A VOYAGE TO BORNEO.

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large. They are very dexterous at making falfe /tones, which appear fo like the truebezoar /tones, that unlefs you take great care, you will be often deceived. The beltway to try them is thus : rub on a piece of white paper fome white-lead, lime, or chalk $then rub your bezoar thereon: if it be good, it will turn the white-lead, &c. to agreeni/h colour. Here is alfo a fort of bezoar, called by the natives golega derrelandack, which gives a pleafant bitter tafte to wine, water, &c. when infufed a fmalltime therein ; and yet there appears no vifible diminution of its fubftance.

As to an inveftment outward, a fmall matter for a private trader, may turn to ac-count, viz. iron bars, fmall fleel bars, fmall looking-glades, hangers with buckhornhandles, ,/beet-lead, beautiful callimancoes, knives without forks, proper mixture ofcutlery ware ; the fmalleft fort of fpike nails, twenty-penny nails, fmall grapplingsof about forty pounds weight, and fmall guns from one to two hundred weight, with-out carriages; red leather boots, fpectacles, proper fortment of clock-work, fmallarms, brafs-mounting bell-mouth-iron blunderbuffes, ordinary horfe piftols, gun-powder, a few fcarlet-worfted /lockings, he. But now I think it is time to proceedon the journal of my return through the Straits of Bally, wherein I /hall be the moreparticular, by reafon thofe /traits were feldom or never navigated by any of our countrybefore, efpecially in the wefterly monfoon, which is the only time we are obliged toattempt it.

CHAP. III.— Giving a Dsfcription of the Ifland of Madura , the City and Kingdom of

Ballamboang, the Straits of Bally, Cape of Good Hope , the IJlands of St»Helena and

Afcenfon, &c.

WE fleered our courfe by log fouth-fouth-we/l having little wind at well by north,in order to get fight of the ea/l end of the ifland of Madura : and the next day, beingthe 25th of December, I faw the ifland called Arients, bearing fouth by weft diftantabout fix leagues. At firft I took it to be the ifland called Nille Solombo, but foundm y miftake, being carried away by the current near eight leagues to the eaftward oftny reckoning in fo fmall a run, having little wind and fair weather: not being ableto weather it, I flood along the fhore, and had good foundings 7 but we were greatlyfurprized when we found the water 00 a ludden fhoaling from twelve fathoms to threeand three-fourths ; and upon examination, the water being clear, we could fee rocksat bottom, and found all along the fhore uncertain fhelves of rocks and depths ofwater, which you may be hurried on or over by the great currents; fo that it is verydangerous coming near that fhore, without you are very well acquainted with it, andhave a commanding gale. The wind coming about to the northward of the weft, welaid up pretty well, and at fix in the evening we faw the iflands Solombo and NifleColombo, but came not near enough to be able to give any particular account ofthem: however, I have been credibly informed that beef efpecially, and other pro-pfions, are very cheap there. We fleered away fouth-weft all night, with little wind,air Weather, and a very fmooth fea, founding every hour till feven the next morning ;a nd had from thirty to forty-three fathom water. At twelve at noon this day, beingthe 27th, Poolo-Pondy bore fouth, and the eaft end of Madura fouth-weft by weft halfweft about five leagues; and I found by my reckoning, that the end of Madura liesouth-half-weft diftance fixty-feven leagues from Tomberneo road. At this time of}ear there is a ftrong current fets to the eaft-north-eaftward.

December the 27th, we had the wind at north-weft, fqually the firft part, the latteri. ai n w ? at her : I flood along fhore between Poolo-Pondy and Madura, according to theeft directions of the drafts, and our own judgments, in order to get into the fouth-

eaft