SINGAPORE. 
373 
The specimen thus presented of the population of Singapore prepared 
us for the sight of the motley group we were to meet on shore. 
At Singapore I had the pleasure of renewing my acquaintance 
with Mr. Balestier, our worthy consul. To him, his lady, and his 
son, we are under many obligations for their kind treatment and 
attention. Mr. Balestier is so well known among men of science in 
the United States, it would be needless for me to say that from him 
I derived much interesting information relative to the place, its com¬ 
merce, &c., for which I here offer my acknowledgments. He was 
extensively engaged in the cultivation of sugar, on a plantation of 
one thousand acres, w'ithin two miles of Singapore, nearly half of 
which was under cultivation. This extent of ground he has by his 
exertions reclaimed from the jungle, and it bids fair to repay the 
labour and expense he has incurred in clearing and bringing it into 
cultivation. He is the first person who has attempted the cultivation 
of sugar at Singapore, and for his success he was awarded the gold 
medal of the Calcutta Agricultural Society. 
As we passed through the vessels with which the roads were 
crowded on our way to the shore, the hum of voices was plainly 
audible, particularly from the Chinese junks, which seemed not un¬ 
like a human hive. On reaching the mouth of the river, as was to 
be expected, the crowd thickened, and the way became more and 
more obstructed, until we were fairly jammed among the sampans, 
with their crowded population. The river does not exceed two 
hundred and fifty feet in width. It is shallow at its mouth, and 
passes through the centre, or rather divides the old from the new 
town ; these are connected by a wooden bridge. As far up as the 
bridge, which is about one-third of a mile from the entrance, the river 
is of various widths, and its banks have been carefully built up with 
stone, having steps occasionally for the convenience of landing from 
the boats. A large population is on the river, dwelling in the sam¬ 
pans, which are all crowded with men, women, and children, the 
latter naked, and frolicking in and out of the water at pleasure. 
These boats are ranged in rows on each side of the passage towards 
the bridge, and are confined by stakes stuck in the bottom. As may 
be well imagined, there are frequent accidents and misadventures, 
that call for the exercise of the lungs of this crowded multitude, yet 
during the many opportunities I had of viewing them, both by day 
and night, I have seldom seen a set of people apparently so contented. 
We landed at the bridge, near which is the office of our consul, in 
a large quadrangular building, one side of which faces the river. 
The terms of old and new town promise a difference of architecture 
2 G 
