THE HISTORY AND PRESENT CONDITION OF MALACCA. 727 
Malacca to pay their customs there, although they unlade nothing 
at all, as we do at Elsinor : and if by night they escape away and 
pay not their custom, than they fall into a greater danger after, for 
if they come into the Indies and have not the seal of Malacca they 
pay double custom. I have not passed further than Malacca to¬ 
wards the cast, but that which I will speak of here is by good in¬ 
formation of them that have teen there. The sailing from Malac¬ 
ca towards the east is not common for all men, as to China and 
Japan but only for the king of Portugal and bis nobles, with leave 
granted to them of the king to make such a voyage or to the sub¬ 
scription of the Captain of Malacca. These are the king’s voyages 
that every year there departeth from Malacca two Gallions, one of 
them goetb to the Moluccas to lade cloves and the other to Banda 
to lade nutmegs and maces.” 
The next extract from aneient voyages which I will make is from 
that of Newhoff in 1662 : 
“ The capital city is likewise called Malacca, being the same in 
former times called “ Jakola.” It lies under 2. 30 in a hay at the 
ascent of a hill on the w'est side of the river Muar (otherwise called 
the Gaza and Jyga and Kroisant or as the Dutch exprest it Kries- 
arant) which having its rise deep in the country divides the castle 
from the city and washing its "walls falls with a rapid current into 
the sea. Cross this river is a strong bridge built of stone with se¬ 
veral arches. * * * It is very populous. * * * 
i( The king ol Johore besieged the city in 1606, with 60,000 
men, the Portuguese having maintained themselves there till 1649, 
when the Dutch after a siege of four months made themselves mas¬ 
ters of it after the Portuguese had been in possession 130 years. 
* * * & & 
“ The foundation of Malacca w f as laid about 250 years before the 
arrival of the Portuguese in India. About that time one Sangsinga 
reigned in Sinkepure situate under 50 minutes of north Latitude 
and in the neighbouring country of Java one Para visa who at his 
death left his sons under the guardianship of his own brother, their 
uncle, but he having found occasion to murder the eldest, usurped 
the throne at which some of the noble Javanese being highly dis¬ 
gusted did, with Paramisora their late king’s youngest son, fly to Sin¬ 
kepure where they met with a kind reception from Sangsinga, hut 
it was not long before Paramisora in combination with his Javanese 
murdered Sangsinga and put himself in possession of his kingdom. 
e 3 
