Omba, Pentare, Timor

We stayed at Bouton but till the 12th day because it was a bad harbour and foul ground, and a bad time of the year too, for the tornadoes began to come in thick and strong.

When we went to weigh our anchor it was hooked in a rock, and we broke our cable, and could not get our anchor though we strove hard for it; so we went away and left it there.

We had the wind at north-north-east and we steered towards the south-east and fell in with four or five small islands that lie in 5 degrees 40 minutes south latitude and about 5 leagues from Callasusung harbour.

These islands appeared very green with coconut-trees. We saw 3 towns on them, and heard a drum all night, for we were got in among shoals, and could not get out again till the next day.

We knew not whether the drum were for fear of us or that they were making merry, as it is usual in these parts to do all the night, singing and dancing till morning.

We found a pretty strong tide here, the flood setting to the southward and the ebb to the northward.

These shoals and many other that are not laid down in our charts lie on the south-west side of the islands where we heard the drum, about a league from them.

At last we passed between the islands and tried for a passage on the east side. We met with divers shoals on this side also, but found channels to pass through.

So we steered away for the island Timor, intending to pass out by it. We had the winds commonly at west-south-west and south-west hard gales and rainy weather.

The 16th day we got clear of the shoals and steered south by east with the wind at west-south-west but veering every half hour, sometimes at south-west and then again at west, and sometimes at north-north-west, bringing much rain with thunder and lightning.

OMBA, PENTARE, TIMOR, ETC.

The 20th day we passed by the island Omba which is a pretty high island lying in latitude 8 degrees 20 minutes and not above 6 leagues from the north-east part of the island Timor.

It is about 13 leagues long and 5 leagues wide.

About 8 leagues to the west of Omba is another pretty large island called Pentare.

We saw on it abundance of smokes by day and fires by night, and a large town on the north side of it, not far from the sea; but it was such bad weather that we did not go ashore.

SHOALS

Between Omba and Pentare and in the mid-channel. There is a small low sandy island with great shoals on either side.

But there is a very good channel close by Pentare, between that and the shoals about the small isle. We were three days beating off and on, not having a wind, for it was at south-south-west.

The 23rd day in the evening, having a small gale at north, we got through, keeping close by Pentare. The tide of ebb here set out to the southward, by which we were helped through, for we had but little wind.

But this tide, which did us a kindness in setting us through, had like to have ruined us afterwards.

There are 2 small islands lying at the south end of the channel we came through. Towards these islands the tide hurried us so swiftly that we very narrowly escaped being driven ashore.

The little wind we had before at north dying away, we had not one breath of wind when we came there, neither was there any anchor-ground.

But we got out our oars and rowed, yet all in vain; for the tide set wholly on one of these small islands that we were forced with might and main strength to bear off the ship by thrusting with our oars against the shore, which was a steep bank, and by this means we presently drove away clear of danger. Having a little wind in the night at north, we steered away south-south-west.

In the morning again we had the wind at west-south-west and steered south, and the wind coming to the west-north-west we steered south-west to get clear of the south-west end of the island Timor.

The 29th day we saw the north-west point of Timor south-east by east distant about 8 leagues.

Timor is a long high mountainous island stretching north-east and south-west. It is about 70 leagues long and 15 or 16 wide, the middle of the island is in latitude about 9 degrees south.

The Portuguese trade to this island. But I know nothing of its produce besides coir for making cables, of which there is mention Chapter 10.

The 27th day we saw two small islands which lie near the south-west end of Timor. They bear from us south-east. We had very hard gales of wind and still with a great deal of rain; the wind at west and west-south-west.