Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
only having at the beginning, by reason of the unhealthiness of the air, but six or seven fish-
ermen who inhabited it. But the number was increased by the meeting of fishermen from
Siam, Pegu, and Bengal, who came and built a city, and established a peculiar language,
drawn from the most elegant modes of speaking of other nations, so that in fact the language
of the Malays is at present the most refined, exact, and celebrated of all the East. The name
of Malacca was given to this town, which, by the convenience of its situation, in a short
time grew to such wealth, that it does not yield to the most powerful towns and regions
round about. The natives, both men and women, are very courteous, and are reckoned the
most skilful in the world in compliments, and study much to compose and repeat verses and
love-songs. Their language is in vogue through the Indies, as the French is here.'
At present, a vessel over a hundred tons hardly ever enters its port, and the trade is en-
tirely confined to a few petty products of the forests, and to the fruit, which the trees planted
by the old Portuguese now produce for the enjoyment of the inhabitants of Singapore. Al-
though rather subject to fevers, it is not at present considered very unhealthy.
The population of Malacca consists of several races. The ubiquitous Chinese are perhaps
the most numerous, keeping up their manners, customs, and language; the indigenous
Malays are next in point of numbers, and their language is the Lingua-franca of the place.
Next come the descendants of the Portuguese—a mixed, degraded, and degenerate race, but
who still keep up the use of their mother tongue, though ruefully mutilated in grammar; and
then there are the English rulers, and the descendants of the Dutch, who all speak English.
The Portuguese spoken at Malacca is a useful philological phenomenon. The verbs have
mostly lost their inflections, and one form does for all moods, tenses, numbers, and persons.
Eu vai
, serves for 'I go,' 'I went,' or, 'I will go.' Adjectives, too, have been deprived of their
feminine and plural terminations, so that the language is reduced to a marvellous simplicity,
and, with the admixture of a few Malay words, becomes rather puzzling to one who has
heard only the pure Lusitanian.
In costume these several peoples are as varied as in their speech. The English preserve the
tight-fitting coat, waistcoat, and trousers, and the abominable hat and cravat; the Portuguese
patronise a light jacket, or, more frequently, shirt and trousers only; the Malays wear their
national jacket and sarong (a kind of kilt), with loose drawers; while the Chinese never de-
part in the least from their national dress, which, indeed, it is impossible to improve for a
tropical climate, whether as regards comfort or appearance. The loosely-hanging trousers,
and neat white half-shirt half-jacket, are exactly what a dress should be in this low latitude.
I engaged two Portuguese to accompany me into the interior; one as a cook, the other to
shoot and skin birds, which is quite a trade in Malacca. I first stayed a fortnight at a village
