Page:Journal of the Right Hon. Sir Joseph Banks.djvu/395

Rh to the inferior people, or to leave any with the principal ones to be distributed among them after she was gone. This we were told did not at all extend to the beads or small pieces of cloth which we gave the natives in return for their small civilities, as bringing us palm wine, etc. Some of our gentlemen were of opinion that the whole of this letter was an imposition, but whether it was or not I shall not take upon myself to determine.

In the evening we had intelligence from our trading place that no buffaloes or hogs had been brought down; but only a few sheep, which were taken away before our people, who had sent for money, could procure it. Some few fowls, however, were bought, and a large quantity of a kind of syrup made from the juice of the palm tree, which, though infinitely superior to molasses or treacle, sold at a very small price. We complained to Mynheer Lange: he said that as we had not ourselves been down upon the beach, the natives were afraid to take money from any one else, lest it should be false. On this, the captain went immediately down, but could see no cattle: while he was gone, Mr. Lange complained that our people had not yet offered gold for anything: this he said the islanders were displeased at, as they had expected to have had gold for their stock.

20th. In the morning early the captain went ashore himself to purchase buffaloes: he was shown two, one of which they valued at five guineas, the other a musket: he offered three guineas for the one, and sent for a musket to give for the other. The money was flatly refused, and before the musket could be brought off, Dr. Solander, who had been up in the town in order to speak to Mr. Lange, returned, followed by eighty spearmen and twenty musketeers sent by the king, to tell us that this day and no more would be allowed us to trade, after which we must be gone. This was the message that Dr. Solander had from the Radja by Mr. Lange's interpretation, but a Portuguese Indian who came from Timor, probably next in command to Mr. Lange, carried it much further, telling us that we might stay ashore till night if we pleased, but none of the Indians would be