CH. VII TO SAN GIB AND TALAXJT 153 



the Eesident of Manado, the representative of the great King 

 William III., should honour the island with his presence 

 was of sufBcient importance to mark an epoch in the history 

 of the island. 



During the three days that passed between the arrival of 

 the news and the appearance of the smoke of the ' Ternate ' 

 over the island of Ganga, the coolies were busUy employed 

 in trimming the hibiscus shrubs, in cutting away the dead 

 leaves of the agaves which were planted along the terrace 

 in front of Cursham's house, in raking and weeding the 

 aforesaid path, ia cleaning up and making orderly the 

 house — in fact, in doing everything that would be likely to 

 catch the eye and take the fancy of such a potentate. 



We had routed out from among the stores two little brass 

 cannon, and we were prepared to fire a salute of thirteen 

 guns the moment the Eesident put foot upon the island. 



The ' Ternate ' arrived at twelve o'clock on the following 

 Wednesday, and as she took up her position at the end of our 

 little pier we made the customary salute with an enormous 

 Dutch flag we had hoisted to the top of our flagstaff. 



After lunch I went on board, and was received with the 

 greatest cordiality by my old friends the Eesident, the 

 Controleur, and the Dominie of Manado, and by the captain 

 of the ' Ternate,' van Eyck. I was invited to accompany 

 them to the islands on the ' Ternate,' an invitation I was 

 only too pleased to accept. 



The agent of the Company had accompanied the Eesident 

 to Talisse in order to explain to him the natural resources of 

 the island and the prospects of the Company's plantations, and 

 he invited him with the Controleur, the captain, and myself 

 to a sumptuous feast in the Opzichter's house that evening. 



It was a strange sensation to be again feasting in a 

 civilised manner with a small company of European gentle- 

 men, and to be drinking the wines of Burgundy and Cham- 



