CHAPTER IX.The Botanic Garden—The Croton tiglium—The true Camphor-tree—The Malaleuca Kayu-puteh—Excursion into the interior of the island—Botanical productions—Chinese farms and plantations—Pepper harvest—Plantain-trees—Gambir plantations—Boiling houses—Cultivation and preparation of Gambir—Dense vegetation of the Jungles—Establishment of a Chinese-planter.
The Botanic Garden—The Croton tiglium—The true Camphor-tree—The Malaleuca Kayu-puteh—Excursion into the interior of the island—Botanical productions—Chinese farms and plantations—Pepper harvest—Plantain-trees—Gambir plantations—Boiling houses—Cultivation and preparation of Gambir—Dense vegetation of the Jungles—Establishment of a Chinese-planter.
The Botanic Garden will soon cease to exist. Of the valuable trees it contained a few remain, liable frequently to injury from the inroads and depredations of cattle; and I understand that its locality is to be disposed of in lots for building. A large number of thriving nutmeg and clove-trees laden with fruit, still remain; and a few common tea-trees are seen flourishing, occasionally covered by blossoms, and fruit; severalBauhinias, among which theB. tomentosawas conspicuous with its ornamental, delicate, white blossoms and leguminous pods, as well as theGardenia, whose fragrant flowers diffused a powerful scent around some time before the shrub could be discerned; small plants of the Champaca (Michelia suaveolens) were also seen, but had not yet attained a sufficient elevation to gratify by the agreeable appearance and odour of its blossoms, which are so much the delight of the Javanese women, and other native females, who perfume and ornament themselves with its flowers.
Among others which excite interest to those of the medical profession was theCroton tiglium, at that time both in fruit and flower; from the seeds of this shrub the well-known and powerful purgative Croton-oil is obtained; the true camphor-tree (Dryabalanops Camphoraof Colebrooke) from Sumatra, which yields the medicinal camphor[62]was also in the garden; this valuable tree was in a very healthy and thriving condition, and was nearly ten feet high; theMalaleuca Kayu-puteh, from which the highly-valued cajeput, or, correctly speaking, Kayu-puteh oil is obtained by distillation from the leaves, attracted my attention, and confirmed my previously formedopinion, that a much larger quantity of this oil might be obtained from the foliage of the AustralianEucalypti-trees; more especially those which have opposite, rounded, and whitish leaves; the oil produced by them being in considerable quantity. On taking and rubbing the leaves of thisMalaleucait would be very difficult to distinguish it in odour from those of theEucalypti, occasioned by the oil contained in them; this valuable oil may therefore, at but little expense, be distilled in any quantity in the colony of New South Wales; thegenuineoil cannot be purchased at Singapore at a cheaper rate than from two and a half to three dollars for a bottle, which contains about a pint of the oil; but there is a large quantity of an adulterated article very generally sold by the natives at this settlement. The tree, which I felt some interest in examining, was about twelve feet high, branchy, and was at this time both in flower and fruit; the bark was smooth and velvety, and appeared to be deciduous, similar in character to that which I have remarked in theMalaleucaor tea-tree of New South Wales.[63]
Across the creek, at the upper part of the settlement and near the splendid and extensive pile of buildings, the residence of E. Boustead,Esq. is a wooden bridge, at present in a very dilapidated state, and impassable for carriages, which is a source of great inconvenience to ladies and others who visit across the water. It is reported that a new bridge is in contemplation, to be erected a short distance above the site of the old one; and it would be desirable, for the convenience of the residents, that it should be commenced and finished as speedily as possible.[64]
In company with Mr. Moor and Dr. Martin, I made an excursion into the interior of the island, for the purpose of viewing the plantations of Gambir, Pepper, &c. as well as for the purpose of investigating its natural productions. Most of the residents, deeply engaged in mercantile pursuits, find but little leisure or inclination to explore the island, or ascertain its real capabilities,or the picturesque scenery and fertile soil it contains, their rambles being merely confined to evening drives, or walks, in the immediate vicinity of the settlement.
We went a short distance up the Singapore river in a sampan; the banks abounded in the dark green and rank mangrove trees, behind which hills arose, and occasional native dwellings. We did not proceed far before we landed among some Malay houses, surrounded with numerous palm, fruit, and flower trees; among which the lofty Jack tree, with its enormous fruit pending from the trunk or larger branches, the feathered cocoa palm, the erect Areka palm, a beautiful shrub ofHibiscus rosa-chinensiscovered by a profusion of large flowers of a delicate nankin colour, and several large trees of theBixa orellana, or arnotto of commerce, the Cashumpa of the Malays, (some of whom occasionally used it as a dye,) were numerous. One of these dwellings was a manufactory for the refining of sago, and another a native foundry for small cannon; the powerful fragrance of the tube rose (Polianthes tuberosa) was diffused around at the very curly hour of the morning we arrived, when the sparkling dew-drops had not yet forsaken the herbage, the sun not having yet the power to cause their glistening and refreshing decorations to vanish.
From this picturesque little spot we proceeded through a jungle of lofty grasses and shrubs, with elevated trees rising from the dense mass; a sedge grass bearing a beautiful silvery inflorescence, theFlemingea,Melastoma, different species ofNauclea, and numerous ferns were seen; of the latter, among other elegant species, was the widely-spreadGleichenia Hermanni, attaining the elevation amid the wilderness of six and eight feet, andBlechnum,Polypodium,Lycopodium, were mingled with others, adding to the denseness of the vegetation. As the sun rose and diffused its rays around, a great number of butterflies, beetles, and other insects passed away in enjoyment their short fleeting lives, and revelled upon the sweets the flowers contained. A lofty species ofPandanus, named by the Malays Ninpuan, was very abundant in moist situations; it rose with its long foliage bending at the extremities, and as the tree increased in elevation it bore a closer resemblance to the growth of the palm tree, and attained the height of forty and fifty feet. The leaves of this tree bleaching about the Malay houses, I found were used by them for a variety of purposes, as coverings for their dwellings, and the manufacture of coarse mats.
We often emerged from the pathways leading through a wild country, upon neat cottages, surrounded by plantations, inhabited and cultivated by that industrious class of people, the Chinese. A primary object of cultivation, I observed, was the Gambir-shrub,[65]and the pepper-vine: the former was cultivated and exported to a much greater extent, until the Dutch government, by heavy duties, prohibited its introduction into Java, in order to encourage the cultivation and exportation of it from their own settlement at Rhio. Vegetables of different kinds, the sugar-cane, &c. are also cultivated for the supply of the Singapore market.
The situations selected by the Chinese in this undulating country, for their farms and plantations were upon, or close to the sloping hills; and these places are selected for the Gambir and pepper plantations, the lower land proving too swampy. The pepper harvest had commenced, and the vines had the appearance of being very productive this season, being covered with a profusion of clusters of the pepper-berries,large, and of fine quality.[66]Some had even attained maturity, having changed from a dark-green to a vivid red. From the latter, the berry being in a ripe state, the white pepper is made; some of very excellent quality was shown us by a Chinese planter who had prepared it.
Instead of the usual and tedious process of drying the pepper in the sun after it has been gathered, I observed the planters, after collecting a large quantity together, steam it; by which, the drying process is expedited, without, it is said, the pepper losing any of its flavour by the operation. At the various plantations I visited, this process was found most generally adopted, although a small quantity was in a few instances laid out upon mats in the sun to dry. The steaming process is almost invariably adopted when the immediate demand for the article is very great, as it was at this time, pepper being in considerable demand at Singapore, for the English market. It was stated to me,that three thousand pepper-vines will produce fifty peculs of pepper annually.
The pepper vines are planted in rows, a short distance apart one from the other, and were, in this instance, trailed up split pieces of dead wood, which served as a prop to the vines; some were tied to their support; but generally they naturally attached themselves, by giving out fasciculi of roots from the joints, at certain distances.
Plantain trees were occasionally seen in the pepper plantations, probably for the certain degree of shade and moisture they may have afforded. It is said, that a pepper plantation will not thrive unless it be near one of the Gambir shrubs, or rather upon an estate where the Gambir extract is prepared. This was considered to result from the refuse leaves of the Gambir, after boiling, being requisite as manure for the vines. From my own observation, I ascertained this not to be the precise reason of the pepper-vines thriving better where Gambir-boiling houses and plantations existed, but from the Gambir leaves, after they had undergone the boiling process in the manufacture of the extract from them, being strewn thickly over the surface of the ground between the vines, for the purpose of preserving it in a cool andmoist state. This was the principal reason of its being used, and, of course, the soil was finally improved by it, as well as it would be by any other dead vegetable matter. I did not observe in even a solitary instance that it was used about the roots of the vines, but, on the contrary, it was kept cleared from them, the roots of the vines having the earth hoed up about them, leaving a circular space around, and ashes were occasionally mingled with the earth about them, as a manure.
The Gambir plantations were very numerous, as well as those of pepper; and it surprises me, that from the great and general demand for the latter production, both in the China and European markets, it is not an article of more general cultivation. Some persons have asserted that the soil of Singapore is not calculated for the production of pepper; but if in the numerous plantations I have seen, large clusters of fine berries, excellent both in appearance and flavour, is a sufficient denial of the assertion, I can readily make it, and hope its cultivation will be encouraged. Two or three thousand peculs of pepper are collected annually at Singapore.
I had fortunately an opportunity of observing at several of the Gambir boiling-houses, the processof manufacturing that extract, from the collecting of the prunings, the stripping of the leaves, to the completion. The shrubs were from five to seven feet high, with rather drooping branches; the time of collecting, is when the shrubs require pruning, which is usually every six months; and the trees would be injured, if not destroyed in value, were they not regularly pruned. It is stated, that one shrub will exist and produce the extract for twenty-five or thirty years, if properly and regularly attended to: every care is taken to keep the plantations free from weeds.
I have observed, that the time of collecting the leaves for the manufacture of the extract, was at the time the shrubs required pruning. This, on passing through a plantation, I had an opportunity of witnessing. The too luxuriant branches were cut off with a pruning knife, collected into baskets, and then conveyed to the boiling-house, which is erected in the midst of Gambir plantations, the whole of which, at the period of my visiting them, were in full operation; the leaves are then stripped from the pruned branches in the boiling-house, and afterwards placed into the Qualie or cauldron; (which is made of bark, with an iron bottom;) under this is an enormousfire, which consumes a very large quantity of wood; the leaves were frequently stirred, and such additions of them made, as were required by their diminution during the boiling process, until the cauldron being entirely full they are suffered to boil for some length of time together. After thus remaining for several hours, the leaves are removed from the cauldron, and placed upon a large bark shoot near it; and the drainings from them return into the vessel.
The leaves are usually boiled twice, and, after being well washed upon the shoot, the washings are thrown into the cauldron, so that none of the extract may be lost. The leaves are then consigned to their final destination, that of being strewn over the soil of the pepper plantations. The liquor remaining in the cauldron, as well as the drainings, is reboiled, and inspissated until it arrives at the consistence of a very thick extract: it is then placed into oblong moulds. At this time, it resembles very much a very light yellowish-brown clay. After remaining some time in the mould, it is taken out, divided with a knife into pieces, subdivided into small squares, and placed upon a raised platform in the sun to dry. It becomes, when hard and dry, of a very dark-brown colour,displaying in the interior, on being fractured, a light-yellowish brown.[67]
From my own observation, as well as from the assertions of all the Chinese manufacturers of this extract, whose boiling-houses were visited, no sago was used in the preparation, although it has been asserted by many writers, that the sago is required to give consistence to the extract; but a good extract ought certainly to have sufficient density in itself without the addition of any other substance.[68]
The flavour of the extract is very pleasant, having at first the agreeable sweetish taste of the liquorice-root, and afterwards a not unpleasant astringent bitter flavour. The largest quantity of this extract is consumed in Java; being used by the Javanese in coarse dyes, as well as a masticatory. The Dutch government encourage, to agreat extent, the cultivation of Gambir, at their settlement of Rhio, on the Island of Bintang, as they derive a large revenue from its importation and extensive consumption in Java: a prohibitory duty being also placed upon all Gambir produced in foreign settlements, has still further caused the increase, and still increasing, preparation of it at Rhio. I am indebted to the kindness of a mercantile gentleman at Singapore, who visited and resided for some time at Rhio, for the following observations upon the cultivation and preparation of the Gambir at that settlement, together with the quantity annually exported.
The island of Bintang contains about six thousand Gambir plantations, the larger ones consisting each of from eighty to a hundred thousand trees; the smaller plantations, or, as named by the Malays, gardens, contain from three to four thousand. The shrubs are in full bearing, and covered with foliage, ten months in the year; but during December and January, the leaves change to a yellow colour, and consequently are then in an unfit state for producing the extract. Of course, at some parts of the year, the Gambir manufacturers have nothing to do, the shrubs not being in a fit state for pruning; but if the demand for the extract is very great, the rack-renterswill, even at the risk of destroying the plantation, cut off the branches, and convert both them and the leaves into extract. There are at present upwards of eight hundred plantations in Rhio, completely ruined by this system, which took place in the month of April last, at which time Gambir extract was in very great demand. One boiling-house, or manufactory, is usually attached to about every forty Gambir plantations. It may be observed, that during the rainy season the extract produced is of an inferior quality to that which is made during hot, dry weather, although the foliage being in greater proportion, more extract is yielded by them.
During the wet season, vegetation is very rapid in its progress on the shrubs: if stripped entirely of their foliage, it is not an uncommon circumstance, in the space of five days, to see them renewed, and covered with verdure. The production of Gambir, during the year 1829, amounted to thirty-one thousand peculs; in 1830, it amounted to thirty-five thousand peculs; in 1831, to forty-seven thousand peculs; in 1832, to sixty-three thousand peculs; and for the present year, 1833, will amount to full seventy thousand peculs; and each pecul, of one hundred and thirty-three pounds, pays to the Dutch government the sum of eight rupees, which, at seventy thousand peculs,brings to them the large annual revenue of five hundred and sixty thousand rupees.
It is surprising that no place has yet been found in the Eastern Archipelago from whence Gambir can be procured that can at all compete in quality with that produced at Rhio. The island of Lingin produces a quality next to that of Rhio; and it is worthy of remark, that Rhio owes its good name to Lingin, as the Gambir, the produce of that island, was not held in any estimation, until Rhio planters (Chinese) went to Lingin to acquire the art of manufacturing it; and they also brought with them the Gambir plants from that place to Rhio, where it was found to thrive and produce a better extract than at Lingin. A Gambir plantation, after it has attained three years’ growth, may be considered capable of yielding good extract, and will continue to do so, if properly attended to, for the space of nine or ten years.
The Chinese, possessing plantations of Gambir at Singapore, informed me, that twenty thousand peculs were manufactured annually upon the island; and some quantity of it was taken away by the Borneo and other native vessels. There are one hundred and fifty Gambir plantations upon the island, not including a number of plantations of young trees not yet producing the extract: there are also about one hundred andseventy plantations of the pepper-vine upon the island.
At Rhio, as well as in Gambir manufactories generally, the whole of the leaves, (and sometimes even the stalks,) without any regard to their selection, are used. It appears, also, that when the qualie, or cauldron, is new, the extract prepared in it becomes very dark, and is sold only as a second quality at Rhio, and is almost unsaleable in the Java market: after the cauldron, however, has been in use for one or two years, the extract manufactured in it becomes of a much lighter colour. As the cauldrons are made principally of bark, it must be some colouring matter in it that is bestowed upon the extract; from this circumstance the old cauldrons are held more in estimation than the new. It appears that the white kind made at Rhio, by the women in their own houses, is not a regular article of commerce; but is preferred by a few for its refined appearance: it is prepared and brought into a white state, by the extract being re-dissolved, and passed through several washings, until the sediment has become of a white colour, when it is taken out, formed into cakes, and dried in the sun. It is rarely used in comparison with the other kinds of the Gambir extract.
As we left the plantations, and entered thejungles, a dense vegetation surrounded us on every side, except the small pathway which led through it: the pathway, overshadowed by trees and entwining plants, made our walk during the heat of noon-day, in these situations, delightfully cool and refreshing. TheSukun utan, or wild bread-fruit trees, were very numerous in the jungle; the forest trees, towering to a great elevation, without a branch except at the summit, gave them much the character of those of Australia, but unlike them, in not having their foliage dull and arid. Many birds were shot, of the fly-catcher tribe, of handsome plumage; a beautiful small black falcon, not more than four or five inches in length, and some other small birds; but the feathered tribe were far from numerous: the swallow (not differing from our European species) was abundant about the settlement of Singapore; but I did not observe any in the interior of the island.
About eightA.M.we arrived at the extensive Gambir and pepper plantations, garden, orangery, and neat habitation of a Chinese, who informed us that he had been ten years upon the island. We breakfasted at this place, a servant having been previously sent on with provisions; but we always found the Chinese planters eager to provide us with any provisions they had. He suppliedour table, however, with some excellent oranges from his garden: he has upwards of two hundred orange trees, (which had been originally brought from China,) of large size and in full bearing, which brought him in a good annual income, from the sale of the fruit in the Singapore market. He said he had expended fifteen thousand dollars upon the cultivation and improvement of his farm.
Many Chinese are settled in the interior of this island, upon land for which no quit-rent having been paid, they render themselves liable to lose the ground they have cleared and cultivated, unless they pay the heavy sum demanded by the government as quit-rent. However, I am not aware of any such oppressive measures having yet been resorted to by the government, and hope the tax on the industry and general cultivation of the land will be removed altogether; and by bestowing small grants upon the settlers, render the island a garden instead of a jungle—productive, instead of barren.
Although I devoted much attention to the subject of quit-rents, and collected much information on the question, I do not consider that I can do better than insert the following intelligent remarks, which have been published in the Singapore Chronicles of January 24th,and February 7th, 1833. The subject is one immediately connected with the welfare of the island; and should the tax be rescinded, which would encourage both emigration and cultivation, we may expect to see the dense forest give place to houses and plantations, smiling with the animation such scenery would occasion, encouraging industry, and adding to the wealth of the settlement.
“We have already noticed, on one or two previous occasions, the great prohibitions which exist to the cultivation and consequent improvement of this island, in the excessive quit-rents which are required by government on all grants of land, whether within the limits of the town, or beyond it. The terms of this impost we have already noticed, but we think the subject will not suffer by our mentioning them again.
“Persons desirous of clearing and cultivating waste and forest land, must make application to the superintendent of lands, stating the district and place where the land is situated; also the description of land, whether hill or level land, and also its extent. After due survey, the superintendent will report the application to the chief civil authority, who, if no objection exists, will grant a permit to clear the land, which must beeffected within such time as may be determined. The land being cleared, the holder of the permit shall be entitled to a lease, subject to the following limitation and provisions:—that the rate of rent shall not exceed one dollar per acre, on the first lease given, fifteen years being the duration;—that the lease so granted shall be, at its expiration exchanged, for a second lease for a future term of fifteen years, at such rate as shall be determined on, not exceeding three dollars per acre;—that on the expiration of the second lease, a third, for fifteen years, shall be granted, at a rate not exceeding six dollars per acre;—that on the expiration of the third lease, a fourth shall be granted, at a rate not exceeding ten dollars per acre.
“It shall be optional with the government, in the event of the leaseholder refusing to accept a lease at, or under the rates above specified, to eject the holder and resume the land with all buildings thereon. The rate of ten dollars per acre, being declared to be the maximum of rent demandable for lands occupied for cultivation, and beyond the limits of the town of Singapore, or any other town that may be hereafter established, it shall be optional with leaseholders to demand a permanent lease of nine hundred andninety-nine years at the rate of ten dollars per acre, per annum.
“The foregoing rules, however, are applicable only to lands beyond the limits of the town, and occupied for agricultural purposes; those respecting ground occupied within the limits of the town, for the erection of buildings, being different. For such ground, the rate of quit-rent has been fixed, on regular leases for nine hundred and ninety-nine years, at one dollar for nine hundred and sixty-six feet, or in the proportion of forty five dollars per acre.
“Such are the terms on which land is held at this settlement, and which we declare to be prohibitions to an extended cultivation and the general improvement of the island. In the first place, with regard to land beyond the limits of the town, the rent, even on the first lease, cannot be considered moderate, at a dollar an acre, as the leaseholder must necessarily incur considerable expense, at the commencement, in clearing the land, which, for the most part, is overgrown with jungle and forest. To repay himself for this expenditure, and to render the speculation worthy of his time and attention, the ground must be made to yield productions calculated to realize some profit. Those most likely to do so, on this island, (from its hilly nature,)are spices, and certain descriptions of fruit. But many years must elapse before the trees will bear, during which the leaseholder is involved in a necessary and unavoidable expense, which his undertaking may finally be unable to repay.
“The case may not be so applicable to lands suitable for the cultivation of grain or vegetables, which are speedily raised, and require but small outlay, yet even these could not, from their cheapness, realize a profit whenever the land should become chargeable with a rent of ten dollars an acre.
“The periodical leases, renewable after fifteen years, seem to be considered by most as of little value; they afford no security for fixed property in the soil, as a grant on one of these leases is liable to be resumed by government, ‘with all buildings thereon,’ should the leaseholder or his heirs not choose to comply with the terms of the new lease. A permanent lease, on the contrary, establishes the property in the leaseholder’s family, and he is induced, through a certainty of security for the future, to invest and risk more means in endeavouring to render his land productive, than he could prudently do, when the lease is only periodical. But the excessive rate of the present rent acts as a formidable prohibition to many, who would, were the rent reduced,be well disposed to invest property in agricultural speculations on this island.
“The injurious effects of the present system are but too apparent in the neglected and uncultivated condition of that very great portion of the island which is beyond the immediate influence of the town and suburbs, and where deep solitude and wild nature reign paramount. The island of Singapore measures about fifty miles in circumference, we believe; and yet a very small portion of it is under cultivation, owing, in a great degree, to the high rents required for grants of land. The great depreciation of the value of landed property is another palpably injurious effect arising from the present system. We could point out instances where landed property has been sacrificed, at a great loss to the owners, merely for the sake of getting rid of the heavy burden of the quit-rent with which the land is chargeable. One case to the point will exhibit the matter in a still stronger light. We know of a lot of twenty acres, mostly hill, well situated, contiguous to the town, and under cultivation; there is likewise a substantial dwelling-house, in a commanding situation, which, from its original cost, could not be rented under forty dollars a month, at least: this sum, in twelve months, amounts to four hundred andeighty dollars; but the quit-rent, if a permanent lease be taken out, would be two hundred dollars a year, which leaves two hundred and eighty dollars only to pay the interest of the money originally spent on the property, exclusive of other charges. This property is, however, to be disposed of, at a sum amounting to about one-half of what the owner expended in building on it; yet, with such a reduction, and although the ground is so eligibly situated, no purchasers can be found, solely because the prospect of paying two hundred dollars a year quit-rent, deters those who are willing to purchase, while it makes the owner anxious to part with the property at a great sacrifice.
“We believe the local government is fully sensible of the impolicy and ruinous consequences of the present rate of rents; and we understand that the present governor, Mr. Ibbetson, even recommended a reduction, substituting sicca rupees for dollars; but that the Court of Directors would not hear of such a thing, and insisted on a strict observance of all Mr. Fullerton’s regulations, and an adoption of his principles. We need scarcely add, the land-regulations, now under review, were framed by the latter gentleman.
“It seems to us, that this refusal to accede toa most reasonable and wise measure, was dictated more by infatuation than by any other visible cause. Probably the directors imagine this island contains anEl Dorado, somewhere in its unknown parts, from which they or their successors in governing will derive, at some future time, incalculable wealth, arising from hidden mines of gold or tin. We wish them success in this prospect; but we can assure them, notwithstanding, they will find hereafter that the best and most valuable treasure is to be obtained by allowing the island to be freely cultivated, under a liberal system of encouragement to those who are inclined to commence agricultural pursuits. If such were adopted, population would soon increasein reality, and with it, private wealth and public revenue; the latter derived, both from an extended cultivation of land, held under very moderate rents, and from an extension of the revenue-farms, which must naturally rise in value with an increase of population.
“The daily and common articles of food, for which we are at present indebted to the neighbouring states and islands, by becoming naturalized, would be much cheaper than at present. To the shipping this would prove a very great advantage, as, at some seasons, the charge forsupplying ships is enormous; at all times, indeed, it is much higher than at most other ports in India. The plantations of cloves, nutmegs, pepper, coffee, sugar, and rice, which could then be raised throughout the island with advantage, would moreover render it a far greater acquisition to the British government than it is at present.
“We have hitherto treated this important subject on grounds of justice to the settlement itself, and advantage to the government. We shall now argue by analogy. Our neighbours at Rhio, profiting by the unwise and illiberal system adopted here with regard to lands, have rendered the island ofBintang(which we believe is double the size of Singapore) a very valuable and fertile possession. We have been given to understand that no less than sixty thousand peculs of pepper are annually raised on that island; nearly the whole of which is under cultivation by Chinese. Besides these productions, raw dammer, wood oil, bark, and timber, are obtained. The gambir is mostly exported to Java, and the pepper to this port. From these articles the Rhio government derive a moderate revenue by means of farms.
“Here is an example set by a neighbouring settlement, generally considered inferior to this,which is well worthy of imitation; and if our worthy rulers would only forego their anti-colonization, and anti-improvement notions, even before the present rapid strides of a reforming age compel them to do so, they would do well to cause this island to rival, or rather excel,Bintangin its productions.”[69]