rtainty. Garrard, Janrin and Company have
reason to be grateful to you, and I have no doubt that they will be so."

Everybody knows that Batavia is a large Dutch town built in the
tropics--that is to say, it has broad streets, with rows of trees in
them, and canals in the centre of stagnant water, full of filth, and
surrounded by miasma-exuding marshes. But the neighbourhood is healthy,
and the merchants and officials mostly only come into the town in the
daytime, and return to their country houses at night. Some seasons are
worse than others, nobody knows why. Captain Cook was there on his
first voyage round the world during a very bad one, and, in spite of all
his care, lost a number of people. We were more fortunate, but did not
escape without some sickness.

Captain Hassall had disposed of most of that portion of our cargo suited
for the Batavian market, so that I soon got rid of the rest. I then
made arrangements for the purchase of sugar, tea, coffee, spices, and
several other commodities which I believed would sell well at Sydney, to
which place we proposed to proceed, touching at a few other points
perhaps on our way.

The articles had, however, first to be collected, as the army had
consumed the greater portion in store at Batavia. Part of the purchase
I made from a brother of my friend Van Deck. He was on the point of
sailing in a brig he owned along the coast to collect produce, and
invited me to accompany him. I gladly accepted his offer, as the
_Barbara_ could not sail till his return.

In those days, as well, indeed, as from the memory of man, these seas
swarmed with pirates, many of whom had their headquarters on the coast
of Borneo. Among them was a chief, or rajah, named Raga, notorious for
the boldness and success of his undertakings. We, however, believed
that with so many British men-of-war about he would seek some more
distant field for his operations. The harbour was full of native craft
of all sorts. Of the native prahus alone there are many varieties, some
built after European models, and carrying sails similar to those of our
English luggers. Others are of native construction, with lateen sails;
and many, built with high stems and sterns, have the square mat-sail,
such as impels the Batavian fishing prahus. Of course, among so many
craft a pirate chief could easily find spies ready to give him
information of all that was going forward. However, we troubled our
heads very litt