Chap. I. 
Commodore Rogge w e t n. 
been long fince difcontinued. There are People, how- 
ever, who are thoroughly perfuaded, that the Natives of 
the Country find, in many Places, confiderabie Quantities 
of Gold, which Places, however, they carefully conceal from 
the Europeans. During the laid War in Java , which lafted 
from the Year 1716 to 1721* the Inhabitants of home 
Parts of the Country were fo often, and fo miferabiy, plun- 
dered, that they were reduced to abfolute Beggary •, yet 
it was obferved with Affonifhment, that, in the Space of 
one Year’s Peace, thefe very People grew exceffively rich, 
and had not only great Quantities of Gold in Duff, but 
alfo in Ingots. 
The Mountains in this ifland are many of them fo high, 
as to be feen at the Diftance of thirty or forty Leagues. 
That which is called the Blue Mountain , is by far the higheft 
of them all, and feen the fartheft off at Sea. They have fre- 
quent and very terrible Earthquakes in this Country. There 
happened one when cur Author was there, which frightened 
him to fuch a degree, that he did not recover it in a Week. 
It began about eight of the Clock in the Morning, and 
fhook the City, and Places adjacent, to fuch a degree, 
that the Fall of the Houfes was expedited every Moment. 
The Waters in the Road were exceffively agitated, info- 
much that their Motion refembled that of a boiling Pot. 
In fome Places the Earth opened, which afforded a ftrange 
and terrible Speftacle. The Inhabitants are of Opinion, 
that thefe Earthquakes are caufed by the Mountain Parangs 
which is full of Sulphur, Salt-petre, and Bitumen, which, 
taking Fire by their inteftine Commotions, caufe a prodigi- 
ous Struggle in the Bowels of the Earth, and of confequence 
an Earthquake ; and they affure us, that it is very common, 
after fuch an Accident, to fee a large Cloud of Smoak 
hanging over the T op of the Mountain. About thirty Y ears 
ago, General Ribeck , who then commanded in the Ifland, 
went, with a confiderabie Number of Attendants, to the Top 
of that Mountain. On his Arrival there he perceived a large 
Cavity in the Mountain, into which he caufed a Man to be let 
down, that he might examine the Infide. The Man, when 
he returned, reported, that the Mountain was hollow within; 
that he had heard a moft frightful Noife of Torrents of Wa- 
ter on every Side ; and that here-and-there he had feen 
Flames burft out, fo that he was abfolutely afraid of going 
far, from an Apprehenfion of being either ftified by the 
Yapqurs, or, of falling through fome of the Chafms. 
It is certain, that the Waters in the Neighbourhood of 
this Mountain are very far from being wholfome, and that 
even thofe that come to Batavia are impregnated with Sul- 
phur. Thofe who drink much of them contract various 
Diftempers, but chiefly aDyfentery : Yet this Water, be- 
ing boiled, is freed thereby from ail thofe fulphureous Par- 
ticles, and does no fort of Hurt, though drank ever fo co- 
pioufly. The Fruits -and Plants in this Ifland are in their 
Kinds excellent, and aimoft out of Number. That, how- 
ever, which is, or ought to be, efteemed moft, is the 
Cocoa, which, as a Fruit, has been already deferibed, and 
therefore fliall be confidered here purely as a Tree. The 
Bark of it is reduced into Threads, of which they make very 
good Cordage, and particularly Cables. The Timber is 
equally fit for building Ships and Houfes, which are co- 
vered with Leaves of the fame Tree. It is faid, that when 
the Father of a Family in this Country has a Child born, 
lie orders a Cocoa-tree to be planted, that it may know its 
own Age ; for this Tree has a Circle rifes annually on its 
Bark, as on the Horns of a Cow, fo that its Age is known 
by Infpeftion ; and if any body afk the Father how old 
his Children are, he fends them to his Cocoa-trees. 
There are abundance of Woods and Forefts fcattered 
over the Ifland, in which are all kinds of wild Beafts, fuch 
as Buffaloes, Tygers, Rhinocerofes, and wild Horfes ; and 
they likewife abound with an infinite Variety of Serpents, 
fome of them of a prodigious Size. Crocodiles are pro- 
digioufly large in Java* and are found chiefly in the 
Mouths of Rivers ; for, being amphibious Animals, they 
delight moft in Marffies and Savannahs. This Creature, 
like the Tortoife, lays its Eggs in the hot Sands, without 
taking any farther Care of them, and the Sun hatches them 
' fit the proper Seafon, when they run inftantly into the Water. 
Some fmall time before our Author came to Batavia , a 
Crocodile was taken in a River’s Mouth to the Eaftward of 
the City, which, was upwards of thirty-three Feet in 
Length, and proportionably big. There is, in fiiorr, no 
kind of Animal wanting here: Fowls they have of all 
forts, and exquifitely good, efpecially Peacocks, Partridge, 
Pheafants, Wood-pigeons ; and, for Curiofity, they have 
the Indian Bat, which differs little in its Form from ours, 
but its Wings, when extended, meafure a full Yard, and 
the Body of it is of the Size of a Rat. 
1 key have Fifh in great Plenty, of different Sorts, and 
very good ; fo that, for the Value of Three-pence, there 
may be enough bought to dine fix or feven Men, They 
have likewife a Multitude of Tortoifes, the Flefh of which 
is very little inferior to Veal, and there are many who 
think it better. As the flat Country abounds in this man- 
ner with all forts of Provifions, there are daily great Quan- 
tities brought to Batavia ; and, to prevent any Danger of 
Scarcity, the Veffels belonging to the Company are conti- 
nually employed in bringing, from the moft diftant Parts 
of the Ifland, Provifions, Spices, and other Neceflffies, 
fuch as Indigo, Rice, Pepper, Cardamoms, Coffee, CtY„ 
There are alio laid up, in the Magazines at Batavia , all the 
various kinds of rich and valuable Commodities, not of 
Java only, but all the Indies , ready to be tranfported 
thence, either to other Ports of the Company’s Dominions, 
or in the Ships that return annually to Holland. Thefe 
may be, in fome meafure, compared to the Flota and Flo- 
tilla of the Spaniards ; and therefore of thefe we ffiall give 
a very clear and diftinft Account. 
I hefe Ships fail from Batavia for Holland five times a 
F ear : The firft go in the Month of July^ and this Squa- 
dron confifts of four or five Sail, which touch in their 
Paftage at the Ifland of Ceylon : The fecond, making a 
Fleet of fixteen or twenty Sail, leave Batavia in the Month 
of Oltober ; they formerly did not fail till the Month of 
December , but that Regulation is changed, and they fail 
now conftandy in the Month of Odlober : The third Squa- 
dron, of fix or feven Veffels, fails in September ; the 4th, 
of four or five, in January ; and the laft Veffel, in the Month 
of March , but npt till the Chinefe Fleet is arrived, which 
brings the Tea ; and of this the beft Part of the Cargo of 
the homeward-bound V effel is made up 5 and, therefore, 
this is commonly called the Tea Ship ; the common People 
likewife call it the Book Ship, becaufe it brings the current 
Account of the Company for the Year, by which they 
fee the State of their Trade in the Indies. It is to be 
obferved, that all thefe Veffels, laden with the Riches of 
fo many Countries, fail from the fame Port of Batavia. 
The Ships from Mocha , which bring home the Coffee, are 
the only Veffels in the India Company’s Service allowed 
to proceed direftly home, without going to Batavia at 
all. Such is the State of Batavia , and the Ifland of Java ; 
fuch the domeftic CEconomy of that great Company in its 
principal Plantation. We will now look abroad, examine 
the Extent of its Dominions, the valuable Commodities they 
produce, and the Means by which the Company governs Tq 
wide an Empire, and manages fo extenfive a Commerce. 
30. The firft and the beft Government, after Batavia , 
is that of the Ifland of Ceylon. The Governor, who refides 
there, is ufually one of the Council of the Indies ; and his 
Council, appointed to affift him, is framed in the fame 
manner with that of Batavia ; the Angle Difference is, that 
the latter are not quite fo great Men as the former, Tho* 
the Governor of Ceylon is dependent on the Council of the 
Indies at Batavia , he is, however, at Liberty to write df- 
rebily to the Directors of the Company in Holland , with- 
out afking the Permiffion of the Governor-General, and 
without being obliged to give him any Account of their 
Conduct in that re ip eft. This Angular Prerogative has. 
had very bad Effefts, becaufe it has frequently tempted the 
Governors of Ceylon to endeavour to withdraw thernfelves 
from the Obedience of the Company, in order to become 
aofoiute Sovereigns of the Ifland. d here have - been many 
Examples of this kind, but it will be fufficient to dwell here 
on the two laft, which have made fo much Noife in Europe. 
I hefe Indian Commotions were owing to the Tyranny 
of two Governors, who immediately fueceeded each other, 
tne one named I uiji^ and the other Vevjluys. The whole 
Tranfa&ion fell out thus : As foon as Mr. RumtfMt his 
Government of Ceylon, Mr. Vuiji , his Succeffbr/ began to 
aft 
