His House, Storehouses, And
Offices Were In A Yard Surrounded By A Tall Bamboo Fence, And
Were Entirely Constructed Of Bamboo With A Thatch Of Grass, The
Only Available Building Materials.
Even these were now very
scarce, owing to the great consumption in rebuilding the place
since the great fire some months before, which in an hour or two
had destroyed every building in the town.
The next day I went to see Mr. S., another merchant to whom I had
brought letters of introduction, and who lived about seven miles
off. Mr. Carter kindly lent me a horse, and I was accompanied by
a young Dutch gentleman residing at Ampanam, who offered to be my
guide. We first passed through the town and suburbs along a
straight road bordered by mud walls and a fine avenue of lofty
trees; then through rice-fields, irrigated in the same manner as
I had seen them at Bileling; and afterwards over sandy pastures
near the sea, and occasionally along the beach itself. Mr. S.
received us kindly, and offered me a residence at his house
should I think the neighbourhood favourable for my pursuits.
After an early breakfast we went out to explore, taking guns and
insect nets. We reached some low hills which seemed to offer the
most favourable ground, passing over swamps, sandy flats
overgrown with coarse sedges, and through pastures and cultivated
grounds, finding however very little in the way of either birds
or insects. On our way we passed one or two human skeletons,
enclosed within a small bamboo fence, with the clothes, pillow,
mat, and betel-box of the unfortunate individual, who had been
either murdered or executed.
Enter page number
PreviousNext
Page 210 of 419
Words from 57274 to 57554
of 114260
