356 DESCRIPTION OF SAVU CHAP, xv 



might be true I dare not take upon myself to determine ; 

 all I shall say is that during our stay we saw no signs 

 either of a warlike disposition or such formidable arms. Of 

 spears and targets, indeed, there were about a hundred in 

 the Dutch house, the largest of which spears served to arm 

 the people who came down to intimidate us ; but so little 

 did these doughty heroes think of fighting, or indeed keep- 

 ing up appearances, that instead of a target each was 

 furnished with a cock, some tobacco, or something of that 

 kind, which he took this opportunity of bringing down to 

 sell. Their spears seem all to have been brought to them 

 by Europeans, the refuse of old armouries, no two being any- 

 thing near the same length, varying in that particular from 

 six feet to sixteen. As for their lances, not one of us saw 

 one. Their muskets, though clean on the outside, were 

 honeycombed with rust on the inside. Few or none of 

 their cartridge-boxes had either powder or ball in them. 

 To complete all, the swivels and patereroes at the Dutch 

 house were all lying out of their carriages ; and the one 

 great gun which lay before it on a heap of stones was not 

 only more honeycombed with rust than any piece of artil- 

 lery I have ever seen, but had the touch-hole turned down- 

 wards, probably to conceal its size, which might not be in 

 all probability much less than the bore of the gun itself. 

 The Dutch, however, use these islanders as auxiliaries in 

 their wars against the inhabitants of Timor, where they do 

 good service ; their lives at all events not being nearly so 

 valuable as those of the Dutchmen. 



This island was settled by the Portuguese almost as soon 

 as they went into these seas. When the Dutch first came 

 here the Portuguese, however, were very soon wormed out by 

 the machinations of the artful new-comers, who not only 

 attempted to settle themselves in the island, but also sent 

 sloops occasionally to trade with the natives, by whom they 

 were often cut off ; as often, I suppose, as they cheated them 

 in too great a degree. This, however, and the probably 

 increasing value of the island, at last tempted them to try 

 some other way of securing it, and running less risk. This 



