A JAVANESE CHIEF.
"Mr. Money says," answered Fred, "that the general made a careful study of the relations between the people and their native rulers. He found a patriarchal form of government, the villages being ruled by their chosen chiefs; several villages forming a sort of district, and several districts united into a province or principality. It was the policy of General Van den Bosch to take this organization as he found it; and, instead of over-throwing the native rulers, he would strengthen them, and make it for their interest, and that of their subjects, to be on friendly terms with the Dutch. This policy was adopted, and it is carried out to this day.
"Now, under the old system of government, before the Dutch came to Java, the peasant was required to give one-fifth of his labor gratuitously in return for the rent of the land, which was considered to be the property of the prince. When the Dutch captured a region, they claimed that they had captured the prince, and not the people, and that the revenues belonged to them as the conquerors. In some of the provinces the Dutch hold possession by treaty, and not by conquest; and the revenues continue to go to the prince as before. To develop the producing capacities of the country, they made an estimate of the quantity of any given article that each district ought to raise under proper management, and then they required the native ruler of the district to see that there was the proper production. Allowance was made for bad seasons, or other calamities; and if the production fell short, without any assignable cause, the ruler found his revenues cut off. The government bought the product, as we have already seen, and made its profit. The prince had his revenue and was happy, and the same was the case with the subordinate chiefs. The peasant was rewarded for his labor; and, as he had no more tax to pay than under the old system, he had nothing to complain of.
"The crown-lands, or those obtained by conquest, were the ones let out to contractors. They were generally on long leases, so that the contractor was encouraged to make improvements; and the result is that cultivation by private management has been greatly increased, and large fortunes have been made in many instances. The government takes its rental by receiving a share of the crops; and it watches over the relations between the lessee and his laborers, to see that neither practices any imposition on the other. Each must keep his agreement, under severe penalties, and the whole system is said to work very smoothly.
"The Dutch officials all over the island have no dealings with the natives except through their own rulers. The native princes have the title of regents, and the authority of each is supreme in his district as long as he carries out the policy of the government. A Dutch resident or assistant-resident lives near each regent, and is considered to be his 'elder brother,' who advises the younger what to do. He frequently makes recommendations to the regent, though he never gives orders; but it is pretty clearly understood that he expects the recommendation to be adopted. The resident has a few subordinate Europeans, who go through the district at regular intervals, and visit every village it contains. They talk with the lower native rulers, examine the proceedings of the native courts, investigate the condition of the government plantations, hear the complaints of the people against their head men, or petty chiefs, and listen to any suggestions that are offered. Disputes are settled in the local courts without the intervention of a Dutch official; but in case of dissatisfaction they may be appealed to the district court, and, if not settled there, they may be carried to the highest courts of the island.
AN IMPROVED SUGAR ESTATE.