Range of the Gntta Taban Collectors. 203 



Art. XVIII. — Range of the Gutta Taban Collectors, and present 



amount of Imports into Singapore.* 



In the first number of this Journal, an account of Guttk Taban 

 appeared, by T. Oxley, Esq., which we are happy to inform our 

 able contributor has been republished in a very great number of 

 periodicals both in India and Europe, and has been acknowledged 

 on all hands to be the best and most complete description of the 

 gutta that has yet been given. f At a later period we gave some 

 details respecting its collection by the Orang Binua in Johore. 

 At that time the principal supply was obtained from Johore, into 

 the jungles of which, parties of Malays and Chinese had penetra- 

 ted in all directions, while nearly the whole indigenous popula- 

 tion were engaged in the search. In consequence of the equiv- 

 ocal position in which government appears to consider it politic 

 to allow the Sultan to remain, the Tamungong has absolute pow- 

 er over the country, and it is to his energetic measures that Sin- 

 gapore has been indebted for a large part of the gutta hitherto im- 

 ported. Following the usual Malay policy, the Tamungong de- 

 clared the gutta a government monopoly, so as to secure to him- 

 self the greatest share of the profit on the product. The price 

 allowed by him was a fair one, sufficient to induce the Malays to 

 give the collection of gutta a preference to other employments, 

 and to leave them a profit of 100 to 400 per cent, on what they 

 procured from the Binua. The Tamungong himself sent out nu- 

 merous parties of from ten to one hundred persons, and caused the 

 tribes of hereditary serfs, such as the Orang Sletar, to be entirely 

 employed in searching for gutta. For the same purpose the Sa- 

 bimba tribe were transported into Johore from the forest of Battam. 

 Subsequently the islands of the Johore Archipelago were laid 

 under contribution, and "menaban"J became the cry amongst all 

 their land, river and sea tribes. The Tamungong's collectors 

 even went as far as Linga, and had procured a considerable quan- 

 tity when the Sultan's eyes were opened to the value of Ins jun- 

 gles. He confiscated a part of what had been collected, and fol- 

 lowing the Tamungong's example, declared gutta taban a royalty. 



At the period of our visit to the interior of Johore, the Tamun- 

 gong had made arrangements with the Bindahara to secure the 

 taban of Pahang. 



.The knowledge of the article has now slowly spread from 

 Singapore in different directions, but we believe has not yet ex- 



* From the Journal of the Indian Archipelago, for August, 1848, vol. it, p. 599, 

 f Cited in this Jour., ii nr., v., 438, where the propriety of the name Gutta Ta- 



ba Ji is mentioned. The Malav word is Gntta. 



J A word which the Gutta Taban has added to the Malay language. The great- 



* r number of Malay nouns admit of conversion into verbs by a prefix. Menaban, 



worn taban, signifies to collect Gitta taban. 



