420 BATAVIA TO CAPE OF GOOD HOPE CH. xvm 



1 3th. My fever returned, but I resolved not to attempt 

 to cure it till in the main ocean I should meet with a better 

 air than this uncleared island could possibly have. In the 

 evening after my fit I went ashore to the king, to whom 

 time after time I had made small presents, altogether not of 

 five shillings value, carrying two quires of paper, which, like 

 everything else, he most thankfully received. We had much 

 conversation, the purport of which was his asking why the 

 English ships did not touch here, as they used to do. I 

 told him that as they had not on the island turtle enough to 

 supply one ship, they could not expect many ; but advised 

 him to breed cattle, sheep, and buffaloes, which advice, 

 however, he did not seem much to approve of. 



Some account of Prince's Island. 



Prince's Island, as it is called by the English, in Malay 

 Pulo Selan, and in the language of the inhabitants Pulo 

 Paneitan, is a small island situated at the western entrance 

 to the straits of Sunda. It is woody and has no remarkable 

 hill upon it, though the English call the small one which is 

 just over the anchoring place the Pike. This island was 

 formerly much frequented by India ships of many nations, 

 but especially English, who have of late forsaken it, on 

 account, it is said, of the badness of its water, and stop 

 either at North Island, a small island on the Sumatra coast 

 outside the east entrance of the straits, or at New Bay, a 

 few leagues only from Prince's Island, at neither of which 

 places, however, can any quantity of refreshments be procured. 



Its chief produce is water, which is so situated that if 

 you are not careful in taking it high enough up the brook, 

 it will inevitably be brackish, from which circumstance alone 

 I believe it has got a bad name with almost all nations. It 

 also produces turtle, of which, however, its supplies are not 

 great ; so that if a ship comes second or third in the season 

 she must be contented with small ones, and no great plenty of 

 them, as indeed was in some measure our case. We bought 

 at very various prices, according to the humour of the people ; 



