VOYAGE FKOM IXDIA TO SIAM AXD MALACCA. 189 



o'clock the former calm changed into favouvable wind, and as 

 we had until now been sideways in the. current to follow it, W9 

 turned now to continue our journey. The enemy took the same 

 way and had the wind in his favour, but we prepared to give him 

 a hearty welcome if he were desirous of one ; a few moments 

 later he turned away frorn us and sailed in the direction from 

 which we had come, whilst we sailed on to the place whither we 

 were bound. 



About three o'clock this pirate had disappeared, but we 

 heard a cannon shot fired, possibly in honour of one of their 

 officers being killed in the encounter, whom they buried in the 

 sea, but this was only a surmise on our part. Only a few balls 

 had struck our ship in the watergang (water line) and had caused 

 little damage. Most of his shots had struck the deck, between the 

 middle and hind mast and also on to the helm and watergang of the 

 ship. We do not know how many shots were fired on us, because 

 at first there were many at the same time ; we had fired about eighty 

 shots. A remarkable thing was that our captain could distinctly 

 see through a telescope, that after the first sharp shots had 

 been exchanged, a Roman Catholic priest blessed the whole crew, 

 who received this blessing with bent heads and folded hands. 



We passed the Strait during the night. 



16. — Towards noon we cast anchor in the harbour of 

 Malacca, and shortly after we went on shore, because we need- 

 ed a recreation after so many adversities. 



17. — To-day I looked about in the town, and found some 

 people who could show me about in the gardens and the neigh- 

 bouring- country. I happily had an introduction to Mr. Abraham 

 de Went, who is a brother of the late gentleman of whose strange 

 ways and love for natural history I had heard very much. This 

 Mr. de Went promised to send me some of his people. 



In the churchyard of the town, which was open to-day on 

 account of a funeral, I found frequently Justicia fastuosa and Cas- 

 sia alata, and also Acrostichum nuriimularifoUum and Polypodium 

 lauceolatum. 



Atthe town-chemist's I found the small Contorta with the juicy 

 orbicular Reaves ; it had many blossoms, which I described to-daj^ 



18, 19, 20, 21. — During these days I visited all the gardens 

 where any sago-trees were growing-, in order to study them very 

 minutely. Many trees had only begun to bloom, while others 



