Many Small Rivers Pervade The Town, Which Also Has An Excellent Road For
Shipping; So That If The People Were Of Any Reasonable Capacity, It
Could Easily Be Made A Goodly City.
It is entirely surrounded by a
brick-wall, built in a very warlike manner, with flankers and towers,
scouring in all directions; and I have been told by some that it was
first built by the Chinese.
In many places this wall has fallen to ruin.
At one end of the city is the Chinese town, being divided from that of
the Javanese by a narrow river, which, after crossing the end of the
Chinese town, runs past the king's palace, and then through the middle
of the great town, where the tide ebbs and flows, so that at high water
galleys and junks of heavy burden can go into the middle of the city.
The Chinese town is mostly built of brick, every house being square and
flat-roofed, formed of small timbers, split canes, and boards, on which
are laid bricks and sand to defend them from fire. Over these brick
warehouses a shed is placed, constructed of large canes, and thatched;
some being of small timber, but mostly of canes. Of late years, since we
came here, many wealthy persons have built their houses fire-proof all
the way to the top: but, on our first coming, there were none other in
that manner except the house of the Sabander, and those of the rich
Chinese merchants:
Enter page number
PreviousNext
Page 233 of 815
Words from 63157 to 63408
of 221842
