We had won many a prize from the vasty deep with no little toil, and
visited many strange people living under burning suns, when we found
ourselves at anchor in the Roads of Batavia, the capital of the large
and fertile island of Java. It was taken by the English in the year
1811 from the Dutch, or rather from the French, who had temporary
possession of it. The British fleet employed on the occasion was under
the command of Admiral Sir Robert Stopford, and the army under that of
General Wetherall and Colonel Gillespie. That admirable and talented
man, Sir Stamford Raffles--the greatest benefactor the islands of the
East had ever known, till Sir James Brooke followed in his footsteps,
was then appointed governor, and had his counsels and prayers been
followed, it would still have been a bright jewel in the British crown.
Unhappily neither were heeded. His letters describing the fertility and
unbounded resources, when properly developed, of that immense territory,
remained unread, unopened at the Colonial Office; and at the general
peace Java was cast back as a worthless trifle into the heap to be
enjoyed by others, which England had gained by so much blood and
treasure. The Dutch took possession, and very speedily re-established
the system of close monopoly and grinding tyranny which the enlightened
policy of Sir Stamford Raffles had abolished.
Newman had now so completely established himself in the good opinion of
the captain, that he was treated more as an officer than a foremast-man,
and whenever duty would allow, he was permitted to go on shore to visit
whatever was worthy of notice. He looked upon me completely in the
light of a pupil, in whose advancement he had the deepest interest.
"Never mind how old you are," he used to say; "you will outlive me yet
by many a year, and will have plenty of use for all the information you
can pick up before you die." I little thought at the time how true his
words would prove. He used in joke to call me hardy Old Jack; and
certainly for many years I never had had an hour's illness. The truth
is, that I was gifted with a sound constitution, and had avoided playing
tricks with it, as a great number of people do, and then complain of the
sicknesses with which they are afflicted, shutting their eyes to the
fact that they have brought them on themselves entirely in consequence
of their own folly.
While we lay at Batavia, I was constantly on shore with Newman. The
Roads of Batavia are rather more than a quarter of a league from the
city, and are guarded from the prevailing winds by a dozen small islands
outside them. The ground on which the city stands bears evident signs
of having been thrown up by the sea, but rises gradually to the
mountains ten leagues off behind it. The River Jacatra runs through the
city, and it is intersected likewise in all directions by canals. It
has also a moat running round it, as likewise a wall of coral-rock. Its
defences consist of twenty bastions, and a castle near the sea, with a
mud-bank in front of it. It is, indeed, completely a Dutch city. But
besides its numberless canals and ditches, as it is situated in a dead
marshy flat, and is surrounded with dirty fens, bogs, and morasses, over
which a tropical sun sends down its burning rays, drawing up noxious
vapours of every description, it may be considered, taken all in all, as
one of the most unhealthy cities of the civilised world. By care and
proper drainage these defects might be amended, and, as the general
temperature of the atmosphere is not excessive, it might become as
healthy as any other place in those regions.
Java is about two hundred miles long and forty broad, and has numerous
deep inlets along the northern coast, where ships may anchor during the
good or south-east monsoon. A chain of mountains, from which a number
of rivers descend to the sea, runs down the centre, and divides the
island into two parts. The air is cooled by the sea-breezes, which, as
in the West Indies, set in every day. The soil is particularly rich.
It is cultivated by buffaloes, and in some places one is sufficient to
drag a plough. Java produces rice of a first-rate quality, sugar in
abundance, cotton in considerable quantities, salt, timber, indigo,
coffee, pepper, and various kinds of spices.
Java is, in reality, governed by the Dutch East India Company; but it is
divided into a number of provinces, ruled over by puppet princes with
the title of Sultan. At the court of each, one of the Company's chief
officers, or head merchants, as they are called, resides. In some of
the provinces these petty emperors have been deposed, and they are
governed by one of the Company's officers, under the title of Resident.
The religion of these princes is Mohammedan, as is that of the natives
generally, though intermixed with many superstitious observances. No
government rules a country with a more despotic system, or is more
jealous of foreign interference with its trade. I suspect, also, that
none has done more injury to the advancement of civilisation in the
East, from their readiness to submit to all the absurd customs and
degrading ceremonies imposed on them by the Chinese and other
semi-barbarous nations, for the purpose of advancing their mercantile
interests. Taught by them, these people look upon all Europeans as
tribes of mean and despicable traders, who have neither the power nor
the spirit to resent any injuries inflicted on them.
In the environs of Batavia are a number of villages, some inhabited by
Malays, and others by Chinese, who visit the island in great numbers,
and carry on a considerable trade, notwithstanding the persecutions to
which they have at times been subject. In various beautiful spots, both
near the city or the neighbouring hills, and along the sea-shore, are
found the large and handsome country residences of the chief merchants
and other authorities connected with the Company. There are five
principal roads which lead from the city towards the country, and which
are planted with high and shady trees. One of the most beautiful roads
leading to the Port of Jacatra is closely planted with a double row of
mango-trees, and both sides of it are embellished with large and
pleasant gardens, and many fine and elegant buildings. All the roads
are much of the same description, and give a character of finished
cultivation to the neighbourhood of the city. Both sides of the
streets, as well as of the numerous canals, are planted with fine trees,
so that the country all round Batavia may well be characterised as a
tropical Holland.
The governor-general usually resides at his country-seat, called
Weltevreeden, a superb mansion, about an hour and a quarter's walk from
the city. He there resides in great state, and never goes about without
being attended by a body-guard, dressed in coats of scarlet cloth richly
laced with gold.
The ordinary habitations of the Europeans are of brick, run up in a
light airy manner, and stuccoed on the outside. They have sash-windows.
The interiors are all on the same plan. The fronts are in general
narrow, and the houses extend back a long way from the street. Fronting
the entrance, a narrow passage, with a parlour on one side, leads to a
large long room, lighted from an inner court, into which it opens. This
apartment is called the "gallery," and here the family live and dine.
The floors are of large, square, dark-red stones. No hangings are to be
seen, but the walls are neatly stuccoed and whitened. The furniture
consists of some arm-chairs and two or three sofas. On the walls are
numerous looking-glasses, and chandeliers or lamps are hung in a row
along the ceiling of the gallery, and are lighted up in the evening.
The stairs leading to the upper rooms are generally at the end of the
gallery. The upper parts of the houses are divided much as below. They
are generally but scantily provided with furniture; indeed, from the
heat of the climate but little is required. Behind the gallery are the
lodgings for the slaves, the kitchen, and the out-houses. Instead of
being glazed, the windows are often closed with a lath-work of rattans.
Few of those in the city have gardens. In the country, on the contrary,
the greatest attention is paid to them, many of which are very
beautiful, though laid out in the formal Dutch style, as they are full
of the choicest flowers and shrubs. Newman was especially struck with
them.
"Ah, this would indeed be a beautiful country to live in, if people
could but manage not to die!" he exclaimed. Unhealthy as the country
undoubtedly is, the city itself is far worse, so that, as a place of
residence, it is almost abandoned by the more wealthy merchants, who
only visit it as a place of business--their fine mansions being turned
into stores or counting-houses.
Europeans at Batavia, of whatever nation, live much in the same way.
They rise at daybreak, and sit for some time cooling themselves in the
thinnest dress in which they have passed the night; then they dress, and
breakfast on coffee or tea, and are at their offices at eight. They
work till nearly noon, when they dine, and take a nap till four, when
they again attend to business till six. Afterwards they drive out, or
mix in social intercourse in an informal way till nine, when they sup,
and retire to bed at eleven. Newman, whose means of observation were
greater than mine, told me that the men had their parties together, and
the ladies theirs, which I should consider a very bad arrangement. The
men of higher rank--the upper merchants--are each attended by a slave,
holding an umbrella behind him; but a junior merchant must carry his
umbrella himself.
The women marry very young, are very ill-educated, and pass much of
their time lolling on sofas, talking and laughing with their slaves,
whom another moment they will order to be whipped for the slightest
offence. Those born in the country have very supple joints, and can
twist their fingers, hands, and arms in almost every direction. What
can be expected from women who are abandoned, almost as soon as born, to
the care of ignorant slaves--little or no care being taken to inculcate
moral or religious principles into their plastic minds, till they have
fully imbibed all the superstitious notions and prejudices which are
held by their attendants? While saying this, I must urge parents at
home never--if they value the eternal happiness of their children--if
they wish them to imbibe right principles, and to avoid pernicious
ones--to commit them to the charge of persons, however decent in their
behaviour, who are not likely, from their want of education, to be able
to instil them. Parents, children were given you by God; and at your
hands he will require them. On your care, on your exertions, on your
prayers, it depends whether they grow up a blessing to you and to
themselves, or become miserable and lost. Still, children, nothing will
exonerate you, when you become free agents, and understand good from
evil, if you reject the good and choose the evil. You have more need
for prayer, more need for exertion, more need for self-control, to
conquer the vices which have grown up with you; and, believe Old Jack,
however you may be weighed down with them, if you will but _try_, if you
will but cast all your burden on Him who is alone able to bear it, you
will succeed.
Provisions of all sorts we found abundant and cheap. The fruits are the
cocoa, areca, banana, papaya, white and red shaddock, mangostan,
rambootang, ananas, and betel. Saffron is collected there, and every
description of allspice. The betel is a creeping-plant with an aromatic
leaf. The natives spread over the leaf a little slaked-lime, and place
at one end a small piece of areca-nut and cardamom. They then roll the
leaf up, and masticate it for hours together. It blackens their teeth
and reddens their lips, and gives an effect which the Chinese and Malays
admire considerably.
Java abounds in serpents--the smallest is the most dangerous. Its bite
is said to cause death. It is scarcely thicker than a candle, and from
two to three feet long. They are of various colours:--some grey,
spotted with white; and others green, with bright red and white streaks.
We heard of one twenty feet long, and of the thickness of a man's arm;
and saw another stuffed, as big round as the body of a man, and about
fifteen feet long. The Javanese are likewise plagued with ants, and all
sorts of creeping things.
Having given a faint sketch of the mode of life of the rulers of this
wealth-giving island, I must briefly describe the native inhabitants, as
also some of the numerous tribes which flock there from other quarters.
As I have already observed, the native princes, the nominal governors of
the greater part of the country, are kept in the most perfect subjection
by the Company; and the common Javanese are in the most abject state of
slavery. The labourer is not only obliged, at fixed periods, to deliver
a certain quantity of the fruits of his industry to the regent placed
over him on behalf of the Company, 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
lower rate; on the contrary, he is compelled to part with this also, as
well as with what the Company claimed of him, to the same petty tyrant,
at an arbitrary price, very much below its real value.
The Javanese, like all people living under a torrid zone and a despotic
government, are of an indolent disposition, and, it is said, require
great excitement to make them work; but the real secret of their
idleness is the certainty that they will not be allowed to enjoy the
fruits of their labour. Possessing no certain property, they are
satisfied with little. The food of those who inhabit the level country
is rice and fish; but those who dwell in the mountains use a root called
_tallas_, with salt. This salt they make out of the ashes of wood.
Their dwellings are little huts, constructed of bamboos, plastered with
mud, and thatched with broad leaves. Their furniture consists of a
bedstead made of bamboos, a block on which to pound their rice, two pots
for boiling food, and a few cocoa-nut shells for drinking. They seldom
live much beyond their fiftieth year. They were converted to Islamism
about 1406, when the Arabian Chick-Ibn Molana came over, and, marrying
the daughter of the king of Damak, received as her portion the province
of Cheribon. Their mosques are generally of wood, and perfectly
unadorned; but the tomb and mosque of the said Ibn Molana form a
magnificent edifice. They do not place their dead in coffins, but wrap
them in linen, and place a stone at the head and another at the foot of
the grave, as seats for the two angels who, after their death, examine
into their conduct while in this world.
The Javanese are, in general, well-shaped; of a light-brown colour; with
black eyes and hair, their eyes being much sunk in the head. They have
flattish noses and large mouths. In figure, they are generally thin,
though muscular; here and there only a corpulent person being seen. The
women, when young, have softer features than the men; but when they grow
old, it is difficult to conceive any human being more hideous than they
become. A man's dress consists of a pair of linen breeches, scarcely
reaching half-way down the thighs, and over this a sort of shirt of blue
or black coarse cotton cloth, which hangs loose below the knee. The
hair of the head is bound up in a handkerchief, in the form of a turban.
A woman's dress consists of a coarse chintz cloth, wrapped twice round
the body, fastened under the bosom, and hanging down to the calf of the
leg; over this is a short jacket, which reaches to the waist. No
covering is worn on the head, but the hair is bound up in a fillet, and
fastened at the back of the head with large pins. Sometimes chaplets of
flowers are worn. Children run about without clothes till they are
eight years old. Of course, I have been speaking only of the lower
classes. The upper generally dress with great magnificence.
The Javanese are not much employed as domestic servants, but slaves have
been brought from the coast of Bengal, Malabar, Sumatra, and other
parts, as well as from Celebes, and often become very accomplished
servants. They are generally well-treated, and behave well; but their
great vice is gaming, to which they are tempted by the Chinese, who keep
the gaming-houses, and are much too cunning to allow the poor slaves to
regain what they may have lost. This vice, as is the case elsewhere,
tempts them to rob their masters and to commit many other crimes, for
the sake of supplying themselves with money to continue the practice, or
to recover what they have lost.
There are said to be a hundred thousand Chinese in and about Batavia,
the whole population amounting only to a hundred and sixty thousand,
made up of natives, Armenians, Persians, Arabs, Malays, Negroes, and
Europeans. We were witnesses of a curious spectacle one day, when the
Chinese assembled from far and near to visit the tombs of their
ancestors at Jacatra, near the site of the capital of that ancient
kingdom. The road from Batavia to Jacatra is a very fine one. On
either side it is adorned with magnificent palaces, occupied by the
councillors of the Indies, the principal persons in the Company's
service, and the richest merchants. In front of these palaces, parallel
to the causeway, is a navigable canal crossed by bridges very
ingeniously constructed of bamboo. On the opposite banks are numerous
native villages, which are seen peeping through the cocoa, banana,
papaya, and other bushy shrubs, with which every hut is surrounded.
Near the ancient capital is the fortress to which the unhappy Prince of
Genea withdrew when the Dutch conquered the kingdom, and where he lost
his life fighting desperately.
In the Chinese burying-place are great numbers of tombs, with
inscriptions specifying the time of the death, age, name, and virtues of
those whose remains are within. The tombs are much ornamented, and
surrounded with cypresses; and on either side are benches on which the
relatives and friends may rest when they come to perform their funeral
duties. On the present occasion the tombs were ornamented with wreaths
of paper or silk of different colours, and three wax tapers were burning
on each. Provisions, also, were either sent or brought, and placed as
offerings on the tombs. The most opulent were distinguished from the
rest by the richness of their viands--fish, fruit, sweetmeats, and
beverages. These provisions, having been left for some hours on the
tombs, were partly consumed by the family of the deceased, some was
offered to the spectators, and the rest carried away. Roasted fowls,
which had been kept whole on purpose, were, however, left behind by
some; for what purpose I could not ascertain. These travelled Chinese
had got over many of their national prejudices, and very politely
offered Newman and me some of the good things; of which we partook with
no little satisfaction, though, as my companion observed, a cemetery was
an odd place to pic-nic in.
Movable theatres were erected on one side of the cemetery, and temples
had been built on the plain below. These temples are large saloons,
ornamented with grotesque and antique statues, especially those
representing Josi in the midst of his family. Josi, a disciple of
Confucius, and afterwards his most confidential friend, rose from the
dregs of the people, and became the greatest legislator of his nation.
After the death of Confucius, the emperor banished him; so he retired in
the bosom of his family to the low state from which he had sprung, where
he declared that he enjoyed far more true happiness than he had ever
done in his exalted position. To him and his benignant laws the Chinese
are indebted for the preservation of their manners, customs, and dress.
He is always represented in his retirement after his labours for the
public good were concluded. We had here, as Newman observed, an example
of the way in which the ancients deified their great men, and learned to
worship them.
Opposite each idol were burning red wax tapers, of different sizes, and
matches of incense. An altar or table covered with dainties stood in
the middle of the temple, surrounded by idols; and in a room behind it
was another altar, surmounted with a statue of Josi. An old bonze or
priest of venerable aspect, with a long white beard, stood up, reciting
some prayers in a low voice. He had on his head a white straw-hat, in
the shape of a cone. On the top of it was a little ball of gold, and
behind a small tuft of red silk. He kept continually bowing with great
regularity, and every now and then let fall a piece of wood like a
ruler, which he as often picked up again. He was habited in a tunic of
transparent violet silk, with a girdle of twisted silk ornamented with
gold; and to it were attached the instruments required for the ceremony.
Over this he wore a gold-embroidered robe, with long sleeves turned up
at the wrists. It was of violet colour, and a strong material; and,
being closed all round, must have been put on over the head. On his
breast and back were two plates of rich gold embroidery, representing an
eagle, or a bird like one. In his hand he had a large fan, the case of
which hung at his girdle like a knife-sheath. His slippers were square
at the toes, and embroidered with gold; but his legs were bare.
Under the vestibule of the temple, a hog and a goat, with the horns on,
were killed as burnt-offerings, and placed on a stand, with their
entrails before them. The interior of the temple was filled with tables
covered with preserved fruits and tea, where the bonzes and rich people
were sitting eating, drinking, and smoking; but none of the multitude
ventured in. Many female bonzes, or bonzesses, were in the vestibule,
dressed in violet silk robes, but without embroidery. Their hair was
twisted and turned up behind, forming a round tuft, fastened with two
diamond-headed pins. These tufts were stuck round with other very rich
pins, forming the beams of a most brilliant sun. They took no part that
we saw in the ceremonies.
What I have described seemed to be a prelude to the ceremonies. The
bonzes, fifteen in number, left the vestry to the sound of shrill, noisy
music. They took their stations before the altar, where they made many
genuflexions and gestures. They then presented to the high-priest, who
had no distinguishing mark, many meats which were on the altar. On this
he made various signs, pronouncing some words in a whining tone of
lamentation. After having made various libations with several liquors,
which he spread over the offerings, the other bonzes replaced them on
the altar. One of them then took a card, containing characters, from
which he sung. Judging from the loud laughter of part of the auditory,
the words seemed to have little analogy to the ceremony. Every bonze
held in his hand a box filled with incense matches, one of which he
lighted as soon as its predecessor was extinguished. After a repetition
of this ceremony, during which the music was never discontinued, they
entered the side-room to take refreshment. Having drunk their tea, they
went in procession to a second temple, where the same ceremony was gone
through. Thence they repaired to the theatre. When they had reached
the front of it they halted. "Are they going to act?" said I. "I
should not be surprised," observed Newman. "What are they but actors?
The people, you see, have taken no part whatever in the matter." The
chief bonze mounted the theatre alone, and having made many violent
gestures and exclamations, again descended, when the performances began.
During these ceremonies the gates of the temples, and both sides of the
theatres, were filled with common Chinese, a large number of whom were
children, playing different games of chance. I never saw people so fond
of gaming as they are.
A part of the roasted poultry was left all night on the tombs, the
common people imagining that at that period the dead assemble and eat it
up. People in misfortune strew amulets over the graves of their
ancestors, to obtain their favour. These amulets are bits of silk
paper, on which are spread pieces of leaf silver, which they fancy
passes current as a paper-money among the dead. I could not ascertain
whether the hog and goat were actually offered up with any ceremony, or
simply left to be devoured by the priests.
"Have you ever seen anything like this before?" asked Newman, as we were
on our way back to the ship.
"Yes, I think I have," I answered.
"So have I," he remarked, "in a Roman Catholic church. The priests of
Rome--ancient and modern--and these bonzes are much alike. They have
both copied their ceremonies from the Jews and the heathens of old,
travestying them somewhat, to make them pass for their own. Depend on
it Josi understood human nature, and knew what would suit the taste of
the vulgar."
So numerous are the Chinese in Java, and so inclined to revolt, that the
Dutch government are always careful to provide them with amusements. In
each place there is a chief, with the title of "captain," who is
answerable for their good conduct. He is obliged to maintain, at his
own cost, a troop of female actors, called Bayadeers. They perform,
without exception, every night, from nine o'clock till daybreak, in a
kind of theatre, in the middle of the street. The play, as far as we
could make out, represents the wars of the Tartars against the Chinese.
Various chiefs, in different costumes, with their faces smeared black or
white, or masked, come to announce a new war, in which they anticipate
great success. They harangue the soldiers with violent gestures. Then
comes a general or emperor, and, making another speech, gets up on a
table with a chair on the top of it, when he takes his seat at the back
of the stage. The combatants then come in with long spears, and,
fighting desperately, one party runs away, while the other has to listen
to a long speech on their bravery. The Tartars are known by their short
coats, large trousers, helmets, sabres, and great shields. The roaring
music of gom-goms never stops during the performance.
One day we visited the Chinese quarter, where there are an immense
number of gaming and eating tables. The seats, as well as the tables,
are made of bamboo. The Chinese eat with two little sticks, and use a
spoon of china with a short crooked handle. Each article of food is
served on a little dish like a saucer. The jelly, minced meats, and
soup, are generally cold, while their beverages are hot. The chief is
arrack, sugar, and hot water. The favourite dish is part of a dog, of a
species with a smooth skin, which they carefully fatten. It is eaten
with every kind of sauce. No people eat so much pork as the Chinese.
The hundred thousand Chinese in Batavia are said to feed at least four
hundred thousand pigs, which increase not a little the bad odours of the
place. Whether they do it to keep the Jews at a distance, I do not
know, but the two people do not get on well together.
We used to meet in the Chinese company, or quarter, curious processions
of men, with marked or painted faces, having kettle-drums, gom-goms, and
tambourines. Some, grotesquely dressed, were carried on poles or in
hampers, ornamented with paper, ribbons, and little bells; some were
seated on monsters, like our representations of sea-horses. These
processions are in honour of the spirit of evil. The reason they give
for them is, that as the Divinity is infinitely good, it is not
necessary to implore him; but the devil, on the contrary, must be
feasted and amused, to prevent him from going about and committing
mischief. In every Chinese house, in a sort of shrine, is a picture of
Confucius, represented as a great fat man, with 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, just as is seen in Romish chapels.
Chinese girls are always shut up, and employed in sewing and embroidery;
and parents arrange marriages without the couple having even seen each
other. The poorer sort, however, are allowed to serve in their shops.
We heard the people generally well spoken of, as being good fathers,
sons, husbands, and friends. They carry on every art and traffic, and
engross nearly all the house and ship building in Batavia, though they
pay enormous annual duties to the Company on their industry and trade.
Among other duties, they pay for being allowed to let their nails grow
long, especially that of the little finger, as it is a proof that they
do not work for their living. The twisted tail, which they wear
extremely long, often down to their knees, pays in proportion to its
length. It is measured every year at a fixed time. To cut off the tail
of a Chinaman, or to pare his nails, is looked upon as a most severe
punishment. Their dress consists of large trousers, and round coats,
which reach to the middle of the thighs. It is either of black or very
bright sky-blue. White is worn for mourning; and when for a very near
relative, the collar has a rent in it. They have a custom of keeping
their dead for some days in the house, which, in such a warm climate,
frequently causes bad fevers. A Chinese house, where a death has
happened, is known by a white cloth hung in lieu of the door.
This information, through Newman's help, I picked up during our visits
on shore. The ship had been at anchor about a week, when we again went
on shore, and had walked on for an hour or so, when, a little beyond
Fort Ansol, we found ourselves in front of a Chinese temple, standing in
a grove of cocoa-nut trees by the side of a rivulet, among very pretty
scenery. The building was about twenty feet long, and twelve wide. The
entrance was through a railing into a small area, and then into a hall,
at the end of which was the sanctuary. In the middle of the hall, just
within the door, was an altar, on which red wax tapers were burning.
There was also an image of a lion, richly gilt. At the end of the hall
was a picture of an old man and a woman, with crowns on their heads, and
about two feet high. They were, I suppose, Josi and his wife. While we
were there, several people came in, and prostrating themselves before
the picture, knocked their heads continually against the ground. At
last a man came in to consult the idols by divination. He had in his
hand two small longitudinal pieces of wood, flat on one side, and round
on the other. Holding these pieces of wood, with the flat sides toward
each other, he let them fall on the ground. As they fell, with the flat
or round side up, so he augured well or ill of some proposed enterprise
or project. He let the sticks fall upwards of twenty times, but seemed
as ill-contented as at first with the promises they made. Every time
they prognosticated evil, he shook his head with a most disconsolate
look. I could not help saying, "Try it again, Chinaman; don't give in."
Whether he understood me or not I do not know, but down he went on the
ground, and thumped his head very hard and often. Then he jumped up and
threw the sticks, and I suppose the omen proved favourable, for with a
joyful countenance he lighted a thick candle and placed it on the altar.
As soon as he was gone, the cunning old bonze blew it out and sold it
to the next comer.
We must not be surprised to hear that the Chinese at times revolt
against the authority of the Europeans among whom they live, and commit
murders and other atrocities; and then to hear of a cruel massacre
committed by the Dutch upon them in Batavia. On one occasion, many
thousands had collected; and some of them having been guilty of murders
and robberies, a considerable apprehension was excited against the whole
body. The Council, therefore, determined that every Chinese who could
not prove that he was obtaining an honest livelihood, should be
transported to Ceylon, to be employed as a slave in the service of the
Company. Among others, a number of Chinese of wealth were seized; and a
report getting abroad that all were to be thus treated, they flew to
arms, and quitting the city in great numbers, took up their quarters in
the mountains, and strengthened themselves so much as to render the fate
of Batavia itself precarious.
In this dilemma the Council offered the rebels an amnesty; but this they
refused, and marching towards the city, ravaged the country on every
side. Here, however, they met with a severe repulse; and when the
infuriated soldiers and sailors returned into the city, supposing that
the Chinese who had remained quiet within their houses were about to
revolt, they attacked them wherever they could be found. All the
Chinese, men, women, and children, without distinction, were put to the
sword; the prisoners in chains were slaughtered; and even some wealthy
people, who had fled to Europeans for safety, were, through the
violation of every principle of humanity and morality, delivered up to
their sanguinary pursuers--the Europeans embezzling the property
confided to them. Thus, all the Chinese, both innocent and guilty, were
exterminated. Notwithstanding this, however, thousands rushed in soon
after to supply their places! It was apprehended that this occurrence
would excite the indignation of the Emperor of China, and, perhaps,
induce him to stop their trade with his country; but when they sent
deputies to apologise, their fears were shown to be groundless by his
truly paternal reply,--to the effect that he was little solicitous for
the fate of unworthy subjects, who, in the pursuit of lucre, had quitted
their country, and abandoned the tombs of their ancestors!
Notwithstanding the unhealthiness of the climate, and the impediments
thrown in the way of commerce by the unwise restrictions of the Dutch,
the Roads of Batavia are always full of the flags of all nations,
attracted by the profit merchants are still able to make. As Batavia
is, or rather was, before Singapore was established, the sole depot for
the spices of the Moluccas and the productions of the island of Java,
consisting of rice, coffee, sugar, arrack, and pepper, ships were coming
continually from every part of India, Africa, and even Europe; and as
they were not allowed to take away coin, they were compelled to fill up
with some or other of the above-mentioned productions. The trade,
indeed, was one almost exclusively of barter.
Bengal sent drugs, patnas, blue cloths, different kinds of stuffs, and
opium; which were exchanged for rice, sugar, coffee, tea, spices,
arrack, a small quantity of silks, and china-ware. The kings of Achen
and Natal, in the island of Sumatra, sent camphor--the best which is
known--benzoin, birds'-nests, calin, and elephants' teeth; and in return
took opium, rice, patnas, and frocks, which were made at Java, Macassar,
and the Moluccas. The princes of the Isle of Borneo sent gold dust,
diamonds, and birds'-nests; and took opium, rice, patnas, frocks,
gunpowder, and small guns, as they said, to defend themselves against
pirates, but, in reality, for their own use as pirates.
The Americans brought kerseymeres, cloths, hats, gold-wire,
silver-galloon, stationery, wine, beer, Seltzer water, provisions, and
piastres; in exchange for spices, sugar, arrack, tea, coffee, rice,
rushes, and Chinese silk and porcelain. The Muscat ships brought
piastres and gum-arabic; those from the Isle of France, wine, olive-oil,
vinegar, hams, cheese, soap, common trinkets, and ebony.
From the Cape of Good Hope were received kitchen-garden seeds, butter,
Constantia and Madeira wines; while the Chinese brought immense
quantities of porcelain and silks of every kind, taking in return opium,
ebony, sandal-wood, spices, and birds'-nests. These nests are half the
size of a woman's hand. They are made by a very small sea-swallow,
(_Hirundo esculenta_), and consist of a glutinous substance, interwoven
with filaments. They are found in the cavities of steep rocks on the
coast of all the Sunda Islands, on the northern shores of Australia, and
in many other parts of the Indian Seas. The native way of procuring
them is by fixing a stick on the summit of the precipice, with a
rope-ladder secured to it, whence the hunters descend in their search
into the most perilous situations. Although they have neither taste nor
smell, yet, from being supposed to be both tonic and a powerful
stimulant, they are an ingredient in all the ragouts of the most wealthy
people in China. They make an excellent broth. The white nests are
most in request. They are prepared by being first washed in three or
four changes of lukewarm water. When they have been some time in it,
they puff up like large vermicelli. Europeans, indeed, discover nothing
more in this singular dish than an insipid jelly, very much indeed
resembling vermicelli, when simply boiled.
After Java was restored to the Dutch, England still carried on a
considerable commerce with the island; but it is far smaller than it
would be under a less restricted system.
The Dutch were for long the only European nation who kept up any
commercial communication with Japan, because no other would submit to
the absurd restrictions and degrading ceremonies imposed by that
barbarian power. Every year, the governor-general sent a ship of
fifteen hundred tons, laden with kerseymeres, fine cloths, clock-work,
and spices. These were chiefly exchanged for bars of copper, which were
made into a very clumsy kind of coin for paying the native and European
troops, as well as the people employed in the counting-houses of Java
and the Moluccas. These ingots are of the finest red copper, and as
thick as the finger. They are cut into two, four, six, and eight
sous-pieces of Holland. The value is inscribed on them. This coin is
termed in the Malay language _baton_, which signifies a stone. The
captain, however, brings back furniture, fans, various articles of
copper, and sabres--the temper of the blades of which equals the best
workmanship of Turkey. The cargo always contains a present to the
emperor; and he, in return, sends one to the Dutch governor-general.
When the Batavian ship is seen, the emperor's agent hails it, to demand
whether the captain is a Christian. He replies that he is Dutch, when a
signal is made for him to approach. From that moment he is boarded 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. Were either found on board, the ship would be
sent back without being allowed to anchor. This visit concluded, the
merchandise is landed, the ship is disarmed and unrigged without the aid
of the captain or crew, and the guns and rigging are carried on shore.
The captain transmits 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 return. Provisions are amply supplied in
the meantime to the crew. When the return merchandise is ready on the
beach, the emperor having notified what he chooses for the ensuing year,
the Japanese themselves again load the vessel, replace her rigging, and
restore her arms, papers, and effects, of which they took possession on
her arrival. There is no instance of anything having been lost; indeed,
the Dutch speak of the Japanese as a most honest people. They are said
to leave their shops and stores without guards or clerks. If a Japanese
goes to a shop, and finds no one there, he takes the article he wants,
lays down the value marked on it, and goes out. All the streets of the
towns are closed at night by iron gates, and each Japanese is
responsible for his neighbour; so they are all interested that no harm
should happen to one another. When a theft is committed in any quarter,
and the author cannot be discovered, the crier, (who is a kind of police
agent), the judge of the division, and the neighbours are compelled to
make good the loss, and are subject to severe corporal punishment.
Very little in those days was known of the interior of Japan, as the
Dutch ambassadors were compelled to submit to the most humiliating
conditions to keep up their intercourse with the country. On visiting
the capital, they were conveyed in palanquins, well enclosed with fixed
lattice-work, like prison-vans in England; and the bearers dared not,
for fear of their lives, indulge them with a view of the country through
which they passed. This information about Japan Newman gained from one
of the officers of the ship trading there. To return to Java.
One day when we were on shore, we saw a great confusion among the crowd,
who were dispersing on every side, as if in mortal dread of something;
and presently we saw a half-naked Malay with a long dagger in his hand,
striking right and left at everybody he met, killing some and wounding
others. As he ran on, crying out in his frenzy, "_Amok--amok--amok_!
kill--kill--kill!" we saw some of the police dashing towards him with
long poles, at the end of which was a fork of wood with iron spikes
inside it. He dodged by several of them, killing one on his way, till
at last a guard met him full in front, and he ran in on the fork, when
he was immediately pinned to the ground; but even then he struck out on
every side with his glittering weapon.
This is what is called running a _muck_! from the word used _amok_--
kill! He had, as is the custom, taken a large quantity of opium, and
thus excited himself to fury in consequence of some supposed or real
injury he had received from his master! Most of these mucks are run by
slaves brought from Celebes. Being mortally wounded, he was immediately
broken alive on the wheel, in the presence of two councillors of
justice.
It is remarkable, that at Batavia, where the assassins, when taken
alive, are broken on the wheel, the mucks are of great frequency; while
at Bencoolen, where they are executed in the most simple and least cruel
way, they seldom occur. Slaves who have murdered their masters, were
executed with the most horrible barbarity by being impaled. An iron was
passed down their backs, so as not to touch any vital part, and by it
they were suspended, one end of the iron rod being fixed in a post ten
feet from the ground. If the weather is dry, they may live on many days
in that horrid position; but if water enters the wound, mortification
ensues, and they quickly die.
The Javanese emperors used till lately to throw their criminals to wild
beasts, or compelled them to enter into combat with them. I heard a
story of a Javanese who was condemned to be torn in pieces by tigers.
On being thrown down from the top of a large cage, he fell across the
back of the largest and fiercest of them, where he sat astride! So
intimidated was the animal, that he did not attempt to injure him; while
the others, awed by the unusual appearance, endeavoured to avoid him!
The poor wretch, however, having been condemned to death, was shot dead
in the cage. This custom was, however, prohibited by the French. Of
course I have been speaking of a state of things as they existed some
years ago, and I daresay some improvements have taken place; but at the
same time the Dutch are of a very conservative disposition, and I
suspect that most of my descriptions would be found correct even at the
present day.