St. John'S Island

We lay some time at St. John’s Island and visited the shore every day to buy provision, as hogs, fowls, and buffalo.

Here was a small town standing in a wet swampy ground, with many filthy ponds amongst the houses, which were built on the ground as ours are, not on posts as at Mindanao.

In these ponds were plenty of ducks; the houses were small and low and covered with thatch, and the insides were but ill furnished, and kept nastily.

I have been told that most of the houses in the city of Canton are poor and irregular.

The inhabitants of this village are husbandmen: they were at this time very busy in sowing their rice, which is their chiefest commodity.

The land in which they choose to sow the rice is low and wet, and when ploughed the earth was like a mass of mud. They plough their land with a small plough, drawn by one buffalo, and one man both holds the plough and drives the beast.

When the rice is ripe and gathered in they tread it out of the ear with buffaloes in a large round place made with a hard floor fit for that purpose, where they chain three or four of these beasts, one at the tail of the other, and, driving them round in a ring as in a horse-mill, they so order it that the buffaloes may tread upon it all.

A CHINESE PAGODA, OR IDOL-TEMPLE, AND IMAGE.

I was once at this island with seven or eight Englishmen more and, having occasion to stay some time, we killed a shote, or young porker, and roasted it for our dinners. While we were busy dressing of our pork one of the natives came and sat down by us; and when the dinner was ready we cut a good piece and gave it him, which he willingly received.

But by signs he begged more, and withal pointed into the woods; yet we did not understand his meaning nor much mind him till our hunger was pretty well assuaged; although he did still make signs and, walking a little way from us, he beckoned to us to come to him; which at last I did, and two or three more. He going before led the way in a small blind path through a thicket into a small grove of trees, in which there was an old idol-temple about ten foot square: the walls of it were about six foot high and two foot thick, made of bricks.

The floor was paved with broad bricks, and in the middle of the floor stood an old rusty iron bell on its brims. This bell was about two foot high, standing flat on the ground; the brims on which it stood were about sixteen inches diameter.

From the brims it did taper away a little towards the head, much like our bells but that the brims did not turn out so much as ours do. On the head of the bell there were three iron bars as big as a man’s arm and about ten inches long from the top of the bell, where the ends joined as in a centre and seemed of one mass with the bell, as if cast together.

These bars stood all parallel to the ground, and their farther ends, which stood triangularly and opening from each other at equal distances, like the fliers of our kitchen-jacks, were made exactly in the shape of the paw of some monstrous beast, having sharp claws on it. This it seems was their god; for as soon as our zealous guide came before the bell he fell flat on his face and beckoned to us, seeming very desirous to have us do the like.

At the inner side of the temple against the walls there was an altar of white hewn stone. The table of the altar was about three foot long, sixteen inches broad, and three inches thick. It was raised about two foot from the ground and supported by three small pillars of the same white stone. On this altar there were several small earthen vessels; one of them was full of small sticks that had been burned at one end. Our guide made a great many signs for us to fetch and to leave some of our meat there, and seemed very importunate but we refused. We left him there and went aboard; I did see no other temple nor idol here.

The China-Junks, And Their Rigging

We saw several small China junks in the lagoon. One came and anchored by us.

I and some more of our men went aboard to view her: she was built with a square flat head as well as stern, only the head or fore part was not so broad as the stern.

On her deck she had little thatched houses like hovels, covered with palmetto-leaves and raised about three foot high, for the seamen to creep into. She had a pretty large cabin wherein there was an altar and a lamp burning. I did but just look in and saw not the idol.

The hold was divided into many small partitions, all of them made so tight that if a leak should spring up in any one of them it could go no farther, and so could do but little damage but only to the goods in the bottom of that room where the leak springs up.

Each of these rooms belong to one or two merchants, or more; and every man freights his goods in his own room; and probably lodges there if he be on board himself. These junks have only two masts, a main-mast and a fore-mast.

The fore-mast has a square yard and a square sail, but the main-mast has a sail narrow aloft like a sloop’s sail, and in fair weather they use a topsail which is to haul down on the deck in foul weather, yard and all; for they did not go up to furl it.

The main-mast in their biggest junks seem to me as big as any third-rate man-of-war’s mast in England, and yet not pieced as ours but made of one grown tree; and in an all my travels I never saw any single-tree-masts so big in the body, and so long and yet so well tapered, as I have seen in the Chinese junks.

Some of our men went over to a pretty large town on the continent of China where we might have furnished ourselves with provision, which was a thing we were always in want of and was our chief business here; but we were afraid to lie in this place any longer for we had some signs of an approaching storm; this being the time of the year in which storms are expected on this coast; and here was no safe riding. It was now the time of the year for the south-west monsoon but the wind had been whiffing about from one part of the compass to another for two or three days, and sometimes it would be quite calm. This caused us to put to sea, that we might have sea-room at least; for such flattering weather is commonly the forerunner of a tempest.

On July 4 at 4PM the wind came to the north-east and freshened upon us, and the sky looked very black in that quarter, and the black clouds began to rise apace and moved towards us; having hung all the morning in the horizon.

This made us take in our topsails and, the wind still increasing, about nine o’clock we reefed our mainsail and foresail; at ten we furled our foresail, keeping under a mainsail and mizzen.

At 11PM we furled our mainsail and ballasted our mizzen; at which time it began to rain, and by twelve o’clock at night it blew exceeding hard and the rain poured down as through a sieve. It thundered and lightened prodigiously, and the sea seemed all of a fire about us; for every sea that broke sparkled like lightning.

The violent wind raised the sea presently to a great height, and it ran very short and began to break in on our deck. One sea struck away the rails of our head, and our sheet-anchor, which was stowed with one flook or bending of the iron over the ship’s gunwale, and lashed very well down to the side, was violently washed off, and had like to have struck a hole in our bow as it lay beating against it.

Then we were forced to put right before the wind to stow our anchor again; which we did with much ado; but afterwards we durst not adventure to bring our ship to the wind again for fear of foundering, for the turning the ship either to or fro from the wind is dangerous in such violent storms. The fierceness of the weather continued till four o’clock that morning; in which time we did cut away two canoes that were towing astern.

Corpus Sant, A Light, Or Meteor Appearing In Storms

After four o’clock the thunder and the rain abated and then we saw a corpus sant at our main-top-mast head, on the very top of the truck of the spindle. This sight rejoiced our men exceedingly; for the height of the storm is commonly over when the corpus sant is seen aloft; but when they are seen lying on the deck it is generally accounted a bad sign.

A corpus sant is a certain small glittering light; when it appears as this did on the very top of the main-mast or at a yard-arm it is like a star; but when it appears on the deck it resembles a great glow-worm.

The Spaniards call it corpus sanctum. They go to prayers and bless themselves for the happy sight.

I have heard some ignorant seamen discoursing how they have seen them creep, or, as they say, travel about in the scuppers, telling many dismal stories that happened at such times: but I did never see anyone stir out of the place where it was first fixed, except upon deck, where every sea washes it about: neither did I ever see any but when we have had hard rain as well as wind; and therefore do believe it is some jelly: but enough of this.

We continued scudding right before wind and sea from two till seven o’clock in the morning, and then the wind being much abated we set our mizzen again, and brought our ship to the wind, and lay under a mizzen till eleven. Then it fell flat calm, and it continued so for about two hours: but the sky looked very black and rueful, especially in the south-west, and the sea tossed us about like an eggshell for want of wind.

About 1PM the wind sprung up at south-west out of the quarter from whence we did expect it: therefore we presently brailed up our mizzen and wore our ship: but we had no sooner put our ship before the wind but it blew a storm again and rained very hard, though not so violently as the night before: but the wind was altogether as boisterous and so continued till ten or eleven o’clock at night.

All which time we scudded and run before the wind very swift, though only with our bare poles, that is, without any sail abroad. Afterwards the wind died away by degrees, and before day we had but little wind and fine clear weather.

I was never in such a violent storm in all my life; so said all the company. This was near the change of the moon: it was two or three days before the change. The 6th day in the morning, having fine handsome weather, we got up our yards again and began to dry ourselves and our clothes for we were all well sopped. This storm had deadened the hearts of our men so much that, instead of going to buy more provision at the same place from whence we came before the storm, or of seeking any more for the island Prata, they thought of going somewhere to shelter before the full moon, for fear of another storm at that time: for commonly, if there is any very bad weather in the month, it is about two or three days before or after the full or change of the moon.

THE PISCADORES, OR FISHERS ISLANDS NEAR FORMOSA

These thoughts, I say, put our men on thinking where to go, and, the charts or sea-plats being first consulted, it was concluded to go to certain islands lying in latitude 23 degrees north called Piscadores. For there was not a man aboard that was anything acquainted on these coasts; and therefore all our dependence was on the charts, which only pointed out to us where such and such places or islands were without giving us any account what harbour, roads or bays there were, or the produce, strength, or trade of them; these we were forced to seek after ourselves.

The Piscadores are a great many inhabited islands lying near the island Formosa, between it and China, in or near the latitude of 23 degrees north latitude, almost as high as the Tropic of Cancer. These Piscadore islands are moderately high and appear much like our Dorsetshire and Wiltshire Downs in England. They produce thick short grass and a few trees. They are pretty well watered and they feed abundance of goats and some great cattle. There are abundance of mounts and old fortifications on them: but of no use now, whatever they have been.

A TARTARIAN GARRISON, AND CHINESE TOWN ON ONE OF THESE ISLANDS.

Between the two easternmost islands there is a very good harbour which is never without junks riding in it: and on the west side of the easternmost island there is a large town and fort commanding the harbour. The houses are but low, yet well built, and the town makes a fine prospect. This is a garrison of the Tartars, wherein are also three or four hundred soldiers who live here three years and then they are moved to some other place.

On the island, on the west side of the harbour close by the sea, there is a small town of Chinese; and most of the other islands have some Chinese living on them more or less.

THEY ANCHOR IN THE HARBOUR NEAR THE TARTARS’ GARRISON, AND TREAT WITH THE GOVERNOR. OF AMOY IN THE PROVINCE OF FOKIEN, AND MACAO, A CHINESE AND PORTUGUESE TOWN NEAR CANTON IN CHINA.

Having, as I said before, concluded to go to these islands, we steered away for them, having the wind at west-south-west a small gale. The 20th day of July we had first sight of them and steered in among them; finding no place to anchor in till we came into the harbour before mentioned. We blundering in, knowing little of our way, and we admired to see so many junks going and coming, and some at an anchor, and so great a town as the neighbouring easternmost town, the Tartarian garrison; for we did not expect nor desire to have seen any people, being in care to lie concealed in these seas; however seeing we were here, we boldly ran into the harbour and presently sent ashore our canoe to the town.

Our people were met by an officer at their landing; and our quartermaster, who was the chiefest man in the boat, was conducted before the governor and examined of what nation we were, and what was our business here. He answered that we were English and were bound to Amoy or Anhay, which is a city standing on a navigable river in the province of Fokien in China, and is a place of vast trade, there being a huge multitude of ships there, and in general on all these coasts, as I have heard of several that have been there. He said also that, having received some damage by a storm, we therefore put in here to refit before we could adventure to go farther; and that we did intend to lie here till after the full moon, for fear of another storm. The governor told him that we might better refit our ship at Amoy than here, and that he heard that two English vessels were arrived there already; and that he should be very ready to assist us in anything; but we must not expect to trade there but must go to the places allowed to entertain merchant-strangers, which were Amoy and Macao. Macao is a town of great trade also, lying in an island at the very mouth of the river of Canton. It is fortified and garrisoned by a large Portuguese colony, but yet under the Chinese government, whose people inhabit one moiety of the town and lay on the Portuguese what tax they please; for they dare not disoblige the Chinese for fear of losing their trade. However the governor very kindly told our quartermaster that whatsoever we wanted, if that place could furnish us, we should have it. Yet that we must not come ashore on that island, but he would send aboard some of his men to know what we wanted, and they should also bring it off to us. That nevertheless we might go on shore on other islands to buy refreshments of the Chinese. After the discourse was ended the governor dismissed him with a small jar of flour, and three or four large cakes of very fine bread, and about a dozen pineapples and watermelons (all very good in their kind) as a present to the captain.

The next day an eminent officer came aboard with a great many attendants. He wore a black silk cap of a particular make, with a plume of black and white feathers standing up almost round his head behind, and all his outside clothes were black silk: he had a loose black coat which reached to his knees, and his breeches were of the same; and underneath his coat he had two garments more, of other coloured silk. His legs were covered with small black limber boots. All his attendants were in a very handsome garb of black silk, all wearing those small black boots and caps. These caps were like the crown of a hat made of palmetto-leaves, like our straw hats; but without brims, and coming down but to their ears. These had no feathers, but had an oblong button on the top, and from between the button and the cap there fell down all round their head as low as the cap reached, a sort of coarse hair like horse-hair, dyed (as I suppose) of a light red colour.

Their Presents, Excellent Beef. Sam Shu, A Sort Of Chinese Arak, And Hoc Shu, A Kind Of Chinese Mum, And Its Jars

The officer brought aboard as a present from the governor a young heifer, the fattest and kindliest beef that I did ever taste in any foreign country; it was small yet full-grown; two large hogs, four goats, two baskets of fine flour, 20 great flat cakes of fine well-tasted bread, two great jars of arak (made of rice as I judged) called by the Chinese sam shu; and 55 jars of hoc shu, as they call it, and our Europeans from them. This is a strong liquor, made of wheat, as I have been told. It looks like mum and tastes much like it, and is very pleasant and hearty. Our seamen love it mightily and will lick their lips with it: for scarce a ship goes to China but the men come home fat with soaking this liquor, and bring store of jars of it home with them. It is put into small white thick jars that hold near a quart: the double jars hold about two quarts.

These jars are small below and thence rise up with a pretty full belly, closing in pretty short at top with a small thick mouth. Over the mouth of the jar they put a thin chip cut round just so as to cover the mouth, over that a piece of paper, and over that they put a great lump of clay, almost as big as the bottle or jar itself, with a hollow in it, to admit the neck of the bottle, made round and about four inches long; this is to preserve the liquor.

If the liquor take any vent it will be sour presently, so that when we buy any of it of the ships from China returning to Madras, or Fort St. George, where it is then sold, or of the Chinese themselves, of whom I have bought it at Achin and Bencoolen in Sumatra, if the clay be cracked, or the liquor motherly, we make them take it again. A quart jar there is worth sixpence. Besides this present from the governor there was a captain of a junk sent two jars of arak, and abundance of pineapples and watermelons.

Captain Read sent ashore as a present to the governor a curious Spanish silver-hilted rapier, an English carbine, and a gold chain, and when the officer went ashore three guns were fired. In the afternoon the governor sent off the same officer again to compliment the captain for his civility, and promised to retaliate his kindness before we departed; but we had such blustering weather afterward that no boat could come aboard.

We stayed here till the 29th day and then sailed from hence with the wind at south-west and pretty fair weather. We now directed our course for some islands we had chosen to go to that lie between Formosa and Luconia. They are laid down in our plots without any name, only with a figure of 5, denoting the number of them. It was supposed by us that these islands had no inhabitants, because they had not any name by our hydrographers. Therefore we thought to lie there secure, and be pretty near the island Luconia, which we did still intend to visit.