52a ANNUAL REGISTER, 1816. 



may be iidmitted to niaiiy her on 

 coiidition that he bei-oiiies a ser- 

 vant witli her : this second degree 

 f)f slavery conies under the title of 

 " rowaiig." Pei'sons convicted or 

 offences not of the lirst niag-nitude, 

 are g'enerally sold for shives by 

 the prince, or taken to servo him 

 as such. The term " ruwung" is 

 used to expre?s the second, or 

 modified degree of slavery. If a 

 rnaii happens to be iiidehted, and 

 without the means of payment 

 (the debt exceedini!,' ten dollars) 

 he may he sold by tlie Jaxa, and 

 the amount for uhich lie is dis- 

 posed of is appropriated to repay 

 his creditor ; the surphis being 

 disided bet'.veen tlie prince, tlie 

 jaxa, and the creditor, as a recom- 

 pense for their tiouble : the man 

 sold in this manner becomes a 

 rowaniC- 'J'his st-.ite of seivituJe 

 embraces every feature of slavery, 

 excej)ting that the rowang cannot 

 be sold, put to deaili, nor sent out 

 of t!ie country. If a rowar.g wishes 

 to marry, he may do so on re- 

 ceiving his master's consent, but 

 the woman becomes a rowang 

 also. But the rowang possesses 

 this advantage, that he may re- 

 deem liimseU" at any time, by pay- 

 ing the amount of the debt, or 

 the money may be advanced for 

 him ; so that his condition is that 

 of a debtor bound to serve iiis 

 creditor until the amount of his 

 debt is discharged. In the event 

 of the deltt not amounting to ten 

 dollars, the party cannot be sold ; 

 but the jaxa will order the goods 

 and property of the debtor to be 

 disposed of, and an obligation to 

 be given for the payment of tl;e 

 veniuindei' whenever his circum- 

 stances may ahnit. A person in- 



debted to another, and unable to 

 pay, may make over liis wife and 

 cliildren to the creditor, who, in 

 such case, will become rowangs ; 

 and, on eventual payment of his 

 debt, lie nuiy demand back his 

 family. 



Jn marriage, the dowry esta- 

 blished by custom, for all persons 

 of etpial rank, is foi'ty dollars, to 

 be jiaid to the jiaients of the 

 bride; but as it happens, in many 

 cases, that the husband is unable 

 to pay this sum, he becomes in- 

 debied to the parents for the 

 amount, and this constitutes a 

 tliird Inanch of slavery, imder the 

 term Tatung'gun. The man and 

 wife reside in the house of the 

 bride's father, and the man per- 

 forms service in attendance on 

 the family, or in assisting in the 

 cultivation of the land. When 

 the husband is enabled to pay the 

 dowry, he is then at liberty to 

 rpiit the father's house, and to 

 maintain an independent esta- 

 blishment, under the term of 

 " Orang Merdika," or freeman. 

 If the new-married man, how- 

 e\er, behaves to the satisfaction 

 of his wife's family, it often hap- 

 pens, that after a certain time, 

 tlie father-in-law consents to re- 

 mit the whole or part of the 

 dowiy, according to the circum- 

 stances of the |);irties. 



The punishments for crimes 

 are death, confinement, and sell- 

 ing into slavery ; neither torture 

 to obtain confession, mutilation, 

 nor even corporal punishment are 

 used. Theft and robbery are 

 punished with death; and, for 

 nmrder, treason, aiid gang r(;b- 

 bery, in aggravated cases, the 

 punishment of death i< inflicted 



