the neck of a tiger, do it without delay ; should he
order you to kiss the cheek of an angry serpent,
do it without hesitation. Do not flinch in either
case, for your obedience will gain you renown, and
lay for you the foundation of prosperity. When
you are ordered to walk over ground strewed with
spikes, forthwith walk over i t ; you will receive no
harm, for, even should death be the consequence,
the reward of your devotion will be a smooth road
to heaven.”
In their extravagant efforts to appear servile, the
Indian islanders may almost literally be said to
mimic the gait and manners of the very beasts of the
field. In approaching the sovereign, the subject
creeps or goes on all-fours, and retires in the same
humiliating manner. He never stands erect, by
any chance, in the presence, whatever his occupation.
In the early intercourse of Europeans with
the Javanese, a Dutch admiral and his suite, having
stood erect before a Javanese monarch, though
that monarch was a refugee claiming assistance, the
courtiers were so shocked at his presumption, that
they began to use force to compel him into an attitude
of more humility, and a serious quarrel was
the consequence. *
* {* At Mindanao, they may loolc at their prince ; but, from
the highest to the lowest, they approach him with the greatest
respect and veneration, creeping very low, and ofttimes on
6
The languages of the tribes which have the federal
and aristocratic forms of government, have no
such extravagant expressions as those now alluded
to, for with them there are many competitors for
panegyric, and no one to make a thorough monopoly
of it.
The government of Java, and all the other forms
of absolute government, are hereditary in the family
of the reigning prince, but the rule of primogeniture,
so indispensable to tranquillity, is neither
practised nor understood. By custom it is generally
thought necessary that the heirto the throne
should be the son of a legitimate wife, or queen,
and not of a concubine. The sovereign, during
his lifetime, proclaims the eventual successor, who
is honoured as the first subject, but seldom entrusted
with any share in the administration. This
practice, which is universal in all the absolute forms
of social polity, deserves to be looked upon as an
improvement on these forms of government.
Under the Javanese monarch, a minister, or
P ateh, and four assistants, superintend the administration
of the country. Two of the assistants
are intended to aid in the management of the
their knees, with their eyes fixt on him, and when they withdraw,
they return in the same manner, creeping backwards,
and still keeping their eyes on him, till they are out of sight-”
Dampier, Vol. I. p. 143.