Sumatra, people Teem the fame with thofe o'f Malacca;-' but thé autfrör-'has
' ftrangely embroiled the queftton, by fuppofmg that the Malays never
planted any-colony before they became Mahometans. ■ The Engltfh
, poffefs two fettlements 'in the country of Batta, -where human' ftefh is
ftill eaten, but reftrifted to that of prifoners taken in war and capital
offenders, an qbfofvation which perhaps extendë Öniveffally wherfetêr
this praftice is known to exift.. The kingdom of Acheen in the NJ W .
extremity o f the ifland carries On a cbnfiderable trade1 wïèh ®e coaft of
Coromandel. The natives are more flout and tall, and of a- darker
complexion than the other Sumatrans. After -Garni ’had paffed the
Cape %f Good Hope in 1497,’ thé importance of the ’City ofiMdacca
became known, and it wasfoon after feized by ihefe invaders, whtofe
proximity led to feveral difcuffions and €oritfefts ‘ with thê tihrthêrn
powers of-Sumatra, m confequence of which the kingdom of'Aoheen
became remarkable in the hiftory o f thefe regions ; and in 16‘i y the
monarch attacked Malacca with five hundred fmall fliips, "but was de-
featéd^r nor is this petty föverêignty imhotêd in the {ubïequfent tranfae-
tions o f the DutctTand Englifh.
Several finaH ifles èncompafs Sumatra. Banca is particularly ^fllé-
brated for its tin.* O f Bil l e t o n little is known ;- nor o f the ifles
that lie between Sumatra and Malacca called PiEti,'a'n<r’other names,
with the common addition o f Pulo, which in thefè ¥éax appears to imply
an illand, being probably a Malay term.'}' Oh thé W,the Mass AO
v or Poggy ifles have been lately noted for their inhabitants,' diflifiular
from their neighbours, and approaching the Otaheitans in the amiable
fimplicity o f their manners, as well as in their petfonal appearance;
while their colour, like that of the Malays, is light browtt o f éoppef.4
Tava. • The large and interefting work of Mr. Marfden has led fo thófé details
concerning Sumatra ; but the account of the other iflands muft be
more reftrifted. J a v a is not only an extenfive ifland, about 650 B.
* The induftrious tranflator of Stavorinus, vol. ii p, 3J7, fays that thefe mines were only difco«
.vered in 1710 or 1711, and though the Dutch receive about three millions of pounds weight, the
veins feem, inexhauftible.
t This is confirmed by Thunberg’ s vocabulary of the Malay, fo that Pulo is a ridiculous ad-
- dition in maps; |
»■ Af.Ref.vi.77.
■ V ^ ^ 1 ^ ^ ‘ I ,naifes
mil.es in length by ,about ioo. qf metfod,breadth,* but i$ifremarkable for,
the ,city <©f Batavia, ,the,pelebrate^ )capital ©f the Dutch poflefliqns.
This, ifland, fike the^former,^ abounds withiforefts, and prefects an en-
c^antfog/verdure. Jt, foems\alfp b y t a, ridge. ofmountins^!
Jijfee a, fpine p e rv ad in g^ .leqgijji'd . r5atayia: |s# flrpngiy fortified witK
a citadel1award^. fea^ ( There,are, many’cabals, ahpfo four
feft in,depth, Ind-fhe town^fodarge',,and^ell. buifo q£ftony.', „This me-’
tropplfo jof.the - oriental arcfopglagp^pr^fejats,. many^ nations .and ylaafo
guages ; .and the Chinefe xonftitute; the greater girt ,of the inhabitants^
bein^contented/pr the fake o f gain tq forget.t^elltprn^s ’©f their an-
ceftors, and tfielawsof their country agafoft en^rafcfon.* lTt;f 4^day,
language, the Frendhpf'thd eafly i^er^-univerfallyunderfiopd ., The
ftpeets-,are planted with,,large -|Feesj pvhijQh,praftice,-with- the Dutch ca-j
nals, pcohably. contributes to the unhealthiaeJ^hfethis .foot. The, heat*
is not fer intenfe.oqi^fidejed .in, itfelfo bs^pg.''between. and>.&6?, as
from the low.fituation .o f theyto-wn, ;and the murky e,xhala|i'onifrpfo
ihe^bogs,ipanals^-and a muddy-fea, whenee, frpm^pejp’qfook,tifl four,
it is rmpoffible: to walk out, ,and fods ufoal tocl^ng^ lin^ii(t^ice a.day.-
The;fori being nearly vertical, rifes.ajid fejfoabqgt ^fix^tOTbdghQut the
year p but the nofturnal, r.epqfoyas foleftecf’/by mqfkitps. In -the. cvieni
fog,' from fix to nine, parties.are,forrped,, and int^emperancp.affifts,, the
poifdh of the climate, ,The y^ater is alfo of a bad.quality,} and -it appears
abfolutely unaccountable!.that a*people, goflefled of carqraon ju,dg?x
meat fhpdM have felefted, this, among ten, tfioufapd preferable fituatiops
m the various ifles. The „Javanefe are of a’ yeHowxcomplexion, ..anc!
not unpleafing lineaments : they; are ..generally* Mahometans;.;. Theifi
cfoh/ls;bf lead, as in Sumatra'and B^rhhoi- The Ghinefe'are., the ,-moft
indufltibus"elafs, both in trade and agriculture.: The? d r is’fo uhwhole* ’
fomej from fetid fogs and other caufes, that ^./fenteraes; and putrid fevers
deftroy prodigious numbers; and 'Ofthr^e. fettlers ;it is rare that one
outlives'the year. ^.The rainy feafon begins with December, and lafts till
March. Crocodiles abound in the rivers, as in mpft bf the oriental
!'Thunberg, if 213.. For a tolerable map of Java fee the Voyage or StaYofiftus, h jff i, v. i.
P* 3 ' 3i where there is alfc albng aiiSiminute defcription of the ifland. 1
* The Dutch Governor General difplays a pomp approaching to royalty..
ifles
Java.
Batavia.