But the progress of Islam in the west of Java seems to have been much slower than in the east; a long struggle ensued between the worshippers of Siva and the followers of the Prophet, and it was probably not until the middle of the sixteenth century that the Hindu kingdom of Pajajaran, which at one period of the history of Java seems to have exercised suzerainty over the princedoms in the western part of the island, came to an end, [1248] while other smaller heathen communities survived to a much later period, [1249]—some even to the present day. The history of one of these—the so-called Baduwis—is of especial interest; they are the descendants of the adherents of the old religion, who after the fall of Pajajaran fled into the woods and the recesses of the mountains, where they might uninterruptedly carry out the observances of their ancestral faith. In later times, when they submitted to the rule of the Musalman Sultan of Bantam, they were allowed to continue in the exercise of their religion, on condition that no increase should be allowed in the numbers of those who professed this idolatrous faith; [1250] and strange to say, they still observe this custom, although the Dutch rule has been so long established in Java and sets them free from the necessity of obedience to this ancient agreement. They strictly limit their number to forty households, and when the community increases beyond this limit, one family or more has to leave this inner circle and settle among the Muhammadan population in one of the surrounding villages. [1251] But, though the work of conversion in the west of Java proceeded more slowly than in the other parts of the island, yet, owing largely to the fact that Hinduism had not taken such deep root among the people here as in the centre of the island, the victory of Islam over the heathen worship which it supplanted was more complete than in the districts which came more immediately under the rule of the Rajas of Majapahit. The Muhammadan law is here a living force and the civilisation brought into the country from Arabia has interwoven itself with the government and the life of the people; and it has been remarked that at the present day the Muhammadans of the west of Java, who study their religion at all or have performed the pilgrimage to Mecca, form as a rule the most intelligent and prosperous part of the population. [1252]