Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
strictly due, he said to them mildly, 'The needles which you sent from your village were
many more than came from such-a-one's village, yet your tribute is less than his; go back
and see who it is that has not paid the tax.' And the next year the produce of the tax in-
creased greatly, for they feared that the Rajah might justly kill those who a second time kept
back the right tribute. And so the Rajah became very rich, and increased the number of his
soldiers, and gave golden jewels to his wives, and bought fine black horses from the white-
skinned Hollanders, and made great feasts when his children were born or were married;
and none of the Rajahs or Sultans among the Malays were so great or so powerful as the Ra-
jah of Lombock.
And the twelve sacred krisses had great virtue. And when any sickness appeared in a vil-
lage one of them was sent for; and sometimes the sickness went away, and then the sacred
kris was taken back again with great honour, and the head men of the village came to tell the
Rajah of its miraculous power, and to thank him. And sometimes the sickness would not go
away; and then everybody was convinced that there had been a mistake in the number of
needles sent from that village, and therefore the sacred kris had no effect, and had to be
taken back again by the head men with heavy hearts, but still with all honour,—for was not
the fault their own?
