LEAVE AMBOYNA. 
221 
eight to ten fathoms. All along the uneven bottom 
were rocks and stones, offering a variety of stations 
for the growth of these animal forests. It was a 
sight to gaze on for hours, and no description can 
do justice to its surpassing beauty and interest. It 
had generally been considered that this coast was 
particularly rich in all kinds of marine productions, 
such as corals, shells, and fish, but the results of our 
dredging outside the harbour did not in any way 
prove such to be the case, to our great disappoint- 
ment. During our stay the mail-steamer arrived ; 
this seemed to be almost the only chance to break 
the dull monotony of a residence in this enervating 
climate, unless an earthquake happens, which affords 
a grand opportunity for something to talk about to 
new arrivals. 
Life at Amboy n a, and at almost every other place 
of the Dutch possessions, at the best is dull. Once 
or twice a month the Eesident gives a reception, 
when all the Europeans and most of the Mestizos 
come and dance till late ; and as there are some 
seven or eight hundred people in the city, and the 
larger portion are usually invited and attend, it is 
frequently a brilliant affair. 
We had been here six days when it was deter- 
mined to make a move from the anchorage. Accord- 
ingly, all was ready, and on the morning of the 
10th October we were again under weigh, steaming 
through beautiful calm seas, with numerous islands 
