440

Hamilton’s account of the east indies,,

into England. He had a very mean education, and could not tell what he meant eitherin fpeaking or writing. lie had a brutal courage, and was the hulband of three wivesall alive together. He knew nothing either of the theory or practical parts of naviga-tion, and yet had been honoured with a commiffion for lieutenant in the royal navyof England.

I mull now leave my long digreffion, and proceed from Malacca along the coaft ofMalaya, though there are no places of commerce between it and Johore Lami, which isfometimes the place of that King’s relidence, and has the benefit of a fine deep largeriver, which admits of two entrances into it. The fmalleft is from the weft ward, calledby Europeans the Streights of Sincapure, but by the natives Salieta de Brew. It runsalong the fide of Sincapure illand for five or fix leagues together, and ends at the greatriver of Johore .

Chap. XL. — Treats of the Dominions of Johore , its ancient and prefent State occafioned

by a Revolution.

THE territories of Johore reached from Perah to Point Romano, which is theTouthermoft promontory on the continent of Afia, it lying but one degree to the north-ward of the equator, about three leagues from Johore river, in length about ioo leagues,..and in the broadeft place about 80.

The inhabitants are lazy, indolent, perfidious and cruel. The .country is very woody,being daily refrefhed with fhowers and breezes of wind. It abounds in tin, pepper,elephants teeth, gold, Agala wood and canes, but the inhabitants are fuch drones, thatthey fow very little rice or other grain. And the inland people fubfift moftly on fago,the pith of a fmall twig fplit and dried in the fun, and on their fruits which grow allfeafons of the year, and roots, which they always have in great plenty, and poultry,which they rear up.

About the fea-coaft they feed moftly on fifh and rice brought to them from Java,Siam, and Cambodia . The .people of induftry are the Chinefe who inhabit amongthem in their towns; and there may be about 1000 families of them fettled in theJohore dominions, befides a much greater number who drive a foreign trade amongthem.

In religion they are heretical Mahometans, and are fupplied with priefts from Surat ,but the Seids are in moll efteem among them. T hey are great lovers of praying andpreaching, and frequent their mofques very often, and look very devout; but theirpractices are the moft irreligious and immoral of any people I know.

In anno 1695, their King was a youth of twenty years of age, and being viciouflyinclined, was fo corrupted by adulation and flagitious company, that he became into-lerable. I went to Johore Lami at that time, to traffic with his fubjects, and fonieChina -men, with a cargo proper for their turn, and, according to cuftom, went tocompliment His Majefty with a prefent, in which was a pair of fcrew barrelled piftols.He defiredme to prove them with a fhot, to try how far it would penetrate a poll thatwas at the gate, which I did, and he much admired how fo little powder fhould haveftrength to force a ball fo far in the wood, and begged Tome powder and ball, which Igave him, and the next time he went abroad he tried on a poor fellow on the ftreet,how far they could carry a ball into his flelh, and fliot him through the fhoulder.

He was a great Sodomite, and had taken many of his Orankays, or nobles’ fons, byforce, into his -palace for that abominable fervice. A Mooriffi merchant, who was afreighter on. board my {hip, had a handfome boy to his fon, whom the King one day

1 flaw,