lent club-house overlooks the outer harbour, which
is a fine natural anchorage sheltered from the pre-
vailing winds, and facing the China Sea, and full of
ceaseless activity, cargo boats going backwards and
forwards, a perfect fleet of steamers trading with
every part of the world, embarking and discharg-
ing goods, and a constant succession of small boats,
carrying passengers, plying to and fro. Chinese
junks with their great brown sails, and sailing craft
of every description, which trade between the
numerous small and thriving villages dotted round
the shores of the many surrounding islands, are
busy going and coming, or anchored in the distance
off the beach, where the native quarter of the town
reaches down to the sea. Singapore is a city of
considerable size ; one portion of it is taken up by
the European and business community, another
by the Chinese traders and retail dealers ; Tamils,
Javanese, and Malays occupy other portions, and
the rest of the town is composed of a polyglot
collection of inhabitants with more than a pro-
portionate number of Chinese, as the shopkeeping
and local trade of the country is principally carried
on by them. At night they are still to be seen
hard at work when others' shops are closed, for
4 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
they are strenuous and indefatigable when toiling
for their own gain.
The lower classes of Chinese live closely crowded
together, earning a livelihood by many forms of
manual labour, and the celerity with which ships
coal in the harbour is due to their work, for they
follow one another in quick succession, a seemingly
endless chain of men carrying baskets full of coal
on their backs from the sheds to the ships, and
returning with them empty in their hands for fresh
loads. As a community they are hardworking and
generally law-abiding, but should any rule or
regulation be issued by the Government which
is not to their liking, they become riotous and
violent, making the occasion an excuse to satisfy
their innate love of a row, to insult Europeans, and
do a little looting on their own account. Those
who take part in these tumults possess no houses
or wives, have deposited their earnings in safe
keeping, and have nothing to deter them from
joining in the fun and fray, knowing that at most
a broken head, which they do not mind, or a term
of imprisonment in jail, where they have better
food and are more comfortable than they are out-
side, is all that usually falls to their lot if they get
within reach of the police, as directly severe
measures for repression are taken these disturb-
ances quickly cease. The better class of Chinese
usually have nothing to do with these outbreaks,
for there is an excellent and salutary law that
provides for the deportation of any person not
a natural-born subject of Her Majesty, who at any
time may be proved to be associated with secret
SUBURBAN RESIDENCES OF MERCHANTS. 5
societies dangerous to the peace, or to be an
instigator or participator in any riots or disturb-
ances ; so that those who have anything to lose
think twice before intriguing and running the risk
of being sent out of the country. They are
hospitable and friendly, pressing their visitors to
drink brandy and champagne instead of the
ubiquitous tea. They are fond of reiterating
emphatic expressions of their own opinions, and
this appears to be their most popular form of
argument. Many of them speak English, but
Malay is the universal language of this part of
the world, and forms the medium of conversation
between the different races. The only master they
recognize is superior force, and our system of
administering justice is so different to what they
have been accustomed to, that they are filled with
delight to think that so long as they keep within
the law, no one else can interfere with them,
and this subject forms an oft-recurring source of
conversation. They are fond of their children,
and liberal in subscribing to local sports and
amusements.
The suburban residences of the merchants are
situate at some little distance from the town, and
are good substantial houses, each one built on a
portion of the many small hills which are so
numerous on the island of Singapore. They stand
sequestered in their own grounds amongst beautiful
and shady trees and well-kept lawns, forming a
pleasing and home-like prospect ; and it is to these
comfortable and attractive dwelling-places, with
their cool, lofty rooms, that the merchant returns
6 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
in the evening after his day s work is done, driving
thereto along a smooth and well-watered road,
passing beneath an avenue of trees which makes
the way agreeable and shady even on the hottest
days.
Singapore is now the principal town of the
Malay Peninsula ; its early history is somewhat
obscure, but the island is supposed to have been
devastated by the Javanese about 1252, and to
have remained almost uninhabited after that time,
until it was taken possession of by Sir Stamford
Raffles in 18 19, by virtue of a treaty with the
Johore princes, when the present city was founded.
Desirous of visiting the neighbouring state of
Johore, I drove across the island till I reached
the straits of that name, at a place situated
opposite to the present palace of the Sultan,
which can be distinctly seen across the water.
On the way I passed many dead nutmeg trees,
all that now remained to indicate that a flourishing
plantation had previously covered the hillside, for
disease and blight had completely killed the trees,
and destroyed the industry.
In former times the passage through the Straits
of Johore was both tedious and dangerous for
sailing ships. The narrow fairway allows but little
room for tacking ; the breezes are most fitful ; and
the ships, either drifting helplessly with the current,
or anchored, waiting for a change of tide or wind,
afforded a tempting prey to the piratical inhabitants
who lived along the coast and lay in hiding amongst
the numerous creeks, from which they would sud-
denly row out in their long, swift prahtis, and
SPIRIT AND OPIUM FARMERS. 7
appear at the side of the ill-fated ship almost as
soon as an alarm could be given. Then ensued
a fierce struggle, ending in certain death to those
attacked if overcome.
As the boat which I had arranged should meet
me had not as yet arrived, I awaited it at the
police station, which, like many others, consisted
merely of a couple of rooms — one on each side, an
open space in the middle, at the far end of which
was the lock-up, somewhat resembling a cage with
wooden bars in front placed close together, so that
the prisoner could not squeeze through whilst wait-
ing to be taken in to headquarters ; a verandah
with a table and a couple of chairs, a stand of arms
and cutlasses, and a sentry walking up and down,
completed the picture. When not on duty, the
sergeant, or corporal in charge, and his few men
occupy quarters close by, where each married man
is apportioned a good-sized room. Their duties
are not severe ; smuggling troubles them but little,
as the port and island of Singapore is free to all
goods excepting spirits and opium, for each of
which there is what is locally termed a farm. This
means that they are let during a term of years to
a Chinaman, or syndicate of Chinese, who for a
stipulated monthly payment are allowed under
certain conditions to have the entire control of the
collection of the duty on these articles, and receive
every assistance on the part of the Government to
enable them to carry on the business.
The spirit farmer collects the duty on all im-
ported spirits, no shopkeeper being able to dispose
of a bottle without giving to the purchaser a pass
8 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
to show that the duty has been paid. He also
manufactures a native spirit called samshu, made
from rice, not only intoxicating, but, like absinthe,
peculiarly mischievous in its permanent effects.
The opium farmer has the sole right of cooking
opium, that is, preparing it for smoking — a rather
peculiar process. The opium is moistened, boiled,
and stirred, then mixed with water, the solution
being evaporated until of the consistency of a thin
treacly extract, known locally as chandu, which the
farmer retails at a certain fixed rate, much higher
than its intrinsic value. Half the revenue of the
colony comes from these two farms, and the profits
of the farmer would be seriously interfered with
were there much smuggling or illicit manufacture,
so he employs a large number of detectives who
are constantly on the look-out.
When the time approaches for these farms to be
renewed the excitement is intense, and the com-
petition between the different sects of Chinese most
keen ; and deservedly so, for the possession of them
gives to the successful competitors an all-pervading
influence for a term of years. Upon their good
faith in great measure depend the strength and
quality of the spirit, and the purity of the pre-
pared opium. Their detectives search and examine
their countrymen on arrival, thrusting their hands
into the pockets of their clothes, and ransacking
their baggage.
This system of chandu farming is not confined
to the island of Singapore, but extends to the coast
districts of the native states, where an attempt to
introduce it into the mining districts of the interior
SAILING AND ROWING IN MALAY BOAT. 9
provoked such serious riots and discontent that the
endeavour had to be abandoned, and the duty is
now collected upon the unprepared opium as it
arrives, leaving its preparation to the smokers
themselves.
The whole principle of farming revenues is per-
nicious in the extreme, and unbefitting a strong
and stable government ; for in times of prosperity
the opium farmer makes large profits, but when
the reverse occurs the loss ultimately falls upon
the Government, as the farmer fails to pay the
instalments when due, necessitating the cancelling
of his contract and realization of his pledges.
Eastern races have but small appreciation of
punctuality; but at last all was ready, and I em-
barked on a long, shallow boat, crank and narrow,
with only about six inches of freeboard. The crew
consisted of five Malays, the helmsman, a fine,
strongly - built, powerful - looking man, pleasant-
mannered, decided and energetic, a worthy de-
scendant of the pirates of former times ; he was
an amusing companion, an excellent sailor, and
we made many expeditions together. Some years
afterwards he was tried and acquitted of the charge
of murdering a Chinese trader ; not the only victim
by any means, if report can be credited. His
method in each case was supposed to be very
similar. He ingratiated himself into the confidences
of some unsuspecting Chinese trader, and having
persuaded him of the profits to be obtained, they
would start together in a boat for some of the
numerous islets and creeks along the coasts. The
Chinaman who brought the money to pay for his
lo CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
purchases was never heard of again, and the Malay
returned to his home with the story that his
Chinese companion had travelled on to some
neighbouring village.
The fact of each side of these waters being
under different jurisdiction made the suppression
of such crimes difficult, especially so in the case
of a Chinese life, which was not regarded of much
value by the Malays, who naturally did their best
to screen their countrymen and co-religionists.
As there was a favourable breeze we hoisted
sail, and in order to keep the boat upright and
in trim as she scudded along, ropes were fastened
to the mast, having loops on the lower end in
which -some members of the crew sat, with their
feet on the gunwale, and at every stronger puff
of wind they would push themselves out from
the boat with their toes, craning their bodies over
the water, and with their weight counteracting
each gust and preventing the boat from turning
turtle. The number of men hanging out depended
on the strength of the wind, a one, or two, or more
man breeze, as it is termed.
Crossing the straits and coasting along the
opposite shore, we enjoyed a most exhilarating
sail, when, suddenly turning into a narrow creek,
invisible from a distance, we found ourselves in
a perfect calm, so thick Were the mangrove trees
on either side. The sail was hauled down, and
the boatmen made ready to row. A round piece
of twisted rattan, which in this country serves for
rope and string, placed over a wooden peg stuck
into the side of the boat, was the primitive arrange-
PEPPER GARDEN. ii
ment that took the place of rowlocks. The oar
blades, which were not so large as those of a
small scull, were nailed, and tied with rattan, on
to straight poles not much thicker than broomsticks,
and the handles being passed through the rattan
rings the rowers dip these rude oars into the water,
and at the end of each stroke they give a mild
sort of jerk, which is sufficient to cause the light
craft to glide over the water, although so little
power is applied. After a short row up the creek,
which gradually became narrower and narrower,
until the bushes on either side touched the oars,
we reached a roughly constructed landing-stage,
to which was fastened a primitive ladder, and
climbing up it we found ourselves in a pepper
garden, with its gambier^j>lantation adjoining, both
cultivations being at the time very profitable occu-
pations, and much pursued in the state of Johore,
being owned and worked by Chinese. These
pepper gardens, although small in size, are
expensive to open and keep in a proper state
of cultivation, and it is necessary to have adjacent
a considerable reserve of jungle, where burnt earth
can be made, for it is the principal manure used,
and has a great effect on the health and productive-
ness of the vines.
When a Chinaman is desirous of making a
pepper garden, the first thing he does is to engage
Malays to fell and burn the jungle and build a house,
the sides and roof of which are covered with attap
leaves, cut from that most useful palm, nipa fruti-
cans. He then procures Sinkehs; these are Chinese
who, wishing to leave their country and seek work
T
y
I
I
I
12 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
elsewhere, are collected and brought to Singapore
by some broker, who keeps them in his house until
a purchaser arrives, and buys them of him for
a certain sum per head. These coolies are then
taken to the Chinese protectorate, where they sign
articles to work at fixed rates of pay during the
period of their indenture, at the expiration of
which they are free to go where they choose.
Pepper cuttings are next purchased, but are
often difficult to procure, as the best kinds are
obtainable only when the young vines have to be
cut back. After being struck, they are planted
against posts, to which they are tied, and up
which they climb, and ultimately cover. The
vines are perennial, with leaves of a somewhat
hard, dark green colour ; and a person walking
through the garden seems to be in the midst of
a forest of posts encircled with vines of a uniform
cylindrical shape, with short lateral branches grow-
ing outwards, from which clusters of green pepper-
corns hang down in small bunches, speckled and
brightened here and there by a few reddening ones
riper than the rest, showing that the time for
harvesting has arrived, as the vines are injured
by allowing the berries to ripen on them, which
therefore are gathered when full grown, but before
being thoroughly mature, so that they may not
lose their pungency, or shed and fall to the
ground.
If black pepper is made, the berries are detached
from the stem and sun-dried on mats. Should
white pepper be required, the bunches are allowed
to ripen by keeping them some days in the house
GAMBIER PLANTATION. 13
after gathering ; the stalks and pulp are then
removed, and the white seeds dried.
The Chinese overseer conducted me over the
plantation, and passing through a belt of forest
we suddenly emerged into an adjacent gambier
plantation, which appeared to be in the last stage
of productiveness, for the bushes were bare and
straggling, with only a few leaves remaining at the
end of their branches. This cultivation rapidly
exhausts the soil, and as but little care is taken
of the trees, whose younger shoots are being
continually cut, no wonder that in a few years'
time the bush itself becomes choked and dies.
Coolies were carrying bundles of gambier sticks
to the shed, where the leaves and the young shoots
are put into a large shallow pan with water, a
fire being lighted underneath ; and, after sufficient
boiling, the leaves are taken out and drained, so
that none of the liquor shall be lost. When
sufficiently evaporated, the liquid is stirred up
and down with a piece of soft wood until it
thickens, the whole becoming a mass resembling
soft, yellowish clay, which is then placed in shallow
trays, and when somewhat hardened cut into cubes,
dried in the shade, and sold under the name of
gambier, being used for tanning and dyeing. The
boiled leaves are not wasted, but serve as a top
dressing for the roots of the pepper vines.
On returning to the house, some tea was at once
poured out into small, round, handless cups ; for
on the table of every Chinese dwelling a tea-pot
invariably stands ready for use, containing a weak
fluid with just a flavour of tea, which passers-by
14 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
are constantly pouring out and taking a sip of.
Along two sides of the house was a wide bench
raised some two feet from the ground, and made
with sticks, covered with pieces of bark stripped
from large trees. This was divided into cubicle
partitions by large blue mosquito nets hanging
down, suspended from cords overhead. Each
coolie occupied one of these, in which he rested
after work, and slept. A long - drawn, gulping,
rasping, snorting sound proceeding from inside a
net, together with the peculiar sickly odour, made
it evident that some opium smoker was within.
The opium smoker lies at full length with his
head resting on a log, hollowed out to fit the back
of his neck, and square underneath, so as to remain
firmly fixed and not roll about. A little tray holds
the necessary paraphernalia, which consists of a
curiously shaped pipe with a large, hollow, closed-
in bowl, having only a small aperture, a needle, a
little pot of prepared opium, and an oil lamp over
which there is a glass globe, or shade, with an
opening at the top, so as to protect the flame from
draughts and enable it to burn steadily.
The smoker turns towards the tray, takes up
his pipe, sees that the tiny hole is clear, places a
little pill of the treacly drug upon a needle, and
rests it exactly over the central hole of the pipe
bowl ; he then warms the charge, and works at it
with his needle until a small orifice remains ; then
holding it over the flame he ignites the opium, and
sticking his needle into the burning mass two or
three times to keep the passage into the pipe
clear, he draws the vapour into his chest with the
THE OPIUM SMOKER. . 15
gurgling sound that attracted my attention -S^Js
slowly exhaling the smoke he closes his eyes, and
appears to be in the calm, placid enjoyment of
some phantasm of the brain, which leaves his
body in a listless, inanimate trance. The opium
smoker who inhales to excess is always easily
distinguishable ; his body loses its sleek, well-fed
appearance, becoming thin, skinny, and dried, and
he has a peculiarly sickly tinge, and aliard, wizened,
drawn appearance about the face.
The smell of cooking in the verandah, and the
sound of splashing water as the coolies bathed,
told us that they would shortly be coming in to
liave a meal, and as the afternoon was drawing
in we left on our homeward journey. The wind
had died away, a perfect calm prevailed as we
paddled along in the cool of the evening with
the stars shining brightly overhead. The splash
of the dipping oars, the recurring click as they
rose from the water, and now and again some
desultory conversation between the boatmen, was
all that disturbed the tranquil stillness of the
night, till the grating of the boat against the steps
of the landing-place aroused me from a pleasant
drowsiness.
The state of Johore, although formerly more
accessible than the native states to the northward,
has not kept its place in the progressive develop-
ment and material advancement that has ensued
elsewhere from British protection and better
administration, owing to its lack of mineral wealth.
At the time of my visit several Ceylon planters,
attracted by its accessibility from Singapore, had
i6 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
.^oiiftfJenced opening lands in several districts in
the interior for coffee arabica, but owing to the
poorness and unsuitability of the soil, the low
elevation of the hills (only a few hundred feet in
height), the difficulties of the labour supply, and
the unhealthiness of the climate, this industry, as
far as coffee arabica is concerned, has entirely
ceased, although estates of Liberian coffee and tea,
more conveniently situated, are still in existence.
It is the only one of the native states in the
British sphere of influence that has preserved its
semi - independence, and whose affairs are not
directly administered by a British resident, aided
by an organized staff of officials. The ruler of this
state was the late genial Sultan Abu Baakar, so
well known in England, where he died whilst on
a visit. Many visitors to Singapore must have
taken away with them agreeable reminiscences
of the hospitality, and the sumptuous entertain-
ments he gave in his palace overlooking the
straits. In Singapore society he was a popular
figure, a patron and staunch supporter of all sports,
and especially so of the local race meetings, in
which several of his horses always competed ; and
when residing in the island on these occasions,
his fine house was the centre of much amusement
and gaiety.
CHAPTER II.
The late Sir Frederick Weld, g.C.m.g. — Departure from Singapore-
Squall at sea — Arrival at Malacca — Malacca and its Malays — The
Malacca Baba — Interior of Malacca — Paddy fields, houses and
Inhabitants, villages, trades, marriages, and divorces — Tapioca
planting— Tenure of agricultural lands.
In the late Sir Frederick Weld, g.c.m.g., the
Straits Settlements were fortunate in having a
Governor whose experience amongst the Maoris
of New Zealand well befitted him for the task of
supervising the consolidation of the states already
brought under British protection, and of increasing
the area of our rule to other states as yet free and
independent.
He was much respected by the chiefs throughout
the Malay Peninsula, whom he visited, and whose
confidence he entirely won by a never- varying
straightforwardness and candour. His reputation
for trustworthiness and uprightness materially
helped the peaceful absorption of many fresh
states, prevented outbreaks, and quieted numerous
feuds ; thus carrying to a successful issue the system
inaugurated by Sir Andrew Clark of placing a
British official as adviser to the native chiefs.
As the steamer which was to take me part of
the way towards Sungei Ujong — at that time a
state but little known — started from the outer
c 17
i8 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
harbour, I stepped into a sampan from the jetty
close by the club-house, and was soon alongside
of the steamer, where the noise of the donkey-
engine, the rattling of chains, the loud quacking of
the ducks as they were slung on board, betrayed
the activity that was going on in order to get the
ship off to time.
The decks were piled with crates of fowls and
ducks ; jars of spirits, tubs of fish, cases of kerosene
oil, lined the sides; and on the hatchways being
closed they were immediately taken possession of
by the many deck passengers, who opened and
spread their mats upon which they reclined,
making themselves as comfortable as they could.
An awning was stretched across overhead as a
protection against sun and rain. Every vacant
nook was occupied by some being or some thing,
a most varied and miscellaneous assortment as we
looked down upon it all from the poop.
The steamer seems to have no buoyancy, for she
is below her Plimsoll mark and overloaded, the
passengers are greatly in excess of her licensed
number ; but what matter ? Europeans seldom
travel in her, she is under the control of a Chinese
supercargo who thinks only of profit, and the port
rules were not at this time stringently enforced ; so
as much as could be crammed on board was taken,
until the lapping of the water high up along the
steamer s sides warns even the most heedless that
it were folly to load her more.
The whistle sounds, the rattle of the 'chain is
heard as the anchor rises, the steamer slowly
threads her way through the shipping, and turns
DEPARTURE FROM SINGAPORE. 19
to go a short way into the Straits of Malacca, by
passing through the inner harbour where there is a
narrow channel between two islands. On the one
side wharves stretch from end to end, alongside of
which big ocean-going steamers are moored. The
number of warehouses behind the quay testify to
the large trade being carried on, for we are just
leaving the great emporium of Malaya, where
steamers coal on their outward and homeward
voyages, and where goods are transhipped and
distributed to all parts of the world. The docks
are situated here ; ships are being repaired, and
the constant clang of hammers is heard as we
along.
On the other side a silent dulness pervades the
reddish-coloured hills, the summits of which have
since been planted with trees, giving cover to strong
fortifications and big guns, which it is hoped make
Singapore impregnable to attack from the seaward^
whilst boards at the water s edge mark the position
of some submarine mines placed across the narrow
entrance of the harbour. Passing between two red
bluffs, we emerge into a well-buoyed channel that
guides us into the straits beyond.
The sun has set, the outline of the coast fades
from view, the night is fine and clear, a cool breeze
makes a ripple on the water, and tempts me to
have my bed made up on deck ; but sleep has
hardly come when the noise of hurrying feet is
heard, then the flapping of the side awnings as
the sailors lower and make them fast : none too
soon, for a black bank of clouds has formed ahead,
the breeze has freshened, and we are soon struck
20 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
by the squall, accompanied by torrents of rain and
blinding darkness. The steamer slacks her speed,
begins to pitch, and the waves splash over her
dipping bows ; her human freight seeks shelter as
best it may. An hour, and all is over; dripping
decks, dead and dying ducks and fowls that have
been smothered or trampled upon by their fellows,
and small crested waves alone remain to tell of the
squall we have just gone through, an experience
very frequent in these waters at certain seasons of
the year.
Early the next morning we approach Malacca,
and on nearing the coast perceive that the whole
shore is lined with a deep fringe of cocoanut-trees,
whilst in the distance can be discerned the hills
and mountains which form the dividing range of
the Peninsula. We pass a number of small canoe-
shaped fishing boats, in each of which a man is
seated, having a wide conical hat upon his head,
which looks like an inverted mushroom, as a pro-
tection from the sun. These tiny boats rock to
every ripple, causing anyone affected with seasick-
ness to shudder as he watches their occupants
quietly fishing, entirely undisturbed by the pitching
and tossing of their little craft. As we draw near
the anchorage speed is slackened, but before the
engines are stopped the ship is waylaid by a
number of boats, which the rowers fasten on to her
sides and up which they clamber, and rush amongst
the passengers to seek for fares. They vociferate
excitedly, for competition is keen, and pick up
and secure the goods of their bespoken fares to
prevent their changing their minds and engaging
ARRIVAL AT MALACCA. 21
their passage to the shore with someone else.
These boats are rowed by four or six men ;
they are capacious and strong, carrying a large
sail, and able to withstand rough weather, a
necessary attribute, as owing to the shallow fore-
shore steamers are obliged to anchor more than a
mile out, and the journey to and fro is sometimes
unpleasantly lively.
Malacca formerly was the principal trading port
of this part of the world, and a place of consider-
able importance. In 151 1 the Portuguese under
Albuquerque attacked the town, commencing their
assault by attacking the bridge spanning the river
that intersects it. They then stormed the stockades
on each side, which they took, and after setting
fire to both parts of the city, which had been
defended by 20,000 fighting men, they withdrew to
their ships.
The king of Malacca, and his son-in-law the
king of Pahang, were present at the battle, and,
escaping capture, returned and commenced repair-
ing the damage done, and refortified the town.
The Portuguese shortly made a second attack,
and, having effected a landing, kept up a constant
bombardment for ten days, in which their ships
assisted. At last the city was taken and sacked,
and its inhabitants — men, women, and children —
massacred, for orders were given that all Malays
and Moors should be put to death. On their
side a number of Portuguese soldiers died of
wounds inflicted by poisoned darts expelled from
blow tubes.
In 164 1 the Dutch under Caartekoe took Malacca
22 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
by assault, after besieging it for five months, and
Portuguese ascendency came to an end.
It was taken by the English in 1795, but restored
to th6 Dutch in 1818, to be transferred once more
to the English in 1824 in pursuance of the treaty of
Holland.
The ruins of the church built by the Portuguese
still stand on the top of a steep conical hill, whence
a fine view of the surrounding country is obtained.
On one side you look down on the red-tiled roofs
of houses half hidden amongst the cocoanut-trees,
against whose green leaves they make a pleasing
contrast of colour as the sun shines upon them ;
on the other side white gravestones on the adjacent
hills mark the burial place of the Chinese merchants
who have made this land their home, whilst at our
feet is the sea glittering in the sunshine, and in
the distance a steamer passes by, leaving a trail
of smoke behind.
The fortifications have all been levelled, and
a postern gate at the base of the hill is all that
is left to show where the ramparts once stood,
and nothing now remains to mark the spot by the
river where assailants and besieged fought hand
to hand, giving no quarter and expecting none.
The entrance to the river itself has become so
silted up that it is only at high tide that a sailing
craft of not more than a few tons can now enter,
and at low water even small boats are unable to
pass the bar.
The town was formerly the principal trading
station and the great mart of this part of the
world, where goods coming from China and the
MALACCA AND ITS MALAYS. 23
many islands of Malaysia and the Pacific Ocean,
as well as from India, were bartered and sold, but
its former glories have entirely departed, and its
commerce has been transferred to the more recent
settlements of Penang and Singapore, both of
which places are more favourably situated as ports
of call and for the transhipment of cargoes.
The Malays of Malacca are a prosperous and
contented community, having everything at hand
that is necessary to make life easy and happy.
They have mosques wherein to worship, fish can
be had for the taking, in their paddy fields close
at hand they grow their rice, they dwell under the
shade of fruit and cocoanut trees, the produce of
which, being easily marketable, is sold for sufficient
to supply them with the little extra luxuries they
require for the year.
The women are clever at embroidery, especially
with silver and gold thread, as well as in the art of
preserving fruits in a manner somewhat similar to
our crystallized ones, and in the making of many
kinds of sweetmeats and pickles ; in fact, the
Malacca Malay, when compared with those in the
interior of the native states, is far advanced in
civilization.
The costume of the men consists of a kind of
short smock, reaching only down to the hips, made
of some imported cotton stuff of flowery pattern
or gaudy colour, and called a baju, or coat. There
is not much shape about this garment, which has
a pocket on each side, a circular hole at the top fits
the neck, an opening in front makes it easy to put
on or take off over the head, and it is fastened
24 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
either with small gold or common mother-of-pearl
buttons, according to the means of the wearer.
A sarong, or cloth fastened round the waist, hangs
down to near the feet; the head is covered some-
times by a round cap, but more generally by a
coloured cloth not much larger than a handkerchief,
which twisted round forms a skimpy kind of turban.
Should any one of them wish to appear very
civilized and smart, he affects trousers, in which
case he ties his sarong so that it does not fall below
the knee, and dons white canvas shoes.
The women's costume is equally light and airy,
and consists of a gay -coloured jacket, which,
opening all the way down in front, reaches to the
knees ; the upper portion is fastened by three
brooches, and their sarongs are similar to those
worn by the men. Their hair is tied in a rolled
knot behind, and kept tidy by long pins stuck
through it, and when they wish to be very smart
they thrust their feet into gold-embroidered, heel-
less slippers, which strike the ground with a
flapping noise as they walk along; and they en-
velop the upper portion of their bodies and their
heads in a sarong, the corners of which being
extended are held outstretched by the hands at the
level of their eyes, so that only an opening just
sufficient to look out of is left, and usually the
uglier the wearers are the more closed do they
keep this aperture.
Amongst themselves, the discussing of their
neighbours and the latest scandal seems to form
the chief subject of their conversation, in the same
way as Tamil women will talk of food for hours,
MALACCA AND ITS FRUITS. 25
and seem never tired of this — to them — fascinating
subject.
The outskirts of Malacca are thickly popuUted
by Malays, whose gardens, bordering on fine
stretches of paddy fields, contain both fruit and
cocoanut trees, in whose produce there is quite a
brisk trade at certain seasons of the year ; and the
decks of the steamers trading to Singapore are
crowded with a miscellaneous assortment, amongst
which are the far-famed and prickly durian, so
obnoxious to new comers, but delicious to those
who have succeeded in overcoming its peculiar
smell and taste ; dukas, a fruit for which Malacca is
famous, and equal in flavour to a nectarine ; mangos-
teens, encased in a peculiar covering that hardens
as the fruit ripens, and has a little crown on the
top with a leaf for every division of the fruit inside,
which is delicate in flavour, but does not keep good
for many days ; wholesome langsats that have a
pleasant acid taste, but whose stone is bitter ; red
rambutans, with their prickly skins, beneath which
a large seed is thinly coated with a luscious cover-
ing ; and the rambai, a fruit that hangs down in
bunches like yellow grapes, full of seeds inside, and
somewhat bitter in flavour. Besides these there
are the tampuni, pulasan, papaya and guava, all
edible and pleasant to the taste.
The red colour of the roads is an agreeable
change from the white granite thoroughfares of
Singapore. Good laterite is easily procurable, and
the streets are paved with this material, which is
softer than granite, and pleasanter to drive along
in fine weather.
26 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
The sea-wall is faced with blocks of hard laterite,
having a honeycombed appearance on the outside.
These stones are quarried and cut in a soft state,
and after exposure to the air and weather for a
year they become hard, making excellent building
material, and are much used. The esplanade is
lined with flamboyant trees, or * aflame of the forest"
as it is sometimes called, and when in blossom the
flowers form a mass of gorgeous colour.
No description of Malacca would be complete
without mention being made of the Malacca Babas,
who are Malacca-born Chinamen, and form a con-
siderable community, many of them being ignorant
of the language of their forefathers, and only speak-
ing Malay. They are of a gregarious disposition,
and even the wealthy live in their business houses
in the town, although they have fine residences and
gardens some little distance away in the country, to
which they only resort for recreation and change.
The interior of Malacca is less thickly populated,
the country is undulating, and the principal settle-
ments are within easy distance of the roads, which
are numerous. Wherever there are valleys and
gulleys the opportunity has been taken to convert
them into paddy fields, which once a year are
prepared for planting by having the weeds and
grasses growing in them cut down and burnt.
Then they are inundated with water, the ground is
dug with a long-handled hoe, buffaloes are driven
to and fro to churn up the earth, or a small wooden
plough is used, depending upon the nature of the
soil ; the water is then let off, the surface smoothed
and made ready to receive the plants.
THE CULTIVATION OF RICE. 27
On some suitable spot adjacent to the rice field
the paddy seed has already been sown in a nursery,
where it germinates and grows, forming little tufts
of plants. These are pulled up, and after the top
portion of their growth is cut to within a few inches
of their roots, they are carried and planted out in
the fields by women ; the water is once more
admitted, and there is nothing left to do but to
regulate it and to wait until the grain is ripe,
when all hands turn out with baskets and small
knives or sickles, and cut the golden ears from off
their stalks and carry them to the drying grounds,
where, after being exposed to the sun, the grain
falls from the stalks, and is stored in round cylinders
made of bark — through which rats cannot pene-
trate — to be taken out as required. The grain, as
long as it is in the ear, is called paddy, but when
husked it is called rice. In order to prepare the
paddy for household use it is re-dried on mats, then
placed in a rude wooden mortar, which is formed
merely out of a hollowed log, and pounded with a
long-handled pestle ; but more usually this pestle is
a short piece of wood let into a wooden beam, the
centre of which is fastened to a frame, and made so
as to allow the person working it to easily depress
one end by placing her foot and weight upon it,
thus raising the pestle from the mortar. Directly
the foot and weight is removed from the end of the
beam the pestle falls upon the paddy, breaking the
outside husk a little at each blow. The process
continues until the paddy placed in the mortar is
sufficiently husked to allow of its being winnowed.
Should there be the slightest breath of air, this is
28 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
done by letting the husked paddy fall gradually
from a height, and the lighter and smaller particles
get blown away, but the heavier fall on to the
mat below, from which they are taken up, and
winnowed anew by placing them by small quan-
tities at a time in a flat triangular tray, made
of plaited reeds fastened to a wooden frame. The
broad side of this frame is laid hold of and held in
both hands, and by shaking and tossing it in a
peculiar manner the husks are made to go to the
top of the triangle, out of which they are tossed by
a deft movement and jerk of the tray, and this is
continued until nothing but the rice is left behind,
and after any black specks or foreign matter have
been picked out by hand, it is ready for cooking.
On the hill slopes by the side of these fields
there are fringes of cocoanut and fruit trees, and
amongst them the Malay builds his house, which
of itself is rather a peculiar structure. The builder
takes six or eight stones, depending on the size
of the house he intends to erect ; these are placed
on the surface of the ground, a little bed having
been made for them to rest upon ; then he fells
and squares the required number of hard wood
posts, cutting a hole in them at the height he
requires his flooring to be from the ground,
generally about five feet, and shaping the tops so
as to leave a small square projection in the centre.
These posts are then rested upon the stones, the
joists and beams are let into the holes already cut,
and secured by wooden pegs ; light pieces of wood
are stretched across the top, and fit over the small
square projections, making the framework of the
HOUSES AND INHABITANTS.
29
house complete. The sides of the dwelling are
either formed of attaps, or of long strips of bark ;
the roof is steep-pitched and made with thin long
saplings, just sufficiently strong to bear the weight
of the men who cover them with attaps, or palm
leaves. Sticks placed across the joists, and covered
with a lattice of split rattan, or narrow laths cut
m
#-1 - ,^
1 r
1
from the nibong palm, form the floor, which
shakes and quivers as you walk across it.
Fortunately tornadoes and violent gales are
unknown in these parts, or these houses would
soon be blown away, and deposited in some neigh-
bouring swamp.
Mats woven from rushes are unrolled and laid
flat, and upon these the inmates sit and sleep.
Formerly a common practice of seeking a cowardly
revenge was to creep underneath the house and
30 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
thrust a spear up through the interstices of the
flooring into the sleeper above ; the only difficulties
were to be sure of sticking the right person and
not someone else, and to prevent alarm being given
by poisoning or killing the half-starved, miserable-
looking dog that fed around the house upon the
refuse thrown out, but which was usually never
admitted inside. Nowadays wooden planks are
used by the better class of natives for the sides
and floors of their houses.
A fireplace or hob is made by filling a shallow
box with earth, and on this a few stones are placed
upon which rest the saucepans and cooking pots,
whilst a few sticks ignited underneath make all
the fire required to cook the rice and food. Over-
head a sort of rough shelf made of sticks is the
receptacle for the cooking utensils when not in
use. The boiling rice is skimmed with a spoon
made of a portion of a cocoanut shell, through
which a piece of wood is stuck to form a handle.
The larder of the household hangs down from the
roof, suspended by strings of rattan threaded
through the centre of the half of a cocoanut shell,
the rounded side of which is uppermost, and
hanging a little above the article to be protected
against the ravages of rats. This clever and
simple device never fails, for although the rat is
able to climb down the string, directly it reaches
the smooth rounded outside of the cocoanut shell
it meets with an obstacle it cannot get round ; and
whilst endeavouring to do so, it causes the shell
to tip a bit, and as its smooth surface affords no
foothold, the rat falls to the floor below.
HOUSES AND INHABITANTS. 31
A curious dislike prevails amongst the inmates
to having trousers hung up inside the house ; they
think it unbecoming to sit or sleep beneath anyone's
pantaloons, although any other garment does not
cause the same offence.
Water for cooking and drinking is brought from
an adjoining open well or stream, in gourds made
from a large species of pumpkin, the inside of
which has been taken out, leaving the hard outside
shell, and when new they give to the water kept
in them a somewhat muddy taste.
Cooking operations are simple, for the meal
usually consists of boiled rice, small pieces of dried
fish heated over the embers of the fire, and a
concoction of hot red chillies that have been ground
with salt into a paste. The smoking rice is put
in the centre of the floor ; pieces of dried fish and
fiery chillies ground up with salt are the usual
relishes, and around this simple fare the family
sit with their legs crossed ; and should there be a
stranger within the house he is always invited
to join in the meal, to which each one helps
himself, and places as much as he cares to take
upon a leaf spread in front of him, which serves
the purpose of a plate'. No one speaks, all being
too busily engaged taking handfuls of rice, which,
with a dexterous movement of the fingers, they
place within their mouths. Upon completion of
the meal many of them have a disgusting habit
of showing their satisfaction by belching, after
which they wash their hands and rinse out their
mouths.
The materials used in chewing are then passed
32 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
round to each person in succession, commencing
with the principal guest, who selects a betel leaf,
which he spreads out flat, and places upon it a
little moist and finely ground lime ; then he folds
the leaf in four, and putting it into his mouth helps
himself to a small piece of gambier, and a little
areca nut to flavour what he is chewing ; next he
takes a quid of tobacco, with which he first of all
rubs his teeth, then places it in his mouth, so that
his cheek bulges out, and for a few minutes solely
occupies himself with chewing ; then he commences
to expectorate a nasty red fluid down through the
openings of the floor. The chewing mixture with-
out the tobacco is not unpleasant, for it has a
pungent, aromatic taste, but it was not sufficiently
agreeable for me to try it more than once. What
it was like mixed with the quid of tobacco I cannot
say, for although I smoked continuously, I could
never bring myself to chew the leaf. This habit
of constant chewing is very bad for the teeth,
which become black and decayed until they are
quite unfit for use, and even then the old people
do not discontinue the custom, but putting the
harder ingredients into a mortar, they chop them
up with a chisel-headed pestle before putting them
into their mouths. Around each dwelling several
vines may be seen trained up posts, and it is from
these that the betel leaves are plucked. The
aromatic nut is supplied by the tall, slender areca-
nut palms which grow so freely, and look so
picturesque crowned with a few dark green leaves
beneath which hang clusters of nuts in their tough
outer covering, the colour of which, as the fruit
VILLAGES. 33
ripens, changes from green to yellow. The lime
induces expectoration, and the gambier is some-
what insipid, having a peculiar gummy kind of taste.
After the meal washing up takes place. The
refuse water is thrown through the interstices in
the floor, a dirty habit, as underneath the house an
oflFensive-smelling pool forms, from which the fowls
and ducks gather the eatable leavings, scrambling
for them with the mangy-looking dog that lurks
around the house. Although everything is brought
into the house by the door, Malays have this un-
pleasant habit of throwing rice skimmings, fish
bones, and all refuse through a hole in the floor
by the side of the cooking place.
The size of a Malay village in the interior varies
in proportion to the extent of land in the immediate
vicinity suitable for rice growing and under irriga-
tion. The houses are built a little distance apart,
and stand in their own grounds close to the paddy
fields, and surrounded by fruit trees. There is
often a little shed in the compound that shelters
a fireplace, scooped out of the hillside, and having
two openings, one a horizontal shaft in which the
firewood is placed, joined at the end to a perpen-
dicular outlet, on the top of which rests the large
cauldron used by Malay women to make the
delicious sugar cakes of jaggery they are all so
fond of, and which is manufactured by evapora-
tion from the sap of the palm trees that grow
around. Ducks and fowls wander about, and
broody hens sit on nests beneath the houses.
The ground is covered with close-cropped sward,
eaten short by buffaloes and goats. The former,
34 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
when wanted for work, are tethered at night to a
stake driven into the ground ; a fire is lighted near
to keep the mosquitoes from annoying them, but
at other times they are allowed to roam at will, and
congregate in herds, making innumerable tracks in
the low scrub in the vicinity of the villages. The
latter are shut up at night in small houses, elevated
some eight or ten feet off the ground on posts, and
made accessible by steps scooped out of a log that
leans against the doorway, in order to prevent the
goats from being carried off by the tigers and
panthers prowling around, which otherwise would
speedily be their fate.
Malay silversmiths, blacksmiths, and carpenters
are fast being superseded by Chinese, and as the
villagers have no trades to give them occupation
during the time there is nothing doing in the fields,
many of the men leave their homes in search of
employment, returning at frequent intervals, for
they are able by working three months in the year
to supply themselves with all the necessaries they
require for the remaining nine. The women stay
at home, and beyond their household duties have
little else to occupy themselves with, for they do
not weave, and sew but little, as they usually
purchase their apparel ready made. Their only
excitement is connected with religious festivals and
marriages. The cost of the latter ranges from
twenty dollars to two thousand dollars, according
to the wealth of the parents and whether the bride
has been married before, because it is only on first
marriages that so much money is spent, and the
wedding of a divorcee takes place more quietly.
MARRIAGES AND DIVORCES. 35
The bride is prepared for the nuptials by having
her hair cut so as to leave a fringe in front, and
her teeth filed, and on the appointed day she
powders her face, dyes her eyelids, borrows the
finest garments she can and as much jewellery as
she is able from all her friends, and is seated on
a dais to be admired by her kind. The bride-
groom is dressed in his best, as are all his friends,
who stroll about in the neighbourhood of the house
and make him the object of their congratulations
as the time approaches for him to seat himself
beside the bride, when the assembled company
chant some verses of the Koran, and the recog-
nized priest or Haji proceeds to perform the
ceremony. The bride and bridegroom grasp each
others right hand, and a cloth or handkerchief is
placed over them by the Haji, who, holding their
hands, prefaces the words of the marriage contract
with an exhortation and prayer. After the cere-
mony the bride and bridegroom sit together for a
short while for the edification of the guests, and
then the feast takes place.
The Mohammedan religion has caused the mar-
riage-tie to be very loose and easily broken, for it
is only necessary that the husband should repudiate
his wife to render them both free ; the woman,
however, has to wait three months before she can
marry again. There are three degrees of divorce ;
should the husband repudiate his wife only once or
twice the divorce is revocable, but if he does so
three times, then it is irrevocable ; and to become
revocable the woman must be married to, and
divorced from, some other man before remarrying
36 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
with her former husband. Connected with this,
the Malays have a custom of presenting one, two,
or three pebbes to the divorcee by way of intimating
which degree of separation they wish it to be, but
the simple holding-up of three fingers has been held
to be a sufficiently implied and legal dissolution
of the bond of matrimony.
Notwithstanding this apparently simple method
of divorce, family relations and questions of money
often prevent it from being so easily effected; be-
sides, the freedom the Malay women enjoy cause
them to be quite capable of looking after their own
interests in this respect. Perhaps the jealous dis-
position of the men helps to make the marriage-tie
more binding, for Malay women seldom appear to
have any difficulty in marrying again after they are
once divorced ; and, although the husband may be
ready enough to get rid of his wife, he does not like '
seeing her comfortably settled with another, or to
be himself the object of her covert jibes and sneers.
Both sexes are fond of their children, and these
often become the strongest tie of all ; and when they
are young the father may frequently be seen carrying
one about perched on his hip with its legs akimbo
or teaching it to walk, amusing and playing with it ;
and when he returns it to its mother she tosses
it in the air, catching and letting it go and talking
to it the while, then she kisses it by placing her
nose against its face and sniffing once or twice
loudly — a peculiar manner of caress according to
our notions ; and swinging the child round she
places it on her hip, and holds it there with her arm
round its body.
TAPIOCA PLANTING. 37
Chinese tapioca planters owned much of the land
in the interior portions of Malacca that was un-
occupied by Malays ; and during the years of their
prosperity, before the price of tapioca fell, gave
abundance of employment to the inhabitants of the
neighbouring villages. Large numbers of carts
were required to carry the manioc roots to the
central factories, and the manufactured product
down to the coast, and, being principally owned
by Malays, became the means of earning for their
owners an easy and comfortable livelihood.
The method of tapioca cultivation as pursued in
the Straits is wasteful and devastating. Fine forest
trees are cut down and burned, manioc cuttings are
planted short distances apart, and soon grow up
several feet from the ground with long spindly
stems, on the tops of which are a few leafy
branches, whilst yam-like tubers form underneath
the ground and usually reach maturity in a little
more than a year, when they are uprooted, detached
from the stalks, and carried in carts to the central
factory, which is erected in some place where there
is a plentiful supply of good water procurable, a
most important requisite in the preparation of
tapioca, and much depends upon its being pure
and clean. The roots are first peeled, then grated
and carried with the water into vats, where they
are kept some days, and the water is constantly
changed. The juice of the root is extracted by
pressure, and the residue, after drying and sifting,
is baked in pans over slow fires in order to free the
flake from the small quantity of hydrocyanic or
prussic acid that it contains. Manioc roots roasted
38 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
whole in the embers of a wood fire make an ex-
cellent substitute for potatoes, and have not the
sweet taste peculiar to yams. As soon as the crop
has been gathered the ground is dug over and
a fresh lot of cuttings are planted, but by the time
this crop is harvested, or at most one more, the soil
is exhausted, and the land, already very dirty, is
abandoned, and becomes choked with weeds, scrub,
and lalang grass ; the latter soon predominates, and
turns the country where it flourishes into a wilder-
ness of long grass with white fluffy seeds that are
wafted about in every direction. In dry weather
this grass burns easily, afterwards growing up
stronger than ever, for it has a network of roots
that go down some distance below the surface
of the ground, and are always ready to push forth
fresh shoots, consequently it is most difficult to
eradicate by digging, but if the young blades are
eaten back by buffaloes or cattle the lalang ceases
to make further growth, and other grasses take its
place.
The tenure by which all agricultural lands are
held is by payment of an annual quit rent, which
sum covers all rates and taxes. Should the tenant
fail to pay, the Government can distrain for the
amount, and in cases where the occupiers desert
their holdings, which often happens, and especially
in new districts, the Government after a while
re-enter into possession of the land.
CHAPTER III.
Departure for Sungie Ujong— Striking upon sunken rocks— Journey
up river — Crocodiles — Captain J. P. Murray, R.N., Resident —
Honourable Martin Lister — Black panthers — Rantau— Seremban
— Gunong Brembong — Coffee planting — Native labour — Charac-
teristics of Malays — Pay days.
In order to reach Sungie Ujong from Malacca it was
necessary to embark on board another small steamer,
which combined the maximum of discomfort with
the minimum of speed. We steamed along parallel
with the coast, and not far out from the shore,
passing on our way some small conical rocks that
were straight in our course, and which the ebbing
tide had left uncovered and exposed to view. At
this point rather a curious incident occurred some
years later, during one of the many times in which
I took this journey. It was on a somewhat larger
steamer, in command of which there was a new
captain, who, either not being thoroughly acquainted
with the proper course to be steered, or unmindful
of these rocks, was lolling on a seat, not troubling
himself about the ship, which was left to the control
of the helmsman.
I happened also to be sitting on the bridge at
the time, and suddenly was surprised to see the
bows of the steamer rise in the air, and she came
almost to a standstill ; then her bows dipped, and
39
40 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
we continued on our way. We had struck and
slid over one of these rocks. Fortunately they
were covered with just sufficient water to allow of
this being done, for had the tide been lower and
the rocks nearer the surface there would no doubt
have been a bad smash ; as it was, it was quite
enough to make one satisfied with the usual hum-
drum monotony of steaming through the water,
and not to wish for the more lively sensation of
jumping obstacles on the way. Meanwhile the
captain s face had been a study — blank astonish-
ment and dismay at first, followed by intense relief.
Crossing the bar at the entrance of the Linggi
river, we steamed up it. As the tide was low, the
mud-coloured banks of the mangrove swamp on
each side were exposed to view, and a crocodile
was now and then to be seen lying basking on the
shelving slope, until, disturbed by the approaching
steamer, it would suddenly turn round with a
nimbleness quite amazing and disappear beneath
the water. Another again would be floating with
its head just visible, when all at once it would sink
out of sight, and vanish so quietly as to leave no
perceptible sign or movement in the water behind
to mark the spot where its uncanny head had so
lately appeared.
These pests make the rivers dangerous ; generally
women are taken and carried off when bathing or
fetching water, but they have been known to
attack the occupants of a small boat. Once their
jaws close firmly on the victim, unless help is very
close at hand, there is no reopening of their mouths,
and if their hold is relaxed it is simply because the
CROCODILES. 41
teeth have torn along through the flesh to the end
of the part laid hold of.
I have never seen anyone taken by a crocodile
myself, but an eye-witness has described how in
one instance he saw a man holding on to the side
of a boat to prevent himself from being dragged
down, shrieking for help, which could not reach
him, until overcome he let go, to disappear and
rise no more. These reptiles are reputed to bury
their prey in the mud at the bottom of the river,
and to feed upon them when they have become
decomposed. From a distance a crocodile looks
more like a log lying on the bank than anything
else, and it is only on nearer approach that the
outline of this repulsive-looking monster is distinctly
defined.
The river gets narrower as we proceed, the bends
become sharper, and the branches of the mangrove
trees brush against the sides of the steamer, which
is sometimes obliged to stop to permit of her bows
being pushed round to enable her to turn some
corner ; but there is nothing to recall to mind that,
but a few years previously, this highway had been
stopped by the inhabitants of the neighbouring
state of Rembau, and a blockade maintained —
causing distress, and threatening famine to the
Chinese miners in the interior — which the people
of Sungie Ujong were unable to raise until two
men-ofrwar sent a force of bluejackets and marines
in boats to their assistance.
Occasionally a tribe of monkeys were descried
sitting on the branches of trees, peering out
through the foliage and seeming to take quite an
42 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
intelligent interest in what was passing, or the
sudden rustling of leaves would attract my atten-
tion in time to see branches alive with motion as
the monkeys ran along them and jumped or swung
from tree to tree. The swamp on each side of the
river is a perfect network of mangrove roots,
amongst which colonies of crabs have their home,
and immediately on being disturbed they scuttle
away, and, popping into their holes, disappear, or
sometimes, if not too frightened, they will linger at
the entrance, only half hidden from view, wondering
at the unwonted disturbance.
I had almost forgotten to mention that ubiquitous
species of little animal, Poriopkthalmus Koeirenteri,
which seems to thrive amidst the pestilential mud of
the mangrove swamps. It skids along the banks
at a tremendous pace, disporting itself on the still
wet, slimy mud which the receding tide has but
recently uncovered, and when alarmed darts into
the water so quickly as to puzzle the observer who
sees it for the first time, because, apparently, it
has no means of propulsion, as from a distance
nothing can be seen except the little creature gliding
over the soft mud on its belly. On closer examina-
tion a mark on the surface is visible where its
stomach has scraped, and on each side little cuts
where its pectoral fins have struck the mud as it
nimbly slid on its way.
At night the channel is plainly defined by a
sparkling mass of tiny lights, as myriads of fireflies
flit and scintillate amongst the leaves of the border-
ing mangrove trees ; and I have often watched with
fascination these twinkling sparks, until my eyes
CAPTAIN J. P. MURRAY, R.N. 43
have become tired with gazing upon the glittering
lines between which the boat slowly wended its
way to the highest point of the river practicable for
a small steamer to reach, where was situated a
landing stage and a few houses clustered together,
the only port, at this time, of the state, and named
Linggi. Some years later this port was given up
for another further down the river, which in its turn
was abandoned for one on the sea coast called Port
Dickson, after a Colonial Secretary of the Straits
Settlements, the late Sir Frederick Dickson, who
was also for some while Acting Governor.
The river at Linggi was so narrow that in order
to turn the steamer about her stern had to be
shoved in amongst the branches of the trees on
one bank, whilst her bow was pushed and dragged
round through the branches on the other, A few
small boats took what cargo there was for Seremban,
a long and difficult four days of poling up stream,
and often longer when there was either too much or
too little water in the river.
There was a police station near the landing place,
and I was fortunate in meeting Capt. Murray, r.n.,
the genial and kindly Resident, who was on his
way to Malacca ; but before leaving the next day
he ordered a policeman to escort me to Seremban,
and bid me make myself at home in his house.
Not long afterwards he met with a fall, which,
followed by a long day's journey and exposure to
the sun, brought on an illness to which he suc-
cumbed a few days after reaching Malacca, whither
he had gone for medical advice.
Travelling with Captain Murray was the Hon.
44 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
Martin Lister, who was at that time engaged in
opening a Liberian coffee plantation at Linsum ;
afterwards joining the Civil Service, he was ap-
pointed the first Resident of the Negri Sembilan,
a group of neighbouring states ; and it was in large
measure owing to his tact and influence with the
inhabitants that this change in administration was
accepted peacefully and quietly by the people con-
cerned. Later on he became Resident of Sungie
Ujong, in addition to his duties in the Negri
Sembilan ; but his health having completely broken
down he was ordered home, but never arrived
there, succumbing to his malady at Sue^. It is
a touching coincidence that the last portion of the
career of each of these two friends should have
been so similar; they were both stricken with a
mortal illness whilst Residents of Sungie Ujong,
and departed from the state never to return ; but
they left behind them with the people amongst
whom they lived, memories of many a kindly
action and reputations for unvarying justice and
uprightness, qualities amongst those in authority
that have made our Empire what it is.
At certain seasons of the year in the neighbour-
hood of Linggi, towards evening, great numbers
of flying foxes — which are a kind of large bat,
having reddish-coloured backs and brown heads —
were to be seen sailing along high up in the air,
following one another in quick succession, and
journeying from the land across the straits towards
the hills of the interior.
Some of the villagers were very expert at setting
traps for tigers and panthers, which were numerous
BLACK PANTHERS. 45
and frequently captured, and after being allowed to
remain for some days to quieten down and become
tamed, they were carried to the villages in cages,
only just large enough to hold the wretched, half-
starved animal, which was generally so weak and
stiff from want of food and long confinement as
to be incapable of moving. The tigers wo^ld lie
in quiet calmness, taking but little notice when
poked with a stick, whereas the black panthers
were always ready with a spiteful snarl, game and
vicious to the last The latter are not dangerous
when unmolested, but are most ferocious if
attacked. I have constantly observed them cross
the road scarce fifty yards away when I have
been walking or driving, and there was one
special locality where sometimes two or three
were to be seen at dusk ; but I never troubled
about them, nor did they ever interfere with me
in any way. I remember seeing a magnificent
female of this variety which had only been some
months in captivity. She was intensely savage,
and the sight of anyone sent her into paroxysms
of rage and fury, so that no one dared to go too
near the bars of the spacious cage in which she
was confined. She was given a male companion,
but at the end of a week they had a tremendous
fight, in which she came off the victor and he was
killed. Although they are called black panthers,
on a nearer view their bodies are seen to be prettily
dappled with brown.
It was a twenty-two mile walk to Seremban ; the
road was undulating, ever going up or down some
hill, villainously bad, scarcely passable for carts.
46 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
and utterly unfit for any description of buggy.
The first portion of the journey skirted straggling
Malay villages ; then, with the exception of a
tapioca clearing, there was nothing but jungle,
until the pioneer Liberian coffee estate at Linsum
was reached, and adjacent to it the village of
Rantaju.
The cultivation of Liberian coffee was as yet in
an experimental stage in the Straits, and it was
still uncertain whether it would take kindly to the
soil and climate, or become the failure it afterwards
was in Ceylon. Wherever planted in these regions
it proved itself to be hardier and more robust than
the Arabian variety, growing at a lower elevation,
and thriving where well cared for and liberally
cultivated. The trees grow to a considerable size,
and have to be planted at longer intervals apart
than Arabian coffee — nine feet by nine feet being
quite close enough ; the leaf is large, and of a
dark green colour ; the bean, which is enclosed in
a thick, tough berry, is bigger than the latter, and
unless picked and prepared with care the infusion
lias a bitter taste, and is not so pleasant to drink as
the other variety, consequently it fetches a lower
price in the market. The berries hang for a con-
siderable while and ripen slowly, so that there is
a great temptation to gather them before they are
thoroughly ripe and mature. The trees are topped
at about five feet from the ground to make them
spread laterally. The yield per acre is largely in
excess of the Arabian variety, and should this
coffee recover its price, the planting of it cannot
fail to become a most lucrative industry. Arabian
COFFEE PLANTING.
47
coffee was also planted at Linsum, but in a few
years it overbore itself, the climate at this elevation
proving too hot and forcing for it unless planted
under shade, when its bearing capabilities are
checked, and instead of producing fruit it runs
to wood and leaves. Cocoa was also planted on
this estate, but proved only a qualified success,
some trees growing and bearing magnificently.
whilst their neighbours were stricken and stunted,
under, to all appearances, exactly similar conditions.
The pepper vines did well, and the sago palms
grew luxuriantly in any swampy localities.
The road for the remaining twelve miles lay
mostly through jungle, but for some distance
before reaching Seremban it traversed a country
which had once been planted but since abandoned,
and which had become covered with a kind of
short scrub and lalang, across which there was
48 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
no shade ; and as it was intensely hot, the last
portion of the tramp was very exhausting and
wearisome, especially as I was not as yet
accustomed to the damp, moist heat of the
Straits, which to a new comer is at first very
enervating and trying, and from being so lately
cooped up on board ship I was somewhat out of
condition.
On reaching Seremban I found that Captain
Murray's residence consisted of two houses, each
of two stories. The dining-room, Government
offices, and store-rooms were on the ground floor ;
whilst above were the sitting-room, study, and
bedrooms. The houses were joined together by
a bridge, which connected the two broad verandahs
that ran round the outside of both houses, and
one of them being somewhat higher than the
other was called the quarter-deck. A little tame
honey-bear cub wandered about the house, and
was most wilful in its ways. It much disliked
being chained up, and when annoyed would throw
itself down on the floor and cry and shake with
rage just like some naughty, badly- brought-up
child. Its end was sad, for in one of its fits of
temper it upset an oil lamp that was standing on
the ground, and got so badly burnt that it had to
be destroyed. The estate for which I was bound
was fifteen miles further up country, and situated
in the main range of hills at an elevation of
about fifteen hundred feet. A gang of men were
employed in cutting a road over this intervening
distance, but it was some years before it was
completed. The track to the hills traversed un-
GUNONG BREMBONG. 49
dulating country till it reached the foot of the main
range of mountains, where there were extensive
paddy fields, and a large Malay village called Pantai.
From this point there was an uphill climb the
whole way through dense forest, along a narrow
path that followed the course of the main stream,
the waters of which could be heard dashing and
tumbling below with a perpetual roaring sound,
the noise of which increased or decreased as the
road either approached closer to the river or
receded, winding round one of the numerous
valleys, where tiny rivulets divide the ridges that
intersect the spurs of Gunong Brembong.
A small house had been built, a little clear-
ing, of Arabian coffee, planted by way of com-
mencement, and some extent of forest felled
by a European, who shortly after was invalided
home, and has since died. In these parts nature
always revenges herself for being interfered with.
Fever-laden vapours rise from the land despoiled
of its trees, and the soil disturbed by digging
emits noxious gases, and these reign paramount
until a new growth has taken the place of the
one destroyed, or time and exposure have
weakened the banefulness of the fumes. The
fever in these hills was of a very malignant type —
for weeks at a time attack would succeed attack.
The best means of cure was change ; but as work
had to be looked after and directed, it was im-
possible to leave the place, so there was nothing
to be done but to endure it. Alternate days were
generally worse than the intervening ones, although
sometimes the fever would be continuous for days
so CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
and weeks with slight intermissions, and its course
was much as follows. Each morning the fever-
stricken subject, with emaciated body and weak,
tottering footsteps, would seek a couch in the
verandah in which to enjoy the deliciously fresh
and cool air of the hills, until after a short while
of languid but refreshing rest a cold shivering fit
would compel him to return to his bed, and to
cover himself, head and all, with blankets, seeking
warmth. Then followed an awful continuous sick-
ness, a great rise in temperature, and a burning
head that felt as though it were striving to split
asunder, making the temples throb and ache, until
the consciousness that the limit of endurance was
nearly reached came as a consolation, and provi-
dential light -headedness supervened, giving relief
from suffering. The climate otherwise was pleasant,
and as cool as it would have been at a much
higher elevation in Ceylon.
The labourers were Malays from the adjacent
independent states, many of whom had never
seen a white man, nor had they ever been
accustomed to any systematic work. It was my
custom to give out money to be taken to the
villages where labour was procurable, and many
a man was persuaded to come and work by the
temptation of being able to supply his home with
a few dollars before he started. Some would come
and work until their advances were repaid, and
then without a word would return home again ;
others stayed for a longer period, trying to put
some money by; whilst many would arrive on the
estate out of curiosity, being told by some
A GROUP OF MALAYS.
NATIVE LABOUR. 53
comrade about what was going on, and they would
pay me a visit just because they were inquisitive
to see a white man.
I always entertained them to tea, and their
wonder was at the clock, who^e pendulum swung
backwards and forwards with constant regularity ;
and the ticking of my watch would surprise and
amuse them as they placed it to their ears.
Photographs they did not seem to understand at
all, nor could they make anything of them, looking
at them turned upside down as often as not ; and
even when objects were pointed out and the
subject explained, it seemed to be entirely beyond
their comprehension ; and although they would,
out of politeness, continue to look at the photo-
graph in an absent-minded way, they were always
intensely relieved when the subject was changed.
Notwithstanding the strangeness of their surround-
ings they never appeared gauche or awkward except
when sitting on a chair for the first time, and then
they would sit gingerly on the very edge of the
seat, and were apparently half afraid lest it should
give way beneath their weight. I used to suggest
to them that they should try and see what the
routine of work on the estate was like, and help
me by joining what, in Malay, I called my force
of ** labourer children," — a usual and well-understood
expression to signify not only the good feeling and
pleasant terms that existed between employer and
employed, but that the one in authority entertained
a considerate care for those under him — and I
always received the invariable answer, '* I have
not as yet made up my mind.** However, the
54 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
next day they were generally to be seen out in
the fields amongst the men, and after working
hours came for an advance of money, for they
were most suspicious at first that they might not
get paid, and considered prepayment as the only
means for protecting themselves from imposition.
The peculiar distinctive qualities of Malays are
so diverse that any generalization of their character
is extremely difficult; but the constant association
and friendly acquaintance I had with so many of
them, coming from different states, and yet un-
affected by the influences of civilization, gave me
an opportunity of observing their idiosyncrasies,
and the many traits recounted will enable the
reader to form a fair opinion.
The children play about from quite an early
age entirely uncontrolled; a sharp slap, casually
administered, is about all the correction given. The
women cook, carry water, see to the house, and
work in the fields, where a great proportion of
the manual labour is done by them. The men,
when at home, build and keep their houses in
repair, collect rattan from the neighbouring jungle,
do all the fencing requisite, make traps for catching
fish and game, and seek for forest fruits and edible
roots. They attend to the buffaloes and drive
them when ploughing, for these animals are some-
what dangerous to handle, and when being led
along the narrow paths through the jungle by a
rope of rattan passed through their nose their
attendant has to be on the alert, for should any
sudden noise or movement frighten the one he
is leading it will rush blindly forward, and then
CHARACTERISTICS OF MALAYS. 55
it is difficult to keep clear of its horns and to
check its onward course and calm its fears. In
the towns every buffalo is obliged to have a stick
fixed across its horns and made fast to its head,
so that should it become terrified or savage it
cannot do much harm.
The inhabitants of each little independent state
have some peculiarities and characteristic traits,
by means of which the locality from whence they
come can be determined, and when they speak
a difference of dialect is easily detected.
The Malays, as a race, are very slow to acquire
confidence in a stranger ; they are polite with an
innate courtesy, and should they suddenly be
confronted by a novel or difficult situation, their
self-control and grace of movement is so inborn
that they go through the most trying ordeal without
the slightest awkwardness. They can be led or
shamed by words into doing almost anything ; but
once let them imagine that they are being driven
or forced against their will, they turn mulish and
stubborn, and it is difficult to overcome their
obstinacy. They are reserved, never taking
liberties, and equally disliking any to be taken,
quick to judge character or to take offence, dis-
liking coarseness, flattered by small attentions and
agreeable glibness of speech. Notwithstanding an
apparent frank openness of manner, and seeming
candid light-heartedness attractive in the extreme,
they possess a self-restraint and control that enables
them to narrate only just as much as they think
it expedient for the listener to know. They parry
an awkward question with commendable dexterity.
56 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
and their face assumes a blank mask impossible
to pierce. If caught in a flagrant lie, with im-
perturbable good humour they own that their
** tongue has made a slip," and that you are better
informed than they. An indolent love of ease and
pleasure makes them dislike the monotony of any
continuous work. They seldom trouble to enter
into an argument, preferring outwardly to agree,
but inwardly they still retain their own opinions
of unshaken and undisturbed superiority ; or, as
they tersely put it, **they have a divided face —
the one half for the interrogator, and the other
half for themselves." They never boast, and dis-
like hearing others do so, and but seldom lose theif
presence of mind under the most trying circum-
stances. Plucky with a cool quietness that com-
mands admiration, they at the same time are never
forgetful that their own individual existence is a
matter of the first importance to themselves. As
long as their strongholds are intact they defend
them ably, and on several occasions have success-
fully repulsed assaults made by small parties of
soldiers unaided by cannon ; but convinced of the
hopelessness of withstanding arms of precision,
and disliking cold steel, they never await the
onslaught of troops whose guns have previously
made a breach in the defences of their fort, but
scatter to take up a new position behind fresh
stockades elsewhere. Cruel in so far as an utter
callousness and absence of sympathy towards
suffering is concerned, they are yet kind and
indulgent to their children. They have a great
dislike of petty wrangling, and shun the society
of the quarrelsome.
CHARACTERISTICS OF MALAYS. 57,
They are the most sensitive of Eastern races
to any disturbing influence, and many of them
suffer from a peculiar neurotic complaint called
latah, which is a disease that makes the sufferer
lose all power of self-control on certain occasions ;
for instance, in one case the sudden use of a
certain word will make the person afflicted jump
and shout, no matter where he may be ; in another
Ccise, a sudden exclamation and a pretence to fight
will cause the person afflicted to use the same cry,
and to copy the action of fighting in every par-
ticular, hitting anyone who may be near, absolutely
unable to control his movements until the paroxysm
is past, when, as soon as he has recovered from his
momentary exhaustion, he turns and curses the
practical joker whom he has been forced to mimic.
This nervous disease is more frequently to be met
with in women than in men, and unless you happen
by chance to hit upon the subject upon which they
are latah, you may never discover that there is
anything wrong with them. On one occasion I
accidentally found it out in a man whom I had
known for years, often travelled with, and never
suspected to be at all afflicted with any sort of
nervous complaint, for several times to my know-
ledge he had behaved in a very plucky way. One
day in the jungle I touched him suddenly on the
back and said **cut*'; he jumped and wildly cut
the air with his parang, exclaiming *' cut, cut, cut,"
the while, and when the paroxysm had passed,
turned round and said, "Ah, Tuan" (Ah, Master),
in a beseeching manner, as much as to beg of me
not again to take advantage of his malady; and
S8 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
of course I assured him on this point, and said
that it had occurred unwittingly, and that I would
be more careful in the future.
Their complex nature can be better understood
by studying their antecedents. The race as at
present constituted in this portion of the peninsula
is for the most part composed of descendants of
emigrants from Sumatra who have intermarried
with the aboriginal inhabitants. Notwithstanding
the Mohammedan conquest of the thirteenth and
fourteenth centuries, Malays still retain in their
legends and mythology many traces of the Hindu
influence that was previously paramount for many
centuries. They are not strict Moslems, neglecting
many of the observances and tenets of that religion
when they clash with their own pleasures and
indulgences. The fasting month of Ramadhan is
kept by many only in a most perfunctory manner,
and they have holy places at which they make
their vows, whilst spirit legends and folk-lore enter
largely into their faith. They firmly believe in
the efficacy of breathing upon sick persons, as
well as upon the medicine, before it is given, and
in cases of illness they constantly requisition the
attendance of the local exorciser. Foreign and
other influences seem to have had much to do
with the building up of their present temperament,
and their chief characteristics can be traced to such
sources.
The influence of Hindooism accounts for many
of their superstitions, as well as for the fabulous
tales they are so fond of repeating, and other
myths and legends. Their treachery, cunning,
CHARACTERISTICS OF MALAYS. 59
and absolute disregard of human life is due to
their Arabian ancestors, who introduced the
Mohammedan religion, which is answerable for
their fatalism and the looseness of their marriage
ties. They owe the indulgence of their love of
ease and pleasure to the productiveness of the soil,
which grows enough for their daily wants without
requiring any great effort on their part. The
aboriginal admixture accounts for their preference
to fight in the jungle and dislike to meet an enemy
in the open. Their inherent taste for gambling
perhaps comes from former Siamese conquests
and Mongolian influences. The climate is answer-
able for their neurotic tendencies, and in great
measure for the nervous diseases from which they
suffer. Their nautical vocabulary was added to
and enriched by many Portuguese terms and
expressions, during the time of the ascendency of
that race in this part of the world.
The youths go through a phase of strutting
about in fine raiment, always ready for an intrigue
in which there may be some spice of danger ; for
before British intervention, a krise — a long shaped
dagger, the blade of which is often fluted and
twisted, the handle and scabbard being of highly
polished wood — was carried by everyone, and
drawn without much provocation, and used with
deadliness, although generally treacherously and
when the offender was off* his guard. Often
the victim was waylaid, or craftily induced to
go on some expedition with his would-be de-
stroyer, who, whilst they were travelling together,
took the opportunity of killing his companion.
6o CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
This latter was a common method practised by
the followers of a chief, when ordered to remove
a person who had made himself obnoxious and
given offence, or whose death was necessary to:
the accomplishment of some cherished scheme or
to gratify some private spite.
As these people were under no absolute necessity
to labour, and only did so to obtain luxuries and
greater comfort, it was a difficult matter to induce
them to do a good day's work ; but by tact and
perseverance and sparing no pains I had trained
my older hands into excellent workmen, and the
new arrivals would follow their example, and in
time things went on very smoothly. An advance
would be given to the men every Saturday evening,
and after work on the last day of every month each
man received any balance there might be due to
him. It was always a lengthy business paying
the men, and especially so if there were many
who had never worked on the estate before, and
were receiving their pay for the first time ; for
there would always be several men who, on being
told the number of days on which they had worked,
would appear much disappointed, and strenuously
declare that the entry of one or two had been
omitted. They were always quite positive that
they were correct, and that you were wrong in
not recording their presence on the day in dispute.
This necessitated the calling together the friends
and companions, and questioning them upon the
subject, and perhaps, after a quarter of an hour's
interrogation, one of them would remember that
the complainant had had a headache on the day
PAY DAYS. 6 1
in question and did not workj or had gone to the
village at the foot of the hills or elsewhere. The
grumbler would then acquiesce ' with a stolid in-
difference, disliking to have beert found in the
wrong, but without the slightest compunction for
having wasted your time and kept everyone else
waiting, or thanks for the careful enquiries made ;
however, this was better than that anyone should
carry the tale of his having been cheated back to
his village, to prejudice the minds of others and
prevent their coming. It is marvellous how soon
news spreads amongst an Eastern race, and the
slightest rumour of unfair treatment would have
seriously reduced the number of workmen ; for
unless Malays like and have confidence in the
master for whom they work, they prefer to stay
away and not go near him. A brusque manner,
or a tactless method of dealing with them, has
often proved quite sufficient of itself to cause an
employer to be boycotted ; and so quietly was this
accomplished, that the person affected would vainly
wonder why it was he could get no labourers to
work for him.
The day after paying was always one of anxiety
as to how many would remain, for a great exodus
invariably occurred, and there was a scarcity of
labourers for the next few days until more arrived,
each of whom brought either a krise or spear, often
both, in addition to his parang, so that the houses
they occupied presented quite a warlike appearance
from the number of dangerous weapons hanging
and lying about. Although there were often about
two hundred men living within a short distance
62 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
of one another, they never once fought amongst
themselves or created the slightest disturbance,
which, considering their past careers, and that
they came from many different states and villages,
and were constantly changing, was extraordinary,
and only shows how easily the Malay is affected
by outside influences, and exemplifies the advan-
tages derived from the prohibition of intoxicating
drinks by the Mohammedan religion.
CHAPTER IV.
Monkeys — Flying Squirrels and Lizards — Wild Dogs — ^Jakuns —
Benighted— The Jungle— Birds— Wild Beasts— Leeches— Ticks-
Snakes — Fish — Scenery — Coflfee Planting— Cholera — Fall over
Rocks — Waris Families— The Chief of Sungie Ujong — Sword
Dance — Berok Monkeys — Malay attacked by Tigress — Death of
Tigress and Cub— Growth of Coffee — Difficulties of Labour —
Government dilatory — Abandonment of Estates.
The dawn of each day was heralded by the weird
cry of the wa-wa, or Gibbon monkey, whose call
was soon taken up by others of its tribe on the
opposite hillside, so that all around the air re-
sounded with their loud whooping shrieks.
Wa-was have long arms and very short legs and
tails ; they are black in colour, with a white fringe
of hair round their faces, which gives them an
almost human look, and each has the appearance
of some pigmy old man. They are most attractive
and plaintive creatures, but dwindle in confinement,
and seldom live for any lengthened period after
capture. There is also a white or cream-coloured
variety, but I never saw one in a wild state.
It is an interesting sight to come suddenly upon
a group of common monkeys, and then to watch
their stampede. They run up a tree and along
its branches, till reaching the extreme ends they
jump without the slightest hesitation right out into
63
..^'
V^ <^^^ 64 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
^'^^V' ^
<t^^ ^ s>^"
S"
^^
^^* ^'V./ space, seeming not to mind and little heeding how
long the drop may be to the branch they wish to
gain. They fall through the air with their arms
and legs stretched out, and no sooner have they
clutched the bough, which bends beneath their
weight, than without a seeming effort they are
off again, scampering across the tree and along its
branches, flinging themselves on to the one beyond.
The wa-was are of a more solitary disposition,
and swing from branch to branch with their long
arms, using their feet but little. Their progress
is slower, and they are less nimble, but they also
fling themselves from tree to tree, doing so with
outstretched arms, ready to seize the branch when
reached.
Flying squirrels would sometimes be seen sailing
through the air, but flying is a misnomer, for these
creatures have only the power of supporting their
bodies as with outstretched legs they skim across
the valley, always reaching some tree at a lower
elevation than the one they started from.
Flying lizards do much the same, and when dis-
turbed they appear to inflate themselves and flit
to another tree, up which they run and launch
themselves into the air once more, making short
flights from stem to stem, but never, as far as I
could discover, flying for any great distance.
Both these creatures have a kind of web which
stretches between the limbs along each side of their
bodies, forming a bat-like wing, so that when they
are extended the skin becomes taut, and sustains
their bodies whilst in motion and carries them
along.
WILD DOGS— JAKUNS. 65
Occasionally wild dogs in full cry after some
animal would be heard as they travelled along
the hillside ; but, being very shy and wary, they
are seldom seen, and it was only once that I
came suddenly upon one of these little creatures,
which was no bigger than a jackal, and appeared
as much surprised as I was at the encounter, and
disappeared directly he caught sight of me.
Along the ridges of the hills travelling was fairly
easy, for there was usually a track made by wild
beasts moving to and fro that could be followed ;
and these paths were used by the Jakuns, signs
of whose existence I sometimes came across, but
seldom managed to discover where they lived.
These Jakuns are supposed to be the descendants
of the aboriginal inhabitants, and they are a harm-
less race of men who spend their lives in the
jungle, and make their dwellings in some secluded
and retired spot, where they are with difficulty
discovered, running away at the first signs of an
approaching stranger, being very timid, and having
gleaming, restless eyes just like a wild animals.
They are small in stature, though well formed,
somewhat resembling Malays in physiognomy, but
having sharper and smaller noses ; living upon
jungle roots, rats and other rodents, for which they
set traps, or monkeys and larger animals killed by
the poisoned darts which they expel from their
long blow-pipes with extreme accuracy. And it is
fortunate that they have had a means of* defence
so deadly and dreaded by the Malays, or they
would long since have been exterminated, as they
suffered much persecution in this part of the
66 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
country, and were never safe from raids should
the place where they encamped for the night be
at any time found out, when the men were killed
and the women and children captured and sold as
slaves ; for it was only some while after the estab-
lishment of British supremacy that slavery and
slave dealing were abolished. There were but
a few representatives of this interesting tribe left
in this part of the peninsula, and they were
quite distinct, having a different appearance and
dissimilar characteristics, from the Melanesian race
who dwell in the hills further north.
Three rivers have their sources in this mountain
range, and flow in different directions — the Linggi
to the west, the Moar River to the south, and the
Triang to the east — and I often used to make
excursions and wander among these hills looking
for and prospecting places in which the soil
appeared richest, or scaling the neighbouring peaks
where great granite boulders and steep solid cliffs
of rock obstructed my progress, necessitating many
a detour, and only to be circumvented with diffi-
culty. Once, being benighted on my homeward
journey and unable to find my way, I made myself
as comfortable as I could for the night, selecting a
nice dry sandbank in the bed of a mountain torrent
for my resting-place. The night unfortunately
turned out wet; there was a heavy fall of rain,
causing the stream to rise and cover my im-
provised couch, from which I was obliged to
move and clamber up the steep bank at the side
by feeling my way, for owing to the pitch darkness
it was impossible to see anything around me ; and
THE JUNGLE— BIRDS. 67
there I sat, wet through, in the jungle, listening to
the water rushing past below me, until morning
dawned and I was able once more to continue my
journey.
The soil in these hills is of excellent quality and
of good depth ; it consists of a nice friable loam
permeated by quartziferous sand. The rocks are
granite, containing an unusual percentage of feld-
spar, and enormous boulders project through the
earth along the slopes of the hills as well as on
their summits and in the rocky streams.
The large jungle trees were fine and tall,
being crowned with wide-spreading, leafy branches,
beneath which there was a close thicket of smaller
trees and undergrowth, necessitating a track being
cut to form a passage — an easy matter for those
accustomed to frequent the jungle ; a snick here
and there cutting through some obstructive sapling
or branch was quite sufficient to make space
enough to pass, and this was done so deftly and
quickly that a fair walking pace was kept up the
whole while, unless some thicker entanglement of
thorns or bamboo made the cutting more arduous
than usual, when a slight check would occur ;
for however many a party consists of, going
through the jungle all walk in single file, one
behind the other; thus the leading person does
most of the clearing of the pathway for the rest
to follow.
Birds were not numerous ; that most frequently
heard wias the Argus pheasant, a pugnacious bird
that lives much by itself, and has a loud cry
that sounds like a distant coo-ey; it is very shy,
68 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
but can easily be captured with traps, for the male
birds have certain spots which they frequent and
strut around, showing off their lovely plumage
and calling defiance. There is a beautiful small
pheasant, just like a diminutive peacock, having
similar eye-like marks on its feathers, and another
whose reddish-brown-coloured back has caused it to
be called the fire-backed pheasant. A gregarious
species of quail is sometimes to be seen, the male
being of a brilliant green with a red-plumed crest
Large pigeons, resembling the ordinary wood
pigeon, although sometimes seen, are difficult to
approach. Swifts and swallows fly about in the
daytime, and in the evening the nightjar comes out
and sits near the house, making a noise, like
a stone skidding on ice several times in succes-
sion, with the most delightful irregularity in the
number of cries it gives and its intervals of
silence.
Wild beasts were fairly numerous on these hills ;
the tracts of elephants and seladang {bos sondaicus),
deer and pigs, tigers and panthers, rhinoceros and
tapirs were to be seen, as well as porcupine ; the
latter make their abode in the hollow trunk of some
fallen tree, and when disturbed by hearing the log
tapped at the end furthest from the hole, they rush
out and scuttle away at a great pace. Leeches
from two to three inches long abounded, and in wet
weather the ground seemed alive with them as they
stretched out their spindly bodies in the air or
made their way towards you, caterpillarwise, arch-
ing their backs as they rapidly travelled along.
Should you happen to stand still, numbers of
LEECHES— SNAKES. 69
dark brown leeches would be immediately seen
crawling over the dead leaves from all directions,
and sometimes a green one with a yellow stripe
down the length of its body, and light brown
underneath, might be observed coming along with
the rest ; but usually this variety remained amongst
the living green leaves of the branches, and
adhered to your clothes as you brushed past,
occasionally getting down your neck, but more
often they crawled up your sleeve and fed upon
your arm. The bites from this kind were more
venomous than those of the brown leeches, and
the place they sucked became more inflamed, felt
sorer, and took longer to heal.
After passing places much infested with these
creatures, the blood would ooze through the
stocking above the boot, for just round the ankle
was their favourite feeding ground ; and when, on
your return home, you pulled oiT your stockings,
numbers fell out, fat and bloody, whilst others were
to be seen still gorging, often as many as ten or
twenty round each ankle. The bites gave but
little trouble directly the bleeding ceased, and dis-
appeared in a few days unless poisoned by swamp
water, which caused obstinate sores that would not
heal.
To come across a place abounding in tiny ticks
was equally disagreeable, for they fastened on and
buried themselves in your skin, causing the greatest
irritation and annoyance, and being so minute they
were difficult to see and remove.
Snakes are so constantly met with as to cease to
cause any alarm, and when riding along a narrow
70 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
path the riders face sometimes nearly comes in
contact with one lying along a bough and waving
about its head, uncertain which way to turn.
A person walking through the jungle frequently
encounters one of these reptiles coiled up on the
branch of a shrub, and often only sees it just in
time to prevent his clutching hold of it with his
hand. The bright green harmless whip snake is
occasionally made a pet of, but one that I had,
instead of becoming tamer by handling, grew more
spiteful, so I let it go. Amongst the snakes whose
bite is certain death, the dreaded cannibal Hama-
dryad, who devours its own kind, is by far the
worst of them all, for it is very savage, always
moving slowly and reluctantly out of the way,
and if interfered with or annoyed, not only attacks
the disturber, but pursues him as well.
The rocky streams were full of pools, abounding
in quantities of little fish, which, upon observing
anyone approach, darted away to hide themselves
beneath the stones and boulders. After a few had
been caught with rod and line they became quite
cunning, and were hard to capture unless snared
with conical-shaped traps made of rattan tied
closely together, having a concave opening by
which they could enter but not return, and these
were placed in spots through which the fish had
to pass on their way up stream.
From the summits of some of the ridges of the
hills the sea could be seen, as well as the opposite
coast of Sumatra, but views were difficult to obtain
owing to the height of the trees and the density
of their wide-spreading tops. The far-off scenery
SCENERY— COFFEE PLANTING. 71
at best was somewhat uninteresting, for there is
not much variety in dense masses of forest when
viewed from a distance. The wooded valleys
below appeared like a sea of sober green, relieved
here and there by small patches of lighter tints,
indicative of the position of some village, the
paler green of whose paddy fields was all that
could be discerned.
Quite different again was the landscape as seen
from my house looking down on the opposite
side of the mountain, which was close enough
to allow of my being able to distinguish the leafy
top of each individual tree. The heads of some
towered above their neighbours, and every one was
different in shape, size, and colour, consisting of
various tints of green and bronze, upon which the
rising or setting sun caused fresh shades and
shadows to appear, creating a constant change
never wearisome to the eye.
In order to prepare the land for planting coffee
the undergrowth and smaller trees are first cut
down, then the larger trees are felled in clumps —
a method not only saving a great deal of labour,
but also safer, as otherwise trees are constantly
falling while the men are at work. The usual
way is to cut a notch on each side of the tree,
leaving a sufficient piece uncut in the middle to
prevent its falling of itself, and when a sufficient
number of stems have been thus treated a large
tree is selected and completely cut through, so
that it may fall in the desired direction, bringing
down all the smaller and half- cut- through trees
with it as it descends. Then all the standing-up
7a CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
boughs have to be lopped and laid flat, so that
the fire may more easily consume them, and as
soon as the timber is sufficiently dry, and a fine
day with the wind in the right direction arrives,
the whole hillside is fired. This is quite an
exciting event ; several men with torches com-
mence lighting the fallen timber at the top, and
clamber down the hill, setting alight to different
places as they pass and shouting as the dried
wood ignites. They run down the steep side of
the hill upon the branches and trunks of the fallen
trees, often many feet from the ground, and where,
should they slip and break a limb, nothing could
save them, for the dead leaves crackle and the
fire blazes up directly the torch is applied, and
by the time they reach the lower parts of the
field the upper portion is well ablaze, and the
fire roaring above them. Of course, it would be
less dangerous to light the fire at the lower end,
but the burn would then be patchy, and the wood
not so well consumed. It is a glorious sight to
see the whole hillside ablaze, and the fire and
sparks leaping up, whilst listening to the roar
and crackle of the flames ; and for days afterwards
the embers glow and simmer. The next proceeding
is to place pegs at certain intervals in line, for
which a long rope is used ; and roading and
draining have also to be done, and holes cut
and filled in with surface soil ; and finally, when
the wet season commences, the coffee plants raised
in the nurseries are planted out. All these works
necessitate a close supervision, and in addition
to this the labourers also required to be instructed
how to perform each part of the work.
COFFEE PLANTING. 73
To weed and keep down suckers from the coffee
shrubs, which are topped between two and three
feet from the ground, is all that is necessary until
the trees come into bearing and the berries mature
and require to be gathered. I suppose there are
not many people who drink a cup of coffee, or
buy the roasted bean, who know or think how
many coverings it has when it is plucked ripe
from the tree. If the coffee is dried in its outside
shell the latter becomes hard and difficult to
separate without injury to the bean, which is
then of less value, as it has not so good a colour
and shape. Another advantage of removing the
covering at once is that the bean is much more
easily dried, a great consideration in the hills when
the weather is uncertain, for each evening, and
during every passing shower, the coffee that is
drying outside has to be replaced in the store.
This building is always erected in a spot where a
plentiful supply of water is procurable by gravita-
tion, and by it the berries are carried on to a
revolving cylinder, round which is fastened a copper
sheeting, having rough projections or teeth, which
strip the pulpy outer covering from off the bean
and drag it past a bar that prevents the bean from
following, and the water flowing down washes the
pulp away on to a heap outside, whilst a sieve
moving backwards and forwards throws to one
side any berries that have escaped the teeth ;
but the beans themselves go through its meshes
and are carried into a cistern, where they are
allowed to slightly ferment, thus loosening the
glucose matter that still adheres to their next
74 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
covering, and making it possible to remove it by
washing, after which the coffee is dried in the
sun until the shell has become sufficiently brittle
to allow of the beans being placed in a mill and
bruised by a large wooden roller that goes round
and round, and whilst it breaks the outside covering
skin, or parchment, as it is called, it also removes
a fine inner, transparent covering called the silver
skin, but does no damage to the bean itself. These
now dusty fragments are separated from the beans
by winnowing, after which the latter are assorted
according to their size by passing down through
a revolving circular sieve of different meshes,
through which they fall into receptacles below,
whence they are collected and got ready for ship-
ment by being placed in casks or bags.
In addition to constantly recurring fevers, an
outbreak of cholera occurred. It was a dreadful
time, demoralization at first set in strongly, and
it was very difficult to persuade the men not
to all leave in a body. Many did go, however,
frightened that their families might be attacked
in their absence, for this scourge was claim-
ing many victims in the neighbouring villages.
Others decided to stay, knowing that everything
possible was being done to help them to overcome
the malady, and that if they were taken ill in their
homes they would not have the advantage of being
physicked and medically treated.
They had great faith in my powers of doctoring,
and certainly I always did a large amount of free
dispensing, not only amongst the coolies working
on the plantation, but to many who came for miles
CHOLERA. 75
to consult me as to their ailments. During this
outbreak I had to do all the doctoring, and
also the nursing, for the patients' friends could
only be got to administer to their comfort in a
perfunctory way, and kept as much as possible
at a safe distance ; so what with trying to keep the
estate work going and looking after the sick, my
time was more than fully occupied.
I spent much of each day with those who were
suffering from the complaint, and often took off
my coat to wrap it round heated stones trying to
alleviate the patient's spasms and keep his body
warm when nothing else was handy ; but in spite
of all my efforts many of them died as I sat on
the floor by their side. It was heartbreaking work
at first, a^ case after case ended fatally, eluding
my utmost efforts and every care bestowed, for no
medicine seemed of any avail, and I tried many
cholera mixtures of different kinds. The scare was
so great that the burying of the dead became a
difficulty, their comrades only taking them a short
distance and placing them in very shallow graves
in the jungle close to the edge of the path. I
managed to maintain pretty good discipline through-
out this trying time ; only once did a man refuse to
obey a necessary and sanitary order, remarking if
he did as he was told he would surely die. How-
ever, I insisted, and he gave in, but the poor chap
was buried the evening after ; his words came but
too true.
After a while the disease became less fatal,
seeming to lose its malignancy, and gradually died
away ; not, however, before it had laid hold of me.
76 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA
and within a few minutes I was so shaky and
feeble that I dared not take the ordinary cholera
mixture I used to dispense to my patients, from
fear of drinking an overdose, so had recourse to
brandy instead, as a little more or less of that
liquid did not signify, and I had just sufficient
strength to pour out and swallow over half a
tumblerful, obtain a blanket, and gain my bed.
I was afraid of calling in aid, lest the report of
my seizure should spread amongst the coolies, of
whom already over twenty-five per cent, had suc-
cumbed on the estate itself, besides the numerous
deaths of those who had managed to reach their
homes before they had been attacked, and it was
only the influence I had over them that kept them
together and prevented a general exodus.
It was astonishing how quickly the disease over-
powered me, and I collapsed from strength and
vigour into an awful weakness, feeling utterly
helpless to combat the malady. A sensation of
icy coldness crept up my legs, a twitching cramp
tingled in my arms and hands, my heart fluttered
wildly, and I was absolutely incapable of foretelling
the ultimate result of the attack as I lay helpless
and alone. However, in twelve hours I managed
to get about, although very limp and feeble, for
the epidemic had already lost its extreme virulence,
and my case was the last one that occurred on the
estate. After a week's interval, during which there
had been no further outbreak, and I had freely
told the men we had entirely got rid of it, I had
a terrible fright, being called one night to attend
what was supposed to be a fresh case. On reach-
A FALSE ALARM. 77
ing the houses where the coolies lived, I found
them all in a very excited state, and from scraps
of conversation overheard I, for the first time,
began almost to despair of restraining them from
bolting, and knew it depended upon whether I
saved the patient s life or not, for the coolies were
becoming alarmed, declaring the place was haunted
by evil spirits. I was conducted to where the sick
man was lying on the floor, whilst his comrades
were packing up their goods ready for an early
start the next morning back to their homes. At
the first glance I was relieved to see it was not
cholera the man was suffering from, but, never-
theless, was somewhat puzzled with the symptoms,
and no one appeared able to afford me any
information. ' I gave him an emetic, then another,
with no result, and as he was becoming very
drowsy I got him up, and with assistance walked
him about, half carrying him the while. At last
the emetic acted, and I found he had poisoned
himself with refuse opium ; much to my relief
he recovered, and I therefore did not lose my
men as I should have done had the case terminated
fatally. I was in the future to be amply repaid for
all the care I took of them ; it was a subject of
conversation in the villages round for some time,
and materially assisted the recruiting of labourers.
When the road to Seremban was sufficiently
completed to allow of a horse traversing it without
difficulty, I was able to go to and fro more often ;
and on one occasion as I was riding down the
mountain path, and passing a place where some
rocks obstructed the way as it circled round by a
78 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
gorge, the sides of which were precipitous and
rocky, my horse caught his hoof in a crevice, and
being unable to withdraw it he fell forward towards
the edge of the road. It was quite unexpected,
as I had often ridden past the spot on previous
occasions, and before I had time to collect my
thoughts I found myself lying on my back, my
downward course having been stopped by a large
boulder about ten feet below. On looking up I
seemed to see nothing else above me but feet and
hoofs, for the horse having been unable to recover
himself, and after giving me a bit of a start, had
also fallen over the side. Scarcely had the thought
of how very awkward it would be to be jumped
upon passed through my mind, when I saw the
horse make an effort to clear me, which he managed
to do, landing by my side in a much worse place,
striking and grazing himself against the rocks and
stones, upon which he left his hair as he drew his
hind legs over their sharp edges, and disappeared
in the gully beyond. I jumped up to follow him,
expecting to find he had come to terrible grief in
the stream below ; but a fallen tree that was lying
across the gully had just caught the pommel of
the saddle as the horse was passing under it, and
stopped his further progress. I managed to ex-
tricate him with some difficulty, and to regain the
road by a circuitous route, and was much relieved
to find that although he had been badly cut and
grazed he was otherwise uninjured.
The chieftainship of Sungie Ujong, like many
of the other smaller states, does not descend from
father to son, but from uncle to nephew, through
THE CHIEF OF SUNGIE UJONG. 79
the female side of certain families called '*Waris/'
In addition to a chief ruler of the state, headmen
to manage the different villages were elected, and
invested with authority to settle minor differences
and disputes, and to maintain law and order.
These headmen met with ready obedience from
the other villagers, unless they made an abusive
use of their powers, in which case factions and
disputes arose, and tlie discontented portion of the
community would often leave and make new homes
for themselves elsewhere.
These **Waris" families are the descendants of
certain settlers who, having left their own tribe or
village, migrated and established themselves in a
new part of the country, intermarrying with the
aboriginal inhabitants. They still maintain and
exercise certain acknowledged rights and privileges
in respect of neighbouring forests and lands, and
these vested interests were fully recognized by the
more recent settleris, who only owned the ground
they occupied and cultivated.
The chief of Sungie Ujong at this time was
called the Datoh Klana, but his official title was
Klana Putra, and he resided in the village of
Pantai, at the foot of the hills, until some years
afterwards, becoming mad, he was sent to live in
Singapore. One night he gave a great entertain-
ment ; quite a large assembly of Malays collected
to watch a display of sword-dancing which took
place in front of his house. It was an interesting
scene as the lurid glare of many torches lighted
up the fencers and the bright and varied-coloured
costumes of the lookers-on, Malays from different
So CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
States, who collecting in little groups discussed the
fencers and their methods, whilst the rhythmic beat
of many drums made an almost deafening and
bewildering noise.
A sword-dance is a fascinating pastime to the
Malays, who watch each movement of the players
as they advance towards one another, then retreat
and pirouette, then twist and twine their bodies in
a snake-like fashion, imitating caution, stealth,
attack, then bending, stamp and circle round,
vying with each other as to who can make the
most graceful movements ; and as they get excited
the game becomes quicker, emulation increases the
pace of their movements,* their breathing grows
more laboured, their weapons approach each other
nearer, and flash here and there so quickly that
in the flickering light it appears as though they
struck each other, — but that seldom happens, as
they manage to control their tempers, — until one
of them tired out at length gives up, and invites
another pair from amongst the bystanders to come
out and take their place, and give an exposition of
their swordsmanship.
As a show of agility and dexterity amongst
friends there is no danger in the game, but played
as it was that night, before little groups from differ-
ent states standing round, each man fully armed
and unaccustomed to much self-control, with the
memory of many former raids and feuds amongst
themselves still strongly lingering in their minds,
all of them desirous that their champion should
excel, and each party more than jealous of its
neighbours, there was an element of risk, and the
SWORD DANCE. 8i
smouldering fire might at any moment have burst
forth with sanguinary results.
It was not long before one more hot-headed than
the rest began to prick his adversary, who happened
to be his own nephew, just to show those standing
round that there was no fear in the village and
state from which he came, and to intimate that if
he was willing to pierce his own relation, how much
readier he would be to plunge his weapon deeper
into the body of some adversary, totally uncon-
nected by any ties of kinship or tribeship.
A few of the older heads suggested a cessation
of the games, as matters were becoming a little
critical, advice with which the Datoh Klana cor-
dially agreed, for he had probably been thinking
the same for some while, but was ashamed of his
own initiative to intimate that once the passions of
the miscellaneous spectators were fairly aroused, his
authority would not suffice to prevent an outburst.
The games were brought to a close, and the various
groups gradually dispersed, taking their torches to
light them on their different roads, and the murmur
of voices and beating of drums slowly died away in
the distance. The hot-tempered fencer was invited
up to where we were sitting, to keep him out of
mischief, and being regaled with cigarettes and
lemonade made in Chinese fashion (the latter a
nauseous compound in which little filaments of stuff
are generally to be seen floating about), soon be-
came a safer and pleasanter companion after he
had had a few soothing whiffs and a chat upon
other subjects.
Many of the inhabitants of this village kept a
82 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
large, ugly kind of slave monkey of the Berok
species, to ascend their cocoanut and other trees
and gather the nuts and fruits for them. These
monkeys were kept chained up near at hand, and
were intensely savage with strangers ; going to the
end of their tether they would stretch out their
hind legs to try and clutch the passers-by, if they
thought they were within reach ; at other times
they would look at you in a defiant manner, and
make a grimace expressive of how dearly they
would enjoy the chance of one good bite.
When a cocoanut was wanted a man or boy
would fetch a light rattan reel, on which was coiled
a long cord. The chain would be detached from
the monkey's collar, and the string fastened to it
instead, and he would then be led towards some
tree where there appeared to be a ripe nut or two,
and told to ascend it, which he would do in a some-
what sulky and protesting manner, stopping half-
way up, until a sharp tug of the cord and an
expostulatory remark from his master compelled
him to continue ; for in this respect the monkey is
very human in his dislike of being made to do
what he is told, if it is at all distasteful to him.
On reaching the cluster of nuts near the top,
several tugs of the cord would be necessary to
assist him to make up his mind which was the
ripest and easiest to detach, and to throw down the
one required. Finding a suitable foothold he would
twist the nut round and round until it broke off and
fell down, none too easy a task to accomplish, as
its fibrous stem is tough and difficult to break. If
another nut was wanted, a look of wearied disgust
MALAY ATTACKED BY TIGRESS. 83
would overspread his face as he slowly proceeded
to do as he was bid. The order to descend was
obeyed with more alacrity, and the string being re-
wound he would be led back and chained up, and
left to take his exercise, walking to and fro as far as
his tether would permit.
A tigress used to roam in the district through
which the road from Pantai to Seremban passed,
usually behaving very well, and molesting nobody,
except when her cubs were young, and then
generally two or three travellers along the road
disappeared. Once an Indian coolie, who was be-
nighted, lay down by the side of the path, and the
next morning all that was left to mark where he
had rested was a cloth he had placed underneath
his head ; his body had disappeared, and he was
never heard of more.
On another occasion a Malay had a lucky escape
as he was returning homewards with his purchases
slung on a stick carried over his shoulder, amongst
which was a large bottle of kerosene oil. The
tigress sprang out upon him as he passed by, but
jumping short missed his body and struck his
bundle, breaking the bottle of oil, and then bolted,
for tigers are like cats in this respect when they
miss their prey. The man ran away, giving the
tigress no chance of a second attempt, and leaving
her to ruminate upon the difference of a good meal
and the taste of kerosene oil as she licked her paws.
Whilst some Malays were hunting for game in
this neighbourhood, and were beating a clump of
bushes standing in the midst of a track of lalang,
a tiger cub was shot by one of the party as it
84 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
emerged from the thicket some distance away, and
the tigress, seeing her offspring mortally wounded,
turned and charged towards its destroyer. The
Malay had just time to slip another cartridge into
his rifle, and preserving his presence of mind and
coolness, he shot the tigress just as she was about
to spring.
Owing to the isolated position and flimsy con-
struction of the houses inhabited by Chinese
charcoal burners and small tin miners, they were
sometimes entered by tigers ; and connected with
this a curious superstition and belief was current,
namely, that the oldest Chinaman of the party
was usually singled out from amongst the sleeping
group and carried off.
The coffee bushes on the hills were commencing
to repay all the trouble and labour bestowed upon
them by their vigorous growth, as well as to cover
the ground with their foliage. Fevers became
less prevalent, good houses had been erected for
the labourers, and all that was wanted was the
necessary permission to import natives of India
to pick the crops, for which work it was impossible
to obtain sufficient coolies locally. In 1876 the
Secretaries of State for India and the Colonies
had both agreed to the principle of allowing
natives of India to be employed in the Malayan
States, and in 1878 the then Governor of the
Straits Settlements requested permission for their
direct importation to the native states from India.
It will hardly be believed that although these
protectorate states were under duly qualified British
officers, it took from 1878 to 1885 before the
GOVERNMENT DILATORY. 87
necessary permission to allow of this being done
was finally granted
These estates had been opened on the under-
standing and in the belief that there would be
no doubt whatever of being able to procure the
necessary Tamil labour long before the crops
should be fit to be gathered ; but the coffee-trees
commenced to bear, and the berries to ripen, and
then to fall for want of hands to pick them, and
a long stretch of 360 acres of luxuriant coffee in
full bearing, which had been planted and cultivated
under most difficult and trying circumstances, had
to be abandoned ; and although nature and disease
had been overcome, this industry was strangled by
red-tape, and fell a victim to the seven years of
protracted negotiations that took place before the
Colonial and Indian Governments would finally
accede to the earnest and urgent representations
of three successive Colonial Governors.
Fortunately experiments in the growing of
Liberian coffee in the plains were proving satis-
factory, and being more favourably situated with
regard to labour facilities, all that was already
under cultivation could be maintained and kept up,
although no extensions could be made until some
years later.
CHAPTER V.
Exploring and Surveying — Rassa — Events which caused British
Intervention — Man-eating Tiger — Camping in the Jungle —
Sleeping Man seized and carried off by Tiger — My Syce killed
and partially eaten by Tiger — Placing Spring Guns — Alone with
a Tiger— A Shot at a Tiger— Village of Lukut— Port Dickson—
Cape Ricardo.
Upon the closing and abandonment of coffee
cultivation on the hills, I turned my attention to
exploring, surveying, and road -making, and in
consequence travelled many times throughout all
the native states now under British control on
the western side of the peninsula, gaining a
thorough knowledge of the country and acquaint-
ance with its inhabitants. It was an arduous life,
full of hardships and exposure ; for at this time
the country was covered with dense forest, with
small villages dotted here and there, having but
little intercourse with one another, and the only
means of communication between them being
narrow tracks through the jungle, along which
only one man could pass at a time, and occasion-
ally these paths were so indistinct as to be nearly
obliterated and most difficult to follow.
The obstacles encountered in traversing and
exploring the country, in order to discover the
best route for a road to follow after its general
88
EXPLORING AND SURVEYING. 89
direction had been decided upon, were many.
The jungle was so thick that nothing could be
seen ten yards in advance, and as the country was
much broken up into innumerable hills and ridges
with gullies between them, in which swamps and
thorns abounded, progress was necessarily slow
and tedious. These numerous difficulties had
to be overcome before I could be thoroughly
assured that the line of the future roadway was
the best, and the gradients staked out the flattest
which under the circumstances could be chosen.
In wet weather even travelling was very
fatiguing; the tracks across or along the slopes of
the hills were wet and greasy, causing the foot to
slip back some portion of each stride taken ; swamps
waist deep in mud and water had constantly to
be floundered through ; everything got more or
less wet and sodden; and fever often followed as
a natural consequence. It was trj'ing work
journeying across such country day after day for
ten hours at a time, or working in dense jungle
on the scantiest of fare.
For some little while I lived at Rassa, a village
within a short distance of Seremban, and which
owed its existence to its having been the highest
point on the river to which laden boats could
ascend. My house was built on the side of a low
hill by a moat that had formed part of the former
defences of the fort that crowned the top of the
slope, and close to the execution ground where
prisoners sentenced to death were shot, a method
that had replaced the Malay mode of capital
punishment, which was in its turn to be superseded
90 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
by hanging within the walls of jails as soon as
they were erected. The original Malay system
of executing prisoners was curious. A cotton pad
was placed on the shoulders of the kneeling victim,
and a long straight krise thrust through it into his
body until the heart was reached ; then the weapon
was slowly pulled back, and the cotton pad both
checked the sudden rush of blood and cleaned the
blade of the krise as it was withdrawn.
This village of Rassa was formerly the centre
of the disturbances that so agitated the country
between the years 1873 ^.nd 1876 as to cause the
British to interfere. A Malay of Arab descent,
Syed Ahman by name, had managed to get himself
elected Klana, to which office he had some claims,
but was not the rightful heir according to long-
established custom, and his appointment occasioned
jealousy and discontent. He was strongly sup-
ported by a subordinate chief called the Banda,
who unfortunately died, and was succeeded by a
man who took the opportunity of making the
Klana*s unlawful succession a pretext for creating
disturbances. Jealousy added to the Klana s un-
popularity, for he was proving himself a capable
administrator, encouraging Chinese miners, and
there were not wanting signs that if left un-
molested much longer he would become too
firmly established to oust, for he had with some
acumen obtained recognition by the British Govern-
ment as Chief of the State, and with their help
had already given a lesson to Sungie Ujong^s
hereditary enemy, Rembau, when that state had
blockaded its outlet on the Linggi river. He had
RASSA. 91
also requested the assistance of a British official
to help him administer the government of the
state ; and it was as well that he had done so, for
the Banda being assisted in his revolt by some
Selangor freebooters and marauders led by one
of their rajahs, equally noted for his cruelty and
fighting qualities, matters became very serious for
Syed Ahman, whose power was well nigh gone,
and had it not been for his British adviser, and
a body-guard of Arab mercenaries, he would have
been driven from the state. About this time the
S'trimenanti people, delighted at the prospect of
humbling the Klana, who, because of his descent
from the prophet Mahomed, had refused to recog-
nize the Malay rajah of that state as his titular
chief, joined the Banda and were preparing to
invade Sungie Ujong.
Rassa became the centre of the disturbances,
and its defences were lost and retaken by each
party in succession ; whilst in the neighbourhood
there were over five thousand Chinese miners at
work, who were with difficulty restrained from
joining in the fray. The Government of Singa-
pore becoming anxious lest there might be a
repetition of the wholesale massacres of Chinese
which occurred fifteen years previously, in i860,
sent troops to the assistance of the Klana to help
him to maintain his authority.
The Banda and his rajah friends, after a slight
and faint-hearted resistance, fled to Selangor, but
being refused asylum in that country by its sultan,
surrendered to the British, who, although they
declined to allow the Banda to return to the scene
92 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
of his former intrigues, g^nted him a pension
which was continued to his family for a number
of years.
Whilst travelling about the state of Sungie
Ujong at a time when disease had destroyed large
numbers of wild pigs, that form the principal food
of the tigers, with one of which I had on two
occasions what might have been unpleasant en-
counters. Tigers are not only carnivorous, but
eat various kinds of food; they frequent the
vicinity of durian trees at the season when the
fruit is ripening, and upon hearing the thud as
one falls to the ground they leave their lair close
by, and breaking open its thorny covering enjoy
a luscious meal. They wander in the mangrove
swamps feeding upon unwary crabs, and roam
along the sea-shore eating several kinds of dainty
mollusca; they lurk by swampy places satisfying
their appetites with frogs, of which they are
exceedingly fond, but should one of them take a
fancy to human flesh, its whole nature changes,
and then, instead of shunning, it seeks the resorts
of man. An inveterate man-eating tiger becomes
very cunning and cowardly ; it does not frequent
one spot but travels twenty miles or more during
the night, capturing its prey about the same
localities but at different intervals of time, thereby
increasing its own security. It is never certain
where this pest will turn up next, for by the time
the rumours spread of its having been seen at
any particular place it has moved on elsewhere
before steps can be taken for its destruction,
creating fear and dismay throughout the districts
MAN-EATING TIGER. 93
it frequents. So easy of capture does it find its
fresh prey, that it devours but a small portion of
each victim, and^ does not return to finish its meal,
but seeks another one many miles away the next
or following day.
Travellers, and even bullock-cart drivers, wait
until a company of them have assembled before
passing tigerish localities, hoping by their numbers
to scare the enemy. No one stirs out at night, and
even in the daytime there is always a chance you
may be suddenly pounced upon. The road becomes
absolutely unsafe, and the tiger grows so bold that
it wanders up and down in the bordering jungle,
rushing out to attack sometimes a bullock cart, at
other times it will even spring upon one of a gang
of passing men, for numbers cease to frighten it.
I have seen a small, thin, slender knife the blade
of which was bent, the striker having failed to
drive it home into a tiger which had seized his
companion who was walking close behind him.
It is fortunate that, although the man-eater grows
bolder, attacking one of a band, instead of as
formerly only the solitary wayfarer, it never really
recognizes its own po>yer and strength, and the
ease with which it captures its prey makes it less
tenacious to keep it, and it allows itself to be driven
away by shouting and the flourishing of sticks,
whereas formerly if interfered with it would have
avenged itself upon the interrupter.
When camping in the jungle it is usual to erect
very primitive little shelters, taking but a short time
to build, in which to pass the night. A lean-to roof
thatched with palm leaves keeps off the dew and
94 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
rain, sticks placed near together make a sleep-
ing-bench upon which all lie down in a row
with their heads underneath where the roof is
lowest, and their feet touch the outer edge of
the structure and have to be tucked up to avoid
getting wet if it rains. The sticks are so hard
and uneven that at first most of the night is spent
in tossing about, endeavouring to find some less
irksome position, until habit teaches that this is
useless, and the best way is to determine not to
mind, but try and drop off to sleep with a stolid
indifference to discomfort.
The lean-to roof forms the only wall, the rest
is all open and unenclosed, and when the flickering
glow of the fires used for cooking dies away, and
the one solitary lamp with its dull glimmering light
is put out, all is in darkness.
Accidents but seldom happen to parties camping
out, and finding that an apparent indifference to
danger increased my influence over the Malays and
made them regard me with more respect, I never
during all my travels carried a weapon of any sort
other than a *'golah," a sharp-edged chopper knife,
fitting into a sheath placed inside the cloth or belt
of its bearer, and thus held in position, whereas
the larger kind of chopper, called a ** parang," is
carried in a sheath by the side and fastened to
a cord encircling the waist.
At first the inky darkness of night creates a kind
of awe, as you lie awake listening to the heavy
breathing of some sleeping coolie, and pondering
upon your seeming loneliness and helplessness
should some passing beast of prey happen to select
MAN CARRIED OFF BY A TIGER. 95
you for his supper. Habit, however, soon reconciles
you to sleeping peacefully, oblivious of all thoughts
of danger, and even the rustling of a dead leaf
as some wild animal passes by ceases to disturb
otherwise than by causing a feeble curiosity as
to what it may be, for experience teaches that in
this part of the world the wild animals, as a rule,
are just as disinclined to make your near acquaint-
ance as you are theirs, and the sudden start and
scamper often heard intimates that your scent has
reached the intruders nostrils and frightened him
away.
Of course there are exceptions, and one morning
on arriving at a camp, such as described, I found
that the occupants of it had passed through a
terrible experience the night before. They had
all gone to sleep as usual, and woke up horrified
on hearing one of their number shouting for help
as he was being hauled out from their midst by
a tiger, who had seized him by the leg, and was
pulling him out of the shelter and making away
with him. The man s piercing screams vainly re-
sounded through the trees as he was being dragged
further and further off from his terrified companions,
who sat huddled together quaking with fear and
powerless to help, for they had no firearms ; the
night was dark, and as the fires had gone out they
could see nothing. The cries shortly ceased, and
when daylight came search was made and the partly-
eaten body of their former comrade was found,
about 200 yards away from camp, and carried
back and buried, and at the time of my arrival the
men were all getting ready to leave their camp
96 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
and to build another some distance away. Several .
days afterwards I spent a night at this deserted
camp, but nothing occurred to disturb my rest.
One of my syces also met his death whilst he
was journeying along and carrying a saddle on
his head which he had been sent to fetch. He
was at the time accompanied by a native overseer
to whom I had lent a pony, and who, having
overtaken him as he was returning, had advised
him to halt and wait till morning at a wayside
house, as it was getting dusk, and the part of
the road which they were approaching was fre-
quented by the man-eating tiger. On my syce's
refusing to do as suggested, and expressing his
determination to continue his journey, the overseer,
for safety's sake, made him walk on in front of the
pony he was riding. The roadway was bordered
on each side by scrub and forest, so that the
obscurity made it difficult to follow the track, as
it wound in and out amongst numerous small hills.
Suddenly a dark object was seen to spring from
the bank above upon the unfortunate syce, from
whom but one cry was heard as he was knocked
over and fell prostrate by the roadside. The
tiger stood over his prey, and growling at the
pony as he approached, caused him to jump
across the road and start off galloping as hard
as he could until he reached his stable, and it
took some coaxing to get him to leave it the
next morning. Directly I got on his back his
courage and confidence returned, and he carried
me to the scene of the seizure of the night before
without any trouble, for we had been on many
PLACING SPRING GUNS. 97
journeys together, and I had often helped him out
of boggy swamps, from which he could not have
scrambled unassisted. The poor little animal
must have been terrified the night before, for on
examining the road I discovered he had made,
for him, a tremendous jump from quite close to
where the man was knocked down by the side
of the road, and I quite believed what the overseer
told me as to his not knowing how he managed
to stick on, but imagine fear made him grip the
pony very tightly. I found two or three men
waiting for my arrival, having already recovered
my saddle, which had fallen several feet down the
bank at the side of the road.
We followed the line taken by the tiger with
its victim — picking up a portion of the man's
clothing on the way — and after crossing a swamp,
and proceeding a short distance beyond, we found
my poor syce's body, lying face uppermost, on a
ridge in the jungle. The cleanly-picked bone of
the man s right leg, which had been torn off, was
close by; the marks of the tigers fangs were
plainly visible at the back of his neck, show-
ing how he had been seized and carried away,
otherwise to all appearances his body was un-
injured. We placed spring guns all around, which
we visited the next morning to find them just as
we had left them, for the tiger had not returned
for another meal, and as it appeared useless to
keep the body exposed any longer, it was buried
where it lay. At a distance of over twenty miles
from this place I had a very unpleasant half-
hour as I was journeying along a jungle track,
98 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
which I had to traverse in order to inspect some
work going on in the neighbourhood, where this
man-eater had created quite a panic amongst the
workmen, as he had taken several of them away.
I had ordered my bearers to go on to a camp
some five miles off, intending to follow myself
almost immediately and to catch them up. How-
ever, I was detained in talking to one of my
employees until there was only just time left for
the journey before darkness set in. I started off
at my best pace along the narrow track, and
at about mid-distance, as I was ascending out of
one of the innumerable gullies that had to be
crossed, I smelt the strong odour of a tiger, and
on looking down saw its fresh pug marks on
the path. Here was a nasty predicament to be
in, for in all probability this tiger could be
none other than the famous man-eater, which
was following up my bearers, and therefore
he must be between me and the camp I wished
to reach.
The light was already becoming a little in-
distinct, and I had some distance before me yet,
so there was no time for hesitation, for in these
climates darkness comes on quickly, as there is
little or no twilight I drew my knife, although
it was but a poor instrument for defence, and
carried it in my hand. It was a time of intense
excitement, peering into the undergrowth on both
sides of the path, every now and then seeing the
footprints of the tiger as I hurried along, not
knowing at what instant I might be face to face
with the beast; or perhaps having missed seeing
ALONE WITH A TIGER, 99
him as I passed by some bush, I should feel a
sudden blow behind as he sprang upon me. After
nearly two miles of anxious walking, during which
I made as much clatter with my boots as possible,
in the hope that such a strange and unusual noise
might scare him away, I saw in front a large tree
that had fallen across the path, and remembered
when last I had passed this obstacle I had taken
some little while creeping round it through the
undergrowth at one side. Fortunately the ground
sloped down at a considerable angle towards the
tree that blocked the way, which enabled me to
take a short run and leap on to the barrier, from
which I jumped off on to the ground below as
noisily as possible, and as I landed, there was the
sound of a sudden rush in the thicket close by
as the tiger bounded away. There is no doubt
he had heard me coming, and was crouching and
waiting close to the thick entanglement caused
by the branches, through which I could only have
made my way slowly ; but the strange sight of a
man, perhaps to him clothed in an odd manner,
with a large white mushroom hat on his head,
jumping through the air, and whose feet made
such a thud as he landed, was too much for his
equanimity, so instead of attempting a capture he
took fright and fled, much to my relief as I
sheathed my knife and continued my journey.
When I reached camp I said nothing about my
adventure, as I did not wish to increase the alarm
of the labourers, as they had already erected
palings round their sleeping-places for protection,
and it was becoming increasingly difficult to
lOo CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
prevent their quitting this tiger-infested district
and returning to their villages.
A short while afterwards I was destined to come
to still closer quarters with this man-eater, and to
make his very near acquaintance. I was driving
to Linggi with a friend who had but lately arrived
from England, and was armed with a sporting rifle ;
and hearing rumours, as we passed some houses
by the wayside, of this tiger having been seen not
far off, I borrowed a gun, after enquiring if it was
properly loaded, and receiving an affirmative reply,
qualified with the remark that owing to its being
very wet the night before the owner had withdrawn
the charge, and then dried and reloaded the gun.
We had not started long before a bullock driver
shouted to us as we were passing him that the tiger
had just come out to attack his bullocks, but that
he had driven it off, and it had gone up a small
path on one side of the road.
On reaching the path indicated we left the trap
and walked up it out of curiosity, and having but
little hope of seeing anything, when suddenly to
my eyes — which were practised and accustomed
by much forest travelling to note and quickly see
things that to the ordinary observer would pass un-
noticed — there appeared a shade of colour unnatural
to its surroundings, and on looking more closely
the head of the tiger gradually became visible
as he lay motionless beneath a bush almost out
of sight. He was crouching but fifteen feet away,
intently watching me with his head close to the
ground, and waiting to spring, perhaps only
prevented from having done so already by my
unfamiliar white face and attire. He returned
A SHOT AT A TIGER. loi
my gaze with a quiet, steady stare, never blinking
nor shifting his eyes in the slightest degree.
I stood still; my friend with the rifle meanwhile
endeavoured to look round my shoulder, but could
see nothing. The tiger remained quiet — there
seemed to be no hurry — so taking a steady and
deliberate aim I pulled the trigger. The gun went
off with a puff, and a sound as if it had been but
sparingly loaded, and there followed the noise of
a sudden rush, and then all was quiet. Upon
examination I found drops of blood on the leaves
where the tiger's head had been, as well as on the
spot where he had landed from the tremendous
spring he made. I tracked him a short distance by
the twigs he had broken and the marks of his claws
on roots and ground as he dashed along in his
frantic flight, but soon gave up the chase and re-
turned to the path, as we were on our way to catch
a steamer at Linggi, and could not delay longer
without the risk of its leaving before we arrived.
Some days afterwards, when 1 returned to this
part of the country, 1 made enquiries, and dis-
covered that the gun had been loaded with but
a few pellets of shot and a little powder, and as it
had been raining heavily for some days the latter
was more or less damp. The owner of the gun had
been pigeon shooting, for which purpose a very
light charge was all that was necessary, as he always
crept up close to the bird before discharging his
piece ; and when 1 borrowed it the one barrel loaded
contained only what was left of his supply of powder
and shot, which had become almost exhausted.
The tiger entirely forsook the district, and was
102 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
not heard of for some two months, when he carried
away a Chinaman from a house about twenty-five
miles distant, in daylight, and being followed up,
was shot as he stood growling over his victim.
He was a very old male, with but one eye ; so I
fancy, as both his eyes were sound when we looked
at one another, that a shot from my gun must have
penetrated one of them and blinded him, and this,
added to the burning powder which probably
scorched his face at such close quarters, would
account perhaps for his not having sprung upon
me.
Close to the northern boundary of Sungie Ujong
is the village of Lukut, situate upon a small river
of the same n^ime, and famous as being formerly
one of the principal places from which tin was
exported. The foreshore has become so silted
up that the village is now difficult of approach
from the sea ; but although it has lost its former
prosperity it is still an interesting old place, where
the remains of ruined stockades and defences, now
almost obliterated by a rank growth of underwood,
as well as the occasional discovery of some old
rusty cannon or blunderbuss, testify to the lawless
and uncertain times that formerly existed, when
each petty chieftain was constantly at war with his
neighbour, and was obliged to protect himself
from sudden surprise and attack, and the few
Chinese who had the hardihood to live amongst
such turbulent surroundings were not sure of their
lives from day to day^ nor that the tin won amidst
such perils would not be forcibly taken from them.
At any rate, they were always certain to be com-
LUKUT— PORT DICKSON. 103
pelled to pay a heavy toll for the protection of the
chief in whose district they were living.
The petty chiefs themselves were careful not to
make their exactions too burdensome, or too fre-
quently to kill the goose that laid the golden eggy
as the revenues they received from these industrious
Chinese aliens not only added materially to their
comfort and power, but were the only exactions
they could levy other than from their own followers,
who would migrate elsewhere should their taxation
become unbearable, and seek the protection of some
milder chief This constant internecine fighting at
last so crippled the power of the smaller chiefs that
it became only possible for them to defend the
stockaded villages in which they dwelt, and they
were no longer able to afford any sort of protection
to the Chinese miners, who were left to the mercy
of marauding gangs of bandits and robbers, pirates
and murderers, who so terrorized and desolated the
country, that previous to British intervention the
revenues of the district of Lukut had fallen from
200,000 to 5,000 dollars per annum, and were on
the point of being entirely extinguished.
Not far from here, to the southward, on the sea
coast, is the prosperous and thriving town of Port
Dickson, the only sheltered deep-water anchorage
near the shore between Singapore and the Straits
of Klang, and which is now the calling place of
steamers trading up the coast, and the outlet for the
trade of the interior. Villas and houses built on
the hill slopes overlooking the Straits of Malacca
occupy the place of the trackless forest ; there is
a fine pier, alongside of which steamers load and
I04 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
discharge their cargoes, and what was once man-
grove swamp has been filled in with earth from
the adjacent hill and is now the site of shops and
streets.
Further to the south is Cape Ricardo, a bold
rocky promontory, having a lighthouse on its
summit, which was attacked by pirates at the
time of the Selangor disturbances,
A shallow flat makes many of the villages along
the coast difficult of access, except by small boats,
and for these this headland is a dangerous place
to weather unless the tide is slack and the sea
quiet, for the current races round the cliffs that
rise abruptly from the sea and tower overhead.
The water is usually disturbed by numerous eddies,
and dashes against this wall of rock only to recoil
and to be driven forward once again by the tide ;
and even at the best of times a small boat tumbles
and tosses about as she rounds the point and turns
the corner into the smoother waters beyond, that
continue along the coast of Sungie Ujong until the
river Linggi is reached, which near the sea is the
southern boundary of the state, and separates it
from Malacca.
On the narrow strip of sand which connects the
projecting headland of Cape Ricardo with the
peninsula there are still remains of a canal,
which, when finished, was to have saved the
small boats trading up and down the coast from
risking the passage round the rocks ; however,
the intentions of the originator of this scheme
were better in the conception than in the execu-
tion, and the canal was never completed.
CHAPTER VI.
S'tul — Brennang — Samunieh — Pudu — Kwala Lumpor — Frequent
Fires — The Capitan China — Secret Societies — Events which
caused British Intervention — Kwala Selangor — Lombong Tin
Mining — Winning, Sluicing, and Smelting of Tin Ore — Division
of Profits — Miners' Houses— Shed for Dying Coolies.
Adjoining Sungie Ujong to the north lies the state
of Selangor, and in 1883 the only means of com-
munication between the two places was by a jungle
track, which some distance from Seramban lost
itself in a muddy stream until the foot of the S'tul
range of hills was reached. After surmounting
these and descending on the other side, the valley
of S'tul was passed, and amongst the few houses
dotted round the paddy fields were some inhabited
by men from Karinchi in Sumatra, who have the
reputation of being able to transform themselves
at will into tigers, a superstition firmly believed
in by their neighbours, who hold them in some
dread and awe.
The next inhabited place reached was the isolated
village of Brennang, consisting of two or three
wayside houses of the usual flimsy kind, easily
built, and as lightly abandoned should the dwellers
care to leave them and move elsewhere. Each
house had a rough shelter for passers-by, in which
hung sundry bunches of shrivelled plantains for
105
io6 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
sale, and which were generally occupied by half-
naked children, who made these sheds their play-
ground. Here the traveller rested awhile before
attempting to cross the swamp, full of rank grasses
and rushes, and waist-deep in mud, that stretched
across his path.
Just as night was falling the river of Samunieh
was reached, and in the village beyond the way-
farer felt thankful that half the journey had been
achieved, and that the next day would bring him to
Kwala Lumpor. Not, however, that the second day s
journey was any better than the first ; more tedious,
if anything, was the narrow jungle path, full of
holes and roots ; the paddy fields of Cadjan and
the river at Cheras had all to be crossed, as well
as innumerable streams and "spurs and swampy
gullies, before the mining camp of Pudu was
reached, an outskirt of Kwala Lumpor, and a
settlement of Chinese miners, who were all busily
employed '* winning" the tin with which the valley
abounded.
Kwala Lumpor is the chief town of Selangor,
and the principal Government offices are located
here. It is situated at the mouth of the Gomba
river, a tributary of the Klang, the latter being the
chief river of this part of the country. The
houses of the Government officers were pleasantly
situated on the adjoining hills overlooking the
town, roads were in course of being laid out, order
was kept by a small body of Malay police, and Mr.
(now Sir) Frank A. Swettenham had lately been
appointed the British Resident of the state ; and
its rapid development was in large measure due to
KWALA LUMPOR— FREQUENT FIRES. 107
the policy adopted of improving the means of
communication to enable the Chinese miners to
transport their supplies at a reasonable cost, and
also to the encouragements to settle that were
extended to the Malay immigrants from foreign
states, who readily availed themselves of the ad-
vantages given.
The immediate neighbourhood consists of a fine
fertile basin of flat country forming an amphi-
theatre, surrounded on the east by the mountains
of the main range, and on the other sides by
subsidiary spurs. The hills here are bolder and
the valleys more extensive than further south, and
these characteristics become even more marked in
the state of Perak, further to the northward.
The town itself already presented all the appear-
ances of a prosperous mining centre ; the streets
were littered with bricks and timber, for substantial
structures were fast taking the place of the flimsy
wooden houses so liable to catch fire and be
destroyed. It was no unusual occurrence for a
whole village, which had quickly sprung into
existence owing to some great influx of Chinese
miners to the neighbourhood, to be entirely devas-
tated and laid waste by fire, a layer of ashes and
a few badly-charred posts here and there being
all that was left of what had been but a few hours
before a flourishing little centre of trade. In the
towns, of course, the destruction was on a bigger
scale, and the opportunity was taken advantage
of by all the bad characters to lay hands on and
steal what they could ; rioting and fighting also
created a new danger, and made the confusion
io8 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
worse. The better houses were formerly built with
mud walls, and over the ceiling there was a layer
of earth. On the first alarm of fire, a hurried rush
would be made by the inhabitants to close the
doors of their shops in order to prevent their
contents from being looted. The owners of the
wooden houses nearest the conflagration were
busily employed in carrying what they could of
their goods to some place of safety. Those in the
mud houses simply sat inside and patiently awaited
events, in comparative safety if the conflagration
was not too fierce ; for although the light roofs
overhead were burnt and destroyed, the contents
of the shop were but slightly damaged unless the
fire gained an entrance through the wooden doors
or windows, in which case the building would be
entirely gutted. On no consideration would those
inhabitants who were somewhat more remote from
the fire help to extinguish the flames or open their
doors, and the only way to gain an entrance was
by bursting them in. As an instance of this, 1 have
seen the roof of a shop catch fire from some spark
that had blown on to the thatch unknown to the
inmates within, who obstinately refused admittance
to those outside endeavouring to enter, so that they
might get on to the roof and put out the flames.
Shouting and hammering were of no avail, and
there was nothing to be done but to break in the
door with an axe, when the Chinese occupants were
disclosed crouching down and awaiting events in
dumb stupidity, seemingly paralyzed by the dread
of being robbed should they open their doors and
by the fear that the fire after all might reach them.
THE CAPITAN CHINA. 109
Then in turn house after house had to be broken
into, and the inmates compelled to fetch water
to throw over their roofs in order to prevent stray
sparks from igniting the palm leaves with which
they were thatched.
It was to prevent the destruction of property
and its concomitant evils, that directly a village
became prosperous and of sufficient importance,
orders were given that within a defined area all
the shops were to be built of brick before a certain
date. This decree had been issued at Kwala
Lumpor just before my visit, and accounted for the
roads in the parts affected by the order being
littered with building material.
The **Capitan China" was the title of the head
of the Chinese community, and the position at
this time was occupied by Ah Loi, a man of con-
siderable influence and power, who greatly assisted
the Government in preserving law and order. He
was an old settler, and on several occasions had
led the Chinese in their resistance to Malay
cupidity, and during the disturbances the town of
Kwala Lumpor had been three times burned down,
and on each occasion it was rebuilt by this in-
suppressible trader, who not only had to defend
himself from external attacks, but also to quiet
the different tribes and societies of the Chinese
when they fell out and fought among themselves.
Although to an outsider one Chinaman looks
very like his neighbour, they often speak so
entirely different a dialect as not to be able
to understand one another ; and the various
tribes are animated with a hostility which is only
no CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
too ready to break forth on the slightest provo-
cation, unless restrained and kept in check by
superior force and discipline. The secret societies
also made matters worse, for if two members of
separate communities had a dispute with one
another, it was not long, if they happened to belong
to different societies, before they appealed to their
fellow comrades on either side, and a free fight
took place. As the numerous cries for assistance
spread the numbers increased, for the men of each
society were obliged to help their faction if called
upon to do so, and all new comers were forced to
join one of the societies for self-preservation if
they did not already belong to any. In dealing
with these societies it has been a difficult task to
limit their tendencies for evil and to curb their
sphere of action by legislation, and should they
be suffered at any time to go unwatched and un-
checked, they would speedily again grow powerful
and dangerous. Some of the Chinese mine-owners
kept their labourers almost in a state of serfdom,
and occasionally treated them with (he greatest
barbarity. The smuggling of opium used to be
very prevalent, and I often came across the tracks
formerly made by smugglers in the uninhabited
jungle, stretching between the coast and the mining
districts of the interior.
The present Sultan of Selangor, whose name is
Abdul Samat, resides, as he always has done, at
a village near the mouth of the Langat riven In
1856, with the assistance of a powerful chief,
Rajah Juma'at of Lukut, he succeeded, notwith-
standing the hostility of several other claimants.
THE SULTAN OF SELANGOR. iii
in securing the chieftainship and establishing his
authority. In 1863 he appointed his son-in-law,
Tunku-dia-Udin, to be Viceroy over Klang and
the inland districts, thereby offending his nephew,
Rajah Mahdi, who claimed the position for him-
self, and endeavoured to assert his claims by force
of arms. The whole state became involved in an
internecine warfare that lasted ten years, during
which time the Sultan remained quietly at Langat
watching events ; and eventually it was only with
the assistance of a force of three thousand men,
sent by the ruler of Pahang at the request of the
Governor of Singapore, that Tunku-dia-Udin was
enabled to defeat and quell his enemies. In the
meantime the districts he had been appointed to
govern had been ruined and depopulated, and the
expense of the struggle had overwhelmed him in
debt. Such anarchy prevailed that every Malay
over twenty had at least killed one man, a life
was taken for a hasty word, a jest, or a debt of a
few dollars, and as often as not treacherously and
without warning. The example set by the rajahs
was deplorable ; one of them boasted of having
taken a hundred human lives, whilst several others
counted between twenty and fifty ; they maltreated
and killed their slaves, and murdered their followers
in cold blood on the slightest of pretexts. Pirates
made the sea unsafe for traders ; and becoming
emboldened by long impunity, a gang of them
proceeded to Penang and shipped as passengers
on board a schooner, which they surprised and
captured at sea, murdering thirty - four of its
passengers and crew. The rumour of this piracy
112 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
caused a search to be made for the missing
schooner, which was discovered anchored off the
pirates' haunts at Langat, whilst her cargo was
openly displayed for sale in the shops of the
town, and a large sum of specie had been already
divided. Several of the pirates were discovered
still on bpard their prize, and were arrested ; a
visit was paid to the Sultan, who was affable and
obliging, and although personally not involved in
the piracy, regarded it as a pastime and amusement
which kept the unruly followers of his rajahs out
of other mischief. Everything appeared to be pass-
ing off well, when suddenly a treacherous attack
was made on the boat s crew as they were on the
point of returning to the steamer. In consequence
of this a gunboat was sent, which, in spite of
a brisk fire from the fort, shelled the stockades,
drove out its defenders, and a party of soldiers
landing completed its destruction and burnt the
town. The Sultan agreed to outlaw the rajahs
implicated, but the unruly elements were only
scotched, not killed, and the coast became as un-
safe as ever. At last the very daring of these cut-
throats resulted in a further capture, a native
of Malacca, the only survivor of a party of
nine British subjects, suddenly and treacherously
attacked whilst at anchor off the Langat river,
and who had marvellously escaped by clinging
to the rudder of the boat for hours whilst the
pirates looted its contents, after swimming ashore,
fortunately fell in with friendly Malays, and finally
succeeded in returning to his native town, where
shortly afterwards he recognized some of the
0<
o
o
<
D
"3
BRITISH INTERVENTION. 115
murderers of his companions as they entered the
Malacca river, and informing the police obtained
their arrest, when some of the pirated property was
found in the boats on board of which they were. At
the request of Tunku-dia-Udin, these men were tried
and sentenced by a native court held at Langat ;
seven of the eight captured were executed, being
publicly krised. A heavy fine was exacted of the
Sultan, who agreed to the appointment of a British
Resident to advise and help his Viceroy, and con-
sented to have an official stationed at Langat, so
as to be in constant communication with himself.
During the negotiations Cape Rachado lighthouse
was attacked by pirates coming from the banks
of the river on which he dwelt, and later on a
piracy occurred close to the Sungie Ujong
boundary. But these proved the last outbreaks by
the unruly elements that had terrorized the state
for so many years ; and the outbreak of the Perak
war afforded an opportunity of giving congenial
employment to several of these restless rajahs,
who, delighted at the prospect of fighting, readily
joined the British troops, to whom they gave
valuable assistance from their knowledge of the
country, its inhabitants, and the arts of Malay
warfare. Although British troops were necessary
to quell the disturbances in Perak, Sungie Ujong,
and S'trimenanti, the Sultan of Selangor, with the
loyal assistance of Tunku-dia-Udin, managed to
keep the remnant that was left of his former
subjects under control and peaceable. He still
lives in retirement at Langat, although now in
affluent circumstances, and takes an interest in
ii6 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
the development of the state by British officers ;
but is only seen on special occasions when he
travels to Kwala Lumpor with all the luxury that
a princely steamer and well-fitted railway saloon
carriage can afford, accepting his prosperity with
the same calm placidness with which he received
his blood - stained rajahs, and weathered the
intrigues, storms, and disputes that well nigh
devastated and depopulated the country ; truly an
interesting man, this doyen*" of the Malay sultans,
whom neither prosperity nor adversity can alter.
Langat and Klang were not the only seaboard
towns of Selangor where misrule and excess ran
riot, for there was a settlement at Kwala Selangor,
near the mouth of the Selangor river, whose
population consisted of Menangkabau, Mendaling,
Rawas. and Bugis Malays, and Chinese shop-
keepers, and which was a well-known rendezvous
of bad characters and robbers. Fish-curing formed
the principal peaceful vocation of the inhabitants,
and the river was notoriously unsafe owing to the
boldness of the crocodiles that lived in it, and not
only fed upon the offal thrown into the water when
the fish were split and cleaned, but even attacked
the occupants of small boats, seizing and pulling
them out of their little craft. The village itself
was by no means a sweet-smelling place, for a brisk
trade was carried on in drying prawns and making
blachang, the latter being an odoriferous mass of
decomposed prawns, much appreciated by Malays^
who eat it as a condiment at their meals with relish
* Since writing the above the news of the death of Sultan Abdul
Samat has been received.
SELANGOR. 117
and esteem it a delicacy, apparently oblivious of its
foul smell. To me it was nauseating, and I never
tried to conquer my aversion beyond experimentally
tasting a little on one occasion.
On a solitary knoll overlooking the village there
are the ruins of a fort erected by the Dutch in order
to command the mouth of the river, so as to con-
veniently collect the dues levied upon the imports
and exports ; and at the same time it was well
situated for the purpose of carrying on their system
of monopolizing the chief products of the country,
which obliged the merchants and traders to sell
to the Government all tin and certain produce
obtained in the interior at an agreed-upon price,
fixed considerably below the market value of the
goods. On the signing of the treaty of Holland
the Dutch evacuated this place for the last time,
and the Malay inhabitants not only re-occupied it,
but made it their stronghold from which to fit out
piratical expeditions. As late as 1875, whilst the
British Resident was on a visit to the place, a man
was stabbed and killed openly in the street before
a large number of witnesses, and it was not until
some years afterwards that the unruly elements
were thoroughly quieted.
The interior of Selangor, which had become
depopulated during the disturbances, soon attracted
Malay emigrants from Sumatra and elsewhere, who,
hearing of the establishment of law and order
under British officials, came over to settle and make
new homes for themselves in the Malay Peninsula,
and being more industrious and better cultivators
than the previous inhabitants, brought much fresh
ii8 CAMPING AND. TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
land under the plough and formed new villages,
with the result that now the Malay population of
the state is for the most part composed of these
aliens who have settled in the country.
There are two systems of tin mining pursued
throughout the country by the Chinese, and these
methods are called **Lombong" and **Lampan"
workings. The Lombong, or open working, is the
one more usually carried on, as it is in the valleys
that most of the tin is found. It consists of
digging, carrying, and throwing to one side the
top soil to a depth varying from three to thirty
feet. The first work to be commenced, when on
satisfactorily prospecting the decision to open a
mine has been arrived at, is to fell the jungle, pile
and burn it; then the surface water has to be
drained and confined to channels. An excavation
is next made, the size depending upon the scale
upon which the mine is being opened ; usually in
a new valley the commencement is but small, and
the land is thoroughly tested and proved before
extended operations are undertaken. A water-
wheel, or engine and pump, are placed in position ;
the hole in which the water collects is kept dug out
at a lower level than the workings, so as to keep
them dry and free from water and to enable the
miners to dig and carry away the earth, which they
do in small oblong baskets, the side handles of
which are connected by a length of stiff rattan,
through which a carrying-stick is passed. The
miner then lifts his load and places the stick on
his shoulder, having a basket suspended at either
end, which is kept from slipping off by a knob
LOMBONG TIN MINING.
119
or projection at the top of the stick. He then
runs up ladders at a great pace, steadying each
basket with a hand to prevent their swinging about
and spilling their contents. These ladders are
ingeniously simple, and made from the long, slender
trees cut from the forest close by ; and when steps
have been scooped out the miners are able to run
^^^^^^^^^^^^^H
>- i'*3Pv^^^HflT |. fl^^^^^^^^^^^lp^^wJH^^B^^
^
^
up and down them, carrying their loads, if they are
not placed at too steep an angle. The men carry
their full baskets up one ladder, and when they
reach the surface empty them at some little distance
and return by another ladder, to find that their
comrades at the bottom of the mine have already
filled fresh baskets for them, and discarding the
empty ones they take up full ones in their place
and commence the ascent again ; so that there is
I20 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
a constant moving succession of coolies going up
and down, for whom the men working in the mine
itself are busily employed preparing their loads, so
that they shall not have to wait and waste their time.
The soil removed usually consists of several feet of
ordinary earth, then a beautiful white clay, and on
these being taken away the tin-bearing sand is ex-
posed to view. This sand is then carefully sampled,
and small portions of it are washed now and again
in a kind of open wooden dish to discover whether
it contains any ore. Directly prospects are obtained,
the sand, instead of being thrown away as hereto-
fore, is piled up in a place allotted to it. These
tin-bearing deposits vary considerably in thickness,
from a few inches deep to several feet, and usually
consist of sand and stones, although sometimes
large waterworn boulders are also to be met with.
A long wooden trough, or sluice, through which
a stream of water flows, is then prepared, and
charged with sand and stones, which are raked
backwards and forwards with a long - handled
species of hoe, the larger stones being collected
and thrown to one side, whilst the lighter ones
and the sand are carried away by the water, but
the tin ore being of a heavier specific gravity
remains in the sluice, and this process continues
until the quantity of ore accumulating makes it
necessary to turn off the water. The ore is then
collected and put into a bucket, and the work com-
mences anew. Many feet below this quartzose sand
another layer is constantly discovered, and when
this proves to be the case the tin sand at the
lower level has usually a better percentage of tin
SMELTING TIN ORE. 121
ore mixed with it than is found in the upper strata.
Before smelting, the ore has to be washed again,
and cleared of all impurities as far as possible.
The Chinese method of smelting the tin ore is
in cylindrical-shaped furnaces made of clay, round
the outside of which sticks are placed perpendicu-
larly, and close together, being held and kept in
position by bands. In the centre, and down
through the middle of this structure, there is a
hoUowed-out space in which the fire burns, being
kept alight by fresh supplies of charcoal thrown on
the top, where the tin ore is also placed in small
quantities, and whence, melting, it trickles down
through the burning charcoal and runs out at a
small aperture at the bottom of this tube, falling
into a pan dug in the ground and lined with clay,
from which it is removed by ladles and poured into
sand moulds, where it cools and solidifies. These
moulds are made by passing a wooden block,
shaped to correspond to the size of the ingot
required, into damp sand.
Should the results of this first experiment be
satisfactory, fresh houses are built, more men ob-
tained, and another paddock, or excavation, is
opened on a larger scale ; and this is continued as
long as sufficient ore is met with to cover the cost
of working, or until the deposits have been ex-
hausted. In places these deposits are fairly regular,
in others most uncertain ; very rich in some spots,
but close by nothing is often found, and what is
called the tin stream has disappeared entirely. If
the mine is a prolific one. Its owner usually docs as
much of the work as possible by contract, or by
122 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
giving daily wages to his miners ; should, however,
there arise doubts as to the success of the venture,
an arrangement is made whereby each coolie, ac-
cording to the number of days he works, has a
share in what the mine produces, so that if there
is a loss it shall be well distributed.
There is besides a salutary custom, that should
the advancer of the mine suddenly cease giving the
usual supplies, thus necessitating an arrangement
being made with someone else, the new advancer,
upon the raising and sale of the tin ore, receives
payment for everything he may have advanced
before the man he succeeded has any claims at all.
This rule is necessary to prevent the sudden and
arbitrary withdrawal of supplies, and the conse-
quent abandonment of the mine before the wash
dirt, or tin-bearing sand, is reached and the ore
saved. It also guards the miner from being
deprived of the results of often many months of
labour and hard work, and recognizes the principle
that unless an advancer is prepared to see the
result of his venture through to the end, for better
or for worse, and has well calculated the cost
beforehand, he had better devote his energies and
capital to some other branch of trade.
During the progress of the work the owner
supplies what is requisite, and this he does much
to his advantage, retailing his goods to the mine
at a greatly enhanced value, so that should the tin
ore obtained be only sufficient to satisfy his account,
he makes a good profit. The more successful the
mine, the greater luxuries and the larger credit
does he allow the miners, who increase the variety
MINERS' HOUSES. 123
and excellence of their food, as their enjoyment in
great measure consists in living as well as they can
afford to do, sending a portion of their earnings
to their homes in China, and gambling with the
balance. For on pay-day the mine owner obtains
permission from the gambling farmer to enable
him to allow his miners to gamble on their own
premises for a certain number of days, and during
this period he looks forward not only to regaining
possession of some of the monies he has disbursed,
but of lending his men further sums which usually
return to him as well. After the festivities and
jollifications are finished, the men once more return
to a spell of hard-working industry.
The houses in which these miners live are of
simple and primitive construction. A long, high-
roofed building, thatched with attap-palm leaves,
whose sides are made either of the same material
used more sparingly, or split logs placed close
together ; but whichever method is adopted, plenty
of daylight peeps through, causing these sheds
to be quite light inside, although entirely destitute
of windows. There is usually only one entrance,
which is closed at night by a rough plank door.
The interior is broken up with benches and
sleeping places, and in a conspicuous place there
hangs a list of all the labourers, and daily the
head man marks an entry against each name,
recording whether its owner has been to work
or not, as well as keeping voluminous and
methodical accounts of what he has received and
issued to his men.
A hollow wooden gong beaten with a stick is
124 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
the signal for commencing or leaving off work,
and tapers which burn for a certain time are
lighted, so that there shall be no tampering wrth
the clock — when there is one — or deception as
to the number of hours worked.
A little shelter, the roof of which is just large
enough to cover a mosquito net that hangs down,
being fastened at the top to the four posts which
support the structure, reminds the passer-by that
death is ever present ; for the Chinese miners have
a superstition against allowing their comrades to
die in their houses, considering it a sure precursor
of misfortune. In order to prevent this, as soon
as they judge recovery very doubtful, and death
to be close at hand, they carry the sick man out
and put him in this little shelter, always ready
and waiting for a new inmate, and here he is
left alone for death to overtake him. These
shelters are so small that during the showers and
squalls which are so frequent, the rain splashing
up from the ground bespatters and saturates the
sick mans couch, and the mosquito net that
surrounds him becomes dripping with moisture,
whilst the chilly cold of the early dawn makes
his last moments replete with misery and dis-
comfort.
CHAPTER VII.
Gambling houses — Hua-Hocy lotteries — Lam pan working — Supersti-
tions regarding tin ore — Malay Pawang — Dwellers around mines —
Malay wood-cutters ; felling, sawing, and squaring of timber —
Buffaloes at work — Charcoal burners — Buffalo carts — Reverbcra-
tory furnaces — Alluvial deposits, and the lode formation of tin
and gold.
In all villages of sufficient size there are public
gambling houses where Chinese miners congregate
and play. These gambling houses are under the
•control of the "farmer," the representative of a
syndicate, who, in consideration of a fixed payment,
is granted by the Government the exclusive
privilege of erecting gambling houses and per-
mitting play within them, as well as in any other
houses for which he may grant permission for
short periods. This system is simply a relic of
former times, before the era of British protection,
when every means of increasing the revenue was
greedily seized upon, and would ere now have
been discontinued, with other debasing practices,
were it not for the large sum accruing to the
Government from the sale of this monopoly.
These gambling dens have a most pernicious
and demoralizing influence ; they openly entice the
passer-by to try his luck, and allure the weak-
minded to their ruin, as well as being the fruitful
125
126 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
source of much misery and crime. Within are
to be seen little tables placed about the room ;
a croupier is in attendance at each, around which,
of an evening, stand groups of excited Chinese,
anxiously watching the result of the spin, or
waiting in eager expectancy to hear what number
is called, which will settle the fate of the stakes
they have deposited. As the croupier pays his
losses and rakes in his winnings there is a hum
of conversation and much animated gesticulation,
succeeded by a breathless, earnest silence as the
gamblers once more crowd around the different
tables, those behind pressing forwards, and, as
it were, striving by their very wishes and the
ardent intensity of their hopes to induce the
number they long for to turn up ; and their
haggard, dubious faces betray the eagerness of
the emotions they are striving to subdue. As the
groups grow larger the heat becomes intense, and
the odour from so many panting, perspiring, and
unsavoury human beings, closely crowded together
in so warm an atmosphere and confined a space,
becomes intolerable, and the stench sickening.
The large amount obtained by the Government
is only a portion of the monies taken from these
ignorant and uneducated miners, and the con-
tinuance of this injurious and debasing system,
and the direct encouragement of this vice, is
most discreditable to British administration.
There formerly existed a system of gambling,
prevalent in the colony as well as in the native
states, called Hua-Hoey, which was really a lottery,
the tickets representing thirty-six different kinds
HUA-HOEY LOTTERIES. 127
of animals, and all stakes on the winning beast re-
ceived thirty times the wagered sum. As coloured
pictures were all the stock-in-trade requisite, this
species of gambling afforded the unscrupulous an
easy means of defrauding and swindling the credu-
lous. Trickery and cheating took place at the
drawings, so that the animal upon which there
were fewest tickets was frequently made to win.
Although the traffic was illegal, the difficulties of
detection were great, and in 1885 the evils arising
from the increasing numbers of sharpers in Penang
became so disastrous and far - reaching, that a
numerously signed petition was forwarded to the
Government, drawing attention to the pernicious
trade, and requesting that stringent measures be
taken for its suppression, as its dissemination
amongst all classes was creating much misery and
unhappiness, besides ruining many. Not only did
clerks rob their employers, and coolies steal the
goods entrusted to their care, to enable them to
place a stake upon an animal they fancied, but
women also acted as the agents of the promoters
of these lotteries, and going about persuaded others
of their sex to gamble, edging them on by spurious
lotteries and a little success at first to venture
larger sums, the loss of which caused them to sell
and pawn their jewellery, to deceive and to be
dishonest.
As I have already mentioned, the other system
of mining pursued is called lampan, or hill-mining,
which in respect to its uncertainty is similar to
valley workings, for some hills contain tin ore,
whilst close by others are destitute even of a trace
128 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
of the metal. The ore is found sometimes amongst
a regular and defined narrow stony streak, some
distance below the surface, at others it is dis-
tributed throughout the whole soil of the hill ; in
fact there is no rule, and I myself have seen it
right on the surface and amongst the roots of the
trees ; but these signs are no guarantee of its exist-
ing in sufificient quantities to repay the workers,
as a few yards away the earth may contain none
at all.
The method adopted is to cut a watercourse
to conduct the water from the nearest available
stream, so as to utilize its force to sluice and wash
away the hillside, when the lighter particles are
carried off by the current, and the heavier ones
with the ore left behind. It is a much less expen-
sive and laborious way of obtaining tin-ore than
valley mining, and is much in favour with Malays,
who have numerous small workings in the hills, to
which they repair when the necessity of earning a
little money arises ; and these mines often descend
in the same family for several generations. Im-
proved communication, however, has brought them
within easier reach, and they are rapidly passing
into alien hands, to be systematically developed
and opened up. There seems to be absolutely no
rule with regard to these tin deposits, and it is
entirely a matter of chance whether the strike turns
out a rich one or not. Hills and valleys that have
proved unprofitable and been abandoned by one
set of miners, when reopened after the lapse of
several years by others have given satisfactory
results, and this very uncertainty in the distribution
SUPERSTITIONS REGARDING TIN ORE. 129
of the mineral accounts for the innumerable and
wondrous stories that obtain currency.
There is a strong belief amongst the Malays
that the tin ore grows, and no matter how you
may argue this question with them, they will,
although politely agreeing with you, still retain
their opinion that such is the case, and bring for-
ward many instances of their own experience to
prove that this theory is correct. Formerly, when
the ore was smelted and yielded poor results, it
was popularly supposed to be young, and not
sufificiently matured, and this used to be a con-
stant complaint ; now it is not so frequently
heard, education has spread, and the miners have
discovered that very often such bad results have
been caused by too great a proportion of hematite
or wolfram mixed with the ore. Both are very
similar in appearance when in fine particles to
tin ore, and being of somewhat the same specific
gravity they remain behind in the sluices, and can
only be separated from the ore by careful hand-
washing in smaller sluice boxes or pans ; and unless
this is done before smelting their presence makes
the tin ore form a conglomerate, instead of trickling
down the furnace in a molten state and flowing out
into the pan below.
These particles of wolfram and hematite are
largely distributed throughout the tin-bearing lands,
and to the uninitiated present much the same
appearance, in fact often only testing or assay will
finally decide the questi6n. I have known an
instance of a would-be tin miner, with more pluck
than experience, returning delighted to his friends
I30 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
with the tale that he had walked knee-deep in
mud and tin sand mixed, only to find by the
bitter results of practical working and money lost
that an abundance of wolfram is no criterion of
the presence of payable ore, and besides giving
much trouble when too plentiful, it is rather a
bad sign than otherwise when met with in large
quantities.
Of course the vagaries and perversity of spirits
enter largely into tin-mining folk-lore, and are
greatly relied upon by the ignorant to explain
away many of the curious phenomena and startling
uncertainties so frequently met with in this industry
in the Malay Peninsula, which the cleverest geolo-
gists have only accounted for in a general way, and
wherein the practical and experienced local miner,
rendered cautious and wary by many a mistake
and failure, is a far safer pilot and guide than the
best of theories or the wisest of savants. No
greater offence can be given to a gang of miners
than by descending their mine with boots on and
an umbrella opened overhead, as it is popularly
supposed that such a proceeding is an insult to
the presiding spirits, who, out of revenge, will
make the tin ore disappear. So firmly rooted
was this superstition in the early days of British
protection, that the mere presence of a European
in proximity to a mine so equipped was disliked
and resented, and his nearer approach would cause
all the miners at work to utter a warning cry in
order to stop the intruder's advance ; now, how-
ever, so many Europeans are connected with the
industry, whose advent has done something towards
MALAY PAWANG. 131
breaking down many barriers of superstition, as
well as having had a civilizing effect upon the
miners themselves, who have much changed for
the better, for instead of looking upon the white
man with disdain and hostility, they have begun
to fully recognize and appreciate the many benefits
and protection obtained by his presence in the
country, and have themselves become quieter and
more law-abiding.
There is in each district a Malay who has gained
some considerable local reputation as a prophetic
dreamer, or Pawang, a sort of general adviser and
mediator between the spirits and the miners. He
is consulted on all occasions, decides on what spot
a commencement should be made, and assuages
and propitiates the spirits by the slaughter of a
buffalo or some other means. He constantly visits
the mines in which he takes an interest, receiving
small gifts now and again, so that his influence
may be for good, and not malevolent, and mixing
so constantly with the Chinese he picks up a
smattering of their language and is generally an
opium smoker. He is constantly called ia to give
his advice, or by his incantations to exorcise some
fancied evil sprite who, by his wickedness, is
causing disaster ; needless to say these men make
the most of their prophetic successes, and their
many failures are accounted for by every con-
ceivable and ingenious method of argument, the
blame for misfortune being attributed to the miners
having done some act which occasioned the spirit's
wrath, or omitted some necessary deed or offering.
An intimate knowledge of the district enables the
132 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
Pawang to shrewdly guess the most likely places
for tin to be found, and long habit makes him very
wary of expressing a decided opinion, whilst all is
covered by the plausible sentence, "God willing,
your venture will turn out well," with which he
glibly encourages the hesitating, and which he is
never tired of reiterating.
A few Malay squatters invariably build houses and
take up their residence in close proximity to every
fresh Chinese mine that proves successful, or any
new village commenced. The women occupy them-
selves and obtain a fair livelihood from re-panning
and re-washing the ** tailings," or refuse heaps of
sand, after the Chinese have saved what they can,
for owing to the large quantities of tin-bearing
sand that have to be put through the sluices it
is impossible to prevent the loss of a certain
proportion, and there is always a considerable
quantity of light ore carried away by the water,
sometimes owing to careless or unskilful washing,
for tin-washing is quite a trade, and good Chinese
washers are valuable acquisitions to a mine. This
re-washing of the heaps of ** tailings" is quite an
industry; it is not entirely relegated to Malay and
Chinese women, but is also followed by aged
Chinamen past the prime of life, who no longer
having sufficient agility to carry baskets up the
ladders, nor the strength for hard manual labour,
have built small houses for themselves in which
two or three of them live together and cultivate
a small plot of ground adjoining, and generally
possess a pig or two in a sty close by. In the
Larut district in Perak a small colony of Siamese
DWELLERS AROUND MINES. 133
were thus employed. It is a desultory sort of
pursuit, and one of its attractions is that those
engaged in it can choose their own time for
going to work. In the mornings, long after all
others have gone about their daily tasks, the
Malay women may be seen starting off in twos
or threes to some stream that is flowing from
the mines, carrying under their arms large open
wooden dishes somewhat hollowed out in the
centre and about eighteen inches in diameter.
Standing in the streams, these women scoop up
some gravel from its bed and commence washing
it in their pans. They are very dexterous, and
a few swift movements backwards and forwards,
combined with a peculiar twist, is quite sufficient
to get rid of a large portion of the lightest matter.
The stones are picked out and thrown away after
having . been cleaned should there be any clay
adhering to them, and then the residue is care-
fully manipulated and gradually allowed to fall over
the edge of the pan, which is held and rocked
on the surface of the stream, so that its current
may facilitate operations when necessary, until all
that is left is perhaps a thimbleful of tin ore,
which is carefully put into a discarded tin or palm
leaf; perhaps, more often, an old bit of rag, or
the corner of the washer's sarong does duty
instead. A fresh scoop is then made and the
process continued, the searchers wandering about
these streams, sometimes successfully, sometimes
otherwise, till after a few hours they grow tired
of their work and return home with their winnings,
the value of which varies from ten cents to one
dollar, according to their luck.
134 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
The aged Chinamen go about the same occupa-
tion in a different way, and usually confine them-
selves to the old heaps of refuse or tailings, which
they wash over again in small portable sluice-boxes,
easily carried from place to place, and fixed near
a pool of water, where, whilst one fills the box
with sand and washes it, his comrade supplies
him with water by throwing it up with a scoop
attached to a handle into a small and quickly pre-
pared reservoir. This scoop is either made of
bark or more usually of an old kerosene oil tin,
and the water is used over and over again as it
is always returned to the pool.
The Malay men find plenty of work and occupa-
tion, when required, in clearing the forest, cutting
and drawing timber, building houses and sheds, as
well as in the many little odd jobs constantly neces-
sary about a mine. They are far more expert in
the use of the axe and parang, or chopper, than the
Chinese, and seem never to tire when so engaged.
The axes they use are of the lightest description
and peculiar in shape, being fitted on to a thin
pliable handle, so that instead of using the axe with
a strong muscular swing, and causing it to bury itself
in the wood by the force of the blow, merely the
wrist is used, and the axe flicked against the tree,
the springiness of the handle making it chip a little
piece out each time of striking, and a quick succes-
sion of blows in a short while eats through the
largest trees. These wood-cutters, in order to save
themselves all the extra labour and cutting they
can, especially when the tree is large, erect a
staging often ten to fourteen feet off the ground,
FELLING TIMBER. 135
SO as to be above the spot where the stem is
augmented in size by the large buttress-like pro-
jections ending in huge roots, which are mostly
surface feeders, and therefore inclined to spread.
The tree is made to fall in the desired direction,
first of all by cutting it nearly through on the
side where it is to be felled, and then a similar cut
is commenced a short distance above at the opposite
side.
When the tree is ready to fall this scaffolding be-
comes a dangerous place on which to stand, so the
wood-cutter clambers down as fast as he can and
runs to a safe distance, from whence he watches
the results of his labours. Generally the first indi-
cation that one of these enormous trees is about
to fall is a slight shivering and unsteadiness of the
leaves above, then a quiet, gentle inclination for-
wards, to be immediately followed by a cracking
sound as the portions not completely cut through
commence to strain and break ; then the tree's
momentum increases, slowly at first as its branches
force their way through the neighbouring boughs ;
then leaves and broken and torn limbs fly about,
and there is a roar of sound, followed by the
crunching noise of the branches being shattered
underneath as the tree strikes the earth with such
a mighty force that the ground around shivers, and
the huge tree itself gives one shuddering rebound
and then lies still beneath the swaying branches of
the neighbouring trees that swing backwards and
forwards, shedding a shower of leaves which for
some little while continue to drop with a rustling
sound.
136 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
The sawing of the trees into planks is always
done by Chinese, the work being too laborious for
the ordinary Malay, who dislikes so . monotonous
and continuous an occupation ; should he, however,
require planks for any purpose, he obtains them
by splitting the tree with wooden wedges into
lengths, trimming these rough and uneven slabs
into shape by adzing. In the course of time he
manages to hew them into very tolerable planks,
but they all differ somewhat in width, as the most
is made of the material at hand. He also squares
small trees into beams and rafters, dragging them
out of the jungle with the aid of a buffalo, and
leaving behind quantities of chips and shavings
to mark the spot where he has been at work.
These buffaloes vary very much as to the loads
they are able and willing to draw, for they have
obstinately stubborn wills which resist every
species of persuasion should they consider them-
selves overloaded. Consequently a strong and
well-disposed beast is a great acquisition to any-
one engaged in this trade, and they are not only
expensive to purchase when compared with others,
but their owners dislike parting with them if they
can avoid it. The buffaloes are either white or
black ; the former have a sort of flesh-coloured skin
with coarse and rough prickly white hair, and dull,
lazy-looking pink eyes and pale-coloured hoofs and
horns ; they are ugly and of clumsy appearance,
very slow and ungainly in their movements. The
black buffaloes, however, do not appear so awkward
as their colour is less noticeable ; they are supposed
to be hardier, and when sold for slaughter fetch
BUFFALOES AT WORK. 137
a slightly higher price, as their flesh is thought
to be better eating ; but I myself could never
discover any difference, the meat of both was
equally tough and stringy unless rendered more
palatable by being wrapped up in a leaf of the
papaya, which has the property of making meat thus
enclosed tender in a very few hours. The harness
is of the simplest kind, and only consists of a
wooden yoke that fits over the buffalo's neck,
having a notch at each end, over which is slipped
a ring made of rattan that is attached to a shaft
or long stick, the ends of which trail on the
ground, and are cut so as to leave a branch a
little distance from the end, which is chopped off
not too close so as to form a fork ; and into these
forks a cross-stick is placed and tied, and this rude
sleigh-like contrivance is ready for the log, which
rests on the cross-piece of wood, to which it is
firmly fastened to prevent it from slipping off.
The buffalo driver walks in front, giving an oc-
casional tug at the leading rope attached to a ring
passed through the nose of the animal, which
follows slowly behind, stopping every now and
then to regain its breath, for if the log is heavy
and the track rough, progress is made by a series
of spasmodic and strenuous efforts. Should the
track along which the timber is hauled be much
used and the ground be at all soft, sticks are cut
and thrown down crossways at intervals that they
may prevent the ends of the shafts and the logs
from cutting into the ground and rendering the
path impassable during wet and muddy weather.
Charcoal burners commit great havoc and destroy
138 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
many of the best and finest trees annually, being
especially partial to the varieties whose timber is
the hardest and most durable, as it is from these
the best charcoal is obtained. The tree is felled,
and the trunk-end for several feet is covered with
earth and clay and ignited, and when sufificiently
burnt the charcoal is collected and carried away in
baskets, and placed under cover to prevent its
getting damaged by the rain. Fresh earth and
clay are thrown over several more feet of the log,
and this process is continued until the whole tree
is gradually converted into charcoal.
The Chinese employed in this trade carry the
baskets long distances, often a days journey, to
the nearest road, mine, or central depot. The life
led by these men is lonely in the extreme, going
their rounds and visiting the trees that are burning ;
solacing themselves with opium, they generally pre-
sent a thin and attenuated appearance, and their
skin becomes of a pale and sickly hue owing to living
continuously in the deep shade of the jungle, where
it is usually moist and damp. The carrying of the
loads is done by younger men as yet unpractised in
the burning, or the tin-smelter sends his own men
to take the baskets down to where he is able to send
a cart to fetch them. Formerly nothing but buffalo
carts were utilized for this purpose ; now bullock
carts have somewhat taken their places, because
along the hard roads the buffalo is but a poor
beast for draught, going at a snaiFs pace, extremely
susceptible to heat, so much so that the Chinese
drivers often hang a broad and long piece of white
cloth over the animal, completely sheltering it from
REVERBERATORY FURNACES. 139
the sun. This sheet is attached to two long sticks
which, fastened to the cart, stretch horizontally
over the buffalo's body. A scoop is also carried,
so that every advantage may be taken of any
pools or streams met with on the journey, to cool
the beast by throwing water over him. A pleasing
trait in the Chinese character is that they are uni-
formly humane and careful of the animals owned
by them or of which they have charge, and it is no
uncommon sight to see a Chinese carter patiently
waiting by the side of the beast he is driving until
it intimates its willingness to proceed. They never
overwork nor overdrive their animals, which are
consequently always sleek and fat, showing un-
mistakable signs of the care bestowed upon them.
To lessen the destruction of fine forest trees,
the Government gives every facility for the export-
ing of the tin ore, and now large quantities are
yearly smelted in reverberatory furnaces in the
neighbourhood of Singapore, where the coal used
can be discharged from steamers lying alongside of
the works, and the business has become a very
lucrative one for those concerned.
The alluvial tin deposits have proved themselves
richer, extending over a larger area, than was
expected ; but they are also being exhausted at a
quicker rate than was at one time supposed possible;
and as the wave of discovery and the rush to new
fields passes onward the valleys become a desolate
waste of mounds and heaps, stagnant pools and
ponds, where the hoarse croaking of many frogs
replaces the sound of busy human life that formerly
prevailed.
I40 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
The rapid development and advancement of the
Malay States has been entirely due to the wealth
of these alluvial deposits, for they have supplied
the means for supporting an efficient Civil Service,
enabling good roads to be made and railways con-
structed. But these very facilities help and assist
the process of exhaustion, and it will not be many
years before what has happened in other parts of
the world, where placer mines have been worked,
will come to pass here.
In certain districts a proportion of alluvial gold
is found mixed with the tin ore, and in several
instances the lode formation of the gold has been
discovered and worked with satisfactory results,
the cheap Indian and Chinese labour materially
aiding and placing the industry in a most favour-
able position when compared with other gold-pro-
ducing countries. Should the formation continue
to reasonable depths, of which there are many
indications, then the Malay States will enter the
ranks of gold - producing countries with every
prospect of success, possessing advantages only to
be equalled in India. Tin lodes have also been
discovered, and are berng worked remuneratively,
but reef-mining is at present in its infancy, and
only the future can determine its ultimate success.
CHAPTER VIII.
Communication in Selangor — Forest — Rattan— Journey ' to Klang —
Timber— Night in the jungle — Woodcutters — Kwala Lumpor : its
central position— Resident- General — Leaving Kwala Lumpor —
Travelling northward — Limestone hill and caves — Soil — Wild
animals — Rogue elephant— Former denizens of the jungle — Camp
— Insects — Scorpions — Horse leeches — Crossing pass — Ulu Yam —
Benighted on horseback — Bathing — Sunset — Remains of Siamese
tin-workings.
In 1883 the only other egress from the State of
Selangor besides the river routes was by a primitive
and roughly constructed earth road between Kwala
Lumpor and Bukit Kuda, which was very steep in
places, with so many ups and downs as to appear
somewhat like journeying over a tempestuous sea.
On both sides of the road was dense jungle, the
large trees of which nearly met overhead, con-
sequently there was no varied scenery along the
route, nothing except an unending vista of forest,
beautiful in its way, yet somewhat monotonous.
Tall, giant trees towered overhead, amongst the
forks of whose heavy and wide-spreading branches
grew enormous stag ferns, very striking when seen
nestling so high up, with their long green fronds
hanging down, overlapping the withered brown
leaves underneath* Some of these forest trees
had stems upon which the dark brown bark grew
rough and crinkled, whilst on others it was of a
greyish hue, smooth and glossy-looking, and here
141
142 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
and there might be descried a trunk spreading
out with several wing- like projections as it neared
the ground; and beneath the mighty monsters grew
other trees of smaller girth, and beneath these
again still smaller ones, and saplings of various
sizes, down to the newly sprouted seed sending
up its tiny shoot, trying to force its way in life,
and either strangled at the outset — killed by the
dense shade and tangled growth amidst which fate
had placed it — or perhaps, more fortunate in its
surroundings, able to struggle upwards with thin
attenuated stem and scanty top, its efforts seem-
ingly bent upon endeavouring to rear its head
high enough to obtain its share of the glimmer-
ing sunlight which, although blazing bright and
strong above, only penetrates the dense mass of
foliage with uncertain, feeble, and flickering rays.
Amidst this tangle of boughs and branches, the
home of orchids and lichen, huge ropes hang
down, sometimes dangling overhead, at others
rooted in the ground, and growing up. There
are quantities of these parasites, varying in thick-
ness from a piece of string to a chain-cable, and
of many varieties, from a species that when cut
exudes an excellent rubber, to another from which
water trickles to slake the thirst of the traveller,
who holds the dangling end over his open mouth,
into which the water drops. Flowering plants are
conspicuous by their absence, although now and
again the solitary bloom of a ground orchid or
other shade-loving plant may be descried, as well
as the grape-like clusters of the fruit of the attap
palms, and various fruits and berries.
RATTAN. 143
The vegetation of the swamps differs consider-
ably, being dependent upon the depth of water,
mud, and other influences. The trees are smaller,
and grow from a tangled pyramid of roots ; their
timber is always soft and of little value. A dense
mass of impenetrable thorns takes the place of
undergrowth, and it is in places such as these
that the rattans are collected, and cut out of the
thorny shell-like covering which is peeled off, as
only the inside is of any use. These rattans grow
in thick profusion, twining and twisting amongst
the thorns and bushes, many yards in length, with
nearly a uniform thickness throughout, raising
their heads and growing upwards until, overcome
by their own weight, they fall down and entangle
themselves in still more inextricable confusion.
There were about sixteen miles of uncomfortable
travelling along this road, so bad as to be impass-
able for carts in wet weather, and only practicable
in the dry months for those lightly loaded. The
journey was very hard on the poor little ponies,
who often were forced to make great efforts to
drag the conveyance to the top of the hill, and
were then compelled to exert all their strength
to prevent the vehicle from running upon them
as they descended the other side. As it was,
they were only able to accomplish quite short
distances, and it was necessary to change them
several times during the journey. Here and there
a freshly broken cart by the side of the road bore
witness to the struggles that had taken place when
it stuck fast in some deep rut, and it is upon such
occasions that the training of the bullocks is put
144 CAMI^ING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
to a severe test, for they are coupled by a yoke
or cross-piece connected to the pole of the cart
by means of an iron pin, which, passing through
both pieces of wood, is kept in place by a nut at
the bottom, thus allowing the yoke to freely move
backwards and forwards. The oxen are fastened
and kept in their places by two wooden pins,
which, passing through holes in the yoke, hang
down on each side of the bullock's neck, and in
order to prevent the cart from tipping up, or the
bullocks from slipping out their heads, a piece of
string is passed round their throats, and its ends
secured to the yoke. The load also has to be
carefully balanced, so that there shall be just
sufficient weight on the bullocks* necks to enable
them to utilize their full strength, and to prevent
the cart from tilting backwards ; for should the
burden on their necks be too oppressive they soon
tire, and lowering their heads allow the yoke
to slip over their horns, and are only prevented
from entirely ridding themselves of it by the cord
encircling their throats, which often becomes so
taut as to nearly choke them. It is always
difficult to get the best of cart bullocks to work
in unison, after they have failed once or twice
to move the load to which they are attached, and
the driver has a hard task, twisting their tails,
prodding them with a sharp stick, shouting and
abusing them ; for immediately they find the cart
cannot be moved, one of them is sure to give
way and back, which allows the other one to go
forward, the cart turns to one side, and the
bullocks place themselves in such a position that
JOURNEY TO KLANG.
MS
the driver has much difficulty in getting them
right again before making another endeavour.
During these struggles the cart works backwards
and forwards from side to side in the soft
mud, sinking deeper at each unavailing effort,
necessitating some of its load being removed
unless there is plenty of assistance at hand to
help in pushing the wheels round. Some drivers
i^^f^g-^^
have a cruel and odious practice of making a raw
place on the bullock's back, and with a pointed
stick prodding this open sore — a barbarous method ,'
usually, however, the animals are well cared for, as
if not they are unable to work, and especially is
this the case with the fine white species imported
from India; whilst those from Siam cost less, do
less work, and require but little attention. The
terminus of the road from Kwala Lumpor to Klang
was the small village of Bukit Kuda, a most un-
146 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
interesting place, where every house was a rest-
ing and refreshment place for travellers, and did
quite a lucrative business. Hot and dusty way-
farers were lounging about on the seats out-
side the shops, resting in the shade of the
verandahs, eating or chewing betel, or smoking.
Coloured syrup in glasses, sugar canes, plantains,
sweetmeats, and other eatables were displayed
upon the small counters, which were drawn up
at night, and served as shutters to the windows
within which the shopmen sat and gossiped
with their customers outside. A few weary-
looking bullocks lay in the road, and a pony
was being led about to get dry in the sun,
having been bathed in the Klang river, which
at this point is tidal. A small steamer (when
not broken down and useless) plied between
this village and the port called Klang, some
distance further down the river, and up to which
place trading steamers from Singapore and Penang
were able to come to discharge their cargoes.
The strength of the tides is considerable, and
there must always be a dangerous undercurrent
as well, for anyone falling overboard from the deck
of a steamer is usually sucked under and drowned,
and his body is not recovered. During spring
tides the water rushes up or down between the
somewhat narrow banks, fringed on each side with
mangrove trees, and the traveller, if he is proceed-
ing by a rowing boat, has to wait until the current
flows in the desired direction, as it is useless trying
to stem the stream in a boat of this description.
Klang itself consisted merely of a few houses and
JOURNEY TO KLANG. 147
Government offices built on a swampy flat sur-
rounded by hills, one of which reached down to the
water's edge, and upon it a fort had been con-
structed and armed with guns to command the
river. It was also an uninteresting place, the abode
of many sandflies, these being most annoying and
maddening tormentors, and only kept out by the
finest mosquito nets ; they are irritating to a
degree, and although I could sleep comfortably
with mosquitoes buzzing round and sitting upon
my head and face, if the other little pests were
about, nothing but covering myself over so as to
effectually prevent them from biting would allow
of my obtaining any rest or peace at all.
Klang has greatly increased since these days, and
the country round has been opened up and con-
verted into gardens, and a resident population has
caused it to become quite a settlement. The rail-
way now joins Kwala Lumpor and Klang, and is
even extended further down the river to its estuary,
where there is a large basin of water perfectly
protected by islands and land on every side, into
which large steamers are able to come and dis-
charge their cargoes ; higher up the river turning
is a difficulty, the bends are sharp, and the depth
of water insufficient for ships other than small
coasting steamers.
On one occasion, upon arriving opposite Klang
on a dark murky night, with a strong tide running
up, the anchor was let go, and the ship commenced
to swing round and had already got broadside on to
the stream, when her stern caught in a sunken tong-
kong or sailing schooner laden with bricks, and at
148 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
the same time her forepart dragged on the anchor
chain, which, instead of being clear of the bow, had
got underneath her keel. Fast fore and aft, broad-
side on to the current, which was flowing strong,
she began to heel over to a dangerous extent, so
much so that the captain awoke me to give me
a chance, as he termed it, should anything happen,
since I was the only other white man on board
besides himself. There were close on 200 pas-
sengers, and matters looked so serious that the
question of sending them on shore arose, only to
be negatived on consideration, for had they become
frightened and crowded on the wrong side of the
steamer they would have caused the very catas-
trophe we were anxious to avoid. The water could
scarcely be seen moving along the ship's sides, but
the swishing of the current as it tore past was
plainly to be heard, and brought to mind how little
chance there would be of surviving if anything went
wrong. There was nothing else to be done but
turn in again and continue one's broken slumbers,
hoping for the best, and on awaking next morn-
ing I found the ship had gradually been lifted off
the obstacle, against which she had struck, by the
rising tide, and was lying quietly at anchor as if
nothing had occurred.
The country along the banks of the river in this
neighbourhood is for the most part low and swampy,
necessitating a thorough system of drainage before
planting. In places this has been done, and the
cultivation of various products has replaced the
former rank vegetation and thick jungle.
The forests contain but a small quantity of the
TIMBER. 149
best class of timber, but the inferior kinds are fairly
plentiful, whilst there is an abundance of useless
varieties. It is this inequality in value that has
prevented any export timber industry from growing
and the successful working of saw mills, for there
is no means of transporting the larger and finer
specimens, once the few trees adjoining any
navigable stream have been cut down ; and even
then the harder woods will not float, and it is
necessary to fasten them to those of a lighter
and softer species to prevent their sinking. It is
cheaper to have the tree sawn into planks or
scantlings by Chinese sawyers on the spot where
it falls than to make any endeavour to transport
it to some central factory, an impossibility should
the log be overweight for a buffalo to drag, whilst
the scarcity of merchantable woods effectually pre-
vents the utilization of any other motor power.
A gentle, undulating country, whose soil contains
somewhat more sand than usual, is the kind of
locality liked by the harder varieties of timber,
of which perhaps the best and finest is the chingei,
which is cut down by Malays, split in two, then
the solid trunk is adzed and hollowed out and made
into boats, which last for many years. There are
several species as durable and more so, but they
do not grow to the same size, nor are they so easily
worked, with the exception of the merbau, which
has a smooth bark, and runs the chingei with its
thick coruscated bark hard for supremacy ; for tool
handles nothing can approach the tough, long-fibred
penaga, whilst for Chinese carrying-sticks mengapus
is best. Sea-going craft are usually constructed
i^o CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
of a hard yellow wood called kulim, which grows
in the coast districts, and has the property of resist-
ing many kinds of marine insects, besides being very
durable and easily worked. Rengas, a dark red
wood, makes excellent furniture and takes a good
polish ; but it is troublesome to shape unless kept
for a considerable time, owing to its sap having the
unpleasant properties of causing pustular eruptions
on the skin of any person it comes in contact
with. I have often seen men with their faces so
badly swollen that they could hardly see at all
for several days from incautiously or unknowingly
cutting a rengas tree, and getting the sap on their
skins ; even touching its leaves will cause some in-
convenience and puffiness. Some Malays profess
to be proof against the irritant and poisonous
qualities of this tree, and to be able to cut it down
without feeling any ill effects ; but in such cases
the man is always careful to anoint himself well
with oil before setting about his task, which appears
to be the real reason of his immunity.
Of the softer woods the many varieties of
miranti are amongst the finest, and its colour
ranges from a dark red to almost white, the former
being much superior, having often when cut in the
hills at an elevation of over 1200 feet a flowery
grain nearly equalling the famous satin wood of
Ceylon ; whilst jelutong, with its dark smooth bark,
grows to a great height, and exudes a milky sub-
stance when cut ; its timber is very soft and of poor
quality, but it is popularly supposed to be less
inflammable than other kinds of soft wood, and
is much used for making clogs and cofiins.
NIGHT IN THE JUNGLE. 151
Journeying one evening between two wood-
cutters' camps my guide lost his way, and, night
coming on, there was nothing to be done except to
sit on the root of a tree and wait for morning.
There were four of us altogether — my comrades
consisting of Malays from Singapore ; and, un-
accustomed to such experiences, they were filled
with much dread of wild beasts, especially the
rhinoceros, and took very unkindly to the situation
in which they found themselves. The distress and
fears of these men would have been rather comical
had it not been for a steady and continuous down-
pour of rain the whole time, in which we were
compelled to sit patiently, as it was too dark to
move about. Everything was soaking wet, and
ten unpleasant and chilly hours had to be passed
before daylight enabled us to continue our journey
once again. The next morning we found ourselves
within a quarter of a mile of the place we had
endeavoured to reach, and getting a boat we were
soon in the main river, where the sun dried the
clothes on our backs whilst breakfast was being
prepared.
Owing to the convenient and central position
of Kwala Lumpor, which, since the opening of the
railway between it and Klang, has been brought
well within twenty-four hours of Singapore, — a
journey which is now accomplished with every
comfort that a good steamer can afford — it has been
made the headquarters of the Resident-General, an
officer responsible to the Governor for the proper
administration of the native states. He supervises
the Residents, and, whereas formerly each state had
IS 2 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
land rules and regulations peculiar to itself, and
which were constantly being materially altered and
changed so as to meet the opinions and ideas
of each new Resident who took up his appointment,
now progress is being made under an eminently
qualified officer, Mr. H. Conway Belfield, with a
view to the unification of the laws and regula-
tions relating to the land ; and this is also being
carried out in other departments, and the system
of judicial administration especially is being re-
modelled and placed upon a more equitable and
consistent basis.
This process of unification and solidification has
come none too soon, for the revenues of these
states are now quite capable of sustaining the
burden of the expenditure necessary during the
next few years for the completion of the railway
system on the western side of the main range, and
for the development of the eastern districts less
favourably situated with regard to means of com-
munication. At the same time the fact cannot be
lost sight of — that as the alluvial deposits of tin get
worked out in certain districts, there follows a very
serious diminution of revenue from those parts
affected, which has hitherto been made up and
concealed in the general expansion of the total
revenue caused by the opening up of new fields
and the continually improved facilities of communi-
cation.
But what is happening in detail will assuredly
before long have disastrous results on the revenue
as a whole, for agriculture alone could in no way
supply the equivalent to the taxation obtained from
LEAVING KWALA LUxMPOR. 153
the tin-mining industry, and these alluvial deposits
are now within measurable distance of being ex-
hausted along the western coast; and then the
mining population will have to turn their attention
to the undeveloped eastern side of the mountains.
Before this takes place it is to be hoped that the
permanent cultivation of some agricultural products
will have extended sufficiently to enable this certain
loss of revenue to be in some measure recouped,
and that the nomadic habits of a considerable
portion of the Malay settlers will not cause them
to abandon their holdings and migrate elsewhere,
following in the wake of the mining industry.
During the early years of the decade, 1880 to
1890, the country between Kwala Lumpor in
Selangor, and Kwala Kangsar in Perak, the head-
quarters of the Resident of that state, was entirely
unopened up, there were no roads to speak of, and
the journey consisted of a difficult and tedious
tramp through the jungle. Leaving Kwala Lumpor
and travelling to the northward for a few miles
towards the hills that encircle this portion of the
country, the village of Batq was reached — a few
scattered houses alongside a fordable river, across
which on the other side could be seen rising from
the forest-covered plain, and standing isolated by
itself, a picturesque white limestone hill. This hill
IS famous for its fine cave whose narrow entrance
is situated a little way up the hillside, and almost
immediately opens out into a broad, high-vaulted
space, at the apex of which there is a small aper-
ture admitting just sufficient daylight to change
the darkness into a sombre gloominess, through
154 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
which comes the rustle of many wings as colonies
of disturbed bats fling themselves into space, flit
hither and thither with sudden dashes, seeking
safety in flight ; so that by the time the intruder s
eyes have become somewhat accustomed to the
semi-darkness, he thinks himself alone, and feels
but a pigmy as he looks up at the roof above and
shouts, only to hear his own voice reverberating
with a hollow, deadening sound and echoing back
to him, having frightened a solitary and belated
bat that has been hanging in some darker and more
obscure corner than its companions, and quickly
disappearing, it leaves nothing but insects of various
kinds behind, which placidly continue their pursuits
undisturbed and unalarmed by the unusual sound
of a human voice. The floor beneath is largely
composed of guano, but not in sufficient quantities
to be of any commercial value ; and exploring still
further, a smaller cavern is discovered, from which
narrow, damp, and clammy tunnels lead on into the^
hill, and whose roofs are composed of thick greyish
masses of pendant stalactites.
Around these limestone hills the soil is especially
good, and vegetation is luxuriant on either side
of the cool bright stream that meanders through
the forest, full of little minnows, which dart hither
and thither ; along its banks the tracks of many
animals show that this is one of their favourite
localities, and the especial haunt of the seladang,
the bison of the Malay Peninsula, a magnificent
species of wild cattle, known to have measured
as much as seventeen hands, or five feet eight
inches at the shoulder, and possessing wide-
ROGUE ELEPHANT. 155
spreading and very sharp horns. They are ex-
ceedingly fierce and dangerous when wounded,
charging without hesitation the intruder of their
haunts, and most difficult to approach in the
thick jungle, through which it is no easy matter
for the tracker to move silently without treading
upon some of the many dead twigs that bestrew
the ground or shaking some small sapling as he
creeps along. Being extremely wary, these animals
move off at the slightest noise, and when once
disturbed and thoroughly aroused the sportsman
had better give up the chase for that day. With
luck, and the wind in the right direction, the
tracker may perchance come upon one of these
fine creatures lying down and resting, or asleep
after its early morning feed, and as it rises and
starts round to see what the unwonted sound may
be it exposes, itself to view, and affords the
sportsman an opportunity of getting a shot ; but
he must not delay, as the seladang dashes away
once its curiosity is satisfied, or the scent of the
intruders reaches its nostrils, and travels a long
distance, not returning to the place from which it
has been disturbed for some days.
A rogue elephant was a constant frequenter of
this neighbourhood, and well known to the inhabi-
tants owing to the malformation of one of his
feet, which was smaller than the others. He was
very wicked, and caused the locality he haunted
to be shunned by all, and when I first passed
through it I found the small jungle path had not
been traversed for some time by human beings,
and there was plenty of evidence of his having
156 CAMPING AND TRAMPINCi IN MALAYA.
but lately been there. Elephants are usually
harmless, but a rogue is dangerous in the ex-
treme to follow, for should he discover that he
is being tracked he silently waits for the sports-
man in some dense thicket where he is with
difficulty seen, and rushes out unexpectedly upon
him. This is just what occurred to a party who
were following up this particular rogue through the
jungle, having already obtained one shot at him,
and were endeavouring to get another. The
elephant stopped, awaiting his pursuers in a
swampy locality full of thorns, through which it
was difficult for the tracker to make any progress
at all, and suddenly without any warning he rushed
out and charged upon those following him, who
were unable to move out of his way owing to
the entanglement of the undergrowth. As it
happened the person upon whom the rogue rushed
was the late Captain H. C. Syres, who was sub-
sequently Commissioner of Police for the pro-
tected Malay States, a well-known sportsman
and excellent shot, famed for his coolness and
nerve, whether shooting big game or allaying the
turbulence of a Chinese mob. Owing to the
denseness of the jungle the elephant managed
to get to such close quarters before it was pos-
sible to lodge the contents of an eight-bore in
his body, that one of his tusks struck a sapling
so near to the captain that on stretching out his
gun at full length the end of the barrel touched
the splintered tree which the elephant had split
as he turned to fly. The party spent the re-
mainder of the day following his tracks, but they
FORMER DENIZENS OF THE JUNGLE. 157
never came up to him again ; and fresh trackers
sent out the next day to continue from the place
at which they had left off, after proceeding some
distance lost his trail entirely. It was but a short
while ago that news arrived that this gallant
sportsman, who possessed such numerous trophies
of his skill, had met his death whilst on a shoot-
ing expedition on the eastern slopes of the moun-
tains. A wounded seladang charged and tossed
him in the air, and hurt him so severely that he
succumbed to the injuries he received.
Flourishing coffee gardens and macadamized
roads have now taken the place of the primeval
forest, and the seladang has been driven from
his haunts. The grunt of the frightened wild
pig disturbed at its meal is no longer heard, the
rhinoceros has abandoned its wallow. The largre
shady trees are gone beneath which the elephants
used to sway their trunks in ceaseless motion, and
over whose tops the flapping of the hornbill's wings
was heard, or the hoarse cry of the bird as it
rested amongst the topmost boughs or searched
for the fruits and reptiles upon which it fed. The
weird cry of the Argus pheasant has ceased to
echo through the woods, nor does the stealthy
tread of the many jungle cats (so destructive to
the smaller animals) startle the timid mouse-deer
from its resting place. The python no longer
crawls jimongst the rocks or waylays its prey,
nor does the tiger spring and seize its victim by
the neck, or howl by night, silencing the barking
elk, which, startled, fled away, whilst all the
denizens of the forest quaked with fear and be-
158 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
came instantly quiet at the sound of the dreaded
roar, which was all that then disturbed and broke
the death-like stillness of the jungle.
Crossing this fine alluvial flat, the track emerged
into an open space and lost itself in the tangled
growth of the coarse and many -jointed buffalo
grass, which creeps and spreads, covering the
ground wherever it obtains sufficient light to
enable it to grow. Across this open space was an
abandoned house — our resting place for the night
— and alongside of it were the ruins of another
one, which had been demolished and levelled
to the ground by an elephant which had taken
up his abode in the vicinity, and had scared away
the occupants who had made it their temporary
home.
The floor of the remaining house was raised
several feet from the ground, as is usual with all
the Malay dwellings. The steps were broken
and had fallen into decay, so fresh ones had
to be made ; but this took only a short while
to accomplish, for a few sticks tied together
with jungle rope cut close by made a sufficiently
good ladder up which to climb. Dirt and dust,
spiders and insects, had held possession of the
house for some time, and there was a musty smell
of decay pervading it all. A branch plucked from
a neighbouring tree served as a broom to sweep
away most of the former through the interstices
between the rough, uneven sticks on to the ground
below. The cobwebs and spiders remained undis-
turbed overhead, and no attempt was made to drive
out the many insects that had their dwelling in the
INSECTS— SCORPIONS. 159
nooks and corners, or the harmless armies of ants
crawling along and up the sides in ceaseless moving
phalanxes without a break in the long dark line
of the travelling throng. Should you happen to
cut this advancing multitude in two, then a sudden
commotion takes place, the ants hurrying and
scurrying to right and left, seemingly panic-stricken
for an instant ; but the disorder is only momentary,
they soon return to their ranks, picking up the
dead and wounded on their way, methodical even
in this, for should one of them lift up his fallen
comrade another soon comes to his help, and the
two carry the burden between them, regaining their
place in the ranks, which are quickly re-formed,
and all signs of the recent tumult effaced as the
procession marches onward. These ants forage
everywhere in search of food, creeping through
the smallest crevices, and if any jam or tinned
milk comes within their reach they crowd to it,
smothering and drowning themselves in their
anxiety to get their fill ; and the preserve
presents but an uninviting appearance with a
layer of dead ants on its surface. The only
way to prevent this is to surround the tins with
water, over which the insects cannot pass, and
it is usual in all houses for the legs of the side-
boards and cupboards in which sugar and such-like
things are kept to rest in saucers filled with water.
But the most baneful insects are scorpions and
centipedes, and though I have escaped being bitten
myself, several of my men have at times been
invalided ; for, as is well known, the bite of both
is very painful, causing the part affected to swell and
i6o CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
become tender for some days. On several occasions
these insects have been found amongst my bedding
in the morning, when it was shaken out preparatory
to being rolled up for the journey, and once I
discovered a scorpion underneath my pillow as
I felt for my watch, which I had placed there
overnight.
A few small branches laid on the flooring
made a somewhat more level sleeping-place upon
which to spread our mats, whilst dead bits of stick
were collected for firing, and soon the rising smoke
betokened that food was being cooked, and it was
time to have a bathe — a frequent necessity in this
climate; so picking my way barefoot to a tiny
stream flowing through a swampy bottom hard
by I plunged in, luxuriating in the cool water
after the long march. My enjoyment was destined
to be of but short duration, for a sharp bite on
one of my legs startled me, and I commenced
to scramble out, but not before another bite
hastened my efforts ; and on gaining the bank
I found two large horse leeches, nearly six inches
in length, fastened on to my leg. Pulling them
off", the blood still continued to flow as I returned
to the house after my unpleasantly curtailed bath,
where my meal, for which I was more than ready,
awaited me.
A soothing pipe whilst darkness was coming
on, a last cup of tea, and then to bed, being careful
to tuck the mosquito net in securely under the mat
all round, after which it took but a short while
to fall asleep, for I had to rouse myself by half-past
four the next morning and see that the men who
ROUGHING IT. i6i
had to light the fires and cook the food did not
oversleep themselves, and delay our getting a good
start at the first peep of dawn and directly it be-
came light enough to see ; because a short while
lost at daybreak might cause a late arrival after
the day's journey, and give but litde time in which
to make preparations for the night.
After the morning meal, which only differed from
that of the preceding evening in so far as then
I ate half of one of the small fowls of the
country hot, whereas now I ate the other portion
cold, a plate of rice and a small piece of dried
fish as a relish, followed by a cup of cocoa or
coffee, and 1 was ready to creep into the still
wringing- wet clothes of the day before, which there
had been no means of drying. It was useless
to think of putting on a dry change of raiment,
for in a short while it would again have been wet
through, soaked with perspiration, and consequently
I should only have had two wet suits instead of
one. The early dawn always felt more or less
chilly, and dressing in sodden clothes was usually
accompanied by unpleasant fits of shivering.
Soon we were wending our way along the spur
of the hills we had to ascend, past the dangerous
place frequented by the rogue elephant. The path
became more overgrown, and the track rougher;
large fallen trees blocked the way, retarding pro-
gress, as they had to be crossed, for the ground
was too steep to admit of laden men going up or
down in order to get round the obstacle, so with
as little delay as possible a foothold was cut in
the log, and sticks placed on either side to enable
the men to climb over it.
M
i62 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
The path as it approached the pass became
almost precipitous, and so slippery in wet weather
as to be very difficult of ascent. The loaded
coolies clambered up this portion laboriously,
careful of their foothold at each step they took,
and using their toes to clutch the ground. The
descent for a short distance was equally bad, and
had to be negotiated even more cautiously, but it
is amazing how a barefooted man will manage
to walk in perfect safety where a booted one has
to use a stick with which to steady himself.
Habit and use make their feet become almost
like additional hands; they are able to pick up
money or sticks from the ground, they seize and
hold any object they may require to keep steady
whilst they are working at it, and in climbing
ropes they grasp it between the first and second
toe, instead of swarming up as we do. They take
the greatest care not to tread on thorns, for not-
withstanding that the soles of their feet have a
thick and hardened skin, thorns readily penetrate,
and. have to be pulled out ; or if they break off, as
they often do, leaving their sharp points in the
flesh, they require to be extracted, and it is a very
usual sight to see the carriers after a rough day s
journey performing this operation, and cutting the
thorns out of one another's feet
After some hours of descent the valley of Ulu
Yam is reached, a fine stretch of paddy fields, and
a village inhabited by immigrant Malays from
Sumatra.
Some years afterwards, when a six-foot road
had been cut contouring the hillside, 1 was be-
BENIGHTED ON HORSEBACK. 163
nighted whilst riding down it on a little black
pony. There was a high bank on one side, and
a steep drop on the other, and it was so dark that
1 could see neither, so there was nothing to be
done but sit quietly on the pony's back and trust
entirely to his guidance. It was the first time we
had been on a night journey together, and the poor
little beast was nervous and terrified. Fearful of
walking over the edge of the path he kept con-
stantly smelling the track, whinnying and crying
with fear, and although I had often heard horses
when badly hurt shriek out with pain, I had never
known them do so from abject fear before. Some
of the little wooden bridges across the numerous
gullies were slightly rotten, and these he crossed
with nervous trembling ; and on the edge of one
he stopped, so dismounting I lighted a match, to
find it broken down, but as the ravine was only
some five feet deep we managed to scramble over,
and finished our journey safely.
After that night's experience we always seemed
to understand one another better, and a mutual
liking and confidence was established, so that no
place was too difficult for the pony to try and
negotiate if I went first, for if he came to grief he
knew I should somehow help him out. I was very
sorry when he died; he was a picture to look at,
and made a beautiful wheeler in a tandem, but
nothing would persuade him to go properly in
single harness ; he would rear, throw himself back-
wards, jib, try and shake himself free of the
harness, and failing that start off with a bound,
gallop a short distance, and go once more through
i64 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
the same performance ; but with a leader in front
no pony could go better or more pleasantly ; he
had the best of manners, and most delicate of
mouths, and in saddle was as game as possible.
The house of the Orang-tua, or recognized head
of the cluster of dwellings in Ulu Yam, was
situated close to the path, and was our halting
place for the night. We were made welcome,
mats were spread, and bits of news interchanged.
At the back of the house was a nice clear flowing
stream with gravelly bottom, nearly three feet deep.
As I walked into the water I saw a long, thin,
attenuated water snake, that had been disturbed by
my intrusion, swiftly wriggling itself across to the
other side. There was no fear of my bath being
disturbed by leeches here, for they only swarm in
muddy places ; nothing more disquieting than the
nibbling round my legs of a number of little
minnows, which, attracted by my white skin, came
to examine and try whether it may not be some-
thing edible, and amused me by the persistency of
their efforts.
On my return to the house after bathing, it was
with feelings of contentment that I ascended the
ladder on to the verandah, for the accommodation
was comfortable and luxurious when compared with
the night before ; and sitting down on the doorstep
the look-out was bright and cheerful, for the setting
sun, throwing a last beam of light across the brown,
watery paddy fields, that had been so lately planted,
lighted them up with just one warm parting flash
of radiance before its golden orb disappeared below
the horizon, leaving an afterglow of colours in the
REMAINS OF SIAMESE TIN-WORKINGS. 165
heavens to tinge the wavy clouds with brilliant
sheens of splendour, gradually deepening in tint to
a glorious crimson, which was slowly lost in dark-
ness. One of my bearers had found he possessed
mutual friends and relations with my host, and they
sat up late together discussing them and chatting.
The next morning saw us all once more on the
move ; skirting alongside the paddy fields we com-
menced a hot and dreary journey to Ulu Selangor
through grass and scrub, for all the intervening
country had been cleared of its forest growth and
abandoned, after a crop or two had been taken
from the land. Crossing a river about mid-day
we travelled on, reaching in the afternoon the low
ridge of hills on the far side of which lay the
village where we intended to camp for the night.
This ridge was covered by a dense growth of
bamboos, and was interesting from the fact that
it contained signs of a former Siamese occupation,
the record of which would have been lost had
it not been for the numerous round shafts which
had fallen in and were nearly filled with earth,
and amongst these the track wound in and out,
threading its way between them as it traversed
this honeycombed hill. The mining method
adopted by these Siamese adventurers, in prob-
ably the eighteenth century, required the assistance
of two men, one of whom was employed in ex-
cavating a circular hole of sufficient dimensions
to enable him to work within it. As he dug
out the soil under his feet he put it in a basket
attached to a cord, which his comrade drew up,
and throwing its contents to one side returned
1 66 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
it to him. When the ore-strata was reached he
not only sent up to the surface what there was
in the shaft itself, but undermining ais far as he
could all round he scooped up everything that
was within his reach, and this all had to be carried
some little distance to a neighbouring stream in
order to separate the tin ore from its surroundings.
Alternate notches were cut in opposite sides of
the shaft, into which the miner, by sticking his
toes, was able with the help of a bamboo pole,
or by pressing his elbows against the walls, either
to gain the surface or to lower himself without
much difficulty, for these holes were seldom much
over twenty feet in depth.
Being unable to cope with the water in the
flats, these Siamese emigrants confined their
attention to higher places, where, by sinking shafts
at regular intervals, they systematically extracted
and scooped out all the ore-bearing strata of the
ground in which they worked ; but they must have
been satisfied with results which would be totally
insufficient nowadays to have made their method
worth while in the poor land in which they
worked.
CHAPTER IX.
Ulu Selangor — Destroyed by dam bursting — Trade — Kalampong—
Ulu Bemam — River — Mountains — Herd of elephants — Kwala
Slim — Crossing swamps — Kwala Galeting — Death of the only
Europeans in this district — Fish-hook ants — TroUah — Crute
— Small-pox — Sungkai river — Kwala Lepis — Catching wild
elephants — Jungkau — Tapah and country round — Hanging
over precipice — Sakais.
The original village of Ulu Selangor was built
on a low bank by the side of the Selangor river,
at the highest point where it was navigable for
the small boats conveying the imports and exports
of the district. At the back of it stretched away
a long valley, in the upper portion of which a
high bund had been constructed, confining many
acres of water of considerable depth, which was
utilized by the miners in the neighbourhood.
This dam had been in existence for very nearly
a hundred years, and the villagers had ceased to
realize the dangerous situation they had selected
for their houses, until one wet, dark night, suc-
ceeding an unusually rainy day, the cry was raised
that the tank was bursting. Some hurriedly ran
to higher ground, but many, hardly crediting the
intelligence, remained in their dwellings rather than
face the storm outside, whilst others lingered to
collect as much of their goods as they could carry
away before abandoning their homes. Fatal delay,
167
i68 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
for the bund had broken, and the opening, small
at first, soon widened, letting loose an avalanche
of water that ramped and tore down the valley,
levelling everything that opposed its passage
across the intervening space, and, rushing on the
village, swept it and all its inhabitants out into
the river ; then, dashing against the opposite bank
where the ground was steep and high, the waters
recoiled and eddied, tossing shattered houses,
animals, and human beings about in tumultuous
confusion, whilst the current pressed and carried
them on in its downward course.
A few houses that stood on a slight eminence
were all that escaped being destroyed, and the
valley above bore witness for many months to
the torrential flood that had passed over it. The
bushes and tall grass were still lying flattened to
the ground, and where the bund should have been
a wide rent gave entrance to what had once
been a lake, but was now a stretch of quickly
drying mud, where a few fish lingered and hid in
the slimy bottom. The village was rebuilt on
higher ground, and being connected with Kwala
Lumpor by railway, it has become a flourishing
little centre of trade, and substantially built brick
houses have taken the place of more temporary
structures.
Its inhabitants do a considerable business with
the neighbouring state of Pahang, as it is from
here that the road starts that leads over the
mountains to the mining district of Tras and to
the gold mines of Raub ; and it was the base where
supplies were collected for one of the forces that
KALAMPONG. 169
were sent to put down the disturbances that broke
out shortly after a British Resident had been im-
posed upon the Sultan of that state.
The sole mark left to remind the traveller of the
disaster that once overwhelmed the place in its
early days is a grassy mound, the grave of the
District Officer, the only white man who was in
the village at the time of its destruction, and whose
body was recovered some distance down the river.
The Malays in this neighbourhood had been
almost exterminated during the many internecine
fights, for they had commenced by helping the
Siamese to conquer Perak, and before the effects
of that expedition had disappeared they began
fighting among themselves, which was more des-
tructive still. Those lower down the river pre-
vented any merchandise from passing up or down,
and took to piracy directly the Dutch, in accordance
with the Treaty of Holland, 1824, withdrew from
the fort they had constructed at the river's mouth.
The most terrible anarchy prevailed, and traditions
of murders and horrible cruelties were still current
among the poverty-stricken remnant left in the
interior.
The scenery in the neighbourhood of the Selan-
gor river is uninteresting, the whole country round
being broken up with numerous little hills and
valleys, and these had to be crossed on the journey
towards Bernam, the first part of which was dull
and uninteresting until Kalampong was reached,
where there had formerly been quite a consider-
able mining settlement ; but the houses were
already falling into decay, the population having
I70 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
mostly left owing to the rich discovery of tin which
had once attracted them having become nearly
exhausted. The last portion of the journey, not-
withstanding the flatness of the country traversed,
was a tedious and trying walk, along a path much
cut up by the buffaloes which were employed to
drag provisions for the miners over this narrow
way, rendering it muddy and slippery in wet
weather, and rough and uneven to walk upon
when dry. The village of Ulu Bernam is situated
in a beautiful and broad valley through which the
Bernam river flows, the boundary between the
states of Selangor and Perak, and its inhabitants
were foreign Malays, who appeared prosperous and
well-to-do ; their houses were nicely built, and the
turf between them was kept closely cropped by the
many goats and buffaloes that roamed at large,
whilst here and there a clump of bamboos broke
the uniformity of the level sward.
Tied to the river bank were a few small boats,
whose owners were lazily lolling under the shade
of the removable roofs — made from leaves of the
nipa palm sewn together — they had erected, and
resting after their two weeks of hard poling up the
river. The children were disporting themselves
in the river itself, laughing and shouting at one
another with gladsome exuberance of spirits ; higher
up a group of women were vanishing behind the
bank round a bend in the stream, in order to seek
a more secluded bathing-place ; and across the
water the curious bleat of the cow buffalo could
be heard as it called to its calf, and emerging
from a path leading to the woods came several
HERD OF ELEPHANTS. 171
buffaloes, which having done their day s work were
being brought by small boys perched on their backs
down to the river, into which they were driven,
almost disappearing as they lowered their bodies
until nothing but their heads were visible above
the water. In the far distance the dark bold out-
line of the Slim mountain range, six to seven
thousand feet in height, formed a fitting and
picturesque frame to this pleasant landscape, where
the air was pure and balmy, and where only happi-
ness seemed to reign, and contentment appeared
the lot of all.
Whilst travelling along the foot of these hills
in the direction of Ulu Slim, I unexpectedly
came across a herd of elephants standing in a
bamboo glade; and as they were not aware of
my presence, I sat down and was interested in
watching these huge beasts in their wild state,
oblivious of the prying eyes so intently gazing
on them and observing their every movement.
They stood a little distance apart, all facing
one way, swinging their trunks from side to
side, or flapping their ears backwards and for-
wards, otherwise motionless, solemn and silent.
They were not more than thirty yards off", and I
left them undisturbed, more fully convinced than
ever that shooting these useful animals was but
poor sport, for they are dull of sight and not over
quick at hearing, being largely guided by smell,
so that the tracker is often able to get quite close
up to the unsuspecting beast, should the wind be
in the right direction. The principal danger is
that when a herd is disturbed and thoroughly
172 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAVA.
frightened its members rush panic-stricken in all
directions, and there is the chance that one of
them, terrified by the report of the sportsman's
gun, may in its mad career accidentally knock
him down, and do him an injury as it dashes
past.
Shooting elephants, unless a licence has been
obtained, is wisely prohibited, so that as long as
they stay in their haunts, and do not come forth
and destroy the crops and gardens of the villagers,
they are left in peace. These herds frequent
certain feeding places and districts, wandering to
and fro for many miles, being often joined by
tame elephants that have broken loose and been
lost by their owners ; but when this is the case
these runaways can always be detected, for the
wild ones raise their trunks and feed upon the
young shoots of overhanging trees, whilst those
that have once been in captivity tear up the
creeping grasses that grow in the open glades as
they pass along, in addition to eating the foliage,
for they are less fastidious, and have acquired
the habit of eating the common grasses that grow
so freely in the neighbourhood of villages.
There was one especially famous elephant which
had a malformed foot, and was well known in many
districts, as he used to travel from the western
coast, adjoining the Straits of Malacca, right over
the range of mountains into the territory of Pahang.
On one occasion, when walking alone in the jungle,
I came upon his tracks, and whilst stopping to
examine them I was considerably startled by
hearing him trumpet within a few yards of where
KWALA SLIM. 173
I stood, and being in no wise anxious to break
in upon his solitude I moved quietly on and left
him undisturbed. He had the reputation of being
a sacred elephant, and never did any injury, so that
his visits were not unwelcome, and he was popu-
larly supposed to be the hallowed and reverenced
elder and leader of his herd.
Native shikaries have a clever dodge while
hunting game of finding out from what quarter
the wind is blowing, for in the forest it is often
faint and imperceptible. They lightly scrape one
of their nails with a knife, obtaining a fine white
dust, which falls but slowly through the air, and
is easily affected by the slightest breath of wind
there may be, and clearly indicates from what
direction he must approach his quarry, so that it
may not scent his presence.
Leaving Ulu Bernam, our next day's march
was to Kwala Slim, a spot where the two rivers
meet on their way to the sea. The track followed
the course of the river the whole way, through
alternately flat and swampy jungle. During the
journey we passed the Berang river, whose brown-
tinted and effluvial waters gave evidence of the
unwholesome and malarial nature of the country
through which it flowed, and crossed it by means
of a large fallen tree that stretched from bank to
bank. Malays but seldom suffer from giddiness,
and are very expert at walking along logs and
trees, and even should the bridge oscillate with
each step taken, as often happens, they appear
in no wise disconcerted ; most of them can swim,
and although their method is entirely different to
174 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
ours, resembling more the actions of a dog than
a man in the water, they manage to get along
at a fair pace. I usually made the syce, if he
was anywhere at hand, swim with my pony
when crossing a river, in order to save myself an
unnecessary wetting, should there be a bridge or
any other means by which I could get over.
Upon one occasion, when my pony was being
taken across the Berang river, he got bogged in
the muddy bottom just as he was trying to
clamber out ; so I sent the syce to lift his tail
and took the end of the reins myself, and although
all that could be seen of the man was just his
face above the water, the pony managed to gain
firmer ground without much difficulty. When a
horse gets fast in the mud it is no use dragging
him by the bridle if after a plunge or two he
cannot free himself, for he only sinks deeper into
the mire ; better far go to his tail and lift it, so
that the animal may obtain a leverage to assist him
successfully to extricate himself from his diffi-
culties. If there be two persons, one should hold
the end of the reins out in front as well, this
will assist him still more ; and it is marvellous
through what bad places a pony accustomed to
be bogged will manage to pass helped in this
way. One of my ponies would cross any morass,
provided it was free of roots, that I myself could
struggle through ; and when unable to proceed
any further by himself he would wait until we
came to his assistance, and not till then would
he make any desperate plunges to free himself
from the clinging mud.
KWALA GALETING. 175
By the evening I reached Kwala Slim, a dreary,
remote spot by the side of the river, whose banks
were liable to be flooded, and with the whole
country round it periodically suffered from inunda-
tions. Here the officer in charge of this district
lived, and on inquiring for him I was told he was
suffering from fever, but he shortly came out,
having just risen from his bed, looking dreadfully
ill and weak. The excitement of seeing a fellow-
countryman and hearing his own language made
him more cheerful, and by the time he went to bed
he seemed somewhat improved.
Early the next morning I started for Kwala
Galeting, a river that flows into the Slim at the
foot of the main range of mountains, and on arrival
the headman of the village came to tell me that
there was a European ill a short distance away who
had ordered a boat to take him down the river that
morning, but he had not arrived. He was a planter
from Ceylon who had commenced a coffee planta-
tion in the hills near this place, not realizing what
the difficulties of transport were and how little
chance there was at that time of ultimate success.
Taking some men with torches to light me on my
return journey, I started off to see him, and found
him in bed suffering from his daily recurring after-
noon attack of ague and fever, but the shiverings
had ceased. He informed me he was going down
country the next day, and that some work he had
wished to see finished before departure was just
completed that afternoon. To enable him to leave
the first thing the next morning I went and in-
spected what had been done, and offered to stand
176 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
by him and start him on his journey if he wished
it. He said it was not necessary, so I lighted
the torches I had brought and returned to camp
thoroughly tired out. The next morning I left
on my way to Trollah, and being so accustomed
to an attack of fever myself and to see others
suffering from it, did not anticipate the reply I
received, on reaching the end of my journey at
Kwala Kangsar, to my inquiry if any news had
been obtained of the only two white men I had
met on my journey across Perak, and was shocked
when I heard that they had both died a few days
after reaching more civilized parts, showing that
they had delayed their departure too long ; a not
infrequent mistake, and one easily made, for after
the first few attacks of fever the patient ceases
to realize how the poison is sucking away his
strength and vitality, and expects to shake it off
as he has already succeeded in doing so often
before.
Few people used the track that led to Trollah
and the places beyond, for during the next two days'
journey I did not pass more than a few inhabited
dwellings. The track was over steep, abrupt hills,
tiring in the extreme, and very hard work for
coolies carrying heavy loads. I usually walked
on alone some distance in front of my men to
save the tediousness of waiting whilst they were
passing difficult places in the path, over which they
were obliged to proceed slowly and cautiously.
A little off the track was a hot spring, smelling
strongly of sulphuretted hydrogen, where I often
had a deliciously warm and refreshing bath, and
FISH-HOOK ANTS. 177
never passed without drinking its waters. It was
a favourite place for wild beasts to come down and
drink, their tracks in the vicinity being numerous,
and a little distance further on a tigers lair was
close to the path ; but he never molested me nor
any other travellers that I was aware of, although
on many occasions I knew that he was lurking in
the neighbourhood as I passed by.
What struck me most as I sometimes sat and
rested on some fallen tree, was the absolute stillness
all around, the barking of a deer being but seldom
heard, no birds singing, and as a rule nothing broke
the still monotony and dreariness of the jungle,
at most only the rustling of a leaf, caused by some
dark-coloured lizard running over it ; or sometimes,
if you remained motionless, a lovely orange-breasted
woodpecker, or a black one with scarlet head and
crimson crest, would afford you an opportunity of
observing it flit from tree to tree, hopping up and
continuously tapping the stem of each one in its
search after the insects upon which it preys ; or
perhaps you might be startled out of your reverie
by feeling a sharp prick on your hand as you
carelessly placed it on the rotting log upon which
you were sitting, and upon examination would find a
reddish ant attached to it, known amongst the natives
as the fish-hook ant, on account of its having two
hooks on its back shaped like fish-hooks. These
hooks are exceedingly sharp, but of what use I could
never discover, for once caught fast in any object
the ant would hang supported by them, powerless
to extricate itself from its dilemma.
Other kinds of ubiquitous little ants were always
N
178 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
in evidence, hunting around in search of food, very
vicious and pugnacious, for I have often watched
them pursue and capture larger ants that have
strayed into their neighbourhood. It was curious
to observe the anxiety to escape the larger insect
showed, when it found itself being surrounded by
these tiny little creatures not a quarter its own size ;
it would run in every direction, only to be met and
turned back each time it attempted to break through
the gradually closing circle. At last it was laid hold
of by one bolder than the rest, and the struggle
began, the large ant appearing not to retaliate, and
only striving to get away, until at last, becoming
overpowered as its captors increased in numbers, it
gave in and allowed itself to be dragged away
without making any further resistance.
At Trollah the only accommodation was a house
that was rapidly falling to pieces, and the roof was in
such a wretched state that daylight was plainly visible
through, and it afforded but scant protection should
rain happen to fall during the night ; some little
while afterwards nothing remained of this dilapi-
dated shelter, necessitating a forced march to a
hamlet situated at Crute, which could only be
gained before dark by leaving Kwala Galeting
at the first peep of dawn and after a long day s
journey of continuous hard walking without a
rest. Just before reaching Crute the worst swamp
on the whole route had to be crossed, which was
wide and often up to the neck in depth.
Once when arriving at this place at a time when
small-pox was raging witH particular virulence and
decimating the few inhabitants in the neighbouring
SMALL-POX— SUNGKAI RIVER. 179
villages, the parents of a child came with their
little one, and crying, placed it in my arms to
discover whether it had the dreaded scourge, in
the hopes that a white man might effect a cure
where all the native remedies had failed. Small-
pox was a disease in attending to which I had
had no experience ; however, if I had told them
I was ignorant of the subject they would not have
believed me, so the only thing to be done was to
try and diagnose the case. After an examination,
during which all the occupants of the two houses
had come to look on, I handed the child back to its
father and pronounced it not to be suffering from
small-pox, but from fever ; so dosing it with some
simple remedies, I gave the parents some quinine
to use when I had gone. Everybody seemed
pleased and delighted with what I told them, but
it was with some trepidation for my reputation
that when stopping here on a future occasion
1 made inquiries after the child, and was relieved
to hear it had quite recovered.
During the journey I am now describing I
passed by this place, and spending a night at
a primitive village alongside of the Sungkai river,
which I crossed the following morning, reached
Kwala Lepis, or Bidor as it is now called, the
same evening, where I found excellent accommo-
dation for the night in the house of the headman
of the village.
Alongside of the dwelling was a high platform,
from which the elephant trappings were put on the
animals back ; they were of the crudest kind,
consisting of a few old sacks, then a skin, and
i8o CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
on the top of this the panniers, made of rattan,
were placed arid fastened.
It is curious that in Selangor, and further south,
although tame elephants are mentioned as having
been in use in Malacca when it was captured by
the Portuguese in 151 1, now all traces and records
amongst the people of the former use of elephants
as beasts of burden have been lost in that part
of the peninsula, although in portions of Perak
elephants are still fairly numerous, being princi-
pally owned by the chiefs. The words of com-
mand used by the mahouts are of Siamese origin,
which shows that the custom of elephant training
was introduced into the peninsula from Siam.
The catching of these animals used to be a
more lucrative affair than it has recently become.
Formerly the chief only had to requisition each
village headman in his district to supply so many
men, who worked for weeks without pay, often
even having to provide their own food as well. As
this system of forced labour has been abolished, the
chiefs now are obliged to pay the men employed,
so that the expense of capturing elephants has
greatly increased, and there is always some risk
that after all the preparations have been completed
the herd may move off somewhere else, and refuse
to be brought back.
The method adopted is to build a kraal or
enclosure in a valley near some favourite locality
much frequented by the herd. As soon as the
enclosure is completed, numbers of men are re-
quired to drive the forest to try and force the
elephants to take the desired direction. The
CATCHING WILD ELEPHANTS.
i8i
animals soon become frightened, and often break
away through the line of beaters, and have to be
refound before the drive can be recommenced on
the following day, unless they have gone too far,
when the beaters go back to their homes, to await
news of the return of the herd to the neighbour-
hood of the kraal. Should the drive be successful.
which seldom happens on the first day, and the
members of the herd enter the narrow entrance of
the enclosure, it is immediately closed and securely
fastened. The now captive elephants trumpet
loudly, and rush round the kraal making a great
noise, charging thq fence, and trying to break
through the structure, which has been made of
trees securely lashed together and strengthened
by numerous supports on the outside. On the
1 82 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
mside sharpened bamboos are placed at intervals
in order to ward off the elephants attacks, and
men keep guard day and night, walking along a
platform on the top of the fence, and at any
attempt on the part of the animals to break out
they drive them back with spears. After some
weeks of captivity and starvation the elephants
become sufficiently quiet to allow themselves to
be shackled, and are then one by one led away
harnessed to a • tame elephant ; but in order to
prevent the wild one becoming too obstreperous or
unruly on the way ropes are fastened to its hind legs
and allowed to trail behind, so that they can be
quickly wound round some tree close to the path,
and speedily render its struggles futile and its
efforts to escape abortive. The elephants are thus
conducted to strongly made, although temporary
stables near some stream, and are securely fastened,
so that they can do no damage. They now receive
the best of treatment ; the sores caused by the
chafing of the ropes are attended to, their keepers
wash them, scrub their backs with cocoanut fibre,
feed them, and do all in their power to tame and
reconcile them to their new mode of life ; for their
object is to get them quiet and docile as quickly
as possible, a process that takes two to six months,
according to the disposition of the elephant, which
also has to be trained to carry burdens ; but it
takes another year or so before its back becomes
sufficiently inured to carry heavy loads, and its feet
hardened enough to stand much travelling. An
elephant is only able to work for a limited number
of days at a time, for its feet soon become sore
TAPAH. 183
and tender if overworked ; and since the extension
of roads, and improved facilities of transport, their
usefulness has greatly decreased, and their value
fallen fifty per cent. The best of them can carry
half a ton of tin, although only a quarter of a ton
of rice can be loaded on their backs, but an
ordinary elephant will only transport half these
weights, travelling at the rate of a mile and a half
an hour, and often less should the track be at all
bad and hilly.
But to continue my journey. The track after
leaving Bidor to the north became wider, the
bushes on each side being cut back somewhat in
order to prevent their interfering with the loads
carried by the elephants ; but the way itself was no
easier for foot passengers, rather the reverse, for
these animals when going along a path always
tread in the same spots, causing each footprint to
become a pool of water, and the path itself gets
so churned up, and what is left of its surface so
greasy, that it is by no means easy for the pedes-
trian to avoid slipping into some of the many holes
with which it is cut up.
Passing through the Jungkor Valley, famous for
its alluvial gold deposits, and adjoining which the
lode has been discovered at Bukit Mas, where it
is being worked, Tapah was reached, then con-
sisting of but a few tumble-down huts close to
the river. Now this place has become the head-
quarters of the district officer ; it has its club, cricket
ground and hospital, and is a good example of a
small district station, with perhaps still a somewhat
notorious and evil reputation for the insalubrity of
i84 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
its climate, and is connected with the railway by a
few miles of excellent cart-road, and equally good
roads branch from it in several directions. Upon
the hills around are the officers' quarters, and a
wooden suspension bridge crosses the river, a fine
piece of engineering at a time when only small
boats could ascend the river, making the transport
of heavy iron material impossible and necessitating
the use of timber, which could be locally supplied.
Black cobras, which are scarce in other portions
of the peninsula, are frequently to be met with.
The country in the neighbourhood is very much
broken up and distorted ; small steep hills surround
the town, preventing any free current of air from cir-
culating and driving away the malarial fumes which
arise during the night. Away to the north-east
the Tapah river has its source, high up among
the distant mountains, over which the eagle soars,
and where numerous rivulets wind in and out
amidst the stunted undergrowth before falling over
steep precipices into the valley below, where, being
joined by numerous other torrents, they form one
river which rushes down, confined by the steep hills
on either side, and is often unfordable for several
days at a time during wet weather, when it
carries huge trees along in its current, and dashes
and splinters them against the large boulders
that bestrew its bed and obstruct their progress.
I spent nearly a month amongst the higher ranges
of these mountains^ where the sides of the hills
are so abrupt as to make travelling difficult and
dangerous ; many places of sheer rock had to
be crossed on bridges, and such bridges! a few
HANGING OVER PRECIPICE. 185
frail, slender sticks with a hand-rail that gave to
the slightest pressure, whilst the sticks beneath
one's feet danced up and down, supported only
by equally thin saplings fixed into some chink
in the rocks. The slightest slip, or the breaking
of a rotten stick, and the person crossing would
have been precipitated two or three hundred feet
over the sheer cliff, and death would have been
a certainty.
I have seen natives, who will usually walk over
anything, stop and turn round, and beg not to be
made to cross — a request I always acceded to,
for I never forgot how I felt the first time I
went over one of these frail structures skirting
the side of the cliff, with overhanging rocks above
and a precipice beneath. On arrival at the outer
side I could go no further, and after a rest re-
turned, and gaining sounder ground sat down,
for my legs seemed to have lost their use and
to give way beneath me ; however, the next time
I had to negotiate this same place I did so
without difficulty or hesitation, as I had by then
become more accustomed to these dizzy heights,
and walked with assurance over the most dangerous
of these tiny bridges. Perhaps what made matters
worse on my first attempt was, that earlier in the
day, whilst passing over a slab-rock that was at
a steep angle, and had been made slippery by
water trickling over it, I had lost my footing and
fallen down and slid on its smooth surface, but
just as I was going over the edge of the rock
my fingers caught in a crack, and I hung with
my legs dangling in space, until a comrade who
i86 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
happened fortunately to be with me came to my
assistance and helped me up with the aid of a
stick, thus, perhaps, saving me from a nasty drop,
and probably a fatal accident; for if I had been
alone it is quite possible that in trying to regain
my footing I should have lost my grip and fallen
down the slippery precipice, over which most of
my body was already hanging.
Whilst sojourning in these hills I lived in a
hut built on a razor-like ridge by the side of
a steep escarpment which a landslip had made ;
until one night the wind rose and shook this
flimsy structure so much that I left it and built
fresh quarters in a more sheltered spot.
The hills in this part of the country are in-
habited by several tribes of Sakais, who are
descendants of the aboriginal inhabitants of the
Malay Peninsula, and are a pure, unmixed branch
of the Melanesian race, being quite distinct from
the Malays, and having skulls that approach the
Negritos of the Philippines in form, and not differ-
ing widely from the Papuans of New Guinea.
They appear to have no tradition from whence
they came, and are unlike the Jakuns, who have a
legend that they came from the north. The latter
are altogether a smaller race, and have long straight
hair, whereas the former are shock-headed, and
their hair is black or russet-coloured and wavy
or frizzy. They are lithesome and athletic looking,
walking up the hills at a great pace, or creeping
through the jungle with amazing facility and
dexterity. If seen at a distance they usually
dart away, for their first instinct is to hide
SAKAIS WITH BLOW-PIPES.
SAKAIS. 189
whilst the stranger passes by. I have often tried
to find out where they were concealed as I walked
along, but I was never able to catch a glimpse
of them, although they disappeared but a short
distance off. They are ignorant, not being able
to count up to more than three, but they can
reckon three sets of threes, and by this method
can calculate up to nine, which is their limit.
They have no actual religion, but possess a firm
belief in evil spirits, and a case is recorded of their
actually killing a member of their tribe whom they
imagined to be possessed by one, in consequence
of numerous cases of sickness and death, and the
person chosen to carry out the sentence was the
suspected man s own brother. They have faith in
i^ood and bad omens ; the latter appear to become
very persistent if there is any work for which some
of them may be required. They are independent
and unsociable, only obeying their chiefs ; and so
little do the various tribes intermingle that they
speak a different dialect and do not understand
one another. They roam at large amongst the
hills with only a strip of bark as clothing, and a
blow-pipe in their hands, trapping and eating any
kind of animal ; snakes, mice, and monkeys are
to them equally tasty. They look forward to the
season when the wild durian ripens, and clear
small patches of forest where they plant paddy
and gourds and yams, living in wretched hovels
and not caring to improve their miserable mode
of existence. They are dirty in their habits, and
their bodies are full of vermin ; they have no sense
of decency, and were formerly very little better
190 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
than the wild animals amongst which they dwelt.
They owe their continued existence to the pro-
tection of the mountains, amongst the tops of
which they lived, safe from the marauding Malay,
who considered a Sakai's life of no more value
than a dogs, and would kill one as readily and
with as little hesitation, being only warded off
by their dread of the poison-tipped darts they
expelled from their blow-pipes. They make a rude
sort of music of two or three notes by blowing
with their nostrils through a primitive kind of
flute made of reed or bamboo. The women wear
rude ornaments, follow their lord and master
through the woods, carrying the camp furniture,
and clothed as scantily as he is himself, and when
captured they and their children were formerly
sold as slaves. Finding that their persecution
has ceased they have, to a great extent, left their
SAKAIS. 191
homes amongst the higher crags and come down
and settled in the lower valleys, where the soil
is more fruitful and the climate warmer.
The ubiquitous and pushing Chinaman has pene-
trated into their haunts, and has already commenced
to teach them the wants of civilization and the
delights of opium smoking. Living somewhere
near their settlement, he gradually gains their
confidence, so that in time all the bartering is done
at the little shop he has constructed in the jungle,
where he lives solitary and alone. His compatriots
at intervals carry him what he requires, returning
laden with tin ore, which the Sakais have collected
in the hill streams, or fowls, which he has persuaded
them to rear, or pumpkins, or damar — a resin that
is found amongst the roots of the trees, many of
which are impregnated with this substance, so that
they burn readily — or the incense wood, most
valuable and difficult to procure, and all of which
he obtains in exchange for some necessity he has
taught these wild men to require. After a while he
takes a Sakai woman to wife, thus cementing his
connection with the tribe, the members of which
will deal with no one else, and he thereby becomes
their medium of intercourse with the outside world,
much to his own advantage.
CHAPTER X.
Chanderiang — Night at Malay Miners' Camp — A Sikh Policeman and
his Prisoner— Kwala Dipang — Sungei Rya — Ipoh — Gunong Mce-
nit — The Sensitive Plant— Coolies' Loads — Kwala Kangsar — The
Regent— Sir Hugh Low, g.CM.g.— The Perak War— The Perak
River — A Journey Down — Birds, Fish — The Sultan — Road to
Thaiping— Charged by a Rhinoceros— Seladang— Herd of Wild
Pigs— Pass in the Hills — Bukit Gantong — Events which caused
British Intervention, and the Perak War — Slavery.
Notwithstanding the previous digression, I only
Stayed at Tapah whilst a boat was obtained in which
to cross the river, and reached Chanderiang the same
day, and being anxious to push on with my coolies
we started for Kwala Dipang with a guide, who
vehemently protested against leaving at so late an
hour, and said it would be impossible to reach any
house before it got dark. But I was obdurate, not
knowing what was ahead, and insisted on setting
out. After we had gone a short distance the guide
deserted and left us to find our own way, and it
indeed looked as if he was going to be right, and
that we should have to spend the night alongside of
the track in the forest Night came on, but a
bright moon overhead just enabled us to follow the
path, but with difficulty. Still we struggled on, and
fortune favoured us, for we espied a light glimmer-
ing in the distance, and cooied and cooied again. A
figure appeared on the threshold and directed us
how to ascend the steep approach to the place
192
A SIKH POLICEMAN AND HIS PRISONER. 193
where he was standing, and on arrival we dis-
covered that it was occupied by several Malays,
who had come out for a few days to wash for tin
in the hills. We asked for shelter, whicli was
readily given, although space was scanty, and
there was but little room, which were minor in-
conveniences to what we might have encountered
had we discovered no habitation. The inmates,
who had never been close up to a white man before,
were greatly interested in watching and noting every
detail of my toilet and manner of eating, being
surprised at my knowledge of their customs, and
unable to suppress their wonder at the whiteness of
a European skin, and astonishment at being able to
see the veins in it.
An amusing episode occurred whilst travelling
many years afterwards along this portion of the
journey between Chanderiang and Kwala Dipang.
I had driven to the former place, and wished
to rejoin the cart road at the latter, and as over
this intervening twelve miles a good bridle path
had been constructed, the journey was much easier
and less fatiguing than it used to be.
I had started to walk across the hills, and over-
took on the way a Sikh policeman escorting a
Malay prisoner, who was a noted housebreaker and
thief. As we walked along my servants and the
policeman entered into conversation ; pedestrian
feats formed the subject of their discourse, during
which another Malay joined the party. The
policeman became somewhat boastful of his
prowess, and I could hear from the contemptuous
way in which the Malays were answering him that
194 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
his bragging disgusted them, and offended their
sense of good manners and politeness. I was
getting tired of the conversation, so quickened my
pace in order to leave the man and his prisoner
behind ; not a bit of it, the policeman, after all his
vain-glorious talk of how much better he could
walk than anyone else, seemed unwilling to be
distanced, and determinedly kept up. There were
four miles of ascent in front of us until the gap
at the top of the hill was reached, and as we
tramped along I heard the prisoner expostulate
and declare he could not travel at the pace we were
going, but the policeman was too intent upon not
being left behind to pay any attention, and, chang-
ing place with his prisoner, told him to catch hold
of his belt and follow along, so as mile succeeded
mile they both kept up, the sikh striding on, and
the prisoner running behind ; at last the top of the
hill was gained, and the descent began. Now
came my opportunity ; although the lithe and long-
legged policeman was able to keep up with me
during the ascent of the hill, I knew that I could
distance him now, and made every effort to do so,
for in front lay a long stretch of level ground
without any shade, which I did not want to traverse
at a tearing pace in the middle of the day. I soon
began to hear the clattering of feet behind, and
knew that the policeman had also commenced to
run, and was more than ever intent on not being
left behind. Unfortunately for him, in his emula-
tion he entirely forgot his prisoner, until a rustle
was heard some distance back, caused by the
prisoner making a dash into the jungle, and when
A SIKH POLICEMAN AND HIS PRISONER. 195
we both turned round there was no one to be seen.
The Malays had been distanced, and the prisoner
had escaped. I laughed, as the policeman, instead
of at once pursuing his prisoner, fumbled in his
pouch to find a cartridge. He then fired in the
air, and disappeared into the wood where the
prisoner had vanished, and presently I heard a shot
or two in the distance.
After a little he returned to beg me not to report
him, as he was due for a pension very shorriy, and
started off once again in search of his charge. In
the meantime the Malays overtook me, and we
completed the rest of the distance in comfort, and
I saw no more of our sporting policeman. The
affair was no concern of mine, and I was rather
amused at the man whose unwillingness to be
beaten had absorbed him so entirely and made him
oblivious of his duty. Some time afterwards I made
inquiries, and heard the prisoner had not been
recaptured, and probably never would be, as his
first arrest had taken three years to accomplish.
The story the policeman gave the authorities of
the escape was a very pretty one, but the particulars
of it were absolutely devoid of truth ; but no doubt
he is now enjoying his well-earned pension, and his
Malay prisoner was saved from a long term of
imprisonment, probably owing his life to this
incident ; for some Malays are like various wild
animals, in so far as when deprived of liberty
and freedom they pine away and die, and sen-
tences which to a Chinaman mean many years of
plenty to eat, contentment, freedom from anxiety
and care, to a Malay signify encagement, from
196 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
which he only emerges to be carried to his grave.
Early in the morning we left the hospitable Malays,
who had done their best to make our nights
lodging as comfortable as possible, parting the best
of friends, and to their farewell of ** May thy
journey be prosperous," I returned the usual reply
of ** May thy tarrying be peaceful," and we con-
tinued our ascent until the pass was reached, on
the other side of which was a high plateau of very
productive soil, amidst limestone hills, through
which we commenced a gradual descent to Kwala
Dipang, a small village on the banks of the
Kampor river. Crossing the river, we traversed
a fine alluvial flat to Gopeng, where there was
already a considerable Chinese settlement, notwith-
standing the difficulties of transport, everything
having to be carted over a road very similar to the
one from K. Lumpor to Bukit Kuda to a spot on
the Kinta river that was accessible to small steam
launches and fair- sized cargo boats. This village
has grown into considerable dimensions, notwith-
standing its having been twice gutted by fire.
On this occasion we only stopped to buy a few
necessaries, and continuing onward, crossed over
some low hills that separate this part of the
country from the large Kinta valley, into which we
descended ; and crossing the Sungie Rya river we
reached the village just as the cool breeze of
evening was succeeding to the stifling heat of the
day, and were accommodated in the guest, house
of the Datoh of this part of the country, who,
directly he heard of my arrival, descended from his
picturesque house, with its high-peaked gable ends
SUNGEI RYA— IPOH. 197
and a verandah, having on one side stores of
paddy, whilst on the other side its numerous
inmates were apparently lazily lolling about, but
in reality alert, and ready to carry out their master s
bidding with willing obedience.
I found in the Datoh a fine representative of the
old-fashioned, courteous Milay chief, amiable and
friendly, having the prescience to recognize the
benefits of British rule, to which he had given
his cordial adhesion and co-operation, so different
in this respect to some of the other chiefs of
higher degree. He was wealthy withal, the owner
of elephants and buffaloes, rice fields and mines ;
his house was situated on the bank of a beautiful
river, looking on to the high white cliffs of a lime-
stone hill which, rising abruptly out of the plain,
broke the monotony of the never varying expanse
of green.
Journeying from this place to Ipoh there was
nothing to indicate what a future lay in store for
the Kinta valley, a portion of which we were then
traversing, and Ipoh itself was a straggling, un-
interesting village, alongside of a river difficult
of access for cargo boats. A few Chinese shops
had been erected, and were apparently languish-
ing for want of trade ; there was no one to be
seen about, and a deadly. ' air of dulness and
quietude prevailed, which "were left behind without
regret, as, passing on, I halted for the night at the
foot of the Meerut range of mountains, separating
this district from the valley of the Perak river.
Some years afterwards the mines in Larut becoming
less productive caused an exodus of many of those
198 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
employed in them to Kinta, where fresh discoveries
of tin were constantly being made ; and soon its
broad valley, was dotted with mining camps, alive
with hurrying Chinese, and resounded with the
creaking of many water - wheels, as revolving,
they turned a drum rotating an endless wooden
chain, on each link of which was a bladed piece
of wood that, running in a trough placed at a
slight incline, brought a continuous stre.am of water
to the surface. The village of Ipoh leaped into
sudden notoriety, owing to rich finds of tin in the
adjacent country, and a town sprang up of mush-
room growth only to be burnt down and rebuilt, but
this time with bricks and mortar, as befitted so
wealthy and rising a place. Owing to the river
proving an unreliable and uncertain means of
transporting food for such large numbers of men
during a portion of the year, when through an
insufficiency of water cargo- boats might be unable
to ascend, and in order to prevent the risk of a
scarcity of provisions, a railway was constructed
to a point lower down on the Kinta river, which
was navigable for boats all the year round ; and
this railway has since been connected with its
southern portion, thus bringing Ipoh within easy
and direct railway communication with Teluk
Anson, the port of Lower Perak. Ipoh was not
destined for long to be the terminus of the railway,
as immediately on the completion of this section
it was further extended to the northward.
Shortly after starting the next morning we com-
menced the ascent of Gunong Meerut, over three
thousand feet in height, by a track leading up
GUNONG MEERUT. 199
one of its spurs, and made more difficult from
having been used in wet weather by elephants,
whose feet had sunk deeply into the ground,
breaking up the path and making it harder for
my coolies, who, already tired out and exhausted
by our continuous and arduous journey, slaked
their thirst in the muddy pools thus formed as
they struggled up the hill.
From the top of the ridge there was a glorious
view, although seen with difficulty through the
trees; on one side was the broad Kinta valley we
had just left behind, with now and again a glimpse
of the rivers as they wound through undergrowth
which partially obscured them from view ; to the
eastward white limestone cliffs bordered the level
plain and stood in the foreground of a jumble
of hills and valleys, -behind which long, winding,
forest-clad slopes were crowned with rugged and
precipitous rocks ; whilst in the misty distance the
dim and shadowy outline of still higher mountains
could be faintly seen. The view to the northward
was obstructed by a continuation of the ridge on
which we stood, but away to the westward, across
the Perak river valley, was Gunong Bubu, stand-
ing out with its rounded top 5450 feet in height,
and connected with the Thaiping Hills by one of
its many oblique slopes, which stretched in various
directions. After a short rest, during which my
Chinese coolies smoked their long-stemmed pipes,
the small metal bowls of which require to be re-
filled at every two or three whiffs, we commenced
the descent to the Perak river, reaching its banks
at the village of Kwala Menerang, some distance
200 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
below Kwala Kangsar. The path from here
followed the bank of the river, along which houses
and villages were scattered, and wherever the
ground was uncultivated it was covered with the
brown, heather-like sward of the sensitive plant,
a weed that readily spreads, and whose leaves
curl up and droop directly they are touched by
the feet of every passer-by, leaving a faint grey
trail for a little time to indicate where he has
passed along until the leaves unclose again.
On reaching Kwala Kangsar my men gave relief
to their feelings, and showed their delight that the
journey had come to an end by throwing them-
selves down on the grass to rest directly they had
set down their burdens. We had had a long and
difficult march of eleven houris of honest, solid
plodding every day; and I went over the same
journey on many subsequent occasions, both in
fine and wet weather, in connection with the
exploring, laying out, and making of the main
trunk road of the Malay Peninsula, from Kwala
Lumpor to Kwala Kangsar, until the route was
so well known to me and my coolies that I used
to go on ahead, feeling assured they would turn
up shortly after my arrival at the next camping
place, and I was never disappointed. My followers
were of the fewest, as I was generally accompanied
by only two Chinese coolies, both picked men, and
when not taking long journeys with me they
enjoyed well-merited rest. No expedition seemed
too long, no hardship I could endure too severe for
them. At the end of a day s journey, though
tired, they were always cheerful, spread my simple
COOLIES' LOADS 201
couch, did the little cooking requisite, and in a
short while had a meal prepared. Each man
carried his load slung on a stick, at one end of
which hung my canteen, containing cups and plates,
knives and forks, cooking pots and frying pan, all
nicely packed in a round, covered, galvanized
bucket, the top of which made an excellent basin,
and the lower part could be utilized for fetching
water; at the other extremity was the bedding,
wrapped in a waterproof sheet. Mine consisted
of a pillow, rush mat, blanket, and mosquito net,
and theirs was similar, with the difference that it
had to suffice for both of them.
The second man's load was composed of a
basket containing a few tins of cocoa, milk, and
meat, the latter only used when fowls were un-
obtainable, a lantern, oil, and a day or two s supply
of rice — all slung on one end of his carrying-stick ;
and on the other end two changes of clothes and
boots for myself, wrapped in waterproof coverings,
and the same for my attendants, as well as a fowl
that was to be the evenings meal, and which
can be very easily and quickly prepared if it is
skinned instead of being plucked, and then fried.
One of the prettiest views in the Straits is
obtained from the verandah of the Residency at
Kwala Kangsar, where Sir Hugh Low, g.cm.g.,
lived when British Resident of Perak. The house
stands upon an isolated knoll overlooking the
Perak river, up whose beautiful valley an unin-
terrupted view is obtained until the river itself
appears a mere streak or is lost to view in the
mountains, their lofty peaks towering above the
202 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
subsidiary ranges which follow the course of the
river, and confine the valley for the greater por-
tion of its length; in the garden in front of the
Residency humming-birds hover over the flowers,
sucking the nectar, but scarce ever resting on the
bloom itself; and at the back there is an orchard
of orange and various kinds of fruit trees.
On the opposite side of the river dwelt the
Regent of the state, who had been appointed in
place of the deposed and exiled Sultan Abdullah ;
and along its banks dwelt a large population of
Malays, broken up into factions under different
chiefs, who were at first intolerant of the restraints
and regulations of the more settled system of
government that succeeded the Perak war.
It was a matter of no small difficulty to amalga-
mate so many discordant elements into a homo-
geneous whole ; but Sir Hugh Low was more than
equal to the task, and it was owing to his firm
and just treatment of the inhabitants that dis-
turbances did not continue to break out, and that
the Malays settled down to more peaceful occupa-
tions. He was most successful in his treatment
of the chiefs, many of whom were difficult to
manage, believing it to be far better policy to err
on the side of liberality, with regard to the sum
allotted to each in exchange for former rights and
privileges, than by parsimony to create a dis-
affection ready to break out into hostility on small
pretexts, and to subdue which would have been far
more expensive than the little extra allowance that
changed disloyalty into loyalty, and unrest into
peaceful contentment.
THE PERAK WAR. 203
Nothing illustrates the peculiarities and temper
of these chiefs better than an anecdote told by Sir
Hugh of a chief who happened to be sitting on the
bench, with him and several other chiefs, whilst one
of his own tribesmen was being tried for murder.
The evidence was so clear that, with one exception,
they all agreed upon a verdict of guilty. When
the recalcitrant was asked his reasons for his
opinion of the man's innocence, he replied : " What
do I care for evidence ; he belongs to my tribe.*'
By tact and prudence, fearlessness and a generous
sympathy. Sir Hugh Low made friends of the
people whose destinies he so successfully guided ;
and the wisdom and foresight of this conciliating
policy was soon apparent in the advance and pro-
gress of the country.
During the Perak war of 1876 the Malays in the
neighbourhood of Kwala Kangsar, as well as down
the Perak river, offered some resistance, sheltering
themselves behind earthworks and stockades, in-
flicting loss upon the troops whenever they
attempted to rush their strongholds without first
of all bringing their guns into action, with the aid
of which, however, the Malay defences were easily
captured. The officers and men who fell during
the fighting in the neighbourhood lie buried in a
small and well-kept cemetery at Kwala Kangsar,
close to the Perak river, which is here four to five
hundred feet in breadth.
This river is by far the largest and finest of
any on the western side of the main range of
mountains which separate the watersheds of the
Malay Peninsula; it rises in the hills bordering
204 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
on Petani, whose distant peaks are hidden from
view by a series of high precipitous spurs reach-
ing down to the rivers edge. As is natural,
there are many myths and fables connected with
it recounted by the Malays who live along its
banks. One accounts for there being no crown
amongst the Sultans regalia, namely, that a
former Sultan whilst leaning over the side of the
boat in which he was sitting lost his crown, which
dropped from his head and immediately sank,
eluding all the efforts of his followers to recover
it by diving.
The river is liable to sudden floods, when the
waters have been known to rise so high that
persons boating over low places in the roads close
to the river were able to catch hold of the tele-
graph wires and pull the boat along by that means.
The overflow has but little current, spreading
across the adjoining lowlands until the river falls
sufficiently to admit of its returning to its proper
course. The waters in the river itself flow swift
and strong, and are so deep that persons poling
against the stream are unable to continue their
journey, and have to tie up until the freshet has
abated. At other times of the year there is so
little water in the river that men can easily walk
across the greater part of it, and it is full of
sandbanks, which are a great hindrance to those
travelling if at all in a hurry, and especially so
at night. Poling up the river on these occasions
the deeper channels are usually followed, but some-
times in dry weather a passage has to be scooped
in the sand to allow the boat to pass, and fre-
A JOURNEY DOWN THE RIVER. 205
quently the men have to get out and wade about
in search of some feasible passage through which
they can drag the boat over the shoals into the
deeper water beyond. Travelling down the river
is a delightful experience ; the paddlers finish each
stroke by knocking the handle of the paddle against
the side of the boat, and it is their object to do this
all together as the boat glides along, passing village
after village, whose inhabitants are to be seen
moving about, sitting on the banks, or bathing.
The sound of many voices, all repeating the Koran
together, intimates that the religious education of
the youthful part of the community is not neglected ;
and at night the beating of drums and the flitting
backwards and forwards of many lights amongst
the cocoanut trees as the native dwellers beneath
move to and from their neighbours* houses,
pleasantly indicate the sociable evenings they
enjoy. The hoot of the owl mingles with the
weird and plaintive notes of the ^Eolian-pipes,
made of lengths of bamboo in which holes of
different shapes and sizes have been cut so as to
emit musical notes of changing timbre, and as the
wind rises and falls so does the melancholy music
they give forth. The village children delight in
making these uncanny -sounding contrivances and
placing them in the tree tops exposed to the
lightest breath of air, so that there may be an
almost continuous wail of varied cadence.
As the rising sun lifts the veil of mist from the
river's surface the people emerge from their houses
to bathe, the women drawing water for the morning
meal. There is a wide expanse of nature's glories
2o6 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
— crags and cliffs and wooded slopes as far as the
eye can reach. At certain seasons snipe flit quickly
overhead on their way to some feeding ground, and
plover circle round, disturbed from one of the islets
which they frequent. Sandpipers skim across the
water, and in the vicinity of the river s banks there
is more bird life to be seen than elsewhere in the
Straits. Teal frequent the secluded pools, and the
white-tailed sea eagle ranges high up in the air,
from whence come the paraquets' shrill cries as
they hurry by. The magpie-robin frequents the
propinquity of the habitation of man, and in the
adjoining scrub, where the dark brown-bodied and
black-hooded jungle- crow hops from branch to
branch, the nest of the weaver and tailor- bird
may be found. In the open a flight of ortolans
swarm from bush to bush, the king-crow hawks
in mid-air for insects, and flies with a jerky, spas-
modic motion, quivering its curious tail, consist-
ing of two long pliant feathers, each terminating
in a small black disc. Dragon flies flit about in
the sun, a blue-breasted quail rises from the rank
grass and whirrs a short distance off and settles
again, a painted snipe gets up out of a muddy
hollow and flies away with owl-like flaps of its
wings. In the paddy fields, buff-backed herons
that become nearly white at certain seasons are
plentiful, and upon the top of some dead tree a
flock of mynas chatter. Around the village
dwellings sparrows hop about, and honeysuckers
search for insects amongst the clusters of nuts
pendant from the tall cocoanut trees. A lovely
white-breasted kingfisher may be seen perched on
FISH. 207
some branch overhanging the shining water, and
bee-eaters, with their rich dark chestnut heads,
having body feathers of bright green and blue,
which present a burnished appearance in the sun
as the birds sit resting awhile from their quest
after food.
The river itself contains many kinds of soft-
fleshed, bony fishes ; the tapa fish, which frequents
the deepest and darkest pools, the much prized
kelaban, and many other varieties are captured.
Occasionally fishing excursions are got up, when
men, women, and children turn out, and dynamite
cartridges are exploded in the deeper holes, the
holiday-makers lining the shallows below and pick-
ing up the dead fish as they float past ; or perhaps
the picnickers poison an adjacent stream with a
decoction made from the root of a plant, the
juice of which has the properties of causing all
the fish affected to become stupefied and rise to
the surface ; but this method is a most destruc-
tive one, for it entirely clears the places where
it has been used of every kind of fish, killing
both large and small. Lower down the river the
high mountains of the interior are lost to view,
and smaller hills take their place as bend after
bend is passed, until even these disappear ; and
after passing Passir Salak, where the British
Resident (Mr. Birch) was murdered in November,
1875, the vision is limited to the fringe of cocoa-
nut trees that line each bank, or the scrub growing
down to the water s edge. As soon as the tidal in-
fluences are felt, the soil of the banks changes from
a nice light sandy shade to the dark mud colour
2o8 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
of the lower alluvial lands, and the river broadens
and Teluk Anson is reached.
On the death of the Regent the present en-
lightened Sultan, His Highness Idris Mersid-el-
Aazam, was installed in 1889, and he resides at
Kwala Kangsar, where a fine residence has been
built for him by the Government He takes an
intelligent interest in the progress of his couritry,
and has a thorough knowledge of judicial pro-
cedure and the dispensing of justice, having
formerly occupied a position analogous to that
of Chief Justice with us. Before any material
change in the laws or regulations of any state
can come into operation, it has to be approved
by the State Council, which is composed in
each state of representatives of the Chinese,
the principal Malay chiefs, a European official,
with the British Resident to advise the Sultan,
or head of the state, who presides. In Perak,
of course, the Sultan occupies the position, and
fills it most worthily, for he has a keen perception
of right and wrong, as well as possessing the
courage of his opinions.
The northern portion of Perak was inhabited
by Siamese in the twelfth century, and became
tributary to Acheen in the seventeenth ; but the
only ostensible relic of the latter occupation is
the wooden border of the grave of an Atchinese
princess in the vicinity of Thaiping.
From Kwala Kangsar to Thaiping is a pleasant
drive along a fine valley,, at the head of which, a
little distance to our right, is Gunong Pondok, an
isolated limestone hill, with white precipitous cliffs,
CHARGED BY A RHINOCEROS. 209
whose sides are so steep as to be capable of
being scaled only on one side, and the top is
covered by small stunted trees, amongst which
wild goats are said to roam. The marble found
here is quarried and broken up, making good road
metal, and when burnt a capital lime is obtained.
Whilst prospecting in the range of mountains
that rise beyond this curious limestone hill for
land suitable for the cultivation of coffee, I had
proof why the rhinoceros is really so dreaded
by the Malays, who have firm notions regarding
its viciousness, of which I had become somewhat
sceptical, for on the few occasions I had disturbed
one, it had invariably made off immediately upon
my approach, and disappeared. However, my
dubiousness received a rude awakening, for on
one occasion as I was climbing up hill with some
Malays we suddenly roused one of these beasts,
which rushed away ahead of us. I commenced
to talk, but was begged to be quiet, for when
a rhinoceros is in the vicinity Malays maintain
the strictest silence, endeavouring to pass by as
quietly as possible. We could hear the animal
moving about in front of us some way off, and
then down the hill it came charging in our
direction. Owing to the density of the jungle
we could see nothing, but listened as it rushed
past close to us, and then we heard it stop,
having made a wrong shot, and lost our scent,
for these beasts are not over quick of vision,
being mostly guided by their sense of smell and
hearing. We hurried along up the hill, not wait-
ing to give it another opportunity of returning to
2IO CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
the charge, and at last I obtained convincing cor-
roboration of the report prevalent amongst Malays
that this animal is very apt to viciously attack
intruders on its haunts.
On the left rises the solitary mountain Gonong
Bubu, 5450 feet in height, a landmark for many
miles round, and on its slopes various experi-
ments were being carried out in the cultivation of
different products suitable to the soil and climate.
Away on the lower spurs of the hill, whilst
exploring the route of a road, and as I was
struggling through some high grass, and had just
reached a bush standing by itself, I was surprised
by a large seladang, roused from its slumber,
springing up and rushing away from a spot but
a few feet off, and so close that it shook the
leaves of the shrub against which I was standing;
but so seldom is game to be met with in travelling,
that I had ceased to carry firearms with me, for
the chances are that when a sudden opportunity
of using a gun does arise, you are either un-
prepared or it is being carried by someone else
at the time. There was a fine herd of these
beasts in this part of the country, and I often
came across their tracks, but never got within such
a short distance of one again, for they are very
wary, and I have known of a week being fruit-
lessly spent in a vain endeavour to get a shot
at one of them. On another occasion further
away, whilst staking out a line of road, a herd
of wild pigs disturbed by my men took fright, and
as a river prevented their escape on one side,
they came dashing across the path. No sooner
HERD OF WILD PIGS.
211
had one crossed about two feet away from where
I was standing, than I was startled by another
one galloping by close behind, and others were to
be heard coming on through the thicket towards
us ; but they were so intent on running away as
not to take the slightest notice of any one of us,
nor to heed our presence, for they rushed straight on
1
i!4..ij?y
d
^"^^I^^^^^^^M^^^^H^H^^ *
<^ii^
1
amongst us, passing unpleasantly close to our legs,
and turning neither to the right nor left to avoid
us. Some of them were quite near enough to
have injured us badly as they went by, had they
been so disposed. Wild pigs are coarse, ill-
conditioned, lanky-looking creatures, of a dirty,
dark, tawny brown, with black bristles on the
mane, and they make lairs for themselves by
212 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
collecting lalang grass or reeds or attap leaves,
and beneath this heap they creep and sleep, and
the vicinity soon becomes infested with tiny ticks.
The pigs are very dangerous to dogs when brought
to bay, ripping open and terribly gashing any that
may be venturesome enough to come within reach
of their tusks, and they are most destructive to
newly-planted cocoanut groves, not only rooting up
the nut when first put in, but destroying trees
of a considerable size, thereby making it neces-
sary to keep the fences around the plantation in
good order and repair for several years.
The road to Thaiping rises over a pass in the
range of hills that separate the valley of the Kangsar
from the fine paddy fields of Bukit Gantong, the
village where the former chief of this portion of
the country had his residence, close to an artificial
lake covered with beautiful lilies and full of fish.
Fruit trees were plentiful on the hill slopes, and
from here the road passes through many villages
on the way to the fine alluvial flats of Thaiping.
As events that happened in this district were the
immediate cause of British intervention in the
internal affairs of the state, and as its chief was
amongst those implicated in the murder of the first
Resident, which deed led to the Perak war, a short
account of both will not be out of place.
The chief, whose name was Nga Ibrahim, ruled
the district of Larut, occupying the position of
adviser to the Sultan, or ** Mantri," by which title
he was usually distinguished and addressed. He
was the son of a simple Malay trader, Inche Jaffar,
who coming from Sumatra had settled in Krian,
A SUCCESSFUL RULER. 213
and being a man of energy and strong character,
was appointed to the subordinate position of head-
man of his immediate neighbourhood. He im-
proved the district placed under his charge to
such an extent, and the revenue he remitted from it
to the Sultan was so satisfactory, that his authority
was extended to Larut as well.
Shortly after his appointment tin was discovered
in a stream. Chinese miners began to be at-
tracted to the district in yearly increasing numbers.
The revenues he received from these industrious
Chinese soon made him the richest and one of the
most powerful chiefs in Perak, and he was held in
high favour by the Sultan of that state because of
the sums of money he sent him. He preserved law
and order, and so successful was his rule, and so
many opportunities did the district of Larut during
his lifetime afford to the Malays of making money
and obtaining an adequate livelihood, that it became
quite a saying amongst the inhabitants beyond the
pass, that once any of their number crossed it they
found it so comfortable on the other side that they
never returned.
His son, Nga Ibrahim, succeeded him in 1852,
and not only received a grant of the whole of
Larut from Sultan Jaffar, which gift was afterwards
ratified by Sultan Ali, but was appointed Mantri,
and became absolute ruler over this portion of
Perak.
The Chinese so rapidly increased in numbers that
he gradually began to lose control over them, and in
order to keep his position sided with one of the
factions, a fatal error on his part, for by it he lost
214 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
all their respect and his- reputation for impartiality.
These two factions were composed of Chinese who
came from different parts of China ; they were very
jealous of one another, and cordially detested each
other. The side the Mantri joined was composed
of Kehs, called Go Kwans, or five-district men,
and belonged to the Hye San society ; whilst the
opposing faction were Macaos, called See Kwans,
or four-district men, and belonged to the Gee Hin
society.
After a while the Mantri, finding his allies were
not so powerful as formerly, turned in favour of the
Macaos, and drove the Kehs from the country. The
latter made preparations to return, and war was
declared, several hundreds of fighting men being
specially brought down from China for the purpose,
and after a determined struggle they were success-
ful in re-establishing themselves, in spite of the fact
that the Government of Penang gave its moral
support to the Mantri, and prevented the export
of arms and ammunition to his adversaries. The
Mantri, who frequently visited Penang, where he
had a fine house and was well known, finding he
was unable to keep order, prevailed upon a British
officer to enter his service, who notwithstanding
considerable opposition on the part of the Indian
Government, managed to recruit a hundred Sikhs,
whom he brought back and took over to Larut to
try and maintain the Mantri's authority. Un-
fortunately about this time Sultan Ali died, and
the Mantri, who had become so rich and wealthy,
besides being by nature ambitious, shifty, and
weak, induced other chiefs to join him in making
THE PERAK WAR. 115
an elderly chief, who was not the lawful heir,
Sultan, in the hopes that at his death he would be
powerful enough to seize the succession for himself.
This wrong action led to much trouble, as the
rightful successor joined the Kehs in their despe-
rate attempts to conquer the opposing faction
supported by the Mantri ; and so not only were
two Chinese factions at war with one another, but
the Malays themselves became divided, and took
opposing sides in the quarrel. The district of
Larut was transformed from a prosperous mining
camp into a series of fortified and stockaded
villages, whence issued gangs of marauders, rob-
bing and murdering in every direction. The
Kehs having obtained the command of the sea,
maintained a blockade of the coast, capturing the
Macao boats, and cutting off their supplies. Trade
became so disorganized that both sides were on
the point of starvation, and the Kehs becoming
desperate, took to piracy and murder, indiscrimin-
ately robbing any trading schooners they managed
to secure, and even attacking them in the vicinity
of Penang. The shallows along the coast pre-
vented their being chased except by rowing boats ;
these were no match for the light piratical craft
which glided safely over places covered by but a
few inches of water, and disappearing up the
numerous inlets it was impossible to follow and
capture them. This was the state of affairs at the
end of 1873, and during the next year the British
Government at last decided to interfere and put
down these disorders, which were becoming an in-
tolerable nuisance, and very harmful to the trade of
2i6 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
Penang. The Chinese readily assented to arbitra-
tion, and surrendered ; the warfare ceased, and the
imported fighting men were sent back to China;
the British officer in the pay of the Mantri became
Assistant- Resident at Larut, and his body of Sikhs
formed the nucleus of the present fine police force.
The faults of the Mantri were condoned, the suc-
cession to the Sultanate was decided in favour of
Abdullah, and he was appointed in place of the
newly-created puppet Sultan Ismail, who fled to
the jungle. Mr. Birch, the first Resident, resided
in Lower Perak, but within a year the ex-Sultan
Ismail, Sultan Abdullah, the Mantri, and all the
chiefs who had formerly been at feud with one
another, were already joining in a last effort to
uphold the unbridled use of their authority, and
before two years were completed the protection
afforded to some escaped slaves was the event that
lighted the spark of insurrection, and occasioned
the murder of the Resident, which the Perak war
avenged.
The chiefs implicated in this cold-blooded
murder were tried and condemned, and several
of them were hanged ; the Sultan Abdullah was
banished, the ex -Sultan Ismail was allowed to
reside in Johore under the surveillance of the
Sultan of that state, and the Mantri, who formerly
had fought against Sultan Abdullah and owed the
retention of his position entirely to British help, —
for at the time of their interference his fortune had
been dissipated in trying to quell the disturbances,
and he himself had become indebted for very
large sums of money, — was also banished, as he
SLAVERY. 217
was found to be involved in these intrigues, and
to have plotted against the representative of the
power to whom he owed everything. Rajah Jusuf,
the next heir to the Sultanate, was appointed
Regent, and Mr. (now Sir Hugh) Low, who
succeeded Mr- Birch in the responsible post of
Resident of this turbulent country, ably continued
the good work of abolishing slavery, so bravely
undertaken by his predecessor, so that by
December, 1884, it was entirely done away with,
and the last slave was free. Sungie Ujong had
already set the example in 1879, and Selangor in
1880, but the many powerful chiefs of Perak were
more difficult to deal with. The Regent was made
Sultan in 1886, and I can well remember the
entertainment he gave at his house in honour of
the event, but at the time he had become so
weakened by a lingering illness that he was only
able to receive the congratulations of his assembled
guests reclining on a sofa, and he lived only a
short while in which to enjoy his new dignity and
long-wished-for title.
CHAPTER XI.
Thaiping — Introduction of Pumping Machinery— Orderly Behaviour
of Chinese miners — Outbreak of Secret Societies, punishment and
stampede — Hospitals — Rhinoceros visiting a ward — Sanatorium —
View from the hills above Thaiping — Return to Thaiping— Tamil
festival — Churches — Town Life — Government Offices — ^Theatres
and Plays — Storms and Lightning — Malay running amuck.
The town of Thaiping — the Chinese for "everlast-
ing peace" — a name given to it at the termination
of the disturbances in its neighbourhood, is situ-
ated at the foot of a range of mountains rising
abruptly from the plain, and surrounding it on
all sides were the many tin mines that have
made it famous. This tin field, which had been
the scene of so much disorder and lawlessness,
had once more become a populous and prosperous
mining camp, but its progression was restricted
and limited by the difficulties experienced in
keeping the mines free of water. Work had
often to be suspended for days together on account
of the workings becoming flooded out. In dry
weather it was owing to an insufficiency of water
to drive the water-wheels, and in wet weather
water percolated into the mines more rapidly
than such primitive pumps were able to deal
with. It was at the initiative of Sir Hugh Low
that the Chinese miners imported proper pumping
218
PUMPING MACHINERY. 219
machinery, driven by steam power, to supersede
the antiquated water-wheel, thereby revolutionizing
the industry, and causing it to be no longer
dependent upon the uncertain supply of surface
water, nor hampered by the wetness of the season.
The introduction of engines and machinery enabled
mining operations to be extended over a greatly in-
creased area, for which large numbers of labourers
were required, and a great influx of miners ensued,
resulting in immediate prosperity. The Govern-
ment treasury began to fill ; the valley became the
scene of a vast activity, owing to the regularity
and extensiveness of the tin deposits.
To keep order in the states and amongst the
various sects of Chinese miners, in addition to
Malay police, a fine body of armed Sikhs, recruited
from India, was organized by Captain (now
Lieutenant - Colonel) R. S. F. Walker, cm.g.
Lately this force has been divided, part still
carrying out the ordinary duties of police, while
a portion has become a purely military force,
which, under the name of Malay Guides, form a
unit of the troops available for the defence of
Singapore should the necessity arise.
Nothing has been more remarkable than the
spread of order and respect for the law amongst
the Chinese miners, and this is in large measure
due to the excellence of the police force. Only
once has there been any serious rioting and
violence against the constituted authorities of a
dangerous nature, and it was suppressed so severely
and so thoroughly that the lesson then learnt has
never been forgotten. I have often been struck
220 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
with the manner in which a large mining camp
of many hundreds of Chinese has been controlled
and kept in most complete order by half a dozen
Sikh police. But it is entirely due to the know-
ledge that there is an overpowering force in reserve
which could be brought up within a short time to
severely punish any violence offered to its repre-
sentatives, and to instantly repress such an out-
break. Whenever any weakness or hesitation is
shown by those in authority in dealing firmly with
the Chinese, it always acts as an incentive to in-
creased rioting and tumult. Secret societies gave
a considerable amount of trouble at one time, cul-
minating in Kinta in a faction fight, which, unless
speedily suppressed, might have spread to other
portions of the district, for many rumours of a
coming general rising of antagonistic societies were
circulating through the different mining camps.
The officer in charge was equal to the occasion,
and immediately left for the scene of the dis-
turbance, accompanied by a European police
officer and some Sikh policemen ; and after quell-
ing the rioting and arresting many of the rioters,
proceeded to inflict summary punishment upon
them, and soon the police were busily engaged in
the task of flogging the ringleaders, picked out
from a large batch of prisoners standing round.
After a while it seems to have suddenly occurred
to some of these that, as they were left unguarded,
they might as well make a bolt for it instead of
awaiting their turn to be flogged. No sooner had
this bright idea seized them than they acted upon
it, and then commenced a regular stampede of
HOSPITALS. 221
flying Chinamen. The disturbances had ended,
punishment been inflicted, and laughter at the
ludicrous incident replaced the faction cries of but
a short while previous ; for a Chinaman is easily
amused, readily giving way to risibility, and once
his fancy is tickled and he commences to laugh, he
forgets all else ; whilst this summary method of
punishment indicated to the miners elsewhere the
advisability of keeping quiet and behaving them-
selves, and there were no more outbreaks.
The geographical position of Thaiping (but eight
miles from the nearest port) was a great factor in
its advancement, and it was connected by a good
cart road with Matang, where small steamers could
reach, and in addition soon afterwards a railway
was constructed to Port Weld, where larger
steamers were able to enter and discharge their
cargoes on the wharves alongside. Sickness was
very prevalent amongst these new and un-
acclimatized Chinese immigrants, to alleviate
whom the system of state-supported hospitals
was introduced, and has since been extended
throughout the native states, till in each district
there is an efficient staff" of dressers and assistants
under qualified doctors, fine and airy wards,
where the patient is given a liberal and generous
diet, suitable to his ailment, is well attended
to, and made most comfortable. Paupers receive
free treatment, and of others a small sum is
asked.
In addition to these central hospitals, the
employer of indentured Indian labour is obliged
to have a duly-qualified dresser, medical inspec-
222 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
tion, and hospital accommodation on the estate
itself.
Nothing is more illustrative of the uncivilized
surroundings amidst which these hospitals first
arose, than the appearance one evening of that shy
and seclusive animal the rhinoceros, which, enter-
ing at one end, walked calmly through one of the
wards, passing between the beds of the astonished
patients, and departed through the opposite door-
way without harming anyone or doing any damage.
This was a most extraordinary occurrence, for the
rhinoceros shuns the habitations of man, is more
or less solitary, and its ferocious character would
lead one to expect that it would have injured or
maimed someone during its passage through the
hospital ward ; probably it was too much astonished
by the strangeness of its surroundings to care
about anything except an endeavour to discover
the nearest way of escape.
Not alone in hospitals did Thaiping lead the van
of civilization in the native states, for on the old
town being burnt down fine broad streets were laid
out, shade-giving trees being planted at intervals
along the sides, good macadamized roads were
constructed, and after a while kept in a repair that
would put to shame many a London thoroughfare.
An efficient supply of bright, sparkling water was
brought from the neighbouring hills, substantial
houses of brick were erected, and the town was
well lighted and policed. The health of European
officers was not neglected, for a sanatorium was
made by building several bungalows on the high
hills at the back of the town, where many an
VIEW FROM HILLS ABOVE THAIPING. 223
invalid has since been restored to health ; and on
these hill-tops, where a magnificent view of the
surrounding country is obtained, I first met the
clever and able State Engineer, Mr. F. St. G.
Caulfeild, to whose initiative and skill the state of
Perak owes so much.
From the summit of these hills the town of
Thaiping can be seen situated in the plain below ;
bayonets flash in the sun as the police go through
their evolutions on the parade ground, for daily
drills are in no wise neglected, and have their
place in the curriculum of police duties, whilst
straight rows of barracks indicate where their
quarters are.
The green of the acacia trees that line the streets
intermingle with the red-tiled houses of the traders,
forming a pleasing contrast of colour. The sombre
shingle roofs of detached dwellings mark the houses
in which the Government officials dwell, and dwarfed
figures in white, running to and fro on the green
and well-kept cricket ground, bear witness that this
national game has found a home for itself in this
foreign land, where inter-state and colony cricket
matches are regularly held, creating a healthy
emulation amongst its devotees, who after each
innings discuss its events over cooling drinks in
the club hard by, where billiard tournaments are
held, and where there is a good library of books
and the latest papers can be read, and which is
the scene of many small dances ; and here the
Queen's birthday is always commemorated by some
entertainment, when the excellent band of the
Sikhs performs and further enlivens the scene.
2 24 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
The jail stands out by itself, and beyond are
the grey granite rocks, where some of its inmates
accomplish their daily task of quarrying stone. The
Government offices and hospital buildings can also
be descried at opposite ends of the town.
The boom of the midday gun is distinctly heard
as the sound succeeds the puff of smoke already
seen to issue from the fort situated on a small
hill, where ammunition and gunpowder is stored,
whilst a short distance away, on another hillock,
the Union Jack floats over the house inhabited
by the British Resident when in Thaiping.
Around the town pools of water glisten in the
sun, and grey sand is all that now remains to mark
the spot that was once alive with miners and dotted
with the houses in which they dwelt ; further away
the brown-coloured roofs of a cluster of sheds show
where fresh discoveries have been made, and are
being busily exploited and worked. Beyond this
again is the race-course, where annual meetings are
held which the Sultan attends in state, accompanied
by a mounted escort and followed by several
carriages full of retainers. Capital sport is pro-
vided, and as the colonies of Selangor, Sungie
Ujong, and Kinta all have their gatherings, there
are plenty of opportunities for those so disposed
to indulge in their love of racing.
A little to the westward the smoke of a steamer
is seen as she goes up the narrow inlet that leads to
Port Weld, winding her way in and out, for the
coast line all along has a fringe of mangroves with
many tortuous channels, bordering on long mud
flats, which intervene before the deep water beyond
VIEW FROM HILLS ABOVE THAIPING. 225
is reached. And the outline of the train appears
as it travels along a narrow straight clearing in the
forest and passes over the swamp that lies between
Thaiping and the port.
In the distance is the island of Penang, and
beyond again the coast of Sumatra, where the
Atchinese have resisted the Dutch for nearly thirty
years, fighting for their country and their freedom,
whilst nearer to us lies the district of Krian,
formerly one vast morass, now colonized by
Chinese, Malays, and Tamils. To the northward,
Province Wellesley, a portion of the colony, can
be seen, and beyond to the north again the peaks
of the Kedah hills come into view, over which
country Siam exercises sovereign rights. Turning
to the eastward we gaze across the valley of the
Perak river, looking towards the fine, bold range
of mountains that divides the peninsula in the far
distance.
The air is cool and crisp, clouds begin to. appear
and gather round, a mi^t blows up, obscuring the
distant view, and we look down on a vast blanket
of dense vapour from whence torrents of rain pour
down upon the Thaiping valley below (which
boasts the heaviest rainfall in these parts), whilst
we are dry above the clouds, and going indoors
enjoy the unwonted treat of sitting in front of
a cheerful wood fire. Taking one last look round
outside, before retiring for the night, we find the
mist has cleared, numberless stars are shining
brightly overhead, and gazing down we see the
outline of the streets of the town irradiated with
lights, and the nine o'clock gun booms forth,
Q
228 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
in a showery spray over their handiwork. On an
open spot bullocks may be seen lying with all four
legs tied together, for that is the method adopted
to keep them quiet whilst they are being shod, as
the animal's hoofs would soon wear away, and it
would become lame by travelling on the hard roads
were it not for the little metal plates that cover
each division of its cloven feet. A little farther
on is a horse tied between four posts, to one of
which a leg is tightly fastened, for the farrier is
careful of himself, and should the horse be restive
he ties him up securely before commencing to shoe
him. Sparks fly out of a Chinese blacksmith's
shop as he shapes an iron bar, and steam rises
with a hissing sound as he plunges the red-hot
metal into a bucket of water close by. A carpenter
is planing a plank, and his mate is adzing a post
into shape, and a wheelwright is fitting some
spokes to a hub. The tinsmith is busy making
teapots, which hang in rows outside his shop.
The market is crowded with miscellaneous goods,
and the noisy cackling and quacking of fowls and
ducks mixes with the hum of the bargaining throng.
A diseased-looking Chinaman issues forth from a
medicine shop, where innumerable nostrums and
specifics are sold ; and next door a pasty-looking
compatriot is watching an opium dealer weighing
out his precious mixture. Opposite a cloth mer-
chant displays in his window many- coloured silks
from China, and European made stuffs; and adjoin-
ing, a rice dealer is measuring his grain.
A procession of Chinese may be seen coming
down the street, on their way to their highly-
TOWN LIFE. 229
gilded temple ornamented by curious heads of
strange device . and dragons guarding every
cornice. A discordant music accompanies the
beating of gongs and cymbals, a blue-coated priest
in velvet cap struts along between banners held
aloft by officials in conical -shaped hats with scarlet
tassels, and behind a motley crowd of Chinamen
carrying more banners and offerings of the most
varied description — meat, fruits, and pigs cooked
whole ; and amidst such incongruous surroundings
the Chinese belle of the town sits aloft, bedecked
in jewels, upon a car covered with festoons and
garlands of flowers, whilst a less fortunate female
companion follows riding astride a quiet horse.
After the procession has gone by the gaping
crowd disperses, and the Mohammedan Malay
quietly wends his way up the few steps leading
to the large stone pond, in order to wash his feet
before entering his mosque to pray.
The curio collector has already bought up nearly
all the old Malay silver, but the click of the Malay
silversmith's hammer is still to be heard as he sits
at work punching out some pattern for a silver
box ; but the quality of his art has not improved,
although he looks very wise sitting over his work,
wearing huge goggle-shaped spectacles that have
tortoise-shell rims. Tamil workers are fashioning
armlets and bangles of gold and silver, and a
Chinese jeweller is pondering over some intricate
and troublesome bit of mending, and his companion
is covering some article to be embellished with
thin gold-leaf; these latter craftsmen work sitting
at tables, whilst the former nationalities squat upon
the floor.
230 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
A Chinese barber is shaving the head of a
customer previous to dressing his hair by plaiting
amongst it long threads of silk, so that it is
difficult to know where nature ends and art begins
in his glossy pig-tail ; and his comrade is cleaning
the ears of a compatriot, using long horrid-looking
implements that make you wonder, not that the
Chinese are invariably deaf, but that they can
hear at all. Shoemakers are busily at work making
shoes of soft yellow hide, which look nice, but
become sodden in the first shower of rain.
A jinricksha-coolie whisks his fare out of the
way of a coming vehicle driven by a Sikh, who
howls at him as he passes by for being on the
wrong side of the road, and anathematizes him by
calling him *'a cursed pig," forgetful that he himself
has but little control over the horse that he is
driving, for he sits on a footboard close to the
horses tail and his legs dangle down over the
sides of a shaft, whilst his passengers sit in a
little covered-in cart, the hood of which is so low
that they have to creep in, and the only way out
is over the drivers seat on to the step below.
Should the horse kick, the syce slips off his seat,
but the fares cannot move, and are compelled to
sit in the midst of a shower of splinters.
Chinese, Malay, and Tamil school-boys wait and
play about until their master arrives and opens the
door of the building in which their lessons are
taught, for the education of the masses is not
neglected, and in all Malay settlements the village
headman sees that the male children attend the
vernacular schools established at convenient centres.
GOVERNMENT OFFICES. 231
Peons sit in the verandahs of the Government
offices pulling the punkahs that make work en-
durable for the hard-worked officials inside, who
listen to all comers, no matter what their nationality
might be, with the same ready courtesy and atten-
tion. A crowd sits silently in the Supreme Court
awaiting the verdict ; whilst in the police court the
intelligence of the magistrate is sorely taxed en-
deavouring to sift a grain of truth from a peck of
lies, or listening to a Tamil talking a patois and
slaughtering his mother tongue, which is the most
highly organized of the Dravidian languages. A v
policeman leads a quarrelsome Chinaman by his
pigtail to the station, followed by a throng of idlers
who cause the lazy pariah dog that lies basking
in the sun to get up and slink out of the way.
Overhead a few vultures may be occasionally seen
circling high up in the distance.
As evening comes on all classes of Chinamen
walk about the streets, through which it is not
easy to drive, for they never get out of the way
until the last moment, when they give a lurch
that just saves them from being run over. The
gambling house is crammed, and even outside
groups of Chinamen stand about in the hopes
of at last getting within to try their luck. The
individuals of this crowd come from many districts
in China, and not only speak dialects unintelligible
to each other, but follow different vocations and
trades as well. The miners are principally Kehs
and Macaos, the shopkeepers Hokkiens, the market-
gardeners Teochews, and the Hylams domestic
servants.
232 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
The Chinese wyong or play commences, and
now and again a general laugh shows that the
audience appreciates it, although to a stranger it
is monotonous and lengthy, apparently a constant
repetition of the same music and the same gestures
hour after hour. The Tamils also have their show,
but it is in the open air by the side of the road,
where an old man beats a tom-tom, whilst a young
woman poses herself and dances ; but on festival
days plays go on all day long, and many take part
in them — women in gorgeous clothes, men dressed
up as animals ; a constant dialogue is kept up, and
at each hit or witty saying the listeners standing
round laugh, and the tom-tom players emphasize
it by beating a deafening tattoo and yelling a cry
of approval.
The Malays indulge in a similar relaxation, and
trained troupes travel round, giving entertainments.
The band sit round in a half-moon shape, and beat
their hollow drums, also carrying on a sing-song
conversation, emphasizing its witticisms and rhymes,
but more melodiously and with less noise than
the Tamils, whilst women with long golden nails
fastened to their fingers gesticulate and delight
the audience with the grace and rhythm of their
movements ; and at the finish one of them bends
backwards, and is ready to pick up dollars with her
mouth out of a basin full of water.
There are heavy downpours of rain, and storms
are frequent, when the lightning is most vivid ; but
the dwellings are seldom damaged, although on one
occasion, when I happened to be in the Government
offices, they were struck, and we all felt the shock
MALAY RUNNING AMUCK. 233
as the electricity ran down the wall of the room.
On going upstairs it was found that the desk and
seat usually occupied by the Assistant Resident had
been struck and damaged, though, fortunately, he
was not there himself at the time.
Thaiping possesses an efficient fire-brigade formed
of members of the police force.
Whilst standing in the verandah of a house in
the town, I was a spectator of a Malay running
amuck not far off. He was pursuing a woman
with a krise in his hand, atid as they ran down
the street the inhabitants shouted, armed them-
selves with sticks, and joined in the chase. I
picked up a stick and rushed out likewise, but
before anybody could reach him he had overtaken
the woman, who was now clinging to a verandah
post, paralyzed with fear. The man commenced to
plunge his krise into her quivering body. It was
a sickening and brutal sight to witness, for at each
stab all the poor woman did was to writhe and
cling still faster to the post. By this time the
street was alive with men armed with any weapon
that came handy, and the avenging crowd was
drawing near, eagerly anxious to strike the mur-
derer down ; for the man who runs amuck gets no
mercy from his compatriots, who beat the life out
of him without compunction or hesitation. When
the Malay turned to face his pursuers he saw a
bristling array of sticks and paddy pounders (the
latter large enough to dash his brains out without
much force), and cries of "Knock him down!"
resounded on all sides. The man s heart failed
him as he approached the advancing mob, so he
234 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
brought the tragedy to a close by cutting his own
throat just in time to save himself from being
knocked down ; and falling to the ground he spun
round, wallowing in his blood, with the gaping
curious crowd around, none of whom were inclined
to touch him or render him any assistance. The
police carried him and his expiring victim away
to the infirmary, where he managed to defeat the
ends of justice by tearing off his bandages and
bleeding to death.
Some people entertain a spurious sentimentality
respecting amuck runners, but amongst the Malays
the man who does it is looked upon as some wild
beast — 3. fit subject for extermination — and there
is no false feeling of commiseration or pity for
him. Amuck-running is generally the outcome
of brooding over some actual or fancied wrong,
until a morbid desire of venting his spleen gains
such an ascendency over the Malay that he
becomes tired of life, and not only endeavours
to satisfy his spite, but to leave a trail of un-
offending victims of his vengeful folly.
CHAPTER XII.
Leaving Thaiping — ^Journeying on Elephants, their Obedience and
Sagacity— The Kurow River — Nearly drowned— I juk— Wild ele-
. phants — Salamah — Attacked by Wasps — Red ants — Elephants
wander, and start delayed — Ascent of Gunong Inas, a disagree-
able night — Descent — Janing — Shooting Rapids on the Perak
river — Bruar — Kwala Plus — A Thunderstorm— Ipoh — A Coffee
Plantation, Death of Manager, typical of many others — British
sense of duty.
The State Engineer having decided to make an
expedition before finally settling upon the routes to
be followed by several of the principal roads, we
made what were to me luxurious preparations for
a somewhat lengthy absence, procuring several
elephants to carry ourselves, our servants, a tent,
and provisions. Leaving Thaiping and travelling
northward, our first halting place was at the house
of a European who was living in the jungle,
supervising the opening of a tin mine, and where
we passed rather a melancholy night, as he was
suffering from a severe attack of malarial fever,
and before leaving the next morning we made
all arrangements for his being carried into
Thaiping.
Elephant-travelling in this country is a slow
mode of progression, for the animal's pace rarely
exceeds one and a half miles an hour, and during
the whole journey you are never still, for at each
235
236 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
Step taken you see-saw backwards and forwards
with a jerky motion. Immediately the kneeling
elephant perceives that you are clambering into the
rattan baskets which form the panniers it com-
mences to rise, often without the word of command,
and before you are properly seated, so that unless
you hold on tightly you are liable to slip off over
its tail.
The mahout sits on the elephant's neck, with his
legs behind its ears, and in order to make his seat
more secure he puts his feet inside the cord that
encircles the animals neck, and to which a large
wooden bell is attached, stuffed with grass to
prevent it from constantly clanging. It is re-
markable with what obedience the elephant will
either remove an obstructing branch or instantly
comply with the word of command, when told to
be careful of something to the right or left,
generally emphasized by the driver s tapping the
tree with his goad as he reaches it, to give his
charge warning that unless it proceeds with caution
it will strike the panniers in which the rider is
sitting, cramped up for want of space, and unable
to dangle his legs over the basket with any degree
of safety owing to the narrowness of the path.
I have never seen an elephant fall down, but
when traversing slanting and slippery ground it
walks with the greatest caution, and when crossing
swamps puts its trunk into the tracks made by
others of its kind which have previously passed
over the place, gauging their depth before placing
its foot in the same spot. Should the swamp have
been uncrossed by elephants before, they are very
ELEPHANT AND RIDBRS.
JOURNEYING ON ELEPHANTS. 239
timid and dislike facing it, especially so if there are
many small roots sticking up, for they are afraid
of these getting between their toes and wounding
them, and each time the mahout drives the goad
into their foreheads to urge them on they cry out
and bellow. When the descents into the ravines
are too steep to walk down, they stretch their fore-
legs in front and their hind legs out behind and
slither down, and their method of ascending is
equally uncomfortable, for they jerk and toss the
rider about as if he were merely some light feather
on their backs.
Amongst the elephants that accompanied us was
a baby one, which followed its mother, running
loose by her side ; but if it happened to cry out,
as it sometimes did, she would get into a terrible
state and rush to its assistance, knocking up against
anything that came in her way. On one occasion
the little one got bogged in a swamp and could not
move, until its mother came to its assistance and
helped it along. Another time the young elephant,
being unable to get over a tree that had fallen
across the road, stood up with its forelegs upon the
log, and its mother lifted and pushed it over from
behind. It was a wicked, mischievous little animal,
and the drivers always tried to keep it away from
our vicinity whilst its mother was being loaded each
morning. Elephant-drivers are rather looked down
upon by their fellow-countrymen, but their calling is
not without danger, for the seemingly sagacious
beast, which appears so quiet and steady, is liable
to take fright and bolt, as well as to sudden fits of
frenzy, during which it often kills its driver, not-
240 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
withstanding that he may have treated it kindly
and looked after it for several years.
We traversed a sparsely inhabited and un-
interesting country, crossing the Kurow river, in
which some years later I and another man nearly
lost our lives. On that occasion we were a party
of five, and were inspecting the surveys of a
cart road the Government contemplated construct-
ing by contract. Our carriers had gone forward
by another route, and on nearing the village at
which we had arranged to pass the night we
found our way barred by an affluent of the main
river, which was in flood and flowing swiftly as
there had been heavy rains. One of our party
not only was unable to swim, but, unaccustomed
to travelling in the jungle, had encased his feet in
high jack-boots, and was carrying a revolver in a
holster as well. The only way to reach camp with-
out making a long detour was to swim across this
stream, so two of us — I being one — seeing that
the landing place on the opposite bank was lower
down, and that the current would help us along,
proposed to take the non-swimmer across by sup-
porting him between us, and it was agreed that
he should hold on to our backs and clutch the
shoulder nearest to him. Taking off our coats,
we gave them to a comrade to carry over and
commenced the passage. All went well at first,
until an eddy in the current caught our legs and
forced them underneath us. The non-swimmers
. jack-boots filled with water and weighed him down,
and during our struggles he let go of the man
who was assisting him on the down-stream side,
NEARLY DROWNED. 241
but fortunately he kept his grasp of me, using
his free hand to hold his pith helmet on his
head. We alternately went under water and
came up again to the surface, but in a little while,
his efforts to raise himself becoming weaker, I
managed to get out of the swirl, and my vest
tearing at the shoulder from the strain put upon
it, relieved the weight and freed my arm, enabling
me to swim more easily without being dragged
under at each effort my companion made to gain
the surface. However, he behaved like a brick,
never attempting to clutch me, but simply hung
on, although during most of the crossing he was
under water, and his hand holding on to his helmet
was all that was visible above the level of the
stream. Two of the party, who had already got
across, joined hands and held out a stick, which
I caught hold of, and we were soon pulled safely
on shore. My companion naturally was very ex-
hausted, being obliged to sit down and rest as
he was half drowned, and I also felt queer and
tottery for a few moments.
We all crossed safely over, but the State
Engineer, seeing us in difficulties, had plunged
in to our assistance, and in so doing had lost his
hat, in which he had securely fastened his gold
watch and chain. As the helmet was still floating
around in the eddy, and had not as yet been carried
out into the main river, which was quite near,
I swam after it and brought it to shore. Some-
one produced a welcome flask, but of which we
had a pull all round, and walked on to camp,
where we found our coolies had already arrived,
242 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
and we were soon enjoying our dinner, with the
exception of my companion, who had not fully
recovered from his immersion.
There is always some uncertainty every morn-
ing, when elephants are used for transport in this
country, as to when a start will be made. They
are shackled and turned out into the jungle to seek
food and forage for themselves during the night,
as no provisions are carried for them. In their
search they often wander a considerable distance
from camp, notwithstanding the hobbles on their
legs, and although the mahouts start at daybreak
to track up the animals, it is always some hours
before they return with their charges, whose foot-
prints they can always distinguish, even should the
shackles by some mishap have been got rid of.
The bell which clangs at each movement of the
elephant is a great assistance in ascertaining its
whereabouts, and saves the tracker many a long
detour in his search.
One of our camping places for the night was
in the valley of the Ijuk river, where we arrived
rather late in the evening and after it had become
quite dark. During the latter portion of the day's
journey we had been unable to see the way at
all, but the darkness did not appear to incommode
the elephants in the slightest, and all went well
until they smelt some wild ones in the vicinity ;
they then became very excited, and wanted to
trumpet. Their drivers were apprehensive lest
they should suddenly break away, or be charged
by those at large, and they became unremitting
in their endeavours to urge the elephants forward
SALAMAH— ATTACKED BY WASPS. 243
and to keep them quiet. We reached camp
without mishap, but the next morning our elephants
were difficult to catch, and one of them had been
beguiled away for a considerable distance by her
wild companions.
The next day's journey to Salamah was up and
down a series of low spurs that separated the
water-sheds of the Ijuk and Krian rivers ; and
whilst we were travelling along, the passing of the
elephant ahead of ours disturbed some wasps in
a nest that hung down from a branch just over-
head. All we could do was to catch hold of the
first suitable thing and wrap it round our faces
and necks to save them from being stung, and
when we had run the gauntlet we turned round
to watch the same thing happening to those who
followed. There are many kinds of wasps which
make these nests in the trees of the jungle, and
I have often been badly stung when unable to
turn aside whilst engaged in surveying. The
slower and less you move the more likely you
are to escape without being molested, but it is
rather trying to remain quiet or stationary with
numbers of vicious little wasps flying and buzzing
all round, for every now and again one will rush
and sting you, and if you but lift your hand before
having completed your work it necessitates your
clearing out altogether, for they will then all attack
at once. Sometimes you are compelled igno-
miniously to take flight and run in order to save
yourself; but should you come across a nest of
large hornets, it is advisable to keep at a respectful
distance, for their sting is most painful, often
244 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
causing fever, and persons badly stung have
frequendy died from the effects.
Red ants are also disagreeable little creatures,
and equally annoying when a line is being cut
through the jungle. They make their nest with
the aid of leaves, usually selecting the branch of
a small sapling or shrub, and are especially fond
of the undergrowth which springs up after the
virgin forest has been destroyed. They construct
their nests most cleverly ; some of them take a
leaf hanging on the tree, and hold it together with
their feet so as to enable others to do the sewing
by carrying a grub that emits a thread of silk
backwards and forwards, fastening each stitch to
the leaf with their antennae, and as soon as the
grubs silk- producing powers are exhausted they
change it for a fresh one, and continue until
several leaves are securely held together by a
strong web. They are of a reddish colour, turn-
ing up and bending their bodies over their heads
in the same manner as an earwig, and seizing
hold with their sharp, pincer-like tails. They smell
strongly of formic acid, and swarm in certain
localities, and never cease to torment and molest
as long as you are in their neighbourhood.
The leaves and shrubs are alive with them, and
every sapling the men cut down disturbs a fresh
lot, who go determinedly on the war path. They
climb up your legs off the cut and felled branches
lying on the ground ; they cling to your coat as
you brush past the bushes on which they swarm ;
they get into your hair, inside your clothes, and
bite whenever they can obtain a hold, the effect
ELEPHANTS WANDER— START DELAYED. 245
of which is irritating beyond measure rather than
very painful. The natives at work suffer the
most, for they get bitten on their bare legs
and between their toes, and whilst they continue
cutting with one hand, the other is busily em-
ployed in brushing these little pests off their
bodies.
The officer in charge of the district lived at
the small village of Salamah, which we reached
the same evening, crossing a level plain, where
the Chinese appeared to have already exhausted
the tin ore it once contained. As my friend had
some business matters to attend to we spent the
next day here, during which I visited a supposed
tin lode that had been recently discovered in the
neighbourhood, and where a shaft was in course
of being sunk along its course. It did not look
to me at the time a very promising venture, and
shortly afterwards work upon it ceased, but not
before a considerable sum of money had been
expended.
The next morning everything was packed and
we were ready to start, but the elephants failed
to appear, and it was not till late in the afternoon
that one of the mahouts returned with the tale
that they had spent the whole day tracking up
their charges, and had only managed to capture
them after a long hunt, and that the same flighty
female which had previously deserted at Ijuk had
once more wandered off a long distance after its
wild companions. As it was then too late for
a start we waited till the next day, and travelled
in an easterly direction towards the hills, halting
246 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
in a village at the foot of the range that separated
us from the valley of the Perak river, which
we wished to reach. As the path across the
mountains was too steep for the elephants to climb,
we sent them round by a different route, and
engaged carriers to transport all that we required
to take with us for the next week. Our first day's
march brought us to a beautiful torrent half-way
up the mountain, and we built our camp by the
side of a dark, deep pool, in which we bathed,
finding the water very chilly. Recommencing the
ascent early the next morning, we reached the
summit of Gunong Inas, 5861 feet in height, the
same afternoon, after a long, tedious climb, and
so steep that, had our coolies been anything but
lightly laden, they could not have followed. Near
the top I found several specimens of the wild
coffee — a plant not often met with in the Malay
Peninsula, and I had only observed it growing
in one other locality ; the stunted growth border-
ing on the summit was covered with the long,
trailing vines of various kinds of pitcher plants ;
but the peak itself was bare of trees, only lichen
and dwarf shrubs grew between the numerous
sharp-edged granite rocks.
Shortly after our arrival a mist blew up, shutting
out the distant view, and it commenced to drizzle
just as our laden coolies began to arrive. It was
time to look around for some dry place in which to
pass thie night, for, owing to the dearth of sticks
and palms, building a camp was out of the question,
and so we broke up into small parties and hunted
round for nooks and crannies underneath the rocks
A DISAGREEABLE NIGHT. 247
wherein to shelter. We spread our couches on
a smooth slab-rock, over which a large granite
boulder jutted out, forming shelter above us, and
protecting us from the rain. Our men found other
places in which to pass the night, and supped upon
cold rice saved from their morning's meal, for there
was neither water to cook with, nor wood to make
a fire. The drizzle turned into heavy showers as
the night advanced, but being on the sheltered
side of the hill we kept dry until the rain com-
menced to percolate through the soil above and to
trickle over the ledge on which we slept, gradually
saturating our bedding, and making us wretchedly
wet and cold, for the night was dark, and we dared
not move for fear of falling into some crevasse.
The morning's view was somewhat of a disappoint-
ment, as there was a haze over the distant country,
although it was sufficiently clear to enable us to see
where the hills fell away and rose again to the
northward between us and Gunong Bintang, which
is over 6000 feet in height. The descent of the
mountain into the valley of the Perak river was
at first, if anything, steeper than the side by which
we had ascended, and we were fain to help
ourselves along now and again by catching hold
of some sapling that grew by the side of the track.
On coming to the lower spurs we walked right
through the abandoned camp of a party of Sakais,
showing that the path along which we were
travelling was but seldom used ; and during the
journey I saw alongside of the narrow track a
large snake, with head erect and poised in the
air ready to strike, within a few inches of the
248 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
legs of my companion, who was walking on in
front. I gave a warning cry, which not only
startled him, but the snake as well, for it turned
to go away, and we both watched it gradually
uncoiling itself and leisurely gliding off. It proved
to be an enormous python, and as we had
nothing in our hands with which to attack it,
it escaped unscathed ; and it was fortunate it did
not seize my comrade by the leg, for its bite is
nasty and takes some time to heal.
In a couple of days we reached Janing, the most
northerly station in Perak, and after some delay
succeeded in engaging men to take us for some
distance down the Perak river. We made an
early start in the morning, having previously sent
our carriers round by the path to meet us at the
house of the headman of the village of Bruar,
as the small dug-out in which we were to travel
was but capable of holding two passengers besides
the Malay boatmen, both of whom paddled, one
sitting in the bow, the other in the stern, whilst
we sat in the middle, our legs crossed in front of
us, unable to move for fear of upsetting our crank
little craft. As the height of the river made it
more than dangerous for us to shoot the first rapids
reached, we were obliged to get out, scramble over
the rocks by it, helping our men to pass the empty
boat through with the aid of poles and ropes.
A series of rapids, a little lower down, had still
to be negotiated, and could only be passed by
getting into the boat once more. This time we sat
with a hand holding on to each gunwale in order
to keep as steady as possible, and the men shoving
SHOOTING RAPIDS ON THE PERAK RIVER. 249
off we were soon dashing along at a fine pace ;
every now and then the man in the bows would
shout some directions to his comrade in the stern,
and. the paddles would be simultaneously plunged
into the seething waters and the canoe almost lifted
out of the way of a hidden rock in front, which we
were suddenly almost on top of. The slightest care-
lessness or misunderstanding between the boatmen
(who have a series of cries intimating what kind
of stroke of the paddle is needed) would have
caused a catastrophe. After we had safely passed
the worst places and were gaining more open water
I thought for a moment that after all we should not
get through without being swamped, for a large
rock was right in our course, against which the
current dashed, and recoiling made the water so
rough and broken that the waves splashed over ;
but the way on the boat and a few vigorous strokes
of the paddles caused her to rush through this
danger into smoother waters beyond. We soon
afterwards came to the place where we intended to
land, and parted with our boatmen, or " children of
the rapids," as those accustomed to shoot the rapids
are euphoniously called.
It was pouring with rain when we reached the
village of Bruar, and our carriers not having
arrived, the headman rigged us out in Malay
garments, much to the amusement of his house-
hold. Next morning, our elephants having re-
joined us, we still continued travelling to the
southward (making some explorations on the way
with a view to learning the topography of the
adjacent country and finding out the height of
250 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA,
some passes in the hills lying at right angles to
the main range), until we crossed the Perak river
and camped on a grassy headland on the southern
bank of the Plus, and close by where it flows into
the main river.
To all appearance we had chosen an ideal spot
on which to pitch our tent ; a beautiful sward of
closely-cropped grass covered the dry ground on
which we sat admiring the lovely view of the
water, woods, and mountains, whilst below us on
two sides there were different rivers ; the larger
one — the whiteness of whose waters has given the
name of "Perak" (silver) to the state — flows
sedately and swiftly by, and slight eddies alone
break the smooth evenness of its surface, whilst
the other one ripples over rocks and stones, a
sparkling expanse of gently splashing wavelets ;
and close beside us was a grove of palms and fruit
trees, from whence came sounds of laughter as our
men recounted some amusing incident or tale to
the inmates of a house occupied by the sole
dwellers on this lovely knoll.
In the middle of the night a sudden squall of
wind and rain arose, awakening us out of sleep
just in time to save the tent from being blown over,
and instead of pleasant slumber we spent what to
us appeared a considerable time outside in the
midst of thunder and lightning, holding on to
the tent-pole and to the guy-ropes until the wind
sufficiently abated to allow of our changing our
dripping clothes, and once more to seek our
couches ; by which time we had agreed in future
to pitch our tent only in sheltered spots, and not
IPOH— A COFFEE PLANTATION. 251
to be tempted again by panoramic considerations.
Travelling by easy stages to Ipoh, we passed on
our way to Chumor some of the best soil I had
come across in the peninsula.
Our journey was highly successful, for it con-
firmed the State Engineer in his opinion that the
Kinta valley could be reached by this northern
route without ascending the range of mountains
that separated the two watersheds further south.
The correctness of this supposition was subse-
quently fully proved by further explorations, during
which I discovered a low and easy gap in the hills
through which the road now runs. At the same
time the line of country was selected over which
the road from Thaiping to Salamah has since been
made, as well as the road which skirts along the
hills of the Perak valley, joining the Thaiping road
some miles west of Kwala Kangsar.
During the construction of this section of the
cart road between Ipoh and the Perak river, the
opening up of a coffee estate was commenced on
the very locality where I had been so struck with
the excellence of the soil, and connected with this
enterprise an event happened, so typical of many
others, that I do not hesitate to relate it. The
European upon whom devolved the active manage-
ment of the estate was an old Ceylon planter, who
had been in the Straits for a couple of years, and
was a person of marvellous endurance, had never
suffered even so much as a day's illness, and was
far and away the best walker of anyone who had
ever come to the native states. Notwithstanding
the climate, he could seemingly without the slightest
252 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
fatigue walk forty-two miles along a bridle-path,
crossing a hill of close on 3000 feet in height, and
arrive quite fresh and ready for dinner, returning
the same distance the next day. I always con-
sidered thirty to thirty-five miles a very good day s
walking over similar country, and although there
were several of us who could do that distance, or
walk for twelve consecutive hours over bad roads
without stopping, none of us could equal the
journeys he appeared to accomplish so easily. He
felled the jungle, planted the estate, of which he
had a share, and all promised well ; but nature,
indignant at being interfered with, had her revenge
even on this man, the sturdiest of us all, for on one
occasion while passing through Kwala Kangsar I
found him suffering from an attack of fever which
he could not shake off, and tried hard to persuade
him to accompany me to Singapore, whither I in-
tended going in a few days. He refused, having
some accounts to make up, and coolies to pay on
the estate, and declining all offers of help returned
there against our advice, but agreed to meet me in
Penang directly he had completed his work. As
he did not arrive as arranged, before leaving Penang
I sent a telegram to be forwarded to him, saying
that another steamer was leaving in a day or so,
and telling him to come on by that. But on reach-
ing Singapore I received this short message in
reply: ** Poor Tommy is dead"; and that was all.
He had returned to the estate, finished his accounts,
paid his men, but had sacrificed himself to what he
considered to be his duty, for by the time he once
more reached Kwala Kangsar it was only to die
before he could proceed further on his way.
BRITISH SENSE OF DUTY. 253
Many similar cases occur, and will continue to do
so in these hot climes as long as a self-sacrificing
devotion to duty remains so strongly rooted a
principle as it is at present amongst Britishers. I
have often heard a beardless youth, still in the en-
joyment of every boyish pastime, and with all his
life before him, say to a friend (quartered in some
more salubrious district, with whom he was on a
visit to recruit his health), " I must go back ; I have
my work to do." An unanswerable argument ; and
the lad has returned perhaps only to succumb to
his illness, with no witnesses to mark or appreciate
his heroic disregard of all else but his sense of
duty.
CHAPTER XIII.
Pigeon shooting— Krian — Snipe shooting — A Tamil ruse — Buffaloes
— Nipa Palms and making Attaps — Province Wellesley — Sugar
Planting and Indian Immigrants — Penang — Its Botanical Gardens
and Hills — The dwellers in the Island on the Esplanade— Drying
and salting fish — Fishing stakes.
Near Thaiping during several weeks in the year,
excellent pigeon shooting is obtainable every
evening some little while before dusk, when flights
of small green pigeons returned to roost amongst
the branches of the mangrove trees along the
shore, after having spent the day searching for
ripe berries in the forest. These birds, which were
of a dull green colour with a bright orange patch
on the breast, generally followed the same line
of flight for some days in succession, and once
the sportsman had discovered it, all that it was
necessary to do was to find some open space
behind a belt of jungle, so as to be able to stand
screened from the view of the approaching birds.
The number that flew past at one time varied
very much, sometimes a flock of twenty or thirty,
at others only two or three, and after the birds
had been fired at once, they remembered it, and
directly they perceived they were being waited for
they twisted in the air, and swooped, and dashed
past as speedily as possible. The shooting only
254
KRIAN— SNIPE SHOOTING. 255
lasted at most an hour, but during that time very-
pretty sport was often obtainable and a good bag
the result.
Northward of Thaiping is the district of Krian,
a large agricultural settlement, which the industry
of its inhabitants has in the course of a few years
changed from a vast morass into extensive rice-
growing fields, only needing an assured supply
of water to render the cultivation stable and
successful. At present the growing of rice in
this district is largely dependent upon a precarious
supply of surface water, and should the rain come
at the wrong time the crops suffer accordingly,
and in years of drought fail almost entirely, so
that the cultivators who are dependent upon their
crops are often obliged to sell their holdings owing
to continuous bad harvests. A system of irrigation
by gravitation is in course of construction, and
when completed will materially benefit the paddy
planters ; and it is to be hoped that this method
of irrigating will be further extended, for there
is plenty of water and many large tracts of most
suitable land for rice growing throughout the
Malay States, only requiring settlement and an
assured water supply to enable them to become
yearly productive, and make the inhabitants not
so dependent upon imported rice as they are at
present.
At certain seasons these expanses of paddy
fields abound in snipe, which of an evening may
be heard whistling overhead, and flying in all
directions, high in the air, circling round and
round before settling on some attractive feeding
256 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
ground. It is only for a couple of months that
good sport can be obtained, as the snipe are
migratory, and soon move elsewhere, but during
the time they are plentiful thirty couple a day is
a moderate and usual bag. Walking the birds
up is hard work on a hot day, for at the season
of the year when they arrive the cultivation of
the paddy fields has already commenced, the
ground is being ploughed and planted and the
water turned on, so that the sportsman wades
the whole day through slush and mud, and if
the snipe are wild, wisp after wisp get up out
of range and fly away; at other times they lie
pretty well, apparently preferring the neighbour-
hood of the houses of the cultivators, around which
the best shooting is generally to be had. The
dwellers in these rice-growing flats are so con-
stantly working in the fields that the snipe get
accustomed to their presence and pay little heed
to them ; but the shooter has always to be careful
in what direction he fires for fear of hitting some-
one who has remained unperceived. On one
occasion, after shooting a snipe near a house, cries
and shouts arose from within, and gradually the
whole Tamil family came out, so I determined to
see what was the matter. The surface of the
ground all around was so covered with water that
it was impossible to see where I was walking, and
on approaching the house I inquired what had hap-
pened, but the only answer was a renewal of wails
and shouts, and in the midst of the group stood
a man with his head bandaged. Unable to get
a reply I went nearer, only to fall into a large
A TAMIL RUSE. 257
open well that supplied the house with water
during the dry season. I scrambled out, not
in the best of tempers after my ducking, and
asked what it all meant. It was explained in
a broken jargon of Malay that a shot from my
gun had hit the man's eye and ruined his sight,
but my request to have the bandage removed was
met with the reply that his face was bleeding,
and they endeavoured to prevent my going too
near, pretending not to understand thoroughly
what I said to them. Beginning to suspect that
they were trying on a dodge I addressed them,
much to their dismay, in their own language —
Tamil — and proceeded to take off the dirty bandage
round the man s head myself, and asked which eye
was the damaged one ; an unfortunate question for
which my subject was unprepared, as he had
become so nervous at his ruse being discovered
that he first said one eye then the other. I
examined them both and found absolutely nothing
the matter with either, and left them all much
chagrined that their plot for extorting a few dollars
had miscarried and been so unsuccessful.
Upon the small ridges that separate the paddy
fields numerous traps and snares are set to capture
any snipe that happen to alight upon these
divisions, which serve the double purpose of con-
fining the water to its proper locality, and providing
a path along which the cultivators are able to walk
without wading in the slush or damaging the
growing crops. Malays are not singular amongst
eastern races in their indifference to the sufferings
of all wild creatures, and most of them, until taught
258 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
to the contrary, will pick up a wounded snipe and
place it on the stick to die by degrees rather than
take the trouble to kill it immediately.
Numbers of buffaloes wallow in the fields as yet
untilled, and it is advisable not to approach too
closely, for, although a native causes them no alarm
and easily drives them away, directly a white man
appears the herd collect together and advance
with heads well thrown back and noses in the air,
sniffing at the intruder ; then one of them stamps
his foot, and the herd draw a little nearer and
shake their heads, apparently debating what the
next move shall be, undismayed and unalarmed by
your endeavour to drive them away ; until a native
appears with a stick, when they at once scamper
off, and you trend your steps to some other field
at a safe distance. It is always advisable not to
shoot too near these herds of buffaloes, as they are
of uncertain temper, and apt to charge a stranger.
In this district there is a Tamil settlement under
the direction of a Roman Catholic Mission ; and
it is instructive to watch the quiet, earnest way
in which the priests endeavour to keep their little
colony together and to improve the welfare of their
converts.
The manufacture of attaps for roofing purposes
is another industry largely followed in this district,
for on the banks of the streams and channels that
wind with tortuous course through the mangrove
swamps stretching along the western coast, where
the salt and fresh water mingle, the nipa-attap
flourishes.
This palm is indigenous, grows readily, and
NIPA PALMS AND MAKING ATTAPS. 259
requires but scant attention, it being only necessary
to keep other growths in check, so that they shall
not spring up and choke the plant. The full-grown
leaves are cut off and used for roofing, whilst the
young and immature ones are cut into short lengths
and tied in bundles, being utilized instead of paper
for cigarettes ; they give to the tobacco a peculiar
flavour not altogether disagreeable, but to which
it is necessary to become accustomed.
The cultivation and gathering of the nipa-attap
exactly suits the Malay, who drifts up with the
flowing tide in his little dug-out boat, and making
it fast to some root projecting from the bank, he
lands, and wading through the mud amidst his
grove of palms, cuts off the largest branches and
denudes them of their leaves until sufficient have
been collected and loaded, when he unties the rope,
gets into his boat, and drifts home with the ebbing
tide, smoking the while and paddling leisurely
along. The next process is relegated to the
women and children, and occupies their spare time,
as sitting and chatting they deftly double the leaves
over a small lath cut from the trunk of the nebong
palm, sewing them together with rattan to keep
them firm and in position. When finished they
make excellent roofing, being laid in lengths over-
lapping each other, and last for about three years
before requiring renewal, although thatch made
with the larger and tougher leaves of the sago
palm continues good for double that period. The
houses of the dwellers in the coast districts ad-
joining the Straits of Malacca are for the most
part roofed with these attaps, which are also
26o CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
exported in great numbers to Sumatra. There
is a considerable trade in exporting the nipa-attaps
along the coast carried on in large tongkongs with
brown lateen sails, owned and navigated by Chinese,
who only put to sea when the weather is fine, be-
cause the decks of their crafts are piled up to such
a height with the light leaves, exposing so large
a surface to the winds as to make their smacks
unseaworthy in stormy weather.
To the north of Krian there is a wedge of British
territory called Province Wellesley, which together
with the adjacent island of Penang was ceded to
an enterprising Britisher more than a hundred
years ago by the then Sultan of Kedah, whose
successors have since come under the sovereignty
of Siam, and whose country now forms one of the
group of semi -independent Malay States recog-
nized as within the sphere of Siamese jurisdiction.
Province Wellesley, like Krian, is an agricultural
district, and its planters have suffered severely
from the low price of sugar; consequently this
industry has not spread throughout the Malay
Peninsula, as it otherwise would have done, for
there are considerable tracts of land further south
suitable for the cultivation of the sugar-cane, and
only awaiting remunerative prices to be opened
up.
The greater proportion of the labourers em-
ployed on these estates are Indian immigrants,
imported under agreements to work for a short
term of years, on the expiration of which period
they are free to go where they like. This constant
importation of labour by planters has materially
PENANG.
261
advanced the prosperity of the colony, as well as
the native states, for numbers of these labourers,
on becoming free and their own masters, have
settled permanently in the country.
Only a narrow stretch of water separates the
island of Penang from the mainland, and it is in
this sheltered and natural harbour that ocean-going
steamers anchor, as well as the smaller ones and
sailing crafts, which merely trade to the adjoining
coasts.
The business houses of the merchants of Penang
and the quarters of the native traders are all
clustered together, and stretch along the shore
close to this roadstead, which is alive with boats
carrying various cargoes to and fro.
The town itself is situated on flat ground at the
base of a group of hills, and is the chief centre of
262 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
the trade of the northern parts of Sumatra and the
Malay Peninsula. Its trade with the former place
has for many years been hampered and adversely
affected by the failure of the Dutch either to
establish peaceful relations with the Achinese or to
subjugate them. However, the general expansion
of trade in other directions has now more than
counter-balanced what has thus been lost.
A short drive along a well-made road, through
thick groves of cocoanut palms, leads to the
attractive- looking residences of the European
merchants, which stretch along the sea-shore for
several miles. Beyond are the botanical gardens,
charmingly situated on the lower spurs of the hills.
Rising abruptly behind, they form a varied back-
ground to the beautiful flowering plants and shrubs,
amongst which wind well-laid-out paths that lead
to the stream whose waters rush down through
the garden from the hills above in a series of
falls. The beautiful native, and tropical flora is
well represented, the choicer plants being sheltered
by small light sheds of split bamboo, and amongst
the flowers flit swarms of gorgeous butterflies,
which congregate together in large clusters on the
ground, forming a mosaic of lovely colours.
The ascent of the hills is made along a small
footpath, which winds up the mountain-side until
it reaches a group of houses built on the very top,
and occupied by Penang residents, who, desiring a
change from the oft stifling heat below, come up
and spend a few weeks on these hills, from which
the views are glorious, and where the air is
always cool and fresh. A comfortable hotel makes
THE DWELLERS IN THE ISLAND. 263
it also a favourite health resort for others of
smaller means.
The dwellers in the island are of different races,
and here, as in Singapore, the prosperous and
successful Chinese merchants and traders are to
be seen driving about in well-turned-out equipages
drawn by a pair of horses, which are driven by
Japanese or Boyanese coachmen in bright-coloured
and fantastic liveries ; and passing Chinese coolies
toiling in the shafts of jinrickshas occupied by fares
sitting inside, and quite unconcerned at the efforts
of these human horses, who are often sickly, and
always striving to reach the end of their journey
as quickly as possible, mopping their faces as they
run along, and audibly panting from their exertions.
During the heat of the day, and away from the
busy quarters of the town, all seems quiet and
almost deserted by the European community ; for
it is not till the afternoon is well advanced that
the men are able to leave their offices and betake
themselves to the golf-links or the cricket-field, for
wherever sufficient English people reside both these
games, as well as race-meetings, soon become firmly
established and inevitable.
The European ladies and children remain within
doors during the day out of the glare and the
heat of the sun, but the pale faces of the latter
only too clearly show that the fresher and cooler
breezes of the closing day are insufficient to
counteract the effects of the (to them) baneful
climate. On the esplanade late of an afternoon
the scene is varied and animated, for here repre-
sentatives of most of the nationalities residing
264 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
in Penang may be met with, and their different
characteristics noted. Smartly-dressed, light-hearted
Malays loll about, laughing and talking, gossiping
and telling one another stories ; tidily-clad Javanese,
more serious and quiet of demeanour, walk in twos
or threes watching the cricket, or a game of foot-
ball, that is being played by Chinese youngsters
to the accompaniment of much shouting and
gesticulation. Slim, lithesome Achinese saunter
around, carelessly dressed, and seemingly unmind-
ful of the valour of their race that for over twenty
years hcis stubbornly resisted Dutch encroachments,
although they would be only too ready to give in
their allegiance to British rule.
A tall and stalwart Sikh, wearing an enormous
turban on his head, clothed in bright-coloured
raiment, having a massive gold chain round his
neck, and carrying a large stick in his hand, walks
by, and the military regularity of his movements
clearly shows that he has served in the Indian
Army. He is on his way to take up his duties
for the night of watching the residence of some
Chinese merchant, or his business quarters in the
town, and is seen to exchange nods and greetings
as he passes two of his fellow-countrymen, whose
dark blue uniforms proclaim them to be members
of the police force, and who are bending over a
perambulator trying to amuse the pallid-looking
child of their superior officer, which is out for
its daily airing accompanied by its Chinese amah
(or nurse), who stretches out her hand, and waves
it up and down, endeavouring to arouse and show
off her charge. The Chinese woman*s face is hard
THE DWELLERS IN THE ISLAND. 265
and wrinkled, for she is getting on in years, and
has had many vicissitudes of fortune before taking
to her present occupation. She is methodical and
slow of movement, apparently overcome by the
stiff and highly-starched coat and trousers that
hang loosely on her person, whilst her feet are
encased in awkward-looking, thick-soled shoes. A
pleasant-faced, good-humoured, stout little Siamese
ayah stands unconcerned and nonchalantly by the
side of another perambulator, with an air which
plainly indicates that her present duties are only
undertaken for the sake of gain, and not from
choice or pleasure ; for she is seen to much greater
advantage in her native country, of which with her
bright, quick, and industrious habits she is the life
and soul.
Should she be residing in her beloved Bangkok,
the Venice of the East, she either sits alone in
her own little boat, bargaining with some com-
patriot of whom she wishes to buy something,
or whom she is endeavouring to persuade into
purchasing some of her own wares, which are dis-
played and spread out in front of her, for her heart
delights in trading as well as in amusements.
Having completed her bargains, or disposed of
her goods, she paddles to the river's bank and joins
her friends, who, with their hair cut short to the
neck, their yellow shawls thrown gracefully over
their shoulders, and wearing bright-coloured cloths
looped up at the back, and tied in such a way as
to resemble short pantaloons, make a picturesque
group standing together in some open space, or
sitting beneath a shady tree, and as a fitting back-
266 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
ground rises one of the many " watts " or temples
with which the chief town of Siam abounds, whose
plaster coverings are encrusted with many-coloured
bits of glass and china that glitter and shine in
the sun. Or, perhaps, returning home, our little
Siamese busies herself with household duties, or
takes her place at the cumbrous loom, and deftly
throwing wooden shuttles across the threads, she
weaves the bright-coloured raiments peculiar to her
country.
But after this digression, let us return to our
description of Penang. . At one corner of the
green a group of dark-skinned Tamil ayahs talk
and chatter in high-pitched tones, whilst the stolid
Chinamen stand by the railings watching a game
of cricket played by the Europeans, and as the
cricket ball whizzes past their heads they turn to
one another in an amused, laughing way and con-
gratulate each other on the escape they have had,
gazing after the ball that has rebounded from the
wall of the public reading-room, although it never
occurs to them to pick it up and return it to the
players ; that is left for the more quick-witted
Tamil boy, who is also looking on with interest
at the game, betokening that he is also a cricketer,
and accustomed to play with other boys on some
flat piece of grass near his home.
Carriages drive about or stand close by the sea-
wall, so that their occupants may enjoy the sea breeze
or watch what is going on around ; a closed gharry
drawn by a small pony and driven by a Tamil
passes slowly along, and between the closed jalou-
sies of its windows the eyes of the occupants peep
THE DWELLERS IN THE ISLAND. 267
out, these are Malay women, carefully screened from
view, although they are able to observe all that is
going on around. Quite different is the gharry
that follows ; the windows are all open, and sitting
inside it is a Chinese family, well dressed and
bedecked in jewels, fully enjoying the scene around,
the children drawing one another's attention to any-
thing that takes their fancy with animated gesture
and shrill chatter. The scene is one of recreation
and enjoyment, and even the fever-stricken white
man, but recently arrived from some malarious
district, shakes off his languor, and his haggard
and drawn face relaxes into smiles at the kindly
greetings he receives from his many friends.
The band plays selections of music, and in the
intervals the ripple of the waves adds to the delight
and harmony of the evening as they lap against the
sea wall, urged on by the cool breeze the setting
sun has left behind as a recompense for the fierce
heat of the day. But .avarice and the struggle for
existence are represented even here, for stalking
along appears a chetty, the usurer of the East, the
blood-sucker of the poor; his head is closely shaven,
his coal-black body is nude to the waist, which is
encircled by a silver belt supporting a thin white
cloth that hangs down in folds almost reaching to his
sandalled feet; and by his side walks a Tamil coolie,
who fawns upon him, and in wheedling tones en-
treats him not to sell up his home or to take from
him his cart and bullocks with which he earns his
livelihood ; but he might as well talk to the granite
blocks of which the sea-wall is composed, they
would be equally unresponsive, and not less hard
268 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
than the stony - hearted money - lender, once his
victim is well within his toils.
Conjurers and snake-charmers from India are
frequently to be seen exercising their art by the
side of the road. The conjurer stands or squats
in some open space and performs a series of sleight-
of-hand ; he has two principal tricks, one of which
is without extraneous aid to plant the seed of a
mango in the ground and make it grow into a
healthy seedling ; and the other is the well-known
basket trick, when the conjurer places one of the
troupe, generally a woman^ into a basket and makes
her disappear. In order to prove the genuineness
of the trick, and that she is no longer inside the
now closed basket, he pierces it with a sword in
several directions.
The snake-charmer carries his venomous play-
things about in small round baskets made from
rushes, and taking the lid off one he deftly seizes
its writhing occupant below the neck, and throwing
it a little distance away commences to blow his pipe,
which emits a dull monotonous music, to which
the snake is attracted and stands with its head
poised in the air, and when it glides too near the
performer he again pushes it to a distance. One
amongst a group of Europeans who happened to
be spectators on an occasion when a snake-charmer
was giving an exhibition on the steps of an hotel,
under the impression that the cobra's fangs had
been extracted, essayed to catch one of these
snakes during the performance and pick it up.
He was only prevented from doing so, and there-
by running the risk of being bitten, by the snake-
DRYING AND SALTING FISH.
269
charmer's urgent entreaties and warnings that the
snakes were really venomous and the fangs intact.
To prove his assertion a fowl was procured and
the snake permitted to bite it, with the result
that within a short while the fowl was dead.
Around Penang, as well as along the coasts of
the native states, a large industry in drying and
salting fish is carried on by the Chinese and
Malays, who capture the fish both by netting them
and with hook and line, and it is no unusual occur-
rence when travelling on board a steamer to see
a light suddenly displayed ahead by some fisher-
man alone by himself, who never troubles about
showing any signs of his whereabouts until the
steamer is close upon him and he is afraid of being
run down. The numbers of fish captured by the
above methods are small when compared with
those taken in the fishing-stakes, which are erected
wherever a locality is suitable and fish plentiful.
These stakes almost disappear from view when
the tide is high, but as it goes out they can* be
seen stretching across the flat expanses of shallow
2 70 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
foreshore and along the hidden sandbanks which
are so common in the Straits of Malacca.
They consist of a line of long thin sticks stuck
into the sand, and upon the lower portion of this
fence a light removable paling, composed of split
rattans tied together, is fastened so as to prevent
the fish from passing through. At the end of these
stakes there is a round circular fence into which the
fish are able to pass as they swim along either side
of the fence towards the deeper water in their
endeavours to get round this obstacle to their
progress ; but when once they have entered the
trap they cannot return, and remain until lifted out
in a net that has been sunk to the bottom of the
trap some hours before by the fishermen, who visit
these stakes at regular intervals when the tide is
low, to take out the fish that have entered, and
returning to their houses close to the shore occupy
themselves between whiles with salting and drying
their captures. The take of fish is often a very
mixed one ; large and small are indiscriminately
brought to shore, even including sharks, for the
latter is considered quite a delicacy amongst the
Chinese.
These stakes when once completed are a con-
tinuous source of revenue to their owners, only
occasionally needing repairs, for they are always
erected in positions somewhat sheltered from the
prevailing winds to prevent their destruction by
storms, and as much out of the beaten track of
steamers and sailing crafts as possible to preserve
the fence from being damaged on dark nights,
when they cannot be discerned by those on watch
FISHING STAKES. 271
until the steamer is close upon them or the noise
of the sticks as they grate against her sides is
heard, for in order to enter the rivers along the
coast these trading boats are obliged to pass close
to the shallow waters and the sandbanks and fore-
shores near where the stakes are placed.
CHAPTER XIV.
Island of Pangkor— Dutch Fort — Pirates — District Officer murdered
— Station moved to Lumut — S'tiawan — Pandah Karim — Start upon
a Survey— Tamil Boy murdered — Three Weeks in a Swamp —
Thorns and Mosquitoes — A Tiger — Kota Stia — Rowing up the
Perak river to Teluk Anson — The Bridle-path to Tapah — Poling
up the Kinta and Tapah rivers and descending them.
To the southward of Penang there is another small
piece of British territory called the Dindings, which
was ceded in 1826 by the Sultan of Perak. It is
a somewhat desolate if picturesque spot, consisting
of the rocky Sembilan Islets as well as the island
of Pangkor, which is clothed with forest trees, and
separated from the mainland by a channel, the
north entrance of which is beset with sunken rocks
and dangerous on stormy nights or when the
lights are not distinctly visible. Steaming up
this channel, we pass a group of houses nearly
hidden from view by the cocoanut trees amongst
which they are situated, and in them dwell the
fishermen who forrn a portion of the scanty popu-
lation that reside in this small island ; and a little
distance further the steamer anchors in a bay, on
the shore of which are the shops of the few traders
who live here, also the police station, whilst close to
this anchorage there are still the ruins of the old
Dutch fort which was abandoned as long ago as
1670.
272
PIRATES. 273
High and dry, along the beach, are several boats
and tongkongs undergoing repair, and lying at
anchor in this sheltered bay are various other crafts
filled with wood cut from the mangrove trees that
line the many creeks extending into the adjacent
mainland. The wood of the mangrove tree, after
being sawn in lengths and split, is used as fuel by
the steamers trading between Penang and Teluk
Anson, whilst the bark of the tree is exported for
tanning and dyeing purposes.
The Sembilans, as the nine small islets to the
south of Pangkor are called, are renowned for the
quantities of turtles* eggs that are collected round
their shores at the season of the year when the
turtle lays her eggs.
The Dindings and its neighbourhood had for-
merly an unenviable notoriety as being a rendez-
vous of pirates, and I well remember on my first
visit there seeing the blood marks on the floor of
the house in which the district officer in charge
was attacked and murdered, his wife and a lady
friend being at the same time assaulted and
wounded by a band of Chinese robbers, who
afterwards ransacked the dwelling. Curiously
enough, the next official who succeeded to the
appointment very nearly met the same fate at the
hands of a Malay Haji, who had given evidence
in an amuck case in which a relative of his whilst
running amuck had been killed. The affair seems
to have upset the Haji's mental equilibrium to such
an extent that he decided to run amuck himself,
and in furtherance of this idea somewhat later
crept up behind the chair of the district officer
2 74 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
who happened to be lunching in company with
the European inspector of police at the time, and
would certainly have killed him on the spot had
he not been noticed by the inspector, who jumped
up just in time to somewhat divert the direction
of the blow and save the life of his superior, who
was nevertheless so badly stabbed that eventually
he was compelled to resign his appointment.
Formerly the administration of this small piece
of British territory was supervised by the Resident
of Perak, but in 1886 it came under the direct
control and management of the colony, and the
station and residences of the Government servants
have since been moved, owing to the continued
unhealthiness of the island itself, to Lumut, a place
on the adjacent mainland, which was ceded by
the Sultan of Perak in 1874, some little distance
up an inlet of the sea, and close to the Perak
boundary. Further along the same creek is the
village of S'tiawan, which is in Perak territory.
In the neighbourhood there is a settlement of
Kelantan Malays, who have opened a considerable
tract of land, upon which they planted the shrub
from which patchouli scent is distilled. Unfortu-
nately such a large increase in the supply could not
be disposed of ; the price fell so much that the culti-
vation was no longer remunerative. Some of these
Malays made a good living by capturing rhinoceros,
which were somewhat plentiful in this part of the
country. The method of their capture was very
simple : a large hole was cut in a path they frequented
and covered with brushwood, into which the animal
fell if it happened to pass along the track across
STIAWAN. 275
which the trap was dug. They were often injured
by the fall, and died shortly after their release,
which did not taWe place for several days, nor until
the animal had become so weak from starvation that
it had but little strength left, when a sloping way
was cut leading to the pit, up which it was either
driven straight into a cage just large enough to
hold it, or led away to one; and in order to
prevent its escape on the journey long copes were
fastened to its legs, so that directly it showed
symptoms of restlessness they could be twisted
round some tree and so render its struggles futile.
In this confined space it was kept until purchased
and loaded on some small boat, to be ferried across
to the port at the Dindings for transhipment to
Penang, where it usually died in a few days after
arrival, and proved but a poor bargain for its
purchaser.
My visit to S'tiawan was for the purpose of
surveying for a road between that place and the
Perak river, and I was fortunately accompanied
by a number of Malays who were accustomed to
work for me. They came from a village called
Talum, close to Kwala Kangsar, the residence of
the Sultan, who reserved the snipe-shooting in the
vicinity of their village for himself and friends ;
and they were certainly the best Malays I ever
had to deal with, always bright and cheerful, no
day's work too long for them ; and if I was
anxious to complete any special work they were
equally interested in it and continued labouring
till dark, and upon its final completion they would
return to their village with their headman, Pandah
276 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
Karim, who was a really upright and trustworthy
man, and in whom I was able to place the most
complete reliance. He was a good Mahomedan,
acting up not only to the letter of his religion,
but to the spirit of its teaching ; he had great
influence with his fellow- villagers who accompanied
him, and at a few days' notice I could depend upon
his having a gang of men ready and willing to
meet and accompany me wherever required. He
was a small man, well past middle age, and was
obliged to use spectacles in order to read. After
some practice he became quite expert in judging
of the most practical line to take across a difficult
country, and took as keen an interest in the work
and the gradients of the road as I did myself,
and his character was of a type that any race
might be proud of. Only one other Malay of
a somewhat similar disposition did I discover
during the time of my residence in these regions,
and he in the same way, without showing any
signs of authority, seemed to have unbounded
influence with the men who worked with him.
As the jungle to be traversed was remote and
entangled, I supplemented the force of men I had
brought with me by an equal number of strangers,
about whom I knew nothing, and being anxious
to commence working, took them on with as little
delay as possible. Before I had gone far I recog-
nized that I had to deal with a rough and queer
lot, so gradually sent them all away and replaced
them with others, as it was not pleasant dealing
with men who refused to work, and who upon the
slightest reprimand scowled and seized the handles
TAMIL BOY MURDERED. 277
of their parangs, intimating that if they only dared
they would cut you down.
After some days, while I was working near
camp, I heard a shout and answered it, but was
unable to locate its exact direction, so concluded,
after I had replied once more, that it was only
someone collecting rattan calling to his com-
panion, and continued what I was engaged upon
until evening, when we all returned to camp to-
gether, and were met by a gruesome sight, for
on the ground my Tamil servant, Pombayan, was
lying quite dead with his throat cut, and the camp
had been looted of everything that was of any value.
There were indications where the struggle had
taken place, and my camp bed was bespattered
with my poor servant's blood, for he had fallen
on to it ; and a cut in front, as well as three cuts
on the back of his head, showed how he had
been felled and hacked whilst on the ground, and
then dragged and thrown outside, where his throat
was gashed from ear to ear to prevent any chance
of his survival.
My camp was built at some distance away in
the jungle, so it was exceedingly improbable that
anybody should have chanced upon it ; and as
one of my workmen was absent during the
whole day, although he had promised to re-
turn, my suspicions were aroused, and lighting
torches I started for S'tigiwan, and amongst the
throng that crowded round my men when they
were recounting what had happened was the man
I was in pursuit of, so I had him arrested, and
his house was searched, but he had made good
2 78 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
use of his ten hours' grace, and his clothes were
found hanging up wringing wet, but he had for-
gotten to clean his parang sheath, upon which
were splashes of blood. Unfortunately, at this
time Perak had been to some extent denuded of
her police force and police officers, for service in
Pahang, to which place they had been dispatched
to quell some disturbances that had broken out
amongst a portion of its inhabitants who were
dissatisfied and discontented with the imposition
of the Residential system ; so that it was some
while before any real steps were taken to work
up the case, and in the meanwhile the man's friends
had not been idle, and nothing could be found in
his possession or in that of others to connect him
with the murder, although he had been seen going
and returning from the direction in which my camp
was situated. His clothing, upon a portion of
which were blood stains, and other things he wore
on the day of the murder were sent from Perak to
the Government analyst at Singapore, but on the
journey thither the mail-bag which contained them
fell into the water as it was being transhipped at
Penang, and the contents were so soaked that nothing
could be done with them. All this untoward chain
of events prevented the assassin's being brought
to justice, and the murder ranks amongst the
number of those crimes of which the culprits have
never been discovered. Amongst the Malays, life,
and especially that of an unbeliever, is held of
such slight value that none of that race would
willingly give evidence against his compatriot,
unless he had some private spite to satisfy, or
revenge to gratify.
CHINESE SERVANTS. 279
Pombayan was a Tamil, a native of Puducottah
in Southern India, and at the time of his death
he had been with me for sixteen years, having
entered my service when quite a lad, and had
accompanied me on a great many of my travels,
although I used to leave him at home when possible,
because he never quite recovered from the frequent
attacks of malarial fever contracted during the
early years of pioneering upon the hills and the
hardships he then endured; but during the whole
time he was a thoroughly faithful and attached
companion, and I felt his loss keenly.
Another of my servants was a Chinaman, who
was with me for ten years, and when I returned
to civilization once more and related to him what
had occurred in the meanwhile, his first exclamation
was that he must accompany me, and he did so
on the next expedition I made ; but as he was
elderly I usually delegated to him the looking
after my house during my absence. He had a
wife and family in China, whom he used to go
and see at intervals of several years, always coming
back at the agreed-upon date. He was loyal and
trustworthy, and on being told on his return from
China that I was not returning to the East, he
sat down on the steps of the verandah and gave
vent to his feelings by weeping, and refused for
some time to be comforted.
The Hailam Chinese make excellent servants,
and they are perfectly honest with anyone who
treats them well and understands them. They
are born cooks, all knowing something of the
culinary art, so that there is never any difficulty
28o CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
in finding a person to cook at a pinch ; and as
long as you have a reliable head boy, as these
servants are called, he can always obtain under
ones at the shortest notice. Constant travelling
about necessitated my keeping three servants, as
the journeys knocked them up, and it was neces-
sary for them to rest, and to take it in turns
to accompany me. I usually arranged to take the
youngest on my roughest excursions, and after
six months he generally used to try and obtain
some easier situation.
On many future occasions, when accompanied
by some of the men who were with me at that
time, I often heard the story of Pombayan's murder
repeated to new-comers sitting round the camp-fire
of an evening, who always inquired what I did
when I arrived in camp and found my servant
murdered, and upon being told that I was much
distressed invariably replied, *' How strange, I did
not think that a white man would really care what
happened to a black one.'*
But to return to the survey upon which I was
engaged, and where, after moving camp several
times, we erected one on a nice sandy ridge not
far from the seashore and bordering upon a vast
swamp, across which we were obliged to pass in
order to reach the Perak river. Our camp con-
sisted of a rough shelter open all round and quite
unprotected. It was not pleasant each morning on
waking up to see the footprints of a tigress and
her cubs, who had been disporting and amusing
themselves close to where we had been sleeping,
but owing to the darkness of the nights we had
THREE WEEKS IN A SWAMP. 281
been unable to perceive them, and never knew
of their presence until daybreak. As this sandy
ridge appeared to be the regular playground of
these animals, we changed our camp into the swamp
itself, building it upon the roots of trees and sticks
above the level of the water. After proceeding a
short distance the character of the swamp changed,
and instead of wading waist-deep in mud we found
that a little distance below the surface of the ground
the earth was fairly hard and firm, and the water
only occasionally more than knee-deep. Progress
would have been less difficult had it not been for
continuous clumps of thorns, the stems of which
were covered with sharp needle-like spikes, neces-
sitating the use of a pronged stick with which
to cast them on one side when cut, as they were
too prickly to take hold of. Even when a passage
had been cleared it took the whole day for my men
to change camp a mile and a half, so tedious was
it for them to carry their burdens over the track
strewn with long spiked thorns and bristling with
prickly roots, and to cut sticks at the end of their
journey with which to build a new camp.
Most of the men wore canvas shoes, which in
great measure protected their feet, as the thorns
could not penetrate the leather soles, but they
readily pierced the canvas tops ; and every evening
after work a considerable time was spent by the
coolies cutting out and extracting thorns from their
hands and limbs.
Nearly as numerous as the thorns were the
black clouds of mosquitoes that settled upon your
clothes and face and hands, and which it was vain
282 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
to try and escape from, and useless to brush off,
for others immediately took their place. At first
they were most vexatious, but after a day or so
they ceased to give the same annoyance, for the
irritation caused by their proboscis piercing your
flesh was so continuous that you became accus-
tomed to it, and no bad results followed ; for
although their bite is often poisonous, creating
painful swellings and sometimes sores on new-
comers, it ceases to have any effect upon those
who have resided some while in the tropics and
become acclimatized, and is only troublesome at
the time and for a few hours afterwards. Their
constant buzzing and trumpeting could be heard
all the day long, and at night they persistently
tried to find some small opening in the mosquito
nets through which they could enter. Over three
weeks were spent in this morass of roots and
thorns, of mud and water, always wet and damp,
where, the sun never penetrated, and where the
vision was circumscribed, being limited by a thick
and thorny tangle that not only prevented anything
from being seen at a distance of a few yards, but
also obstructed progress, as it was impossible to
penetrate it without a considerable amount of
cutting. It was only along this narrow cleared
track fenced by the thorns thrown to each side that
it was practicable to walk at all ; and if twenty men
chopping steadily for eight hours succeeded in
making half a mile of progress it was a satisfactory
day's work, and had there been much rain as well
life would have been almost unendurable.
The only river we came to was so blocked with
A TIGER— KOTA STIA. 283
rank, coarse grasses, that we were able to cross
— although it was of considerable depth — by simply
walking on the top of the matted growth, which
was sufficiently strong to easily support our weight
and allow us to walk across with scarcely wetting
more than the soles of our feet. Two days more
after crossing this river brought us to the bank
of the Perak river, and into the glare of the sun
once more, and it was a delightful change to see
signs of life and human habitations.
The day before getting out into the open, after
work was finished, I lingered somewhat behind my
men, who returned to camp, and on my arrival there
one of them inquired of me in a quizzing manner
whether I had seen anything by the way, and on
my replying in the negative I was informed that
as they were walking along a tiger had growled
at them quite close by, and since their arrival they
had been wondering whether I should encounter it
on my way back alone.
Before ascending the Perak river I stopped a
day at the police station at Kota Stia, which was
in charge of a Sikh corporal who had been all
through the Afghan war, and about which he re-
lated many interesting reminiscences. The village
is situated on the banks of the river, and the centre
of the attap trade of Lower Perak.
I have already described in a previous chapter
the same industry on a smaller scale in the district
of Krian, but a much larger one is carried on
here. The fortunate dwellers along the banks of
the river, as far as the tide extends, possess groves
of these attap palms, so that all the year round a
284 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
lucrative occupation is close at hand, and they can
at any moment sally forth and cut and make the
attap thatch, for which a ready market exists ; and
not only that, but the Chinese traders are always
only too ready to advance money or goods to be
repaid in kind at a small reduction on the prevailing
market price.
Several Chinese tongkongs were anchored in the
river off the village loading these attap-leaves for
shipment to Sumatra, where they are much used
to thatch the large sheds in which tobacco plants,
after being cut, are hung up to dry and wither
before the leaves are detached and fermented ;
while yet more tongkongs were waiting for a
favourable breeze before putting to sea. The
crew of these craft live in a little cabin in the
poop, which has a window looking out astern ;
but should one of the sailors fall overboard at
any time he need look for no assistance from his
comrades, who consider it unlucky to rescue a
drowning person, and imagine that some calamity
would certainly overtake them if they did so.
Steamers used to load firewood off this place, but
the mangrove trees have been so much destroyed
and cut in the neighbourhood that the trade in fuel
has been abandoned.
Near to Kota Stia were the remains of an old
Siamese fort, and not far off a stretch of land
now covered by forest trees, and known by the
name of ** Bendong Siam," or the paddy fields
of the Siamese. There is a tradition amongst
the present inhabitants that a large settlement
of these people existed^ and certainly there were
ROWING UP THE PERAK RIVER. 285
signs that a considerable extent of country
in this district had been under cultivation at
some former time. No doubt this neighbour-
hood was a peculiarly well-suited one for the
residence of conquering and marauding settlers,
as they were remote enough from the districts
populated by the Malays to be safe from any
sudden raids, whilst the river was broad and
sufficiently deep to allow of their ships lying
safely at anchor, and guarding the only route by
which any numbers could come to attack them.
They were able to collect their toll on the trade
of the country without difficulty, as a considerable
proportion of the imports and exports had of
necessity to pass up or down the Perak river.
At the same time they had an ample expanse
of suitable land on which to grow sufficient rice
for their own wants, and were close to the sea,
whence they could not only obtain the fish they
themselves needed, but were able to monopolize
the industry of drying and salting them ; the
sandbanks off the coast in this neighbourhood
being still noted for the quantities of fish daily taken
in the fishing-stakes by those pursuing this trade.
As the tide commenced to flow in the morning
we embarked in a small boat, having an easily
removable roof at the stern made from the leaves
of the nipa palm, which sewn together make an
excellent covering, keeping out the sun and rain,
and lasting for a considerable while. My bedding
was spread under this shelter upon a flat deck,
made by covering sticks placed crosswise with a
flooring of cut rattan, upon which a mat is placed.
286 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
The' roof came down so close as only to permit of
the occupant s adopting a sitting position, and if he
wishes to stand upright, he is obliged to crawl out
of this shelter before he can do so. Lazily reclin-
ing on my couch I read, a book, whilst my boy
was busy preparing food in the bows of the boat,
which, propelled by the rowers, and assisted by the
incoming tide, travelled along at a fair pace, passing
on the way Kota Blanda, the site of a fort built
during Dutch supremacy, as well as several huge
roots of the attap palm, which, growing close to the
water s edge, had become detached and fallen into
the stream, and were carried up or down by the
flowing or ebbing tide until caught by some over-
hanging branches, or taken out to sea.
On one occasion, floating in a boat up this river
by night, my boatmen lost their way in the dark-
ness, and I awoke to find the boat amongst some
trees growing in a backwater which impeded our
further progress, and none of us knew in the
slightest degree where we were. Daylight enabled
us to extricate ourselves by cutting our way
through the bushes, following the direction of the
ebbing water until it brought us back into the river
again ; but it was early the next morning before
we reached Teluk Anson, so the mishap delayed
us some twelve hours on the journey. This time
my rowers endeavoured to save the tide, which
had already changed, but had not gained sufficient
strength to entirely stop us as we turned round
the last bend in the river and the town came
into view, the first name of which, Teluk, means
promontory in Malay, and the last word, Anson,
THE BRIDLE PATH TO TAPAH. 287
was the name of a former Lieutenant-Governor
of Penang. The old port of this part of Perak
was called Durian Sebatang, but owing to the
silting of the river and some difficult turns it
was abandoned, and the present place being selec-
ted as suitable, the jungle was cleared and the
site of the town located ; but at high tides the
water rises in the ditches, and the ground itself
becomes moist and sodden, so that it is anything
but an agreeable place of residence.
The town consists of a number of wooden
houses, with plank walls and tiled roofs. The
railway now transports goods into the interior,
to the tin-mining districts of Tapah and Kinta,
but at the time of my first visit Teluk Anson
was an isolated village with absolutely no roads,
and the interior could only be reached by taking
boat. As far as foot passengers were concerned
this was not to last long, for a small bridle path
was made to Tapah, through a district where not
a single house was met with on the line.
The first time I made the journey — walking over
the narrow track, cleared with the aid of a com-
pass, and from which the smaller saplings had been
cut a short distance from the ground, so that their
stumps required to be carefully avoided in walking
along — I outpaced my carrying coolies, who could
only proceed slowly and with difficulty, so sat
down to await their coming, as I did not wish to
leave them altogether for fear they should lose
their way. Whilst waiting I was interested to
hear a bear and her cubs snorting and grunting
not far off, which were entirely unaware of my
288 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
presence. Bears are but seldom encountered in
these parts, and are mostly small and not vicious
like those of Ceylon, which will follow and at-
tack the wayfarer, even when unprovoked and
unmolested ; nor can they compare with the fine
bears to be met with in the Rocky Mountains
and other parts of America and Canada.
The cutting of the road was very unhealthy
work and difficult of accomplishment, for the real
Perak Malay has an aversion to manual labour
when it can possibly be avoided, and the work had
to be carried out by Chinese but lately arrived in the
country, unacclimatized and unused to the felling
and uprooting of trees, besides knowing nothing as
to the manner in which the earthwork of the road
should be commenced, necessitating constant teach-
ing and continuous supervision. The village of
Tapah even now is noted for a peculiar fever
that attacks those living in it; especially is it so
with Europeans, who seldom escape if their resi-
dence is of any duration.
After the path was finished it was constantly
being damaged by elephants, who during the wet
weather made many holes in the portions over
which they walked, but fortunately did not venture
to test the strength of the bridges that crossed the
many streams. Even when the railway was con-
structed these animals trampled about its banks,
and one large tusker went so far in his dislike to
the innovations of civilization as to dispute the
passage of a train. In this encounter, however,
he came off badly, for he was instantly knocked
down and killed.
CHOLERA. 289
The twenty-four miles of bridle path connecting
Tapah with Teluk Anson were extremely fatiguing
to walk along during wet weather owing to the
greasy and slippery nature of the soil for a con-
siderable proportion of the journey. At each step
forward the foot would slip back nearly as much
as the distance gained ; half way, a house where
travellers could pass the night was erected, and on
one occasion, while walking along this road, I met
a friend who had lately been employed in erecting
a cairn of stones for trigonometrical observations
on the summit of Gunong Inas, where we had
spent such an unpleasant night. He seemed to
have had an equally uncomfortable stay, though
for a longer period, and was now en route to some
mountain beyond Tapah. During our conversa-
tion I discovered he had passed the night at the
half-way house, only having heard on his arrival
that two men had died there of cholera a few
days before, but as it was raining at the time, and
too late to continue his journey until the following
day, he was forced to remain there. The path
happened to be more slippery than usual and
travelling was very difficult, and as we rose to
part he said that this walk always appeared to
him the longest journey he knew of anywhere.
But he was shortly on a longer and more distant
one, however, for before many more days' sun
had set the cholera had claimed him as a victim.
Close to the bank of the river adjoining the
town of Teluk Anson numerous boats were tied,
and these so increased in numbers as the interior
of the state became opened up and developed as
290 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
to be quite a wonderful sight shortly before the
railway was completed. The boats stretched out
into the river two or three feet deep, and were
either waiting to be loaded, or for the tide to turn
to help them on the first portion of the journey
up the different streams which joined the main river
above this port. The steamers discharged their
cargoes in many instances direct into these broad,
shallow boats until there were but a very few inches
of freeboard left before their rowers were satisfied
that they were sufficiently loaded. The crews in
some instances consisted of Chinese, in other cases
of Malays, the former always possessing larger boats
and fitted with a plank outside upon which the
polers walked, whereas the latter had smaller boats
and the polers walked up and down inside the
gunwale of the boat itself, and thus were able to
navigate smaller and swifter rivers than the former.
Once these boats were loaded the crew were
anxious to get away on to the higher reaches of
the river, where the wind was powerless to disturb
the surface of the water, for they dreaded the
slightest ripple for fear it should swamp their craft ;
but when they got into the narrower streams that
flowed from the Kinta and Tapah hills their perils
were not over, for snags and roots and sunken trees
were a constant source of danger, and many were
the boats upset in ascending and descending these
rivers. The sharp corners, when the currents were
strong, were difficult to turn, and it was no un-
common thing for the polers to have to exert all
their efforts to keep the boat stationary and to
prevent her being swept down by the current,
>
X
POLING UP THE RIVERS. 293
which nevertheless sometimes happened. The
men were often hurt trying to fend her off the
trees and bushes that line the banks, and were
obliged to tie up for several days until the freshet
ceased and the volume of the descending waters
had decreased.
On the Tapah river, where it usually took a week
or more to pole up a laden boat against the stream,
the descent could be made within the twenty-four
hours ; and very exhilarating it was to be swept
rapidly down, especially if the river happened to
be in flood. The steerer sat in the stern of the
boat, two rowers occupied the thwarts, ready to
row when necessary, whilst another man stood in
the bows, pole in hand, every now and again calling
on the helmsman who manipulated a large circular
paddle fixed to the stern of the boat, which made
a powerful rudder, and could not only be turned
to both sides, but also used as an oar, either to
straighten the course of the boat or to keep her
off the bank.
The voyagers were sure to be once or twice
carried against the river sides and to get mixed
up amongst the branches and thorns, of which a
speci.es known as **wait a bit," having long trails
covered with fish-hook thorns that catch and tear
your clothes, and were sometimes even so numerous
as to stop the boat itself All had knives handy to
cut these long, overhanging, whip-like detainers
should they catch hold of anyone, and all loose
articles had to be stowed carefully out of the way.
Once I took off my coat and left it by my side,
but it was not long before it was snatched out of
294 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
the boat and I saw it disappearing in the water
as we rounded the next corner, for we could not
stop for some distance, and then all chance of re-
covering my lost property, which contained my
watch and note-book, was gone. Cargoes were
frequently lost, and the merchant up country never
knew whether his goods would come to hand or
not ; but these accidents did not so often happen
to the boats carrying tin down stream as to the
ascending ones laden with miscellaneous merchan-
dise, for the downward freight was so much more
valuable that the traders insisted upon the boats
being lightly loaded, which was practicable, as the
weight and bulk of the goods imported largely
exceeded that of those exported from these
districts.
CHAPTER XV.
Mr. Nod Denison — An arduous Exploration through Floods — Destruc-
tion of Gutta Trees — ^Method of collecting Gutta by Dyaks —
Through the Floods of the Bemam River — Fever-stricken Followers
— Rembau, its Stockades, Politics, and Inhabitants — Tampin —
Johol — ^Jempol — Ulu-Moar — S'trimenanti— Exploring — A Message
from the Datoh — Small -pox— A Cock Fight — Coffee trees — Fruit
trees — Irrigation — Graves — Eam Tuan of S'trimenanti — Bukit
Putus, its Defence and Capture — Meeting between Sir Frederick
A. Weld and Chiefs.
The district of Lower Perak, of which Teluk
Anson was the chief town — and where the
Government offices of the superintendent's staff
are situated — was fortunate in having Mr. Noel
Denison as principal officer, an indefatigable and
zealous official, and very popular amongst Malays,
and the phenomenal success of the agricultural
district of Krian was due to his hard work and
exertions ; for at his advent, there was no popula-
tion, but before he left settlers had come from many
parts, and had brought quite a large area under
cultivation. So much was he respected and liked
by the inhabitants, that upon his death they wished
to erect some memorial to the officer who had
done so much for them and benefited the district
generally ; but the Government used its influence,
perhaps wisely, to prevent the scheme being carried
out by the public, and itself perpetuated his
295
296 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
memory by a tablet let into a water-tower then
in course of erection.
Some distance below Teluk Anson a canal is cut,
joining the Perak with the Bernam river further to
the south, and which was made to enable the small
river boats to proceed from one river to the other
without going out to sea, along a coast so liable to
sudden squalls.
The most trying journey, although it was only
of short duration, I ever made was from Teluk
Anson, during the rainy season, to explore a line
of country between the Bernam river on the one
side and the valley of the Sungkai river on the
other. It rained every day ; all the rivers were
in flood, and it was with the object of discovering
the extent of country inundated, and the feasibility
of constructing a road, that the exploration was
undertaken. I commenced by spending over a
week partially immersed in mud and water, where
the Sungkai river had overflowed its banks, and
where our camp each evening had to be constructed
above the flood water, a tedious proceeding causing
much delay ; and besides, there was the uncertainty
of how high the water all around us would rise
during the night from the continuous rain, or a
freshet, coming down from the higher lands, might
at any moment have made further progress im-
possible. The thorny growth was not so dense
as seriously to impede our progress, which was
fairly good, although it rained constantly, but of
that we took little notice, and beyond causing all
our clothes to become saturated and sodden it did
not retard our movements. At last we reached a
DESTRUCTION OF GUTTA TREES. 297
village by the banks of the river, and here we took
a well-earned rest, mending and drying our wearing
apparel and laying in a stock of fresh provisions for
the continuance of our journey.
Leaving this village we skirted and traversed some
hills, where numbers of gutta- producing trees were
lying in the jungle in every direction; and this portion
of the country probably had remained untouched
until a party of Dyaks from Borneo came over to
collect gutta in these parts, and they are so accus-
tomed to this employment that they scarcely leave
a gutta-producing tree undiscovered. Their method
of obtaining the juice is wasteful in the extreme,
for not content with tapping the trees and obtaining
a small quantity at frequent intervals, they devastate
the woods of gutta trees by cutting them down,
so that they may make as much profit as possible
as the result of their expedition. Having felled
298 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
the tree, they cut rings through the bark round
its stem and branches about a foot apart, into which
channels the juice flows, coagulates, and is collected.
Large and small trees are indiscriminately cut down,
and the whole country is denuded of its gutta trees
in a very short while. From indications remaining,
the collectors must have had a very successful
expedition in these regions, as numbers of trees
were met with which had been entirely destroyed
and were lying rotting on the ground. The moist
climate and frequent showers of the Malay States
appear to be especially favourable to these trees,
which are indigenous, grow luxuriantly, and yield
copiously. In fact, taking example from the few
trees that have escaped destruction, or have been
grown near some Malay house, whose owner has
been content to tap the tree frequently and has not
cut it down, there is no reason to doubt that the
quantity of gutta that could be exported, once
the inhabitants took to systematic planting of
the trees (which there are signs of their doing),
would be very large, and have a considerable
effect on the market, for the supply in the
future will be continuous instead of, as formerly,
evanescent.
Besides gutta trees there are several kinds of
creepers that produce gutta-percha ; and a case has
been known of a thirsty explorer, who, mistaking
a gutta-creeper for one of the many varieties which
exude water, placed his mouth beneath one that
he had cut in two, and drank its juice, with the
result that the liquid he swallowed coagulated and
solidified in his bowels, thereby causing his death.
THROUGH THE FLOODS. 299
Traversing several small ridges we passed through
this district so prolific of gutfa trees, and came to
the watershed of the Bernam river, where we found
the country through which we had to go inundated,
and our progress was more difficult than it had
previously been, for, instead of a large flat covered
with water of fairly equal depth, the surface was
broken up into hillocks and depressions, the flood
water just reaching to the tops of the former, but
quite deep and impassable wherever the latter
happened to be.
On arriving at places which were too deep for
us to wade through, the men hung up their loads
on the branches of any small adjacent trees, and
commenced to erect light and frail bridges, or to cut
down some large tree to span a spot where the water
would not admit of their fixing the light posts of the
temporary structures made. The expert swimmers
of the party undertook the making of these light
bridges, which were just sufficiently strong to allow
of one man crossing at a time, whilst the rest cut
long, slender, whippy saplings and sticks. The
construction was simple in the extreme ; each span
was supported by two sticks stuck into the ground
leaning inwards, being tied just above the level
of the water, and into the fork thus formed two
sticks were placed to make the footway, level with
which the end of one of the supports was cut
off, whilst that of the other was allowed to project
up some distance ; and a light lath being fastened
to it formed a slight rail, enabling those crossing
to keep their balance by lightly touching it. Upon
completion of the bridge loads were once more
300 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
taken up and the journey recommenced until
another similar place was reached. So arduous
and hard did my men find their labours that they
lightened their burdens as much as possible by
discarding everything that was not absolutely
necessary, and preferred to go on short commons
rather than carry more rice than just sufficient
for their expected requirements. It rained at fre-
quent intervals both night and day ; the men fell
ill from being continually wet through and from
having to be constantly in the water erecting
bridges. So much was this the case that on the
last day's march a portion of the number were de-
layed two days in conveying their sick comrades
along.
On reaching Slim — where I could obtain a fresh
supply of men — I paid off and dismissed any who
wished to leave ; and, with the exception of two
Malays and my Chinese carriers who elected to
remain, every one of the twenty-five were more
or less fever-stricken, although they had been with
me barely a month, and appeared very delighted at
returning to their homes, notwithstanding that they
were receiving nearly double wages, for it was only
that inducement which enabled me to collect a
fair-sized gang to accompany me ; for, knowing the
hardships of the journey I was undertaking, I did
not employ the men that I usually obtained from
Talum, so as not to incapacitate them if wanted
at some future time. Another fortnight enabled
me to finish the work I was engaged upon, and
returning to Tapah I was just able to complete
my plans before being laid low myself with a
REMBAU— ITS STOCKADES. 301
virulent attack of fever, necessitating a journey to
and sojourn in Penang to recover from it. The
two men who accompanied me throughout did not
escape either, for I met them later on looking thin
and wan, just recovering from a bad attack of
malarial fever. My Chinese servant left my employ-
ment very shortly afterwards, although he to all
appearances came through unscathed, and my
Chinese carriers I never met again.
Adjoining the territory of Malacca is the native
state of Rembau, which I traversed, walking from
Sungie Ujong to Malacca in the days when it was
free and independent, and had not yet accepted
British protection.
The houses in which the principal families of
each village dwelt were protected by forts and
stockades, which had been erected to prevent their
being rushed and looted during the inter-tribal and
internal fights which were so constantly occurring.
The defences in every case were similar, and con-
sisted of a dry moat, the earth from which had
been thrown up so as to form a bank, and into
this a palisade of split logs was firmly planted,
and the tops were strongly bound together, and
being constructed of the hardest wood procurable
lasted many years, and formed an excellent pro-
tection, behind which those inside could shoot at
an approaching enemy. The weapons used were
old flint muskets and small cannon — made in the
last century, and not much larger than an ordinary
blunderbuss — also spears and krises. The chief
was a Penghulu, an office somewhat corresponding
to that of ruler and chief magistrate combined, the
302 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
occupant being elected for life, and chosen from
amongst certain families, whose privilege it was to
supply in rotation the chief of the state.
There is little wonder under these circumstances
that the death of each chief was made an occasion
for disputes and dissensions, in which the inhabi-
tants of the neighbouring states joined, for there
were always free lances only too ready and willing
to give their assistance to one side or the other,
and to bring a following as lawless as themselves
ready to join in any fighting to be had. Their
method of warfare was desultory and undisciplined,
and is aptly described in a Malay proverb, **To
retreat when hard pressed, not ashamed to fly, and
not satisfied when pursuing.'*
At the time of my visit there still existed a
great deal of ill-feeling and enmity between the
people of Rembau and those of the adjacent state
of Tampin, whose chief was descended through the
paternal side from a Syed (a lineal descendant of
the Prophet Mahomet), and therefore had con-
siderable influence amongst his co-religionists ;
and being ambitious to extend his authority over
the neighbouring state of Rembau, a series of
intrigues and disturbances took place, but without
success, for the sturdy inhabitants of that state
were too fond of their old-established form of
government to quietly allow of a change, and
objected to the prospect of contributing to the
support of a prince who owed his rank to the
prophet, and not to any family of royal Malay
descent.
The Government of Malacca set its face against
POLITICS AND INHABITANTS. 303
these continuous intrigues and eruptions on its
frontier, and in order to gain some ascendency and
influence at the courts of the native rulers in the
neighbouring native states which came within the
sphere of its influence, commenced a policy of
supplying the chiefs with money in order to enable
them to improve their country and open up com-
munications. Finding that the money was being
wasted and ill-spent from ignorance, the Govern-
ment decided that the roads constructed with their
money should be properly laid out and supervised
by some competent person. The contract for this
work was placed with me on the understanding
that I should, as far as possible, work in agree-
ment with the chiefs and employ the labour of
the country, so that the money set aside for the
purposes of road -making should be distributed
amongst and benefit the inhabitants of the districts
through which it passed ; and therefore prior to
commencing work I had to pay a formal visit to
the Datoh. I was received with every courtesy ;
guns were fired in my honour, but I recognized
that, notwithstanding the apparent cordiality of my
welcome, I was being regarded with a good deal
of suspicion ; but his mistrust was allayed when he
discovered that I had undertaken the work to make
money out of it, and not to dabble in the internal
politics of his state, and upon finding out who I
was, for he had heard of me by repute owing to
a relation of his having been in my employment
for some years in a very responsible position.
This relative was more closely allied to the family
of the old Datoh than that of the present one,
304 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
who had banished him from the country for some
intrigue, and although refusing him permission to
return, felt no active animosity against him as
long as he kept away, but had he come back
there is no doubt his life would have been taken
before many days had passed. The Datoh was
a man of strong character and great influence,
and thought more of the proposed road being a
convenience to himself personally than to the
public generally, therefore our ideas of where it
should pass were at variance; but on hearing I
had also been employed by the Government of
Malacca to lay out roads for them, as well as to
alter and deviate existing ones that joined his
frontier with the town of Malacca, likewise also in
other parts of the Malay States, he gave in, un-
convinced and unsatisfied, but not caring to argue
the point any further with a person differing so
much from his usual advisers, who were only too
ready to agree with all he said, and to acquiesce
in every suggestion he made.
These Rembau Malays were settlers from the
district of Menangkabau in Sumatra, and still
kept up a certain intercourse with that country,
speaking a much broader Malay dialect than those
•in other portions of the peninsula, and changing
the a at the end of a word into o. They were
by far the sturdiest and best workers of all, and
plucky as well ; but notwithstanding their good
qualities they were somewhat looked down upon
by their neighbours as being thievishly inclined
and treacherous in the extreme.
On the Malacca side of Rembau is the small
TAMPIN— JOHOL— JEMPOI^-ULU-MOAR. 305
state of Naning^ which caused considerable trouble
between 1 831-1834 by refusing to acknowledge
the jurisdiction of Malacca, and being helped by
Rembau, successfully resisted the first expedition
sent against it and obliged it to return to Malacca,
where a fresh one was organized. The density
of the jungle was such, and the means of trans-
porting supplies so inadequate, that this second
punitive expedition, although better equipped than
the previous one, took some three weeks to advance
for twelve miles, carrying on a guerilla warfare the
whole way.
Beyond Tampin there was a cluster of small
states, including Johol, Jempol, Ulu-Moar, and
S*trimenanti, where the Government were pursuing
a similar policy, and by whom I was engaged to
mark out the main road through them.
I spent a week in the hills between Tampin and
these states before being satisfied that the best gap
had been discovered over which the road should
pass, and then set out exploring in order to obtain
a general idea of the main features of the country
before proceeding farther with the survey. It was
whilst thus engaged that one of the chiefs sent a
message to inform me that he had decided no road
should pass through his territory, and that rather
than allow it he had made up his mind to kill the
intruder. The only reply I could send back to him
was that the taking of my life would not help him*
much, for someone else was sure to come in my
place ; and to lessen the sting of the above speech
I added, of course he could do as he liked, and
concluded with the Malay saying that **the plucking
3o6 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
of a bud would not stop the growth of the tree/'
to show him that the policy the Government had
initiated would continue whatever might happen
to me.
As I walked through the village of this chief
a day or so afterwards, the men were sitting at
the doors of their houses watching me as I passed
by. They were all fully armed, for in these inde-
pendent states no one moved about without a
weapon of some sort on his person, to be used
on the slightest provocation. As I approached a
house one of its inmates came down a ladder,
threw up his hand to show me he had no weapon
in it, and saluting me in a most friendly manner,
asked if I had forgotten him, as he had formerly
worked on the coffee estates of Gunong Brem-
bong. On assuring him to the contrary, and
after conversing with him for a short while, he in-
formed all his friends who I was, and so amicable
relations were established, and our former acquaint-
ance stood me in good stead.
It was during this expedition that I came upon
an awful example of the desolation following a bad
epidemic of small-pox. Upon reaching a small and
beautiful valley, where the rice fields although
planted were neglected, and as we passed. house
after house standing empty and uninhabited, my
g^ide recalled to mind its former inmates, of whom
perhaps one or two were still alive ; but in many
instances whole families had succumbed and died,
and all their little possessions that were of small
value remained as they had been left, for none
cared to remove them. The spread of vaccination
A COCK FIGHT. 307
has been amongst the greatest of the benefits that
have followed British protection, but it was difficult
to persuade the people of its efficacy, and in many
instances the idea was so repugnant to the people
of certain districts that it often took years of dis-
cussion to obtain their consent to submit to it,
unless in the meanwhile small-pox broke out, and
then there would be a general request for some
vaccinator to be sent amongst them with as little
delay as possible.
The inhabitants of these states were of lighter
build than the Rembau men, more pleasure-loving,
and throughout there was an air of easy-going
contentment, and the appearance of having nothing
to do beyond enjoyment
Cock-fighting was a popular pastime, and one
much in evidence. The possession of a champion
cock was something to be proud of and to boast
about, and a battle between different well-known
favourites was quite a local event, and much money
was wagered on the result. The cocks were pre-
pared for the fight by having a long, sharp spur
tied carefully to each leg; their owners would then
carry them, stroking and talking to them the whole
time, whilst the spectators crowded round the space
reserved to view the fight. The following is an
account of a fight I witnessed. The owners
approached one another, and, crouching down,
placed their birds on the ground, and smoothed
down their feathers. The birds themselves seemed
to fully share in the excitement of the scene, and
to know what was expected of them, for, on being
confronted by one another, they became eager and
3o8 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
exultant, and their necks craned forwards and the
surrounding feathers bristled up. Twice were they
drawn back after touching each other's beaks, to
stir up their enthusiasm, but the third time their
owners released them from their grasp, and the
fight commenced. The birds faced each other
with outstretched necks, then struck viciously at
one another with their spurs which disappeared
amongst their respective feathers, but failed to
pierce the flesh ; they pecked and jumped at
each other the whole while, although neither
gained any advantage at first, for both were
well -trained birds. One round was finished,
and they were caught up and smoothed down
and refreshed by their owners, who placed the
birds beak between their lips, and thus moist-
ened their throats. Time was up, and the fight
recommenced. During this bout one of them
jumped over the other s guard, and made a quick
stab at him as he passed over his back, and
another round was finished. The cocks were
already showing signs of exhaustion, but faced
one another as pluckily as ever, and the fight
recommenced, during which one of them again
managed to jump over his adversary, and struck
again at his back as he passed, but it was done
so quickly that the onlookers did not perceive
that the spur had been driven home, for the
cocks turned round face to face as unwaveringly
as ever, and continued the fight. The victory
seemed still in doubt, when all of a sudden one
of them was seen to turn giddy and run round
in a circle and fall over dead in his tracks, game
COFFEE TREES— FRUIT TREES. 309
to the last. The favourite had won. The delight
of its backers was manifest, but to me it seemed but
poor sport, and the sudden death of the wounded
bird almost uncanny, and although I often saw
cock-fights in progress as I passed along, I never
stopped to witness another.
The many bright-plumaged birds of the jungle
had been almost exterminated, having been ruth-
lessly shot whenever seen for the sake of their
skins, which were collected for export, until a very
sensible local law came into force forbidding the
taking or killing of birds, and the sale of their
plumage or feathers, thus putting a stop to this
wanton and wholesale destruction.
A few Arabian coffee trees grew in some of the
gardens of the villages, but curiously enough
the natives did not drink a liquor obtained from
the berries in the usual way, but made an in-
fusion by boiling the leaves.
Fruit trees abounded, and grew extremely well,
the soil being suitable, cocoanuts, rambutans,
durians, rambei, mangosteens, langsats, and many
other varieties flourished. Chinamen came all the
way from Malacca to buy fruit at the season when
it was ripe, conveying it away in baskets.
Herds of buffaloes were numerous, and previous
to an attack of foot-and-mouth disease, which killed
them off in large numbers, they formed the prin-
cipal wealth of the inhabitants.
The country was much broken up into valleys,
through which streams flowed, making the irriga-
tion of the paddy fields easy, and there was
every appearance of there having been a settled
3IO CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
population in this part of the country for many
generations. The graves were in many instances
better cared for here than elsewhere, and wooden
monuments supplemented the mound of turned
sods, which is the usual way of marking the spot
where Malays have been buried.
The first Sumatra Malay colonists who settled
in this part of the country intermarried with the
original inhabitants, and even to this day the right
of their descendants, through the female line, to
the ownership of the soil is still recognized, and
from them the Penghulu, or chief of the state,
is selected in rotation. Beneath the Penghulu was
the *' Lembaga,'* who ruled his tribe, and below him
again the "heads of families."
All these minor chiefs were in direct subjection
to the kings of Malacca until the conquest of
that place by the Portuguese, early in the six-
teenth century, caused the flight to J oh ore of the
royal family, who, although still retaining their
nominal sovereignty, were unable to maintain their
authority over these " Negri Sembilan,'' or nine
states, as their power was broken. As was only
natural with such a complicated system of chief-
tainship, disputes and disturbances arose ; the
chiefs of various tribes fought the chiefs of
states, and the heads of families the chiefs of
tribes, and the chaos became such that in the
middle of the eighteenth century the then ruler of
Johore, not caring any longer to be responsible
for their behaviour and good conduct, released
them from their allegiance. After a quarter of a
century of misrule and fighting, these states peti-
RIVAL CLAIMS. 311
tioned the Rajah of Johore to appoint a prince to rule
over them in order to keep up the Mohammedan
religion and observances, which were becoming dis-
carded and falling into disuse. After consider-
able negotiations it was decided that the king of
Menang - Kabau should send some royal prince
belonging to his family as viceroy, and that certain
taxes should be imposed for his maintenance, but
that he should in nowise have authority to inter-
fere with the vested interests, of the different tribes,
in the soil nor meddle in the internal politics of the
several states, and beyond being titular princes
they had but slight jurisdiction. Several vice-
roys succeeded one another, and the system con-
tinued for half a century ; but by that time the
very fact of the appointment of succeeding vice-
roys had introduced a new element of discord,
for each viceroy married, and as their children
and descendants increased, these in their turn
commenced not only to assert their claims to the
titular sovereignty but to the penghuluships as
well ; and the succeeding half-century was simply
a series of internal disputes and disturbances be-
tween the different royal families and their
adherents, until in 1876 the British Government
recognized the claims of one of these, not merely
to S'trimenanti and Ulu-Moar, but to Jempol and
Jellye as well.
Between 1873 and 1876 not only were these
states, through which I was travelling, torn by dis-
sensions, but Rembau and Sungie Ujong, which
were both included in the original nine states, joined
in them, the latter place becoming especially em-
312 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
broiled, its ruler at this time being Syed Ahman,
who although not the proper heir had got himself
elected klana or chief, and whose authority was
well-nigh gone ; for the Banda, a chief equally
powerful, had revolted, and was being assisted by
some of the Selangor Rajahs and freebooters, whose
piracies and murders had been put a stop to in
that country. This opportunity was too favour-
able a one for the people of S'trimenanti and
these states to forego, and they invaded Sungie
Ujong to pay off many a long-standing score
and to take their revenge. In his extremity
Syed Ahman appealed to the British for pro-
tection, having previously asked for someone
to be appointed to help him rule the state and
to maintain his authority. His request was
granted, and assistance and troops were sent,
and after quelling the rising of the Bandas
followers they proceeded in the direction of
S'trimenanti, travelling up the valley of Ampan-
gan to Faroe, which had been the scene of many a
former fight between the peoples of both states, and
drove the invaders before them into the hills that
separate the two countries. On the S'trimenanti
side of these hills were the districts of Terachi and
Bandole, both well protected by stockades and
forts, and the only path between the two countries
was through a deep cleft in the range of mountains
called Bukit Putus, or "the broken place in the
hills," which locality has been notable for two
events in recent Malay history.
The S'trimenanti men, hopeless of combating
with British troops in the open, retired to their
BUKIT PUTUS-DEFENCE AND CAPTURE. 313
Strongholds in the Bukit Putus pass, where the
defile was guarded by several stockades, which,
being surrounded on all sides by jungle and steep
approaches, would have been most difficult to
capture had it not been for a very unexpected
event. A few Goorkhas, under an English officer
(who received a V.C. for the exploit), and guided
by an Arab called Sheikh Abdulrahman, were
reconnoitring in the forest, when a Malay was
perceived going in the direction of one of the
stockades, and being silently followed, was seen
to enter through a narrow aperture which, as it
was screened by forest and could only have been
found by those conversant with the stockade, had
314 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
been left unguarded. The Malays inside felt
secure from attack, as their stockade was situated
some distance up the hill, and the approach was
too steep for any sudden assault ; it did not con-
tain as many occupants as the forts in a more
vulnerable position, and had only been erected to
prevent the principal defence from being out-
flanked or fired into from above.
Seeing this Malay enter unchallenged, the re-
connoitring party was collected, and stealthily
approached unperceived to the small opening,
through which they crept and took the Malays
inside entirely by surprise, who, springing up,
precipitately fled, offering but slight resistance,
for they had been quite unaware of their enemies
being in their vicinity, and had carelessly laid
down their arms and left their defences unwatched
whilst they all sat down to partake of the midday
meal, which was so unpleasantly interrupted. By
the loss of this fort the key of their position was
in the hands of the British troops, who, training
and firing the guns, that had been for the defence
of the stockade which they had captured, upon
one at a lower elevation into which the defeated
Malays had fled, soon made it untenable, so that
it had to be evacuated by its defenders and the
passage of the pass was gained. Thus it was
that the strongest position in the country was
taken with hardly any loss, and the S'trimenanti
people were unable to prolong the contest, and to
take to flight to escape capture ; for a force of
soldiers under Captain Murray, r.n., having made
a long detour, were already climbing over the hills
A TREACHEROUS DEED. 315
with the object of outflanking them and cutting off
their retreat.
When I visited this place for the first time the
signs were still discernible of where the stockades
had formerly been, and the steep hills on either
side appeared to render the position so secure
that the Malays seem not to have contemplated
any possible danger of their being outflanked and
attacked from the rear.
Even after this defeat some of the S*trimenanti
Malays continued for some while to attack isolated
bodies of police, and to plunder and murder wher-
ever they could, until the principal bandits were
killed ; and to show that at last there was a chance
of disturbances ceasing, the decapitated head of the
chief of them was carried to Sungie Ujong in proof
of his death. The method of this chiefs assassi-
nation was related to me with gusto by the man
who committed the deed, which was one of vile
and barefaced treachery. The narrator, accom-
panied by a few friends, arrived one evening at
the house of the man they had determined to take
the first opportunity of killing, and with many
vows of friendship stated that they had come to
join his band of freebooters. They ate the meal
he placed before them, chewed betel leaf with him,
and helped themselves to his tobacco, and by
bedtime had so gained his confidence that he in-
vited his newly-made friend to sleep within his
house, whilst his companions were allowed to lie
down in the verandah outside. In the middle
of the night the murderer crept to where his host
lay asleep and plunged his krise into his heart,
3i6 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
killing him instantly, and quickly cutting off his
head as a trophy, he managed to escape with his
companions before the bandit's followers had fully
realized what had occurred.
The Malays had a great reverence for and fear
of the Goorkha troops, for they were more than
their match in guerilla fighting, and equal to them
in their knowledge of jungle warfare, as well as
possessing more dash and bravery.
The next event of historical interest at Bukit
Putus was when Sir Frederick Weld met the chiefs
of the neighbouring states at that place in 1880,
at a time when disturbances were feared, owing
to the continued refusal of some of these small
states to recognize the authority of the Eam
Tuan. It was during a rather hot discussion
upon political subjects that one of the chiefs flung
down his krise on the floor of the house in which
the meeting was held, and required some pacifying,
for the chiefs and people complained on the one
hand of the newly-recognized Eam Tuan's in-
difference to their affairs, and on the other hand
of the interference of the neighbouring state of
Johore in their internal politics. There was no
satisfying their manifold wants, nor any means of
allaying their jealousies, for the penghuluship of
several of these states, and other honourable ap-
pointments, instead of being occupied by the
rightful heirs, had been seized upon and appro-
priated by the strongest faction, whereby was
formed an antagonistic minority, who were only
too ready to take advantage of the slightest
opportunity to oust the present holders of authority,
APPOINTMENT OF RESIDENT. 317
and to create disturbances on the smallest of
pretexts. Matters were patched up so as to
prevent any serious or open breach of the peace,
but the relations between the Earn Tuan of
S'trimenanti and the neighbouring states were
never cordial, and all friction did not cease until
the appointment of a British Resident in 1889,
who had not only the difficult task of settling
numberless disputes, for each state afforded several
instances of power usurped by might, but also of
allaying many long-standing jealousies and feuds.
CHAPTER XVI.
Jelebu — Crossing the Mountains — Tigers— Kanaboi — Tin— Kwala
Klawang— Earn Tuan— Terrified Elephants— Bukit Tanah— Ex-
ploring Hills— Road -making — Malays — Chinese — Tamils — The
Malay Peninsula — Geology — Qimate and Rainfall — Some of its
Products, Flora, Fauna, and Minerals — Its Inhabitants, Education,
and Administration — Comparisons of Revenue and Trade.
The state of Jelebu was separated from S'trime-
nanti by a ridge, and over it there was a seldom-
used and hilly track, which I had once occasion
to traverse when engaged upon a journey of ex-
ploration connected with the extension of the
Sungie Ujong railway. I had several times
previously travelled through Jelebu, crossing the
mountain ranges that separate it from the western
state in no less than three places.
The first journey I made was from Kwala
Lumpor, and as far as Ulu Langat the path
was good, but as soon as we left that mining
village behind the track became indistinct, for
travellers along it were few and far between.
Our party consisted of myself, four Malays, and
the Arab sheikh, who had made himself famous
during the Sungie Ujong war, for in addition to
his exploit at Bukit Putus, he had on another
occasion distinguished himself when the troops
were unable to scale the palisade of a Malay fort
318
CROSSING THE MOUNTAINS. 319
by having himself hoisted up and helped over the
defences, to find, fortunately for him, the stronghold
already evacuated.
During our ascent of this mountain range we
passed several shelters all palisaded round so as
to protect their occupants from becoming a prey
to the many tigers which frequented the neighbour-
hood. Arriving at the summit there were signs
of where the Malays had been mining the hill for
tin, and the shed they had lived in afforded us
a shelter for the night. It was here that some
wayfarers met with a curious adventure. Being
accompanied by several goats, which they were
leading across the hill for sale in Selangor, they
determined to pass the night in this structure, and
were cooking their food when a passing tiger,
attracted by the idea of having a goat for supper,
entered. One of the Malays, nothing daunted,
sprang up, seizing his parang at the same time,
and placed himself in front of the goats whilst
the tiger was deliberating what he should do next.
The man's plucky action, instead of ending disas-
trously for him, caused the tiger to hesitate still
further, and finally to withdraw without molesting
any of the occupants of the house.
This Malay man was more fortunate than a
couple of Chinese coolies who were working near
each other on a path in the jungle. One of them
being seized by a tiger cried out to attract the
attention of his comrade, who gallantly came to
his rescue with the implement with which he was
working, and successfully caused the tiger to drop
his prey ; but it was only for the purpose of turning
320 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
upon him, and it was next his turn to shout out and
to cry as the animal sprang at him. In his case
it was of no avail, as his companion, whom he had
so bravely rescued, in the meantime had got up
and run away, leaving his more plucky comrade to
his fate, and to replace him in affording the tiger
a meal.
During our occupation of the shed we were
undisturbed, and commenced the descent of the
range of mountains the next morning. The slopes
of the hills were, if anything, steeper than on the
western side of the range, and the streams, instead
of dashing amongst granite boulders and rocks,
flowed over a species of trap- rock that was greasy
and slimy from the constant moisture. At the
foot of the hills we reached the small village of
Kanaboi, situated on the banks of a river of the
same name ; this, as well as all the other streams
and rivers of Jelebu, flows into the large Pahang
river, which empties itself into the Gulf of Siam
on the eastern coast of the Malay Peninsula. I
spent several days here endeavouring to ascertain
whether there was any truth in the reports as to its
richness in gold, but beyond discovering some
prospects of the precious metal amongst the allu-
vial deposits of the river, I could in nowise further
substantiate the rumours that reached me.
Travelling to the southward, and climbing over
a curious steep ridge of hill composed of sharp
quartz pebbles, and called by the natives the *' Hill
of Fire," because the edges of its stones were so
sharp that they pricked and lacerated the feet of all
who crossed it barefoot; to the westward as we
KWALA KLAWANG. 321
journeyed along was a high granite cliff that rose
abruptly from a fine valley, which had formerly
been cultivated but was now devoid of inhabitants.
The country round was rich in alluvial tin, which
was found to lie but a little distance below the
surface of the ground, and proved easily workable
and remunerative whilst the supply lasted.
Reaching Kwala Klawang, a small village then
consisting of two or three houses, built close to the
Klawang stream at the highest point where it was
navigable for even the smallest of boats, and which
has since become the site where the District
Officers house, the Government offices, and the
traders' shops have been built.
Further up the valley another small group of
houses was reached, in one of which dwelt the
Eam Tuan, or titular ruler of Jelebu, a descendant
of a son of a former Rajah of S'trimenanti, who
had succeeded, with the help of his kinsmen, in
getting himself recognized and his position secured.
Although he was accorded all homage as the
supreme head of the state, the ownership of the
land still remained vested in the families of
the local headmen, and he had no power personally
to dispose of it in any way. Such a peaceful state
of affairs was not to endure for very long, and the
state became split into factions, one of which led
by the Penghulu, who felt that some of his authority
had gone by the new appointment, was in favour
of ousting the Eam Tuan ; but eventually a com-
promise was arrived at, and he went to reside at
Klawang, a valley which, although adjoining Jelebu,
really by inheritance belonged to Sungie Ujong.
322 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
Here his successors also lived, still recognized by
a portion of the inhabitants in the state, but dis-
regarded by the others; or what was left of them,
for during the disturbances the country had become
depopulated and deserted.
The Eam Tuan, who was the holder of this
almost empty title, was a man of mild and pleasant
manners, and had accepted with resignation his
present position, only desiring to be left in peace
to follow unmolested agricultural pursuits, and to
enjoy country sports.
In the vicinity of his house, as I arrived, a group
of Malays were playing a kind of football or kick-
about, using a light, hollow ball made of rattans
entwined and laced together in a spherical shape.
The object of this game is to keep the ball in
the air as long as possible, kicking it with instep or
ankle, and thus tossing it indiscriminately from one
to the other. Some players become very expert, and
will return the ball by kicking it over their backs
with the soles of their feet, and when this trick is
successful the assembled players shout a Ha! ha!
of approval ; others toss it in the air by butting it
with their heads ; in fact, there seem no special
rules in this game other than to try and keep the
ball alive without the aid of hands, and from
touching the ground.
Pitch -and -toss is not unknown to Malay boys,
and when in funds they are often to be seen toss-
ing coppers into a small hole in the ground, and
watching the result of each throw of the coin
with as much eagerness and interest as any street
arab. Grown-up lads also amuse themselves by
a trial of skill with their comrades.
MALAY BIRD CATCHERS. 323
In the verandah of the Earn Tuan's house a
dove was confined in a cage made of rattan, and
was kept for fighting, for dove fights are watched
with the same keen interest and excitement by
Malays as cock fights, and a champion dove is
a very valued treasure to its owner, and worth
a considerable sum. In a smaller cage there was
a captive quail, used as a decoy to attract others
of its kind to where snares had been prepared.
Malays are very expert bird catchers, and quite
happy when so engaged. There are several methods
of capturing wild birds ; by bird-lime obtained from
the milky juice of many trees, and especially from
those producing gutta-percha; another way is to
place snares made of hair on the ground, and
so arranged that directly the bird gets its leg
within the noose which is attached to a peg
stuck into the ground, it tightens at the pressure
and holds the captive fast. Often as many as
twenty or thirty of these snares are placed
around the decoy, and some food is sprinkled on
the ground as a further attraction. Still another
plan adopted to catch pigeons is for the snarer
to build himself a little conical shelter of palm
leaves, in which he can hide and remain unseen
by the birds, who come to the decoy and commence
feeding on a smooth piece of ground that has been
prepared for them. The snarer watches his oppor-
tunity, and stealthily pushes a stick, on the end
of which is fastened a running noose, along the
ground to where the bird is feeding, captures it,
and draws it into his little shelter and places
it in a cage he has brought with him for the
324 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
purpose, and is soon again ready to try and catch
another. Curiously enough, the birds, as long
as the man remains unperceived by them, do
not suspect his presence, and take but little
notice of their snared companions, and continue
feeding unconcerned. The pigeons thus caught
are often kept and fed for some days before
being carried to the nearest market, where they
meet with a ready sale.
Both Malays and Sakais are clever at construct-
ing and setting traps for wild animals, making
the jungle unsafe where they are placed, and care
has to be taken in passing through it. Pits are
dug for rhinoceros and pigs ; beams to which a
sharp spear-head is fastened are set so that the
point shall fall upon the passing beast, which brings
about its own doom by touching a twig placed in
its path, and so arranged that upon its being
knocked on one side it lets loose the string that
keeps the beam in place. Spring guns are some-
times set, but the most common trap of all is one
made for the different kinds of smaller game and
deer, and which is very effective. This trap is
prepared by cutting and laying a few branches
and twigs on the ground to make two low fences,
over which the smaller creatures are afraid to pass,
and which gradually approach each other until they
meet and form a point where the trap, consisting
of a log held suspended between two rows of
sticks firmly fixed in the ground, is set. Any-
thing entering this narrow passage touches the
trigger and down comes the log of wood on the
unsuspecting creature's back, often squeezing the
TERRIFIED ELEPHANTS. 325
life out of it The larger kinds of birds are fre-
quendy caught in traps of this kind, as well as
deer and porcupine, and other lesser animals.
Birds and beasts are also captured by using calls,
and in the case of the timid mouse-deer, two
sticks are tapped together in a peculiar way, and
the little creature thinks that it is a buck of its
own species stamping on the ground and answers
it, gradually drawing nearer to the challenge, thus
enabling the Malay or Sakai to shoot it with a
gun or poisoned dart.
Some years after my first visit, the state of
Jelebu, so called after the name of a man who
was drowned in the Triang river, came under the
jurisdiction of the Resident of Sungie Ujong,
whose locum tenens, finding the distance too far
for him to walk, imported a couple of elephants
from Perak and set out to visit the Eam Tuan,
borne upon their backs. This magnate, wishing
to accord his guest all the honour in his power,
and being absolutely ignorant of the peculiarities
of tame elephants, fired a salute from the small
and rusty cannon that guarded the entrance to
his house upon the arrival of the cavalcade.
The noise and flash of the powder was too
much for the elephants, who, becoming terrified,
bolted, carrying their riders into the adjacent
forest, where fortunately they were unseated with-
out injury, and were able to enjoy the comicality
of their position and escape from what might
have been a serious accident. The example of
introducing elephants as beasts of burden was
not followed by others, and as these soon became
326 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
a nuisance on account of the damage they did
to the gardens of the villagers, who were afraid
to drive them off at night when they strayed
into their compounds, they were in a short while
returned to Perak. After the death of the Eam
Tuan the dignity lapsed, as no successor was
installed in his place, the Government rightly
refusing to recognize the claims of those who con-
sidered they had some right to the position so lately
acquired and merely retained only on sufferance.
I was on very friendly terms with the Eam Tuan,
and at his death became acquainted with a curious
custom and piece of etiquette existing amongst
the Malay rajahs of his rank, and which pre-
vented any of their number from being buried,
should he owe any money, until his creditors
were paid in full. At the time of the Eam
Tuan's death he happened to be indebted to me
for quite a trifling sum, but so particular were
his family that this small amount should be repaid
before the funeral, that they delayed it for two
whole days whilst they endeavoured to find me ;
but as I happened to be on some distant journey,
a friend of mine, an Arab sheikh of good
standing, assured them that this was a case
where some relaxation might be reasonably made
in existing custom, and took upon himself the
responsibility of receiving the amount on my
behalf, and in my name requested the family no
longer to hesitate to accord to their chief a
suitable and fitting funeral, which they did, and
thus died and was buried the last of the rulers
of Jelebu.
ROAD MAKING. 327
The paddy fields in this state are irrigated by
an ingenious method. A frail and light undershot
water-wheel is placed by the side of a small stream,
and on its outer circumference, attached to each
of its blades, is a section of bamboo tied at a
certain angle, and having one end open, so that
as the wheel revolves water is scooped up and
carried overhead to be emptied in continuous rota-
tion into a trough, from whence it flows to irrigate
the fields.
Ascending the Klawang valley, I crossed a gap
in the hills called Bukit Tangga, and it is through
this pass that the road now passes which con-
nects Jelebu with Sungie Ujong. It is a peculiarity
of the Malay that he in nowise can calculate the
height of a hill, and is but of small use in helping you
to determine the lowest point where the mountains
can be crossed. Hearing subsequently of a lower
gap to the northward, I made a week's exploration,
only to discover the ridges of the hills to be knife-
edged and the approaches to them exceedingly
steep and precipitous, whilst the lowest part was
considerably higher than the one at Bukit Tangga
It may be as well for me to give the reader some
account of the work upon which I was engaged in
constructing roads throughout most parts of the
Malay Peninsula (upon the principal number of the
journeys I have described), and which in their turn
have, in many instances, been already superseded
by railways.
First of all it was necessary to make the selection
of the line of country to be followed and to ascertain
the correct points of the compass, for that was the
328 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
only reliable guide as to direction. Then the site
of the road itself not only required surveying and
staking out, but the gradients necessitated the
greatest care being exercised so as to utilize the
configuration of the country to the best advantage.
The maximum steepness of any portion of a road
was a gradient of one foot in twenty, or, to make
my meaning clearer, only fifteen feet of gradual rise
or fall could be ascended, or descended, in every
hundred yards of length.
Ridges and hills were numerous, and the whole
country was covered with a dense mass of jungle
through which the eye could penetrate but a few
feet in advance, rendering the task of laying down
and staking out a good and proper line for the road
to follow very difficult, also causing a constant
repetition of the work when some unforeseen
difficulty necessitated a change of direction or
gradient. Added to this, food was often hard
to procure, its transport difficult, and the life
most arduous and unhealthy.
After the line of the road was staked out, with
a numbered peg at every chain, the gradients and
levels to be followed marked, and a detailed plan
made of the direction and the physical features of
the country passed through, all was ready for the
jungle to be cleared along the line, which was
necessary before the road itself could be con-
structed.
First of all the undergrowth was cut down and
thrown to one side, then the smaller trees were up-
rooted and the larger ones dug round about, so as
to expose their roots some little distance below the
ROAD MAKING.
329
ground before being cut, so that no roots should
remain in the roadway. The heavy tops of the
larger trees saved much axe work, but even then
it was often a week before two men were able to
cut through sufficient of the roots to cause the
tree to fall, and by itself drag up the remainder,
leaving a large hole where it once stood. In places
where charcoal-burners had cut down and burnt the
large hard-wood trees, leaving their roots in the
ground, the work was more difficult, owing to the
wood having become so tough and hard as to resist
the axes, causing them to chip and splinter, and
necessitating the making of large fires over the
roots and the keeping of them alight until they had
been consumed ; all very well in dry weather, but
most troublesome when it was wet. After the trees
had fallen they were then cut into lengths and
330 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
rolled to one side, when it was no unusual sight
to see twenty men straining at one huge log,
endeavouring to remove it w^ith poles, to the
accompaniment of yells and shouts. The width
of the clearing of course depended on the breadth
of the road to be constructed. Where long dis-
tances had to be traversed through sparsely-
populated districts, bridle paths were made, so as
to enable travellers on foot or horseback to get
from one place to another, and where the necessity
of a cart road had not as yet become apparent.
Timber bridges of hard -wood beams and sawn
planks were made across all streams and rivers.
Obtaining and keeping a sufficient supply of labour
together, besides arranging for their supplies of
food, and sickness, constittited the principal diffi-
culties in constructing these smaller paths, which
were six feet in breadth.
Cart roads required much more labour, and were
of three varieties, all of them sixteen to twenty
feet in width.
The earth roads were most unsatisfactory, for
directly bullock and buffalo carts travelled along
them they got so damaged and cut up that in wet
weather they became impassable ; the carts stuck
in the deep ruts and holes, churning up the mud
and destroying the formation of the roadway.
The gravelled roads were somewhat more satis-
factory, but it entirely depended upon the pits
whence supplies could be obtained. In Malacca
there were excellent gravelled roads, made with
the small hard laterite and ironstone pebbles which
abounded in the earth at the sides of the roads in
ROAD MAKING. 331
many parts ; and this formation also existed in
some parts of Sungie Ujong, and occasionally in
Selangor, but where inferior gravels were employed
it was quickly changed into dirt and mire.
The metalled roads, besides being excellent,
were a pleasure to construct, for the results were
permanent and lasting. The roads in Perak were
for the most part constructed on this principle, and
were far superior to those made in the other Malay
states. They were metalled to a width of twelve
feet, slightly higher in the centre than at the sides,
to allow of the rain-water draining off. First of
all a layer of larger stones — broken so as to be
approximately of the same size — was carefully
placed in position and laid by hand, then there
was a top layer of smaller stones, and the whole
was nine inches in thickness after it had been well
consolidated by a small steam road-roller, weighing
about four tons, which was very suitable for this
class of work, as heavier rollers could not be used
with advantage on newly-made banks and excava-
tions. A thin dressing of earth and sand, well
watered and rolled, completed capital and durable
roads. The stone used had often to be carted
several miles from the quarries, and was either
granite or limestone, according to the kind of
rock which happened to be within most con-
venient distance. In long stretches of forest, grass
for the bullocks had often to be fetched a con-
siderable distance.
The labourers employed were Malays, Chinese,
and Tamils, each nationality requiring different
treatment, and their own special idiosyncrasies had
332 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
to be studied and understood before it was possible
to get them to put forth their best efforts and to
keep them going. Everything had to be explained
and shown at the commencement, and the labourers
instructed as to what was expected of them.
On each work many of those employed col-
lapsed from fever or dysentery, both constant
sources of sickness, whilst many left owing to
ill-health ; especially was this the case when cutting
through soil containing much decomposed granite,
then whole gangs became fever-stricken, and were
compelled to leave, and substitutes for them had
to be found, who in their turn also became in-
capacitated in a very short while.
Malays were only of use for jungle-clearing and
light earthwork, and even they, inured to the
climate and not prone to exhaust themselves by
too much labour, were often ill, and usually only
worked for short periods at a time.
Chinese were the most useful all-round workmen,
for they were also able to clear the jungle, though
less expert in doing so than the Malays. They
were excellent for all earthwork, and when well
trained, graded and levelled the surface satisfac-
torily. They required very firm treatment and
to be made to understand that it was better policy
to do their work properly than to scamp it. They
were excellent on contract, and as long as money
was owed to them most easy to deal with ; but
if the case was reversed by faulty supervision, or
the dishonesty of their headman at the commence-
ment of the work upon which they were engaged,
then there were endless difficulties and troubles
TAMILS 333
to get them to finish what they had begun, or to
work at all, for once all prospect of a profit had
disappeared it became their endeavour to obtain
advances of money and goods, doing as little as
possible the while, until it was convenient for
them to go off somewhere else. They were good
blasters and metal breakers once they became used
to drilling, and expert in the use of the hammer.
Tamils were not nearly so physically or con-
stitutionally strong as the Chinese, and suffered
much more from the climate, becoming thin and
fever- stricken. They are especially sensitive to
any alteration of diet ; even a difference in the rice
supplied or a change of drinking water is sufficient
to cause them to lose their health, and often the
reason given for leaving a place or changing their
abode is that ** the water there did not agree with
them." They are useless as wood-cutters, and
work best on daily wages and when set a task.
They are amenable and easily managed by anyone
speaking their language who treats them justly and
fairly. Although inferior to the Chinese in any
kind of heavy earthwork, they are equal to them
in drilling and in breaking stones, and superior to
them in laying and spreading metal ; also working
for less wages, they are more suitable for all classes
of light work and agricultural employment.
The geology of the country is a most interesting
study. The main range of hills are granite — a
crystallized compound of quartz, feldspar, and mica;
the spurs and smaller hills are for the most part
composed of slates, sandstones, and clays. All the
paleozoic rocks — the ancient formation above the
334 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
granite — have been much distorted and altered by
the upheaval of the granite, which has been more
violent and greater between 3'' and 6'' than between
i'' and 3*^. Laterite of a rich red colour, due to perox-
ide of iron, is most common in the southern portion
of the peninsula, and in the northern half, crystalline
limestone hills are frequently met with standing out
by themselves with precipitous cliffs. Much of the
tin ore is found in the bed of ancient streams
beneath a covering of fine silt, above which there
is a layer of china clay or kaolin, as well as in clays
and sandy loams at varying depths from a few
inches to many feet. There is an entire absence
of marine fossils ; an old cannon has been found
in a tin mine in Larut thirty feet below the present
surface of the ground, as well as an old paddy
mortar similar to those now in use, and trees are
constantly discovered in the old river drifts. The
surface of a portion of the country in the neighbour-
hood of Thaiping has been proved by borings
taken, to have recently sunk over a hundred feet.
Stone implements — mostly axes and adzes — have
been frequently discovered ; and one type of stone
axe, which is fairly common, has also been found
in several parts of Europe, Indiana, and Java, being
similar in shape to some old axes made of copper
and bronze, but no fossil remains, or other relics
of human life or mammalia have been brought to
light. A hoard of Portuguese coins of the fifteenth
century was dug up in Kinta.
The climate is a moist, depressing heat, un-
affected by the monsoons. There is no true rainy
season ; the six wettest months are March, April,
RAINFALL— PRODUCTS. 335
May, October, November, and December. The
rainfall varies from ninety to two hundred inches
in Thaiping, which is the wettest district in the
Straits. The nights are cool, and to some extent
counteract the unvarying damp heat which slowly
but steadily undermines the European constitution ;
and those of a fair complexion usually appear to be
the most susceptible to its banefulness. Malarial
diseases have become less virulent since the country
has been more opened up and inhabited ; but when-
ever new settlements are made and soil disturbed
fevers are sure to be prevalent in the neighbour-
hood for the first few years.
The products of the Malay Peninsula are varied,
for the very heat and moisture that makes humanity
decay forces plant-life to grow and bear abundantly.
Areca-nuts increase quickly in size, and bear pro-
fusely. Cocoanuts yield abundant crops as long as
properly cared for. Coffee arabica flourishes on
the hills, but in the plains it soon over-bears itself
if in the open and dies. Liberian coffee grows in
the plains, yielding heavy crops, but the trees,
if not kept up with liberal manuring, deteriorate,
and leaf-disease, which is ever present, obtains a
firmer hold and lessens their productiveness. Fruit
trees flourish except those of the orange species,
which not only suffer from blight, but the constant
wet rots the fruit before it ripens. Nutmegs were
once a flourishing and paying cultivation, but a
blight in 1856 killed most of the trees, since which
but few new plantations have been opened. Gutta-
percha-producing trees and creepers are indigenous,
and grow wild in the forests. Tapioca grows
336 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
readily, and on the lighter soils the tubers arrive
at a goodly size. Tobacco plants are cultivated by
the natives to a small extent, producing leaves
suitable for the commoner kinds of tobacco, but
unadapted for the outside covering of cigars. Up
to the present, all efforts to grow a tobacco similar
to that produced in Sumatra have failed. A trial
plantation opened on the light alluvial flats near
Thaiping, as well as one on the stiffer black
deposits of Krian, resulted in pecuniary loss, for
in the first instance the leaves lacked the colour and
substance of those grown for cigar-coverings in
Deli, and in the second the leaves were coarse
and lacked the proper texture to fetch the high
price requisite to repay the extensive outlay
necessary in this kind of tobacco cultivation, which
is at all times risky, a good year being relied upon
to recoup the losses of several bad ones. Pine-
apples grow readily everywhere, and it is only
necessary to stick the crown of one into the ground
in order to obtain a new plant producing several
pines. Rubber and caoutchouc trees grow rapidly,
and yield well, as the moist climate is in every way
favourable to all kinds of trees producing milky
juices. Wood oil is obtained from two varieties of
trees.
Plant life is tropical and luxuriant ; tree-ferns
and various kinds of calladium flourish in damp
localities, there are ground and aerial orchids,
pitcher and other trailing plants grow in dense
masses, and a free-flowering crimson creeper
causes the trees which it covers to be a blaze
of colour. Rhododendrons flower on the hill-
FAUNA-INHABITANTS. 337
tops, and on their slopes all kinds of European
vegetables can be cultivated. The virgin forest
is singularly deficient in flowering plants, and
beyond a solitary specimen now and again, they
are seldom to be met with, excepting during the
few days when the fruit trees blossom. What
gives to the jungle its peculiar charm are the
different shades and sombre hues of colour, not
only of the leaves and shoots of the different
trees, but their bark as well.
The fauna is disappointing from a sportsman's
point of view, for the luxuriance of the vegetation
so clothes the ground with forest as to leave no
large area of grass. The elephant, bison or
seladang, tiger, panther, pig, bear, and different
kinds of deer are the most frequently met with,
but the last named are not gregarious varieties,
and do not congregate in herds. Many kinds of
wild cat abound, all of which are not only wicked
and vicious, but most destructive to the smaller
kinds of game.
The inhabitants are Aborigines, Malays, Chinese,
Tamils, a few Arab and Indian traders, Jawi
Pakans — a mixed Tamil-Malay class, and Babas
— a mixed Chinese - Malay class, besides the
descendants of former Portuguese and Dutch
settlers. The population of the western states
under British protection in 1880 was about
200,000, and in 1891 it had reached over
361,000, and the following is an approximate
return of the numbers of the different nationalities :
Aborigines, 11,000; Malays, 166,500; Chinese,'
164,000; Tamils, 17,500; mixed and other nation-
338 CAMPING AND TRAMPING IN MALAYA.
alities, 2,000. It was estimated that in 1896 the
population had increased to 540,000.
There are English, Malay, and Tamil schools
for both boys and girls, although for the latter the
number is as yet very small. The Chinese mostly
patronize the English schools, and all Malay boys
attend their village vernacular school, where they
are given a very fair elementary education, which
does not in the least unfit them for agricultural
pursuits, as on the completion of their studies they
become paddy-planters, boatmen, and labourers ; so
that the spread of education in the Straits is in
every respect an advantage to the population,
and has no tendency to demoralize the masses
by making them above their stations in life, or
their ordinary every-day occupations.
Each state is administered by an organized staff
of British officials under the control of a Resident,
who advises the rulers upon all matters, and is
responsible to his chief, who up to June, 1895,
was the Governor 6f the Colony of the Straits
Settlements ; but since that date a Resident-
General has been interposed, and the Sultans of
the federated states have agreed to provide him
with a suitable salary and staff, as well as to follow
his advice in all matters of administration other
than those touching on the Mohammedan religion,
and they have also agreed to help in money,
men, and other respects, states in the federation
needing it — as well as to provide a force of soldiers
for the defence of the colony should the necessity
arise.
The accompanying statistics of the progressive
COMPARISONS OF REVENUE AND TRADE. 339
increase of total revenue, exports, imports, duty
on tin, land, postal and telegraph and railway
revenues, exemplify the continuous prosperity and
advancement of the Western Protected Malay
States more eloquently than any words, and show
how they are almost entirely due to the alluvial tin-
mining industry. The values are expressed in
dollars.
1880
1890
1895
TOTAL REVENUE.
881,910.
4.777,988.
8,374,264.
Postal
Value of Value
Duty
Land
and Tele
Imports. of Exports.
on Tin.
Revenue.
graph.
1880...*3,25o,ocx) ♦3,ioo,ocx)
399,391
38,844
233
1890... 15,443.809
17,602,093
1,604,778
146,487
36,524
1895. ..21,865,412
30,847,492
3,355.346
444.397
107,943
Railway
Receipts.
Nil.
406,032
1,294,390
* Approximate.
PLYMOUTH :
WILLIAM BRKNDON AND SON,
PRINTERS.
AS. R 117 c
Tazi«r
3 2044 043 365 345
This book is not to be
taken from the Library
