We sailed thence on the 29th July, passing the S.W. end of Formosa, a large island reaching from lat. 22° to 25° 18' both N. and in long. 121° E. It was formerly well inhabited by the Chinese, and frequented by the English; but the Tartars have since spoiled the harbour, lest the Chinese should fortify themselves there. On the 6th August we came to anchor on the east side of the northermost of the _Five Islands_, or _Bashees_, in fifteen fathoms. These islands are from the latitude of 20° 26' to 21° 13' both N. and long. 121° 50' E. Contrary to our expectations, we found three or four large towns on the island at which we anchored. The westmost of these islands, which the Dutch among us named _Orange_ isle, is the largest, being seven or eight leagues from N. to S. and two from E. to W. There are two other large islands to the S. of this; the northern of which we named _Grafton_ isle, which is four leagues from N. to S. and a league and a half from E. to W. The other, and most southerly, we named _Monmouth_ isle, being three leagues from N. to S. and one from E. to W. Two other isles, lying E. and W. between Monmouth isle and the S. end of Orange isle, we called _Bashee_ isle, from a certain liquor we drank there, and _Goat_ isle. _Orange_ isle is the largest, but barren, rocky, and uninhabited, and has no anchorage on its coasts. _Monmouth_ and _Grafton_ isles are both hilly, but well inhabited. _Goat_ isle and _Bashee_ isle are flat, the former having a town. The hills in all these isles are rocky; but the intermediate vallies are fertile in grass, plantains, bananas, pine-apples, pompions, sugar-canes, potatoes, and some cotton, and are well supplied with brooks of fresh water. They are also well stored with goats and hogs, but have hardly any fowls, either wild or tame. The natives are short and thick, with round faces and thick eye-brows, with hazel-coloured eyes, rather small, yet larger than those of the Chinese. Their noses are short and low; their mouths and lips middle-sized, with white teeth; and their hair is thick, black, and lank, which they cut short. Their complexion is of a dark copper colour, and they go all bare-headed, having for the most part no clothes, except a clout about the middle, though some have jackets of plantain leaves, as rough as a bear-skin. The women have a short petticoat of coarse calico, reaching a little below the knees, and both sexes wear ear-rings of a yellow metal dug from their mountains, having the weight and colour of gold, but somewhat paler. Whether it be in reality gold or not, I cannot say, but it looked of a fine colour at first, which afterwards faded, which made us suspect it, and we therefore bought very little. We observed that the natives smeared it with a red earth, and then made it red-hot in a quick fire, which restored its former colour.