The population of the Portuguese at Bintan is considerable; they live at their ease; their houses are large, good, and well-furnished, and they have a decent church. The Negro inhabitants of this part are the Felups; they speak a language peculiar to themselves, and are idolaters. Those who live up the country or at a distance from the Europeans, are almost savages: they hunt other Negroes that pass through their territories; but they respect the Whites, and make it a rule never to offer them the slightest insult. Those of Bintan or its environs who are occupied in commerce, are gentle, frank, and civilized; they like strangers, are always ready to render them service, and are candid and honest in their commercial dealings. About seven leagues from Bintan is the village of Gereges. The French and English formerly had factories here, but they are now abandoned: the Portuguese have, however, established themselves in this village in great numbers. The country is intersected by a number of little rivers; and journeys as well as commerce are here performed by water. The king of this little state resides about a quarter of a league from Gereges; his houses, and those of his women, officers, and slaves, form a large village, which is built without order or regularity on a level soil well covered with trees. The houses are surrounded by several palisades formed of large piles, ten or twelve feet high, and each door is, according to custom, very low and narrow. The subjects of this prince are reputed brave, and adroit in the use of arms. The English have more than once experienced the effects of their skill, particularly on an occasion which I shall describe. They had some misunderstanding with the alquier of Gereges and the officers of the king. The English complained to the prince and asserted, that as he had not done them justice, they would do it to themselves. With this view they armed and manned the largest vessel which had entered the river, and seemed by their preparations as if they intended to land and ravage the country, as they came to anchor opposite the village. The prince, far from being alarmed at this expedition, assembled his troops, and dispersed them in ambush along the river; when, as soon as the English begun the attack, the Negroes opened, and kept up for several hours such a rapid fire of musquetry, that several of the enemy were killed and wounded, and their intentions rendered abortive. The king commanded in person, and when he saw that the English could no longer appear above deck, he ordered his troops to cease firing, and ranged them towards the shore in a threatening position. The result was, that the English were obliged to weigh anchor and let their vessel drop down with the tide. An accommodation was then set on foot, which the English purchased dearly.