seaman, of the first division, were also
wounded. I then gave the order to fire the buildings within the area,
which was promptly done ; but it being calm, and these buildings de-
tached from the main fort, the fire did not comnaunicate with it as I had
hoped. A short time after the fire commenced, two magazines of powder
blew up; but lam happy to state that the explosion injured none of us,
although in their immediate neighbourhood. Lieutenants Hoff and Edson,
after storming the forts against which they had been sent, hoisted the
American flag, and leaving a detachment in each, they formed between
the fort and water ; a brisk Are was thus poured in from two sides.
Passed-midshipman Godon, in the launch, took a position immediately in
front of the fort, and kept up a spirited and well-directed fire ; but so
tenaciously did the enemy cling to their position, that not until nearly all
of them had been destroyed could we carry the fort. This was, how-
ever, gallantly done by Lieutenant Ingersoll, Passed-midshipman Sylvanus
Godon, and Midshipmen Joseph C. Walsh, J. W. Taylor, and Henry C.
Hart, who spiked, and threw the guns froin the platform. The Ainerican
colours were then hoisted, with three hearty cheers. Apprehending that
the enemy had laid a train to his magazine, and the fort being mostly de-
stroyed, and completely dismantled, I deemed it proper to call off the offi-
cers and men, as it would have been an act of inhumanity to expose them
to an explosion.

For some time previous to the surrender of this last fort, another, situ-
ated about one hundred and fifty yards from the east bank of the river,
and upon the opposite side of it, had been firing upon us with a twelve-
pounder. It being impracticable to enter the river with our floats, and
not possible to ford it without wetting our fire-arms, I did not deem it ex-
pedient to attack this, but made preparations for the reduction of another
in the neighbourhood of the one left in charge of Lieutenant Terrett of
the marines, which would have remained undiscovered (the town and forts
being situated in so thick a jungle), had the enemy not opened his fire
upon Lieutenant Terrett. I immediately despatched Lieutenants Pinkham
and Edson, with portions of their divisions, to reduce it ; when, being
invested upon two sides, the enemy, after a short but ferocious resist-
ance, fled to the jungle with much loss. It pains me, sir, jto state, that
in this attack private Benjamin T. Brown was killed, and private Daniel
H. Cole wounded, supposed mortally. I omitted to mention, in its proper
place, that John L. Dubois, seaman, belonging to Lieutenant Hoff’s
division, was severely wounded by a sabre-cut on the head and hand, and
several others slightly, from darts and javelins. The action having lasted
nearly two hours and a half, and the town being almost reduced to ashes,
the surf at the same time rising very fast, I deemed it prudent to com-

536

APPENDIX.

mence the embarcation under cover of the marines, hoping that what had
been done would meet with your approbation.

From the knowledge of the place possessed by Sailingmaster Barry,
and his coolness, I derived the utmost advantage. Assistant-surgeons
Foltz and Pawling were active and zealous in the discharge of their duties,
binding up and dressing the wounded under the fire of the enemy. The
different orders I had occasion to send to those separated from me, were
conveyed with promptness and great precision by Passed-midshipman
Tooley and Purser William A. Slacum. The lieutenants commanding
the different divisions, have reported to me the entire satisfaction they
derived from the coolness and bravery of the officers and men under their
particular commands. I feel it a duty to state to you how much I am
indebted to Lieutenants Pinkham, Hoff, Ingersoll, and Edson, for the
promptness and alacrity with which they executed all orders, and my
warm admiration for the gallantry evinced by them upon all occasions.
The loss of the enemy must have been considerable ; at least one hundred
and fifty killed. I am happy to state, that among the killed was Poolow
N. Yamet, commonly called Po Mahomet, the principal rajah concerned
in the plunder and massacre of the crew of the ship Friendship. We
captured one pair of colours, twenty-six stand of arms, and one brass
fieldpiece. We also set fire to and destroyed a number of proas on the
stocks. The cannon in all the forts, with the exception of one, being of
iron, were spiked and thrown over the parapet, and the powder destroyed.
The following is a list of the killed and wounded.

Killed — William P. Smith, seaman ; Benjamin T. Brown, marine.
Wounded — Lieutenant Edson, contused leg ; Midshipman J. W. Taylor,
slightly ; Daniel H. Cole, marine, supposed mortally ; Henry Dutcher
(o. s.), severely; Peter Walsh (o. s.), severely; Levi M‘Cabe (qr. gun.)^
slightly ; John L. Dubois, seaman, severely ; John Addison, seaman,
slightly ; James A. Huster, marine, slightly ; James F. Noland (o. s.),
shghtly; James M‘Cabe (o. s.), slightly.

I have the honour to be, sir, very respectfully,

Your obedient servant,

(Signed) IRYINE SHUBRICK,

Lieut, commanding the Expedition.

Com. John Downes,

Commanding TJ. S. Ship Potomac.

APPENDIX.

637

Medical Statistics of the Crew of the U. S. Frigate Potomac, during a

Voyage round the World, by J. M. Foltz, M. D., Assistant- Surgeon,

U. S. Navy.

A concise statistical account of the health of the crew of the U. S.
frigate Potomac, consisting of five hundred individuals, during a period
of three years— in which time she performed a voyage of circumnaviga-
tion, and passed through every variety of climate, from 40° of north lati-
tude to 57° south latitude, having spent twenty months between the tropic's,
and five months in the most unhealthy parts of the East Indies exhibiting
the manner in which our crew were affected by the change of climate and
the long confinement on board ship, the most prevalent diseases, with a
few brief hints on prevention and modes of treatment, — cannot but be
interesting to the philosopher and physician, and may prove of utility to
some future navigators. The following observations, extracted from my
journals and notes taken at the time, are submitted, with a confidence in
their correctness.

I joined the Potomac at the navy-yard, Washington, and was the first
medical officer that reported for duty,, on the 23d of. May, 1831 ; at that
time there were two hundred of the crew on board ship, of whom twenty-
four were on the sick-list. On the 3d of June the ship was hauled off to
Greenleaf Point, a distance of two miles from the navy-yard, where her
armament and stores were received on board. Throughout the day the
crew were exposed to a very hot sun for the season, and were obliged, to
use the river water, of which they drank copiously. The sick-list in con-
sequence increased from twenty-two to thirty-six in one day. The men
were seized with cholera-morbus, accompanied with violent spasms, which
in several robust young men were so severe as to require copious vene-
section. The submur. hydrarg. et opii (calomel and opium), and submur.
hydrarg. etpulv. Doveri (calomel and Dover’s powder), were administered
with the most happy results. On stating my opinion of the cause of the
illness to Mr. Shubrick, the commanding officer, who also attributed it to
the same source, water was brought from shore for the use of the ship’s
company ; after which there Were no new cases. The river water at this
season contains a large quantity of vegetable and animal matter in a state of
decomposition, and is unfit for use until after it has been kept for some time.

On the 15th of June we left Washington for Hampton Roads, where
we arrived on the 22d. The change from a fresh water river to the salt
water materially improved the health of the crew ; several cases of vernal
intermittents were speedily cured ; but as we were frequently receiving
draughts of men, who came on board after the most violent debauchery
and dissipation, the sick-list continued large, having an average daily of
twenty-three, during twenty-four days while we remained at Norfolk. On
the 4th of July, our boatswain, set. thirty-six, went on shore to congratu-
late himself on his having received a warrant, and was brought on board
after an absence of three days, labouring under mania a potu (delirium
from intemperance), and haemoptysis (bleeding from the lungs), which put
a period to his existence in five days, falling a victim to intemperance.

On the 16th of July sailed for New-York, with three hundred and fifty

538

APPENDIX.

of the crew on board, and anchored off the Battery, in North river, in five
days. The complement of her officers and crew was supplied here ; and
on the 24th of August, 1831, the Potomac sailed with five hundred and
two souls on board, all in apparent good health, except one officer, whose
case will be noticed in the proper place. The average age of the crew, as
near as could be estimated, was thirty-one years. During our passage to
Rio de Janeiro we did not fall in with the northeast tradewinds ; variable
winds and calms prevailed until we reached the third degree of north lati-
tude when we met the southeast trades, which carried us to Rio. After pas-
sing the Cape de Verd Islands, the Potomac’s course for eight days was
parallel with the coast of Africa, distant four hundred miles. Here we
met with the most violent rains, with constant thick, heavy weather ; the
sick-list increased ; several cases of fever occurred. On the 6th of Octo-
ber crossed the equator, at which time the thermometer* stood at 79°,
with twenty-two on the sick-list ; fresh tradewind and cloudy weather.
Many of the younger part of the crew, who had not been previously at sea,
suffered much from the change of diet and confinement to the ship during
the passage, and were troubled with indigestion and catarrhs ; several
obstinate cases of sea-sickness continued until our arrival at Rio. There
were ten cases of fever, and twelve were admitted with slight injuries.
The average of the thermometer, during the passage of fifty-one days, at
noon, was 76°.

During our stay of twenty days in the harbour of Rio de Janeiro, the
crew were daily supplied with fresh provisions, and were permitted to
use the tropical fruits, which are very abundant at this season, without
restraint. The thermometer, at noon, averaged 76°, and the barometer
stood at 29.70, and the daily proportion on the sick-report was seven-
teen. Several cases of diarrhoea and derangement of the bowels occurred.

-At Rio, malignant diseases seldom prevail ; the natives are of a bilious,
lymphatic temperament, and are subject to elephantiasis, sarcocele, and
frambossis.

Ships-of-war that remain a long period in the harbour of Rio, usually
have large sick-lists ; diarrhoeas commonly prevail ; they are very insidious
in their approach, and frequently terminate in ulceration and a severe form
of dysentery. Ships’ crews should be protected from the rain^ — they
should never be permitted to remain below decks with wet clothes on, and
be careful to avoid the unripe fruits that are daily brought off for sale in
the bomb-boats, and bathe frequently during the dry season.

Sailed on the 5th of .November for the Cape of Good Hope, where we
arrived on the 6th of December, after a passage of thirty-one days. The
passage was boisterous, with much rain and thick foggy weather. Our
easting was made between 32° and 34° of south latitude, where we met
with westerly winds, and the thermometer ranging at 60°. During the
passage there were forty admitted with dysentery and diarrhoea ; most of
them occurring immediately after leaving port, and continued to swell the
sick-list during the passage ; they however yielded to medical treatment
and farinaceous diet. The average number sick during the passage was
twenty-one.

Fahrenheit’s is always given.

APPENDIX.

539

Upon our arrival at the Cape of Good Hope there were twelve cases
of intermittent fever on the sick-hst, which were produced by the cold
and wet weather during our passage, most of them having had the disease
the last autumn in the United States ; they were soon relieved after our
arrival at the Cape, where intermittent fevers are of rare oocurrence.

The climate at the Cape of Good Hope is very good ; the average tem-
perature throughout the year is 68°, and there are many instances of lon-
gevity among the natives and foreign residents. The bills of mortality
kept at the Cape, exhibit all the diseases to be'met with in the same lati-
tude north ; while the malignant diseases of the tropics are unknown.
Invalids from British India frequently resort to this place for the restora-
tion of health, and many are benefited.

The southeast winds prevail here, and frequently blow with great vio-
lence, when they are accompanied with a remarkable phenomenon a small
stationary cloud hangs over Table Bay. This is produced by the cold air
that comes charged with humidity in its passage across the Indian ocean,
coming in contact with the highly heated air on the north side of Table
Mountain ; the humidity is condensed, and produces the cloud ; but as it
obtains the temperature of the surrounding atmosphere it again disap-
pears, so that there is a constant generation and destruction of the cloud
in question. The Hottentots, at present, are said not to exceed seven thou-
sand, whereas one century ago they were estimated at twenty thousand.

While the Potomac remained in port, the thermometer ranged at 68°.
On the 12th of December sailed from the Cape of Good Hope, between
which and the Island of St. Paul’s wm encountered rough, cold weather,
with strong westerly winds. Several cases of pleurisy occurred, and
many had catarrhs and colds, which, however, did not disable them from
attending to duty. After passing the Island of St. Paul’s, our course was
northeast to the west coast of Sumatra ^ we met with the southeast tiade-
winds, w^hich continued with much regularity. The equator was crossed
on the 27th of January. During our passage the crew was formed into
divisions, and exercised almost daily in the use of fire-arms and cutlass, to
prepare them for the landing at Quallah-Battoo , and such ivas the state
of excitement on the subject, and the great anxiety of all to participate in
the affair, that our sick-list was smaller during this passage than at any
other period during the cruise. The proportion on the sick-list was ten ;
which was made up of intermittents, catarrhs, and slight injuries ; and
upon our arrival at Quallah-Battoo, on the 5th of February, 1832, after a
passage of fifty-one days, there were but three on the sick-list.

On the morning of the 6th the attack was made, by which we had eleven
of our crew wounded and two killed. In one of the w'ounded the ball passed
through the right lung, entering a little to the right of the sternum, at the
sixth rib, and passing out under the scapula, having carried with it pieces
of his belt, cloth jacket, and shirt. He expectorated blood copiously,
and after much suffering has recovered, with a collapse of the lung and
an abscess on the right side. The wounded recovered remarkably well :
a circumstance to be attributed to the uniformity of temperature, and their
comfortable condition on the gun-deck of the frigate. We remained
twelve days at Quallah-Battoo, during which time the thermometer ranged
at §5°, with alternate land and seabreezes; The crew were carefully

540

APPENDIX.

protected from the sun ; but, in consequence of the intense heat, watering
ship was found very laborious. Fresh beef and vegetables were daily
served out to the crew, who also indulged freely in fruits. The severe
exertions of the crew during the attack on shore, after a long period of
rest, want of mental excitement, and change in diet and climate, produced
a material change in the health of the crew. In one month our sick-list
of three swelled to fifty-seven. Fifty-two cases of complaints of the
bowels, and twelve cases of bilious fever, were reported within a month.
The Malays are healthy and robust when compared with their Asiatic and
Javanese neighbours ; are very temperate in their living, use little animal
food, and, like all Mahommedans, bathe frequently. They are afflicted
with goitre; which cannot be attributed to the use of snow-water, as
there is no snow on the island. I met with many who had recently suf-
fered much from smallpox.

16th February, sailed for the Island of Java, where we arrived in eigh-
teen days. In crossing the equator the thermometer stood at 85°. On
the 25th of February there were thirty on the sick-list, which was made
up of cases of diarrhoea ; no new cases having occurred since leaving port,
and the wounded were all doing well.

On our arrival in the Straits of Sunda, a change was made in the rations
of the crew by Commodore Downes, which contributed materially to the
preservation of the health of the ship’s company. Portions of the beef,
pork, and beans, which constitute the daily rations, were discontinued,
and rice and curry served out in lieu of them ; and the spirituous ration
was divided into three portions — one of which was given in the morning,
one at noon, and the remainder in the evening. All hands were ordered
to wear flannel, and were inspected daily by the officers, to ascertain that
the order was compMed with. The Potomac arrived at Bantam Bay on
the 6th of March, and remained there twelve days, during which time the
ship was wooded and watered. The latitude was 6° south, and the
average temperature during our stay was 82°, with regular land and sea-
breezes and frequent showers. The average number on the sick-report was
twenty-nine ; of which fifteen had diarrhoea and dysentery, and four fever.

On the 19th March arrived at Batavia, and. anchored four miles from
the shore ; this port having been more fatal to navigators than any
other on the globe — Dutch and English vessels having been laid up for
want of hands to man them. It was here that Dr. J. Johnson met with
that malignant fever which committed such dreadful ravages in the Eng-
lish squadron ia 1806. We were consequently not without the most
dreadful forebodings, and enforced every precaution and mode of preven-
tion that had heretofore been found useful. Awnings were spread over
the ship day and night; native Javanese boats’ crews were employed to
do the necessary boat-duty of the ship, and our men carefully protected
from the sun, and all unnecessary duty avoided.

Those officers who went on shore spent as little time as possible in the
city ; going directly to the country, where a purer atmosphere prevails ;
and the most rigid temperance was strictly enjoined.

From Dr. Johnson’s valuable work on tropical climates we received
many useful hints on prevention, and after the occurrence of disease were
able at once to strike upon a course of treatnient, the result of which we

APPENDIX.

541

had much occasion to be highly gratified with, and would strongly recom-
mend it to every navigator who visits those seas. Notwithstanding every
precaution, the number of sick daily increased ; and those who reported
themselves sick were attacked with enteritis (inflammation of the bowels),
attended with much tormina and tenesmus. In several cases the disease
assumed a most malignant character from the commencement, and in one
case— a robust, vigorous young man — it proved fatal within twenty-four
hours of his first indisposition. • Violent inflammatory symptoms obtained
in the onset of the disease, for which they were copiously bled, and the
subm. hydrar. (calomel) given in large doses and frequently repeated ; and
emetics were also prescribed in the- commencement of the disease with
much benefit, a§ they counteracted the great tendency to visceral conges-
tion. Mercurial inunction was freely used to accelerate copious saliva-
tion, which, when once well established, was generally useful, although
it did not in every instance preserve life. The course of the disease was,
violent inflammatory symptoms from the beginning ; tormina and tenes-
mus ; seyere spasms ; bloody fetid evacuations ; collapse, and death.

We remained at Batavia twenty days, during which the thermometer
averaged 83°, with very little variation throughout the twenty-four hours ;
but alternate land and seabreezes prevented the severe oppression of so
high a temperature. When the landbreeze came off at night, it brought
with it putrid exhalations from the fens and marshes that were extremely
offensive, and oppressed the respiration to such a degree that there were
few on board who did not complain of it. This malaria doubtless brings
with it the seeds of disease, from which foreigners suffer so much.

The wall that formerly surrounded the city was demolished by the
French and English when in their possession, and the city extended to
the high grounds, three or four miles from its former site ; and as the
dwellings of the merchants here are large, spacious, and airy, it has
effected a great change in the salubrity of the place.

The foreign residents are temperate in their living, and never expose
themselves to the sun. The governor and Dutch troops are stationed in
the interior, where the climate is not so obnoxious to foreigners ; yet a
few years residence on the island is certain to bring with it physical and
mental enervation.

Ships going to Batavia, should be careful to enforce the regulations
adopted in the Potomac. They should use little animal food, and entirely
abolish the spirituous ration ; as I am convinced by so doing they would
prevent much disease, and save many valuable lives.

On the 10th of April we sailed from Batavia, with forty-two on the sick-
list, including twenty-eight cases of dysentery. On the I4th the ther-
mometer stood at 90°, and the sick-list increasing ; and on the 17th passed
through the Straits of Gasper, the thermometer at 85°, and fifty-four on
the sick-list. On the 21st, at meridian, we were at anchor one mile south
of the equator, calm, thermometer 85°, and fifty on the sick-report. New
cases occurring daily. “The chloride of lime is used freely about the
cots and hammocks of the sick, and every possible attention paid to clean-
liness.”— “ 1st of May — There have been three deaths* within the last

* Among the number was Mr. Oliver, commodore’s secretary ; he had been labouring
under tracheal phthisis for two years, and came on board with the expectation that a resi-

542

APPENDIX.

twenty-four hours ; the total number on the sick-list is thirty-four, with
twenty-eight cases of dysentery and five of fever. The thermometer has
been ranging at 86° since we left Batavia, with calm and light airs ; we
are out twenty days, and are but six hundred miles from Batavia. Last
night we had the most tremendous thunder, lightning, and rain.”

The Potomac arrived at Lintin (China) on the 20th of May, with
twenty-nine on the sick-list, after a most tedious passage of thirty-nine
days. After the 2d of May we fell in with moderate breezes, which con-
tinued until our arrival at Canton ; after which the number of sick
diminished daily. There were one hundred and fifty cases of dysentery
in the Java and China Seas, out of which there were thirteen deaths, — a
proportion truly small, when compared with the number of deaths in
other vessels while in those seas. . We, remained at Lintin seventeen
days, during which the thermometer had a daily average of 80°, with a
regular seabreeze, which well ventilated the ship. The average number
on our sick-list was twenty-six ; three fourths of which were chronic
cases of dysentery, and several cases of bilious fever.

Canton was formerly considered the most unhealthy district in China,
but at present it is one of the most healthy. The Lintin fleet, which
usually remain stationary for many months, enjoy good health ; dysen-
teries and fevers are the prevailing diseases. The Chinese and natives
of British India have so little vitality in their lower extremities, that frac-
tures and ulcerations of those parts are very difficult to cure — a circum-
stance to be attributed to the debilitating effects of the climate.

Sailed on the 5th of June for the Sandwich Islands, with thick foggy
weather and a fresh breeze. On the 9th, during a gale, with the ther-
mometer at 80°, there were two deaths — cases of chronic dysentery.
During the passage there was much rain and thick heavy weather ; the
easting was made between the thirty-fourth and tliirty-sixth degrees of north
latitude, with the thermometer ranging at 72°, and the average on the
sick-list twenty-five, during the passage.

Arrived at Oahu, Sandwich Islands, on the 23d of July, after a passage
of forty-eight days. The character of the diseases had much changed ;
during our passage there were no new cases of dysentery, but the old cases
convalesced slowly. Pleurisies, catarrhs, and intermittent fevers took the
place of the enteric diseases, and yielded more readily to medical treatment.

The Potomac remained twenty-three days at the Sandwich Islands,
during which time the thermometer stood at 79°, and barometer at 29.90.
The crew were allowed to go on shore ; in consequence of which the sick-
list was swelled by the men who had been on shore. On the day of our
arrival there were seventeen on the list, and on the day of sailing it had
increased to twenty-six. The climate of the Sandwich Islands is good ;
the foreign residents enjoy good health ; the natives are large, corpulent,
and of a lymphatic temperament. Their usual diet consists of the arum
MAOULATUM, or wako-robin, which is cultivated, and attains a great size ;
and contains a large portion of fecula, out of which they manufacture

dence between the tropics would prove beneficial. The disease was so far advanced
that a change of clime could not arrest the progress of the disease. His conciliating
manners, cheerfulness of disposition, and intelligence, gained him many friends ; he died
regretted by all who enjoyed his acquaintance.

APPENDIX.

543

starch; — made into foye^ with raw fish, it is considered one of their
greatest luxuries, and the natives say it occasions their corpulency. The
islanders are subject to a disease of the skin which they call crawcraws
— a species of leprosy, — and for which they undergo a course of the kava-
root, which is a powerful alterative and narcotic. They are also much
afflicted with ulcerations, which are very difficult to heal, in consequence
of the torpor of the circulation. When the missionaries arrived, infanti-
cide was of frequent occurrence : a drastic-purgative indigenous bean was
used, which occasional!^ destroyed the mother, and seldom failed in pro-
ducing abortion. This horrid practice has been discontinued through the.
influence of the missionaries. The population of Honoruru is estimated
at seven' thousand, and the town is healthy.

Sailed for the Society Islands on the 15th of August, and crossed the
equator on - the 5th of September, in 5° west longitude, with the ther-
mometer at 80°, and the southeast tradewinds ; at this time there were
twenty-four on the sick-list. For several days previous we had calms
and rains, with the thermometer at 90° ; the tradewinds continued until
we arrived at Otaheite, after a passage of twenty-eight days, during which
time the sick-list averaged tvvrenty-four ; there having been twelve cases
of intermittent fever ; the chronic cases of dysentery convalesced very
slowly, and continued to crowd the sick-report.

The Potomac remained six days at Otaheite, during which time the
crew were kept hard at work on shore watering ship. They indulged
freely in tropical fruits ; yet they remained healthy, in consequence of their
not being able to procure ardent spirits, which they drank to excess at
Oahu. Here we lost one of the crew from concealed strangulated ingui-
nal hernia. The latitude of this port is 16° south ; dysenteries are more
frequently met with here than at the Sandwich Islands. The natives are
not so large, and the females more delicately formed ; many whiten their
skin with the juice of the papa, an indigenous plant, and avoid the sun to
improve their complexions.

Those missionaries who remain some time on the island seldom escape-
being attacked with elephantiasis. I met with several of them who were;
labouring under this disease in an aggravated form ; the natives also suffer
much from it.

Their diet consists of vegetables and fish ; the breadfruit constitutes a.
large portion ; and as all the tropical fruits are here produced spontane-
ously, labour is not necessary, and their lives are consequently inactive-
and indolent.

Sailed on the 20th ; our course was southeast until we arrived in the thir-
ty-fifth degree of south latitude, where we met with fresh westerly winds that
continued until our arrival on the west coast of South America. Through-
out the passage we encountered much boisterous and wet weather ; the
thermometer changed from 84° to 55°, which was lower than it had been
since our sailing from New-York ; which, together with the wet, uncom-
fortable state of the ship, produced several cases of pleurisy, inflamed
tonsils, rheumatisms, and intermittent fever. The average on the sick-
list during the passage was thirty-six, of which twenty-two were admitted
with rheumatism, and fifteen vifith pleurisy.

We arrived at Valparaiso, after a passage of thirty-four days, on the

544

APPENDIX.

24th of October, having been fourteen months from the United States *,
more than eleven months of which had been spent at sea. The number on
the sick-report on our arrival was thirty -four ; two of which had symptoms
of scurvy, owing to the long confinement to the ship and salt provisions.
The symptoms w'ere very mild, and did not manifest themselves until we
came under the influence of the land-air : the first few days in port the
aisease became more severe ; after which they speedily recovered, and
Were the only cases that occurred during the cruise.

Shortly after our arrival liberty was granted to the crew, which, as
usual, increased the number of sick. Ten cases were admitted with
mania a potu, and a number with lues venerea.

The Potomac remained forty days in the harbour of Valparaiso', during
which time the average of the thermometer was 66°, and the barometer
29.75. This is the spring in Chili, when high winds prevail from the
south without rain. The sick-list was large for this port ; but could safely
be attributed to the excesses and intemperance of the crew on shore ;
thirty-five was our daily proportion, a majority of them having derange-
ment of the stomach.

Santiago, the capital of Chili, is situated ninety miles inland from
Valparaiso, and has a population of forty-five thousand. It is remark-
able for the extreme heat of the day and coldness at night, occasioned
by the cold atmosphere from the snow-clad mountain immediately in the
rear of the city, rushing down to occupy the place of the highly rarefied
air in the plains below, in which the city is built. Remitting and bilious
fevers prevail to a great extent ; but the most usual disease is goitre,
which is frequently hereditary, and in some cases produces cretinism.
The water that supplies the city is produced by the melting of the snow
on the momrtains, and to this the natives attribute the cause of the dis-
ease. Iodine and the hydriodate of potassa are used with more success
in the treatment than any other article in the materia medica. While in
Santiago, I heard of one case of extirpation of the thyroid gland ; the pa-
tient did not recover.

December 2d, sailed for Lima, where we arrived on the 15th. We had
a south wind with pleasant weather during the passage, and on our
arrival at Callao, the sick-list was reduced to eighteen.

Remained in Callao seventy-five days, the thermometer ranging during
that period at 70°, and barometer at 29.85. This is the most healthy
season at Lima; with clear, dry weather, the proportion sick was
twenty -four.

The ship was broken out, and wmll cleaned and painted, and the chlo-
ride of lime freely scattered throughout the hold.

Four cases of remitting fever occurred here ; they were attended with
little arterial excitement, and would not bear the lancet. The sick-list
of the ships of war in this port is usually large, and they frequently suffer
much from dysentery. In July and August a constant mist and fog fills
the atmosphere, which the inhabitants of Lima much dread. This wet
season is very inimical to diseases of the lungs, and individuals predis-
posed to phthisis (consumption) will be certain to have the disease devel-
oped by a residence in Lima. One of our crew died from phthisis while
in port ; and on our sailing for Valparaiso, an officer of the U. S. ship Fal-

APPENDIX.

645

mouth was transferred to the Potomac, in consequence of being attacked
with haemoptysis.

The climate of Lima is enervating and injurious to the constitution.
The natives are small, delicate, and short-lived ; although the foreign!
residents suffer less from acute diseases than in the Indies, yet they are
insidiously worn down by the climate, notwithstanding the most exem-
plary temperance and regularity in living.

The streets of Lima are kept clean, and many of them have streams of
water running through them. The remarkable property of the atmosphere
producing dry putrefaction, and preventing all noxious effluvia, is, perhaps,
one cause of the absence of malignant diseases. Dead animals are suf-
fered to remain in the roads ; and the Pantheon, where all the dead of the’
city are interred, is open to the air ; yet in no instance is there the least
noxious effluvia.

28th February, 1833, sailed for Valparaiso, where we.amved in sixteen
days, having a cold, wet, and boisterous passage ; the thermometer ranged
at 74°, and the proportion on the sick-list during the passage was twenty-
three. The officer, Mr. S. E. Penniman, with haemoptysis, from the Fal-
mouth, had a return of the hemorrhage, which assumed a periodical form,
returning every evening during our passage, and died nine days after ou^
arrival at Valparaiso, from pneumonia, in the 25th year of his age. He
was a gentleman of talent, and promised much future usefulness, and fell
a victim to the climate of Peru.

The Potomac remained sixty-seven days in Valparaiso, during the
months of March, April, and May (the autumn in Chili). The thermom-
eter was not so high as, during our previous visit, and there were occa-
sional rains, which accompanied a north wind, which is much dreaded in
this port, as the harbour is then unsafe. They were in every instance
announced by the barometer, and only occur in the fall and winter. The
average on the sick-list during our stay was twenty-one, and the list was
kept thus large by the excesses of the crew on shore, and slight injuries ;■
the number ill whose indisposition could not fairly be traced to dissipa-
tion on shore did not exceed eight, which were cases of rheumatism,
pleurisies, and enlarged glands. Several cases of chronic diarrhoea that
occurred at Lima were speedily relieved on our arrival in Chili. The
ship’s company were supplied with fresh provisions four times a week
during the period we remained on the coast of South America.

On the 25th of April a case' of smallpox occurred in one of the servants,
who contracted the disease on shore ; he was immediately transferred to
a temporary hospital on shore, hoping by that means to prevent the propa-
gation of the disease throughout the ship. A few days after, another case
presented itself in one of the boats’ crews, vvho was daily on shore, and
was also sent to the hospital without delay. The first case proved to be a
severe case of confluent smallpox, and the second lost the use of the right
eye by opacity of the cornea.

On the 1st of May a severe norther set in, during which the thermometer
fell to 45°, and the sick-list increased ; all of the invalids were labouring
under inflammatory affections ; during our stay in port there were four-
teen reported with scrofula, sixteen rheumatism, twenty-two hepatitis
(inflammation of the liver), and, thirteen syphilis (venereal). Four weeks

M m

540

APPENDIX,

had elapsed sinr.e the appearance of the last case of variola, and as the
crew were prohibited from going on shore during that period, we antici-
pated the entire disappearance of the disease.

On the 20th of May we sailed for Coquimbo, where we arrived in three
days. On the 11th of June another case of smallpox was reported, and
was speedily succeeded by two other cases. It was now placed beyond
doubt that the contagion was in the ship, and that it would inevitably- ex-
tend throughout the whole ship’s company ; when it was determined to
inoculate the ship’s company, as by so doing the violence of the disease
would be much mitigated, and its progress through the ship much
hastened. On the 20th of June all hands were called to muster, and
commencing with the officers, every individual that was not marked with
smallpox was inoculated with pus’ taken from a well-developed case of
variola. The number inoculated was two hundred and eighty-seven.
The ship’s company were placed on fresh provisions, and the spirituous
portion of the ration stopped for all those who had undergone the operation.
At this time the health of the crew was very good, there being but eigh-
teen on the list, exclusive of the cases of smallpox.

On the 24th, examined all who had been inoculated ; when it was ascer-
tained that eighty-five had taken the disease — many of them in a very
mild form. Where there were symptoms of inflammation and fever, the
patients were bled, and the snip, magnesia (Epsom salts) administered ;
supertart, potass, (cream of tartar), in water, given as their common drink,
and all were ordered to abstain from animal food. An eruption appeared
in eleven cases ; but in no instance was it attended with any unfavour-
able symptom. On the eleventh day after inoculation the febrile symp-
toms were most severe, after which they began to subside. There were
thirteen individuals on board who had no evidence of having been pre-
viously vaccinated, and who all took the disease from inoculation ;
twelve of the crew took the disease from the infection, and, as was proved
by inoculation, eighty-five were susceptible to the disease.

At Coquimbo we met with the American whale-ship Corinthian, with the
smallpox on board ; the first officer had contracted the disease at Concep-
tion, of which he died. I visited the ship, and found the third officer,
cook, and a small lad (two last both coloured), labouring under the first
stage of the disease ; the two adults were copiously bled and placed on
the solution of tartras. antimonii (tartar emetic) ; and at the recommenda-
tion of the fleet surgeon. Dr. Jackson, I inoculated the whole crew,
twenty-seven in number, out of which eleven took the disease ; in several
it was a mild varioloid, and all recovered without any unfavourable symp-
toms. Four took the disease from infection, of which two died — the first
officer and cook, — while all who were inoculated recovered: strong evi-
dence in favour of inoculation.

Coquimbo is very healthy, and has a great uniformity of temperature
throughout the year. The city was called La Serena by the old Spaniards,
from the serenity of the atmosphere, and was selected by the proprietors
of the silver and copper-mines as their residence, in consequence of its
salubrity. To this purity of the atmosphere and uniformity of tempera-
ture, together with the medical police enforced on board ship, can be
attributed the great success in not losing one man out of five hundred

APPENDIX.

547

from this terrible disease. During our stay, the average on the sick-list
was nineteen ; the thermometer standing at 65°, and the barometer at
29.80. There had been no rain at Coquimbo for three years previous to
our arrival; while we were there they had several showers.

The smallpox list was so far reduced on the 8th of J uly as to enable
the commodore to put to sea, when, after a passage of eight days,, we
arrived at Callao, a regular south wind continuing during the passage.
Two sporadic cases of smallpox occurred after our arrival.

On the 22d of August sailed from Callao, having been there thirty-five
days ; the thermometer ranging at 69°, and the barometer at 29. / /, with
a daily average of twenty-eight on the sick -report. A constant mist and
fog filled the atmosphere, and was so heavy as to supply the place of rain
which was much dreaded by the natives, as this is the sickly season when,
dysenteries, intermittent fevers, and pulmonary diseases obtain. Several
cases of low grade of fever occurred in this part, which frequently prevails
throughout the shipping ; it is attended with a small and frequent pulse,
and great prostration. Dr. Ruschenberger, surgeon of the U. S. ship Fal-
mouth, has seen much of this disease, and found small and frequent doses
of the submur. hydrarg. et pulv. antimonialis (calomel and James’s pow-
der), the most successful in its treatment.- Fourteen cases of adenetes
were admitted to the list, which in the- crew usually terminated in
suppuration.

On the 22d sailed for Payta, where we arrived in three days ; and
although so short a distance from Callao, where we were constantly en-
veloped in fogs and mist, we here found the climate all we could desire,

a clear, dry atmosphere, regular winds that prevent the extreme heat of

the day, and but little change of the thermometer at night. On the 26th
sailed for the Galapagos Islands, and in six days anchored in Essex Bay,
Charles Island, lat. 1° 13' south. A large number of the crew were
daily on shore after terapin, and frequently exposed throughout the day
to a hot sun, with those immense animals on their backs, travelling over
the broken lava ; yet the health of the ship’s company remained compara-
tively good. Ardent spirits could not be procured, and the crew were
kept upon their regular allowance. Essex Bay was frequently visited
during the late war by Commodore Porter, and it was found to contribute
materially to the health of his ships’ companies.

A settlement is now being made on the island, which promises to do
much good; they have located on the Irigh and fertile parts of the island,
where the temperature is much lower than in the bay, and the residents,
who are from Guayaquil, complain much of the cold.

Our whale-ships frequently touch at this port, and never suffer from
the climate. The crews of our whale-ships are temperate, and always
wear flannel ; their only wants are vegetables, for which they frequently
suffer during their long periods at sea.

As our crew were much predisposed to bowel complaints after our visit
to India, there was a return of dysentery, attended with some of the high
inflammatory symptoms, tormina, and tenesmus, that characterized the
disease at Batavia. They were copiously bled, emetics of ipecacuanha
administered, followed by large doses of the submur. hydrarg. We
remained ten days in port, during which the temperature ranged at 73°,

548

APPENDIX.

barometer stood at 29.90 ; when we sailed for Guayaquil, and Anchored
at the Island of Puna in eight days. There were thirty-eight cases of
dysentery and diarrhoea admitted within the last three weeks, and at this
time there are twenty on the list ; eight cases of hepatitis occurred within
the same period, which, however, yielded to medical treatment ; two cases
of dysentery terminated fatally. During ten days at Puna, the sick-list
averaged twenty-eight daily ; a majority of the patients were labouring
under dysentery and diarrhma. Guayaquil is very unhealthy during the
wet season, when the rain descends in torrents, and continues for many
weeks ; hepatitis, bilious and remitting fevers, prevail. The natives are
remarkable for the clearness of their complexion, as the latitude is but 3°
south, and is occasioned by their frequent and protracted rains, and their
carefully protecting themselves from the sun.

Sailed from Puna on the 28th of September, and arrived at Payta in three
4ays, at which time there were twenty-eight on the sick-list. The few
days we remained in this port the list was reduced to fifteen, which were
chronic cases of dysentery, the sequel of the disease on board at the Gal-
apagos Islands. The climate of Payta" “is the most salubrious on the
coast of Peru, and is remarkable for the uniformity of temperature, dryness
of the atmosphere, and regularity of the winds ; the thermometer during the
year ranges at 70°. The dense fogs of Callao, and the heavy rains of
Guayaquil, are equally unknown here. Payta is the port of Piura, a city
with a population of four thousand, and so called from the purity of the
atmosphere. The river, which flows past the city, passes through marshes
of the smilax sarsaparilla ; from which it is said to obtain medicinal quali-
ties, which, together with the serenity of the atmosphere, make it the
resort of invalids from this part of the coast.

The cruising ground of the ships employed in the sperm-whale fisheries
is directly off this port, and, in consequence of its easy access and the
excellence of the market, it is much frequented by them.

American whale-ships never carry medical officers, as is the case in the
English and French whale-ships ; in consequence of the peculiar liability
to accidents, and their long cruises at sea, many lives are lost and much
suffering produced for want of medical aid. The establishment of an hos-
pital at some convenient port would be the means of alleviating much
human misery and distress, at the same time it would foster this great
school of hardy seamen. Payta is peculiarly adapted for this purpose,
where an hospital could be established at a trifling expense ; it is also a
proper place for the sick of our squadron, where they could be placed in
charge of a medical officer, and kept until the departure of one of our ships-
of-war for the United States ; instead of being cooped up in merchant
vessels, without medical attendance, for four months during their passage
home through the most inclement and unhealthy regions on the globe. The
expenses that are annually incurred in sending sick officers and seamen
from the Pacific station, would be amply sufficient to defray all the neces-
sary expenses of an hospital.

10th of October, sailed from Payta, and in a few hours had a great
change in temperature, the thermometer falling to 64°, with thick foggy
weather, and the sick-list increased during the passage to forty. On the
16th touched at Lambayeque, and arrived at Callao on the 27th of October,-

APPENDIX.

549

having been twenty-one days at sea since our departure from Puna;
during which time the thermometer ranged at 68°, and the proportion on
the sick-list was thirty — a majority having derangement of the stomach.
The Potomac remained twenty-seven days at Callao, the thermometer
ranging at 69°, barometer at 29.65, with a much more clear and dry
atmosphere than during our previous visit ; the-sick list averaged thirty,
including a number of cases of scrofula, which are very obstinate,

21st of November, sailed from Lima, having at different periods of the
cruise spent one hundred and twenty-seven days in this port ; which
afforded abundant opportunities of observing the effects of climate upon
foreigners, and witnessing the diseases that occur here.

The Limaians are small in stature, and are short hved ; the frequent
revolutions in Peru carry off most of their athletic male population, while
the climate and dissipated lives they lead shorten the period of their exist-
ence. The native Peruvians, who constitute four fifths of their popula-
tion, are short, with very large chests, are fond of agricultural pursuits,
were conquered, and are governed, by a handful of Spaniards. Their
phrenological organization indicates little intellectual development, while
their animal propensities are also diminutive , their habits and character
strongly corroborate these indications ; for when left to themselves, they
diligently cultivate their fields, live amicably, and are hospitable and friendly ;
while the sentiments and faculties located in the superior and posterior
portions of the cranium are much enlarged. Hence, when visited by
Pizarro, they called themselves the children of the sun, and were far ad-
vanced’in agriculture and the arts, while the sciences and warfare were
scarcely known among them.

Our sick-list in Callao was usually large — an average of thirty-two ; of
which adenetes, or enlargement of the glands of the groin, constituted a
large number. These indurations could seldom be resolved, notwithstand-
ing the most active and varied treatment that could be enforced ; in the
officers, whose constant rest could be maintained, pediluvium (the foot-
bath), cataplasms, and frictions, would occasionally prove useful, but
rarely with the crew. They usually suppurate, and produce indolent
ulcers, and are to be met with in every ship-of-war that visits Peru. The
best prophylactics are, carefully avoiding the heavy mists, wearing flannel
next the skin, and attention to the slightest injury or laceration of the
skin on the lower extremities. Chronic hepatitis also frequently occurs,
while the acute form of the disease is rarely met with.

Arrived at Valparaiso in twenty-five days, having met with calms and
adverse winds ; the average sick during the passage was twenty-six.
Off Juan Fernandez we met with fresh head winds, which continued
several days, during which the thermometer fell to 60°, and was followed
by six cases of acute hepatitis, while many were labouring under colds
and catarrhs. During the passage eight were admitted with bilious fever,
who all convalesced immediately after our arrival in Chili, where the
weather is dry and temperate at this season.

We remained fifty-three days at Valparaiso, during which time the
thermometer averaged 69°, with constant pleasant weather, the barometer
standing at 29.70 ; the average on the sick-list was eighteen, which was
made up of slight accidents and indispositions resulting from indulgence

.550

appendix.

on shore. A quarter-gunner, one of the most athletic and useful men in
the ship, lost his life by a fall on shore, when in a state of intoxication, and
a case of phthisis terminated fatally. The only cases of importance that
occurred were several cases of hepatitis and intermittent fever. At this
season (their summer months) dysenteries and inflammation of the liver
prevail among the natives, and the former frequently prove fatal. I
attended a case of the latter in a Mr. Blanco, a gentleman who had been
educated at our military academy at West Point, and promised much future
usefulness to his young country ; he had resided several years in the port,
and was much debilitated by previous indisposition. The progress of the
disease was twice arrested, and every indication was favourable ; but, not-
withstanding the most vigorous treatment, suppuration took place, which
put a period to his existence. We spent one hundred and sixty days at
Valparaiso, at different seasons of the year, and uniformly had a small
sick-list. The climate of Chili is one of the best in the world ; and this
port was so peculiarly grateful to the Spaniards who came here from the
coast of Peru, that they gave it the name of the “ Vale of Paradise.”

The Chilanoes are a robust and vigorous race, and frequently reach a
great age, are capable of enduring much fatigue, and spend much of their
■time on horseback. The smallpox is endemic, and destroys many per-
sons annually ; and the state of medical science is so low that vaccination
has not yet become universal.

An inflammatory fever, attended with much cerebral congestion, pre-
vails during the autumn months, and sometimes assumes the form of an
■epidemic, which proves very fatal, and is considered to be contagious by
the natives, who give it the name of chaoolunga ; and which they treat
with the infusion of conchelagua, an indigenous plant, which is a powerful
diaphoretic.

The state of the medical sciences is very low on the coast, as there
are no schools of medicine, and the native practitioners being from the
lower orders of life, and uneducated, they command little respect ; and
their practice, which consists in the administration of the plants of the
country, is attended with little success.

9th of February, sailed from Valparaiso, and met with head winds, which
continued until we reached the fiftieth degree of south latitude, with cold, wet
weather ; on the 6th of March we were off Cape Horn, in 57° south latitude,
.at which time the thermometer stood at 46°, and the barometer at 29.80,
with thirty-six on the sick-report. The character of the diseases had
much changed since our departure from Valparaiso ; pleuritis (pleurisy),
cynanche tonsillaris (sore throat), and rheumatism, now swelled the list,
and many of the crew were unwell who did not go on the list, as they
were desirous to continue on duty during the passage home. After
■doubling Cape Horn we met with fresh, favourable breezes, which con-
tinued until our arrival at Pdo de Janeiro. The lowest point reached by
the thermometer during the passage was 42°, and the average on the
sick-list was thirty-three ; three fourths of which were labouring under
inflammatory affections, produced by the cold and wet weather.

Arrived at Rio on the 23d of March, where we remained sixteen days.
This is the rainy season ; and although there were frequent showers during
the day, the quantity of rain was very smalh The average standing of

APPENDIX.

551

the thermometer was 78°, and the barometer 29.78, with twenty-nine on
the sick-list.

After leaving Rio, a number of cases of diarrhoea came on the list, and
our progress was slow until after we crossed the equator, which we did on
the 27th of April, with the thermometer at 82°, and twenty-seven on the
sick-list. We arrived at Boston after a passage of forty-four days, during
which time the proportion on the sick-list was twenty-eight, on the 23d
of May, at which time the whole ship’s company were so well as to be
able to take their discharge except six, who were transferred to the hos-
pital— two with phthisis, one with fractured tibia, and the remaining
three with chronic rheumatism.

The Potomac has been absent nearly three years, and the total number
of deaths during that period was twenty-five, of which

•16 died of dysentery,

3 consumption,

1 hepatitis (inflammation of the liver),

1 concealed hernia (rupture),

.1 hydrocephalus (dropsy of the brain),

1 injured spine,

2 shot at the attack on Quallah-Battoo.

25 Total.

During the cruise seven of the crew, including two of the junior officers,
were sent to the United States in consequence of ill health.

The average number of souls on board was four hundred and ninety,
including thirty officers, of which we were so fortunate as not to lose one
during the cruise. Our number of deaths was less than is usual on shore
among the same number of adults- — tliree out of every hundred being the
yearly proportion ; which would have given the Potomac forty-five deaths
during the cruise. It must however be remembered, that at the time of
sailing we were considered all in good health. The daily average of all
excused from duty, in consequence of illness and slight injuries, for more
than three years, while I was on board, was twenty-eight ; which may be
considered a large list. This, however, being the first cruise of the
Potomac, we should expect a large sick-list, as new ships are always
more unhealthy than old ones, — a circumstance supposed to be owing to
the large quantities of salt used in building, which, attracting humidity
from the atmosphere, renders the ship damp, and consequently unhealthy.
The Brandywine was very sickly during her first two cruises, which was

attributed to her being freely salted.

The Potomac has her galley on the birth-deck, and is the only frigate
in the service that has it placed there ; and was thought by many of the
senior officers to contribute to the health of the ship — an opinion in w^hich,
with due deference, I cannot concur ; as I consider cleanliness and dry-
ness the best prophylactics on board ship— circumstances that cannot
exist when the galley is placed on the lower deck.

In the cheerful and contented condition of the crew, with a constant
state of employment, can be traced the health of the ship ; to which a
theatrical company, a weekly newspaper, and relaxation from severe mili-

652

APPENDIX.

tary discipline during our long passage across the Indian and Pacific
Oceans, materially contributed ; to which should be added the judicious
police enforced on board ship during our visits to the most insalubrious
por-ts on the globe. About one third of the crew had the spirituous por-
tion of their ration stopped during the cruise, and it was found they were
more frequently on the sick-list than those who drank their grog. This
was owing to their being mostly boys and landsmen, who had never been
to sea before, and would consequently not enjoy as good health as old
sailors. A reduction in the quantity of grog issued would contribute
much to the health of our sliips’ crews ; and giving it to them after,
instead of before mesls, would prevent intoxication (which usually follows
from taking a gill of spirits on an empty stomach), and preserve the health
and lives of our sailors. This subject has been repeatedly urged by our
.ablest surgeons, yet it is unattended to.

During more than five hundred days at sea we never lost a man by a
fall from aloft or overboard ; and as the latter is an accident of very fre-
quent occurrence, a few brief hints on the mode of treatment may not be
out of place. So soon as out of water, hold the head in such a position
as to permit the water in the mouth to discharge ; then apply your mouth
to that of the patient and inflate the lungs, at the same time press upon the
ribs so as to imitate respiration, and continue this as long as there is a
possibility of restoration ; while the attendants are rubbing the body and
extremities with coarse woollens, put the feet in warm water, or, if con-
venient, lay the patient in a warm bed. Drowned persons die from suffo-
cation ; the indications therefore are, to supply the lungs with air, and
restore the natural temperature of the body. Many lives have been lost
in fruitless attempts to evacuate the water frpm the chest, where it cannot
.enter until after death ; and, when once there, all attempts at respiration
will be fruitless.

When we compare the state of the health of our crew with that of early
navigators, the improvements in modern navigation are found to be truly
great. Lord Anson sailed from England with eight vessels, and one
thousand nine hundred and eighty souls ; out of which only a single ship’s
company, the Centurion, performed her voyage of circumnavigation. The
early Spanish and Dutch navigators were equally unfortunate.

The great improvements in the marine police adopted by Captain
Cooke during his voyages round the world, have benefited navigators as
f much as his geographical discoveries ; but it must be borne in mind that
his ships were small, and small vessels are more healthy than larger ones ;
at the same time, that his crews were in a constant state of excitement,
anxiously looking forward to the discoveries they were almost daily
making, being satisfied they would receive a proper reward upon their
return home. In this, cheerfulness and cleanliness, consist the only
good prophylactics on board ship.

Medical Bureau, Washington, 1835.

APPENDIX.

553

List of Officers, ^c. on board the Potomac when she sailed from the City

of Neiu-York.

Commodore — John Downes.

Lieutenants — Irvine Shubrick, Stephen B. Wilson, Reuben R. Pinkham,
Henry Hoff, Jonathan Ingersoll.

Surgeon — Samuel Jackson.

Commodore's Secretary — Nathaniel K. G. Oliver.

Sailingmaster — Robert S. Tatem.

Second Master — John Barry.

Chaplain — John W. Grier.

Purser — ^William A. Slacum.

Assistant Surgeons — Jonathan M. Foltz, Henry Dewitt Pawling.

Passed Midshipmen — Henry Tooley, junr., Sylvanus Godon.

Master's Mate — Charles de Selding.

Midshipmen — Francis P. Hoban, William May, Allen M'Lane, James

G. Stanley, John W. Taylor, George Sinclair, Henry C. Hart, James

H. Popplerton, William T. Cocke, James L. Parker, Charles Wm. Morris,
George M. Totten, Charles Hunter, James B. Lewis, Micaj ah Claiborne,
Eugene Boyle, Levi Lincoln, junr.

Schoolmaster — Francis Warriner.

Captain's Clerk — Erskine Stansbury.

Boatswain — John M‘Nelly.

Gunner — John R. Covington.

Carpenter — William E. Sheffield.

Sailmaker — Christian Nelson.

Marine Officers

First Lieutenant — Alvin Edson.

Second Lieutenant — -George H. Terrett.

Supernumeraries to join schooner Dolphin — Sailingmaster Benj. J . Totten^
Assistant Surgeon Cornelius Moore, Midshipmen Wm. P. Taylor, Joseph
C. Walsh, Alonzo B. Davis.

Recapitulation.

Officers 40

Supernumerary officers .... 5

Petty officers ....... 28

Seamen 171

Ordinary seamen 118

Landsmen 66

Boys 28

Marines, officers and privates . . 44

Total .

. . 500

. METEOROLOGICAL TABLES.

. The following Meteorological Record was commenced on the of June,
1833, while at the pcrrt of Coquimlo, Chili, west coast of South America; and
continued until the arrival of the Potomac at Boston.

THERMOMETER.

BAROMETER.

Date

A.M.

P.M.

A.M.

P.M.

Winds.

Weather

1833,
June 1

60»

29.80

29.85

29.82

S’d. & E’d.

Fair

29.75

29.85

S.E. & S.W.

Fair

29.72

29.80

29-. 80

Variable

Cloudy

•4

29.80

29.83

Do.

Fair

29.84

29.85

29.80

N.E. to S.W. ■

Fair

29.75

29.78

Do.

Light passing clouds

; 7

29.78

29.72

29.75

Variable

Fair

, 8

29.70

29.75

Northward

Cloudy and rain

30.00

N. & W.

Fair

39.75

39.72

39.75

Do.

Fair

29.78

29.80

29.85

Variable

Fair

29.90

29.95

Do.

Cloudy

29.88

29.85

29.80

South’d.

Fair

29.70

39.82

N. & W.

Thick and foggy

29.85

s. & w.

Fair

29.83

29.85

29.95

Northward

Hazy

39.95

29.90

29.88

N. & E.

Fair

29.88

39.85

29.88

S. &E.

Fair

29.80

29 . 75

29.75

Northward

Fair

29.72

39.75

29.75

N. & W.

Cloudy

29.73

29 . 72

29.73

Variable

Cloudy

29.72

29.75

Do.

Cloudy

29.75

29.80

Light airs

Cloudy

29.80

29.85

Variable

Cloudy, with rain

29.85

S’d. & W’d.

Fair

29.90

29.95

29.90

Do.

Fair

29.90

29.85

29.75

Variable

Fair

29.70

29.75

S’d. & W’d.

Fair

29.80

Northward

Cloudy

29.80

39.80

Cahn

Fair

July 1

29.80

S’d. & E’d.

Fair

29.80

Do.

Fair

29.80

29.95

Variable

Fair

29.95

29.80

S’d. & E’d.

Fair

29.75,

29.75

39.90

Variable

Cloudv

29.90

Light airs

Cloudy

29.85

29.75

39.75

Do.

Cloudy

39.80

29.85

29.80

Do.

Fair

30.05

30.00

1 Variable

Fair

!3,

12:

. 1

APPENDIX.

Latitude.

Longitude.

THERMOM.

BAROMETER.

Wat’r.

A.M.

P.M.

A.M.

M.P.

29» 32'

71“

53' W.

54“

58°

30.05

.30.00

30.00

58“

25 54

30.00

29.90

6OI

22 42

29.95

29.85

19 12

29.75

15 53

29.75

29.65

29.75

13 20

29.75

29.70

29.75

12 24

29.75

Callao

29.78

29.80

29.70

29.75

29.70

29 . 75

29.78

29.80

29.75

29.72

29.70

29.72

29.75

29.80

29.85

29.80

29.75

29.72

65,

29.75

29.80

29.75

29.70

29.75

29.78

29.75

29.78

29.75

29.78

29.72

29.75

29.72

29.70

29.72

29.7s

10° 22'

78“

35' W.

29.78

29.70

7 56

29.75

5 39

29.78

Payta.

29.78

3° 40'

29.78

2 03

29.78

1 31

70-

29.75

1 12

29.78

Essex Bay.

(ialapagfos.

29.78

29.75

29.72

29.70

29.72

29.70

29.72

2&.72

29.72

29.70

1“ 31'

90“

5l'W.

29.70

2 02

70 170172

29.70

129.70

Winds.

Weath’r.'

Variable.

Fair.

S.S.E.

S.E.

do .

Cloudy.'

S.E.’ly

Fair.

Cloudy, i

Sd.&Ed.

do ’

do 1

Calm.

do ;

Foggy.

Sd.&Ed.

Fair.

South.

Cloudy. 1

Sd.&Ed.

Fair.

South.

Cloudy, i

Sd.&Ed.

South.

Sd.&Ed.

South.

Fair.

Cahn.

Cloudy.

Sd.&Ed.

Foggy.

Cloudy.

Variable.

South’d.

Sd.&Ed.

Cloudy.

Variable.

Cloudy.

Variable.

Variable^

Sd.&Ed.

Fair.

Variable.

South.

Sd.&Ed.

Cloudy,

Variable.

Cloudy.

Variable.

Fair.

Sd.&Ed.

South.

Variable.

Sd.&Ed.

Variable.

Sd.&Ed.

Variable.

Sd.&Ed.

Variable.

Cloudy.

S.S.W.

Variable.

Cloudy.

South.

Sd.&Ed.

Variable.

Cloudy.

APPENDIX.

557

Nov.

20
21
22

31
1

THERMOM.

Date.

Latitude.

Longitude.

1833,
Sept. 12

1“ 35' S.

880 22' W.

1 37

85 33

2 00

83 36

2 40

81 37

3 18

GuK Guay-

Puna,

aquil.

Guayaquil.

'21

S'’ 21' s.

800 28' W.

4 07

Oct. 1

4 51

81 40

Payta.

5“ 33' S

81° 51' W

6 13

6 22

81 02

6 46

80 31

Lambayeq’e

60 53' S

800 lo'W

7 27

80 02

7 57

79 47

8 29

9 04

79 23

8
9

14
16

9 31

9 41

10 06

10 55

11 15

11 47

Callao.

do'

78 27

78 17

77 52

BAROMETER.

L.M.

MM.

A.M.

8 ^
P.M.

iVat’r.

Winds. ^

’■Oo

12°

29.72

740

Sd.&Ed. ^

r2 '

29.72

29 . 72

29.72

Variable.

29.72

29.75

South’d.

29.75

29.68

V'ariable.

29.70

Vd&Wd

29.70

V ariable.

29.70

29.68

Westw’d

29.68

Variable.

29.68

29.70

Westw’d

29.70

Nd&Wd

29.70

Variable.

29.70

Westw’d

29.70

Sd&Wd

29.70

W estw’d

29.70

29.72

Sd&Wd

29.72

29.70

29.65

Variable.

T'2

29.65

Sd&Wd

29.65

Sd.&Ed.

29.65

29 . 65

29.65

29.68

29.65

29.60

29.55

South’d.

29.65

29.70

29.65

Sd.&Ed.

29.65

29.70

29.75

29.70

29.75

29 . 75

29.75

29.70

29.65

29.70

29.71

29.68

29 .68

29.68

Variable.

29.65

Nd&Wd

29.65

Variable.

29.68

Sd.&Ed.

29.68

29.65

29.68

Variable.

29.68

29.65

29. 6£

29.65

29 . 65

Sd.&Ed.

29.61

29.66

29.65

29.68

29.66

29.65

Variable.

29.68

Sd.&Ed.

29.68

Variable.

29.68

! 29.68

Sd.&Ed.

29. 6f

29.66

: do

29. 6i

3 29.66

29.66

29.6.

3 29.66

l7(

29. 65 [29. 65 [29.61

Weath’r.

Fair.

Cloudy.
Fair,
lloudy.
do
do
F air.
do
do

Cloudy.

Fair.

Cloudy.

Fair.

Cloudy.

Fair.

Cloudy.

Fair.

Cloudyt

Fair.

Cloudy.

Fair.

Cloudy.

Fair.

558

APPENDIX.

Date.

Latitude.

Longitude.

THERMOM.

BAROMETE

Wat’r.

Winds.

Weath’r.

V.M.

P.M.

A.M.

P.M.

1833,
Nov. 16

Callao.

67°

29 . 65

29.65

Sd.&Ed.

Cloudy, '

29 . 68

29.68.

29.68

Variable.

29.68

Sd.&Ed.

Fair.

29.68

29 . 65

29.65

do ■

29.65

29.05

Cloudy.

13°

07' S.

78°

42' V7.

29.68

67°

F air.

29.68

29.70

Cloudy,

29 . 75

29.75

29 . 75

29.75

29.78

29.80

29.85

68i

Fair.

29.85

29.90

69.

29.90

Dec. 1

30.00

Variable.

30.00

Sd.&Ed.

29.95

Variable.

Variable,

29.95

30.30

30.00

Sd.&Ed.

Fair,

30.00

Variable.

30.00

29.95

South’d.

29.95

30.00

Sd.&Ed.

Cloudy.

30.06

30.05

Fair.

30.05

30.00

Cloudy.

29.85

Fa,ii-.

29.75

South’d.

Valparaiso.

29.75

Sd.&Ed.

29.75

29.^

29.68

Variable.

Cloudy.

29.70

29 . 70

Sd.&Ed.

Fair.

29. m

29.70

Variable.

Cloudy.

29.70

29 . 70

29.70

Sd.&Ed.

Fair.

29.70

29.68

29.65

Variable.

29.60

29.65

North’d.

Cloudy.

29.65

29.70

29.75

29.78

Sd&Wd

Fair.

29.78

29 . 78

Variable.

Cloudy.

29.78

29-70

29.70

Sd.&Ed.

Fair.

29.70

1834,

Jan. 1

29.65

Sd&Wd

29.65

29.60

Sd.&Ed.

29.65

29.05

29.65

29.70

Variable.

29 . 65

29.65

29 . 65

Nd&Ed.

29.65

Variable.

29.75

Nd&Ed.

29.75

29,75

29.70

Nd&Wd

29.65

Variable.

29.65

29 . 65

29.65

29.70

29.75

Sd&Wd

29.78

29.75

Sd.&Ed

29.70

29-65

29.60

29.55

29.60

29.65

Cloudy.

29.68

29-65

129.65

Variable.

Fair.

APPENDIX.

559

Date.

Latitude.

Longitude.

THERMOM.

BAROMETER.

Wat’r,

Winds.

Weath’r.

A..M.

P.M.

A.M,

P.M.

1834,

an. 19

Valparaiso.

66“

70“

29.60

Variable.

Fair.

■

29.60

29 . 58

29.60

Sd&Wd

29.65

Variable.

Cloudy.

29.70

North’d.

Fair.

29.65

Variable.

29.65

29 . 65

Sd.&Ed.

29.65

29 . 65

29.65

Variable.

29.70

29-70

29.70

North’d.

Cloudy.

29.70

Sd.&Ed.

Fair.

29 . 70

29 . 75

V ariable.

29.80

^9.80

29.75

29.70

29.68

29.70

i'eb. 1

29.70

29.75

29.78

Sd.&Ed.

Cloudy.

29 . 75

29.75

North’d.

Fair.

29.75

Cloudy.

29 . 75

29.75

Variable.

29.78

North’d.

29.78

29.'?'8

Sd.&Ed.

Fair.

29.70

29 . 70

29.70

V ariable.

32“

26' S,

74“

52' W.

29.70

29.75

29 . 75

68i“

29.85

Sd.&Ed.

71i

29.90

Variable.

29.95

Sd.&Ed.

29.85

29.80

Variable.

29.80

29.75

Cloudy,

29.75

29.80

Sd&Wd

Rain.

30.00

30.10

Sd.&Ed.

Squalls.

30.00

29.90

661

Sd&Wd

Cloudy.

29.85

29.55

29.65

29.75

29.80

South’ly.

Rain.

29.85

29.80

Sd.&Ed.

Fair.

29.75

29.76

29.75

Nd&Wd

Squalls.

58 ,

29.75

29.80

South’ly.

Fair.

29.60

29.80

Sd&Wd

29.85

29 . 9.5

3o;oo

Sd.&Ed.

54i

30.00

5ii

South’ly.

Cloudy,

30.10

30.20

30.10

Sd&Wd

30.10

30.^

30.00

March 1

29.80

29.75

29.70

.55i

29.30

29.22

29.20

Westerly

29.00

28.95

29.00

29.10

S.W.

29.20

W esterly

29.05

481

Nd&Ed.

Squally.

29.50

29.65

Sd.&Ed.

29.65

29.60

29.45

Easterly

Cloudy.

48 i

29.30

Variable.

Squally.

29.30

Sd&Wd

Fair.

29.20

29-30

29.40

Westerly

Cloudy.

29 . 50

29.50

58 .

Sd&Wd

Fair.

29.60

Nd&Wd

Cloudy.

29.40

29.30

Foggy.

29.60

29.70

Westerly

Fair.

29.70

29 . 65

Nd&Ed.

29.40

29.50

29.60

Westerly

29.65

Sd&Wd

29.60

North’ly

29.60

29.40

Westerly

29 .'40

29.55

29.65

Nd&Wd

29.90

Sd&Wd

29.90

29-90

29 .85

Variable

176

29.81

29.85

South’ly

! 1

APPENDIX

Latitude.

Longitude.

THEEMOM.

BAROMETER.

Wat’r.

Winds.

Weatli’r

A.M.

P.M.

A.M.

P.M.

24°

29' S.

41°

27' W.

76°

78°

29.85

Sd.&Ed.

Fair.

29.75

Easterly

Rio de

29.65

29.50

South’ly.

Cloudy.

Janeiro.

29.68

29.70

29.78

Rain.

29.78

29.85

29.80

Cloudy.

29.80

29.75

Fair.-

8!)

29.70

29.65

- do

29.78

Rain.

29.85

29.80

Cloudy.

29.80

29.75

Fair.

29.72

29.70

Cloudy.

29.75

29.85

29.80

Fair.

29.80

24°

52'

29.80

lijRstsrly

29.85

Nd&Ed,

29.80

29.75

do .

29.70

29.75

North’ly.

Rain.

29.75

Cloudy.

29 . 75

29.75

Nd&Wd

Squally.

29.80

Variable.

Cloudy.

29.80

29.75

Nd&Ed.

Rain.

29.75

29.80

Fair.

29.80

Easterly

29.75

29.70

S.E.

Squally.

29.70

Sd.&Ed.

Rain.

29.70

Variable.

29 . 75

29.75

Easterly

29.75

Nd&Ed.

28 N.

29.75

29.70

29 . 70

29.70

Variable.

do'

29.75

V ariable.

29.75

Nd&Ed.

Cloudy.

29 . 75

29.75

Fair.

29.70

29.75

N.E.

29.80

Nd&Ed.

29.85

N.E.

Rain.

29.85

Nd&Ed.

Fair.

29.85

Cloudy.

29.80

Easterly

Fair.

29.85

Sd.&Ed.

29.90

Sd&Wd

29.80

29.75

S.W.

29.70

S.S.W.

Rain

30.00

30.10

Variable.

30.18

30.10

30.00

Nd&Wd

Cloudy.

29.90

North’ly.

Fair.

29.90

76-69

Westerly

30.00

30.10

68-78

Variable.

29.90

29.85

61-76

29.85

Boston.

29.90

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THE HISTORY OF THE DECLINE FALL OF THE

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HISTORY OF THE BIBLE. By the Rev. G. R. Gleig,
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NARRATIVE OF DISCOVERY AND ADVENTURE IN
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HISTORY OF CHIVALRY AND THE CRUSADES. By

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VIEW OF ANCIENT AND MODERN EGYPT. With an

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FESTIVALS, GAMES, AND AMUSEMENTS. Ancient and

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SACRED HISTORY OF THE WORLD, as displayed in the

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HISTORICAL AND DESCRIPTIVE ACCOUNT or BRITISH

INDIA ; from the most Remote Period to the Present Time. Including a
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HISTORY OF IRELAND. From the Anglo-Norman Invasion

till the Union of the Country with Great Britain. By W. C. Taylor, Esq. !
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require eulogy.

HISTORICAL VIEW OF THE PROGRESS OF DISCOV-
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From the Earliest Period to the Present Time. By P. F. Tvtler, Esq.
With Descriptive Sketches of the Natural History of the North American
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Remarks on a late Memoir of Sebastian Cabot, with a Vindication of Hakluyt.
18mo. With a Map and Engravings.

Among the most remarkable occurrences of the nineteenth century are the various
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although not perfectly satisfactory in their results. In no other portion of the earth’s
surface has the navigator to contend with such formidable difficulties, and in none
does he behold so peculiar an aspect of nature : it follows, therefore, of course, that
expeditions to no other part of the world furnish to the historian such ample and
interesting materials. The present volume exhibits a full and accurate view of all
that is important in modern knowledge of the most remote territories of North
America, and may be considered as forming a sequel to the “ Polar Seas and Regions,”
and as furnishing all that was wanting to a complete account of the whole series of
northern discoveries by land and water.

HISTORY OF CHARLEMAGNE. To which is prefixed an

Introduction, comprising the History of France from the Earliest Period
to the Birth of Charlemagne. By G. P. R. James, Esq. ISmo. With a
Portrait.

The age of Charlemagne may be considered as the period to which the origin of
most of the nations of Europe as they at present exist, can alone be traced with suf-
ficient certainty ; beyond this epoch, the researches of the historian are often fated to
I end in disappointment and obscurity. In tracing the fortunes of the several powers
into which that continent is divided, from the earliest attainable facts to the present
time, it is indispensable that the inquirer should possess a clear and accurate under-
standing of the actual state as well of France as of the surrounding countries, at the
period when, by the successes and achievements of that remarkable monarch, his
kingdom became the dominant power of the European continent. Until the appear-
ance of Mr. James’s History, this clear and accurate understanding was of exceedingly
difficult attainment ; the materials from which it was to be drawn were scattered
through various historical works, and all the labour of arrangement, condensation, and
comparison was to be performed by the student himself. Such is no longer the case ;
light has been shed upon the darkness of that remote age ; and the world of Science
is indebted to Mr. James for the means of readily acquiring a complete and satisfactory
knowledge in aU its details, of the first great epoch in European History. In the
numerous commendations of this work that have appeared in the Reviews and
periodicals both of England and the United States, the highest terms of eulogy have
been employed ; and all have noticed with strong expressions of praise, the singular
perspicuity of the style, and the remarkable absence of prolixity and confusion in the
progress of the narrative.

6 Historical Works Published by J. ^ J. Harper.

SKETCHES FROM VENETIAN HISTORY. By the Rev.

E. Smedley, M.A. In 2 vols. 18mo. With Engravings.

Few have the knowledge, the time, or the means to explore for themselves the
treasures’ of the Itahan chronicles. The author of this work has laid open their
stores for the benefit of those to whom the language in which they are written renders
them a sealed book — gleaning from them the most characteristic incidents, amusing
stories, and anecdotes, while, at the same time, he has sustained aU the ^gnity of
historical research ; passing lightly over events of minor importance, and reserving
himself for those momentous and interesting transactions winch require to be more
fully displayed. The beauty of the style has been very generally noticed, and has
gained the applause of the most competent judges.

INDIAN TRAITS ; BEING SKETCHES OF THE MAN-
NERS, CUSTOMS, AND CHARACTER OF THE NORTH AMERICAN
NATIVES. By B. B. Thatcher, Esq. In 2 vols. 18mo. With numerous
Engravings.

The appearance, character, and habits of the North American Indians have long
been a favourite and fertile theme for writers as well as readers, and accurate
descriptions of them are equally instructive and agreeable. These form the subject
of the present volumes, and they are admitted to contain much correct and interest-
ing information. A larger work, by the same author, entitled “ Indian Biography,”
treats of the history of those remarkable members of the human family : the work
now under consideration makes no pretensions to that character, but is entirely de-
scriptive ; and it is entitled to high praise, not only as being the first attempt to
render the subject attractive to general readers, but also for the ability with which
the object is accomplished.

NUBIA AND AB Y SSINIA. Comprehending their Civil History,
Antiquities, Arts, Religion, Literature, and Natural History. By the Rev. M.
Russell, LL.D. 18mo. With a Map and Engravings.

There is no country in the world more interesting than that which was kno’wn to
the ancients as “ Ethiopia above Egypt,” the Nubia and Abyssinia of the present day.
It was universally regarded by the poets and philosophers of Greece as the cradle
of those arts which at a later period covered the kingdom of the Pharaohs with so
many wonderful monuments, as also of those religious rites which, after being
slightly inodified by the priests' of Thebes, were adopted by the ancestors of Homer
and Virgil as the basis of their mythology. A description of this remarkable nation,
therefore, by the well-known author of the “ View of Ancient and Modern Egypt,”
cannot be otherwise than instructive and highly interesting.

TALES FROM AMERICAN HISTORY. By the Author of

“ American Popular Lessons.” In 3 vols. ISmo. With Engravings.

The writer of these Tales has had in view two chief purposes, — the one to con-
vey to the juvenile reader a general idea of the incidents connected with the discovery
and subsequent history of the American continent ; the other to excite an interest
in the subject which shall create a desire for more minute and extensive information.
These purposes have been effected with much success, and the volumes will be
found instructive and entertaining. In the majority of instances, the Tales have
been selected with reference to the illustration of some moral principle ; and the
frequent mportunities afforded for the introduction of reflections leading to the cul-
tivation of piety and religion have been ably and zealously improved. As a school-
book this collection of Historical Tales is calculated to be eminently serviceable ;
and there can be no doubt that their introduction into seminaries will be attended
with both pleasure and advantage to the scholars.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMED RELIGION IN FRANCE.

By the Rev. E. Smedley, M.A. In 2 vols. 18mo. With Portraits.

BIOGRAPHICAL WORKS.

LETTERS AND JOURNALS OF LORD BYRON; with

Notices of his Life. By Thomas Moore, Esq. In 2 vols. 8vo. With a Por-
trait.

By unbiased critics Bjoron’s Letters have been pronounced equal, if not superior, in
point of vigour, interest, variety, and liveliness, to any that have yet adorned this
branch of pur literature. The present edition is printed on large type and good
paper, and in a convenient form. '

THE LIFE OF NELSON. By Robert Southey, LL.D.
18mo. With a Portrait.

This Biography has been pronounced one of the Laureate’s most successful efforts :
the enthusiastic and romantic character of Nelson furnished a congenial subject, and
he has treated it with consummate ability. The errors of the fortunate and gallant
admiral are fairly and fearlessly exposed ; while the nobler elements of his mind, his
heroic courage, his perseverance, and his insatiable appetite for glory, as well as the
great actions in which they are displayed, are described and illustrated with a happy
choice of language and most fehcitous effect.

LIFE OF MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. By Henry Glass-

ford. Beli., Esq. In 2 vols. 18mo. With a Portrait.

It is now generally admitted that great injustice has been done to the character of
Mary, and that there is good reason to believe her, to say the least, guiltless of the
darker offences charged against her. Mr. Bell has undertaken her vindication, and,
having investigated the facts with uncommon industry and patience, he has succeeded
in establishing a conviction of her entire innocence. The sympathy excited by the
story of her beauty and her misfortunes is now heightened by the assurance of her
wrongs. Mr. Bell’s is considered the most affecting, as well as the most impartial
life of Mary that has been written.

MEMOIRS OF THE EMPRESS JOSEPHINE. By John

S. Memes, LL.D. 18mo. With Portraits.

Amid the turmoils, the vast achievements, the ambitious aspirings, and the com-
plicated intrigues which mark the era of Napoleon’s greatness, it is refreshing to pursue
the elegant and gentle course of Josephine, whose affection for the conqueror and
native goodness of heart were so often made the instruments of mercy, and whose
persuasive voice was ever ready to interpose between his wrath and its trembling
object. Placid in situations peculiarly trying, Josephine preserved her character
unsullied, and the story of her hfe abounds with occasions for the respect and admi-
ration of the reader. The author has performed his task with great abiUty, and the
public is indebted to him for one of the most dehghtful biographies.

MEMOIRS OF CELEBRATED FEMALE SOVEREIGNS.

By Mrs. Jameson. In 2 vols. 18mo.

The intention of this work is to illustrate the influence which a female government
has had generally on men and nations, and that which the possession of power has
had individually on the female character. The didac-tic form of history or biography
has not always been adhered to ; incidents and characters are treated rather in a
moral than in a political or historical point of view ; and public affairs and national
events are not dwelt upon, except as connected with the destiny, or emanating from
the passions or prejudices of the individual or sovereign. The Lives form an admi-
rable illustration of the female character, and the lessons they furnish abound with
instruction, while the incidents recorded are interesting, not only in themselves, but
as authentic details of remarkable personages whom circumstances or personal quah-
ties have invested with claims to our attention.

RECORDS OF MY LIFE. By the late John Taylor, Esq.
Author of “Monsieur Tonson.” Complete in one volume, 8vo.

8 Biographical Works Published by J. Sp J. Harper.

THE LIFE OF NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. By J. G.

Lockhart, Esq. With Portraits. In 2 vols. 18mo.

This celebrated work contains an epitome of all that has been proved to be true con-
cerning the character and actions of the most extraordinary man of the last thousand
years. The English language possesses no other authentic epitome of his history ;
and, notwithstanding the smallness of the limits witlrin which it is compressed, the
narrative throughout is clear, distinct, and copious. The life of Napoleon, doubly in-
teresting when relieved of the tediousness of useless detail, has never been better told.
The work is written with commendable impartiality, and the author has been care-
ful to interweave with his narrative all the new illustrations and anecdotes fornished
by Bourrienne, and other French writers, whose memoirs have appeared since the
publication of the great work of Sir Walter Scott, from which a large portion of his
materials was derived. As an evidence of the amazing popularity of this History, it
is stated that more than 27000 copies of it have been disposed of in Great Britain
alone.

THE LIFE OF FREDERIC THE SECOND, King of

Prussia. By Lord Dover. In 2 vols. 18mo. With a Portrait.

Frederick II. lived in an age among the most remarkable in the annals of the
world. He was one of those rtien who constitute an epoch ; who, by their paramount
influence upon the events of a particular period, impress it, in a degree, with character-
istics resulting from their own peculiar sentiments, habits, and proceedings ; who may
be considered monuments on the road of ages to designate certain divisions of time.
But, apart from the character of Frederic, the great incidents in the midst of which
he lived and moved, and in wMch he was a prominent actor, render this period of
European history one of the most interesting and important; and it has been ably
delineated by the modem iustorian of the Prussian monarch. Lord Dover has long
been favourably luiown as the Hon. Mr. Elhs, and his Life of Frederic has much
enhanced his reputation. It is honourable to him, considering the irrehgious character
of Frederic, that he has nowhere rendered vice attractive, and that his pages are
studiously guarded from the shghtest contamination of infidelity.

THE LIFE AND ACTIONS OF ALEXANDER THE

GREAT. By Rev. J. Williams. With a Map. 18mo.

This volume fills a blank in the historical library, and furnishes an excellent manual
for the student. It is not confined to the mere exploits and adventures of the Mace-
donian hero, although they constitute the leading topic, but contains a masterly view
of the times in which he lived, and of the manners, arts, and sciences of the Greeks,
Persians, Egyptians, Arabs, and Indians, and other nations whom he visited or con-
quered. The story is well and elegantly told, and conveys a more distinct and
accurate idea of the ancient Napoleon than is to be found in any other history. In the
perusal, the curiosity of the reader is gratified as well as stimulated, and his mind is
moved to profitable reflection.

LIFE AND TIMES OF GEORGE THE FOURTH. With

Anecdotes of Distinguished Persons of the last Fifty Years. By Rev. George
Croly. 18mo.

The regency and reign of this monarch occupied one of the most eventful and in-
teresting periods of English liistory, not only from the magnitude and importance of
their pohtical occurrences, but also from the vast improvements in science and the
arts by wliich they were distinguished, and the number of eminent individuals who
flourished at this epoch. The character of George himself was not the least re-
markable among those of the principal personages of the time, and it has been
handled by Mr. Croly with a just and fearless, but not uncharitable spirit. His per
ceptions are close, keen, and accurate, and his language singularly terse and energetic.
His work wiU be of the highest value to the future Iustorian.

MEMOIRS OF THE DUCHESS D’ABRANTES (Madame

Junot), In one volume, 8vo. With a Portrait.

Biographical Works Published by J. J. Harper,

LIFE OF LORD BYRON. By J. Galt, Esq. 18mo. (40 cents.)

The splendour of Lord Byron’s fame, and the interest attendant upon the story of
his eventful life and early death, have combined to render his biography a work of
more than usual attraction. Mr. Galt enjoyed the advantages consequent upon a
long and intimate acquaintance with the noble poet, and has given a striking and
satisfactory description of his mind and character. One of the greatest merits of the
work is its strict impartiality ; the writer is evidently free from prejudice either fa-
vourable or adverse to his subject, and tells what he knows or believes to be the truth,
without any bias from envy, ill-will, or affection.

THE LIFE OF SIR ISAAC NEWTON. By Sir David

Brewster, K.B., LL.D., F.R.S. 18mo. With Engravings.

This is tlie only extended Life of the greatest of English philosophers ever given
to the public. In attempting to supply a vacancy in philosophic and scientific litera-
ture, Sir David Brewster, himself one of the most profound and eminent savansoi the
age, has not only sought out from resources hitherto unknown and inaccessible to
previous writers every fresh and novel particular of Newton’s life, but has given tlie
most lucid explanations of his great discoveries, and the steps by which they vvere
accomplished ; and has been remarkably successful in rendering these intelligible to
all classes of readers.

THE LIVES OF THE MOST EMINENT BRITISH PAIN-
TERS AND SCULPTORS. By Allan Cunningham. In 5 vols. 18mo.
With Portraits.

The author has collected, in these small volumes, a history of art in England, and
the lives, characters, and works of its most eminent professors,— the materials of
which were previously scattered through ma,ny volumes, inaccessible and uninviting
to the mass of readers. Thh critical observations profusely scattered through these
biographies will render them useful to the student, while the personal anecdotes
with which they abound make -them equally alluring to the ordinaiy reader. The
labours and struggles of genius, the success of perseverance, and the inutility of
talent unallied to prudence, as exemplified in these narratives, afford a useful moral
lesson, while the incidents which illustrate them become the source of pleasure and
entertainment.

THE LIVES OF CELEBRATED TRAVELLERS. By ,

James Augustus St. John. In 3 vols. 18mo.

Every man whose mind can sympathize with human nature under all its various
aspects, and can detect passions, weaknesses, and virtues like his own through the
endless disguises effected by strange religions, policies, manners, or climates, must
peruse the relations of veracious travellers with satisfaction and advantage. The
author of these volumes has with great industry and judgment compiled a series of
highly interesting narratives, containing the most striking incidents in the fives and
wanderings of all the celebrated travellers that have flourished within the last eight
centuries, taking them up in their regular order of succession, presenting only the
attractive portions, and omitting all useless and unnecessary details. The reader
will find in these volumes the substance of many ponderous tomes, most of which
are rare, and only to be found in the extensive European libraries.

A MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF WILLIAM LIVINGSTON ;

Member of Congress in 1774, 1775, and 1776; Delegate to the Federal Con-
vention in 1787, and Governor of the State of New-Jersey from 1776 to 1790. ^
With Extracts from his Correspondence, and Notices of Various Members
of his Family. By Theodore Sedgwick, Jun. 8vo. With a Portrait.

This work embraces a clear and interesting account of the life and character of an
eminent and excellent man, distinguished for learning and talents, and the most ex-
emplary and patriotic devotion to the liberties and independence of his country. It
is written in an unpretending manner, and with a commendable freedom from the sin
of exaggeration, which is so apt to beset biographers, and is highly valuable as an
acquisition to our revolutionary annals.

10 Biographical Works Published by J. ^ J. Harper.

LIFE OF MOHAMMED ; Founder of the Religion of Islam,
and of the Empire of the Saracens. By Rev. George Bush, A.M. With an
Engraving. 18mo.

The objects of the writer in the preparation of this volume have been condensation,
clearness, and accuracy. It was written expressly for the pubhshers by an American
author, and, in addition to the numerous and highly flattering commendations bestowed
I upon it by the press, it has received the testimonial of republication in England. In
! one respect, the plan adopted by the author presents an improvement upon preceding
I fnemoirs of the great impostor, m the careful collocation of the chapters of the Koran
j with the events of the narrative, — a method by which the history is illustrated in a
1 remarkable degree. The appendix, containing a series of prophetic investigations,

; is peculiarly curious, learned, and valuable.

THE LIFE OF OLIVER CROMWELL. By Rev. M. Rus-

sell, LL.D. In 2 vols. 18mo. With a Portrait.

These volumes contain a popular Histor]' of one who, it is allowed, was, in many
respects, the most extraordinary man t'hat England has ever produced. It has been>
the study of the author, while he availed himself of the labours of all of his prede-
cessors, to give an unbiased view of Cromwell’s conduct : in his early life ; at his first
entrance upon public business; in his achievements as a soldier; in his rise to
political power ; and, finally, in his government of those kingdoms which he was the
first to conquer. The reverend gentleman is certainly entitled to the most unquali-
fied praise for his exertions, and for the new, curious, and important information
which he has collected and arranged ; and those who peruse his work will be re-
warded by much valuable information.

INDIAN BIOGRAPHY: or, an Historical Account of those

Individuals who have been distinguished among the North American Natives
as Orators, Warriors, Statesmen, and other Remarkable Characters. By B. B. ;
Thatcher, Esq. In 2 vols. 18mo. With a Portrait.

The extensive popularity of these Biographies is one of the strongest evidences of
their merit : within a veiy few months after the publication a large edition was dis-
posed of, and the work was at once established as a standard. Until its appearance
there was no authentic or satisfactory account of the Indians : notices of a few of
the most distinguished among them in earlier times were to be found scattered through
the pages of various historical works, but the number was very limited, and it might
be said that all knowledge of their true character, and of the traits for which they were
remarkable, was locked up in manuscripts or in obsolete publications. The writer
of these volumes has, with great industry and perseverance, explored those almost
unknown stores of information, and produc^ a work of the highest character for
candour, extent, and accuracy. It ha^been mily said, that until Mr. Thatcher took
upon himself the office of their historian, full justice had never been done to the
characters and actions of the aborigines.

LIVES OF THE APOSTLES and EARLY MARTYRS, or the
CHURCH. By the Author of “ The Trial of Skill.” 18mo. Juvenile.

The style is beautifully simple, and the narrative is interspersed with comments
and reflections remarkable for their devout spirit, and for the clearness with which
they elucidate whatever might appear to the mind either contradictory or unintelli-
gible. It is impossible for any child to read these effecting histories without becoming
interested; and the interest is so directed and improved as to implant and foster the
purest principles of religion and morality. The most esteemed religious publications
throughout the Union have joined in cordial expressions of praise to this work.

THE LIFE AND REMAINS OF EDWARD DANIEL

CLARKE ; Professor of Mineralogy in the University of Cambridge. By
Rev. William Otter, A. M. Complete in one volume, 8vo.

Biographical Works Published by J. J. Harper. 11

THE LIFE OF WICLIF. By Charles Webb Le Bas, A. M.

18mo. With a Portrait.

The object of the author has been to produce, within a reasonable compass, the
substance of the information which has been preserved to us relative to this very ex-
traordinary man, — a man whose strength of character made an impression on the
mind of his country which- has never been effaced. The volume embraces, it is
believed, all the important information contained in the works of Vaughan, Fox,
Lewis, James, and other writers on the subject, and is certainly among the first
specimens of beautiful composition in the English language.

LUTHER AND THE LUTHERAN REFORMATION. By

John Scott, A. M. In 2 vols. 18mo. With Portraits.

This work is designed to present, in a more popular and convenient form, the sub-
stance of the information collected by Milner and others relative to the most remark-
able period, and the most important event, which has occurred in the Iristory of the
chprch since the apostles’ days. To exhibit an account of “ the blessed Reforma-
tion” which may be deemed just and adequate, which may show what the Refomiers
really contended for, and in what spirit and for what reasons they contended for it,
and which, at the same time, may prove attractive to the public, must be judged an
object highly seasonable and of great consequence. Such a work. Mr. Scott has
supplied. ^

THE LIFE OF ARCHBISHOP CRANMER. By Charles

Webb Le Bas, A. M. In 2 vols. 18mo. With a Portrait,

Mr. Le Bas has collected into a compendious and interesting narrative the sub-
stance of more voluminous compilations ; and has presented to the public a work, ele-
gantly written, which will enable them duly to estimate their obligations to the great
master-builder of the Protestant Church of England.

LIVES AND VOYAGES OF DRAKE, CAVENDISH, AND

DAMPIER ; including an Introductory View of the earlier Discoveries in the
South Sea, and the History of the Bucaniers. 18mo. With Portraits.

The relation of the voyages, discoveries, and adventures of early and celebrated
English navigators is, in so far, a liistory of the rise of her naval power. In this
volume are contained the Lives of three of the most eminent ; and, from the very
nature of the subject, it presents much curious and valuable information, gleaned
from many sources, and in every instance verified by scrupulous examination and
reference to original documents. Early Spanish Discovery in the South Seas, and
the first circumnavigation of the globe by Magellan, form a subordinate but appro-
priate branch of the work; and the subject is completed by the History of the
Bucaniers, — those daring rovers whose wild adventures afford so much to charm
the youthful mind, and form one of the most interesting chapters in the annals of
maritime enterprise and adventure.

SKETCHES OF THE LIVES OF DISTINGUISHED FE-
MALES. Written for Girls, with a view to their Mental and Moral Improve-
ment. By an American Lady. 18mo. With a Portrait, &c.

As example acts more forcibly upon female youth than on the other sex, it is pecu-
liarly important that the biography which is placed in the hands of young females
should be either carefully selected, so as to give them no examples but those that are
unexceptionable, or else that it should be accompanied by such remarks as will
enable them to discriminate between the excellences to be imitated and the eccen-
tricities to be avoided. With such views these sketches have been prepared. They
will be found peculiarly instructive, and are written in a style which cannot fail to in-
terest. The volume is embellished with a portrait of Mrs. Judson, &c., and em-
braces biographical sketches of several of the most distinguished females of our own
country.

12 Biographical Works Published by J. Sp J. Harper.

THE LIFE OF JOHN JAY : with Selections from his Cor-
respondence and Miscellaneous Papers. By his Son William Jay. In 2 vols.
8vo. With a Portrait.

It would be doing injustice to the American public to suppose that they do not take
an interest in knowing the characters and actions of those to whom they are in-
debted for the liberty and prosperity they now enjoy. Mr. Jay, it will be remembered,
stood high among those who devoted themselves to the service of their country, and
acquired a title to its gratitude. The present work, casting much new and valuable
light on our early history, and being, in all respects, worthy ot its great subject,
cannot, therefore, fail to prove highly interesting and valuable ; and such, in'fact, it
has been pronounced by all who have perused it.

LIFE OF THE REV. ROBERT HALL. By Olinthus

Gregory, LL.D. &c. 8vo. With a Portrait. (Embraced in the third volume
of Hall’s complete works.)

Dr. Gregory has traced Mr. Hall from childhood to maturity, from maturity to his
death, and, throughout, has presented a plain, simple, accurate, and full account
of him. He has also traced him in his social and moral l elations, and has shovyed
how his fine talents and acquirements became subordinated to the povyer of Divine
' grace, and devoted to the promotion of the glory of God and the happiness of man.

BiriGRAPHICAL SKETCH OF WILLIAM WIRT, ESQ.

With a Portrait. 12mo. (Prefixed to “ The Letters of the British Spy.”)

Of such men as Mr. Wirt our countryinen cannot know too much. He is one
of the great and good men who- live for their country.

LIFE AND WRITINGS OF THE LATE ROBERT C,

SANDS, Esq. In 2 vols. 8vo. With a Portrait.

THE LIVES AND EXPLOITS OF BANDITTI AND ROB-
BERS in all Parts of the World. By C. Macfarlane, Esq. In 2 vols.
12mo.

MY IMPRISONMENTS: MEMOIRS OF SILVIO PEL-
j LICO DA SALUZZO. Translated from the Italian. By Thomas Roscoe.
12rao.

THE LIFE AND DEATH OF LORD EDWARD FITZ-

GERALD. By Thomas Moore. In 2 vols. 12mo. With a Portrait.

I WONDERFUL CHARACTERS. Comprising Memoirs and

Anecdotes of the most Remarkable Persons of every Age and Nation. Col-
lected from the most Authentic Sources. In 2 vols. 8vo. (In Press.)

ECCENTRICITIES AND SKETCHES OF COL. DAVID

CROCKETT OF WEST TENNESSEE. 12mo.

Well-written sketches of the Lives of Gibbon, Robertson,
Brown, Wesley, President Davies, Dr. Good, Capt. MottvII <&c.,
are prefixed to their respective works.

VOYAGES, TRAVELS, &c.

A NARRATIVE OF FOUR VOYAGES, TO THE SOUTH
SEA, NORTH AND SOUTH PACIFIC OCEAN, CHINESE SEA,
ETHIOPIC AND SOUTHERN ATLANTIC OCEAN, INDIAN OCEAN,
AND ANTARCTIC OCEAN. From the year 1822 to 1831. Comprising
Critical Surveys of Coasts and Islands, with Sailing Directions. And an ac-
count of some new and valuable discoveries, including the Massacre Islands,
where thirteen of the Author’s Crew were massacred and eaten by Cannibals.
To wlrich is prefixed, a Brief Sketch of the Author’s early Life. By Capt.
Benjamin Morrell, Jun. 8vo. With a Portrait.

“ We are bold in saying that everybody will want to read this book, and our com-
munity will not be slow in ranking the author as the American Cook or Parry.” —
N. U. TVeekly Messenger.

“ ft does not often fall to our lot to be able to commend a book of this kind with as
much confidence as we can Morrell’s ‘Four Voyages.’ ... It may go in company
with Stuart’s Voyages, and Tyerman and Bennett’s Journal.”— Christian Advocate
and Journal.

“ This work is among the first, if not the first, of the respectable contributions
of American navigators to the general stock of knowledge relative to the condition
of man. Its author has traversed almost every sea, and visited every important place,
in the southern hemisphere ; and, with an eye ever watchful for interesting facts,
and a happy talent in recording them, he has succeeded in producing a most in-
structive volume. . . . We have no doubt that it will find its way into every library in
our country, and secure a perusal from many a ‘fireside traveller’ who desires an
acquaintance with the world without venturing the perils of the deep.” — The
Presbyterian.

NARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE TO THE ETHIOPIC AND
SOUTH ATLANTIC OCEAN, INDIAN OCEAN, CHINESE SEA,
NORTH AND SOUTH PACIFIC OCEAN, in the Years 1829, 1830, and
1831. By Abby Jane Morkell, who accompanied her Husband, Capt. Benja-
min Morrell, Jun., of the Schooner Antarctic. 12mo. Portrait.

The scenes and adventures of which Mrs. Morrell was a witness were highly in-
teresting in their nature, and it is believed that an account of them, divested of
nautical technicalities and descriptions purely maritime, will be read with pleasure,
especially by readers of her own sex and country.

THE TRAVELS AND RESEARCHES OF ALEXANDER

VON HUMBOLDT ; being a condensed Narrative of his Journeys in the
Equinoctial Regions of America, and in Asiatic Russia : together with Analyses
of his more important Investigations. By W. Macgillivkay, A.M. 18mo.
With Engravings.

The celebrity enjoyed by Baron Humboldt, earned by a life of laborious investigation
and perilous enterprise, and by the most extensive contributions to science, renders
his name familiar to every person whose attention has been drawn to statistics or
natural philosophy; and his works are ranlred arnong the very first for the splendid
pictures of scenery which they contain, the diversified information which they afford
respecting objects of universal interest, and the graceful attractions with which he
has invested the majesty of science. 'The present volume contains an abridged ac-
count of all the travels and researches of this eminent observer of nature, in which
nothing is omitted that can be either interesting or useful to the general reader, while
the several narratives are sufficiently condensed to bring them within the compass M
a convenient volume.

NARRATIVE OF DISCOVERY AND ADVENTURE IN

AFRICA, from the earliest Period to the Present Time. By Hugh Murray,
Esq. 18mo. With Engravings.

14 Voyages, Travels, <^c. Published by J. Sf J. Harper.

A DESCRIPTION OF PITCAIRN’S ISLAND AND ITS

INHABITANTS. With an Authentic Account of the Mutiny of the Ship
Bounty, and of the subsequent Fortunes of the Mutineers. By John Barrow,
Esq. 18mo. With Engravings.

The author of this volume has brought into one connected view what had here-
tofore appeared only in detached fragments, and some of these even not generally
accessible. The story is replete with interest. We are taught by the Book of Sacred
History that the disobedience of our first parents entailed upon our globe a sinful
and suffering race ; in our own time there has sprung up from the most abandoned
of this depraved family — from pirates, mutineers, and murderers — a little society
which, under the precepts of that Sacred Volume, is characterized by religion, mo-
rality, and innocence. The discovery of this happy people, as unexpected as it was
accidental, and every thing relating to their condition and history, partake so much
of the romantic as to render the story not ill-adapted for an epic poem.

JOURNAL OP AN EXPEDITION TO EXPLORE THE
COURSE AND TERMINATION OF THE NIGER. With a Narrative
of a Voyage down that River to its Termination. By Richard and John
Lander. In 2 vols. 18mo. With Portraits, Maps, &c.

, With encouragement and assistance of a very limited description these adventurous
young men embarked in an enterprise which in every previous instance had terminated
fatally ; and all who knew the nature of the climate, and the grievous hardships they
must encounter, predicted that the only intelligence ever received of them would be
some obscure rumour of their destruction. The narrative shows how often these
predictions were on the point of being verified. They were assailed by sickness,
imprisoned in filthy huts, sold as slaves, plundered, abused, and nearly sacrificed to
the cupidity and revenge of the ferocious savages. In spite of all these obstacles, by
means of patience, perseverance, enthusiasm, and courage, they finally triumphed
over every difficulty and completely gained the object of their mission, thus effecting
the most important and apparently the most hopeless geographical discovery of the
age.

NARRATIVE OF DISCOVERY AND ADVENTURE IN
THE POLAR SEAS AND REGIONS. By Hdgh Murr.4.y, Esq. 18mo.
Engravings.

A NARRATIVE OF THE EARLY PORTUGUESE AND
ENGLISH VOYAGES TO INDIA, and an Account of the Navigation of
the Indian Seas. By Hugh Murray, Esq. and Captain Clarence Dalrym-
PLE. [Nos. 47, 4-8, & 49 of the Family Library.] 18mo. Engravings.

LIVES AND VOYAGES OF DRAKE, CAVENDISH, AND

DAMPIER ; including an Introductory View of the earlier Discoveries in the
South Sea, and the History of the Bucaniers. 18mo. With Portraits.

VIEW OF THE PROGRESS OF DISCOVERY ON THE
MORE NORTHERN COASTS OF AMERICA, from the earliest Period
to the Present Time. Including the early Voyages of Cabot, the French, &c.,
and the Travels of Hearne, Mackenzie, Franklin, and others. By Patbiok
Fraser Tytler, Esq. 18mo. With Engravings.

NARRATIVE OF VOYAGES UNDERTAKEN TO EX-
PLORE THE SHORES OF AFRICA, ARABIA, AND MADAGASCAR,
by command of the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty. By Cant. W. F.
W. Owen. In 2 vols. 12mo.

Voyages, Travels, <^c. Published by J. ^ J. Harper. 15

POLYNESIAN RESEARCHES during a Residence of nearly
Eight Years in the Society and Sandwich Islands. By William Ellis. In
4 vols. 12mo. Engravings.

“ This is the most interesting work, in all its parts, we have ever perused.” — Quar-
terly Review.

“ The simplicity of the narrative, — the graphic beauty of many of the descriptions
— and the moral grandeur of the whole subject of these volumes, are calculated to
produce the most powerful and salutary impression on every religious and cultivated
mind.” — Ormv’s Discourse un the South Sea

“Mr. Elhs’s volumes are replete with the most interesting details, illustrative as
well of the former condition and history, as of the present state of the South Sea
Islanders. They comprise a mass of curious and highly entertaining information re-
specting their manners, customs, and traditions.” — Eclectic Review.

“ The world is much indebted to Mr. Ellis for the information which he has com-
municated in these volumes ; and every person of taste and piety must be highly
gratified with their hvely and beautiful descriptions of scenery and natural history,
as well as with the extraordinary and more than romantic nanatives, which no one
could be better qualified to relate than the author himself.” — Congregational Magazine.

“ We promise our readers a high degree of intellectual and Christian gratification
in the perusal of these entertaining volumes. The author has addressed himself to
the consideration of every question which in general interests the enhghtened trav-
eller. He has aimed at promoting the advancement of science and commerce, as
well as religion. *By the happiest narratives, and the introduction of the most strik-
ing incidents, he has preserved his work from every approach of dullness and insip-
idity. The whole production is worthy of the author and the cause.” — Evangelical
Magazine.

“ They are full of incident and information on missionary, literary and scientific
topics, in connexion with Polynesia. The author’s style of writing is engaging, his
statements are authentic, and derived from personal observation, and he is always
the Christian and the missionary, as well as the traveller.” — Baptist Magazine.

“ We take this opportunity of strongly recommending to our readers Mr. Ellis’s
Polynesian Researches. They are highly honourable to the talents and piety of
their author ; who, amidst arduous missionaiT labours, has been able to collect large
stores of information, hterary, scientific, and popular ; which render his volumes
both useful and entertaining.” — Christian Observer.

“ To the naturalist, to those who have a taste for the picturesque of scenery, to
the philosopher, and the general observer of human nature, these volumes will afford
- subjects of entertainment and reflection : but by the Christian, and by those especi-
ally whose zeal and hopes have been most engaged by missionary exertions, they
will be read with the deepest attention. We recommend these volumes to the Chris-
tian public, whose thanks Mr. Elhs will universally receive. He has, at least ours ;
and with him we devoutly exclaim, ‘ What hath God wrought !’ ” — Methodist Magazine.

“ Mr. Elhs has here compiled, and presented to the pubhc, a mass of valuable and
interesting information, every way deserving of general perusal.” — Christian Guar-
dian.

PERILS OF THE SEA ; being Autlientic Narratives of Re-
markable and Affecting Disasters upon the Deep. With Illustrations of the
Power and Goodness of God in wonderful Preservations. 18mo. With En-
gravings.

This collection of remarkable disasters and preservations has been compiled with
great care from authentic sources. In making the selection attention has been paid
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and of the power and goodness of Providence in rescuing from destruction when, to
all appearance, there were no means or prospect of deliverance. The collection em-
braces narratives of the loss of the Kent, the Empress, the Lady Hobart, the Essex,
the Halsewell East Indiaman, the steam-packet Rothsay Castle, of five Wesleyan
missionaries, &c. &c.

THE LIVES OF CELEBRATED TRAVELLERS. By

James Augustus St. John. In 3 vols. 18mo.

16 Voyages, Travels, <^c. Published by J. J, Harper.

SKETCHES OF TURKEY IN 1831 AND ’32. By an Ameri-
can. 8 VO. With numerous Engravings.

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“ This is truly a work of a superior order, which may be transmitted to Europe
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N. Y. Traveller.

SIR EDWARD SEAWARD’S NARRATIVE OF HIS SHIP-
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will bear reading again and again.” — Commercial Advertiser.

CAROLINE WESTERLEY ; or, the Young Traveller from

Ohio. ISmo. With Engravings.

This work will prove instructive as well as attractive to young persons. In its
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THE LIFE AND REMAINS OF EDWARD DANIEL

CLARKE, By Rev. Daniel Otter, A.M. 8vo.

A SUBALTERN’S FURLOUGH : descriptive of Scenes in

various Parts of the United States, Upper and Lower Canada, New-Brunswick,
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THREE YEARS IN NORTH AMERICA. By James Stuart,
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THE CONDITION OF GREECE IN 1827 AND 1828 ;

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LETTERS FROM THE tEGEAN. By Jambs Emerson, Esq.

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DOMESTIC MANNERS OF THE AMERICANS. By Mrs.

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WORKS ON THEOLOGY, kc.

THE WORKS OF THE REV. ROBERT HALL, A.M.

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attention of his hearers ; and he yet speaks, by his writings, in a language which
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A DICTIONARY OF THE HOLY BIBLE. Containing an

Historical Account of the Persons ; a Geographical and Historical Account of
Places ; a Literal, Critical, and Systematical Description of other Objects,
whether Natural, Artificial, Civil, Religious, or Military ; and an Explanation
of the Appellative Terms mentioned in the Old and New Testaments ; the
whole comprising whatever important is known concerning the Antiquities of
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Body of Scripture History, Chronology, and Divinity ; and serving in a great
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Haddington. With a Life of the Author, and an Essay on the Evidence of
Christianity. Complete in One Volume, 8vo.

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A CONCORDANCE TO THE HOLY SCRIPTURES OF
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EVIDENCE OF THE TRUTH OF THE CHRISTIAN

RELIGION, derived from the literal Fulfilment of Prophecy. By Rev. Alex-
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writer whose testimony is thus given is the Rev. Dr. Shuttlewortb, Warden of New
College, Oxford. The work is so justly appreciated in Edinburgh that it has passed
through six editions ; and parts of it have been pubhshed in tracts in English, French,
and German.

THE SACRED HISTORY OF THE WORLD, as displayed
in the Creation and Subsequent Events to the Deluge. By Sharon Turner,
Esq. 18mo.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMED RELIGION IN FRANCE

. By Rev. Edward Smedley, M.A. In 2 vols. 18mo.

_ ,

18 Works on Theology, Sfc. Published by J. ^ J. Harper.

ON THE IMPROVEMENT OF SOCIETY BY THE DIF-
FUSION OF KNOWLEDGE., By Thomas Dick, LL.D. 18mo. With
Engravings.

The author of the Christian Philosopher, the Philosophy of Religion, and the Phi-
losophy of a Future State, has earned for himself a title to the name of a benefactor
of mankind. For years he has been successfully engaged in the improvement of his
fellow-beings, by the dissemination of useful knowledge, and correct ideas upon sub-
jects of the highest importance. In the present masterly treatise he has gathered
together an almost inconceivable mass of established and striking facts haying relation
to every department of science connected and improved by sound and judicious obser-
vations, at once tending to illustrate the advantages of knowledge, to enlarge and direct
the mind, and to facihtate the acquisition as well as the employment of useful truths.
In the progress of his work he explains and removes the causes of numberless errors,
concerning the phenomena of the mental and physical world ; points out the true path
and the most effectual means of inquiry ; exemplifies the pleasures and benefits of
mental cultivation; and exalts the strongest desire for the improvement of the
faculties, by the singularly familiar and beautiful course of his reasoning, which in
itself furnishes to the reader an ample source of enjoyment. The book is one which
cannot be laid aside unfinished ; it enchains the attention with all the force of the
most highly wrought incidents of fiction, while it impresses the mind with an exalted
sense not only of the truth, but of the intrinsic and measureless value of its revelations.

THE COMFORTER; or, Extracts selected for the Consola-
tion of Mourners, under the Bereavement of Friends and Relations. By a
Village Pastor. 12mo.

This work is intended to suggest topics of religious consolation to the afflicted ;
and the Christian community are assuredly under great obligations to the “ Village
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in upon the bereaved and distressed believer. In the happy selections he has made,
he has had particular regard to the writings of such men .as were experienced in the
ways of affliction, and over whom it has shed its sanctifying influence. It has been
warmly recommended by clergymen of different denominations, as well as by the re-
ligious periodicals.

SUNDAY EVENINGS , or, an easy Introduction to the Read-
ing of the Bible. [Designed for Sunday Reading and Sunday-School Libra-
ries.] 3 vols. 18mo. With Engravings.

The title of this excellent little work sufficiently explains its object. As an intro-
duction to the knowledge of Scripture History, and an incentive to the study of the
Sacred Volume, it is calculated to produce the most happy effects upon the minds of
children ; and the simplicity of the language preserves to the story all those charms
which are inherent in the narrative, but are sometimes lost to very youthful readers
by their want of a perfect understanding of the words they read. Besides a developed
and connected view, in easy language, of the Scripture story itself, the author has
endeavoured to intersperse in the narrative such notices of the countries spoken of,
together with such references to the New Testament and practical remarks, as would
tend to make the book either more interesting, more intellectually improving, or more
valuable in a moral and rehgious light : and it cannot fail of obtaining the approbation
of all judicious and pious parents, and of proving, by the blessing of God, an assistance
to the Christian mother, in giving to her children an early knowledge and love of his
Sacred Word.

THE HISTORY OF THE JEWS. By Rev. H. H. Milman.

In 3 vols. 18mo. With Engravings.

A TREATISE ON THE MILLENNIUM ; in which the pre-
vailing Theories on that Subject are carefully examined ; and the true Scrip-
tural Doctrine attempted to be elicited and established. By George Bush,
A.M. 12mo.

' Works on Theology, Syc. Published hy J. J. Harper.

LUTHER AND THE LUTHERAN REFORMATION. By

John SoOtt, A.M. In 2 vols. 18mo. With Portraits.

THE LIFE OF ARCHBISHOP CRANMER. By Charles
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THE LIFE OF WICLIF. By Charles Webb Le Bas, A.M.
18mo. With a Portrait. '

THE CONSISTENCY OF THE WHOLE SCHEME OF

revelation with Itself and with Human Reason. By Philip Nicholas
Shuttleworth, D.D. 18mo.

THE HISTORY OF THE BIBLE. By Rev. G. R. Gleig,
A.M. In 2 vols. 18mo. With Maps.

SERMONS ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS. By Rev. John

Wesley, A.M. Containing a Number of Sermons never before published in
this Country. In 3 vols. 8vo.

PRESENT STATE OF CHRISTIANITY, and of the Mis-
sionary Establishments for its Propagation in all Parts of the World. Edited
by Frederic Shoberl. 12mo.

KEY TO THE REVELATION. In thirty-six Lectures, tak-
ing the whole Book in course. By Ethan Smith. 12mo.

mathematics.

AN ELEMENTARY TREATISE ON MECHANICS. Trans-

lated from the French of M. Boucharlat. With Additions and Emendations,
designed to adapt it to the Use of the Cadets of the U. S. Military Academy.
By Professor Edward H. Courtenay. 8vo.

ELEMENTS OF DESCRIPTIVE GEOMETRY, with their

Application to Spherical Trigonometry, Spherical Projections, and Warped
[ Surfaces. By Professor Charles Davies. Plates. 8vo.

I A TREATISE ON SHADES AND SHADOWS, AND LIN-

I EAR PERSPECTIVE. By Professor Charles Davies. 8vo.

ELEMENTS OF SURVEYING. With the necessary Tables.

By Professor Charles Davies. 18mo.

GIBSON’S SURVEYING. New and Improved Edition. By

J. Ryan. 8vo.

A TABLE OF LOGARITHMS, of Logarithmic Sines, and a

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NATURAL AND MORAL PHILOSOPHY.

INQUIRIES CONCERNING THE INTELLECTUAL POW-
ERS, AND THE INVESTIGATION OF TRUTH. By John Aber-
crombie, M.D., F.R.S. 18mo. [With Questions.]

THE PHILOSOPHY OF THE MORAL FEELINGS. 'By

John Abercrombie, M.D., F.R.S. 18mo.

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directed, and familiar with abstract inquiry. His descriptions of the mental phenom-
ena are singularly lucid, precise, and interesting, and his reasonings sound, original,
and perspicuous. Above ^ all, he has exhibited philosophy as the handmaid of re-,
ligion, and made it manifest that all the rays of knowledge naturally converge
towards that one point in which is situated the throne of heavenly and eternal truth.

The most able and influential reviews, bqth of England and the United States,
have given the strongest encomiums to this admirable work, and it has been
extensively adopted in our colleges and higher establislunents for education.

LETTERS OF EULER ON DIFFERENT SUBJECTS IN

NATURAL PHILOSOPHY. Addressed to a German Princess. Translated
by Hunter. With Notes and a Life of Euler, by Sir David Brewster, LL.D.
With additional Notes, by John Griscom, LL.D. With a Glossary of Scientific
Terms. In 2 vols. 18mo. With Engravings.

Of all the treatises on Natural Philosophy that have been published in the various
languages of Europe there is none that has enjoyed a more extensive and permanent
celebrity than that of the famous mathematician and philosopher Leonard Euler,
contained in his letters to the Princess of Anlialt. They have been translated into
several tongues, and edition after edition has been published in Europe with still
increasing reputation. The most eminent savans of England and France have
repeatedly borne testimony to their excellence, not only by the strongest expressions
of approbation, but by assuming the task of editing the work : the latest who has
bestowed this mark of commendation was Sir David Brewster, from whose edition
this now published was printed. The notes added by him are copious and valuable ;
and the pubhshers of the American edition, still more to enhance the merit of the
work, have secured the assistance of Professor Griscom, whose notes will be found
numerous and of great utility.

LETTERS UNNATURAL MAGIC. Addressed to Sir Wal-
ter Scott, Bart. By Sir David Brewster, K.H., LL.D. 18mo. With En-
gravings.

The author of this volume passes under review the principal phenomena of nature,
and the leading contrivances of art which bear the impress of a supernatural character,
and more especially those singular illusions of sense in which the most perfect organs
fail to perform their functions, or perform them unfaithfully. These are themes full of
interest, and worthy of the labour bestowed upon them by the philosophic writer.

The eye and ear are, of course, the chief organs of deception, and, accordingly,
optical illusions occupy a considerable portion of the volume. Those depending on
the ear succeed, and, after these have been described and explained, we are entertained
with amusing accounts of feats of strength, of mechanical automata, and of some of
the more popular wonders of chymistry. Under each of these divisions anecdotes of
the most interesting kind illustrate the author’s explanations, and no subject in itself
grave and important was ever treated in a more captivating manner.

ON THE IMPROVEMENT OF SOCIETY BY THE DIF-
FUSION OF KNOWLEDGE : or, an Illustration of the Advantages which
would result from a more General Dissemination of Rational and Scientific In-
formation among all Ranks. By Thomas Dick, LL.D. 18mo. With
Engravings.

NATURAL HISTORY.

THE BOOK OF NATURE. By John Mason Good, M.D.,

F.R.S. To which is now prefixed, a Sketch of the Author’s Life. Complete
in one volume, 8vo.

“ This work is certainly the best philosophical digest of the Idnd which we have
seen.” — Monthly Review.

NATURAL HISTORY ; or, Uncle Philip’s Conversations with

the Children about Tools and Trades among the Inferior Animals. 18mo.
With numerous Engravings.

THE NATURAL HISTORY of INSECTS. With numerous

Engravings. 18mo.

The study of Natural History is at aU times, and to almost every person, eminently
pleasing and instructive ; the object in this admirable volume has been to render it
doubly captivating by the plain and simple style in' which it is treated, and by the
numerous engravings with which the text -is illustrated. There is no branch of this
delightful science more pleasing than that which exhibits the wonderful goodness and
wisdom of the Creator, a,s they are displayed in the endless varieties of insect life —
their forms, habits, capacities and works — and which investigates the nature and
peculiarities of these diminutive tribes of animated existence.

A POPULAR GUIDE TO THE OBSERVATION OF NA-

TURE. By Robert Mudie, Esq. 18mo. With Engravings.

AN OUTLINE OF THE NATURAL HISTORY OF
EGYPT. By Rev. Michael Russell, LL.D. [No. 23 of the Family Li-
brary.] 18mo.

AN OUTLINE of THeI^ATURAL HISTORY of PALES-

TINE. By Rev. M. Russell, LL.D. [No. 27 Fam. Lib.] 18mo.

AN OUTLINE OF THE NATURAL HISTORY OF NU-
BIA AND ABYSSINIA. By Rev. M. Russell, LL.D. 18mo. No. 61
of the Family Library.] Engravings.

DESCRIPTIVE SKETCHES OF THE NATURAL HIS-
TORY OF THE NORTH AMERICAN REGIONS. By James Wilson,
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ILLUSTRATIONS OF THE CLIMATE, GEOLOGY, AND
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ILLUSTRATIONS OF THE ZOOLOGY, BOTANY, CLI-
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[Nos. 47, 48, & 49 of the Family Library.] Engravings.

ILLUSTRATIONS OF THE GEOLOGY, MINERALOGY,

AND ZOOLOGY OF AFRICA. By Professor Jameson and James Wilson,
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CLASSICAL WORKS.

XENOPHON. The Anabasis : Translated by Edward Spel-

MAN, Esq. The Cyrop^dia : Translated by the Hon. Madhice Ashly Coo-
per. In S vols. 18mo. With a Portrait.

SALLUST. Translated by William Kose, M.D. With Notes.
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CiESAR. With Hirtius’s Continuation. Translated by Wil-
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CICERO. The Orations Translated by Duncan, the Offices by
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THE WORKS OF HORACE, translated literally into English

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THE ORATIONS OF DEMOSTHENES. Translated by

Thomas Leland, D.D. In 2 vols. 18mo. Portrait.

MEDICINE AND SURGERY.

LEXICON MEDICUM; OR, MEDICAL DICTIONARY;

Containing an Explanation of the Terms in Anatomy, Botany, Chemistry, Ma-
teria Medica, Midwifery, Mineralogy, Pharmacy Physiology, Practice of Physic,
Surgery, and the Various Branches of Natural Philosophy connected with Me-
dicine. By Robert Hooper, M.D. With Additions from American Authors,
by Samuel Akekly, M.D. Two volumes in one, 8vo.

A DICTIONARY OF PRACTICAL SURGERY : compre-
hending all the most Interesting Improvements, from the earliest Times down
to the Present Period ; an Account of the Instruments and Remedies employed
in Surgery ; the Etymology and Signification of the Principal Terms ; and
Numerous References to Ancient and Modern Works. By Samuel Cooper,
M.D. With numerous Notes and Additions, embracing all the Principal Im-
provements and Greater Operations introduced and performed by American
Surgeons. By David Meredith Reese, M.D. In 2 vols. 8vo.

THE STUDY OF MEDICINE. By John Mason Good, M.D.
New and Improved Edition. In press.

DIRECTIONS FOR INVIGORATING AND PROLONGING

LIFE ; OR, THE INVALID’S ORACLE. Containing Peptic Precepts,
pointing out agreeable and effectual Methods to prevent and relieve Indigestion,
and to regulate and strengthen the Action of the Stomach and Bowels. By
William Kitchener, M.D. Revised and Improved, by Thomas S. Barrett,
M.D. 18mo.

MISCELLANEOUS WORKS

THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON ; or, Adventures of a

Father and Mother and Four Sons on a Desert Island. The Progress of the
Story forming a clear Illustration of the first Principles of Natural History,
and many Branches of Science which most immediately apply to the Business
of Life, In 2 vols. ISmo. Engravings.

The purpose of this pleasing story is to convey instruction in the arts and Natural
History, and, at the same time, to inculcate by example principles which tend to the
promotion of social happiness. Every one has heard of Robinson Crusoe< and the
unrivalled and long-continued popularity of that admirable narrative, proves that
the tastes and feelings to which it addresses itself are among the strongest and most
universal which belong to human nature. The adventures of the Swiss family are
somewhat similar in character, and, of course, in interest ; and they illustrate, in the
most forcible and pleasing manner, the efficacy of piety, industry, ingenuity, and good-
temper, in smoothing difficulties and procuring enjoyments under the most adverse
circumstances. The story abounds with instruction and entertainment, and well
deserves the high encomium that has been passed upon it, of being one of the best
children’s books ever written.

THE SON OF A GENIUS. A Tale, for the Use of Youth.

By Mrs. Hofland. 18mo. Engravings.

This admirable story has been too long familiar to the public — at least to that portion
of it which has advanced beyond the period of childhood — to require either eulogy or
description. It has for many years maintained its place among the best and most
esteemed juvenile works in the Enghsh language; and its popularity is easily
accounted for by the touching interest of the incidents, and the purity of the principles
it inculcates both of wisdom and religion. The pubhshers were induced to reprint
it, partly by the advice and sohcitations of many of their friends, and their own
knowledge of its merits, and partly by the consideration that it has long been out
■of print, and that it was very difficult to procure a copy.

THE YOUNG CRUSOE ; or, the Shipwrecked Boy. Contain-
ing an Account of his Shipwreck, and Residence for Several Months alone upon
an Uninhabited Island. By Mrs. Hofland. 18mo. Engravings.

Mrs. Hofland, the admirable author of the “ Son of a Genius,” and other excellent
juvenile productions, is also the writer of this pleasing story. In its plan and
objects it is somewhat similar to the “Swiss Family Robinson;” and, like it,
will be read with dehght by every httle boy or girl who can sympathize in the mis-
fortunes, or rejoice in the comforts and enjoynients of another. The style, the in-
cidents, and the pervading spirit are all in the highest degree excellent,— as, indeed,
are all the writings of this accomplished and amiable author. The culture of the
youthful mind requires talents of a pecuhar character ; and, when accomplished with
abUity, reflects the highest credit upon the successful teacher. None have been more
successful than Mrs. Hofland ; and her name alone is a sufficient warrant for the
merits of any book to which it is appended.

THE CLERGYMAN’S ORPHAN, and Other Tales. By a

Clergyman. For the Use of Youth. 18mo. Engravings.

The author of the “ Clergyman’s Orphan” informs us that with most of the char-
acters whose romantic history is here recorded he was personally acquainted ; and
vouches that it is substantially a narrative of facts. • The object of the work is to
strengthen in the minds of young persons the conviction of a special superintending
Providence.

DISCOURSES AND ADDRESSES ON SUBJECTS OF
AMERICAN HISTORY, ARTS, AND LITERATURE. By Gulian C.
Verplanck. 12mo.

24 Miscellaneous Works Published by J. J. Harper.

COURT AND CAMP OF BONAPARTE. 18mo. With a

Portrait of Prince Talleyrand.

This volume has been carefully prepared as a suitable and indispensable com-
panion to the Life of Napoleon. It contains the substance of the many hundred
volumes of Memoirs, Lives, Narratives, anecdotes, &c., connected with the career
of N apoleon, with which the press of F ranee has been so prolific during the last fifteen
years. It presents rapid but vigorously drawn sketches of the emperor’s brothers,
wives, sisters, ministers, marshals, and generals ; and those who wish to gain a
competent knowledge of “ Napoleon and his times" will find no work in any language
which conveys so much information in so little space or in a more hvely and agreeable
manner.

THE ORNAMENTS DISCOVERED. By Mrs. Hughs.

18mo. Engravings.

The reputation of Mrs. Hughs (of Philadelphia) as an agreeable and instructive
writer is a,lready firmly established. She has done much for youth, and the present
volume will add to the obligations they owe her. It is written with plainness, yet
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will be found exceedingly interesting.

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