us to a
place there called Tahannee.[425] He accordingly left two of his chief
men with me as pilots, desiring us to go before and wait for him at an
island by the way, where he promised to be with us in two days, giving
great encouragement to hope for abundance of cloves. He told us that the
Dutch gave 50 dollars the bahar, but they would cost us 60, which I very
readily promised to give. The 7th we weighed from this anchorage or
road, called _Amascan_; and, by direction of our new pilots, steered W.
and W. by N. for Machian, leaving two islands to larboard, four or five
miles from Amascan; we had twenty-two, thirty, and even forty fathoms,
two cables length only off the island. 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 de