A Visit to Java

New Zealand Listener, Volume 6, Issue 140, 27 February 1942, Page 5

A Visit to Java

HE Tanjong Priok is the port of Batavia. It is a very busy port, and very hot. There is a railway from the Tanjong Priok to Batavia and there are trees on both sides of the railway, and the story goes that only black monkeys live on one side ‘and only grey monkeys on the other. It is said that neither will ever cross the railway line, and so these two colonies live quite apart, looking across at each other and gibbering and chattering as monkeys do. At one point on our journey we were told we would visit a colony of monkeys, who were most friendly. It was late afternoon when we entered a grove of thick trees. The car stopped and the guide made a series of strange noises probably meant to be monkey talk,

In an instant the trees were alive with monkeys; they swarmed down the branches, and climbed on to the car. They were most persistent little beggars, demanding food. An enterprising native was selling nuts, which we bought and gave to them. And in their greed they fought and squabbled over the nuts. It was very amusing to see the almost human methods they applied. I saw a grim-faced old father monkey grab an agile youngster which had stolen his nuts, turn it over and give it one, two, three, as if it were a naughty small boy. I saw mothers box the ears of their young. There were so many of them, the trees overhead and the ground around our feet and all over the car seemed to be swarming with them.-(" Shoes and Ships and Sealing Wax." Nelle Scanlan. 2YA, January 20.)