200 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGEAPHY AND TRAVEL 



in length by 10 in breadth. Sibiru is said to have an 

 active volcano. 



Enfjaiio, the last of this OTeat chain of islands, is not 

 more than fifteen miles in length, and is surrounded by 

 coral reefs. Its hills nowhere exceed 400 feet, and it is 

 covered with timber, like all the islands in this chain. 

 The inhabitants, under 1000 in number, are half savage, 

 were unacquainted with the use of iron until a short time 

 ago, and speak a language which is described as being 

 wholly unintelligible to Malays. The coco-nut is largely 

 grown, together with bananas, sugar-cane, and pine-apple. 



(2) The delta islands of the eastern coast, althougli of 

 large size, are not important. Two, Mendang and Eupat, 

 separated by a narrow strait, lie off the mouth of the 

 Eakan river. Farther south, the Siak and Kampar Besar 

 rivers disembogue by a network of canals to form a group 

 of four large islands, each more than 3 miles in length 

 — Bankalis, Padang, Eantau, and Panjor. Twt) others, 

 Sabon and Mandol, are a little farther to the south. All 

 these islands are alike in being low, flat, and densely 

 jungled. They have a very sparse population, and pro- 

 duce little besides sago. 



(3) The Ehio-Lingga Archipelago exhibits a vast col- 

 lection of reefs, shoals, and islands clustered around the 

 terminal point of the Malay Peninsula. The northern 

 group has two chief islands, Batam and Bintang, while in 

 the southern division there are also two which consider- 

 ably exceed the rest in size — Lingga and Singkep. Geo- 

 logically, all these islands are continuations southwards 

 of the Malay Peninsula, showing the granites and sand- 

 stones of that region, and in every w^ay differing from the 

 low alluvial formations of the eastern coast of Sumatra. 

 The islands are more or less undulating and hilly, and 

 Lingga Peak rises to a height of 3920 feet. 



