432 GOLDEN MOUNTAIN. 



Portuguese, anchored in the roads, on the 10th 

 of July, from the Maldive islands, bound to Pe- 

 nang, "with a cargo of dried fish and some tortoise- 

 shell, which had been procured in exchange for 

 rice ; his object was to dispose of his cargo in ex- 

 change for dollars and Betel-nut at this place. The 

 dried fish was the Bonito cut into small pieces. 

 The Maldive natives prepare it in the following 

 manner : — A long slice is cut from each side of the 

 fish, and these again are divided into two parts, so 

 that each fish is divided into four pieces ; it is then 

 boiled for a short time in salt water, after which 

 it is smoked and placed in the sun to dry ; it 

 then becomes extremely hard, and resembles, 

 when broken, a piece of wood, having a reddish 

 appearance at the fractured parts : " after it has 

 been soaked, it is used for curries and other 

 native dishes. 



The " Golden Mountain" is a very conspi- 

 cuous and beautiful object from the anchorage ; 

 but it ought to be mentioned, that, from this 

 position, two mountains are seen to the west- 

 ward, one towering to a peak, and densely 

 wooded, the other, anterior to it, is a lofty 

 rounded hill : the first is the one known to 

 Europeans as the "Golden Mountain;" the 

 second, or rounded mountain, is not named in 

 the charts, but it may be called the " Pedir 



