!virtues ; they are honourably distinguished from all
the civilized nations of Asia by a regard for truth.
The British gentlemen who had much intercourse
with the Javanese, were forcibly struck with this valuable
feature of their character, and did not fail to
contrast their singular and unexpected candour with
the almost universal disregard of truth which characterizes
the inhabitants of Hindustan. In courts
of justice the truth was readily elicited, and we had
seldom to complain of peijury or prevarication.
In a great number of cases the prisoner himself
would acknowledge his offence, and often, without
a particle of extenuation, furnish an ample
detail of all the circumstances of his own criminality
.T
hey have no capacity for intrigue, and, in their
conduct, we do not discover them at any time pursuing
those dexterous expedients, and subtle practices,
of which the whole lives of other Asiatic people
so frequently consist. The natives of Arabia, of Hindustan,
and China, find it an easy matter to circumvent
them, and, while inferior in courage, and
often in real capacity, they seem, in all ages of
their history, to have made a gainful business of
the practice of their knavery.
The Indian islanders are capable of attachment,
gratitude, and fidelity, and it would be difficult to
quote among them any instances of the flagrant and
revolting violation of those virtues, by which the
Hindus have rendered their name so odious to Europeans.
In their external deportment they are grave, reserved,
cautious, courteous, and obsequious. Their
flattery is not artful, and they make very poor sycophants.
This portion of their character is directly
referable to the despotic nature of their political
institutions.
The Indian islanders are neither litigious, avaricious,
nor rapacious j but, I think, sufficiently tenacious
of their rights. Considering the form of
government under which the Javanese live, I have
been surprised to find with what boldness they demand
justice, and with what pertinacity they maintain
their cause. A petition, for example, is not
unrequently summed up by such expressions as the
following: - I have been wronged. I will not
submit to it, and I demand justice.» It is in suing
for justice, rather than in defending themselves,
that this trait of character is chiefly exemplified.
W m 18 because the accuser is generally in the
nght. The injury they have received makes a
deep impression upon them, and all the bearings of
t e aggression are familiar to their minds, so that
before the judge, while they preserve decorum,
thlf 1 ’T i their CauSe though simple eloquence. in 3 tone of vehement
Excluding their conduct in a state of hostili-
ty towards the public enemy, and the excesses