Page:Scented isles and coral gardens- Torres Straits, German New Guinea and the Dutch East Indies, by C.D. Mackellar, 1912.pdf/323

Rh some day when there is an earthquake they will be left high and dry to be picked up on afternoon walks. This Sultan was imprisoned and his son committed suicide.

I am not sure whether it was in Lombok or another isle that, after a revolution, the Sultan, when defeated, agreed to surrender to the Dutch troops. On the appointed day a great procession left the palace with the Sultan, and when the latter arrived before the Dutch General he, the Sultan, gave a signal, and instantly he and every single member of the blood Royal drew his or her Kris and killed themselves!

A deed for the songs of poets—the pity of it!

Lombok is 55 miles long by 45 broad. The Peak of Lombok, or Gunong Ringani, is 12,375 feet high, and nearly extinct. It has never been ascended. A lake of some size lies at the height of gooo feet. Coffee is much cultivated, and there are many cattle and horses. The Rajah has a good palace, and it is all very beautiful. The population is about 540,000. Not many Europeans are resident in it. Landing is difficult as there is always a very heavy surf and swell.

Straits 1o miles wide separate Lombok and Sumbawa, which is larger than Jamaica, but it is not well known. Tambora, go40 feet, is the highest peak; it is said to have been 13,000 feet high before the bad eruption of 1815. The present crater has a diameter of 7 miles. At this eruption great whirlwinds carried away men, cattle, and everything else, but where they were carried to I do not know, and I should have liked to have viewed the scene from a safe distance. The sea was covered with fine ashes to a depth of 2 feet, and ships could scarcely get through it. It rose 12 feet. No one can call: these places dull to live in; you may have excitement at any