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CORNELL 
 
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nell University Library 
 PS 1924.H68P9 
 
 A Princess 0* Java :a tale of the Far Ea 
 
 3 1924 023 417 995 
 
\B Cornell University 
 M Library 
 
 The original of tliis book is in 
 tine Cornell University Library. 
 
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 the United States on the use of the text. 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924023417995 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA 
 
 A TALE OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 S. J. HIGGINSON 
 
 ^^^^^^S 
 
 g^^^^g^So 
 
 
 
 
 i 
 
 
 BOSTON AND NEW YORK 
 HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN AND COMPANY 
 
 1887 
 
Copyright, 1887, by &.<!. HiaoissoN. 
 All rights reserved. 
 
 X 
 
 The Riverside Press, Cambridge : 
 Electrotyped and Printed bj H. 0. Houghton & Co. 
 
DeUtiateU 
 
 TO 
 
 MY BELOVED DAUGHTEK 
 
 F. A. K. 
 
 ^ 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAY A. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 The Princess Mattah-Djarri was bom in Kali Chan- 
 di, a kampong, or native village, situated high upon the 
 side of one of the symmetrical cones which compose a 
 volcanic range running through the southeastern por- 
 tion of the Island of Java, called the Teng'gers. The 
 word Teng'gers, an abbreviation of the Javanese word 
 ung'eng'ger, expresses the wondering surprise and ad- 
 miration excited by the loveliness and grandeur of the 
 view spread before you. This particular cone is, per- 
 haps, the most remarkable volcano in the East Indian 
 Archipelago, attributable in part to the peculiar forma- 
 tion of its crater, and the smooth and gradual declivity 
 of its sides, broken by horizontal ridges of jagged and 
 naked rock which extend around it at regular intervals 
 from base to siunmit. Between these bleak protuber- 
 ances, rich plateaus and fertile slopes of vast dimen- 
 sions support the most glowing and luxuriant vegetation, 
 constantly refreshed and nourished by multitudes of 
 pearly streams that spread their moisture through the 
 porous earth as they gurgle down from the snows and 
 rains above. Around and on the base, immense plan- 
 tations of sugar, rice, cotton, and cinnamon alternate 
 with extensive groves of cocoanut, banana, and palm. 
 As we ascend into the cooler atmosphere, termed the 
 second zone, the plains and more gentle descents are 
 
2 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 covered with far-reaching estates of coffee, tea, nutmeg, 
 pepper, and sugar-pahn, dotted with the universal cocoa, 
 and interspersed with teeming groups of the endless 
 variety of tropical fruit-trees that mark the landscape 
 everywhere. Colossal forests of jati (teak -wood), 
 planted and cultivated by the government with especial 
 care, cover large tracts, wherein the tall rasamala, or liq- 
 uid amber, also shoots its straight trunks up to the height 
 of one or two hundred feet. 
 
 StiU ascending, we enter the third zone, where tobacco 
 and European vegetables greet us. When we reach the 
 fourth zone, we find ourselves walking upon beautiful 
 mosses, or picking our way through exquisite ferns and 
 stones covered with ivy, or winding around immense 
 trunks of trees concealed by rare and precious lichens 
 under the shade of a northern foliage. Above this, aU is 
 ice, snow, and desolation, except in some places where, in 
 strange and peculiar contrast, a dense vegetation of jungle 
 and wood grows up to the very brim of the crater. 
 
 On one side of a vast plateau in the second zone, a 
 high bambu wall surrounded the kampong of KaU Chandi. 
 This wall was intended to protect the inhabitants from 
 the constant incursions of tigers and other ferocious ani- 
 mals inhabiting an adjacent jungle, which formed an im- 
 penetrable thicket on one side of the plain. Beyond the 
 kampong, on the opposite side, the graceful groves and 
 prolific plantations alluded to extended in every direction, 
 rejoicing in all the wealth and beauty of tropical redun- 
 dancy. The cottages and huts of the kampong, made of 
 the plaited bambu, like the waUs encircling it, and covered 
 with the attap (thatch of the nipa and cocoarpahn), were 
 entirely concealed by the heavy foliage of the fig, Ume, 
 lemon, orange, and banana, which crowded every little 
 unoccupied space within the walls. Myriads of tower- 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 3 
 
 ing cocoas and palms reared their bunchy tops high above 
 these lower growths, completely sheltering the kampong 
 from the devastating mountain rains and scorching heat of 
 the wet and dry monsoons, while they perpetually waved 
 their long green arms and nodded and bowed their stately 
 heads in welcome greeting towards the glinting waters of 
 the Indian Ocean, which sent its ever-inroUing surf up 
 in a white and foamy line that stretched far away to the 
 east and west on the rocky beach in the distance below. 
 
 The palace of the Bopati, who was a Javanese prince 
 and Mattah-Djarri's father, was a striking feature in the 
 suburbs of Kali Chandi. The title of Bopati, equivalent 
 to that of regent or governor of a province, at once pro- 
 claimed his high rank and authoritative position, and, 
 although the exact letter of Javan law does not declare a 
 Bopati must be a prince by blood, yet it would be difficult 
 to find one unable to boast of this dignity. 
 
 The Princess Keomah was Mattah-Djarri's mother, 
 and the first married, therefore principal, wife of the Bo- 
 pati, who, according to the custom in Eastern countries, 
 enjoyed the cheering ministrations of a number. How- 
 ever, to be the first one legally permitted to enjoy the 
 honor of sharing her husband's joys and sorrows is a 
 matter of serious importance in Java, where it is only the 
 children of this first wife who inherit the name and prop- 
 erty of the father. The subsequent or inferior wives, as 
 they are designated, and their children, although acknowl- 
 edged and in a degree respected, legally inherit nothing. 
 
CHAPTER n. 
 
 In Java it is not the custom to give a child, especially 
 a g^l, a double name, but when Mattah-Djarri was 
 christened she was honored by the presence of two am- 
 bitious and jealous grandmotheTS, whose rival claims to 
 distinction had to be considered. 
 
 It had long been a custom established by tradition and 
 practice in the family of the Bopati to give the first 
 daughter of the Eadan Itu the name of the grandmother 
 who was lucky enough to make the infant the first visit. 
 To omit this custom when Keomah's little daughter ap- 
 peared would have been considered equal to inviting bad 
 luck upon the future of the child. Accordingly, when 
 notice of the little girl's birth was circulated in the fami- 
 lies, and the respective grandmothers invited to make the 
 accustomed visit at the expiration of the forty days which 
 must intervene in Javanese etiquette between the birth 
 and naming of a Mohammedan child, the two rival and 
 anxious grandparents lost no time in repairing to the 
 kampong Kali Chandi, each hoping to be the first to 
 arrive and claim the privilege of bestowing the grand- 
 daughter's name. But, before proceeding further, it is 
 proper to explain to the reader that in Java there is al- 
 ways in front of an umah tempang (dwelling of a noble) 
 a great green square, inclosed by high walls, which is 
 called the alun-alun. In the centre of the alun-alun two 
 spreading waringin trees (Indian fig), which denote no- 
 bility, are kept growing, one on each side of the broad 
 sweep leading from the entrance to the foot of the steps 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 5 
 
 mounting to the lawang seketing or first veranda, where 
 a Javan noble receives his guests. 
 
 Now it happened when the kulis or servants bearing 
 the palangki of Mattah, the mother of the Bopati, arrived 
 at the entrance of the alun-alim, they met another pa- 
 langki borne from the opposite direction, which was about 
 to turn into the entrance also. Without halting, the beari- 
 ers of both conveyances trotted up the white pebbled 
 drive side by side, tiU. they reached the shade of the war 
 ringin trees, where they stopped, and shppiag their burdens 
 from their shoulders deppsited them both on the ground 
 at the same moment. Mattah sat stUl, wondering who 
 could be in the other palangki, and thought she would 
 wait and see its occupant descend first, little dreaming it 
 was Djarri, the mother of Keomah and her rival for the 
 honors of the day. 
 
 When Djarri peeped through the red silk curtains of 
 her palangki and recognized the green and gold colors, 
 bespeaking the higher rank of Mattah, and, a moment 
 later, saw the little green and gold embroidered toe-piece 
 of one of the latter's spatus, or sandaled slippers, slowly 
 protruding from under the fringe of the yet undrawn cur- 
 tains, in, as she supposed, the preparatory effort of Mattah 
 to descend, it was with great difficulty she could com- 
 mand herself sufficiently to sit longer, and watch the 
 golden fringed border gently spread apart and a second 
 toe-piece glide out and join the first, immediately fol- 
 lowed by a full view of the lower half of the figure of 
 Mattah, wriggling around in her seat to bring her body 
 squarely into the opening, ready to half crawl, half sKde, 
 to the ground. At this stage of her exit Mattah delayed 
 her descent, allowing her feet to dangle down over the 
 sides of her palangki, in the wish to satisfy her curiosity 
 as to who was behind the red silk curtains opposite, won- 
 
6 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 dering why the individual did not appear. With this 
 desire uppermost in her mind, she leaned forward and 
 thrust 'her head out, pretending to be looking around for 
 a servant to approach and attend her, but in reality to 
 show her face, and thus inform the concealed occupant, 
 whom she inferred must be a neighbor from the near 
 vicinity, of the presence of the mother of the Bopati, and 
 impress whosoever it might be with a proper sense of the 
 respect due the exalted company they had chanced upon. 
 
 When Djarri observed this little play of Mattah's, 
 whose weaknesses she understood, and remembered the 
 occasion of their simultaneous visit, her excitement evolved 
 itself into instant and exasperated action, hastily deter- 
 mining her to take advantage of her rival's hesitation. 
 
 Forgetting the deUberation and dignity that should at 
 all times characterize the movements of a Javanese ma- 
 tron of rank, she suddenly threw back her head with an 
 indignant sniff, and snatching the cord belonging to the 
 curtains still carefully closed beside her, she jerked them 
 asunder with a savage whiz, as she quickly wheeled around 
 on the smooth kloso beneath her, and brought both her 
 little naked feet out of the palangki together in the hur- 
 ried efforts of her sudden resolve to be upon the ground 
 first, and possibly thus secure to herself the honor of 
 bestowing her name upon Keomah's little daughter. 
 
 But Djarri, notwithstanding her unbecoming haste, was 
 doomed to disappointment, beside bringing upon herself 
 ihe mortification of being considered ungraceful and Ul- 
 bred. In her impatient struggles shfe neglected the care 
 and caution required to keep her tiny spatus on her 
 toes, and allowed one of them to slip ofE and fall upon 
 the white pebbles, which Mattah, watching and curious, 
 instantiy perceived. Its color reminded her of Djarri. 
 Quickly stooping down she peered into the otiier palangki 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 7 
 
 and recognized her rival. This unexpected sight put to 
 flight all Mattah's previous designs of making an impres- 
 sion, as well as explained the unusual activity of her vis- 
 a^is. Although priding herself on her slow and stately 
 bearing, Mattah involuntarily bestirred herself, and 
 brought her feet down upon the pebbles in unison with 
 those of Djarri, giving expression to her disgust in a 
 derisive little titter, accompanied by a disdainful glance 
 from her sharp black eyes towards the luckless slipper 
 lying upside down upon the ground, to drop which was 
 a sure sign of unaccustomed luxury in the estimation of 
 a Javanese. 
 
 Mattah's spiteful mirth so enraged Djarri that she in- 
 wardly promised her palangki bearers a sound beating 
 the very moment they set her down in her husband's 
 kampong on the other side of the plain, imputing her 
 present discomfiture to their want of vigilance in not rec- 
 ognizing Mattah's palangki at the entrance of the atun- 
 alun, and hurrying forward to be the first to arrive in 
 front of the steps of the dalam or palace of the BopatL 
 
 The two grandmothers, finding themselves face to face 
 on the ground in the shade of the wariugin trees, were 
 each too pr9ud and vnly — qualities in which a Java- 
 nese woman excels — to allow the other to perceive or 
 even suspect her mortification or jealousy ; both made a 
 strong effort to appear tranquil and indifferent. Djarri 
 smoothed the creases out of her handsome kaybaya vrith 
 her hands, while she composedly slipped her brown toes 
 into the pointed fronts of her red spatus. Mattah, in 
 the' mean time, coolly straightened down her sarong, and 
 shoo^ out the fringes on the long ends of her sembong 
 or sasht Their toilets completed, they calmly looked 
 up and greeted each other with a surprised and pleased 
 smUe, bending their bodies forward and touching their 
 
8 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 foreheads with their closed hands, in the respectful salu- 
 tation called the sembah. AU conversation was pre- 
 vented by the appearance of a solemn, barefooted ser- 
 vant, who silently descended the steps to receive them, 
 dressed in a sarong and kalambi — a sort of gay figured 
 skirt and loose jacket — with his head tied up in a green 
 and yellow figured handkerchief, called the ikat, and 
 a kris (short dagger) stuck in one side of his sabuk 
 (belt). Without daring to speak, he motioned the two 
 self-suppressed grandmothers to follow him up the steps 
 and wait on the lawang seketing while he went to an- 
 nounce their arrival. 
 
 The Bopati witnessed the joint arrival of the two pa- 
 langkis through the lattice of a side veranda, where he 
 rested on a divan in the half-reclining position so expres- 
 sively illustrating the luxury of Eastern indolence. A 
 multitude of pillows and cushions were propped around 
 him, with which he could change his position and make 
 himself comfortable with as little trouble as possible, 
 while he lazily drew the cool, perfumed smoke through 
 the many coils of a jeweled chebung placed on the floor 
 a few yards distant. 
 
 The side glances and evident chagrin of the two el- 
 derly mothers brought a smile to his lips, but he forgot 
 the christening tiU a servant came and reminded Viinn of 
 it, by informing him of the arrival of the grandmothers 
 for that purpose. The curious embarrassment of the sit- 
 uation forced itself at once upon his mind, and caused 
 him to reflect upon the prior rights to preference pos- 
 sessed by each visitor. He became very much troubled. 
 How could he sHght the mother of Eeomah who was the 
 Eadan Itu, and had borne him seven sons before this lit- 
 tle daughter arrived ? It was equally impossible to pass 
 over Mattah, his own mother, whose rank was higher 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 9 
 
 than that of Djani, and give the preference to the latter, 
 who was also the younger. Altogether, it was a serious 
 matter. He felt he could not decide in favor of either 
 and preserve pleasant relations with both families. He 
 stopped smoking, got up, took a turn or two on the ve- 
 randa, and stared hard at the empty palangkis, without 
 being able to come to a conclusion. 
 
 His first thought was to depart from the ancient cus- 
 tom of his ancestors, and bestow upon the little yellow- 
 skinned girl a name not belonging to either family. 
 Next, he wondered if he could not give her his own moth- 
 er's name, Mattah, and reconcile Djarri with the present 
 of a handsome fan having a carved handle of rhinoceros 
 horn, which he had recently purchased for one of his 
 wives, and which is accredited with possessing great vir- 
 tue against all kinds of charms and secret poisons, and 
 therefore very desirable. This idea also was soon dis- 
 missed. Djarri was rich and could obtain as many fans 
 made of the precious rhinoceros horn as she wished, and 
 would, besides, scorn a present intended to recompense 
 her for preference given to Mattah. At last, rather than 
 allow his midday nap to be spoiled by this unpleasant 
 crowd of perplexities, he determined to shift the solution 
 of the difficulty on to Keomah and his other wives. He 
 sent for them all, stated his distresses, and commanded 
 them to discover some satisfactory adjustment, whereby 
 the child could be named according to the custom so long 
 observed in his family without giving offense to either 
 side ; and then he returned to his chebung and his cush- 
 ions. 
 
 Etiquette required the Eadan Itu to first exhaust her 
 ability to meet the Bopati's request before the inferior 
 wives could express an opinion. Keomah soon found the 
 task beyond her powers and was in despair. She could 
 
10 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 see no way to satisfy the equal demands of both grand- 
 mothers without wounding or offending one of them, and 
 that she felt unwilling to do ; moreover, she was impressed 
 with a vague fear that such a strange conflict of claims 
 foreshadowed an unpropitious future for her little golden- 
 faced girl. She remembered to have heard her mother 
 tell about an unusual incident that had occurred at the 
 christening of Sewa, her next oldest sister, with the ill- 
 omened prophecy of the Dukun or priest made at the 
 time. And when Sewa, in later years, fulfilled it by 
 departing from the customs of her family, and made 
 them all ashamed by marrying a white-faced infidel, her 
 mother recalled the prediction of the Dukun with many 
 tears, while her father's rage knew no bounds. All this 
 passed through her mind as she turned with a gloomy 
 face to her less distinguished sisters, and bade them, with 
 a sigh, try what they could do, and left them. 
 
 The inferior wives, and there was a respectable num- 
 ber, laid hold of the problem with much giggling and 
 sUly talk, such as unoccupied women, in their position, 
 have a great fondness for, while they made all kinds 
 of impossible proposals and absurd suggestions, without 
 arriving at any suitable or definite decision. At length 
 Keomah reappeared to remind them that their master 
 had finished his siesta, and that the two grandmothers on 
 the lawang seketing were growing weary and impatient 
 in the momentaiy expectation of the long^elayed sum- 
 mons of the Bopati. 
 
 To while away the time, and conceal their chagrin from 
 each other, they had sent for their granddaughter, and 
 pretended to be quite absorbed in admiring her bright 
 yeUow skin and well-formed limbs as she lay asleep be- 
 fore them in the sembong of her babu (nurse) naked, 
 excepting a narrow strip of green silk wound around her 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 11 
 
 tender back and stomach to preserve her health and im- 
 prove her figure. 
 
 It was not long before the mirth of the second wives 
 began to die away, and their round, flat faces to assume a 
 serious and troubled expression as they slowly perceived 
 they would have to abandon the question with the same 
 result as Keomah. The dreaded disapproval of the 
 Bopati rose up before them. What would he say ? And, 
 worse than all, what would he do ? His face, dark and 
 lowering in threatened punishment, took on gigantic pro- 
 portions as they fancied themselves called before him. 
 They knew from weU-remembered experiences that it was 
 a dangerous business to displease or disobey him. They 
 shrank closer together and looked helplessly towards a 
 small gallery on one side of the court, where they could 
 see Keomah bending over a table. Perhaps she would 
 intercede for them ! She was good, and had done so 
 before. In vain liiey eagerly drank the delicious cups of 
 fragrant tea she continually sent them in the hope that 
 its inspiring effects might suggest a new thought or idea 
 that would lead to some disentanglement of the dilemma. 
 In doubt and fear they cast occasional furtive glances 
 towards the shady veranda, where they knew, from the 
 faint odor of smoke that reached them, their master still 
 lay concealed. Finally, as doubt gradually became a cer- 
 tainty, they successively drew their small jeweled char 
 puris (siri boxes) first presents from the Bopati, from 
 under their green sembongs, and filling their mouths with 
 the soothing contents, they munched away till the blood- 
 red juice stained their lips the same brilliant color. 
 
 But neither Keomaih's tea, their increasing fears or 
 perplexities, nor the sedative properties contained in their 
 siri boxes were of any avail. They spitefully wished 
 Keomah's girl in the bottom of the crater above them ; 
 
12 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 and what, they asked one another, did she have a daugh- 
 ter for, any way ? They were about giving up their 
 afflictive task in despair, when Paputti, a soft, round lit- 
 tle dumpUng of a girl, but the youngest and prettiest of 
 aU the Bopati's wives, suddeidy jumped up as she saw 
 Keomah approaching, and snapping down the lid of her 
 chapuri thrust it under her sash, exclaiming : — 
 
 " Give it both names, O Keomah ! Beg the Bopati 
 to reflect upon the name of ' Mattah-Djarri ' for your 
 daughter." 
 
 This novel proposal came upon all like a sudden clap 
 of thunder. They stared at Paputti in anger and amaze- 
 ment ; all but Keomah, who looked gratefully towards 
 the inspired speaker. " The ugly fat thing," said the 
 others among themselves ; " how could she think of any- 
 thing, and now the Bopati will be more pleased with 
 her than ever ! " They looked cross and black at Pa- 
 putti, and wondered what she would receive for a pres- 
 ent. They were certain it would be something hand- 
 some. Shutting their chapuris with an extra snap, which 
 told that they considered the business settled, they tucked 
 them under their sashes, and rising, one by one, left the 
 gallery, where they had been assembled, darting back 
 angry glances at Paputti, as they disappeared. 
 
 The Bopati was highly delighted with what he regarded 
 as Paputti's extreme ingenuity. He frankly declared 
 that her suggestion was the only one that could meet the 
 difficulty and maintain good wiU among all parties. Pa/- 
 putti not only received the handsome fan made of the 
 prized rhinoceros horn, which the Bopati had thought of, 
 for a moment, as purchase-money for the rich old Djarri, 
 but two or three caressing little pats on her pretty shoul- 
 ders besides, with a special word of praise from the Bo- 
 pati's own lips, and her sisters in marriage hated her 
 accordingly ! 
 
CHAPTER in. 
 
 A WAT out of the Bopati's quandary having now pre- 
 sented itself, he proceeded to the inauguration of the 
 ceremony of bestowing the name. Assembling his house- 
 hold around him, in the passadong or second salon, used 
 in a Jayan noble's house for grand family occasions, he 
 took the young child from its babu, and, commanding the 
 grandparents to step forward and separate themselves 
 from the rest of the company, announced the arrival 
 of the time for solemnizing the christening, after which 
 the banschaki, festival in celebration of betrothals, mar- 
 riages, births, christenings, and circumcisions, would com- 
 mence. 
 
 The two grandmothers, vrith the respective grand- 
 fathers, who had followed close upon them, came for- 
 ward as requested, and took their positions a little in 
 advance of the others, their hearts, meanwhile, thumping 
 loudly while they suppressed their breath in envious anx- 
 iety, each fearing yet dying to know which would be the 
 favored one, and both aware they dare not remonstrate 
 or give voice to a word in disapprobation of the publicly 
 expressed will of the Bopati. 
 
 Djarri visibly trembled, while the long fringed ends 
 of her sembong swung back and forth by her side as if 
 stirred by a sudden breeze. She dared not move a 
 muscle for fear that Mattah, whom she felt sure, being 
 the eldest, would triumph over her, might observe it, and 
 impute it to its proper cause. She saw in prospective the 
 latter's satisfaction, accompanied by'a second vision of 
 
14 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 her disdainful glance at the hapless red slipper lying up- 
 side down on the pebbles beside the palangki. She thought 
 she should surely die on the spot, if she heard the clear, 
 strong tones of the Bopati pronounce the detested name 
 of " Mattah " over Keomah's child. In her jealous agony 
 she raised her eyes to her daughter's face, and saw it 
 pleased, expectant, and apparently happy. This revela- 
 tion of Keomah's indifference only increased the keen 
 pangs she already endured. Pressing the long pointed 
 nails of her withered fingers into the stained palms of 
 her hands she straightened up her short figure, and defi- 
 antly held her head back higher than usual in a resolute 
 attempt to brace herself for the supreme moment of her 
 defeat. She thought, " Oh ! if I had only arrived a few 
 moments earlier ! And those blind and stupid palangki 
 bearers ! WeU ! it they escape with their lives when they 
 reach home, they will owe it to my husband's clemency 
 and not mine." 
 
 Mattah, who remembered on reflection that her age 
 would insure her precedence over Djarri on all ordinary 
 occasions, did not suffer the almost unendurable anxiety 
 and suspense of the latter ; yet former experience told her 
 she had greatly to fear the influence of Keomah over the 
 Bopati in favor of her own mother. 
 
 She had little doubt, iadeed, but that Keomah had al- 
 ready persuaded him to use his power of substituting the 
 younger for the elder, as was his prerogative, should his 
 judgment so advise, in all affairs not belonging to state. 
 She was assured, moreover, that the Bopati, notwith- 
 standing he had many wives younger and prettier than 
 Keomah, liked the latter, and always respected her wishes. 
 Surely, now it would be Keomah's wish to see her own 
 mother honored, and the Bopati, she feared, would please 
 her if he could do so vrithout interfering with his own 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 15 
 
 selfish wMms. Had she not upon all occasions seen 
 Djani placed high at the different feasts and festivals 
 following the great family ceremonies? Whose fault 
 was that but Keomah's ? 
 
 Mattah felt she was going to be-iiirronged, andas this 
 idea gained ground in her mind she happened to look 
 down and observe the green and gold ends of her sembong^ 
 
 The colors reminded her that her own rank was a 
 shade higher than that of Djarri ; this reflection increased 
 the shame of the humiliation she believed was about to be 
 put upon her, causing her lips to tremble with suppressed 
 indignation, and to feel as if her breath was about to 
 leave her. 
 
 The Bopati, quite unconscious of the painful emotions 
 agitating the bosoms of Mattah and Djarri, as well as 
 unobservant of the black and menacing looks directed 
 towards ths little round Paputti joyfully waving her new 
 fan, went on with the ceremonies of the baptism. First, 
 he called the Dukun, who ordered a large brass bowl, 
 kept for the purpose, to be brought and placed in the 
 centre of a kloso Psantram (mat of much value from 
 the latter place) spread on the floor in the middle of 
 the room. 
 
 The bowl was then filled with fresh, pure water, into 
 which every one present threw some sweet-scented grasses 
 and some flowers ; the Dukun casting in three pieces of 
 sugar-cane, and the nearest relatives some padi (rice in 
 the hull) and some nasi (boiled rice) ; after which the in- 
 fant was carried by the mother three times slowly around 
 the apartment, the father walking solenmly by her side, 
 followed by the Dukun in his white turban and long white 
 robes, which informed the spectators that he had made 
 a journey to Mecca. As the Dukun walked behind the 
 father, he carried in his hands the large brass bowl con- 
 
16 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 taining the water, flowers, grass, and other articles, dur- 
 ing which time all those present implored blessings on 
 the future of the child, with earnest prayers that it might 
 become the mother of powerful statesmen and brave war- 
 riors. Then the bowl was again placed in the centre of 
 the kloso, and the company collected around it, while the 
 Dutun strained the water, now sticky and fragrant from 
 the soaking sugar-cane and flowers, into a broad open 
 vessel of silver through a white cloth stained with bright 
 red spots by drops of the scarlet liquid pressed from the 
 roots of the wong-kudu. In the mean time the child was 
 being washed on one side of the room in the milk of six 
 green cocoanuts. AH being now ready, the Dukun took 
 the infant in his arms, and softly let it down into the 
 water in the silver vessel, where it remained floating a 
 moment, sustained by his hands, then was suddenly with- 
 drawn and held high above the baptismal font, while the 
 Bopati loudly pronounced the name selected. Great was 
 the consternation of the terribly wrought up grandmothers 
 when they heard the loud voice of the Bopati pronounce 
 the combined name of " Mattah-Djarri " over the drip- 
 ping child. At first they could not comprehend its mean- 
 ing, and glared at "each other in questioning anger, un- 
 willing to believe that neither of them had triimiphed. 
 When at last they were brought to understand how it 
 was, Keomah was grieved to hear them both whisperingly 
 express their unmistakable disapprobation and disgust. 
 Mattah declared it was an omen of evil, and Djarri as- 
 sented, reminding Keomah of the history of Sewa ; both 
 joining at last in one common lamentation over the ab- 
 surd weakness of the Bopati in listening to the sugges- 
 tions of that siUy chattering Paputti. 
 
CHAPTER rV. 
 
 The childhood of Mattah-Djarri was passed in the 
 kampong where she was bom. When there were no visit- 
 ors in the dalam she was allowed to play in the spacious 
 garden court extending back between the long, low wings 
 of the palace. This garden was an enchanting spot. 
 Sparkhng jets of water shot up from a huge basin bub- 
 bling in its centre, which softly descended again in show- 
 ery mists of iridescent spray, moistening and invigorat- 
 ing the perpetually blooming rings of red, white, and pink 
 oleander which grew around it. Great waxy-leafed mag- 
 nolias encircled the gay oleanders, their dark glossy foli- 
 age dotted with gigantic white blossoms, whose fragrance 
 made the air heavy with their powerful scent. Fig and 
 orange trees interlaced their boughs, drooping under the 
 weight of their luscious burdens, which mingled with the 
 delicate buds and blossoms, and hung ripe and golden 
 beside the green half-formed fruit. Beds of melati sur- 
 rounded with borders of ever-renewing color blended 
 their milder fragrance with the delicate orange blossoms 
 and rich magnoUa. Brilliant butterflies hovered above 
 these gardens of eternal bloom, extracting their sweet 
 essences, while myriads of insects concealed below made 
 the air melodious with their faint song. Alluring ham- 
 mocks were suspended in shady arbors and cool recesses, 
 inviting the indolent resident to accept their indulgent 
 embrace, where, lulled by the breeze and gentle motion, 
 he could lazily enjoy the reckless waste of fruit and flow- 
 ers around him, watching parrots and paroquets in gay- 
 
18 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 est plumage, ambling all day long over the graceful limbs 
 and branches, disputing with jealous blue monkeys the 
 delicious fruit. 
 
 Occasionally, as a great treat, the child was permitted 
 to walk sedately, with Djoolo, her babu, over the pebbled 
 paths running through the green grass of the alun-alun, 
 followed by Schagga, the old oppasser, who solemnly 
 marched behind them with his head bent down and eyes 
 apparently fixed upon the ground. To these promenades 
 were added frequent excursions in the palangki about the 
 lovely gardens in the suburbs of the kampong and into 
 the beautiful groves and plantations beyond the bambu 
 walls. These airings were the bright and refreshing 
 oasis in the life of the Radan ajeng, furnishing the sun- 
 shine necessary to preserve her joyful health and buoyant 
 vitality. She always returned overflowing with frolic- 
 some spirits, which Schagga, the custodian of the moods 
 and manners of the females of the dalam, severely con- 
 demned, and which Djoolo as highly encouraged. But 
 the chirping little princess was not repressed by the grave 
 oppasser's stern rebukes. "When he scolded she laughed, 
 and slyly pressed her nurse's hand. Schagga generally 
 received a present of an ikat, a sarong, or sabuk on these 
 exciting occasions intended to restore his good humor 
 and insure all impossibility of complaint. 
 
 Sometimes these excursions were extended to the edge 
 of the forest, when a shining piece of gold would tempt 
 old Schagga to order his mistress to be set down a few 
 yards beyond the line of sunshine that separated the bril- 
 liant day from the perpetual twilight caused by the close 
 and intertwining f ohage overhead. No present or persua- 
 sion could induce Schagga with all his greed to go far- 
 ther, — the safety of the noble child confided to his care 
 being more precious to him than anything else where 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 19 
 
 > 
 there was real danger. Here she gazed around in awe 
 
 on the mysterious shade. Gigantic trunks were covered 
 with the tender green of chmbing vines, winding around 
 them as they crept upwards, to descend from their 
 branches to the earth again in leafy ladders, which were 
 constantly traversed by multitudes of insects and small 
 animals equally at home on ground or tree-top. Black 
 caverns yawned in the distance, inhabited by green-eyed 
 monsters that could at any moment spring forth deter- 
 mined upon a sumptuous feast. Thick serpents, agile 
 and wary from long fasting, glided away from them into 
 safe obscurity. Bright peacocks stepped about, with an 
 air of dignity, folding their variegated tails of green and 
 gold, while voiceless birds in gorgeous colors silently flit- 
 ted from Umb to limb, or sat motionless in the stiU gloom 
 with their heads turned in a hstening attitude towards 
 the unwelcome intruders. 
 
 Little kampongs, occupied exclusively by the Blan- 
 dong (people who take care of the timber) are dotted 
 along the borders of these vast forests, whose inhabitants 
 seldom ever leave the mountains, and spend all their time 
 in cutting and dragging the hard teak and other timber 
 from their almost inaccessible depths, and in peeling the 
 bark off the deluwang (paper trees) which they plunge 
 into immense wooden troughs, filled with clear water, 
 on the spot, to prepare it for the succeeding beatings 
 into the soft silky article used for paper in the Archi- 
 pelago, and which, Djoolo explained to Mattah-Djarri, 
 composed the dress of her squinting, shaven - headed 
 Chinese doU, which was her darling companion by day 
 and night. 
 
 From the forest they returned to the kampong by a 
 different route, taking a path which led them through the 
 coffee plantations, where the peasants were picking the 
 
20 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 scarlet berries from the low pohon koppi (coffee-trees) 
 growing under the high datap planted to shade them, 
 and through the nutmeg groves where women and chil- 
 dren were gathering up the spicy nuts as the pale green 
 fruit fell to the ground bursting its thick shell, allowing 
 the brown kernels to hop out in their envelopes of pink 
 and fragrant mace ; also the cinnamon gardens where the 
 laborers were stripping the perfumed bark from the young 
 branches and tender stems, to lay them out to dry for a 
 foreign market. 
 
 After leaving the plantations, they came out on an ele- 
 vated highway, from whence they could look, on the one 
 side, over the waving tegal (rice fields cultivated on 
 high ground) and on the other side, down upon the sar 
 wahs (rice plantations that can be inundated at wiU) 
 which gradually descended in beautiful terraces till they 
 were lost in the distance below, the diversified shades in- 
 dicating their different stages of cultivation and matu- 
 rity. Some were traversed by a clumsy krebo (buffalo) 
 slowly dragging an antique wooden plow behind him, 
 on which a lazy brown peasant balanced himself to make 
 it sink deeper into the soft black soil. Some were ponds 
 of thick watery mud, through which men and women la- 
 boriously waded, sticking in the tender habit (young rice 
 shoots). Others were entirely covered with still glassy 
 water, under which the future crop was gathering life 
 and strength, and some presented a broad expanse of 
 pale or deep green, yellow or dark gold, as the grain 
 approached perfect ripeness. 
 
 In the terraces of deepest gold the harvesters were 
 busily at work, cutting off separately each stalk a few 
 inches below the bending heads with the ani'ani (a pe- 
 culiar instrument, made for that purpose, and held be- 
 tween the thumb and finger), then tying them into small 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 21 
 
 bundles, which resembled huge bouquets, to cany home. 
 Below and beyond the mountain base this interesting pic- 
 ture gradually faded away into the deep green of the far- 
 stretching plains, spotted, here and there, with the gray 
 attaps of numerous kampongs, and bordered by the spires 
 and red-tiled roofs of the distant city, moored like a gi- 
 gantic barge on the edge of the sea, whose restless waters 
 glittered and shone, under the low afternoon sun, with 
 all the brilliancy and variegated tints of a magnificent 
 "rainbow. 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 At the age of fourteen Mattah-Djarri was full grown 
 according to the criterion under the equator, where wo- 
 men are mothers of large families at the age of twenty, 
 and are regarded as old and worn out at forty and set 
 aside as having about finished their career. 
 
 Mattah-Djarri's gorgeous beauty now fully conjBrmed 
 the promise of her childhood, to which was added the 
 additional charm of an amiable and cheerful disposition, 
 united with the quiet and gentle deportment that distin- 
 g^hes all Javanese women, whether of high or low de- 
 scent. These qualifications, combined vrith the soft beauty 
 of the Javan women, sometimes render them very attrac- 
 tive to Europeans of the opposite sex, — their studied 
 unobtrusiveness, ready willingness to please, and smiling 
 acquiescence in the tastes and habits of those around 
 them causing them to become desirable and pleasant com- 
 panions. 
 
 To say the least we could of Mattah-Djarri's personal 
 appearance at this time would be to call it remarkable. 
 By those who commend female beauty of the oriental 
 type, it would, doubtless, be described as unique and 
 dazzling. Her complexion possessed the bright, golden 
 tint so much admired as the standard of beauty m her 
 race, and was brought out in richer and warmer con- 
 trast by the shining blackness of her hair and long al- 
 mond-shaped eyes, which flashed and sparkled from 
 under a pair of dainty, crescent-shaped eyebrows in alter- 
 nate gleams of mirth and intelligence, or languished in 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 23 
 
 glances of tenderness or loving appeal. Her forehead 
 was broad and full, bearing the required resemblance to 
 the chandana stone, with the wide expanse between the 
 eyes that must mark every true descendant of pure Java- 
 nese blood. She had a delicate and expressive nose ; for 
 there is much expression in a nose, notwithstanding many 
 critics quite ignore this important member; and her 
 mouth, filled with pearly teeth, was more than beautiful. 
 It was tender, loving, amiable, sweet and passionate, aU 
 in one. "When she laughed in a little silvery, rippling 
 way peculiar to herself, the most indifferent and unap- 
 preciative person could not fail to be more or less im- 
 pressed with the sweet and winning character of its 
 charm. 
 
 Her hair, combed back from her forehead and ar- 
 ranged in the conde during the latter part of the day, 
 fell long, black, and glossy around her figure in the morn- 
 ing, enveloping her in a soft and sUky mass resembling 
 a gleaming veil that floated back when she walked and 
 swept the floor with its rich folds. This great length of 
 hair is not uncommon, however, in women in the far East, 
 and is ascribed, by many, to the unfailing habit of wet- 
 ting the head twice daily in the bath, and then allowing 
 the hair to hang loose and free down the back a great 
 portion of the time for the double purpose of letting it 
 dry and to enjoy the comfort of perfect abandonment in 
 the hot climate. 
 
 In stature Mattah-Djarri was somewhat above the 
 ordinary Javanese woman, who cannot be called tall ; but 
 in sjmimetry and delicacy of figure and grace of limb she 
 had no compeer. Both were full and exquisitely rounded, 
 as those of her country-women are in general, which is 
 imputed to the supposed action of the water in bathing 
 twice daily by pouring or throwing it on the top of the 
 
24 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 head in the Eastern fashion, from whence it flows down 
 in trickling streams all over the body, and, as the years 
 go on, gradually causing the limbs and skin to become 
 round, firm, smooth, and polished. In Mattah-Djarri's 
 case this efBect was doubtless aided in no small degree by 
 long friction with dehcate oils and the pahus of Djoolo's 
 hands. The faithful babu had bathed her every morning 
 and evening since she was bom in soft, perfumed water ; 
 after which, she anointed her body and limbs with the 
 highly scented lang - a - chandana (oU of sandalwood), 
 rubbing it into the pores of the skin till the latter was 
 smooth and dry; then polishing it with the light and 
 delicate bore kuning, a yellow perfumed rice-powder 
 used by people of rank. Every motion of the beautiful 
 girl was the expression of grace and harmony, to which 
 was added a tranqml ease and dignity that impressed 
 every one with a sense of her extreme loveliness of char- 
 acter and person, combined with the pure oriental beauty 
 of her face, to gain for her, among her own people, the 
 rare honor of being likened to the Widadaris (children 
 of heaven). 
 
 In accordance with the ancient customs of the Javanese, 
 Mattah-Djarri, when eight years old, should have had her 
 teeth filed off short and straight across the front and a 
 little concave in the middle, so that by the time she was 
 grown they would have been stained — blackened by the 
 daily use of siri, the juice of which is intended to enter 
 the teeth where the enamel is filed away, and dye them a 
 permanent brown or black, depending upon the length of 
 time it has been used. Happily she escaped this hideous 
 disfigurement through an intense dread of pain, which 
 nearly threw her into convulsions of fear and terror 
 when she saw the seria (dentist) arrive from time to 
 time, and unwrap the formidable instruments with which 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 25 
 
 he intended to perform the operation. At these periods 
 she would rush to Keomah and beg and plead so pitifully 
 " that the seria might come another day," that she always 
 succeeded in gaining her request, aided, as she was, by 
 Keomah's indifference towards the performance of the 
 ancient rite, as well as by her stealthy encouragement in 
 neglecting to reprove the child's fears or reprimand her 
 disobedience. 
 
 Now, it was well known, by every one excepting the 
 Bopati, that Keomah indulged in some very strange no- 
 tions for a Javanese princess. And while nearly all her 
 friends commented upon it, coughed, cleared their throats, 
 and turned away their faces when it was alluded to, and 
 hinted to each other more or less about it, none of them 
 dared teU the Bopati, or speak out boldly before any one 
 whom they thought likely to inform him, of the Badan 
 Itu's smuggled heresy. We will explain this apostasy 
 of Keomah's by saying that her older sister Sewa, before 
 referred to, was the wife of a rich European hving in 
 one of the cities on the searcoast, whither the Bopati was 
 sometimes called officially, Keomah not unfrequently ac- 
 companying him on these occasions to make a visit to her 
 sister. It was in Sewa's house that she had been wicked 
 enough to pick up a few treasonable opinions in reference 
 to some of the old and established practices of her nation. 
 
 Sewa had a history that rendered her more or less con- 
 spicuous among the Javanese. She had formerly been 
 famed for her great beauty, and when very young had 
 disgraced her family, and brought reproach upon herself, 
 by eloping one dark night with a fair-faced Christian 
 foreigner while aU the household supposed her to be 
 asleep. There was a fearful time in the dalam of the 
 proud old noble, also a Bopati, when he discovered his 
 daughter's disgrace. Keomah trembled as she recalled 
 
26 A PRrNCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 how he stormed and raged, and all the females of the 
 establishment had to keep out of his sight for days. This 
 stranger, who had so dreadfully upset the old Javan's 
 well-regulated household, had been his accidental g^est 
 for a few weeks. At that time he was poor, by his own 
 confession, and almost unknown, and, like many other 
 yoimg men of modern date, had wandered to the rich 
 valleys and mines of the East to seek his f ortime. When 
 about to leave the hospitality of the Bopati, he discovered 
 that he was hopelessly in love with the beautiful Sewa. 
 
 Being an honorable man, he tried to go away without 
 her, and could not ; attempted it a second time, and re- 
 turned again with some frivolous excuse. He fretted for 
 a day or two over his ardent passion, and knowing per- 
 fectly well that the old Bopati would never consent to give 
 him his daughter, he determined to depart and take the 
 lovely Sewa with him, without giving her father a chance 
 for refusal. Sewa, like many maidens in other countries, 
 was madly in love, and therefore not hard to persuade ; 
 besides, she was pledged in a fast-approaching marriage 
 to a Javan noble, enjoying the rank of a Tumung'gung, 
 whom she had seen but once, and cordially hated ever 
 since she had known the handsome young stranger, 
 whose pale beauty, delightful manners, and warmly ex- 
 pressed love found a ready response in her own ardent 
 bosom, and made her feel herself as fortunate as she was 
 happy when he asked her to go with him. 
 
 A few days after the secret departure of the lovers 
 Mr. Bardwell, who had become Sewa's husband, sent a 
 messenger to beg the offended father's forgiveness, also 
 to present him with a copy of their certificate of marriage, 
 performed by the Christian ceremony. This paper the 
 old Mohammedan tore up, threw on the floor, and spat 
 upon in his contempt. The messenger he ordered out of 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 27 
 
 his presence with a threat that caused him to lose no time 
 in obeying. Sewa was never forgiven by the old Bopati ; 
 but, as time wore on, and her husband became rich and 
 powerful, the female members of her family gradually 
 forgot her error, and she and Keomah began to exchange 
 little visits, which, by slow degrees, ran into an estabUshed 
 intimacy ; and Sewa, at last, indulged the habit of visiting 
 her repressed Mohammedan sister in all the liberty, style, 
 and elegance of a wealthy Christian lady. This liberty 
 of Sewa's Keomah admired immensely, and she never 
 missed an opportunity of returning her visits. To do 
 Keomah full justice, every time she had any trouble or 
 annoyance with the numerous wives belonging to her 
 husband, she secretly approved of, even rejoiced, in the 
 bitterness of her heart, over Sewa's former and present 
 conduct. 
 
 To be sole mistress, as Sewa was, in her own house- 
 hold, with no suspicious and impertinent favorites always 
 striving to supersede her, no jealousies, either in her own 
 bosom or theirs, with which to contend or be tormented 
 by, no quarrels of theirs to settle, complaints to hear, or 
 griefs to soothe, and withal to be able to do as she pleased, 
 was a state of bliss that poor Keomah could scarcely con- 
 ceive of, surrounded as she was by two or three dozen 
 wives, all younger than herself, and some of them very 
 pretty, and each one desiring and seeking preference with 
 her husband. All this could but make her regard Sewa's 
 free and untrammeled life with commendation and satis- 
 faction, despite all the precepts in the Koran and instruc- 
 tions of the Panghulu from the mosque, as well as the 
 express commands of the Bopati and the customs of her 
 ancestors. In addition to these discomforts, she had to 
 undergo the unpleasant duty of recognizing the children 
 of these wives, who were legion. Sometimes this seemed 
 
28 A PRINCESS OF JA VA. 
 
 the greatest trial of all. As the Radan Itu, she was 
 expected to have a kind word and motherly caress for 
 each one, although she was spared the unpleasantness 
 of having them dwell in the interior of the Dalam with 
 her own ; and Keomah was a woman who tried to per- 
 form what she believed to be her duty. It is easy to 
 conceive of her admiring approbation when she visited 
 Sewa and witnessed the deference and respect with which 
 the latter was surrounded in her own home, as the one 
 mistress and only wife ; besides, she could never cease to 
 wonder at the many pretty personal habits and practices 
 Sewa had learned from her husband's nation. In view 
 of all this, is it strange that Keomah approved and al- 
 most envied Sewa's life, and was sincerely proud of her 
 as her sister ; being not only inclined to adopt the opin- 
 ions and imitate the tastes of the beautiful and refined 
 European ladies she met at her house, but often wishing 
 she was one of them. Especially did she agree with 
 them in regard to the horrid and repulsive practice of 
 filing and then dyeing the teeth by the Javans' uni- 
 versal custom of chewing siri, which these ladies never 
 failed to decry, and against which Sewa took every op- 
 portunity to express her aversion and disapprobation. 
 
 Therefore when it became a question of defacing the 
 lovely white teeth that adorned the sweet mouth of her 
 own daughter, Keomah was not sorry to find an excuse 
 to defer the process, in the sUent hope that it might 
 not be done at all, and was more than ready and willing 
 to espouse the cause of the frightened child, and join her 
 voice to hers in pleading that it might be put off yet a lit- 
 tle longer. The Bopati listened to Keomah's objections, 
 warmly supported by Paputti, who always defended the 
 child she had named, and was quite persuaded that he 
 was right in agreeing that the operation could be just as 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 29 
 
 well performed after the little princess was older and 
 more able to conquer her terrors and appreciate the im- 
 portance of the intended embellishment. Moreover, he 
 was a man of much taste in female beauty, and did not 
 shut his eyes or turn his back if he happened to see 
 a pretty, laughing European woman in the sea-coast 
 cities, where he so frequently went, and was compelled 
 to admit that Keomah was more than half right in de- 
 claring white teeth were vastly more to be admired than 
 black ones. At length the matter was settled during one 
 of the seria's visits, when the little girl's terrors and fears 
 increased to such an extent, that she was threatened with 
 convulsions ; then the Bopati, in some apprehension, con- 
 sented to permit the ceremony to remain unperformed 
 until the princess was old enough to be provided with a 
 husband, who might decide for himseH the all-important 
 question of how he desired his wife's teeth and mouth to 
 be adorned and beautified. 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 AxTHOTTGH Keomah had warmly advocated the omis- 
 sion of the ancient custom regarding Mattah-Djarri's 
 dentistry, she insisted upon having her delicate Uttle ears 
 prepared for the reception of the costly jewels every 
 daughter of a prince was expected to wear. And now 
 the plain gold circlets befitting childhood were removed, 
 to be replaced by sparkling settings of briUiant gems, 
 more becoming to the rank and elegance of a full-grown 
 princess. These were daily changed. Clear blue or 
 green sapphires, pure white brUliants, dark carbuncles, 
 topaz, and other costly stones alternately following each 
 other, to match other parts and colors of her costume, 
 so that she never appeared two days in the week in the 
 same dress or ornaments. Corresponding jewels also 
 covered her fingers, whose delicate nails were pointed, 
 polished, and stained a deep pink. Curious bracelets, 
 composed of precious stones set in gold filagree, were 
 clasped around her small wrists, with armlets of the 
 same rich character worn between the elbow and shoul- 
 der. Anklets of rare and antique workmanship were 
 worn loosely above her high, arched instep, with tiny 
 bells attached, that gave out a faint musical sound when 
 she walked. Chains of pearls, both black and white, of 
 almost priceless value, hung around her neck, reaching 
 down to the sash of green and gold that woimd many 
 times around her slender waist to retain in place the 
 gorgeous sarong, worked in the sacred patterns with 
 gold and crimson thread on a -heavy damask of dark 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 31 
 
 green. Her kaybaya, also of richest color and texture, 
 fell in soft folds of graceful drapery nearly to her feet, 
 and was fastened in front with great oval clusters of pure 
 white diamonds that sparkled on her bosom hke minia- 
 ture suns. On her little bare feet she wore the usual 
 spatus, with the whole toe-piece one blaze of the same 
 precious stones. The brilliancy and costliness of her 
 dress and ornaments did not appear exaggerated in one 
 so young, as the reader may suppose, but seemed to be 
 in perfect keeping with her glowing youth and resplen- 
 dent beauty, simply producing the effect of harmonious 
 and befitting decoration. 
 
 Mattah-Djarri's apartments and attendants also under- 
 went a decided change at this time. The former were 
 fitted up in a style of oriental magnificence and luxury 
 that accorded with the splendor of her personal appear- 
 ance. The finest klosos were laid upon her bed, and rich- 
 est Persian damask was used for its canopy. Gorgeous 
 rugs from Smyrna were spread upon the marble floor, 
 and brilliant tapestries and draperies from China and 
 Japan decorated the walls and composed the portieres. 
 Fine, soft cashmere shawls, that cost years of patient toil, 
 were brought from Persia and spread over her couches 
 and divans and piled among their cushions ; while deli- 
 cate vases of rare shapes, and pieces of china like trans- 
 parent crystals were distributed about the rooms for her 
 own private use. 
 
 Jeweled fans, little gold worked sandals in various 
 patterns, and costly, inlaid chapuris, which she never used, 
 were strewn around on tables, divans, and floor in careless 
 profusion, giving the chamber more the air of a superb 
 boudoir belonging to some favorite and powerful sultana, 
 than the simple apartment of a timid princess in the isl- 
 and of Java. • 
 
32 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 To her attendants was added, among several others, a 
 young girl a little older, than herself, whose duty it was 
 to entertain and amuse the Badan ajeng by reciting and 
 inventing, if necessary, tales of love, war, and fiction, 
 sparsely interlarded with adventure, in case her imagina- 
 tion carried her so far. This girl's name was Wagari. 
 Another woman, whose name was Chatra, of middle age 
 and much experience, was also allotted to her. Chatra's 
 duties were of a character quite different from those of 
 Wagari. It was her task to give the young Badan, 
 Mattah-Djarri, good advice ; to instruct her in her reli- 
 gious duties ; to accompany her to prayer ; to teach her 
 the different passages and precepts laid down in the 
 Sastra (sacred Hindu book containing the doctrines of 
 their religion, and still revered by the Javanese), with 
 which a Javanese female of rank ought to be familiar, 
 and to make her acquainted with the leading motives and 
 events influencing the lives of celebrated Javanese women, 
 whose histories were renowned in Javan poetry and lit- 
 erature, especially that of Jowar Manikam, who was a 
 princess of great beauty and virtue, celebrated in a ro- 
 mance bearing her name. Chatra had also to give care- 
 ful attention to Mattah-Djarri's deportment, and detect 
 all or any defects that might have been overlooked in 
 her girlhood. In short, Chatra's duties were not the 
 most pleasant. Her beautiful charge, although perfectiy 
 obedient and gentle, soon convinced her she had a way 
 of thinking that was entirely her own, and which gave 
 unmistakable evidences of coloring from her aunt Sewa. 
 Chatra could not reconcile her mind to this ; neither could 
 she quite comprehend it. She knew Mattah-Djarri had 
 never visited her aunt. That was a risk the Bopati 
 would not permit. He intended his daughter to marry a 
 nobleman of her own race. He Jiad great wealth, and he 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 33 
 
 would enrich his own people, not strangers ; and Chatra 
 had had her instructions. 
 
 Yet she saw with pain the young girl fully believed in 
 Sewa, greatly admiring her foreign ideas and ways. She 
 felt as if she wanted to scream, which is generally the 
 first and utmost expression of a Javanese woman's out- 
 raged feelings, when she heard Mattah-Djarri assert her 
 opinions with an air of independence and self-assurance 
 that she considered quite ill-bred in a well-born Javanese 
 maiden, and attributable entirely, she decided, to Sewa, 
 who was hopelessly ruined, as she confidently remarked 
 one day to Wagari, " by her milky-faced husband." But 
 Chatra could say little and do less against it, for she soon 
 detected Keomah's tendencies in that direction, and wisely 
 concluded not to notice them in the latter's daughter, 
 whom she quickly perceived had received them from her 
 mother, arranging it in her own mind as a legitimate, and 
 perhaps necessary, accompaniment to her pearly white 
 teeth, which latter she could only regard as a great re- 
 proach to a princess. On this serious subject, however, 
 she felt she might and ought to speak without fear, so 
 she approached it cautiously by saying one day to her 
 pupil, — 
 
 " Most noble princess ! How famous wUl be your 
 beauty when your teeth are shaped and colored according 
 to the customs of our people. Are you not impatient to 
 have it done before you are given in marriage ? " 
 
 Mattah-Djarri on hearing this looked up with a slight 
 start and visibly increasing color, while she hesitated a 
 moment before laughing a little disdainfully for a reply, 
 in which Wagari joined with a smile of appreciative 
 sympathy that irritated Chatra dreadfully. Perceiving, 
 however, she was not to be favored with further answer, 
 she continued the subject by remarking in a tone of re- 
 
34 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 gret, how much less painful she supposed the operation 
 would have been had it been performed when the princess 
 was younger, insinuatingly adding perhaps it would be 
 wisest if she permitted her to speak to Keomah about it 
 directly. 
 
 " No, Chatra, speaik not to any one. I shall not con- 
 form to the ancient custom," responded Mattah-Djarri, 
 this time in accents clear, firm, and decided, for she 
 greatly feared to have the question brought up in any 
 shape. 
 
 " I fear you are forgetting what is due to your rank, 
 noble princess," persisted Chatra, quite swept out of her 
 depth by the independence and decision ringing in the 
 tone of the young girl's reply, yet conforming to her 
 habit of addressing her pupil as a superior being, with 
 whom she had to use respectful command, remonstrances, 
 or reproval as the case might require. But you see, my 
 exalted pupil, it is my duty to call the Bopati's attention 
 to this unavoidable oversight " — she dared not put it 
 in any other way — " in what is befitting your station, 
 and I would prefer speaking first to Keomah," further 
 remonstrated Chatra, determined to do her best. 
 
 " No, no, my good Chatra. I forbid you," said Mat- 
 tah-Djarri. 
 
 " But reflect," persisted the former, " on your wonder- 
 ful beauty spoiled by this one defect of white teeth," — for 
 the Javans consider white teeth a disgrace, as too much 
 resembling those of an animal, — "your magnificent 
 dress and ornaments tarnished, as it were, by such a hide- 
 ous blemish, the splendor of your chambers made ashamed 
 by such a lack of taste in their mistress. I counsel you, 
 my matchless mistress," urgently continued Chatra, " to 
 change your mind, and follow the practices of the noble 
 princesses that have preceded you." 
 
A PBINCESS OF JAVA. 36 
 
 Mattah-Djarri looked Chatra a moment full in the face, 
 shook her head, arose without speaking, and moving 
 calmly to one side of the chamber drew apart the tapes- 
 tried hangings that concealed the entrance to another 
 apartment, and passed through, leaving Chatra to under- 
 stand by this act that the subject was dismissed, not to 
 be renewed again. Mattah-Djarri had a mortal fear of 
 having it recalled in any shape, not feeling sure the 
 Bopati might not repent of his decision, if reminded of 
 it, and order the seria's return at any moment. 
 
CHAPTER Vn. 
 
 When Chatra saw the curtains close behind the princess 
 and the important question left thus unsettled, and to be 
 hereafter excluded, for she dared not renew it after this 
 marked repulse, her eyes shot forth sparks of anger, as it 
 were, against the unofPending tapestries, while she sav- 
 agely ground her teeth, and gave other unmistakable 
 signs of an internal longing to soundly box her " match- 
 less mistress's " ears. Suddenly recollecting, however, 
 that Wagari was still in the room, and no doubt delightedly 
 observing her discomfiture, she hastily cast her eyes in 
 the direction of the latter, and caught her gaze fixed upon 
 her with a keen and curiously amused expression, which 
 instantly brought Chatra's countenance into a sembl9.nce 
 of satisfied indifference. Thinking it would be more 
 in accord vrith the dignity of her position to appear quite 
 unconscious of any cause for Wagari's amusement, she 
 observed with afBected concern, — 
 
 " I hope the Radan, Mattah-Djarri, wUl soon recover 
 from the annoyance she feels about this long-neglected 
 dentistry. I am sure I wish, as much as she, that it was 
 over," pretending to believe Mattah-Djarri had accepted 
 her counsel. 
 
 Wagari received Chatra's remark with a noise that 
 sounded as much like a roar of laughter as ever a Java- 
 nese girl was known to indulge in. This loud demon- 
 stration of mirth caused the elderly preceptress to turn 
 and stare at her more youthful companion in profound 
 surprise, which was intended to convey to Wagari her 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 37 
 
 entire ignorance of the cause of her boisterous mirth. 
 Wagari respectfully responded to this pretension of Cha- 
 tra's by indidging in a second and longer burst of merri- 
 ment. 
 
 " How can you be so like a siUy monkey, Wagari ? " 
 now angrily demanded Chatra, forgetting her caution and 
 losing all patience. She felt it was enough to be repulsed 
 by the princess, without being detected and laughed at 
 by the appreciative wit of one younger than herself, and 
 that one her kinswoman, as was Wagari. 
 
 " Don't compare me to a monkey, you cawing old 
 crow," dutifully returned Wagari, her temper rising at 
 the implied likeness to an animal she despised. 
 
 " Why not, I 'd like to know, when you behave like 
 one ? " asked Chatra in a high voice, now thoroughly 
 aroused. 
 
 " Because I am not like one, hateful catamount," cried 
 Wagari in increasing wrath, adhering to the favorite Ja- 
 vanese practice of mortifying an opponent by comparing 
 them to some obnoxious animal. 
 
 " O Gunung Brama ! " ejaculated Chatra, appealing 
 to the name of the smoking volcano looming up to the 
 clouds above them, as she clasped her hands and rolled 
 up her eyes in entreaty towards its fiery summit. " This 
 is a double insult. I cannot bear it." 
 
 " Yes, but you shall bear it, and you are a nest of crows 
 and catamounts combined," pursued Wagari, " and I am 
 glad to tell you I " — 
 
 " Be silent, spiteful idiot," interrupted Chatra. " Do 
 you wish to drive me out of the ^-oom ? " bouncing up 
 from her seat like an india-rubber ball, clapping her 
 hands over her ears at the same moment to shut out 
 Wagari's voice, while she stood still a second and glared 
 down upon her, white with rage. Then relieving her anger 
 
38 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 by two or three little pet screams, expressive of the deep 
 disgust and iadignation with which her relative inspired 
 her, she grasped her chapuri with one hand and her 
 sarong with the other and rushed out of the room, con- 
 tinuing to utter short, low, barking howls, till after she 
 had darted under the half -raised curtains, which gave ad- 
 mission to the corridor on the side opposite those through 
 which Mattah-Djarri had disappeared a few moments 
 before. 
 
 This habit of expressing intense and high-wrought ex- 
 citement, by throwing it off in short and rapid screams, 
 is an ordinary custom among Javanese women, and sim- 
 ply means their disgust is too great for words. Had 
 Chatra belonged to the lower and more illiterate classes, 
 she probably would have accompanied her screeches 
 with a series of sudden jumps and springs half a foot 
 or more high, straight up and down from the ground. 
 As it was, she contented herself by running off to seek 
 some dark and silent retreat, where she could thump her 
 head against a yielding bambu partition in indignant 
 complaint, and thus bemoan her wrongs. 
 
 As Chatra rushed under the long, fringed curtains, in 
 her hasty escape from Wagari's tongue, the latter threw 
 herself back on the cushions behind her and laughed long 
 and heartily, in the satisfaction she experienced in hav- 
 ing won the field. When this amusement was exhausted, 
 she arose, smoothed down her sarong and kaybaya and 
 walked across the room to the table where Chatra had 
 been seated, and taking up a little piece of embroidery 
 the latter had been working upon, she carefully examined 
 it, pulling up the stitches with her long finger-nails, till 
 she spoiled it completely. After which, she disdain- 
 fully cast it on the floor, sajring aloud to herself, " Like 
 a monkey, indeed ! Let her take that," sending the un- 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 39 
 
 fortunate embroidery across the room with the toe of her 
 Bpatu. 
 
 After "Wagari had thus insulted the poor little piece of 
 embroidery, she sauntered up and down the chamber sev- 
 eral times, bending her head forward to hear i£ the prin- 
 cess was doing anything in the adjoining apartment or 
 mating any movement that sounded like returning. Dis- 
 covering no such signs or sounds, she stopped and 
 stretched her arms above her head, yawning in a lazy, 
 sleep-suggesting fashion, then ran her fingers down over 
 her earrings and amber necklace with a sort of contem- 
 plative and afBeetionate touch. Assuring herself all was 
 in proper place, she paused before a broad divan, ar- 
 ranged the piUows in the most comfortable manner possi- 
 ble, and sank down upon them, to sleep and doze away 
 the time in the cool room till summoned by her mistress, 
 and enjoy meanwhile the pleasing reflections caused by 
 her late triumph over Chatra. 
 
 Wagari felt no compunctions in this exultation over 
 Chatra's defeat. She considered she had only repaid a 
 debt that she had long owed the latter for unmerited re- 
 bukes, and this pleased her, and convinced Chatra at the 
 same time, that she dared ridicule her if she felt like it. 
 She wanted Chatra to understand she was entirely inde- 
 pendent of her opinions and patronage and intended to 
 have convictions of her own, and more, intended to ex- 
 press them. This had not been the first breezy exchange 
 of friendly sentiments that had marked the intercourse 
 between the two relatives, neither was it to be the last. 
 It was a cyclonish habit of theirs inherited, no doubt, by 
 both, from one common ancestor in whose veins coursed 
 the fiery blood of Arabia, some of which had doubtiess 
 descended to Chatra and Wagari. It was seen in War 
 gari's stately step, her tall figure, vivacious manner and 
 
40 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 love of the marvelous, with her wonderfully inventive 
 imagination and facility for weaving romances ; aU of 
 which had procured for her her present position. In 
 Chatra, it appeared in the form of much learning, for a 
 Javanese woman, and a great regard for the proprieties, 
 with a strong sense of religious duty ; and had also 
 caused her to be chosen for the important post, which 
 she now filled, of preceptress to the young princess, 
 whose blood, beauty, and great wealth set her upon one 
 of the highest pedestals in the Javan nation. 
 
 The ancestor of Chatra and Wagari, of whom we have 
 spoken, was an Arab priest, who by some means found 
 himself on the island of Java at an important epoch in 
 his life and considered it greatly to his safety and advan- 
 tage to remain there. In time he became the father of 
 a large family, by a Javanese wife, who remained on the 
 island of their birth, laying the corner-stone for a con- 
 gregation of dukuns and savants from whom Chatra and 
 Wagari had descended. The father of each had been a 
 priest, from whom they had received superior advantages 
 of education, travel, and association. 
 
 Chatra had made two pilgrimages to Mecca to bow 
 before the shrine of the prophet at the Hadji or yearly 
 pilgrimage, and Wagari had started to accompany her fa- 
 ther as near to the Holy City as an unmarried woman was 
 permitted by Mohammedan law to approach, been ship- 
 wrecked and turned back, and had afterwards traveled 
 as interpreter and half attendant with a lady explorer 
 from the West, to every inhabitable part of the Indian 
 Archipelago. From this traveler Wagari had learned 
 very much, and she regarded her experience as quite equal 
 to Chatra's pilgrimages. She had picked up several East 
 Indian dialects in the course of her wanderings, besides 
 speaking French and Dutch tolerably well, and had thor- 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 41 
 
 oughly learned to understand the habits, opinions, and 
 general mode of thought, as practised and expressed by- 
 Western people. All of this was of great advantage to 
 Wagari, causing her to appear much older and wiser than 
 she really was, and invested her with an air of knowl- 
 edge and superior wisdom that caused Mattah-Djarri to 
 lean upon her and look up to her, at times, with childlike 
 simplicity and respect. This, with Wagari's ready and 
 graceful way of saying and doing everything, combined 
 with her wonderful talent for narration, marvelous in- 
 vention, and vivid description in picturing the scenes and 
 characters in which her oriental imagination reveled, not 
 only rendered her an attractive and entertaining compan- 
 ion but caused the princess to regard her with a degree 
 of friendliness and equality quite unusual between per- 
 sons of rank and their inferiors in the East, where rank 
 means finer and better clay than that of which the ordi- 
 nary mortal is composed. Wagari, on her side, imcon- 
 sciously adored beauty, splendor, and noble birth, and 
 longed for notice and appreciation from her superiors. 
 She found all this united in her superb young mistress. 
 In Mattah-Djarri her love, pride, and ambition were at 
 once gratified, and she became the Eadan ajeng's devoted 
 friend and willing slave. There was no sacrifice or haz- 
 ard she would have withheld to aid or please the latter 
 had occasion demanded it. She experienced a real pleas- 
 ure in looking at her. Mattah-Djarri's unique beauty, 
 rich dress with the penetrating colors of the gems she 
 wore, and the fascinating sweetness of her manners, con- 
 verted her presence into a magnet of the strongest attrac- 
 tive power for the romantic Wagari, who would sit for 
 hours and wait her appearance with a yearning that was 
 almost painful. To attend upon her, hove# around her 
 person, loiter in her apartments, or recline upon a divan 
 
42 ^ PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 with her eyes fixed upon her mistress's face and figure, 
 lying quiet and expectant upon a couch opposite to her, 
 while she related her stirring fictions, aflEorded Wagari 
 a positive delight. At such times she seemed to forget 
 everything around her, and gave fuU flight to her imagi- 
 nation in unrolling tales and wonders that made the 
 Arabian Nights seem tame in comparison. Meanwhile, 
 her listener's bosom would heave, her breath grow short, 
 her eyes dilate, her face grow red and pale by turns, 
 just as Wagari ordered it, till at length they would both 
 fall back, wearied and exhausted from the exciting emo- 
 tions the vivid romancer had called up. 
 
CHAPTER Vni. 
 
 Aster Mattah-Djarri passed into the adjoining apart- 
 ment, she went immediately up to a mirror to examine 
 the offending purify and beauty of her mouth. Standing 
 before the reflecting surface, she laughed at herself to 
 further the inspection. She saw nothing but two rows 
 of beautifully shaped pearly teeth in a mouth of exquisite 
 sweetness. "Chatra is mistaken," she said to herself, 
 " my teeth are not a blemish and they remind me of 
 Sewa ; but Chatra don't like Sewa, therefore she don't 
 like anything that resembles her. However, all our peo- 
 ple say Sewa was a wonderful beauty in her youth." 
 
 From such reflections as these, Mattah-Djarri came to 
 the conclusion that her mouth and teeth were just as she 
 liked to have them, and determined to put Chatra prop- 
 erly down if she ever referred to the subject again. 
 Turning away from the mirror, her glance happened to 
 fall on a beautiful chapuri, or siri box, lying on a table 
 near by. Taking it up, she admired its rich inlaid Ud, 
 flashing with precious stones in the sunlight, and drawing 
 a shell pin from her hair turned over its contents of betel- 
 nut, cardamom, cloves, and the other ingredients that 
 compose the mixture contained in a siri box belonging to 
 a person of good condition, while an expression of dis- 
 gust spread over her face, proving clearly the inspection 
 did not agree with her taste. Going to a window, she 
 held the chapuri upside down outside and watched the 
 precious contents fall on the groimd below ; Stter which, 
 she motiioned to a servant crossing the court at that 
 
44 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 moment, and handing him the chapuri, bid him seek 
 Chatra and tell her it was a present from her mistress. 
 She hoped this little attention would please Chatra and 
 perhaps make amends for the rebufB she had just given 
 her. The jewels would render the present valuable, and 
 its emptiness convey a gentle hint to Chatra that the 
 subject of siri was definitely settled, and put to flight all 
 lurking ideas she might have to the contrary. 
 
 Chatra was still in the dark corner, whither she had 
 flown to indulge her grief after her stormy altercation 
 with Wagari, when the servant approached and gave her 
 the chapuri with the accompanying message from the 
 princess. Perceiving the value of the gift, as she turned 
 it over in her hand, Chatra was more than delighted with 
 this mark of her mistress's favor. Its lack of contents 
 conveyed to her the insinuation that Mattah-Djarri in- 
 tended it should, and she understood that the work of 
 the dentist and the subsequent dyeing were irrevocably 
 rejected by her noble pupU. 
 
 When the servant had disappeared with the chapuri, 
 Mattah-Djarri sat down and gave herseK up to what 
 appeared to be a profound meditation. Her thoughts 
 turned to a yoimg Patch (noble holding position below 
 a Bopati) whose name was Sarjio and whom she had 
 seen once or twice, not long before, crossing the alun-alun 
 to the Bopati's official bureau. She wondered what his 
 opinion would be about the color and shape of her teeth 
 and the horrid use of siri. Then she thought it not im- 
 possible that the Bopati might choose him for her hus- 
 band ; and again, wondered if Sarjio would be wUhng to 
 be chosen. She had no means of ascertaining what his 
 state of mind was on this point, and thought she would 
 give anything to know, as well as what were the Bopati's 
 intentions in regard to her future. She was very sure he 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 45 
 
 had intentions. Chatra had told her as much. This 
 brought her mind back to the Pateh, the dentist, and 
 the siri. Mattah-Djarri felt she would be very sorry to 
 displease him. She wished he could hear the opinion 
 of Sewa, as expressed by Keomah, on this absurd Jar 
 vanese custom. Could he do so, she believed he must 
 agree with her. Chatra and her suggestions came again 
 before her mind, and she began to fear that no one but 
 Sewa and Keomah would say she was right in repulsing 
 the weU-meaning intentions of her preceptress. Perhaps 
 even Sarjio would take part with Chatra, if he knew of 
 it, and that would be a dreadful calamity. 
 
 From these unsettled and trivial reasonings, ^Mattah- 
 Djarri's thoughts would invariably return to fix themselves 
 upon the young Pateh. How noble he looked! How 
 grave and handsome his face ! How magnificent his dress ! 
 And would he demand her in marriage from her father ? 
 She supposed some one would do so, perhaps had done so. 
 Why should it not be he, as well as another ? Perhaps 
 the Bopati would offer her. That was often done too. 
 
 Such were some of Mattah-Djarri's reflections and the 
 questions she asked herself — a not uncommon practice 
 with very young girls. Then she went on stUl further. 
 If the Pateh married her, where would he take her to 
 live ? Would it be down on the plain near the sea, or 
 into the, to her, mysterious and unknown city on the edge 
 of its foaming waves, whose clusters of red-tiled attaps 
 she could see gleaming in the distance, every time she 
 was carried beyond the walls of the kampong. This 
 latter possibility seemed the most pleasing of all. She 
 smiled as her thoughts followed it up and recalled Sewa's 
 description of her Hfe in her city home. But perhaps, 
 after all, if the Pateh became a married nrtin, he might 
 not remain on the low flats on the coast, but would 
 
46 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 select a home in his father's kampong, which was the 
 nearest one to the smoking top of the Brama, where 
 she could feel the earth tremble and grow hot beneath 
 her feet, and see the jungle in some places growing up 
 close to the fiery crater's brim, and hear the wild hogs, 
 wild cats, wild dogs, and tigers snarling and howhng as 
 they skulked all day long in its tangled recesses, waiting 
 for the darkness of night to steal forth and make a meal 
 on the first living creature their stealthy step might sur- 
 prise. In the possibility of these conjectures, there 
 was a fascinating danger and excitement that made the 
 young girl love to linger upon them ; pleasingly sugges- 
 tive as they were, however, they soon led up to another 
 thought that chased them entirely out of her mind, and 
 caused her pure and devoted nature to shrink back in 
 apprehension and alarm. 
 
 What if the Pateh were to fill his house with other 
 wives, as her father did, and as nearly all the nobles of 
 her race approved of ? Would she be willing to share 
 him, she asked herself, with a score or more of other 
 women, perhaps fat and ugly as Paputti had become with 
 her disagreeable children always going and coming. The 
 very thought made her shudder. She had often seen 
 Keomah weep when the Bopati visited the apartments of 
 the younger wives, and she remembered once in particu- 
 lar, when a beautiful girl, a mere chUd she thought at 
 the time like herseM, vnth whom she wanted to play, was 
 brought to live in the dalam, how Eeomah had wept 
 and gone to bed iU for a week. Then Djarri, Keomah's 
 mother, came, and the Bopati was sent for, and they had 
 a dreadful time talking loudly in Keomah's apartments, 
 and afterwards the Bopati came out laughiag derisively, 
 and Eeomah became more ill than ever, and the young 
 girl remained in the dalam and was given a suite of 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 47 
 
 rooms more elegant than those of any one else. How 
 vividly it all came back to her mind. If she had been in 
 Keomah's place and Sarjio in the Eopati's ! — Her agitar 
 tion increased so^much at this point, she could not remain 
 quiet in her seat. Moving her body backwards and for- 
 wards, she bent her head down and covered her face with 
 both her hands and sobbed aloud. Recovering in a few 
 moments from the distressing effects of this exciting pic- 
 ture which her mind had conjured up, she withdrew her 
 hands and dried her eyes, while a fierce and threatening 
 look lurked under their half-closed lids. " If he did that 
 to me," she murmured, " I would not answer for my 
 gentle behavior," pulling open a drawer and taking there- 
 from a small silver patram (woman's dagger), which she 
 looked at a moment, then replaced with a smile, and 
 turned with a sigh to reenter the chamber where Wagari 
 was still waiting. 
 
 As Mattah-Djarri drew aside the heavy tapestries to 
 pass between them, she saw Keomah enter the apartment 
 from the opposite side, under the curtains through which 
 Chatra had rushed some time before. Mattah-Djarri 
 went forward quickly to meet her mother, and being the 
 taller of the two, leaned down and kissed her on the fore- 
 head with a sigh accompanied by a warmth and tender- 
 ness that caused Keomah to gaze keenly into her face 
 to detect a reason for this unusually sad and touching 
 exhibition of feeling. Mattah-Djarri was always loving 
 and considerate towards her mother, but now Keomah 
 felt there was a depth and feeling in her caress she had 
 never observed before. She did not know it was the 
 first time her daughter had ever had a conception of what 
 might have been the sufferings of a woman with a polyg- 
 amous husband. Taking Mattah-Djarri's little hands 
 between her own, Keomah scarcely knew how to break 
 
48 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 the subject of her visit, and looked helplessly for assist- 
 ance to Wagari, who had instantly arisen when the 
 mother and daughter entered the room ; but "Wagari, not 
 knowing what was in Keomah's mind, stood motionless, 
 comprehending she had something important to communi- 
 cate and wondering what it could be. Requesting the 
 two girls to sit down beside her, Keomah commenced her 
 unhappy errand by saying in the stately manner of the 
 East, — 
 
 " You are aware, Mattah-Djarri, princess of the 
 ancient house of Rajah Datapp Putah, that it is the duty 
 of aU women, when fate gives them the opportunity, to 
 marry, love, and obey their husbands, bear children to 
 perpetuate his name and increase the number of brave 
 and loyal subjects for their sovereign. To this end, your 
 father, our most gracious Bopati, desires you to prepare 
 yourself for the worthy discharge of the duties that will 
 devolve upon you, as the wife of a noble husband who will 
 soon claim you in marriage. He bids you reflect upon 
 your high position and your good fortune in being pro- 
 vided with a husband that is worthy of his daughter, and 
 wiU, in truth, reflect honor upon you in every way." 
 
 Having proceeded thus far in her task, Keomah's for^ 
 titude failed her, and suddenly stopping, she burst into 
 tears and could say no more. Seizing her daughter, she 
 drew her on to her lap and passionately pressed her, 
 again and again, to her swelling bosom, while she tried 
 to regain her voice and overcome her choking emotion. 
 Astonishment was at first depicted on the face of Mattah- 
 Djarri, which, on witnessing Keomah's grief, soon gave 
 place to distress, and she began to weep in unison with 
 her mother. Wagari, not knowing what else to do in the 
 presence of the two princesses locked in each other's arms 
 in a deluge of tears, arose and stood leaning sympatheti- 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 49 
 
 cally half over them both. Curiosity, however, began 
 to assert itself gradually in Wagari's mind, particularly 
 as she reflected that there was no cause here for real an- 
 guish beyond the natural grief a mother and daughter 
 must feel over the prospect of a permanent separation. 
 This reminded her of the extent of her own loss, in case 
 of the marriage and departure of the princess, but she 
 was too generous and unselfish to dwell upon her own in- 
 terests while her beloved mistress was unhappy, as well 
 as too much awed and bewildered at first, to know just 
 what to do to comfort the two weeping women before her. 
 Reflecting for a moment, she concluded to adopt the little 
 device of asking an important question and perhaps draw 
 their minds into another channel. 
 
 " May I ask, O Keomah," she respectfully inquired, 
 as soon as she could obtain a chance of being heard be- 
 tween Keomah's sobs, beside running the risk of being 
 reproved for impertinence, " what is the name of the for- 
 tunate prince " — for prince she supposed it was — " who 
 fa to become the noble Radan ajeng's husband ? " 
 
 Hearing Wagari's voice, Keomah raised her head and 
 looked into her face an instant, then biiried her own again 
 on her daughter's shoulder and commenced to shake and 
 sob more violently than ever. 
 
 " It is some one she don't like," thought Wagari, her 
 own eyes growing moist with sympathy. " The Patch is 
 very handsome," she continued somewhat suggestively, 
 catching Mattah-Djarri's eye after a pause, as the latter 
 lifted her head from Keomah's bosom and began to wipe 
 away her tears and try to soothe and cahn her mother. 
 
 At the mention of the name of the Pateh Mattah- 
 Djarri's face brightened, and affectionately pressing her 
 lips to her mother's cheeks, she begged her not to weep, 
 declaring if she continued, she would disobey the Bopati's 
 commands by refusing to leave her. 
 
50 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 " But," she continued, thinking of "Wagari's insinua- 
 tion, " who is to be my husband, O Keomah ? That is a 
 grave matter with me," she added argumentatively, per- 
 ceiving with some surprise that Keomah seemed disin- 
 clined to reply. 
 
 As the latter continued to sob, Mattah-Djarri gently 
 extricated herself from her arms, and bidding Wagari 
 bring a wet sponge from an adjoining chamber, bathed 
 her mother's face and otherwise tried to restore her to 
 composure. When Eeomah at length gained her usual 
 self-control, Mattah-Djarri returned to her former in- 
 quiry, pressing her mother to inform her who it was that 
 the Bopati had chosen for her husband. 
 
 " It is useless, O Mattah-Djarri," replied Keomah, " to 
 urge me further. I am not permitted to tell at present. 
 You are going to leave me, and the Bopati considers the 
 marriage in every way most suitable." Saying this, 
 Keomah rose and left the room, and as soon as she had 
 gone the two girls began to speculate about the identity 
 of the intended bridegroom. Wagari felt sure in her own 
 mind that it could not be the Fateh, or Keomah would 
 have said so. She did not express this opinion to the 
 princess, wisely considering it best, under these conditions, 
 that the latter should suppose that she herself had quite 
 forgotten her late allusion to him. In truth, Wagari 
 had no cause to assume anything about the Pateh in 
 connection with her mistress, beyond the facts that he 
 was young, handsome, and noble, a distant cousin of 
 Keomah's, and that he came occasionally to the dalam 
 to see the Bopati, and appeared an eligible and proper 
 prince to choose for a husband for a beautiful princess. 
 But now, Keomah's evident reluctance to name the hus- 
 band in prospect filled Wagari with surmises, causing 
 her to more than half suspect it was an ugly old Tu- 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 61 
 
 mung'gung — a noble of high rank and fortune gov- 
 erning a neighboring province, whom she had seen in 
 earnest, and, she thought, delighted conversation -with the 
 Bopati, on the latter's private veranda the Sunday pre- 
 vious. It was the incongruity of this marriage, she 
 feared, that prevented Keomah from naming him. 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Aptbk various conjectures had been exchanged be- 
 tween Mattah-Djarri and her attendant, and many hith- 
 erto unobserved signs and allusions analyzed, in the hope 
 of gleaning every possible item of information upon the 
 subject, all of which led to nothing, Mattah-Djarri asked, 
 taking up the possibility of the Tumung'gung, — 
 
 " Are you quite sure, Wagari, you saw the — the — 
 noble kiai Tumung'gung (venerable prince) of the prov- 
 ince of Narawadi, on the veranda of the Bopati last Sun- 
 day ? " A vague sense of pride and duty prompted her 
 to support the dignity of, perhaps, her own possible fu- 
 ture, by speaking of the disagreeable old man as his rank 
 demanded. 
 
 " Quite sure, most exalted princess," replied Wagari, 
 vrith a gentle sigh, adding, after a contemplative pause, 
 during which her heavy eyebrows drew closer together 
 and her gaze rested upon the ground with a severe and 
 indignant expression. " Yes, I know his dark, dried face 
 and crooked nose well " — Then recollecting herseK she 
 looked up in dismay into the princess' face, and instantly 
 falling upon her knees before her, begged her pardon 
 for her hasty and inadvertent remark, declaring she was 
 no doubt prejudiced against the kiai Tumung'gung, and 
 that her love for her mistress had quite carried her away, 
 but she had no doubt he was a most worthy noble. 
 
 "Arise, Wagari, and sit down," said Mattah-Djarri. 
 " I give you liberty to express your opinions freely, in 
 this case, and you need not apologize afterwards." 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA.. 53 
 
 " Permit me to offer you a million thanks, beloved 
 mistress," exclaimed Wagari, as she rose to her feet, im- 
 pulsiyely stooping again to imprint a graceful kiss upon 
 the former's little hand which lay firm but passive in her 
 lap. 
 
 " I am greatly disturbed by the thought of that old 
 Tumung'gung for your husband. He must be a monster 
 of selfishness," — her eyes alternately expressing the 
 compassion she felt for the lovely girl before her and her 
 disgust for the selfish old man, whom she thought wished 
 to appropriate her. " He divorced himself from his two 
 first Badan Itus, noble princesses as they both were, and 
 has now four or five score of inferior wives in his dalam. 
 You will lead a frightful life with them, dear Badan 
 ajeng," and Wagajpi looked at her mistress as it her 
 heart was going to break. 
 
 " How do you," emphasizimg the you, " know so much 
 about the affairs in the household of the Tumimg'gung ? " 
 demanded Mattah-Djarri, bending a keen and searching 
 glance upon her attendant's face, without showing any 
 signs of emotion over the latter's foreboding disclosures. 
 
 " I have heard it from my cousin, who is the Tumung'- 
 gung's jaksa (law officer)," answered Wagajci, looking 
 earnestly at her mistress, " and he always speaks the 
 truth. He has often told me and my sister about the 
 Tumung'gung's doings and the jealousies and excitements 
 of his many wives ; also, described the gentleness and 
 goodness of the last Badan Itu, who was so overcome 
 with gladness when the jaksa informed her that the old 
 prince intended to send her back to her father that she 
 wept like a child." 
 
 " Truly, Wagari, that sounds badly for the Tumung'- 
 gung," said Mattah-Djarri ; " but what had the princess 
 done to anger him to. such a step ? " 
 
54 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 "Done, my blessed mistress," ejaculated Wagari, 
 throwing her head back in impressive protest, " why, she 
 had done nothing. She was always quiet and obedient 
 and studied how to please him, but he became tired of so 
 much consideration and wished to make another alliance. 
 Barabatah, a very young princess of a house as noble as 
 his own, had the misfortune to attract his notice, and 
 being his equal, he could not demand her as an inferior 
 wife, so there was no choice left but to be divorced from 
 tihe second Badan Itu to make way for the third." 
 
 " Well, what was the end of that arrangement .'' Did 
 Barabatah die ? " 
 
 "Not at aU, noble princess," replied Wagari; "but 
 she would not consent. She was in love with the young 
 Badan Adawara, who was absent on a journey to the 
 Timor Islands. They were almost unknown to each other 
 and he had never thought of asking for her in marriage, 
 but she had seen him, and loved him with aU. her life. 
 This ardent affection caused her to reject the Tumung'- 
 gung's proposals with scorn and hatred, although she 
 knew her father, the old Radan, had long before arranged 
 the marriage with him. At length, Barabatah, in her 
 despair, confessed her passion for Adawara, and said she 
 woidd die if they gave her to any one else and especially 
 to the Tumung'gung of Narawadi. 
 
 " Her father became deeply incensed with her conduct, 
 but her mother begged earnestly for her forgiveness, af- 
 firming it was Barabatah's ill health that caused her to 
 be so perverse and ungrateful, and assured Viim that if 
 he would defer the marriage for a couple of months, till 
 her daughter's health recovered from the sudden shock 
 of this proposed alliance, she was quite sure Barabatah 
 would be more reasonable. Hearing this account of his 
 intended victim, the Tumung'gung said he did not want 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 55 
 
 an ailing bride and expressed his willingness to wait. 
 Thus the marriage was deferred for two months. That 
 was a sorrowful time for the poor young princess, who 
 became thinner and weaker as the days roUed away. She 
 refused to eat and sat up all night on the balcony, weep- 
 ing and gazing at the moon. Her father's wives were 
 quite upset, some with interest and some with curiosity, 
 during this period. Not a few of them pitied the dis- 
 tress of the princess and some laughed at her opposition, 
 but they all agreed she would have to yield at last, and 
 they waited with impatience to see the end. There was 
 one of them, however, who truly sympathized with the 
 unhappy girl. Her name was Bumeda and she had al- 
 ways been remarked for being sad and living much alone." 
 
 " May the Holy Prophet bless and protect Eumeda," 
 interrupted Mattah-Djarri ; " but how could she aid the 
 unhappy Barabatah ? " 
 
 " Well, it lacked just three days of the time for the 
 wedding day to be fixed," continued Wagari, "when 
 Bumeda heard, through some member of her family 
 living in one of the kampongs belonging to the estates of 
 Adawara, that the brave prince had returned the day be- 
 fore. She thought it such a shame that he should not 
 know of the sweet girl's love for him, and give him the 
 opportunity to rescue her, if he wished to do so, that she 
 made an excuse to visit her family. Whilst there, she 
 managed to send a trusty messenger to the prince, with 
 an accoimt of the sad condition of Barabatah, in conse- 
 quence of her devoted love for him, and her approaching 
 marriage with the old Tumung'gung of Narawadi." 
 
 At this part of her narrative, Wagari stopped and 
 gazed at her mistress as if she was considering what she 
 should say next. In truth, a sudden thought of what the 
 young Fateh might do in her mistress's case had just 
 
66 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 occurred to her, and she was hesitating a moment to de- 
 cide if she should give expression to it. 
 
 " Go on, Wagari, go on," impatiently exclaimed Mat- 
 tah-Djarri, leaning towards her in breathless suspense, 
 " what happened when the prince was informed ? " 
 
 " "What happened ? " repeated Wagari, lying back 
 against her pillows, and laughing in a low chuckling way 
 peculiar to herself when pleased, forgetting her mistress 
 was waiting with suspended breath to catch her reply. 
 
 " Yes, what happened then ; tell me quickly," com- 
 manded the princess in an imperious tone. " Did Adar 
 wara receive the messenger unmoved and leave Barabatah 
 to die or be sacrificed ? " cried she, clasping her hands, 
 and pressing them till the ends of her fingers below her 
 rings became purple. 
 
 " No, indeed ! not he ! " responded Wagari trium- 
 phantly, " he was too splendid and handsome for that," 
 she added, after a short pause, as if a man's handsome or 
 splendid appearance was an indication of the generosity 
 of his heart, or in any way prompted a noble action. 
 But Wagari was given to unweighed and careless expres- 
 sion,*taken over, she once explained, from the Nonyah 
 Blanda (European lady) with whom she had wandered 
 so long over the Archipelago. 
 
 "But what did Adawara do, Wagari?" cried Mat- 
 tah-Djarri, becoming indignant and impatient v^ith her 
 attendant's dangling. " But stop," she hastily added, in 
 apprehensive contradiction, — " don't tell me he did not 
 immediately seek the Badan Mayung's palace and de- 
 mand the hand of Barabatah. I could not endure that," 
 said she, putting her hands up before her eyes, as if try- 
 ing to shut out Barabatah's pain and misery, in case he 
 had not done so. 
 
 " But the prince did not go," said Wagari, now fixing 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 57 
 
 her clear eyes, brimful of fun, on her mistress's distressed 
 face. 
 
 " Oh ! oh ! Wagari ! " exclaimed the latter in a tone of 
 deep grief, " why did you tell me about Barabatah's mis- 
 fortunes ? " her face growing pale and her lips trembling 
 with sympathetic pity. " You said she did not die after 
 she was married, but she died of grief before, poor thing, 
 and so should I," she added, rising and walking nervously 
 backwards and forwards and beginning to sob. "It 
 makes me ill to think of it." 
 
 In answer to this emotion of her mistress, Wagari 
 laughed gayly and quickly replied, — 
 
 " The young Badan sent his father to the Radan Ma- 
 yung, and before Bumeda returned home the day for the 
 marriage of Barabatah and the Badan Adawara was 
 named." 
 
 " Indeed ! indeed ! The Holy Prophet be praised ! " 
 cried Mattah-Djarri, her face breaking into smiles and 
 beaming with pleasure. " I am so glad," giving vent to 
 a long sigh of relief as she resumed her seat. " But "Wa- 
 gari, why did you not say that in the beginning ? " sud- 
 denly frowning; " don't try my patience like that aifother 
 time," reprovingly, " I won't accept it ; " and she looked 
 wamingly at her daring attendant, who smiled with an 
 easy and satisfied air, remembering her mistress's unfail- 
 ing indulgence, but at the same moment knelt again before 
 her, to entreat her pardon for her second ofEense, declaim 
 ing she had not given her the opportunity before of tell- 
 ing how it really did end. 
 
 " Well, let it go now, Wagari," said Mattah-Djarri, 
 " I forgive you since Barabatah is married to the brave 
 young Kadan. How much she loved him," admiringly, 
 while a thoughtful look gathered on her face. Arousing 
 herself in a moment, she asked, — 
 
68 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 "How did the kiai Tumung'gung accept his disap- 
 pointment, Wagari ? for of course he was disappointed ? " 
 an indistinct vision of her own fate and its possible ter- 
 mination rising before her mind. 
 
 " Oh, yes, the lover was disappointed," answered 
 Wagari in a scornful tone, using the permission given 
 her a short time before to express herself as she felt con- 
 cerning the old noble. " The Radan Adawara holding 
 the higher rank, the aged Tumung'gung had to give up 
 without complaint, consoling himself no doubt, by trans- 
 ferring his choice to you, my honored mistress," ended 
 Wagari, an expression of overwhelming pity filling her 
 eyes, as she turned fuUy around and allowed her gaze to 
 run over her mistress from head to foot. " Pardon me, 
 dear Badan ajeng, but you are many times more beauti- 
 ful than Barabatah, and a million times too good and 
 gentle to live with the selfish old Tumung'gung of Nar- 
 awadi. If he should prove to be the Bopati's selection, 
 I beseech you," she continued, clasping her hands en- 
 treatingly, " to persist in declaring you will never con- 
 sent. That might cause the marriage to be delayed, and 
 in the mean time something might happen to deliver you 
 as Barabatah was delivered," and Wagari unconsciously 
 leaned forward in her earnest persuasion and took both 
 her mistress's hands in her own, whUe she looked en- 
 couragingly and sympathetically on the beautiful young 
 face turned towards her, trying to gather hope and cour- 
 age from her devoted attendant's last suggestions. 
 
 " I will think of what you say, Wagari, if I am des- 
 tined to be the wife of the old Tumung'gung of Nara- 
 wadi," returned Mattah-Djarri. " Yes, I 'H remember 
 Barabatah," she added, her thoughts going out to the 
 young Pateh, wondering if it was possible he would res- 
 cue her as Adawara had delivered Barabatah, should it 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 59 
 
 become necessary. " But," after a few moments, during 
 which she and Wagari were both silent, " we have no 
 proof that the Bopati has chosen the Tumung'gung for 
 my husband. It might be, and perhaps is, another," she 
 argued, urging herself to think so. She wished to suggest 
 the name of the Fateh, but felt ashamed to allow Wagari 
 to suspect the direction in which her thoughts ran. 
 
 Mattah-Djarri was not yet suflSciently under the influ- 
 ence of the all-powerful passion to lose sight of the pro- 
 prieties, and openly speak of one, in the light of a possi- 
 ble lover, who had never given any token, that she knew 
 of, of his preference for her. Besides, she possessed a 
 tranquil and self-contained character that could reason 
 and wait. As she mused upon the subject, it seemed 
 probable that it was some such distasteful selection as 
 that of the Tumung'gung must be, that had caused Keo- 
 mah to withhold the name of the Bopati's choice. She 
 thought Keomah's great distress appeared to confirm 
 this view, or why should she have refused to give the 
 name of her future husband. That was not like Keo- 
 mah ; and she remembered the latter had said, " The 
 Bopati considers the marriage in every way a most suit- 
 able one," and had avoided giving her own opinion. She 
 could fancy that Keomah too might consider the rank, 
 wealth, and powerful position of the Tumung'gung de- 
 sirable, but as a husband for herself, she believed the 
 prospect would grieve her mother. Still these terms 
 would apply in a certain way to either the rich old Tu- 
 mung'gung of Narawadi or the handsome young Patch 
 from the plains below. Altogether she was perplexed 
 and mystified, and hoped Chatra would know and let 
 drop a word or two that would throw some light upon 
 the subject. 
 
 Nearly the same thoughts were running through the 
 
60 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 mind of Wagari. She could not come to any conclusion 
 and also determined to look to Chatra for information. 
 This reminded her of their late quarrel, which threw a 
 momentary chill on her expectations in that direction. 
 But Wagari was not often at a loss for an expedient to 
 help her over a difficulty, consequently she decided to 
 seek Chatra immediately and apologize for her recent 
 rudeness. When dismissed by the princess, she pro- 
 ceeded at once to put this resolve into practice, and a few 
 moments later she was approaching Chatra, who was 
 seated imder the shade of a mango tree in the rear court, 
 watching the absurd antics of two or three monkeys that 
 were trying to strip some fig-trees near by of their fruit. 
 Hearing footsteps behind her, Chatra looked around over 
 her shoulder, and observing Wagari near her, said care- 
 lessly, — 
 
 " Watching your friends, you see," revengefully at- 
 tempting to support her late accusations by reference to 
 the busy animals among the foUage. 
 
 Wagari, perceivmg Chatra was still bitter and ready 
 to renew their late encounter, resolved to conciliate her 
 relative if possible ; so she replied by afPectionately plar 
 cing her hand on the latter's shoulder and saying depre- 
 catingly, — 
 
 " Please don't, Chatra ; I come to confess that I have 
 been extremely rude and insulting, and beg you to for- 
 give me. You know it is in the blood of our family to be 
 hasty and impatient." 
 
 Chatra scarcely believed her ears when she heard 
 Wagari's humble confession, and was no less surprised 
 than delighted, but felt too deeply wounded to allow the 
 latter to see her satisfaction, therefore made no reply 
 whatever to her overtures. Waiting a moment without 
 receiving an answer, Wagari continued, — 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 61 
 
 " Come, Chatra, suppose we be friends again." 
 
 " What do you want, Wagari ? " said Chatra snap- 
 pishly, after being thus solicited. "Speak put; don't 
 fumble about in that hypocritical way," keeping her eyes 
 steadily fixed on the ankuals. 
 
 " Oh, nothing," replied Wagari with affected indifEer- 
 ence, struggling to keep down her rising temper. " Only 
 I thought it was disagreeable to be bad friends ; but it 
 don't matter if you like it," and moving away from Chatra 
 she began slowly to ascend a flight of steps leading to a 
 veranda, turning her head half-way round and looking 
 carelessly down on Chatra as she mounted, tiU she 
 reached the gallery which gave admission to that side of 
 the dalam. Chatra let her go without sajdng or doing 
 anything further to repel or encourage her proffered 
 friendship, but as soon as she had entirely disappeared a 
 smile of complacency played about her face, for she really 
 was a good woman at heart, and it pleased her to see her 
 relative show what she regarded becoming deference in 
 a young person. 
 
 " After all," she murmured to herseK, " Wagari means 
 well, and I, too, think it is better and more politic to be 
 friends." Relapsing into silence, she appeared to reflect 
 more profoundly, then presently resuming her soliloquy, 
 she repeated in liie same abstracted tone, " Wagari is a 
 good child. I wonder if she knows what caused Keomah 
 to weep when she came out of the apartments of the Ra- 
 dan ajeng^" Throwing some rice that she had in her 
 lap on the ground, which instantly brought the monkeys 
 down from the branches above, Chatra arose, saying to 
 herself again, " I will try to discover if Wagaxi knows 
 anything ; " and then ascended the steps of the veranda 
 and soon passed out of sight beyond the door through 
 which Wagari had disappeared a few moments before. 
 
CHAPTER X. 
 
 The following day Eeomali surprised Chatra b^ond 
 all belief by announcing her intention of setting 0ut im- 
 mediately with the princess on a visit to Sewa, Vhither 
 she had never before gone without the Bopati, and h?*! 
 never taken Mattah-Djarri. Chatra's mental comKient 
 on hearing this was, " Surely Eeomah is going crazy ! " 
 In Chatra's mind this was the only way to account for 
 this unnecessary exposure of the beauty of the yoimg 
 princess, and Sewa, she thought, would be only too happy 
 to aid the young and inexperienced Badan ajeng in the 
 commission of some such disgraceful act as she herself 
 had been guilty of. 
 
 Chatra wondered if the Bopati had lost his senses also. 
 She had never before heard of such a thing as a Javanese 
 princess visiting out of her own immediate family before 
 marriage, and, worse than all, she now began to suspect 
 that Keomah would not be sorry if her daughter should 
 follow the example of her audacious aunt. She was so 
 disturbed by these reflections that she determined to be- 
 come reconciled with Wagari, and went in search of her 
 to inform her of the intended departure, and ascertain if 
 she knew anything about it. She found the Ibtter busy 
 directing Djoolo in the packing, and in high glee because 
 she was to accompany her mistress. 
 
 After administering what she considered a suitable re- 
 proof for Wagari's levity in the face of the dangers which 
 she was about to encounter, she inquired if she knew 
 what was the object of the visit. Wagari said she be- 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 63 
 
 lieved it was to give the Badan ajeng an opportunity 
 of seeing something of the world, and also to become 
 acquainted with her cousin, the Nonah Bardwell, Sewa's 
 only child, whom Mattah-Djarri had never yet seen. 
 
 This cousin was supposed to be quite a European, 
 highly accomplished, and very fashionable, according to 
 the western standard. When very young her father had 
 sent hep to Europe to be educated and brought up among 
 his own people. Being now grown and her education 
 completed, she had returned a few months before to her 
 parents, without any recollection or knowledge whatever 
 of any of the members of her mother's family, whom in- 
 deed she had never seen ; for the visiting between Sewa 
 and Keomah had not yet commenced when she was sent 
 away. It was to gratify her curiosity in regard to her 
 mother's people, that Keomah had been pressingly in- 
 vited, at this time, to come with her daughter and make 
 them a lengthy visit. This invitation seemed to Keomah 
 to come just in time to meet her urgent need. 
 
 The Bopati, having fully arranged the princess's mar- 
 riage to his entire satisfaction, made little objection when 
 Keomah informed him of Sewa's proffered hospitality and 
 timidly begged that she might be permitted to accept it. 
 
 The very strangeness of the request gave her courage, 
 and she was as much surprised as Chatra, when after a 
 few moments' hesitation the Bopati gave his consent, 
 accompanied with many commands as to what she should 
 do and how she should act in relation to her going and 
 coming, and whilst in Sewa's house ; impressing upon 
 her mind, above aU things, the necessity of preserving a 
 becoming dignity and proper degree of seclusion, partic- 
 ularly in not permitting the young Radan, Mattah-Djarri, 
 to be gazed upon by impertinent strangers or any casual 
 visitors they might meet. 
 
64 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 Then he smnmoned one of his most reliable oppassers 
 and commanded him to accompany them and carefully 
 guard the Radan ajeng from all publicity or exposure, 
 and keep him informed, at the same time, of anything 
 unusual that might occur. The Bopati, in fact, was not 
 averse to giving his daughter, before she was married, 
 the advantage of some experience of a more mixed so- 
 ciety than she had hitherto had. He was proud of her 
 great beauty and anxious she should acquit herself well 
 and do him honor, when her husband should take her 
 into the presence of their great Susuhunan (sultan), as 
 he knew he must do as soon as possible after marriage ; 
 and this he thought would be a good opportunity for her 
 to accustom herself to meeting strangers. 
 
 In due time the party arrived at the palatial residence 
 of Sewa's husband and were received by its inmates with 
 every demonstration of affectionate respect. It was the 
 first time Sewa had ever seen her niece beyond the 
 grounds belonging to the dalam of the Bopati, and she 
 was highly gratified with this especial mark of favor 
 towards herself ; for somehow the Bopati had always 
 managed to make, her feel that he rather despised her 
 for the indiscretion of her youth. 
 
 Her daughter Josephine had been properly impressed 
 with the rank of her noble relatives, and made to under- 
 stand the rare compliment the Bopati extended to them in 
 permitting this visit, her mother fully explaining to her the 
 habits and opinions of the Javans in regard to the seclusion 
 of their females, especially those that were yet unmarried 
 and possessed of high rank and extraordinary beauty. 
 
 Mattah-Djarri was quite bewildered with the oddity 
 of all around her, and above all delighted with the gay 
 and pleasant manners, pretty and tasteful European dress, 
 and altogether magnificent appearance of her cousin 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 65 
 
 Josephine. Even her name excited a sort of wondering 
 and pleasing difficulty in her mind. Although she had 
 often heard it, it never seemed so strange before, because 
 she had never attempted to pronounce it in addressing 
 any one. " Josephine, Josephine," she repeated over and 
 again to herseU, trying to familiarize her ear with the 
 tmaccustomed sound, while she thought it was such a pity 
 it was not soft and musical like her own tongue. 
 
 Josephine entered at once into what she considered a 
 becoming intimacy with her cousin, who was some two 
 years younger than herself, by bestowing upon the prin- 
 cess the short name of " Mattie," sounding, as she said, 
 more like fashion and civilization. When Keomah first 
 heard her daughter addressed in this new and unceremo- 
 nious way she was somewhat taken aback, but considered 
 it best, however, to say nothing. Later on, when she 
 heard Sewa summon her beautiful daughter by calling 
 " Josie, Josie," and the young friends of the latter use a 
 pet epithet, she wished she could do likewise, and was 
 glad she had made no remark, and concluded it was 
 just as well to let down a little on their own stilted and 
 solemn manner of addressing each other. 
 
 There was nothing about Mattah-Djarri that could be 
 construed into a likeness to her cousin. Indeed, no two 
 persons could have looked more unlike, yet contrasted 
 more harmoniously. Mattah-Djarri's black hair brought 
 out in striking contrast the amber hue of her cousin's 
 shining braids, and the latter's clear pink and white com- 
 plexion made a pleasing relief for the more brUliant and 
 golden tint of that of Mattah-Djarri ; reminding one of 
 that voluptdous rose called the " Virgin's Blush," when 
 arrayed beside its stUl more intoxicating sister the 
 " Cloth of Gold," which was in truth a perfect represen- 
 tation of Mattah-Djarri's rich oriental coloring. 
 
66 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 Josephine inherited nothing from her mother's appear- 
 ance except her small hands and feet, otherwise she was 
 a graceful, delicate counterpart of her father. A full 
 blonde of the fairest, brightest type, with great blue eyes, 
 commanding figure, and the presence and carriage of an 
 empress ; but in character, despite the rigid discipline of 
 her careful education, the warm and passionate blood of 
 Sewa asserted itself, making her, perhaps, by its unex- 
 pected freaks of ardor and impulse, more interesting and 
 attractive than she would otherwise have been, had her 
 veins been filled only with the more sluggish element of 
 her father's race. Soft and lovely, as applied to Mattah- 
 Djarri, never would have been an appropriate term for 
 the majestic Josephine, who, although but recently arrived 
 in the gorgeous and slumbering Eastern city, had already 
 obtained the reputation of being an unmistakable belle. 
 Her father exulted in her European beauty and accom- 
 pUshments, and her mother regarded her as the most 
 remarkable being she had ever seen, frequently asking 
 herself if she indeed could be the mother of such a su- 
 perb, fair-haired woman. 
 
 To Mattah-Djarri, Josephine appeared unique and 
 beautiful beyond her expectations, and worthy of all the 
 admiration and love she could bestow upon her. She had 
 never had any conception of a woman like Josephine, 
 and during the greater part of the first few days after 
 her arrival sat and gazed upon her cousin in admiring 
 surprise. Her gay conversation and lively descriptions 
 of things, people, and lands she had seen, completely 
 fascinated Mattah-Djarri and caused her to experience 
 the greatest delight in possessing such a relative. 
 
 Josephine, on her side, looked upon Mattah-Djarri as 
 the loveliest creature she had ever beheld. From the 
 moment that her eyes rested upon her as she descended 
 
, A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 67 
 
 from the high traveling carriage, which the Bopati had 
 secured for them at great trouble and expense from the 
 seacoast, and turned shyly and timidly around to greet 
 her, she had, as she expressed it, loved her with her 
 whole heart. Her sweetness and gentleness of manner, 
 and great beauty, of which she appeared entirely uncon- 
 scious, with the singular splendor of her costume, thor- 
 oughly captivated the warm imagination and loving heart 
 of Josephine, whose ideas of manner, beauty, and grace 
 in woman were founded altogether upon the models she 
 had seen in Europe. Here was beauty and attraction of 
 an altogether different type. 
 
 Josephine, however, could not at this period be re- 
 garded as a proper or impartial judge. She had just 
 then especial reasons for being warmly and favorably im- 
 pressed with everything belonging to her mother's race, 
 and had she not met her cousin at the present moment 
 she would have been equally prepared to declare they 
 were all wonderfully handsome and interesting. 
 
 It was necessary for Mattah-Djarri, whilst visiting her 
 aunt, to appear at the table and take her meals with the 
 family. In doing this she ate for the first time in her 
 life with the opposite sex. In the beginning she felt al- 
 most unable to conform to such a novel custom, but being 
 pressed and persuaded by Josephine, she determined to 
 overcome her diffidence and repugnance, and learn to 
 practice, as soon as possible, what Sewa declared were 
 the more appropriate and polished habits of Europeans. 
 
 At first the singularity of this proceeding destroyed her 
 appetite ; her whole attention was given to the graceful 
 management of her knife and fork ; the adjustment of 
 her napkin ; keeping her elbows in position ; and holding 
 herself erect and easy, at the same time observing all the 
 other little accompaniments that mark the table manners 
 
68 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. ^ 
 
 of the well-bred man and ■woman. She was so engrossed 
 with these minor matters that she would pass through a 
 whole meal scarcely tasting food. 
 
 It was a serious mystery to Mattah-Djani how Jose- 
 phine could ever have learned to laaigh and converse with 
 gentlemen sitting opposite her at the dinner-table, with 
 the ease and grace that distinguished her. At such times 
 she listened in wonder, feeling herself overwhelmed with 
 confusion and embarrassment if any one addressed to her 
 a single remark; vainly wishing she could slide down 
 from her chair, like an ill-trained child, and hide under 
 the table cover. Wagari, whose affection for her mis- 
 tress prompted her, especially at this time, to notice 
 everything the latter said or did, began to grow uneasy 
 about her evident loss of appetite, imagining she was 
 growing pale and meagre in consequence. 
 
 She was anxious that her darling mistress should 
 appear in the full glory of all her beauty among these 
 curious strangers, who, she observed with much pride, 
 would often turn more than once to gaze in surprise 
 upon her dazzling appearance as she passed. 
 
 " Ah, they never saw anything like the Radan ajeng 
 in Europe," Wagari would mentally observe. " No won- 
 der they are astonished ; " then turn and complain to the 
 oppasser that it was a shame Keomah did not notice her 
 mistress was looking pale, and urge him to find an ex- 
 cuse to draw the latter's attention to it. At length Mr. 
 Bardwell relieved Wagari's fears, by giving expression 
 one day to her own apprehensions, declaring he should 
 feel it his duty hereafter to look after his niece himself 
 at meal times, furthermore remarking that her timidity 
 and loss of appetite carried him back to the days of his 
 youth, by reminding him of Sewa and her manifold con- 
 fusions and embarrassments when she first became his 
 wife. 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 69 
 
 " But I enjoyed it," he said, looking kindly at the 
 latter, who sat calmly and serenely at the lower end of 
 the table, doing her duty as hostess in the most self-pos- 
 sessed manner. " Yes," he continued, " it really was an 
 odd and refreshing experience, after the set forms and 
 hackneyed terms that mark European manners and 
 make one almost feel that in knowing one woman in 
 civilized society he knows all." 
 
 " You give us strong encouragement to follow your ex- 
 ample, Bardwell," said a puffy old fellow somewhat near 
 fifty, who was dining with them ; at the same time fixing 
 his eyes, with a most tender expression, on the blushing 
 and shrinking Mattah-Djarri. 
 
 " Well, not in that direction, Laning," answered Mr. 
 Bardwell in English, which language neither Mattah- 
 Djarri nor her mother understood, following the speaker's 
 gaze with a half derisive smile on his face. " I would 
 not give much for you if you did." 
 
 " Oh, never fear for me," returned the one addressed 
 rather testily, his face growing redder, and giving his 
 whole attention to his dinner-plate, while he thought to 
 himself, " Bardwell is becoming entirely too personal. I 
 should n't wonder it he considered himself the only man 
 in Java that could safely run away with a woman," and 
 he fell to work on the food before him with redoubled 
 vigor, believing he was greatly undervalued, and deter- 
 mining to maintain a strict silence during the rest of the 
 meal. 
 
CHAPTER XI. 
 
 There was one evening, in particular, that Mattah- 
 Djarri long remembered with, blushes of mortification, 
 — an evening when she had hoped to have more coui«- 
 age than usual and found she had less. Mr. Bardwel^ 
 had invited a number of guests to dinner, and after all 
 had arrived and were seated on the veranda, he looked 
 around, and observing Mattah-Djarri was not present, 
 immediately guessed the cause and arose to fetch her. 
 
 She explained her absence by saying she had twice 
 made the attempt to join them, once with Sewa and after- 
 wards with Josephine, and each time when about to step 
 out on the veranda, her courage had failed her and she had 
 abruptly retreated and hurried back to her room, hoping 
 she would not be missed. She begged he would excuse 
 her, assuring him she was unable to face, with any degree 
 of dignity, so many strangers whose ways and manners 
 were so different from her own, and feared both Sewa 
 and Josephine would have great cause to regret her 
 presence. Hearing all this, Mr. BardweU smiled and 
 jestingly reproved her, and drawing her arm within his 
 own, led her back to the veranda, taking the precaution 
 to hold her arm so tightly that she could not unexpect- 
 edly slip away from him. 
 
 The guests were engaged in an animated conversation, 
 waiting for the reappearance of their host, when two or 
 three of the loudest talkers suddenly lowered their voices, 
 and the eyes of the others, following their gaze, rested 
 upon Mr. Bardwell, who was moving slowly towards 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 71 
 
 them under the brilliant lights, with such a vision of singu- 
 lar beauty and loveliness upon his arm as few of them had 
 ever seen before. Astonished admiration was depicted 
 upon the countenance of each stranger present. 
 
 Their host saw it, and inwardly congratulated himself. 
 *' How pleased and proud Josephine will feel," he thought, 
 as he approached them and saw the gentlemen rise to do 
 his companion honor and be presented, and then observed 
 the little flutter of admiration that went round as they 
 reseated themselves. 
 
 Poor Mattah-Djarri had no idea of the sensation her 
 unwilling presence was creating, and sank into a chair 
 beside Keomah almost overwhelmed with confusion. All 
 those formidable Europeans to rise up and look down 
 upon her in that manner ! She, who had never before 
 this visit been in the presence of a foreigner ! it seemed 
 incredible. 
 
 A picture of Chatra's disgust and consternation flashed 
 before her mind and she unconsciously smiled, and, rais- 
 ing her g^eat luminous eyes, saw Josephine seated not f ai' 
 from her and near Sewa, with the Patch beside her. 
 
 " The Patch ! " she inwardly exclaimed ; " can it be 
 he indeed ? " She looked again. Yes, sure enough, it 
 was Sarjio, sedate and dignified, in a magnificent Java- 
 nese costume and actually talking in quite a matter of 
 fact way with Josephine ! This was about all she could 
 remember of that memorable evening, she afterwards de- 
 clared to her cousin, excepting the laughing face and blue 
 eyes of a young European who sat opposite to her at the 
 dinner-table and politely addressed to her a remark or 
 two on some subject which she said she could not under- 
 stand, and did not answer. 
 
 " About the weather, I expect," said Josephine laugh- 
 ingly. " He wanted to inform you it was warm." 
 
72 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 " I don't know," said Mattah-Djani innocently, " but 
 you know, dear Josie, it was my first attempt at a dinner- 
 party, and I prayed I should not make you feel ashamed." 
 
 " Ashamed, little goosie," responded Josephine, using 
 one of her school-girl phrases, " why you got on splen- 
 didly. No one would have supposed it was your first 
 dinner." 
 
 " I hope you are not mistaken," replied Mattah-Djarri, 
 "but teda ka-ting al (it did not appear), I fear. No 
 doubt those gentlemen who sat near me would tell a dif- 
 ferent story. Indeed, I tried to eat and appear indiffer- 
 ent, but ewuh — I was so lost and confused it was no 
 use." 
 
 " But you saw the Pateh ? " eagerly interrupted Jose- 
 phine, her color deepening to a bright crimson. " Don't 
 you think he is very handsome ? " she continued, without 
 giving her cousin time to reply to her first question. 
 
 " He is more than handsome," replied Mattah-Djarri 
 warmly ; " he looks like a true satria (nobleman), and his 
 dress is always gorgeous. ' Tres distingue,' Wagari calls 
 it, which is the only French word I know," she added, 
 with a confused little laugh. 
 
 " Well, Wagari has taste, at any rate," rejoined Jose- 
 phine, " but, tell me, where did she see Sarjio — the 
 Pateh, I mean ? " looking inquiringly at her companion. 
 
 " We have seen him several times crossing the aluu- 
 alun at Kali Chandi, when he was going to the Bopati. 
 My veranda commands a view of the front. I can see 
 everything that goes or comes to the dalam, through the 
 lattice, without being seen," said Mattah-Djarri explain- 
 ingly- 
 
 "Indeed," said Josephine, looking somewhat suspi- 
 ciously at her cousin ; " perhaps you know him very well, 
 then ? " thinking what a dangerous rival Mattah-Djarri 
 would make. 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 73 
 
 " No, I don't know him in the way you mean, that is, 
 to speak to ; such familiarities are not permitted between 
 young people belonging to the better classes among the 
 Javanese." 
 
 " That is a pity, for you ought to hear his voice," said 
 Josephine. " It is just like music and fuU of power, as 
 I heard Mr. Laning say. Edward Tracy calls it magnet- 
 ism ; but did n't you notice it last night ? And his eyes, 
 Mattie, did n't you observe his eyes ? " 
 
 "I think I caught the sound of the Pateh's voice 
 once," replied Mattah-Djarii, recalling its deep tones, 
 " and I did observe his eyes too," remembering their 
 dark splendor when she looked up and detected his gaze 
 directed towards her end of the table. 
 
 " Sarjio is not like the rest of them," proceeded Jose- 
 phine, musingly, and with pride in her tones. "It is 
 plain to be seen he was educated in Europe," then re- 
 lapsed into a short silence, during which she appeared to 
 be quite unconscious of her cousin's presence. " Of 
 course you observed young Tracy," she presently re- 
 marked in a brighter tone. " That is the name of the 
 European who sat opposite you, and we call him young, 
 because he has an uncle bearing the same name. Mr. 
 Tracy is the Pateh's great friend ; they were educated 
 together in the same colleges in Europe." 
 
 " I recoUect him," said Mattah-Djarri, " but I would 
 not recognize him again. I remember I thought his 
 head and fa«e were light and bright, and his eyes large 
 and blue like yours. I fancied he was laughing at me," 
 she added, blushing, as she remembered his vain at- 
 tempts to open a conversation, and she repeated to Jose- 
 phine, as nearly as she could recall, every word he had 
 said to her in her own language ; confessing her mortifi- 
 cation in regard to the fruitless result and deploring her 
 
74 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 want of self-possession on such a trying occasion ; also 
 declaring she despaired of ever attaining the ease and 
 self-reliance of her cousin. 
 
 "What nonsense, Mattie," cried Josephine in reply. 
 " I have no douht Mr. Tracy thought your timidity and 
 modesty were lovely in the extreme. So unlike, as papa 
 says, * the gay and self-asserting manners of European 
 beauties ; ' and your beauty is not to be disputed, dear 
 cousin. I heard the gentlemen whispering about it all 
 around the veranda, and papa told Keomah this morning 
 he was dehghted with your d^ut. You have no occasion 
 to feel mortified, I assure you." 
 
 " You are partial, I fear, Josie," said Mattah-Djarri, 
 feeUng her confusion return as she thought of the dinner 
 scene the evening before. " I know I have earned the 
 reputation of being bodo bodo (foolish and stupid)." 
 
 But Josephine was telling the simple truth. Edward 
 Tracy assured one of his friends the next day that he 
 could not half eat his dinner for looking at that wonder- 
 fully beautiful Javanese princess opposite him. 
 
 " But she can't converse, and that 's a pity," he con- 
 cluded. 
 
 " I am not so sure of that," was the response of his 
 friend, a Dutchman, who having lived many years in 
 Java was supposed to speak from experience. " These 
 Javanese girls," continued he, " are painfully shy and 
 timid at first, like the natives generally, with few ex- 
 ceptions, all over the East ; particularly when they first 
 begin to frequent European society, which, you must re- 
 member, is a most novel experience to them. Females, 
 among the better classes, are never permitted to speak to 
 a stranger of the opposite sex, as perhaps you know, 
 until after the betrothal, and more frequently not until 
 after the ceremony of marriage has been performed. 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 75 
 
 But when association makes them familiar with the 
 strange and unusual experience, and one gets actual pos- 
 session of them, so to speak, they can and do sustain 
 themselves with much ease and dignity, and can converse 
 intelligently on very many subjects. There is Sewa, the 
 wife of Bardwell, for instance. She is a pure blooded 
 oriental, and no man would have occasion to feel abashed 
 for her in any society ; yet I have heard Bardwell say, 
 when he first knew her she could scarcely be persuaded 
 to open her lips." 
 
 " I hope your observations have been correct, van 
 Delder," said Tracy with a pleased and thoughtful air, 
 resuming again after a short silence, " I exerted my 
 utmost last night to inspire that beautiful niece of Sewa's 
 with some confidence, and tried to look as agreeable and 
 as indulgent as possible, to encourage her. My good 
 intentions were wasted, however ; she either could not or 
 would not speak, and appeared so overwhelmed with con- 
 fusion by my innocent remarks that I was impelled, 
 from pure kindness, to remain silent." 
 
 " I am not surprised," said van Delder ; " it is most 
 unusual for a Javanese girl of rank to come into the 
 presence of strangers in that way. No doubt it was the 
 first time in her life she ever sat at table with a number 
 of people. I suppose it was brought about by Sewa, who 
 is a sister of Keomah." 
 
 " "Was Keomah that pale, delicate woman with the soft 
 black eyes, that sat next to the Patch ? " asked Tracy. 
 
 " Yes, that was she," answered van Delder ; " and I '11 
 wager the Bopati knows precious little about this dinner 
 party. Here comes Markham," continued he, looking 
 around ; " let 's hear what he has to say." 
 
 " Discussin'g the beautiful princess ? " cried the new 
 comer, a comfortable looking bachelor of middle age, 
 
76 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 carrying about him a decided air of conceit and self-com- 
 placency, who having catlght the word " Bopati," as he 
 approached, rightly inferred from it the subject of the 
 conversation. 
 
 " Well," continued he, without waiting for a reply, 
 " she is the most extraordinary beauty I ever saw. I 
 wonder how much those superb gems she wore are 
 worth ! Have you any idea, van Delder ? " he inquired 
 taking off his hat and using its broad brim for a fan, as 
 he slid uninvited into the capacious arms of an easy- 
 chair. " It is awfully hot to-day, it seems to me," he 
 added, talking on without giving any one else time to 
 speak, while he drew forth a fragrant handkerchief, 
 which he tenderly pressed against his damp forehead. 
 
 " Tes, it 's pretty warm," answered van Delder : " I 
 wish these confoimded trade winds would shift a little 
 and give us a change." 
 
 " I should like to go up on the mountains and wait 
 there foi the mangsa rendang (wet monsoon)," said 
 Tracy, lo5king in the faces of his companions to discover 
 a corresponding desire. 
 
 " I fuUy agree with your taste, Tracy," returned 
 Markham, " and am ready at any moment to join the 
 caravan. If this intense heat continues much longer I 
 shall be baked to a good brown." 
 
 "It is too soon to go to the mountains, if you intend 
 to wait for the rains before returning," interposed van 
 Delder. " They are at least three months distant ; we 
 are now in the kasa dasa (middle of the dry monsoon)." 
 
 " Well, never mind the monsoons now," cried Mark- 
 ham ; " go on about the princess. Did you notice how 
 proudly BardweU pranced down the hall last night with 
 her on his arm ? I saw him slyly peeping from under 
 his eyelids to observe the effect. He has somewhat over- 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 77 
 
 come the transports in which he indulged for a while 
 after the arrival of his own daughter." 
 
 " That young princess is certainly very striking," said 
 van Delder, taking no notice of this last remark. 
 
 " Well, rather," said Markham, using a slang phrase 
 that was quite the fashion just then. " By George ! I 'd 
 like to run away with her ! " continued he, looking 
 around on his two companions with a most benignant 
 and generous expression, which plainly said, " There gen- 
 tlemen, that settles her worth, I teU you ! " 
 
 " I have no doubt several young gentlemen might be 
 found to-day who would be quite willing to do the same," 
 said van Delder, looking sharply at Tracy. " She is said 
 to be enormously wealthy too, in her OAvn right, if that 
 would be an attraction for a poor European toiling and 
 sweating under the equator to make a fortune." 
 
 " Indeed," quickly replied Markham, " then it would 
 n't be such a bad speculation after aU. But I suppose 
 that old Mohammedan curmudgeon upon the Teng'gers, 
 whom you call the Bopati, would find a way to change 
 one's spiritual abode rather suddenly, if one attempted 
 it, especially a disreputable Christian like myself, for 
 instance." 
 
 " He probably would," answered van Delder, laughing, 
 " on the score that your aspirations were too soaring." 
 
 " Humph ! " ejaculated Markham, somewhat disdain- 
 fully ; " there might be a difference of opinion on that 
 point. But money and beauty both suit me, and I am 
 willing to bear with him," he pursued, so engrossed with 
 himself that he failed to notice that Tracy did not join 
 in the conversation, but now arose and taking up his hat 
 shook hands with van Delder and said he must be going. 
 
 " Oh ! going, are you ? " said Markham, observing 
 Tracy's movement. "Well, good-by," extending his 
 
78 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 hand while he still kept his seat. " But you have not 
 told me what you thought of the princess," suddenly rec- 
 ollecting he had not heard the latter's opinion. " How- 
 ever, it don't make any difEerence now," perceiving 
 Tracy did not answer ; " only don't forget I am ready 
 for the mountains at any moment ; and Tracy," calling 
 after the latter as he walked rapidly towards his carriage, 
 " I think we ought to go." 
 
 " I think so too," shouted back Tracy, without turning 
 his head. 
 
 " Dear me ! " exclaimed Markham, shrugging his 
 shoulders and looking after him, " I wonder what 's up 
 now ? " 
 
 " The princess, I 'II wager a rupee ! " said van Delder, 
 in the tone of a man who had just arrived at a conviction. 
 
 " What ! the princess ? " questioned Markham surpris- 
 edly. " You don't mean it, I 'm sure." 
 
 " Why not ? " asked van Delder. " It is natural at his 
 age, and she is surprisingly lovely. A little high-colored, 
 perhaps, but these extreme blondes admire that style im- 
 mensely." 
 
 " Fudge ! how you talk, van Delder," said Markham 
 pettishly. " What have blondes or brunettes to do with 
 a young simpleton's fancy ? " 
 
 " Well, Tracy is not a simpleton to begin with," said 
 van Delder warmly, " and it is a law of nature that man 
 and woman should admire their opposites, and here we 
 see the opposites or two extremes, one might say, and the 
 result can easily be guessed at." 
 
 " I did n't think that of Tracy," said Markham, with 
 a wounded, imposed-upon air. " Really, the fellow is 
 trespassing upon my domains. I had thought of throw- 
 ing a card in that direction myseU." 
 
 " Take my advice, then, and stand aside," replied van 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 79 
 
 Delder. " You can't compete with Tracy in that sort of 
 thing, old man," laughing in sly derision at what he con- 
 sidered the insufferable conceit and selfishness of his 
 blase companion. 
 
 " I think it is confoundedly mean in Tracy, anyhow," 
 answered Markham. " Laugh as much as you' like. 
 This pretty princess would just suit me. She has good 
 Javan blood, beauty, and a fortune, and as to the rest, 
 I 'm not particular. But if Tracy turns up as a rival, I 
 suppose I must resign," continued Markham, thinking it 
 politic to make a show of honorable generosity, instead of 
 permitting himself to fall under the suspicion of unwill- 
 ing compulsion, should the momentous question, which 
 should have the princess, ever be disputed between him- 
 self and the dashing Tracy. 
 
 " That is very good of you, Markham," answered van 
 Delder ironically, and laughing more' heartily than ever. 
 
 " Humph,'' shrugged Markham, moodUy relapsing into 
 silence, trying to believe himself ill-treated, while van 
 Delder lit a cigar, after ofEering him one, and began to 
 smoke, without pressing the subject farther, resolving to 
 assist Tracy in carrying off the princess bodily, rather 
 than allow Markham to be indulged in his ridiculous self- 
 conceit. 
 
CHAPTER XII. 
 
 Mattah-Djabei, who, notwithstanding the confusion 
 and emharrassment that continually attended her, in this 
 her first experience of life beyond the narrow limits of 
 her father's dalam in Kali Chandi, found it all delight- 
 fully novel and pleasant, and thought she much preferred 
 it to the monotony of the latter. It is true, she missed 
 the pure and exhilarating mountain air, which seems to 
 infuse new Ufe into the blood, especially in the early 
 mornings, when it was her habit to leave the confined air 
 of the bed-chamber to drink coffee on some veranda or 
 pavilion which affords a clear and imobstructed view of 
 the glorious panorama ever unrolled from the heights of 
 the Teng'gers. But these were smaU considerations to 
 her at this time, for which she felt more than compen- 
 sated by her deUght and pleasure in the constant surprises 
 by which she was surrounded. 
 
 The varied gayeties which she saw Josephine daily en- 
 ter upon in company with agreeable companions of her 
 own age and of both sexes, without either conunent or 
 restriction from any one, and their unquestioned manner 
 of coming and going, saying and doing, and otherwise 
 following whatever appeared to please them best, fiUed 
 Mattah-Djarri with wonder and admiration. She had 
 exchanged opinions vdth "Wagari on the subject, and they 
 both agreed that Josephine's mode of enjoying life was 
 not only proper, but vastly preferable to the tiresome and 
 everlasting seclusion imposed upon the women in the 
 dalam of the Bopati, with all its gorgeous grandeur and 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 81 
 
 legions of otsequious servants. Occasionally, something 
 would occur that would thrust a thought of her own fu- 
 ture upon her attention, causing her to fall into frequent 
 fits of sad abstraction, which would last until supplanted 
 by the interest again inspired by new faces, new scenes, 
 and new pleasures. 
 
 In her more sanguine moments, Mattah-Djarri's.future 
 rose before her clothed in the pleasing form and seduc- 
 tive coloring that marked the handsome Pateh. Then, 
 all was bright and beautiful. In less favored periods the 
 old Tumung'gung and liis multipHcity of bickering wives 
 presented themselves in the lonely apartments of some 
 isolated dalam, garnished with side-pictures of her weep- 
 ing mother and her own helpless misery. From these 
 latter visions she turned suddenly away, unable with all 
 the exaggeration of her Eastern imagination to throw a 
 halo of mysterious attraction over or around the repulsive 
 prospect. 
 
 Neither Mattah-Djarri or Wagari had learned any- 
 thing further from Keomah in reference to the identity 
 of the former's proposed husband, although Wagari had 
 been constantly on the alert for the shghtest hint that 
 could lead to a correct suspicion. The only reward of 
 the latter's vigilance was that she had observed Sewa 
 and Keomah frequently engaged in what appeared to 
 her an ominously earnest and serious conversation, dur- 
 ing which Keomah always appeared distressed and Sewa 
 indignant. 
 
 She further remarked that if the princess or Josephine 
 approached at such times, Sewa and Keomah abruptly 
 changed or dropped the conversation and fell back to 
 their usual placid and indifferent manner. 
 
 The dried old Tumung'gung at once introduced him- 
 self to Wagari's fancy, and she was sure he was the sub- 
 
82 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 ject of these portentous interviews. She communicated 
 these observations and inferences to her mistress, as she 
 felt in duty bound to do, and found the latter agreed with 
 her in her opinion, and they both declared it was the 
 only drop of bitterness in their present experience. 
 
 But even this had for Mattah-Djarri its panacea, which 
 grew more sweet and palatable the longer she quaffed it. 
 The dark shadows encircling these suspicions were suc- 
 ceeded as before by the bright sunshine enveloping the 
 handsome Pateh, with comparative remembrances of Ba- 
 rabatah's grief and despair and her joyful rescue by the 
 gallant Adawara. 
 
 Thus the time passed, during Mattah-Djarri's visit, in 
 alternate periods of gloom and vivacity, which depressed 
 or elated the watchful Wagari accordingly, and also ex- 
 cited the anxious concern of Josephine, who adopted 
 many innocent ruses to induce her cousin to confide the 
 cause of her occasional depression to her. 
 
 " Do tell me, dearest Mattie," Josephine would urge, 
 when she saw the clouds settling on her cousin's bright 
 face, " what is it that troubles you ? My European 
 governess used to tell us, it relieved the conscience and 
 lightened the heart to disclose their griefs. Come, teU 
 me, then," she would continue laughing, " is it the bur- 
 den of heart or conscience that weighs you down ? " 
 
 To all Josephine's anxious solicitations or tender rail- 
 lery Mattah-Djarri would only answer by impulsively 
 throwing her arms around her cousin's neck, hiding her 
 face on her bosom, and not unfrequently giving way to 
 a succession of distressing sobs that appeared to almost 
 break her heart, and which made Josephine very un- 
 happy for the time. Beyond these demonstrations, which 
 revealed so much, yet said so little, Mattah-Djarri would 
 not commit herself. In truth, when tempted, as she 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 83 
 
 sometimes was, to confide in Josephine, she felt she had 
 nothing but surmises and presentiments to communicate. 
 ^Restrained by this fact, she decided to keep her own 
 counsel until she knew positively what the Bopati had 
 determined her future to be. Her pride and sensitive- 
 ness rendered her unwilling to speak to Josephine of the 
 Tumung'gung or the Pateh as a husband ; especially of 
 the latter, whom Josephine knew personally, and to whom 
 she herself had never spoken, and of whose sentiments, 
 besides, she was entirely ignorant. If she had to be- 
 come the Hadan Itu of the old Tumung'gung, she feared 
 Josephine might laugh at her high hopes and her disap- 
 pointment in reference to the Pateh, who was so infi- 
 nitely above the older noble, in her estimation, that she 
 was ashamed to speak of ViiTn as a possible candidate for 
 a position the latter might be destined to fill. And if 
 the wife of the Pateh, as she hoped, she felt it would 
 be best to let him or her parents be the first to say 
 so. Therefore, to all Josephine's overtures, in insinuat- 
 ing that she herself had a grief she was willing to impart 
 in return for Mattah-Djarri's confidence, the latter re- 
 mained silent. 
 
 "Perhaps you are in love, dear Mattie," suggested 
 Josephine, a day or two before her cousin was to depart 
 for Kali Chandi, indulging the school-girl's belief that 
 all the sorrows and sadness of women must rest on that 
 agreeable basis. Perceiving that Mattah-Djarri only 
 smiled and shook her head without making further reply, 
 Josephine continued, " If you are in love, dear, I can 
 fully sympathize with you, for I also have my anxieties," 
 then paused and waited for Mattah-Djarri to ask the 
 usual eager questions of what, whom, and where, which 
 generally pass between young girls on such momentous 
 occasions. 
 
84 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 " What a queer girl she is ! " thought Josephine, after 
 waiting a few moments and finding that her companion 
 said nothing, although she looked at her with eyes full of 
 anxious sympathy. 
 
 Mattah-Djarri, though cherishing the warmest appre- 
 ciation of her cousin and consequently deeply interested 
 in everything the latter said or did, thought it would be 
 dishonorable to inquire into Josephine's secret troubles, 
 unless she intended to divulge her own. This conviction 
 impelled her to repress her curiosity and refrain from 
 asking Josephine questions, although she perceived she 
 was invited to do so. 
 
 " You have not much curiosity, Mattie, and you don't 
 care if I am unhappy," reproachfully continued Josephine, 
 drawing a long sigh. 
 
 " Oh ! Josie, how can you say so ? " ejaculated Mattah- 
 Djarri, throwing up her hands in denial, and quite shocked 
 at the idea of such a thought entering into the mind of 
 her cousin, whom she adored. 
 
 Josephine said no more at the moment and dropped 
 into silent musing, during which time Mattah-Djarri's 
 awakening suspicions recalled many little incidents she 
 now began to clothe with a serious meaning. 
 
 She had often observed her cousin receive letters 
 brought to her by a gandek (messenger), though without 
 any appearance of secrecy. These letters Josephine 
 would hastily press to her bosom before eagerly tearing 
 them open to read with increasing color and excited man- 
 ner ; after which, she would walk up and down the room, 
 her face and eyes glowing and burning with a new fire, 
 and her whole presence seeming to rise and expand into 
 a fuller and grander woman, imder the influence of some 
 mysterious and powerful emotion. 
 
 When Mattah-Djarri witnessed these unexpected whirl- 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 85 
 
 winds of passion thus take possession of the self-possessed 
 Josephine, she was always half-frightened and awed into 
 wondering and deferential silence. Their possible and, 
 perhaps, probable explanation never before presented it- 
 self to her mind ; even now it only assumed a vagfue and 
 indefinite shape, which she felt it was wrong to allow her 
 rising suspicions to interpret as she found she was doing. 
 Nevertheless, a new idea had suddenly fixed itself in her 
 imagination, and she unconsciously began to regard Jose- 
 phine as quite another person. A new being, indeed ! 
 dominated and carried along by the force of some un- 
 known and all-conquering power, such as Wagari had 
 described to her in her romanqes. 
 
 Mattah-Djarri gazed upon her cousin in meditative 
 amazement, reproaching herself for not having accredited 
 her with all the superiority she now considered she pos- 
 sessed. To her mind, Josephine suddenly became an ex- 
 alted creature. A woman with a secret, and that secret 
 was perhaps concealed love. 
 
 As these unusual and interesting speculations flitted 
 through Mattah-Djarri's brain and her eyes rested upon 
 the subject of them, sitting dreamily inside the low win- 
 dow, apparently lost in her own reflections, a messenger 
 covered with dust suddenly stood on the outside before 
 the open casement, bearing something in his hand which 
 was evidently intended for Josephine. 
 
 Mattah-Djarri was about to direct the latter's attention 
 to the boy, when Josephine looked up and saw him her- 
 self. Instantly her whole appearance changed. Her 
 face flushed a bright pink, and impatience and delight 
 replaced her former inactivity and absorption. 
 
 " What do you bring ? " she demanded, rising from her 
 seat. The boy dropped upon his heels and drew a small 
 package from a box which he extended towards Jose- 
 phine, who received it with unmistakable joy. 
 
86 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 It was but the work of a moment to unwrap the silky- 
 paper enveloping the parcel, which revealed a little box 
 of exquisite workmanship, its sides and lid set with pre- 
 cious stones, that sparkled and flashed in the strong light 
 from the vrindow, greatly enhancing its beauty. Jose- 
 phine examined it for a few moments, while her face 
 depicted the pleasure it gave her. Then turning it over 
 she touched a hidden spring, and the lid suddenly flew up, 
 disclosing a paper neatly folded within. 
 
 Taking it out with a smile, she pressed it to her lips, 
 then unfolding it, began to read without either apology 
 or explanation to her cousin, who sat looking at her in 
 surprise, silently wondering who could be the sender. 
 
 As Mattah-Djarri again watched the color rising in 
 Josephine's face and saw her eyes dilate in the intensity 
 of her emotion, as she eagerly traced the boldly written 
 characters on the page before her, her breath begfinning 
 to go and come in short swelling gasps, as she read 
 and reread her letter, pausing occasionally to scrutinize 
 attentively every dot and meaningless scratch upon the 
 sheets, and otherwise expressing the excitement that was 
 taking possession of her, she felt like invoking the curse 
 of the Prophet upon whatever or whoever was the cruel 
 instigator of it all. 
 
 After the perusal of the letter, Josephine refolded it and 
 returned it to the casket without speaking to her com- 
 panion a,nd rose to her feet to pace the floor in her former 
 excited manner, appearing to be utterly unconscious 
 of the continued presence of another. Mattah-Djarri 
 was still sitting in mute wonder, vainly trying to analyze 
 or understand the depth and nature of the sentiment that 
 could so rapidly transform her self-possessed and splen- 
 did cousin into the anxious, trembling, forgetful woman 
 now walking rapidly up and down the room, with her 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 87 
 
 hands clasped and her eyes fixed and set in a reflecting, 
 far-away gaze, while her whole external appearance was 
 wrought up and so changed, in some unaccountable way, 
 as to make her scarcely recognizable. 
 
 After Josephine had continued her walk for some time, 
 her eyes suddenly fell upon Mattah-Djarri. Stopping be- 
 fore her she interlaced her slender fingers and extending 
 her two hands, thus locked together, imploringly towards 
 her, exclaimed in tones of anguish, — 
 
 " What win I, what shall I do, dear Mattie, in this 
 crushing perplexity that comes upon me ? " while great, 
 transparent tears roUed slowly down her cheeks, dropping 
 one at a time on the marble floor, leaving big round 
 splashes on its polished surface, resembling the warning 
 and scattered drops that herald the first approach of the 
 coming storm. 
 
 " You don't speak, you don't answer," she continued 
 in a low, mournful tone, observing Mattah-Djarri open 
 her lips to speak, then hesitate and remain silent, while 
 she looked pityingly and helplessly up at her face, her 
 moist eyes expressing the pain she felt ; for she knew not 
 what to say, or how to offer comfort or advice, in the 
 presence of such an imperious, overwhelming passion as 
 this, which now evidently swept her companion out of 
 herself. 
 
 " But you don't know, you don't understand," pursued 
 Josephine, raising her voice as she recollected Mattah- 
 Djarri was in ignorance of the existence of the devouring 
 sentiment that filled her heart and seemed to her to be her 
 life itself,- all the life for which she cared to live. 
 
 " No, I don't, dear Josie," now returned Mattah-Djarri 
 in a solemn, awe-struck whisper, rising and taking Jose- 
 phine's two hands and covering them with her own, " but 
 what ia it ? TeU me, what is this dreadful grief that dis- 
 
88 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 turbs and distresses you ? " adding after a little pause in 
 a trembling voice, " indeed, you frighten me," a sudden 
 vague fear of some secret crime flashing across her brain, 
 as she recalled the bloody thrusts and frequent amok 
 among her own race, where life was held as nothing when 
 it obstructed the smooth flow of their passionate love, in- 
 curred their hate, aroused their jealousy, or incited their 
 revenge. Mattah-Djarri's mind was ready at this mo- 
 ment to grasp at any possible solution of Josepliine's 
 trouble, however improbable it might have appeared to 
 another. She had not yet experienced the magical po- 
 tency of a genuine first love, and but poorly understood 
 the transforming power of that strange, mysterious force 
 that will suddenly arise in the breast of the young and 
 sweep everything before it. She was not permitted to in- 
 dulge her preposterous reflections very long, however, for 
 Josephine immediately took up her question by answering 
 in a clear and emphatic voice, — 
 
 " This dreadful grief that disturbs and distresses 
 me, as you term it," with a proud smile, " is a joy. A 
 joy that punishes, consoles, depresses, then inspires and 
 makes everything glorious. It is to feel " — reflecting a 
 moment — "in short, Mattie, it is to cherish a sentiment 
 that brings with it exquisite joy and exquisite pain. A 
 passion that controls you, consumes you, possesses you 
 wholly and entirely, leading you whither it will." Paus- 
 ing a moment during which her companion gazed at her 
 in wondering silence she resumed, raising her voice more 
 impressively and continuing her promenade, "I am 
 happy, happier than I ever was before, yet, contradictory 
 as it may appear, I am miserable, oh, so miserable ! " she 
 cried, wringing her hands and sinking down, pale and 
 wretched-looking, against the cushions on a seat opposite 
 her cousin, covering her face with her hands and burst- 
 ing into tears. 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 89 
 
 " Don't weep, dear Josie," said Mattah-Djarri, spring- 
 ing up and going to her and slipping her arm lovingly 
 {(round her neck ; " you are excited now. You will " — 
 
 " I am not excited," said Josephine interrupting her 
 quickly, " but I love him, I love him ! I cannot tell you 
 how my very life depends on — on his — and papa won't 
 believe it ; he won't listen to me when I tell him it must 
 be," wiping her eyes and looking up pathetically into the 
 face of her companion. 
 
 "I wish, indeed I wish I could help you," cried 
 Mattah-Djarri, drawing the beautiful head closer to her 
 bosom and the tears filling her eyes ; " but I don't know 
 how to give advice," wishing she knew who was the ob- 
 ject of this intense devotion, yet hesitating to ask. > 
 
 " I don't really mean to ask you for advice," returned 
 Josephine ; " I know I will do what I can't help, what 
 I don't want to help, but," complainingly, " it is papa's 
 fault that I suffer these dark spells. He will have it to 
 answer for," she concluded a little revengefully, feeling 
 it most unkind and inconsistent that he, who had never 
 refused her anything in aU her life, should refuse her 
 now. 
 
 " Does he know ? " questioned Mattah-Djarri, in some 
 apprehension, the habitual reverence and obedience with 
 which she had been taught to regard her father's wishes, 
 causing a sensation of doubtful fear to rise in her mind. 
 
 " Of course papa knows," replied Josephine, surprised 
 that any one could ask her a question that implied igno- 
 rance of the familiar confidence that had always existed 
 between her and her father, and which also hinted that she 
 could be deceiving him. " Papa knows all about it," she 
 repeated after a pause. " I am real unhappy for him. 
 But he is the one who is wrong. He ought to understand, 
 for he must have felt as I do, when he fled with my 
 
90 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 mother, and now he should sjoupathize with me instead of 
 making me miserable. It seems to me this is his duty. 
 Don't you think so too, Mattie ? " she asked, looking 
 pleadingly into the face of the latter, hoping she would 
 say she agreed with her and strengthen her wavering con- 
 victions on this point. It was a sore trial to the indulged 
 Josephine to think her father could not be brought to ap- 
 prove of her overwhelming passion, and to participate in 
 her dearest wish. It made her fear that there might be 
 a semblance of right on his side. 
 
 " I have been taught to think the Bopati's will is not 
 to be disputed, and must be right and best for me," an- 
 swered Mattah-Djarri, a painful sense of the impossibility 
 of contending against it crossing her mind. 
 
 " Yes, I am aware of the perfect subjection of a Java- 
 nese woman," said Josephine, impatiently ; " but I have 
 been brought up in a different school, you know, and 
 can't feel as you do about these things. I know papa is 
 wrong. I must choose my own happiness," she added, 
 half indignant that he should wish to interfere, — her 
 frank and intimate companionship with him imcon- 
 sciously causing her to regard all restraint and inter- 
 ference on his pai't with her desires and plans as little 
 less than a presumption he had no right to assume. 
 
 " The Sastras commands women to be silent and cheer- 
 fully submissive when the Petri (father or head of a 
 family) speaks," said Mattah-Djarri, attempting to feel 
 dutiful and obedient towards her own fate, whatever it 
 might be, and not knowing what else to say, yet feeling 
 she must say something. 
 
 " I am not so crazy about that kind of duty as you are, 
 dear Mattie, I am sure," said Josephine ; " yet I would 
 like to please papa, if he would be reasonable, but now 
 that seems impossible," and letting herself slip farther 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 91 
 
 down between the pillows and cushions piled up behind 
 her, she relapsed into silence. 
 
 Mattah-Djarri, glad to escape the necessity of discuss- 
 ing a philosophy she did not comprehend, made no further 
 effort to arouse her companion or prolong the conversa- 
 tion, while she pondered about who the mysterious " him " 
 could be and wondered if she had seen him ; thinking he 
 must be one of Josephine's many European acquaint- 
 ances, and hoping she herself would never be absorbed 
 to such forgetfulness of others as Josephine betrayed at 
 times, in her professed love and admiration for this un- 
 known. Perceiving the latter remained silent and mo- 
 tionless and to all appearances asleep, Mattah-Djarri 
 arose softly and stood regarding her a moment with a 
 face full of pity and love, then quietly left the room, 
 to seek the retirement of her chamber, to reflect upon 
 her affairs and brmg her mind to the cheerful confidence 
 and submission she had recommended to her cousin. 
 
 Wlien the time arrived for Keomah and her daughter 
 to return to Kali Chandi, it was arranged that Sewa and 
 Josephine should f oUow them within a fortnight and pass 
 some weeks at the dalam of the Bopati, for the purpose 
 of benefiting by the cool and bracing air of the Teng'- 
 gers during the intense heat of the Mangsa trang (dry 
 monsoon, or dry and clear season), whose scorching heats 
 appeared to be unfavorable to Josephine. The Bopati 
 had invited them himself, generously offering them the 
 hospitality of his palace, and, in fact, of the whole kam- 
 pong, he said, if they chose to appropriate it ; therefore 
 the two princesses took leave of Sewa and Josephine in 
 the expectation of welcoming them very soon among the 
 momitains in their own home. 
 
CHAPTER Xm. 
 
 The week following the return of Keomah to Kali 
 Chandi, a small group of foreigners passed through the 
 principal streets of the kampong on their way to the da- 
 lam or palace of the Bopati. 
 
 These strangers were dressed in costumes that only a 
 few of the more adventurous inhabitants — those who 
 had visited the coast — had ever seen before. The nar- 
 row brimmed hats they wore, affording so little protection 
 from the sun, particularly attracted their attention, caus- 
 mg them to smile when they compared them with their 
 own broad and shady chapungs of plaited bambu, in shape 
 and duty resembling an umbrella. 
 
 Their close fitting garments they also considered very 
 absurd. " How silly to be so smothered up," they said 
 among themselves, looking down on their own half -naked 
 bodies, and cool, breezy sarongs, wondering the clever 
 Europeans had not a better idea of what was necessary. 
 
 Arriving in front of the alun-alun of the dalam, the 
 strangers halted to look around, until two barefooted, 
 half -clad, military looking individuals, with gay handker- 
 chiefs tied upon their heads and several ugly-looking 
 krises (short daggers) stuck in their belts, appeared be- 
 fore them and with the accustomed sembah begged per- 
 mission to conduct them into the presence of their mas- 
 ter. Beaching the waringen trees they dismounted and 
 consigned their kudaa (horses) to a number of servants 
 who seemed to spring up out of the ground, so silently 
 and suddenly did they appear. 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 93 
 
 The military-looking individuals led them up a broad 
 flight of white, stone steps to the lawang seketing, where 
 they were met by the Bopati, an elderly, dignified-looking 
 man in rich native'dress, with two glittering jeweled-han- 
 dled krises in his belt. They informed him they were a 
 party of tourists going to the summits of the Teng'gers, 
 begged to pay Viim their respects and present an intro- 
 duction kindly accorded one of their number by Sarjio 
 the Patch, who was coming from another direction 
 and would join them later. The Bopati with true ori- 
 ental hospitality assured them they were welcome, po- 
 litely offered them the accommodations of his palace, and 
 urging them to make themselves at home, bowed and 
 retired. 
 
 They were immediately surrounded again by a num- 
 ber of attendants, each of whom singled out a guest, and 
 bending before him almost to the ground, requested him 
 to enter the passadong (second salon where guests are 
 entertained) and partake of tea, coffee, and tombaku (to- 
 bacco). From the passadong they were shown into cool 
 and spacious, shaded chambers, where soft India rugs 
 were spread before each article of furniture. Here the 
 servants brought them brightly painted sarongs and 
 kalambis, to replace their warmer garments, in which 
 to sleep away the noon-day heat, which is very oppres- 
 sive during the two or three hours of perfect stiUness 
 between the falling of the land breeze and the rising of 
 the sea breeze. The wearied guests needed no second 
 invitation to rest and refresh themselves after their 
 long and exhausting ride up through the groves and 
 gardens on the mountain-side. 
 
 At four o'clock the servants reappeared, bearing 
 again to each guest the fragrant tea, coffee, and tombaku, 
 indicating it was time to rise and prepare for the after- 
 
94 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 noon bath. Aroused and brightened by the stimulating 
 beverages, they were conducted through a long colonnaded 
 passage, paved with yellow and black squares of tUe, to 
 the umah mandi or bathroom, an immense chamber 
 lighted and ventilated by horizontal apertures in the 
 walls, close up under the eaves of the overhanging attap. 
 The floor was paved with polished tiles like the passage 
 leading to it, and gently depressed on one side to carry off 
 the water. On the highest side a row of little bambu 
 apartments were ranged against the wall, furnished with 
 large, red earthen tuns always filled with pure, clear 
 mountain water, the latter called hadi, and made soft 
 and pearly by slow filtering through gigantic vessels of 
 porous stone which stood around the larger apartment, 
 their contents continually dropping from their pointed 
 bottoms into huge flat basins set below, giving out a 
 splashy, pleasant sound which impressed the ear with a 
 refreshing sense of coolness and enjoyment. Coco*- 
 nut gajungs, black and polished from long use, hung on 
 pegs from the walls, and fresh, dry sarongs, covered with 
 the brilliant figures of sprawling animals, were laid on 
 the shelves ready for use. 
 
 Towels and rasping flesh brushes were not to be seen, 
 these adjuncts of civilization not deemed necessary in a 
 climate where the heated atmosphere immediately ab- 
 sorbs all moisture without additional aid. 
 
 Large wooden boxes were arranged above the open 
 tops of the small apartments and supplied with water by 
 servants who carried it up slender bambu ladders in 
 vessels on their heads. A mechanical contrivance was 
 attached to' these small reservoirs to be kept in motion by 
 a hull on the outside of the building and directed by the 
 bather inside, whereby the latter could receive gently 
 falling showers on the top of his head ; or be pelted by 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 95 
 
 sudden and savage gusts of rain ; or fired upon by rushing 
 jets and heavy streams ; or dashed all over in one grand 
 swoop ; or wrapped and enveloped in a soft caressing 
 spray, which mildly stole upon him like the evening 
 breeze and was the greatest luxury of all. 
 
 The noise made by the Europeans brought several enor- 
 mous gekkos (species of house lizard from twelve to twenty 
 inches long) from the corners under the eaves, where 
 ihey had slumbered undisturbed for years, to see what 
 was the occasion of the unusual uproar. Cautiously 
 peeping over the edge of the wall, they hesitated a mo- 
 ment to collect their frightened wits, then scuttled 
 across the ceiling with fheir huge green and red spotted 
 backs downwards, like a fly on a similar expedition. 
 Multitudes of little brown lizards (scineoidian), down be- 
 low followed the example of their gigantic cousins over- 
 head, by darting out from under the water basins and 
 rattan seats, whisking their long tails around in return- 
 ing again for a moment's reflection, preparatory to mak- 
 ing a bold and final dash over the slippery floor to less 
 exciting quarters on the other side of the room. 
 
 Some half dozen cockatoos and parrots, hung in the 
 shade of the bathroom duiing the noon-day heat, joined 
 the general complaint, — the former by raising their re- 
 gal crests of pink and sulphur and screeching as loud as 
 they could ; — the latter by turning their heads to one 
 side, moving uneasily from one foot to the other, rattling 
 the delicate chains that attached their legs to the short 
 lengths of bambu whereon they stood and calling out 
 " Siapa ini " in notes so loud that they attracted the cu- 
 riosity of a number of pet wou'wous or gibbons romping 
 and swinging in the trees near by. Leaping up to the 
 horizontal openings near the top of the walls, there they 
 remained, sitting, hanging, and embracing one another ; 
 
96 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 listening, ■watching, and staring down on the strangers 
 with inquisitive eyes, trying their best to comprehend the 
 meaning of it all. Such noisy laughing and talking had 
 never before been heard in that bathroom. For the Jar 
 vanese come and go, dress, bathe, work, and wait in seri- 
 ous silence. A loud or boisterous individual among them 
 is considered a disgrace to his family and his religion. 
 
 From the bathroom the Europeans, directed by their 
 solemn attendants, proceeded to a broad side-veranda 
 usually called in Java a gallery. It was lavishly fur- 
 nished in the fashion of the country and cooled and per- 
 fumed by the shaded and fragrant air wafted over it 
 through the flowers and foliage of a blossoming nutmeg 
 grove, which filled up the space between that side of the 
 dalam and the prickly edge of an adjacent jungle. 
 Here they stretched themselves on luxurious lounges, cov- 
 ered with rich Eastern stuffs, reclined on seductive easy- 
 chairs, or propped themselves up in fanciful positions on 
 springy divans covered with pillows of the sUky kapok, 
 to smoke, rest, or idly dream away the still more dreamy 
 time tUl the hour to dress arrived for the mangan wengi 
 (evening meal), the second most important in the Jar 
 vanese day. In the distance below they could see the 
 changing ocean and occasionally inhale a whiff of the salty 
 vapor carried by the evening breeze up the mountain- 
 side, while they listened to the melancholy call of the 
 ring-dove, here a common forest bird, softly chiding its 
 absent mate in the surroimding groves. As the evening 
 drew on, the air was made strangely musical by the sup- 
 pressed hum of millions of insects that spring into life 
 and motion in tropical climes as the stiU heat of the day 
 dies away ; to which was added the faint echo of the sav- 
 age and half famished beasts disputing over their even- 
 ing repast in the neighboring jungles. 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 97 
 
 "When the sun had entirely disappeared in its brilliant 
 watery bed, a close observer might have seen poisonous 
 scorpions and hideous lizards descend from the lovely fo- 
 liage, and hissing serpents untwine their long bodies and 
 glide down the graceful trees tp disappear in the thick 
 grass ; while the songs of strange nocturnal birds rang 
 out upon the dreamy air, and constellations never seen ia 
 temperate zones took their places ia the deep blue ^boTes, 
 and all nature rejoiced in the silent splendor of an eqasr 
 torial night. 
 
CHAPTER XrV. 
 
 Ax hour after darkness had set in, the Bopati with 
 his guests, the latter refreshed and clad ia white linen 
 suits, were assembled around the table in the umah ma- 
 kan (dining paviUon) of the dalam. 
 
 The room was large, open on aU sides with a project- 
 ing roof supported by rows of white columns contrasting 
 pleasantly with the red-tile floor. Numberless uncov- 
 ered bowl-shaped lamps, in which the white pith of 
 the aren floated and burned in the clear green kalapa 
 (cocoa-nut) oil, sprang out from the walls and hung 
 in clusters from the ceiling, throwing out a soft radiance 
 that filled the room with a mellow light. Incense lamps 
 filled with burning dupa were placed on the floor around 
 the sides of the room, perfuming the air with their agree- 
 able odor. Small boys in gay kalambis stood here and 
 there about the apartment, like bright spots on the dark 
 floor, holding lighted coils of taUi api in waiting response 
 to the demands of cigar and chebung. In a faroff cor- 
 ner two servants stood pulling a red silk cord which kept 
 in motion a swinging punkah suspended from the ceiling 
 over the table, causing a current of cool air to circulate 
 throughout the room. 
 
 The table was abundantly supplied with the cookery of 
 the country, consisting chiefly of the diversified prepara- 
 tions of nasi (boiled rice) which might appear to be a 
 scanty and meagre diet in a cold climate, but is palatable, 
 nutritions, and thoroughly desirable in a warm one, ovring 
 no doubt to the manner in which it is prepared and served, 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 99 
 
 — each grain of rice being soft, dry, and separated. It 
 is then eaten with some one of the inmunerable varieties 
 of curries, which are always used to give it zest, to which 
 are added selections from the endless assortment of sam- 
 bels that compose one of the most important aids to food 
 in the Indian Archipelago. 
 
 These sambels consist of a highly seasoned condiment 
 prepared from fish, flesh, and vegetables and are always 
 eaten with rice ; also, a preparation of shrimps called 
 blachang, and another, composed of a mixture of fruits, 
 called rijac, in which green mangoes, capsicum, and pun- 
 gent spices form a prominent feature. The smoked and 
 dried flesh of the deer, known by the name of dinding, 
 and the salted, hard-boiled eggs of the Muscovy duck, 
 which are a peculiarly Indian preparation, are used to 
 mix with the rice, which latter forms the general founda- 
 tion of an Indian repast. 
 
 Fish, flesh, and fowl were well represented, but in such 
 small proportions compared to the alternate pyramids 
 of rice, some colored yellow and some brown, that they 
 became entries instead of the principal dishes. 
 
 Candied fruits and pastry called ketan were served 
 last, with the luscious fruits unknown beyond the torrid 
 zone. The pesang rajah and pesang susu (king and 
 milk bananas), which quite take the place of bread with 
 the native inhabitants ; the delicious durian with its in- 
 tolerable odor ; the deep purple manggistan covering the 
 white, pearly, juicy pulp inside its hard rind, and the 
 fragrant menona or custard apple ; the pumblemoos, the 
 blimbing, the jack-fruit, with many other kinds, were 
 heaped in broad platters upon the table, to be eaten 
 with or after the meal. Tamak, the pahn-wine of the 
 country, made from the sap of the sugar-palm, and 
 difEering in strengfth and flavor with its age, constituted 
 
100 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 the principal beverage, and was followed by coffee, tea, 
 chocolate, and some fine wines from Europe, which 
 finished the abundant coUation. 
 
 The Bopati considered it his duty to honor his guests 
 by sitting at the head of his table, in direct opposition 
 to the customs of the Jayanese. Opposite him, at the 
 foot of the table, sat Sarjio, the Pateh, and beside him 
 on the right, young Tra«y, his European friend. The 
 others arranged themselves according to their taste. 
 Markham and van Delder, who were of the party, sat 
 beside each other ; the former thinking about the prin- 
 cess and her ample fortune, and the unique grandeur of 
 her father's palace, and wondering in what part of it 
 she, herself, was stowed away. 
 
 " Do you think she will appear ? " whispered he to 
 van Delder, pursuing his thoughts and keeping one eye 
 on the Bopati, towards whom he felt he was playing a 
 deceitful part, in daring to raise his eyes to his beautiful 
 daughter. 
 
 " Who are you talking about ? " demanded van Del- 
 der shortly, pretending not to understand him, and afraid 
 the Bopati, whom he knew understood both English and 
 Dutch, might hear. 
 
 " Why, his daughter, to be sure," replied Markham, 
 nodding his head towards the master of the house. " Do 
 you think we 'U see her ? " 
 
 "Hush, he wiU understand you," softly replied van 
 Delder, who had no notion of being turned out of his 
 pleasant quarters in the middle of the night, to look for 
 lodgings among the wild beasts of the Teng'gers. 
 
 " What would he do if he heard me ? " again whis- 
 pered Markham, his fears coming to the surface. 
 
 " I suspect some fine, fat tiger from the jungle would 
 breakfast on your dainty carcass," answered van Del- 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 101 
 
 der, running his eye oyer the sleek limbs and weU-fed 
 body of his friend. 
 
 "Then I guess I'll subside for the present," said 
 Markham, feeling a little shudder run down his spine 
 and staring hard at the Bopati, as he thought what a pity 
 he should lose the chance of a fortune for such an old 
 heathen. " I declare," continued he, after a pause, " I 
 wish I 'd gone to the piting'gi," — the village chief, whose 
 duty it was to receive strangers, render them assistance, 
 make bargains, and receive payments. 
 
 "For what purpose?" asked van Delder, in some 
 surprise, thinking, " Well, the fellow 's gone crazy at 
 last." 
 
 " Oh ! then, if I had had an opportunity, I might have 
 improved it," he replied ; " but, when one is a man's 
 guest, you know " — 
 
 "Yes, I know," interrupted van Delder warningly," 
 " if you are not careful you 'U get us all in trouble. I 
 see the Bopati is wondering what we are whispering 
 about, and you have stared at him so, he is no doubt sus- 
 picious. These people are always on the alert for treach- 
 ery, and this man is celebrated for his vigor and cruelty 
 when once aroused. If we are all murdered to-night, 
 your imprudence will be the cause." 
 
 " Great Jupiter ! " exclaimed the giddy and selfish 
 Markham, forgetting his caution and speaking loud 
 enough to be heard aU around the table. " I '11 eat no 
 more of his rice ! " laying down his knife, spoon, and fork. 
 
 " Be quiet — do," said van Delder, impatiently, no- 
 ticing that they were attracting the attention of their 
 companions, especially that of the Pateh, whose gleam- 
 ing eyes were bent upon them in marked disapprobation, 
 whether of their subject or their bad manners, van Delder 
 was unable to decide. 
 
102 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 " You look frightened, Markham," cried Traey at this 
 moment. "Pooh, man, that is nothing but the salutar 
 tion of a Royal Bengal," — alluding to the deep roar of 
 a tiger which was prowling around outside the bambu 
 walls of the kampong. Tracy, who had overheard part 
 of the conversation, instantly comprehended it all, and 
 his quick intuition detecting the Patch's unspoken re- 
 proof, as well as the slight ripple of curiosity around 
 the table, he immediately presented the ominous sounds 
 as an explanation. 
 
 " It is really bloodthirsty," replied Markham, looking 
 gratefully at Tracy for covering his indiscretion. "It 
 spoils my appetite, but I '11 get used to it, no doubt." 
 
 Markham had not been very long in the East, and 
 had no idea of the danger to which he exposed himself 
 and his friends if he aroused any suspicion of deceit or 
 treachery on their part, in the mind of their host ; and, 
 although frightened by the warning words of van Delder, 
 he took up his fork and spoon again and began to mix 
 his rice and curry, whispering back that he had not liked 
 " the looks of those two barbarians," — meaning the two 
 Javan nobles, — "with their belts stuck full of krises, 
 from the very first," and thought they had better leave 
 the dalam in the morning. 
 
 Behind the chair of each guest stood an attentive ser- 
 vant, whose dress indicated that he was the personal 
 attendant of his master. It was this servant's duty to 
 be always on the alert and in all circumstances near his 
 master's person, to anticipate his desires, detect his wants, 
 watch his interests, receive his commands and transmit 
 his messages, and also wait on him at table if required. 
 In the present case the servants of the Bopati served the 
 food. Behind the latter's chair three men were stationed 
 in a row : the same number, in the same attitude, stood 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 103 
 
 at the back of the Pateh. The last mentioned were 
 Malays from the coast, and, though generally termed 
 Javanese, their shorter stature and brighter color pro- 
 claimed the difference between the two races to those 
 familiar with the population. The host and his guests 
 spoke to the servants in the Malay tongue, which is so 
 much like the Javanese that it is usually understood by 
 both races ; but when they addressed each other, it was 
 in Dutch, French, or English, all of these la.nguages being 
 more or less sppken by the white population in Java. 
 
 Both of the Javanese nobles felt somewhat embar- 
 rassed, especially the Bopati, sitting bolt upright before 
 the table on straight-backed seats, conveying the food to 
 their mouths with the, to them, awkward knife and fork, 
 for it is the custom of the Javanese to be served singly 
 on wooden, brass, or silver waiters, while they recline 
 upon a couch or divan and eat with thumb and fingers. 
 They made a polite effort, however, to conceal their dis- 
 comfort, which was very much less to the young Pateh, 
 who, having been educated in Europe, was familiar with 
 Western habits, than to the old Bopati, who had never 
 passed beyond the confines of the Indian Archipelago, 
 and therefore knew little about the customs of other 
 nations, beyond what he had picked up in his association 
 with foreigners on the coast of his own island. This fact, 
 however, gave him very little concern. As a host he en- 
 tertained his guests with a liberal hospitality and the 
 rigid etiquette of Javanese politeness, and cared nothing 
 for their opinion of him or his manners. He was the 
 " Bopati," or governor of that province, and as such he 
 respected himself ; moreover, he considered it degrading 
 in a Mohammedan to be influenced by the opinion of 
 Christians. 
 
 Sarjio he liked and admired; he was a member of 
 
104 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 Keomah's family, and the son of a noble whose ancient 
 blood was equal to his own. It was in consequence of 
 his regard for the Patch that he had thus thrown open 
 his dalam to strangers with such unusual freedom. He 
 looked upon the friends of the Patch as fair represen- 
 tatives of a class of Europeans generally found in the 
 East, — intelligent, self-reliant, energetic men ; active, 
 independent, and rich from their own efforts ; enjoy- 
 ing an opinion of themselves and of each other that was 
 more or less exalted, according to the degree of success 
 that had attained the various enterprises and specula- 
 tions in which they had embarked. Sarjio and Tracy, 
 as we have before observed, were warm friends. Their 
 familiar intimacy had occasioned no little comment from 
 their friends on both sides ; for it was quite uncommon 
 to see anything like exchange of friendship or confidence 
 between a son of Islam and a believer of the Christian 
 creed ; or between a fair-skinned European and a tawny 
 descendant of Mongolia. Both young men were strikingly 
 handsome and of a type entirely different, exhibiting so 
 unmistakably the effects of numberless centuries of diet 
 and climate that it was hard to believe they had sprung, 
 in the beginning, from one common parent. 
 
 Some such thought as this must have run through the 
 mind of the Bopati, who was a philosopher in his own 
 way, for he sat and watched, with unwonted interest, the 
 two young men opposite, — the one possessing the most 
 attraction for him dark and sedate, with a golden tint 
 suffusing his light-brown face, his eyes long, almond- 
 shaped, and piercing black ; his manners distinguished 
 by a grave and dehberate dignity that repelled all un- 
 due familiarity, yet was winningly agreeable ; his dress 
 brilliant and costly in its half -savage splendor, but in per- 
 fect accord with the oriental face and bearing of its 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 106 
 
 wearer. The other, although about the same age, with 
 his fair face, bright manners, and sparkling wit, appeared 
 much younger. His eyes were of the clearest blue ; his 
 hair, light and curly, covered a head of finest contour ; 
 and his dress, of the purest white linen, tightly fitted a 
 figure of which the gods might have been proud. The 
 Bopati gazed at them both long and contemplatively. He 
 instinctively felt this brilliant young foreigner was no 
 common character, and he was also impressed with the 
 same sentiment in regard to the young Pateh. 
 
 The high-bred European, who sat so perfectly at his 
 ease while he carelessly and gracefully handled his knife 
 and fork, — a performance which the Bopati considered a 
 feat to be proud of, — conversing and laughing in a way 
 that proved he was at home with himself and all aroimd 
 him, as indeed Tracy was everywhere, inspired the old 
 Javan noble with sincere admiration. He studied him 
 as one would have studied a curious picture. 
 
 The Pateh, although he betrayed no signs of timidity 
 or awkwardness in his manners, seemed to sit in a sort of 
 waiting attitude, handling his table implements in a vis- 
 ibly careful way, which proclaimed at once his want of 
 constant practice. His face wore an expression of quiet 
 and thoughtful seriousness cultivated by all the Javanese. 
 
 He replied to the lively sallies of his neighbors with a 
 self-contained smile, accompanied sometimes by a courte- 
 ous inclination of the head and upper half of the body. 
 But to aU noisy hilarity he looked superlatively aloof. 
 Glances of the keenest intelligence shot from under 
 his half-closed lids and danced in his long, black eyes, 
 as they sometimes glittered and swam with a mirthful 
 appreciation of the fun around him, to which his train- 
 ing and religion would not allow him to give further ex- 
 pression, though he listened in full enjoyment of it alL 
 
106 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 His well-knit figure, more slender than that of the 
 European, was firm, supple, and equally athletic, and as 
 graceful and symmetrical as that of a girl. His face, 
 bearing the characteristics of his race, was entirely beard- 
 less, with broE^d, fuU forehead; nose rather short and 
 straight, with thin, beautifully curved nostrils ; and short 
 upper lip disclosing a mouth full of character and good- 
 will. The chin was well marked, denoting firmness and 
 steady purpose. One felt here was a man who would 
 perform whatsoever he undertook, that it would be no 
 vain thing that would turn him aside. 
 
 The richness and magnificence of the Pateh's dress 
 presented a dazzling contrast to the simple harmony of 
 that of his friend, and was similar to that of the Bopati, 
 only more brilliant and youthful. His head was covered 
 with the ikat (folded handkerchief) of the batik sarak 
 pattern, the peculiar design of which denoted the rank 
 of the wearer. It completely concealed his long, straight 
 black hair, which the Javans never cut, but twist up in 
 the glung, a round knot at the back of the head, and tie 
 the corners of the ikat under it, with ends arranged to 
 hang down against the shoulders. 
 
 A short jacket called the sikapan, reaching below his 
 waist, was made of heavy blue silk, over which figures 
 of crimson elephants walked with trunks raised in the 
 air, and peacocks with gold and green spreading tails 
 strutted, while little ringed snakes wriggled uneasily 
 under their feet. The sikapan rolling back off his chest 
 in front exposed a fine, white Indian serge kotan (gar- 
 ment like a waistcoat) buttoned up high and close under 
 the chin, with oval buttons in gold filigree. 
 
 A jarit of dark, rich brocaded sUk, with border and 
 figures to correspond with the sikapan, was wound closely 
 around his hips and waist and allowed to descend over 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 107 
 
 the limba like a skirt, one comer falling on the right 
 side to the floor in graceful drapery, while the left 
 was tucked up under his sabuk till it only reached the 
 knee. This sabuk was of gold and crimson lace, and was 
 wound many times around the waist, securing the jarit 
 in place, and firmly tied at the left side in a bow, the 
 long fringed ends reaching to the feet, which were bare 
 and thrust into a pair of spatus, with toes richly embroid- 
 ered and set with brilliants. 
 
 A kris with a sheath of the white and black variegated 
 tomako-wood, inlaid with squares of gold and ivory, was 
 stuck under the sabuk on the left side behind. And a 
 shining we'dung — a cleaver-shaped hatchet, used to re- 
 move obstructions in traveling through the forests — was 
 worn on the left, with a small delicate kris beside it, its 
 handle blazing with diamonds and precious stones. Al- 
 together the Pateh made a remarkable and brilliant fig- 
 ure at that dinner-table among the plain, white-skinned, 
 white-dressed Europeans. Even the Bop3,ti, in all his 
 splendor, looked somewhat dim and ordinary beside hitn. 
 The presence of the younger Javan seemed to emit a 
 glow of dazzling radiance that one felt but cpiild not 
 easily describe. 
 
 A psychologist nught have attributed it to his peculiar 
 qualities of mind ; a physiologist would have ascribed it, 
 perhaps, to the contagious vitality thrown off by the re- 
 dundant vigor of his health and youth, and the living, 
 breathing beauty of his face and form, and called it prob- 
 ably the personal magnetism that surrounds every in- 
 dividual and makes itself more <Sr less felt by all who 
 approach them. The reader can decide it as he un- 
 derstands it ; we only know that a halo of brightness 
 and mentally perceptible splendor seemed to accompany 
 the presence of the Pateh, iii striking contrast with th? 
 
108 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 serious dignity of his deportment, which this evening 
 made him a better listener than conyersationalist. 
 
 The table-talk, however, was light and trivial, and not 
 such as would draw out the interest or character of a 
 man of any depth of thought. It referred principally to 
 the coming expedition, in which the Pateh was expected 
 to join, with anecdotes and experience of former ex- 
 cursions. Speculations were exchanged regarding the 
 possibility and safety of descending to the sandy plain 
 forming the bottom of the crater on the top of the moun- 
 tain. Three gigantic cones rise from the centre of this 
 crater, of which the largest and highest is the perpetually 
 burning Brama. 
 
 The prospects for a wild boar hunt on the slopes and 
 between the rocky ridges before they reached the sum- 
 mit, with the risks and excitements of a tiger hunt in 
 the jungles, were brought forward, each in their turn. 
 
 Then came opinions about the most effective weapons 
 to choose for defense and destruction, and the number of 
 men required from the piting'gi for protection and assist- 
 ance ; computations of distances ; and the extra wraps 
 needed for protection from the increasing cold as they 
 neared the distant peaks. At length the proposals were 
 all heard, discussed, and dismissed, and an oppasser be- 
 hind the Bopati motioned the small boys to come forward 
 and present the taUi api always offered to each guest 
 when the meal is finished. 
 
 Small silver trays bearing cigars, pipes, and tambaku 
 were passed around, the incense lamps replenished, and 
 the huge punkah was swung more vigorously, while the 
 guests leaned back in their seats to watch the curling 
 smoke ascend till caught by the breeze from the punkah, 
 which whirled it away in little fantastic clouds to settle 
 in the distant corners of the room. 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 109 
 
 'An hour or two later we find the guests again on \h.e 
 deep side-veranda, sitting in social groups, but talking 
 very little. Several still held their cigars in their fin- 
 gers, drawing an occasional whiff, and knocking off the 
 ashes from the smouldering ends. 
 
 They all appeared to be occupied in contemplating the 
 beauty of the superb night and the unrivaled prospect 
 unroUed before them under the glorious brilliancy of the 
 tropical full moon. High against the heavens they could 
 see the lurid smoke of the Guning Brama rolling steadily 
 upwards, twisting itself around, between, and above the 
 patches of fleecy clouds which were settling down upon 
 the rearing summits. Far below in the dreajny dis- 
 tance the glassy waters of the Indian Ocean flashed and 
 stretched away off under the white moonlight like a 
 gleaming mirror, till they met the studded blue of the 
 arched horizon. 
 
 Bight and left, and descending immediately in front of 
 them, the black, heavy foliage of the groves, forests, and 
 plantations were clearly outlined in the transparent radi- 
 ance. The moon and stars appeared double and triple 
 the size they present in temperate zones, their shimmer- 
 ing brilliancy increasing accordingly in the pure atmo- 
 sphere. 
 
 The wonderful beauty was in perfect harmony with 
 the strange calm that crept over everything around them 
 as the night wore on. From time to time, the soft and 
 saddening tones of a flute floated faintly through the air, 
 expressing the anxious wish or unhappy love of some 
 native swain who thus hoped to soften the hard heart of 
 his mistress. At intervals harsher sounds rang out on 
 the stOlness of the air. The sudden scream of a hurigry 
 panther made them shudder over thfi possible fate of his 
 victim, while they wondered if it was man or beast 5 and 
 
110 A PRINCESS OF JA VA. 
 
 the answering roar of two or three dissatisfied tigers from 
 the swarming jungle caused several of them to draw 
 nearer together in instinctive protection. Once they 
 sprang, to their feet in startled apprehension as their ears 
 were assailed by the cacophonous cry of roving bands of 
 monkeys and wou'wous, as they swept down through the 
 forests, from the heights above, in search of food or in 
 playful pursuit of one another, its half human intonation 
 giving rise to the momentary suspicion that they were 
 about to be attacked by a body of treacherous natives, 
 who, being assured of their helplessness, had cast aside 
 their usual caution and shouted in exultant prospective 
 over their certain destruction. 
 
 But soon they smiled at their fears and resumed their 
 seats, as their eyes met the surprised looks of the Bopati, 
 who had also hastily arisen when he perceived the sud- 
 den alarm of his guests, and now laughingly explained 
 the harmless character of the portentous noise. Not 
 long after the scare of the wou'wous, their attention was 
 attracted by that curious animal or bird known as the 
 kulong, or flying fox, circling slowly around in the clear 
 moonlight above the clustering tops of the cocoas and 
 palms below them, watching for an opportunity to secure 
 an evening meal on the tender sprouts and young fruit, 
 whilst a wary and indignant native concealed in the 
 shade below was also waiting for an opportunity to 
 wreak a long-cherished vengeance on the depredators of 
 his young groves. 
 
 The kulong bears a resemblance to an immense bat, 
 which in truth it appears to be, except the head, which 
 looks like the European fox. They live principally upon 
 fruit and the delicate young shoots of the palm and 
 cocoa trees. During the day they conceal themselves in 
 the dark depths of the forest, where they hang from the 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. Ill 
 
 trees in great black patches, asleep and motionless. As 
 soon as darkness appears, they arouse themselves and 
 hurry forth to seek their food, generally in some choice 
 cocoa-nut or pahn grove : hence the anxious cultivator's 
 malignity. 
 
 The kubin, or flying cat, next excited the astonishment 
 of the Europeans, as they watched it suddenly dart up 
 from the top of one tree and as suddenly fall down 
 again upon the top of another. It, too, had been waiting 
 for the shades of night to find a playground. The kubin 
 is accredited by the ignorant natives with possessing 
 dangerous powers of fascination, and is consequently 
 regarded by them with feelings of superstitious awe and 
 carefully avoided. Many calamities and misfortunes are 
 ascribed by the Javanese montagnard to the malicious 
 influence and interference of the kubin. 
 
 Indeed, a succession of surprises broke the monotony 
 of the placid hours as they rolled on towards midnight, 
 the usual hour for retiring, during which time the sea 
 breeze that prevails during the day imperceptibly dies 
 away and is succeeded, Hke the land breeze in the morn- 
 ing, by two or three hours of perfect cahn. Thus the 
 two currents perpetually alternate with each other, always 
 preserving the hours of absolute tranquillity between. At 
 night these hours form the most delightful period of the 
 twenty-four. The intense stillness of midday prevails 
 without its excessive heat ; and if there is moonlight, its 
 untold glory in that climate diffuses itself over every- 
 thing. HiU and vale are robed in new beauty. Abrupt 
 lines are obliterated ; steep declivities become gentle un- 
 dulations ; sharp peaks are rounded into graceful emi- 
 nences, and certain famiUar localities and well-defined 
 distances become unknown, mysterious spaces, where 
 imaginary angels, demons, and hobgoblins disport them- 
 
112 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 selves. All natvire is dreamy, languid, poetic, and vig- 
 orous ; soothing, enervating, inspiring, and exulting, 
 according to the receptive mood and condition of the 
 mind to receive and interpret it. The predominant feel- 
 ing, however, is a longing for absolute repose, for perfect 
 inactivity of mind and body, with an irresistible desire 
 to be left undisturbed and in the uninterrupted enjoy- 
 ment of the wonderful caJm that rests on everything 
 around you ; while, in the midst of scenes and landscapes 
 glowing and teeming with robust life, you breathe in, 
 as it were, with ea«h inspiration, the delightful indescrib- 
 able luxury of periect stillness and quiet, without the 
 oppression or disBatiefaction of solitude. 
 
CHAPTER XV. 
 
 Before Eeomah had recovered from the excitement 
 of her recent visit, which for length and liberty had 
 never been equaled in her life, and could compose her 
 mind sufficiently to enter again calmly and intelligently 
 upon the petty and monotonous routine of the dalam, she 
 was sent for by the Bopati, and informed that he had 
 now fully decided on fixing the day for the laki rabi 
 (marriage ceremony) of the Radan Mattah-Djarri. 
 Without asking her opinion or approval, which indeed he 
 could never have understood as a part of a husband's 
 duty, he desired her to make known his decision to their 
 daughter, and to see that she was properly prepared for 
 the occasion and the banschald which was to follow it, 
 as soon as the allotted forty days composing the period 
 called the lamar, which was now to commence, had ex- 
 pired, during which time she was to observe the usual 
 custom of not leaving the house. 
 
 This news, although expected sooner or later, was a 
 terrible blow to the poor mother. At first she felt im- 
 pelled to speak up and beg for delay, but, not feeling able 
 to offer anything like a sensible reason for such a de- 
 mand, nor daring to express or explain her objections, or 
 even hint that she had any, or that the old Tumung'gung 
 might be distasteful as a husband to a young and beauti- 
 ful girl like Mattah-Djarri, she repressed her maternal 
 instincts, and felt she could do nothing but make a respect- 
 ful sembah and retire, in the conviction that her daugh- 
 ter's future was decided beyond aU influence or control 
 that she could, by any means, bring to bear upon it. 
 
114 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 "With a slow step and heavy heart she sought the 
 apartments of the princess, repeating to herself, as she 
 went, short snatches of instruction and encouragement 
 from the Sastras, to enable her to communicate the 
 dreadful news with the dignity and firmness it was her 
 duty to assume in the discharge of all of the Bopati's 
 commands. Her late short experience of unrestrained 
 Uberty and independence, added to the example of Sewa, 
 had not tended to increase the perfect and cheerful 
 submission to the Bopati's wUl in either her breast or 
 that of her daughter, especially in a matter so serious 
 and important as that of maixiage. But how to make 
 known these new sentiments, or obtain sufficient courage 
 to express or define them inteUigently, was something 
 Keomah could not imagine. As she crossed the garden 
 court, she stopped a moment under the oleander trees by 
 the fountain, and pictured to herself Sewa's scorn and 
 indignation when she should tell her that she had not 
 dared to open her mouth in objection or disapproval 
 when the Bopati had brought the final moment before 
 her. Oh, what a weak, poor, cowardly mother she was 
 for all, she thought ! As she reflected upon it, her anger 
 began to rise and she determined to go back to the Bo- 
 pati and say something at least, to let him know that she 
 deemed the marriage extremely unsuitable. 
 
 Yes, she said to herself, she would do that much and 
 bear his anger for Mattah-Djarri's sake. Perhaps some 
 good might come of it. Looking up, she saw the Bopati 
 crossing the veranda, and decided that now was her op 
 portunity. She started toward him, but as he approached 
 he looked at her so sternly and with such an evident 
 intention of not being spoken to, that her heart failed 
 her, and she merely bowed her head and passed on as if 
 not Intending to address him at all. 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 115 
 
 As she sorrowfully pursued her way across the veran- 
 das and through the corridors, her indignation subsided, 
 and she felt glad she had not accosted the Bopatd ; she 
 was more assured than ever that she would only have made 
 matters worse. She thought how could she have named 
 to him, above all others, her new ideas of independence, 
 or have explained her strange and undefined long^ings for 
 a fuller and higher life, if not for herself, at least for 
 Mattah-Djarri, who was so yoimg and so fully capable of 
 entering upon and enjoying it, as her late intercourse with 
 Josephine and the latter's companions had proved. How 
 make the Bopati understand all this as she felt it, or con- 
 vince him that the old Tumung'gung, with all his wealth 
 and rank, could but make a wretched and repugnant hus- 
 band for a gu-l in the fuU flush of youth, health, and 
 beauty ? 
 
 The Bopati, like all Javanese nobles, never thought of 
 these personal tastes in women. Keomah knew per- 
 fectly he had no conception of such female individuality, 
 and would be not only amazed but no doubt furious with 
 her for daring to aspire to such a degree of bold thought. 
 
 Keomah faltered and hesitated a moment outside the 
 entrance of her daughter's apartments, to arrange in her 
 mind some form of speech in which to make known to 
 the latter the vmattractive future that awaited her. She 
 tried to find words in which to clothe the disagreeable 
 message that would make it appear less forbidding than it 
 was. Vain attempt, however : the longer she waited the 
 more difficvdt it became, till at last, in despair, she passed 
 under the curtains, with her mind in a state of hopeless 
 confusion, trusting to chance or intuition to assist and 
 guide her. She found Mattah-Djarri in the inner cham- 
 ber, half sitting, half lying on a divan, with Wagari 
 beside her, reading aloud from some book of travel or 
 adventure. 
 
116 A PRINCESS OF J A VA. 
 
 " Pray be seated, O Keomah ! " said Mattah-Djam, 
 looking up with a warm welcome in her eyes when she 
 heard her mother's footsteps, " and listen to this account 
 of the actual customs practised by the inhabitants of the 
 Timor Islands, where Wagari has been, and knows it to 
 be the truth." 
 
 Keomah, glad of an excuse to defer as long as possible 
 her unpleasant duty, dropped into the nearest seat with- 
 out speaking, and motioned to Wagari to proceed, who, 
 turning back to the chapter she had just commenced, read 
 in a low, clear voice — 
 
 THE STOKT OF MASHBA. 
 
 " Mashba was a beautiful maiden beloved by all her 
 family and admired by their friends. Her complexion 
 was a golden brown, and her eyes shone like the stars. 
 Love and goodness beamed from her face. Her hair was 
 long and wavy and fell down and covered her feet. Her 
 teeth were black and curved in the centre, and her lips 
 were red like the juice of the wong kuda. Her cheeks 
 were rounded like the pumblemus, with a rosy tint diffus- 
 ing the lower half. Her neck and arms were slender and 
 graceful as a willow bow, and her fingers long and taper- 
 ing. Her feet were small, with pink soles, and her figure 
 was pliable and majestic. She walked like a princess 
 and looked like an angel. She wore a dress covered with 
 purple flowers embroidered with her own fingers, and 
 scented with the perfume of the melati blossom, and 
 when she came into the room it was as if the sun had 
 risen. 
 
 " Mashba had two brothers, one older and one younger 
 than herself. They all lived together in a dwelling buUt 
 of bambu, covered with attap made of the nipa and green 
 vines, and situated on the side of a stream running through 
 the great valley of the Timor. 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 117 
 
 " One morning a young traveler stopped at the door and 
 begged a cup of water, which the gentle Mashba gave 
 him and wished him a safe journey. When the sun set 
 that evening, Mashba's brothers were surprised to see the 
 same traveler return and ask for a night's lodging. In 
 the morning when he was ready to depart he called 
 Abakir, the eldest brother, aside, told him his name was 
 Paraski, showed him a certificate of the wealth he pos- 
 sessed in sheep and horses, and asked for Mashba to 
 wife. Abaldr was loath to give the lovely Mashba to a 
 stranger, but seeing her eyes full of tearful entreaty, he 
 consented, and the young stranger henceforth became one 
 of their fanuly. 
 
 " As time passed, Mashba learned to love her husband 
 more and more every day, tUl at length she never was 
 happy out of his presence. 
 
 " They fished in the stream together ; rode the wild 
 ponies side by side over the mountauis ; tended the sheep 
 and cattle together ; planted the habit in rows that were 
 just alike ; wore sarongs of the same pattern ; and 
 counted the moons on the same stick. 
 
 " The elder brother saw it and was glad, but Namel, 
 the younger brother, was jealous. He loved Mashba, and 
 could not endure to see her forget him for a stranger. 
 
 "One night Paraski sickened and died, Mashba 
 dressed herself in pure white, and kneeling beside his 
 dead body refused to leave it. On the second morning the 
 corpse had to be burned, as was the custom among the 
 Timor people, and Abakir was horrified to hear Mashba 
 declare she would be burned on the pyre with it. Namel 
 fell into convulsions when he heard of Mashba's decision. 
 According to the custom of those islanders, Mashba could 
 do as she pleased, and although it was considered a great 
 honor in a family for a woman to die with her husband, 
 
118 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 all her friends were sorry and tried to dissuade her. She 
 •was firm, however, and hegan to prepare herself for 
 death. She had the same vein of jealousy in her blood 
 that had so tormented Namel. She thought of Paraski 
 sitting by the side of shady fountains in Paradise and 
 being waited upon by lovely maidens. She saw them 
 smile upon him and heard the disputes about who should 
 be the first recipient of his favors, and resolved to go and 
 wait upon him herself. 
 
 " "When the hour came for the disposal of the body, it 
 was brought out and placed upon a bier in an open space, 
 with the feet pointing towards the rising sun, and Mashba, 
 in pure white, stood at the head, and all the people formed 
 themselves in a circle around them. Her friends came 
 one by one to take leave of her. Meanwhile the most 
 inspiring music was played and gay songs were sung ; for 
 all rejoiced in Paraski's good fortune, and the adulation 
 he was receiving in Paradise. 
 
 " Custom made it the duty of Mashba's nearest relations 
 to plunge a knife into her bosom before she ascended the 
 fimeral pyre ; therefore Abakir, as her eldest brother, had 
 to be the first to commit the bloody deed. Suppressing 
 his tears he went up to her, — while all the people looked 
 on and applauded, — embraced her, kissed her, and asked 
 her again to retract her vows and stay with him and 
 Namel. She shook her head and kept her eyes fixed on 
 Paraski's face. He then kissed her again, pressed her 
 to his bosom with his left arm, and stabbing her at the 
 same moment with a kris held in his right hand, fainted. 
 He was borne away, and now it was Namel's tarn. He 
 came forward twice, and each time retreated, unable to 
 embrace Mashba and give her the fatal blow which was 
 expected to take her life. She stood faint and trembling 
 with pain, and begged him to do it quickly, while the 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 119 
 
 music played faster and louder and Namel was urged 
 forward. At last in desperation he rushed up hehind 
 her and plunged bis kris into her neck, then, dashing 
 it upon the ground, fled to the mountains. 
 
 " In a few moments Mashba was laid, dying from loss 
 of blood, on the pyre beside the dead body of Paraski ; 
 and before the fire was in full blaze she had breathed 
 her last. 
 
 " That night Abakir put aside his grief and went in 
 search of Namel. He found him sitting beside a jungle 
 swamp, with mud heaped on the top of his head. Abakir 
 was amazed and grieved to hear Namel confess he had 
 put poison in an orange and given it to Paraski to eat, the 
 day before he died. Abakir's sorrow was now increased 
 threefold. He mourned over Namel's wickedness as 
 much as for the death of Mashba and ParaskL 
 
 " ' What wilt thou do now, O Namel? ' inquired Aba- 
 kir when the latter refused to return with him. ' Thou 
 canst not live here in this desert place beside the jungle.' 
 
 " ' I will die here,' said Namel. ' Paraski ever stands 
 before my eyes and Mashba turns her face away from 
 me. I cannot look upon the scenes where they have dwelt. 
 I am punished for my wickedness in having had to deal 
 the blow that took her life. It was just.' 
 
 " In much sadness Abakir lay down under a bush be- 
 side Namel that night and often was he wakened by his 
 brother's groans of remorseful ang^uish. When it was 
 dawn he arose and remembered he had dreamed that two 
 white doves came and sat upon the branches above his 
 head, sang to each other, fed out of each other's mouths, 
 and called to bim ' O Abakir ! we are Mashba and Par 
 raski,' then soared away towards the clouds and disap- 
 peared ; while a black raven was chained fast to the 
 torn trunk of a tree below them and croaked and begged 
 
120 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 for food, water, and liberty, and hoarsely groaned, ' O 
 Abakir ! I am NameL' In fright Abakir turned to his 
 brother and shook him. He was dead. ' Ah ! ' said 
 Abakir, sitting down upon a stone to weep, ' I have 
 heard from each of them.' " 
 
 When the chapter was finished, Mattah-Djarri's eyes 
 were filled with tears ; she desired Wagari to read no 
 more at present, and arose to give her attention to her 
 mother. Keomah had tried to follow Wagari's story, but 
 the truth was she was making a gigantic efPort to master 
 her emotion and could not have repeated for her life a 
 word that the reader had said. Without waiting longer 
 she inunediately made known the object of her visit, re- 
 peating, with all the tact and tenderness she could com- 
 mand, the exact words of the Bopati. She was greatly 
 surprised to find Mattah-Djarri receive the communica- 
 tion with a calmness and resignation which, for a moment, 
 gave rise to the suspicion in her mind that she had made 
 a mistake in her estimate of the young girl's taste, and 
 that, after all, the horrid old man was not so disagreeable 
 to her as she had supposed. 
 
 In these latter reflections Keomah was mistaken. She 
 did not know Mattah-Djarri was almost waiting for the 
 intelligence she had brought, and that in her love for her 
 mother she had determined to conceal as far as possible 
 all evidences of her own disgust and despair, and thus 
 save the former all the distress and regret she knew she 
 would otherwise suffer upon her account. 
 
 When Wagari had returned with her mistress from 
 her visit to Sewa in the city, she had at once sought 
 Schagga and learned from him that the old Tumung'gung 
 had made several visits to the dalam during tiheir ab- 
 sence, and at each visit he and the Bopati had held long 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 121 
 
 conversations on the latter's private veranda, after which 
 they drank coffee together and smoked the pipe of friend- 
 ship, seeming mutually pleased. 
 
 This inf ormatiou Wagari, who was all anxiety and 
 curiosity ahout the disposition of her mistress's future, 
 communicated to her, and they hoth drew their own con- 
 clusions therefrom. Mattah-Djarri, who never before 
 remembered to have seen or heard of such frequent visits 
 or intimacy between the Bopati and the Tumimg'gung of 
 Narawadi, interpreted them to mean that he was the 
 noble referred to by Keomah, in the beginning, as hav- 
 ing been selected for her future husband. Knowing im- 
 plicit obedience was her only choice, she decided to do 
 her best to conceal her aversion from Keomah, hence 
 her composure and apparent acquiescence, when the lat- 
 ter came to her, heart-broken, with the Bopati's dreadful 
 commands. 
 
 As Keomah was about to leave Mattah-Djarri's apart- 
 ment with a much lighter heart than when she entered, 
 she observed her daughter's face assume an ashy paleness, 
 and a few moments later she saw her sink down in a 
 dead faint, while Wagari leaned over her, weeping and 
 deploring the cruel sacrifice of her beloved mistress, in 
 bestowing her upon a husband, whose rank and wealth, it 
 was true, were superior to her own, but who was in him- 
 self so perfectly odious that th^ could prove no com- 
 pensation for what she must suffer under his dominion. 
 
 It was some time before calmness and composure were 
 restored. Afterwards when Ghatra came in and knelt be- 
 fore her mistress, according to the custom among depend- 
 ents on such occasions, and offered her congratulations, 
 wishing her great happiness, long lite, and the honor of 
 being the mother of many sons, she was greatly amazed 
 to see the young girl burst into a fit of weeping and lamen- 
 
122 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 tation so truly pitiable that it brought tears of sympathy 
 to her own eyes, though she could not, for her life, see 
 any cause for such sorrow, unless there was a previous 
 attachment which her pupil had not confessed and she 
 had had no reason to suspect. Chatra thought there was 
 much room indeed for rejoicing, instead of weeping, for 
 the marriage was in her eyes most desirable ; — a hus- 
 band of exalted rank, rich and influential; with thousands 
 of slaves at his feet, and admittance to the presence of 
 their great Susuhunan — what more could a fond parent 
 bestow or well-instructed maiden desire ? Giving expres- 
 sion to some such opinions as these, Chatra was again 
 highly indignant with Wagari, who replied to her by 
 exclaiming, — 
 
 " Why, look at the man's face and remember his age. 
 Does that go for nothing ? " 
 
 " I should say it went for nothing in marriage," re- 
 plied Chatra ; " but you were always silly, Wagari, as I 
 have told you many times." 
 
 Keomah here interrupted the two attendants by com- 
 manding Chatra to retire, and desiriag Wagari to give 
 all her attention to her mistress, whose sobs from time to 
 time shook her from head to foot. 
 
 The xmhappy mother, having finished her painful task, 
 and understanding by this time how matters really stood, 
 could think of little she could say to console or encourage 
 Mattah-Djarri and arose to leave the room and give her 
 miserable child an opportunity for composure and reflec- 
 tion, which she hoped might bring sleep, trying to as- 
 sure her she would no doubt be glad when all was over and 
 she had had time to become accustomed to the honors of 
 her new position. In saying this Keomah was false to her 
 own convictions, for she had no idea that Mattah-Djarri 
 ever could or would be reconciled to the Tumung'gung, 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 123 
 
 and she, moreover, feared the young Pateh had made a 
 ■warm impression upon her daughter's heart. She con- 
 sidered it highly probable, and the very thought of him, 
 young, handsome, and attractive, in contrast with the 
 ^gfyi withered, wrinkled old man, made her turn away 
 quite sick. She could see no prospect of anjrthing but 
 misery for her beautiful child. Not even the unhappy 
 satisfaction that sometimes will still exist in an affection 
 that is torn and goaded to wretchedness by well-founded 
 jealousy. No one, she thought with regret, could ever be 
 jealous of the Tumung'gung. She knew from report the 
 selfish and brutal character of the old noble, and she had 
 little doubt but that Mattah-Djarri would be merely a 
 new toy to amuse him tiU the novelty was worn away ; 
 then thrown aside for another, and consigned to her own 
 apartments, to live in solitude and seclusion the remain- 
 der of the prince's life, bearing his title, upholding his 
 rank, while he never gave her a thought and continued 
 to take under his protection as many more wives as his 
 doting fancy might dictate, aU. of whom her gentle and 
 sensitive daughter would be compelled to accept and rec- 
 ognize and always treat with respect. She knew from 
 sad experience what all this meant, and she had been 
 considered a most fortunate exception, in having much 
 less of this kind of trouble and heartache to contend with 
 than the generality of Javanese matrons. 
 
 The possibility of divorce flashed through Keomah's 
 mind for an instant and the thought gave her comfort ; it 
 seemed to be a loop-hole through which Mattah-Djarri 
 might escape the capricious vrill of the Tumung'gung, 
 when he grew tired of her, as he was sure to do. A lit- 
 tle reflection dismissed this idea as quickly as it came. 
 The princess's rank forbade this alternative unless there 
 was some grave accusation brought against her, and Keo- 
 
124 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 mah could not Indulge a hope or wish that her innocent 
 child would be deemed guilty of a deUberate wrong. In 
 short, turn which way she might in her mind, there 
 seemed nothing to do but to submit and endure it. She 
 had discussed the whole affair with Sewa : it was in truth 
 the object of her late visit. Sewa could suggest nothing 
 but open defiance, and that was not to be dreamed of : and 
 if this, she thought, was Sewa's opinion, who had be- 
 come so wise and intelligent, so far beyond her own peo- 
 ple in practical knowledge, so independent and seK-reli- 
 ant, so quick with a remedy for every dilemma, she felt 
 her daughter's case was indeed hopeless. Sewa had 
 said repeatedly, " You can do nothing but tell Mattah- 
 Djarri to refuse to obey, and send her to me, and my hus- 
 band will protect her." This Keomah knew would be 
 rank rebellion towards the wiU of the Bopati, which was 
 extremely dangerous and might cost Mr. BardweU and 
 his family their lives. It was true, Mr. BardweU was a 
 European and supposed to live lander the protection of 
 his government, but it was equally true that the Bopati 
 was a powerful prince whose vdll controlled thousands 
 of the native population, and if he, in anger or re- 
 venge, desired the complete extinction of a family, it 
 was not long before they disappeared, one at a time, by 
 seemingly natural causes. Keomah could not permit her 
 sister to run the risk of such a calamity, neither did she 
 believe that Mr. BardweU would consent to it, if asked. 
 NaturaUy, the Tumung'gfung would join in the resent- 
 ment of the Bopati, and there would be no chance of 
 safety for the BardweUs. Clearly there was no hope 
 there, and Keomah could only return to her first starting- 
 point, absolute obedience, no complaints, and bear the 
 misfortune as best they could. 
 
CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 As soon as Keomah had left the room Mattah-Djarri 
 f orhade Wagari to admit any one to her presence and de- 
 sired her to seat herself in a distant corner and not dis- 
 turb her. Then lying down upon a divan, she propped 
 herself up with piUows and remained motionless for 
 hours. The only sign of consciousness she gave was the 
 restless roving of her eyes as they ceaselessly followed 
 the rich and intricate designs traced in the figures and 
 flowers worked in the tapestries and rugs about her 
 room, the untiring movement of the wandering pupils 
 giving outward expression to the excited activity of the 
 mind within. 
 
 Wagari's mind was also busy, whUe she sat mute and 
 silent in her corner watching and trying to define the 
 gradual change that was creeping over the face and form 
 of her mistress. The timid, deUcate, uncertain girl 
 seemed to have been suddenly supplanted by a firm, stem, 
 resolute woman, whose beauty was enhanced by the 
 deathly pallor of her face, out of which her briUiant 
 black eyes flashed with a splendor more marvelous than 
 ever ; and her loose, uncoiled hair spread over the pil-' 
 lows in a mass of glossy richness it had never seemed 
 to possess before. It was a mystery to Wagari what 
 could be the subject of this intense absorption. "Was it 
 her future with the Tumimg'gung or was it something 
 else ? She knew from many little signs with which she 
 was familiar that her mistress was thinking, but thinking 
 
126 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 about what, the faithful romancer continued to ask her- 
 self in vain. At length, Djoolo appeared with some food 
 which was rejected by a shake of the head. The old 
 nurse gently insisted, but it was useless, her precious 
 child could not eat. Djoolo put down the tray, and fall- 
 ing upon her knees beside the couch hid her face in the 
 folds of her mistress's sarong, and wept as if her heart 
 was also breaking. Her distress aroused Mattah-Djarri, 
 who laid her little hand on her nurse's head and whis- 
 pered, — 
 
 " My good Djoolo, you must not ; you pain me. I 
 shall be stronger to-morrow," assuming the latter im- 
 puted her feebleness to sudden illness. The nurse's 
 reply was to weep more violently and cling closer to her 
 darling. Wagari now came forward, glad of an excuse 
 to leave her distant corner, and begged to be allowed to 
 repeat some tales of fiction or romance, that she hoped 
 would give a new turn to the young princess's thoughts ; 
 but the latter refused again with a peremptory shake of 
 her head and said she could not listen, it wearied her. 
 "Wagari, determined not to return to her corner, and in 
 despair, took up a fan and seating herself beside her 
 mistress moved it gently to and fro, hoping the monot- 
 onous motion and softly stirring air would induce a sen- 
 sation of drowsiness and finally bring sleep.. 
 
 Observing, at the expiration of an hour or two, that 
 there were no signs of languor creeping over the wide- 
 open lids, or of arresting the gaze of the wandering 
 pupils, she leaned forward and whispered to Djoolo to 
 call Chatra, thinking that perhaps her presence might 
 make a diversion. Chatra entered with deep concern 
 depicted upon her face, but being at a loss to know ex- 
 actly what was proper to do in such an emergency, she 
 advised a submissive cheerfulness, followed by quoting 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 127 
 
 her favorite precepts from the Koran on the duty of 
 woman. 
 
 Mattah-Djarri received the kind offices of Chatra with 
 a spiritless ghost of a laugh so unlike her own natural 
 merry ring that it caused her three attendants to start 
 and look searchingly in her face. Catching Chatra's in- 
 quiring half frightened look, she laughed again, this time 
 in a tone of compassionate derision, at herself as well as 
 at their useless ejBEorts to comfort her, and desired Chatra 
 to withdraw and not return till she asked her to do so. 
 Chatra left the chamber at once, her compassion taking 
 a much lighter character and her wonder increasing. 
 "I declare," she said to herself, as she whisked, half- 
 offended, along the corridor, " the siUy child wiU make 
 herself ill. One might suppose she was ordered to go 
 to her own funeral, instead of her wedding, and such a 
 wedding, too, as it wiU be ! " Chatra thought if Wagari 
 was in her situation and was taking on so, she would not 
 be so much surprised, but the Badan Mattah-Djarri, — 
 well she could not explain it, but she felt certain Sewa was 
 at the bottom of it, for she was sure no good could come 
 of that visit. Cogitating and grumbling to herself, 
 Chatra directed her steps towards the wing of the dalam 
 occupied by the inferior wives, hoping one of them, par- 
 ticularly Paputti, might call her in to indulge in a little 
 gossip. She felt it would do her much good to give ex- 
 pression to her convictions just now. 
 
 Djoolo followed Chatra when she left the chamber of 
 their mistress to beg her opinion of the latter's singular 
 condition, asking her if she did not think the Dukun, who 
 acted in the capacity of priest and doctor, had better be 
 sent for ? 
 
 Chatra thought it would be best to wait till morning 
 and first consult Keomah, and Djoolo returned to assist 
 
128 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 her mistress in her evening toilet. She found her un- 
 willing to rise and too much agitated to say or do any- 
 thing. The bath was omitted for the first time in her 
 life that she could remember ; the accustomed oils and 
 perfumes were also rejected as too troublesome. The 
 lamps were lighted and turned down low, the transparent 
 curtains drawn around the couch and across the windows, 
 and Djoolo curled herself upon a rug near her mistress's 
 feet to pass the night as she had done when the latter 
 was a child. Wagari settled herself comfortably on an 
 opposite divan for the same purpose, keeping her eyes 
 upon her mistress till she fell asleep. No one moved 
 or made a sound in the apartment; thus the evening 
 passed into midnight, which in time gave place to the 
 grscy dawn of another day, and almost immediately the 
 brilliant light of the medal-suria (rising of the sun) 
 flooded the rooms. 
 
 The golden splendor had little efEect upon Mattah- 
 Djarri, who had not once closed her eyes in sleep during 
 the long hours, iu truth seemed quite unconscious of the 
 passing time, and despite all the suggestions and per- 
 suasions of Djoolo and "Wagari, she refused to leave her 
 couch. Wagari unconsciously dropping into the familiar 
 intimacy of a loved companion and friend, urged her 
 again and again to rise and go out in the morning air, in 
 her palangki, or for a walk in the seclusion of the tama- 
 rind compound. 
 
 " You forget, "Wagari," answered Mattah-Djarri bitter- 
 ly, " I must not go out ; I must observe the lamar." 
 
 " Oh ! the lamar," said "Wagari, feeling ready to suffo- 
 cate in sympathetic repulsion. " The lamar for the old 
 Tumung'gung indeed ! that is too much to bear, with the 
 rest of it," alluding to the forty days of absolute seclu- 
 sion and the portentous ceremonies that closed it. 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 129 
 
 " Sudah," said Mattah-Djarri relapsing into her former 
 silence and deep thought. 
 
 Wagari said no more, hut felt she would give much to 
 know upon what the Badan Mattah-Djarri was reflecting 
 with such serious interest. She felt that if it had been 
 her case, she would have to talk, if it was only to hear 
 the sound of her own voice and try to relieve her heart 
 by making a noise of some kind. 
 
 Keomah was not ignorant of the state into which her 
 daughter had fallen, and, after passing a wretched night, 
 arose with the sun, intending to go to the Bopati, throw 
 herself at his feet, and implore him to recall his com- 
 mands. She knew that by so doing she would bring upon 
 herself his anger and perhaps his suspicions, but she 
 ceased to care. She determined to brave it. He could 
 lock her up and order her to be beaten if he chose. With 
 this purpose in her mind Keomah went first to the cham- 
 ber of Mattah-Djarri, who arose and stood upon her feet, 
 when she saw her mother enter, stiU resolved to conceal 
 her g^ief from her as much as possible. 
 
 When Keomah looked at her, she was struck with 
 alarm and astonishment at the change that had been 
 wrought in her appearance since the day before. She 
 could not define it, but there it was, transforming her 
 face, which was the same, yet not the same. Keomah 
 took her in her arms and drawing her regal head upon 
 her bosom sat down and nursed her in her lap like a small 
 child, commencing after a few moments to croon a soft 
 lullaby over her that she had sung to her when she was a 
 baby. As the sad and monotonous tones feU upon her 
 ear, Mattah-Djarri wept for the first time since her grief 
 had come upon her. Keomah paused from time to time, 
 to kiss the fair face, and offer soft and soothing words of 
 endearment, as she smoothed the glossy hair with her 
 
130 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 hand, and caressed the polished shoulders pressed against 
 her bosom. 
 
 That poor half -enlightened mother ! How her heart 
 swelled with unutterable anguish, regret, and indignation 
 over the fate of her resplendent daughter, lying in her 
 arms crushed and broken like a superb flower the morn- 
 ing following a tempest. Her mind involuntarily reverted 
 to Sewa and Josephine, dwelling upon the respectful love 
 and tenderness with which they were surrounded. She 
 remembered how Sewa's husband consulted her and was 
 influenced by her wish, and in her heart she cursed the 
 Javanese and all their arbitrary and ancient customs. For 
 the moment she hated the Bopati, and would have flown 
 at him like a tigress from the jungle and torn him into 
 shreds. The instincts of the wUd and savage mother 
 that were stirred in her bosom destroyed all fear and re- 
 straint. Her whole nature went out in one strong current 
 of protecting love towards the child in her arms. 
 
 Gently disengaging herself, she placed Mattah-Djarri 
 on the divan and started for the apartments of the Bo- 
 pati. It was early yet and she was forbidden to enter 
 there before ten o'clock in the morning, unless sent for. 
 This was a precaution adopted to prevent an embarrassed 
 meeting between any of the wives. Keomah forgot it 
 and hurried on, mentally blind in her despair and rage. 
 Sintering the first chamber, she saw no one ; passing on 
 into the second, it was also empty ; she glided throi^h it 
 into the third and private sleeping-room of her husband 
 and there on the bed fast asleep he lay, with the latest 
 and youngest wife lying wide awake by his side, afraid 
 to stir lest she might disturb him ; on a bed at the other 
 side of the room a second woman and an old favorite, 
 was also lying asleep. What passions raged and stormed 
 in Keomah's breast ! jealousy, anger, and disgust. She 
 could not tell which was the strongest. 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 131 
 
 «0 Allah I AUah!" she groaned, "is this to be 
 Mattah-Djairi's portion also, with tibie hideous, grinning, 
 toothless old Tumung'gung ? " She would prefer to see 
 her die. Strange how the scene affected her now, when 
 she had been used to it ever since her marriage; yet 
 it came upon her like a new and revolting revelation, 
 because it was associated with Mattah-Djarri, whom she 
 loved better than herself. 
 
 The girl beside the Bopati shrank closer to his side, 
 when she saw Eeomah, and looked at her in silent fear. 
 " What if she should jerk a petram (woman's dagger) 
 from her sash, and, stab me," thought she, "I should be 
 dead before the Bopati was awake," and she gave him 
 a sharp thrust with her elbow, thinking it was safer to 
 incur his displeasure than to die by Eeomah's dagger. 
 
 The Bopati, not accustomed to such ungentle caresses, 
 awoke with an indignant stare in Keomah's face. He 
 was not sure he was not dreaming, and was about to 
 spring up and thrust her out of the room, when her voice 
 arrested him. 
 
 " You are a cruel beast," she screamed, " and Mattah- 
 Djarri shall not be given to the Tumung'gfung. She 
 shall not ! she shall not ! she shall not ! " she repeated, 
 every time louder and louder, till her voice reached an 
 incoherent shriek. 
 
 The Bopati was motionless a few moments from pure 
 amazement. Becovering himself he rapidly concluded 
 Keomah had a fit of jealousy, and springing up he seized 
 her and pushed her into a closet and shut and locked the 
 door, his first care being to smother the sound of her 
 voice ; for although he was supreme master and cared for 
 no one's opinion, he did not enjoy either scandal or 
 amusement at his expense among his servants or his sec- 
 retaries. His two con^anioQS also sprang to the floor 
 
132 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 at the same moment and rushed out of the apartment, 
 making their way as quickly as possible to their own 
 rooms, where they shook themselves out and laughed and 
 enjoyed the Badan Itu's jealousy immensely. To incur 
 the jealousy of the Radan Itu was considered an honor 
 among the wives. 
 
 Keomah, whose grief and indignant temper had carried 
 her beyond all sense of propriety and control, soon ex- 
 hausted herself with inefEectual shrieks and sank gasping 
 and half fainting upon the floor of the closed closet, where 
 she remained slowly recovering herself, expecting every 
 moment that the door would open, and she would see the 
 frowning face of the Bopati ordering her off to be beaten ; 
 but she had arrived at that point where she felt indiffer- 
 ent as to what befell her, and in the excitement of her 
 overwrought feelings she even ceased to think of Mattah- 
 Djarri. The Bopati stUl remained in the apartment, 
 walking up and down, listening with a certain degree of 
 satisfaction to the tumultuous and muffled sounds issuing 
 from the hot and stifling closet. After his companions 
 had run away in such unceremonious haste, he laughed 
 to himself. He could appreciate the ludicrous as well as 
 any one, and what he considered Keomah's positive jeal- 
 ousy pleased and flattered him. It had been years since 
 she had shown anything but tranquil indifference towards 
 his many favorites. He was but man and it had often 
 piqued him. Here was a storm at last ! And as long as 
 it was not too terrific and not spread too much abroad, 
 he liked it. The idea of Mattah-Djarri's troubles being 
 the cause of it never entered his head. 
 
 Leaving Keomah to suffocate or compose herself in the 
 closet at her leisure, the Bopati went out on the side 
 veranda, to take his coffee and enjoy the fresh air of 
 the morning, experiencing a grateful sense of peace and 
 
A PUmCESS OF JAVA. 133 
 
 repose after his early excitement. ■ After the coffee, he 
 went to the bath and from thence back to the veranda 
 for another season of rest, chuckling to himself occa- 
 sionally over the discomforts of Keomah sweltering and 
 panting in the closet. At length, as the heat of midday 
 approached, he thought he would be generous and release 
 her from confinement. Going to the closet, he put his 
 hand on the key and called her name, adding that if she 
 promised to behave in future, he would graciously par- 
 don her late outburst and say no more about it. 
 
 Eeomah, expecting to be punished, disgraced, and ban- 
 ished forever from the dalam, had grown sullen and de- 
 fiant and would not answer. The Bopati repeated his 
 liberal intention, with the request for the desired prom- 
 ise, and still no answer. He unlocked the door quickly, 
 startled by the suspicion that his wife had smothered to 
 death indeed. When the door opened, Keomah, though 
 weak and faint, managed to step out boldly and confront 
 him, but uttered not a word. Looking at her sternly 
 from head to foot for a moment, the Bopati said, — 
 
 " Keomah, your jealousy deserves severe reproof, but 
 you may go this time ; only beware how you repeat the 
 conduct of this morning. You will not find me again 
 so forbearing." 
 
 Keomah inunediately perceiving his mistake, cunningly 
 decided to take advantage of it, and bending her head, 
 she thanked him and turning quickly left the room, 
 scarcely knowing whether to believe in her good luck or 
 not. She did not go, as might be expected, to Mattah- 
 Djarri, to ascertain how she felt or what was her condi- 
 tion by this time, but went instead to her own rooms, 
 where she ordered cofEee and food and reflected long and 
 bitterly over her fruitless attempt with the Bopati, both 
 glad and sorry it had turned out as it did. She felt it 
 
184 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 was better so than to'have been rightly understood. In 
 cahner moments she saw no good could have come from 
 the latter event, but much harm to herself, and perhaps 
 to her daughter, upon whom the Bopad, doubtless, would 
 have visited his wrath ; for nothing enraged him so much 
 as contradiction or opposition to his will. 
 
CHAPTER XVn. 
 
 The wretchedness and despair that had taken pos- 
 session of Mattah-Djarri was indescrihable. It affected 
 every nerve in her body. A dull passiveness pervaded 
 her whole physical being, producing an overpowering dis- 
 inclination to move, yet her mind had never been so ac- 
 tive. A multitq^e of new ideas, thoughts, and plans 
 flashed through her brain in disconnected confusion, but 
 as the hours passed they assumed a more tangible shape 
 and began to arrange themselves in regular order. A 
 new force had arisen within her, of which she had never 
 before been conscious. 
 
 Nature began to speak with a voice that would be 
 heard. Her own individualily asserted itself. She be- 
 gan to understand what Sewa meant when she had said 
 one day, " Our own innate consciousness will always di- 
 rect us in what is right for us, if we will allow it to do 
 BO." This faint glimmer of a new dawn in her mental 
 existence agitated her, surprised her, and introduced into 
 her mind forbidden resolves and suggestions which fright- 
 ened her. She seemed to have stepped out of the dark- 
 ness into light ; from internal oppressive bondage into 
 expansive liberty which branched off in forbidden paiths 
 in all directions. She felt she belonged to herself ; her 
 instincts pointed out in a dim and nojsty way the path 
 which was holiness, purity, and truth for every woman- 
 It elevated her and she encouraged it and rejoiced in it, 
 believing she was beginning to think and feel like Jose- 
 phine. She determined to encourage this belief and fol- 
 
186 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 low it, but there was so much darkness and inexperience 
 about it, through which she had to grope her way with- 
 out a guide, that it quite bewildered her. 
 
 One point, however, she had fixed in her mind. She 
 would be true to the instincts of her own soul, and pray 
 and trust to Allah. So she began to arrange her plan of 
 action around this one central pivot. She felt it was an 
 anchor that would float her bark tUl clearer skies .beck- 
 oned her onward. But alas ! these new lights and new 
 resolutions, born of the truth and purity of her own be- 
 ing, could not bring back the bright and pleasant antici- 
 pations that had so largely occupied her mind in regard 
 to the probabilities and possibilities of her own future ; in 
 which she had dreamed her dreams and built her castles 
 up to the very day before she had first seen Josephjne, 
 the day on which Keomah had come to tell her th^A her 
 future was disposed of and then hurried her o£E to make 
 the visit to Sewa and her cousin, — since which brief and 
 delightful intercourse with the latter she had seemed to 
 see everything differently. She remembered Josephine's 
 determination to disobey her father and not discard the 
 lover, whoever he was, whom her heart had chosen ; and 
 although she shuddered under the fear of the Bopati's 
 anger, she determined, also, she would not accept the man 
 against whom her heart revolted. She recalled her high- 
 flown advice to Josephine regarding the obedience and 
 respect due to the Petri or the head of the family, and 
 laughed in bitter scorn of her own inconsistency, sighing 
 for her former hopeful uncertainty, comparing it with 
 the dread and despair of the present detestable reality 
 by which it had been replaced. 
 
 The Tumimg'gung, his wrinkles, his crooked nose, his 
 little, sharp blinking eyes, his claw-like hands and squat 
 figure, shaky and shrunken with sensuous indulgence and 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 137 
 
 age, stood out before her in such strong and repulsive 
 coloring, that it encouraged this decision and made her 
 inwardly determined to die rather than permit him to lay 
 his hands upon her in the right of proprietorship. She 
 decided, however, to keep her convictions and resolves to 
 herself for the present : not to Keomah, or even to War 
 gari, to whom she could trust everything, would she 
 reveal the depth and intensity of her dislike. She was 
 impelled to this by two reasons : first, she would not add 
 to Keomah's distress ; second, she would not make a con- 
 fidant of Wagari in regard to her new views and resolu- 
 tions until she had decided upon some definite plan for 
 herself. Strange course of reasoning for a Javanese girl ! 
 Unheard-of possibilities of escape presented themselves 
 to her mind, but as yet she would not discuss them. 
 
 Pictures of the Patch in his glowing youth and beauty 
 constantly passed before her vision, increasing her re- 
 pugnance for the Tumung'gung to positive hatred, and 
 bringing again the pleasing hope that the former might 
 rescue her before it was too late. She thought surely he 
 had heard of the Princess Barabatah and the Bada^ Ada- 
 wara ; and if he remembered her with anything like ad- 
 miration or regard, a similar course must suggest itself 
 to him. The vague supposition brought a blush to her 
 face, and caused her to close her eyes in silent pleasure, 
 while she wondered how she could make known to him 
 the fate that awaited her. 
 
 Another question came up for answer. The Patch's 
 rank was below that of both the Bopati and the Tumung'- 
 gung. She knew his father lived and held the higher 
 title. Would the young Patch dare come forward to her 
 relief and thus defy the two older nobles and their su- 
 perior power? From these conjectures Mattah-Djarri's 
 mind drifted again to the hideous Tumung'gung, and she 
 
138 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 began to calculate how long he would be likely to live, 
 and felt a joy in the thought, that if she became his wife 
 nature must set her free before many years. Then how 
 many wives did he really possess, and were they nearly 
 all fat and ugly like those of the Bopati, eating, sleeping, 
 tittering, and bickering all the time over their jealousies 
 and their children ? Would she have to worry about the 
 latter, and treat them with kindness as Keomah did, be- 
 cause her husband was their father ? Oh ! how she began 
 to detest lite in a dalam, and the Tumung'gung of Nara- 
 wadi, his wives, and their children worse than all. How 
 willingly they might have him and keep him forever, if 
 she was the Badan Itu ! She determined not to be kind 
 and gentle, like Keomah. Then she laughed a bitter, 
 mocking laugh, as she remembered she had determined 
 not to be the Radan Itu at all, and clinched her small, 
 firm hand in angry defiance, resolving never to look at 
 the paning'sat (presents of the bridegroom and his friends 
 to the bride), the cordial reception of which is supposed 
 to indicate the delight of the bride-elect in her new pros- 
 pects. 
 
CHAPTER rvin. 
 
 Such was the state of affairs with Keomah and Mat- 
 tah-Djam the day on which the party of Enropeans 
 arrived at the dalam. An occasion of so much impor- 
 tance at any previous time in Mattah-Djarri's life would 
 have aroused in her bosom the most lively feelings of in- 
 terest and curiosity. As it was, when Wagari in much 
 excitement informed her of the great event, she did not 
 even reply ; and the next morning when the former came 
 hastily and begged her to go with her out on the veranda 
 to look through the lattice at the guests walking and talk- 
 ing together in the alun-alun, she declined, and refused 
 even to move sufficiently to see them through her own 
 window. Wagari went without her to the veranda, de- 
 voutly wishing something would happen to bring her 
 mistress back to life. 
 
 After watching the strangers for some time, and trying 
 to understand a word or two of the various remarks that 
 occasionally reached her ears, Wagari noticed the strik- 
 ing form of the young Pateh descend the steps from the 
 lawang seketing and join a group of two or three of the 
 guests standing under the waringin trees, one of whom 
 she recognized as the young European who had shown 
 such a desire to look at her mistress when they went for 
 a drive during their late visit. 
 
 " Ah ! this is quite providential," she murmured, fly- 
 ing back to Mattah-Djarri to acquaint her with these new 
 additions, and this time with success. She was gratified 
 to see her mistress rise with a faint glow of interest on 
 
140 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 her face, go with her to the veranda, and carefully survey 
 the whole party, especially the Pateh. 
 
 " They are all handsome," remarked Wagari in a sort 
 of explanatory answer to her scrutiny, " but the Pateh 
 and that young European with the blue eyes and light 
 waving hair are superbly so. Look at them, most noble 
 princess, as they walk towards the front together." 
 
 "I see them," answered Mattah-Djarri with a sigh. 
 " Sarjio, the Pateh, is most noble and dignified looking." 
 And she asked herself, " Why, oh! why had not the Bopati 
 chosen him for her husband ? " How happily she would 
 then have received the paning'sat, cherished it, rejoiced 
 over it, had it come from him or his ! 
 
 " Think you not, my exalted mistress, that the Pateh 
 b the most distinguished looking among all those stran- 
 gers ? " asked Wagari, trying to draw her mistress into 
 conversation. 
 
 " He is truly that, Wagari," replied Mattah-Djarri. 
 
 " And his rich costume," pursued Wagari ; " it glitters 
 in the sun as if it were all gold and precious stones. Do 
 you notice it, my mistress ? " 
 
 " I admire it vastly," answered the princess. " But, 
 Wagari, do you notice that stranger with the fair, sunny 
 face, coming back to the waringin trees with the Pateh ? " 
 
 " Yes, dear princess," answered Wagari, with pity in 
 her tones, as she remembered she had just called her 
 mistress's attention to him, which she had evidently not 
 heard ; and she continued, " He is a very handsome man, 
 too, but so different from the Pateh. Look what an air 
 he has. I should think Miss Bardwell would admire 
 him, and they must know much in common ; they have 
 both been educated in Europe." 
 
 Mattah-Djarri made no further response to Wagari's 
 comments for some time, but gazed in silence at the ani- 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 141 
 
 mated groups before her, who were excitedly discussing 
 their intentions for the disposal of the day. 
 
 In the mean time Wagari contuiued to make all kinds of 
 comments on the guests, going from one to another, trying 
 in vain to interest her mistress's thoughts in matters which 
 her own experience informed her generally possessed 
 the greatest attraction for young girls. Wagari's thought- 
 ful efforts were fruitless. Mattah-Djarri could think of 
 little else than the great trouble that beset her, and the 
 presence -oi the Pateh increased the pain. She failed to 
 notice Wagari's involuntary insistence and familiarity. 
 In truth the two girls had forgotten their relative posi- 
 tions and were no longer mistress and maid, but friends 
 and companions. Wagari was so engrossed in Mattah- 
 Djarri's grief and so indignant towards the Tmnung'gung 
 that she was willing to run any risk to defeat him, inde- 
 pendent of her ardent desire to help and save her beauti- 
 ful mistress from a marriage that could only bring her 
 the deepest wretchedness. 
 
 Wagfari, receiving no encouragement to talk, gradually 
 relapsed into silence as she stood beside the princess 
 gazing on the party without. Mattah-Djarri seemed lost 
 in reflection, while her eyes dwelt abstractedly, first on 
 the European, then on the Patch, and back to the Euro- 
 pean, each time her interest increasing. At last they 
 rested steadily on the latter till he passed with the others 
 beyond the entrance of the alun-alun and out of sight. 
 Then she turned thoughtfully from the lattice and walked 
 back to her couch, lying down again in the same listless 
 mechanical position as before. Wagari followed close 
 behind her, hoping and waiting for her to speak and 
 express an opinion of the scene they had just witnessed. 
 Mattah-Djarri, however, maintained a profound silence 
 throughout the day, appearing quite unconscious of aU 
 
142 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 around her, except when Keomah came to ask how shd 
 felt, which question she merely answered and said no 
 more. 
 
 Keomah passed her hand caressingly over her forehead 
 several times, but as there was no responsive return from 
 her apparently half-stunned daughter, beyond looking 
 wearily up at her face, she understood the latter wished 
 to be alone and undisturbed, and left her, knowing there 
 are times when the Ughtest touch, word, or whisper falls 
 on the overstrung or unhinged nerves of human nature 
 with a crushing and almost insupportable force, and the 
 greatest boon that can be bestowed is to leave the un- 
 happy sufferer alone. 
 
 Wagari loitered still in the room and about her mistress 
 after Keomah went out, tormenting }\pr mind in conjec- 
 tures as to the direction in which her thoughts were travel- 
 ing. She hoped she was making up her mind to refuse 
 to be married to the Tumung'gung, and she inwardly re- 
 solved that if such were the case she woidd cling to her 
 and aid her to the very death. Her scorn for the licen- 
 tious old reprobate increased every hour, and she longed 
 to indulge in some flagrant act against him. She gave 
 no thought to consequences, although she knew that the 
 old noble could sweep her out of existence by a word. 
 She longed for the time when Sewa and her daughter 
 must arrive. She felt sure they could suggest sometMng 
 that would assist or relieve them. These cogitations in- 
 spired her with a hopeful courage, and she declared to 
 Mattah-Djarri that she had an impression or presenti- 
 ment that her troubles would yet turn out well ; like all 
 Javanese, she believed fuUy in that strange intuition or 
 intelligence which often comes upon us, we cannot tell 
 whence or from whom, and seems to give us silent and 
 mysterious warning of what we may expect. 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 143 
 
 Ferceiving her mistress wished to be alone and that 
 her presence -was unnecessary, Wagari went out on one 
 of the verandas, to get a change of air, where she met 
 Chatra. 
 
 " Don't you think the Radan Mattah-Djarri is in a very 
 critical state and that she may die ? " she asked of her. 
 
 " It could be possible," replied Chatra ; " does she eat 
 anything ? " 
 
 " Nothing," said "Wagari. " She appears to think all the 
 time. I wonder what about ! " 
 
 " I hope she is not meditating mischief," replied Chatra, 
 " or revolving new ideafi from that Sewa. All this trouble 
 comes from listening to her." 
 
 "Listening to Sewa," repeated Wagari in surprise. 
 "Why, what do you mean, Chatra? Sewa can have 
 nothing to do with her marriage to the Tumung'gung." 
 
 " No, certainly not," replied Chatoa ; " but she has no 
 doubt picked up heathen notions about young girls marry- 
 ing whom they like best, and especially about marrying 
 young girls to young men. I heard old Mattah say so. 
 What objection could a reasonable princess have to be- 
 coming the Badan Itu of the rich Tumung'gung of Nara- 
 wadi ? Humph ! " and Chatra looked disdainfully around 
 to be sure no one was likely to hear her. " That is what 
 she can learn from Sewa." 
 
 " If that is all," returned Wagari, " I hope with all my 
 life she may profit by the lesson, and I wiU do all I can 
 to assist her." 
 
 " You, Wagari," said Chatra, looking at her contemp- 
 tuously ; " I advise you not to ruin yourself. You would 
 find it difficult to escape the wrath of the Bopati or 
 Tumung'gung, and you know what follows," looking at 
 her younger relative significantly. 
 
 " I know what you mean," said Wagari, replying to 
 
144 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 Chatra's suggestive glance ; " but I ■will take tiie risk, if 
 my assistance is needed," and she looked so calm and 
 determined about it that Chatra thought no doubt she 
 would. 
 
 At this juncture their conversation was cut short by an 
 exclamation from Wagari, who looked suddenly up and 
 saw a procession of some kind entering the alun-alun, and 
 hastily rushed off again to beg her mistress to come out 
 and see it, as well as to ascertain herseU who or what it 
 was. 
 
 " No doubt it is some Pandita (learned or holy man) 
 or a distinguished Pang'gawa (minister of state) with his 
 retinue," concluded Wagari, after describing to Mattah- 
 Djarri as much as she had seen of the approaching cor- 
 tege. At first Mattah-Djarri refused, as before, to leave 
 her couch, but under the pressure of Wagari's persuasions 
 she at last consented, and arose, saying, — 
 
 " Since you so earnestly desire it, my good "Wagari, I 
 win go to the lawang wadon (women's veranda) and look 
 upon this wonderful cavalcade. For myself, I have no 
 curiosity. Indeed I feel as if I could not walk or see 
 either, for that matter, and you must support me." 
 
 Wagari instantly threw her arm around the slight figure 
 and almost carried her along in her delight that she had 
 consented to go at aU. By the time that they were both 
 seated behind the lattice where they could see without 
 being seen, according to the habit of weU-bom women, 
 the procession had reached the waringin trees and was 
 about to halt. First came a black and white spotted 
 kuda basar (horse of the largest size) on which some one 
 sat, both horse and rider covered with brilliant tapestries 
 and hangings of green and gold embroidered cloth, with 
 two men in similar colors walking on one side of the 
 horse, holding high above the head of the rider an enor- 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 145 
 
 mous green payruig (umbrella) with a border of deep 
 gold fringe which quite concealed the head and shoulders 
 of the great personage it protected. On the other side 
 of the horse were two. other attendants who carefully 
 watched the face of the rider. A dozen or more horse- 
 men, attired in green, followed on the jaran jaran (the 
 ponies of the country), each attended by a servant who 
 walked beside his horse. Behind these a number of men 
 walked slowly and sedately three abreast, each carry- 
 ing a spear in one hand and a broad chapimg in the 
 other ; their heads were covered with the bright ikat 
 which is always worn. " It is some one of exalted 
 rank," said Wagari, noticing the abtmdance of green 
 color. 
 
 The first rider very slowly approached the flight of 
 steps leading up to the lawang seketing, where his attend- 
 ants checked his horse, at which moment the followers on 
 foot instantly dropped on their heels or sat down on the 
 back of their feet, — a position called the dadok and simi- 
 lar to squatting. The horsemen dismounted at the same 
 instant and stood motionless beside their beasts, waiting 
 for their master to signify his intention of alighting, 
 which he did by an upward motion of the hand. Observ- 
 ing this, they gravely walked forward and arranged them- 
 selves around his horse, while the two attendants not 
 occupied by the care of the payung assisted him to the 
 ground, the payung bearers carefully keeping him in the 
 shade. The other attendants watched, in the mean time, 
 for his feet to touch the pebbles, at which instant they 
 all bowed their heads, and those in the dadok reverently 
 bent forward and touched the ground with their fore- 
 heads. 
 
 " Can you see who it is, Wagari ? " asked Mattah- 
 Djarri, who could not see the face of the head of the pro- 
 
146 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 cession, on account of the intervening payting. "He 
 appears to dismount with difficulty." 
 
 " I cannot distinguish him yet," answered Wagari ; 
 "but there comes the Bopati on the lawang seketing. 
 The stranger will turn around now and ascend the steps." 
 
 As the visitor mounted the steps, he threw off the 
 brilliant scarf that hung dovm over his head and shoul- 
 ders, disclosing a hideous old brown, dried-up face and 
 toothless mouth, in his attempt to smilingly greet his host. 
 Mattah-Djarri started as if stung by a viper and uttered 
 a little scream, and Wagari simultaneously ejaculated, 
 " Gusti ngulati kiai Tumung'gung ! " (God, or the Lord, 
 behold the old Tumung'gung !) 
 
 For a few moments the two girls, who had both risen 
 to their feet, stood transfixed. Then Wagari turned to 
 her mistress, who had grasped the lattice to support her- 
 seK, and continued, her face deadly pale, staring at the old 
 man now slowly seating himself on the lawang seketing, 
 while the officers and attendants belonging to the dalam 
 were hurriedly coming forward to do him honor. 
 
 " Assist me, Wagari," said Maitah-Djarri, turning her 
 ghastly face towards the latter and reaching out her hands ; 
 " I will return." Wagari sprang forward and quite took 
 her misti'ess in her arms this time, and carried her back 
 to her divan, saying, — 
 
 " Forgive me, my dear mistress. I thought it might 
 be a Ratu (king) or perhaps a Bramana (holy man from 
 the opposite coast), at least, and that the sight would 
 divert your mind." 
 
 Wagari vprung her hands in regret over the mistake 
 she had made, and in her heart wished all manner of 
 accident and misfortune might befall the venerable noble 
 on his way back to his own province. 
 
 It was not long before Eeomah entered the princess's 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 147 
 
 apartments, her face wearing an unhappy, troubled ex- 
 pression. She looked anxiously at her daughter, before 
 speaking or seating herself, and then hesitated as if in 
 doubt whether to proceed or not. Wagari, who was look- 
 ing at her, felt her heart beat faster. She was certain 
 something very disagreeable to her mistress was coming ; 
 but Mattah-Djarri, observing her mother's disturbed man- 
 ner, did not wait for her to speak, and simply said, look- 
 ing at her, " Yes, I know, I will go," and began to rise. 
 
 " Can you sustain yourself through it, my child ? " 
 asked Keomah in sorrowful tones, while an expression of 
 great relief came over her face. 
 
 " I wiU try to do so," said Mattah-Djarri in a resolute 
 way, standing up and shaking down her long hair, and 
 suddenly appearing taller and more determined to the 
 eyes of Keomah and Wagari than ever before. They 
 both regarded her with surprise as she desired Wagari, 
 in a firm and composed manner, to summon Djoolo to 
 aid her in arranging her costume. 
 
 " You will go with me, O Keomah ? " she added, look- 
 ing at her mother and addressing her by name, in the 
 style of the East, which she had not done for a long 
 time. 
 
 In a short time Mattah-Djarri was arrayed in a magnif- 
 icent dress, and preceded by an attendant walked be- 
 side Keomah, with Chatra and Wagari behind them, into 
 the presence of the Bopati and the Tumung'gung, who 
 were both reclining on divans in the former's private 
 veranda. When Keomah paused before Uie Bopati, he 
 arose and with much ceremony presented her and her 
 daughter to the grinning old man beside him. 
 
 The Timiung'gung's puerile love and impatience had 
 impelled him to come at the commencement of the lamar, 
 as was sometimes the custom among the nobility, to see 
 
148 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 and speak with his bride elect once before marriage, and 
 make this an excuse for an opportunity to feast his eyes 
 upon her extreme youth and beauty ; and then return to 
 fortify himself with a long rest, by the observance of the 
 lamar, for the important ceremonies of marriage and festi- 
 val afterwards. During the lamar, custom requires the 
 bride and bridegroom to maintain a strict seclusion 
 within their dwellings, till the period is closed by the 
 ceremony of marriage. This observance, however, is 
 only practiced in marriage with the Badan Itu : the suc- 
 ceeding wives are taken without ceremony and dismissed 
 at will, by simply obtaining a written permission from 
 the priest, which is never refused. 
 
 When the Bopati presented Mattah-Djarri to the Tu- 
 mung'gung he affected the agility of youth and sprang to 
 his feet in delighted astonishment, stretching out both 
 his hands towards the vision of freshness and rare beauty 
 that stood pale and trembling before him ; for according 
 to Javanese etiquette he was not permitted to touch her 
 in any other form of greeting before she was his wife. 
 
 Once she raised her eyes and looked at him with an 
 expression of loathing and contempt so strongly depicted 
 in her glance, that the old man dropped his hands and 
 gazed on her an instant in amazement. Such an expe- 
 rience had never been his before. Such contempt and 
 hate as he saw in that glance and from a young thing 
 like this ! He thought he must surely be mistaken, and 
 rubbed his little, red, half-blind eyes, and looked again. 
 But this time the heavy lids drooped, and the long fringes 
 concealed the brilliant orbs from view. 
 
 " What a hideous skeleton he is, to be sure," was Wa- 
 gari's mental comment, as she cast a furtive glance in his 
 direction, " and how disagreeably he looks at the Radan 
 ajeng," she thought as she stole another look and saw 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 149 
 
 him nodding and grinning to himself, in pleased satisfac- 
 tion, while he ran his eyes in a deliberate, estimating way 
 over the figure of her mistress, muttering, " She 'U do, 
 she 'U do ; " and with one nod, more emphatic than the 
 rest, closed the inspection by abruptiy demanding of the 
 Bopati why it was that the teeth of the young Eadan 
 Mattah-Djarri were not curved and blackened by this 
 time by the usual process of file and siri. The Bopati 
 explained it, as before described, in a few words, and 
 looked darkly at Keomah. 
 
 At this the old Tumung'g^ng bristled up somewhat 
 indignantly, and declared it must be done as soon as 
 possible, *' For," said he, appealing to the Bopati's sense 
 of propriety, "how could I conduct my wife into the 
 presence of our sublime Susuhunan with white teeth, 
 proving that one of our ancient and important rites had 
 been neglected ? " 
 
 " How could you indeed, O Tumung'gung ! " echoed the 
 Bopati, seeing the impossibility, and, for the first time, 
 the great mistake on his part ; " and it must be done yet, 
 and shall be done immediately," he added, fixing a stem 
 look on the two women standing mute and motionless. 
 
 When Mattah-Djarri heard the Bopati's last remark, 
 the blood rushed into her face, staining it a deep crim- 
 son, and as suddenly receding, left it the hue of death. 
 Both the old men noticed it, but neither of them consid- 
 ered these evidences of fear or emotion of any impor- 
 tance. The Tumung'gung grunted out his approbation of 
 the Bopati's remark and the four women were dismissed. 
 
 Wagari drew a long breath as they turned to depart, 
 and invohmtarily placed herself, as well as she could, be- 
 tween her mistress and the amorous gaze of her old lover 
 as they moved away, instinctively feeling she must pro- 
 tect her, witiiout knowing why. 
 
160 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 Chatra was not unobservant of Wagari's manoeavre 
 and felt thoroughly disgusted with her boldness, which 
 she expressed by giving sundry sly but rough jerks and 
 pokes to the back drapery of the latter's kaybaya, intend- 
 ing to convey both warning and reproof, and inform her 
 that it was her place to fall a little in the rear. Wagari 
 understood the admonition but gave no heed to it till 
 they had gotten entirely clear of the Bopati's apartments 
 and out of sight of both him and the Tumung'gung, when 
 she dropped quickly back beside Chatra, and seizing the 
 flesh on the upper part of the latter's arm with her 
 thimib and finger, pinched it as they walked, till Chatra 
 writhed with pain, though she did not dare utter a sound. 
 After an instant or two of this affectionate demonstration 
 on Wagari's part, she suddenly loosed her pincer-Uke 
 grip and resumed her place beside her mistress, while 
 Chatra covered the wound with her other hand and 
 looked death and vengeance at the back of her daring 
 assaulter. 
 
CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 Late in the afternoon of the same day Wagari made 
 another attempt to draw the princess from her abstracted 
 state of mind, by asking permission to relate some tales 
 of fiction, or read to her stories of travel or romance, as 
 had been her custom tUl within the last few days. Her 
 mistress objected, as before, to being disturbed, but when 
 Wagari gently insisted, respectfully reminding her that 
 her health must soon give way under this continual ab- 
 sorption of mind and inactivity of body, and mentioned 
 some interesting experiences of her own adventures, when 
 accompanying the Nonyah blanda (European lady) who 
 had formerly employed her, Mattah-Djarri half rose and 
 looked at her with a face full of a new interest and asked 
 her if the foreign lady had visited the Guwa Upas (val- 
 ley of poison), and if she had accompanied her. Wagari, 
 greatly pleased with these favorable signs, eagerly replied 
 in the affirmative, adding that the Tuan blanda, the hus- 
 band of the lady, accompanied them and made what he 
 termed " most valuable scientific investigations," discover- 
 ing the true source and nature of the poison that ren- 
 dered the valley so fatal to all life ; and that he had also 
 examined the ruins of the ancient Hindu temples scat- 
 tered over the chain of hills and moimtains encircling it, 
 and had collected many small specimens of the antique 
 architecture to carry away with him, as well as important 
 data in reference to the period in which they were con- 
 structed and by whom. 
 
152 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 " Tou interest me greatly, "Wagari," replied her mis- 
 tress, " and now tell me all you know about the Guwa 
 Upas ; but remember you must tell me the exact truth 
 this time, no romancing," and she looked impressively at 
 her attendant. 
 
 " I wiU be careful to relate only what I have actually 
 seen myself and heard from the Tuan, noble princess," 
 said Wagari, wondering what could induce her mistress 
 to wish to hear nothing but solemn facts about the ordi- 
 nary Guwa Upas, and particularly at such a crisis as the 
 present, when one would naturally suppose a few flights 
 of the imagination would be much more engrossing. 
 
 With such thoughts in her mind she rearranged her 
 mistress's cushions and otherwise made her as comfort- 
 able as possible, before pushing a footstool forward for 
 her own feet, preparatory to settling herself in the easy, 
 indolent attitude she always assumed when about to 
 commence one of her narratives. With one hand lying 
 carelessly clasping the other in her lap, Wagari fixed her 
 eyes on her mistress and waited, while she watched her 
 with pleasure readjust her pillows with her own hand, 
 to raise her head a trifle higher, then turn her face to- 
 ward her and slip one litlle pink palm under her cheek, 
 and say, as she looked at her with the interested expres- 
 sion of former days, " Now, Wagari, commence. What 
 said the strange travelers about the valley of poison? 
 But first of all, tell me exactly where it is." 
 
 " The Guwa Upas," replied Wagari, " is a broad, flat, 
 sandy plain, situated among the many peaks and eleva- 
 tions of different heights, composing the groups in the 
 range of mountains near the southwest coast, known as 
 the Guning Deing (Deing Mountains). It is nothing 
 but a desolate, deserted waste of sand, proved by investi- 
 gation to be the crater of an extinct volcano, and cannot 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 153 
 
 lay just claim to the title of vaUey. A chain of low hiUs 
 covered with bright, green grass, rising abruptly from the 
 sand, surrounds the plain. We walked over the sides or 
 tops of these hiUs, and looked all over the dreary waste, 
 which is said to be about twenty mUes in length and from 
 one half to two thirds that distance in width." 
 
 " And there is nothing growing upon this waste, I sup- 
 pose, " remarked Mattah-Djarri. 
 
 " Nothing," said Wagari. " Nothing that belongs to 
 animal or vegetable life can exist on the plain, but for a 
 very short time. Its whole surface is dotted with the 
 bones and carcasses of birds and animals in every stage 
 of decomposition. The animals from the surrounding 
 mountains and hills rush down the slopes and start 
 across the plaui, where they soon begin to stagger, and 
 not knowing life and safety lie behind them, make every 
 effort to go forward, tiU they fall and die. The birds 
 sail over from the surrounding heights and keep on their 
 way to the opposite side, and unless they fly unusually 
 high, they also drop npion the weU-covered sand and rise 
 no more. Therefore the struggling, the dying, the dead, 
 and the white bleached and crumbling bones are strewn 
 side by side, over the fatal plain, in the utmost confu- 
 sion." 
 
 " How wonderful and dreadful," said Mattah-Djarri 
 with a shudder and looking a little frightened ; " but what 
 causes the terrible fatality ? " she asked, her eyes grow- 
 ing more grave and thoughtful as they rested anxiously 
 on her attendant's face. 
 
 " The Tuan blanda was deeply interested in what he 
 called this phenomenon," answered Wagari, " and insisted 
 on remaining several days on the hills to investigate 
 it. During this time we lived in a cell of the ancient 
 Chandi Hindu (Hindu temples) which had been occu- 
 
154 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 pied for many years by a recluse, who had gone away 
 not long before, leaving his small conveniencies behind 
 him. The Tuan engaged a man from one of the many 
 kampongs in the neighborhood to bring us our food. 
 The Nonyah was delighted with this novel life, although 
 dreadfully afraid of serpents. But to return to the Tuan. 
 When his experiments were concluded he said the porous 
 plain or bottom of the old crater exhaled large quanti- 
 ties of carbonic acid ; hence the complete extinction of 
 every hving thing that absorbs or inhales the poisonous 
 atmosphere above it. He thought these exhalations or 
 emanations were in some way connected with the gas 
 fountains or holy fires of Melati Derwat. The yellow 
 brown hue of the Guwa Upas strewn with the ghastly 
 remains of its victims, and the oppressive silence that 
 pervades it, with the hot air quivering under the fierce^ 
 glare of the burning sun, strike one with forbidding ter- 
 ror and make a gloomy contrast with the green and 
 •vigorous foliage covering the encircling hills." 
 
 " Chatra read me a fable not long ago," said Mattah- 
 Djarri, " which was once circulated by an imaginative 
 traveler, wherein he describes the Guwa Upas, and at- 
 tributes the deadly vapor to the exhalations of the upas 
 tree growing by a stream of water in its centre. Crimi- 
 nals sentenced to death were given the choice of imme- 
 diate execution or of making a journey to the poison 
 upas growing by the stream, to procure some of its bark 
 and leaves and a certain quantity of its sap. If they 
 were fortunate enough to secure these testimonials and 
 return, they were declared to have been especially pro- 
 tected by Heaven, and ever after lived at the expense of 
 our great Susuhunan. Hundreds, said he, were sent on 
 this perilous expedition every year, but few returned." 
 
 " I have also read that romantic story, but there was 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 155 
 
 more," returned Wagari ; " shall I repeat it, most noble 
 princess ? " 
 
 Mattah-Djarri having signified her desire to hear the 
 remainder, Wagari described the house of a dulcun or 
 priest, who lived on the highest summit among the hiUs 
 surrounding the vale of poison, to which, she said, the 
 criminal was accompanied by his relatives the night 
 before the fatal journey, and where he remained till 
 morning, receiving the offices of the holy man, who re- 
 mained close by his side tiU sunrise. Then he furnished 
 the doomed traveler with a pair of leather gloves with 
 which to take hold of the deadly foliage, a cup to re- 
 ceive the milky fluid of the upas, and a leathern mask to 
 cover his head and neck having a strip of glass in front 
 to see through ; after which a solemn blessing was pro- 
 noimced over him, the last embraces of friends and relar 
 tives received, and the criminal descended the hUl and 
 struck out upon the plain. They watched him out of 
 sight, and it was very seldom that he was ever seen 
 again. 
 
 "A thrilling picture," said Mattah-Djarri; "I had 
 forgotten that part of it. But it has been proved, has it 
 not, Wagari, that the upas is not poisonous to anything 
 surrounding it ? " 
 
 " Most assuredly, beloved princess," said Wagari. " It 
 grows in our forests often covered with vines and other 
 forms of vegetable life, which receive nothing detrimental 
 from it ; but the mUk, if swallowed or introduced into 
 the blood, is allowed to be certain death. That reminds 
 me that I saw Schagga yesterday, dipping the points of a 
 number of knives, spears, and krises in its gummy sap. 
 He told me they were for the use of the European guests, 
 who had lately arrived, and accepted the Bopati's hospi- 
 tality. He said they would remain a week, perhaps, in 
 
156 A PRINCESS OF JA VA. 
 
 the dalam, during which time they intended to make 
 some hunting excursions in the neighborhood." 
 
 When Wagari ceased speaking, she was disappointed 
 to find her mistress showed no signs of interest in her 
 mention of the guests, which she had adroitly brought in 
 on purpose, and was greatly surprised to see her suddenly 
 sit up and ask her how far the Guwa Upas was from the 
 kampong Kali Chandi. 
 
 " Not very far," replied Wagari ; " I think a tukang 
 pos (letter carrier) could reach it in less than a day." 
 
 " What direction would you take to go to it from Kali 
 Chandi ? " said Mattah-Djarri, fixing a keen look on 
 Wagari, whom she supposed knew everything. 
 
 " There is the Guning Deing," replied Wagari, point- 
 ing through the window towards the coast to a lengthened 
 and bristling chain of peaks, that stretched away in the 
 west, and in general outline resembled the shape of a 
 prahu (boat), and therefore often received the name of 
 the Gumng Prahu. 
 
 " Ah ! yes," said Mattah-Djarri, her eyes following the 
 direction indicated by Wagari, " I have often looked at 
 those five highest cones standing out so sharp and clear 
 against the brilliant sunset, from the bottom of the orange 
 grove, and wondered what was beyond their misty heights. 
 Are the inhabitants of the kampongs around about the 
 Guwa Upas bright and intelligent?" asked Mattah- 
 Djarri, returning to the subject, " or are they stupid and 
 wondering as the Guning people sometimes are ? " 
 
 "They resemble the inhabitants of the Teng'gers, I 
 think," answered Wagari, her astonishment increasing 
 every minute. "In some cases indifferent, in others, 
 bright, alert, and comprehending." 
 
 " I should think the wind sweeping over the plain 
 would carry the noxious gases among them and become 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 157 
 
 exceedingly dangerous. How is that, Wagari?" said 
 Mattah-Djarri. 
 
 " I don't know how that is," replied Wagari, " but I 
 believe there are no kampongs or huts on the hiUsides 
 that slope toward the plain. They generally commence 
 near the top on the opposite side and spreading down- 
 ward are therefore protected." 
 
 Wagari was stiU further amazed to see her mistress 
 relapse into silence and again sink back on her cushions, 
 from which she had partly risen, remaining motionless for 
 a time ; then arousing herself, once more ask her about 
 the ruins of the old Hindu temples that are still scattered 
 over the Guning Deing, resembling crumbling villages of 
 broken columns, reclining idols, and haJf-buried monu- 
 ments, furnishing abundant evidence of the stupendous 
 temples that once covered their heights. 
 
 " I regret, dear princess, that I know but very little 
 about these wonderful antiquities," said Wagari in answer 
 to the princess's question, " beyond what I saw, and the 
 fact that they abound in every direction in those localities, 
 and certainly prove that there was a period of grandeur 
 and magnificence in art enjoyed by a far remote and 
 ancient people, which seems incredulous at the present 
 time. The Tuan blanda was lost in amazement when he 
 saw them. He said, the boldness and dehcacy of their 
 conception and execution, with the symmetry and regu- 
 larity of their desigfn and proportion, and the number and 
 beauty of their statues and bas-reliefs was too astonishing 
 and wonderful to be believed by those who had not seen 
 them. They appeared to me to be quite like those we 
 had visited at Brambanan, though he considered them 
 much more curious." 
 
 "Where is Brambanan, Wagari?" asked Mattah- 
 Djarri, interrupting her. " I believe I neVer heard of it." 
 
158 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 " Brambanan is a village on tlie great highway between 
 Surarkarta and Yug'garkarta," repKed Wagari, "near 
 which stands the Chandi Kubin Dalam, an ancient and 
 celebrated temple palace, visited by nearly all travelers, 
 with many others around it in the near vicinity. They 
 are supposed to be relics of the Brahmins or the Hindus. 
 Not far from Brambanan are the ruins of the famous 
 temple of Loro Jongrang and the Chandi Sewn (Thou- 
 sand Temples). This latter is a marvelous ruin. It is 
 round and cone-like in shape, covered with green leaves 
 and small vines, and surrounded by multitudes of smaller 
 temples, which are guarded by huge kneeUng stone figures 
 (rechas) and other threatening forms with clubs raised 
 ready to strike in their hands, mouths wide open and 
 filled with the teeth of animals ; enormous mustaches, 
 prominent noses, and great round eyes set in round full 
 faces, which seem ready to burst out laughing when you 
 look at them. They were said to represent the guardians 
 of the sanctuary, and their formidable appearance seemed 
 to confirm it. 
 
 " The Tuan and the Nonyah visited dozens of other 
 temples, equally extensive and magnificent, but none in- 
 terested the Tuan like those on the Guning Deing. The 
 scenes and characters described in the ' Brata Yudha ' 
 (an epic poem highly esteemed by the Javanese) are laid 
 there. There is a vast plateau on the top of one of the 
 elevations of the Guning Deing," continued Wagari, 
 " which is quite covered with the crumbling remains of 
 temples that once stood upon its surface. This high plain 
 is reached by climbing a flight of one thousand or more 
 broken stone steps that ascend to it, one on each of the 
 four sides of the mountain. The dilapidated state of 
 this wonderful work is said to give indisputable proof of 
 its great antiquity. There are also evidences of a violent 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 159 
 
 eruption of the mountain having taken place since the 
 steps were built. In the neighborhood there are still 
 standing parts of the walls measuring from ten to twelve 
 feet thick and thirty to forty in height, which were rent 
 from top to bottom by some great concussion of nature, 
 such as an earthquake. Such, at least, was the opinion of 
 the Tuan blanda, and as he was what the Nonyah called 
 a great ' scientist,' I suppose he knew. There are many 
 specimens of delicate tracery on the walls, and portions of 
 fine sculpture half buried in the ground, and many partly 
 effaced inscriptions written in characters so ancient that 
 it requires one deeply learned in the meaning of hiero- 
 glyphics to decipher them. To me they appeared like 
 unmeaning scratches, but the Tuan declared they were 
 exceedingly valuable and made impressions of them all, 
 which he carefully preserved in his ' Book of Wonders,' 
 as the Nonyah called an immense volume which he had 
 to hire a boy to carry for him. This Tuan was a singular 
 person indeed. He would often walk up and down at 
 night under the moonlight and sigh and repeat aloud to 
 himself, * wonderful, wonderful ! ' and once he quite an- 
 gered the Nonyah by declaring he would be willing to 
 give all his future life to be able to go back a score or 
 two of sifecles." 
 
 " Did it displease the Nonyah, because he only said he 
 would like to go back a score or two of sibcles ? " asked 
 Mattah-Djarri. 
 
 " It did, most noble princess," answered Wagari. 
 " She was quite angary, and said he had too much curiosity, 
 and that he ought to be content and thankful to live in 
 the present with her." 
 
 " How different the Christian women are from the 
 Mohammedan," said Mattah-Djarri, musingly. " I no- 
 ticed it with Josephine. A Javanese woman would have 
 
160 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 taken no notice of such a remark ; yet they can become 
 violently jealous and destroy a Uf e in their passion. Pro- 
 ceed with the ancient temples, Wagaii," commanded 
 Mattah-Djarri after a short pause, during which time 
 Wagari had risen and gone to a table, pulled apart an 
 already broken, unripe cocoanut, and emptied the clear, 
 sparkling water (wari) contained therein into a glass and 
 drank it. 
 
 " In one of the temples we found the ashes of a fire 
 recently burning. Tliis was very strange. The Tuan 
 made inquiries and learned that the neighborhood had 
 just suffered from a heavy misfortune, and that the inhab- 
 itants had revisited the ancient sanctuaries, built fires, and 
 offered incense on the old altars, in the hope of mitigat- 
 ing it. It seemed to be their custom, in cases of general 
 calamity, though I never heard of it before ; but in many 
 of those parts the inhabitants are stlU half Hindu. The 
 Tuan said he saw much that reminded him of the sculp- 
 tural designs and customs of the ancient Egyptians, of 
 which the Nonyah said he had made a long study. But 
 I have forgotten to tell you about the singular casts in 
 copper, brass, and even gold, that were found in the 6u- 
 ning Deing, " said Wagari, apologetically, " also about 
 the gas fountains, or holy fires of Melati Derwat, and the 
 mud volcanoes and boiling streams pouring therefrom. 
 These are much more interesting than the delapsed 
 ruins." 
 
 " I will hear of them another time, Wagari," said 
 Mattah-Djarri ; " I am weary now," passing her hands 
 slowly across her brow. " You may go and send Djoolo 
 to me." 
 
 "I am glad indeed, dear princess, that I have been 
 happy enough to interest you," said Wagari rising, and 
 then pausing to deliberate within herself whether it was 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 161 
 
 not her duly to insist upon remaining with her mistress 
 through the night, as well as profoundly astonished at 
 the unexplained change that expressed itself in her air 
 and manner, and which seemed to prove that her mind 
 was made up to some decided course and therefore 
 greatly relieved. 
 
 " Send Djoolo immediately," said her mistress, looking 
 indulgently at Wagari as she stood hesitatingly hefore 
 her, rightly suspecting the latter did not wish to leave 
 her. " I will call you later, perhaps." 
 
 Wagari left the apartment with her mind in a muddle 
 of amazed perplexity. Going to her own room she 
 threw herself on a couch to try to think it all out clearly 
 before being sent for. She asked herself what was the 
 cause of this new composure and recently displayed 
 interest of her mistress. Had she decided to accept the 
 Tumung'gung without objection and thus found tranquil- 
 lity and relief in submission ? Wagari could not believe 
 it, and thinking and pondering over it she fell asleep, 
 where we wiU leave her while we return to look after the 
 guests whom we left enjoying the matchless prospect 
 from the side veranda of the daJam on the Teng'gers> 
 
CHAPTER XX. 
 
 Edwaed Tract and Sarjio the Pateh sat together on 
 one end of the veranda at some distance from their 
 friends. No one gave them any attention, because it was 
 the general habit of Tracy to sit apart and alone with 
 the Javanese when they happened to be in other society. 
 The Pateh disliked indiscriminate associations with Eu- 
 ropeans, who frequently assumed a tone of arrogance and 
 condescension, as members of a superior race, that more 
 or less irritated the proud spirit of the Javan. Moreover, 
 in natural ability, education, and culture there were very 
 few men who were his equals and whose cpnversation he 
 enjoyed ; and although he was uniformly polite to every 
 one, he looked upon the white merchant, lawyer, sugar- 
 planter, coffee-grower, and the poor government function- 
 ary, who comprised the greater part of the European so- 
 ciety in the Indian Archipelago, with a certain degree of 
 contempt that would have surprised them had they been 
 aware of it. The Pateh had no idea of placing himself 
 on a level with common blood, and had he been brought 
 into the presence of a European prince, he certainly 
 would have considered it an absurdity not to have borne 
 himself towards him as an equal. If it had been a reign- 
 ing sovereign, he would have fallen on his knees before 
 him, with all the deference and humility he would have 
 offered his own exalted Susuhunan ; therefore it Will be 
 very easy to understand the nature of his feelings when 
 a man whom he considered half-educated, with plebeito 
 blood, but plenty of money, and a white face upon which 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 163 
 
 he presumed, attempted to patronize him. In Tracy he 
 only saw the college chum and the man of congenial 
 mind. Many times he had wished his friend had a few 
 drops of noble blood to boast of, a title, however trifling, 
 to show his descent from a patrician tree. 
 
 While sitting together this evening they had scarcely 
 exchanged more than a word or two up to the present 
 moment ; but the careless and familiar freedom of their 
 attitude and manner towards each other proclaimed the 
 confident understanding of long friendship, in which each 
 one follows his own inclination and feels he is sure to 
 please. They were both unusually silent and self-ab- 
 sorbed. A slight frown sat upon the brow of the Patch, 
 which sometimes deepened into a fierce and determined 
 scowl, while the fingers of his right hand would glide 
 around his belt and close over the glittering handle of 
 his kris, remain a moment, then relax their hold, and 
 slide down again beside the other in his lap. At such 
 moments a sound resembling something between a moan 
 and a sigh would escape his lips. This unusual emotion 
 of the cahn and self-contained young Javanese did not 
 escape the observant eye of his companion, who was sev- 
 eral times on the point of addressing him, yet for some 
 reason desisted and turned again to the contemplation 
 of the wonderful scene spread out before them. 
 
 His thoughts, however, were not so disagreeable and 
 disturbing as those of the Pateh. Instead of a frown, a 
 smile of peculiar softness would often flit like a bright 
 gleam across his face, giving tmconscious expression to 
 the pleasing recollections within, although more than 
 once followed by the varying shades of doubt and per- 
 plexity that explained an occasional gesture of dissatisfac- 
 tion. 
 
 This evening these signs passed unnoticed by the Pa- 
 
164 A PRINCESS OF J A VA. 
 
 teh, but had he been less engrossed with his own perplex- 
 ities he would doubtless have expressed his concern by 
 saying, " My dear Tracy, what extraordinary anxiety 
 preys upon your mind ? " although it was a rare case when 
 the high-bred Javanese asked questions ; he generally 
 waited to be told. 
 
 To all appearances Tracy possessed everything to ren- 
 der him happy and contented, satisfied, we might say, with 
 himseU and with others. He had just been admitted 
 as a partner in an old and prosperous firm, in which his 
 bachelor micle had been the senior for years, and had 
 now installed his nephew in his place, and had, besides, 
 recently made a will, whereby this same nephew was 
 made heir to all his immense wealth, accumulated by 
 many long years of travail in the East. Added to this, he 
 was loved and respected by his numerous friends for his 
 real merit and was, without his knowledge, a general fa- 
 vorite in the small community of Europeans to which he 
 belonged. Notwithstanding all these advantages he was 
 at this moment tormented by a sentiment of uneasiness 
 that rendered him more or less uncomfortable, and at 
 times almost amounted to a positive pain. He could not 
 indulge it, yet he would not dismiss it. He had revolved 
 it in his mind till he grew nervous, and viewed it from 
 every side with the same result, dissatisfaction and dis- 
 approval ; many times he had thrown it from him and 
 returned to it eagerly; shut it out of his heart, then 
 opened wide the doors and invited it to enter. 
 
 How many among us practice this same wise plan, in 
 our journey through life ? then whine and whimper over 
 it and dignify our weakness by the name of a fate we 
 cannot conquer. Tracy's regard for the Patch led him 
 this evening to forget his own lighter grievances in an 
 attempt to comfort his friend who was suffering under a 
 
A PRINCESS OF J A VA. 165 
 
 distress and an annoyance which had evidently been ex- 
 plained to him before. Leaning towards the Pateh and 
 laying his hand upon his arm he said, in allusion to the 
 cause of the latter's emotion, — 
 
 " Don't mind it so much, Sarjio ; I would not permit 
 myself to become agitated, Lf I were you, as long as I 
 had a hope, particularly such a hope as you have." 
 
 " That is very easy in theory, Tracy," replied the Pa- 
 teh, " and I wish I could follow it in practice ; but I can- 
 not, and I doubt if you could either. I have reasoned 
 with myself in the same strain a' score of times, but it is 
 of no use. When I think of Josephine, I am calmed and 
 soothed, but reflections on her father will f oUow and they 
 exasperate me beyond all control." As the Pateh ceased 
 speaking his brows again contracted, while he ground his 
 teeth in anger, and his hand again sought the glittering 
 handle of his kris. 
 
 " Pooh ! " answered Tracy, making an attempt to 
 treat the matter lightly for the Patch's sake. " Why do 
 you care for the father when you are sure of the daughter 
 and also the mother ? Forget the unreasonable parent in 
 the happy triumph you must experience in the knowledge 
 that you possess Miss BardweU's affections, and — and 
 be patient, as I advised before. Yes, wait," he continued 
 in a blundering attempt to reconcile the Javan. " It 
 will come right. Sewa's family is powerful and Miss Bard- 
 well determined. I predict the father will come around, 
 if you quietly persevere and do nothing rash or dreadful," 
 feeling it was necessary to caution the Pateh against any 
 sudden outbreak. " Naturally," he pursued, " BardweU 
 wishes his daughter to marry a European like himself. 
 You should not blame him for that." 
 
 " I don't," said the Pateh. " The desire is proper ; 
 but when he is assured that she will not and her happi- 
 
166 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 ness and mine depend upon his acquiescence, it is cruel to 
 her and insulting to me, to withhold it. He, indeed ! " 
 cried the Pateh, excitedly ; " he possesses neither name 
 nor lineage ; he has no ancestry. He ran away one dark 
 night with Josephine's mother. That was his greatest 
 honor. And I ! — my blood comes down through centu- 
 ries of men and women celebrated for their heroic deeds 
 and princely titles. Truly, I make him a great com- 
 pliment which he affects to scorn. I have made up my 
 mind, however ; I will not take my wife by stealth, as 
 he did her mother. I shall teU him so ; but I will take 
 her for all that, in the very face of the noonday sun. 
 Josephine shall be my wife, my only wife, as I have as- 
 sured him. For her sake I will depart from the customs 
 of my nation and never, while she lives, will I take an- 
 other wife." 
 
 " That was very wise in you," said Tracy. " As a 
 Christian he would certainly object to a plurality of wives, 
 among whom his beautiful daughter would count only as 
 one," and Tracy turned away his head to conceal a smile, 
 as a picture of the imperious Josephine rose before his 
 mind, seated on a divan with two or three dozen of 
 her husband's wives around her. 
 
 " I expected an objection on that score," said the 
 Pateh, " and did not wait to hear it. In truth I have 
 said and done all I can, but he still declares he will never 
 consent." 
 
 " Well, I should desist now, for a time," answered 
 Tracy, "in the conviction of having acted fairly and 
 honorably. I feel something favorable will turn up soon. 
 It always does when we have done our best. I believe 
 that when our mind and purpose is righteously fixed, 
 and we have done our utmost, it is our duty to wait on 
 Heaven to aid us and we shall receive the required 
 help." 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 167 
 
 " If I did not believe in the truth and righteousness of 
 my purpose," said the Pateh, " I should desist at once, 
 despite all my love for Josephine. As it is, I wish to 
 create her happiness by completing my own. Since- my 
 mind is relieved in regard to your sentiments, Tracy, I 
 am more settled and determined than ever." 
 
 As the Pateh concluded the last sentence he looked at 
 his friend with a keen and piercing gaze of inquiry which 
 Tracy saw, but pretended not to notice, by looking away 
 o£E towards the sea, while an expression of genuine sym- 
 pathy was depicted on his handsome face. Observing 
 this and Tracy's silence, a warm blaze began to kindle 
 in the Javan's eyes. Bending forward, he asked in a 
 suppressed whisper which trembled with the emotion he 
 tried to conceal, — 
 
 " TeU me, Tracy ; are you frank with me in saying 
 you do not love Miss BardweU? I only ask you not 
 to deceive me. I don't ask you not to love her. If 
 you deceive me I could not forget it," and a murderous 
 look swept over the Patch's brow. 
 
 " I have told you the truth, Sarjio," answered Tracy, 
 looking full in the noble's face, feeling halfoffended as he 
 perceived the latter's jealous suspicions, and noticed the 
 threatening glance with which he was regarding him. 
 " You are aware it was my uncle's thought, and not 
 mine." 
 
 " Then you are quite sure, Tracy, you did not, nor do 
 not agree with your uncle's plans ? " returned the Pateh, 
 eagerly leaning forward again to catch his companion's 
 answer. 
 
 "It is needless to repeat my assertions," answered 
 Tracy, " and I begin to feel indignant with you. My 
 thoughts turn in another direction." 
 
 " Ah ! explain yourself, my dear friend, and forgive 
 
168 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 me," exclaimed the Pateh, with an air of profound satis- 
 faction. 
 
 " Not now. Some other time I will confide in you," 
 repUed Tracy with some embarrassment. "My uncle 
 has other views for me. But dismiss your fears in any 
 case. I would not marry Miss Bardwell, not even to 
 please my best of uncles, and I would strain a point to 
 please him." Before Tracy had concluded he grew some- 
 what excited, observing which the Pateh said, with a 
 twinkle of mirth in his eyes, ^- 
 
 " I believe you, and pardon me if I confess your words 
 give me pleasure ; but let me advise you not to get excited- 
 Wait and be patient; ajl will come right, as you tell 
 me." 
 
 " I advise that course for you," said Tracy, " but for 
 myself, the disease has not gone far enough to require 
 any special treatment. After your difficulty is removed, 
 I will explain mine. Why don't you advise with the 
 Bopati in regard to your affairs ? He would be an able 
 ally, I am sure." 
 
 " I have asked his advice," replied the Pateh, " but it 
 amounted to nothing. He was highly amused and was 
 unable to understand how I felt, and reminded me of the 
 Christians' one wife. I told him I fully intended to fol- 
 low their customs in that respect." 
 
 "Well, how did he receive your new ideas of mar- 
 riage?" asked Tracy, his amusement and curiosity 
 aroused. 
 
 " He regarded it as a joke and said I would soon 
 change my mind, and began to speculate on the length of 
 my constancy, or in other words, my chances of infidelity, 
 followed by the disgust and consternation of my Christian 
 wife. I became angry and tried to convince him I was in 
 earnest and had well eonsider^d the subject before com- 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 169 
 
 mitting myself ; he laughed then, more than ever ; ad- 
 vised me to take a princess from my own , nation ; 
 asked me if I had ever seen the Badan Mattah-Djarri, 
 ■whose heauty is celebrated, and earnestly counseled me 
 to consult my happiness and abandon all ideas of a Chris- 
 tian wife, firmly refusing to interfere. I reminded him 
 that Keomah was Sewa's sister and consequently the 
 Nonyah Bardwell's aunt. That tie he declared was 
 only nominal. Sewa had forfeited her right of blood by 
 marrying a foreigner without rank. I persisted, how- 
 ever, and urged him, as Sewa's relative, to remonstrate 
 with Josephine's father, which he again flatly refused 
 to do. Said his pride forbade such a himuliation ; a 
 Javan noble could not supplicate or ask favors from a 
 European belonging to the people ; and appealed to my 
 own self-respect to prove it, reaUy telling me he hoped I 
 would not make myself ridiculous, and the interview 
 ended. His last word was ' Abandon your f oUy, Sarjio, 
 and wait a while and you 'U not repent it.' It is singu- 
 lar both you and the Bopati advise patience. ' Patience ! 
 patience ! ' I am tired of the word," concluded the Fateh 
 with a light laugh, in which both bitterness and amuse- 
 ment could be detected. 
 
 " I am really sorry," said Tracy, " and fuUy sympar 
 thize with you in your troubles. I don't suppose you could 
 be persuaded to adopt the Bopati's advice ? " he asked, 
 after a short pause, hoping his friend would really do so 
 for his own future ; for in all candor he could but regard 
 the Patch's choice of a Christian and almost thoroughly 
 European wife as absurd and foolish in a Javan noble, 
 and a very different arrangement, in all its accompany- 
 ing events and conditions, from a European Christian 
 husbaJid aiid a Javanese wife. 
 
 " Adopt the Bopati'a views ! " rtsgohoed the Pateh in 
 
170 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 astonishment and displeasure, " after all I have told you. 
 Why, Tracy, you are half crazy to ask such a question. 
 What," continued he, his voice betraying the passion he 
 felt, " give up my Josephine ! her golden hair, fair face, 
 and blue eyes ? Consign her to the possession of another ? 
 Never ! never ! should that happen, that other must die ! 
 She is mine, mine ! I swear it, before Java and all Eu- 
 rope and in the presence of high Heaven. That decree 
 is unalterably fixed. She has promised, sworn it. Yes, 
 I made her swear it, and she will be faithful. I recognize 
 the blood of my race in her love and her answers. She 
 has somewhat of the character of Sewa, who belongs to 
 my family, you know." At this point the Pateh paused 
 a moment to calm his excitement, and Tracy looked 
 around to see if any one had overheard them, feeling 
 his own heart thrill with the magnetic ardor of the Java- 
 nese. In a few moments the Pateh resumed, his dark face 
 glowing and spai-kling with the energy of his passion, — 
 " Yes, I made Josephine swear, by her own God, that 
 she loved me, me alone, above all human beings, and that 
 she would never give me up. I was afraid of some in- 
 fluence from her father. And she did it, Tracy ; she re- 
 peated the oath, solemn and binding as it was. I heard 
 her whisper it in my ear, her voice low, soft, and sweet, 
 like the wisikan (whispering wind). Ah ! what I expe- 
 rienced at that moment ! What ecstasy filled my soul ! 
 I closed my eyes and was transported to the paradise of 
 the blest. But you ! you Europeans cannot feel as we 
 do. Your love is cold ; your blood frozen. You hesitate 
 and calculate while we rush on, give ourselves up to our 
 inclinations and revel in their enjoyment. I would not 
 possess your stagnant blood," ended the Pateh, looking 
 compassionately at his companion, and waiting to hear, 
 him contradict or confirm this assertion. 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 171 
 
 Tracy, however, only looked at him for a few seconds 
 in silence, then asked, in a low, earnest tone, " Your wo- 
 men, Sarjio, do they all love as you do ? " showing an 
 agitation that attracted the Patch's notice, notwithstand- 
 ing his own excitement. 
 
 " Yes, they do. We are all the same," answered the 
 Patch. " We love and we hate with all the warmth and 
 intensity of our climate." And it is true, love in the 
 bosoms of these children, nourished and ripened by the 
 sun, takes the character of their climate and becomes like 
 a scorching blast from a heated furnace, developing or 
 consuming everything before it. 
 
 " With me," continued the Pateh, pressing his hand 
 against his breast, " it brings indescribable bliss or un- 
 told torment. When I think of Josephine, and hear her 
 again in fancy saying, ' Sarjio, I love you, I shall al- 
 ways love you,' I seem to have suddenly left the earth 
 and entered a glorious heaven. The sky above becomes 
 more blue ; the air around me more balmy and trans- 
 parent. The whole earth changes, and I am wrapt, as 
 it were, in garments of resplendent beauty. I forget, 
 everything. I see only Josephine, radiant, beautiful, 
 bending over me, in her queenly splendor. I hear her 
 voice, I feel her breath on my face. I feel her head on 
 my bosom, see her eyes full of silent love gazing into mine, 
 and I am lost to all else. It is my life, my hope, my joy, 
 and my glory," and the Pateh in his delirious enthusi- 
 asm fell back against the cushions behind him, lock- 
 ing his hands together and pressing them over his eyes, 
 abandoning himself to his own ecstatic dreams, in which 
 the fair and queenly Josephine Bardwell was the central 
 figure. 
 
 Tracy listened to the Pateh in reverential astonish- 
 ment. The ardent, eager expression of the latter's feel- 
 
172 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 Ings affected him strangely. He had never heard or seen 
 the Javan so carried away before. His habitual manner, 
 like that of all Javanese, was distinguished by an almost 
 imperturbable deliberateness and self-possession. He was 
 always calm and seK-repressed. To see him thus, glow- 
 ing, excited, enthusiastic, literally alive and burning up 
 with the intensity of his passion, and hear him express it, 
 acknowledge it, and exult in it, surprised Tracy more 
 than a little. He ran his fingers through his hair and 
 looked at the Fateh again to assure himself that this 
 royal impassioned lover really was his former sedate 
 friend. Yes, it was Sarjio and no mistake, absorbed and 
 motionless ; no doubt, at that moment, listening to the 
 loving whispers of his Josephine. Seeing his companion 
 so abstracted and entirely oblivious to everything around 
 him, Tracy did not address him, but began to ponder 
 over all the Fateh had told him. 
 
 He understood the humiliation it had been to the lat- 
 ter's pride to supplicate Mr. BardweU for his daughter's 
 hand and then be refused ; and he could also perfectly 
 comprehend the father's objections to having his beauti- 
 fvd and only child become a native noble's wife, notwith- 
 standing his own regard for her mother and friendship 
 for her people. He could not say the father was wrong. 
 Indeed, he would have been surprised had he heard of 
 Bardwell doing otherwise. The incongruity of the mar- 
 riage, despite the dash of oriental blood Josephine in- 
 herited from her mother's side, struck Tracy as being ex- 
 cessively disagreeable. It seemed to him to be altogether 
 out of the fitness of things as intended by nature. 
 How, he wondered, could such a girl ever be happy or sat- 
 isfied with the repressed and narrow life, even under the 
 very best conditions, that must fall to the wife of a Javan 
 prince. With all his partiality for the Fateh, he could 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 173 
 
 not approve of what seemed to him a wicked sacrifice on 
 her side, that would quickly be followed by a monotonous 
 repugnance that must soon become unbearable to a girl 
 of European tastes and habits. He could fancy a Euro- 
 pean husband might find life tolerable, even pleasant, 
 with a Javanese wife, as was the case with Mr. Bard- 
 well and Sewa ; but vice versa, he thought it would make 
 a great difference. These meditations reminded him of 
 his own perplexities, and brought a long train of reflec- 
 tions, that increased his sjrmpathy for Sarjio. He turned 
 about and looked at him, stiU reclining against the cush- 
 ions, inert and motionless. He felt a strong impulse to 
 arouse him and give him the confidence he had promised ; 
 not that he believed it would aid either of them, but his 
 recent cogitations made him long to confess himself to 
 some one ; and who now so capable of understanding him 
 as Sarjio ? Debating, these questions in his mind, Tracy 
 arose and began to pace up and down in the shadow of 
 the back part of the veranda, quite forgetful of the pres- 
 ence of the rest of the company, till at length their differ- 
 ent adieux, as they retired, one at a time, attracted his 
 attention and reminded him of the approach of midnight. 
 Going up to the Pateh, he put his hand on his shoulder, 
 shook him gently, and suggested it was time for them to 
 do likewise. The Pateh instantly sat up, and extending 
 his hand, said in his most musical accent, — 
 
 " Forgive me, my dear Tracy, I have been negligent 
 indeed, but how could I forego the joyful interview I 
 have just had with Josephine ? Yes, I have walked with 
 her, conversed with her," he pursued, in reply to Tracy's 
 inquiring gaze ; " heard her speak again in her bright 
 way, and I am happy." Perceiving his companion's look 
 of inquiry change into a stare of intense astonishment, he 
 continued in explanation, " In spirit I have had a meet- 
 
174 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 ing, shadowy and subtile, it is true, more like a conviction 
 or impression, perhaps, it would seem to you, but I can 
 perceive and enjoy it. It is a gift of spiritual sight that 
 I possess in a small degree with thousands of others of 
 my race." 
 
 "Incredulous!" returned Tracy; "you have been 
 dreaming, or have gone mad, Sarjio." 
 
 " Not at all," said the Pateh. " This is scarcely a phe- 
 nomenon, as some might term it, and is well understood 
 throughout the East. It can be cultivated and acquired 
 by any one so determined." 
 
 " Explain your meaning, Sarjio," said Tracy, falling 
 into sudden doubt about his friend's sanity. " I own I 
 am quite mystified, though I know you indulge in some 
 peculiar notions about theosophy and all that." 
 
 " It is very simple," answered the Pateh. " Under cer- 
 tain conditions, in which a determined will and concentra- 
 tion are the principal, I can detach myself, so to speak, 
 from my surroundings and go out in spirit to seek and find 
 one in whom I am strongly interested ; as in the present 
 instance. I have cultivated this faculty since childhood. 
 It is neither mysterious nor difficult. I have heard Euro- 
 peans define this acute penetration as being impressions 
 received from disembodied spirits, which were so strong 
 that they amounted to convictions, termed by them com- 
 munications. We understand it as the power of mind 
 over matter. The result, however, is the same." 
 
 " Oh, yes, the occult sciences,'' said Tracy laughing. 
 " I know now to what you aUude. Divine illumination 
 or the doctrine of theosophy, as I have just said, and as 
 some sects or societies name it. A sort of transmigration 
 of the soul with the additional art of returning again to 
 inhabit the original body, is it not ? " 
 
 " Well, you can ridicule the faculty as much as you 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 175 
 
 like," returned the Pateh ; " I for one believe it is no 
 dream. I shall see my darling soon, and then, and 
 then " — clasping his hands. 
 
 " "Well, well, be calm now," interrupted Tracy quickly, 
 intending to prevent, if possible, a return of the previous 
 excitement. "Look! there is the Bopati getting up," 
 as he saw their host slowly rise from his chair and stand 
 still a moment, looking down on the distant ocean glit- 
 tering under the moonlight. " Come, we must say our 
 * good-night' and retire," going forward to bow before the 
 dignified old noble and wish him a pleasant night's rest. 
 
 The Pateh rose immediately and followed his com- 
 panion, and in another half hour the broad gallery was 
 deserted by all, except one servant, the color of whose 
 belt and head-dress indicated that he belonged to the ser- 
 vice of the young Pateh. He stood in the shadow of 
 one of the colossal pillars, as silent and immovable as 
 the piUar itself. One acquainted with the dress of the 
 population would have remarked that he was equipped 
 for a journey. His sarong was looped up in the centi'e 
 with one corner fastened under his belt, leaving his legs 
 entirely exposed. A broad chapung hung from his arm, 
 and two or three krises and a wayung were stuck through 
 his belt. His feet and his body from the waist up were 
 bare. 
 
 After standing for some time, a light footfall caused 
 him to look toward the broad entrance to the corridor, 
 where he perceived the figure of his master. Stepping 
 hastily out from the shadow of the piUar, and allowing 
 himself to be seen, he made a low obeisance and stood 
 stiU. The Pateh moved towards him in his stately and 
 deliberate way, drawing from his bosom a small box, 
 whose sparkling appearance proved it was set with gems 
 of rare value. Handing it to the servant, who instantly 
 
176 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 dropped upon his knees to receive it, the Fateh uttered 
 four words : " Bawa sama Nonah blanda," and turning 
 around retraced his steps and disappeared -vrithin the coi> 
 ridor. The man rose from his knees, tightened his belt, 
 passed swiftly down the steps, crossed the alun'^un, 
 and passing out the front entrance saluted the sentinels 
 and turned his steps towards the sea. Hurrying forward 
 a few moments, he stopped opposite a low stall where a 
 deep-brown, dried-up old man sat asleep on a box, lean- 
 ing against a table upon which was a pile of small par- 
 cels containing boiled rice wrapped up in green plantain 
 leaves. Standing still before the table, Satrap, the Pa- 
 tch's servant, readjusted his dress, by fixing his chapung 
 firmly on his head, tightening his belt a little more, ex- 
 amining the manner in which his sarong was tucked up, 
 then taking up several of the green packages laid a cop- 
 per coin on the table, touched the old man's arm, and de- 
 parted as silently and swiftly as he had come. When he 
 was entirely clear of the kampong and about entering the 
 shade of the plantations, he paused again and drew from 
 his belt, which is used by the Javanese as a pocket for 
 everything, the box he had received from his master. He 
 turned it over and looked at it admiringly saying, " bagus, 
 bagus " (beautiful, beautiful), after which he wrapped it 
 in a piece of delicate paper that he took from the crown 
 of his chapung, then untied another box of larger size, 
 which hung from his belt beside the plantain parcels, and 
 placing the jeweled one therein, strapped all fast again 
 to his side, and began his descent down the mountain, in 
 a sort of jogging run or a peculiar jerky canter, a gait 
 always adopted by messengers when making long jour- 
 neys on foot. 
 
CHAPTEE XXI. 
 
 The next morning when the Fateh joined the party of 
 Europeans who were assemhled under the waringin trees 
 in the alun-alun to discuss the advantages of one excur- 
 sion above another which they were planning for the day, 
 no one would have suspected from his calm and composed 
 exterior what vehement gusts of passion and fury were 
 sweeping through his breast. At the very moment when 
 Mattah-Djarri and Wagari were commenting upon and 
 admiring his noble and dig^nified bearing, he was almost 
 blind with rage ; yet so strong was the long-cultivated 
 Javanese habit of concealment and self-controlj that he 
 compelled himself to take part in the suggestions and 
 replies without betraying any emotion in either tone or 
 manner. Tracy, remembering the excitement of the night 
 before, had turned his eyes upon him several times in 
 curious scrutiny, yet failed to detect anything amiss in 
 the bearing of his friend. 
 
 He would not have believed that the Patch had never 
 felt so angry and indignant in all his life, as when he 
 was thus scanning his face. In fact, the Patch scarcely 
 believed it himself, and slipped his hand several times 
 into a small pocket in the inside of his sikapan to feel a 
 crumpled and twisted letter he had thrust therein in his 
 first indignation, to assure himself he was not under some 
 incomprehensible delusion. This letter was from Jose- 
 phine's father. He had received it that morning a short 
 time before he had joined the group under the waringin 
 trees. It had been forwarded to him from his dwelling 
 
178 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 on the plains, and contained a decided, positive, and per- 
 emptory refusal from Mr. Bardwell, to listen to all or 
 any overtures or negotiations from the Pateh for the 
 hand of his daughter Josephine. Mr. Bardwell based 
 his objections on the dissimilarity o£ habits and distinc- 
 tions of race, quite ignoring the fact that Josephine's 
 mother was a full Javanese, and that Josq>hine must 
 natuxaiUy mberit the same blood in a greater or less der 
 gree, which made her, besides, a blood relation of the 
 Pateh i distaM, it is true, but nevertheless, a branch 
 from the paremt stock« and what the Javanese regarded 
 as a repiFoach — a sparious branch. All these thoughts 
 passed through the Pateb's mind as he moved around the 
 alun-alun. 
 
 He knew iOxe old nobles bele«ging to his family,, who 
 boasted of their pure and long desc^it, would not consider 
 that he had honored them by introducing a half-caste* 
 Christian wife, who never could become one of themselves, 
 and whose childreii would always present in their visage 
 the admixture of a foreign race, and could never be re- 
 garded as pure Javanese. These reflections did not tend 
 to soft^i his resentment. Added to the superior and 
 condescending tones of Mr. Bardwell's letter, it infuriated 
 him to such a degree that he longed to wash out the af- 
 front by plunging his: kris a dozen times or more into the 
 disdainful merchant's body ; and had he not been re- 
 strained by the thought of Josephine's giief , he would have 
 lost no time in doing so. As to cmisideriBg such an act 
 murder, and to be avoided as an unpaxdonable and pun- 
 ishal>le crime, it never entered his brain. There was no 
 logic in his calendar that could construe the just aveng- 
 ing of an unmerited insjilt into murder, as it would be 
 regarded by a Western natiion, 
 
 Mr. Bardwell, on his. side, also had his gnevanees. 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 179 
 
 When writing this letter to the Pateh, he could scaxcely 
 control his temper sxifflciently to express himseU within 
 the limits of decent propriety. He forgot his own youth 
 and the just indignation of the old Bopati, whose kind- 
 ness he received, and whose hospitality he shared and 
 returned by eloping with his favorite daughter. In his 
 paternal selfishness he became arrogant and insulting. 
 He chose to regard the young Javan noble as an impu- 
 dent and pretentious native, aspiring to something that 
 was far above him. His beautiful Josephine become the 
 wife of a native ! The very idea was enraging and not 
 to be thought of. " What did he care, in such a case," 
 he asked himself, " about princely blood or long descent ? " 
 It was all Malay ; prince or peasant, it was the same to 
 him ; and as to wealth, he had sufficient himself. He 
 summoned his daughter and talked to her ; tried to per- 
 suade her, painting all the deprivations and disadvantages, 
 and what he termed " the reproaches," that must fall to 
 her lot if she persisted in her absurd desire to marry the 
 Pateh. It was fruitless. Josephine exculpated herself, 
 defended and praised her lover ; reminded >iiTn of her 
 mother, the taint in her own blood ; cried, begged, ex- 
 postulated, and finally ended by declaring she would 
 cling to the handsome Pateh till death. 
 
 Her father was in despair, which reflection converted 
 into disgust and anger ; aU of which was poured out on 
 the head of the young prince. In his distress, the dis- 
 appointed father went to consult with the uncle of young 
 Tracy, between whose nephew and his own daughter the 
 two friends had once talked of establishing marriage. 
 The elder Tracy advised silence and postponement, assur- 
 ing him that was a remedy well worth trying ; adding 
 that opposition often made the rebeUious more determined, 
 and that in the absence of all contradiction Miss Bard- 
 
180 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 well might be led to see the incongruity herself. Mr. 
 Bardwell decided he would endeavor to follow this plan, 
 but resolved heaven and earth might fall together before 
 he would consent to indulge such preposterous taste in 
 Josephine ; concluding, as a last resort, he would take her 
 to Europe on a supposed pleasure trip and leave her 
 there, where, coming in contact with Anglo-Saxon soci- 
 ety, he hoped she would forget her insanity and learn to 
 become ashamed of her youthful fancy. Under the in- 
 fluence of these reflections and resolutions he took no fur- 
 ther notice of the Pateh's pretensions nor of Josephine's 
 obstinacy, and assisted her and her mother in preparing 
 to depart for the mountains to pass a portion of the 
 mangsa trang (dry monsoon), during which time rain sel- 
 dom falls and the air is hot and clear. He hoped some ex- 
 perience of native hfe and customs might have a salutary 
 effect upon his daughter. She would witness female life 
 in the dalam of the Bopati, as she must expect her own 
 to be as the wife of the Pateh, and he thought it might 
 deter her. She would perceive how impossible it would 
 be for her, with her tastes, education, habits, and love of 
 fashion and society, to conform to such a secluded and 
 monotonous existence. Altogether, the sorely tried and 
 ambitious parent began to regard the visit as the best 
 thing, perhaps, that could happen to bring about the state 
 of mind he longed to see in his child. 
 
 It never occurred to him that the Pateh by any pos- 
 sible chance might go to Kali Chandi ; or make a visit to 
 the dalam of the Bopati ; neither would the Pateh have 
 thought of so doing at that particular time, had it not 
 been for the earnest solicitations of Tra«y and his friends. 
 The Pateh's knowledge of the Teng'gers mountains made 
 him a desirable addition, and his well-known intimacy 
 with Tracy made it seem quite natural that he should 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 181 
 
 make one of their number, therefore it had been arranged 
 that he should join them at Kali Chandi. His inclina- 
 tions prompted him to remain on the plains in his dwell- 
 ing. He wanted to be near Josephine, who, for some 
 reason, had not informed him of their intended visit, 
 and it was to make known to her that he was one of 
 the party making the ascent to the Brama, that he dis- 
 patched Satrap, the messenger, with the casket contain- 
 ing the letter. 
 
 When the excursionists left the kampong, after having 
 decided upon the direction they would take, the points 
 they would visit, and the time when they expected to re- 
 turn, the Patch left instructions for Satrap to proceed, on 
 his return, to the baths of Jati Sung'gu and there await 
 his coming. 
 
 The baths of Jati Sung'gu are situated in an elevated 
 valley, bearing the same name, covered with forests of 
 jati sung'gu (the true teak), which on account of its hard- 
 ness and durability is much used for ship-building. 
 
 This valley is celebrated for the superb views it affords 
 of the conical peaks that inclose it, and for its natural 
 baths, — huge basins, supposed to have been scooped or 
 hollowed out of the solid rocks by the action of the ice in 
 glacial periods, perhaps millions of years ago. The sides 
 and bottoms of these immense reservoirs are uniformly 
 round, sloping, smooth, and polished by the same whirling 
 and boring process. Small streams draining the water 
 from the heights above and relieved of all dregs and im- 
 purities on their long, winding journey downward, supply 
 these basins with a pure, sparkling, and wonderfully trans- 
 parent water, which appears only two or three feet deep. 
 But when the bather makes his first plunge, he is aston- 
 ished and alarmed to find himself going down some 
 forty or fifty feet before he touches the bottom. The 
 
182 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 cool, silvery deliciousness of the water in these unique 
 baths, with the beauty of the valley, have given them 
 more or less celebrity, causing all that can do so to visit 
 them and enjoy a plunge. It was for this purpose the 
 guests of the dalam had arranged to return to Jati 
 Sung'gu in the afternoon, where they were to be met by 
 servants bearing food and refreshments. 
 
 The Pateh did not enjoy the excursion nor even the 
 society of Tracy. The contents of Mr. Bardwell's letter, 
 stuffed in the inside pocket of his sikapan, where it 
 seemed to singe and burn the flesh beneath it, occupied 
 his mind entirely. He wished to be alone to indulge his 
 anger and indignation. He wanted to teU Tracy about 
 this additional insult, and could not for lack of opportu- 
 nity. Either the zigzag paths they were following were 
 unfit for conversation, or there was always some one near 
 enough to overhear them. He could only dwell upon one 
 thing, and that was his resolve not to relinquish Jose- 
 phine. He reasoned the matter over with himself repeat- 
 edly. He had been invited by her father to visit his 
 house. He had done so in the beginning because Sewa 
 was his relative and her husband desired it. He had 
 been introduced to Josephine by her father and won her 
 honorably, without concealment on his part, and now he 
 was determined that she should become his wife. This 
 thought gave him the only comfort he experienced dur- 
 ing that dreadfully long day. The Fateh would have 
 been more embittered had he known Mr. Bardwell had 
 invited him to visit and dine at his house because it was 
 to his advantage in commercial affairs to be able, at any 
 time, to command the influence of one or two powerful 
 Javanese friends ; and he could thus cultivate his sociely 
 for his own advantage and at the same time please Sewa 
 and gain the respect and good -will of her influential 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA, 183 
 
 family, and draw to himself a double benefit. But who 
 could have supposed, in their wildest dreams, that his 
 handsome daughter, educated in the most refined circles 
 in Europe, and so recently arrived, with all the tastes and 
 habits of that society still freshly imprinted on her mind, 
 could or would fix her affections upon any one so unlikely, 
 so disBumlar, so incongruous in every sense, ^s this young 
 native prince. 
 
 To her father it seemed incredible. To Tracy most 
 amazing. But the latter liked Sarjio, and if it was his 
 happiness, he wished him success and could not repress 
 his sympathy or withhold expressions of hopefulness 
 when he saw him suffer. In truth, the whole affair an- 
 noyed him considerably. He would have preferred not 
 to have known anything about it. He was unwilling to 
 offend Mr. BardweU by appearing to take sides with the 
 Patch, yet he feared it would come to this, for he had no 
 idea of turning his back upon his friend when he was in 
 trouble. Of aU the men Tracy had ever known, he pre- 
 ferred the young Javan noble, and determined that while 
 he would not seek any participation in the Patch's love 
 affab-s, he would stand ready to support his side of the 
 question. 
 
 The mormng after the Patch's messenger left Kali 
 Qhandi, Josephine's maid waited for her mistress outside 
 of her bathroom door, with the box the Patch had in- 
 trusted to him in her hand. Josephine received it vrith 
 exclamations of delight, pressed it to her heart as on 
 former occasions, admired its costly gems, touched the 
 secret spring, and watched the lid rise and disclose the 
 precious missive within. As she drew the latter forth 
 with her delicate fingers, she murmured, " My Sarjio, 
 my Sarjio," allowing her voice to linger with a soft, lov- 
 ing cadence on the name. 
 
184 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 An hour or two later, Satrap was ascending the moun- 
 tain with her hastily written answer tucked under his 
 belt. From time to time he stopped to turn aroimd and 
 take breath, while he surveyed the green plains below 
 him and the gray city, almost concealed under the pahn- 
 trees, stretching along on the farthest edge, breaking the 
 long, white line of surf whose dull roar stiU reached his 
 ears. 
 
 About two o'clock he entered the alun-alun in Kali 
 Chandi, where he received the commands of his master, 
 and without stopping to eat or rest, hurried on to the 
 baths of Jati Sung'gu, taking his meal of rice and chabi 
 out of a plantain leaf as he trotted along. When he 
 reached the baths it was four o'clock. The excursionists 
 had all finished bathing and were lying about on the 
 grass resting and partaking of the good cheer the gener- 
 ous Bopati had forwarded them. When Satrap came up 
 he seated himself among the servants and native attend- 
 ants, who squatted in a ring a short distance from their 
 masters, waiting to obey their commands and afterwards 
 eat their own rice. The Pateh took no notice of the 
 arrival of Satrap when he saw him appear, but shortly 
 afterwards arose and walked slowly into the forest. A 
 moment later Satrap plunged into the forest in an oppo- 
 site direction, to all appearances continuing his journey, 
 and was soon lost in its thick shade. In ten minutes he 
 dropped on one knee before his master and handed him 
 the letter received from Merrah, Josephine's maid. 
 When the Pateh returned to the dalam. Satrap was 
 stretched out fast asleep on a bali-bali in one of the ser- 
 vants' huts in the compound in the rear. 
 
 After the Pateh had read Josephine's letter, a soft and 
 sweet expression settled over his face, replacing the fierce 
 gloom of the morning. Tracy observed it when he 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 185 
 
 joined him again without suspecting the cause, and smiled 
 to himself as he thought, " Well, now he 's had another 
 interview," mentally alluding to the disclosures on the 
 veranda the night before. While they lay on the grass 
 the Patch had managed to acquaint Tracy with the 
 contents of the letter which he had received that morn- 
 ing from Mr. BardweU, again expressing his intense 
 disgust and indignation, and assuring him that it was 
 only for Josephine's sake that he did not start ofiE at once 
 to the city and kill him. As they followed their com- 
 panions back to the Kali Chandi, keeping together as 
 usual, sometimes sliding down steep rocks, picking their 
 way under water-falls, skirting jungles, and all the while 
 on the outlook for surprises from some wild beast, 
 Tracy perceived that the Patch's face not only continued 
 to wear its air of pleased satisfaction, but took on an 
 expression of delight ; and he began to fear it was some- 
 thing more serious than a shadowy interview with Jose- 
 phine that was producing this marked and happy 
 change. A vague fear that it might arise from a con- 
 cluded arrangement to destroy Bardwell came up in his 
 mind as he recalled the sudden appearance of Satrap and 
 the short absence of the Pateh in the forest. He knew 
 if the latter had expressed to his attendant a desire that 
 Mr. Bardwell should die he would shortly hear of his 
 funeral. He was loath to admit the suspicion that his 
 friend could descend to such a secret, underhanded way 
 of taking a human being's life, yet familiarity with the 
 natives' mode of thought and customs prepared him to 
 accept it without surprise, and he instinctively moved a 
 little away from the Pateh, deciding if Bardwell died 
 soon he would never speak to Sarjio again. He tried to 
 iiank how he could touch upon the subject and give the 
 Pateh the opportunity of teUing him the truth, when 
 
186 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 they came out on a smooth bit of road and Sarjio turned 
 to him with a beaming face and said, — 
 
 " She will be here to-night, Tracy ; is at this moment 
 in the dalam of the Bopati, perhaps." 
 
 " Of whom are you speaking ? " asked Tracy, %ht 
 breaking upon his mind, and wondering if the Pateh 
 would tell him he expected a spiritual visit from his Jose- 
 phine. 
 
 " Of whom should I speak but Miss Bardwell ? " 
 
 •' How do you expect her to come, Sarjio ? " again 
 queried Tracy, with fim in his voice. " I» flesh and 
 blood, or in sbadowy, impalpable form, only apparent to 
 your own highly cultivated vision ? " and he laughed 
 heartily over the Javan's hallucinations. 
 
 " Don't indulge your mirth too soon, Tracy," said the 
 Fateh impatiently, and with some severity. " I assure 
 you. Miss BardweU will be at the dalam to-night with 
 Sewa." 
 
 " Oh, oh ! " cried Tracy, this time his voice express- 
 ing the utmost astonishment, as he quickly asked, turn- 
 ing half around and looking suspiciously into the face of 
 his friend, " You must admit, Sarjio, this is rather ex- 
 traordinary just now ; and what brings her ? " 
 
 " It may appear so," replied the Pateh ; " but it was 
 arranged a week ago that she was to come with Sewa 
 and visit Keomah and Mattah-Djarri. I have just 
 learned it from a letter that Satrap has brought me." 
 
 " Do they know you are here, or that you intended to 
 come ? " inquired Tracy, vmeasily, thinking, " Well, this 
 is a pretty mufss." 
 
 " I wrote Josephine last night that I was here : beyond 
 that they know nothing," answered the Pateh. " But 
 she will come, and use her pleasure, no doubt, about say- 
 ing I am here. I think she will tell Sewa, perhaps." 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 187 
 
 " And they come to visit Keomah and Mattah-Djarri," 
 said Tracy, musingly, " and doubtless to enjoy the moun- 
 tain air during the dry monsoon." 
 
 " Yes, I suppose so," answered the Pateh, *' You re- 
 member the Radan ajeng Mattah-Djarri, whom you met 
 at Bardwell's dinner. She is so beautiful, you jnust have 
 noticed her." 
 
 " Yes, I remember her," answered Tracy, becoming 
 thoughtful ; and be walked on beside the Pateh with his 
 eyes fixed on the ground, while neither of them spoke 
 for some time. 
 
 ♦' Josephine writes me they expect to be at the dalam 
 before sunset," said the Pateh at length, taking up the 
 conversation where they had left it. " It is her father's 
 desire that they should come, but he can't imagine that 
 I am here ; " and the Pateh laughed low and musically, 
 but Tracy observed that derision was the leading note. 
 
 " You fill me with surprises, Sarjio ; what will you do 
 now ? " inquired Tracy ; '* go away, for instance, or stay 
 and meet Miss Bardwell ? " 
 
 " I go away ? " repeated the Pateh. " Not I — I '11 
 remain as you do, unless — unless Josephine goes with 
 me," he added, after a short pause, in a slow, deUberate 
 voice, which convinced Tracy he had made up his mind 
 to decided and rapid action, and the result now rested 
 with Josephine. 
 
 " You are not disposed, I see, to be too modest, Sar- 
 jio," said Tracy, half in fun and half in earnest, begin- 
 ning to think the Pateh was contemplating taking rather 
 a high hand. " Have you reaUy an idea," he continued, 
 " Miss BardweU could be induced to go with you, and 
 where to ? pray let me ask you, and at the same time 
 suggest it might not be an easy task to carry a European 
 girl about in this hot climate." 
 
188 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 " I will not carry Josephine about," said the Pateh, 
 with some displeasure, taking Tracy's words literally. 
 " I will give her the best carriage and four horses that 
 can be procured on this side of the globe, and I will 
 make her my wife, to begin with, before I start," added 
 he in a proud and tremulous tone. 
 
 " You talk like a man that is dreaming, Sarjio," said 
 Tracy. " Miss BardweU is a Christian, you a Moham- 
 medan. Where could you have the marriage rite per- 
 formed ? " 
 
 " Here in this village," replied the Pateh, pointing to a 
 group of thatched huts, with a slender minaret rising 
 from the round dome of a mosque in its centre ; " or at 
 Kali Chandi, or in my father's kampong nearer the sum- 
 mit, or anywhere where there is a village with a dukun, 
 or a mosque with a panghulu. Josephine's consent is 
 all that is needed. It is out of the ordinary custom, I 
 know," he continued, in reply to Tracy's surprised look, 
 " but the situation requires that I lose no time, and as I 
 possess money and power, which I now rejoice in, it shall 
 serve me as it has never served me before." 
 
 " I hope you will not do anything so imprudent, Sar- 
 jio," said Tracy earnestly. " I trust, for your sake and 
 her own. Miss Bardwell knows her duty too well and has 
 too much respect for her father's wishes to consent to be 
 married in such a manner. Don't you think you had 
 better wait and see first if it can't be brought about in 
 the proper way, before resorting to such rash measures ? " 
 
 " I understand you, and you may be right, but I will 
 now wait only on Josephine's will," replied the Pateh 
 decidedly. " Her father has forfeited all claims to my 
 consideration. He has insulted me," with rising anger, 
 " and, Tracy, I fear I shall kill him," he jerked out in a 
 stifling voice, his hand at the same instant grasping the 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 189 
 
 sparkling handle of his kris, which he suddenly drew 
 forth, making several suggestive passes with its serpen- 
 tine hlade through the air. 
 
 " Think of Josephine's grief, Sarjio," said Tracy sooth- 
 ingly, hoping to cahn him, while he looked with appre- 
 hension on the formidable weapon with which the indig- 
 nant Javan was cutting and plunging into an invisible 
 BardweU, and shuddered for the latter's fate, should he 
 by any unfortunate chance happen into the presence of 
 the Pateh before he had conquered his first paroxysms 
 of rage. 
 
 " I do think of Josephine and her sorrow ; I have 
 thought of nothing else aU day," replied the Pateh in 
 answer to Tracy's last exhortation. " It is she that with- 
 holds me ; but still, I fear in an unguarded moment I 
 might meet him, and then, Tracy, I could not answer for 
 myself." 
 
 " Be careful, then, not to meet him if you perceive 
 there is danger of it. Fix your mind on Josephine," said 
 Tracy. " Picture to yourself her sorrow should anything 
 happen to her father. You know how she loves him. 
 Imagine her aversion for the hand that would harm him." 
 
 " Enough, enough, Tracy," ejaculated the Pateh, slid- 
 ing his kris back into its sheath with a groan ; " you 
 have saved me for the present, and I won't talk of the 
 future." Then pausing for a moment, he murmured as 
 if thinking aloud, " Tes, Josephine, for thee I wiU do all 
 things." 
 
 Without listening further to the conversation of the 
 two young men as they tramped back to KaU Chandi 
 behind their companions, after the fatiguing exertions of 
 the day, we will look in upon Miss Bardwell and her 
 mother, satisfied that the excursionists will reach the 
 dalam of the Bopati in safety, where an abundant supper 
 
190 A PRINCES^ OF JAVA. ~^ 
 
 will await them, after whidi they will doobtless indulge 
 in the lounging and smoking of the night before, on the 
 side gallery, while the same strange stillness fills the air 
 and the same brilliaot moon steadily moves toward the 
 zenith Qverh^ad. 
 
CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 As soon as Josephine had replied to the Patch's letter 
 and given it to Merrah to see it started on its; way, she 
 sought her mother to ascertain the hour of their intended 
 departure for the mountains, and to urge that it might 
 be as early in the day as possiUe. She was now anxious 
 to get away before her father could heai of the Patch's 
 trip to the top of the Teng'gera. She was gratified to 
 find Sewa making preparations to leave in time to arrive 
 at Kali Chaadi before sunset. H^ father was in her 
 mother's apartments giving a few last instruetions. She 
 started at seeing him, almost overwhelmed, for a moment, 
 by the eonseiousness of the deception she was practicing 
 towards him. She felt sorry she knew Sai'jji) was at the 
 dalam of the Bopati. She wished she had not known 
 of it untn after her arrival. Then there would have been 
 no occasion to deceive her father ; but she would not tell 
 him now and thus destroy all chance of seeing her lover. 
 She compromised with her conscience by deciding to tell 
 her mother as soon as they had left the city weU behind, 
 although she knew Sewa would think whaitevec she 
 wished she should. 
 
 Wh^ Jos^phine enteired the room, her father called 
 her to come and sit beside him, and told her he thought 
 seriously of going to Europe in a month or two, perhaps 
 immediately after her return from the mountains, and 
 ■jrould take her with him ; affecting to believe she would 
 naturally be delighted with the prospect. He considered 
 this a good jdan to draw her mind from that '^ infernal 
 
192 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 native," as he amiably termed the young Patch. He 
 observed with deep pain the indifEerent, even reluctant 
 air, with which Josephine received his proposals. There 
 were no joyful exclamations nor enthusiastic expectations 
 expressed, as he had hoped and supposed there would be. 
 Instead, she looked frightened and sad, and he inwardly 
 cursed the " brown whelp " who had thus come between 
 him and the object he so much loved. As his eyes wan- 
 dered over the beauty and elegance of her face and fig- 
 ure, and he reflected that she was willing to hide it all in 
 the seclusion of Java with a native prince, he drew a 
 deep sigh, which carried such a profound sense of grief 
 on its breath, that Josephine looked up and impulsively 
 threw her arms around his neck and began to weep upon 
 his bosom, while his emotion quite equaled her own. 
 Her distress, for the time, was painful to witness, yet she 
 had not the least idea of retracting or abandoning the 
 Patch. Her father's repeatedly expressed determination 
 to oppose her wishes made her more obstinately persist- 
 ent, while his disapprobation and sadness both irritated 
 and grieved her. In her heart she blamed and reproached 
 him for making them all so miserable. Long and unre- 
 strained indulgence had oblitei-ated all proper ideas of 
 the deference and submission she owed him. She wept 
 because she felt sorry for him and deplored what she 
 considered his short-sighted perversity and hardness of 
 heart in willingly making both her and himself unhappy. 
 She knew he suffered keenly, but she knew that Sarjio 
 did also. 
 
 The great error of her own disobedient wilfulness 
 towards a loving parent did not enter her thoughts. She 
 had always seen herself the petted idol whose will was 
 not to be crossed. She had no conception of the arbi- 
 trary selfishness of this supposition, and felt injured and 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 193 
 
 wronged by her father in this new and unexpected oppo- 
 sition. 
 
 At last, mother and daughter were seated in their com- 
 fortable carriage, with servants and baggage following 
 behind them, and were soon winding slowly up the moun- 
 tain-side. It was Josephine's first experience of a grad- 
 ual and imperceptible ascent into a cooler and purer at- 
 mosphere. The rare and stimulating air intoxicated her 
 spirits, filling her with delight, and, joined to the wondrous 
 beauty of the scene slowly unrolling behind and below 
 them, with the knowledge that she was moving steadily 
 onward toward the object of her dearest hopes, invested 
 the moment with a halo of romance and bewildering illu- 
 sion that lifted her above and beyond all commonplace 
 and everyday things and thoughts. She felt she had just 
 begun to live, and looked back with sudden compassion 
 on the tameness and blankness of her previous existence, 
 more firmly resolving that nothing should prevent her 
 from living with Sarjio amidst that superb mountain 
 scenery which was his native home. 
 
 In the ecstasy of her feelings, she confided to Sewa 
 her knowledge of the Patch's presence at the dalam in 
 Kali Chandi. Sewa was frightened at first. Her hus- 
 band's anger loomed up in her mind and overwhelmed 
 her with dismay. She dreaded what the consequences 
 might be, but under the extravagant and ardent manipu- 
 lations of her daughter she soon began to perceive his 
 unreasonable injustice, not to say cruelty and wrong, 
 towards her innocent and unofltending child. It was not 
 long, therefore, before she succumbed entirely to the mag- 
 netism of her daughter's enthusiasm and began to share the 
 latter's anticipated pleasure in speedily meeting her incom- 
 parable Sarjio- Thus the first half of the journey was 
 passed in delightful enjoyment by both mother and daugh- 
 
194 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 ter, and in almost entire forgetfulness of the father's 
 claims. 
 
 Not long after midday the carriage stopped near a sil- 
 very waterfall in the dark shade of a forest, where the 
 occupants descended to the ground to refresh themselves 
 with a draught of the sparkling heverage, clear and cold 
 from the dizzy summits ahove. Josephine looked around 
 in amazement. She was no longer in a tropical clime. 
 The air was cool and invigorating, and gave the rust- 
 ling of the leaves a northern sound. Herds of deer 
 stood away off looking at them in silent surprise, then 
 suddenly bounded away and were soon hidden by the 
 multitudinous trunks of the gigantic teak and liquidam- 
 ber trees, which shot up like tall columns in every direc- 
 tion. More than once an enraged wild hog (babi roesa) 
 would suddenly come crashing through a tangled mass of 
 low shrubbery, and with a threatening squeal rush past 
 them to conceal himself behind or under another cover- 
 ing. After partaking of a substantial lunch in the quiet 
 shade, they reentered the carriage and started again on 
 their upward route towards Kali Chandi. The ascend- 
 ing road now led into the very depths of the forest. The 
 view of the rolling valleys on the mountain's base, and 
 the broad, flat plain surrounding it, with the uneasy 
 ocean beyond, and the dipping horizon still farther away, 
 was shut out behind them entirely. Curious paths 
 twisted down the descents, crossed their road, and wrig- 
 gled out of sight in an opposite direction, over which the 
 Javanese rhinoceros would sometimes clumsily trot, one 
 behind the other, with their one stubby horn erect in the 
 air and tail corresponding, while they snorted and bel- 
 lowed either in fright or defiance. 
 
 In many places the weU-trodden paths of these animals 
 wound up the most dangerous steeps, continuing till they 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 195 
 
 reached the very edge of the smoking crater, where they 
 ran around the dangerous brim for long distances and 
 then descended again towards the forests below, with- 
 out any apparent motivB. 
 
 Enormous snakes not unf requently lay stretched across 
 the highway in occasional patches of sunshine, or with 
 their immense length coiled in ugly brown heaps by the 
 narrow road-side, reluctantly moving to escape the car- 
 riage wheels. Among the branches and limbs of the 
 trees that met and interlaced overhead, the long and 
 slender whip-snake laped and relaped itseK, without seem- 
 ing end or beginning, like a brown and white striped cord 
 that only had to be disentangled to be put into service. 
 
 Josephine had never seen such sights before, and was 
 thrown into the utmost terror when she first beheld them, 
 but observing that Sewa regarded them with sleepy, in- 
 different eyes, and the servants scarcely noticed them at 
 all, she gained more courage and gradually calmed her 
 fears, resolutely bringing her thoughts back to their 
 pleasant meditations on the handsome Patch, for whom 
 she endeavored to imagine she was bravely passing 
 through all these dangers. In this delusion she raised 
 her mind to such a pitch of romantic exaltation that she 
 felt quite willing to face a chance threatening of death 
 itself, had successful progress to the palace of the Bopati 
 demanded so. 
 
 As the great golden orb of the setting sun sank into 
 the Indian Ocean, the carriage of Sewa and Josephine, 
 with their baggage and servants, rolled along under the 
 cocoas and pahns around Kali Chandi, and soon turned 
 into the broad green of the alun-alun and halted in front 
 of the lawung seketing belonging to the dalam of the 
 Bopati. Hosts of servants instantly appeared, to attend 
 them, while the Bopati, followed by Keomah and Mattah- 
 
196 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 Djarri, hastened forward to bid them welcome. The 
 Bopati, who had never seen Josephine before, regarded 
 her with much astonishment. Her thoroughly European 
 air and appearance pleased and surprised him. He 
 showed her special attention and began to feel more 
 kindly towards Sewa. 
 
 The quick eyes of Josephine immediately detected 
 something wrong or unusual with Mattah-Djarri. Her 
 face had a pained and, at the same time, a set and resolved 
 expression that it did not wear when they had been to- 
 gether before ; and over it all there was a touching sad- 
 ness that seemed to appeal to Josephine for sympathy 
 and protection. Sewa, like Josephine, observed the 
 change and at once divined the truth, but with the habit- 
 ual cunning and seeming indifference of the Javanese, 
 pretended to be blind to it all, deciding not to mention it 
 until it was mentioned to her. She even complimented 
 the Bopati upon the Badan ajeng's improved beauty, to 
 which he assented with great satisfaction. Josephine 
 heard the passing compliments in surprise and looked at 
 Mattah-Djarri whose face wore a deadly pallor that could 
 not be called an improvement. 
 
 Then she listened to Sewa and knew from a certain 
 little ring in her voice that her mother did not believe in 
 her own statements, and she felt there was something de- 
 cidedly out of place coimected with her cousin. Going up 
 to the latter she took her hands in hers and kissed her, 
 begging her to accompany her to the apartments she was 
 to occupy. The two girls disappeared beyond the passa- 
 dong, Mattah-Djarri with difficulty preserving her com- 
 posure tUl they were alone in Josephine's rooms, when she 
 threw her arms around her cousin and began to cry, in a 
 manner most distressing to the latter. 
 
 " What is it, Mattie ? explain this mystery," en- 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 197 
 
 treated Josephine ; " it alarms me," half crying herself, 
 forgetting the Pateh and all the interesting confidences 
 she had intended to hestow upon Mattah-Djarri the first 
 instant they were alone. 
 
 Wagari, entering the apartment at this moment in pur- 
 suit of her mistress, and catching the last sentence, com- 
 prehended the situation and explained, in as few words 
 as possible, the unhappy position of the princess, taking 
 care to describe the Tumung'gung as a hideous old ogre 
 and very beast of prey. 
 
 Josephine felt her own griefs were as nothing in com- 
 parison with the impending fate of her lovely cousin. 
 She could imagine nothing more dreadful than to be 
 forced into a marriage with the repulsive old tyrant whom 
 "Wagari had described, with the additional portraiture of 
 his shrunken, half-tottering figure, dried-up face, blink- 
 ing eyes, and toothless mouth, and to which Mattah-Djarri 
 gave assent ; she felt her flesh creep and remembered 
 with joy the superb and youthful beauty of her own Sar- 
 jio. It was horrible, too hondble, she declared, and 
 must be prevented, and while she removed her traveling 
 dress, she proceeded to console her cousin by solemnly 
 assuring her such a sacrifice must and should be frus- 
 trated. 
 
 " How glad I am, dear Mattie," exclaimed Josephine, 
 after they had talked the matter over, " that we are just 
 in time to save you. Another month and you would 
 have been gobbled up by the old monster," and she forced 
 a cheerful little laugh, in an effort to inspire her saddened 
 companion with a sentiment of courage and hope. 
 
 " I hope your desires and assurances will be realized, 
 dear Josie," said Mattah-Djarri, " but I am not so san- 
 guine. You don't know what the Bopati's anger can be- 
 come. To die is the only refuge I perceive, and that is a 
 
198 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 desperate remedy to think of. It makes me shiver," and 
 the young girl shook from head to foot in apprehensive 
 dread. 
 
 " Don't talk about such an event," said Josephine. 
 " You would not commit suicide ! and something will 
 ' turn up,' as the girls at school used to say when 
 troubles arose ; and so it always did, for we all came off 
 happily with our lives, notwithstanding we each felt we 
 were sure to die when summoned before Madame, to be 
 reproved or accused of some misdemeanor." 
 
 Josephine's maid appearing to accompany her mistress 
 to the bath, prevented further conversation on the subject 
 of the Tumung'gung. After the bath, food and rest were 
 necessary, which excluded all opportunity for added 
 questions or confidences between the cousins, till late in 
 the evening when Josephine went into Mattah-Djarri's 
 apartments, which joined those allotted to her own use, 
 and inquired if there were any strangers or guests at the 
 dalam. Mattah-Djarri informed her of the visit of the 
 European excursionists. " And is that all ? " inquired 
 Josephine, in a disappointed tone, suddenly fearing some- 
 thing might have called the Pateh away. *i Where are 
 they at present ? " she further asked. 
 
 "I have heard from Wagari, who keeps herself in- 
 formed of all that is going on, that they went on an ex- 
 cursion to-day to the caves of Durha, and from thence 
 they were to return to the dalam by the baths of Jati 
 Sung'gu," replied Mattah-Djarri, a suspicion rising in her 
 mind that Josephine's imknown lover might be one of 
 their number. "That sunny-looking Mr. -Tracy, per- 
 haps," she thought, " who had spoken to her that night 
 at the dinner-table." 
 
 " They will return to-night, or have, no doubt, already 
 done so," she continued, thinking the news would please 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 199 
 
 her cousin, if the mysterious lover happened to be among 
 them. " Wagari knows all their movements from Schag- 
 ga, you see," with a faint smile. 
 
 " I understand," replied Josephine rather impatiently, 
 getting uneasy about the Pateh ; " but are there no other 
 guests in the dalam, no young rajahs or radans or any- 
 thing like that?" Saying this, Josephine looked anx- 
 iously into her cousin's face while she waited with sus- 
 pended breath for her answer. 
 
 *' None, unless it is Sarjio the Pateh," replied Mattah- 
 Djarri hesitatingly. " He is with the Europeans." 
 
 This reply relieved Josephine's mind, but she made no 
 response. She was debating whether it would not be bet- 
 ter to inform her cousin at once of the relations existing 
 between herself and the Pateh. She had noticed Mattah- 
 Djarri's hesitation when about to speak of him, and im- 
 puted it to a delicate reluctance she might feel about 
 mentioning his name to her, forgetting she had not di- 
 vulged the name of her lover when she had disclosed to 
 Mattah-Djarri the secret troubles that oppressed her. 
 
 " Have you seen Sarjio since he arrived at the dar 
 lam ? " asked Josephine at length, more for the pleasure 
 it gave her to repeat his name than anjHJung else. 
 
 " I saw him this morning from my veranda." 
 
 " You did," cried Josephine, suddenly jumping up, and 
 leaning over to kiss the speaker on both cheeks, feeling, 
 at the moment, she loved her next to the Pateh, because 
 she had seen him such a short time ago. " How did he 
 look, Mattie ? " 
 
 " Handsome, as he always looked when I have seen 
 him," said the latter. 
 
 " I have something to tell you, Mattie," said Josephine, 
 reseating herself, and drawing her chair a little closer 
 to Mattah-Djarri. " Oh, if you only knew ! " and Jose- 
 
200 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 phine was about to relate the particulars of her intended 
 confidence at once, when looking up she caught the sharp 
 eyes of "Wagari, whom she had forgotten and who was 
 lolling on a divan in a distant corner, fixed upon her 
 face, fuU of eager interest, and she changed her mind. 
 " I '11 not tell her," she thought to herself, with an im- 
 patient glance towards Wagari. " She would repeat it 
 to the servants, and before to-morrow night it would be 
 known all over Java ; " for Josephine knew what a per- 
 fect network of telegraphy the lower classes formed, and 
 that under their habitual indifference was concealed a 
 quick perception, keen intelligence, and an alert desire to 
 communicate their discoveries to one another, using un- 
 known ways and means that bordered on the magical. 
 
 "Wagari saw Josephine look at her, then suddenly stop 
 and make some trifling excuse for not continuing what- 
 ever she had intended to say, and suspecting the true 
 cause, her natural politeness prompted her to arise and 
 beg permission to leave the room, resolving to keep a 
 sharp eye on the Nonah (unmamed white girl) during 
 the time she remained at the dalam, and discover what 
 great secret it was that her presence prevented the latter 
 from communicating to her beloved mistress. She went 
 directly to look for Schagga and found him sitting cross- 
 legged on a mat beside the entrance to that wing of the 
 dalam which was exclusively devoted to the use of the 
 women, chewing siri, — his usual employment when not 
 accompanying some one of them abroad. He informed 
 her the guests had returned and were at present on the 
 deep side-veranda, and that the Patch arid his friend 
 had come back some time after the rest. Wagari good-na- 
 turedly returned with this news to the apartments of her 
 mistress, thinking it might interest her, slender an(f mear 
 gre as the communication appeared. Mattah-Djarri made 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 201 
 
 no comment or remark when she heard it, hut Wagari 
 noticed Miss Bardwell's face flushed and her eyes flashed 
 excitedly, and that she eagerly repeated the Patch's 
 name. This recalled to her mind several little circum- 
 stances that had attracted her attention during the time 
 of her mistress's visit, and she immediately had suspi- 
 cions. 
 
CHAPTER XXni. 
 
 When the Pateh and Tracy crossed the alun-alun, 
 lagging, as they were, some distance behind the others, 
 they both looked around, hoping to discover some signs 
 of the arrival of Sewa and Josephine. Perceiving none, 
 they did not stop on the first veranda with their com- 
 panions, who having arrived before them were relating 
 to the Bopati the most notable adventures of the day, 
 but after saluting him passed on to their respective rooms, 
 each observing the searching looks of the other without 
 remarking upon it. To Tracy, the coming of Miss Bard- 
 well appeared highly improper. He regarded it as 
 throwing herself into the Patch's arms and willfuUy de- 
 ceiving her father, which he highly condemned, for he 
 rightly judged the latter could know nothing of the 
 Patch's presence. He was in some doubt as to whether 
 it was not his duty to inform Mr. Bardwell, in his 
 daughter's interest. It appeared to bim dishonorable to 
 withhold the knowledge from the former, whom he re- 
 spected and who had always been his friend, especially 
 when it was a matter of such vast importance to him as 
 the fate of Josephine. Much as he liked and admired 
 the Pateh, he could but regard Miss Bardwell as partially 
 insane in this act, as well as in her desire to become the 
 wife of a Javanese, and he by no means, as before stated, 
 condemned her father for opposing it. 
 
 His friendship for the Pateh next presented itself. 
 " How could he notify Bardwell," he asked, " without 
 betraying Sarjio's confidence and proving himself disloyal 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 203 
 
 to a regard he had professed since he was a boy ? " He 
 felt he could not do it. He would have nothing to do 
 with the affair at all. Finally he decided to think no more 
 about the matter at present, and in the morning a new 
 view of it might present itself. Before he went to sleep, 
 however, he concluded he would send his card to Miss 
 Bardwell in the morning and beg an interview, for he 
 had ascertained from his servant that she really had ar- 
 rived with her motlier. Then he would try to persuade 
 her to return to her father or send for him to come to 
 her, and afterwards propose to his friends to pursue their 
 way to the simmiit without delay. If the Pateh would 
 not accompany them, which he feared he might not do 
 on account of Miss BardweU's presence, they would go 
 without him. Notwithstanding all these prudent inten- 
 tions, he felt uncomfortable. He was sure his imcle 
 would misimderstand him and that he would gain the ill- 
 will of Bardwell besides, who would probably accuse him 
 of aiding and abetting the Pateh in his generous inten- 
 tion of running away with Josephine. He had not a 
 doubt now but that she would go and with the full con- 
 sent of Sewa. 
 
 At an unusually early hour in the morning Tracy 
 awoke, and after attempting in vain to go to sleep again, 
 arose and went out immediately, as was the custom, into 
 the open air. The nutmeg grove looked cool and invit- 
 ing and the perfumed air from its blossoms drew him 
 towards it. Passing the Patch's window, he saw he was 
 also awake and walking up and down his chamber, with 
 his head bent forward in deep reflection. " Josephine 
 again," said Tracy to himself, looking at the Pateh a 
 moment or two tlirough the window before the latter per- 
 ceived him. 
 
 " Come out," called Tracy, when the Pateh looked up 
 
204 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 and saw him. " Let us take an early walk. The air 
 IS delicious." 
 
 The Pateh, glad to exchange the anxious deliberations 
 in his own mind for the pleasant conversation of his 
 friend, joined him at once in the badju and pjalmahs in 
 which he had passed the night, only being careful to ad- 
 just the ikat, worn night and day on the head of the 
 Javanese. Tracy's attire was the same and in a condi- 
 tion similar to that of the Pateh, with the addition of im- 
 covered and disheveled hair. Neither of them had been 
 to the bath or looked in the mirror that morning. Not 
 expecting to meet or see any one so early, unless it might 
 be a chance servant going to his work, they sauntered 
 through the nutmeg grove toward a cold, transparent 
 spring which bubbled up on one side of it, forming a deep 
 pond, with a pavilion on its banks, which was a favorite 
 spot to sit and enjoy a drink of the cold mountain-water, 
 and receive at the same time invigorating draughts of 
 the freshened morning or evening breeze, sweeping up 
 in front through a broad open space in the forest, sloping 
 down toward the sea. The first remark the Pateh made, 
 when he was sure they were beyond danger of disturbing 
 any of the sleeping occupants of the dalam by the sound 
 of their voices passing through the open windows and 
 unclosed lattices of the different apartments, was, — 
 
 " She is here, Tracy, my matchless Josephine. Her 
 rooms open on that pretty balcony covered with vines," 
 turning partly around and indicating with a slight motion 
 of his hand and arm an airy frame of green, leafy net- 
 work that seemed to hold fast of itself to the side of one 
 comer of the long, low palace, and from which the occu- 
 pants could unobserved see everything outside. 
 
 " I suspected as much," answered Tracy, without say- 
 ing he had heard it last night from the servants. " At 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 205 
 
 what hour did they arrive ? I suppose Sewa accompanied 
 her." 
 
 " Certainly Sewa is with her," replied the Patch, feel- 
 ing half displeased with Tracy's tone. " They arrived 
 about the dropping of the sun," which is the term gener- 
 ally used to describe sunset under the equator, where the 
 sun appears to fall suddenly from the sky down behind 
 the horizon, without the lingering warning it bestows in 
 northern climes. 
 
 " What will you do now, Sarjio ? " asked Tracy, re- 
 peating the question of the night before. 
 
 " I have already told you," said the Patch curtly, his 
 displeasure increasing owing to Tracy's reproving man- 
 ner, and the imphed idea of change the latter's words 
 conveyed. 
 
 " Oh ! I beg your pardon," said Tracy, observing the 
 Patch's resentment. " I thought you might have con- 
 cluded to be prudent. You must admit, Sarjio, it is 
 rather presumptuous to take off a man's daughter without 
 his permission. I think, at least, you ought to notify 
 him." 
 
 " I could hardly do that in the present case," returned 
 the Patch, laughing at the absurdity of such a proposi- 
 tion. " After the torture he has caused me to endure, 
 I would rather enjoy it," the ring in his voice giving 
 symptoms of another mental cyclone. " I will not waste 
 much thought on what is due to him, I assure you. I 
 wish I could treat him as I do these blossoms," savagely 
 whipping off several white heads of the melati flowers 
 growing beside their path, with a stick he had picked up. 
 
 " I hope not so bad as this," said Tracy, stooping to 
 catch some of the fragrant petals as they whizzed past his 
 feet. " Sarjio, I entreat you to suppress your indignation 
 and reflect seriously upon what you are doing," continued 
 
206 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 Tracy with impressive earnestness. " If anything hap- 
 pened to Bardwell the government might make it most 
 unpleasant for you." 
 
 " Bah ! the government," cried the Pateh with dis- 
 dainful scorn. " I will take the consequences. If Bard- 
 well insults me again let him heware ! " and the Fateh 
 ground his teeth at the recollection of the letter of the 
 day before. 
 
 Perceiving his companion's anger was returning, and 
 that nothing could be done now to influence him in re- 
 gard to Mr. BardweU or his daughter, Tracy dropped the 
 subject by making no further reply, feeling considerable 
 alarm for the consequences, should Bardwell hear' of the 
 Pateh's presence at KaU Chandi and come there himself, 
 as he feared he would do before they succeeded in getting 
 away. The two young men moved slowly on without ad- 
 dressing each other again until they reached the pavilion ; 
 the Pateh carefully choosing the most tempting paths 
 leading in the direction of the spring, near where he had 
 often been before, his mind busily laying plans, mean- 
 while, to successfully carry away Josephine. He had not 
 slept any the night before, but passed the hours ia restless 
 excitement. " Was Josephine in the house or not ? " he 
 had asked himself a hundred times. At last, being un- 
 able to endure the uncertainty of suspense any longer, he 
 sent, regardless of the lateness of the hour, one of the 
 three servants that he always kept within call for Satrap, 
 who was the only one in his service that knew anything 
 about the Nonah blanda, and commanded him to ascer^ 
 tain if she had arrived. It was but a few moments be- 
 fore Satrap reappeared, and bending his body into the 
 dadok position always assumed by the lower classes when 
 they come into the presence of noble blood, said : " The 
 Nonah blanda is here, my master." 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 207 
 
 " What rooms does she occupy ? " demanded the Pateh. 
 
 "The Nonah is near the Badan ajeng. The green 
 veranda on the western corner belongs to her rooms," 
 answered Satrap, carefully nammg the exact locality, 
 thinking it quite possible his master intended to make the 
 Nonah a visit, the lateness of the hour being of no con- 
 sequence in his estimation. He waited a moment or two 
 longer in his humble squatting attitude, expecting to be 
 ordered to go and find some one to arouse the Nonah 
 and bid her prepare to receive the visit of the Pateh. 
 To Satrap's surprise his master dismissed him, only tell- 
 ing him to keep a vigilant watch on the beautiful Nonah 
 and carefully observe every one that approached her. 
 
 The Pateh had no prying designs in thus placing a 
 watch on Josephine. He was only actuated by a sudden 
 impulse of fear, lest her father might, in some way, hear 
 of his departure for the mountains, and contrive to get 
 possession of his daughter in consequence. It was his 
 intention to be near and prevent anything of this kind.. 
 In this resolve he was impelled both by love and re- 
 venge. His suspense removed, he threw himself on the 
 bed to sleep. It was impossible. He trembled all over 
 from pleasurable excitement. His thoughts were like 
 wild-fire. He felt as if he could fly. He felt it would be 
 a reUef if he dared to haUoo and make a noise. He 
 wanted to sing as loud as he could, something a Javanese 
 of any position never does, and then he laughed at his 
 own enthusiastic folly. At last he got up and tried to 
 cahn his nerves and brain by the physical exercise of 
 walking backwards and forwards, until called by Tracy 
 to come out of doors. 
 
CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 When Wagari was left alone with her mistress, in 
 whose apartments she had passed every night since the 
 great trouble, she resolved to draw her notice to Jose- 
 phine and her possible interest in the Fateh, thinking by 
 this means she might perhaps find out the actual truth ; 
 not only to satisfy her own curiosity, but to discover 
 what hope of escape with the Pateh there might be for 
 the princess. Miss BardweU's blushing eagerness to 
 speak of the young noble, combined with former little in- 
 cidents that had now assumed significance, inclined her 
 to fear that the beautiful cousin of her mistress might be- 
 come the unconscious means of depriving her of aU hope 
 of escape from the old Tumung'gung, through the young 
 prince. This suspicion filled her with annoyance. She 
 had secretly indulged a hope that the handsome Pateh 
 might prove another Adawara, and she had even gone 
 so far as to lay a plan whereby she could play the im- 
 portant part of the sympathetic Bumeda, with the differ- 
 ence of going herself to the Pateh, and not only stating 
 the distressing situation of the Badan Mattah-Djarri but 
 to implore him to save her. She would remind him of 
 Barabatah and the gallant conduct of the young Badan 
 who had delivered her from life-long misery, and refer 
 him to their present happiness, for every one knew what 
 a model husband and wife the Badan Adawara and the 
 Badan Barabatah had become ; but if the Nonah Bard- 
 well had cast her eyes on the handsome noble, which "Wa- 
 gari thought would be a very strange thing indeed, she 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 209 
 
 ffelt pretty sure the superiority of her odd and unique 
 beauty among the Javans would flatter and attract him, 
 and his European education would render intercourse be- 
 tween them congenial and interesting. Therefore she 
 would be compelled to despair of all assistance from the 
 Patch and turn her e£Eorts to aid her mistress in some 
 other direction. Now there was that friend of the Pa- 
 teh's, she thought to herself, was it not more probable, 
 aftei; all, that it was he who had called up the Nonah's 
 blushes, and that she was led to talk of the Patch, to 
 come unobservedly around to him. She knew enough 
 about her own heart to understand a little stratagem of 
 this kind. 
 
 Before "Wagari had the opportimity of approaching the 
 subject- of the Patch and Josephine, her mistress desired 
 her to go to Chatra and get the book out of which tlie 
 latter had once read to her the fable of the Guwa Upas, 
 saying, she thought she would like to look it over herself. 
 
 When Chatra handed Wagari the volume, she said, 
 " Do you know, Wagari, that Sewa and her daughter 
 arrived at the dalam this evening at sunset ? " 
 
 ■" Why of course I know it," answered Wagari pet- 
 tishly, provoked that Chatra should ask her such a ques- 
 tion. 
 
 " Surely, a hantu (demon or devil) is now in the da- 
 lam," said Chatra wrathfuUy, "and Sewa comes when 
 these horrid Christians are here. I expect she talks to 
 them aJL I warn you, Wagari, we are g^ing to have 
 trouble. I feel it coming." 
 
 " Indeed ! Chatra,'' returned Wagari laughing; "what 
 kind of symptoms disturb you ? " 
 
 " Dreams, Wagari, premonitory dreams," answered 
 Chatra solemnly. "-You know I believe in certain kinds 
 of dreams. It is your duty, now," with increasing eai> 
 
210 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 nestness, " to tell me everything you see and hear. If 
 there was wrong and I detected it, I would — weU. I 
 would wake the Bopati in the middle of the night, if nec- 
 essary.'' 
 
 " "What are you talking about, Chatra ? " said Wagari 
 impatiently. " What wrong do you expect ? " 
 
 " You are stupid, Wagari. Don't you see this ? If 
 the Radan Mattah-Djarri refuses to eat, weeps, and is 
 unwilling to be married, Sewa wUl inform these stran- 
 gers, and between them no one knows what might hap- 
 pen. They might manage to get her away." 
 
 " I hope they may, with all my heart," returned Wa- 
 gari gladly, catching the idea. " I would assist them. 
 I hate the Tumung'gung." 
 
 " Wagari, you are a greater fool than ever," cried Char 
 tra, turning savagely upon her. " Now go to your own 
 room," pointing to the door. 
 
 Wagari did not wait to be told the second time to go. 
 The light in Chatra's eyes warned her it was best to get 
 beyond her reach at once. 
 
 Much conversation with the garrulous old Mattah, the 
 mother of the Bopati, who despised Sewa because she 
 was Keomah's sister, as much as because she had dis- 
 graced her youth, caused Chatra to distrust and abomi- 
 nate the latter. She dreaded her advice or influence 
 over her young mistress, and was alarmed and tormented 
 with suspicious forebodings at the bare thought of the 
 latter being near her. She regarded the present crisis in 
 the affairs of Mattah-Djarri as a very bad time for Sewa 
 to arrive, and Wagari's bold offers of assistance enraged 
 her. She determined to expostulate with the latter at 
 the first opportunity and threaten her with informing 
 the Bopati of her disloyalty and show her the impru- 
 dence and danger of her foUy. 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 211 
 
 Mattah-Djarri received the book from "Wagari and 
 began to peruse it herself, refusing to allow the latter to 
 read it to her. Wagari looked at her and wondered 
 what she could find in it that would prove of any service 
 in the present dilemma, and really thought it possible 
 her mistress's mind was losing its balance. She could 
 not rest without making several attempts to divert her 
 thoughts and draw her from the book into conversation, 
 running the risk of reproval for her temerity. She spoke 
 of the Nonah Josephine as if by accident, and of the 
 Pateh in the same manner. But all to no purpose. She 
 found it was impossible to get her mistress to talk, and 
 above all to bring the conversation around where she 
 wished it ; so after being asked to desist, she gave up all 
 hopes of learning anything about the Pateh, the Nonah 
 Josephine, or the young European that night, and curled 
 herself up on her divan, attentively observing her mis- 
 tress, while her mind was occupied in trying to form or 
 discover a plan, by which she could rescue her from 
 the fate that awaited her, if the Pateh could not be ap- 
 pealed to. 
 
 After thinking it all carefully over, she made up her 
 mind Sewa was the only one left that she knew who 
 could render the needed assistance. She determined to 
 entreat her aid the next day. Then the idea struck her 
 that perhaps it was this affair of the Tumung'gung which 
 had decided her to come to the dalam at this time. In 
 this new idea she experienced great comfort, and went 
 to sleep, feeling more hopeful and cheerful than she had 
 felt since the day Keomah had entered the apartment to 
 communicate the direful tidings of the approaching mar- 
 riage. 
 
 It was Chatra's custom to go to her mistress every 
 night, the last thing before retiring, and inquire if the 
 
212 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 latter had any commands unfulfilled, and invoke for her 
 the blessing of a good night's rest. This night she went 
 a little earlier than usual, hoping she might obtain a look 
 at the Nonah Josephine and perhaps at Sewa also, either 
 going or coming from the princess's apartments, op per- 
 haps in them, which she considered not unlikely^ She 
 was not disappointed. In the first chamber she encoun- 
 tered Keomah with Sewa, examining some trifles about 
 the room as they came out. Sewa's appearance greatly 
 surprised her. She was taller than Keomah, and still 
 sweet and pretty looking, and spoke with an air of cul- 
 ture that excited her admiration despite all her preju- 
 dices. Sewa had proved an apt scholar and learned much 
 from association with her husband and his friends. And 
 Chatra was compelled, besides, reluctantly to acknowl- 
 edge that there was a strong resemblance between her 
 and her young mistress. 
 
 This last observation made the prudent woman feel 
 quite sick, and regret more than ever the Bopati's blind- 
 ness in allowing Sewa to come to the dalam just now. 
 The thought came into her mind, that if the Badan 
 ajeng resembled her aunt in person, she might also in 
 character. She dared not follow up what this might 
 lead to in her pupil's present rebellious condition. 
 
 In the second chamber^ Chatra found her mistress 
 with her cousin sitting before her talking rapidly, while 
 she held one of her- little hands in her own. Pausing a 
 moment at the threshold to attract their attention, she 
 heard the name of the Tumung'gung and knew at once 
 the nature of the conversation. That displeased her, and 
 when she advanced and the Nonah adroitly turned the sub- 
 ject and continued to speak on, without taking any appar- 
 ent notice of her, she inmiediately decided the Badan 
 ajeng was not safe a moment with such a gUb actress. 
 
A PSIMCESiS OF JAVA. '213 
 
 While she stood still waiting for a pause to make her 
 humble salutation and retii«, «he examined the siugulax 
 beauty oi the "squawking pairrot," as she afterwards 
 described the cultivated tones and delightful presence of 
 Josephine to the old Mattah, and admitted that her fair 
 complexion, blonde hair, 'and general tone 6i refinement 
 and high breeding were quite astonishing in Sewa's daugh- 
 ter. She looked in vain for some traee of Javanese 
 blood. "A real Nonah blanda, sure enough," «he said 
 to herseU, and a despised Christian also, she thought with 
 rising disgust. But when Jose|Aine nodded her head to 
 her and carelessly asked Maittah-i) jam to attend to her 
 and -send her away, 'Chatra'« disapprobation increased 
 ienf old, and her amazement 'v^th it. 
 
 When she left the room, she dubbed her a hateful vrseh 
 Jike her imotiier, and highly dangerous. '" Yes, titey will 
 rvdn everything," she moaned to hersdf , " and that silly 
 Wagari, too," whom she feared would be so fascinated 
 with Josephine'« fine manners and strange beavtty that 
 she might adopt all her fine ideas. 
 
 " Have yon assured your father, the Bopati, Mattie, 
 liiat you cannot marry this old man?" inquired Jose- 
 phine, returning to the 'Subject of thdr conversation after 
 Chatra had retired. 
 
 " Me ! " exclaimed Mattah-Djarri ; "why no, dear Jo- 
 sie ; I dare not use such a liberty. But Keomah said all 
 she could this morning. The Tumung'-gung came and 
 they sent for me. Afterward Keomah went to the Bo- 
 pati and tried to remonstrate." 
 
 " And then " — said Josephine, pausing for her cousin 
 to add the result. 
 
 " Well, then, the Bopati was highly incensed with 
 Eeomah, and commanded her to retire and not mention 
 jny name to him again," concluded Mattah-Djarri with a 
 sigh. 
 
214 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 " And you '11 make no further resistance ? " said Jose- 
 phine interrogatively, " but submit to the barbarous sac- 
 rifice ? " turning up her nose in contempt. Mattah-Djarri 
 ■wondered whether it was at the Tumung'g^g's age and 
 ugliness, the Bopati's severity, or her own apparent 
 weakness. In either case it made her feel uncomfortable, 
 and she said, deprecatingly, — 
 
 " I have thought of several plans to avoid it, but I am 
 unable to decide which is best. In truth, I hoped that 
 when you came, you could help me with your advice. 
 The lamar must be observed. That defers it for several 
 weeks yet. We could plan much in that time," look- 
 ing appealingly at Josephine and trying to force a snule, 
 which proved a failure, and ended in a httle sob that 
 quickly developed into downright tears. 
 
 " Don't weep, dear, please don't," pleaded Josephine 
 in a distressed voice. " You shall not be given to the 
 Tumung'gung, I promise you. I will engage Sarjio to 
 save you. I will, indeed ! " she repeated, observing 
 Mattah-Djarri look up through her tears with a stare of 
 surprise and incredulity ; " and I am sure he will." 
 
 Josephine's hopeful and confident air communicated it- 
 self to Mattah-Djarri and soon caused her to dry her eyes 
 with her handkerchief, exclaiming, " Oh ! if he would, 
 if he would ! " with rising color. " But who will teU 
 him or ask him ? He has never spoken to me, and " — 
 
 " Never mind that," interrupted Josephine ; " it is all 
 the same. I will tell him what a dear, good child you 
 are," quite patronizingly, for now Josephine felt she was 
 taking a most important lead. " He will do it, if I ask 
 him, I know," she ended, with an air of confidence and 
 pride that caused her listener to wonder what secret 
 power she must feel certain of possessing. 
 
 " How very good you are, dear Josie. How can I 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 215 
 
 thank you sufficiently," said Mattah-Djam, with much 
 feeling ; " the Pateh is so handsome." 
 
 " He is, he is glorious to look upon," cried Josephine, 
 enthusiastically again interrupting her cousin, " and I 
 am glad you think so. What superb eyes and what a fig- 
 ure and hearing ; but you must talk to him, Mattie, before 
 you can know what he is like," pursued Josephine, a 
 smile of pleasure illumining her face, which grew into 
 an expression of warmth and loveliness as her mind dwelt 
 upon her lover, that made her appear more beautiful than 
 ever, her cousin thought. 
 
 " Josie," said Mattah-Djarri suddenly, sitting upright 
 and placing her feet upon a footstool, " did you ever hear 
 about the romance of Barabatah and the Radan Ada- 
 wara ? " 
 
 " I never heard of it," replied Josephine. " Tell me 
 about it. Was it a case similar to yours ? " 
 
 In answer to Josephine's command and inquiry, Mat- 
 tah-Djarri related Barabatah's griefs and their happy 
 termination, to which Josephine Kstened with absorbing 
 interest, without perceiving anything suggestive or sig- 
 nificant in her cousin's reference to it at the present mo- 
 ment. Indeed, she was so occupied with her desire to 
 divulge her peculiar relation with the Pateh to her com- 
 panion and witness the latter's surprise and approval, that 
 while she listened, she was thinking of him and impatient 
 to hear her finish, that she herseU might begin. She 
 really felt it quite stupid in Mattah-Djarri not to suspect 
 the name of her lover* tax her with it, and give her the 
 proud satisfaction of happy admission. 
 
 Mattah-Djarri, on her part, never suspected Sarjio of 
 being the unnamed lover of her magnificent cousin. The 
 latter's white face, golden hair, dainty dresses, and for^ 
 eign maimers naturally seeming to forbid it. ~ She did 
 
216 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 think however, in a doubtful way, that it might be Sarjio's 
 friend, the gay European. That appeared to her quite 
 fitting and more than likely. But there was so much 
 that seemed to her mysterious, if that was true, that she 
 could not understand it, or pursue the reg^ar sequence of 
 facts and results, as a more experienced or suspecting girl 
 would have done, either to prove or refute it. At the con- 
 clusion of Barabatah's history, Mattah-Djarri observed 
 Josephine looking wearied and in need of rest. Remem- 
 bering her long drive, she looked at a little French watch 
 the Bopati had once purchased for her in one of the towns 
 on the seacoast : she was mortified to find it was midnight 
 and that she had detained her cousin so long. " Go, my 
 dear Josephine, immediately," she cried, " go to bed and 
 forgive me for forgetting, in the pleasure of your society, 
 the fatigues yon have undergone to-day." 
 
 Thus admonished Josephine admitted she felt quite 
 exhausted, but in her interested concern about Mattah- 
 Djarri's deplorable afEairs had quite risen above it ; but 
 now reminded of it, she would profit by her advice, and, 
 rising, she bade her an affectionate good-night and went 
 •to her own rooms, where she found Merrah, her maid, 
 Ijdng on the rug beside her bed fast asleep. 
 
 Without disturbing her, Josephine quiedy prepared 
 herself for the night, thinking the poor creature, like her- 
 self, was tired out, and as she always slept in that man- 
 ner on the floor, she might enjoy unbroken slumber. 
 
 As she arranged her sarong and kaybaya, in which all 
 Eiuropeans in Java, as well as natives, sleep, and slowly 
 wound the long, red silk sash around her waist, she re- 
 membered, with regret, that she had been so engrossed 
 with Mattah-Djarri's sorrows she had not yet had the 
 opportunity to tell her about Sarjio. " I will do it the 
 first thing in the morning," she «aid to herself. " I am 
 
A PRTNCESS OF JAVA. 217 
 
 sure it will please and astonish her, she thinks him so 
 handsome," and smiling happily while she indulged 
 these and other similar reflections, she unrolled her long 
 hair, shook it straight down her hack, perfumed her 
 hands and face, and added other little embeUishing 
 touches to her toilette de nuit, before she abandoned her- 
 self, like Merrah, to that profound, unconscious repose 
 that is bom of health and fatigue. 
 
CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 Mattah-Djaeki went to sleep that night in a state 
 of mind not unlike that of Wagari. She felt more cheer- 
 ful, hopeful, and brighter than she had felt since she first 
 learned the Bopati's disposition of her future. In the 
 morning she woke just as the gray dawn began to replace 
 the soft glow of the night lamp, which burned behind 
 the embroidered Javanese screen where storks waded 
 on the edge of a stream and butterflies hovered above 
 blossoming lilies. The first object her eyes rested upon 
 was Josephine, who had also awakened early and was 
 then coming into her chamber, the doors and win- 
 dows of which, according to the prevailing custom, were 
 always left open, to ask her to go with her out into the 
 tempting freshness of the morning. She sprang up with 
 a warm smile of welcome and in a moment the two girls 
 were out of the close rooms and under the waving foliage 
 of the nutmeg grove, without changing the sarongs and 
 kaybayas in which they had passed the night, which with 
 the exception of being rumpled were quite the same as 
 those worn during the day. 
 
 " This is really intoxicating," cried Josephine, inhaling 
 long draughts of the Ught, fragrant atmosphere. 
 
 " I must return," suddenly exclaimed Mattah-Djarri, 
 looking frightened. " The lamar, you know — I must 
 not leave the dalam," she explained, in answer to Jose- 
 phine's startled gaze. 
 
 Josephine, who had made herself acquainted with all 
 the customs relating to marriage among the Javans, re- 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 219 
 
 plied, " Pooh ! you have no lamar ; you are not going to 
 be married now. You have forgotten." Mattah-Djarri 
 had, however, ah-eady reluctantly turned about to retrace 
 her steps, hoping that as it was so early no one from the 
 dalam had seen her thus dishonor the ancient etiquette 
 of her nation. 
 
 " You shall not go back," cried Josephine, seizing hold 
 of her arm and detaining her. " Have more courage. 
 Reject the hideous old Tumung'gung by beginning now to 
 disregard this first observance." Mattah-Djarri hesitated 
 a moment, with one foot set forward and her face turned 
 toward the dalam, then with sudden decision in her 
 voice said : " I wUl try to do so," and turning quickly 
 grasped Josephine's hand and walked rapidly forward 
 till she reached the centre of the grove. 
 
 " There, now," she cried, panting and out of breath. 
 " T have done it, and I have dragged you nearly to death, 
 Josie," as her eyes fell on Josephine's half-loosened sa- 
 rong and flying kaybaya, which the latter had not taken 
 time to adjust since she had left her couch. " No in- 
 deed," said Josephine, stopping and untying her sash, 
 straightening it up, and relaying the displaced folds on 
 the right side of her sarong, while Mattah-Djarri did 
 the same. " I am a little out of order, I own, but I 
 wanted to get out early this first morning, and could not 
 wait for the bath to change my dress," apologetically, 
 "but I think I look worse than you do," sUpping her feet 
 in and out of her spatus and looking ruefuUy at her 
 rumpled kaybaya. 
 
 " No one wiU see us," said Mattah-Djarri, " it is too 
 early. Come, we 'U go to the spring. Make a wish as 
 you go and look into the water before you touch it, and if 
 you can discover the color of your eyes, you 'U get your 
 wish." 
 
220 A PmNCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 " And you will wish also? "said Josephine, instantlj^ 
 deciding what she would wish for. 
 
 " It is not my first visit ; it only holds .good the first 
 time," said Mattah-Djarri. 
 
 "Well, then, I will wish I may see Sarjio speedily to 
 beg his assistance for you," said Josephine. " Now let 
 us run and find the color of my eyes quickly." 
 
 The two girls started off at a pace they intended for a 
 run, and soon reached the spring, where Josephine, with- 
 out noticing the beauty of the spot or the view for which 
 it was distinguished, hastily scrambled down the grassiy 
 hank and peered into the calm and glassy surface of its 
 waters. " They are blue, blue," she cried, looking "joy- 
 fully around at Mattah-Djarri, who was also gazing in- 
 tently into the limpid fitdd, to see the beautiful face 
 bending over it iu its gay excitement. 
 
 " They are blue, indeed," warmly assented Mattah- 
 Djarri. " I can see their color distinctly. You will get 
 your wish, and oh ! I hope — I hope you may, Josie." 
 
 " I feel I shall, and now let us drink to its fulfilment 
 this day — this very morning," pursued Josephine, look- 
 ing around for something to drink out of. 
 
 " The gajimgs are kept in the pavilion," said Mattah- 
 Djarri, anticipating her wish and getting up from her 
 knees, saying, "I will get one.'' 
 
 " No, no, let me go," cried Josephine, springing up 
 and running up the bank towards the pavilion, which 
 stood a few yards back from the descent to the water. 
 
 " On which side is it ? where does it hang ? " she con- 
 tinued calling back to Mattah-Djarri as she ran lightly 
 up the short jQight of steps that led to the entrance, rushed 
 inside, and looked around for the gajung. She quickly 
 observed it lying on a three-legged bambu stool on the 
 opposite side of the room, near a bower of vines that had 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 221 
 
 crept in through the unlatticed windows and twined 
 themselves around a post, forming a perfect screen, be- 
 hind which sat Tracy and Sarjio, gazing down through 
 the vista in front of them on the early mists rising from 
 the ocean, having just drank from the cocoar-nut gajung 
 and laid it on the stool. Josephine ran across the floor 
 and talking up the drinking cup perceived Sarjio and 
 Tracy. The surprise of aU parties was about equal. 
 Josephine dropped the gajung and stood staring at them 
 while it rolled towards the door. Tracy, recognizing 
 her, sprang to his feet, an idea of his disordered toilet, 
 particularly his unbrushed hair, flashing through his 
 mind ; at the same instant he perceived Josephine's des- 
 habille %nd understood that she, like himself, had been 
 drawn forth unprepared, by the beauty of the monoing. 
 With a hasty bow he picked up the gajung and hur- 
 riedly left the chamber, carrying it in his hand, a feeling 
 of instinctive politeness prompting him to relieve a lady, 
 so situated, of his presence as quickly as possible. As 
 he reached the bottom of the steps he heard joyful 
 exclamations of surprise and pleasure passing between 
 Josephine, and Sarjio, he having left the latter still seated, 
 so much astonished that he forgot to move, and when he 
 recovered himseU so delighted he thought only of J<y 
 sephine. 
 
 Unlike Tracy, he never thought of his appearance. 
 The woman he loved with all the burning ardoij of Ids' 
 nature was before him, wearing the dress of the women 
 of his own race. He had never seen her so clad before. 
 It made her appear like his own and bewildered him with 
 delight. He thought only of her beautiful presence. 
 Tracy heard them talking in the most rapturous tones, and 
 on looking back a moment or two later saw them waMsr. 
 ing up and down together in front of the open arches, 
 
222 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 without any apparent thought of anything but them- 
 selves. 
 
 " Well," said he to himseU, " it is amazing what girls 
 will do when they are in love." Hearing a noise at this 
 moment from the spring, he cut short his cogitations, 
 making a few steps forward, which brought him to the 
 edge of the bank, and looking down he recognized Mattah- 
 Djarri standing upon the brink of the water, dabbling one 
 little naked foot up and down in the clear fluid, with its 
 discarded spatu lying on the edge of the bank beside her. 
 Supposing the noise of his footsteps was made by the re- 
 turn of her cousin with the gajung, she said in a low, 
 distinct tone, as if pursuing her thought, without looking 
 around, and stUl keeping her eyes upon the pond before 
 her, — 
 
 " I am glad, Josie, I have taken this first step, many 
 thanks to you, and I have resolved to die," the last word 
 uttered with strong emphasis. " Yes, die," she repeated 
 with increasing force, " suffocate here in this spring, 
 before I will be given to the hateful Tumung'gung. Do 
 you think the Pateh " — 
 
 At this juncture Tracy's surprise, not unmixed with 
 amusement, must have made itself felt, for Mattah-Djarri, 
 looking around with a sudden start, saw Tracy, lost her 
 balance and tumbled over into the water. There was 
 no danger of her drowning, for all Javanese girls swim 
 like &h, this being about the first accomplishment they 
 learn in childhood. Tracy,' however, was down the bank 
 in a second, and stooping over the water seized her arm 
 and pulling her out set her down on the goass beside 
 him. 
 
 " Gracious ! " thought he to himself, " matters are be- 
 coming serious. Here is one girl in the pavilion stealing 
 an interview with her lover, while another is going to 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 223 
 
 drown herself in the spring. I wonder what wUl come 
 next?" 
 
 Mattah-Djarri, ahnost dying with shame and confusion 
 and inwardly praying that she might sink into the ground, 
 did not speak, but looked up at Tracy, her face crim- 
 son with blushes, and tried to draw her naked feet under 
 her wet and clinging sarong, which fastened itself to her 
 limbs as if glued. Tracy, perceiving her painful em- 
 barrassment and mortifying pUght, suppressed his in- 
 clination to laugh and tried to keep a sober face while he 
 expressed his regret for the accident. Mattah-Djarri 
 still kept silence, letting her frightened glance fall from 
 his face and rest upon one of her little green and gold 
 spatus swimming round and round on the surface of the 
 water, while the other, which was drawn in at the moment 
 of her immersion, was about being carried over the bank 
 down the hiU, on the stream of surplus water running 
 away from the spring. Mechanically reaching for a long 
 stick near by, Tracy began to fish out the truant sUpper, 
 when the ludicrous character of the whole situation struck 
 him so forcibly that he suddenly burst into an uncontrol- 
 lable fit of laughter, after which he succeeded in drag- 
 ging up the object of his efforts with the end of his stick, 
 upon the bank beside his companion. To do Tracy jus- 
 tice, he thought Mattah-Djarri in her mantle of blushes 
 and wet garments incomparably charming. The graceful 
 and elegant curves of her symmetrical figure in all their 
 beautiful roundness and fullness were clearly revealed by 
 her wet and clinging clothes. 
 
 Tracy ran his eyes over her with the appreciation of an 
 artist, while she looked up pleadingly at his face, and said 
 in a hesitating whisper, " Oh, go away ! Please go away ! " 
 and seemed to shrink closer to the ground on which she 
 sat. 
 
224 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 " Don't send me away," replied Tracy merrily* " I 
 am awfully sorry you fell into the water, but there is 
 no use in feeling ba<Uy about it now. Wait a moment," 
 looking towards the little stream that had carried the 
 migrating spatu down the hill ; " I will get the other slip- 
 per ; then we will go and find Miss Bardwell." 
 
 " I should be so glad if' you would," replied Mattah- 
 Djarri ; " I can't walk without it." 
 
 In another moment Tracy was peering' along the edge 
 of the twisting stream for the spatu, which he expected 
 to find lodged against some obstruction not far distant. 
 Mattah-Djarri looked gratefully after him tUl his head 
 disappeared below the bank. Then she sprang up and 
 flew to the pavilion in search of Josephine, whom she 
 had forgotten in the fright and confusion of her sudden 
 dipping and Tracy's unexpected presence. 
 
 " Josephine, Josephine," she almost screamed, entering 
 the pavilion in breathless excitement, only to see the lat< 
 ter standing with her back towards her a few feet from 
 the door, the Patch by- her side, with his ana thrown 
 roimd her- figure while she leaned upon him, listening in 
 eager delight to his rapid and earnest utterances. If 
 Mattah-Djarri was surprised and overwhelmed with con- 
 fbsion at the spring, she was now almost petrified with 
 amazement. She stood still a moment gazing in blank 
 astonishment at the two before her, who were so en- 
 grossed with each other that they appeared neither to 
 see nor hear her. Then turning she fled down the steps, 
 coming against Tracy and nearly knocking him over as 
 he was in the act of putting one foot on the bottom step 
 to ascend, holding the spatu for which he had been 
 searching high above his head on the end of the stick. 
 
 Tracy, now fully imbued with the spirit of the ludi- 
 crous that appeared to pervade the successive incideats 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 225 
 
 of the morning, indulged in another long and hearty peal 
 of laughter, which poor Mattah-Djarri, in the disadvan- 
 tage of her wet sarong and kaybaya, interpreted as be- 
 ing in unsuppressed derision of herself. Not knowing 
 what else to do, she stood a moment with her great black 
 eyes raised to his, then bending her head forward covered 
 her burning face with her hands and began to cry. 
 
 The lovers inside of the pavilion, hearing Tracy's loud 
 peal of mirth, were suddenly recalled to their senses, 
 and, supposing that their own loving demonstrations 
 might perhaps be the occasion of his outburst, they ap- 
 peared in the entrance at the top of the steps, looking 
 somewhat embarrassed but preserving the same familiar 
 and endearing attitude toward each other, and were, in 
 their turn, greatly astonished on seeing Mattah-Djarri 
 standing wet and shrinking before Tracy, with her face 
 buried in her hands, weeping. 
 
 Their perplexity did not diminish when they saw his 
 laughter suddenly converted into anxious concern, as he 
 took hold of one of her hands and drawing it away from 
 her face, earnestly begged her to desist, while his voice 
 became tender and persuasive and he looked as if about 
 ready to cry himself. 
 
 Josephine, quite mystified, left the side of the Pateh 
 and ran down the steps, hurriedly inquiring what had 
 happened. Being assured by Tracy that there was no 
 cause for alarm, and that Mattah-Djarri had only fallen 
 into the spring and lost her slippers, she shook hands 
 with Tracy, and laughing with much amusement, noticed, 
 for the first time, that both he and Sarjio were in their 
 morning deshabUle of pjahnahs and kalambi which re- 
 minded her of her own appearance and still worse, Mat- 
 tah-Djarri's embarrassing condition, who, she declared, 
 had forestalled them all in having already taken her early 
 
226 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 bath. Sarjio now descended the steps and joined them, 
 pointing to a moving figure at some distance under the 
 trees, which he had just perceived, and thought was com- 
 ing towards them. Mattah-Djarri immediately recogr 
 nized Schagga out in search of Josephine and herself. 
 As both she and the Pateh were aware that they were 
 transgressing all the rules of propriety among the Javar 
 nese, they hastily said " good-morning " and separated, — 
 Mattah-Djarri and Josephine turning to go forward and 
 meet the old servant, while Tracy and Sarjio quickly ran 
 up the steps to conceal themselves inside the pavilion^ 
 the latter devoutly hoping that neither he nor Ms friend 
 had been seen. 
 
 Nothing but the desire to prevent Schagga. from com- 
 ing to the pavilion and discovering the presence of the 
 two gentlemen coidd have induced Mattah-Djarri to at- 
 tempt to walk away, tied and hampered as she was by 
 the clinging and binding folds of her wet sarong. She 
 begged Josephine to walk behind her and screen her 
 from the view of those in the pavilion. Meeting 
 Schagga she said, pointing to her wet clothes, " Behold, 
 Schagga, I have been unfortunate enough to fall into the 
 spring." 
 
 "I perceive it, noble mistress," returned Schagga, in 
 his most respectful manner and without showing any 
 surprise. " Allow me to inquire how it happened ? " 
 
 Without replying to the old man's question, Mattah- 
 Djarri continued, " Did you see us leave the daJam so 
 early, or has some one missed us and informed you ? " 
 
 " I saw you myself, noble princess," answered Schagga, 
 " and came out to be assured of your safety." 
 
 " That is v^ell, but don't mention it to any one, my 
 good Schagga," said the princess, in the coaxing tone of 
 her childhood, " and I will give you as tnany sarongs and 
 ikats as you can wear in a year." 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 227 
 
 " And I a purse of gold, dear good old man," chimed 
 in Josephine, with a sudden burst of affection, rapidly 
 perceiving that the accidental rencontre, if known, might 
 look like an appointment, and anxious to preserve her- 
 seK and cousin from all disagreeable complications with 
 the formidable Bopati. Schagga's eyes snapped with 
 greedy pleasure, as he bowed his head in assent to the 
 young gfirls' proposals, and stepped back to wait for them 
 to pass on and take his own place a short distance be- 
 hind. After he had taken a few steps, the fear of losing 
 his promised presents prompted him to hasten forward 
 and suggest to his mistress that she coidd not enter the 
 dalam in her wet garments at that hour, without danger 
 of being observed, and proposed to go on alone while 
 they waited until he could send Wagari back with a dry 
 sarong and kaybaya. 
 
 " Yes, indeed, that is best," said the two girls in one 
 breath, and they turned o£E into a side path, to wait be- 
 hind a clump of shrubbery tiU Wagari should appear. 
 
 Mattah-Djarri said she was convinced Schagga had 
 seen Sarjio and Tracy, otherwise he would not have con- 
 sidered any notice taken of their entrance either danger- 
 ous or of much importance at that early hour of the day. 
 
 " What would be the consequences, Mattie," asked 
 Josephine, as they loitered under the dense foliage, " if 
 this old custodian has seen the gentlemen and divulges 
 it?" 
 
 "No doubt I should be severely punished," replied 
 Mattah-Djarri. 
 
 " Perhaps, if your intended bridegroom was made 
 aware of it, he might become disgusted with your bad 
 manners and reject you," rejoined Josephine, thinking 
 what a happy termination to the projected mariiaige such 
 an event would prove. 
 
228 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 " Then I should be disgraced and locked up," an- 
 swered Mattah-Djarri, " until the Bopati could find some 
 one of inferior rank, perhaps, that would i)e willing to 
 accept a large dower to marry me." 
 
 " Dear me ! " said Josephine, raising her eyebrows. 
 " But if the Tumung'gung made no such objection and 
 only exacted a suitable reproof, what then ? " 
 
 " He could and would, I suppose, demand that I should 
 be sent to his palace and there watched, to insure safety 
 and proper behavior on my side, tUl the expiration of 
 the lamar, and then I should be married. But I am de- 
 termined I will not be given to him." 
 
 Wagari now appeared with the dry clothes and, with 
 many expressions of pleasure and regret, for she was 
 pleased to see her mistress resume some interest in the 
 things around her, as well as sorry for the accident, pro- 
 ceeded to help her to wind up her long, damp hair and 
 change the wet garments for the dry ones, before going 
 back to the dalam. 
 
 " Don't tell her about Sarjio," whispered Josephine, 
 which reminded Mattah-Djarri, now calm enough to col- 
 lect her wits about her, of the singularly intimate and 
 endearing position in which she had seen Josephine and 
 the Pateh, its significant meaning, suddenly falling upon 
 her heart, inflicting a new pang. 
 
 She now perceived that the Pateh was Josephine's un- 
 named lover. " And that explains what I have seen," 
 she said to herself, turning pale. " But what does she 
 mean," she further questioned, "by saying she would 
 ask him to rescue me from the Tumung'g^ung ? Was 
 this lovely cousin of whom she felt so proud playing 
 with her ? " 
 
 Like the Pateh, Mattah-Djarri's excitable blood began 
 to tingle under the idea of derision or insult, and turning 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA, 229 
 
 coldly to Josephine, she demanded in haughty tones if 
 the Pateh was the mysterious lover of whom she had 
 spoken. 
 
 "It is he, dear Mattie," cried Josephine, too happy 
 and delighted to notice her companion's changed manner, 
 although it did not escape the observing eyes of Wagari, 
 who saw all her hopes for her mistress dashed to the 
 ground and wished the Nonah blanda far enough away. 
 
 " Don't you think I am right now ? " asked Josephine^ 
 looking proudly at her cousin with a happy smile. " I 
 have been waiting and waiting to tell you about it." 
 
 This last answer, with the satisfied and unconscious 
 air of innocence that accompanied it, somewhat staggered 
 Mattah-Djarri and softened her indignant suspicions, 
 with the thought of a possible misunderstanding ; yet she 
 asked again, in a manner in which traces of resentment 
 still lingered, — 
 
 " How then, Josephine, could you offer him to me, — 
 his aid, I mean, — in escaping from the Tmnung'gung? " 
 she hastily corrected, fearing to betray the secret hopes 
 she had cherished, and feeling at the moment that she 
 preferred to be given a hundred times to the Tumung'- 
 gung, rather than have either her cousin or the Pateh 
 suspect her ; Josephine above all, she thought, her face 
 turning crimson, as she remembered the latter's words 
 and felt perhaps she had offered him to her because she 
 was sure of him herseK, and all the while was secretly 
 laughing at her. 
 
 " I described your position, dear; I told him all," said 
 Josephine quickly ; " and he agrees with me, that the 
 sacrifice must not be made and has promised to help 
 us. He says he will do anything in his power to save 
 you, and I know he wUl. Sarjio's word is truth." This 
 frank and open assertion of Josephine's revealed to 
 
230 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 Mattah-Djarri her mistake, as well as considerably mol- 
 lified "Wagari, whose curiosity about the Nonah was now 
 satisfied. Mattah-Djarii felt ashamed of her late sus- 
 picions and looked searchingly into her cousin's face to 
 detect any signs of the latter having noticed them. Glad 
 to discover that she was spared that mortification, she 
 pressed her cousin's hand in silent gratitude, as they 
 pursued the path back to the dalam, each absorbed in 
 her own peculiar reflections. 
 
CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 The astonishment of the Patch on hearing the voice 
 of Josephine calling to Mattah-Djarri, as she ran up the 
 steps of the pavilion, then almost immediately saw her 
 pick up the gajung beside him, can be more easily im- 
 agined than described. He suspected at once that the 
 novelty of the environs, combined with the curiosity she 
 would naturally feel to look around her, on this her first 
 morning in the mountains, had drawn her out at that 
 early hour to enjoy the pure and fragrant atmosphere, 
 so delightfully cool and refreshing in contrast with the 
 stifling heat of the plains. Therefore his surprise was 
 quickly succeeded by intense delight, and when Tracy 
 hurried away, he arose and clasping her in his arms, 
 poured forth his ecstatic welcome in the most ardent 
 expressions of joy and love. Josephine's surprise and 
 pleasure being quite equal to his own, there was a mutual 
 exchange of tenderness and renewal of promises, after 
 which she briefly related the distressing situation of her 
 cousin and implored his advice and assistance, which he 
 quickly declared he was more than wiUing to give ; 
 though at the moment he had no conception of how he 
 could prevent the powerful Bopati from marrjdng his 
 daughter to the still more powerful Tumung'gung, if he 
 so wished. However, in aU honesty, he determined to 
 do his best, hoping Josephine and her cousin had already 
 formed some plan, which they only wished him to as- 
 sist in carrying out. From Mattah-Djarri's projected 
 nuptials he was led to speak of their own, and urged 
 
232 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 Josephine, with all the eloquence and persuasion of which 
 he was master, to consent to become his wife in as short 
 a time as possible, and not return to her father, who 
 would undoubtedly take her from him forever if he 
 could. " I fear so, indeed, my dearest Sarjio," replied 
 Josephine with a sigh. " He reaUy seems quite deter- 
 mined." 
 
 " He has assured me of it," answered the Pateh, grow- 
 ing pale with anger and apprehension. " I will give you 
 this letter of his to read," drawing her father's offensive 
 missive out of the pocket of his badju, where he had 
 placed it after again warming up his resentment with its 
 reperusal the night before. " If you do not feel that I 
 am wronged and insulted, my more than beautiful," he 
 added, placing it in her hands, " after you are acquainted 
 with its contents, the blood of Sewa stira not in your 
 veins." 
 
 Josephine received the letter, torn and crumpled by 
 the indignant erushings and twistings it had received, 
 with decided indications of resentment towards her father, 
 saying, — 
 
 " I am almost determined to be guided by your wishes, 
 my dear Sarjio, but I must first have time to reflect 
 upon it and try further to obtain papa's consent. If I 
 am again unsuccessful, then when you return from the 
 Brama, I shall be willing to trust myseH to you,'' adding 
 the marriage ceremony could be performed anyw^iere, as 
 he had proposed ; after which he could take h«r to Sin- 
 gapore, four hundred miles distant on the opposite side 
 of the Straits of Sunda and under the dominion of the 
 English. There the ceremony could be repeated by the 
 Christian church, and they could remain till her father 
 forgave and consented to receive them. 
 
 The Pateh was quite delirious with joy, and would 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 233 
 
 have taken her anywhere on the face of the earth had 
 she so demanded. Again he pressed her Uttle white 
 hands to his lips and swore by Allah and the Prophet 
 that he would render her eternal fidelity and make her 
 happy. In the midst of these rhapsodies, they were 
 recalled to earth by Tracy's merry laugh. 
 
 The Patch, equally impelled by love and revenge, de- 
 termined not to allow Josephine to return to her father 
 if he could possibly prevent it. He feared the latter by 
 his endearments, intrigues, and commands would keep her 
 away from him tUl he prevailed upon her to yield or 
 accompany him to Europe, which he was sure would end 
 in a permanent separation and she would be lost to him 
 forever. As to seeing her carried off to Europe with 
 this purpose in view, he felt sure he would kill BardweU 
 before that should happen. No, he decided in his own 
 mind she should not go back. The plan of going over 
 to Singapore was exactly the thing to do. As he sat on 
 the veranda and sipped his coffee after his return from 
 the pavilion, reflecting upon it all, he smiled with satis- 
 faction at the thought of Bardwell's insulting letter 
 hastening; what he intended it should prevent. It pleased 
 him immensely. How he hated the European father at 
 that moment, and longed in the clamoring instincts of his 
 half-savage nature to take his life. Nothing less than 
 this would satisfy him. His life or nothing was his idea 
 of gratifying his resentment. Enlightened, disciplined, 
 trained as he had been by the long restraint and instruc- 
 tion of a eivUized and superior education, yet he could 
 not feel that it was morally wrong to take the life of a 
 man who had insulted him, or that it would be unjusti- 
 fiable murder to slay BardweU. Like the tiger of his 
 native jungles, he would spring upon him and tear him 
 to pieces, then go ealmly on his w^, feding neither re- 
 gret nor remorse. 
 
234 ^ A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 Before the Pateh was prepared to leave his chamber, 
 Tracy entered to tell him another excursion in a difiEer- 
 ent direction had been arranged for the day, and their 
 friends desired to know if he would accompany them. 
 The Pateh excused himseK under the plea of being com- 
 pelled to visit an adjacent district on important business, 
 and said he would send the piting'gi to direct their route 
 in his place. The truth was he could not bring his mind 
 to leave the dwelling that sheltered Josephiae ; least of 
 all to make one of the party of Europeans when his mind 
 was in its present state of high tension. He wished to 
 be alone and to be quiet. Sleep was what he needed to 
 restore his habitual calmness and self-control. He in- 
 tended to start off about the time his friends were ready 
 to depart and gallop to the district not far away, where 
 he could make an excuse of business and then return as 
 soon as he fancied the excursionists were out of sight. 
 Tracy attempted to urge him to go, but finding it useless 
 soon desisted. It was not long before he returned to 
 tell the Pateh he also had decided not to join the party ; 
 feeling somewhat unwell, he said, he thought it best to 
 remain at the dalam and pass a quiet day, adding that 
 the Bopati was going to accompany the party to some 
 celebrated ruins of whose evidences of former splendor 
 and grandeur he was very proud. 
 
 Tracy suspected the Patch's refusal was a mere excuse, 
 of which Josephine's proximity was the chief cause, and 
 decided he would stay at home and see the end of it, as 
 well as for other reasons. The Pateh rode away accom- 
 panied by two servants and returned in less than an hour, 
 declaring he had been extremely fortunate in dispatching 
 what he had had to do so quickly. Tracy smiled when 
 he heard this, to which the Pateh responded with a low 
 laugh, saying with an easy nod of his head towards his 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 235 
 
 friend, " I admit it all, Tracy, but what detains you in 
 the dalam when your friends are abroad ? " 
 
 "Headache or indigestion, or perhaps I arose too 
 early," replied Tracy, wishing to speak about the adven- 
 tures of the morning. 
 
 " What do you think of Mattah-Djarri ? " asked the 
 Pateh, a sudden possibility darting into his mind. " I 
 hope you were not trying to drown her this morning," 
 he laughingly pursued, as he remembered the dripping 
 and shrinking figure he had seen standing crying and 
 trembling before Tracy at the bottom of the paviUon 
 steps. 
 
 " On the contrary, I think I saved her life," answered 
 Tracy ; " for I heard her declare she would die or drown 
 herself in the spring before she would be married, or 
 something like it." 
 
 " Ah, yes, poor child ! " said the Pateh, " it is a sad 
 business. The Bopati is going to marry her to the old 
 Tunnmg'gung of Narawadi and she protests against it 
 with aU her strength." 
 
 When the Pateh ceased speaking he looked earnestly 
 into his friend's face, who said nothing in reply, but sat 
 a moment longer with his eyes fixed on the ground, twist- 
 ing the ends of his mustache with the fingers of both 
 hands. Then he arose, while the Javan appeared to be 
 waiting for him to make some rejoinder on the subject in 
 question, and merely remarked that he must go to his 
 own room. 
 
 The Pateh saw him depart with a mingled expres- 
 sion of pity and contempt clearly depicted on his dark 
 features. " After all," he murmured, " suppose he 
 proves to me he is not what I have believed him ! But 
 it cannot be. I will wait and see." With this determi- 
 nation he dismissed the European from his mind and 
 
236 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 engaged his thoughts at once in analyzing and rearrang- 
 ing his own plans. 
 
 He had two momentous undertakings upon his hands. 
 One he was going to pursue and accomplish at the cost 
 of his life. The other he would exert all the power and 
 ingenuity that was consistent with safety and hope of suc- 
 cess to perform. The first was to make Josephine his 
 wife ; the second, to fulfill his promise to the latter, in 
 doing all he coxdd to rescue her cousin from a miserable 
 future. To these two ends he bent his reflections. Great 
 difficiilty attended both enterprises. To marry Josephine 
 seemed easier than to save Mattah-Djarri. He could not 
 think what he would do with her after he had delivered 
 her and brought upon himself the hatred of the Tu- 
 raung'gurag and the ill-will of the Bopati. He could not 
 marry both the girls, but of course the Tumung'gung and 
 the Bopati would believe that was his intention. 
 
 When Tracy reached his own room, he took o£E his 
 European clothes and put on his pjalmahs and kalambi, 
 after which he ordered the bambu lattice of his win"- 
 dows to be closed, his room darkened, and. then throw- 
 ing himseU on a divan closed his eyes ; perhaps to relieve 
 his headache, perhaps to sleep, and perhaps to think. 
 Be that as it may, he did not remain quiet very long, 
 but getting up began to pace the room, with a most 
 dissatisfied and imhappy air. It was not long before a 
 servant came to summon him to " tiffin " (the midday 
 meal of rice, curry, vegetables, and fruit), which he de- 
 clined. Looking across the court garden to the opposite 
 wing, he could see Mattah-Djarri and her cousin, sit- 
 ting in a shady corner of the veranda with Wagari read- 
 ing to them. He was struck with the difference between 
 the two girls. Josephine was fair and happy; from 
 time to time, her clear laugh would faintly ring out on 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 237 
 
 the air, in response to something amusing from the book 
 of the reader. Certainly, he thought, she was a very 
 beautiful woman ; he did not wonder at the Patch's crazy 
 infatuation. 
 
 Mattah-Djarri, dark and brilliant, only snuled when 
 her companion laughed, and more frequently appeared ' 
 not to notice or even hear the voice of Wagari. Her 
 whole appearance indicated sorrow and dejection. Her 
 head seemed to droop to one side, her figure to bend for- 
 ward, while her hands lay heavy and listless in her lap. 
 Her face was the very picture of despair in its dark, rich 
 beauty. He could see the costly gems on her bosom 
 flash and sparkle under the different shades of light. He 
 fancied sometimes that she directed her dreamy eyes 
 towards his room, with a wistful, thoughtful look, that 
 must have pleased him, for he smiled imconsciously, 
 though a moment after he would continue his walk, ap- 
 pearing more unhappy and dispirited than before. At 
 length he saw Keomah and Sewa come out and join their 
 daughters, which appeared to call forth a most animated 
 discussion on all sides. He saw several of the Bopati's 
 wives come out also and walk up the veranda, as near as 
 possible to the disputants, in an attempt to catch a few 
 words, and when Keomah looked at them reprovingly 
 they would saunter back, as if accident and not inten- 
 tion had brought them there. Tracy wondered if they 
 were discussing the marriage of either or perhaps both 
 of the girls. After a time all parties appeared to agree 
 and harmony was restored. Josephine laughed gayly 
 and Mattah-Djarri aroused herself and appeared inter- 
 ested. A servant brought writing materials and placed 
 them on a table before Josephine. At this Keomah shook 
 her head, but she was evidently soon overruled by Sewa ; 
 while Josephine selected two sheets of paper and two 
 
238 4 PRrNCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 envelopes, and after inspectang them spread them on the 
 table before her and appeared to write a few lines on 
 each, then handed them to Mattah-Djarri, who folded 
 them in the envelopes, which Josephine addressed and 
 handed to a servant with a word or two of instruction. 
 
 If the Pateh saw this, thought Tracy, he would have 
 a fit of jealousy. To his great astonishment he saw the 
 servant, after descending the steps with the letters, cross 
 the court by the fountain, come toward his own room, 
 and hand one to his boy who was sitting on his heels in 
 the shade near his door. 
 
 " This is remarkable indeed ! I suppose I am ordered 
 out of the house," was Tracy's next comment, " and the 
 Pateh also. Yes, the boy goes towards his room." His 
 own servant did not stir or change his position, but held 
 the little note in his hand to wait until his master should 
 move or open his door or window, and thus give him no- 
 tice that he could be disturbed. Tracy spoke to him in a 
 low voice through the latticed window and bade him hand 
 him the note. Could he believe his eyes ? It was a po- 
 lite invitation from Keomah to take tea with her and 
 the young ladies on her veranda at five o'clock. Who 
 had ever before received such an invitation from a Java- 
 nese woman ? 
 
 O thou wily, self-wiUed Josephine ! If the Bopati had 
 known thy Christian ways, he would have desired thee 
 to remain at home ! To answer and gratefully accept 
 was the work of a moment, but before the reply was dis- 
 patched across the court the Pateh asked to be admitted. 
 Throwing open the doors and windows, Tracy bade him 
 enter. His joyous face told Tracy that he had received 
 a similar invitation, and after some comments on the 
 singularity of the proceeding, both acceptances were sent 
 out together. The two young men, looking under the 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 239 
 
 foliage across the court, saw them received and read 
 aloud by Josephine, after which she jumped up and en- 
 thusiastically kissed her mother and Keomah, while they 
 both held up their hands and shook their heads in 
 apparent demonstrations of dep^ecatLng assent. 
 
 The Pateh was in raptures. " My Josephine," he said 
 aloud, looking at her, "who is like unto thee !" where- 
 upon Tracy, who had suddenly lost his headache and in- 
 ddgestion, rallied him and told him he was love-sick. 
 
 " I believe it," cried the Pateh, good-humoredly, " but 
 I fear you are in danger of contagion." 
 
 Traey looked confused, and noticing the Patch's beam- 
 ing gaze fixed inquiring^ upon his face, blushed like a 
 girl and kept silent. 
 
CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 It required all Josephine's skill and devemess to per- 
 suade Keomah to make a first attempt, under her man- 
 agement, to elevate her mode of life by adopting some of 
 the most simple habits of Western social life. For in- 
 stance, to drink tea in company with the male members 
 of her own family on her veranda in the presence of open 
 day, as Josephine described it, instead of separated and 
 alone in their own rooms. 
 
 " I should love to do so," declared Keomah, over- 
 whelmed with her niece's arguments and persuasions. 
 " I should like to do just as you and Sewa do," she contin- 
 ued, " but it is impossible. The Bopati would be enraged 
 with my presumption, should I approach him with such 
 a proposal. And who else could I invite ? " asked Keo- 
 mah, looking around at Sewa and Josephine vrith a man- 
 ner that said, " This question cannot be answered." 
 
 " Who, indeed ? my dear Keomah," cried Josephine. 
 " Let me tell you. These very gentlemen who are now 
 in the dalam, — the Pateh and Tuari Tracy, who have 
 stayed at home instead of accompanying the excursionists. 
 Commence now to be more independent. Give me your 
 permission to ask them to come and drink tea with us." 
 
 Keomah stared in amazement at this request, but ob- 
 serving that Sewa only laughed and then seconded the 
 proposal, she quickly began to think better of it and lent 
 an ear to all Josephine's cunning and plausible repre- 
 sentations. The latter, perceiving Keomah's hesitation, 
 used Mattah-Djarri'a sad face and forlorn air as her 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 241 
 
 strongest argument, affirming that the novelty and excite- 
 ment would be most beneficial for her, and serve to draw 
 her mind from the gloomy future that oppressed her. 
 Keomah struggled to hold out against this insinuating 
 pleader and the unusual innovation on then* customs, as- 
 serting truly it was only the fear of the Bopati's displeas- 
 ure that withheld her full consent, as for her own part 
 she would be too pleased. 
 
 " The Bopati need never know it," argued Josephine ; 
 " and if he should — well then — it was an accident and 
 my fault. I invited my friends to sit with me a moment, 
 you know ; and even the Bopati would not have you be 
 rude to his invited guests, for you are aware we came 
 here upon his invitation." 
 
 " Well, my dear, have it your own way," conceded 
 Keomah at last. " Do as you and my poor Mattah- 
 Djarri like best," turning to the latter with her eyes full 
 of tears. 
 
 Josephine having gained her point, which she was de- 
 termined upon doing, for the double purpose of enjoying 
 the Patch's society and to cheer up the drooping spirits 
 of her cousin, bestowed her thanks and caresses on her 
 aunt and mother, and sent off her invitations as we have 
 seen. After receiving the replies, she went gayly to her 
 rooms, taking her cousin by the hand and leading her 
 with her, to discuss the all-important subject of what 
 they should wear at the coming " tea-party," as she 
 designated the usual tiny, fragrant cups of tea and deli- 
 cate strips of rice cake that Keomah intended to serve to 
 her gruests on her veranda, instead of sending them to the 
 privacy of their own rooms, according to the custom of 
 her household. 
 
 " Mattie, put on one of my gowns," cried Josephine, 
 " and wear it for fun to the tea." 
 
242 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 " I will try one and see how it sets," answered Mat- 
 tah-Djarri, entering into the sportive spirit of her guest. 
 "Come, Wagari, help me," she continued, selecting an 
 airy, pink frilled robe, from among Josephine's abundant 
 supply. 
 
 " My noble mistress, you have forgotten the skirts," 
 exclaimed Wagari, pulling out the folds, which hung flat 
 and straight without the needed support underneath. 
 
 " Oh ! so I have," said Mattah-Djarri, slipping the 
 robe off again ; " but how am I to keep them on ? " she 
 asked, turning the skirts over and holding them up be- 
 fore her, without perceiving sleeve, strap, or string, with 
 which to secure them. 
 
 Josephine nearly convulsed with laughter undertook to, 
 instruct her, and after much work and mutual amusement 
 saw her cousin completely metamorphosed in the Euro- 
 pean dress, which was so becoming and graceful that 
 Keomah and Sewa were sent for to admire the transfor- 
 mation. To further test the new fashion, the two girls 
 went out on the court veranda where Josephine had 
 written her invitations in Keomah's name, to walk back- 
 ward and forward and give Mattah-Djarri practice in 
 her strange costume, which despite all her efEorts at 
 ease appeared to her the most awkward and cumber- 
 some attire possible. It was the first time she had ever, 
 encased herself in anything but her own loose and grace- 
 ful garments. 
 
 " I can't wear it," she said after several trials. " I 
 should never be able to walk properly." 
 
 Wagari was full of admiration. She declared her 
 mistress was more lovely than ever, and begged her to 
 keep it on. But Chatra, coming along, shook her head 
 and looked the scorn and disapproval she felt, though she 
 said nothing. 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 243 
 
 • 
 
 After much laughing, taUdng, and many trials, of which 
 Sarjio and Tracy were the concealed but delighted wit- 
 nesses, Mattah-Djarri and Josephine reentered their 
 apartments, the former to lay aside her borrowed plumes 
 and return to her own, declaring not all Josephine's sweet 
 and agreeable persuasions could induce her to appear 
 before the European in a dress in which she would look 
 as ridiculous as in the wet robes of the morning. 
 
 " Only think, Josie, how I appeared this morning," she 
 concluded, blushing at the remembrance of the sorry 
 figure she felt she must have presented. 
 
 The two girls arranged themselves at last, each to her 
 own taste, — Mattah-Djarri, gorgeous and resplendent in 
 her oriental brilliancy ; and Josephine, deUcate, dainty, 
 and airy in her softened shades and innumerable frills, 
 which danced up and down in the most light and grace- 
 ful manner every time she stirred. 
 
 " We are all ready now," said Josephine, surve3dng 
 herself in a mirror and adding a few last touches ; " let 
 us take our fans and go before the company arrives." 
 
 " I am quite as nervous as I was the evening of your 
 dinner," answered Mattah-Djarri, half frightened, yet 
 determined to be composed and self-possessed. "It will 
 be my last pleasure no doubt," she thought to herself with 
 a shiver, recalling the ugly face of the Tumung'gung, 
 which gave her the courage of desperation. 
 
 Keomah, with Sewa by her side, and two servants at 
 her back, sat on the lawang wodon (woman's veranda) 
 with her tea things before her. Several chairs were 
 placed in a semi-circle at a little distance from and oppo- 
 site the table, with a footstool in front of each one and a 
 half dozen pahn fans on a stand near by. A few mo- 
 ments after Mattah-Djarri and Josephine had taken their 
 seats the gentlemen appeared, and with many bows and 
 
244 A. PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 • 
 
 smiles acknotrledged the coinplinient Keomah had paid 
 them. Wagari sat at some distance from her mistress, 
 not supposed to be one of the parly, but near enough to 
 be spoken to and hear and see all that was going on. 
 Chatra had refused to be a witness, as she said, to a scene 
 so disgraceful to a princess, unless she was commanded 
 by Keomah to be present ; such not being the case, she 
 remained away, adding it, in her mind, to the list of 
 items to be transmitted to the old Mattah ; also earnestly 
 hoping the Bopati might return while the tea-drinking, 
 was at its highest. 
 
 When the tea things were removed, Josephine, touch- 
 ing the Fateh on the shoulder with her fan, asked him in 
 a low tone if he thought they dared walk as far as the 
 spring. This little familiar action so intoxicated ^e ar- 
 dent Javanese with happiness that he felt quite capable 
 of defying all laws, social or civil, that his race ever in- 
 vented, to gratify any whim of the fair creature beside 
 him. He arose at once, declaring a stroll under the 
 orange and nutmeg trees to the pavilion would be delight- 
 ful. Josephine was in ecstasies, and insisted upon Mattah- 
 Djarri and Tracy accompanying them. The latter also 
 sprang to his feet with unusual alacrity and begged 
 Mattah-Djarri to go with her cousin and allow him to be 
 her escort. Mattah-Djarri looked helplessly at Josephine, 
 then at Keomah. She longed to go but was unable to 
 decide what she could or ought to do. 
 
 Keomah, understanding her wistful expression, and 
 feeling such deep sympathy for the distress she believed 
 her child was trying so bravely to support, experienced a 
 fresh thrill of indignation, which rendered her reckless 
 and defiant for the moment, and she nodded her head to 
 her daughter and said that Sewa and she would go too, 
 and even called Wagari to accompany them. 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 245 
 
 The Pateh and Josephine led tJie way, Tracy and 
 Mattah-Djarri, with Wagari by her side, came next, and 
 Keomah and Sewa behind. Josephine made the most of 
 her opportunity by asking the Pateh all sorts of questions 
 about everything she wished to know, and returned to 
 him her father's letter, which had fUled her with pain and 
 shame, assuring her lover she was now more resolutely 
 devoted to him than ever. The Pateh scarcely knew 
 whether he was on the earth or not, with this white, 
 beautiful woman beside him, expressing her fervent at- 
 tachment, promising she never would consent to give him 
 up, sympathizing with him in his late mortification, plead- 
 ing for her father, explaining that the latter's love for her 
 had made him selfish and unreasonable'; then contradict- 
 ing him, laughing at him, commending him, and acting 
 altogether as if he quite belonged to herse^. The won- 
 derful strangeness of it all quite bewildered the Pateh 
 with delight. He almost felt he must be acting a part 
 in a dream. " But now, Sarjio," said Josephine after 
 a time, " have you reflected about Mattah-Djarri, and 
 thought of any plan by which she can escape from the old 
 Tumung'gung, of whom she really cannot speak without 
 a shudder ? " 
 
 " She will have to come with you, my Josephine," 
 answered the Pateh. " I cannot think of any other way 
 by which I can save her and defy the Bopati." 
 
 " Well, then, that is settled, but — suppose I could not 
 go before the time fixed for her marriage ? " said Jose- 
 phine hesitatingly, not having quite decided just when 
 she would leave her father's protection for that of her 
 lover, although she had fully made up her mind to be- 
 come the Pateh's wife some time. 
 
 " When we return from the summit, my Josephine. 
 It would not be safe to wait longer. You wiU then, I 
 
246 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 hope, be prepared to go with me and take your cousin 
 ■with you." 
 
 Josephine did not immediately reply to this proposal, 
 but looked back at the object of their remarks, who was 
 walking slowly as she listened to the conversation of 
 Tracy, \fho from time to time bent down his head to 
 catch her low replies. 
 
 " How beautiful she is, Sarjio," Josephine observed to 
 the latter, as he looked in the direction of her gaze. 
 
 " It would be infamous to allow her to be sacrificed to 
 the old Tumung'gung," said the Pateh, noticing the grace- 
 ful elegance of her figure and the ease and dignity with 
 which she moved along by Tracy's side. " The Bopati," 
 he continued, " must be very cruel, or there is, most likely, 
 some private reason that influences him." 
 
 " Sarjio," said Josephine suddenly, as she looked back 
 at her cousin a second time, " I have a new idea, and in- 
 deed it might be. I really believe I am not mistaken," 
 keeping her eyes reflectively upon her cousin, again ex- 
 claiming after a little pause, " What if " — 
 
 "Well, my Josephine," said Sarjio, after waiting a 
 second or two to hear the new thought, " what if what ? 
 I believe you were going to suggest something, were you 
 not ? " he added, laughing. 
 
 " I was indeed," replied Josephine. " And now look 
 back and try to fancy what it was." 
 
 " I can't fancy ; I prefer you to tell me," said the 
 Pateh, looking tenderly at her before he obeyed her by 
 turning his head around to look over his shoulder. 
 
 " I see you understand me," said Josephine, looking 
 back with him. " Would it not be splendid ? " she con- 
 tinued in hopeful glee. " And why not, Sarjio ? " no- 
 ticing he looked grave. " Evidently Tracy admires her, 
 and that is the beginning, you know," looking at lum 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 24T 
 
 archly and remembering the day she first met him, her 
 absorbing admiration for his manly beauty, and the sur- 
 prised notice she drew from him 5 for it must be told in 
 indulgent candor that the beautiful daughter of Mr. 
 BardweU had made the first overtures towards the high 
 born Javan prince. Without waiting for the Patch to 
 reply, Josephine followed up her new thought By asking 
 him if Tracy knew Mattah-Djarri was to be married to 
 the Tumung'gung in such a short time, how he had re- 
 ceived the news, and what he had said. She thought if 
 she knew these important little particulars she could 
 judge correctly if there was any possibility of Tracy ever 
 falling in love with her sweet cousin. 
 
 " I have had my suspicions, my life and sunshine," 
 said the Pateh. " Several little occurrences made me 
 curious. I informed Tracy of the Tumung'gung's pro- 
 posal this morning. He said nothing, but appeared un- 
 happy and ill at ease about something." 
 
 " If Tracy wished to marry Mattah-Djarri, and we 
 .will suppose it possible," pursued Josephine, while her 
 lover smiled at her hasty conclusion, " no doubt the stern 
 Bopati would object seriously at best, and now, with this 
 complication with the Tumung'gung, refuse altogether. 
 Sewa says he has great reverence for Javanese blood and 
 rank." 
 
 " Mattah-Djarri's immense fortune might prove an ob- 
 stacle," said the Pateh. " I think the Bopati would ob- 
 ject to have it transferred from his own race to foreign- 
 ers. He secretly hates this Western nation that has so 
 much power ; but then, he should select a suitable husband 
 for the Badan ajeng. However," continued the Pateh, 
 " if Tracy should prove a suitor, he must do as I intend 
 to do with you, my Josephine, take her quickly without 
 her father's consent." 
 
248 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 " You, my dear Sarjio," cried Josephine, with the per- 
 versity of a girl sure of being loved, " you are not going 
 to take me so quickly, for I have been thinking it really 
 would be best for me to wait until I return from Europe 
 with papa a year hence." 
 
 " You did not tell me before that you had an idea of 
 Europe," said the Patch hastily, and in a tone that indi- 
 cated that he was not pleased with his companion's ap- 
 parent vacillation, at the same time feeling the ground 
 slip away, as it were, from beneath his feet. 
 
 " I only knew about it an hour or two before we left 
 home," replied Josephine. " Papa said he was going as 
 soon as we returned from Kali Chandi, and I should ac- 
 company him and remain a year." 
 
 " You will not go, Josephine ! " exclaimed the Pateh 
 earnestly, determined to prevent such a calamity to him- 
 self. " Come, promise me," he urged, " you will not go 
 back to your father." 
 
 " Well, perhaps I wiU not," answered Josephine, in a 
 tone that seemed to say that she had not made up her 
 mind, and indulging a contrary spirit, with which some 
 women always seem possessed toward a man whom they 
 are positive really loves them. Perhaps because it gives 
 them pleasure to have him sue, protest, and beg. Per- 
 haps because they don't like to be considered of too little 
 value, and perhaps because it is best for the man never 
 to feel too sure of them. " But you must wait," she 
 resumed, " till you come down from the heights of the 
 Brama ; then we will decide. What would you do, Sarjio, 
 if I went to Europe with papa ? " asked Josephine in 
 continuation, still feeling a wicked pleasure in his dissat- 
 isfaction. 
 
 " I ? What would I do ? " echoed the Pateh, " if you 
 went ofE to Europe now and left me ? I would marry 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 249 
 
 Mattah-Djarri," looking back at her and Tracy, now quite 
 a distance behiad them. " I would marry her the day 
 you sailed." 
 
 '^ O Sarjio ! " cried Josephine, all desire to tease him 
 further flying out of her head. " I did not think that of 
 you ! " 
 
 " Well, my Josephine, what do you think ? " inquired 
 the Pateh, delighted with his ruse. " You go off to Eu- 
 rope, which means, Sarjio, I leave you forever ; natu- 
 rally I wish to replace your loss by the next best acquire- 
 ment, so I take Mattah-Djarri, because she is your 
 cousin and because the Bopati as good as made the sug- 
 gestion once to me himself." 
 
 " Oh ! oh ! oh ! " exclaimed Josephine, completely over- 
 whelmed with the idea of this new possibility and the 
 tumultuous crowd of jealousies that accompanied it. 
 Mattah-Djarri's dislike for the Tumung'gung, her dis- 
 tress, her many times expressed admiration for Sarjio, her 
 interest in hearing about him, — aU was now explained. 
 She loved him and the Bopati knew it, hence his offer of 
 her hand. And Sarjio, he was a Javanese ; he might 
 marry her anyhow as soon as he had secured herself ! 
 He could do it if he wished ; it was part of his religion 
 to have a number of wives. What would now become of 
 her ? She would go directly to her father. After all, 
 he was right. He was her only true friend. And in the 
 midst of the surprising grief of these distressing reflec- 
 tions which rushed through her brain, with all the rapid- 
 ity of newly aroused jealousy, she left the Patch's side 
 and hurried on, with a speed so quicdt and sudden that he 
 saw it was useless to attempt to overtake her before she 
 reached the pavilion, which was now in full view and 
 which he saw her enter a moment later. 
 
 Hastening on as fast as possible, without attracting the 
 
250 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 notice of the party still in sight behind, he soon entered 
 the pavilion in a state of mind he had never experienced 
 before. He was no longer half a European, controlled 
 by the restraints and discipline of his Western education. 
 The excitable blood of the equator asserted itself. He 
 found Josephine, whose groans and sobs reached him be- 
 fore he ascended the steps, in convulsions of grief, weep- 
 ing and wringing her hands behind the little green arbor 
 where he and Tracy had sat in the morning. When he en- 
 tered the door she turned, made a step forward, impulsively 
 stretching her hands towards him, the tears still stream- 
 ing down her face. Instantly, however, she turned her 
 back and flew into the farthest corner, covering her face 
 with her hands, whUe he saw her whole body shake and 
 quiver like a leaf in the breeze. The sight maddened 
 him. With one bound he reached her and clasping her 
 in his arms, dragged her hands from her face, his own 
 pale as death and the tears gushing from his eyes. 
 
 " My Josephine ! my life ! my angel ! " he cried in an- 
 guish. " Has it come to this ! " 
 
 When Tracy and his companion entered the pavilion 
 a little later, they were surprised to find it empty. They 
 descended the steps and looked at the spring, and he 
 jokingly referred to the adventure of the morning, which 
 elicited a shy laugh from Mattah-Djarri. She was evi- 
 dently more at ease with him and listened with changing 
 color to all he said, no longer evincing that painful em- 
 barrassment which had hitherto almost deprived her of 
 speech in his presence. 
 
 As Keomah and Sewa approached, Tracy proposed that 
 they should walk on farther and look for Sarjio and her 
 cousin. Coming around a turn in the shrubbery they 
 saw them sauntering along the path. Josephine was turn- 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 251 
 
 ing her face towards her companion and her manner indi- 
 cated a question, but they were too far off to hear. 
 
 " Do I look as if I had been angry and weeping, Sar- 
 jio ? " she was saying softly, turning her face full upon 
 him for his inspection. " You know I should not like 
 them to know," inclining her head towards Tracy and 
 her cousin. 
 
 "No, life of my life," returned the Pateh, with a 
 pained expression, as he ran his lustrous black eyes over 
 the fair, white countenance, softened and pathetic from 
 recent tears. " Are you sure you feel better now, my 
 Josephine, and still sure you forgive me ? " he asked in 
 a voice quivering with emotion. " I will never forgive my- 
 self," he continued, " for having wounded you so deeply," 
 and the Pateh's handsome, youthful face looked as if the 
 woes of twenty years had just swept over it. 
 
 The party lingered around the banks of the spring a 
 few moments, when Keomah, whose dread of the Bopati's 
 return during her absence rendered her secretiy anxious 
 and uneasy, whispered to Sewa her fears and said they 
 must go back. Leaving the spring by another path, they 
 started back in the same order in which they had come 
 excepting that Tracy and Mattah-Djarri, with Wagari, — 
 purposely dropping behind, — went first, followed by the 
 Pateh and Josephine, who now kept just out of hearing 
 distance and no more. The path which they followed 
 and which had been inadvertently chosen by Tracy 
 instead of the one generally used leading to the rear, 
 came out on the side of the alun-alun a little in front of 
 the dalam, which Keomah greatly regretted. Unwilling 
 to mention it, however, there was nothing left but to con- 
 tinue and enter a small gate through the stone wall to 
 the alun-alun, cross the corner of the great green, and 
 thus reach the side entrance to the building. 
 
CHAPTER XXVm. 
 
 The Tumung'gong, having set his mind on Mattah- 
 Djarri after his disappointment with Barabatah, could do 
 nothing but think about her and felicitate himself. Her 
 youth and extraordinary beauty made him long to get 
 possession of her and show her at the court of his great 
 Susuhunan ; to say nothing of gratifying the doting love 
 which he had conceived for her. He had employed every 
 hour since he had been in Kali Chandi in trying to invent 
 some excuse that woidd justify him in leaving his resl" 
 dence to return during the required forty days seclusion, 
 to look upon her again. First he thought he might do so, 
 to speak to the Bopati about having her teeth shaped and 
 stained in accordance with their ancient custom. Then he 
 remembered that he had already said about all he could 
 on that subject, and had the Bopati's promise that it should 
 be attended to, as he had desired. Next, he wondered how 
 it would do to go and consult him about which one of his 
 palaces he should select wherein to pass the first weeks 
 of his honeymoon ; for he reasoned, it would not be poli- 
 tic to take such a young thing in the beginning to his 
 usual home among all his jealous wives. After some de- 
 liberation, this excuse appeared too flimsy also, and he 
 feared to be censured and laughed at. While he was 
 thus groping around for a plausible pretext to gam an- 
 other look at the beautiful girl he already regarded as 
 his own, he was told that Sarjio, the young Fateh, had 
 gone to Kali Chandi and was actually staying in the 
 dalam. 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 253 
 
 That was enough to decide his uncertain ruminations. 
 Ordering two or three necessary attendants, he immedi- 
 ately set off privately for the mountains. " The Pateh," 
 thought he, " has some designs. He shall not look upon 
 my property." This reminded him of the young Kadan 
 Adawara, and he could not get on fast enough. The 
 Pateh's youth, rank, high character, and manly heauty 
 made the Tumung'gung feel that a marriage between 
 him and Mattah-Djarri would be highly appropriate. 
 
 Overtaking the Bopati a few miles from Kali Chandi 
 returning leisurely home with his guests, he saluted him 
 and told him where he was going, and the two old nobles 
 went on together, leaving the Europeans behind, in care 
 of the pitingi'gi, to visit a waterfall a short distance off 
 the direct route. Groing along, the Tumung'gung ex- 
 pressed to the Bopati lus fears about the dangerous prox- 
 imity of Sarjio, their young friend, but the latter, know- 
 ing the secret state of the Pateh's heart, treated them 
 lightly. On arriving at the dalam, who can imagine the 
 astonishment and jealous rage of the old lover, when, 
 having scarcely seated himself on the lawang seketing, 
 he looked around in the deUghtful anticipation of soon 
 feasting his eyes on the beauty of Mattah-Djarri' and 
 beheld her walking gayly across one corner of the alun- 
 alun beside T^acy, with the Pateh close behind her. 
 
 " Heavens and earth ! " he exclaimed, springing to his 
 feet, " what do I see there, Bopati ? Surely that is not 
 my betrothed bride," he howled, rushing up to the lattice 
 and peering down upon the advancing party. 
 
 The Bopati, hearing himself thus addressed, also sprang 
 up, and looking in the direction indicated by the Tu- 
 mung'gung instantly recognized the advancing couples, 
 and knew at once that Sewa and Josephine were at the 
 bottom of this unheard-of proceeding. 
 
254 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 " There is Sewa, too," cried the Tumung'gung in in- 
 creased rage and amazement, as the Bopati joined him 
 behind the lattice. " You are not a stranger to her dis- 
 grace, I am sure. And that Nonah (white girl), who is 
 she, Bopati ? " 
 
 " Sewa's daughter," answered the Bopati shortly ; 
 " and I will remind you that Sewa is Keomah's sister, 
 Tumung'gung." 
 
 " So much the worse for you," the latter cried. " She 
 wiU ruin your whole family. I am told she is familiar 
 with aU these white infidels, and her husband approves 
 of it. Ha, ha, ha ! She will recommend the Pateh to 
 the Radan ajeng instead of recommending me." 
 
 By this time Mattah-Djarri and Tracy were quite op- 
 posite the end of the veranda, and feeling the magnetism 
 of the angry eyes bent upon them, they looked up and 
 beheld the amazed face of the Bopati gazing at them 
 from behind the open lattice, and beside him Tracy 
 thought the most repulsive countenance he had ever 
 seen. 
 
 Mattah-Djarri gave a sudden start and uttered a sup- 
 pressed exclamation. She recognized the crooked nose 
 and blinking eyes of the old Tumung'gung glaring down 
 upon her in diabolical rage. 
 
 " Allah, Allah ! " Tracy heard her whisper in tones of 
 fear and terror, and a moment later she staggered and tot- 
 tered, and would have fallen to the ground had he not put 
 out his hand and seized her arm in time to save her. He 
 immediately heard a gurgling, hissing sound, which came 
 from the Tumung'gung in his dismay and disgust at the 
 sight of the freshness of his intended bride profaned by 
 the touch of another man, and, fury of furies, that other 
 man a white-faced dog of a Christian ! " I will expunge 
 it with his blood," gasped the Tumung'gung, between his 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 255 
 
 compressed gums, almost choking in the transports of his 
 rage ; and jerking out his sharp and glittering kris, he 
 made a stride towards the steps to reach the object of his 
 indignation. 
 
 " Be quiet," said the Bopati in a low, compressed tone, 
 laying his hand upon the old man's shoulder and detain- 
 ing him at his side by the strength of his g^asp. 
 
 " Tiada : no ! " shrieked the Tumung'gung, struggling 
 to shake off the Bopati's powerful grasp. " No, by 
 Allah ! I will have his blood, blood," he reiterated, sav- 
 agely flourishing his kris above his head, tiU overcome, in 
 a few moments, with rage and, the feebleness of age, he 
 sank down, choking and exhausted, on a seat near by, 
 while a hissing sound still issued from his bloodless lips, 
 as he repeated, " The lamar, the lamar ! " and rolled his 
 eyes towards the Bopati in helpless and reproachful in- 
 dignation. 
 
 The last word had the effect of firing the blood of the 
 Bopati, whose feelings had hitherto been absorbed in 
 making efforts to cahn and control what he felt to be the 
 just anger of his noble friend. As he heard him continue 
 to groan forth " The lamar, the lamar ! " he became very 
 much excited, running two or three times around the seat 
 of the old suitor, waving his hands and arms wildly above 
 his head ; and at last darting to the extreme end of the 
 other side of the lawang seketing, he seized a hammer 
 and struck a furious blow on a gong there suspended. 
 It was understood by every officer and attendant that 
 this gong was never to be sounded except on occasions of 
 great danger, great importance, or sudden emergencies ; 
 at which timies every man within the sound of its tones 
 was commanded to appear instantly at the bottom of the 
 broad flight of steps in front of the waringin trees. 
 
 Before the Bopati had reached the side of the Tu- 
 
256 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 mung'gung again, his numerous officers, oppassers, and 
 servants began to gather in expectant silence before the 
 lawang seketing ; the general impression being that their 
 master wished to publicly celebrate the honorable presence 
 of the Tumung'gung of Narawadi, whom they recog- 
 nized, leaning back on the seat where he had lately fallen. 
 The Bopati, having thus given expression to his wrathful 
 excitement, immediately recovered himself, and disliking 
 all manifestations of curious commotion, according to the 
 principles of his education, rapidly resolved to suppress 
 all cause for wonder or comment among his attendants. 
 So he hastily begged the Tumung'gung to conceal his 
 justifiable indignation and leave the matter to him and 
 he would see him amply revenged. Receiving his assent, 
 he turned to his officers and servants and proclaimed that 
 his friend, the noble Tumung'gung, had had a sudden 
 attack of illness, which so alarmed him that he ran in 
 haste to the gfreat gong to summon assistance, and di- 
 rected them to carry the old man, who by this time was 
 lying ba<!k in his seat limp, silent, and motionless from 
 the effects of his ungovernable temper, into his ovm apart- 
 ments and lay him on a couch. Here the Bopati seated 
 himself beside the Tumung'gung and used many argu- 
 ments to persuade him to calmness and silence, promis- 
 ing him the hand of the princess immediately it it would 
 pacify him, reminding him that the usual observance of 
 the lamar could be set aside, as was permitted in ex- 
 traordinary cases, and the marriage could take place in 
 three days. The Tumung'gung listened, too weak to 
 make resistance, but not convinced. The Bopati further- 
 more declared that it would be much more politic, as 
 well as in accordance with their position, to adhere to 
 the silent and secret manner of executing their revenge 
 that had always been peculiar to their people. 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 267 
 
 The Tiunung'gung considered his wounds too deep to 
 be easily persuaded to the Bopati's views, and in his first 
 transports would hear of nothing less than striking off 
 the heads of Keomah, Sewa, and her daughter, specially 
 the first named, with the whole pack of those detested 
 foreigners. This only, he assured the Bopati, would ap- 
 pease his wrath and compensate for his wrongs. 
 
 " Keomah ! " echoed the Bopati, in some consternation, 
 feeling a little inclined to resent the Tumung'gung's gen- 
 erous proposal toward the Badan Itu. " She has greatly 
 neglected her duty, I admit, but notwithstanding she 
 is getting old, she is, in a manner, my favorite wife ; '* 
 Keomah's recent paroxysms of supposed jealousy hav- 
 ing greatly raised her in his favor. " I intend to punish 
 her in my own way," he pursued, " and as to Sewa and 
 her daughter, I shall send them off at once, also these 
 Strange guests. That is the best I can do at this mo- 
 ment. As to striking off their heads," and here the 
 Bopati stopped to indulge in a bitter laugh, " you for- 
 get we are no longer the unquestioned masters we once 
 were, and that this usurping foreign power would inves- 
 tigate such a summary and wholesale proceeding and 
 require a satisfactory explanation, which it would be 
 impossible for us to give according to their ideas. I, 
 however, fully agree with your sentiments,'' he con- 
 cluded. 
 
 " True, true, Bopati," now moaned the Tumnng'gung, 
 some of lus rage passing off in this new channel ; " but 
 that Sewa has become one of them. She is the ring- 
 leader of mischief. I am surprised that you allow her 
 to be here. You must have an object to gain ? " inter- 
 rogatively. Before the Bopati could reply, the Tumnng'- 
 gung suddenly cried out, " Bopati, you 're a fool to have 
 that woman here with your wives ! With her and your 
 
258 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 European guests, you are not sure that you have a virtu- 
 ous or faithful wife in your whole establishment." 
 
 " They shall depart, I have told you," replied the Bo- 
 pati with a scowl ; then smUed to himself as he thought 
 of the fate of the man who would dare to tamper with 
 one of his wives. 
 
 "I confess you are pitifully short-sighted, Bopati," 
 again groaned the Tumung'gung, as he reflected upon 
 the danger of his intended bride. " Who knows," work- 
 ing himself into another rage, " what that white face 
 may have whispered to my — your daughter ! It was 
 just such a one that Sewa fled with, you remember," 
 concluded the old Javan with a savage howl in the face 
 of the Bopati, as he recalled that circumstance, with the 
 recollection that he himseU was the man to whom Sewa's 
 father had betrothed her before the Christian came along, 
 and exasperated beyond expression, beside, by the easy 
 carelessness with which he perceived the Bopati looked 
 after his women. 
 
 " Don't get into another passion, Tumung'gung," said 
 the Bopati severely and warningly, not relishing his com- 
 panion's presumptuous and howling reproofs. "Your 
 age won't permit it." 
 
 " Sewa would suggest to the Radan Mattah-Djarri to 
 follow her example, and now I think of it, she looks just 
 as Sewa did at her age," again shrieked the Tumimg'- 
 gung, as if the Bopati had not spoken, blinking and snap- 
 ping his eyes at the latter as he lay back panting on his 
 couch. These last allusions in connection with the Radan 
 ajeng caused the Bopati to spring upon his feet and go 
 through a performance similar to the one in which he in- 
 dulged on the lawang seketing before he struck the big 
 gong. But recovering himself before he had attracted 
 any attention, he again insisted upon the Tumung'gung 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 259 
 
 following his advice by suppressing his indignation and 
 leaving him to manage the whole affair ; thinking with 
 what satisfaction he would visit the offense upon Keo- 
 mah. 
 
 " Be satisfied, my injured friend," he urged conciUat- 
 ingly. " You shall be revenged and marry the Radan 
 Mattah-Djarri as well." 
 
 At length the incensed suitor was persuaded to yield 
 to the Bopati's suggestions, and was so far recovered as 
 to be able to congratulate himself many times on the 
 good fortune that had started him off to Kali Chandi as 
 soon as he heard the Pateh was there ; " because," said 
 he, looking at the Bopati significantly, " he is young and 
 handsome." 
 
 " You have nothing to fear from him," responded the 
 Bopati. "He will run away with Sewa's daughter, I 
 expect. He has demanded her in marriage and been 
 refused." 
 
 " Oho ! " ejaculated the Tumung'gung, brightening up. 
 " I hope he may succeed. Did he tell you so himself ? " 
 " Yes," replied the Bopati, " and asked me to inter- 
 cede with Sewa's husband in his behalf. He is infatuated 
 with this girl and said he had offered to sign a contract 
 to conform to the Christian habit of taking but one 
 wife." 
 
 " What ! " ejaculated the Tumung'gung. " Forego the 
 right of the four lawful wives allowed by our religion, as 
 well as the indefinite number permitted him as a noble ? " 
 " He declared the same to me " replied the Bopati. 
 Hearing this the Tumung'gung laughed immoder- 
 ately, in which the Bopati joined, saying compassion- 
 ately, " Sarjio is still young and romantic." 
 
 " Where are your European guests at present ? " sud- 
 denly asked the Tumung'gung, cutting short their mirth 
 
260 A PRIt^OES^ OF JAVA. 
 
 and rising with dif^ciiltrf td Iddk out the vindow, half ex- 
 ^fecting to see some of them prowling around to get a 
 look at his future bride. " I thought I heat-d them enter 
 a short time ago." 
 
 " In the nmah inandi " (bathroom), answered the Bo- 
 ^^ti, whb had heard his guests return and followed the 
 sound of their movements all the time he was talking to 
 the Tumung'gung. 
 
 " I suppose it is tod hit6 to get them away to-night ? " 
 again asked thfe Tumung'gfung. 
 
 " It 18 too late," replied the Bopati, " without allowing 
 them to suspect there ii an especial cause, tod that I 
 wiU not permit, but I will place a mata-mata (private 
 watch) on each one ; " and a pair of sharp, deep, burning 
 black eyes took silent note of fevery act of each Euro- 
 pean that night and afterwards, until they were far be- 
 yond the precincts of Kali Chandi. 
 
CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 JosEFHiNs and th^ Pateh, having ^idvancctd el^^e be- 
 hind MattahTDjaiTi and Tracy when they passed ^o\ig^ 
 the gate into the alun-^un leaving Wagari far behind 
 them with Sewa and Keomah, eould not fail to observe 
 tiie a,gitation (4 the young princess and Tracy's sud- 
 denly profEered support, They both inyolnntaTily quick- 
 ened their steps, looking up at the veranda as Tracy 
 turned his head and hastily ^sked, " Who is that ? " in- 
 dicating, with a glance in the direction of the lattice, the 
 old f iifCe b6si<l6 the Bopati peering down upon them, 
 
 " The Tumung'gung of Naraiwadi," answered the Par 
 teh in a low voice, with a meaning look. 
 
 Josephine gazed with ansious ciiripsity towards the 
 lattice, rememberiiig Wa^gaxi'^ graphic description of the 
 old noble. 
 
 " Oh ! look at him, Sarjio," she ^xclaiiQed in a whisper,, 
 as they hastily passed on. " Did you ever see any one 
 Sip hideous ? But you will save Uer, surely you will save 
 her," she said, gazing wistfully into her lover's fape, as 
 they stopped in front of the steps of the women's veranda, 
 to speak a last word together before separating. 
 
 " I wiU, my life, my soul," said the Pateh. " She 
 must come with you and that speedily," meeting her apr 
 pealing glance with an eager questioning gaze. 
 
 " Be it so," she answered reverently, bending her head, 
 as if about to receive a Ue^ing, " and I pray Qod to 
 bless both her and me." 
 
 " And me also," added the Pateh, ^^^ pikyf^lly, his 
 
262 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 heart thrilling with joy and wishing to dispel her serious 
 mood before he left her. " I hope you will not exclude 
 me." 
 
 " I would, dear Sarjio, your faith was the same as 
 mine," replied Josephine, looking sadly at him, her eyes 
 filling with tears. 
 
 " La illah il' Allah" (there is no God but Allah), sol- 
 emnly responded the Pateh, slowly turning his face to- 
 ward the mysterious black stone in the Kaaba at Mecca, 
 and raising his eyes to the glowing evening sky. 
 
 Josephine felt his hand tremble as he took her own 
 and pressed it against his breast in deep emotion. For a 
 moment there was perfect silence, then the Pateh's voice 
 rose again full of thankfulness. 
 
 " Allah soit lou4 ! " he murmured in French. 
 
 " Allah soit lou^ ! " tremulously repeated Josephine, 
 joining her low voice to his, and her blue eyes following - 
 his to heaven. 
 
 Tracy accompanied Mattah-Djarri, much against her 
 will, up the steps of the women's veranda, led her to a 
 seat, and stood beside her till Keomah, pale and trembling, 
 since she had heard the one heavy stroke of the great 
 gong, joined them. 
 
 " Please go, Tuan, please go," said Mattah-Djarri im- 
 ploringly to Tracy, in the interval before Keomah reached 
 them. 
 
 " You always beg me to leave you," answered Tracy 
 reproachfully, trying to force a snule, which was a mere 
 mechanical grin concealed by his heavy mustache. " Do 
 you find me, then, so disagreeable ? " he asked. 
 
 " Oh ! no, no, not that," said Mattah-Djarri, coloring 
 and trembling; "but I — I have offended the Bopati, 
 and you may be censured. But it was my — don't for- 
 get it was my fault." 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 263 
 
 " It was nobody's fault," said Tracy bluntly. " If you 
 mean your walk with me, I wUl explain it to the Bopati." 
 
 " No, no, the Tumung'gung is there," she answered, 
 turning earnestly towards Tracy and continuing rapidly, 
 " Don't you think you had better proceed to the summit ? 
 Go at once." 
 
 " If it win save you trouble, I will," said Tracy. 
 
 "No, not for me, not for my sake, but your own 
 safety," said Mattah-Djarri ; "the Tumung'gung wiU 
 seek revenge, perhaps," adding hesitatingly, "I — I am 
 — his" — 
 
 Keomah's approach prevented Mattah-Djarri from 
 finishing her sentence, and Tracy could do nothing but 
 thank the mother and the daughter for the pleasure of 
 their company and retire. As he descended the steps he 
 met Josephine coming up, her face flushed and tears in 
 her eyes. The Pateh was standing waiting for him a 
 few yards distant. As Tracy approached him he could 
 not help observing the expression of triumphant happi- 
 ness that suffused his features, adding an additional splen- 
 dor to the marvelous radiance of his face. His eyes 
 seemed to emit positive sparks of fire as he bent them 
 upon him without speaking and turned to walk by his 
 side to Tracy's room, where they both took cigars and 
 sat down to smoke in silence ; neither one caring to talk 
 and each waiting for the other to make the first remark. 
 
 At length the distant sound of voices and laughter 
 reached their ears, and Tracy looked at the Pateh saying, 
 " Our friends have returned and seem to be having a 
 good time." 
 
 The Pateh replied by asking, "What think you of 
 Mattah-Djarri's future husband ? " 
 
 " Oh, don't ! " cried Tracy, putting one hand up before 
 his eyes. " It sickens me to think of it" 
 
264 A PRINCEiSS OF JAVA. 
 
 " I wish the iUness may increase," thought the Fateh 
 to himself, a kindling look coming into his eyes ; but he 
 only said, " It is a desperate case." Then after a pause, 
 " I suspect we have made trouble in the dalam." 
 
 " How so ? " asked Tracy quickly, thinking of Mattah- 
 Djani's anxious request that he should proceed at once 
 to the sunmiit. 
 
 " The Tumung'gung," explained the Patch, " will con- 
 sider his rights infringed upon, and probably reproach 
 the Bopati with a breach of duly and call upon him to 
 resent his wrongs." 
 
 " And what then ? " asked Tracy, wishing he could 
 pound the old dotard's head. 
 
 " It will certainly be visited upon Keomah and her 
 daughter," answered the Patch. " The latter for failing 
 to observe the seclusion of the lamar, and the former for 
 permitting it. Our attendance will prove a great offense 
 too, I fear, though I think the Bopati might be prevailed 
 upon to excuse that, as being a custom of Sewa and Joser 
 phine." 
 
 " It is horrible, aboHunable," cried Tracy, " this revolt- 
 ing marriage. But perhaps it.may yet be averted." 
 
 "I think not," said the Pateh. "The Tumung'gung 
 will not give Mattahrl)iarri up. He appreciates her, in 
 a way. Josephine tells me her cousin is quite insane 
 with distress and despair." 
 
 "No wonder," said Tracy, feeling the utmost disgust 
 and repulsion himself. 
 
CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 The Tumung'gung having in a measure become paci- 
 fied through his own exhaustion and the Bopati's per- 
 suasions and promises amply to redress his wrongs, and 
 believing the late evidences the latter had had of the 
 little regard shown for his authority during his absence 
 would induce him to keep his word, turned his attention 
 to a gorgeous chebung that was placed by lu^ side. Di- 
 recting a servant to place the delicate amber mouthpiece 
 between his lips, as he lay on his ba^ck, he began to draw 
 the fragrant smoke through the perfumed water, watch- 
 ing the Bopati occupy himself in the same manner, and 
 gave his mind up to meditations on the various ways in 
 which the latter ought to punish the ofEenders and pre- 
 serve his right to Mattah-Djarri inviolate and bring her 
 to his arms as quickly as possible. Ruling, as he did, with 
 aU the insolence of a born saivage despot in his own prov- 
 ince, and particularly in his palaces, where his slightest 
 wish was either anticipated or met with anxious obedi- 
 ence, he felt the present culprits should, in justice, be 
 flayed alive ; aU except the soft and lovely Badan ajeng, 
 whom he would not be long in inspiring with a laudable 
 regard for his authority after he had full possession of 
 her. 
 
 The Bopati's thoughts ran in a vein something similar 
 to those of the Tum4ng'gung, as he lay back smoking 
 and looking through the window on the graceful palms 
 waying above the kampong a little beyond, unconsciously 
 counting the long lin^a of ponies leisurely moving, one 
 
266 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 behind the other, over a portion of the road that he could 
 see, their backs piled high with bales of coffee and spices, 
 on their way to the coast. He was internally faming over 
 the conduct of Keomah and Sewa, whom he held account- 
 able for this late abominable behavior of their two daugh- 
 ters. He was also highly incensed with the Patch, and 
 determined that he should take his friends out of his 
 house as soon as decency would permit ; but through it 
 all, he resolved to give no occasion for comment or scan- 
 dal. So he sat reflectively maturing his plans. Before 
 he had succeeded in this undertaking, however, the Tu- 
 mung'gung broke in upon his cogitations by suddenly 
 rising and asking, — 
 
 " Who was that yoimg European, Bopati, who crossed 
 the alun-alun by the side of the Badan Mattah-Djarri ? " 
 
 " A friend of Sarjio's and one of the guests," replied 
 the Bopati. 
 
 " He did not accompany his party to-day, I suppose, 
 nor the Patch either ? " continued the Tumung'gung, 
 looking frowningly in his host's face. " Think you not 
 there was an object in this ? " 
 
 " The Patch gave official duties in an adjacent kam- 
 pong as his reason, and the European complained of ill- 
 ness, I believe," replied the Bopati, suddenly struck with 
 the suggestive singularity of the event. 
 
 " By Ali and the Prophet of the faithful ! " exclaimed 
 the Tumung'gung, clasping his hands and falling back on 
 his cushions, letting his pipe fall to the ground. " You 're 
 blind, Bopati ; blind as a stone ! " — screaming out the 
 last sentence in a voice so loud that his servants squat- 
 ting out on the veranda suddenly jumped up, thinking 
 they were called ; and one of them, rushing into the cham- 
 ber, picked up the broken meerschaum, for which impu- 
 dence he was ordered off to be locked up. 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 267 
 
 " That may be possible," said the Bopati coolly, be- 
 ginning to be annoyed by the Tumung'gung's boisterous 
 absurdities, and concluding it was high time to insinuate 
 that he would like to see them laid aside. 
 
 " I shoidd not be surprised," said the Tumung'gung, 
 without taking any notice of the Bopati's changed man- 
 ner, " if that Tuan blanda of Sarjio's carried the young 
 Badan o£E to-night,'' working himself up into another 
 high pitch of excitement. 
 
 The Bopati stared at him and said nothing. 
 
 " I teU you again, Bopati," pursued the Tumung'gung, 
 " not to forget how Sewa disappeared with that Christian 
 years ago. I was at her father's dalam that night, and 
 by Allah ! Mattah-Djarri does look like her ! My own 
 matarmata must guard her," he concluded. 
 
 " And so he shaU," said the Bopati, at last aroused by 
 these repeated allusions to his daughter in connection 
 with Sewa's flight, to what the Tumung'gung regarded 
 as a needful sense of danger. 
 
 Before midnight, the Bopati began to wonder at his 
 previous indifference and had resolved that something 
 decisive should and must be resorted to at once to avert 
 all possibility of further evil disturbing the peace and 
 propriely of his household. 
 
 Therefore, after many proposals and much delibera- 
 tion, the two nobles decided upon what they considered 
 the most politic course of action, to meet the emergency, 
 and in mutual satisfaction again resorted to their che- 
 bungs to cement the new bonds and declare again their 
 eternal friendship. 
 
 The Tumung'gung now summoned his most vigilant 
 and trustworthy mata-mata, who always accompanied 
 him, and gave him instructions about keeping a strict and 
 constant espionage on every movement of the Radan 
 
268 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 Mattah-Djarri, from that moment forth, till otherwise 
 commanded by him. This done, he felt much relieved 
 and prepared to settle himself comfortably for the night, 
 intending to return to his own province in the cool dawn 
 of the following morning, to arrange for his immediate 
 marriage with the Radan Mattah-Djarri, and concoct 
 some plausible reason for omitting the usual observance 
 of the lamar. 
 
 The Bopati also had his work to perform. The Fateh 
 was requested to attend him a moment, and gravely re- 
 buked for lending his support to conduct so unseemly 
 as that of the afternoon, and frankly asked to take his 
 friends out of the dalam and away from Kali Chandi the 
 following day, and nothing more should be said about it. 
 The Pateh, feeling guilty, merely bowed his head and bit 
 his lips, secretly glad the affair was to be gotten over so 
 easily. Assuring the Bopati that his wishes were most 
 reasonable and should be regarded with respect, he 
 thanked him for his hospitality and with a grave sembah 
 retired, hoping through the assistance of Tracy to get the 
 Europeans away the next day, without their knowledge 
 of the true cause of their sudden departure. 
 
 The Bopati was entirely too crafty to mention his hosr 
 pitable intentions towards Sewa and Josephine to the Par 
 teh, or to them either, for that matter, till some time after 
 Sarjio and his friends were well out of sight. He intended 
 to let him depart imder the impression that nothing further 
 was to be said about their late escapade. He knew the 
 Pateh would defend Sewa and her daughter, and the two 
 latter make a jest of his scruples, ridicule the doting Tu- 
 mung'gung, and perhaps tell it to all the Europeans, and 
 he would become the object of their derision. To tell the 
 truth, had it not been for the jealous and angry import 
 tunities and insinuations of the old lover, the Bopati 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 269 
 
 would have been inclined to pass the matter over lightly 
 for the sake of Sarjio and his friends. He was at bot- 
 tom a generous man, and as long as no harm had arisen 
 he would have contented himself with reproving Keo- 
 mah, dismissed the subject^ and enjoyed himself another 
 week with his guests. Incited now by the Tumung'gung, 
 he viewed the offense differently. He was more angry 
 because the Tumung'gfung had witnessed the loose disci- 
 pline of his household^ than he was at the flagrant act of 
 disobedience itself. He felt he would like to whip Keo- 
 mah and Sewa well with his own hands. As soon as the 
 oilier guests were gone, he intended briefly to order the 
 latter and her daughter out of his palace, which he 
 thought with pleasure would be a beginning of the mor- 
 tification and punishment he was going to portion out to 
 Keomah at a future day. 
 
 Poor Keomah, *ho had been suffering the most cruel 
 agonies since she had heard the heavy stroke on the great 
 gong, was much relieved when she was told the Tu- 
 &iung'gung was attacked with sudden illness, and the 
 signal was to call assistance ; but, as the hours wore on 
 and brought no communication from her husband, she 
 knew something decidedly unpalatable was in store for 
 her. The nest day, when informed that the Tumung'" 
 gung had calmly gone off to his own province, and the 
 European guests were also making preparations to de- 
 part and finally went, and when a few hours later, Sewa 
 received a formal request from the Bopati to depart also 
 with her daughter and servants, Keomah felt her heart 
 sink within her bosom, and tried to fortify herself 
 against approaching disaster. 
 
CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 When the last faint vestige of the recent guests disap- 
 peared through the gateway in the high wall around the 
 alun-alun, Josephine and Mattah-Djarri turned away 
 from the lattice of the latter's veranda and wound their 
 arms around each other and cried. Josephine wept be- 
 cause she feared she might never see her adored Pateh 
 again, and Mattah-Djarri because the excitement and in- 
 terest that had largely aided in keeping up her spirits 
 the last two days had been suddenly withdrawn. She 
 did not know how it happened, but she had ceased to 
 think of the Pateh entirely. She still admired him, but 
 he no longer occupied an important place in her thoughts. 
 If he crossed her mind at all it was in connection with 
 Josephine or his European friend, the young Tracy. The 
 latter she recalled with a sigh. His merry eyes as he 
 drew her out of the spring ; his gay laughter afterward ; 
 his warm glances and respectful sympathy; and the 
 strange confidence with which he inspired her, bringing 
 imconscious forgetfulness of everything but himself when 
 in his presence. Would the delightful moments ever re- 
 turn ? Would she ever see him again ? she asked her- 
 self. Certainly not, was the answer. Nothing but death 
 or the Tumung'gung, which was worse, was before her. 
 Such reflections as these augmented her sorrow and 
 caused her tears to flow faster. She leaned on Josephine 
 and prayed that she might die. Wagari, whose society 
 and services had been almost dispensed with since the 
 arrival of Josephine, hastened to the side of her mistress 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 271 
 
 and endeavored, by every means in her power, to sup- 
 port and divert her mind from the sad thoughts which 
 again oppressed her. 
 
 " Don't weep, dear Mattie," said Josephine between 
 her own sobs, drawing out her handkerchief to dry her 
 eyes. " When Sarjio returns we will be happy." 
 
 " You win be happy, no doubt," repUed Mattah-Djarri, 
 " but I — I cannot be. There is nothing left for me 
 but " — The wretched girl's emotion so overcame her at 
 this point that she could say no more, and hastily sought 
 her chamber to sob and moan over her unhappy fate. 
 Josephine and Wagari both hovered around her, en- 
 deavoring to comfort her and soften her grief by propos- 
 ing all kinds of means whereby she might escape from 
 the horrid old man, whose name she could not now hear 
 without turning pale. In the midst of their tender solici- 
 tude, Keomah and Sewa entered ; the former with a 
 grieved and agitated countenance, and the latter with one 
 correspondingly indignant. 
 
 " What is it ? What is it ? " simultaneously demanded 
 the cousins, perceiving from the manner of both Keomah 
 and Sewa that something unusual had occurred. 
 
 " We must leave Kali Chandi," answered Sewa briefly. 
 " The Bopati desires us to depart directly." 
 
 The three girls looked in consternation at one another, 
 not knowing for a moment what to say, till Keomah 
 broke out in a wail of bitter reproach against herself, 
 averring that her careless neglect of her duty had brought 
 this added trouble upon them aU, and in heart-broken 
 tones begged her sister and niece to forgive her. 
 
 " I am the one to blame, O Keomah," exclaimed Jose- 
 phine. " The fault is mine, and I beg you will forgive 
 me. I made the proposal and wrote the invitations, and 
 I am the one who should suffer." 
 
272 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 Sewn said little, but the flame on her face bespoke 
 much. In short, her anger and resentment were exces- 
 sive. It had been many years since she had been so 
 quietly set aside and treated for nothing. Surely not 
 since she had crawled out of the window that dark night 
 into the arms of the pale Christian. 
 
 As it was now too late to leave the dalam and reach 
 the city before nightfall, and as to attempt to descend 
 the mountains after dark was extremely dangerous, Sewa 
 said that under all conditions they must partake of the 
 Bopati's hospitality until the next day. In truth, she had 
 already retui-ned him a message to that effect, caring 
 little whether it met with approval or not. She had come 
 at his invitation, and she intended to remain till she could 
 get away with the prospect of reaching her own home in 
 safety. 
 
 Before the surprise and comment called forth by this 
 last episode had subsided, another messenger appeared, 
 bearing a command that quite ecUpsed the Bopati's 
 modest request. It was a letter from Mr. BardweU de- 
 siring Sewa to return at once, with their daughter, and 
 make a hasty preparation for the latter to accompany 
 him to Europe the following week, giving as a reason 
 sudden and urgent business. Scarcely had this piece of 
 startling intelligence been well understood before Schagga 
 appeared at the entrance of the apartment and motioned 
 Wagari to come forth. He informed her that Chatra. 
 was most anxious to see her a moment about a matter of 
 much importance. Wagari tried to fancy what it could 
 be as she went towards Chatra's room. Something of 
 great moment, she thought, as she approached the door 
 inside of which Chatra stood, her head bent forward in 
 an attitude of anxious waiting. 
 
 " You have sent for me, Chatra," said Wagari, looking 
 at her expectantly. 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 278 
 
 " Yes, I sent for you," answered the elder woman. 
 " I hope I have not disturbed our mistress. I have just 
 heard — or did you know," she continued in a flurry of 
 excitement, " that the Radan ajeng Mattah-Djarri is to 
 he given in marriage to the Tumung'g^ng on the sukla 
 paksa " (first day of themoon or first of the month). 
 
 " That will be in six days," replied Wagari, controlling 
 her surprise with a mighty effort, determined not to allow 
 Chatra to perceive that she had not already received some 
 intelligence of the coming event. 
 
 " But how came you," emphasizing the pronoun, " to 
 know this, Chatra ? " she asked after a slight pause, dur- 
 ing which Chatra began to have her doubts as to whether 
 she was communicating as much of a secret as she had at 
 first supposed. 
 
 " Tell me, first, if you knew it before ? " demanded 
 Chatra, bargaining on her side for the knowledge she 
 thought it possible Wagari's position near her mistress 
 might bestow. 
 
 " You have always advised me not to divulge the pri- 
 vate affairs of the Badan ajeng, Chatra," answered Wa- 
 gari evasively, assuming a reproachful tone. 
 
 " That is true," said Chatra, highly flattered to dis- 
 cover her advice was thus respected, " and you shall not 
 do so now. No doubt you may know something about it, 
 but I will teU you how I came to know it, and what an 
 escape I have had. But you must solemnly promise not 
 to tell. K I was dismissed you know you would follow, 
 as you are my relation." In view of this fact, Chatra felt 
 safe in disclosing a most astounding piece of news to her 
 young relative. Like many gossips, she was compelled 
 to unburden her mind or suffer the greatest unrest. 
 
 " About an hour ago or more, perhaps," began Chatra, 
 «thi8 kitten," softly stroking a downy litUe white cat 
 
274 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 curled up in her lap, " -which the noble Mattah gave me 
 as a token of her interest in me " (she did not add for 
 retailing to her all the news and gossip of Keomah's 
 household) " the last time I was sent there by Keo- 
 mah, to take her the birthday presents of the batik 
 sarongs " — Here Chatra was interrupted by an ami- 
 able scratch from the much cherished kitten, which 
 caused her to throw it, without concern for the safety 
 of its limbs, with a dash upon the floor. " "Well, as I 
 was about to say," she continued, after composure was 
 restored, " I put the kitten out there," pointing with 
 her finger to the garden of the court, " to take some 
 air and exercise. A few moments later Narak came out 
 with the Bopati's new dog, which made chase for the 
 kitten as soon as his eyes rested upon it. Dreadfully 
 frightened, it ran for its life and slipping through a 
 hole ran round on the west side, finally taking refuge 
 under the Bopati's gallery. Amdous for the kitten's life, 
 and seeing Narak's dog doing his best to push himself 
 through the opening which had given escape to the cat, I 
 hurried around as fast as my feet could carry me to re- 
 cover it before the dog could get under the gallery and 
 seize it. I went down on my hands and knees and 
 crawled under after it, and poor thing ! it was glad 
 enough, I tell you, to jump into my arms. Now you 
 must know, Wagari, that it is difl&cult to get under that 
 veranda, as well as dangerous ; and to tui-n about on all 
 fours and come out again safely is quite a feat. I was 
 afraid for my life. In my eagerness to get possession of 
 the kitten I forgot about the snakes, scorpions, centipedes, 
 and the like that one might encounter in such a place ; 
 so remembering the danger, I cautiously turned about 
 without noise and slowly pushed myself along, carefully 
 looking about me, when suddenly I heard die noise of 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 275 
 
 Bome one entering overhead and knew it was the Bopati. 
 Holding my breath I stopped, hoping he had come for 
 something and would go away again, but he did not. He 
 sat down, Wagari," wiping the perspiration off her face, 
 "and offered a seat to some one who was with him. 
 Think of my situation ! I was sure the Bopati would 
 hear my heart beat. By this time the hateful dog — I 
 always hated dogs — had gotten through the aperture 
 and was racing around thrusting his nose everywhere, on 
 the scent of the kitten, which I quickly wrapped up in my 
 sembong. In another moment the dog was under the 
 edge of the veranda. I thought, what if he should bark 
 and make a fuss, as dogs will do when anxious about 
 their prey and can't get at it. O Gunung Brama ! I 
 fairly lay down in terror. I struck out towards the dog 
 with a stick I found near me, but it did not intimidate 
 him in the least. However, seeing no prospect of secur- 
 ing the cat, he presently frisked off after Narak, who 
 passed without seeing me, softly whistling to him to fol- 
 low. Beit AUah ! " (House of God !) devoutly ejaculated 
 Chatra in Arabic, the Moslem's language for devotion, 
 and stopping in her narrative to draw from a little bag 
 fastened to her sash a small dingy patch of heavy black 
 silk, — a piece of the curtain that once suiTounded the 
 Kaaba in Mecca and which is yearly replaced by a new 
 one, the old one being cut into small bits and sold to the 
 pilgrims at the great Hadji for fabulous prices. Chatra 
 had always carried this at her side since she had re- 
 ceived it from her husband at his death. " I kissed this 
 sacred relic," holding it up before Wagari, " and begged 
 the protection of the Prophet. 
 
 " I kept perfectly still," continued she, " fearing to 
 move, lest the Bopati might hear me through the thin 
 bambu floor. He had begun to talk in low tones to the 
 
276 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 person who had entered with him, and though I did not 
 mean to listen, I could not help hearing. He expressed 
 himself as being very angry with Keomah and Mattah- 
 Djarri ; said the Tumung'gung was in a great rage and 
 justly, and that the only way he could insure the safety 
 of the Radan Mattah-Djarri was to arrange for an im- 
 mediate marriage. Then he told him that he had de- 
 cided that the ceremony should take place on the snkla 
 paksa. Hearing this, I was astoimded and afraid to 
 breathe. If I had been discovered listening — but I 
 was not, so I 'U not waste time now in discussing what 
 my fate would have been," said Chatra, repressing her 
 emotion and continuing, " the Bopati forbid his com- 
 panion to allow the approaching marriage to become 
 known to any one untU the day before the ceremony. 
 Then he told him to be very particular about preparing 
 properly for the music of the banschaki and to have the 
 panghulu with all his assistants in spotless white robes 
 at the mosque at an early hour, and to see that the 
 peasants and villagers "were all in holiday dress, and to 
 be sure that nothing like work was done that day or the 
 seven days following. To provide rice, cocoaruuts, and 
 bananas for presents for them, and many more details of 
 that kind which I was too much surprised and agitated 
 rightly to understand." 
 
 " Ala-ta-ala ! " ejaculated Wagari, as Chatra stopped 
 to take breath. 
 
 " You may well be amazed, Wagari ; and think of the 
 risk I underwent," Chatra pursued after a moment, en- 
 joying the wide-eyed astonishment depicted in her lis- 
 tener's face. 
 
 " After a while the interview ended and the man with 
 whom the Bopati had been speaking went out, but the 
 Bopati did not appear to move. I feared I should iie 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 277 
 
 with apprehension, and -wondered what I would do if he 
 remained there for hours, as he often does. "While I 
 was in this dreadful suspense, the man returned to re- 
 ceive further instructions, I suppose, and this time the 
 Bopati and he went out together. O Allah bless him ! " 
 invoked Chatra piously, putting away the little morsel of 
 rusty black stuff in her bag, then getting up to look in 
 the mirror, to examine if there were any soiled spots on 
 her white head-dress, which was not unlike the bonnet 
 of a Sister of Charity, and which all females who have 
 made the pilgrimage to Mecca are entitled to wear. " I 
 lost no time in crawling out too, I assure you," she re- 
 sumed, "and not forgetting what I had heard, I ran 
 around to the end of the corridor near the princess's 
 apartments, where I had a right to go, you know, and 
 stood there to see who it was that had been with the 
 Bopati, suspecting that he would pass on out of the alun- 
 alun at once. I was right, for in a moment the piting'gi 
 walked out with a grave face, and I knew it was he to 
 whom the Bopati had given his instructions, and our 
 beautiful mistress will be married immediately and we, 
 Wagari, will lose our excellent home. We shall never 
 find such another," she added, with a deep sigh. " There 
 is but one Badan Mattah-Djarri." 
 
 " Ala-ta-ala ! " exclaimed Wagari again, turning pale, 
 leaning back on her seat, and begging Chatra to reach 
 her a drink of water. 
 
 " Our loss is very great," said Chatra feelingly, ris- 
 ing to reach a glass. " I told you Sewa would bring a 
 demon into t]je house, a very hantu itam " (black devil), 
 added Chatra, permitting her disgust and aversion for 
 Sewa to influence her tongue. " I am glad, at least, I 
 had nothing to do with it." 
 
 " I must go now, Chatra," said Wagari, rising. 
 
278 A pnmcESs of java. 
 
 " It is all too hasty," resumed Chatra, wanting to talk 
 the surprising news over. " I wish you could stay a few 
 moments longer." 
 
 "No, no, I will come again,'' replied Wagari, moving 
 towards the door and stooping to caress the kitten on the 
 floor, while she thanked it in her heart for being the 
 means of letting her into the important secret. 
 
 " Yes, it is real pretty, but I won't follow it under the 
 Bopati's veranda again," said Chatra, foDo'vidng -the mo- 
 tion of Wagari's hand with her eyes. "'I might have 
 been ruined. You will be careful, Wagari," she called, 
 as the latter stepped out on the veranda and ran quickly 
 down the steps into the court below, lingering a few mo- 
 ments near the foimtain to think over what Chatra had 
 just told her. 
 
CHAPTER XXXn. 
 
 Although Wagari expected to hear at any moment 
 of her mistress's marriage day being irrevocably fixed, 
 she had felt nearly positive, she did not know why, 
 that such an event in connection with the Tumung'gung 
 would never occur. All her hopes were now frustrated. 
 She saw no escape for the Badan ajeng. As she watched 
 the heavy spray falling on the blooming oleanders hold- 
 ing up their pink and white faces in eager gratitude 
 around the basin to receive it, her thoughts instinctively 
 settled again upon Sewa and Josephine as the only ones 
 that could help in this emergency. Clasping her hands 
 and looking around in her anxiety, she beheld the Bopati 
 himself, lying in a hammock not far distant, watching 
 her ; while Mirata, one of his younger wives, sat near 
 him, stripping the peeling o£E some oranges with her fin- 
 gers, pulling the fruit into four quarters, and handing 
 bim one piece at a time, giving the hammock a little 
 push meanwhile, which kept it in gentle motion. They 
 were both looking at her ; the Bopati thinking what a 
 pity she had not come under his notice before she was 
 appointed reader to his daughter ; Mirata wondering 
 how it was, Wagari, with her fine eyes and stately figure, 
 had never been sought for as a wife by some such hus- 
 band as the noble and wise Bopati. 
 
 Wagari gave a visible start on thus meeting the gaze 
 of her master, guiltily feeling she possessed a secret of 
 his she was not intended to know. Hurrying to her mis- 
 tress with her mind in the utmost confusion, she was for- 
 
280 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 tunate enough to find her alone. Hastily telling her she 
 had something important to communicate and receiving 
 her promise not to betray her, she related, in as few 
 words as possible, the story she had just received from 
 Chatra. The despair and consternation of the princess 
 can well be conceived. It lasted only a little time, how- 
 ever. She soon grew calm and collected, and turned to 
 her attendant with the question, " No one but Chatra 
 knows what you have told me, Wagari ? " in a clear, firm 
 tone, which caused Wagari to regard her with surprise. 
 
 " She looks as she did when the Nonah Josephine 
 came," Wagari thought to herself, answering, " No one, 
 noble princess." 
 
 " Would you like to help me, my good Wagari, to dis- 
 appoint the horrid old Tumung'gung ? " 
 
 " Don't ask me, my mistress ; I wiU do anything to 
 that end, as you know," replied Wagari, somewhat hurt 
 that the former should consider it necessary to ask the 
 question. 
 
 " Well, then, do now just as I tell you, and be silent 
 and cautious, as our people can be when they have a 
 point to gain. Go first and ask my cousin to come here. 
 Tell her to come slowly and carelessly. Then go back to 
 Chatra. Tell her Sewa and Josephine intend to return 
 to-morrow to their city home, to prepare the latter to go 
 to Europe with her father. Then go out on the court 
 and saunter about as if you were seeking the air. Con- 
 trive to move down towards the servants' compound. 
 See who is there, and if you observe a stranger you could 
 say something and perhaps find out where he came from 
 and to whom he belongs. I thought I saw a stranger 
 pass the veranda this morning, and he had on a waist- 
 band with ends dyed in the colors that distinguish the 
 Tumung'gung. Ascertaiii if any of that noble's retinue 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 281 
 
 have been left behind. And after you discover all you 
 can in this indifferent manner come back to me. Now 
 go, my good Wagari," she concluded, with a choking sob 
 rising in her throat. 
 
 In a short time Josephine came leisurely into Mattah- 
 Djarri's apartments. On perceiving her, the latter put 
 her finger on her lips to indicate silence, pointing at 
 Djoolo arranging her perfumes and powders on a table 
 near by, which was soon concluded and the faithful 
 woman left the room, feeling truly happy in the thought 
 that her young mistress was getting somewhat over her 
 first sorrow. As soon as Djoolo had passed through the 
 curtains and they had closed behind her, Mattah-Djarri 
 repeated to Josephine the story broijght by Wagari. 
 
 "A double calamity," cried Josephine, wringing her 
 hands ; " and I, oh ! I shall never see Sarjio again ! 
 Papa will take me to Europe when I return home, and 
 you wiU be married to the old monster ! Oh ! oh ! oh ! " 
 and Josephine gave way to a gust of grief, despite all 
 Mattah-Djarri's attempts to prevent her. 
 
 By the time Wagari returned, Josephine had become 
 calm again and was able to listen with- some deg^ree of 
 comprehension to the latter's report, as well as intel- 
 ligently to understand the plans and suggestions of 
 Mattah-Djarri, whose energy, quickness, and decision now 
 rose to meet the occasion. 
 
 " In the first place," said Mattah-Djarri to her anx- 
 ious listeners, " I will never consent to be given to the 
 Tumung'g^ng of Narawadi. I would prefer to die. In- 
 deed, his touch would be like an embrace from the ular 
 lanang" (a poisonous and much dreaded snake). 
 
 " If we could send a messenger to overtake Sarjio," 
 interrupted Josephine hopefully, " he would return and 
 rescue us both." Then she related his proposals and in- 
 
282 A PjRTNCESS of JAVA. 
 
 tentions in regard to herself and Mattah-Djarri, not caring 
 now for Wagari's presence, who, to do her justice, had no 
 other thought than to aid her mistress and her cousin 
 with her, if the former so desired. 
 
 " We must not look to the Pateh, dear Josie," said 
 Mattah-Djarri firmly. " It would he impossihle for a 
 messenger to reach him to-night on the mountains, even 
 could we at this moment find one whom we could trust. 
 You can rest assured no servant or tukang surat (letter 
 carrier) could leave the dalam now without being closely- 
 watched and compelled to teU where he was going, if sus- 
 pected. Did you see or hear anything suspicious, Wa- 
 gari ? " said she, addressing the latter. 
 
 " Boorah, one ofi the attendants who came with the 
 Tumung'gung, was eating some rice, with his face turned 
 this way," answered Wagari, " and I saw the tukang gam- 
 elan looking around among his instruments, no doubt pre- 
 paring for the banschaki." 
 
 " If Boorah has been left here, it is to watch me," said 
 Mattah-Djarri reflectively. " Is that all you saw or 
 heard, Wagari ? " 
 
 " Since the Nonah has spoken about the noble Pateh, 
 I am almost sure I saw one of his servants in the orange 
 grove. Perhaps he was waiting for some one." 
 
 " One of the Patch's servants ! " cried Josephine with 
 excited eagerness. " What was he doing, Wagari ? Did 
 he appear to have anything like a package, box, or any- 
 thing of that sort ? " and she grasped Wagari by the arm 
 with a force that made her wince. 
 
 " I saw nothing," said Wagari, shaking her head. " I 
 will go out again and accost him. I have spoken to him 
 before," she continued, rising, anxious to go, the thought 
 coming into her mind that here might be a way to com- 
 municate with the Pateh. 
 
A PRTNCESS OF JAVA. 288 
 
 "Go, go, dearest, best Wagari," said Josephine, push- 
 ing her gently towards the door. " If you bring me a 
 letter I will fill your purse with gold." 
 
 In a few moments Wagari was in the orange grove 
 pulling from the low branches the largest and ripest 
 oranges she could find for her mistress, gradually mov- 
 ing toward the lower end of the grove or garden, where 
 an indolent looking peasant sat on the edge of a big, flat 
 stone, eating his boiled rice and tchabi out of a plantain 
 leaf, which was the most natural thing in the world to do 
 at that hour of the day. As Wagari slowly approached 
 him, he appeared to grow more duU and stupid, and when 
 she passed close to him, he actually let himself slide down 
 flat on his back and shut his eyes to go to sleep. Wagari, 
 having satisfied herself that she had gathered enough of 
 the fruit and the best of it, turned to retrace her steps, 
 pausing a moment in -front of the rock to speak to thie 
 man, who -acknowledged her politeness by grunting out 
 some sort of a reply. Wagari moved on her way now, 
 dropping her handkerchief, without seeming to perceive 
 it, but she had not reached the court before she missed 
 it, and calling to Merrah, Josephine's maid, offered her 
 one of the best oranges in her little basket if she would 
 run back and fetch it for her. 
 
 When Merrah stooped to pick up the handkerchicif, 
 she heard some one call her name, and in another moment 
 she stooped again to gather up a dark object that fell 
 near her feet. Whatever it was, she tucked it out of sight 
 under her belt, while she carried the handkerchief in her 
 hand back to Wagari. When the latter entered her mis- 
 tress's apartments with her little basket of fruit, strange 
 to say, she passed it first to the Nonah Josephine. 
 
 " Oh ! Wagari, how I bless and thank you," exclaimed 
 the latter, seizing a little box among the oranges, and 
 
284 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 Idssiug it repeatedly, hastily sought the spring which re- 
 vealed its contents. " A letter from Sarjio ! " she cried 
 in suppressed tones of joy. " Now, indeed, we are safe." 
 Quickly perusing its contents, she hastily wrote an answer 
 describing the threatening danger and beseeching him to 
 come to her rescue, and not permit her father to separate 
 them forever. 
 
 While the letter was being written, Merrah was sent 
 to the pasir to make some purchases, it being the hour 
 when nasi, tchabi, sambals, dingding, and all the other 
 curious concomitants required to make a Javanese supper 
 were freshly cooked and exposed for sale in the warungs 
 or little stalls that line the streets and highways. Sitting 
 at a table in one of the latter, she saw the man who 
 had thrown her the box in the orange grove. After ex- 
 changing a few words with him she bought some kain 
 (white cotton cloth) from a stand near by, stipulating 
 that if it did not suit it was to be returned for another 
 piece before midnight. When Merrah returned to her 
 mistress with her purchase, she told her that it would be 
 impossible for the tukang surat to find the Patch that 
 night. He had left him at the close of the lingsar kulon 
 (name given to one of the four divisions of the day, 
 from one to three o'clock)„and had then received instruc- 
 tions to join him the third evening after at a particular 
 spot near the summit where the party intended to en- 
 camp. In the mean time they were going to make a 
 ddtour some distance off of the regular route, and this 
 would render it impossible to find him at night on the 
 mountains. 
 
 Here was another dilemma. The sun had fallen and it 
 was already dark, for twilight in that climate does not 
 exceed ten minutes. This new difficulty destroyed Jose- 
 phine's rising hopes, and she became nervous and excited, 
 
A PRINCmS OF JAVA. 285 
 
 unable to suggest or decide upon anything that seemed 
 likely to extricate her and procure the needed assistance 
 from her lover. Mattah-Djarri, however, was calm and 
 quiet. Josephine, looking at her, repeated again her 
 remark made on the day of her arrival, «' that she had 
 become quite another person." At length tihie three girls 
 having concluded it best, informed Sewa and Keomah 
 what Ghatra had h^ard. 
 
 When JS^omah and Sewa understood it all they were 
 overcome with grief, and looked at each other in mute 
 despair; they both felt they had hastened this direful 
 catastrophe by which Mattah-Djarri, the most innocent 
 gf aU, was to become the greatest sufferer. The latter's 
 self-possession surprised them. She did not shed a tear, 
 and scarcely spoke, while her color came and went from 
 pale tp crimson, receding again, leaving her face spread 
 with an ashy pallor, and an expression of fierce defiance 
 in her eyes, which strangely replaced their usually soft 
 and loving glance. After embracing Keomah and beg- 
 ging her not to be distressed, she passed into the inner 
 chamber, desiring Wagari to follow her. 
 
 It was not long before Wagari came out, her counte- 
 nance expressing a pleased satisfaction, which Josephine 
 thought but poorly accorded with her mistress's painful 
 situation. It annoyed her so much to see this pleasure 
 depicted on Wagari's face that she reproachfully said to 
 her as she passed, " Why, Wagari, you look quite hap- 
 py," hoping she would receive the remark as a merited 
 reproof. Wagari oidy smUed in reply, and Josephine 
 thought with indignation, " The heartless thing is really 
 delighted." 
 
 Keomah now tremblingly informed them she had been 
 ordered tp prepare Mattah-Djarri to receive the seria, or 
 dentist, the next mQmjng, and tiiiat h@ was now with his 
 
286 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 assistants and instruments in the dalam, with commands 
 to perform his work ■with as little delay as possible. Jose- 
 phine, when she heard this communication through Keo- 
 mah's sobs and tears, quite despaired, but she was sure 
 Wagari laughed, yes, positively laughed and looked 
 happy. After this additional ill news, Wagari got up 
 and returned to her mistress. " To teU her, I suppose," 
 thought Josephine, " but Mattah-Djarri little knows the 
 miserable creature is secretly glad." In a short time Mat- 
 tah-Djarri returned and sat down with Keomah, Sewa, 
 and her cousin, while Wagari, who came behind her, 
 went directly to her own room, from whence she soon 
 emerged with a sembong thrown over one shoulder, 
 which showed that she intended to take a walk be- 
 yond the grounds of the dalam. Going out of the rear 
 entrance, she skirted the wall of the alim-alun en one 
 side, following the path usually traversed by servants and 
 people carrying provisions to the kitchens, and came out 
 on the principal highway, turning off from thence into a 
 dense quarter of the kampong, where she soon entered a 
 shop in the pasir and bought a half dozen of the common 
 dark blue sarongs and kaybayas worn by the peasants. 
 Throwing them across her arm, she turned her face 
 toward home, which she reached by the way in which 
 she had come, taking the precaution to slip two or three 
 sarongs around her as she skirted the wall, to wear them 
 into the dalam instead of carrying them. As there was 
 a constant stream of servants and others going and com- 
 ing between the kampong, the house of the pitingi'gi, and 
 the dalam, Wagari passed out and in without atti-acting 
 any attention. Even Boorah, the Tumung'gung's mata- 
 mata, looked at her without suspicion. 
 
 Keomah and Sewa left the apartments of the young 
 princess, both feeling wretched enough. Sewa experi- 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 287 
 
 enced the keenest reproach for her share in the added 
 disaster, and Josephine, since informed that Satrap, the 
 stupid peasant of the orange grove, could not reach the 
 Pateh that night, felt some decisive action must be re- 
 sorted to immediately. She must decide upon some plan 
 whereby she could avoid going back to her father, or lose 
 the Pateh forever. That vras what her father meant 
 by taking her to Europe. She now passed the moments 
 in heaping reproaches upon him, wishing for the support- 
 ing presence of her dark lover, and lamenting the un- 
 happy fate that brought them such sorrows ; growing 
 more determined every moment not to return to her 
 father and be carried over the seas, yet not knowing how 
 to prevent it. She was now more than willing to run 
 away with Sarjio ; and where, she moaned, could she go to 
 await his coming ? She could think of nothing practica- 
 ble that could aid her, unless it were to follow out a wild 
 idea that came into her head of leaving the dalam to 
 wander about in some indefinite place, till the Pateh 
 came to deliver her. This she soon saw was impossible 
 in that climate, where the heat of the sun by day was as 
 dangerous to the life of the deUcately bred European 
 as was the savage appetite of the wild beast at night ; 
 and if she overcame these obstacles, how could she escape 
 detection among the many millions of inhabitants scat- 
 tered, almost as thick as leaves on the trees, in every 
 direction. 
 
 Absorbed in these reflections, she would rock her body 
 to and fro with her arms pressed to her sides and her 
 hands clasped in support under her chin, and moan and 
 groan in the most piteous manner. It threw Sewa into 
 spasms of grief to'behold her. She would have given her 
 husband, her life, and all she possessed, to have made 
 her happy and joyous as she had seen her a few weeks 
 
288 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 before. To Sewa, Josephine was the day-star, the ■well- 
 spring of all that was lovable and beautiful. She idol- 
 ized, almost reverenced her, as such mothers can, with a 
 blind, worshiping idolatry, lavished in perfect abandon- 
 ment upon a child they feel to be superior to themselves, 
 yet whoUy and honorably their own, — a being possessing, 
 as they believe, a superior knowledge and intelligence, 
 which rightfully demands a loving and wondering defer- 
 ence from them and which it gives them supreme delight 
 to offer ? Such was the case with this yielding, oriental 
 mother and cultivated, European daughter. 
 
 " Advise me, assist me, Mattah-Djarri," implored Jose- 
 phine at last, almost beside herself with the tumultuous 
 griefs that rent her bosom. " You are so strong, so — 
 BO suddenly changed, so self-possessed and detennined. 
 Think of something for me or something that will save 
 us both, till Sarjio can deliver us. Perhaps we can hide 
 in some house, cottage, hut, or under some rock in the 
 forest tiU he comes," she went on, suggestingly. " Pro- 
 pose something, dear Mattie. I have plenty of money ; 
 we can purchase a few days' delay and security, if I only 
 knew how." 
 
 " All ordinary means would fail to save us now," re- 
 plied Mattah-Djarri. " The Bopati and the Tumung'- 
 gung possess unlimited power in their provinces, which 
 extend for mUes and miles on every side. Their mata- 
 mata are everywhere ; silent, secret, treacherous, and dis- 
 simulating. To avoid them or escape them would be a 
 miracle, but I will make an attempt for myself and die 
 if it fails. I had arranged it all in my mind before you 
 came ; since then I have felt better. Indeed, it don't 
 appear so hard to die," she reflectively concluded, think- 
 ing of the Tumung'gung, " when one comes face to face 
 with a desperate and insurmoimtable cause." 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 289 
 
 " What plans or designs have you decided upon ? " 
 asked Josephine. " Tell me what they are and let me 
 join you in them and explain them to Sarjio, and he will 
 come, he will come," she half sang, half cried, in the 
 sudden revulsion of rising hope. 
 
 " Tell the Nonah, Wagari," commanded Mattah-Djarri 
 quietly to the latter who stood by. 
 
 " How you are changed," exclaimed Josephine, looking 
 curiously at her cousin, before Wagari had time to speak. 
 " I wonder what it is," vainly trying to define the trans- 
 formation she felt but could not explain, for it was true, 
 Mattah-Djarri had changed. 
 
 The timid, shrinking, self-distrusting girl Josephine 
 had seen descend from the high traveling carriage in 
 front of her father's stately marble steps had been sup- 
 planted by a desperate, determined, self-reliant woman. 
 The prospect of being given to the hideous old man 
 proposed to her had aroused all the latent resistance, 
 strength, and stubbornness in Mattah-Djarri's character, 
 converting the natural timidity and dependence of a 
 child, which had been greatly increased and fostered by 
 her secluded and restrained mode of life, into defiance 
 and rebellion ; developing a spirit of reckless opposition 
 and determination that frightened her when she reflected 
 upon it, and changed her at once into a resolute woman, 
 led and governed by impulses that had never stirred her 
 bosom before. Death appeared to her a small matter 
 compared with the cruel and torturing infliction about to 
 be imposed upon her ; and, unconsciously to herself, the 
 bright and fascinating face of young Edward Tracy, 
 dancing, like an ignis fatuus, through her mind, since 
 the morning when Wagari had called her to the lattice 
 to see the guests assembled in the alun-alun, rendered 
 her impervious to all considerations of obedience^ pru- 
 
290 A PBINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 dence, or propriety that were in any way connected with 
 the old Tumung'gung. There was no fear in her breast 
 now ; no drawing back or hesitating. The intensity of 
 her feelings carried her above all such minor and, to her, 
 insignificant considerations. She was sorry for Keomah, 
 but as to any sense of duty or obedience to the Bopati or 
 Tumung'gung, she felt none. She had made her choice, 
 arranged her plans, fixed her decision with the delibera- 
 tion and wisdom of a woman twice her age, and now 
 nothing remained to be done but to go fearlessly for- 
 ward. If death came, she was prepared to receive it 
 calmly ; hence her quiet self-possession. Once she had 
 wavered and debated within herself, but a picture of the 
 shriveled face and thin, hooked nose of the Tumung'- 
 gung, the seria with his instruments, and Tracy with his 
 light hair, blue eyes, and merry countenance instantly 
 brought her back to her previous resolution. No one 
 would have supposed that that slight figure, childishly 
 youthful face, golden olive skin, and wondering, innocent 
 black eyes, concealed such marvelous powers of will and 
 precocious energy. But so it was. The same blood that 
 had borne Sewa above and away from the ancient and 
 venerated customs of her revered ancestors, to please and 
 gratify her own feminine fancies and heart inclinations, 
 now took her niece by the hand and drew her, calm and 
 serene, from the vortex of repulsion that was about to 
 engulf her. 
 
 As soon as Josephine had finished speaking, Wagari 
 proceeded to say that she was going with her beloved 
 mistress to life or death. 
 
 " I thought you looked pleased with her misfortunes a 
 little while ago,'' coldly interrupted Josephine, remember- 
 ing the snule she had seen on Wagari's face when Keomah 
 was talking. 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 291 
 
 " You are mistaken, Nonah," returned Wagari, with 
 indignation in her voice ; " I was glad to be allowed to 
 aid in her escape.'' 
 
 " Oh ! then I beg your pardon, good Wagari," said 
 Josephine, regarding her admiringly. " Tell me, now, 
 what my cousin is going to do." 
 
 " But you promise, Josie, that if you don't assist or 
 even approve you will not betray me," interposed Mattah- 
 Djarri. 
 
 " Instead of that I hppe to become your companion," 
 replied Josephine assuringly, her spirits rising with the 
 prospect of relief under the responsibility of another. 
 
 " Well, then," proceeded Wagari, eager and anxious to 
 enter upon the details of the romantic enterprise in 
 which she was about to engage, without once reflecting 
 upon the attending danger, " my noble mistress will 
 leave the dalam to-night during teng'aweng'i (period 
 between midnight and one o'clock), or perhaps sooner, if 
 all is quiet." 
 
 " But how or where to go ? " interrupted Josephine, joy- 
 fully grasping the idea of escape for herself and cousin 
 under the guidance of Wagari, whom she intuitively felt 
 was to be the directing compass in the hazardous under^ 
 
 Wagari now unfolded their plans and Josephine lis- 
 tened, lost in amazement. " If we can conceal ourselves 
 tDl the first search is over," said Mattah-Djarri, after War 
 gari had ceased speaking, " Wagari can sell some of my 
 jewels and procure the means of living till we reach the 
 coast of Bali Bali, Madura, Sumatra, or even Borneo ; 
 any place, in fact, where we will be beyond the reach of 
 the Tumung'g^g. My gems are of great value and will 
 make us independent. If all fails and I find I am going 
 to be captured and brought back, Wagari must make her 
 
292 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 Escape with the jewels, which will- make her rich for life. 
 She had a lover, a young dukun, who has been a long 
 time at Mecca; she will then hare the means to join 
 him in Arabia." 
 
 " I will never leave you, my angel mistress," interposed 
 Wagari, wiping tears from her eyes. 
 
 " You must not sacrifice your life for me, Wagari," 
 said Mattah-Djarri, looking gratefully towards the faith- 
 ful girl. " Should it go so far, you must marry your 
 lover and be happy." ^ 
 
 " I will accompany you, dearest Mattie," cried Jose- 
 phine enthusiastically, a new idea darting into her miiid. 
 " Yes, I will surely go with you, and we will wait there," 
 she said breathlessly, almost choking with the combined 
 emotions of hope and danger. " We will — we wiH hide 
 ourselves in some hole, some corner, some cell or dungeon, 
 or wall or whatever it is that may offer us shelter' till 
 Sarjio arrives, and then, dear, we wiU all go to Singa- 
 pore. That is his own idea. He proposed it to me. To 
 take you with me when I went with him, for' of course I 
 am — I was going with him. Yes, yes, I ■will die ■with 
 him ! " asserted Josephine, becoming weak and trembling 
 from the emotion of her overwrought feelings. " But 
 where," she cried, still struggling to give expression toi 
 her haste and anxiety, " where is this refuge ? How can 
 we reach the hiding-place ? Who knows the way ? " 
 appealing in turn to Mattah-Djarri and Wagari. 
 
 " Wagari knows the way in part. She is somewhat 
 acquainted with the country and it is not far," again 
 answered Mattah-Djaxri, fearing Josephine's excitement 
 would make her iU or deprive her of the capability' of 
 acting cautiously and promptly, which was now so all-im- 
 portant. 
 
 "Is it — near — the sea or toward the dty ? " she 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 298 
 
 gasped out, fearing it might be and that her father would 
 yet get possession of her. 
 
 " No, dear Josie, it is on the Guning Deing, that dark 
 blue, misty liwawan (distant mountain range) you saw 
 toward the west this moroing." 
 
 " Oh, Mattah-Djarri," sighed Josephine, in the reaction 
 of relaxed tension, " you are a witch, a perfect witch ; 
 come here and let me embrace you," extending one hand 
 to her, " and you too, Wagari," stretching forth the other 
 toward the reader. ^ 
 
 ■" Do try to calm yourself, Josephine, we have much 
 to do," replied Mattah-Djairi. " See, now, sirapong (pe- 
 riod of the night between eight and ,eleyen) is upon us.'' 
 
 " I must 3ind I will," replied Josephine resolp,telyf ■" for 
 I must write another letter and explain it all to Sarjio, 
 »)id dispatch it, you know, befcnse -midnight." 
 
CHAPTER XXXTTT. 
 
 Josephine lay perfectly quiet and motionless for the 
 next half hour, endeavoring to recruit her strength and 
 recover her calmness, meanwhile rapidly reviewing in 
 her mind how she would brieflj^and effectually erpress 
 her wishes to her lover, upon whose letter she from time 
 to time pressed her hand, as it rested inside her dress 
 upon her bosom. During the time she was thus passive, 
 Mattah-Djarri and Wagari commenced their preparations 
 for departure. Mattah-Djarri's most valuable jewels 
 were collected and made up into one parcel ; those of 
 inferior quality were tightly packed into another. The 
 rings and gems she wore daily about her person, with 
 other small valuables, were taken off and done up in a 
 third package, each as small and compact as possible. 
 Wagari made two trips to her own room, each time re- 
 turning with one half the plain blue sarongs and kay- 
 bayas she had purchased in the pasir in the early part 
 of the evening. These preliminaries completed, Mattah- 
 Djarri approached her cousin, and, shaking her lightly to 
 arouse her from her reverie, said, — 
 
 " Come, Josephine. Your letter and your preparations. 
 The minutes are going." 
 
 " I will hurry," replied Josephine, hastily rising, and 
 showing she had quite regained her usual self-possession, 
 and stepping nearer the lamp to read once more Sarjio's 
 letter, which he had written at the first halt his party had 
 made on the mountains, and sent back to her to explain 
 much that he could not find opportunity to say in the 
 
A PRINCESS OF J A VA. 295 
 
 morning before his abrupt departure. It breathed the 
 old story ; love and devotion till the end of life and be- 
 seeching her to be faithful to her promises to him. " It 
 ■wiU be only seven days," he wrote in conclusion, " and 
 you will be mine, mine forever. In the paradise of the 
 blessed, my beautiful, I wUl seek only thee. An unmis- 
 takable impression teUs me there is danger, great danger 
 menacing you. I try to believe it the fears of my love 
 and would fain expel it from my mind, but it wiU and 
 does return. I have e^ressed my forebodings to Tracy, 
 who laughs at my apprehensions, but I can Sfee that he 
 himself is iU at ease, if not entirely miserable. Can it be 
 possible that your wish and my suspicions may be true ? 
 Has the gentle and beautiful Mattah-Djarri impressed her 
 image upon his heart ? I count the hours, my precious 
 life, tiU Satrap returns. On the third day from this 
 AUah grant he may put a letter of yoxirs in my hand ! " 
 
 Josephine, before refolding her letter, pressed it to 
 her lips many times, then showed the passages about 
 Tracy to Mattah-Djarri. " It wiU cheer her," she 
 thought, and she was not mistaken when she fancied a 
 richer color crept into the face of the latter, and that her 
 eyes sparkled for a moment with a pleasurable glow. 
 
 Josephine now conmaenced a second letter to the Pa- 
 teh, a part of which was under the dictation of Wagari. 
 She explained their intention of leaving the dalam that 
 night during teng'aweng'i, and of making their way, under 
 Wagari's direction, to the ruins of the ancient Hindu 
 temples covering the hills surrounding the Guwa Upas, 
 and secreting themselves there to await his arrival. 
 Then she spoke of her cousin's determination to die on 
 the poisoned plain rather than be given to the Tumung'- 
 gung, " and it is mine, also, dear Sarjio," she added, 
 " rather than be separated from you." 
 
296 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 Wagari described as near as possible the direction 
 they ■would follow in getting there, and gave a minute 
 description of the situation of the cave of the recluse, 
 where they hoped to live till he came to deliver them. 
 When aU was said that could be said, in the little time 
 allowed them, the missive was closed and given to Mer- 
 rah, to carry it to the kampong, under the excuse of 
 exchanging her purchase of the kain, and deposit it 
 with the waiting Satrap, accompanied by a purse of 
 gold and the promise of ten times as much more if he 
 delivered the letter to his master on the second day in- 
 stead of the third. Josephine felt now, in leaving her 
 natural protector, like one floating through an obscure 
 atmosphere to untried, tmknown spaces beyond, and one 
 day more was as a century. 
 
 Wagari suggested that it would be advisable to make 
 some provision for food in the early morning, when they 
 would probably be fatigued and famished, and without 
 safe opportunity to procure it, and volunteered to go 
 again to the kampong and obtain something in the pasir 
 to take with them. In doing this she considered it 
 safest, at that hour, to pass boldly through the alun-alun 
 in fuU view of every one, knowing a careless, uncon- 
 cerned act was generally looked upon without suspicion, 
 while mystery and secrecy always provoke it. 
 
 The barefooted guards, sauntering backward and for- 
 ward on each side of the entrance, demanded her busi- 
 ness, according to the custom after sundown. With the 
 word, " pegi macan " (going to eat), she passed on, 
 straight to a spot, not far distant, where she knew a 
 tukang macanan always sat on his heels, between his two 
 baskets, till midnight, waiting for his customers. Fur- 
 chasing several little green parcels neatly rolled up in 
 the fresh and fragrant p|,antain leaves, ajid tied with 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 297 
 
 green strings stripped from the fibrous bark of the ba- 
 nana tree, she leisurely returned with them in her hands 
 to find her mistress and the Nonah Josephine about fin- 
 ishing a letter which was to be left in a conspicuous pla«e 
 among the clothes of the former, which they naturally 
 supposed would be carefully searched as soon as their 
 flight became actually established the nert morning. 
 
 The letter was written by Mattah-Djarri, and ad- 
 dressed to Keomah, simply stating the fact that she was 
 about to leave the dalam, Josephine and Wagari accom- 
 panying her; begging her mother and Sewa not to be 
 anxious, and directing them to Josephine's home in the 
 city for further information, leaving the impression, with- 
 out saying so, that they were going thither. This little 
 ruse the two girls felt justified in employing to cahn the 
 apprehensions Keomah and Sewa would doubtless expe- 
 rience when it was discovered that they had departed 
 alone, during the night. Josephine knew her mother 
 would suspect the Patch was not far o£B, and that in her 
 secret heart she would be glad. Mattah-Djam felt Keo- 
 mah would grieve for her, and this letter would lighten 
 her pain for the present, trusting to Sewa to sustain and 
 reconcile her tiU she, perhaps, could communicate with 
 her again. " This letter," observed she to Josephine, 
 " which will be immediately shown to the Bopati, will 
 cause them to suppose that I have suddenly fled in die 
 determination not to submit to the operation of disfigure- 
 ment by the seria," — she had learned to regard it as 
 Sewa and her daughter did, — " which is to be per- 
 formed in the morning ; that I have gone to your father 
 to implore his protection, taking advantage of your love 
 and sympathy to prevail upon you to accompany me, 
 with Wagari as an attendant. This, joined with my re- 
 luctance to be married to the Tumung'gung, will be the 
 
298 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 first conclusion, and the Bopati's rage will be frightful. 
 It will also convince him, I trust, that Keomah and 
 Sewa are entirely ignorant of our intentions. He will 
 immediately seek me at the house of your father, where 
 he will, no doubt, proceed at once himself. Sewa will 
 also hasten home, perhaps." 
 
 " She certainly will," interrupted Josephine, warmly, 
 a remembrance of her mother's devoted love rising in 
 her mind ; " but you know she has to go, by the Bopati's 
 command, in any case." 
 
 " Yes, I know," answered Mattah-Djarri, " and Keo- 
 mah will perhaps accompany her, expecting to find me 
 there, and hoping in some way to soften the Bopati's 
 resentment. Now, while the Bopati and his retinue, 
 for no doubt he will take his oppassers and officers 
 with him, will be reaching the plains, we shall have am- 
 ple time to gain the Guning Deing overlooking the Guwa 
 Upas, and conceal ourselves in the cell of the old recluse. 
 Wagari will direct us, for she knows much about the 
 ruins of liie ancient temples. We can get there, you 
 see, dear Josie, before they begin to look for us. With- 
 out some such plan," she continued, while Josephine lis- 
 tened and gazed upon her in admiring astonishment, 
 " we could never reach the Guning Deing, or escape the 
 millions of eyes that wiQ search for us two days hence." 
 
 Josephine thought the plan was perfect, and as it had 
 already been discussed with Wagari, whose ready brain 
 had helped to form it before they knew Josephine was 
 to be one of their party, the next thing was to place the 
 letter where it would be sure to be found and perused, 
 and prevent a general alarm being sent out until after 
 the elapse of the time required to reach Mr. BardweU. 
 
 As a last act Josephine wrote a letter to her father, 
 frankly telling him she was about to leave his love and 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 299 
 
 care for that of the Pateh. Then she entreated him to 
 forgive her, and bestowed upon him a hundred imagi- 
 nary embraces and kisses, with many expressions of 
 endearment ; after which she reproached him with being 
 hard-hearted and with compelling her to resort to this 
 undutiful measure, in order to gain for a husband the 
 man she loved ; referred to the injustice and insult 
 conveyed in his letter to the Pateh, a part of which 
 she quoted with emphasized refutations and reproachful 
 comments, which she considered unanswerable. She as- 
 sured him that if he had not written the Pateh this 
 cruel letter she never would have had the heart to leave 
 him in this way, and begged him to remember how he 
 had, in the ardor of his love, obtained her mother, say- 
 ing, " It is in the blood, dear papa." She declared 
 that her meeting with the Pateh at KaU Chandi was 
 purely accidental on his side, and that no power on 
 earth could keep her from him, and that it would be 
 useless in him to attempt it ; ending her singular epistle 
 by embracing him again, as she termed it, assuring 
 hiTiri that she would be his loving Josephine aU her life. 
 
 This letter was read aloud in a low voice and pro- 
 nounced by the three girls to be quite proper. Then 
 they engaged in a consultation as to how it was to reach 
 Mr. BardweU. They decided that it would be best to 
 have him receive it the next afternoon or evening, about 
 the time they supposed the Bopati would be likely to ar- 
 rive in search of Mattah-Djarri. Wagari said they could 
 find a kuli in some of the kampongs they must pass, who 
 would only be too glad to deliver it for a little money at 
 any hour or any distance they desired, before the news 
 of their flight was spread over the country. 
 
 " But why send the letter at all, Nonah Josephine ? " 
 asked Wagari. " It might lead to your capture." 
 
300 A. PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 " I feel I must do it," replied Josephine, " to save my 
 parents all the grief and trouble I can. When papa 
 knows the truth, he will make no further efEort to get me, 
 and raj mother will not be anxious or alarmed. She 
 likes the Fateh, you know." 
 
 This explanation seemed to be sufficient, and Mattah- 
 Djarri wrote a brief note to her father to accompany 
 Josephine's letter and declared they must depart. 
 
CHAPTER XXXIV. 
 
 AxL now being p^ady, the three young girls prepared 
 to leave the dalam. Josephine and Wagari trembled 
 with excitement. The former grew so nervous, and her 
 hands shook to such an extent, that she could scarcely 
 remove her European dress and array herself in the 
 sarong and kaybaya of the native peasant which Wagari 
 had procured in the kampong. Her face, neck, arms, 
 hands, ankles, and feet had to be stained a dark yellow 
 brown ; so had Mattah'Djarri's golden skin to be brought 
 to the same plebeian color, and Wagari's also, whose 
 complexion, although failing in the aristocratic yellow 
 shade, was stiU of a much lighter hue than that of the 
 sun-tinted peasant. 
 
 Josephine's white skin required sevetal washings in the 
 diluted juice of the purple rind of the mangistan before 
 it gained the desired color. 
 
 " I fear I shall never be white again," said she, looking' 
 ruefully at her httle browii hands and arms, when the 
 shade attained was decided by her two companions to be 
 perfect. 
 
 " Oh, yes, you will," said Wagari, cheieringly, " and 
 without trouble, too. Although the rind of mangistan 
 dyes brown or black according to its strength, the pearly 
 fruit within as quickly removes the stain, and you can be 
 turned into a white woman at any moment. We have 
 only to step into a mangistan grove and become our- 
 selves." 
 
 " I am y^y glad of that," said Josephine ; " I shall 
 
302 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 return to my own color as soon as possible. But come, 
 it must be nearly time to start," looking at her mite of a 
 watch, which she deftly tucked under her semhong, call- 
 ing it her chapuri or siri box, in imitation of the Javanese. 
 " Yes, it is nearly twelve o'clock." 
 
 " It is indeed," said Mattah-Djarri, looking up from 
 a parcel she was arranging at a little French clock the 
 Bopati had brought her from Batavia the last time he was 
 there. " Wagari," she continued, " go out quietly on the 
 corridor and verandas and try to observe if any one is 
 stirring. Chatra said this evening there were no guests 
 in the dalam. Most likely aU is quiet, but it is prudent 
 to go and see." 
 
 Wagari slipped out between the closed curtains as 
 stealthily and noiselessly as a cat, letting them close again 
 behind her with an almost imperceptible movement. She 
 glided along from one corridor into another and out on 
 the darkened side of the veranda reserved for women, 
 and saw nothing unusual. Everything seemed to be in a 
 state of perfect tranquillity. The doors and windows 
 opening on the verandas stood wide open in the ordi- 
 nary way, but no one was to be seen. Schagga had dis- 
 appeared also, resigning his duty to the sentry, who never 
 penetrated the inner court. In the apartments of the 
 females, soft, silky curtains and light portiferes were gently 
 swaying back and forth with the breeze ; the pale light 
 from the night lamps scattered about on the floors within 
 gave her slight glimpses of the interior, where nothing 
 seemed to stir. She could see the beds closely tucked 
 around with their transparent curtains through which 
 neither mosquito nor other insect could penetrate, and the 
 clearly defined forms of the sleepers lying in different 
 positions inside. On all sides the galleries and gardens 
 appeared to be deserted by everything except the shadows 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 303 
 
 thrown by the bright full moon. "What a pity it is 
 moonlight," thought Wagari as she looked out on the 
 white light and began to count the pebbles in the walks to 
 try the power of its brilliancy. From the interior court 
 she glided softly down toward the rear to ascertain if any 
 of the servants were moving. There also all was peace 
 and repose, disturbed only by the monotonous murmuring 
 of a mountain stream which fell with a trickling sound into 
 a broad basin where the servants procured their water. 
 
 She could see some of the serving-men stretched at f uU 
 length upon their tikirs, which were spread upon the open 
 square, in the rear compound, their heads wrapped in 
 ikats and their dark bodies shining and naked to the 
 waist, where the many folds of their sabuk or waistband 
 secured a short sarong that by no means covered their 
 limbs ; the Javanese hold that the waist and hips are 
 the only parts of the body that health demands should be 
 protected, and these they wrap around many times with 
 great care. 
 
 Beyond the servants' and near the tamarind compound, 
 Wagari could see two sentries who were leaning motion- 
 less upon their spears and she thought most likely half 
 asleep. Retracing her steps with the quiet cat-like 
 nimbleness with which she came, she reported the general 
 peacefulness prevailing everywhere and proposed they 
 should depart at once. Mattah-Djarri and Josephine had 
 arranged the parcels of plantain-leaves, the jewels, and 
 extra sarongs, in three small bundles such as are com- 
 monly carried by peasant women when going on their 
 little journeys from one kampong to another. 
 
 The paning'sat or presents to Mattah-Djarri from the 
 expectant bridegroom, which had been arriving for sev- 
 eral days, were made up in a larger and separate bundle. 
 Some of these presents were very costly on account of 
 
304 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 their rarity. Wagari looked at the fourth hundle and 
 asked, " Why, what is that ? " fearing they would be bur- 
 dened with something unnecessary. 
 
 "The paning'sat," answered her mistress contemptU' 
 dusly. 
 
 Wagari's eyes sparkled with pleasure. She was not 
 only going to run away with the Tumung'gung's bride 
 but also with his presents. 
 
 " We wUl throw it into the spring as we pass," con- 
 tinued Mattah-Djairi, " as my farewell to the Tumung'- 
 gnng." 
 
 " I hope he may drown in fishing it out," responded 
 Josephine. 
 
 " And I also," added Wagari, in the famUiar tone of 
 an intimate friend, which indeed she had become.- 
 
 " Shall we go now ? " said they, each picking up a 
 bundle and looking scared and frightened into one an- 
 other's faces, as the importance of the first fatal step 
 made itself felt. 
 
 " Shall we go out the door on to the corridor or through 
 the window ? " whispered Mattah-Djarri, rallying herself 
 and leading the way towards the former. 
 
 At the door they hesitated ; it seemed an easy matter 
 to part the curtains and glide through, yet it was danger- 
 ous and difficult. Mattah-Djarri drew back, and looking 
 around her sumptuous chambers, returned and extin- 
 guished the great lamp. 
 
 " What an oversight," she whispered, " to allow it to 
 bum so late. But now, Wagari, the mata-mata of the 
 Tumung'gung, where is he, I wonder ? He might be 
 hiding among the oleanders in the court or concealed in 
 the melati gardens opposite my windows. Indeed, he 
 might be watching us all the time. I am afraid to ven- 
 ture out untU I know where he is." 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 305 
 
 " But that is impossible, Mattie," said Josephine im- 
 patiently ; " we must accept the risk and go boldly forth." 
 Being now ready, she was anxious to go. Every mo- 
 ment increased her nervous fears. She felt that when 
 once started on the way they would be comparatively safe. 
 
 " Wagari," said Mattah-Djarri coaxingly, with her 
 hands on the curtains, " be a good girl and go out again 
 and try to get near enough to the sleeping servants in 
 the compound to recognize Boorah, if he is among them. 
 You know his big head and tall form will not be hard to 
 distinguish." 
 
 Wagari put down her bundles and slipped between the 
 curtains a second time. In another instant she was 
 swiftly and silently making her way under the friendly 
 shadows of the galleries, as far as they would shelter her, 
 toward the sleeping group beyond the basin receiving the 
 water of the trickling mountain stream. "When she 
 reached the edge of the protecting shade, she stopped a 
 moment to look around for some other cover to aid her 
 in getting near them. She could perceive only one way, 
 so darting suddenly across the dozen yards of moonlight 
 that separated the rear buildings from the servants' bath- 
 ing rooms, she gained the shadows of the latter and crept 
 cautiously down against the wall, till within a short dis- 
 tance of the sleeping men, where she crowded herself into 
 the recess of a door and tried in vain to detect the head 
 and form of Boorah among them. After some twenty 
 minutes of this dangerous scrutiny she was compelled 
 to admit that he was not there. Then where was he ? 
 was her next thought. Doubtless watching her mis- 
 tress's apartments, or perhaps at that very moment his 
 eyes were upon her and he was laughing exultingly, 
 thinking how securely he had her and her companions in 
 his power. With the fears arising from these suspicions 
 
306 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 uppermost in her mind, Wagari stood irresolutely medi- 
 tating for several minutes over the situation, pressing her 
 hand upon her forehead, endeavoring to think of some 
 way of getting clear of the dalam from the opposite side. 
 She was certain Boorah would confine himself to the 
 side on which her mistress's apartments were situated. 
 
 Just as she was about to step out of her hiding-place 
 to hurry back with her suspicions, she caught sight of a 
 dark object moving slowly along on the other side of the 
 court under the shadow of the very gallery she had left 
 but a few moments before. She shrank back closer and 
 smaller into the doorway, watching the figure with 
 breathless apprehension. It was Boorah coming from 
 his careful espionage. He had seen the light go out 
 when Mattah-Djarri extinguished the great lamp ; and, 
 waiting a few moments, had concluded she had safely re- 
 tired for the night and was now going to refresh himself 
 with some cold water and boiled rice, intending to return, 
 as soon as this was done, to his concealed post among 
 the melati bushes opposite the Badan ajeng's windows. 
 From this spot he could see everything that happened on 
 that side of the palace, and with the guards and private 
 watchmen dotted around both front and rear, Boorah 
 thought it quite impossible anything unusual could occur 
 and he not be aware of it. 
 
 As he slowly came opposite to her on the other side, 
 Wagari held her breath in an agony of fear. What if 
 he should see her and come to her ? She noticed he 
 looked cautiously around him and sometimes back 
 towards the central building. " Thinking of my mis- 
 tress, the ugly badak " (rhinoceros), said she, when he 
 stopped once and turned about, taking a careful survey 
 of all that was behind him. She felt sure he would see 
 her, an(J decided, if he turned to come towards her, to 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 807 
 
 dash ofB -with her utmost speed towards the interior 
 apartments and not give him time for recognition, hop- 
 ing he would infer from her dark blue dress that she 
 was some startled babu after something for a sick child, 
 or a servant of one of the wives of her master, who had 
 been on an errand for her mistress or herself and was 
 anxious to escape detection. 
 
 Holding herself in readiness for this hasty retreat, she 
 had the unspeakable relief of seeing Boorah pass on be- 
 yond her into the clear moonlight and go to the fountain, 
 and take a drink, and stepping over the rim of the basin 
 sit down on it, letting his feet hang down into the 
 water. Then he untied a plantain leaf and began to eat. 
 " Some one wiU drink water from that fountain-basin 
 to-morrow morning," thought Wagari with disgust, as she 
 now perceived what had brought the Tumung'gung's 
 most sagacious spy to the rear. It was to lave and cool 
 his feet in the refreshing mountain-water, they being 
 probably inflamed and swollen, as is frequently the 
 case with individuals of a robust constitution during the 
 dry monsoon. This action made her suspect that he had 
 been standing at his post of observation probably since 
 dark, which was correct. 
 
 Deciding that the favorable moment for leaving the 
 dalam had arrived, she flew back to her two companions, 
 who were undergoing agonies of suspense on account 
 of her long absence. Hurriedly describing Boorah's pres- 
 ent occupation, she urged them to lose no time in getting 
 away. Snatching up the largest bundle containing the 
 paning'sat and carefully taking up the basin of dye in 
 the other hand, she bade them follow her, and quickly led 
 the way to the side gallery opening on the nutmeg grove. 
 The agreeable fragfrance of the latter met their faces, 
 mingled with a delicate whi£E of the salty sea breeze 
 
308 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 now gently ascending the mountain side. Mattah-Djarri, 
 firm and collected, and Josephine, nervous and trembling, 
 followed noiselessly at Wagari's back. Gliding down the 
 steps, they flew like birds, one at a time, across the little 
 strip of moonlight shining on the white pebbles between 
 the gaUery and the heavy foliage forming the edge of the 
 grove. Reaching this desired shelter, they rapidly turned 
 into the path they had traversed an evening or two be- 
 fore, walking swiftly and sUently, one behind the other, 
 in the native fashion, each one recalling the different de- 
 grees of interest that had inspired them during that un- 
 lucky promenade. 
 
 Josephine thought of the Pateh, and pictured to her- 
 self his concern and excitement could he see her now, 
 skulking away like a felon ia the darkness, scarcely able 
 to suppress a scream at the most harmless shadow. Mat- 
 tah-Djarri saw in imagination the fascinating face of the 
 European, and wondered if he would ever think of her 
 again. She looked up at the moon through an occa- 
 sional opening in the heavy foliage above her and felt 
 a strange thrill of joy in her saddened heart with the 
 thought that he might at the same moment be gazing on 
 it from the door of a tent on the mountains. Wagari 
 contemplated with a chuckle of satisfaction the discom- 
 fiture of the old Tumung'gung, and enjoyed, in prospec- 
 tive, his rage and disappointment when he should discover 
 that his bird of rare plumage had flown. 
 
 They soon passed around the banks of the spring, 
 where they paused a moment without speaking. Wagari 
 looked at her mistress, who nodded her head in answer, 
 whereupon the former slammed the paning'sat over the 
 bank and down into the water with a force that sent the 
 latter flying high up against the bank, causing them all to 
 start at the sudden' noise. 
 
A PRINCESS OF JA VA. 309 
 
 " Suppose the Tumung'gung's mata-mata should be 
 creeping around and hear this commotion," whispered 
 Josephine. The next instant the harsh scream of a pea- 
 cock, whose sensitive ears had caught the sound, rang out 
 upon the still air, followed by the warning call of several 
 timorous guinea-fowls. " Hurry, hurry," whispered 
 Mattah-Djarri, "those wretched birds will give the 
 alarm." 
 
 Wagari ran and emptied the basin of dye she had car- 
 ried into the stream that bore the overflow from the 
 spring down the mountain-side. Then hurriedly washing 
 away all traces of it as well as she could in the moonlight, 
 she hid the vessel under the pavilion, and joining her com- 
 panions, admonished them to run, setting the example 
 herself by hurrying on before them, whispering they 
 must be out upon the highway before Boorah finished his 
 rice and left the fountain, and when once out of the 
 groimds of the dalam they would pass for peasant girls. 
 
 " You are right, Wagari," answered Mattah-Djarri in 
 an encouraging whisper. " Get on as fast as you can, 
 we wiU foUow ; and Josie dear," turning toward the lat- 
 ter, " be very careful to keep behind me. The peasant 
 women follow always one behind the other." 
 
 " I will remember," rephed Josephine, falling back into 
 her place ; "I forget myself and want to be at your 
 side." 
 
 The three girls now ran and walked as fast as they 
 could, compelled to take a direction opposite from that 
 in which they wished to go, till at length they came out 
 suddenly upon the strugghng termination of one of the 
 kampong lanes that would lead them back and bring 
 them out again beyond the alun-alun on the principal 
 highway on the other side of the dalam. They now 
 felt they had escaped and stopped a moment to take 
 
310 A. PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 breath, while Josephine twisted and rearranged the 
 sembong which Mattah-Djarri had wound around her 
 head to conceal her light hair, in the turban-like fash- 
 ion adopted by high-bom Javanese, when they leave 
 the bath, to wring the water out of their heavy coils of 
 long hair. 
 
 " You '11 have to be very careful of your head, Jose- 
 phine," said Mattah-Djarri, assisting her. " A glimpse 
 of your golden braids would prove a cruel tell-tale." 
 
 " Yes, indeed," said Wagari, " if one peasant saw the 
 Nonah's hair, he would run in astonishment and tell 
 about it to the first one he met, and before teng'angi 
 (period between eight and twelve to-morrow) the entire 
 population would know it, for a Javanese with yellow 
 hair has never been seen before." ^ 
 
 " I will keep it concealed, I will pretend a sick head- 
 ache," replied Josephine, wishing for present safety that 
 her golden braids were black, and the next moment 
 reproaching herself for wishing anything changed that 
 Sarjio so much admired. 
 
 Starting off again with the regular step of the Java- 
 nese, they soon threaded the streets and lanes of the kam- 
 pong and were on the outskirts of the opposite side, when 
 they halted again, to decide which of the two roads now 
 branching o£F before them would be the proper one to fol- 
 low. They both appeared to lead in the direction of the 
 group of distant peaks looming up against the western 
 horizon that formed a dark collective mass resembling a 
 boat in shape, which Mattah-Djarri and Wagari knew to 
 be the Guning Deing or Guning Prahu, the last word 
 meaning boat, as its peculiar shape suggested. 
 
 " While we are considering," said Wagari, making a 
 cheerful attempt to dispel their gloom, " let us see what 
 we have to eat," untying one of the green packages and 
 
A PRfNCESS OF JAVA. 311 
 
 displaying in the white moonlight some nasi, tchabi, and 
 dingding. " It was the best I could do," she continued 
 apologetically. " We can add some fruit in the morn- 
 ing." 
 
 Each one helped herseM with her fingers, in the mean 
 time gazing around and deliberating upon which road 
 they should take. Presently Josephine observed the 
 peculiar shape of a huge tree trunk, leaning half-way 
 across the road to the left, and remembered to have 
 passed under it the day they came to KaU Chandi. 
 
 Pointing it out to Mattah-Djarri, the latter said, " Then 
 the other road is the right one for us," which they gladly 
 agreed upon and arose to go on. After going a short 
 distance, the road they had chosen turned abruptly to the 
 right, entering the forest and running horizontally along 
 the mountain side. They were now sure they had made 
 the right selection and advanced boldly into the forest, 
 but as soon as they were well beyond the moonlight and 
 the black darkness vmder the foliage had settled down 
 upon . them, they suddenly stopped and grasped each 
 other's hands in dismay. 
 
 " Are you much frightened, Josie ? " asked Mattah- 
 Djarri in a low voice, feeling her own hitherto undaunted 
 courage beginning to ooze away. 
 
 " Yes, yes, I fear I can't proceed," answered Jose- 
 phine, trembling with fear and drawing back, thinking of 
 the badak, with its one stubby horn, and the two formi- 
 dable tusks curling up from the snout of the babi roesa, 
 that had plunged across their path when she ascended 
 the mountains. 
 
 " You wiQ not return, Josephine ? " said Mattah- 
 Djarri in alarm, as she noticed her cousin turn around 
 and advance a step or two in the opposite direction. 
 
 " I am afraid, I am afraid," answered Josephine, 
 
312 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 still moving backward toward the moonlight at the edge 
 of the forest. " The wild beasts wiU devour us." 
 
 " It is very dangerous, my noble mistress," said Wa- 
 gari, in a voice that sounded far away in the thick dark- 
 ness, " and I " — 
 
 " I wUl go on alone," interrupted Mattah-Djarri, reso- 
 lutely determined to conquer her terrors, " and you and 
 Josephine must return," her voice sinking into a quiver- 
 ing whisper, as the fear that they might be impelled to 
 do so pressed itseU upon her, although she tried to look 
 bravely into the faces of her two companions, when they 
 all stepped again out of the deep shadows into the open 
 moonlight. 
 
 "I have no thought of deserting you, most beloved 
 mistress,'' said Wagari in a wounded tone, " but I would 
 suggest that we must in some way procure a flambeau. 
 Light will give us security in this impenetrable gloom." 
 
 " That is it, Wagari," cried Josephine, turning about 
 and peering into the darkness they had just left. " If 
 we had a light I could venture." Another consultation 
 now took place while they huddled together back under 
 the edge of the forest and looked over the sleeping plan- 
 tations and groves below them to the distant summits 
 they wished so much to reach. 
 
 " What is that ? " suddenly asked Josephine, keeping 
 her eyes fixed on what appeared to be a brown, red- 
 tinted, pyramidal cloud, that rested its base on one of 
 the highest cones, with a lurid thread of gleaming gold 
 twisting spirally around it, and streaks of flame shooting 
 out at intervals around the sharply outlined peak that 
 supported it. 
 
 " A volcano in action," answered Mattah-Djarri ; " but 
 you should see it on a dark night, when the smoke roUs 
 up in mighty volumes and the whole mass looks like 
 wrestling columns of murky flame." 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 313 
 
 " Where or how shall we get a flambeau ? " anxiously- 
 demanded Wagari, giving her attention to their present 
 necessities. " If we could only discover a knot of rosin 
 wood. There are plenty of them in the forest,'' she said, 
 looking around, " and I have some matches." 
 
 For a moment they each looked searchingly about 
 them with anxious solicitude, but of course perceived 
 nothing under the edge of the forest gloom that resem- 
 bled a rosin knot. Wagari, whose courage rose in a 
 measure with her excitement, ofBered to return to the 
 suburbs of the kampong, where she knew there was a 
 tukang kaju (wood dealer) who had a little stall not far 
 from the gate and whose flambeaux, tied up in bundles of 
 from three to eight, were always piled up in rows ready 
 for sale. This happy proposal was received with grati- 
 tude by Josephine and Mattah-Djarri, who went back 
 with her as near to the entrance of the bambu wall 
 around the kampong as they thought safety would per- 
 mit, where they waited in trembling apprehension for 
 Wagari's reappearance. 
 
 " You will never forget her, dear Josie," said Mattah- 
 Djarri, looking after her generous attendant as she rap- 
 idly disappeared, " if anything — if anything happens to 
 
 me 
 
 ?' 
 
 "Never, never," answered Josephine emphatically. 
 " She shall never serve any one again ; but don't talk, 
 Mattie, about anything happening to you." 
 
 Wagari found the tukang kaju just within the gate 
 with the flambeaux ready made as she had expected. 
 HastUy selecting a bundle of three and laying the money 
 where it could be seen in the morning, she returned, hold- 
 ing them above her head in triumph. They all hurried 
 again over the hard, white road to the edge of the for- 
 est, and lighting each of the flambeaux, which were 
 
314 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 composed of thin strips of light pine, tied together and 
 smeared with an inflammable gmn, they swung them 
 across the path before their feet, after the manner of 
 night pedestrians in Java, and taking their places one 
 behind the other, Mattah-Djarri leading the way and 
 Wagari coming behind, they boldly plunged into the 
 depths of the forest and hurried onwards. 
 
CHAPTER XXXV. 
 
 The scream of the peacock (merak) caused Boorah 
 hastily to ■wheel himself around off the flat brim of the 
 fountain, where he was sitting, dragging his feet out of 
 the water at the same time, and run in a stooping posi- 
 tion under the vines and tlirough the graveled walks of 
 the court garden, till he reached a low passage which 
 gave egress from the court to the outside of the building, 
 and brought him to the side of the dalam near the melati 
 gardens, which he had chosen as the most convenient 
 place from which to watch the young Badan ajeng's 
 windows or apartments. It also gave him a clear sweep 
 in front of the great side gallery, whose steps the three 
 escaping girls had stealthily descended a few moments 
 after he had left it. 
 
 He looked sharply up, down, and around, but detected 
 nothing amiss, neither could he hear any unaccountable 
 sounds. The dull light from the night-lamp shone dimly 
 through the princess's window curtains swinging lightly 
 to and fro, but no movement or sound within betrayed 
 anything suspicious. " Strange, indeed, that scream of 
 the peacock," thought he, " and the warning of the guinea- 
 fowls. I never knew them to raise a cry in the night 
 unless disturbed by something unusual." By no means 
 satisfied, Boorah went around to the front, carefully scru- 
 tinizing the figures thrown by the shadows in the back 
 part of the veranda, as he passed. Keeping on under 
 the waringin trees and through the alun-alun, he saluted 
 the guards standing on either side of the entrance and 
 
316 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 walked out into the broad highway, where he stood a 
 few moments in the cahn moonlight, taking a survey in 
 all directions, without perceiving anything that excited 
 his curiosity or drew his attention. Three peasant 
 girls, not far away, were moving smartly along towards 
 the centre of the kampong. The sombre color of their 
 dark blue sarongs and kaybayas told him they belonged 
 to the poorest classes, and he looked after them without a 
 passing thought, for it was quite common to see people of 
 their condition scudding home at all hours of the night. 
 He soon turned and walked thoughtfully back to the 
 melati gaMen, skirting the strip of moonlight between 
 the gallery and the nutmeg grove on his way. 
 
 Boorah, like all his race, was guided by his instincts 
 and impressions, and now experienced a strong sense of 
 impending calamity in which he religiously believed. He 
 felt something was wrong, but could not obtain a clew 
 that would lead him to anything like a plausible conjec- 
 ture or determination as to what it might be. It was not 
 long before he slipped out of the melati garden again, and 
 walked noiselessly around by the rear to the other side 
 of the dalam, from which there was no ingress or egress. 
 Going on around behind the mosque, on one side of the 
 alun-alun, and coming out again on the front, he continued 
 from thence back over the graveled walks to the lawang 
 seketing where two or three watchmen were sitting on the 
 steps. Ascertaining they had no suspicions and had no- 
 ticed nothing unusual, he again moved on around towards 
 his post in the melati bushes, having made the entire 
 circuit of the dalam. 
 
 This time Boorah walked slower, looking more cau- 
 tiously, if possible, in every direction. As he came opposite 
 the gallery and on the edge of the little strip of moon- 
 light, he stopped and peered searchingly into its shadows, 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 317 
 
 then out into the dark shade of the grove. Suddenly his 
 sharp eyes detected a little hrown spot on the white 
 pebbles that he was sure had not been there in the early 
 part of the evening. Pouncing upon it as though it were 
 a pearl of priceless value, he found it to be a little 
 soft ball of some smooth substance, which proved to be 
 a small, crumpled kid glove. " la-lah tuhan-ku ! " 
 (O my God !) exclaimed he, " how came it there ! " 
 Getting behind the shrubbery of the melati as quickly as 
 possible, he turned it inside out, examining each of the 
 little fingers and trying to push his big thumbs into them, 
 hoping he might discover something more. His investi- 
 , gations proved fruitless, and he pushed the tell-tale glove 
 under his belt and tried to come to some conclusion about 
 its sudden appearance on the pebbles. It must belong 
 either to the Nonah or the Badan ajeng, but how did it 
 get there ? He was positive it had not lain on that strip 
 of moonlight since dark. He had been watching faith- 
 fully all the time, according to the instructions of his 
 master. No one had passed over it, unless it was about 
 the time the peacock screamed. This thought fright- 
 ened him half to death. He dreaded losing his reputation 
 of being the most sagacious matarmata among all the 
 Tumung'gung's people, and more, he was most reluctant 
 to have his head snipped ofE his shoulders, should his 
 apparent neglect cause the irritable old noble to take a 
 fancy to do so. He was tempted to climb into one of 
 the Radan ajeng's balconies and relieve his mind by a 
 peep into her apartments and assure himself of her pres- 
 ence. This, however, he did not dare to do ; but anx- 
 ious and uneasy, he moved around the rest of the night, 
 always careful to keep his eyes in the direction of her 
 doors and windows, tUl the sun suddenly shot up above 
 the mountains in the east, covering everything with light. 
 
318 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 Boorah had no idea the Badan Mattah-Djarri would 
 leave the dalam alone or accompanied only by others of 
 her own sex. Had he suspected the possibility of such 
 an event, the story of the one glove would have been 
 sufficient to have informed him of the truth. His in- 
 structions were to detect if she communicated with any- 
 one outside the dalam ; if she received any messages ; if 
 she went forth to meet or talk with any person, particu- 
 larly the Pateh or the European ; or if any strange ser- 
 vant-man or babu approached her apartments. Since the 
 screech of the peacock and discovery of the glove, Boorah 
 was terribly undone. He had traversed all the paths of 
 the nutmeg grove, the orange grove, the fig gardens, the 
 lemon, citron, and banana inclosures. He had even gone 
 back and examined the solitude of the tamarind com- 
 pound and walked half-way around the pine-apple planta- 
 tion and gone as far into the cocoarnut and pahn grove as 
 time would permit, for he felt he dared not be too long 
 absent from his well-selected post opposite the princess's 
 windows in the melati gardens. After the sun had 
 risen he crept cautiously out of the latter, and went to the 
 rear and stationed himself not far from the fountain 
 where "Wagari had last seen him, at a point which gave 
 him an oversight of everything going on in the court and 
 on the interior verandas. 
 
 It was not long before he saw Djoolo approach the 
 corridor communicating with her mistress's apartments, 
 bearing a tray on which was placed coffee, oranges, and 
 bananas. A moment later Merrah, Josephine's maid, 
 also walked along the veranda bearing the same to her 
 mistress. He could see the ghtter of the little coffee-pot 
 and the golden yellow of the fruit. Before Merrah had 
 turned off the veranda, she met Djoolo coming out again 
 with her tray still in her hands. The latter turned and 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 819 
 
 walked with her into the corridor towards Nonah Bard- 
 well's rooms, shortly reappearing again on the veranda 
 still bearing the tray. This time Djoolo walked the 
 whole length of the gallery, stopping opposite the fountain 
 thro'wing the spray over the oleanders, to look careftdly 
 among the green bushes and pink blossoms. Then de- 
 scending the steps, she walked about, looking under the 
 various arbors, and other little secluded nooks where 
 seats were placed. " Is she looking for her mistress ? " 
 asked Boorah of himself, wiping great drops of water 
 from his forehead. Going back, Djoolo again met Merrah 
 with her tray. Boorah's interest and mental excitement 
 now increased rapidly. He knew neither of the young 
 girls were in their apartments or their coffee would have 
 been left there. "While Merrah and Djoolo stood holding 
 their little trays and speculating as to the whereabouts 
 of their respective mistresses at that early hour, he saw 
 Keomah come out and sit down in a cool corner, directing 
 her cofEee to be placed on a table beside her. While this 
 was being done, she appeared to speak to Djoolo, who set 
 her tray down on Keoroah's table and went towards the 
 chamber of Wagari, for Boorah knew the location of the 
 room of every occupant of the dalam. "Keomah has 
 sent to Wagari to inquire," said Boorah to himself this 
 time. 
 
 In a second or two Djoolo came back in evident sur- 
 prise and said something to Keomah, who arose imme- 
 diately, putting down the cup from which she had not yet 
 drank, and went quickly into the corridor leading into 
 the Radan Mattah-Djarri's rooms. Boorah now stood 
 upon his tiptoes in alarmed eagerness. He would have 
 given much to have dared to run up and enter the rooms 
 himself. Curbing his anxiety and impatience, he stood 
 still and waited, and saw Keomah presently return and 
 
320 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 walk rapidly around the veranda toward the apartments 
 occupied by Sewa ; and in a few moments they both came 
 out together and sat down beside the table and drank 
 each a cup of coffee, talking eagerly while they sent for 
 Schagga, who came and shook his head and walked away 
 faster than usual, entering that wing of the building de- 
 voted to the use of the second wives. From thence he 
 went in the same hurried pace to a detached building 
 toward the rear occupied by their children. It was not 
 long before he came back to Keomah, who arose with 
 Sewa and went, a second time, to the apartments of her 
 daughter, followed by Djoolo and Merrah. After some 
 time they all came out again on the veranda, Keomah 
 holding a letter in her hand and weeping violently. 
 
 At this juncture Boorah's anxiety overcame all 
 thoughts of prudence. He jumped down from the high 
 seat where he had perched himself for better observation, 
 and running to Schagga begged to know the cause of the 
 excitement. Schagga explained the disappearance of his 
 young mistress in a few words, and reproached him with 
 the faithless manner in which he had performed the work 
 intrusted to him, showing that he knew for what purpose 
 Boorah had been left at the dalam. Both men now ex- 
 perienced the keenest concern about their own fate, each 
 declaring to the other that he had practiced the utmost 
 vigilance and both disbelieving it. Boorah said nothing 
 about the screaming of the peacock, the finding of the 
 glove, nor his trip to the fountain after midnight, nor 
 that he now knew the fugitives had escaped about that 
 time, which thought threw him into the deepest rage and 
 vexation with himseM. Going at once to the spot where 
 he had picked up the glove, he selected the path which 
 he supposed the runaways would most likely have taken 
 to gain the highway, and walking slowly over it, carefully 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 321 
 
 examined the ground at every step, for any little signs 
 or tokens of their passage that they might have left be- 
 hind them. The first and only object that met his eyes, 
 before reaching the spring, was the fellow of the glove 
 mider his belt. He secured it greedily, and felt he was 
 on their track. 
 
 Josephine on starting had picked up her gloves from 
 force of habit, and not knowing what to do with them 
 at the moment, pushed them lightly beside her watch, 
 under her belt, which serves the East Indian woman for 
 a pocket, from which they had slipped one at a time, she 
 never thinking of them again. 
 
 When Boorah reached the spring, the paning'sat, stUl 
 floating on its surface, 'attracted his attention. It was too 
 heavy to be carried over the bank, so went bobbing around 
 till Boorah excitedly hooked it out. He had never seen 
 Buch rich and costly sarongs in his life, beside many 
 other things of which he did not know the use. Some 
 of the sarongs were in silk embroidered with gold, with 
 kaybayas and little spatus to match them. Jewels, 
 sashes, belts of gold made in sections, that were supple 
 as ribbons, with strings of pearls and chains of precious 
 stones, met his view. In short, Boorah would have been 
 suddenly rich, had he dared to make the fact known 
 by disposing of what he had found in the bundle. He 
 divined at once to whom the precious package belonged. 
 The Radan ajeng had made it up to take with her, and by 
 accident she had dropped it and it had roUed into the 
 spring, and not being able to recover it, the girls had 
 gone on without it. Perhaps that very noise had made 
 the peacock scream. His next duty was to go quickly 
 through the kampong and see if there were any other 
 traces. Boiling up the paning'sat, he looked around for a 
 place to conceal it, and selected the pavilion. In search* 
 
322 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 ing for a secure spot where the bundle -would escape 
 observation till he could take it away, for he intended 
 to keep it for himself, he spied the basin Wagari had 
 cast aside. Drawing it out, he examined it closely 
 and discovered on the bottom the stains from the dye. 
 Knowing the cunning habits of the people and being fa- 
 miliar with their peculiar modes of deception, he remem- 
 bered with agonizing regret the three peasant women he 
 had seen walking rapidly away from him the night before 
 when he stood in front of the alun-alun. Going into the 
 village, he made inquiries about some brown peasant girls 
 or strangers, but no one had seen them. Pursuing his 
 way, he came at length to the stall of the tukang kaju 
 at the other side of the kampon^, who had just dis- 
 covered the loss of one of his bundles of flambeaux, 
 and, strange to relate, had f oimd the worth of it in money 
 on a little flat stone beside the pile. He was teUing it to 
 a neighbor as Boorah came up. The mata-mata listened 
 with brightening eye. He could accoimt for the missing 
 flambeaux. 
 
CHAPTER XXXVI. 
 
 "When the Bopati was aroused from his second morn- 
 ing nap and told that the Radan Mattah-Djarri could not 
 he found, and that the Nonah Josephine as well as Wagari 
 was also absent, he sprang up, wondering whether he 
 was the great Bopati and chief officer of the estates and 
 provinces that covered the gigantic slopes of the Teng'- 
 gers or not. He thought he had a nightmare, and 
 wheeled around to his youngest wife and asked her if 
 he really was awake or had been dreaming. Being as- 
 sured he was wide awake and that the dalam was in a 
 great uproar besides, on account of the missing Mattah- 
 Djarri, who had left a letter behind her to attest to the 
 fact, he hurried out without taking his cofEee and went 
 straight to Keomah, who was weeping and wringing her 
 hands on the veranda, with Sewa beside her, indtdging 
 in a similar but less impressive performance. Seizing 
 the letter without a word, he read it through. He could 
 not believe his senses. Such impudence, such independ- 
 ence ! The ungrateful creature ! And on the eve of her 
 marriage to one of the first nobles in the land ! It was 
 too much. The enormity of the crime silenced him. 
 The weight of the blow knocked the breath out of him, 
 so to speak, and deprived him for the time of speech and 
 action. He was composed and calm, but the glance of 
 his eye that feU on Keomah well-nigh crushed her. 
 " Merciful Allah ! " she ejaculated, shrinking down into 
 her seat. " He will take my life." A few moments 
 later, she entreated Sewa to beg the Bopati to allow her 
 to accompany her home. , 
 
324 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 "Ask him yourself, Keomah," answered Sewa. 
 " Don't be afraid ; and if he forbids you, then come any- 
 how, and don't return." 
 
 " I cannot, oh ! I wish I could ! " sobbed the poor 
 mother, forgetting tlie Bopati's wrath and thinking how 
 dreary and lonely her life would be now without her 
 beautiful child. 
 
 Sewa had begun to dislike the Bopati for the unfeeling 
 part he was performing towards Mattah-Djarri, and now 
 that her first fright about Josephine was subsiding in the 
 expectation of finding her at home, she ceased to feel the 
 grief of the first few moments. To her it seemed quite 
 probable that Josephine had simply accompanied her 
 cousin to the protection of her own home, aided and ad- 
 vised by the Patch, and to this she had no objection. 
 Since they had both been so unceremoniously asked to 
 leave the dalam, she felt rather pleased than otherwise, 
 to think that the Bopati was frustrated and defied by the 
 assistance of her daughter. She immediately prepared 
 to go home as she had intended, only now determined to 
 take her sister with her and prevent the Bopati from 
 making her the recipient of his vengeance. "With this 
 intention, she boldly sought him in his rooms, where he 
 was making hasty preparations to foUow after the fugi- 
 tive princess. 
 
 Preferring her request, she was gruffly refused and 
 told she had made all the late trouble and disobedience 
 in his family. Not to be put off, however, she pressed 
 her request with such eloquence, determination, and so 
 many cunning arguments in flattering praise of his well 
 known clemency and popularity as a wise ruler and in- 
 dulgent master, that the Bopati's pride and vanity were 
 quite tickled, and he graciously said at last, that as it was 
 to bring back her self-willed child, Keomah could go, 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 325 
 
 thinking to himself there was no use in losing the good 
 opinion of his people, and the Europeans in particular, 
 by seeming to be unmindful of Keomah's grief and 
 wishes at such a time. " The brat of a girl," he thought 
 to himself, " is not worth it, and if it were not for the 
 Tumung'gung's rank and disappointment, I would lock 
 her up for the rest of her life and beg the Susnhunan to 
 allow me to appropriate her large fortune." 
 
 As soon as possible the two sisters were on the way 
 down the mountain side. To Keomah the day never ap- 
 peared so long. 
 
 " Do you think they went over these hills last night 
 alone, Sewa ? " she asked, looking around on the dark 
 caverns and rocky precipices in pity for their fears. 
 
 " I should think they had descended in palangkis," 
 answered Sewa. " And now, Keomah, don't be foolish." 
 
 Thus chided, Keomah was silent, hoping they would 
 arrive before the Bopati, who had started ahead of them 
 for the city, intending to make a short detour and inform 
 the Tumung'gung of the disaster that had befallen him. 
 
 Mr. Bardwell was sitting on his luxurious veranda 
 enjoying the evening air, when he recognized Sewa 
 and Keomah as the occupants of a carriage that swept 
 around the circle and stopped in front of his steps. He 
 descended quickly to welcome them, glad his wife and 
 daughter had returned so promptly at his bidding, nat- 
 urally supposing the latter was coming on behind in an- 
 other carriage with her cousin. 
 
 " This augurs well," thought he ; " Josie is going with 
 me to Europe without reluctance." But who can depict 
 his grief and surprise when informed that his daugh- 
 ter, with Mattah-Djarri, had disappeared the night be- 
 fore, and he saw the two mothers wring their hands in 
 consternation and sorrow when informed that he had 
 
326 A PRrNCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 received no intelligence from them, and knew nothing 
 ahout them. 
 
 " Woman, where is my daughter ? " he cried, in a 
 voice of thunder, seizing Sewa by the shoulder and shak- 
 ing her. " Have you given her to that cursed Javan 
 and come here to play the innocent with me ? No doubt 
 you went to Kali Chandi on purpose to give him the op- 
 portunity of getting her away. Yes, you notified him to 
 come and take her. I know your treacherous blood ; 
 but you shall follow. Come, get your things and go. 
 I '11 not have you in my house another night. Come, go, 
 I say,'' he yeUed again, quite beside himself. "Your 
 Pateh shall have both mother and daughter." 
 
 Sewa did not move. She stared at her husband and 
 believed he had gone mad from the sudden shock, and 
 thought it no wonder. Presently she sank down into 
 a chair, and slid from that on to the floor, a limp rag, 
 where she lay apparently cold and lifeless on the white 
 marble. Keomah, who had stood by all the time, speech- 
 less, now interposed. In the depths of her own great 
 grief she did not forget Sewa. She stooped down and 
 tried to restore her. 
 
 " You are cruel and wicked," she said, looking at her 
 brother-in-law ; "I did not expect this of you. You are 
 a European." Then she handed him the letter found 
 among Mattah-Djarri's clothing. 
 
 In truth, Mr. BardweU was temporarily insane. He 
 understood the character of the Javanese, and knew that 
 in cunning and treachery they were hard to excel where 
 there was an object at stake. He believed Sewa and 
 Keomah had connived to unite Josephine with one of 
 their own race. It was most natural, he admitted, but 
 their hypocrisy and deceit enraged him. When Sewa 
 was carried into the house and laid on her bed, he 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 327 
 
 prayed she might never open her eyes again ; he wished 
 she would die. He detested her now, and all her connec- 
 tions. Had the Pateh been before him he would have 
 attempted to Strang him. He had no doubt that Jose- 
 phine was with him at that moment. In short, where 
 else could she be ? he asked himself, and moaned aloud 
 in the sickness of his soul. And was she married, or 
 would the feUow marry her ? Misguided, miserable girl, 
 to throw herself away thus. She who could have had 
 her choice among the highest circles. He groaned and 
 walked the veranda. Josephine, so queenly and beauti- 
 ful, to come to this ! He beat his head with his fists, and 
 pulled his hair out by the handfuls in the frenzy of his 
 rage and grief. In the midst of this storm of passion 
 the carriages of the Bopati and the Tumung'gung ar- 
 rived. Neither of them waited to be asked to alight. 
 The Bopati sprang to the ground the instant his carriage 
 stopped, and the Tumung'gung followed his example as 
 fast as his age would permit. The two old nobles hur- 
 ried up the steps, but Mr. BardweU did not speak or 
 move an inch forward to greet or welcome them. In 
 their over-excitement they failed to notice this breach of 
 good manners. 
 
 " My daughter ! " said the Bopati, when he had 
 gained the top of the steps and saluted Mr. BardweU. 
 
 " My daughter ! " echoed Mr. BardweU. 
 
 " Give me the Radan Mattah-Djarri ! I demand her ! " 
 repeated the Bopati, feeling BardweU's insulting manner 
 and looking furious. 
 
 " Give me the 'Nonah Josephine ! I demand her ! " 
 returned Mr. BardweU, looking defiantly into the old 
 Javan's face. 
 
 " Yes, my bride. We want her. We wiU have her," 
 squeaked the Tumung'gung, choking with rage, and 
 
328 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 coming forward beside the Bopati, his snaky eyes blink- 
 ing and twitching more than ever. 
 
 " Go to Hades ! " shouted Mr. Bardwell, using his fa- 
 vorite oath, and looking the wrath and disgust he felt. 
 " Get your bride and daughter in welcome ! " glaring at 
 them. " I 'd like to throw her at you both ! " 
 
 " Summon her, th6n," said the Bopati. " Command 
 her to be brought out and we will go instantly." 
 
 " Where is the child I intrusted to you, you sneaking, 
 hypocritical, old black scoundrel ? " now roared Bardwell. 
 " Leave my house, get off my veranda, or I 'U horse- 
 whip you ! " he continued, making a step towards the 
 Bopati, while the gathering servants scattered La every 
 direction. 
 
 Hearing this, the Bopati's jaw dropped in sheer as- 
 tonishment, while the old Tumung'gung pinched his nose 
 and ran his fingers into his ears to convince himself 
 that he had heard rightly. At this stage a kuli emerged 
 from the surrounding gloom, and hastily walking to 
 the front of the steps held up two letters in his hand. 
 The amazed servants not coming down to receive them, 
 he made two strides to the top of the steps and thrust 
 both into the hand of the Tumung'gung, who, being 
 accustomed to aU sorts of tricks to preserve secrecy 
 and silence, instantly closed his talon-hke fingers over 
 them without turning his head, in the next moment bring- 
 ing his hand around on a level with his waist to look 
 down and see what he had, while the kuli quickly de- 
 scended the steps and disappeared. The Tumung'gung 
 saw one letter was addressed to the Bopati in Javanese 
 characters, the other to Mr. Bardwell, and both in a deli- 
 cate female hand. His quick mind instantly suspected 
 that they had some relation to the missing girls. At 
 the moment when the Bopati, drawing out his kris, was 
 
A PRINCESS OF JA VA. 329 
 
 ready to spring upon Bardwell, who had suddenly 
 grasped a chair near by with which to crush him, the 
 Tumung'gung screeched " Sudah ! sudah ! " and stepped 
 between them, handing a letter to each. Mr. Bardwell 
 recognized the handwriting of Josephine and dropped 
 the chair, while the Bopati, at the same instant, felt that 
 something important was about to be revealed, and tore 
 open the letter addressed to himself. 
 
 Now, indeed, consternation and rage took entire pos- 
 session of the Bopati and the Tumung'gung. The Bo- 
 pati saw he was defeated and outwitted in his own 
 dalam ; and that by a female, a girl, his own child. He 
 would have her back, punish her, give her to the now 
 writhing Tumung'gung without marriage, if indeed the 
 latter would accept such an infamous piece of effrontery, 
 and kill her afterwards, if she dared to open her mouth, 
 look, or even think disobediently. He felt thus much 
 was due to the dignity of his princely blood. Absolute 
 submission in his province must be maintained; and 
 where should he first assert it but in his own household ? 
 This reflection reminded him that he had yet to settle 
 with Keomah, which sent a thriU. of satisfaction through 
 his bosom over and above the tumult of passion raging 
 there ; and while he and BardweU were undergoing the 
 surpiise of their mutual mistake, he calculated the nature 
 of the revenge he would mete out to Keomah. 
 
 The Tumung'gung was equally, but differently, af- 
 fected. His disappointment was overwhelming, but his 
 jealous rage exceeded it. Sarjio had possessed himself 
 of both Mattah-Djarri and the Nonah Josephine. He 
 felt sure of it. While the contents of the letters were 
 being made known to him, he began at first to walk 
 slowly backward and forward, which pace increased to 
 a run as the conclusion was reached, and finally throw- 
 
330 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 ing himself on his back on a divan, he stretched out his 
 little bent body and legs, and clutched up at the air with 
 his claw-like hands, roUing his head from side to side, 
 and turning up his eyes till nothing but a little yellow 
 bloodshot speck could be seen. After indulging in this 
 mute pantomime for a few moments, he added to it a 
 noise which issued from his throat in cries resembling 
 a cross between a yell and a groan, so unearthly and sin- 
 gular in its character that both BardweU and the Bo- 
 pati started and looked around in apprehension. 
 
 Despite his own grief, Bardwell burst into involuntary 
 laughter, in which the Bopati joined in the sedate and 
 subdued manner of the Javanese. The Tumung'gung, 
 however, was in no wise interrupted, but continued his 
 peculiar and impotent manifestations of rage and jealousy, 
 till the Bopati in disgust exclaimed, " Bakgasti ! " (mak- 
 ing a fool of himself.) Being thus advised, the old no- 
 ble immediately stood up, looking wildly around, still 
 making spasmodic clutches at some invisible object, at 
 which he shook his fists and plunged his kris in the 
 most ferocious manner. As soon as the Tumung'gung 
 was sufficiently calm, the Bopati made ready to return to 
 Kali Chandi to institute an immediate search for Mattah- 
 Djarri, in which he pressed the Tumung'gung to assist 
 him. Nothing could have delighted the old reprobate 
 more. " Sima " (gone) ! he gasped, alluding to his fu- 
 gacious bride, with a last flourish of his kris, before jam- 
 ming it down into its sheath with a force that would have 
 shivered it to pieces had it not been made of the best 
 tempered metal. 
 
 " Let us go then, Bopati ! " he cried, going toward his 
 carriage as fast as his excitement would allow him. 
 
 In another moment they both departed as suddenly as 
 they had come, intending to scour the country far and near 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 331 
 
 and bring back the beautiful culprit, dead or alive. As 
 to Boorah, the Tumung'gung had flayed him ahve a 
 dozen times before he was fiimly seated in his carriage, 
 and having thus in imagination disposed of the fate of 
 his matarmata and gloated a moment or two over the 
 extra tortures with which he should be rewarded, dis- 
 missed him from his mind, and gave his whole attention 
 to the best and quickest means of recapturing his lost 
 fiancee. The Bopati tried to inspire the old man with 
 patience, as they hurried on, by assuring him that Mattah- 
 Djarri's great beauty and the Nonah's fair face and 
 golden hair would render long concealment impossible. 
 They would attract notice anywhere, he assured him, and 
 discovery was certain. With this belief the two Javans 
 solaced themselves tUl they arrived in Kali Chandi, 
 whence their emissaries were at once sent off in every di- 
 rection, the kampongs notified, and the whole population 
 converted into mata-mata. 
 
 The two old men now expected to hear very soon from 
 the fugitives. Indeed, it did not seem difl&cult for two 
 powerful noblemen, with a dense population cringing at 
 their feet, each member of which instantly became a 
 secret and separate spy, if commanded, to long delay in 
 ■regaining three simple girls, unaccustomed to taking 
 care of themselves and unacquainted with the moun- 
 tain paths, and who had never before been exposed to 
 the terrors of a midnight tropical mountain forest. 
 
 The Tumung'gung and the Bopati understood all this, 
 and both felt certain their revenge would speedily be 
 gratified, unless the runaways had been assisted in their 
 escape or carried away by the Europeans or the Patch, 
 which latter the Tumung'gung secretly believed. 
 
 After the Bopati had given his commands about the 
 Radan Mattah-Djarri, he insisted upon the Tumung'gung 
 
332 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 retiring to a secluded room in the dalam to re-invigor- 
 ate himself with coffee, tambaku, and a period of rest, 
 and sought his own chamber for the same purpose. He 
 had scarcely composed himself upon his couch before 
 Paputti in fright and tears appeared at the door and 
 begged to be admitted. She informed him that Chatra 
 had been seized with a sudden illness when she heard 
 of the Radan ajeng's unhappy flight, and after suffer- 
 ing all the day before and through the night had just 
 expired. 
 
 " Well, bury her then," growled her lord, going off to 
 sleep. '' Send Schagga for — the pitingi'gi — to — to 
 arrange — it," — and the kind-hearted Paputti heard her 
 honored master snore before she was out of the room, 
 thinking he might have felt some pity for Chatra. 
 
 Mr. Bardwell made no attempt to recover his daughter. 
 He did not wish to see her again. His grief was too 
 deep for expression. She had chosen the Javanese and 
 was no doubt with him at that moment. He felt she was 
 lost to him and smothered his sorrow and disappointment 
 in silence, while Sewa went from one fainting spell into 
 another, assured her darling had been devoured by wild 
 beasts on the Teng'gers, and that her delicate bones were 
 being crunched at that very moment in some matgan's- 
 (tiger's) den. She quite disregarded her first consola- 
 tion in the thought that the Pateh was with her, or had 
 secured her safety. " Had such been the case," she 
 reasoned with Keomah, " Josie would have informed me, 
 for she knew I would not have disapproved." 
 
 Keomah could neither do nor say anything ; she sat in 
 silence and waited, dumb with grief and pain. Hers was 
 the hardest lot to bear, yet she said the least. Her mind 
 dwelt on the youth and beauty of her daughter and the 
 hard fate that loomed above the latter's head. She tried 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 333 
 
 to think where she should go to find her, what they would 
 do, or where fly to aroid the fury of the Bopati and 
 the jealous vigilance of the Tumung'gung, raising her 
 eyes to heaven and praying she might succeed in both. 
 Her hope was in Wagari. She thought it possible that 
 Wagari, who had traveled much, might find a way to 
 escape with her mistress to an adjacent island, where she 
 herself would follow them. 
 
 Thus her loving mother's heart invented and laid plans 
 all night long to appease its restless hunger. 
 
CHAPTER XXXVn. 
 
 The Pateh and Tracy climbed the mountain together, 
 falling behind the others, as usual. The rest of the 
 party had come to regard this exclusiveness as a matter 
 of course, and after a little raillery offered no objection. 
 They could not fail to see that their gay young friend 
 and the sedate Javan preferred to be alone. The two 
 laggards talked very little the first day, and each thought 
 the other more silent and depressed than he had ever 
 seen him before. Clouds of gloom and perplexity sat 
 upon the Patch's brow. Several times he drew a long 
 breath and opened his lips as if about to speak, yet re- 
 frained, while he kept his eyes bent upon the ground, 
 casting ever and anon a keen side glance upon the face 
 of his companion, whose countenance wore an unmistak- 
 able expression of regret and discontent which the Pateh 
 could not help observing. At length Tracy remarked, as 
 if pursuing his thoughts aloud, — 
 
 " I feel like a coward^ Sarjio, in going off and leaving 
 that lovely Mattah-Djarri to be dragged into a marriage 
 with that despicable old Tumung'gung. It is scandalous. 
 And such a repulsive old whelp, to be sure," giving a vin- 
 dictive kick to a loose stone which sent it bounding down 
 the narrow mountain path. 
 
 " I am tempted to go back," replied the Pateh, " but 
 the Bopati pushed us out so decidedly that I fear I might 
 cause her more harm than good. He is now influenced 
 by the suspicious Tumung'gung." 
 
 "Well, we will return at the end of the week, as you 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 335 
 
 have resolved upon, and I really think something will 
 have to be done then to save her," said Tracy. " You 
 will find your Josephine as joyous and beautiful as ever ; 
 but this other poor child — I declare it is too diabolical 
 to think about. K it was not for my uncle's wishes, I do 
 beUeve I would beg her to commit herself to my care," 
 ended Tracy with a sigh. 
 
 " How, Tracy ? " exclaimed the Pateh quickly. " "Would 
 you dare " — 
 
 " Oh I would make her my wife at once," interrupted 
 Tracy, " that is, if she were willing. I don't know that 
 she would be, however," looking inquiringly at his friend. 
 
 " I think she would be willing," answered the Pateh 
 with a smile, " and truly I wish you would do so. It 
 would be serving the Bppati and the Tumung'gung with 
 what they deserve, and save a noble girl from a wretched 
 future and make her happy besides. And you, also, 
 Tracy, don't you think you would be a contented, happy 
 man with Mattah-Djarri ? She possesses an immense 
 fortune that is settled upon herself. You would be inde- 
 pendent of your uncle ? " 
 
 Tracy started a little under the Patch's questions, and 
 answered somewhat evasively, — 
 
 " Mattah-Djarri's money would not influence me. I 
 am under many obligations to my uncle, and at least owe 
 him obedience and respect. He cherishes wishes for my 
 present and future that I cannot ignore, but it does make 
 me wretched to think of this girl going to such a lot as 
 that Tumung'gung. He is detestable," with strong em- 
 phasis, " and what presumption in such an old cub ! 
 The very best, indeed. Horsewhipping would be too good 
 for the Bopati, in my estimation." 
 
 To speak candidly, Tracy was thoroughly miserable. 
 Mattah-Djarri's beauty, sweetness, and gentleness had 
 
336 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 made a deep impression upon his heart. In vain he 
 laughed at himself and tried to shake it off. " What, 
 take a Javanese wife ! " he cried in self -derision. Still his 
 admiration did not change. He felt drawn nearer to 
 Sarjio, because he belonged to her people. He had 
 come, to the mountains because her home was upon them, 
 and now he would not acknowledge to himself how 
 deeply her prospective future touched him. To associate 
 her in thought with the old Tumimg'gfung seemed the 
 most barbarous profanity. He felt like reproaching the 
 Fateh because he had not chosen her instead of Jose- 
 phine. Yet had the former done so, he would have 
 been equally disgusted. He let his mind dwell on 
 their novel rencontre at the spring, and wondered 
 where there was another woman whose face and form 
 would have passed through that trying ordeal without 
 doing damage to her attractions. Then he remem- 
 bered the pain and dismay in her eyes when she looked 
 up and caught his amused glance, at the foot of the 
 steps, and burst out crying. This recollection pained 
 and flattered him and he followed it up with her happy 
 mood and gay laughter dm-ing the afternoon, when she 
 had forgotten her shyness and timidity, he congratulated 
 himself, in the pleasing society of her attendant. He re- 
 called her blushes, the lights and shadows playing over 
 her face, adding glory to her wondrous beauty. "All 
 this," thought he, " to go to that halt-dead, hideous old 
 Mohammedan ! " It was maddening. Then came her 
 shrinking terror when she looked up and saw the latter's 
 face behind the lattice and her unconscious appeal to his 
 protection, in drawing closer to his side and accepting his 
 support. It would all return, again and again, with a 
 weight and strength of insistence that seemed like a re- 
 proach which weighed down his spirits and would not be 
 
Missing Page 
 
Missing Page 
 
CHAPTER XXXVIII. 
 
 As the Europeans approached the summit, they looked 
 with wonder on the changed landscape around them. 
 The dense forests of teak and gigantic liquidamber trees 
 with the green, waxy, tropical bean winding its clinging 
 vines around their enormous waists, had disappeared, as 
 well as the spreading banyan, rising and falling to rise 
 again, forming villages of arches and columns, roofed 
 with perpetual green, vmder which regiments of soldiers 
 could encamp without exposure to sun or rain. 
 
 The teeming coffee and tea plantations, the groves of 
 oranges, bananas, and sugar palms, had long been left 
 behind. Potatoes, cabbages, Indian corn, ferns, and 
 velvety mosses had replaced them. The towering cocoas 
 no longer waved their outstretched arms lovingly above 
 their heads, but gnarled oaks with small and stunted 
 leaves greeted them coldly and repellingly, while an occa- 
 sional rift in the clouds below disclosed warm gleams 
 from the ripe banana, pineapple, and rice plantations 
 so far down on the mountain's base that they could 
 distinguish "Only the golden color. A white undulating 
 thread finished the green of the far-ofB plain, marking 
 the surf-bound coast the deafening roar from which no 
 stretch of fancy could make reach their ears. The gray 
 atap of myriads of villages studded the intervening sea 
 of green and bespoke the multifarious, brown-skinned 
 population that walked and toiled, ate and slept, lived 
 and died under its eternal shade. Lithe, deft, artful, 
 sagacious human beings, eagerly pursuing their own in- 
 
340 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 dividual ways, and with whom they had nothing in com- 
 mon. 
 
 Colonies of the lutung, or black ape, frolicked around 
 them, or scampered away on the soft moss to gambol 
 over the bleak trees or dabble in the edges of the clear 
 streams (which increased in volume and number as 
 they mounted upward), often carrying their babies in 
 their arms out into the shallow borders of the water, 
 where they would wash and bathe them and administer 
 spanking corrections to the unruly ones in the most 
 human-like manner. 
 
 As night came on, prickly porcupines chased one 
 another from under the scanty bushes. Small bats in 
 flying groups, darted quickly past them. Squirrels, with 
 tails erect, ran up the trees in hot haste. Wild boars in 
 droves went trotting and squealing down the well-washed 
 paths, and the clumsy rhinoceros slowly followed their 
 trails toward the smoking crater, while wolves, jackals, 
 tigers, and panthers screamed in the distance. Milky 
 clouds sailed toward them, drawn by the magnetic 
 mountain top, rising and falling, uniting and separating, 
 drifting and whirling through the ever clear blue ; diver- 
 sified with great patches of black, enlivened not unfre- 
 quently by streaks of lurid lightning and peals of thunder 
 reverberating around their feet, accompanied with heavy 
 dashes of rain that threatened to wash them down over 
 the ridges of black and scarred volcanic rock projecting 
 at intervals, in sharp lines of broken precipices, be- 
 tween them and the gorgeous groves and plateaus of Kali 
 Chandi. 
 
 Ever and anon the ground trembled beneath them 
 and gave other evidences of the internal disturbances 
 produced by the ceaseless activity of the smouldering 
 Brama, whose yawning crater opened its belching mouth 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 341 
 
 between two rival sisters rising in grand cones from the 
 sandy bottom of an extinct crater, known as the Sandy 
 Sea. 
 
 The last night before they reached the top, the guides 
 pitched their tents near two streams of water, one hot 
 and one cold, which ran side by side down the mountain. 
 
 " What a curious phenomenon ! " cried several of the 
 party in astonishment, as they threw themselves down 
 on the thin grass growing on a narrow strip of ground 
 between the two streams, and, stretchiag out their arms, 
 dipped a hand in each. 
 
 " Wonders will never cease in this country," they 
 <;9ntinued ; " who wiU explain this last oqe ? " 
 
 " The Patch, no doubt," answered Tracy. " What is it, 
 Sarjio ? " 
 
 " Very simple, indeed," the latter replied. " One 
 stream has its origin in the crater of the volcano ; the 
 other drains the perpetual snows of the Guning Giri," 
 pointing his finger towards the highest peak dominating 
 the many above them. 
 
 " And that volume of smoke rolling np continually," 
 asked another, indicating a dark mass that rose steadily 
 toward the heavens ; " is that from the crater of the 
 Brama?" 
 
 " That issues from the heart of the mighty Brama," 
 replied the Pateh. 
 
 " We wUl descend to-morrow," they all cried, " and 
 explore this old crater, from whose bosom three cones 
 arise, each bearing a crater of its own." 
 
 " Then we must bestir ourselves early," said the Pa- 
 teh, " or lodge a night in its capacious throat.'' 
 
 " We win arise early," they simultaneously exclaimed, 
 and in this intention it was not long before a liberal sup- 
 per was dispatched and they were all wrapped in their 
 
342 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 extra robes and blankets, fast asleep in the cold, bracing, 
 somnolent atmosphere. 
 
 Tracy awoke about midnight, and being unable to sleep 
 again, arose and went out. The moon was shining cold 
 and bright. The clouds had roUed themselves up and 
 floated away out of sight, leaving the surrounding peaks 
 bare and distinctly outlined against the deep blue, to re- 
 turn again about ten or eleven o'clock in the morning and 
 reclothe them in their mantles of mist. The scene was 
 grand and impressive, and doubtless would have attracted 
 a much less enthusiastic temperament than Tracy pos- 
 sessed, although it was not the gorgeous and wonderful 
 views over those equatorial volcanoes, exaggerated, soft- 
 ened, mystified, and unearthly as they appeared under 
 the midnight moon, that deprived him of sleep and drew 
 him forth after the irksome fatigues of the day. Cold 
 winds swept his bared head, and he murmured, as a 
 dull crept suddenly over him, " Oh for the soft breezes 
 of Kali Chandi. Ah, there is Sarjio," he continued, 
 stooping down to look under the meagre foliage of the 
 knarled oaks, to get a better view of a motionless figure 
 standing beside the hot stream, with eyes apparently 
 fixed on its steaming waters, as they rushed down the 
 mountain, leaving a white zigzag line of warm vapor ever 
 rising to mark its course through the cold atmosphere. 
 " He is a striking figure," thought Tracy, as he gazed 
 upon the Javan, cahn and stately with his arms crossed 
 upon his breast and his head bent forward in an attitude 
 of profound meditation, looking much larger than he 
 really was, standing as he did between Tracy and the 
 descending moon. "Josephine Bardwell will secure a 
 handsome husband, if he is somewhat dark," was his con- 
 tinuing thought, " and I hope she will prove worthy of 
 his noble, loyal heart ; if not, she had better take care." 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 343 
 
 Tracy looked a moment longer at the Pateh, feeling 
 a rising sorrow in his bosom for the anxieties which he 
 knew tormented him and destroyed his rest, then turned 
 to gaze upon the long chains of moon-lit cones, pointing 
 towards heaven, which stretched away from him on 
 nearly every side, instantly recognizing the symmeti-ical 
 pyramid of the towering Merapi, the giant Merabahu, 
 and the sharp peaks of Ung'arang. Here and there one 
 was illuminated by a flashing light or dull flame playing 
 around its top, or darkened by a fimnel-shaped colimin 
 of murky smoke bending backward and forward above 
 it as it curled steadily upward in the moving wind. 
 
 " How wonderfully weird and unearthly it all appears," 
 said Tracy, continuing his soliloquy, as he gazed, unmind- 
 ful of the cold that began to penetrate his body, in awe- 
 struck solemnity on the grand and impressive panorama. 
 " I wonder Sarjio can stand with his back toward it," 
 turning his face to look at the latter, who still stood with 
 his eyes bent on the stream. 
 
 " Sarjio," he exclaimed, going up to him, " a penny for 
 your thoughts." 
 
 The Pateh slowly raised his head, unfolded his arms, 
 and looked around him with a sigh, without betraying 
 any surprise when his friend addressed him. 
 
 " I have had a dream, Tracy, a dream I cannot pass 
 by lightly," he said, looking the latter in the face, " I lay 
 down to-night more oppressed than ever with this strange 
 sense of danger hanging over Josephine. I thought of 
 your ridicule and tried to shake it off and go to sleep, 
 and I did fall asleep, I suppose, and dreamed, for it was 
 a dream, that I saw her weeping and wringing her hands 
 in terror and caUing upon me to save her. I woke with 
 her voice wringing in my ears. ' Sarjio, come, save me, 
 save me ! ' I shall start in a few moments for Kali 
 
344 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 Chandi," concluded the Pateh, wiping the perspiration 
 from his forehead. 
 
 "Sarjio," exclaimed Tracy in the utmost astonishment, 
 " you are mad ! You are going to follow a phantom call, 
 a call born of your own fears." 
 
 " I don't think so," answered the Pateh ; " I feel it is 
 the shadowy impression taking visible form. I have not 
 heeded the first gentle call of Josephine's troubled spirit 
 and it takes a more impressive shape ; yes, it is a more 
 imperious cry and interprets the strong impression of 
 danger or impending disaster that has so weighed upon 
 me. I will no longer slight its warning. I am certain 
 Josephine is in deep trouble, and I hold it wrong to do 
 violence to my convictions, vague or subtile as they may 
 appear. I am careful to observe these delicate admoni- 
 tions — for I regard them as veritable communications, 
 wafted to our coarser or more material perceptions by 
 the impalpable, far-reaching, unseen wings of our spir- 
 itual vision — and I receive them with reverence and 
 obey them with alacrity." 
 
 " I admit I also feel rather blue in the midst of all this 
 splendor," said Tracy, casting his eyes over the peaks 
 around them, " but I have not been favored with your il- 
 luminating dreams." 
 
 " If you feel ' blue,' as you call it," replied the Pateh, 
 " I should look about, if I were you, for a cause. I 
 would assure myself whether it came from spirit, brain, 
 or stomach." 
 
 " You really don't mean to start for Kali Chandi to- 
 night, Sarjio ? " asked Tracy, returning with some degree 
 of alarm to the first subject. 
 
 " I certainly mean to go," answered the Pateh. " I 
 am now waiting for Satrap, who should have been here 
 before dark. If he don't arrive at the end of another 
 half hour, I shall commence the descent." 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 345 
 
 The two men now relapsed into silence. Tracy 
 wanted to go with the Pateh, yet he thought, how could 
 he ? What would his friends think in the morning 
 when they learned that he had stolen off in the night with 
 the Javan. It would not look well, and Tracy liked to 
 observe the proprieties. 
 
 No Satrap appearing at the expiration of the half hour, 
 the Pateh put a little whistle to his lips and blew a low 
 note, which was almost instantly answered by the pres- 
 ence of a servant at his side. Commanding him to 
 quickly gather up a few small articles that he would need _ 
 and arouse two of his companions and f oUow him with 
 them at once, leaving the others to bring the heavy robes 
 and blankets back with the party, he turned about and 
 made a step or two towards Kali Chandi, sajdng, " Au 
 revoir, Tracy ; .1 must hasten now." 
 
 " Stop, Sarjio," cried Tracy ; " I have halt a mind to 
 go with you.'' 
 
 " Well, come ; I shall be glad of your company, and I 
 think you will feel better," alluding to Tracy's sombre 
 mood of the last few days. 
 
 " Call my boy, also," said Tracy, turning hastily to 
 Sarjio's attendant. " Tell him to bring the flambeaux 
 and come with you. The pitingi'gi's men can bring the 
 other things with those of your master." 
 
 The Pateh soon discovered a second path that he had 
 been searching for and which led to a wider and better 
 one, both being nothing more than trails made by the 
 wild beasts that were constantly moving up and down the 
 mountain side, causing the one traversed by the greatest 
 number to be the best. Here they stopped to light their 
 flambeaux, and in another moment Tracy and he were 
 plunging down over the sliding earth and rolling stones 
 with a speed that promised a likely chance of soon 
 breaking their necks. 
 
346 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 " I can't understand your dreams and impressions, 
 Sarjio," said Tracy, when he found the path wide enough 
 to get beside him, " and that they can lead you to this 
 length is indeed amazing." 
 
 " It may appear so to you, my dear Tracy," replied 
 the Pateh. " You- have not yet cultivated your internal 
 perceptions and learned to detect the prophetic warning, 
 silent to all except our own souls." 
 
 " Well, I suppose I am behind In metaphysics," an- 
 swered Tracy, — " perhaps I ought to say, metaphysical 
 psychology, if I could use such a term to describe the 
 hidden abstract element running through the conscious- 
 ness in the souls and minds of men. I own I don't un- 
 derstand it. To say the least, your ideas — excuse me 
 if I call them superstitions — are very peculiar. I never 
 knew you encouraged these singularities. You remind 
 me of the old beggar who gave me that dissertation on 
 the astral light," referring to a wandering Brahmin that 
 once attempted to make a convert of him. 
 
 " Well, I am not a Brahmin, though I believe in the 
 occult," said the Pateh, " and some time I will convince 
 you the material and tangible is the smallest part of our 
 existence." 
 
 Notwithstanding Tracy's skepticism and the rapid rate 
 at which the two men were descending the steep paths, 
 incurring danger to life and limb, the former began to be 
 infected with the Patch's impressions and prophecies and 
 to feel the influence of his wiU, when suddenly they came 
 upon Satrap who had lost his way owing to his master's 
 miscalculations, and now with a long stick over his shoul- 
 der and accompanied by a kuli carrying two immense 
 flambeaux was toiling upward to the point whither he 
 had been before directed. Looking the surprise he felt 
 on being thus suddenly confronted by his master, he 
 
A PRINCESS OF J A VA. 347 
 
 stopped and quickly drawing down his stick, untied a box 
 swinging on one end of it and handed it to the Patch, 
 who tore it open, calling upon Tracy to strike a light or 
 hold up his flambeau. Tracy hurriedly did the latter, 
 almost as impatient and excited as the Pateh. The un- 
 steady light from the flickering flambeau rendered read- 
 ing difficult, and the Pateh strode o£B a little distance 
 into an open space where there was clear moonlight, 
 Tracy following after him, while the servants behind came 
 up and halted together in waiting wonder over their 
 master's extraordinary haste and vehemence. 
 
 Turning the open page to the moon, the Pateh read its 
 contents in a few seconds. Tracy noticed a deadly pal- 
 lor spread over his face as he folded it and was prepared 
 to hear him say, as he quickly turned with a groan to 
 reach the path, — 
 
 " It is as I supposed, and we must onward, Tracy, 
 onward," clutching the latter's arm. " I will teU you 
 as we go," and down they plunged, faster and more fu- 
 riously than before, — the rattling stones and loose earth 
 roUing on behind them, as they slipped, slid, jumped, and 
 fell in their breathless speed. 
 
 " Allah, be merciful ! " ejaculated the Pateh. " Pre- 
 serve them tin we overtake them. You see the fulfil- 
 ment of my dream, Tracy," cried he excitedly, " they 
 are in danger, imminent danger. Oh I Allah taala! " he 
 continued in wailing accents that rang out in a pathetic 
 echo on the night air. " Help me to reach them before 
 it is too late ! My Josephine, unprotected in these moun- 
 tain forests ! " and the Pateh breathed hard and again 
 wiped the streaming perspiration from his face. 
 
 " TeU me, for heaven's sake, what has happened ? " 
 now demanded Tracy, struggling to keep his feet and 
 get his breath in their downward race, sometimes at the 
 
348 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 side, sometimes behind the Javan, who paused not for 
 stone, rock, or limb. 
 
 In a few words the Pateh recounted the contents of 
 Josephine's letter, and saw with satisfaction that Tracy's 
 haste and concern quite equaled his own. Little more 
 was said between the two young men, though they kept 
 side by side as much as possible on their reckless course, 
 tiU the morning broke and they could see below them 
 the rich plains of Kali Chandi. They had passed over 
 many miles in the rapidity of their descent, which it 
 would have required ten times as many hours to ascend. 
 The impatient hurry and concern of the Pateh had 
 fuUy communicated itself to Tracy, who felt he could 
 have kept on without fatigue till he reached the mandala 
 (base or plain at the foot of the moimtain), sustained 
 perhaps by a longing to make mince -meat of the old 
 Tumung'gung and choke the Bopati. He inwardly 
 prayed that Mattah-Djarri and her cousin might succeed 
 in escaping till they could reach them. What then 
 would happen, he did not decide. 
 
 An hour or two after the sun had risen they descended, 
 panting and breathless, into the plains surrounding the 
 kampong of the Bopati. Without losing a moment, they 
 hurried through the vUlage, going at once to the dalam, 
 intending to ascertain it the three girls had succeeded in 
 getting away or had been detected, and Josephine carried 
 back to her father and Mattah-Djarri dragged into the 
 arms of the repugnant Tumung'gung ; for the Pateh 
 knew well what would be her fate if caught in this flar 
 grant opposition to her father's wiU. 
 
 As they approached the lawang seketing, the two 
 young men were so agitated they were afraid to speak 
 and ask the question of the mandur who came forward to 
 conduct them up the steps. He informed them in grave 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 349 
 
 tones that the Bopati was absent in search of the lost 
 Badan ajeng Mattah-Djarri. 
 
 " Thank Heaven ! " breathed Tracy, in audible relief, 
 in his own English, to which the Patch responded 
 "Amen " in the same language. 
 
 " The lost Badan ! " repeated the Pateh, affecting sur- 
 prise. 
 
 " Yes, most noble Pateh," replied the mandur, bending 
 his body forward. " She disappeared three nights ago, 
 and Chatra, her governess, died the next night." 
 
 " CaU Keomah," said the Pateh, " I will speak with 
 her about this distressing news." He supposed Sewa 
 had gone home, in pursuance of the statements in Jose- 
 phine's letter. 
 
 " The noble Keomah is also absent," said the mandur. 
 " She went away with Sewa, the morning after the acci- 
 dent." 
 
 " "Was the young Eadan carried away ? " asked the 
 Pateh, feeling his heart grow lighter. 
 
 The mandur shook his head, indicating he did not 
 know more, adding that she had taken the young Nonah 
 and Wagari vidth her, and the noble Tumung'gung of 
 Narawadi was assisting his master in the search, with all 
 his matarmata, and the dalam and kampong were thrown 
 into the utmost confusion ; " for this," said he, " is a most 
 extraordinary occurrence in the princely house of the 
 Pangdran Datapp Putah." 
 
 Having thus learned what they most wished to know, 
 the Pateh and Tracy declined the further hospitalities of 
 the mandur, and sought a waning in the kampong, where 
 they refreshed themselves with a breakfast of boiled rice, 
 dried deer flesh, tchabi, sambel, and coffee. While they 
 sat at their little bambu table, they saw the Tumung'- 
 gung being driven swiftly past in a European carriage. 
 
350 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 Two attendants stood on the steps behind, and one sat on 
 the box beside the coachman. 
 
 " Going to the dalam," said the Pateh, looking mean- 
 ingly at Tracy. 
 
 " Yes, and quite foreign in his style," answered Tracy, 
 nodding his head and feeling the utmost satisfaction in 
 the old noble's loss. 
 
 The Fateh heard some one aroimd them say that his 
 exalted highness had passed through the kampong twice 
 the day before, and suspected the Tumung'gung's jeal- 
 ousy and impatience urged him to come to KaU Chandi 
 in the beUef that Mattah-Djarri was hiding in the vicinity 
 and in the hope of gaining some intelligence of her where- 
 abouts. The Patch's conjectures were correct. The 
 Tumimg'g^ng felt convinced that his lovely and timid 
 fiancee was concealed in some neighboring kampong, and 
 with the assistance, perhaps, of her clever reader, had 
 managed to bribe some unlucky pitingi'gi to aid or con- 
 ceal her ; therefore he scoured the country around Kali 
 Chandi, and left the research of his own province on 
 the plains to the discretion of his multitudinous mata- 
 mata. 
 
 The Bopati cherished the same opinion as the Tu- 
 mung'gung in regard to the hiding-place of the fugitives. 
 The Tumung'gung had positive evidence that both the 
 Pateh and the European were on the mountains pursuing 
 their way to the summit the night of the flight and the 
 day following. "But the Pateh may have provided 
 for them, notwithstanding," he argued with the Bopati, 
 who expressed his disbelief by saying, — 
 
 " I don't believe, Tumung'gung, that either the Euro- 
 pean or the Pateh have anything to do with it. Sarjio 
 could have had Mattah-Djarri for the asking, if he had 
 wanted her, before you demanded her, and the Europeans 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 351 
 
 are all together on the mountains. If either of them 
 has taken her he ■would be with her." 
 
 " You forget, Bopati, that I saw that infidel whisper- 
 ing to her as he walked by her side across the alun-alun," 
 shouted the Tmnung'gung, in savage remembrance of the 
 handsome Tracy's proffered aid, when Mattah-Djarri's 
 emotion at the sight of his face nearly caused her to fall 
 to the ground, and exasperated by what he considered 
 the Bopati's stupid obstinacy. "He might have been 
 laying his plans at that moment, thanks to your negli- 
 gence." 
 
 ' " Ang'undang" (you bawl nonsense), returned the Bo- 
 pati angrily, now determined to repel all insinuations of 
 carelessness and neglect in the administration of proper 
 rule in his own dalam. 
 
 The two young men, now satisfied that the three girls 
 had succeeded in getting away three nights before, and 
 had not been heard from since, determined to push on 
 as fast as possible in the direction of the Guning Deing 
 to commence their search for the recluse's cell among 
 the ancient ruins of the Chandi Hindu, surrounding the 
 Guwa Upas, as described by Wagari. With this purpose 
 in view, the Pateh sent Satrap out through the kampong 
 with orders to pick up all the rumors that might be afioat 
 in regard to the great event, and meet him again beyond 
 the walls on the side towards the sea, while he and 
 Tracy took a roundabout direction to come out in the 
 same locality. 
 
 Satrap was there before them and had nothing new to 
 conunuiucate beyond the episode of the midnight pur- 
 chase of the flambeaux, which had now become common 
 .property. He had heard it from the tukang kaju him- 
 self, with the additional remark that Boorah with this 
 clew had' taken to the forest and the powerful Tu- 
 
352 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 mung'gtmg had promised him his life if he succeeded 
 in finding the young Radan Mattah-Djarri. 
 
 The Pateh became ahnost wild with apprehension 
 when he heard this. 
 
 " If they escape now it will he more than a miracle," 
 he groaned to Tracy. " Boorah is celebrated for his 
 sagaciiy and cunning, and is acquainted with every pene- 
 trable spot on the Teng'gers and with every kampong on 
 this side of Java." 
 
 " If we would save them, we must hasten," replied 
 Tracy, impatient to be on his way towards the distant 
 mountain range the Pateh pointed out as their destina-, 
 tion, lying far to the right and across the extreme end 
 of the semicircular plain below, formed by the chains 
 of the Teng'gers and the spur of the Guning Deing. 
 
 Commanding Satrap to keep him in sight all day and 
 gather up all the information he could, as well as to keep 
 a sharp lookout for Boorah, the Pateh bade Tracy fol- 
 low him and turned off into a path leading through the 
 groves and plantations, which brought him out, an hour 
 later, on the edge of the forest near a kampong inhabited 
 by the Blandong people. Here he hired three tandus, 
 a conveyance similar to a palangki and used by the lower 
 classes, with kulis, to carry them a distance of sis tor 
 eight hours in a direction they would indicate, and placed 
 one at the disposal of Satrap with instructions to take 
 all the rest in it he could, consistent with the duties he 
 desired him to perform. 
 
 " Question any one you may meet, turn aside into a 
 kampong, if necessary," said his master, " and be careful 
 to hide yourself in the tandu if you are in danger of rec- 
 ognition. Above all, conceal yom'self from Boorah, if 
 by any chance you catch a glimpse of him, yet ascer- 
 tain where he is going, what he is doing, and keep steadily 
 on your way as I have directed." 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 353 
 
 After Satrap was dismissed, the Pateh and Tracy- 
 walked a short distance on the forest road before taking 
 their places in their respective tandus. As they looked 
 around them through the matted clumps of under-growth, 
 into the black recesses, formidable openings, caves, rocks, 
 and thickly packed trunks, among which the road before 
 them was soon lost to view, it seemed quite impossible 
 that the three unprotected girls could ever have gotten 
 safely through in the darkness and added perils of the 
 night. 
 
 " O my life, my beautiful ! " cried the Pateh, stopping 
 and wringing, his hands, " where art thou ? Why was I 
 not here to protect th.ee with a thousand strong arms ! " 
 
 " Come, come, Sarjio," said Tracy, looking a little 
 paler, " we 'U not waste time in futUe regrets. It may 
 not be as bad as you fear," in an encouraging tone, as 
 he saw the Pateh had quite broken down in despair over 
 the idea of the dangers and terrors that must have 
 threatened, and had perhaps destroyed, the delicate and 
 queenly girl whose life and safety were much more pre- 
 cious to him than his own. 
 
 Recalled to himself by the determined and hopeful 
 tones of Tracy, the Pateh overcame his weakness and 
 took his place in one of their conveyances, ordering the 
 bearers to make all possible speed to reach the open 
 country on the other side of the forest. Tracy followed 
 his example, advising the Pateh to improve the opportu- 
 nity of trying to strengthen himself with a few hours 
 sleep, as he himself intended to do, while they were 
 swung on the shoulders of the kulis through the perilous 
 depths of the forest. 
 
CHAPTER XXXIX. 
 
 Mattah-Djakbi and her two companions, whom we 
 left hurrying forward in the midnight forest, with noth- 
 ing but the flickering blaze of their flambeaux to protect 
 them, had no realizing sense of the dangers to which they 
 were exposing themselves. To the former it would have 
 made little difference, perhaps, but the twcr latter would 
 probably have hesitated, especially Josephine, who doubt- 
 less would have preferred running the risk of returning 
 to her father and fighting her way to the consummation 
 of her wishes by some less dangerous process. We must 
 give them each credit, however, for showing no signs of 
 faltering or hesitation after they had made the first bold 
 plunge. Their hearts beat fast and loud with fear, and 
 they started and quickened their steps when the raven- 
 ous growl of a hungry tiger smote their ears, but they 
 had but one thought, — on, on, trusting to their blazing 
 flambeaux to keep him at a safe distance. The road, 
 unlike the vertical mountain paths, was smooth and well- 
 worn, running almost level, hke a narrow shelf, around 
 the sloping mountain side and offered no obstructions to 
 their feet. 
 
 Josephine walked or ran mechanically, as it were, hold- 
 ing fast to the long ends of her cousin's sembong and 
 keeping her eyes shut, while Wagari took charge of her 
 little bundle. She gave up aU hope of ever seeing 
 another morning, and longed to have Sarjio know how 
 much her devotion to him was willing to undergo. Not 
 a word was spoken. In silence they almost flew over the 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 355 
 
 hard ground, their swinging Hghts throwing weird, fan- 
 tastic shadows and ghost-like forms on the hiige black and 
 gray trunks, standing like columned waUs on each side 
 of their way. Great balls of fire suddenly appeared, bob- 
 bing about in the thick darkness, to recede and appear 
 again, illuminating the ground with the abrupt flashes 
 of light emitted from the opening and shutting wings of 
 immense fire-flies moving about in the soft air. Ravens 
 and owls croaked and hooted in the high tree tops, thou- 
 sands of doves trilled their sad song and gently called to 
 each other, and miUions of singing and buzzing insects 
 made the forest ring with their multifold voices. Night- 
 birds screeched hideously in the foliage around them ; 
 wild -cats hissed and sputtered on the branches above 
 them ; the savage, untamed forest dogs yelped and 
 barked behind them. They heeded them not. In this 
 dreadful terror they were impelled by the one desire, 
 forward, away from it all ; till at length, after four hours 
 of indescribable terror, they suddenly emerged into an 
 open country. Day was breaking, cultivation was around 
 them, a waving cocoa-nut grove before them. The for- 
 est was passed and they stopped, grasped each other's 
 hands, and sank down on a grassy knoll to breathe and 
 rest. 
 
 " What an escape," whispered Josephine, still trem- 
 bling, and pressing the hands of her companions. " Oh ! 
 I thank Heaven ! " casting her eyes upward. 
 
 " My hair must be white," said Wagari. " I have 
 heard of people's hair turning white in one night from 
 fear." 
 
 " Then mine ought to be black," returned Josephine, 
 her spirits beginning to revive with the sense of release 
 from the horrors of the forest and the rapidly increasing 
 daylight. 
 
356 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 " What troubles I Iiave brought upon you both," said 
 Mattah-Djarri remorsefully, looking mournfully from 
 one to the other. " But we must not loiter here," she 
 resumed, casting her eyes about. " We must be near a 
 kampong. These plantations denote inhabitants," rising 
 and preparing to move on. 
 
 " Yes, it is true," responded Wagari, " we must seek 
 a sheltered spot where we can rest and eat something. 
 In a few moments the neighborhood will be teeming 
 wilih life and light. "We may be discovered." 
 
 " Let us, then, follow this patib," said Mattah-Djarri, 
 indicating a white line which they could see running 
 through the grass. It leads in the direction we are going, 
 and when we see the first flash in the east, we will trust 
 to chance to find a hedge or clump of shrubbery behind 
 which we can conceal ourselves and rest." 
 
 They crossed the plantation of cocoas, and passed along 
 the edge of one of cofEee, when red streaks suddenly 
 appearing they threw down their flambeaux, and had 
 scarcely time to roll them in the dust and damp grass to 
 extinguish their flame, before the sun shot up, filling 
 every nook and corner with brilliant Ught. Hastily turn- 
 ing aside behind a thick hedge of oranges and oleanders, 
 where happily a small stream trickled by through the 
 grass, they threw themselves down beside it exhausted 
 and reUeved. 
 
 "There are some fig trees," said Wagari, looking 
 around, as she lay on the ground with her head propped 
 up on one elbow, " and beyond them a pineapple planta- 
 tion. What a repast we will have. Before I settle 
 myself, I will get some," suiting the action to the word. 
 
 It was but the work of a moment to wring a few of 
 the luscious ananas from their prickly stalks, pluck some 
 figs, unroll their plantain leaves, and conmience their 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 357 
 
 Aieal, making drinking cups out of the huge leaves around 
 them. 
 
 " How do you feel now, Josie ? " asked Mattah-Djarri, 
 *' and you, my faithful Wagari ? How much I owe to 
 you both," she added, tears welling up into her eyes. 
 
 " I fear I am almost overcome with fatig^ue, or per^ 
 haps it is the fright," answered Josephine, " but food and 
 rest win restore me. And you, how do you feel ? " taking 
 her cousin's hand ; " but please don't talk about owing me 
 anything, Mattie. I am serving myself, you know. I 
 am running off to Sarjio." 
 
 As Josephine concluded her face lost its weary look, 
 and became radiant under the impulse of her happy ex- 
 pectations. 
 
 " And you owe me nothing, either, my beloved mis- 
 tress," said Wagari. " I am glad, glad to serve you." 
 
 " Don't call me your mistress any more, my good 
 Wagari," said Mattah-Djarri, looking gratefully at her. 
 " You must regard me as your friend, and you must 
 address me as such, hereafter." 
 
 " O most noble Badan ajeng," answered Wagari, re- 
 turning for the first time in the last week to her old 
 manner of address, " I never could think of such pre- 
 sumption." 
 
 This assertion amused Josephine, who had noticed more 
 than once the change from formal respect to familiar 
 intimacy which had recently marked Wagari's bearing 
 towards her mistress, and which in the general excite- 
 ment had passed unnoticed by them both. 
 
 The sun was getting high in the heavens when they 
 began to wonder how they could continue their journey 
 and avoid observation. 
 
 "Don't you think they have missed us yet at the 
 dalam ? " asked Josephine, looking at her little watch. 
 
358 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 " I think they have," replied Mattah-Djarri, with a 
 deep sigh, a remembrance of Keomah's tender love and 
 the sorrow it would bring her passing through her mind. 
 " That reminds me of our letters," she continued, " and 
 we must find some one to carry them to the Tuan, your 
 father, Josephine." 
 
 " I hope Wagari can manage it," said Josephine, look- 
 ing at the latter. " I have plenty of gold with me to 
 buy a discreet and silent messenger, if that is necessary." 
 
 " It can be easily accomplished," replied Wagari, " if 
 there is no suspicion of who we are, and there can be 
 none yet, of course." 
 
 It was finally arranged that Wagari should go to the 
 nearest kampong, which was probably not five hundred 
 yards distant, but hid from them by the thick foliage, 
 and try to hire a kuli to carry the letters at once to the 
 city and deliver them to Tuan Bardwell. The city, they 
 supposed, could not be more than a haU day's distance, 
 measuring the tiine, as was the custom, by the speed of 
 a fleet runner. 
 
 As this was the usual mode employed to forward 
 messages and letters, when o£E the one or two regular 
 government post routes, and particularly in the mountain 
 districts, Wagari knew it would excite neither surprise 
 nor comment to go boldly to a bureau for that purpose 
 and demand a tukang pos (letter carrier). Therefore 
 they felt quite safe in forwarding their letters and be- 
 lieved their identity would never be suspected. 
 
 After the messenger was dispatched*, Wagari was to 
 secure, if possible, the services of one single and one 
 double tandu, with kulis to bear them, under the plea 
 of needing them for a sick woman and her friends, 
 going from a kampong higher up to a dukun, who acted 
 also as doctor, living on the other side of the plains 
 below. 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. » 359 
 
 "When these plans were matured, Wagari started, and 
 Josephine changed the fashion of her head-dress, un- 
 twisting the sembong in which her hair had hitherto been 
 concealed, and winding it loosely over her head, to prer 
 pare to play the r61e of the sick Javanese in need of the 
 advice of the duknn. 
 
 " Remember, Wagari, the sick woman has become 
 much worse since she left her home to seek the doctor," 
 was Mattah-Djarri's parting injunction to her unwearied 
 and inventive attendant, who threw her sembong over 
 one shoulder, and adjusted the fringed ends in the man- 
 ner of a true peasant, as she moved o£B to look for a 
 kampong. She felt the tandus were absolutely necessary, 
 not only to give them rest while they were borne for- 
 ward, but to screen them from observation. 
 
 After a rather lengthy absence, during which the min- 
 utes appeared like hours to the two amdous girls, con- 
 cealed behind the orange-trees, Wagari came suddenly 
 through the foliage from another direction, wearing a 
 hopeful and gratified expression that told them at once 
 she had been successful. 
 
 "Wagari, you are a magician ! " cried Josephine, with- 
 out waiting for her to speak. " A brown fairy, truly. 
 How far away have you left your carriages ? " 
 
 " Close at hand, and the ' brown fairy ' will proceed 
 to carry out her sick friend immediately," replied Wa- 
 gari, adopting the same strain. 
 
 Josephine quickly arose from the grass, and Mattah- 
 Djarri and Wagari, placing themselves on each side of 
 her, put their arms around her and half led, half carried 
 her forward to the edge of the path, where the two tan- 
 dus were waiting with four strong and sturdy looking 
 men belonging to the Blandong people. She grew rapidly 
 worse as they approached them and had to be lifted in 
 
360 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 and laid down very gently on the coarse klosos spread on 
 the sloping bottom of the tandu and her head kept care- 
 fully covered, while Wagari put down the curtains and 
 instructed the bearers not to talk, nor upon any account 
 to speak to her, undisturbed quiet and rest being their 
 only hope of preserving her life till they reached the 
 dukun. 
 
 " A long distance," said one of them, looking pityingly 
 at the limp form of the seemingly suffering woman, as 
 she let herself slip unresistingly down into the hoUow 
 bed. 
 
 " It will be sor^ " (period between six and eight 
 o'clock), said another, looking down over the glowing 
 valley, " before we can descend the Teng'gers, cross the 
 plain, and reach the mandala on the other side." 
 
 " Tou will be paid liberally," quickly spoke up "Wa- 
 gari, " if you get her there before she dies ; and now 
 djallan djallan " (go with speed). 
 
 Taking her mistress by the arm, she helped her into 
 the other tandu, getting in herself beside her. 
 
 The kulis, with their bodies naked, excepting their loins 
 and hips, fastened their huge chapungs under their chins 
 with a strip of plaited grass, raised the poles upon their 
 shoulders, and started one before the other with the 
 cradle-like conveyances gently swinging between them, 
 to descend the slopes and declivities as easily as possible, 
 by keeping the zigzag paths made from one kampong to 
 another to facilitate communication. 
 
 Despite the anxieties of their minds, the monotonous 
 motion of the tandus soon rocked the three tired girls 
 into a profound slumber, which was not interrupted till 
 late in the afternoon, when they were aroused by the 
 sound of the mighty blasts of the F^andayang Salatan, 
 which they had been gradually approaching. Inquiring 
 
A PRINVESS OF JAVA. 361 
 
 how far they had come and where they were, the kulls 
 informed them that they had crossed the plain and were 
 nearing the projecting, corner-like base of the Guning 
 Deing which guards one side of the entrance to the broad 
 plain or shnibless valley running toward the east through 
 the Deing g^oup. 
 
 Looking up this immense flat passage, with the moun- 
 tains rising on either side, they could see the conical ele- 
 vations known as liquid or mud volcanoes, rising from the 
 middle of the plain, of which the Fapandayang Sala- 
 tan (forge south) was the largest, and so named from 
 the resemblance of its noise to the sound of the puffing 
 bellows and steady blows of hammer and anvil in a 
 blacksmith's forge. 
 
 Wagari pointed out an odd-looking dwelling near the 
 dangerous edge of a naked crag, situated pretty well up 
 on the mountain side, as being the house of the dukun 
 or doctor to whom they were going. She asked to be 
 set down at the base to examine into the condition of 
 their sick friend, saying, that if it were possible they 
 would much prefer to climb the steep on their feet, in- 
 stead of trusting their safety to the uncertain transit of 
 a tandu, borne on the shoulders of two men, up the diffi- 
 cult ascent. They were gratified to find their sick friend 
 much better and quite able to walk after her long rest. 
 The kulis were paid and dismissed, and the three sup- 
 posed peasants began slowly to ascend the base of the 
 mountain. When the tandus were out of sight, they sat 
 down to eat the slender remains of their breakfast, while 
 "Wagari recounted the ease with which she had secured 
 their services and no questions asked, and the tukang pos 
 as well. 
 
 They were each surprised to find themselves feeling 
 so well, and looked around with some degree of interest 
 
362 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 on the strange freaks nature here presented. They 
 could see the liquid mud rise and overflow the crater of 
 the Papandayang and fall in streaming masses down its 
 sides, accompanied by jets of hissing steam and streams 
 of boiling water, which issued from the crater's seething 
 mouth and ran down behind the sluggish mud, overtaking 
 and washing it down with greater speed, or passing it to 
 rush on alone and find a bed on the plain below. Hot 
 vapors streamed from the innumerable fissures and crev- 
 ices on the volcanoes' sides, and huge bubbles of mud 
 ceaselessly rose and fell all over the surface of its base, 
 exploding with a dull noise and scattering the hot liquid 
 in every direction. 
 
 " I recognize this plain of the Deing," said Wagari, 
 gazing hard at the Papandayang, " and our way lies di- 
 rectly through it. From its upper end we can reach the 
 narrow valley which leads to the chain of hills surround- 
 ing the Guwa Upas. Yes," she continued, looking care- 
 fully all around, " I remember it well. I came here 
 from the Chandi Hindu with the Nonyah and Tuan 
 blanda to visit that very group of mud volcanoes," point- 
 ing to the Papandayang and its surrounding satellites ; 
 " we must pass them, and also the gas fountains or 
 Holy Fires of Melati Berbar ; the latter are not very 
 far from the little valley at the upper end to which we 
 are going." 
 
 Relying upon Wagari's knowledge, her two compan- 
 ions took up their small bundles, hoping to reach, if 
 possible, the end of their journey before morning. As 
 they approached the muddy monster, rising like a huge 
 sugar-loaf to the height of seven thousand feet, and 
 flanked by several others whose height varied from one 
 to six thousand feet, all abruptly rising from the hard- 
 baked plain, and their ears were assailed with the in- 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 creased and deafening roar of the combined blasts of 
 them all, Josephine was almost as much frightened as 
 when she made her first attempt to enter the black forest 
 near Kali Chandi the night before. She looked around 
 in terror for some place to which she might fly. Wagari 
 and Mattah-Djarri, divining her fear, grasped her hands 
 to reassure her. 
 
 " It is nothing," said the former. " We have only to 
 be careful to tread in the path." 
 
 " You are mistaken, Wagari," cried Josephine excit- 
 edly. " I feel the earth tremble and sink beneath my 
 feet ; surely it will part and let us down. And look at 
 those black heaps with the steam coming out of them," 
 indicating the small mounds, varying from two to twelve 
 feet in height, that studded the cracked surface of the 
 plain, a clearly defined crater in the middle of each, 
 from which httle streams of mud flowed down, and jets 
 of steam rushed out of the holes and fissures that cov- 
 ered their sides, in imitation of their great principal. 
 
 " I see them," said Wagari ; " no doubt they have 
 been going on like that for an eternity, but we '11 pass 
 them in safety, if you don't attempt to run — you don't 
 know where — perhaps into a spring of boiling mud." 
 
 " Did you ever pass this place ? " asked Josephine, in 
 continued alarm. 
 
 Wagari, without answering, held her companions' hands 
 tightly and they all hurried over the ground, each one 
 feeling the undulating motion of the earth as it gently 
 rose and fell beneath their weight, instinctively stepping 
 lightly, lest the raging demons below should rise and 
 drag them downward. 
 
 When they felt they were safely over the dangerous 
 spot, Wagari replied to Josephine's question by say- 
 ing, — 
 
364 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 " I have been here hefore with the Nonyah and the 
 Tuan, and there is the well or pool," pointing to a large 
 square of quaking mud, soft and distinct from the baked 
 and cracked surface around it, " where we saw a kuda 
 sink out of sight in the hot mass beneath." 
 
 " Indeed ! How dreadful ! " cried Josephine, becom- 
 ing more frightened, as she looked at it and thought how 
 easily she might have made her bed in the boiling black 
 pulp, had she followed the impulse of her terrors a few 
 moments before. 
 
 " How did it happen, Wagari," asked Mattah-Djarri, 
 " that the kuda fell in ? " 
 
 " He was ridden by a stranger," answered Wagari, 
 " who was unacquainted with the nature of the ground, 
 and was trpng to get as near as possible to the base of 
 the Papandayang. Suddenly he found the horse beneath 
 him sti'uggling in the liquid mud. He had presence of 
 mind sufficient to spring off its back and extricate him- 
 self, with the assistance of the Tuan, before it was too 
 late, but the unfortunate animal sank lower and lower, 
 its tongue protruding and its eyes nearly bursting out of 
 its head, as it writhed and struggled in the seething mud, 
 till at last it sank out of sight entirely. I assure you 
 the sight was sickening." 
 
 " Let us get as far from it as possible," cried Mattah- 
 Djarri and Josephine, hastening forward and looking 
 back with horror on the fatal spot. 
 
 By this time the sun had dropped behind the moun- 
 tains, which here spread far apart, adding greatly to the 
 width of the plain, as if to give to the Papandayang and 
 his excited aides-de-camp as much room for action as pos- 
 sible. The girls noticed, however, with much satisfac- 
 tion, that as the darkness began to gather, the flames is- 
 suing from the sides and summits of the volcanoes and 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 365 
 
 muddy little hillocks threw sufficient light upon the 
 ground to enable them to see the path clearly and avoid 
 aU such miry pitfalls as the one they had just passed. 
 When they had gotten around and somewhat beyond the 
 Fapandayang Salatan, the Holy Fires or gas fountains 
 of. Melati Berbar suddenly burst upon their view. 
 
 " "What a sight ! " they almost simultaneously ex- 
 claimed, stopping to gaze in awe and wonder upon the 
 lurid jets of flame, shooting straight up in the stUl air to 
 an immense height, without noise or apparent motion, and 
 iUumLaating the plain for a great distance around. Look- 
 ing back on the Fapandayang, they could see a large 
 stream of water gushing out of the mouth of the crater 
 on the side next to them, running down over the mud 
 into the plain, where it fiUed up aU the clefts and pools, 
 and boiled up again from the heat below. Pits or shal- 
 low wells around the base were filled with mud, which 
 rose and sank, in the bright light, with constantly recur- 
 ring regularity. The noise was more terrific than ever ; 
 the roaring of the water, the explosions from the gas- 
 eous mud, the hoarse thunder from the hammering vol- 
 canoes, with the shrill whistle of the escaping steam, pro- 
 duced a complication of sounds that were indescribable. 
 Added to this was the singular splendor of the shooting 
 flames in front, against the black green of the moun- 
 tains which rose in distinct and majestic outline behind 
 them. Josephine clung to her companions in bewil- 
 dered terror. " Have we not come upon the infernal re- 
 gions ? " she wildly demanded. "Wagari, though amused 
 at her question, which she could but admit presented 
 some appearance of truth, led her forward as fast as 
 she could, and otherwise endeavored to calm her fears 
 and restore her composure. By the time they came op- 
 posite the Holy Fires, distance had softened the noises 
 
366 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 in their rear and Josephine was able to laugh at the 
 curious impression that had recently affected her, aver- 
 ring she had had the conviction for a short time that she 
 had truly come upon the abodes of the wicked. 
 
 Perceiving on reflection that it would be quite impos- 
 sible to enter the ruins of the Chandi Hindu while it was 
 dark, even should they succeed in reaching them, and 
 Wagari, not being positive, in the uncertain moonlight, 
 which one of the many little valleys strikiug ofE in various 
 directions from the great plain was the right one to 
 choose to reach the Guwa Upas, thought it would be most 
 expedient to find a place within the protective light 
 thrown by the jets of holy fire to rest and wait till day- 
 light. Soon selecting a little depression in the warm 
 earth they curled down into it, sorely oppressed by fatigue 
 and hunger, but with a feeling of security they had not 
 felt within the last twenty-four hours. Indeed they ap- 
 peared quite safe from intrusion from the outside world. 
 The mountain ranges had again drawn nearer to each 
 other on both sides of the plain and seemed to loom up 
 over them in bold defiance towards everything beyond. 
 The huge Papandayang and his associates appeared to be 
 suddenly imbued with compassion, and quite blocked up 
 their passage in the rear, while a continuous mountain 
 chain effectually closed the upper end of the valley which 
 they were approaching. 
 
 As they huddled close together, trying to think how 
 they could get some food, they each began to experi- 
 ence a realizing sense of the isolation and importance of 
 the step they had taken. To Wagari it was not a 
 matter of such vital import as it was to her two com- 
 panions ; to them it was a leap in life they could never 
 recall, and to Mattah-Djarri it might prove a leap be- 
 yond. 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 367 
 
 They could distinguish the attaps of dozens of kam- 
 pongs dotting the dark foliage on the base of the moun- 
 tains on each side and, late as it was, Wagari deter- 
 mined to go to one of them and seek something to eat, 
 hoping some needy tukang makanan might be found who 
 had not yet sold out his stores and closed his baskets. 
 When Wagari had gone a few steps, Mattah-Djarri and 
 Josephine jumped up and ran after her. They were 
 afraid to be separated from her or let her go alone. Her 
 knowledge of the cduntry and her cheering presence were 
 indispensable. Wagari, however, insisted upon them both 
 going back to their strange bed to remain till she re- 
 turned, explaining, that Josephine's head rolled up in a 
 sembong, when she was walking about apparently well, 
 would be such an uncommon sight that it might lead to 
 their betrayal. 
 
 Mattah-Djarri and Josephine went reluctantly back 
 and crept down again into the soft, warm sand, watching 
 Wagari disappear toward the shadowy mountains' base, 
 and looking for her return the moment they had lost sight 
 of her. It seemed ages while they waited for her re- 
 appearance. Hearing a footstep, they raised then* heads 
 expecting to see her. It was a man, who appeared to be 
 crossing the valley on the path Wagari had taken. In- 
 stantly ducking their heads, they watched him pass, not 
 more than two dozen yards distant. 
 
 " I hope Wagari wiU not meet him," whispered Mat- 
 tah-Djarri, as they looked after him and noticed his firm 
 and rapid step, and that he kept turning his head and 
 looking observantly around him, while he hurried on 
 swinging a broad chapung on his arm. 
 
 " Do you think he saw us ? " whispered Josephine, in 
 answer to her cousin's remark. 
 
 " Tiada," replied Mattah-Djarri. " We are quite hid- 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 den in this hollow place; besides, he did not torn his 
 face this way." 
 
 " I observed that," said Josephine, " although he ap- 
 peared to be looking about in search of something." 
 
CHAPTER XL. 
 
 While the emissaries of the Bopati and the Tumung'- 
 gung were diligently pushing their inquiries in the kam- 
 pongs in every direction for some tidings of the fugitives, 
 Boorah was quietly pursuing a clew of his own. The 
 bundle of paning'sat, the basin under the pavilion with 
 its tell-tale stains, the missing flambeaux of the tukang 
 kaju near the gate of the kampong, with the money left 
 behind, were convincing evidences to his practiced ex- 
 perience of the precautions used by the princess and her 
 companions to insure successful flight. The next query 
 was, whither had they flown ? which road or path had 
 they chosen ? On the supposition that they had passed 
 out of the kampong by the main road, leading directly 
 from the tukang kaju, he followed it, carefully observing 
 every little indication by the way. Arriving at the forest 
 where the highway branched off in different directions, he 
 hesitated and searched a long time before he could find 
 any trace or sign from which he could draw an in- 
 ference. Here he passed several hours, slowly walking 
 backward and forward in both directions with his body 
 half bent and his face near the ground in close scrutiny 
 of every leaf, stone, pebble, mark, or track of any kind 
 that he perceived. Nothing presented itself from which 
 he could glean any information, till his eyes fell upon the 
 two half-burnt ends of the matches Wagari had used to 
 light the flambeaux. Picking them up out of a little 
 hollow left by an overturned pebble, he examined them 
 and pronounced them HoUandais. This Uttle crrcum- 
 
370 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 stance was a page of revelation. No one but the princess, 
 or some one from the dalam, would use such expensive 
 lighting material, and those mute, tiny, half-burnt splin- 
 ters informed Boorah which road the fugitives had taken. 
 
 He set ofiE with the eagerness and vigor of a blood- 
 hound and with a speed that would have overtaken them 
 long before they reached the Papandayang, had he been 
 able to follow them without stopping to make inquiries. 
 After leaving the forest, he visited half a dozen kam- 
 pongs before he discovered the one where the tandus 
 had been hired, and he was hunting about there for some 
 time before he obtained this clew. How he exulted when 
 he found the tukang karata from whom they had hired 
 the tandus, and saw the gold piece paid for them. How 
 he traced Wagari's cunning hand in it aU ! and the sick 
 woman from the kampong above ! Who else could she 
 be but the Nonah Josephine or the young Badan grown 
 tired and iU from the unaccustomed exertion .'' 
 
 Thus he arranged it all in his own mind to suit him- 
 self, and in so doing came nearer the truth than he sup- 
 posed. Feeling sure he was now upon the right trail, 
 Coorah engaged the services of two others whose calling 
 was the same as his own, and hurried after the tandus 
 in the direction indicated by the tukang karata, intending 
 actually to set his own eyes upon the three girls, and then 
 place his spies upon them, while he hastened away to 
 inform his master and claim his life. 
 
 Toward sunset he was overjoyed to meet the four 
 blandong or foresters, returning with the empty tandus. 
 He learned from them the exact spot where they had 
 left the three women, also the kampong and the odd 
 dwelling, pointed out by Wagari as the place of their 
 destination. Boorah and his assistants started again 
 with increased ardor, soon separating to enter the kam- 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 371 
 
 pong from different sides. He had not a doubt, now, 
 but that he would soon see the objects of his search, and 
 began to calculate the time it would require to return to 
 his master, and to instruct his assistants how to maintain 
 a communication with him during his absence. His dis- 
 appointment was very great, on reaching the kampong, 
 to find it consisted of a small collection of huts, and 
 that the house alluded to near by was the residence of 
 a baku (small chief), and, furthermore, that no strangers 
 had been in the kampong that day. 
 
 Boorah was loath to believe this report, and lost consid- 
 erable time in assuring himself of its truth. When at 
 last he was compelled to accept it, he concluded the blan- 
 dong had only made a mistake in the location of the 
 kampong, and at the worst the fugitives could not be far 
 off. He returned to the entrance of the plain of the 
 Deing, and commenced a close search for tracks or foot- 
 prints leading in the direction of the mountain side. He 
 soon discovered the impress of a little spatu in the soft 
 earth, the toe pointing in the direction of the Papanda^ 
 yang. Again his heart bounded with hope and exulta- 
 tion. Surely, none but the Radan ajeng and her com- 
 panions could be on that plain with spatus on their feet. 
 The class of natives who indulged in such luxuries did 
 not walk abroad, and the poorer classes never dreamed of 
 so incumbering themselves. 
 
 Boorah, determined not to be baffled, nor to lose his 
 head, ordered his assistant mata^mata to visit and make 
 inquiries in every kampong on one side of the plain, 
 while he did the same on the other, and appointed a place 
 of meeting beyond the Holy Fires of Melati Berbar. 
 
CHAPTER XLI. 
 
 A FEW moments after the man with the chapung had 
 passed, and while Mattah-Djarri and Josephine still lay 
 cowering and whispering in the hoUow in the sand, they 
 heard other footsteps, and a moment later Wagari came 
 running with her arms fuU of green packages, and dex- 
 terously slipping down heside them, exclaimed in an 
 excited whisper, — 
 
 " Boorah, Boorah ! he is there ! " throwing her hand 
 toward the side of the valley from which she had just 
 come. 
 
 " Merciful Allah ! " exclaimed Mattah-Djarri. "Then 
 we have seen him." 
 
 " I met him," continued Wagari, " or rather, I saw 
 some one coming to meet me under the trees in the kam- 
 pong and I slipped to one side of a warung. He stopped 
 and bought some tombaku and nasi, where I had just 
 made a purchase, and asked where he could get a mat 
 and pillow to take a few hours' sleep. I almost stopped 
 breathing to listen. Then he inquired if there was any 
 news or many strangers in the kampong. The tukang 
 makanan was not disposed to say much, and merely di- 
 rected him where to obtain a kloso and bantal, and 
 Boorah paid for his purchase and went on, and I flew 
 back here. Surely, he is seeking you, my noble mis- 
 tress." 
 
 Mattah-Djarri trembled as Wagari concluded. She 
 had no doubt of the truth of her last statement; and 
 where would they go to escape the keen-eyed mata^mata ? 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 373 
 
 They shrank down closer together into the hollow and 
 tried to think. They believed he had not seen them, 
 yet they could not be certain. He might have seen them, 
 and, to detect where they were going, pretended he had 
 not, and in the mean time place a watch upon them. 
 They knew they could form no idea of what a Javanese 
 saw or knew from what he did or said. They did not 
 know what instant he might be upon them. If the wind 
 stirred they were sure it was he. 
 
 Wagari thought of the grinning delight of the old 
 Tumung'gnng when he again beheld her mistress, and 
 groaned aloud. Josephine prayed that the Pateh would 
 come before they could be captured. Mattah-Djarri be- 
 trayed no excitement and suggested that they had better 
 press on to the Guwa Upas, dark as the Uttle vaUey 
 through which they had to pass might be, saying there 
 was stUl a chance of their not having been seen and of 
 yet reaching the cell of the recluse in safety. 
 
 As they thus anxiously debated, the demands of hun- 
 ger called loudly, and with one accord they unwrapped 
 the parcels of rice and began to devour it greedily. 
 When they had finished their hurried and ravenous meal, 
 they felt stronger and more hopeful. Mattah-Djarri and 
 Wagari whisperingly discussed the possibility of still 
 reaching the Chandi Hindu without interruption from 
 Boorah or his assistants, for they were sure he was not 
 alone in the search. Even yet the Pateh might rescue 
 them, or, perhaps, after all their concern, the dreaded 
 mata-mata might be ignorant of their proximity to the 
 Holy Fires, and was only following up a stray suspicion. 
 They concluded to get away from their present hiding- 
 place as quickly as possible. The latter proved much 
 more difficult than they had supposed. Several times they 
 raised up to start, each time sinkuig down again in appre- 
 
374 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 hension. The ground all around them was quite bare of 
 vegetation, and the jets of fire threw a white light over 
 it far and near, rendering it impossible for a moving 
 object to escape observation. 
 
 Josephine, who was almost worn out with fatigue and 
 excitement and who needed rest, opposed leaving their 
 present place of seeming security before morning, re- 
 minding her companions that the moon would soon go 
 down behind the mountains, and as soon as they were be- 
 yond the reflections from the jets of flame, as they had 
 no flambeaux, they would be in darkness, and declared 
 she was utterly unable to encounter again the terrors 
 of the previous night. 
 
 Between these doubts and fears the poor girls passed 
 the few hours remaining before daylight, proposing to slip 
 away when the approaching dawn would soften the livid 
 glare spread everywhere by the shooting flames. Just 
 before the gray began to gather in the east, Wagari 
 touched her two companions, and silently pointed to the 
 figure of Boorah standing before the lurid jets not three 
 hundred yards distant. What was he doing ? Did he 
 wish them to know he had seen them and still saw them ? 
 
 Wagari felt her mistress's slender fingers almost sink 
 into her flesh, as the latter pressed her arm in her sus- 
 pense and apprehension. Presently they saw two men 
 approach Boorah from the opposite side of the valley. 
 After a few moments' conversation and some apparent 
 reflection, they all moved off together in the latter direc- 
 tion. 
 
 " They are going to the kampongs on the other side," 
 whispered Wagari. " They have not seen us." 
 
 As the men disappeared in the gloom beyond the great 
 circle of light, they each drew a long breath and felt 
 around them for their little bundles, the crowing cocks 
 
A PRTNC£SS OF JAVA. 875 
 
 from the kampongs warning them daylight was fast ap- 
 proaching. 
 
 In a few moments more they were swiftly gliding 
 away toward the upper end of the valley, without once 
 looking back on the immense jets of flame or the steam- 
 ing dome of the thundering Papandayang. 
 
 " Now, the Guwa Upas, Wagari," exclaimed Mattah- 
 Djarri, as soon as they were clear of the glare of the 
 light. " Lead the way, and let us hasten ; and Josie," 
 turning to the latter, " keep your sembong carelessly 
 thrown over your head, and I will do the same," adjust- 
 ing her own, " and don't forget to keep close behind 
 Wagari." 
 
 Wagari almost ran, so great was her haste, begging 
 her companions to follow close upon her. " Faster, 
 faster," she urged. " Soon the hiUs will be covered with 
 the laboring people going to the streams to bathe." 
 
 It was not necessary for Wagari to thus admonish 
 them twice, for they hurried forward with a rapidity 
 that was truly surprising. The only impediment was 
 Josephine's spatus. She dropped them off constantly. 
 
 Not accustomed to walking with them over the ground, 
 her tired feet refused the muscular effort required to 
 keep them on, as they rushed over the rough paths they 
 had to follow through the little ascending vaUey after 
 quitting the plain. As she could not take a step on her 
 tender feet without the spatus, Mattah-Djarri was con- 
 tinually stooping to pick them up and throw them for- 
 ward to her. A couple of hours of this laborious travel 
 brought them to the base of a chain of low hOls, around 
 one of which a tangled path wound gradually upward. 
 Without hesitation, Wagari chose this path, following it 
 with her two companions tiU they had made more than 
 one half of the upward circle, when they suddenly 
 
876 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 stopped to gaze down upon a broad waste of dull yellow 
 sand, upon which the morning sun poured down in burn- 
 ing splendor. 
 
 " The Guwa Upas ! " exclaiined Wagari, sliding down 
 on the grass beside the edge of the path to look . at it. 
 Mattah-Djarri and Josephine followed her example, gaz- 
 ing down in awe and surprise on the desolate, mysterious 
 solitude. Not a living thing was to be seen upon it. 
 Not so much as a blade of grass. Here and there were 
 spots white with scattered bones shining in the sun, and 
 not far from the green and rising shore of sloping grass 
 was the half-decomposed carcass of an animal. Presently 
 a bird fluttered down on the sand, flapped its wings a few 
 moments in fruitless efforts to rise again, then settled into 
 quiet, and soon its body stiffened out in the rigidity of 
 death. 
 
 Mattah-Djarri sighed and turned away her head, and 
 arose, suggesting it would be more prudent to seek the 
 ancient ruins containing the cell of the holy recluse im- 
 mediately. Looking around and observing the broken 
 and scattered deities of the dismantled temples, which 
 rose from every hill in the vicinity, she asked after a 
 moment's reflection, — 
 
 " Wagari, in which one is the cave of the Ber-tapa ? " 
 (sect of wandering priests and hermits). 
 
 " It is just over that ridge," answered Wagari, pointing 
 toward the greenest and highest elevation near them. 
 " And that little yellow line you see coming down is a 
 path that leads around it to a kampong and kali (river) 
 in the jurang (space between two hills above a vaUey) on 
 the other side. The Nonyah and the Tuan procured 
 their food from that kampong, while the latter was pur- 
 suing his researches." 
 
 "We wiU go there," said Mattah-Djarri, moving to- 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 377 
 
 ward the rich green dome, where part of an arch, and a 
 section of leaning wall, the lower half stUl standing up- 
 right, with many smaller figures too far off to be distin- 
 guished, proclaimed the site of an ancient Hindu temple. 
 As they passed along the sides of the hills towards it, 
 they could see below, through the occasional openings be- 
 tween the palms and cocoas, the attaps of the kampong 
 Kali Beber, of which Wagari had spoken, situated on 
 both sides of the kali which wound around the base of the 
 hills with a pleasant murmuring sound. 
 
CHAPTER XLII. 
 
 The kampong Kali Beber, situated between the hills 
 on the base of one of the towering peaks of the Guning 
 Deing, which rose maiiy thousand feet above the chain of 
 lulls surrounding the poisoned valley called the Guwa 
 Upas, has attained some celebrity as being in the imme- 
 diate vicinity of many of the most ancient and interesting 
 Chandi Hindu (Hindu temples) in Java. 
 
 In these localities the hiUs and mountain sides in every 
 direction, and in some instances to the very summits of 
 the latter, are covered with the decayed and dilapidated 
 ruins of what must once have been the most magnificent 
 edifices. Multitudes of their images in copper and brass 
 are strewn around them on the ground in nearly every 
 conceivable shape. It was in one of these ancient ruins 
 that Mattah-Djarri, Josephine, and Wagari hoped to find 
 concealment for a short time ; either tiU the Patch came 
 and delivered them by his assistance and protection, or 
 until they could find an opportunity to escape from the 
 island. 
 
 The ruin they were approaching was one of the largest 
 and most imposing of them all. As the three girls drew 
 near the principal entrance, animals with wings stared at 
 them from dull, copper eyes, or stood with two heads and 
 siK feet in the long grass. Battered figures of human 
 beings, bearing the evidences of many centuries, crouched 
 among the low bushes, with three heads to one body and 
 mouths wide open, grinning hideously at them as they 
 passed. Bows of rechas (images in stone or copper), 
 
4 PRINCESS OF JAVA. 379 
 
 representing the guardians of a door "or passage, sat and 
 stood on each side of what must have been the principal 
 entrance of the temple. Gaining the inside of this por- 
 tico, they were amazed at the evidences of grandeur and 
 magnificence which must once have adorned the structure. 
 " I knew you would be surprised," said Wagari, address- 
 ing Josephine. "The Tuan blanda thought it was 
 wonderful. He never grew tired of inspecting it and 
 talking about it. I don't believe there is a stone or old 
 relic that he has not turned over and examined a dozen 
 times." 
 
 " If our old professor could be set down here," re- 
 turned Josephine, alluding to her school life, " how he 
 would open his eyes ! " 
 
 Fragments of sculpture that once ornamented the walls 
 still remained. Niches for lamps and images were still 
 to be seen, and steps descending to apartments below and 
 ascending to chambers above were still fit for use and 
 guarded by grim and repulsive reohas at every turn. 
 Portions of antique platforms, which appeared to indi- 
 cate special spots for prayer and penance, were stiU pre- 
 served. Where wei^e the legions that had knelt upon 
 them, breathing forth their desires, their pains, and their 
 prayers to the great Inspiration that prompted them! 
 Gone like the leaves on the trees back to the invisible 
 embraces of the great Mother, and their spirits also to 
 draw nearer the hopes that they sought. 
 
 On one side of the ruin a square space appeared to 
 have been used for a burial ground (chunkup). Broken 
 and half -disintegrated pieces of tombs and monuments in 
 stone and brass, with strange inscriptural characters stiU 
 visible on their surfaces, were lying about on the grass in 
 thick profusion. Wagari, who had been there before, 
 attempted to give the interpretation of some of the most 
 
380 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 legible, as she remembered to have heard it from the 
 western savant. 
 
 " These," said she, touching the fragments of a broken 
 brass bell, or cup, with the toe of her spatu, as they 
 passed along, to draw attention to the hieroglyphics 
 plainly visible on one side, " extolled the virtues of their 
 deities, and those on the pedestal explained the various 
 Uses and purposes of the temples. Some of these figures, 
 stopping to look around, laud the heroic deeds of the 
 departed chiefs vrho have now become gods. That im- 
 age," pointing to a figure with three mutilated heads, 
 " resembles one I saw in the great temple of Bodo-Bodo, 
 and the one near it is intended to represent Brahma as- 
 cending from the dangers of the sun, to the great impa- 
 tience and annoyance of the former." 
 
 After crossing the chuiAup the weary girls reached 
 that part of the ruin in which the abandoned cell of the 
 Ber-tapa was situated, and which appeared to have formed 
 one side of the graveyard. HaK-broken columns were 
 lying on the ground around the principal entrance, 
 through which they carefully picked their way up the 
 dilapidated steps by following the faint vestiges of a path 
 made by the feet of the recluse. The portico, a part of 
 which was still preserved, had once been grand and im- 
 posing, and afEorded a fine view of the hiUs and valleys 
 surrounding Kali Beber and the high peaks reaching 
 toward the sky beyond it. They each involuntarily 
 looked for the mysterious plain of the Guwa Upas, 
 but it was hidden by the green dome over which they 
 had just passed, and whereon was situated the ruins 
 of the first or principal part, perhaps, of the temple 
 they were now in. Inside of the great arches which 
 formed the entrance, broken steps descended to the right 
 and to the left, and passages, overrun with grass and 
 
A PRINCmSS OF JAVA. 381 
 
 weeds, spread apart as they ran forward, and were 
 crossed by others coimng from oblique and opposite 
 directions. 
 
 " Now," said Wagari, pausing, " we have arrived. Let 
 us sit down and look around us." 
 
 Seating themselves on the broken stones and images, 
 they gazed with awe upon the decayed altars, steps, and 
 passages, where thousands of human feet had passed and 
 repassed in the centuries long gone by. 
 
 " I wonder what Chatra thinks of us," said Wagari, 
 renewing-her attempt to be cheerful. 
 
 This allusion to the punctilious instructress brought the 
 probable wrath and consternation of the latter, with their 
 accompanying grimaces of helpless dismay, so vividly be- 
 fore the imaginations of Mattah-Djani and Wagari that 
 they forgot, with the elasticity of youth, their present 
 difficulties and laughed merrily, in which Josephine, 
 catching the infection, immediately joined. An inter- 
 change of comments and anecdotes relating to Chatra's 
 idiosyncrasies followed, after which the three girls felt 
 brighter, and jestingly declared they would each like to 
 select their apartments. 
 
 Alas ! Had they known the object of their mirth woidd 
 never again raise her voice in careful warning or discreet 
 instruction, and that Paputti and Schagga had been the 
 only ones left to bestow the last attentions she needed in 
 her dying hour, their amusement would have been turned 
 into tears of regret and remorse. 
 
 Wagari proposed to show the way to the cell of the 
 Pandita, and descended a half-dozen steps to the right of 
 the entrance, through a broken door to another passage 
 choked with weeds and debris, and from thence, down a 
 second and much longer flight where an old door at the 
 bottom, with comparatively new hinges supplied by the 
 
382 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 former tenant, opened into a large and clean apartment, 
 which proved to be a handsome, oblong chamber cut into 
 the soUd rock. A door at the farther end, with hinges 
 like the former, led to another passage into which a series 
 of smaller, square, round, and oblong chambers opened one 
 after the other, each dimly lighted, as was the first, by 
 rows of smooth round holes or windows pierced through 
 the rock close to the ceiling, and coming out a little above 
 the ground on the outside, where they were quite con- 
 cealed by the high grass and weeds. The passages and 
 rooms appeared to be clean and well swept, and around the 
 sides were niches and little rocky projections with lamps 
 and flambeaux resting upon them. 
 
 " Why, what can this mean ? " inquired Josephine, in- 
 dicating the lamps and ready prepared flambeaux. 
 
 " Those," answered Wagari, *' are left by the devout 
 and wandering dukuns, who go once a year to all the 
 principal temples to offer a prayer, after which they are 
 swept and left as we see them. This is a custom ob- 
 served throughout Java, by certain holy men, as an offer- 
 ing of their respect and reverence to Yewang Widi " (the 
 Holy Deity). 
 
 " Suppose we light a flambeau," said Josephine, reach- 
 ing for one lying on a projection just inside the door. 
 
 " No indeed ! " cried Wagari in alarm, who, like the 
 Javans generally, cherished many Hindu superstitions, 
 " Mithra (the great God) would frown upon us." 
 
 Josephine, impressed by the speaker's words, drew 
 her hand back without touching the flambeaux, and 
 asked what the husband of her former employer had 
 said about these chambers and passages, and for what pur- 
 pose they were used. After reflecting a moment, Wagari 
 replied, — 
 
 " He said they were of such a remote date that very 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 383 
 
 little that was reliable was known about them, and that 
 these chambers were hewn with much care, and were 
 doubtless devoted to important uses, but whether by the 
 ancient Hindus or some still more remote race, he could 
 not decide. In ancient language, he said, these temples 
 were called Bethel, which meant the house of the temple 
 of the sun. But no matter, Nonah, what they may 
 mean, or by whom constructed ; all these things have been 
 consecrated by the holy Ber-tapa, and we must not touch 
 them." 
 
 " I am sure I have no desire to touch them," said 
 Josephine, stepping back into the first and largest apart- 
 ment, " and I would like to see this door fastened," 
 putting her hand upon it to hold it back for Mattah- 
 Djarri and Wagari to come out, " and not opened 
 again." 
 
 " And I, also," said Mattah-Djarri, and it was closed 
 and fastened as securely as possible, not to be opened 
 again while they remained. 
 
 " But this first and largest apartment, Wagari," said 
 Mattah-Djarri, " perhaps it is a desecration to use it," 
 feehng her religious superstitions making a claim upon 
 her conscience. 
 
 " No, my noble mistress. Had this chamber been 
 Sonsecrated to the great Mithra, the BeMapa would have 
 regarded it with becoming reverence, and died rather 
 than have profaned it by converting it to his own use." ' 
 
 "I thought so," said Mattah-Djarri, "but was not 
 sure." 
 
 " Come, let us arrange our chambers," interposed Jo- 
 sephine in a gay tone, " and leave the gods to take care 
 of theirs. Where shall we eat, where shall we sleep ? " 
 she cried, affecting to be gay. " I am quite starved 
 again," and she looked meaningly at Wagari, who 
 
384 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 laughed, and said she would go to the kampong Kali 6e- 
 ber to get some food. 
 
 " Do, my good Wagari," said Josephine approvingly, 
 " and don't forget we have plenty of money." 
 
CHAPTER XLin. 
 
 Acting upon the hint conveyed in Josephine's remark, 
 Wagari untied their bundles, taking out one of the coarse 
 sarongs and kaybayas bought in Kali Chandi, and throw- 
 ing them over her shoulder, left the chamber and sought 
 the stream at the base of the hiU, some distance above 
 Kali Beber, where she immediately began to bathe, turn- 
 ing her face towards Mecca, as is the general custom. 
 
 Josephine and Mattah-Djarri, in the mean time, shook 
 the dust off their garments, and looked over the contents 
 of their bundles, placing them on the projections and 
 niches hewn in the rock, and examining the bali-bali (a 
 low bench from six to ten feet square, covered with 
 springy strips of split bambu, and used as a bed) left 
 by the Pandita, and upon which they would have to 
 sleep. In the centre of the chamber was a polished, 
 flat, stone table, hewn from the rock, and on the side, 
 below* one of the deep tunnel-like apertures that ad- 
 mitted the Ught, was a small platform with two or three 
 stones ranged upon it to form a fire-place, with a brass 
 pipe leading to the opening above to carry off the smoke, 
 also a reminiscence of the holy recluse. 
 
 " It is not so bad as it might have been, is it, Mattie ? " 
 said Josephine, stepping about on the tips of her toes, 
 " but I am dreadfully afraid of a toke (snake or lizard) 
 coming out of some one of these corners," looking at each 
 one in apprehension. " You know they live in dark 
 places." 
 
 " But you see there is nothing of the kind here, Josie," 
 replied Mattah-Djarri. " Everything is swept 61ean." 
 
386 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 " I see it is," replied Josephine. " Still, I can't divest 
 myself of the feeling." 
 
 After Wagari had bathed, she wrung all the water 
 she could out of her long, black hair, combed it, twisted 
 it up into the conde, spread her wet sarong and kay- 
 baya on the grass, and pursued her way to the kampong, 
 where she sought a warung, and purchased the best she 
 could find, haggling very long over the price, under the 
 plea of poverty, to escape suspicion. She chose a differ- 
 ent path to lead her back to the hills, a part of which 
 was much frequented as the direct route to a clump of 
 mango-trees, where there was a seat commanding a view 
 of the Guwa Upas. Here she sat down a few moments, 
 soon perceiving that with a little caution ingress and 
 egress to and from the ruins could easily be managed 
 from this point without observation. 
 
 When Wagari returned, she found her companions 
 sitting on the side of the bali-bali discussing the possibil- 
 ity of obtaining a bath, so indispensable in a hot climate. 
 Neither of them had ever bathed in a kali in their lives, 
 moreover it would be a dangerous experiment for them 
 at this time. If they went at the usual hour in the morn- 
 ing or evening, they could not escape the notice of the in- 
 habitants going and coming from the banks of the stream 
 at all points, and if they went earlier or later, they still 
 ran the risk of meeting an early or tardy bather ; and 
 if they went after dark, they would draw upon them- 
 selves a marked attention, for there is a superstition 
 among the lower class of Javanese about approaching a 
 stream of water after nightfall. They believe the banks 
 of the streams are peopled with the antu (spirits or 
 ghosts) after sunset, and carefully avoid intruding upon 
 them. To allow Wagari to carry water to them was 
 impossible. There was only one expedient left. They 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 387 
 
 must try to find a spring concealed among the ruins, and 
 as springs and fountains bubble up plentifully on the 
 side of nearly every elevation in Java, and dwellings and 
 buildings are always erected near the bank of a spring 
 or stream, they concluded they could find one choked 
 up somewhere by the rubbish around the ruins, so when 
 Wagari noiselessly entered and began to lay her parcels 
 on the stone table, they dropped the subject and sprang 
 toward her, exclaiming, — 
 
 " What have you, Wagari, what have you brought us ? " 
 watching with the eager curiosity of young children to 
 see her um-olling the green plantains one after the other. 
 
 When the last and largest parcel was unwrapped and 
 disclosed a little square piece of looking-glass in a crude 
 bambu frame, ornamented with a small wooden goose 
 sitting on each corner, and was followed by a pretty pink 
 earthen tea-pot containing a paper of native tea-leaves 
 and a little kompor (an earthen vessel in which to 
 build a fire) stuffed with rosin-knots, their delight and 
 enthusiasm made Wagari's brown face turn red with 
 pleasure. 
 
 " What a darling treasure you are, Wagari," said 
 Josephine, helping herself liberally to some of the white 
 and pearly-looking sweetened rice cakes the former had 
 purchased. " I promise you a fortune in the name of the 
 Pateh ; yes, he will more than thank you," she continued 
 musingly, after which she foBgot for a short time her 
 keen appetite, and her eyes took on a far-away look, 
 while her thoughts wandered ofE to the object of all her 
 hopes and dreams. 
 
 When their hunger was appeased, they agreed to make 
 themselves as comfortable as possible, and Wagari sallied 
 forth a second time to the kampong to secure some mats 
 or klosos to spread over the bali-bali and something that 
 
388 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 would answer for pillows, trusting to luck or her own in- 
 genuity to smuggle them up to the ruins without observa- 
 tion. During her absence Mattah-Djarri and Josephine 
 ascended the old steps to explore the ancient temples 
 and find, perchance, an old fountain or spring. In this 
 they were more fortunate than they expected, in very 
 quickly coming upon what must once have been a mag- 
 nificent fountain with a sparkling stream still welling up 
 in its centre, and almost immediately lost again, as it rip- 
 pled away under the weeds and grass. 
 
 " "We can make it answer," said Mattah-Djarri, look- 
 ing with gratification on the clear water, " and I long to 
 try it and get this stain oflf," rubbing her pink finger^ 
 nails with her thumbs and carefuUy holding them up to 
 examine them. 
 
 " I hope Wagari will think of bringing some mangis- 
 tans," replied Josephine. " I am really afraid I shall 
 never be white again," looking with aversion on the 
 pretty brown hue stUl covering her hands and arms. 
 
 " She will not forget them," said Mattah-Djarri. " She 
 spoke of them herself. She wants to get the stain ofE 
 her own face, yet it does appear safer to keep it on." 
 
 " Oh ! I can't endure it, Mattie. I feel frightened 
 every time I look down at my hands ; at any rate, let us 
 get our dry sarongs and bathe in this water, and when 
 Wagari comes she wUl decide about the stain." 
 
 The first thing Wagari's eyes rested upon when she 
 passed within the old portico of the temple were the wet 
 sarongs of her mistress and the Nonah spread over some 
 weeds to dry. " Ini bagus sakali " (this is very fine), 
 said she, hurrying down the steps and delightedly display- 
 ing the articles for which she had gone, with the addi- 
 tion of a long string, of purple mangistans. In a very 
 short time the ofEensive stains were removed, and the 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 389 
 
 three weary and exhausted young girk were sound asleep 
 on the bali-bali. 
 
 When they opened their eyes again it was growing 
 dark. They stared at one another the first few seconds 
 in utter bewilderment, before memory returned, and the 
 dangers and anxieties of their position were recalled. 
 The first thing they needed was a light, and Wagari was 
 on her way to the kampong in no time, while her com- 
 panions drew their feet up on the bali-bali in the gather- 
 ing gloom and waited for her return. 
 
 As the darkness increased a new fear crept over Jose- 
 phine. She remembered to have heard that old ruins 
 were always infested with legions of serpents. She had 
 not thought jof this before, beyond the vague fears she 
 had experienced when they first entered. 
 
 " Mattie," she said, " the ular lanang (one of the most 
 poisonous snakes in Java) lives about dwellings. I have 
 heard papa say so." 
 
 " But this chamber is cut in the solid rock, dear Josie," 
 answered Mattah-Djarri. " So we are not in danger." 
 
 " They could come in through those holes," returned 
 Josephine, looking up at the round apertures for the ad- 
 mission of light, " or they might crawl down the steps." 
 
 Wagari's return with two or three lamps and an abun- 
 dant supply of cocoa-nut oil dispelled Josephine's fears for 
 the moment, but after they had eaten their suppers and 
 the lamps were desirably placed for the night, they were 
 not to be chased away so easily, and she again took her 
 position on the bali-bali and drew her feet under her, 
 while her big blue eyes roamed around the dark edges of 
 the room, and watched the row of loop-holes near the 
 lofty ceiling with an expression of anxious apprehension. 
 
 " What should we do," she asked argumentatively, " if 
 an ular lanang were to drop down from those windows 
 
390 A PRIifCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 when the door was shut ? It could not get out, neither 
 could we ! We would he shut up with it in this stone 
 den," looking around with a shudder. 
 
 " We would stand on the bali-baU and call the ser- 
 vants," said Mattah-Djarri, relapsing into habit, forgetting 
 they had none to call. 
 
 " Call the servants ! " reiterated the other two, smiling. 
 Then they all laughed merrily over the mistake. 
 
 Wagari suggested afterwards that perhaps they had bet- 
 ter sleep with the door open to prevent any such accident, 
 for she knew it was neither impossible nor improbable that 
 a reptile of some sort might at any moment drop through 
 the apertures, which opened near the gfround on the out- 
 side. In fact, she felt it was something that might be 
 expected. It was concluded, however, that the entrance 
 of some wild animal through the open door would be as 
 dangerous as the presence of a serpent, so the door was 
 closed, the lamps trimmed, and they each took their re- 
 spective places on the broad bali-bali to pass the night. 
 
 Long after Mattah-Djarri and Wagari had gone to 
 sleep, Josephine still sat up between them, the very 
 picture of terror. Even the beloved image of her Sarjio, 
 with his fancied words of endearment and approbation 
 could not reassure her. She watched the shadows 
 thrown on the floor by the lamps, and stared at the high, 
 smooth, tunnel-like openings inclining upward and out- 
 ward, expecting every minute to see a huge serpent glide 
 in and drop on the floor below. In her now excited im- 
 agination she depicted its exact color and size, changing 
 the latter as her fears increased or relaxed. Sometimes 
 she saw it thick, long, and blunt at both ends, with a 
 brown flabby skin dotted all over with dirty gray spots. 
 Then she changed it to a dull copper color, like one she 
 had seen beside their carriage on the way to Kali Chandi, 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 391 
 
 with a black ring around its neck and tongue protruding, 
 seemingly anxious to devour anything it might meet. 
 From this horrifying resemblance, she passed to the 
 brilliant white' and black diamond-shaped squares, regu- 
 larly diminishing in size from the middle to each ex- 
 tremity of the long and sinewy body of the formidable 
 ular lanang (snake of the earth), so called because it 
 lives in holes in the ground, in and about all kinds of 
 buildings ; its bite is considered certain death. Once or 
 twice Josephine was sure she saw the head or tail of the 
 hideously glittering creature appear inside the excava- 
 tion, immediately followed by a picture of its whole 
 length falling with a heavy thud upon the stone floor, 
 and after remaining still a moment to recover from the 
 imexpected descent, rear its head a foot or more, and 
 career around the room in vain search of some hole or 
 opening in the solid rock through which it could escape, 
 darting at last under the bali-bali and coiling itself up 
 in a great heap of snake, while she sat voiceless and 
 trembling with horror, unable to awake her sleeping com- 
 panions or warn them of the presence of the monster 
 beneath. 
 
 As the hours passed and the stillness of death reigned 
 around them, poor Josephine diversified her terrors by 
 imagining the possibility, which indeed was not an ex- 
 aggeration, of a tiger stealing stealthily down the decayed 
 steps and waiting outside the door tiU one of them should 
 open it, when it would spring upon her and carry her off 
 to the forest or mountains, as she had been told they 
 frequently did with a child in the kampong when im- 
 pelled by hunger. Fortunately, none of the imaginative 
 girl's apprehensions were realized, though she scarcely 
 dared withdraw^ her eyes long enough from the points 
 whence the expected danger was to come to look with 
 
392 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 wonder at her companions, sleeping so peacefully while 
 such horrors were waiting to descend upon them, forget- 
 ting these horrors were not regarded as such by them ; 
 for to expect and guard against a serpent, tok^i or tiger 
 was, and always had been, a part of their daily life, to 
 which custom rendered them alike familiar and indifferent, 
 and while they were unconsciously careful never to omit 
 proper precautions, they never thought of dread or alarm 
 while practicing their observance. 
 
CHAPTER XLIV. 
 
 When morning came Josephiae looked haggard and 
 languid, and lay still on the bali-bali, while her companions 
 sought the site of the old fountain, took their bath, re- 
 turned, and prepared their breakfast, which consisted of 
 the cooked rice and sambel of the previous evening with 
 the addition of tea made in the little kompor. Their 
 spirits and courage, which had kept them thus far so 
 bravely, appeared to have forsaken them. Reaction had 
 come vrith its limp and depressing effects. The where- 
 abouts of Boorah troubled them no little. Wagari, re- 
 lieved from the pressure of the excitement of the day 
 before, was afraid to go to the kampong for food. Mat- 
 tah-Djarri, though resolute and determined, was haunted 
 with the dying struggles of the bird she had seen fall on 
 the Guwa Upas. Was it sufEocating? Did it suffer pain ? 
 Was it conscious ? she asked herself. She thought the 
 latter, for it had spread its wings and tried to rise again. 
 No one had ever returned from the. Guwa Upas, after 
 having suffered seriously from the poisoned atmosphere, 
 to give their experiences. She asked Wagari, who shook 
 her head, indicating that she knew nothing. In truth, 
 Wagari, whose idea was either escape with her mistress 
 to an opposite shore or deliverance through the young 
 Patch with Josephine, was frightened when she heard 
 the question, which explained her deep meditation before 
 asking it and also those periods of abstraction that had 
 caused her so much wonder and anxiety the first days of 
 their trouble in Kali Chandi. She could not or would 
 
394 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 not think of her beautiful mistress seeking escape by- 
 death on the Guwa Upas. The idea was horrible. That 
 lovely, delicate form, to struggle, die, and lie exposed 
 and uncovered amid the bleaching bones on the deso- 
 late sands, to be beaten by the pelting rains, consumed 
 by the hot winds and scorching sims, tUl time reduced 
 it to one of the small groups of scattered white that dot- 
 ted its surface ! The thought made "Wagari positively 
 ill, and she arose, saying she would go to the kampong 
 and try to gather some news of the Radan Mattah-Djar- 
 ri's flight, which she supposed was by this time circu- 
 lated everywhere throughout the provinces of the power- 
 ful Tumung'gung and Bopati. With Boorah in then- 
 neighborhood she was anxious to know something, though 
 she had carefully refrained from alluding to her fears ; 
 for Boorah's name had been avoided since the night be- 
 side the Holy Fires, though each knew the other thought 
 of him. When Wagari reached the group of mango 
 trees on her way to Kali Beber, she shut her eyes and 
 turned her face away from the Guwa Upas, till after 
 she had made the turn in the path and placed her back 
 toward it. 
 
 After making her purchases at a small and unpreten- 
 tious toko in the suburbs, she turned about to bargain with 
 a klontang (Chinese peddler) who sat near with his packs 
 of sarongs and kain, pretending she would buy if they 
 were cheap enough. She employed this ruse to make 
 excuse for loitering a little longer in the hope of glean- 
 ing some news about her mistress's flight. The nenek 
 (woman of the toko) not having a customer at that mo- 
 ment, turned her attention to Wagari and the klontang, 
 joining with the former in beating down the prices of 
 the Chinaman, complimentarily telling him he was a 
 cheat of the finest dye, and would take the nasi out of the 
 
A PRTNCESS OF JAVA. 395 
 
 very mouths of the Javanese, and that his prices were 
 twice too much. This piece of information made them 
 all the best of friends, causing the klontang and nenek 
 toko to enter into a social and mutual derogation of each 
 other's goods, which drew around them the few passers- 
 by and was what they both desired, each hoping to add 
 thereby to their sales. 
 
 Wagari selected something, paying a little more than 
 one half of the price originally asked, which met the 
 approval of the half-dozen spectators assembled, and 
 brought forth a few sedate remarks about the honesty of 
 the cunning Chinaman, who was soliciting from each one 
 another sale at the same price, while the nenek toko also 
 took the opportunity of trying to sell a few more of her 
 parcels. The little circle in a state of mutual good humor 
 began to talk to each other about the meagre affairs of 
 the kampong, when one of the men wearing a short blue 
 and white striped badju, which showed that he belonged 
 to the gardu (guard house), anxious to show his superior 
 stock of information, retailed, in solemn voice, the recent 
 escape of the Badan ajeng, Mattah-Djarri, with a de- 
 scription of her extreme beauty, the anger of the great 
 Tumimg'gung, to whose province the kampong KaU Beber 
 belonged, and whose Radan Itu she was soon to have be- 
 come, with the shame and displeasure of the noble prince, 
 the Bopati on the Teng'gers, who was her father. 
 
 Wagari with the rest of the hearers expressed her sur- 
 prise and disapproval, and wondered at any one in their 
 senses to refuse the honor intended by the noble Tu- 
 mung'g^g ; after which she ventured to ask the man 
 with the blue and white striped badju if it was known 
 what had become of the young Radan ajeng, or if the 
 noble Bopati had a prospect of comforting his broken 
 heart by her speedy return. 
 
396 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 Looking more serious and wise than before, he an- 
 swered by saying that the matarmata were searching 
 everywhere, and that that very morning Boorah, the in- 
 comparable matarmata of the noble Tumung'gung him- 
 seK, had been in Kali Beber, and after talking a while 
 vrith his chief, went away, instructing him to take careful 
 notice of every individual who entered or left the kam- 
 pong. When he concluded, Wagari rolled up her parcels 
 in her new piece of kain, and said she must go to her 
 work, leaving the rest of the company to gape and listen 
 to the blue and white badju, whose position inspired them 
 all with an extra degree of respect. 
 
 Wagari saw they were now in great danger. Boorah 
 was close upon them, and it would not be safe to ven- 
 ture into the kampong again. Therefore she sought 
 another toko and purchased rice sufficient to last them 
 two more days, believing the Pateh must come before 
 that time. Before she had proceeded many steps from 
 the last toko on the way back to the Chandi Hindu, the 
 dull, deep sound of the tong-tong from the gardu smote 
 her ear. 
 
 The tong-tong is a hollow log, with a wide slit in one 
 side, hung by one end in the guard house, and struck 
 Uke a gong with a heavy piece of wood shaped to re- 
 semble a gigantic bowling pin, to warn the inhabitants 
 of danger or call assistance. 
 
 The first few strokes almost threw Wagari o£B her feet. 
 " Allah ! Allah ! " she exclaimed. " O Beit Allah ! " 
 raising her eyes to heaven in supplication. " My mistress 
 has been discovered, and has rushed away on the Guwa 
 Upas ! " She could not see where she was stepping, as 
 she staggered forward, mechanically counting the heavy 
 strokes resounding far and near, failing in her emotion 
 to notice the sound of hasty feet followed by the immedi- 
 
A PRINCESS OF JA VA. 397 
 
 ate slamming of gates and doors around her, as the peo- 
 ple in the streets rushed into their dwellings and secured 
 them. Suddenly her stunned understanding grasped the 
 import of the numbers she was repeating, and an expres- 
 sion of mingled joy and terror swept across her face ; at 
 the same moment she ejaculated, " Dewas bagus (beauti- 
 ful gods), it is the amok ! " Looking around, she quickly 
 darted through an opening in a fence near by. The in- 
 stant «he was inside the pahng, she stopped and looked 
 back into the street to see a Javan rushing past at full 
 speed, his ikat o£E his head, his hair disheveled and 
 streaming down his back in long, black tangled masses ; 
 his mouth red with siri, his eyes wild with frenzy, and a . 
 bloody kris held up in his hand ready to be plunged into 
 any man, woman, child, or animal that he might see or 
 meet on his course. As Wagari realized how narrowly 
 she had escaped becoming the victim of this madman, 
 she leaned against the fence faint and trembling, while 
 she kept her eyes upon the amok, who kept steadily on 
 in the middle of the now deserted streets. Before he 
 had gone far, she saw several of the white and blue 
 badjus from the guard house run out from side streets 
 and lanes, and turn in behind him in rapid pursuit. One 
 with the uleh, a sort of lasso, coiled in his hand and 
 another holding the tjang'gah. 
 
 The tjang'gah is a weapon not mdike a pitchfork, 
 with a long handle and two long prongs lined with sharp 
 inverted knives. This instrument is thrust with force 
 against the body of the escaping criminal, generally 
 from behind. The long prongs shp easily around him, 
 and the knives prevent his retreat. Thus he is held at 
 a safe distance till secured by the lasso, and if an amok, 
 he is dispatched on the spot. 
 
 Bunning the amok is the name given to a rage or 
 
398 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 frenzy the native works himself into when jealousy or re- 
 venge maddens him. He will then puU his handkerchief 
 from his head, jerk out his kris, plunge it into the offend- 
 ing party a half dozen times, and take to the streets, run- 
 ning straight before him, slaying everything he meets 
 tiU he is overtaken and destroyed. At such times the 
 tong-tong is beaten at the guard house in a peculiar way 
 to inform the villagers there is an amok, and warn them 
 to escape into their houses. In five minutes after the 
 first stroke of the tong-tong the streets are utterly devoid 
 of life, not a soul is to be seen, till again informed in the 
 same way that the amok has been run down and killed. 
 
 After Wagari had somewhat regained her composure, 
 she perceived she was in the rear inclosure of a cottage 
 fronting on the next street. Wishing to avoid all en- 
 counter with the frenzied amok and feeling that the 
 safety of her mistress depended upon her getting out of 
 the kampong as quickly as possible, to escape the vigilant 
 eye of Boorah, she entered the back door of the cottage 
 to ask permission to pass through into the street without 
 waiting to hear the tong-tong inform her that the danger 
 had passed. As she entered, a sight met her eyes that 
 chilled her blood, accustomed, as all Javanese are, to 
 such occasional scenes. On the floor before her a young 
 woman was lying in a pool of blood writhing in the ago- 
 nies of death, and near her a small boy was standing, 
 gazing down upon her, dumb and stupid from fright. 
 
 Wagari comprehended the work of the amok in an 
 instant. Shaking the boy by the arm she demanded, 
 " Who did that ? " pointing to the dying woman. 
 
 The boy only stared at her, and Wagari, not for- 
 getting her own safety in the horror inspired by the 
 dreadful sight, immediately thought of the certainty of 
 exposure U required to give her testimony, which she 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 399 
 
 knew she would be obliged to do, if recognized as having 
 been the first one to enter the house after the amok had 
 left it. She hastened to the door opening into the street 
 and looked up and down, intending to get out as quickly 
 as possible. She saw no one, but knowing the madman 
 was still running his dangerous race, she hesitated a mo- 
 ment, and looked back at the victim on the floor who had 
 ceased to move, and whom she believed was now dead. 
 One arm was thrown over her head ; her kaybaya was 
 torn nearly off her body, and the blood oozed slowly out 
 of several ghastly slashes about her neck and chest. Her 
 face was soft and pretty, and still retained a horrified 
 expression. 
 
 " Was it bapa (father) ? " Wagari asked again, looking 
 at the child and then at the victim. 
 
 " Bapa," he answered, without seeming to comprehend 
 her. 
 
 " And that is your nana (mother) ? " she continued, 
 inclining her head towards the dead woman. 
 
 " It is nana," said the chUd, staring blankly at her, as 
 before. 
 
 The signal of safety from the gardu now rang out on 
 the air, and Wagari turned and ran back through the 
 inclosm-e, gaining the street by the way she had left it. 
 She had not gone far before she met the Chinese klon- 
 tang, hastening back to take his position again on some 
 favorable corner. Halting a moment and letting the pole 
 from which his baskets were suspended at each end slip 
 from his back and shoulders, he offered her another piece 
 of cloth for the same price that she had paid before. 
 Wagari declined it and made a remark about the amok. 
 
 " Jealousy," said the klontang, grinning and putting 
 back his goods. " The parampoan was pretty." 
 
 Wagari shook her head commiseratingly and hurried 
 
400 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 on, avoiding, as much as possible, the crowds that were 
 now returning to the streets to talk about the late ex- 
 citement. She soon reached the clump of mango trees, 
 where she again shut her eyes till after she had passed 
 the turn in the path. 
 
 When she descended the steps to her companions, she 
 found Josephine sitting up, and Mattah-Djarri beside her 
 persuading her to drink some tea. She recounted all she 
 had heard in the kampong, while she took out her bundles 
 and piled them in a square heap on the stone table, after 
 which she sat down on the side of the bali-bali, and with 
 her companions tried to reckon the time it would require 
 for Satrap to reach the Pateh on the mountains, after he 
 had left Kali Chandi, and how long it ought to be before 
 the former could get to the ruins on the Guning Deing. 
 They had no idea that he would not come. Josephine 
 was positive he would start the very instant he read her 
 letter. 
 
 Mattah-Djarri and Wagari looked in her feverish face, 
 and eyes unnaturally bright, and devoutly prayed he had 
 done so. The rest of the day was passed Ln going up 
 and down the old steps to the portico above, for the 
 double purpose of scanning the lulls for the approach of 
 the Pateh, or any appearance of Boorah. 
 
CHAPTER XLV. 
 
 If there is any truth in the hypothesis of possible com- 
 munication between mind or spirit inhabiting separate 
 and distant bodies, we are not surprised that the strength 
 and vividness of the Patch's dreams and impressions 
 should have impelled him to start from the heights of the 
 Teng'gers at midnight to seek the well-being of the woman 
 he loved. If spirit can speak to spirit, soul call to soul at a 
 distance, surely he felt the yearning, imperative, terrified 
 cry of Josephine's heart, as she sat, wild-eyed and trem- 
 bling, on the bali-bali between the sleeping Mattah-Djarri 
 and Wagari, while the dark hours rolled away in the 
 gloomy cell of the Chandi Hindu. If the Patch felt the 
 terror in Josephine's heart, Tracy felt the wiU and deter- 
 mination in the bosom of the Patch, and when they were 
 set down at dark vrithin the entrance of the dangerous 
 plaui surrounding the mighty Papandayang, either his 
 sympathy or his own individual concern caused him to 
 suffer quite as much anxiety and suspense as did his 
 friend. 
 
 '' How far distant is that kampong Kali Beber now, 
 Sarjio ? " asked Tracy, as he crawled out of his tandu and 
 tried to straighten out his stiffened limbs, while he looked 
 in astonishment at the gigantic mound which Bent forth 
 the noise and uproar that smote his ears. 
 
 " Not more than eight or ten hours," replied the Patch, 
 " but we must wait here tUl the moon rises. This plain 
 is dotted vrith boiling mud springs." 
 
 "It seems improbable," returned Tracy, "that those 
 
402 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 three young girls could ever have made their way through 
 such a pandemonium of dangers as here appears." 
 
 "Yes, yes," replied the Pateh, with an audihle groan. 
 " I can't conceive of Josephine in such a place. Merci- 
 ful Allah, protect them ! " he continued, looking up to the 
 sparkling heavens and seeming to engage in silent prayer. 
 After a few moments, he resumed, turning suddenly to 
 his companion, " Tracy, suppose we seek the advice of a 
 pandita living on the mountain side not far from here, 
 one of the Ber - tapa, who has long given himself to 
 prayer and study. He professes the gift of divine illu- 
 mination. What say you ? Shall we seek him while we 
 are waiting for the moon to rise." 
 
 " By all means,'' replied Tracy, " I should like to see 
 one of your priestly prophets. If he gives me true infor- 
 mation I will helieve and join your order, Sarjio. I 
 don't suppose," he continued, " we will attract special 
 attention. Many strangers must come here to see these 
 curiosities, the mud volcanoes." 
 
 " Every one goes to the Pandita," replied the Pateh. 
 " To conduct strangers to his retreat has become quite a 
 business. Come, we will go to the nearest kampong, get 
 something to eat, and obtain a guide. A visit to the Ber- 
 tapa will explain our presence." 
 
 Tracy and the Pateh followed a guide with a flambeau 
 up the zigzag mountain path for a half hour, when they 
 turned aside to a rude structure, built under an over- 
 hanging rock, which formed its roof, back, and one side. 
 A bambu pole projected from over the door, from which 
 a twinkling red light was suspended, and a bright light 
 within shone through a small window which was shaped 
 like a half-moon to commemorate the Hegira or flight of 
 Mohammed from Mecca to Medina, when the young 
 moon lifted her slender crescent over the flying prophet 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 403 
 
 and his few devoted followers. The door was wide 
 open, and before it a man, with a long flowing beard, sat 
 in an arm chair with his face towards the East. 
 
 The guide threw down his flambeau and stepped to one 
 side, while the Patch walked forward, with Tracy behind 
 him, and saluted the Pandita by putting his hands to- 
 gether, touching his forehead, and bending his body 
 reverently towards the ground. 
 
 " Approach, my brother," said the clear, low voice of 
 the Ber-tapa, rising. " Thrice welcome to thee and thy 
 friend." 
 
 The Patch now announced his own name and that of 
 Tracy, who made a profound obeisance to the venerable 
 figure, and they both followed him into the one large square 
 room which formed his dwelling. A bali-bali covered 
 with a striped mat and a round pillow covered with the 
 same stood against the rock which formed the wall on 
 one side. Opposite, several rows of shelves contained a 
 number of books and pamphlets covered with characters 
 in Arabic. On the farthest side of the room, facing the 
 door, a piece of stone sculpture, representing Hagar in the 
 wildemess holding a botde of water to the famished 
 Ishmael, stood upon a square block of black wood. In 
 the centre was a stone table with a pitcher and two drink- 
 ing cups, made from cocoarnuts, upon it, and a bambu 
 bench and two chairs placed around it. Huge tiger- 
 skins were spread on the stones in front of the bali-bali 
 and before the bench and each chair. OfEering the two 
 latter to his guests, the Pandita seated himself on the 
 bench, fixing his glittering black eyes, first on one visitor, 
 then on the other, waiting for them to speak. 
 
 Tracy felt strangely attracted toward his host, whose 
 gaze, as it met his own, seemed to penetrate his inmost 
 being. He would no more have attempted to conceal 
 
404 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 anything from him at that moment, by evasion or pre- 
 varication, than he would have attempted to fly over the 
 plain to the summit of the Papandayang. On the con- 
 trary, had the Pandita asked it, he would have unhesitat- 
 ingly laid bare his most secret and sacred thought. A 
 desire that Sarjio would quickly speak and prevent him 
 from doing so rose in his bosom. The Pateh, however, 
 seemed unwilling to break the silence. After a moment 
 the Ber-tapa, looking him kindly in the face, addressed 
 him by using a salutation quite common in the East 
 between holy instructors and the less favored who seek 
 their aid. 
 
 " Is it well with thee, my brother ? Is it well with thy 
 house ? Is it well with thy people ? " said the Pandita 
 in courteous tones, bending his keen eyes on the dark, 
 anxious face of the young man before him. " Stay," he 
 continued, raising his hand as the Fateh was about to 
 speak. " Thou need'st not answer. I know thy thought. 
 And brother," leaning toward him, "time presses. 
 Great peril hangs over the one thou lovest. Even death 
 waits to clasp the delicate form." 
 
 As the Pandita ceased speaking, the Pateh rose, pale 
 as death, and made a hasty step toward the door. Tracy 
 also rose to foUow him, but the Ber-tapa bidding them 
 wait another moment, as present haste could not aid 
 them, looked at Tracy, his face full of pity, saying, — 
 
 " If thou would'st be content, my son, follow the course 
 thy heart lays down for thee, and thy life will pass in 
 happy usefulness. Thine own small world will be glad 
 that thou hast lived." 
 
 " And if the contrary ? " said Tracy, speaking to the 
 Pandita for the first time. 
 
 " If the contrary," repeated the latter, a slight frown 
 gathering on his brow, " thou wilt sow misery and reap 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 405 
 
 its withering bloom. Thou wilt fail to enter paths of 
 knowledge that will ennoble thee, expand thy mind, and 
 lead thee to avenues of science in the great universe of 
 nature that are as deep and subtle as they are far-reach- 
 ing, all comprehending, and, to the uninitiated, mysterious. 
 I warn thee, I entreat thee, choose the higher Ufe," con- 
 cluded the Pandita, stretching his hand with a gesture of 
 persuasion toward Tracy. 
 
 " Thy words, O holy dukun," answered Tracy, strug- 
 gling to throw off their impression, " may be fraught with 
 wisdom, but to me they sound like a prophecy without 
 foundation." 
 
 " Alas, that it is so ! " returned the Pandita in a sad 
 voice. " I would make thee happy and raise thee to a 
 nobler existence. I would lift thy mind from the craven, 
 soul-stinting contemplation of the perishable, to dwell 
 with expanding rapture on the imperishable. I would 
 lead thee to the great, the enduring, the endless, the sub- 
 lime destiny that awaits the soul of man. I would teach 
 thee how to understand the mysteries, extending through 
 the unceasing si^cles of the future, and thou would'st learn 
 to exult in that power of spirit discernment that smiles at 
 aU material obstacles, and roams whither it would in 
 interminable space, grasping the truth it seeks." 
 
 " What would'st thou have me do, reverend father ? " 
 said Tracy, unconsciously adopting the latter's form of 
 speech and moving uneasily a step or two nearer the 
 door. 
 
 " FoUow the impulse of thy heart," answered the Pan- 
 dita impressively. " The voice of thy conscience, which 
 the wise man makes a law unto himself. It is for this 
 purpose that thou hast received it. Do this, my son, and 
 later thou wilt become a brother of our Order." 
 
 " Ah ! that is it," said Tracy, vdth a breath of relief. 
 " You wish me to join your mysterious Brotherhood." 
 
406 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 "I advise you to embrace wisdom and seek knowl- 
 edge," returned the Pandita in decided tones, bending 
 his eyes upon the floor. 
 
 Complete silence followed for a moment or two, while 
 the Pateh stood ready to make his parting salutations, 
 feeling every instant was an age. Drawing a sigh, the 
 Pandita resumed, without raising his. eyes from the floor 
 and as if continuing to address Tracy, — 
 
 " Death in an unknown, terrible form, waits to receive 
 one who calls to thee, calls unknown to herself. The 
 contest will be fierce and strong. You may save her, my 
 son," rising and giving his hand to Tracy, " receive my 
 farewell. Go, and may the victory be yours." 
 
 Tracy was now very much excited, and bowing his 
 head walked quickly out into the night and called the 
 guide, whom he could see at a little distance, sitting on a 
 stone beside his blazing flambeau. The Pateh lingered 
 a moment behind Tracy to speak a word or two to the 
 Pandita, who accompanied him to the door, embraced him, 
 and called him beloved brother, teUing him that he had 
 found the true illumination, and charging him to follow on 
 in the paths of light. Then he blessed bim and bid him 
 hasten on his purpose. Joining Tracy, who stood with 
 the guide at the end of the path waiting for him, without 
 a word they both hurried back to the plain, at the edge 
 of which they stopped a moment to drink a cup of cofEee, 
 waiting for the appearance of the moon, whose reflection 
 they could just see whitening the tops of the highest 
 peaks opposite. 
 
 " This seems like a waste of time, Sarjio," said Tracy, 
 as they sat down beside a little table. 
 
 " It is, it is," slowly answered the Pateh, in a hoarse 
 voice, the weight of the calamity conveyed in the Pan- 
 dita's words having swept away aU his excitement and 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 407 
 
 replaced it with determined calm and seU-possession, as 
 is often the case with strong and excitable natures when 
 heavy disaster comes upon them suddenly. " I have no 
 power here," he continued. " We are in the province of 
 Narawadi." 
 
 " Great heaven ! the land of the Tumung'gung," ejacu- 
 lated Tracy, interrupting him. 
 
 " Yes," replied the Pateh, " and as I have just said, 
 I have no authority here, and no money could induce 
 these superstitious peasants to guide us while it is still 
 dark over the first mile of shaky earth that we must 
 cross to reach the path in the centre of the vaUey. 
 They believe that without the dispelling light of sun or 
 moon inniunerable wicked spirits hover over the boiling 
 mud-pools who would greedily seize them and offer them 
 in sacrifice to the devils beneath ; and to attempt it our- 
 selves would be almost sure destruction." 
 
 In a few moments more the moon gUded up into the 
 heavens above the high cones, and threw a flood of sil- 
 very light over the plain, making it almost as light as 
 midday, and the two young men sprang up to continue 
 their journey. 
 
 While they had been drinking their coffee, they had 
 heard that the holy dukun whom they had just visited 
 was no other than the famous recluse of the ancient ruins 
 near KaU Beber, who, after attaining a certain degree of 
 sanctity by prayer and penance, had emerged from his 
 seclusion, and now passed his time in giving instruction 
 and in going from one place to another, aiding the af- 
 flicted, offering up prayers, and doing all the good he 
 could to further the accomplishment of every truthful 
 and honest purpose. Musing on this information, and 
 the advice and prophecies of the Ber-tapa in connection 
 with the strange fate that was now leading him and the 
 
408 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 Pateh to seek Mattah-Djarri and Josephine in the very- 
 cell once occupied, and, as he thought, probably made in- 
 habitable by the dukun himself, his heart thrilling with 
 the fear that there might be truth in his words, and that 
 they pointed to the present situation of Josephine and Mat- 
 tah-Djarri, Tracy followed the Pateh, whose face was 
 pale, and lips compressed, out from under the palm-trees 
 into the open plain, where they could see the bright patches 
 of boiling mud, shining and quivering in the moonUght, 
 in contrast with the duU baked surface around them, 
 with here and there a little column of vapor slowly rising 
 between. 
 
 " Steam from the hillocks and streams of bubbling 
 liquid," explained the Pateh, as he saw Tracy looking 
 curiously at the latter. 
 
 They had not made more than a few steps, when 
 Tracy was astonished to see the white turban and long, 
 white robe of the Pandita as the latter stepped out from 
 the shadows of a gigantic waringin tree, with a book in 
 his hand and a servant behind him, and signified his in- 
 tention of accompanying them. 
 
 "Thou art more than kind, holy brother," said the 
 Pateh, " and we shall be more than thankful for thy 
 society." 
 
 While the Pateh was speaking, he was moving forward 
 towards the path he intended to take, the Pandita beside 
 him repeating the two words, secrecy and haste. Com- 
 manding the servant to go before and follow the shortest 
 paths to the old ruins beyond Kali Beber, the Pandita 
 hurried after him, the Pateh and Tracy, one behind the 
 other, coming on close behind. 
 
 In a very short time they had reached the centre of 
 the dangerous plain and turned into the path, passed 
 over two nights before by Mattah-Djarri, Josephine, and 
 
A PRINCESS OF JA VA. 409 
 
 Wagari. Not a word was spoken while they walked 
 rapidly forward, the Paiidita passing around the Papan- 
 dayang without pausing to look at it, or seeming to hear 
 its hissing steam or thundering noise. Opposite the gas 
 fountains he paused, and turning o£E the path walked to 
 within a short distance of their brilliant jets, falling upon 
 his knees, clasping his hands, and bending forward in an 
 attitude of devotion. Tracy involuntarily took off his 
 hat, while the Pateh stood still, folded his arms on his 
 breast, and bent his head toward the groimd in silence, 
 the servant of the Pandita doing the same. 
 
 " Was ever scene so strange," thought Tracy, as cast- 
 ing his eyes around, they fell on the form of the priest 
 in his broad turban and white robes, kneeling in the glare 
 of the yellow flames, as they shot noiselessly upward, 
 the other two motionless figures on the path before him 
 bending in reverence, with closed eyes and solemn faces 
 turned eastward. In the rear, the swelling mud volca- 
 noes, with columns of white steam issuing from their 
 tops, their duU roar just reaching them, and the cascades 
 on their sides sparkling under the moonlight between the 
 long lines of towering black cones that stretched up and 
 down, like giant sentinels, under the calm, sUent blue 
 overhead. 
 
 " Am I Edward Tracy or not ? " he asked himself. 
 " Truly, I am inclined to think otherwise. I ought to 
 go home like the little old woman in the child's story- 
 book, and, like her, see if my httle dog barks ; and if my 
 little dog barks, it wiU be I, and, if it be I, ask whither I 
 am going and for what purpose." 
 
 Tracy's humorous colloquy was interrupted by the re- 
 turn of the Ber-tapa to the path, who took up the march 
 as before, saying, as he had already twice said, " Time 
 presses, my brother." 
 
410 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 Tracy, not able to suppress Ms curiosify longer, man- 
 aged to get beside the Pateh, saying, " Sarjio, is the du- 
 kun really going with us, and what do you think this 
 extraordinary move portends ? " 
 
 The Pateh answered in the afiSrmative, continuing, " I 
 am most grateful for this extreme mark of respect from 
 one so elevated, and it means that there must be a weighty 
 reason for it," in a voice that trembled with suppressed 
 feeling. " When at the door of his dwelling I hastily 
 whispered to him my errand, he himself suggested that it 
 might be to our benefit if he should accompany us, to 
 which I could only add my desire that he would, for he 
 knows the direct paths and will save time, which is now 
 all-important. I feel an hour is most momentous. But 
 Tracy, let me ask you, and pardon my impertinence, 
 what is your intention ? " 
 
 " My intention," repeated Tracy, feeling it difficult to 
 find a reply, "how do you mean or in reference to 
 what ? " he added, after some visible hesitation. 
 
 " You know I am going to rescue Josephine (our 
 Prophet bless the undertaking)," the Pateh added, in a 
 changed voice, again looking up to the sky, " after which I 
 shall take her immediately away and avoid all that need- 
 less trouble with her father, and I thought that you — per- 
 haps " — here he hesitated a moment, then resumed, — 
 
 " It is true her cousin will go with her. It is my in- 
 tention to take them both, and Wagari also — good and 
 noble girl ! But I thought, Tracy, that you might — well, 
 that you had perhaps changed your mind, and would like 
 to become the husband and protector of Mattah-Djarri. 
 There, now you have it ! " 
 
 " I, Sarjio, I ? How can I ? " exclaimed Tracy with 
 deep emotion. " You know my uncle's wishes, and I am 
 not an ingrate. I wished to see her saved from the 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 411 
 
 Tummig'gung. I want to aid you ; ftirther than this I 
 have no definite resolve." 
 
 " I am sorry, Tracy," replied the Pateh. " Have you 
 considered the words of the holy father in front of us." 
 
 " To be frank, I don't attach much to that, Sarjio," 
 replied Tracy. " He wishes to make a disciple of me." 
 
 " Perhaps he does, and why not," asked the Pateh, "if 
 it is for your happiness ? " 
 
 " That has yet to be proved," said Tracy incredulously. 
 
 " Well, we will see what the day brings forth," replied 
 the Pateh. " I suppose you wiU not refuse to accept his 
 prophecies if you see their fulfillment." 
 
 Tracy did not reply immediately to the Patch's last 
 remark, who after a short silence opened the subject 
 again by gently reproaching him for not having given 
 him his full confidence before, in regard to the intentions 
 of his uncle, saying he had left him under the impression, 
 the evening that he had alluded to it on the veranda of 
 the dalam at EaU Chandi, that it was bnly a matter talked 
 of, but not definitely settled. 
 
 "My dear Sarjio," said Tracy, with much feeling, 
 " let us not discuss the subject. I will aid you all I can. 
 As to the other matters, we cannot think alike ; forgive 
 me for saying so," and he laid his hand on his friend's 
 arm, whom he felt made the slightest perceptible move- 
 ment away from him, saying presently with a sigh, 
 "Well, be it so." 
 
 As it came near daylight the Fandita pressed forward, 
 urging his servant before him to make haste, looking back 
 from time to time, to see if his companions were follow- 
 ing -with a speed that kept up with his own, while the 
 little cavalcade hurried along with long strides and hard 
 breathing, at a pace that would have seemed incredible 
 to any one knowing the habits of the sedate, deliberate 
 
412 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 Sarjio and the luxurious indulgence of the fastidious 
 Tracy. 
 
 But the full light of the day was upon them, notwith- 
 standing, when they reached Kali Beber, entered its 
 bambu gates, threaded the suburbs, crossed the stream 
 amidst the staring bathers, and took the path that wound 
 around the hill to the old Chandi Hindu. 
 
CHAPTER XLVI. 
 
 The evening of the day on which we left the three 
 dejected girls watching anxiously for some appearance 
 of their expected deliverer, as well as for the approach 
 of Boorah, closed in without any signs of either. The 
 lamps were lit and placed on the floor as on the night 
 previous, the door carefully fastened, and Wagari made 
 tea in the little kompor placed under one of the loop-hole 
 windows, while Mattah-Djarri tried to freshen the con- 
 tents of the plantain parcels, purchased in the morning, 
 to tempt the appetite of Josephine. Very little was said 
 between them, and when their supper was prepared stiU 
 less was eaten. They had no appetite. Each drank 
 several cups of tea, and Josephine's thirst was so great 
 she begged Wagari to prepare it a second time. 
 
 After the night had fairly settled down the terrors of 
 Josephine returned, and her fever increased with them. 
 She lay on the bali-bali, sleeping at short intervals, with 
 her eyes not more than half closed ; rolling over the 
 smooth mats, tossing her arms wildly about, moaning and 
 murmuring to herself, while her frightened and distressed 
 companions hung over her, not knowing what to do. 
 Sometimes she opened her eyes wide and stared at them 
 a moment, without seeming to know them, then turned 
 away her face to talk to Sewa or her father, but more 
 frequently to Sar jio, pleading with him in piteous tones 
 to save her from some threatening horror. 
 
 " She dreams," said Wagari, placing a wet handker- 
 chief on the pure white forehead, her own hands and 
 
414 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 voice trembling alike, as she thought of the deadly fevers 
 which so frequently and suddenly swept away the unac- 
 climated and was reminded of the late exposure to the 
 night air, the undue excitement, and unaccustomed fatigue, 
 which Josephine had undergone, and now the confined 
 aip of the old stone chamber and mouldering ruins, which 
 she reflected must be dangerous. She looked at her mis- 
 tress standing at the foot of the bali-bali gazing on their 
 stricken companion, with tears rolling silently down her 
 face and her hands clasped together in an agony of ap- 
 prehension. Wagari knew her thoughts were the same 
 as her own. " AUah akbar. Islam " (God is great. We 
 must submit to Him), she heard her repeating to herself, 
 as she turned away and pretended to be occupied with 
 the little kompor and the tea about the fireplace. Wa- 
 gari's heart also took up the cry, and thus the anxious 
 hours passed, both trying to fortify themselves with the 
 Moslem's first principle of faith, without speaking or 
 thinking of sleep, while they watched the dreaded fever 
 take gradual possession of the gay and wayward Jose- 
 phine. 
 
 Mattah-Djarri spent hours on her knees beside the 
 great stone table, feeling it was all she could do. Jose- 
 phine's condition almost stupefied her, and her own life 
 seemed to grow suddenly more dear, as she felt the need 
 of preparing to forsake it. Another day and no doubt 
 Boorah would discover them, and if he did not they would 
 begin to starve if not compelled to reveal themselves 
 sooner to seek assistance for Josephine. As the first shock 
 following the knowledge of the latter's condition passed 
 away, her mind grew calm and clear. She saw the neces- 
 sity of summoning immediate relief from the kampong to 
 save her cousin's life, if it was not already too late. How 
 to do this she could not determine. Such a strange sum- 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 415 
 
 mons from the ancient ruins in the middle of the night 
 would arouse the whole kampong. She or Wagari would 
 have to go first to the gardu, make all kinds of explanar 
 tions, wait to see a detachment of police sent to examine 
 into the truth of their statements, before anything could 
 be done, and even after this, perhaps, be unable to find . 
 a doctor or dukun who understood how to administer the 
 medicine needed. All this was fatal to herseU. She 
 fully comprehended it, calmly determining to bring her 
 mind to face the dreadful consequences — life with the 
 repulsive Tumung'gung or total disappearance on the 
 Guwa Upas. She chose the latter, and according to the 
 commands of her religion began to prepare herself for 
 death by rapid flight toward the fabled tree growing on 
 the banks of the stream in its centre. 
 
 Not long after midnight Josephine begged for another 
 draught of tea, and it was very evident to Wagari, who 
 had had some experience, that her fever was assuming a 
 dangerous character. She immediately lighted the few 
 rosin-knots remaining, and began to prepare the tea on the 
 kompor, while Mattah-Djarri tried to calm and soothe 
 the sufferer, who sat up and looked around in terror, then 
 covered her face. Mattah-Djarri wrung her hands in 
 despair. " She will die, she will die," she whispered to 
 Wagari in tearful anguish, " before we can get relief, 
 and I shall have caused her death ! I have brought her 
 here ! " Wagari, comforting her all she could, had ap- 
 proached the bali-baU with the tea, while Mattah-Djarri 
 tried to persuade Josephine to remove her hands from 
 her face and drink it, when they were startled by the 
 sound of something falling heavily from above on the top 
 of the kompor, upsetting it and scattering the coals all 
 around the floor. 
 
 " The ular lanang," shrieked Mattah-Djarri and Wa- 
 
416 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 gari in one breath, springing upon the bali-bali beside 
 Josephine, who with one terrified scream fainted away. 
 
 The venomous serpent, attracted by the light and per- 
 haps heat of the smoke, had crawled inside of one of the 
 apertures and slid down through the inclined opening, 
 as poor Josephine had pictured to herself the night before. 
 For a moment a deathlike stillness prevailed in the dis- 
 mal chamber. Josephine to all appearance was dead. 
 Her two companions stared in dumb terror at the white 
 and black diamond-marked reptile, one of the largest of 
 its species, while it twisted, coiled, and uncoiled its long, 
 shining body, knocked the little kompor off the platform, 
 and then, rearing its head with a hissing, horrifying 
 sound, sprang at it out of the hot ashes. Not satisfied 
 with revenging itself on the impenetrable earthenware, 
 the enormous snake opened its jaws and blew from its 
 mouth gusts of dark green spray toward the door, in 
 which direction, fortunately, its head happened to lay. 
 Finally, stretching itself at full-length across the floor, it 
 lay quiet, seeming to wait and listen, rendering it im- 
 possible to reach the door without stepping over it. 
 
 After the first paroxysms of hoiTor, Mattah-Djarri 
 gave her attention to Josephine, telling Wagari to watch 
 the serpent, which she feared might, at any moment, 
 change its position and eject the poisonous vapor over 
 them, as she knew it could throw it to a distance of ten 
 or fifteen feet. She feared Josephine, who began to 
 show signs of returning life, might in her delirium spring 
 off the bali-bali and expose her white skin to contact 
 with it, or be bitten by the reptile itself, which would be 
 immediate death. They dared not move for fear it might 
 turn its head and spring upon them. The ular lanang 
 was known to be bold and venomous, not waiting till it 
 was attacked to defend itself. 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 417 
 
 After a partial recovery, Josephine swooned again, 
 and this time in vain her companions whispered her name 
 in accents of terror and entreaty. 
 
 " Was she dead, indeed ? " Mattah-Djarri managed to 
 ask Wagari by mute signs and inaudible whispers. 
 
 The latter, after looking attentively at Josephine, put 
 her ear down over her heart for a few moments, then 
 raised her head and shook it from side to side for 
 " No." How the hours passed tUl daylight came into 
 the apertures, no one ever knew. Josephine opened her 
 eyes once and asked feebly for water. Wagari put the 
 empty cup that had contained the tea to her lips, which 
 seemed to satisfy her, and pushing it away she leaned 
 back apparently contented. 
 
 When morning came at last, the following questions 
 forced themselves upon their mind. How would they get 
 the door open ? Must they die with that dreadful ser- 
 pent? Would it be long? Must they starve? Who 
 would die first ? Must it be Josephine ? Would the 
 Pateh come ? Even Boorah's face they felt would be 
 welcome. When it was fuUy light Josephine moved, 
 opened her eyes, and finally raised herself up and looked 
 around. They thought she. seemed better, and tried to 
 make her understand the importance of keeping still and 
 silent. She looked inquiringly into their faces and asked 
 them where she was, then attempted to get o£E the bali- 
 bali, and casting her eyes upon the floor her gaze fell 
 on the huge reptUe stretched before the closed door. 
 Shriek after shriek issued from her lips, while she clung 
 convulsively to her cousin, who with Wagari exerted all 
 her strength to prevent her from springing off the bed, 
 while the ular lanang raised its head, hissed, and blew its 
 spray more savagely than ever. 
 
 Suddenly the door flew open and Booraih with two 
 
418 A PRmOESS OF JAVA. 
 
 men behind him stood on the lower steps and looked War 
 gari in the face. " The ular lanang ! " shrieked Mattah- 
 Djarri, pointing to the serpent coiling ready to spring upon 
 him. Boorah, following the indication of her finger, saw 
 the fatal preparation, and disappeared up the steps with 
 his companions. 
 
 The reptile, glad of the opportunity to escape, uncoiled 
 its glittering body, and gUded up the broken steps after 
 them. 
 
 When both were out of sight, Mattah-Djarri looked 
 first at Wagari, then at Josephine, and shuddered. " We 
 must have a doctor immediately," she said. " She may 
 die." 
 
 " Yes," answered Wagari, with a long sigh, feeUng 
 fate had decided the destiny of both her companions, 
 despite all their distress, labor, and determination to de- 
 cide it for themselves. 
 
 " Shall I bring the dukun ? " asked Wagari, getting 
 off the bali-bali, arranging her sarong, and throwing a 
 sembong over one shoulder to go to the kampong, while 
 she gazed in fright at the muttering, unconscious Jose- 
 phine. 
 
 " Go to the pitingi'gi, Wagari. Summon aU the aid 
 you can," said Mattah-Djarri. "Concealment is of no 
 avail now. Say the Badan ajeng Mattah-Djarri demands 
 his assistance." 
 
 At this moment Boorah who, with one of his men, 
 having dispatched the other with the news of his dis- 
 covery, had waited above, and seen the serpent glide out 
 of sight among the rubbish at the head of the steps, de- 
 scended and entered the chamber. Mattah-Djarri knew 
 the mata-mata would not dare lay his hands upon her, 
 but she also knew she could not escape him, and supposed 
 his master was close upon his heels. Turning about to 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 419 
 
 speak again to Wagari, she beheld him station himself 
 near the door, with the utmost coolness and a smile of 
 satisfaction on his face. A sense of humiliation, pride, 
 and defiance gave her wings. Darting past him, she flew 
 up the steps with the swiftness of an arrow, and before 
 he had time to gain presence of mind sufficient to spring 
 after her, she was crossing the chunkup. Almost im- 
 mediately he was behind her, and saw her look back at 
 him, as she sped on past the first ruin, over the green 
 dome, down the hill, and out on the plain of the Guwa 
 Upas. 
 
 "Wagari saw her mistress dart up the steps and fearing 
 what might happen instantly rushed after Boorah, to see 
 the princess's head disappear below the top of the lull, 
 when she herself turned and fled, screaming for help, 
 down the path towards the mango trees, where she met 
 the Pandita, the Pateh, and Tracy hastening around the 
 turn. To scream, wring her hands, and point to her 
 mistress flying over the noxious plain was all that she 
 could do. 
 
 " The Guwa Upas ! It is death ! " ejaculated the Pa- 
 teh, suddenly springing forward to follow her. 
 
 " Tou cannot, my brother," said the dukun, laying a 
 strong hand upon, his arm and detaining him. " You 
 will only give two lives instead of one." 
 
 Before either of them had time to think or call fm> 
 ther, Mattah-Djarri was quite beyond hearing, and they 
 saw Tracy speeding across the waste like the wind, call- 
 ing, "Mattah-Djarri, Mattah-Djarri," as he went, in a 
 voice of loud and imperative command. They saw her 
 hesitate, then stagger on a few steps more, turn and 
 stretch her arms towards Tracy, and fall to the ground. 
 
 To snatch up her light form and run back to the grassy 
 shore was the work of a few seconds, though it seemed a 
 
420 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 long time to Wagari, the Patch, and the Pandita, who 
 rushed down to the edge to receive her, as Tracy, ahnost 
 suffocated, tottered up, dropped her on the grass, and sank 
 down poisoned and exhausted beside her. To drag them 
 high up out of danger, fan them, throw cold water in 
 their faces was quickly done, while the dukun applied 
 remedies to overcome the effect of the poisonous gas they 
 had inhaled. They soon began to show signs of recovery, 
 and the Pandita said they were out of danger, when "Wa- 
 gari, remembering Josephine, hastily informed the Pateh 
 of her dangerous condition, djdng, as she believed, in the 
 cell of the recluse. To say that he reached it in the ex- 
 cited state of a madman would be a statement not far 
 from the truth. The agonized voice of the Pateh aroused 
 Josephine, and seemed to call her back to life, and with 
 the assistance of the Pandita, who was both priest and 
 doctor, restored her sufficiently to enable her two hours 
 later to lean, weak and languid, against his shoulder, as 
 she half sat up on the baU-bali, while the holy dukun 
 made them man and wife. 
 
 When the Pateh took his feeble wife in his arms and 
 said she was now his own forever, Tracy took the hand 
 of Mattah-Djarri, and leading her forward stood before 
 the priest, begging him to perform the same ceremony for 
 them. When it was all over the intrepid girl clung to 
 his arm and cried for joy, while the faithful Wagari fol- 
 lowed her mistress's example. 
 
 With tears in his eyes, Tracy pressed his wife to his 
 bosom, and thanked God in his heart that he had arrived 
 in time. 
 
CHAPTER XLVn. 
 
 Before the end of a fortnight, at the hour when dress 
 and fashion throngs the Eastern streets, a double bridal 
 party passed out of the portals of a Christian church in 
 Singapore. The first pair represented an Anglo-Saxon, 
 with light wavy hair and deep blue eyes, who strode along 
 with a proud and happy face, supporting a delicate, 
 golden-skinned woman upon his arm, whose wondrous 
 beauty caused the spectators assembled around the door 
 to gaze upon her in undisg^sed surprise. 
 
 The second pair was the reverse of the first. The 
 groom was a Javanese, handsome, stately, and striking. 
 A prince, the spectators said, with enough of precious 
 stones about him to purchase the whole of Singapore. A 
 lady, fair-haired, fair-skinned, and beautiful, hung lovingly 
 upon his arm, while she walked and looked the happiness 
 she felt. 
 
 When the parties were seated in their open carriages, 
 a tall Javanese girl, with flashing Arabian eyes, climbed 
 up on one of them to the seat beside the coachman, 
 holding her mistress's fan and handkerchief in her hands. 
 
 " Come, come, Wagari, that will not do," said the 
 gentleman beside the lady in the carriage. " Come down 
 and sit inside with my wife," arranging a place for her on 
 the seat in front of the latter. 
 
 " Yes, Wagari," added the lady, " right here, near to 
 me," putting her hand on the cushion before her, " and 
 never, never dare assume the place of a servant again. I 
 will not permit it." 
 
422 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 " Nor I either," said the gentleman. " Hereafter, I 
 desire you to become one of my — our family," looking 
 around with a tender smile into the face of the lady he- 
 side him, who nodded approvingly and nestled up closer 
 to his side. 
 
 " You do me a great honor, noble Tuan, and you, also, 
 most exalted Eadan ajeng ! " replied the attendant, a 
 grateful blush suffusing her face, as she seated herself, 
 and leaning forward bent her head to kiss her mistress's 
 hand and conceal the tears she felt welling up into her 
 eyes. 
 
 The two carriages drove to the harbor, a little distance 
 out of the town, where the occupants embarked upon a 
 steamer making rapid preparations to go to sea. When 
 safely on board and standing upon the spacious deck, 
 watching the last adieus of parting friends on the wharf 
 below, Josephine said to her husband, — 
 
 " I feel I am really married now, Sarjio, and papa will 
 be so much better satisfied. He only believes in the 
 Christian rite, you know," somewhat apologetically. 
 
 " If you are pleased, my angel," replied the Pateh, a 
 glow of pleasure brightening his eyes, " I am more than 
 happy. I am " — 
 
 "Oh! there is papa now," suddenly cried Josephine, 
 gazing eagerly upon one of two gentlemen hastily alight- 
 ing from a carriage that had just dashed up to the wharf 
 with a pair of horses covered with foam. " Papa, darling 
 papa ! " she called, leaning over the rail, stretching her 
 arms out toward him. 
 
 Mr. BardweU hearing the voice looked up and re- 
 sponded with a wave of his hand, and a moment later was 
 hurriedly ascending the plank with his companion, the 
 elder Tracy, close behind him. 
 
 Before the Pateh had time to speak, his wife had left 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 423 
 
 his side and was in the arms of her father, kissing him, 
 hugging him, and begging his forgiveness all in one 
 breath. 
 
 When the delight of meeting and reconciliation had a 
 little subsided and Josephine felt she was forgiven, she 
 placed her hand in her father's arm and led him up to 
 her husband, who stiU stood, calm, quiet, and observant, on 
 the spot where she had left him. He had lost some of 
 his resentment now. He felt he owned his wife accord- 
 ing to Christian form as well as Mohammedan law. She 
 was indisputably his. He could afford to look on quietly 
 and exult in the knowledge of full possession. 
 
 " Forgive me, Sarjio," said Mr. Bardwell, in a voice 
 full of emotion, extending his hand while the tears rolled 
 down his cheeks. '' If you will love her and make her 
 as happy as I have wished to do, I will beg your pardon 
 for all the sorrows I have caused you both." 
 
 " Come now, make up, Patch," chimed in the hearty 
 voice of Tracy's uncle in his brusque, straightforward 
 way, noticing the proud Javan was slow about taking the 
 father's proffered hand. " You must be good friends with 
 your father-in-law," he continued. " We have crossed 
 the Java Sea for that very purpose." 
 
 The Pateh stUl seemed to hesitate and maintained 
 silence, until catching the swimming eyes of Josephine, 
 who looked imploringly at him, he grasped Mr. Bard- 
 weU's hand with a cordial clasp, all resentment passing 
 out of his heart at the same moment. 
 
 " And you, young man," now said the uncle, turning 
 to his nephew, with whom he had already shaken hands, 
 and assuming a highly offended tone. " What have you to 
 say for yourself, running off like a criminal in this way ? 
 I never thought my brother's son would do anything he 
 was ashamed of, eh ? " 
 
424 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 " I am not ashamed, sir," replied Tracy, laughing with 
 pleasm-e, and turning to present his wife. " It was an 
 accident." 
 
 " Hem ! a most surprising accident, indeed," returned 
 the imcle, adjusting his spectacles and regarding in pro- 
 found astonishment the lovely girl who was looking 
 timidly up in his face. " Why, truly, Edward, I am 
 surprised," he continued, losing his pretended anger. "I 
 had no — no idea your wife was like this ! No wonder 
 Markham was so testy about it ! Gad ! I would n't mind 
 having her myself ! " imprinting a kiss upon the smootih, 
 upturned brow. " Gad ! young man, you 're going back 
 with me. I can't consent to lose such a niece as this," 
 kissing Mattah-Djarri again, who thought that next to 
 Tracy himself, his uncle was the most charming man she 
 had ever seen. 
 
 In the confusion and happiness of all parties they had 
 not noticed the gentle motion of the steamer pushing out 
 from the dock and turning its bows towards the open sea, 
 till Josephine exclaimed, " Look, we have started," per- 
 ceiving they were already some distance out. " You are 
 going with us, papa ! " she joyfuUy exclaimed as the possi- 
 bility crossed her mind. 
 
 " No, my pet, we are going back with the pilot," an- 
 swered her father, putting his arms around her, " and your 
 mother and I want you both to come back to us very 
 soon," looking anxiously at the Pateh. 
 
 " We will, we wUl, won't we, Sarjio ? " said Josephine, 
 appealing to the Javan. 
 
 " We will, my angel, if you so desire," said the latter, 
 thinking what a detestable practice that was of Christian 
 fathers kissing and embracing their daughters so much. 
 
 " Yes, Edward," said the elder Tracy, continuing his 
 conversation with his nephew, " I had other plans for 
 
A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 425 
 
 you, but you have followed the dictates of your own heart, 
 and I am satisfied," remembering with a sigh his own 
 mad, youthful love for a beautiful girl whom he put in 
 her grave the day he was to have made her his bride. 
 
 " Indeed it seemed very strange at first," he proceeded, 
 " but I said to Bardwell, ' Gad ! let us make the best of 
 it, and go to Singapore and bring them back,' and now, 
 my dear," turning to Mattah-Djarri and taking her hand, 
 " if you will promise to bring this, renegade home again 
 soon," laying his other hand afBectionately on his nephew's 
 shoulder, " I will promise to see your mother and teUher 
 how happy you are and all about it. In fact, BardweU told 
 me that Keomah was positively glad." The loving fight 
 that shone in Mattah-Djarri's eyes made the old uncle 
 feel weU repaid for all the trouble this promise might 
 give him, and caused him to say to himself, as he moved 
 away to inquire about the return of the pilot's boat, " If 
 either that old Tumung'gung or Bopati on the Teng'gers 
 dares to interfere with my nephew's wife. Gad ! they wiU 
 hear from me," bringing his cane down with a sudden 
 rap on the deck that made every one start. 
 
 Before dark a little steamer from one of the eastern 
 ports of Java shot swiftly past on her way to Singapore. 
 Occupying prominent seats on the after deck were two 
 Javans whose rich dress and numerous attendants bespoke 
 them nobles of high position. As the other passengers 
 crowded to one side to scrutinize those on the outward 
 bound steamer, the two nobles suddenly sprang to their 
 feet, — 
 
 " Look, look, Bopati ! " cried one, " by Allah and the 
 Prophet ! there stands your daughter with that white- 
 faced unbeliever, and as sure as I am the Tumung'gung 
 of Narawadi, there is that Sar jio that you think so highly 
 of, with Sewa's daughter beside him. I warned you, 
 
426 A PRINCESS OF JAVA. 
 
 Bopati, I warned you," continued the Tumung'gung in 
 great excitement. " That accursed Christian is taking 
 her to Europe." Muttering and whimpering out his re- 
 proaches and wishing he could throw the Bopati over- 
 board, whose negligence he blamed for his late trouble 
 and disappointment, the Tumung'gung sank again into his 
 seat, making a mighty effort to conceal his agitation. 
 
 The Bopati, who had scanned the deck of the passing 
 steamer with a scowling brow, now turned a shade or two 
 paler, and sat quietly down without saying a word. 
 
 " O dog, son of a dog ! " loudly cried the Tumung'- 
 gung, shaking his kris in impotent rage after the reced- 
 ing vessel, " May AUah forget me if I forget thee ! " 
 
 " Son of the Faith," said the Bopati, taking refuge 
 behind his creed, " it is the Will of Allah." 
 
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