On the 23d, he
returned to Macassar by sea, and the other officer, who was also an
ensign, remained to take the command of the soldiers that were still
left at this place.

The season now approached in which navigation to the westward would be
again practicable, which gave us all great pleasure; especially as
putrid diseases had begun to make their appearance among us, and a
putrid fever had carried off one of our people.

On the 7th of May, the resident gave me a long letter from the governor
of Macassar, which was written in Dutch, and of which he gave me the
best interpretation he was able; The general purport of it was, that he
had heard a letter had been sent to me, charging him, in conjunction
with the king of Bony, with a design to cut us off: That the letter was
altogether false, exculpating himself with the roost solemn
protestations, and requiring the letter to be delivered up, that the
writer might be brought to such punishment as he deserved. It is
scarcely necessary to say, that I did not deliver up the letter, because
the writer would certainly have been punished with equal severity
whether it was true or false; but I returned the governor a polite
answer, in which I justified the measures I had taken, without imputing
any evil design to him or his allies; and indeed there is the greatest
reason to believe, that there was not sufficient ground for the charge
contained in the letter, though it is not equally probable that the
writer believed it to be false.

At day-break on Sunday the 22d of May, we sailed from this place, of
which, and of the town of Macassar, and the adjacent country, I shall
say but little, there being many accounts of the island of Celebes and
its inhabitants already extant. The town is built upon a kind of point
or neck of land, and is watered by a river or two, which either run
through, or very near it. It seems to be large, and there is water for a
ship to come within half cannon-shot of the walls: The country about it
is level, and has a most beautiful appearance; it abounds with
plantations, and groves of cocoa-nut trees, with a great number of
houses interspersed, by which it appears to abound with people. At a
distance inland, the country rises into hills of a great height, and
becomes rude and mountainous. The town lies in latitude 5 deg. 10' or 5 deg. 12'
S. and longitude, by account, 117 deg. 28' E. of London.

Bonthain is a large bay, where ships may lie in perfect securi