224 



JOURNAL, R.A.S. (CEYLON). 



[Vol. XIX. 



r eport of the state of the Government of Macassar and of what 

 the writer as Governor had accomplished. 



From the other papers quoted by Prof. Veth in the journal 

 named it appears that in 1752 Loten was nominated as 

 Governor of Ceylon,* and on 30th September of that year 

 arrived at Colombo per ship Giessenburg. There he discovered 

 the artistic talent of de Bevere, and got him to prepare the 

 majority of the plates exhibited. 



On llthf August 1755 his wife died in Colombo. 



Loten occupied the Governorship until March 1757, when 

 with the rank of " Councillor Ordinary of Netherlands India "{ 

 he returned to Batavia, entertaining the purpose of shortly 

 leaving the service of the Company and setting out upon the 

 return voyage to the fatherland. 



From a paper written at Colombo in February 1756, and 

 addressed to the Political Council, it appears that he expe- 

 rienced great difficulties with one of his head officials, the 

 upper merchant and chief administrator Noel Anthonie le 

 Beck.§ Prof. Veth also remarks that Loten' s rule in Ceylon 

 was much disturbed by internal commotions, fear of attack 

 from external enemies, and great scarcity of finances. || There 

 also existed from his hand a " Geprojecteerd Reglement ver- 

 vattende d' ordres die men in cas van eenig onverwagt allarm 



* In succession to Gerard Joan Vreelant, who died in February 

 1752, after a governorship of under a year. The commandeur of Jaffna y 

 Jacob de Jong, acted as Governor until Loten's arrival (see C. As. Soc. 

 Jl. xi. 141, Wolf ii. 75, 126). Wolf was in Ceylon during the whole of 

 Loten's governorship, but, being in Jaffna, did not come in contact 

 with him, and says nothing of his rule. In the C. As. Soc. Jl. viii. 430-3 

 (misprinted 336-9) will be found a letter in Sinhalese, with translation, 

 written by Loten from Colombo on 4th July 1754, to the Siamese priest 

 Upali, who, with other iheras, had recently arrived in Ceylon in re- 

 sponse to an embassy sent to Siam by King Kirti Sri Rajasinha (see C. 

 As. Soc. Jl. xviii. 17-44). 



f This should be 10th : see second paper infra. 



% According to Robid£ van der Aa (u. i.), Loten was raised to this 

 rank in October 1754 (see also Hooykaas, op. cit. 102). 



§ See R. G. Anthonisz's Report on Dutch Records 50. 



J| For a summary of the events in Ceylon during Loten's governorship, 

 see the Beknopte Historie (C. As. Soc. Jl. xi. 141-5). 



