I. Malay Peninsula.
The savage tribes of the Malay Peninsula are divided into the Semang, the Sakai and the Jakun.
Among the Sakai, according to De Morgan “the debtor and his family work for the creditor during one or two moons, according to the decision of the panghulu (village-chief)”. This certainly is a commencement of debt-slavery; but such compulsory labour, limited beforehand to one or two months, is not yet slavery in the true sense.
Skeat and Blagden state that, among the Benua-Jakun, crimes of all kinds might be expatiated by the payment of fines. If the offender failed to pay the fine, he became the slave of his victim. No more details being added, the existence of slavery does not seem to us to be quite certain.
As neither in Skeat and Blagden’s exhaustive work, nor in the other books and articles we have consulted, any further mention is made of slaves, we are justified in concluding that these tribes, with the exception perhaps of a division of the Jakun, do not practise slavery[325].
II. Sumatra and neighbouring islands.
Brenner and Junghuhn speak of the Battas of Sumatra in general as keeping slaves[326].
The existence or former existence of slavery is sufficiently proved with regard to the following divisions of the Battas:
- Battas on the Pane and Bila rivers[327],
- Battas,, of Mandheling[328],
- Battas,, of Pertibie[329], [[111]]
- Karo Battas[330],
- Raja Battas[331],
- Battas of Angkola[332],
- Battas,, of Simelungun[333],
- Battas,, of Singkel and Pak-pak[334],
- Battas,, of the country of Panei[335].
Among the Battas of Silindung slavery has never existed, according to Meerwaldt[336]. Whether he means only slavery in the restricted sense, or also pawning, is not clear.