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ACCOUNT OF CELEBES , AMBOYNA, ScC.

in the war with the Ternafefe, the Portuguefe and the Dutch . Neither were they atall the caule that the princes of Celebes have not extended their dominion fo far tothe eaftward, for the three abovementioned nations have always prevented it;although at that time the kings of Nouffanivel took the high-founding and proud titleof “ Kings of ten thoufand l'words.”

The Company muff not, therefore, ever think that the Amboynefe would be of anyhelp to them, in cafe a foreign power were to endeavour to wreft thefe poffeffions fromthem; for, were there no other reafons to induce them to look upon any change asbeing for the better, their indifferent, indolent, and timorous difpofition would befufficient to prevent them from joining either fide. It is true, that thofe of Hitoe for-merly fhewed a little more courage in the civil commotions which took place in thelaft century, when they fought for independence, as they could no longer bear theoppreflion of their inhuman talk-mailers; but in the cafe we have fuppofed, it wouldbe the fame to them beneath which European yoke they had to bend ; as, let theevent be as it might, they would always have to wear the chains of the conquerors;belides that, as attached to the Mahomedan religion, they are the fworn enemies ofall Chriftians.

The women, though they are not fo indolent as the men, are, on the other hand,exceffively lafcivious; they poffefs no chaftity either in a married, or an unmarried ftate,and there is nothing that can reftrain them from fatisfying their paffionate defires. Itis very ufual among them that a girl gives proofs of her fruitfulnefs before marriage,which is never the lead bar to getting a hufband; and, on the contrary, frequently isa reafon for being preferred to others, of whom it is lefs certain that they are capableof becoming mothers.

The Amboynefe were in former times, as the Alforefe are at prefent, idolators ;but the Javanefe, who began to trade hither in the latter end of the fifteenth, and inthe beginning of the fixteenth century, endeavoured to diffeminate the dodrines ofMahomet here, and they fucceeded fo well, that in the year 1515, that religion wasgenerally received.

The Portuguefe arriving here in the mean time, endeavoured likewife to make theRoman catholic religion agreeable to the inhabitants, and to propagate it amongltthem; which, in particular, took place, according to Rumphius , in the year 1532,on the peninfula of Leytimor, but thofe of Hitoe have, to the prefent day, remainedfirmly attached to the Mahomedan faith, whence, in contradiftindion to the Leytimo-refe, they are called Moors.

When our people came to Amboyna, and the Portuguefe were expelled from theilland, the proteftant religion was gradually introduced ; yet the unpleafing refult ofthefe frequent changes of religion has been, as might naturally be expeded, that, fromblind idolaters, they have firft become bad Roman catholics and afterwards worfeproteftants.

The pradice of idolatry cannot yet be wholly eradicated ; this, added to the pre-valence of the fuperftitions which difgrace chriftianity among the followers of theRoman catholic perfuafion, and the almoft univerfal negligence and want of zeal ofour tcclefiaftics in thefe regions, almoft entirely takes away the hope that the falutarydodrines of the gofpel will ever be deeply rooted here, and that the Amboynefe willever be cured of their deplorable blindnefs.

I cannot either fay much good refpeding their moral condud ; I have before men-tioned that the women are univerfally unchafte, and the men are, in this refped, nobetter. Theft is likewife one of the moft prevalent vices among the Amboynefe, andthey are not a little dexterous in contriving the means of pilfering; I had twice expe-

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