l 
am 
Abel Jansen T a s m a n 
of Land, which lay four Miles Weft. This Land proved 
to be a Clufter of twenty Iflands, which, in the Maps, are 
called Anthang Java. They lie ninety Miles, or there- 
abouts, from the Coaft of New Gurney. It may not be 
amifs to obferve here, that what Captain Faflman calls the 
Coaft of New Gainey , is, in reality, the Coaft of New Bri- 
tain , which Captain Damper firft difcovered to be a large 
Illand, feparated from the Coaft of New Gainey. 
14. On the 25th, in the Latitude of 4 0 35' South, and 
in the Longitude of 175° io', we found the Variation 9 0 
30 Eaft. We were then in the Height of the Iflands of 
j Mark, which were difcovered by William Schovten and 
James le Maire. They are fourteen or fifteen in Number, 
inhabited by Savages, with black Hair, dreffed and trimmed 
in the fame manner as thofe we faw before at the Bay of 
Murderers in New Zeland. On the 29th, we pafifed the 
Green Iflands and, on the 30th, that of St. John *, which 
were likewife difcovered by Schovten and le Maire. _ This 
Ifland they found to be of a confiderable Extent •, and judged 
it to lie at the Diftance of 1840 Leagues from the Coaft of 
Peru. It appeared to them well inhabited, and well culti- 
vated, abounding with Flefh, Fowl, Fifli, Fruit, and other 
Refreffiments. The Inhabitants made ufe of Canoes of all 
Sizes, were armed with Slings, Darts, and wooden Swords, 
wore Necklaces and Bracelets of Pearl, and Rings in their 
Nofes. They were, however, very intradable, notwith- 
ftanding all the Pains that could be taken to engage them 
in a fair Correfpondence ^ fo that Captain Schovten was at 
laft obliged to fire upon them, to prevent them from make- 
ing themfelves Mafters of his Veffel, which they attacked 
with a great deal of Vigour : And very probably this was 
the Reafon, that Captain T afman did not attempt to land, or 
make any farther Difcovery. On April 1 . we were in the 
Latitude of 4 0 30' South, and in the Longitude of 17 1° 2', 
the Variation being 8° 45' t0 the Eaft, having now Sight 
of the Coaft of New Gainey •, and, endeavouring to double 
the Cape, which the Spaniards call Coho Santa Maria , we 
continued to fail along the Coaft, which lies North-weft. 
We afterwards paffed the Iflands of Antony Caens , Garden- 
ers Ifland , and Fijhers Ifland, advancing towards the Pro- 
montory called Struis Hoek , where the Coaft runs South, 
and South-eaft. We refolved to purfue the fame Route, 
and to continue fleering South, till we fhould either difcover 
Land, or a Paflage on that Side. 
It is neceflfary to obferve, that, all this time, they con- 
tinued on the Coaft, not of New Guiney , but of New Bri- 
tain ; for that Cape, which the Spaniards called Santa Ma- 
ria , is the very fame that Captain Dampier called Cape St. 
George •, and Caen’s, Gardeners, and Fifhers Iflands all lie 
upon the fame Coaft. They had been difcovered by Schov- 
ten and le Maire, who found them to be well inhabited, 
but by a very bafe and treacherous People who, after make- 
ing Signs of Peace, attempted to furprife their Ships : And 
thefe Iflanders managed their Slings with fuch Force and 
Dexterity, as to drive the Dutch Sailors from their Decks : 
Which Account of le Maire’ s agrees perfectly well with 
what Captain Dampier tells us of the fame People. As 
for the Continent of New Guiney, it lies quite behind the 
Ifland of New Britain and was therefore laid down, in all 
the Charts before Dampier’ s Difcovery, at leaft 4 0 more to 
the Eaft than it fhould have been. 
15. On April 1 2 . in the Latitude of 30 45' South, and 
In the Longitude of 167°, We found the Variation io° to- 
wards the Eaft. That Night, Part of the Crew were wakened 
out of their Sleep by an Earthquake. They immediately 
ran upon Deck, fuppofing that the Ship had ftruck. On 
heaving the Lead, however, there was no Bottom to be 
found. We had afterwards feveral Shocks ; but none of 
them fo violent as the firft. We had then doubled the Struis 
Hoek, and were, at that time, in the Bay of Good Hope. 
On the 14th, in the Latitude of 5 0 27' South, and in the 
Longitude of 166 0 57', we obferved the Variation to be 9 0 
1 5' to the Eaft. The Land lay then North-eaft, Eaft North- 
eaft, and again South South-weft 5 fo that we imagined 
there had been a Paflage between thofe two Points : But 
we were foon convinced of our Miftake, and that it was all 
one Coaft *, fo that we were obliged to double the Weft 
Gape, and to continue creeping along-fhore, and were much 
hindered in our Paflage by Calms, This Description agrees 
Numb. 23.. 
very well with that of Schovten and le Maire », fo that pro- 
bably they had now Sight again of the Coaft of New Gui- 
ney. 
It is very probable, from the Accident that happened to 
Captain Faflman, and which alfo happened to others lipoii 
that Coaft, and from the burning Mountains that Will be 
hereafter mentioned, that this Country is very fob] eft to 
Earthquakes: And, if fo, without doubt, it abounds with 
Metals and Minerals , of which we have alfo another Proof, 
from a Point in which all thefe Writers agree *, viz. that 
the People they faw had Rings in their Nofes and Ears, tho* 
none of them tell us of what Metal thofe Rings were made, 
which le Maire might eafily have done, fince he carried off 
a Man from one of the Iflands, whofe Name was Mofles , 
from whom he learned, that almofl every Nation on this 
Coaft fpeaks a different Language. 
16; On the 20th, in the Latitude of 5 0 4' South, and 
in the Longitude of 164° 27', we found the Variation 8® 
30'' Eaft. We that Night drew near the Brandande Tland , 
i. e, burning Ifland, which William Schovten mentions 9 
and we perceived a great Flame iffuing', as he.fays, from 
the Top of an high' Mountain. When we were between 
that Ifland and the Continent, we faw a vaft Number of 
Fires along the Shore, and half-way up the Mountain \ 
from whence we concluded, that the Country riiuft Be very 
populous. We were often detained on this Coaft by Calms, 
and frequently obferved fmall Trees, Bamboes, and Shrubs, 
which the Rivers on that Coaft carried into the Sea ; froni 
which we inferred,, that this Part of the Country was ex- 
tremely well watered, and that the Land muft be very good. 
The next Morning, we paffed the burning Mountain, and 
continued a Weft North-weft Courfe along that Coaft. 
It is remarkable, that Schovten had made the fame Obfer- 
vation with refperit to the Drift-wood forced by the Pavers 
into the Sea. He likewife obferved, that there was fo co- 
pious a Difcharge of frefti Water, that it altered the Colour 
and the Tafte of the Sea. He likewife fays, that the burn- 
ing Ifland is extremely well peopled, and alfo well cultivated. 
Fie afterwards anchored on the Coaft of the Continent, and 
endeavoured to trade with the Natives ; who made hini 
pay very dear for Hogs and Cocoa-nuts, and likewife 
fliewed him fome Ginger. It appears from Captain Tafl 
man’s Account, that he was now in Hafte to return to Ba- 
tavia, and did not give himfejf fo much Trouble as at the 
Beginning about Difcoveries j and, to fay the Truth, there 
was no great Occafion, if, as I oblerved, his Commiflion 
was no more, than to fail round the new-difcovered Coafts, 
in order to lay them down with greater Certainty in the 
Dutch Charts. 
17. On the 27th, being in the Latitude of 2 0 10' South, 
and in the Longitude of 146° 57', we fanfied that we had 
a Sight of the Ifland of Moa but it proved to be that of 
Jama , which lies a little to the Eaft of Mod. We found 
here great plenty of Cocoa-nuts, and other Refreffiments. 
The Inhabitants were abfolutely black, and could eafily 
repeat the Words that they heard others fpeak *, which thews 
their own to be a very copious Language. It is, however, 
exceedingly difficult to pronounce, becaufe they make fre- 
quent Ufe of the Letter (R) *, and fometimes to fuch a de- 
gree, that it occurs twice or thrice in the fame Word. 
The next Day, we anchored on the Coaft of the Ifland of 
Moa, where we likewife found abundance of Refrefhments, 
and where we were obliged, by bad Weather, to flay till 
May 6. We purchafed there, by way of Exchange, 6000 
Cocoa-nuts, arid 100 Bags of Pyfarighs, or Indian Figs. 
When we firft began to trade with thefe People, one of our 
Seamen was wounded by an Arrow, that one of the Natives 
let fly, either thro’ Malice or Inadvertency. We were, at 
that very Junfture, endeavouring to bring our Ships clofe 
to the Shore *, which fo terrified thefe Iflandersj that they 
brought, of their own Accord, on board us the Man, who 
had fhot the Arrow, and left hifri at our Mercy. We 
found them, after this Accident, much more tractable than 
before in every relperit. Our Sailors, therefore, pulled 6ff 
the iron Hoops from fome of the old Water-caiks, ftuck 
them into wooden Handies, and, filing them to an Edge, 
fold tliefe aukward Knives to the Inhabitants for their Fruits. 
In all Probability, they had not forgot .what happened 
to our People on July 16. 1616. in the Days of William 
4, p Schovten : 
v 
