9 20 An hiflorical Account of the Intercourfe Book I. 
Water, lying Id. the River, waiting the Tide to carry her 
over the Bar, and this Man had the Curiofity to ftep 
afliore, and being a little Way from the Boat, had a Call 
to eafe himfelf, and had no fooner put himfelf in a Pof- 
ture, near the Bufhes, but out leaped a Tyger, and caught 
both his Buttocks in his Mouth, and was for carrying him 
away ; but one of the Seamen in the Boat feeing the Trage- 
dy, took up a Mufket, and placed a Bullet in the Tyger’s 
Head, while the Man was in his Mouth helplefs. The Ty» 
ger immediately let him fall, and fkulked into the Bulhes, and 
the wounded Man was carried on board his Ship, where the 
Surgeon made a perfect Cure of the Wounds, 
Piply lies on the Banks of a River, fuppofed to be a 
Branch of the Ganges , about five Leagues from that of 
Ballafore\ formerly it was a Place of Trade, and was 
honoured with the Englijh and Butch Fadories. The 
Country produces the fame Commodities that Ball afore 
does. At prefent it is reduced to Beggary, by the Fac- 
tories removing to Hughly , and Calacutta , the Merchants 
being all gone. It is now inhabited by Fifiiers, as are al~ 
fo Angelie , and Kidgiere , two neighbouring Hands on the 
Weft-fide the Mouth of the Ganges . Thefe Hands abound 
alfo in tame Swine, where they are fold very cheap. There 
are near thefe Hands dangerous Sand-banks, that are both 
numerous and large, and make the Navigation out and 
into Hughly River both troublefome and dangerous ; and 
and after we pafs thefe IOands, in going up the River, the 
Channel for Shipping is on the Ealt-fide, and feveral 
Creeks run from the Channel among a great Number of 
Hands, formed by different Channels of the Ganges , two 
of which are more remarkable than the reft, viz. Coxes 
and Sugar Hands, where great Ships are obliged to an- 
chor, to take in Part of their Cargoes, becaufe feveral 
Places in the River are too Ih allow for fuch Ships to pafs 
over, when their whole Cargoes are aboard. 
There are no Inhabitants on thofe Hands, for they are 
fo peftered with Tygers, that there could be no Security 
for humane Creatures to dwell on them *, nay, it is even 
dangerous to land on them, or for Boats to anchor near 
them ; for in the Night they have fwam to Boats at An- 
chor, and carried Men out of them ; yet among the Pa- 
gans t the Hand Sugar is accounted holy, and great Num- 
bers of Jougies go yearly thither in the Months of No- 
vember and December , to worfhip and wafti in Salt-water, 
who many of them fall Sacrifices to the hungry Tygers. 
The firft fare Anchoring-place in the River, is off the 
Mouth of a River above Sugar , commonly known by the 
Name of Rogues River, which had this Appellation from 
fome Banditti Portugueze , who were Followers of Sultan 
Sujah , when Emir Jemal , Aurenzefi s General, drove the 
unfortunate Prince out of his Province of Bengal. For 
thofe Portugueze having no Way to fubfift after their Maf- 
ter’s Flight to the Kingdom of Arachan , betook them- 
feives to Piracy among the Hands, at the Mouth of 
the Ganges , and that River having Communication with 
all the Channels from Xatigam to the Weft ward from this 
River, they ufed to Tally out and commit Depredations on 
thofe that traded on the River Hughly . 
About five Leagues farther upon the Weft-fide of the 
River of Hughly , is another Branch of the Ganges, called 
Ganga % it is broader than that of Hughly , but much fhal- 
lower, and more incumbered with Sand-banks. A little be- 
low the Mouth of it ; the Banes have a thatched Houfe, 
but for what Reafons they kept a Houfe there we are in 
the Dark. Along the River of Hughly, there are many 
fmall Villages and Farms interfperfed with thofe large 
Plains, but the firft of any Note on the River-fide is Cul- 
culla , a Market-town for Corn, coarfe Cloth, Butter and 
Oil, with other Productions of the Country. Above it is 
the Butch Banks Hall, a Place where their Ships ride 
when they cannot get farther up for the too fwift Currents 
©f the River. 
Culculla has a large deep River that runs to the Eaft- 
ward, and fo has Juanpardao , and on the Weft-fide there 
is a River that runs by the Back of Hughly Hand, which 
leads up to Radngur , famous for manufacturing Cotton-' 
doth, and filk Nomaals, or Handkerchiefs; Bujfundri 
and Frejindi, or Gorgat , and Cohong , are all on that Ri- 
ver, which produce the greateft Quantities of the beft Su- 
gars in Bengal We are now arrived at the greateft Set- 
tlement the Company have on this Coaft, which is Fort 
William ; but having already given a large Account of 
this Place, and of fuch others as are of any Note in its 
Neighbourhood, we will proceed. The Kingdom of Ba- 
ca is the firft on the Eaftern-fide of the Ganges , next to 
that lies the Kingdom of Aracan , then the Kingdom of 
Ava, which is next to that of Pegu ; on all which Coafts 
we have fome, but very little Trade ; and as to the Wands 
along the Coaft, though well enough fituated for Com- 
merce, yet, as they are uninhabited, they do not deferve^, 
or require our Notice. 
The next Place on the Continent to the Southward, is 
Merjee, a Town belonging to the King of Siam , fituated 
on the Banks of the River of Fanacerin, lying within a 
great Number of fmall uninhabited Hands. The Har- 
bour is fafe, and the Country produces Rice, Timber for 
Building, Tin, ElephantsTeeth, and Agale-wood. In former 
Times, a good Number of Englijh free Merchants were 
fettled at Merjee, and drove a good Trade, living under 
a mild indulgent Government ; but the old Eafi- India 
Company envying their Happinefs, by an arbitrary Com- 
mand, ordered them to leave their Induftry, and repair to 
Fort St. George, or to ferve them, and threatened the 
King of Siam with a Sea- war, if he did not deliver thofe 
Englijh up, or force them out of his Country, and in An- 
no 1687, lent one Captain Weldon , in a fmall Ship called 
Court any to Merjee with that Meffage ; he behaved himfelf 
very infolently to the Government, and killed fome Siam- 
efe without any juft Caufe. One Night, when Weldon 
was afhore, the Siamefe thinking to do themfelves Jufcice 
on him, got a Company together, defigning to feize or 
kill the Aggreffor; but Weldon having Notice of their 
Defign, made his Efcape on board his Ship, and the Si- 
amefe miffing him, tho’ very narrowly, vented their Rage 
on all the Englijh they could find ; the poor Vidims be- 
ing only guarded by their Innocence, did not fo much as 
arm themfelves to withftand the Fury of the enraged Mob, 
fo that feventy-fix were maffacred, and hardly twenty ef- 
caped on board of the Court any ; fuch was the tragical 
Confequence of one Man’s Infolence. 
Before that fatal Time, the Englijh were fo beloved, and 
favoured at the Court of Siam, that they had Places of 
Truft conferred upon them, both in civil and military 
Branches of the Government. Mr. Samuel White was made 
Shawbandaar , or Cuftom-mafter at Merjee and Fanacerin » 
and Captain Williams was Admiral of the King’s Navy £ 
but the troublefome Company, and a great Revolution 
that happened in the State of Siam, made fome repair to 
Fort St. George, others to Bengal , and others to Achen. 
Since that Time, Things are quite altered, and the Af- 
fairs of the Company being throughly fettled, all Things 
are carried on with the utmoft Regularity, fo that though 
it has not been found neceffary to eftablifh new Fadories, 
or to fettle Colonies along the Coafts, which would infalli- 
bly have alarmed other Nations, without contributing 
much to the Service of our own ; yet the Commerce of the 
whole Gulph, from the Mouth of the Ganges , to the ve- 
ry Extremity of the Peninfula of Malaca , is properly pro- 
vided for, by which Means the Company reaps the Profit, or 
at leaft a reafonable Part of the Profit of the private Trade 
thither, without being put to any unneceffary Expence. 
As to our Factories on the Hand of Sumatra , they are 
now fo numerous, that it is conceived we enjoy the beft 
Part of the Traffick which that rich Hand affords. Our 
Fadories therein are Mocho , Bantal , Cattoun , Bencoolen , 
Marlbrough Fort, of which we have fpoken largely be- 
fore, and Sillebar, of which we have alfo taken Notice. 
It is true, that the Butch, being Mafters of the neighbour- 
ing Hand of Java, have found Means from thence to fix 
themfelves upon Part of this Hand, and it is faid, they are 
poffefs’d of a gold Mine, which they work, but to no great 
Advantage, at leaft to the Company. On this Occafion, I 
cannot help taking Notice, that the Condud of our Eafi - 
India Company is to the full as commendable in their not en- 
deavouring to follow this Example, fince I am fatisfied, that 
Commerce is a much more valuable Thing than Mines of 
Gold, elpecially in the Hands of a Company. Becaufe 
this may feem a Paradox, I think I fhall not mif- 
