1832.] WATERING PARTY. 125 
Battoo bearing north-by-west-half-west ; Pulo Kio, northeast-by- 
north ; and Soo-soo, northeast-by-east-half-east. 
Lieutenant Wilson was immediately despatched on shore in the 
launch, attended by a suitable guard, to make arrangements for 
watering the ship ; bearing with him a flag of truce. He found 
coi-responding white flags flying in several places along the shore ; 
and having met with no difficulties in making arrangements for 
getting ofl" water, before noon he returned on board. 
At the place of watering, the river is enclosed between two 
abrupt banks of sand ; the northwest side answering the double 
purpose of confining the river to its bed, and of forming the httle 
bay of Soo-soo upon the other. The launch and third cutter 
were the boats put in requisition for this service ; the superior 
officers, in turn, taking charge of them, protected at all times by 
an armed guard, besides the launch, bearing in her a six-pounder^ 
which the sailors declared was own cousin to Betsey Baker, that 
had behaved so well a morning or two before, at Quallah, and to 
which they had given the name of Miss Polly Hopkins. The 
boats, as there was some surf upon the beach, more particularly 
when the Seabreeze sets in, were necessarily moored, with a 
grapnel seaward and a rope upon the shore. The distance from' 
the shore of the bay across to the river is about thirty yards.. 
Elevated upon some casks, the hose-tube was placed securely^ 
and the hose led to the boats, which were moored outside the 
surf ; a few hands being left in the boats to attend to the filhng. 
The party on shore waded into the river, carrying the water in 
buckets and pouring it into the hose-tube, which being elevated 
five or six feet in the distance of twenty yards, the water glided 
rapidly into the casks in the boats. 
While this duty was going on, the' Malays collected in large 
numbers on the banks of the river, armed, as usual, with krisses 
and long knives, and watching with much apparent curiosity this 
method of watering. 
It was soon ascertained that many of these spectators were from 
Quallah-Battoo ; and as the natives of Sumatra are so famed for 
cunning, fickleness, and treacTiery, it was thought they might 
possibly, under present excitement, seek any favourable opportu- 
nity that might ofler to renew hostilities with any unguarded 
portion of the watering party. This, however, was not probable, 
