DIED) THE DUTCIE IN PERAK. 
This Island Dinding about 30 miles to the north-west of 
Malacka is uninhabited, full of high Mountains, vast Forests 
and very dreadful Wildernesses. The Sea-coast is here and 
there covered with terribly large Rocks and overhanging Cliffs 
Which are overgrown in a wonderful way with Verdure and 
Underwood and some with very high Trees, so that one cannot 
very well waik round the Island along the beach. We saw a 
Rock on the beach as big as a House and quite hollow inside, 
into which we entered and came outon the other side; inside 
it was formed like a cave and fashioned by nature with divisions 
like small rooms. The sweet water flowed down from the 
high, woody Mountains between great ravines making its way 
down to the Sea in numerous little Rivers and we found it 
lovely, agreeable and clear. It is said thatin Amboyna and 
on this Island Dinding the best fresh water of the whole 
Hast-Indies is found, and thisI believe to be the fact, for I 
myself Gn my own opinion) have neverin anyother country 
in India drunk betteer woter than in these two places. 
We heard in the wildernesses many Rattie-snakes but we 
did not see any, though we were anxious to doso and made 
search for these monsters. I haveread that on the tail of the 
Rattle-snake is found a small longitudinal bladder in several 
joints, by means of which they make the rattling sound * like 
Crickets and Grasshoppers, that they are greyish and pretty 
large and have sharp teeth in their mouths, also that their 
bite is generally deadly, etc. but how much of this is true I 
cannot declare. This, however, I believe, that they are of a 
pretty good size and very shy, for we heard them in the 
thickest part of the wood, in the hanging cliffs of the moun- 
tains and in the highest of the Trees; sometimes their rattling 
sound seemed to be pretty far from us. 
On this Island Dinding we plucked tne Oysters of the Trees, 
which grew there on the stems and boughs in innumerable 
quantities; this might seem to some people incredible, but I 
shall explain that the beach and shores of this Island, as also 
those of the Coast of Pera, situated only half a mile from 
Dinding, are almost everywhere, as has been said, covered 
with an absolute wilderness, the Trees of which, standing with 
their stems nearly in the salt water, are almost continually 
washed by the same. Their great branches hang down into 
the briny foam, and round their bark (some I have seen -abso- 
lutely petrified) a great quantity of Oysters grow; we did not 
find them to be large, but they were good and of a pleasant 
flavour. 
December, 1668. 
Thus we daily pitched water and firewood and caught an 
abundance of very good Fish, such as Mullet, Pike, Bream, 
Flounders, Flatfish and Sea Turtles of good flavour. Mean- 
while the black Envoys of Pera started with the Netherlands 
Opperhooft for Malacka, and we, being at last ready left the 
Island Dinding on the 3rd December to proceed on the voyage 
Short des- 
cription of 
the Island of 
Dinding. 
Rattle- 
snakes. 
On the Is- 
land of Din- 
ding Oysters 
grow on the 
trees in great 
number. 
Departure 
from the Is- 
land of Din- 
ding for Ben- 
gal. 
*[What the sound described is, it is difficult to conjecture. The author 
may have been misled by the sounds made by cicadas or other insecis.—HD. ] 
