Pointing to the capital, Batavia (now Jakarta), Frank said, “That is where I want to start!”

Preaching in Java

In 1931, Frank Rice arrived in Jakarta, a large, bustling city on the island of Java. He rented a room near the center of the city and filled it with cartons of Bible literature, astonishing his landlady.

“At first I felt rather lost and homesick,” recalled Frank. “People strolled around in white drill suits and pith helmets, while I sweltered in my heavy Australian clothes. I spoke not a word of Dutch or Indonesian. After praying to Jehovah for guidance, I decided that there must be people in the business district who spoke English. That is where I started preaching​—and what a fruitful field it proved to be!”

Since most Jakarta residents spoke Dutch, Frank studied hard to get a working knowledge of the language and soon began preaching from house to house. He also tackled Indonesian and gradually learned that language too. “The problem was that I had no Indonesian literature,” said Frank. “Then Jehovah guided me to an Indonesian schoolteacher who became interested in the truth and agreed to translate the booklet Where Are the Dead? More booklets followed, and soon many Indonesian-speaking people became interested in the truth.”

In November 1931, two more pioneers from Australia arrived in Jakarta, Clem Deschamp, aged 25, and 19-year-old Bill Hunter. Clem and Bill had brought along a pioneer home on wheels​—a house car, or motorized caravan—​one of the first to arrive in Indonesia. After they learned a few Dutch phrases, they set off on a preaching tour covering the major cities in Java.