A JUS'!' appreciatiol1 of entiments
and motives repugnant to our own is among tbe most difficult of intellectual feats. Tbe Oermans expreSB their sellse of th is truth by a concise and vigorou, if not altogether elegant, saying: " No man can g t out of hi own kin, anel int lIis l1f'ighbour·s.' A dire rence of olom betw CII th aid skins, it may b, added, withltold veil advonturons ouls from attempting tbi!'\
temporary transmigratioll. Alld til wisdom of nations, brown and whit ,
anctions this diffidenc . In Java, Occidental!:' and Orientals have be n
108
c1welling together for about three cen-turie. They have become conversant with ea h other's language, opinione, and affairs: they are brought into a certain mutual dependence, and into daily and hourly contact: there is no arrogance or ontempt on the one ide, no abject fear or hatred on the other; no wilful prejudice, it would seem,
011 either aide. But Hollanders do not understand the Javanese, nor do Java-nese under tand the Hollanders, in any true sense of the word. 0 that it seems the part of wisdom to acknowledge this at the outset, merely stating th at the notions of ni e and na ty, fair and foul, right alld wrong, nch a' they obtain among tho tw nat iou. are tlntaaoni tic.
Anyway, on til • part of a ra. ualob rver, sneh a. tbe pre~ nt . rib , any furth l' ritjci~ms woulcl be pre umptuou and almo:t in vitalJly lLnju : wh refore, sl1ch wiU b refrained from.
.But, whereas, t freely onfess that the innel' lir of the ./avane ha rem:üned
109
~a.et. a-nd Faw. about Java.
hidden from me, their outward exis-tence has become familiar enough. The J avanese practically live out-of-doors.
They take their bath in the river, per-form their toilet under some spreading waringin tree, hanging a minor as big as the hand on the rugged stem, and squat down to their meal by the roadside.
Af ter nightfall, dark figures may be dis-cerned around the stalls of fruit-vendors, fantastically lit up by thc uneertain aame of an oil-wiek. And, in the dry season, they of ten sleep on the moonlit sward of some gardeo, or on the steps of ao uoteoanted house.
This life seems strange to us Northeroers, self-coostituted prisoners under roofs and within walls. But we have only to kok at a Malay, and the intuitive conviction flashes on us, that it is emineotly right and proper for him thus to live. He is a creature of the field. His supple, sinewy frame, his dark skin, thc far-away look in bis eyes, thc very shape of his feet, with the short,
110
Glimpsel of Native LiftJ.
strong toes, well separated from one another-his whole appearance- imme-diately suggest a background of trees and brushwood, running water, sunlit, wind-awept spaces, and the bare brown earth. And the scenery of Java with its strange colouring, at once violent and duB, its luxuriant vegetation, and its abrupt changes in the midst of apparent monotony, lacks, otherwise, the flDal, completing touch by the absence of dusky figures moving through it. Land-scape and people are eaeh other's natural complement and explanation. Hence, the pieturesque and poetic charm of the Javanese out-ot~doorB.
One of the most fascinating scenes is that of tbe bath in the river, soon af ter sunrise, such as, at Batavia, I have repeatedly witnessed from the Tanah Abang embankment. The early sunlight-a elear, cool, yellow- with a sparkie as of topazes in it, brigbtens the subdued green of the "asem"
treea along the riverside, and make.
111
)J'acls (t7ull!'ulwies abo!~l Java.
the short wet grass glisten. The brown water of the Kali Batawi gleams golden between the oblique bars of shadow: aod the bodies of the bathers, stripped to the wni t, gleam like bron ze statues. Small boys and girls swim about, kicking up the water a they go. Women stand, graceful and erect, in the clinging transparent folds of their sarongs, pulled up over the bosom, and drawn tight under the arms, leaving free the shapely shoulders. I on ce saw two young gids thus attired, half hidden in a clump of tall-Ieaved reeds, pouring water over one anothel"s head from little buckets made of an areng-Ieaf. Their black hrur shone, and their garmeotsweredrawn bythe running water into elir.ging flowing folds that moulded their lithe little figures from bosom to ankie. At the sound of my footsteps, one of them looked up, lifting a childish face, and large luiet eyes, as uncooscious as a fawn's. But ber companioll, saying something, made
112
Glimpli6S of Nalü'e L~/r.
hor illl"ll her head, anel look down the riv r. A Ild, as J follow el h r glancr, 1
.aw :11101 h I" pict\lre~q\le "TOnp- SOIllC
ix or ci,...ht !Tl Il tugging ::md hoving at a J road, brick-lad 11 har/Yc, which had TUil agroullcl 011 the hall w bed
or
Lhe kali (riv r). The water dripped frolll theil' leg :lI1d tucked-up sarong~, and their backs gleamed in the ·un. hin ,L
almo t bent double th y mged the ponderouB thin forward. But, till, the bright red heap r main cl stationary.
'uddcnly, a yOllng boy, who Lwl beell skipping on thû mbankment, came ,I wn ",ith ti rnnning leap. antI. givin~
the boa a udden . hall pu. h, ent it darting forward. Then h loou up, laughing, and hook ba·k til hock of hla k haiL" whi h had (:JU n VPI" hi eyes. Hc looked like a uu ky yOllng riv r god, who out of kin noss had om to as ist hi votarie .
'rhe flower-market i a 'cene of idyIlic graee, when, aftel' tb il" early bath in tho river, thc women co me trooping thithcr,
113
an I "tand hUl'gaining thnir band full of r i! t\nd pillk 1'0 UfO, l'l'ealllyj 'sHlllinc , and bd)('l'o: ''"' wltitel' tlwll now, 'l'he .rnvatl 'e have OL "'l'pat love of flowers, t,hotl"'h, appar ntl ,th .Y take na trouble to mi ., th 111 in thpir gardens, In 1 ata ia, at lea t, Lil vel' ,w any grow-inrr IJ al' thcil' 'tta ' in th
kam-!Jong: '"IN p l'hap tbe tUl'dy hibiscu in h dg " and that laJ'g white
odori-rt'l' u 'OIlV lVlllll whicb llle wind sows
along raad idp~ and h dgel'ow - tbe I'(l;wty of th ni ht, And they do not ,",(Jem lu ('W.'(J for a haudful of flowers in a \'(\' , lo brighten the mi-dal'kue s of th ir littl(' pilgal' hut!',
BUI LIJP \I' lil n Ul" hal'dly 'v l' el1
Wi.Lholll n l'l ~f'bud J' t ub 1'08 -blo som
1 wiJl d lutO theil' hail', al1d th men not
tlllfl' llU ntly hal' une tu k bebind the I'ar, 01' etw 'en th fold of th ir head-k l' 'hi f, fol' th 'hildl'cn, their bare IJl'own littL bodies ar hung with tand-jong wl'eath , Thc p1uckod-Ollt petals
f alllllanner of fragrant Gower al'e used 114
to cent th water which the WOltlûll
pont' over theil' Ion" blark hair, aft('1' washing it with a (leeo tion of hal'l'Pc1 leaves anel 'talk'; ano, tO!r thel' with ambel'gris, and a weet, lllellin~ root.
alled "ahkar wangai " nl'(, ,tr('wn between the fold, of thcil' holiday-attire, Like all Ori >ntal", tbr. ,Javnne e :1r e
-es iv Iy fond of perfurrJr,,' wlri 'h no doubt, purtially ('xplaill tlreir pl'ofu, us of tt'onrrly- ' nt d ~1()\\'PI', Rul thnt, apart fr III h I1l1'l'pl,v ('n, 11:11 rn joyment of th ' . m 11, they prize Jlowel',.
rllt' til plen lll'1' afrol' IIld 10! h 'yr b~
their tint~ anti tihap\'" i. }J['()\'Pc\ b~
the f1' qUPl1cy with ",hi 'h f1ol'al de<;igll'
Ot 'ur 11 th iJ' tluthcs alld rnn1l1enti', Th full 10be~ of tllp loto -I l1eL, tlw di" f th llufoldl'd 11011'\'1' wit h lpal'l-'~
radiat in~, il '" 'l1l'ioIlQly-c'onfigllratE'd L,i ..
lil al" 1'('l'o!l:lliz('(l agaill "lid "~f\in Uil
Ih' lil'ul,ban ~ ;tn(l handl(" of til(' 111 n', puniardi:' anrl on rl1l' ginllr-l'la~p"\ :11)"
t hl large ,ij I'er IGlltaya-hl'ullt'IJf'R of 1111' WOIIIPIl, 'l'lw lil\!' \'Iotll 1'''1' 'fll'Ong~ i4
l i j
J'aof~ (md }'aneio3 (lbout Ja/'a,
d corated with fanciful delineations of tbe fiowel's that blow in every field and meadow, their chalices and eal'ly tendril sprouting amidst figul' of
wide-mouthed c1l'a~ n , fan~ed aud clawed, i\Ioreover for their hidd('n virtue , and thc sacred moaning of which they are the symbol flow l'S are by the natives a 0 iatec1 with all tho princil al acts ancl circum taIlces of their li"es- with joy alld sorrow and cel' mony, and the
~on'i e of th "ods. Wh n the vilJag folk, dOllOill~ their holiday-attim, go fOl'th to the fe tive pbnti ng of the rioe, Ol' tho gathering, stuIk by sta Ik, of th l'il'C ars, they wear wrouth of flowor twined in their hui\'. At t hp 1"11. tof hi,.
circumci. ion, Lil boy i rowned with them. Th yare thc chief ornament of lovol'!' for th ,ir 1n3\'riagp day- gl aming in the elaborat h ad·c\rp .. of tlle bridp, anel dangling down n. a 10nO' frin.... from th groo!n';: goldpIl tlindem: t,he f'(;nb-hard or hi poniunl, toD, if! wound auout with IHlplets of flow l'S: and a heavy
U6
Glilmp80iJ oJ Z.tative Lif~, garland girdles his naked waist, all yellow with "boreh" powder, To the dead on tbe third, the seventh, the fortieth, tho hundredth, and the thou-sandth day aftel' the burial, a tribute of flowers i bronght by the relations, who pray for the welfare of their kinsman's soul, nnd in return implore
!ti protcction together with that of all their ancestor up to Adam and Eve who ar especially venel'uted.
La tly, flowers are thought tb most acceptable offering to the gods, the ancient gods whom n violence of Bud-dhi. tor Mohammedan in vader has suc-eoded in ollsting from that safe aanctu-nl'y- th pE'oplr's heart- and thoy hare i now,in mlltual good-will and tolerUllce witb th 'foewnn Allah. "b ide whom ther i~ no God." Under some huge waringin tree, at tbo gate of a town or village, an altal' i' erected to the i utnln ry ~eni\l. , t he "Da.nhjang Des!"n, ' who ha his abod in the thi k·leaved branche . And the piou peopl ,
when-117
Fact, anti FaMie3 abottt Java.
ever tbey bave any important business to transact, come to it, and bring a tribute of frankincense and flowers, to propitiate tbe god, and implore bis protection and assi9tance, tbat tbe matter they bave taken in band may prosper. On tbe way from Batavia to Meester Cornelis, there stands such a tree by the roadside, an immense old waringin, in itself a forest. And the rude altar in its shade, fenced oft" from the public road by a wooden railing, from sunrise to sunset is fragrant with flora) offerings.
There are several flower-markets in Batavia. But I have taken a particll-lar fancy to tbe one held at Tanah Abang, not far from the bend in the river, wbere I saw my two little naiad frolicking among th ru he . It site i a somewhat inglllarly chosen on fol' the plll'pO e, near th entrance of the cemetery, and in the hauow of the buge old gateway, tlle . n1,Pr rripliull on whi h dedicates th place to the
118
mimp'e' of Native Life.
- --
-repose of the dead, and to their pious memory. In its deep, dark arch, as in a black frame, i . set a vista of dazzling whitc-plastered tombstone. , pillars, and obelisks huddled into irregu]ar groupa, with here and there a figure hewn in fair wbite marbie soaring on outstl'etched winga, and everywhere a scintillation as of molten metal- tbe colourless, intolerable glare towhich tbe fierce sunligbt fires tbc cOITugated line of the roofs prote ting tbe monuments.
But on the bitber side of the gateway there ar restful hadow and coolness.
ome ancient crravestones pave tbe gJ'ound, as if it were tbe Boor of an oid village church-bluish-grey stab embla-wned with ere tand coat -of-arms in worn away bas-relief. Heraldi b asts are still faintly disccrnible on some, and long Latin epitaphs, engraved in the curving character- of tbe seventeenth century, may be spelt out, recording nam es wbicb echo down the long corri-dors of time in the history of tbe colony:
119
F(W(.s a'l1it Fancies (wout Java, and, oddly latinized, the atyla and titlc bestowed on thc deceased by tbe Lords Seventeen, mier of tho Honourable East India Company, the Company of Far Lands, as in the olden time it was called,
Hither, befare the sun is fairly riselI, come a score of native flower-sellcrs, shivering in the new morning air i who spread squares of matting on the soil, and, squatting down, procced to ~: -range the contents of their heaped-up ba kets, 'fha bluish-grey CYravestone', with the coats of anns and long inscl'iptions, are covered with heaps f creamy melati as delicate and sharply-defi.lled in ont-line, as if they had been carved out of ivory-pink and red 1'0 es with tmn -parent leaves, that cling to the touch-tjempakah-telor, great mooth globes of pearly whitenes - the long cali (jS of the cambodja-blo som, in which tints of topaz-yellow and pink and purple are mixed as in an evening sky-the taU seeptre of the tubero e
flower-120
'ro\l"ned, --alld 'pachar hina," which
:C'nlS to be made out of grain ' of pur' gold.
,Oll'. who knolV thc t,a-te, of th.,
"orun ' bl.lndab" hav> brought flo\Vf'l'ing plant:; to mal'ket, mo tly Ialmai on rose and tiny Japane c Iilie ju t dug up, the arth still 'Iinging to their
deli-'ate roots: or they sit hinding iuto stift' dum y wreath : wux-white gard uia, violet cabis a and leave ' :.1'5 Û wny au]
grey a th win of 1U0th .: fol' they have lem'nt th at the white folk hoose flowers of the e c1ull tint t lay up n tornb of thei!' dead. And there is on old man brown, hrunk n, and wrinkled, a if h w re mad of th pUl'chcd 'arth of the 'emetcl'y who ell' handfuls of 1'lucked-ollt petal', stin'ing up now anel th n, with hi Ion fincyer h nrt, I'ragrant heal' in hi ba ket- thou ands of brilliantly-cülolll' d leaH ,t ,
Abou even o'clock, th cu t men'!, almo t xclu ively wom n, al'rive fre h
rl'Om thcir bath in th' l1oighbou"in 121
riv 'I'. They form pi tnresque groups un t.hc . unny road, tho e slender
liglIl' ' in thcir bright-hued garnlents, pink, and red, and green, their J'ound 111'own face, :md hla k hair stil1 wet
anu . hining, fram d in th yellow
uureolc of the payong,* and spread out
~ehind tb ir heud. And the qui t spot
111 th hadow of the \.:emetery-gate is al
i:
with th ir high-pitched twittering VOl e ,a they go about from oneftower-~ ~ler to another, bargaining fOl' je sa-nun s, ol'ange-blos oms, and tiny pink
I' ~e , ~vhieh, with d ft nngers, they tWIst lIlto the glos y oil of their
" kondeh, ' or knotted hail',
Javanese women are most pardonably prolId of their hair. It is omewhat 'O:1rse, but very long and thick and of a brilliant blaek, with bluish gleams in it : and it pl'ettily frame their broad fore-head with regular, well-defined eurve and point. They take great care of it,
* Th payong i an uml.lreJla, quite flat
\Vllen pl'ead out, of yclJow oiled paper, 122
too, favourably contrasting, in thi res-pect, with Ellropean women of the lowel' classes, though some of thei1' methods, it must be owned, ure repugnant to European notions of decency, Fo!', a they bathe, and sleep, and eat in publi so, in public, they I an e each other hair, A woman wiU squat down in
ome shady pot by the roadsid , an I, haking loose b r coi! d-up hair, ub-lUit to the manipulation of ot rri nd, who parts the strands with hel' spread-out fingr!' , :.1I1d l'e11l0\'e up rfluities with quick monkey-lik ge. tnr . \VImt would you have? "The country' mall -ner, the count(y' 11000ur," a the Dutch proverb hath' it, Thi pal'ti ulal' WH)'
f clean iog the hair is a national
il1-"titution among tbe J:wan ,:md, aR ueh, el brated in th!' Je" )1(.1 of thC' i'nrc, and in th tal sof thr oldC'1I tilllf'
,
whie:h ar till relwnt.rd
lr
nn C'\'C'lling.lLlIlOUg fri nd .
Tb , 'hola!' of thC' party, 1 y thc liO'ht lil' an oil-\\'iek, read" f!'Ol\l !1 gl' a . .\'
12:.1
manuscript, which b has hil'cd fol' the evening at the price of one "pitjL"t It is the tory of the bcautiful beggar-maid, who wandel'. from village to village. he doe. not know hel' own name 01' WIlD were her parent. , having, in infanc)", b n stolen by robb rs.
ne day, b come b gging to th
"'ate of the palace. The Rajah order tbe guard to admit the uppliant, alld bi Raden-Ajoe (qu n) cause a rep a t
to be prepared for h 1'. They [11'0 kind toward tho ill affiictioll, hnving known greal orrowthem. ch'es: fortheil' nly child, ::t dau..,htel'. my. t!'l'iOllSly di aJJp ared year nnd year ag-o: . a/Jd now tb y al' olu anf) hildle . Th ...
Rajah, gazing UJ on the 'tran~er, fre-quently sigh : hi daughter wouJel hav growll up to b a maiden a fair, if he had liv d. Anel the Rad n-A,ioe, taking h \' by the hand. hid, hel' it
dOWII, and 1111100 e those glossy 10 ks, worthy to be wreathpd with the fragl'~nt
t Aboul tWl>ppnc . li4
(·nimpm
of
Nati,'~ .Li!c.blossom of the aeana. ~he herself wi1l clean se them. Then, as she parts the long braids, ah I there upon the crown, i . the cicatriee which her liWe daughter had! Tbe long-lost one i found again.
Then, when the exclamations of massa, ! and astàga! provoked by this recital of the maiden' wonderful history, have ubsided, on or anoth l' of th audience, perhaps, mUl'lUurs omething about fortune and good luck, and how it may be seeur d bl' th poss s ion of olle single long hail'. al' it very oft!y, not a mOl'tal woman'. Have yOU 111'''1''1'
e n th Pontiolluk gli 1 by, wh ite in thc white mo nlight? ha,-e you nevol' heard h l' langh lond and long, \\'hpl1 all wa ti)) ? • he i the soul of a dNld virgin, wh om no lover ev I' ki ed. And now sbe cannot l' t be ause 'he nev I'
Im w love: nnd .'h would rain win it yet; but not in kindn 110\\' ut in spite lUId d ad!y lnali 'e. 'h sit i 11 the bmn h of tI' es, soft!y . ingilJ ' to her elf. ('omhing hel' long h[\il'.
Im w love: nnd .'h would rain win it yet; but not in kindn 110\\' ut in spite lUId d ad!y lnali 'e. 'h sit i 11 the bmn h of tI' es, soft!y . ingilJ ' to her elf. ('omhing hel' long h[\il'.