Ixxii 
INTRODUCTION. 
££ affumed to himfelf, of Lord of the Winds and Seas to 
66 the Laft and to the Weft , is an evident proof of this; 
££ but much more the Malayan language, which fpread 
££ mod; all over the Eaft, much after the fame manner as 
c< formerly the Latin, and of late the French, did all over 
“ Europe.” Thus far, I fay, w r as known. But that from 
Madagafcar to the Marquefes and Eafter Ifland, that is, 
nearly from the Eaft fide of Africa, till we approach to¬ 
ward the Weft fide of America, a fpace including above 
half the circumference of the globe, the fame tribe or na¬ 
tion, the Phoenicians, as we may call them, of the Oriental 
world, fhould have made their Settlements, and founded 
colonies throughout almoft every intermediate ftage of this 
immenfe tra£t, in iflands at amazing diftances from the 
mother continent, and ignorant of each other’s exiftence; 
this is an hiftorical fact, which could be but very imper¬ 
fectly known before Captain Cook’s two firft voyages difco- 
vered fo many new inhabited fpots of land lurking in the 
bofom of the South Pacific Ocean ; and it is a fa6t which 
does not reft folely on fimilarity of cuftoms and inftitutions, 
but has been eftablifhed by the moft fatisfaClory of all 
proofs, that drawn from affinity of language. Mr. Marfden, 
wdio feems to have confidered this curious fubjeCt with 
much attention, fays, that the links of the latitudinal chain 
remain yet to be traced *. The difcovery of the Sandwich 
Iflands 
• 
4C et trapus ; ils ont les cheveux prefque unis, et font olivatres comme les Malayes> 
“ avec qui ils ont , en general , une efpece de refemblance. , ' > — Voyages des Ad. des Pages, 
T. ii. p. 90. 
* Archaeolog. Vol. vi. p. 155. See alfo his Hiftory of Sumatra, p. 166. from which 
the following paffage is tranfcribed. a Befides the Malaye, there are a variety of lan- 
“ guages fpoken on Sumatra, which, however, have not only a manifeft affinity among 
“ themfelves, 
