Besides their girdle and bracelets, formerly mentioned, the _Popoes_, or inhabitants of the Thousand Isles, wear a bit of stick, the size of a tobacco-pipe and the length of a finger, thrust through the gristle of the nose, which they think renders them terrible to their enemies, as some Europeans consider mustachios. They are the worst and most savage people in all the South Seas. The continent of _New Guinea_ appeared a high country, extremely full of trees and plants of a vast variety of kinds, so that, in sailing 400 leagues along its coast, they did not observe one barren spot. Our author thinks that it probably contains many precious commodities, as rich metals and valuable spices, especially as most of the countries hitherto discovered under the same parallel are not deficient in such riches. He was afterwards assured, that some of the free burgesses in the Moluccas go annually to New Guinea, where they exchange small pieces of iron for nutmegs. Schouten and other navigators conceived high ideas of this country, and represented it as one of the finest and richest in the world; but they were unable to penetrate any way into the interior, which could not be done with a small force, as it is extremely populous, and the natives are mostly well armed, and of a martial disposition. Roggewein and his officers were at this time in considerable doubts, whether to prosecute the route formerly followed by Dampier, or to go by Ternate, Tidore, and Bacian, as the less dangerous passage. To gain time, however, they chose the former, as they most otherwise have coasted round the last-mentioned islands, in their way to the Moluccas. In this view, they steered along shore, or rather through an innumerable chain of small islands, extending from the western point of New Guinea to the island of Gilolo, making their passage with much difficulty and danger, and were greatly delighted and astonished on getting sight of the island of _Bouro_, in lat. 2° S. [3° 30' S. and long. 127° E.] the most eastern country in which the Dutch East-India Company, maintain a factory. This island is mostly pretty high land, and abounds every where with trees and shrubs of various kinds. On their arrival upon its coast, they were spoken with by a small vessel, in which were two white men and several blacks. The white men examined them very strictly to whom they belonged, whence they came, and whither they were bound. To which they answered, that they came from New Guinea, and were going to Batavia, but wisely concealed belonging to the West-India Company, knowing that the East-India Company permitted no vessels, except their own, to navigate these seas, and had given strict orders to capture all strange vessels that might appear there. Yet, in spite of these precautions, the English sometimes find their way among these islands, to the no small displeasure of the Dutch company, although they keep ships cruizing here during both monsoons, to preserve their monopoly of spices.