Page:History of the Indian Archipelago Vol 2.djvu/458

 4)14* DUTCH HISTORY these restraints were removed, the sequel of their history plainly showed, that that moderation was only the result of expediency and necessity. It may perhaps be admitted, that, in the measures they pursued, there was a less insolent, daring, and open violation of justice than in those of the Portuguese j but they were attended by results still more perni- cious, because the power which confirmed the thral- dom of the natives was greater than that of their predecessors, and therefore embraced a larger field of desolation. I shall take a view of their conduct in the prin- cipal seats of their authority, viz. in Java, in the Moluccas, and other neighbouring islands, and in Malacca, and the other seats of theii' power in the west, illustrating each subject by a rapid narrative of some of the most prominent events of their ad- ministration. The eminent fertility of Java, the greatness of its resources, and the commodiousness of the port of Batavia, soon pointed it out as the fit seat of an extensive and commercial empire ; and as early as 1611, just a century after the establishment of the parallel authority of the Portuguese at Malacca, the first Dutch governor-general laid the founda- tions of the future capitalin Jacatra. By the year 1618, the ambition, rapacity, and abilities of the Dutch, French, and English, the new adventurers from Europe, had convinced the