Our thirteen prahus had all been fitted out in and about Singapore. I
wish you could have seen them, Touhan [_Tuean_, Sir]. These prahus we see
here are nothing to them, such brass guns, such long pendants, such
creeses [Malay _kris_, dagger]! Allah-il-Allah! Our Datoos [_datuk_, a
chief] were indeed great men!

Sailing along the coast as high as Patani, we then crossed over to
Borneo, two Illanoon prahus acting as pilots, and reached a place
called Sambas [West Borneo]: there we fought the Chinese and Dutchmen,
who ill-treat our countrymen, and are trying to drive the Malays out of
that country. Gold-dust and slaves in large quantities were here taken,
most of the latter being our countrymen of Sumatra and Java, who are
captured and sold to the planters and miners of the Dutch settlements.

"Do you mean to say," I asked, "that the Dutch countenance such
traffic?"

"The Hollanders," replied Jadee, "have been the bane of the Malay race;
no one knows the amount of villainy, the bloody cruelty of their system
towards us. They drive us into our prahus to escape their taxes and
laws, and then declare us pirates and put us to death. There are natives
in our crew, Touhan, of Sumatra and Java, of Bianca [Banka] and Borneo;
ask them why they hate the Dutchmen; why they would kill a Dutchman. It
is because the Dutchman is a false man, not like the white man
[English]. The Hollander stabs in the dark; he is a liar!"

However, from Borneo we sailed to Biliton [island between Banka and
Borneo] and Bianca, and there waited for some large junks that were
expected. Our cruise had been so far successful, and we feasted
away--fighting cocks, smoking opium and eating white rice. At last our
scouts told us that a junk was in sight. She came, a lofty-sided one of
Fokien [Fuhkien]. We knew these Amoy men would fight like tiger-cats
for their sugar and silks; and as the breeze was fresh, we only kept her
in sight by keeping close inshore and following her. Not to frighten the
Chinamen, we did not hoist sail but made our slaves pull. "Oh!" said
Jadee, warming up with the recollection of the event--"oh! it was fine
to feel what brave fellows we then were!"

Towards night we made sail and closed upon the junk, and at daylight it
fell a stark calm, and we went at our prize like sharks. All our
fighting men put on their war-dresses; the Illanoons danced their
war-dance, and all our gongs sounded as we opened out to attack her on
different