THE OLD PLAYERS IN HOLLAND. By the magus of Denver.

  There were good times for me in Holland, while living on this small country on the Southern Sea. A small country with bicycles, wooden shoes and friendly people. Outside the world of pentjac silat that came in the later years after me, had known some fantastic old djagoes or champion poekoelan players who really knew their stuff. I remember mr van Tongeren, Anton Geesink  were then the martial greats in Judo. Everything was then plain and simple. The best remembered by me for being the most practical, most quiet and most humble poekoelan experts were still uncle John de Vries, (uncle Ventje came later with many others), paatje Baron, Mr Croque, Max Lentze, my father in law, Carl Deerns, Loa, Johnny Kahin, inclusively also mr Edgar van der Groen, (before anyone in Mexico or America knew him), Otten, and a few others. Otten was good with his Shantung  kun tao, and also mr de Groen and not van der Groen was a brilliant Southern Chinese kun tao expert.. These men were very humble and quiet and hardly mentioned their skills, and could only be seen through their actions.
  There were others, and in the freedom of my own clarification were individuals like Frits Vermaesen and a few others were actually big jungle book story tellers about their fighting others and always winning their matches just like the guy, the Dutch Indo from New Guinea who always was combating somebody and was getting suffering bodily heat temperatures for not fighting. Spent a lot of times in bars for the hunt.  In Los Angeles was this Boyish character  a real charm when he fought my friend Karels who kicked his ass. The one who thought could figth the most screamed the hardest for wanting to sue my friend Karels for beating him up. Vermaesen was always with the brothers Hoopers in Slotermeer, and was telling his stories on street corners, when I met him and introduced to him by Eddy Hooper who told me that the man I met could beat any other player in the Dutch Indo community. ( For sure as I knew better could only smile at the bad jungle book story being told to me).  The fighting skills of Vermaesen was just as good as many others in the Dutch Indo community. I write this commentary not by underrating or underestimating their poekoelan capabilities but need to gear my direction for writing to a different direction for the outcome. Without the truth will be left to desire a story that came through a world of illusion.
  I saw the Setia Hati from Tjangkring, near Situbondo where the art came from, and also saw Vermaesen was not a fulfillment. Because I do practice pentjac silat Tjangkring with influences of Pencak silat Pamur from Madura. Then Remrev claimed Setia hati first as non to boot was better off to practice his tjambur adoek for a put together system as kempoish or karate related with some principalities of silat. Let be fair to the real system in silat. I found guru Terpijn the very best of Setia Hati players in Holland, from the recollection in  stories by others.  I saw many others better to be remembered that they were the real deal as far as my memory could be serving me. I am not perfect by any means but could express myself in the spirit of any system I practice from also reliable teachers. Why lie about a background --I had assembled my craft by putting together the many things of systems and created my own art. But the forms and jurus and langkas remain a testimony for my old kun tao and old school silat.
  Nothing against all those false claimers, only their bad jungle book stories led me to write my commentaries. Something that Pekir like to write after me, and make his evaluation with his commentary. In what he writes is just like the tower of Pizza. I red most of his articles gave me always  a happy grim for no reprisal that anyone is entitled to have his own desired opinion and more power to them. Mud throwing goes always fort and back. It is just my game to prosper to find my peace in happiness. An old man and his keyboard.
  Don't hate my family or students but just me for my freedom of speech in writing.  I am entitled to my freedom in speech and in writing. I am old enough to be the old styled kun tao or silat player. They may hate me in Holland but I am respected all over the planet. I have great and good relationship with the gurus from East and Central Java. West Java is my tabu to remember.
  A spoken word in verbal expression is silver, and a written word is mostly a golden platter. I make that up from the original elite.
Hallelujah had expressed myself again to gain more enemies in a foreign land.

By the Magus of Denver, and founding father of kun tao silat Serak de Thouars.