Page:History of the Indian Archipelago Vol 3.djvu/107

 LAWS. 93 in the public market. The three following laws of the Javanese are descriptive of their manners touching this point : " If a man purchase a piece of cloth without examination, and, carrying it home, discovers, on washing it, that it is holed, he shall proceed with it to the magistrate, who will endea- vour to find out whether the defect in the cloth be recent or of long standing. If the latter, the ven- der shall make good the loss ; if the foniier, the purchaser ; and, if the matter appear dubious, the loss shall be shared between them." — *' If a per- son, after having given something to another, afterwards repent, and demand it back, alleging that he had only given it in charge, and the de- fendant bring witnesses to prove that the pro- perty was actually given to him, he shall be en- titled to keep it, and the plaintiff shall be fined, besides, to the amount of 8000 pkhis. If, how- ever, the defendant, in the last case, should fail to prove that the property was actually given to him, he shall be compelled to make restitu- tion two-fold, and pay, besides, a fine of 12,000 pichis.'* The laws of the Indian islanders provide for de- posits principally in the case of travellers. When a traveller arrives at a village, it is his duty to re- port himself to the chief, and consign his goods to his charge. If they are lost, the village is respon- sible. Even the owner of a house is by law or cus-