750 THE HISTORY AND PRESENT CONDITION OF MALACCA. 
her little drop in the eyes of the world, whereas she has long since 
given up all pretensions to such rivalry and would now rather hold 
up her head as an agricultural and mineral producing country. 
The last returns of Malacca trade exhibit for the year 1847-8 ; 
Imports,. 1,638,478 
Exports,. 1,591,429 
The imports consisted chiefly of rice from Acheen and Singapore, 
with opium and piece goods from the latter place and tin from the 
adjacent Malayan states. The exports consist of tin and treasure to 
Singapore, opium and piece goods to the adjacent Malayan states. 
But besides this small maritime trade, Malacca has a constant 
trading intercourse with all the surrounding petty Malayan states, of 
which no returns are furnished nor indeed would it be practicable 
to obtain them with any degree of correctness. She may be said 
to feed the people of these states, for it is from Malacca that their 
supplies of rice are chiefly obtained in barter for Tin, Gutta Percha 
and other inferior articles. They might with ease grow all the rice 
required for their own consumption and more too, but in the state 
of anarchy and disorder into which they have fallen, the cultivation 
of the land is not much attended to, and were the supplies from Ma¬ 
lacca to fail, starvation would ensue among them. As it is, rice is 
extremely dear among them, and when a Malacca trader succeeds 
in conveying Ins cargo in safety and obtaining payment for it (which 
often consists more in promises than hard money) his profits are 
considerable. 
Conclusion. —It lias been already stated that in 1828 Mr. Fullar- 
ton, the then Governor of the Straits, contemplated making Malac¬ 
ca the capital of the Straits settlements. He gave his reasons for 
such a measure as follows: 
“ In the first place it is the ancient seat of European government, 
has been so for more than 200 years, as such it is known and res¬ 
pected by all the surrounding Malay states, of which indeed it is the 
capital. The salubrity of its climate has long been established. It 
is more centrically situated within two days sail of Singapore and 
four of Penang. In the way of supplies to troops &c. it commands 
infinitely greater resources than either of the others, particularly 
for Europeans, and is admirably calculated for the central station 
and depot for whatever force it may be determined to collect toge¬ 
ther for the defence of the whole. The fortifications are indeed 
destroyed, but in this respect it is only on the footing of the other 
