Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1901-11-16

III
earth. ] have just returned
Va from visit of exploration to
them, and my pen halts as try
10 describe them. / have seen the
Parthenou az Athens, the Forum Of old
Rome. the myriad ruins of India and
the pyramids Of Egypt but nowhere
anything like the remains OF the old
temples Of Java. They are scattered
over a vast territory. Some Of them
cover many acres and some are miles In
extent. The most wonderful of all lies
within few miles Of Djokjakarta. II
Is known as the Temple OF Boro Boe-
doer.
BuDDHA's GREATEST MONUMENT.
This temple is the greatest monument
ever erected to Bpddha II surpasses
the temples Of Slam and the giant
Buddhas Of Bangkok, II Is more Won
derful than the Japanese creations In
bronze and stone and larger than any
Buddhist monument In China. Some OF
you have seen the pyramids. The great
est OF them Ia that Of Ghizeh, which
covers thirteen acres and upon which
several hundred thousand men are said
TO have worked for twenty years. IL
that be SO the Temple of Bogo Boedoer
must represent the labor Of more than
half a million, II Is not quite so large
as the great pyramid, but the labor up
on II was Infinitely greater. have
climbed the pyramid OF Ghlzeh and
have explored It's interior by the light
OF magnesium wire. II is huge mass
OF stones laid UP In terraces in pyra-
mid shape. There is no decoration, no
carving-nothing but great blocks Of
stone.
THREE MILES OF CARVINGS.
This so-called Temple OF Boro Boe-
doer is also pyramidal, but II is one
mass OF carving and statues 1t Is built
upon a vast stone platform rising ter
race by terrace to gigantic cupola
more than 100 feet above the base. At
the bottom It Is 500 feet square and Il
covers, judge. from eight TO ten acres
OF ground. All the terraces are decor
ated with statues and their walls with
bas-reliefs OF wonderful carvings.
There are, II has been found by actual
measure, more than three miles Of
carved figures, some two or three feet
In height, some no larger than your
finger, and all as exqusltely cut as
though picked out with knife by some
patient Chinese. I counted In places
eight different figures In a space a yard
square, and such figures continue right
along around and around the terraces,
so that the length is about three miles.
Every figure must have taken weeks to
make. When II Is remembered that the
work IL that OF an artist you can see
that vest population must have been
engaged upon II. Altogether thousands
Of lives are bottled up In these carvings
the lives OF the past telling the story
OF their times TO the present. Some OF
the figures are wonderfully lifelile.
Every face has q different expression
and some smile and frown as though
alive.
LIFE IN JAVA 1000 YEARS AGO.
! can't give you the number OF statues
of Buddha. There are five hundred
large ones representing him In sit
ting posture In the different positions
he held when he prophesled, taught and
thought before he was translated to the
Nirvana. There are figures represent
ing the life Of the court and common
people Of this island thousand years
ago. ! went by miles OF elephants. pea
cocks and monkeys. / saw all the vege-
tables and fruits OF the tropics por-
trayed In stone. Stone peasants drove
stone buffaloes as they dragged stone
plows through the stone fields. There
were stone men carrying stone rice up"
on their shoulders, and stone women
bearing water Jars on their heads as
they did In the days OF the Scriptures.
There were dancing elephants and ele-
plants carrying fans and state UNI
brellas. The life Of the sea as well as
the land Is depicted upon the temple,
There are ships and boats In action,
and. indeed, all the figures and scenes
OF the life OF these people thousand
years ago.
A THOUSAND YEARS OLD.
Yes, I mean a thousand years agol
For II Is estimated that these ruins are
at least ten or twelve hundred years
old. The temples were constructed
when Buddhism was at its height on
this island. This beautiful carving was
done when our ancestors In the wilds
OF England and Germany were eating
with their fingers, living In huts and
sleeping on skins and at least six hun
dred years before America was discov-
cred and that many years before the
people Of Europe knew that Java exist
ed.
But why did the temples rot fail TO