Of a population, amounting to 110,000, exclusive of women and children, scarcely 5000 are Euro peans; and of these, not one-fifth arc Dutch, the greatest number being Portuguese and French. The rest are composed of agreat variety of Indians, who are all under chiefs of their own nation, such as, Chinese, Javanese, natives of the island, Malayans, Amboynese, Mardykers, Baliers, Bouginese, Masas sars, &e. The Chinese are the most numerous ene mies to idleness. They seem born for the bustle of active commerce. They are indefatigably industri ous, and will submit to any drudgery, however labo rious, -.that is attended with a certainty of gain. Cunning, however, and deceitful to the last degree, they take a pride in imposing upon Europeans; and, boasting of their dexterity, they tell you, that the Dutch have one eye, but the Chinese have two. They keep all the shops, and most of the inns in the city, •and are in 'general the farmers of the duties, excises, and customs. The Javanese apply them selves chiefly to agriculture and ship-building ; and the Malayans to fishing. This last is a most wicked and profligate race. They profess to be Mahome tans ; but are absolutely void of morals, and would commit murder for the most trifling reward. Their last chief was publicly whipped and branded for his villanies : since which they have been ashamed to choose another. The Amboynese, a bold, boister ous, and turbulent people, are not allowed to live in the city, but are confined to a certain quarter of the suburbs. They are generally employed in building houses of bamboo, with windows of split-cane, which are very neatly wrought in different figures. The Mardykers are of various trades, as merchants, gar deners, graziers, poulterers, &c. Few of the free Indians, however, are employed in domestic or me nial services. These are chiefly employed by slaves, which are annually imported from Sumatra and Ce lebes.
All the dominions, which the Dutch possess in the East, are governed by two supreme councils ; the council of the Indies, and the council of justice, both of which are fixed at Batavia. To the first of these belongs the entire direction of public affairs ; and to the latter, the administration of justice in all its branches. But the citizens and free-merchants are amenable only to the tribunal of the city of Batavia; which is composed of eight aldermen and a president, who is always a counsellor of the Indies. The go vernor-general, who presides. in the council of the Indies, is in a manner the sovereign of all the coun. tries belonging to the company. He possesses unlimit ed authority ; is allowed a court, and most of the honours of majesty ; and so great are the legal emo.
luments of his office, that without oppressing the people, or burdening his conscience, he is able to raise an immense fortune within two or three years. He is, however, removeable at the pleasure of the di: rectors at home, and, in case of treason, or other enormous crimes, the council of justice have a right to seize his person, and call him to account.
The ecclesiastical government of Batavia resides in eleven members of the reformed religion. Liberty of conscience is granted to every denomination of reli gionists, though not liberty of worship : Mahome tans and Pagans are tolerated by government ; and even the Chinese have their temples, in which they worship the Devil under the figure of a gigantic co lossus, sitting cross-legged with an enormous belly hanging over his knees ; but the exercise of the Ro man Catholic religion is obstinately prohibited.
The regular establishment of troops at this colony _seldom exceeds 3000 men, of which 700 only are Eu ropeans ; yet very few of these are furnished by the Dutch. They, are chiefly Germans, many of whom, it is said, have been kidnapped into the service. The irregulars are very numerous, consisting of Chinese _and natives of the island, who are commanded by •their own officers. All the white inhabitants, how .ever, are trained to the use of arms ; for no person can settle here but as a soldier in the company's ser vice, and he must serve a certain time before he is al lowed to enter into any branch of trade. But the whole of their force is very inefficient for the defence •of the settlement : and the Dutch depend more upon the insalubrity of the climate, than the strength of their arms for repelling a hostile invader. The whole establishment of the company in 1777 consisted of 613 persons in civil, and 35 in ecclesiastical employ ments, 99 surgeons and assistants, 125 belonging to the artillery, 875 seamen and marines, 1571 soldiers, and 903 mechanics ; in all, .4221 Europeans, besides 703 natives in their service.
The bay and harbour of Batavia are excellently .adapted for commercial navigation. The trade con sists chiefly in the valuable productions of the island, such as pepper, rice, sugar, cotton, and indigo ; and as Batavia is the emporium where all the merchandize of the Dutch company in India is deposited, the im port and export duties are very considerable. Yet
the revenues of the colony are altogether inadequate for its support. This city being the seat of govern ment, the.charges of the Company's civil establish ment, as also of the military and marines, are defrayed out of the treasury of Batavia. On this account a considerable balance appears every year against it ; and in 1779 the charges exceeded the receipts by 51,327 sterling.
The establishment of this colony upon the ruins of a royal city, in opposition to the efforts of the English, and afterwards to the united forces of the populous , empire of Java, and its consequent prosperity, affords us a striking example of what may be effected by courage and perseverance. When the Dutch first visited this island, the residence of the king of Jan tra was an inconsiderable village pallisadoed with bamboo canes. Having entered into an alliance with this prince, they contracted with him for the produce of his little territory, which consisted chiefly of pep per. But afterwards suspecting him of a breach of faith, they buil a strong fort in the neighbourhood to awe him into justice. This raised the jealousy of the English, who had also some correspondence with the people of Jaeatra, which soon kindled into open war. The fleets of the two nations engaged at a short distance from the fort, when the Dutch were completely defeated. The English then took possession of Jacatra, and upon an eminence in the middle of the town established a magazine, which they fortified with a considerable number of heavy cannon. Vanden Broecke, the Dutch commander of fort Maurice, being hard pressed for want of am munition and provisions, threw himself under the pro tection of the governor of Bantam, who immediately dispatched 2000 men to his assistance. The Ban tamese officer entered Jacatra, stript the king of all ensigns of royalty, and drove him with his family, helpless and poor, to a distant corner of the island, where he dragged out his existence in the humble condition of a fisherman. Peace being soon after concluded between the two Companies, the English retired from the island, leaving the Dutch in posses sion of Jacatra, but so completely under the power of the Bantamese, that Vanden Broecke and seventy of his men were carried prisoners to Bantam. This unfavourable aspect of affairs, however, was soon changed by the arrival of a Dutch squadron. Com modore Koen after his defeat had retired to Amboy na, and having received a strong reinforcement, re turned in 1619 with a fleet of seventeen sail and a considerable body of troops. He ravaged and entire ly destroyed the town of Jaeatra ; and marching his forces to Bantam, demanded the restitution of Van den Broecke and his companions. The Bantamese governor was in no condition to make resistance. Koen returned immediately to fort Maurice ; and upon the ruins of Jacatra, in the midst of fens and morasses, and under a vertical sun, he laid the foundation of the new city of Batavia. National taste and national prejudices seem to have dictated, in a great measure, the choice of this situation. The Dutch were par tial to the swamps of their native country ; and they fondly indulged the idea of enjoying, in an opposite quarter of the globe, the muddy canals and shady walks of Amsterdam. The plan, however, was so well contrived, and, notwithstanding the local disad vantages, the execution was so prompt and successful, that Batavia speedily became, and has ever since con tinued, the capital of the Dutch conquests and set tlements in the East. But this colony had not only to encounter difficulties at its first establishment ; it continued during its infancy to experience the most decided opposition both from their countrymen at home, and from the inhabitants of the island. The emperor of Java, who had beheld with satisfaction the jealousy between the Dutch and English, and had been an idle spectator of their hostility, now began to take alarm at the growing prosperity, and gradual encroachments of his ambitious neighbours. His fears prompted him to the most decisive, but detesta ble measures. He attempted to take off governor Koen by secret assassination : but that design failing, lie drew together an immense army, and determined to extirpate these daring intruders. In the beginning of the year 1629, Batavia was invested by 200,000 Javanese ; but the Dutch works were defended with such courage and conduct, that, after a siege of seve ral months, they were obliged to retire broken and discomfited. The good fortune of the colony in this enterprise, however, was greatly overbalanced by the death of the 'governor-general, to whose wisdom and activity it had owed its existence and preservation ; and they would probably have felt the effects his loss more severely, had not a diversion happened in the island, which relieved them in a great measure from the apprehension of present danger.