aró, in a great depsee, gjxaag^s to unrelmtling hatred and blood-thirsty
revenge. Almost the only passion fb a i6eapn<Ege tfcem t©; deeds «efflwij-
geance or assassination is jealousy. The wound given -to a husband’s
honour hy seducing, his wile is seldom healed, the crime seldom forgiven j
and what is remarkable, the very people who break the marriage tie on the
slightest capriee.Tot the most vague pretence, .are yet uncommonly watchful
over it while it remains entire- They are Hide liable to those fits and
starts of anger, or those sudden explosions of fe y , which appear among
northern nations. To this remark have been brought forward-as'exeep-
tiqns, ,thoser acts of .vengeance, proceeding from an irresistible phtM&y,
called mucks, where the unhappy sufferer aims at indiscriminate destruction,
fill he himself is . killed like a wild beast, whom it I ’ impossible to take
alive,. It is a mistake, however, to attribute these acts of desperation to
the Javans.
That such have occurred on Java,./even during the British administration,
«t erue/ V<et not, .among the Javans u they have happened e&dtusivjgly inlibe
Jaige towns -of Batavia, £emórang, and Svr&baya, and have bee© eabfeed
almost entirely to «fee class «Crfiwves. TMs phrer^-afe'k crime -against
society, seems, if mdt to have originated under the Dutch, .certainly at least
to have .been increased dui;iqg their administration by the great .severity, of
fh^ir piinisljmenis. Tar .the slightest; ftmft, a alaye, was punished with a
severity which jhe dr-ead^tl m much as -death 5 and with torture in ail i1§
torrid forms before his «yes, often preferred'lid Tush on1 dpath -%jid
vengeance.
A tror.imis crimes arc extremely rare, mad principally' owing
to misgovern ment when they have occurred. In answer to what has been
asserted concerning jobberies, -assassinations,- and thefts, it may fee Stated,
that during‘the-residence of the English, an entire confidence waé ïeffijjed
-in the people, and that, confidence waV never found misplaced, ’ ;Xh£
English yever-used bars.or bolts to their houses, never travelled with arms,
and no Insfeaopp -occurred of ibeir being ill ..used. The Butch, on the
^contrary, placed no confidence: all their windows were 'barred, -and all
their floors lodked, in keep out the treacherous native!'fyh ^ ‘ey, called
them},, and they never moved nve miles abroad without pistols and swords,
What .could be #^pepfed by a goverpment hhat derived a principal part of
its Eesenue item the encouragement -of nfice, fey the farms of gaming,
cock-fighting, and opium shops? After the twoJformer were abolished by
■ ’fhe
the; Tfogiisfa j and the local - government had done all in its power to discou-
raw , ihe latter.. a; (risible;; amelioration took place birthe,, morals of the
losvpf, ranks.
Hordes of; banditti, formidable fete their numbers and audacity, formerly
infested .s$me .parts of ;the. cowtry* <®#tfeul#fly; the provinces of Bantam
and.Cheribon; but. since they have been dispersed by the strong'hand of
government, the, roads pfjjJayaynay Hot travelled in as mueh "security .as those;
of jElngland -. -..
Mwvhv has be&rt said of the, indolence, of thp,-Javans, by those who.
deprived theta. of; all motives: for industry. T shall not again repeat what,
I have formerly of several 0ceasions rtated on this!snbjeet, but shall only,
enter a broaddenialoftho charge- They are as indiustrious, and, laborious,
as any people could be e je c te d to be, in;:the*r eircumstanees of insecurity
and oppression, or. as any people would b e .required to-.fee, with, their
advantages of soil and climate. If they do not labour during the whole
day# it is because such persevering toh isiUipLeeessary® [ or w:ould bring them
no additional enjoyments. The besf refutation of the charge of indolence
is to: be found in: the extent of their pd|Wia^©n-s the well dressed appearance
of their rice fields,, and the abundant supplies of their harvests. They
genially- rise by daylight 5 at- half past six they go out to therice fields,
where they employ theipbufialoe&till ten,. when they return home,, bathe,
and refresh themselves with a meal- During the violent, heat- of the noon
they remain, under 'the shade .of their -houses, or village trees, making
baskets, mending their implements of husbandry, or engaged in, other
necessary aVQcations, and at about four return to labour them,
WithouthlifafepstM ether cattle. -.At- six they return to their homes, sup,
and spend the remainder ©f their .time- till,- the hpuRof rest (which isrgene*
rally between eight and mpe-i in little - parties for amusement or
aatiomviwhch the whole: village. becomes, a .sc&ne cd quiet content and
pleasures The same round of toil,,and relaxation is observed during the
season for garden culture, dry field; labour',; or, other employments.
... Under this system» the villagers seem to enjoy- a. greater, degree of happiness
than they could derive from those increased means that would result
from increased exertion, I can bear testimony to their general, che.eyfuln.ess,,
contentedneas, and good humour, for,-haying visifed their villages ak all
Seasons, and often when..least expectede©tipit$f unknown, I have, always
found them either pleased and satisfied with their lot whenfengaged At their-
i K 2 ' work,