that Mr. Ord, who was the person entrusted with the management of this business, should first proceed thither; particularly as at that season of the year it was the windward port.  He arrived there on the twenty-fifth day of June 1685, and, after taking possession of the country assigned to the English Company, and leaving Mr. Broome in charge of the place, he sailed for the purpose of establishing the other settlements.  He stopped first at Indrapura, where he found three Englishmen who were left of a small factory that had been some time before settled there by a man of the name of Du Jardin.  Here he learned that the Dutch, having obtained a knowledge of the original intention of our fixing at Priaman, had anticipated us therein and sent a party to occupy the situation.  In the meantime it was understood in Europe that this place was the chief of our establishments on the coast, and ships were accordingly consigned thither.  The same was supposed at Madras, and troops and stores were sent to reinforce it, which were afterwards landed at Indrapura.  A settlement was then formed at Manjuta, and another attempted at Batang-kapas in 1686; but here the Dutch, assisted by a party amongst the natives, assaulted and drove out our people.  Every possible opposition, as it was natural to expect, was given by these our rivals to the success of our factories.  They fixed themselves in the neighbourhood of them and endeavoured to obstruct the country people from carrying pepper to them or supplying them with provisions either by sea or land.  Our interests however in the end prevailed, and Bencoolen in particular, to which the other places were rendered subordinate in 1686, began to acquire some degree of vigour and respectability.  In 1689 encouragement was given to Chinese colonists to settle there, whose number has been continually increasing from that time.  In 1691 the Dutch felt the loss of their influence at Silebar and other of the southern countries, where they attempted to exert authority in the name of the sultan of Bantam, and the produce of these places was delivered to the English.  This revolution proceeded from the works with which about this time our factory was strengthened.  In 1695 a settlement was made at Triamang, and two years after at Kattaun and Sablat.  The first, in the year 1700, was removed to Bantal.  Various applications were made by the natives in different parts of the island for the establishment of factories, particularly from Ayer-Bangis to the northward, Palembang on the eastern side, and the people from the countries south of Tallo, near Manna.  A person was sent to survey these last, as far as Pulo Pisang and Kroi, in 1715.  In consequence of the inconvenience attending the shipping of goods from Bencoolen River, which is often impracticable from the surfs, a warehouse was built in 1701 at a place then called the cove; which gave the first idea of removing the settlement to the point of land which forms the bay of Bencoolen.