Jan.] BEAUTY OF THE SCENERY. 473 



disiacal scenery which surrounds them. They may talk of Italian skies, 

 and Sicilian shrubbery. No island or coast in or around the Medi- 

 terranean Sea can rival Singapore in salubrity of climate, fertility 

 of soil, or beauty of scenery. Its air is deliciously balmy — its 

 shrubbery luxuriant — health and beauty here revel together — nature is 

 dressed in ever-changing but never-fading charms, and her sunny 

 smiles are ever reflected from the human countenance. 



From the dawn of day until some time after sunrise, the most spark- 

 ling fable of Turkey, Persia, or all the East is fully realized in Singa- 

 pore. Every leaf, and flower, and spray, and blade of grass, is 

 gemmed with dewdrops of extraordinary clearness and purity ; which 

 have imbibed so much of the vegetable fragrance, that when they 

 begin to exhale in the increasing warmth of the solar ray, the whole 

 atmosphere is filled with the most delightful perfumes, and every 

 passing zephyr scatters grateful odours from its wings. This is the 

 hour for healthful recreation. The roads are now crowded with 

 carriages and equestrians of both sexes, while the fields and meadows, 

 and lawns, and hills, and valleys are sprinkled with pedestrians, 

 some in groups, others in pairs, and many in contemplative solitude. 

 When the sun has attained a somewhat higher altitude, and the strag- 

 glers begin to feel the potency of his beams, they all repair to their 

 dwellings, with a keenly sharpened appetite for the luxurious break- 

 fast that awaits them. 



The town of Singapore is about one mile and a half in length, and 

 one in breadth. The streets are regular, and are built after the English 

 style, with beautiful side-walks. The houses are principally built of 

 freestone ; they are generally two stories high, finished with taste and 

 neatness, and all painted white, which gives the whole a very fine and 

 imposing appearance from the offing. There are a few houses, how- 

 ever, which detract much from the symmetry and beauty of the tout 

 ensemble. I allude to those which belong to the Chinese, Malays, 

 and Hindoos ; merchants who adhere to the custom of their respective 

 countries, or follow their own taste, whim, or caprice, in the fashion 

 of their dwellings. 



The Chinese are here, as they are at Manilla, the most industrious 

 class of the whole population ; and as they meet with liberal encour- 

 agement from the British merchants, they will doubtless contribute 

 greatly to the improvement of this infant but flourishing settlement. 

 In fact, I have not the least doubt but in less than half a century 

 Singapore, as a commercial city, will have no competitor east of Java, 

 leaving the Bay of Bengal out of the question. There are two good 

 markets here, which are open every day, at all hours, and are well 

 supplied with vegetables, fruits, grain, fish, pork, and green turtle ; 

 the latter is said to be the cheapest animal food that can be procured 

 at this place. 



There are no export or import duties levied here ; no tax, dues, or 

 fees, for lighthouse, harbour, or anchorage. A register is kept, how- 

 ever, of all imports and exports. Ship-masters are required to make 

 reports to the master-intendant, and deliver their invoices to the super- 

 intendent of imports and exports. There is a weekly newspaper 



