UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA
AT LOS ANGELES
JJNlVEk- CALIFORNIA
UbfcAKY
A JOURNEY
TO JAVA
To
My brother and sister-in law
(Mr. and Mrs. C. C. McMillan)
to whose kindness I owe my
Journey to Java,
I gratefully dedicate this book
A JOURNEY TO
JAVA
BY
m. McMillan
With 34. Illustrations
HOLDEN & HARDINGHAM
ADELPHI, LONDON
IDS
v,. 2.
\tx
1
PREFACE
I wish to offer my best thanks to my fellow
travellers, Mr. and Mrs. Malcolm Giles, their
niece, Miss Smith, and to Mrs. Shrimpton, for
allowing me to use some of their photographs in
this book. Also to Miss Butters, F. H. Sikes,
Esq., and Professor F. Wright, of Washington,
U.S.A., for their kind encouragement and criti-
cism. But especially do I desire to acknowledge
my indebtedness to Miss Edith Rowe for her
unwearied expenditure of time and trouble in
revising my manuscript and assisting me in the
correction of the proofs.
m. McMillan.
London.
November, 1914.
CONTENTS
CHAPTER PAGE
I SYDNEY TO BRISBANE : THE GREAT BARRIER
REEF T
II CAIRNS, SAMARA1 ; LANDING AT NEW GUINEA 1 7
III PORT MORESBY IN PAPUA - - - - 27
IV THE NATIVE VILLAGES HANUABADA AND
ELAVARA 43
V THURSDAY ISLAND AND PORT DARWIN- - 53
VI JAVA — LANDING AT SOURABAYA - - - 69
VII TOSARI AND THE BROMO - IOO
VIII RETURN TO SOURABAYA — THE GOVERNMENT
OF JAVA — THE " CULTURE SYSTEM " - 1 33
IX DJOKJAKARTA — THE WATER CASTLE — BATIK
INDUSTRY ------ I5I
X BORO BOEDOR I7 2
XI garoet; lake bagendit; valley of
death; upas tree - 203
xi i bandoeng and the tangkoeban prahoe- 234
xni buitenzorg ------ 250
XIV BATAVIA - - 263
VII
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
boro boedor temple ... - Frontispiece
Facing page
CHINESE STEWARDS ON BOARD THE MATARAM - 4
CHINESE STEWARDS 4
CAPTAIN WILLIAMS AND HIS LITTLE PASSENGERS IO
WITHIN THE GREAT BARRIER REEF - - - 1 6
PAPUAN ON LAUNCH OFF CAIRNS l6
MAIN STREET, SAMARAI 24
AVENUE OF CROTONS, SAMARAI - - - - 24
PORT MORESBY 3°
DU(.-<>UT CANOE, PAPUA 3°
NATIVES, PORT MORESBY 3 8
NATIVE RAFT ON CANOES 3$
NATIVES, HANUABADA, PORT MORESBY - - - 44
HOUSES IN NATIVE VILLAGE OF HANUABADA - - 44
NATIVE VILLAGE OF ELAVARA, PORT MORESBY - 48
PAW PAWS, PORT MORESBY 50
BOAT MANNED BY NATIVES 50
SCOW, SEEN NEAR PORT DARWIN 54
FIRST SIGHT OF THURSDAY ISLAND - - - 54
PEARLING SMACKS OFF THURSDAY ISLAND - - 56
ix
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
MAIN STREET, THURSDAY ISLAND 56
NATIVE CARRIER, JAVA 80
INTERIOR OF THE BROMO VOLCANO - - - 102
BATOK MOUNTAIN 1 24
STAIRCASE UP THE BROMO 1 28
INTERIOR OF THE BROMO 1 28
ONE OF THE STAIRCASES, BORO BOEDOR - - 1 74
DAGOBAS, CIRCULAR TERRACE, BORO BOEDOR - 1 88
CENTRAL BUDDHA, MENDOET TEMPLE - - - 200
FISHING, LAKE BAGENDIT 214
RAFT, LAKE BAGENDIT 214
RICE-FIELDS NEAR GAROET 23O
VIEW FROM HOTEL BELLEVUE, BU1TENZORG - 252
PASSER, (MARKET,) BUITENZORG - 260
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
CHAPTER I
SYDNEY TO BRISBANE : THE GREAT BARRIER REEF
We left Sydney (N.S.W.) on March ist in the
Mataram, one of the new steamers of the
Burns Philp line, commanded by Captain John
Williams. It was a steady boat of 3,300 tons,
and far superior to the older and smaller ones of
the Company in use hitherto. The state-rooms
and saloons were admirably appointed with every
modern convenience, and the food was very good.
It was only in the matter of bathroom accom-
modation for ladies, that there was some room
for improvement. One bath for 28 ladies and
children seemed an inadequate supply, and if you
wished to use it, meant a scramble, or else getting
up abnormally early. I was much amused to find
that some ladies had hit on the expedient of getting
up about 5 o'clock a.m.. and after performing
their ablutions, returning to their berths and their
slumbers; not a very satisfactory proceeding in the
tropics. To add to the discomfort, our bathroom
was situated in one of the hottest parts of the ship,
so that the hot room in the Turkish Hamman
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
might be called cool in comparison, and the result
was the reverse of refreshing. The weather was
very rough between Sydney and Brisbane, and
most of the time the portholes had to be closed,
which was a great trial in such warm weather.
However, all fared alike, as there are no deck
cabins on these boats, the sleeping accommodation
being below the dining and smoking rooms.
These latter open on the deck, and above them is
a very comfortable saloon, situated on the top or
promenade deck, where our chairs were arranged.
These steamers leave Sydney once a month,
and every alternate month they include New
Guinea in the trip, taking letters, stores and cargo
to that island. The Mataram was not the
New Guinea boat, and for that reason had been
chosen by our party, as we had no desire to leave
the smooth waters inside the Barrier Reef for the
stormy waves of the Coral Sea, nor did we wish to
lose four days of our time in Java. However,
fate was too strong for us, and to New Guinea
we were obliged to go. A few days before the
time fixed for sailing, we heard to our surprise and
annoyance, that on account of the wreck of the
Moresby (another steamer of the same line)
a short time before on the dangerous New Guinea
SYDNEY TO BRISBANE
coast, the Mataram had to take its place, so
that the white inhabitants of the land of Papua
might not suffer for lack of food and other neces-
saries. It was useless to protest, and there was
no time for change of plans; personally, I was
rather glad of the opportunity of visiting such a
little known and out of the way country, and of
having a chance of obtaining some interesting
snapshots. I should not have been so pleased
had I been able to foresee what fearful storms
were to be encountered on the way. It is well
the future is so mercifully hidden from us; else
how could we enjoy the present?
We had a full complement of passengers, about
46 in number, all first class, as the Mataram
carried neither second nor steerage. I was for-
tunate in getting a most comfortable double berth
cabin to myself, with a promise that I should keep
it all the way, provided no lady passenger turned
up at Brisbane or Cairns to claim the second
berth. It was my first experience of Chinese
stewards; only the chief and second stewards were
white men; all the others wore the pigtail and used
to tuck the ends into the pocket of the white jacket
worn while waiting at table, so that it might be out
of the way. Clad all in white, they looked ex-
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
trcmely clean and smart, but their faces seemed
so much alike that up to the very end of the voyage
I had difficulty in distinguishing one from the
other.
As we approached Brisbane the sea became
calmer, and we could walk on deck without
appearing to be learning to skate, also we were,
able to turn our thoughts from ourselves and take
an interest in our fellow passengers.
Some of the men were on their way to New
Guinea or Thursday Island, either for business
purposes or to take up appointments. One pas-
senger for Thursday Island was connected with
the pearl fishery there, and showed us some lovely
pearls and curious pearl blisters. The latter owe
their name to their being spread out like a blister
instead of being rounded off into the orthodox
pearl shape. They have their own special value,
and are sold at fairly high prices, to be made into
brooches, pendants, hat-pins and other ornaments.
A few of the passengers were on their way home
to Singapore, after an all too brief holiday in the
cooler climate of Australia; others, like ourselves,
were visiting Java en route for England. One
young lady was going to Singapore to be married,
and we had the pleasure of seeing her there after
CHINESE STEWARDS
CHINESE STEWARDS ON BOARD THE MATARAM
SYDNEY TO BRISBANE
the wedding ; another lady was always seen clasp-
ing a small handbag, and she volunteered the in-
formation that it contained a watertight tin box,
in which reposed a piece of candle and a box of
matches. Some years before she had been in a
wreck off the Australian coast, and though no lives
were lost, the passengers and crew had to take to
the boats in the darkness of the night, and
managed to row to a desolate, rocky island, where
they effected a landing. Here they suffered many
discomforts, not the least being the want of
matches; they had with them tea, water, and plenty
of food, but such matches as were in the possession
of the men of the party being too wet to be of use,
they were unable to light a fire or boil water for
tea. This lady told us that the horror of the
moment on board the ship, when all the lights went
out suddenly and they were left in total darkness,
and fully alive to the possibility of the ship going
down immediately, was indescribable, and never
to be effaced from her memory. She determined
if ever she should be in another shipwreck it
should not be her fault if matches were missing;
hence her constant companion, the bag with the
tin box containing them. Fortunately, we did
not require her kind services on the Mataram,
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
but it seemed to me rather like " locking the door
when the steed was stolen "; as it was most un-
likely that exactly the same circumstances would
occur again; next time the tea might be missing or
the wood for the fire. However, when it made
her happy to think she need not be drowned in
the dark for want of a box of matches, it was not
for us to criticise or find fault.
There were several young people on board to
whom the sunny days and calm evenings on the
Mataram when it was sailing in smooth waters,
gave many opportunities for that old, yet
ever new and always fascinating occupation of
love-making. I am glad to say from information
since received that in at least two instances the
wooing resulted in happy marriages. Most of
the passengers were very pleasant, a few exceed-
ingly so, and we made some valued friendships
which are still maintained. But as there is no
rule without an exception, so in one or two cases
the passengers did not attain the general standard
of agreeableness. One lady did her best to annoy
and make mischief, and her language when put
out or irritated in any way seemed more in touch
with Billingsgate than Mayfair, to which latter
district she claimed to belong.
6
SYDNEY TO BRISBANE
Another lady had a small pet dog which was a
perfect nuisance, always getting under people's
feet, and too spoiled and pampered to be interest-
ing. If the dog's mistress had been nice, and
made herself agreeable, we should not have
minded so much; but she was just the opposite,
nasty and disdainful, the kind of person a friend
of mine calls a ' ' Snorter. ' ' This was bad policy
on her part, as the other passengers could have
insisted on the dog being relegated to the cook's
care and not allowed on the upper deck. In fact,
there was at one time during the voyage an agita-
tion to put this into effect and banish doggie to the
regions below, where I feel sure he would really
have had a much happier time. Rumours of this
reached her, and she was much alarmed at the
prospect of such a fate for her pet; her consequent
change of manner and extreme amiability were
most amusing to witness. One day I came on
deck and found the pampered little beast using our
precious table (brought with much trouble from
Brisbane) as a pedestal, on which he squatted,
while his adoring mistress caressed and fondled
him. This was really too much ; so greatly to the
amusement of some of the passengers standing by,
I politely but firmly requested his removal, at the
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
same time emphasizing my words by tilting the
table to such an angle that the cherished darling
was obliged to jump off. On the whole, however,
we had a very happy time, and were a " goodly
ship's company "; the Captain also was kindness
itself, and did everything in his power for the com-
fort and convenience of the passengers. He was
always bright and cheery even in the most tem-
pestuous weather, and guided his boat most skil-
fully through many a dangerous channel.
We reached Brisbane in two and a half days
from Sydney, landing at its port (which bears the
curious name of Pinkenbah) , from which half an
hour's journey brings one to Brisbane proper.
The trains are evidently not timed to meet the
boats, or else we were very late, as we had
more than an hour to wait. This further
curtailed the very short time at our disposal
for seeing Brisbane, our steamer being due
to leave again at midnight. Brisbane has been
called " The Queen City of Australia," " Beauti-
ful Brisbane," etc., but in my opinion Sydney far
surpasses it both in beauty of situation and also
from an architectural point of view. Neverthe-
less, it is a fine city, and has a special charm of
its own. There are many handsome public build-
SYDNEY TO BRISBANE
ings, good shops, and wide streets; the atmosphere
is clear, with little or no smoke from factories, and
the city, taken as a whole, is certainly more
tropical looking than Sydney. This is partly due
to the numerous beautiful trees — palm, camphor,
acacia, banana, and best of all the jackaranda
tree, with its wealth of blue flowers. There are
many pretty villas near the town, ideal houses for
hot weather, with their broad verandahs and
charming gardens. Some of them had an odd
appearance as they were built on piles, the better
to withstand the ravages of the white ant, that
terrible scourge of the tropics.
Brisbane enjoys a more equable climate than
either Sydney or Melbourne, and is free from the
sudden and surprising changes of temperature that
one has to get inured to in both of these places,
more especially in Melbourne. The winter in the
" Queen City " is perfectly delightful, but the
summer is often unbearably hot. Brisbane has a
great future before it, and when it gets a good
water supply and a hygienic system of drainage,
will almost have attained perfection as a dwelling
place. Possibly these blessings are now in-
stalled, as the Brisbanites were eagerly expecting
them when we were there.
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
Our time was too limited for much sight seeing;
a walk through the principal streets, purchases of
fruit and biscuits and a small table to take back
to the ship, and then darkness descended with the
astonishing suddenness of the tropics (which know
not the charm of the twilight hour) , and we had to
seek the Gresham Hotel, dine there, and take the
train back to our steamer. At the railway station,
which is nearly opposite the hotel, we found the
little table, of wickerwork and bamboo, with which
we had to content ourselves, instead of the folding
table we wanted, Brisbane not possessing such an
article. We were about to have it put in the car-
riage with us as there was plenty of room; but this
was not allowed. A pompous-looking official in
uniform insisted on regarding it as merchandise,
to be put in the luggage van and paid for accord-
ingly; so we had to expend a further sum amount-
ing to one-third of the original cost for the privi-
lege of taking it away. Such red tapism about a
tiny table was most absurd; but the article in ques-
tion was a great comfort to us in our subsequent
journeyings, and we never regretted its cost.
The Mataram left Pinkenbah at midnight,
and this was a pity, as we missed the scenery of the
coast immediately beyond Brisbane, so renowned
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SYDNEY TO BRISBANE
for its beauty. In the morning the rough weather
recommenced, and the scenery ceased to interest
us, though we caught glimpses of a charming coast
line, especially when passing Smoky Point; but
the steamer pitched and tossed in a most distress-
ing and uncomfortable fashion when we had
passed out from the shelter of the land and felt the
full force of the wind. On the morning of the fifth
day out from Sydney, to our great joy we steamed
past Moreton Island into smooth water, and were
inside the Great Barrier Reef of Australia. The
delight of gliding along in a calm sea, and being
able to survey and enjoy the picturesque scenery
made us forget all our discomfort.
There is a very narrow and dangerous channel
between Moreton Island and the mainland; our
Captain, who was extremely careful and rightly
so, would not risk entering it till daylight. On
Moreton Point there is a lighthouse for a beacon
and a warning.
We were now within the " Great Barrier Reef
of Australia,'' which lies off the East coast of
Queensland, and is more than a thousand miles
long, not continuous, but with various gaps and
channels, some wide enough to allow ships to pass
through, others too narrow and dangerous even
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
for small boats. This great reef is comprised of
coral and the skeletons of coral polyps. Not very
long ago, it was popularly supposed that coral was
the work of an insect, and stood in somewhat the
same relation to it as the honeycomb to the bee,
sermons were preached on the subject and
analogies drawn. Now we are more enlightened,
and thanks to Darwin and Dana we have learned
that coral is a calcareous deposit of various kinds
of polyps (of the class Anthozoa) , which assumes
many and often beautiful forms. These coral
producing polyps increase by budding, the young
polyp buds issuing from the original polyps in
various directions from the top or sides or base,
not disconnecting themselves, but remaining
where they have grown out, although the parent
polyps may be dead. In their turn they send out
more buds and so on ad infinitum. This lime-
stone deposit begins when the polyp is single and
has attached itself to something, it may be a rock
or even part of the wreck of a ship. The coral
continues to increase in the manner described, the
so-called skeletons of the dead polyps helping to
make a foundation on which the living coral
grows. Many species are included in the common
name coral, and each has its scientific appellation,
12
SYDNEY TO BRISBANE
but no very sharp dividing line can be drawn be-
tween one group or another. The Great Barrier
Reef is mostly composed of Madrepore or lime-
stone coral, which forms a solid mass, though
Millepore (class Hydrozoa) and other kinds are
also found. Some of these Madrepores have the
whole frame covered by a living substance, not
unlike gelatine, which joins all the polyps to-
gether, but the living part decomposes as soon as
the coral is taken out of the water.
The growth of a coral reef depends on the lime-
stone coral, and as these reef builders can only
exist and do their work in clean, fresh sea water
not deeper than 125 feet, nor colder than 68F.,
they must make their home in the tropics. The
familiar red coral is found in the Mediterranean,
sometimes at a great depth, and belongs to the
Alcyonaria class of coral (sub-division Alcyon-
acea) , but it is not in any sense reef coral. Some
reefs grow much more rapidly than others, as much
as three inches a year, others only advance one
inch. Where parts of these reefs rise above the
sea level they form islands on which a sparse vege-
tation is found, and occasionally a palm tree; the
portion of the reef under water is indicated by a
line of breakers. Instead of a reef the coral some-
'3
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
times is formed by various agencies into an atoll
or island, with a lagoon of water in the middle and
a fringe of coral round, broader or narrower as the
case may be. If the breaks or gaps in the coral
barrier are wide enough for ships to pass through,
they find safe anchorage in the lagoon. Although
the coral polyps can only live in comparatively
shallow water, yet the coral reefs rise from a depth
of several hundred or even thousand feet. Darwin
accounts for this by his theory that the sites of the
reefs undergo a gradual subsidence, correspond-
ing to the growth of the reef upwards, and in this
way he was supported by Dana, and their explana-
tion was accepted by most geologists. Later it
was discovered that this theory did not always fit
the condition; as in the case of some coral reefs,
notable at the Pelew Islands (see foot note) , the
sea floor has been raised instead of submerged.
From this Sir John Murray argued that reefs can
be built up without a sinking floor, or may grow
on a settled foundation, such as the slope of a
volcanic island. The reef grows mostly on the
outer or sea side, and the action of the salt water
Pelew Islands. — A group of 26 small Islands in the Pacific Ocean,
lying to the East of the Philipine Islands, discovered by the Spaniards
in 1545, and in their possession till they were purchased by Germany
in 1899, and now form part of the German New Guinea Protectorate.
Only six of the Islands are inhabited.
*4
SYDNEY TO BRISBANE
dissolves the dead coral inside the reef or atoll,
making a basin for the lagoon; only the margin of
the reef is alive, the remainder is a bed of dead
coral, limestone, shells, etc.
As coral only thrives in clear water, it avoids
the mouth of a river where the sand and debris
brought down by the current makes the water
muddy and turbid. At Cairns so much silt is
brought down by the Barrow river that a flat has
been formed extending a long way out and pre-
venting ships from coming into the harbour.
Wonderful corals are found off Cairns, beauti-
ful both in form and colour, pink, violet, brown,
etc., as described by Agassiz in his visit to the reef,
and later by Saville Kent in his most comprehen-
sive and exhaustive account of " The Great
Barrier Reef of Australia." These corals are
much more brilliant than any found in the West
Indies; but we had no chance of seeing them as
our steamer gave the dangerous coral as wide a
berth as possible, and kept in midchannel where
the water was rather muddy owing to the silt
brought down by the river.
It was a great disappointment, but we consoled
ourselves by looking at the coast line, which here
presented a most delightful panorama of hills,
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
covered with shrubs, tree ferns, bananas, and
taller trees, such as the graceful acacias, Moreton
Bay pines, araucarias, or Bunya Bunya trees,
growing to a height of ioo to 150 feet, also the
dark green eucalyptus tree which attains a still
greater height. Close down by the shore and
even growing out of the water were mangrove
thickets and dense undergrowth. Half way up
the heights were pretty little houses with wide
verandahs, showing white against the green
foliage. We also passed countless little islands,
as we threaded our way in and out among them at
a respectful distance; for their proximity indicated
coral, and that spelt danger. The weather was
perfect, the sun shining brightly in a cloudless
blue sky, making everything stand out with almost
startling vividness. We sat on deck and enjoyed
the scenery as we passed smoothly and swiftly
along, knowing full well that such bliss was too
perfect to last. Had we not been going to New
Guinea we should have been able to prolong this
enjoyment the whole way to Thursday Island; but
after Cairns we had to leave the sheltered waters
inside the reef, and venture forth into the Coral
Sea, to encounter the storms, certain to be met
with, at that time of the year.
16
CHAPTER II
CAIRNS, SAMARAI; LANDING AT NEW GUINEA
Cairns is a prettily situated but rather straggling
town at the head of Trinity Bay, about 900 miles
N.W. of Brisbane. The harbour is spoilt, as I
have mentioned before, by the debris from the
river, and ships must anchor a couple of miles
from the shore. As we were not allowed to land
this did not much matter. A high range of moun-
tains rises behind Cairns, and in this range are
the celebrated Barrow Falls, of which we had
heard much and which we were hoping to see.
All we saw, however, was a distant view of the
railway line and the white smoke of a passing train
on its way thither. Cairns is quite tropical, and
for a great part of each year most unpleasantly
hot; it is surrounded by magnificent forests where
cedars are to be found, as well as those trees
enumerated before. The soil is rich, and cotton,
sugar cane, rice and tobacco can be cultivated, but
without coloured labour it is doubtful whether they
'7
\ JOURNEY TO JAVA
could be made remunerative. As for fruit, the
variety and abundance are both remarkable; pine-
apples, bananas, custard apples, mangoes, per-
simmon and the delicious passion-fruit grow
truly, as well as those known to us in England,
such as apples, pears, plums, grapes, oranges,
apricots and peaches. These last named some-
times attain a great size, nine or ten inches in cir-
cumference, and have a most delicious flavour.
Cairns is right in the midst of the mineral riches of
Queensland, and precious stones in almost a be-
wildering variety are found in its neighbourhood,
especially opals and sapphires; diamonds, rubies,
topazes and emeralds also abound. The whole of
Queensland is rich in minerals, and there are gold,
silver, copper, coal and tin mines. It is a great
pity there is such a meagre population in this land
of untold riches, as it badly needs people, especi-
ally men who will work. " A white Australia "
is all very well in theory, but the climate is not
such as to make a white man take kindly to hard
labour, generally under a burning sun; yet with-
out such labour the land cannot be developed.
ign white people would be less desirable than
the coloured people of our Indian Empire, or even
1 hinese, and might in time be far more dangerous;
18
LANDING AT NEW GUINEA
vet if the latter are refused entrance, the former
are bound to come.
Although I was not actually in Cairns, it is in-
delibly imprinted on my memory as the place
where I had to share my cabin with a lady and a
baby ! I had known there was a possibility of a
lady coming on board, who would occupy the
second berth in my cabin, but a baby as well was
quite outside the scope of my imagination. No
lady passenger came on at Brisbane, and when the
tender put off from Cairns and came along-
side, I need not describe my anxiety as I scanned
the passengers for our boat, nor how rejoiced
I was to find they were all of the male sex;
19 men but no woman. My joy, alas, was short-
lived! No sooner were all the passengers on
board than I received a message from the purser
to say he was at his wits end to find accommodation
for the unexpected influx of passengers (some of
whom were from the shipwrecked Moresby) , and
much as he regretted having to do it, he would be
obliged to send a lady and her baby into my cabin
and use hers for some of the men. He assured
me it would only be for a short time, just till we
reached Port Moresby (New Guinea) whither
most of the Cairns passengers were bound. There
19
A IOURNEY TO JAVA
was no help for it. so I had to submit with as good
■ ■ as possible. The baby was a dear little
girl, about 1 8 months old, and her mother as nice
as could be, but I made up my mind to vacate the
cabin in their favour at night, and sleep in the
saloon.
On the launch or tender were some Papuans
returning to New Guinea, and we were eager to
see them and get some snapshots if possible.
They were fine looking, well built young fellows,
and presented a very striking appearance with
their great mops of dark hair standing out round
their heads, something after the fashion of a bottle
brush, or golliwog. One of them, with a particu-
larly golliwog looking head of hair, into which he
had stuck some scarlet feathers, seemed quite to
enjoy the sensation he was creating, as he balanced
himself in a perilous position on the side of the
boat and smoked a cigar that some one had given
him. I got a snapshot of him, but he was too far
off for a good one. (See photo.) Then I had
to leave those fascinating sights and go down to
pn-pare my cabin for its unwelcome visitors. I
was very sorry for the baby's mother; it was in-
finitely worse for her than for me, as she had to
turn out of her own cabin and bring all her
20
LANDING AT NEW GUINEA
possessions with her as well as the baby's belong-
ings. I had to vacate my lower berth too, as the
baby could not be in the upper one; this did not
much matter, as I used the berth only as a re-
ceptacle for my goods and chattels, and went each
night to sleep in the saloon.
We were only outside Cairns for three hours,
and very soon after leaving it our steamer passed
out from the shelter of the Barrier Reef into the
wind-tossed waters of the Coral Sea.
" The tempest howls, the foaming- surges roar,
While I unhappy, quit the safer shore."
might have been said by each one of us as we left
Cairns, for the tempest did indeed howl its loudest
and the storm was awful. The wind blew a per-
fect gale, the rain fell in torrents, great black
clouds covered the sky, and the Captain told us
we had gone right into the N.W. Monsoon. For
four days the storm raged with unabated fury, and
as it increased, our interest in life and mundane
affairs correspondingly declined. Our good ship
gave many expressions of dislike to the situation
by creaks, groans and shivers; she also performed
a sort of ocean war dance that did not conduce to
comfort. Great waves rolled up, looking like
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
mountains, and broke over the ship and swamped
the deck from end to end, and the noise was
terrific; you could not hear yourself speak unless
you shouted at the top of your voice, and not
always then. The heat was well nigh unbear-
able, and as all the portholes had to be closed, the
cabins were airless and suffocating. It was well
we had such a careful commander as Captain John
Williams, who knew the dangers of the course,
and would take no risks, or we might have met
with the fate of the Moresby. As it was, it
taxed all his skill and seamanship to get us
through safely.
The cabins were so hot and stuffy that I was
glad I had an excuse to sleep in the saloon, and
really had the best of it, for being on the upper
deck, it was comparatively cool. In fact, several
of the passengers followed my example.
The poor baby and her mother had a very bad
time, as they were both ill in that airless cabin;
they were much to be pitied.
One little interlude came in the midst of the
storm when we approached Samarai, a beautiful
little island off the coast of New Guinea. In the
shelter of its shore we did not feel the storm quite
so much, though it continued as fiercely as ever.
22
LANDING AT NEW GUINEA
To counter-balance this brief respite, a most
terrific thunderstorm burst upon us as we drew
near the island. It was a grand but terrible sight.
The vivid flashes of lightning and loud peals of
thunder were simultaneous, and the noise was like
the roar of cannon accompanied by the sharp crack
of rifles, as though the artillery of heaven were
arrayed against us. At one moment the sky
was a pall of inky blackness, across which
arrows of lightning, like so many fiery serpents,
darted and scintillated; the next moment it was
one blaze of light, forming a background for zig-
zags of forked flames of an even intenser bright-
ness; again " a cloud of lightning " seemed to
enfold the heavens. As for the rain, the only
description applicable to it is Job's, where he says
the clouds poured out water."
Just as we anchored, the thunderstorm ceased
as suddenly as it had begun, but the rain con-
tinued in the same cataract fashion, and only a few
of our more intrepid passengers went ashore. Our
ship was some distance from the coast, so the land-
ing had to be effected in small boats; these tossed
up and down and looked as if they might be
swamped at any moment, though the occupants
could not have been much wetter if they had.
23
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
These latter presented a sorry spectacle on their
return, with the water streaming from hats and
garments, and they looked like the proverbial
drowned rats. But they brought back glowing
accounts of the beauty of the little island, and we
could see from the steamer, in spite of the rain,
what a charming appearance it presented.
Samarai is so small that it is possible to walk all
over it in half an hour. The little township is
celebrated for its beautiful avenue of many
coloured crotons, bordered by cocoanut palms.
Crotons are variegated shrubs with most bril-
liantly coloured leaves, looking at a distance
almost like flowers. One of the courageous pas-
sengers who landed brought back a piece of
hibiscus blossom, a lovely crimson flower, rather
like a Madonna lily in shape, but with a long, red
tassel hanging from the centre. It was the first
of the kind we had seen, though we were to grow
very familiar with it in Java where it flourishes in
great abundance. Two hours sufficed to land
the cargo we had brought to Samarai, and we then
took our departure. Some little distance from
land a beautiful kingfisher came flying over the
ship, and one of the passengers caught it outside
the porthole of his cabin and brought it into the
24
AVENUE OF CROTONS, SAMARAI
MAIN SI REE1 , SAMAR VI.
LANDING AT NEW GUINEA
saloon for us to see. It was much alarmed at
being held prisoner, and squawked vigorously as
a protest. It had a most lovely plumage,
exquisite shades of green ranging from a light to
quite a dark colour. I am glad to say its captor
allowed it to go free, which was very good of him,
as he was a collector of birds and sorely tempted
to keep it. He did say that if it returned he might
not be so merciful, but I suppose it reached the
shore safely, as we never saw it again.
Passing out from the shelter of Samarai, we
found the tempest lying in wait for us with re-
doubled fury, and in addition we had the wind
against us. The storm increased in proportion as
we got into the open, and in a short time we felt
the full force of the monsoon. It was darkly
hinted that there might be even worse in store, as
a hurricane was not improbable at this season.
However, we were spared that. We were due in
Port Moresby that night, but there seemed no pro-
bability of our arriving up to time as the storm had
delayed us, and the Captain dared not run the risk
of trying to navigate the dangerous passage into
the Bay after dark. It was difficult enough in
daylight. We had therefore to endure another
night of discomfort, and we heartily wished that
-5
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
Now Guinea had never been discovered, or that
the discoverer had kept the knowledge to himself.
But for it, we should have been gliding along in
a calm sea to Thursday Island, and escaped all the
gale. Some of our passengers had been in worse
storms, they said, but all agreed they had never
known such a long one. Generally they last from
24 to 48 hours at most, but wc had had practically
eight days of rough weather, and on four of these
a furious tempest. That last night was the worst
of all, and even the best sailors were tired out with
the heat and discomfort: so most thankful were we
when next morning about 11.30 o'clock we
steamed into Moresby Bay. So much had the
storm delayed us that we arrived at New Guinea
when our time-table said we should be leaving it!
At Samarai we had taken on board a passenger
from a shipwrecked government schooner, and
now we heard that Burns Philp's cargo steamer
had also been wrecked on the reef only the day
before, so we had good reason to rejoice at our
own safe arrival.
26
CHAPTER III
PORT MORESBY IN PAPUA
There is no harbour at Port Moresby, only two
wooden piers for small boats, so we had to anchor
quite a mile and a half from the land and had a
good view of the coast with a high range of
mountains in the distance. It was such a relief
to feast our eyes on green trees and hills and a
clear, blue sky, instead of on green foam-tipped
waves and tempestuous clouds.
Even in the Bay it was quite rough enough on
account of the high winds which still prevailed,
quite unlike the smooth water inside the Barrier
Reef. We longed for a steam-launch or tender
to bear us to the shore and much wished Messrs.
Burns Philp had provided one; so did the Cap-
tain, who found it extremely difficult to get his
cargo landed. In default of such a launch we
had to take to small boats or canoes manned
by natives, and though it was by no means easy to
get into them, we were so rejoiced at the prospect
27
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
of being once more on solid earth, that we never
hesitated. Once we were clear of the ship our
little craft rocked up and down in the most alarm-
ing fashion, for the waves that looked quite small
from the upper deck, assumed mountain-like pro-
portions when viewed from our small barque low
down in the water. When we reached the wooden
pier, which extends some considerable way into
the sea, we had great difficulty in effecting a land-
ing, owing to the wash of the waves against the
wharf. The boat bumped up and down in such
a manner that only at intervals was it quite close
to the pier and you had to seize that fleeting
moment to jump or be pulled on shore up some
very slimy, slippery steps. I tried the jump, but
was not quite quick enough, and but for the
presence of mind and the strong hand of a fellow
passenger, who most kindly clutched me with a
firm grasp, I should have had at best an im-
promptu and undesired bath, the water just there
being very deep indeed. Fortunately the catas-
trophe was averted, and I half tumbled, and was
half dragged, up the steps, and so landed in New
Guinea. Once on shore and our minds at rest
we were able to turn our attention to the groups of
natives who had congregated at the end of the
28
PORT MORESBY IN PAPUA
pier to watch our arrival. The men wore no
clothing except a waist cloth, their bodies being
liberally tattooed ; they were further adorned with
armlets of plaited straw and earrings of tortoise-
shell, as many as half-a-dozen in each ear. A
few had nose rings and one man displayed a
unique ornament in the shape of a large white
safety pin worn as an earring, of which he seemed
quite proud. The women have petticoats of
loose dried grass of a reddish brown colour, woven
into a band and tied round the waist. The upper
part of the body was bare, but much tattooed like
the men, and similar armlets and earrings were
worn with the addition of necklaces of beads.
The children, whose clothing consisted of bead
necklaces and bracelets only, were such funny,
fat, little, brown things. Natives belonging to
the Mission go about clothed quite decently, the
men in calico coats and trousers, the women in
gaily coloured skirts and jackets.
Before telling what befel us in Port Moresby,
I ought perhaps to say something about New
Guinea itself, as until lately, it has been rather an
unknown region. Till I visited it I had but the
vaguest notion where it was situated, or to whom
it belonged.
29
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
New Guinea is the largest island in the world
(excepting, of course, Australia) and is nearly
1,500 miles long from East to West and 200 broad
from North to South. It lies to the north of
Queensland and is separated from it by Torres
Straits, and south of the Caroline Islands. It
stretches far out into the Coral Sea, and, at its
most easterly point is situated Port Moresby;
therefore it takes some days to get there from
Cairns. On the west it extends almost to the
Molucca Islands. It was discovered as far back
as 151 1 by Antonio de Abrea, but was practically
unknown till 1793, when it was annexed by the
East India Company. This act not being con-
firmed by the Home Government was of little use.
It was not till almost a century later, when
Australia became alarmed at the rapid way in
which Holland was securing the Western half of
the island, and at the rumours that Germany also
wished for a share, that any action on the part
of England was taken. Queensland was dis-
mayed at the prospect of foreigners in possession
of land so close to her shores, and with much diffi-
culty, and after many appeals, persuaded Eng-
land to allow British New Guinea to become a
Crown Colony, subject to the Commonwealth
30
PORT MORESBY
Di (,-OI I CANOE, PAPU \
PORT MORESBY IN PAPUA
Government. But this was only arranged on con-
dition that the Australian Government made itself
responsible for the money required. That was in
1 888, and from that time up to 1906 very little
was done to develop the resources of the place.
In 1905 the name was changed to Papua by Act
of Parliament, and handed over to the Australian
Commonwealth to be governed by it. In 1906
the Federal Government took over the possession
of Papua, and since then its progress has been
by leaps and bounds, so much so that it is to be
regretted that the Australian Government were
not allowed a free hand years before. There is
a Lieutenant-Governor and a local Executive
Council, also a Legislative Council consisting of
the Executive Council and three nominated un-
official members. The Colony is divided into
seven divisions, each of which has a resident
magistrate.* Port Moresby, where we landed, is
the principal town and seat of government; it
contains about 2,000 natives and 60 white people.
Papua (to give it the proper title) is unlike any
other country, not only in size, but because of its
* From 1R85 to 1914, German New Guinea or Kaiser Wilhelmsland
had an area of over 70,000 square miles, more than a quarter of the
island. This, Germany's largest colony outside of Africa, was taken
by the Australian forces on September 25th, 1914, and the British Hag
hoisted.
31
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
primitiveness. In the interior is found the stone
age in full sway, while nearer the coasts it gives
way to the iron age, but very gradually, so that
the stone axe and steel tomahawk are used side
by side. In warfare, the sling, the spear and
shield, the bow and arrow are all used, and primi-
tive industries, such as canoe making, pottery,
cultivation of the ground, etc., are still conducted
as in the earliest ages. The native canoes that
we saw at Port Moresby were all merely rough
trunks of trees, dug out or burnt out until hollow
enough to float evenly. The climate is hot, for
the greater part of the year on the coast, but
higher up on the mountains it is quite cool, and
the flowers of more temperate climes, such as
buttercups, daisies, forget-me-nots, rhododen-
drons, etc., are found in abundance. The hot
season is from November to May, the hottest
month being January; the cold season is generally
reckoned from June to October, the coldest
month being August. An immense range of
mountains extends through the land, some of the
peaks so high as to be covered with perpetual
snow. Mount Victoria, the highest peak, towers
to a height of 13,200 feet. Two large rivers
water the country, the Fly and the Purari. The
32
PORT MORESBY IN PAPUA
former is 620 miles long, and can be navigated
for over 500 miles. No dangerous wild beasts
infest the land, but there are venomous snakes,
and on the coast are crocodiles and alligators.
These take a large toll of natives annually, most
of the deaths being due to snake bite, or dis-
appearance inside a crocodile. The vegetation
is most luxuriant, and trees abound ; the cypress,
sago palm, evergreen oak, screwpine, banana,
breadfruit tree, sandal wood, and along the coast
the cocoanut palm, all grow well in New Guinea,
and many others also. The cocoanut palms do
not flourish so well in the interior, they are best
and more abundant near the sea. From the
breadfruit tree the natives make a kind of cloth.
Most of the products of the tropical zone can
be easily cultivated, the fruits especially. New
Guinea is also famous for its birds, especially the
beautiful Bird of Paradise with its wonderful
variety of magnificent plumes ; nearly fifty species
of this bird have been found. Then there is the
Cassowary, that queer bird allied to the Emu,
with only vestigial wings like the New Zealand
Kiwi. But as there are about 800 different
species of birds it would be useless to try and
enumerate them.
33
\ JOURNEY TO JAVA
There are very few animals, mostly the Wal-
laby (or small kangaroo) , wild swine, and the
Echidna or ant-eating hedgehog. No hares or
rabbits are found, and if the Papuan Authorities
are wise they will keep them out, as they have
grown to be such a pest in Australia and New
Zealand.
Those who wish to know more about Papua
cannot do better than read Miss Beatrice Grim-
shaw's delightful and comprehensive account, in
her book, " The New New Guinea," and I would
also refer them to " The World of Life " by Dr.
Alfred Russel Wallace, in which he writes most
enthusiastically of the vegetable life in New
Guinea. Port Moresby is reckoned a town, but
to the traveller it looks more like a village, con-
sisting as it does of a number of wooden and iron
one-storied houses on either side of a so-called
street, on which the grass grows freely, as there
are no carts, carriages or horses to keep it down.
It seemed strange to be in a place and not see a
vehicle of any description. The town boasted of
two stores, one belonging to Burns Philp & Co.,
and the other to one of our fellow passengers.
There is also a wooden building dignified by the
name of Post Office, which stands apart from the
34
PORT MORESBY IN PAPUA
others and nearer the landing stage. All these
houses have broad verandahs, so necessary in a
hot climate, and most of them are built on piles
on account of the insects. Some of them, especi-
ally those belonging to Government Officials,
have very pretty gardens, the many coloured
croton shrubs, and scarlet hibiscus making a gay
display, while overhead the feathery palm trees
provided a grateful shade from the burning heat.
There were a few palm trees also on either side
of the street, but too far apart to afford much
shelter from the sun; many more are needed.
On the heights above the town are a few resi-
dences, notably Government House, a white
building standing out against the dark green
foliage, also the Station of the London Mis-
sionary Society, which is farther along the coast
and overlooks the native village of Elavara.
Our first visit after landing was to the Post
Office, to buy stamps and postcards, but we found
it closed, not to be opened till 4 o'clock p.m., as
the officials were busy sorting and distributing the
mails we had brought and could not be disturbed
in their arduous task. We had a suspicion that
this meant they wanted time to read their own cor-
respondence, and our suspicions were confirmed
35
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
when we met the greater part of the white popu-
lation sitting or standing in the shade of trees or
houses perusing closely written sheets of foreign
paper as we passed up the street. However,
there was plenty of time and we were in no hurry ;
they take things leisurely in Port Moresby.
The monthly steamer is the only link with the
outside world, and is eagerly expected and gladly
welcomed, not only for letters but newspapers,
news of what is going on, fresh faces to see and
new people to talk to, for it is deadly dull in Port
Moresby. Our next visit was to Burns Philp's
Store, where I tried in vain to buy a pair of white
cotton gloves, such luxuries are unknown there;
the settler in Papua either brings his gloves with
him or wears none. The other store where we
bought postcards belonged to a fellow passenger,
one of those from the shipwrecked Moresby,
who came on board at Cairns. It was much the
same sort of shop as Burns Philp, but more con-
veniently situated in the middle of the town, both
had large or small quantities as the case might
be of everything likely to be needed, something
after the style of a general shop in an English
village or small town. The picture postcards
were very good, showing the native villages and
36
PORT MORESBY IN PAPUA
the Papuan in full dress with feather-mounted
hair. It is from the latter they derive their name.
The proprietor of the store very kindly invited
us to tea at his private bungalow, a few yards
higher up. He had been taking his two little
girls to school in Sydney and was returning to
Port Moresby when the wreck occurred. On our
way to his house we met a strange and uncanny-
looking bird, which approached us in a confident
manner and seemed quite tame; we were told it
was a Cassowary. Up to that moment I had
looked upon a Cassowary as a somewhat mythical
creature, only to be found on the plains of Tim-
buctoo, where it occasionally dined off missionary,
including his hymn-book in the repast. It was
rather a shock to find one stalking about Port
Moresby, much too small to swallow even half a
missionary, and showing no blood-thirsty tend-
encies towards us. It was either not full-grown
or was a poor specimen of its kind, probably the
latter, which was not surprising considering its
origin. Our host told us that either he or a friend
(I cannot now remember which, and fancy the
point was purposely left obscure) found a rather
rough-looking, large, greenish egg, and curious
to see what would come out of it, kept it under
37
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
his arm, day and night I presume, for some time,
until one day the shell cracked, and with a
triumphant squeak the Cassowary emerged. It
was brought up by hand and became so attached
to its foster-father that it would follow him about
like a dog. We were inclined to be rather scep-
tical about this wonderful hatching, but thought
it wiser to follow the advice of an old Irish jaunt-
ing car driver who told his fare, a lady who was
questioning the genuineness of one of his remark-
able tales, " Better believe me ma'am than go
look for the truth of it." However, if the first
part of the Cassowary story made large demands
on our faith, there was no doubt of the truth of
the latter part, as the bird was indeed exception-
ally tame, and not only walked solemnly after its
master but showed a desire for closer acquaint-
ance with us, which I need hardly say was not
reciprocated, the Cassowary not being at all a
nice or attractive looking bird. In appearance it
is something like an emu or small ostrich, of a
brownish-black colour, with feathers so long and
loose that they are more like hair; these feathers
are longer at the back and serve the purpose of a
tail. The head and upper part of the neck are
bare, but on the neck are two bulbous looking
38
NATIVES, PORT MORESBY
ft J* '■". ; ■ i .
X A'! [VE RAFT nv c WOKS
PORT MORESBY IN PAPUA
pendants, and in some cases the head is adorned
with a many coloured (blue, purple, and red)
horny crest about three inches high. Three toes
grow on each foot, one toe is much shorter than
the other two, but has a horrid, long, sharp claw
which it uses in self defence. When attacked it
fights with legs and feet and with its short, ves-
tigial wings. These wings are no help even in
running, but can be used with effect as a weapon.
Our Cassowary was a small bird without a crest,
but some attain a height of five feet.
As we approached the door of Mr. B.'s bunga-
low we saw under a tree, a cow ! True, it was a
" lean and hungry-looking " animal, but where
there was a live cow there might be fresh milk for
our tea, and our hopes rose high. One of the
greatest drawbacks on board ship is having to use
condensed milk in tea, so that the " cup that
cheers " with fresh milk would indeed have been
a luxury. Alas ! when we were seated in a most
charming and spacious verandah, completely
shaded from the sun, and a dainty tea with nice
biscuits was brought in, our host apologised for
the condensed milk, and said the supply of fresh
milk was so limited it had all been used up in
the morning. However, the tea itself was ex-
39
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
cellent and much enjoyed by us in our hot and
thirsty condition. While we were being enter-
tained, a squall of wind and rain came on, as the
rainy season was not yet over. We were glad to
be in shelter, as the rain was so heavy, but the
storm ceased in a few minutes and the sun shone
out once more. We were able to take a walk in
the direction of the native villages, but as the sky
was becoming again overcast and black clouds
were travelling up showing that another and
bigger squall was approaching, we thought it
wiser to postpone our visit to Hanuabada to
another day and return to the steamer. We had
a good tossing going across to it, and quite an
exciting time getting on board, but we were glad
we had not remained on shore, as the rain came
down in torrents for the rest of the afternoon.
Now that our extra passengers had been
landed, I had come into my own again, and much
enjoyed having my cabin to myself; I devoutly
hoped no lady would turn up at Thursday Island
to share it. Next morning there was tremendous
excitement over a shark that had been caught
close to the ship. It was so huge that it took six
shots to kill it, and was a fearsome beast with
enormous jaws. We wanted it brought on board
4 o
PORT MORESBY IN PAPUA
that we might take some snapshots, but our re-
quest was not granted, as it was said the smell
would be awful and last for days, so that it was
towed to the shore to serve as a feast for the
natives, who esteem it a delicacy. The man who
shot the shark kept the huge jaws as a trophy.
Its fearful teeth made one shudder at the thought
of their closing on any human being. The native
boats kept cruising round the steamer; some of
them just dug-out canoes, others made of two or
three canoes lashed together by planks, which
made a kind of platform or raft (see photo) ; these
were used for taking the cargo on shore. The
whole made quite a pretty picture as they floated
about on the blue sea, manned by natives whose
mops of hair waved in the breeze. There was
also a Dutch boat at anchor in the bay, with
about 80 tons of cargo for Port Moresby. It
was still there the second morning, but left in
the afternoon taking the cargo with it, as it could
not be discharged owing to the scarcity of labour,
and the captain was obliged to keep to his
scheduled time. Our captain was not so bound,
but at the same time did not want to stay longer
than was absolutely necessary. He was quite
worried by the difficulty he had in persuading the
41
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
natives to come and unload. The latter are very
lazy and soon earn enough to buy tobacco, calico,
and other things, of which they have learnt the
value, but which they cannot make or find for
themselves. Then they take a rest and enjoy
what they have acquired, unwilling to exert them-
selves afresh, until their supplies are exhausted.
They are only paid one shilling per day, so as
far as money is concerned they are not hard to
satisfy. This laziness on their part was most in-
convenient for us, as it kept us so long in Papua
that our time in Java was considerably curtailed.
42
CHAPTER IV
THE NATIVE VILLAGES HANUABADA AND ELAVARA
The weather was now quite settled but very hot.
There being no hotels in Port Moresby (though
one was being built) we lived on board the
Mataram, making expeditions to the town when
the weather was propitious. I had not suc-
ceeded so far in getting the snapshots I wanted
of the native villages, so on the last day of our
visit I set out immediately after lunch with a
fellow passenger, who most kindly consented to
accompany me. The captain was going ashore
to try and persuade the Governor to lend him
some prisoners to help in finishing the unloading
of the cargo, so he took us with him in his boat.
It was a glorious day, blue sky, hot sun, and a
slight but refreshing breeze, which latter was
fortunately blowing in our faces as we turned
from the town for our two or three miles walk
along the shore. The road skirted the beach, and
the leaves of the graceful cocoanut palms waved
43
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
and rustled over our heads, making a most grate
ful canopy that modified in some measure the
scorching rays of the sun ; and it can be scorching
in Papua ! As we walked along we met groups
of women and children, and some very old men ;
the latter were a terrible sight in their unclothed
condition, but the women looked smiling and
happy. Papuan women wear a grass kilt or petti-
coat, which is called a ramies, the upper part of
their bodies is bare, but adorned with the most
intricate tattooing, neck, arms, ears, and even
noses having appropriate ornaments of beads,
shells or tortoiseshell, and this makes the women
look decidedly picturesque. As for the little
children, who were running about in their birth-
day dress, occasionally with a bead necklace or
bracelet in addition, they were the funniest of fat,
little, brown babies, very frightened if you
attempted to speak to them. The older children
were not so shy and perched themselves on the
rickety-looking platforms of their houses, so that
we might take their photographs and give them
pennies.
Many of the women had brown earthenware
waterpots poised on their shoulders in most grace-
ful fashion, and were on their way to fetch water
44
NATIVES, HANUABADA, PORT MORESBY
HOUSES IX NATIVE VILLAGE OF HANUABADA
HANUABADA AND ELAVARA
from a spring. I persuaded one of them to let
me take a snapshot of her. She had a fat, wee
child with her who strongly objected to the camera
and clung roaring and crying to its mother trying
to hide behind her scanty drapery. Quite
a little crowd collected and I got some fairly
successful snapshots, one of a woman standing on
a dug-out canoe. All were quite willing, we
found, to pose for a few pennies, indeed the diffi-
culty was to persuade them to go away.
We had now reached the broad, white, sandy
path that does duty for a street in the village of
Hanuabada, and the first of the native houses
came in sight. There was quite a long row of
them, such quaint looking dwellings, apparently
in such a tumble-down condition that they might
fall to pieces any moment. This was a delusion,
however, as they are really quite strong, but their
structure raised on high poles set in the water is
of such a spidery appearance that it gives them
an unsubstantial air.
Imagine a brown garden summer-house built
something like a Swiss cottage with gabled front
and broad verandah, perched on very high stilts
with a skeleton ladder, with rungs far apart, as
the only means of access, and you have some idea
45
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
what a Papuan house is like. The piles on which
the houses are built (just rough logs or trunks of
trees) are driven into the sea sand, so that the
dwelling is over the water, and you look down
through the extremely large spaces between the
logs that form the flooring, into the blue depths
of the ocean. Cool certainly, but apt to make
one a little nervous at first. The crazy ladder
also, by which you reach the verandah or plat-
form to gain access to the interior of the house,
is more suitable for natives with unclothed bodies,
and bare feet, than for white folk in heavy gar-
ments and high heeled shoes. But there is good
reason for building after this fashion; as only one
point of attack is presented to the enemy, tribes
from the hills, who used to swarm down at inter-
vals and attack the seabord dwellings. With
deep water on three sides, the people of Hanua-
bada and kindred villages could concentrate their
attention on the fourth or landward side and ward
off any attack. The houses have no windows, nor
are they needed, as the interior is only used as a
sleeping-place, and absence of light tends to cool-
ness; the broad platform in front is the living
place, where the natives eat and carry on such
work as carving, net-making, etc., while at the
4 6
HANUABADA AND ELAVARA
same time they can see what is going on below.
The brown waterpots are hand-made, of clay
pulled by the fingers of the native women into
quite good and even artistic shapes, and then
baked in fire. This, and the making of skirts or
ramies of dried grass, are the only native indus-
tries, except a little carving done by the men.
We passed through the village and came to an
ascent, up which we toiled under the burning sun,
and reached at the top the Mission Station. From
this point we could see the second native village
of Elavara spread out before us. The houses
there are built after the same style as those in
Hanuabada, but the tout ensemble is much more
picturesque, as instead of a row of dwellings
along the sea shore, those in Elavara are grouped
on a little island and extend right out into the
open sea. (See photo). A very rickety bridge,
swaying from side to side, several hundred feet
long, connects the village with the mainland, and
over this the natives pass to and fro in an uncon-
cerned manner that wins your admiration as you
expect each moment to see the daring passenger
fall, not over but through the bridge, (so wide are
the spaces in the flooring,) or else the whole struc-
ture collapse.
47
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
On the wooded eminence where we stood, the
Mission premises are built. They belong to the
London Missionary Society, and a splendid work
among the natives is being carried on by the Rev.
Mr. Laurence, the missionary in charge, and his
wife. It must be no small sacrifice to live and
work in such a place separated from children and
friends. We were most heartily welcomed by
Mrs. Laurence, who invited us into her cool
verandah and regaled us with lime juice and
water, a most refreshing drink when one is hot
and thirsty. She then showed us the lace she is
teaching the native girls to make, and said they
were very apt pupils. We also inspected a num-
ber of Papuan curiosities, such as spears, shields,
and a very queer looking drum. The natives of
the two villages belong to the Motuan and
Koitapuan races ; the language is called Motu or
Mutu, and is not very easy to learn.
The view from the verandah of the Mission
House was glorious; the strange looking village
below, the deep blue sea beyond dotted with all
sorts of craft, rowing and sailing, the dark foliage
on the opposite shore making a most effective
background and intensifying the cloudless vault
of sky, presented a wonderful picture not soon to
4 8
NATIVE VILLAGE OF ELAVARA, PORT MORESBY
HANUABADA AND ELAVARA
be forgotten. But time was passing and we had
a long, hot walk before us, in order to reach Port
Moresby wharf, and get a boat to the steamer.
We were about to say good-bye when a great
noise and shouting were heard outside. On rush-
ing out to ascertain the cause we found that the
Mission ship, the " John Williams " was just
entering the bay. This was the ship built and
equipped with money given or collected by Sun-
day School children all over the world, and a fine
looking vessel she is. Mrs. Laurence said that
her husband had gone out to meet it, and was to
send a boat to take her to it when it arrived. She
asked if we would accompany her and we could
then go on in the same boat to the Mataram
when she had been left on board the " John
Williams." Need I say we most gratefully
accepted her offer, only too thankful to be spared
the long tramp of nearly three miles on such a
sultry afternoon. While waiting for the boat
Mrs. Laurence gave us tea and delicious little
cakes. Then a native arrived to say the boat
was ready and we descended the hill to the shore.
We were conducted to a miniature wharf, the
private property of the Mission. At the end of
it a sailing boat was moored, manned by natives
49
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
from the Mission, clothed in gay, cotton jackets
and trousers, which, if less picturesque, were more
decorous than the native style of dress, or rather
no dress.
There was a favourable breeze, so our sail was
set and we flew over the water; it was perfectly
delightful, most exhilarating, and a fitting climax
to an exceptionally interesting day. Leaving
our kind hostess on board the Mission ship we
were taken to the Mataram, which lay a little
farther out, and were just in time to reassure our
friends, who were beginning to feel a little
anxious on our account.
The captain had now landed as much cargo as
he possibly could, and was obliged to take the
remainder away together with the cargo, consist-
ing principally of copra and the Chinese delicacy
beche-de-mer, from Port Moresby.
Copra is the dried kernel of the cocoanut, used
in India occasionally as an ingredient in curry,
but chiefly valued for the oil obtained from it.
Sometimes it is dried in the sun or else in a kiln,
but in either case it yields 55 to 60 per cent, of
cocoanut oil.
Beche-de-mer is a corruption of a Portuguese
word meaning sea worm or sea slug; these are
50
PAW PAW'S, PORT MORESBY
B< ) VI MANNED BY \ \ I IVES
HANUABADA AND ELAVARA
allied to the sea urchins and are found on coral
reefs. They are used by the Chinese as a
favourite ingredient in their dishes, whether stews
or soups, and esteemed a great delicacy. In
shape the beche-de-mer is like a slug or small
cucumber, and has a thick, flexible skin, instead
of the horny shell of its kin, the sea urchin. The
more ordinary kinds live just under the sand in
shallow water, with the head projecting, bearing
according to Dana's report a beautiful, feathery
rosette or flower; the more valuable kinds are
found in deep water, and must be dived for. To
fit them for exportation they are slit open, boiled,
and then dried, when they look not unlike smoked
sausages. They must not be exposed to damp
or they are spoiled; in a perfect condition they
should be so dry as to " rattle like walnuts in a
bag."
We left Port Moresby that evening and passed
quite close to the sunken Moresby, which was
partly visible above water; not far from it was
another wreck lying on a reef, unmistakable
evidence of the perils and dangers we had
escaped.
Next day we were in the open sea, out of sight
of land for some hours, then countless little
Si
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
islands began to appear, looking most inviting
with white sandy beaches and clusters of palm
trees. One, we were told, was Tuesday Island,
another Wednesday, there was also a Friday
Island and presumably a Monday, but many had
no names. Evidently, whoever was responsible
for their nomenclature had called each after the
day of the week it was first sighted or visited.
Thursday Island is the only one well known in
the whole group, and this because of its pearl
fishery.
The sunsets each evening in these tropical
regions were most gorgeous, the panorama of
colour so brilliant and varied that often we
neglected the summons to dinner and remained on
deck to watch the kaleidoscopic effects in the sky,
till darkness descended with disconcerting sud-
denness, and the claims of hunger asserted them-
selves.
The nights also were most delightful, so calm
and peaceful. After dinner most of the pas-
sengers came on deck to look at the Southern
Cross, as it shone out with intense brilliance
against the dark background " of Heaven's ebon
vault studded with stars unutterably bright." At
such times one knew it was good to be alive.
52
CHAPTER V
THURSDAY ISLAND AND PORT DARWIN
We saw Thursday Island quite a long time before
we reached it, as Torres Straits is so dangerous
and difficult of navigation that quite a big detour
must be made to keep in a safe channel. How-
ever, we got alongside the wharf at last, and were
able to step on shore. This island, one of the
smallest in the Torres Straits, is situated N. of
Cape York in Queensland, and belongs to that
State. It is only three miles long by two and a
half broad, and owes all its importance to being
the centre of the pearl fishery carried on in those
parts.
The pearling business is mainly in the hands of
Chinese and Japanese, which is a pity. To this
island might aptly be applied the quotation " Dis-
tance lends enchantment to the view," as from
the steamer it looked a most charming place, just
the kind of island described in boys' books
53
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
of adventures in the South Seas. The little bays
with sandy beaches shining with dazzling white-
ness in the sunlight, the quantities of tropical
foliage giving promise of coolness and shade, all
served to make a fascinating picture. Not the
least of the attractions was the harbour itself
(called Port Kennedy) with its multitude of
schooners and pearling smacks, small boats and
canoes rocking on the dancing waves, together
with a few larger ships that had put in for shelter
from the storms so prevalent during the last fort-
night. Alas for expectations! The reality was
a woeful disappointment. As we entered the
little town and passed up its one broad street, it
was like walking into a " burning fiery furnace."
On either side were plain-looking, little wooden
houses, some of them shops; these latter, which
are mostly kept by Chinese and Japanese, have as
their sole redeeming feature broad awnings or
coverings over the doorways, which extend along
the front, so that a certain amount of intermittent
shade is afforded as one passes down the street.
The trees were few and far between, and useless
as a protection from the sun; they seemed to know
this, and had a listless, dispirited air, as though
they would fain apologise for occupying a place
54
SCOW, SEEN NEAR PORT DARWIN
FIRST SIGHT OF THURSDAY ISLAND
THURSDAY ISLAND & PORT DARWIN
in the landscape. Our first visit was, of course,
to the Post Office to get our letters and buy post-
cards and stamps; here we found most of our
fellow passengers bound on the same errand.
Then my brother insisted on having his hair cut,
as there was no barber on board our ship. He
soon discovered a smiling hairdresser in a little
wooden shop, which was perfectly clean and nice,
but not what you would call luxuriously appointed.
He sat himself down to be operated on while my
sister-in-law and I sauntered down the roadway
and looked into the windows to see if there were
any curios to be picked up. The curios
were there, but the prices extremely high. They
mostly consisted of mother-o'-pearl shells ex-
quisitely carved, spoons, knives, boxes, plaques,
and indeed every variety of ornament of the same
material; pearls too, most lovely but very costly,
and pearl blisters, with a variety of odds and ends
made of shells.
The mother-o'-pearl obtained at Thursday
Island is sent to China and Singapore to be
carved, then it comes back to the island and has to
pay a heavy duty as manufactured goods, hence
the long prices asked. The same things can be
bought much more cheaply at home. We pur-
55
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
chased some spoons and carved boxes as memen-
toes of our visit, and I took some snapshots of the
street and shops (see photo) . I tried to get one
of the church, which was built as a thankoffering
for the survivors and a memorial to those who were
lost in the wreck of the Quetta twenty years
before, but it was too much in the shade.
That was a terrible wreck, and is still remem-
bered and spoken of with bated breath. The
Quetta, one of the finest ships of the British
Indian and Australian Steam Navigation Com-
pany, was lost on the night of February 28th,
1890, near the entrance to Torres Straits. It
had apparently passed safely through all the
difficulties of the dangerous channels, and was not
far from Thursday Island and its harbour, when
it struck on an unknown rock, not marked in any
chart, the bottom of the ship was torn out, and in
three minutes she sank in thirteen fathoms of
water. There were about 280 people on board,
and of these only 160 were saved; some of the
latter had an extraordinary experience. One
girl, only 16 years old, swam about for thirty-
five hours before she was picked up, and
another, supported by a plank, drifted for almost
the same length of time, finally being washed
56
MAIN STREET, THURSDAY ISLAND
PEARLING SMACKS OFF III! RSDAY ISLAND
THURSDAY ISLAND & PORT DARWIN
ashore on Adolphus Island, from whence she was
rescued. Subsequent examination of the spot
where the disaster took place showed that the
Quetta had struck on a pinnacle of growing
coral, which ripped her open for nearly two-thirds
of her length, so that she sank like a stone.
Mr. W. Saville Kent, in his book on " The
Great Barrier Reef of Australia," says that this
seems to show that coral grows much more rapidly
than is generally supposed, as this particular coral
rock was not in the survey made 30 or 40 years
before.
In the Church on Thursday Island is a porthole
of the ill-fated steamer, which was found many
years after the catastrophe entirely encrusted with
coral and seaweed.
The Bishop of Carpentaria has his headquarters
on the island, but was away visiting another part
of his large and scattered diocese.
It was a blisteringly hot afternoon, the heat
hit one in the face," to use Miss B. Grimshaw's
expressive phrase, and not only in the face but in
the back and on the head, and we seemed to be
swallowing gallons of burning air. Walking was
too great an effort, the comparative coolness of
the steamer out on the water appealed to us, and
57
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
not in vain, so we gave up all idea of further ex-
ploration and retraced our steps to the wharf. We
heard later that there were really very pretty spots
further inland, with shrubs, creepers and shady
trees, that we might have visited. We were quite
willing, however, to take it on trust as we had seen
quite enough of Thursday Island. The harbour
was still alive with shipping, and the sea with
sharks; one of the latter was caught and eagerly
examined amid much excitement. On enquiring
the reason, we were told that a Chinaman a few
days before had fallen from a ship in the harbour
and had been snapped up by a shark. In the
pocket of the man's trousers was his whole for-
tune, a large sum in gold, nearly £100 I believe,
which of course accompanied him into the shark.
Some time later one of these monsters was caught,
and in its maw was one leg still clothed in its
trouser, but not the money. Now the whole com-
munity is dissecting and exploring each shark that
is killed, in the hope of finding the other leg and
the gold! Nothing was found in the shark just
taken, but another was caught and hauled up by
a rope, which one of the sailors managed to fasten
round its slimy body. It was all but secured
when the rope slipped, and away went our friend,
58
THURSDAY ISLAND & PORT DARWIN
or rather our enemy, no doubt carrying with him
the Chinaman's leg and fortune.
We were only a few hours on Thursday Island,
and left it without regret, though again it pre-
sented a pretty picture as we sailed round the
corner and could see the Governor's and other
houses perched up on the heights above the town
and surrounded by dark green foliage.
The sun sank below the horizon that evening in
a perfect blaze of colour, far too wonderful a sight
for mere words to give any idea of its glory,
nothing but actual vision could make one realize
such splendour. We felt we were getting near
home, as now the Great Bear was visible on one
side of the ship, while on the other the Southern
Cross held sway.
The next day was St. Patrick's, and in honour
of the occasion one of the passengers came down
to breakfast wearing a huge green bow instead of
his usual tie. It seemed a far cry from this
tropical sea and unclouded atmosphere to the
green land of St. Patrick and its misty skies.
The weather was now perfect, and the sea as
calm as the proverbial mill pond. There was a
glorious moon, and we sat on deck far into the
night, loth to leave such beauty and coolness for
59
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
our hot and stuffy cabins. It made one recall
Southey's lines:
" How beautiful is night !
A dewy freshness fills the silent air,
No mist obscures, nor cloud, nor speck, nor stain
Breaks the serene of heaven ;
In full orbed glory yonder moon divine
Rolls through the dark blue depths.
Beneath her steady ray
The desert circle spreads
Like the round ocean girdled with the sky.
How beautiful is night ! "
and the night were indeed gloriously, trans-
cendently beautiful. Late in the afternoon we
approached Port Darwin, which looked a most in-
viting place, the thick, tropical foliage growing
right down to the water's edge. The tide was full
in, and the water perfectly clear, reminding me
of the pellucid depths at Chateau dTf near Mar-
seilles. Appearances, however, were again
deceptive. Port Darwin looks pretty enough to
the casual visitor, but it is terribly hot, and the
last place in which it would be desirable or
pleasant to live, at least so we were told. There
are very few white inhabitants, but a good many
Chinese and a sprinkling of aboriginals and
other coloured men. Rather a motley crowd
were on the wharf to greet us, but the white
60
THURSDAY ISLAND & PORT DARWIN
folk hailed us with especial joy. We were able
here, as at Thursday Island, to step on shore
without the intervention of a boat, and were for-
tunate enough to secure the only vehicle Port
Darwin seems to boast. It was a kind of small
waggonette holding four. The last time my
brother and his wife had been to Port Darwin
they were unable to get this much sought after
conveyance, so they were particularly glad of
the opportunity it afforded of exploring the place;
as to walk any distance in the terrific heat was
impossible.
There is quite a nice hotel with wonderful
creepers growing all over its verandah and bal-
conies, to which we drove first; as the driver of
the waggonette had to get permission from the
Manager (who was the owner of our horse and
carriage) to take us round. From the hotel we
went on to the Botanic Gardens. In a few years'
time these gardens will be well worth a visit from
those interested in horticulture, especially of the
tropical kind, as it has many fine specimens of
trees and plants. There is a magnificent avenue
of cocoanut palm trees and another of crotons,
also some remarkably fine hibiscus shrubs whose
scarlet tasselled blossoms stood out with startling
61
A JOURNKY TO JAVA
vividness against the dark tree ferns. The
grasses were most beautiful, seven or eight feet
in height, and of various colours, pink, yellow
and brown, etc. In one part there was a splendid
display of brilliantly-coloured tropical flowers,
though their beauty was somewhat marred by the
weeds and climbing plants that almost choked
them. Want of labour is a serious drawback to hor-
ticultural enterprises of this kind ; if the flowers
grow easily and quickly, so do the weeds, and it
is a hard and constant fight to keep the latter
down. Indeed, it is surprising the gardens are
so well kept, and reflects great credit on those in
charge of them. There were some especially
fine specimens of the " traveller's palm " or
ravenala, which I now saw for the first time. The
tree looks like an enormous expanded fan of a
bright green colour. The stalks of its huge
leaves hold water, sometimes as much as a quart;
this is obtained by piercing them, and it is quite
good to drink. Often these palms have been a
priceless boon to travellers when no other water
was obtainable, and that is the origin of the name.
The tree grows to a considerable height, and pre-
sents a most graceful appearance; as it grows the
lower leaves drop off, and there is often a very
6a
THURSDAY ISLAND & PORT DARWIN
long handle to the fan sometimes reaching thirty
feet; the leaves are used by the natives to thatch
their houses. Another object that attracted our
attention was a huge banyan tree with its branches
continually turning into roots and stems.
On our way back from the gardens our driver
took us to see his collection of birds. There must
have been over a thousand, and their plumage
was wonderfully beautiful, and so varied in
colour. They were not singing birds, and most
of them were very small, their chief value lay in
the exquisite and rare colouring of their feathers.
It is interesting to note that the plainest feathered
birds, like the lark, have the sweetest song, nature
thus giving compensation for the homely exterior.
The man said he was going to take the birds to
Europe to sell, but that it was a difficult business
to get them so far alive, and many died on the
way. Poor little birds, how they would miss
their bright, tropical home in the dull cities of the
West!
W T hen we reached the town which bears the
name of Palmerston we said goodbye to our guide,
as we wanted to visit Chinatown with its quaint
shops, where all the Chinese population live. Here
we bought postcards and other souvenirs of our
63
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
visit, also some fresh fruit to take on board ship.
Port Darwin boasts a hospital, and we met some
of the nurses (who are also nuns) , not clothed in
the dark conventual garb, but wearing the prettiest
and most effective nurse's costume I have ever
seen. It consisted of a white dress, and over it a
pale blue apron back and front, and a long veil of
the same blue colour. They looked so fresh and
dainty it made one feel cooler to look at them.
In Chinatown we met some of our fellow pas-
sengers, Mr. and Mrs. G., their niece, and her
friend, Mrs. S., who questioned us eagerly as to
where we had gone when we disappeared in such
a mysterious fashion. We gave them an account
of our peregrinations, and expressed our sorrow
that the vehicle had not been large enough to take
them with us, as we should have liked to do. It
was getting dark, so we went back to the ship,
and there found why the white inhabitants had
been so pleased to see us. A steamer in the
harbour meant unlimited ice drinks for them all;
Port Darwin is a place that " raises a thirst," and
yet has no ice wherewith to quench it satisfactorily.
While we were sight-seeing they had made the
most of their opportunities, and remained the
whole time on board, following the example of the
64
THURSDAY ISLAND & PORT DARWIN
" thirsty Earth that drinks and gapes for drink
again," as, till the next steamer came round, there
would be no more ice-cold " plenteous draughts "
wherewith to revive their souls. In return they
gave us a most charming impromptu concert; some
of them had very fine voices indeed, and the part-
singing sounded beautiful and melodious on the
still, night air.
At midnight we departed from Port Darwin,
leaving the thirsty to look and long for the next
steamer. Three drowsy, stifling hot days followed,
the nights bringing little relief from the burn-
ing heat, except that the darkness was grateful
after the scorching glare of the sun all day.
We were now passing a succession of little
islands " lifting their fronded palms in air," the
sea between Port Darwin and Java being a verit-
able archipelago. None, however, were worthy
of note, though all looked pretty and seemed fer-
tile, until we entered Lombok Straits and passed
between the islands of Lombok and Bali. Here
the true East begins and the fauna and flora of
Australasia ends.
Instead of the playful and harmless wallaby, the
fierce leopard and man-eating tiger are to be found
on Bali and Lombok, as in the forests of Java.
65
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
The two mighty peaks of these islands (Bali
and Lombok) tower aloft into the sky, but owing
to their proximity to the Equator, are never
covered with snow. Our steamer passed so close
to Lombok that we could look into the caves and
through most wonderful arches made by the action
of the water.
Lombok is one of the Sunda Islands, and lies
between Bali and Sumbawa; it is of volcanic
origin, and its highest peak is over 12,000 feet
high. Crops similar to those in Java are culti-
vated, and buffaloes, cattle and horses are bred
and exported. The chief town bears the same
name as our ship, Mataram, and lies on the
Western coast, but the chief commercial centre is
Ampanam. Since 1 894 this island has been under
the control of the Dutch. Bali is larger than
Lombok, and also belongs to Holland. Its
highest mountain, the volcano Gunong-Agung,
rises to a height of 10,400 feet; the products of the
island are similar to those of Java, rice, sugar,
coffee, etc., etc.
The natives of Bali are among the most interest-
ing peoples of Malaysia. They are closely allied
to the Malayan-Java type, both in physique and
language, and have the same capacity for culture.
66
THURSDAY ISLAND & PORT DARWIN
They also excel in handicrafts, such as metal
work. But the chief interest lies in the fact that
they have kept Brahmanism as their religion, and
in a form much older than is found in Hindustan
at the present time. Long before Hinduism was
known to Java that faith was firmly rooted in Bali,
so firmly so that when the surrounding islands, in-
cluding Java, had been compelled to accept the
Koran, Bali remained faithful to its old belief, and
Brahmanism has there the same strong hold now
as it had a thousand years ago. While our
steamer was passing the island we looked up at
the huge, extinct volcano (Mt. Agung) , which
stands out like Mt. Fugi in Japan, and is much the
same sugarloaf shape. Just as we approached it
the sun was setting in a blaze of splendour, and
sharp against the crimson sky the peak stood out
a mass of purple and gold, while below and beyond
white, fleecy clouds floated, throwing into relief
the gorgeous colouring. It was magnificent!
At the foot of the mountain among the palm trees
were little brown villages, the houses with
thatched roofs. We came so near that we could
easily distinguish the men at work in the fields and
the children playing on the sandy beach. Leav-
ing Bali behind, we went on our way, and though
67
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
we passed other islands, it was getting too dark to
see them.
It was our last night on board the Mataram,
and we felt quite sorry to leave it and our kind
and courteous captain.
68
CHAPTER VI
JAVA LANDING AT SOURABAYA
Java derives its name from the Sanscrit word
Yava, meaning rich in millet or barley, and is the
important island of the Dutch East Indies, it is
also the richest, most populous, and one of the
most beautiful islands of the world; for this reason
it has been styled " The Garden of the East,"
and the Malays call it " The Pearl of the East."
The Portuguese were the first to discover its
value, and gained a footing there in the sixteenth
century, but they were not left long in undisputed
possession; the Dutch followed them, and, estab-
lishing trading stations along the coast, soon sup-
planted the Portuguese, and encroaching still
further into the interior, annexed more and more
country till the whole island was practically under
their control in 1808, and absolutely so in 1825,
when the last rebellious native ruler was subju-
gated. Java belonged to England from 181 1-
1816, the British having taken possession of the
69
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
island when Holland was united to France under
Napoleon. During those years, under the
strong, judicious and humane rule of Sir Stam-
ford Raffles, the natives were well governed and
the island prosperous. It was a thousand pities
that England gave up such a beautiful and valu-
able possession, but it was given back to Holland
when Napoleon fell. The : Dutch returned and
installed themselves, showing greater energy than
ever, and the natives had a very hard time under
the severe discipline known as the " culture
system," of which I shall speak later. But those
times are now over, and the natives seem con-
tented and happy under Dutch rule.
Java is a long, narrow island (666 miles long
and varying in width from 46 to 126 miles) near
Sumatra and Borneo; the clear waters of the sea
of Java wash its northern coast, which is low and
swampy, covered with mangrove trees and over-
grown with rank vegetation down to the water's
edge. In contrast to this, the south coast rises
rocky and precipitous, and at the base of its high
cliffs the surf of the Indian Ocean continually
breaks. East and west the straits of Bali and
Sunda respectively divide it from the islands of
the same name. It is not so difficult to gain access
70
JAVA— LANDING AT SOURABAYA
to Java now as it was when Miss Scidmore
visited it many years ago, but still there are
a good many rules and regulations to be
complied with. You cannot remain on shore
at any port more than twenty-four hours
without registering your name, age, religion,
nationality, place of birth, occupation, and name
and captain of the ship you came in, and you must
state your object in visiting Java. The authori-
ties being satisfied on all these points, you will
receive a permit or passport called a Toelatings-
Kart, and will be free of the country unless you
wish to shoot big game or indulge in any other
sort of sport, when an extra permit must be
obtained. The money in use in Java is the same
as in the Netherlands, though the design on the
coins of lesser value is different. A silver guilder
is the standard coin, its value being is. 8d. in
English money, so that twelve guilders equal an
English £i sterling. The smaller coins are the
half guilder = iod.; quarter guilder = 5d.; a silver
piece worth 2d. and a stuiver worth one penny, but
English sovereigns are accepted everywhere. At
most of the hotels and in the bigger shops in the
towns English (of a kind) is spoken, but those
who know Dutch and Malay have a great advan-
71
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
tage, especially those knowing the latter lan-
guage.
As a rule, the traveller visits Java from Singa-
pore, and lands first at Batavia on the west, but
as we were coming from Australia we came in at
the opposite end of the island, and arrived first
at Sourabaya. The only disadvantage in so
doing is that you get all the more characteristic
and distinctively Javanese sights at the beginning
of your trip.
Our ship was now about to enter the roadstead
outside Sourabaya; in the distance there appeared
what looked like a huge Noah's ark in the midst of
a sandy waste.
The captain told us it was a lighthouse, and
that the sea covered the sand at high tide. What
appeared like the boat part of the ark proved to be
in reality a broad verandah, adorned with gaily-
coloured flowers and plants in pots, the whole
effect being most quaint. I rushed for my camera
to get a snapshot, but when I returned with it we
were already far away, and the lighthouse came
out as a tiny speck in an expanse of sea and
sand. The pilot's arrival on board warned
us that our voyage was almost ended, and
we followed the example of our fellow passengers
72
JAVA— LANDING AT SOURABAYA
and hastened to get our luggage ready. The
Mataram (in common with all other big ships)
had to anchor a considerable distance from
the landing-stage, and in the absence of a steam
launch, which was not provided by the Company,
our entry into Sourabaya had to be made in a
sampan or native boat, not unlike a punt, but with
an awning to keep off sun and rain. We were
expecting a guide to meet us, as we had asked for
one to be in readiness, but the moment the ship
anchored such a crowd of coolies and Malays
swarmed up the gangways, all shouting and
jabbering in an unknown tongue, that it was a per-
fect Pandemonium, and we could not make our-
selves heard, much less understood. Some of
the passengers managed to get sampans and de-
parted. We were endeavouring to follow their
example, as we had given up all hope of finding
our guide, when an agent of the Burns Philp
Company, who spoke English, came to our rescue
and got us a sampan. Some portion of our lug-
gage had been placed in this boat, and we were
half-way down the gangway, intending to get in
beside it, when we were arrested by the most pierc-
ing shrieks and yells, and to our horror, we saw a
Government launch coming swiftly round from
73
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
the other side of the steamer. Without the
slightest warning, it crashed into the little waiting
sampans, smashing most of them, and reducing
our particular one to matchwood. Imagine our
consternation at seeing our precious belongings
tossing about in the sea! We gave them up for
lost, but fortunately the wash from the launch
carried them up against the side of our ship, and
the smart, nimble-fingered coolies managed in
some marvellous manner to retrieve them, and
threw them into the one sampan that had miracu-
lously escaped the general destruction. It was
the cleverest thing I had ever seen, not excepting
conjuring tricks, and the whole episode was over
in a couple of minutes. But even the brief immer-
sion of a few seconds had made our luggage
thoroughly wet, and the contents of trunks and
bags were in a deplorable condition when we un-
packed them in Sourabaya. The excitement
caused by this episode was immense, and many
were the expressions of sympathy we received from
the lookers on. Finally, with the agent's help,
we got another and larger sampan, and with all
our belongings, both wet and dry, we set out for
land. This delay, however, had allowed the
already threatening clouds to gather thickly in
74
JAVA— LANDING AT SOURABAYA
the sky, and half way to shore, to add to our dis-
comfort, a heavy thunderstorm, accompanied by a
deluge of rain, came on. Sea and sky seemed
indeed to have conspired against us, and we were
soon as wet as our immersed luggage, in spite of
the awning of our boat, which evidently served
the purpose of a sunshade better than that of an
umbrella.
We were profoundly thankful, when we at last
reached our destination and could step on shore,
to feel we had said good-bye to the sea for some
weeks, at all events.
We got our luggage through the Customs with-
out the slightest trouble; the Customhouse
Authorities at Sourabaya were most polite, and
showed their discrimination by not worrying us
about our belongings, whereby friction was
avoided and much time saved. When we
emerged from the Customhouse we found outside
some strange looking vehicles, something like
dog-carts, with a canopy overhead, but the seats
and the bottom of the car almost on a level, so that
instead of the feet hanging down as in an ordinary
cart, you had perforce to stretch them out
before you. Two passengers can sit behind with
their backs to the back of the driver, whence the
75
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
name sados, a corruption of dos a dos. The
whole of the front seat is occupied by the driver,
and he needs it, as he flourishes his whip
and gesticulates with his arms in a rather alarming
fashion. There are more comfortable carriages
called " Kosongs," four wheelers, and generally
drawn by a pair of horses, but these had been
snapped up by the passengers who had preceded
us, so it was a case of Hobson's choice. My
brother and the agent took one sados and drove off
to the Bank to obtain the all important money and
necessary passports. My sister-in-law and I were
hoisted (I can use no other term) into a second,
and whirled away to our hotel at a terrific pace; for
the drivers in Java simply tear along as fast as
possible without the slightest regard for the lives
or limbs of pedestrians. These latter seemed
quite accustomed to the Jehu-like propensities of
Javanese coachmen, and showed considerable
agility in skipping out of the way. As for us, we
just held on like grim death to the sides of the
vehicle, for as we knew no Malay and he no Eng-
lish, we could not make our driver go more slowly.
Except that we had the name of our hotel we were
completely at his mercy; he could take us where
he liked; it gave me the most curious feeling of
76
JAVA— LANDING AT SOURABAYA
helplessness I had ever experienced. This rapid
rate of progress was the more annoying, as we
were soon passing through most fascinating scenes
of Javanese life, and we would have given anything
to stop and look at them, or even pass them by
more slowly.
The wharf at Sourabaya is situated like most
docks in a very unaristocratic part of the town, and
we had to drive a long way before reaching the
Dutch residential quarter, where the best hotels
are to be found, as well as the finest houses. At
first we skirted the canal, passing the huge build-
ings belonging to the dockyards which lined one
side of the road, as well as some very ugly, small
ones. The boats in the canal looked most pic-
turesque with their wooden roofs painted in
various colours, their striped sails and brightly-
decorated prows; the effect was very gay. We
then turned a corner so suddenly that we were
nearly jerked into the road, and found ourselves
opposite a big, ancient-looking building shaded by
beautiful trees; this we learnt later was the " Prins
Hendrik," an old fort no longer in use. Another
turn and we were in a narrow street teeming with
Oriental life, with Chinese and Javanese shops or
bazaars on either side. These latter seemed full
77
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
of quaint and unknown things, as far as could be
seen during our rapid transit, but we could only
catch glimpses of these marvels. The thorough-
fare was crowded with a motley collection of
Malays, Javanese, Chinese, Negroes and even
Arabs conspicuous in their long, white garments;
in fact, all sorts and conditions of men and women
were represented, all dressed in the costume of
their country, making a wonderful kaleidoscopic
scene.
The Chinese were mostly dressed in white or
blue linen jacket and trousers, their long pigtails
plaited with red silk hanging down their backs;
the Javanese were clad in the native costume of
sarong and kabaja worn by men and women alike.
The sarong is a long, straight piece of native
cloth, very wide, painted in various designs and
different colours, blue, red and brown being the
most common; on one side there is a border, and
in certain parts of Java the sarong has a panel of
more elaborate design than the rest of the piece.
This cloth is worn round the body from the waist
to the feet, forming a kind of petticoat or skirt,
and when there is a panel this comes to the front;
the whole is kept in place by a belt of thick ribbon.
Over this is worn the Kabaja (or kabaia) , a loose
78
JAVA— LANDING AT SOURABAYA
jacket, generally of a bright colour, fastened, in
the women's case, with three little silver brooches
connected by chains of the same metal. * When
the men are doing any hard work they take off this
jacket, leaving the upper part of the body bare.
So far the dress is alike for both sexes, but the
women wear in addition a slendang, which is a
broad sash of cloth similar in kind to the sarong,
but not necessarily the same colour. This is put
on so as to pass under one arm and fasten on the
opposite shoulder with the ends hanging down at
the back, a little after the fashion in which some
Highlanders wear the plaid. The slendang
serves the Javanese woman as a pocket or carry-
all, and is a most capacious one; often you will see
peeping out of its voluminous folds the downy,
black head of a Javanese baby. The slendang
is a mark of respectability, without it no self-re-
specting Javanese female would be seen abroad.
The women wear no covering on their heads, but
the men invariably have a turban composed of a
square piece of the same cloth as the sarong, folded
round the head in a particularly neat way, and
finished off with a curious knot, the ends forming
* Sec cover of book.
79
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
a loop each side like cats' ears. All this of course
we learnt later.
The strangest sight of all, and one that never
lost its interest during our stay in Java, was the
native carrier. At the ends of a bamboo pole,
the middle of which rests on his shoulders, he
carries every conceivable thing. Sometimes deep
baskets containing fruit and vegetables, or flat
ones with fish and native food, are fixed to each
end ; at other times huge bundles of fodder for the
bullocks and horses; or at the end of one pole will
hang a primitive charcoal stove, and at the other
a basket with eatables ready to be cooked when
required. It is marvellous what heavy weights
can be carried in this way; even bricks for building
purposes, quite a huge pile being balanced in a
hod or basket at each end of the pole. We passed
many motors and numerous bicycles, also well-
appointed carriages drawn by very good horses,
generally in pairs. In some of the carriages, re-
clining at ease, were richly dressed Chinamen, as
a great number of the Celestials living in Soura-
baya, and indeed in most of the towns in Java, are
exceedingly wealthy, and live in good style in
beautiful houses, waited on by Javanese or Malay
servants.
80
NATIVE CARRIER, 1 \V.\
JAVA— LANDING AT SOURABAYA
From the narrow street we emerged into a
square, caught a glimpse of a market, and then
entered a broad avenue, the Simpang Road,
shaded on either side by tjemara trees. Here
were some fine shops and one of the best cafes in
the Dutch East Indies — Grimm's Restaurant.
We continued our way at the same break-neck
speed, passing under the beautiful trees and noting
some fine public buildings, till we finally, after a
drive of more than an hour, rattled into the open
space in front of the Simpang Hotel.
This hotel is considered the best in Sourabaya,
and is always full; just then it was more crowded
than usual on account of the nearness of the Easter
holidays. Fortunately we had secured rooms by
cabling, at half-a-crown a word, from Thursday
Island, or we should not have got in. Some of
our fellow passengers were not so lucky, and had
considerable difficulty in finding accommodation
anywhere, though there are two or three other
excellent hotels in Sourabaya besides the Hotel
Simpang. Our host, who appeared at the
entrance to welcome us, spoke English well. He
explained as he conducted us to our rooms that
he much regretted he could not give us the two
bedrooms we required close together, but it was
impossible as the place was so full.
8r
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
Hotel Simpang was quite unlike any building I
had seen hitherto, and consisted of a large, one-
storied house in the centre, with a number of
smaller houses or bungalows, built at a little dis-
tance round three sides of it, the whole covering a
considerable tract of ground. These smaller
buildings contained bedrooms, bathrooms, kit-
chens, and various offices, while the central build-
ing had the dining-room and larger bedrooms.
The various bungalows are connected with each
other and with the principal house by narrow
paved or concrete passages covered overhead with
galvanized iron, but open at the sides, and slightly
raised to escape the damp of the ground in wet
weather. The spaces between the passages are
filled with soft gravel which you can walk across
if you like, but it is not so pleasant as on the path-
ways. We were taken along a very wide
verandah to an immense room in the main building
which had been reserved for my brother and his
wife. All the rooms, both large and small, open
on to the verandah, and that portion immediately
in front of each room is reserved as a sitting-room
for the occupant, and furnished with table, chairs
and footstools, and has a brilliant overhanging
light. There is no drawing-room or lounge in
82
JAVA— LANDING AT SOURABAYA
Javanese hotels, the verandah answers the pur-
pose. The great drawback to this arrangement is
its publicity, for the outer part of the verandah
is a thoroughfare, and forms the only means of
access to the various rooms, so that people are
always passing and repassing. We entered the
bedroom through a door which had two leaves,
like a folding door, but which was not continued
the whole way to the ceiling, in order that a cur-
rent of air might pass at the top and keep the room
cool ; a wooden bar secures this door inside. The
window had only shutters, no glass; and the
shutters are nearly always closed to keep the room
dark and therefore cool in the daytime, but at
night the electric light brilliantly illuminates the
interior. The room contained two huge four-post
beds, about seven or eight feet square; no blankets
or counterpane, but each had a sheet tightly
stretched across the mattress, a couple of ordinary
pillows in white pillow cases, and a long one like
a bolster which is called a " Dutch wife." It
is supposed to assuage your sufferings from the
heat, either by being used as a support for your
feet, thus allowing the air to play round you, or
else, when there seems to be no air, to be kicked
about as a relief to your feverish feelings. A
83
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
white canopy at the top and mosquito curtains all
round completed the equipment. The floor was
stone or concrete, so that no insect might find
lodgment, and quite bare except for some narrow
strips of matting alongside the beds. The rest of
the furniture consisted of a large wardrobe of dark
wood fitted with shelves, a square table in the
middle of the room, smaller ones by each bed, a
washstand with looking-glass on the wall above
it, so that it did duty as dressing-table as well, and
two really respectable sized jugs and basins.
These last were a pleasant surprise, for we had
been told to expect nothing larger than a sugar
bowl and cream jug There were two or three
chairs and a fairly high screen covered with some
sort of tapestry, with hooks on the side next the
room on which to hang your garments. This
screen was very necessary to protect the interior
of the room from prying eyes, as the doors are
generally left open for the sake of coolness.
Wherever we went in Java we found the same style
of bed and room, larger or smaller as the case
might be; the only exception was at Buitenzorg
in the Hotel Bellevue, where the rooms were car-
peted all over and furnished more in European
style. After inspecting this apartment and seeing
84
JAVA— LANDING AT SOURABAYA
the luggage deposited therein, we were conducted
along several of the outside passages until we
came to a little courtyard planted with shady trees,
where was a small building containing two bed-
rooms, one of which was allotted to me. The
other I was pleased to find was to be occupied by
a young lady, a fellow passenger, who, being also
separated from her party, was equally relieved to
have me as neighbour; for this court and building
were rather isolated, and evidently formed one of
the outside boundaries of the Simpang ground, a
high wall dividing one side of the court from the
public road. The verandah outside each room
was arranged in a similar manner to that in the
larger building, and furnished with table and
chairs, but was far pleasanter, as, being a sort of
cul-de-sac, there were no passers by. This was
a decided advantage, as it gives you rather a shock
to find your passage along the verandah barred by
the naked feet of a portly Dutchman who spends
the greater part of his afternoon outside his bed-
room extended at full length in his lounge chair
smoking and reading, dressed only in pyjamas, his
feet, guiltless of socks or shoes, stretched out on
the movable pieces of wood attached to the arms of
the chair. He and such like gentlemen take up
85
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
much more than their legitimate room, and are
so lazy that they will scarcely take the trouble to
move their feet to allow you to pass; such an effect
has a tropical climate on European manners!
In spite of our interest in the newness and
strangeness of our surroundings, we could not any
longer ignore the pangs of hunger. It was now 3
o'clock, and we had tasted nothing since our
breakfast on board ship. The riz tavel or midday
meal was, of course, over, but the manager of the
hotel had an excellent repast ready for us and
some of our fellow passengers, soon after 3
o'clock, and we were quite ready for it. The
meal was quite ordinary and European, soup,
meat, vegetables, and what looked like blanc-
mange, also some sort of stewed fruit, and then
cheese, butter and biscuits. Any of the ordinary
mineral waters, and wine and spirits, can be
obtained, but the water in Sourabaya is excellent,
as it is brought in pipes from the Kasri-springs
on the slope of the Ardjoens.
My brother returned from his successful quest
for money and passports just in time to join us.
It was fortunate we were given such a substantial
late luncheon, as, though you get afternoon tea in
Java, it is tea pure and simple, with nothing to
86
JAVA— LANDING AT SOURABAYA
eat, and is brought to each person separately on a
little tray and placed on the table in the verandah
outside his room. As dinner is never served
before 8.30 and often not till 9 o'clock p.m., we
should have been in a desperate condition, as we
had had no time to supply ourselves with biscuits.
We took care to provide ourselves with a good
stock of these later, when we knew more about
Javanese customs. You can buy a great variety
of biscuits, even Huntley and Palmer's, in all the
big towns in Java, and I should strongly advise
the traveller to have two or three small tins of
these as part of his luggage; they will be found
most useful, and in some places really necessary,
for instance in outlying districts and upon the
mountains where the bread is not very good. We
should have liked to go out and explore, but were
obliged to spend the rest of the afternoon in un-
packing and endeavouring to dry our wet gar-
ments, to which the Java sea had been so unkind.
We found that not only were the clothes soaked,
but unhappily the red in a shawl, which was in
one of my sister-in-law's boxes, in close proximity
to some of her best wearing apparel, had proved
untrustworthy, and the colour had run, and
Joseph's renowned coat could not have been more
87
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
particoloured than some of her unlucky garments,
which were of course completely spoiled. Those
that had escaped the crimson stain were horribly
sticky with the salt water, and if not of washing
material were quite unwearable. It was most
annoying, to be obliged to spend the time in this
unpleasant but necessary task, when we were
longing to see more of Sourabaya.
The guide engaged for us by Burns Philp
arrived to be interviewed, but he was neither so
satisfactory nor so pleasant in his manner as the
one who brought us ashore. The latter was a
Eurasian, whereas the new guide was Dutch, and
spoke English better than he understood it. I
came to this conclusion as he never seemed able to
answer our questions properly, his replies being
either vague and unsatisfactory or else wide of the
mark, nor did he ever attempt to explain things.
He was also much too fine a gentleman for our
purpose; he never offered to relieve us of coat or
umbrella, and if anything was handed to him to
carry he immediately passed it on to a coolie. The
Dutch, and indeed all Europeans in Java, con-
sider it derogatory to their dignity to carry the
smallest thing, or even to open the door of a room
or carriage, these menial offices being performed
88
JAVA— LANDING AT SOURABAYA
by Malay or Javanese coolies. All this guide did
for us, therefore, was to translate at railway
stations and hotels, and make the natives do our
bidding, and for this he was paid ios. a day and
all his expenses! It is not easy to get guides of
any kind, but the best to employ are Eurasians,
who generally know Dutch and Malay and enough
English to understand all your wishes, while some
of them speak English well. Failing one of
these, it will be found quite satisfactory to hire a
Malay or Javanese boy, who knows sufficient Eng-
lish to translate your wants. They are much less
expensive, as you pay them a fixed sum per day
or week (not a quarter as much as the other guides
charge) , and they find their own food and lodging,
travel with the natives in the trains at a much
cheaper rate, and yet serve your purpose quite as
well. A party of our fellow passengers took a
Malay boy in this way and found him a most excel-
lent guide. Anyone who has a command of
Malay can travel through the length and breadth
of Java without a guide. The natives are never
allowed to learn or use Dutch, so that all Euro-
peans living in the Dutch East Indies must know
Malay and be able to speak it fluently. There-
fore for travel purposes Malay is more useful than
89
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
Dutch, though it is better to know both. The
dearth of competent guides is a serious drawback,
but this should soon be remedied, as the demand
is certain to create the supply.
It was the eve of Good Friday, and our guide
informed us that the shops would be shut and the
people away holiday-making from the next morn-
ing till the following Tuesday. That being so,
we thought it would be better to start early next
day for Tosari, and return to Sourabaya when the
holidays were over. For some reason of his own
the guide opposed this, and wished to wait, saying
the Sanatorium at Tosari would be so full with the
people who had gone there for Easter that we
should have great difficulty in getting accommoda-
tion, and he would need time to make the neces-
sary arrangements. My brother gave in about
starting next morning, but insisted on our leaving,
on Saturday, and told the guide he must try and
find room for us by that time. The Sanatorium
at Tosari turned out to be in telegraphic communi-
cation with Sourabaya, so there was really no
difficulty, except what the guide chose to make.
The next day was Good Friday; there was of
course no English Church or service in Soura-
baya; all seemed to regard it just as a public
90
JAVA— LANDING AT SOURABAYA
holiday and day of pleasure. After breakfast we
got two carriages from the hotel, each holding two
persons, and set off to see as much as we could
of the town. My brother and the guide went in
the first carriage to show the way, and we ladies
followed in the second. We had been told by the
guide that the shops would all be shut, but to our
surprise we saw they were open and doing a brisk
trade. We tried to attract the attention of the
guide, but though he was supposed to be showing
us the sights, he never once looked round or
pointed out any places of interest, so we tried in
vain. We wanted to go to a shop and get a water-
proof for my brother, who would need it at Tosari,
as the rainy season was not yet over, but we had
to wait till we returned to the hotel before we could
get hold of the guide. He seemed surprised that
we did not know the shops would be open till 12
or 1 o'clock, although closed in the afternoon, and
rather unwillingly turned back and drove with us
to a fine large draper's shop, where they seemed
to have the latest European fashions, and my
brother succeeded in getting a very nice water-
proof coat. Not that it was much use to him;
whether because it was unlucky through being
bought on Good Friday, or for some other
9'
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
mysterious reason, it disappeared next morning at
the railway station, and was never heard of again.
It was annoying!
We returned to the hotel for luncheon, or as it
is called " riz tavel,' or rice table, so named be-
cause the piece de resistance is a huge plateful of
rice to which are added various sorts of meat. It
was our first experience of it. A large soup plate
is set before you flanked by several little plates.
Plain boiled rice is brought round and you help
yourself. Then you are handed a number of
dishes one after the other, containing fish, pieces
of meat, stewed chicken, curry, eggs, various
vegetables and lots of queer looking eatables.
You make your choice, placing them on the little
plates, from which you transfer them in any order
you please to the soup plate, and eat them with
the rice. It is quite a good dish in a hotel like
the Simpang, and most satisfying, but in some
places the condiments offered to you with the rice,
look so strange and taste so queer that you go on
rejecting each in the hope of something better till
you find yourself with rice alone, which is not at
all satisfying. At the Simpang they give you also
boiled or fried fish, roast beef, and stewed fruits
of various kinds; these latter are sometimes
handed to eat with the meat.
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JAVA— LANDING AT SOURABAYA
In Java the European spends the afternoon in
repose, and wakes up about four o'clock, when
tea is brought round to each room. From five to
eight o'clock is the time for driving, and the ladies
discard the sarong and kabaja and appear in
elaborate toilettes. No hats or bonnets are worn,
though I believe on state occasions and at concerts
they have some sort of headgear. In the daytime
a sunshade keeps the heat off, and when the sun
goes down they are cooler and more comfortable
without any covering on the head. I hear the
fashion in this respect is changing, and hats are
being worn a good deal.
I was not much inclined for repose, as every-
thing was so new and strange, but I thought a bath
would be very refreshing on such a hot afternoon.
I had not ventured to take one in the morning, as
though I saw Dutch ladies lightly garbed and
wearing wooden shoes emerging from the bath-
rooms, which were in a little pavilion by them-
selves, I had not the courage to cross the com-
pound in dressing gown and slippers, not knowing
what might await me, as I had heard such queer
stories about the bathing accommodation in Java.
Providing myself with towels, I set off to explore,
and as it was not the usual hour for bathing I had
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A JOURNEY TO JAVA
no difficulty in finding an empty bathroom. The
door was fastened inside with a wooden bolt, and
having secured this, I gazed around me with in-
terest. I found myself in what at home one would
call a wash-house; as the big stone cistern in the
corner had all the appearance of a copper in which
to boil clothes. The floor was brick, or tiles that
looked like bricks, and the room was lighted from
the roof. A tin pail or dipper with a handle at
one side like a saucepan, a high wooden stool, and
three pegs let into the wall completed the furni-
ture.
I no longer wondered that the ladies wore
wooden shoes, and devoutly wished I had a pair
myself, as I realised that by the time a bath had
been taken Javanese fashion, that is by pouring
the water over you, the whole place would be a
swamp with not a dry spot, and you would be
obliged to finish your toilet standing in water, as
the floor did not slope enough to allow it to drain
off quickly as it should have done. However,
" necessity being the mother of invention," I
managed to dress standing on one foot, keeping
the booted one out of the wet by resting it on the
stool turned sideways, then putting on the final
stocking and shoe in the least wet place by the
94
JAVA— LANDING AT SOURABAYA
door, and making a rush for the latter. It was
difficult, but I managed to emerge fairly dryshod.
The bath itself was most delightful; the cold water
poured over one is much more refreshing and
cooling, and less of a shock, than getting into a
cold bath in the ordinary way. The same kind of
bath is used all over Java, and one gets not only
accustomed to it, but learns to prefer it.
Some funny stories are told of European tyros
in Javanese bathing; one, of a man who tried to
climb into the cistern, another of a person who
used the cistern as a basin, putting soap into it,
thereby necessitating its being completely emptied
before it could be used by anyone else, to the con-
sternation of his host, as the cisterns hold many
gallons of water. Occasionally you will find the
bathroom in close proximity to your room, one
being allowed for every two or three bedrooms,
but generally they are some distance away, and
sometimes, as at Hotel Bellevue in Buitenzorg,
near Batavia, quite a day's journey from the
sleeping apartments.
I returned to my room much refreshed, to find
tea awaiting me on the verandah outside my door,
and a smiling Malay engaged in beating my bed
and the inside of the mosquito curtains with a
95
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
broom made of twigs tied together, in order to dis-
lodge any mosquito or such like insect which might
have secreted itself in the hope of a meal. Having
satisfied himself that all was in order, he proceeded
to draw the netting closely round the bed to keep
the mosquitos out. In the daytime the curtains
are drawn back to let in the air and looped up on
bamboo or bone hooks. I tried to talk to this
native and find out if he were Malay or Javanese,
but the conversation was not very satisfactory, as
his English and my Malay were about equal.
There are no women servants in evidence in the
East; all the waiting, attendance, etc., is done by
men, and very deftly and quickly done.
After tea I packed for Tosari, as we had to make
an early start next morning. We were told to re-
strict our luggage as much as possible, because on
leaving the train at Pasoeroean the remainder of
the journey had to be done by carriage and on
horseback or in sedan chairs, the luggage being
carried on the backs of horses or mules. The
dinner hour in Java is very late, 8.30 or 9 o'clock;
so much is eaten at the riz tavel that no one is
ready for it earlier. It was just an ordinary table
d'hote, soup, fish, meat, jellies, stewed fruit, etc.
There were some strange looking dishes handed
96
JAVA— LANDING AT SOURABAYA
round, but as I did not venture on them I can-
not say what they were. We had, however, one
new experience, in tasting for the first time that
most delicious and incomparable fruit, the
mangosteen. This fruit is about the size of a
Tangerine orange, but of a dark, reddish brown
colour, and speckled with yellow or grey; the rind
is very thick, and shows outside where it is divided
within into segments, like an orange. The in-
terior consists of a white, juicy substance that com-
bines both acidity and sweetness in its unique
flavour, which cannot be compared to any fruit I
have ever tasted; it is most like a combination of
strawberries or peaches and ice-cream.
The Mangosteen tree (of the natural order of
Guttiferae) is a native of the Molucca Islands, and
never exceeds more than 20 feet in height; it is
something like a fir tree in shape; the leaves are
shiny and leathery looking, and it has a large
flower with a corolla of four dark red petals. It
was introduced into Java, and is much cultivated
there, but is too delicate a fruit to be exported any
distance. We were told that quite a large sum
of money had been offered to anyone who would
manage to convey a mangosteen in good condition
to Holland, so that the Dutch Queen might taste
97
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
it, but so far no one has succeeded, and the reward
is still to be claimed. The fruit must be eaten
fresh, as soon after it is picked the white interior
begins to turn brown, and eventually shrivels and
dries up. Java boasts of many other delicious
fruits, such as the pomelo, like a green water
melon but pink inside; the red rambutan with a
prickly shell similar to a horse chestnut, but with
a white, juicy substance inside; the duka with a
leathery rind and grape-like taste; the papaya or
custard fruit resembling a melon, and the durian,
that monster fruit which is said " to surpass in
flavour all the fruits of the world," but has such a
horrible and disgusting smell that it is never
allowed in the hotels, and therefore must be eaten
far from human habitations. The natives eat it
freely, and it is always on sale cut in sections in
their passers or markets. It is never picked, but
allowed to fall to the ground when ripe. Dr.
Ward in his Medical Topography of the Straits,
says : ' ' Those who overcome the prejudice excited
by the disagreeable, fetid odour of the external
shell, reckon it delicious." Little children love
it. Besides these less well-known fruits there are
many others more or less familiar by importation,
such as the cocoanut, the banana (a universal
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JAVA— LANDING AT SOURABAYA
fruit in Java, each native hut having its own
banana tree) , the melon, orange, lime and pine-
apple. The last named grows most plentifully,
but we were warned not to eat it as it often causes
fever and cholera in Europeans. But not one of
all these fruits can be compared with the mango-
steen, which is the Queen of Fruits in my opinion.
99
CHAPTER VII
TOSARI AND THE BROMO
There are no night trains in Java, which is rather
a pity, as the gain in coolness and freedom from
dust would be considerable, but all the engine
drivers and stokers are natives and evidently the
Dutch consider there is less risk of accident in
daylight travel ; it also gives the tourist an oppor-
tunity of viewing the landscape, which is of
course an advantage. In consequence, the train
starts abnormally early so as to get as much of
the journey over before the heat of the day as
possible. Five o'clock a.m. is not an unusual
hour. I am glad to say our train was a particu-
larly late one, and did not leave till a quarter to
eight, but even this necessitated our getting up
soon after six in order to have our breakfast and
leave for the station soon after seven. We had
seen nothing of our guide since noon the day
before; he was no doubt fulfilling the engage-
ment which prevented him from taking us to
IOO
TOSARI AND THE BROMO
Tosari, as we found we could have had the same
rooms at the hotel there on the Friday as on the
Saturday. He turned up, however, to conduct
us to the station, whither we drove, arriving there
with plenty of time to spare. Here we met one
of our fellow passengers, Mrs. H., and her hus-
band, who had come to Sourabaya to meet her,
and take her to their home, a cable station distant
several hours' journey. A friend of theirs was
seeing them off, and they introduced him to us.
Later, on our return to Sourabaya, he was ex-
ceedingly kind in taking us about and showing us
hospitality.
The train was in ; so we were soon seated with
Mr. and Mrs. H. in a first class compartment,
which we found quite as comfortable as any of
the carriages in England or on the Continent.
The seats were arranged in the same manner, and
the train was a corridor one, in the sense that all
the carriages communicated ; but, as in Switzer-
land, you walked through the middle of the car-
riages and not through an outside passage. The
windows had a most ingenious arrangement of
fine wire blinds that kept out the dust and glare,
but admitted the refreshing breeze. The second
class carriages are also very comfortable, and
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
many of our fellow passengers chose them as
much less expensive and yet quite nice. Both
have restaurant cars attached, where lunch and
tea is provided; but though the food is fairly
good it is better to cater for oneself and take
sandwiches, biscuits and Thermos bottles of tea,
as we did; though, in this case, we only had to
make up for our early breakfast, as we were to
lunch at Poespo. Just before starting the water-
proof coat was missed, but neither search in the
station, nor a message sent to the Simpang Hotel,
in case it had been left behind, revealed its where-
abouts. The scenery through which we passed
was not only beautiful but had all the charm of
novelty. It was my first sight of sugar cane
plantations, with their feathery flowers not unlike
pampas grass; the rice fields, too, with the sun
gleaming on the water that surrounded and
almost covered them, were quite new to me and
most interesting. Trees, palms, bamboos,
bananas, etc., and tropical foliage flourished in
abundance on either side of the railway line, and
often one caught a glimpse of a native village
embowered in a perfect mass of greenery, and
sometimes of little, brown children running out
to see us pass. In about two hours we reached
1 02
■
INTERIOR OF 'I HE BROMO VOLCANO
TOSARI AND THE BROMO
Passoeroean, where we had to leave the train
and take to carriages ; our friends were going on
for another seven or eight hours, so long a jour-
ney was it to their distant home at the cable
station. At Passoeroean, when our luggage was
taken out we saw, to our dismay, that our guide
had brought two large tin trunks, one large
wooden box and two bags as his share, to be taken
all the way to Tosari. We had been cautioned
to take as little as possible and had reduced ours
in consequence to the smallest limits, so we felt
much aggrieved. I suggested that he must have
brought all his worldly possessions with him. I
was only joking, but " there is many a true word
spoken in jest," and we found on our return, that
counting on a long tour with us, he had given up
his lodgings in Sourabaya, and brought all his
belongings with him. He always dressed either
in a white or khaki suit, putting a fresh one on
each day; so he required plenty of room for his
clothes. The station presented an animated
scene, and I was much amused watching the
natives who thronged the place, some selling
fresh fruit, others cakes and sweetmeats; there
were also vendors of queer, little paper toys, some
of which I bought. By this time the guide had
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secured carriages, of which we had to have four.
They only hold two people, so two were needed
for ourselves, one for our guide's luggage, and
one for our own, into which the guide's luggage
overflowed. He stood and looked on giving
directions to the coolies, but doing nothing him-
self, not even offering to open the carnage door
for us. It was really too funny. We two ladies
got into the first carriage and the guide and my
brother into the second, and away we galloped,
the two other carriages following behind. We
drove through the most wonderful scenery along
roads that were just like avenues in a park, so
overshadowed were they by beautiful trees;
through the native villages or kampongs, where
all the inhabitants turned out to see us; past little
brooks by the wayside, where the native children
were disporting themselves in the water ; meeting
natives with huge hats like umbrellas, painted a
brilliant blue, and also carriers with huge
bundles of fodder for the cattle, balanced on their
bamboo poles. Then the wild flowers were a
most delectable sight. Everywhere the land-
scape glowed with them, the colouring was so
vivid. It was a perfectly entrancing drive and
the air was delightful, warm but not too hot. At
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TOSARI AND THE BROMO
Pasrepan we had to change carriages, a very
necessary proceeding, as our horses were quite
exhausted owing to the rapid rate at which they
had been driven. They never seem to drive
slowly in Java, and we had come at a gallop,
although it had been uphill all the time. We
went on still ascending until we arrived at
Poespo, 2,600 feet above the sea level. From
this point, to reach Tosari, you must proceed
either on horseback or be carried in a sedan chair,
there being no carriage road. We all chose the
latter mode of travelling, except the guide who
had a horse, and five or six extra horses were
needed for the luggage. It is quite wonderful
how the natives manage to sling quite large trunks
by means of ropes on each side of a horse, and
what a weight some of these animals can carry !
Their burdens wobble about in a most alarming
fashion and look as if they would fall off, but
this they never seem to do. Our guide needed
three horses for his luggage, the huge wooden
box needing a horse to itself, as being the full
amount for him to carry.
We had lunch before we started, and a very
good one; then we set forth making quite an im-
posing cavalcade. Three sedan chairs with six
10.S
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
bearers to each, four to carry and two to relieve
at intervals, then about six or seven horses, the
guide riding one and the others led by natives,
carrying the luggage, so that we were quite a
large party. Our journey was all uphill, as
Tosari is some thousand feet higher than
Poespo, 6,000 feet above sea level. The scenery
continued to be very beautiful, and the wild
flowers as luxuriant as before, but gradually the
landscape became more open, the forests and
woods were left behind and replaced by fields
with occasional tjemari trees and what looked like
firs. In the fields European vegetables are cul-
tivated, potatoes, cabbages, onions, etc., so that
the land loses its tropical aspect and appears
barren in comparison with the exuberant vegeta-
tion at a lower altitude. But it was getting dusk
and we could see very little during the last half
hour of our journey; a fog also came on and the
air felt clammy and cold. The sedan chair is
quite a comfortable means of transit when you
are borne in it uphill; but descending you are
shaken to pieces and your poor bones rattled over
the stones at a most terrific pace, especially when
the bearers keep step. On reaching Tosari we
found it was impossible to obtain accommodation
106
TOSARI AND THE BROMO
at the Sanatorium ; it was full up with visitors for
the Easter holidays, so we were taken about one
hundred yards higher up, to a kind of annexe,
not nearly so comfortable or well furnished. At
the Sanatorium proper, there are separate little
pavilions, such as we had at the Hotel des Indes
in Batavia, and in Tosari pretty gardens surround
these and there are excellent tennis courts and
croquet lawns. On a lofty terrace was our rather
primitive hotel, consisting of one-storied wooden
buildings erected round three sides of a square
or courtyard, on the fourth was a wide flight of
stone steps, giving the only means of access to
this veritable eyrie. The accommodation was
plain, even rough, and the food very bad.
Lamps or candles were the only illumination.
The steps did not seem to present any difficulty
to our bearers, and they ran up them with the
sedan chairs, glad to lay their burden down in
the courtyard. The horses also climbed them as
a matter of course, and seemed quite accustomed
to walking upstairs. A narrow verandah ran
round the building, the rooms opening on to it,
as well as on to a wider verandah the other side
from which you looked down into the valley
below. At the top of the square facing the steps
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A JOURNEY TO JAVA
was the dining room, a bare looking place, with
a long table down the middle; a door opposite
to the one by which we came in gave access to a
balcony, furnished with tables and chairs, from
which a magnificent view can be obtained ; at
night you can see from it the twinkling lights in
the Sanatorium below. The bedrooms were
small but the beds as usual enormous. No
mosquito curtains adorned them, none were
needed, and there were blankets, as that altitude
allows you to sleep between the bedclothes in-
stead of on the top of them. The cold was
intense, but the air was deliciously fresh and pure
after the hot, suffocating atmosphere of Soura-
baya. We were glad of all the warm wraps we
had brought, and also thankful for spirit lamp
and kettle, so that we could make hot tea and
have it with biscuits to supplement the meagre
fare provided. Dinner was served soon after
our arrival, but was not a success from our point
of view. There were a good many visitors, most
of them, like ourselves, unable to get into the
Sanatorium, and yet obliged to make the expe-
dition then or miss it altogether. Two of the visi-
tors were fellow passengers, Mr. and Mrs. B., and
they had come up the day before, as we should
1 08
TOSARI AND THE BROMO
have done, and had already made the excursion
to the Bromo. Late that night, when I stepped
from my room on to the outer verandah and lean-
ing on the railing, that was the only barrier
between me and the depths beneath, gazed on the
scene before me, I was filled with wonder and
admiration, together with a sense of awe and
mystery surpassing any feeling of the kind ever
inspired by the mountains in Switzerland. It
was moonlight, and the mountains with their
numerous peaks stood out vividly bathed in light,
in striking contrast to the dark lurking shadows,
intensified in places to an inky blackness which
filled the gorges and ravines dividing them.
Between them and me lay a valley in which
nestled small, brown houses ; these, and the steep,
rocky path leading down to them through trees
and flowers were all glorified and idealized by
the beautiful moonbeams. There all was calm
and quietness, the natives were evidently
wrapped in slumber, as no lights were visible.
But up above where I stood, the atmosphere
seemed to lack that serenity and peace, which the
night and the deep stillness that brooded over
everything should have brought, and which one
expects to experience in the mountains. Nature
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A JOURNEY TO JAVA
seemed to be in a waiting, listening mood, as if
expecting or fearing something. One felt some-
how that here the " Everlasting Hills " were not
so much the symbols of the protecting strength of
the God of Nature as of His power and wrath.
They seemed, those outwardly cold, lifeless-
looking peaks which you knew were full internally
of raging burning fire, the personification of
baneful demons longing to let loose their powers
and carry havoc and desolation into the quiet
valley below. The spirit of evil seemed abroad
wrestling with the spirit of peace; one could no
longer wonder that the natives in these volcanic
regions worship, and try to propitiate, the death-
dealing mountains, and regard them as the home
of wicked spirits. These thoughts came un-
bidden as I stood and looked, and I felt I would
not have missed for any consideration that won-
derful and never-to-be-forgotten sight. Before
I went back to my room the impression of evil
seemed to pass and the spirit of peace to prevail ;
then I remembered it was Easter Eve, in fact,
Easter Day had dawned.
The next day was glorious, the sun shone
brightly and the air was crisp and invigorating.
After breakfast I went out on the balcony adjoin-
no
TOSARI AND THE BROMO
ing the dining-room to see the view, which was a
most extensive one. Far away in the distance
you could just discern the water of the Strait of
Madura, which sparkled as it caught the sun's
rays ; in the plains beneath were rice fields almost
covered with water and numerous lakes or ponds
all glittering in the sunshine. On the edge of
the slopes just below, and all around, were here
and there Tenggerese kampongs or native vil-
lages, with their queer shaped houses, sometimes
perched on a mountain ridge in a seemingly
perilous position. On the left rose tall and
majestic, three huge mountains, Penanggoengan,
in the shape of a sugar-loaf, the " many crested "
Ardjoena with its five peaks, and Kawi with three
summits. A chain of volcanic mountains runs
the whole length of Java from West to East;
some of them are extinct but many are still active
like Smeroe and the Bromo, others after slum-
bering for years may suddenly burst forth as the
Kloet did in 1901, plunging the surrounding
country for 200 miles into darkness and killing a
few Europeans and over a hundred natives, be-
sides destroying the rice and sugar crops.
I had to tear myself away from the entrancing
prospect, as we had planned an excursion to a
in
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
place called Ngadirono, among the Tengger
Mountains, where they grow all the fresh vege-
tables and some of the fruits for Sourabaya.
Mrs. B., our fellow passenger on the Mataram.
strongly advised us to go. She and her husband
had been and enjoyed it immensely. I was
amused, however, to find she chiefly recom-
mended it as a place where you got good bread
and delicious butter. The butter in Java as a
rule leaves much to be desired, so that it is a treat
to get any that could be termed delicious, and
evidently this exception had made a deep impres-
sion on her. The Javanese never use either milk
or butter, dislike it in fact, and value the cow
merely as a beast of burden. I presume, there-
fore, they are not skilled in butter-making, which
probably accounts for the rancid taste most of
the butter which is supplied in the hotels has,
together with the extreme difficulty of keeping
such a perishable article fresh in very hot weather.
We left the hotel about 10 a.m., my sister-in-law
in a sedan chair, my brother, the guide and my-
self, on foot. I don't think the guide liked this
arrangement, he would have preferred to ride,
but it was only about three miles and it did not
seem worth while, though in fact it was a stiff
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TOSARI AND THE BROMO
climb. First we descended, passing through the
kampong, which seemed full of natives, men,
women, and children, especially the latter, and
then down a precipitous path to the bank of a
small river, which just then was a rushing torrent
on account of recent rains. Over this we went on
large stepping stones and climbed a steep ascent
on the other side. Here we paused a moment to
rest and view the prospect.
Far down below was the little river or moun-
tain torrent; we could trace its course for some
distance and see where it formed quite a big
waterfall when it plunged from the heights into
this valley. On either side of it were precipitous
slopes traversed by narrow pathways. Perched
on the top in little groups were the curious look-
ing houses of the Tenggerese ; for we were in the
heart of the Tengger Mountains, in the strong-
hold of that strange Javanese tribe, which has re-
mained true to its old religion, half heathen, half
Brahman. At the fall of Madjapahit, the men
of this tribe fled to these then almost inaccessible
mountains, and here they have lived ever since, a
people apart, marrying only amongst themselves,
worshipping Shiva, and greatly addicted to
animistic practices. In number they are about
"3
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
five or six thousand, and own about fifty villages
scattered about on the Tengger slopes. They
are shorter, stronger, and of a darker colour than
the people of the plains, of an industrious dis-
position and well skilled in the tillage of the land,
they make the utmost use of every available spot
for their sowing and planting, even of places so
precipitous that it seems incredible that anything
less agile than a monkey could have gained a
footing on them. Goats with little tinkling bells
are found wandering about near their kampongs,
generally in charge of a small boy, who tethers
them where the grass is greenest and most juicy,
changing their pasture as often as he thinks fit.
Their houses are square or oblong in shape, and
built of bamboo, with thatched roofs. Formerly
they were made of wood, when that commodity
was more plentiful than it is at present; they
have no windows but each has a door that faces
the Bromo Crater, which they worship. They
believe that within it a demon or evil spirit dwells,
who must at all costs be propitiated by offerings,
now, only of fruit or grain and occasionally a
fowl ; but in days gone by human sacrifices were
offered. Every year in the month of May a
grand sacrificial feast is held, and the people
114
TOSARI AND THE BROMO
come in thousands from far and near, camping
out on the sea of sand that surrounds the vol-
cano. Then at the appointed time they ascend
the mountain by a specially made staircase, which
is renewed each year, and having gained the
summit they cast their oblations into the demon's
home, or, in other words, into the crater's mouth.
Leaving the river behind, we made our way along
a road which sloped gently upwards, passing
fields of potatoes, onions, carrots, and other
European vegetables. There were no rice fields ;
the Tenggerese say that the cultivation of rice is
forbidden by their religion, which shows how
astute their ancient priests were in making a virtue
of necessity, as rice will not grow so high up on
the mountains. Low hedges of thorn sometimes
bordered our path, and at their foot grew the
familiar dandelion and nettle, as well as wild
violets, forget-me-nots and sorrel. The Alpine
edelweiss and rhododendron are also found in
these regions, but we did not happen to see any;
at this altitude most of the plants and flowers of
the temperate zone grow freely. Here and there
we noticed tall tjemara or pine trees, but the
natives in their zeal for the cultivation of the
ground, have cleared nearly all the forests, and
"5
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
the Government has had to come to the rescue
and plant young trees to supply the place of those
so ruthlessly cut down. The air was beautifully
clear and fresh and I greatly enjoyed the walk.
Our road now began to descend a little, and soon
we found ourselves on a wide plateau where a
fine hotel had been erected. It was surrounded
by gardens and lawns, while the slopes imme-
diately below had been turned into market
gardens, planted with all kinds of vegetables and
some fruit, and from here Sourabaya is supplied
with these necessary articles of diet, which are
carried down on stout mountain ponies to
Pasoeroean, and thence by train to the big towns.
It was a charming hotel and most beautifully
clean ; indeed one is always struck by the extreme
cleanliness and order prevailing everywhere in
Java. I heard, however, that this does not apply
to the inside of the native houses, especially in
the Tengger regions, where water is scarce and
the climate cool. But the Government evidently
takes care that all the approaches to the dwellings
are kept free from extraneous matter, and the
hotels everywhere are patterns of Dutch cleanli-
ness. The landlord came out to greet us and
welcomed us with effusion to Ngadirono. He
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TOSARI AND THE BROMO
provided us with an excellent lunch, the bread
and especially the butter exceeding our expecta-
tions, and more than justifying Mrs. B.'s
enconiums. After lunch we wandered about the
garden and had tea in a delightful arbour. The
walls of this sylvan retreat were formed by a
thick hedge, something like box, over which roses
climbed in profusion ; it was open to the sky over-
head and furnished with comfortable, rustic seats.
There were wooden summerhouses also and a
good grass tennis court. We sat here some time
and enjoyed the fragrant perfume of the many
flowers that filled the air, and then we sauntered
down to inspect more closely the vegetable
gardens and watch the natives at work. There
was a fine view also of the surrounding country.
It was then time to return, but we were deter-
mined not to leave without some of the excellent
butter, and offered to buy some. At first we were
refused on the score that there was none to spare,
but eventually we secured one pound, for which
we had to pay the exorbitant price of four
shillings. But it was put up daintily in a beauti-
ful glass jar with a lid, and as it kept quite good
and added much to our comfort for more than a
week, we did not grudge the money, though it
"7
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
certainly seemed a big price to pay. The glass
jar is still in my possession as a memento of
Ngadirono.
We retraced our steps by the way we had come
and got back to Tosari late in the afternoon, very
tired, especially with the last climb up from the
river, but much delighted with our expedition.
The dinner that night seemed worse than ever
when contrasted with our appetizing lunch; the
soup was greasy and the meat tough and not well
cooked. It is a great pity that mutton as an
article of food is tabooed in Java. The Dutch
there consider the poor sheep when turned into
mutton an unclean thing, and pronounce it
" horrid," " dirty," and unfit to be eaten ; so that
the staple dishes are beef, veal and pork. It is
curious there should be this prejudice against
such an inoffensive animal, whose food is nice,
clean grass, but in Java these animals were un-
known till the European settlers introduced
them, and there is no word for sheep in the
Javanese language. It is called by the natives a
" Dutch goat." The ruling nation has adopted
many of the Javanese customs, and possibly this
may be its reason for ignoring the sheep and
lamb. We supplemented the hotel meal with
118
TOSARI AND THE BROMO
bread (which was quite good) and some of our
newly acquired butter; these, in addition to tea
made by means of our spirit lamp, served to
satisfy our hunger. We were fortunately able to
get plenty of milk, a supply being brought us
each day corked up in a wine or spirit bottle.
I believe the food in the Sanatorium proper is
quite good and perfectly satisfactory to Euro-
peans; but in the smaller hotel where we were,
which is no doubt a cheaper place for the Dutch
resident in Java, anything seems good enough.
For the ordinary tourist it is not a bit cheaper.
We had to start betimes next morning for the
Bromo, as it was advisable to make the excursion
before the great heat of the day. My sister-in-
law had heard such accounts of the appalling
difficulties of the expedition that she decided not
to accompany my brother and me. We were very
sorry for this afterwards, as it was by no means
as fatiguing as we had been led to suppose.
Soon after 3 a.m. we were called, and tea with
bread and butter brought to us, and we set forth
a little before four o'clock; my brother and I in
sedan chairs and the guide on horseback. It
was most weird and uncanny starting off at that
early hour from the quiet hotel, full of sleeping
119
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
folk, in the pale light of the waning moon, borne
on the shoulders of dusky natives, whose bare feet
made scarcely any sound as we passed down the
steps and turned to the left for the long climb to
the Bromo. But this strange and unaccustomed
setting could not prevent my feeling the intense
cold, which was as severe as among the glaciers
of Switzerland. The moonlight was stronger
when we emerged from the shadows of the hotel
and the peaks of the neighbouring mountains,
catching the rays, stood out white and clear
against the sky ; but along the road we traversed,
and in our progress through the Javanese kam-
pongs, or villages, the dim light only served to
make everything look ghastly and mysterious.
Continually ascending we were carried along
narrow roads, sometimes mere paths, broadening
out somewhat as we reached a village. In these
latter the inhabitants were, for the most part,
wrapped in slumber, but in two or three I saw
a man in a sort of shed warming himself at a fire
of wood or charcoal, and presumed he was either
a watchman or someone preparing for an early
day's work. I longed to share the warmth of his
fire, as by this time, in spite of rugs and shawls,
I was numb with cold. The moon had now set
1 20
TOSARI AND THE BROMO
and darkness reigned supreme, but our bearers
experienced no difficulty in finding their way and
stepped out briskly. Soon a faint flush appeared
in the sky, herald of the approaching dawn ; little,
white clouds tipped with crimson floated up, a
warmer atmosphere seemed to enfold us; the
distant mountains took on rainbow hues and
appeared as if floating in a sea of gold ; finally,
" the sun in all his state illumed the Eastern
skies " and poured his rays with grateful warmth
on my shivering frame. Never was sunrise more
welcome ! A sudden turn in the road brought a
wonderful sight to our view. Our bearers
stopped and called out " Smeroe ! Smeroe ! "
and pointed out the great volcanic mountain, the
highest in Java, 12,300 feet high, where it stood
directly in front of us, but far away, with all the
glory of the sunrise upon it. The crest of the
mountain glittered in the sun and every few
minutes a great cloud of white smoke issued from
it, to be in its turn transmuted into gold. We
sat entranced at the marvellous vision, and our
bearers seemed to enjoy our admiration, for their
faces beamed. But we could not stay very long,
and once more we were lifted and carried onward
through fields and plantations, past groves of
121
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
tjemara trees, along most precipitous paths, so
that I was lost in wonder at the agility and sure-
footedness of our bearers. At last, about three
hours after we had left Tosari, we came to the
entrance of the Moengal Pass. Here the road
divides, one path leading down into the pass, the
other ascending sharply to a small plateau where
the Government has provided a hut for shelter.
Here you partake of the refreshment brought
with you, as nothing can be obtained in the hut
or shed. We had been warned and had brought
tea in our Thermos flasks, together with bread and
butter and hard boiled eggs provided by the
hotel. The hot tea was most comforting, and the
long ride had made us hungry enough to enjoy
the simple fare. I might say here, that we found
the Thermos flasks invaluable during our wan-
derings, not only for keeping liquid hot, but also
for preserving its coldness. When our repast
was finished the guide took us to the edge of the
precipice at the side of the hut and there we saw
spread before us a most superb and unique
panorama. Would that I could find words to
describe it in such a manner as to give those who
have not seen it even a faint idea of its grandeur !
From the slight eminence on which we stood we
122
TOSARI AND THE BROMO
looked far down below to a great expanse or sea
of sand, the celebrated Zandsee. In colour it
was a yellowish grey, as smooth as a looking
glass, and apparently stretching for miles. En-
closing it as far as one could see was a steep,
rugged wall of rocks and earth covered with
grass and foliage. Rising out of the sandy
waste were three mountains; the Batok, looking
like a monster plum pudding just turned out of
a colossal mould by some giant hand, for its sides
were all radiating curves where the lava had run
down, and the top was slightly flattened. Behind
it we could just perceive a dark, cavernous open-
ing from which smoke proceeded, and that was
all that could be seen of the Bromo's crater from
where we stood. More to the right was the third
mountain, in shape like a cone, with the same
indented sides as the Batok ; this was the Wido-
daren. Beyond these mountains the south wall
enclosing the sandy expanse was visible, it is
called the Ider Ider, and reaches its highest point
near a dyke called the Tjemara-Lawang, which
means the " gate of spirits." We were standing
on the northern boundary known as the Moengal.
Away in the distance in a southerly direction we
could just catch a glimpse of the majestic
123
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
Smeroe, continually emitting a cloud of steam,
but nothing like the view we had of it as we came.
This enormous expanse of sand is the crater floor
of a huge volcano, the Tengger. The dyke
which breaks the continuity of its outer wall must
have been the result of an eruption which split
up the mountain, allowing the mud and lava to
run through the gap into the valley below, and to
this opening the natives have given the poetical
name, " gate of spirits." When the eruption de-
creased in violence in this vast crater, four new
and smaller ones were formed, producing four
mountains which rose up one after another from
the sandy floor. Three I have mentioned above,
the fourth, the Giri, lay hidden behind the Wido-
daren. The silence was profound, undisturbed
by note of bird or even the rustle of the wind in
the trees; it seemed almost incredible that a little
way below the surface of the earth on which we
stood, stupendous cauldrons of fire were eternally
seething and bubbling, and that the death-like
stillness might at any moment without warning
be broken by a thunderous roar as a prelude to
the boiling over of one of these reservoirs and the
consequent flowing forth of a stream of fiery lava.
We would fain have lingered, but our guide was
124
TOSARI AND THE BROMO
getting impatient, as we had still some distance
to go. With reluctance we turned away and pre-
pared to descend the Moengal Pass. At the top
of this precipitous path are small holes or caves
dug out by the natives, and here the Tenggerese
invariably offer sacrifices to the Dewas or spirits,
whom, they believe, have their dwelling place in
this desolate region and who require to be pro-
pitiated before allowing human beings to set foot
in their domain. These caves or openings are
on both sides of the path. We had left our
palanquins at the foot of the ascent to the hut, as
it was too dangerous to use them on this narrow,
zigzag track. Wonderful views greeted us at
each turn of our winding way, but the task of
keeping our feet and avoiding slipping on the
rough stones was too absorbing to allow us to
enjoy them properly, and we were thankful when
we had reached the bottom and could walk on
the firm, unyielding sand. Here, to our surprise,
our bearers met us with the sedan chairs; as we
had expected to cross the intervening space
between the pass and the Bromo, on foot. But
we were most thankful to take advantage of
them and be spared the long, hot walk, as here
in the shelter of the crater we missed the breeze
125
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
that had been so refreshing on the heights above,
and though it was so early in the day the hot rays
of the sun seemed to beat directly on our heads.
That was a wonderful journey over the sandy
desert, which in one place blossomed into pretty,
yellow flowers not unlike buttercups, covering
quite a considerable extent of ground. We met
one or two natives on ponies, and three or four
on foot; but except for these we had the whole
Zandsee to ourselves, and found it most impres-
sive. We had to go right round the Batok, which
did not lose its plum pudding-like aspect even
when viewed more closely. Leaving it behind,
we soon traversed the intervening space and
arrived at the Bromo, a huge mountain of con-
gealed lava, its slopes all seamed and notched
like the edge of a saw. It was surrounded by
hillocks of sand, hardened by the sun. When we
reached these we stepped out of our palanquins
and walked the rest of the way. Up these large
hummocks of sand the ascent was comparatively
easy, but when we reached the foot of the Bromo
itself we had to climb up the side through soft,
yielding sand and earth, in which one sank almost
to the knees. The flight of wooden stairs was in
process of erection for the May Festival in
126
TOSARI AND THE BROMO
honour of the Tenggerese's chief god, Dewan
Soelan Iloe. I looked with covetous eyes at such
a nice, easy way of getting up, but the natives said
the stairway was unfinished, the cement not dry,
and they would not permit its sacred steps to be
profaned by the feet of a foreigner. The usual
method of getting to the top, is for two natives to
haul you up by bands or scarves passed round
your arms above the elbows, while a third pushes
you from behind. My brother adopted this plan,
but the natives were such fierce-looking bandits,
and had evidently not used Pears or any other
soap for so long, that I could not bear them to
touch me, and declined their assistance. A
wooden railing ran along one side of the tabooed
flight of steps ; grasping this I managed with
considerable difficulty to pull myself up, and
panting and breathless T gained the summit
almost as soon as my brother. I do not think the
natives liked my even touching the fringe of their
sacred staircase in this manner, but they offered
no objection. The Bromo was not in a state of
eruption just then, or we rould not have made
the ascent. When it does erupt, it suddenly
pours forth volumes of black smoke accompanied
by a roaring noise like thunder that resounds
127
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
through the Zandsee ; it also plays mad pranks
with stones and lumps of lava, ejecting them from
its mouth with such force that they are hurled to
a considerable distance ; then it ceases as sud-
denly as it began and only white smoke steals
forth silently. The latter was all we could see,
as we gazed into its dark depths ; though at inter-
vals we heard a deep, rumbling sound far down
in the interior, and once I saw a lurid flame that
" gave no light " but rather " made darkness
visible." Around the mouth of the crater were
great lumps of lava and stones with sparkling
crystals in them thrown up in the last eruption.
It was an impressive and awe-inspiring sight to
see the hidden forces of nature thus revealed,
and for me a unique experience.
The view from the edge of the crater was most
extensive and wonderfully fine, as each rock and
hill stood out clear cut against the blue sky; but
later in the day, even in the early afternoon, a
mist closes down on everything, therefore it is
essential to take the early morning for a visit to
the Bromo.
Going down was worse than coming up, but
was accomplished in less time. The friendly
rail once more lent me assistance and I hope the
128
STAIRCASE UP THE BROMO
l \l ERIOR OF THE BROMO
TOSARI AND THE BROMO
Tenggerese had not to offer a special sacrifice
or perform any cleansing rite in consequence.
Once more we entered our palanquins and
were borne swiftly back to the Moengal Pass.
The bearers would have taken me up it, but I
insisted on getting out and walking, partly be-
cause I had more faith in my own two feet than in
their eight on such a stony path, which was more
like the bed of a mountain torrent than anything
else, and partly because I wanted to enjoy the
wonderful peeps, each different, you get of the
Zandsee, as the path twists or turns. Walking
up was not such anxious work as going down, so
that one was able to enjoy the magnificent pros-
pect. My bearers could scarcely believe that I
intended to walk when I could ride or be carried,
and every now and then as I came up with,
or passed them, they would put down the palan-
quin and make signs for me to get into it. But
I shook my head and continued my way, well
rewarded by all I saw. At the top I stood and gave
a last long look at the marvellous panorama, the
like of which I never expect to see again no matter
where I may travel, and then I got into the chair
and was bumped and shaken all the way back,
my bamboo conveyance swaying from side to side
1 29
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
as its bearers plunged down the steep descent to
the hotel. There is not much joy in a sedan
chair when going downhill, it seems possessed by
a demon. We got back before one o'clock, in
plenty of time for lunch, the expedition having
taken between eight and nine hours. It is not
often one puts in an eight hours' day before one
o'clock p.m. We were glad of a rest in the after-
noon, but after tea we walked down to inspect the
Sanatorium, and survey the little pavilions and
gardens to see what we had missed. It looked
quite luxurious as compared with our rustic
hostelry on the heights above. When we got back
we again sat out on the balcony beyond the dining
room and enjoyed the sight of a most gorgeous
sunset.
The five peaks of Ardjoena shone like gold in
a setting of crimson, and the crests of Kawi
appeared to rise out of a purple sea of many
shades; there was quick transition from blazing
splendour to softer rainbow colours, these in turn
melting into crimson, then into changing purples,
which deepened in hue, until sudden and complete
darkness descended, as if a monster extinguisher
had been manipulated by a Titan hand.
Next morning we were supposed to leave at
130
TOSARI AND THE BROMO
seven o'clock for Sourabaya; we therefore got up
before six, had everything packed and were quite
ready, but there was no sign of our guide and no
appearance of breakfast. We tried to enquire,
and managed to ascertain that our guide was mak-
ing his toilet and must not be disturbed, and that
breakfast was ready for us in the dining room.
We finished our repast and came back into the
courtyard to find the palanquins and bearers in
readiness, the horses laden with the luggage, and
one riderless steed standing by, but still no guide.
When our patience was almost exhausted he
appeared, evidently finishing a hasty breakfast and
exceedingly cross. My brother was much
annoyed, and determined to try and find another
guide who would be more useful, and have more
consideration for our linguistic deficiencies, and
not leave us in the lurch as he had done that morn-
ing. The going back was most delightful, in
spite of the palanquins; the forests through which
we wended our way were regions of enchantment;
in them we saw the jolliest little brown monkeys
bounding from tree to tree, chattering and
grinning at us as though they resented our intru-
sion into their sylvan home. At Poespo we ex-
changed our palanquins for carriages, occupying
'3<
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
them in the same order as before. Our drive up
had been rapid, but our drive down was a wild
stampede. John Gilpin was a slowcoach in com-
parison ! We tore along at such a breakneck pace
that once we almost collided with another carriage
in front, and once we were nearly run down by a
motor car in which was seated the Grand Duke of
Mecklenburg Strelitz on his way to Tosari. We
clung like limpets to the sides of our vehicle, quite
expecting to find ourselves lying in the road each
time our driver dashed round a corner. He had
a whistle in his mouth, and kept whistling the
whole time to warn all and sundry to get out of
his way. But though rash and foolhardy, he was
a skilful driver, and managed to avoid any catas-
trophe and landed us safe and sound at Pssoeroen
railway station, where we thankfully took train for
Sourabava.
132
CHAPTER VIII
RETURN TO SOURABAYA — THE GOVERNMENT OF JAVA
THE " CULTURE SYSTEM "
We got back to the Goebeng Station at Sourabaya
about 3 o'clock p.m. and took a " kosong " (four
wheeled carriage) to the hotel, where we deposited
our luggage, and drove on to the office of Messrs.
Burns Philp and Co. to try and change our guide.
We should have liked the one who had met us
on the Mataram and brought us ashore, but
we were just too late to secure him, for he had
been engaged an hour earlier by some fellow
passengers. However, through him we got a
very nice young fellow, a Syrian, who knew the
country well, though he had never acted as guide
before; he also spoke English much better than
our Dutch guide, and of course knew Dutch and
Malay well.
The English friend of our fellow passenger
(Mrs. H.) to whom we had been introduced at
the railway station on our way to Tosari, came to
dinner that evening and offered to go shopping
1 33
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
with us next day, as we were anxious to see some
of the native brass work for which Sourabaya is
famous; he also very kindly invited us to tea at
his house.
From one of the Javanese peddlers who came
round to the verandah where we were sitting
before dinner, we had already bought some of the
little brass boxes, which are used for keeping the
betel leaf which all natives chew. These
peddlers bring all sorts of wares to the hotels and
display them to the tourists in the hope that they
may buy. Some very fine specimens of batik
cloth for sarongs were shown us in this way, but
we had been told that Djokjakarta, which is one
of the homes of the batik industry, was the place
in which to buy it, so we refused to be tempted.
It was terribly hot in Sourabaya, and we felt it all
the more coming from the cool air of Tosari.
The mosquitoes also were very troublesome, and
seemed to take a fiendish delight in attacking the
unhappy tourist. Little green lizards ran over
the walls of the bedrooms in great numbers; the
place seemed full of them. They are pretty look-
ing little things, but I did not want them any more
than I wanted the mosquitoes for bedfellows, so I
used to cautiously open the mosquito curtains just
J 34
THE GOVERNMENT OF JAVA
wide enough for me to make a dive between them
on to the bed, drawing them quickly together
again and carefully tucking them in. By this
means I eluded both enemies in the night time.
It was well that the beds were so big, and that
there was no danger of my landing on the floor
at the other side, which might easily have hap-
pened with an ordinary narrow bed. Next morn-
ing our new guide appeared before 10 a.m.. and
we were very pleased with him. As Mr. W. (our
English friend) could not call for us until 12
o'clock, we went out to do some shopping with the
guide for an hour or so, and saw some very
fascinating things. I was able to get in miniature
a little bedstead exactly like the one in my room,
and several other little curios. Then we visited
a large grocery shop and laid in a store of biscuits,
tea, cocoa, etc., but we never again needed them
as much as we had done at Tosari, as the food in
the other places was not at all bad, and in the big
towns very good, but the biscuits were always
welcome at early morning and afternoon tea. We
finished up with ices at the Grimm Restaurant, a
delightful cafe, quite as good as any in Paris. We
then retraced our steps to the hotel, and punctually
at noon Mr. W. appeared with his own carriage to
*35
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
take us about. We had a most interesting drive
with him, and went to several of the shops where
brass work was displayed. Some of the old work
of this kind is exceedingly beautiful; the engrav-
ing, embossing and pierced work in many of the
specimens shown us, were executed with great
artistic skill . But everything of this sort was very
expensive, so we had to content ourselves with
modern handiwork. I got a very nice brass re-
ceptacle for betel nut and its accessories, shaped
like a vase and engraved all over; the upper part
lifted off like a lid, and the bowl part below con-
tained all the little brass boxes for betel leaf, areca
nut, lime, and whatever else is used; when these
are taken out, the bowl can be used for flowers or
anything one likes. Betel chewing is the univer-
sal practice among the natives, not only in Java,
but in most countries of the East. It is the leaf
of a climbing plant, not unlike an ivy leaf, but it
contains a quantity of narcotic juice, which is
mixed with lime and areca nut. The Javanese
are always chewing this compound, and invariably
carry it about with them, but it blackens their teeth
dreadfully and makes the lips unnaturally red.
After making our brass purchases we went to a
photographer to get some photographs of the
136
THE GOVERNMENT OF JAVA
places we had seen, and then to the hotel. In
the afternoon Mr. W. sent his carriage to bring
us to his house, a most charming, almost palatial
residence in the old Dutch style. His wife (a
Dutch lady) was away from home, but he did the
honours most kindly and hospitably, and we were
very much pleased to have an opportunity of see-
ing the interior of a Dutch-Javanese private house,
which otherwise would have been impossible. It
was a beautiful place, with a verandah about
twenty feet wide on the front and a similar one at
the back, both having tiled floors. The front one
is where visitors are received, and there we had
tea; the back verandah is the family gathering
place, and I believe most of the meals are served
there. A long passage with panelled walls runs
through the middle of the house connecting the
two. On either side of this corridor are high doors
of polished wood leading into lofty and spacious
apartments. The drawing room was very large,
with a parquetry floor, and had beautiful old
Dutch furniture and lovely china, as well as
Javanese curios. The floor was like glass, and
quite as slippery. The library was a very fine
room also, with an old Dutch bureau and book-
cases, and on a table in one corner was a very
'37
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
fine model of a Javanese kampong or village. A
rather bare appearance is given to the rooms by
the absence of heavy curtains and all upholstery,
but it makes them look and feel cool. And "How
to keep cool " is the ruling idea among Europeans
in Java, and every house and place is arranged
to that end.
Mr. W. took us into his garden, which we
entered from the back verandah; it was full of the
most beautiful flowers, many of them in pots or
large china vases. Except in the higher alti-
tudes, nearly all gardens have these pots instead
of flower beds; I suppose it is to protect them from
the ravages of insects which are a fearful pest in
tropical climates. There were many rare and
strange looking orchids growing in all sorts of
unexpected places, and a profusion of the most
exquisite roses, not in pots, but trained over
arches and trellis work. Quantities also of tropi-
cal plants and flowers of varied hues were grouped
together so that the garden blazed with colour,
and to see it was a great treat. On either side
of the garden, but some distance away, were the
stables and wooden houses for the servants, as
the natives never live in the house with their Euro-
pean masters and their families.
138
THE GOVERNMENT OF JAVA
We said goodbye to Mr. W., and thanked him
most heartily for all his kindness to us, and re-
turned to the hotel. We found there was time
for a drive before dinner, so hiring a carriage we
drove towards the Kali Mas (Kali is the Javanese
for river) , crossing the Redbridge that connects
the European and Chinese quarters. The river
itself presented a most animated appearance, with
sampans and canoes darting about among the
heavily laden barges with their queer roof-like
coverings. W T e followed the course of the river
for some distance, driving along a beautiful
avenue of trees with the river on one side and on
the other handsome villas and pretty gardens be-
longing to the Dutch residents. It was nearly
dark by this time, and in some of the houses the
family were gathered on the front verandah, which
was brilliantly lighted up. The Dutch do not
seem to mind publicity, and eat, drink, rest, and
amuse themselves in full view of the passers by.
I was told that the front verandah lighted up is a
sign that the members of the family are at home to
visitors; should they desire privacy they retire to
the back verandah and leave the front in darkness.
They all seemed to be " at home " that evening.
On our way bark we met many carriages in which
»39
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
were ladies most elaborately dressed, but wearing
neither hat nor bonnet. Milliners in Java are not
in request.
Sourabaya is a very fine city, and in former
times was the capital of the Dutch East Indies,
before Batavia was given that title; and even now
it may be considered the commercial capital, as it
is wholly given over to business. It is situated
at the mouth of the Kali Mas, which has been
called the river of gold on account of the yellow
colour of its water. It possesses a dockyard and
gun foundry, and is the headquarters of the Mili-
tary Command of East Java. Nearly every race
and language is represented among its inhabitants,
but by far the most numerous are the Chinese,
who number about twice as many as the Euro-
peans. These Celestials are very wealthy and
important, live in beautiful and artistic houses in
the best style, dress magnificently on state occa-
sions, and drive about in well-appointed carriages.
I believe they are not allowed to have European
servants or employees, but thev seem to manage
quite well with the services of the Javanese or
Malays.
Sourabaya is about the hottest place in Java,
for the island of Madura, just opposite to it, pre-
140
THE GOVERNMENT OF JAVA
vents the cooling breezes from reaching the town,
hence malaria and cholera are always present.
Water too, for drinking purposes, is bad and
scarce; the good water supplied in the hotels is
brought all the way from Pasoeroean and reserved
for Europeans.
The Indo-Javanese Empire of Madjapahit,
which once ruled over the whole of Java, came
into existence quite near Sourabaya. It was at
the fall of this empire in the sixteenth century that
the Tenggerese tribe fled to the hills and forests
round Tosari. Sourabaya boasts some fine
public buildings, has two or three Clubs, a Con-
cert Hall, a Theatre, excellent hotels and capital
shops. It has military communication with all
parts of Java, and intercourse with the outer world
by ships and steamers. In fact, it has everything
except a healthy climate.
Before continuing the account of our travels or
relating our experiences in Mid Java, whither we
went after leaving Sourabaya, it might be as well
to say something of the government of Java by the
Dutch, and give a brief account of the much
abused " culture system." Those who do not
care for such details can skip them, but they will
probably interest some readers.
141
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
Java is governed by a joint administration,
Dutch and native; for this purpose it is divided
into seventeen Residencies (formerly there were
twenty-two) , each controlled by a native prince
called a Regent, and by a Dutchman who has the
title of Resident. Supreme over the whole
island, however, is the Governor General of the
Dutch East Indies, who holds his appointment
direct from the Crown, and is practically absolute
within his own Dominion. He is at the head of
the Army and Navy, and has full discretionary
powers in dealing with the native princes. Under
him is a Council of five, consisting of a vice-presi-
dent and four members; these he is obliged to con-
sult, but he is in no way bound to take their advice.
He has also ministers at the head of various de-
partments, such as Finance, Justice, Public
Works, etc., who keep him an courant with every
matter concerning their respective divisions or
sections. The Governor-General receives a
salary of ^14,000 a year, which is further supple-
mented by various allowances for special objects.
Two palaces are set apart for his use, one at
Buitenzorg, in the grounds of the beautiful
Botanic Gardens, and another at Weltevreden
(Batavia). In addition, he has a beautiful
142
THE GOVERNMENT OF JAVA
country residence at Tjipanas, among the moun-
tains. In each of the Residencies the Javanese
Prince reigns supreme in the natives' eyes, and
enjoys all the pomp and ceremony of a native
court, sits under the golden umbrella (or pajong)
on state occasions, and exacts homage of his
entourage. But behind him is the real ruler, the
Resident, who acts the part of " guide, philo-
sopher and friend," and without whose permission
he may not drive outside his own courtyard. This
" elder brother " is content that the Regent
should have the honour and glory, while he
possesses all the power. In case of any difference
of opinion the advice given by the Resident is com-
pulsory on the Regent, the latter enjoys the
" pomp and circumstance " of kingship only; he
is ever made to feel the " iron hand within the
velvet glove." The Resident has under him an
Assistant-Resident and also officers called con-
trollers, all Europeans, who act as he directs.
The Regents or Native Princes receive a liberal
allowance, from £2,000 to £3,000 a year, so that
they may keep up their courts in true oriental
magnificence, but they no longer have any control
over the revenues derived from the land owned
by their ancestors; these belong to the Govern-
143
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
ment. Two of the Residencies enjoy a greater
nominal independence than the others, inasmuch
as one is ruled by a Sultan and the other by a Susu-
hunan, instead of a Regent. Both Principalities,
as these two are called, are in Mid Java, one Sura-
karta or Solo, as the Javanese designate it, is
ruled by the Susuhunan, a title which means "His
Holiness," as he is supposed to wield spiritual
as well as temporal power; the second is Djokja-
karta, which is quite near Solo, and its ruler bears
the title of Sultan. These two, in spite of their
high-sounding appellations, have no more real
power than the Regents, but they have a much
larger salary (the Susuhunan has about ,£70,000
a year) , and keep up much greater state and
pageantry in their courts. The official language
is Malay; Javanese is too difficult and complex for
that purpose, and lacks the adaptability of the
Malay tongue, which is spoken and understood
throughout the East.
The High Court of Justice is at Batavia, but
there are lower courts in the five principal towns.
The army is purely colonial and not connected
with that in the Mother Country; the regiments
have about two-thirds native to one-third Dutch
soldiers, but all the officers are European. The
144
THE GOVERNMENT OF JAVA
revenue is derived from various sources, forests,
mines, salt, opium and railways, the last three
being government monopolies. All help to fill
the Dutch coffers, but the most important contri-
bution to the Budget is obtained from the sale of
coffee, which is the only produce now grown under
the much abused " culture system," though in
former years, sugar, indigo, tea, quinine, tobacco,
pepper, cinnamon and various spices were all
cultivated by this drastic method.
This system was conceived by the wily brain of
General Van den Bosch. Before his time Mar-
shall Dcendals had ruled with an iron hand from
1808 to 181 1, crushing all resistance of the native
princes to the power of the Dutch Government by
most drastic methods, making them to under-
stand that they held their semi-sovereignty only
at his will and pleasure. Like the Romans, he
considered good roads essential to the well-being
of a country, and set about making one in Java
running the whole length of the land from Anjer
Point in the West to Bunjuwangi in the East. He
compelled each kampong (village) en route to
construct a certain portion of the road within a
definite time, and if it had not been completed at
the date fixed, the chiefs of the defaulting village,
'45
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
who were held responsible, suffered death by
hanging. By these means, the road, which ex-
tends for 800 miles, was finished within two years,
and a splendid one it is, but it took a heavy toll
in the lives of the natives. Then Dcendals turned
his attention to the land, and by means of " forced
crops " compelled the natives to cultivate some-
thing more than their beloved rice. Each family
had to plant and tend one thousand coffee trees
and make a present of two-fifths of the produce to
the Government; the three-fifths that remained
they were compelled to sell to the Crown at a
ridiculously low price so that a large profit was
obtained. In 181 1 the Dutch were superseded
by the English, and for four years Java was under
the wise, skilful, and humane government of Sir
Stamford Raffles, who effected many reforms, re-
stored the confidence of the native princes,
abolished the forced delivery of crops, and allowed
the natives to return to the cultivation of rice. In
1 8 15, after Napoleon's fall, Raffles was with-
drawn, and in 18 18, by the decision of the Con-
gress of Vienna, Java again became Dutch. For
some time Raffles' example was followed by those
in authority, and they governed wisely and well
according to his methods. But in 1833 the island
146
THE GOVERNMENT OF JAVA
was in debt, free labour did not prove as lucrative
as forced, and Holland accepted the offer of
General Van den Bosch to try and bring about a
better state of affairs. He was allowed to adopt
any methods he pleased to achieve his object, and
so conceived the idea of, and instituted, the
" Culture System," with which his name is in-
variably associated in both praise and blame.
When, as a result of his system, wealth poured
into Holland, the first was lavishly awarded, but
later, when it was realised by what oppression and
cruelty this tribute had been exacted, when the
non-cultivation of rice (so that the ' rich ' crops
might be grown) resulted in a famine, and the
death of half a million of natives from hunger, the
most opprobrious epithet was not too strong to
be applied to him. So short-lived is the gratitude
of a government or a people!
The culture system of Van den Bosch consisted
in compelling the natives to give up one-fifth of
their land; on this impounded portion they had to
cultivate certain crops specified by the govern-
ment, and give the labour of one day in seven for
this object. In return they were promised that
the land tax hitherto paid by them should be re-
pealed. At first only the sugar cane was planted,
'47
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
but such enormous profits resulted from the sale in
Europe of the sugar thus obtained, that the system
was extended to the other crops, and by degrees
tea (the seeds of which had been brought from
Japan and China) , coffee, indigo, quinine,
tobacco, pepper, and various spices were all culti-
vated in the same manner, and thereby great
wealth accrued to Holland. The system pressed
heavily on the natives; the land tax continued to
be enforced, even for those lands they were com-
pelled to give up; by degrees more than one-fifth
of these were claimed, and they had still to pay for
what was no longer theirs. The contractors who
managed this " sweating " business ground down
the natives more and more, and became increas-
ingly tyrannical and cruel to secure larger profits
for themselves, until at length the poor people
were only permitted to grow their rice on land so
far from the villages that they had no time to
devote to its cultivation, and found (to their cost)
that the more money they made for their masters
the poorer they became themselves.
But Holland began to wake up to the iniquity
of these proceedings in her colony. A novel
entitled " Max Havelaar " (by Edouard Douwes
Dekker Multatuli) dealing with the subject and
148
THE GOVERNMENT OF JAVA
exposing its tyranny made a great stir in Holland.
It was a novel with a purpose, and never had one
better results; by degrees public opinion was
aroused; the famine among the Javanese in 1849
completed the good work that " Max Havelaar '
had begun, and free labour was installed in Java
instead of forced culture. At the present time
only coffee is produced by the old method, and a
period for this has been fixed after which it, too,
will be free.
In spite of so much blame being attached to the
system originated by Van den Bosch, there is no
doubt it brought a blessing in disguise. This
was not due to any merit in its originator, whose
only idea was to make money, without a thought
or care for the welfare of the Javanese; nor in
the system itself, which was wholly bad, but to
the effect on the vegetation throughout the island.
The easy-going, apathetic Javanese would never
have cultivated the ground in the same way of
their own accord; to grow sufficient rice to meet
their daily needs was all their aim, and none of
those crops which serve to make Java such a sourer
of wealth would have been introduced or grown,
as few of them are indigenous. Compulsory sow-
ing and planting has made Java what it is, i.e., a
'49
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
veritable " Garden of Eden," with the most
luxurious vegetation of any island in the world; so
out of evil has come good.
150
CHAPTER IX
DJOKJAKARTA — THE WATER CASTLE — BATIK
INDUSTRY
We had intended visiting Soerakarta (or Solo as
the Javanese call it) , where the Susuhunan wields
his nominal sovereignty in the Vorstenlanden or
" Lands of the Princes," but we heard that one
of the sons of his Highness had died, and that
the whole city would be in mourning, and our
sight seeing most likely restricted in consequence.
We decided, therefore, to go on to Djokjakarta,
some distance further; this is the second native
state of Middle Java, and the city is considered
even more Javanese than Solo. Both towns are
in the very heart of Java, and the Susuhunan in
the one, and the Sultan in the other, are the suc-
cessors of the Emperors or Sultans of the ancient
kingdom of Mataram. Round these two Princi-
palities are gathered all the romance and mystery,
legends and stories of the Java of a byegone age,
and so conservative are the dwellers of the East,
151
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
that the manners and customs of the natives to-day
are, with a few exceptions, similar to those of the
Javanese who inhabited the country when the
magnificent Hindu temples (still stately and awe-
inspiring in their ruined condition) were crowded
with eager worshippers, while priests made offer-
ings at the shrine of Buddha. Djokjakarta is
also a place of interest historically, as here Mar-
shal Dcendals made one of his military expedi-
tions; and later Sir Stamford Raffles quelled in-
surrections and established European supremacy
in Djokja with an armed force.
As usual we had an early start, our train being
timed to leave at 6 a.m., which meant getting up
before five. Tea and toast were brought round
to our rooms at 5 o'clock, and soon after we left
in a carriage for the station. The new guide was
a great success, looked after our luggage, got us
a nice compartment, and was most attentive. He
was born in Jaffa, and though only eighteen years
of age, had already travelled in India and
America, as well as over most of Java; so he was
quite experienced and extremely intelligent; we
were indeed lucky to get him! There was the
ordinary bustle and confusion at Goebeng station,
which always seemed crowded with natives, who
152
DJOKJAKARTA— THE WATER CASTLE
were most interesting to observe. Our carriage
in the train was slightly different from the one in
which we went to Tosari; one side being fitted with
two armchairs vis a vis, and the other having one
long seat with divisions; fortunately we had the
whole compartment to ourselves. The journey
from Sourabaya to Djokjakarta takes about eight
hours, and is a most interesting one. Soon after
leaving the station the peaks of the lofty Ardjoeno
Mountain, that we had seen from Tosari, were
visible. Then came an extensive plain with sugar
plantations, their feathery flowers swaying and
bending in the breeze; these were succeeded by
sawahs or wet rice fields, veritable swamps almost
covered with water; in some places these are quite
flat, and in others raised to form terraces, so that
a stream of water directed to the top terrace or
platform flows down on to and over the lower
levels; a most ingenious and labour-saving
arrangement. Here one is able to observe the
different Stages of rice cultivation proceeding side
by side; muddy patches with the fresh seed just
sown; watery patches, to whirh the tender shoots
have been transplanted; and fields of growing rice
where the young shoots are of a most vivid li^ht
green colour. Further on were tracts where
'S3
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
drainage had begun in order that the grain might
ripen fully in drier ground. When the grain is
perfectly ripe it is laboriously reaped by hand,
each ear being cut off separately by means of a
little curved knife. All the work done in the
paddy fields is done with bent back under a scorch-
ing sun, but the natives do not seem to think it
any hardship. In the middle of most of the plan-
tations where the grain was ripening, elevated
sheds of plaited bamboo were erected, and in each
of these was a small boy whose duty it was to scare
away the birds, either by shouting, or by making
a network of cords stretched over the field quiver
and vibrate. Birds are very fond of rice in the
ear. When the harvest is gathered it is tied up in
little bundles and at once dried in the sun, then the
grain is separated from the straw in a primitive
manner, by pounding it, and taken to native mills
to be ground. The Javanese persistently refuse
to employ any modern method of reaping the rice,
clinging to the ancient custom of cutting off each
ear separately; and the Dutch allow them to keep
to the old way, which has the advantage of giving
plenty of occupation to the teeming population.
The sugarcane is cultivated in almost as swampy
ground as the rice, but the soil must be enriched
•54
DJOKJAKARTA— THE WATER CASTLE
by a certain kind of manure or oil cake, before the
canes are planted, and from ten to eighteen
months' growth brings them to maturity. When
the cane is ripe, sugar-making must be at once
commenced and carried on to the finish, or much
sap may be lost and the quality of the sugar suffer.
Between the sugar and rice plantations we passed
from time to time through groves of magnificent
palm trees, the cocoanut palms laden with fruit;
beside them grew graceful bamboos and in-
numerable banana trees, the latter weighed down
by heavy clusters of green bananas. These
groves usually indicated the proximity of a kam-
pong, and sometimes we could see the bamboo
arch forming the entrance to the village and could
catch a glimpse of the little thatched houses
nestling among the trees. We crossed bridges
over rivers and skirted the banks of canals that
intersected the land in all directions. Once the
train passed through the outskirts of an immense
forest, and one could easily imagine leopards and
tigers and the fierce one-horned rhinoceros lurking
in its gloomy depths; the vegetation was most
exuberant; amid the tall trunks of the palms and
teak trees great tree ferns spread themselves out,
and the rattans and other creepers stretched from
'55
ii
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
branch to branch, forming a network of greenery
and making a delightful shade, which we were
quite in the mood to appreciate, as the sun was
beginning to make himself felt and the carriage
was very hot. Thanks to starting so early we
had enjoyed several hours of comparative cool-
ness, and at nine o'clock had partaken of a petit
dejeuner in the form of sandwiches, biscuits and
tea from our Thermos flask. This by no means
spoiled our appetite for quite a nice luncheon at
one o'clock in the restaurant car attached to the
train. We steamed into Djokjakarta Station
about 2.30 p.m. and drove to the Toogoe Hotel,
which had been recommended to us. We found
it most comfortable, and were allotted large airy
rooms, opening on to a broad verandah, with the
usual table and chairs, and overhanging lamp out-
side each door. A long, narrow court, planted in
grass, divided the bedrooms from the dining room,
to which we ascended by wooden steps. The
dining room was not unlike a square verandah, as
it consisted of a roof supported by pillars and open
at the sides, which made it delightfully cool. We
unpacked, had a short rest, partook of tea brought
us on small trays to our portions of the verandah,
and then set forth to see the sights of Djokja-
'56
DJOKJAKARTA— THE WATER CASTLE
karta. The hotel supplied us with a carriage,
and a coachman with a huge and very smart hat,
in size resembling that of " The Merry Widow."
Outside the hotel gates we could at once realise
we were in a native city, as on all sides were faces
of varying shades of brown, and not a white one
was to be seen. The Passer or Market was quite
near, and was evidently a permanent one, as the
wooden stalls were roofed with red tiles for the
convenience of the vendors who sat in them dis-
playing all sorts of fruits, vegetables, clothing,
and many other wares. In the small towns the
passer is a kind of gypsy affair, and leafy booths
and palm leaf umbrellas are considered sufficient
to form a stall or stand. There was no time then
to visit the passer; that had to come later. We
drove through the streets, that were broad avenues
of Kanari trees, and they reached as far as eye
could see in every direction, and we passed queer
looking covered carts drawn by diminutive
humped buffaloes, little naked boys driving flocks
of geese or ducks or leading goats to pasture, and
swarthy men with gaily-coloured turbans, gener-
ally crowned by enormous hats made of plaited
bamboo or straw, of a brilliant blue or red. These
huge hats are quite a feature in Javanese life, and
'57
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
serve the triple purpose of hat, sunshade and
umbrella. Some of them are quite four feet
across; a bright blue seems the favourite colour,
though red is also worn; the paint is put on so
thickly and smoothly that even the tropical rain
runs off it. Some of the coachmen had their
hats painted in gold stripes with representa-
tions of dragons and other mythical animals
between. Only the men wear hats or turbans,
the women go about with bare heads, their
abundant and elaborately arranged hair being con-
sidered sufficient covering. Both men and
women allow their hair to grow long, but the men
twist it up under their turbans so that it does not
show.
A fairly deep stream of water ran along one
side of the road, and in this the little Javanese
children were splashing and wading without any
troublesome clothing to impede their movements
or procure them a scolding for getting it wet. We
saw none of the dodok or crouching and squatting
on their heels and sidling along of the natives in
the presence of their superiors, that Miss Scid-
more speaks of in her book " Java, the Garden of
the East," either here or anywhere else in Java;
though doubtless it is still practised in the presence
158
DJOKJAKARTA— THE WATER CASTLE
of the Sultan. Many changes have taken place in
Java even since Miss Scidmore published her
book in 1897; the Javanese are becoming more in-
dependent, and have given up some of the servile
customs that date back to a time when their life
and liberty were altogether at the mercy of their
rulers.
Our destination was the old Taman Sarie or
Watercastle, an ancient summer residence of a
former Sultan. We entered through a gateway
in a high wall surrounding a large tract of ground
forming a series of gardens. The wall was
broken down in many places and the gaps filled
with moss, lichens and luxuriant creepers. In
the middle of the enclosure was a large lake, and
a veritable fairy castle, crowned by a tower called
the Maze, 400ft. high, rose out of the water. In
the days of its splendour it must have looked like
one of the palaces described in the Arabian
Nights that arose at the bidding of the genii; even
"in its decay it is wonderfully weird and fascinat-
ing. Formerly access to it was by boat across
the lake, and by a secret underground passage,
but the lake is so choked up with weeds and rub-
bish in some parts, that one can pass into the
castle without having recourse to either boat or
'59
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
tunnel. A Javanese guide conducted us through
winding passages, across wide courtyards, among
tanks and ponds the sides of which were green
with moss, and the water in them almost hidden
by weeds and aquatic plants. Passing under a
stone archway elaborately carved, into a small
court surrounded by high moss-grown walls, we
were told we were now in the bathing place sacred
to the Sultan, where he had to perform his ablu-
tions before attending prayers at the Mosque. In
the centre of this secluded retreat was a tank of
water with the same clear stream bubbling up that
had cleansed the august person of his Highness
in the days so long ago; two flights of steps, green
and slimy, led down into the water, one on either
side; by the one he descended into, and by the
other he ascended out of the water, so that his
face should always be turned towards the shrine
of the Prophet. A larger and less secluded bath-
ing place for his courtiers was close by in an even
more neglected condition. Following our guide,
we wended our way
"Through fane and palace court and labyrinth, mined
With many a dark and subterranean street
through chambers high and deep."
until, descending by a moss-covered stone stair-
160
DJOKJAKARTA— THE WATER CASTLE
case, we entered the Sultan's sleeping chamber,
deliciously cool and dim, in appearance like a
cave hewn out of rock. The bed place had quaint
carvings and decorations all round it, and on the
stone couch was a covering of soft green moss,
now alas! the lurking place of lizards and count-
less creeping things. Light fell softly from small
openings in the roof, and the soothing sound of
running water could be heard. In former times
there used to be a contrivance by which a curtain
of water could be made to fall over the entrance,
thereby rendering more refreshing the cool atmos-
phere. Truly a delightful if somewhat damp re-
treat from the scorching heat of a Javanese
summer afternoon! From this cave of slumber
we were conducted along alleys or corridors with
glass walls and " fountain lighted roof " through
which " the green splendours of the water deep "
in the lake above us could be seen; we were shown
where, at the Sultan's will, the underground
passage could be flooded up to the water-tight
gates that admitted to the subterranean part of
the palace, so that access to the castle could only
be obtained by boat. There was an immense
banqueting hall falling into ruins with remains
of wonderful archways and pillars; also a deep
161
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
circular well called the " spring of music "
around which were built vault-like chambers
where the Sultan's retainers could gather to sleep
or rest when the noonday sun was high in the
heavens; and, near by, an oval tank full of glorious
water lilies almost choked by weeds, with pavi-
lions enclosed by stately decorated walls that
must once have been marvellously beautiful,
opening out from it. Truly, it was an enchanting
place, and in its pristine beauty, before earth-
quakes had shattered its walls and pillar'd
porticos, and the ruthless hand of Time had been
allowed " to smear with dust those glittering
golden towers," it must have been a veritable
Aladdin's palace. Now it made one unutterably
sad to see it in the hour of its decay, to
" Look on its broken arch, its ruined walls,
Its chambers desolate and portals foul,"
so that it was almost with a sensation of relief that
we passed forth into the bright sunshine and the
wonderful gardens and shrubberies where the
roses ran riot, and orchids and other bright hued
flowers grew in the wildest profusion, where the
wild vine and matted creepers hid the stained and
broken walls. These gardens cover an immense
extent of ground, and must have been a perfect
1 6a
DJOKJAKARTA— THE WATER CASTLE
Paradise when properly kept and tended; great
stone vases full of flowers that fell round them in
wreaths and festoons, were placed at regular in-
tervals, forming avenues terminating in archways
and pergolas covered with roses. Beyond these
could be seen the native houses in the kampong,
shaded by waving palm and bamboo trees.
Hundreds of little children were darting about the
courts and garden alleys ready to climb walls and
gather flowers for Dutch pennies. Quite a big
village has grown up round the old Taman Sarie,
unless, indeed, it has existed there from the days
of the Sultan for whom the castle was built, nearly
four hundred years ago, who would have had
his entourage housed within the walls of his castle
enclosure as the present Sultan has his retainers
inside his Kraton. But for two hundred years
now the castle has been left to the lizards and bats.
I could have lingered for hours in the wonderful
place, but there was much to be seen elsewhere.
Leaving the Taman Sarie, we drove to the Aloon
Aloon, a large open square in the middle of the
town. The palace or kraton of the Sultan is on
one side, the gates guarded by two immense
waringin trees cut by order of the Sultan into fan-
tastic shapes resembling huge umbrellas or square
163
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
toadstools. To the left is his Highness's private
Zoo, containing three leopards and a tiger in
cages, and three huge elephants walking at large.
These we duly inspected, and then gazed long-
ingly at the high walls that concealed the Sultan's
residence from view, and watched as they passed
slowly through the gates a long procession of
about fifty native attendants carrying glass flower
vases, each of a different pattern, and intended,
no doubt, for some special festival. We should
have been glad to pay the Sultan a visit; but no
one is allowed to enter the Kraton without the
special permission of the Dutch Resident, and this
must be obtained in the morning, so that his High-
ness may appoint a time convenient to himself to
receive the visitors. We did not reach Djokja-
karta till late afternoon, and were to spend the
whole of the next day at the Boro Boedor temple,
so had no time to pay our respects to the Prince,
although we had letters of introduction that would
have procured us that honour. The Sultan's
Kraton is situated within a wall twelve feet high,
and more than four miles in circumference. In-
side are buildings, streets, ponds, canals, gardens
and kampongs, all for the Sultan's retinue, which
numbers 15,000. Some of these natives carry on
164
DJOKJAKARTA— THE WATER CASTLE
trades and industries, such as gold and silver-
smith's work, and the batik cloth colouring pro-
cess. The Prince owns a magnificent dining hall
capable of accommodating six hundred guests; he
has a palace for himself, a house for his principal
wife, one for the Resident when he honours the
Kraton by a visit, a barracks for his native
soldiers, stables for his elephants, with many other
offices; so that the Kraton is a complete town in
itself. He calls the Resident " Papa," and the
Resident's wife " Mama," and without the per-
mission of the former cannot go outside the
Kraton. Djokjakarta also possesses a Vreden-
burg or fortress where 500 European soldiers are
stationed to keep watch and ward, and guard the
Dutch interests in the Principality.
On our way back to the hotel we drove past the
entrance to the house of the Dutch Resident, a
stately-looking white building in a beautiful
garden, with statues of Buddha sitting under stone
pajongs (umbrellas) , and looking like sentinels
on guard. At the hotel we dismissed the carriage
and walked across the road to visit what its owner
(Mrs. Noronha, a Eurasian lady) designated the
" Old Curiosity Store." She had thoughtfully-
left her card, which informed us she sold batik
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A JOURNEY TO JAVA
sarongs, krises, postcards, etc., for us at the hotel,
and was not only willing but eager to give us any
information we required. We found she had an
excellent collection of sarongs and slendangs and
pieces of batik work both in silk and cotton. This
batik work is peculiar to Java, and is a most
curious process. The natives spin the yarn and
weave the cloth, as I was informed, without a
loom. The cloth is first steeped in rice water and
then stretched on a frame, then with a little funnel
(not unlike that used to put sugar icing on cakes)
hot wax is poured on the cloth in such a manner
as to form a pattern or figure; the material is forth-
with plunged into a dye which makes no impres-
sion on the wax, but colours the rest of the cloth;
when the dye is fixed, hot water removes the wax,
which is again applied to another part, and the
cloth once more placed in a different dye. This
process is repeated until all the required colours
and patterns have been obtained. Should red or
crimson be one of the colours needed, the cloth is
sometimes immersed in oil for two or three days
before it is dyed, this being supposed to give a
peculiar richness to the colour. As the cloth is
batiked on both sides, there is neither right nor
wrong side to the material. It is a very tedious
1 66
DJOKJAKARTA— THE WATER CASTLE
process, but the women are exceedingly clever in
doing it, and sit at their frames with little charcoal
furnaces beside them for melting the wax. The
Susuhunan, Sultan and other Royalties wear batik
of a peculiar kind, sacred to them, and no one else
dare be seen wearing sarongs with the royal
designs or colours. Unfortunately this unique in-
dustry has suffered from the introduction by
Europeans of cheap printed calicoes with inartistic
designs. These designs are not only imitated by
the natives, to the detriment of their own artistic
tracing, but the calicoes are used instead of the
batik cloth for sarongs and slendangs, etc. Soon
the genuine Javanese article will be difficult to
procure, except at a very high figure; even now
some of the more elaborately-designed sarongs
cost from £6 to £10 each, and are bought and
worn by Dutch ladies. I bought two ordinary
ones fairly reasonably; one had a pattern all over
it, and the other had in addition a panel. The
latter kind is worn in a particular district, and the
sarong is so arranged that the panel comes to the
front of the wearer. The handkerchiefs for tur-
bans are also batiked, some in lovely shades of
brown. Mrs. Noronha had a large number of
other interesting things to show and sell, amongst
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A JOURNEY TO JAVA
them curious paper and cardboard figures, imita-
tions of those used in the wayangs, or shadow
picture shows, that the Javanese delight in. The
real figures are made of leather or buffalo's hide;
they are from eighteen inches to two feet in height,
and painted, gilded, and ornamented with the
greatest care. They are supposed to represent
different characters in the history of Java from very
early times down to the annihilation of the Hindoo
empire of Madjapahit. These puppets are
jointed and shown as shadows on a screen with
the light behind them; considerable expense is in-
curred to make them something like the characters
they represent; but the face and head are always
grotesque and fantastic, so as not to quite repre-
sent the human face and lineaments which the law
of Islam forbids to be reproduced. While these
heroes and heroines are being manipulated from
behind, an actor in front recites the story or poem
that is represented, and sweet music is discoursed
by the gamelan, a band of musical instruments
consisting for the most part of small gongs, struck
with wooden hammers covered with elastic gum.
But there are also stringed instruments played
like a harp, and a drum beaten with the hand.
The name gamelan is also used to describe the
1 68
DJOKJAKARTA— THE WATER CASTLE
native xylophone only, and not the whole
orchestra. Javanese music is unwritten and
played by ear; there are about a hundred national
airs. The music of the gamelan is melancholy
and a trifle monotonous but not disagreeable.
In addition to the wayangs or shadow picture
plays, there is a performance called topeng played
by men with masks. These plays, which are of
the nature of our " Dumb Charades," are given
in the open air, the spectators forming a circle
round the performers. The latter are most
sumptuously attired in ancient costumes, the head
and face being hidden under an absurd mask.
Usually a man called a dalan tells the story, the
performers " suiting the action to the word."
These recitals are generally concerned with the
history and fortunes, mythical and real, of Prince
Panji, grandson of the old Emperor Dewa
Kasoema, who established his kingdom at Jang'-
gala, situated near the present Sourabaya, in 846.
He is said to have introduced the Kris (Javanese
or Malay short sword or dagger) into the countries
he reigned over (though some ascribe its introduc-
tion to Panji) , and to have been far in advance of
his time in learning and skill. He had four sons;
at his death he divided the island of Java among
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A JOURNEY TO JAVA
them, thus setting up four kingdoms instead of
one. The eldest son was the father of Panji, a
hero as renowned among the Javanese for his
valour and marvellous exploits as Hercules among
the Greeks.
We also inspected a collection of Krisses,
which though of various shapes and kinds, follow
one general pattern. Every Javanese man
carries one stuck into his belt at the right side
rather towards the back. It is from twelve to
eighteen inches long, quite flat, though often wavy
or serpentine in shape; sometimes the blade is
beautifully damascened, and the hilt made of ivory
with intricate carvings, or of gold ornamented with
precious stones; the scabbard is correspondingly
adorned. But these are for princes and nobles
and wealthy Javanese; the common people are
content with plain hilts and wooden scabbards.
I bought one at the hotel from a travelling peddler,
who brought some for our inspection; the blade
was damascened and the hilt of ivory, beautifully
carved, but the scabbard was of such ancient wood
that it was falling to pieces; I was, however, very
pleased to get it.
We had a long tiring day crowded with incident,
so were glad to retire betimes, especially as we had
170
DJOKJAKARTA— THE WATER CASTLE
to start very early next morning. I tried to write
up my diary under the lamp in the verandah, but
found myself so surrounded by a collection of
dying and dead moths, and horrid little insects
very much alive, that I gave up in despair and re-
tired to my room, to be greeted by processions of
little green lizards chasing each other up and
down the walls or creeping backwards. I had
never seen so many at one time. However, I
knew they were harmless, so their gambols did
not disturb my slumbers. In Djokja the hotels
provide you with a little oil lamp, which burns
all night, and is fixed against the wall, and enables
you to keep an eye on the lizards. This lamp is
the successor of the tumbler of oil with a wick in
it, that Miss Scidmore speaks of, and shows how
Java is progressing and how up-to-date she is.
171
12
CHAPTER X
BORO BOEDOR
The next morning was gloriously fine, when at 7
a.m. we left the hotel in a motor car to drive the
twenty-five miles that lay between Djokjakarta
and the famous temple of Boro Boedor (meaning
Great or Many Buddhas) . It was fortunate for
us that we were travelling in the days of motors,
also that we were able to hire one; as thereby much
time was saved and the fatigue reduced to a mini-
mum. In default of a motor we should have had
to go by a little train that ran alongside the road,
unprotected by any railing, flanked on either side
by booths and basket houses, to a place called
Moentilan; here, a ramshackle carriage, the horses
harnessed with pieces of rope, would have been in
waiting to take us to the river Progo. The bridge
has been broken down for many months, and in
its stead a primitive raft made of plaited bamboo,
similar to that with which the natives build the
sides of their houses, and poised on four canoes,
172
BORO BOEDOR
is the only means of communication with the other
side. Standing on this you are paddled across,
hoping you may find a conveyance of some sort on
the opposite bank, a hope that is seldom realised,
unless you take the precaution of arranging with
the manager of your hotel at Djokja to secure one
to be in readiness for you. Otherwise there is
nothing for it but to cover the distance between
river and temple by " marrow bone stage," and
this means a two mile walk that seems like four
Irish miles on a hot afternoon, in spite of most of
the way being along a tree-shaded avenue; at least
so our friends who made the journey in the way
described, told us later; they were unable to get
any description of vehicle, and arrived at the
temple in too exhausted a state to enjoy it pro-
perly. We were spared all this discomfort in our
luxurious car, which was driven by an excellent
and most careful Javanese chauffeur, and this ex-
pedition was without doubt the most enjoyable of
the many pleasant drives we had in Java, and the
only one we made by motor car.
The soft, fresh, morning air felt deliciously cool
as it gently fanned our faces, while we glided
swiftly and noiselessly along the shady roads and
through the wayside villages in which the inhabi-
'73
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
tants were already astir. The native family
groups in their gaily coloured sarongs, enjoying
their simple morning meal al fresco, were a most
picturesque and fascinating sight. Some were
gathered just outside the bamboo houses, with
little low wooden stands before them on which
were bowls and plates containing rice and various
other eatables, and little cups from which they
were drinking I know not what; possibly tea or
coffee, but if so without milk, which they never
touch; the children clustering round for their share
of the good things provided, were quite bewitch-
ing. As we passed the primitive little markets
held on one side of the road, we could see the
natives buying from the vendors of food in them,
small parcels of cooked rice daintily wrapped in
cool bamboo leaves, and fastened with a cactus
thorn, or bargaining for the juicy fruits heaped in
baskets on the ground. Along the road came men
going to work with their tools in their hands or
carried on the shoulder; enormous blue and red
hats covered their heads, and made delightful bits
of colour against the green background; a moving
bundle of green stuff turned out to be a carrier
balancing on a bamboo pole two huge bundles of
fodder, between which his face looked out like that
*74
STAIRCASE, BORO BOI DOR
BORO BOEDOR
of an owl from a monster ivy bush. Across the
rice sawahs clumsy-looking grey bullocks were
ploughing their way through the swampy soil,
urged on by little brown boys innocent of all
clothing, who were seated astride their backs;
dotted here and there over these paddy fields were
groups of men and women toiling up to their knees
in muddy water, tending or transplanting what is
in their estimation a sacred grain, " the gift of
the gods." The whole way, in fact, was a suc-
cession of delightful pictures, and always there
was the same background of rice plantations,
sometimes flat, sometimes in terraces covered with
water glittering in the sunshine or glowing in
vivid shades of green, varying from the startingly
bright colour of the young shoots newly trans-
planted, to the darker, intenser emerald hue of the
crops giving promise of harvest. As for the
flowers! such a gorgeous array of scarlet, blue,
yellow, pink and white blossoms met the eye on
every hand and perfumed all the air, that it was
almost overpowering, while among the kanaris,
palms, and bamboos were some trees ablaze with
huge bright scarlet blossoms something like the
flame trees (Poinceana regia) of Singapore.
In addition to the kampongs by the way, where
'75
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
the inhabitants were so much in evidence, were
other villages enclosed within bamboo palisades
almost hidden from sight by the wealth of greenery
which covered both the fence and the houses. We
noticed also that on the outskirts of each kam-
pong was placed a bamboo erection with tiled roof
and raised floor, having hanging by the door a
hollow log with a stick inside it. This we learned
was a rest-house for travellers where they can par-
take of food brought with them, and sleep during
the noontide heat, secure alike from sun and rain;
it serves also as a meeting-place for the villagers,
where the news of the day can be discussed. The
hollow piece of wood is used as a drum and beaten
by the stick. According to the note struck it
either invites the natives to come forth from their
dwellings and hear a piece of news or an order
from the Government, or else it warns them to
keep closely indoors, because some one is indulg-
ing in the pastime of running " amok."
The Javanese, in common with the Malays, are
subject to this sudden madness, and when taken
with a fit of anger a man will rush down the road
brandishing a kris. He pursues a straight course,
and turns neither to right nor left, but kills every-
thing that comes in his way, whether man or beast,
176
BORO BOEDOR
and continues his wild career until arrested by
native police, who have a special apparatus, con-
sisting of a bamboo pole terminating in two large
prongs, for catching these madmen. The prongs
are pushed under the arms, and so pinioned, the
disturber of the peace is overpowered and taken
to prison to answer for any crimes he may have
committed. The signal to keep inside the house or
fence is therefore at times most necessary. We
crossed the river by a quaint covered bridge, and
continued our way by narrower but not less beauti-
ful roads; birds of most brilliant plumage of varied
hues soared above us, and gorgeously coloured
butterflies of immense size fluttered about us.
The rapid and smooth progress, and the strange
sights all around, gave one a sensation of unreality,
as if it were all a dream. The wheels of Time
seemed to have turned back to the era of the
Arabian nights, our motor car appeared a
magician's chariot rushing through the air, its
motive power only the command of our Jinn
driver, at whose word we were being transported
to our destination with the speed and promptitude
of Prince Houssain's magic carpet.
From such illusions we were awakened by the
said driver turning round and calling out, " Boro
177
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
Boedor! " at the same time pointing to a grey
turret-crowned hill in the distance, behind which
stood out three magnificent mountains. Soon we
entered the avenue of kanari trees leading up to
the passangrahan or government hostelry, along
which our friends had toiled in the burning sun
some days previously. The way was strewn with
perfect and imperfect statues of Buddha, also
fierce stone lions and dragons in a more or less
broken condition, right up to the door of the inn,
where two Buddhas and an enormous stone lion
kept guard. So ended this wonderful drive which
was a fitting prelude to our visit to the most mar-
vellous temple the brain of man has ever conceived
or human hands executed; a temple without in-
terior, pillar or roof, writing or inscription; made
of stones cast forth from some fiery volcano, put
together without mortar or cement; a shrine for
some portion of the ashes of the Great Buddha, on
which no skill or labour had been spared to make
it worthy of its object.
Buddhism was founded in India in the sixth
century e.c. by Gautama, the son of Suddhodana,
who was chief or king of an Aryan tribe called
Sakyas. Gautama was afterwards known as
Buddha, or " The Perfectly Enlightened One,"
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BORO BOEDOR
and also as Sakya-muni, or wise man of the Sakya
tribe; his mother's name was Maya. As a youth
he occupied himself in studying the problems of
existence and the universality of suffering, and
while still a young man he gave up home and
friends and went forth into the jungle to dwell
apart from mankind, living the life of an ascetic
and mortifying the flesh in every possible way.
Here he was taught by Brahmin recluses many of
the mysteries and secrets of life, but after some
years he abandoned this mode of living as unpro-
fitable, and returned to the world. Then, as he
sat under the tree of wisdom came his final battle
with the powers of evil, from which he emerged
conqueror and attained to perfect illumination and
self-conquest. This entitled him to Nirvana, a
state of bliss without desire or suffering; but such
was his love and pity for humanity that he volun-
tarily relinquished it for a time, and went forth
again into the world to teach men the lessons he
had learned.
Originally, Buddhism was not strictly speaking
a religion, as it claimed no knowledge of God nor
of any duty towards Him; it recognised no form
of prayer, had no belief in the soul or immortality,
nor had it any ritual, priest or sacrifice. It was a
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A JOURNEY TO JAVA
svstera of philosophy, and its principal tenets set
forth that suffering being co-existent with life, and
desire being the cause of suffering, the aim of each
one should be, by living a pure life of self-sacrifice
and love, to subdue and finally conquer desire, and
so obtain salvation from sin and its consequences.
This wished for result is gained during a suc-
cession of re-births, either in human or animal
form; in each period of earthly existence something
of the gross and carnal is eliminated until the in-
dividual becomes so cleansed and purified that he
reaches the state called Nirvana, where no desire
is possible, as it is existence without personality.
For forty-five years Gautama Buddha preached
and taught his doctrine throughout the length and
breadth of the land; then in the eightieth year of
his age he died, and (tradition says) his ashes were
divided among eight towns, a portion being
allotted for burial in each of them. Three
hundred years later, King Asoka caused seven of
these tombs to be opened and the ashes in them
divided, this time, it is said, into upwards of eighty
thousand parts, each portion being carefully and
reverently placed in a metal or stone vase, so that
wherever the disciples of Buddha should settle,
one of these memorial urns containing the
1 80
BORO BOEDOR
venerated remains should find a place in their
midst.
At first they were merely buried under mounds
of earth or tumuli; but later, to preserve them
more effectually from hurt or desecration, stone
monuments were erected over them in the shape
of dagobas, which were supposed to represent the
bud of the lotus resting on a pedestal formed by
the leaf or open flower of the lotus lily, which is
held as a sacred flower by Buddhists all over the
world.
Boro Boedor is without doubt one of these
shrines, and the most beautiful of them all. At
one time there must have rested in the cavity be-
neath the large unfinished Buddha of the topmost
dagoba one of the urns or vases containing what
was believed to be one of these infinitesimal por-
tions of the sacred ashes of the great teacher,
Gautama Buddha, but this has long since dis-
appeared.
The temple was erected (as far as can be ascer-
tained) about the middle of the seventh century,
when Buddhism was at the zenith of its fame in
Java, and for three centuries longer it continued
to flourish. In 1475, however, the warrior hordes
of " The Prophet " swept over the land, and the
181
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
people were converted to Mohammedanism at the
point of the sword. Not that much force was
necessary, as the easy-going Javanese embraced
the new faith as readily as they had turned from
Brahma to Buddha; indeed, by that time the
" Great Teacher's " religion had begun to
decline in favour, and many had returned to
Brahmanism. A few remained faithful to
Buddha, and I like to think that the old tradition
is true which says that some of these disciples,
afraid lest the glorious shrine which enclosed the
ashes of their Master should fall into the hands of
enemies, and its terraces be polluted by their foot-
steps, covered up with kindly earth the marvellous
masonry and intricate carvings, planting over it
wild vines, clinging creepers and quick growing
trees, until in a very little while the rapid growth
of vegetation in the tropics had made the mound
which hid such a treasure indistinguishable from
other green hills around.
Many years rolled away, dense forests thick
with undergrowth grew up around the buried
shrine, whose secret was so well kept that neither
legend nor tradition told the tale of its existence,
or hinted at its whereabouts. Out of sight and
forgotten, undisturbed by friend or foe, for six
182
BORO BOEDOR
centuries the Tyandi Barabadur lay concealed in
the jungle, till accident revealed in 1814 the exis-
tence of this relic of a thousand years ago to some
British engineers. Fortunately, Sir Stamford
Raffles was at that time in command of the island,
and realised at once, from the report received, the
great importance of the find. For six weeks over
two hundred natives were engaged in cutting down
and rooting up trees and ferns and taking the earth
off the building. When most of the debris had
been cleared away, drawings were made and
measurements taken by order of Sir Stamford
Raffles. Unfortunately the latter had soon to
give up his command, and Java was restored to
the Netherlands before the excavations were com-
pleted. The Dutch Government, however, was
fully alive to the great importance of the discovery,
and Dutch archaeologists were quite as keen as
English ones, to unearth the buried ruins and in-
vestigate the temple's history. Antiquarians and
savants have devoted much time and study, not
only to Boro Boedor, but also to the numerous
ruined temples scattered throughout the length
and breadth of Java. But none of them can vie
with Boro Boedor in grandeur of conception and
elaborativeness of design. It is a miracle of art,
183
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
the most glorious Buddhist monument in the whole
world. Speaking of it Alfred Russell Wallace
says, " The amount of human labour and skill ex-
pended on the great Pyramid of Egypt sinks into
insignificance when compared with that required
to complete this sculptured hill temple in the in-
terior of Java." (Malay Archipelago.)
Dr. Groneman, the honorary president of the
Archaeological Society at Djokjakarta, has written
a most excellent and comprehensive explanatory
pamphlet about Boro Boedor, which has been
translated into English and can be obtained on
the spot. It furnishes a useful, if somewhat
learned, guide book to the ruins, and especially
the bas-reliefs. I am greatly indebted to it for
much of the information concerning the temple I
am able to give.
The first view of Boro Boedor, as seen from the
door of the passagrahan, gives one a feeling of
bewildered astonishment, not unaccompanied by
disappointment. It is unlike one's preconceived
notions, and appears a confused mass of broken
walls and pinnacles and huge grey stones as it
stands out stark and bare against the intense
blue sky. No mantle of clinging creeper softens
the hard, jagged outlines, no covering of velvety
184
BORO BOEDOR
green moss conceals the broken stones, and this
is the more striking when contrasted with the
superabundant luxuriant vegetation all around.
Not until you cross the intervening space and
stand on the first of the terraces do you begin to
realise the superlative nature of the vast design,
and the enormous amount of time and toil ex-
pended on a building in which almost every stone
has its intricate carving. You are filled with awe
and wonder; surely giants must have built and
elfs and gnomes ornamented this miracle of art;
it is impossible it can have been wrought by human
hands!
As you pass round the galleries engraved on
either side, with clear-cut pictures in stone, sur-
mounted by pinnacles and cupolas adorned with
graceful flower or weird looking animal, and look
up to find the inscrutable eyes of the calm-faced
Buddhas fixed on you at every turn; as you ascend
from terrace to terrace and find new wonders and
fresh splendours surrounding you on all sides, you
begin to understand that months might be spent in
examining this peerless edifice without exhausting
its marvels or finding out all its treasures. No
description in writing can convey more than the
faintest idea of this unique temple; its grandeur is
,85
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
too vast and overwhelming, and there is nothing
in the world to which it can be compared. It is
situated in the Residency of Kadu in Mid Java,
near the Progo river, in the midst of a fertile plain.
In form it is a many-sided pyramid, and each side
of the base measures six hundred feet. Though
so broad at the base, it is not more than a hundred
feet high, and has no interior, the natural conical
shaped hill or mound, which forms the centre or
core, being enclosed by a series of terraces built
right round it. Starting from the bottom and
mounting upward, there is first the remains of a
broad platform or terrace covered with stones
which hide the original lowest or outer terrace four
feet below. Dr. Groneman obtained leave from
the Government to have this latter partially un-
covered, and was rewarded by finding a great
number of beautiful bas-reliefs (160), the exis-
tence of which was unknown till then. These
were photographed and then carefully covered up
again, so are not accessible to the ordinary tourist.
The present outer terrace is in a very ruined con-
dition, and the openwork parapet which formerly
enclosed it has completely disappeared; from it
rise one above the other five square terraces to
which access is obtained by high stone steps form-
186
BORO BOEDOR
ing a continuous flight of stairs to the top. There
are four of these staircases, one in the middle of
each side of the temple, and at each terrace an
archway is built over the stairs and profusely
carved and ornamented and surmounted by a
grotesque head. Formerly there was a balus-
trade on either side issuing from lions' mouths and
terminating in serpents' tails, and the opening at
each terrace was guarded by sitting lions; there
were also gates, as the stone sockets for hinges can
be plainly seen, but all these have disappeared.
The wall surrounding each terrace is raised
above the succeeding terrace and forms a parapet
to it. Both sides of walls and parapets alike are
covered with the most wonderful bas-reliefs de-
picting scenes from the life of Buddha, and these
are the most marvellous and striking characteris-
tics of the temple. Jutting out from the walls at
regular intervals are buttresses or projections ex-
tending more than half-way across the terrace.
These projections are on a level with the terrace
below, but the upper portion is fashioned into an
alcove or niche surmounted by stone spires and
cupolas, all most richly decorated and forming a
shrine for a life-size image of Buddha. Jutting
out from the projection below the statue, but fac-
•3
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
ing towards the outer wall is a weird-looking
grotesque head of some mythical animal, some-
thing like the gargoyles on cathedrals, and
evidently used as a spout to drain off the water.
The Buddhas are seated on lotus leaf cushions or
thrones, with legs crossed, tailor fashion (sila, as
the Javanese term is) , with a halo or disc round
the head. There are 432 of these projecting
niches or shrines containing Buddhas, all of whom
face outwards towards the four points of the com-
pass. The figures are nude, with the exception
of what Dr. Groneman calls " a thin cloak, the
same that is worn by the monks of the Southern
church," over the left shoulder, but some term this
' the Brahmanic cord," and it certainly looks
more like a cord than a cloak. The head is
covered with short curls, and has the tiara or
round hair knot on the top. Passing from terrace
to terrace under successive arches over the stair-
case, until we have ascended to the fifth, we find
ourselves before a circular terrace; there are three
of these, not enclosed by walls but outlined by a
row of dagobas of pierced stone, seventy-two in
number, looking like huge bells, and intended to
represent the bud of the lotus flower. There are
thirty-two of these ranged at regular intervals
188
BORO BOEDOR
round the first terrace, then seven or eight steps
higher the second has twenty-four, and higher
again, where the hill is narrower, there are only
sixteen, enclosing the third and last terrace. Each
of these dagobas rests on a lotus leaf base, and
contains a statue of Buddha in the same posture as
the Buddhas below, but facing inwards, appar-
ently gazing forth through the stone lattice work
at the great central dome, rising in the middle of
the third or highest terrace. Alike in form to the
other dagobas, but many times larger, this huge,
supreme one rears itself far above the surrounding
masonry, forming the crowning point or apex of
the whole structure. Through being on the top
it has suffered most of all from the long burial,
and only part of it remains. When it was dis-
covered it was completely closed; on being opened
it was found to contain an enormous statue of
Buddha in an unfinished condition, seated on a
platform which covered a deep cavity. In this no
doubt once reposed the memorial urn containing
the sacred ashes. Leading from this small
chamber is a larger one, on a lower level, which
was probably made use of by the priests in con-
nection with their occult observances. A groat
deal of controversy has raged round the signifi-
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
cance and meaning of the unfinished condition of
the central Buddha, but it still remains a matter of
conjecture, as neither writing nor inscription
appears in any part of the temple to give any ex-
planation. Some archaeologists consider the in-
complete figure depicts Buddha as having attained
Nirvana, and now wholly separated from the
world and dwelling in a region beyond it; he has
passed into the state of Parinirvana or non-exis-
tence, which means absorption in the Infinite, the
ultimate aim of all devout Buddhists. The un-
finished state of the statue is symbolical of the
imperfect knowledge possessed by the artist of the
form thr great Teacher bears in his beatific con-
dition.
Dr. Groneman suggests a much more matter
of fact explanation; in his opinion, the statue was
not completed because it was never intended to be
seen, and therefore time and labour spent on
finishing it would have been wasted.
Returning to the square terraces, we find, as
Dr. Groneman tells us, that each of them " is
about ten feet above the preceding one, and they
are connected by flights of stairs of about ten
steps each; that each gallery has a width between
the walls of about seven feet, and the walls are
five feet thick."
190
BORO BOEDOR
The Buddhas in the niches or shrines are all
exactly alike except for the position of the right
hand; the left hand invariably rests on the lap,
the back of the hand laid on the right foot. But
the right hand of the Buddhas on the first four
terraces vary according to which point of the com-
pass the figure faces. Those looking towards
the North have the right hand raised with palm
to the front and fingers pointing upwards; this is
supposed to represent Buddha expounding the
law. Those facing South have the back of the
right hand resting on the right thigh, the open
palm signifying Buddha teaching. Those with
face turned to the East have the palm of the right
hand on the lap, which shows Buddha learning.
With face turned to the West (sunset) the two
hands are side by side on the lap, palms upwards,
depicting the Teacher in meditation. The fifth
or last square terrace (or wall) commands all four
quarters (or the zenith) , and on it the figures are
distinguished by having the right hand upraised,
the tip of the index finger bent over and touching
the thumb, so as to form a circle, the symbol of the
sun. This is presumably Buddha demonstrating
and explaining the Buddhistic doctrine of which
the circle was also symbolic. In the three circular
A JOURNKY TO JAVA
terraces, where the Buddhas are imprisoned in the
stone bells, with rhombic openings, and facing
inwards, both hands are held in front of them, the
right one above the left, with bent fingers curved
shell-like over it. These represent Buddha in
Nirvana in profound meditation.
Dr. Groneman points c it that the Buddhas of
the five square terraces are seated on lotus thrones
with a halo of light round the head, and probably
are intended to represent the rule of Buddha over
the world of men and animals. Those in the bell-
shaped dagobas have no halo, and their faces are
turned away from the earth; they show Buddha as
having left the world and ruling over spheres
above and beyond it.
It was Wilhelm Von Humboldt that first drew
attention to the five different attitudes of the
Buddhas of Boro Boedor and compared them with
the five Dhyani-Buddhas. Three of these latter,
Vairochana, Akshobya, and Ratna-Sambhava,
ruled in succession during thousands of years over
three successive worlds which have now dis-
appeared. The fourth, Gautama Buddha Sakya-
Muni, has reigned for many centuries over this
world, but he also must pass away, and this earth
be destroyed and a new one created. Then
192
BORO BOEDOR
will come the fifth and last, Amogasiddha, the
Buddha of Love. Dr. Groneman, to whom I am
indebted for the above particulars, does not agree
with Humboldt, and shows how in many respects
the Buddhas at Boro Boedor differ considerably
from the Dhyani Buddhas of Nepal, though he
acknowledges there are certain points of agree-
ment.
From the Buddhas we turn to examine the mar-
vellous bas-reliefs that adorn all the walls. They
are so numerous that if placed in a straight line
they would extend for three miles. Except in a
few instances they are as clearly cut and vivid as
a thousand years ago; full of force and delicacy
and not without humourous touches; these carv-
ings in stone represent scenes from the life of
Buddha and his disciples, and illustrate some of
the many legends with which his name is
associated.
The story of Buddha, from his leaving his lotus
throne to descend into the world to his future
mother, up to the time he attains Nirvana, is set
forth in " the language of plastic art "; incident-
ally also, are depicted the manners and customs
of the seventh century, which so much resemble
those of the twentieth, that many of the scenes
r93
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
sculptured on these hoary walls are enacted to-day
in the kampongs and savvahs, and elsewhere
throughout Java. The clumsy buffalo still draws
the primitive plough, the native continues to
gather the ripe rice ear by ear, and to carry home
the sheaves on a shoulder pole of identical shape;
women carry water vessels of the same ancient
pattern on their heads, and the dancing girls prac-
tice the graceful evolutions that found favour
before the Sultan and Princes of the mighty but
long vanished Empire of Mataram. Records of
court life and ceremonial, in which the royal
umbrellas and state caparisoned elephants bear a
conspicuous part; life in the fields showing the
sowing, planting and reaping of the sacred grain;
scenes in the forest and jungle where the sinuous
snake winds his way through the grass, the
monkeys frolic in the trees, and the birds hover in
the air; all have their place in this unique picture
gallery.
Buddha appears in them in various forms and
avocations; at one time he is riding his famous
horse Kanthaka, and at another weighing birds
in a scale as Thoth weighed souls in Egyptian
sculpture; he is seen seated on rushes under a fig
tree which henceforth becomes the venerated Bo
194
BORO BOEDOR
tree or tree of wisdom; he is engaged in his
struggle with the evil one and comes off con-
queror. One series gives some of his re-incarna-
tions, he is born a king and riding a white
elephant, then becomes a mendicant asking alms;
here he is an old seaman accompanying a wealthy
merchant on a voyage, and a quaint fully rigged
three-masted ship is portrayed; again he is a
Brahmin living in a primeval forest, and thus it
goes on showing successive re-births. He is also
an animal in some of his incarnations, and takes in
turn the shape of an elephant, stag, wild bull,
monkey, swan, quail, woodpecker, fish, turtle,
hare, etc. As a turtle he saves the passengers
and crew of a shipwrecked vessel, carrying them
on his back to a desert island, where, as there is
no food, he offers his body to be eaten. As a hare,
he has nothing to give the Lord of Heaven to eat
except bitter grass, so throws himself on the fire
to be roasted for Indra's meal, but is rescued un-
hurt and taken to heaven. All these and
hundreds more are depicted with such poetic sym
bolism, such harmony of purpose and minuteness
of detail, and executed with such lavish
ornamentation and intricate carving that one
stands amazed. The cornices of the outer walls
195
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
are decorated with festoons of groups of birds, and
bands of rosettes of varied but ever graceful form
and figure, whether of man or animal, flower or
fruit, so perfectly finished that the artistic skill and
unwearied patience of those ancient workmen (to
whom it must have been a labour of love and a
religious rite) are a rebuke to the less con-
scientious craftsman of to-day.
We walked on a roasting hot afternoon through
gallery after gallery of these marvellous sculp-
tures, and, beautiful as they were, it was very
tiring work, and we would fain have had them
transplanted to a more temperate region. If all
the hundreds of stone pajongs depicted before us
had been transformed into one huge, real
umbrella, it would have been no more protection
from that scorching sun than a cobweb. We
toiled up the steep stone steps leading to the
highest terrace, where the Buddhas in Nirvana
sheltered from the sun in their lotus bud dagobas,
eternally meditate, gazing out through their stone
lattice with unseeing eyes and mysterious look,
ever calm and inscrutable, unhurt by the many
centuries of neglect that have passed over their
heads. Unaffected by the tourists who come at
intervals to look and wonder, and sometimes to
196
BORO BOEDOR
envy their cool retreat, they hold their vigil round
the shrine which once contained some of the ashes
of the beloved Master. Up to that shrine we
climbed by the rude staircase that leads to the
top, and then such a magnificent panorama was
spread out before us that heat and fatigue were
alike forgotten. From where we stood the view
extended on every side for miles; three great vol-
canic mountains rose majestic from a vast plain —
Soemboeng, of sugar loaf form; Merbaboe, at
whose base the documents conveying Java to the
English were signed in 1811; and Merapi, from
whose crater death and destruction have too often
issued. Other peaks beyond were faintly out-
lined against the horizon, and it is said that on a
very clear day no less than nine volcanoes can
be distinguished. The plain itself was one great
fertile garden covered with rice fields, tobacco,
tea, and indigo plantations, and studded with palm
groves marking the sites of kampongs. The
river Progo, like a streak of silver, wound its way
along; a soft haze gave a mirage-like effect to hill
and plain, and entranced bv such a glorious pros-
pect, we echoed Miss Marianne North's words,
uttered on this spot forty years before, " the
finest landscape T have ever seen."
*97
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
Turning from Nature's wonders around us to
man's stupendous work beneath us, we looked
down upon the venerable pile of timeworn stones,
and into the marvellous sculptured terraces, over
which the silent, mysterious Buddhas had watched
for so many centuries, keeping vigil first in the
heyday of the wondrous shrine's glory and splen-
dour, and then in the profound darkness of its
buried period. Now that once more the light of
sun and stars shines upon them, they look with
sad, unfathomable eyes on the ruins, " yet beau-
teous in decay " of its former grandeur, a gran-
deur so transcendent that we could almost believe
in the truth of the old tradition that has grown up
around it, which tells how the temple rose in one
night at the bidding of genii.
Our time at Boro Boedor was all too short; had
we known we would have arranged to spend the
night at the passangrahan, as the temple ought to
be seen just before sunrise, when it takes on its
most weird and mysterious aspect in the grey light
before dawn, it also should be viewed at sunset,
when it is bathed in rich, glowing colours that
give to statues and carvings the semblance of life.
It was too late, however, to make any change in
our plans, and most reluctantly we tore ourselves
198
BORO BOEDOR
away before we had seen one quarter of its glories,
though what we had seen sufficed to fill our minds
with awe and wonder.
The Bromo volcano in the Tengger Mountains
and the Boro Boedor temple near Djokjakarta
stand out in my memory as the two great sights of
Java. It seems as though Nature and Man vie
with one another in producing unique monuments
of the power of the former and the skill of the
latter. From Boro Boedor we drove to the beau-
tiful Tjandi Mendoet (also a Buddhist Temple) ,
which is on the other side of the river Progo, a
little over a mile from Boro Boedor.
For many years its existence was unsuspected,
and it lay hidden in the depths of the jungle
covered with the ashes of the neighbouring vol-
cano Merapi.
In 1835 ^ was discovered by a Dutchman named
Hartman; when the temple was exposed to view
it was found that the original outlines of the struc-
ture were well preserved, and judging from the
design and decoration, it appeared to have been
built about the same time as Boro Boedor, or
possibly a little later.
The temple is octagonal in form, and is crowned
by a pyramidal cupola; the body of the building
199
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
is 46 feet square, and rises to a height of over 60
feet. An arched doorway gives access to the in-
terior, and in the entrance are some very beautiful
bas-reliefs.
On passing into the dimly lighted inner
chamber (21 feet square) one is confronted by
three colossal statues, one facing the entrance and
one on either side. These statues are all repre-
sentations of Buddha, and have been called by
some the " Buddhist Trinity." The Central
Statue is 11 feet high, and quite plain and un-
adorned except for the Brahmanic cord, in striking
contrast to the elaborately decorated smaller
figures on either side, which are each eight feet
high.
The whole temple is in a very ruined condi-
tion, but many of the bas-reliefs are marvellously
perfect, especially one in the entrance to the in-
terior, on which Buddha is depicted seated under
a " Bo " tree, whose leaves have spread them-
selves out over his head, so as to form a pajong or
state umbrella; groups of worshippers are present-
ing him with offerings and incense, while Buddha
appears to be addressing to them words of wisdom.
The figures in this sculpture are executed with
wonderful skill and delicacy, and show little trace
^
M\ l R \l 1:1 DDII A. MENDOl I I I MIM.I-.
BORO BOEDOR
of their long burial. We were also much in-
terested in another tine bas-relief, in which
Buddha appears as an infant in his mother's arms,
for it might easily have been a representation of
the Madonna and Child, as depicted by Italian
artists.
There are. other ruined temples in the same
neighbourhood which we would gladly have
visited had time permitted, such as the majestic
ruins of Prambanan on the banks of the river Opak
between Djokja and Solo. Prambanan is
superior to Mendoet both in architecture and in
beauty of detail, and is famous as containing the
exquisite statue of Loro Jonggran, the " pure
virgin " of the Javanese, and consort of Siva, who
is worshipped in India under the name of Kali.
This beautiful image is eight-armed, and stands
six feet high; the whole ruin is often named after
it, and it is referred to as the Tjandi Loro Jong-
gran. One of the bas-reliefs that adorns the room
in which the statue is placed, is known as the
Three Graces."
Then there are the ruins of Tjandi Sewoe, or
The Thousand Temples," the In." st structure
among all the Buddhist monuments that has yet
been discovered in Java, which are situated a short
20 1
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
distance from Prambanan. They consist of a
large central temple, surrounded by four rows of
smaller ones, 240 in number. Formerly these
were enclosed by three walls, but only a portion
of the innermost one remains. The giant images
of kneeling watchmen still guard the four roads
leading to the four entrances, but the four temples
that stood near the watchmen have been com-
pletely destroyed, probably by an earthquake.
Other notable ruins are the Tjandi Singsosari,
or " Temple of the Garden of the Lion," which
is to be found on a plain at the foot of the Tengger
Mountains, about four miles from Malang; also
the numerous temples on the Dieng plateau, of
which there are over 400 in a more or less ruined
condition; the most perfect of these are the five
Ardjoeno temples, and the Tjandi Bima or
" House with the Heads."
Months might be spent in visiting and examin-
ing these " stupendous and finished specimens of
human labour and of the science and taste of ages
long since forgot."
202
CHAPTER XI
garoet; lake bagendit; valley of death;
upas tree
On our way back from Boro Boedor and
Mendoet, we had a terrific thunderstorm and the
rain fell in torrents. All the picturesque scenes
of our morning drive were blotted out by a cur-
tain of mist and rain, and our motor splashed
through what might easily have been mistaken
for a shallow river, such a deluge of water poured
along the road. We were quite snug and dry in
our comfortable car, which afforded adequate
protection from wind and rain, but it was dis-
appointing to miss the charming views. Our
only mishap (if one could call it so) arose from
my thoughtlessly placing mv camera on the floor
of the car, which was extremely hot, owing to
the speed at which we were going. Fortunately
I discovered my mistnke before all the films were
spoiled, but some were blurred and others ren-
dered useless by the celluloid partially melting
'4
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
and so obliterating the impression. It was most
unlucky !
We got back to Djokja in good time and left
the thunderstorm behind us, but not the rain,
which came down persistently the rest of the
evening; the atmosphere was most sultry and
oppressive, with no cooling breeze to refresh us.
This sort of weather seemed to have a most ex-
citing effect on the lizards, as they chased each
other up and down the wall with added energy
and in larger numbers than on the previous night,
their weird call of " chuck, chuck," being more
persistent than heretofore. I did not molest
them, as the Javanese say that to kill a gheko or
lizard brings disaster on the slayer; but I was
glad to be safely behind mosquito curtains, as I
watched their antics by the dim light of the night-
lamp, while I pondered on all the marvels I had
seen that day, till my waking thoughts of mysteri-
ous temples and solemn-faced Buddhas were
merged in the fantasies of true dreamland.
Rather close and uncertain weather greeted us
next morning for our train journey to Garoet,
and the rain seemed perilously near; fortunately
it did not fall, but the atmosphere was misty and
prevented our having as good a view as we
204
GAROET; LAKE BAGENDIT
should have liked of the magnificent mountains
as we made our way up into their midst.
It is a long journey from Djokja to the pretty
little town and delightful summer resort of
Garoet, which is situated on a plateau 200 feet
above the level of the sea, and encircled by no
fewer than fourteen volcanic mountains, the
largest of which is Goenoeng Goentor, or
Black Thunder mountain. Garoet was once a
holy city, undefiled by the white man's tread, for-
bidden to Europeans. This is all changed and
it has become a recognised health resort and
summer station, where, as at Tosari, the jaded
Western, worn out by the fiery heat in the cities
of the plain or by the sea, can come to be cooled
and invigorated ; it is also a centre from which
the tourist can make expeditions to the marvel-
lous sights in its vicinity. Our train journey was
full of interest, though in the beginning the in-
terminable rice fields were a trifle monotonous ;
but as we mounted higher the flat fields gave
place to a series of rounded or curved ten.
on which the precious grain was grown, with a
much prettier effect, as the water dripping from
terrace to terrace formed huge pools or miniature
lakes which reflected the azure of the sky and
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
glittered in the sun. From the enormous tracts
of land used for the cultivation of rice, one might
suppose Java could supply the whole world with
that commodity, whereas there is not much more
than suffices for her own consumption. We
passed over high bridges spanning deep ravines,
in whose depths one could catch a glimpse of
the white foam of the torrent as it dashed on its
way; we crossed tracts of dark forest, where the
dense undergrowth and tree ferns grew up almost
to the line, showing that a clearing had been
made through virgin forest for the railroad.
Then our train, ever ascending, wound round a
steep declivity, and from a dizzy height the plain
far below could be seen. Another bit of forest
and then we emerged on to a plateau dotted here
and there with clumps of bamboo and waving
palm trees, indicating kampongs. On this
plateau the mountains seemed quite to surround
and hem us in, and although the floating grey
clouds only permitted some of the peaks to be
visible against the sky, yet the effect of such a
number of mighty mountains in close proximity,
most of them with fire still slumbering in their
hearts, was most solemn and awe-inspiring, in
spite of the tantalising mist-curtain which was
being perpetually raised and lowered.
206
GAROET; LAKE BAGENDIT
While still among the rice plantations we par-
took of an excellent lunch in the restaurant car,
and we were able to reserve the contents of our
Thermos flasks for afternoon tea.
About six o'clock we reached Tjibatoe, where
we had to change trains, as Garoet is off the main
line. Here we were besieged by swarms of
coolies, who, with much chattering and gesticula-
tion, seized our luggage to transfer it to the other
train. Even had we understood and spoken their
language, I doubt if we could have made our-
selves heard in such a babel ; as it was, we stood
helpless, watching our beloved and necessary
possessions carried off before our eyes, till at last,
to our joy, our guide, George, appeared, and
grasping the situation, with a few sharp sentences
spoken with a commanding air, rescued the
baggage from the multitude, and permitted about
six coolies to have the honour of taking it to the
Garoet train and depositing it in our carriage.
This latter was quite different to any we had
been in, and was just like an old-fashioned pew
in an ancient church; there was a table in the
middle with chairs round it, and even the tin
sconces with candles in them hanging on the
walls, heightened the illusion, for I hav< oft< a
207
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
seen similar ones in village churches. They gave
a poor and most inadequate light. There was
room and to spare for all our boxes and bags, and
we had the compartment to ourselves. The dim-
ness of the light was not of much consequence,
as it was a very short run from Tjibatoe to Garoet.
At the station there, we procured a carriage with-
out difficulty, and a few minutes' drive brought
us to our hotel, the Van Horck, one of the
prettiest and most comfortable we visited in
Java.
It was bewildering to be ushered, dusty and
travel-stained as we were, from the darkness out-
side into a brilliantly-lighted dining room full of
people in evening dress ; but a most courteous
landlord stepped forward and welcomed us in
English and conducted us to very charming
rooms. These were most spacious, and con-
tained enormous beds, the biggest we slept in
anywhere in Java, either before or after our stay
in Garoet. They must have been eight feet
square, and one could move on to a fresh, cool
spot many times in the night. From the verandah
outside the rooms, our outlook was a garden; as
trees, shrubs and flowers were dimly visible by
the light of Japanese lanterns hung on the trees,
208
GAROET; LAKE BAGENDIT
while the grass itself was ablaze with the light of
thousands of fire-flies. Nowhere else did we see
them in such numbers or giving forth such a
brilliant illumination, and one could easily believe
the stories of Javanese burglars using them as
dark lanterns for their midnight prowlings.
This hotel was in many ways much the nicest
we had been in. The rooms were not only large
and airy, but the portion of verandah in front,
which served as sitting-room, was screened off on
either side, so you had a cosy and almost private
lounge. Only when the passer-by came directly
in front could he see or be seen, and as we were
in a particularly quiet corner of the hotel there
were few to disturb us. A hanging lamp over
quite a good-sized table gave a most brilliant
light, and the place was perfect for reading or
writing, when one had learned to ignore the
insects swarming around. Java has its own par-
ticular brands of these, and the light acts as a
magnet to attract them, as well as the moths and
bats, etc., known to us in England. Some of
the bats are huge; indeed Java boasts of the
largest species of bat yet discovered, called by
the natives Kalong (Steropus Javanicus); it
measures full five feel when its wrings arc ex
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
panded. I don't know whether we saw it, but
we certainly saw some enormous ones, and among
them the Lowo or dog bat (Pteropus rostrabus),
which is not so common as the Kalong.
There is also a very tiny fly which is a great
pest; Java teems with them, and day or night
makes no difference to their ravages. They get
into or on to every description of food, more
especially sugar and sweet things; if you do not
cover eatables they are soon black with them.
They are so tiny as to be hardly visible, but if you
put a lump of sugar on the table, in a couple of
seconds it will be hidden under hundreds of the
small flies which have settled on it. There is no
possibility of getting rid of them all, and no doubt
we swallowed hundreds.
The lizards in Garoet were as numerous and
active as in Djokja, but they are said to wage
war on the mosquitos, which they eat. There is
a horrid and dangerous lizard called a blood-
sucker, whose bite is poisonous, but he is very
shy and rarely attacks except when on the de-
fensive. The Garoet lizards had different notes
of call, " Tooky, Tooky; Becky, Becky," being
used as well as " Chuck, Chuck "; no doubt there
are many species of these animals. Their noise
2IO
GAROET; LAKE BAGENDIT
did not disturb our slumbers, and after a good
night's rest we awakened to find the weather most
propitious for our excursion to Lake Bagendit.
From our verandah we looked with interest on
the pretty garden that had been so shadowy the
evening before in the uncertain light shed by
lanterns and fire-flies, and found it even more
charming than we had expected.
Postponing our examination of Garoet itself
until the afternoon, we set forth in carriages to
drive to Lake Bagendit, one of the most famous
of the excursions from Garoet. The lake is about
an hour's drive through the most delightful
scenery, not unlike the road from Djokja to Boro
Boedor for the first part of the way; the same
long, straight avenues bordered by shady trees
with rice plantations on either side, sometimes
with groves of bamboos and little bits of wood or
copses, with waving palm trees of various kinds.
In the distance could be seen the tea and coffee
plantations and the outlines of dense forests
where sportsmen go to shoot big game. All
around were the marvellous mountains more
clear and distinct than the day before, and look-
ing very near, but in reality a long way off; smoke
was issuing forth from some of them, but none
211
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
was active at that particular time. In the flat
rice fields little boys sat in bamboo huts poised
on four thin poles erected in the middle of the
savvah and drove the birds away from the ripe
grain. The flat rice plantations were succeeded
by curved terraces, in shape very much like the
pictures of the pink and white terraces in New
Zealand, before they were destroyed by the erup-
tion of Mount Tarawera. In some of the fields
the natives were gathering in the rice in one part,
while in another small grey bullocks were draw-
ing a primitive-looking plough through watery
mud, under the direction of a tiny unclothed
Javanese boy. There was "water, water every-
where," lakes and pools and running streams.
No wonder the air was so charged with moisture
and that one's boots became covered with blue
mould in a night ! Such an amount of water
acted upon by a hot sun would turn any place
into a vapour bath.
The way to Lake Bagendit lies through a
native village, which is entered by a high gate-
way of bamboo. Here we were greeted by
swarms of little children, all eager to get pennies
in exchange for bunches of flowers and curious
looking little basket traps for catching small fish;
212
GAROET; LAKE BAGENDIT
quaint miniature copies of those used by the men
for taking the larger fish. The village was a
typical Javanese one, each small brown basket
house almost buried in bamboo, banana, and palm
trees. One principal street ran down the middle
to the shore of the lake and as we approached we
heard the sound of music. We found it pro-
ceeded from a band of musicians stationed under
trees at the water's edge and playing on the
strange bamboo instrument called the anklung.
These are made of bamboo tubes, each instrument
when shaken producing one note; these notes
range from treble to bass and vary in tone accord-
ing to the size of the instrument. They are
rapidly shaken one after the other, in whatever
order is essential to the desired tune. They pro-
duce a weird kind of music, but it is most effec-
tive, especially when heard across the water.
Just beyond where the musicians sat was an open-
ing, showing the lake and a little landing-stage;
as we stepped on to the latter a most enchanting
scene presented itself. Stretched before us was
a large expanse of water, as calm as a mill pond,
reflecting as in a looking-glass the deep blue sky
and the surrounding mountain peaks. Opposite
to us, the Black Thunder mountain (Goenoeng
213
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
Goentor) stood out grim and stern, and behind it
were the outlines of other peaks half veiled in
fleecy clouds. Fishing canoes were dotted here
and there on the lake, and some distance from the
shore men and children were wading in the water,
catching fish in big baskets similar in shape to
the tiny ones we had bought from the children.
Into these the fish are enticed by bait, and once
in, they cannot get out. Flat tray-like baskets
poised on the heads of the fishers are used to re-
ceive the fish thus caught; the basket trap being
emptied is then ready to be filled again. How
they managed to wade and fish and keep these
baskets balanced on their heads without any
apparent fastening, was a mystery, which
heightened the magic and unreality of the scene.
We were invited to enter the quaintest of
covered rafts, consisting of a bamboo platform
with a canopy overhead, supported by four
bamboo poles at the corners. On this platform
stood four chairs for the passengers, the whole
erection being fastened on three canoes. In the
two outer ones natives with short little paddles,
shaped like cricket bats, prepared to paddle us
across, while the centre canoe contained a man
with a long pole, who steered our course as with
214
RAFT, LAKE BAGEND1T
GAROET; LAKE BAGENDIT
the wand of a magician, and we slowly glided,
followed by the weird music of the anklungs,
over the glassy surface of the lake, to the opposite
shore, threading our course among the fishers and
waders and little canoes, in a dream-like ecstasy
of enjoyment that cannot be described, so en-
thralling was the witchery of the hour and scene.
Here on an eminence has been placed a summer-
house or cupola, from which extensive views of
lake and mountain can be seen. We stepped
from our raft and followed a winding and rather
precipitous path through what appeared to be an
enchanted garden, so gorgeous were the flowers
on every side, so heavy the scent of the perfumed
air. Growing here, in the utmost profusion
among tree ferns, were poinsettias with their
flaming blossoms, pink and white oleanders, and
the sweet tuberose, " the sweetest flower for
scent that blows " ; scarlet hibiscus with its deli-
cate tassels, the pale green flower of the ylang
ylang, and huge bushes of frangipanni, which the
natives call sumboja (Plumieria acutifolia). The
last-named is the flower of the dead for Javanese
and Malay alike. It is sometimes used as an
offering in the temples, but never for the adorn
ment of the living. It is counted a sacred flower,
2»5
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
always associated with graves and burial rites and
dedicated to those who have passed into the realm
of shadows. Fit emblem of the transitoriness of
life; as the blossom is so delicate that its pure
whiteness becomes stained if only touched by the
finger or even by the fall of one petal on another.
The flowers last a little longer when they drop off
of their own accord; but even then, in a day at
most, they become brown and decayed, un-
pleasant to look at or handle. Near the bushes
of frangipanni was a curious water plant, the
flower shaped like an artichoke or half-opened lily
bud. Each separate petal was full of water that
spouted out of it when grasped by the fingers ; it
is often used by thirsty travellers when other
water cannot be obtained.
As we gained the summit of the hill, the tropical
flowers gave place to the more familiar ones of
the temperate zone, and pale blue convolvulus,
dahlias, lilies, fuschias, and a host of other
flowers, especially roses, surrounded us at the top.
The roses were most wonderful, crimson, white,
pink and cream in colour, climbers, standards,
and bush roses, and there were besides, great
clumps of maidenhair fern making a most effective
background for these flowers. How delicious
216
GAROET; LAKE BAGENDIT
was the delicate perfume of the roses after the
heavy scent of the tropical flowers! They filled
all the air with their sweetness.
But even they were forgotten for the moment
as we gazed in admiration on the exquisite scene
before us.
Standing under the cupola, which was open on
all four sides, we looked out upon a glorious
panorama of lake and mountains. It was a
wonderful prospect. The Black Thunder
mountain still dominated the scene, but to the
right of it was Tangkoeban Prahoe, shaped like
the prow of some giant boat. In the South the
smoke of Papandajan could be seen curling up-
wards and losing itself in the clouds. Down
below, like a sea of glass, the lake of enchant-
ment glittered in the sun, more mysterious and
fairy-like than ever. As we gazed from where
we stood into its limpid depths \vc became aware
of a large mass of water lilies floating on the sur-
face of the lake close to the shore and extending
along it for some distance. Some were a beauti
ful mauve colour, others more a blue shade, and
others again white. They were a large size and
had enormous green leaves, and looked perfe< tly
lovely lying on the water. Near us on the hill
->7
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
was growing a high tree with vivid red flowers,
something like the coral tree of Australia, only
that it had leaves.
I wish I could convey any idea of the un-
equalled beauty of the whole scene. The
glorious summer's day and almost cloudless sky
made a perfect setting for the fairy-like lake on
whose calm surface the fantastic rafts and little
canoes glided to and fro, and in whose depths
were reflected the massive rugged mountains that
walled it in, as though providing a gigantic ram-
part to keep that idyllic spot concealed from the
world. As we lingered inhaling the rich per-
fume of roses and tropical flowers with which the
air was laden, and gazing on the multitudinous
hues of plants and blossoms, a magical spell
seemed cast over us, transporting us to a scene
in the Arabian Nights, and we could have re-
mained there for hours, " the world forgetting, by
the world forgot." But the spell was broken by
inexorable Time, who waits for no man, and re-
luctantly we descended the flowery path to the
bottom of the hill where our raft awaited us.
That marvellous scene, however, will always re-
main as an abiding memory.
At the foot of the hill little children brought
218
GAROET; LAKE BAGENDIT
us large bunches of the water lily and other
flowers. Some posies were apparently composed
of a remarkable and variegated flower that we
had not seen before. Not until we had bought
and examined them closely did we discover that
this many-hued flower was in reality a number of
detached petals from various flowers so cleverlv
fastened together that the collection appeared as
one unusual flower.
A wave of the hand and our magical raft came
alongside and we stepped on board to be wafted
across the lake into a commonplace world again.
As we once more glided over the smooth sur-
face of the water, our guide told us weird stories
of other lakes, even larger than this one, hidden
away among the grim-looking mountains around,
in whose waters lurked the fierce crocodile and
alligator. On the shores of these lakes and in
the fastnesses of the mountains surrounding
them, dwelt, he said, an ancient wild and blood-
thirsty race of men called Atje. They were the
terror of the dwellers in neighbouring kampongs,
as they sometimes descended on these in their
marauding expeditions, plundering and slaying
in a wholesale manner. This tribe worshipped
the erocodiles and alligators in their lakes, and
219
"5
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
had a curious tradition that if an Atje dreamed
that he was eaten by one of these horrible beasts,
it was a sign that his life was forfeit and he must
instantly make the dream a reality, by giving him-
self as a meal to the first crocodile he could find.
These wild men are most cunning, and sometimes
put on the veneer of civilisation for their own pur-
poses, as when they want to get over to Borneo
or Sumatra or one of the other islands. Once
two of them came down and took their passages
in one of the small coasting ships that visit the
islands. They were not recognised as members
of this fierce tribe, so no precautions were taken.
When the boat was found at its destination the
crew and all the passengers were dead, killed by
the wild men, who had also stolen everything of
value from the ship and had disappeared with
their booty. Now when any of these lawless folk
seek to cross to another place in the company of
civilised people, they are secured in a large iron
cage on deck and closely guarded till they are
put on shore, so that there shall be no repetition
of this murderous deed. Not far from the dis-
trict where these savages dwell, is another place
in the mountains called Banjarmassin, where
glittering diamonds can be found, if indeed one
220
GAROET; LAKE BAGENDIT
cares to risk one's life in getting them, as these
fierce denizens of the hills are not friendly to out-
siders. They have never been conquered and
are the despair of the Dutch Government.
With such tales beguiling the time, we were all
too soon at the other side of the lake listening
once more to the mysterious strains of music from
the anklungs. Some of these primitive instruments
we were anxious to obtain, but the owners would
only sell us a complete set, and these it was im-
possible for us to carry. We drove home another
way in order to visit the hot springs at Tjipanas,
where there are very fine mineral baths, some
large enough to swim about in, like the hot lakes
in New Zealand. The road wound between fish-
ponds which are placed terrace-wise and are fed
from the hot springs. These latter are five in
number, each of a different temperature (104-
108 F), and for the sum of fourpence one can
enjoy a hot bath in a stone basin enclosed within
a bamboo shed. The views here were also most
charming, though they seemed commonplace
after the mysterious and eerie beauty of Lake
Bagendit and its surroundings. From tho
Springs a road leads up to the Thunder moun
tain, but it is a difficult ascent, and we did uo1
221
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
attempt it. In the first half of the nineteenth
century Mount Goentoer was extremely active
and there were many eruptions, but for the last
fifty years or more it has been quiescent.
Leaving the mountains, we went on through
a charming little village and a lovely bit of
forest, in which we looked in vain for the
tigers, panthers, rhinoceros, and wild boars
that are said to abound in the neighbour-
hood of Garoet. Perhaps we were not altogether
sorry we missed seeing them, as we might have
been the game and they the hunters. After
traversing the forest we gained the high road we
had followed in the morning, through the familiar
rice fields, and we were once more within the pre-
cincts of the delightful Van Horck Hotel.
There are a great many excursions to be made
from Garoet, the most popular being a trip to the
crater of the Papandajan volcano; but as we had
seen the Bromo, and intended visiting the crater
of the Tangkoeban Prahoe from Bandoeng, we
could not spare the time for a third volcano. To
visit Papandajan one must start as early as 4
a.m., as one did for the Bromo, or go the evening
before to Tjiseroepan, which is 3,900 feet above
the sea level, and eleven miles south of Garoet.
GAROET; LAKE BAGENDIT
From thence about two hours' ride brings one to
the crater (8,460 feet above the sea) by a path
over white boulders of lava. Here the visitor
dismounts and proceeds on foot to a point where
the bubbling, seething bottom of the crater can
be seen, as well as the walls, 600 to 900 feet high,
that encircle it on three sides. The only known
great eruption of this volcano took place on
August 1 2th, 1772, when forty villages were
destroyed and 3,000 people lost their lives. Sur-
rounding the crater are mud springs, sulphur
pillars and solfataras, and the noise made by the
fumaroles and bubbling mud pools is deafening.
Another excursion, which I was most anxious
to make had time permitted, is that to the Telega
Bodas or White Lake, and it was a great dis-
appointment to have to give it up. The Telega
Bodas is a sulphur lake of a greenish white colour,
in which the water is always in a state of bubble
and ferment. It is 5,610 feet above the sea and
enclosed within steep walls. To reach it one
must drive to Padaharan, seven miles distant,
and then proceed on horseback or in a sedan
chair through coffee plantations, and a kind of
wilderness or bush, till the shore of the lake is
reached. The white colour that gives the lake
223
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
its name, is from the reflection of the sulphur and
alum precipitated at the bottom. It was not so
much the White Lake I wished to see as a strange,
mysterious valley close to it, and always included
in the expedition, known as the Slaughter Place
(Padjagalan) or Valley of the Dead, so called
because the bottom of the valley exhales a
poisonous and asphyxiating vapour, strong
enough to kill any animal attempting to cross from
one side to the other. In close proximity to this
valley, is another desolate region called Kawah
Manock, or the Birds' Crater, where are three
pools, the largest of them about thirty feet in
diameter ; it generates and gives off a very dense
vapour, similar in effect to the poisonous gas at
Padjagalan; so that birds, flying overhead low
enough to inhale the deadly fumes, are overcome,
and falling, perish in the pool. No doubt it was
this, and similar places to be found in the Dieng
plateau, that gave rise to the myth of the Upas or
poison tree of Java. This fabulous tree never
existed except in the fertile imagination of a
surgeon named Foerset, who published in 1785
such a circumstantial account of it and its death-
dealing properties, that everyone was deceived
into accepting it as a fact. According to Foerset,
224
GAROET; LAKE BAGENDIT
this most mysterious tree grew in solitary state in
a desolate valley (something similar to the Padja-
galan) in Java, and gave forth such a pestilent
exhalation from the poisonous gum exuding from
its bark that no living thing could approach with-
in a certain radius and survive. Animals that,
hunting for prey or being hunted, in the excite-
ment of the chase approached too near the fatal
tree, were struck down and perished ; birds flying
low enough to breathe the fumes of death, shared
the same fate, and the bleaching bones of beast
and bird lay strewn over this valley of the dead.
The Javanese knowing the deadly nature of the
poison, coveted it to use on arrow-head and spear-
point against their enemies, and adopted various
expedients to obtain it. One was to offer life
to a condemned criminal if he should succeed in
penetrating into the loathsome vale and bringing
back a portion of the poisonous gum. By this
remote chance of life, some were induced to
make the attempt, but few returned successful
from the quest; most of them met the death they
had tried to escape, were overcome and stupiln <l,
and their bones left to mingle with those of the
animals that already lay whitening in the sun.
So runs Foerset's tale !
225
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
This fascinating theme inspired the brush of at
least one British painter, and years ago there was
exhibited at South Kensington Museum a large
painting by Frank Danby, A.R.A., entitled " The
Upas or Poison Tree of Java." In it the painter
depicts a desolate, rocky valley, sombre and
drear, with no vegetation other than the one soli-
tary poison tree, its gnarled roots spreading over
the stony ground, on which lie the bleaching
bones of animals and birds who have fallen vic-
tims to its malign power. In the foreground of
the picture is a man, the criminal, bound on his
dangerous errand, his hands held before his face
as though to shut out the ghastly scene before
him, and he appears to be summoning up resolu-
tion to approach the tree. A vulture that has
hovered too low in winging its flight across the
ravine, lies dead with outstretched wings at his
feet, a portent of his own fate. The picture was
a wonderful effort of the imagination and had a
great fascination for me. Many a time have I
stood and gazed at it, little thinking then that I
should one day visit the land of the Upas Tree.
This picture is no longer on view, it had to be
withdrawn from exhibition as, unfortunately, the
surface was cracking all over and the painting in
226
GAROET; LAKE BAGENDIT
danger of obliteration. Through the courtesy of
A. P. Oppe, Esq., Deputy Director of the Vic-
toria and Albert Museum, it was specially brought
out for me to see, and I was much shocked at its
condition. It was with difficulty the details could
be discerned.
There is a tree called the Upas that grows in
Java which contains a sap of a milky appearance,
which when taken internally or injected into the
blood, acts as an immediate and deadly poison ;
it was formerly used by the Javanese to poison
their spears and arrow-heads in time of war. But
this tree grows in the forests with other trees and
exercises no deleterious effect on them or on the
surrounding vegetation. The Guwa Upas or
valley of poison, in which the tree was supposed
to grow, may well be the Valley of the Dead, with
its layer of carbonic acid gas, so destructive to
both animal and vegetable life, or it may be that
which is situated near the White Lake, whose
deadly fumes have a like disastrous effect. Or
it may be the valley or plain, 20 miles long and
8 or 10 wide, in the Dieng Mountains, the crater
of a long extinct volcano which is encircled by a
chain of green hills. These so keep out air and
wind that the noxious gas oozing up from the
227
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
sandy bottom of the crater cannot be blown away,
but is retained in such quantities that animals
coming down from the hills and seeking to cross
the plain are overpowered by the fumes, and their
skeletons lie strewn around, with those of the
birds who, weary in their flight, have dropped
down into the valley to rise again no more. It
was a happy inspiration on the part of Foerset to
transplant the Upas tree into such a valley, and
attribute to it the deadly effects of the poisonous
gas.
The afternoon of our visit to Lake Bagendit we
had a very delightful walk about Garoet and
visited the passer, where we bought some quaint
baskets which are made to come in two, so that
you can use one part without the other. We saw
also the Kapok tree (Eriodendron) growing, its
thick seed capsules contain a fibre which re-
sembles cotton, but is too short and brittle for
spinning; it makes, however, most excellent stuf-
fing for pillows instead of feathers, and is used in
upholstery. The wealth of flowers at Garoet
was amazing, huge magnolias with enormous
blossoms, oleander trees with pink and white
flowers in great abundance, and hibiscus and
trees with flaming blossoms abounded ; the many-
228
GAROET; LAKE BAGENDIT
hued crotans were most numerous and beautiful.
The hats the natives wore at Garoet seemed
bigger than elsewhere. We met natives carrying
a number of these in various shades of red and
blue, dangling from a long bamboo pole which
was supported at either end on the shoulder of a
man. We wanted to buy two of the biggest, in
size resembling a cart-wheel, but the counsels of
prudence prevailed, as we did not see how it was
possible to carry them. Finally we contented
ourselves with two of a medium size; but even
with these the problem of carriage was a serious
consideration, as we had nothing large enough to
hold them. In the end we carried them as they
were, all through Java, to the accompaniment of
unkind and withering remarks from friends who
should have known better, and the amused looks
and smiles of the natives at railway stations and
hotels. This embarrassing position continued
until we reached Singapore, where a large basket
was bought for them, and they were despatched
to England.
On our return to the hotel to get ready for
dinner we were astonished to find that the Dutch
ladies even in that cooler climate wore the Sarong
and Kabaia the whole day, and went about with
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
out stockings in heelless slippers. There is not
the same excuse for this in Garoet as there is in
steaming Sourabaya, and if the ladies only knew
what frights they looked with their large stout
persons encased in a costume only suitable for
the small, slim Javanese women, they would not
think of wearing it. I presume they prefer com-
fort to elegance; it is only in this way I can
account for their disregard of appearances. Early
next morning a whole crowd of natives came to
our portion of the verandah eager to display vari-
ous articles of merchandise they had brought to
sell, such as sarongs, slendangs, brass work, etc.
Among other things were some of the curious
bamboo musical instruments, and my sister-in-law
and I each purchased one of the smallest of these,
just to show what they were like. I got a square of
the cloth used by the men for their turbans, and
asked the vendor to make it up into a turban for
me ; this he did most willingly, though he seemed
greatly amused at my request. I also secured
some of the dried aromatic grass called Bintara,
which is dried and used for scenting linen and
garments. Then we had to make haste and pack
up to catch our train to Bandoeng; we were ex-
tremely sorry our stay at Garoet was so short. It
230
GAROET; LAKE BAGENDIT
is a perfectly delightful place and there are many
interesting excursions to be made from it, but
time did not permit. The town itself is also
charming, with its many pretty villas and gardens
and lovely flowers.
Bidding a reluctant farewell to our landlord
and his comfortable hotel, we once more entered
the pew-like carriage at the station and steamed
off to Tjebatoe en route for Bandoeng.
Between Garoet and Tjibatoe we had a fellow
traveller who turned out to be a Dutch tea planter.
He spoke excellent English and told us he had
large tea plantations in the neighbourhood of
Garoet, and that he would have been delighted
to take us over them had he known we were at
the Van Horck hotel. We were sorry to have
missed such an interesting experience, but, even
had we received the invitation, our time was too
limited to allow us to take advantage of it.
Garoet and the surrounding district is the centre
of the Java tea cultivation, and the tea grown
there is much sought after by American and Eng-
lish tea blenders, to mix with Indian and Ceylon
tea. The tea plant thrives best at a height of
1,500 to 1,800 feet, though it can be grown at
most altitudes in Java, but it requires a well-
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
drained clay soil. In former years only China
tea was grown in Java, but now it is mostly
Assam that is planted, and this latter has the
advantage of bearing more leaves.
The process of tea cultivation is briefly as fol-
lows : — The plant is grown from seed, which is
sown in a nursery, and then the tiny seedlings
transplanted. Several times a year the planta-
tion must be dug over while the young plants
are growing, as the soil must not lie too heavily
on their tender roots ; they must also be kept free
from weeds. About the third year trenches are
dug between the shrubs, so as to give the roots
plenty of air, and in the same year the first
crop may be gathered. This will only be a
small one, but each succeeding year will show an
increase, and the trees will go on producing tea
for a great many years if well cultivated and
properly cared for; they must be severely pruned
each year to prevent them from flowering.
The various kinds of tea are not, as one would
suppose, obtained from different plants; the one
tree produces all kinds, the quality depending on
the position of the leaf on the tree. For instance,
the best tea, both green and black, is given by the
two leaves at the extreme tip of each branch or
232
GAROET; LAKE BAGENDIT
twig, and is known as Orange Pekoe ; the colour
depends on the subsequent treatment. The
leaves that come next to the two at the top give
us Souchong tea, and those lower still what is
called Congou. To make the leaves into green
tea they are taken straight from the tree and dried
on hot iron plates ; this prevents their turning
black. For black tea, the leaves are exposed to
the air until they shrivel up and are nearly dry,
then they are put into a machine and bruised by
rollers over and over again, and when sufficiently
powdered are spread out to dry in flat baskets.
The action of the air on the leaves turns them
black, and when this has been achieved thev are
put through a final drying process, by hot air in
a drying machine, when they are ready for pack-
ing and exportation. I believe something like
12,000 tons are now exported annually, as, since
the Dutch Government renounced its monopoly
in the tea industry in 1865, the output has largely
increased.
2 ?,?>
CHAPTER XII
BANDOENG AND THE TANGKOEBAN PRAHOE
The railway journey from Tjibatoe to Bandoeng
is full of interest, and our train passed through
some magnificent scenery. From the time we left
Djokjakarta we had been gradually ascending into
the mountainous provinces of the Preanger (Pre-
anger Regentschappen) , which extend along the
south-west of Java. At Tjibatoe, where we
changed for Garoet, we had reached almost the
highest point, 3,000 feet; the railway line there has
been called the " Tropical St. Gothard," but the
culminating point of the whole route is un-
doubtedly at Leles, just beyond Tjibatoe, where
the scenery is most superb and inspiring. At
Leles the Great Black Thunder mountain directly
faces you, and there is a splendid view of the
dome-shaped Haroman, a lofty mountain, which,
though so high, is yet cultivated in terraces right
up to the summit, while on the left of it stands out
the Dead Kling mountain. We caught glimpses
of many-hued wild flowers and variegated shrubs
234
TANGKOEBAN PRAHOE
as we went along, for our train, though called an
express, did not come up to our idea of that term.
We also saw (as we had done at Garoet) many
most beautiful birds.
In the Preanger Regencies alone, according to
Alfred Russell Wallace, there are to be found
forty species of birds peculiar to Java. One of
them, the Minaret fly-catcher (Pericrocatus
miniatus) looks like a flame of fire as it darts
through the bushes. There is also a rare and
curious black and crimson oriole (Analcipus San-
guinoleutus) , and a yellow and green trogon
(Harpactes Reinwardti) , besides many kinds of
kingfishers, hornbills, lorikeets (Loriculus pusil-
lus), and other " strange bright birds " on
' starry wings "; as for the enormous butterflies,
their colours are too gorgeous for description.
We crossed the river Tjmanoek by a long bridge
(90 feet) , and could see the water beneath foam-
ing over its rocky bed. During one portion of the
journey our train wound along a narrow stone
shelf or ledge hewn out of the mountain, whose
cliffs towered above us on one side, while on the
other was a precipitous descent into the plain of
Leles, 2,000 feet below. From our dizzy height
in the cleft mountain side we had a glorious
2 35
16
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
panoramic view of the fertile plain with its network
of rice fields, rising in terraces dressed in varying
shades of living green, while the rivulets and pools
of water gleamed in the sun's rays. It made a
wonderfully beautiful picture, one hard to be sur-
passed. At the top of the Kalaidon Pass we
began to descend into another plain, and steamed
rapidly down for about i ,000 feet till we reached
Bandoeng Station. Here we alighted and drove
to the Hotel Homann, which had been recom-
mended to us as the best. We found it was a huge
place as big as the hotel in Sourabaya, yet so
crowded with guests that we could not obtain
rooms close together, a wide courtyard separating
mine from that of my brother and his wife. The
guide too had to be accommodated at some dis-
tance, and in the upper storey. For this hotel
had two stories, and was the first so built in which
we had been. Access to the upper rooms was
by an outside wooden staircase, which led to a
gallery on which the rooms opened, very much
after the Swiss chalet style. The hotel also con-
tained an ordinary bathroom with a reclining bath,
the only one of the kind we met with in Java.
We were late for the riz tavel, but were served
with an excellent lunch, of which we partook in
236
TANGKOEBAN PRAHOE
the huge dining room, which at that hour we had
to ourselves. The food at Hotel Homann was
especially good, and we had not tasted such
delicious bread and butter since leaving the
Luchtkuurood Hotel at Tengger. After lunch
we went for a drive through the town, which is
quite an important as well as a very pretty one,
and which enjoys a cool, moist climate.
Bandoeng is the capital of the Preanger Resi-
dencies, and the dwelling-place of a Dutch resi-
dent and native regent. In front of the latter's
palace, where the prince holds his mimic court, is
a large aloon-aloon or square, and on either side
of the broad shady avenues, which are called
streets, the wealthy Dutch folk have built them-
selves charming villas with wide marble or tiled
verandahs covered with creepers, standing among
palm trees in pretty gardens full of beautiful
flowers and shrubs; the variegated leaves of the
shrubs as brilliant as flowers. But for the shrubs
and trees the gardens would be rather stiff, as the
flowers are planted in earthen pots raised on
pedestals from the ground, and arranged symetri-
cally in rows in true Dutch style. I was never
able to discover whether this method of floral cul-
tivation, which obtains in Java in the gardens of
2 37
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
the Dutch, was chosen on account of the insects
who might attack the plants, or because of the
overweening love of tidiness and order for which
the people of Holland are famous. Flowers in
pots are certainly more easily tended and kept free
from weeds than when planted in beds, and it saves
trouble. The gardens in Bandoeng fairly bristled
with these receptacles, of many shapes and
colours, but all filled with most brilliant flowers.
There is a pretty park in Bandoeng, with shady
walks under glorious trees, gay with crotons and
flowers. The training school for native teachers
was pointed out to us, and also a large and famous
mosque. The latter we were only allowed to view
from the outside, as we were not considered worthy
to enter its sacred precints.
Bandoeng is a great racing centre, and boasts of
a fine course outside the town; much gaiety and
merrymaking take place there during the annual
races in July. The market is most interesting,
and was full of bustle and animation when we
visited it that afternoon. It was the only place
where I saw the little silver brooches arranged in
sets of three, connected by silver chains, with
which the native women fasten their kabajas or
jackets. Each brooch is a representation in very
238
TANGKOEBAN PRAHOE
thin silver of the head of a goddess whose name,
we were told, is Krisno Ardjoeno, a most fantastic
looking personage with a long pointed nose (see
cover) . We invested in several sets as they are
quite pretty; we also bought a yellow kabaja and
a green belt or sash. The combination sounds
rather dreadful, but they looked very well
together, like the feathers on the yellow and green
trogon bird. We found our guide most useful in
bargaining for us.
Close to the town are the Tjiampeloes Baths,
and within half an hour's drive is the pretty water-
fall called Tjoeroek-Dago; but the great excursion
from Bandoeng is to the crater of the Tangkoeban
Prahoe. It is so called because in shape the
mountain resembles the overturned prow of a
gigantic boat. Legendary lore looks upon it as
the petrified remains of the colossal boat in which
the ancient Javanese escaped when the world was
flooded; it rested on this mountain, and as the
waters fell the occupants descended into the plain,
and in process of time peopled the islands of the
East. We had planned to visit this famous vol-
cano next day, so had no time for the lesser excur-
sions, nor opportunity, .'is the rain began to come
down heavily, and we were glad to escape to the
239
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
shelter of our hotel and rest awhile before dinner.
The latter was not served until 9 o'clock, and
when at that hour we entered the dining room we
found it crowded with a gaily-dressed assemblage.
The gentlemen in evening dress, and the ladies
in their low-necked silks and satins presented a
wonderful contrast to their appearance in the day-
time. Especially was this the case with the ladies
who go about till late in the afternoon in the scanty
and tight sarong skirt and loose white jacket, their
bare feet thrust into heel-less shoes. If they only
could see themselves as others see them!
Immediately after dinner, in view of our early
start next morning, we retired to our rooms, for
we were to be called soon after 5 a.m. I seemed
only to have been asleep about five minutes, when
a rattle of cup and saucer announced that it was
morning and tea was awaiting me outside on the
verandah. It helped to waken me up, and I was
soon dressed. I looked across the court several
times to the door of my brother and sister-in-law's
room, and as it was open I presumed they had been
called, but time went on, no one seemed moving,
no tea equipage was visible on their verandah, and
I became alarmed, and went across to find out
what they were doing. Imagine my consternation
240
TANGKOEBAN PRAHOE
at finding them wrapped in peaceful slumber,
totally oblivious of the claims of Tangkoeban
Prahoe or any other volcano. When I succeeded
in awakening them and explained the situation,
they were very much annoyed that they had not
been called or served with tea. However, a
vigorous hand clapping, the usual bell in the East,
soon procured a native, who speedily brought the
tea, and as my brother and sister-in-law completed
their toilets with lightning rapidity, the carriages
to take us to Lembang had only to wait a few
minutes and we were soon " all aboard."
The carriages looked as if they had been
brought in the ark-boat at the time of the Flood,
so antiquated was their structure. They held
three people, the driver in front and two behind.
To reach their seat those whose place was behind
had to clamber over the seat in front, the best way
they could, a most uncomfortable, not to say risky,
proceeding. Three horses (one for each of the
occupants) drew this strange vehicle, and as soon
as we were seated they set off at a gallop up the
easy ascent to Lembang, aboul fifteen miles away.
The road was most picturesque, and interesting
sights met our view continually as we drove along
for about two hours. We passed I h rough pretty
241
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
villages where the men were about to begin their
day's work, or were squatting on their heels out-
side their basket houses while they ate rice from
little round bowls, or drank coffee, which they
take without milk, but sometimes sweeten with
sugar. Their cooking utensils are of the
simplest, just a pan of charcoal and a couple of
pots and they are independent of fire or stove.
We passed a group of native women, about a
dozen in number, who had their hair done up high
on their heads, surmounted by curiously-shaped
horn combs. Our guide told us these were
women from Sumatra, and this was their distinc-
tive headgear; as the Javanese women wear no
combs, and have their hair drawn tightly from the
face into a knot behind. These Sumatra women
were on their way to the passer (market) , and we
met various people bound for the same place.
One was a baker with two little tin trunks, with
round tops, swinging at the ends of the bamboo
pole across his shoulder. Another was a fruit
seller, and carried delicious looking fruit on flat
baskets in the same style. The most curious
figure was a vendor of syrups or fruit juice, as he
had his bottles of syrup poised on either side of
an arch-like erection, on which the glasses for
242
TANGKOEBAN PRAHOE
drinking the liquid were arranged in a semi-circle.
It was all most fascinating, and we greatly enjoyed
our drive in the fresh morning air.
There is a capital hotel at Lembang standing in
a spacious garden filled with roses, lilies, mari-
golds, and many other flowers, especially roses of
all kinds, and growing in beds, not in pots. The
host and hostess were a Dutchman and his wife,
two of the very fattest people I have ever seen.
The woman looked the stouter of the two, but that
was probably on account of her dress. She had
the short, narrow sarong, a loose white jacket and
bare feet in thick shoes without heels, and looked
enormous. They were both very kind and atten-
tive, and spoke English well. We had nice hot
tea and biscuits before continuing our journey, in
sedan chairs, carried by coolies, as the road is too
rough for a carriage. Rough indeed it was, the
steepest, most precipitous road it has ever been
my lot to travel. It was a mere track like the
bed of a mountain torrent, strewn with great stones
and boulders, or covered with swampy mud in
which our bearers sank up to their ankles. How
the men kept their footing I cannot imagine,
especially as in some places the road was so steep
it was like climbing a wall or scaling a cliff. But
*43
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
the natives are like monkeys in the way they climb,
and their bare feet seem to find a foothold in im-
possible places. The easiest part of the way was
through large cinchona plantations, in one of
which may be seen a white obelisk, which marks
the last resting place of the great naturalist Jung-
huhn, who for many years occupied a villa close
by and interested himself in the culture of the cin-
chona tree. This precious tree was brought from
Callao into Java in 1854, by a botanist named
Justus Karl Hasskarl, after a long and eventful
voyage; at least so f unghuhn relates. The trees
that had survived the voyage and were still
vigorous, were immediately planted at Tjibodas,
5,000 feet above sea level, where they grew and
flourished, and seedlings taken from them were
planted in various parts of Java, and in the
Botanical Gardens at Buitenzorg. Cinchona
plantations increased rapidly, and the cultivation
of the tree for its health-giving bark was taken up
with much vigour. Certain experiments that
were made proved that the South American
species, Calysaya, imported in 1865, was richer
in quinine than any other variety, and this is the
kind now most generally grown. The cinchona
plant is grown in a nursery from seed, and when
244
TANGKOEBAN PRAHOE
the young sapling is about three feet high it is
transplanted into the open. After four years'
growth a crop can be obtained, but the sixth to
eighth year yields a better harvest. There are
several methods of obtaining the bark, but it must
be peeled off with a horn or bamboo knife, not a
steel one, which would injure and discolour it.
The bark is dried in the sun, or by artificial heat,
and then carefully sorted; the better qualities to
be used for the preparation of quinine, and the
poorer ones to be made into various pharmaceuti-
cal preparations. It is then put up in bales for
exportation.
Cinchona trees have a great many dangers to
contend with, as they are subject to various
diseases. The roots are often rotted away by a
fungus-like growth, or the branches are attacked
by a blight that destroys them, but the greatest
enemy is an insect that feeds on the leaves and
sucks away the sap. In all these cases the tree
must be burned as soon as possible, for there is
no remedy.
The earliest well nuthrntirated account of the
medicinal value of the bark of the cinchona tree
is the cure of the Countess of Chinrhona, wife of
the Governor of Peru in 1638. She had an attack
24s
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
of malarial or intermittent fever, and the adminis-
tration of this medicine cured her. The name
cinchona owes its origin to her connection with its
introduction, and should be spelt " chinchona."
It was also known as Jesuits' bark, as the Jesuits
learned the secret from the South American
Indians and spread the knowledge throughout
Europe.
Our road led us among thousands of these trees,
which are quite small, with leaves which have red-
dish tips. From these plantations we turned into
a wild forest, like the virgin forest of old New
Zealand; so thick is the undergrowth and so beau-
tiful the ferns. Dwarf palms and tree ferns
abounded; luxuriant creepers made a tangled net-
work over the branches of the trees, and from these
branches they hung in long trails, or coiled them-
selves round the trunks and stems; underneath
were shrubs and plants whose rich and varied
colouring shone vividly against the dark green of
the tree-ferns. Exquisite and rare ferns nestled
at the roots of the mighty and ancient forest
giants, that reared their heads proudly on high,
and grew so close together that a semi-twilight
replaced the burning sunshine, and gave a
grateful coolness and shade. Our bearers must
246
TANGKOEBAN PRAHOE
have appreciated it, as it was terribly hot
work carrying heavy sedan chairs containing full-
grown and by no means light persons up that pre-
cipitous path . That forest was a dream of beauty ,
and we were sorry to come out into the open, on
the top of an eminence, from which we descended
a short way to find ourselves on a small plateau,
looking down into a lake of blue-white water. We
quickly left our chairs to look around us. On the
other side of the small plateau was a similar lake
only of a yellow colour. These lakes are the
craters of the volcano, and one of them, the Kawa
Ratoe, is still active. We could see the clouds
of steam issuing from fissures in the sides, above
the water, and there was a strong smell of sulphur.
The lake or pool is constantly varying in size;
sometimes the water disappears altogether. The
other crater is called Kawa Oepas, which means
poisonous crater; no doubt because of the noxious
gases that collect in it; there is always water form-
ing a small lake at its bottom, and it is 150 feet
higher than the Kawa Ratoe. We scrambled
down half way to the latter and picked some beau-
tiful wild flowers, and would have made further
exploration to see the sulphur and mud pools, but
the sky became overcast, and a storm threatened,
247
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
so we thought it wiser to return. It was annoying
not to have a clear sky, as one should have had a
splendid view from the plateau, right across to the
Sunda Sea. But a heavy curtain of mist blotted
out the distant scenes, and we had to be content
with the clouds of vapour and bubbling sulphur
pools beneath our feet. The last great eruption
of the Tangkoeban Prahoe took place in May,
1846. It was a fine sight, but not nearly so won-
derful as the Bromo, and to my mind the journey
to it is infinitely more difficult and tiring.
There is no nice rest house on the Tangkoeban
Prahoe, and we had to eat our luncheon in haste,
seated on the ground close to the edge of the
crater, for the mist was increasing rapidly, and it
might have been dangerous to delay our return.
So we hastily resumed our sedan chairs and began
the breakneck descent. If it was rough coming
up, it was much worse and more alarming going
down, and I wonder we survived to tell the tale.
Our bearers' agility was marvellous, and the way
they skipped from stone to stone and kept their
balance in slippery places was a succession of
acrobatic feats. I held my breath in alarm, many
times expecting to be precipitated forward and
dashed to the ground; but my chair recovered its
248
TANGKOEBAN PRAHOE
balance in a magical manner, and I felt reassured
for the moment, only to have fresh scares at in-
tervals. It grew darker and darker, and down
eame the rain in torrents while the thunder
growled in the distance. We longed to be safely
out of the glorious forest that had been such a
delight to us coming up, and felt very thankful
when the cinchona plantations were reached, and
we were more or less in the open and away from
the lightning-conducting trees. But if the road
were less steep, it was much more slippery, and we
seemed to have exchanged one danger for another.
The natives had great difficulty in keeping their
footing, and twice one of my bearers lost his and
fell; but the other three held firm and one of the
extra coolies helped him up.
We breathed a sigh of relief when the Lembang
Hotel came in sight, and the antediluvian car-
riages seemed luxurious indeed, after our hair-
breadth escapes in the sedan chairs. Our horses
galloped wildly back to Bandoeng, evidently
excited by the thunderstorm and rain which con-
tinued until we reached the Hotel Homann, and,
indeed, for the rest of the day. So we had no
further opportunity of exploring Bandoeng, as we
left early next morning for Buitenzorg.
249
CHAPTER XIII
BUITENZORG
The first part of the railway journey from Ban-
doeng to Buitenzorg is one continuous ascent until
the station is reached at Tjiandor, i ,600 feet above
sea level, and the line passes through some magni-
ficent scenery, and crosses two rivers. A spidery-
looking viaduct spans the first, the Tjitaroen, and
from its dizzy height one can look down on the
foaming torrent below, which rushes into a natural
tunnel and reappears in a narrow gorge lower
down. Another long bridge takes the train over
the Tjisokan river, and from it a pretty cascade
can be seen, the water falling from a considerable
height down the craggy side of the cliff. Before
reaching Tjiandor, the plain is dotted all over with
little hills or mounds, both round and oblong.
These hillocks have been thrown up by the erup-
tion of lava from the neighbouring Mount Gedeh,
which is one of the most interesting and remark-
able volcanoes in Java. It has two craters, a
smaller within a larger, and in the centre of the
BUITENZORG
small one is an opening which is still active.
After leaving Tjiandor, our way led us through
countless plantations of cinchona, tea, coffee, etc.,
and these continued right up to Buitenzorg.
I have spoken of the tea and cinchona cultiva-
tion; that of coffee is very similar to the latter, as
far as the trees are concerned, and the same kind
of soil and treatment suit both.
Until the year 1690, when Java first began to
grow coffee, Arabia was the only source for the
world-supply of that commodity. In that year
Van Hoorne, the then Governor of the Dutch East
Indies, received some coffee seeds from the mer-
chants who carried on a trade between the Arabian
Gulf and Java. These seeds were sown in a
garden in Batavia, and succeeded so well that
coffee trees were planted throughout the island,
and thrived exceedingly. Another version gives
a later date for the introduction of coffee into Java,
1699, anQl states it was Henricus Zwardecroon who
introduced it, and that it was one of the first crops
to be made compulsory by Van den Bosch. It is
also the last to be retained as a Crown monopoly.
The coffee tree belongs to the Genus Coffea, a
tree indigenous to Arabia and Abyssinia; it grows
wild in thr province of Caffa in the latter country,
J 7
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
and possibly the name may owe its derivation to
this. The tree is an evergreen, and in its natural
condition attains a height of from 18 to 20 feet;
but in cultivation it is not allowed to exceed 8
or 10 feet, and is made to grow in a pyramidal
form, the lowest branches almost on the ground.
In its native home it bears a beautiful snow-white
flower, with a fragrant perfume, but the blossom
is short lived. The variety grown in Java has a
bright red flower, and the coffee plantations pre-
sent a delightful appearance when the trees are in
bloom. The fruit when ripe is not unlike a small
cherry, and is of a dark crimson colour. In each
fruit are two seeds embedded in pulp of a bluish or
else a yellowish colour, according to the kind of
plant. From these berries, after they have gone
through the processes of being freed from the
pulp, dried, sorted, and finally roasted and
ground, the coffee we drink is made. The coffee
trees require shade and water, the latter only till
the fruit is ripe, and they flourish best on sloping
ground at an altitude between 1,500 and 2,800
feet. They bear fruit in the third year, but it is
not gathered for exportation until the fifth or sixth
year; a tree will last for bearing about forty years.
We descended rapidly through all these planta-
252
VIEW FROM HOI EL BELLEV1 E, Bl l I ENZORC
BUITENZORG
tions and rice fields, and enjoyed a wonderful view
of the glorious mountains bathed in the glow of
the setting sun, until it became so dark that the
outside world was blotted out. Our carriage was
only lighted by a solitary candle in a lantern,
which but served to make darkness visible. How-
ever, we had plenty of illumination when we
stopped at the large and well-lighted station at
Buitenzorg. Here a messenger from the Hotel
Bellevue met us. He was Dutch, but told us in
excellent English that our rooms were ready for
us and the hotel omnibus waiting outside. We
were soon within in, and were rapidly conveyed
to the Bellevue, which (in spite of the darkness)
we could see was a palatial hotel.
We were given beautiful rooms with balconies;
indeed, I had two rooms which opened out of each
other, the further one giving access to a spacious
verandah completely screened on either side and
furnished like a sitting room. The hotel was
quite European in style, and had carpets on the
floors and curtains to the windows; but its crown-
ing glory was its position; as from the balconies of
the bedrooms most wonderful views are obtained.
From the front of the hotel the river can be seen
winding along in a valley of tropical vegetation,
2 53
A JOURNKY TO JAVA
rustling palms and banana and bamboo trees grow-
ing right on its banks, while at intervals clusters
of little brown houses look out from the mass of
greenery. Light and airy-looking bamboo
bridges span the water at intervals, and high above
all Mount Salak lifts its green crest. The back
of the hotel looks on to the pretty valley of Tjili-
wong and beyond to the cultivated and forest-clad
slopes of Mount Salak; beyond that again to the
crater of an extinct or dormant volcano. I had
the river view, and never tired of watching the
wonderful panorama spread out before me, and
the varying scenes and incidents of native life
which were constantly taking place within a
stone's throw of my balcony. It was most amus-
ing to see the native families coming down early
in the morning to bathe in the river, and the
women washing clothes there and spreading them
out to dry, which they seemed to do all day long;
as for the little children, they splashed about in
the water from morning till night, evidently
thoroughly enjoying it, to judge by their smiling
faces and screams of delight.
The Javanese seem to make every meal a pic-
nic, for the meals are all taken in the open air,
and it was a constant amusement to watch the
254
BUITENZORG
families squatting on their heels round the little
tables, eating rice and fruit, and, their repast
finished, beginning their basket weaving or other
industries, or going off with various kinds of mer-
chandise at the end of the long poles slung across
their shoulders. It was just like a play with the
same scenery, but different actors.
Buitenzorg means " free from care," and it is
the " Sans souci " of the Dutch in Java; the town
is a large one, and is situated 853 feet above sea
level in the midst of mountains and beautiful
scenery. It enjoys a bracing and altogether de-
lightful climate, and has the finest Botanical
Gardens in the world. Many of the Batavian
merchants have houses there, and escape as much
as possible from the stifling malaria-laden air of
Batavia to the clear freshness of the mountain
breezes at Buitenzorg. Rain falls for a couple of
hours every afternoon between two and five
o'clock, and this moisture and the hot sun in the
daytime make it an ideal place for the cultivation
of trees, plants and flowers.
After breakfast at the hotel we set out to see the
world-renowned gardens. They are open free to
the public; but to visit the Museum, Herbarium,
Library, and Laboratories, special permission is
255
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
required. We were quite content with the public
part, and had not sufficient time to see even the
whole of that. You enter the Gardens through a
stone gate close to the Chinese market, and at
once find yourself in a long avenue of magnificent
kanari trees, planned and laid out over 80 years
ago by the famous horticulturist Teysmann.
Against these tall trees climbing plants are trained
and the trunks are covered with staghorn ferns,
ratans, and large orchids such as the Grammato-
phyllum speciosum, which often bears three thou-
sand blossoms at a time.
Right and left of the avenue are plots of ground
devoted to the culture of various kinds of trees
and plants, more than ten thousand species being
represented. One is reminded of that once
popular book " The Swiss Family Robinson,"
and that gifted family's experiences in the desert
island upon which they were wrecked, where they
found trees to supply all their wants. What had
seemed impossible in fiction was here in fact;
sausage trees with fruit shaped like that tasty
edible; soap trees whose fruit is used for washing
purposes by the natives; candle trees with what
looked like clusters of wax candles hanging on
the branches; bread fruit trees; the various palms
256
BUITENZORG
yielding sugar, sago, oil, dates, cocoanuts, etc.,
together with fragrant spice trees of clove and
cinnamon; all had their place in this wonderful
garden. In addition, the whole array of tropical
fruits, pines, melons, mangosteen, mangoes, etc.,
also flourish and abound. Hanging from the
trees are marvellous orchids which look like
butterflies or moths fluttering on the branches, as
you pass under them to the river which flows
through the grounds. On its banks a large
number of aquatic plants are cultivated, such as
mangroves, giant plants from seaside marshes,
and the Egyptian papyrus. Great thickets of
frangipanni (Plumieria acutifolia), the Javanese
flower of the dead, are planted, to afford the re-
quired shade to delicate shrubs and seedlings,
while in beds and on banks are countless many-
hued flowers, yellow, white, red, interspersed with
beautiful foliage plants, such as crotons, etc.,
which have their home in this tropical paradise.
There is a fine avenue of banyans, those curious
trees whose branches hang down till they touch
the earth, when they immediately take root and
form other trees; near them was a fine specimen of
the traveller's palm (Ravenala), whose stems
contain the water so welcome to the thirsty way-
farer.
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A JOURNEY TO JAVA
But in the midst of all the beauty were some
strange, evil-looking plants, from which one
turned in disgust, such as the Pitcher plant
(Nepenthes), with its horrid pale green mouth
that opens to catch insects in its sticky toils and
closes upon them at once. There were queer
twigs that seemed to crawl, and plants with long,
creeping fingers that clutched at, and twisted
round, whatever they could get hold of, and held
it fast as in a vice; also uncanny looking orchids
that seemed more animal than plant; all these gave
me a creeping feeling of horror, and were such as
one might imagine growing in a witch's garden.
Leaving these nightmare exotics, we came out
on a beautiful green lawn shaded by wairingin and
sausage trees in front of the Governor-General's
Palace, a large and handsome stone building. It
has a fine position in the middle of the gardens,
with a pretty park behind it in which herds of
deer browse quietly beneath the shady trees, as in
Bushey and Richmond Parks at home. Near the
palace is a large artificial lake studded with lotus
flowers and great water lilies (Victoria Regia) .
In the centre of the lake is a gem-like island,
covered with feathery palms, papyrus plants and
bamboos, and a wealth of red flowers.
258
BUITENZORG
A monument, in the form of a Greek temple,
marks the last resting place of Lady Raffles, who
died while Sir Stamford was Governor of Java.
She was buried in this beautiful spot, which was
then only a park, and was later made into a botani-
cal garden. A special clause concerning the care
and upkeep of this tomb was inserted in the treaty
that restored Java to the Dutch.
A bust of Teysmann, who planned the Kanari
Avenue, adorns the rose-garden, where roses of
many varieties are cultivated; but they are not
half so fine as those at Lembang. Special plots of
ground have been set apart for the experimental
culture of coffee, cinchona, tea, rubber spices,
etc., so that the best methods of studying how to
combat the diseases and dangers that beset these
trees and plants may be carefully studied. But it
would be impossible to give anything like an ade-
quate description of the marvels of these famous
gardens, which were established in 1817 by Rein-
wardt, and are justly celebrated as the best
scientific tropical gardens of the kind in the world.
From them we drove through the town and out to
Batoe Toelis or " The place of the inscribed
stone." Here in a bamboo hut is a large stone
standing against a wall; it is covered with an in-
2 59
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
scription in what we were told was an unknown
language, but which is in reality the ancient Kawi
or classic language of the Javanese, which is quite
incomprehensible to the present-day native. It
is regarded as a sacred stone, and offerings are
brought to it and incense burned before it. Not
far from the Batoe Toelis is a little shrine, which
also contains a stone, on which is the imprint of a
foot, said to be that of Buddha. If so, he must
have had feet of a very large size and of most
curious shape. We were now on the top of the
hill on which the shrine stood; down below in the
valley could be seen the river and the famous
bamboo bridge which is here built across it. The
bridge is a most graceful structure, with an over-
hanging arch, and is made entirely of bamboo.
Our way back to the hotel led past a charming lake
which was covered with glorious water-lilies, and
round by gardens full of cocoa trees.
The cocoa tree has large, glossy leaves, and
bears egg-shaped fruits or pods that have the
appearance of being stuck on to the trunk of the
tree. The correct name is cacao, and the tree,
which is a native of Mexico, belongs to the genus
Theobroma (natural order Sterculiacece) . They
are small, seldom attaining a height exceeding
260
1
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2* 3 ^
'tlfflw V f^jaC—
JT1
PASSER, (MARKE1 ,) Bl II ENZORG
BUITENZORG
eighteen feet; the flowers grow in clusters on the
main branches and trunks of the trees, and so give
the fruit the " stuck on " appearance. The fruit
is oval in form, and not unlike an elongated veget-
able marrow, about four or five inches in diameter;
but the colour, instead of being green, is a dark
brownish purple, and the rind is thick and
leathery. Inside there are five cells, and in each
of these, are arranged in regular order five to ten
seeds, surrounded by a pink acid pulp. These
seeds are the cocoa beans or raw cocoa. An
extraordinary thing about these trees is that they
bear buds, flowers and fruit all at the same time,
though there is a fixed season for picking and dry-
ing the seeds. I got one of the natives to give
me a cocoa fruit, and I carried it with me as far
as Singapore, hoping to dry it sufficiently in the
sun there to enable me to convey it home. Unfor-
tunately, at the end of a fortnight, the pod began
to show signs of decay, the drying process having
been insufficient. Unwilling as I was to part
with it, it became so unpleasant that I was obliged
to throw it away. But before doing so I cut it
open and viewed with interest the symmetrically
arranged seeds inside; the pretty pink pulp, how-
ever, was quite discoloured.
261
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
There is a most interesting market at Buiten-
zorg, where we saw a wonderful display of the
fruits of the earth. Heaped in picturesque con-
fusion were yellow bananas, red rambutans, green
dukas, prickly-looking pineapples, dark brown
mangosteens, giving no hint of their delicious in-
terior, papayas, melons, custard apples, etc.,
tastefully displayed to tempt purchasers; all kinds
of baskets, sarong cloths, cooked rice, and many
native products were there for sale. It was the
largest market we had seen.
A great number of pleasant trips can be made if
the traveller has time from Buitenzorg, and the
drives everywhere around the town are an ever-
new delight. The broad streets and roads,
shaded by lovely kanari and waringen trees, lead
past charmingly-built villas, each in a garden
which is a vision of beauty, owing to the rare exotic
plants, procured no doubt from the Botanic
Gardens. After the foiled flowers of the gardens
in Sourabaya, Bandoeng, and other towns, it was
refreshing to look upon most carefully tended beds
of brilliant-hued blossoms; not a weed to be seen,
not a leaf out of place.
Buitenzorg is indeed worthy of the praise
universally bestowed upon it.
262
CHAPTER XIV
Batavia
During the short railway ride of about an hour
and a half to Batavia, we noticed that, as at Buiten-
zorg, the soil was a deep red colour, which seemed
to impart a warm glow to the landscape, the rich
red earth contrasted with the many shades of green
in rice field and palm grove, making a harmony
of colour that was exceedingly beautiful.
Our train passed through a place called Depok,
where there is a community of Christian natives;
they are the descendants of the slaves whom
Chastelein (a member of the Dutch Indies Coun-
cil) set free, and endowed with land and money
so that they might be independent. The railway
line also skirts a bit of primeval forest, preserved
by the Dutch Government, all that remains of the
vast woods and jungles that once covered the plain
of Batavia.
The station we were bound for was not Batavia
proper, but the one situated in the Koningsplein,
263
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
a vast open space about a mile square in the centre
of Weltevreden, the new town or west end of
Batavia. There is a very fine railway station,
with lofty halls and excellent waiting and refresh-
ment rooms, which would do credit to any of the
capitals of Europe.
Weltevreden (well content) is perfectly charm-
ing and undoubtedly the finest town in the Dutch
East Indies; its tree-lined avenues giving it the
appearance of an immense park. In it the
wealthy Dutch bankers and merchants have built
themselves lordly pleasure houses, many of them
of great architectural beauty. Large gardens
surround these villas, almost hiding them from
view, while the beautiful trees and rare flowers
with which these grounds are filled serve to
enhance the park-like appearance of the town.
We arrived late in the afternoon, and drove at
once to the Hotel des Indes, which was even more
palatial than the Hotel Bellevue at Buitenzorg,
and we were soon established in a magnificent set
of rooms. In this hotel the various sets of rooms
are in separate pavilions connected by covered
passages with each other, and all grouped round
a main building in the centre of the plot of ground
which the hotel occupies. In this respect it was
264
BATAVIA
like the Hotel Simpang at Sourabaya, but on a
much larger and grander scale. Instead of
gravelled paths occupying the space between the
large building and the smaller ones, the ground
was spacious enough to be laid out in grass lawns
in which some fine banyan trees were growing.
Our rooms were in a large pavilion some dis-
tance from the main building, and were entered
from a big marble-floored verandah, on which were
a table, chairs and a writing desk. From this
verandah two lofty doors opened into a huge room
as large as a ballroom, furnished most handsomely
as a sitting room and lighted by two wide windows.
Two doors opposite to those leading into the
verandah, and quite as high, gave access to two
separate bedrooms, both of immense size, in fact
the largest we occupied while in Java. These
rooms in turn communicated with another
verandah closed in with wire netting, having on
one side a bathroom and on the other a door that
led into the covered way connecting our pavilion
with the next one.
We were delighted with our quarters, more
especially because we had our bathroom in close
proximity to our bedrooms. At Buitenzorg the
bathing pavilion is a long way from the hotel, on
26 5
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
the other side of a big garden. The bedrooms
were furnished in the same manner as in the other
hotels; but their great size and lofty ceilings gave
one a feeling of airiness and coolness that was
most grateful in the burning heat of Batavia,
which has almost as trying a climate as Soura-
baya; even Weltevreden, although it stands much
higher than the older part of the town, seemed
terribly close and suffocating after the cool moun-
tain breezes of Buitenzorg.
We had dinner in a large dining room in the
central building, and discovered that the Hotel
des Indes boasted a reception or drawing room in
which were Dutch and French books and papers.
Batavia (including Weltevreden) is quite a
Dutch town, just a little bit of the Netherlands
in an oriental setting. The native kampongs and
Chinese quarters are so successfully hidden away
on the outskirts, buried in palm and banana trees,
that they are little in evidence, and but for the
tropical vegetation one might imagine oneself in
Holland. The title of " The Hague of the Far
East ' ' which has been applied to Batavia is,
therefore, quite appropriate.
After dinner that night our guide came to us in
great perturbation, and asked if he might return
266
BATAVIA
home next day, as he was not feeling very well.
After some questioning we elicited the fact that
he was mortally afraid of cholera, which was pre-
valent in Batavia just then. He wanted to leave
the place at once lest he should take it. Cholera
is always more or less active in Batavia, among the
natives; but there had been a specially serious out-
break shortly before we came, and several Euro-
peans had been attacked by the disease; hence
George's alarm. Naturally we were reluctant to
let him go, and tried to combat his nervousness
and dread; but it was no use. So my brother gave
the required permission. In his present state of
fright he might have fallen an easy prey to the
disease. We missed him exceedingly, as he had
been most attentive and intelligent, indeed quite
satisfactory in every respect. Since we had to
part from him, it could not have been in a more
suitable place than Batavia; as it is the one town
in Java where there is no difficulty in finding
people who understand and speak English.
Next morning after we had said good-bye, with
many regrets, to our guide, we took a carriage to
see the sights of Batavia. As we had business
with Messrs. Burns Philp's Company, whose
offices were in Batavia city, we decided to go there
267
18
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
at once, and from thence explore the old part of
the town, instead of beginning with the newer por-
tion where our hotel was. From the broad
avenues of Weltevreden we turned into narrow,
crooked streets, in one of which Burns Philp's
office had found a home. Anything more unlike
an office according to our Western ideas it would
be difficult to find. The ground floor was a dark
place littered with packing cases, among which
we picked our way to a ladder-like staircase, such
as is used in stables to reach a loft above. This
gave access to the upper floor, where in a large
bare room a number of Chinese clerks were busily
engaged at their desks, which seemed to be the
only furniture in the apartment. A portion of
the room was partitioned off to make an inner
office for the Company's Agent. Into this we
were ushered, and found Mr. McC. most cour-
teous and obliging, anxious to give us every
assistance in his power.
We had intended going on to Singapore by the
German steamer, due to leave Batavia on the
following Saturday, but found it was impossible
to obtain the necessary accommodation. The
next German boat would not leave till a week
later, and we had come to find out if we could
268
BATAVIA
travel by some other line and avoid the long wait.
The agent told us that a Dutch cargo boat, which
took a few passengers, was to leave for Singapore
on the following Sunday, a day later than the
German steamer. It did not sound very promis-
ing; but we decided to take our chance in it. It
was, moreover, rather annoying to find we could
not choose our berths until we were on board.
This important matter settled, Mr. McC. kindly
told us what we ought to see in old Batavia, and
accompanied us to our carriage to give our coach-
man the necessary directions. It was exceedingly
kind of him to take so much trouble, and owing
to his courtesy we saw much that otherwise we
should have missed.
Batavia is no longer the " Queen City," the
home of the merchant princes of the Dutch East
India Company; the only relics of her former
magnificence are a few of the beautiful old gabled
houses, fallen, alas, from their high estate, and
used now only as offices and warehouses. In
1619 the Dutch built Batavia on the banks of the
Tji-Liwong river, on the site of the ancient town
of Djokatra, removing to it from Bantam, the
former capital of the Dutch East Indies. They
spared no pains to make their Eastern home as
369
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
much like a little bit of Holland as possible, and,
ignoring the necessities of a hot climate, they re-
produced the picturesque, but airless, red brick
houses of their native land. They also cut canals
from the river through the town, and planted their
banks with straight rows of trees in true Dutch
style. Unfortunately, this Dutch-looking town,
having been built in swampy land near the mouth
of the river, proved terribly unhealthy; the Euro-
pean houses were most unsuitable for a hot country
like Java; the canals, instead of flowing with cool-
ing water, became choked with the debris from
the volcanoes, the stagnant water in them was a
source of danger and a cause of fever and malaria;
the death rate was appalling, and over a million
white men died in the space of 22 years. The
city of Batavia earned a bad reputation, and was
known as the " graveyard of Europeans," " The
gridiron of the East," the most unwholesome
place in the universe, etc.
It took the authorities a long time to realise that
the high death rate was due to the unhealthy posi-
tion of the town; but at last they grasped the situa-
tion, and most reluctantly abandoned their
eighteenth-century houses and built on much
higher ground dwellings that were more suitable
270
BATAVIA
for a tropical climate. Marshal Daendals, with
characteristic energy, set about building a new
town in a better position, and did not hesitate to
pull down many of the old houses in order to make
the streets wider. Old Batavia is now only used
by the Dutch in the daytime as a business centre;
at sunset they depart from it and go to their homes
in Weltevreden, where they are immune from the
death-dealing miasma of the marshes that sur-
round the lower town.
Our driver took us to see some of these quaint
and beautiful old houses, looking much out of
place in their present squalid surroundings; then
we drove to the old Town Hall, which is a very
fine building; from it we went to see the Gate, all
that remains of the ancient Batavian Castle and
of the wall that at one time surrounded the town.
It is flanked by two life-size statues of warriors in
bronze or some such metal. To me they looked
very like North American Indians, but I could not
get any accurate information concerning them.
Not far from this gate, under the shade of some
trees, is an ancient gun (Meriam) which the
natives hold sacred. It is guarded day and night
by the Javanese, and a fire is always kept burning
before it. Tradition says that somewhere in Java
271
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
is a similar cannon hidden away; when the second
one is found, Java will once more belong to the
Javanese, and the foreign usurper will be expelled
from the land. Our next visit was to the old Por-
tuguese church, but it was closed, and we did not
succeed in finding the caretaker to let us in. It
is a large, gloomy building surrounded by a grave-
yard. Beyond the church, in a lonely part of the
road that skirts the canal, there is a high stone
wall of grim and forbidding aspect. In one place
it is surmounted by a man's skull fixed on a pike;
beneath is a tablet with an inscription in Dutch and
Malay. Our driver pointed out this gruesome
object to us, and we got out of the carriage and
walked up the weedy and grassgrown path that
led to it that we might inspect it more closely. It
was indeed a gloomy and sinister spot. Later we
learned that the skull had belonged to one Peter
Elberfeld, a half-caste, who conspired with the
natives against the Dutch in 1722. According to
Sir Stamford Raffles' account, the Dutch rule in
Java was distinguished by an arrogant assumption
of superiority for the purpose of overawing the
natives, together with an unaccountable timidity
that made them suspect treachery and danger in
most unexpected quarters. Peter Elberfeld had
272
BATAVIA
an intense hatred of the Dutch; he joined with the
native princes in a wide-spread conspiracy to
massacre the whole white population in Java. At
a given time there was to be a simultaneous in-
surrection of the natives all over the island, and
every European was to be put to death. All
Elberfeld's plans were ready for execution, when
an unforseen circumstance revealed the dastardly
plot, and swift and condign punishment was meted
out to the ringleaders. Elberfeld had a niece
living with him, who not only did not join with
her uncle in his hatred of the Dutch, but had
secretly fallen in love with a young Dutch officer.
She knew it was useless to ask Elberfeld's con-
sent to the marriage, so arranged with her lover
to elope from her uncle's house and get married
without his knowledge. The night before this
was to take place she could not sleep, so strong
was her remorse at what she felt was base ingrati-
tude to one who had always shown her the greatest
affection and kindness. Wrapped in thought, she
was gazing out into the night from the verandah
outside her room, when her attention was attracted
by the sound of stealthy movements near her, and
she could distinguish dark forms that stole silently
out from among the trees nnd passed into the house
273
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
by the side door. Much alarmed, she went to her
uncle's room to rouse him, but found it empty.
Hearing the murmur of voices in the dining room,
she went to its closed door, and looking through
the keyhole discovered it was full of people talking
in subdued tones. She listened for a few minutes
and learned the nature of the plot, and heard the
conspirators take the most solemn oaths to be true
to each other and carry out their scheme of ven-
geance on their enemies to the bitter end.
The girl was overwhelmed with horror, and dis-
tracted at the dilemma in which she found her-
self, and she hesitated long between the affection
and gratitude she owed her uncle, and the love and
devotion she had for her betrothed. But the love
for her future husband prevailed, and she revealed
to him what the conspirators had planned. Her
fiance at once gave information to the authorities,
and on the next night, the very night the elope-
ment was to have taken place, soldiers surrounded
Elberfeld's house, and he and his fellow con-
spirators were arrested and charged with their
crime. All the native princes who had joined in
the plot were put to death in an ignominious
manner, but in Elberfeld's case the wrath and
vengeance of the Dutch required that his body
274
BATAVIA
should be torn to pieces. Each of his four limbs
was tied to a horse and the animals were then
driven by whips in four different directions. As
a last indignity his head was cut off and stuck on
an iron pike, which was fastened above the gate
leading into his house. The entrance was then
walled up so that none might in future set foot in
the traitor's home; underneath the ghastly trophy
was placed a tablet with an inscription, a transla-
tion of which reads as follows: —
" In consequence of the detested memory of
Peter Elberfeld, who was punished for treason,
no one shall be permitted to build in wood or stone
or to plant anything whatsoever in these grounds,
from this time forth for evermore. Batavia, April
22, 1722."
The girl gained nothing by the betrayal of her
uncle; she was not even allowed to marry the
Dutch officer for whose sake she had given the
information.
Leaving this desolate and uncanny place, we
continued our drive along the canal, and could
almost have imagined we were in Holland. A
tramway that runs beside the canal provides a
means of transit between the old town and the new.
The port of Batavia is Tandjong Priok, six
2 75
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
miles off, situated on the Bay of Batavia. The
harbour can supply safe anchorage to vessels of
almost any tonnage. The stone quays are lined
with warehouses, but no dwelling-houses for
Europeans are built at Tandjong Priok. It
stands on too low ground to be healthy. Com-
munication between the port and Batavia is main-
tained by railway and canal; there is also a well-
kept road between the two places.
We had now exhausted the sights of Batavia
Old Town, so we continued our drive to Weltevre-
den, and visited the immense open space in the
centre of that town, known at Konigsplein. Here
are railway station, Governor's house, Regent's
house, and the beautiful white building in the form
of a Greek temple that contains the celebrated
museum of the Society of Arts and Sciences,
founded in 1778. Outside this building is a large,
bronze elephant, presented by the King of Siam.
A wide street connects the Konigsplein with a
smaller square, designated Waterlooplein. Here,
to my surprise, there is a monument, " The Lion
of Waterloo," commemorating the battle of
Waterloo. It is generally believed that that great
victory was mainly due to British pertinacity and
valour, but a Latin inscription on the Java
276
BATAVIA
memorial informs the public " that it was the
courage and stedfastness of the Belgians who were
then Dutch subjects that turned the tide at that
battle, thus securing the defeat of the French and
the peace of the World. ' ' One lives and learns !
In the same square (Waterlooplein) is a statue
of Jan Coen, who founded Batavia in 1619; there
is also an iron pyramid to the memory of General
Michiels. From the Waterlooplein we pro-
ceeded to visit the Chinese quarters, which are
extremely interesting, and we had the good for-
tune to see a Chinese wedding procession. On
our way back to the hotel we passed the handsome
club building " Harmonie," and some fine shops.
The shops in Batavia will bear comparison with
those in any town in Europe; one of them, called
" East and West," contains a splendid assort-
ment of Javanese curiosities.
We devoted the whole of the next day to the
Museum, and yet had but a cursory view of its
wonders. Weeks might be spent in that treasure-
house without exhausting its marvels. The
Director or Curator of the Museum was a most
polite Dutch gentleman, and we were greatly
indebted to him for his courtesy and kindness.
As he knew very little English, he sent for his
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
daughter to take us round and explain things to
us. This young lady spoke fluent English, and
took a great deal of trouble, as our time was so
limited, to point out just the curiosities and
antiquities that were most worthy of notice, and
her ciceroneship made all the difference to our
enjoyment.
The Museum is a perfect treasure-house of
Javanese antiquities; here are displayed ancient
weapons; curiously shaped musical instruments,
gorgeous robes worn in days long past by the Sul-
tans and Princes of Java; wonderful sarongs,
batiked in a manner rarely seen nowadays, and
embroidered with gold and silver thread; finely
wrought specimens of ancient metal work; a large
assortment of Krises, with damascened blades and
jewelled scabbards; and exquisitely carved and
ornamented chairs, tables and couches. Won-
derful Javanese ornaments, such as necklaces,
earrings, bracelets, etc., were arranged in glass-
cases. One room was set apart for the grotesque
figures and masks formerly used in the puppet
shows and shadow pictures; these were most
amusing. There were also models of houses and
villages, and of Buddhist temples; the latter being
in many cases adorned with precious stones.
278
BATAVIA
There were some ancient coffins, a rather grue-
some sight, but we were thankful to find these had
no occupants.
One apartment of the Museum has in it a famous
collection of coins and medallions.
The entrance hall, which is large and lofty,
contains statues and bas reliefs, and some enor-
mous Buddhas. I think, however, what pleased
us most of all was the old Dutch furniture, brought
from Holland three hundred years ago, by the
earliest settlers, in order to give a home-like
appearance to their dwellings in the tropics.
There were beds, chairs, tables, bureaux, chests,
boxes, etc., all carved or inlaid; specimens of skill
and artistic design not to be matched in these days.
There was a wonderful collection also of old
Dutch glass and china, some of which must have
been in existence a century or more before it took
the long journey to Java.
On leaving the Museum, after expressing our
great gratitude to our guide, we visited the Co-
operative and Mutual Assistance Stores ("Eigen
Hulp " and " Onderlinge Hulp "), great shops
modelled on the lines of the Army and Navy
Stores, and also the large emporium " East and
West," at the back of the Harmonie Club, and
279
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
made some purchases in both places without any
difficulty, as the assistants spoke very good Eng-
lish. We were greatly amused at a native we
met on the way who was supposed to be watering
the streets. He had an ordinary watering-can
under each arm from which he sprinkled water on
the road. When they were empty he filled them
out of the canal close by. It was easy to see that
time was no object with the Javanese, as, at the
rate the man was working, it would take a day to
water one street.
The funeral of a Dutch soldier attracted our
attention on account of the lugubrious appearance
of the horses attached to the hearse. The poor
beasts, in that torrid climate, had a pall-like cover-
ing of black velvet almost reaching to the ground,
their eyes looked out from slits in the velvet, and
were the only part of them to be seen, with the
exception of their feet.
They presented such an absurd appearance in
their sombre drapery that, in spite of the solemn
occasion, one could not forbear a smile.
The Government offices in Weltevreden are
housed in the old palace of Governor General
Daendals, and the walls of the Assembly Room
in the same place are adorned with life-size por-
280
BATAVIA
traits of all the Governors of the Dutch East
Indies.
Besides the " Harmonie " Club there is also a
military one, called the " Concordia," where all
the rank and fashion of Batavia meet on two or
three evenings a week to listen to good music and
display their fine clothes.
We had an invitation to the concert there that
evening, but as we had packed up for our early
start next day, we regretfully declined it.
We had to be at the station the following morn-
ing before 6.30 o'clock, which meant rising about
5 a.m. We were fortunate in getting a man from
the hotel who spoke English to interpret for us,
and to look after our luggage on the way to the
steamer, so we did not miss our guide.
The railway ride to the Docks is through low-
lying, swampy land, and we did not wonder that
malaria and the deadly Java fever had worked such
havoc among the early settlers in that unhealthy
part.
On our arrival at Tandjong Priok, the port of
Batavia, we were thankful to find we could go on
board the ship from the wharf, instead of having to
be rowed out to it in a sampan as at Sourabaya,
for we had no desire to repeat our disastrous
experience there.
281
A JOURNEY TO JAVA
Our steamer was called the " Baud," named
after Jean Chretien Baud, a distinguished Dutch-
man. We were specially interested in it, for it
was the first steamer in which we had been, where
oil fuel was used.
The captain told us that oil was much cheaper
and more satisfactory than coal, and that he should
use 700 tons in the two days' passage from Batavia
to Singapore.
It was with much regret that we saw the shores
of the fair island of Java receding from our view;
we had enjoyed every moment of our stay in that
beautiful " Garden of the East," and throughout
our journeyings had met with the greatest kind-
ness and courtesy from the Dutch officials and
residents, and had encountered none of the
irritating restrictions and difficulties complained
of by many travellers. To this enchanting land
we may apply without reservation a phrase well-
known in relation to another of the world's
loveliest spots: — See — Java — and die!
The End
INDEX
Abrea, Antoniode, 30.
Agassiz, 15.
Agung Mt., 67.
Aloon-aloon, 163, 237.
Amok, 176, 177.
Archeological Society, Djokja-
karta, 184.
Ardjoens, III, 130.
Army, Dutch in Java, 144.
Atje, 219, 220.
Asoka, 180.
Australian Commonwealth, 31.
Botanical Gardens, Port Darwin,
61-63.
,, ,, Buitenzorg,
244, 253-259.
Brahmanism, 67.
Brisbane, 2, 4, 8-10.
Bromo, 114, 119-129, 199.
Buddha, Gautama, 178, 179, 180,
181, 192-195, 200.
Buddhism, 178, 179, 249.
Buitenzorg, 84, 142, 249, 251,
253-263.
Burns Philp, 1,
73, 267, 268.
26, 27, 34, 36,
Bagendit Lake, 211.
Bali, 65, 66, 67.
Bandoeng, 230, 236-241, 249.
Barrow Falls, 17-
..v River, 15.
Batavia, 72, 263-276, 281.
-, 221, 239, 265.
Batik, 134, [66, 167.
Toelis, 359, 260.
Batok Mt., 123, ia6.
B !■ M'T, 511, 51.
Betel, 136.
Birdi, Java, 235.
N> ■ S3-
,, Port Darwin, 63.
Boro Boedor, i7-\ 17,
Cacao, (Cocoa,) 260, 261.
Cairns, 15, 17, 19, 21, 30, 36.
Caroline Islands, 30.
Cassuwary, 33, 37, 38, 39.
Chinese Stewards, 3.
Chinese in Java, 78, 80, 140, 277.
( iii' li' ma, 2. 1 1-246.
Climate, Brisbane, 9.
,, Java, mS, 134, [40,
2 J7. 2 55. 270.
Papua, 32.
Coffee, 145, 251, 252.
Coma^'-, 71.
Commonwealth Government, 30.
, 50.
( .11.. I Reel is, 13, 14. '5-
283
»9
INDEX
Coral Sea, 2, 31, 30.
Costume, Native, Java, 78, 79.
,, ,, New Guinea, 29.
Crotons, 24, 35, 61.
Culture System, 141, 145-149,
251.
Dana, 12, 14.
Doendals, 145, 152, 271, 280.
Danby, Frank, A.R.A., 226.
Darwin, 12, 14.
Depok, 263.
Dhyani-Buddhas, 192, 193.
Diamonds, iS, 220.
Dieng Mountains, 227.
,, Plateau, 202, 224.
Djokjakarta, 134, 144, 151, 156-
171, 204.
Dodok, 158.
East India Company, 30.
Elavara, 47.
Elberfeld, Peter, 272-275.
Caroet, 205-211, 222, 228-231.
Gcdch Mt., 250.
German New Guinea, 31.
Government of Java, 142-144.
,, ,, Papua, 31.
Great Barrier Reef, 2, 11-16, 21,
27-
Grimshaw, Miss B., 34, 57.
Groneman, Dr., 184, 186, 188,
190, 192, 193.
Guides, 89.
Goenoeng Goentor, 205, 213, 222.
Gunong-Agung, 66.
Hanuabada, 40, 45, 46.
Hibiscus, 24, 35, 61.
Hinduism in Bali, 67.
Hotel, Bellevue, Buitenzorg, 253
,, Des Indes, Batavia, 264
265.
,, Homann, Bandoeng, 236
237-
,, Simpang, Sourabaya, 81
265.
,, Toogoe, Djokjakarta, 156
,, Van Horck, Garoet, 208
222.
Humboldt, Wilhelm Von, 192.
Fauna, New Guinea, 34.
Flora, New Guinea, 33.
Foerset, 224.
Frangipanni, 215, 216, 257.
Fruits, Java, 98, 99, 257, 262.
,, Queensland, 18.
Industries, New Guinea, 32.
Gamelan, 168, 169.
Java, Geographical position, 70.
,, History of, 69-70.
Junghuhn, 244.
284
INDEX
Kabaja, 78, 93, 229.
Kali, 201.
Kali Mas, 139, 140.
Kalong, 209, 210.
Kanari trees, 157, 178, 259, 262.
Kapok, 228.
Kent, W. Savile, 57.
Kiwi, 33.
Koningsplein, 263, 276.
Kosong, 76.
Kris, 169, 170, 278.
Moreton Island, 11.
Museum, Batavia, 276-279.
Murray, Sir John, 14.
Music, 168, 169, 213.
N
New Guinea, 2, 22, 26, 28, 34.
i) )> German, 31.
Nirvana, 180, 190, 193, 196.
North, Miss Marianne, 197.
Language, Java, 144.
,, New Guinea, 48.
Lembang, 241, 243, 249, 259.
Lizards, 171, 204, 210.
Lombok, 65, 66.
Loro Jonggran, 201.
M
Madjapahit, 141, 168.
Malang, 202.
1 s '». Ml-
Mangosteen, 97.
Malaram, I, 3, 6, 10, 43, 66, 68,
73. '5«. "M
Max, Havelaar, 14K, 14.,
Mendoet, 199-301.
Merapi, 197.
Merbaboe, 197.
•1 Station, New Guinea,
47. 4 S -S"-
Mocngal, i^-j, 123, 135, 139
Moentilan, 17^.
Molucca Islands, 30.
Monsoon, 21.
Pajong, 165, 196.
Panji, 169, 170.
Papandajan, 217, 222.
Papua, 31.
Papuans, 20.
Passports, 71, 76.
Pelew Islands, 14.
Pinkebah, 8.
Port Darwin, 60, 61, 64, 65.
Port Kennedy, 54.
Port Moresby, 19, 25, 29, 31
34-5'-
Prambanan, 201, 202.
Preanger, 234, 235, 237.
Queensland, [I, 18, 30, 53.
Quetta, 56, 57.
Quinine, sec Cinchona.
Raffles, Lady, 259.
Raffles, Sir Stamford, 146,
183, 272.
285
INDEX
Rafts, Java, 172, 214.
,, New Guinea, 41.
Ramies, 44.
Regents, 142, 143, 237.
Reinwardt, 259.
Residents, 142, 143, 165, 237.
Rice-fields, 153, 154, 175.
Riztavel, 86, 92, 236.
S
Tangkoeban Prahoe, 217, 239,
241-249.
Tea culture, 231-233.
Tengger Mts., 112, 113, 202.
Tenggerese, in, 113, 115, 141.
Thursday Island, 4, 16, 40, 52-
59-
Tjandi Barabadur, 183.
Tjandi Loro Jonggran, 201.
Tjandi Sewoe, 201.
Tjandi Singosari, 202.
Sados, 76.
Salak Mt., 254.
Samarai, 22-25, 2 ^-
Sanatorium Tosari, 90, 107, 108,
119, 130.
Sarong, 78, 79, 93, 166, 229.
Saville, Kent, 15.
Scidmore, Miss, 71, 158, 159,
171.
Singapore, 4, 55, 72, 175, 282.
Slendang, 79, 166.
Smeroe, 121, 124.
Solo, 151.
Sourabaya, 72, 74, 75-99, 116,
I33-M 1 -
Sugar, 154, 155.
Sultan, 144, 151, 163.
Susuhunan, 144, 151.
Upas Tree, 224-228.
Van den Bosch, 145, 147, 149,
251-
Vorstenlanden, 151.
W
Wallaby, 34, 65.
Wallace, Alfred Russell, 34, 184,
235-
Watercastle, see Taman Sarie.
Wayang, 168.
Weltevreden, 142, 264, 271, 276,
280.
Taman Sarie, 159-163.
Tandjong Priok, 275, 276, 281,
282.
Zandsee, 123, 126, 128, 129.
Printed by Ebenezer Baylis * -Son, Trinity Works. Worcester, and London
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