A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels, Vol. 13 by Robert Kerr

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With light land-breezes from W. by N. for a few hours in a morning, and
sea-breezes from S.S.W. and S. we advanced to the westward but slowly.
At noon on the 14th, we were between six and seven leagues from the
land, which extended from N. by E. to S. 78 W.; we still saw smoke in
many places by day, and fire by night, both upon the low land and the
mountains beyond it. We continued steering along the shore, till the
morning of the 15th, the land still appearing hilly, but not so high as
it had been: The hills in general came quite down to the sea, and where
they did not, we saw instead of flats and mangrove land, immense groves
of cocoa-nut trees, reaching about a mile up from the beach: There the
plantations and houses commenced, and appeared to be innumerable. The
houses were shaded by groves of the fan-palm, or _borassus_, and the
plantations, which were inclosed by a fence, reached almost to the tops
of the highest hills. We saw however neither people nor cattle, though
our glasses were continually employed, at which we were not a little
surprised.

We continued our course, with little variation, till nine o'clock in the
morning of the 16th, when we saw the small island called _Rotte_; and at
noon the island _Semau_, lying off the south end of Timor, bore N.W.

Dampier, who has given a large description of the island of Timor, says,
that it is seventy leagues long, and sixteen broad, and that it lies
nearly N E. and S.W. I found the east side of it to lie nearest N.E. by
E. and S.W. by W., and the south end to lie in latitude 10 deg. 23' S.,
longitude 236 deg. 5' W. We ran about forty-five leagues along the east
side, and found the navigation altogether free from danger. The land
which is bounded by the sea, except near the south end, is low for two
or three miles within the beach, and in general intersected by salt
creeks: Behind the low land are mountains, which rise one above another
to a considerable height. We steered W.N.W. till two in the afternoon,
when, being within a small distance of the north end of Rotte, we hauled
up N.N.W. in order to go between it and Semau: After steering three
leagues upon this coarse, we edged away N.W. and W., and by six, we were
clear of all the islands. At this time, the south part of Semau, which
lies in latitude 10 deg. 15' S., bore N.E. distant four leagues, and the
island of Rotte extended as far to the southward as S. 36 W. The north
end of this island, and the south end of Timor, lie N. 1/2 E. and S. 1/4
W., and are about three or four leagues distant from each other. At the
west end of the passage between Rotte and Semau, are two small islands,
one of which lies near the Rotte shore, and the other off the south-west
point of Semau: There is a good channel between them, about six miles
broad, through which we passed. The isle of Rotte has not so lofty and
mountainous an appearance as Timor, though it is agreeably diversified
by hill and valley: On the north side, there are many sandy beaches,
near which grew some trees of the fan-palm, but the far greater part was
covered with a kind of brushy wood, that was without leaves. The
appearance of Semau was nearly the same with that of Timor, but not
quite so high. About ten o'clock at night, we observed a phaenomenon in
the heavens, which in many particulars resembled the aurora borealis,
and in others, was very different: It consisted of a dull reddish light,
and reached about twenty degrees above the horizon: Its extent was very
different at different times, but it was never less than eight or ten
points of the compass: Through and out of this passed rays of light of a
brighter colour, which vanished, and were renewed nearly in the same
time as those of the aurora borealis, but had no degree of the tremulous
or vibratory motion which is observed in that phaenomenon: The body of it
bore S.S.E. from the ship, and it continued, without any diminution of
its brightness, till twelve o'clock, when we retired to sleep, but how
long afterwards, I cannot tell.

Being clear of all the islands, which are laid down in the maps we had
on board, between Timor and Java, we steered a west course till six
o'clock the next morning, when we unexpectedly saw an island bearing
W.S.W., and at first I thought we had made a new discovery. We steered
directly for it, and by ten o'clock were close in with the north side of
it, where we saw houses, cocoa-nut trees, and to our very agreeable
surprise, numerous flocks of sheep. This was a temptation not to be
resisted by people in our situation, especially as many of us were in a
bad state of health, and many still repining at my not having touched at
Timor: It was, therefore soon determined to attempt a commerce with
people who appeared to be so well able to supply our many necessities,
and remove at once the sickness and discontent that had got footing
among us. The pinnace was hoisted out, and Mr Gore, the second
lieutenant, sent to see if there was any convenient place to land,
taking with him some trifles, as presents to the natives, if any of them
should appear. While he was gone, we saw from the ship two men on
horseback, who seemed to be riding upon the hills for their amusement,
and often stopped to look at the ship. By this we knew that the place
had been settled by Europeans, and hoped, that the many disagreeable
circumstances which always attend the first establishment of commerce
with savages, would be avoided. In the mean time, Mr Gore landed in a
small sandy cove near some houses, and was met by eight or ten of the
natives, who, as well in their dress as their persons, very much
resembled the Malays; They were without arms, except the knives which it
is their custom to wear in their girdles, and one of them had a jack-ass
with him: They courteously invited him ashore, and conversed with him by
signs, but very little of the meaning of either party could be
understood by the other. In a short time he returned with this report,
and, to our great mortification, added, that there was no anchorage for
the ship. I sent him however a second time, with both money and goods,
that he might, if possible, purchase some refreshments, at least for the
sick; and Dr Solander went in the boat with him. In the mean time I kept
standing on and off with the ship, which at this time was within about a
mile of the shore. Before the boat could land, we saw two other
horsemen, one of whom was in a complete European dress, consisting of a
blue coat, a white waistcoat, and a laced hat: These people, when the
boat came to the shore, took little notice of her, but sauntered about,
and seemed to look with great curiosity at the ship. We saw however
other horsemen, and a great number of persons on foot, gather round our
people, and, to our great satisfaction, perceived several cocoa-nuts
carried into the boat, from which we concluded that peace and commerce
were established between us.

After the boat had been ashore about an hour and a half, she made the
signal for having intelligence that there was a bay to leeward, where we
might anchor: We stood away directly for it, and the boat following,
soon came on board. The lieutenant told us, that he had seen some of the
principal people, who were dressed in fine linen, and had chains of gold
round their necks: He said, that he had not been able to trade, because
the owner of the cocoa-nuts was absent, but that about two dozen had
been sent to the boat as a present, and that some linen had been
accepted in return. The people, to give him the information that he
wanted, drew a map upon the sand, in which they made a rude
representation of a harbour to leeward, and a town near it: They also
gave him to understand, that sheep, hogs, fowls, and fruit might there
be procured in great plenty. Some of them frequently pronounced the word
Portuguese, and said something of Larntuca upon the island of Ende: From
this circumstance, we conjectured that there were Portuguese somewhere
upon the island, and a Portugueze, who was in our boat, attempted to
converse with the Indians in that language, but soon found that they
knew only a word or two of it by rote: One of them however, when they
were giving our people to understand that there was a town near the
harbour to which they had directed us, intimated, that, as a token of
going right, we should see somewhat, which he expressed by crossing his
fingers, and the Portuguese instantly conceived that he meant to express
a cross. Just as our people were putting off, the horsemen in the
European dress came up, but the officer not having his commission about
him, thought it best to decline a conference.

At seven o'clock in the evening, we came to an anchor in the bay to
which we had been directed, at about the distance of a mile from the
shore, in thirty-eight fathom water, with a clear sandy bottom. The
north point of the bay bore N. 30 E., distant two miles and a half, and
the south point, or west end of the island, bore S. 63 W. Just as we got
round the north point, and entered the bay, we discovered a large Indian
town or village, upon which we stood on, hoisting a jack on the fore
top-mast head: Soon after, to our great surprise, Dutch colours were
hoisted in the town, and three guns fired; we stood on, however, till we
had soundings and then anchored.

As soon as it was light in the morning, we saw the same colours hoisted
upon the beach, abreast of the ship; supposing therefore that the Dutch
had a settlement here, I sent Lieutenant Gore ashore, to wait upon the
governor, or the chief person residing upon the spot, and acquaint him
who we were, and for what purpose we had touched upon the coast. As soon
as he came ashore, he was received by a guard of between twenty and
thirty Indians, armed with musquets, who conducted him to the town,
where the colours had been hoisted the night before, carrying with them
those that had been hoisted upon the beach, and marching without any
military regularity. As soon as he arrived, he was introduced to the
Raja, or king of the island, and by a Portuguese interpreter told him,
that the ship was a man-of-war belonging to the king of Great Britain,
and that she had many sick on board, for whom we wanted to purchase such
refreshments as the island afforded. His majesty replied, that he was
willing to supply us with whatever we wanted, but, that being in
alliance with the Dutch East India Company, he was not at liberty to
trade with any other people, without having first procured their
consent, for which, however, he said he would immediately apply to a
Dutchman who belonged to the Company, and who was the only white man
upon the island. To this man, who resided at some distance, a letter was
immediately dispatched, acquainting him with our arrival and request: In
the mean time, Mr Gore dispatched a messenger to me, with an account of
his situation, and the state of the treaty. In about three hours, the
Dutch resident answered the letter that had been sent him, in person: He
proved to be a native of Saxony, and his name was Johan Christopher
Lange, and the same person whom we had seen on horseback in a European
dress: He behaved with great civility to Mr Gore, and assured him, that
we were at liberty to purchase of the natives whatever we pleased. After
a short time, he expressed a desire of coming on board, as did the king
also, and several of his attendants: Mr Gore intimated that he was ready
to attend them, but they desired that two of our people might be left
ashore as hostages, and in this also they were indulged.

About two o'clock, they all came aboard the ship, and our dinner being
ready, they accepted our invitation to partake of it: I expected them
immediately to sit down, but the king seemed to hesitate, and at last,
with some confusion, said, he did not imagine that we, who were white
men, would suffer him, who was of a different colour, to sit down in our
company; a compliment soon removed his scruples, and we all sat down
together with great cheerfulness and cordiality: Happily we were at no
loss for interpreters, both Dr Solander and Mr Sporing understanding
Dutch enough to keep up a conversation with Mr Lange, and several of the
seamen were able to converse with such of the natives as spoke
Portuguese. Our dinner happened to be mutton, and the king expressed a
desire of having an English sheep; we had but one left, however that was
presented to him: The facility with which this was procured, encouraged
him to ask for an English dog, and Mr Banks politely gave up his
greyhound: Mr Lange then intimated that a spying-glass would be
acceptable, and one was immediately put into his hand. Our guests then
told us, that the island abounded with buffaloes, sheep, hogs, and
fowls, plenty of which should be driven down to the beach the next day,
that we might purchase as many of them as we should think fit: This put
us all into high spirits, and the liquor circulated rather faster than
either the Indians or the Saxon could bear; they intimated their desire
to go away, however, before they were quite drunk, and were received
upon deck, as they had been when they came aboard, by the marines under
arms. The king expressed a curiosity to see them exercise, in which he
was gratified, and they fired three rounds: He looked at them with great
attention, and was much surprised at their regularity and expedition,
especially in cocking their pieces; the first time they did it, he
struck the side of the ship with a stick that he had in his hand, and
cried out with great vehemence, that all the locks made but one clink.
They were dismissed with many presents, and when they went away saluted
with nine guns: Mr Banks and Dr Solander went ashore with them; and as
soon as they put off they gave us three cheers.

Our gentlemen, when they came ashore, walked up with them to the town,
which consists of many houses, and some of them are large; they are
however nothing more than a thatched roof, supported over a boarded
floor, by pillars about four feet high. They produced some of their
palm-wine, which was the fresh unfermented juice of the tree; it had a
sweet, but not a disagreeable taste; and hopes were conceived that it
might contribute to recover our sick from the scurvy. Soon after it was
dark, Mr Banks and Dr Solander returned on board.

In the morning of the 19th I went ashore with Mr Banks, and several of
the officers and gentlemen, to return the king's visit; but my chief
business was to procure some of the buffaloes, sheep, and fowls, which
we had been told should be driven down to the beach. We were greatly
mortified to find that no steps had been taken to fulfil this promise;
however, we proceeded to the house of assembly, which, with two or three
more, had been erected by the Dutch East India Company, and are
distinguished from the rest by two pieces of wood resembling a pair of
cow's horns, one of which is set up at each end of the ridge that
terminates the roof; and these were certainly what the Indian intended
to represent by crossing his fingers, though our Portuguese, who was a
good catholic, construed the sign into a cross, which had persuaded us
that the settlement belonged to his countrymen. In this place we met Mr
Lange, and the king, whose name was A. Madocho Lomi Djara, attended by
many of the principal people. We told them that we had in the boat goods
of various kinds, which we proposed to barter for such refreshments as
they would give us in exchange, and desired leave to bring them on
shore; which being granted, they were brought ashore accordingly. We
then attempted to settle the price of the buffaloes, sheep, hogs, and
other commodities which we proposed to purchase, and for which we were
to pay in money; but as soon as this was mentioned, Mr Lange left us,
telling us that these preliminaries must be settled with the natives: He
said, however, that he had received a letter from the governor of
Concordia in Timor, the purport of which he would communicate to us when
he returned.

As the morning was now far advanced, and we were very unwilling to
return on board and eat salt provisions, when so many delicacies
surrounded us ashore, we petitioned his majesty for liberty to purchase
a small hog and some rice, and to employ his subjects to dress them for
us. He answered very graciously, that if we could eat victuals dressed
by his subjects, which he could scarcely suppose, he would do himself
the honour of entertaining us. We expressed our gratitude, and
immediately sent on board for liquors.

About five o'clock dinner was ready; it was served in six-and-thirty
dishes, or rather baskets, containing alternately rice and pork; and
three bowls of earthenware, filled with the liquor in which the pork had
been boiled: These were ranged upon the floor, and mats laid round them
for us to sit upon. We were then conducted by turns to a hole in the
floor, near which stood a man with water in a vessel, made of the leaves
of the fan-palm, who assisted us in washing our hands. When this was
done, we placed ourselves round the victuals, and waited for the king.
As he did not come, we enquired for him, and were told that the custom
of the country did not permit the person who gave the entertainment to
sit down with his guests; but that, if we suspected the victuals to be
poisoned, he would come and taste it. We immediately declared that we
had no such suspicion, and desired that none of the rituals of
hospitality might be violated on our account. The prime minister and Mr
Lange were of our party, and we made a most luxurious meal: We thought
the pork and rice excellent, and the broth not to be despised; but the
spoons, which were made of leaves, were so small, that few of us had
patience to use them. After dinner, our wine passed briskly about, and
we again enquired for our royal host, thinking that though the custom of
his country would not allow him to eat with us, he might at least share
in the jollity of one bottle; but he again excused himself, saying, that
the master of a feast should never be drunk, which there was no certain
way to avoid but by not tasting the liquor. We did not, however, drink
our wine where we had eaten our victuals; but as soon as we had dined,
made room for the seamen and servants, who immediately took our places:
They could not dispatch all that we had left, but the women who came to
clear away the bowls and baskets, obliged them to carry away with them
what they had not eaten. As wine generally warms and opens the heart, we
took an opportunity, when we thought its influence began to be felt, to
revive the subject of the buffaloes and sheep, of which we had not in
all this time heard a syllable, though they were to have been brought
down early in the morning. But our Saxon Dutchman, with great phlegm,
began to communicate to us the contents of the letter which he pretended
to have received from the governor of Concordia. He said, that after
acquainting him that a vessel had steered from thence towards the island
where we were now ashore, it required him, if such ship should apply for
provisions in distress, to relieve her; but not to suffer her to stay
longer than was absolutely necessary, nor to make any large presents to
the inferior people, or to leave any with those of superior rank to be
afterwards distributed among them; but he was graciously pleased to add,
that we were at liberty to give beads and other trifles in exchange for
petty civilities, and palm-wine.

It was the general opinion that this letter was a fiction; that the
prohibitory orders were feigned with a view to get money from us for
breaking them; and that by precluding our liberality to the natives,
this man hoped more easily to turn it into another channel.

In the evening, we received intelligence from our trading-place that no
buffaloes or hogs had been brought down, and only a few sheep, which had
been taken away before our people, who had sent for money, could procure
it. Some fowls, however, had been bought, and a large quantity of a
kind of syrup made of the juice of the palm-tree, which, though
infinitely superior to molasses or treacle, sold at a very low price. We
complained of our disappointment to Mr Lange, who had now another
subterfuge; he said, that if we had gone down to the beach ourselves, we
might have purchased what we pleased, but that the natives were afraid
to take money of our people, lest it should be counterfeit. We could not
but feel some indignation against a man who had concealed this, being
true; or alleged it, being false. I started up, however, and went
immediately to the beach, but no cattle or sheep were to be seen, nor
were any at hand to be produced. While I was gone, Lange, who knew well
enough that I should succeed no better than my people, told Mr Banks
that the natives were displeased at our not having offered them gold for
their stock; and that if gold was not offered, nothing would be bought.
Mr Banks did not think it worth his while to reply, but soon after rose
up, and we all returned on board, very much dissatisfied with the issue
of our negociations. During the course of the day, the king had promised
that some cattle and sheep should be brought down in the morning, and
had given a reason for our disappointment somewhat more plausible; he
said that the buffaloes were far up the country, and that there had not
been time to bring them down to the beach.

The next morning we went ashore again: Dr Solander went up to the town
to speak to Lange, and I remained upon the beach, to see what could be
done in the purchase of provisions. I found here an old Indian, who, as
he appeared to have some authority, we had among ourselves called the
prime minister; to engage this man in our interest, I presented him with
a spying-glass, but I saw nothing at market except one small buffalo. I
enquired the price of it, and was told five guineas: This was twice as
much as it was worth; however, I offered three, which I could perceive
the man who treated with me thought a good price; but he said he must
acquaint the king with what I had offered before he could take it. A
messenger was immediately dispatched to his majesty, who soon returned,
and said that the buffaloe would not be sold for any thing less than
five guineas. This price I absolutely refused to give; and another
messenger was sent away with an account of my refusal: This messenger
was longer absent than the other, and while I was waiting for his
return, I saw, to my great astonishment, Dr Solander coming from the
town, followed by above a hundred men, some armed with muskets and some
with lances. When I enquired the meaning of this hostile appearance, the
Doctor told me that Mr Lange had interpreted to him a message from the
king, purporting that the people would not trade with us, because we had
refused to give them more than half the value of what they had to sell;
and that we should not be permitted to trade upon any terms longer than
this day. Besides the officers who commanded the party, there came with
it a man who was born at Timor; of Portuguese parents, and who, as we
afterwards discovered, was a kind of colleague to the Dutch factor; by
this man, what they pretended to be the king's order was delivered to
me, of the same purport with that which Dr Solander had received from
Lange. We were all clearly of opinion that this was a mere artifice of
the factors to extort money from us, for which we had been prepared by
the account of a letter from Concordia; and while we were hesitating
what step to take, the Portuguese, that he might the sooner accomplish
his purpose, began to drive away the people who had brought down poultry
and syrup, and others that were now coming in with buffaloes and sheep.
At this time I glanced my eye upon the old man whom I had complimented
in the morning with the spying-glass, and I thought, by his looks, that
he did not heartily approve of what was doing; I therefore took him by
the hand, and presented him with an old broad-sword. This instantly
turned the scale in our favour; he received the sword with a transport
of joy, and flourishing it over the busy Portuguese, who crouched like a
fox to a lion, he made him, and the officer who commanded the party, sit
down upon the ground behind him. The people, who, whatever were the
crafty pretences of these iniquitous factors for a Dutch company, were
eager to supply us with whatever we wanted, and seemed also to be more
desirous of goods than money, instantly improved the advantage that had
been procured them, and the market was stocked almost in an instant. To
establish a trade for buffaloes, however, which I most wanted, I found
it necessary to give ten guineas for two, one of which weighed no more
than a hundred and sixty pounds; but I bought seven more much cheaper,
and might afterwards have purchased as many as I pleased almost upon my
own terms, for they were now driven down to the water-side in herds. In
the first two that I bought so dear, Lange had certainly a share, and it
was in hopes to obtain part of the price of others, that he had
pretended that we must pay for them in gold. The natives, however, sold
what they afterwards brought down much to their satisfaction, without
paying part of the price to him as a reward for exacting money from us.
Most of the buffaloes that we bought, after our friend, the prime
minister, had procured us a fair market, were sold for a musket a-piece,
and at this price we might have bought as many as would have freighted
our ship.