Page:Christiaan Snouck Hurgronje - The Achehnese - tr. Arthur Warren Swete O'Sullivan (1906).djvu/127

 family of him who at the conclusion of the alliance was recognized by his fellows as chief, this could not prevent the inheritors of the office from being outvied by others at a later period. Still the feeling of respect for tradition in Acheh is great enough to leave the name and certain outward forms intact.

There was besides the usual conflict between one who is endowed with a loosely defined supremacy and those who find themselves subjected to it; on the one hand eagerness to shake off the yoke as far as possible, and on the other efforts after extended power.

Wars and other such special crises always showed whether the panglima sagi had inherited the influence as well as the rank of his forefathers; in times of comparative order and repose he was and still is a mere ulèëbalang like the rest.

We may here make cursory mention of two other sorts of ulèëbalangs, who exercise no authority within the three sagis. The first is the ulèëbalang poteu, i.e. "ulèëbalangs of our lord (the Sultan)", who either held a position of trust within the Sultan's own territory, or filled a high post at Court, or else owed their titles simply to the royal favour. Such offices are hereditary like the rest. The second is to be found among certain of the chiefs in the outlying dependencies who take some pride in adopting the title of ulèëbalang as a general designation of their rank. The chiefs in Acheh proper who rather look down on these aspirants, are wont to remark in contradiction of their claims, that the rulers of the dependencies are really only keujruëns (kejuruan) or meuntròës (mantri) no matter what titles they may have gained from chance, royal favour or their own arrogance.

To return to the ulèëbalangs of Acheh proper, we find then that they are both rajas, military commanders and judges in their own territories. For the exercise of their authority they have the following helpers:

a. Their younger brothers or more distant next-of-kin, generally known by the name of bantas. Of these one is the banta par excellence, the ulèëbalang's right-hand man. His duties are something like those of the patih of a Javanese princedom or regency.