268 .JAVA REVENUE. 



of refined sugar, or nearly eleven hundredweights per 

 acre. 



The above fii^ures 1 obtained from reliable sources in 

 the early part of 1871 ; since that period there has 

 been a notable increase in the yield of crops generally. 



At the time of its introduction there was nothing 

 new in the system described above ; it has fre- 

 quently served the purpose of developing the resources 

 of new or neglected countries. About tlie same period 

 the Egyptian Government, under Mehemet Ali, like- 

 wise had the exclusive right of buying agricultural 

 products for exportation at fixed prices ; his object, 

 however, beinaf less the material and moral welfare of 

 the population as to obtain means for enabling him 

 to cope successfully with his Sovereign, the Sultan. 



At present, I am told, cofiee is the only monopoly of 

 the I)utch Government; the cultivation of sugar and 

 all other produce being free to Europeans as well as 

 natives, subject, of course, to the State tax, and a 

 Bill is now being prepared to abolish forced labour 

 throughout Java. 



Other sources of revenue are the tin mines, the 

 opium licences, and the customs' duties. The 

 enormous growth in the receipts since 1833, resulting 

 from the introduction of forced labour, have not only 

 enabled the Govei-nment to pay off the heavy debt 



