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JUNE, 1924 )
NOTES ON PIRACY IN EASTERN WATERS
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had been arrested at "Akkeeaff" (? Akyab) on the borders of the Chittagong District and had narrowly escaped being put to death for not having brought any presents with them. These men reported that the Raja kept up a standing force of only 300 men, of whom a few had matchlocks. The revenue of the country was only about Rs. 80,000. There were four weak killas (forts) containing 700 or 800 guns which had been taken when Chittagong was under the Mughal Government, but were of little use. There were also many ships' guns, anchors and grapnels taken out of ships which they had captured (Cotton, Chittagong, p. 225).
818. Other traces of the Portuguese seamen, who were once the terror of Bengal, may be found in the lists of the crews of the East India Company's ships, for it was not uncommon for these to fill up deficiencies in their crews by natives of Eastern ports. A very uncomplimentary reference is found in the Log of the Stringer Galley, Isaac Pike Commander, under date 29th September 1711 :-"This alteration proceeds from the severity of the weather .... the Sea is not altogether so short as before but very high, violent and dangerous, breaking often on the ship, must need be a great strain to her and we ship much water. Our China sailors and some of the Portuguese are ready to give up the ghost and proffer to take no wages for their voyage so they be excused comeing on deck, but so bad example to the rest must not be allowed, tho' they do noe good when they be here.” So far they retained the name of Portuguese, but soon they were to be lumped with Asiatic seamen under the common title of Lascars. Thus, in the Log of the Britannia (John Somner, Commander) to Fort Saint David, Bombay, Surat, Bengal and Madras, 1748-52, there is entered after the list of seamen another list of Lascars, all of whom, except two, have Portuguese names. The other two names are English (Ind. Off., Marine Records).
819. Porttuguese sailors in Calcutta seem to have acquired a reputation for lawlessness, if we are to believe such statements as the following :-" The cool, deliberate and frequent assassinations of our countrymen by that accurged, despicable, revengeful race, the Portu. guese sailors, calls aloud for their extermination from this country" (India Gazetteer or Calcutta Public Advertiser, 17th January 1785).
Chinese. 320. Koxinga had long cherished the hope of driving his old masters the Dutoh from Formosa, and the hatred he always felt towards them had been further inflamed by their readiness to assist his Tartar eneinies against him. They on the other hand were now in a poor state to resist an attack, for, owing to a quarrel between Governor Cojet and Van der Lahn, the Commander of a small fleet sent to support him in July 1860, Van der Lahn had withdrawn his ships (Chin, and Jap. Repos., 3rd April 1864, p. 224). At last, in May 1661, with a fleet of 600 junks Koxinga attacked the island, committing the greatest cruelties, not only upon the Dutch, both men and women, who fell into his hands, but also upon the Chinese peasantry. The small Dutch fleet that was present was overpowered and all attempts to introduce reinforcements proved unavailing, At last, after a vigorous defence, seeing that there was no hope of succour and fearing to expose the women and children who were with him to the horrible tortures which Koxinga inflicted upon any prisoners whom he captured, the Governor, Frederick Cojet, on the 1st February 1662, surrendered the Fort of Zeelandia upon terms of capitulation (which were honourably observed by Kozinga), and the Dutch retired from Formosa. Cojet, in spite of his gallant defence, was disgraced and imprisoned until the year 1674 (Dubois, 213). The Dutch acoounts of this disaster mention various prodi. gies which foretold it. A Chinese account (H. E. Hobson, R.A.S. North China Journ., 1876,
04 Cojet's capitulation apparently did not secure the release of the prisoners already in the hands of Koxinga, for in 1663 Koxinga's son offered Bort to deliver up about 100 Dutchmen and women and grant freedom of trade in Formosa to the Dutch in return for alliance against the Tartars. (Valentyn, quoted in Chin. Repor. XX, 544).
