858 Ceram. 



their features also are harsh and prominent, and the women 

 in particular are far less engaging than those of the Malay 

 race. Captain Van der Beck was never tired of abusing the in- 

 habitants of these Christian villages as thieves, liars, and drunk- 

 ards, besides being incorrigibly lazy. In the city of Amboyna 

 my friends Doctors Mohnike and Doleschall, as well as most 

 of the European residents and traders, made exactly the same 

 complaint, and would rather have Mohammedans for servants, 

 even if convicts, than any of the native Christians. One great 

 cause of this is the fact that with the Mohammedans temper- 

 ance is a part of their religion, and has become so much a hab- 

 it that practically the rule is never transgressed. One fertile 

 source of want, and one great incentive to idleness and crime, 

 is thus present with the one class, but absent in the other ; 

 but besides this, the Christians look upon themselves as nearly 

 the equals of the Europeans, who profess the same religion, 

 and as far superior to the followers of Islam, and are therefore 

 prone to despise work, and to endeavor to live by trade, or by 

 cultivating their own land. It need hardly be said that with 

 people in this low state of civilization religion is almost whol- 

 ly ceremonial, and that neither are the doctrines of Christiani- 

 ^ty comprehended, nor its moral precepts obeyed. At the same 

 time, as far as my own experience goes, I have found the bet- 

 ter class of " Orang Sirani " as civil, obliging, and industrious 

 as the Malays, and only inferior to them from their tendency 

 to get intoxicated. 



Having written to the Assistant Resident of Saparua (who 

 has jurisdiction over the opposite part of the coast of Ceram) 

 for a boat to pursue my journey, I received one rather larger 

 than necessary, with a crew of twenty men. I therefore bade 

 adieu to my kind friend CajDtain Van der Beck, and left on 

 the evening after its arrival for the village of Elpiputi, which 

 we reached in two days. I had intended to stay here, but 

 not liking the appearance of the place, which seemed to have 

 no virgin forest near it, I determined to proceed about twelve 

 miles further up the bay of Amahay to a village recently form- 

 ed, and inhabited by indigenes from the interior, and where 

 some extensive cacao-plantations were being made by some 

 gentlemen of Amboyna. I reached the place (called Awaiya) 

 the same afternoon, and with the assistance of Mr. Peters 



