126 TRAVELS rN THE EAST INDIAN ARCHIPELAGO. 



to obtain elephants* teeth, and hoard them up m the 

 choicest treasure?*. 



The morning after leaving Dilli, Roma appeared 

 on our starhoai'd hand. It is very high and moun- 

 tainoua In 1828 it suffered very severely fi*om 

 a violent hxuTicane, which also caused a fi'ightful de- 

 struction on Letti. On the latter island the cocoa- 

 nut treea were levelled to the gi'ound over consider- 

 able areas. Hiis disaster was followed by a drought, 

 which destroyed all their crops, and produced great 

 mortality among the cattle, through lack of food. 

 The hunicane also caused the bees to desert the 

 island for a time — ^a serious loss to the inhabitants, 

 as wax and honey are among their chief exports. 

 These are taken to the Ami Islands, and thence to 

 Macassar and Amboina. When a chief dies, his 

 vrife takes his place in the council, a privilege rarely 

 granted to a woman among these Eastern nations. 

 East of Letti is Lakor, a dry coral bank, raised twen- 

 ty feet above the sea. 



Damma soon after came into view. It is also high 

 and mountainous, and has a lofty volcanic peak at 

 its northeastern extremity. In 1825 it was pouring 

 forth great quantities of gas. At its foot is a sul- 

 phur-spring, such as exist at many places in Java and 

 Celebes, m the immediate vicinity of existing volcau* 

 ic action. The doctor of Captain Kloff's ship, the 

 Dourga, sent some of the crew to bathe in this spring, 

 and he states that "though they were so affected 

 with rheumatism as to be not only unfit for duty but 

 in a state of great misery, the use of this water con- 

 tributed gi^eatly to the improvement of their health.*' 



m 



