146 TRAVELS IN THE EAST INDIAN ARCHIPELAGO. 



sun was sinking behind tlie Higli, jagged peaks of 

 Ceram, and Ms last golden and purple rays seemed 

 to waver as they skot over the glassy but gently- 

 undulating surface of tke bay, and tke broad, deeply- 

 fiinged leaves of tke cocoa-nut palms on tke beack 

 took a deeper and ricker kue in tke glowing sun- 

 ligkt. Tken a dull, keavy booming came out of a 

 small Mokammedan mosque, wkick was picturesque- 

 ly placed on a little projecting point, almost sur- 

 rounded by tke purple sea. Tkis was tke low roll- 

 ing of a keavy drum, calling all tke faitkful to assem- 

 ble and return tkanks to tkeir Propket at tke close 

 of tke departing day. Tke rajak tken left me to 

 wander along tke skore alone, and enjoy tke endless 

 variety of tke ckanging tints in tke sea and sky wkile 

 tke dayligkt faded away along tke western korizon. 



It was in tkis bay tkat tke Dutck first cast an- 

 ckor in tkese seas, and tkis tkougkt naturally car- 

 ries us back to tke early kistory of tke Moluccas, so 

 famous for tkeir spices, and so coveted by almost 

 every nation of Europe, as soon as enterprise and ac- 

 tion began to dispel tke dark clouds of ignorance and 

 superstition wkick kad enveloped tke wkole of tke 

 so-called civilized world during tke middle ages. 

 Antonio d'Abreu, a Portuguese captain, wko came 

 kere from Malacca, in 1511, is generally regarded as 

 tke discoverer of Amboina and Banda, but Ludovico 

 Bartkema (Vartoma), of Bologna, after visiting Ma- 

 lacca and Pedir, in Sumatra, according to kis own 

 account, reacked tkis island as early as 1500, yet kis 

 description of tke Moluccas is so faulty tkat Valentyn 

 tkinks ke never came to tkis region, but obtained kis 



