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TERNATE 95 TOPOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL DESCRIPTIONS
not very practiced in reading Ternatese and he finds it rather difficult; the letter is, for that
matter, only an exhortation to follow my decisions in all regards. Since there is no question
of not doing so, the information is accepted rather calmly. Cigarettes are served, current
affairs dealt with, and local news discussed; the people assembled here soon feel at ease.
The proposal to view the village is readily agreed to and soon a large procession fills the
narrow streets.
Actually there are three large kampongs, all stretching along the coast: the
northernmost is called Kampong Bajo, even though no Bajo live there; the middle one is
Sakita, [p. 137] where the Rajah has his house, and the southernmost kampong is called
Tobungku.
There is a lively trade with Chinese from Makassar and Bugis from Kendari and
with other areas which belong to the government of Celebes; 4 there are even a few Arabs,
whose warehouses are filled with damar and rattan, brought by the Alfurus to the coast.
One Chinese has a rather nice toko (shop) with a zinc roof. Numerous paduakans are lying
on the beach waiting to be loaded or already ready for the journey south; others are still in
the process of being built; and the whole gives the impression of a certain prosperity, since
men and women are well dressed and show a becoming confidence in the company of
strangers.
The number of inhabitants is estimated at twelve hundred to fifteen hundred. They
are all Moslems who do not, however, adhere too strictly to their religious obligations,
although their mosque is a very neat building, made of stone and with a tile-covered floor.
It was built in a short time under the guidance of a few religious leaders and paid for by
voluntary contributions.
The houses are all built on piles about two meters above ground level and of light
materials; a bamboo ladder allows one to enter; the compounds are for the most part fenced
in, with living hedges along the one-fathom-wide footpaths. The cooking place, [p. 138]
recognizable by a few stones covered with ashes, is indoors, as are the sleeping quarters of
the occupants, though in a separate part; a bigger room is used as a sitting- and work-room,
where fishing gear (cast and ground nets) are made, linens are woven, 5 and products are
stored. This room has a doorway and also a window or bamboo shutter to let in light and
air. In a few houses one sees palm leaf sheaths filled with paddy, which, however, is stored
in a separate shed when there are larger quantities.
4 [p. 137, n. 1] In Bosscher and Matthijsen (TBG), the state of Tobungku is called “insignificant”
in the fullest sense of the word (p. 87). Apparently this has changed since then or varies according to
the season. Neither is the trade, as claimed in that article, completely in the hands of the officials,
whose authority is slight or nonexistent with regard to the Alfurus in the interior. Revius also says
that the central part of the country carries on trade with the Makassarese, the Bugis, and with
people from Mandar and other parts of the Indies archipelago. This trade dates from earlier
centuries, since, according to Valentijn (1724, Ib:81) they associate with “foreign traders and Bugis
smugglers, who often lurk on the river Lahan, to the north of Tambuco, to obtain rubber and other
forbidden wares.”
5 [p. 138, n. 1] The kain Tobungku woven of local threads is very rough, but it is in demand with
the Alfurus because of its durability. The price is f 4.- per piece, and the colors are blue and black.
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