— 89 — 



envoys were sent to this country to inform it of his accession and to call 

 it to court, whilst in the year 1404 the Emperor sent envoys to present the 

 chief of the country with velvets, silks and gauzes embroidered with gold, 

 and to bring him to the imperial court. When the eunuch Yin Ch'ing (*) 

 was sent to Java, he visited this country also, and when Chêng Ho went to 

 the western ocean in 1405, presents were sent again. 



Before Chêng Ho arrived there, the chief Tsai-nu-li-a-pi-ting-ki ( 2 ) 

 had sent envoys with Yin Ch'ing to go to court and carry tribute; the 

 emperor issued an edict appointing him king of Sumatra , and gave him a seal, 

 a commission and a court-dress of coloured silk. After this he sent tribute 

 every year and did not stop as long as the emperor Ch'êng-tsu lived. 



Chêng Ho was sent three times to this country ; when he came there 

 for the first time, the father of the king had been fighting with his neigh- 

 bour, the king of the country of the Tattooed Faces ( 3 ), and had been killed 

 by an arrow ; the king's son was still young and his mother cried out to the 

 people: //Whoever can avenge me, I will take him for my husband and reign 

 together with him." There was a flsherman who heard this; he rallied the 

 people of the country and went to attack the enemy ; after killing their king 

 he came back and the wife of the late king took him for her husband, on 

 which he was called the old king. 



When the son of the late king was grown up, he secretly leagued 

 himself with some people of rank , killed the old king and took his place ; a 

 younger brother of the old king, called Su-kan-la (Sekander) (*), escapedinto 

 the mountains and harassed the country for several years. 



When Chêng Ho went there again in the year 1414, this Su-kan-la was 

 dissatisfied that he got nothing from the imperial presents and therefore 

 collected several thousands of men to attack and rob Chêng Ho; the Chinese 

 soldiers and the people of the country routed them and killed a large quantity 

 of these robbers, who were pursued as far as Lambri ( 5 ) and brought back 

 prisoners. The king then sent envoys to present his thanks. 



O f*- m 



C) lp- 3^ J|l JJpj" Jj£\ ~J" tl ! the tlu-ee last s yll ab l es perhaps express the native 

 title petinggi. 



O 4^ ï§ï H the same as Nakur. q. v. 



