om we inquired for the Rajah, thinking his
boat was far ahead of us, but they said they had seen nothing of him.
Mr. Crookshank then begged them to bring a boat in which he could take
Bertha up to Linga Fort that evening, instead of her remaining another
night in the pinnace. We went on as long as the tide lasted, and then
anchored in the Batang Lupar. Again we made a fire on deck, and after
taking some food, settled ourselves for the night. At eleven o'clock the
promised boat came for Bertha and Mr. Crookshank, and Mrs. Stahl went
with them as nurse; they thought nothing could be worse than spending
another night on board the pinnace, but I fear the little boat journey
was still more painful. When they reached Linga, they found only Malays
in the fort, and the dwelling-house shut up, for Mr. Johnson was at
Sakarran. They had to carry Mrs. Crookshank up a ladder into the fort,
and lay her on a table; but happily Mr. Chambers arrived that night from
Banting, and furnished a curtain as a screen, and pillows from his boat
to make a more comfortable couch. As we were setting off again next
morning, we met Mr. Johnson in a long boat, going straight off to
Kuching. He was lying ill of fever at Sakarran, when his Malays roused
him by saying, without preface--"The news is bad, Tuan: the Rajah is
killed and Kuching in the hands of the rebel Chinese." Upon this he
jumped up, called together the chiefs, and bidding them follow him with
a strong force of Dyaks, he set off himself without calling at Linga by
the way. When we told him that Rajah was alive and on his way to Linga,
he turned back with us, and taking me, my ayah, and the children into
his boat, soon landed us at his house. This was Tuesday, but we heard
nothing of the Rajah until Friday. Mr. Johnson, after breakfasting with
us at his house, went on to Kuching, and found that, after we lost sight
of the Rajah's war boat, they had fallen in with the steamer belonging
to the Borneo Company, the _Sir James Brooke_, just entering the river.
Mr. Helms' schooner also came across her, so all the passengers in the
schooner and the war boat had moved into the steamer, and they
immediately proceeded up the river, preparing the guns on board to
attack as soon as they reached the town. What must have been the
feelings of the Chinese in the fort when they saw the smoke of the
steamer curling above the trees, and then received one ten-pounder shot
after another into their midst! They fi