TIIE BLNUA OP JOHORE* 
243 
river of Sfdfli Besar, tlie largest and only inhabited one on the east 
coast of Johore, and to the ascent of a mountain inland, from the 
summit of which an extensive view over eastern Johore was obtained. 
On the Sidilf no aborigines were found, but the Malays informed me 
that they were numerous on the Indau, the first large river on the 
coast of Pahang. On leaving the Sid Hi we sailed for the group of 
islands of which Pulo Tingi is the most remarkable, and where the 
orang Tamhusa (sometimes called Sea Gypsies) have a village. We 
next made for Pulo Pamangfl (P. Pisang of the charts) and having 
skirted it, proceeded to the largest of all the eastern islands, P. Tio- 
man (P. Timoan of the charts.) Having previously obtained an ac¬ 
count of Pulo Aor and some specimens of its rocks, it did not seem 
advisable to incur the delay of two or three days which a visit to it 
would have required, and we therefore directed our course towards 
the mainland, intending to touch at the islets which lie between it and 
Tfoman. Unfortunately we made no progress until late in the day, 
and when at last a breeze came to our assistance the Serang consi¬ 
dered it necessary to seek an anchorage off the coast of the mainland. 
In the morning we found ourselves to the northward of Kwalla, Indau. 
After landing on some islets we entered the Indau, which is one of 
the largest rivers on the eastern coast. On the 21st. I left the gun¬ 
boat and proceeded up the river in my sampan. Next day we reach¬ 
ed the first kampong of the orang Binud, that of the Batin Hamba 
Raja. Above this the river divided into two branches, the Auak In¬ 
dau on the north, and the Simrong on the south. We followed the 
Simrong until, on the morning of the 23rd., we reached the place 
where it is joined by a large branch from the south called S tingi 
Made. Having learned that from the upper part of the Simrong a 
day’s walk would bring us to one of the principal rivers of the west 
coast, the Batu Pahat or Rio Formosa, which I had partially ascend¬ 
ed on my way from Malacca in February last, I resolved to cross to 
the point which I had reached from the Straits of Malacca, and thus 
complete a line of observation across the Peninsula. It appeared 
further that by ascending the Made I would approach within two or 
three day’s walk of the Joliore river, and I determined, on returning 
from Batu Pahat and alter ascending the Anak Indau, to endeavour 
to reach Singapore by striking through the centre of Johore and 
gaining the source of the Johore river. At Kwalla Madd I pro¬ 
cured a small canoe, the Simrong having suddenly become so 
contracted, rapid, and obstructed by fallen trees, that the sam¬ 
pan could not proceed. On the second day from Kwalla Made we 
