About this time, we got notice from the admiral and other friends to be much on our guard, as some of the principal natives in respect to birth, though not in wealth or office, had conspired to murder us for the sake of our goods, and then to give out that it had been done by the Lampons.  These devils came several times in the intention to execute their horrid purpose, but seeing always lights about our house, which we had set up that we might see them, and hearing our drum at the end of every watch, their hearts failed them for fear of our small arms, both which and our murderers [blunderbusses] we had always ready for their reception.  At length they fell out among themselves and dispersed.

By our continual alarms, and the grievous outcries of men, women, and children, who were nightly murdered around us, our men were so wrought upon, that even in their sleep they would dream of pursuing the Javans, and would suddenly start out of bed, catch at their weapons, and even wound each other before those who had the watch could part them; but yet we durst not remove their weapons, lest they should be instantly wanted, of which we were in constant dread.  Being but few of us, I had to take my regular turn of watch with the rest, and have often been more in fear of our own men than of the Javans, so that I had often to snatch up a target when I heard them making any noise in their sleep, lest they might treat me as they did each other.  So terrified were we on account of fire, that though, when we went to sleep after our watches were expired, our men often sounded their drum at our ears without awakening us, if the word fire had been spoken, however softly, we would all instantly run from our chambers; so that I was forced to warn them not to talk of fire in the night without urgent occasion.  I do not mention these things to discourage others from going hereafter to Bantam:  for we were then strangers, but have now many friends there, and the country is under much better regulation, and will more and more improve in government as the young king grows older.  In three months time, the town on the east side of the river was five times burnt down; but, God be praised, the wind always favoured us; and although the Javans often set it on fire near us, it pleased God still to preserve us, as there was little wind, and the fire was put out before it got our length.

Sec. 3. Differences between the Hollanders, styling themselves English, and the Javans, and of other memorable Things.

About this time there was again a great outcast between the Hollanders and the natives, owing to the rude behaviour of the former, and many of them were stabbed in the evenings.  The common people did not then distinguish between us and the Hollanders, calling both of us English, because the Hollanders had usurped our name on first coming here for trade, in which they did us much wrong, as we used often to hear the people in the streets railing against the English,