"The town called Songi is of considerable size, and the entire
population along the river may certainty be reckoned at from 2000
to 3000 persons, independent of Dyaks. The country has a flourishing
aspect, but the soil is represented as bad, being soft and muddy. There
is a good deal of trade from this river, and it annually sends several
large prahus to Singapore: two were lying off the town when we arrived,
and two others had sailed for that place twenty days before. The
produce of the country is bees-wax, birds'-nests, rice, &c. &c., but
they seem to be procured in less abundance than in the other contiguous
rivers. There is nothing peculiar about the Malay population, except
that, generally speaking, it struck me, they appeared better off than
the people of Sarawak, or others I have visited hereabouts. We ascended
the river by night, anchored a short distance from the Songi, in a
tide-way like a sluice, and entered the smaller river shortly after
daylight. Having sent the Pangerans ahead to advise Seriff Sahib of our
arrival, we pulled slowly up to the campong of the Data Jembrong, where
we brought up to breakfast. Data Jembrong is a native of Mindanao,
an Illanun and a pirate; he is slightly advanced in years, but stout
and resolute-looking, and of a most polite demeanor--as oily-tongued
a cut-throat as a gentleman would wish to associate with. He spoke
of his former life without hesitation, and confessed himself rather
apprehensive of going to Singapore. He was remarkably civil, and sent
us a breakfast of some fruit, salt fish, stale turtles' eggs, and
coffee sweetened with syrup; but spite of all this, his blood-thirsty
education and habits prejudiced me against him. Breakfast finished,
we went forward to visit Seriff Sahib, who received us in an open
hall; promised to get us as many animals as he could now; regretted
our short stay, and assured me he would collect more by the time I
returned. Among these is to be a mias pappan, living or dead. I at
the same time offered ten dollars for the skeleton belonging to the
hand already in my possession, and a less sum for the parts. Being the
first Europeans Seriff Sahib had ever met, he was rather puzzled to
know what we were like; but we had every reason to be satisfied with
his kindness and the civility of his people: the inhabitants, though
crowding to see us, are by no means intrusive, and their curiosity
is too natural to be harshly repressed. I need hardly remark here
how very erroneously the position of the Sadung river is laid down in
the charts, it being placed in the bay, to the westward of Santobong,
and nearly in the position of the Samatan river.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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