SINGAPORE. 
397 
From Mr. North we obtained a number of rare Malay and Bugis 
manuscripts, forming a collection which is said to be the largest now 
in being, that of Sir Stamford Raffles having been lost. Some of them 
are beautifully written. 
One of the most amusing incidents that occurred during our stay at 
Singapore, was a visit to a ship of the king of Cochin-China, which 
we made by express invitation. The whole trade of Cochin-China is 
a monopoly in the hands of the king who owns the ships, which like¬ 
wise compose part of his navy. They are built after the European 
model of some half a century back. The vessel that furnished it 
belonged to France, and was wrecked on their coast many years ago, 
after which missionaries and artisans were sent out by Louis XVI., 
who taught them many of the arts of Europe. The outward form of 
the old French ship appears to have been pretty well imitated, but the 
stern is more elaborately carved and ornamented with gilding. The 
internal arrangements also show a great variation from the model, 
and in them the notions of the Cochin-Chinese prevail, unmixed with 
those of Europeans. The two ships were about five hundred tons 
burden ; they are very roughly built, have huge sterns, and exceed¬ 
ingly thick sides. Indeed every thing on board is unsightly, and all 
the work is of the rudest description, giving no very high idea of the 
proficiency of the mechanics of Cochin-China. 
These vessels have a middle deck, which is pierced for guns. The 
cabin, into which we were shown, had a josh-temple, and with josh- 
sticks burning. There were two cabins ; that under the poop had small 
rooms, and was very low between decks. There were no fixtures, but 
simply a mat to lie on. The binnacle is a bed of sand, in which the 
compass-box is set for security; and a number of small, coloured sticks 
were stuck into the sand, which were represented to be markers, by 
which the way of the vessel was noted. A manuscript chart, which 
the captain took great pride in exhibiting, was shown us. This was 
evidently a copy of an English one, but all the names were in Chinese. 
The crew had a decided Malay look, and were small men; they are 
in form stout, but are not athletic. There did not appear to be any 
mixture of races among them. As we passed around the deck, we 
observed a party of five or six of the men engaged in gambling with 
cards, in which they were so much engrossed, that they heeded not 
the command of their officers to desist and make room for us. This 
vessel was furnished with rattan-cables, which were exceedingly well 
made. The wheel for steering appeared odd, on account of its small 
size, and the helmsman sits when he takes his trick. On either side of 
the deck, just abaft the foremast, there is a cook-house, formed of a 
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