RICE CULTURE IN JAVA.—MILITARY AND SOCIAL MATTERS.
Bright and early the next morning the boys were out for a visit to a place where there was a spring of remarkably cold water. It was about two miles from Buitenzorg, and the road leading to it ran through a palm forest and among rice-fields. They had an opportunity to see the care with which the Javanese till their land. The hilly ground is laid out in terraces, one above another, and when the water has performed its work in one place, it goes to the terrace next below; thus it is made to do duty over and over again. There are large reservoirs where water can be stored in the wet season, and kept for the period when the rain-fall ceases. By close attention to the needs of the soil and the peculiarities of the climate, the Javanese are able to make their land extremely productive, and a failure of crops is a very rare occurrence. On much of the rice-land they grow two crops a year.
THE HOUSE AT THE SPRING.
The spring was of goodly size, and flowed into a pool fifty or sixty feet across. A house had been erected at one side of this pool, and was overshadowed by banana and cocoa trees; it had a lot of dressing-rooms, where the boys were not long in donning the proper costume for a bath. They shivered somewhat when they first entered the water; but the shock did not last long, and then they found the sensation was most delicious. The place was in charge of a Chinese, who demanded a most exorbitant price for the use of the bath and a few bananas and mangosteens that were ordered. When they offered a low sum, he bowed, and seemed to say that, if he could not have what he wanted, he would take what they offered, which was a good deal more than he deserved.
On their return they had a different view of the rice-fields, and Fred made note of the fact that when you look upwards on a lot of rice-fields you see nothing but a series of terraces, while, looking downwards, you seem to be gazing on a lake. While the water is on the flats, the ground is stirred with a harrow drawn by a pair of buffaloes; the rice is sown, and as soon as the plants are of the requisite height the surplus ones are taken out and transplanted. The crop is then started, and the farmer has little to do till the time of harvest, beyond taking care that his fields have plenty of water. When the harvest is made, the paddy—as the uncleaned rice is called—is cut and taken to the mill.
Rice-mills are abundant in Java; some are run by steam, many by water, and many small ones by horses and buffaloes. The rice-mill is quite simple, and consists of a shaft like a ship's capstan and four projecting arms. Each arm has a wheel at the end, and as the shaft goes round the wheels revolve in a circular groove containing the rice to be cleaned. The wheel removes the husk, and when this is done a winnowing-mill separates the rice from the chaff or trash. This is the whole operation. The rice-mill of to-day is practically what it was a hundred years ago.
The Dutch have introduced farming implements of the European pattern on some of the estates, but the natives do not generally take kindly to the innovation. They prefer the old form of ploughs which have been in use from ancient days, and think that what was good for their fathers is good for them. Frank made a sketch of a primitive plough; it had a single handle, and its point could only scratch a furrow in the soil without turning it over.
POUNDING COFFEE.
At one place they saw a native engaged in pounding coffee in a large mortar, to separate the berry from the hull. He had a heavy pestle which he held in both hands, and the perspiration standing on his face showed that the labor was not one of pure pleasure.
On all the large coffee estates improved machinery is in use for the preparation of the product. The berry as it comes from the tree is about the size of an English walnut; the bean is enclosed in a thick husk, and the great point in the preparation is to remove the husk without injuring the bean. Pounding by hand is likely to damage the bean by breaking it, and when this is done the market value of the coffee is considerably reduced. Inventors have studied the problem, and a good many machines have been devised to accomplish the desired separation. The most successful one thus far is the invention of an Englishman in Ceylon, and his machines are in use all over the coffee-producing world.
DUTCH OVERSEERS.
He has called the principle of specific gravity to his aid, and made it very useful. The coffee-berry floats on water, as the husk is very light, but the bean by itself sinks to the bottom. A stream of water floats the berries along a narrow channel, and feeds them automatically into a groove where two plates of copper revolve in opposite directions about half an inch apart. These plates crush the berry, but do not injure the bean; the husk and bean together are carried to a trough, where the bean sinks and is caught in a tub, while the useless husk floats away to whatever distance the water is made to carry it. The coffee is then spread out on a platform and dried in the sun, and it is afterwards sorted, winnowed, and made ready for market. The work is supervised by Dutch overseers, but all the manual labor is performed by natives.
On returning from their ride, and while at breakfast, the boys had a conversation with one of the gentlemen whose acquaintance they had made during the rainy afternoons on the veranda. Fred was curious to know why he did not hear a single native speaking Dutch or English, but confining himself strictly to Malay.
"That is easily explained," said the gentleman. "It is the policy of the Dutch not to teach their language to the natives, but they require all their own officials to learn Malay. They have a school or college in Holland, at the old town of Delft, which was established in 1842, for the express purpose of fitting young men for the East Indian service. Before they can graduate, the students must pass an examination in the usual college studies, and also in the Malay language, Mohammedan justice and laws, and in a knowledge of the country and nations of Netherlands India. Of course they are not expected to speak the Malay language fluently on leaving college, but they know a good deal of it when they land here, and are expected to know more before they have been long in Java. If they are not able to converse easily in Malay by the end of a couple of years, they are liable to be sent home. This makes them study hard, and renders them far more useful than if they could talk only in Dutch.
"You see how it works," he continued. "The Dutch officials can talk and write in their own language with very little fear that the natives can understand a word; but no native can write or say anything that every Dutch official cannot comprehend at once. On several occasions they have been able to nip conspiracies in the bud by this advantage, particularly at the time of the great mutiny in India. Then they do not encourage missionaries to labor among the natives; they argue that the natives are quite content with the religion they have, and it would interfere with their labor in the field to become interested in Christianity. And if a missionary should open a school to teach any other language than Malay, and endeavored to tell the principles of any European or American religion to the natives, he would be very liable to receive a notice to leave the island at an early date."
A company of soldiers marched past the hotel while the party was at breakfast. After looking at them, Fred inquired, "How large an army do they keep here, and how is it composed?"
"The number of troops in the field, or on duty in garrisons, varies from time to time," was the reply, "and therefore an account of the army at one date is not altogether good for another. The army is composed, like that of India, partly of native and partly of European soldiers. The native force is exclusively Mohammedan, and is filled up by voluntary enlistments, never by conscriptions. The European portion is also voluntary, and the conscript troops in the army in Holland are never sent to Java. The infantry is divided into field battalions and garrison battalions, and the soldiers in each battalion are one-third European and two-thirds native. Each battalion contains six companies, the two flank companies consisting of European soldiers, and the four centre companies of natives. The native companies are composed of the different Mohammedan tribes and sects from all parts of Netherlands India, all mixed together, so that there shall never be a large majority of one kind of people in the same battalion."
"That is a very shrewd arrangement," said Frank, "as it prevents a mutiny by making it impossible for a whole battalion to have a common grievance."
FOOT-BRIDGE OVER A MOUNTAIN STREAM.
"Not only that," the gentleman replied, "but it facilitates the movement of the troops; and the Dutch say that their principal object in making the battalions in this way was in consequence of the character of the service. The Dutch East Indies are of great extent, and it is often necessary to make marches where there are no roads, and the few bridges that exist are only intended for persons on foot. Consequently, they can never move their troops in large bodies, owing to the difficulty of carrying provisions. Each battalion under the present system has the means of transporting its own provisions, ammunition, and light mountain guns where there are no roads, as the native soldiers can act as porters, while the Europeans compose the fighting force in case an enemy is encountered.
"All the commissioned officers are Europeans, and in each native company two of the four sergeants and four of the eight corporals must be Europeans; and some of them live in the barrack-rooms with the native soldiers. The European companies in each battalion have barracks separate from the natives, but close at hand; and whenever any of the soldiers of the native companies are sent on duty, they are accompanied by a proportionate number of Europeans. There is a difference in the pay and food of the European and native soldiers; but in all other respects they are treated as nearly alike as possible.
"There is a free school attached to each battalion for the education of both adults and children; the soldiers are urged to attend it, and their children are required to do so. Every officer of the battalion, whether commissioned or non-commissioned, who has any peculiar knowledge, is required to give it to the school; and any soldier of the battalion who has a talent for instructing can be appointed an assistant-teacher in the school, and be relieved from duties that are purely military—except in time of war. All soldiers, whether native or European, can have their wives and children with them, except when on active service in the field."
Fred thought the Java soldier had an easy time of it. Frank thought so too; and asked if he had any more privileges than those that had been named.
"Yes," was the reply; "there is the privilege of a house and garden."
"What!" said one of the boys, "a house and garden for soldiers in the army!"
REWARDS FOR GOOD CONDUCT.
"Certainly," responded their informant; "when a regiment is not quartered in the city, the soldiers are rewarded for good conduct by receiving a plot of ground near the barracks, with the privilege of building a hut. European and native are treated alike in this respect; and it has been found the greatest incentive to good conduct. The man spends his time with his family in the cultivation of his garden when he is not on duty—which is by far the larger part of the day. He returns to the barracks at night, and his family may remain in the hut or go with him to the military quarters.
PIRATE PRISONERS ON A COLONIAL GUN-BOAT.
"But I haven't told you how large the army of Java is. Ordinarily, there are about twenty-five thousand men of all arms; but at present the number is greater, owing to the war in Sumatra, which requires an extra force. The infantry is the most important branch of the service, and is composed as I have told you. The engineers consist of Europeans and natives mixed together in the same companies; the artillery has European gunners and native riders, and the cavalry are nearly all Europeans. There is a colonial navy with several gun-boats, which are generally occupied in seeing that the pirates throughout the Archipelago are kept in proper subjection. And there is also a militia force, which is only to be called on in emergencies: it consists of a cavalry and an infantry corps; and every European living in Java, whether Dutchman or other foreigner, must belong to the militia or the fire-brigade."
The boys thought this was a severe regulation; but they changed their minds when told that the militia-service was very slight, and a man might be a member of the fire-brigade for years without any call being made for his assistance. The Europeans in the interior are exempt from service, except in cases of special emergency; and those living in the cities are not often called upon. Englishmen and others have complained of the requirement to do militia and fire-brigade service, but are met with the reply which cannot be easily answered: "If you don't like the laws and customs of Java, you had better emigrate."
"The Dutch rulers of Java do not pretend they are occupying the country for any other purpose than to make money out of it. They never talk about their great mission of civilizing and enlightening the benighted people of the East, as the English do in India; and whenever anybody is disposed to find fault with them, they say to him without hesitation, 'If you don't like things as you find them here, you would do well to leave. The steamer will start for Singapore in a few days, and you are at liberty to take passage at once.'
PASSPORT OFFICE.
"You must have a passport on landing in Java, or, if you have none, the consul of your country must vouch for you. You must get a permission to travel in the interior; it is very rarely refused, and only when the authorities are satisfied that you have the intention of doing harm."
Frank asked what it would be necessary to do in case he desired to remain permanently, and become an inhabitant of Java.
"You can stay here six weeks," was the reply, "without any formalities beyond the ordinary permission of the police, which costs nothing. But if you want to live here you must apply for permission on a printed form, and have two householders of the place where you are to endorse your application. If there is no objection to your staying, the desired document will be granted by the Governor-general, and the fees and stamps connected with it will cost you about forty dollars of American money."
"Does every foreigner who comes here to live have to pay forty dollars?" Fred inquired.
"That is the law," answered his informant; "but the permission is never refused, unless the authorities suspect that the applicant intends to disturb the public peace, or when he is unable to obtain the necessary securities. The result is, that the foreign population of Java is of a better class than you find in most other parts of the East; the adventurers who have not a dollar in their pockets, and expect to make a living by means more or less questionable, do not come here. The Chinese are very numerous in Java; more than a quarter of a million are settled here; but they are of a better class than the majority of those who go to San Francisco, and they give very little trouble to the authorities. The security is required to protect the government against the applicant becoming a pauper, and to vouch for his good behavior; but it has no reference to private debts, which are treated just like private debts everywhere else.
ORDERED OUT OF THE COUNTRY.
"The government also reserves the right to send anybody out of the country in case he becomes troublesome, even after he has received permission to reside here. The rule applies to a citizen of Holland the same as to any other foreigner, but it is very rarely exercised, and only when all other means of adjusting the difficulty have failed. The local governors have the power of ordering anybody to leave their districts, if he has been found guilty of treating the natives improperly, and the Governor-general may restrict the movements of any individual whenever he thinks the good of the colony requires it."
Fred wished to know if a foreigner could hold land in Java like any subject of the King of Holland, and was answered in the negative.
"What a monstrous injustice!" he replied.
Doctor Bronson laughed at his nephew's remark, and the latter turned towards him with an inquiring look on his face.
"You may not be aware," said the Doctor, "that an alien in the United States is unable to hold real estate, and I believe that the same is the case in Great Britain."
"In that view of the matter," said Fred, "Java is not so bad as I thought it was. But can a foreigner be naturalized here, as in England and America, and then hold property?"
"Certainly," responded the gentleman; "and the time of residence in Java before naturalization is the same as in your own country—six years. When he becomes a citizen, he has the same rights as a Dutchman, but until that time he labors under various disadvantages. The Dutch theory is that all the good things in Java belong to themselves, and if a foreigner chooses to live here and not become a citizen, he must be satisfied with any crumbs that happen to be lying around."
"I have before told you," he continued, "that the Dutch discourage all attempts of the natives to learn the languages of Holland and the rest of Europe, and are not inclined to teach them anything that is distinctively European. I know a native of high rank who went to Europe and spent several years there; when he returned he could speak Dutch, English, and French quite fluently, and was proud of his accomplishments. But he has told me that whenever he spoke to a Dutch official or to a private citizen in any European language, he was always answered in Malay, and if he tried to continue the conversation in any other than the latter tongue it was soon brought to an end. While the Dutch treat the natives kindly, and will not allow any imposition upon them, they are very particular about anything that would bring a European below a native. For instance, they will not permit a native to have a European servant, no matter how high the rank of the former, and how low the latter.
"No native would dare to drive out with a European coachman on any of the public streets, nor with a European on the front seat of his carriage, while he occupied the back one. If a European soldier or sailor becomes drunk in public, he is instantly arrested by the police, in order that his conduct may not degrade the white race in the eyes of the natives. Several years ago a native regent obtained the consent of a Dutch girl to marry him; her family was poor, and her social rank was low, but when he asked the permission of government for his marriage it was promptly refused, and he was dismissed from his office.
"The Dutch idea in this whole matter is that the Oriental never respects his equals, but only his superiors. Consequently they hold that in all social relations they can best serve their own interests and those of the natives by holding themselves to be the superiors, as they are by right of conquest. At the same time, they endeavor to give the native no cause of complaint against them. If a Dutch master maltreats a servant, the latter can have his wrongs redressed in the nearest police court; and if the master is found guilty, he is subject to a heavy fine. A merchant who endeavors to defraud a native is in hot water very speedily; and if he becomes notorious for attempts to enrich himself by this kind of dishonesty, his troubles will increase at a very rapid rate."
"But if one foreigner attempts to cheat another," said Frank, "does the government feel called on to interfere?"
"That is quite another affair," was the reply; "commercial matters between foreigners are exactly like the same transactions in other countries, and the courts exist for the administration of justice, the enforcement of contracts, and other contingencies of trade, in Java as in England and America."
NO ADMITTANCE.