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BATAVIA !
On account of this unhealthy condition only very few Europeans remain day and night in the old city. The fine large houses are employed for offices and godowns, and in the afternoon, when business is finished, most of the Europeans retire to the new town, which is situated south of the old city and built in modern style. Broad roads and spacious squares and nice bungalows surrounded by gardens form there a healthy place. It was Marshall Daendels who in the first years of this century began to build the new town with the construction of barracks and the palace that was designed to be the residence of the Governor-General, but has never been used as such. It is now utilised for Government offices. It contains the large assembly room for the Governor-General and the Council for India, which room contains the portraits of all the Governors-General of Netherlands India. The palace is situated on the west side of the Waterloo Square, where are to be seen a monument of the battle of Waterloo, another monument to General Michiels, and a bronze statue of Jan Pieterszoon Coen, which was unveiled when the 250 years' existence of Batavia was celebrated. On the right and left of the palace are the Supreme Court and the Military Club Concordia. At a short distance from the Waterlooplein is another and larger square, the Koningsplein, each side of which is nearly one mile long. The square is surrounded by elegant comfortable houses, the residences of the higher officials and wealthy merchants. There is also a fine church, Willemskerk, near the railway station, and the museum of the Batavian Society of Arts and Sciences.
The old city and the new are connected by three railways, two tramways, and wide roads for carriages. Different Banks and Banking Corporations have agencies at Batavia, viz. :--The Netherlands Trading Society (Nederlandsche Handel Maatschappij), with a capital of f. 60,000,000 (of which f.45,000,000 paid up) and a reserve capital of £5,000,000 gave a dividend of 11 per cent in 1904, 15 per cent in 1905 and 8 per cent in 1906. The Netherlands India Mercantile Bank (Nederlandsch Indische Handelsbank), with a capital of £.1,500,000 and a reserve capital of f.2,112,570,36. promotes trade, industry, and agriculture in Netherlands India, advances money to agricultural estates and stimulates agricultural enterprise. The Colonial Bank (capital f.10,000,000) also supplies capital to estates for the same purpose, The Netherlands India Escompto Company, with a capital of f.6,000,000 and a reserve capital of f.687,500, does general banking business, advances money on shares, etc. The bank paid 8 per cent, to its shareholders in 1906. There are also agencies of the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation and of the Chartered Bank of India, Australia and China.
The port of Tandjong Priok is in communication with Batavia by railway and by a canal. The outer harbour is formed by two piers 1,850 metres long; the entrance is 125 metres wide, and the depth is 8 metres. The inner harbour has a quay 1,100 metres long and 175 metres wide; the water has a depth of 7-50 metres. There is extensive accommodation for coaling, and in the docks and workshops all kinds of repairs to vessels can be made. The expenses for the construction of the harbour and annexed works amounted to 263 millions of guilders.
The population of Batavia consisted on the 31st December, 1900, of 8,893 Europeans, 26,817 Chinese, 2,245 Arabs, 232 other foreign Orientals, and 77,700, natives; total 115,887.
BUITENZORG
The usual residence of the Governor-General is at Buitenzorg, at a distance of a little more than one hour by railway from Batavia. The population of Buitenzorg consists of 1,649 Europeans, 3,854 Chinese, 463 Arabs, 20 other foreign Orientals and 19,089 natives; total, 25,075. The botanical gardens near the palace of the Governor- General were made in 1817, and are well known not only for their beautiful arrange- ment, but especially for the great services rendered to science and agriculture under the management of the eminent directors, Teysmann, Dr. Scheffer, and Prof. Dr. Treub. All experiments for the introduction of exotic plants into Netherlands India are made here with the result that many useful plants from foreign countries are reared and flourish in Java as in their native soil.
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