Hamilton’s account of the east indies.

45 ®

in the Streights of Banka, at the mouth of which, is the illand of Lucipara, a fmallbarren ifland, which fends forth fand banks ahnoft three leagues towards the coaft ofSumatra . And within a mile of that fhore, where the channel is deepeft, there are butfour fathoms and an half water, but the bottom is foft.

About i a leagues from the north end is the place of the King’s refidence. In 1710,a fon of the King of Pullambam was King, and a fire accidentally happening in a village,when the fire was extinguifhed, they chanced to find much melted metal under therubbifh, which proved to be tin. The King ordered his people to dig a little into theground, and they found plenty of ore, which he now reaps a good advantage by. TheDutch fent from Batavia for leave to fettle a factory there, but could not obtain thatfavour, the King declaring that his country fhould be free for all nations to trade in.

The natives of the ifland are, as mofl other Malayas, very treacherous, inhuman,and inhofpitable to ftrangers, who have the misfortune to be fhipwrecked on that coaft.I knew one Captain Pelling, who belonged to fome gentlemen of Atcheen, and had themisfortune to be fhipwrecked there, and they cut him off and all his crew, except twoboys, who were made flaves : but I know a very honeft ingenious gentleman now alivein England, who had better fortune; for after his {hip was loft in the Streights ofBanka, he and his men directed their courfe to Pullambam, where a very hofpitableDutch gentleman, who fortuned to be chief of the Dutch affairs at that time, gave thema kind reception, and procured them paffage for Batavia, where fome years after, I wasin company with the hoft and gueft together.

Banka has a very foul coaft for fix leagues within Monapin Point, which is the north-weft cape-land on the ifland ; and over that cape there is an high mountain called Mo-napin hill. On the north-eaft coaft of the ifland there are fo many banks and rocksunder w'ater, that navigation is very precarious, and none but panjalangs and praws(fmall veffels) venture to go that tract; befides, there are no places of commerce onthe north-eaft fide of Banka, to invite a ftranger by the profpect of gain, and fo I re-turn back to the coaft of Sumatra again, without taking notice of the little pepper anddammar that are the product of Banka.

From Pullambam there are no places of commerce on the coaft, till we come toJambee, which is about 100 Englifh miles. Here formerly the Englifh had a factoryon an ifland near its river’s mouth, called Barella; but the impediments their trade metwith from the Dutch , who had a fa&ory in the country up the river, made the EnglifhCompany withdraw. The Dutch kept a little factory at Jambee till 1710, and thenwithdrew alfo. That country produces only pepper and canes; and, by the lazinefsof the inhabitants, there is hardly any of them procurable.

The illand Lingen lies under the equator, about 20 leagues from’ Jambee, and as farfrom the river of Johore, and is a part of the Johore dominions. It is about twentyleagues long, and ten broad. It is very mountainous within, and very low towards thefea. Its product is fome pepper and canes, and it abounds in porcupines, which affordsthem the valuable porcupine beakoar. Some of them I have feen as big as a walnut,and of the fame fhape, and pretty near in colour, valued at 600 pieces of eight. Be-tween Lingen and Sumatra are the Streights of'Drions, where generally {hips pafs thatgo from Malacca to Batavia.

On the Sumatra fhore there are no places of commerce, till we come to the fouthentrance of Andraghira river, and there lies Pattapan, a town belonging to the dominionsof Johore , that affords pepper and gold. Off the mouth of that river about ten leagueslie the two iflands of Carimon, and between them and the Sumatra fhore, are theStreights of Labon. Upon the eaft fide of the Great Carimon, is the entrance of the

Streights