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we should be wandering altogether off the right track in seeking for the laws and institutions of countries such as Acheh in lawbooks of foreign (e. g. Arabic) origin. Such works are it is true, translated, compiled and studied in the country, but their contents have only a limited influence on the life of its people[1]. It is owing to a misconception of this very obvious truth that the entirely superficial enquiry of Mr. der Kinderen (or his secretary Mr. L. W. C. Van den Berg) has proved abortive, as may be seen from his "explanatory memorandum" just referred to. To any one who has made himself acquainted with the political and social life of the Achehnese, his remarks on pp. 17–18 of his memorandum will sound as audacious as they are untrue: "Nor indeed is there any trace of ancient popular customs in conflict with Islam, at least in the sense that would indicate a customary law having its existence in the consciousness of the people, as is the case for example with the characteristic institutions regarding the law of person and inheritance which we meet with among the Malays on the west coast of Sumatra. The native chiefs when questioned as to such popular customs, either gave evasive answers, or quoted as such certain rules for the ceremonial in the Kraton, the distinctive appellations of various chiefs etc., all of course institutions of a wholly different sort from what was intended by the enquirer. Apparently they misunderstood the drift of the question and confused the material with the formal and administrative law. Only one of them, who, it may be remarked was no Achehnese by birth, but of Afghan descent, absolutely denied the existence of any legal institutions conflicting with the Mohammedan law.
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- ↑ The truth of this is also entirely overlooked in Mr. L. W. C. Van den Berg's essay on the "Divergences from the Mohammedan law as to family and inheritance in Java and Madura" in the Rijdragen van het Koninkl. Instituut voor de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde van Nederlandsch-Indië for 1892 p. 454 seq. Throughout this essay he employs as data for determining the ancient institutions of Java, regulations which appear in various lawbooks compiled under Hindu influence. To appreciate the folly of such a method we have only to imagine for a moment that the present civilization of the Javanese was by a revolution exchanged for one totally different. Then when the new order of things had been firmly established we should find in Java, not merely here and there, but everywhere, complete codes of Mohammedan law, some in Arabic, others translated into Javanese or with Javanese notes. We should thus have much stronger evidence of a theoretical application of Mohammedan law than we now find as regards Hindu law. Mr. Van den Berg could then present to our view a Javanese code of law more strictly Mohammedan than has ever been enforced in any Moslim country!
