Savage Tamed

Coolie&151;Madelon Lulofs&151;Viking ($2).

Reginald Heber, author of From Greenland's Icy Mountains, thought savages vile; Jean-Jacques Rousseau thought them noble. Modern anthropologists make finer distinctions, think them a little of both. Madelon Lulofs, who has seen, smelt and heard many a noble-vile Javanese, would like to side with Rousseau but her conscience will not let her. Her story of how a potentially noble savage was made into an ignoble coolie would be considered too sentimental by empire-builders, too tolerant by professional friends-of-the-oppressed. To her Javanese hero it would doubtless not be comprehensible at all.

Ruki knew nothing outside the life of his village, and could not imagine wanting to know. But he fell an easy prey to the decoy who chattered of the wonderful rewards to be earned by working on a white man's plantation. Long before he got to Sumatra he repented of his greed and wanted to go home, but because he had signed his mark to the contract it was too late. On the teak plantation Ruki, like most of his unfortunate fellows, lived the brutal life of a slave. His woman was taken from him. given to the white tuan. He lost his pay gambling. An attempted escape did him no good. At the end of his contract, because he was ashamed to go home as poor as he had left, he signed again.

So it went, year after year. Gradually Ruki's lot improved: he became a dependable worker, was finally allotted a woman. She made him save his money until there was enough in their old age to let them return home with honor. Night before they were to start Ruki's old bad habits overtook him, and he gambled it all away. Once more he signed the contract, but by now he hardly cared.

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