A VOYAGE TO BORNEO.

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arrack, or any other fort of ftrong fpirits: and what is remarkable, and ffiews a goodtemper in them, is, that when one of them has earned two or three doublekees, hefails not to call others of his acquaintance to partake with him, and will furely fpendit all before night in tobacco and arrack, fitting down in the ftreets ; where they getdrunk, and fleep all night, though the weather be fometimes very cold. They are notreally unlike monkeys or baboons in their geftures and poftures, efpecially when theyfit funning themfelves, as they often do in great numbers. I could not learn thatthey have any religion ; neither did I fee any thing like a prieft among them ; fo thatI am apt to believe they are wholly ftrangers to any manner of divine worlhip. How-ever, they are very ferviceable fellows; they ferve in town as porters : neither willthey willingly fuffer a ftranger to carry any burden, but will endeavour to fnatch itaway in fpite of him, and carry it where it ought to be, as one of them did to a failorof mine, crying, “ you Engliffiman, you no Hottentotfo that they look upon them-felves to have the privilege of being ticket-porters at the Cape. They are fo honeft,that you may truft them almoft with any thing; and they will carry it fafely wheredirected, though nobody follows, or looks after them. This fhews the afperfion tobe groundlefs which fome authors (particularly Mr. Morden, in his book of GeographyRectified) call upon them, faying, that they are fuch great thieves that they will ftealwith their feet, while they {tare in your face: others affirm, (and particularly Dr.Heylin) that they feed upon human carcafes : it is true, their diet is very beaftly ; butupon inquiry, I never could find that to be true.

Their language is fo very harffi and guttural, that I never heard of any Europeanthat could pronounce fcarce any one word of it; and when they fpeak, they feemrather to cackle like hens or turkeis, than fpeak like men. However, thofe thatlive near the Cape, do generally fpeak a little Dutch , and fome few words of Engliffi,which they pronounce intelligibly enough.

The Dutch do never puniffi them for any crime, but fend the delinquents to theirown people, by whom they are puniffied, for ftriking or quarrelling with a Dutchman,but more feverely if they have offered to fteal. By the Dutch laws it is death for aDutchman to lie with a Hottentot women ; though I think they need not have laidthat reftridlion upon them, the very fmell and looks of fuch hideous creatures beinga fufficient antidote againft lechery. The arms of war are generally fmall javelins;but I was informed, that the inland people ufe the long-bow and arrow verydexteroufly.

Having completed my affairs here, I failed away on the 12 th of May, for theffiand of St. Helena, according to the orders I had from the Honourable Eaft-India Company. We had a ftout fouth-eaft gale which run us the length of Penguinjhand and then fell calm. This ifland is fmall, low and fandy, lying at the entrance of thebay. The inhabitants are only Dutchmen, who, for offences not puniffiable withdeath, are banilhed thither from the Cape for ninety-nine years. And as a fartherEdition to their misfortunes, they are denied the privilege of any women to liveamong them: their talk is to gather balkets full of Ihells every day, of which theybiake lime. Thofe that are guilty of capital crimes, are puniffied by racking, impalingon fpit or ftake, burning and hanging; for the Dutch governor and council have

-— UUl CctUUUl liy, UCUl^ <Jlliy tUl cumiu**'-'- lit luituai^#

t lives wholly on fiffi j there are many hereabout, though I faw but one at a diftance

dimming in the fea.VOL XI.

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