LOMBOC 220 LOMBOQ
above 100 feet above the level of the sea. The northern or volcanic range consists of
two groups, the western being composed of several mountains, and the eastern of one
great one. This last is the Gunung Rinjani, or Mount Rinjani, the same which is
called by mariners the Peak of Lomboc. This rises to the height of 12,375 feet above
the level of the sea, and is consequently the highest land in the whole Archipelago.
The mountains of Lomboc contain no volcanos in activity, but many extinct craters.
Nearly the whole island is covered with a bed of ashes which proceeded from the
celebrated eruption of Tambora, in the neighbouring island of Sumbawa, in April 1815,
distant twenty leagues. This was felt with great severity at the time and long after,
the depth of ashes which fell having varied, according to the nature of the locality,
from one to two feet in depth. This not only destroyed the growing crops, but for
some years prevented the sowing of corn, and the result was famine, disease, and
the cutting off of much of the population. The after-effects, however, have proved
beneficial, much land before incapable of cultivation having been fertilised and
rendered productive by the volcanic ashes. » ,
The rivers of Lomboc are numerous, but small, and generally unfit even for boat
navigation. By their application to the purpose of irrigation, they are, however, the
main cause of the great productiveness of the island. Lomboc also ha3 numerous
mountain lakes, like Bali, and these, by furnishing a perennial supply of water, contribute
to the same object. One of these lakes, named the Danu, that is, “ the lake,” or
Sagara-anak, literally “ child-sea,” is of considerable extent, and computed to be 8813
feet above the level of the sea. These lakes are, no doubt, extinct volcanic craters.^
The vegetation of Lomboc resembles that of Java. The teak tree, however, is
absent, as in Bali, and, generally, the timber trees, although ornamental, are not of
good quality for economical uses. The Fauna differs very much from that of Java.
In Java, for example, there are three species of ape, but in Lomboc only one. The
tiger, the leopard, and all the other large feline animals found in Java are wanting in
Lomboc. The elephant, the rhinoceros, and the tapir, are all wanting, and of this
family of animals the wild hog alone is present. The wild ruminants are numerous,
as different species of deer, the Sunda ox, and the common buffalo become wild. In
the domestic state are found the ox of the same variety as the cattle of Bali, but
differing from those of Java, the buffalo, the goat, the hog, the dog, and the horse,
the latter much inferior to that of the neighbouring island of Sumbawa. Among
birds, the peacock of Java does not exist in Lomboc, but it has one beautiful
species of parrot, peculiar to itself, and a cockatoo, a bird not found in any island
west of it. The poultry are the common fowl of the game breed,—the people of
Lomboc as well as the Balinese being great coek-fighters,—and the duck, an ugly,
lean, penguin-like animal, kept in great quantities, chiefly for their eggs, which, as in
Java, are, when pickled, a favourite food of the people.
The natives of Lomboc, who call themselves Sasak, are a distinct people from
the Javanese and Balinese, speaking a language essentially different from those of
these two people, although containing many words in common with them. I t is
written in the Javanese character, on palm leaves. The entire papulation has been
estimated at about 400,000, in the following proportion of nationalities, namely,—
Sasaks, 380,000 ; Balinese, 20,000 ; and natives of Celebes, 5,000. To this may be
added four or five Europeans, and a very small number of Chinese.
The ordinary arts, as they are practised by the natives of the Archipelago, have
acquired a considerable degree of advancement among the Sasaks, especially the art of
agriculture, in which irrigation is said to be practised with even more skill than in Java.
Their iron is all imported, but manipulated at home into implements of agriculture,
and tools, swords, spears, and fire arms, with no inconsiderable skill. Agriculture is,
however, the special pursuit of the people of Lomboc. They are, indeed, almost
exclusively a rural and a home-keeping people, seldom engaging in external trade,
and never in piracy. This traffic is in the hands of the natives of Celebes, who, as
already stated, are computed to amount to 5,000, all settled at the places of foreign
trade, on the coast. The exports of Lomboc consist of raw agricultural produce,
namely, rice, cotton-wool, pulses, horses, with ox and buffalo hides. The rice, the
chief export, is reckoned to be not less than 16,000 tons, a large quantity for so small
an island, and probably more than is at present exported from the great island of
Java, once the granary of the whole Archipelago. Much of this, and of the pulses
and hides, are sent to the market of China. The imports consist of salt, whicli the
island itself, from the form of its coasts, does not produce,—of iron, cutlery, fire-arms,
cotton cloths of Europe and the neighbouring islands, with gold and silver, and the
small money of China, the last the principal currency of the island, as was the case
, , , , , to some degree with Java, before with the whole Archipelago, excep ^ ^ n> on the weatem cotahste, aanrrdi vsahlo oref
Europeans. The chief place of t although but an open road. Labuhan
of the strait which divides Lom«° , 00 i a rbour”), on the same coast, is a land-locked
Tring (probably Labuhan-prmg, ^ but oaimot be used, except occasionally as a
harbour, and secure against a ¿ Bal ubrity, a quality which within the tropics
port of refuge, on accou:nt nature. The town of Amp&nan consists of four
belongs to most harbours o affcer their respective inhabitants, the Sasaks,
different quarters, or kampungs Shipping obtain at it, m abundance and
the Balinese, the of oxen, hogs, poultry, rice,
S e 6ousWroots,a anciExcellent fruits. Whalers, and other European and American
shipping repair to it for this edan religion, but when, or by whom they
The Sasaks have adopted the M a h o ^ ^ ^ S ^ they ta d professed the same
khid oTffindffism H Z b e L g ^ d MoXms!
H M B H i 1 1 1 1 1 1 r “ ’’“oh agrAeet twheit hb etghien nHiningd oufi stehde pporepsuelnatt iocenn otuf r“ya, l^L . 00, wffich hhaadd jbie^e^n ^di v^ided into^ four
native principalities, was subdued ^ P. tbe narrow channel which divides
to effect the conquest, it was only necesBary ■ effected the conquest,
the two islands. Although no longer ^ j J mese
the Sasaks are still ruled by a prin Sasaks in subjection, although near
are the ruling nation of t h e i sW hoWing profe’Ssing Hinduism
twenty times their own number, an ^ . . P professing Mahommedanism.
conquering and holding in permanent name of a metro-
T h e r e s i d e n c e of the Balinese king of om repU(;ation I t is situated about three
politan province of Java, once of consffierable repuUtiom ™ f h wegtern
Liles inland from BbePthe case, and their
coast. Most of the Balinese are settled 1 j. b iess than 20 000. M. Zollinger,
numbers are correctly given, its population wouidnot be fves
who visited the place, t o e
the following account of i t . ? «straight direction from the coast,
miles distant from Amp&nan, and two S S the c ^ i n d tren cross a river, when
From the last-named place we proc ® ^ „ forfv feet broad, planted with an
wavee nfiuned o of uwrisledl vfeigs troene sa, w h i c h runs all the way to Jaamram. is sduurrriouugn dthede
by a bamboo hedge The four ° aP the ^ utch call Friesland horses. All
night with a kind of bamboo barnc , angles, and the two main ones cross
the streets and paths mtersect each othe g | the two palaCes of the Raja.
g S i ^ ^
w H B
« 1 1 1
S f u s t t d°efera ^ e e s , U woods planted on h i l l s -
all the work of men s hands.
LOMPO-BATANG. The name of the highest mountain of Celebes,
a " T o o * kL r z ™ . f . r x : tv . r ,hor t »f
that of the highest mountains of Sumatra, Java, Bali, and Lombo .
LONTAR. The Malay name of the Palmyra palm, or Borassus habelliformis.
This is a slight corruption of the Javanese one, rontab compou compounded
wordron a leaf, and tal or tar, the Sanscrit name of this palm
word is equivalent to the Hindu one, talpat. The name of . Archiderived
from the leaf which was the writing material of all the nations of theArchi
pelago before the introduction of paper, and still continues to be so of some oi tfiem.
LOORY, h u t correctly Nuri in Malay, and Nori in Javanese, is the generic name
for “ parrot.” The sub-family of parrots, to which naturalists have given the name