Journals Of Two Expeditions Of Discovery In North West And Western Australia Volume 1 (Of 2) by George Grey (read book txt) 📕

Volume 1 Chapter 12 (Physical Geography Commercial Prospects) Pg 176

Of Goats,  Pigs,  Poultry,  Maize,  Paddy,  Yams,  Plantains,  Fruit,

Sandalwood,  Beeswax,  And Tortoiseshell In Small Quantities.

 

At Dili Duties Of 10 Per Cent Are Exacted And Produce Is Rather Dear.

Sandalwood Is To Be Had At From 2 To 4 Dollars The Picul Of 125 Catties;

Wax Is Generally From 30 To 35 Dollars (Spanish) The Picul Of 110

Catties.

 

The Ports Of Timor Furnish A Little Gold Dust At Times. Good Water And

Firewood Are To Be Had At Most Of Them; That Of Dili Is A Good And Safe

One.

 

Gold Dust,  I Understand,  Is Also Procurable At Sandalwood Island And New

Hebrides.

 

For Vessels The Good Season On The Coast Is From About The 10th Of April

To The 15th Of October.

 

Cootababa Affords Horses And All The Produce Of The Other Places. No

Duties Are Levied Here,  The Place Not Being Subject To The Portuguese. It

Is A Small Port And Should Be Entered With Caution.

 

The Best Ports Of Timor For Wax Are Dili,  Cootababa,  Ocussi,  Sitranny,

Nilow,  And Manatronto. It Is Gathered In June,  Cleaned In July,  And Sold

Principally In That And The Two Following Months; But A Vessel Should Be

Active,  As Enterprising People Go Along The Coast And Buy It Up For The

Kupang Merchants,  Who Send It To Batavia Where It Is Said To Sell For 120

Rupees The Picul; The Price At Cootababa,  Being Lately About 80 Rupees At

2 1/2 To The Spanish Dollar.

 

Sandalwood Can Be Had From March To October,  The Usual Trading Season;

But From March To May Is The Best Time As Vessels From Kupang And Macao

Are On The Coast Early,  Buying It Up In Time To Return To Macao And China

In The Favourable Monsoon. The Best Ports For Sandalwood Are,  Cootababa,

Ocussi,  And Sitranny,  But It Is To Be Had Most Abundantly At Ata-Poopa.

 

Articles In Request.

 

Spanish Dollars,  Muskets,  And Gunpowder Are The Essentials For Procuring

Wax Or Sandalwood,  But If You Wish To Have A Greater Assortment,  Small

Quantities May Be Added Of Any Articles From The Following List.

 

Doubloons (Spanish).

Sovereigns (English).

Blue Cloth Of Pondicherry Of Good Quality.

Ditto English (If Cheap) Of Dark Colour For Officers.

White Shirting Or Good Calico For Men And Women.

Volume 1 Chapter 12 (Physical Geography Commercial Prospects) Pg 177

Handkerchiefs Of Colours And Sorts.

White Cotton Stockings.

Men And Women's Gown Pieces Of Sorts And Colours.

Silk Stockings,  Plain And Ribbed.

Shoes For Men And Women.

Brandy,  Rum,  Gin,  Lead And Flints.

Quart-Glass Decanters,  Cruet Stands,  Dress Swords,  Wine Glasses And

Rummers,  Knives And Forks,  Razors,  Needles,  Scissors,  Earrings,

Bracelets,  Shawls Of Sorts,  Mock Jewellery,  Sugar,  Soap,  Biscuits.

 

Bally And Surabaya Are Good Places For Rice,  But More Especially The

Former,  As It Is To Be Had Cheap,  Especially If Bartered For Opium. The

Rice Can Be Carried To Macao Where A Good Price Can Always Be Obtained

For It.

 

Puloo,  Batao,  And Ocussi On The Coast Of Timor Are Good Places For

Obtaining Tortoiseshell At All Times,  As Well As The Islands In Front Of

Timor,  From October To December. The Price Is About 800 Spanish Dollars

Per Picul In Cash; But In Exchange For Blue Or White Cloth,  Powder,  Arms,

Flint,  Etc.,  It Would Be Obtained For Much Less.

 

Roti And Bally Are Both Good Places For Ponies In Exchange For Cash Or

Goods.

 

The Following Is An Account Of Our Purchase And Barter At The Island Of

Roti In January 1838:

 

10 Horses For 10 Muskets (Old).

4 Horses For 2 Fowling-Pieces (Old).

9 Horses For 27 1/2 Rupees Each.

3 Mares For 22 Rupees Each.

8 Sheep For An Old Regimental Breastplate.

14 Goats For A Pair Of Pistols (Old).

The Duty On Each Horse Was Six Rupees.

 

In Mr. Earle's Translation Of The Account Of The Voyage Of The Dutch

Colonial Brig Dourga,  Which,  It Is Stated,  Left Amboyna May 26th 1825 And

Visited The Islands Of Kissa,  Lettee,  Mon,  Damma,  Lakor,  And Luan,* It Is

Said,  In Speaking Of Them:

 

The Clothing Of Those Who Cannot Obtain European Or Indian Cotton Cloth

Is Pieces Of Prepared Bark Fastened Round Their Waists.

 

The Productions Of These Islands Are Sandalwood,  Beeswax,  Pearls,

Tortoiseshell,  Trepang,  Edible Birds' Nests,  Indian Corn,  Rice,

Vegetables,  With Abundance Of Livestock. As The Use Of Money Is Scarcely

Known These Are Only To Be Obtained By Barter In Exchange For Cotton

Cloths,  Brass Wire,  Iron Chopping Knives,  And Coarse Cutlery. The First

Article,  Cotton Cloth,  Is Most In Demand And M. Kolff Suggests That A

European Merchant Might Carry On An Advantageous Trade Here. The Value Of

Volume 1 Chapter 12 (Physical Geography Commercial Prospects) Pg 178

An Ox Is From 8 Shillings And 4 Pence To 10 Shillings; Of A Sheep From 3

Shillings And 4 Pence To 5 Shillings. Beeswax Can Be Obtained In

Abundance At Roma At The Rate Of 2 Pounds 7 Shillings Per Hundredweight.

The Trade With The Islands Is Carried On Solely By Natives,  Those Of

Macassar,  Amboyna,  And The Arru Islands Being The Chief Purchasers; And

Chinese Brigs From Java Occasionally Visit Kissa.

 

Geby,  An Island In The Gellola Passage,  Has A Fine Harbour; A Large

Quantity Of Tortoiseshell Can Be Obtained There For Trade With The

Natives. The Asia's Islands,  Lying A Short Distance To The Northward,  Are

Not Inhabited But Abound In Turtle.

 

Trade With The Islands Of The Asiatic Archipelago.

 

The Following Points Of Information Concerning The Indian Archipelago

Were Furnished By Captain Brodie,  Formerly In Command Of A Dutch Vessel

Of 326 Tons:

 

In Case Of A Necessity For Repairing Or Coppering A Vessel Surabaya Is

The Best Place As It Can Be Done Well And Cheap. Wood For Ship-Building

Is Abundant; And Good Carpenters Can Be Had At The Rate Of 20 Copper

Doits Per Diem,  That Is To Say,  Three Men For A Rupee A Day.

 

The Malaccas Are Under Dutch Government,  Of Which Ternate Forms A Part.

It Is Said To Be A Good Place To Dispose Of Odds And Ends,* And For

Getting A Little Shell. It Is Also A Good Place For Refreshments.

 

Banda Is Not So Good A Place To Go To,  If Another Is At Hand,  As It Is

For A Merchant Vessel A Strictly Prohibited Port. In Fact The Spice

Islands,  Or Malaccas,  Can Be Entered For Water And Refreshments.

 

At Timor (Kupang) You Can Get Sandalwood,  Wax,  And A Little Shell,  But

Dear.

 

At The North-East End Of Celebes There Are Two Other Places,  Monado And

Keema,  Where The Best Gormootip Or Black Coir Rope Can Be Obtained At

About 7 Rupees Per Picul. These Two Places Are Under The Dutch

Government. Some Little Business Might Be Done There: Stock In Particular

Is Cheap.

 

At The Island Of Ceram The Inhabitants Are Said To Be Favourable To The

English,  But Dutch Vessels Of War Cruise Often About There,  And Are Very

Jealous.

 

Bouton,  A Small Island With A Rajah Under Dutch Protection,  Situate At

The South-East End Of Celebes,  And Off The Bay Of Boni,  Is A Place Where

 

Volume 1 Chapter 12 (Footnote) Pg 179

 (*Footnote. The Serwatty Islands To The East Of Timor See The Map Of The

Asiatic Archipelago By Mr. John Arrowsmith.)

 

 

Volume 1 Chapter 12 (Physical Geography Commercial Prospects) Pg 180

Prows Assemble And Get Vast Quantities Of Shells And Beche-De-Mer. Nearly

All These Prows Proceed With Their Cargoes To Singapore For A Chinese

Market.

 

Fine Cattle Are To Be Had At About Four Dollars A Head At The Town Of

Bally,  In The Straits Of Allass,  Between Lombok And Sumbawa.

 

New Guinea Produces Good Beeswax,  Pearls,  Tortoise-Shell,  Trepang,

Birds-Of-Paradise,  Etc.

 

Field For Enterprise.

 

I Shall Conclude This Subject With Some Remarks Of Mr. John Sullivan.

R.N.,  A Gentleman Who Possesses A Vast Fund Of Information Regarding The

Indian Archipelago,  And To Whom I Am Indebted For Many Details Regarding

Its Commerce. He Says:

 

To Suppose That The Almost Countless Islands In The Ocean Before-Named

(The Pacific) Do Not Give Many Valuable Articles,  And Particularly

Tortoiseshell And Pearl,  Would Be No Less An Error Than To Doubt The

Existence Of The Islands Altogether.

 

No,  The Case Is Otherwise; And It Is Needless To Say That In The Quarter

Alluded To There Are Already A Few American Merchants,  Who Have

Discovered By Their China,  Whaling,  And Sealing Voyages Many Sources Of

Wealth,  And Who Are At This Moment Reaping Rich Rewards For Their Toil,

While 999 Out Of Every Thousand Of The European World Know Nothing At All

About It. Nevertheless There Is Yet A Vast Field Open To The Speculator,

Which Must Ever Promise Ample Recompense For His Confidence And Outlay.

Volume 1 Chapter 12 (Footnote) Pg 181