Full text of "Sketches, Civil and Military, of the Island of Java and Its Immediate ..."

Google

This is a digital copy of a book lhal w;ls preserved for general ions on library shelves before il was carefully scanned by Google as pari of a project

to make the world's books discoverable online.

Il has survived long enough for the copyright to expire and the book to enter the public domain. A public domain book is one thai was never subject

to copy right or whose legal copyright term has expired. Whether a book is in the public domain may vary country to country. Public domain books

are our gateways to the past, representing a wealth of history, culture and knowledge that's often dillicull lo discover.

Marks, notations and other marginalia present in the original volume will appear in this file - a reminder of this book's long journey from the

publisher lo a library and linally lo you.

Usage guidelines

Google is proud lo partner with libraries lo digili/e public domain materials and make them widely accessible. Public domain books belong to the
public and we are merely their custodians. Nevertheless, this work is expensive, so in order lo keep providing this resource, we have taken steps to
prevent abuse by commercial panics, including placing Icchnical restrictions on automated querying.
We also ask that you:

+ Make n on -commercial use of the files We designed Google Book Search for use by individuals, and we request thai you use these files for
personal, non -commercial purposes.

+ Refrain from automated querying Do not send automated queries of any sort lo Google's system: If you are conducting research on machine
translation, optical character recognition or other areas where access to a large amount of text is helpful, please contact us. We encourage the
use of public domain materials for these purposes and may be able to help.

+ Maintain attribution The Google "watermark" you see on each lile is essential for informing people about this project and helping them find
additional materials through Google Book Search. Please do not remove it.

+ Keep it legal Whatever your use. remember that you are responsible for ensuring that what you are doing is legal. Do not assume that just
because we believe a book is in the public domain for users in the United States, that the work is also in the public domain for users in other

countries. Whether a book is slill in copyright varies from country lo country, and we can'l offer guidance on whether any specific use of
any specific book is allowed. Please do not assume that a book's appearance in Google Book Search means it can be used in any manner
anywhere in the world. Copyright infringement liability can be quite severe.

About Google Book Search

Google's mission is to organize the world's information and to make it universally accessible and useful. Google Book Search helps readers
discover the world's books while helping authors and publishers reach new audiences. You can search through I lie lull lexl of 1 1 us book on I lie web
al |_-.:. :.-.-:: / / books . qooqle . com/|

^ 4^0

•I..v- vH°. .l<y<<//.

SKETCHES,

CIVIL AND MILITARY,

OF THB

ISLAND OF JAVA -,

AND

ITS IMMEDIATE DEPENDENCIES:

COMPRISING

INTERESTING DETAILS

Batatta,

AND AUTHENTIC PARTICULAR

Of ♦

THE CELEBRATED POISON-TREE.

Illustrated wjth a Map of Java, Plan of Batavia, and
Chart of the Strait of Madura, from actual Surrey,

SECOND EDITION, WITH ADDITIONS.

LONDON:

PBINTBP FOB J. J. STOCKDALK, 41, PALL-MALL

1812.

Printed by S. Gosmkll, Utile Queen Suett, Loncl**

JAMES AMOS, ESQ.

ST. HELEN'S PLACE.

i
I

MY DEAR SIR,

I hops I shall neither offend you by
prefixing your name to the following pages,
nor by stating the motives, beyond those
of a private and personal nature, which influ-
enced my selection of it on this occasion*

The disposition which you evinced, at an
unusually early period of life, to render
yourself extensively useful to society, and
in which disposition you so strenuously per-
severe, would, of itself, justify jny choice,
and, I trust, be sufficient ground to induce
your acceptance of this public testimony,
from a consciousness that, not being unwoj>

IV DEDICATION.

thily offered, on the one part, neither will
its reception be derogatory on the other. The

F * >

long connexion of your respected family
with the East Indies, and your own well-
known extensive concerns with that rich por-
tion of the globe, have also combined to di-
rect you to acquaint yourself with details
which give you more than an individual
interest in what relates to it.

• m •

You have already availed yourself of many
opportunities to display your zeal in pro-
moting every useful political and commercial
knowledge ; and the advancement of com-
merce and of literature, as best calculated to
promote the general good, has frequently
been Seen to be near to your heart.

Although it may seem presumptuous, in
such an individual as myself, td attempt to
confirm ydu in the truly beneficial and laud-
able sentiments you have adopted on, I doubt
not, the most mature and studied conviction

'DEDICATION. V

of their utility, yet the vanity will, I trust,
be venial, which impels me to hope that even
this inconsiderable meed of applause may
prove an incitement to your progress towards
giving them an universal expansion/

To you, Sir, pre-eminent in the commerce
of a country "whose merchants are
princes/' I now presume to dedicate
these hasty " Sketches," and have the honour
to subscribe myself, with most respectful
esteem,

My dear Sir,
Your sincere, though very humble friend :

JOHN JOSEPH STOCKDALE.

London,
gthQctobtr, 1811.

PREFACE.

Thb following work owes its origin to the ex-
pedition, under that brave and experienced soldier
Sir Samuel Auchmuty*, against the last set-
tlement remaining in the hands of an European,
power hostile to Great Britain. The subject, in
itself interesting, is rendered much more so by
the probability of the many new sources of en-
terprise, which will now be opened to the view
of that liberal, extensive, and spirited commerce,
which has so highly contributed to enable this
kingdom to present itself an insurmountable bar-
rier to the atrocious schemes of that enemy of the
human race, Napoleon Buonaparte.

> * A biographical memoir and portrait of this gentleman is

contained in " Notes on the Vice-Royalty of La Plata/' &c.
which also includes an account of his military operations in
South Amerifca.

a a

vitl PREFACE*

The portion comprised in the first three
Books, is selected from the Voyages of John
Splinter Stavofinus, rear-admiral in the service
of the Stated General; into which is incor-
porated the substance of the notes of his well-
informed English translator, Mr. Wilcocke, with
occasional reference to the early labours of the
celebrated Valentyn, §ir GeprgjQ Staunton's Acr
count of the Embassy to China, &c. &c.
. Although the plan of comprising each separate
account in one Book subjects the reader to some
^repetition ; yet, as it is calculated to do more
justice to the respective travellers, the editor
hopes it will pot be imputed to tym 3s a fault

The remaining part of the work acquires mucl}
value, as the actual observation of an. intel-
ligent traveler, C. F. Tombe*, an officer of
engineers, and general in the French service,
\vhose information is most recent, and iq a great
measure entirely new,

From the same source is derived the first
actual survey 'of the island of Java and its iair

* Voyage aux Indes Orientals, edited by Sonuin^

PREFACE IX

fttediate dependencies, which has. been made
public in this country, or indeed in Europe, and
the plan of the line of defence of Batavia ;
with the addition of the city, to the plan, and
Mine necessary details to the interior of the map,
principally from Valentyn's book ; for the loan
of which, and the ready access afforded to the
invaluable stores contained in the museum and

- library of the Right Hon. Sir Joseph Banks,
Bart, the editor must, in common with every
votary of literature and science, acknowledge his
warmest obligations.

The authorities for the other additions are in
every case duly quoted. The particulars of the
celebrated poison-tree will, he cannot doubt, be
considered highly important.

In a space of time, perhaps unprecedentedly

' short, the editor has translated, selected, and
compiled, the subsequent " Sketches/ 9 and, to
avow " the head And front of bis offending," he
has been guilty of making a book, which he ven-
tures to hope will be found to contain amuse-
ment, interest, and information. The effort, at

X -. *R£FACB.

any rate, is not very ambitious} and, although
it cannot entitle him to literary reputation, he
trusts that its avowed production on the spur of
the moment, will shelter him from the severity
of that criticism, which has often shown itself
indulgent to his lowly endeavours. He has
little, indeed, to apprehend from the huge Levia-
than of criticism, The Edinburgh Review * f
which, singular as it may appear, has studiously
avoided, except in one instance*^, noticing any
works of which he is the publisher, although
some of them are the productions of the first
characters of the time -.—personal offence he can
scarcely have given to these mighty arbiters of
public taste, not having individual knowledge of
any one of them.

* It would be more consistent with that grammatical accu-
racy on which these critics occasionally love to descant, to
substitute the word Essayist for that of Review j but, even
waving this objection, how can the general title of Review be
fairly assumed by a work which does not notice, foreign lite-
rature included, in the course of its whole yearly series, as
many English books as issue from the London press alone in
one quarter of the time ?

f Mr. Petrie's Statement of Facts relative to the Disturb*
juices in India*

PREFACE. XI

Whatever may be the fate of the present per*

formance, he feels confident that, as rather an

uncommon exertion of industry in his own call*

1 ing, it will attach no blemish to 'his humble

name.

No. 41, PaS Mall.

A 4

DIRECTIONS FOR THE BINDER.

Hap of Jara, from actual Survey • - - to face the Title.

Plan of Batavia, and its Line of Defence, from
fbe ^utigol to the Ancka River - - * - . Page avi.

CONTENTS.

BOOK I.

CHAPTER L

Situation of Java.— Straits of Sunda.— Prince's Is1and*-»-Dwart
ia deo Weg. — Bay of Anjer.— Claim of the Dutch East In-
dia Company to the Sovereignty of the Straits of Sunda<—
Bay of Bantam. — Road of Batavia.— Kingdom of Bantam—*
tributary to the Company. — Speech on the Appointment of
a Successor to the Throne. — Empire of Jaccatra.— Chari-
ton.— -The Soesoehoenam, or Emperor of Jarsu-^-Tbc
Sultan.— Principality of Madura.— Political Conduce of the
Company towards the native Princes . . • Page 1 7

CHAPTER II.

Climate of Java.— Land and Sea Winds.— Monsoons.— Thun-
der-storms. — Ri vers* — Productions. — Pepper. — Rice. —
Sugar. — Coffee. — Cotton-yarn. — Salt. — Indigo. — Timber.
Fruits— Vast Variety of them.— The Natives.— Their Cha-
racter. — Dress. — Customs. — Dwellings.— Food. — Diver*
sions.— Religion.— Physicians.'*— Agriculture* 3*

CHAPTER III.

Batavia.— The River of Jaccatra.— Water-fort.— Bar at the
Mouth of the River.— The Castle.— Buildings in and near
it— Walls of the Cky. — Gates.— AdQiiralty-wharf. —Quar-
ter for Workmen,— Churches.— Houses,— Chinese Houses.

XIV

CONTENTS.

—Massacre of the Chinese.-*- Assessment on Rents* — Bank
of Batavia.— Suburbs.— Chinese Campoo.— Character of
the Chinese.— -Their Appearance.-— Dress. — Religion.—
• Temples. — Divination.— Tombs,— Environs of Batavia.—
Roads.— Streets. • Page 55

CHAPTER IV.

Government of Batavia. — Council of India.— Governor-Ge-
neral.— Director-General. — Counsellors of India. — Coun-
cil of Justice.— Board of Scheepens,— Punishments.— Im-
palement. — Mucks. — Orphan-Chamber. — Opium-Com-
pany.— Chief of the Marine.— Commandant and Upper
Comptroller of Equipment.— Vice-CtonMiwndant.— Mili-
tary*— Mi ihia.**-Ranks and Precedency*— Sumptuary Laws.
—Clergy. — Coins.— Weights.— Measures. •»••*....». 78

CHAPTER V.

European Mode df Living at Batavia.— Women.— Their early
Marriages.— Complexion.— Temper. — Manners.— Educa-
tion of Children.— Bathing.— Excessive Jealousy of the In-
dian Ladies —Cruelty to their female Slaves.— Short Widow-
hoods* — Dress. — Diversions. — * Carnages.— NoriinoDB. —
Carts drawn by Buffaloes. — Management of the Company's
Trade. — Senior Merchants of the Castle. — Warehouse-
keepers.-— Commissaries at the Warehouses.—- Exportation
of Gold and Silver to India.— Decay of Batavia by Increase of
private Trade.—- Province of Jaccatra.— -Imports at Batavia.
—Islands of Onrust — De Kuiper— Purmerend— Edam. 107

CHAPTER VL

Causes of the Unheakbiness of Batavia.— Mud-banks.— Mo-
rasses.— Familiarity of the Inhabitants with Disease and
Death.— Want of Circulation in the Canals^— Deserted and
untenanted Houses.— Depreciation in the Valve of Houses.
— Other Causes, originating in Europe, applied to explain
the great Mortality at Batavia,— Periods when the Number

CONTENTS. XV

of Deaths successively increased. — Register of Deaths in
Hospitals, &c— Comparative Statement of the Number of
Men lost by the Company every Tear. • • • • « Page xa8

CHAPTER VII.

General Review of the Decline in the Company's Affairs.—
Recapitulation of the Receipts and Expenditure of each
Settlements— General Statement, &c— -Reflections on the de-
cayed State of the Company .—Receipts and Expenditure. 146

BOOK II.

CHAPTER I.

Navigation from Batavia to Samarang. — Government of Sa-
marang.— Dissension between the Soesoehoenam and Manko
Boeni. — The latter supported by the Company. — The Em*
piie of Java parcelled out. — The Sea-coast ceded to the Com*
pany— They make themselves Masters of Balambouang.— -
Soera Carta, the Capital of the Soesoehoenam.— D'Jokje
Carta, that of the Sultan.— Residencies of Oelopampang—
Soorabaya— Grisse— Samanap — Rembang— Joana— Japara
— Samarang-— Pacalonga— Tagal.— Residents at the Courts
of the two Javanese Emperors.— Establishment, Revenues,
&c. of this Government. 153

CHAPTER IJ.

Combats of wild Beasts and Criminals. — The Company ap-
point Successors to the Princes of Java — Likewise Prime
Ministers. — Tommagongs, or native Regents. — Prices paid
for* the Rice.— Account of the Depatti of Samarang. — Enter-
tainment at the Governor's House.—- River of Samarang.—
Tides. -*- Fortifications. — Chinese Temple. — Warehouses
and Workshops. —Guardhouse.— Government House.—

XY1 CONTENTS*

Snburbs.^-Garrison. — View of Fisher's Island. — Account
of Japara.— The Fort, House of the Resident, &c— Old
Japara.— Ancient Javanese Tombs.— Old Moorish Temple.
— Character of the present Resident Page x68

CHAPTER III.

Mandelique Island. — Account of Joana River. — Inland Navi-
gation to Samarang.— The Town.-— Chinese Campong.—
Fort.— House of the Resident. — Character, &c. of the pre-
sent Resident. — Hi& Emoluments.— Celebration of the New-
Year.— Account of the Touimagongs, or native Regents.—
Of the Pattis, or Sub-regents — Entertainment r.t the House
of one of the Tommagongs. — Lubok Island.— Madura, i8o

book in.

CHAPTER I.

Situation of Java. — Face. of the Country.— The North Coast*
* —The South Coast less known.— Weather.— Rivers. — SoiL
— Agriculture. — Productions. — Upland and lowland Rice.
—Pepper— Quantities furnished to the Company. — Sugar
•-^Chiefly encouraged and manufactured in Jaccatnu— Num-
ber of Sugar-mills. — Their estimated annual Income.-*
Sugar-works, and Method of making Sugar.— Different
Qualities of it.— Coffee — Quantities and Prices of it.— •
Cotton. — Quantities and Prices 'of Cotton-yarn.— Salt — An
Article of Trade to Sumatra.— Timber.— Large Forests.—
Indigo— Quantities and Prices*— -Other Articles. — Mine-
rals ...••» • • • 191

CHAPTER H.
Division of Java.— General Population. —Bantam,— Boun-
daries. — Government. — Population. — Dependencies. —

CONTENTS. XVll

Country of Lampoon.— -The Company's Establishment at
Bantam. — Expenses.. — Islands in the Straits of Sunda, &c— »
Peculiar Unhealtbiness of Bantam.— Jaccatra, and its Prean-
ger Lands. — Boundaries. — Population. — Administration. —

• Rivers.— The Mookcrvaart. — Canals and Drains cot by the
Dutch.— Productions.— Cheribon. — Boundaries. — Popula-
tion.*— Productions. — Establishment. — Expenses and Profits.
— Empire of the Soesoehoenam. — Former Extent and
Grandeur.— Present reduced Situation. — Dominions of the

■ Sultan.— Island of Madura.— Titles of the reigning Soesoe-
hoenam, and Sultan.— Political Relations of the Company
with these Princes. • p . f • Page 208

CHAPTER III.

Importance of Java to the Dutch East India Company.—
Reflections on the Conduct of the Company towards the
native Princes — and their Javanese Subjects.— 'Necessity of
Reform in these Points • . , 2 to

CHAPTER IV.

Character of the Javanese.— -Their Indolence, not merely the
Result of Climate, but also of the arbitrary Government
— Industry of the Chinese.— Food of the Javanese. — Their
Dwellings.— Household Conveniences. — Usual Period of
Life. — » Peculiar Disease. — Religion. — Mosques* — Mauso*
leum near Cheribon.— Customs of the Javanese. — Laws re*
sptcting Iuheritance. — Their Appearance, Dress, &c. 235

CHAPTER V.

Batavia.— Its Situation. — Harbour. — Canals.— Walls. — Castle,
Houses, &c. — Inhabitants. — Revenues and Charges, &c—

* Character of the Inhabitants. — Mode of Living.— Marriages,
r-fSlaves,.— Gaming. . . , . . f •*•!••• * !S

XVtll CONTESTS*

BOOK IV.

CHAPTER I.

Batavia*— Its Situation— Government— Commere*.— General
Observations oa colonial Produce. — Relations with Ja»
pan..* Page 259

CHAPTER II.

Defence of Batavia.— Banks*— Troops. — Population.— Walks.
Unhealthine$s.-<-Production8 %jo

CHAPTER III.

The Chinese*— Ceremonies at their Feast of the Dead.— Pecu-
liarities.— Industry*— Domestic Virtues.. 286

CHAPTER IV.

Environs of Batavia. — Welte-Freden.— Tanabang.— Mester-
Cornelis.— Isles of Cambusa and Onrus. — Description of
Tijclenking — Its false Bay.— Sacred Trees. — Tombs of the
Kramates*— Vegetable Poisons.— Bohos-upas, or Antiars,
&c. — Their Antidote— Andira* ••*•« ••• 099

CHAPTER V.

Assassination of the King of Bantam.— Coronation of his
Successor.— Sketch of the Kingdom. — View* of the Dutch
on the Lampons Country.— Factories of the Islands of Bof-

* neo, Timor, and Bymou. 347

CHAPTER VI.

Palankang. — Balembouang. — » Bagnouwangie Bay. — Indian
Prince and Dutch Commandant. ...••••.•.••.••••• 356

CHAPTER VII.

Catapang.— Caravan into the Interior of Java.— -Desert of Ba-
lembouang. — Panaroukan.— Principalities of Besouki, Ban-

CONTENTS XIX

ger, Passourouang and BangelL — Reception by Jaran
Princes , . . . . ~ Page 364

CHAPTER VIII.

Opasees.— -Surabaye.— Environs. — Gressec. —Entertainments
by the Tomogon. .••,••••••••.••••••••• ••• 381

CHAPTER IX.

Sidafjo.-— Strait of Madura. — Rembang.— Japan.— Javanna*— -
Samarang— Its Line of Defence.— TagaL—Tchcriboo. 391

\
1

ilfuManwivl /IasIw •» TtrX** (lull*

I4 4«m.i»>w

41 rliJiiu liiyTlW^iHi

3r • l1, ^^\Tri i fg)f

THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

t »

1768—1771.

* *

» •■

3 P ,Q, fr ■ If , ■ t .

• * »• > *

CHAPTER L

Situation of Java.—*St*aits of Sunda.— Prince's

■ hisrtdt—Dwars in dfo x Weg.—*B4y ofAnjer.—*

Clktm +f the thitkh East India Company to the

Sovereignty of'4he s Straits of Sunda.—Bay of

Buntat*.—<Road tif Batavia.*~£ingdom of Ban*

• 4ari*+-4rihutary iojhe Company .—Speech on tit

Appointment of a Successor to the Throne.— Em-

fire of ' Jaccatra.-^Chcriban^The Socsochoenam>

or Etnperor if Java.— -The Sultan.-*— Prinei-

' fdity of Madura.— Political Conduct of the

Company towards the native Princes.

TW island of Java, which is one of the largeft
of those constituting the great Oriental Archi-
pelago, is situated -between 6° and 91° south lati.

fade, and extends fronKjao to 131* east longi-

l8 ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

tude from Teneriffe, being one hundred and
sixty-five Dutch miles, in length. It lies nearly
in the direction of east and west ; to the south
and west t its shorts aj-q washed t>y the southern
Indian Ocean ; to the north-west lies the island
of Sumatra; to thb north, Borneo; to the
north-east, Celebes; and to the east, that of
Bali : from which last it is separated by a nar-
row passage, called the Straits of Bali.

The arm of the sea which runs between Java
and Sumatra, is known by the appellation of
the Straits of Sunda. The length of this chan-
nel is, on the- Sumatra side, taken from the

-/Flat Point, to Varketi6, or Hog Point, fifteen

..German miles ; and, on the Java side, from the
first point, oc Java Head, to the point of Ban*
taw, full twenty. In the mouth of the strait

.lies Prince's Island, about a league and a half
from the coast of Java* and foil six leagues from

. Sumatra.
. Prince's Island is low, and only about four
leagues in circumference. It has, however, two
i}ilhj que at its east end, and the other a little
more to the south, which make it visible at f
moderate distance, especially the hill which lies

* at the east end, and which is accordingly, by
navigators, called the High Hill ; the English

. call it the Pike. At its s: w. side is a stone reef,

». which, according to the charts, extends a league

OX XU ISLAND OF JAVA*. 1 9

add a half out to sea, and is dangerous for ships
going through the passage between this island
and Java. The island is covered with trees,
and affords an agreeable prospect to the passing
seamen : it is inhabited by Javanese, whoy sub*
aist by fishing.

By the situation of Prince's Island, at the en*
trance of the Straits of Sunda, are formed two
passages ; the one, Tunning betwpen Princes
Island and Java, has been called the Behouden,
or Secured Passage,, and is made use of, for the
most part, by those ships which have to pass the
atraits during the south-east monsoon, in order
that, sailing close in with the shore of Java, they
may soon get within anchoring* depth, and not
be in danger of being driven out to spa again*
by the currents, which at that time erf the year
set strongly out of the straits to the westward*

The other passage, whith is called by. seamen
Het Groote Gat, or the Great Channel 1 some-
times serves also as an entrance to the straits
daring the south-east monsoon ; but it is with
the greatest difficulty, and after a continued
struggling with the south-easterly winds, and
the currents, that this can be effected ; and not
nnfreqoently five or six weeks are spent 'in
working up a distance, which, in the west
monsoon, is often sailed over in twice as many
bouts,

a a

OK THE I1LAND O* JAVA.

Notwithstanding the difficulty of entering the
straits on this side, when these contrary winds
and currents are in force, almost all the ships
which fall to leeward, upon the west coast of
Sumatra, as well as those which come from the
west of India, are obliged to pass through this
channel, as it is scarcely possible to reach the
Windward shore of Java, in the teeth of tbd
south-east monsoon ; and they therefore* cannot
generally avail themselves of the other passage.

The entrance of the straits, on this side, affords
an uncommonly pleasing prospect, near the Su-
matran shbte. First, the Flat Point, which k
low, &nd covered with trees, and behind it ; the
majestic mountains' of Sumatra, rising with "a
gradual ascent to the clouds ; 4 little more for*
ward, the Keizers, or Emperor's Island, lifts it*
high and spiry scnnmit ; ' farther on, the islands
Kraketau, Siybzee, and Pulo Bicie, or the
Iron Island, show their mountains covered tfrith
evergreens. The opposite coast of Java is not
inferior to this, and improves continually in ap-
pearance, affording at the same tin&e good an-
chorage, which is not to be met with on the Su-
matra side. The numerous groves of cocoa-
nut-palms, and the rice-fields in the back -ground,
give the most pleasing ideas of the fertility of its
soil.
Twelve or thirteen leagues from Prince's Island,

ON THE ISLAND. OP JAVA., a I

in the most narrow; part pf the strait, and oppo-
site to Varkens, or Hog Point of Sumatra, lies,
an islaqd, which, on account of its situation,
exactly in the middle of the channel, has, with,
great propriety, obtained the name of Dwars in
den Wcg, Thwart the Way, or Middle Isle. It
is low, and of little extent, with some small
reefs, which stretch out from it here and there.
Like all the islands in these seas, it is covered
With wood, and is believed to be uninhabited.

A strong current always runs through the pas*
sages on either side this island, setting, with the
prevailing easterly or westerly winds, either to
the north -east or to the south-west, although it
sometimes happens, . that the* current runs con-
trary to the direction, qf the wind, fpr a short
timet Between Dwars in den W eg and the coast
qf Java, and farther on to the point of Bantam,
thfire appears to be a„ settled current, independe-
ntly, of the wind.

Ships passing out through the Straits of Sunda,
often anchor in the hay of Anjer, in order to
take in their last supply of fresh water, from a
rivulet which ruos frpm the mountains into the
sea, at this place, close to a little grove of cocoa-
nut-trees. There js likewise a Javanese village,
which is under the jurisdiction of the king of
Bantam, and which, has erroneously been rec-
kpned, by some travellers, among the large cities

» 3

2£ ON THB ISLAND OF JAVA.

of Java, though tt has nothing which can he
construed intp a town.

Not far from this is an islet or rock, entirely
overgrown with brushwood ; it is called the
Brabandsch-hoedje ; and a little farther to the
north, a similar one, called the Toppers*
hoedje .* : this last is steep and bold, having
fifty fathom depth close to it.

The Dutch East India Company claim an ab-
solute sovereignty over the Straits of Sunda, and
this is acknowledged by all the other powers.
The Company require the salute, and have the
right of interdicting this passage to all other na-
tions, though they prudently do not enforce such
right. The right is maintained as proceeding
from the circumstance, that the land on both
sides of the straits is tributary to the Company;
viz. the kingdom of Bantam on the Java shore,
and on the other side the land of Lampon, with
that which lies farther westward, being con*
quercd provinces belonging to Bantam. There
is a resolution, on this subject, of the council of
India, and articles are included in the secret-
orders which are given to the Company's ships
bound to the west of India, respecting the salute
to be required of the ships of other nations ; but

* They are called the Cap and Button by English pavigatojs*

Oil THB 1SLA9P OP JAVA. *3

which order is not to be opened, unless they
chance to meet with such.

From Anjer to the point of Bantam, the coun-
try appears, in general, with high mountains in*
land, and a foreland more level. From this
point, which is the northernmost extremity of
Java, the land declines to the south-east, and
makes a deep bay ; and in the farthest part of
the bight is situated the city of Bantam.

From the point of Pontang, which forms the
eastern extremity of the bay of Bantam, as that
just mentioned does the western, the land is every
where very low ; yet there are high mountains
inland, among which the Blue Mountain towers
above the rest. Although this mountain lies at
a great distance, towards the south side of the
island, and south-east from Batavia, yet it is seen
before Bantam. It was formerly, as is related, a
volcano ; but nothing of this kind is at present
perceivable.

The navigation from this place to the road of
Batavia affords the most agreeable prospects,
by the numerous small islands, covered with per*
petual verdure, and which are Btrewed, as it
were, along the sea. The anchoring-ground is
every where very good ; but* there are many
rocks, from ten to eighteen feet under water, and
which sometimes occasion much damage to the
vessels which do not carefully avoid them. The

* 4

24 CUT TJTff ISlMlir 4* JAV A.

Batavian : gov^nraent, however, havfe- caused,
buoys to be placed upon them,, moored by heavy*
anchors;. and: upon somfc of them beacons are
erected; bpt when these are washed away by'
the currents, the navigator :mukt avoid the rocks
by- taking the bearings of the several islands.

The road of Batavia is jusily esteemed one of
the best in the world,, as well with regard to (he?
anchoring-ground, which consists of a soft clay,
as to the safety it affords tlje'$hips which anchor
in it, and to the number which it can contain.
Although the road is open, from the n.w. to
e.jf.b. and east, yet ships lid as secure and quiet
as if they were landlocked, oh account of the
. numerous islands which lie on that side, and.
break the force of the waves. Ships are never
obliged to moor stem and -stem here ; and the
current which runs within the islands U not
strong, but without them. it is feery violent,

In the road, nearest to the town, lies a guard*
ship* commonly called the admiral-ship, with an
ensign at the top, from which, both in the day
and in the night, such signals are made to the
other, ships in the ro?d, as the commanding of-j
ficer thinks requisite* For several yegrs past if
has been regulated } that one of the captains of
t He ships in. the toad should keep guard on
board this ship, id order that, in case of acci-
dent, by fire or otherwise, some one may be

ON THB ISLMWOI JAVA* I5

fclway* at hand, to give the necessary dicecliom,
as the Othir captains of the vessels genehrily pass
the night tn the city. Oti such occasions a qigaal
is made from the add»tral-ship, to give informa-
tion, in order that the necessary assistance be
immediately sent from the shofc. . ...•'**

Before saying any thing of Batavia, if will not
be improper ro relate how far the power of th*
East India Company extends over the whole
island of Java, which is divided into four em*
pires, or kingdoms, either, wholly or in pari
subject to the dominion of the Company.

The first, to begin from the west, is the king*
dom of Bantam; this is governed by its. own
kings, with fall power of life and death over
their subjects; yet they are tributary to the
Company, paying a yearly acknowledgment of
p hundred bhars of pepper, or 3 7,500 pounds
weight; besides which, a strict engagement i*
(entered into by the king, not to sell either pep!
per, or any produce of his couatry, to ether a*
tions. It must all be delivered to the Compaq)*
for a certain stipulated £ripe*< and this ctaes ro|
solely regard the pepper produced in his dbmii
pions in Java, but likewise 'qll which is jrowtt
in his other territories, -his countered prorinfes^
situated in<*the great island of -Borneo/ and id
Sumatra, which likewise y4eld r ratrch < pepper ;
f n4 ^e Company have Jceordingf jr resitleociei

*6 Cm TO* ISLAM Of JAVA,

established, in the first, at Banjermassing, and
indie last, at Lampon Toulabouwa, which serve,
in the same way as Fort Speelwyk at Bantam,
to enforce the fulfilment of the treaties, and to
jwevent a contraband trade.

The king of Bantam is also deprived of the
power of appointing his own successor, and the
Company nominate one of. the royal family to
aioooed him, as latterly took place in the year
1767.

. The speech made, on that occasion, by Mr.
Ossenberg, ordinary counsellor of India, who
was deputed thither from Batavia x to represent
the united Dutch East India Company, as lord
paramount, from its peculiarity, is well worthy
of being inserted literally in this place, translated
out of the Malay, the language in which it was
delivered. •

" His excellency the governor-general, and the
honourable the council of India, having thought
fa and resolved to appoint me commissary ple-
nipotentiary to the court of Badtam, in order, at
the request of the king* to propose and appoint
his majesty's eldest son Pangora Jig (prince)
Gust^ hereditary prince, and successor to tho
empire of Bantam ; and this desirable period
being now arrived* in consequence, I, the com*
missary 'aforesaid, in the name and behalf of that
general East India Company of the Nether*

OH TBB ISLAVD OF JAVA, 2}

lands, appoint the said pangbrang, to be pan*
gorang ratoo, or hereditary prince, and heir to
the crown and the whole empire of Bantam,
by the title of Abdul Mofagir Mohamed AH
Joudeen.

" The commissary expects, that the said pan*
gorang ratoo will, at all times* consider this hia
important promotion, as a peculiar favour, and a
great benefit conferred upon him by the honour-
able Company ; being adopted from this mo*
ment, as the grandson of the East India Com-
pany of the Netherlands; and that he, will
henceforth, on all occasions, And in all times,
behave with integrity arid gratitude towards
them, obeying the commands of the honourable
Company, and of the king bis father, during
his whole life."

After the appointment, this harangue was again
read, by order of the commissary, in the Malay
language, in. the presence of the king his father,
of all the grandees of his court* and a number
of the Company's servants, who had come from
Batavia* and .belonged to the retinue of the
commissary ; and the ceretpooy concluded with
playing of gmgttnsy and other demonstrations
of joy. ,

The second, empire in Java is that of Jacca-
tra, which is bounded, to the east, by that of
Cheriboo, aud to the west, by the kingdom of.

2$ Orf THE f SLAHD- OF JAVA.

Bantam. Jaccatra was formerly governed by its
own tings; but the last of these having been
subdued by the arms of the Company in the year
16*9, they have ever since possessed if, by the
right . of conquest , as sovereigns. It is under
the immediate government of the governor-ge-
neral and council of India, and all the Javanese
ctf Jaccatra are therefore born the Company's
subjects. Before this revolution, Jaccatra was
the capital of the empire ; but Batavia, which
is built ver^ near the former, is now the chief
place.

• The third empire is that of Cheriboh. This
is under the domiaiofi of threje different primate,
wbo are independent of the Company, and s*-»
vweigns in their respective districts. Yet tbey
are their allies, and, 4n the same manner as the
king of Bantam, they are bound, by treaty, to
sell all' the produce of their territories, exclusively
to the Company, and not to permit any other
nation than the Dutch to enter their dominions;
for the doe maintenance of which conditions,
the Company likewise take cafe to guard and
garrison their seaports,

These would be theoaty princes iojava, who
possessed not only nominal, but also real so-'
vcreigiby, • were itnot for the situation of their
dominions, which Y\t between Jactartra, and tho>
empire of the Soesoehoetiatft, or edpefoi of Jama,

ON THE ISLAND Of JAVA* 4£

who is also a dependant on the Comply $>ftf
whom they ntfjst of course stand ip ^vf^^d
whose wishes they must in every respect observe
for if they do not, the Company make no.sgfupfc
of dethroning one prjqce, a$d establishing *&$-
ther in his stead. , , /. \

The Company, exercfcfd their pow^r iq this
respect, in the commeocerpent of the yea* ijfa
Qne of these Cberibon prions, not treating, hi$
subjects welk, wap put updei arrest, V J ft r 4flff
fern tbe ; qoqi>cil <?f Iri4^ >; aaA touched tontftf
castle Victor, tin the. island of; Amboyp^i t w^
another prince ojf the blood ;wa$ elevated M> tfc
vacant dignity, upon cpndition ); l>o?reTe^)af .fe>f
furnishing a certain artnqal sum of Jp$#py»j for
the support of his imprisoned predecessor. • ,< n

The fourth empire is tha,t of the Soesoehpe r
&aj$, or emperor of Java,; whicji is 'ofttyi canted
Doosoehoeaaa) Mataramt from the piece p£ fyi#
ipsideocc. . Tiu%einpire M oaqipr^eodQd« of pl4>
the greater part of the island: that pi Gheribftf
mee formed part of it, at*d it was tijpnf very
^powerful ; hut, since the Dutch* ha*e ftpop esta-
blished here, it has lost i£uch of its Jqjtra ag£
importance* Yet it regained- . undivided. tilj
^bout the middle of the present ccntucy, whe?
the emperor found himself s* tpuch embarrassed^
mi consequence of the rebellion of Maako Boenti,
» prince of the bload, tt>at, he made a cessiop of

3& Off THE XSLAtiD OP JAVA.

his territories to the Company, who, in retard,
granted him the half back again as their vassal,
and promised him their protection, engaging at
the same time, never to make an emperor of
Java,, who was not a prince of the imperial
family.

The empire being thus split into two parts,
the other 'half was, in like manner, given to
Maako Boeni, as the Company's vassal, under
the title of Sultan, with' a similar promise of
protection, and engagement never to nominate;
any other than princes of his family, as sue*
cessors to his dignity. This other half consti-
tutes the fifth empire of Java.

To these may be added a sixth, though it does
not properly belong to Java ; being a separate
island, but close to it : the bland and princi-
pality of Madura, which is divided from Javi
by a narrow strait. It is under the government
of a prince, who is equally a vassal of the Com*
pany, who also dispose of the succession.

All these princes are under engagements to
deliver the produce of their respective countries
to the Company alone, and not to sell any of it
to another nation ; likewise, not to enter into
any connexions, or treaties, with other powers ;
and great care is taken to enforce these con*
ditions, by the Company, whose numerous forts
and garrisons, along the whole north coast of

Off THK ISLAND OF JAVA* < $/

Java, tender the contravention of them extremely
difficult, if not wholly impossible, to the natte
princes. Were they, however, all to unie
against the Company, the latter would be in a
very disagreeable predicament ; but their muttal
and unceasing jealousies and animosities ire
safeguards against this. Though the Compaq's
government do not perhaps- foment, yet theydo
not extinguish the flames of discord; wHch
being always kept smouldering, make one nrtive
prince prevent whatever another may d«ign
against the Company.

It was likewise for very solid political retsons,
that the empire of Java was allowed, or rather
contrived, to be divided into two state* ; for
such an extent of territory as it formerly com*
ppebended, would always have made, whoever
was its sole master, a dangerous ncighbmr to
the Company, whereas, being under the domi*
nion of two meh, who are irreconcilable ene-
mies, it is easily kept in entire subjection.

«ar/mr.*sEAfltD<-os jrou

... 1 . * * I - . * ' • • » .

»
* . ' ' *

CHAPJEft H.

|l .' '•'.-

; J«:*v. • .. ....--

CkwU of Jaw.urJLand: and Sea Wmdi^Mm*

\ fami*. tf ithetn.~±Tk*. Natfres^-Tl** * Gfci*
+— Diversions. —Religion.^Fiysiciam.^Agri*

* • •» • ' / ' i . ■ «

Java^ situated fo ithfestmttt of the egkntar, io
a ciwjtfevyhicb wa* thought uninhabitable by
tb* atoieotft* wbo believed that the ' atoichiog
beat r\n4ere4 the land, there so arid and barter
» to W ufi^ble to produce aay thing for the
sftbsistetcfe of man. .. Thia opinio© originated
from the*, total igooraooe: of the interior p^rta of
Africa, vfcich lie between the tropics, as well as
respecting the Indies, and the great peninsula
beyond the Ganges. The improvements of na-
vigation, in modern times, have exploded this
error, and proved that the lands near the equi-
noctial line, far from being barren and unin-
habited, yield the palm in nothing, to less torrid
legions, and are able to feed full as many inha-

0* THS ISLAND OF JAVA. 33

bitants, as the most fertile country in the tempe-
rate climates.

The idea, that the heat must be utterly insup-
portable in these parts, is not so absurd, for the
sun is twice a year vertically over them, and its
rays shoot, almost always in a perpendicular line ;
so that it would be nearly as bad as was supposed,
if Nature herself did not come to their assistance*
by the refreshing land and sea breezes, which
blow here alternately throughout the year, and
so far moderate the heat, as to make it tolerable
to most men. As the rising and setting of the
sun is likewise always nearly at the same hour,
and scarcely differs more than a few minutes, the
long nights consequently cool the air so much,
that in the mornipg, for an hour or two before
daybreak, it may be rather said to be cold than
warm, especially by such people as have resided
here for some time.

From the month of July to November, the
thermometer of Fahrenheit w,as always, in the
hottest part of \ he day, between 84° and 90°,
excepting only one day, when it rose to 92 ;
and in the greatest degree of coolness in the
morning, it was seldom lower than 7 6°. This
thermometer was placed in the open air, in the
city of flatavia, shaded both from the rays of the
sun, and from their reflection.

The baromeler undergoes little or ho variation,

34 ofr the istAirb ofr Java.

and stands for a whole year at twenty-nine inches
ten lines, according to daily observations.
The warmth of the air decreases greatly,- on
*% approachirig the mountains, which lie towards
the southern parts of the bland. At the country*
teat of the gofrerhor-gefiei-al, called Buitenzorg
(rural care), Situated full sixteen Dutch mile*
south from Batavia, at the foot of the fiu6
ttdurttafris, the cold is so great in the mdrning,
faiat tiiot only thick clothed aref requisite, but if ti
difficult ib beconfce warm even with them. Br.
Thu'nberg, ' who vfeited bdth Buitenzorg ahd
the felue mountains, says, that the climate ii
irfery healthy knd refreshing, ahd the atf, especU
ttliy ih theiftoming and etetoiilg, absolutely cdtS 9
toisomuch thkt; hot hkv?h£ brdtight a gteatcofrt
Vvith hifn, he was € * chtlled, knd perfectly
Shivered with the cold evening air, in a cctmtry
that lies almost directly under the equator.*

The land afid sea wind* blow here' every day
without exception. The sea-breeze, which ih
the ea'dt morisOon is generally confined bitween
e.k<b. and notth, but in the wist mdnaooh tuhi
as fair as n. w. and farther, btegins to blow fcbbtit
eleven or twelve o'clotfc in the fotenobn. R
Increases gradually in the afternoon lift ett&ing,
and then dies imperceptibly ixfkf, tiH about
eight or nine o'clock, when it is pet&etfy cdft.
The land-wind begins at mtdnrght, ofc jiitf her

6N frffi iftAtfD OP JAVA. 35

fete* and continues fill an hour or two after Stin-
rise, when it generally again falls calm, till the
ttta-brcefte comes on at its accustomed hout.

The Jear is divided into two seasons, One of
which is called the east monsoon, or dry seasotl *
and th* 6thef 'the West nionsoon, or rainy season*

The e<st, of goad monsoon, commences in
♦toe thdhths of April atfd Mayj and ends in the
kitter &tid of Septenfter, or tht beginning of
Octobers. The tfddfcr- winds tHeh blow, abotit
fobf or five leagued off Shore, arid through the
whole of the IndiafH seas to the south of the
Jiae, from the s. e. and ri. s. ft. ; at times, however,
rudnifcg a9 far as s.s.e. with fine dry weathet,
Arid a defer sky. '

Tttt Wetft, OT'bid tabft$6on, generally begfris
in the latter end pf November or beginning of
Decfeifib4r, The wind often Mows with gredt
Violence, and is accompanied by heavy torrents
of ram, Which render this season very unhealthy*
*hd a tittieW the greatest mortality. The samcs
Winds art likewise found to prevail every where
td the south of the linfc. They continue till the
latter ehd of February or the beginning of
Matth, and are very variable till April ; in
Ifrhich month the easterly Winds begin to blow :
hence these months, as likewise October and
part of November, are catted the shifting months;
*nd (he times of the breaking up of the mon-

36 ON THE ISLAVfr 09 JAVA.

toons arc esteemed, at Bat* via, the most un-
healthy of all.

It is very remarkable, that, when the westerly
winds blow as far as nine or ten degrees south of
the line, the contrary takes place, at the same
time, and to the same distance, to the north of
it ; and vice versd, when the westerly winds pre-
Tail to the north, the easterly winds blow to the
south of the line ; which alternation is grpatly
helpful to the navigation westward of Java.

For some years past, it has been observed at
Batavia, that the commencement of the mon-
soons begins to be very uncertain, so that neither
their beginning nor their end can be depended \
upon with so much certainty as formerly ; the
cause of which has not hitherto been discovered.

Thunder-storms are very frequent at Batavia,
especially towards the conclusion of the mon*
soons, when they occur almost every evening.
They, however, seldom do much damage.

There are no large rivers in Java navigable by
vessels of even a moderate bprden, but many
small ones, which, flowing from the mountains
in a northerly direction, run into the sea, all
along the northern coast; they are, however,
mostly choked up at the mouth by sands or
mud-banks, which render their entrances, at low
water, very difficult to the smallest vessels.

On the bank, or bar, before Batavia, the flood

OK TUB IftLAKD OP JAVA. 21

rites *bout six feet, though at spring-tides, as
every where* it is more. High and low water,
likewise, only occur once in four-and-twenty
hours.

The productions of the island are considerable,
and of great importance to the Company ; more
particularly for the last thirty years, in which
period the cultivation of coffee and other articles
has been assiduously prosecuted and encouraged.

The chief produce is pqpper, which is mostly
grown in the western part of the island. This
spice is produced from a plant of the vine kind,
pper nigrum, which twines its tendrils round
poles or trees, like ivy or hops. The pepper-
corns grow in bunches close to each other. They
are first green, but afterwards turn black. When
dried they are separated from the dust, and
partly from the outward membranous coat,
by means of a kind of winnow, called a harp,
and then laid tip in warehouses. This winnow,
or harp, is an oblong frame, with a bottom of
iron wire closely twisted, so that the pepper*
corns cannot pass through it ; this is set sloping,
and the ungarbled pepper rolling along it, frees
itself from most of its impurities.

The empire of Bantam, with its dependencies
at Lampon, yield annually to the Company more
than six millions of pounds of this spice. This
pepper is esteemed the next best to that which

c 3 x

3f 0J? THE I3LMTO OF JJUVAi

coeoe* from the caasjt of Malabar, That from
P^lcmbaog, pfwfricb likewise a very consider*
able quantity is delivered tp tfoeCortpaay,** watt
^8 that of Borneo, is of a much inferior quality.

The price for which the king of Bantam is
obliged to sell all the pepper produced in his
dfcpiqioq*, is fixed at si* riidoHaro, or fourteen
gilders and eight stivers per picel of one hundred
apd twenty^ five polled** nearly two-pence half-
penny per pound- ,

It has been the epinip* pf many* that the
white pepper is the fruit #f platot distinct fam}
that which produces the bla£fc ; this, 'however,
is not the case; they are both the same pro-
dpctipn 1 but the white is manufactured by being
laid in lime, which takes off its outer coat and
renders it whitish. This i* done before the pep-
per is perfectly dry. *

Rice, oryza sahva, is tfce second product of

Java, ?nd is collected in large quantities, cBpCr
cially in the empire of Java pepper. It grows
, chiefly in low fenny ground. After it has been
sowp, and has shot pp about two or three band*
breadths above the ground, it is transplanted by
little bundles of.si& pr more plants, in rows;
tbep by 'daquittftg *ip the oa&y rivulets which
al^oqqd in thi$ country, the rice is inundated,! a
tbe rainy season, and kept under water till the,
sfaJk? h*ye attained sufficient, strength ; when

the land is drained* by opening the (feres, aarj
it is sopn dried by the great beat of the sun.
. £t the time of the rice-harvest, the fields b?v«
much the same appearance as our wheat and
barley fields, and afford an equally rich scene
of golden uniformity.

The pickle is not used in reaping the rice, but
instead of it a small knife, with which the stalk
is cut abqut a foot under the ear ; this is done
Que by one^ and they are then bound inter
shpaves, the tenth of which is tbe reward of the
slower.

fhp faddee, which is . the narpe given to thq
ricp whilst in the husk*, doc? not grow, like
¥)ieat and barley, in. compact ears, but) lik?
O^ts, in loose spikes. It is not threshed^ t%
separate it from the husk, bat stamped ip larg^
wooden blocks, hollowed out ; and thp pjore it
is ptapppgd the whiter it becomes* when hoiked*
<fhe na(iyje Indians throughout the EJ?st u§e thip.
gr^ip 93 bread, .an^ as thpir principal food.

Jpv^i. Ja^s been callpd the granary of the Eapt^
<W a^qcoijflt pf the *ippjnen§e quantity of rico
♦

* The following, besides many others, are ' names applied
to rice, in its different stages of growth and preparation : pad%
dUfy original name of the $e«d» msfy grain of Jast seasoa^
kmmuy (fee. rioelplaots Wore transRlw^oi V* <¥* *tfc

Wf<> boiled rice, &c. <t

c 4

» •

« » *

40 0* IW If LAND OF JAVA.

which it produces. The other islands in this
neighbourhood yield little or none, except
Celebes, where enough is grown to provide
Amboyna with this staff of life.

In the year 1767 the quantity of fourteen
thousand ton of rice was required, and fur-
nished, for the consumption of Batavia, Ceylon,
and Banda, from the island of Java.

Sugar is produced in large quantities in Java,
and brought to Batavia. The quantity of thir-
teen millions of pounds, manufactured in the
year 1768 in the province of Jaccatra alone, is
sufficient to show with what luxuriance the
sugar-cane, saccharum offictnarum y flourishes here.
Much of it is exported to the west of India, to
Surat and the coast of Malabar, and the rest to
Europe, Moat of the sugar- mills are kept and
worked by Ct4nese.

A fourth production of the island is coffee.
The plantations of it are, however, peculiarly
confined to the provinces of Cheribon and Jac-
catra, The tree, eoffea, which produces this
berry, was first introduted into Java in 172a or
17*3* under the government of the governor*
general Zwaardekroon, who greatly encouraged,
the cultivation of it among the Javanese. It is
so much multiplied, that in 1768 Jaccatra fur*
nished 4,465,400 pounds weight to the Com-
pany, who paid four rixdollars per picol, being

OH TKI ISLAND OP JAVA. 41

equal to about 141. $d. sterling per cwt. ; bat
other accounts make this article stand them in
the same proportion as the pepper, two-pence
halfpenny per pound, or about 1/. as. per cttt.:
the first is probably what is paid to the cultiva-
tors, and the last the invoice value, with the ad-
dition of the charges.

Cotton -yarn is likewise an important object of
trade, which Java furnishes to the Company.
It is spun by the Javanese from the cotton pro*
duced, in great plenty, in the interior parts.
The province of Jaccatra yielded, in 1768, no
more than 133 picols, or 16,225 pounds, which
was 1875 pounds less than ought to have been
delivered by the Indian*, according to the quota
imposed upon them ; but this deficiency was oc-
casioned by a season of uncommon drought, by
which the cotton crop had been materially in-
jured.

Salt, much of which is brought from Rem*
bang to Batavia, is also an article of trade for
the Company, who dispose of it for a handsome
profit at the west coast of Sumatra.

Another product is indigo, which is mostly
shipped to Europe. The culture of the plant
which produces this dye, indigefera tinctoria, is
prosecuted with vigour in the province of Jac-
catra. In the year 1768 the natives were as-

42 ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA-

sessed at 6 1 %$ pounds, though fbey paly fur-
wished 2875 pounds.

large quantities of heavy timber are also
brought from the north-east coast of Java to
Batavia- This is not, in reality, a branch of trade
for thp Coppany ; but it is of great importance
for ship-building, and other purposes.

The great importance of this islajad to the
Company is very apparent. • It produces some of
their jnoQt considerable articles of qonjorerce,
and provides the greater part of their Indian
possessions with food, . besides fijrnishipg mate-
rials for shipbuildipgt

The island is extremely abundant *n fruitr
trees* First is the eocoannt-pslm, poatf mvf*r*>>
which 19 well knpwn ; the jzifirtKCff, which yield*
the pa)m-wine, or toddy ; china-oranges, titruf
aiwmtium* pi which there are two sotfs, one of 3.

large, and the other of a smaller size ; the taiPflr
rind- J rep, {amarlxidus tydiffi, the fruit of which
consists in pods, coining thp tamarind, a-
fp^ngy substance, in which the beans or si ones*
are inclosed ; (he fompe\mo^i > or shaddock, cifrys^
'dfwmanus, \\\e ff pit of which i* most wbolesqqac,
op acpoiint Qf U* refreshing quality a»d tastp,.

It is a hi&r kff»9Pj of tbe «ze of % &M*.kwk*

the jpice is moderately ap;d, and qUfcwhs* tf|ir«t$;

it is coaling, antiseptic, and antiscorbutic. , i4 1

Next the durioon, or drioon tree, the fruit of

GUI THB ISLAJI* Of JAVA; 4)

which is incited 19 a hard shell, of the sfre of *
man* head, and spquetimes larger ; if has a qigtl
ibsagreeablf smell, which 19 extremely offensive
to those who have netrer eaten of it ; when once,
however, the fruit is tasted, the loathing which
Us odour is apt to excite is quickly overcome*
and use makes it, in the end, sp familiar, th&t
it is generally preferred beyond all ptber fruifo
It is a stropg stimulative, and is therefore much
prised by the Chinese. The tree is large and lofty 1
the leaves ate small in proportion, but in them*:
•elves long and pointed. The blossoms grow ia
clusters, on the stem pnd larger, branches. The
petals are five, qf a yellowish white, surroqndiqg
five bunches of stamina, each bunch containipg
about twelve, and each stamen having foqr an-
Item. The ppintal is knobbed at top. Wbe*
the stamina and petals fall, the empaleratot rpr
Fembtet a fungus, and is nearly the shape pf 9
Scotch-bonnet. The fruit is not unlike the bmdt
fruit, but larger and rougher on the outside. ft
has by some been confounded with the breadr
fruit. It is considered as diuretic and sudflrifi^
and serviceable in expelling wind;

The sursak-tret has a fruit similar to the fyrmny
but it is not accompanied by sush a fetid smell; \\
seems to be the jaws:*, pr jakes, pf Cook* and tbf
Ua nanca (radermachia) of Thuflberg ; or what if
commonly called the jack, by the English ; §|

44 ON TBI ISLAM OF JAVA.

Batavia, it is generally of the size of a large
melon ; its smell somewhat resembles that of
mellow apples, mixed with garlick; the outer
coat is covered with angular prickles, and eon-
tains a number of seeds, or kernels, which, when
roasted, eat like chesputs, inclosed in a fleshy
substance, of a rich, but, to strangers, strong
flavour, but which gains upon the taste.

The mango-tree, tnangifera indica, deserves
equally to be noticed ; its fruit, when ripe, is of
a thin, oblong shape, and about the size of a
goose's egg. Its coat is not thick, of a yellow
colour, and soft. When peeled, it has a fleshy
substance. Within it is of an orange colour,
like a melon, to which its flavour has some ana*
logy; but a good mango is much more deli-
cious. In the centre is a large kernel. When
green it is made into attjar (a common name
for all articles preserved in vinegar with spices) ;
for this the kernel is taken out, and the space'
filled op with ginger, pimento, and other spicy
ingredients, after which it is pickled in vinegar,
and is sent to all parts.

The msngo-tanges, or mangosteen, garctnia man-
gano$ia> is esteemed the most delicious fruit of
the Indies. It is generally of the size of an
apple, and resembles a pomegranate in appear-
ence, only it is larger and thicker, and its coat
fc not so tough. The fruit, when stripped of

Off TBB 1S1AJTD OF JkVA. 45.

the outwird rind, appears like a little apple, of
a snow-white hue, composed of six or seven
lobes, of the size of the joint of a finger, with
a black stone in the inside ; they are very soft
and juicy, and their flavour is delightfully re*
freshing beyond description. The taste ap-
proaches nearest to that of the peach ; but it is
rather more mellow. The tree is about the size
of that of a common plum. Some assert that
they have been cored of a dysentery of long
standing by eating large quantities of this fruit ;
though others are of opinion, that it produces
a contrary effect The rind has a strong astrin*
gent power, and might perhaps be used as a dye
for a fine deep red colour* The Chinese use
the rind of the mangosteen for dying black.

Lemon, citrus medic a > and lime trees, are in
great plenty, as is also a certain fruit called ka-
lappa f terminaUa caiappa, like our walnuts, but
better tasted. It grows upon a high tree, which
affords an agreeable shade, and is inclosed in a
green husk, where it lies in rolls, and is as white
as milk.

Fine-apples, bromelia ananas, are produced in
large quantities,. and are therefore little esteemed
at Batavia ; they are generally sold for the value
of a stiver (penny) apiece, and sometimes for
less.

Besides these, the. fruits most worthy of re-

itaark are the fisang, tw banaafcs* /to** fWdM-
mcdi of which thfere are several korts t the best*
pitang radjo, is delicious arid wholesmfce, with* ft
thin coat and an innet pulp, tvhich i* sWetighy
and sdmewhat meaty \ it Is eatdn* both raw ind
dressed ib various* ways. The farniwo, eugenid
mabcdtnsis > ia of a deep rtd cbldur and oval
shape) the largest net bigger thad a sfflal! appfc«
it is pleasant add cdolitig; though it ha* hot
JDaeh flav&m. The jamboo-epet^tiiduerj eugenid
jatnbosi both smells arid tastes like corisefvfe of
roses. The papaya, eatfaa papaya,' is as Urge a4
a small melon, and the yellow pttlp #lthin haS
nearly the same td&te. The sweetsfrp, dnnonA
tqmm$a> consists of a Mass of tetge kernels^
from which the surrounding palp, %hieh is very
sweet and mdaly, i^stidosd* Thfc^ustarttapiile,
tnnona reticulata, derived its Ertglish name front!
the likeness tvhich its white and rich puJp bead
tt> a custard. The ramfatton, nephcliutn lappateum %
grows in large dusters, and very much resembles
* chesnut with the husk on ; the eatable part is
small in quantity, but its acid is rich and plea-
sant, and perhaps ftott agreeable than aiiy other
In* the whole vegetable kltigdotiv The bititob'mgi
tverthoa hilimbi, the hilimbing bessd, axterrhoa cd*
tambofo, and the chetimelk % dvcrrbia acuJa, art
three species of one genus, and though they

differ ill shape, are nearly the aatoe in taste * the

*ft tat ittAtia o* javA. 47

first is oblong, / of tbfc thickness of a finger, and
so MOr that it cannot be eaten alone ; the bilim^
tbhg fosse is an egg-like pentagonal fruit, about
the size of a p^ir, and is the least acid of thfe
three ; the la&t is extremely acid, and of a small
roundish irregular shape, growing in clusters
close to the branch, and containing each a single
seed ; they all make excellent pickles and soar
Mace. The guava, psuftum, is well known in tht
Weftt Indies. Tb6 boa bidarra, rhamtms jujuba,
ife a found ydlow fruit, about the size of a
gctoseberty ; its flavour is that of an apple, but
ft has the astringency of a crab. The nam-nam,
syntmetra tauiijldra, in shape somewhat re*
iemMes a kidney ; it is about three inches long,
«nd th£ ofrtsidfc is very rough ; it is seldonk
eaten raft; The suntnl, trichifta, within a
thick skin, contains kernels like those of thfc
. toangosteetr, but which are both acid and astrin-
gent. The madja, lintoni, has, under' a hard
brittle shell, a lightly acid pulp, which cannot
be eaten without Sugar. The satac 9 calamus r&-
tang xahecci) is the fruit of a prickly bush, And
has a singular Appearance, being covered with
scales, lik* thoie of a lizard; it is nutritious and
well-tasted, ih flavour somewhat resembling 4
Strawberry. The fokksfokhs, solahufo metongeni,
h of ajWrpfc^blufc colour, shaded like a pear, and
Various kftfes i ft has art agreeable taste tobe*

48 ON THE ISLAND OP JAVA.

boiled* Water-melons, ar buses, are in great
plenty and very good. Grapes, melons, pomp*
kins, pro megra nates, and figs, appear to be the
only European fruits at Batavia, though straw-
berries and some others are said to thrive in the
interior parts of the country.

The native inhabitants are all commonly called
Javanese, whether they belong to the kingdom
of Bantam or to any other part of Java ; those
of Madura bear the name of their island. They
are of a middling size, and in general well-
proportioned, of a light brown colour, with a
broad forehead and a flattish nose, which has a
small curve downwards at the tip. Their hair is
black, and is always kept smooth and shining,
with cocoanut-oil. They are in general proud,
lazy, and cowardly. Their principal weapon is
iris, a kind of dagger, like' a small hunting-
knife, and which they always carry with them.
The handle or hilt is made of different materials,
more or less valuable, according to the wealth or
dignity of the wearer. The blade is well-
hardened # steel, of a serpentine shape, and thus
capable of making a large and wide wound. It
is often poisoned, and in that case causes imme-
diate death. Arrogant towards their inferiors,
they are no less cringing to their superiors, or
those from whpm they have any favour to expect.
Their dress consists in a piece of cotton, whicfc

OH THE ISIlAND OF JAVA. 49

thjey wrap round the waist, and drawing it
between the legs, fasten it behind. They am
otherwise naked/ except that they wear a small
cap. This is the dress of the common people;
Those of more consideration wear a wide Moorish
eoat of flowered cotton, or other stuff, and in
general turbans, iqstead of caps. Tbey suffer
no hair but that of the head to grow, and
eradicate it carefully wherever it appears else*
where.

The dress of the women is little better than
that of the men : it consists in a piece of cotton*
cloth, which they call saron, and which, wrap*
ping round the body, just covers the bosom,
under which it is fastened, and hangs down
to the knees, and sometimes to the ancles:
the shoulders and part of the back remain
uncovered. The hair of the head, which they
wear very long, is turned up, and twisted
round like a fillet, fastened with long bod*
kins of different sorts of wood, tortoise*
shell, silver, or gold, according to the rank or
wealth of the lady. This head-dress is called' a
tondi, and is also in vogue among the Ba (avian
Jadies. It is often adorned with a variety of
flowers.

The men and women are very fond of bathing,
especially in the morning. Children of both
sexes go entirely naked, till about eight or nine

XWC TH£ ISLAND OP JAVA*

years of age ; twelve or thirteen is their age of
puberty.

i The Javanese are polygamists; they marry at
many wives as they can maintain, and take their
female slaves for concubines. This, however,
ef course, does not occur with the common
people, who must be content with one wife, be*
cause they cannot afford tp keep more. The
*fomen a*e proportionally more comely than the
men, and are very fond of wtyte men. They
ace jealoufi in the extreme, and know how to
mate an European, with whom they have had a
Jove -affair, and who proves inconstant, dearly
ccpont bis incontinence and his fickleness, by
administering certain drugs, which disqualify
him for the repetition of either. People of the
utmost credibility at Batavia have related too
many examples of this refinement of female re*
Veng0, to render the circumstance doubtful.
..Their dwellings may, with greater propriety,
be called huts, than bouses. They are con-
structed of split bamboos, interlaced qr matte^
plastered with clay, and covered with at Lap, or
the leaves of the cocoa-nut tree. The entrance is
low, and has neither door nor shutter. The whole
house usually consists of but one apartment, in
which husband, wife, children, and sometimes
poultry, of which they keep a great many, pig
together on the ground. They always chooa* •

ON THE ISLAND W JAVA* . ^f

shady pjnce for building, of plant trees all
round. Such as possess more property, are pro-
vided with a little more comfort and conve-
nience ; but it is ahVayS in a wretched, paltry
manner.

Their chief food is boiled rice with a little
fish, and their drink watef. They do not, how-
ever, reject arrack, when they can obtain it.
They are almost cofltiritially chewing betel, 6r
ptnang, and likSwise a Sort of tobacco producecf
here, and therefore denominated Java tobacco,
which they also smoke, through pipes made of
reed : they sometimes ptit opium into their
pipes,' with the tobacco, in ofder to invigorate
their spirits ; but the continual use of it rather
deadens them : some, who have been too immo-
derate in this indulgence, sit like statue*, with
open fixed eyes, and speechless.

They have no tables nor chairs, but sit upon
the ground, or upon mats, with their legs crossed
under them. They neither make use of knives*
forks, nor spoons, but eat with their fingers*
They have a certain kind of musical instruments*
called gomgoms, consisting of hollow iron bowls,
of various 6izes and tones, upon which a~man
strikes with an iron or wooden stick ; their har-
mony is not disagreeable, and they are not unlike?
a set of bells.

p a

$% OK THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

Cockfighting, for which they keep a peculiar
breed, is a favourite diversion. Though never
so poor, they will sooner dispose of every other
part of their property, than their game-cocks.
They are, besides, obliged to pay a tax to the
Qraipany for these fowls; and this duty is yearly
farmed at Batavia, and forms part of the reve-
nues of the province of Jaccatra* In the year
1770 it amounted to about 35 /• tos* per
months it is, however, peculiar to that pro-
vince.

A kind of tennis-play is also a favourite di-
version among them, and they are very handy
and dexterous at it. They strike the ball
with their feet, knees, or elbows, whither they
choose, and receive it back; thus keeping it for
some time in continual motion, without its
touching the ground: the ball is generally of
the size of a man's head, hollow, and made of
matted reeds*

Their manner of salutation consists in touch-
ing the forehead with the right hand, accom-
panied by a slight inclination of the body.

The Mahomedan religion is predominant over
the whole island* Jt is said, that far inland, over
the mountains, towards the south side of the
island, some of the aboriginal idolatrous natives
are still to be met with. Mosques, or places of
prayer of the Mahometans, are- erected all over

ON THE ISLAND O* JAVA. 53

i the island; there is a very famous one near Cbe»

They are very particular about the tombs
of their saints, and will suffer nothing unbecom-
ing to be done upon or near them.

They have both male and female physicians,
who have been- known to effect very surprising
cures by their knowledge of the medicinal and
vulnerary herbs produced in their country. They
have sometimes greater practice among the Eu-
ropeans at Batavia, than those physicians who
have been regularly bred, and come from Eu-
rope; but they know nothing of anatomy. Much
friction of the affected parts, is one of their chief
means of cure. This is done with two fingers
of the right hand, which are pressed down by
' the left, and passed continually downwards, after
having first anointed the part with water mixed
with fine ground wood or oil.

For the purposes of agriculture, they use buf-
ftloes instead of horses, of which, however,
there are plenty, but of a diminutive size. The
buffaloes are very large animals, bigger and hea-
vier than our largest oxen, furnished with great
ears, and horns which project straight forward,
and bend inwards. A hole is bored through the
cartilage of the nose, and these huge animals are
guided by a cord which is passed through it
They are generally of an ash-grey colour, and
have little eyes. They are so accustomed to be

d 3

J4- 9V TH* Tfl-AND OF JAYA.

pondqeted thj-ee times a <Jay into the water, tqi
cool themselves, that without it they cannot b*
brought to work* The female gives milk, but
it is little valued by the Europeans, on stcqpqnt
gf i|s apripiowoua nature*

• r •

• .

OW *H* ISLAND OV J%*A. 55

CHAPTER IIL

Batavia. — The River of Jaccatra. — Water^fort. — s
Bar at the Mouth of the Ritor. — The Castle.—
Buildihgs in and near it. — Walls of the City. —
Gates. — Admiralty-wharf. — Quarter for Work-
men. — Churches. — Houses. — Chinese Houses. — ••
Massacre of the Chinese.— Assessment on Rents.
— Bank of Batavia. — Suburbs. — Chinese Cam-
fon. — Character of the Chinese. — Their Appear -
ance.— Dress. — Religion. — Temples. — Divina-
tion.— Tombs.— Environs of Batavia.— Roads,
— Streets.

The city of Batavia, styled the Queen of the
East, on account of the beauty of its buildings,
and the immense trade which it carries on, is
situated very near the sea, in a fertile plain, in
the kingdom of Jaccatra, upon the river of that
name, which, running through the middle of the
town, divides it into two parts.. To the north
of the city is the sea-shore ; behind it, to the
south, the land rises with a gentle, and scarcely
perceptible, acclivity to the mountains, which lie
fifteen or sixteen Dutch miles, or leagues, in*
land ; one of these, which is very high, bears,
the name of the Blue mountain.
In 16 1 9) the governor-general, John Pictet*

i>4

$6 ON THE ISLAND Of JAVA.

sen Coen, took the town of Jaccatra, tohich he
ift a great measure destroyed, and founded ano-
ther city, not exactly on the same spot, but very
near ir 9 to which be gave the name of Batavia,
though it is said, that he much wished to have
called it New Horn, from the place of his nati-
vity, Horn, in North Holland. Although then
an inconsiderable place, in point of strength arid
beauty, he declared it the capital of the Dutch
settlements in India: his choice of the situation
was so just, his plan so well contrived, and every
thing throve so fast under his care, that Batavia
rose with nparallelcd rapidity to that magnifi-
cence and importance, which have rendered it the
admiration and the dread of all the more east-
ern nations of the Indies; and which still dazzle
and overawe them, although the city has, for
these last fifty years, greatly declined, both as to
opulence and population.

The city is an oblong square, the shortest aides
facing the north and south, and the longest the
east abd west. Through the middle of it, from
south to north, runs the river of Jaccatra, over
which there are three bridges, one at the upper end
of the town, another at the lower part, near the
castle, and the third about the middle, and thence
called the Middle- point bridge. Two of these
are built of stone. Close by the middlemost is
* large square redoubt, provided with some

ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA, 57

pieces of cannon, which command the river,
both up and downwards.

The breadth of the rivef, within the city, is
about 160 or j8o feet. It runs into the sea,
past the castle and the admiralty-wharf. On
both sides of the mouth are long piers of wood
and brick- work, about 3800 feet in length,
taken from the moat of the city. The eastern
pier, which was repaired, and in a great mea-
sure rebuilt, a few years ago, cost the Company
36,218 rixdollars in timber, and 36,320 rix-
dolJars in masonry, making, at forty eight sti-
vers, /. 174,09 1, 4, about 16,000/. sterling; a
large sum, when it is considered, that the tim~
bcr costs the Company but little money, as it is
produced in abundance in Java.

The vessels belonging to the free merchants
ace laid up and repaired between these piers on
the west side ; but along the east side, the pas*
sage remains open for the lighters, which go in
and out of the city, with the cargoes of the ships.

At the outward point of the eastern pier is a
shed for the horses which draw the small vessels:
and boats up and down the river.

Opposite to this is a hornwork, commonly
called the Water-fort, built during the govern-
ment of the governor-general Van ImhofT, at an
immense expense to the Company ; for several
large ships were obliged to be sunk, on account

58 ON THE ISLAND OP JAVA.

of the depth of water on the spot, in order to
lay a good foundation for building the fort. It
19 constructed of a kind of coral-rock, and de-
fended by several heavy cannon * : within it are
barracks for the garrison ; and there is no other
approach to it than along the western pier. It is
at present very much out of repair, and the walls
begin to sink and fall in many places.

The objects for which this fort was erected,
seem to have been the defence of the road, and
of the entrance of the river ; yet in both thesef
respects it is now of little advantage, for the
anchoring-place is so far removed from this forti-
fication, by the increase of the mud-bank which
lies before the river, that, although its guns
might reach the ships in the road, little damage
eould be done on either side, at such a distance^ ;
and as to what regards the defence of the river**
mouth, that is of very trifling importance ; fof
the daily and continual increase of the bar

• In 1793, when Lord Macartney visited Batavia, this fort
lady mounted and dismounted, fourteen guns and two
howitzers.

t Ary Huysers, who wrote an account of the Dutch settle-
ments in India, in 1789* and had been at Batavia a few years
before, says, that in his time a trial had been made of the
heavy artillery at the mouth of the harbour, and that It was
found sufficient to command and protect the whole extern «f
the road.

.»

QH THE ISLAND Of* JAVA* gS

renders the water much too shallow for krgt
vessels, and an enemy would never seek to effect
a landing there, but would always prefer an
easy, firm sea-beach, such as is to be met with
beyond Ansjol *.

The above-mentioned bank or bar lies directly
before thp mouth of the river, and extends a
great way to the west, and but a little to the east;
for which reasons, such vessels as are deeply
laden, must go round by the east side, close
Along the eastern pier, in order to get within
the bar. It is continually increasing towards the
road, by which the place where the ships lie is
more and more remove^ from the city. To the
westward it is dry in some places.

Right before the mouth of the river, from
which the most shallow part of the bank it
distant about 600 or 650 feet, there is at low
water no more than a foot or a foot and a half,
so that a common ship's boat cannot get over it,
but must also go round its east end. When the

* At -Ansjol, and at Ttajoogpoura, la the eastward of tht
city, 00 the sea«coast, are strong forts, aad to the westward*
at Ankay, Tangorang, and the &wal. On the land-side, Ba»
Uvia is further covered by the forts at Jaccatra, the Watering*
place, Ryswick, &c. ; though these are merely defences against
the natives, and are most of them little better than fbrtiifaf
houses.

ON THB ISLAND OP JAV*.

sea-breeze blows fresh, it makes a troublesome
and cockling sea ; and a west or bad, monsoon,
seldom passes, without the loss of some vessels
upon it.

This shoal ness of the water is said to be the
consequence of a violent earthquake which took
place in Java in the latter end of the last cen-
tury, and by which the river of Jaccatra was
partly stopped up; yet the greatest increase of
the bank has been since the year 1730 ; and it
is to be apprehended that the river will in time
become wholly unnavigable and useless.

The castle, or citadel, of Batavia, which
forms the north boundary of the eastern division
of the city, is a regular square fortress, with four
bastions, which are connected by high curtains,
except on the south side, where the curtain was
"broken down during the government of Baron
Van Imhofil The walls and ramparts are built
of coral-rock, and are about twenty feet in
height. It is surrounded by a wet ditch, over
which, on the south side, lies a drawbridge.
Between the moat and the buildings within the
fort, on this 6ide, is a large area or esplanade.
In the centre of the buildings looking towards
the city, is a great gate and broad passage, with
warehouses on each side, leading to another
esplanade on the north side, inclosed between

CMI THE ISLAND OF JAVA. 6 1

the ramparts and the buildings, all which is ap-
propriated to the use of the Company *.

The government-house, which forms the left
wing of the buildings to the south, is provided
with numerous and convenient apartments, but
is at present uninhabited. In it is a large hall,
where the council of India generally assemble
twice ft week ; this is adorned with the portraits
of all the governors -general since the establish-
ment of the Company.

Close by is a little church, or chapel, usually
called the Castle-church; and somewhat more
forwards a guard-house, where a party of dra-
goons always mount guard.

Over the castle-bridge there is a great plain,
or square, planted with tamarind-trees, which
afford a very agreeable shade. The entrance to
it from the city is over a bridge, through a large
and stately gate. This is surmounted by a bold

do Parish'* account of this fortress, in Macartney'*
Embassy to China, 1 793, b as follows :— " A little above was
the castle ; a regular square, fort, but without ravelins or other
outworks. It had two guns mounted on each flank, and two,
or sometimes three, on each face ; they were pot en^arbette^
nor properly en embrasure^ but in a situation between both,
having both their disadvantages, without the advantages of
either. The wall was of masonry, about twenty-four feet high.
It had no ditch, but a canal surrounded it at sorne distance.
It had no cordon. The length of the exterior side of the work
was about 700 fcet"

I *

62 OH THE 1st AKi> Of JAVA*

cupola, from which riscfe an octagon turret,
conL* ; oing the only public clock to be met with
at Batavia. It was built under the government
*f B*ron Van Irohofif* as appears by an inscrip-
tion over the gateway, and formi no trifling em-
be H is h merit of the city.

On the left *fcb of the gate is a large buildings
ttsed as a gnafd-haose* having in fcont a long
gallery > resting upon a row of pillars, and where
a captain's guard of grenadiers is generally
posted* . :

On the west side of the sqaard stand tfoe
Company's artilhrry«house, and the dispensary,
or provision-magazine, both of whieh reach
back to the river-side, so that the goods are taken
in and oat of the lighters with the greatest ease*
This is ah advantage which is possessed by almost
all the Company's warehouses and repositories in
Battvia.

On the opposite side are the iron-magazine, and
what is termed the grass-plot, being the place of
execution for criminals: this is an artificial
square eminence, upon which are a gallows and
tome posts ; behind it is' a small building, yith
windows looking towards the place of execution,
whence the counsellors of justice behold the
completion of their sentences. It is customary
throughout Holland and its dependencies, for
the magistrates, or judges, who have passed

OH TH* ISLAKB OF JAVA* 63

sentence upon criminals, to preside at the execu-
tion of it. This is, in Europe, -generally done
upon some open place before their town-halls,.
from the windows of. which the magistrates*
dressed in thek robes of ceremony, behold the
execution. -

A number of pieces of artillery, iron and brass*
*nd of ail sorts and sizes, together with other
warlike implements, are ranged upon the plain*
Any one may ride through the gate just men*
tioned, as far as the drawbridge of the castlfl,

but not over it, unless be have the rank of senior
merchant.

The city Is, encircled by a, w*U pf coral-vock %
defended by twenty-two bastion*, or bulwarks,
all provided with .artillery, and surrounded by a
broad moat, in which there is seldom any want
of water, that being conveyed into it. from th*
river,

Batavia has five gates ; one at the east side,
which is called the Rotterdam gate ; two to the
south, the New gate, and the Die§t gate ; one
to the west, the Utrecht gate ; and one on the
north side, west of the river, called the Squan*
gate.

* Sir George Staunton says, that part of the town* wall it
constructed of lava, which is of a dark blue colour, of a very
hard dense texture, emits a metallic sound, and closely resemble*
jgne of dm lava at Ysumta.

64 ON TRB ISLAND OF JAVA.

Near the last-mentioned gate, and opposite to
the castle, is the admiralty- wharf; and not far
off, the warehouses for naval stores, as likewise
the workshops of the carpenters, coopers, sail-
makers, and smiths, wifh other offices connected
with the shipping. Here are also the houses of
the commandants and comptrollers of equip-
ment, who were formerly obliged to reside upon
the wharf; but for some years past this regu-
lation has not been observed, and they sow live
in more pleasant parts of the town.

In the south-east corner of the city, close to
the ramparts, lies the Ambagtskwartm, or the
workmen's quarter, in which all the mechanics
and labourers who are employed by the Com-
pany in their buildings, have their abode. The
journeymen work here under masters of their re-
spective trades, carpenters, smiths, plumbers,
braziers, masons, and others, who are all ac-
countable to the chief of the quarter, who is
called fafoiei, or head workman, and has gene-
rally the rank of merchant. Besides a great
number of Europeans who are employed here,
there are full a thousand slaves, by whom the
Company incurs an enormous expense, with
little benefit from their labour, which generally
turns to the advantage of individual members of
the government.

Within the city are three churches for the re-

f>tt THB ISLAUD OF JAVA. 6$

formed religion, in which service is performed
in the Dutch, Portuguese, and Malay languages;
And one without the gates, which is called the
feuter Portuguese church* Besides these a Lu-
theran church was built during the government
l>f Baron Van Imboff, not far from the castle ;
this is provided with a fine organ and a very
handsome pulpit.

There is a town-hall, with other public build-
ings; The houses are mostly of brick, run up
in a light airy riaanner, and stuccoed on the out*
side, with sash windows. Within they are al-
most all built upon a similar plan, the frdntt
being in general narrow, though there are a few
which are more extended.

On entering the door thrfre is a narrow passage,
and on one side a parlour ; then you come into a
large long room, lighted from an inner courts
which trenches upon this apartment, and renders
its form irregular. This is called the gallery,
and is the place where the family usually live
and dine. The floors are of large, square, dark
led stones. No hangings are to be seen, but the
walh are neatly stuccoed and whitened. The
furniture consists in some arm- chairs, two or
three sofas, and a great many looking-glasses,
#hich the Europeans, in these regions are very
fend €>(. Several chandeliers and lamps pre hung
in a row, along the length of the gallery, which

66 on the ithxvv or java.

•

are lighted op in the evening. The stairs leadic$
to the upper rooms are generally at the end of
this apartment. Six or seven steps up, is one
which stands over the store-room, or cellar, where
the stock of wine, hce^, butter, &c. is kept. Up
stairs the houses are distributed almost the same
as below. They are in general but poorly pro-
vided with furniture; and the setting out of
looms is not so much in vogue here as in Hoi*
land ; nothing is added, which is superfluous*
or more than is wanted for use. Behind the
gallery are the lodgings for the slaves, the kit*
chen, &c Few houses have gardens, and there
are not even the least vestiges of there ever hav-
ing been gardens. behind the houses* In several,
the windows are clo&d with a lattice-work of
aattaas, instead of being glased, for the sake of
air.

The above relates only to the houses of JSuro*
peans, which are the greatest in number. The
few Chinese who live at present within the city,
have very wretched houses, the inside of which*
is very irregularly distributed* They mostly
dwelt in the aouthern and western suburb^
called the Chinese Campon. Before the revolt .
of the year 1740, they had* the best quarter off
the city allotted to them, to the west of the great
river j but when, in that commotion, aU thai

ON THE ISLAKD OF JAVA* $f

houses were burnt to the ground * , the whole
quarter was made into a passar, or market, where

* The following account of this massacre! extracted from
a very recent and intelligent Dutch writer, Ary Huysers, who
was long resident at Batavia, may not be unacceptable.—" A
little before the perpetration of this massacre, several thousand
Chinese adventurers and fortunc-huntccs had resorted to Bata-
via, allured by the prosperity of their countrymen already
settled there. The great number of these new colonists, to*
getber with the robberies and murders which were committed
by them, excited no little degree of just apprehension. The
famous Van Imho&V who was at that time a member of the
couacil 9 proposed, in order to get rid of these useless and dan*
gerous new-comers, that every Chinese who could not prove
that he bad an honest livelihood, should be seized and trans*
ported to Ceylon* there to be employed in mining, or other la*
boux^ for the service of the Company. This advice was ap»
proved and immediately followed. • A great number of Chinese
were seized and put in Irons ; but imprudently several Chinese
of property were secured by the uoder-officcrs charged with
the execution of the order, and wen only liberated on paying
hige sums of money. This occasioned great murmurs, and led
the rest of the nation to credit a report which jras spread
abroad, that those who were unable to pay would be drowned
or otherwise put to death. They in consequence retired btf
thousands from the city towards the interior parts, and strength-
cued themselves so much as to tender the fate of Batavia itself
pgk^riou*. In this dilemma the council first offered an ana*
tttsty tp the discontented Chinese, but tbis'they rejected with
soosn i and purposing to exterminate the whole Christian settle-
POTt) begspi by ravaging the Opuntry in the wildest manner,
burning the sugar-works, and marching down to the gates of
the city. Here however they met with a severe repulse. The
jMMl military iahabkanw untafid in restating them, and

£ 2

68 ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

all kinds of provisions are now daily exposed to
sale.

drove them back again into the country. During these com*
motions the Chinese who resided within the town kept them-
selves perfectly quiet ; and in order that these innocent people
might not be exposed to insult, the government issued an order,
prohibiting them from leaving their houses alter six o'clock in
the evening* and ordering them to keep their' doors*shut. This
|>rudent precaution was not, however, sufficient to protect
them from the fury of the irritated soldiery and sailors who
were in the city, and had witnessed the devastations of the
Chinese without the gates. Suddenly and unexpectedly an
instantaneous cry of murder and horror resounded through the
town, and the most dismal scene of barbarity and rapine pre*
tented itself on all sides. All the Chinese, without distinction,
men, women, and children, were put to the sword. Neither
pregnant women nor sucking infants were spared by the re*
lentless assassins. The prisoners in chains, about a hundred
in number, were at the same tiftie slaughtered like *heep*
European citizens, to whom/ some of the wealthy Chinese bad
lied for safety, violating every principle of humanity and mo- '
fality, delivered them up to their sanguinary pursuers, and em-
bezzled the property confided to them. In short, all the
Chinese, guilty and innocent, were exterminated. And whence
did the barbarous order by which they suffered emanate?
Here a veil has industriously been drawn, and the truth witt
probably never be known with certainty. The governor*
general, Valkcnkr, and his brother-in-law Helvetius, were ac-
cused by the public voice of directing the massacre ; but it was
never proved upon them." It is remarkable, that, when Val*
kenier was afterwards condemned to imprisonment for life at
Batavia, among the numerous charges brought against him for
mad-administration during fab government, no notiat wa»

ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA. 69

The poundage, or assessment, which is paid
annually t>£ every house, consists in half a,
month's rent. This money is expended in drag-
ging and cleansing the canals, and in, repairing
the town-hall and other buildings belonging to
the city. Permission must be requested, every
year, of the Company's government to levy this
assessment in behalf of the city, which is seldom
refused.

The bouses aje not let by the year, but by the
month; the rents run from five to forty rix-
dollars per month. A good house, in an agree*
able situation, may be hired for twenty or twenty-*

taken of his presumed instrumentality in this dreadful mas*
sacre.

Much apprehension was entertained that this occurrence would
excite the indignation of the emperor of China, and deputies
were sent to bim the following yeaf to apologize for the roea #
sure. The letter written to the emperor on the occasion is
given at length by Huysers; the only remarkable circumstance
in which it differs from the above relation, is the allegation
that some Chinese within the city had set n>e to it in different
places, and were preparing to rise upon the Europeans; but
the extermination of the innocent with the guilty is acknow*
kdged, and attempted to be excused on the plea of necessity.
These deputies were agreeably surprised on finding that the
emperor calmly answered, that "he was little solicitous for
the fete of unworthy subjects, who, in the pursuit of lucre,
had quitted their country and abandoned the totnbs of their
ancestors."

* 3

TO ON VE ISLAKD OP JAVA.

fire rixdollars. A tixdollar, at Batavia, is worth
forty-eight stivers, or about 4*. 4*/. sterling.

The churches are repaired out of the duties
levied upon funerals.

A bank of circulation has been established here
for some years, which is united with the lorn*
bard, or bank for lending money on pledges.
It is under the administration of a director, who
is generally a counsellor of India, two commis-
saries, a cashier, and a book-keeper.

A fee of five rixdollars is given at the opening
of an account ; and stamped bank-bills, signed
by the director and commissaries, are delivered
for the money placed in the bank. Its capital is
computed to amdunt to between two and three
millions of rixdollars; between 435,000/. and
650,000/. sterling.

The suburbs of Batavia are remarkable oa
acccfant of their considerable extent, uncommon
•pleasantness, and great population. They are
inhabited by Indians of various nations, and by
some Europeans. The Chinese quarter is the
most populous, and seems itself a city, with no*
inerous streets ; yet their houses are mean and
small. It is crowded with shops, containing all
kinds of goods, as well those of their own ma-
nufacture, and such as they receive annually
from China, as what they buy up of those im-
ported from Europe. The number of the Chinese

ft* THX lit AUB OF JAVA.

mhb live both within and without the walls of
the city, cannot be determined with precision;
but it must be very considerable, as the Com*
pany receive a poll-tax from them of more than
40,000 rixdollars.

Every Chinese who has a profession is obliged
to pay a monthly poll-tax of half a dueatooo*
six shillings ; women, children, and those wh#
have no trade, are exempted from the tax ; . s»
that their number can only be guessed at They
are under a chief of their own nation, who is
known by the appellation of Chinese Captain %
be lives within the walls, and has six lieutenants
under him in different districts. A flag is hoisted
at his door, on the first or second day in every
month, and the Chinese, liable to the tax) are
then obliged tb come to him to pay it.

Like the Jews in Europe, they are very cunning
in trade, both in the largest dealings and in tb*
most trifling pedlary. They are so desirous of
saoney, that a Chinese will run three times from
one end of the city to the other, if he have but
the prospect of gaining one penny. In doing
any business with 7 them, the greatest care must
be taken to avoid being cheated.

Their stature is rather short than tall ; they
are in general tolerably square, and not so
brown as the Javanese. They shave their heads
#11 rouqd, leaving a bunch of hair 00 the middle

yi ON THB rSLAND OF JAVA*

of the crown, which is twisted with a riband*
and hangs down the back. Their dress consists
in a long robe of nankeen, or thin silk, with
wide sleeves, and under it they wear drawers of
the same, which cover their legs. '

In every house there is a niche, or place where
the image of one of their joostjes, or idols, painted
on Chinese paper, is hung up. Before it they
keep one or more lamps always burning, at
also a kind of incense, which is made into little
thin tapers. This idol is generally depicted a*
an old man with a square cap upon his head,
and a female, designed for his wife, by his side*
About an hour's walk out of the city, just be*
yond Fort Ansjol, they have a temple, standing
in a grove of cocoa-nut trees by the side of a
rivulet, and in the midst of most pleasant scenery.
The building is about twenty feet in length, and
twelve or thirteen in breadth. The entrance is
through a railing into a small area, and the?
into a ball, behind which is the sanctuary. In
the middle, just within the door, \s a large altar,
on which tapers made of red wax are kept burn*
ing night and day. There is also an image of a
lion richly gilt. In a niche behind the altar are
representations of an old man and woman, both
with crowns upon their heads, and about twp
feet in height, which are their idols ; and as they,
look upon their joostje to be an evil spirit, they

ON THB ISLAND OF JAVA. 73

continually supplicate him not to do them any
harm. In their adorations they prostrate them-
selves before him, and endeavour to express the
awe and reverence they entertain by striking
their head continually against the ground.

They likewise consult their idol when they arc
about any important undertaking. This divina-
tion is done by means of two small longitudinal
pieces of wood, flat on one side and round on
the other. They hold these with the flat sides
towards each other, and then letting them fall
on the ground, augur of the effect of their
prayers, and the good or bad result of their pur-
posed enterprise, by the manner in which they
lie, with the round or fiat sides upwards. If the
presage be favourable, they offer a wax candle
to their god, which the priest, or bonze, who
attends at the temple, immediately turns into
ready money.

In thjs temple I saw a Chinese, who let these
little sticks fall above twenty times before they
promised him success : he seemed to be but very
little pleased with these repeated evil prognosti-
cations, and shaking his head, at every time,
with a most discontented look, he threw himself
upon the ground, and thumped his head against
it, till at last the omen proved agreeable to his
wishes; and he then joyfully lighted a thick

74 OV THE ISLAFfD OF JAVA.

wax candle, and placed it upon the altar of bis
joostjt. '

Besides this temple, tbb Chinese have several
others, which arc tolerated by the government ;
but it is worthy of observation, that whilst the
practice of the most abominable idolatry is al-
lowed, the exercise of the Roman Catholic re-
ligion is obstinately prohibited.

The Chinese are of a very lustful temper*
They are accused of the most detestable viola*
tions of the laws of nature ; and it is even said,
that they keep swine in their houses, for pur-
poses the most shameful and repugnant.

Their tombs, on which they expend a great
deal of money, are partly built above, and
partly under ground. They are arched over.
The entrance, Which is made like a door-way,
is closed with a large stone, covered with en*
graved Chinese letters. They are to be seen irt
great numbers, about half an hour's walk from
Batavia, on the road to Jaccatra.

They visit the graves of their ancestors and re*
lations from time to time, strew them with odo-
riferous flowers ; and when they depart, leave 4
few small pieces of silk or linen, before the en*
trance, and sometimes boiled rice, or other vic-
tuals, which is speedily made away with at
flight.

The environs of Batavia are very pleasanti W>4

ON THE ISLAND OP JA*A. 75

are almost every where intersected with rivulets,
by which the circumjacent rice-plantations are
inundated, and fertilized in the proper season.

There are five principal roads which lead from
the city towards the country, and which are all
planted with high and shady trees.

That which runs to the eastward, to Ansjol
and the sea-coast, is laid along the side of a ri-
vulet, the stream of which running down an
imperceptible slope, is very slow, which makes
it resemble the canals in Holland. Both sides

of it are adorned with gardens; but they are be-
ginning to be neglected, save one or two, be-
longing to the director-general.

At no great distance from the sea-shore, whi-
ther this road finally leads, is an oyster-bed ; and
on the beach stands a house of entertainment,
which is resorted to by the Europeans, for the
purpose of eating this shell-fish.

The second road has the appellation of the
Mango-doa, from its having been formerly
planted with a double row of mango-frees. This
runs more south than the former one, and far-
ther inland. Along this road are likewise many
gardens, but they are not so splendid and plea-
sant as those which border and embellish the
road to Jaccatra; for there the finest picture
which can be conceived, presents itself to the
delighted eye, both with respectto the grandeur

76 OK THE ISLAND OF JAVA. ,

of the buildings and the elegance of the
grounds. Most of the houses belonging to
them, have their fronts towards the road, and
from the back rooms they have a prospect of the
river of Jaccatra.

This road is nearly two hundred feet broad,
and is closely planted with trees. I do not
know that I ever beheld a more delightful
avenue. It terminates at a small fort, which is
called Jaccatra, situated about half a Dutch
mile from Batavia ; and, though the road is con-
tinued to Weltevreeden, the country-seat of the
governor-general, and beyond it farther into the
country, it assumes on the other side of Jaccatra
the name of Goenong Sari*

The fourth is called the Molenvliet, or Mill-
drain, because part of the water of the great, or
Jaccatra river, is diverted through a channel
along this road, for the purpose of turning a
powder-mill, which Stands scarcely ten minutes
walk from the city. The road leads along the
canal, for full half a Dutch mile up the country,
and is equally adorned on both sides, with hand*
some houses and pleasant gardens. It then pro-
ceeds to Tanabang, where a large market is held
every Saturday, for all kinds of provisions which
are brought thither from the interior.

The fifth road leads through the Chinese Cam*
pon, also along a river, to Fort Ankay, and i».

On THE ISLAND OF JAVA. JJ

in likfc manner, bordered on both sides with gar*
dens.

None of these roads, nor any of the streets in
the city, are patfed ; the ground consists of a hard
day, which is made very smooth and plain ; only
in the city, along the sides of the streets, by the
houses, are stone footpaths, of about three or

four feet in breadth. The streets and canals are

•

planted on each side with large trees; generally
the onophyllum, calophyllum y and calaba, the eana-
rium commune, and some others which are still
more rare.

}8 ON THK ISLAND OP JAVA.

CHAPTER IV.

\ Government of Batavia. — Council of India.— G<*>
vernor- General. — Director- General. — Counsel-
lors of India. — Council of Justice.— Board of
Scheepens. — - Punishments. — Impalement. — *
Mucks. — >Orphan-Chamber.— Opium-Company.—
Chief of the Marine. — Commandant and Uppet
Comptroller of Equipment. — Vice- Commandant*
—Military.— Militia. — Ranks and Precedency.—'
Sumptuary Laws. — Clergy. ^-Coins*— Weights.
—Measures*

The chief government of Bat a via, and of all the
possessions df the Dutch East India Company in
Asia, is vested in the council of India, with the
governor-general at their head.

This council consists, besides the director-ge-
fceral, of five ordinary counsellors, including the
governor of the Cape of Good Hope, nine ex-
traordinary counsellors, and two secretaries.

Five of the extraordinary counsellors are go-
vernors of the out-factories of the north-east
coast of Java, Coromandel, Amboyna, Ceylon,
and Macasser.

This council determines affairs of every kind,
those which relate to the administration of jus-

OH THE ISLAND OP JAVA. 7f

lice, alone excepted* Yet in civil matters, an
appeal may be made from the sentence of tb*
council of justice, to the council of India*

All appointments and promotions to offices
are effected by the council of India, not except-
ing that of the governor-general ; but this must
be confirmed by the assembly of seventeen, in
the Netherlands. Ecclesiastical preferments, and
the appointment of the ministers of justice, pro*
ceed immediately from the direction in Holland.
In the council of India, the governor and dU
rector general, and the five ordinary* counsellors,
alone, conclude upon most matters which are
brought before them ; the other nine member*
are properly only assessors, who may give their
advice, but have no votes, except on war or
peace with the Indians, pardoning criminals con*
demned to death, in the election of a governor-
general, and in a few other important points*
The power and influence of this' body in the
Indies, are unbounded. It is the representative
of the state and of the Company, and millions of
Indians are subject to its sway. Kings and princes
are crowned and dethroned by its mandates.
* € I have been witness/' says Ary Huysers,.
" to the deposition of two powerful kings of
the Moluccas, and the hereditary prince of TV
dore. One of these died miserably in a little
village, near the .place of my residence, I saw

So 0N *HE ISLAND OP JAVA.

the venerable old man before bis death ; be was
deventy-two years of age. When I expressed
my commiseration at the deep humiliation he
had undergone, he answered with a sigh, in the
Malay language, pointing to heaven, ' It is the
will of God/ ••

The authority of the governor-general is zU
most unbounded; and although he is obliged fo
give cognizance to the council, and consult
them on some matters, he possesses a most ar-
bitrary and independent power in all : for thefc
are few or no members of the council, who do
not stand in need of his good offices, in some in-
stance or other, for example,, in order to obtain
lucrative employments for their relations or fa-
vourites*; and if this be not sufficient to make
them obey the nod of the governor, he is not
destitute of the means of tormenting them in
every way, under various pretences; nay, of

' * By the second article of the oath taken by the governor-
generat and counsellors of India, on their appointment, they
engage " never to receive any gifts or presents, directly or
indirectly, from any one under their authority; neither in
respect, or in the hope or expectation thereof, nor of any
advantage, favour, or other private consideration, either of
relationship, friendship, or otherwise, to appoint or cause to
be appointed, any other individual to an office, place, or
station, than such as they believe and find to possess the most
experience, the most integrity, the most fidelity, and the most
ability for the same. 9 '— So much do men regard* oaths 1

OK THE ISLAND OP JAVA. 8 2

tending them prisoners to Europe ; as was done
with respect to MM. Van Imhoff, de Haaze, and
Van Schinnen, in the year 1740, by the go-
vernor-general Valkenier *• As, therefore, those
who are immediately next to him in rank, de-
pend upon, and stand in awe of him, it follows
fhat the inferior servants of the Company feel
still deeper reverence, and tremble before him,
as in the presence of one upon whose arbitrary
. will and power their happiness or misery wholly
depends.

The governor-general usually resides at hit
country-seat, called Weltevreeden, about an
hour and a quarter's walk from fiatavia, an4
which is a superb mansion.

He gives public audience here every Monday
and Thursday ; and on Tuesdays and Fridays at
another seat, situated nearer to the city, on the
Jaccatra road. On the other days of the week
be is inaccessible to every body, and cannot be
spoken to unless on affairs of the greatest im-
portance .and urgency. Nobody goes thither
without having some business ; for it would be
taken extremely ill if any one were to pay a viait

* He was the personal enemy of those gentlemen, and so

tyrannically abused his authority, that when the council re*

fused to sanction this arbitrary measure, he surrounded the

council-table with a body of armed men, and thus command

Jfacai to assent to his wish?,

9t Otf THE ISLAND OP JAVA. >

of mere ceremony. The time of audience to
ftom six o'clock in the morning till eight. Every
one waits in the open air, in the court before the
house/ till he is called in by one of the body*
guards.

When the governor rides out, he is always ac-
companied by some of his horse-guards. An
Officer and two trumpeters precede his approach,
And every person who meets him, and happens
fo be in a carriage, must stop and step out of it
till he has ridden by. This humiliating homage,
£& weH as that paid to the edek heeren, or coun-
Sellors of India, as will be presently noticed, are
Squatty required from foreigners/ These cere-
monies are generally complied with by the cap**
fains of Indiamen, and other trading ships :
• f but/* says Captain . Carteret, who was at
fiatavia in 1768, u having the honour to bear
his majesty's commission, I did not think myself
at liberty to pay to a Dutch governor any homage
which is not paid to my own sovereign : it is,
however, constantly required -of the kingV
officers ; and two or three days after my arrival,
the landlord of the hotel where I lodged told me,
he had been ordered by the shebandar to let me
Know that my carriage, as well as others, must
stop if I should meet the governor, of any of
Ihe. council ;J*ut I. desired him to acquaint the
shebandar that I could not consent to perform

.»*^i-_ ^._Jk.

0* THE ISlA!f» OP JAVA., fj

any such ceremony; and upon his ihtfrnatmg
something about the black men with sticks/ who
precede the approach of these great men, I told
him, that if any insult should be offered me, I
knew how to defend myself and would take care 4
tofbe upon my guard ; at the same time pointing
to my pistols, which happened to lie upon the
table r upon this ; he went away, and about
three hours afterwards returned, and told me he
had orders from the governor to acquaint me

that I might do as I pleased/ 9 Since that time

•

the English officers have never been required to
comply with this degrading custom ;. yet when
they have been in an hired carriage, nothing*
has deterred the coachman from stopping and
alighting, in honour of the Dutch grandee,'
but the most peremptory menace of immediate?
death.

A company of dragoons always mount guar #
art WeUevreeden. He has besides some halber-
diers, who arc employed in carrying mes-
sages and commands, and who always at-
tend on the governor's person wherever he
goes. They are dressed in short coats of scarlet
cloth, richly laced with gold, and are next in
rank to the junior ensign in the Company's
service.

When his excellency entered the church, all
persons, both men and women, the counsellor*

F %

t4 OlfTHB I8I»AN» 0* JAVA.

qf India not excepted, stood up in token of re-
spect t but this etiquette was abolished upon the.
accession of R. de Klerk to the government in
2777, His lady receives the same honours, and
is equally escorted by a party of horse-guards
when she rides out

* The director-general, who is the eldest coun-
sellor of India, is the next in rank. The direc-
tion and control over the trade of the Company,
throughout alj India, and to Europe, together
with every thing relative to it, is exclusively
intrusted to him. The governor-general does
not in the .least meddle in these matters if the
director has ability for it.

Next in order are the ordinary and extra**
ordinary counsellors of India, Those who- re-
side at Batavia are also usually presidents of
different boards or courts. Every counsellor of
)ndia has likewise the correspondence with one
of the ouN&ctories allotted to him ; the general
himself has that of one or two settlements; and
no one is excused in this respect but the director,,
on account of his multifarious other avocations.

• Although every member lies under this obli-
gation, Jhere are but few who take the trouble
Vpon themselves ; most of them transfer it to
persons ,of a lower rank. .

r When a counsellor . of India, or his lady,
qpters, a church, all the men stand up, in the

ON TBI ISLAND OF JAVA. I j

same manner as for the governor-general, bat
the women remain sitting. On meeting one of
them in a carriage, every body must stop, riie
up, and bow to them, and stay till they are
gone by. When they go out, they have tWo
slaves, who run before thfem with sticks : othtr
people are allowed but one.

There are always two secretaries of the go*
vcrnment, who take down in writing the pro*
positions, or resolutions, which have been dis-
cussed in the council, and lay them before the
governor-general when the assembly breaks up.
He examines them, and gives directions what is
,to be made into decrees, and what is only to be
inserted in the. journals. The resolutions being
then drawn up in writing by the first secretary,
are again presented to the governor, who makes
such alterations in tjicm as he thinks fit ; and at
the ensuing session of the council they are read
over and approved.

The salary of a counsellor of India is a thou*
sand rixdollars per annum ; besides which ha
has six hundred rixdollars for house-rent, seven
hundred for his trouble in signing dispatched,
three hundred towards providing his table, to*
gether with a considerable allowance of pro-
visions from the Company's warehouses. Taking
•every thing together, he can reckon upon *
yearly income of four thousand rixdollars, 9]$L

$6 iOK THE ISLAND OF JAVA,

Jtesides the above, the first secretary has the
\ emoluments of making out the commissions,
. which do not amount to a trifle, especially when
m;? m appointments of governors, directors/ or
, commandants occur, who pay liberally for their
. commissions ; sometimes giving fees to the
amount of a thousand rixdoilars. None of them
can save any thing from this income, which they
amply want for their household expenses ; for
which reason they are generally, favoured with
the. government or directorship of an put-settle-
ment, after they have been three or foqr years in
; (the council*

n. , Xhf private secretary of the goverpor-geocral
is usually promoted to be secretary to the council,
ypon a vacancy. .

Thirty-si;*, or forty, clerks ^re daily employed

tin the secretary's office, which is next to the

: gpyernment-house, . in the castle, They . bare

for the most part the rank of junior merchants ;

. nevertheless they are not able, t$> carp moj$ tbaq

^ bare subsistence. r

u Justice is administered to the servants of the

t Company by an assembly, having, the appei)*-

lion of council 4>f; justice. .This body * by to

„ constitution independent of the council o{ Irtdia ;

vhuj, jps the. members of which Jt consists have

many wants *od wishes to. be fulfilled, tbay

likewise endeavour to be mm tfce iwntain-head

•f promotion and advantage ; and, a« well as all
others, follow the inclinations of their sovereign
ruler in all cases that ace hroi^ght before therp.
This council consists of a president, who ranks
next to the. junior counsellor of India, eight
ordinary members, and twpu&djutors, taken from
the Company's servants. Their salary is no
more than two thousand two hundred rixdollars ;
which is scarcely sufficient for the support of their
establishments : they are besides obliged to serve
.the office of counsellor of justice, for the space
of ten years, before they may be . candidates for
any other office. .

There are two fiscal s belonging to this council,
enc of which bears the title of advocate-fiscal,
4r attorney- general, but whose office relates onjy
to the persons iir the Company's .service. The
other is styled the water- fiscal, through whom
all indictments relative to navigation are made.
This was formerly one of the most lucrative
employments of all India, and it is still very
advantageous, though not so much as formerly,
because (he private trade is not so flourishing as
it was/in former times. The methods by which
-fortunes we*e jnade in this office will easily be
ebneeived by seafariqg people. The secretary of
tihe council of justice has .the rank of merchant.

The citizens and free merchants of Batavia,
* who, are, not in the Company's service, are ame r

&t OK THE ISLAND OT JAVA.

liable to a separate municipal court of justice,
being what is called the board of sehtepens, or
aldermen, who are eight in toumber, with a
president, who is a member of the council of
India.

To this court belong a sheriff, for the matters
which relate to the city, and a constable of the
territory of Batavia; both of which are very
lucrative offices, and are never bestowed but on
great favourites.

The punishments inflicted at Batavia are ex-
cessively severe, especially such as fall upon the
Indians. Impalement is the chief and most
terrible.

In the year 1769 there was an execution* of
this kind, of a Macasser slave who had mur-
dered his master. The criminal was led io the
morning to the place of execution, the grass-
' plot, and laid upon his belly, being held by four
men. The executioner made a transverse in*
cision at the lower part of the body, as far at
the os sacrum; he then introduced the sharp
point of the spike, which was about six feet
long, and made of polished iron, into the wound,
so that it passed between the back-bone and the
'skin. Two men drove it forcibly up along the
spirit, while the executioner held the end, and
gave it a proper direction, till it came out be*
tween the neck and shoulders. The lower en4

I *.

OR THB ISLAND OF JAVA, 8^

was next put into a wooden post and rivetted
fast, and the sufferer was lifted up, thus im-
paled, and the post stuck in the ground. At
the top of the post, about ten feet from the
ground, there was a kind of little bench, upon
which the body rested.

The insensibility or fortitude of the miserable
sufferer was incredible. He did not utter the
least complaint, except when the spike was
rivetted into the pillar; the hammering and
shaking occasioned by it, seemed to be intole-
rable to him, and he then bellowed out for pain;
and likewise again when he was lifted up and
set in the ground. He sat in this dreadful situa?
tion till death put an end to his torments, which
fortunately happened the next day about three
o'clock in the afternoon. He owed this speedy
termination of his misery to a light shower o£
rain, which continued for about an hour, and he
gave up the ghost half an hour afterwards.

There have been instances at Batavia, of cri-
minals who have been impaled in the dry season,
and have remained alive for eight or more days
without any food or drink, which is prevented to
be given them by a guard who is stationed at the
place of execution for that purpose. None of
the vital parts are injured by impalement, which
makes the punishment the more cruel and i6~
tolerable ; but as soon as any water gets into the

4)0 ON THE ISLAND ©V JAVA.

wound, it mortifies and occasions a gangrene,
which directly attacks the more noble parts, and
brings on death almost immediately.

This miserable sufferer continually complained
of intolerable thirst, which is peculiarly inci-
dent to this terrible punishment. Tjhe criminals
are exposed, during the whole day, to the burn-
ing rays of the sun, and are unceasingly tor-
mented by npmerous stinging insects.

About three hours before he died he was in
•conversation with the bystanders, relating to them
.the manner in which he had murdered his good
master, and expressing his repentance of the
•crime he had committed. This he did with great
composure; yet an instant afterwards he burst
out in the mo6t bitter complaints of unquench-
able thirst* and raved for drink, white no one
was allowed to alleviate, by a single drop of
-water, the excruciating torments he endured*.
* This kind of punishment, notwithstanding its
great cruelty, is asserted by many to be of the
highest necessity, in a country where a treacbo-
ro06 race of men, unrestrained by any moral prm<-
'Ciples from the perpetration of the greatest crimes,
perfortn the daily menial and household servictfs-
>of the Europeans. The slaves who cone from
Hthc island of Celebes, and especially the Bougi-
-nese, ate guilty of the most horrid murder*:

OH THR- 1BIAVD OP JAVA*

9«

most of (hose who ma mucks belong to that na-
tion*

These acts of indiscriminate, murder are called
ywcky because the perpetrators of them, during
their frenzy, continually cry out amok, amok,
which signifies iiff $ kill. When* by swallow-
ing much opium, Or by other means, they are
raised to a pitch of desperate fury, they sally out
with a knife or other weapon in their hand, and
kill, without distinction of sex, rank, or age,
whoever they meet in the streets of Batavia ; and
proceed in this way till they are either shot or
taken prisoners. Their intoxication continues
till death; tltfy run in upon the aims opposed
>to them, and often kill their opponents even
^lifter they are theib selves mortally wounded.

In order* if possible, to take them alive, the
officers of justice are provided "with a pole ten or
, 4 wclvc- feet in length, at the tad of which ts ,a
fcipd off fork, made of two pieces of wood, time
feet long, stuck on the inside with sharp ittfti
spikes.; this is held before the wretched object of
ipurtoft, wbo runs into it, iod is thus taken.

If be happen to fee mortally wounded* ht is
itaupediately broken alive upon the wheel, with-
out any form of trial, in the presence of two 6r
tbrep of the counsellors of justice.

It is remarkable! that at Batavia, where the
tUftifett&tf, wbte take© alive, are broken <m the

42 OTK ¥HB ISLAND OF JAVA.

wheel, with every aggravation of punishment
which the most rigorous justice can inflict, the
mucks yet happen in .great frequency ; whilst at
Bencoolen, where they are executed in the most
simple and expeditious manner, the offence is
extremely rare. At Batavia, if an officer take
one of these amoks % or mohawks, as -they have
been called by an easy corruption, alive, his re-
ward is very considerable ; but if be kill them,
nothing is added to his usual pay : such is the
fury of their desperation, that three out of four
are of necessity destroyed in the attempt to secure
them.

The orphan-chamber at Batavia serves at the
same* time for the whole of the Dutch possessions
in India. Every out-factory has, it is true, its
own orphan -chamber, but they must render ac-
count of their administration to that of the capt*
tal, and remit the effects which are not claimed,
or the heirs to which do not reside on the spot*
That of Batavia corresponds with the orphan-
chambers of the different cities where the cham-
bers of the East India Company are established.
These weeskamers, or orphan»chambers, are esta-
blishments which are dispersed throughout the

"United Provinces for the administration of the
estates of all who die intestate, and the appor-
tionment of them among the heirs.

* The board consists of a president, who i»«

OW THB XSLAVD tfp JAVA* 93

Qouoaellor of India, and six %veesmesters> or re-
gents, who are appointed by the council of India,
with a secretary, and a svwrn clerk. The capital
Stock remaining in the hands of the orphan-
chamber amounted, in the year 1 766, to about
120,000/. sterling.

There are several other courts, or boards, as
the commissioners of dikes or sluices, of bank*
ruptcies, a court of common pleas, a board p(
control over marriages, and others.

A company was established at Batavia, during
the government of Baron Van Imhoff, for the
opium-trade, which is still in existence. The
ttock is divided into shares of two thousand rix-
dollars each, on which half only has hitherto
been furnished, but the remainder may be re-
quired at any time; The dividends are unequal,
yet very large, and the shares sell at a high pre*
miuto ; they are generally in the hands of the
counsellors of India. The management of this
trade is intrusted to a director, who is a coun-
sellor of India, two acting proprietors, a cashier,
and a book-keeper.

Every chest of opium stands the Company in
two hundred and fifty, and sometimes three hun-
dred rixdollar?, and is delivered to the society
for five hundred, and sometimes more* On the
other hand, the Company is bound to sell this
drug to no other. The retail of it produces large

94 •» the i st Art d op Java.

profits, as eight or nine hundred rixdoHars, m&
more, are made of every chest The gain woatd*
he more considerable, if this monopoly could be
strictly enforced for the whole quantity of opium 1
consumed in the eastern parts of India ; but, not**
withstanding the Company have interdicted thi*
trade to their servants, and especially to*he sea-
men, upon pain of death, and have prohibited 1
the importation into any of their possessions; by
foreign nations, upon pain of confiscation of
ship and cargo, yet very great violations of these
laws are daily practised, on account of the im-
portant profit it affords ; by which the society
is much injured, although on jtheir part they d<*
all they can, on the arrival of ships from ther
Ganges, to* discover if any contraband opium be
on board : but those who engage in this illicit
trade, take too many precautions to incut much
risk of detection. The smuggling trade which
the English carry on in this article in the eastern)
islands, and by way of Malacca, is also ex-*
tremely detrimental to the society.

When any ships arrive in the road of Batavia,
from places whence contraband goods can be
brought, two of the members of the council of
justice, with the water-fiscal, and the provost-
marshal, are dispatched the next day/ in order
to Examine whether any prohibited wares are os
board) the examination, however, is only per-*

OH THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

sonally done by tfee last-named officer, who re-
ports the result to the others.
^ k" chief of the marine, or port-admiral, has
been established at Batavia since the year i j€t*
His rank is equal to that of a counsellor of In-
dia, but he takes place after the junior counsellor.
He has the same privileges ; has equally the style
of edelc hetr, and may be present at their assem-
blies ; but cannot deliver his sentiments, except
in matters relative to his department His chief
occupation consists in superintending the repairs
of ships, examining the ships' journals, signing
sailing-orders, and warrants for delivery of stores
to the ships ; and further, in keeping whatever
relates to maritime affairs in due order.

Upon this officer, follows the commandant and
tipper comptroller of equipment, to whom the
management of the stores is confided. He like*
wise superintends the discharge, loadipg, man*
ning, and furnishing the ships with provisions.
This is one of the most lucrative, but, at the
same time, most troublesome employments at
Batavia ; since he has had a head placed over
him, ' however, the emolument has greatly de-
creased, while the fatigue remains in its full ex-
tent. He is assisted l>y a vice-commandant, and
Under comptroller of equipment, who ranks as
post- captain* to whom be generally leaves the
superintendence of loading and unloading the

£$ #V TBI ISLAND 0* JAVA.

thips, and who supplies his place in cafes of
sickness or absence*

The Company have granted to these three
pfiicers as an emolument, the privilege of shipping
somp tons of goods, not contraband, by every
ship which sails to India, according to the size
of the vessels ; and if the ships* captaiqs do not
buy up these goods at a very high rate, they are
sure to find but scanty opportunities of dis-
posing of their own.

The commanders of vessels, with their lieute-
nants and mates, rank next ; the first equal with
merchants : in 1770 there were thirty-nine of
them who resided there, or commanded country*
ships*

The whole of the Dutch land-forces in India
are under the command of one head, who was
formerly styled captain-major, but has now the
title of brigadier, and ranks after the chief of the
marine. He has two lieutenant-colonels under
him ; one of whom has the command of the rot*
litary at Batavia, and the other at Ceylon ; there
are, besides, six majors, two of whom reside at Ccy-
lou, one on the Malabar coast, one at the Cape of
Good Hope, and two at Batavia : one of the last
is also chief of the artillery.

There is a regiment of dragoons, which serve
as a body-guard to the governor-general. The

Off THE 1»AH0 .Of ,**«*, 97

iqfottiy tvc divided into two battaKpos, and,**
quartered in the city and suburb*. , »

Beeves these regular troops, tfcere are two
companies called pmaists, consisting of mar*
chants* junior merchants, book-keepers, and
assistants. One company it called pennists of
the castle; the other, permists of the city. Tbo
former is commanded by the first secretary, of the
government, apd the latter by one of the .senior
merchants of tfoe castle, 'TJiey are. reviewed
once a year by the ; governor-general and conn*
fil ; and each company has a distinct uniform.

The other Company's servants are s^lao formed
into two companies ; one cotyps^s of the marine*,
mid others belonging to .the admiralty- wharfs
with the commandant and upper comptroller o£
fquipment at their hpf d ; the other,, of the work-
men of the ambagts kwartier, with thefabriei. In-
dependently of these, till the free inhabitants, or
citizens, are enrolled into two companies of horse
and of foot, which are 4on)otan4ed by a cquo*
•el lor of India, as eoJtoncl, aod mount guard
{very night qt the town-hall.
: AH the practitioners of surgery are subordinate
fc> a chief, who h*s the poptrol, pver alt the sur#>
yeonq and-snrgeon's mates as well on board ship*
as in the hospitals ; and who has the rank 0$
^pm^r merchant. , • s9

,.Ewy if^YiduftJ.MJS atif «id } fonnat gad,j|

flJYeefingfy/afftte* to every infraction of his privi*
leges in respect to precedency, especially in patv
Be Companies, as if his happiness or misery de-
pended Wholly opori their duo observance. K#~
thiftg is more particularly attended to at ehtetw
teinments, by the master of the House, than*
(he seating of every guest, and drinking th^if
healths, in the *xact order of precedency.
The' ladies most tenaciously insidt upon evtety
£retogative attached to tfc station of thett
husbands : some of them, if they conceive them J
selves plffced lower than they are entitled to, wilt
fat ihsulten and proud -silence during the 'whole
entertainment: ft does not infrequently happen,
thai two ladies e^ 1 equal rank meeting* efcdK
<Jther in their fcarmges, neither* tffll give way/
ifct/righ they may be forced to refrain for hours in
tifcJstreet. - - ■ ••

7 To provide Against thesfc disputes on the suIn
jefct of precedency, the respective ranks of all the
Company's servants were ascertained by a tttolu-
£on af governmetft, which was renewed in 1764*
and a regulation respecting the pomp of fanera*
^fceselons was added to it, which is still in
tdttt. Regulations wete likewise introduced
^ith respfect to dress during the governibent 4f
ftte governor-gerieitol Mossd ; by which persons 1
of a certain condition were alone allowed to weal*
ttobroidered^ ; ot^4aced clMfaiesr hvk this -is

|iMe attended to at present* tot almost e+fery one
who chooses drtfeses' id this forbidden -finery.
•Velvet coats are bowetdr not ctoirttnofi, Jind they
are absolutely prohibited t<fc be Weirfr by any
under tfte Yadk of senior teefeherit Tto* act by
-which ttfcfe regulation* wer* established, is com-
posed bf ft hundred arid .thirty-one attkto* It
etrtcra tofo the fbftat minute detail>ie*}fcdt}ng.tte
carriages, horse*, chliips; servants,' dn&t, 'fee* erf
the Company'* sefv^nH, and exhibits a utmnge
pfctttre *f m*amieW aild itltberaliiy. fy tbe ftk
art id*, "little chaises' for children, dra*r>by tht
handjIntiBt not be gilt Or paiftted, b«t io« tbife
etf^^rdptfrtlon of th« rtrtik of ttj* pqrttfttit By
the 3 ftrf* tto one inferior to a merobafcr ! st&tfiMp

a p4flatitt<dr^iihbfe)1a in thd neigh bo%*fe<*d df
the '*a*tfo| «XQepl when ft tarn* L4dN» whose
iiiflteoA- ^belo^tbe rtlttt of «Whl#lll>rt (rf
JndW, ittty ttbtwear a f > c* M inteje welf ti£ gwutffcr
▼aloe tfiafr six thousand riadollart;: wivea dC
seizor mfcrrfiante are limited to four thousand^
trfhers to three add one thousand. Article 49th
permits kdies of the higher ranks to go abroad
with thtde fetaale attendants, who* tnay wear*
M ear-rings of single middle sized diamonds, goM
-hair-pins, petticoats of gold, silver, or silk cloth,
jackets of gold or silver gau£e, chains of gold*
or beads and girdles of golcj, but neither pearls
nor diamonds, nor any other kind, of jewels* id

ICO ,0* THB IfLANP 09 J ATA.

the hair." • Wives of inferior mesehftats **y
have two, and ladies in an inferior station one maid*
who may. wear " ear-ring* of small diamonds,
gold hair-pins, a jacket of fine linen, and a
chintz petticoat, but no gold nor silver stuffy nor
silks, jewels, real or artificial pearls* nor aoy or-
naments of gold." By .article 65, none, but perr
aons Of the. highest rank, are allowed to have
Irampejts, clarions, or drums among the music
with which it is customary to entertain guests
during dinner. There is a wise recommend**
4ion in the 83d article, to the officers of the.
.Company in Bengal, not to surpass their precje-
frissocr if* pomp of dress nor, appearance* .jui^esr
ftecklUy not the governors or chiefs of the other
^Eitmpean settlements. ( JPedfeps the 1,1 «th article
is the oust curious of all It allows to the di-
rector at Snrat, jwhen* bo 1 goes in .jfetR Among
-other things* fiw* fan*; njade jraorcfog totfc
fashion of the cottBtty* with the {fathers of
birds of paradise, and cow-hair, \yi*h golden
cases and handles. It likewise fixes the duties
to be paid upon all carriages, horses, ice. It is
-worthy of observation, that those upon carriages
increase downwards from the higher to the lower
rinks : members of the. government pay 50 jrix*
dollars per annum ; captains of tbe military, mer-
chants, &c. too; junior merchants, &c J25;
book-keepers, &c* 1 80; citizens of no.^sial xagkj

Q£ THB ISLAM CT fATAS IOI

n^nativethbabitantsof considcntikm, mo; and
£be common natives, 500 rixdollars for keeping
carriages. Fines are the jtenalties attached to the
infraction of almost all these sumptuary regular
dons.. -' :

There may be twelve clergymen of 1 the re*
formed religion at Batavia, six of whom preach
in the Dutch* four in the Portuguese, and two
In the Malay languages ; likewise three Lutheran
ministers* who preach in Dutch* .

Ser? ice is performed every Sunday in the
above languages; in Dutch at two churches in
the morning, but only at one in the afternoon.
An examination of catechumens takes place
every Wednesday evening. So that, upon the
whole, these reverend gentlemen need not com*
plain, when their number is complete, of too
severe labour. The morning service com*
m ences at half past eight o'clock, and is ge-
nerally over by Jen, when the greatest heat of
the day begins.

Ecclesiastical disputes are never heard of here.
The Company's government, who are. extremely
anxious to avoid every thing which could in*
terrupt the public tranquillity, would soon ter*
minatc the quarrel by the summary argument of
force. \

! It is jnujch to be wished that, upright and
teamed dergymen ( wcte alone sent out; yet that

S*ft OIT THB IIIAVd OF JAVfe

this is not ahvay* the case, appears from a *€*•»
frtipn of the government in the year 17 63,
earnestly requesting that the assembly of seven*
teen would dispatch some ministers of the Gospel*
possessed of virtue and learning, to Batavia,. with
en augmentation of salaried and emoluments.
Their salary was the? one thousand eight hunt
drod . gkldiTS per annum ; but with their allows
ances tor house-rent^ boaTd* &c. they could
reckon upon thtee thousand, about $75/. 1 which
is certainly not enough to live upon at Batavia
with a family, and on an equal footing with the
fenior merchants.

Once in every year, or sometime* only* onoe in
tiro years, one ofthe clergymen of Batavia goes
upon a visitation to the Company's possession*
on the west coast of Sumatra. Some 'Of* them
. well know how to turn such 'occasions to the ad*
vantage of their pockets, by taking with them at
touch merchandise as they can find room for*

The coins current at Batavia are the milled
Dutch gold ducat, jrortb six gilders and twelve
Stivers 1 the Japan .gold ttmpangs, of which the
old go for twenty-four gilders, and the new for
fourteen gilders and eight stivers : the SpftoisH
dollar or piaster rises and falls socketing 46 the
^ quantity in circulation, or the degree of demand}
lis value ip generally between kittjMhree and
«Kty*i$ jtfiwss ; the miitad silver dncatoon,

OK THB ISLAND QF JAV*,,

which is the current coin of the Company through-,
Qut their possessions, except on the cQntinent of In*
dia ; its proportionate value according to the other,
coins is sixty-six stivers ; but in Indian money,
it goes for eighty, at which rate it is current at/
Batavia ; at the Cape of Good Hope it is worth
seventy- two, and at Cochin seventy- five stivers :.
the unmilled ducatoon is two stivers less at B*«
tavia : the milled Batavia rupee, called the silver,
derham cTJava, which was formerly coined at.
Batavia, is made good in the Company's books at
twenty- four stivers, and in circulation it is takea,
at thirty ; it is the only rupee which goes for so,
much at Batavia, and is current at Amboyna*,
Banda, Ternate, Macasser, and Malacca, at the ,
same rate, but on the coast of Malabar it is eight
per cent less in value than the Surat rupee : all
cAher rupees generally go fof twenty-seven'
stiyers ; the Persian rupees are the most current ;
there are also half anej quarter rupees in circula-
tion. The smaller coins are skillings, dubbtlljes, '
or twoptfnny- pieces, and doits: there are two
sorts of shillings ; the old, which are current in.
Holland, go for si$ stiver^ but the new, here
called sh^p-skilltngSt, are wofth seven and a half:
twopenny-pieces which are old and worn go far'
two slivers, but th* new for two stivers and a
half : no other doits are taken in change than
those stamped with the mark of the East-India,

•4

104 Ok THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

• • • #

Company, and these are equal to a farthing.
The rixdollar, which is the money used for'
accounts in private trade, is worth forty-eight'
stivers ; thus, three new or milled ducatooos arc
equal to five rixdollars*.

Most merchants* goods are calculated at Bat*,
via by pifols of one hundred and twenty- five
pounds, Amsterdam weighty ; and these are sub-
divided into a hundred cattis, each weighing onq
pound and a quarter.

Rice and other grain is measured by cqyangs,
which differ in weight* On the receipt of the ,
rice by the Company at Java, they must weigh
three thousand five hundred pounds. They are
shipped at Batavia for three thousand four hun-

. «

* The following is i table of , the value in sterling money
of the above coins at the par exchange of f.\% per pound i
tiz.

j&, u J.

The old Japan gold eoupang /»4 o or i 3 7|

The new ditto 14 8 1 6 a|

The milled Dutch ducat 6 14 . o 1% o

The silver milled ducatoon 4 <* 9 7 5$

The unmUled ditto J 18 071

The Spanish dollar from 3 3 • S 8|

to S^ 060

The rixdollar a 8 -9 4 . 4i

The Bauvia rupee 1 ior 9 * 8j ,

Other rupees, about 1 f o % $\

f Ricaud, in his Trair i de Commerce makes theytffWat Ba*t
favia equal to 1 iS|/4. Amsterdam weight.

OK THE ISLAND OP J AT A. ' I^J

dred, and landed there for three thousand thret
hundred. The warehouse* keepers dispatch them *
for the out-factories for three thousand two
hundred; where they are unloaden for three
thousand one hundred ; and finally, they are de*
Mvered for consumption for three thousand pounds
at the ont-factories, namely, those which receive
their rice from Batavia, as Malacca, the Cape of
Good Hope, Ceylon, the western coast of Su-
matra, &c: thus every coyang loses five hundred
pounds in weight. This deficiency is an allow-
ance which is made to the Company's servants,
who respectively have the management of the
rice; for instance, for every 3300 received at
Batavia, the warehouse- keepers are only bound
to deliver 3200, &c. Out of this difference
they must make good all loss by dust,
tec. and what they can keep over is a per-
quisite to themselves. Similar allowances
are made on most of the goods in which the
Company trade, and they are all fixed by a reso-
lution of the council. They form a very material
part of the income of the Company's servants ;
who, however, are bound to sell again to the
Company what they have gained in this way,
of all spices, coffee, saltpetre, japan, copper,
and tin; the other articles they are allowed to
dispose of as they please.

Sugar is taken by canasters of three ficols, or

l«A ON TH* IILAHD OF JAVjfc*

three hundred and seventy-five pounds neat eacht^
the gross weight is about four hundred, or four
hundred and five pounds.

The ganimg is a small rice-measure, of thirteen
pounds and a half in weight.

Every bag of coffee shipped from Batavia to
Holland, weighs two hundred and fifty-two*
and a bale of cinnamon eighty pounds*

mt tire islam* ov jata* Soy

CHAPTER %

European Mode of Living at Batavia.— Women.—
Their early Marriages. —Complexion. — Temper.—
Manners. — Education of Children. — Bathing.—
Excessive Jealousy of the Indian Ladies.— Cruelty
to their female Slaves.— Short Widowhoods.—
Dress. — Diversions.— Carriages. — Norimons.—
Carts drawn hy Buffaloes. — Management of the
Company *s Trade.— Senior Merchants of the
Castle.— Warehouse- keepers.-- Commissaries at the
Warehouses.— Exportation of Gold and Silver to
India.— Decay of Batavia by Increase of private
Trade.— Province of Jaccatra. — Imports at Ba-
tavia. — Islands of Onntst—De Kuiper — Purtne*
rend — Edam*

JStrBOFEAVf, whether Dutch or of any other
nation, and in whatever station they are, live
*t Batavia nearly in the same manner. . Jq
die morning, at five o'clock, or earlier, when tbf
day break*, they get up. Many of them then sit
*t their doors ; others Stay in the house, with
jwthing but a light gown, in which they sleep*
^browb over their naked limbs ; they breakfast
«po» coffee or teaV afterwards dim, and ft
•boot 'whatever biteiness they may have. Almost
altwbolbavt any .jltee ot employment must to

ioS

air xhiisuut* or Java*

at their proper station by eight o'clock, and they
remain at work till eleven, or half past. They
dine at twelve ; take an afternoon's nap till four,
and attend to their business till six, or take a
ride out of the city in a carriage* At six o'clock
they assemble in companies, and play or con*
verse till nine, when they return home : whoever
chooses to stay supper is welcome ; and eleven
o'clock is the usual hour of retiring to rest* Con-
vivial gaiety seems to reign among them, and
yet it is mixed with a kind of suspicious reserve,
which pervades all stations and all companies,
and is the consequence of an arbitrary and jea*
lous government. The least word which may
be wrested to an evil meaning, may bring , on
very serious consequences, if it reach the ears of
the person aggrieved, either in fact, or in ima-
gination. Many people assert, that they would
not confide in their own brothers in this
country. j

No women are present at these assemblies;
♦hey have their own separate companies. . j

Married men neither take much concern, ntir
dhow much: regard, for their wives. They aeldom
Atorierse with them, at least on useful subjects,
of on such as concern sbciety. After having
b$eh married for. years, the; ladies are* oftea^
therefore, a»i ignorant of ifci world and of
mabnere, ar tipon tbeir WOfl^pgMiay. Jtfenot

0* TMLXUKttXVjM J*TA^ > top

that they have no capacity to learn, but the. men
have no inclination to. teach..

The men generally dress in the Dutch fashion*
add often wear black.

As soon as yon enter a Jhouae, where you in-
tend to stop for an hour or more, you are desired .
by the master to make yourself comfortable, by
taking off some of your clothes, &e. This is done
by laying aside the sword, pulling off the coat and
wig, for most men wear wigs here, and substi-
tuting for the latter a little white night-cap,
which is generally carried )in the pocket for. that

porpqfC. ,1 ^ mi:

- Wfoq they gO qtt «»; foot, they are attended:
by a slave, who carries a suivshade, samhed or*
pffangy over their heads ; hut whoever is lofter
in rank than a junior merchant may not have at
slave .behind him, btkt imdst carry the samirsd
himself.

Most of the white women at fiatavia are bom
in the Indies, Those who come from Europe at
a marriageable age are very few. They ate
either the offspriog of European mothers, or of
oriental female slaves, who having first been-
mistresses to Europeans, have afterwards
been married to tbcuv aQ d been converted
to Christianity, or at least have assumed
the name of Christians. . The children of
these marriages may be known to the third and

•/

rra ok rm aauLwo nw jav** *

fourth generation, especially by the eyes* wbWf
are much smaller than 1 in 'the Mnmiaed progeny*
Qf Europeans. . . ,

There are likewise children who ate- the off*
spring of Portuguese; but these never become
entirely white. ...-*.

Children born in the Indies art nicknamed

■

kftlafu by the Europeans, although berth parents
may have come from Europe.
• Girls are commonly marriageable at twelve or
thirteen years of age, and sometimes younger;
It seldom happens, if thpy are hot tolerably
handsome, have any money or expectations, OU
are related to people in power, that they are Un-
married alter that age. >- »• ' •>• " /
As they marry while tbey ate yfct children, -Jtt.
may easily be conceived, that they do w* possess*
those requisites which enable <a woman to T»i~
nage a family with propriety. Many of the w
can neither read nbr write, nor posted* any ideas
of religion, of morality, nor of social intfc*-

Being married so young, they seldom bear
many children, and are old women at thirty
years of age. Women of fifty, in Europe, look
younger and freshes than those of thirty at
Batavia, They are in general of a very delicate
make, and of an extremely fair eomptation t
hat the tint a of vttmilion which cfcbeltish on*

6* *fai t&AKD OF JAtiU fct|

northern ladies, ' am wholly banished thck
eheeks ; the skin of their face and hands is of
Ae most deadly pale white* Beauties must not
besought amongst tbem; the handsomest would
scarcely be thought middling id Europe.
• Thfcy have very supple joints; and can ttini
(heir fingers, hands, and arms, in almost every
direction ; but this they have in common witb
fiie women in the West Iudted, and in othet tro-
pical climates.

They are commonly of a listless and lazy tern*
per ; which is chiefly to be ascribed to their edtfi
tation, and the number of slaves of both aextfft
they always have to wait upon them. r

' They rise about half past seven 6r eight
b'clock in the morning ; spend the forenoon kt
playing and toying with their female slaves, whb
ire never absent, and in laughing and talking
with them, while a few moments afterwards they
Irfll have th4 poor creatures whipped unmerct
fully, for the merest trifle. They loll in a loos*
tad airy dress upon a sofa, or sit upon a loir
atool, or upon the ground, with their legs crossed
under them. They chew pinang, or betel, with
wKch custom all the Indian women are infktu*
%ted ;' they likewise masticate the Java tobacco,
*hich makes their spittle of a crimson cblour ;
knd when they have done it long they' get a
tfttck bolder along their lips, their teeth become

lift OK TRB JS&ANP Of

black, and their mouths very cfaagreeaj^
though it is pretended that this custppn puri&ft
the mouth, and is .a preservative against ifa
tooth-ache. ., i

As the Indian women are not deficient in u&e
del-standing, they would become very . ttffful
members of society, endearing wives, am} gpgf}
mothers, if they were but kept frpm £unitia?ifjf
with the slaves in their infancy, and educated
under the immediate eye of their . parepts, wjio
sfeould be aqsidupus. to inculcate in their tpqdec
iBiojk the principle of true morality and pplishsd
jnauner^ But, alas ! the parents are far frpni
taking such, a burdensome task upon themselves,
A* soon as, the child is born tbey a)>andpn if to
Ahe care of a female slave, who generally 9uckfa$
and rears it till it attains the age of nine or te^
years. These nurses are often but onp removj?
above a brute, in point of intellect; and thf
little innocents imbibe with their milk all tip
prejudices and superstitious notions which dis*
grace the minds of their attendants, and w^ich
are never eradicated during the remainder , of
their lives. . ,

They are remarkably fond of bathing and
ablutions, and make use for this purpose of a
large tub, which ^olds three hogsheads of watff*
and in which they immerse their, whole body at
least twice a week. Sojpe do thi§ ip \h$ flM£RF

OK THB ISLAND OP JAVA; 1 1 3

ing in one of the running streams out of the
city.

In common with most of the women in India,
they cherish a most excessive jealousy of their
husbands, and of their female slaves. If they
discover the; smallest familiarity between them,
they set no bounds to their thirst of revenge
against these poor bondswomen, who in most
cases have not dared to resist the will of theit
masters, from fear of ill treatment.

They torture them in various ways ; they
have them whipped with rods, and beaten with
rattans, till they sink down nearly exhausted :
among other methods of tormenting them, they
make the poor girls sit before them in such a
posture that they can pinch them with their toes
in a certain sensible part, which is the peculiar,
object of their vengeance, with such cruel inge-
nuity that they faint away by excess of pain.

Instances of the most refined cruelty practised
upon these wretched victims of jealousy, by
Indian women, and which have been related by
witnesses worthy of belief, have been recited,
but they are repugnant to, every feeling of hu-
manity, and surpass the usual bounds of credi-
bility.

Having thus satiated their anger upon their
slaves, their next object is to take equal revenge

114 ON THE ISLAND OP JAVA.

upon their husbands, which they do in a manner
less crucl"and more pleasant to themselves.
' The warmth of the climate, which influences
strongly upon their constitutions, together with
the dissolute lives of the men before marriage,
are the causes of much wantonness and dissi-
pation among the women.

Marriages are always made at Batavia on
Sundays, yet the bride never go^s abroad be-
fore the following Wednesday evening, when
she attends divine service ; to appear sooner in
public, would be a violation of the rules of de-
corum.

As soon as a woman becomes a widow, and
the body of her husband is interred, which is
generally done the day after his decease, if rich
she has immediately a number of suitors ; but
the laws do not allow a re-marriage till the ex-
piration of three weeks.

Their dress is very light and airy ; they have
a piece of cotton cloth wrapped round the
body, and fastened under the arms, next to the
skin ; over it is a shift, a jacket, and a chintz
petticoat; which is all covered by. a long
gown or kabay> which hangs loose ; the sleeves
come down to the wrists, where they are
fastened- close with six or seven little gold
or diamond buttons. When they go out in

019 THE ISLAND OP JAVA. il$

rtate, or to a company where they expect tli<5
presence of a lady of £ counsellor of India,
they put on a very fine (nuslin kahay, made liktf
the other, but hanging down fo the feet, while
the first only reaches to the knees. When they
invite each other, it is always subject to the
condition pf coming with the long or the short
kabay. They all go with their heads uncovered :
the hair, which is perfectly black, is worn in a
wreath, fastened with gold and diamond hair-
pins, called a condi : in the front, and on the
sides of the head, it is stroked smooth, and ren-
dered shining, by being anointed 'with cocoanut-
oil. They are particularly attentive to this head-
dress; and the girl who can dress their hair most
to their liking, is their chief favourite among
their slaves.

English travellers who hare visited Batavia,
have all admired the taste of this head-dress,
which they think inexpressibly elegant. When
the ladies pay their evening visits to each other,
the wreath of hair is surrounded by a chaplet of
flowers, in which the g&teful fragrance of the
nyctanlhes samba c^ or Arabian jasmine, unites
with the modest sweetness of the polyanihes tube-
rosa, and is beautifully intermixed with the
golden stars of the mimusops eletigi.

On Sundays they sometimes dress in the Eu-
ropean style, with stays and other fashionable

H 2

1\6 ON TAB ISLAND OF JAVA.

incumbrances, which however they do not like,
being accustomed to a dress so much looser and
more pleasant in this torrid clime.

When ?{ lady goes out, she has usually four or
more female attendants, one of whom bears her
betel-box* They are sumptuously adorned with
gold and silver, and this ostentatious luxury the
Indian ladies carry to a very great excess.

Tbey seldom mix in company with the men,
except at marriage-feasts.

The title of My Lady is given exclusively to
the wives of counsellors of India.

The ladies are very fond of riding through
the streets of the town in their carriages in tbe
evening. Formerly, when Batavia was more
flourishing, they were accompanied by musicians;
but this is no more customary at present than
rowing through the canals which intersect the
town in little pleasure-boats ; going upon these
parties, which were enlivened by music, was
called arangbayen.

There was a theatre at Batavia, but it was
soon given up.

The coaches are small and light,. Glass
window* to coaches are alone allowed to the
members of the government, who have also the
privilege of painting or gilding their carriage*
agreeably to their own taste.

A stave must ruQ before every wheel-carriage

ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA. 1 1 7

with * stick in bis hand, in order to give notice
of its proximity , and prevent all accidents ; for
the streets not being paved, the approach of the
carriage cannot be easily perceived*

Most people hire a carriage, at the rate of
sixty rixdollars a month, of tbe licensed stable-
keepers, by whom the duty is paiiJ, Counsellors ~
of India, and a few others of the Company's
upper servants, are exempted from it.

Sedan-chairs are not in use here. The ladies,
however, sometimes employ a conveyance some*
what like them, called a norimon. This is a kind
of box, narrower at the top than the bottom, and
carried by a thick bamboo pole, fastened over
the top. They sit in it with their legs crossed
under them, and have then just room enough to
sit upright, without being seen.

The carts for the conveyance of goods inland,
drawn by buffaloes, are of a very simple .and
clumsy construction, A long pole, which serves
for a beam, goes through an axletree, which
turns two wheels, or rather round blocks like
quoits, sawn out of the trunk of a thick tree,
about four feet in diameter, and having a round
bole in the centre, through which the end of
tbe axletree is inserted. At the further end of
the beam is a cross piece of wood of four or
five feet in length, with four stout pegs, and
which is laid upon the shoulders of two buffa-

H 3

Il8 ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

Joes, ii) the manner of a yoke, so that their
necks fit bet weep the pegs ; and this serves both
Jo hear the weight of the cart and to drag it
along. The carts themselves are small, and
(cannot cany a great weight ; they have a cover-
ing of leaves,. to preserve the load from the rain.
- The trade of the Company is managed by the
flirector-geperal. The burdensome duty of hip
office is greatly alleviated by two assistants, who
are senior merchants of the castle. Their bust-
ness consists chiefly tn superintending the housing
jn the Company's warehouses of all goods which
are brpught to Batavia by their ships, and the
delivery of them again ; all returns pn this score
fitt first made tp them.. The senior of them has
the superintendence of all the goods which
arrive, and the other over those dispatched.
Deliveries are made on warrants signed by one
pf them. All papers relative? to trade, which
are received from the out- factories, are examined
by them, and they report their contents to the
director. They are both likewise administrators
of the great treasury, but derive little etnolu-
jnent from it. Their office is one of the most
troqblesorpe of any ip the Company's civil servjee
at Batavia, and is not equally lucrative in com-
parison with others 1 9 which less labour is at-
tached, and whence mijch greater profits accrue;
yet U is ap office pf much consideration, as it

ON THE ISLAND OF J AT A. II9

gives the precedency over all other senior mer-
chants. k

All merchandise is housed in the Company's
repositories, which are situated partly in the city
of Batavia, and partly on the island of Onrust,
under the direction of administrators, or ware-
house-keepers, who must render account of \the
same.

This branch of business is divided into several
departments, each of which has two administra-
tors, two commissaries, and a book-keeper. Some
of these administratorships are very lucrative,
especially that of the island of Onrust, on ac-
count of the large quantities of goods deposited
there. A certain per-centage is allowed to all
the administrators, upon the whole of the goods
.which they deliver, for waste, loss in weight, and
damage, when the delivery is effected within a
twelvemonth after the receipt ; but when the
goods have lain more than* a year in the ware-
houses, the allowance is greater.

The occupation of the commissaries at the
warehouses, is to take care that the Company
suffers no prejudice at the receipt or delivery of
goods. They are obliged to,be present at the
weighing of every thing, and to be attentive to
the accuracy of the weight ; an oath of fidelity
in the discharge of their duty is administered to
them annually by the council of justice.

h 4

tap

OH THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

The quantity of goods sent from Europe to
India is inconsiderable, in comparison with those
which are conveyed from one part of the Indies
to another, or to Europe. The chief "article of
exportation to India is gold and silver, in bullion
and coin. The annual exportation of the pre*
cious metals to India, by the Dutch East In-
dia Company, has been calculated at nearly
550,000/.

People well worthy of credit, who have lived
forty years and more at Batavia, affirm that there
is an inconceivable difference between the actual
state of the city, with respect to trade, and its
flourishing situation, before the year 1740. Free
inhabitants, who had never been in the service
of the Company, used then to return to Europe
laden with riches, very few instances of which
occur at present ; hence it may be plainly per*
ccived that there is little chance of making money
at Batavia by private trade, and it is well known
thaj it grows worse from day to day ; and this,
combined with its unhealthiness, may sufficiently
account for its deterioration. ~

Something has been already said of the pro-
vince of Jaccatra ^ namely, thtf it is a possession
of the Company, subdued by their arms, whose
natives are their immediate subjects, governed by
the council of India, and more particularly under
the eye of the governor* general.

ON THE ISLAND OF J ATA. 421

A person is appointed by the governor, under
the title of commissary of inland affairs, who
represents the sovereign in the interior of ' the
country*

He adjusts all differences which arise between
the native grandees, with the pre-kno\yledge of
the governor-general, and exacts all penalties
and fines laid upon them, the greater part of
the profits of which accrue to him. - He is fetfted
and respected like a prince, in the interior parts,
as the happiness of every individual is almost
entirely in his power.

The regents, who are his coadjutors in th6
administration of the land, are taken from among
the natives. The first in rank are the adapoiis,
to whom the government of a large district is
intrusted. Then follow the tommagongs, who
are, however, much l6wer in rank, having the
direction over a proportionately smaller extent of
country; although each of them stands alone
in his local jurisdiction. These have inghtbien
under them, who are as lieutenants, and before
whom disputes of little importance between the
inhabitants of their districts are settled ; yet the
parties may appeal to the commissary.

It is only when very important matters occur,
in wfiich the Company have a particular interest,
that they are brought to the cognizance of the
government at Batavia; and settled by them.

1*2 ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

The commissary, who resides without the
city, has a guard of natives every night • at his
house, aod twenty or twenty-four armed attend-
ants, who are Javanese, in the pay of the Com*

The chief productions yielded by this province,
are sugar, coffee, indigo, and cotton-yarn. The
revenues which the Company draw from it,
amount annually to full a million of gilders.

The original letters, which are written by the
council of India, to the Indian princes, are com*
posed in the Dutch language, and signed by the
governor-general, and by the secretary in the
name of the government ; but translations are
always added in the Malay, Javanese, or other
language of the prince to whom the letter is ad-
dressed. For this purpose, there are several
translators at Batavia, who are well paid, and
have the rank of merchants.

The letters which are sent by the Indian
princes, to the government, are written upon
gold or silver flowered paper, and are brought to
the council with much ceremony.

All goods which are carried into or out of Ba-
tavia, are subject to duties which are levied at
the bar, at the entrance of the city. These, at
well as the other taxes and imposts, areanifually
farmed out, generally to Chinese. The whole
of them amount .together upon an average to

ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA,

12]

32,000 rixdollars, /-76,8oo per month, making
/•9 2 1, 600 per annum, about 83,800/*

Of the several islands which lie before
Batavia*, there are no more than four, which
are made any use of by the Company ; and of
these, Onrust is the principal. This island lies
about three leagues n.w. from Batavia ; it is
nearly round, rises six or eight feet above the
surface of the water, and is of. small extent,
being about 4800 feet in circumference. la
the centre of the island, and within a fort,
consisting of four bastions and three curtains,
stand the warehouses and other buildings. On
these fortifications, and on three small outworks,
which are constructed at the water's edge, the
walls of all which are whitened with lime, are
mounted sixteen pieces of cannon of various
sizes. " The fortified island of Onrust," says
Captain Parish, who was there in 17931 "is
well situated to command the channel that affords
the principal passage into the road. The work
upon that island was of a pentagonal form ; its
bastions were small and low, not more than

* They are, in all, fifteen in number, and have the follow-
ing names given to them : Onrust, de Kuiper, Purmerend,
Engels Onrust, Rotterdam, Schiedam, Middleburgh, Amster-
dam, Horn, Harlem, Edam, Eakhuizen, Alkmaar, Leydeo,
and Vader Smit. The two first are innermost, and are front*
ing, and within sight of the city.

124 ONr THE ISLAND OP JATA.

twelve feet the highest ; and not always con-
nected by curtains. A few batteries were lately
constructed on the outside of this work, that bore
towards the sea. Onihese, and on the bastions,
about forty guns were mounted in different direc-
tions. South of this was another island (this
mast be that called de Kuiper), at the distance
of a few hundred yards, on which two batteries,
mounting together twelve guns, had been lately
erected/*

In the year 1730 a small church with a steeple
was erected here ; where service is performed on
Sundays by a clergyman, who comes hither from
Batavia for that purpose every week.

The Company have here ten or twelve large
warehouses, which are almost always full of '
goods ; pepper, japan copper, saltpetre, tin, ca-
liatour-wood, sa pan- wood, &c. They are under
the direction of two administrators, who,' as
before mentioned, have very lucrative places.

On the north side of the island stand two
saw-mills ; and on the south side there is a long
pier- bead, on which are three large wooden
.cranes, erected for the purpose of fixing masts in
?bip$, or unstepping them. Three ships can lie
here, behind each other, alongside of the pier,
in deep water, to *be repaired, or to receive or
discharge their cargoes. There is another pier,
a little more to the westward, called the Japan
pier, where one ship can lie to load or unload.

On THE ISLAND OF JAVA. , *2<

There is above twenty feet of water against the
piers, and it rises and falls about five feet, once
in four-and-twenty hours. All the Company's
ships which require it are hove down at the
wharfs along the piers, and receive every neces-
sary repair with ease and dispatch. " It would be
injustice/ 9 says Captain Cook, " to the officers
and workmen of this yard, not to declare, that,
in my opinion, there is not a marine yard in the
world, where a ship can - be laid down with
more convenience, safety, and dispatch,, nor re-
paired with more diligence and skill/ 9

The government of the island, and the direc-
tion over the repairs which take place here, are
intrusted to a master-carpenter, who has the ma*
nagemdnt of every thing, except what relates to
the departments of the administrators of the
warehouses. His office is esteemed a very pro-*
fi table one, and be has the rank of senior mer-
chant. Though the island is but small, the num-
ber of people dwelling upon it, is supposed to
be near three thousand, among whom are three
hundred European workmen. « v

About sixteen hundred feet from Onrust is the
island de Kuiper, or Cooper's Isle, which is one
third less in size than the former. The Com-
pany have several warehouses .upon it, in which
coftee is chiefly laid up; There are two pier-
heads, where vessels may" load and discharge at

126* OK THE ISLAND OP JAVA* ..

its south* side. There are several large tamarind-
trees interspersed over it, which afford an aigree-
ablc shade. The workmen who are employed
here in the daytime, are fetched away at night
to Onrust, and only two men remain behind as
a watch, together with a number of dogs, who
are remarkably fierce, so that no one dares to set
his foot on the island at night.

To the eastward of Onrust, and at twice the
distance of Cooper's Isle, is the island Purmerend,
Which ' is half as large again as Onrust. It is
planted with shady trees ; and in the centre is a
building which serves for an hospital, or lazaretto,
for persons afflicted with the leprosy, and other
incurable diseases, who are sent thither from
Batavia. It is supported by the alms of Euro*
peans and Javanese, but the latter contribute
the largest share.

The island of Edam lies about three leagues
k.n.e. from Batavia. It is about half an hour's
walk in circumference. It is very woody, and
has abundance of large and ancient trees. Among
them is one, the trunk of which is so large, that
twenty men, with their arms extended, cannot
encompass it ; its outward branches shoot down-
wards, and, taking root, as soon as they reach
the earth, grow again up into trees ; I saw some of
them which were already two feet thick ; it is the
banian-tree, ficus irtdka, or Indian-fig; itsscs-

• ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA. 1 27

. teemed boly by the Javanese, and , is much ve-
nerated by them. The Company have some
warehouses on this island, for salt ; but the
chief use they make of it; is as a place of exile
for criminals, who are employed in making
cordage, and over whom a ship's captain is
placed as commandant.

llS OT THE ISLAVD 6* JAVA,

CHAPTER VI.

Causes of theUnhealthiness of Batavia.r—Mud-banh*
—Morasses*— Familiarity of the Inhabitants with
Disease and Death. — Want of Circulation in the
Canals. — Deserted and - untenanted Houses.—-
Depreciation in the Value of Houires.— Other
Causes, originating in Europe, applied to explain
she great Mortality at Batavia. — Periods when
the Number of Deaths successively increased.-—
Register of Deaths in Hospitals, 6fc. — Com-
parative Statement of the Number of Men lost by
the Company every Year*

Sound reason, and the united experience of
ages, have incontrovertibly demonstrated that
low swampy land, such as has Seen abandoned,
or thrown up by the waves of the sea, and coun-
tries overgrown with trees and underwood, are
all extremely unhealthy, and frequently fatal
to a great proportion of their inhabitants. And
the insalubrity of the air has been found to
augment or decrease as the habitations of man*
kind have been placed nearer to or farther from
morasses, or stagnant waters, or woods, which
by their proximity prevent the noxious exhala-
tions from being dissipated by a free circulation
of air.

Oft THE ISLAND OF JAVAS 1 29

All these causes of disease and death combine,
in a greater or less degree, their baneful in-
fluence to render Batavia one of the most un-
wholesome spots upon the face of the globe.

They make their appearance throughout all
the neighbouring foreland ; and, from the point
of Onfong Java, on one side, to two leagues
beyond Ansjol on the other, where the firm
sandy beach commences, a dismal succession of
6tinking mud-banks, fihhy bogs, and stagnant
pools, announces to more senses than one the
poisonous nature of this dreadful climate.

Along this shore the sea throws up all man-
ner of filth, slime, moll u sea, dead fish, mud,
and weeds, which . putrefying with the utmost
rapidity by the extreme degree of heat, load and
infect the air with their offensive miasmata. This
aggregation of mud and putrefaction receives a
more peculiar increase during the bad or west
monsoon, than at another time ; and the con-
stant prolongation of the pier-heads of the river*
contributes also a share towards this accretion.
The mud-banks thus recently thrown up are
soon covered with such bushes and shrubs as are
peculiar to morasses, whereby fresh supplies of
mud and filth are caught and retained ; and the
noxious exhalations are augmented add strength-
ened, while the north-west winds convey thi
whole of the putrid effluvid to the city;

t .

t30 CK THB ISLAND OF JAVA.

Near Batavia are likewise several very low
tracts, especially to the west of the city, which
although they lie far enough from the sea not to
be subject to inundation by it, yet by the con-
tinual and heavy rains which fall in that season
of the year, often stand under water ; and even
Include in their circuit swamps covered with
high trees, which augment the corruption of the
atmosphere by their foulest vapours.

It is not strange that the inhabitants of such a
country should be familiar with disease and death.
Preventive medicines are taken almost as regu-
larly as food, and every person expects the
returns of sickness as we do the seasons of the
year. In the words of a late intelligent travel-
ler, " the European settlers at Baiavia com-
monly appear wan, weak, and languid; as
if labouring with the 6 disease of death. 9 Their
place of residence, indeed, is situated in the midst
of swartps and stagnated pools, whence they are
every morning saluted with ' a congregation of
4 foul and pestilential vapours,* whenever the sea-
breeze sets in, and blows over this morass*
The meridian sun raises from the shallow and
rtiuddy canals, with which the town is inter-
sected, deleterious miasmata into the air ; and
the trees, with which the quays and streets are
crowded, emit noxious exhalations in the night.
There are few examples of strangers remaining

OK THE ISLAND' OP JAVA. I3I

in Batavia long, without being attacked by
fever, which is the general denomination in that
place for illness of every kind. The disorder at
first is commonly a tertian ague, which after
two or three paroxysms becomes a double tertian,
and then a continued remittent, that frequently
carries off the patient in a short time. The
Peruvian bark is seldom prescribed in any stage
of the disease ; or is given in such small quan-
tities as to be productive of little benefit. The
chief, or rather the sole medicine administered,
is a solution of camphor in spirit of wine. The
practitioners of physic at Batavia, where the
presence of the most skilful certainly is necessary,
not having- had the advantages of a medical
education, are satisfied as to theory, with con«*

sidering the nature of the fever as being to rot
and corrupt the human frame ; and, as to prac-
tice, that camphor being the most powerful anti-
septic known, it is proper to trust to it, by a rule
more staple even than Moliere's, and to exhibit
k in every variety and period of the complaint.
The intermittent fever does not, however, always
prove fatal ; but continues, in some instances,
even for many years ; and the patient becomes
so familiarized to it as scarcely to think it a
disease, attending, in the intervals of its attack,
to his affairs, and mixing in society. A gentle*
nan in that predicament, conversing upon the

IJ 2 OK THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

nature of the climate, observed^ that in fact it was
fatal to vast numbers of Europeans who came to
settle there; that he lost many of his friends
every year ; but for his part he enjoyed excellent
health. Soon after he called for a napkin to
wipe his forehead, adding, that this was his fever-
day ; he had a shocking fit that morning, and
still continued to perspire profusely. Upon
being reminded of bis late assertion of being al-
ways healthy, he replied, he was so, with ex*
ception of those fits, which did not prevent him
from being generally very well ; that he was
conscious they would destroy him by degrees,
were he to remain in the country long, but that
he hoped his affairs would enable him to leave it
before that event was likely to take place. It is
supposed that of the Europeans of all classes who
come to settle in Batavia, not always half the
number survive the year. The place resemble*,
in that respect, a field of battle, or a town
besieged. The frequency of deaths renders fa*
miliar the mention of them, and little signs are
shown of emotion and surprise, on hearing that
the companion of yesterday is to-day no more/'
When an acquaintance is said to be dead, the
common reply is, " Well, he owed me no-
thing ;" or, " I must get my money of his ejee*
cutors."

The circumstances just noticed would alone be
sufficient to render Batavia a most unwholesome

.41

QH THE ISLAND OF JAVA. 13)

place of abode, and the mortality greater here
than at any other spot of the Company's posses-
sions; but to these more than adequate causes
which occur in the environs and situation of the
city, may be added the present interior state of
the town itself, whereby the destructive un-
healthiness of the climate is carried to the very
pinnacle of corruption*

Two principal causes are to be met within the
city, and a great part of its insalubrity is to be
ascribed to them ; namely, the little circulation
of water in the canals which intersect k, and the
diminution of the number of its inhabitants*
The former is occasioned by the river, which
formerly conveyed most of its water to the city,
being now greatly weakened by the drain which
has been dug, called the Slokhaan, which re-
ceives its water from the high land, and carries
it away from the city, so that many of the canals
run almost dry in the good monsoon* The
stagnant canals, in the dry season, exhale an
intolerable stench, and the trees planted along
them impede the course of the air, by which in
some degree the putrid effluvia would be dissi*
pated. In the wet season the inconvenience is
equal ; for then these reservoirs of corrupted
water overflow their banks in the lower part of
the town, and fill the lower stories of the houses,
where they leave behind them an inconceivable

* 3

"34

ON TH* ISLAND OF JAVA.

quantity of slime and filth : yet these canals are
sometimes cleaned ; but the cleaning of them is
so managed as to become as great a nuisance as
the foulness of the water; for the black mud
taken from the bottom is suffered to lie upon
the banks, in the middle of the street, till it has
acquired a sufficient degree of hardness to be
made the lading of a boat, and carried away.
As this mud consists chiefly of human ordure,
which is regularly thrown into the canals every
morning, there scarcely being a necessary in the
whole town, it poisons the air while it is drying,
to a considerable extent. Even the running
streams become nuisances in their turn, by the
negligence of the people ; for every now and
then a dead hog, or a dead horse, is stranded upon
the shallow parts, and it being the business of
-oo particular person to remove the nuisance, it
is negligently left to time and accident.

The second cause originates in the decay of
trade, which was formerly so flourishing in this
place, that there used to be scarcely a possibility
of procuring a house within the walls of the
city ; at present, on the contrary, those houses
in which the greatest merchants dwelt, their
count ing-houscs where they carried on their
business, and the warehouses which received
their immense stocks of merchandise, are now
either deserted and untenanted, or changed into

©W THE ISLAND OP J ATA. 13$

stables or coach-houses. The ruined square, the
Lepel, or Spoon-street, and other parts of the
lower town, afford the most visible testimony of
this decay.

The buildings remaining thus uninhabited
and uncleansed, speedily contract in this low,
warm, and marshy place, an infectious and foul
air, and contaminate even the houses adjoin-
ing ; and that this both causes and augments the
unhealthiness of the place, is evident from the
circumstance that the mortality is greater in the
lower town; or on the north side, than in the
other pacts of the city which are more fully in*
habited.

The castle, which is now esteemed the most
unhealthy part of the whole place, used not^to be
more so than any other spot around it; but at
that time the buildings in it, which are appro-
priated for the governor- general, and for the
first servants of the Company, were inhabited by
them; these stand at present empty; are neg-
lected, choked with dirt, and running to decay:
the poor office-clerks, who have not the means
of procuring another abode, and are compelled
therefore to dwell in those buildings erected for
them in the castle, are the victims. The mili-
tary, who are for the most part quartered in the
barracks built for them, and the people belonging
to the marine department, who reside upon or

1*6 ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA,

near the admiralty- whajf, which is opposite to, the
castle, are no less exposed.

Most 7 people, not satisfied with. having left the
lower towa in order to go and live higher up,
have abandoned the city altogether, and reside
in gardens without the walls, and as far removed
from the town as their circumstances or the
employments which they have to attend to in the
City will allow them ; letting their houses in the
city stand empty, or occupying them only for a
short time of the year, and no longer than is
absolutely necessary. This goes on increasing
from year to year, and will probably, in the
lapse of time, produce the total abandonment
sjnd ruin of Batavia. The amazing depreciation
in the value of houses, is a clear proof of this
assertion.

The Dutch, who are so fond of gardens in
Holland, have transferred that taste, where it can
certainly be cultivated with more success, and
indulge it t6 a great extent, at their houses a
little way from Batavia; but still within that
fenny district, concerning which an intelligent
gentleman on the spot used the strong expres-
sion, that the air was pestilential and the water
jSoisonous. Yet the country is every where so
verdant, gay, and fertite ; it is interspersed with
such magnificent houses, gardens, avenues,
canals, and drawbridges ; and is so formed in

ON THE ISLAHD OP JAVA. I37

every respect to please the eye, could health be
preserved in it, that a youth coming just from
sea, and enraptured with the beauty of every
object he saw around him, but mindful of the
danger there to life, could not help exclaiming,
" What an excellent habitation it would be for
immortals V 9

Although the chief causes of the greater insa-

lubrity of Batavia than any other place under the
same parallels, have been pointed out, it would
be wrong to ascribe solely to these the amazing
mortality among the Europeans who come hither.
There are other causes, which are independent
of Batavia and its climate, which contribute to
this mortality. These may be chiefly considered
as originating in Europe, since it is certain that
the supplies of men arriving, in the Indies from
Europe, have not for several years past been
found to bring with them those healthy cohsti-
tutiorrs which they did half a century ago. * The
continual increasing dearness of provisions in
Europe since the year 1740, has, as is naturally
the case, most affected the lowest classes of
•society, who have in consequence been obliged
to take up with coarser and less nourishing food,
which must undeniably have a prejudicial effect
upon their animal frame. These, for no other
sort of people, a very few excepted, take service
with the Company, when conveyed on board of

I38 #N THE ISLAND OF JAVA,

the ships, deteriorate their constitutions, which
have been already fundamentally shaken, by the
hardships attendant on a sea life, the close and
narrow places where they are lodged, and the
melancholy with which most of them are at-
tacked, on account of leaving their native
country.

Arriving thus at Batavia, the most unwhole-
some spot which could be selected, with a broken
constitution, which has received new shocks
from their long voyage, it can scarcely be ex-
pected, when to this is added a scanty and insipid
4iet, consisting of rice and some dried fish, to-
gether with the extreme plenty and cheapness of
fruit, and the easy access to strong liquors, that
they should long survive the fatal moment when
they first $et foot on this .dangerous shore : thi*
regards the soldiery. But it is not only from the
military that the muster-rolls of death are swelled:
the 5a me mortality likewise takes place among
4he seafaring part of the Company's servants ;
vet it is not so much, in every respect, appH-
cable to those who are really seamen, and having
from their youth been bred up to the profession,
have in general subsisted upon better food, and
-acquired a more hardy temperament, but with
respect to merely nominal sailors, who have
never before stood upon a deck, *nd who con-
stitute the greater bumber of the mariners in the

OK THE ISLAND OP JAVA.

J3»

employ of the Company : tbesi must be looked
upon as on an equality with the soldiers.

Thus, when it is said that the mortality is ge-
neral in the military and marine departments of
the Company's establishment, it must be consi-
dered, that the greatest number of the individuals
engaged in, the sea-service, consist of such as
differ from the military upon their first coming
on board, only irf name. Many years ago, a
sufficient number of able seamen could be pro-
cured, not to be compelled to have recourse to
landsmen for filling up a ship's complement ; but,
ever since the year 1740, the many naval wars,
the great increase of trade and navigation, parti-
cularly in many countries where formerly these
pursuits were little attended to, and the conse-
quent great and continual demands for able sea-
men, both for ships of war, and for merchant-
men, have so considerably diminished their sup-
ply, that in our own country, where there for-
merly used to be a great abundance of mariners,
it is now with much difficulty and expense that
any vessel can procure a proper number of able
hands to navigate hen

Many people who have never visited the
countries between the tropics, and are too apt to
credit the misrepresentations of travellers, have
been led to believe, that excessive heat is the
cause of the unhealthiness of Batavia j but the

I4O OK THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

healthiness of many other countries where the
same degree of heat prevails, is proof enough of
the contrary. At Surat, and in Bengal, which
are esteemed the most salubrious parts of India ;
more than once the thermometer of Fahrenheit
has risen above 100 in the months of March and
April, while at Batavia it has seldom been higher
than 90 , and generally below that point ; which
is a degree of heat not unusual even in our own
country : and this is moreover considerably mi-
tigated by the refreshing land and sea breezes,
returning alternately at stated hours in regular
rotation.

' The intermediate calms, however, before these
breezes relieve each other, are not wholesome*
The stagnation of the atmosphere at those times,
and especially in the evening, before the land*
wind begins to blow, and when the vapours,
exhaled during the heat of the day, hang low
over the earth, is hurtful to respiration ; and the
evening air is, in consequence, more especially
pernicious at Batavia. Yet many of the inhabit-
ants axe accustomed to sit out of doors in the
evening, because the warmth within exceeds that
without.

There may, perhaps, be other causes, besides
the various disadvantageous circumstances attend-
ing the local situation and actual state of the
city above adduced, which may give occasion to

ON THE ISLAND OP JAVA. I4I

the prevailing disorder and great degree of mor-
tality for many years past observed at Batavja,
and which are either not yet discovered, or
cannot be pointed out with sufficient accuracy of
proof; for it is certain, that many of the circum-
stances here enumerated were in existence at
those times when the city was not reckoned a
more unhealthy place of abode than any other
under the same climate.

An unusual degree of mortality first made its
appearance in the year 1733 ; and in that, and
the five following years, the deaths amounted
annually to more than two thousand among the
free merchants, or burghers, and Company's ser*
vants, and full fifteen hundred slaves.

From 1739 to 1743, the mortality was not
quite so great ; for in those five years, no more
than five thousand five hundred and sixty-two
of the Company's servants died in the hospitals,
whereas the number amounted, in the preceding
five years, to eight thousand two hundred and
eighty-six ; but it afterwards increased again, so
that. from 1744 to 1771, the deaths in the hos-
pitals alone, into which no others are admitted
than such as are in the Company's service, and
of these only the common soldiers and sailors,
who have not money to provide themselves with
better accommodation, are the only persons who
admittance, amounted to forty-eight thou*

14* ON THE ISLAND OP JAVA*

sand and thirty-six* In the year 1769 alone,
there died in and out of the hospitals:

&434 of the Company's servants,
1 64 Burghers,
68 1 Native Christians,
833 Mahomedans,
133 1 Slaves, and
1003 Chinese*

6446

And of the latter the number may at least be
augmented by one third, as so much may betaken
for the deaths concealed, in order to avoid pay*
ment of the tax upon funerals ; and the numbers
mentioned above, are only such as have been
declared.

The dead in the hospitals amounted, from the
beginning of July 1 775, to the end of July 1 776,
' to the number of two thousand five hundred and
ninety -live.'

The followi ng is a correct list of the number
of deaths in t he hospitals at Batavia, from the year
1714 101776, viz.

Dead.
904
676
656
626
671
780

Year.

Dead.

Year.

Dead. 1

Year.

I714

459

1720

ISO

1726

171c

469

1721

614

1727

1710

453

1722

73°'

1728

1717

494

1723

6S7

1729

1 7 18

59*

1724

769

1730

1719

660

1725

9»S I

I »73«

OX THE istANQ OF JAVA.

Year.

Dead.

Year.

173a

781

'747

1733

Irt6

1748

'734

'375

'749

'735

J5 6 «

1750

1736

'574

'75'

1737

'993

*75*

»73»

1776

'753

'739

998

'754

1740

1124

»75S

'74'

1075

1756

174a

1082

'757

'743

1*83

1758

'744

'595

'759

'745

1604

1760

1746

1565

1761

Dead.
1881
1 261
1478

*?35
1969

1601

1618

'5«7
2109

1487

'44i

1638

'337

'3*7
1 000

Yew.

176a
1763
1764

I766
I767
1768
I769
1770
1771
1772

'773
*774

'775
1776

*4S

Dead.
1390 %

175°

"757
»754
2039

2404
"833

174a

2434
2480

2066

1187

1957

*I 88
2877

It was in 1733 *^ at c*Mfc were chiefly began
to be dug around Bat a via, by which the water
was diverted from taking its course through the
city, and from that time the number of dead has
constantly increased. In 1744, a second hospi-
tal was erected, and in order to defray the ex-
penses, the regulation was introduced in both
hospitals, that the wages of all the sick who were
admitted into them, should be withheld from
them while they were under cure, and applied to
the benefit of the institutions, whence, it is said,
many more patients died from the chagrin this
regulation caused them ; and we accordingly see
that that and the succeeding years are marked
with a greater mortality than before* In 1761, they
began to stow in the hospital, without the city,
more sick pepple than the' two hundred conva*

144- ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA*

lescents, who were formerly attended there { and
the years immediately following, show another
period of increase. In 1775* an hospital-ship was
laid up in the road, in consequence of which, as
well in that as in the next year, the number of
dead was greater than ever.

On making a comparison between the rlumbef
of deaths, and the remaining servants of the
Company at Batavia, and those at the othet
settlements, it appears, that out of five thousand
four hundred and ninety Europeans, who were
present &t Batavia, according to the annual
muster, on the 30th of June 1768, of which
number, however, one thousand* three hundred
and thirty-eight were patients in the hospitals,
two thousand four hundred and thirty-four died
within the ensuing twelve months : and that the
number of the Company's servants, at all the out*
settlements, was on the last day of June of the
same year, according to muster, fourteen thou-
sand four hundred and seventy Europeans ; of
whom, one thousand six hundred and thirty*
seven died in the year following z whence it ap-
pears, that the proportion of the dead to the
living is at Batavia, as twelve to twenty-seven,
which is almost one half, and at the out-settle-
ments, as eleven to one hundred, or something
less than one ninth. The Company, therefore,
lose in general jcvery year one fifth part of their

Oft THE HLANJ) 0» JAVA* 14$

servants. And they experienced a loss in the
same proportion, daring the same period of twelve
months, upon the crews of thirty- seven ships
navigating in India ; and of the crews of twenty-
(even ships that sailed from Europe in 1768*
1769, which all together amounted, by their mus-
ter-rolls, to five thousand nine hundred and se*
venty-one hands, the number of dead was nine
hundred and fifty-nine, which is also nearly one
in six.

This comparison may certainly appear in

different lights in different years, yet not so much

so, but that the calculation may in general be

taken for what has for several years past been the

' annual result.

I46 09 THE ISLAND OF JAVA*

CHAPTER VII/

General Review of tie Decline* in ths Company**
Affairs.*— Recapitulation of the Receipts and Ex-
ftonditure of each Settlement. — General State-
ment, &c— Reflections on the decayed State of
the Company*— Receipts and Expenditure.

Were the prosperity of the East Tndia Com-
pany only in a state of decline, from the circum-
stances already mentioned, hopes might be ert-
tertained of relief and restoration. . A fortunate
chance of war, or a favourable peace in Europe,
might afford sufficient opportunities of engaging
men enough to supply, in a very ample manner,
the deficiency of people now laboured under.

But many other circumstances concur, if not
tp render the restoration of the Company's
affairs a matter of impossibility, at least to
afford the most unfavourble prospects respecting
them*

• It is not only for a few years past, that the
decline of this great body has been manifest, but
from much earlier times : " It cannot by any
means be denied," says Mr. Van Imhoff, in
his Considerations of the year 174a, "that the
preset) t state of the East India Company wears a
much more disadvantageous aspect, and is not

OIT tlTE 'ISLANb OP JAVA. . 147

by far in do flourishing a condition as in former
times." Mr. 'Mossel writes to the same effect,
in the year 1752 ; and very little reflection is re-
quired at present to discover, that in the year
1777, the situation of the Company has, in the
last fiver and-twenty years, become much worse $
and that their affairs threaten a disastrous termi-
nation at no very distant period, if more effectual
measures of redress are not suggested, And re-
Sorted to, than those which have hitherto been
employed.

The common course of events, in this world,
teaches us, both from ancient and from modern
history, that there have been, or are, no empires,
states, republics, nor public bodies, but have
all, after reaching the summit of their greatness,
declined considerably, though the one more than
the other, in power and consideration ; although
the means which have been resorted to;

•

have ever had the wished-for effect of wholly
preventing their ruin ; and it has been fortunate;
when, acting as palliatives, they have served to
procrastinate the fall. These vicissitudes must
be ascribed to the inscrutable designs of Provi-
dence; and it should seem, that by them the
Ruler of the universe hath, for the accomplish*
ment of his all- wise purposes, intended to mani-
fest to mankind the utter instability of every thing
in this sublunary world.

148 ON TH* 'ISLAND Ot J ATA*

The primary causes, which sap the founda-
tions of a state or society, whilst in its most
flourishing vigour, and pare the way for its de-
cline and fall, are very seldom known. The
seemingly unimportant commencements of ruin
are nearly undiscernible, and they do not appear
till long afterwards, and when the evil is so
deeply rooted, and has raised itself to a height
visible to all, while it is likewise, in general, too
late to remedy it ; or if some appearances of the
latent source of ruin be discovered, the fataL
consequences which may arise from it, are seldom
duly appreciated. In this, the body politic re-
sembles the animal frame, and is like a man in
the bloom of life, who, enjoying an uninter-
rupted state of health, possessed of a firm and
unshaken constitution, pays no regard to the
first insidious attacks of 4 slight indisposition,
which he presumes will. easily be overcome by
the natural strength of his constitution * till
too late he finds, that with unmarked, but hi-
, deous strides, the direful disease has advanced
beyond the grasp of medicine, and at length
bids bold defiance to every attempt of nature, or
Of art, to .check its fatal progress.

The evil which has its origin in the constitu-
tion of the body politic itself, is irresistibly aug-
mjented, when accidental extraneous circum-
stances concur, to drag to perdition, the state or

ON TrfE ISLAND OF J AY A. 249

Institution which thus totters on its base. Both
the interior leaven of corruption, and external
adventitious evils, have taken place, and still
' exist, with regard to the Company.
* The latter need not be insisted on, they are evi-
dent to every eye : with respect to the former,
the first germination of those seeds of destruc-
tion is to be placed in the period when the con*
quest of countries, and the increase of terri-
tory, were more the objects of the Company's
attention, than the prosecution, increase, or
improvement of their commerce and navigation j
and this period is to be defined, as having
chiefly existed from the year 1660 to 1670, during
which time it wfes that the Company made
themselves masters of the Portuguese establish-
ments on the Malabar coast, and of the island of
Celebes, both which acquisitions cost them a
great expense of blood, and incalculable trea-
sures, and have never been of any other than an
imaginary advantage to their interests.

A* this chapter is devoted to a general consi-
deration of the affairs of the Company, it may
not be amiss to insert here, a recapitulation of
the receipts and expenditure of all the establish-
ments of the Dutch East India Company ; the
former CQmprising their territorial revenues,
and profits upon the country-trade; and tie 1
latter, all the expenses of each establishment jn*

* 3

I «

150

OK THE ISL4VD.OP JAVA*

se, taken from the books of the year 1779, that
s, from the i3t of September 17789 .to the 31st
of August 1779: the order ip which thti esta-
blishments are placed, is that in which they are
arranged in the books of the Company, and
those actually known to be in the hands of the
English, and distinguished by the mark +.

Charges. Expenditure

Jaccatra, including Batavia /*• 1,820,327 /. 2, 384,9^0

f Amboyna
tBanda' .

Ternate
* Macasser

Timor •

Banjer matting

Palexnbqng

Japan .
t Malacca .
t Padang
t Bengal
f Coromandel
t Ceylon
t Malabar .
tSurat ....
t Cape of Good Hope

North-east Coast of Java

Cberibon . . .

Bantam . . . ,

Landak and Succadana

48,747

9*35°
114,997

63,190
13*6*9

106,809
162,520

74.577

3 8 Si«S9
427,131
611,704

4*4,977

' 283,207

195,168

436,874

3S.76i

1,764

201,082
146,170
229,40$
163,137

n>7«
12,091

49>677

9 6 >356

»3»23S

53> 6 75
^65,517

452,133

1*243,038

489.645

S°5**6*

281,873

12,584

78,262

5,726

Total /5 9 209,7^6 /6,799>Si*

5,209,796

•■mAmm-4

leaving «n excedem in the charges of /. 1,589,7 22

Oil THE. 1SIAND JOF JAVA. J 5$

or 144,520/. 3*. ZJi sterling. The Incfea pos»
sessions of the Company wese not always 4
charge upon them. In 1689, the balance,
drawn in the same manner, was on the other
side, and showed a. .favourable surplus of

/•937»3 6l « IG - 5 l 8 5» ai V- *3*- 5</.) j and in 1744*
anadvanceappearedof/.779,Q5<^fqt,843/«5*6<£).
Mossel, to whom we have so frequently ihad
occasion to refer, calculated, is his time (1753),
the whole yearly receipts 3*^.8,791,000, adfll the
expenditure at y.6,5 17^00, Which wt>ufd leavo
a favourable surplus of /.aia73,5<5o (about
206,680/. sterling), and which is amazingly
different from the later results. The deficiency
is supplied by drafts from India, upon the direc-
tion in Holland; and, together with various
other objects, the expenses of equipping twenty*
five or thirty ships annually, the payment
of the wages and premiums to the returning
crews, the salaries of the directors, and.
the expenses of the administration at home,
the dividends to the proprietors, &c. form
the general debit of the Company, against the
profits upon the merchandise they dispose of in
Europe. These gains have been calculated upon
an average, at from ten to eleven millions of
gilders, or about one million sterling, per annum 5
and this computation appears to be just, from the
following statement of the invoice-prices, and

K 4

*5*

OK THft ISLAND OP JAVA.

set proceeds of the cargoes received from India*
for the ten years from 1750 to 1759, viz.

Vcaf*.

Ships.

Inroices.

Sales.

«75P

• *2

• /7»17»»»77

• /i» 9,0*4*409

1751

. 24 <

. 9,630,682

. 16,670,614

«75*

• 20

. 7,883,361

• *3»» S3*58o

»*53

f M •

. 10,259,866

• »7»3*7»o37

»754

. 22 .

. 8,859,297

, 19,840,766

175$

• 22 .

- 9AS2.48S

. 19,806,077

»75 6

» *5 <

. 8,421,419

, 19,890,066

«7J7

. 26 .

• 8,935,72©

. 14)829,367

1758

. 22 .

6,906,717

» » 8,934,386

. 28 ,

> 8,437,469

. 18,817,328

* •

THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

1774—5.

BOOK II.

mamamammaBtamsssaaaaemam

CHAPTER I.

Navigation from Batavia to Samarang.— Govern*
ment of Samarang. — Dissension between the Sot*
soehoenam and Manko Boem. — The latter sup-
farted hy the Compaq \—*The Empire of Jawf
parcelled outs— The Sea-toast ceded to the Coat-
fony.—They make themselves Masters of Balaam
hmmg.~-Soera Carta, the Capital of the Soesoe-
&oenam.-+D 9 Jokje Carta* that of the Sultan*—
Residencies of Qehpampang — Sourahaya —
Grisse — Samanap —Rembang —Joana — Ja-
para —Samarang— Pacalonga—TagaL— Resi-
dents at the Courts of the two Javanese Emperors.
—EstahUshmettty Revenues, &b. of this .Govern*
mint.

On leaving the road of Batavia, navigators
should steer for the island of Edam ; then lie*
tween that and the island of Leyden, or else
between Leyden and Enkhuizcn ; and afterwards
roqnd Point Carawang, and so far from the

*54 OV TBZ M ^AHD OF JAVA.

shore to have offing enough to pass the reef
which runs out from Sedary : the lead is in this
respect the best guide, since, you must not suffer
it to shoal more than ten fathoms till this reef is
passed, of which you may be certain in the day*
time, when the high trees of Sedary, which are
few, single, and easily to be distinguished on
account of their height, bear a* *♦ w. ; and in the
night steering to the 'east, in twelve fathoms
water : it deepens when you are past the reefs;
dpon which steer more southerly, ' keeping how-
ever your depth into the bight . of Pamaooekan,
till the water shoals to ten and nine fathoms,
when you ipust steer again mom* caet, in tffler
not 4o approach tea near the shoe* of Java j. jou
«*y be sure you will then run clear of tip rpek
upon which the Oastle of Woerdci* **a**k>st,
«Hhough there is sixteen fathoms water elbstf to
it-: but the. safest h| to anchor hem during v the
night. Having doubled tye point of Pama-
noekan, sjeer for that of Injfaayniaye, in tpn,
etevep, twelve, and thirteen fathoms water;
upon approaching the. last, be sore to keep in
those depths, to avoid falling upon the reef of
Cheribon; which baying, passed, steer as mqct
to the southward of east as to retain nineteen or
t\yenty fathoms depth ; or in thp daytime keep*
ing within, sight of the sbQre till you, begin tQ
npar Pajnalang, w,hen you must steer sp far off

«9 T«*isiaki» of MYA. «$S

store *» to double the,KO«k whiph lfcs *. *. by w.
from tba,t glace : you vyttA then come io sight of
the hills of TagftJ, ^parang, *ofl the Twp

Brothers ,\ \vheij the tyst J>car due soyth, steer
for t|ip sfcpRe, and afterwards along it, till fbc
pnsjga^af ftf S^arang bear? t.f.^. ^nd let
drop your anchor in five or four qqd a half
fathoms. ^11 along the north coapt of Java, the
bottom is a soft clay*

. Thiq government, which is one of the most *
lucrative for the Company's servants, wa^ twenty
years ago only a commandery ; it was changed
into a govern rpenfjuppn the considerable acqui-
sition of territory made by the Company along '
the sea-coast, by cession to them by the Soeso^-
hoenam, at the conclusion of peace, during thp
government of Mr. Harting, who terminated thf
war of Java, in which the empire was split into
two parts, one remaining under the Soesoehoer
nam, and the other becoming 6ybject to the
present reigning sultan, Manko Boeni.

It is of the utmost importance to the Company
that this, establishment be well governed, qo
account of the immediate relation which it hap
to the two above-mentioned Javanese princefc
"who nourish the most implacable epm/ty U^ar^
each other. The Company ^oyld npt wish tp
see a termination of their mutual hatred* fpr ap
long as it remains in force they i&tfto the mature

rj6 ON THB ISLAND 6* JAVA.

possession of their acquisitions along the sea-
toast; and though not nominally, they are
always in reality likewise masters of the inner
parts ; for, upon uniting with either of these twa
princfes, they can make the balance lean so much
against the other, that they are both constrained
to remain quiet.

This was in fact their object in fomenting the
dissension which arose between the Soesoehoenam
and Manko Bocni, and whence the war of Java
bad its origin*

The last-named, a prince of the imperial fa*
mtfy, and a descendant of 'the former Soesoe-
hoenam, wanted to have as an appanage the
province of Ma t a ram # which had already been al*
lotted to the hereditary prince Masseyd, son of
the Soesoehoenam.

This Masseyd was of a short stature and an
excellent disposition ;* he gloried in the circum-
stance tyat he had never killed an European
except in battle. Manko Boeni, on the con-
trary, and his son and heir apparent, more'than
once caused the captive Europeans to be pounded
in their rice-blocks ; or be cut off their genitals,
and forced them into their mouths. The last-
mentioned in particular showed himself an im- .
placable enemy of all Europeans, and of a most
cruel and bloodthirsty temper.

As Mataram was an extensive and wealthy

<MC THK ISLAND 09 J ATA. 157

district, which the Company did not wish to re-
main under the power of the Soesoehoenam, they
clandestinely encouraged Manko Boeni to re-
quire it at the hands of the Soesoehoenam. The
Company did this agreeably to their adopted
system of weakening the empire as mugh as pos-
sible, in order to preserve their possessions in
Java with greater ease ; and they secretly pro-
mised Manko Boeni to maintain him* in his
pretensions.

. Immediately hereupon he left the court, and
retired to hU* domains, where he directly rose in
arms against the emperor, and began a civil
war.

The Company, in order to save appearances,
and to render their conduct more defensible than
if they had openly espoused the part of Manko
Boeni, offered themselves as mediators between
these two princes, foreseeing that the Soesoehoe-
nam, who relied upon the superiority of his
power, far from conceding, would reject all
overtures of peace, and, prosecuting the war with
vigour, would endeavour entirely to subdue his
opponent

Exactly as they foresaw, the emperor rejected
all offers of conciliation, and entered eagerly into
a war which was to end in his discomfiture and
disgrace.

There was now. the most urgent necessity for

ttfS O* TH* TSfcAND OF JAVA.

tfti Company to espouse, in earnest, the quarrel
of Manko Boeni, partly ih order to persevere iri
their* proposed system; and partly to secure fhera-
seWes from the ill will whifch would infallibly,
Und not unfedsbnibly; Be entertained against
them by the Sbesoehoenam, as he soon became
Acquainted with their mandeuvfes to kihdle those
flahies of disc6td ; and, if Manko Bbeni werfc
subdued, the power 6f the Soesoehoensim ttrould
thereby be so much augmented, that the Com*
parry would, in all pr6bability, have stood in
need of the eiertioii of all their power to resist
S\\* attack.

Fortune favoured their arms : and though in-
calculable sums were expended ih the contest,
they attained their object— 4he division and sepa-
ration of the empire,

A considerable part of the province^ of the
empire of Java, among which Nlataram was one
of thfe principal, w& £fven to Manko Boeni,
ttndet the title of Saltan i the whole of the north-
cast coast of the island was ceded (o the Com-
pany, upotaf conditio^ of their paying a yearly
acknowledgment of twenty thousand rhtdollars,
about 4350/. to the Soesoehoenam, who retained
possession of thtt lfeihiaihdet under his former
title.

The jurisdiction of this government wis fur-
ther extended by th£ inquest of the land of Ba-

ON THE ISLAND O* JAVA. 159

lambouang, situated at the most eastern extre-
mity of Java.

This province, the productions of which can
sever yieltf the Company a sufficient compensa-
tion for the blood and treasures which it costs,
would doubtless have never become an object off
their ambition, if the cupidity of one of their ser-
vants had not excitfed in them the desire of pos-
sessing it. Placing no limits to his lust df
wealth, he rather, as ordinary nletbods could
not assuage his rapacity, put the interest of his
employers to the hazard, than suffer his boundless
thirst of gold to remain unsatisfied.

The plausible pretext by which the goverri-
ment in India, and afterwards the direction in
Holland, werfe instigated to disturb the tranquil*
lity of this country, which they had for many
years regarded with so much indifference, wds
the representation that there was reason to fear
that the English wanted to take possession of it ;
nay, that ah expedition for that purpose was
actually oft foot, and was expected, ot had
arrived at the Straits of Bali ; that they had pro-
bably Already landed, and would consequently
establish themselves in time on the island. There
was some, trqih in this report ; but the Company
would in -all likelihood never have began 1 that
ruinous w&r, had it not befen for these interested
instigations; for their Competitors would not

1 60 ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

have found it an easy matter to establish their
trade here, notwithstanding this was so much
insisted on at Samarang.

In this manner was this eropir^ once so
formidable, split into three parts; and it has
thereby, not only become a less dangerous neigh-
bour to the Company) but is likewise entirely
under their control, by means of their holding
the balance between the above-mentioned poten-
tates. Even the prince who has the greatest
right to the throne is not appointed heir to the
crown, without the consent of the Company;
and the nomination of the prime ministers of
both the princes is likewise vested in the Com-
pany. *

The capital city of the Soespehoenam is Soere
Carta, commonly called Jolo. and is about two
days journey inland, south-east from Samarang.
That of the sultan, D'Jokje Carta, lies five days
journey south-west from Samarang, at the south
side of Java, in the province of Mataram *.

To the government of the north-eastern coast

* The resting-places, or stages, on the road from Samarang
to D'Jokje Carta, ares

from Samarang to Onara, 5 (Dutch) mites,

from Onara tojambou* 7 ditto,

from Jambou to Sombou, 7 ditto*

from Sombou to Surrigenent, 6 ditto,
and from Surrigenent to D'Jokje Carta, 9 ditto*

OK THE ISLAND OF JAVA. \6l

of Java, the seat of which is at Samarang, be-
long all the factories, commonly called resi-
dencies, which the Company possess from Oelo-
pampang, 'as far as the province of Cheribon ;
which last, in the same manner as Bantam, is
under the immediate administration of the go-
vernment at Bat a via.

The sea-coast, thus ceded to the Company,
belonging to the government of Samarang, ex-
tends from Oelopampang to Tagai, full one
hundred German miles in length : the breadth
inland is various, running farther into the coun-
try at one place than at another *. It is divided
into nine residencies.

* Extract from Captain Bligh's Journal, 1789,
44 Sunday the 6tb. In the afternoon we saw the high lan4
of Cape Sandana, which is the north-east part of Java. The
next day we were off the Cape, which is a low point project?
ing from the high laud. It is placed by the Dutch maps in
7 52' south; but, according to my observation, and our esti*
mated distance from the land, I make it in 7* 46'.

" We steered to the westward* along the coast of Java, ant)
on the 10th, at noon, we anchored off Passourwang, in two
fathoms, distant from the shore half a league ; the entrance
of the river bearing s. w. The coast hereabouts is so shoal,
that large ships are obliged to anchor three or four miles from
the land. As soon as we were at anchor, I got in my boat
and went on shore. The banks of the river, near the en-
france, .were mud, on which grew a few mangrove- bushes.
Among them we saw hogs running, and many were lying dea4
}n the mud, which caused a most intolerable stench, and made

1 6a OH THB I3LAMB OP J ATA.

Oelopampang is the first, beginning frooi tb*
east. This settlement was only established aftct

me heartily repent having come here j but proceeding about a
mile up the river, the course of which was serpentine, we
found a very pleasant country, and landed at a small and well-
constructed fort* The houses at Passourwang are neatly built,
and the country appears to be well cultivated. The product
of this settlement is rice, of which they export large quantities.
There are but few Dutch here ; the Javanese are numerous,
and their chief lives with considerable splendour. They have
good roads, and posts are established along the coast ; and it
appears to be a busy and well-regulated settlement. Latitude
7° $& south.

" The o»xt day, about noon, we sailed; and on the lath*
in the evening, anchored in Sourabaya road, in seven fathoms:
the flagstaff bearing s.£w. distance from the shore one mile.
We fouixl riding here seven square-rigged, and several smaller
vessels. Sourabaya is one of the most pleasant places I ever caw.
It is situated on the banks of a river, and is a mile and a half
distant from the sea-shore, so that only the flagstaff can be
seen from the road. The river is navigable up to the town for
vessels of too tons burden, and the bank on one side is made
Convenient for tracking. The Chinese carry on a considerable
trade here, and have a town on the side of the river opposite
to Sourabaya. The country near the town is flat, and the soil
light, so that they plough with a single bullock or buffalo. Our
latitude observed in Sourabaya road, was 7* 1 1' south.

** On the x ;th we sailed from Sourabaya. At noon we an-
chored at Grissee, which is a 'town, with a small fort, belong-
ing to the Dutch. We remained here about two hours. Lati-
tude of Grissee, 7 9' south.

" The navigation through the Straits of Madura is so intri*
eate, that, with the little opportunity I had, I am unable to un-

OUt ME flLAfffc OP JAVA^ l^^

the war of Batatntouang, and a* under* the dr-
rection of a junior merchant.

Sourabaya is the next ; the chief of .which has,
at present, the rank of senior merchant, and tfw
title of commander of the eastern district. It:
mostly yields rice.

Then follows Grisaee, where the resident has
the rank of merchant, and the chief produce of:
which b also rice.

Satnanap* situate on the island of Madura, is*
the residence of a junior merchant. It yieUr

\* H * d ~ i»tk * t t±** Mi lt > <w>

dertake a description of it. The neat day, September the i$th,
having pasted the Straits, we bore awily K> the Westward, aleag :
the coast of Java. We had regular soundings ail the way to
Samarang, off which place we anchored on the 22d, in the
afternoon; the church bearing s.b. distance from the shore
half a league, depth of water two fathoms. The shoalness of.
the coast here, makes the road of Samarang very iucobrenient,
both on account of the great distance whidb largo ships (of,
which; there were several in the road) are obliged to lie from
the shore, and of the landing, which is in a river that cannot
be entered before ha If- flood. This river resembles the one at
Fassonrwang, the shores being low, with offensive dead animals
lying about them. Samaraftg is surrounded by a wall and>
ditch. Here is a very good hospital, and a public school, chiefly
for teaching the mathematics. They have likewise a theatre.
Provisions are remarkably cheap here, beef being at ten doits
per pound, and the price of a fowt twelve doits. The latitude
of Samarang is 6° 5/ south.

44 On the 26th, we sailed from Samarang, and on the ntjtf
Octobrr we anchored jn Batavia road,"

h 2

164 ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

no article of trade, and serves only to keep watch
over the island in which it lies.

Rembang, where formerly a junior merchant
was stationed, but the chief has now (he rank of
merchant It yields salt and timber ; and a ship
of five hundred tons, and three or four smaller,
vessels, are annually built here for the service, of
the Company*

At a little distance from Rembang lies JoaiM*
which is under the control of a junior mer-
chant. It yields rice and timber, also a little in*
digo and cotton- yarn.

Japara, where the resident has the rank of
merchant. Its productions are the aame as those
of Joapa.

Samarang, the residence of the governor of
Java, Its chief produce is rice and cotton-yarn.

Farther on is Pacalonga, governed by a junior
merchant, and yielding sugar and rice.

Lastly, and most to the westward, Tagal, where
a merchant is the resident, which produces rice.

Besides the residents at these places along the
coast, those at the courts of the Soesoehoenam,
and the sultan, are also subordinate to this go-
vernment. There are two at each, the first
ranking as senior merchant, and the second as
merchant; with the difference, however, that at,
Soera Carta the former is a captain in the mili-

OH THE ISLAVD OF JAVA. 1 65

tary, while at D'Jokje Carta, they both belong
to the corps of f ennuis.

The Company maintain a body of about one
hundred* and fifty men in the service of each of
these princes, nominally as a body-guard in
honour of them ; but this number is rarely full,
there being a great want of men in this govern-
ment*

Both these Javanese princes have a number of
children by their many concubines, so that the
portion of each child is not very brilliant, and
some of them are merely common regents at
different places : thus I met with one, at the
residency of Joana, who was tommageng, or re*
gent, of the province of Patti, and at the same
time uncle of the reigning Socsoehoenam.

The whple establishment of the Company, in
the government of the north-eastern coast of
Java, consisted, in 1776*1777, of 234 persona
in civil, and 1 3 in ecclesiastical employments ;
35 surgeons and assistants, 109 belonging to the
artillery, 268 seamen and marines employed on
shore, 1356 soldiers, and 30 mechanics; in all
2045 Europeans. The governor has. a very lu-
crative office; it is estimated to yield from 80 to
100,000 rixdollars, or nearly 20,00c/. sterling
annually. He is generally superseded in two or
three years, and must, in his turn, make room
for a move unfledged successor, that each may

1 66 QH THB I8LAKD OF JAVA.

have his due share of the good things of the
land. The greater part of this immense revenue
accrues from the trade which the governor is
enabled to carry on. His ostensible emoluments,
besides his salary, consist in three tenths of an
allowance of five per cent, granted to the Com-
pany's servants; the rest being distributed in va-
rious proportions to the inferior officers, on all
the import and export duties, and other territorial
sources of revenue of the Company, and in a
yearly contribution levied from the strand- regents,
or native magistrates of the several districts,
amounting together to 17 13 Spanish dollars.
Besides the articles mentioned, a large quantity
of lentils, M<fy***gt which are much used for tbe
consumption of the common people, with some
cardamom, the amtmrn compactum, ginger, amo-
mum zingiber, and turmeric, are exported from
this colony. They are mostly employed in the
country-trade. Part, however, of its produce
eomes to Europe. In 1778, the following goods,
brought from this part of the coast, were sold in
Holland, viz.

20,000 lb. of indigo, at /.6 (iu. sterling)
per lb. which stood tbe Company in
/.i 10 (is. <p£)

50,000 lb. of turmeric ;
and 65,000 lb, of cotton yarn*
On the other hapd, this colony takes opium, to

.93 ?Hf MIA*? OF J4VA. t(7

the amount of /. 1,500,000, or about 136,000/.
sterling annually, silk clothes, India piece-goods,
and European manufactures, op all which large
profits accrue both to the Company and to their
servants. The statements of Governor Mossd
make the yearly receipts of the Company here
amount to /. 400,000, and the charges to
/38o,ooo ; but, in 1779* the former were
^.436,874, and the latter only f.%% 1,873 ; leav-
ing a favourable balance of/i55>Qo;, or about
14,000/.

|6S Off THE ISLAND OP JAVA<

CHAPTER H.

Combats of wild Beasts and Criminals.— The Com-
pany appoint Successors to the Princes of Java —
Likewise Prime Ministers. — Tomogangs, or na-
tive Regents. — Prices paid for the Rice. — Ac-
count of the Depatti of Samarang. — Entertain-
ment at the Governors House.— River of Sama-
rang. — Tides. — Fortifications. — Chinese Temple.
— Warehouses and Workshops.— Guardhouse. —
Government House. — Suburbs. — Garrison. — View
of Fishers Island.— Account of Japara* — The
Fort, House of the Resident ', &c.—Old Japara.
— Ancient Javanese Tomhi. — Old Moorish
Temple.'— Character of the present Resident.

The most favourite diversions of the Javanese
emperors are combats between wild beasts.

When a tiger and a buffalo are to fight for
the amusement of the court, they are brought
upon the field of combat in large cages. The
field is surrounded by a body of Javanese, four
deep, with levelled pikes, in ordfer that, if the
animals endeavour to break through, they may
be killed immediately ; this, however, is not so
easily effected, but many of these poor wretches
arc torn in pieces, or dreadfully wounded, by the
enraged animals.

0tf TUB ISLAM* OP JAVA. 169

When every thing is in readiness* the cage of
the buffalo is first opened at the top, and his
back is robbed with certain leaves, which have
the singular quality of occasioning an intolerable
degree of pain, and which, from the use they are
applied to, have been called buffalo-leaves by
our people, but by the Javanese kamadu. They
sting like nettles, but much more violently, so
as to cause an inflammation in the skin. On
every vein they have sharp-pointed prickles,
which are transparent, and contain a . fluid that
occasions the irritation. Dr. Thunberg says, it
is a species of nettle, before unknown, to which
he gave the name of urtica stiaiulans. The door
of the cage is then opened, and the animal leaps
out, raging with pain, and roaring most dread*
fully.

The cage of the tiger is then opened, and fire
is thrown into it, to make the beast quit it,
which he does generally running backwards out
of it.

As soon as the tiger perceives the buffalo, lie
springs upon him ; his huge opponent stands
expecting him, with his horns upon the ground :
if the buffalo succeed in catching and throwing
him into the air, and the tiger recovers from his
fall, he generally loses every wish of renewing
the combat : and if the tiger avoids this attempt
of the buffalo, he springs upon him, and «etaiag
him in the neck, or other parts, tears his flesh

170 OS TH a ISLAM* OF JAVA*

from his bones; in most cases, however* the
buffalo has the advantage.

The Javanese who must perform the dangerous'
office of making these animals quit their cages,
may wot, when they have done, notwithstanding
they are in great danger of being tprn in pieces
by the enraged beasts, leave the open space, bet-
Tore they have saluted the emperor several times,
and his majesty has given them a signal to de-
part ; they then retire slowly, for they are not
permitted to walk fast, to the circle, and mix
with the other Javanese.

The emperors sometimes make criminals, con-
demned to death, fight with tigers. In such
cases, the man is rubbed with btrri, or turmeric,
and has a yellow piece of cloth put round bim ;
. a iris is then given to htm, and he is conducted
to the field of combat.

The tiger, who has for a long time been kept
lasting, tails upon the man with the greatest
fury, and generally strikes bim down at once
with his paw ; but if he be fortunate enough to
avoid this, and to wound the animal, so that it
quits him, the emperor commands him to attack
.the tiger, and the man is then generally the vic-
tim : even if he ultimately succeed in killing hi»
ferocious antagonist, he most, suffer <teath,;by
command of the emperor.

An officer in the Company's service, who had

Oil THB ISLA1» Or JAVA. t7t

long been stationed at the courts of the Javanese
emperors, once witnessed a most extraordinary
occurrence of this kind, namely, that a Javanese
who had been condemned to be torn in pieces
by tigers, and for that purpose had been thrown
down from the top into a large cage, in which
several tigers were confined, fortunately fell ex*
actly upon the largest and fiercest of them, across
whose back he sat astride, without the animal
doing him any harm, and even, on the contrary,
appeared intimidated; while the others also,
awed by the unusual posture and appearance
which he made, dared not attempt to destroy
him ; he could not,' however, avoid the punish-
ment of death, to which he had been condemned,
for the emperor commanded him to be shot dead
,in the cage.

According to the stipulations of the last treaty,
the Company determine which of the sons of
either emperor shall succeed his father, who is
then nominated heir to the crown ; they equally
appoint the pangorang, or prince, who has the
administration of the empire, and is first warm,
or prime minister.

The Company's possessions along the coast,
arc divided into regencies. A Javanese, of some- „
what more than common birth, is appointed
regent in each, by the Company, under the de-
nomination of tomagmg, to whom the determi-

17* ON THB ISLAND OP JAVA*

oatioD of disputes of small moment, among his
subordinate Javanese, is left ; they may even in-
flict corporal punishment, but not death ; crimes
which require the last being only adjudicable by
the native council at Samarang.

They must likewise take care that the Java-*
nese inhabitants deliver the produce of their land
to the Cotopany, or rather to themselves, in
order to convey it afterwards to the several resi*
dencies or factories.

A certain contingent, or assessment of pro-
duce, is laid upon each of these regents, which
they must be attentive to furnish punctually, or
they run a risk of being dismissed.

The Company pay a fixed price for every ar-
ticle. That of the rice is ten rixdollars, or
twenty-four gilders, for every coyang of 3400
pounds weight, about is. 6d. per cwt. ; but when
the harvest fails, they sometimes pay five rix-
dollars more ; or when the wants are very large,
as in the year 1773, when the scarcity of this
grain at fiatavia, occasioned by a certain occur-
rence respecting the first administrator in the
grain- magazine, was very great; or. when se-
veral succeeding harvests have failed, orders are
m then given to the residents to buy the rice imme-
diately from the natives, and the coyang then
stands them in fifty rixdollars.

Samarang alone has a depatii, who is higher

OH THE ISLAM) COT JAVA. *}$

in rank than the tommagongs, and a prince
of the blood, or pangorang. He has, how-
ever, no jurisdiction over the other regents,
except those within the district of Samarang
itself. He is likewise the chief of the native
council.

Stavorinus was once in company with this
prince, at the house of the governor of Sana-
rang, who gave an entertainment that evening
on the occasion of the birth-day of his little boy.
The depatli was placed next to the governor, at
his right hand ; he appeared to be a man of foil
fifty years of age, rather above the usual stature,
thin, and of a brown complexion; he had
little beard, a grave deportment, and was very
sedate and unaffected in conversation.

He was dressed iri a short brown coat, with
silver buttons, and silver-edged button-boles;
the sleeves sat tight to the arms, below the el-
bow to the wrists. Under this he wore a chinta
snron, which reached to the ground. On his
feet he bad large slippers, square-toed, and
turned up. His cap, or head -band, was of white
linen, which having been much beat, and pre*
pared with rice-starch, was as transparent as
gauze. He was addressed by the governor by
the title of towatig defattu and treated with great
respect. His dahn> or dwelling, stands on the
Pascebaan, near the house of the governor, whom

174 O* THE ISLAK© OP JAVJu

be is likewise obliged to accompany, when be
goes to teside at Boeyang, about half a league
farther, where he has also a mansion elose to
that of the governor.

On the occasion of this festival, two of the
elders of the church at Sarnarang, the fiscal, and
the lieutenant of the artillery, danced a reel for
the diversion of the company.

The town of Sarnarang lies on the east side of
the river of the same narne, which takes its rise
*botrt three Dutch miles inland, and falls into
the sea, about two hundred roods below the
place ; at its mouth it is not more than three
hundred and thirty; or forty, feet broad. A
bridge over it, leads from the town to the
usual residence of the governor, which is called
the Vrybeid, Freedom, and is a large and band-
some building. The Chinese and Javanese
pons or suburbs are on the same side of
liver.

* This river, like all others in Java, has a bank,
lying before its mouth, which is in some place*
eomposed of soft mod, and in others of hard
sand. At low-water there is scarcely more than
one foot water upon it*

Here, as. well as all along the coast of Java, ,
the tide rises but once in foor-and~twenty hours*
|n the bad monsoon, or when the west winds
blow, it is bigh-wattr in the daytime, and low*

ORTHB ISC AMD OP JAV*. %f$

watel at night ; and daring the good or cast
monsoon,' the contrary takes place. When it is
low-water without the .banks, the mere are at
the highest ; and the moon seems to have no
influence, here, upon the tides.

The fortifications of Samarang are in the
same state as all those of the Company, mostdc-
plombly bad. The walls which surround it,
and connect the projections, for they can scarcely
be called angles, are low and ruinous.

The most remarkable object at this place was
a temple of the Chinese, a middling-large build*
ing, with two courts before it ; the interior is de- •
coratcd with the gigantic images of their gods,
which are strongly gilt, and make a splendid ap-
pearance.

Samarapg has a small but neat church ; near
it is an elegant tomb of Mr. Touttemond, for*
merly head administrator and second in com*
mand here.

The warehouses and workshops stand in a row,
all under one roof, projecting out, and coher-
ing a piazza before them, foil three hundred feet
in length. They are to the sooth-west of the
town, by the river-side.

The guard-house has, besides the place for the
privates, two large apartments for the accommo*
dation of the officers upon duty.
The government-house* formerly the residence

Ij6 OV THE ISLAND OP JAVA.

of (he governor and where the several offices
are actually held, is near to, and faces the river.
There are three campons, or. suburbs — the Chi*
nese, the Javanese, and the Bougincse ; of which
the two first arc west, and the last eastward of
the river.

. When the garrison of Samara ng is complete,
it amounts to one hundred and fifty men, be-
sides an independent company of dragoons,
which are under the command of a captain- lieute-
nant; alt the other military of the place are
subject to the orders of the captain-commandant
of Saonarang.

. Visschers, or Fisher's Island, is a small low ■
island, about two leagues and a half s. w. from
Japara, and particularly distinguishable by two
of three high trees, which grow upon it.

Behind De Nis and a little to the s. e. lies
another island, which is surrounded by very
dangerous shoals, and contracts the extent of the
road of Japara.

From the island De Ni?, the water shoals gra-
dually, first, from fire to two and a half fa-
thoms; and when in this last depth, you are
abreast of the Foul island : it then lessens by de*
grees, to six feet, when . you are close to a high
rock, called the Walvisch, or Whale, whence
it shoals more and more, with some sunken
rqeks* tp the mouth of the little river of J a para,

Otf THE IstAKD OF JAVA. 1JJ

where is two feet *Atdr &dd less, and which is
about 140 or 150 feet over. The source of this
stream lies no more than a short league up the
country.

On entering the rivulet 01) the north side, is a
gentle eminence, ab6ut fifty feet high, on the
western part of .which stands a small triangular
fort, with one bastion pointing to the sea, and
the other two to the land ; in the middle of the
curtain which connects the two last is the gate:
this fort is mounted with several pieces of cannon
of different calibre ; it is built of stone, and is kept
in good repair : the garrison consists of one Ser-
jeant, two corporals, and sixteen privates. The
test of the eminence is used for a burying-ground,'
in which the ensign-staff is erected.

On the south side of the rivulet are sotae Ja-
vanese hetises and huts, and about sixty roods
from ita mouth it is crossed by a bridge.

On the north side is the house of the resident,
opposite to a large plain, planted with shady trees,
tod railed round. It has several handsome
Apartments, furnished neatly and elegantly, in
the European style. On the left of it is a plea-
'sant bower, or pivilion, of one hundred feet in
length, eighteen in breadth, and ten in height,
so closely interwoven with flowering shrubs, that
it is impervious to light showers of rain. At the
erid is a grotto ; and when, on an evening, the

178 ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA*

whole is, illuminated, it forms a .very charming
coup (fail.

About a mile and a half above the settlement
the stream turns a saw-mill , which saws the
yearly quantity of four or five thousand large
logs of timber into planks, termed mill-planks.
The water is carried to the mill through a brick
channel, and a dam b made across the rivulet, to .
prevent it from running off, till thee is sufficient
to turn the mill.

. One Dutch mile inland lies the ancient Java*
nese city of J a para, called Old Japara, formerly
the residence of the sovereigns of an empire of
that name. The tomb of one of them is still in
existence ; it contains the body of the emperor,
that of his most beloyed wife on the right hand,
and of two other of his wives on the left, toge-
ther with several of his children. The shape of
these graves is oblong t the approach to them i9
through a sort of portico, inclosed by * railing,
in a large covered apartment. Over the graves
of the emperor and his most beloved wife, a
large piece of linen is continually expanded,
which covers them both ; and they are strewed
every Friday with fresh flowers.

Not far from this i* an old ruiqous Moorish
temple, of stone, with such beautiful sculpture of
imagery and foliage, that the art and ingenuity
of the Javanese of those times excites our admi*

OK THR ISLAND OF JAVA. ijf

ration. This temple is at least three bandied
years old.

At the sea-side, about two miles from Japara,
the resident has a wooden summer-house, in a
pleasant grove of cocoa-nut-trees, whence there
is a very fine prospect out to sea, and of the
neighbouring it

tcfe #y TBt is&avd or ja*a.

CHAPTER IH. ,

•

MandeTtque Island. — Account of Joana River.—
Inland Navigation to Samarang. — The 7W;/f .—
Chinese Campoh. — Port.— House of the Resident.
—Character, &c. of the present Resident.— His
Emoluments.— Celebration of the New Year.—
Account of the Tommagongs, or native Regents.—
Of the Pattis 9 or Sub-regents.— Entertainments
the House of one of the Tommagdngs.—Lubok
Island.— Madura.

Early on the morning of the a 2d of Decern*
her 1774, we weighed anchor and put to sea, in
order to proceed to Joana.

Mandelique, often called the Duivelsklip,
or Devil's Rock, because, in the east mon-
soon, ships are detained here a long time by
contrary winds and currents before they can
weather 4t, is small but of a middling height,
so as to be seen at the distance of five or six
leagues. It lies about half a league from the
coast of Java ; between which and the island
there is a passage, in three and a half or four
fathoms water, but it is too narrow to be safe,
and ships therefore very seldom pass through it.

The river of Joana flows out of a large inland
lake, into which several small streams, discharge

OH TOE SSLAft* OF }K*A. 1$|

themselves* It is catted the inland sea, and
disembogues its superfluous water* mostly through
this river, which, after a considerable serpentine,
course, falls into the sea about fom leagues to|the
westward of Remhaag. It i* one of the largest
and most navigable rivers along the whole north
coast of Java, being at the mouth, and a great
way up beyond the residency, twenty and more
feet deep, and in breadth about two hundred*

In the bad monsoon the afflux is much more
violent than ra the good monsoon. The water,
*9 is the caste wkh all rapid streams, is turbid ;
but when it has stood still some time in pots or
tasks, it becomes very clear and pleasant.

Up this river is a passage along sevenfl other
rivers to Samarang, and thence farther up the
country. This navigation may be performed in
boats, termed ptrmayangs, in two or three days ;.
and it is especially availed of in the bad mon-
soon, when the voyage by sea, round the island
Mandeltque, requires too long a time, and is
much too dangerous for small craft.

A broad mud- bank, upon which there is some-
times less than a foot water,-* lies before the
mouth of the Joana river.. From its mouth to
the residency, which stands full a league up oft
the west side, it runs between low and swampy
grounds, which are uncultivated, and produce
nothing but brushwood : they are sometimes in*

¥3

l8* OH THB 1SLAH0 OF JAVA.

undated when the river rises suddenly after heavy *
rains.

The town of Joana commences just above tho
residency. It consists of two rows of houses built
along the river, about a quarter of a Dutch mile
in length. At the farther end lies the Pascebaan,
and not far from it is the dwelling of the torn-
fnagong.

On the opposite side, upon an island formed
by the river of about half a Dutch mile in cir-
cumference, stands the Chinese tampon.

The odge % or fort of Joana, is a redoubt with
four demi-bastions, in which are the rice-ware*
houses, barracks for the soldiery, and some
% buildings which serve for a kitchen and other
offices for the resident. The house-of the resident
stood formerly within the fort, . hut it has been
pulled down, and a: new one has been built
without, of freestone, on the east side, and is
kept in excellent repair.

This mansion was constructed according to
the plan of the engineer Haak. It consists of
two pieces opposite to each other, connected
by a lofty (dome of full twenty-five feet diameter,
supported by four columns of the Tuscan order.
Botb these pieces are, however, but of one
story ; they are sixty feet long and twenty- five
broad, within the walls. One of them forms a
*{ugle hall of the same dimensions. The othof

* »

ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA; iSj

is divided into three apartments ; the middle one,
which is twenty- five feet in depth, and about
sixteen in breadth, is opposite to the door of the
great hall and to the great dome : it is fitted up
as a chapel ; the entrance to it is through a
handsome arch or portico : on each side of it is a
large chamber of the same size, making, together
with the chapel, the length of the whole build-
ing on this side, and the same as that of the
great hall. The walls of all these apartments
are beautifully stuccoed, adorned wjth sump-
tuous gilt cornices ; and the roofs are concave,
wainscoted, and curiously adorned with carved
imagery.

Behind (his pile stands a building, constructed
entirely of wood, containing three handsome
rooms ; and above these is one large apartment
for the unmarried female slaves, and which
might therefore be called the seraglio. From
this edifice is a inost delightful view backwards
over the faddtt or rice fields, interspersed with
small groves, and terminated by the distant and
Jofty mountains of Japanu

In the front of all stands a handsome saloon,

built close to the river-side, It is of an oblong

voctagon shape, and is stuccoed on the sides and

roof, but the cornices are not gilt. A large

bafcony projects from it towards the river, the

M 4

»l

1S4 ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

only inconvenience of which consists in the
swarms of mosquitos which infest it every even*

ing.

The emoluments pf this residency amount

annually to sixteen thousand rixdollars, about*
3500/. They proceed from the surplus-weight
of the rice delivered by the native regents to thf
Company, and from the cheapjate at which this
article is purchased, not to mention what he
Jiimself buys up and disposes of to individuals
for at least fifty per cent, profit ; likewise from
the collection of the timber yearly furnished to the
Company at a fixed price, and which costs him
no more than the labour, which is very cheap,
as he has only to send two or three hundred Ja-
vanese into the woods to fell the trees, and hew
them into logs.

Ship- building also afford? considerable gain tp
the present residept ; for both timber and labour
cost him little ; a Javanese master- shipwright
earning no more than about' six dubbeltja, or
two penny- pieces a day, his assistants four, and
the common labourers two.

He lately built a snow of one hundred and
one feet in length, according tq the model qf
the States' armed snow, the Zephyr, of Rotter-
dam, which wgs handsomely fitted up. It was
sold for eighteen thousand rixdollars.

There are also profits attached to the bhan-

Oil THE ISL4&& 9F JAVA. ll$

daaty, or (arm of the duties, which accrue no-
minally to the Chinese, bat in reality to the re*
tident.

A few days before the new year, every Java*
pe$e of the least connexion, either with the
Company or resident, comes to make presents to
him, consisting chiefly of poultry, eggs, sugar,
fruit, &c. Those of a higher order, such as the
Chinese capUin, bring rolls of satin*

On the first of January 1775, a salute of one-
and-tweoty guns was fired at sun-rise, front
$om$ small pieces of cannon planted before the
#alopn. Qn this ocoiaiop an European, a strong
and corpulent bmb» who qcted as gunner, met
.frith a. terribly accident. Passing before the
muzzle of one of the guns, the priming of whiqb
fcqd flashed withput discharging the piece, it
went off the instant he was before it, and blew
him upwards of &gc feet forwards ; the loading
had fortunately been rammed down without a
wad, so that he : was 90 otherwise hurt than by
being dresdfqlly bprnt on his side, arm, and

Two hours afterwards came three Javanese
regents, or to^mtago^gs, belonging to the district
0$ this, factory* to congratulate the resident on
•fts Wi year, in the following manner : SulLh
m* </«8f fyro twwapg* Jtik ca$$i m mur fat$a*g\

• I

l86 OH THE tSLAWD OF JAVA.

•

that is, u Much joy with the* new year ; God
grant you a long life/*

The first of these regents, who was tommagong
over part of the province of Patti, appeared to
be a mato of full fifty years old. He had gray
hairs and a little beard ; he was esteemed one of
the most intelligent of the Javanese, and was
even thought so much of, that the Soesoehocnam
wanted much to have made him administrator of
bis empire, but he declined the dignity, pre-
ferring to be a common regent in the Company's
possessions than a powerful statesman under an
arbitrary monarch ; for the ministers of those
princes are not only liable to incur a speedy dis*
grace, and to be dismissed from their offices, but
they are often degraded to the rank of bat t art %
which is little different from the condition of k
slave, obliged to perform the most menial and
most toilsome offices; while it is very seldom
that the Company come to such extremities.

His dress consisted of a short coat, or jacket,
of deep red velvet, which came a little below the
hips, and was fastened with small silver button's
round the body, under the arms, and rotind the
wrists. The Ipwer part of this jacket, below thfc
buttons, was stiffened out all round* Under it
he wore a saron, in the country fashion, round
his body dawn to his heels, made of Javanese
painted cloth- His his w» in a sheath of gold*

ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA. l8?

beautifully worked, and the handle was made of
eajou pelji, which is reckoned the moat costly
wood produced in the Indies ; it is very scarce,
of a grayish colour , with thin black veins running
through it, and of a very hard, close, and fine
texture. His cap was of purple velvet, bordered
with narrow silver lace. Like most Javanese of
distinction, he spoke little, and with becoming*
gravity.

The next regent was the uncle of the present
fioesoehoenam, and equally regent of the pro-
vince of Patti. The simplicity of this man was
*b remarkable as the intelligence of the former;
and the resident was always able to do whatever
he pleased in the province of Patti, as the latter
was very easily persuaded to every thing.

The third regent was the tommagong of Joana*
a large comely man, whose good-nature wa* pic-
tured in hi* open and friendly countenance : in
understanding, however, he too was not to be
compared to the first.

There was likewise another, who was regent
j>f Caylam, as well as a native of the place* The
other Javanese would s got acknowledge him, or
any of. the Gay lammers, tp be of their own race, or
true Javanese, saying, that they were produced
from the unnatural connexion of a wproan with
a dog. Iudeed, the whole time that they were
together, none of the other regents condescended
to address a single word to him,

*83 ojtf tbb istAH* or jaya.

Each regent bad bis patti* or sufcniegent, with
him ; but while the former sat upon a chair, the
latter was obliged to sit upon the floor, upon his
heels, and when called by his. superior, to creep
along the ground to him, and sit down at his
feet, waiting till he was pleased to speak or to
issue bis commands. '

At sever* o'clock in the evening these regents
came with a number of servants, with musical
instruments; &c. to supper to the resident's house.
Before supper there was music and dancing in
the European style ; but after it, several Javanese
dancing girls were sent for, with whom each of
the regente, and after them their patiis, danced,
or, as. they termed it, tandacked, to the sound of
their own musical instruments, gomgoms, boudas,
and a kind of violins, which continued till late
at night, when tbey^ all left ua for their own
bouses.

On the 3d of January the resident paid a
visit to the tommagong of Joana. He received
him in state, and* during the playing of gom-
goms and other instruments. His favourite wifey
and the wife of his son, together with his mo*
ther, likewise came and drank tea. A large
silver plate with confectionary stood upon a table
near, and each took what he liked of it.

On the 14th the same regent gave an enter-
^foment on the occasion of the marriage of his.

on mm island or java! ^89

daughter, which had been solemnized some time
before. The resident had Caused, at bis dcsictv *
the provisions to be dredsod by his own people^
in the European manner, so that thdre Was little
or no Javanese victuals to be seen. After sop*
per some dancing girls tfete again introduced*
with whom the tommagong and his sons tandttkedk
Their wives were not present at this ; and when,
a«hort time before the company broke up, they
came in, care had been taken that the dancing
girls were gone before they entered.

Lubok, commonly called tbe Baviaaq or
Baboon island, is not large, but extremely
populous. Seventy or eighty vessels go con*
tinually to and fro, between it and the coasts of
Java and Borneo. The inhabitants have no
connexion with, and are independent of the
Company.

Along the coasts of Java, from Joana, as far
as the point of Grissee, where the land turns first
to the south, to Sourabaya, and then, behind
the island Madura, in an easterly direction to
the Straits of Bali, through which it stretches to
the south again, as far as the Southern Indian
ocean, there is no danger to be avoided. One
may sail without apprehension along the shore,
at the distance of one or two leagues from the
land, only taking care to steer clear of the pro-
jecting points.

IftO

OH THE ISLAVD OF JAVA,

Many high mountains lie inland ; the foreland
is, on the contrary, low, but may be seen at the
distance of three and a half or four leagues.

The land of Madura may be seen eight or
nine leagues off; but the eastern part of it, it
is said, is visible at fifteen and more leagues*
distance.

THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

1775—8.

B O O K III.

ssaBspssasssfisasBBnt

CHAPTER I.

Situation of Java.— Face of the Country .—-The
North Coast.— The South Coast less known.—*
Weather,— Rivers. — Soil.— Agriculture.— *Pro*
duct ions. — Upland and lowland Rice. — Pepper
—Quantities furnished to the Company. Sugar
— Chiefly encouraged and manufactured in Jac-
catra. — Number of Sugar-mills. — Their estimated
annual Income.— Sugar-works > and Method of
making Sugar.— Different Qualities of it.— Coffee
—Quantities and Prices of it.— Cotton. — Quan~
tities and Prices of Cotton-yarn.— Salt— An
Article of Trade to Sumatra.— Timber.— Large
Forests.' — Indigo— Quantities and Prices.— Other

' Articles.— Minerals.

Thi island of Java may with justice be coo*
sidered as the most precious jewel in the diadem
of the Dutch East India Company: it consti-
tutes, together with Sumatra, Borneo, and Cele*
l?es # the Suada islands, and is the southernmost

19* ON THE ISLAND OP JAVA.

of them* According to the most recent and b*st
observations it is situated between 5* 50' and
8° 46' of south latitude, and extends from
j20°5'to 12 9 50' longitude east of Teneriffe,
full one hundred and eighty Dutch miles in
length ; and at the broadest part, from the point
of Coedoes, near Japara, to the south coast of
the province of Mataram, it is about six-and-
thirty Dutch miles oven Its longest diameter lies
in the direction of w. by m.^n. and e. by s.^'s.
To the east it has the island of Bali* from which

it is separated by a strait of the same name: to the
north it has the large island of Borneo, and those
of Billeton and Banca, at the distance of forty or
forty-five leagues : to the north-west is Sumatra,
from which it is divided by the Straits of Sqnda ;
these are no more than seven leagues over at the
narrowest part, namely, from the Varkens, or Hog-
point, to the opposite land of Bantam, and they
are here still more contracted by the island
Dwars-in-den-weg, or Thwart- the- way, which
lies in the middle of the passage : to the west
and south its shores are washed by the southern
ocean.

A chain of high mountains, commencing td
the east, in the province of Balambouang, and
running through it to the westward, gradually
decreasing in height, divides this island, longi-
tudinally, into two parts, of which the northern

<M* THE ISLAND OP J ATA. t$$

portion is the largest and the best. The north
coast has almost every where a low and woody
foreland ; although it has hills in some places,
for instance, a little to the west of Bantam,
where the high land stretches down to the sea-
coast.

The island has* several deep inlets, or bays,
on this north side, as those of Bantam, Batavia,
Chcribon, Samarang, Joana, and Sourabaya,
where there is good anchorage, in little depths.
Indeed the whole coast affords both good an-
choring-ground and a safe road for the vessels
which pass and repass, during the good or
south-east monsoon ; but in the bad monsoon,
when the north-west wind blows hard, and raises
a high sea, it is dangerous to anchor near the coast,
which is then almost uniformly a Ice shore.

The southern coasts of Java are much less
known than the northern, for the Company have
cot hitherto taken much trouble to have them
examined ; so that the greater part of what is
ascertained concerning them, is gathered from
the scattered information of the navigators who
have accidentally sailed along them *,

* In Valentyn's map of Java, which contains five sheets and
a half of large paper, the southern coasts, of Java are Wd dowa
seemingly with great accuracy 5 the appearance of the land is
every where described, and the track of some navigator who
coasted along it at a very short distance, from Prince's island

194 -°N TH1 ISLAND OF JAVA.

In the good monsoon, the sky is almost always
clear, though sometimes in the evening a thun-
der-cloud comes down over the mountains : bu*
this does not frequently happen, except near
the time of the breaking up of the monsoon,
when many violent thunder-storms rapidly suc-
ceed each other.

In the bad monsoon, the prevailing west winds
bring with them heavy rains and violent thunder-
storms ; yet this makes but little alteration in the
degrees of heat or cold ; in the warmest part of
the day, the thermometer generally stands at be-
tween 8 2° and 88°, and is seldom higher.

This degree of heat, if accompanied by a mo-
tionless state of the air, would, by continuance,
become intolerable; but all-bountiful Nature has
afforded her aid to the gasping inhabitants of
this torrid clime, by the alternate land and sea
breezes, which blow here every day, in regular
rotation ; and if they do not wholly moderate
the excessive heat, yet they render it more sup-
portable, and not very uncomfortable to those

who make no considerable stay here.

to Balambouang, with his soundings, anchorages, nature of
the bottom, &c. is marked down in it ; but h does not appear
when, or by whom, this voyage was performed, though, from
its direction, it appears probable that it was undertaken by the
commarid of the Company, for the express purpose of explor-
ing the south side of Java*

OH THB ISLAND OF JAVA. '195-

•■ The weight of the air is nearly the same
throughout the year ; the barometer seldom va-
ries 1 more than two or three lines; but the air
does not seem to possess so much elasticity as in
the northern regions. Experiments in electricity
do not succeed here so well as in Europe.

Java is watered by a great number of rivers,
which all descend from the chain of mountains
which divides the island ; but none of them are
navigable for ships, or large vessels, on account
of their insignificance, and of the bars before
their mouths, and upon most of which there is
little more than one foot depth at low-water.
The most considerable is that of Joana, and the
Sedant or Tangerang.

4 The soil is almost every where a reddish gra-
nulated clay, which, during the dry season, can
be little tilled, by reason of its hardness, without
a great deal of moistening.

The labour bestowed upon it is very trifling,
in comparison with the bountiful fertility of the
land in the production of various articles of ne-
cessity, luxury, and commercial importance.

Ploughing is performed here, as in most parts
Qf India, with buffaloes, which arc numerous.
The plough consists of a beam, or pole, eight
feet in length, to which, about three feet from
the fore-end, is fixed a piece of wood, some-
what* crooked and sharp-pointed: this.*%reaks

N Z

I $6 ON THE IStAND <JF JAVA,,

the soil,- which is afterwards turned over by %
triangular iron of upwards of nine inches iq
breadth. One or two buffaloes yoied to it, and
a Chinese, or Javanese, who guides the plough,
leisurely perforin the work of tillage.

No manure is used for the land, at least inas-
much as regards the fields employed in more ex-
tended purposes of agriculture ; garden -grounds,
however, are moistened with water in which oil-
cakes have been soaked ; which emits a most
horrid excrementitious odour,- but renders the
sa|l rich and fat, The only trouble taken with
the land, consists in burning Upon it all the
weeds and rubbish which it produces ; and when
one piece of ground ceases to yield sufficient
crops, another is resorted to, and the first is
suffered to lie fallow for several years, after
which it becomes again fertile of itself.

The articles produced in the island of Java
J are far greater in value than those pf all the
neighbouring countries : they chiefly consist of
the following :

In the first place, rice, which, for abundance,
excellence, and flavour, excels all other coun-
tries ; and it not only produces sufficient for thQ
support of its own inhabitants, hut also provide*
the eastern provinces and Ceylon. There arc
tvyo species of it ; one, which, when planted, i$
set nea% under water, so that the tops Just

bN tft* ISLAND OP JAVA. 1§>J

pear above this surface, as the rice -plants would
otherwise die, or be destroyed ; for, being too
weak to stand against the wind by itself, the
plant requires the surrounding water to support
it. The other sort, which is planted in the rainy
season, on high ground, and upon the moun*
tains, receives the necessary moisture solely from
the rains ; but it is not so good as the former
sort. The lowland rice is called sawa> and is
planted in May; while the upland rice, deno*
minated tipar, is planted in November, and
reaped in March ; and these two crops bear
some analogy to the winter and summer grain
with us : the upland rice does not yield so great
an increase as the other. These two sorts of rice
are always kept separate, and will not grow to-
gether. Mr. % Marsden terms the upland rice
laddahg, and the lowland satvoor. The former,
he says, bears the higher price, being a whiter,
heartier, and better flavoured grain > and having
the advantage in point of keeping. The latter
is much more prolific from the seed, and subject
to less risk in the culture, but is of a watery
substance, produces less increase in boiling, and
is subject to a swifter decay. It is, however, in
more common use than the former. Besides this
general distinction, the rice of each sort, parti-
cularly the upland, presents a variety of species.

N 3

19^ ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

In general, it may be observed that the larger
grained rice is less esteemed than the smaller and
whiter. The upland sort is also called paddce
goenong, or mountain- rice. It was one of the
objects of our government in sending Captain
Bligh to the South Sea, to procure seeds of this
mountain-rice ; and notwithstanding his disasters
he obtained some from Timor, which .were for*
warded to His Majesty's botanic garden at St.
Vincent, and to other parts of the West Indies,
where it is now cultivated with success.
. The pepper from Java is an article which,
next to the finer spices, yields, perhaps, the
greatest proportional advantage to the Company; ,
for though there arc more parts where it is pro-
duced, and whence it is brought into the Com*
pany's warehouses, namely, the coast of Mala*
bar, the west coast of Sumatra, Palembang, and
Borneo, yet the greatest quantity of what the
Company receive, is produced in the country of
Bantam, and its dependent provinces on the op-
posite coast of Sumatra, as appears from the foU
lowing list of what pepper was received at Bata-
via and Onrust, in 1776-1777, viz. •

from Bantam and Lampong, - black pepper 3,714,000 /4.

' white ditto 15,000

Borneo, • black ditto 1,117,375

white ditto 16,150

ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA. v 1 99

from Ffclerobang, ... black pepper 497,507/*.
West coast of Sumatra, - ditto ditto 1,119,436

Province of Jaccatra, - ditto ditto 1,900

Sugar is by fir the chief produce of the pro-
vince of Jaccatra ; and although Cheribon, and
the' north-east coast of Java, annually 'produce
considerable quantities of it, they cannot rival
Jaccatra in this respect ; and no wonder, for the
culture of it was early cherished by the higher
powers in Jaccatra. The cultivators of the sugar-
cane enjoy many exemptions of pecuniary im-
posts, and they have been encouraged by every
means, not only by the government of Batavia,
but likewise by positive orders from the chamber
of seventeen in Holland, under date 20th of
June 1710.

On the other hand, the cultivation and manu-
facture of sugar has never been prosecuted with
vigour, nor suitably encouraged, on the north-
eastern coast. The various plans of improve*
ment which have been suggested, have never
been made any use of ; and the last, which was
presented to the governor general Van der Parra,
in the year 1774, by the resident of Japara,
Mr. Van der Beke, and which contained many
very good things, was never taken any notice of.
Nay, so far from any encouragement being held
out, the importation of sugar at Batavia, from
the north-eastern coast of Java, has been almost

»4

206 OH THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

interdicted to private merchants, by a heavy
duty of one rupee per picol, which was solely-
laid upon it in order to favour the sugar-mills in
the province of Jaccatra and the Preanget lands ;
and thus, the discountenancing of the manufac-
ture of sugar in the other parts of Java, is, pro-
bably, the cause why the common Java sugar
has never attained the quality of that of Jaccatra,
the latter being much more substantial and better
granulated.

In the year 1710, there were one hundred
and thirty-one sugar-mills in Jaccatra; their
number, Ijowever, decreased considerably be-
fore, during, and after the war of Java; so
that at the end of December 1750, there were no
more than seventy- seven, of which only sixty-six
were in a condition to work ; these, with seven
m the kingdom of Bantam, eight in that of Che-
ribon, and thirteen in the province of the north-
eastern coast of Java, made the number of
sugar-mills existing at that time 4 ib the whole
bland of Java, one hundred and five; but at
present, 1777, they are still more diminished.

Mr. Mossel has made a calculation what pre*-
>fit these seventy-seven sugar-mills, in the pro*
vincc of Jaccatra, might annually yield to their
proprietors, or lessees : he reckoned that a yearly
quantity of ten million pounds weight of sugar

ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA, 201

might be produced by them, which be took at
four rixdollara per picol, is . . rixd. 320,000
and an equal quantity of molasses,
from which afterwards, either an in-
ferior sugar is made, or arrack dis-
tilled, at one rixdollar per picol, . . 80,000

together, rixdollars 400,0000

upwards of 87,000/. sterling, or nearly nooL
for each sugar- mil L The whole may be more
amply seen by referring to his " Observations
on the Sugar- works in the Neighbourhood of Ba-
tavia, &c." dated the 31st of December 1750.

The sugar-cane, which in general gro wshere very
luxuriantly, is planted from September to April,
and stands twelve or fifteen months in the field,
according as the land be rich or poor, before it
is cut. If the soil be good, and adapted to hs
cultivation, it can be cut four times ; on some
grounds less often, and on others only once.

The sugar-works here, are not so well or so
solidly constructed, as those in the West Indies.
The cane is here bruised between two rollers,
smd is therefore twice put through before all the
juice is expressed ; the sugar-mills in the West
Indies have three rollers* so that the same quan-
tity of cane can be pressed in half the time taken
for it here: the latter mode, however, requires a
greater degree of strength ; one or two buffaloes

20Z ON ^HE ISLAND OF JAVA*

are here sufficient, but at least four horses tie
required there for turning the mills.

The juice is twice boiled, and afterwards put
into pots, upon ' which a layer of clay, diluted
with water, and kneaded into a paste, is laid,
and it continues in this state for about twenty
days: during this time the clay is once or
twice renewed ; and by this operation the sugar
acquires a tolerable degree of whiteness ; it is
then set in the drying-place, which is a shed,
covered with atap, where it remains until it is
perfectly dry, and the molasses have entirely
trickled out of it, through an opening at the
bottom.

When a sugar-mill is in good condition, and
has no want of work-people, or of buffaloes,
about fifteen thousand canes can be bruised every
ibur-and twenty hours; these yield from nine
to eleven pots, containing each fifty pounds
weight of sugar of the first and second qualities,
twelve pounds of the third quality, and from six-
teen to twenty pounds of molasses.

Mr. Mossel calculated that all the canes
which the sixty- seven sugar-mills annually ccrti-
suined, covered four thousand six hundred mor-
gm % 9200 acres, of land, to which adding the
sajne quantity of four thousand six hundred
morgen, for pasture-ground for thte buffaloes, and
ten thousand morgen for wood for fuel, the

OH THB ISLAtfD OP JAVA, £03

whole extent of ground wanted for the prosecu-
tion of that manufacture, with that number of
mills, would not amount to twenty thousand
morgen, 40,000 acres, which is but a small part
of the province of Jaccatra, north of the moun-
tains.

The first quality of the sugar differs only from
the second and third by its greater whiteness*
The first sort is that which is alone jent to Eu-
rope; the second goes chiefly to the western parts
of India ; and the third, which is the brownest,
to Japan. There is likewise another sort, which
is very brown, and much less dry ; it is called
dispens-sugpr, because it is mostly delivered by
the dispensiers, or purveyors, from the provision-
warehouses of the Company, to be used on board
of their ships.

Coffee is likewise a product yielding much
profit to Java, and great advantage to the Com-
pany. The cultivation of it is performed in the
same manner as in the West India islands. Jac-
catra and Cheribon are the two districts where it
is most vigorously prosecuted, though the article
is equally grown on the north-eastern coast.
Java, where it is not indigenous, is indebted for
this production to Mr. Zwaardekroon, who was
governor- general from the year 1718 to 1725/
and who procured the coffee-plant from Mocha,
and after paying a very, high price for what was

404 ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

first produced, fifteen rixdollafs per picol, he
continued to encourage the cultivation of it by alt
the means in his power. His endeavours were
so well seconded by his successors, that in (he
year 1753, i,eoo,ooo pounds weight of coffee
were furnished from Cheribon, at the rate of
piVA- stivers per pound ; and full as much from
Jaccatra and (he Prcanger lands at A stivers per
pound: and, in the sequel, the quantity pro*
duced grew so large, that in the year 1 768, the
quantity of 4,465,500 pounds weight of coffee*
was delivered to the Company from Jaccatra and
the Preanger lands, at the reduced rate of four
rixdollars p4r picol of one hundred and twenty*
five pounds, i^s.^d. per cwt. ; although the native
cultivator must deliver one hundred' and sixty
pounds for a picol, which excess in the weight is
an emolument partly accruing to the commissary
. of inland affairs, and partly to the administrators
in the warehouses.

But (he reason why Jaccatra appears to furnish
so large a propprtjon of coffee, is, that a consi-
derable quantity of this produce which is grown
in the parts of the province of Cheribon nearest
to Jaccatra, come down through the last •men-
tioned country to Bat a via : the income of the
commissary for inland affairs is hereby greatly
enhanced, and it is pretended, that at is moft
convenient to the natives.

OH THE ISLAND OF JAVA. %0$

/ Cotton b likewise the production of Java. The
shrub, gouypmm htrbaccum^ which produces it, is
cultivated in almost every part of the island by
the natives ; the kingdom of Bantam, however,
excepted, where little of it is found ; so that the
yarn which is spun of it, in the province df Che-
ribon, and other parts, yields a considerable de-
gree of gain, on being clandestinely imported into
Bantam.

The Company, to whom the gfeater part of it
is delivered, pay for it, according to its qualities,
forty-five* thirty-five, twenty-four, and less rix-
dollars per picol of one hundred and twenty- five
pounds; equal to the respective rates of 17^/.
\l\d. and 9^. sterling per pound.

Jsccatra and the Preanger lands furnished in
the year 1753* the quantity of about two hun-
dred picoU, or twenty-five thousand pounds of
cotton-yarn; and in 1768, no more than 133
picols, or 16,235 pounds. The greater part of
the cotton-yarn is sent to Holland ; the rest is
employed by the natives in weaving cloths for
their own consumption.

Attempts have likewise been made to introduce
the manufacture of cotton cloths, as an article of
trade for the Company, and to supersede part
of their large importations of the article from
Hindostan ; but hitherto with very little success,
Java also produces salt, though it is not an

%a6

ON THE ISLAND OP JAVA.

article of very extensive commercial importance*
Most of it is brought from Rembang, where the
Company purchase it at the rate of six rixdollars
per five thousand pounds, and they export it
to the west coast of Sumatra, where it is dis-
posed of, generally, at the rate of between thirty
and thirty-five rixdollars for three thousand
pounds weight, which is equal to about ioj. io</.
sterling per ton English, and the selling price
from 91*. %d. to 1075. per ton.

The north-eastern coast, and part of the dis-
trict of Chcribon, furnish a very large quantity
of timber, logs, beams, boards, knees, &c.
which is not only sufficient for the consumption
of Batavia, for ship-building, houses, and do*
mestic uses, but a very considerable quantity of
it is annually exported to several of the out-fac-
tories, and, in particular, to the Cape of Good
Hope.

The large forests in the above districts, belong,
to the Company ; the natives arc obliged to- fell
and prepare the timber, as a kind of feudal
service, so that no other emolument is made by
thero, on this score, than the hire of the draft-
oxen by which it is conveyed to the sea- shore ;
and this, together with the freight by sea, forma
the whole of the purchase-money and charges of
the timber. Those forests, however, begin to
be considerably diminished.

ON THE fSSAND OF JAVA. ZOJ

Next is reckoned indigo, which although not
an original production of Java, has heen culti-
vated with tolerable success, since the Company
have been established here; insomuch tbat,
whqreas formerly that article was obliged to be
sent for from the empire of the Great Mogul, and
special firmans were obtained, with some diffi-
culty, for that purpose, that trade has now been
abandoned in Hindostan, and instead of being
purchasers, the Company have been able to be
sellers of a considerable quantity of the article.

The Company pay for the first quality thirty
stivers per pound, and in proportion for the
second and third qualities. The indigo is sorted
upon its delivery at Batavia, by a person spe-
cially appointed for that purpose. ' In the year
1768, Jaccatra furnished 2875 pounds of indigo,
though the inhabitants have been assessed at
the quantity of 61 25 pounds.

Turmeric, curcuma* long- pepper, piper longum*
and cubebs, piper cubeba> are also productions
of Java; but the collection and exportation of
these articles is not of great importance. The
two last are most in demand for Surat.

Of minerals and metals, Java can make boast
of none but a little iron-ore and star-stones,
asterias, called in the Malay tongue, or by the
natives, maasouron.

208 OS THE ISLAND OF JAVA

CHAPTER II.

Division of Java*— General Population.— Bantam.
«p— Boundaries. — Government. — Population. — •
Dependencies.— Country of Lampoon.— The Corn-
patrfs Establishment at Bantam.— Expenses.—
Islands in the Straits of Sunda 9 &c— Peculiar
Unhealthiness of Bantam.— Jaccatr a 9 and its
Preanger Lands. — Boundaries. — Population.—
Administration.— Rivers*— The Mookervaart.-*-
Canals and Drams eut by the Dutch.— Produc-
. tions. — Cheribon. —Boundaries. — Population-
Productions. — Establishment. — Expenses and
.Profits.— Empire of the Soeseehaenam.— Former
Extent and Grandeur.— Present reduced Situa-
ti on.— Dominions of the Sultan— hland of Ma-
dura. — Titles of the reigning Soesoehoenam, and
Sultan.— Political Relations xf the Company with
these Princes.

When the Company first established them*
selves here, Java wag divided into three large
empires, namely,Bantam,Jaccatra,and the empire
of the Soesoeboenam, which last .was the most
extensive, and comprehended full two thirds of
the whole island, Cheribon being feudatory to
it. Times have now so far altered, that the

<HTTH* ISLAND OF JAVA* ?0<)

islaod is divided into five states, or empires,
which altogether contain one hundred and twen-
ty-three provinces, or governments, amongst

which the kingdom of Bantam is considered but
as one. :

Each province, or government, consists of a
certain number of tjatjars, or families, the num-
ber of which, throughout the whole of Java,
including Bantam, amounted, in the year 1777,
to 152,014.

These ^re calculated, upon an average, through-
out Java, to consist of two men, two women,
and two children, forming, therefore, a popuia*
tion of ••••••«• souls 912,084.*

But if to this we add the inhabitants

of the principality of Madura,
which, though a separate island, is
always taken together with Java,
and which contains ten thousand ,
families, or . * ♦ . • souls 60,000

■*■

the whole population of Java and Ma-
dura will amount to 972,084

* Huysers gives the population of Java, exclusive, of Ma-
4nra, as follow*, vis.

in the kingdom of fyntam 5*000 tjatjars, or families

injaccaera 33f9*4 ditto

inCheribon . . . , . 15,000 ditto
in the Mataram, or empire

of Java proper . . . 94,200 ditt?

O ia

•*

110 Otf THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

assuredly a very slender number of inhabitants
for such an extensive island. It was formerly
much more populous ; but the long and bloody
wars with which this country- has been afflicted,
for nearly a century and a half, before the Com-'
jtany succeeded in establishing themselves in that
firm manner in which their power here is at pre-
sent rooted, is sufficient to remove our surprise
at the paucity of the inhabitants of this extremely
fertile island. The last' war waged against the
empire of the Soesoehoenam seems, in particu-
lar, to have produced a great degree ^depopu-
lation. According to4he statement of the po- v

pulation made in the year 1738, the number of
families in the territories of the Soesoehoenam
alone amounted to 309,700, or souls 1,858,200,
and at present (1777), the same lands,
which were then under the domi-
nion of the Soesoehoenam, part of
which are now, however, taken
from him, contain no more than
11 8,i 00 families, or . . . . . 708,600

i,i49,6po

H«k

in all 148, 1 14 families, reckoned at six individuals each, make* v
the whole number of inhabitants 888,684; but he adds, Hi a,
note, that, according to more recent accounts, the population,
x>f Java n calculated at one million and a half, or two million^
of people. These statements, however, do not include the in*
habitants of Batavia.

ON THE ISLAND OP JAVA. 21 1

making a difference of more than the half, which
would appear too improbable for belief, were the
statement not made on inspection of authentic
documents *.

The actual five divisions of Java are, Bantam,
Jaccatra, Cheribon, the empire of the Soesoeboe-
nam, and that of the Sultan.

The kingdom of Bantam, which forms the

■

* Valentyn's statement of the population of Java, in his
time, shews a still greater disproportion ; his account, in which
he takes every tjatjar, or family, at five persons only, gives —

in the kingdom of Ban*
tam, exclusive of the
city of Bantam . » families 5,000, or persons 40,850

in Jaccatra, exclusive of

Batavia ..... ditto 19,390, or ditto 96,950

in Cheribon and its de-
pendencies . . • ditto 63,120, or ditto 365,600

in the countries belong-
ing to the emperor of
Mataram, or the Soc-
soehoenam . . . ditto 483)570, or ditto 2,417,850

in the county of Balam-
bouang, a rough cal-
culation, full . . • ditto 50,000, or ditto 300,000

and in the island of Ma-
dura about . • . ditto 30,000, or ditto 250,000

Total 3,311,250

A decrease in this island from upwards of three millions to
ess than one million of people, in about sixty years, is an
amazing instance of the destructive agency of war.

O 2

212 Otf THE ISLAND OP JAVA.

western division of Java, is about one hundred
Dutch miles in circumference, each being of
twelve hundred Rhineland roods. The Indian
ocean washes it on the south ; to the north-west
and north it has the straits of Sunda, and their
islands ; fo the east, it is divided from the empire
of Jaccatra, by a narrow slip of land, called
G rending, lying a little to the westward of the
Sedani, or river of Tangerang, and by a chain
of mountains, known by the name of Gocnong

■

Tjeberum, which terminate to the south in the
bay of Wynkoopsbergen.

Bantam became strictly connected ftith the
Company, in the year 1680, by means of the
assistance afforded by them against Sultan Agon,
who had formerly abdicated the throne, but who
had resumed the sceptre ; his son solicited and
obtained the aid of the Company > toward esta*
Wishing him in the government. The country
remained, in a manner, independent, and its
' trade continued free; hut upon this, encroach-
ments were practised from time to time, and it
was sought to draw the bands of connexion with
Bantam closer, by giving assistance, towards re-
ducing the revolted province of Succadana, in
Borneo, which formerly belonged to Bantam,,
and is still an appendage of that kingdom. At
last, in 1751, Bantam became wholly a fief of
the Company, occasioned by the fortunate issue

0N THE 1$LAJU> OP JAVA, 215

of the commotions there ; the king was then
privately taken hold of, and continued a prisoner,
while a prince of the blood-royal, who had been
kept in exile at Ceylon, was exalted to the
Ihrone in his stead ; and a yearly tribute of one
hundred bhars of pepper, amounting to thirty-
seven thousand five hundred pounds weight, js
now paid to the Company from Bantam.

The rule of succession was, at tbe desire of
the king, regulated by the Company, wt*> choose
and appoint the heir apparent to be hereditary
prince, as was done in the year 1767 : this he-
reditary prince succeeded to bis deceased fethpr
in the month of September 1777, and was for-
mally crowned as king of Bantam, by Mr, Bre-
ton, tbe minister plenipotentiary deputed by tbe
• Company for that purpose*

Although the *ulfan, or king, of Bantam, is
a vassal of the Company, he is, nevertheless, a
sovereign prince, lord and master of life and
death, and uncontrolled in his authority over his
. own subjects; be ia^staxes/augmenta or lightens
them, according to bis own good pleasure * and
. baa all other regalia, and marks of . sovereignty ,
; appertaining to a free monarch, excepting that he
. is restricted from entering into any alliances or en-
gagements, either with the European or Indian
« princes ; as likewise from selling the productions

° 3 ■ ■ .

214 ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA*

■

of his territories to any other than to the Com*
pany.

Bantam has the smallest population of all the
divisions of Java ; its whole extent comprehends
no more than five thousand tjatjars, or families,
and, consequently, only thirty thousand inhabit-
ants.

_ I

The Company keep in Fort Spcelwyck, in-
cluding the guard wKicli is stationed at Fort
Diamond, an establishment amounting, when
complete, to three hundred men.

In 1776-1777, the establishment of the Dutch
Company at Bantam consisted of twenty civil ser-
vants, one clergyman, five surgeons and assist-
ants, seventeen belonging to the artillery, thirty
seamen, 199 soldiers, and ten mechanics; in all
182 Europeans. On* account of its vicinity to
Batavia, no revenues, whether territorial or com-
mercial, are drawn from this place; but the
charges of the establishment are not heavy : in
1779 they amounted to about 7115/. sterling,
which is nothing in comparison with the benefit
derived from the pepper furnished by Bantam.
To the dominion of the king of Bantam belong
all the islands in the straits of Sunda, from
Prince's Island to Pulo Babi, or Hog Island,
close to his capital city. Many of them are in-
habited, and produce pepper ; others are desert,
or the resort of pirates and smugglers! who arc

OK THE ISLAND OP JAVA; ' 215

dexterous in carrying on»an illicit trade in pepper
with foreign options. In November 1 769, the
Dutch Company's cruising grab Zeeleeuw, the
Sea Lion, was attacked, taken, and the crew
massacred, in the bay of Lampoon, by these
pirates. The Klapper, or Cocoa Islands, which
lie on the south coast of Java, near the straits of
Sunda, are uninhabited, and are only occasion-
ally resorted to for the take of the edible birds'-*
nests which are found there; but they are said
to be greatly infested with enormous snakes*
Prince'* Inland is called, in the Malay language,
Pulo Selan ; and in the language of its inhabit-
ants, Pulo Paneitan. - It is woody, and a very
small part of it only has been cleared. Valentyn
landed on it in 1694, and found it then uninha-
bited. He adds, that there is good anchorage in
the south-west bay, in nine and ten fathoms, and
two small fresh-water rivulets running into it.
Lieutenant Cook, in the Endeavour, lay ten
days on the south-east side, in eighteen fathoms.
There is a town upon it, called Samadang, of
about four hundred houses, divided into two
parts, by a river of brackish water. There is no
remarkable hill upon it, yet the English call the
highest eminence the Pike. It was formerly
much frequented by the India ships bf many na*-
tions, especially the English, which have* >of
fate, forsaken it, 3s it is said! because, the water

£l6 Off THE ISLAND 09 JAVA.

is bad, and touch either at North Island) a email
island that lies on the coast of Sumatra, at the
east entrance of the straits, or at New Bay,
which lies only a few leagues from Prince'*
Island, at neither of which places any consider-
able quantity of other refreshments can be pro*
cured. At Princes Island may be bad turtle,
with which the first) the second, and perhfrpt
the third, ship in the sea sob, may be tolerably
supplied ; those bought by the Endeavour's
people cost, upon an average, a halfpenny of
three farthings per pound ; large fowls, a dozen
for a Spanish dollar ; small deer, not larger than
a rabbit, two-pence apiece; larger deer, about
the size of a sheep, but of which only two were
brought down, a rupee \ many kinds of fish,
tolerably cheap; cocoa-nuts, at the rate of a
hundred for a dollar, if picked, or ope hundred
and thirty, if taken promiscuously ; plantains in
great plenty; some pine-apples, watermelons,
jacks, and pumpkins; besides rice, the greater
part of which is of the mountain- kind, yams, and
several other vegetables, at very reasonable rates*
The other islands in the straits of Sunda, apper-
taining to the dominions of Bantam, are too in*
significant for particular description. They arc
mostly level, founded upon bods of coral, and
covered with trees. A few, however, have steep
and naked sides, sqch as the island Dwars in den

OK THE ISIAHD OP JAVA. llf

Weg, or Thwart-the-way, and the two very
small round ones, called by the Dutch Brabandsch
Hoedje, and Toppers Hoedje, and by the Eng-
lish the Cap and Button* The gentlemen ac-
companying Lord Macartney in the lion, had
occasion to visit the two last mentioned ; they
were so steep and rugged, that' it was difficult to
get ashore : at a little distance, they might be
taken for the remains of old castles, mouldering
into ruins, with tall trees already growing upon
the tops ; but, upon a nearer view, they betrayed
evident marks of a volcanic origin : in the Cap
were found two caverns, running horizontally
into the side of the rock, in which were a num-
ber of those birds'- nests so much prized by the
Chinese epicures. The situation of these placet
was, on that occasion, determined with the
greatest nicety, viz.

South lat.

torn mag.
from London.

Thwart-the-way

?ss' °"

. 105* 43' 0*

North Island .

$ 38

♦. i°S 43 3°

Cap • • • •

5 5« 3°

. 105 48 30

Button . • , •

5 49

• 105 48 30

The air is, in general, here very unhealthy,
pnd the mortality considerable. In the year 1 768*
that is, from the beginning of September to the
end of August, out of the complete number of
the Company's servants, including pennists, ma*
'riner&j and military, being three hundred and

*l8 ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

seventees, the deaths amounted to sixty, about
one -in five.

. The division which follows next in geographi-
cal order, is that of Jaccatra, with its Preanger
lands ; Preanger lands is the denomination given
Jo those districts which did not originally belong
(to the kingdom of Jaccatra, but which have
•been united to the Company's possessions since
4bc year 1677 ; with respect to their administra-
tion, they are divided between Batavia, and the
residency of Chcribon,

x This division is full one hundred and ten
•Dutch miles in circumference. To the west it
borders upon Bantam, with the districts of
Greend'mg, Badak, and Pagadongan ; to the
south, upon the Southern ocean, for the most
-pqrt with the district of Jampan, and partly
with that of Soekapoura, belopging to the Che-
ribon Preanger lands ; to the east, upon the go-
vernment of Cheribon itself, with the districts of
Timpanganten, Samadang, Pagadqcn, and Pa-
panoekang; to the north, upon the sea, with
the districts of Pamanoekang, Tjassen, Crawang,
and that of Jaccatra proper, under Batavia.

• ■ * * _

1 The country of Jaccatra, with its Preanger
'lands, comprises, upon the whole, thirty dis-
tricts, containing together 33,9 r 4 tjatjars, or
families, or 205,484 inhabitants, of which the
district of Batavia alone contains 19,469 families!

ON THR ISLAND O* JAVA. * 19

or 116,814 inhabitants; this shows that the
other districts are proportionally much less po-
pulous, whereby a great extent of capital land
remains uncultivated and neglected, and even
what is tilled is owing to the industry and per-
severance of the Chinese settlers.

The paucity of inhabitants in the country of
Jaccatra, cannot, like that in the empire of the
Soesoehoenam, be attributed to the ravages of a
destructive war ; for Jaccatra has, since the last
siege of Batavia, in the year 1629, been very
little subject to that calamity, except in the in-
surrection of the Chinese, in the year 1740,
when even the Javans of Jaccatra were the least
concerned in it; but it may principally fee
ascribed to the circumstance, that, after the arms
of the Company were victorious over the king* ■
dom of Jaccatra, and they had taken the capital,
having likewise defeated the army of Bantam,
all the inhabitants of the country were carried N

away into the kingdpm of Bantam ; whereby
Jaccatra remained, for a considerable space of
time, nearly uninhabited.

It appears, however, according to Mr. Mossel,
that these lands contained only, in the year 1755, j

the number of one hundred and fifty thousand j

souls; so that, in opposition to the other j>arts
of Java, the population has bpre been consider-
ably augmented..

%ZO OV THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

Every district has its regent, who is appointed
immediately by the supreme Indian government
at Batavia, These regents decide in civil matters
of little importance, but affairs of consequence
they must lay before the commissary of inland
affairs, or the governor- general.

Jaccatra is watered and fertilized by several
fivers, most of which, however, are no better
than rivulets, in the good or dry season. Thfe
'largest of these are the Sedani, or the river of
'langerang, and that of Crawang ; they descend
-from the high mountains inland, and flow into
.tbe sea, in a northerly direction.

* The river of Tangerang runs into the sea, not
Air from tbe point of Ontong Java, and near its

• mouth is a small post of the Company, called
flie Kwal. Just below that post-, the river gives
a part of its water to the Mookervaart, a canal
cut from that place to Batavia, in order to pro-
vide the canals and moats of the city with watef ;
but as, in the rainy season, this river swells very
high, and too much would then be conveyed
through that cut to the city, a lock was made, in
the year 1770, at the upper end of the Mooker.

. vaart, which cost full 15,270/. whereby no more
water, than is wanted i& suffered to come to
Bafcivia,

It is. not the water alone of the river of Tan-
gerang which supplies this canal, bat likewise

ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA. It*

that of the rivers of Ankee, Passangaraog, and
Grogol ; and it is through the Mookcrvaart that
Batavia receives taost of its water; for that which
comes down by what is called the great river oC
Jaccatra, is very trifling in comparison with this*
The drain* called the Slokbaan (the glutton, or
cormorant), which was dug in the year 1 746, a
little to the eastward of the river of Jaccatra,
receives the water from the upper grounds, and
thus deprives it of its greatest force. The coo*
formation of the country likewise requires that
fiatavia should receive its water from the west*
ward, as, on that side, it is more elevated than
on the other.

The Dutch seem to have pitched upon Batavia
for the convenience of water* carriage; and, hi
that respect, it is, indeed, a second Holland,
and superior to every other place in the world.
There are very few streets in the city without a
canal of considerable breadth running through,
or rather stagnating in them, and continued for
several miles beyond the town, intersecting* to*
gether with five or six rivers, in almost every
direction, the dead flat in which it is situated ;
nor is. this the worst, for the fence of every field
^nd garden \% a ditch ; and interspersed among
the cultivated ground, are many filthy fens, bggs,
and morasses, as well fresh as salt : nay, such,
is the influence q( habit, both upon the taste ant|

322 OK THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

understanding, that Governor-general Van der
Parra, whose country-bouse was situated upon
the only rising ground near Batavia, contrived,
at some trouble and expense, to inclose his own
garden with a ditch.

The rivers, the Sontar, the Bacassie, and the
Tjikarang, foil into the sea to the east of Batavia.

The productions of Jaccatra are principally
coffee, sugar, and rice; likewise indigo, cotton-
yarn, turmeric, and cadjang, or lentiles, from
Which last oil is pressed. In 1778 were sold in
Holland the following articles, being productions
df the colony of Jaccatra :

*,ooo,ooo lbs. of sugar, at four stivers.
* 2,000,000 lbs. of coffee, at eleven ditto.
500,000 lbs. of pepper, at seventeen dittos
1 00 leagers of arrack. •
10,000 lbs. of candied ginger.

cotton-yarn to the amount of/. ao,ooo, and

indigo, to the amount of/, iooo.
This may be taken as the annual quantity of
what Jaccatra is able to furnish for Europe, and
the gain upon these articles' is considerable, as
Done of them cost much ; the pepper and coffee
scarcely c£, and the sugar \\ stivers per pound.
Of sugar, the Company further dispose every
year of full four millions of pounds weight in
Japan, Surat, the Malabar, and other establish*
ments, upon which they likewise make consider-

ON THE ISLAND OF JA.VA. * tt%

able profits ; and about the same quantity, four
million pounds, is exported in private trade,
together with immense quantities of arrack, rice,
and other articles. The revenues and expenses
of Jaccatra are included in those of Batavia.

The Company possess this empire by right of
conquest, having taken it from its king, who
was obliged to yield to their arms in the year
1619 ; and Batavia was founded on or near the
site of bis capital city, Jaccatra.

.The third division of Java is Cheribon, which,
together with its fteanger lands, may be about
half the size of Jaccatra and its dependencies.
It borders, to the west, upon Jaccatra, with the
districts of Limbangan, Tjauris, Impanagara,
and Indramayo ; to the south, upon the Southern
,ocean, with the district of Soekapoura ; to the
east, upon the province of Banjoemaas, or Pan-
joemag, belonging to the sultan, with the dis-
trict of Soekapoura, upon the country of .the
Soesoehoenam, with the districts of Oetame and
Gabang, and upon the strand-regency of Brebes;
with the district of Lassary ; and to the north,
upon the sea, with the district of Gabang and
those of Cheribon proper, and Indramayo.

It comprises in all nine districts, containing
full fifteen thousand ijatjars, or families, being

sikapo, or fixed inhabitants, besides the foedjangcf,
or unmarried, and strangers.

224 0N THE ^LAND OF JAVA.

These lands are divided between two princes,
the sultan Anom Soepoe Cheribon, and the
Pa nam Bahan, both of whom are feudatories of
the Company. Of the last it is a rule that the
children succeed to the father in his dignity,
provided they are inclined to do so ; and if they
do not choose to be burdened with the cares of
authority, they have the right ; of nominating a
deputy to exercise their hereditary power in their
stead*

Formerly there were three princes of Cheribon;
but in the year 1769, one of them not treating
Ms subjects well, was exiled by the supremo
government to Amboyna, where he still remained

in »775-

These princes are obliged to deliver all tb?

produce of their country for certain fixed prices,
exclusively to the Company ; and neither the
princes, nor their subjects are allowed to have
any communication with strangers, much less to
carry on trade with foreign nations in any of the
articles produced upon their lands. On the part
of the Company, as much care is taken as pos-
sible to prevent the contravention of these condi-
tions ; and they have a resident here, with a gar*
xison of seventy Europeans, stationed in a small
fort in the district of Cheribon, whilst there is also
an out-post stationed at Indramayo.
This empire put itself under the protection of

OK THE ISLAND OF JAVA. VI $

■

the Company in the year 1680. In criminal
matters the administration is under the combined
authority of the two princes and the Company's,
resident.

Its productions are coffee, timber, cotton-yarn,
areca, indigo, sugar, and also a little pepper:
this last article grew formerly here in such
abundance, that in the year. 16S0, the bhar of
three hundred and seventy-five pounds was paid
for at the rate of no more than ten Spanish
dollars, about i6j. per cwt. Cheribon contri-
butes many important articles to the consumption
of India, and to the European trade. It yields
yearly, for the former, at least one thousand lasts
of rice, and one million pounds of sugar at i£ or
% stivers per pound ; and lor Europe at least
30,000 /Af. of cotton-yarn, of letter A, at 14
stivers (is. 3</.), 10,000 lbs. of indigo, at 30
stivers (v, yd.), and 1,200,000 lbs. of coffee, at
2j stivers. Yet in 2778, no more than one
million pounds of the Cheribon coffee were sold
in Holland at eleven stivers per pound. The
intrinsic revenues of this settlement are amply
sufficient to defray the charges. In 1779 the
last amounted to/. 12,584, and the former to
/. 35,761, showing a favourable balance of
/. 23,177, or 2107/. sterling. In 1776-7, the
establishment of Cheribon consisted of ninety-
eight Europeans; namely, fourteen civil servants,

226 OH THE : ISLAND OF JAVA.

one clergyman, three surgeon*, f\vo artillery*
iben, fifteen Seamtn, sixty soldiery, and three
mechanics, 'the resident at Cheribon is said to
make no less than 70,000 rixdollars, upwards of
14,000/. sterling per annum.

Before the war of 1:740 the Steesoehoenatw, or
Emperor of Java, as he wafs called, was sole
proprietor of aH the country eastward of the last-
toeritioned empire of Chertbon, which was the
western boundary of that of the Soesoeboenam.
This comprised all the' rest of the bland, and
was inclosed, on the other aides, by the sea and
the narrow straits which separate Java from the
islands of Bill and Madura. It extended in
length, from edit to west, one hundred Dotch
miles, and in breadth, upon an average, about
fivc-dnd-twenty. If contained fifty-six provinces,
or districts, forge and small t and three hundred
and nine thousand seven hundred tjatjars> or
Jamilies. After that period thirty of those pro*
vinces, all situated on the sea-coast, were ceded
to the Company for an equivalent in money;
and seven, amongst which wad Mtftaram, to
the sultan Manko Boeni, This empire, once so
formidable to the Company, is ndw so reduced
in power and extent, that its monarch can at
present, r 7^7, enumerate no more than sixteen
provinces under his dominion, containing only
thirty-three thousand two hundred tjafjars, or
families.

OR TH* ISLAHO O* JAVA. %tj

The dominion* which Ml to the lot of the
mUao Manko Boeni, who is still living, con*
eist of seven provinces, interspersed between)
those which have renained with the Soesoehoe*
asm ; and this intermixture of the territories of
these two monarchs, makes them individually
orach more feeble than if the possessions of each
were adjacent, and formed one compact country.

The seven provinces belonging to the sultan
contain, together, fifteen thousand eight hundred
tjaijars, or families; the most extensive and
moat important is that of Mataram, which
is washed by the Southern ocean*

Although the principality of Madura is now
solely confined to the island of that name, which
lies to the north-east of Java, from which it is
separated by a narrow strait of scarcely a league
and a half over, it has always been reckoned to
belong to the government of the north-eastern
ooast of Java : the whole island is divided into
three districts, and contains thirty thousand
tfotjars, or families ; it is thirty Dutch miles in
length, and upon an average scarcely six in
breadth.

All these princes possess their dominions as
vassals of the Company, whose pretensions to
the paramount authority -are grounded upon a
voluntary cession of all his dominions, alleged
to have been made in favour of the Company by

22$ OK THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

the Tate deceased Soesoehoenam, upon his death-
bed, in the year 1746 : this, at least, is what is
pretended, for the sake of appearance, as it iff
otherwise pretty well understood that the em-
peror was dead before this pretended cession was
made known to the grandees of the court ; but
this is kept as secret as possible. The empire,
thus weakened and diminished, was afterwards
given as a fief to one of the princes of the
imperial race, to the prejudice of Masseyd ; who,*
however, was quieted with a certain appanage,
and the promise, that if the present Soesoehoe*
nam died without issue, his children, in the
right of being the nearest of blood, should sue*
ceed to the imperial dignity.

The titles which the reigning Soesoehoenam
has assumed are as follows: Soesoehoenam, mo-
narch or sole ruler; Paeoeboeana, axis of the
globe, literally, nail or spike of the earth ; Sene-
fatty Hiengalaga, commander in chief of all the
armies; Abdul Rachman, holy priest, literally
slave of the most merciful God; Sahiedun % sove-

reign king; Pamtagama, prince of the faithful:
those of the sultan of Mataram are, Sultan,
prince or king; Hanim Coeboeana\ regent of the
world ; Sencpatty Hiengalaga, Abdul liachnian^
Sahiedieu, Panatagama, Calif * Attn lach, vice*
gerent of the Almighty. -
All these princes bound themselves, in tho

ON T£R ISLAND OP-JAVA. 2C9

year 1756, not to deliver any of the products of
their respective countries to any other than the
Company ; and in every case to act both defen-
sively and offensively, in conjunction with the
Company, against their enemies.

The provinces have each their regent of their
own nation, under the title of tommagong fatti,
who are respectively subordinate to the several
residents.

ft$0 OK TBB ISLAXD OF JAVA*

CHAPTER IH.

Importance of Java to the Dutch East India Com-
pany.— Reflections on the Conduct of the Company
■towards the native Trinccs—atid their Javanese.
Subjects.— Necessity of Reform in these Points.

From what has preceded, the great importance
of the island of Java to the East India Company
will have very evidently appeared. It is fertile
in productions, which have now, by the pro*
gressive increase of luxury in the world, become
articles almost of the first necessity, whereby
this colony is adequate to bring as much, if not
more, wealth into the coffers of the Company
than the spice* islands, which have hitherto been
considered as the chief means of the prosperity,
if not even essential to the existence of that body.
But Java can only hope to be equally precious
with the spice- islands, by a change of circum-
stance^ by cordial exertions to promote the
cultivation of its highly fertile soil with industry
and vigour, by ceasing to depress and impoverish
the natives by cpnstant injustice and continual
extortion, and by avoiding in future every specie*
of war, which* by producing a still greater de-
population, would bring destruction to the
Indians and rain to the Company.

OK THE ISLANJ) OF JAVA. *£ t

The princes of the country, although sovereign
over their own subjects*, are, nevertheless,
the one more, and the other less, vassals of the
Company; and so far subjected to them, that
the mode of succession to their thrones is regu-
lated, and the heirs of their dignity are no-
minated, by the Company. The dismemberment
of the empire of the Soesoehoenam, and the
possession of the sea-coasts, render the Company
secure from that power once so formidable, and
from the consequences of such prejudicial en-
gagements and alliances, as might be entered
into by the native princes, with European
powers ; and although those princes bow with
reluctance to the yoke which has been imposed
,upon them, they are sufficiently wise to consider,
that, i f il>ey were evep fortunate enough to dis-
engage themselves from their present bondage,
their power has been so broken by the depopu-
lation of the country, that, freed from the Dutch
Company, they would still be obliged to yield
to the first foreign nation which should have
the inclination and ability to establish itself upon
the island, and perhaps be reduced to a more
cruel state of servitude than they now experience

* An instance to the contrary occurs in the last chapter,
where we are informed that one of the princes of Cberiboa
was deposed by the Company for misconduct towards his owty
inbjects.

* 4

2, 3 2 ON THE I$LAND OF JAVA.

under their actual taskmasters ; of which they
Imve a striking example before them in the
Mogul empire.

If, therefore, the government at Batavia were
to cherish, protect, and favour as much as pos-
sible the several princes of Java, giving them
every indulgence in matters of small moment,
without suffering any diminution of the power
and influence which has been attained over *bem,

those princes would see the sound policy of
rather maintaining the Company in their posses-
sions on the island, than allowing them to be
transferred to other hands, without opposition on
their part.

If ft be necessary for the Company- to attack
these princes to them by the bands of political
interest/ it is no less an object of importance for
their welfare, and perhaps of necessity to their
safety, that they equally aim at securing the at*
tachraent of their Javanese subjects, by rendering
their lives at least supportable, and by opposing
and preventing the shameful treatment and crying
injustice which these poor people experience at
the hands of the governor, residents, and regents*
The common Javanese are in an absolute state
of slavery : they are no more masters- of what
little they seem to possess, than an unconditional
plave, who, together wi^h all he has, belongs to
the master who has purchased him, his

ON THE ISLAND OP JAVA. 2J3

and his posterity. The common Javan is not
only obliged, at fixed periods, to deliver a ccr*
tain quantity of the fruits of bU industry to the
regent placed over him, in behalf of the Com-
pany, for whatever price the latter chooses to
allow him, and that price, moreover, paid in
goods, which are charged to him at ten times
their real value; but he likewise cannot consider
what may remain as his own property, not being
permitted to do with it what he may think fit,
nor allowed to sell it to others at a higher or a
lwerrate; and he is, on the contrary, compelled
to part with this also, as well as what was
claimed of him in behalf of the Company, to the
same petty tyrant, for himself, at an arbitrary
and frequently at an infamous price. The re-
gents experience in their turn, though perhaps,
in a less iniquitous degree, the oppression of the
residents; whilst in the country of Jaccatra, the
commissary for inland affairs acts the same part,
in a no less unjustifiable manner, under the im-
mediate eye of the governor- general, towards
the native regents and common Javanese in that
province.

The continually decreasing state of the popu-
lation in Java, which, from the year 1738 to
1777, has diminished more than one half, may
be attributed to the natural operation of thi$
abject state of depression and servitude, in which

*34

ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

the common people of Java live, as well as to
the ravages t>f a war of nearly twenty-five years,
to which it >has been the custom solely to ascribe
it ; though this war, and the various civil com*
motions which have happened besides, have, un-
doubtedly, greatly contributed to this waste of the
human species.

OH THB ISLAND OP JAVA. *35

• CHAPTER IV.

Character of the Javanese. — Their Indolence, not
merely the Result of Climate, but also of the arbi*
trary Government. — Industry of the Chinese.—
Food of J he Javanese. — Their Dvjellings. —
Household Conveniences*— Usual Period of Life.
— Peculiar Disease. — Religion. — Mosques. —
Mausoleum near Cheribon. — Customs of the

. Javanese. — Laws respecting Inheritance. — Their
Appearance, Dress, &c*

Thk Javanese are said to be of an indolent dis-
position, and to require 'much pains to excite
them to labour. This is, in general, true of alt
the nations who inhabit the torrid zone, and
who live under despotic governments, by which
they are arbitrarily deprived of their property.
But would not this vice, which is represented b%
a national blemish in the character of the Java-
nese, be in a great measure amended— would it
not be removed, if arrangements were made,
that to these miserable people might be left the
property and uncontrolled disposition of only that
portion of the fruits of their labour which might
Kmain after they have furnished to the Com-
pany the quantities and qualities required at 'their
feaqds ? The - inhabitants of Java possess, m

£36 ON THE ISLAND OF. JAVA.

•

common with all the rest of mankind, a natural
and 4nnate desire of having the free command
and disposal of their own property ; and, like,
others, they would, to obtain this,/ submit to
heavy labour, and be more industrious, in pro*
portion as they had the more certain prospect of
earning a property, and of security in the en*
joy merit of it.

Deprived of the most distant prospect, and
not encouraged by any hope of bettering their
situation, they sit down sullenly contented, as it
were, with the little left to them by their despotic
and avaricious roasters ; who, by this unwise,
as well as unfeeling conduct, extinguish every
spark of industry, and plunge their subjects into
the gloom of hopeless inactivity.

The climate, it is alleged, influences their
disposition, and compels them to a life of indo-
lence. But does not the fallacy of this assertion
appear in the Chinese who reside here? These
inhabit the same island, open their variegated
shops next to the dwelling of the Javanese, and
till with laborious industry the neglected soil
around the wretched habitation of the native.
In diligence, perseverance, and manual labour,
they surpass many of the industrious classes of
the community in Europe; but they are com*
paratively unshackled, and are free masters of
what they can earn by trade, or procure by agri-

ON THB ISLAND OP JAVA. itf

culture, beyond the pecuniary or other assess-
ments levied upon them by the government.
This encourages them readily to undertake the
most laborious occupations, and diligently to
persevere in them, while they feel a rational hope
of obtaining, in proper time, the reward due tq
their exertions.

The Javanese, possessing no certain property,'
are satisfied with little. The usual food of those
who inhabit the level country is rice, with a little
fish ; but those who dwell in the high land, and
in the mountains, and who plant little or no
rice, make use of a certain root called t alias ^ and
some salt, which they make out of the ashes of
wood.

Their dwellings are little huts, generally con*
structed of bamboos, plastered with mud, and
covered with ataf>> or other similar leaves.

The conveniencies of household furniture are
unknown to them. The whole of the apparatus
in their wretched hovels consists of a kind of
bedstead, two or three feet from the ground,
made of bamboos, one or two pots for boiling
their victuals, a hollow block to pound their
pee in, and a few cocoanut-shells for drinking*
yessels.

Generally speaking, their period of life does
not much exceed half a century ; and few of them
pre found to attain the age of threescore.

2£& Off THB JSfcAHB OP JAVA*

They are subject to a sort of ulcers* which it
a disease peculiar to the island and to its inhabit*
ants, and which has thence received from Euro-
peans the denomination of the Java pox. It i*
a sort of lues* but of a less malignant nature.

Their religion is that of Mahomed, accom-
panied by many superstitious opinions and ob-
servances, retained from the religion of their
idolatrous ancestors. In the interior parts they
have no abstract ideas of religion, and can in-
deed form none but such as arise immediately
from the gross observation of their senses. The
Mabomedan religion was introduced into Java
by the Arabians.

In the year 1 406, Cheik Ibn Molana, other*
wise Ibn Israel, an Arabian, who had contri-
buted to the propagation of the Mabomedan
faith at Achcen, Johor, and other places' in the.
East, came to Java, and look up bis abode near
the place where afterwards the city of Cheribon
was built : the Javanese Mahomedans look upon
him as the founder of their religion in the island ;
but it appears from Vaientyn, that the kings of
Damak and Fadjang had been converted to TVJa*
homedanism before the arrival of Cheik Ibn Mo*
lana, to whom the king of Damak gave his
daughter in marriage, aod with her, is a portion,
the country of Cberibon : the city of that name

was built about the tame time* and Cheik Ibn,

OR THE ISLJUtfD OP JAVA,. 239

Molana became both a powerful sovereign and
a venerated apostle of Islamism : both the kings
of Bantam, and the princes of Cherihon, derive
their origin from him ; and Mahomedans, from
all parts of Java* perform pilgrimages to his
tomb as to that of one of their greatest saints*

Their mosques* or places of prayer, are dis-
persed all over the country. They are mostly
built of wood, and have neither exterior appear*
ance, nor interior ornament, to recommend them
to the curiosity of strangers. Near Cberibon,
however, a very handsome mausoleum was
erected to Cheik Ibn Molana, which, with tho
mosque belonging to it, is deserving of parti-
cular description. It may rank among the most
curious and magnificent antiquities, not only of
Java, but of the East It is called A$tana % ok
the palace of the soetoehoenam gomong djati, mo*
fiarch of the mountain of djatUtrees. It is a vast
semicircular space, or amphitheatre, seemingly
cut out of a rock, the mountain of the djati-trees,
mid divided into five different areas, or courts,
each rising above the other and communicating
by steps. The front is guarded by a row of pa-
Ifeadoes * beyond these is a wall of. about five
feet high, faced with little white and painted
Chinese tiles, in the middle of which seven steps
lead up to the first court, the largest and broadest
of the five beipg one hundred feet in front ; 04

*43 ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

the will are ranged Dine superb, and inconceivably
large, china vases, with flowers ; and two large
trees grow on the left of this area. Another
wall, exactly similar to the first, divides this from
the second court ; at the foot of this wall stand,
on the right harid, seven, and on the left 'six
large and beautiful china vases, with flowers ;
the ascent to the second court is by five steps;
and upon the wall arc placed, on each side, four
aimilarlargechina vases, and eight trees are planted
in this court, so disposed that each vase stands
between two trees, except on the left side, where
the irregularity is observable of two trees stand*
ing together : in this court are two handsome
Javanese houses, intended for the reception of
the princes, or great men, whA may come upon a
pilgrimage to this sacred place : four china vases,
with flowers, are aho placed in the upper part
of this court, at the foot of the third wall. AH
these vases are the gifts of different Mabomedan
princes, the kings of Bantam, Macasscr, Palera-
bang, and others, who have at various times
visited the tomb. A neatly paved path leads
quite across the second court to the entrance of
the third, which is through a baudsome gate,
and up four steps ; but this court, which is much
smaller thao the other two, and is guarded by a
similar wall, has nothing in it. No Christians
are allowed to go higher than this place, although

OH THE ISLAKD OF JAVA. 241

tome of the upper officers <if the Company are
said to have penetrated as far as the fifth and last
court. There is no wall before the fourth, but %
merely an ascent by five steps cut in the rock ;
in this is a magnificent Moorish temple, or
mosque, with three roofs above each other, all
decreasing in size upwards, and the area is
planted with trees on each side of the mosque.
The ascent from this to the last and smallest of
the courts is, probably, likewise by steps, but
they are hidden by the mosque and trees in the
fourth : this farthest and most elevated area
seems to be only eight of nine paces broad on
each side, but it runs considerably back, in a
semicircular shape ; upon it appears only the
tomb itself of the holy man : this, by reason of
the great height and distance, cannot be ac-
curately described; it seems to be a handsome
and lofty structure, with a large arched gate ;
and some pretend to distinguish a profusion of
gilding upon it. It is necessary to observe, that
the whole is formed in a sloping direction, and
that each court has a considerable acclivity before
reaching the entrance of the next, which renders
the site of the tomb itself very elevated : these
entrances are all closed by small railed gates.
The tomb, and the buildings appertaining to it,
are kept in very indifferent repair, and are falling
last to decay.

24) Qtf T9B ISLAND pP JAVA,

They do not bury their dead in coffins, as the
Europeans or their Chinese neighbours do, but
simply wrap them in w piece of white linen, and
deposit tbem in the grave, placing two stones
upon it, one at the head, the other at the
feet* They believe that these stones are to serve
for seats to the two angels, who, after their death,
examine into their conduct while in this world.
- The laws of Java determine the right of in-
heritance as follows : when a m?n dies, leaving
a widow, son or daughter, and brother, bis sub*
Stance is divided into eight equal stares ; ef these
the child receives four, the widow one, end the
brother three* If the deceased leaye two, three,
or four widows, then that share which is other-
wise given to the one widow is divided, in equal
portions* among all the widowed claimants. If
the deceased have two, three, or more brothers*
the same is done with respect to them, and the
three eighths which would have (alien to the
share of one, is divided equally among then all,
provided they are all sons of the apn&e father.

These laws, however, are sometimes departed
frpm when circumstances afford inducements to
favour one of the heirs more than the, others.

Thus the high priest* of the provinces of Patty
and Joan? certified to the resident of Joans,
that they bad fixed the share «f the widow of a
man who had died there at one third part of the

OH THE ISLAND Of JAVA. 343

whole inheritance, and had divided the remain-
ing two thirds into eight portions, one of which
they likewise adjudged to the widow, four to
the daughter of the deceased, and three to hi*
brother; giving as a reason for this departure
from the usual mode, that the wife had, by her
own diligence and industry, gaigpd the greater
part of the property thus left to be divided, and
being therefore the occasion of the prosperity of
the family, ought to be the greatest sharer in the
division of the estate.

The Javanese are, in general, well shaped, of
a light brown colour, with black eyes and hair;
their eyes are more sunk in the head than is
generally observed in the nations south of the
line ; they have flattish noses and large mouths,
are mostly thin, yet muscular ; a few corpulent
men among them make no exception to this
general description. . The women, when young,
have much softer features than the men ; but
when they grow old, imagination cannot well
conceive more hideous hags.

The dress of the men consists of a pair of
linen breeches, which scarcely reach half way
down their thighs, and over this a sort of shirt
of blue or black coarse cotton cloth, which hangs
loose about them below the knees. The hair of
the head is bound up in a handkerchief, \n the
fprm of at urban,

* -

244 0Mr THB IS ^4ND OP JAVA.

The dress of the woman consists of a coarse
chintz cloth wrapped twice round the body,
and fastened under the breasts, hanging down
to the calf of the leg, or lower ; over this they
wear a short jacket, which reaches to the waist :
they have no covering to the bead, but wear
their hair bound in a fillet, and fastened at the
back of the head with large pins*: they some*
times adorn their hair with chaplets of flowers*

Children, boys and girls, often run about en*
tirely naked till they are eight or nine years of

age.

What is mentioned with respect to dress, re*
lates only to the lower classes ; the higher orders
and rich people wear much more costly gar-
ments.

OH THE ISLAND OF JAVA. *4$

CHAPTER V.

Batavia. — - Its Situation. — Harbour. — • Canals.—
Walls. — Castle.— Houses, &e.— Inhabitants.—
Revenues an4 Charges, &c— Character of the
Inhabitants.— Mode of Living.— Marriages.—
Slaves.'— Gaming.

Batavia lies, according to the best observations*
in the south latitude of 6° 5', on the northern shore
of the empire of Jaccatra, in the deepest part of
a bay formed by the points of Ontong Java
and Crawang ; from which points, it lies, namely,
from the former, about four Dutch miles south-
east, and from the latter about five miles south-
west. Ten or twelve small islands, at the dis-
tance of from two to four leagues from the city,
shelter the bay from n. w. to w. by a. from the
swell of the sea ; the road is between a quarter
and half a league from the city. The ground
upon which the city is built, bears evident marks
of having been left, or thrown up, by the sea ;
as is the case with a great extent of the land on
e^ph side, the shore of which is almost always
soft mud, for a good way up, and which,
increases every year. Above, or to the south of
the city, towards Tanabang and Wcltevreeden,
the ground rises by degrees * and the soil be-

<V3

246 OH THE ISLAND OF JAVA*;

comes firmer and drier as you approach the
mountains, which lie twelve or more Dutch
miles inland.

Batavia receives the greater part of its water
by the drain which has been made from the Se-
dan), or river of Tangerang ; but neither is \h\s t
nor the water of the other rivers, which, com-
municating with the Mookervaart, is brought to
the city, added to the great river of Jaccatra,
which runs through the middle of it, all togethtf
nearly adequate to give a proper degree of circu-
lation to the inner and outer canals of the city,
whereby most of them have only one or two feet
water in the good monsoon, or dry season ; and
in the crosa-caoals there is no perceptible current
whatsoever. »

The form of the city is an oblong square, loo-
gitudinally intersected by the great river. Its.
circumference, including the castle, is about
twelve hundred roods, or one Dutch mite ; the
longest sides, which lie in the direction of a. by b.
and s. by w. are about three hundred, and the
shortest two huudred roods in length. Besides
the city-moats, which run entirely round, each
division, on either side of the river, has two
canalft running parallel with the longest sides*
aod intersected at right angles by several cross-
canals.

The city is surrounded by a wall of coral-

OH THB ISLAND O? JAVA* 247

rock, terting as a facing to the rampart behind
it, which occupies but a very narrow space of
ground in many places. It is defended by
twenty or one-and-tvventy bastions, if the greater
part of them may be so called, as they are mostly
of a square or semicircular shape, projecting
beyond the curtains, which, with the wall itself,
are built nearly perpendicular, and are in so
ruinous a condition as to threaten to fall down
every day ; for which reason no other cannon are
placed upon them but such as are very light,
and intended only to fire general salutes.

The castle, which formerly lay by the sea-side,
but which is now, by the continual increase of
the mud-banks before it, full one hundred roods
from the sea, stands on the east bank of the
river which divides (he town ; it covers about
two hundred roods of ground,, and is a regular
square fortress, with four bastions of rock-stone.
For these regions it might be considered as a
tolerably strong fortification, were it not full of
buildings withinside, which must obstruct, if
not render impracticable, its defence. Besides this,
Governor-general Van Imboff rendered it en-
tirely Useless a9 a citadel, by breaking down the
curtain which formerly connected the two bas-
tions looking towards the city, in order to make
a rooffty esplanade before the government-house,
and the other buildings in the castle : indefen-

4 4

I48 ** THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

sible, therefore, on that side, whoever is in pos-
session bf the eastern part of the city is equally
master of the castle.

Besides the public buildings, the following,
number of houses, of all descriptions, large and
small, are found here according to Valentyn t

"*gS5 } »»""«""•

997 Chinese ditto.

103 Dutch ditto, tenanted by Chinese.— In all . . 24^
And oat of the city,

Arrack

Large

Small,

Chinese

Total

houses.

Dutch do.

ditto.

At the New-gate 6

•

181

309

559

At the Diest-gate, 1

136

*77

At the Rotterdam-gate, 5

iao

5»*.

106

•

73*

At the Utrecht-gate,

»7

*35

5<9

75 »

Coach-houses, -

12 116 850 1240 *3*l

In all, without the city, 3328

. Total 4770

This account appeared to the gentlemen who
were there in 1769, in the Endeavour, to be
greatly exaggerated, Especially with respeet to
the number of houses within the walls. Huysers
stages the number of houses in Batavia to be
3500, but does not add whether he includes the
suburbs. In 1778 there were in the neighbour-
hood of Batavia sixty brick*kilns r thirty-four
tile-kilns, eighteen lime- kilns, seven manufac-
tories of earthen-ware, twenty arrack-distillcrics,
and about seventy sugar-mills.

OH THE ISLAND OP JAVA. £49

The number of the inhabitants were, in the
year 1778, from the statements of Huysers, 468
European burghers, 5582 native Christians, 4873
mardykers, or manumitted slaves of all nations,
23*309 Chinese, 289 Amboyncse, 278 Banda-
nese, 966 Moors, 254 Gentoos, 1852 Malays,
324 Boutonners, 1983 Macaasers,. 3707 Bougi-
nese, 104 Timorese, 189 Mandharese, 85 Sum-
bauwers, 13,073 Baliers, 331408 Javans, and
20,072 slaves ; making in all, 1 10,816, exclusive
of women and children, and of the Company's
servants. The Company's establishment of Bate*
via consisted in 1776- 1 777 of 613 persons in civil,
and 35 in ecclesiastical employments, 95 sur-
geons and 'assistants, 125 belonging to the
artillery, 875 seamen and marines, 1571 soldiers,
and 903 mechanics; in all, 4221 Europeans,
besides 703 natives in their service.

Among the Europeans are also comprehended
the posterity of Europeans born hem ; of these
the most considerable number are females ; indeed
there are not many women at Batavia who were

born in Europe, but the white women, who are

by no means scarce, are descendants from Euro-
pean parents, of the third or fourth generation,
the gleanings of many families who have succes-
sively become extinct, in the male line ; for it is
Certain, that, from whatever cause, this climate
ij not so fa(al to th<? ladies as to the other

*5* 4W THI ISLAND OP JAVA.

The female Europeans at Batavia seldom ex-
poie themselves to the beat of the sun, make
frequent use of the cold bath, and live more
temperately than the men, which may be the
reasons of their suffering leas from the insalubrity
of the climate.

The important revenues arising from the im-
port and export duties, &c. and the valuable
productions which the country around it affords!
might induce tbe supposition, that fiatavia, or
father the colony of Jaccatra, for that is tbe. at*
count in the books of the Company, to which
aft relative to Batavia is carried, were adequate
ta its own support ; yet this is fat from being the
caso. Batavia is the metropolis .of tbe Dutch
Indian possession; it is the seat of their govern-
ment ; a large garrison is constantly maintained
in it ; most- of tbe Company's ships touch here,
both outward and homeward bound ; their Car-
goes are landed and shipped ; all recruits are re-
ceived, maintained, and paid here; in short*
almosft all the charges of tbe marine and military
establishment of tbe Company are carried to the
account of Batavia; and it cannot, therefore, be
but that a considerable balance must appear every
year again?! it. The famous Mossel r it is true,
in bis Memorial of Economy, maintains, that
Batavia might be rendered a source of great
revenue to the Company, even after defraying

ON THB !SLANI>\#F JAVA* 1$ I

all these charges* Taking as a basis the books
of the year 1752, he calculated the profits and
revenues of Batavia at /. 39300,000/ and the
charges to /. 2,800,000 per annum, leaving a
yearly surplus of/. 500,000, about 45,454/. ster-
ling. But the books have not been closed so
favourably since his time: in 1767, indeed, a
favourable balance appeared 0^.233,330, about
% 1, % 12/.; but in the peaceful year 1779, the col-
lective receipts amounted to/. 1,820,327, and
the charges to/. 2,384,930, or/ 564,603, about
51,327/. more than the receipts, which is vastly
different from the calculations of Mossel.

The various opinions and habits which have
been imbibed, by the different modes of educa-
tion, and manners of life, of so many individuals,
from so many different countries, are here all
obliterated, or blended into the single passion of
amassing riches, which seems to be " their be*
ing's end and aim ;" and to attain this object,
they leave untried no means wichin their power.
With whatever ideas of virtue or honesty they
may step on shore, they can scarcely be said to
have passed the threshold of their first abode,
before those unsuitable notions are dismissed
from their minds * : there are very few who resist

• Oviogton, a traveller of the last century, relates as a
common proverbial saying in his time, that " those who sasl
from Europe to India, leave their consciences on thk side of

the

2$Z ON TrtB ISLAND OF JAVA-

the temptations which assail them, and who do
not deviate from the paths of integrity. Yet
there are very few who, although they have sa-
crificed every consideration, for the sake of the
Object of their unwearied pursuit, attain the
wished- for goal, and acquire sufficient wealth,
to satisfy their desire of riches; disappointed,
therefore, in their expectations, discontented with
their situation, and dissatisfied with themselves,
they fall into a state of melancholy and dejection,
which, added to the influence of a noxious cli-
mate upon their health, and the want of their
customary viands, exhausts their animal spirits,
and renders them a prey to that death which
alone extinguishes their boundless lust of wealth/
Most of the people who live here, and even
many of the rich, who, it might be supposed,
bad attained the summit of their wishes, have
something in their countenances expressive of
discontent and dejection, and which seems a
pertain sign, that all is ndt right within* The
climate may, undoubtedly, contribute much to
this appearance ; the animal spirits do not flew
in that free circulation, nor do the powers of the
mind possess that strength and elasticity, which '

«•*■

Cape ; and in returning thence to Europe, they leave their
consciences on the other side of the Cape. 9 * So that, except
In doubling the Cape, aa East Indian tfas not -supposed to have
any conscience at all.

OK THE ISLAND OF JAVA. / 253

animate the human frame, and give energy to
the exertions of the soul, in more temperate
climes. This is not all ; for, after a short resi-
dence in this debilitating atmosphere, a state of
languor, and love of inactivity, soon overcome
«11 the active powers of the mind, and, occa-
sioning a total neglect of exercise, ruin the
constitution, and induce an absolute repugnance
to every kind of occupation. The only resource
for thoqe who are in this state of llstlessness, ap-
proaching to torpidity, is, to seek for relief in
society, and to endeavour to kill the heavy hours
in the most frivolous manner : smoking tobacco,
uninteresting and useless conversation, drinking
and card- playing, form the sum pf their amuse-
ments; and having, in this manner, spent the
day and part of the night, they rise the n£xt
morning, utterly at a loss how to pass the many
tedious hours of the day they enter upon; and
devoid of all inclination for reading, either for
amusement or instruction, they are compelled
to go the same dull round, and are only soli-
citous to make choice of such ways of killing
time, as least interfere with their beloved state of
motionless repose.

That happy social intercourse, tempered by
friendship and softened by love, which is the
result of a rational nuptial connexion, is little
known here. Most marriages are made with th*

*54 ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

sordid views of obtaining riches, or securing pre-
ferment ; and (he few matrimonial engagements
entered into on account of personal qualifications,
afford instances of alienation in a very short
time after the hymeneal knot has been tied :
principally owing to the erroneous educatioif
which parents give to their children, but more
especially to their daughters.

There is another circumstance, which does not
a little contribute to render the domestic lives of
the Batavians disagreeable, or unhappy ; this ia
the service of slaves; which, as no European
servants can be procured, nor are allowed to be
kept, has become a necessary evil. Every year
full three thousand of both sexes are brought to
Batavia, as well from the coast of Ma Fa bar,
Bengal, Sumatra, and other parts, as from Ce-
lebes; from which last place, however, the
greatest number are imported. A duty of twelve
rixdollars, about 47J. per head, is paid upon alt
slaves who enter Batavia for the first time, ex-
cepting upon those brought by the commanders
of vessels, from the places whence the slaved
come, on their own account ; and which, with
respect to the ships coming from Celebes or Ma-
casscr, is fixed to the number of twelve, who
are permitted to be brought at one time, without
paying any duty.
• They are employed in every kind of domestic

OV THE ISLAND OF JAVA. 255

and menial service, in which they are instructed
by those who have been longer in the family, or
have had opportunities of improvement; and
they become, in time, good cooks, tailors, coach*
men, &c. and do not yield, in their acquired
qualifications, to the best European servants
They experience, in general, better usage, at the
hands of their masters, than what the negro
slaves in the West Indies meet with from the
colonists; although instances sometimes occur
here, of barbarity and inhumanity in their treat*
roent : but these arc not frequent, and those who
are guilty of such conduct seldom fail to meet
their due reward, and are generally murdered,
or poisoned, by their exasperated slaves; or else
the slaves run away from their masters, who
thereby lose a valuable property, and are pu-
nished in their purses. When the slaves are
well treated, they possess fidelity enough, and
confidence may be reposed in them, provided
they do not carry their passion for gaming, to
which they are extremely addicted, to excess;
for if they have once abandoned themselves to
this infatuating vice, they not only play till they
lose all they may have of their own, but likewise
all they can lay their hands on belonging to their
masters* continually flattering themselves with
the idle, hope of retrieving their former losses by
a lucky, throw ql the dice; in which they are*

t$6 • ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

generally, miserably deceived ; for the Chinese,
who are here accustomed to keep gaming-houses,
and, among other games of hazard, have one
denominated top-tables, are too great adepts in
the art, and much too cunning for the poor
slaves, to allow of their regaining what they may
have lost

It cannot easily be conceived why the supreme
government does not put a stop to these baneful
proceedings, by prohibiting, or destroying, those
dangerous haunts of gamesters and sharpers,
which are the causes of the seduction and ruin
of the larger part xd the slaves in the city ; for
it is the officers of justice of the municipal go*
vernment which fare the best by them, receiving
from the keepers of the gaming-houses a monthly
consideration for their protection and conniv*
ance # ; whence it happens, that these officers
will never receive, nor attend to, any complaints
which may be made of the seduction of the
slaves, on the part of their owners : even the
confession of the slave himself, who has lost all
his own, and his master's property which he
could get at, and the testimony of the master,
who has found his slave at the gaming-table, are

* The officers who control the Chinese gaming-houses, are
required to pay to the Company, as a consideration for the
profits they make by them, a monthly contribution of 3100
fudotfan, or upwards of 8000A sterling per annum*

ON TUB ISLAND OP JAVA. Iff

insufficient to procure the conviction or punish-
ment of the Chinese, if the latter merely persists
in swearing that he never saw the slave in his
bouse; " I can do nothing in the business; the
Chinese, you hear, denies it ;" is the only an-
swer, and the only satisfaction, \yhich can, in
such cases, be obtained from the execute* of the
law.

What, however, is the most disagreeable cir-
cumstance attending a residence at Batavia, is
the insalubrity of the climate, and the great de-
gree of mortality which prevails there, especially
among transient visitors, or recent arrivals ; this
is apparent to such a degree, that the English,
who circumnavigated the globe, 1768-1770, and
had experienced almost every vicissitude of cli-
mate, declared that Batavia was not only the
most unhealthy place they had seen, but that
this circumstance was a sufficient defence or pre-
servative against any hostile attempts, as the
troops of no nation would be able to withstand,
nor would any people in their senses, without
absolute necessity, venture to encounter, this pes*
iilential atmosphere.

THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

1804—6.

BOOK IV.

CHAPTER I.

Batavia — /// Situation— -Government — Commerce*
— General Observations on colonial Produce.—
Relations with Japan.

Batavia, situate on the northern coast of the
island of Java, in the ancient kingdom of Jaca-
tra, iri 6° io's. latitude, and 1*22° 47' s. longitude,
is traversed by a great river, which falls into the
sea a short three quarters of a mile from the
town.

This is one of the largest and richest cities of
Asia : all the streets are watered by canals, which
are navigable for good-sized boats. It is the
capital of the Dutch possessions in the East, and
the scat of the head council, which consists of
twelve members, including the governor-genera),
who presides. In j 804 it stood as follows :

a a

c>6o on the ISLAND OF JAVA,

M. Sibert, Governor-general, President.

M. Wise, Director-general of the Administration,

M. Engelhart, Director-general and Governor

of Java,
Edlers — (Counsellors of the Indies.)
M. Eyseldyck, M. Waldeck,

M. Bailly, M. Cantervischer,

M. Holl, M. Rose, Resident- at

M, Rymsdcck, Tcheribon,

M. Van-Hausen, M.Sandolhe«Roi, Brigadier,

SECRETARIES.

M. Van-Bram, M. Mooress.

At the beginning of December, in the same
year, a neutral ship came in with dispatches from
Europe, which made some changes in the go-
vernment. The governor-general was super*
seded, which, on account of his age, he had re-
peatedly solicited, and was replaced by Mr. Wise,
who was succeeded by Mr, Eyseldyck.

The council is commonly held on Tuesday and
Friday , from seven o'clock in the morning till noon.
On those days the governor's guard does the same
military honours to each member of the council,
when he passes, as to a general. As soon as two
runners who precede the carriage are seen, tho
guard is drawn out, and the drum beats a salute*

The authority of this council is absolute: it
makes and suspends laws, maintains troops, ap-
points kings, declares war, concludes treaties of

i \

i v,

OK THE ISLAND OF JAVA. 26 1

peace and alliance with alh the Eastern princes,
and places residents at their courts. It takes
cognisance also of all matters, commercial, civil,
and military. The whole authority of the coun-
cil may be considered as united in the governor-
general, who preside^ ; for he may adopt, on his
own responsibility, any, propositions of council
which are rejected contrary to his opinion.

A fiscal is at the head of the police and cri-
minal affairs : he has great authority, and regu-
lates fines and punishments arbitrarily.

A shabendar, agent-general for trade, acts as
consul for all nations, is the medium of every
operation of trade, and introduces foreigners,
whether princes or private individuals, to the
council.

A marine fiscal superintends whatever relates
to the police of the roadstead, river, and navi-
gable canals.

The commerce of Batavia is considerable ; but
it is, properly speaking, merely an exchange
trade, for the export of cash is expressly pro-
hibited : no captain of a merchant-ship, no
trader, who brings piastres, must take any of
them away again ; they must be expended. The
Chinese, who farm^Yfae customs, closely examine
whatever is carried on board, and, if they find
any gold or silver coin, it is not only confiscated,
but the owners are also subject to fine and im-

»3

262 OK THE ISLAND OP JAVA.

prisonment. When a vessel arrives, the captain
incloses his bill of lading to the shabendar, who
selects the articles, the exclusive trade in which
is reserved to the Company; such as opium,
camphor, benzoin, calin, a sort of Indian metal,
pewter, irop, saltpetre, giyipowdcr, guns, &c.
and fixes on what is to be given in exchange,
and at what price. This arrangement takes place
at the house of the director-general : the captain
then makes a statement of what remains, and
petitions the council, always through the medium
of the shabendar, that he may be permitted to sell
the remainder to the highest bidder. When he
has obtained an answer, which is always favourable
in such cases, be affixes his statement to the
privileged hotel of the city, and the merchants
are then at liberty to treat with him.

It seldom happens that these captains obtain,
the whole of what they were to have in return*
the Company almost always insisting that they
shall take a quarter or a third in spices, by which
means they secure a consumption equal to their
Stock on hand.

As this city is the general depot for all the
#pices of the Moluccas, and the productions of
the island of Java, consisting o( rice, coffee, su-
gar, arrack, and pepper, ships are continually
coming from every part of India, America, the
African and even European islands ; and, npt-

ON THB ISLAND OF JAVA* 263

withstanding the war, and the unhealthiness of
Batavia, the road is always full of the flags of all
nations, attracted by the profit they are sure to
make by it.

Bengal sends drugs, patnas, blue cloths, dif-
ferent kinds of stuffs, and opium, which are ex-
changed for rice, sugar, coffee, tea, spices, ar-
rack, a small quantity of silks, &nd china-ware.

The kings of Achem and Natal, in the island
of Sumatra, send camphor, the best which is
known, benzoin, birds'-nests, calin, and ele-
phants 9 teeth ; and in return have rice, opium,
patnas, and frocks, which are made at Java,
Macassar, and the Moluccas.

The princes of the isle of Borneo send gold-
dust, diamonds, and birds'- nests ; and take rice,
opium, patnas, frocks, gunpowder, and some*
times small guns, as they say, to defend them
against pirates, but rather for their own use as
pirates.

The Americans bring kerseymeres, cloths, hats,
gold wire, silve?, galloon, stationery, wine, beer,
Seltzer water, provisions, and piastres, in ex-
change for spices, sugar, arrack, tea, coffee, rice,
rushes, and Chinese silk and porcelain.

The Mascate ships bring piastres and gum-
Arabic, in. exchange for sugar, tea, pepper, rice,
and china.

Those from the Isle of France bring wine,

i
1

264 Off THE ULAXi> Of JATAir

olive-oil, vinegar, hams, cheese, soap, common
trinkets, mercery, and ebony ; and receive back,
white sugar-candy, coffee, pepper, arrack, tea, a
large quantity of China and Bantam ware, satins
and pekins, calin, and rotang.

From the Cape of Good Hope ape received
kitchen-garden seed, butter, and Madeira and
Constantia wine, in exchange for rice, sugar,
coffee, tea, and spices.

The Chinese bring an immense quantity of
porcelain and silks of every kind, taking in re-
torn piastres, opium, ebony, sandal-wood, spices,
and birds'-nests, which they esteem great daijt*
ties.

These nests are nearly half the size of a wo*
inan'a hand ; they are made by a very small sea*
swallow, and consist of a glutinous substance
and froth of the sea interwoven with filaments*
They are found on the coasts of all the Sunda
islands, in the cavities of steep rocks. The In-
dian method of procuring them is by fixing a
stake on the summit of the precipice, with a
rope ladder affixed, whence they descend int*
the most perilous situations to look for thorn*
These nests are a considerable branch of trade
to China. Although they have neither taste nor
smell, they have the property of renovating and
giving a new tone to- a debilitated and womn-oul
stomach, and restoring all its functions: they

ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA. 265

are, in short, a most powerful stimulant* They are
made into most excellent broth, and are an ingre-
dient in all the ragouts of the princes and governors
of India. Their high price prevents the mere colo-
nists from partaking of them, for they fetch from
five to six louis a pound : the white nests are raOst
in request. They are prepared by first washing
them in three or four changes of lukewarm
water; when they have been some time in it
they puff up like large vermicelli *•

* These nests, so highly thought of, particularly in China, are
the production of a kind of swallow, the salangana, hirund%
eiculenta^ of a blackish grey colour, a little inclining to green,
with a shade of mouse-grey on the back and under the belly}
the middle toe, including the claw, is longer than the foot ; the
nail of this toe is very long, sliarp, and crooked ; the bird use*
it in fastening itself to the rocks \ the tail is longer than the
body, neck, and head together ; it is also rather forked. This
swallow nearly resembles, in shape, the bank-swallow, but it i»
90 light and delicate, that ten of this species weigh only about
two ounces and a half.

The salangana prepares its nest with its dung, and is two;
months in completing it. In form it is a half oval elongated,
and intersected at right angles by the centre of its little axis.
In two of the nests which I inspected, feathers were introduced
into their semi-transparent substance. The nearer white the
nests are, the more they are valued. The Chinese hold them
in the highes^estimation, and serve them up, prepared iu va-
rious ways, at opulent tables, not only as a delicious dish, but
as a restorative and most powerful stimulant. The European
palate discovers noting more in this singular dish than *a in-
sipid jelly, nearly resembling vernucelli.~&wwi7i/.

» %

266 OH THE ISLAND OP JAVA.

The Dutch being the only Europeans who
keep up a communication with Japan, the go-
vernor-general of the Indies sends a ship of i aoo
to 1500 tons from Batavia every year, in the
month of July, laden with kerseymeres, fine
cloths, clock-work, and spiefcs : these are almost
wholly exchanged for bars of copper, which is
made into a very clumsy kind of coin for paying
the Indian and European troops, as well as the
people employed in the counting-houses of Java
ahd the Moluccas. These ingots are of the finest
red copper, and as thick as a finger ; they are cut
into two, four, six, and eight sous pieces of Hol-
land ; the value is inscribed on them : this coin
is termed, in the Malay language, batou, which
signifies stone. The Company also takes cam-
phor from Japan, but it is far inferior in quality
to that of Sumatra.

These voyages are very advantageous to the
captains of the ships sent out. As they are
allowed several tons, independently of the cabin
and deck, they bring, on their own account, dif-
ferent sorts of furniture, fans, various articles of
Copper, and sabres, the temper of the blades of
frhich equals the best workmanship of Turkey.
These sabres are contraband, and ate sold at
Batavia from four to eight louis apiece.

The cargo always contains a present for the
emperor of that vast territory, and be, in return,

ON THE ISLAHD OF JAVA/ 267

sends one to the governor-general of the Dutch,
possessions in India. It consists mostly of desks,
drawers, and close-stools, of valuable inlaid wood,
covered with a varnish peculiar to the country,
and incrustated with flowers, or other designs, in
mother o*-pearl of different colours.

The mode of dealing at Japan is wholly pri-
vate, since the missionary Jesuits were drivep out
of it for wishing to sow dissensions, by pro-
pagating their doctrine. The India Company
has a permanent commissioner in a small island,
Naugazacki, a short distance from the main
land. When the Batavian ship is a little way off,
the emperor's agent hails it, to demand whether
the captain is a Christian ; he answers that he is
Dutch, when a signal is made for him to ap-
proach : from that moment he is' surrounded by
innumerable armed boats. He is first boarded,
to see that he has neither women nor books ; for
the law is very severe against the introduction
of either into the island. A Dutchman, who
was to announce that he had either, would be
immediately sent back, without being allowed
any anchorage ; and such an occurrence would
be sufficient to break off all commercial inter*
course. This visit concluded, the merchandise
is all put ashore, the ship is disarmed and un-
rigged, without the aid of the captain or crew, and
the whole is carried on shore; the captain transmits

a68 OK THE ISLAND OP JAVA.

the bill of lading to the emperor's agent, with a
note of what he desires in exchange, and waits
quietly for the merchandise he is to have in re*
turn. A sufficiency of provisions and women
for him and his crew are sent to the island with-
out delay, their laws permitting an intercourse
with the females of the country. During this
interval the captain transacts his own business
and his private exchange. When the whole is
finished, the return merchandise ready on the
beach, and the emperor having notified what he
chooses for the ensuing year, the Japanese again
load the vessel themselves, replace its rigging,
and restore all the arms, papers, and effects
which thev secured on its arrival. There is nor-
instance of any thing being lost : in fact, honesty
is carried to so great a pitch in this country, that
the merchants mostly lqave their shops and store*
houses without either guards or clerks. If a
Japanese wants any thing, he goes into the shop
where it is sold, and if he finds no one at home,
hfe takes it, lays down the value which is marked
upon it, and goes out*

All the streets of the towns are closed at
night by iron gates ; each Japanese is respon-
sible for his neighbour, so that they are all in-
terested in no barm happening to each other:
besides, when a theft or other crime is com-
witied in any quarter, and the autbo? cannot be

OH THE ISLAND OF JAVA. $69

discovered, the crier, who is a kind of police-
agent, the commissary of police intrusted with
the watch, the judge of the division, and the
neighbours, would be forced to make good the
loss, and be subject to severe corporal punish*
ment : the family of the two latter would be put
to death.

This people is very strict in the observance of
its laws, customs, and civil and domestic man-
ners. The Dutch, in their embassies, have been,
and still are, necessitated to submit to humiliat-
ing conditions to keep up their communication
with Japan. The ambassadors and their auite
have no knowledge of the interior of the coun-
try, being conveyed to the capital in palanquins
well inclosed with fixed lattice-work, and no*
thing could induce the bearers to indulge them
with a view of the country they pass through to
make any local observation, so that rihat is known
- of the interior is very little and uncertain. The
seas which lave the shores of Japan, are very dan*
gcrous, and not much known ; nor is there any
good chart ; therefore the officers, sent with the
merchant-ship from Batavia, are almost always
selected foj: their great experience.

7,jb OK THE ISLAND OP JAVA.

CHAPTER II.

Defence of Batavia. — Banks. — Troops. — Popula-
tion.— Walks. — Unheal thiness. — Productions.

The line of defence of Batavia, which is the
depot for the whole wealth of Holland in India,
extends from the mouth of the river Antijol to
that of the river Ancka.

Besides the walls of the city, composed of well-
built bastions, inclosed by a wet ditch, very deep
and wide, there is also a good citadel with four
bastions, also of stone. This citadel command*
the city, and defends the entrance of the river
Jacatra, called the Great River, which, running
through Batavia, fills its dikes and those of the
citadel. On the -extremity of the left bank, at
the mouth ,of this river, is a fort, named Water-*
castel, which is washed by the sea. Its plat*
form is of stone, and the parapets are well covered
with turf; it mounts thirty sixteen and twenty*
four pounders, and contains barracks, built of
bamboo, for about one hundred men, some officers'
rooms, and a well, all in good repair. The fort
is flanked by capital batteries, raised on the right
and left bank, in front of the citadel and fortifi-
cations.
The kft wing is defended by four works, viz. a

ON THE ISLAND OP JAY A, 27 1

redoubt, called the Flute, somewhat above the
mouth of the Ancka, which it commands, as
boats might come up there, and a very fine cause*
way which communicates with it, extending to
the city walls.

Along the coast are the Beschekerme and
Middel batteries : the latter is befween that and
the Water-castel. A redoubt, named the Siberg,
is just erected, to flank the Beschekerme and de-
fend the grand causeway of the Ancka. The
right wing is also defended by four works, three
of which are on the coast : the Castor, near the
mouth of Emerald river, which contains three,
four, and five feet water ; the Bottelier, whoso
flanks have been recently rounded, also situated
near a small river, but where a landing of any
moment would be found very difficult ; the Ze-
lucht, at the mouth, and on the left bank of the
river Antijol, which has lately been constructed
in lieu of an isolated battery which was on
Stingerland Point ; and lastly, the Tolbruck, a
strong battery placed near and above the great
wooden bridge over the Antijol, to defend the
passage and communication with the great cause-
way from Tijelenking by Tanijong-Priock, The
Tolbruck was also to replace a work traversed
by the causeway from Tijelenking to Batavia,
which was covered on one side by the river An*

tjl Ofo THE ISt AND O* JAVA.

tijol, near a Chinese temple, and, on the other,
by marshes which line the coast.

The little fort of Antijol is very old, built of
brick ; its- parapets are scarcely four inches thick,
and it could, at the utmost, merely serve as a de-
fence against the natives. It may he said to be
relinquished. In a second line on the great cause-
way from Batavia to Tolbruck, is a good battery
which communicates with, and flanks it. All
these works are of earth lined with turf, and
contain barracks made of bamboo for about one
hundred men.

An European artillery officer is always resident
at the Tolbruck, Bottelier, and Water-castel i in
the others Sepoy Serjeants, who command de-
tachments of fifteen to twenty Chinese and Ma*
lays, who mount guard armed with sabres and
spears.

The whole left wing is so unwholesome, owing
to the marshes of which it consists, and whence
arise pestilential exhalations, that those who are
on this station often fall victims to it within fotar
or five hours after they arrive at their posts ; they
must, in part, be daily recruited, and those who
ran bear it drag on a languishing existence, al«
though born in the country.

The two sides of the causeway, which extends
from the Flute redoubt to the city dikes, were
formerly enriched with pretty country-houses

OK TH4 ISLAND OF JAVA. V]$

and pleasure-gardens, of which some vestiges are
still visible; but they have been all deserted,
from the unhealthiness of the air.

All the plain which forms this defence is com-
posed of muddy and impracticable morasses*
which extend beyond the city, and are inter-
sected by canals. In times of extreme drought, the
top of the gfeat mud-bank, which is at the mouth
of the Jacatra, is perceptible at low water : vessels
are obliged to weather its east side to get in*
When they have proceeded up the river to the
mole called the Jacpatte, they find horses which
drag them up to the custom-house, where they
unload.

At the mouth of the Ancka, by the natives
called Caimans river, because it abounds in those
reptiles, the bottom is mud and sand, as Is the
bank, which has accumulated at the mouth
within four or five years; but at Stingerland
Point the bottom begins, on the coast, to be a
mixture of sand and coral, with occasionally small
shells, almost to Tijelcnking.

The coast from Stingerland Point, to the great
village of Tijelenking, is less unhealthy : we
therefore see pretty country-houses, tolerably
sized villages, and hamlets.

An enemy makingan attack upon Batavia, could,
p> the worst, only run the ships on shore ; and

*74 O* THft ISfiAVD OF JAVA.

might then perhaps, by means of its small craft,
exposing itself to the fire of the batteries, bum
a few, as the British squadron did when it block*
aded the road : but supposing htm to obtain posses-
sion of Batavia, in spite of its defences, natural
and artificial, he would still be very far from,
master of the Dutch possessions in the island of
Java, and it would, moreover, be impossible foe
him to maintain himself there ; for the environ*
of the town cannot nearly produce the provisions
necessary for the immense population, native and
Chinese, which it contains; he would further
have to guard against the king of Bantam, a
neighbouring prince and faithful ally of the
Hollanders, -whose country is very populous ;
and the council of India retiring to Samarang,
on the northern coast, the governor-general
would derive great resources from the emperor of
Mataram, and the sultan of Joucki, who would
readily furnish 35 or 30,000 brave and well-*
armed men, independently of Europeans, and
Madurans and Sammanappa, regimented and
commanded by their native princes.
. Samarang receives the produce of all the
northern and eastern coast, and of the interior
principalities ; and from this depot, the m*ga*
sines of Batavia are supplied.
The European and Indian troops entrusted

OW THE ISLAND OF JAVA. 275

with the defence of Batavia and its out poets,
consist of

Men.

French auxiliary troops of the 12th battalion, about . 240

ft3<I Dutch battalion , 600

National troops three battalions • . 2400

Of the above, 200, including officers, subalterns, and

grenadiers, are Europeans 5 the remainder Madurans

and Sammanapps.
x Battalion infantry chasseurs, Madurans and Sammanapps 400

Foot artillery (mostly recruits), Madurans . • . . 600

t Company of light artillery, Madurans ..... 100

European cavalry ..»••••,•••. 200

4540

There is also a corps of military engineers,
mostly Europeans. Among them are two French
officers, Col. Bar bier, director of fortifications, and
a captain: the others are German and Dutch.

The commandant of these troops is a Swiss;
he has the rank of brigadier, and is a counsellor
of the Indies. The second in command, M.
Vaugine, a Frenchman, regimental colonel of
the national troops, is invested with the details
of the service and administration. The artillery
is under the command of a Frenchman, who has
resided here forty years : his name is D'Ormancey
d'Hormois : he comes from Dijon.

All these troops are quartered in the environs,
on account of. the unhealthiness of the-city and
iqoast ; the third battalion only remains in the city,

s %

Zj6 09 THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

to take the duty of the castle and gates, with
some Indian artillery in the batteries on the
coast. It must be admitted, notwithstanding the
courage and a kind of ferocity natural to the Ma-
Jays, that, even if .they were backed, supported,
and commanded by Europeans, directed also by
princes of their own, it would be difficult to
make them stand a sharp action. There is reason
to apprehend they would give way, and that
nothing could rally them afterwards. The re*
emits, which daily come in, desert forty to
sixty at a time. Their princes, who reside at
Batavia, and for whom they have great venera-
tion and love, must be the pretext for subjecting
and rallying them ; but they must also be promptly
embodied before they can get on board the ca-
noes, which are always upon the coast, and by
which means they easily make the island of Ma*
dura, their own country ; or they take refuge in
the kingdom of Bantam, which is the common
resort of deserters and robbers, both Malay and
Chinese. This kingdom, wherein all malcon-
tents readily meet assistance, although the king
is allied and almost tributary to the Dutch Com*
pany, has its frontier at Tangarang, two leagues
from Batavia.

To this inconvenience must be added that of
the misunderstanding which continually prevail*
among a great part of the superior officers,

ON THB ISLAND OP JAVA. 377

owing to a want of confidence in the brigadier,
who, from his particular character and principles,
has never succeeded in obtaining it from any of
them. Besides, no real military spirit and union
can efcist in a mercantile government, where the
lowest clerk has a high rank, and in which
every new-comer may be indiscriminately received
as an officer, may soon attain the most elevated
rank, and whose sole object is to make a fortune
by every means which this colony, so abundant
in resources, presents. It is, however, indebted
to these strangers for its numerous European
population, without which it would be reduced
to the few colonists who are fixed there. It
will be easily perceived, that, without the natural
defence of this island, the mildness of its govern*
ment and its adroit policy in keeping up a con-
stant division of the. most powerful princes, who
govern under the title of allies, tributaries and
protegees of the Company, and who are really
under its dominion; but for these concurrent
circumstances, the Dutch, unless they had a far
greater European force, would have considerable
difficulty in preserving their establishments in
the island of Java. We may add, that the Com-
pany has a great ascendancy over the princes of
the other Sunda islands, so that all the petty
kings round about, although they have no com-
mercial relations with , Batavia, do not feel their

278 OH THE ISLAKD OP JAVA.

power secure, until they have obtained the appro-
bation of the governor-general , which they send
ambassadors to solicit.

The population of Batavia, including the
suburbs, is estimated at about 160,000 inhabit-
ants.

The Chinese alone are 100,000, and in a
great measure occupy the principal suburbs : the
others live in the city. The natives, Armenians,
Persians, Arabs, and Europeans, make up the
population. The latter are scarcely ia to 1500,
in the service of the Company and private mer-
chants. Few of them sleep in the town where
are their store-houses, to which they go at six
o'clock in the morning, transact business till ten or
eleven, and then return to the country, on account
of the umvholesomeness of the city, and the ex-
treme heat, which compels the most inconsider-
able private person to keep a carriage ; the heat
is too great, and it would be attended with too
much danger, to go on foot If some Europeans
do occasionally remain in the town, it is only
from a desire of gain, which induces them to
risk death or a state of languor, that they may
have a better chance of doing business with the
captains or supercargoes of the vessels which
daily arrive.

Noon is the general dinner-hour, and one
o'clock that of the siesta* The climate renders

Oil tHB ISLAND OF JAVA. Zjg

this life indispensable ; and, until five or six in the
evening, no oue is to be seen on business, which
is almost wholly transacted in the morning.

After siesta the Dutch get into their carriages,
and take a ride round the ancient kingdom of
Jacatra, crossing the grand Chinese cemetery/
which is nearly in the centre. In this burial-
place are immense quantities of tombs, with
inscriptions, specifying the time of the death,
age, name, good qualities, and virtues of those'
within. These tombs are environed by cypress
and many other small trees, and ornamented
with more or less elegance, according to the
means of the surviving relatives. They con-
sist of a cut stone three feet long by the same
width ; at the head is another stone of an ellipu
tical form, set perpendicularly to a mass of
earth, which slopes down behind ; on this stone is
the inscription ; at the two sides are long benches
of turf or stone, as seats for the relations to
repose on, under the shade of the cypress, when
they come to perform their funereal duties.

This ride is one of the finest imaginable ; alt
the ways which communicate with it are adorned
with magnificent palaces, occupied by the coun*
sellors of the Indies, the principal persons in the
Company's service, and the richest merchants.
In front of these palaces, parallel to the cause-
way, is a navigable canal, crossed J>y bridges

*80 OH THE ISLAND OF JAVA* .

very ingeniously constructed of bamboo, con*
nee ting the opposite bank, which is covered with
Indian villages, many of the huts of which are
scarcely visible through the cocoa, banana, pa-
paya, and other bushy ehrubs which conceal
them, and with which every hut is surrounded.

Going straight from the city to Jacatra, before
we come to the Chinese burial-place, and near
one of the lodges of Freemasons, is the an-
cient fortress, whither the unhappy prince of
this kingdom withdrew when the Dutch had
conquered it for the purpose of establishing them-
selves there, and in which he died gloriously in
the last engagement.

The cause of the insalubrity of Batavia may,
in a great measure, be attributed to the largo
bank o( mud which has accumulated opposite
the piouth and across the river' of Jacatra; to
the canals of, stagnant water which are in the
different quarters, into which all the filth and
carcasses are thrown, retaining and spreading
infectious effluvia in so hot a climate ; and lastly,
to the nature of the soil, composed of wet marshes
full of miasmata, which incessantly exhale and
produce the putrid diseases so fatal to Europeans*
and even to the Chinese and natives.

The most hale and robust man, without having
been guilty of any excess, is momentarily sub*
jeet tQ be attacked by a disease and carried

QN THB ISLAND OP JAVA* , % %9l

off in a few hours, owing to the rapid progress
which putridity makes in the viscera. A person
should expose himself as little as possible to the
night-air, eat and drink very moderately, and
take much exercise on horseback — these are the
most certain means of preserving health.

The camp of Welte-Freden and Jacatra, which
are a league and a league and a half from
the city, and where the Europeans in general
reside, as the most healthy spots, are not exempt
from disease. The body is in a continual perspir-
ation, the pores always open, and, if at that
time we experience a little cool air, which is
common in the morning and evening, fngn the
land and sea breezes, the pores are instantly
closed, and a slight attack of the ague shortly
follows. You no sooner go to bed than it
increases, and if its progress is not quickly
checked, the senses are gone in five or six
hours afterwards. Before twelve hours have
elapsed, putridity has already commenced its
ravages, and death ensues before the friends
with whom the previous evening was probably
spent, know of the illness ; consequently there
is no country in which the news of a death creates
so little surprise, whatever may be the interest
taken in the life of the victim.

When an European marries, the attorney who

♦

draws up the contract, at the same time makes

*Sl OH THE ISLAND OF JAVA*

the will of the couple. The unmarried who
have natural or adopted children, which is very
common in this colony, or who wibh to benefit
their friends, make theirs in like manner *. This
precaution is necessary on account of a law,
whereby government is authorized to take pos-
session of all succession-property, the heirs to
which are not ascertained either by will or mar-
riage-contract +. It is evident that the object of
government, in making this law, was to prevent
the disadvantageous consequences to which
families would be liable from the sudden mor-
talities of the climate*

The only method of rendering Batavia more
Wealthy, would be to remove the banks which are
at the mouths of the rivers of Antijol, Jacatra*
and Ancfca, and to make such a declivity in
all the canals, that the water cannot stagnate,
but have an uninterrupted and sufficiently rapid
current to carry off the filth which they are
always filled with; to build good sluices to clear
them somewhat above their mouths, particularly
at Jacatra, so that a considerable body of wa-
ter falling, with great force, might carry off

* The expense of t will is fixed at ten rixdollan, which is
equal to five piastres, whatever may to its contents, and with*
out any reference to the ntac of the legacy*

^Independently of those portioos pointed out by law, a
will is requisite togprc the hcfci * upt to the fpiduajy pan tf
a succession. * .

OK THE ISLAND OF JAVA* *8$

whatever had subsided at the entrance of the
river, and prevent the reaccumulation of the mod
forming another bank* The bank of Jaeatra
is always infested by a prodigious quantity
of sharks and monstrous caimans, a kind of
alligator, on the watch to devour the carcasses
which float down the riven

The marshes also should be drained and
brought into cultivation. This work has indeed
already been commenced. On the plain of Ba-
tavia is delineated, on the left bank of the river
of Jacalra, between the town and the coast, a
large flat which they have been at work upon,
but it is a slovenly performance ; part only has
been drained, and it is always marshy, wet, and
impenetrable. The policy of the Dutch may
possibly too have some effect in the continuance
of this unwholesomeness. In the first place,
these marshes are a natural defenee, * and the
British squadron, when it blockaded Batavia
in 1804, only relinquished it from the mor*
* tality which prevailed in the squadron, neither
officers nor men being free from it. They ia
fact . lost so many men in this road, that when
they wanted to weigh anchor they were neces-
sitated to call in the remnant of the crews of two
or three frigates to accomplish it When one
frigate was got under way, the same was done for
tfee others, Another motif c seems also to aflbrd

*84 ON THB ISLAND OF JAVA.

a justification of their neglect to render the
country healthy: the insalubrity tends to. keep
away many foreign fortune-hunters who would
•warm the colony too much. The governors
and European merchants there, are used to the
climate, and their constant residence in the
country protects them against the bad effects of
the unwhotesomeness of .the city air, fatal only
to those who reside in it, or to strangers who
settle there for commercial purposes.:
' The environs of Batavia produce only a little
corn, maize, and rice. The fruit-trees are the
cocoa, areca, different species of the banana, the
papaya, white and ted shaddock, mangostan,
rambootang, an enormous quantity of ananas,
touch betel, a creeping plant, whose aromatic
leaf is chewed by all the Indians. They spread
over this green leaf a little slaked lime, and at
one end, a small piece of areca- nut and carda-
mom ; they then roll it together and masticate
it continually. They retain this composition in
their mouths for hours together, which blackens
their teeth and reddens their lips and gums ; but
the Chinese and Malays consider teeth, black as
jet, very beautiful. Many of the Malays affix a
little curled tobacco, which always hangs out of
the mouth, to one end of the roll of betel.

At Batavia is collected saffron, and every kind
of allspice, which is much used in whatever they'

OH THE ISLAND OF JAVA. 285

eat, particularly in rice, which is the principal
food, as being a tonic, necessary in a hot
climate, where the stomach is so easily, dis-
ordered.

- Food is cheap in this country ; poultry, par-
ticularly Manilla ducks, are very plentiful : ten
large fowls are sold for five franco, and other
articles in proportion. Wine alone is dear ; in
one part of 1805, it fetched ten francs a bottle;
but from neutral and French ships coming in
from the Isle of France, it was reduced to two
shillings, which is generally its lowest price.

*S& OH THE ISLAND OF JAVA*

CHAPTER III.

The Chinese.— Ceremonies at their Feast of the
Deqd. — • Peculiarities. — - Industry. — Domestic
VirtutSi

On the 5th of April, according to annual cus-
tom, from sunrise, an endless multitude of Chi^
fiesc, of both sexes and all ages, some on foot,
others on horseback or in carriages, repaired to
Jacatra, near the site of the capital of that an-**
cient kingdom, where are all the tombs of their
countrymen. These tombs were previously or-
namented with bands of paper, or silk, of dif-
ferent colours, and three red wax tapers were
burning on each. Every Chinese brought, or
sent his slaves with, various provisions, which
were placed as offerings On the tombs. The
opulent were easily distinguished from the rest
by the luxuriousness of their meats ; there were
dishes spread with all which the most splendid
Oriental table could suggest, of viands, fish, fruit,
sweetmeats, and drink. After having left these
various provisions for some hours on the tombs,
they ate part, offered some to the spectators,
and carried the rest away. Several, however,

PV THB ISJLAXD OF JAVA* l8j

left behind them roasted poultry, which they had
kept whole on purpose.

Women wept over the graves of th«ir bus*
bands » children deplored the loss of the authors
of their days ; and the o}d sighed fon their faith*
ful companions* appearing to regret having sur-
vived them.

' Moveable theatres are constructed at the side,
•ad temples on the plain. These temples ate
large saloons, ornamented with grotesque and
antique statues, especially those representing Josi
in the midst of his family. *

. Josi, a disciple of Confucius, to whom he had
been servant, and afterwards his most intimate
and confidential friend, who became the greatest
legislator of that ancient nation, was of the low*
est and most degraded class of the people. After
the death of Confucius, the emperor disgraced
and banished him. He retired into the bosom of
his family, and was reduced to his primitive sto#
tion, where he said that he found the happiness
which he had lost during the whole time he had
directed the affairs of the empire. To him, and
to his laws, the Chinese are indebted for the pre-
servation of their manners, customs, and dress.
It is in his retirement, surrounded by his rela-
tives, that he is represented and adored in the
temples ; a proof that the Chinese felt the extent
of their loss in the change of administration.

a88 ON THE ISLAND OP JAVA.

and that they were sensible of the mildness and
wisdom of the laws of Josi. Opposite to each
of these Gothic idols were red wax tapers of
different sizes burning, and small matches of
incense, which diffused an agreeable perfume.
Before, and in the midst of, these statues is a
kind of altar, covered with the greatest dainties ;
in a room behind this altar is another altar back-
ing the former, and surmounted by a statue of
Josi and other figures. An old bonze, of vene-
rable aspect, with a long white beard, stood up f
reciting some prayers in a low voice ; he was co-
vered, aqd continually balanced his body with
great regularity ; he had a piece of wood, like a
ruler, in his hand, which he now and then let
fall, and as often picked up again : at the end of
half an hour he withdrew. Under the vestibule
of one of the temples two victims, as burnt-of-
ferings, were killed, and placed on a prop ; they
were skinned, and their entrails taken out and
set in front of them. One was a hog, the other a
goat with the horns left on. The selection of
these animals for sacrifice originated with Josi,
who justified the preference, inasmuch as these
animals, eating and destroying whatever might
serve as food for man, could not but be an ac-
ceptable offering.

The interior of the temple was filled with
tables, where they ate sweetmeats and preserved

OH THE ISLAND OF JAVA. 2&£

fruits* drank tea, and smoked* This seemed,
however, to be only permitted to the bonfces and
wealthy ; for the multitude remained without*
not daring to approach. Preparation was now
made for the .ceremonial. A kind of veStfy-
room contained the ornaments and dresses for
worship ; in this the bonzes dressed and made
every thing ready : behind it was a kitchen, pro-
bably for preparing the offerings.

The dress of the bonzes consists of a tunic of
violet silk, transparent as crape, thrown over
their ordinary clothes ; they then gird themselves
with a girdle of twisted silk, ornamented with
gilding, to which are attached the ornaments and
instruments required for the ceremony ; over thi*
is a robe, whose long sleeves, embroidered in
gold, turn up at the wrists. These robes are also
violet, but of a kind of Pekin work, very strong
and fine; they are close all round, and are put
on over the head. On the breast and back are
two plates of gold embroidery, very rich and
beautifully wrought. These pieces of embroi-
dery represent a bird almost like an eagle. They
have ornaments on their arms, also embroidered,
and which closely resemble the amice. In their
hand is a large fan, the case of which is sus-
pended from their girdle like a knife-sheath.
Their head-dress is a white straw or rush hat, in
the shape of a cone, at the point of which is a

200 , Oft TJtt ISfcAfll* 9? JAVJ*

little ball of gold' or crystal, and behind a smalt;
tuft of red silk wjbiqh covers half the hat. Their
slippers are square at the toe, and embroidered
with gold ; their legs are naked*

Many bopzessea were in the vestry-room.
They also had violet silk robes* but neither gilt,
por embroidered. These robes : wen? open before,
and covered the whole body* Their hair, twisted
And turned up behind, formed a round tuft,,
fastened with two pins, of which the heads were
diamonds. These tufts were surrQupcfcd, in the
Malay manner, with other very rich, pins or :
aigrettes, forming the beams of a most brilliant
»un, Their slippers were like those of the
bonzes. They bore no part in the exterior cere-
monies, as would be supposed from their dross,
but remained in the vestry*

The time of the ceremonies having arrived,
the bonzes, fifteen in number, left the. vestry,
to .the sound of shrill noisy muw, insipid to aa
European ear. They .took their stations before
the altar, where they made many genuflexions
and gestures ; they then presented to the high-
priest, the chief of the bonzes, who had do dis-
tinguishing mark, many meats which were on
the altar; he made different signs, pronouncing
some words in a whining tone of lamentation*
After having made various libations with several
liquors, which be mixed and spread over the

On THte istAHb o* Java, m

offerings, the other bonzes replaced them on the
altar. One of them then took a card, containing
some characters which he sung. The word*
seemed to have little analogy to the day and ce*
remony, judging from the loud laughs of part
of the auditory. Every bonze held in his hand
a box, or small case, filled with incense*
matches, and which he lighted as often as they
were extinguished. After a repetition of this
ceremony, during which the music was nevet
discontinued, they entered the side-room, to take
refreshment. After drinking tea there, they
went, in procession, to a second temple, where the
Same ceremony was gone through. Thence they
repaired to the theatre, when they bid reached
the foot of which they halted! the chid;
bonze mounted it alone* made many gestured
snd violent exclamations, and the performers
began the spectacle.

During all these ceremonies and scenes, the
gates of the temples and both sides of the theatre
were' filled with Chinese, especially children,
playing different games of chance, the ruling
passion of this people. Such are the ceremonies
of this day, which the Chinese consecrate to the
memory of their ancestors and friends*

A great part of the roasted poultry was left all
night on the tombs. The common people ima-
gine that, in -the night of this ceremotiy, the

T 2

*9*

ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA*

dead assemble and regale themselves. The un-
happy strew along the graves of their ancestors,
^whom they most regard, amulets, to induce
them to interest themselves in their misfortunes*
These amulets are pieces of silk paper, on which
is spread a sheet of leaf-silver : it is considered
to be paper-money, which passes current among
the dead*

The Chinese are so numerous at Batavia, and
so easily stirred up, that the policy of the Dutch
is always careful to give them some kind of
amusement. To accomplish this, their chief,
who has the title of captain, is obliged to main*
tain, at his own cost, a troop of public Malay
girls, termed rouguins, and on the Malabar and
Coromandel coasts bayaders. These girls, every
day without exception, from nine o'clock at
night till daybreak, act a play in the middle of
the street, on a kind of theatre built in th&
Chinese campong. It is difficult to give an idea
of the performance, which always seems to re*
present the wars of the Tartars against the Chi-
nese. It appears as though various chiefs, dif-
ferently dressed, their faces smeared black and
white, or masked, came to announce a new war,
in which they anticipate great success : they ha-
rangue the soldiers with variety of gestures and
grimaces : then comes a general or high-priest,
by his dress, who, after talking, exclaims

ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA. 293

and gesticulates some time, gets up and seats
himself on a bamboo-seat, raised on a small
table of the same, placed to remain at the back
of the centre of the theatre. After he has made
a kind of speech, the combatants appear. The
Chinese have each a different head-dress and
costume ; they are armed with lances, or rather
iron-shod sticks, seven or eight feet long, which
serve both for offence and defence They twist
them about their bodies, and make use of them
in parrying blows. The Tartars are in uniforms,
short coats, large trowsers, and hats or caps like
a callotte ; they are armed with a sabre and great
shield, which covers the head and half the body.
These combats end with more speeches by the
chiefs and high-priest, on the courage of the
soldiers.

The roaring music of gomgoms, which sound
equal to striking four or five great kettles, never
stops during the performance. The rouguins
enact every character. They always have a
great number of Chinese, and some Euro*
pcans, strangers from Bat a via, as spectators.

About the theatre, and along the principal
street of the Chinese campong, in the midst of
which it is built, are immense numbers of gaming
and eating tables, all Chinese. The 6ea(s as
well as tables are made of bamboo ; many stran-
gers take a walk and sup there : they cat with

*94 ?* THE ISLAND OF JAVA,

little sticks, which serve as forks; the spoons
are of common china, with a short crooked
handle. In their eating-places is an endless va-
riety of victuals ; each portion is served up on a
small plate like a saucer. The eatables consist
of jelly, mince, or soup, and are almost always
cold: their drinks, on the contrary, are always,
hot ; one kind, called toujou, is made of arrack,
sugar, and hot water.

One of their favourite dishes is a dog, which
they eat with every kind of sauce. They have
a particular species with a smooth skin, which
they fatten, and are very partial to, as well as
to pig; of which no nation eats so much as the
Chinese. The hundred thousand Chinese at '
Batavia may be reckoned to feed from three to
four hundred thousand pigs: there is not a fa*
inily which does not keep many, and which
contributes, in no 6mall degree, to promote the
bad air and filthiness prevalent in their campong,
and about their houses.

Independently of the playhouse, in the streets
of the campong, are processions of men with
masked or painted faces, kettle-drums, gamgoms,
and tambarines ; many are dressed as devils, who
are carried in triumph on poles, and others in
hampers, ornamented with paper, ribands, an4
little bells, seated on monsters, like our repre*

scntatiou of sea-horses.

O* Tlt£ IftLAHD 6* }AVX. 1^

The reason they give for these feasts to the
devil is, that the God of heaven and, of earth
being infinitely good, it is not necessary to im-
plore him ; that, on the contrary, the devil must
be feasted and intreated, to amuse him, and
prevent him, by this means, from temptations,
and making tours fatal to the nation: conse-
quently there is not a Chinese house which has
not in the shop and chamber a great- fat figure*
painted on paper or on the Wall, Representing
Confucius, their first lawgiver, whom they de-
signate as a monstrous Chinese, and the devil at
his side tempting him. On each side are pots of
flowers, and tapers of red wax gilt, which are
lighted on certain days, together with a little
lamp in front, as in small Romish chapels.

The Chinese girls are always shut up and em-
ployed in sewing and embroidery : they are never
seen in public, and are only known to be in the
house by an earthen vase as long as a common
flower-pot, placed on the roof, and which is
broken on the day of their marriage, to signify
that these who were there are no longer to be
disposed of. The marriages are made between
the parents, without the couple ever holding
communication till their celebration. Once
married, the women are equally shut up
in the interior of their family, being only per-
mitted to see their relations ; the poorfer sort

T 4

2$6 ON TflE ISLAND Of JAVA.

alone let them work and serve in their shops,
but they are closely watched there. Notwith-
standing the life of severity and slavery which
the Chinese women lead, no people has more
domestic virtues* The Chinese is a good son 9 a
good father, good husband, and good friend ;
he carries gratitude almost to an extreme : it is
natural to them, and they have been frequently
known tp offer and divide their fortune, or what
little they had, with Europeans who had assisted
or served them, and had become in turn neces-
sitous. Many of the Chinese, however, are
Very depraved in their manners ; so avaricious
are some, that they let out the* persons of their
nieces, and even daughters, when they are under
their care, +

Batavia affords many examples of Chinese,
who, not having the means of making good their
engagements, nor extending their trade, have
made over their daughters to Europeans, as a
security for money advanced. The wretched
victims of this infamous traffic are slaves until
the parents choose to redeem them by paying
the loan : it is true that they transfer widows in
preference.

Little need be said on the commercial genius
and industry of the Chinese, whose disposition
in that respect is well known. There are in
and round Batavia some who carry on every

ON THE ISLAND OP JAVA. 297

art and trade, engross all the house and ship
building, and transact every kind of retail
business. They are very active and' ingenious,
and particularly intelligent. They will execute
any plan, however difficult; but they think
extremely well of themselves, and are so ex*
cess iv el y conceited of their own talents, that,
in their opinion, no people can equal them. If
a comparison is drawn between two similar ob-
jects, one made in their own, the other in another
country, however inferior the former might be,
they would give it the preference.

They are ill adapted to military science ; but,
although cowardly and effeminate, are inclined
to revolt. Their immense population renders
them very restless, but their insurrections never
break out until they are fully assured that they
are three or four times the number of their op-
ponents, and tHe same in their private disputes.

In the villages of Java is always a Chinese
chief, who is called a captain ; in towns two, the
second a lieutenant. These chiefs superintend
their laws, religion, and private police. In se-
rious matters, and in disputes with the Europeans
and natives, reference is made to the fiscal.

The Chinese pay enormous annual duties on
their industry and trade, which are collected by
the Company. They pay a duty for being al-
lowed to let their nails grow very long, especially

££$ ON THE ISLAND OF JAVAl

those on their little fingers* This is considered
a great luxury amongst them, as it is an une-
quivocal proof that they do not work for their
living.

The twisted tail, which they wear extremely
long, sometimes down to their knees, pays in
proportion to its length ; which is regulated and
measured every year at a fixed time.

Their dress consists of large trowscrs, and
round coats which reach to the middle of the
thighs ; they are always of black, or very bright
sky-blue. They use white for mourning, which,
for very near relations, is. designated by a rent in
the collar.

Tbey have the dangerous custom of keeping
corpses in the house for seven entire days, though,
from the heat of the climate, they become putrid
in a few hours ; a custom pernicious not only to
the immediate family, but to the neighbourhood*
A Chinese house, where a death has happened,
is known by a white cloth hung in lieu of the
door*

OH THE JSULtfD OP- JAVA, 4j}

CHAPTER IV.

Environs of Batavia. — Welte- Freden.—Tanahang*
— Mester-Cornelis*— Isles of Cambusa and Onrus.
—Description of Tijelenking—Its false Bay.—
Sacred Trees.— -Tombs of the Kramates. — Vege-
table Poisons. — Bohon Upas, or Anliars % &C*
Their Antidote— Andira.

T'ifi camp where all the troops are, in bamboo
barracks, situated near the city, being in a low
and unhealthy situation, and the high regency
of Batavia having, in 1799, received the ulh
French battalion as an auxiliary troop, a new
camp was established in a woody plain, a league
and a half up the country, upon an airy site, the
Und of which is dry and the vicinage littlo
marshy. It is called Weltc-Freden, and French
Camp, The road to it is the fine causeway,
which is part of the ride from Jacatra. On oEq
side it is dotted with country-houses belonging
to the counsellors of the Indies, and which arc
$0 many palaces ; and, on the other, a navigable
canal, on the right bank of which are Indian
hamlets. Quitting the city on the left, is a work
called the Water-plats, in which are some gugf
of a middling calibre, and a barrack and guard*

bpuse iw the Maduraus and Sammanapps. Three

JOO ON THB ISLAND OF JAVA.

quarters of a mile on this side the camp is a bar-
rack and post for cavalry entirely Europeans.
In front of the military hospital is a fine
sluice, placed on the great river, to preserve the
water, which would otherwise be lost in a
branch which there falls into it, and to supply
all the navigable canals, and inundate the
environs, in case military operations should ren-
der it necessary.

After passing the sluice, leaving on the left
the avenue which leads into the midst of the
Chinese tombs, the camp appears in the shape
of a long square, about half a league in circum*
ference; on the two near fronts are the officers*
houses ; those of the field-officers are isolated ;
the other form two rows of buildings, in
which each has his particular room, according to
his rank. The barracks, which are built of
wood and stone, occupy a third of the ground,
oh the side opposite the entrance ; the remain-
ing space is appropriated for exercising. The
engineers 9 camp has accommodation for four
officers ; it is isolated, and within two gun-shots
behind the extremity of the right -front of the
grand camp, in a small plain formed by a creek
in the great river. Their residence occupies two
fronts of the creek ; the intermediate ground is
planted with cocoa and different very large trees,
which always supply shade, air, and a pleasant

ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA ^Ot

walk: the situation is altogether picturesque. As
this place js very lonely, and the natives thievish
and cruel, particularly after smoking opium, an
European sentinel is placed there every night
At the extremity of the little attached gardens
runs the river with a small. Malay village, and
the hospital burial-ground, planted with trees
of different kinds in front An avenue, forming
the left front of Welte-Freden, leads to a large
Chinese village only separated from the barracks
.by a ditch, over which is a bridge. A large ge-
neral market is held there daily.

The road from Mester-Cornelis joins the
bridge; opposite the officers' dwelling, which
occupies the right front of the camp, runs the
great road, which leads to a pretty country-house
of M. Siberg, the late governor. One end of
the house joins the camp ; another is fronted by
a Chinese village, and the great river runs be-
hind it. The gardens, which are open to the
public, are magnificent.

Between the military hospital and horse bar-
racks already mentioned, is Tanabang causeway,
to the right of which is the grand cemetery of
Batavia, surrounded by a wall seven feet high.

Tanabang is a large Mal#y village, m which
are several Chinese families; a great market is
hold there the year through. This village, is on
a height, twp leagues and a half frou! the city ;

JO* ,<*H TOT ISLAND OF JAVA.

there is also a very pretty country-bouse belong-
ing to counsellor Rymsdeck. On the same cpuse*
■way, a little beyond the cemetery of Bafavia, and
on the same side, is an immense plain, where
the grand review* and manoeuvring of troops

take place.

Mester- Cornells is a small fort, a fall league
from Welte-Freden ; the road to it is very plea-
sant and even, passing, from the camp, directly
opposite M. Biberg's front gate- A gun-shot
farther/ on the right, is a considerate Indian
town ; a little nearer, on the other side, a Chinese
Tillage, and afterwards, at various distances, many
otherMalay towns, as large as the first, separated,
by meadows : on the right is an immense plain
of maize, in which is another large Malay and
Chinese village, and beyond it an avenue lead-
in<* to a country-house, commanding a fine view

of the plain.

On this road are several varous, or Indian
huts, where are sold boiled rice and roasted*
maize, to which the Chinese and Milaysare very
partial, as well a9 fruit and betel.
• The ground rises insensibly to Mcster-Cof-
nelis, which is discovered about half a mile off.
This fort lies in a hollow, on the bank of the
gi-eat river, and k commanded by a small height J
on the right and left of the road are bamboo bar-
tacks for (he Maduran artillery, of which this is

ON* THE ISLAND OF JAVA. JOJ

the depot : the recruits in daily training, are six
hundred.

. The fort is bailt of stone, but is not strong;
the demi-bastions are scarcely two feet thick,
and four high : it has some moderately sized guns,
and is surrounded by a dry ditch, partly filled up*
The entrance is by a stone bridge ; within is a
guardhouse, occupied by M. Phils, a native of
France, who, from major in the Dutch artillery,
was promoted to the rank of lieutenant-colonel
commandant of the place. He was, one of the
expedition sent in search of La Perouse, under
the comitfand.of D'Entrecasteaux.

At the side of this is another house occupied
by European artillery. The fort is quitted by
another bridge, on the opposite- side, communi-
cating with a range of wooden barracks, in which
are the artillery officers, and the companies which
are formed and trained there.

A Malay prince has been many ytars confined
in a small room behind the guardhouse: he
.!$ the eldest son of the last king of Bantam
but one* On his father's death be wished to en*>
joy his right of inheritance ; but the India Com-
pany thinking it more politic to give the crown
to his uncle, this prince made a considerable
party in the country, and declared war against his
uncle for the recovery of his throne ; but he was
vanquished, made prisoner, and shut up in

504 ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

Mester-Cornelis, under the responsibility of the
commandant of artillery.

This prince goes without shoes, and in no
other costume than that of the common Malays ;
his food is only rice, pimento, and fish ; with
betel occasionally. He is attended by a Javan,
and is allowed to walk in the fibrt-yard. He still
expresses a hope of resuming his throne. He
was so glad of a glass of arrack, which' the Eu-
ropean officers sometimes gave him, that he pro-
mised to reward them when he should be king ;
but the sentinels were shortly afterwards desired
not to let him bold any communication with
them*

" In going to Batavia, through the Straits of
Sun da, are several small islands ; among them
tbat of the Great CambGsa, which is not large
enough to be inhabited ; but always has a smalt
guard of artillery with one gun, as a signal to ships
entering the Strait. Next to this, on the right is the
isle of Onrus ; it is fortified with several pieces of
cannon, fifty European infantry and some artil-
lery-men, the whole under the command of a
lieutenant. The post is very unpleasant, from
the unwholesomeness of the island ; it has been
observed that no detachment ever returned from
it complete; some always dropoff, and the sur-
vivors are in a very languid state. It is, notwith-
standing, the only place where the Company can

ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA. 305

build and refit vessels. , The timber-yards are
very good.

About five leagues e. of Batavia is the great
Malay village of Tijelenking; it is intersected
by a river which unites with the Antijol, and the
mouth of which is at the extremity of a kind of
small bay, containing no where more than six
or eight inches depth of water on an oyster-
bottom. In the middle is a serpentine channel,
which goes to the mouth : it is twelve to fifteen
feet wide, and two to four feet deep : it is only
navigable for small country boats and large ca-
noes, of which the river is always full, as far as
a large wooden bridge which crosses it, and
communicates to a considerable bazar, which
the Chinese hold all the year, for the sale of
every kind of eatable and stuffs used in -ndia*
At Tijelenking all the roofs of the houses are made
of the leaves of the cocoa-tree, and which are
adopted in the environs of Batavia. Prom this
place is derived most of the salted and fresh fish
for the consumption of the city and the neigh-
bouring country. Much salt is also made here.

At the end of the bazar is a fine house be-
longing to an European merchant.

Along the coast and near the. point which
forms the false bay is ten feet water on a sandy
bottom* Going out of the bay is ten feet water,

/ -

£36 ON THE ISLAND OF JAV*.

at the mouth of the channel, and then gradually
six, eight, and ten.

A short distance from the village, on the
right hank of the river, above the bridge, are two
roads which cross the country to the back of 6a-
tavia. On the left bank, at the end of the bridge,
is a great road leading to the sea-coast at Tani-
jong-Priock Point, and thence, by Tolbruck, to
the city. From the end of this bridge, where
the great road begins* is a direct communication
with the coast by a very narrow mound raised
in the marshes, beyond a smqll wood which must
be traversed to get to it. Half a league from
Tijelenking, upon the coast, and on the causeway
of B*tavia, is a pretty seat of M. Van Basel, a
Dutch merchant. It is surrounded by a Ma*
lay village; th$ inhabitants subsist on fish,
and on the produce of the cocoa-trees, with
which the coast and environs abound. The oil
which they extract from the cocoa, when fresh r
i$ as good as olive-oil ; but in a few days it is
only fit for burning and tanking ; the Indians,
however, use it in frying.

A little further, en the same side, is the great
village of Coijack, half the inhabitants of which
are Chinese; the houses occupy the space of
three quarters of a mile from the coast. Fish
and cocoa- trees are also a principal part of their
resources. The Chinese have several yards on the

OK THB ISLAND OF J ATA. 367

Cbfftt for building and repairing larg£ canoes
Almost all the houses of this village are built tf
bamboo, and raised on large piles ten feet abov^
the ground, especially those on the sea-shore*
This precaution is necessary to secure them fronj
the tigers and serpents. One room serves the
whole family ; the floors are made of rotang with
holes in it, th^t the air may circulate freely ; the
beds consist of a single mat, as is the case with
&11 those of the natives of the Sunda islands.

NeKt to this, still following the coast, is .the
point of Tanijong-Priock ; the name of a large
fine 6t?ne house belonging to counsellor Ryms*
deck. It is entirely isolated on the sea- shore, and
has no other protection than that of some Indian
hute. Tanijong-Priock Point is conspicuous,
from the many trees which surround a kraraate'3

tomb.

The kramates are Malay priests, who, having
made a journey to Mecca, are considered as saint*
after their death. Those who survive, to make
the situation of their graves respected, plant a '
tree, resembling the tamarind, which they call
sacred, and poisoned; a very corrosive gum
oozes from it. They plant in addition, at lbs
foot of each tree, a creeper, which soon entwines
the trunk and branches, and emits a liquot
which is a very subtle poison. It is not improbable
that thii creeper gave rise to the fable of th* .

308 OK THE ISLAND OP JAVA.

bohon-upas, a tree " whose smell," says a Dutch
doctor, " is so powerful and poisonous, that no
plant can grow within a league and a half of it,
and all the birds which come within that distance
of it instantly die *."

The island of Java contains every kind of ser-
pent. The most dangerous, whose bite is mortal,
are the smallest ; they are scarcely thicker than
a common candle, and from two to three feet
long : their colours are various ; some are grey,
spotted with. white; others green, with bright
red spots and white streaks. They are common
in the plain of Welte-Freden and about the en-
gineers' camp ; attention is therefore paid to exa-
mine the rooms occasionally, for these reptiles
often insinuate themselves under the table, and
beds? M. Tombe killed one which was pursued
by a brother-officer. He gave it two cuts with
his sabre, and thought it dead ; but an hour after-
wards wondered to see it move. It lived fifteen
days, which was not considered a matter of sur-
prise, as it was of the species slowest of digestion.
It measured sixteen feet ip length, colour iron-
grey with white spots, and of a most dangerous
kind.

Colonel Legrevisse, a native of France, born at
Givet, who had been twenty-five years in the
Company's service, had, at his house, a live ser-
pent which all the Europeans went to see.* It was.
* See on Vegetable Poison*, page 330,— &///*v

ON THB ISLAND OF JAVA. 3O9

cffthc thickness of a man's arm, and nearly twenty
feet long. It would swallow a fowl as we swallow
an Oyster ; but it was not dangerous. The colo*
nel has another, stuffed, as thick as a man, and
fifteen feet long. These large kinds are most com*
modly foundin theChineseand Malay cemeteries.
The salamander is a lizard as thick as an arm,
and about two feet long. This creature avoids
man, but destroys poultry, and the Indians
therefore call it fowl-eater. It is amphibious,
and may be found ra the morning on the rivur
sides *•

. But one of the greatest inconveniences which
M. Tombe experienced, particularly in the rainy
season, was the clouds of great winged ants, as
large as honey-bees, which so annoyed him with
their buzzing, that he was obliged, in the middle
of the night, to get out of bed, and walk into the
yard till tbey had all entered ; for they fell the
instant after in every direction, particularly about
his chamber-lamp. In the morning they lay
upon the ground dead or crawling ; and such as
could not get quickly enough into holes to hide
themselves, were eaten or drawn away by a lesser

* 1 can scarcely think the reptile here spoken of, is the sala-
mander. It seems more likely to be, a species of the iguana
(Iguana Amboinensis), which is very common in the islands of
Java and Amboyna : its flesh is very delicate and savoury.—.
Samini. .

U X

3X0 dfc THE I5LAtft) 0* JAVA.

kind of black ant, nests of which are found
in all parts of the house, in spite of every pre*
caution to the contrary. To keep provisions, the
feet of whatever they are placed in, are £ut
into jugs or holes of water, which dust be al-
ways kept full.

There is likewise the building-ant, which is
the most destructive. Irt a single night these
ants make subterraneous passages, whence they
get about and into every kind of furniture, and
ghaw a trunk of linen, books, and papers, so
as to render them useless. If the servants oncd
omit to destroy these kind of galleries, the con*
tents of the house would almost be in danger*
They are called carias, and are so destructive
that they eat away the wood, little by little, BO
that houses have at last been abandoned, be-
cause they were in danger of Falling) the timbtr
was so full of them *.

The moutouke is an animal less troublesome,
but equally voracious. It is a thick whito
maggot* which lives in the wood, and 60 eats it
*way, that the backs of chairs, and feet of draw-
ers, although apparently sound, are frequently
rotten within, and fall into dust when it is least
suspected. This creature may sometimes . be
heard at work. It is as big as a silk-worm and

• These white ants are the termes.— &/nw*.

OH TUB IJLAMD OF JAVA. 3II

Tcry white, a mere lump of fat. Thirty an
roasted together threaded on a little stick, and
are delicate eating. They are commonly found
on the feet of old bamboos *.

ON VEGETABLE POISONS.

The existence of thebohon-upasin the island of
Java can scarcely be a matter of doubt ; and if M.
Tombe has not met with it, it must be from his
not having traversed those districts in which, un-
happily for mankind, this dangerous tree grows*
The following passage from " The Monthly Re-
pertory Y' gives some particulars of the tree in
question. The writer is an Englishman, and
only signs his initials C. H.

u In the year 1774 I was stationed at Batavia,
as a surgeon, in the service of the Dutch East
India Company. During my residence there,

• It is the larva of some large beetle.— Sonnini.

f It is very singular, that a man of science and literature,
for such M. Sonnini certainly is, should have made a reference,
so incorrectly, that the article which he refers to cannot be
discovered by it. Such is the case with the present reference*
But far more extraordinary is it, that.a gentleman so studied in
natural history should, at this time, not know that such an ac-
count is the notorious fabrication which first acquired celebrity
in this country, by Dr. Darwin's introduction of it into his
" Botanic Garden, or Loves of the Plants," from the London
Magazine, into which it was translated from the publication of
M. Foerch; for a high character of the veracity of whom, see
page 330. I have retained the narrative, which the reader will
probably peruse if he has not already met with it, and is in a
disposition for romance-reading. It is a great pity, however,
to deprive C. H. of such flourishing laurels, in whatever perio-
dical work he may have planted thexn.— &/*/*-.

$1% OK THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

I received several different accounts of the boh on-
iupas, and the violent effects of its poison. They
all then seemed incredible to me, but raised my
curiosity in so high a degree, that I resolved to
investigate this subject thoroughly, and to trust
only to my own observations. In consequence
of this resolution, I applied to. the governor-
general, M. Petrus Albertus van der Parra, for a
pass to travel through the country : my request
was granted, and, having procured every informa-
tion, I set out on my expedition. I had pro-
cured a recommendation from an olcLMalayan
priest to another priest, who lives on the nearest
habitable spot to the tree, which is about fifteen
or sixteen miles distant. The letter proved of
great service to me in my undertaking, as that
priest is appointed by the emperor to reside there,
in order to prepare for eternity, the souls of those
who, for different crimes, are sentenced to ap-
proach the tree to procure the poison.

" The bohon-upas is situated in the island of
Java, about twenty-seven leagues from Batavia,
fourteen from Soura-charta, the seat of the em-
peror, and between eighteen and twenty leagues
from Tinkoe, the present residence of the sultan
of Java. It is surrounded, on all sides, by a
circle of high hills and mountains ; and the
country round it, to the distance of ten or twelve
miles from the tree, is entirely barren. Not a
tree nor a shrub, nor even the least plant or
grass, is to be seen. I have made the tour all
around this dangerous spot, at about eighteen
miles distance from the centre, and I found the
aspect of the country on all sides equally dreary.
The easiest ascent of the hills is from that part
where the old ecclesiastic dwells, From his

OH THE ISLAND OF JAVA. JIJ

house the criminals are sent for the poison, into
which the points of all warlike instruments are
dipped. It is of high value, and produces ft
considerable revenue to the emperor.

" The poison which is procured from this tree is
a gum that issues out between the bark and the
tree itself, like the camphor. Malefactors who,
for their crimes, are sentenced to die. are the
only persons who fetch the poison; and this is
the only chance they have of saving their lives*
After sentence is pronounced upon them by the
judge, they are asked in court, whether they will
die by the hands of the executioner, or whether
they will go to the upas-tree for a box of poison ?
They commonly prefer the * latter proposal, as
there is not only some chance of preserving^ their
lives, but also a certainty, in case of their safe
return, that a provision will be made for them
in future by the emperor. They are also per-
mitted to ask a favour from the emperor, which
is generally of a trifling nature, and commonly
granted. They are then provided with a silver
or tortoisesbell box, into which they are to put
the poisonous gum, and are properly instructed
how to proceed while they are upon their dan-
gerous expedition. Among other particulars, they
are always told to attend to the direction of the
winds ; as they are to go towards the tree, before
the wind, so that the effluvium from the tree is
always blown from ihem. They are told like-
wise, to travel with the utmost dispatch, as that
is the only method of insuring a safe return.
They are afterwards sent to the house of the old
priest, to which place they are commonly at-
tended by their friends and relations. Here they
generally remain some days, in expectation of a

314 6* TQ£ ISLAND OF JAVA.

favourable breeze. During tbat time the eccle-
siastic prepares them for their future fate by
prayers and admonitions. When the hour of
their departure arrives, the priest puts them on
a long leather cap, with two glasses before their
eyes, which comes down as far as their breast,
and also provides them with a pair of leather
gloves. They are then conducted by the priest,
and their friends and relations, about two miles
on their journey : here the priest repeats his in-
structions, and tells them where they are to look,
for the tree. He shows them a hill, which they
are told to ascend, and that, on the other side,
they will find a rivulet, which they are to follow,
and which will conduct them directly to the
©pas. They now take leave of each other; and
amidst prayers for their success, the delinquents
hasten away. The worthy old ecclesiastic has
assured me, that during his residence there, for
Upwards of thirty years, he had dismissed above
seven hundred criminals in the manner which I
have described, and that scarcely two out of twenty
returned. He showed me a catalogue of all the
unhappy sufferers, with the date of their de-
parture from his house annexed, and a list of the
offences for which they had been condemned;
to which was added, a list of those whe had re*
turned in safety. I afterwards saw another list
of these culprits, at the jail-keeper's at Soura*
charta, and found that they perfectly corresponded
with each other, and with the different informa-
tions which I afterwards obtained. I was present
at some of these melancholy ceremonies, and
dfcsired different delinquents to bring with them
some pieces of the wood, or a small branch, or
some leaves of this wonderful tree. I have aba

ON THE ISLAND OP J/vVA. 315

given them silk cords, desiring them to measure
its thickness. 1^ never could procure more than
t\vo dry leaves, that were picked up by one of
them on his return; and all I could learn from
him, concerning the tree itself, was, that it stood
6n the border of a rivulet, as described by the
old priest ; that it was of a middling size ; that
five or six young trees of the same kind stood
dose by it ; but that no other shrub or plant
could be seen near it ; and that the ground was
Gf a brownish- sand, futt of stones, almost im-
practicable for travelling, and covered with dead
bodies. After many conversations with the old
Malayan priest, I questioned him about the first
discovery, and asked his opinion of this dan-
gerous tree; upon which he gave me the follow-
ing answer : — * We are told in our new Alcoran,
that, above an hundred years ago, the country
around the tree was inhabiled by a people
strongly addicted to the sins of Sodom and Go*
itoorrah ; when the great prophet 'Mahomet de-
termined not to suffer them to lead such detestable
lives any longer, he applied to God to punish
them : upon which God caused to grow out of
the earth this tree, which destroyed them all,
and rendered the country ever uninhabitable.'

" Such was the Malayan opinion. I shall not
attempt a comment ; but must observe, that all
the Malayans consider this tree as an holy in-
strument of the great prophet to punish the sins?
of mankind ; and, therefore, to die of the poison
of the upas, is generally considered among them
as an honourable death. For that reason I also
observed, that the delinquents who were going
to the tree, were generally dressed in their best
apparel. This however is certain; though it may

316 OK THE I8LAKD OF JAVA.

appear incredible, that, from fifteen to eighteen
miles round this tree, not only no human crea-
ture can exist, but that, in that space of ground,
no living animal of any kind has ever been dis-
covered. I have also been assured, by several
persons of veracity, that there are no fish in the
waters, nor has any rat, mouse, or any other
vermin, been seen there; and when any birds
fly so near this tree that the effluvium reaches
them, they fall a sacrifice to the effects of the
poison. This circumstance has been ascertained
by many delinquents, who, in their return, have
seen the birds drop down, and have picked them
up dead, and brought them to the old ecclesi-
astic. I will here mention an instance, which
proves the fact beyond all doubt, and which
happened during my stay at Java.

"In 1775 a rebellion broke out among the sub-
jects of the Massay, a sovereign prince, whose
dignity is nearly equal to that of the emperor.
They refused to pay a duty, imposed upon them
by their sovereign, whom they openly opposed.
The Massay sent a body of a thousand troops to
disperse the rebels, and to drive them, with their
families, out of his dominions. Thus four hun-
dred families, consisting of above six hundred
souls, were obliged to leave their native country.
Neither the emperor nor the sultan would give
them protection, not only because they were
rebels, but also through fear of displeasing their
neighbour the Massay* In this distressful situa-
tion they had no other resource than to repair to
the uncultivated parts round the upas, and re-
quested permission of the emperor to settle there.
Their request was granted, on condition of their
fixing their abode not more than twelve or four-.

OH THB ISLAND OF JAVA. 3 17

teen miles from the tree, in order not to deprive
the inhabitants, already settled there at a greater
distance, of their lands. With this they were
obliged to comply; but the consequence was,
that, in less than two months, their number was
reduced to about three hundred. The chief of
those who remained returned to the Massay, in-
formed him of their losses, and entreated his
pardon, which induced him to receive them
again as subjects, thinking them sufficiently pu-
nished for their misconduct. I have seen and
conversed with several of those who survived,
soon after their return. They all had the ap-
pearance of persons tainted with an infectious
disorder; they looked pale and weak, and, from
the account which they gave of the loss of their
comrades, and of the symptoms and circumstances
which attended their dissolution, such as con*
vulsions, and other signs of a violent death, I
was fully convinced they fell victims to the poi-
son. This violent effect of the poison, at so
great a distance from the tree, certainly appears
surprising, and almost incredible ; and especially
when we consider that it is possible for delin-
quents, who approach the tree, to return alive.
My wonder, however, in a great measure ceased,
after I had made the following observation : I
have said before, that malefactors are instructed
to go to the tree with the wind, and to return
against the wind. When the wind continues to
blow from the same quarter, while the delin-
quent travels thirty, or six-and-thirty miles, if
be be of a good constitution, he certainly sur-
vives. But what proves the most destructive is,
that there is no dependence on the wind in that
part of the world for any length of time. There

Jlft ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

are no regular land-winds ; and the sea- wind i$
not perceived there- at all, the situation of the
tree being at too great a distance, and surrounded
by high mountains and uncultivated forests. Be-»
sides, the wind there uever blows a fresh regular
gale, but is commonly merely a current of light
soft breezes, which pass through the different
openings of the adjoining mountains. It is also
frequently difficult to determine from what part
of the globe the wind really cornea, as it is di-
vided by various obstructions in its passage, which
easily change the, direct ion of the wind, and often
totally destroy its effects. I, therefore, impute
the distant effucts of the poison, in a great mea*
sure, to the constant gentle winds in those parts,
which have not power enough to disperse the
poisonous particles, if high winds were more
frequent and durable there, they would certainly
weaken very much, and even destroy, the ob-
noxious effluvia of the poison ; but without them
the air remains infected and pregnant with these
poisonous vapours. I am the more convinced of
this, as the worthy ecclesiastic assured me, that
a dead calm is always attended with the greatest
danger, as there is a continual perspiration is*
suing from the tree, which is seen to rise and
spread in the air like the putrid steam of a
marshy cavern.

" In the year 1776, in the month of February^
I was present at the execution of thirteen of the
emperor's concubines, atSoura-charta, who were
convicted of infidelity to the emperor's bed. It
was in the forenoon, about eleven o'clock, when
the fair criminals were led into an open space
within the walls of the emperor's palace. There
the judge passed sentence on them, by which

ON Tilfi ISI/AVB OF JAVA. 3*9

they were doomed to suffer death by a lancet*
poisoned with upas* After this the Alcoran wa*
presented to them, and they were, according to
the law of their great prophet Mahomet, to ac-
knowledge, and to affirm by oath, that the
charges brought against them, together with the
sentence and their punishment, were fair and
equitable. This they did by laying their right
hand upon the Alcoran, their left hand upoa
their breast, and their eyes lifted towards heaven;
the judge then held the Alcoran to their Yips, and
they kissed it. These ceremonies over, the exe-
cutioner proceeded on his business in the follow*
ipg manner: Thirteen posts, each about five
feet high, had been previously erected. To these
the delinquents were fastened, and their breasts
stripped naked. In this situation they remained
a short time in continual prayer, attended by
several priests, until a signal was given, by the
judge, to the executioner ;" on which the latter
produced an instrument, much like the spring-
lancet used by farriers for bleeding horses. With
this instrument, it being poisoned by the gum of
the upas, the unhappy wretches were lanced in
the middle of their breasts, and the operation
was performed upon them all in less than two
minutes. My astonishment was raised to the
highest degree, when I beheld the sudden effects
of that poison, for, in about five minutes after
they were lanced, they were taken with a tremor
attended with a subsullus tend'mum, after which
they died in the greatest agonies, crying out to
God and Mahomet for mercy. In sixteen mi-
nutes, by my watch, which 1 held in my hand,
all the criminals were no more. Some hours
after their deaths I observed th$ir bodies full of

£ftO o* THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

livid spots, much like those of the petechia, their
feces swelled, their colour changed to a kind of
blue, their eyes looked yellow, &c. ice.

" About a fortnight after this, I had an opportu-
nity of seeing such another execution at Sa-
marang. Seven Malayans were executed there
with the same instrument, and in the same man-i
ner; and I found the operation of the poison,
and the spots in their bodies, exactly the same.

u These circumstances made roe desirous to try
an experiment with some animals, in order to be
convinced of the real effects of this poison ; and
as I had then two young puppies, I thought them
the fittest objects for my purpose. I accordingly
procured, with great difficulty, Sbme grains of
upas. I dissolved half a grain of that gum in a
small quantity of arrack, and dipped a lancet
into it. With this poisoned instrument 1 made
an incision in the lower muscular part of the
belly, in one of the puppies. Three minutes
after it received the wound, the animal began
to cry out most piteously, and ran as fast as
possible from one corner of the room to the
other. So it continued during six minutes*
when all its strength being exhausted, it fell
upon the ground, was taken with convulsions,
and died in the eleventh minute. I repeated this
experiment with two other puppies, with a cat,
and with a fowl, and found the operations of the
poisons in all of them the same : none of these
animals survived above thirteen minutes.

" I thought it necessaryto try also the effect of
the poison given inwardly, which I did in the
following manner : I dissolved a quarter of a
grain of the gum in half an ounce of arrack, and
made a dog, of seven months old, drink it. In

Off TBE 1S1AVD OF JAVA. 3*1

seven minutes after, a retching ensued, and I
observed, at the same time, that the animal was
delirious, as it ran up and down the room, fell
on the ground, and tumbled about ; then it rose
again, cried out very loud, and about half* an
hour after was seized with convulsions, and died.
I opened the body, and found the stomach very
much inflamed, as the intestines were, in some
parts, but not so much as the stomach. There
was a small quantity of coagulated blood in the
stomach ; but I could discover no orifice from
which it could have issued ,* and therefore sup-
posed it to have been squeezed out of thfe lungs,
by the animal's straining while it was vomiting.
Prom these experiments I have been convinced,
that the gum of the upas is the mobt dangerous
and most violent of all vegetable poisons ; and
1 am apt to believe that it greatly contributes to
the unhealthiness of that island. Nor is this the
only evil attending it: hundreds of the natives of
Java, as well as Europeans, are yearly destroyed,
and treacherously murdered, by that poison,
either internally or externally. Every man of
quality or fashion has his dagger or other arms

Stoisoned with it ; and, in times of war, the Ma-
ayans poison the springs and other waters with
it : by this treacherous practice the Dutch suf-
fered greatly during the last war, as it occasioned
the loss of half their army. For this reason they
have ever since kept fish in the springs of which
they drink the water, and sentinels are placed
near them, who inspect the waters every hour,
to see whether the fish are alive. If they march
with an army, or body of troops, into an ene-
my's country, they always carry live fish with
them, which they throw into the water some

%Z%. ON THE ISLAND OF.JAVAr

hours before they venture to drink it ; by which,
means they have been able to prevent their total
destruction/'

Other travellers have given nearly similar ac-
counts of the bohon-upas, but they rather in*
cline to the marvellous. A scientific gentleman,
who accompanied D'Entrecasteaux in his expe-
dition in search of La Perouse, M. Descbaraps,
a physician, asserts, that the bohon-upas certainly
exists in Java, but that the stories with which it
abounds only arise from mistake. The following
notes on the subject of this tree were communi-
cated by M. Deschamps to M. Malte-Brun, who
has published them in his French edition of the
Voyage to Cochin-China, &c. by Barrow, vol. ii.
p. 267, &c.

" The bohon-upas is common in the province of
Balembouang. It looks like an elm ; and grow*
to the height of about thirty or forty feet. The
leaves are alternate, oval, and rough to the
touch. The flowers are dioecial and axillary.
The male, formed of a round receptacle, sprin-
kled with stamina, resembles that of a doorstania:
the female has two pistils. The fruit is round,
and contains a kernel. On breaking a branch
of the tree, a milky juice runs from it, and im-
mediately condenses itself: it is the famous poi-
son,- . Mixed with the blood, it kills almost in-
stantaneously. The Javans eat the animal*
killed by means of this poison, without feeling
any ill effects from it.

" The fiction which has gone abroad of the very,
atmosphere of the tree being mortal, is unfounded,
as I have myself cut branches from it ; but ori-
ginates in the following circumstance :

" The sovereigns of Java, who are much em-

ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA. $2%

barrasscd by the great number of brothers which
the custom of polygamy produces, get rid of
them/ by banishing them, with other state -cri-
minals, to very marshy and unhealthy islands*
situate on the southern coast of the great island.
As the greater part of these exiles perish there,
the people have the idea that they are killed by
the exhalations of the bohon-upas."— Sowiw.

Memoir on the Strjchnos-tieute, Antiaris-toxicarid)
and Andira Harsfieldii, of the Island of Java.
By M. Leschenault, Naturalist travelling at the
Expense of Government. — Taken from Annalei
du Miisium SHistoire Naturelle 9 Cap. XL XIL
p. 457, &c. in which are engravings of the three
plants. — Editor.

In the equatof ial regions, the juices of plants*
incessantly at work, from the effect of continual
vegetation, have a degree of intensity far beyond
that in temperate countries ; plants, whether sa-
lutary or the reverse, have greater power. This
fact is proved by the great number of valuable
products which the arts and physic are obliged
to procure from hot climates, at a heavy ex*
pense. If some of these products can be sub*
atituted by analogous plants in our own climate*
they are very inferior in quality and in efficacy.

There undoubtedly are no plants more
noxious than those which supply the inhabitants
of the place where they grow with the poison
which they put on to the points of their arrows :
these poisons are secreted under different forms
in vegetables, whence they are extracted by va-
rious means. Man, always ready to lay hold on
whatever can add to bis strength, seems every

x 2

324 bM THE ISLAND OF JAVA*

where to have discovered this fatal secret of
nature; and to have added thereto, to his utmost,
either by a mixture to increase the activity of
these poisons, or by his mode of making use of
them.
, The use of poisoned arrows is of remote an-
tiquity : the Gauls employed them, but merely
in hunting; the Scythians and Brachmans as*
sailed the Macedonians with poisoned arrows*
It is prevalent in the hot countries of both hemi-
spheres,; but, European travellers, either misled
by the natives, who seem, universally, to make
a secret, to foreigners, of these dreadful prepa-
rations, or not having made the necessary re*
searches, have hitherto given but very vague and
indefinite accounts of the effects of these poisons,
and of the plants which produce them. The
lavages of Surinam are known to poison their
arrows with the juice of a large tree, but the
species of tree is not known ; the ahouaiguacu,
piane or curara, and the woorara, which grows on
the banks of the Amazons River, are plants
which the natives of America use for poisoning
their weapons, but we have no description of
fiiese plants. Salt, sea-water, or sugar, taken
in a great quantity, are .said to oppose their ac-
tion. M. de la Condamine, in the account of
his voyage, gives some detail of the poison pre-
pared from the Ticunas : he says, that more than
thirty species of herbs or roots, and particu-
larly certain creeping plants, are in the compo-
sition which is in common use in the Amazons
River; but he describes none of the vegetables of
which it is composed. According to his account
there is no danger in eating the game killed with
Arrows dipped io this poispn j the natives assured

ON THE ISLAND OP JAVA. • 325

him that sugar was a certain antidote to it. M.
de la Condamine procured several of these poi-
soned arrows, and, above a year afterwards, made
experiments with them at Cayenne. Animals'
struck with these arrows died in terrible convul-
sions; a fowl pierced, but instantly made to
swallow sugar, survived : other experiments were
afterwards made by him at Ley den, where the
sugar given to the wounded animals succeeded
but indifferently ; a hen which swallowed a con-
siderable quantity seemed merely to live some-
what longer than the rest.

The celebrated travellers, Baron Humbolt
and Bom pi and, have, however, ascertained the
mode of preparing the poison used on the Ama-
zons River, and the creeper curara which sup-
plies it: they happened neither to find it in
blossom nor in fruit ; but Messrs. de Jussieu and
Wildeqow, after examining its branches, are of
opinion that it belongs to the genus coriana.
Subjoined is an extract of a letter from M. Hum*
bolt, on the poisons of South America, and a
Dote, communicated by M. Bosc, on the plant
which the North American savages use for poi-
soning their arrows :

" On the Oroonoko, from the cataracts of
Atures to the sources of the river (east Of Mount
Duida), the natives distinguish two vegetable
poisons by the names of curara of roots, and
curara of the stem, of a creeper. The Indians
who inhabit the village Mandavaca, situate on
the banks of the Casiquare and Esmeralda, are
famous for preparing these poisons, which are *
equally in use in war and in the chase: they form
a very considerable branch of trade. Half a pound
of curara, preserved in the fruit of the crescent ia,

3*6 ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

costs the missionaries of St. Francis from six to
seven francs, about the price of eight to ten days
labour. Thousands of Indians make daily use
of arrows poisoned with the curara, without
knowing the plant whence it is derived : its pre-
paration is the secret and monopoly of some old
men, termed Masters of Poison. In crossing
from Riotemi to Punich, in the forests of Javita,
while our canoe was got over the carrying-place
of Rio Negro, our guide was an Indian, who
was acquainted with the creeper, the root and
stem of which supplied the raiz curara. The
name of this creeper is mavacura : it has the ap-
pearance of a phyllanlhus, but the leaves are
contrary, oval, pointed at the top, and have
three cavities.

" In going up the Casiquare, the arm of the
Oroonoko which connects that river with the
Guiania, or Rio Negro,, we undertook the dan-
gerous course of the Esmeralda, for the sake of
seeing the poison prepared. The creeper which
is used comes from the distant mountains of
Guabaya and Jumariquin : it is also called ma-
vacura i but it seemed, both to M. Bompland and
myself, to be a rubiacca, from its stipula and
opposite leaves. From the same place is pro-'
cured the juvia, described by the name of Ber-
thole Uia exceha, in our equinoctial plants, and a
grass or reed, the joints of which are nearly six
metres in length.

" To prepare the curara of Esmeralda, they
scrape the rind and sap of the stems of the ma*
vacura, throw cold water upon it, filter the
infusion, which is yellowish, and concentrate it
by fire* It is absolutely false that blood, poison

OK THE ISLAND OP JAVA. 327

of vipers, and other ingredients, as father Ga-
milk mentions, are mixed with it.

" As the venomous juice is not sufficiently
thickened by the fire, to give consistency to the -
poison, the glutinous juice of the keraca-guero-
tree is put to it : it is this juice principally which
gives the curara the carbonic and olive tint,
which makes it resemble opium. As the manu-
facture does not always succeed equally well,
poisons of very different strength are found on
the Oroonoko. They catch the small monkeys,
which they sell to the white people, by wound-
ing them with arrows, the point of which is
touched with weak curara, and put common salt
into the sore, to prevent the operation of the poi-
son. Throughout the whole district of the Oroo-
noko, the muriate of salt-wort is looked upon as
the most active counter-poison : unhappily salt
is very scarce south of the Cataracts.

" In 1802, when M. Bompland and I were
on the banks of the Amazons River, we were
not so fortunate as to procure Jhe flowers of the
creepers, which yield the famous Ticunas poison,
and that which is made at Mojobamba. We
kept up a correspondence for a year after with
the governor of the province of Jaen de Braca-
xnoros, to obtain from him the blossoms and
fruit ; we only got the latter, and, from their in-
sertion in a common receptacle, we supposed the
plant to belong to the menispermis family.

" Those so experienced in travel as you are,
know the obstacles which impede botanical re-
search : plants, even under the equator, flourish
only in particular seasons. It is fortunate to
procure the leaves or the fruit ; but leaves, fruit,
and blossom together, arq more than can be

328 OH THB ISLAND OF JAVA*

hoped for. You, my friend were more fortu-
nate in the forests of Java: your discoveries
respecting the boa-upas are the more important,
as all naturalists had conspired to confuse the
object so worthy the attention of the literati.

" All the poisons of South America are con*
centrated juices, thickened by evaporation ; the
ebullition makes the poison more active, while it
decomposes the venomous principle of the jatro-
pha manihot. The curara is known in Guiana
as a remedy which strengthens the stomach ; it is
always tasted by a purchaser, being active in
proportion to its bitterness, and acts as poison
only when it comes in contact with the blood.

" Humbolt.
" Paris, 2 a November 1810."

€S The cynanque of Carolina, of which there
is a drawing by Jacquin, termed vincetoxicon
gonocarpos by Walter, and gonolobus macro*
phyllus by Michaux, passes, in the country, for
the plant which the savages use for poisoning
their arrows. For this purpose they mix its juice
with little balls of white clay, which they then
place in cavities made on purpose, somewhat
above the point of the arrow ; this clay, being
moistened by the blood, remains in the wound.
The savages are said to have retained, to this
plant the name which formerly designated its use.
I brought some seeds from America with me, but
they have not grown.** — Bosc.

Bruce gives some details, of the vegetable
poisons with which the natives of southern Africa,
poison their arrows. The plants whence these
poisons are extracted are the Amaryllis disthica,
euphorbia caput Medusae, and a species of rhus.

ON THB ISLAND OP JAVA. 329

A young negro, named Bognam-nonen-derega,
of the Macpas tribe, on the western coast of
Africa, in the service of the celebrated traveller
Michaux, the elder, told me that, in his coun-
try, arrow 8 were poisoned by steeping them in
the juice of a plant combined with the venom of
an animal, which, from his description, I con«-
ceive to be a large species of scolopendra. Tbun-
berg says, that the Hottentots employ a poison
prepared with the juice of a kind of lignum vita*
(sideroxilum toxiferum, denominated by M. De-
Jeuze, in a note on Darwin, cestrum), and the
venom of a serpent, but he enters into no parti-
culars of its preparation or effects.

The famous poison which the Indians of the
archipelago of the Moluccas and the Sunda Isles
make use of, known by the name of ipo and
upas (words which in those islands mean ve-
getable poison),, has excited the curiosity of Eu-
ropeans beyond every other, because the account*
given of it haye been exaggerated, and accom-
panied by the marvellous with which the people of
India like to adorn their narratives. These pa*
pular stories have been collected and confidently
repeated by travellers, in other respects of value,
from .their excellent observation and long la-
bours. In the Epbemerides des Curieux de la
Nature, decurie 2, year 3 (1684), obs. 45 and
54, are the accounts, of Andre Cleycrus and Spcil-
man, of the poison of Macassar, as an antidote
to which they administer human excrement, taken
internally, which acts as an emetic.

The laborious Rumphius calls the tree which
produces the ipo, arbor toxic aria. He repeats
what he was told by the natives, and gives an
incomplete description and print of the tree, from

3J0 ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

a branch and fruit, which were sent to him. I
have reason to think that he was deceived, at
least in the fruit, which certainly does not belong
to the tree which furnishes the poison. Thun-
berg and Acymelceus, according to the Dutch
travellers above cited, have written a dissertation
on the ipo of Macassar. The inestimable trans*
lator of Darwin, M. Deleuze, gives a n extract
from the dissertation, in a note, with a caution
against believing the circumstances which it con*
tains. The whole of these travellers have
merely repeated what they were told : they may
be accused of too great credulity, but not of wilful
misrepresentation. It is not so with one Foercb,
a Dutch physician, who has endeavoured to mis*
lead Europe with a degree of impudence scarcely
to be belteved or forgiven. After having made
a collection of the most absurd stories, to which
he has added his own inventions, he, on his re-
turn to Europe, gave, as an eye-witness, a nar-
rative *, accompanied by all those minute and
circumstantial details, which are generally the
seal of truth, and which prevent a man being
accused of falsehood, unless he is held in tho
most profound contempt. This ridiculous fable
has been long properly appreciated, and h$s
been satisfactorily refuted by M. Charles Coque-
bert in the Bulletin des Sciences de la Society
Fhilomatique. The naturalists and literati of
^Europe, without having any faith in these fables,
wished to know the precise nature of these poisons.
Inquiry was made at Java, but it was productive
of little satisfaction, owing to the secrecy observed

by the natives. They gave the lie to toe fictfona

* Stc gage 3 1 i,-*»£<ft«r«

OUt THE ISLAND OF JAVA. 33Z

which had been spread abroad, but they did not
ascertain the fact as to what really was in exist*
ence.

While- Labillardiete was at Java he never
heard mention of it. Lord Macartney, on his
way to Batavia, made some inquiries, the result
of which went to treat, as fabulous, the account*
brought to Europe, but gave no further satis-
faction ; the same answer was also given to the
directors of the Dutch India, Company, who
wrote to' India for information*

When I set out upon a voyage of discovery to
the southern hemisphere, the respectable and
learned M. de Jussieu recommended me, in
the event of my landing at Java, to make every
possible inquiry on the subject. I was very de-
sirous to resolve the question, to which fortunate
chance and some perseverance of research, have
now enabled us to speak with certainty.

I procured not only the two species of poisons,
or upas, which are collected and prepared at
' Java, but also those of the islands of Borneo an4
Macassar : I brought to Europe a great quantity
of them, with which JVL Deli lie, physician and
botanist to the Egyptian expedition, and M.
Magendie, have made an infinity of interesting
experiments, which show the activity and mode
of action of these poisons on the animal economy.
These experiments, managed with equal skill and
care, have been the subject of two memoirs react
at the Institute, and of a dissertation delivered
before the Faculty of Medicine at Paris, by M«
Delille.

I shall now give the history of these poisons,
how they are prepared, and a description of (1)0
plants they are extracted frqm.

332 ON THE ISLAND OP JATA.

I procured the poison, which, in the island
of Borneo, is called ipo, at Sumanap in the isle
of Madura. A boat coming from that coun-
try, had on board one of those men who in-'
habit the interior of the mountains, and are de-
nominated orang-daias ; they are easily recog-
nised by their arms, which are tatowed with a
blue substance which I suppose to be indigo.
They are the only people of the island who arc
in possession of the secret of the plants which
furnish the ipo, and who know how to prepare
it; they keep it carefully rolled up in palm-
leaves. The orang-daias, to check curiosity, or
lor some other reasons, talk much of the danger
attendant on collecting the ipo ; he whom I saw .
had a kind of pointed tube like a pea-shooter, and
a small quiver full of poisoned arrows ; they are
the weapons most in use among the islanders
both in hunting and in war : I bought them of
him as well as three rolls of ipo, on the gathering
and preparing of which, not a word which he
said was reasonable. The only positive fact I
got from him, and which I afterwards verified,
was, that the poison was prepared from very
l&rge creepers.

The orang-daias make their arrows with bits
of slit bamboo; they are very thin, and about
eight inches long ; at the upper end is a bit of

1>ifh very like that of the elder- tree, which servesi
o force the arrow from the tube by the breath,
as from a pea-shooter. The arrows, used in the
chase, are headed with sharp iron, and coated with
ipo ; those intended for war have a small shark's
tobtb or copper blade, which, slightly inserted it\
the shaft of the arrow, is only fastened bv the
resinous gum of the ipo; the warmth, ot th$

ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA. 33 J

blood dissolving it instantly, the point remains
fixed in the wound, after the arrow is withdrawn ;
and the great quantity of poison it is plastered
with, mixes in the blood, and causes speedy
death. I made many experiments with small
arrows coated with this ipo, on fowls, and on a
dog : the fowls died in one, two, and three mi-
nutes, according as I suffered the poison to dis-
solve in the wounds ; the dog died in eight mi*
nutes ; I struck the arrow into the fore past of the
thigh, about half an inch, and let it remain in
till he died. All the animals died in violent
tetanous convulsions, which threw them back-
wards, and were intermittent.

The orangdaia showed me how to soften the
ipo and lay it on to the arrows. He took the
root of a species of menispermis, by the Malays
called touba; from which he expressed the juice,
and mixed it with the ipo; lie then put some of
this root into a pot, over the fire, with that of
the dioscorea triphylla, in Malay, gadon; he
added a small quantity of water; shut the pot
with a lid, in the upper part of which he made a
little hole for the steam to pass through, and,
with the steam, he softened the ipo, and spread it
on the arrows ; he said that this was the method of
his country, and that it revived, and gave a new
strength to the poison.

The poison of Macassar, also called ipo, was
given to me by M. Carrega, captain of a ship in
the Dutch service, on his return from a voyage
to that country. He learnt that it was a resinous
gum from a large tree, mixed with the juice of
the root of the amomum zerumbet, by the Malays
termed lampouiang ; be gave me no more parti-

£34 °* TRB ISLAND OP JAVA.

tulars, but I found that it was the same as 'One of
those of Java of which I shall now treat.

There are two kinds, known by the name of
, upas, which the inhabitants, principally of the
eastern part, lay on small bamboo arrows, which
they blow through tubes and employ in the
chase ; they also mix the upas with rice or fruit ;
with this mixture they make a bait which soon
destroys the animals which take it ; the flesh of
the animals so killed, or of those wounded with
the poisoned arrows, retains no noxious quality ;
it is only requisite to cut out the parts,
in immediate contact with the poison. The
plants which produce them will only grow in the
province of Bagnia-vaugni ; one of these poisons
is the upas antiar ; the other, upas tieute ; the
latter is the strongest and least known, because it
appears that the natives, even amongst themselves,
make a secret of the preparation, which is much
more complicated than that of the upas* antiar.

During the first part of my stay at Java, my
researches were useless ; at Batavia and Samaranj
I learnt absolutely nothing; J was only tol<
some absurd stories not worthy repetition, nearly
similar to those which Foerch relates. At Soura-
carta, the residence of the Sousounan, of emperor
of Java, I was told that the upas existed in the
province of Bagnia-vaugni, which I visited
towards the end of July 1805. It was a Javan
whom 1 took into my service, and who killed me
some birds with arrows tipped with the upas
antiar, who pointed out to me . the tree which
yields the poison, and taught me the pre*
paration by making it in my presence. Ob-
serving that I attached some value to the
knowledge, he told me, that there were, in the

OH THE ISLAND OF JAVA*

mountains, some men who knew of another
species of upas which was still more violent )
that, for his own part, he was ignorant respect-
ing it, except that he was told it was fetched a
long way off, and from places very difficult and
dangerous of access. I immediately desired him
to bring me one of the men, to whom I gave
some money, with a promise of more if he would
jive roe information. He told me that, in fact,
le had some of the poison, but that the man
who gave it to him had died long since, without
telling him whence he got it ; at the same time
he offered to sell me some* I told him, that I
did not want the upas, but only to discover the.
place it came from, and the plants which sup-
plied it; that if he could and would have in-
formed me, I should have given him the sum he
asked, at the same time showing some piastres,
which excited his cupidity. He then confessed
that it was extracted from a creeper named tieute,
which grows in the circumjacent woods, and was
prepared from the rind of the root ; that those
who were in possession of the secret never madq
the preparation without concealing themselves in
the depth of the woods. He then conducted me
about ^league and a half from the Dutch fort,
into a place where 1 saw several of these creepers*
They had neither flower nor fruit. I took many
specimens of the plant, while the Javan unco-*
vered and took up great pieces of the root*
When I got home, he grated it carefully, paying
great attention not to mix bits of wood with the
rind, which he kept together, and part of which
he put into a copper pot of water; when the
rind had boiled some tipie, he poured off the de-
coction, and added a further portion of rind]

$$6 ON THE ISLAND OP JAVA.

this he repeated three times, when he suffered
the extract to reduce itself to the consistency of
treacle : when the preparation was on the point
of being completed, he threw into it two onions,
a clove of garlick, a good pinch of pepper, two
pieces of the roo* of the Kasmpheria galenga,
which the Malays call konkior ; three small bits
of ginger, in Malay djiaha, and a single grain of
capsicum fructicosum, or pimento. This mix-
ture being made, he left it a very short time on
the fire ; he cleaned it, turning his head away, to
avoid inhaling the steam of the kettle: about
three pounds of rind gave nearly four ounces of
extract.

' I instantly laid some on two pieces of bam-
boo, and, by the Javan's advice, let them
dry before I used them : I then pricked a middling*
sized fowl in the belly; it died in violent convul-
sions in the space of about a minute: another
full- grown strong fowl died in the same wa£ in
two minutes, from a wound at the bottom of the
leg; a very strong wild cock, pierced in the
thigh with a small arrow; touched with this upas,
after it had been exposed to the air for three days,
died in four minutes ; two dogs, s1ightl)uprif ked
in the buttock with the same arrows, died in
half an hour. I only particularize these expe-
riments, which are uninteresting after those made
by Messrs. Delille and Mage n die with the same
substance, to show that this poison lost nothing
of its strength at the end of four years, the re-
sult£t>f the experiments, in both cases, being
nearly similar.

The repeated experiments, so carefully made
by Delille and Magendie, which leave nothing
to be sought for as to alt the organs of the ani-
mal economy, show that the poison acts " by the

0* Tfof IsiAKD' 0^ JAVA, 337

way of the absorbent and sanguiferous vessels, on '
the marrow of the spine/' and, by its irritation,
causes tetanus, asphyxia, and death.

The upas . antiar is prepared from the re-
sinous gum which issues from a very large tree,
from notches made in the trunk. This poison is s
prepared cold in an earthen vessel ; with the
resinous gum are mixed grains of the capsicum
fructicOsum, pepper, garlick, roots of the Kaem-

{)heria galenga, maranta Malaccensis, by the Md-
ays called bang] a, and those of the costus Ara-
bfcus, named koutjia : each of these substances'
is pounded and mixed slowly, except the corns '
of the capsicum fructicosum, which are rapidly '
thrown, one by one, to the bottom of the vessel,
by means of a small wooden peg; each grain oc-
casions a slight fermentation, and rises to the
surface, whence it is taken and another thrown '
in, to the number often ; the preparation is then
finished.

The effect of the upas antiar on the animal
economy is less immediate than that of the upas
tieute, and its operation is different. A small
water-hen, which I pricked in the thigh, with an
arrow, recently prepared, died in three minutes ;
at the moment of its death it had a strong con-
vulsion, and at the same time threw up the food'
which was in its stomach. An azurin, in Ma-
lay ponglor, a bird as large as a thrush, also'
,y\pricked in the thigh, died in the same space of
time, and with the same symptoms. The upas 1
afetiar occasioned every animal which was'
wounded strong evacuations both ways, gene-
rally frothy and tinged with green. M. Delille,
to whom I sent a considerable quantity of this 1

338 ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

poison, made a variety of experiments,, the re*
suits o r which were pretty nearly the same.
4 From these various observations it may be in-
ferred, that the upas antiar acts first as a purga-
tive and emetic ; it then presses on the brain,
the functions of which it disturbs, and causes,
death, accompanied by tetanic convulsions. The
ipo of Macassar acts in the same way; and, from
the accounts given to M. Carrega, proceeds from
a large tree, and is obtained by incision. This
similarity of circumstances, and of climate, affords
a reasonable supposition that it is the same as tbe
upas antiar. The same reasoning applies to tbe
ipo of Borneo, which is the juice of great creepers,
and acts in the same way as the upas ticute,
which it also resembles in its excessively
bitter taste ; I therefore think that this substance
is the same, but the preparation is different.
At Java this prepared poison resembles thick and
very brown treacle, which is kept in small bam-
boo tubes, similar to what I brought. That of
Borneo, on the contrary, is concrete, and is kept
in palm-leaves; to give it this dry consistency,
it seems to be mixed and beaten up vyith a kind
of earth. I dissolved some ipo of Borneo in
water: a sediment took place of a brown and
britile substance, which, after being washed in
a great deal of water, and dried, retained little
of its bitterness.

The arrows of the Javans differ from those of
the inhabitants of Borneo. The head, instead
of terminating with sharp iron, is shaped like a
very fine long awl, so that it is very brittle, and
remains fixed in the wound; and, as M. Delille
has well observed, the smaller the wound the
greater the danger ; when the aperture is large

ON THB ISLAND OP JAVA. £39

ft frequently occasions a considerable hemorrhage,
and the blood, which flows abundantly, carries
with it the poison, as fast as it dissolves, and
weakens, or even destroys, its effect.

The Javans say that the remedy for this poison
is sea-salt, taken in large quantities. From my
own and M. Delille's experiments it appears
that this remedy is of very little or no efficacy,
and seems to me only to torment, without giving
relief to the victim.

I have observed, and M. Delille confirms
the observation, that the liquid poison, intro-
duced into a wound, is less violent than when it
has dried on the instrument which gives the
wound. It appears that, in a fluid state, it mixes
with the blood, and runs out with what escapes ;
which is not so in the other case, where absorp-
tion takes place, in proportion as the poison dis-
solves. In the serous cavities and digestive
channels the absorption goes on very well, al-
though the upas be extended by much water, or
mixed, as a liquid, with the aliments.

The antiar is a monoecias tree, of a new species,
which I shall call arUians toxkaria ; it is very
large. I have always found it in fertile places,
and, owing to such fertility, surrounded by a
great number of vegetables, to which its proxi-
mity is in no respect detrimental. Its trunk is
straight, with protuberances at its base, like those
of the common canarium. Its rind is whitish
and smooth; the wood white :- the leaves fall be-
fore it flowers, and do not put forth again till
after the fall of the male flowers, when the buds
are impregnated ; they are oval, coriaceous, ge-
nerally curled ; of a pale green colour, dry con-
sistency, unpleasant to the touch, covered with

y %

340 OM THR ISLAND- 0% ^V^ r

abort rough hair. The leaves of very yop&gt
antiajra are. different from those of the, f^grouy^
plant; they are about six inches, long, alqwsfc.
sessiles, shaped something, lik$ a spatula, a ; littje~
indented at the edges, and not so rougb as. those
of the old trees. The juice of, this tree is v<xy {
viscous and bitter ; that which comes from th<$,
young branches is white, and from the truest
yellowish ; it flows plentifully on a, notch being,
cut in the bark.

The emanations from this juice, like.thqse
which come from the sumacs and eijphorbias, of r
from the mancenillier of America, are .dangerous*
particularly to those the texture of whos^.skjn,
ox whose constitutions are more disposal to ab~,
sprb these emanations ; while others arc not, ; at
all affected by them, as the following, circum-
stance proves.

The tree which furnished me with the speci-
mens of the plant and upas which I brought
home, was above a hundred feet high, and the ;
base of its trunk about eighteen feet in cireuiq r
ference. A Javan, whom I employed to get
lae some branches of the tree in flower, was*,
obliged to climb up and cut them. He had
scarcely climbed twenty-five feet when he found .
himself so indisposed that he was forced to come ,
dowi). He swelled, and was ill several days,
experiencing vertigo, nausea, and vomiting;
\yhile another Javan, who went to the very top,
, #nd brought me exactly what I desired, w^s not
in the least incommoded. Having afterwards...
felled one of the trees, which w^s four feet
round, I walked in the midst of the broken
branches, had my bands and face besmeared all
pvej: with the gum which issued from it, and felt

O* THE ISLAND OP JATA. t^fl

•

too inconvenience : it is true, I took the preaautfyn
'of washing myself immediately. The approach
to the antiar is, in no resjiect, noxious to ani-
marts; I hare seen lizards and insects oh its
trunk, and birds perching on its boughs.

The antiar 9 belongs to the nettle family, arid
•nbarly approximates to the brosimum.

The tieutcf" is a new species; it is a very
large creeper, which I found in fertile places.
'Like the antiar, it is noxious neither to animals
-nor to vegetables ; it reaches to the tops of the
highest trees. No juice runs from its stem. Its
root strikes about two feet into the earth, and
then extends several fathoms horizontally ; the
toot is as thick as a man's arm, ligneous, and
covered with a fine reddish brown rind, bitter
to the palate. This bark furnishes the gum
with which the upas is prepared; it does not
ran from it, but is obtained solely by ebulli-
tion* When the foot is cut fresh, it emits a
great quantity of tasteless innoxious water. The
wood is of i yellQWish white, moderately hard,
of a spungy appearance : its smell is not strong,
bat rather nauseous ; the bark of the stem is

* Atitiara toxiearia: arbor nionoica.

Flerts mascuii, axillaris, ptarcs, super receptactohim com*
mune impositi: receptaculum piieiforme, kmge*peduncularum,
coarejrom, irregular^ subtus squamuiatum squumulis imbri*
cttismia, supra squamosum squamis recti*, aotheras substssilei
duo-locularesv dfetmguentibus ct apice curvo obtegentibiis.

Fktfes femiriei solitarii axillarcs subsessiles; squamuiae de-
cern -rel duodecim imbricatim circum positas, appressat calK
cem suppleotes ; germen unum ; superium styli duo longi, di-
virteati) stigmata dik> acuta ; semen unum, calice persi&rente,
dnspaceo tectum; driip* prunifbrmis, obliqua, vestigia squa-
tnriarora evanida.

•f Strjrdmos tteutet inermb; caule sarmentbso excelso;
foUis eiltpticis, apicibus acutb; cyrrhis simplicibus iociassatis.

Y 3

£4* <>* THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

Tcdditti, that of the young sprouts green and
smooth ; the axillary branches are slender and
very divergent ; the leaves are opposite on a short
petal ; they have three cavities, of which the two
lateral ones do not extend quite to the top, are
elliptical and sharp, full, smooth, and of a deep
green ; the very young leaves are reddish ; the
young boughs have tendrils in shape like fish-
hooks ; these tendrils are few, opposite to the
leaves, inflated towards the top, with a very little
stipula at the base, which is perhaps merely the
remnant of the leaf, of which this assumes the
place.

Although M. Delille, who has made endless
experiments on many kinds of vegetable and
mineral poisons, has told me that he found none
so violent as those extracted from the two plants,
the subject of this memoir, the natives, and from
them travellers, have gratified themselves with
exaggerating their activity * ; but I think I can
now assert that the different substances known
in the Moluccas and Sunda islands, by the names
of ipo and upas, and perhaps too the poison
used by the Philippine *f» islanders, all refer to

* The Javans who live where the upas is collected, cannot
impose respecting its powers ; but at Bragnia-vangni they say,
that the antiars formerly yielded a more active poison than
they do now, and that there still is at Bali a king or gousti, in
whose states is an antiar, the upas of which is so violent, that
death is the consequence of respiring its emanations. I got a
letter written to this petty king f who is also king of Karan-
assam, to procure me this pretended poison ; but my request was
ineffectual.

f According to M. de Sainte-Croix, the inhabitants of the
peninsula of Camarines in the isle of Lucon employ a very
active poison, which the uncivilized Indians supply the Spanish
alcaides with, for the defence of the coasts against pirates. M.

0*1 THE ISLAND OF JAVA. 343

those extracted from the strychnos tieute and
antiaris toxicaria, and that the only difference
consists in the mode of preparing it, which can
in no instance augment their malignity to the
pitch of producing the phenomenon, which*
some travellers pretend. I moreover am of opi-
nion that the greater part of the preparations,
which are adopted and transmitted by prejudice,
are of no effect ; the substances made use of for
that purpose in Java, all pungent and aromatic,
have never been supposed hurtful, and the unpre-
pared upas, with which I have made some expe-
riments, seemed no less violent than the other.

After having described the two plants sup-
posed to be the most noxious in Java, I shall
mention one, which, among the inhabitants, has
a contrary reputation.

This plant is a new species -of the andira.
It is very rare, and is found in the Tingar moun-
tains in the district of Passourouang. The na-
tives term it prono-djivo, which signifies giving
strength to the soul. The Javans look upon the
fruit of this plant, reduced to powder and
mixed with food, as a preventive against
a multitude of diseases, giving power to the sto-
mach and arresting the effect of poisons. They
also use it as a specific against the bite of venom-
ous beasts; in this case they mix it with lemon-
juice, and apply it to the wound. The berries
are bitter. I named this plant Harsfieldii, from
Mr. Harsfield, an American physician and bota-
nist, who is principally engaged, at Java, in in-

^ — — ■ - — — - - — — ■ — r J 1 1 -i 1—— - ~

de Sainte- Croix has not seen tiie plants which yield a
poison killing with violent convulsions 5- he told me that the
inhabitants keep the preparation secret.

* 4

344 PN Tift ISLAND OF JAVA.

vestigating the vegetable productions of that
island which ipay be of service in the medical
art, iji the number of which, according to the
natives, this holds the first rank.
• Each fruit of theandira Harsfieldii * commpnly
sells in the country for about two pence half-
penny to five pence, a large sum for the Javans;
and which is c proof of their confidence in its
virtue,

" | Experiments with the UfQS Ant tar £, by 2JL C.
Brodie, Esq, F. R. S. — Read at the Royal So-
ciety, 2 1 st February 1 8 1 1 ."

•' Experiment 21. — About two grains of this
poison were made into a thin paste of water, and
inserted into a wound in the thigh of a dog.
Twelve minutes afterwards he became languid ;
at the end of fifteen minutes, the heart was found
to beat very irregularly and with frequent inter-
missions ; after this he had 3 slight rigor. At
the end of twenty minutes, the heart beat very
feebly and irregularly ; he was languid \ was sick,
and vomited ; but the respirations were as fre-
quent and as full as under natural circumstances,
and he was perfectly sensible. At the end of

* Antfira Harsfieldii: flores papilKooacei; caKx urceobtus,
bast gibbosus, limbus quinque-dentatus subaequalit; vexillum.
arctum alis, aequale; carina duo petala; stamina decern diadel*
pha \ stamen superum libenim ; anthers parvse ; germen
oblongum stipitatum ; stylus unicus brae vis; legumen siccutn,
non dehiscens olivse-forme nitidum violaceum ; unum-sper-
mum semen, membranulft, vestitum.

f Philosophical Transactions, Part I. 1811.— -Editor.

X We are informed, that the island of Java produces two*
powerful vegetable poisons, to one of which the natives give
the name of upas tieute, and to the other that of upas antiar.
I was supplied with a quantity of the latter through the kind*
oess of Mr. Marsden, who had some of it in his possession.

ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA. 345

twenty minutes he suddenly fell on one side, and
was apparently dead. 1 immediately opened
into the thorax, and found the heart distended,
with blood in a very remarkable degree, and to
have entirely ceased contracting. There was
one distinct and full inspiration after I had bqgun
making the incision into tj*e thorax. The ca-
vities of the left side of the heart contained
scarlet blood ; and those of the right side contain*
ed dark-coloured blood, as in the living animal."
" Exp. 22. — A small quantity of upas antiar,
prepared as before, was inserted into a wound in
the thigh of a young cat. She appeared languid
.in two minutes after the poison was inserted.
The symptoms which took place did not essen-
tially differ from those which occurred in the
last experiment, except that there were some
convulsive motions of the limbs."

" At eight minutes after the poison was in-
serted she lay on one side, motionless and insen-
sible ; the heart could not be felt ; but the re-
spiration had not entirely ceased. On opening
into the thorax, I found the heart to have ceased
contracting. . It was much distended with blood,
and the blood of thp left cavities was of a scarlet
colour. There were two full inspirations after
the .incision of the thorax was begun. On irri-
tating the heart with the point of the scalpel,
slight contractions took place in the fibres of
the appendices of the auricles, but none in any

OtherMrt."

" Exp. 23 .-—The experiment was repeated -on
aTabbit. The symptpms produced were similar
to those in the last experiment ; but the animal
did not vomit, and the convulsive motions were
in a less degree: he died eleven minutes after the

34^ ON THE ISLAND OP JAVA*

£oison was inserted. On opening the chest, the
eart was found to have entirely ceased contract-
ing : it was much distended with blood, and the
blood in the cavities of the left side was of a
scarlet colour. On irritating the heart with the
point of the scalpel, the ventricles contracted,
but not sufficiently to restore the circulation.*

" Exp. 24. — About agrain of the upas ^ntiar
was inserted into a wound in the side of a rabbit.
He was affected with symptoms similar to those
before described, and died in ten minutes after
the poison was applied. On opening the thorax,
immediately after death, the heart was found to
have ceased contracting, and the blood in the
cavities in the left side was of a scarlet colour.*'
" Exp. 25, — It appears from these experiments
that liic upas antiar, when inserted into a wound,
produces death (as infusion of tobacco does
w hen injected into the intestine), by rendering
the heart insensible to the stimulus of the blood,
and stopping its circulation. The heart beats
feebly and regularly before either the functions
of the mind or the respiration appear to be af-
fected. Respiration is performed even after the
circulation has ceased ; and the left side of the
heart i6 found, after death, to contain scarlet
blood, which never can be the case where the
cause of death is the cessation of the functions
of the brain or lungs. The convulsions which
occur when the circulation has nearly ceased,
probably arise from the diminution of the supply
of blood to the brain, resembling those which
take place in a person who is dying with haemor-
rhage,"

<m THB ISLAND OP JAVA. 347

CHAPTER V.

Assassination of the King of Bantam. — Coronation
of his Successor. — Sketch of the Kmgdom.<—Vivws
of the Dutch on the Lampons Country. — Factories
of the Islands of Borneo, Timor, and Bymon+

On the night of the 18th or 19th of Match
1804, the king of Bantam was murdered in his
bed by one of his grand-nephews, a young prince,
son of him confined in Mcster-Cornelis fort.
This prince, to carry his intention into effect,
disguised himself as a female, that he . might
obtain admission into his uncle's seraglio, and
get to his bed-room. He concealed himself under
the bed, and waited the return of the king, wh<>
was gone to dine on board the ship of the Dutctt
admiral Hartzing, whose division was moored in
the road.

This event was said to be the result of a popu-
lar conspiracy against the king, who was pre*
tended not to be the legitimate sovereign, being
only brother to the king last deceased* . as has
been already stated*

The murderer, instead -of saving himself, or
running to attatk whoever was near him or in
his way, as the MUJays generally do in their

34* OV THB tS&AKD OF JAVA.

rage, confessed his guilt, and delivered himself
to the Dutch resident, saying, that he had just
revenged the injustice dene to his father, the
legitimate sovereign of the country, who was
their prisoner.

Agreeably to the law of retaliation, frhich
prevails, amoRg the India rte of this part of Asia,
the assassin -was immediately put to death in the
same way which he had himself adopted ; and
the 'high agency held an extraordinary sitting to
proceed to the appointment of a successor.

M.£yseldy<&, counsellor of India, and then
director-general, was fixed on by k tbe high re-
gency to dec* and crown 'the new king in the
Company- s name. He set off on the 27th erf
March for Bantam, in "a ship armed on purpose,
accompanied by four of the first merchants as
commissioner. He had 4lso a guard of honour,
consisting of a lieutenant, sergeant, two tofpo-
nls, eighteen grenadiers of the 12th 'battalion,
and as many Dutch : this guard was commanded
by IkutenanUsolenel, then major, liegrevfese.
The counsellor, on bis arrival at Bantam, as-
•ettbled all the princes* patys, and ttandores,
before tbe people ; * addressed them on the tldtfcs
they had to fulfil towards their sovereign, ttffl
announced Are prince -whom the high regtbey
had appelated to rule over them. A hwgfc pair
pf teak* was srt «p before tbe palace gate;

ON THE 1S4AHD OP» J^VAtt $4£

young gjrls brought fruit, flowers, and every:
kind of herb which the country produce* in>
baskets; placing them in one scale* The ap*>
pointed prince being placed in the opposite acate,
and having weighed down all these productions,
which were to represent those of the earth, he
was. acknowledged and proclaimed king: ther
counsellor at the same time placing the crown>
upon his head and embracing him ; &UL the',
priqees, his brothers, and even his father; pro*
«trated themselves at his feet; to evince their re- >
apect for him. The king, then promised to be a»
faithful ally to the Copipany, and ratified the*
engagements* of i his ; predecessor, relative to^.
sUtaueeof wbatrraen might -be needful in case of)
war, and to the delivery of all the production* ofi
his territory, at the price and; on the conditions*
which were eiUblisbedof old.

The ceremony'took place under a dischargsofj
the palace and fort guns, . and waft (terminated by;
feasting, which continued: fifteen days. J>ptingj
this time the king was . iosttUcd/. and examined'
into the situation of hia kingdom. The*: neir king*
made every one a present of money,; hom thai
counsellor down to the private spldier: this pit*,
sent was taken from.' the treasury.

These ceremonies of Bantam always prorpfatadi
to those who are. sent .upon > them,,. for*be *ir'iai
3tHl more pestilential there than at Batavia ; al|

350 ON THB ISLAND OF JAVA.

the grenadiers and European subalterns died
either during their stay, or after their return;
only two or three of the French and officers were
saved. The secretary Schniith likewise fell a
victim to it. M. Eyseidyck, his wife who had
followed him, and major Legrevisse, together
with the four merchants, all experienced putrid
disorders, which brought them almost to the
grave.

The kingdom of Bantam was formerly the
greatest, and its sovereigns the most powerful,
of the whole island of Java ; but it has been
much reduced since the Dutch have interrupted
its communication with the other parts of Java,
By taking possession of the kingdom of Jacatra.
It includes, notwithstanding, a great extent of
territory, from the river Tangarang, two leagues
from Batavia, and which serves as its boundary,
to the western extremity of the island. It6 po-
pulation is considerable, and is much increased
by the Maduran deserters, slaves, Chinese bank-
rupts, and even murderers, who take refuge
% there ; for, besides its proximity, they are at-
tracted thither by the certainty of finding an
asylum, because, the natives not being subjects
of the Company, the country is privileged, and
the Dutch police can neither pursue nor arrest
any of those who fly to it, although the sove*»

ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA, 351

reigns are under the dominion of the high re*
gency.

The capital, built wholly of bamboo, is situ-
ated on the sea-shore, near the mouth of a gfeat
river, which empties itself into the bay. The
king resides there in a kind of palace, built, in
the European style, within an old ruinous fort,
with eighty pieces of brass cannon of all sizes,
partly without carriages, and altogether un-
serviceable. .

The Dutch, on the contrary, have, at the side
of it, a fort in a very good state, which com-
mands that of the king as well as the city.
They have a commandant, four artillery officers,
and fifty Europeans, who encamp without the
city on account of its unhealthiness. The king
of Bantam assumes the European costume on
great public days ; he has a scarlet or other co-
loured coat embroidered with gold, with boots,
spurs, a hat, sword, and poniards. On other
occasions he dresses in the Malay manner, but
very rich, and always carries two poniards, .The
natives of his kingdom are generally distin-
guished from those of Java : the former have
their hair loose, with a small cap, or narrow
round hat without a brim; their eyes and fea-
tures also appear more ferocious than those of
the Javans.

35* OlfrTHKv IS&AVD Otf JAYAl

The seraglio contains from three to four hun-
dred women.

Therkiogdom ptodutes an immense quantity
of rice and* pepper, math some small portion of
tin and calin. From Bantam to Batavia, by
ljubdj . is ninety miles.

The Lainpons country in the island of Su-
matra, though larger than the kingdom of
Bantam, is dependent upon it. The king de-
rived much more advantage from it a few years'
611106/ but the Lampons having risen and given
shelter to some pirates, with whom they make'
common cause, his authority is almost at an
end, and the calin-mines are not worked.

The Batavian ^government has ' long had in
serious contemplation » to establish a factory in
the island of Sumatra, which is only separated 1
from that of Java by the Straits of Siinda, and
would open various lucrative branches of com-
merce; its camphor being the best which is
known, and producing large quantities of ben-
zoin, pepper, rice, and calin. Its attention was
therefore directed to Lampons Bay, which is
spaeioua, deep, with good anchorage, and situ-
ated at the entrance of the Straits of Sonda, near
the southern point of the island, almost oppo-
site to Bantam ; but this bay being the resort of
vast numbers of pirates who infest those seasj
they were prevented forming an establishment

OK THS I8&ANO Of JAVA. 353

by the almost otter impossibility of rooting them
out, or rather by the inadequate means employed
to e&ct it. Armid ships were often sent to
burn the Tillages of the pirates ; but being eonr
£ned to this object, they always returned when it
was accomplished. The whole country is en*
ttrely a habitation for Indian vagabonds and
thieves, and is, in a great measure, in a state of
insurrection against its sovereign, the king of
Bantam.

la the last expedition which the high rcgsncy
fittod out agjamst it, M. Brandcls, an able
officer, was sent to fix upon a favourable situa-
tion for a (duty bamcks, and stonelieuses ; but
this, ended, like the former, in burning a few
huts, the Indians sheltering themselves in the
interior; and the officer reported that he could
discover no place suitable for such an establish-
ment, having aeen nothing but impenetrable
marshes the whole length pf the coast, and some
distance up the country.

The Hollanders were not discouraged by the
ill success of these endeavours.

The Batavian governosent, for the better ac-
complishment of its purpose, made it a matter
«of kttarest to Ac king of Bantam, who was after-
/wards assassinated, and who, on coming to his
throne, engaged to supply government with -a
considerable quantity of rice and pepper *t a

354 ON THE ISLAND OP JAVA.

shamefully low price, which, being unable to
deliver to the extent, as he was forced to collect
the greater part from the Lampons, his richest
possession* which their rebellion and the number
of pirates prevented, he felt himself interested ia
supporting the regency. He consequently under*
took to subject and reduce the rebels to obe-
dience at any rate, provided the high regency
would be at the expense of, and furnish him with,
three hundred European troops. His proposal-was
accepted, and the three hundred men were sent,
with major Legrevisse at their head* These troops
-repaired to Bantam, where they remained at the
king's disposal, expecting that every tbiijg was
ready for their embarkation ; hut, in the interval,*
news having been brought to Batavia, by an
American, thai war had actually taken place,
-the government lost np time in recalling the
troops, and the project was again deferred to
a more favourable 'opportunity.

It is very clear, th^t if the Dutch obtained a
respectable footing in the Lampons country,
with a fort, garrisoned by three or four hundred
Europeans, some Maduran companies, and a
resident, they might easily hold a communication
with the sultan of P&limbang ; in like manner
form alliances with the different kings and petty
. princes within the line which bounds the king-
dom of Achem, whose sovereign is the most

ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA. 355

powerful of the whole bland ; destroy, and
ultimately, by degrees, annihilate the English
factory at Bencoolen ; by their alliances effect a
balance of power against Achem, and secure
nearly all the produce of the whole island of
Sumatra, which is very great, both for fertility
and extent*

The 30th May is the anniversary of the con-
quest of Jacatra and founding of Batavia. A salute
of artillery from all the forts and batteries of the
line of defence announces this fete in the morn-
ing. The governor : general and the whole
council repair, in full dress, at seven o'clock, to
the hall of audience in the castle. The edler-
bailli, president of the city magistracy, leaves
them, takes a coat and black cloak, and, at the
head of all the sheriffs, in similar costume,
renews, to the council, their oath of fidelity to the
noble Company, high regency, and the Batavian
Tepublic; after which the governor delivers an
appropriate speech, and they withdraw in the
same order. The edler-bailli then resumes his
seat amidst his colleagues, and a grand council
is held till one o'clock. In the evening the
governor has a party extraordinary at bis house ;
and thus the day concludes.

336 ON THE ISLAKP OP JAVA.

CHAPTER VI.

Valankang. — Balembouang. — Bagnouwangie Bay.
— Indian Prince arid Dutch Commandant.

Palankang is a village a league and a half up
the country* to the right of the mouth of Balem-
bouang Bay. It is intersected by a small river,
whose entrance is opposite to it. Oa the 1 3th
February 1805, general Tombeaod his company
were visited by the Joudo-Nogoro, prime minister
of the country* He came on horseback with his
escort to Palanfcang* where he got into a canoe.
Scarcely had be reached the aid* of the bay when
the Malays did him nomage, by seating them-
selves cro6&*leggtd on the ground behind him*
Hi* business -was to announce the Dutch con*,
ma&dant, who arrived at three o'clock in &
beautiful barge with an awnusg,. on.: which the
Dtiteh pendant was hoisted, They returned in
the same style.

The landing at Balembouang is difficult* and
the coast dangerous, particularly at the north of
the river, where is a sand- bank* The com-
mandant, a German, Baron Wikermann, fiad
formerly been one of the guard of honour to the
emperor of Mataran, when he married a Malay

OK THB ISLAND OF JAVA, 357

lady, and on this, the eldest son** birth-day,
he gave a great entertainment.

Extending at the bottom of a grand saloon, was
a transparent curtain, for a Malay comedy, which
opened with noisy music, disgusting to the ears of
an European. The musicians all sate cross-legged ;
a dozen of them beat gomgoms, a kind of cop-
per, and very sonorous, cymbals, of different
sizes for variety . in sound. The director of the
band played the principal instrument m use
among the Indians; it is a two-stringed fiddle,
the handle abbut a foot and a half long, and flat.
The body is made of a very large, scarce, and
dear cocoa-nut, which the Malay princes pro-
cure at an exorbitant price. This species is
only found in the islands of Madura and Baly.
-The nut is fastened to the handle, almost at the
end ; the fiddle-stick is a bent rotang, and the
strings of horse-hair. The instrument is placed
perpendicularly on the ground, like a violoncello,
and the sound is not unlike what is produced
from that instrument when the bow is drawn
over the strings behind the bridge. The musician
sometimes stops to sing, which he does most
wretchedly, and always in one tone.

The music played during breakfast, which
consisted of tea, coffee, and fruit ; the ladies .
afterwards withdrew to the saloon, where the
music was, and, seating themselves on one side

z 3

358 Oil THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

on great mats spread on the ground! began play-
ing cards.

At noon dinner was served, and as the company
were of three very different nations, it was in the
European, Chinese, and Malay style, so that each
might choose. Toasts were drank in Bourdcaux
wine, of which the commandant had received a
few bottles as a present*

Tea followed, and betel was handed to the
tomogon, to his ministers, the prime mandore
of the ^lalay army, and the chief of the Chinese;
card-playing and smoking then continued till
nine o'clock, when supper was served. The
next day the fete was repeated as from Madame
Wikermanu, to whop the visitors paid their
respects accordingly. After dinner the party
took a ride, in carriages, to a pepper . and coffee
plantation, which the commandant had first
established on the India Company's account, in
New Land, a mile from the village ; and then
on to an old plantation, named Socoradija, also
under his direction, a league further up the
country than the former*

During a ten days stay here M. Tombe and
his friends visited a prince, who is also
high - priest, and a chief of the Chinese.
They were well received by both, state chairs
and music being prepared on their entering the

OK THE I8LAKD OF JAVA. 359

palaces, where they took tea, coffee, and pre-
served fruits, and smoked pipes. These chiefs
had probably been informed of the intended
visits by Baron Wikerraann, as the company
found that they were expected, by similar pre-
parations being made at both places.

Bagnouwangte is the only Dutch post on the
eastern part of the island of Java ; it is situated
five leagues from the mouth of Balembouang
Bay, in the Straits of Baly, and seven from the
coast ; a small river, also named Balembouang,
runs through it. It has a little earth fort lined
with turf, surrounded by a ditch full of water,
over which are two drawbridges. The garrison
consists of — 1st, a lieutenant, who has the
command of and lives in the fort, where are
three capital residences with out-offices, besides
a guard- house-— 2d, a company of Madurans
intermixed with about ten Europeans and some
Sammanapp artillery, with a Dutch second-
lieutenant and sergeant.

Opposite to, and at the side of, the mouth
of the river arc a bank and several reefs ;
but there is anchorage notwithstanding. Two
pilots, who reside in the village, precede the
ships which pass the Strait, to point out an-
chorage to such as want to take in provisions
and water.

z 4 •

j6o OK THB ISftAVD O* JAVA*

The commandant has the mahagcmeot of t*o
floe plantations of pepper and Coffee, as already
mentioned, and an indigo manufactory adjoin*
ing. In the middle of the former is a large shed
for depositing and drying the coffee and pepper.
A rivulet passes through it, which has a sluice to
distribute the water, by subterraneous channels,
into two great basOds, one of which, opposite,
the shed, is entirely of brick, and into gutter!
which water the roots of the pepper-trees. A
third of the distance from each end of the prin-
cipal avenue of this plantation are huta built of
bamboo, and covered with cocoa-lcares, . for
those who have the care of it* A river runs at
•one side of the indigo-house, on which are sheds
and other houses, also a building in which the
Malays employed there,* reside.

A league beyond, at Sacoradaija, are an ex-
tensive old brick-built house, hospital, and prison,
for the Malaya. Immediately in front of the
house is a very large stove of flat, well-ce-
mented, square tiles for drying coffee. So old is
the plantation, that the branches of the coffee-
trees completely fill up the avenues to it, and are
not easily put aside to pass through, .

The commandant, Wikermann, is also charged
to keep up the friendly ties which subsist between
the kings of Baly and the Company.

OM THE ISLAND OP JAVA* 36I

The Balyans who cross the Strait and come to
Bognouwangte, cannot bo received until they
are furnished * with a passport, written on a
badamier leaf*

This establishment ia surrounded by a village
of the same name, where the tomogon resides*
It consists of thirty Chinese and forty Malay
families. It is separated from Panaroukan by a
desert, thirty-five leagues across, very mountain*
ous, and covered with thick woods, full of tigers,
buffaloes, and leopards ; and being also one of
the most unhealthy of the whole island of Java,
all the malcontents of Samarang and Surabaye,
as well European officers as soldiers, are ba-
nished thither for five or six months, according
to the degrees of their offences* All the Javaa
and Madura n , criminals, condemned to the gal*
lies, are also transported to it for life, to
work in the new plantation and in that of Sa~
coradaija.

, The environs of the fort and village are sur-
rounded by marshes* which frequently occasion
putrid diseases among the few Europeans and
natives who live there. The unhealthiness of
this country, however, 19 mostly owing to 4
volcano, a league and a half within the western
part of the isle of Baly, opposite to the establish-
ment. This volcano frequently emits a shower
of ashes which cover both the establishment and

36ft OH THE ISLAND OP JAVA*

its vicinity, as happened in 1804, and soon
afterwards occasioned a great number of mortal
diseases.

Before quitting this part, it should be ob-
served that all the geographers, ancient and
modern, err in placing a town of this name in
the eastern part of Java ; describing it as a city
too, which, according to some, contains 10,000
inhabitants, carries on a considerable trade, and
whither all the ships of the East resort. *

Balembouang Bay, the entrance of which begins
^t Gounong-Ikaa point, in the Strait of Baly, is
entirely desert and full of thick woods down to
the water's edge, where, at every step, may be
seen tracks of the wild beasts, which haunt
there in great numbers. In fact, in this ex-
tremity of the island, there is no establishment
whatever, except the campong of Palankang, a
league and a half inland, to the right on enter-
ing the bay : it is true that, forty or fifty
years ago, the India Company had a battery
and tent, round which was a small Malay and
Chinese village; but that establishment, which
was only intended for the refreshment of ships
passing the Strait, and to keep up the amicable
relations with the Balyans, for the slave-trade,
has been abandoned ; six European officers,
who successively commanded them, having all
died of the dropsy, from the unwholesome

OV THE ISLAND OF JAVA. 3$J

water of two rivulets, the- mouths of which are
at the side of the place where it stood. This
post has subsequently been transferred to the
Bagnouwangie stream, whither the natives have
also followed it.

364 clf TH * ISLAND OF JAVA.

CHAPTER VII.

Catapang. — Caravan into the Interior of Java.-—
Desert of Balembouang.~Panarouhinf--Prin*
dualities of Besouii, Banger, Pass our ouang and,
Bang ell.— Reception by Javan Princes.

Iro-Gounon, tomogon of Balembouang, ordered
a hundred Malays to attend a caravan, of which
M. Tombe formed a part, into the interior of
Java ; twenty-five as a personal escort, and seventy-
five to carry the baggage. They were all armed
with poignards, and one party also had lances
of eighteen feet long, and another carbines, to
protect them from the tigers, leopards, and, what
were still more to be dreaded, on account of
their ferociousness, wild buffaloes. Having three
days journey of desert, to pass, they had, inde-
pendently of their own horses, and those of the
escort, fifteen others laden with provisions for
the whole caravan.

On the a6th February 1805, it left Bagnou-
wangie for the little village of Catapang, two
leagues off, on the coast in Baly Strait. The
road is very fine and level, through a large forest,
in which were seen a great number of peacocks
and apes ; the latter jumping from tree to tree to
catch the others on the wing.

ON THE ISLAKD OF J ATA. 36$

Continuing mbng the coast for about an hour,
the caravan halted at a spring, which flowt from
a rock, where every one refreshed, himself. Pre*
viously to entering the desert, dispositions were
made that the caravan might be always on the
defensive. The party proceeded one by one, led
by the first mandore, armed with a lance, which *
he carried horizontally over bis horse's neck*

As, in these deserts, there can be no encamp-
meot at night, without being subject to be de-
voured by wild beastfc, besides that the ooldnesa

of the nigbteir ia Java is mortal, particularly to
Europeans, the governor, resident at Samaraag,
bus .built, about twelve leagues apart, a shed and
a house for travellers ; they are constructed of
bamboos covered with cocoa* leaves, surrounded
by hedges and ditches, and guarded by armed '
Malays, who constantly, and especially at night, '
keep up fires about and in the ccntoe of the in*
closure.

The caravan reached the first post, Bagnou-
Matie, New Death, so called because some na*
tives and Europeans have been de voored there, at *
three o'clock in the afternoon : here were some
bad mattresses and mats of rotang. The inlets to
the inclosure were barricaded, and great fires
were lighted within and round it. The night
passed quietly ; some lowiogs only being heard,
and several buffaloes coming to one of the e»»

$66 on' TBS ISLAND OP JAVA.

trances to drink at a rivulet which runs near.
Pour Malays armed with lances kept guard du-
ring the night at the entrance of the dwelling.

The road from Catapang to the post of Bag*
nou-Matie, is merely a way known to the na-
tives ; even the trace of it is lost in many parts of
the wood. This path is scarcely wide enough for
one person, and is bordered on each side by very
thick grass, nine or ten feet high, which adds to
the danger of the journey, as the, tigers often '
conceal themselves in it, and can make their at-
tack when it is least looked for ; different places
were distinguishable where these animals had
been. The path is always up or down hill) and
the dead branches of trees crossing it make end-
less stoppages : it also crosses several small rivers,
the points of rocks in many parts of which ren-
der the fords extremely rugged.

On the 24th the caravan crossed a rapid river,
and after going up the side of it for two hours,
halted. Here Joudo-Nogoro's colleague, Mas-
soora-Adijlaga, who accompanied the caravan,
dismounted bis horse to purify himself, which
be did by dipping his head in the water three
times, notwithstanding the danger of stopping ;
but his religion prescribed it, and he was
surrounded by his escort.

At two in the afternoon the caravan arrived at
the. second post, Sonbourouarou, which' is also

ON THE ISLAND OP JAVA. $6j

guarded by Malays: Massoura-Adijlaga has built
several houses here for himself and his wives,
as he sometimes spends a fortnight or month
together at it. He has a flock of goats, herds of
deer, and much poultry. The road was nearly
the same as before, and still in the forest.

The baggage, it should be observed, generally
sets out before daybreak. On the 25th the cara-
van followed it, as usual, about an hour after.
Massoura-Adijlaga informed the party that he
should take his leave at the river of Calie-Tkos,
Rats River, which is at the extremity; and on
the frontier of the kingdom of Balembouang, as
he was not to go further. It arrived there at ten
o'clock in the morning. This fiver, the water of
which is whitish and unwholesome, is remarkable
for its extraordinary rapidity. It is wide, and
shut up between two very steep mountains. On
the crest of the mountain, on the left bank, near
the ford, is a small hamlet inhabited by Malays,
who, apprized of the caravan, and having per-
ceived it at a distance, came into the water up
to their waists, and guided the horses to facilitate
their passage. These wretched Indians, dwell-
ing in the midst of tigers and leopards, acquitted
themselves of the duty of hospitality on this oc-
casion ; they had dressed some maize in the ear,
spread it on bamboo mats at the river side, and
set it before the company as the best they had,

4 I

368 ON TH* ISLAND OP JAVA.

apologizing that, being poor orang-goonon,
jnountaineers, they hpd nothing else tp give*
They partook of this breakfast, and added to it
some roasted fowls, which the minister brought
from Sonbourouarou. The company drank some
water preferred and carried in bamboos, mixing
with it a Httle gin, which remained of tyo flasks
which the commandant of Bagnouwangie gave the
tnaadores for the purpose, and who carried them
suspended in large cocoanut-sheHs.

The caravan continued its route, having -t^kcn
leave of the minister, and, an hour afterward*,
crossed a river, the sides of which are very dan-
gerous from the tigers of the environs, which
efteo go there, fi*tf or she together, to quepch their
thirst* Several extremely fierce tiger -cats were
aeon skipping about, which went off as it ap-
proached them. There were also many apes,
two of which, from their size, might be orang-
outangs, wild men of the woods.

At length, at three in the afternoon, the cara-
van got out of the desert, and entered ^a im-
mense plain, dotted with thickets and rice-fields,
ing a fine contrast to the preceding solitary

OOflU

Leaving a village en the right, *t five o'clock,
the party arrived at Panaroukan, the capital of
the ancient kingdom of that name, of which
a rich Chinese is the chief. He attended, and
excellent beds were made ready in chambers.

OH t »S ISLAND Of JAVA. 369

He occupies a very large house built of wood,
the front of which resembles that of a theatre.
He immediately orcjered te^ and preserved fruit
to be served. The arrival was no sooner known,
than the pgty, chief of the Malays, paid his visit.

At seven o'clock the company were most agree-
ably surprised with a grand supper, wholly in
the European style, and in so great profusion,
that they at first thought other guests were ex-
pected, The only deficiency was wine, for which
was substituted gin and water.

. Being invited to make some stay with the host,
they consented, and the more readily on M.
Tornbe's part, as he had learnt that there was a
«qaall fort if) this country, occupied by a dozen
European invalid*, commanded by a sergeant
The escort, in consequence of the intended stay,
returned to Bagnouwangie, and a new one of
a similar number of Malays and horses was or*
dered to replace it the next day.

Soon after the arrival of the caravan, one of the
invalids introduced himself. He was- a French-
man, originally from Amiens, sixty-five years of
age, and had been thirty years in the Company's
service, M. Torn be told him his wish to see the
fort, where he announced him, and he went
there next morning with M. Jaussaud. The
sergeant-commandant is eighty years old, though

A A

37° OW THE ISLAND OP JAVA.

be- did not seem sixty, and the youngest of the
detachment is fifty- five.

The fort is unimportant; it is square, built
with palisades and planks, which are falling
down from age ; mounts four two-pounders, and
is surrounded by a wide ditch full of water. It
has two entrances, with a good drawbridge — the
principal entrance fronts the coast. It stands on
a marshy plain, three quarters of a mile from
the coast. The Dutch flag is planted opposite the
fort.

Within it is a small barrack-house, the rooms
of which are tolerably comfortable. The ser-
giant's apartments are at the entrance, and iso-
lated. Tljey consist of three compartments and a
kitchen on the side of the guardhouse. These
old soldiers, although their pay is but moderate,
live tolerably well, and make no complaints, as
provisions are cheap, and their food consists
principally of fish, poultry, and rice, with which
the vicinity abounds.

Panaroukan is situated in the Strait of Madura,
near Cape Sandanna, upon a river which empties
itself by several branches into the sea : neither
of them is navigable even for canoes, except in
great floods. It is said that there is a passage
for coasting vessels, in the midst of the reefs which
line the coast, and which gave rise to the fort,
which it has long been in agitation to rebuild of

ON THE ISLAND OP JAVA/ 37 1

stone, as it, at the same time, serves as a check on
the natives' and Chinese in the event of an in-
surrection. From this fort, when the weather
is clear, can be seen Sammanapp, and the south*
eastern island. It is a considerable village, in-
habited by one third Chinese and two thirds
Malays ; and either nation has its own temple,
priests, and bonzes.

On the 27th, the escort and horses being
ready, the party set off from Panaroukan for
Besouki, another Malay principality, where they
arrived in the afternoon. The distance is about
eleven leagues of extremely bad road, and con*
tinually in the woods to within a gun-shot of
the place. At noon they found themselves in an
immense plain of rice, interspersed with thickets,
exhibiting a delightfully picturesque view. The
approaches to Besouki are very beautiful, on ac-
count of their variety of pleasant scenery. The
whole plain was then animated by a multitude of
Javans, male and female, employed in the planta-
tions and other work which the rice requires.

Besouki is a very large village, about three
leagues from the coast. The m^ndores con-
ducted the party to the tomogon's palace, but
he was from home. His people asked them to
walk in and wait. The paty, chief of this cam-
pong, came soon after to inform them that the
tomogon was gone to visit the prince of Sam*

AA 2

372 s ON >HE ISLAND Of JAVA*

snanapp, his father-in-law, and that be would
not. return till five o'clock in the evening. He
then led them to his own house, where he
showed every attention, immediately serv-
ing up roasted fowls, excellent broth, curry*
fish, rice, tea, fruits, and sweetmeats. At five
o'clock they were apprised of the return of the?
prince, to whom they were immediately cod*
ducted, and presented by the paty. The torao-
gon gave them a civil reeeption under a shed
opposite his palace, in which they had tea and
preserved fruits. Mats were laid en the ground,
at the side and without, for the paty and bis
suite, who were served with betel. .

The prince is from forty to forty-five years of
age, a native of China, and never bad but one
wife, with whom he still lives, although poly-
gamy is customary with the Mahometans : be
has no children. He is reputed, by the Dutch of
Java, a well-informed man, of some know-
ledge in physics and mathematics. His grand-
father, a Chinese chief, having put himself at
the head of a party of his own nation and the
natives, in a* war which one of the emperors of
Mataram bad to sustain against several neigh-
bouring kings, and having obtained great suc-
cesses, that emperor, in return, promoted hint
to the dignity of toniogon upon coaditkm thai

ON THE ISLAND Of JAVA. 373

he should abjure fats religion ; which he did, that
his children might succeed him.

His dress consists of nankeen trowsers, in the
French style, with yellow slippers, which forms
a singular contrast to his moustaches, turban,
and Malay jacket. The company took leave of
him to visit the mosques and tombs of his an-
cestors.

Besouki is a considerable village, intersected, in
various parts, by a small river. The foipogon't
palace is built, in the European manner, of white
atones : in front is a large court with a wooden
gate. He appeared to be more reserved than the
others towards his subjects who were about
him.

The environs of this canton abound in rice ;
and game is very common, owing to the quantity
Of thickets which cover the plain.

On the 28th the party set off, at si* o'clock
in the morning > with a new escort and fresh horses.
As they had a long distance to go, the paty of
Besouki sent forward, over- night, to a petty chief
of a village through which they must pass #
some poultry, eggs, and rice, with an order to
have them ready for their arrival. The road is
in many places bad : it crosses several riee- fields,
some small rivers, and an inconsiderable wood.

The village where they dined is unimportant,
and a brook runt across it.

AA 3

;3M ON THE ISLAND OP JAVA.

Tbey reached the tomogon's of Banger in th£
evening, and were most courteously received.
The paty immediately paid them a visit, and took
lea with them, and betel after it. There were
.only three European beds in the tomogon's
palace.

. This young prince, being curious in regard to
foreign articles, wished to see the form of the
officers' trunks. After having closely examined
them, perceiving that he had touched two cases
made of pig- skin, on which some of the bristles
yet remained (that animal is detested by these
people, who are all Mahometans), instantly
called for a basin of perfumes and aromatics,
and washed his hands to purify himself.

His disposition seemed very gentle, and his
subjects appeared greatly attached to him.

The table was elegantly set out, though
the provisions Were all dressed in the Malay
fashion : it was spread with fine linen and beau*
tiful silver plate, and was lighted by four large
flambeaux in candlesticks of masfy silver. ' The
tomogon did the honours, and was surrounded
by thirty Malays seated on the ground, except
the mandore who waited. Excellent Bourdeaux
wine was- set before the company, and they
drank several . toasts with three, the Malays all
joining in the huzza. Candles were necessary,
although it was the noddle of summer, for, in

ON THE ISLAND-. ,__

vF JAVA* • ***

the latitude and longitude of /*,« j , . ,

are nearly equal throughout tht- _ ' _ . 6

. ir 4 • • .l -j r*? 1 - At MX 'or

half past six in the morning day be.

-. a i- • ^ • a? 8 * anc * e nds

at the same hour in the evening : the .

twilight nor dawn ; at least they are r

ceptible. The tomogon himself showed tiA 5 *"
their rooms, where they had capital beds, be>°
tiful linen, and very fine mugquito-nets, orna-
mented with fringe, and almost new. Several
Malays slept on mats under the bedsteads, and
at the doors of the rooms, to be ready to give,
assistance, were it requisite, in the night. ,

The prince was preparing a grand entertain-
ment for his father, who was expected the next
morning : he was seventy years old, and, on ac- ,
count of bis age, had recently abdicated in his
son's favour, and retired to Surabaye.

On- the ist of March the party began their
journey, after having breakfasted: every thing
was in readiness for the old man's reception, and
a rich carriage, drawn by two fine horses, went
to meet him.

It is only nine leagues from Passourouang,
and good travelling for the horses. The road,
which is large and old, is in the middle of rice*
fields, with some hills easy of ascent and well
cultivated. The country from Besouki is most-
delightful. The vicinity of the villages presents
picturesque views, from the feet of the high

AA4

3? 6 OK T« '"*» " MVA.

• ^,e interior, to the sea. 'the
mountains, i wlth tbickctg whkh g^ M
plains arc strewn > ^

u I # r ' CK P rc88 v * or t " elr ornament,
°^a* u ' ie * more k^iMlingj a °d a mul»
*? tCn f ^ a ' a y men anc * w °fl>*n working at the
trcude gj ve jj^ tQ t j ie c n c hanting picture.

*?— cached P^n.o.ng ., nooo, and
j t^ell received by the Dutch commandant
oiiesselaar, a captain of foot. He wad many*
yfeart lieutenant in the European cavalry, which
acts as guard of honour to the emperor of Solo ;
and the appointment of Passottrouang was given
bhn to retire to* He has with him two officers,
s&me subalterns and European soldiers, and sdme
companies of Malays, to guard a small fort of
masonry, father intended against the natives, in
case of revolt, than against an external foe. He
also has the management of several considerable
plantations of coffee and pepper belonging to the
Company* and which are in the environs ; like*
Tfisc the direction of a yard for building the
coasting-vessels necessary for the transport of
those productions. The hill, and * mountain two
leasees inland, are cultivated, almost to the
summit, with all kinds of European garden-stuff,
which never Regenerate, whether from the situa-
tion or from the soil in which they grow, and
which wppty a great |>art of the civil *nd mUi*

OS tHft ISLAND Of JAVA. jfj

tary administrations of Surabayc, whose environs
produce little in this way,

Thia appointment is very lucrative to M. Hes*
telaar, being estimated to bring in 15,000 rix-
dollars a year. His household consists of thirty
Malay slaves from Baly and Macassar, ten of
whom are musicians ; a Chinese belonging to the
thief has taught them music, having learnt it
himself from a German in the Company's service,
who lived many years at Passourouang. He also
has four elegantly gilt carriages, and a one-horse
chaise, with twenty fine horses richly capari-
Boned. His wife is a native, by whom he has
several children. He always keeps a most splen-
did table.

On the morrow he introduced the party to the
prince, with whom they took tea, smoked, and
ate some preserved fruits ; the prince afterwards
showed them, in one of his yards, two immense
tigers, in an inclosure of thick palisades. Thwe
had been taken in traps by several of his subjects,
but one of them died a few days before*

The principality of Passooroqaog is one of
those, in Java, where these animals are common.

They next visited theChinese campong, which
is very considerable, this people forming a third
of the population of the place ; they also visited
their -chief, who set before them pipes 4nd tea.

ftssouttwang is the cajntal of a vtrj brgft

37& OK THE ISLAND OF JAVA,

principality ; it is crossed by a wide river, which
is navigable some leagues up the country for
coasting-vessels, with which it is always covered.
A fine wooden bridge communicates from one
side to the other : the commandant's house backs
the fort on the right bank facing the bridge.
This is a very extensive and commodious resi-
dence, with many offices ; the boat-yard is near
the mouth of the river, which falls into the sea a
short way beyond.

M. Gauffe, surgeon*major of the 12th French
battalion, was there, but had gone into the in-
terior to propagate vaccination among the na-
tives, and to give them the advantage of that in-
estimable discovery. On the 3d March they
proceeded to Bangell, only seven leagues off.
The road is wide and excellent, over a plain, cul-
tivated with rice and maize : at some distance
right and left are several villages, embosomed in
papaya and bananas, and surrounded by cocoa-
trees.' The prince of Bangell is almost seventy
years old ; he received them with particular kind-
&ess, and the usual ceremony. He abstains from
wine, aa be unites the rank of high priest with
that of tomogon. This old prince is the eider ,
brother of the prince of Bcsouki, and consequently
originally from China. He speaks all the oriental
language?, particularly those of Madura and
Chioa, *fi4 baa some ideas of European geogra-

ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA. 379

phy : be conversed like one who had travelled,
and more particularly in Italy, and was at no
loss how to make use of a map of Europe, which
was laid before him.

His eldest son, a fine man, almost white,
speaks Dutch fluently, and is well acquainted with
civil architecture. . He said that one df his legiti-
mate wives was big of her sixty- first child, of
which twenty-nine were dead, and of the remain-
ing thirty-one, twelve were at Besouki, with his
brother, who took charge of their education.

The facility of procuring women throughout
Java is rather singular. No sooner were the gen-
tlemen in bed, than a Malay came to offer
them ; and • it is the *more remarkable, as the
character of the people inclines to ferocity. The
sex are slaves, and the men jealous in the extreme.
It is also true that these sort of females, called
rouguins, are free girls, or belong to unfor-
tunate families, who thus give them up on the
demand of the prince, to whom they refuse
nothing, in the hope of obtaining favour and at-
tention in return.

The next day the caravan commenced the first
day's journey to Surabaye, the principal Dutch
settlement in the Strait of Madura. The com*
pany were conducted in the tomogon's carriages
to Soutacarie, the frontier town of his principa-
lity, five leagues off, where their horses and es-

380 ON THIS ISLAND OP JAVA.

cort waited for them with profisions,. addressed
to the chief, with whom they breakfasted. The
road from Bangell to Soutacarie is wide, even,
and very fine ; the country is well cultivated in
rice and maize, and full of large and populous
villages.

After leaving Soutacarie tbey were still three
leagues from their first destination. Tbey crossed
the river of Bagieratn, over a large wooden bridge,
leaving, on the left, a chain of low hills of easy
ascent. They kept along the side of the river up
to Surabaye : it is very wide, with several little
islands, which, combining with the charmingly
varied country round Surabaye, render the ap-
proach to it extremely fascinating. A league on
(his side of, it, on the right, and close to the
river, is a very extensive palace named Simpang,
which one of the Dutch governors had built of
brick : it now belongs to the chief of the Chinese,
but is occupied by the present governor, who ia*
fris tenant, and makes it his residence.

ON THB ISLAND OP JAVA* §St

CHAPTER VIII.

Op asses* — - Surabaye. — Environs. — Gressee. — •
Entertainments by tie Tomogon.

Opasses are Maduran or Sammanapp soldiers
always in waiting on the European officers, to
whom they are at the same time servants. These
Indians are naturally brave and intelligent.

The Dutch governor of Surabaye is subordi-
nate to that of Java. The principality is
governed by two tomogons, one of whom is
allied to the emperor of Solo, better known as
emperor of Mataram. The garrison consists of
major Franquemont, commandant of all the
European and Indian troops ; an adjutant, one
hundred Europeans, including a company of the
old Wurtemberg regiment ; six companies of
Maduran infantry and two of the Maduran ar-
tillery, under the command of European officers,
or officers born in the settlement. Here is a
■military hospital lor one hundred and fifty sick.

The capital of the settlement is the depdt for
the recruits, with which the princes of Madura
and Sammanapp are obliged to furnish the Com-
pany.

Surabaye is a small town not mentioned in any

3&A ON THE ISLAND 0* JAVA*

geography, although it is an establishment of
some importance and very healthy. * It is crossed
by the river of Caliemas, not far from that of
Bagieran, which falls into it a little higher. The
environs and their banks are full of villages in-
habited by two thirds Malay and the remainder
Chinese.

The troops are quartered in a brick fort, con-
taining a small arsenal, on the right bank of the
river. The hospital is on the same side, without,
and near the town.

The government and all the officers dwell
mostly on this side : on the opposite bank are
the principal Malay and Chinese campong, to
which there is a communication by two large
wooden bridges. Two moles are just completed
at its mouth, with batteries, independently of
those, previously there, to defend the entrance.

The river is navigable for all the country
coasters, of which it is always full. There are
several small yards where they are built to draw
ten and twelve feet water ; they are sold to the
princes of Borneo and Baly ; likewise others
for transporting the produce of the neighbour-
hood, whiqh is only rice.

The ships destined for the Philippines and for
China generally touch at Surabaye, especially in
the season of the north- westers; they there find
every possible refreshment, except garden-stuff,

OH THE ISLAND OF JAVA. 383

which the Europeans are obliged to procure from
the principality of Passourouang.- Good native
-sailors may also be had there, but it must be
under an engagement to bring them back to Java.

The mountains, in the vicinity, contain a tole-
rably hard stone, in colour and veins exactly like
box- wood. The natives work it very tastefully,
by a wheel, into candlesticks, plates, and goblets.
They also manufacture many little -articles,
such as combs, brushes, &c. of the buffalo's
horn.

A league and a half from Surabaye, upon a hill
which runs along the left bank of the river
Bagieran, is a saltpetre-house." This factory
might have been an important establishment, of
great utility, had it been kept up, on account of
the quantity of saltpetre- earthjin the vicinity, which
is produced from the dung of a number of bats,
with which the country abounds ; but it. is given
up, and was lately sold to a Chinese for the small
sum of six hundred rixdollars, although it cost at
least fifteen thousand. This seems the more in- .-
explicable, as an European officer has been sent
to look for saltpetre at Byman, near Sombawa
island. Some say it was owing to private pique
of the council to Baron OgendorfF, who originated
the saltpetre-house. The rural walks about
Surabaye ate very pleasant, and so numerous,
that they may be varied every day for a month,

3*4 °" THS ****** *> <* }AtA>

without going the same twice. They are all
wide enough for a carriage, and ate shaded by
thickets and close hedge? of bamboo, banana,
ind other very high shrubs, which keep off the
heat of the sun. Within the circumference of
twelve miles is an infinity of campongs, so close
to each other that they appear to make one city :
another proof of the salubrity and fertility of the
country. One of the petty kings of the isle of Baly
paid a visit to this place on his return from Batavia,
whither he had been on behalf of the great king
of that island, to solicit the Company's protec-
tion and alliance, that he might be enabled to
put an end to the devastating scourge of iote&tioe
9 war, which has long prevailed among the king*
and princes of his country. His suite consisted
of one hundred men, armed with their poignardf
and klebana. One carried his parasol, another
his befdUbox, and a third bis square silk cap,
embroWered with gold. While he remained
with the commandant, these three Malays sate
cross-legged on the ground behind his statc~cbair.
He had two other Malays with him, probably
his ministers, or nobles, as they wero seated, on
chairs, by his side.

The commandant engaged M. Tombe and hia
friends on a water-party to M. Van-Harsen's, re*
aident of Gressec, whither they went in a beauti-
ful large barge belonging to the governor*

ON THE ISLAND OP JAVA. '385

oovered like the passage-boats of Holland; the'
cabin occupied its whole length, except that, at*
either end, was space left for the master, some
rowers, and a small sail to hoist when the
weather permitted. The cabin was very well
furnished ; the seats, which went all round, were
covered with good cushions : a table up the
middle, with small lockers for provisions, and par-
ticularly for pipes ; and lastly, latticed casements
With silk curtains, completed the floating saloon.

From Surabaye to Gressec by 6ea, is reckoned
three leagues, which was performed in five
hours, against wind and tide. The coast of
Java, from the mouth of the Surabaye river, to
Gressec, forms a large angle, with an island in
the middle. A bank of sand and mud which
runs along the coast, and is almost always vi-
sible, has rendered necessary a wooden mole,
built on piles opposite the fort : it is six hundred
feet in length : the boats are fastened to it, and
the pier is ascended by a wooden ladder. Having
gained the other extremity, we traverse a large
room with neither door nor window over the
abutment, probably intended for a guard-house,
and, descending five steps, arrive at Gressec.

Gressec, the capital of an ancient Javan king-
dom, is now merely a small town divided be-
tween the natives and the Chinese. The latter,

B B

j86 OH THE ISLAKD OF J AY A*

here, as every where else, hare their pw*
pong, temple! and bonzes.

The small fort is built of stones ; within it is
a barrack for the guards who have the care of it.

The principal street is along the coast : it con-
sists of four or five large houses of beach stones,
inhabited by the resident, Dutch admiral, book-
keeper, some commissioners, and the Company's
surgeon. The street is wide, and shaded by se-
veral rows of tall thick trees, opposite the houses,
which makes the entrance rural and pleasant At
the end of, and behind the street are Malay and
Chinese camponga, also the grand square, in
which are the palaces of the two ruling tomogons*
There is neither river nor rivulet at Gressec ;
water for drinking is fetched from two springs,
half a league off, near the coast, or it is brought
from Surabaye.. The natives frequently uso
brackish water, and such as they catch from the
rains. Notwithstanding the difficulty of pro-
curing good water, and in spite of the marshes
and stagnant pools which lie round the Malay
and Chinese campongs, and the mud-bank on
the coast, which, being dry at low water, con-
tinually exhales intolerable vapours, the air of
the place is very wholesome: sick persons are
seldom met with, and it is esteemed the most
salubrious of all Java : which would induce on*
to think that the unhealthiness of the kingdom

OH THE ISLAND 0* JAVA. 3&7

of Bantam, Jacatra, and BalembOtyang, is rather
owing to the nature of the soil than to the
marshes. The currents, however, in this strait,
which is very narrow, are so strong, that filth
of whatever kind cannot remain long.

A short league further, at the foot of the
hills on which Gressec stands, is a saltpetre-
house in full work, established, by the Company,
under the direction of the resident.

The administration of the country consists of
a resident, and some Malay companies com-
manded by natives. A Dutch sergeant of the gar-
rison of Surabaye commands them in chief, with
the title of military commandant. To give the
latter some consequence among the natives, he
is often, particularly when there are any officers
at Surabaye, invited to the resident's tabic.
There are also some inferior officers and a
surgeon. Lastly, two tomogons govern the na-
tives. The present princes are brothers, their
father having long since ceded half the princi-
pality to his eldest son, and subsequently,
owing to his great age, finally abdicated in
favour of the youngest of seven sons.

This prince was major of all the Malay
troops ; he had been promoted to that rank in
preference to his next brother, to whom the rank
fell, as being more capable of doing honour to
the situation.

BBZ

388 ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

Ret urning, from the resident to the younger
tomogon, whose name is Ardyo adi Nogoro
the party were agreeably surprised, on entering
the first court of- his palace, to hear noisy
music and a Malay play* The theatre was in
a shed opposite his principal residence,, and was
nothing more than a transparent curtain of seven
or eight feet high, and eighteen or twenty feet long,
stretched on a frame, and kept perpendicular by
two feet fixed to each end. The manager was
behind this screen, and gave action to card
figures of different kinds, representing cavalry,
infantry, kings and princes at war. It was
exactly like what we term Chinese shades. The
Malay director at the same time sung of the dif-
ferent fights and victories of the ancestors of the
emperor and other princes of the country, to the
cound of a number of kettle-drums and gomgoras
of different sizes.

The two-stringed fiddle, already described,
was the principal instrument, and played by the
leader of the band. The musicians * were
placed on one side of the theatre; on the other
were the tomogon's six brothers, seated respect-
fully on chairs. In front, at some distance from

* All the Indians, and consequently their musicians, seem
to have some ideas of the different sounds of musk. On the
approach of the party to the palace the musicians played an
adagio ; when they saw them, an allegro.

ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA. 3$ 9

the screen, state- chairs were placed for the Eft-*
ropcans and the tomogon, who sate in the middle*
In the long square which the company formed,
were thirty rouguins, fourteen to sixteen years
old, ornamented with garlands of flowers. These
girls danced round without touching each other,
and turned very gracefully on one foot ; at the
same time singing, in a languishing tone, the
victories and praises of the emperors. They now
and then sate down in a groupe on the ground to
rest. In one of the angles outside the shed
were two tables set out with Bourdeaux wine, gin,
liquors, and pipes, and it is customary to drink,
every instant.

No sooner were the gentlemen seated than
Ardyo adi Nogoro opened the ball by a kind of
minuet with two of the rouguins ; after which,
having placed them close together, he threw an
handkerchief round their waist, and brought
them for M. Tombe to do the same, which, in
compliance with their customs, he did, and in
the same way passed them to the next, and so
through all the European visitors.

While the handkerchief was round the two
girls, and before dancing commenced, a man-
dore brought two glasses of gin on a silver dish,
one for the dancer, and one for the tomogon ; it
was no sooner takrn hold of, than the whole

b b 3

3$C> OH THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

assembly and spectators huzzaed three times,
after which the dancer did the same, and drank.

At the opening of the ftte the tomogon se-
lected, from the groupe of young girls, the ona
whom he thought prettiest, brought her to M.
Tombe, placed her on his knees, and left her
wholly at his disposal : he did the same to the
other five of the company. They were, how*
ever, af liberty to change them if they were not
to their taste ; and when they were tired of hav-
ing them on their knees, they sate at their feet.
v . This entertainment continued till half past
five in the morning ; at six they breakfasted, and
at eleven arrived at Surabaye.

1 ON frflt »LAH» OP JAVA, 39k

CHAPTER IX.

SMaijo.— Strait of Madura. — Rembang.—Japara.
~Javanna.—Samarang—Its Line of Defence. —
Tagal. — Tcherihon.

Sir a 1 jo i* a pretty village, which appears to
great advantage from the mouth of the channel
of the Strait of Madura, across Panka Point.
On this point is always a military guard of
three or four Europeans and some Madurane,
sent by the resident of Gressec to protect the
Dutch flag, and a small battery which is there.
M. Loriaux, the engineer at Surabaye, in his
plan for the defence of this pprt of the island of
Java, has seen the importance of this post, and
of the village of Sidaijo, where is a fine road
leading behind Gressec and Surabaye. He con-
sequently has erected a much more considerable
work, to which a company of Madurans, com-
manded by. European officers and subalterns,
has been added for the defence of the landing-
place.

At Panka Point are always Javan and Euro-
pean pilots, who, as soon as they discover vessels
standing forthe channel, go before to pilot them
to Gressec or Surabaye. The master of the pilot-
boat always haa an order, from the resident at

?b 4

39* OK THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

Gresscc, for the captains to give the name of
their ship, their own name, what nation they
are of, whence they come, and whither tbey ace
going. This declaration must be made and
signed by the captain or one of his officers ; the
pilot then stays on board, and the master re-
sumes his post. The same custom occurs at the
port of Ancere, in the Strait of Sunda, and
at Bagnouwangie, in the Strait of Baly. Re-
freshments may be procured at the same time ;
for the master and Malay rowers generally avail
themselves of the opportunity to supply the
sailors and passengers, at very low prices, with
fish, poultry, eggs, garden-stuff, and fruit.

The channel of the Strait of Madura, where
it narrows, is only eighty-three fathoms wide;
its entrance is designated by buoys. Although,
at the beginning,. there are only three, three and.
a half, and four fathoms water, the largest men
of war can pass it ; the bottom being merely mud,
which is easily worked through, without the least
danger, in the lightest breeze, and by the force of
the. currents.

After leaving this Strait and doubling Panka
Point, is seen Rembang, a small settlement on
the northern coast, in a spacious hollow ; then
n earing and doubling Japara Point, pass in front
.of Javanna, another Dutch settlement, where
ships moor somewhat at large: this settle

OH THB ISLAND 09 JAVA. 3$$

ment, and that of Japara, being open toads, and
4he coast not altogether free from danger to those
not well acquainted with it. The residents at
these places are commissioned to see the engage-
ments of the princes with the Company fulfilled,
by causing the rice, sugar, and coffee, which the
country produces, to be deposited in the maga-
zines, until the ships come to take them to the
general magazines at Samarang.

Samarang, only about sixty miles distant from
the residence of the emperor of Samarang, and
one hundred and five from that of the sultan of
Joucki, the two most powerful princes in the
island, is rather a pretty town, on the norther*
coast o( Java ; it is situated about seventy-two
miles west of Surabaye, and ninety east of Tch*»
ribon ; intersected by the Great River, so called
because it is the largest in the vicinity.

It is a free road : ships which draw four and
five fathoms cannot anchor nearer than a league
and a half from shore; merchant- vessels which
draw two fathoms, and two and a half, may ap-
proach within about a league. At the mouth of
the Great River is a shoal, but it is marked by
buoys.

A short mile east of the mouth of the Great
River, is that of the river Caligawa ; they ate
both navigable a good way up the country for
small boats ; of which that of Caligawa is always

394 OK ™ ISLAM) 07 JAVA.

full, because it run* through the large village
tof Torabaya, and the Javan and Chinese cam*
pongs, where all the small trade of the neigh*
bourhood is carried on. They both take their
rise in the mountains of the empire of Mataram.

The houses occupied by the Europeans are, in
a great measure, built of small stones. The
air is very healthy ; and, notwithstanding the
great heat, one may walk out at any hour of the
day, without being liable to inconvenience from
it.

The authority of the governor of Java, who
resides there, extends* from Tcheribon, exclu-
sively, to the easternmost point of the island in
the Strait of Baly. He is appointed by the high
ftgency, and is subordinate to the governor-
general of Batavia. '

This establishment is very important to the
Dutch. All the communications of the two em*
pires of Mataram and Joueki, as well as the
other kingdoms and principalities, bear upon it';
wherefore it is the general dcp6t of all the pro-
duce of Java in rice, sugar, coffee, and pepper.
The greater number of the vessels which fill the
magazine of Batavia touch here.

On a steep rock, three quarters of a mile be-
hind Bodijon, is seen, from a bamboo observa-
tory, all the neighbouring coast, mountains, and
ravines. On the same height, a short distance

ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA. J9$

from the observatory, are several tombs of the
Javan princes* surrounded by walls of small
stones.

Observations on the Line of Defence of Samarang.

The line determined on for the defence of thi$
important post, extends from the river Tawang-
Trassie to that of Clayrang. The intermediate
parts of the two extremities of this line are na-
turally protected by banks, which prevent all ap-
proach to them, and by impenetrable morasses,
which do away every hope and possibility of
turning the centre-works, and penetrating into
the interior.

The part which forms the centre, and which
is intrenched, c6mmences at the Great River, and
reaches to the month of the Caligawa, an extent
of nine thousand six hundred feet. Many works
have been constructed along this part of the coast
and at the month of the two rivers, but time ha*
shown that the greater part of the positions were
wrong. These works were thrown too forward,
and were not substantial enough to resist the
waves which continually break against them;
one part has been overwhelmed, and the other
sunk down, and was swallowed up by the sea.
To remedy this, and to put the coast into as

respectable a state as the nature of thfc ground

5<?6 ON TH& ISLAND OP JAVA*

tfould permit, the governor, Engelhart, has
built,

i. At the mouth of the Great River, on tht
left bank, the angular fortification, called the
Nieuwc-west-baterie, which, with the old re-

doubt, called the Oost-batcrie, which* has been
repaired, and is on the opposite bank, seems an
adequate defence for the mouth and entrance.
Four guns, placed on the platform of a destroyed
demi-bastion on the bank of the river, rather
behind the fortification, would not be unservice-
able, as they would enfilade the mouth of the
river and sweep the great bank opposite, oyer
which all boats can pass at high water ; but it
would be prudent to construct a parapet to cover
the cannoneers attached to those gUR$.

z. A circular redoubt, called the Goedever-
warting, constructed at five hundred and forty
feet from the coast, which sweeps the interme-
diate plain, defends the grand communication,
parallel to it, and flanks the left part of the
work, which forms the centre of the front of the
defence. It would be more effectual if a little
wider. The face should be prolonged twenty-
four feet, at the side of the river, to flank the
Nieuwe-west-baterte, and batter the gorge of
the redoubt called the Oost-baterie, in case the.
enemy should succeed in getting possession of
tjiis secogd wprk, and wish to establish himself.

ON THE ISLAND O* JAVA. 357

there. It would also be indispensable to destroy
the demi-bastion which closes this gorge on the
side of the plain ; for there can be no doubt that,
if an enemy got possession of it, he would be
protected by the same demi-bastion, which he
would raise with the earth in front of the works,
and would then be sheltered from the fire of the
circular redoubt, and might batter the comma*
nications on the plain.

The centre is defended by a work called the
Nieuwe angelegte Gedette-van, a fortification
looked upon, by the governor and principal
military officers, as (he citadel and bulwark of the
establishment, where should be the central point
collecting the troops, the post of reserve, and
depot of provisions and stores, in case of any
attack. But this work, which is seven hundred
and eighty feet in front, is far from possessing
all the advantage ascribed to it, although its
fire seems pretty well calculated for the defence
of the coast, the grand communication at the
back, and the length which it occupies. It is
surrounded by two branches of the Caimans
river ; the left flank is lengthened to cover and
enfilade the interior, which is seen. It also
defends the Redan-oost of (he old line, on
which it is proposed to mount some field-pieces.

A second circular redoubt, called Goede-
Trouwc, Good Hope, is erected, on the plain.

$9 8 .0* ™ ISLAND OF JAVA.

between the work above mentioned, and those on
the river Caligawa, at nearly the same distance
from the coast as the former. This redoubt
Completely flanks the centre work ; and Zee-
mam-baterte, Mariners* battery, defends the
communication* and would prevent the enemy
from, establishing himself in the old battery
Poulus, in c«se he succeeded in making a land-
ing on this front ; but it also might fce somewhat
widened : on one side the fire would be more
.extensive; on the other it would have the ad-
vantage of defending the communication with
Zeemans-baterie, the gorge of which it might
batter, as well as the Tor aba y a battery* and
consequently not only prevent an enemy from
intrenching himself in these two works, but
likewise defend the Caligawa river, and co-
operate in supporting a retreat, which might be
effected along the right bank of the river Tora-
baya*

The Zeemans-baterie, and battery of Torobaya.
situated, one on the left, the other on the right*
bank of the river Caligawa, near its mouth, are
sufficient to defend the approach to it. The
Torobaya battery is an old one rebuilt ; with a
fleim bastion added, to prolong its right flank,
00 as to defile it, and cover the communication
from Zeemaos-haterie to Goede-Trouwe, the
coast affording a space for landing of about two

OH THE ISLAND OP JAVA* 399

hundred and forty feet. As an enemy, wishing,
to attack Samara ng, might attempt to force the
passage of the mouth of the river Caligawa, poa*
seas himself of its defence, and establish .himself
there, to protect the disembarkation of bis troop*
on the shore of the right hank, it is essential
that there should be, at least, one battery, in
the creek, formed by the junction of the Torabaya
and Caligawa rivers. A small work in this place
would defend the communication of the titer
Caligawa, impede an enemy's establishment in
the two works situate at its mouth, and mom*
over drive him out of it when he was there.

The centre work, and two circular redoubts,

have not the necessary relief. In the first place,

they are on marshy ground, which daily gives

1 way ; in the next place, they ought to command

the coast, which they are much too low to do.

' Notwithstanding these different works, Saraa*
rang is far from being in a respectable state of
defence. It has but six hundred troops, of which
one hundred and fifty, including the officers of
the old Wurtemberg regiment, and forty na*
tional grenadiers, are European. The artilleiy
is only served by Madurans and Javans, on
whose steadiness the ' governor himself says he
could not place much reliance if he were at-
tacked. He was even convinced, that if five or
fix transports or Mined boat* weec to appear

4DO Off THE ISLAND OP JAVA.

opposite the mouth of the two rivers, the gun-
acre would abandon the works, and consequently
leave the enemy at liberty to. take possession of
them, and penetrate into the country. Inde-
pendently of this inconvenience, and supposing
these artillerymen to be staunch, an entrance might
still be effected by the rivers Tawang-Trassie and
Clayrang, although they are small and shallow,
*nd some large bamboos are planted in the
month of the former, to prevent boajs coming
there, and one or two small guns at the mouth
*f the other ; for all these obstacles, not tieing
supported, would soon be removed.
,: A little more to the west of the mouth of the
jirar Tawang-Trassie, the coast is healthy and .
ground firm, where troops may be landed without
difficulty, and instantly strike into a large hollow
way leading to the town by CaJiebanter, a height
which commands the neighbourhood ; in the fast
war a fortification was there, in the middle of
which runs the road, surrounded by mountains,
woods, and inaccessible vallies, a league and a
half from the town, which would be reached
without any impediment*

The emperor of Solo is engaged to furnish the
governor with ten thousand men, on his first
requisition, in case of an attack ; but the time it
-would take to collect this number of Malays, .
scattered throughout the country, and in their

ON TBX ISLAND OP J A? A. 4OI

families, to form them into corps, and organize
them, although their chiefs and companies are
already assigned to them, would afford the enemy
an opportunity of doing great mischief, by pos-
sessing himself of the town, and small forts which
defend the communications with the interior, and,
by increasing the fortifications, to maintain him-
self there, until the Company could ratify its
contracts with the princes, or enter into fresh
engagements with them by treaties of alliance.

To guard against such an event, there ought
to be,

, 1st, Instead of the centre work, which is in*
adequate to its object, a capacious fort of maw
aonry, which, supporting the advanced worts,
would defend and cover the town.

ad, An increase of the garrison by a company
of artillery, and a complete battalion of infantry,
all Europeans : these forces, added to those al-
ready there, and to which the natives would
more willingly unite, would do away, every ap~
prehension for the safety of the establishment.

A fort has been ordered to be built on the
road which connects the empire of Solo -with
that of the sultan of Joucki, from fear of an
approaching rupture between those princes, na-
turally hostile to each other ; and which will pro*
fcbly be so contrived as to check whichever of
the two may appear adverse to the Company.

40* OH THE ISLAKft OF JAVA.

i •

The government of Java is the most
as the highest office, in India, next to that of the
governor- general. v M« Engclhart's annual in-
come is said to be two hundred and fifty thou-
sand piastres ; and, at bis house, Asiatic pa-
geantry is seen in all its splerideur. Hts situa-
tion, changed every four years, is reserved for
the counsellors of India, who are not rich or
have lost their property, the high regency being
convinced that, before the expiration of their"
time, they will have re-established their for-
tunes.

Tagal is a small establishment, where is a
resident, who carries into effect the engagements
of the prince, by receiving, and depositing in the
Company's warehouses, the productions of the
country. It is not a military post The village
is large, and divided between the natives and'
Chinese ; it is built at the bottom of a mountain,
on which is a volcano, always burning. The
mount is a remarkable object from the sea, for
it appears to have, at the top, a very high tower,
somewhat inclining, from the effect of the erup-
tion. *

The irregular positions of all the out-offiees of
the principal houses at Tcheribon, and of which
some are at the side and others rn the middle of
a very extensive garden foil of trees, basins, and

Oft tHB ISLAM? OF JAVA. 403

funning streams, make the situation truly pic*
turesque from the various scenery round about
it. The resident, who has for many years
inhabited this delightful retreat, has made it a
most enviable place. He has a good music*
master, who has formed a band of fifteen of his
slaves. In * his garden, a short way from the
bouse, he ha* built a bamboo orchestra : in one
part of the garden is a large park of antelopes',
thale and female, and twenty sheds where he
rears* deer ; also 6 dozen large China vases sunk
into the ground for an immense quantity of gold
and silver "fish.

Tcheribon is a small town, or rather a large
'village, the capital of the kingdom of that
name, divided between two princes of the same
family, each of whom has the title of sultan, and
resides in it. From external appearance, their
palacesaffect little of Asiatic show, being built
only of planks and bamboo.
' This place, one hundred and fifty miles east
of Batavia, has only an open road, sheltered to
the west by a large bank. It has four and A
half and five fathoms water two leagues from
shore, the distance at wh'fch ships are obliged
to moor. Smaller vessels run along the bank to
within three quarters of a league from land; As
the . river, Dear Tcheribon, divides into two

c c %

4O4 OK THE ISLAND OF JAVA.

branches, which fall into the sea a short distance
from each other, the country ships, which- draw
but four to six feet water, are obliged, in coming
in and going out of the principal branch, to wait
for high tides on account of a small bank at its
mouth, with only two and a half feet water
when the tide is out. This river is always full
, of the vessels of Java and of the surrounding
islands.

On the right bank of the river, by the sea*
side, is a small brick fort, surrounded by a
fosse, over which is a bridge with a redoubt.
The fort is of little consequence; its embrasure-
parapet is but eighteen inches thick. It is de-
fended by four bad small guns, which serve
rather to secure the Dutch flag and answer the
salutes of the ships which pass or come in, than
as a defence against an enemy, who might
choose to take possession of it and establish
himself there.

The mole is in a very bad state ; on the left
bank it is entirely down, and has in a great mea-
sure disappeared. On the right bank it is still iq
being, but the piles are rotten, broken, or forced
out. It was in contemplation to rebuild it, with a
battery at the end, as well as two others on each of
the banks, as a defence against the pirates who
continually infect the vicinity, and coulclcasily at*

OH THE ISLAND OF JAVA. 405

tack 60 weak and unprotected a place, and
pillage and lay it under contribution.

The whole garrison is composed only of fifteen
Madurans, armed with bad firelocks, and com*
manded by a sergeant and two European cor-
porals.

This kingdom produces the best and finest
coffee of all Java ; the grain is sound and small :
it is also famous for horses ; they are small, and
well-made, but vicious.

The elder of the sultans has a park of spotted
deer, like antelopes*, which are taken in the
adjacent forests.

In the woods and mountains of this kingdom
it is that the rhinoceros is most commonly met
with.

The air of Tcheribon is generally salubrious ;
notwithstanding, leprosy is a prevalent disease,
also disorders in the eyes, which are sometimes
dangerous from April to December.

In this town are only the resident, secretary,
book-keeper, surgeon-major in the pay of the
Company, and thrtie subalterns, who are Eu»
ropeaos ; the rest are natives, who make up two
thirds of the population, and Chinese, who have
a considerable caropong, and are employed ia

* This species is the axis, cervus axis.— Smuki .

406 OK THS ISLAND OF JAVA.

retail trade and agriculture. The establish-
ment may bring in sixty thousand piastres a
year ; it k independent of the government of
Java, and the resident corresponds directly with
the high regency.

TO THI

SECOND EDITION.

THE surrender of the Island of Java and
its dependencies having now taken place, and created
such a demand for this humble compilation as
seemed to justify the Publisher in bringing forward
a new edition of It ; he has annexed a Chart of the
Strait of Madura, which is intended to be placed
opposite page 39 1; and has added another Chapter,
for which he is almost wholly indebted to Mr.
Barrow's elegant and interesting " Voyage to
Cochin China"

23dJflnuaiy, 1812.