That Night Part Of The Crew Were Wakened Out Of
Their Sleep By An Earthquake.
They immediately ran upon deck,
supposing that the ship had struck.
On heaving the lead, however,
there was no bottom to be found. We had afterwards several shocks,
but none of them so violent as the first. We had then doubled the
Struis Hoek, and were at that time in the Bay of Good Hope. On the
14th, in the latitude of 5 degrees 27 minutes south, and in the
longitude of 166 degrees 57 minutes, we observed the variation to be
9 degrees 15 minutes to the east. The land lay then north-east,
east-north-east, and again south-south-west, so that we imagined
there had been a passage between those two points; but we were soon
convinced of our mistake, and that it was all one coast, so that we
were obliged to double the West Cape and to continue creeping along
shore, and were much hindered in our passage by calms. This
description agrees very well with that of Schovten and Le Maire, so
that probably they had now sight again of the coast of New Guinea.
It is very probable, from the accident that happened to Captain
Tasman, and which also happened to others upon that coast, and from
the burning mountains that will be hereafter mentioned, that this
country is very subject to earthquakes, and if so, without doubt it
abounds with metals and minerals, of which we have also another
proof from a point in which all these writers agree, viz., that the
people they saw had rings on their noses and ears, though none of
them tell us of what metal these rings were made, which Le Maire
might easily have done, since he carried off a man from one of the
islands whose name was Moses, from whom he learned that almost every
nation on this coast speaks a different language.
CHAPTER XVI: ARRIVES IN THE NEIGHBOURHOOD OF BURNING ISLAND, AND
SURVEYS THE WHOLE COAST OF NEW GUINEA.
On the 20th, in the latitude of 5 degrees 4 minutes south, and in
the longitude 164 degrees 27 minutes, we found the variation 8
degrees 30 minutes east. We that night drew near the Brandande
Yland, i.e., burning island, which William Schovten mentions, and we
perceived a great flame issuing, as he says, from the top of a high
mountain. When we were between that island and the continent, we
saw a vast number of fires along the shore and half-way up the
mountain, from whence we concluded that the country must be very
populous. We were often detained on this coast by calms, and
frequently observed small trees, bamboos, and shrubs, which the
rivers on that coast carried into the sea; from which we inferred
that this part of the country was extremely well watered, and that
the land must be very good. The next morning we passed the burning
mountain, and continued a west-north-west course along that coast.
It is remarkable that Schovten had made the same observation with
respect to the drift-wood forced by the rivers into the sea. He
likewise observed that there was so copious a discharge of fresh
water, that it altered the colour and the taste of the sea. He
likewise says that the burning island is extremely well peopled, and
also well cultivated. He afterwards anchored on the coast of the
continent, and endeavoured to trade with the natives, who made him
pay very dear for hogs and cocoa-nuts, and likewise showed him some
ginger. It appears from Captain Tasman's account that he was now in
haste to return to Batavia, and did not give himself so much trouble
as at the beginning about discoveries, and to say the truth, there
was no great occasion, if, as I observed, his commission was no more
than to sail round the new discovered coasts, in order to lay them
down with greater certainty in the Dutch charts.
CHAPTER XVII: COMES TO THE ISLANDS OF JAMA AND MOA.
On the 27th, being in the latitude of 2 degrees 10 minutes south,
and in the longitude of 146 degrees 57 minutes, we fancied that we
had a sight of the island of Moa, but it proved to be that of Jama,
which lies a little to the east of Moa. We found here great plenty
of cocoa-nuts and other refreshments. The inhabitants were
absolutely black, and could easily repeat the words that they heard
others speak, which shows their own to be a very copious language.
It is, however, exceedingly difficult to pronounce, because they
make frequent use of the letter R, and sometimes to such a degree
that it occurs twice or thrice in the same word. The next day we
anchored on the coast of the island of Moa, where we likewise found
abundance of refreshments, and where we were obliged by bad weather
to stay till May 9th. We purchased there, by way of exchange, six
thousand cocoa-nuts, and a hundred bags of pysanghs or Indian figs.
When we first began to trade with these people, one of our seamen
was wounded by an arrow that one of the natives let fly, either
through malice or inadvertency. We were at that very juncture
endeavouring to bring our ships close to the shore, which so
terrified these islanders, that they brought of their own accord on
board us, the man who had shot the arrow and left him at our mercy.
We found them after this accident much more tractable than before in
every respect. Our sailors, therefore, pulled off the iron hoops
from some of the old water-casks, stuck them into wooden handles,
and filing them to an edge, sold these awkward knives to the
inhabitants for their fruits.
In all probability they had not forgot what happened to our people
on July 16th, 1616, in the days of William Schovten:
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