[Footnote 176: It appears in the sequel that this was some tax or custom.--E.]
[Footnote 177: Another tax or imposition.--E.]
[Footnote 178: We suppose the Katti is here meant, as no quantity is expressed in the text--ASTL. I. 323. c.]
The 16th three large Dutch ships came in, and shot thirty, sixteen, and nine pieces of excellent ordnance.[179] Two of these came from Ternate, where they had lost Paul Van Cardan, their admiral, with seventy-four of their men, being taken by the Spaniards. The Dutch offered a ransom for him of 50,000 dollars; but they would hearken to no terms, except the surrender of fort Machian, formerly taken from them by him. The 18th the Dutch officers of the two largest came to visit me, and staid to supper; yet an Englishman reported that they meant to surprise me before the end of a month.
[Footnote 179: This strange expression is probably meant to indicate the respective number of cannon in each ship.--E.]
The states sent again for Rooba-rooba, which I refused to pay; so they sent again to say, now that the Dutch were come, I should have no trade unless I gave above 100 dollars; but I refused to give more than 100. After a long dispute, we at length agreed at 100 dollars; Rooba-rooba, 380 dollars; Serepinang, 50 dollars; besides pissalin, being a duty to the four sabanders of four pieces of Sarassa, or Malayan painted cloth. We received a beam and weight, the cattee being 99 dollars, or 5 pounds 13 1/2 ounces avoirdupoise. The 20th we began to weigh, and the Hollanders coming on shore, agreed at 100 dollars, paying 400 for Rooba-rooba, together with serepinang and pissalin. We had to bribe the Dutch in secret, or we must have been idle. The 23d I made a secret agreement with the chief of Pulo-way to send a factory to that island, for which I had to lend him 300 dollars, and to give 100 dollars more as serepinang; and the Dutch hearing of this next day, used their endeavour to prevent me. The 29th six large Holland ships and two small pinnaces came into the roads, which I saluted with nine guns, and was only answered with three. The 1st April I received from Pulo-way 225-1/4 cattees of mace, and 1307 1/2 cattees of nutmegs. The 11th we began to carry our nuts on board, being so constrained by the Dutch, who meant to land in a day or two; so that we had not time to select the best, nor to let them lie long enough in sweats.
The 13th I went on shore, and proposed to the sabander of Nera, as I had done several times before, the formal surrender of Bands to the sovereignty of the King of England, before the Hollanders might land or commence their intended fort. The states seemed to like this proposal, and promised to take it into consideration, and to give me an answer, but I was doubtful of their inconstancy, neither did they come to any conclusion. The Dutch landed 1200 men on the 15th from 20 boats, and the natives fled. The 20th I went on shore to fetch rice, in part of a debt due by Daton Patee to our company; but the Hollanders had dishonestly taken it, though their admiral promised I should have it. I then went among the Javans to buy rice, but they universally said they were enjoined by the Dutch not to sell me any, although I offered five dollars the coyoung more than the Dutch paid. When I got home, I found the person whom the admiral had formerly sent to me, and desired him to tell the admiral, that his taking my rice was great injustice, and if he were a gentleman, he would not permit his base people to abuse me as I walked about. He answered, that the admiral was a weaver and no gentleman; and being an Englishman, I reprehended him for so speaking; but he affirmed that all the Dutch spoke so of him.[180]
[Footnote 180: We here omit a long series of ill-told disputes with the Dutch; who, presuming on their greatly superior force, interrupted the trade of the English at Banda, and finally obliged Keeling to withdraw, very imperfectly provided with mace and nutmegs, and much dissatisfied. The narrative in Purchas is so abrupt, disjointed, and inconclusive, that it was found quite impossible to give it any consistency or interest.--E.]
The 4th of May I went to Pulo-way, where I got 1000 cattees of nutmegs, and 200 cattees of mace. The 1st August, the Dutch gave me a letter of credit, for the payment at Bantam of all the debts due me at Banda; and this day I went on shore, at the request of the Dutch governor, to view their fort, which was a square redoubt, with thirty pieces of artillery, eight of which were good brass demi-cannon. The 10th I weighed a half hundred against the ordinary Banda weights, and found it to contain 9-1/2 cattees, so that the cattee appears to equal 5 pounds 14-1/3 ounces avoirdupoise. The 11th I anchored near Macassar, in the island of Celebes, hoping to get cloves there in barter for cloth; but learning that a Dutch ship had been lost there lately, I desisted from the attempt, as the road of Macassar was reported to be dangerous. The 21st we anchored off Jackatra, in Java, where we found two Dutch ships, which had brought our people and their goods from Amboyna. The 26th we met a praw, in which was Ralph Hearne, sent to me by Mr John Saris from Bantam, to say that he had ready 3481 bags of pepper for me. We got that day into the road of Bantam, when Mr Saris came immediately on board.
The 13th September, 1609, at the request of the King of Bantam, I sent twenty-five armed men to make him pastime, in honour of his having the night before consummated his marriage. The 23d, having token on board 4900 bags of pepper, I prepared for our homeward voyage; and on the 27th I appointed the following members of our factory at that place: Augustine Spalding chief factor, at £50 a year; Francis Kellie surgeon, at 40s. a month; John Parsons at 30s. a month; Robert Neale 29s. Augustine Adwell 24s. Etheldred Lampre 20s. William Driver 20s. William Wilson 22s. William Lamwell 16s. Philip Badnedge 16s. Francisco Domingo 12s. Juan Seraon 10s. Adrian, Mr Towerson's boy, 10s.[181] Using every possible diligence to get away, I hired six persons to go along with us for England in assistance to our crew; and on the 30th, delivered over the charge of the factory to Spalding, giving him strict injunctions to beware of the Dutch insolence and hatred towards us, and therefore to have as little intercourse with them as possible.