The 10th We Had Sight Of
Machian, Being A High And Capped Island, Bearing N.E. And The Island
Of Tidore Opening Like A Sugar-Loaf On Its Western Side, But Not Such
High Land As Machian.
We anchored in twenty-three fathoms, a mile from a
little island in the mouth of a strait or
Passage among islands five
leagues from the straits of Namorat, and fourteen leagues from the
road of Amascan, where is the Dutch fort we had been near in Bachian.
The 11th in the morning, we weighed with the wind at S.S.E. and the
current setting to the northwards, enabled us to pass the straits. The
wind then veered to N.W. by N. on which we stood east till noon, when we
tackt to westwards, and had sight of Gilolo, a long land. Our depth
going out of the strait was from twenty-nine to thirty-four fathoms, and
we had many islands to the E. and E.S.E. The point of old Bachian was
three or four leagues north of the strait, leaving four islands to
starboard. The island which makes that side of the strait is called
Tavally Backar, where we anchored and remained till the 12th, waiting
for Key Malladaia, being the place where he appointed to come to us,
being ten leagues from Machian. In this island of Tavally we had plenty
of wood, but no water. The 13th our coopers provided themselves with
rattans, which make excellent hoops, and of which there was abundance
to be had here of all sizes.
[Footnote 425: Tahannee is a town on the island of Machian, where the
Portuguese formerly had a fort, but there is none now, neither for them
nor the Hollanders. There is here the best anchorage in the whole
island, and though very near the shore, yet perfectly safe. - Purchas.]
As Key Malladaia did not make his appearance on the 14th, his people
doubted that the Dutch had detained him, on seeing us making our way
among the islands, and suspecting he was in treaty with us. Wherefore we
set sail with the wind at N.W. and plied up towards Machian. The channel
between Bachian, Machian, Tidore, and Ternate, stretches N. by W. and S.
by E. and is six leagues across in its narrowest part. In the morning of
the 15th, we passed between Gilolo, otherwise called Batta-china and
Caia, our latitude at noon being 0 deg. 17' N. so that Machian was not truly
placed on our chart, in which the equator is made to pass through its
middle, whereas we found it five leagues more to the northwards. The
16th in the morning we were close by the island of Caia, and had sight
of a sail to the northwards, which we learnt from a fisherman to be a
Dutch vessel, bound from. Machian to Tidore with sago, of which the
natives make use instead of bread.[426] In the morning of the 17th we
were near a fort of the Hollanders, called Tabalda; and at four p.m.
we came to anchor in the road of Pelebere, hard by Tahanue, in fifty
fathoms water, so near the shore as to be within call;, having one point
of land to the S.S.W. two miles off, another N.E. by N. one and a half
mile off, and the island of Caia five leagues distant.
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