58 THE SIAMESE MALAY STATES. 



shewn a photograph of this and I should have liked to have seen 

 it. Having driven through the town we called on Captain RING 

 and found a gale blowing. The weather looked very bad and 

 it was suggested that we had better delay our departure till 

 next morning. There was a dinner party in our honour that 

 night. Captain Ring and two Danish officers of the Ran Rtd:< 

 the Chief Justice, Treasurer, Mr. Clunies and others, about 14 

 in all. A Siamese band played during dinner, Siamese and 

 Chinese tunes, flutes aud fiddles. I took the Commissioner's 

 wife down and she was the only lady. The Commissioner after 

 " the King" proposed our health and I replied. We left about 

 9.30 and went on board the Damrong Rat in Captain Ring's boat. 

 Happily the wind had gone down. It was pretty rough outside 

 with a head wind and the boat pitched and rolled, the sea com- 

 ing over the bows. We got into smooth water under Pulau 

 Panjang about 3.0 or 4.0 A. M. and anchored in the Pung-a 

 River. 



Monday, 17th December. — A lovely cool morning and the 

 view beautiful beyond description with numberless limestone 

 islets and rocks some rising to the height of four or five hun- 

 dred feet with precipitous sides clothed with verdure. Mr. 

 Ju KEAT had started at 5.30 up the river to convey a letter 

 from the Commissioner to the Governor. We were told that 

 he could not be back for an hour or so and we therefore went 

 in a boat — a very leaky one— to explore the river, taking the 

 camera and Mr. Curtis'S orchid and plant collector. The 

 Pung-a River forms part of a network of broad channels 

 among mangroves out of which rise at intervals great isolated 

 limestone crags and precipitous rocks, some rising to 800 or 

 1,000 feet in height. Our men climbing up the steep rocks 

 got a miscellaneous collection of plants and orchids which half 

 filled our small boat. We also took several photographs of 

 picturesque rocks and caves. Then we returned to breakfast 

 on the launch. Mr. Ju Keat having returned we went in a 

 boat about two miles up the river, taking a rifle in case there 

 were any crocodiles on the mud banks. We did not see one 

 though the tide was low. The stream or rather mangrove creek 

 got very narrow and at length we reached the landing stage 

 where a Police guard was drawn up, and we were met by 



