CHARLES. "The first voyage, we are to navigate the Indian Ocean, calling on as many Robinson Crusoes as we can find in the various little islands: our second voyage is to explore the whole coast of Africa.
"Our ship was last at anchor off the coast of New Holland, and our next stoppage will be at the Moluccas. The name signifies 'Royal Islands,' and was given by the Arabs in the days of their maritime prosperity. The principal are Celebes, Gililo, and Ceram. Dora, Emma, and George have patronized those isles, and will set forth their various qualifications."
DORA. "Celebes is the largest of the Moluccas, and is a ragged, irregular-looking island, in shape similar to a star-fish. The inhabitants are rendered active, industrious, and robust by an austere education. At all hours of the day, the mothers rub their children with oil or water, and thus assist nature in forming their constitutions. At the age of five or six, the male children of persons of rank are put in charge of a friend, that their courage may not be weakened by the caresses of relatives, and habits of reciprocal tenderness. They do not return to their families until they attain the age at which the law declares them fit to marry. Celebes was first discovered by the Portuguese in 1512; but the Dutch expelled them in 1660, and it now belongs to them. Unlike most of the other islands, it abounds in extensive grassy plains, free from forests, which are looked upon as the common property of the tribes who dwell thereon, and are carefully guarded from the intrusion of aliens. The people are Mohammedans."
GEORGE. "Gililo is Celebes in miniature, being of the same singular shape, and producing similar fruits. I have little more of its advantages to set forth. But near here is a portion of the Ocean called Molucca Sea, which possesses a strange peculiarity. It is the periodical appearance of a current of opaque white water, like milk, which, from June to August or September, covers the surface of the basin in which the Banda Islands are situated. During the night it is somewhat luminous, which makes the spectator confound it with the horizon. It is dangerous for vessels, for the sea seems to undergo an inward boiling agitation wherever it passes. During its prevalence the fish disappear. This white water is supposed to come from the shores of New Guinea and the Gulf of Carpentaria."
MR. STANLEY. "You are slightly wrong, George, in stating this curious sea to be near Gililo. Gililo is on, the equator, and the Molucca Sea is at least 5° below the equator, and directly south of Ceram."
EMMA. "Ceram produces quantities of sago, and contains large forests of those trees: they are extremely profitable, for one tree will sometimes yield as much as five or six hundred pounds of sago! The original inhabitants were called Alfoors, and, as some of the race still exist, I will introduce them. The only dress of the men is a girdle encircling the loins. They fix bunches of palm leaves to their heads, shoulders, and knees, and wear square bucklers, which they ornament with considerable taste. The eyesight of these people is uncommonly acute; and their swiftness is such as to enable them to chase the wild hog with success. Rats and serpents form part of their food. This island is equally fertile with the other Moluccas, and produces spices of all kinds, but particularly cloves and nutmegs. There are, happily, more Christians now to be found in Ceram than there were a few years since: nevertheless the majority are still Mohammedans, and barbarous in their habits."
MR. BARRAUD. "Yes. Very little improvement has taken place in the manners of the Alfoors. The young men, even to this day, adhere to the savage practice of propitiating their intended wives, by presenting them with the heads of five or six of their enemies. In order to seize their victims by surprise, they lie in ambush in the woods, cover themselves with moss, and hold branches of trees in their hands, which they shake in a manner so natural, that they have the appearance of real trees: they then allow the enemy to pass, assassinate him by coming up behind him, and, cutting off his head, carry it away as a trophy. These murderers are received by the people of the village with all the honors of a barbarous triumph."
MR. STANLEY. "These identical Alfoors have a singular method of evincing their respect for friends or visitors: as an instance: One of the kings (for the nation has three to share the government) invited a Dutch missionary to an entertainment. When Mr. Montarnes arrived, he was received with great demonstrations of joy, and treated by the king with the most splendid repast that the resources of the country could afford. When the meal was over, the king ordered a number of men armed with swords to step forward. They performed a war-dance, and, after a few feats of this sort, commenced a serious fight: their swords clashed, blood flowed, and some of their bodies were laid dead on the ground. The peaceful minister of religion, shocked at the horrid spectacle, entreated the king to put a stop to it. 'It is nothing,' was the reply: 'they are my slaves! it is only the death of a few dogs! Happy shall I be if this mark of my high respect convinces you of my eager desire to please you!'"
GRANDY. "Astonishing! that people with any belief in a superior power, should hold life in such low estimation; and, simply for amusement, deprive a fellow-creature of that which their utmost stretch of power cannot restore. Oh! may God, in his mercy, soon enlighten these wretched Alfoors, and write in plain characters on the tables of their hearts—'Thou shalt do no murder.'"
CHARLES. "We now come to Java, one of the finest and most flourishing colonies in the world. It is about 600 miles in length, and 90 miles average breadth; almost entirely volcanic; therefore, metals and precious stones are not to be expected. Iron is not to be found in Java; indeed, it is extremely rare in the whole Archipelago; consequently it bears a high price, and the art of the blacksmith is held in a sort of reverence. The term for a son of the anvil signifies 'learned.' The inhabitants of this island trace their origin to a monkey, which they call 'woo-woo.' They are, for the most part, Mohammedans, but not strict, as they will not hesitate to drink wine at the religious festivals."