nsurrection in
an attempt to place himself on the throne. Certain historians assert,
and probably with truth, that this insurrection was instigated and
encouraged by the Dutch themselves, who foresaw that it would be easier
to subjugate two weak states than a single strong one. In pursuance of
this policy, they suggested that, in order to avoid a fratricidal and
bloody war, the kingdom be divided, two-thirds of it, with Surakarta as
the capital, to remain under the rule of the Susuhunan; the remaining
third to be handed over to the pretender, who would assume the title of
Sultan and establish his court at Djokjakarta. This settlement was
reluctantly accepted by the Susuhunan because he realized that he could
hope for nothing better and by his brother because he recognized that
he might do much worse.

In principle, at least, the Sultan remained the vassal of the
Susuhunan, in token of which he paid him public homage once each year
at Ngawen, near Djokjakarta, where, in the presence of an immense
concourse of natives, he was obliged to prostrate himself before the
Susuhunan's throne as a public acknowledgment of his vassalage. But as
the years passed the breach thus created between the Susuhunan and the
Sultan showed signs of healing, which was the last thing desired by the
Dutch, who believed in the maxim _Divide ut imperes_. So, before the
next ceremony of homage came around, they sent for the Sultan, pointed
out to him the humiliation which he incurred in kneeling before the
Susuhunan, and offered to provide him with a means of escaping this
abasement. Their offer was as simple as it was ingenious--permission
to wear the uniform of a Dutch official. This was by no means as empty
an honor as it seemed, as the Sultan was quick to recognize, for one of
the tenets of Holland's rule in the Indies is that no one who wears the
Dutch uniform, whether European or native, shall impair the prestige of
that uniform by kneeling in homage. The Sultan, needless to say,
eagerly seized the opportunity thus offered, and, when the date for the
next ceremony fell due he arrived at Ngawen arrayed in the blue and
gold panoply of a Dutch official, but, instead of prostrating himself
before the Susuhunan in the grovelling _dodok_, he coolly remained
seated, as befitted a Dutch official and an independent prince.

The animosity thus ingeniously revived between the princely houses
lasted for many years, which was exactly what the Dutch had fo