Krawang

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Krawang is a residency of the island of Java, bounded east and south by Cirebon and the Prianger, west by Jakarta, and north by the Java Sea, and comprising a few insignificant islands. The natives are Sundanese, but contain a large admixture of Middle Javanese and Bantamers in the north, where they established colonies in the 17th century. Like the residency of Jakarta, the northern half of Krawang is flat and occasionally marshy, while the southern half is mountainous and volcanic. Warm and cold mineral, salt and sulphur springs occur in the hills. Salt is extracted by the government, though in smaller quantities now than formerly. The principal products are rice, coffee, sugar, vanilla, indigo and nutmeg. Fishing is practised along the coast and forest culture in the hills, while the industries also include the manufacture of coarse linen, sacks and leather tanning. Gold and silver were formerly thought to be hidden in the Parang mountain in the Gandasoli district south-west of Purwakarta, and mining was begun by the Dutch East India Company in 1722. The largest part of the residency consists of private lands, and only the Purwakarta and Krawang divisions forming the middle and north-west sections come directly under government control. The remainder of the residency is divided between the Pamanukan-Ciasem lands occupying - the whole eastern half of the residency and the Tegalwaru lands in the southwestern corner. The former was owned by a company and forms the largest estate in Java. The Tegalwaru was chiefly owned by Chinese proprietors. Purwakarta is the capital of the residency. Subang and Pamanukan both lie at the junction of several roads near the borders of Cirebon and are the chief centres of activity in the east of the residency.

This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.