anchorages. At last, on the 17th, he "disembarked Lieut. GRAY with the Marines upon Point Penagger—a low sandy point covered with wood-and employed them in clearing the ground." This ground is the present Esplanade, which with great foresight he reserved when so freely giving away all other lands. He took formal possession of the Island on the 11th[1] August.
The place was practically unoccupied; the only Malay inhabitants heard of were 52 Malays who came over, apparently from near Tanjong Tokong, to help in felling the forest.
Shortly afterwards an ancient clearing with coco-nuts, fruit trees and a burial-ground came to notice at Datoh Kramat; and in 1795 a grant of this clearing (measuring 13 orlongs) was given to Maharaja SETIA, on the express ground that he was a "relation by descent of the Datoh Kramat who cleared the ground 90 years before."
With these exceptions, the whole place was one great jungle.[2] Clearing went on with energy; wells were dug which yielded water that was fit to drink, but uninviting through being stained red by the roots of the penaga tree. Huts were run up for the marines and lascars, the tents which the settlers had brought not affording sufficient room. A month passed away quietly enough in the performance of these first labours, and the little party on the point was still unmolested by prying and undesirable intruders. But this was not to last long. Writing to Mr. ANDREW Ross of Madras, Captain LIGHT says: "Before we could get up any defence we had visitors of all kinds, some for curiosity, some for gain, and some for plunder."
No Malay wearing a kris was at first allowed ashore, and care was taken to confine to their boats parties of those Achinese
- ↑ By a curious error this event came afterwards to be celebrated on the 12th August, and is so kept in Penang even now, It is easy to explain how the mistake occurred; the 12th August was the Prince Regent's birthday, after whom the Settlement was named. So far back as 1823, the 12th is given as the date of foundation in a minute on Land Administration by Mr. PHILLIPS, who came to Penang with Sir GEORGE LEITH in 1800.
- ↑ The island had been cleared by Kedah of its piratical inhabitants about 1750.
