pear to have - known the clove, but not the nutmeg, which feems to>
havo been brought to Europe by the Mahometans. The largeft of the
little Moluccas is B a t c h i a n , called by D’Anville Baifian, being
governed by a Sultan, who is likewife fovereign of Oubi and Ceram,
with Goram, a little ifle S. E. of Ceram, reputed the moft eaftern boundary
o f the Mahometan faith.*. This monarch has a peniion'from the
Dutch, either Tor the de-ftrudtion, or fupply .of nutmegs,, but. is other-
wife little fubfervient.' Batchian rifes' into woody hills; and ori the
fhores, as in inoft ifles o f this archipelago, there are prodigious rocks of
coral, of infinite '/variety and beauty. M a k i a h is a fmall ifle at .a
greater interval, to the N. of Batchian,, than appears between the, other
Moluccas, and rifes like ahighconicmountainfrom, lhf^|ea., This was
regarded as the chief Dutch fettlement before Anrboy qa became the iqe-
tropolis of the Moluccas.1* Ne.xt.is MQTiR,;formeEly} as as' plf| Ehg-
lilh writer fays, the feat of Venus and volu^UQufnefs» .A^hft*^pft
diftinguilhed cf the proper Moluccas are T i d o r e and T e r n a t .; "While
Portugal was united to Spain the Dutch were defeated near Tidore in
1610, by the Spaniih Admiral Sylva; but byr the .affifkarice-cofethe
king o f Ternat the Batavians feized the fort.- In dTidorejthere are
twenty-five mofks; and the Sultan, as "already' mentioned, poffefles
alfo the fouth of Gilofo, and claims tribute from MyfoU • ••'
T e r n a t is the moft northern and moft important- of thë Moluccas,
though it fcareely exceed twenty-four, miles in cirwmferenge.^ Iftie
Sultan controuls Makian, and Motir, with the north of-Giltilo,- Morfay,
and even fome Celebezian ifles, and part of Papua, whence he received
a tribute of gold, amber, and birds of Paradife. Mr. Forreft has püb-
lifhed a lift of the militia, fumifhed by the refpedtive territories of the
Sultan of Ternat, amounting to ninety thoufand'feven hundred ; npr
was the naval force inconfiderable, anti the Ternatians add 'Tidoreans
have not fhunned maritime conflids even .with Europeans. In 1638
the Batavians formed an alliance with the king of Ternat, and the lelfer
princes, which has been repeatedly renewed; but garrifons are efta-
* The little ifle of .Goram. has thirteen mofks. For. 38.
31 See in Mandelflo a View of Amboyna, in which it is called Cafkak iïè iIfles Möluqu'es.
■ W f c d
blilhed to enforce tbevobfervance, and the fultans- ,of Tfefnaft and Tidore Ter sat.
are1 watched,,rwi-tfe greatattentia#.^ATfbe tla^g|f dfi’the ffioatym fmall
Ihips, may be about the .burden of-ten »ton#’: on each fide are .Angular
frames;'like wings, 'on which the' rowers are placed * yet tbefq-vefiels-
niove with great fwiftrtefe ,rin-ough 41feaooth fea. -'Ternat cwfifts chief! %K"'‘
of .high,. lMd, ‘aboundingowith'. fbjeams, which -byrft t h e c ^ d y '
peaks-; and Jhkrelfeta1 voicario- which difplayed great [force. T693.,
The‘"dhieSE quadrupeds.are^%ohtS) ‘deSec^and1 bpgs, ahd-the bird^
diftinguilhed beauty;J particularly- ahe ^ ‘i^-fiflieF,t|eI-oa|Jied;fin- laariet;
and .mazareen blue; Called,hy--the;nariteSi6^}Gflddc,{s4||^fttTernait‘,the,
Boa-fer-peftt' is fometimes,, found, '©f the l e n g t h £ | f | -feptgand' by;
itsi-power of fudtion and- eonftridtjon js reported femetismCs 'to-fwallow
evenTmaUdeer.', ■ -
Equally.diftingiSilhed are the-mn&fouthprnfSpi£e-tIflaads;o,f A kB oV iIlS Amboyn^
and Ba i^ija, cloves: being nowtt^eftrbftedyfo.far as DatchqiYftrice
could effedt, to Amboyna,, and nut^eg£j;q,;Band,a.. The jSoyeEpor-qf
Amboyna makes an annual progrefk tb^pughpnt, ,6bp- hpiffi Ifiapy^-.-tp -
igi that, treaties^ are obferved, and fupprefs any imyv*©bj£Qt,c# jealoqfy,
Amboyna was difeovered by the Pqrtugaefe about, Xliy^hut was not
feized aij 1 1564; and was conquered bytthej^utch iatfopt This
celebrated, ifle is about $0 B. ,mil^ tnfpngth^N'. to Su, amdfomthe w?ft
there is a- largp bay, which divides spjlnto twojimbs, dr henihfplas.'
On- the eaftern fide is another bay, wi t h , b a d harbour, where the
Portuguefe eredted their chief fqrtrefs Vi&dria. ,The‘tQwn of Amboyna,,
of the ifle, .ftan^s near me S. W. jixtygmity, and^is.'neatfy-'
on account o f the frequent earthquakes, feldbm exceed
but tfie State Houfe js an edifice o f two ftdries.
The„face jof jthis ifland is beaptiTul, typody ^mountains,, and verdant
^flgshthdkig interfperfed with^ hamlets, anti ^rijfohed Jay cultivation.1*
Th%i§lPFe; tree gsfpws to the height of about forty cjy j tfty feet, with
fpreading branches and lpng pointed leaves. In deep flickered vales
feme trees will produce thirty pounds, weight annually, the .chief crop
being from November to February. The ipil is moftly a reddiflr .play,
13 An account, pf the Spice Blands, fince they have been in the pfifTeffion of Great Britain.
Afiatic Regifter, 1800, p. 200. There was a moil violent earthquake in ly y y .'
but.