vivid. In the vicinity of the hills, and elsewhere during the dry

season, seldom a day passes without thunder and lightning; and although these grand exhibitions of nature cause less consternation in general within the tropics than beyond them, it cannot be denied that they are destructive of many lives. Earthquakes are to be expected in a volcanic country, and are frequent in the vicinity of the volcanos; but the European towns have never sustained any serious injury from them.

During the rainy season there are many days free from showers. The mornings are generally clear, and although the rains sometimes continue without intermission for several days, and frequently fall in torrents, they are not marked on Java by that decided character, either of permanence or violence, which distinguishes the periodical rains of the continent of India; neither is the dry season distinguished by that excessive aridity which attends the hot seasons of that country. Even in July and August, the atmosphere is refreshed by occasional showers, and the landscape is at all times of the year covered with the brightest verdure. The thermometer of Fahrenheit has been known to rise along the northern coast as high as 90° about three in the afternoon, and even higher, particularly in the large and low capitals of Batavia, _Semárang_, and _Surabáya_; but from observations made during a course of some years at Batavia, and published under the authority of the Dutch government, it has been found usually to range between 70 and 74° in the evenings and mornings, and to stand about 83° at noon. By similar observations at _Semárang_, the same thermometer, placed in a spacious and open apartment, has averaged 87½° at noon.

At a distance inland of not more than thirty or forty miles, where the ascent is gradual, and of fifteen or twenty or less where it is rapid, the thermometer falls from five to ten degrees lower. At _Chi-serúa_, situated about 40 miles inland of Batavia, and _Chi-pánas_, about twelve miles further, on the opposite slope of the mountain _Gedé_, the thermometer ranges generally between 60 and 70°. In the morning, at six o'clock, it is sometimes as low as 57°; and in the afternoon, at three, its usual height is from 67 to 70°, but seldom rising to 72°. On some of the hills inland of _Semárang_, on which Europeans frequently reside during the dry season, at an elevation of about four thousand feet, the thermometer is frequently seen as low as 45°, and generally, in the clear season, ranges from 50 to 62°, and on the summit of one of the mountains (_Sindóro_) it has been observed as low as 27°[27]. Ice, as thick as a Spanish dollar, has been found; and hoar-frost, denominated _bóhon úpas_, or the poisonous dew, has been observed on the trees and vegetation of some of the higher regions.

By its insular situation, the climate of Java enjoys the benefit of land and sea breezes, which in its least favoured parts subdue the fierceness of the tropical rays, while the great elevation of its interior affords the rare advantage, that from the sea-shore up to the tops of the mountains, there is, almost from one end of the island to the other, a regular diminution of the temperature, at the rate of two or three degrees of Fahrenheit for every ten miles.

The general inference which has been drawn by professional men, from the experience which the occupation of Java by the British has afforded, is, that with the exception of the town of Batavia, and some parts of the northern coast, the island of Java stands on a level, in point of salubrity, with the healthiest parts of British India, or of any tropical country in the world.

The principal stations of the British army, composed of Europeans and Sepoys, were at Weltevreden, within three miles of the town of Batavia, and at _Semárang_ and _Surabáya_, spots certainly less favourable to health than the rest of the island taken generally; but detachments from it have occasionally done duty in every district of the island.

The tables included in the Appendix[28], will shew, that notwithstanding the troops laboured under many disadvantages and privations, in point of accommodation, &c. to which they would not have been subjected in a more permanent settlement, and that they were otherwise exposed to diseases unconnected with those of the climate, the average casualties were not excessive. From the 1st November, 1813, to the same month in 1814, the average number of troops is stated to have been 7,470, the deaths 504, making a proportion of 1 to 14-8: the average number of sick in the same period was 862, making a proportion of sick to well as 1 to 8. From the beginning of November 1814 to the same month in 1815, out of an average number of troops stationed in different parts of the island, in corps and detachments, amounting to 7,487, there were 252 deaths, 63 of which were caused by fever, 123 by dysentery, and 65 by other diseases, making an average number of deaths of 21 per month, or in the proportion of one death to thirty men in the year, a proportion not exceeding that of some of the healthiest possessions in temperate climates.

To this general result may be added the comparative casualties in his Majesty's 78th regiment, during the period of its being stationed in India and Java. This regiment has occasionally been cantoned at each of the principal stations, and has remained on the island from the first conquest of Java. By the table will be seen the number of rank and file of which this regiment consisted at different periods, since 1797 to 1815, and the number of casualties in the same periods. It might not be proper to select the years in which it landed on the continent of India or on Java; but those in which it was stationed in either country may be brought together, as fit subjects for comparison. By calculation, upon the data of the table, it will appear, that from December 1800 to December 1801, the deaths were to the number of troops as 1 to about 20½; in 1801-2, as 1 to 12; in 1803-4, as 1 to 5¼; in 1804-5, as 1 to 8½; in 1805, as 1 to about 20; in 1806-7, as 1 to 28 nearly; in 1807-8, as 1 to 24½; in 1809-10, as 1 to about 23; in 1811-12, as 1 to 3¾; in 1813-14, as 1 to 6; and in 1814-15, as 1 to about 20 nearly. The places at which the regiment was stationed at these different periods will be seen by the table; and the cause of the unusual mortality that prevailed in 1811-12, and which exceeds any of the years on the continent, will be found in an extract from the letter of Dr. Currie, the surgeon, inclosing the return. The mortality in the last year was as 1 to 20 in the regiment, and among the whole troops, according to the data above, as 1 to about 30; a low estimate for climates, whose characters stand higher for salubrity than that of Java.

That the climate of Java, in general, is congenial to the human frame, at least to that of an Asiatic, is corroborated by the great extent of its native population, compared with that of the surrounding islands, notwithstanding the checks which it experienced both from the native princes and the European government; and the convincing proof which the records of the British army now afford, are perhaps sufficient to remove the unfavourable impression which existed against the climate of the island, as affecting Europeans.

At the same time, however, that Java has to boast this general character of high salubrity, comparatively with other tropical climates, it is not to be denied that there are some spots upon it which are decidedly unhealthy. These are to be found along the low swampy marshes of the northern coast, which are mostly recent encroachments upon the sea: the principal of these is Batavia, the long established capital of the Dutch eastern empire.

The climate of this city has ever been considered as one of the most baneful in the world. It has even been designated the storehouse of disease; with how much justice, is too woefully demonstrated by the writings of those visitors who have survived its perils, and the records of the Dutch East-India Company itself. If we may credit Raynal,[29] there perished between the years 1714 and 1776, in the hospitals of Batavia, above eighty-seven thousand sailors and soldiers. From the table, No. 1, imperfect as it is, on account of the loss of many of the registers at the period of the British conquest, it will be seen what a large proportion the deaths bore to the whole population; and from the table, No. 2, of the same Appendix, discovered among the Dutch records, it appears further, that the total amount of deaths in this city, from the year 1730 to the year 1752, was in twenty-two years more than a million of souls.

To those who are acquainted with the manner in which the affairs of the Dutch East-India Company were managed abroad, there will perhaps be no difficulty in laying rather at the door of the colonists, than of the nation, the crime of maintaining a commercial monopoly, at such a dreadful expence of lives as resulted from confining the European population within the narrow walls of this unhealthy city. That the sacrifice was made for that object, or to speak more correctly, under that pretext, for the private interests of the colonists who were entrusted with its details, can scarcely be doubted. From the moment the walls of the city were demolished, the draw-bridges let down, and free egress and ingress to and from the country was permitted, the population began to migrate to a more healthy spot, and they had not to go above one or two miles beyond the precincts before they found themselves in a different climate. But this indulgence, as it gave the inhabitants a purer air, so it gave them a clearer insight into the resources of the country, and notions of a freer commerce, which, of all things, it was the object of the local government and its officers to limit or suppress.

Necessity might have first determined the choice of the spot for the European capital; but a perseverance in the policy of confining the European population within its walls, after so many direful warnings of its insalubrity, cannot but lead to the inference, that either the monopoly of the trade was considered a greater object to the nation than the lives of the inhabitants, or that the more liberal views of the government were defeated by the weakness or corruption of its agents.

Of the vegetable and animal kingdoms, as of the mineral, we shall content ourselves with such an account as may be necessary to convey to the reader a general notion of the nature of the country and its resources, referring the man of science to the intended publication of Dr. Thomas Horsfield, a gentleman whose sole attention has, for the last seven years, been directed to the natural history of Java.

Java is distinguished not only by the abundance of its vegetation, but by its extraordinary variety. Upwards of a thousand plants are already contained in the herb-area of Dr. Horsfield, of which a large proportion are new to the naturalist. Between the tops of the mountains and the sea-shore, Java may be considered as possessing at least six distinct climates, each furnishing a copious indigenous botany, while the productions of every region in the world may find a congenial spot somewhere in the island.

Vegetable productions, which contribute to the food and sustenance of man, are found in great variety. Of these the most important is rice, which forms the staple grain of the country, and of which there are upwards of a hundred varieties. Maize, or Indian corn, ranks next, and is principally cultivated in the higher regions, or in those tracts where the soil is unfavourable to the rice cultivation. The bean, or _káchang_, of which there are many varieties, is an important article of food. Of the sugar-cane, which is used by the natives only in its raw state, they distinguish eight varieties, an account of which, as well as of the cultivation of coffee, pepper, indigo, tobacco, &c. will be found in the chapter on agriculture. Aniseed, _múngsi_, cummin-seed, _márícha_ (black pepper), _chábi jáwa_ (long pepper), _kumúkus_ (cubebs), socha dolichos, and _mendéking_, plants of considerable importance, may be considered as indigenous to the island, and are collected for various uses in diet and medicine.

Besides the cocoa-nut and other productions more generally known, there are many trees growing spontaneously, of which the seeds and kernels are used as food; the principal of these are the _peté_, _jéngkol_, and _kómlandíngan_, several species of the mimosa, and the _púchang_ and _kamíri_. The bread-fruit tree grows on Java, and is of the same species (although inferior in quality) with that of the South Sea Islands: but the fruit is comparatively very little esteemed or employed as an article of food.

Of tuberous roots, besides those furnished from the principal genera, convolvulus, dioscorea, and arum, are those from the _bangkwang_ (dolichos bulbosus), the roots of which are much esteemed by the natives, and the _kéntang jáwa_ (ocymum tuberosum) or Java potatoe. Most of the numerous varieties of the convolvulus and dioscorea, which furnish food for the natives, have been enumerated in one of the first volumes of the Batavian Transactions. The jatropha manihot, called _úwi blanda_, or _wúdo_, has been propagated through all parts of Java, and is found growing in the hedges.

The true sago of Amboina and the Eastern Islands, is found only solitary in a few low and marshy situations, and the preparation of it from the pith of the tree is not known to the inhabitants of Java: the leaves only are employed for covering houses; but from the _áren_, or sagurus rumphii, which grows abundantly in every part of the island, and on account of its variously extensive uses, ranks next in importance to the cocoa-nut, a substance is prepared, similar in all respects to the true sago of the Eastern Islands. The tops of various trees of the palm kind, which are sought after in other parts of the East as food, are, on account of the abundance of rice and other esculent vegetables, but little regarded in Java; but the young shoots of many varieties of the _bambu_ are used in the diet of the natives. Wheat and potatoes, with almost every species of European vegetables, are cultivated with success. Of the oil-giving plants a particular account will be given when describing the agriculture of the country.

Java, in common with the Malayan islands in general, abounds in indigenous fruits. "No region of the earth," observes Mr. Marsden, "can boast an equal abundance and variety of indigenous fruits." The _mangústin_, which on account of its acknowledged pre-eminence amongst Indian fruits, has been termed the pride of these countries; the _durian_, or _dúren_, to which the natives of these islands are so passionately attached; the _rámbutan_, the _lánseh_ or _lánseb_, with an extensive variety of the jack, the mango, the plantain, the guava, the pine-apple, the papaw, the custard-apple, the pomegranate, and almost every species of fruit which grows within the tropics, are here found in the greatest variety. The tamarind tree is general. The island also produces many kinds of oranges, citrons, lemons, and in particular the pumplemous (known in Bengal under the name of the Batavian lembu, or lime, and in the West Indies as the shaddock), besides the _sáwu_, _klédung_, _pachítan_, and a variety of others, not generally known to Europeans, but well calculated for the table. Of the mango, at least forty varieties are enumerated; the wild raspberry, which is found in the higher regions, is not destitute of flavour; one kind, in particular, with dark violet-coloured fruit, approaches in taste to the European species. In some of the mountainous tracts are to be found peaches, Chinese pears, and some other fruits imported from Japan, the Cape of Good Hope, and China.

Among innumerable flowers which bloom in perpetual succession throughout the year, and impregnate the air of these countries with their fragrance, those of the _champáka_, _tán-jong_, _meláti_, _kanáng'a_ and _nágasári_, hold the first rank; they are used by the natives in the ornament of their persons, and are remarkable for their fragrance. The myrtle and rose are found in the gardens of Europeans. A great variety of ornamental trees and shrubs, many of them overlooked in the catalogues of Rhumphius and Van Rheede, have been noticed, as deserving cultivation for their utility as well as beauty.

The medicinal plants of Java have been described in an account published in the Batavian Transactions: among these are many which are employed in the daily practice of the natives, of which a large proportion have not been subjects of investigation or experiment by Europeans, and others which had not previously been botanically described or classed. In a country hitherto imperfectly explored, and abounding in profuse vegetation, it was natural to calculate on the discovery of many useful medicinal plants; and among upwards of sixty, described, for the first time, by Dr. Horsfield, he particularly notices several, as likely to become most valuable articles in general medicinal practice.

Besides abundance of coir, termed _sepét_ by the natives, prepared from the fibres which surround the cocoa-nut, and gamuti (called _duk_), prepared from those of the _áren_ tree, both of which are well known, another species of palm, the _gebáng_, also yields valuable ropes, the fibre of which is obtained from the large petioles or stalks of the leaves by pounding and beating. Intelligent natives assert, that ropes prepared from these are particularly valuable, exceeding in strength all other kinds of equal size. The fibres and ropes are called _bas_. The cotton shrub (gossypium herbaceum) is universal; and hemp, though its uses are unknown to the Javans, is found in the gardens of foreign settlers. Besides these, the island affords various kinds of vegetables, the fibrous bark of which is made into thread, rope, cloth, &c.; but they are never cultivated, and when required for use are collected in their wild state. The general denomination, in the Javan language, of the internal bark of all vegetables which can be manufactured into cords, thread, &c. is _lúlub_. This being freed, by beating or maceration, from the adhering particles of the exterior bark, yields the fibrous substance, which is twisted by the most simple process, commonly by the hands alone. The trees which afford the _lúlub_ are the _wáru_, which is very abundant, and is manufactured into ropes for all common domestic purposes; the _melínju_, the bark of which is called _bágu_; and the _béndo_, which affords ropes of superior strength and durability.

Of the bambusa, the _pring-ápus_, the stem of which may be considered arborescent, furnishes the cheapest ropes. These are made with great expedition, being split into thin strips, which are twisted on the spot into cords fit for all common purposes, although they are serviceable only for a few days. They are uniformly used, in travelling, for securing baggage, &c. Among shrubs principally employed for these purposes are the _werúng_, _urís-urísan_, _dalúmpang_, _che-plákan_ and _glúgo_; among plants, the _widúri_ and _rámi_; the fibres of the latter afford very strong and durable cords, which are chiefly employed for nets or lines, and used in fishing: they greatly resemble the sunn of western India, and would probably be found to answer the same purpose, as well in furnishing the bags called in India gunny-bags, for the transportation of goods, as for the manufacture of paper in Europe. This remark applies also to the _lúlub_ of several of the other shrubs mentioned. Several species of _písang_ or plantain yield the materials for ropes and cords of various fineness, according to the methods employed in preparing them. In the Manilla Islands, cables are made from these fibres; and in the first volume of the Batavian Transactions a mode is described of preparing from them a substance resembling cotton. The leaves of the '_nanas_, or pine-apple, contain also abundance of useful fibres, which are easily separated in a bundle, after scraping off the coriaceous substance. It is very fine, and the separate fibres are employed by the natives in sewing without any preparation; but it may also be spun, and is made into a kind of stuff resembling silk, gauze, &c.

Mats are made from several species of pandanus, from a kind of grass called _méndong_, and from the leaves of various palms, particularly the _gebáng_. The latter affords the most common kinds, coarser and less durable than the others, as well as bags (straw sacks) resembling very coarse mats.

The paper in common use with the Javans is manufactured from the _glúgo_, (morus papyrifera.)

A variety of vegetable substances are used in dyeing: the principal of which, however, are the _tom_, or indigo, which is extensively cultivated throughout the island; and the _wong-kúdu_, which affords a lasting scarlet. A black dye is obtained from the bark of several exotic trees, united with the rind of the _mangústin_ fruit. A yellow dye is also obtained from an exotic wood, heightened by the addition of the bark of the _nángka_ tree, and a variety of the mango.

Extensive forests of the _játi_, or teak of India[30], are found in almost all the eastern provinces; but the most valuable and important are in the central districts, situated inland, between _Semárang_ and _Sidáyu_, and particularly in the districts of _Blóra_, _Jípang_, and _Padáng'an_.

Of the teak tree there is but one species known, the tectona grandis of Linnæus, the tekka of Van Rheede, and the jatus of Rhumphius. Its natural history has been already fully detailed, and all the kinds generally enumerated are merely varieties. These are usually distinguished among the natives of Java by names derived from the quality and colour of the wood. The principal are the _játi kápur_, the chalky teak, and a kind varying in colour, and on account of its excellence termed _játi súng'gu_, or the true teak. The former is the most common: its wood is of a whitish hue, and it sometimes contains calcareous concretions in nodules or streaks. This sort is chiefly employed for common domestic purposes, and though inferior in quality to many others, from its abundance and comparative cheapness, is perhaps the most generally useful. The _játi súng'gu_ is harder, closer, and more ponderous, and particularly selected for ship-building. The colour of the wood is of different shades, from light to intense brown, with a cast of violet verging sometimes to red or black. If the stem is covered with spines, or rather pointed scales, it is called _játi dúri_, but in its texture and quality it agrees with the _játi súnge'gu_. Besides these the natives distinguish, as _játi gémbol_, those excrescences or protuberances which are produced from a variety of the _játi_, furnishing materials for handsome cabinet-work.

The teak tree on Java grows at a moderate elevation above the level of the ocean. It is generally conceived, that the timber afforded by forests growing on a soil of which the basis is limestone, and the surface uneven, gravelly, or rocky, is the hardest, the freest from chalky concretions, and in all respects the best; but in laying out a teak plantation, a soil consisting in a great proportion of black vegetable mould, is always selected for the purpose of obtaining a rapid growth. The teak tree is slender and erect. It shoots up with considerable vigour and rapidity, but its expansion is slow. Like all other trees affording useful timber of a close grain, it is many years in arriving at maturity. Under favourable circumstances, a growth of from twenty to twenty-five years affords a tree having about twelve inches diameter at the base. It requires at least a century to attain its perfection, but for common purposes, it is usually felled when between thirty and fifty years old[31].

Notwithstanding the extent to which cultivation has been carried in many districts of the island, large portions of its surface are still covered with primeval forests, affording excellent timber of various descriptions. Besides the teak, there are several kinds of wood or timber employed for various domestic purposes, as the _súren_ (the tuna of Bengal), of which the wood is very light, stronger and more durable than all other kinds of similar weight produced on the island: as the grain is not fine, it is not employed in making furniture, but it is useful for chests, trunks, carriages, &c.; its colour is red, and its odour somewhat resembling that of the cedar. Its weight is probably inferior to that of the larch.--The _wúngú_ or _ketángi_ is often used instead of teak: the grain is somewhat finer: when in full blossom it is perhaps the most beautiful tree existing.--The _wádang_ or _báyur_, a light and tolerably durable wood, is employed for masts and spars of small vessels; but the surface must be well covered with resinous substances to prevent its splitting.--The _gintúngan_ is employed in the same manner, but grows to a larger size; the colour of the wood and bark is red.--The _lampéan_ or _lában_ is light but durable, and affords materials for the handles of the spears or pikes borne by the natives.--The _nángka_ abounds in several districts where teak is not found, and is almost exclusively used in the construction of houses, and other domestic purposes: the wood is more close and ponderous than the _súren_, which it otherwise resembles; it takes a tolerable polish, and is sometimes employed for furniture. The colour is yellow; but it is made to receive a brownish hue, by the application of the young teak-leaves in polishing: its bark is used as a yellow dye.--The _lúren_ resembles the _nángka_, but is generally of rare occurrence, though in some tracts it furnishes the only timber: its use in the neighbouring islands, particularly on Sumatra, is well known.--The _kusámbi_ is uncommonly heavy, hard, and close: it supplies anchors for small vessels, blocks, pestles, and numerous similar utensils.--The _sáwur_ is a very beautiful and useful wood; the colour resembles that of mahogany, but the grain is closer, and it is more ponderous: its chief use is for handles of tools for carpenters and other artificers, for machinery, especially for the teeth of the wheels of mills, and other purposes where a hard and durable wood is required. On account of its scarcity, it is uniformly cut down on Java before it arrives at the necessary size for cabinet-work. Forests of it grow on the hills of _Báli_, opposite the Javan shore, whence it is brought over by boat-loads for sale.

The _pílang_ is a very hard wood, and employed in the eastern districts, instead of lignum-vitæ, for the construction of ships'-blocks, &c.--The _pung_ is equally hard, and uniformly employed by the natives for pegs in constructing their _prahus_.--The _wáli kúkun_ is equal to the _kusámbi_ in weight, and exceeds it in hardness: it is employed for anchors, naves of wheels, machinery, &c.--The _tang'gulun_ is a hard wood of a close grain, and employed by turners for various small works.--The _kelúmpit_ is a very large tree: sections are employed by the natives for cart wheels.--The _járan_ is a white wood taking the tool easily: the natives prefer it to all others for the construction of their saddles, which consist principally of wood.--The _demólo_ affords a light wood, which is made into planks, and employed where durability is not much required.--The wood of the _kedáwung_ is whitish and moderately hard.--The _lában_ is a yellowish and hard wood: it is employed for the handles of axes and various utensils.--The _jánglot_ is considered by the natives as the toughest wood produced in the island, and is always employed for bows when procurable: the tree is of a moderate size.--The _béndo_ is a light wood, useful for canoes.--The _séntul_ is a light close-grained wood, and easily worked: it resembles the _súren_.

For household furniture, cabinet-ware, &c. are employed--the _sóno kling_ of the _Maláyus_, the colour of which is a deep brown, inclining to black:--the _sóno kómbang_, which has some resemblance to the _lingua_ wood of the Moluccas:--the _war'm-lot_, dark brown; and _próno-sodo_, resembling the walnut, both scarce:--the _wer'n_, of a brown colour, of a close substance and light, abundant in some districts:--the _mentáus_ and _júmberit_, the wood of which is white and fine-grained, uniformly used for inlaying:--the _randu kúning_, yellowish and close-grained:--and the _íng'as_, of a brownish red colour, and very brittle.

For the hilts and sheaths of krîses, the natives make use of the _timóko_, of which the black and white variegated fragments are called _pélet_. These are of various kinds.--The _arúman_, variegated white and black, is also employed for canes, handles, and spears, &c. and is very heavy.--The _tiké_, yellowish, closed and marble,--the _mángu_,--the _áti áti_,--the _kráminan_,--the _púrwo-kúning_ and several others, are employed for the same purposes.--The _kamúning_ is of a brownish colour and very fine grain:--the _tayúman_ resembles the last and is very much esteemed:--the _wúni stelágo_ affords a reddish wood.

Among the most extensively useful productions ought not to be forgotten the _bámbu_, or _príng_, which abounds on Java, and seems, from the greater luxuriance and variety by which it is here distinguished, to find the soil and climate more congenial to its growth than those of any other country. It blossoms in different parts of the island. The rattans (_rótan_) of Java are on the whole inferior to those of Sumatra and Borneo: the improved state of cultivation is unfavourable to their growth and propagation.

Many woods afford excellent fuel. The charcoal prepared from the _kusámbi_ is equal perhaps to that of any other wood with which we are acquainted, and is universally preferred in cooking, and in the other branches of domestic economy. Charcoal, for gunpowder, is uniformly prepared from the celtis orientalis, called _áng'grung_.

Among the useful trees must be noticed: the soap-tree, of which the fruit is used to a very great extent in washing linen:--the _kasémak_, from the bark of which is made a varnish for umbrellas:--the _sámpang_, from the resin of which the natives prepare a shining varnish for the wooden sheaths of krîses:--the cotton-tree, from which a silky wool is obtained for stuffing pillows and beds:--the wax-tree, which, though scarce on Java, grows abundantly on some parts of Madúra: (the kernel, by expression, produces an oil, which some time after becomes hard and bears a resemblance to wax; it may be burnt in lamps or converted into candles, and affords an agreeable odour): the _bendúd_, a shrub producing the substance of which the elastic gum, commonly called Indian-rubber, is prepared. The art of preparing it in this form is however unknown in Java. Torches are made of it, for the use of those who search for birds' nests in the rocks, and it serves for winding round the stick employed to strike musical instruments, as the _gong_, &c. to soften the sound. The _mínyak káwon_ or _niátu_ is a very useful tree, which grows solitary in all, and abundantly in some parts of the island, and produces a kind of tallow.

_Dámar_, or resin, is distinguished by the inhabitants of these countries into two kinds: _dámar-bátu_ or _séla_, and _dámar-puti_, comprising numerous varieties obtained from different trees. None of these are, however, produced on Java. Besides the _rásamála_, which is very limited as to its place of growth, the _Canáram_, and a peculiar resin employed by the natives for varnishing the wooden sheaths of their krîses, called _sámpang_, few odoriferous resins are found. The camphor-tree, which abounds on Sumatra and Borneo, is unknown on Java. The wood oil, distinguished among the Malays by the name of _krúwing_ (which in Java is applied to all resinous or oily substances employed in the construction of vessels), is not a native of Java, but it grows abundantly on Banka and Sumatra.

None of what are called the finer kinds of spices, namely, the nutmeg, clove, and cinnamon, are indigenous to Java; but the few trees which have been planted in the gardens of Europeans have thriven well: and, from the nature of the soil and climate, there seems little doubt that the nutmeg and clove, in particular, might be extensively cultivated throughout the island, did it suit the policy of the European government to admit of their general introduction.

The vine was once extensively cultivated in some of the eastern provinces of the island, in which the soil and climate appear well calculated for its growth; but an apprehension, on the part of the Dutch East-India Company, that its cultivation on Java might interfere with the wine trade of the Cape of Good Hope, induced them to discourage it, and the preparation of wine from the grape was strictly prohibited. Lieutenant-Colonel Mackenzie, when noticing the vast quantities of ashes thrown up from the different volcanos, makes the following observation on the eastern part of Java. "The soil of the country is evidently enriched by the ashes and earth emitted by these eruptions, and there is reason to conclude, what persons well acquainted with the south of Europe assert, that the vines of Italy and the Cape would thrive in perfection, in a soil and climate so well adapted to them."

Among the vegetable productions of Java, none has excited more interest than the celebrated _úpas_, or poison-tree. Mr. Marsden, in his history of Sumatra[32], has referred to various concurring authorities, in refutation of the very extraordinary tales told of this tree; and, in this general account of the productions of Java, it may perhaps be sufficient to refer the reader to the particulars contained in the subjoined note[33].

Of the useful or domestic quadrupeds it may be observed, that neither the elephant nor the camel is a native of Java: the former is rarely imported, the latter unknown. Neither the ass nor mule is found; but the island has a fine breed of small horses (_járan_), strong, fleet, and well made. A still finer breed is imported from _Bíma_, on the neighbouring island of _Sumbáwa_, which by competent judges has been said to resemble the Arab in every respect except size. They seldom exceed thirteen hands, and in general are below this standard.

The bull and cow (_sápi_ or _lémbu_) are general, but much more so in the central and eastern districts than in the western. The breed has been greatly improved by the species introduced from continental India. But the animal of most essential and general use in the agriculture of the country is the buffalo (_kábu_, _maísa_, or _múnding_), a particular account of which will appear in the chapter on Agriculture. Goats (_wedús_) are numerous and of a small size: sheep (called here European goats) are scarce and small. As in other sultry climates, the latter have a coarse woollen coat, which is employed for stuffing saddles, pillows, &c. but it is in so little request that the inhabitants are rarely at the trouble of shearing for it. The hog (_chéleng_) is reared principally among the Chinese.

Of beasts of prey may be enumerated several species of the tiger, as the _máchan lóreng_ (felis tigris), _máchan gogor_ (a variety), _máchan tútul_ (probably the small leopard of Pennant), _máchan kombang_ and _kúwuk_, the smallest kind, called tiger-cats. The jackal, and several varieties of the wild-dog; as the _ásu wáwar_, _ásu ájag_, or _ásu kíki_; and among other wild quadrupeds, the rhinoceros, and _bánteng_, or wild Javan ox, the wild-hog and the stag: the last, as well as the rib-faced and axis deer, is tamed and fattened for food. The aggregate number of mammalia on Java have been estimated at about fifty. The habits and manners of the larger animals, the tiger, leopard, black tiger, rhinoceros and stag, and two species of deer, the varieties of the wild-hog, &c. are sufficiently known; but the _bánteng_, or Javan ox, the Javan buffalo, the varieties of the wild-dog, those of the weasel and squirrel, and most of the other smaller quadrupeds, still present curious subjects for the study of the naturalist. Next to the rhinoceros, which sometimes (though rarely at present) injures plantations, the wild-hogs are the most destructive animals. They are often poisoned (or intoxicated, according to the quantity they consume) by the _kálák kámbing_, or by the remains from the preparation of _brom_. The practice of suspending rags impregnated with urine, at small distances around the plantations, is universal over the whole island. These animals are said to have so violent an aversion to this odour, that even this "feeble barrier" is useful in preserving the plantations.

Musk, called _dedes_, is procured from the _rasé_.

Although the same qualities are ascribed to them here as in other countries, bezoars are comparatively scarce in Java; and those occasionally found in the maritime capitals are uniformly brought from other countries. The hog-deer and Nicobar pigeon are not natives; and although wild-hogs, in which bezoars are said to be found, are very abundant, they are never examined or approached by the natives. Every extraordinary concretion, calculus, ossification, &c. found in any part of an animal, is called _mustíka_, which corresponds to the bezoar of the Arabs, Persians, &c. A concretion of feathers found in the stomach of a fowl is called _mustíka áyam_, and is carefully preserved. A stony concretion, discovered accidentally by the rattling of a human skull exposed for many years to the action of the sun, has been denominated _mustíka órang_, and the most salutary virtues ascribed to it. Analogous to the bezoars, must be considered the horns of the rhinoceros, whose virtues are highly prized.

Among the domestic fowls, or poultry, are the turkey, which is comparatively scarce, and chiefly raised for the tables of Europeans; the goose, which is very common near all the establishments of Europeans; the _bébek_, or duck, abundant in every part of the island; the common fowl and pigeons. Among the birds of prey, the eagle is not found; but there are several varieties of the falcon, of which the _jóko wuru_ is the largest; also the carrion crow and the owl. Of the parrot kind, two only, the _bétet_ and _selíndit_, are found on Java. The peacock (_merák_), is very common in large forests. The number of distinct species of birds has been estimated not greatly to exceed two hundred, of which upwards of one hundred and seventy have been described, and are already contained in the collections made on account of the English East India Company.

The dorsal feathers of the white heron, and the vent feathers of the _sándang láwé_, are employed, as substitutes for ostrich feathers, by the natives, for plumes, &c. It is very rarely that the feathers of geese, &c. are employed for beds or pillows, the silky cotton of the _kápok_ being preferred on account of its coolness. For ornamenting the arrows of the natives, the feathers of some of the falcon tribe are chiefly employed.

Among the interesting subjects which still remain open for search, are the habits and constitution of the hirundo esculenta, the small swallow which forms the edible nests, annually exported in large quantities from Java and the Eastern Islands for the Chinese market. These birds not only abound among the cliffs and caverns of the south coast of the island, but inhabit the fissures and caverns of several of the mountains and hills in the interior of the country. From every observation which has been made on Java, it has been inferred, that the mucilaginous substance, of which the nests are formed, is not, as has been generally supposed, obtained from the ocean. The birds, it is true, generally inhabit the caverns in the vicinity of the sea, as agreeing best with their habits, and affording them the most convenient retreats for attaching their nests to; but several caverns are found inland, at a distance of forty or fifty miles from the sea, containing nests similar to those on the shore. From many of their retreats along the southern coast, they have been observed to take their flight in an inland direction, towards the pools, lakes, and extensive marshes covered with stagnant water, as affording them abundance of their food, which consists of flies, mosquitoes, gnats, and small insects of every description. The sea that washes the foot of the cliffs, where they most abound, is almost always in a state of the most violent agitation, and affords none of those substances which have been supposed to constitute the food of the esculent swallow. Another species of swallow on this island forms a nest, in which grass or moss, &c. are merely agglutinated by a substance, exactly similar to that of which exclusively the edible nests consist. This substance, from whatever part of these regions the nests be derived, is essentially uniform, differing only in the colour, according to the relative age of the nests. It exhibits none of those diversities which might be expected, if it were collected casually (like the mud employed by the martin, and the materials commonly employed in nest-making), and applied to the rocks. If it consisted of the substances usually supposed, it would be putrescent and diversified.

Dr. Horsfield thinks that it is an animal elaboration, perhaps a kind of secretion; but to determine its nature accurately, it should be carefully analyzed, the anatomy of the bird should be investigated, and its character and habits watched.

The kayman of the Dutch, the _boáya_ of the Malays, and the _bóyo_ or _bájul_ of the Javans, which abounds along the shores and in the principal rivers of the island, resembles more the crocodile of Egypt than that of the Ganges, or the American alligator. The character of the lacerta crocodiles, as given in the Systema Naturæ, applies to the Javan crocodile, with this difference, that in the latter the two crests of the tail coalesce towards the extremity, in which respect it agrees with that of the Ganges; but its head and jaws are broad, and rounded. In its manners, habits, and destructive qualities, it resembles the largest animals of this genus. Next to the crocodile in size is the _béwak_ of the Malays, or _menyáwak_ or _selíra_ of the Javans. It sometimes attains the length of six or seven feet, and lives near the banks of rivers and marshes. Its character agrees with those of the lacerta monitor. It is erroneously denominated the guana by Europeans. The eggs of this animal, as well as of the crocodile, are eaten by the natives, and the fat is collected for medical purposes. A small lizard, the _búnglon_ of the Javans, is erroneously called the chameleon, in consequence of the property of changing its colour. It has the specific characters of the guana, but is much smaller, seldom exceeding eighteen or twenty inches in length. There are various other lizards.

Two varieties of the turtle, _pényu_ and _pényu kombang_, are found in the seas surrounding Java. Both yield the substance called tortoise-shell, but they are seldom taken of sufficient size to render it valuable: the flesh is excellent. Another kind, of which the species is unknown, renders a thicker shell. _Kúro_ is the name of the common land-tortoise, which is found very abundantly in particular districts.

Besides the rana esculenta, green frog (_kódok íjù_ of the Javans) which is frequently eaten, and the _kódok benju_, there is the common toad, _kódok_, and the _bánkong_ and _kíntel_. The frog-fish (rana paradosa), or a variety of it, is also found on the island, and has been exhibited in the same supposed metamorphosis as in other countries. No noxious quality of any of these animals is here known.

It is uncertain whether the boa constrictor be found on Java. The serpent usually called the _úlar sáwa_ is a species of coluber, and has been described in one of the volumes of the Batavian Transactions; but several other species are found which arrive at a very large size. One of them, the _úlar lánang_, is very much dreaded by the natives, and said to be poisonous. Of the _úlar sáwa_ there are several varieties, one of which, _úlar sáwa máchan_, is most beautifully variegated. Upwards of twenty serpents are enumerated as poisonous. The _úlar lámpe_ is found at or near the discharge of large rivers into the ocean, and is more abundant in some districts than in others. This is greatly dreaded by the natives; its bite however is rarely mortal, and the effects are comparatively slow, death seldom occurring within twenty-four hours from the time of its infliction. No remedies which deserve notice are known by the natives: charms and superstitious applications are generally resorted to. The most remarkable serpent is the _úlar kádut_, or _kárang_. The úlar lánang, and some of the varieties _úlar sáwa_ are slender, and possess considerable agility. According to the account of the natives, they frequently ascend trees, and suspending themselves by the extremity of their tail, seize upon small animals passing below; but the true _úlar sáwa_ of the Eastern Javans is slow, thick, and unwieldy. Nothing which could illustrate its supposed power of fascination has been noticed.

Of the fish most commonly used for food by the natives, many of which are excellent and abundant, thirty-four species of river fish, seven found chiefly in pools or stagnant waters, and sixteen sea fish, are already enumerated by Dr. Horsfield. The classes of amphibia and pisces, doubtless, afford many new subjects for investigation. Valentyn enumerates five hundred and twenty-eight uncommon kinds of fish found in the waters of the Eastern Islands.

Honey and wax are produced by three species of bees, inhabiting the largest forests, but they are both collected in very inconsiderable quantities. Bees are occasionally domesticated by the Arabs and Indians near the large settlements, but never by the natives. Silk-worms were once introduced by the Dutch near Batavia, but attention to them did not extend among the natives. The chrysalis of the large atlas affords a coarse silk, which is however not collected for use. To the fruit, several insects, and to the corn while in the ear, a peculiar species, generally known by the name of _wálang-sángít_, are most destructive. The latter has in some years destroyed the growth of whole districts, and occasioned partial scarcity. The natives attempt, in some instances, to extirpate it by burning chaff and brimstone in the fields. There are scorpions and centipedes, but their bite is considered of little consequence: the natives generally apply a cataplasm of onions to the wound. The class of insects affords many new objects; specimens of most of the genus papilio, and many of other genera have already been collected.

Java does not afford the same opportunities for beautiful collections of shells as the Moluccas, Papua, and other Islands. Along the northern coast, few shells are found of beauty or variety, and the corallines have mostly lost their integrity by attrition; but the extensive bays in the southern shore contain many of these objects in a state of beauty and perfection.

FOOTNOTES:

[12] The primitive Athenians were called Iones or Iaones (Herodotus, lib. i. &c.) This name is thought to have been given to them from Javan, which bears a great resemblance to Ιάων. This Javan was the fourth son of Japheth, and is said to have come into Greece after the confusion of Babel, and seated himself in Attica; and this report receives no small confirmation from the divine writings, where the name of Javan is in several places put for Greece. See Daniel x. 20. xi. 2. where the vulgar translations render it not Javan, as in the original, but Græcia. The Athenians afterwards named Asia the less _Ionia_.--Potter's Archæologia Græca.

[13] Panicum Italicum.

[14] The term _Zapagé_ or _Zabaja_ seems also to have been a corruption from _Jawa_, and to have been used with the same latitude, according to the following notices by Major Wilford. "There was a constant intercourse, both by sea and land, between the kingdom of _Magad'hi_ and China, on the authority of Chinese history; and they traded to an island and kingdom, called Founan, to the eastward of Siam, during the third and fourth centuries. This was probably a Malay kingdom; but we cannot ascertain its situation. It seems that the Malay emperors and kings, as those of _Zapagi_ and _Founan_, did what they could to introduce trade and learning into their dominions, but their exertions proved ineffectual; at least they were not attended with much success; and their subjects soon relapsed into their former mode of life." ... "There are two countries called Maharaja, which are often confounded together; the first, at the bottom of the Green Sea, including Bengal and all the countries on the banks of the Ganges; the second comprehended the peninsula of Malacca, and some of the adjacent islands in the seas of China. In these countries the emperor, or king, always assumed the title of Maharaja, even until this day. Their country, in general, was called _Zapagé_ or _Zabaja_, which is a corruption from _Java_ or _Jaba_, as it was called in the west, and was also the name of Sumatra, according to Ptolemy, who calls it _Jaba-diu_, and to Marco Polo. In the peninsula of Malacca was the famous emporium of _Zaba_: Zubaja, in Sanscrit, would signify then _Zaba_. The empire of _Zabajé_ was thus called, probably, from its metropolis, _Zaba_, as well as the principal islands near it. _Zaba_ was a principal emporium even as early as the time of Ptolemy. It remained so till the time of the two Mussulman travellers of Renaudot, and probably much longer. It is now called _Batu Sabor_, upon the river Jehor, which is as large as the Euphrates, according to these travellers; who add, that the town of Calabar, on the coast of Coromandel, and ten days to the south of Madras, belonged to the Maharaja of Zabaje. The wars of this Maharaja with the king of _Alkoner_ or countries near Cape Comorin, are mentioned by the two Mussulman travellers in the ninth century, and it seems that, at that time, the Malayan empire was in its greatest splendor."--_Asiatic Researches_, vol. ix.

[15] Others again have derived the term _Jawa_ from _Yava_, which in Sanscrit means barley, whence Java has occasionally been termed the land of barley.

[16] Beschryving van _Groot Djawa_ of te _Java Major_ door F. Valentyn.--Amsterdam, 1726.

[17] The breadth is a few miles less between Cheribon and the south coast, occasioned by the deep bay of _Cheláchap_, and also in the eastern termination of the island beyond Surabáya, where it only averages forty-five geographical miles.

[18] The term _regencies_ is adopted from the title of Regent, given by the Dutch to the chief native authority in each district.

[19] _Súra-kérta_ or _Sura-kérta di ning'rat_, is the name given to the seat of empire; but as the capital was only removed to its present site about the middle of the last century, it is still frequently called _Solo_, the name of the village in or near which this capital was established.

[20] This capital is indifferently turned _Yokya_, _Jokya_, _Juju_, _'Ng'yug'ya_, or _Yug'ya-kerta_, and is the _Djojo-Carta_, according to the Dutch orthography. The turn _Yug'ya_ has been selected, on account of its nearer approximation to the supposed derivation of the word from the _Na-yud-ya_ of the Ramayan.

[21] The height of the mountain _Arjúna_, in the eastern part of the island, has been determined at 10,614 feet above the level of the sea; and this mountain is by no means so lofty as those of _Semíru_ and _Tegál_, the exact height of which has not yet been ascertained.

[22] The height of this mountain has been ascertained to be 5,263 English feet above the level of the sea.

[23] To the above general observations, which are made on the authority of Dr. Horsfield, it may not be uninteresting to subjoin a more particular account of two or three of the volcanos which have been examined by that gentleman; those of _Tánkuban-Prahu_, _Papandáyang_, and _Gúntur_ are, therefore, extracted from a paper published by Dr. Horsfield in the Batavian Transactions.

"TANKUBAN-PRAHU.--This mountain (which has derived its name from its appearance at a distance, resembling a _prahu_, or boat, turned upside down) forms a vast truncated cone. Its base extends to a very great distance, and it belongs to the largest mountains of the island, forming one of its most interesting volcanos. Although it has had no violent eruption for many ages, as is evident from the progress of vegetation, and from the depth of black mould which covers its sides, its interior has continued in a state of uninterrupted activity.

"The crater is one of the largest, perhaps the largest, of the island. It has, in general, the shape of a funnel; but its sides are very irregular. The brim, or margin, which bounds it at the top, has also different degrees of elevation, rising and descending along the whole course of its circumference. The perpendicular depth at the side, where I descended (in the south), is at least two hundred and fifty feet: in the west the margin rises considerably higher. The regular circumference of the crater I estimate one English mile and nearly an half. The south side of the interior crater, near the top, is very steep. I found it impossible to descend, without the assistance of ropes tied to the shrubs at the margin. It consists here of small fragments of lava. About one-third of its depth it becomes more oblique or inclining, and the lower part consists of large piles of rocks, through which the descending streams of water have excavated a winding channel. The east side descends gradually about one-half of the depth, where it is terminated abruptly by a perpendicular pile of large rocks, which continues to the bottom. The north side is more gradually shelving than the others, and is partly covered with vegetation. The west side is one perpendicular pile of rocks. The nucleus of the mountain consists of large masses of basaltes, in which the volcanic opening is situated; and the sides exhibit piles and strata of this stone in every possible variety of configuration. In some places the rocks have the appearance of a regular wall, which is suddenly diversified by large fragments suspended apparently by a small base, and threatening to fall down every instant. Sometimes they rise in an oblique manner, and appear to have been disposed by art. But I shall not attempt a minute description of the disposition of the rocks and the strata which form the internal walls of the crater, which, without an accurate drawing, would be tedious and scarcely intelligible. The surface of the rocks which line the interior of the crater is completely calcined, generally of a white colour, sometimes inclining to grey or yellow. In many places small fragments of lava adhere to and cover the rocks of basalt: these are of different sizes, and of great variety of form and colour; but the most are calcined or burnt, or the surface like the rocks themselves. The different sides of the internal crater are excavated in many places, by furrows made by the descending water, which penetrate to a considerable depth, and expose more completely the interior basaltic composition. The bottom of the crater has a diameter of three hundred yards, but is not completely regular; its form depends on the gradual meeting of the sides below. Its surface is much diversified: it is strewed, like the sides, with immense blocks of basalt, the interstices between which are excavated, in a similar manner, by the streams of the descending water.

"Near the centre, somewhat inclining to the west side, it contains an irregular oval lake, or collection of water, whose greatest diameter is nearly one hundred yards: it dilates into several branches. The water is white, and exhibits truly the appearance of a lake of milk, boiling with a perpetual discharge of large bubbles, which rise with greatest force from the eastern side. The heat is 112° of Fahrenheit's scale: the apparent boiling arises from a constant development of fixed air. The water has a sulphureous odour; its taste is astringent, somewhat saline. Shaken in a bottle it explodes its fixed air with great violence. The sides of the lake, to some distance, are lined by a white aluminous earth, most impalpably fine, and very loose, on which account it is very difficult to approach the water. In attempting to examine its temperature, and to collect for analysis, I sunk into the earth to a considerable distance, and found it necessary to dispose large fragments of basaltes before I was able to pass over it. This earth consists of the clay (alumine) of the lavas dissolved by the sulphureous steams on the bottom of the crater; it is of the purest kind, and divided to a degree minute almost beyond conception. Large quantities have been several times thrown out of the ancient craters of the island. One eruption of this substance occurred in the year 1761 from the mountain Gedé: it was considered as an eruption of ashes.

"I was witness to a similar eruption, which occurred from the mountain of _Klut_, in the month of June last year. The earth very much resembled ashes, and was so impalpably fine and light, that the common breeze of the monsoon carried it from this mountain, situated in the longitude of Surabáya, to Batavia and farther westward. It possessed the properties of the purest clay, and being mixed with water became viscid and ductile. It can easily be formed into vessels, and if procurable in large quantities, might usefully be employed in the arts. All its properties indicated sufficiently that it was the alumine of the lavas, divided in an extreme degree by the causes above-mentioned. The Javanese are not wholly unacquainted with the properties of this earth. It is a custom amongst silversmiths to collect the ashes thrown out by similar eruptions, for the purpose of making _moulds_ for the finest works.

"Towards the eastern extremity of the lake are the remaining outlets of the subterraneous fires: they consist of several apertures, from which an uninterrupted discharge of sulphureous vapours takes place. Two of these are larger than the rest; they are several feet distant from each other. The apertures are of an irregular oblong form, and covered with crystals of impure sulphur, which form from the discharged vapours, and adhere to those incrustations of the aluminous earth which have formed themselves in a great variety of configurations (hollows, tubes, &c.) near the apertures. The vapours rush out with incredible force, with violent subterraneous noises, resembling the boiling of an immense cauldron in the bowels of the mountain: their colour is white, like the concentrated vapours of boiling water. The apertures cannot be approached without the greatest danger, as their true extent cannot be discovered: they are surrounded by incrustations of sulphur adhering to delicate laminæ of the aluminous earth, which are extremely brittle. The greatest diameter of the large opening is nearly twelve inches.

"To give an adequate description of the interior of this crater would furnish matter for an able pen: the force of the impression is increased, perhaps, by the recollection of the danger which has been overcome in descending to the bottom. Every thing here contributes to fill the mind with the most awful satisfaction. It doubtless is one of the most grand and terrific scenes which nature affords; and, in the present instance, the extent of the crater, as well as the remains of the former explosions, afforded a view and enjoyment which is not in my power to describe.

"PAPANDAYANG.--The Papandáyang, situated on the western part of the district of Cheribon, in the province of _Suka-pura_, was formerly one of the largest volcanos of the island; but the greatest part of it was swallowed up in the earth, after a short but very severe combustion, in the year 1772. The account which has remained of this event asserts, that near midnight, between the 11th and 12th of August, there was observed about the mountain an uncommonly luminous cloud, by which it appeared to be completely enveloped. The inhabitants, as well about the foot as on the declivities of the mountain, alarmed by this appearance, betook themselves to flight; but before they could all save themselves, the mountain began to give way, and the greatest part of it actually _fell_ in and disappeared in the earth. At the same time, a tremendous noise was heard, resembling the discharge of the heaviest cannon. Immense quantities of volcanic substances, which were thrown out at the same time and spread in every direction, propagated the effects of the explosion through the space of many miles.

"It is estimated, that an extent of ground, of the mountain itself and its immediate environs, fifteen miles long and full six broad, was by this commotion swallowed up in the bowels of the earth. Several persons, sent to examine the condition of the neighbourhood, made report, that they found it impossible to approach the mountain, on account of the heat of the substances which covered its circumference, and which were piled on each other to the height of three feet; although this was the 24th of September, and thus full six weeks after the catastrophe. It is also mentioned, that forty villages, partly swallowed up by the ground and partly covered by the substances thrown out, were destroyed on this occasion, and that 2,957 of the inhabitants perished. A proportionate number of cattle was also destroyed, and most of the plantations of cotton, indigo, and coffee, in the adjacent districts, were buried under the volcanic matter. The effects of this explosion are still very apparent on the remains of this volcano; but I defer an account of it, till I have had an opportunity of making a more minute examination.

"GUNTUR.--The whole of the eastern part of this mountain is completely naked, and exposes to view, in a striking manner, the course of the lavas of the latter eruptions: the top is a regular cone, and covered with loose fragments of lava. I shall give a very concise abstract of the observations on the mountain, and on the different streams of lava which have lately flowed from its crater. I could distinctly trace, from the base of the conical top to the roots of the mountain, five different eruptions. The latest stream of lava which I examined (the mountain has since had a later eruption) was thrown out in 1800. Its course along the top cannot be distinctly observed, being completely covered with sand and small fragments of lava, which generally rise towards the end of an eruption. At the place where the stream first appeared distinctly, it was about five yards broad and completely even on the surface: having proceeded about twenty yards further it gradually widened, and was formed into a connected stream, higher in the middle, the sides tapering or inclining towards the top, forming a ridge with a pointed or sharp back. As the stream arrived at the foot of the mountain, it spread more and more, and pursued its course to the eastward, about six hundred yards over the adjacent country. Its greatest breadth, from north to south, is about one hundred and sixty yards, and it terminates abruptly by a rounded margin, consisting of large blocks of lava piled upon each other, nearly perpendicularly, to the height of fifteen to twenty feet.

"This stream of lava, like all the others of later date which I have examined on the island, does not consist of a connected mass of fluid lava, united like a stream of melted metal; at least on the surface where it is exposed to view. It is made up of separate masses, which have an irregular (generally oblong or cubical) shape, and lie upon each other as 'loose disjointed clods,' in an immense variety of disposition. In some of these fragments I think I could observe a tendency to assume the regular basaltic figure. During its course down the steeps of the mountain, the stream, as has been observed, forms the long connected ridge (which has been described above, in the account of the volcanos, as generally covering the sides); but having arrived at the foot and spread more at large, these lumps of lava dispose themselves, in some instances, in plains, bounded by deep vallies: now they rise to a considerable height, and form a steep perpendicular eminence; then again they are piled upon each other more gradually, and appear rising by steps and divisions. But to give an accurate description of the arrangement of these fragments of lava would be unnecessarily prolix, and would require, to be clearly understood, a good drawing. In different places, the sulphureous vapours have forced their way through the interstices of the blocks of lava. The sides of their outlets (whose form is very irregular) is covered with a white calcareous crust; and the heat is so great, that small pieces of paper thrown into them are immediately singed.

"This stream of lava is bounded on the north by another, of the same nature and disposition, thrown out of the mountain (according to an estimate made from the commencement and progress of vegetation upon it) about thirty years ago. In its course along the sides of the mountain it forms the same pointed ridges above described. It affords a plain demonstration of the manner in which the surface of lava is decomposed and rendered fit for vegetation. A third district of lava bounds the new stream first described in the south: it is more extensive than the others, and consists of several distinct regions, probably thrown out during one eruption (which appears to have been more violent than the others), but in successive periods shortly following each other. It extends farther to the eastward than the others, and covers a great portion of the foot of the mountain. Vegetation has already made considerable progress upon it: in the vallies between the separate streams of lava are found not only plants but also small shrubs. At one place, near the termination of this stream, the lava is piled up in two irregular ridges to the height of twenty feet; and at a small distance from its eastern extremity, in a spot which has escaped the effects of the later eruptions, and is covered by pleasant wood, are three different hot wells, within the circumference of a quarter of a mile. In the south, this district of lava is bounded by a recent stream, which appears to have been thrown out in 1800, by the same eruption which produced the first mentioned stream. It differs from the others only in the colour of its lava, which has a reddish hue: it is less considerable in extent than any of the others, and cannot be traced far from the foot of the mountain. The fifth stream of lava which I examined is still farther towards the south, and is one of the oldest which have been discharged from the eastern part of the crater. Near the foot of the mountain, vegetation has made greater progress than in any of the other districts of lava.

"The colour of the recent lava of this mountain is jet-black or grey: one of the streams only has a reddish colour. Its texture is very loose, and its fracture very porous. The smaller fragments have much the appearance of the scoriæ of a blacksmith's forge: on being thrown against each other, they emit a sound like two bricks coming into contact. The interior crater of this mountain, as it has remained after the eruption of 1800, is less interesting than the others which I have examined. Its shape is somewhat oval, the greatest diameter being about one hundred yards: its depth is not very considerable. Its structure, in general, is similar to that of _Tankuban-prahu_. It has one remaining aperture, which discharges with great force hot sulphureous vapours."

_Batavian Transactions_, vol. ix.

[24] Mineral wells, of various qualities, are found in almost every part of the island. As an instance of the hot wells, the following account of those found in Cheribon is selected. "At the village of _Bongas_ (situated about ten miles to the north-east of _Karang-Sambong_) I directed my route to the large mountain, in order to examine part of the hills along its foot, called the hills of _Pana-wangan_, and several hot wells which are found near their borders. On approaching these hills, after a very gentle acclivity covered entirely by calcareous stones, I very soon came to the spot of the hot wells. They are found on a gently inclining plain, about one hundred yards in circumference. This plain is perfectly white; and on approaching it, it is perceived at some distance by a sulphureous vapour, arising from the whole neighbourhood. The water springs from several apertures, but their temperatures are not equal; the hottest indicates the degree of one hundred and thirty of Fahrenheit's scale. They all contain a very large quantity of calcareous earth in solution and suspension, which coming into contact with the air, immediately separates, and adheres to the surrounding objects, or is precipitated to the ground. The branches of the shrubs in the vicinity are all enveloped by a stalactical incrustation. The water from the different wells gently descending the white calcareous plain, is collected in a rivulet below. A large number of calcareous rocks are found in the vicinity of the plains; some are covered with elegant crystals of calcareous spar, others have a coralline appearance, and some have the fracture of alabaster. On proceeding up the hills, immense irregular blocks of calcareous rocks are found strewed about in the valleys. About one hundred yards above this district are several wells of naphtha, or petroleum. It rises in small plashes of water, about twelve or eighteen inches in diameter, upon which it drives its black specks, emitting the peculiar odour of the petroleum. The earth in the circumference of these plashes is strongly impregnated with this oil: it is very tough, and from that immediately bounding apertures, the naphtha flows out on its being pressed; some portions exactly resemble asphaltum. A considerable space of ground is occupied by these wells. The stones are all calcareous. A few hundred yards above this spot, the borders of the hills become very steep. I examined them to some extent. They are composed exclusively of calcareous stones. Several extensive stalactitic caves are found at no great distance above the wells; they exhibit the usual appearances of calcareous caves and vaults. The process of incrustation is continually going on. In some places, deep perforations extend into the heart of the hills."--_Essay on the Mineralogy of Java, by Dr. Horsfield. Bat. Trans._ vol. ix.

Among other objects of curiosity, which can only be illustrated by particular description, are the explosions of mud, situated between the district of Grobogan on the west, and of Blora and Jipang on the east. By the natives they are termed Blédeg, and are described by Dr. Horsfield as salt wells.

"These salt wells," he observes, "are dispersed through a district of country several miles in circumference, the base of which, like that of other parts of the island which furnish mineral and other saline waters, is limestone. They are of considerable number, and force themselves upwards, through apertures in the rocks, with some violence and ebullition. The waters are strongly impregnated with sea-salt, and yield upon evaporation very good salt for culinary purposes. (In quantity not less than two hundred tons in the year.)

"About the centre of this limestone district, is found an extraordinary volcanic phenomenon. On approaching it from a distance, it is first discovered by a large volume of smoke rising and disappearing at intervals of a few seconds, resembling the vapours arising from a violent surf: a dull noise is heard, like that of distant thunder. Having advanced so near, that the vision was no longer impeded by the smoke, a large hemispherical mass was observed, consisting of black earth, mixed with water, about sixteen feet in diameter, rising to the height of twenty or thirty feet in a perfectly regular manner, and as it were pushed up, by a force beneath; which suddenly exploded with a dull noise, and scattered about a volume of black mud in every direction. After an interval of two or three, or sometimes four or five seconds, the hemispherical body of mud or earth rose and exploded again. In the same manner this volcanic ebullition goes on without interruption, throwing up a globular body of mud, and dispersing it with violence through the neighbouring plain. The spot where the ebullition occurs is nearly circular and perfectly level, it is covered only with the earthy particles impregnated with salt water, which are thrown up from below; the circumference may be estimated at about half an English mile. In order to conduct the salt water to the circumference, small passages, or gutters, are made in the loose muddy earth, which lead it to the borders, where it is collected in holes dug in the ground for the purpose of evaporation.

"A strong, pungent, sulphureous smell, somewhat resembling that of earth-oil, is perceived on standing near the explosion; and the mud recently thrown up possesses a degree of heat greater than that of the surrounding atmosphere. During the rainy season these explosions are more violent, the mud is thrown up much higher, and the noise is heard at a greater distance.

"This volcanic phenomenon is situated near the centre of the large plain which interrupts the large series of volcanos; and owes its origin to the general cause of the numerous volcanic eruptions which occur on the island." _Batavian Trans._ vol. ix.

"These salt wells, as Dr. Horsfield terms them, and other phenomena connected with them, appear to be precisely of the same description as the mud volcano at Macalouba, in Sicily, and the eruptions described by Pallas, at Tainan and Kercha (the boundary of Europe to the south-east of Little Tartary) and no doubt owe their origin to similar causes--the extrication of gas, as well described by Dallas, in his Translation of the History of Volcanos, by the Abbé Ordinaire," page 249. All the phenomenon described in this work, as well in Sicily as at Tainan and Kercha, are to be found in Java, where, on the hypothesis of the Abbé, "the vitriolic acid liberating a great quantity of fixed air from the salts with which this argillaceous and limy mass is impregnated, is observed escaping copiously, by a general bubbling on the surface of the plain, when the substances are sufficiently diluted by rain," &c.

On the hypothesis of the Abbé it may, therefore, be doubted whether the assertion "that the Blédegs owe their origin to the general cause of the numerous volcanos on the island, is correct." Pallas conceives that the phenomenon at Kercha and Tainan may be explained by supposing a deep coal mine to have been for ages on fire, that the sea broke in upon it, that the water was turned into steam, and that the expansion occasioned thereby, and the struggle of the different gases to get free, force the upper surface, &c. but there seems no necessity for admitting the action of fire; the mud he describes is only _luke-warm_, this is precisely the case in Java.

It is remarkable that in Java, as in Sicily, in the vicinity of these phenomena, "the country around is of calcareous earth; briny springs and salt mines are found in the neighbourhood; some beds of oil of petroleum are also observed floating on adjacent stagnant waters."

[25] The tradition is as follows:--"It is related, that in former times the islands of Sumatra, Java, Bali, and Sumbawa were united, and afterwards separated into nine different parts; and it is also said, that when three thousand rainy seasons have passed away, they will be reunited."

The separation of the lands of Palembang (Sumatra) and Java took place in the Javan year 1114

The separation of the lands of Bali and Balembangan on Java in 1204

The separation of the lands of Giling Trawangán and Bali in 1260

The separation of the island of Selo-Parang and Sumbawa in 1280

_See Chronological Table, under the head "History of Java."_

[26] In order to give the reader some idea of the tremendous violence with which nature sometimes distinguishes the operations of the volcano in these regions, and enable him to form some conjecture, from the occurrences of recent experience, of the effects they may have produced in past ages, a short account of the extraordinary and wide-spread phenomena that accompanied the eruption of the Tomboro mountain, in the island of Sumbawa, in April 1815, may not be uninteresting. Almost every one is acquainted with the intermitting convulsions of Etna and Vesuvius, as they appear in the descriptions of the poet and the authentic accounts of the naturalist, but the most extraordinary of them can bear no comparison, in point of duration and force, with that of Tomboro. This eruption extended perceptible evidences of its existence over the whole of the Molucca islands, over Java, a considerable portion of Celebes, Sumatra, and Borneo, to a circumference of a thousand statute miles from its centre, by tremulous motions, and the report of explosions; while within the range of its more immediate activity, embracing a space of three hundred miles around it, it produced the most astonishing effects, and excited the most alarming apprehensions. On Java, at the distance of three hundred miles, it seemed to be awfully present. The sky was overcast at noon-day with clouds of ashes, the sun was enveloped in an atmosphere, whose "palpable" density he was unable to penetrate; showers of ashes covered the houses, the streets, and the fields to the depth of several inches; and amid this darkness explosions were heard at intervals, like the report of artillery or the noise of distant thunder. So fully did the resemblance of the noises to the report of cannon impress the minds of some officers, that from an apprehension of pirates on the coast vessels were dispatched to afford relief. Superstition, on the other hand, on the minds of the natives, was busily at work, and attributed the reports to an artillery of a different description to that of pirates. All conceived that the effects experienced might be caused by eruptions of some of the numerous volcanos on the island; but no one could have conjectured that the showers of ashes which darkened the air, and covered the ground of the eastern districts of Java, could have proceeded from a mountain in Sumbawa, at the distance of several hundred miles. Conceiving that it might be interesting and curious to preserve an authentic and detailed account of the information that could be gained of this wonderful phenomenon, while the event was still recent and fully remembered, I directed a circular to the different Residents, requiring them to transmit to the Government a statement of the facts and circumstances connected with it, which occurred within their own knowledge. From their replies, the narrative drawn up by Mr. Assey, and printed in the ninth volume of the Batavian Transactions, was collected; the following is an extract from that paper:--

"The first explosions were heard on this island (Java) in the evening of the 5th of April: they were noticed in every quarter, and continued at intervals until the following day. The noise was, in the first instance, universally attributed to distant cannon: so much so, that a detachment of troops was marched from Djocjocarta, under the apprehension that a neighbouring post had been attacked; and along the coast boats were in two instances dispatched in quest of supposed ships in distress. On the following morning, however, a slight fall of ashes removed all doubt as to the cause of the sound; and it is worthy of remark, that as the eruption continued, the sound appeared to be so close, that in each district it seemed near at hand, and was generally attributed to an eruption either from the mountains Merapi, Klut, or Bromo. From the 6th the sun became obscured; it had every where the appearance of being enveloped in a fog. The weather was sultry and the atmosphere close, and still the sun seemed shorn of its rays, and the general stillness and pressure of the atmosphere seemed to forebode an earthquake. This lasted several days. The explosions continued occasionally, but less violently, and less frequently than at first. Volcanic ashes also began to fall, but in small quantities, and so slightly as to be hardly perceptible in the western district. This appearance of the atmosphere continued, with little variation, until the 10th of April; and till then it does not appear that the volcano attracted much observation, or was considered of greater importance than those which have occasionally burst forth in Java. But on the evening of the 10th, the eruptions were heard more loud and more frequent; from Cheribon eastward the air became darkened by the quantity of falling ashes; the sun was nearly darkened; and in some situations, particularly at Solo and Rembang, many said that they felt a tremulous motion of the earth. It was universally remarked in the more eastern districts, that the explosions were tremendous, continuing frequently during the 11th, and of such violence as to shake the houses perceptibly. An unusual thick darkness was remarked all the following night, and the greater part of the next day. At Solo candles were lighted at 4 p. m. of the 12th; at Mágelan in Kédu, objects could not be seen at three hundred yards distance. At Grésik, and other districts more eastward, it was dark as night in the greater part of the 12th April, and this saturated state of the atmosphere lessened as the cloud of ashes passed along and discharged itself on its way. Thus the ashes that were eight inches deep at Bányuwángi were but two in depth at Súmenap, and less in Grésik, and the sun does not seem to have been actually obscured in any district west of Semárang.

"All reports concur in stating, that so violent and extensive an eruption has not happened within the memory of the oldest inhabitant, nor within tradition. They speak of similar effects, in a lesser degree, when an eruption took place from the volcano of Karang Asam in Bali, about seven years ago, and it was at first supposed that this mountain was the seat of the eruption. The Balinese on Java attributed the event to a recent dispute between the two Rajahs of Bali Baliling, which terminated in the death of the younger Rajah by order of his brother.

"The haziness and heat of the atmosphere, and occasional fall of volcanic ashes, continued until the 14th, and in some parts of the island until the 17th of April. They were cleared away universally by a heavy fall of rain, after which the atmosphere became clear and more cool; and it would seem that this seasonable relief prevented much injury to the crops, and removed an appearance of epidemic disease which was beginning to prevail. This was especially the case at Batavia, where, for two or three days preceding the rain, many persons were attacked with fever. As it was, however, no material injury was felt beyond the districts of Banyuwángi. The cultivators every where took precaution to shake off the ashes from the growing paddy as they fell, and the timely rain removed an apprehension very generally entertained, that insects would have been generated by the long continuance of the ashes at the root of the plant. In Rembang, where the rain did not fall till the 17th, and the ashes had been considerable, the crops were somewhat injured; but in Banyuwángi, the part of the island on which the cloud of ashes spent its force, the injury was more extensive. A large quantity of paddy was totally destroyed, and all the plantations more or less injured. One hundred and twenty-six horses and eighty-six head of cattle also perished, chiefly for want of forage, during a month from the time of the eruption.

"From Sumbawa to the part of Sumatra where the sound was noticed, is about nine hundred and seventy geographical miles in a direct line. From Sumbawa to Ternate is a distance of about seven hundred and twenty miles. The distance also to which the cloud of ashes was carried, so quickly as to produce utter darkness, was clearly pointed out to have been the island of Celebes and the districts of Grésik on Java: the former is two hundred and seventeen nautical miles distant from the seat of the volcano; the latter, in a direct line, more than three hundred geographical miles."

The following is an extract from the reports of Lieutenant Owen Phillips, dated at Bima on the island of Sumbawa. "On my trip towards the western part of the island, I passed through nearly the whole of Dompo and a considerable part of Bima. The extreme misery to which the inhabitants have been reduced is shocking to behold. There were still on the road-side the remains of several corpses, and the marks of where many others had been interred: the villages almost entirely deserted and the houses fallen down, the surviving inhabitants having dispersed in search of food. The Rajah of Sang'ir came to wait on me at Dompo, on the 3d instant. The suffering of the people there appears, from his account, to be still greater than in Dompo. The famine has been so severe that even one of his own daughters died from hunger. I presented him with three coyangs of rice in your name, for which he appeared most truly thankful.

"As the Rajah was himself a spectator of the late eruption, the following account which he gave me is perhaps more to be depended upon than any other I can possibly obtain. About 7 p. m. on the 10th of April, three distinct columns of flame burst forth near the top of the Tomboro mountain (all of them apparently within the verge of the crater), and after ascending separately to a very great height, their tops united in the air in a troubled confused manner. In a short time, the whole mountain next Sang'ir appeared like a body of liquid fire, extending itself in every direction. The fire and columns of flame continued to rage with unabated fury, until the darkness caused by the quantity of falling matter obscured it at about 8 p. m. Stones, at this time, fell very thick at Sang'ir; some of them as large as two fists, but generally not larger than walnuts. Between 9 and 10 p. m. ashes began to fall, and soon after a violent whirlwind ensued, which blew down nearly every house in the village of Sang'ir, carrying the ataps, or roofs, and light parts away with it. In the part of Sang'ir adjoining Tomboro its effects were much more violent, tearing up by the roots the largest trees and carrying them into the air, together with men, horses, cattle, and whatever else came within its influence. (This will account for the immense number of floating trees seen at sea). The sea rose nearly twelve feet higher than it had ever been known to do before, and completely spoiled the only small spots of rice land in Sang'ir, sweeping away houses and every thing within its reach. The whirlwind lasted about an hour. No explosions were heard till the whirlwind had ceased, at about 11 a. m. From midnight till the evening of the 11th, they continued without intermission; after that time their violence moderated, and they were only heard at intervals, but the explosions did not cease entirely until the 15th of July. Of the whole villages of Tomboro, Tempo containing about forty inhabitants is the only one remaining. In Pekáté no vestige of a house is left: twenty-six of the people, who were at Sumbawa at the time, are the whole of the population who have escaped. From the most particular inquiries I have been able to make, there were certainly not fewer than twelve thousand individuals in Tomboro and Pekáté at the time of the eruption, of whom only five or six survive. The trees and herbage of every description, along the whole of the north and west sides of the peninsula, have been completely destroyed, with the exception of a high point of land near the spot where the village of Tomboro stood."

[27] Batavian Transactions, vol. viii. Introductory Discourse.

[28] See Appendix A.

[29] Raynal, vol i. page 293.

[30] It is remarkable that the teak tree, which, as far as our information yet extends, is not to be found on the peninsula of Malacca, or on Sumatra or the adjacent islands, should grow in abundance on Java and several of the islands which lie east of it: as on Madúra and its dependent islands, Báli, Sumbáwa, and others. Sumbáwa produces a considerable quantity. The whole of the hills on the north-east part of that island under Bíma are covered with it; but from the constant demand for the timber, the trees are seldom allowed to grow to more than a foot in diameter, except in the forests exclusively appropriated to the use of the sovereign. In Dómpo, which occupies the central division of the same island, the teak cannot be used by any but the sovereign, and the trees are in consequence allowed to attain their full size. The timber is here uncommonly fine, and by the natives considered superior to that of Java; but the forests being surrounded by steep hills, and the population but scanty, it cannot be transported to the sea-coast without great labour and expense. On Celebes the teak tree is only known in a few spots. The principal forest is in the district of Mario; and this does not appear to be indigenous, as the natives assert that the seed from which the forest has grown, was brought from Java about eighty years ago by one of the sovereigns of Tanété.

[31] The Dutch, apprehensive of a failure in the usual supply of teak timber, have long been in the habit of forming extensive plantations of this tree; but whether from a sufficient period not having yet elapsed for the trial, or that the plantations are generally made in soils and situations ill calculated for the purpose, experience, as far as it has yet gone, has shown, that the trees which are left to the operations of nature, attain to greater perfection, even in a comparatively barren soil, unfit for any other cultivation, than those which are with great care and trouble reared in a fertile land. Their wood is more firm, more durable, and of a less chalky substance than that of the latter.

[32] Page 176, third edit.

[33] Although a serious refutation of the gross imposition practised on the people of Europe, by the romance of Foersch on the subject of the upas, or celebrated poison-tree of Java, may at this day be in a great measure superfluous, as the world has long ceased to be the dupe of his story, and as regular series of experiments have been instituted, both in France and in England, to ascertain the nature and potency of the poison; yet it may not be altogether displeasing to the reader to see in this place an authentic account of the poison, as drawn out by Dr. Horsfield at my request, and published in the seventh volume of the Batavian Transactions. Almost every one has heard of its fabulous history, which, from its extravagant nature, its susceptibility of poetical ornament, its alliance with the cruelties of a despotic government, and the sparkling genius of Darwin, whose purpose it answered to adopt and personify it as a malignant spirit (in his Lives of the Plants), has obtained almost equal currency with the wonders of the Lerna Hydra, the Chimera, or any other of the classic fictions of antiquity.

"Although the account published by Foersch, in so far as relates to the situation of the poison-tree, to its effects on the surrounding country, and to the application said to have been made of the upas on criminals in different parts of the island, as well as the description of the poisonous substance itself, and its mode of collection, has been demonstrated to be an extravagant forgery,--the existence of a tree on Java, from the sap of which a poison is prepared, equal in fatality, when thrown into the circulation, to the strongest animal poisons hitherto known, is a fact which is at present my object to establish and illustrate. The tree which produces this poison is the anchar, and grows in the eastern extremity of the island. The work of Rhumphius contains a long account of the upas, under the denomination of arbor toxicaria. The tree does not grow on Amboyna, and his description was made from the information he obtained from Makasar. His figure was drawn from a branch of what is called the male-tree, sent to him from the same place, and establishes the identity of the poison-tree of Makasar, and the other Eastern Islands, with the anchar of Java. The simple sap of the arbor toxicaria (according to Rhumphius) is harmless, and requires the addition of several substances, of the affinity of ginger, to render it active and mortal. In so far it agrees with the anchar, which, in its simple state, is _supposed_ to be inert, and before being employed as a poison, is subjected to a preparation which will be described after the history of the tree. Besides the true poison-tree, the upas of the Eastern Islands, and the anchar of the Javans, this island produces a shrub, which, as far as observations have hitherto been made, is peculiar to the same, and, by a different mode of preparation, furnishes a poison far exceeding the upas in violence. Its name is chetik, and its specific description will succeed to that of the anchar: the genus has not yet been discovered or described.

"DESCRIPTION OF THE ANCHAR.--The anchar belongs to the twenty-first class of Linnæus, the monoecia. The male and female flowers are produced in catkins (amenta) on the same branch, at no great distance from each other: the female flowers are in general above the male. The characters of the genus are:--MALE flower; calix, consisting of several scales, which are imbricate. Corol; none. Stamens; filaments many, very short, covered with scales at the receptacle. The receptacle, on which the filaments are placed, has a conical form, abrupt, somewhat rounded above.--FEMALE flower; catkins, ovate. Calix; consisting of a number of scales (generally more than in the male), containing one flower. Corol; none. Pistil; germ single, ovate. Styles; two, long, slender, and spreading. Stigmas; single and acute. Seed-vessel; an oblong drupe, covered with the calix. Seed; an ovate nut, with one cell.

"SPECIFIC DESCRIPTION.--The anchar is one of the largest trees in the forests of Java. The stem is cylindrical, perpendicular, and rises completely naked to the height of sixty, seventy, or eighty feet. Near the surface of the ground it spreads obliquely, dividing into numerous broad appendages or wings, much like the canarium commune (the canary-tree), and several other of our large forest trees. It is covered with a whitish bark, slightly bursting in longitudinal furrows. Near the ground this bark is, in old trees, more than half an inch thick, and upon being wounded yields plentifully the milky juice from which the celebrated poison is prepared. A puncture or incision being made into the tree, the juice or sap appears oozing out of a yellowish colour (somewhat frothy) from old, paler or nearly white from young trees; exposed to the air, its surface becomes brown. The consistence very much resembles milk: it is more thick and viscid. This sap is contained in the true bark (or cortex), which, when punctured, yields a considerable quantity, so that in a short time a cup-full may be collected from a large tree. The inner bark (or liber) is of a close fibrous texture, like that of the morus papyrifera, and when separated from the other bark, and cleansed from the adhering particles, resembles a coarse piece of linen. It has been worked into ropes, which are very strong; and the poorer class of people employ the inner bark of the younger trees, which is more easily prepared, for the purpose of making a coarse stuff which they wear in working in the fields. But it requires much bruising, washing, and a long immersion, before it can be used, and when it appears completely purified, persons wearing this dress being exposed to rain, are affected with an intolerable itching, which renders their flimsy covering insupportable. It will appear from the account of the manner in which the poison is prepared, that the deleterious quality exists in the gum; a small portion of which still adhering, produces, when exposed to wet, this irritating effect: and it is singular, that this property of the prepared bark is known to the Javans in all places where the tree grows, while the preparation of a poison from its juice, which produces a mortal effect when introduced into the body by pointed weapons, is an exclusive art of the inhabitants of the eastern extremity of the island. The stem of the anchar having arrived at the above-mentioned height, sends off a few stout branches, which spreading nearly horizontally with several irregular curves, divide into smaller branches, and form a hemispherical, not very regular, crown. Previous to the season of flowering, about the beginning of June, the tree sheds its leaves, which reappear when the male flowers have completed the office of fecundation. It delights in a fertile, not very elevated, soil, and is only found in the largest forests. One of the experiments to be related below was made with the upas prepared by myself. In the collection of the juice I had some difficulty in inducing the inhabitants to assist me; they feared a cutaneous eruption and inflammation, resembling (according to the account they gave of it) that produced by the ingas of this island, the rhus vernix of Japan, and the rhus radicans of North America. The anchar, like the trees in its neighbourhood, is on all sides surrounded by shrubs and plants: in no instance have I observed the ground naked or barren in its immediate circumference. The largest tree I met with in Balambangan, was so closely environed by the common trees and shrubs of the forest in which it grew, that it was with difficulty I could approach it. Several vines and climbing shrubs, in complete health and vigour, adhered to it, and ascended to nearly half its height; and, at the time I visited the tree and collected the juice, I was forcibly struck with the egregious misrepresentation of Foersch. Several young trees spontaneously sprung from seeds that had fallen from the parent, put me in mind of a line in Darwin's Botanic Garden:--

'Chain'd at his root two scion-demons dwell;'

while in recalling his beautiful description of the upas, my vicinity to the tree gave me reason to rejoice that it was founded in fiction.

"DESCRIPTION OF THE CHETIK.--The fructification of the chetik is still unknown: after all possible research in the district where it grows, I have not been able to find it in a flowering state. It is a large winding shrub. The root extends creeping a considerable distance parallel to the surface, sending off small fibres at different curves, while the main root strikes perpendicularly into the ground. The stem, which in general is shrubby, sometimes acquires the size of a small tree. The poison is prepared from the bark of the root. The chetik grows only in close, shady, almost inaccessible forests, in a deep, black, fertile vegetable mould. It is very rarely met with even in the wildernesses of Balambangan.

"PREPARATION OF THE POISON FROM THE ANCHAR.--This process was performed for me by an old Javan, who was celebrated for his superior skill in preparing the poison: about eight ounces of the juice of the anchar, which had been collected the preceding evening in the usual manner, and been preserved in the joint of a bambu, was carefully strained into a bowl. The sap of the following substances, which had been finely grated and bruised, was carefully expressed and poured into it, viz. arum (nampu), kempferia galanga (kenchur), anomum (bengli) a variety of zerumbed, common onion and garlic, of each about half a drachm. The same quantity of finely powdered black pepper was then added, and the mixture stirred. The preparer now took an entire fruit of capsicum fruticosum or Guinea pepper, and having opened it, he carefully separated a single seed, and placed it on the fluid in the middle of the bowl. It immediately began to reel round rapidly, now forming a regular circle, then darting towards the margin of the vessel, with a perceptible commotion on the surface of the liquor, which continued about one minute. Being completely at rest, the same quantity of pepper was again added, and another seed of the capsicum laid on as before. A similar commotion took place in the fluid, but in a less degree, and the seed was carried round with diminished rapidity. The addition of the same quantity of pepper was repeated a third time, when a seed of the capsicum being carefully placed in the centre of the fluid, remained quiet, forming a regular circle about itself in the fluid, resembling the halo of the moon. This is considered as a sign that the preparation of the poison is complete.

"PREPARATION OF THE POISON FROM THE CHETIK.--The bark of the root is carefully separated and cleared of all the adherent earth, a proportionate quantity of water is poured on, and it is boiled about an hour, when the fluid is carefully filtered through a white cloth; it is then exposed to the fire again, and boiled down to nearly the consistence of an extract; in this state it much resembles a thick syrup. The following spices, having been prepared as above described, are added in the same proportion as to the anchar, viz. kempferia galanga (kenchur), (súnti), anomum zingéber (shai), common onion, garlic, and black pepper. The expressed juice of these is poured into the vessel, which is once more exposed to the fire for a few minutes, when the preparation is complete. The upas of both kinds must be preserved in very close vessels."

Dr. H. then details the particulars of twenty experiments made on different animals with these poisons, as well in their simple state as procured from the bark, powerfully prepared in the manner as above stated, in which the violence of the poison was manifested; and concludes with some general observations, from which the following are extracted:

"The operation of the two different poisons on the animal system is essentially different. The first seventeen experiments were made with the anchar. The rapidity of its effect depends in a great degree upon the size of the vessel wounded, and on the quantity of poison carried into the circulation. In the first experiment, it induced death in twenty-six minutes: in the second, which was made with the sap collected at Púgar, in thirteen minutes. The poison from different parts of the island has been found nearly equal in activity. The common train of symptoms is; a trembling and shivering of the extremities, restlessness, erection of the hair, discharges from the bowels, drooping and faintness, slight spasms and convulsions, hasty breathing, an increased flow of saliva, spasmodic contractions of the pectoral and abdominal muscles, retching, vomiting, excrementitious vomiting, frothy vomiting, great agony, laborious breathing, repeated convulsions, and death. The effects are nearly the same on quadrupeds, in whatever part of the body the wound is made. It sometimes acts with so much force, that not all the symptoms enumerated are observed. In these cases, after the premonitory symptoms (tremors, twitchings, faintness, an increased flow of saliva), the convulsions come on suddenly, and are quickly followed by death. The upas appears to affect quadrupeds with nearly equal force, proportionate in some degree to their size and disposition. To dogs it proved mortal in most experiments within an hour; a mouse died in ten minutes; a monkey in seven; a cat in fifteen; a buffalo, one of the largest quadrupeds of the island, died in two hours and ten minutes.

"If the simple or unprepared sap is mixed with the extract of tobacco, instead of the spices mentioned, it is rendered equally, perhaps more, active. Even the pure juice, unmixed and unprepared, appears to act with a force equal to that which has undergone the preparative process. Birds are very differently affected by this poison. Fowls have a peculiar capacity to resist its effects: a fowl died in twenty-four hours after the wound; others have recovered after being partially affected.

"The eighteenth and succeeding experiments were made with the poison prepared from the chetik. Its operation is far more violent and rapid than that of the anchar, and it affects the animal system in a different manner. While the anchar operates chiefly on the stomach, alimentary canal, the respiration and circulation, the chetik is determined to the brain and nervous system: a relative comparison of the appearances on dissection, demonstrates in a striking manner the peculiar operation of each. A general view of the effects of the chetik on quadrupeds is given in these experiments. After the previous symptoms of faintness, drowsiness, and slight convulsions, it acts by a sudden impulse, which like a violent apoplexy prostrates at once the whole nervous system. In two of these experiments this sudden effect took place in the sixth minute after the wound, in another in the seventh minute: the animals suddenly started, fell down head foremost, and continued in convulsions until death ensued. This poison affects fowls in a much more violent manner than that of the anchar. They are first affected by a heat and itching of the breast and wings, which they shew by violently pecking those parts; this is followed by a loose discharge from the bowels, when they are seized with tremors and fluttering of the wings, which having continued a short time, they fall down head foremost, and continue convulsed till death. In some instances, particularly young fowls, the poison acts with great rapidity; death has frequently occurred within the space of a minute after a puncture with a poisoned dart.

"Taken into the stomach of quadrupeds, the chetik acts as a most violent poison; but it requires about thrice the period to produce the same effect which a wound produces. But the stomach of fowls can resist its operation. Having mixed about double the quantity generally adhering to a dart with the food of a fowl, it consumed it without shewing any marks of indisposition. The poison of the anchar does by no means act as violently on quadrupeds as that of the chetik. I have given it to a dog: it produced at first nearly the same symptoms as a puncture; oppression of the head, twitchings, faintness, laborious respiration, violent contraction of the pectoral and abdominal muscles, &c. which continued nearly two hours; but after the complete evacuation of the stomach by vomiting, the animal gradually recovered.

"I have but little to add concerning the operation of the anchar on the human system. The only credible information on this subject is contained in the work of Rhumphius, who had an opportunity of personally observing the effect of the poisoned darts and arrows as they were used by the natives of Makasar, in their attack on Amboyna about the year 1650. They were also employed by the inhabitants of Celebes in their former wars with the Dutch. Speaking of their operation he says, 'the poison touching the warm blood, it is instantly carried through the whole body, so that it may be felt in all the veins, and causes an excessive burning, particularly in the head, which is followed by fainting and death.' This poison (according to the same author) possesses different degrees of virulence, according to its age and state of preservation. The most powerful is called upas raja, and its effects are considered as incurable; the other kinds are distributed among the soldiers on going to war. After having proved mortal to many of the Dutch soldiers in Amboyna and Makasar, they finally discovered an almost infallible remedy in the root of the radix toxicaria of Rhumphius, which, if timely applied, counteracted, by its violent emetic effect, the force of the upas. An intelligent Javan of Banyuwangi informed me, that a number of years ago an inhabitant of that district was wounded in a clandestine manner, by an arrow thrown from a blow-pipe, in the fore-arm, near the articulation of the elbow. In about fifteen minutes he became drowsy; after which he was seized with vomiting, became delirious, and in less than half an hour he died. From the experiments above related, we may form an analogous estimate of its probable effects on man." _Batavian Transactions_, vol. vii.