THEIR IMPOSITIONS. 125 



man which was said to contain jewels, &c. ? to the 

 amount. The merchant could never recover any of 

 his money, the Tuan Mulana having spent it on his 

 numerous concubines and slaves. He was in the 

 habit of sending charms and jackets which were 

 inscribed with the verses of the Koran to the chiefs of 

 Sarawak as presents, of course expecting a valuable 

 consideration in return, but of late years the old 

 gentleman did not find this plan of raising money at 

 all productive ; and as the Rajahs of Bruni had 

 removed from Sarawak, he was able to draw but little 

 revenue from the natives of the settlement, who, 

 though in general they pretend to be good Musselmen, 

 never contribute, if they can possibly avoid it, to the 

 support of their religion. Until very recently the only 

 mosque in the town was in such a dilapidated condi- 

 tion that it was dangerous to enter it, and when the 

 inhabitants were called upon for subscriptions to raise 

 a new one, not a fourth of the necessary sum could be 

 procured by the priests. 



The Klings, or natives of the Malabar coast, who 

 have a flourishing bazaar in the town, have recently 

 built a respectable mosque, being, though few in 

 number, very zealous for their religion. I believe 

 they are of the Shiah sect, which is that prevalent in 

 Persia, and between the advocates of which and the 

 orthodox sect so deadly a hatred subsists on the con- 

 tinent of Asia; but here, if the distinctions be un- 

 derstood, the hostile spirit does not exist, though the 

 Malays rarely worship in the same building with them. 



