JOINT VOYAGE OF THE TWO SHIPS.--VOYAGE OF THE PERA BY HERSELF UNDER CARSTENSZ, AFTER THE ARNHEM HAD PARTED COMPANY WITH HER [*]. [* This took place on April 27.] A. _Letter of the G.-G. and Counc. to the Managers of the E.I.C, dated January 3, 1624._ ...In the month of January 1623, Governor Van Speult dispatched from Amboina the yachts Arnhem and Pera, for the purpose of concluding treaties of friend ship with the natives of Quey, Aroe and Tenimber, and of further discovering and {Page 22} exploring the land of Nova Guinea; as Your Worships may gather from the enclosed document, the islanders aforesaid have of their own free will placed themselves under the obedience and dominion of their High Mightinesses the States-General of the United Netherlands, and have promised to come and trade with our fortresses in Banda and Amboyna. From there the yachts ran over to Nova Guinea and skirted the said coast as far as 17° 8' Southern Latitude our men landed in sundry places, but found nothing but wild coasts, barren land and extremely cruel, savage and barbarous natives, who surprised and murdered nine of our men, partly owing to their own negligence; according to the report we have received of the said coast, there would be nothing in particular to be got there; what winds, currents, shores, rivers, bights, capes, forelands and other features of the coast have been further met with, surveyed and explored, Your Worships may gather from the enclosed journal and minutes, to which we would beg leave to refer you for further particulars... B. _Journal kept by JAN CARSTENSZ [*] on his voyage to Nova Guinea..._ [* CARSTENSZ got the Instructions originally drawn up for the ships Haringh and Hazewind. (See VAN DIJK, Carpentaria, pp. 9-10).] A.D. 1623. _In the name of God Amen._ JANUARY. On Saturday the 21st we weighed anchor before Amboyna and set sail from there, together with the yacht Aernem...On Saturday the 28th...about 3 o'clock in the afternoon...we anchored off the east side of the island of Quey. The following night...we made for Aro on an East-by-North and Eastern course. On Saturday the 29th in the evening we dropped anchor near the northern island of Aro. FEBRUARY. On the 6th...the wind being south-east by east, we set sail again for the island which in some charts [*] is called Ceram, and in others de Papues; course held north-east by north; in the evening N.N.E.; about midnight it fell a calm; sailed 6 miles. [* Cf. _Remarkable Maps_ II, 2, II, 3. Under date of March 31 the present journal once more refers to this mistake in the older charts.] {Page 23} In the morning of the 6th the wind was N.E. with a tolerable breeze, course held N.N.W., we saw high land ahead both on the lee and the weather bow--at noon latitude 4° 57', sailed three miles on the said course; for the rest of the day we had a calm, towards the evening the wind went round to S.E., course held N.E. by E., sailed 4 miles.