be constantly at work to keep
them under.

"Leaving Boele Comba, as I before said, we shaped our course for
Tanjong Berak, passing between that point and the north island. The
passage is excellent, clear of all danger, as far as we could see,
with deep water. The rocks reported to exist by Horsburgh, and put
down on Norie's chart, have no existence. The Bugis prahus always use
this channel, and know them not; and the captain of a Dutch cruiser
informed me that he had often run through the passage at night,
and that it was clear of all danger or obstruction.

"My own observation went to verify the fact, for every part of the
passage appears deep and clear, and we passed over the spots where
these rocks are marked. Approaching Tanjong Berak, there is a sandy
beach, where a vessel may get anchorage in case the wind dies away. The
tides in the channel are strong; here, and along the south coast, the
ebb runs from the eastward, the flood from the west. Having cleared
the channel, we hauled into the Bay of Boni, which, although running
in a north and south direction, has some headlands extending to the
eastward. There are two places marked on the chart, viz. Berak and
Tiero; but these, instead of being towns or villages, are names of
districts; the first, reaching from Tanjong Berak, about 15 miles,
till it joins Tiero; Tiero, extending from the northern confine of
Berak to Tanjong Labu, 15 miles in all. To the northward and eastward
is a high island called Balunrueh. From Tanjong Berak the water along
the coast is very deep; no soundings with 50 fathoms. Toward evening we
went into Tiero Bay, a pretty secluded spot. The southern part of the
bay is foul, having a reef visible at low water, The northern headland
has a spit running from it, with 14 fathom half a mile (or little more)
off. Within the bay there is no bottom with 50 fathom till near its
northern extremity, where the water shoals suddenly. Running in, in
a squall, we got into 3 1/4 fathom, where we anchored. This country
belongs to the Dutch as far as Point Labu.

"_29th._--Calm all day. Sounded the bay: the southern point has a
steep coral reef nearly a quarter of a mile off. The southern part of
the bay is inclosed by a reef, part of which seems to me artificial,
for the purpose of catching fish, and is shallow: outside the reef
the water is deep dose to. The western shore is lined by a reef
close to it, and the water is deep. The center part of the bay is
v