LABUAN. 91 



As my leave was nearly up I had to make my way as 

 quickly as possible through Tjiandjoer and Buitenzorg to 

 Batavia, passing through a very fine country which, unfor- 

 tunately, from the constant and excessive rains, I was 

 unable to see distinctly. 



Soon after my return to Singapore I was ordered 

 to proceed to Labuan, which our Government had lately 

 annexed, and of which Sir James Brooke, the Rajah of 

 Sarawak, was made Governor and Commander in Chief. 

 Thirty European marines had been put ashore as garrison, 

 and as they were being decimated by fever, it was decided to 

 send Sepoys, so I was ordered with eighty men to relieve the 

 marines. Captain Harry Keppel (now Admiral Sir Harry 

 Keppel, G.C.B.) took me over in his fine ship the "Meander." 

 There was no cabin for myself or my subaltern, so a very 

 comfortable canvas one was rigged up between two of the 

 guns on the main deck. My subaltern, a Scotchman, was 

 not a good sailor, and had to confine himself to our cabin. 

 On the second morning he came up on deck with such a 

 serious look on his pale face, that I thought something was 

 gone wrong with the detachment. I had brought with me 

 a Minah Bird which could imitate almost anything, and 

 the only place I had to put it was over the wash-hand 

 stand, to which poor D., deadly seasick, constantly rushed ; 

 the bird after a very short time imitated his retching so 

 axactly that it made the poor fellow much worse, and irritated 

 him beyond endurance. He rushed up to me and in broad 

 Scotch said, " I tell you what it is Hamilton, if you don't 

 take that dommed bird away, I'll wring his neck." 



The first impression of Labuan was not very cheering, a 

 bit of land covered with high forest trees looming out of mist 



