i8 



Islands cf 

 Andaman. 



INDIA BEYOND THE GANGES. 



Mr. Forrejl propofed a fettlemcnt to be formed of the natives of 

 HindooJIany on fome of the iflands, in order to profit by the rich 

 commerce of Pegu. He fays, flate and marble are found here,, 

 and that there is plenty of coral to burn into lime. He adds,. 

 S'ivallo-jo, i. e. a fort of Af^nia, in great requeft in China as a de- 

 licacy, and alfo the edible birds nefts» 



About a hundred and fifty leagues to the weft of the mofl 

 eaftern part of the Archipelago of Mergui, are the greater and 

 lefler iflands of Andaman. Ptolemy calls the firft,. Infula Bonce' 

 Forttinte, perhaps, fays M. UAnville, becaufe navigators might 

 exult at efcaping from fliores, infamous for being inhabited by a. 

 barbarous Anthropophagi. The antient name of the leffer Anda- 

 man was Maniok. All the iilands, even as far as the group off 

 the weft end of Sumatra, labored under the fame fcandal. 



The great Andaman is about a hundred and eight miles 



long, and extends from north to fouth between Lat. 13^53', and 



12° 16' ; it is nearly of the fame breadth, or between thirty and 



forty miles. The mountains rife rude and lofty ; that called 



the Saddle-back, is feen twenty-two leagues diftance at fea. By 



Captain Wragg\ view, there appears a confiderable bay on the 



w-eftern fide, with a fine river running into the fouthern part : 



this is the ifland which Marco Polo calls Angania, and fays, that 



the inhabitants live like wild beafts on fruits, and alfo human^ 



flefli ; and that they have heads and teeth like dogs, but that 



their ifland abounds with fruits and all forts of perfumes. The 



Bramins fay that thefe ifles are inhabited by devils incarnate, 



animated by the fouls of impious men. In refpefl to the teeth 



of the inhabitants, it may be in fome meafure true, for in many 



3. parts 



