Joseph Banks's Descriptions of Places, Batavia, page 407

Page 407

Joseph Banks's Descriptions of Places

Batavia

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Batavia (continued)

Nor any right to have any. Nutmegs have been in the same manner extirpated in all the Islands except their native Banda, which easily supplys this world, and would as easily supply another if the Duch had but another to supply. Of nutmegs however there certainly are a few upon the Eastern coast of New Guinea, a place on which the Duch hardly dare set their feet on account of the treachery and warlike disposition of the natives; there may be also both Cloves and nutmegs upon others of the Islands far to the Eastward, for those I beleive neither the Dutch or any other nation seem to think it worth while to examine at all into.

The town of Batavia, tho the Capital of the Duch Dominions in India, is so far from being peopled with Dutch men that I may safely affirm that of the Europeans inhabiting it and its neighbourhood not one fifth part are Dutchmen; besides these are Native, Portugese, Indians, and Chinese, the two last many times exceeding the Europeans in Number. Of Each of these I shall speak seperately, beginning with the Europeans, of which there were some especialy in the troops of almost

Voyaging Accounts

© Derived from State Library of NSW Transcription of Banks's Journal page (vol. 2) 481, February 2004
Published by kind permission of the Library
To cite this page use: https://paulturnbull.org/project/southseas/journals/-banks_remarks-407.html