lectors was to be paid for, and the village chiefs who now
received the titles of “ Majors ” were to receive live per cent,
of the produce. After a time, roads were made from the port
of Menado up to the plateau, and smaller paths were cleared
from village to village; missionaries; settled in the more
populous districts and opened schools, and Chinese traders
penetrated to the interior and supplied clothing and other
luxuries in exchange for the money which the sale of the
coffee had produced. At the same time, the country was
divided into districts, and the system of * Controlleurs,”
which had worked so well in Java, was introduced. The
“ Controlleur ” was a European, or a native of European
blood, who was the general superintendent of the cultivation
of the district, the adviser of the chiefs, the protector
of the people, and the means of communication between
both and the European Government. His duties obliged
him to visit every village in succession once a month, and
to send in a report on their condition to the Resident.
As disputes between adjacent villages were now settled by
appeal to a superior authority, the old and inconvenient
semi-fortified houses were disused, and under the direction
. of the “ Controlleurs ” most of the houses were rebuilt
on a neat and uniform plan. It was this interesting district
.which I was now about to visit.
Having decided on my route, I started at 8 a .m . on the
22d of June. Mr. Tower drove me the first three miles
in his chaise, and Mr. Neys accompanied me on horseback
three miles further to the village of Lotta. Here we met
the Controlleur of the district of Tondano, who was returning
home from one of his monthly tours, and who had
agreed to act as my guide and companion on the journey.
From Lotta we had an almost continual ascent for six
miles, which brought us on to the plateau of Tondano at
an elevation of about 2,400 feet. We passed through three
villages whose neatness and beauty quite astonished me.
The main road, along which all the coffee is brought down
from the interior in carts drawn by buffaloes, is always
turned aside at the entrance of a village, so as to pass
behind it, and thus allow the village street itself to be kept
neat and clean. This is bordered by neat hedges often
formed entirely of rose-trees, which are perpetually .in
blossom. There is a broad central path and a border of fine
turf, which is kept well swept and neatly cut. The houses
are all of wood, raised about six feet on substantial posts
neatly painted blue, while the walls are whitewashed. They
all have a verandah enclosed with a neat balustrade, and are
generally surrounded by orange-trees and flowering shrubs.
The surrounding scenery is verdant and picturesque.
Coffee plantations of extreme luxuriance, noble palms and
tree ferns, wooded hills and volcanic peaks, everywhere
meet the eye. I had heard much of the beauty of this
country, but the reality far surpassed my expectations.