X. (continued 3)

These measurements, applied at three chief regions of the body, namely, the head, the trunk, and the upper and lower extremities, are intended to be scientifically discussed in a special memoir,[25] and we accordingly confine ourselves here to remarking that the various points of measurements were not only determined in an anthropological point of view, but that among the 68 different categories, into which these measurements are naturally distributed, there occur some which supply many curious points of inquiry, as also considerable assistance not merely to national economics, the result of the light thrown upon the subject of the average of muscular strength of the various races as found by the dynamometer, but also to the graphic art, with respect to a more accurate acquaintance with the human skeleton as well as the entire figure.

In like manner we never omitted to collect some of the hair of the head from as many as possible of the various individuals measured, since the laborious researches of Peter Brown of Philadelphia on the human hair, have elevated it into a very remarkable means of tracing the origin of the various disparities of race.

It must also be considered as an especial boon for the science of comparative anatomy, as well as universal ethnography, that we succeeded in bringing away with us from the Nicobar Islands the skulls of two of the natives.

Lastly, a small collection of twenty-three subjects of ethnographical inquiry, collected from the various islands, will be found useful, partly as illustrating the information already obtained, partly as affording evidence of the amount of culture of the inhabitants of the Nicobar Archipelago.

We are still called upon to answer the question already propounded, whether the Nicobar Islands are suited as the site of a colony, and whether the numerous attempts already made in this direction did not probably fall through for other reasons than those of climate.

According to inquiries instituted by the members of the Austrian Expedition, this insular group, by its geographical position in one of the very chiefest commercial routes of the world, and by the richness and abundance of the products of its soil, offers sufficient points of attraction to interest any leading commercial or maritime power, in securing possession of it. With regard to any colonization or cultivation of the soil by free European immigrants, there is as little to be said as of almost any other islands in the tropics. In order to make such spots aids to the extension of civilization, the utmost certainty of rule is imperatively necessary, such as was instituted with such marvellous results by England in Pulo Penang, Singapore, Sydney, &c. The climate of the Nicobars is very far from being so deadly, that mere residence upon them must speedily prove fatal to Europeans, and it will undoubtedly be signally ameliorated by a partial clearing of the forests, cultivation of the soil, channelling of the rivers, and drainage of the swamps. All such works however must be executed by Malay or Indian labourers, under the superintendence of Europeans. From what we have learned by personal observation of the surprising influence which the transportation system has exercised in Australia upon the cultivation and development of the soil, as also upon the social condition of the convicts themselves, we do not hesitate, despite the distrust of experiments of such a nature which prevails in certain philosophic circles of Europe, to express our opinion, that with a little prudence and forbearance convict labourers in abundance could be imported, who would be at once better off, more contented, and more disposed to do honour to their man's estate than as at present confined at home in their dreary prison cells.[26]

If the various experiments hitherto made have all fallen through, the "effect defective" undoubtedly arises from the deficiency of means requisite for such an undertaking, and in the limited number of men, merely humanly speaking, who were engaged in such enterprises. The mere prime cost of clearing and cultivation, so as to enable them to anticipate a good return for their labour, must be set down as at the lowest computation between £100,000 and £150,000; the number of labourers employed in the undertaking at from 300 to 400; of whom all skilled artisans, such as carpenters, joiners, locksmiths, blacksmiths, bricklayers, masons, &c., must accompany the settlers from Europe.

The sums expended for the first outlay must not however be set down as entirely thrown away, since the fertility of the islands in those colonial products that are most valuable, and the enormous quantity of cocoa-nut palms, must, under the impulse of cultivation and industrious habits, speedily make returns in countless tides of prosperity. So far as regards the aboriginal population, of whom there are not above 5000 or 6000 on all the islands, they would experience but little annoyance from the carrying out of such an enterprise. In fact, morally and materially they could only gain from the introduction of a foreign element. At present they are confined to the narrow belt of shore, where grows the cocoa-palm, their sole support. The interior of the island, so prolific in natural wealth of the most varied description, and which would become infinitely more valuable under a proper development of its capabilities, is utterly unknown and valueless to the native.

Once a settlement were fairly set a-going on the above-mentioned principles, the inhabitants of the Nicobar Archipelago would be placed under the tutelage of European civilization, and in their transactions would no longer be exposed to the knavery and caprices of ships' captains. It would be necessary to watch over the natives as over minors, so as not alone to secure for them material benefits, but by liberal sympathetic treatment as the groundwork of their education, gradually to establish that faith whose introduction hitherto, despite numerous praiseworthy endeavours in the past as well as the present century, has been doomed to be unsuccessful through a variety of extraneous circumstances. Moreover, the Nicobar Archipelago would be a most convenient central station whence to impart the blessings of Christianity to the pagans of the adjoining groups of islands.

MEMORANDUM

Relating to those points of the Nicobar Archipelago whose geographical position was ascertained by the Novara Expedition.

PLACE OF OBSERVATION.Latitude North. Longitude East from Greenwich.

Sáui Cove9°14′8″ 92°44′46″

Komios9732 924342

Morrock Bay83230 933410

Kauláha8210 932940

Kondul71217 933957

Galatea Cove64826 934951

A very careful measurement, made at the point of observation in Sáui, of the Moon's distance from Jupiter, gave 6 h. 11 min. 2 sec., or 92° 45′ 30″ East.

Our voyage from the south side of Great Nicobar to Singapore occupied twenty days. This time the fine weather seemed to have entirely abandoned us. Day and night, at almost all hours and from all parts of the sky, we encountered severe thunder-storms, with water-spouts, lightning, thunder, and the most tremendous rain-squalls. We could thoroughly realize that we were in the tropics at the beginning of the rainy season. One day during the prevalence of one of those floods, five tons during the first half hour, and in the course of an hour and a half eight tons, or 32,000 pints of water, were collected by the sailors in buckets and other similar utensils. These storms came now from the coast of Sumatra, now from the Malay peninsula, or yet again from the Straits of Malacca, and gave our jolly tars not a moment of repose. These tempests alternated with calms accompanied by a most oppressive sweltering hot temperature, and if by chance a breeze sprang up, it was sure to come out of the straits dead against us, and, coupled with the strong contrary current, fairly arrested our progress. Thus tacking about for 14 days between the north shore of Sumatra and Junk-Ceylon, we made as much way in that time as a fast steamer would have done in as many hours, and it was but poor consolation to us that several ships close to us, perhaps six or eight, shared the same adverse destiny.

An incident of a very singular nature suddenly gave us all plenty of excitement. As our deeply respected chaplain was sitting reading one evening in his cabin, he became sensible of a peculiar pressure on his foot; the servant being called, made his appearance with a candle, and on examining the floor was horror-struck at perceiving a pretty large sea-snake (Chorsydrus fasciatus), coiled round the foot of the priest. In the same instant this gentleman instinctively rid himself of the poisonous reptile by a vigorous kick, while the various persons who hurried to the spot were resolved they would secure this dangerous assailant dead or alive. Within the narrow limits of a ship's state-room, a campaign is speedily brought to a close. His snakeship was forthwith routed out of his asylum, and hacked into more pieces than was exactly agreeable to the zoologists, who had been extremely anxious, and even expected, to preserve this now doubly interesting reptile almost uninjured in spirits of wine. It was a tolerably large specimen, one inch thick, and about three feet long, and had apparently either wriggled up the cable, or had been washed on board by a wave through the open sky-light of the cabin.

At length on the 9th of April wind and weather changed, and, in company with the entire squadron of companions in misfortune, we sailed gaily into the Straits of Malacca, with all sail set, and dead before the wind. On the 11th of April, early in the morning, we found Pulo Penang (also called Areca, or Prince of Wales' Island) lying broad on our port beam. Its chains of forest-clad mountains, gloomy, and overcast with dense masses of cloud, prevented our realizing the charms of this possession of England, such as they have been described by all who have visited it.

On the 12th of April we steered between the Sambelongs, or Nine Islands, and the island of Djara, and caught a glimpse of the lofty well-wooded mountains of the kingdom of Perah. The channel through these straits is becoming more and more contracted owing to the débouche at this point of the river Perah. Shallow sand-banks and small rocky islands impede the navigation, and it is a common precaution for ships to cast anchor at the least approach of foul weather, an operation which is the more readily set about that the water is nowhere above twenty fathoms, but good holding ground throughout the straits. Moreover, the charts of these regions are thoroughly reliable and accurate, while at the most dangerous spot, where a sand-bank with only one fathom of water over it lies right in the tracks of vessels, a light-ship is moored, which we passed on the 13th of April, and continued our voyage through the night in perfect safety.

On the morning of the 14th April, the hill of Ophir (called also Ledang or Pudang), 5700 feet high, lay fair before us. We now found ourselves opposite the town of Malacca. The channel at this point approaches so close to the mainland, that we could easily distinguish churches and houses, and the frigate exchanged signals with the neighbouring semaphore.

Malacca, once the Malay capital, has at present altogether lost its former importance, and of the three English colonies in the Straits of Malacca, usually known as the Straits Settlements, is the least important in either a political or a commercial sense. The entire region was, until within these few years, in most evil repute for the atrocious piracies perpetrated here. Natives used to lie in wait in small canoes filled with merchandise of all sorts, with which they boarded the passing ships, and while these were supplying themselves with fruit and fresh provisions, the former were spying the number of crew, as also the means of defence of the unfortunate vessel; after which it usually happened, that during the night the more defenceless of them, while becalmed or lying at anchor, would be attacked by an overwhelming force of pirates and ruthlessly plundered. Captain Steen Bille relates, that even so late as 1846, he loaded his cannon with shot, and maintained extra vigilance during the night.

We now sped along, still favoured by the wind, during the ensuing night, and on the morning of the 15th April had the satisfaction of reaching the entrance of the bay of Singapore, without once having to lie at anchor in the straits. The landscape that lay outstretched before us was splendid,—lofty wooded islands on the coast of Sumatra, and a whole archipelago of islets lay around us, in the channels between which prahus were sailing about, while Chinese junks, full-rigged ships and barques, were working in or out as the case might be, all intimating the proximity of a great mart of commerce. Equally fortunate as in the straits was our passage through the labyrinth of islands, through which a vessel must wind in order to reach Singapore. And this roadstead itself, what a contrast it presented to the lovely beach of the Nicobar Islands! Here were thousands of ships of all sizes and rigs, and the flags of nearly all sea-faring nations in the world. We found at anchor the English frigate Amethyst, and the screw corvette Niger; and having warped ourselves into their vicinity, by 2 P.M. we had cast anchor in 13 fathoms water. Almost immediately afterwards an officer came off from the Amethyst to welcome us, and to impart to us the unpleasant intelligence that cholera had been raging in the city for some weeks past, and had also committed great havoc among the shipping in harbour. Even the captain and one of the crew of an English merchantman had succumbed but a few hours previously to this fell scourge, and the vessel had her flag half-mast high as a signal of mourning. This information at once deranged all our plans and projects with respect to Singapore, and had we not been compelled to victual here, we should at once have set sail. However, under the circumstances there was nothing to do but to spend five or six days at Singapore, and this breathing-space we availed ourselves of to obtain as much information as possible both by eye and ear touching this very remarkable colony, and its not less interesting inhabitants.

FOOTNOTES:

A Forest Scene in Singapore.