chap, xv.] TOWN OF MACASSAR. 333 



trees. This street is usually thronged with a native popu- 

 lation of Bugis and Macassar men, who wear cotton 

 trousers about twelve inches long, covering only from the 

 hip to half-way down the thigh, and the universal Malay 

 sarong, of gay checked colours, worn round the waist or 

 across the shoulders in a variety of ways. Parallel to this 

 street run two short ones, which form the old Dutch town, 

 and are enclosed by gates. These consist of private houses, 

 and at their southern end is the fort, the church, and a 

 road at right angles to the beach, containing the houses 

 of the Governor and of the principal officials. Beyond 

 the fort again, along the beach, is another long street of 

 native huts and many country houses of the tradesmen 

 and merchants. All around extend the flat rice-fields, 

 now bare and dry and forbidding, covered with dusty 

 stubble and weeds. A few months back these were a 

 mass of verdure, and their barren appearance at this 

 season offered a striking contrast to the perpetual crops 

 on the same kind of country in Lombock and Bali, where 

 the seasons are exactly similar, but where an elaborate 

 system of irrigation produces the effect of a perpetual 

 spring. 



The day after my arrival I paid a visit of ceremony to 

 the Governor, accompanied by my friend the Danish 

 merchant, who spoke excellent English. His Excellency 

 was very polite, and offered me every facility for travelling 



