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precaution they conceive requisite is to place it so, that one piece shall not touch another.

The Brahooés are equally faithful in an adherence to their promises, and equally hospitable with the Belooches, and on the whole I greatly prefer their general character. From what I have already said on it, it is evident that they are a more quiet and industrious class, and their habits are decidedly averse from that system of rapine and violence pursued by the other; nor can we fairly ascribe this to any sentiment save a good one, for in personal bravery and endurance of privations and hardships, the Brahooés are esteemed superior to the inhabitants of all the neighbouring countries: their chiefs exercise a much more despotic authority in the various tribes and Kheils, than among the Beloochés, and the people are equally tenacious of their respectability, though they obey them from a different feeling in manner they are mild and inoffensive, though very uncivilized and uncouth; but as the latter is evidently the effect of a want of worldly knowledge and guile, their awkward attempts to be civil please, because we see that they are incited to make them by a natural propensity to oblige, unaccompanied by any interested motive. They are free from the worst traits of the Belooches, which are comprised in being avaricious, revengeful, and cruel, and they seldom look for any reward for their favours or services their gratitude is lasting, and fidelity such, that even the Belooche chiefs retain them as their most confidential and trust-worthy servants.

The amusements of this class

are so correspondent with those already described of the Belooches, that I need not particula- ́ rize them in general the Brahooés pride themselves on being better marksmen than the Belooches, who admit the fact, and ascribe it to their having more practice, for none of them ever quit their Ghedans, even to go a few hundred yards, without a matchlock: they are likewise good swords-men, but never use spears, considering them a useless cumbersome weapon. A Brahooé always dresses in the same style, and whether it be summer or winter, freezing hard, or under a vertical sun, his whole clothes are comprised in a loose white shirt, a pair of trowsers of the same texture, and a felt cap: the shepherds sometimes wear a covering of white felt, made so as to wrap round the body, and come to a peak above the crown of the head; this habit will keep off a vast deal of rain or snow, and is exclusively used for that purpose. The domestic life of the Brahooés is simple in the extreme; the men tend the flocks, till the ground, and do other outdoor labour, in which they are, if needful, assisted by the women; but commonly the duties of the latter are to attend to the household affairs, such as milking, making butter, cheese, and Ghee, and they also weave and work carpets, felts, and coarse white cloth. They are not, as I have previously remarked, secluded from the society of the men, but all live and eat together. Their dress consists of a long shift and pair of trowsers, both of cotton cloth, 2 L2

and

and after they arrive at the age of puberty they wear over the former a kind of stays, made to lace behind, the fronts of which are decorated with ridiculous devices of birds or animals worked in coloured worsted. In religion the Brahooés are all Soonnitte Moosulmans, and their external forms of religion, marriage and interment, are practised according to the tenets of that seet.

People of the Teng'gar Mountains. (From Gov. Raffles's Speech, delivered to the Literary and Scientific Society at Java, Sept. 1815.)

To the eastward of Surabaia and on the range of hills connected with Gunning Dasar, and ly ing partly in the district of Pasuraun and partly in that of Probolingo, known by the name of the Teng'gar mountains, we find the remnant of a people still follow ing the Hindu worship, who merit attention not only on account of their being the depositaries of the last trace of that worship discovered at this day on Java, but as exhibiting a peculiar singularity and simplicity of character.

These people occupy about 40 villages, scattered along this range of hills in the neighbourhood of the Sandy Sea, and are partly under Pasuraun and partly under Probolingo. The site of the villages, as well as the construction of the houses is peculiar, and differs entirely from what is elsewhere observed in Java. The houses are not shaded by trees, but built on spacious open terraces, rising one above the other, each house occupying a terrace, and being in length from thirty to seventy, and even eighty feet.

The door is invariably in one corner, at the opposite end of the building to that in which the fireplace is built. The building appears to be first constructed with the ordinary roof, but along the front, is an enclosed veranda or gallery of about eight feet broad, with a less inclined pitch in the roof, formed of bamboos, which are so placed as to slide out, either for the admission of air, or to afford a channel for the smoke to escape, there being otherwise no aperture, except a small opening, of about a foot square, at one end of the building, above the fireplace, which is built of brick, and so highly venerated, that it is considered sacrilege for any stranger to pollute it by the touch. Across the upper part of the building, rafters are run across, so as to form a kind of attic story, in which they deposit their valuables and instruments of husbandry.

The head of the village takes the title of Petingi, as in the low lands, and he is generally assisted by a Kabayan; both elected by the people from their own village. There are four priests, who are here termed Dukuns, having charge of the sacred records.

These Dukuns, who are in general intelligent men, have no tradition of the time when they were first established on these hills; from what country they came or who intrusted them with the sacred books to the faith contained in which they still adhere. These latter, they state, were handed down to them by their fathers, their office being hereditary, and the sole duty required of them being to perform the puja according thereto, and again to

hand

hand them down in safety to their children. They consist of three compositions written on the Lontar leaf, describing the origin of the world, the attributes of the Deity, and the forms of worship to be observed on different occasions. Copies were taken on the spot; and as the language does not essentially differ from the ordinary Javanese, I hope at an early period to place the Society in possession of translations. In the mean time some notices of their, customs, and of the ceremonies performed at births, marriages, and funerals, may be interesting.

When a woman is delivered of her first child, the Dukun takes a leaf of the Alang Alang grass, and scraping the skin of the hands of the child and of the mother with it, as well as the ground, pronounces a short benediction.

When a marriage is agreed upon, the bride and bridegroom being brought before the Dukun within the house, in the first place, bow with respect towards the south-then to the fire-place, then to the earth, and lastly, on looking up to the upper story of the house, where the implements of husbandry are placed, perform the same ceremony. The parties then submissively bowing to the Dukun, he repeats a prayer commencing with the words,

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bride and bridegroom respectfully present them with betel-leaf.

At the marriage feast which ensues, the Dukun repeats two puja, which will be found in the collection. The marriage is not consummated till the fifth day after the above ceremony-which delay is termed by the undang mantu. A similar delay is, in some cases, still observed by the Javanese in other parts of the island, under the term undoh mantu.

On the death of an inhabitant of Teng'gar, the corpse is lowered into the grave, the head being placed to the south (contrary to the direction observed by the Mahometans) and bamboos and planks are placed over, so as to prevent the earth from touching

it.

When the grave is closed, two posts are planted over the body, one perpendicular from the breast, the other from the lower part of the belly. Between these

two a hollowed bamboo is inserted in the ground, into which, during seven successive days, they daily pour a vessel of pure water, placing beside the bamboo, two dishes also daily replenished with eatables. At the expiration of the seventh day, the feast of the dead is announced, and the relations and friends of the deceased assemble to be present at the ceremony and partake of the entertainment, which is conducted as follows:

An image of leaves, ornamented with variegated flowers, made to represent the human form, and of about a cubit high, is prepared and placed in a conspicuous place, and supported round the body by the clothes of the deceased. The

Dukun

Dukun then places in front of the garland an incense-pot, with burning ashes, and a vessel containing water, and repeats the two puja to fire and water; the former commencing with "Hong Gendogo Bromo ang'gas siwong'go nomo siwoho," &c. and the latter with "Hong, hong gong'go moho terto roto mejel saking hati," &c. burning dupu (incense) at stated periods during the former, and occasionally sprinkling the water over the feast during the repetition of the latter.

The clothes of the deceased are then divided among the relatives and friends; and, the garland burned, another puja commencing "Hong! awigno mastu nomo sidam, hong! araning," &c. is then repeated, while the remains of the sacred water is sprinkled over the feast; after which the parties sit down to the enjoyment of it, invoking a blessing from the Almighty on themselves, their houses and their lands. Nothing more occurs until the expiration of a thousand days; when, if the memory of the deceased is beloved and cherished, the ceremony and feast are repeated otherwise no further notice is taken.

On questioning them regarding the tenets of their religion, they replied, that they believed in a dewa, who was all powerful; that the term by which the dewa was designated, was Bumi Truko Sangyang Dewoto Bator; and that the particulars of their worship were contained in the book called Panglawa, which they presented to

me.

On being questioned regarding the adat against adultery, theft and other crimes, their reply was

unanimous and ready; that crimes of the kind were unknown to them, and that consequently no punishment was fixed either by law or custom; that if a man did wrong the head of the village chid him for it, the reproach of which was always sufficient punishment for a man of Teng'gar. This account of their moral charaeter is fully confirmed by the Regents of the districts under whose authority they are placed, and also by the Residents. They literally seem to be almost without crime. They are universally peaceable; interfere with no one; neither quarrel among themselves. It may be superfluous to add, that they are unacquainted with the vices of gaming and opium-smoking!

The aggregate population

amounts to about twelve hundred souls. They occupy, without exception, the most beautiful, rich and romantic spots in Java. The thermometer, in their country, is frequently as low as 42o. The summits and slopes of the hills are covered with alpine firs, and the vegetation common to a European climate generally prevails.

Their language does not differ much from the Japanese of the present day, though more gutturally pronounced: in a comparison of about a hundred words of the vernacular Javanese, two only differed. They do not intermarry nor mix with the people of the low lands, priding themselves on their independence and purity in this respect

BALI.

Passing from this last vestige of the Hindu worship now remaining

maining in Java, (for the Bedui, though descendants of the fugitives of Pajajaran, scarcely merit notice in this respect), I proceed to mention some of the leading observations which I made in Bali. The notices regarding the prevalence of Hinduism in Bali, and of the nature of the government and country, have hitherto been so scanty, that on such interesting ground I may be pardoned for entering into some detail, without which it is impossible to convey a just notion of the subject.

The island of Bali is at present divided under seven separate authorities, each independent of the other; and, of this heptarchy, the state of Klongkong is acknowledged to be the most ancient; its princes tracing their descent from the princes of Java, and having once possessed authority over the whole island. Among the regalia of this state are reported to be still preserved the creese of Majapahit, and the celebrated gong named Bentur Kadaton; and, although the other governments do not at the present day admit of any interference on the part of this state, they still evince a marked respect and courtesy to that family, as the Asal Rajah Bali, (the stock from which they sprung).

The population is roughly estimated by the number of male inhabitants whose teeth have been filed, and whose services each prince can command, and who amount to upward of 200,000. The female population is understood rather to exceed the male; and, as it may be considered that only the active and able bodied men are included in the above

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The government is despotic, and vested in the prince alone, who is assisted in all affairs relating to the internal administration of the country, by a head Perbakal, (immediately under officers of this name, are placed the heads of villages), and by a Radin Tumung-gung, who conducts the details of a more general nature, of commerce and foreign intercourse. The constitution of each village is the same; the head or chief is termed Perbakal, and the assistant, Kalian Tempek. These officers are invariably selected from among the people of the village; the son, however, generally succeeding the father, if competent to perform the duties. Under the head Perbakal, who has the designation of Perbakal Rajah, are several inferior Perbakals for general duties and communications with the villages; and under the Radin Tumun'gung a similar establishment, bearing the rank and designation of Kalian Tempek. Among the heads of villages are many whose families have formerly distinguished themselves in the wars of Bali, and who are termed Gusti. The command of the military is at present vested in a chief of the Bramana cast, and who seems to

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