SINGAPORE, _Sept. 1, 1851_.
Having arrived at Singapore, I will resume my narrative. We had rather
a rough passage down, in the face of a south-west monsoon in the China
Sea, for a distance of about one thousand four hundred miles. The Malta
is an iron steamer of thirteen hundred tons burden, well disciplined
and manned by Lascars, or Indians, from Bombay, Chinese as deck hands,
and Seedes, or blacks from the African coast as stokers, or firemen,
the heat being too great for Europeans.
It was curious to see the variety of costume of the deck hands as they
left port; it was Sunday at the time, and they did not doff the costume
of the holiday until we left the harbor. I noticed more particularly
the gay-colored turbans, white frocks and fancy belts of the Lascars,
and the long tails of the Chinese, while many of their female friends
were in boats around the ship, keeping up a constant discharge from
bunches of firecrackers. We were only seven passengers, English
gentlemen and officers of the army, myself the only American. The
system adopted throughout by the steam navigation company is to charge
enormous prices, more than double the rates of fare of our Atlantic
steamers; for instance, from Hong Kong to this place, the passage,
including exchange, costs one hundred and seventy dollars, the passage
to Calcutta being upwards of four hundred dollars. They furnish a
profusion of everything available in the way of supplies, rendering the
consumption of liquors, wines, and soda, greater than in the West India
line, where each individual signs a card for the steward as he gives
his order, and settles weekly, or at the expiration of the voyage.
The English officers and gentlemen are particular in dressing for
dinner; considerable etiquette is observed, and they generally occupy
much time at table. I am frequently called upon to combat error and
prejudice against my country in a variety of ways. The minds of some
have been poisoned by such works as those of Mrs. Trollope, and others.
I was told that I was the first overland California traveller. I could
answer the interrogations about lynch law, rapid eating or bolting of
food at hotels and on board of steamers; and in the latter charges, I
could only admit, American-like, that we were a young but fast people,
and that we could not enjoy the luxurious ease of old countries, as
time did not permit; that pioneer life on the borders cautioned the
sovereign people where laws did not exist, to rid themselves of robbers
and assassins.
Throughout the East the Punkah is made use of while the guests are at
meals; it is a long frame from three and a half to four feet in depth,
covered with white cloth, with a fringe running the whole length of the
table, and suspended on hinges from the ceiling, to which is attached
a cord passing over a pulley, and put in motion by an invisible hand
behind a screen, or passing through the wall into the adjoining room.
We have three Lascar boys in costume, who are seated on the opposite
side of the dining saloon, keeping up a constant circulation of air
during meals.
I have been under the surgeon’s hands since I embarked, with a slight
attack of Hong Kong fever; consequently I could not enjoy my passage,
and was disgusted with the sight of eatables and drinkables. I am now
quite recovered, and a drive about the environs of this city in a
palanquin has had a good effect. These palanquins are small carriages
with forward and back seats, adapted for two persons, and on low
wheels, drawn by small Sumatra ponies full of spirit. The drivers, or
rather runners, are Malabars from Madras, of a dark ebony color. The
costume of my man is a white scarf bound round the head, loose white
pants coming to his knees, and a red sash about his loins, so that his
limbs are perfectly free, and he runs beside the horse at the top of
his speed, holding one rein and the trace at the same time for safety
and support. These men will run to the end of the island, sixteen
miles, if occasion requires. You not unfrequently see persons galloping
on horseback, and the man running along to take the reins when the
rider dismounts.
Singapore, near the Straits of Malacca, is a small city on a small
island, well built by the English. It is a free port, and large numbers
of vessels from all parts visit it for purposes of traffic.
Great numbers of Chinese, say as many as thirty thousand, have
migrated to this point, and can be seen in every kind of pursuit; they
monopolize almost every species of labor, and being more vigorous than
the others, can work cheaper at the various mechanical branches. The
greatest variety of costume and language is found here, congregating
from all the East and all the islands, Singapore being in the high-road
from east to west.
I shall proceed to Penang upon Prince of Wales Island, by steamer,
and thence to the island of Ceylon, on the other side of the bay of
Bengal, where I shall wait for the steamer from Suez, on her way up to
Calcutta, and as Ceylon is represented as being a beautiful island, and
I shall be there some two weeks, you may expect to hear from me.