A TRIP TO JAVA

Southland Times, Issue 18934, 22 September 1920, Page 7

A TRIP TO JAVA

THROUGH SUN-KISSED WATERS. FROM BATAVIA TO SINGAPORE. (Written for the Southland Times.) By Wm. Quinn. A writer has said that in the vast archipelago where Java, Borneo, Sumatra, and the Molucca Islands lie. the sea is often fanned only by the land and sea breezes, and is like a smooth bed on which these islands seem to sleep in bliss—islands in which the spice and perfume gardens of the world arc embowered, and where the bird of par.adise has its home, the golden pheasant, and a hundred others of different plumage, whose flight is among thickets so luxuriant, and scenccry so picturesque that the European stranger finds there the fairy land of his youthful dreams. It was into these regions we sailed en route lor Singapore on the Royal Dutch Packets steamer s.s. Rnmphius, after leaving Tangier Priok, the [tort of Batavia. Th" humid heat of Batavia had been very try jng, so that when we readied the open sea and felt the balmy stilt sea breeze, il sent the blood pulsating through our veins and pur erstwhile vigour returned and in place of the listless feeling there wig the joy of living ( I cod LftU'c a- regard' weather still befriended us ami it was a ret of sapphire l>h;e through which our good A more peaceful scene linn that wire hj 1 iv K'fore o;;r eyes could not be imagined. Yet these sunlit waters were the haunts ot the dreaded Malay pirates in the not very distant past. From the very indented coast-line which we were passing their swift sailing prints would sally forth on the East Indian merchant or Uhme.-e junk himDeri tig by in a light breeze, and boarding these with their held in their mouth-, these pirates, if victorious, rarely left a survivor to id! of their bloody doings. If disturbed in their villainy or beaten off. they tumbled beck to their prut- and made off -h 'reward rod by either sailing or pulling over hj d, a ■. knowing "very nook and forties r; 'ho noa-P rh--v generally m n a'e good their "~eape. M'hen'i was a small boy ren'bn:: thrilling bool-- of adventure, the scenes i I avion being in rh"<e seas, my Hood u-i'd t" enrol - I rear! about the on corning i.r.ire- with I heir deadly knives Little did ! think then that il would be my gone! fortune to go through the plaeeand find everything a- pea vful as a Sunday School. It wv.' a .no-l delightful live day-' sea j-.-tmey In Singapore. The everchanging -iirfaee .‘f the ocean in it- varying mood' is fa-einalii.g in ii' beamy an 1 vc ihere are many people who find nothing but irviiivny m a -ea voyage. fur them no magical si d! i> woven, nor do they ever Lear ; “The ocean's -tuny, .-’tow, d"ep nodlow a.nee full of my-acry and of awe moaning over i !!■•> dead it holds in bosom, or lulling them io ughr ken 'lt "p m the chambers of its v..«,y d.units." In th" early hours of a Monday “morning we drew near to Singat-ore ",nd a murky curtaijn-:’ -moke was rising from the funin the sp.tcti.u- hart-on:. I he whole water from was a '.am" of .wtlviiv. stv timers large and 'in til were bu.-ib. loa.hng or unloading from strings ot attendant lighters. Anliquaied native craft of Ark like appearnni-,. v. ere no'ing tii nr way about and what with the rare!.- of th" si.. : ,m v.ttch.es and the shout - of many . nee-, the mn-es •,*-re bewildering. Singapore i- tin island. 2S mil " long and !! i dl.-s wade, lying a: the mo-: .north of t;i" I-.ouutof. A glance at the map will show that it occupies a most itnt orlani strategv p-osirani anil i- therefore a great naval h-.u-e. Singapore has be"n well called “The Gate of tlv East." and ‘hat it now in the hand- of the British instead of the Jlurch is entirely owing r i tile fore-aght ate; indomitable per.-erverance of one man. Sir St. nit ford Raffles, who died at the early age of -Iv, and whose holy lay for manv wears in a t unknown grave in England. He saw the “vision splendid," am! by th." founding i ; Singapore In- .-hn-jcd the entile sub sequent four'" of imiustrLl and political events and the evptn-ion of British iufltjcnee fromyh" Strut' of Male, a to China, 1 hen;'"' i e - .-nt to the Soii'h,on Ocean. Hireward w a- einl!"-s worry. :.ha- : ’ -md pubhc ceti'ttre from hi' counttC- Mud, mr-, IBs name ten forgotten in S”’gap r.nd it }i b"-m .-md Iv-- t > • ■ -1 epitaph wiinen in Malay. A fine -tone of Raffies si antis in iron: of one of th" great public buildings there, looking seaward. After tit" u.-ual amount of (rotnoie and deSay tit passing I lie Health Officer, the ■JHnnpbius tire-.v tip alongside one of the wharves. A- <he was some eoti'iderable distance from the town proper, we proceeded to 'he hotel by motor car. am! a fine power, fttl car it was. driven by a Malay chauffeur and tin- rat" a’ winch he drove was an ey opener. In Ja\ a. in the course of our journey-. we had i .wi-'d o', er -umh.v fowls and dog-, but 11 wa- ! ■ • ft to tin- chotfleur to almost add to th" “bag.” a re-kshti runr.er. I am .-tire the Liter “gent Limin'' will never he nearer to the land "where the weary cea.-e trotn running end the rickshas are at rest" than he was that morning on the Singapore road. There are practically only three hoteK in Singapore. Of course, they tire vety large, out they are always full ami tourists find great, difficulty in securing accommodation. We had cabLd for rooms from Bata 1 , it, bn; on arrival at tlm hotel found treubL awaiting us. In the end we u ere \ cry gia.i to accept one large room in v.hich three of us dept, t he tariff being .Vi - per day each, and this was only th" -tart. For the be-.r part of the time your hand was u amier;ng in am! out. of your pock"', tipping .someone or orh"r. There W’is no charge made fop air you could breathe freely th" v.mtrher permitted ---but sotnei)H;-- even y.nir breath was taken away by the shameful manner in which you were fleeced. All the wader- in thi.- hotel were Chinese. They cmild not speak English and their table service was the worst that we had endured sf) far. Ah Kee. our room “boy," on the contrary was a treasure, a.- honest a.s daylight : he kept evetyrhing .-pick ami ■pan. His wages were IT dollar.- per month, out of which he had to pay To dollars for board, leaving him with two dollars i-L Sd l , but out of this he had to provide himself with cloths and polish to keep hi- six rooms «lean. H" depended on tips from the occupants of the'." for his living. .'■dngnpore is a edy of over VTO.OOO inhabitants. about Ib.OOu are Europeans or Eurasians, f?;e remainder tire of almost every nationality under heaven, but principally Chinese. The Chinese are a very wealthy section of the community; in fact it is a common saying that the Chinese own Singapore. If you see u fine motor car approaching it is ten chances to one the owner is a Chinaman. There are many fine building- in the town, which is widely spread, but a- usual Fas! mingles with West, ami along the banks of the river, right in the centre oi the fawn, are sonre very odorous- native quarters. In the late afternoon am! evening, when the house boats, after being poled, up the river, tie up for the night so closely together, that the river cannot he seen, the [dace fairly “hums.” The smells in Java were .-tweet compared with those of this pL-e. One afternoon we were walking through the Chinese quarter, on the fur side of the river, ami were taking a short cut to the bridge about 200 yards away, the -tench was awful, but we thought we could hold out. We only got 50 yards on cur way, when we were absolutely compelled to turn to the right and run for our live-, yet all around thousands of people were living in thi,; atmosphere, and sump eay the age of miracles is past ! This was cur first, txpcfien.ee of rickshas, anti we found them very handy for getting about in. They are light-hooded carts (generab.v holding otic person l , with rubbertyred v. heel.-, and they are cleanly kept. The r'lt.m-r-' as a rule are born robbers, j::"”;.- "-pceially when rimy know that you are a stranger. I could not help hemp struck with the beautifully moulded limits, particularly the legs of those Malays. Of course, the running exercise bad developed

the muscles, but still they were so symmetrical. Their running action is so springy, just as if they were treading on air. These runners can keep going a surprising distance at a good trot. The rate of fare, 75 tOjJOO cents (2s id) per hour.

Quit? rlo.'e to oi;r ho.'el was St. Andrew's Anglican Cathedral, a noble building in the centre of spacious well-kept, grounds. Walking through it one afternoon I was interested in tlie number of memorial tablets on its wads. One in particular drew my attention. It was to the memory of the officers and men of an English regiment who had been killed at Singapore in the quelling of the mutiny of a Sepoy regiment during the last year of the war. The Sepoys were corrupted by Germans and broke out in open mutiny. The white women and children of the city were hastily put on board steamers in the harbour, and a most uncomfortable time they had there. The mutiny was stumped out, but not without loss of life. As in Java, the authorities; showed no sign of weakness and the ringleaders were led forth and publicly shot. An eye-witness described the scent at the executions to me, and said they had a great moral effect on the native mind.

There is a different currency in Singapore to Java, the Strait Settlement dollar (2s 4dt being the standard coin, one hundred cents going to the dollar, so that a cent is worth a fraction over a farthing. Tint lowest coin in value is the quarter cent, a copper piece, but bank notes for I<> cents, about 2’i'd, are in. common n.-e. With your pocket book bulging with a wad of these, you led like a potential millionaire, but in buying anything of value you part with them by the handful. Money changers are everywhere, a good proportion of these being Indians, and mighty shrewd they are. Before leaving for Kuala l.umpur I had a “hunch” that gold was likely to recede in value, so got rid of all I possessed at current value to ii money changer. On returning to Singapore. I found that I had gained an undeserved reputation for shrewdness, insomuch a--, gold value had come hack and I the money changer had lost eleven dollars i on his transaction with me, and I "'as ! hailed as the Nonh of Irchimier (not the j New Zealander, they considered, him too .-nil i. who had been able to gel ihe best of a money changer, and from lhal lime forth my "mana" was great, so that if any Pnigh buying proposition was on. I was always brought in to finish the business, the buying eommi.-sion being paid in “icy miik shakes" at Little's (a noted Singapore cafe l . 1 oere is a good train service right through the -Malay States. It goes as far Bangkok, the -ieepmg cars are most comfortable and •he mealing arrangements good. It was an I all night journey to Kuala Lumpur, and, as 1 saw when returning, rubber plantations are |in eaeh side of th" line. The Singapore : express slop- at Woodlands, the passenger' j go by ferry steamer aero.ss the Strait and j lake the train widen is waiting at Johore. j i hi arriving at Kuala Lumpur I noticed a j -igiipoq “Bluff Road,” and I thought if I muld onlv >ee Wallacetown ( would feel pa te at home. Returning from Kuala Lumpur I broke my journey at Johore (a native St,del where the Sultan ha.- his palace. Getting j out of the train at .-even o'clock on a beautiful morning, I called up a. ricksha | runner, and spent a very plea.-ant couple of j hours round anil about the town. 1 was j taken out to the Sultan’s palace hy the I waiter front, and some little distance from It id:- 1 saw the Malay guard in the guard hou.-e. 'mu i the palace itself the inmates were evidently not believers in early rising, for the only sign of life 1 noticed was a .-’e,.py ..-..jiinei in one of the inner courtyards. Me would no doubt wonder, what I was doing prowling around but as I had come a!! the way from Nmv /"aland I de- | termini d to see as miadi as I could see. The outside appearince of the palace or its grounds were nothing to rave about. There i' a beautiful Mahonimedan mosque at Johore. It is [>erched on a hill-top overlooking the strait. The architecture is very striking and the rich creamy colour of the building is strikingly shown up by the surrounding green sward and shrubbery. The day was some great holiday with the Mohammedans and all. even the wee mites, were dressed in their "best Sunday clothes.” | They have a great liking for brilliant colI outs, and with their long flowing robes they | looked most picturesque. They seemed as j happy as sandboys, yet it was odd to see ! hah" a dozen gaily dre.-sed, strapping young j men, going down the st.reer, abreast, path holding the- ether'- hand most affectionately, j If eny members of tins party had been of the gcnilrr sex. ilure n ; ghl have been some ' -uise in the proi-.-wjitre. j Many tales have been told of the wonders j ; wr-fori; md by th" Indian fakirs or magicians I and there was one of ihis class in Singapore, jl saw him on two occasions performing his I tricks in from of tlie hotel and as I dabble la little in the conjuring line myself, I watchled him with fairly eriti'-al eyes. He was 1 nothing out of the ordinary, and in fact not 1 to he compared with a professional like Malini, hi- tricks Ling adaptations of common sleight-of hand ones in every day use His nre-ter trick was th- famous mango tree •■■tie. lie, squatting on the road, scraped up la little mud with hi- hand, in the midst of which he planted a seed and this he watered from time In time with water from a bottle. Between the waterings the heap of mud was covered with a cloth, and the last time he removed this cloth a little mango tree was seen growing. To the uninitiated this was a marvellous feat, as all good sleight-of-hand tricks hit to people who do not know how j they are done; but in reality this Indian in , thus [.articular instance did not do his work j well, the method being quite patent to me. il have heard of these magicians being able | to throw a mpe in the air up which a boy | climb-' and di.-appcars into space and I i frankly say here I don't believe it. There are practically three towns in Sncarvore. til" English, Mai -y and Chinese. These are connected by a line ivolaiiade extending four miles. In the English part this is lined with business houses. One of the many interesting sights is the Chinese quarters which lie pa-t the Baffles Hotel. One Saturday night about IL'k) p.m., having missed a friend whom I had arranged to meet, I walked through Chinatown alone. The esplanade was [nuked on either si do with numberless stalls, at which were sold everything from edible birds' ne.-ts to shark fins or sea slugs. If a maiden wanted a love charm, here was the place to buy. If a suitor thought that a hated rival should wing his way to happier or perhaps warmer regions, for a lew cents he could buy a potion that would start hi.- rival on the journey. An apothecary would compound you a pill guaranteed to cure every ill tile flesh is heir to. nr more likely give you ills you never dream; of. I watched a soothsayer telling fortunes. He v. as an aged Chinaman wearing leg spe.-i.acles of horn. boated on the ground hj" had the horoscope spread before him which wa.- illuminated by the light from a smoky oil lamp. In front sat the coolie whose fate was being told, above a ring of , eager Chinamen bent over listening intent.lv to every word spoken hy the old man. So j engrossed were th"V all in the tale that they i never noticed me, when I also bent over and ; joined the circL. What the soothsayer said i I did nor know but the other Chinamen now | anti then glanced at the one sitting down, but his impassive Oriental face was as a mask and told me nothing as to whether the news was good or bad. What with t,hc smoke of the cooking fires, the flare from the lighted torches and the babel of many voices the night scene was truly an Eastern one. Leaving this road I turned to the left and entered the real Chinatown. Up ! and down narrow streets and alley-ways I | went just where fancy led me. I did not j see a white face for almost two hours until , I regained the main road. I was not mol- j ested or interfered with by any one in the slightest degree. It seems to me that in thc.se parts a person pretty well gets what he goes in search of. If he goes “gunning'’ ■ for trouble, he will get his game-bag full. The same remarks apply to immorality in j the East. Both in Singapore and Java I j never had the slightest hesitancy in going I anywhere at any time. The doors of all i the Chinese houses were wide open anti the j girls of the families dressed in their best j were sitting in two oblique rows facing the door. They wore all in Chine.-e cost nine and the tidiness oi iiicir wed orusivn heads was noticeable. The mother was generally sitting in the centre of the grout) and there was many a suppressed giggle behind a i little yellow hand of a girl when the “foreign j

devil” looked in as he passed their door. I thought these girls were sitting there so that they might bo seen by eligible young Chinamen, but in getting back to the hotel Ah Kee told me this was, not so. It was only the finish of a Chinese holiday.

Colonel McC~, Mr W — and myself on our last Sunday evening went to the Presbyterian Church. As it was some distance from the hotel we had to take rickshas to get there. The Colonel would not hear of us riding up to the church door in rickshas but made us get, out at discreet distance and walk to the kirk in a staid manner as becometh Presbyterians. For the sake of coolness, both sides of the church were well open. The Colonel, leaning over, whispered, "How would this suit Invercargill?” I replied that with a good westerly “buster” coming from over the Estuary I would probably be blown through the opposite opening. The tooting of many motor cars on the adjoining road was disconcerting at first but we got used to it. We heard a fine sermon from a very - able preacher, quite a young man, and an Englishman at that. There are many fine buildings about the place. Mohammedan mosque, Chinese joss houses and. Hindu temples are equally at home. The Raffles Mu-eum is a splendid one. Days could be spent in it, the collection of exhibits being so varied. A magnificent tiger presented by the Sultan of Johore gets your attention. The Y.M.C.A. have a good building most comfortably furnisher!. The money for it was subscribed hy business firms and residents of the city, but I was sorry to learn i >--it il was principally used by Eurasians, (lie whites practically giving it the cold ‘boulder. When I was being shown throm-h the building I saw quite a number of th"-e Eurasians and they seemed very decent lads who would pass muster in a crowd anywhere. We spent a very pleasant week in Singapore, but it was quite enough as our hearts were “sighing for the Homeland” and it was with joy we boarded the .steamer that sailed southward on June 21.