of the populous and fertile Bengal Presidency as given in Thornton's
Gazetteer of India, and fully one-third more than that of Great Britain
and Ireland at the last Census. If, as I believe, this vast population
is on the whole contented and happy, the Dutch Government should
consider well before abruptly changing a system which has led to such
great results.
Taking it as a whole, and surveying it from every point of view, Java
is probably the very finest and most interesting tropical island in the
world. It is not first in size, but it is more than 600 miles long, and
from 60 to 120 miles wide, and in area is nearly equal to England; and
it is undoubtedly the most fertile, the most productive, and the most
populous island within the tropics. Its whole surface is magnificently
varied with mountain and forest scenery. It possesses thirty-eight
volcanic mountains, several of which rise to ten or twelve thousand feet
high. Some of these are in constant activity, and one or other of them
displays almost every phenomenon produced by the action of subterranean
fires, except regular lava streams, which never occur in Java. The
abundant moisture and tropical heat of the climate causes these
mountains to be clothed with luxuriant vegetation, often to their very
summits, while forests and plantations cover their lower slopes. The
animal productions, especially the birds and insects, are beautiful
and varied, and present many peculiar forms found nowhere else upon the
globe.
The soil throughout the island is exceedingly fertile, and all the
productions of the tropics, together with many of the temperate zones,
can be easily cultivated. Java too possesses a civilization, a history
and antiquities of its own, of great interest. The Brahminical religion
flourished in it from an epoch of unknown antiquity until about the
year 1478, when that of Mahomet superseded it. The former religion
was accompanied by a civilization which has not been equalled by the
conquerors; for, scattered through the country, especially in the
eastern part of it, are found buried in lofty forests, temples, tombs,
and statues of great beauty and grandeur; and the remains of extensive
cities, where the tiger, the rhinoceros, and the wild bull now roam
undisturbed. A modern civilization of another type is now spreading over
the land. Good roads run through the country from end to end; European
and native rulers work harmoniously together; and life and property are
as well secured as in the best governed states of Europe. I believe,
88