THE LAND OF VOLCANOES.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CXXI, Issue 15457, 8 November 1910, Page 2

THE LAND OF VOLCANOES.

The road from Sydney to .Java. lies along the coast of Queensland, inside the Barrier Reef, writes Mr J. W • Barrett in the “ Argus.” From Thursday Island there is a clear run across the Arafura Sea to the Wetter Passage, which lies between Timor and Wetter Island. Thence the course lies to the north, and in sight of the Lesser Sunda Islands to Eastern Java. From the Wetter Passage, Ombai, Flores, Sumbawa, Lombok and Bali are passed in succession.

Once the islands are sighted until the visitor leaves Batavia for the west the trip becomes a procession of volcanoes—living, dead, dying, and "lying low.” Of these Tomboro, on Sumbawa, is magnificent. It is about 9000 ft high, and has been quiet for a. century. In 1815 4000 ft of its upper part blew off. The ashes fell in a radius of 1000 miles, and 12,000 people were killed. In fact, all the volcanoes in this belt seem alike. They don’t often get violent. but when they do the business seems to he done thoroughly—vido Krakatoa. Beyond Tomboro lies the Salu Gulf, where the pirate is said to still lurk. In fact, the mountain chains on this group of islands are one of the few remaining places on the earth's surface which are unexplored. The difficulties are physical and climatic (i.e., unhealthy districts), and the fact that the inhabitants seem always anxious to retain the head of the exporer as a. memento. To the east of Java, and separated by a shallow strait, is the island of Bali, and to the east of Bali, between it and Lombok, a very deep strait, twenty-three miles wide. This Lombok Strait may justly be described as

OXF. OF THE WONDEBS OF THF, WOULD, as through it passes “ Wallace’s line.” Long since AVallace showed that when deep sea (1000 fathoms) separates countries the plants and animals differ profoundly, because the separation must have been very ancient. So wo find Australia and New Guinea, and Australia and Tasmania, with shallow separations, closely allied in fauna, anfl flora. But Australia and New Zealand, with deep water separation, are very diverse. Between Asia and America lie ' two deep holes in the North and South Pacific respectively. These two join through this narrow chink, the Lombok Strait.. Bali, Java, Borneo and Sumatra, to the west, have Asiatic affinities, whilst Lombok and the chain to New Guinea have Australian affinities.

Now, it. is easy to see that elephants, monkeys and rhinoceros cannot- .swim twenty-three miles to Lombok, hut it is difficult to understand why moundbuilders, cockatoos, parrots and honeysuckers did not fly across to Bali. But so it is, and must remain a case to which Lord Dundreary’s classic observation will apply-

As Sourabaya, the port of East Java is approached, the scone is very fine. Mount Semeru (13,000 ft), on the left, throws up immense columns of smoke and steam caves abound- The Isle of Madura, lies on the right. Ahead a fleet of steamers load nee and sugar. A calm sea (with a warm breeze) is covered with Malay sails, and the sea is well stocked with parti-coloured se'a snakes, Vermillion crabs and turtle. Vou land, and are conveyed to a comtortable hotel in a dilapidated carriage, euphemistically called a “ milord,” driven by a piratical-looking Malay, who wears a wooden hat, painted vivid red and green and blue. Nest morning, at- dawn, you take the Java express to get to the more interesting and cooler western part of the island. Parts of Java consist of

GIGA STIC VOLCANOES. with cultivated plains in between. The train curves round the volcanoes, through rice and sugarcane fields. Here and there rubber is being laid down. Finally, at evening, you land at the. little’ and pretty town of Garnet, 2300 ft above the sea. Garoet is clean and cool, as things go in Java, and is surrounded by some twelve volcanoes, two of which are active. Some are cultivated t-o the craters. Some day one of them will go off. There will be then some repairs wanting in Garoet-. In Garoet you hear Malay music, in particular bands of young people who play folk tunes on bamboo instruments. In its native setting the music is quite interesting and poetic. We purchased ten of the instruments for the Marshall Hall Orchestra, so that when the conductor breaks out. into Oriental composition we can provide the local colour. The Malay m isical scale is quite different from ours (only six unequal tones), but the dissonances may lead the audience to think that a new set of combinations have been devised.

The gait and poise of the Javanese women are very fine and are apparently produced by carrying weights on 1 behead. If our Minister of Public Instruction would issue a ukase ordering the State school children to carry their books to and from school on their heads we_ might see the same uprightgait in Victoria. In any event, such a proclamation would set- Mr Tate’s critics agoing, and would keen them occupied and out- of mischief. The

niTTCK APPEAL TO MANAGE JAVA WELL, and whatever difficulties the Governme.n has the visitor hears none of them, nor can he on superficial examination see signs of them. It differs from our Indian Government in that: (1) The Dutch Oriental empire has been apparently a source of profit and not of loss. (2) The native is compelled to devote a certain amount of time to road-mending. (3) The Government- monopolises certain products, and buys from the grower at its own fixed price. (4) The natives seem perfectly contented. With possibly more lofty ideals, we have been less practical and have tried t-no rapidly to give some self-govern-ment- to people who don't think as we do. So we find Baboos with a classical education (pace, my friend. Dr Deeper) urging from a safe place other people to throw bombs. Oriental government is neither simple nor easy, nor is it a pastime, and there is something to be learnt, from Java. At all events, this great Oriental empire lies dose to Australia. fourteen days’ steam from Sydney with a 14-knnt- steamer, and five and a half -weeks’ absence. It would bn possible to enjov twelve days in Java, and to visit, a number of places in the Archipelago as well. It rattier remarkable that our steamship com-

panies have not organised such a winter excursion. It can be made full of interest, full of information and of instruction to people like ourselves, who are faced with the responsibility of managing New Guinea and of colonising tropical Australia.