The History of Java, v. 1-2

by Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles

Of tuberous roots, besides those furnished from the principal genera, convolvulus, dioscorea, and arum, are those from the bangkwang (dolichos bulbosus), the roots of which are much esteemed by the natives, and the kéntang jáwa (ocymum tuberosum) or Java potatoe. Most of the numerous varieties of the convolvulus and dioscorea, which furnish food for the natives, have been enumerated in one of the first volumes of the Batavian Transactions. The jatropha manihot, called úwi blanda, or wúdo, has been propagated through all parts of Java, and is found growing in the hedges.

The true sago of Amboina and the Eastern Islands, is found only solitary in a few low and marshy situations, and the preparation of it from the pith of the tree is not known to the inhabitants of Java: the leaves only are employed for covering houses; but from the áren, or sagurus rumphii, which grows abundantly in every part of the island, and on account of its variously extensive uses, ranks next in importance to the cocoa-nut, a substance is prepared, similar in all respects to the true sago of the Eastern Islands. The tops of various trees of the palm kind, which are sought after in other parts of the East as food, are, on account of the abundance of rice and other esculent vegetables, but little regarded in Java; but the young shoots of many varieties of the bambu are used in the diet of the natives. Wheat and potatoes, with almost every species of European vegetables, are cultivated with success. Of the oil-giving plants a particular account will be given when describing the agriculture of the country.

Java, in common with the Malayan islands in general, abounds in indigenous fruits. "No region of the earth," observes Mr. Marsden, "can boast an equal abundance and variety of indigenous fruits." The mangústin, which on account of its acknowledged pre-eminence amongst Indian fruits, has been termed the pride of these countries; the durian, or dúren, to which the natives of these islands are so passionately attached; the rámbutan, the lánseh or lánseb, with an extensive variety of the jack, the mango, the plantain, the guava, the pine-apple, the papaw, the custard-apple, the pomegranate, and almost every species of fruit which grows within the tropics, are here found in the greatest variety. The tamarind tree is general. The island also produces many kinds of oranges, citrons, lemons, and in particular the pumplemous (known in Bengal under the name of the Batavian lembu, or lime, and in the West Indies as the shaddock), besides the sáwu, klédung, pachítan, and a variety of others, not generally known to Europeans, but well calculated for the table. Of the mango, at least forty varieties are enumerated; the wild raspberry, which is found in the higher regions, is not destitute of flavour; one kind, in particular, with dark violet-coloured fruit, approaches in taste to the European species. In some of the mountainous tracts are to be found peaches, Chinese pears, and some other fruits imported from Japan, the Cape of Good Hope, and China.

Among innumerable flowers which bloom in perpetual succession throughout the year, and impregnate the air of these countries with their fragrance, those of the champáka, tán-jong, meláti, kanáng'a and nágasári, hold the first rank; they are used by the natives in the ornament of their persons, and are remarkable for their fragrance. The myrtle and rose are found in the gardens of Europeans. A great variety of ornamental trees and shrubs, many of them overlooked in the catalogues of Rhumphius and Van Rheede, have been noticed, as deserving cultivation for their utility as well as beauty.

The medicinal plants of Java have been described in an account published in the Batavian Transactions: among these are many which are employed in the daily practice of the natives, of which a large proportion have not been subjects of investigation or experiment by Europeans, and others which had not previously been botanically described or classed. In a country hitherto imperfectly explored, and abounding in profuse vegetation, it was natural to calculate on the discovery of many useful medicinal plants; and among upwards of sixty, described, for the first time, by Dr. Horsfield, he particularly notices several, as likely to become most valuable articles in general medicinal practice.

Besides abundance of coir, termed sepét by the natives, prepared from the fibres which surround the cocoa-nut, and gamuti (called duk), prepared from those of the áren tree, both of which are well known, another species of palm, the gebáng, also yields valuable ropes, the fibre of which is obtained from the large petioles or stalks of the leaves by pounding and beating. Intelligent natives assert, that ropes prepared from these are particularly valuable, exceeding in strength all other kinds of equal size. The fibres and ropes are called bas. The cotton shrub (gossypium herbaceum) is universal; and hemp, though its uses are unknown to the Javans, is found in the gardens of foreign settlers. Besides these, the island affords various kinds of vegetables, the fibrous bark of which is made into thread, rope, cloth, &c.; but they are never cultivated, and when required for use are collected in their wild state. The general denomination, in the Javan language, of the internal bark of all vegetables which can be manufactured into cords, thread, &c. is lúlub. This being freed, by beating or maceration, from the adhering particles of the exterior bark, yields the fibrous substance, which is twisted by the most simple process, commonly by the hands alone. The trees which afford the lúlub are the wáru, which is very abundant, and is manufactured into ropes for all common domestic purposes; the melínju, the bark of which is called bágu; and the béndo, which affords ropes of superior strength and durability.

Of the bambusa, the pring-ápus, the stem of which may be considered arborescent, furnishes the cheapest ropes. These are made with great expedition, being split into thin strips, which are twisted on the spot into cords fit for all common purposes, although they are serviceable only for a few days. They are uniformly used, in travelling, for securing baggage, &c. Among shrubs principally employed for these purposes are the werúng, urís-urísan, dalúmpang, che-plákan and glúgo; among plants, the widúri and rámi; the fibres of the latter afford very strong and durable cords, which are chiefly employed for nets or lines, and used in fishing: they greatly resemble the sunn of western India, and would probably be found to answer the same purpose, as well in furnishing the bags called in India gunny-bags, for the transportation of goods, as for the manufacture of paper in Europe. This remark applies also to the lúlub of several of the other shrubs mentioned. Several species of písang or plantain yield the materials for ropes and cords of various fineness, according to the methods employed in preparing them. In the Manilla Islands, cables are made from these fibres; and in the first volume of the Batavian Transactions a mode is described of preparing from them a substance resembling cotton. The leaves of the 'nanas, or pine-apple, contain also abundance of useful fibres, which are easily separated in a bundle, after scraping off the coriaceous substance. It is very fine, and the separate fibres are employed by the natives in sewing without any preparation; but it may also be spun, and is made into a kind of stuff resembling silk, gauze, &c.

Mats are made from several species of pandanus, from a kind of grass called méndong, and from the leaves of various palms, particularly the gebáng. The latter affords the most common kinds, coarser and less durable than the others, as well as bags (straw sacks) resembling very coarse mats.

The paper in common use with the Javans is manufactured from the glúgo, (morus papyrifera.)

A variety of vegetable substances are used in dyeing: the principal of which, however, are the tom, or indigo, which is extensively cultivated throughout the island; and the wong-kúdu, which affords a lasting scarlet. A black dye is obtained from the bark of several exotic trees, united with the rind of the mangústin fruit. A yellow dye is also obtained from an exotic wood, heightened by the addition of the bark of the nángka tree, and a variety of the mango.