Volume 14 Australasia - dana ward's homepage

106 AUSTRALASIA.Topography of Sumatra.Being still destitute of easj' highways, and inhabited by diverse tribes andnations without any political cohesion, Sumatra has developed on its seaboardbutfew considerable towns, while in the interior the largest centres of population arelittle more than villages.Nevertheless several epochs have witnessed the growthof large kingdoms, whose capitals have successively been important commercialmarts.The old Atjeh empire, which, according to the chroniclers, arose about the beginningof the thirteenth century, was of considerable extent.At the time of itsgreatest prosperity, in the first decades of the seventeenth century, it embracedabout half of the island, and held several secondary states in vassalage. FromEgypt to Japan ruling princes sought its alliance ;its army comisrised hundreds offighting elephants and disposed of two thousand guns. The sultan, who, despitehis Arab name claimed descent, like so many other Eastern potentates, fromAlexander of Macedon, exercised almcst absolute power, at least in the districts inthe vicinity of his residence.At present the Atjeh frontiers, as arbitrarily laid down by theDutch across aterritory of which they are not even masters, includes only the northern extremityof the island, from south of Langsar Bay on the east, to Silekat Bay on the westcoast.The island of Babi, with a few adjacent islets partly inhabited by Achinese,also forms part of the State.Although the population has been more than decimatedduring the long war with the Dutch, it is still believed to exceed half amillion. The Achinese, properly so called, are divided into three clans, the"twenty-two," the "twenty-five," and the"twenty-six," aogi ot inuldms, that is,communes, each governed by two panglimas, or hereditary chiefs, who naturallycheck each other's power, while the whole body of the panglimas constitute thenational council. Moreover, each village enjoys local self-government, beingadministered by its elders, without whom the chief can decide nothing. Thisindependent communal life explains the astonishing vigour with which the nativeshave hitherto defended their liberties against the foreign aggressors.Since the first treaty of commerce, signed in 1509 with the Portuguese, theAchinese have always maintained either pacific or hostile relations with the Europeans.But about the middle of the present century the State had fallen intocomplete decay, and the Dutch had seized several places on the seaboard. In 1872the moment seemed favourable to punish the sultan for the piratical doings of hisvassals, with whom he was probably in league. Thanks to a treaty with the English,yielding to them her possessions on the coast of Guinea as a set-off against anyfurther claims on their part to the northern parts of Sumatra, Holland hoped soonto make an end of the Achinese ; but their first expedition ended disastrously.Further equipments, a regular camj^aign, and a siege of forty-seven days, wererequired to reducethe kraton, or chief native stronghold, which, however, was notfollowed by the submission of the sultan. After fifteen years of incessant warfare,which has cost Holland an expenditure of £20,000,000 and over one hundred