TWENTY hours from Banda brought us to Amboyna, the capital of the
Moluccas, and one of the oldest European settlements in the East. The
island consists of two peninsulas, so nearly divided by inlets of the
sea, as to leave only a sandy isthmus about a mile wide near their
eastern extremity. The western inlet is several miles long and forms
a fine harbour on the southern side of which is situated the town
of Amboyna. I had a letter of introduction to Dr. Mohnike, the chief
medical officer of the Moluccas, a German and a naturalist. I found
that he could write and read English, but could not speak it, being
like myself a bad linguist; so we had to use French as a medium of
communication. He kindly offered me a room during my stay in Amboyna,
and introduced me to his junior, Dr. Doleschall, a Hungarian and also an
entomologist. He was an intelligent and most amiable young man but I was
shocked to find that he was dying of consumption, though still able to
perform the duties of his office. In the evening my host took me to the
residence of the Governor, Mr. Goldmann, who received me in a most kind
and cordial manner, and offered me every assistance. The town of Amboyna
consists of a few business streets, and a number of roads set out at
right angles to each other, bordered by hedges of flowering shrubs, and
enclosing country houses and huts embossed in palms and fruit trees.
Hills and mountains form the background in almost every direction, and
there are few places more enjoyable for a morning or evening stroll than
these sandy roads and shady lanes in the suburbs of the ancient city of
Amboyna.
There are no active volcanoes in the island, nor is it now subject to
frequent earthquakes, although very severe ones have occurred and may be
expected again. Mr. William Funnell, in his voyage with Dampier to the
South Seas in 1705, says: "Whilst we were here, (at Amboyna) we had a
great earthquake, which continued two days, in which time it did a
great deal of mischief, for the ground burst open in many places, and
swallowed up several houses and whole families. Several of the people
were dug out again, but most of them dead, and many had their legs
or arms broken by the fall of the houses. The castle walls were rent
asunder in several places, and we thought that it and all the houses
would have fallen down. The ground where we were swelled like a wave
in the sea, but near us we had no hurt done." There are also numerous
records of eruptions of a volcano on the west side of the island.
In 1674 an eruption destroyed a village. In 1694 there was another
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