# Max Havelaar, Chapter 14

Max Havelaar · Multatuli · The Novel

Source: https://1732studios.com/books/havelaar/hoofdstuk-14. Data: https://1732studios.com/books/havelaar/hoofdstuk-14.json. Audio: https://audio.1732studios.com/havelaar/<line id>.m4a.


VEERTIENDE HOOFDSTUK  
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
> 'Chapter Fourteen': veertiende is the ordinal 'fourteenth' (veertien + -de); hoofdstuk ('chapter') is a het-word compound of hoofd ('head/main') + stuk ('piece').

Ge weet, begon Havelaar, hoe de nederlandsche bezittingen ter Westkust van Sumatra aan de onafhankelyke ryken in den noordhoek grenzen, waarvan Atjeh het aanzienlykste is.  
You know, Havelaar began, how the Dutch possessions on the west coast of Sumatra border on the independent realms in the northern corner, of which Atjeh is the most considerable.
> Indirect question with hoe: hoe ('how') opens an indirect question with verb-final order, so grenzen ('border') closes the clause. The framing Ge weet directly addresses Verbrugge, Havelaar's listener.
> Frozen ter + superlative: ter (= te der) is a fused old dative-feminine form surviving in fixed phrases. het aanzienlykste is the superlative 'the most considerable'.

Men zegt dat een geheim artikel in het traktaat van 1824, ons jegens de Engelschen de verplichting oplegt, de rivier van Singkel niet te overschryden.  
It is said that a secret article in the treaty of 1824 binds us, with respect to the English, not to cross the river of Singkel.
> Separable opleggen + negated te-infinitive: legt ... op ('imposes') is separable opleggen; the obligation is spelled out by the te-infinitive niet te overschryden ('not to cross'). ons is the indirect object 'on us'.

De generaal Vandamme, die met een faux-air Napoléon gaarne zyn gouvernement zoo vèr mogelyk uitbreidde, stuitte dus in die richting op een onoverkomelyken hinderpaal.  
General Vandamme, who with a faux-air of Napoleon was fond of extending his governorship as far as possible, thus ran up against an insurmountable obstacle in that direction.
> Imperfect of separable uitbreiden: uitbreidde is the simple past of separable uitbreiden ('to extend'); inside the die-relative the verb still goes final. gaarne is the literary 'gladly, fond of'.

Ik moet aan 't bestaan van dat geheim artikel wel gelooven, omdat het me anders bevreemden zou dat de Radjahs van Troeman en Analaboe, wier provincien niet zonder gewicht zyn door den peperhandel die daar gedreven wordt, niet sedert lang onder nederlandsche souvereiniteit zyn gebracht.  
I am inclined to believe in the existence of that secret article, for otherwise it would surprise me that the Rajahs of Troeman and Analaboe, whose provinces are of no small weight on account of the pepper trade carried on there, had not long since been brought under Dutch sovereignty.
> omdat + conditional zou: omdat subordinates; bevreemden zou is the conditional ('it would surprise me') with the infinitive fronted before zou. bevreemden = 'to strike as strange'.
> Genitive relative wier + zijn-passive: wier ('whose') heads the relative; zyn gebracht is a perfect/state passive ('have been brought'). The whole turns on why these pepper-rich realms were not annexed.

Ge weet hoe gemakkelyk men een voorwendsel vindt om zulke landjes den oorlog aantedoen, en zich daarvan meester te maken.  
You know how easily one finds a pretext for making war on such little lands and seizing them for oneself.
> om ... te (joined aantedoen): om ... aantedoen is a purpose clause; aantedoen writes te inside separable aandoen, 1860 style. zulke landjes ... den oorlog aandoen = 'to make war on such little lands'.
> Diminutive landjes + reflexive idiom: landjes is the plural diminutive of land ('little lands', dismissive). zich meester maken van is a reflexive idiom 'to seize, take possession of'.

Het stelen van een landschap zal altyd makkelyker blyven dan van een molen.  
Stealing a region will always remain easier than stealing a windmill.
> Nominalized infinitive + comparative: Het stelen ('the stealing') is an infinitive as neuter subject; makkelyker ... dan is the comparative with dan. The aphorism mocks the ease of colonial land-grabbing.

Ik geloof van den generaal Vandamme, dat hy zelfs een molen zou weggenomen hebben als hy daarin lust gevoeld had, en begryp dus niet dat hy die landschappen in de Noord zou hebben verschoond, wanneer niet daarvoor steviger gronden hadden bestaan dan recht en billykheid.  
I believe of General Vandamme that he would have made off with a windmill itself had he taken a fancy to it, and so I cannot suppose that he would have spared those northern regions had there not been firmer grounds for it than justice and equity.
> Conditional perfect + counterfactual: zou weggenomen hebben is conditional perfect ('would have made off with'); the als-clause lust gevoeld had is a counterfactual pluperfect. daarin = 'in it' (pronominal adverb).
> Counterfactual + comparative steviger ... dan: hadden bestaan is the pluperfect in a counterfactual wanneer-clause ('had there not existed'); steviger ... dan is the comparative ('firmer than'). daarvoor is a pronominal adverb 'for it'.

Hoe dit zy, hy richtte zyn veroveraarsblikken niet Noord- maar Oostwaarts.  
However that may be, he turned his conqueror's gaze not northward but eastward.
> Concessive optative Hoe dit zy: Hoe dit zy ('however that may be') is a fixed concessive with the optative zy. richtte is the weak imperfect of richten; the niet ... maar pair contrasts the directions.

De landstreken Mandhéling en Ankola--dit was de naam der adsistent-residentie die gevormd was uit de pas tot rust gebrachte Battahlanden--waren wel nog niet gezuiverd van atjineschen invloed--want waar dweepzucht eens wortel schiet, is 't uitroeien moeielyk--maar de Atjinezen zelf waren er toch niet meer. Dit was evenwel den Gouverneur niet genoeg.  
The territories of Mandhéling and Ankola — this was the name of the assistant-residency formed out of the newly pacified Battah lands — were indeed not yet cleansed of Atjinese influence, for wherever fanaticism once takes root it is hard to dig out, but the Atjinese themselves were no longer there. This, however, was not enough for the Governor.
> Free relative waar + nominalized infinitive: waar ('wherever') heads a verb-final clause (schiet); 't uitroeien is an infinitive turned neuter noun ('the rooting-out'). wortel schieten = 'to take root'.

Hy breidde zyn gezag tot aan de oostkust uit, en er werden nederlandsche beambten en nederlandsche garnizoenen gezonden naar Bila en Pertibie, welke posten echter--zooals je weet, Verbrugge--later weer ontruimd zyn. Toen er op Sumatra een Regeeringskommissaris aankwam, die deze uitbreiding doelloos vond en ze hierom afkeurde, vooral ook wyl ze in stryd was met de wanhopige spaarzaamheid waarop door 't moederland zoozeer was aangedrongen, beweerde de generaal Vandamme dat die uitbreiding geen bezwarenden invloed behoefde te hebben op de begrooting, want dat de nieuwe garnizoenen gevormd waren uit troepen waarvoor toch reeds gelden waren toegestaan, zoodat hy een zeer groote landstreek onder nederlandsch bestuur had gebracht, zonder dat hieruit geldelijke uitgaven waren voortgevloeid.  
He extended his authority all the way to the east coast, and Dutch officials and Dutch garrisons were sent to Bila and Pertibie, posts which — as you know, Verbrugge — were later evacuated again. When a Government Commissioner arrived on Sumatra who found this expansion pointless and disapproved of it on that account, chiefly too because it conflicted with the desperate economy on which the motherland so strongly insisted, General Vandamme maintained that the expansion need have no burdensome effect on the budget, for the new garrisons had been formed out of troops for which funds had already in any case been granted, so that he had brought a very large region under Dutch administration without any monetary outlay flowing from it.
> Existential er + worden-passive: er werden ... gezonden is an existential process passive ('were sent'), er filling the subject slot before the indefinite plural. The agentless passive keeps the focus on policy, not actors.
> Formal relative welke + zijn-passive: welke posten ('which posts') is the formal/period relative welk used adjectivally to resume a noun. ontruimd zyn is a perfect/state passive ('have been evacuated').

En wat voorts het gedeeltelyk ontblooten van andere plaatsen aanging, voornamelyk in 't Mandhélingsche, meende hy genoeg te kunnen rekenen op de trouw en de aanhankelykheid van Jang di Pertoean, 't voornaamste hoofd in de Battahlanden, om hierin geen bezwaar te zien.  
And as for the partial stripping of other places, chiefly in the Mandhéling country, he thought he could rely sufficiently on the loyalty and devotion of Jang di Pertoean, the foremost chief in the Battah lands, to see no difficulty in it.
> te kunnen rekenen + om ... te zien: te kunnen rekenen is a stacked te-infinitive ('to be able to rely'); the purpose om ... te zien ('to see no objection') closes with a second te-infinitive. geen bezwaar negates the indefinite.

Met weerzin gaf de Regeeringskommissaris toe, en wel op de herhaalde betuigingen van den generaal dat hy persoonlijk zich tot borg stelde voor Jang di Pertoean's trouw.  
With reluctance the Government Commissioner gave way, and only on the general's repeated assurances that he stood surety personally for Jang di Pertoean's loyalty.
> Fronted phrase + separable toegeven: Fronting Met weerzin ('with reluctance') inverts the verb (gaf ... toe). toegeven is separable, 'to give in, yield'.
> Reflexive idiom zich tot borg stellen: zich tot borg stellen ('to stand surety, vouch') is a reflexive construction. The dat-clause is subordinate, so stelde goes to the end.

Nu was de kontroleur die vóór my de afdeeling Natal bestuurde, de schoonzoon van den adsistent-resident in de Battahlanden, welke ambtenaar met Jang di Pertoean in onmin leefde.  
Now the controller who governed the Natal division before me was the son-in-law of the assistant-resident in the Battah lands, an official who was on bad terms with Jang di Pertoean.
> Relative die + verb-final bestuurde: die opens the relative clause ('who governed Natal before me'), pushing bestuurde to the end. The main clause links subject and predicate noun de schoonzoon ('the son-in-law').

Later heb ik veel hooren spreken van klachten die tegen dien adsistent-resident waren ingebracht, doch men moest voorzichtig wezen met geloof-slaan aan deze beschuldigingen, omdat ze grootendeels uit den mond kwamen van Jang di Pertoean, en wel op een oogenblik toen deze zelf van veel zwaarder vergrypen was aangeklaagd, hetgeen hem misschien noopte zyn verdediging te zoeken in de fouten van zyn beschuldiger ... wat meer gebeurt.  
Later I heard much talk of complaints that had been brought against that assistant-resident, yet one had to be cautious in giving credence to these accusations, since they came largely from the mouth of Jang di Pertoean, and at a moment, moreover, when he himself stood accused of far graver offenses, which perhaps prompted him to seek his own defense in the faults of his accuser ... as happens often enough.
> Modal moest + archaic infinitive wezen: moest ... wezen ('had to be') uses modal moeten with wezen, the older infinitive of zijn. geloof slaan aan = 'to give credence to'.
> toen + pluperfect passive: toen subordinates ('when'); was aangeklaagd is a pluperfect passive ('had been accused'). zwaarder ... vergrypen = 'graver offences' (comparative).

Hoe dit zy, de gezaghebber van Natal omhelsde de party van zyn schoonvader tegen Jang di Pertoean, en dit te vuriger misschien omdat die kontroleur zeer bevriend was met zekeren Soetan Salim, een natalsch Hoofd dat ook zeer op den battakschen chef gebeten was.  
However that may be, the chief officer of Natal embraced the cause of his father-in-law against Jang di Pertoean, and the more ardently perhaps because that controller was on very friendly terms with a certain Soetan Salim, a Natal chief who was likewise much incensed against the Battah chief.
> te vuriger (the more ardently): te + comparative (te vuriger) means 'all the more ardently'. The omdat-clause that follows gives the reason, with bevriend was at its end.

Sedert lang heerschte er een veete tusschen de familien dezer beide hoofden. Er waren huwelyksvoorstellen afgeslagen, er bestond yverzucht over invloed, trots aan den kant van Jang di Pertoean die van beter geboorte was, en meer andere oorzaken nog liepen samen om Natal en Mandhéling tegen elkander opgezet te houden.  
A feud had long reigned between the families of these two chiefs. Marriage proposals had been refused, there was jealousy over influence, pride on the part of Jang di Pertoean, who was of better birth, and still other causes ran together to keep Natal and Mandhéling set against each other.
> Existential er + genitive dezer: heerschte er ('there reigned') is existential, with fronted Sedert lang forcing inversion. dezer beide hoofden is the inflected genitive demonstrative, 'of these two chiefs'.
> Comparative beter + relative die: van beter geboorte ('of better birth') uses the comparative beter; the die-relative closes verb-final on was. The pride of higher birth is one root of the feud.

Op-eenmaal verspreidde zich 't gerucht dat er in Mandhéling een komplot was ontdekt, waarin Jang di Pertoean zou betrokken wezen, en dat ten-doel had de heilige vaan des opstands uittesteken en alle Europeanen te vermoorden.  
All at once the rumor spread that a plot had been uncovered in Mandhéling, in which Jang di Pertoean was supposedly implicated, and which aimed at raising the holy banner of revolt and murdering all the Europeans.
> Reflexive zich verspreiden + pluperfect passive: verspreidde zich ('spread itself') is reflexive, with fronted Op-eenmaal causing inversion. was ontdekt is a pluperfect passive ('had been uncovered') inside the dat-clause.
> Genitive des opstands + joined uittesteken: des opstands is the masculine genitive ('of the revolt'). uittesteken writes te inside separable uitsteken (joined-infinitive 1860 spelling), 'to raise the banner'.

De eerste ontdekking hiervan had te Natal plaats gehad, wat natuurlyk is, daar men in nabyliggende provincien altyd beter van den stand der zaken onderricht wordt dan op de plaats zelf, dewyl velen die te-huis door vrees voor een betrokken Hoofd zich laten weerhouden van de openbaring eener hun bekende omstandigheid, die vrees eenigermate overwinnen zoodra ze zich op een grondgebied bevinden waar dat Hoofd geen invloed heeft.  
The first discovery of this had taken place at Natal, which is natural, since in neighboring provinces one is always better informed of the state of affairs than on the spot itself, because many who at home are held back by fear of an implicated chief from disclosing some circumstance known to them, master that fear to some degree the moment they find themselves on a territory where that chief has no influence.
> Causal daar + worden-passive: daar ('since') subordinates; onderricht wordt is a process passive ('one is informed'). beter is the comparative adverb. The clause explains why discoveries surface in neighbouring districts.
> Causative laten + reflexive zich: zich laten weerhouden ('let themselves be held back') stacks reflexive zich + causative laten; zich bevinden ('find themselves') is also reflexive. dewyl ('because') opens the long causal frame.

Dit is dan ook de reden, Verbrugge, waarom ik geen vreemdeling ben in de zaken van Lebak, en dat ik redelyk veel wist van wat hier omgaat, voor ik dacht hier ooit te zullen geplaatst worden.  
This, then, is also the reason, Verbrugge, why I am no stranger to the affairs of Lebak, and why I knew a fair amount of what goes on here before I ever thought I would be posted here.
> Future passive te zullen geplaatst worden: te zullen geplaatst worden stacks a te-infinitive + future zullen + passive worden ('to be going to be posted') — a dense future-passive cluster typical of formal Dutch.

Ik was in 1846 in 't Krawangsche, en heb veel rondgedwaald in de Preanger waar ik reeds in 1840 Lebaksche uitgewekenen ontmoette.  
In 1846 I was in the Krawang country, and I roamed widely through the Preanger, where as early as 1840 I had met émigrés from Lebak.
> Perfect rondgedwaald + imperfect ontmoette: heb ... rondgedwaald is the perfect of separable ronddwalen ('roamed about'); the waar-relative shifts to the narrative imperfect ontmoette ('met'). Mixing tenses is natural in such recollection.

Ook ben ik bekend met sommige eigenaren van partikuliere landen in 't Buitenzorgsche en in de Bataviasche ommelanden, en ik weet hoe van-oudsher die landheeren verheugd zyn over den slechten toestand dezer Afdeeling, omdat dit hun landeryen bevolkt.  
I am also acquainted with some of the owners of private estates in the Buitenzorg country and in the lands around Batavia, and I know how those landlords have from of old rejoiced over the wretched condition of this division, because it peoples their estates.
> Indirect question hoe + causal omdat: hoe opens an indirect question (verheugd zyn at its end, a state passive 'are gladdened'); omdat then gives the cause (bevolkt at its end). hun is the possessive 'their'.

Zóó ook zou dan te Natal de samenzwering ontdekt wezen, die--als ze bestaan heeft, wat ik niet weet--Jang di Pertoean deed kennen als verrader.  
So too, then, the conspiracy was said to have been uncovered at Natal which — if it ever existed, which I do not know — exposed Jang di Pertoean as a traitor.
> Conditional passive zou ... ontdekt wezen: zou ... ontdekt wezen is a conditional/reported passive ('was said to have been uncovered'), wezen the archaic infinitive of zijn. Fronting Zóó ook forces inversion.
> Causative deed kennen: deed kennen ('made known, exposed') is causative doen + bare infinitive in the imperfect. The relative die heads the clause referring to de samenzwering.

Volgens door den kontroleur van Natal afgenomen verklaringen van getuigen, zou hy gezamenlyk met zyn broeder Soetan Adam de battaksche Hoofden hebben doen verzamelen in een heilig bosch waarin zy zouden gezworen hebben niet te rusten voor 't gezag der "christenhonden" in Mandhéling vernietigd was.  
According to depositions of witnesses taken down by the controller of Natal, he was said, together with his brother Soetan Adam, to have gathered the Battah chiefs in a sacred grove, where they were supposed to have sworn not to rest until the authority of the "Christian dogs" in Mandhéling was destroyed.
> Conditional perfect + causative doen verzamelen: zou ... hebben doen verzamelen is a reported conditional perfect with causative doen ('was said to have had the chiefs gathered'). The whole reports an accusation, not a fact.
> Reported zou + pre-temporal voor: zouden gezworen hebben is reported conditional perfect ('were supposed to have sworn'); voor ('before') subordinates the clause closing on vernietigd was (pluperfect passive). niet te rusten = 'not to rest'.

Het spreekt vanzelf, dat hy hiertoe een ingeving van den hemel had ontvangen. Ge weet, dat dit by zulke gelegenheden nooit uitblyft.  
It goes without saying that for this he had received an inspiration from heaven. You know that on such occasions this is never lacking.
> Impersonal Het spreekt vanzelf: Het spreekt vanzelf ('it goes without saying') is an impersonal-het idiom. hiertoe ('for this') is a pronominal adverb; had ontvangen is the pluperfect.
> Negative nooit + separable uitblijven: nooit ('never') is the single negative word; uitblyft is separable uitblijven ('to fail to occur'). The dat-clause is subordinate, hence verb-final.

Of nu inderdaad dit voornemen by Jang di Pertoean bestaan heeft, kan ik niet verzekeren. Ik heb de verklaringen der getuigen gelezen, doch ge zult terstond inzien waarom daaraan niet onvoorwaardelyk geloof mag worden geslagen.  
Whether this design ever in fact existed in Jang di Pertoean's mind, I cannot affirm. I have read the witnesses' depositions, but you will see at once why no unconditional credence may be placed in them.
> Pronominal daaraan + worden-passive with modal: daaraan ('to it') is a pronominal adverb. mag worden geslagen stacks modal mogen + passive worden ('may be placed'). geloof slaan aan = 'to give credence to'.

Zéker is 't dat de man, wat zyn islamsche dweepzucht aangaat, wel tot zoo-iets kan in-staat geweest zyn.  
Certain it is that the man, so far as his Islamic fanaticism is concerned, may well have been capable of such a thing.
> Modal kan + pluperfect infinitive: kan ... in-staat geweest zyn ('may have been capable') stacks modal kunnen with a perfect infinitive. wat ... aangaat = 'as far as ... is concerned'. Zéker is 't fronts the predicate for emphasis.

Hy was, met de geheele battaksche bevolking, eerst kort te voren door de Padries overgehaald tot het ware geloof, en nieuwbekeerden zyn gewoonlyk fanatiek.  
He had, along with the whole Battah population, only shortly before been won over to the true faith by the Padris, and the newly converted are usually fanatical.
> Pluperfect passive + separable overhalen: was ... overgehaald is a pluperfect passive ('had been won over'); overhalen is separable, agent marked by door. eerst kort te voren = 'only shortly before'.

Het gevolg van die ware of vermeende ontdekking was dat Jang di Pertoean door den adsistent-resident van Mandhéling, werd gevangen genomen en naar Natal gezonden. Hier sloot de kontroleur hem voorloopig in 't fort op, en liet hy hem met de eerste geschikte scheepsgelegenheid gevankelyk naar Padang, vervoeren.  
The consequence of that true or supposed discovery was that Jang di Pertoean was taken prisoner by the assistant-resident of Mandhéling and sent to Natal. Here the controller shut him up provisionally in the fort, and had him conveyed in custody to Padang by the first suitable opportunity by sea.
> worden-passive, two participles: werd ... gevangen genomen ... en gezonden is a process passive in the imperfect, the agent in den adsistent-resident (accusative -n). Two past participles share the one auxiliary werd.
> Causative laten + bare infinitive: liet ... vervoeren is causative laten ('had him conveyed') with the bare infinitive at the end. gevankelyk ('in custody') is an archaic adverb. Padang is the west-coast capital.

Het spreekt vanzelf dat men den Gouverneur al de stukken aanbood, waarin de zoo bezwarende getuigenissen waren opgenomen, en die de strengheid van de genomen maatregelen moesten wettigen. Onze Jang di Pertoean was dus van Mandhéling, vertrokken als een gevangene.  
It goes without saying that all the documents in which the so incriminating testimonies were recorded, and which had to justify the severity of the measures taken, were laid before the Governor. Our Jang di Pertoean thus departed from Mandhéling as a prisoner.
> Imperfect aanbood + pluperfect passive: aanbood is the strong simple past of separable aanbieden ('offered, laid before'); waren opgenomen is a pluperfect passive ('had been recorded') in the relative clause. den Gouverneur keeps the accusative -n.
> Modal moesten + past participle as adjective: moesten wettigen ('had to justify') is modal moeten + bare infinitive. genomen is a past participle used attributively, 'the measures taken'.

Te Natal was hy gevangen. Aan-boord van 't oorlogsvaartuig dat hem overvoerde, was hy ook natuurlyk een gevangene.  
At Natal he was a prisoner. Aboard the man-of-war that carried him over, he was naturally a prisoner as well.

Hy verwachtte dus--schuldig of niet, dit doet niets tot de zaak, daar hy in wettigen vorm en door bevoegde autoriteit was beschuldigd van hoogverraad--ook te Padang, als een gevangene te zullen aankomen.  
He therefore expected — guilty or not, that has nothing to do with the matter, since he had in lawful form and by a competent authority been accused of high treason — to arrive at Padang as a prisoner too.
> te zullen aankomen (future te-infinitive): te zullen aankomen embeds the future zullen inside a te-infinitive governed by verwachtte ('expected to arrive'). The inserted dash-clause holds the legal qualification.
> Causal daar + pluperfect passive: daar ('since') subordinates; was beschuldigd is a pluperfect passive ('had been accused'), agent by door bevoegde autoriteit. wettigen vorm shows the old accusative -n.

Wèl moet hy dus zeer verwonderd hebben gestaan, by de ontscheping te vernemen dat hy vry was niet alleen, maar dat de generaal, wiens rytuig hem by 't aan wal stappen opwachtte, het zich tot een eer rekenen zou hem by zich aan huis te ontvangen en te herbergen. Zeker is nooit een van hoogverraad beschuldigde aangenamer verrast geworden.  
He must indeed have stood greatly astonished, on disembarking, to learn not only that he was free, but that the general, whose carriage awaited him as he stepped ashore, would count it an honor to receive and lodge him in his own house. Surely no man accused of high treason was ever more agreeably surprised.
> Modal moet + perfect infinitive (inference): moet ... hebben gestaan ('must have stood') is modal moeten with a perfect infinitive, expressing inference. Fronting Wèl triggers inversion of subject and verb.
> Reflexive idiom + conditional + te-infinitive: het zich tot een eer rekenen ('to count it an honour') is reflexive; rekenen zou is conditional, governing the te-infinitives te ontvangen en te herbergen. wiens is the genitive relative 'whose'.

Kort hierop werd de adsistent-resident van Mandhéling, in zyn betrekking geschorst wegens allerlei vergrypen die ik hier niet beoordeel. Jang di Pertoean echter, na op Padang, eenigen tyd ten-huize van den generaal te hebben vertoefd, en na door dezen met de meeste onderscheiding te zyn behandeld, keerde over Natal naar Mandhéling terug, niet met het zelfgevoel van den onschuldig- verklaarde, maar met den trots van iemand die zóó hoog staat dat hy geen verklaring van onschuld noodig heeft.  
Shortly after this the assistant-resident of Mandhéling was suspended from his post on account of all manner of offenses which I do not here judge. Jang di Pertoean, however, after lodging some time at Padang in the general's house, and after being treated by him with the utmost distinction, returned by way of Natal to Mandhéling, not with the self-assurance of a man declared innocent, but with the pride of one who stands so high that he needs no declaration of innocence.
> na + perfect te-infinitive: na te hebben vertoefd ('after having stayed') and na te zyn behandeld ('after being treated') are perfect te-infinitives after na. te zyn behandeld is also passive.
> niet ... maar + accusative den: The niet ... maar correlative contrasts self-assurance with pride; den trots and den onschuldig-verklaarde carry the masculine accusative -n. The die-relative closes on staat.

Immers, onderzocht was de zaak niet! Aannemende dat men de tegen hem ingebrachte beschuldiging voor valsch hield, dan had reeds dit vermoeden een onderzoek vereischt, teneinde de valsche getuigen te straffen, en vooral hen die blyken zouden zoodanige valsheid te hebben uitgelokt.  
For, after all, the matter had not been investigated! Granting that the accusation brought against him was held to be false, then this very suspicion already called for an inquiry, in order to punish the false witnesses, and above all those who might appear to have procured such falsehood.
> Present participle Aannemende: Aannemende ('granting, assuming') is a present participle opening an absolute construction. The dat-clause that follows is its object, with hield verb-final.
> teneinde ... te (purpose): teneinde + te-infinitive ('in order to punish') is the formal, archaic equivalent of om ... te. had ... vereischt is the pluperfect ('would already have required').

Het schynt dat de generaal zyn redenen had om dit onderzoek niet te doen plaats hebben. De tegen Jang di Pertoean ingebrachte aanklacht werd beschouwd als non avenu, en ik houd voor zeker dat de daarop doelende stukken nooit onder de oogen der Regeering te Batavia gebracht zyn.  
It seems that the general had his reasons for not letting this inquiry take place. The charge brought against Jang di Pertoean was treated as null and void, and I hold it for certain that the documents bearing on it never came before the eyes of the Government at Batavia.
> Impersonal Het schynt dat: Het schynt dat ('it seems that') uses dummy het with a dat-complement — a classic impersonal construction. had is verb-final in the subordinate clause.
> Present participle doelende + genitive der: daarop doelende ('bearing on it') is a present participle phrase; der Regeering is the feminine genitive 'of the Government'. gebracht zyn is a perfect passive.

Kort na Jang di Pertoean's terugkeer kwam ik te Natal aan om 't bestuur van die afdeeling overtenemen.  
Shortly after Jang di Pertoean's return I arrived at Natal to take over the administration of that division.
> Separable aankomen + om ... te (joined overtenemen): kwam ... aan is separable aankomen ('arrived'); the purpose om ... overtenemen ('in order to take over') joins te inside separable overnemen, 1860 style.

Myn voorganger verhaalde me natuurlyk wat er kort geleden in 't Mandhélingsche was voorgevallen, en gaf my de noodige inlichting over de staatkundige verhouding tusschen die landstreek en myn Afdeeling.  
My predecessor naturally recounted to me what had recently occurred in the Mandhéling country, and gave me the necessary information about the political relations between that region and my division.
> Free relative wat + pluperfect of separable: wat ('what') is a headless relative object; was voorgevallen is the pluperfect of separable voorvallen ('had occurred'), with existential er. verhaalde is the imperfect of verhalen ('to recount').

Het was hem niet euvel te duiden dat hy zich zeer beklaagde over de zyns inziens onrechtvaardige behandeling die zyn schoonvader ten-deel viel, en over de onbegrypelyke bescherming die Jang di Pertoean van den generaal bleek te genieten.  
It was not to be held against him that he complained bitterly of the, in his view, unjust treatment that had befallen his father-in-law, and of the incomprehensible protection that Jang di Pertoean evidently enjoyed from the general.
> Impersonal het + idiom euvel duiden: Het was ... niet euvel te duiden ('it was not to be held against him') pairs dummy het with the idiom euvel duiden and a te-infinitive. zich beklaagde is the reflexive 'complained'.
> Genitive zyns + separable ten deel vallen: zyns inziens ('in his view') is a frozen genitive idiom. ten deel vallen ('to befall') is a separable-style idiom closing the die-relative on viel.

Noch hy noch ik wisten op dàt oogenblik dat de opzending van Jang di Pertoean naar Batavia, een vuistslag in 't gelaat van dien generaal zou geweest zyn, en dat deze--persoonlyk voor de trouw van dat hoofd hebbende ingestaan --gegronde redenen had, wat het ook kosten mocht, hem te vrywaren tegen een beschuldiging van hoogverraad.  
Neither he nor I knew at that moment that the sending of Jang di Pertoean to Batavia would have been a blow in the face for that general, and that he — having stood surety personally for that chief's loyalty — had well-founded reasons, whatever it might cost, to shield him from an accusation of high treason.
> Correlative noch ... noch: noch ... noch ('neither ... nor') is a single-negation correlative; the verb wisten still agrees with the compound subject. dàt oogenblik uses the far demonstrative dat for a het-word.
> Present participle hebbende ingestaan: hebbende ingestaan is a perfect present-participle absolute ('having stood surety') — a very formal, Latinate construction inserted to give the general's motive.

Dit was voor den generaal des te belangryker, omdat inmiddels de zoo-even bedoelde Regeeringskommissaris zelf Gouverneur-generaal was geworden, en hem dus hoogstwaarschynlyk uit zyn gouvernement zou hebben teruggeroepen, uit verstoordheid over 't ongegrond vertrouwen op Jang di Pertoean, en over de hierop steunende hoofdigheid waarmee de generaal zich tegen 't ontruimen van de Oostkust verzet had.  
This was all the more important for the general because in the meantime the very Government Commissioner just referred to had himself become Governor-General, and would therefore in all likelihood have recalled him from his governorship, out of vexation at the unfounded confidence placed in Jang di Pertoean, and at the obstinacy resting on it with which the general had resisted the evacuation of the east coast.
> omdat + pluperfect was geworden: was geworden is the pluperfect of worden ('had become'). omdat subordinates the long causal clause, sending the verb cluster to the end.
> Conditional perfect of separable terugroepen: zou hebben teruggeroepen is the conditional perfect ('would have recalled') of separable terugroepen. The stacked verbs at the end are characteristic of formal narrative.

"Doch, zei myn voorganger, wat ook den generaal moge bewegen al de beschuldigingen tegen myn schoonvader voetstoots aantenemen, en de veel zwaarder grieven tegen Jang di Pertoean niet eens een onderzoek waardig te keuren, de zaak is niet uit!  
"But," said my predecessor, "whatever may move the general to accept out of hand all the accusations against my father-in-law, and to deem the far graver charges against Jang di Pertoean not even worth an inquiry, the matter is not finished!
> Concessive optative moge: wat ook ... moge bewegen ('whatever may move') uses moge, the optative of mogen, for concession. aantenemen joins te inside separable aannemen, 1860 spelling.
> Comparative zwaarder + te-infinitive: veel zwaarder grieven ('far graver charges') is the comparative; waardig te keuren ('to deem worthy') is a te-infinitive. niet eens = 'not even'.

En als men te Padang, zooals ik gis, de afgelegde getuigenissen vernietigd heeft, ziehier iets anders dat niet vernietigd worden kan."  
And if at Padang, as I surmise, they have destroyed the depositions that were taken, here is something else that cannot be destroyed."
> worden-passive with modal kan: vernietigd worden kan ('can be destroyed') stacks process passive worden with modal kunnen, all clause-final after the relative dat. ziehier ('here is') is an archaic presentative.

En hy toonde my een vonnis van den Rappat-raad te Natal waarvan hy voorzitter was, houdende: VEROORDEELING VAN ZEKEREN Si Pamaga TOT DE STRAF VAN GEESELING EN BRANDMERK, EN--ik meen--TWINTIGJARIGEN DWANGARBEID, WEGENS POGING TOT MOORD OP DEN TOEANKOE VAN NATAL.  
And he showed me a sentence of the Rappat-council at Natal, of which he was president, containing: SENTENCE OF A CERTAIN Si Pamaga TO THE PENALTY OF FLOGGING AND BRANDING, AND — I believe — TWENTY YEARS' HARD LABOR, FOR ATTEMPTED MURDER OF THE TOEANKOE OF NATAL.
> Present participle houdende ('containing'): houdende is a present participle in legal-formula use, 'containing/to the effect that'. waarvan ('of which') is a pronominal-adverb relative. den Rappat-raad keeps the accusative -n.

"Lees eens het proces-verbaal van de terechtzitting, zei myn voorganger, en beoordeel dan of myn schoonvader niet zal geloofd worden te Batavia, als hy dáár Jang di Pertoean aanklaagt van hoogverraad!  
"Just read the record of the trial," said my predecessor, "and then judge whether my father-in-law will not be believed at Batavia when he charges Jang di Pertoean there with high treason!
> Imperatives Lees / beoordeel: Lees and beoordeel are bare-stem imperatives ('read', 'judge'). eens softens the command to an invitation, 'just read'.
> Indirect question of + future passive: of ('whether') opens an indirect question; zal geloofd worden is a future process passive ('will be believed'). The als-clause closes verb-final on aanklaagt.

Ik las de stukken.  
I read the documents.

Volgens verklaringen van getuigen en "de bekentenis van den beklaagde" was Si Pamaga omgekocht om te Natal den Toeankoe, diens pleegvader Soetan Salim en den gezaghebbenden kontroleur te vermoorden.  
According to the witnesses' depositions and "the confession of the accused," Si Pamaga had been bribed to murder the Toeankoe at Natal, together with his foster-father Soetan Salim and the controller in charge.
> Pluperfect passive + om ... te: was omgekocht is a pluperfect passive ('had been bribed'); the purpose om ... te vermoorden ('to murder') gives the aim. den Toeankoe carries the accusative -n.

Hy had zich, om dit opzet uittevoeren, naar de woning van den Toeankoe begeven, en daar met de bedienden die op den trap der buitengalery zaten, een gesprek aangeknoopt over een Sewah met het doel zyn tegenwoordigheid te rekken tot hy den Toeankoe zou gewaar worden, die zich dan ook weldra, omgeven van eenige verwanten en bedienden, vertoonde.  
To carry out this design he had gone to the dwelling of the Toeankoe, and there struck up a conversation about a Sewah with the servants sitting on the steps of the outer gallery, with the aim of prolonging his presence until he should catch sight of the Toeankoe, who indeed soon appeared, surrounded by some of his kinsmen and servants.
> Pluperfect reflexive zich begeven: had zich ... begeven ('had betaken himself, gone') is the pluperfect of reflexive zich begeven. om dit opzet uittevoeren joins te inside separable uitvoeren, 1860 style.
> Subordinating tot + conditional zou: tot ('until') subordinates the clause; zou gewaar worden ('should catch sight of') is conditional. zich vertoonde ('showed himself') is the reflexive imperfect closing the die-relative.

Pamaga was met zyn Sewah op den Toeankoe losgegaan, doch had uit onbekende oorzaken zyn moorddadig opzet niet kunnen volvoeren.  
Pamaga had rushed at the Toeankoe with his Sewah, but for reasons unknown had been unable to carry out his murderous design.
> Modal in the pluperfect: The pluperfect 'had ... volvoeren' wraps around a modal verb, so 'kunnen' appears as a bare infinitive rather than the expected participle (a 'double infinitive' construction). Note how the cluster 'kunnen volvoeren' piles up clause-finally with all verbs at the end.
> Period spelling: zyn, opzet: The 1860 page writes the possessive 'zijn' as 'zyn', with y standing for the modern ij. 'opzet' (design, intent) is a separable-verb noun frozen into a compound.
> doch = 'but, yet': 'doch' is an archaic, literary equivalent of 'maar' (but). It still coordinates two clauses without sending the verb to the end, but signals an elevated, period register.

De Toeankoe was verschrikt uit het venster gesprongen, en Pamaga nam de vlucht. Hy verschool zich in 't bosch, en werd eenige dagen later door de natalsche policie opgevat.  
The Toeankoe, terrified, had leapt out of the window, and Pamaga took to flight. He hid himself in the forest, and some days later was apprehended by the Natal police.
> Pluperfect with zijn: Verbs of motion like 'springen' (to leap) form their perfect tenses with 'zijn', not 'hebben': 'was ... gesprongen' = 'had leapt'. The participle waits at the very end of the clause.
> Reflexive zich: 'zich verschuilen' (to hide oneself) is reflexive; 'zich' is the third-person reflexive pronoun. 'verschool' is the strong simple past of 'verschuilen' with a vowel change.
> Passive with worden: 'werd ... opgevat' (was apprehended) is the worden-passive in the past: 'werd' (became) plus the participle of the separable verb 'opvatten'. The agent follows 'door' (by the Natal police).

"Aan den beschuldigde gevraagd: wat hem tot dezen aanslag en den voorgenomen moord op Soetan Salim en den kontroleur van Natal had bewogen?" antwoordt hy: "DAARTOE TE ZYN OMGEKOCHT DOOR SOETAN ADAM, UIT NAAM VAN DIENS BROEDER JANG DI PERTOEAN VAN MANDHÉLING."  
"Asked of the accused: what had moved him to this assault and the intended murder of Soetan Salim and the controller of Natal?" he answers: "THAT HE HAD BEEN BRIBED TO IT BY SOETAN ADAM, IN THE NAME OF HIS BROTHER JANG DI PERTOEAN OF MANDHÉLING."
> Embedded question, verb-final: After the colon the indirect question 'wat hem ... had bewogen' is a subordinate clause: the finite 'had' is pushed to the end, behind its object phrase, with the participle last.
> Case remnant: den + dative: 'Aan den beschuldigde' shows the old masculine accusative/dative ending '-en' on the article (den), a frozen case form still alive in 1860 legal prose. 'gevraagd' here is a participial, document-style opening ('Asked of the accused').
> te + perfect infinitive: The deposition's clipped answer uses 'te zyn omgekocht' = 'to have been bribed', a passive perfect infinitive governed by 'te'. 'daartoe' ('to that') is a pronominal adverb (daar- + toe) standing in for the preposition + thing.
> Genitive demonstrative diens: 'diens' is the genitive of 'die' meaning 'his / that man's', a formal way of saying 'whose brother'. It belongs to the older inflected demonstrative system of 1860 prose.

"Is dit duidelyk of niet? vroeg myn voorganger.  
"Is this clear or not?" asked my predecessor.
> Yes/no question: verb first: A polar question inverts the verb to first position: 'Is dit duidelyk...?'. 'of niet' tacks on the alternative ('or not').
> Strong past 'vroeg': 'vroeg' (asked) is the strong simple past of 'vragen', changing the stem vowel rather than adding a dental ending. 'myn' is period spelling of 'mijn'.

Het vonnis is na fiat exekutie van den resident, ten-uitvoer gelegd wat de geeseling en 't brandmerk aangaat, en Si Pamaga is op weg naar Padang, om vandaar als kettingganger naar Java te worden gezonden.  
The sentence has, after the resident's fiat of execution, been carried out as regards the flogging and the branding, and Si Pamaga is on his way to Padang, to be sent from there as a chain-gang convict to Java.
> Present perfect passive: 'is ... ten-uitvoer gelegd' = 'has ... been carried out', the perfect of a worden-passive (the 'geworden' being dropped, as Dutch does). The participle 'gelegd' lands at the clause end.
> om ... te (purpose) + passive infinitive: 'om vandaar ... naar Java te worden gezonden' is a purpose clause ('in order to be sent'). 'om' frames the purpose and the clause closes with the passive infinitive 'te worden gezonden'.
> kettingganger = chain-gang convict: Literally 'chain-walker' (ketting + ganger), a noun compound for a convict made to do forced labour in irons. Such men were shipped to Java to serve their sentences.

Gelyk met hem komen de processtukken van de zaak te Batavia, en dan kan men dáár zien wie de man is, op wiens aanklacht myn schoonvader gesuspendeerd werd!  
Along with him the case papers reach Batavia, and then they can see there who the man is on whose accusation my father-in-law was suspended!
> V2 after a fronted adverbial: The sentence opens with the adverbial 'Gelyk met hem' (Along with him), so the finite verb 'komen' stands second and the subject 'de processtukken' follows it — the verb-second rule in action.
> Genitive relative 'wiens': 'wiens' is the genitive relative pronoun 'whose' (masculine), here governed by the preposition 'op': 'op wiens aanklacht' = 'on whose accusation'. It is the formal counterpart to the everyday 'van wie'.
> Worden-passive, verb-final: Inside the relative clause 'op wiens aanklacht myn schoonvader gesuspendeerd werd', the passive 'werd' (was) sits at the very end after the participle, as subordinate word order demands.

Dat vonnis kan de generaal niet vernietigen, al wilde hy."  
That sentence the general cannot annul, even if he wished to."
> Concessive 'al' + subjunctive past: 'al wilde hy' = 'even if he wished to'. 'al' introduces a concession and triggers verb-first order; 'wilde' is a past form used here with a hypothetical, almost subjunctive sense.
> Fronted object, modal at the end: The object 'Dat vonnis' is fronted for emphasis, so the modal 'kan' takes second place and the main verb 'vernietigen' goes to the clause end as a bare infinitive.

Ik nam het bestuur der natalsche afdeeling over, en myn voorganger vertrok.  
I took over the administration of the Natal division, and my predecessor departed.
> Separable verb 'overnemen': 'overnemen' (to take over) splits in a main clause: the stem 'nam' stays in second position while the prefix 'over' is sent to the end ('nam ... over').
> Genitive 'der': 'der natalsche afdeeling' uses the frozen genitive article 'der' ('of the') instead of modern 'van de afdeling'. This inflected genitive is characteristic of 1860 written Dutch.

Na eenigen tyd ontving ik bericht dat de generaal met een oorlogsstoomboot in de Noord komen, en ook Natal bezoeken zou.  
After some time I received notice that the general would come up north in a war steamer and would visit Natal as well.
> Future-in-the-past with zou: In this subordinate clause the future auxiliary 'zou(den)' is held back to the very end and serves both infinitives ('komen ... en bezoeken'): 'would come ... and would visit'. It expresses reported future.
> 'in de Noord' = up north: A nautical/colonial idiom: 'de Noord' names the northern coast of Sumatra as a region, so 'in de Noord komen' is 'to come up to the north'.

Hy stapte met veel gevolg ten-mynen huize af, en verlangde oogenblikkelyk de oorspronkelyke processtukken te zien van: "den armen man dien men zoo vreeselyk mishandeld had."  
He alighted at my house with a large retinue, and at once demanded to see the original case papers of: "the poor man who had been so frightfully ill-treated."
> te + infinitive object: 'verlangen' (to desire) governs a 'te'-infinitive: 'verlangde ... de processtukken te zien' = 'demanded to see the case papers'. The 'te zien' closes the clause.
> Accusative relative 'dien': 'dien' is the old masculine accusative form of the relative 'die' ('whom'): 'den armen man dien men ... mishandeld had'. Both 'den ... man' and 'dien' carry the -n case marking typical of 1860 prose.
> Frozen dative phrase: 'ten-mynen huize' = 'at my house' is a fossilised dative ('ten' = 'te den', plus dative endings on 'mijn' and 'huis'). Such set phrases survive in formal Dutch as ready-made relics of the old case system.

"Zyzelf hadden een geeseling en een brandmerk verdiend!" voegde hy er by.  
"They themselves had deserved a flogging and a branding!" he added.
> Separable 'erbij voegen' split: 'erbij voegen' (to add) splits: 'voegde' stays in second place and 'er ... by' goes to the end. 'er' here is the pronominal-adverb half of 'erbij' ('to it').
> Emphatic 'zijzelf': 'Zyzelf' = 'they themselves' (period spelling of 'zijzelf'); 'zij' is reinforced by '-zelf' for contrastive emphasis, here heavily ironic in the general's mouth.

Ik begreep er niets van.  
I could make nothing of it.
> Split pronominal adverb 'ervan': 'ervan' ('of it') is split across the clause: 'er ... van', with the negative 'niets' (nothing) sitting between. The whole means 'I understood nothing of it'.

Want de oorzaken van den stryd over Jang di Pertoean waren my toen nog onbekend, en 't kon dus niet in myn gedachten opkomen, evenmin dat myn voorganger willens en wetens een onschuldige zou veroordeeld hebben tot zóó zware straf, als dat de generaal een misdadiger zou in bescherming nemen tegen een rechtvaardig vonnis.  
For the causes of the quarrel over Jang di Pertoean were still unknown to me then, and so it could not enter my thoughts, any more than that my predecessor would willfully and knowingly have condemned an innocent man to so heavy a penalty, that the general would take a criminal under his protection against a just sentence.
> Middle field: Time–Manner–Place: The adverbs stack in the order time/manner: 'my toen nog onbekend' ('unknown to me then yet'). Note also the dative-like 'my' = 'to me' with the adjective 'onbekend'.
> Conditional perfect: 'zou veroordeeld hebben' = 'would have condemned': the conditional 'zou' plus a perfect infinitive ('veroordeeld hebben'). It expresses a counterfactual the narrator could not then believe.
> Idiom: willens en wetens: A fixed phrase, 'willing and knowing' = 'willfully and knowingly'. The archaic '-ens' adverbial ending marks it as a frozen legal-moral formula.

Ik ontving den last, Soetan Salim en den Toeankoe te doen gevangen nemen.  
I received the order to have Soetan Salim and the Toeankoe taken prisoner.
> Causative 'doen' + infinitive: 'te doen gevangen nemen' = 'to have taken prisoner'. Here 'doen' is the causative auxiliary ('have something done'), stacking with 'nemen' so the verbs cluster at the end after 'te'.
> Accusative 'den last': 'den last' (the order) shows the masculine accusative ending -n on the article. 'ontving' is the strong past of 'ontvangen' (to receive).

Daar de jonge Toeankoe by de bevolking zeer bemind was, en we slechts weinig garnizoen in 't fort hadden, verzocht ik den generaal hem op vrye voeten te mogen laten, hetgeen me werd toegestaan. Doch voor Soetan Salim, den byzonderen vyand van Jang di Pertoean, was geen genade.  
Since the young Toeankoe was much beloved among the people, and we had only a small garrison in the fort, I asked the general to be allowed to leave him at liberty, which was granted me. But for Soetan Salim, the particular enemy of Jang di Pertoean, there was no mercy.
> Causal 'daar' = 'since': 'daar' as a subordinating conjunction means 'since/because' and sends its verb to the end: '...zeer bemind was'. This is a distinctly literary causal connector (cf. modern 'omdat').
> te + modal + causative laten: A dense verb cluster: 'te mogen laten' = 'to be allowed to leave/let'. 'mogen' is a modal, 'laten' the causative/permissive verb, both stacking after 'te' at clause end.
> Sentential relative 'hetgeen': 'hetgeen' ('which') is a formal relative referring back to the whole preceding clause. It pairs with the worden-passive 'werd toegestaan' (was granted).
> geen for indefinite negation: 'was geen genade' = 'there was no mercy'. 'geen' (not a/any) negates an indefinite noun, where 'niet' could not be used. 'Doch' again is the literary 'but'.

De bevolking was in groote spanning.  
The population was in great suspense.
> Adjective -e ending: 'groote' takes the attributive -e ending (here doubled vowel 'groote' = modern 'grote'). Adjectives before a noun normally inflect with -e; the spelling is period.

De Natallers vermoedden dat de generaal zich verlaagde tot een werktuig van mandhélingschen haat, en 't was in die omstandigheden dat ik van-tyd tot-tyd iets doen kon, wat hy "kordaat" vond, vooral daar hy de weinige macht die er uit het fort kon gemist worden, en het detachement mariniers dat hy van boord had meegebracht, niet aan my afstond ter bedekking als ik naar de plekken reed waar men samenschoolde. Ik heb by die gelegenheid opgemerkt dat de generaal Vandamme zeer goed zorgde voor zyn eigen veiligheid, en 't is dáárom dat ik zyn roem van dapperheid niet onderschryven mag voor ik er meer van gezien heb, of iets anders.  
The people of Natal suspected that the general was lowering himself to be an instrument of Mandhéling hatred, and it was in these circumstances that from time to time I could do something he found "resolute," especially since he would not turn over to me, as a guard when I rode out to the places where people were gathering, the little force that could be spared from the fort, nor the detachment of marines he had brought along from on board. I noticed on that occasion that General Vandamme took very good care of his own safety, and it is for that reason that I cannot endorse his reputation for bravery until I have seen more of it, or something else.
> Reflexive 'zich verlagen': 'zich verlagen' (to lower/demean oneself) is reflexive; inside the 'dat'-clause the reflexive 'zich' precedes the verb, which would stand finally in a fuller clause.
> Existential 'er' + relative 'die': The relative clause 'die er uit het fort kon gemist worden' uses existential/locative 'er' with a passive ('kon gemist worden' = 'could be spared'). 'die' refers to the de-word 'macht'.
> Cleft with 'daarom' + modal: 't is dáárom dat...' ('it is for that reason that...') is a cleft for emphasis. 'mag' is the modal 'may/can', pushing 'onderschryven' (to endorse) to the end as a bare infinitive.

Hy vormde in groote overhaasting een Raad, dien ik ad hoc zou kunnen noemen. Daarin waren leden: een paar adjudanten, andere officieren, de officier van Justitie of fiskaal, dien hy van Padang had meegenomen, en ik.  
In great haste he formed a council, which I might call an ad hoc one. Its members were: a couple of adjutants, other officers, the officer of Justice or fiscal, whom he had brought along from Padang, and myself.
> Accusative relative 'dien' + double modal: 'dien' is the masculine accusative relative ('which/whom'), object of 'noemen'. The verb cluster 'zou kunnen noemen' = 'might call', stacking conditional + modal + bare infinitive at the clause end.
> fiskaal = prosecuting officer: In the colonial judiciary the 'fiskaal' (officier van Justitie) was the public prosecutor/legal officer. The word survives in 'fiscal' but the older sense is the law officer here.

Deze Raad zou een onderzoek instellen naar de wyze waarop onder myn voorganger 't proces tegen Si Pamaga was gevoerd geworden.  
This council was to hold an inquiry into the manner in which, under my predecessor, the case against Si Pamaga had been conducted.
> Pluperfect passive with 'geworden': 'was gevoerd geworden' = 'had been conducted', the full perfect passive that explicitly keeps 'geworden' (which standard Dutch usually drops). It is the past-behind-the-past of a worden-passive.
> Pronominal-adverb relative 'waarop': 'de wyze waarop' = 'the manner in which'. 'waarop' (waar- + op) is a pronominal adverb doing the work of 'op welke', standard for referring to things rather than persons.

Ik moest een tal van getuigen laten oproepen, wier verklaringen daartoe noodig waren.  
I had to have summoned a number of witnesses whose depositions were needed for this.
> Modal + causative laten: 'moest ... laten oproepen' = 'had to have summoned'. The modal 'moest' governs the causative 'laten', which in turn governs 'oproepen' — three verbs clustering at the end.
> Genitive relative 'wier': 'wier' is the feminine/plural genitive relative ('whose'): 'getuigen, wier verklaringen ... noodig waren' = 'witnesses whose depositions were needed'. It is the formal counterpart to 'van wie'.

De generaal, die natuurlyk vóórzat, ondervroeg en de proces-verbalen werden geschreven door den fiskaal.  
The general, who naturally presided, did the questioning, and the records were written down by the fiscal.
> Worden-passive with agent: A clear worden-passive: 'werden geschreven' (were written) plus the agent introduced by 'door' (by the fiscal). 'den fiskaal' keeps the accusative/dative -n.
> voorzitten = to preside: 'voorzat' is the simple past of separable 'voorzitten' (to chair/preside) — literally 'to sit in front'. The acute accent marks the stressed prefix; the verb is the root of 'voorzitter' (chairman).

Daar evenwel deze beambte weinig maleisch verstond--en volstrekt niet het maleisch dat in de Noord van Sumatra wordt gesproken--was 't dikwyls noodig hem de antwoorden der getuigen te vertolken, hetgeen meestal de generaal zelf deed.  
Since, however, this official understood little Malay — and by no means the Malay spoken in the north of Sumatra — it was often necessary to interpret the witnesses' answers for him, which the general for the most part did himself.
> Causal 'daar' clause: 'Daar ... verstond' again means 'Since ... understood', a subordinate causal clause with the verb at the end. 'evenwel' (however) is wedged in as a concessive adverb.
> Relative 'dat' + worden-passive: 'het maleisch dat ... wordt gesproken' = 'the Malay that is spoken'. 'dat' is the relative for the het-word 'maleisch'; 'wordt gesproken' is a present worden-passive.
> Dummy 't + te-infinitive: 'was 't ... noodig ... te vertolken' uses impersonal 't ('it') as a placeholder subject for the real subject 'to interpret...'. 'vertolken' (to interpret/render) closes with 'te'.

Uit de zittingen van dien Raad zyn stukken voortgekomen, die ten-duidelykste schynen te bewyzen: dat Si Pamaga nooit het voornemen gekoesterd had iemand, wien het ook zy, te vermoorden. Dat hy noch Soelan Adam, noch Jang di Pertoean ooit had gezien of gekend.  
From the sittings of that council documents emerged which seem to prove most plainly: that Si Pamaga had never harbored the intention of murdering anyone whomsoever. That he had never seen or known either Soetan Adam or Jang di Pertoean.
> Perfect with zijn + separable verb: 'zyn ... voortgekomen' = 'have emerged', the perfect of motion-verb 'voortkomen' formed with 'zijn'. 'voort' is the separable prefix folded into the participle 'voortgekomen'.
> Concessive relative + subjunctive 'zy': 'wien het ook zy' = 'whomsoever' — a frozen concessive with the dative relative 'wien' and the present subjunctive 'zy' ('be') of 'zijn'. Highly literary and archaic.
> Correlative negation 'noch ... noch': 'noch Soelan Adam, noch Jang di Pertoean' = 'neither ... nor', a single negation spread across two objects. Dutch keeps one negative force without doubling.

Dat hy niet op den Toeankoe van Natal was toegesprongen. Dat deze niet uit het venster gevlucht was ... en zoo voort!  
That he had not sprung upon the Toeankoe of Natal. That the latter had not fled out of the window ... and so forth!
> Pluperfect of separable 'toespringen': 'was toegesprongen' = 'had sprung upon', the zijn-pluperfect of separable 'toespringen'. 'niet' negates the whole verb (a true verb, hence 'niet' not 'geen').
> Demonstrative 'deze' as subject: 'deze' ('the latter / this one') stands in for the Toeankoe just named, a near demonstrative used pronominally. The clause is a 'dat'-clause with the verb 'was' at the end.

Verder: dat het vonnis tegen den ongelukkigen Si Pamaga was geslagen onder de pressie van den voorzitter--myn voorganger--en van 't Raadslid Soetan Salim, welke personen de voorgewende misdaad van Si Pamaga hadden verzonnen om aan den gesuspendeerden adsistent-resident van Mandhéling een wapen ter zyner verdediging in de hand te stellen, en om lucht te geven aan hun haat jegens Jang di Pertoean.  
Further: that the sentence against the unfortunate Si Pamaga had been passed under pressure from the president — my predecessor — and from the councilman Soetan Salim, persons who had invented Si Pamaga's pretended crime in order to put into the hand of the suspended assistant-resident of Mandhéling a weapon for his own defense, and to give vent to their hatred of Jang di Pertoean.
> Pluperfect passive 'was geslagen': 'het vonnis was geslagen' = 'the sentence had been passed/struck', a zijn-pluperfect passive (geworden omitted). 'slaan' here is the idiomatic legal 'to hand down (a sentence)'.
> Twin om ... te purpose clauses: Two parallel purpose clauses, each opened by 'om' and closed by 'te' + infinitive ('te stellen ... te geven'), explain why the crime was invented. This is the standard 'in order to' frame.
> Idiom: lucht geven aan: 'lucht geven aan' literally 'to give air to' = to give vent to (a feeling). A fixed idiom that does not translate word-for-word into English.

De wyze nu waarop de generaal by die gelegenheid ondervroeg, deed denken aan de whistparty van zekeren keizer van Marokko die zyn partner toevoegde: "speel harten, of ik sny je den hals af." Ook de vertalingen, zooals hy die den fiskaal in den pen gaf, lieten veel te wenschen over.  
Now the manner in which the general questioned on that occasion called to mind the game of whist played by a certain emperor of Morocco who said to his partner: "play hearts, or I cut your throat." The translations too, as he dictated them to the fiscal, left much to be desired.
> Causative 'doen denken': 'deed denken aan' = 'called to mind / made one think of'. 'doen' + bare infinitive 'denken' is a causative construction; 'aan' fixes the object of thought.
> Accusative '-en' + relative 'die': 'zekeren keizer' shows the old accusative -en on 'zeker'; 'die ... toevoegde' is a relative clause where the separable 'toevoegen' (to add/say to) appears as the simple past 'toevoegde'.

Of nu Soetan Salim en myn voorganger pressie hebben uitgeoefend op den natalschen Rechtsraad om Si Pamaga schuldig te verklaren, is my onbekend. Maar wel weet ik dat de generaal Vandamme pressie heeft uitgeoefend op de verklaringen die 's mans onschuld moesten bewyzen.  
Whether Soetan Salim and my predecessor brought pressure to bear on the Natal court of justice to declare Si Pamaga guilty, I do not know. But this I do know, that General Vandamme brought pressure to bear on the depositions that were to prove the man's innocence.
> Fronted 'of'-clause as subject: The whole embedded yes/no question 'Of nu ... hebben uitgeoefend' ('whether ...') serves as the subject of 'is my onbekend'. The separable 'uitoefenen' splits into the participle 'uitgeoefend'.
> Fronted adverb 'wel' + inversion: Beginning with 'Maar wel' fronts the affirming adverb, forcing inversion: 'weet ik' (verb before subject). 'wel' here stresses the contrast: 'this I DO know'.
> Genitive 's mans: "'s mans onschuld" = 'the man's innocence': "'s" is the reduced genitive article 'des', plus the genitive -s on 'man'. A compact survival of the inflected genitive.

Zonder op dat oogenblik nog de strekking daarvan te begrypen, heb ik me tegen die ... onnauwkeurigheid verzet, hetgeen zóó ver gegaan is dat ik heb moeten weigeren eenige verbalen mede te onderteekenen, en ziedaar nu de zaak waarin ik den generaal zoo "gekontrarieerd" had.  
Without yet grasping at that moment what it was leading to, I set myself against that ... inaccuracy, and this went so far that I had to refuse to co-sign certain records, and there you have the matter in which I had so "thwarted" the general.
> Zonder + te-infinitive: 'Zonder ... te begrypen' = 'without understanding', a participial-style adverbial clause built on 'te' + infinitive after 'zonder'. It sets the scene before the main clause.
> Reflexive 'zich verzetten' in the perfect: 'zich verzetten tegen' (to resist) is reflexive; in the perfect 'heb ik me ... verzet' the reflexive 'me' covers the first person, with the participle 'verzet' at the end.
> Double infinitive + te-infinitive: 'heb moeten weigeren' uses the double-infinitive (the modal 'moeten' stays infinitive in the perfect), and 'weigeren' then governs 'mede te onderteekenen' (to co-sign). Several verbs stack at the clause end.

Ge begrypt nu ook waarop de woorden doelen, waarmee ik de beantwoording sloot van de aanmerkingen die er op myn geldelyk beheer gemaakt waren, de woorden waarin ik verzocht van alle welwillende konsideratien verschoond te blyven.  
You now also understand what those words point to with which I closed my reply to the remarks that had been made on my financial management, the words in which I asked to be spared all benevolent consideration.
> Stacked pronominal-adverb relatives: Two relatives in a row use pronominal adverbs: 'waarop ... doelen' (what ... point to) and 'waarmee ik ... sloot' (with which I closed). 'waar-' + preposition is the standard way to relativise a thing.
> Period pronoun 'ge': 'Ge' (and 'gy') is the 19th-century literary 'you', equivalent to modern informal 'je/jij' but in elevated written register. 'begrypt' is period spelling of 'begrijpt'.

--Het was inderdaad zeer sterk voor iemand van uw jaren, zei Duclari.  
— It was indeed very bold for a man of your years, said Duclari.
> Impersonal 'het was': 'Het was ... sterk' = 'It was ... bold', with dummy 'het' as a placeholder subject for the situation just described. 'sterk' here means 'bold/strong' rather than physically strong.
> Possessive 'uw': 'uw' is the formal/period possessive 'your', matching the polite address. 'van uw jaren' = 'of your years', i.e. someone your age.

--Ik vond het natuurlyk. Doch zeker is 't, dat de generaal Vandamme niet aan zoo-iets gewoon was.  
— I thought it natural. Yet certain it is that General Vandamme was not used to such a thing.
> Fronted predicate + dummy 't: 'zeker is 't' fronts the predicate 'zeker' (certain) and inverts, with anticipatory dummy "'t" pointing forward to the 'dat'-clause. Literary, emphatic order.
> 'gewoon zijn aan' = used to: 'gewoon zijn aan iets' = 'to be used to something'. Negated here with 'niet ... gewoon'. 'zoo-iets' = 'such a thing' (period hyphenated spelling).

Ik heb dan ook onder de gevolgen van die zaak veel geleden.  
And I did indeed suffer much from the consequences of that affair.
> Present perfect of strong 'lijden': 'heb ... geleden' = 'have suffered', the perfect of strong 'lijden' (note the strong participle 'geleden'). 'dan ook' is a particle pair meaning 'and indeed/so'.

O neen, Verbrugge, ik zie wat je zeggen wilt, berouwd heeft het me nooit.  
Oh no, Verbrugge, I see what you mean to say — I have never regretted it.
> Embedded clause: modal final: 'wat je zeggen wilt' = 'what you mean to say'. In the subordinate clause the modal 'wilt' goes last, after the main verb 'zeggen'. 'je' is the everyday informal 'you'.
> Impersonal 'het berouwt me': 'het berouwt me' = 'I regret it' (lit. 'it repents me'), an impersonal construction with dummy 'het' as grammatical subject and 'me' as experiencer. Here in the perfect: 'berouwd heeft het me nooit'.

Zelfs moet ik hierby voegen dat ik me niet zou bepaald hebben tot eenvoudig protesteeren tegen de wys waarop de generaal de getuigen ondervroeg, noch tot het weigeren myner handteekening op enkele verbalen, indien ik toen had kunnen gissen wat ik eerst later te weten kwam, dat alles voortsproot uit een vooraf vastgestelden toeleg om myn voorganger te bezwaren.  
Indeed, I must add here that I would not have confined myself to a simple protest against the way the general questioned the witnesses, nor to refusing my signature on a few records, had I been able to guess then what I only learned later, that the whole thing sprang from a design settled beforehand to incriminate my predecessor.
> Conditional perfect (counterfactual): 'zou ... niet ... bepaald hebben' = 'would not have confined (myself)', a conditional perfect setting up a counterfactual that the following 'indien'-clause completes.
> indien-conditional + double infinitive: 'indien' ('if', formal) opens the conditional clause, verb-final, with the double infinitive 'had kunnen gissen' = 'could have guessed' (modal 'kunnen' stays infinitive in the perfect).
> Nominalised infinitive + genitive 'myner': 'het weigeren' is an infinitive used as a neuter noun ('the refusing'), and 'myner handteekening' = 'of my signature' uses the genitive form 'myner' (modern 'van mijn'). Both are formal/period features.

Ik meende dat de generaal, overtuigd van Si Pamaga's onschuld, zich liet meesleepen door de achtenswaardige zucht om een onschuldig slachtoffer te redden van de gevolgen eener rechtsdwaling, voor-zoo-ver dit na de geeseling en 't brandmerk nog mogelyk was.  
I supposed that the general, convinced of Si Pamaga's innocence, was being carried away by the honorable desire to save an innocent victim from the consequences of a miscarriage of justice, in so far as that was still possible after the flogging and the branding.
> Reflexive + permissive laten: 'zich laten meesleepen' = 'to let oneself be carried away'. The reflexive 'zich' combines with permissive 'laten' plus the separable infinitive 'meesleepen' — a passive-like construction.
> om ... te (purpose): 'om een onschuldig slachtoffer ... te redden' = 'in order to save an innocent victim', a purpose clause framed by 'om' and closed by 'te redden'.
> Genitive 'eener': 'eener rechtsdwaling' = 'of a miscarriage of justice'; 'eener' is the genitive of the indefinite article 'een', another inflected relic of 1860 prose.

Deze meening deed my wel in verzet komen tegen valsheid, maar ik was daarover niet zóó verontwaardigd als ik zou geweest zyn indien ik geweten had dat het hier geenszins te doen was om een onschuldige te redden, maar dat deze valsheid de strekking had om ten-koste van de eer en 't welzyn myns voorgangers, de bewyzen te vernietigen die de politiek van den generaal in den weg stonden.  
This supposition did indeed make me rise up against falsehood, but I was not so indignant over it as I would have been had I known that it was here by no means a matter of saving an innocent man, but that this falsehood had the purpose of destroying — at the cost of my predecessor's honor and well-being — the evidence that stood in the way of the general's policy.
> Conditional perfect with zijn: 'als ik zou geweest zyn' = 'as I would have been'. The conditional 'zou' takes the perfect infinitive 'geweest zyn' (the perfect of 'zijn' is formed with 'zijn' itself).
> Pluperfect in an if-clause: 'indien ik geweten had' = 'had I known', a pluperfect ('geweten had') in a counterfactual condition. Note the verb-final order forced by 'indien'.
> Genitive 'myns voorgangers': 'myns voorgangers' = 'of my predecessor', a genitive with the masculine genitive possessive 'myns' (= des/mijns) plus genitive -s on the noun — a heavily inflected period possessive.

--En hoe ging 't verder met uw voorganger? vroeg Verbrugge.  
— And how did it go further with your predecessor? asked Verbrugge.
> wh-question word order: A question opening with the adverb 'hoe' (how) puts the finite verb 'ging' second: 'hoe ging 't...'. 'uw' is the polite possessive 'your'.

--Gelukkig voor hem was hy reeds naar Java vertrokken voor de generaal te Padang, terugkeerde.  
— Luckily for him he had already left for Java before the general returned to Padang.
> Pluperfect with zijn: 'was ... vertrokken' = 'had departed', the pluperfect of motion-verb 'vertrekken' with 'zijn'. The fronted 'Gelukkig voor hem' triggers inversion ('was hy').

Hy schynt zich by de Regeering te Batavia te hebben kunnen verantwoorden, althans hy is in dienst gebleven.  
He seems to have been able to justify himself before the Government at Batavia; at any rate he remained in service.
> Reflexive + perfect te-infinitive + double infinitive: A long cluster: 'schynt zich ... te hebben kunnen verantwoorden' = 'seems to have been able to justify himself'. 'schijnen' takes a 'te'-infinitive; inside, the modal 'kunnen' stays infinitive (double infinitive), and 'zich' is reflexive.
> Perfect with zijn: blijven: 'is ... gebleven' = 'remained', the perfect of 'blijven' (to stay), which takes 'zijn' as its auxiliary. 'in dienst blijven' = to stay in service.

De resident van Ayer Bangie die op 't vonnis fiat exekutie verleend had, werd ...  
The resident of Ayer Bangie who had granted the fiat of execution on the sentence, was ...
> Relative clause + interrupted passive: 'die ... verleend had' = 'who had granted', a relative clause with the pluperfect 'verleend had' at its end. The main verb 'werd' (was) trails off as the sentence is cut short.

--Gesuspendeerd?  
— Suspended?

--Natuurlyk!  
— Naturally!

Ge ziet dat ik niet zoo heel onrecht had, in myn puntdicht te zeggen dat de Gouverneur ons schorsend regeerde.  
You see that I was not so very wrong, in my epigram, to say that the Governor governed us by suspension.
> dat-clause, verb-final: 'dat ik ... onrecht had' is a subordinate clause where the verb 'had' goes to the end. 'onrecht hebben' = 'to be in the wrong'.
> Present participle 'schorsend': 'schorsend' = 'suspending', the present participle (-end form) of 'schorsen', here used adverbially: 'governed us by/while suspending'. It captures Havelaar's epigram on rule-by-suspension.
> puntdicht = epigram: A 'puntdicht' (lit. 'point-poem') is an epigram — a short, pointed satirical verse. Havelaar's barb is that the Governor 'governed by suspension'.

--En wat is er geworden van al die gesuspendeerde ambtenaren?  
— And what became of all those suspended officials?
> Existential 'er' + 'worden van': 'wat is er geworden van ...' = 'what became of ...'. The idiom 'er worden van' uses existential 'er'; 'geworden' is the participle of 'worden' in its full perfect (with 'zijn').

--O, er waren er nog veel meer!  
— Oh, there were many more of them still!
> Two er's: existential + quantitative: A neat double 'er': the first 'er' is existential ('there were'), the second 'er' is the quantitative pronoun standing for 'of them' ('er ... veel meer' = 'many more of them').

Allen, de een voor, de ander na, zyn in hun betrekkingen hersteld.  
All of them, one before, another after, were restored to their posts.
> Perfect passive with zijn: 'zyn ... hersteld' = 'were restored', a worden-passive in the perfect (geworden dropped). 'de een voor, de ander na' = 'one before, another after', a fixed paired idiom.

Enkelen van hen hebben later zeer aanzienlyke ambten bekleed.  
Some of them later held very considerable offices.
> Present perfect 'hebben bekleed': 'hebben ... bekleed' = 'have held/occupied', perfect with 'hebben' and participle 'bekleed' last. 'Enkelen' is a substantivised quantifier ('a few people') with the -en personal ending.

--En Soetan Salim?  
— And Soetan Salim?

--De generaal voerde hem gevankelyk mede naar Padang, en vandaar werd hy als balling naar Java gezonden.  
— The general carried him off in custody to Padang, and from there he was sent into exile to Java.
> Worden-passive after fronted 'vandaar': 'vandaar werd hy ... gezonden' = 'from there he was sent', a worden-passive with inversion after the fronted adverb 'vandaar' (from there). 'gezonden' is the strong participle of 'zenden'.
> Archaic legal vocabulary: 'gevankelyk' = 'in custody / as a prisoner' (an old adverb from 'gevangen'); 'balling' = 'an exile'. Both belong to the formal language of penal banishment.

Hy is thans nog te Tjanjor in de Preanger regentschappen.  
He is to this day still at Tjanjor in the Preanger regencies.

Toen ik in 1846 daar was, heb ik hem een bezoek gebracht.  
When I was there in 1846, I paid him a visit.
> Temporal 'toen' clause + V2 main: 'Toen ik ... daar was' = 'When I was there', a subordinate temporal clause (verb-final 'was'). The main clause then inverts: 'heb ik ... gebracht' (verb second after the fronted clause).

Weet je nog wat ik te Tjanjor kwam doen, Tine?  
Do you still remember what I came to Tjanjor to do, Tine?
> Embedded wh-clause + bare infinitive: 'wat ik te Tjanjor kwam doen' = 'what I came to do at Tjanjor'. 'komen' + bare infinitive 'doen' (no 'te') expresses purpose of motion; the cluster sits clause-finally.

--Neen, Max, dat is me glad ontgaan.  
— No, Max, that has slipped my mind entirely.
> Idiom: glad ontgaan: 'iets is me ontgaan' = 'something has escaped/slipped me'; 'glad' here intensifies it to 'clean/entirely'. Note 'ontgaan' takes 'zijn' and the dative-like 'me'.

--Wie kan ook alles onthouden?  
— Who, after all, can remember everything?
> Interrogative 'wie' + modal: A rhetorical question: 'Wie kan ... onthouden?' = 'Who can remember...?'. The interrogative subject 'wie' is followed by modal 'kan', with 'onthouden' as a bare infinitive at the end. 'ook' = 'after all'.

Ik ben daar getrouwd, heeren!  
I was married there, gentlemen!
> Perfect with zijn: trouwen: 'ben ... getrouwd' = 'got married', the perfect of 'trouwen' formed with 'zijn' (a change-of-state verb). 'heeren' (gentlemen) shows the doubled-vowel period spelling.

--Maar, vroeg Duclari, daar ge nu toch aan 't vertellen zyt, mag ik vragen of 't waar is dat ge te Padang zoo dikwyls geduelleerd hebt?  
— But, asked Duclari, since you are telling stories now anyway, may I ask whether it is true that you fought duels so often at Padang?
> aan 't + infinitive (progressive): 'aan 't vertellen zyt' = 'are telling / are in the middle of telling', the 'aan het + infinitive' progressive. 'daar' opens a causal clause ('since'), verb-final with 'zyt' at the end.
> Embedded yes/no question, verb-final: 'of 't waar is' = 'whether it is true', an indirect yes/no question with verb-final 'is'. Nested inside is the perfect 'geduelleerd hebt' (= 'fought duels'), also verb-final.

--Ja, zeer dikwyls, en daartoe was aanleiding.  
— Yes, very often, and there was reason for it.

Ik heb u reeds gezegd dat de gunst van den Gouverneur op zoodanigen buitenpost de maatstaf is, waarnaar velen hun welwillendheid afmeten.  
I have already told you that on such an outpost the Governor's favor is the yardstick by which many measure their good will.
> Pronominal-adverb relative 'waarnaar': 'de maatstaf ... waarnaar' = 'the yardstick by which'. 'waarnaar' (waar- + naar) relativises a thing as the object of 'naar'; the separable 'afmeten' (to measure by) goes verb-final.
> buitenpost = outpost: A 'buitenpost' (buiten + post) is a remote outlying station, far from the colonial centre — the kind of isolated posting where, the narrator says, the Governor's favour means everything.

De meesten waren dus voor my zeer on-welwillend, en vaak ging dit over in grofheid.  
Most, then, were very ill-disposed toward me, and often this passed over into rudeness.
> Separable 'overgaan' split: 'overgaan in' (to pass into) splits: the simple past 'ging' takes second place after the fronted 'vaak', and the prefix 'over' goes to the end ('ging dit over in...').

Ik van myn kant was prikkelbaar.  
I, for my part, was irritable.
> Possessive 'myn' + fixed phrase: 'van myn kant' = 'for my part', a set phrase with the possessive 'myn' (period spelling of 'mijn'). 'prikkelbaar' = irritable.

Een niet beantwoorde groet, een schimpscheut op de "zotterny van iemand die 't wil opnemen tegen den generaal" een toespeling op myn armoede, op myn hongerlyden, op 't slechte voedsel dat er scheen te liggen in zedelyke onafhankelykheid ... dit alles, begrypt ge, maakte my bitter. Velen, vooral onder de officieren, wisten dat de generaal niet ongaarne zag dat er geduelleerd werd, en vooral met iemand die zoo in ongenade was als ik.  
An unreturned greeting, a sneer at the "folly of a man who wants to take on the general," an allusion to my poverty, to my going hungry, to the poor nourishment that seemed to lie in moral independence ... all this, you understand, made me bitter. Many, especially among the officers, knew that the general was not displeased to see duels fought, and above all with someone so out of favor as I was.
> 'het opnemen tegen' = to take on: 'het opnemen tegen' is an idiom 'to take on / stand up to'. The modal 'wil' sends separable 'opnemen' to the end as an infinitive inside the relative 'die'-clause; 'den generaal' keeps the accusative -n.
> Stacked dat-clauses + impersonal passive: Two nested 'dat'-clauses end in 'zag' and then 'geduelleerd werd'. The last is an impersonal worden-passive with 'er' ('that dueling was done / went on') — a passive with no named subject.
> in ongenade = out of favour: 'in ongenade zijn' = 'to be in disgrace / out of favour'. 'ongenade' is the negated 'genade' (mercy/favour) with the privative prefix 'on-'.

Misschien wekte men dus myn gevoeligheid met voordacht op. Ook duelleerde ik wel eens voor een ander dien ik voor verongelykt hield.  
So perhaps my sensitivity was roused on purpose. I also dueled now and then on behalf of another whom I held to have been wronged.
> Separable 'opwekken' + fronted adverb: Fronting 'Misschien' (perhaps) inverts the verb: 'wekte men ... op', with the separable prefix 'op' at the end. 'men' is the impersonal 'one/they'.
> Accusative relative 'dien': 'dien' is the masculine accusative relative ('whom'), object of 'hield'. 'iemand voor X houden' = 'to hold/consider someone to be X'; 'verongelykt' = wronged.

Hoe dit zy, het duel was daar in dien tyd aan de orde van den dag, en meer dan eens is 't gebeurd dat ik twee samenkomsten had op een ochtend. O, er is iets zeer aantrekkelyks in het duel, vooral met de sabel, of "op" de sabel, zooals ze 't noemen ... ik weet niet waarom.  
However that may be, the duel was in those days the order of the day there, and more than once it happened that I had two meetings in one morning. Oh, there is something very attractive in the duel, especially with the saber, or "on" the saber, as they call it ... I do not know why.
> Concessive subjunctive 'zy': 'Hoe dit zy' = 'However that may be', a frozen concessive using the present subjunctive 'zy' ('be') of 'zijn'. A purely literary, archaic turn of phrase.
> Impersonal 'het gebeurt dat': 'is 't gebeurd dat...' = 'it happened that...', an impersonal construction with dummy 't and a 'dat'-clause as the real subject. The fronted 'meer dan eens' forces inversion.

Ge begrypt echter dat ik nu zoo-iets niet meer doen zou, ook al ware daartoe zooveel aanleiding als in die dagen ... kom eens hier, Max--neen, vang dat beestje niet--kom hier?  
You understand, however, that I would no longer do such a thing now, even were there as much occasion for it as in those days ... come here, Max — no, do not catch that little creature — come here?
> Conditional 'zou' in a dat-clause: 'dat ik ... doen zou' = 'that I would do', a 'dat'-clause where the conditional 'zou' sits at the very end behind the infinitive 'doen'.
> Concessive subjunctive 'ware': 'al ware daartoe ... aanleiding' = 'even were there ... occasion for it'. 'ware' is the past subjunctive of 'zijn' (were); 'al' triggers verb-first concessive order; 'daartoe' is the pronominal adverb 'for it'.
> Imperative + diminutive: 'vang ... niet' is a negative imperative (bare stem). 'beestje' is the diminutive of 'beest' (-je suffix), making it 'little creature' — affectionate, and always neuter.

Hoor eens, je moet nooit kapellen vangen.  
Listen, you must never catch butterflies.
> Modal + negative 'nooit': 'je moet nooit ... vangen' = 'you must never catch'. The modal 'moet' sends 'vangen' to the end; 'nooit' (never) is the single negative carrying the negation.
> kapellen = butterflies: 'kapel' is an older/regional word for butterfly (modern standard: 'vlinder', which Multatuli also uses two segments later). Worth glossing for the modern reader.

Dat arme dier heeft eerst langen tyd als rups op een boom rondgekropen, dat was geen vroolyk leven!  
That poor creature first crept about for a long while as a caterpillar on a tree — that was no merry life!
> Perfect of separable 'rondkruipen': 'heeft ... rondgekropen' = 'crept about', the perfect of separable 'rondkruipen' with the prefix folded into the strong participle 'rondgekropen'.
> Accusative '-en' in a time phrase: 'langen tyd' ('a long while') shows the masculine accusative -en on 'lang' in a duration phrase — a frozen case ending typical of 1860 prose.

Nu heeft het pas vleugeltjes gekregen, en wil wat rondvliegen in de lucht, en zich vermaken, en 't zoekt voedsel in de bloemen, en doet niemand leed ... kyk, is 't niet veel aardiger het daar zoo te zien rondfladderen?  
Now it has only just gotten its little wings, and wants to fly about a bit in the air, and amuse itself, and it seeks food in the flowers, and harms no one ... look, is it not far prettier to see it flutter about there like that?
> Diminutive plural 'vleugeltjes': 'vleugeltjes' is the diminutive plural of 'vleugel' (wing): -tje + -s. The diminutive conveys smallness and tenderness — fitting for the newly hatched butterfly.
> Perception verb + bare infinitive: 'het ... te zien rondfladderen' = 'to see it flutter about'. The perception verb 'zien' takes a bare infinitive ('rondfladderen', no extra 'te'), governed overall by the 'te' after the adjective phrase.

Zoo kwam 't gesprek van de duellen op de vlinders, op de ontferming des rechtvaardigen over zyn vee, op het dieren plagen, op de loi Grammont, op de Nationale Vergadering waarin die wet werd aangenomen, op de republiek, en op wat niet al! Eindelyk stond Havelaar op.  
So the conversation passed from the duels to the butterflies, to the mercy of the righteous man toward his beast, to the tormenting of animals, to the loi Grammont, to the National Assembly in which that law was passed, to the republic, and to what not! At last Havelaar rose.
> Fronted 'Zoo' + V2: 'Zoo kwam 't gesprek...' = 'So the conversation passed...'. The fronted adverb 'Zoo' forces inversion ('kwam 't gesprek'). The series 'van ... op ... op ...' chains the topics with prepositions.
> Genitive 'des' + adjectival noun: 'des rechtvaardigen' = 'of the righteous man', the genitive article 'des' plus a substantivised adjective in -en. A consciously biblical, archaic genitive.

Hy verontschuldigde zich by zyn gasten, wyl hy bezigheden had.  
He excused himself to his guests, since he had business to attend to.
> Reflexive 'zich verontschuldigen': 'zich verontschuldigen' (to excuse oneself / apologise) is reflexive; 'zich' is the third-person reflexive. 'wyl' = 'since/because', a literary subordinator (verb-final 'had').

Toen de kontroleur hem den volgenden morgen op zyn kantoor bezocht, wist hy niet dat de nieuwe adsistent-resident den vorigen dag na de gesprekken in de voorgalery, was uitgereden naar Parang-Koedjang--het distrikt der "verregaande misbruiken"--en eerst dien ochtend vroeg van daar was teruggekeerd. * * * * *  
When the controller called on him at his office the next morning, he did not know that the new assistant-resident, the previous day after the conversations in the front gallery, had ridden out to Parang-Koedjang — the district of the "far-reaching abuses" — and had returned from there only early that morning. * * * * *
> Pluperfect of separable 'uitrijden': 'was uitgereden' = 'had ridden out', the zijn-pluperfect of separable 'uitrijden'. The whole sits in a long 'dat'-clause, so all verbs are pressed to the end after the time phrase 'den vorigen dag'.
> Accusative time phrase: 'den volgenden morgen' = 'the next morning': both article and adjective carry the accusative -n used for masculine time expressions, a hallmark of period spelling/case use.

Ik verzoek den lezer te gelooven dat Havelaar te wellevend was om aan zyn eigen tafel zooveel te spreken als ik in de laatste hoofdstukken heb opgegeven, en waardoor ik op hem den schyn laad alsof hy zich meester zou hebben gemaakt van 't gesprek, met verwaarloozing der plichten van een gastheer, die voorschryven aan zyn gasten de gelegenheid te laten of te verschaffen "zich te doen uitkomen." Ik heb uit de vele bouwstoffen die voor me liggen, een paar grepen gedaan, en zou nog lang de tafelgesprekken hebben kunnen voortzetten, met minder moeite dan 't afbreken daarvan me gekost heeft.  
I beg the reader to believe that Havelaar was too well-bred to speak as much at his own table as I have set down in the last chapters, whereby I cast upon him the appearance of having monopolized the conversation, neglecting the duties of a host, which prescribe that one give or afford one's guests the opportunity "to show themselves to advantage." Out of the many materials lying before me, I have made a few selections, and could have continued the table talk for a long while yet, with less effort than breaking it off has cost me.
> te ... om te (too ... to): 'te wellevend ... om ... te spreken' = 'too well-bred to speak'. The pattern 'te + adjective + om te + infinitive' expresses an excessive degree blocking an action.
> alsof + conditional perfect: 'alsof ... zou hebben gemaakt' = 'as if he had made/monopolised', a counterfactual with 'alsof' ('as if') and a conditional perfect, verb-final. 'zich meester maken van' = to take possession of.

Ik hoop echter dat het meegedeelde voldoende wezen zal om eenigermate de beschryving te rechtvaardigen, die ik van Havelaars inborst en hoedanigheden gegeven heb, en dat de lezer niet geheel zonder belangstelling de lotgevallen zal gadeslaan, die hem en de zynen wachtten te Rangkas-Betoeng.  
I hope, however, that what has been related will suffice to justify in some measure the description I have given of Havelaar's character and qualities, and that the reader will not look on entirely without interest at the fortunes that awaited him and his family at Rangkas-Betoeng.
> Future 'zullen' + archaic 'wezen': 'voldoende wezen zal' = 'will be sufficient'. 'zal' is the future auxiliary, sent to the end of the 'dat'-clause; 'wezen' is the literary/archaic infinitive of 'zijn' (to be).
> Possessive substantive 'de zynen': 'de zynen' = 'his (people)', the possessive 'zijn' used substantively for 'his family/his own'. 'die ... wachtten' is a relative clause ('that awaited'), verb-final.

De kleine familie leefde stil voort.  
The little family went on living quietly.
> Separable 'voortleven': 'voortleven' (to live on) splits in the main clause: 'leefde ... voort', with the manner adverb 'stil' (quietly) in the middle field. 'kleine familie' shows the attributive -e.

Havelaar was dikwyls over-dag uit, en bracht halve nachten op zyn bureau door.  
Havelaar was often out during the day, and spent half his nights at his office.
> Middle field: Time then Place: The adverbials order Time before Place/state: 'dikwyls over-dag uit' ('often during the day out'). This Time–Manner–Place tendency governs the Dutch middle field.
> Separable 'doorbrengen': 'doorbrengen' (to spend, of time) splits: 'bracht ... door', with the object 'halve nachten' and place phrase 'op zyn bureau' between the verb and the stranded prefix 'door'.

De verhouding tusschen hem en den kommandant van 't kleine garnizoen was alleraangenaamst, en ook in den huiselyken omgang met den kontroleur was geen spoor te ontdekken van 't rangverschil dat anders in Indie zoo vaak het verkeer styf en vervelend maakt, terwyl bovendien Havelaars zucht om hulp te verleenen waar hy maar eenigszins kon, dikwyls den Regent te-stade kwam, die dan ook zeer met zyn "ouderen broeder" was ingenomen. En ten-slotte bracht de lieftalligheid van mevrouw Havelaar veel toe tot het aangenaam verkeer met de weinige op de plaats aanwezige Europeanen en de Inlandsche Hoofden.  
The relationship between him and the commander of the small garrison was of the most agreeable kind, and in his domestic dealings with the controller, too, there was no trace to be found of that difference in rank which otherwise so often makes social life in the Indies stiff and tedious; while moreover Havelaar's eagerness to lend a hand wherever he in any way could often came to the aid of the Regent, who for his part was very well disposed toward his "elder brother." And finally the graciousness of Mrs. Havelaar contributed much to the pleasant intercourse with the few Europeans present at the post and with the Native Chiefs.
> Superlative with aller-: 'alleraangenaamst' = 'of the most agreeable kind', an intensified superlative with the prefix 'aller-' ('most of all'). 'den kommandant' keeps the accusative/dative -n after the preposition.
> Genitive -s + om ... te: 'Havelaars zucht' uses the -s genitive ('Havelaar's eagerness'); 'om hulp te verleenen' = 'to lend help', an om...te purpose/complement clause depending on 'zucht'.

De dienstkorrespondentie met den resident te Serang droeg blyken van wederzydsche welwillendheid, terwyl de bevelen van den resident, met heusheid gegeven, stipt werden opgevolgd.  
The official correspondence with the resident at Serang bore the marks of mutual goodwill, while the resident's orders, given courteously, were carried out to the letter.
> Participle phrase + worden-passive: 'met heusheid gegeven' is a reduced participial phrase ('given courteously') modifying 'de bevelen'; the main verb is the worden-passive 'werden opgevolgd' (were obeyed/followed).
> heusheid = courtesy: 'heusheid' is an older word for politeness/courtesy (from 'heus' = genuine, courteous). It survives now mostly in 'heus' meaning 'really/truly'.

Tine's huishouding was spoedig geregeld.  
Tine's household was soon set in order.
> Zijn-passive (state): 'was ... geregeld' = 'was set in order', a zijn-passive giving the resulting state rather than the process. 'spoedig' (soon) sits in the middle field.

Na lang wachten waren de meubels van Batavia aangekomen, en waren ketimon's in zout gelegd, en als Max aan-tafel iets verhaalde, geschiedde dit in 't vervolg niet meer uit gebrek aan eieren voor de omelet, hoewel toch altyd de levenswys van 't klein gezin duidelyke blyken droeg dat de voorgenomen spaarzaamheid zeer werd in acht genomen.  
After long waiting the furniture had arrived from Batavia, and cucumbers had been laid down in salt, and when Max told some story at table it was henceforth no longer from a want of eggs for the omelette, though even so the way of life of the small family always bore clear signs that the intended thrift was being closely observed.
> als-clause + inverted main + niet: The 'als'-clause ('when Max told something') is verb-final ('verhaalde'); the main clause inverts ('geschiedde dit'). 'niet meer uit gebrek aan' = 'no longer from a lack of' — 'niet' negating the cause.
> ketimon = cucumber: 'ketimon' is the Malay-derived word for cucumber, here pickled ('in zout gelegd', laid in salt) — a domestic touch of colonial Indies life. Note the un-Dutch '-'s' plural on a loanword.

Mevrouw Slotering verliet zelden haar huis, en gebruikte slechts eenige malen de thee by de familie Havelaar in de voorgalery.  
Mrs. Slotering rarely left her house, and only a few times took tea with the Havelaar family in the front gallery.
> 'de thee gebruiken' = to take tea: 'thee gebruiken' is a polite idiom for 'to take/have tea'. 'slechts eenige malen' = 'only a few times'; 'slechts' is the formal 'only' (cf. 'maar/alleen').

Ze sprak weinig, en bleef altyd een wakend oog houden op ieder die hare of Havelaars woning naderde. Men was echter gewoon geraakt aan wat men haar monomanie begon te noemen, en lette daarop weldra niet meer.  
She spoke little, and kept a watchful eye at all times on everyone who approached her dwelling or Havelaar's. People had grown used, however, to what they had begun to call her monomania, and soon paid it no further heed.
> Present participle 'wakend' as adjective: 'een wakend oog' = 'a watchful eye', with the -end present participle 'wakend' used attributively. 'blijven + infinitive' ('bleef ... houden') expresses continued action.
> 'gewoon raken aan' + headless 'wat': 'gewoon raken aan' = 'to grow used to'. The object is a headless relative 'wat men ... begon te noemen' ('what people began to call'), where 'wat' has no antecedent.

Alles scheen kalmte te ademen, want voor Max en Tine was 't vergelykenderwyze een kleinigheid zich te schikken in ontberingen die op een niet aan den grooten weg gelegen binnenpost onvermydelyk zyn.  
Everything seemed to breathe calm, for to Max and Tine it was comparatively a trifle to resign themselves to the privations that are unavoidable at an inland post which does not lie along the great highway.
> Causal 'want' + dummy 't + reflexive te-inf: 'want' is a coordinating 'because' (no verb-to-end). Dummy 't anticipates the real subject 'zich te schikken in ontberingen' ('to resign themselves to privations'), a reflexive te-infinitive.
> Pre-nominal participle phrase: A whole phrase 'niet aan den grooten weg gelegen' ('not lying along the great highway') is packed before the noun 'binnenpost' as an extended adjectival participle — a very Dutch, German-like construction.

Daar er op de plaats geen brood werd gebakken, at men geen brood.  
Since no bread was baked at the post, they ate no bread.
> Causal 'daar' + impersonal passive + geen: 'Daar er ... geen brood werd gebakken' = 'Since no bread was baked', a causal clause with impersonal worden-passive and 'geen' negating the indefinite 'brood'. The main clause inverts: 'at men geen brood'.

Men had het van Serang kunnen laten komen, maar de kosten op dat vervoer waren te hoog.  
It could have been brought in from Serang, but the cost of that transport was too high.
> Double infinitive 'kunnen laten komen': 'had ... kunnen laten komen' = 'could have had brought', a pluperfect with a triple verb cluster: modal 'kunnen' (infinitive, not participle) + causative 'laten' + 'komen'.

Max wist zoo goed als ieder ander dat er veel middelen te vinden waren om zònder betaling brood naar Rangkas-Betoeng te laten brengen, maar onbetaalde arbeid, die Indische kanker, was hem een gruwel.  
Max knew as well as anyone else that there were plenty of means of having bread carried to Rangkas-Betoeng without payment, but unpaid labor, that Indian cancer, was an abomination to him.
> om ... te + causative laten: 'om ... te laten brengen' = 'in order to have brought', a purpose clause with the causative 'laten'. The grave accent on 'zònder' marks an emphatic stress ('without' payment).

Zoo was er veel te Lebak, dat wel door gezag te verkrygen was om-niet maar niet te-koop voor billyken prys, en onder zulke gegevens schikten zich Havelaar en zyn Tine gaarne in 't gemis.  
Thus there was much at Lebak that authority could indeed obtain for nothing but that was not to be bought at a fair price, and under such conditions Havelaar and his Tine gladly accommodated themselves to going without.
> Passive te-infinitive (modal 'is te'): 'te verkrygen was' = 'was to be obtained / obtainable', the 'zijn + te + infinitive' construction expressing possibility/passive. 'om-niet' = 'for nothing'; 'te-koop' = 'for sale'.
> Reflexive 'zich schikken in' + 'gaarne': 'zich schikken in' = 'to resign oneself to'; the reflexive 'zich' precedes the subject after the fronted 'onder zulke gegevens'. 'gaarne' is the archaic/literary 'gladly' (modern 'graag').

Ze hadden wel andere ontberingen beleefd!  
They had known other privations indeed!
> Pluperfect 'hadden beleefd': 'hadden ... beleefd' = 'had known/lived through', a pluperfect. The particle 'wel' adds affirmative emphasis ('indeed'), and the exclamation looks back beyond the present narrative.

Had niet die arme vrouw maanden doorgebracht aan-boord van een Arabisch vaartuig, zonder andere legerstede dan 't scheepsdek zonder andere beschutting tegen zonnehitte en westmoessonsbuien, dan een tafeltje tusschen welks pooten ze zich moest vastklemmen?  
Had that poor woman not spent months aboard an Arab vessel, with no other bed than the ship's deck, no other shelter against the heat of the sun and the squalls of the west monsoon than a little table between whose legs she had to cling fast?
> Rhetorical question: pluperfect inverted: A rhetorical question opens with the verb: 'Had ... vrouw maanden doorgebracht?' = 'Had the woman not spent months...?'. 'doorgebracht' is the separable participle of 'doorbrengen'; 'niet' adds the rhetorical force.
> Formal genitive relative 'welks': 'tusschen welks pooten' = 'between whose legs'; 'welks' is the neuter genitive of the formal relative 'welk' (referring to the het-word 'tafeltje'). 'zich vastklemmen' = to cling fast (reflexive).

Had ze niet op dat schip zich moeten vergenoegen met een klein rantsoen droge ryst en vuil water?  
Had she not been obliged, on that ship, to content herself with a small ration of dry rice and foul water?
> Reflexive + modal in a rhetorical pluperfect: 'Had ze ... zich moeten vergenoegen' = 'Had she not been obliged to content herself'. 'zich vergenoegen met' is reflexive; the modal 'moeten' appears as an infinitive in the double-infinitive pluperfect.

En was ze niet in die en vele andere omstandigheden altyd tevreden geweest, als ze maar mocht samen wezen met haar Max?  
And had she not, in those and many other circumstances, always been content, so long as she might only be together with her Max?
> Conditional 'als ... maar' + 'wezen': 'als ze maar mocht samen wezen' = 'so long as she might only be together'. 'als ... maar' = 'as long as / provided that'; 'mocht' is the modal 'might'; 'wezen' is the archaic infinitive of 'zijn'.

Eén omstandigheid echter was er te Lebak, die haar verdriet berokkende: kleine Max kon niet in den tuin spelen omdat daar zooveel slangen waren.  
There was, however, one circumstance at Lebak that caused her grief: little Max could not play in the garden, because there were so many snakes there.
> Existential 'er' + relative: 'was er te Lebak' = 'there was at Lebak', with existential 'er' introducing a new entity, then a relative 'die ... berokkende' (that caused). The accented 'Eén' marks the numeral 'one'.
> Causal 'omdat' + locative 'daar': 'omdat daar zooveel slangen waren' = 'because there were so many snakes there'. 'omdat' is the workaday causal conjunction (verb-final 'waren'); 'daar' is locative 'there'.

Toen ze dit bemerkte en hierover zich by Havelaar beklaagde, loofde deze aan de bedienden een prys uit voor elke slang die ze vangen zouden, doch reeds de eerste dagen betaalde hy zóóveel aan premien dat hy zyn belofte moest intrekken voor 't vervolg, want ook in gewone omstandigheden en dus zonder de voor hem zoo noodzakelyke zuinigheid, zou die betaling spoedig zyn middelen zyn te-boven gegaan.  
When she noticed this and complained of it to Havelaar, he offered the servants a reward for every snake they should catch; but already in the first days he paid out so much in bounties that he had to withdraw his promise for the future, for even under ordinary circumstances, and thus apart from the thrift so necessary for him, that payment would soon have exceeded his means.
> Separable 'uitloven' + demonstrative subject: 'uitloven' (to offer as a reward) splits: 'loofde ... uit'. The subject 'deze' = 'he/the latter' (Havelaar), a demonstrative used pronominally after the fronted temporal clause.
> Relative + clause-final 'zouden': 'elke slang die ze vangen zouden' = 'every snake they should catch'. Inside the relative clause the conditional 'zouden' is pushed to the very end behind 'vangen'.
> Conditional perfect of 'te boven gaan': 'zou ... te-boven gegaan' (with 'zijn') = 'would have exceeded'. 'te boven gaan' = 'to exceed/surpass'; here in a counterfactual conditional perfect, the cluster trailing to the end.

Er werd alzoo vastgesteld dat kleine Max voortaan 't huis niet meer zou verlaten, en dat hy zich, om frissche lucht te scheppen, vergenoegen moest met spelen in de voorgalery.  
It was therefore settled that little Max should henceforth no longer leave the house, and that, to take the fresh air, he must content himself with playing in the front gallery.
> Impersonal worden-passive: 'Er werd ... vastgesteld dat...' = 'It was settled that...', an impersonal worden-passive opened by 'er' with a 'dat'-clause as the logical subject. No agent is named.
> om...te purpose + reflexive modal: 'om frissche lucht te scheppen' = 'in order to take fresh air' (purpose clause); the main predicate 'zich ... vergenoegen moest met spelen' uses reflexive 'zich' with modal 'moest'.

In-weerwil van deze voorzorg was Tine toch altyd angstig, en vooral 's avends, daar men weet hoe slangen dikwyls in de huizen kruipen en zich, om warmte te zoeken, in de slaapkamers verbergen.  
In spite of this precaution Tine was nevertheless always anxious, and above all in the evenings, since one knows how snakes often creep into the houses and, to seek warmth, hide themselves in the bedrooms.
> Causal 'daar' + reflexive 'zich verbergen': 'daar men weet hoe...' = 'since one knows how...'. The embedded clause 'hoe slangen ... zich ... verbergen' uses the reflexive 'zich verbergen' (to hide themselves), verbs at the end.
> Adverbial genitive "'s avonds": "'s avends" (period spelling of "'s avonds") = 'in the evenings', a frozen adverbial genitive: "'s" = 'des' + the genitive -s on 'avond'. Compare 's morgens, 's nachts.

Slangen en dergelyk ongedierte vindt men wel-is-waar in Indiën overal, maar op de grootere hoofdplaatsen waar de bevolking dichter op elkander woont, komen zy natuurlyk zeldzamer voor dan in meer wilde streken, zooals te Rangkas-Betoeng.  
Snakes and such vermin are, it is true, to be found everywhere in the Indies, but in the larger principal towns, where the population lives more closely together, they naturally occur more seldom than in wilder regions, such as Rangkas-Betoeng.
> Separable 'voorkomen' + comparative: 'voorkomen' (to occur) splits: 'komen ... voor'. 'zeldzamer ... dan' = 'more seldom than', a comparative with 'dan' for 'than'. The fronted phrase causes inversion ('komen zy').
> Idiom: weliswaar: 'wel-is-waar' (modern 'weliswaar') = 'it is true / admittedly', a concessive fixed phrase that usually pairs with a following 'maar' ('but'), as it does here.

Indien echter Havelaar had kunnen besluiten zyn erf van onkruid te doen reinigen tot aan den rand van den ravyn toe, zouden toch wel de slangen zich van-tyd tot-tyd in den tuin vertoond hebben, maar niet in zóó grooten getale als dit nu 't geval was.  
If, however, Havelaar had been able to bring himself to have his grounds cleared of weeds all the way to the edge of the ravine, the snakes would no doubt still have shown themselves in the garden from time to time, but not in such great numbers as was now the case.
> Full counterfactual conditional: A textbook counterfactual: the 'indien' clause has the pluperfect 'had kunnen besluiten' (double infinitive), and the main clause the conditional perfect 'zouden ... vertoond hebben' with reflexive 'zich vertoonen'.
> Causative 'doen reinigen': 'te doen reinigen' = 'to have cleared/cleaned'. 'doen' is the causative auxiliary ('have it done'), governing 'reinigen'; 'van onkruid' = 'of weeds'.

De natuur dezer dieren doet hun duisternis en schuiling voortrekken boven 't licht van open plaatsen, zoodat, als Havelaars erf zindelyk ware gehouden, de slangen niet dan als 't ware haars ondanks en verdwaald, de ruigte in den ravyn zouden verlaten hebben.  
The nature of these creatures makes them prefer darkness and concealment to the light of open places, so that, had Havelaar's grounds been kept tidy, the snakes would have left the thicket in the ravine only, as it were, in spite of themselves and by going astray.
> Genitive 'dezer': 'dezer dieren' = 'of these creatures', the genitive plural of the demonstrative 'deze'. A formal inflected demonstrative, standard in 1860 written Dutch.
> Causative 'doen' + bare infinitive: 'doet ... voortrekken' = 'makes (them) prefer', the causative 'doen' + bare infinitive 'voortrekken' ('to prefer'). 'boven' here means 'over/above' in a comparison.
> Archaic 'als 't ware' + genitive 'haars': 'als 't ware' = 'as it were' (subjunctive 'ware'); 'haars ondanks' = 'in spite of itself', a fossilised genitive ('haars' = of her/its) with 'ondanks'. Both are deliberately archaic.

Maar 't erf van Havelaar was niet zindelyk, en ik wensch de reden hiervan te ontwikkelen, daar ze een blik te meer doet slaan op de misbruiken die byna alom in de nederlandsch-indische bezittingen heerschen.  
But Havelaar's grounds were not tidy, and I wish to set out the reason for this, since it casts one more glance upon the abuses that prevail almost everywhere in the Dutch East Indian possessions.
> te-infinitive + pronominal adverb 'hiervan': 'wensch ... te ontwikkelen' = 'wish to set out', 'wensen' governing a te-infinitive. 'hiervan' (hier- + van) = 'of this', a pronominal adverb for the reason.
> Relative 'die' + literary 'alom': 'die byna alom ... heerschen' = 'that prevail almost everywhere'. 'alom' is the literary 'everywhere'; 'heerschen' (to reign/prevail) closes the relative clause. Period 'sch' spelling.

De woningen der gezagvoerders in de binnenlanden staan op gronden die aan de gemeenten toebehooren, voor-zoover men van gemeente-eigendom spreken kan in een land waar de Regeering zich alles toeëigent.  
The dwellings of the administrators in the interior stand on lands that belong to the communities, in so far as one can speak of communal property in a country where the Government appropriates everything to itself.
> Genitive 'der': 'der gezagvoerders' = 'of the administrators', the genitive plural article 'der'. Multatuli's prose is dense with these inflected genitives ('des/der/den').
> Reflexive 'zich toe-eigenen': 'zich toeëigenen' = 'to appropriate to oneself'. The reflexive 'zich' here functions almost as a benefactive ('appropriate everything for itself'). 'waar' opens the relative ('where'), verb-final.

Genoeg, dat die erven niet toebehooren aan den ambtelyken bewoner zelf.  
Enough to say that these grounds do not belong to the official occupant himself.

Deze toch zou, als dit het geval ware, zich wachten een grond te koopen of te huren, waarvan 't onderhoud boven zyn krachten ging.  
For he, were this the case, would beware of buying or renting a ground whose upkeep lay beyond his means.
> Subjunctive 'ware' in a condition: 'als dit het geval ware' = 'were this the case', a counterfactual with the past subjunctive 'ware' (instead of indicative 'was'). The literary subjunctive heightens the hypothetical.
> Reflexive 'zich wachten' + te-inf: 'zich wachten te ...' = 'to beware of / take care not to ...'. The reflexive verb is followed by 'te koopen of te huren'. 'waarvan 't onderhoud ... ging' is a relative with pronominal-adverb 'waarvan'.

Wanneer nu het erf van de hem aangewezen woning te groot is om behoorlyk te worden onderhouden, zou dit, by den weligen tropischen plantengroei, binnen weinig tyds in een wildernis ontaarden.  
Now when the grounds of the dwelling assigned to him are too large to be properly maintained, this would, given the rank tropical growth of plants, degenerate within a short time into a wilderness.
> te groot om ... te (too ... to): 'te groot ... om ... te worden onderhouden' = 'too large to be properly maintained'. The 'te + adj + om te + passive infinitive' pattern; 'wanneer' opens the temporal/conditional clause.
> Conditional 'zou' + 'ontaarden in': 'zou ... ontaarden' = 'would degenerate'. The conditional 'zou' + infinitive 'ontaarden' (to degenerate into); 'by den weligen tropischen plantengroei' is a causal-circumstantial aside.

En toch ziet men zelden of nooit zoodanig erf in slechten staat. Ja dikwyls zelfs staat de reiziger verbaasd over 't schoone park dat een residentswoning omringt.  
And yet one seldom or never sees such grounds in poor condition. Indeed, often enough the traveler stands astonished at the handsome park that surrounds a resident's dwelling.
> Negative adverbs 'zelden of nooit': 'zelden of nooit' = 'seldom or never', stacked negative adverbs carrying a single negation. The fronted nothing forces no inversion here, but 'men' is the impersonal subject.
> Fronted adverb 'dikwyls' + inversion: 'dikwyls zelfs staat de reiziger verbaasd' = 'often enough the traveller stands astonished'. The fronted adverbial inverts subject and verb ('staat de reiziger').

Geen beambte in de binnenlanden heeft inkomen genoeg om den hiertoe noodigen arbeid te doen verrichten tegen behoorlyke betaling, en daar nu toch een deftig aanzien van de woning des gezaghebbers een vereischte is, opdat niet de bevolking die zooveel hecht aan uiterlykheden, in slordigheid grond vinde voor minachting, doet zich de vraag op, hoe dan dit doel bereikt wordt?  
No officer in the interior has income enough to have the labor needed for this performed against proper payment, and since after all a dignified appearance of the administrator's dwelling is a requirement, lest the population, which sets so much store by outward show, find in slovenliness a ground for contempt, the question arises: how, then, is this end attained?
> Purpose 'opdat' + subjunctive 'vinde': 'opdat niet de bevolking ... grond vinde' = 'lest the population find ground...'. 'opdat' opens a purpose clause; 'vinde' is the present subjunctive of 'vinden', a literary marker of purpose/wish.
> Genitive 'des': 'des gezaghebbers' = 'of the administrator', the masculine genitive article 'des' with genitive -s on the noun. Another of the chapter's frequent inflected genitives.
> Separable 'zich opdoen' + embedded question: 'doet zich de vraag op' = 'the question arises' (reflexive separable 'zich opdoen'). The embedded question 'hoe ... bereikt wordt' is a worden-passive, verb-final.

Op de meeste plaatsen hebben de gezaghebbers te beschikken over eenige ketting-gangers, dat zyn: elders veroordeelde misdadigers, een soort van werklieden echter dat in Bantam om meer of min geldige redenen van politieken aard niet aanwezig was.  
In most places the administrators have at their disposal a number of chain-gang men, that is to say: malefactors sentenced elsewhere — a sort of laborer, however, which in Bantam, for reasons of a political nature more or less valid, was not to be had.
> hebben te + infinitive (obligation/availability): 'te beschikken over' = 'to have at one's disposal'. 'beschikken over' takes the fixed preposition 'over'; the te-infinitive after 'hebben' here reads as 'have ... to dispose of'.

Doch ook op plaatsen waar zich wel zoodanige veroordeelden bevinden, is hun aantal, vooral met het oog op de behoefte aan anderen arbeid, zelden in evenredigheid met het werk dat zou vereischt worden tot het goed onderhouden van een groot erf.  
But even in places where such convicts are indeed to be found, their number, especially considering the need for other labor, is seldom in proportion to the work that would be required for the good upkeep of a large grounds.
> Relative + conditional passive: 'het werk dat zou vereischt worden' = 'the work that would be required'. Inside the relative the conditional 'zou' combines with the worden-passive infinitive 'vereischt worden', verb-final.

Er moeten dus andere middelen gevonden worden, en de oproeping van arbeiders tot het verrichten van heeredienst ligt voor-de-hand.  
Other means must therefore be found, and the summoning of laborers to perform statute-labor lies ready to hand.
> Modal passive with 'er': 'Er moeten ... gevonden worden' = 'other means must be found', a modal ('moeten') over a worden-passive infinitive, introduced by existential 'er'. The agent is left unnamed.

De Regent of de Dhemang die zoodanige oproeping ontvangt, haast zich daaraan te voldoen, want hy weet zeer goed dat het den gezaghebbenden ambtenaar die van dat gezag misbruik maakt, later moeielyk vallen zou een inlandsch Hoofd te bestraffen over een gelyke fout. En alzoo strekt het vergryp van den een tot vrybrief voor den ander.  
The Regent or the Dhemang who receives such a summons hastens to comply with it, for he knows very well that the administrator who abuses that authority would later find it difficult to punish a native Chief for a like offence. And so the transgression of the one becomes a free pass for the other.
> Reflexive 'zich haasten' + te-inf: 'zich haasten te ...' = 'to hurry to ...'. The reflexive 'zich' and 'daaraan te voldoen' ('to comply with it') follow; 'daaraan' is a pronominal adverb (daar- + aan).
> Impersonal 'het valt moeilijk' + conditional: 'het ... moeielyk vallen zou ... te bestraffen' = 'it would be difficult to punish'. 'het valt iemand moeilijk te ...' is an impersonal idiom ('one finds it hard to'), here with conditional 'zou'.

Het komt my echter voor, dat dusdanige fout van een gezaghebber in sommige gevallen niet al te streng, en vooral niet naar europesche begrippen, moet worden beoordeeld.  
It seems to me, however, that such a fault on an administrator's part ought in some cases not to be judged too severely, and above all not by European standards.
> Impersonal 'het komt mij voor': 'Het komt my voor dat...' = 'It seems to me that...', a fixed impersonal idiom with separable 'voorkomen' (here 'to seem') and dummy 'het'. 'echter' = 'however'.
> Modal + worden-passive: 'moet ... beoordeeld worden' = 'ought to be judged', a modal over a worden-passive infinitive. 'naar europesche begrippen' = 'by European standards' ('naar' = according to).

De bevolking zelf toch zou 't--misschien uit ongewoonte--zeer vreemd vinden als hy altyd en in alle gevallen zich stipt hield aan de bepalingen die 't getal der voor zyn erf bestemde heeredienstplichtigen voorschryven, daar er omstandigheden kunnen voorkomen die by deze bepalingen niet waren voorzien.  
For the population itself would — perhaps out of sheer unfamiliarity — find it very strange if he always and in every case held strictly to the regulations that prescribe the number of statute-laborers allotted for his grounds, since circumstances may arise that these regulations did not foresee.
> Conditional 'zou' + counterfactual 'als': 'zou 't ... vreemd vinden als hy ... zich ... hield' = 'would find it strange if he held himself...'. The conditional main clause pairs with a counterfactual 'als' clause; 'zich houden aan' = to abide by (reflexive).
> Relative + separable 'voorschrijven': 'die 't getal ... voorschryven' = 'that prescribe the number...'. 'voorschrijven' (to prescribe) closes the relative clause; 'voor zyn erf bestemde heeredienstplichtigen' packs a participle before its noun.

Maar zoodra eenmaal de grens van 't strikt wettige is overschreden, wordt het moeielyk een punt vasttestellen, waarop zoodanige overschryding zou overgaan in misdadige willekeur, en vooral wordt groote omzichtigheid noodig zoodra men weet dat de Hoofden alleen wachten op een slecht voorbeeld, om dat met verregaande uitbreiding natevolgen.  
But once the boundary of the strictly lawful has been overstepped, it becomes difficult to fix a point at which such overstepping would pass into criminal arbitrariness, and above all great circumspection becomes necessary as soon as one knows that the Chiefs are merely waiting for a bad example, in order to follow it with far-reaching extension.
> Zijn-passive after 'zodra': 'zoodra ... de grens ... is overschreden' = 'as soon as the boundary has been overstepped', a perfect/zijn-passive in a temporal clause opened by 'zoodra'. Verb-final order.
> Impersonal 'het wordt moeilijk' + te-inf: 'wordt het moeielyk ... vasttestellen' = 'it becomes difficult to fix...'. Dummy 'het' anticipates the te-infinitive 'vast te stellen' (here joined as 'vasttestellen' in period spelling).

De vertelling over zekeren koning die niet wilde dat men de betaling verzuimde van één korrel zout die hy by zyn eenvoudig maal gebruikt had, toen hy aan 't hoofd zyns legers het land doortrok--omdat, naar hy zeide, dit het begin was van een onrecht dat ten-laatste zyn geheel ryk zou vernietigen--hy moge dan Timoerleng, Noereddien of Djengis-Khan geheeten hebben, zeker is òf die fabel, òf als 't geen fabel is, het voorval zelf, van aziatischen oorsprong. En even als 't aanschouwen van zeedyken aan de mogelykheid van hoog water doet gelooven, mag men aannemen dat er neiging bestaat tot zulke misbruiken in een land waar zulke lessen worden gegeven.  
The tale of a certain king who would not have the payment omitted of a single grain of salt that he had used at his simple meal, when at the head of his army he passed through the land — because, as he said, this was the beginning of an injustice that would in the end ruin his whole kingdom — whether he was called Tamerlane, Nureddin, or Genghis Khan, certain it is that either that fable, or, if it be no fable, the incident itself, is of Asiatic origin. And just as the sight of sea-dikes makes one believe in the possibility of high water, so one may assume that there exists an inclination toward such abuses in a land where such lessons are given.
> Modal 'wilde' + dat-clause: 'die niet wilde dat...' = 'who would not have it that...'. 'willen' here governs a full 'dat'-clause ('that one omit the payment'), whose verb 'verzuimde' goes to the end.
> Genitive 'zyns legers': 'zyns legers' = 'of his army', a doubly inflected genitive: possessive 'zijns' + genitive -s on 'leger'. Deliberately archaic and solemn, fitting the legendary register.

Het gering getal lieden nu waarover Havelaar wettig beschikken mocht, konden niet dan slechts een zeer klein gedeelte van zyn erf, in de onmiddellyke nabyheid der woning, van onkruid en kreupelhout vryhouden.  
Now the small number of men over whom Havelaar could lawfully dispose were able to keep free of weeds and brushwood only a very small portion of his grounds, in the immediate vicinity of the dwelling.
> Pronominal-adverb relative 'waarover' + modal: 'waarover ... beschikken mocht' = 'over whom ... could dispose'. 'waarover' relativises the persons as object of 'beschikken over'; the modal 'mocht' closes the verb-final clause.

Het overige was binnen weinig weken een volslagen wildernis.  
The rest was, within a few weeks, an utter wilderness.
> Substantivised adjective 'het overige': 'Het overige' = 'the rest / the remainder', an adjective used as a neuter noun with 'het'. 'binnen weinig weken' = 'within a few weeks' is a time adverbial in the middle field.

Havelaar schreef aan den resident over de middelen om hierin te voorzien, hetzy door een geldelyke toelage, hetzy door aan de Regeering voortestellen even als elders kettinggangers in de residentie Bantam te doen arbeiden.  
Havelaar wrote to the resident about the means of providing for this, whether by a money allowance, or by proposing to the Government that, as elsewhere, chain-gang men be set to labor in the residency of Bantam.
> Correlative 'hetzy ... hetzy': 'hetzy ... hetzy' = 'whether ... or', a literary correlative pair offering alternatives (here a money allowance or a proposal to Government). It uses the subjunctive form 'hetzy' (= het zij).
> Stacked te-infinitives + causative: 'voortestellen' (to propose, period joined spelling of 'voor te stellen') governs a further clause ending in causative 'te doen arbeiden' ('to have labour performed'). Nested te-infinitives.

Hy ontving hierop een weigerend antwoord, met de opmerking dat hy immers 't recht had de personen die door hem by policievonnis waren veroordeeld tot "arbeid aan den publieken weg" op zyn erf te-werk te stellen. Dit wist Havelaar wel, of althans 't was hem meer dan voldoende bekend dat zoodanige beschikking over gekondemneerden overal de gewoonste zaak van de wereld was, maar nooit had hy, noch te Rangkas-Betoeng noch te Amboina, noch te Menado, noch te Natal, van dat vermeend recht willen gebruik maken.  
He received to this a refusing answer, with the remark that he surely had the right to set to work on his grounds the persons whom he had sentenced by police verdict to "labor on the public road." This Havelaar well knew, or at any rate it was more than sufficiently known to him that such disposal over the condemned was everywhere the most ordinary thing in the world; but never had he wished, neither at Rangkas-Betoeng nor at Amboina, nor at Menado, nor at Natal, to make use of that supposed right.
> te-infinitive of separable 'te werk stellen': 'te-werk te stellen' = 'to set to work', a separable expression ('te werk stellen') in a te-infinitive. 'immers' = 'surely/after all', a modal particle.
> Relative + zijn-pluperfect passive: 'die door hem ... waren veroordeeld' = 'whom he had sentenced', a relative clause with a pluperfect passive ('waren veroordeeld') and the agent in 'door hem'. Verb-final.
> Fronted 'nooit' + double infinitive: Fronting 'nooit' inverts ('had hy'). 'willen gebruik maken' is a double-infinitive cluster (modal 'willen' stays infinitive in the pluperfect); 'gebruik maken van' = to make use of.

Het stuitte hem, zyn tuin te laten onderhouden als boete voor kleine vergrypen, en meermalen had hy zich afgevraagd hoe de Regeering bepalingen kon laten bestaan, die den ambtenaar in verzoeking kunnen brengen kleine verschoonbare fouten te straffen, niet in evenredigheid met het vergryp, maar met den toestand of de uitgestrektheid van zyn erf?  
It went against him to have his garden maintained as a penalty for petty offences, and more than once he had asked himself how the Government could let stand regulations that may tempt the official to punish small, excusable faults, not in proportion to the offence, but according to the condition or the extent of his grounds.
> Impersonal 'het stuit hem' + causative laten: 'Het stuitte hem ... te laten onderhouden' = 'It went against him to have ... maintained'. Dummy 'het' anticipates the te-infinitive; 'laten onderhouden' is the causative 'have it maintained'.
> Modal + causative laten: 'kon laten bestaan' = 'could let stand', modal 'kon' + causative 'laten' + 'bestaan'. The trailing relative 'die ... kunnen brengen' = 'that may tempt', modal 'kunnen' verb-final.

Het denkbeeld alleen dat de gestrafte, ook zelfs hy die rechtvaardig gestraft was, vermeenen zou dat er eigenbelang schuilde onder het geslagen vonnis, deed hem, waar hy straffen moest, altyd de voorkeur geven aan de anders zeer afkeurenswaardige opsluiting.  
The mere thought that the man punished — even he who had been justly punished — would suppose that self-interest lay hidden beneath the sentence handed down, made him, where he had to punish, always prefer the otherwise highly objectionable confinement.
> Long subject + causative 'doen': A heavy subject ('Het denkbeeld alleen dat ... vermeenen zou ...') governs the main verb 'deed hem ... de voorkeur geven' = 'made him prefer'. 'doen' + bare infinitive 'geven' is causative.
> Zijn-passive in a relative clause: 'hy die rechtvaardig gestraft was' = 'he who had been justly punished', a zijn-passive (resulting state) inside a relative clause with 'die', verb-final.

En vandaar kwam het dat kleine Max niet spelen mocht in den tuin, en dat ook Tine van de bloemen niet zooveel genoegen smaakte als ze zich had voorgesteld op den dag van haar aankomst te Rangkas-Betoeng.  
And from this it came that little Max was not allowed to play in the garden, and that Tine, too, took not so much pleasure in the flowers as she had imagined to herself on the day of her arrival at Rangkas-Betoeng.
> 'vandaar kwam het dat' + modal: 'vandaar kwam het dat...' = 'and from this it came that...', a cleft-like opener with inversion. In the 'dat'-clause 'niet spelen mocht', the modal 'mocht' (was allowed) goes last after 'spelen'.
> Reflexive 'zich voorstellen' (pluperfect): 'zich voorstellen' = 'to imagine (to oneself)'. Here in the pluperfect 'had voorgesteld' with reflexive 'zich'; the separable 'voorstellen' yields the participle 'voorgesteld'.

Het spreekt vanzelf dat deze en dergelyke kleine verdrietelykheden geen invloed uitoefenden op de stemming van een gezin dat zooveel bouwstoffen bezat om zich een gelukkig huiselyk leven te verschaffen, en 't was dan ook niet toeteschryven aan zulke kleinigheden, wanneer Havelaar soms met een bewolkt voorhoofd binnentrad, by het terugkeeren van een uitstap, of na 't aanhooren van dezen en genen die verzocht hadden hem te spreken.  
It goes without saying that these and similar small vexations had no influence on the mood of a family that possessed so much material for procuring itself a happy domestic life, and it was therefore not to be ascribed to such trifles when Havelaar sometimes entered with a clouded brow, on returning from an excursion, or after hearing out this person and that who had asked to speak with him.
> Idiom 'het spreekt vanzelf': 'Het spreekt vanzelf dat...' = 'It goes without saying that...', an impersonal fixed expression with dummy 'het' and a 'dat'-clause as the real subject.
> Passive te-infinitive 'toe te schrijven': 'niet toeteschryven aan' = 'not to be ascribed to', the construction 'zijn + te + infinitive' giving a passive/possibility sense ('was not to be attributed to'). Period joined spelling 'toeteschryven'.
> 'dezen en genen' + te-infinitive: 'dezen en genen' = 'this person and that', paired demonstratives in the old -en form. 'verzocht hadden ... te spreken' = 'had asked to speak', pluperfect + te-infinitive.

We hebben uit zyn toespraak aan de Hoofden gehoord dat hy zyn plicht wilde doen, dat hy onrecht wilde te-keer gaan, en tevens hoop ik dat de lezer uit de gesprekken die ik meedeelde, hem heeft leeren kennen als iemand die wel in-staat was iets uittevinden en tot klaarheid te brengen, dat voor sommige anderen verborgen was of in 't duister lag.  
We have heard from his address to the Chiefs that he meant to do his duty, that he meant to oppose injustice, and at the same time I hope that the reader has, from the conversations I reported, come to know him as someone well able to find a thing out and bring it to light that for some others lay hidden or in the dark.
> Present perfect, twice over: Both 'hebben ... gehoord' (we have heard) and 'heeft leeren kennen' (has come to know) are present perfects: a present-tense form of hebben holds the clause together while the participle waits at the end. With the second, 'kennen' is governed by 'leeren', producing a stacked verb cluster.
> Subordinate clause sends verbs to the end: After 'dat', Dutch is verb-final: the modal 'wilde' and the infinitive 'doen' both line up at the close of the clause. Note also the period spelling 'hy' / 'zyn' for modern 'hij' / 'zijn'.
> Relative die + te-infinitive 'uittevinden': 'die' is the relative pronoun for a de-word ('iemand'), opening a verb-final clause. 'uittevinden' is the separable verb uitvinden with 'te' wedged inside it — written solid in 1860 spelling, where today we write 'uit te vinden'.

Er was dus te veronderstellen dat niet veel van wat er in Lebak omging zyn aandacht ontgaan zou.  
It was therefore to be supposed that not much of what went on in Lebak would escape his notice.
> Dummy 'er' + te-infinitive of obligation: 'te veronderstellen' here carries a passive-modal sense: 'it was therefore to be supposed'. The little word 'er' fills the subject slot, a hallmark of impersonal Dutch constructions.
> Conditional 'zou' at clause-end: Inside the dat-clause everything postpones to the end: the verb cluster 'ontgaan zou' (would escape) closes it. 'zou' is the conditional/reported-future of zullen — what would happen, not a flat statement of fact.

Ook zagen we dat hy vele jaren vroeger op die afdeeling gelet had, zoodat hy reeds den eersten dag, toen Verbrugge hem ontmoette in de pendoppo waar myn verhaal aanvangt, toonde in zyn nieuwen werkkring geen vreemdeling te zyn.  
We also saw that he had, many years before, given his attention to that district, so that already on the first day, when Verbrugge met him in the pendopo where my story begins, he showed himself to be no stranger to his new sphere of work.
> den eersten dag — frozen accusative: 'den eersten dag' shows the old masculine accusative ending -en on the article and adjective, an adverbial time phrase ('on the very first day'). Modern Dutch has dropped the case and writes simply 'de eerste dag'.
> tonen + te-infinitive: 'toonde ... te zyn' = 'showed himself to be'. The verb tonen governs a following infinitive marked with 'te', placed at the very end of the clause after its negated object.

Hy had door nasporing op de plaatsen zelf, veel bevestigd gevonden van wat hy vroeger vermoedde, en vooral uit het archief was hem gebleken dat de landstreek waarvan het bestuur aan zyn zorg was toevertrouwd, werkelyk in een hoogsttreurigen toestand verkeerde.  
Through inquiry on the spot itself he had found much of what he formerly suspected confirmed, and above all it had become clear to him from the archive that the region whose administration was entrusted to his care was really in a most lamentable condition.
> Pronominal adverb 'waarvan' as relative: Instead of 'van welke', period and modern Dutch fuse preposition + relative into 'waarvan' (of which / whose). This waar-form replaces a relative pronoun governed by a preposition.
> Perfect with zijn: 'was gebleken': blijken (to become apparent) takes 'zijn', not 'hebben', in the perfect: 'was ... gebleken' = 'it had become clear'. The dative 'hem' marks the person to whom it became clear.
> -en adjective ending after 'in een': 'hoogsttreurigen' carries the old masculine -en ending after a preposition + indefinite article, a declension modern Dutch has flattened to 'hoogst treurige'. The superlative-as-intensifier 'hoogst' (most) modifies 'treurig'.

Uit brieven en aanteekeningen van zyn voorganger bemerkte hy dat deze dezelfde opmerkingen gemaakt had.  
From letters and notes of his predecessor he perceived that the latter had made the same observations.
> Demonstrative 'deze' as 'the latter': 'deze' (this one / the latter) points back to the predecessor just named. In the dat-clause the perfect cluster 'gemaakt had' goes to the end — verb-final order after 'dat'.

De korrespondentie met de Hoofden bevatte verwyt op verwyt, bedreiging op bedreiging, en deden zeer goed begrypen hoe die ambtenaar ten laatste zou gezegd hebben, zich rechtstreeks tot de Regeering te zullen wenden indien niet aan dien stand van zaken een einde werd gemaakt.  
The correspondence with the Chiefs contained reproach upon reproach, threat upon threat, and made it very plainly understood how that official would at last have said that he would apply directly to the Government if an end were not put to that state of affairs.
> Bare-noun 'X op X' intensifier: The pattern noun + 'op' + same noun ('reproach upon reproach') piles a thing on itself for emphasis. The nouns appear without articles — a fixed idiomatic frame.
> Conditional perfect + reported future infinitive: 'zou gezegd hebben' is the conditional perfect (would have said). What he would have said is itself folded into an infinitive construction 'zich ... te zullen wenden' (that he would apply), with reflexive 'zich' and future 'zullen'.
> worden-passive: 'werd gemaakt': 'een einde werd gemaakt' is a process passive (worden + participle) in the past: 'an end were put'. 'indien' ('if') is an archaic/formal subordinator, and 'dien' shows the old accusative -n.

Toen Verbrugge dit aan Havelaar meedeelde, had deze geantwoord dat zyn voorganger daaraan verkeerd zou gedaan hebben, daar de adsistent-resident van Lebak in geen geval den resident van Bantam mocht voorbygaan, en hy had daarby gevoegd dat dit ook door volstrekt niets zoude gewettigd zyn, daar het toch niet te denken was dat die hooge beambte party zou trekken voor afpersing en knevelary.  
When Verbrugge reported this to Havelaar, the latter had answered that his predecessor would have done wrong in that, since the assistant resident of Lebak might in no case pass over the resident of Bantam; and he had added that this would also be justified by absolutely nothing, since it was, after all, not to be thought that such a high officer would take the part of extortion and oppression.
> Pluperfect after a 'toen' clause: The toen-clause (verb-final 'meedeelde') sets a past moment; the main clause then uses the pluperfect 'had ... geantwoord' for the action already completed before it — the past behind the past.
> Modal 'mocht' + bare infinitive: 'mocht ... voorbygaan' = 'might pass over'. The modal mogen sends its main verb to the end as a bare (te-less) infinitive; 'den resident' again carries the frozen accusative -n.

Zoodanig partytrekken was dan ook waarlyk niet te veronderstellen in den zin zooals Havelaar 't bedoelde, niet namelyk alsof den resident eenig voordeel of gewin zou ten-deel vallen van die vergrypen. Doch wèl bestond er een oorzaak die hem bewoog niet dan zeer ongaarne op de klachten van Havelaars voorganger recht te doen.  
Such taking of a part was indeed truly not to be supposed in the sense that Havelaar meant it, namely not as though some advantage or gain would fall to the resident's share from those offences. But there did exist a cause that moved him to do justice to the complaints of Havelaar's predecessor only most reluctantly.
> alsof + verb-final hypothetical: 'alsof' ('as if') is a subordinator that pushes the verb to the end and frames an unreal supposition; the cluster 'zou ten-deel vallen' (would fall to one's share) closes it. 'den resident' is here a dative ('to the resident') in old -n form.
> Archaic 'doch' + V2 inversion: 'Doch' ('but, yet') is a literary/archaic coordinator. The fronted 'Doch wèl' forces verb-second inversion: finite verb 'bestond' precedes the subject 'er een oorzaak'. The stressed 'wèl' affirms against an expectation.
> niet dan = 'only': The construction 'niet dan zeer ongaarne' literally 'not but most unwillingly' is an emphatic way of saying 'only most reluctantly'. 'ongaarne' is the archaic negative of gaarne (gladly).

We hebben gezien hoe die voorganger meermalen met den resident over de heerschende misbruiken had gesproken--geaboucheerd, zei Verbrugge--en hoe weinig hem dit gebaat had.  
We have seen how that predecessor had spoken with the resident more than once about the prevailing abuses — had a heart-to-heart, Verbrugge said — and how little this had availed him.
> Exclamatory 'hoe' clause, verb-final: 'hoe weinig ... gebaat had' is an embedded exclamation ('how little this had availed him'), so the perfect cluster 'gebaat had' stands at the end. Dative 'hem' = 'him' as the one (un)helped.
> geaboucheerd (s'aboucher): A jocular Gallicism — Verbrugge's word — from French s'aboucher, 'to confer face to face'. Multatuli flags it as the bureaucrat's pretentious term for what was really a frank heart-to-heart with the resident.

Het is dus niet van belang ontbloot, te onderzoeken waarom een zoo hooggeplaatst ambtenaar, die als hoofd van de geheele residentie evenzeer als de adsistent-resident, ja meer nog dan deze, gehouden was te zorgen dat er recht geschiedde, byna altyd reden meende te hebben om den loop van dat recht te stuiten.  
It is therefore not without importance to examine why an officer so highly placed, who as head of the whole residency was just as bound as the assistant resident — indeed, more so than he — to see that justice was done, almost always believed he had reason to arrest the course of that justice.
> Anticipatory 'het' + delayed te-clause: The dummy subject 'het' stands in for the real subject, the infinitive clause 'te onderzoeken waarom...' that follows. 'niet van belang ontbloot' = 'not devoid of importance', a litotes.
> Stacked te-clauses: 'gehouden ... te zorgen' (bound to see to it) governs a further dat-clause 'dat er recht geschiedde'. Verb-final 'geschiedde' (occurred, archaic geschieden) closes that clause, with 'er' as filler subject.
> menen + te-infinitive: menen te (hebben) = 'to believe one has / to think to have'. The main verb of the long subject clause finally lands here as 'meende te hebben' — the finite verb held back to the end after the relative material.

Reeds te Serang, toen Havelaar daar ten-huize van den resident vertoefde, had hy dezen over de Lebaksche misbruiken gesproken, en hierop ten-antwoord bekomen: "dat dit alles in meer of mindere mate overal 't geval was." Dit nu kon Havelaar niet ontkennen.  
Already at Serang, when Havelaar was staying there at the resident's house, he had spoken to him about the abuses of Lebak, and had received in answer: "that all this was, in greater or lesser measure, the case everywhere." Now this Havelaar could not deny.
> Fronted adverbial forces V2; 'te Serang': Opening with the place/time phrase 'Reeds te Serang...' triggers verb-second: 'had hy' inverts. The archaic locative 'te' (at) plus a place name is the period equivalent of modern 'in Serang'.
> ten huize van: A frozen formal phrase, 'at the house of', preserving the old dative ten (te + den) before huize. Compare ten antwoord, ten dele below — fossilized case forms still active in 1860 prose.

Wie toch zou beweren een land te hebben gezien waar niets verkeerds geschiedt?  
For who would claim to have seen a country where nothing wrong is done?
> Indefinite relative 'wie' as 'whoever': 'Wie' without an antecedent means 'whoever / who'. Rhetorically it opens a question; 'zou beweren' is the conditional, and 'te hebben gezien' a perfect infinitive ('to have seen').
> niets + adjective on -s: After negatives like niets the adjective takes a partitive -s: 'niets verkeerds' = 'nothing wrong'. 'niets' is itself the single negative word permitted in the clause.

Maar hy meende dat dit geen beweegreden was om misbruiken, waar men die vond, te laten bestaan, vooral niet wanneer men uitdrukkelyk tot het tegengaan daarvan geroepen was, en tevens dat, na al wat hy van Lebak wist, hier geen spraak was van meer of mindere, doch van zeer groote maat, waarop de resident hem onder anderen antwoordde: "dat het in de afdeeling Tjiringien--ook tot Bantam behoorende--nog erger gesteld was."  
But he held that this was no reason to let abuses, where one found them, continue to exist, above all not when one had been expressly called to counter them; and at the same time that, after all he knew of Lebak, there was here no question of greater or lesser, but of very great measure — to which the resident answered him, among other things: "that in the district of Tjiringien — likewise belonging to Bantam — things were in a still worse state."
> om ... te (purpose) + causative laten: 'om ... te laten bestaan' frames purpose ('in order to let abuses continue'). 'laten' is the causative/permissive auxiliary, taking a bare infinitive 'bestaan' with no te of its own.
> Passive 'geroepen was' + nominalized infinitive: 'geroepen was' is a state passive (zijn + participle): 'had been called'. 'het tegengaan daarvan' nominalizes a verb ('the countering of it'), with 'daarvan' a pronominal adverb = 'of it/them'.

Wanneer men nu aanneemt, zooals men aannemen kan, dat een resident geen rechtstreeks voordeel heeft van afpersing en van willekeurig beschikken over de bevolking, doet zich de vraag op, wat dan zoovelen beweegt in tegenspraak met eed en plicht zulke misbruiken te laten bestaan, zonder daarvan aan de Regeering kennis te geven?  
When one now assumes, as one may assume, that a resident has no direct advantage from extortion and from arbitrary disposal over the population, the question arises: what then moves so many, in contradiction with oath and duty, to let such abuses continue to exist, without giving knowledge of them to the Government?
> Reflexive separable verb: zich opdoen: 'doet zich ... op' is the separable, reflexive verb zich opdoen (to arise, present itself). The prefix 'op' splits to the end and the reflexive 'zich' sits in the middle field: 'the question arises'.
> bewegen ... te-infinitive of result: 'beweegt ... te laten bestaan' = 'moves [so many] to let continue'. The object 'zoovelen' (so many people) is what is moved; the te-infinitive names what they are moved to do. 'zonder ... kennis te geven' is a further te-clause.

En wie hierover nadenkt, moet het al zeer vreemd vinden dat men zoo koelbloedig 't bestaan van die misbruiken erkent, als ware er spraak van iets dat buiten bereik of bevoegdheid lag.  
And whoever reflects on this must find it very strange indeed that one so coolly acknowledges the existence of those abuses, as if it were a question of something that lay beyond reach or competence.
> Subjunctive 'ware' in 'als ware': 'als ware er...' = 'as if there were...': 'ware' is the old subjunctive of zijn, used in this fixed literary construction for an unreal comparison. Modern Dutch would say 'alsof er ... was'.
> Modal 'moet' with anticipatory 'het': 'moet ... vinden' (must find) is the modal moeten + bare infinitive. The 'het' anticipates the dat-clause that follows ('that one acknowledges...'), a dummy object pointing forward.

Ik zal trachten de oorzaken hiervan te ontwikkelen.  
I shall attempt to set out the causes of this.
> Future 'zal' framing trachten + te: 'zal trachten' is the explicit future (zullen + infinitive). 'trachten' (to attempt, slightly formal) then governs 'te ontwikkelen' at the end — a future wrapped around a te-infinitive clause.

In 't algemeen reeds is het overbrengen van slechte tydingen iets onaangenaams, en 't schynt wel of er van den ongunstigen indruk dien ze veroorzaken, iets blyft kleven op wien de verdrietige taak te-beurt viel zulke tydingen meetedeelen.  
In general the conveying of bad tidings is already something unpleasant, and it seems indeed as if, of the unfavorable impression they cause, something remains clinging to the one to whose lot the dreary task of imparting such tidings has fallen.
> Relative 'wien' (dative who) + te beurt vallen: 'wien' is the old dative of wie ('the one to whom'). 'te-beurt viel' is the idiom te beurt vallen, 'to fall to someone's lot'. Together: 'something clings to the one to whose lot the task fell'.
> Impersonal 'het schijnt' + 'of': 't schynt wel of...' uses impersonal het ('it seems indeed as if'). The conjunction 'of' here means 'as if', opening a clause whose verb 'blyft' stands before the separable 'kleven' (to cling).

Wanneer nu dit alleen reeds voor sommigen een reden zou wezen om tegen beter weten aan, het bestaan van iets ongunstigs te ontkennen, hoeveel te meer dan wordt dit het geval wanneer men gevaar loopt, niet alleen zich de ongenade op den hals te halen die nu eenmaal 't lot schynt des overbrengers van slechte berichten, doch tevens als de oorzaak te worden aangezien van den ongunstigen toestand dien men plichtshalve openbaart.  
Now when this alone would already be reason enough for some, against their better knowledge, to deny the existence of something unfavorable, how much the more is this the case when one runs the danger not only of bringing upon one's own neck the disfavor that seems to be, once and for all, the lot of the bearer of bad reports, but also of being regarded as the cause of the unfavorable condition that one, in duty, discloses.
> Correlative 'hoeveel te meer' + V2: The fronted exclamatory phrase 'hoeveel te meer' ('how much the more') triggers verb-second: 'wordt dit'. It is the apodosis answering the preceding 'wanneer'-condition.
> Passive infinitive 'te worden aangezien': 'te worden aangezien' is a passive te-infinitive ('to be regarded as'), built on worden + the participle of the separable verb aanzien. It parallels 'zich ... te halen' earlier in the sentence.
> Genitive 'des overbrengers': 'des overbrengers' is a true genitive — old article 'des' plus the -s ending on a masculine noun — meaning 'of the bearer'. Modern Dutch would rephrase with 'van de overbrenger'.

De Regeering van Nederlandsch Indie schryft by-voorkeur aan haar meesters in 't moederland dat alles naar wensch gaat.  
The Government of the Dutch Indies writes by preference to its masters in the motherland that everything is going as one would wish.
> dat-clause with verb-final 'gaat': The report's content sits in a dat-clause: 'dat alles naar wensch gaat', where the present-tense verb 'gaat' falls to the end. 'naar wensch' ('as one wishes') is a fixed adverbial.

De residenten melden dit gaarne aan de Regeering.  
The residents gladly report this to the Government.

De adsistent-residenten, die zelf van hun kontroleurs byna niet dan gunstige berichten ontvangen, zenden ook op hun beurt liefst geen onaangename tydingen aan de residenten.  
The assistant residents, who themselves receive from their controllers hardly any but favorable reports, in their turn likewise send the residents no unpleasant tidings if they can help it.
> niet dan = 'nothing but': 'byna niet dan gunstige berichten' = 'hardly any but favorable reports'. The frame niet dan ('nothing but') recurs through the chapter as Multatuli's signature understatement.
> geen negates the indefinite noun: 'geen onaangename tydingen' uses geen (not + a/any) to negate an indefinite plural noun — 'no unpleasant tidings'. 'liefst' (most preferably) softens it to 'if they can help it'.

Hieruit wordt in de officieele en schriftelyke behandeling der zaken een gekunsteld optimismus geboren, in tegenspraak niet alleen met de waarheid, maar ook met de eigen meening van die optimisten zelf, zoodra zy dezelfde zaken mondeling behandelen, en--nog vreemder!--dikwyls zelfs in tegenspraak met hun eigen geschreven berichten.  
Out of this there is born, in the official and written handling of affairs, an artificial optimism, in contradiction not only with the truth, but also with the very opinion of those optimists themselves, as soon as they handle the same matters by word of mouth, and — stranger still! — often even in contradiction with their own written reports.
> worden-passive: 'wordt geboren': 'wordt ... geboren' is a process passive (worden + participle): 'is born'. The fronted 'Hieruit' ('out of this') forces V2 inversion of 'wordt'.
> Genitive 'der zaken': 'der zaken' = 'of the affairs', the feminine/plural genitive article 'der' replacing 'van de'. A case remnant kept routinely in formal 1860 Dutch.
> Subordinator 'zoodra' sends verb to end: 'zoodra' ('as soon as') opens a verb-final clause: subject 'zy', then objects, then the verb 'behandelen' last. The plural 'zy' (modern zij) is the literary spelling.

Ik zou veel voorbeelden kunnen aanhalen van rapporten die den gunstigen toestand van een residentie ten-hoogste verheffen, doch te-gelyker-tyd, vooral waar de cyfers spreken, zichzelf logenstraffen.  
I could cite many examples of reports that extol to the utmost the favorable condition of a residency, yet at the same time, above all where the figures speak, give themselves the lie.
> Conditional 'zou' + double infinitive: 'zou ... kunnen aanhalen' stacks the conditional zou over the modal kunnen over the main infinitive aanhalen — 'I could cite'. All three verbs cluster at the end of the main clause.
> Reflexive 'zichzelf' with logenstraffen: 'zichzelf logenstraffen' = 'give themselves the lie / belie themselves'. 'zich(zelf)' is the third-person reflexive; the emphatic -zelf stresses that the reports contradict their own selves.

Deze voorbeelden zouden, als niet de zaak om de eindelyke gevolgen te ernstig ware, aanleiding geven tot lach en spot, en men staat verbaasd over de naïveteit waarmee vaak in zoodanig geval de grofste onwaarheden worden staande gehouden en aangenomen, al biedt dan ook de schryver zelf weinig zinsneden verder de wapens aan waarmee die onwaarheden te bestryden zyn.  
These examples would, were the matter not too serious on account of its eventual consequences, give occasion for laughter and mockery, and one stands astonished at the naïveté with which, in such a case, the grossest untruths are often maintained and accepted, even though the writer himself, a few sentences further on, offers the very weapons by which those untruths are to be combated.
> Subjunctive 'ware' in an unreal condition: 'als ... ware' again uses the old subjunctive of zijn for a counterfactual: 'were the matter not too serious'. It pairs with the conditional main verb 'zouden ... geven'.
> worden-passive with two participles: A process passive whose subject 'de grofste onwaarheden' undergoes two actions: 'worden staande gehouden en aangenomen' (are maintained and accepted). 'staande houden' is the idiom 'to uphold / maintain'.
> Concessive 'al' + V2; separable aanbieden: 'al biedt' = 'even though [he] offers'; the concessive 'al' here keeps main-clause V2 order, putting the verb before the subject. The separable prefix 'aan' of aanbieden splits to the clause end ('biedt ... aan').

Ik zal me tot een enkel voorbeeld bepalen, dat ik met zeer velen zou kunnen vermeerderen.  
I shall confine myself to a single example, which I could multiply with very many.
> Reflexive zich bepalen tot: 'me ... bepalen tot' is the reflexive idiom zich bepalen tot, 'to confine oneself to'. In the first person the reflexive is 'me', not 'zich'.

Onder de stukken die voor me liggen, vind ik het jaarverslag van een residentie.  
Among the papers that lie before me, I find the annual report of a residency.
> Fronted phrase + V2 'vind ik': The whole prepositional phrase 'Onder de stukken die voor me liggen' fills the first position, so the finite verb 'vind' comes second and the subject 'ik' third — textbook verb-second inversion.

De resident roemt den handel die daar bloeit, en beweert dat in de geheele landstreek de grootste welvaart en bedryvigheid worden waargenomen.  
The resident praises the trade that flourishes there, and asserts that throughout the whole region the greatest prosperity and activity are to be observed.
> worden-passive: 'worden waargenomen': 'worden waargenomen' = 'are observed', a process passive with the participle of separable waarnemen. The plural subject ('welvaart en bedryvigheid') takes plural 'worden'.

Een weinig verder evenwel, sprekende over de geringe middelen die hem ten-dienste staan om sluikery te weren, wil hy terstond den onaangenamen indruk wegnemen, die op de Regeering zou worden te-weeg gebracht door de meening dat er dus in die residentie veel Inkomend-Recht wordt ontdoken. "Neen, zegt hy, dáárvoor behoeft men niet bezorgd te zyn!  
A little further on, however, speaking of the slender means at his disposal for checking smuggling, he wishes at once to remove the unfavorable impression that would be made upon the Government by the notion that, this being so, much Import Duty is being evaded in that residency. "No," he says, "on that score one need not be concerned!
> Future passive: 'zou worden ... gebracht': 'zou worden te-weeg gebracht' is a conditional passive (zou + worden + participle): 'would be brought about'. 'teweegbrengen' is a separable verb here written split.
> behoeven niet + te-infinitive: 'behoeft ... niet ... te zyn' = 'one need not be'. The semi-modal behoeven, almost always with a negation, governs a te-infinitive ('te zyn').

Er wordt in myn residentie weinig of niets ingevoerd ter-sluik, want ... er gaat in deze streken zóó weinig om, dat niemand hier zyn kapitaal in den handel wagen zou." Ik heb een dergelyk verslag gelezen dat aanving met de woorden: "in 't afgeloopen jaar is de rust rustig gebleven." Zulke zinsneden getuigen wel van een zeer rustige gerustheid op de inschikkelykheid van de Regeering voor ieder die haar onaangename tydingen spaart, of die, zooals de term luidt: "haar niet bemoeielykt" met verdrietige berichten!  
Little or nothing is brought into my residency by stealth, for ... so little business is done in these parts that no one here would risk his capital in trade." I have read a similar report that opened with the words: "in the past year the peace has remained peaceful." Such sentences bear witness indeed to a very restful restfulness, relying on the indulgence of the Government toward everyone who spares it unpleasant tidings, or who, as the term runs, "does not trouble it" with dreary reports!
> Impersonal worden-passive with 'er': 'Er wordt ... ingevoerd' is an impersonal passive: 'er' fills the slot, and the real point ('weinig of niets') is what is imported. The agentless construction is typical of bureaucratic prose Multatuli is mocking.
> Negative 'niemand' + conditional: 'niemand' ('no one') is the clause's single negative word, no double negation allowed. After 'dat' the verb cluster 'wagen zou' (would risk) goes to the end.
> 'de rust is rustig gebleven': Multatuli quotes a real report's tautology — 'the peace has remained peaceful' — to ridicule officialdom. The echoing of rust/rustig (and later rustige gerustheid) is a deliberate stylistic skewering of empty reassurance.

Waar de bevolking niet toeneemt, is dit toeteschryven aan onjuistheid der tellingen van vorige jaren.  
Where the population does not increase, this is to be ascribed to the inaccuracy of the censuses of former years.
> Fronted 'Waar'-clause + V2 'is': The subordinate 'Waar...'-clause (verb-final 'toeneemt') fills first position, so the main clause inverts to 'is dit'. 'toeteschryven' is toeschrijven (to ascribe) with 'te' embedded, 1860-style.

Waar de belastingen niet stygen, maakt men zich daarvan een verdienste: de bedoeling is, door lagen aanslag den landbouw aantemoedigen, die zich juist nu gaat ontwikkelen, en weldra--liefst als de berichtgever zal afgetreden zyn--onbegrypelyke vruchten moet afwerpen.  
Where the taxes do not rise, one makes a merit of it: the intention is, by low assessment, to encourage agriculture, which is just now beginning to develop, and which presently — preferably once the reporter shall have retired — must yield inconceivable fruits.
> Reflexive 'zich ... maken' + pronominal 'daarvan': 'zich ... een verdienste maken van' = 'to make a merit of'. The reflexive 'zich' and the pronominal adverb 'daarvan' (of it) both sit in the middle field; fronting 'Waar...' again drives V2 'maakt men'.
> Future perfect: 'zal afgetreden zyn': 'zal afgetreden zyn' is a future perfect (zullen + perfect infinitive with zijn): 'will have retired'. The separable aftreden forms its participle 'afgetreden'.

Waar onordelykheid heeft plaats gehad die niet verborgen blyven kon, was dit het werk van eenige weinige kwalykgezinden die voor 't vervolg niet meer te vreezen zyn daar er een algemeene tevredenheid heerscht.  
Where disorder has occurred that could not be kept hidden, this was the work of a few ill-disposed persons who are no longer to be feared for the future, since a general contentment prevails.
> plaatshebben + relative 'die': 'heeft plaats gehad' is the perfect of plaatshebben (to take place). The relative 'die' (for the de-word 'onordelykheid') opens a verb-final clause ending in the cluster 'blyven kon'.
> Causal 'daar' + verb-final: 'daar' ('since, because') is a formal/archaic causal subordinator that sends its verb to the end: 'heerscht' (prevails) closes the clause. 'er' is the existential filler.

Waar gebrek of hongersnood de bevolking heeft gedund, was dit een gevolg van misgewas, van droogte, regen of zoo-iets, nooit van wanbestuur.  
Where want or famine has thinned the population, this was a consequence of crop failure, of drought, rain, or some such thing, never of misgovernment.
> Fronted clause + V2; perfect 'heeft gedund': Same rhetorical scaffolding: a 'Waar...'-clause with perfect 'heeft gedund' (has thinned) at its end, then the main clause inverting to 'was dit'. The anaphoric 'Waar... was dit...' frames Multatuli's litany of excuses.
> Negative adverb 'nooit': 'nooit' ('never') is the clause's sole negative, capping the list: failures are blamed on weather, 'never on misgovernment'. The prefix wan- (mis-) makes wanbestuur the chapter's keyword.

De nota van Havelaars voorganger, waarin deze "het verloop van volk uit het distrikt Parang-Koedjang toeschreef aan verregaand misbruik" ligt voor my.  
The memorandum of Havelaar's predecessor, in which he "ascribed the exodus of people from the district of Parang-Koedjang to far-reaching abuse," lies before me.
> Relative 'waarin' + delayed main verb: 'waarin' ('in which') is a pronominal-adverb relative opening a long embedded clause; the main verb of the whole sentence, 'ligt' ('lies'), only arrives after it closes. 'deze' = 'he/the latter'.

Deze nota was in-officieel, en bevatte punten waarover die ambtenaar met den resident van Bantam te spreken had.  
This memorandum was unofficial, and contained points on which that official had to speak with the resident of Bantam.

Maar vergeefs zocht Havelaar in 't archief naar een blyk dat zyn voorganger diezelfde zaak ruiterlyk by den waren naam had genoemd in een openbare dienstmissive.  
But in vain did Havelaar search the archive for a sign that his predecessor had frankly called that same matter by its true name in an open official dispatch.
> Fronted 'vergeefs' forces V2: The adverb 'vergeefs' (in vain) opens the clause, so the past-tense verb 'zocht' precedes its subject 'Havelaar' — verb-second order driven by a non-subject first element.
> Pluperfect 'had genoemd': Inside the dat-clause, the pluperfect 'had genoemd' (had named) is the past behind Havelaar's searching. 'dienstmissive' is a compound (dienst + missive), an official dispatch.

Kortom, de officieele berichten van de beambten aan het Gouvernement, en dus ook de daarop gegronde rapporten aan de Regeering in 't moederland, zyn voor het grootste en belangrykste gedeelte: onwaar.  
In short, the official reports of the officers to the Governor's office, and thus also the reports founded on them to the Government in the motherland, are, for the greatest and most important part: untrue.
> Past participle 'gegronde' as adjective: 'gegronde' (founded, grounded) is a past participle used attributively before a plural noun, hence the -e ending. 'daarop' (on that) is a pronominal adverb modifying it.

Ik weet dat deze beschuldiging gewichtig is, doch houd die staande, en voel me volkomen in-staat haar met bewyzen te staven.  
I know that this charge is a weighty one, yet I maintain it, and feel myself fully able to support it with proofs.
> Separable staande houden + te-infinitive: 'houd ... staande' is the separable idiom staande houden (to maintain), prefix split to the end. Then 'in-staat ... te staven' uses an adjective governing a te-infinitive ('able to support it'). The reflexive 'me' belongs to voelen.

Wie verstoord mocht zyn over dit onbewimpeld uiten myner meening, bedenke hoeveel millioenen schats en hoeveel menschenlevens er zouden gespaard zyn aan Engeland, indien men dáár tydig de oogen der natie voor de ware toedracht der zaken in Britsch-Indie geopend had, en hoe groote dankbaarheid men zou schuldig geweest zyn aan den man die den moed had getoond de Jobsbode te wezen, voor het te laat ware geweest om 't verkeerde te herstellen op minder bloedige wyze dan nu wel noodzakelyk geworden was.  
Whoever may be vexed at this unveiled utterance of my opinion, let him consider how many millions of treasure and how many human lives would have been spared to England, had the eyes of the nation there been opened in time to the true state of affairs in British India, and how great a gratitude would have been owed to the man who had shown the courage to be the bearer of evil tidings, before it was too late to mend what was amiss by a less bloody means than has now indeed become necessary.
> Hortative subjunctive 'bedenke': 'bedenke' is a third-person subjunctive used as a solemn exhortation: 'let him consider'. The whole 'Wie...'-clause is its subject. This archaic mood (verb stem + -e) belongs to elevated literary register.
> Genitive 'schats': 'schats' is the genitive of schat (treasure): 'millions of treasure'. The bare inflected genitive without an article is a literary fossil; modern Dutch needs 'aan schatten' or 'van schat'.

Ik zeide, myn beschuldiging te kunnen staven.  
I said that I could support my charge.

Waar 't noodig is, zal ik aantoonen dat er vaak hongersnood heerschte in streken die geroemd werden als toonbeelden van welvaart, en dat meermalen een bevolking die als rustig en tevreden wordt opgegeven, op 't punt stond uittebersten in woede.  
Where it is needful, I shall show that famine often prevailed in regions that were praised as models of prosperity, and that more than once a population reported as quiet and content stood on the point of bursting out in fury.
> Passive in two tenses: werden / wordt: 'geroemd werden' is past process-passive ('were praised'); 'wordt opgegeven' is present process-passive ('is reported'). Both use worden, the regions and the population as undergoing subjects.
> op het punt staan + te-infinitive: 'op 't punt stond ... uittebersten' = 'stood on the point of bursting out'. The idiom op het punt staan governs a te-infinitive; 'uittebersten' is uitbarsten with embedded 'te'.

Het is myn voornemen niet deze bewyzen te leveren in dit boek, schoon ik vertrouw dat men 't niet uit de hand leggen zal zonder te gelooven dat ze bestaan.  
It is not my intention to furnish these proofs in this book, though I trust that no one will lay it from his hand without believing that they exist.
> Anticipatory 'het' + te-infinitive subject: 'Het is myn voornemen niet ... te leveren' — the 'het' anticipates the real subject, the te-clause 'deze bewyzen te leveren'. The negation 'niet' bites the whole intention ('it is not my intention').
> Concessive 'schoon' = 'although': 'schoon' is an archaic/literary concessive ('though, although'), sending its verb to the end of its clause. Modern Dutch uses hoewel or ofschoon.

Voor 't oogenblik bepaal ik me tot nog een enkel voorbeeld van het belachelyk optimisme waarvan ik gesproken heb, een voorbeeld dat door ieder, hy zy dan al of niet bekend met de zaken van Indie, gemakkelyk zal kunnen begrepen worden.  
For the moment I confine myself to one more single example of the ridiculous optimism of which I have spoken, an example that by everyone — whether or not he be acquainted with the affairs of the Indies — will easily be understood.
> Subjunctive 'zy' in concessive 'al of niet': 'hy zy dan al of niet bekend' = 'whether or not he be acquainted': 'zy' is the subjunctive of zijn, in a fixed concessive ('be it ... or not'). A solemn alternative to the plain 'of hij ... is'.
> Future + modal + passive infinitive: A four-verb cluster: 'zal kunnen begrepen worden' = 'will be able to be understood', stacking future zullen, modal kunnen, and the passive infinitive 'begrepen worden'. All pile at the clause end.

Ieder resident dient maandelyks een opgaaf in van de ryst die in zyn landschap is ingevoerd, of daaruit naar elders verzonden.  
Every resident submits a monthly return of the rice that has been imported into his district, or sent out from it to elsewhere.
> Separable verb 'indienen' split: 'dient ... in' is the separable verb indienen (to submit). The finite part 'dient' stands second; the prefix 'in' jumps to the clause end after the object 'een opgaaf' and the adverb 'maandelyks'.

By deze opgave wordt dat vervoer in twee deelen gesplitst, naarmate het zich bepaalt tot Java zelf of zich verder uitstrekt.  
In this return that transport is split into two parts, according as it is confined to Java itself or extends further afield.
> naarmate + reflexive verbs: 'naarmate' ('according as, in proportion as') is a subordinator sending verbs to the end. Both verbs are reflexive: 'zich bepalen tot' (confine itself to) and 'zich uitstrekken' (extend itself).

Wanneer men nu let op de hoeveelheid ryst welke volgens die opgaven is overgevoerd uit residentien op Java naar residentien op Java, zal men bevinden dat deze hoeveelheid vele duizende pikols meer bedraagt dan de ryst die, volgens dezelfde opgaven, in residentien op Java uit residentien op Java is ingevoerd.  
When one now attends to the quantity of rice which, according to those returns, has been carried over from residencies on Java to residencies on Java, one will find that this quantity amounts to many thousands of piculs more than the rice which, according to the same returns, has been imported into residencies on Java from residencies on Java.
> Formal relative 'welke': 'welke' is the heavier, formal relative pronoun (here for 'hoeveelheid'), favoured in period and bureaucratic prose where modern Dutch would simply use 'die'. The passive 'is overgevoerd' (has been carried over) closes its clause.
> pikol: A picul (Malay/Javanese pikul) is a traditional unit of weight, roughly 61.7 kg — 'as much as a man can carry'. Multatuli uses it because the rice returns were tallied in piculs.

Ik ga nu met stilzwygen voorby, wat men te denken hebbe van het doorzicht der Regeering die zulke opgaven aanneemt en publiceert, en wil den lezer alleen opmerkzaam maken op de strekking van deze valsheid.  
I now pass over in silence what one is to think of the perspicacity of the Government that accepts and publishes such returns, and will only draw the reader's attention to the bearing of this falsehood.
> Separable voorbijgaan + subjunctive 'hebbe': 'ga ... voorby' is separable voorbijgaan (to pass over). The embedded 'wat men te denken hebbe' uses the subjunctive 'hebbe' ('what one is to think'), a formal touch.
> iemand opmerkzaam maken op: The idiom 'iemand opmerkzaam maken op' = 'to draw someone's attention to'. 'den lezer' keeps the old accusative -n. The modal 'wil' (will, want) governs the bare infinitive 'maken' at clause-end.

De procentsgewyze belooning aan europesche en inlandsche beambten voor produkten die in Europa moeten verkocht worden, had den rystbouw zoodanig op den achtergrond gesteld, dat er in sommige streken een hongersnood geheerscht heeft, die niet voor de oogen der natie weggegoocheld worden kòn.  
The percentage reward paid to European and native officers for products that must be sold in Europe had so thrust the cultivation of rice into the background that in some regions a famine prevailed which could not be conjured away from the eyes of the nation.
> Pluperfect + result clause 'zoodat'/'dat': 'had ... gesteld' is the pluperfect ('had thrust'). 'zoodanig ... dat' frames a result clause; inside it the perfect 'geheerscht heeft' goes to the end, and 'worden ... kon' shows a modal over a passive.
> Modal over passive: 'worden kòn': 'weggegoocheld worden kòn' = 'could be conjured away', a passive infinitive (worden + participle of weggoochelen) under the modal kon. The grave accent on 'kòn' marks emphatic stress.

Ik heb reeds gezegd dat er toen voorschriften zyn gegeven, de zaken niet weder te laten komen tot zóó ver.  
I have said already that orders were then given not to let matters again come to such a pass.
> Passive 'zyn gegeven' + purpose te-clause: 'zyn gegeven' is a state/perfect passive ('were given'). The trailing 'de zaken niet ... te laten komen tot zóó ver' is a te-infinitive of content/purpose, with causative 'laten' governing the bare 'komen'.

Tot de vele uitvloeisels van deze voorschriften behoorden ook de door my genoemde opgaven van uit-en ingevoerde ryst, opdat de Regeering voortdurend het oog houden kon op de ebbe en den vloed van dat levensmiddel.  
Among the many offshoots of these orders were also the returns I have mentioned of rice exported and imported, so that the Government might keep its eye continually on the ebb and flow of that foodstuff.
> Fronted PP + V2; verb agrees with later subject: The prepositional phrase 'Tot de vele uitvloeisels...' opens the sentence, so the verb 'behoorden' inverts before its actual plural subject 'de ... opgaven' — V2 with a heavy fronted element.
> Purpose conjunction 'opdat': 'opdat' ('so that, in order that') opens a verb-final purpose clause: the cluster 'houden kon' lands at the end. It is the heavier, more formal cousin of 'om ... te'.

Uitvoer uit een residentie stelt welvaart voor, Invoer: betrekkelyk gebrek.  
Export from a residency represents prosperity; Import: a relative want.
> Separable verb 'voorstellen': 'stelt ... voor' is the separable verb voorstellen, here 'to represent / stand for'. The prefix 'voor' separates to the end: 'Export represents prosperity'.

Wanneer men nu die opgaven onderzoekt en vergelykt, blykt daaruit dat de ryst overal zóó overvloedig is, dat alle residentien tezamen meer ryst uitvoeren dan er in alle residentien tezamen wordt ingevoerd. Ik herhaal dat hier geen spraak is van uitvoer over zee, waarvan de opgaaf afzonderlyk plaats heeft.  
When one now examines and compares those returns, it appears from them that rice is everywhere so abundant that all the residencies together export more rice than is imported into all the residencies together. I repeat that there is here no question of export overseas, the return of which is kept separately.
> blijken + 'daaruit' + dat-clause: 'blykt daaruit dat...' = 'it appears from it that...'. 'daaruit' is a pronominal adverb (from it), and the dat-clause that follows is verb-final ('is' at the end).
> Relative 'waarvan' + plaatshebben: 'waarvan' (of which) relativizes back to the export. 'plaats heeft' is the verb plaatshebben (to take place); its noun part 'plaats' precedes the verb at the clause end.

De slotsom hiervan is dus de ongerymde stelling: dat er op Java meer ryst is dan er ryst is.  
The upshot of this is therefore the absurd proposition: that there is more rice on Java than there is rice.
> Comparative 'meer ... dan' with existential 'er': The absurd punchline turns on the comparative 'meer ... dan' ('more ... than') and two existential 'er ... is' clauses ('there is ... than there is'). Dutch uses 'dan' for 'than' after a comparative.

Dàt is toch welvaart!  
That, surely, is prosperity!

Ik zeide reeds dat de zucht om nooit andere dan goede berichten aan de Regeering meetedeelen, zou overgaan in 't belachelyke, als niet de gevolgen van dit alles zoo treurig waren.  
I said already that the urge to impart never any but good reports to the Government would pass over into the ridiculous, were not the consequences of all this so sorrowful.

Welke verbetering immers is er te hopen van veel verkeerds, als er een vooraf bepaald voornemen bestaat, in de berichten aan 't bestuur alles omtebuigen en te verdraaien?  
For what improvement of much that is amiss is to be hoped, when there exists a fixed and predetermined intention to bend and twist everything in the reports to the administration?

Wat is er by-voorbeeld te verwachten van een bevolking die, uit den aard zacht en gedwee, sedert jaren, jaren klaagt over onderdrukking, als zy den eenen resident vóór, den anderen nà ziet aftreden met verlof of met pensioen, of wegroepen tot een ander ambt, zonder dat er iets geschied is tot herstel der grieven waaronder ze gebukt gaat!  
What, for example, is to be expected of a population that, gentle and meek by nature, has for years upon years complained of oppression, when it sees one resident before, another after, retire on leave or pension, or be called away to another post, without anything having been done toward redress of the grievances under which it goes bowed!
> Existential 'er' + 'te verwachten': 'Wat is er ... te verwachten' = 'what is to be expected'. The 'er' supports the existential/impersonal frame; 'te verwachten' is a modal-passive te-infinitive ('to be expected').
> Perception verb zien + bare infinitive: 'ziet ... aftreden' = 'sees [them] retire': the perception verb zien takes a bare (te-less) infinitive. 'den eenen ... den anderen' shows paired old accusatives, 'one ... another'.
> Pronominal-adverb relative 'waaronder': 'waaronder' = 'under which', relativizing 'de grieven'. 'gebukt gaat' ('goes bowed') is the idiom gebukt gaan onder, to labour under a burden.

Moet niet de gebogen veer eindelyk terugspringen?  
Must not the bent spring at last fly back?
> Rhetorical 'Moet niet ...?' + separable terugspringen: A modal-fronted rhetorical question: 'Moet niet ... terugspringen?' ('Must not ... fly back?'). 'gebogen' is a past participle used adjectivally ('bent'); terugspringen is separable but stays whole here as the infinitive under the modal.

Moet niet de zoolang onderdrukte ontevredenheid--onderdrukt, opdat men zou kunnen voortgaan ze te loochenen!--eindelyk overslaan in woede, in wanhoop, in razerny?  
Must not the discontent so long suppressed — suppressed, that one might go on denying it! — at last break over into fury, into despair, into frenzy?
> opdat + conditional + voortgaan te-infinitive: 'opdat men zou kunnen voortgaan ... te loochenen' = 'so that one might go on denying it'. The purpose clause stacks zou + kunnen + voortgaan, then a further te-infinitive 'te loochenen' (to deny).
> Separable overslaan + tricolon: 'overslaan in' (to turn into, break over into) is separable; here it stays as the infinitive under 'Moet niet'. The tricolon 'in woede, in wanhoop, in razerny' builds Multatuli's rhetorical crescendo.

Ligt er niet een Jacquerie op 't eind van dezen weg?  
Does there not lie a Jacquerie at the end of this road?

En waar zullen dan de beambten zyn, die sedert jaren elkander opvolgden, zonder ooit op 't denkbeeld te zyn gekomen dat er iets hoogers bestaat dan de "gunst der Regeering?" Iets hoogers dan de "tevredenheid van den Gouverneur-generaal?" Waar zullen zy dan wezen, de flauwe-berichten- schryvers die de oogen van 't Bestuur door hun onwaarheden verblindden?  
And where will the officers then be, who for years succeeded one another without it ever once entering their minds that there exists something higher than the "favor of the Government?" Something higher than the "contentment of the Governor-General?" Where will they then be, the writers of feeble reports who blinded the eyes of the Administration with their untruths?
> Reciprocal 'elkander' + zonder ... te: 'elkander' is the reciprocal pronoun ('one another'), the literary form of elkaar. 'zonder ... te zyn gekomen' is a negative purpose-like te-clause with a perfect infinitive ('without ever having come to the idea').

Zullen dan zy die vroeger den moed misten om een kordaat woord op 't papier te stellen, te-wapen vliegen en de nederlandsche bezittingen behouden voor Nederland?  
Will those who formerly lacked the courage to set down a resolute word on paper then fly to arms and keep the Dutch possessions for the Netherlands?
> Future 'zullen' framing a rhetorical question: 'Zullen ... vliegen ... en behouden' is the explicit future opening a rhetorical question, with two infinitives at the end. 'zy' (modern zij) is the literary plural pronoun; the relative 'die' opens an embedded clause.

Zullen zy aan Nederland de schatten weergeven die er zullen noodig wezen tot demping van oproer, tot het voorkomen van omwenteling?  
Will they give back to the Netherlands the treasures that will be needed for the quelling of revolt, for the prevention of upheaval?
> Relative 'die' + future 'zullen ... wezen': 'die er zullen noodig wezen' = 'that will be needed', with future zullen + the archaic infinitive 'wezen' (= zijn). 'tot demping van oproer' = 'for the quelling of revolt', a nominalized purpose.

Zullen zy 't leven weergeven aan de duizenden die er vielen door hùn schuld?  
Will they give back life to the thousands who fell there through their fault?
> Stressed possessive 'hùn': 'hùn' carries a grave/stress accent to point the blame: 'through their fault'. 'hun' is the plural possessive; the accent foregrounds the officials' guilt rhetorically.

En die ambtenaren, die kontroleurs en residenten, zyn niet de meest schuldigen.  
And those officials, those controllers and residents, are not the most guilty.

Het is de Regeering zelf die, als geslagen met onbegrypelyke blindheid, het indienen van gunstige berichten aanmoedigt, uitlokt en beloont. Vooral is dit het geval, waar spraak is van onderdrukking der bevolking door inlandsche Hoofden.  
It is the Government itself that, as though struck with an inconceivable blindness, encourages, draws forth, and rewards the submitting of favorable reports. This is above all the case where there is question of oppression of the population by native Chiefs.
> Cleft 'Het is ... die': 'Het is de Regeering zelf die...' is a cleft for emphasis ('It is the Government itself that...'), throwing the relative 'die' clause's three verbs to the end. The dummy 'Het' opens the construction.
> Elliptical 'als geslagen' (= alsof ... geslagen): 'als geslagen' compresses 'als(of) [zij] geslagen [was]' — 'as though struck'. The past participle 'geslagen' (of slaan) stands alone in an elliptical comparison, a literary economy.

Door velen wordt dit beschermen van de Hoofden toegeschreven aan de onedele berekening dat zy, pracht en praal moetende ten-toon spreiden om op de bevolking den invloed uitteoefenen dien de Regering noodig heeft om háár gezag staande te houden, daartoe een veel hooger bezoldiging zouden moeten genieten dan thans 't geval is, wanneer men hun niet de vryheid liet het ontbrekende aantevullen door onwettige beschikking over de bezittingen en den arbeid van 't volk.  
By many this protection of the Chiefs is ascribed to the ignoble calculation that they, being obliged to display pomp and splendor in order to exert upon the population the influence the Government needs to keep its own authority standing, would for that purpose have to enjoy a far higher remuneration than is now the case, if one did not leave them the liberty of making up the shortfall by unlawful disposal over the possessions and the labor of the people.
> Present participle 'moetende' as adverbial: 'moetende ten-toon spreiden' is a present-participial clause ('being obliged to display'), the -end(e) form acting adverbially. The main clause then has the conditional + modal 'zouden ... moeten genieten'.
> om ... te + accusative relative 'dien': 'om ... uitteoefenen' is a purpose clause (om ... te + uitoefenen, written solid). 'dien' is the old masculine accusative relative ('which') referring to 'den invloed', both showing the frozen -n.

Hoe dit zy, de Regeering gaat niet dan noode over tot het toepassen der bepalingen die den Javaan tegen afpersing en roof heeten te beschermen.  
However this may be, the Government proceeds only reluctantly to the applying of the regulations that are supposed to protect the Javanese against extortion and robbery.
> Separable overgaan + 'niet dan noode': 'gaat ... over tot' is separable overgaan tot (to proceed to). 'niet dan noode' ('only reluctantly', lit. 'not but unwillingly') is the same niet dan frame seen throughout the chapter.
> heten + te-infinitive ('are supposed to'): 'heeten te beschermen' = 'are said / supposed to protect'. The verb heten ('to be called/reputed') governs a te-infinitive expressing reputed (and, Multatuli implies, false) purpose. 'den Javaan' keeps the accusative -n.

Meestal weet men in onbeoordeelbare en vaak uit de lucht gegrepen redenen van staatkunde, een oorzaak te vinden om dien Regent of dat Hoofd te sparen, en 't is dan ook in Indie een tot spreekwoord geykte meening dat het Gouvernement liever tien residenten zou ontslaan dan één Regent.  
For the most part one knows how to find, in unverifiable reasons of statecraft often plucked from the air, a cause for sparing this Regent or that Chief, and it is therefore in the Indies an opinion grown proverbial that the Government would sooner dismiss ten residents than one Regent.
> weten te + om ... te: 'weet ... te vinden' = 'knows how to find' (weten te + infinitive expresses ability). It is followed by a purpose clause 'om dien Regent of dat Hoofd te sparen'. 'dien' is the accusative-marked demonstrative.

Ook die voorgewende politieke redenen--als ze op iets gevestigd zyn--steunen gewoonlyk op valsche opgaven, daar ieder resident belang heeft by 't verheffen van den invloed zyner Regenten op de bevolking, om daarachter zich te verschuilen als er later eenmaal aanmerking mocht vallen op te groote inschikkelykheid omtrent die hoofden.  
Those pretended political reasons too — if they rest on anything at all — usually rest on false returns, since every resident has an interest in magnifying the influence of his Regents over the population, in order to shelter behind it should remarks later one day be made about too great an indulgence toward those chiefs.
> Causal 'daar' + om ... te + 'daarachter': 'daar' opens a causal clause (verb-final 'heeft'). 'om ... zich te verschuilen' is a reflexive purpose clause, and 'daarachter' ('behind it') a pronominal adverb fronted within it.

Ik ga nu de afschuwelyke huichelary voorby van de menschlievend- luidende bepalingen--en van de eeden!--die den Javaan tegen willekeur beschermen ... op 't papier, en verzoek den lezer zich te herinneren hoe Havelaar by 't naspreken van die eeden iets te kennen gaf dat denken deed aan minachting. Voor 't oogenblik wil ik alleen wyzen op het moeielyke van den toestand des mans die, geheel ànders dan uit kracht, eener uitgesproken formule, zich gebonden achtte aan zyn plicht.  
I now pass over the abominable hypocrisy of the humane-sounding regulations — and of the oaths! — that protect the Javanese against arbitrary power ... on paper, and I ask the reader to recall how Havelaar, in repeating those oaths, conveyed something that suggested contempt. For the moment I will only point to the difficulty of the position of the man who, quite otherwise than by virtue of a spoken formula, held himself bound to his duty.
> Reflexive 'zich herinneren' in a te-clause: 'zich herinneren' (to recall) is a reflexive verb; embedded as a te-infinitive its reflexive stays 'zich' because the subject ('den lezer', accusative -n) is third person. 'verzoek' = 'I ask/request'.
> Nominalized adjective + genitive 'des mans': 'het moeielyke' nominalizes the adjective ('the difficulty'). 'des mans' is a genitive (article des + -s on man), 'of the man', followed by a relative 'die' clause.

En voor hem was deze moeielykheid grooter nog dan ze voor sommige anderen zou geweest zyn, omdat zyn gemoed zacht was, geheel in tegenspraak met zyn doorzicht dat de lezer nu wel als vry scherp zal hebben leeren kennen.  
And for him this difficulty was greater still than it would have been for some others, because his temper was gentle, wholly at odds with that perspicacity which the reader will by now have come to know as fairly sharp.
> Comparative 'grooter ... dan' + conditional perfect: 'grooter nog dan' = 'greater still than' — comparative -er + dan. The compared clause uses the conditional perfect 'zou geweest zyn' ('would have been'). 'omdat' then gives the verb-final reason clause.

Hy had dus niet alleen te stryden met vrees voor menschen of met de zorg voor loopbaan en bevordering, noch ook alleen met de plichten die hy als echtgenoot en huisvader te vervullen had: hy moest een vyand overwinnen in zyn eigen hart.  
He had therefore not only to struggle with fear of men or with concern for career and advancement, nor even only with the duties he had to fulfill as husband and father of a household: he had to overcome an enemy in his own heart.
> hebben te + infinitive (obligation): 'had ... te stryden' = 'had to struggle' — hebben + te-infinitive expresses obligation/necessity. The correlative 'niet alleen ... noch ook alleen' ('not only ... nor even only') structures the build-up to the climactic 'hy moest een vyand overwinnen'.

Hy kon niet zonder lyden leed zien, en 't zou my te ver leiden als ik de voorbeelden wilde aanvoeren hoe hy immer, ook waar hy gekrenkt en beleedigd was, de party van een tegenstander beschermde tegen zichzelf.  
He could not see suffering without suffering himself, and it would carry me too far were I to cite the instances of how he always, even where he had been wronged and insulted, defended an opponent's cause against the opponent himself.
> Conditional 'zou' + 'als'-clause: 'zou my te ver leiden' ('would lead me too far') is the conditional, paired with an 'als'-clause whose modal 'wilde' + infinitive 'aanvoeren' go to the end. Dummy ''t' anticipates the situation.
> Reflexive 'zichzelf' as object: 'tegen zichzelf' = 'against himself': here 'zichzelf' refers to the opponent, the very person whose cause Havelaar defends against him. The emphatic -zelf sharpens the paradox.

Hy verhaalde aan Duclari en Verbrugge hoe hy in zyn jeugd iets aantrekkelyks had gevonden in het duel met den sabel, 't geen de waarheid was ... doch hy zeide er niet by hoe hy na 't wonden van zyn tegenparty gewoonlyk schreide, en zyn gewezen vyand als een liefdezuster verpleegde tot de genezing toe.  
He told Duclari and Verbrugge how in his youth he had found something appealing in the duel with the sabre — which was the truth — yet he did not add how, after wounding his adversary, he would commonly weep, and tend his former enemy like a sister of charity until the wound had healed.
> Weak past 'schreide'; participle 'gewezen': 'schreide' is the past of the weak verb schreien (to weep). 'gewezen' (former) is a fossilized past participle used adjectivally. Both belong to the elevated narrative register of the gentleness vignette.

Ik zou kunnen verhalen hoe hy te Natal den kettingganger die op hem geschoten had by zich nam, den man vriendelyk toesprak, hem voeden liet en vryheid gaf boven alle anderen, omdat hy meende te ontdekken dat de verbittering van dien veroordeelde 't gevolg was van een, elders geslagen, te streng vonnis. Gewoonlyk werd de zachtheid van zyn gemoed òf ontkend, òf belachelyk gevonden.  
I could relate how at Natal he took into his own keeping the chain-gang convict who had fired at him, spoke to the man kindly, had him fed, and granted him more freedom than all the others, because he believed he could perceive that this condemned man's bitterness was the consequence of too harsh a sentence passed elsewhere. Commonly the gentleness of his nature was either denied or thought ridiculous.
> Pluperfect 'geschoten had' + 'bij zich nemen': Inside the relative clause, the pluperfect 'geschoten had' (had shot) precedes the main verb 'nam'. 'by zich nam' = 'took into his own keeping', with reflexive 'zich'. 'den kettingganger' keeps the accusative -n.
> worden-passive + correlative 'òf ... òf': 'werd ... ontkend ... gevonden' is a past process-passive. 'òf ... òf' (either ... or, with stress accents) coordinates the two outcomes — denied or ridiculed.

Ontkend door wie zyn hart verwarde met zyn geest. Belachelyk gevonden door wie niet begrypen kon hoe een verstandig mensch zich moeite gaf om een vlieg te redden, die vastgeraakt was in het web eener spin.  
Denied by those who confused his heart with his mind. Thought ridiculous by those who could not grasp how a sensible man would take pains to rescue a fly that had got caught in the web of a spider.
> Headless relative 'wie' as 'those who': 'door wie ... verwarde' = 'by those who confused'. 'wie' without an antecedent means 'whoever / those who', and the clause is verb-final ('verwarde' at the end). The whole sentence is a verbless fragment hanging on the prior 'ontkend'.
> Genitive 'eener spin': 'eener spin' is the genitive of een spin ('of a spider'), with the old feminine genitive article 'eener'. 'vastgeraakt was' is a state passive/perfect with zijn ('had got caught').

Ontkend weder door ieder--buiten Tine--die hem daarna hoorde schimpen op die "domme dieren" en op de "domme natuur" die zulke dieren schiep. Maar nog een andere wyze bestond er om hem neertehalen van 't voetstuk waarop zyn omgeving--men mocht hem beminnen of niet--wel gedwongen was hem te plaatsen.  
Denied again by everyone — save Tine — who afterward heard him rail at those "stupid creatures" and at the "stupid nature" that made such creatures. But there was yet another way to bring him down from the pedestal upon which the people around him — whether they loved him or not — were obliged to set him.
> Existential 'er' + om ... te: 'bestond er ... om ... te halen' — 'er' supports the existential 'there existed', and 'om ... neertehalen' (om + neerhalen, written solid) is the purpose clause ('to bring him down'). Fronting 'nog een andere wyze' drives V2.
> Pronominal-adverb relative 'waarop': 'waarop' ('on which') relativizes 'het voetstuk' (the pedestal). 'gedwongen ... te plaatsen' = 'obliged to set', a participle governing a te-infinitive at the end.

"Ja, hy is geestig, maar ... er is vluchtigheid in zyn geest." Of: "hy is verstandig, maar ... hy gebruikt zyn verstand niet goed." Of: "ja, hy is goedhartig, maar ... hy koketteert er mee!"  
"Yes, he is witty, but ... there is a flightiness in his wit." Or: "he is sensible, but ... he does not use his good sense well." Or: "yes, he is kindhearted, but ... he makes a show of it!"

Voor zyn geest, voor zyn verstand, trek ik geen party.  
For his wit, for his good sense, I take no one's part.

Maar zyn hart?  
But his heart?

Arme spartelende vliegjes die hy redde als hy geheel alleen was, wilt gy dat hart verdedigen tegen de beschuldiging van koketterie?  
Poor struggling little flies that he rescued when he was entirely alone, will you defend that heart against the charge of affectation?
> Apostrophe with archaic 'gy' + diminutive plural: 'vliegjes' is the diminutive plural of vlieg (little flies); the diminutive -je also colours it with tenderness. Multatuli apostrophizes them with the literary 2nd-person 'gy' and its verb 'wilt' — addressing the rescued flies directly.

Maar ge zyt weggevlogen, en hebt u niet bekommerd om Havelaar, gy die niet weten kondet dat hy eenmaal behoefte hebben zou aan uw getuigenis!  
But you have flown away, and gave no thought to Havelaar, you who could not have known that he would one day have need of your testimony!
> Archaic 'ge' / 'u' with reflexive zich bekommeren: 'ge zyt ... en hebt u niet bekommerd' uses the 1860 literary 2nd-person ge with the perfect 'zyt weggevlogen' (zijn-perfect, motion verb) and reflexive 'u' for zich bekommeren ('to trouble oneself').
> Archaic 2nd-person past 'kondet': 'kondet' is the old 2nd-person singular past of kunnen, agreeing with 'gy' ('you could not know'). The dat-clause closes with 'behoefte hebben zou', the conditional cluster at the end.

Was 't koketterie van Havelaar, toen hy te Natal een hond--Sappho heette het dier--nasprong in de riviermonding, omdat hy vreesde dat het nog jonge dier niet goed genoeg zwemmen kon om de haaien te ontwyken die daar zoo menigvuldig zyn?  
Was it affectation in Havelaar when at Natal he leapt after a dog — the creature was called Sappho — into the mouth of the river, because he feared the still-young animal could not swim well enough to avoid the sharks that are so plentiful there?
> toen-clause with separable 'naspringen': The 'toen'-clause (verb-final) ends in 'nasprong', the past of separable naspringen (to leap after) — here the prefix and stem stay joined in the verb-final slot. 'het dier' is glossed mid-sentence as the dog's name.
> Stacked 'omdat' and 'dat' clauses: 'omdat' opens a causal verb-final clause ('because he feared'), which itself embeds a 'dat'-clause ending in the cluster 'zwemmen kon'. Two layers of subordination, both pushing their verbs right.

Ik vind zulk koketteeren met goedhartigheid moeielyker te gelooven dan de goedhartigheid zelf.  
I find such a show of kindheartedness harder to believe in than the kindheartedness itself.

Ik roep u op, u, de velen die Havelaar gekend hebt--wanneer ge niet verstyfd zyt door winterkou en dood ... als de geredde vliegen, of verdroogd door de hitte daarginds onder de linie!--ik roep u op om getuigenis te geven van zyn hart, gy allen die hem hebt gekend!  
I call upon you, you, the many who have known Havelaar — provided you are not stiffened by winter cold and dead ... like the rescued flies, or dried out by the heat over yonder beneath the equator! — I call upon you to bear witness to his heart, all of you who have known him!
> Separable oproepen + apostrophe to 'gy allen': 'roep ... op' is separable oproepen (to call upon, summon). The apostrophe 'gy allen die hem hebt gekend' addresses everyone who knew Havelaar, with the perfect 'hebt gekend' verb-final after the relative 'die'.
> zijn-passive 'verstyfd zyt' + archaic 'ge': 'verstyfd zyt' is a state passive (zijn + participle): 'are stiffened'. The 2nd-person literary 'ge' and the 'wanneer'-clause (verb-final) keep the elevated, apostrophic tone.

Thans vooral roep ik u op met vertrouwen, omdat ge niet meer noodig hebt te zoeken waar de koord moet worden ingehaakt om hem neertehalen van welke luttele hoogte ook.  
Now above all I call upon you with confidence, since you no longer need to search out where the cord must be hooked in to drag him down from whatever trifling height it may be.
> Nested passive in a causal clause: 'omdat' opens a verb-final causal clause; embedded in it, 'waar de koord moet worden ingehaakt' is a modal-over-passive ('where the cord must be hooked in') with the separable inhaken. The metaphor recurs from the 'pedestal' image.

Intusschen, hoe bont het schyne, zal ik hier plaats geven aan eenige regels van zyn hand, die zulke getuigenissen misschien overbodig maken.  
Meanwhile, however incongruous it may seem, I shall give space here to a few lines from his own hand, which perhaps make such testimonies unnecessary.
> Concessive subjunctive 'schyne': 'hoe bont het schyne' = 'however incongruous it may seem': 'schyne' is the subjunctive of schijnen in a concessive 'however ... it may be'. The dummy 'het' is impersonal. A markedly literary turn.
> Relative 'die' + 'overbodig maken': 'die ... overbodig maken' = 'which make [such testimonies] unnecessary'; the relative 'die' refers to the plural 'regels'. 'van zyn hand' = 'from his own hand', i.e. written by Havelaar himself — introducing the embedded poem.

Max was eens verre, verre weg van vrouw en kind.  
Max was once far, far away from wife and child.

Hy had haar in Indie moeten achterlaten, en bevond zich in Duitschland.  
He had been obliged to leave them behind in the Indies, and found himself in Germany.
> Pluperfect + modal + separable infinitive: 'had ... moeten achterlaten' = 'had been obliged to leave behind'. The modal moeten in a perfect appears as the infinitive (the 'IPP' / infinitivus-pro-participio effect), governing the separable infinitive 'achterlaten'.

Met de vlugheid die ik hem toeken, doch die ik niet in bescherming neem als men ze mocht willen aantasten, maakte hy zich meester van de taal des lands waar hy eenige maanden verkeerd had.  
With the quickness I credit to him — though I do not take it under my protection should anyone wish to attack it — he made himself master of the language of the country where he had spent a few months.
> zich meester maken van + genitive 'des lands': 'zich meester maken van' = 'to make oneself master of', a reflexive idiom. 'des lands' is the neuter genitive ('of the country', article des + -s on land), one more 1860 case remnant.

Ziehier die regels, die te-gelyker-tyd de innigheid schetsen van den band die hem aan de zynen hechtte.  
Here are those lines, which at the same time sketch the intimacy of the bond that attached him to his own.
> Possessive nominal 'de zynen': 'de zynen' = 'his own (people)', a substantivized possessive (zijn + -en) meaning his family. 'den band' keeps the old accusative -n; the relative 'die ... hechtte' is verb-final.

--Mein Kind, da schlägt die neunte Stunde, hör!  
— My child, there strikes the ninth hour, hark!

Der Nachtwind säuselt, und die Luft wird kühl, Zu kühl für dich vielleicht: dein Stirnchen glüht! Du hast den ganzen Tag so wild gespielt, Und bist wohl müde, komm, dein Tikar harret.  
The night wind whispers, and the air grows cool, too cool for you perhaps: your little brow is glowing! All day long you have played so wildly, and you must be tired — come, your bed awaits.

--Ach, Mutter, lass mich noch 'nen Augenblick! Es is so sanft zu ruhen hier... und dort, Da drin auf meiner Matte, schlaf' ich gleich, Und weiss nicht einmal was ich träume!  
— Ah, Mother, let me stay a little longer! It is so soft to rest here ... and over there, on my mat indoors, I fall asleep at once, and do not even know what I am dreaming!

Hier Kann ich doch gleich dir sagen was ich träume.  
Here I can tell you right away what I am dreaming.

Und fragen was mein Traum bedeutet... hör, Was war das?  
And ask what my dream means ... hark, what was that?

--'s War ein Klapper der da fiel. --Thut das dem Klapper weh?  
— It was a coconut that fell. — Does that hurt the coconut?

--Ich glaube nicht. Man sagt, die Frucht, der Stein, hat kein Gefühl.  
— I think not. They say the fruit, the nut, has no feeling.

--Doch eine Blume, fühlt die auch nicht?  
— But a flower, does it not feel either?

--Nein, Man sagt, sie fühle nicht. --Warum denn, Mutter, Als gestern ich die Pukul ampat brach Hast du gesagt: es thut der Blume weh?  
— No, they say it does not feel. — Then why, Mother, when yesterday I broke the pukul ampat, did you say: it hurts the flower?

--Mein Kind, die Pukul ampat war so schön Du zogst die zarten Blättchen roh entzwei, Das that mir für die arme Blume leid. Wenn gleich die Blume selbst es nicht gefühlt, Ich fühlt' es für die Blume, weil sie schön war.  
— My child, the pukul ampat was so lovely; you tore the tender little petals roughly in two, and that grieved me for the poor flower. Even though the flower itself felt nothing, I felt it for the flower, because it was lovely.

--Doch, Mutter, bist du auch schön?  
— But, Mother, are you lovely too?

--Nein, mein Kind, Ich glaube nicht.  
— No, my child, I think not.

--Allein du hast Gefühl?  
— But you have feeling?

--Ja, Menschen haben's... doch nicht allen gleich.  
— Yes, people have it ... though not all alike.

--Und kann dir etwas weh thun? Thut dir's weh, Wenn dir im Schooss so schwer mein Köpfchen ruht?  
— And can anything hurt you? Does it hurt you when my little head rests so heavily in your lap?

--Nein, das thut mir nicht weh!  
— No, that does not hurt me!

--Und, Mutter, ich... Hab' ich Gefühl?  
— And, Mother, do I ... do I have feeling?

--Gewis! Erinn're dich Wie du, gestrauchelt einst, an einem Stein Dein Händchen hast verwundet, und geweint.  
— Surely! Remember how you, having once stumbled against a stone, wounded your little hand, and wept.

Auch weintest du, als Saudien dir erzählte Dass auf den Hügeln dort, ein Schäflein tief In eine Schlucht hinunter fiel, und starb. Da hast du lang geweint... das war Gefühl.  
You wept too when Saudien told you that up on the hills yonder a little lamb fell deep down into a ravine, and died. You wept a long while then ... that was feeling.

--Doch, Mutter, ist Gefühl denn Schmerz? --Ja, oft!  
— But, Mother, is feeling then pain? — Yes, often!

Doch... immer nicht, bisweilen nicht! Du weisst, Wenn's Schwesterlein dir in die Haare greift, Und krähend dir 's Gesichtchen nahe drückt, Dann lachst du freudig, das ist auch Gefühl.  
But ... not always, sometimes not! You know, when your little sister grabs you by the hair, and crowing presses her little face close to yours, then you laugh for joy — that is feeling too.

--Und dann mein Schwesterlein... es weint so oft, Ist das vor Schmerz? Hat sie denn auch Gefühl?  
— And then my little sister ... she cries so often, is that from pain? Has she feeling too, then?

--Vielleicht, mein Kind, wir wissen's aber nicht, Weil sie, so klein, es noch nicht sagen kann.  
— Perhaps, my child, but we do not know it, because she, so small, cannot yet say so.

--Doch, Mutter... höre, was war das?  
— But, Mother ... hark, what was that?

--Ein Hirsch Der sich verspätet im Gebüsch, und jetzt Mit Eile heimwärts kehrt, und Ruhe sucht Bei andren Hirschen die ihm lieb sind.  
— A stag that lingered too long in the thicket, and now hurries homeward, and seeks rest among other stags that are dear to him.

--Mutter, Hat solch ein Hirsch ein Schwesterlein wie ich? Und eine Mutter auch?  
— Mother, has such a stag a little sister like me? And a mother too?

--Ich weiss nicht, Kind.  
— I do not know, child.

--Das würde traurig sein, wenn's nicht so wäre!  
— That would be sad, if it were not so!

Doch, Mutter, seh'... was schimmert dort im Strauch? Seh' wie es hüpft und tanzt... ist das ein Funk?  
But, Mother, look ... what is shimmering there in the bush? Look how it hops and dances ... is that a spark?

--'s Ist eine Feuerfliege.  
— It is a firefly.

--Darf ich 's fangen?  
— May I catch it?

--Du darfst es, doch das Flieglein ist so zart, Du wirst gewiss es weh thun, und sobald Du 's mit den Fingern all zu roh berührst, Ist 's Thierchen krank, und stirbt, und glänzt nicht mehr.  
— You may, but the little fly is so delicate, you will surely hurt it, and as soon as you touch it with your fingers all too roughly, the little creature falls ill, and dies, and shines no more.

--Das wäre Schade! Nein, ich fang' es nicht!  
— That would be a pity! No, I shall not catch it!

Seh', da verschwand es... nein, es kommt hierher...  
Look, there it vanished ... no, it is coming this way ...

Ich fang' es doch nicht! Wieder fliegt es fort, Und freut sich dass ich's nicht gefangen habe!  
I shall not catch it after all! Again it flies away, and is glad that I have not caught it!

Da fliegt es... hoch! Hoch, oben... was ist das, Sind das auch Feuerflieglein dort?  
There it flies ... high! High, up above ... what is that, are those also little fireflies up there?

--Das sind Die Sterne.  
— Those are the stars.

--Ein, und zehn, und tausend!  
— One, and ten, and a thousand!

Wieviel sind denn wohl da?  
How many are there, then?

--Ich weiss es nicht Der Sterne Zahl hat Niemand noch gezählt.  
— I do not know; the number of the stars no one has yet counted.

--Sag', Mutter, zählt auch Er die Sterne nicht?  
— Tell me, Mother, does He not count the stars either?

--Nein, liebes Kind, auch Er nicht.  
— No, dear child, not even He.

--Is das weit, Dort oben wo die Sterne sind?  
— Is it far, up there where the stars are?

--Sehr weit!  
— Very far!

--Doch haben diese Sterne auch Gefühl?  
— But do these stars have feeling too?

Und würden sie, wenn ich sie mit der Hand Berührte, gleich erkranken, und den Glanz Verlieren, wie das Flieglein?--Seh', noch schwebt es!  
And would they, if I touched them with my hand, fall ill at once, and lose their glow, like the little fly? — Look, it is still hovering!

Sag, würd' es auch den Sternen weh thun?  
Tell me, would it hurt the stars too?

--Nein, Weh thut's den Sternen nicht!  
— No, it does not hurt the stars!

Doch 's ist zu weit Für deine kleine Hand: du reichst so hoch nicht. --Kann Er die Sterne fangen mit der Hand?  
But it is too far for your little hand: you cannot reach so high. — Can He catch the stars with His hand?

--Auch Er nicht: das kann Niemand!  
— Not even He: no one can!

--Das ist Schade!  
— That is a pity!

Ich gäb so gern dir einen!  
I would so gladly give you one!

Wenn ich gross bin, Dann will ich so dich lieben das ich's kann. Das Kind schlief ein.  
When I am grown, then I will love you so that I can do it. The child fell asleep.

Ihm träumte von Gefühl, Von Sternen die es fasste mit der Hand....  
It dreamed of feeling, of stars that it grasped with its hand ....

Die Mutter schlief nog lange nicht!  
The mother did not sleep for a long while yet!

Doch träumte Auch sie, und dacht' an den der fern war...  
Yet she too dreamed, and thought of the one who was far away ...

Ja, op 't gevaar af van bont te schynen, heb ik aan die regels hier plaats gegeven.  
Yes, at the risk of seeming incongruous, I have given those lines a place here.
> te + infinitive after a fixed phrase: The set expression 'op gevaar af van … te' ('at the risk of …') governs a te-infinitive: 'te schynen' (period spelling of schijnen, 'to seem'). The risk is named by the infinitive clause that follows.
> Present perfect with the participle at the end: 'heb … gegeven' is the present perfect of geven: the auxiliary hebben is conjugated in second position and the past participle 'gegeven' is held to the very end of the clause. Note too the inversion 'heb ik' — the verb stays second even though the sentence opens with an adverbial.

Ik wensch geen gelegenheid te verzuimen om den man te doen kennen die de hoofdrol vervult in myn verhaal, opdat hy den lezer eenig belang inboezeme wanneer later donkere wolken zich samentrekken over zyn hoofd.  
I wish to let slip no opportunity to make known the man who plays the leading part in my story, so that he may inspire the reader with some interest when, later, dark clouds gather over his head.
> om … te (purpose) with causative doen: 'om … te kennen' frames a purpose clause ('in order to make known'), and inside it 'doen kennen' is a causative: doen + bare infinitive means 'to cause to know / make known' — an older, more literary equivalent of laten kennen.
> Relative die + case-remnant den: 'die' is the relative pronoun for a de-word (man), opening a verb-final relative clause ('die … vervult'). 'den man' shows the frozen accusative -n ending (den) still alive in 1860 prose where modern Dutch writes simply 'de man'.
> opdat + subjunctive of purpose: 'opdat' ('so that') opens a subordinate purpose clause whose verb goes to the end. 'inboezeme' is an archaic present subjunctive ('that he may inspire'); 'hy' is the period spelling of hij.
> Reflexive zich with a separable verb: 'zich samentrekken' is a reflexive verb ('to gather, draw together'): zich is the 3rd-person reflexive, and the separable prefix samen- would split off in a main clause but here, inside the wanneer-clause, the whole verb stands at the end.
---

Source text: public domain (Multatuli / Eduard Douwes Dekker, d. 1887; Dutch 1860, Project Gutenberg #11024). English translation: original, © 1732 Studios (2026); rendered freshly from the public-domain Dutch, not derived from any prior English translation. Sentence-aligned by 1732 Studios.