﻿INDONESIA 
  — 
  KENNEDY 
  519 
  

  

  Spears, 
  swords, 
  and 
  shields 
  are, 
  or 
  were, 
  virtually 
  universal 
  weapons 
  

   in 
  the 
  islands. 
  The 
  bow 
  and 
  blowgun 
  also 
  find 
  widespread 
  use; 
  but 
  

   the 
  former 
  is 
  more 
  general 
  in 
  eastern 
  Indonesia, 
  the 
  latter 
  in 
  the 
  west- 
  

   ern 
  part. 
  This 
  probably 
  means 
  that 
  the 
  blowgun 
  is 
  a 
  more 
  recent 
  

   weapon 
  than 
  the 
  bow. 
  Clubs 
  and 
  slings 
  are 
  rare, 
  but 
  appear 
  to 
  have 
  

   been 
  more 
  important 
  in 
  ancient 
  times. 
  One 
  mention 
  of 
  returning 
  

   boomerangs 
  appears 
  in 
  the 
  literature; 
  they 
  are 
  used 
  as 
  toys 
  in 
  a 
  section 
  

   of 
  central 
  Celebes. 
  

  

  Although 
  the 
  more 
  advanced 
  peoples 
  of 
  the 
  archipelago 
  have 
  built 
  

   and 
  navigated 
  large 
  sailing 
  ships 
  for 
  centuries, 
  the 
  Indonesian 
  boat 
  

   par 
  excellence 
  is 
  the 
  dugout 
  canoe 
  with 
  outriggers. 
  With 
  very 
  few 
  

   exceptions, 
  the 
  outriggers 
  extend 
  from 
  both 
  sides 
  of 
  the 
  canoe. 
  The 
  

   attachments 
  of 
  the 
  floats 
  to 
  the 
  booms 
  become 
  more 
  complicated 
  

   toward 
  the 
  eastern 
  parts 
  of 
  the 
  Indies, 
  and 
  in 
  the 
  Moluccas 
  a 
  wide 
  

   variety 
  of 
  outrigger 
  styles 
  can 
  be 
  seen. 
  Transportation 
  of 
  goods 
  

   overland, 
  except 
  in 
  areas 
  where 
  animals 
  take 
  the 
  place 
  of 
  human 
  

   porters, 
  regularly 
  involves 
  the 
  use 
  of 
  back 
  baskets, 
  with 
  lines 
  going 
  

   over 
  the 
  forehead 
  or 
  shoulders, 
  or 
  both, 
  in 
  all 
  the 
  primitive 
  parts 
  of 
  

   Indonesia. 
  The 
  balance 
  pole 
  has 
  replaced 
  the 
  back 
  basket 
  in 
  most 
  

   of 
  the 
  more 
  advanced 
  regions. 
  

  

  SOCIAL 
  ORGANIZATION 
  

  

  The 
  social 
  organization 
  of 
  the 
  Indonesian 
  peoples 
  shows 
  three 
  

   levels 
  of 
  development. 
  First 
  there 
  are 
  the 
  few 
  modern 
  cities, 
  where 
  

   the 
  natives 
  are 
  partly 
  Europeanized. 
  Then 
  there 
  are 
  the 
  native 
  

   states, 
  still 
  semi-independent 
  in 
  most 
  cases, 
  a 
  form 
  of 
  organization 
  

   originally 
  imported 
  in 
  Hindu 
  times 
  about 
  1,500 
  years 
  ago. 
  Before 
  

   that, 
  the 
  social 
  systems 
  of 
  the 
  Indies 
  had 
  never 
  developed 
  beyond 
  the 
  

   tribal 
  or 
  village-community 
  stage, 
  which 
  is 
  the 
  third, 
  and 
  by 
  far 
  the 
  

   most 
  important, 
  level 
  even 
  today 
  in 
  most 
  of 
  the 
  islands. 
  The 
  tribes 
  

   have 
  little 
  functional 
  significance 
  generally; 
  the 
  basic 
  unit 
  of 
  native 
  

   government 
  and 
  social 
  organization 
  is 
  the 
  village 
  community, 
  and 
  

   each 
  of 
  these 
  small 
  groups 
  lives 
  almost 
  entirely 
  independent 
  of 
  the 
  

   others 
  — 
  politically 
  and 
  economically 
  — 
  even 
  within 
  the 
  same 
  tribal 
  

   area. 
  Where 
  life 
  is 
  still 
  nomadic, 
  the 
  same 
  pattern 
  holds, 
  and 
  the 
  

   small 
  bands 
  of 
  wandering 
  Kubu 
  and 
  Punan 
  are 
  functionally 
  discrete 
  

   units. 
  The 
  prevailing 
  style 
  of 
  government, 
  in 
  both 
  nomadic 
  and 
  

   settled 
  tribes, 
  is 
  democratic. 
  Chiefs 
  are 
  chosen 
  by 
  general 
  consent, 
  

   even 
  where 
  the 
  office 
  passes 
  down 
  through 
  a 
  single 
  family 
  line, 
  for 
  an 
  

   unsuitable 
  successor 
  will 
  be 
  deposed 
  by 
  his 
  people. 
  Moreover, 
  the 
  

   village 
  councils, 
  composed 
  of 
  all 
  or 
  nearly 
  all 
  the 
  adult 
  males 
  as 
  a 
  

   rule, 
  exercise 
  effective 
  control 
  over 
  the 
  actions 
  of 
  the 
  chiefs. 
  Eco- 
  

   nomically, 
  too, 
  the 
  Indonesian 
  communities 
  are 
  basically 
  democratic, 
  

   with 
  communal 
  ownership 
  of 
  land 
  and 
  little 
  class 
  distinction 
  on 
  the 
  

  

  