BONI (

See also:

• BONE (a word common in various forms to Teutonic languages, in many of which it is confined to the shank of the leg, as in the German Bein)
• BONE, HENRY (1755-1834)

Bone)  , a vassal state of the government of Celebes, Dutch East Indies, in the south-west peninsula of Celebes, on the Gulf of Boni . Area, 2600 sq. m . It produces rice, tobacco, coffee, cotton and sugar-cane, none of them important as ex-ports . The breeds of buffaloes and horses in this state are highly esteemed . The chief town, Boni, lies 8o m . N.E. of Macassar, and 2+ M. from the east coast of the peninsula . The native race of Bugis (q.v.), whose number within this area is about 70,000, is one of the most interesting in the whole archipelago . Boni was once the most powerful state of Celebes, all the other princes being regarded as vassals of its ruler, but its history is not known in detail . In 1666 the rajah Palakkah', whose father and grandfather had been murdered by the family of Hassan, the tyrant of Sumatra, made common cause with the Dutch against that despot . From that date till the beginning of the 19th century Dutch influence in the state remained undisputed . In 1814, however, Boni fell into the hands of the British, who retained it for two years; but by the European treaties concluded on the downfall of Napoleon it reverted to its original colonizers . Their influence, however, was resisted more than once by the natives .

An expedition in 1825, under

General van Geen, was not fully successful in enforcing it; and in 1858 and the following year two expeditions were necessary to oppose an attempt by the princess regent towards independence . In 1860 a new prince, owning allegiance to the Dufh, was set up . As in other native states in Celebes, succession to the throne in the female line has precedence over the male line . For the wars in Boni, see Perelaer, De Bonische expedition, 1859-r86o (Leiden, 1872) ; and Meyers, in the Militaire Spectator (188o) .