We were told that the priest certainly gives the nuptial benediction, by sprinkling the bride and bridegroom with his urine. But the Dutch universally declared that the women never wrapped the entrails of sheep round their legs, as they have been said to do, and afterwards make them part of their food. Semicastration was also absolutely denied to be general; but it was acknowledged that some among the particular nation which knew how to melt copper had suffered that operation, who were said to be the best warriors, and particularly to excel in the art of throwing stones.
We were very desirous to determine the great question among natural historians, whether the women of this country have or have not that fleshy flap or apron which has been called the Sinus pudoris, and what we learnt I shall relate. Many of the Dutch and Malays, who said they had received favours from Hottentot women, positively denied its existence; but a physician of the place declared that he had cured many hundreds of venereal complaints, and never saw one without two fleshy, or rather skinny appendages, proceeding from the upper part of the labia, in appearance somewhat resembling the teats of a cow, but flat; they hung down, he said, before the pudendum, and were in different subjects of different lengths, in some not more than half an inch, in others, three or four inches: these he imagined to be what some writers have exaggerated into a flap, or apron, hanging down from the bottom of the abdomen, of sufficient extent to render an artificial covering of the neighbouring parts unnecessary.
This much for the country, its productions, and inhabitants. The bay is large, safe, and commodious; it lies open indeed to the north-west winds, but they seldom blow hard; yet as they sometimes send in a great sea, the ships moor N. E. and S. W., so as to have an open hawser with north-west winds: the south-east winds blow frequently with great violence, but as the direction is right out of the bay, they are not dangerous. Near the town a wharf of wood is run out to a proper distance for the convenience of landing and shipping goods. To this wharf water is conveyed in pipes, from which several boats may fill water at the same time; and several large boats or hoys are kept by the Company to carry stores and provisions to and from the shipping in the harbour. The bay is defended by a square fort, situated close to the beach on the east side of the town, and by several outworks and batteries extending along the shore, as well on this side of the town as the other; but they are so situated as to be cannonaded by shipping, and are in a manner defenceless against an enemy of any force by land. The garrison consists of eight hundred regular troops, besides militia of the country, in which is comprehended every man able to bear arms. They have contrivances to alarm the whole country by signals in a very short time, and the militia is then to repair immediately to the town.
The French at Mauritius are supplied from this place with salted beef, biscuit, flour, and wine: the provisions for which the French contracted this year were 500,000 lb. weight of salt beef, 400,000 lb. of flour, 400,000 lb. of biscuit, and 1,200 leagers of wine.
On the morning of the 14th, we weighed and stood out of the bay; and at five in the evening anchored under Penquin, or Robin island: we lay here all night, and as I could not sail in the morning for want of wind, I sent a boat to the island for a few trifling articles which we had forgot to take in at the Cape. But as soon as the boat came near the shore, the Dutch hailed her, and warned the people not to land, at their peril, bringing down at the same time six men armed with muskets, who paraded upon the beach. The officer who commanded the boat, not thinking it worth while to risk the lives of the people on board for the sake of a few cabbages, which were all we wanted, returned to the ship. At first we were at a loss to account for our repulse, but we afterwards recollected, that to this island the Dutch at the Cape banish such criminals as are not thought worthy of death, for a certain number of years, proportioned to the offence; and employ them as slaves in digging lime-stone, which, though scarce upon the continent, is plenty here: and that a Danish ship, which by sickness had lost great part of her crew, and had been refused assistance at the cape, came down to this island, and sending her boat ashore, secured the guard, and took on board as many of the criminals as she thought proper to navigate her home: we concluded therefore that the Dutch, to prevent the rescue of their criminals in time to come, had given order to their people here to suffer no boat of any foreign nation to come ashore.
On the 25th, at three o’clock in the afternoon, we weighed, with a light breeze at S. E., and put to sea. About an hour afterwards, we lost our master, Mr. Robert Mollineux, a young man of good parts, but unhappily given up to intemperance, which brought on disorders that put an end to his life.
We proceeded in our voyage homeward without any remarkable incident; and in the morning of the 29th we crossed our first meridian, having circumnavigated the globe in the direction from east to west, and consequently lost a day, for which we made an allowance at Batavia.
At day-break, on the first of May, we saw the island of Saint Helena; and at noon, we anchored in the road before James’s fort.
We staid here till the 4th, to refresh, and Mr. Banks improved the time in making the complete circuit of the island, and visiting the most remarkable places upon it.
It is situated as it were in the middle of the vast Atlantic Ocean, being four hundred leagues distant from the coast of Africa, and six hundred from that of America. It is the summit of an immense mountain rising out of the sea, which, at a little distance all round it, is of an unfathomable depth, and is no more than twelve leagues long, and six broad.