Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The crew consisted of about thirty men, natives of Macassar and the adjacent coasts and
islands. They were mostly young, and were short, broad-faced, good-humoured looking fel-
lows. Their dress consisted generally of a pair of trousers only, when at work, and a
handkerchief twisted round the head, to which in the evening they would add a thin cotton
jacket. Four of the elder men were 'jurumudis,' or steersmen, who had to squat (two at a
time) in the little steerage before described, changing every six hours. Then there was an old
man, the 'juragan,' or captain, but who was really what we should call the first mate; he oc-
cupied the other half of the little house on deck. There were about ten respectable men,
Chinese or Bugis, whom our owner used to call 'his own people.' He treated them very
well, shared his meals with them, and spoke to them always with perfect politeness; yet they
were most of them a kind of slave debtors, bound over by the police magistrate to work for
him at mere nominal wages for a term of years till their debts were liquidated. This is a
Dutch institution in this part of the world, and seems to work well. It is a great boon to
traders, who can do nothing in these thinly-populated regions without trusting goods to
agents and petty dealers, who frequently squander them away in gambling and debauchery.
The lower classes are almost all in a chronic state of debt. The merchant trusts them again
and again, till the amount is something serious, when he brings them to court and has their
services allotted to him for its liquidation. The debtors seem to think this no disgrace, but
rather enjoy their freedom from responsibility, and the dignity of their position under a
wealthy and well-known merchant. They trade a little on their own account, and both parties
seem to get on very well together. The plan seems a more sensible one than that which we
adopt, of effectually preventing a man from earning anything towards paying his debts by
shutting him up in a jail.
My own servants were three in number. Ali, the Malay boy whom I had picked up in
Borneo, was my head man. He had already been with me a year, could turn his hand to any-
thing, and was quite attentive and trustworthy. He was a good shot, and fond of shooting,
and I had taught him to skin birds very well. The second, named Baderoon, was a Macassar
lad, also a pretty good boy, but a desperate gambler. Under pretence of buying a house for
his mother, and clothes for himself, he had received four months' wages about a week be-
fore we sailed, and in a day or two gambled away every dollar of it. He had come on board
with no clothes, no betel, or tobacco, or salt fish, all which necessary articles I was obliged
to send Ali to buy for him. These two lads were about sixteen, I should suppose; the third
was younger, a sharp little rascal named Baso, who had been with me a month or two, and
had learnt to cook tolerably. He was to fulfil the important office of cook and housekeeper,
