Page:Christiaan Snouck Hurgronje - The Achehnese - tr. Arthur Warren Swete O'Sullivan (1906).djvu/244

 The desired explanation was given, and the Sultan, after venting his wrath on the officials whose foolish pride had so long denied this embassy admittance to his presence, requested the strangers to come that same day to his palace.

The Achehnese were indeed delighted at having attained their object, but at the same time they were ashamed at having no clothing left suitable for such a visit, and also because, out of the whole cargo of pepper which they had brought with them, only a single chupaʾ remained.

When admitted to the Sultan’s presence, they told him about the kingdom of Acheh. They informed him that they had wished to present him with a cargo of pepper by way of first tribute, but were compelled to turn it into money for their needs, so that they could now only offer him a single chupaʾ as a sample of that product. The Sultan accepted the gift most graciously, and requested them to tell him all about affairs in Acheh, the distance of that kingdom from Stambul, the difficulties of the journey and so forth.

Finally he ordered a great cannon to be given them as a return present, and to this was given the name of Lada Sichupaʾ. In compliance with their request he also gave them a number of skilled artisans from his kingdom to instruct their fellow-countrymen in various arts hitherto unknown to them.

It is said that a number of these instructors who came from Syria, settled in a gampōng close to the Dalam, and in remembrance of their native land gave the village the name of Bitay (Ach. pronunciation of Bētal, an abbreviation of Bētal-maḳdis = Jerusalem). In Bitay may still be seen the grave of a saint, Teungku di Bitay, who according to the tradition belonged to this colony of strangers.

The Sultan of Turkey also considered it unbefitting to bind his new vassal to the regular despatch of embassies or tribute, since the great length of the journey presented too many difficulties. "Let the faithful observance," said he, "of a religious custom in your country take the place of the yearly payments which elsewhere constitute the mark of submission to a suzerain. The observance of the feast of Mohammad's birth is among the most meritorious of works of devotion. So let there be no village in Acheh where the inhabitants do not publicly hold a Mòʾlōt feast; that shall be your tribute to the lord of the Faithful."

Such is the explanation given of the fact that this festival has been