OF THE ARCHIPELAGO. 401 of the undertaking, the enterprise must have been one of comparative facility. The Malays, when they first encountered the Europeans, had some know- ledge of fire-arms and artillery ; and the Portuguese writers have a fabulous story of there having been found in the town of Malacca three thousand pieces of cannon.* That they had the knowledge of gun- powder and fire-arms, there can be no doubt, but the unskilful use of fire-arms with barbarous tribes, who always want the art of fabricating them to any useful purpose, and the discipline to use them ef- fectually, inevitably renders them a more easy prey to an European enemy, than when they confine themselves to the weapons more natural to their condition in society, which are always sufficiently well fabricated, and wielded with effect and dex- terity. Having given a detail of the conquest of Ma- lacca, I shall now render some account of the mea-
- " A propos de quoi je ne puis me lenir de faire une re-
maique, fort necessaire pour bien entendre les relations dcs pais eloignez. Cest que les mots de bon, de beau, de magnl- Jique, de gra?id, de mawvais^ de laidy de simple^ de petit, equi- voques d'eux-memes, se doivent toujours entendre par rap- poTt au goftt de I'auteur de la relation, si d'ailleurs il n*explique bien en detail ce dent il ecrit. Par example, si un Facteur HoUandois, ou un Moine de Portugal, exagerent la magnificence, «StC. Siam, parDe la Loubere, Tom, II. p. 107. VOL, II, C C
