The Toba Battas, according to Meerwaldt, formerly had slaves; but now slavery is dying out under Dutch influence. Van Dijk, who visited the Habinsaran district in the Toba-lands, states that in some parts of the district there were slaves, in others there were not. Whether the latter fact is to be accounted for by Dutch influence, does not appear from his very short notes[337].
On the Lubus we have found only two short articles, in which slavery is not mentioned; but this does not prove very much[338].
None of the describers of the Kubus make any mention of slaves; so we may suppose, that slavery does not exist among them[339].
De Groot gives a detailed account of slavery and pawning in the Lampong districts[340].
In Nias slavery certainly exists[341].
The Mentawei Islanders very probably have no slaves. None of their describers make any mention of slavery[342]. “Their whole warfare consists of treacherous attacks, in which nobody’s life is spared”[343]. [[112]]
On the Anambas, Natuna and Tambelan Islands, belonging to the Lingga-Riouw group, there are debtor-slaves[344].
Most of the writers on Enggano make no mention of slavery[345]. According to Walland, the Engganese wear ornaments in their ear-laps, which are pierced for that purpose. If anybody’s ear-lap is broken, he incurs great disgrace; he is no longer listened to in any deliberation, nor considered a notable in his tribe, and becomes the slave of his relatives, for whom he is obliged to work. And Rosenberg says: “If a criminal does not pay the fine, this is done by his kindred; but if they are unable to pay, they sell him as a slave. So slavery exists; but it is of a very mild kind, and the number of slaves is very small”[346]. The fact that both authors speak of slavery only in connection with these particular cases, whereas the others do not speak of it at all, makes us doubt, whether what Walland and Rosenberg call slavery is slavery in the true sense. So we cannot come to a clear conclusion.
III. Borneo.
Among the Hill- or Land-Dyaks (Orang Gunong) slavery in the restricted sense and slave-trade did not exist, but, says Low: “the system of slave-debtors is carried on, though to a very small extent”. Later on this kind of slavery also disappeared[347].