"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."
