MEDAN

Te Awamutu Courier, Volume 64, Issue 4544, 4 March 1942, Page 6

MEDAN

THE CITY OF TOBACCO SUMATRA’S CAPITAL Medan, capital of Sumatra, js the most modern city in the Dutch East Indies, one of the rarest places in the world, where the standard of living of the native population has reached that of the Europeans. With its clean, wide streets and pleasant climate, Medan is almost an ideal place in which to live. It is almost the youngest among the more important cities in the Netherlands Indies. Up to the year 1869 it was a small native village. Then the Deli Maatschappij chose it as head quarters and its rise began. Medan is a native word which means “plain.” The coat of arms of the city is a tobacco plant in bloom, with the motto “Efflorescens e planitie” —“blooming up from the plains,” which expresses the real attitude of the 1, country. Tobacco means life to the district. For half a century, as far as the eye could see, were tobacco plantations. The world started to smoke Deli tobacco and took a liking to it. This was the main reason why in 1887 Medan became the capital of the province called East Coast of Sumatra. In 1905 the population was estimated at 15,000; to-day it is almost 100,000. Out of this number there are, roughly, 7000 Europeans, 50,000 natives, 30,000 Chinese, and the rest other Orientals of various nationalities, many of them Japanese. These Japanese have been interned and transferred to some remote part of the Dutch colonial empire so that they ill not be able to give any assistance to the invaders. The Chinese are wholeheartedly on the Allies’ side, and they influence the natives in the same direction, who, however, are not of much help. They are free, perhaps indifferent, and somewhat lazy; Since 1863, when Mr J. Nienhuis, the pioneer of Deli tobacco cultivation, settled on the east coast, the scantiness of the population, which did not feel inclined to serve as' coolies to the Europeans formed one of the greatest difficulties, which still exists. Workers had to be obtained from Java, South China, South India and from other parts of Sumatra. In the present struggle they will probably be apathetic unless “some personal offence” occurs. Then this happy-go-lucky people will turn into fierce guerilla fighters. And there is no doubt that Japan will never respect the native’s sentiment to the same extent as do the Dutch. The ruer of the natives, whose .world will always count more than that of any European, is the Sultan of Deli; his residence is also in Medan. The Dutch have the final word. They indicate “what should happen,” but for the natives it is still the §.ultan who speaks. He lives in the middle of the city, in a group of buildings surrounded by a large park. His residence looks more iike the home of a rich planter than that of a monarch. The present Sultan is modest—“He is one of us,” in-

telligent, schooled natives say when speaking about him. EVIDENCE OF PROGRESS Not only do the natives have a pleasant life in Medan; Europeans as a rule prefer to live there than in other Oriental cities. It is not only because of the climate; the whole atmosphere—the clean streets, spacious squares, the constant rebuilding and modernising of all the districts — gives an assurance that time, despite the heat, does not stop here, that progress holds its sway-against decay. The mosque—most of the natives, including the Sultan himself, are Mahometan—is surrounded on one side by a moat, on the other by an open field, where cows graze and well-dressed, friendly native children play. Among small cottages built in Dutch style stands the neat church, with modern architectural features. In the shadowy alleys, on both sides of the bitumen road, natives’ shops sell every conceivable ware which, before the Pacific crisis, was “Made in Japan.” The Dutch East Indies was one of the best customers of Japanese exporters. Besides streamlined cars ox carts can be seen. Among the white neat buildings and historical monuments the Medanese is proudest of the municipal central market. Clean, attractive, built in 1931, it is indeed one of the best constructed and finest buildings in the Indies. Inside the market there is nothing of the Oriental hustle and bustle, dirt and misery, so typical of similar centres all over the world. Native shopkeepers and customers enter the place with solemn devotion. When night comes to Medan in

peace time the streets are brilliantly illuminated. The natives find their enjoyment in the amusement parks, while the Europeans go to the “White Club,” where a luxurious swimming pool, the best European band and stage attractions give entertainment to homesick Dutch. The “White Club” demonstrates the wealth and prosperity of the white community. Its members do not come from the aristocracy; they are settiers, most of them middle-class people, who succeed or fail with the fate of Sumatra. Medan is one of the cultural centres of the Indies. The Medan art circle in peace time organises exhibitions and musical performances every year, inviting world-famous artists, paying large fees and arranging lectures and film exhibitions. The Dutch colonists tried to transplant Holland into this far-away, exytr; part of the world. The east coast of Sumatra, besides being rich in tobacco, also has large rubber plantations. Despite the fact that its cultivation started only 25 years ago, rubber production has assumed enormous quantities. Palm oil, tea, and fibre are the other main products. In addition, the oil fields in the northern part of the province have assumed considerable importance, and are one of the objects of the Japanese drive on Sumatra. In fhe vicinity of Medan the tobacco fields fill the picture. For the sake of growing tobacco men began the ceaseless struggle of clearing the jungle to gain more and more territory for plantations. Deli tobacco is an extremely sensitive plant which can be grown in the same soil only every seven years.