Suspicions. 177 



After about an hour, however, they brought us some sup- 

 per (which was the same as the breakfast, but without the 

 fish), and after it some very weak coffee and pumpkins boiled 

 with sugar. Having discussed this, a second conference took 

 place; questions were again asked, and the answers again 

 commented on. Between whiles lighter topics were discuss- 

 ed. My spectacles (concavo glasses) were tried in succession 

 by three or four old men, who could not make out why they 

 could not see through them, and the fact no doubt was another 

 item of suspicion against me. My beard, too, was the subject 

 of some admiration, and many questions were asked about 

 personal peculiarities which it is not the custom to allude to 

 in European society. At length, about one in the morning, 

 the whole party rose to depart, and, after conversing some 

 time at the gate, all went away. We now begged the inter- 

 preter, who with a few boys and men remained about us, to 

 show us a place to sleep in, at which he seemed very much 

 surprised, saying he thought we were very well accommodated 

 where we were. It was quite chilly, and we Avere very thinly 

 clad and had brought no blankets, but all we could get after 

 another hour's talk was a native mat and pillow, and a few old 

 curtains to hang round three sides of the open shed and protect 

 us a little from the cold breeze. We passed the rest of the 

 night very uncomfortably, and determined to. return in the 

 morning and not submit any longer to such shabby treatment. 



We rose at daybreak, but it was near an hour before the 

 interpreter made his appearance. We then asked to have 

 some coffee and to see the pumbuckle, as we wanted a horse 

 for Ali, who was lame, and wished to bid him adieu. The 

 man looked puzzled at such unheard-of demands and vanish- 

 ed into the inner court, locking the door behind him and leav- 

 ing us again to our meditations. An hour ^^assed and no one 

 came, so I ordered the horses to be saddled and the pack-horse 

 to be loaded, and prepared to start. Just then the interpret- 

 er came up on horseback, and looked aghast at our prepara- 

 tions. " Where is the pumbuckle ?" we asked. " Gone to 

 the Rajah's," said he. " We are going," said I. " Oh, pray 

 don't," said he ; " wait a little ; they are having a consulta- 

 tion, and some priests are coming to see you, and a chief is 

 going off to Mataram to ask the permission of the Anak Agong 



M 



