Acting upon the Temanggong's assurance, the Sarawak vessels had gone to Muka, but off the mouth the nakodas had been warned that they would be fired on if they entered, and the bearer of a friendly letter from the Tuan Besar to the Pangiran Nipa was refused admittance. With the aid of the Temanggong's letter, the Tuan Besar determined to try by friendly negotiations to get Pangiran Nipa to be reasonable, and failing that to send the Tuan Muda on to Bruni to complain to the Sultan. In June, 1860, they anchored off the bar, and a Sambas Malay, the nakoda of a vessel flying Dutch colours, was commissioned to take in a letter saying that the Tuan Besar had come as a friend, and as bearer of a letter from the Pangiran Temanggong of Bruni, to the effect that Muka was not to be closed to Sarawak traders. No reply was vouchsafed, and with telescopes it was observed from the gunboats that earthworks were being thrown up at the mouth of the river. The Tuan Besar then decided to take up the message himself, and two small boats were sent in to sound the bar, upon which a large war prahu came out and fired at them. This was a declaration of war, and the Tuan Besar resolved to let them have what they invoked. The following is an account of the affair as given by the Tuan Muda in his book, _Ten Years in Sarawak_, 1866: We plainly perceived that the enemy was preparing in earnest for opposition. Temporary stockades were being erected at the entrance and many hundreds of people were collecting heaps of wood in various places on the shore; these were to be burnt, and their intention was to raise a strong breeze to drive us from our anchors and drift us on to the coast. The idea of the effect was correct, that excess of heat would produce a vacuum, and cause an inshore current of air. However, their fires were not sufficient, and the expected effect did not follow. [Illustration] The town of Muka lies about two miles up the river of the same name, and is situated on both banks of that river and of another, the Telian, smaller in volume, that here flows into it. At the mouth was not only the usual bar, the channel through which had been staked to obstruct the entrance, but also a long sandy finger of land on the north side, which at that time deflected the tortuous stream. Behind the gunboats was a fleet of traders impatient to enter and obtain their cargoes; for which they were more eager than for exposure to danger.