AUDIENCE WITH THE EMPEROR. 79 



flat plain, is surrounded by distant mountains which tower to 

 the sky and have a very fine effect. The next day I had to 

 put on my full dress to visit the Emperor, accompanied 

 by a Colonel of the Dutch Artillery and his wife. The 

 two wives of the Emperor were also present, with his 

 daughter and daughter-in-law ; none of these ladies were 

 beauties, but they were covered with fine jewels. The 

 Emperor was rather neatly dressed a. la Javanese, with some 

 Dutch order on his breast. He was a man about middle age 

 and not very bright looking. There was quite a swarm of 

 half naked children squatting behind the chairs of the ladies. 

 His Imperial Majesty is always waited upon by women who 

 shortly after our arrival brought in tea ; his handmaidens were 

 not beautiful, so that I did not regret having my tea handed 

 to me by two half castes of the male sex dressed up in a kind 

 of rifle uniform with tails to their coats. The Emperor's 

 band was playing all the time of our audience ; the band is 

 composed entirely of Javanese and played remarkably well. 

 Shortly after tea we took our departure. I am unfortunate 

 in being here at the commencement of the Ramadan, as 

 otherwise 1 should most likely have been present at a tiger 

 fight which, from what they tell me, is worth seeing. They 

 have two modes of attacking the tiger, one is with the buffalo 

 and the other by spearing. The first is similar to the Indian 

 buffalo fights ; but the latter is peculiar to Java. The tiger is 

 set down in a trap in the centre of the Allon-Allon, sur- 

 rounded by a triple or quadruple line of spearmen about a 

 hundred yards distant from the trap. When all is ready a 

 Javanese armed with a kriss advances at a very slow pace, to 

 the sound of soft music, and sets fire to the trap, at the same 

 time opening the door which is at the back part of the cage 



