DAMPIER’s ACCOUNT OF THE PHILIPPINES.

45

CHAP.V. — The IJIes to which they gave the Names of Orange, Monmouth, Grafton, Bafhee,und Goat IJlands, in general, the Bafhee IJJands. — A Digrejfion concerning the differentDepths of the Sea near high or low Lands, Soil , lAc. as before. — The Soil, Fruitsand Animals of thefe IJlands. — The Inhabitants and their Cloathing. •— Rings of ayellow Metal like Gold — Their Houfcs built on remarkable Precipices. — TheirBoats and Employments. — Their Food of Goat Skins,Entrails, &c. —Parcht Locufls. —Bafhee or Sugar-cane Drink . — Of their Language and Original, Launces and BuffaloeCoats. — No Idols, nor civil Form of Government. —A young Man buried alive bythem; fuppofed to be for Theft. — Their Wives and Children, and Hujhandry. —Their Manners, Entertainments and Traffick. — Of the Ship ’s firjl Intercmrfe withthefe People, and Bartering with them. — Their Courfe among the IJlands ; their Staythere, and Provifion to depart. — They are driven off by a violent Storm , and return. —The Natives Kindnefs to fix of them left behind .— The Crew, difcouraged by thofeStorms, quit their Defign of cruifmg off Manila for the Acapulco Ship ; and it is re-folved to fetch a Compafs to Cape Comorin , and Jo forthe Red-Sea.

THE fixth day of Auguft we arrived at the five iflands that we were bound to,and anchored on the eaft fide of the northermofl ifland, in fifteen fathoms, a cable’slength from the fhore. Here, contrary to our expectation, we found abundance ofinhabitants in fight; for there were three large towns all within a league of the fea ;and another larger town than any of the three, on the backfide of a fmall hill clofe byalfo, as we found afterwards. Thefe iflands lie in latitude twenty degrees twentyminutes north latitude by my obfervation, for I took it there, and I find their longi-tude, according to our drafts, to be one hundred and forty-one degrees fifty minutes.Thefe iflands having no particular names in the drafts, fome or other of us made ufeof the feamen’s privilege, to give them what names we pleafe. Three of the iflandswere pretty large; the weftermoft is the biggeft. This the Dutchmen who wereamong us called the Prince of Orange’s ifland, in honour of His prefent Majefty. Itis about feven or eight leagues long, and about two leagues wide ; and it lies almoftnorth and fouth. The other two great iflands are about four or five leagues to theeaftward of this. The northermofl of them where we firft anchored, I called theDuke of Grafton’s Me, as foon as we landed on it; having married my wife out ofhis Dutchefs’s family, and leaving her at Arlington houfe, at my going abroad. Thislfie is about four leagues long, and one league and a half wide, ftretching north andfouth. The other great ifland our feamen called the Duke of Monmouth’s ifland.This is about a league to the fouthward of Grafton Ifle. It is about three leagues longand a league wide, lying as the other. Between Monmouth and the fouth-end ofOrange Ifland, there are two fmall iflands of a roundifh form, lying eaft and weft.The eaftermoft ifland of the two, our men unanimoufly called Bafhee ifland, from aliquor which we drank there plentifully every day, after we came to an anchor at it.a he other, which is the fmalleft of all, we called Goat ifland, from the great number° goats there ; and to the northward of them all, are two high rocks.

Orange ifland, which is the biggeft of them all, is not inhabited. It is high land,at and even on the top, with fteep cliffs againft the fea ; for which reafon we couldnot go afhore there, as we did on all the reft.

I have made it my general obfervation, that where the land is fenced with fteeproc s and cliffs againft the fea, there the fea is very deep, and feldom affords anchorground$ .and on the other fide where the land falls away with a declivity into the fea,

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