312 
REPORT ON THE ISLAND OF BANKA, 
ore of tin. By a judicious selection of these situations where the 
supply of water co-operated with a rich territory, the miners obtain¬ 
ed a reward for their labor far more abundant than in after periods, 
and many were enabled to revisit their mother country; these are 
the present accounts of the old inhabitants. 
From the environs of Belo some attempts were also made to the 
eastward, and the mines of Tampelang were opened soon after those 
of Sungie-liat; but in general the western coast is less productive 
than the eastern, and the Chinese formed no fixed establishment in 
the portion of the Island to the south of Tampelang. 
Some mines were also attempted in that extensive interior dis¬ 
trict which bounds Kabo and Pangkal- pinang to the west, hut they 
were conducted exclusively by the original inhabitants, as the Chi¬ 
nese were deterred from situations in which the refined metal must 
be far transported by land. The former inhabitants of this part of 
the Island, called generally Paku like those of Billiton (more cor¬ 
rectly Bllton) at present, were celebrated for working the iron ore 3 
which are distributed abundantly through most parts of Bank a. 
In the extensive tracts of Tabuali , Nr/eery , Ulim, Permisscmg , 
Bcmko-kulto and their dependencies along the western coast (to 
the south of Kotto-waringin) the mining operations were likewise 
almost exclusively carried or by the original inhabitants, who, as far 
as regarded the smelting or refinement of the ore adopted the im¬ 
provements introduced by the Chinese, while in the collection of the 
ore their division into small parties did not admit the regular methods 
employed in other parts of the Island. Some of the districts last 
mentioned towards the southern extremity, have contained (and still 
contain) rich stores tif ore. 
This iiipid sketch of the progress of the mines, shews that opera¬ 
tions have been attempted in every part of the Island, with the ex¬ 
ception of the farthest southern extremity, (between the eastern boun¬ 
dary of Tubuali and point Tanjong Merikat) and the confines of the 
southern fort of the mountain Marass with the adjoining districts in 
that and in a western direction. 
Some information is afforded as to the extent to which the bus!- 
