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SUMATRA
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SUMATRA , the westernmost and, next to See also:Borneo, the largest of the See also:Great Sunda Islands in the See also:Malay See also:Archipelago. It stretches N.W. to S.E. from Malacca Passage to Sunda Strait, between 5° 40' N. and 50 59' S., and 95° 16' and ro6° 3' 45" E. Its length is about r 10o m., its extreme breadth 250 m., and its See also:area, 'including the neighbouring islands, except See also:Banka and See also:Billiton, is 178,33$ sq. m. The See also:northern See also:half runs roughly parallel to the Malay See also:Peninsula, from which it is separated by the Strait of Malacca, and the See also:southern end is separated by the See also:Sumach, Rhns coriaria. 2. Cluster of See also:fruit. 3. One fruit. 4. A See also:seed. 1. See also:Flower. na-See also:row Sunda Strait from See also:Java. Unlike Java, Sumatra has a See also:series of considerable islands (See also:Nias Islands, See also:Mentawi Islands, &c.) arranged like outworks in front of the See also:west See also:coast, which faces the open See also:Indian Ocean. The See also:general See also:physical features of the See also:island are See also:simple: a See also:chain of lofty See also:mountain ranges extends throughout its length, the western slopes descending rapidly towards the ocean and the eastern looking out over a vast alluvial See also:tract of unusual uniformity. Towards the See also:north end of the island the spurs of the See also:main chain sometimes extend towards the neighbourhood of the See also:east coast and the eastern See also:plain widens from north to See also:south. Owing to this configuration of the island the watercourses of the western See also:side are comparatively See also:short: only very few of them are large enough to be navigable. Those of the eastern slope, on the other See also:hand, such as the Musi, Jambi, Indragiri, Kampar, Siak, Rokan, Panei, Bila and Asahan, are longer, and with many of their affluents are navigable in their See also:middle and See also:lower courses over considerable stretches for See also:craft See also:drawing 6 to ro ft. The Musi and Jambi are navigable for 372 and 497 M. respectively. As waterways all the See also:rivers labour under the drawbacks of rapids, mud-See also:banks at their mouths, banks overgrown with See also:forest, sparse See also:population, and currents liable to serious See also:variations due to irregularity of See also:supply from the mountains and sudden See also:rain-falls. In their lower courses some of them See also:form enormous intercommunicating deltas. The mountainous regions contain numerous lakes, many evidently occupying the craters of See also:extinct volcanoes. When, as sometimes happens, two or three of these craters have merged into one, the See also:lake attains a great See also:size. Among the larger lakes may be mentioned Toba; Maninyu, west of Fort de See also:Kock; Singkara, south-east of Fort de Kock; Korinchi, inland from Indrapura; and Ranua, in the south-west. See also:Orography.—In See also:order to appreciate the orography of the island the following sections of Sumatra should be discriminated one from another: (1) The valley of the See also:Achin or Atjeh See also:River. (2) The plainsaround the lake of Toba, which are of varied level and physical See also:character. Those on the south and north See also:lie at an See also:elevation of 4000 ft., having the character of See also:steppes, with scanty forest-See also:cover, and, See also:save in the narrow valleys and river-courses, are suitable for See also:cattle-rearing. The plains on the east and west lie at a lower level and are eroded by larger rivers, clothed with forest, showing more sawahs and ladangs, or dry ricefields, and, near the rivers, planted with jagong (See also:maize), See also:coffee and fruits. Except on the south-east, where the Asahan flows away to the east coast, Toba Lake is sur- rounded by steep shores. According to R. D. M. Verbeek, P. See also:van Dyk, B. See also:Hagen and W. Volz, the lake had its origin in the collapse of a See also:volcano. (3) The valley of the Batang Toru, with the See also:plateau of Sipirok in the east and the mountain chain of Tapanuli in the west. On the south and south-east the valley is bounded by two volcanoes, Lubuk See also:Raja and Si Buwal Buwali, whence were derived the volcanic tuffs of the valley and of the plateau of Sipirok, with their lakes, which are drained by the Batang Toru and its affluents. The valley varies in breadth from 57, m. to half a mile and less. Flowing in a deep See also:bed cut in the See also:tuff strata, the river is not navi- gable. (4) The See also:longitudinal valley of the Batang Gadis,with its affluent the Angkola, and in the south the valley of the Sumpur, the upper course of the Rokan, between Lubuk Raja in the north and Mt Merapi in the south. This valley is 64 m. See also:long, with a mean breadth of 4 to 5 M. All the rivers of this valley, flowing in deep beds of eroded diluvial tuffs, with a fall as much sometimes as 330 to 66o ft. a mile, are unnavigable. The valley is bounded east and west by chains of See also:slate and Palaeozoic rocks. The bottom is in many parts the See also:diluvium of lakes drained by the rivers. (5) The See also:section of middle Sumatra between the See also:line of the three volcanoes, Singalang- Tandikat, Merapi and See also:Sago on the north, and that of the three mountains Patah Sembilan, Korinchi and Tujuh on the south. This section is divided by the Middengebergte or middle chain into a northern half watered by the Ombilin or upper Indragiri with its affluents, and a southern half traversed by the Batang Hari or upper Jambi. To the north of the volcanoes, which rise to 9500 ft. or more, there is a high plateau of volcanic forma- tion, whose elevation declines in a direction from west to east from 2950 to 1640 ft., with the lake of Maninyu (about 40 sq. m. in area) filling the hollow of an old volcano, and with rivers which have eroded their beds in the tuffs to a See also:depth of 300 ft. and more. South of thevolcanoes the northern
affluents of the Ombilin—Sumpur, Sello
and Sinamar—flow through valleys parallel
to one another in a north-west to south-east
direction. Here, too, are found fertile tuffs,
and the valleys are densely populated.. The
rivers, like those already characterized, and
See also:Emery See also: (6) South Sumatra, so far as known, presents everywhere in its valleys the same character as that' of the Batang Toru, Batang Gadis, Sumpur, &c. They also are closed in on the north and south by volcanoes "which have here produced similar masses of tuff, with lakes and rivers of the same formation as in the north. Such are the valley of Korinchi, with the river of the same name, between the See also:peak of Korinchi and Mt Raja; the valleys of Serampei and Sungci Tena;ng (as imperfectly known as that of the Korinchi), in which are to be sought the See also:sources of the Tambesi and Asei, both affluents of ,the Jambi; the longitudinal valley of A too B See also:toy a 4 A. s `ga Pa•aa9° ng at;. CeorgKeIoah Prov.Welleley teat ota Bharu (I Lana ~. Olamant pt. 9 rt - N r a~La. S~ t S nd r„lt'~ ran99ana L"la 'A. u _ . r ngganu S 0 t h P t -w ... atpt v A} 1 Tteeom '~ oc~e°` Ainding „?^ q wt G C h i n`•••a MeuLaboh v w Kuala •~~ .,>° . Perna 0j',s~°w$ t,,pa AN bt A N is ca.!' >P ¢a ~\ sP a. Pahang 4 p .. Tapa run ~. See also:dan 1 c p'1j Kv See also:lib mpor •f• C L' See also:Seine t rj la iv 21 c ka 7p. b°r •.Lr 0 L :~.Y non : q ,c .o 2 C~. ~ Sintal Stns ct y na Beg ns utPi: t M `I a raga rs.o p °~~ q,; T\a ze m'ang IJ See also:oat .; Ba^ TStbo y~ s at alt.Li i n / !1 ,!ak \s a ro P '\`D labs p ants . a n, C.Labang .rsrs hskmct `°RiquwArch. NIQA ,B,d Sd KP,eY}+~O 6. qk t d'~ i7tang a d LG dk S Y~J f Strrilting \~ 'T•aa foam ls.° S N9 dia • 'among Pinang R e 'h V has, (+fngell ['Ste. C. TeMrdeiom 19ana) N.” ~• ( P `W Jib 9F 991' y Q%\$.hsske Bats : L~ . •n 1y o {See also:Equator -I~L01.. See also:Sims:.' Nana cLrngg . gal let 9 L a J3. vv rasa See also:Bala L M .•e tri arArchinela 9 o I N D I A Inbl '~Si Ora S/aarut St C.S qep 9h is'• R I eat •.. w a see. Pads $ ;i~ Le 1 0: •%• - .. J Pon9 , Slberut'na-j n. J M B d tl•8. ab t9 Yf s /r b r , Jambt'.• 1 k c rang 'a. Qqk. un M S //our Str. BC1N R e+ Siporo• Ltdrap L'adlq 1~ ngl ng.. f. ,~B"Sioy g aa: O C E A N Q SmA~ ?q a °° A ,.: ' Sichr. 4y a t y~e aGng. u0W jW. g p p a o!~i' H.are Psy t kk '~ ~~• S. Payer: .. a y Q: d a•,?', W .{" q PaleN an ak S~1 ..d3i NeV, Q ~jt P add,n9loa str., s"" Jr~+7V1 g ~••1 Q? C. Sanding L ~..~ ,,h ( Set' . .• a/ ni .~'} o Sk ng ....O. ... ,, L,~ •, `I: Mega° 8enkulen '!"n'0 Rr is t o•• C M n/See also:angers a ti.y ~1a~ T• See also:Man /' ; SUMATRA P fi,a~U nt erengba.eng ~ TB 1 S Pas., Bintutu h y~ Swutih Ca. See also:English See also:Miles j-m C n.* .t•_ o So 6 . rro 7 7.00 z?o „a. , ' 54 dash ~.~S• K,ot See also:Railways as to gKa an S .fie ~"Lle) 1c Betorag Na sles _"`.u. .£ngano'RS a,ban9g' See also:Ana 4 Boundaries of Residencies .... .. . ,, .~/y .... 4 .- See also:ado S; r. e See also:Chief towns Residencies .u... Benpkaa•iB 5 of 0 0 v 1= Higher Padang 2=See also:Lowe• Padang gaPmDtO was' 1`•LA°•: S g A See also:Longitude East See also:Ice of See also:Greenwich mo” sr°ko ttse B s: . JAVA Ketaun, in Lebong, flowing to the west coast, and of the upper Musi, flowing to the east coast; the valleys of Makakau and Selabung or the upper Komering, an affluent of the Musi, between Sebelat and Kaba. The Makakau and Selabung drain into Lake Ranau, which on the south side is dammed by the volcano Seminung. The southernmost longitudinal valley of Sumatra is that of the Semangka,. which flows into the See also:bay of the same name. Generally the lower valleys of the rivers lie at elevations of 600 to moo ft.; higher up they rise to 2500 or 3000 ft.; the mountain chains rise to 5500 ft.; the volcanoes See also:tower up from 6500 to nearly 10,o0o ft. (7) The section of south Sumatra between the eastern chain of old rocks and the east coast with its numerous river mouths is formed of the See also:alluvium of See also:sea and rivers. In the river-beds, however, and at some distance from the sea, older strata and eruptive rocks underlie the alluvium. The strata near the mountain chains and volcanoes consist of diluvial tuffs. See also:Geology.—The See also:oldest rocks are See also:gneiss, schist and See also:quartzite, the schist often containing See also:gold. They probably belong. to several See also:geological periods, but all were folded and denuded before the Carboniferous beds were deposited. They form the backbone of the island, and See also:crop out on the See also:surface at intervals along the mountain chain which runs parallel to the west coast. Here and there they are penetrated by granitic intrusions which are also Pre-Carboniferous. The next series of rocks consists of slates below and See also:lime-stones above. It lies unconformably upon the older rocks; and the limestone contains Fusulina, Phillipsia and Productus, indicating that it belongs to the Upper Carboniferous. These beds are found only in northern Sumatra. They are accompanied by intrusions of diabase and See also:gabbro, and they are sometimes folded, sometimes but little disturbed. No See also:Permian beds are known, and for many years Mesozoic deposits were supposed to be entirely absent, but Triassic See also:clays and sandstones with Daonella have been found in the upper part of the See also:basin of the Kwalu (East Sumatra). They See also:rest unconformably upon the Carboniferous beds, and have them-selves been tilted to a steep See also:angle. Cretaceous beds also have been recorded by Bucking. See also:Tertiary deposits are very widely spread over the plains and See also:low-lying See also:country. They consist of breccias, conglomerates, sandstones, marls, and limestones, with seams of coal and See also:lignite. The most valuable coal occurs in the Eocene beds. At the See also:close of the Eocene See also:period great eruptions of See also:augite-See also:andesite took See also:place from two fissures which ran along the west coast. The See also:Miocene consists chiefly of marls, with occasional beds of lignite and limestone. On the east coast it sometimes yields See also:petroleum. The See also:Pliocene occurs chiefly in the low-lying See also:land and is generally covered by See also:drift and alluvium. Sometimes it contains thick seams of lignite or See also: See also:Climate.—As throughout the whole of the Malayan Archipelago, so in Sumatra, which lies about equally balanced on both sides of the equator, the temperature stands at a high level subject to but slight variations. The monthly temperature mounts only from 77° F. in See also:February to 80.6° in May, See also:August and See also:November. In the See also:distribution of the rainfall, as dependent on the direction of the winds, the following parts of Sumatra must be distinguished:
(1) south-east Sumatra, on which, as on Banka and Billiton, the heaviest rainfall occurs during the north-west See also:monsoon, the See also:annual See also:volume of rainfall increasing from 98.4 in. in the east to 139 in. in the west. Of the 139 in. of yearly rainfall, 91.7 in. are brought by the north-west and 47.3 in. by the south-east monsoon.
(2) The west coast. Here the rainfall for the See also:year increases from the southern and northern extremities towards the middle. Benkulen, e.g. gets 126 in.; Singkel (2° 15' N.), 172 in.; and Padang 184 in. in the year. Here, too, the prevailing rainfall is brought by the north-west monsoon, but in this See also:belt its prevalence is not so pronounced, Padang getting 94 in. of rain during the north-west monsoon, against 90 in. during the south-east. The mountain chain immediately overhanging it, the high temperature of the sea washing it, the frequent thunderstorms to which it is subject, the moist See also:atmosphere of its See also:equatorial situation, and the shorter regime of the dry south-east See also:wind are the See also:principal causes of the heavier rainfall on the west coast. The higher stations of middle Sumatra, on the .See also: Blowing over land and in the direction of the longitudinal valleys, the south-east wind is comparatively dry, and thus favours the formation of steppes in the north such as the Toba plains. The north-east and south-west winds, on the other hand, being laden with the moisture of the sea, bring rain if they See also:blow for any length of See also:time. See also:Fauna.-Though Sumatra is separated from Java by so narrow a r-sit, both the zoologist and the botanist at once find that they have Broken new ground on See also:crossing to the northern island. The lathy-dermata are strongly characteristic of the Sumatran fauna: not only are the See also:rhinoceros (Rh. sumatranus), the See also:Sus vittatus, and the See also:tapir See also:common, but the See also:elephant, altogether absent from Java, is represented in Sumatra by a See also:species considered by some to be See also:peculiar. The Sumatran rhinoceros differs from the Javanese in having two horns, like the See also:African variety. It is commonest in the marshy lowlands, but extends to some 6500 ft. above sea-level. The range of the elephant does not extend above 4900 ft. The See also:wild See also:Bos sundaicus does not appear to exist in the island. An See also:antelope (kambing-utan) occurs in the loneliest parts of the uplands. The common Malay See also:deer is widely distributed, Cervus See also:muntjac less so. The orang-utang occurs, rarely, in the north-east. The siamang (Siamanga syndactyla) is a great See also:ape peculiar to the island. The ungko (Hylobates agilis) is not so common. A fairly See also:familiar form is the simpei (Semnopithecus melalophus). The chigah (Cercocebus cynomolgus) is the only ape found in central Sumatra in a tame See also:state. The See also:pig-tail ape (.vIacacus nemestrinus)—as See also:Raffles described it in his " Descriptive See also:Catalogue of a Zoological Collection made in Sumatra," Trans. Linn.. See also:Soc. (1820), xiii. 243—is trained by the natives of Benkulen to ascend coco-See also:nut trees to gather nuts. The See also:Galeopithecus volans (kubin, flying See also:cat or flying See also:lemur) is fairly common. Bats of some twenty-five species have been registered; in central Sumatra they dwell in thousands in the limestone caves. The Pteropus edulis (kalong, flying See also:fox) is to be met with almost every-where, especially in the durian trees. The See also:tiger frequently makes his presence See also:felt, but is seldom seen; he prefers to prowl in what the See also:Malays See also:call tiger See also:weather, that is, dark, starless, misty nights. The clouded tiger or rimau bulu (Fells macroscelis) is also known, as well as the Malay See also:bear and wild See also:dog. Paradoxurus musanga (" coffee-See also:rat " of the Europeans) is only too abundant. The Sumatran See also:hare (Lepus netscheri), discovered in 1880, adds a second species to the Lepus nigricollis, the only hare previously known in the Malay Archipelago. The Manis javanicus is the only representative of the See also:Edentata. Some 350 species of birds are known, and the avifauna closely resembles that of the Malay Peninsula and Borneo, including few peculiar species. See also:Flora.—See also:Rank See also:grasses (lalang, glaga), which cover great areas in Java, have an even wider range in Sumatra, descending to within 700 or 800 ft. of sea-level; wherever a space in the forest is cleared these aggressive grasses begin to take See also:possession of the See also:soil, and if once they are fully rooted the woodland has great difficulty in re-establishing itself. Among the orders more strongly represented in Sumatra than in Java are the Dipterocarpaceae, Chrysobalanaceae, sclerocarp Myrtaceae, Melastomaceae, Begonias, See also:Nepenthes, Oxali= daceae, Myristicaceae, Ternstromiaceae, Connaraceae, Amyridaceae, Cyrtandraceae, Epacridaceae and Eriocaulaceae. Many of the Sumatran forms which do not occur in Java are found in the Malay Peninsula. In the north the See also:pine See also:tree (Pinus Merkusii) has advanced almost to the equator, and in the south are a variety of species characteristic of the Australian region. The distribution of species does not depend on elevation to the same extent as in Java, where the See also:horizontal zones are clearly marked; and there appears to be a tendency of all forms to grow at lower altitudes than in that island. A remarkable feature of the Sumatran flora is the great variety of trees that See also:vie with each other in stature and beauty, and as a See also:timber-producing country the island ranks high even among the richly wooded lands of the archipelago. Forest products—gums and resins of various sorts, such as See also:gutta-percha--are valuable articles of export. The See also:process of reckless deforestation is perceptible in certain districts, the natives often destroying a whole tree for a See also:plank or See also:rafter. The principal cultivated See also:plants, apart from See also:sugar-See also:cane and coffee, are See also:rice (in great variety of kinds), the coco-nut See also:palm, the areng palm, the areca and the sago palms, maize, yams, and sweet potatoes; and among the fruit trees are the Indian See also:tamarind, See also:pomegranate, See also:guava, papaw, See also:orange and See also:lemon. Even before the arrival of Europeans Sumatra was known for its See also:pepper plantations; and these still form the most conspicuous feature of the south of the island. For the See also:foreign See also:market coffee is the most important of all the crops, the Padang districts being the chief seat of its cultivation. See also:Benzoin was formerly obtained almost exclusively from Sumatra from the Styrax benzoin. Population.—The following table gives the area and estimated population of the several See also:political divisions of Sumatra and of the island as a whole (excluding the small part belonging to the See also:Riouw-Lingga residency):— See also:Division. Area in sq. m. Population. 1900. Sumatra, West Coast . . . 31,649 1,527,297 Sumatra, East Coast . . . . 35,312 421,090
Benkulen . 9,399 162,396
Lampong Districts 11,284 142,426
Palembang 53,497 804,299
Achin (Atjeh) 20,471 110,804
See also:Total 161,612 3,168,312
Of the total population, about s000 are Europeans, 93,000 See also:Chinese, 2500 See also:Arabs, 7000 foreigners of other nations, and the rest natives. In 1905 the total population was given as 4,029,505.
The natives of the mainland of Sumatra are all of Malay stock (those of the north being the most hybrid), but it is doubtful to what extent Malay has here absorbed pre-Malay See also:blood. The different tribes vary in See also:language, customs and See also:civilization: No See also:race of true Negrito type has been found. The See also:Kubus (q.v.), a See also:savage forest See also:people of the See also:highlands, were believed by some to be Negrito owing to the frizzled character of their See also:hair, but it appears certain that they are Malayan. The north of Sumatra is occupied by the Achinese (see ACHIN). South of Achin and west of Lake Toba is the country of the See also:Battas (q.v.) or Battaks. In the See also: The Korinchis live among the mountains south of Padang. and farther south on the See also:borders of Palembang and Benkulen are the Rejangers, a peculiar tribe who employ a distinctive written character which they cut with a kris on See also:bamboo or lontar. The same character is employed by their immediate neighbours to the south, the Pasumas, who bear traces of Javanese See also:influence. In the extreme south are the Lampong people, who claim descent from the Menangkabos, but have also an admixture of Javanese blood. The inhabitants of the islands west of Sumatra are of mixed origin. Simalu is peopled partly by Achinese and partly by Menangkabo settlers. They profess Mahommedanism but are practically savages. Nias (q.v.) has an interesting native population, apparently of pre-Malayan origin; and the Mentawi islands (q.v.) are inhabited by a race generally held to be a Polynesian See also:settlement which has escaped See also:fusion with Malayan stock. As regards See also:education and the spread of See also:Christianity among the natives, the west coast division is far in advance of the rest of the island. Here about 32,000 natives profess Christianity and there are about 300 See also:schools; elsewhere schools are comparatively few and the See also:adhesion to Christianity very slight. Administrative Divisions and Towns.—In the west coast lands See also:European influence, fertile soil, comparatively See also:good roads, See also:agriculture, timber, and coalfields have created populous settlements on the coast at Padang (the See also:capital of the west coast, with 35,158 inhabitants in 1897, of whom 1640 were Europeans), Priaman, See also:Natal, Ayer Bangis, Siboga, Singkel, and also on the plateaus at Fort de Kock, Payokombo, &c. In the east coast lands it is only at the mouths of rivers—Palembang at the mouth of the Musi, with 53,000 inhabitants, and Medan in Deli, the See also:residence of the highest See also:civil and military officials of the east coast, in which a See also:fine See also:government See also:house has been erected—that considerable centres of population are to be found. Nine-tenths of the natives of Sumatra live by agriculture, the rest by cattle-rearing, fishing, See also:navigation, and, last but not least, from the products of the forests; they are therefore little concentrated in towns. The Dutch government of the west coast, extending along the See also:shore of the Indian Ocean from 2° 53' N. to 2° 25' S., comprises the residencies of the Padang lowlands, Tapanuli and the Padang highlands. The See also:governor has his residence at Padang, which is also the capital of the lowlands residency. Padang Sidempuan, the chief See also:town of Tapanuli, lies inland, south of Mt Lubu Raja. The town of Siboga has considerable commercial importance, the bay on which it stands being one of the-finest in all Sumatra. Bukit Tinggi, or, as it is commonly called, Fort de Kock, is the capital of the residency of the Padang highlands. To the government of the west Coast belong the following islands: Simalu; Banyak Islands, a small limestone See also:group, well wooded and sparsely peopled; Nias; Bata Islands (Pulu Pini, See also:Tana Masa, Tana Bala, &c.); Mentawi and Pegeh or See also:Nassau Islands. The residency of Bankulen (i.e. See also:Bang Ku/on, " west coast ") lies along the west coast from the southern extremity of the west coast government to the south-western end of the island. The capital, Benkulen, is on the coast near Pulu Tiku, or Rat Island, in a low and swampy locality, and on an open roadstead. This was the chief See also:establishment possessed by the See also:British East See also:India See also:Company in Sumatra. Among other noteworthy places are Mokko-Mokko, with the old British fort See also:Anna; Pasar Bintuhan, and Lais (Laye), the former seat of the British See also:resident. The residency of the Lampong districts is the southernmost in the island, being separated from Palembang by the Masuji River. It is partly mountainous, partly so See also:flat as to be under See also:water in the See also:rainy See also:season. The more important places are Telok Betong, chief town of the residency, Menggala (with a good See also:trade), Gunung Sugi, Sukadana, Tanjong Karang, and Kota Agung.
The residency of Palembang consists of the former See also:kingdom of this name and various districts more or less dependent on that See also:monarchy. Between the mainland dependency of the Riouw-Lingga residency and the residency of Palembang lies Jambi, an extensive sultanate, of which a portion belongs to the residency of Palembang as a See also:protectorate, the See also:sultan having in his capital (also called Jambi) a Dutch " See also:comptroller," who represents the resident of Palembang; another portion is claimed by a quasi-See also:independent sultan who reigns in the interior. Of this interior very little was known until the scientific expedition despatched by the Dutch Royal See also:Geographical Society towards the end of the 'seventies, but in 1901 an armed Dutch expedition, necessitated by frequent disturbances, penetrated right into the Jambi See also:hinterland, the Gajo districts, where until then no European had ever trod. The town of Palembang is a large place on the river Musi, with 50,000 inhabitants (2500 Chinese), extensive See also:barracks, hospitals, &c., a See also:mosque (1740), considered the finest in the Dutch Indies, and a traditional See also:tomb of See also: The See also:plantation labourers are almost entirely See also:alien coolies, largely Chinese, and the Malays are comparatively few in number. The tobacco plantations of British North Borneo were nearly all started by planters from Deli.
The government ofAchin (q.v.) occupies the northern part of the island. No little progress has been made by the Dutch even in this See also:war-ridden territory. There is a railway in the lower valley of the Achin River, connecting the capital, Kotaraja, and neighbourhood with Olehleh, a good, See also:free See also:port, with an active trade, carried on by numerous steamers, both Dutch and foreign. Edi on the north-east coast, with another harbour, is capital of a sultanate which formerly owed See also:allegiance to the sultan of Achin, but has formed a political division of the government of Achin since 1889, when an armed expedition restored order. Edi is a centre of the still extensive pepper trade, carried on mainly with the Chinese at See also:Singapore and See also:Penang, which island faces Edi.
Products and See also:Industry.—Forests and natural vegetation cover a much larger part of Sumatra than of Java. Whereas in Java tall timber on the mountains keeps to altitudes of not less than 3000 ft., the tall timber on the mountains of Sumatra commonly descends below moo ft., and in many cases right down to the coast. In Sumatra, as in Java, the vegetation of the lowlands up to nearly l000 ft. is distinct from the vegetation of the mountain slopes and plateaus from that elevation up to 4000 ft. and over. The principal exports from all the regencies alike are See also:black and See also: The system of compulsory cultivation of coffee was abolished in Sumatra in 1908.
Sumatra possesses various kinds of See also:mineral See also:wealth. Gold occurs in the central region, where it is worked at a profit, and it has also been worked in the Menangkabo See also:district and the interior of Padang. See also:Tin is known, especially in Siak.. See also:Copper has been worked in the Padang highlands (most largely in the district of Lake Singkara) and at Muki in Achin. See also:Iron is not infrequent. The most important mineral economically, however, is coal. Coal seams exist in the Malabuh valley (Achin), in the Sinamu valley, and on both sides of the Ombilin River; the Ombilin See also: Lignite of good quality is found in several localities. The production of petroleum began to be strongly developed towards the close of the 19th century; on the Lepan River in Langkat it mounted from 362,88o gallons in 1891 to 20,141,000 gallons in 1899. Muara Enim in Palembang also produces petroleum. Perlak, formerly a tributary state of Achin and now a political division of the Achin government, has become one of the chief centres of the petroleum industry. The crude oil is conveyed in pipes to Aru Bay, on the east coast, and refined in the island of Sembilan. See also:Arsenic, See also:saltpetre, See also:alum, See also:naphtha and See also:sulphur may be collected in the volcanic districts. A systematic mineralogical survey has been undertaken in central Sumatra. Roads and Railways.—In the west, with its long line of coast and numerous valleys, the transport of coffee has induced the construction of very good roads as far as the Lake of Toba, owing to the want of navigable rivers. There is a railway connecting not only the coalfields of the Ombilin valley with Padang, but also the Ombilin river and the Lake of Singkara with the most productive and densely populated plateaus and valleys, north and south of the line of the volcanoes Singalang, Merapi aim Sago. A second railway in the district of Deli connects the inland plantations with the coast; and there is another, as already indicated, in the lower Achin valley. Good roads See also:traverse the broad plains of Benkulen, Palembang and the Lampong districts. See also:History.—As far as is known, Sumatran civilization and culture are of See also:Hindu origin; and it is not improbable that the island was the first of all the archipelago to receive the. Indian immigrants who played so important a part in the history of the region. Certain See also:inscriptions discovered in the Padang high-lands seem to certify the existence in the 7th century bf a powerful Hindu kingdom in Tanah Datar, not far from the site of the later capital of 1b4enangkabo. In these inscriptions Sumatra is called the " first Java." The traces of Hindu influence still to be found in the island arc extremely numerous, though far from being so important as those of Java. There are ruins of Hindu temples at Butar in Deli, near Pertibi, on the Panbi river at Jambi, in the interior of Palembang above Lahat, and in numerous other localities. One of the principal Hindu ruins is at Muara Takus on the Kampar river. The buildings (including a stupa 40 ft. high) may possibly date from the 11th century. At Pagar Rujung are several stones with inscriptions in See also:Sanskrit and Menangkabo Malay. Sanskrit words occur in the various See also:languages spoken in the island; and the Ficus religiosa, the sacred tree of the Hindu, is also the sacred tree of the Battas. At a later period the Hindu influence in Sumatra was strengthened by an influx of See also:Hindus from Java, who settled in Palembang, Jambi and Indragiri, but their See also:attachment' to Sivaism prevented them from coalescing with their Buddhist brethren in the north. In the 13th century Mahommedanism began to make itself felt, and in course of time took a See also:firm hold upon some of the most important states. In Menangkabo, for instance, the Arabic See also:alphabet displaced the Kavi (See also:ancient Javanese) character previously employed. Native See also:chronicles derive the Menangkabo princes from Alexander the Great; and the Achinese See also:dynasty boasts its origin from a missionary of See also:Islam. The town of Samudera was at that period the seat of an important principality in the north of the island, whose current name is probably a corruption of this word. There is a See also:village called Samudra near Pasei which possibly indicates the site. Sumatra first became known to Europeans through the Portuguese, Diogo See also:Lopes de: See also:Sequeira, in 15o8. The Portuguese were the first to establish trading posts on the island, but at the end of the century they were driven out by the Dutch. At this time the most powerful native state in the island was Achin (q.v.). Elsewhere Dutch See also:sovereignty was gradually extended—in 1664 over Indrapura; in 1666 over Padang, until by 1803 it was established over much of the southern part of the eastern lands, including Palembang. Meanwhile, in 1685 the British had acquired a footing in Benkulen, and between them and the Dutch there was always much See also:jealousy and See also:friction until in 1824 a treaty was made under which the British vacated Sumatra in favour of the Dutch, who reciprocated by giving up Malacca. In May 1825 Benkulen was taken over from the British. In the second half of the 19th century the Dutch found a See also:succession of armed expeditions necessary to consolidate their See also:power. Thus in 1851 a revolt was suppressed in Palembang, and an expedition was sent to the Lampong districts. In 1853 Raja Tiang Alam, ringleader of the revolt in Palembang, surrendered. In 1858 an expedition was sent against Jambi; the sultan was dethroned and a treaty made with his successor. In 186o Rejang was added to the Palembang residency. In 1863 there. was an expedition against Nias, and in 1865 another against Asahan and Serdang (east coast). In 1873 war was declaredagainst Achin. In 1876 there was an expedition against Kota Jutan (east coast) and the emancipation of slaves was carried out on the west coast. In 1878 Benkulen was made a residency, and the civil See also:administration of Achin and dependencies was entrusted to a governor. From 1883 to 1894 the government, with the help of missionaries, extended its authority over the south-east and south-west of the island, and also over some of the lands to the east and north of Toba lake, including the districts of Toba, Silindong and Tanah Jawa, and in 1895 over the southern part of the peninsula of Samosir in Toba lake. Its See also:jurisdiction was also extended over Tamiang, till then the northern frontier of the Dutch east coast of Sumatra. By military expeditions (1890-95) the Dutch influence on the Batang Hari, or Upper Jambi, was increased; as also in 1899 in the See also:Lima 'See also:Kotas 1 in central Sumatra, included within the territory of Siak. The war in Achin did not materially retard the development of Sumatra, and although the titular sultan of See also:Achill continued a desultory See also:guerrilla warfare against the Dutch in the mountainous woodlands of the interior, the almost inaccessible Pasei country, really active warfare has long ceased. All along the main coasts of the former sultanate of Achin military posts have been established and military roads constructed; even in Pedir, on the north coast, until 1899 the most actively turbulent centre of resistance of the sultan's. party, and still later only pacified in parts, Dutch See also:engineers were able to build a See also:highway to connect the west with the east coast, and other See also:works have, been successfully carried out. Practically the whole of the island is now more or less explored and under See also:control. The literature dealing with Sumatra is very extensive. Of the older, works the best known is W. See also:Marsden, History of Sumatra (See also:London, 1811). A full See also:list of other older authorities will be found in P. J. Veth's Aardrijkskundlg Woordenboek van Nederl. Indie (1869). Among later works one of great importance is Midden-Sumatra; Reizen en Onderzoekingen der Sumatra Expeditie, 1877-1879 (See also:Leiden, 1881, sqq.), edited by P. J. Veth. See also Beau de See also:Saint-Pol See also:Lias, See also:pie de Sumatra (See also:Paris, 1884) ; E. B. Kielstra, Beschrijving, van der Atjeh Oorlog (1885–1886), and " Sumatras West-Kust van 1819-1825," in .ijd. tot Land-,&c., Kunde (1887); on the history of Palembang, west coast and the war in Achin, in Indisch militair Tijdschrift (1886–1889); Tijdschr. See also:bat. Gen. (1887–1892). For See also:topography and geology, see R. Fennoma, " Topographische en' geologische Beschrijving van het Noordelijk gedeelte . . . Westkust, &c.," Jaarb. v. het Mijnwezen'(1887); R. D. M. Verbeek, Topographische en geologische Beschrijving van een Deel van Sumatra's Westkust, with See also:atlas (See also:Batavia, 1883) ; similar See also:work dealing with south Sumatra, Jaarb. v. het Mijnwezen (1881), and Supplement (1887). W. See also:Vole, Beitrage zur geologischen Kenntniss von See also:Nord-Sumatra," Zeitschr. deutseh. geol. Gesell. (1899), vol. H. Bucking, Zur Geologie von Nord- and Ost-Sumatra," Samml. geol. Reichs-See also:Mus.1st series, vol. viii., with See also:map and five plates (Leiden, 1904); D. J. Erb, " Beitrage zur Geologie and Morphologie der siidlichen West-Kiiste von Sumatra," Z. Ges. E. See also:Berlin (1905) ; J. F. Hoekstra, See also:Die Oro- and Hydrographie Sumatran (See also:Groningen, 1893) ; J. W. Ijzerman, &c., See also:Dwars See also:door Sumatra, Tocht van Padang naar Siak (See also:Haarlem, 1895); A. See also:Maas, Quer durch Sumatra (Berlin, 1904) ; E. See also:Otto, Pflanzen- and Jagerleben auf Sumatra (Berlin, 1903) ; B. Hagen, Die Gajo-See also:Lander," Jahresb. Frankfurter V.G., lxvi., lxvu. (1901–1903) ; Climate : J. P. van der Stok, Regenwaarnemingen and Atlas of Wind and Weather (Batavia, 1897). Consult further Tijd. Aardr. Gen., Tsjd. Batay. Gen., Jaarb. van het Mijnwezen, and Koloniale Verslagen, passim. Additional information and CommentsThere are no comments yet for this article.
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