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HANDBOOK
OP
THE FEDERATED MALAY STATES.
COMPILED BY
H. CONWAY BELFIELD,
British Resident of Selangor,
LONDON :
EDWARD STANFORD, 12-14, LONG ACRE, W.C.
PRICE 2/6
HANDBOOK
OF
THE FEDERATED MALAY STATES.
COMPILED BY
H. CONWAY BELFIELD,
British Resident of Selangor.
LONDON :
EDWARD STANFORD, 12-14, LONG ACRE, W.C.
PRICE 2/6.
I desire to acknowledge my obligations to those friends and
brother officers who have assisted me in the task of compilation
by collecting and arranging material for my work. Their con-
tributions have been of the greatest value to me, and have
supplied the many interesting local details which form the most
attractive features in the text of this Handbook.
H. 0. B.
Junior Carlton Club, Pall Mall, S.W.
May 1st, 1902.
Digitized by the Internet Archive
in 2011 with funding from
The Library of Congress
http://www.archive.org/details/handbookoffedera01belf
15 30
30
PART I.
FEDERATED MALAY STATES.
The Federated Malay States of the Malay Peninsula consist of
the four States of Perak, Selangor, the Negri Sembilan, and
Pahang.
An Agreement was signed in July, 1895, by which these States
were confederated for administrative purposes and a Eesident-
Greneral appointed, with an official residence at Kuala Lumpur,
Selangor.
The following is the agreement : —
Agreement between the Governor of the Straits Settlements,
acting on behalf of the Grovernment of Her Majesty the Uueen,
Empress of India, and the Rulers of the following Malay States ;
— that is to say, Perak, Selangor, Pahang, and the Negri
Sembilan.
1. In confirmation of various previous Agreements, the Sultan
of Perak, the Sultan of Selangor, the Sultan of Pahang, and the
Chiefs of the States which form the territory known as the Negri
Sembilan, hereby severally place themselves and their States under
the protection of the Pritish Grovernment.
2. The above-named Pulers and Chiefs of the respective States
hereby agree to constitute their countries a Federation, to be
known as the Protected Malay States, to be administered under
the advice of the British Grovernment.
3. It is to be understood that the arrangement hereby agreed
upon does not imply that any one Ruler or Chief shall exercise
any power or authority in respect of any State other than that
which he now possesses in the State of which he is the recognised
Ruler or Chief.
2 Handbook of the
4. The above-named Eulers agree to accept a British Officer, to
be styled the Resident- General, as the agent and representative of
the British Government under the Governor of the Straits Settle-
ments. They undertake to provide him with suitable accommoda-
tion, with such salary as is determined by Her Majesty's Govern-
ment, and to follow his advice in all matters of administration
other than those touching the Muhammadan religion. The
appointment of the Resident-General will not affect the obliga-
tions of the Malay rulers towards the British Residents now
existing or to be hereafter appointed to offices in the above-
mentioned Protected States.
5. The above-named Rulers also agree to give to those States in
the Federation which require it such assistance in men, money, or
other respects as the British Government, through its duly
appointed officers, may advise ; and they further undertake, should
war break out between Her Majesty's Government and that of
any other Power, to send, on the requisition of the Governor, a
body of armed and equipped Indian troops for service in the
Straits Settlements.
6. Nothing in this Agreement is intended to curtail any of the
powers or authority now held by any of the above-named Rulers
in their respective States, nor does it alter the relations now
existing between any of the States named and the British Empire.
Federated Malay States,
OFFICIAL ESTABLISHMENT
High Commissioner : Sir Frank Athelstane Swettenham,
K.C.M.G. [Singapore]
Secretary to the High Commissioner : Frederick J. Weld
[Singapore]
Headquarters: KUALA LUMPUR, SELANGOE.
Resident General : William Hood Treacher, C.M.G.
Secretary to the Resident General : Dacres H. Wise.
Assistant Secretary : Oliver Marks.
Judicial Commissioner : Lawrence Colvile Jackson, K.C.
Legal Adviser : T. H. Kershaw.
Commandant, Malay States Guides: Lt.-Col. H. S. Frowd
Walker, C.M.G.
Accountant and Auditor : Robert Douglas Hewett.
Commissioner of Lands and Mines : Arthur T. D. Berrington.
Director Public Works : Francis St. George Caulfeild.
Commissioner of Police : Captain H. L. Talbot.
General Manager Railways : Charles Edwin Spooner.
Secretary for Chinese Affairs: G. T. Hare, C.M.G.
Inspector of Prisons : Lt.-Col. R. S. Frowd Walker, C.M.G.
Inspector of Schools : J. Driver.
Pathologist : Dr. Hamilton Wright.
Th.e Federated Malay States adjoin each other, and occupy
an important portion of the peninsula, the three first-named
States lying on the western side of the chain of mountains
which forms the backbone of the peninsula, while Pahang is
situated on the eastern side of the range, extending from
thence to the shores of the China Sea.
The total area of the four States is estimated at about Area
27,000 square miles, extending from North Latitude 2.24 to
6.10, and from East Longitude 100.23 to 103.60.
The Malay Peninsula is a comparatively narrow strip of Physical
land lying between the Straits of Malacca on the west (Geography.
and the China Sea on the east, the Federated Malay States
being situated in the central and broadest part of the
peninsula. A range of mountains runs throughout almost
Handbook of the
its entire length, dividing the eastern from the western
States. The height of the various points of the range varies
from 3,000 to over 7,000 feet above sea-level.
From this central chain the land slopes away to the sea-
coast on either side, the whole being clothed by Nature, from
the mountain summits to the sea-shore, with dense and
luxuriant tropical forest consisting of a variety of grand
timber trees, the majority of which are considerably over
100 feet in height.
The whole of the peninsula is well watered by innumerable
streams, having their sources in the hills, and combining to
form rivers which flow into the sea at regular intervals on
either side. Some of these rivers are navigable for steamers
of light draught for more than 50 miles from the sea.
The combined coast line on the Straits of Malacca of the
three western States of Perak, Selangor, and Negri Sembilan
extends for 90 miles. That of the State of Pahang upon
the China Sea is approximately 130 miles.
Perak is the most northern of the Federated States upon
the western side. On its southern boundary it meets Selangor,
while the State of Negri Sembilan adjoins Selangor on the
south. Pahang, on the eastern side, which is probably the
largest of all the four States, adjoins all three of the western
States on its inland boundary.
The Federated States are bounded on the north and north-
east by i^t portion of the Colony of the Straits Settlements
known as Province Wellesley, and by Kedah, Patani,
Kelantan, and Trengganu.
On the south they are bounded by the Colonial territory of
Malacca and by Johor.
On the east and west by the China Sea and the Straits of
Malacca respectively.
The geological features of the States vary to a certain
extent in different localities, but the following four principal
formations are generally present : —
(i.) Granite — of which the mountain ranges of the
peninsula are composed ;
(ii.) Large series of beds of gneiss, quartzite, schist, and
sandstone, overlaid with crystalline limestone.
The foot-hills of the mountain ranges consist for
the most part of this Kmestone, much of which is
marble of fine quality.
Federated Malay States. 5
These hills are generally cavernous, and in many instances
the caves are of considerable size and beauty.
(iii.) Small sheets of Trap rock.
(iv.) Eiver gravels and alluvial deposits, overlaid with
patches of peat on the lowlands near the coast.
The following metals have been found in the different
formations : —
In the Grranite — Tin, lead, iron, arsenic, tungsten,
titanium.
In the Laurentian — Gold, silver, tin, lead, iron, arsenic,
copper, zinc, tungsten, manganese, bismuth.
In the Quaternary — Grold, tin, copper, tungsten, iron,
titanium. Also other ores in smaller quantities.
In the Alluvial — All the above-mentioned ores in
varying quantities, in the more workable form of
alluvial deposits.
Numerous hot springs have been discovered in different JTot Springs.
parts of the States, with degrees of temperature varying
from 90° to 180° F.
The water usually gives off an odour of sulphuretted
hydrogen and has a bitter taste.
Dissolved mineral matter is from one to four parts in ten
thousand.
Some of these springs are used as baths, with beneficial
effect.
The climate of the Federated Malay States, as of the Climate.
neighbouring colony of the Straits Settlements, is tropical,
but may be described as being oceanic rather than con-
tinental.
The distinguishing feature is the absence of local seasonal
variations, or of any prolonged or marked epochs, whether of
rain or drought, or of high or low temperatures.
Although near the Equator, the heat, which is of a moist
nature, is not usually felt to be oppressive, and having regard
to their geographical position, the climate of the Federated
States, as a whole, notwithstanding the continuous heat and
the excessive humidity of the air, has been proved to be
healthy for Europeans of sound constitution who lead regular
and temperate lives.
This is particularly the case in the larger towns. In low-
lying and swampy parts, and on newly-opened lands, there
6
Handbook of the
Teinperatiire.
Rainfall.
Popidation.
is of course more risk to health, but no part of the States can
be said to be unfit for Europeans to live in.
Adult Europeans who take care of their health can, as a
rule, remain in the States for at least four or five years with-
out the necessity of a change, and children can, without
prejudice to their health, be kept in the country until they
are six years of age.
The temperature varies considerably according to locality
and elevation.
In the lower and more populous parts of the States, with
a height above the sea-level varying from fifty to five
hundred feet, the shade temperature varies between 70° to
90° F.
It has been recorded below 70° and above 90°, but these
occasions are rare.
The average mean temperature in the shade may be said
to be from 80° to 85° F.
A great point about the temperature of the States is that
the nights are always cool, and that it is therefore possible to
obtain refreshing sleep without the assistance of punkahs or
other auxiliaries.
The temperature at night is about 70° to 75° F.
There is httle or no change in the above figures at different
times of the year.
The rainfall is large, and is on the whole fairly evenly
distributed throughout the year. In those parts of the States
where a difference is noticeable the wettest period of the
year is from September to March. The rainfall is always
considerably heavier in localities near the hills than on the
flat lands near the coast.
The average rainfall in the hilly inland districts varies
between 100 and 200 inches, while in the drier parts of the
States it is usually recorded at from 70 to 100 inches per
annum.
The population of the Federated Malay States, as recorded
by the returns of the Census taken on March 1st, 1901,
numbers approximately six hundred and sixty-five thousand
persons. Of the various races, those native to the peninsula
are the Malays, and the Sakei, or aboriginal tribes, the latter
of whom lead a wild and roving life in the primeval mountain
jungles.
The Malay is not industrious by nature, and does not
compare favourably with other races in the capacity of a
Federated Malay States. 7
workman. His efforts are usually limited to rather desultory
cultivation, to the collection of forest produce, and to fishing
and hoating, in which he is most expert. He is always
a sportsman, and will work harder and with more relish with
that ohject in view than for the sake of enriching himself.
Of the immigrant races in the States, the Chinese take the
first place. They practically monopolise the whole of the
tin-mining industry, they are found engaged in every con-
ceivable trade and business, and are the mainstay of the
commerce of the country. They far outnumber any other
race in the States.
Tamils from Southern India are also present in considerable
numbers. A certain proportion of them are engaged in
trade, but the large majority work as outdoor labourers on
estates, roads, and railways.
Other races represented in the States are Europeans,
Bengalis, Singhalese, Javanese, Sikhs, and Pathans, and
Malays from the various islands of the Eastern Archipelago.
To those concerned with the advantages now offered, and mstory.
with the conditions of life now obtaining in the Federated
Malay States, the past history of the country is but of little
account, and the merest outline of the events of former days
will suffice for the purposes of this pamphlet.
It is now some twenty-five years since internal dissensions
among the Malays of Perak and Selangor compelled the
Sultans of those States to seek the assistance of the British
Glovernment in the neighbouring colony of the Straits
Settlements in putting an end to increasing faction fights,
and in inaugurating a system of efficient administration.
The appeal of these chiefs was responded to by the appoint-
ment of a British Resident in Perak and Selangor respec-
tively, with instruction to advise the Sultan in the govern-
ment of his State, and to organise an efficient system of
revenue collection, with the assistance of a small staff of
European and Eurasian officers, the Resident himself being
subject to the authority of the Grovernor of the Straits
Settlements.
When initial difficulties had once been overcome, the new
system resulted in unusual success. The States became
peaceful, justice was everywhere obtainable at the hands
of European Magistrates, the revenue, at first very small,
rapidly increased, and countries which were but recently
notorious for robbery on land and piracy at sea, became
gradually known throughout the East as available centres
for the development of profitable trade.
8 Handbook of the
The example set by Perak and Selangor was followed a
few years later by the adjoining State of Negri Sembilan,
and last of all, some ten years ago, by Pahang.
Government. ^V ^^ ^^® 7^^^ 1896 each of the four States was indepen-
dently administered, on behalf of its native ruler, by a
British Resident and the usual staff of Grovernment Officers
acting under the direction of the Grovernor of the Straits
Settlements.
In that year the chiefs of the States agreed by treaty to a
system of mutual assistance for administrative purposes, and
to the coalescence of the establishments of the four Grovern-
ments into one Civil Service. The system thus agreed upon
was at once inaugurated, and the administration of the States
is now settled in the following form : Subject to the direc-
tions of Her Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for the
Colonies the Grovernor of the Straits Settlements also holds
office as High Commissioner of the Federated Malay States.
The principal Civil Officer resident in the States is the
Resident-Greneral, in whom is vested the direction of affairs
in all the States. He is assisted by a staff of Federal
Officers, to whose hands is entrusted the supervision of the
principal departments of the four States, such as those of
Finance, Lands, Mines, Public Works, Railways, Police,
Prisons, and Education.
The Federal Staff also includes the Judicial Commis-
sioner, in whom is vested the supreme judicial authority,
the Legal Adviser, the Commandant of the Regiment of
the Malay States Gruides, the Protector of Chinese, the
Pathologist, and the Superintendent of the Government
Experimental Gardens.
Subject to the direction of the Resident-General and the
supervision of the Federal Officers, each State continues, as
heretofore, to be administered by its own Resident upon
nearly the same lines as was formerly the case. The revenue
of each State is separately collected, and the expenditure is
met therefrom so far as is possible. Where the revenue of any
State is not yet sufficiently large to enable it to entirely
defray the cost of its own development, pecuniary assistance
is rendered by those in more prosperous circumstances.
The ranks of the Civil Service are recruited by the
appointment of Cadets after examinations in England, held
annually about the month of August. These examinations
are conducted by the Civil Service Commissioners, and are
held conjointly with those for appointments in the Home,
Indian and Eastern Colonial Services.
Federated Malay States.
All Cadets are required to pass an examination in Malay,
Chinese or Tamil, and also an examination in law, after a
prescribed period of residence in the State. Those who are
instructed to study Chinese or Tamil are sent for the purpose
to China or to India as the case may be.
The selection of Officers possessed of professional qualifica-
tions rests with the Secretary of State for the Colonies.
Laws are passed in each State by the State Council, of Legislation.
which the ruler of the State is the President, and the
members are the British Resident, the Secretary to Govern-
ment, where such an appointment exists, the principal Malaj'
Rajas, and one or more of the most influential Chinese
traders. All legislative enactments are submitted to the
High Commissioner and the Secretary of State.
The Police Force is composed of Indians and Malays, and Police.
is officered by Englishmen.
The Military Force of the States consists of a battalion of Regiment of
Sikhs and Pathans, known as the Malay States Gruides, ^'''^'''
to which is attached an artillery corps armed with field
guns.
Appointments in the Gruides are filled by officers generally
seconded for that purpose from Her Majesty's regiments. A
knowledge of Hindustani is considered essential.
The total revenue of the States in the year 1899 was Revenue.
$14,733,001, and in 1900, $15,609,808.
The principal collections appear under the headings of
Customs, Excise, Railways, and Land Revenue.
The expenditure for the same periods was $11,521,977, and Expenditure.
$12,728,931.
The excess expenditure included expenditure on new
Railways.
The following trade values were recorded in 1899 and Trade.
1900 :—
Imports
Exports
1899.
1900.
33,765,073
.54,895,139
38,402,580
60,361,044
10 Handbook of the
Imports. — The only import duties charged in the Federated
States are those upon opium and spirituous liquors.
Exports. — The principal export is tin, the duty on which
is fixed hy a sliding scale varying with the current market
price of the metal.
This scale ranges from $10.50 per bhara of three pikuls
when tin is at $32 to $15 per bhara when tin is at $44 per
pikul, and thereafter an additional fifty cents per bhara is
added for each dollar per pikul that the metal increases in
value above $44.
The duty which varies from about 11 to 14 per cent ad
valorem, is reckoned on the price telegraphed daily from
Singapore.
One pikul = 1331 lbs.
One bhara = 400 lbs.
The duty on unsmelted tin ore is 68 per cent, of the duty
on tin for the time being.
On gold and other minerals there is charged an export
duty of 10 per cent, ad valorem.
The export duty upon other natural products, such as
timber, rattans, gutta, and ivory, is also 10 per cent, ad
valorem.
Upon cultivated products, such as coffee, pepper, copra,
sugar, tapioca, and rubber, the maximum duty charged is
2J per cent, ad valorem. It is usually less than this figure.
No export duty is charged upon coffee when the market
price is less than $19 per pikul.
Currency. The unit of currency in the Federated Malay States is
the Mexican dollar ($).
The following are legal tender to any amount.
(i.) Currency notes issued by the Grovernment of the
Straits Settlements of the respective values of
$5, $10, $25, $50, and $100 ;
(ii.) Notes issued by the local banks.
(iii.) The Mexican and British silver dollar.
The following coins are also used : —
Silver coins subsidiary to the dollar, and of the respective
values of 5, 10, 20, and 50 cents of a dollar, and
copper coins, of the value of one cent of a dollar, and
half cect of a dollar.
Federated Malay States. 11
So many erroneous impressions are prevalent in England ^xchmge
regarding the value of the dollar in English money, that the
public are cautioned to satisfy themselves regarding this
important matter before deciding to accept employment or
to invest money in business in the Federated States. The
rate of exchange, that is, the value of the dollar if exchanged
for English money, varies daily according to the ruling
market price of silver. The actual value at any given date
can always be ascertained on inquiry at any London bank
doing business with the far East, and is also pubhshed in the
principal daily papers. The rate of exchange at the time of
writing varies between Is. IVd. and 2s. to the dollar. A
sovereign is equal to about $ J 0.25.
It should, moreover, be borne in mind that when articles
of European production or manufacture are purchased
locally, the purchasing power of the dollar is seldom if ever
equal to that of its equivalent in sterling for the time being.
That is to say, that if the value of the dollar is two shillings
according to exchange rates, an article which can be pur-
chased for two shilhngs at home will, nevertheless, cost
more than one dollar in the Malay Peninsula.
The Chartered Bank of India, Australia, and China, whose Banks.
London office is in Hatton Court, E.C., has two branches
in the Federated States, one in Perak and the other in
Selangor.
The bank undertakes all kinds of banking and exchange
business, grants drafts on its various branches, purchases
and receives for collection biUs of exchange, issues letters
of credit, and discounts local bills.
In the colonial towns of Singapore and Penang, each of
which is within one day's journey of some part of the
Federated States, there are the following banks with which
business may be done : —
The Chartered Bank of India, Austraha, and China ;
The Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank ;
The Mercantile Bank.
Savings banks managed and guaranteed by the Govern- Savings hayiks.
ment, have been established in the Federated States.
Deposits of from one dollar to five hundred dollars are
received, and interest is paid thereon at the rate of three
per cent.
Passengers for the Federated Malay States book their Passengers and
passages either to Penang or Singapore, from which ports Z^^^*-
12 Handbook of the
they are conveyed to their destination by local steamers,
which run almost daily.
A complete table of the lines of steamships which carry
passengers to the Malay Peninsula, together with all par-
ticulars regarding dates of sailing, ports of departure, cost
of passages, and other information useful to travellers, will
be found in Appendix A.
As al] articles of clothing can if necessary be procured in
the Malay Peninsula, the new arrival wiJl do well not to
encumber himself with an extensive wardrobe until he has
learnt by experience in the States what articles of clothing
are best suited to his needs.
Tweeds and other suitings of the texture usually worn in
England are too thick to be supportable in this climate, and
must be discarded except for use on the voyage out and
home. The most useful suitings are those of thin flannel
and serge. A dress suit and a supply of white shirts should
be taken, but neither frock coat nor morning coat will be
required.
The most useful articles in the outfit will be a good supply
of thin flannel underclothing and flannel shirts. These should
be purchased at home, as the cost is half that for which they
are obtainable locally.
The garments most usually worn in the daytime consist
of a white drill suit for office work, and a khaki suit for out-
door duties. These should always be purchased locally,
where they are cheap. The prices charged in England for
such articles are prohibitive.
The following head-gear is recommended : —
A pith hat, with wide brim (not a helmet).
A soft felt hat with broad brim and a puggaree, of the
description known as the "Double Terai."
A straw hat and a couple of caps.
Do not bring more boots than can be kept in use, as
leather quickly goes to pieces in this climate, and do not
bring boots with very heavy soles, nor " Field " boots. They
will never be worn.
If addicted to outdoor exercise, do not forget white
flannels, flannel coat, and half a dozen pairs of hand-knit
knickerbocker stockings.
Choose steel trunks in preference to leather portmanteaus
and bags. Leather goods soon deteriorate, and are moreover
not always proof against a deluge of tropical rain.
Federated Malay States. 13
Hints as to sporting requisites will be found later on under
the heading of " Sports."
The best time to arrive is during the continuance of the Time to
north-eastern monsoon, when tlie weather is wetter and ^''''*^^'
rather cooler than at other times. That is, between the
months of September and the following April. During this
period also the passage through the Indian Ocean is usually
calm. October, November, and December are the best
months to arrive in. March and April are the best months
in which to start on the homeward voyage.
Adult Europeans should not come out to the Federated Hints to new
States before they are twenty years of age, and should make «>"''*^«^«-
up their minds to conform from the first to the cardinal rules
for the preservation of health.
These may be shortly summed up as follows : —
Gro to bed and get up early.
Avoid all excesses in eating and drinking.
Never go out between the hours of 8 a.m. and 4.30 p.m.
without wearing a sun hat.
When possible, always wear flannel next to the skin.
Take exercise regularly and moderately, but not to excess,
if avoidable.
Change clothes as soon as possible after exercise.
Avoid bathing in the middle of the day, or more than
twice a day. In the evening, and after exercise, a warm
bath is better than a cold one.
If doubtful about the purity of drinking water, always see
for yourself that it is boiled, and do not take the servant's
word for it. Filtering is often insufficient.
When travelling, drink as little as possible during the
heat of the day, and always avoid roadside streams. The
water of a young coconut is the best on these occasions, if
obtainable.
With ordinary care the European may successfully avoid Diseases,
serious disease, and may live comfortably and healthily
without inconvenient restraint. Malarial fever is not un-
common, but it is not usually of a severe type, and is
amenable to timely treatment by simple remedies.
Typhoid fever occurs occasionally, but other forms of
serious fever are practically unknown. Bowel complaints,
such as diarrhoea and dysentery, are of frequent occurrence,
2
14 Handbook of the
but can usually be avoided by careful living. When such
do occur they should be taken in hand at once by medicinal
treatment, dieting, and rest.
Cholera among Europeans is hardly known, diseases of the
kidneys are very rare, and for all sorts of rheumatic affec-
tions the climate is distinctly favourable.
Diseases of the lungs are rare as originating in the country,
but the climate is very unfavourable for consumptive cases.
The diseases of childhood are rare.
Measles and chicken-pox are the only fevers that are at all
frequently met with. Scarlet fever and whooping cough are
unknown.
There are inward and outward mails between Europe and
Singapore once every week, carried alternately by the
P. and 0. and the Messageries Maritimes Steamship lines.
Mails are also sent and received once every fortnight by
the North Grerman Lloyd Steamship line, and by the Trans-
Indian route.
The duration of transit of letters to and from England and
the Federated States is about 25 days. The postage on letters
addressed to countries within the Imperial Postal Union is
4 cents per half ounce. To other countries it is 8 cents
per half ounce.
Letters addressed to places within the Federated States
and the Colony of the Straits Settlements are received and
delivered daily.
The time occupied in transit seldom exceeds two days.
The postage on all such letters is 3 cents per half ounce.
Parcels by parcels post take as a rule from seven to four-
teen days longer in transit than letters to and from Europe.
The parcels rates are : —
For British dependencies —
Under 3 lbs ... 65 cents.
„ 7 lbs $L30
„ 11 lbs $1.95
For other countries about double these rates.
For local transmission to places in the Colony of the Straits
Settlements and the Federated Malay States the parcels rates
are :- —
Under 3 lbs 20 cents.
„ Tibs 40 „
„ 11 lbs 60 „
Federated Malay States.
15
The charge on post cards is one cent for local cards and
three cents for cards to other countries.
Registration is undertaken at all the principal post offices
of the Federated States. The charge for all countries is five
cents.
Money orders are also issued at the principal post offices.
Those for local transmission and for China, Japan, &c., are
issued in local currency. Those for other countries are
issued in sterling through Singapore.
Commission on money orders is as follows : —
Local ... ... ... 1 per cent of value.
East of Singapore . . . 2J „ „
India and Ceylon ... 2 „ „
Other countries ... ... 3
A complete and efficient system of telegraphic communi-
cation is maintained throughout the Federated Malay States,
and between the States and the Colony of the Straits Settle-
ments and other countries. All messages to other countries
are transmitted over the cables of the Eastern Extension
Telegraph Company, while local communication is effected
by Government Telegraph lines.
Telegraph rates are, per word : —
To Europe
$2.28
To India
98 cents
To Singapore . . .
13 „
Local, ordinary. . .
3 „
„ urgent ...
9 „
„ deferred ...
1* „
A telephone exchange is maintained in Selangor — rate, $3 Telephones.
per month up to one mile, with varying rates beyond.
There is also telephonic communication with most of the
police stations, and lines to different Glovernment institutions,
sanitaria, and offices.
The principal ports in the Federated States are Port Weld Ports and
and Teluk Anson in Perak, Port Swettenham in Selangor, Sarhours.
Port Dickson in Negri Sembilan, and Pekan in Pahang.
With the exception of the last-named, all these ports are
visited daily by steamers from Penang and Singapore, and
are all furnished with efficient wharf accommodation and
16
Handbook of the
connected by railway with the principal towns of the States
in which they are situated.
Religion. The Ohurch of England, the Eoman Catholic Church, and
various denominations of the Methodist Church, principal
among which is the Methodist Episcopal Mission, are all
represented in the Federated States.
There is an English chaplain at headquarters in Perak and
Selangor, and the States are annually visited by the Lord
Bishop of the Diocese.
Eoman Catholic churches in charge of the priests of the
French mission are established in the principal towns in
Perak, Selangor, and Negri Sembilan.
Education. In addition to the numerous G-overnment vernacular schools
which are to be found in almost every town and village of
the Federated States, English schools both for boys and
girls are maintained in Perak, Selangor, and Negri Sembilan,
in some of which, particularly the Yictoria Institution in
Selangor, the Central School at Taiping, Perak, and the
Anglo-Chinese School at Ipoh, Perak, a staff of qualified
Enghsh masters offers every opportunity for acquiring a
sound education in all the subjects usually taught in English
schools.
A comprehensive education code is in force in the States,
and all schools are either entirely maintained by Government
or assisted by grants-in-aid.
Hospitals. The Government has devoted much care to the estabhsh-
ment of efficient hospitals in all districts, and to the engage-
ment of a full staff of qualified medical men from the United
Kingdom, all of whom are in Government employ and are
also permitted to undertake private practice. Their number
at present is fourteen.
Comfortable wards for the reception of European patients
are attached to the hospitals in the larger towns. Patients
are there attended by a resident medical officer and the
Government nurse matron.
A nursing association has been established in Perak and
Selangor, which employs qualified English nurses to attend
on patients in their own homes.
Inland com- Means of inland communication throughout the three
mmications. Western States is already very good, and it is being yet
further improved. Travelling both by railway and road has
been made as easy as the nature of the country and the
Federated Malay States. 17
climate will permit, by a large expenditure of Government
money in bringing these works to a high standard.
All railways in the Federated Malay States are of metre Uailways
gauge.' The first section of line was opened in Perak in
1884, since which time a large portion of the annually
increasing revenue of the States has been regularly expended
in further construction.
All railways have been constructed by, are the property
of, and are managed by the Government, with the exception
of the line in Negri Sembilan connecting the port with the
principal town, which is the property of a private company.
A hue 23 miles in length has been constructed by the
Perak Railway Department, and is now open for traffic
through the colonial territory of Province Wellesley from
the Perak northern terminus on the boundary to a point on
the mainland opposite the port of Penang, with which it is
connected by a steam ferry service.
The mileage of railway now open, to traffic is : —
In Perak and Province Wellesley 1351 miles.
Selangor ... ... ... 97^
Negri Sembilan ... ... 25
Total 257|
Further construction is now being rapidly pushed on, with
the object of connecting up the lines of the three States and
forming one continuous trunk line.
The additional sections thus under construction are : —
(i.) 34 J miles in two separate lengths of 15 J and 19
miles, to connect sections of line now open in
Perak.
(ii.) 45 miles, to connect the present Perak Railway
system with the Selangor boundary.
(iii.) 29 miles, to connect the southern terminus of the
Selangor system with the chief town of Negri
Sembilan and with the inland terminus of the
existing Negri Sembilan Railway.
The first two sections, aggregating 79 J miles, are being
constructed by the officers of the Perak Railway Department,
and the last section, by the staff of the Selangor Railway.
Total mileage of construction in hand is 108J miles.
18 . Handbook of the
It is expected that these works will be completed in about
two years' time, when the railway system of the Federated
Malay States will consist of a Trunk line about 292 miles
in length, having its northern terminus on the mainland
adjoining the harbour of Penang, and thence running south,
through the principal towns of the Western States, to Port
Dickson on the sea-coast, not far from the colonial territory
of Malacca.
From the Trunk line three branches will diverge at
intervals to harbours on the western coast, the first from
Taiping in Perak to Port Weld, the second from Tapah to
Teluk Anson in the southern portion of the same State, and
the third from Kuala Lumpur to Port Swettenham in
Selangor.
The main line can at any future time be carried further
down the peninsula, proceeding southwards from Seremban,
the chief town of Negri Sembilan. Should further exten-
sion be thus undertaken, the present line from that town to
the harbour of Port Dickson will become a fourth branch
line running from the Trunk route to the coast.
Up to the present time no railway construction has been
taken in hand in the Eastern State of Pahang. Connection
by railway between that State and its western neighbours
will necessitate crossing the main range of the peninsula at
an elevation of nearly three thousand feet, and though a rough
survey of the proposed route has been made from Selangor
into Pahang, it is improbable that anything more will be
done until the extensions now in hand in the Western
States have been completed.
All the towns and principal mining centres of the States
of Perak, Selangor, and Negri Sembilan are connected by
metalled cart roads.
The road system throughout these States is very efficient.
The roads are well bridged and very carefully upkept at
considerable cost to the Grovernment, and no toll is levied for
their use. They are easily traversed by any description of
wheeled traffic, and those in Perak in particular are of a high
order of excellence, which is probably unsurpassed in the
East.
A road of much importance has recently been completed
by the Public Works Department of Selangor, running from
that State over the main chain of mountains to Kuala Lipis,
the capital of Pahang. It is about eighty-five miles in length,
of which twenty-three miles are in Selangor and the rest in
Pahang. The range is crossed at an elevation of 2,700 feet,
Federated Malay States. 19
and the summit is reached from each side by a continuous
gradient of one in thirty.
It is substantially metalled throughout its entire length,
and is suitable for any description of wheeled traffic.
For all purposes other than that of mining, State land is J^and.
alienated by the issue of a grant in perpetuity, upon payment
of premium or purchase money varying in amount according
to the position and nature of the property alienated. An
annual quit rent is also reserved in all cases, which rent
may be periodically revised at intervals of thirty years.
No State land situated within the limits of any town may
be alienated except by sale by pubhc auction.
Country lands may be selected and applied for to the Local
Land Office, and, if available, will be alienated to the appli-
cant upon payment of the prescribed fees.
Full particulars regarding the acquisition and tenure of
town and country lands, and the conditions and obhgations
imposed upon land-holders, will be found in the Federated
Malay States Land Enactment, 1897, which can be seen in
the Library of the Colonial Office.
Mining lands are alienated either by auction or by selection.
The title issued in respect of such properties is a mining
lease, the term of which will not usually exceed twenty-one
years, except in the case of special concessions necessitating
a large outlay of capital.
The continuance of the tenancy is in all cases dependent
upon the regular compliance of the lessee with the conditions
imposed by his lease ; principal among which are those
regarding continuous working and the employment of an
adequate labour force.
Intending selectors of mining land can obtain prospecting
licences over defined areas, by virtue of which such area is
reserved for their exclusive examination for a stated period.
Full information regarding mining lands and mines can
be obtained from the Federated Malay States Mining Enact-
ment, 1898, which can be seen in the Library of the Colonial
Office.
All manual labour is performed by Asiatics. The nation- labour.
alities so employed are Malays, Chinese, Tamils, Javanese,
and Bengalis.
The Malay of the peninsula does not figure at all
prominently among the labouring classes. He undertakes
20 Handhoch of the
little work for hire beyond the felling of jungle and the
management of boats. He is mostly concerned about his
own affairs and does not enter into competition with the
immigrant labouring classes.
Chinese are the most numerous and the most important
class of labourers. They will undertake almost any class of
work, from the high grade -handiwork of the skilled artisan
in wood and metal to the drudgery of the most menial
offices. The labour force in the mines of the Federated
States is almost exclusively composed of Chinese, but
they seldom work as agricultural labourers, except on
their own account as vegetable gardeners, or for employers
of their own nationality. When engaged on road and rail-
way work, the arrangement is usually made with the
headman on behalf of his gang of coolies, and not with
the men individually. Chinese labour is more satisfactorily
utilised on piece-work or contract than on daily wages.
Except in the case of domestic servants, it is usually difficult
to persuade them to accept work otherwise than on those
terms.
Tamils from Southern India rank next in importance to
Chinese. They are more amenable to European control than
Chinese, and, therefore, form the bulk of the labour force
employed by the Grovernment and by English planters and
contractors. Their remuneration generally takes the form
of daily wages payable monthly. They are the best coolies
for road and estate work.
The Javanese are not numerous in comparison with the
classes above mentioned. They are fairly reliable labourers
when obtainable, and are useful as gardeners, for road earth
work digging and clearing drains, jungle felling, and
analogous duties. A gang of Javanese is not uncommonly
found upon European estates as supplementary to the main
body of Tamil labourers. They also receive daily wages at
monthly intervals.
Bengalis are usually employed as cart-men. A few have
recently been experimentally introduced into Perak as estate
labourers.
Coming to the question of the cost of labour, coolies, of
whatever nationality, are divisible into two classes — inden-
tured labour and free labour. In the former class are
included those who received from their employers the cost
of their passages from India or China to the Federated
States, and advances of money or clothing prior to or at the
time of their arrival, in consideration of their entering into a
contract to serve for a fixed period at certain rates of wages,
Federated Malay States. 21
during which period the advances so made are repaid to the
employer.
Labourers who are not bound by any such formal agree-
ment come under the category of free labour.
The rates of wages paid to indentured labourers are
usually lower than those given to free labourers, but
experience has proved that free labour nevertheless suits
European employers better than employment by formal con-
tract.
The system of engagement by indenture is principally
used by the Chinese in obtaining labour from China. The
importation of Chinese by Europeans is not successful, and
is not recommended. If Chinese are required, it is better to
engage them locally by arrangement with their headman as
above described.
The system of indenture as applied to the importation of
Indian labour has also fallen into disuse, because employers
find that free Tamil labour engaged in India, at an outlay
sufficient to cover the passage money and a small advance,
answers better than the more formal arrangement.
It is in this way that the planters in the Federated States
obtain most of their coolies.
The outlay in respect of each coolie imported may be
estimated at about twenty dollars a head, which is afterwards
recovered from him.
Coolies are engaged in India by overseers in the service of
the employer, who are sent to India for the purpose, whence
the emigration of the coolies is supervised and assisted by an
official stationed at Negapatam.
The voyage from Negapatam co Penang is completed in
about six days.
The following are approximately the ruling rates of pay
for coolie labour, in addition to house accommodation : —
Indentured Coolies :
Chinese ... ... $4 to $5 per mensem.
Tamils ... ... 17 „ 20 cents.- per diem.
Free Coolies :
Chinese ... ... 30 to 40 cents per diem.
Tamils 23 „ 35 „
Skilled native labour, e.g., carpenters, fitters, engine drivers,
&c., commands rates ranging from 50 cents to $2.50 per
diem.
22 Handbook of the
The wages of domestic servants are : —
House boy (indoor servant) $10 to ^15 per mensem.
Cook
. .
$10 „
$15
Water carrier
.
W* j>
$10
Grardener . . .
$8 „
$10
Syce or groom
(one
for each
horse kept)
.
..
S9 „
$12
The first three are necessary, unless a bachelor living by
himself can arrange to engage a servant who will act for him
both as boy and cook. In that case he will have to pay him
about $15 per mensem.
The Federated Malay States offer to the planter the
following natural advantages : —
(i.) A fertile soil, varying in composition according to
locality, but almost uniformly possessed of the component
substances necessary to ensure a strong and rapid growth.
(ii.) A moist, forcing heat, varying but little throughout
the year.
(iii.) An abundant and regular rainfall.
(iv.) An immense acreage of virgin soil, hitherto un-
touched, available for planting at any elevation up to five
thousand feet.
The following products can be cultivated with success : —
Coffee, tea, sugar, pepper, gambler, sago, rice, rubber,
cocoanuts, ramie grass, nutmegs, bananas, areca nuts, tapioca,
and many varieties of native fruits which yield a profitable
return.
Detailed information regarding the method and cost of
opening estates will be found in Appendix B.
Mining for alluvial tin ore in the Western States is the
principal industry carried on in the country. As already
stated, Chinese labour is almost universally employed in this
work. The tin-bearing stratum is usually found at depths
varying from five to fifty feet below the surface. The over-
burden is removed by excavation, and the metalliferous sand
taken out and washed in sluices. The water is controlled by
dams, races, and water wheels, and pumps and engines of
English manufacture are used in almost every mine. The
ordinary method of alluvial mining is not scientific, and is
more profitable in the hands of Chinese than in those of
Europeans.
Federated Malay States. 23
Mining for alluvial tin by hydraulic power has been
introduced by Europeans and is very successful, but requires
a large outlay of capital. The water is carried for some
miles through iron pipes of about nine inches in diameter,
and is forced through a monitor against the hillside, washing
down the stanniferous earth in large quantities and with a
minimum of labour.
Lode mining for tin and gold has been carried on in
different parts of the Western States, but not so far with
any marked success.
Pahang is considered to be the richest of the Federated
Malay States in mineral wealth. Only very small and
isolated portions of its area have yet been exploited by
miners, but the results obtained have been generally
satisfactory.
Up to the present time but little indication has been
found on the eastern slope of the mountain range of the
alluvial tin deposits which are spread so widely over the
Western States. It is being worked only in one or two
places close to the range. At the foot of the hills, at the
points which correspond to those on the western side of the
mountains where the richest alluvial deposits are found, the
granite is intersected by a slate formation which carries no
tin and cuts the granite off.
Both gold and tin are being successfully worked in the
lode. The excellent results obtained by the Eaub gold mine
are an encouraging augury of what may be expected of
Pahang when the State is more opened up and better known.
The forests of the Federated States produce a large Economic
assortment of excellent hard timbers, principal among which products.
may be mentioned the following varieties : — Daphniphyllopsis
Capitata (Malay Chengal), Afzelia Sp. (Malay Mirabeau),
Scorodocarpus Borniensis (Malay Kulim), Slaetia Sider-
oxylon (Malay Tampinis), Fagroea Peregrina (Malay
Tembusu), Strombosia Javanica (Malay Petaling).
The best qualities of these trees are found at elevations of
from one to two thousand feet.
Other natural products of the forests are gutta-percha,
rubber, rattans of many varieties, including that known as
the Malacca cane, vegetable oils, resins, and the ataps or
palm leaves so extensively used for thatching throughout the
peninsula.
Fruits, indigenous and naturalised, include the durian, Fruits.
mangosteen, banana, duku, chiku, rambutan, pulasan, pine-
24 Handbook of the
apple, guava, lime, orange, custard apple, soursop, mango,
papaya, langsat, rambei, and others.
Vegetables. The Vegetables, usually grown by Chinese gardeners, are
neither numerous nor of high quality. They include lettuce,
French beans, onions, leeks, pumpkins, marrows, and Qg^
fruit. Potatoes are imported from India.
Most European vegetables can be successfully grown at
elevations over 2,000 feet.
Live StocTc. Cattle are principally used for draught purposes, and are
of three descriptions — buffaloes, Indian cattle, and native
cattle.
The cost of a pair of Indian bulls may be anything between
100 and 200 dollars. That of a pair of the smaller native
cattle varies from 80 to 150 dollars.
Buffaloes are seldom or never used by Europeans. Milch
cows and buffaloes are kept by natives in the neighbourhood
of the principal centres of population, and fresh milk of
good quahty is obtainable wherever there are a sufficient
number of customers.
Alternatively, cows may be kept by Europeans for dairy
purposes, but this necessitates the employment of a cattle
man, at about 10 dollars a month, to look after them.
The cost of a good Indian cow is not less than 100
dollars.
Horses and ponies are all imported, mostly from Australia.
Ponies are also brought from Burmah, Northern India, Java,
and other islands of the Malay Archipelago.
Small ponies of from 12 to 18 hands may be purchased
from 100 dollars upwards.
Australian horses for riding and driving cost from $250
to $600, the average price being about $350 to $400.
A large number of sheep and goats are imported for
the butcher. Groats of an inferior quality are bred by
the Malays, and sheep do fairly well in Pahang. The
States, however, are not well adapted to the breeding of
any stock.
Pigs are reared in large numbers by Chinese tapioca
planters and vegetable gardeners, and do well. They always
command a ready sale, as pork is a staple article of food
among the Chinese community.
Eowls and ducks are reared extensively throughout the
peninsula, but are as a rule poorly fed and of very inferior
quality.
Federated Malay States. 25
As they form a constant article of European diet they may
advantageously be kept for household purposes and improved
hy crossing with imported stock.
The price of poultry varies widely according to locality,
being lowest in remote country districts and highest
in the towns.
The cost of eggs is from two to six cents each, but they
are by no means always to be depended upon.
Both sea and river fish are obtainable in large quantities, Fish and
and many varieties are excellent eating. It is difficult, '^*''^^"^*-
however, to keep them fresh for a sufficient length of time
to ensure a regular supply to the inhabitants of inland
districts.
Turtles, crabs, prawns, and shrimps are also procurable.
The fishing industry is pursued by a large number of
Malays and Chinese on the coast, who secure their fish
both by hook and line and by stake fish-traps set in the
tide-way.
A large proportion of the sea-fish and shell-fish obtained
are dried, and in that condition form a staple article of food
for all classes of natives.
Fishing or fish-curing as an industry has not yet been
attempted by any European, but there seems to be no reason
why a trawl net should not be successfully and profitably
used upon many parts of the coast, as fish always commands
a ready sale.
A small charge is levied by Grovernment upon fishing
boats and upon various descriptions of fishing apparatus.
The principal towns of the Federated Malay States enjoy Water
excellent supplies of water for all purposes drawn from supplies.
reserved areas in the hills into impounding reservoirs, and
carried thence into service reservoirs for local delivery.
The regular and abundant rainfall also enables any house-
holder to collect rain water in tanks and to store a sufficient
supply for domestic purposes.
It should be carefully borne in mind that even after Cost of living.
taking into consideration the current market value and local
purchasing power of the dollar, it will cost the new arrival
more to live in the Federated States than in England.
26 Handbook of the
It is usually the case that Europeans live at a more
expensive rate than when at home, and it will not he safe for
the newcomer to cut his estimate of annual expenses down
to any lower figure than one which exceeds hy half what he
has found requisite in England.
Prohahly the smallest sum upon which a bachelor on an
estate or in a country district could live with any approach
to comfort, considering only the necessaries of life and
making no allowances for luxuries, would he from $80 to
$100 a month. If any margin is to be allowed for amuse-
ments and social diversions at least half as much again must
be provided.
These figures represent the lowest possible limit in the
case of gentlemen of education and refinement. Emigrants
of the artizan class could probably manage, with care, on $60
or $70 a month, if not called upon to pay rent for the house
they occupy.
Means of In addition to the railways, the following means of trans-
transport. port for passongors and goods are available : —
Grharis, or light two- wheeled pony carts, with a light over-
head covering as a protection from sun and rain, are the
form of passenger conveyance for hire in Selangor, Negri
Sembilan and Pahang. Each ghari will accommodate one
passenger and a box of moderate dimensions, in addition to the
driver. Native passengers frequently travel two in a ghari,
but this arrangement is not recommended, for the sake both
of the passengers and the pony. A journey in one of these
gharis not infrequently partakes of the nature of violent
exercise, but in the absence of a private conveyance or of a
bicycle, it is usually the only alternative.
In Perak the gharis are of larger build, are usually drawn
by horses, and are more spacious than those above
mentioned.
The jinricksha, pulled by Chinese coolies, is the con-
veyance usually hired for short runs in and around the
neighbourhood of the towns. They are comfortable, and
usually fairly clean, but as the coolie who pulls it seldom
understands any language but his own dialect, and is as a
rule supremely ignorant of the rule of the road, it is well to
keep a wary eye on his movements.
Goods of all descriptions are conveyed over the roads in
carts drawn by pairs of bullocks, the speed of which seldom
exceeds two miles an hour.
Federated Malay States. 27
The average rates of transport are as follows : Hates of
transport.
For Passengers : —
By Railway —
1st class, 8 cents per mile.
2nd „ 5 „
3rd „ 3 „
JJ 55
By ahari—
In Perak, 15 cents per
In Pahang, 35 „ „
In other States, 20 „ „
mile.
55
55
By Jinricksha —
6 to 10 cents per mile.
For Goods : —
By Railway —
1st class goods,
2nd „
3rd
, per pikul,
55
55
3
4
i
i
cent
55
55
per
mile,
55
55
These rates do not include collection and delivery : —
By Bullock Cart—
15 cents per mile.
In Perak 10 cents per mile.
For Live Stock : —
By Railway —
Horses in boxes 15 cents per mile, including one
syce for each horse.
Cattle 4 cents each per mile.
Sheep, 1 cent „ „
Boats for passengers and goods can be hired on the
navigable rivers of the Federated States, but there is no fixed
rate of hire. The charge is a matter of arrangement, depend-
ing on the number of the crew, the height of the river, and
other conditions existing at the time of hire.
Travellers can obtain lodging and refreshment at the Accommoda-
Government rest houses, which are situated in all the ^*o'^/^'*
principal towns and at convenient intervals along the main
roads. Each of these buildings is in charge of a Grovernment
28
Handbook of the
caretaker, and a cook and water-carrier is also kept on tlie
premises.
All furniture, crockery, glass, and linen is supplied by
the Grovernment.
The charge for occupation and use of bedroom is one
dollar per head per diem. The rest house keeper will board
visitors at a rate of about two dollars per diem, or at
proportionate rates for single meals.
A time limit is fixed for the occupation of a rest house by
any visitor. Should a traveller desire to remain longer than
the allotted number of days, he must obtain permission from
the local Grovernment Authority.
Stables are attached to rest houses and no additional
charge is made for their use, but the visitor's horse must be
attended to by his own syce.
Sanitaria. The Grovernment has erected bungalows on the hills of the
Western States at elevations varying from 1,500 to 4,000 feet.
They are fully furnished and can be hired by those in need
of change of air for specified periods, and at rates which can
be ascertained on application to the District Authorities.
The Grovernment of Negri Sembilan also possesses an
excellent sanatorium on a salubrious part of the coast, where
good sea bathing is obtainable, in which suites of rooms can
be hired by visitors.
There are also a few Grovernment rest houses situated at
considerable elevations on the hills, and at the seaside, where
a beneficial change can be enjoyed at very moderate cost.
Openings for As almost all matters in which the services of professional
professional j^qj^ qj,q necessary are attended to by officers in G-overnment
employ, there is at present very little chance of a new-
comer founding a profitable practice upon his own account.
The medical practice is entirely in the hands of the GI-overn-
ment doctors. There are no others. The legal work is already
divided among the barristers and solicitors now practising in
the States, and a newcomer would have but little chance unless
his attainments were exceptional. Even then it would be
absolutely necessary that he should obtain some proficiency in
the Malay language before he could attempt to practise.
There are no vacancies in the clerical appointments.
Civil Engineers and architects would find but little
opportunity, because no important works or buildings are
erected, except those which are projected by the Government
and carried out by its own engineers.
Federated Malay States. 29
A competent and hard-working engineer might in time
obtain some profitable employment as a contractor for
Government works, but in this case also he would have to
spend some time in acquiring that local knowledge without
which he would be working in the dark and to his own loss.
It would also be necessary that he should have the command
of some capital.
Surveyors who satisfy the Grovernment of their competency
by certificates or examination can obtain licences to practise
their profession in the Federated States. Much land yet
remains to be surveyed, and it is probable that a reliable
man would obtain continuous work, which would enable
him to live comfortably, but the authorised scale of survey
fees limits the charges which may be made, and it is unlikely
that any surveyor w^ould make a fortune by his work.
Moreover, the constant exposure to the climate, often in
unhealthy localities, is very trying to the soundest con-
stitution.
Apart from employment under Grovernment, there is no Openings jc
opening for European skilled labour. Upon the occurrence ^''^*^^^*-
of any such vacancy, eitlier in a Grovernment department or
in a firm, it is filled by the engagement of a man by agents
in England.
The management of engines and machinery in mines and
workshops is entrusted to skilled natives under European
supervision. Their work is satisfactory, and their remunera-
tion much less than that which would be required by a
European mechanic.
There are no openings for clerks. All this work is done Clerks.
by locally educated Eurasians and natives.
European domestic servants are unknown in the Federated Domestic
States. There is no chance of any such servant obtaining «^''^'^"^«-
employment except in the case of nurses, for whom occasional
enquiry is made by ladies.
To the young man possessed of moderate capital planting Planters.
affords the best opening. The first two years should be spent
in diligently acquiring local experience and a knowledge of
native languages by working as assistant upon the estate of
an experienced planter.
It will be time enough for the newcomer to make up his
mind as to the product to which he will devote his attention
when he has made himself acquainted with the facts
relating to different varieties of crops, such as the initial
3
30 Handbook of the
outlay per acre until the time when a return may be
expected ; the period which must elapse before the return
comes in ; the cost of subsequent upkeep of the estate and
of the preparation of the produce for the market ; the future
market prospects of different descriptions of produce, so far
as it is possible to foresee them.
These and other analogous matters should be most carefully
weighed by the young planter before he commits himself to
the acquisition of a particular class of land or to the cultiva-
tion of a particular crop. He should estimate most carefully
how far his capital will go, and limit his operations to a scale
which will leave him a safe margin of funds up to the time
that the crop begins to come in, when he can extend his
estate in proportion to the prices he realises.
The few particulars regarding cultivation which are given
in Appendix B, are intended to be considered as approximate
guides only. The figures will always vary according to
locality, ruling rates of labour, cost of materials, current
market prices, and other uncertain data, and what is there
set out is given only in order to furnish a very general idea
of the expenditure which may probably be incurred.
In the same way, the young investor is warned not to risk
his money in mining adventure until practical experience
gained in the country has taught him exactly what to expect,
and he is in possession of reliable information regarding the
cost of his scheme and the probable results to be obtained
from the selected area.
The Federated Malay States offer a varied amount of
amusements to those who have the time and means to take
advantage of them.
Cricket is played in every town, and is very popular.
Inter- State matches are played annually, and there are regular
fixtures against the Singapore and Penang clubs. The
cricketers of the Federated Malay States include many
excellent performers. Matches are played throughout the
day, and the heat is not found at aU unbearable.
Football has attracted much attention of late years, and is
much appreciated, though the game is hardly suited to the
climate. It is only played after 5 p.m.
Hockey has also been recently introduced. Grolf is as
dominant in the Federated States as in other parts of the
world. There are links close to all the chief towns.
Lawn tennis can also be played everywhere, weather
permitting. The courts are all grass.
Federated Malay States. 31
The roads are for the most part excellent for cycling, and
no one who appreciates this form of exercise should omit to
bring a bicycle with him. To anybody whose duties require
him to travel it will be an immense assistance. Ordinary
repairs to bicycles can be effected locally.
Bring out a spare set of tyres and tubes sealed in a tin
case. They can be purchased locally, but are not so good and
are more expensive.
Riding can be indulged in all over the States, and driving
in most places.
Bring out saddlery and harness from home. It will be
more satisfactory and cost less than if bought in the
peninsula.
Let the saddle be light and fitted with a thick felt
numnah.
Horses are generally driven without breeching, but that is
a matter of taste.
A saving collar will be useful, also a pair of rope traces.
Bring a set of stable brushes, scrapers, &c.
There are four race-courses in the Federated States, and
meetings are held annually at each ; also occasional gymkhana
meetings.
To those fond of shooting the Federated States afford the
following game : —
Elephant, bison, rhinoceros, tiger, sambhur and other
deer, crocodile, and wild pig.
Snipe, teal, and many varieties of pigeons.
The weapon for large game should be a double 8 or lO-bore,
capable of burning ten drams of black powder. Holland's
10-bore " Paradox "is as good a weapon for the purpose as
can be procured.
For other shooting, a well-made double 12-bore, both
barrels cy Under, is the best gun. It should not weigh less
than seven pounds. Loaded with ball cartridge such a
weapon is ae effectual for deer and pig up to 40 yards as any
rifle, and the density of the jungle seldom affords shots at
longer range than that.
Shot cartridges should be loaded with 3 drams of black
powder or 42 grains of nitrate, and 1 ounce of shot only.
The usual English load of 1^ ounce of shot will be found
too heavy in this climate.
Any first-class nitrate powder may be safely used and kept
in the Federated States^ The writer has stored them for
Social
attractions.
32 : Handbook of the
three years without the least deterioration. They should be
packed in soldered tins.
No. 7 is the best shot for general purposes. It is equally
effectual for snipe and pigeons.
There is very little fishing to be had in the Federated
States. Most of the rivers are polluted by the detritus
washed out of the tin mines, and it is necessary to travel far
in order to get beyond the influence of this discolouration.
Even then, in the clear rivers near the hills, though an
occasional fish may be taken by persistent spinning or live
baiting, there is no certainty that any sport will be obtained,
and a blank day is the rule rather than the exception.
Fishing tackle rots and goes to pieces very quickly in this
climate.
There are clubs in all the principal towns, centrally
situated near the cricket grounds, tennis courts, &c. They
are patronised in the cool of the evenings by ladies as well
as by gentlemen. Billiards and bridge are regularly played.
At the headquarters of Perak and Selangor the State Band
plays three times a week in the evenings.
Dances, concerts, and theatricals each have their turn, and
art associations have been established for the encouragement
of sketching and photography.
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Fe<jerated Malay States. 33
PART II.
PERAK.
His Highness the Sultan.
Raja Idris Mersid-el-Aazam Shah, G.C.M.G.
British Resident . . John Pickersgill Rodger, C.M.G.
Secretary to the Resident . Alfred Reid Yenning.
Senior Magistrate . . R. G. Watson.
State Auditor . . . H. Yane.
State Engineer . . .J. Trump, A.M.I. C.E.
THE COUNCIL OF STATE.
His Highness Idris Mersid-el Aazam Shah, G.C.M.G., Sultan
of Perak : President.
The British Resident : John Pickersgill Rodger, C.M.G.
The Secretary to the Resident : Alfred Reid Yenning.
His Highness the Raja Muda : Raja Musa.
The Raja di Hilir : Raja Abdul Jalil.
The Orang Kaya Temsnygong : Hassan.
The Orang Kaya Mentri : Wan Muhammad Isa.
The Orang Kaya Kaya Sri Adika Raja : Wan Muhammad Saleh.
The Orang Kaya Kaya Laksaniana : Inghe Husin.
The Orang Kaya Kaya Panglima Kinta : Yusuf.
The Datoh Sri Maharajah Lela : Abubakar.
The Datoh Muda: Abdul Wahab.
Mr. Leong Fi.
Clerk of Council : The Assistant Secretary to the Resident.
34
Handbook of tke^
BRITISH RESIDENTS.
1. James Wheeler Woodford Birch October 4 th, 1874, to
November 2nd, 1875.
2. James Guthrie Davidson
... April nth, 1876, to
February 16th, 1877.
William Edward Maxwell February 17th, 1877, to
April 17th, 1877.
(acting)
3. Sir Hugh Low, G.C.M.G.
April 1st, 1877, to May
31st 1889.
August 13th, 1879 to
October 8th, 1879.
September, 1881, to
January, 1882,
March 22nd, 1884, to
January, 1886.
June 1st, 1889, to June
30th, 1896.
March 6th, 1890, to June
28th, 1890.
William Edward Maxwell
(acting)
William Edward Maxwell
(acting)
Frank Athblstane Swettenham,
(acting)
4. Frank Athelstane Swettenham,
C.M.G.
William Hood Treacher, C.M.G,
(acting)
William Hood Treacher, C.M.G, October 23rd, 1891, to
(acting) January 8th, 1893.
Ernest Woodford Birch (acting) September 21st, 1895, to
July 4th, 1896.
5. William Hood Treacher, C.M.G. July 1st, 1896, to
December 12th, 1901.
John Pickersgill Rodger October 5th, 1897, to
(acting) April 16th,' 1898.
John Pickersgill Rodger, April, 1899, to April,
C.M.G. (acting) 1900.
Lt.-Col. R. S. Frowd Walker, April, 1900
C.M.G. (acting)
John Pickersgill Rodger,
C.M.G. (acting)
to April,
1901.
April, 1901, to December
12th, 1901.
John Pickersgill
C.M.G.
Rodger, December 13th, 1901.
Geographical
description.
The State of Perak is situated between the parallels of
3°37' and 6°05' north latitude, and 100°3' to 101°51' east
longitude, on the western side of the Malay Peninsula. It
is bounded on the north by Province Wellesley and Kedah,
on the south by Selangor, on the east by Patani, Kelantan
and Pahang, and on the west by the Straits of Malacca.
The coast line is about 90 miles in extent, the greatest length
of the State, in a north and south direction, being 172 miles,
and the breadth, in an east and west direction, 100 miles.
Federated Malay States. 35
The area of the State has been calculated approximately as
being 6,555 square miles, or 4,195,200 acres.
It has been estimated that there are upon the mountain
ranges of the State 1,451,770 acres at an elevation of over
1,000 feet, available for the planting of those products which
flourish upon high lands in the tropics, and that between
1,000 feet and the plains there are 588,000 acres suited to
the cultivation of products at a lower level.
The State is well watered by numerous streams and rivers, Physical
of which the river Perak is the most important. This river Geography.
runs nearly north and south, until it turns sharply to the
westward and falls into the Straits of Malacca. It is
navigable for about 40 miles from its mouth by vessels of
from 300 to 400 tons burden, and for another 125 miles by
cargo boats. The upper part of the river is rocky and
abounds in rapids, and is consequently impassable, except
for small boats and rafts.
The rivers Kinta, Batang Padang and Plus are the three
largest tributaries of the Perak river, and all are navigable
by cargo boats. These rivers rise in the high mountain
range, and flow west and south until they fall into the main
stream.
Of the other rivers, the Bernam, Dinding, Bruas, Larut,
Sa'petang, Kurau and Krian may be mentioned. The
Bernam river, which forms the inter State boundary between
Perak and Selangor, is two miles wide at the mouth, and is
navigable for steamers to a greater distance (about 100 miles)
than any other river in the Peninsula.
The mountain ranges, which occupy a great portion of the
State, reach in some places altitudes of 7,000 feet and over,
and run mainly in a north west and south easterly direction.
They form two principal chains, besides a few detached
groups.
The larger of these chains is a portion of the backbone
range of the Peninsula, and forms the eastern boundary of
the State.
The lesser (of which the highest peaks are Grunong Bubu
in the south (5,450 feet) and &unong Inas in the north) rises
in the southern portion of Larut, and runs in a north easterly
direction through the State to its northern boundary.
Between these two ranges lie the valleys of the Perak and .
Kinta rivers, themselves divided by a still smaller range of
hills, the highest point of which is Grunong Mera, about
3,500 feet.
36 Handbook of the
There are many interesting problems involved in the
geology of the State which unfortunately remain at
present unsolved on account of insufficient data, but leaving
these debateable matters out of the question, the broad facts
are very simple. There are in reahty only four formations
represented — firstly, the granitic rocks ; secondly, a large series
of beds of gneiss, quartzite, schist and sandstone, overlaid in
many places by thick beds of crystalline limestone — thirdly,
small sheets of trap rock, and fourthly, river gravels and
quaternary deposits. The granites are of many varieties,
and also, in all probability, of several different geological
periods.
The series of quartzites, schists and limestones are of great
age, but as no fossils have ever been found in any of them
nothing definite can be stated as to their exact chronological
position.
Their lithological characteristics, and the total absence of
all organic remains, point to the Archaean period.
The failure to discover signs of life in them is of course
merely negative evidence, and the finding of a single fossil
would at once upset it. However, until this happens, they
may be conveniently classed as Laurentian. It is at present
impossible to form anything approaching an accurate estimate
of the thickness of this extensive series, but it is probable
that it approximates 4,000 to 5,000 feet. Unconformability
has been noticed between the limestones and the beds beneath,
but whether this is sufficient to separate them or not is a
matter for future investigation. In some places, on the top
of the limestone, are small patches of heavy black trap, often
vesicular in texture. It is evidently now only a remnant of
what it once was, and is represented in many places by only
a few scattered fragments, but the time which has elapsed
since the deposition of the limestone is so great as to allow of
any amount of denudation having taken place. It is a
question whether the crystalline character of the limestones
is not due to their having been flooded by a thick layer of
incandescent trap.
The quarternary beds consist of old valley gravels, newer
clays, sands, peats and gravels, and near the coast, river and
marine deposits. They are composed of the detritus of the
granite and Laurentian formations, with of course a certain
amount of organic matter, and, in Kinta, some slight
admixture of decomposed trap rock.
The interval of time represented by the position of the
ancient Archaean rocks and the modern alluvial beds lying
Federated Malay States. 37
upon them is so immense that there naturally arises the
question of what took place in Perak during those countless
ages. This, however, can only be determined by a very
much wider range of observations than have yet been made,
extending over the Peninsula and some of the adjacent
islands. The interval is so great that many thousands of
feet of rock may have been deposited and slowly washed
away again. However this may be, it is sufficient here to
state that no traces of any such beds have yet been discovered
in Perak, and so, from a practical point of view, their previous
existence or non-existence is a matter of no moment.
The period at which the country assumed its present
general configuration was, comparatively, quite recent. The
eruption of the granite may very probably not have taken
place at one time. There were, most hkely, several successive
eruptions, and between each the degradation of the granite
itself and of the upturned edges of the beds of sedimentary
rocks went on. Ail the present alluvial beds are of a date
subsequent to the raising of the ranges of granite hills, and
if the suggestion already put forward, that the limestone was
indurated by the molten trap rock, is correct, then the
eruption of the trap was anterior to the disturbance caused
by the upheaval of the granite. The peculiar forms of the
edges of the limestone formation, the isolated position of
small portions in places many miles from any other
trace of it, and its fissured and shattered appearance, all seem
to point to the conclusion that it was indurated prior to its
being broken through by the granite, and that the induration
was uneven.
According to this view the existing remains of the formation
are those portions which in former times were subjected to the
hardening action of the trap rock, while all the unhardened
parts have been washed away. Some of the outliers may have
been indurated by direct contact with the granite — in the hill
known as Grunong Pondok there are several granite dykes
traversing the crystalline limestone of which the hill is
composed, and at the end of the hill next to the granite
range the two rocks are in contact. This action could only
have taken place to a limited extent at the edges of the
formation, as in other situations there are thick intervening
beds of the non-calcareous members of the series, widely
separating the limestone from the granite.
The taller hills are exclusively composed of granite, as are
also some of the lower ones. The upturned Laurentian beds
appear at the bases of the granite ranges as spurs or
foot hills, the limestone in particular forming most curious
38 Sandhook of the
and picturesque hills, sometimes attaining a height of
considerably over 2,000 feet.
A suitably chosen section across the Kinta Valley would
give — starting from the Mera range — granite, gneissic and
schistose beds, clay-slates and sandstones, limestone, remains
of trap, alluvium, limestone, clay-slates and sandstones,
schistose and gneissic beds, and lastly the granite of the
Central range of the Peninsula. Sections in other valleys
would not be so perfect, as the limestone in particular is very
fragmentary.
The ores of the various metals mentioned in Part I. are
found in Perak in the different formations under which they
have been there tabulated. The list, however, is not to be
accepted as complete, as small quantities of the ores of many
other metals have also been found.
The metalliferous ores in the alluvial beds are naturally
derived from the older formations, but are in many cases
much more commercially important, because they are more
accessible and easier to work. In the formation of these
beds nature has done on a large scale what a miner does in a
small way. She has crushed and ground to powder vast
masses of rock, and by the action of water has sorted out and
concentrated within restricted areas all the valuable
constituents. The agents employed may be briefly
summarised as water, air and heat. The surface of the rock
having been softened by the combined action of these three
powerful destroyers, the rain detaches fragments and carries
them in the streams down the hillsides. In their descent,
being thrown violently against the rocks in the bed of the
stream, fragments are chipped off and become gradually
disintegrated until, on arrival at the level of the plains, they
are reduced to the state of sand and gravel. Here the
heavier particles are deposited, and the lighter gradually
find their way far out on to the plain. This simple process,
continued for thousands of years, wears away the hills and
distributes their materials over the plains and at the bottom
of the seas into which the waters ultimately flow.
The alluvial deposits themselves are also subjected to
a somewhat analogous process. The floor of a valley formed
of a thick deposit of alluvial matter will in time be
lowered by the action of the stream flowing through it, and
thus the matter first deposited will be again shifted and
sorted. Eivers and streams do not usually lower the level
of the whole valley equally ; thus it happens that portions
of the old alluvium are frequently left at the sides of the
valleys, forming what are known as river terraces. The
LIMESTONE CLIFFS, KINTA.
Federated Malay States. 39
excessive rainfall of Perak does not favour the formation of
these terraces, or, to speak more correctly, it rapidly rounds
them off, and the numerous tributaries v^^hich come in at such
short distances from the hills, on either side of the valleys,
cut them up and destroy their distinctive character ; but still
in many localities they may be recognised. They have taken
in the past a curious and interesting part in filling the caves
of some of the limestone hills with tin-bearing drift. Some
of these caves are now over four hundred feet above the
present level of the valley. They are worked for the tin
contained in them, and the remnants of the river terraces are
also mined to a considerable extent.
From the foregoing it will be apparent that there are two
distinct phases in the formation of alluvial valleys. Firstly,
the filling in with the detritus of the hills, and secondly the
sorting and partial carrying away of the deposit first formed.
The two processes may be seen in operation sometimes in
neighbouring valleys ; and to a certain extent, in the same
valley, at different seasons of the year. Flooding is an
essential of the fiUing-in process and variations of rainfall
therefore affect it ; but the alteration of the level of the
lower part or outlet of a valley is the important determining
factor between the two phases. The falling of a few trees,
or the accumulation of some driftwood, will bank up a
stream, and may cause it in a short time to deposit several
feet of earth above the obstruction ; while the breaking down
of such a barrier, the cutting of a new channel by the stream,
or other circumstances tending to lower it and prevent it
flooding, may, on the other hand, cause a lowering of the
surface of a valley to set in.
Some years back the filling-in process was going on to a
considerable extent in some of the valleys at the foot of the
hills between Papan and Lahat, in Kinta, where large
stretches of standing dead forest were to be seen. This was
caused by the silting up of the valleys and the raising of
the level of the earth above what is called the crown of the
trees. A layer of from one foot to eighteen inches of earth
is sufficient to kill most jungle trees. The trees having been
killed, rotted away and fell down branch by branch and
trunk by trunk, further blocking up and impeding the flow
of the streams and so increasing the amount of deposit. As
soon as the deposition moderated, a f]'esh crop of trees would
spring up, at a higher level than their predecessors, and in
the course of years the same thing would happen again. It
was in this way that the layers of peat and tree stumps were
formed which are such characteristic features of all alluvial
beds.
40 Sandhook of the
One of the most important geological facts in regard to
Perak which has come to light up to the present time is the
evidence of a recent subsidence of the coast line to the
extent of 105 ft. or more.
Sometime ago a boring was made to a depth of 105 feet at
Matang, about eight miles up the Larut Eiver, and a section
was made from it, which shows that within quite recent times
an important alteration of level has taken place. The
ground at that place is 6 feet above the present high-
water mark. Down to a depth of 17 feet from the surface,
the formation is marine, but below that, beds oi sand, clays,
and gravels, with leaf bands and pieces of wood are met with,
of the same nature as the drift near the hills, and containing
a small quantity of fine tin-sand ; these beds extend down
to a depth of 105 feet and probably much further.
It therefore appears that there has been a subsidence of at
least 105 feet since the deposition of the tin-bearing drift of
Larut. An alteration of level of this extent must have made
most important geographical changes in the configuration of
the Straits of Malacca ; and the fact may help to solve some
of the problems connected with the distribution of the flora
and fauna of this interesting locality.
In the first 17 feet of marine deposits there were found 16
species of molluscs, all identical with species now inhabiting
the sea of the coast. In the remainder of the bore, no animal
remains were discovered.
According to Malayan tradition, some small hills near the
mouth of the Perak River, which are now some miles inland,
were formerly islands. This points to the rapid formation
of the sea-swamps subsequent to the depression of the land ;
and to the comparatively recent date of this change of
level.
There are several hot springs in the State, and one visited
in upper Perak had a temperature of between 90 and 100^ F.,
and smelt strongly of sulphuretted hydrogen, the water
having a bitter taste. This spring rises through a greenish-
grey compact translucent silicious rock, which has probably
been deposited by the spring's own action. Similar rock has
been found at hot springs in Kinta, and does not appear to
have been met with where such springs do not exist. They
are not due to volcanic action, but seem simply to result from
water entering a rock crevice on the hills, and then flowing
down through the fissure, under the action of gravity, to a
great depth before it rises to the surface again and in its
Federated Malay States. 41
passage under pressure through the heated rocks it acquires
its high temperature and takes up its mineral and gaseous
constituents. All the springs which have been examined
rise through granite and are in the vicinity of granite hills.
A sample of the water not having been examined, no
reliable idea can be formed of it properties ; but the natives
beheve that its use will cure rheumatism and diseases of the
skin. These springs are much frequented by elephants,
rhinoceros, and other wild animals. It has been suggested
that the waters of these hot springs would have medicinal uses,
taken internally, but the connection between them and goitre,
in Perak, is too constant to be merely a coincidence.
One remarkable hot spring occurs in the bed of the Perak
Eiver at Pulau Kamiri. The heat on the sand at the
bottom of the river is 120° F., and if an q^^ is buried in the
sand, the heat is sufficient to cook it. The water is about
5 feet deep over the spring which is about 40 feet from the
eastern bank of the river.
The climate of Perak is good, the temperature ranging in cumate.
the low country from 66° F. in the night to 96° F. in the
shade in the heat of the day. The average mean is about
70° F. in the night and 87° F. in the day. The nights are
uniformly cool.
At 3,000 feet the average is 60° F. at night and 73° F. in
the day.
The rainfall varies considerably, as much as 200 inches in the
year being occasionally registered at Taiping, but the average
elsewhere is about 90 inches. There is no true rainy season,
but the wettest months are March, April, May, October,
November and December.
1. The total population of the State in 1891 and 1901 was Population.
as follows : —
Population.
1891.
1901.
Males
156,408
239,556
Females ...
57,846
90,109
Total ... 214,254 329,665
2. The total increase since 1891 is 115,411, or 53*86 per
cent. The increase in Males is 83,148, or 53*16 per cent.,
and in Females 32,263, or ^^'77 per cent.
42
Handbook of the
Hiitory.
3. The total increases amongst Europeans, Americans and
other nationalities are as follows : —
Europeans and Americans ... ... 306
Malays and other Natives of the
Archipelago 38,176
Chinese 55,894
Tamils and other Natives of India ... 19,875
Eurasians ... ... ... ... 302
Other Nationalities 858
4. The following table gives the figures of comparison
with the Census of 1891 : —
Race.
1891
1901.
Increase
per cent.
Europeans and A m ericans
366
672
83-60
Malays and other Natives of the Archi-
pelago
103,992
142,168
36-71
Chinese
94,345
150,239
59-24
Tamils and other Natives of India
14,885
34,760
133-52
Eurasians
289
591
104-49
Other Nationalities
377
1,235
227-58
It will be seen from the above figures that all nationalities
contribute to the total increase, the greatest increase, among
the main races, being shown by the Chinese, and the highest
percentage of increase by the Tamils and other Natives of
India.
The large increase in the Chinese population, who now lead
the Malays and other Natives of the Archipelago by 8,071,
was almost a foregone conclusion and calls for little comment.
It is, in a sense, at once the cause and the result of the
general progress of the country and of the development of
the great mining industry on which that progress so largely
depends.
According to local native tradition the district of Bruas,
on the coast of Larut, was the place where a Kingdom and
Raja were first established in Perak. Temong, a few miles
above Kuala Kangsar, on the Perak River, was afterwards
the seat of government.
Early in the sixteenth century, after the capture of
Malacca by the Portuguese, and the flight of Sultan
Federated Malay States. 43
Muhammad to Johor, a Prince of the Royal line of Malacca
and Johor established himself in Perak as Sultan, and the
members of the Royal Family now living claim to be
descended from him. In subsequent years Perak was twice
invaded by the Achinese, and rajas and chiefs were carried
in captivity to Sumatra. One of these was a Perak Prince
who was afterwards Sultan of Achin, and became famous
under the name of Sultan Mansur Shah.
About the year 1650, the Dutch established, by virtue of
a treaty with Achin, a trading station on the Perak River,
and acquired a monopoly of the tin trade, which even then
was of some importance.
In the following year their factory was attacked by the
Malays, and the Dutch were cut off to a man.
The Dutch trading station, though again established, was
abandoned several times, owing to the hostility of the Perak
people.
The Island of Pangkor, or Dinding, was, about 1670,
occupied by the Dutch, but was abandoned in 1690, and
their fort, of which the ruins remain to the present day, was
blown up in the last century.
The last Dutch station in Perak was on the Perak River,
at Pengkalan Halban, some miles below the present town of
Teluk Anson, but it was deserted in 1783, though resettled
some years afterwards. The Dutch were finally ejected by
the English, under Lord Camelford and Lieutenant
Macalister, in the year 1795.
Perak was subdued by the Siamese in 1818, but by a
treaty between the East India Company and Siam in 1824,
its independence under British protection was secured From
that time until 1874 there was little political communication
between Perak and the British settlement in the Straits of
Malacca. In the latter year, internal disturbances and
piracy on the coast of Perak, which injuriously affected the
neighbouring settlement of Penang and the coasting trade
in the Straits of Malacca, were put an end to by the inter-
vention of Sir Andrew Clarke, r.e., g.c.m.g., then Q-overnor
of the Straits Settlements.
A British Resident and Assistant were, at the request of
the Sultan of Perak, appointed to aid in establishing and
maintaining a proper administration, while their powers and
other matters were determined by a treaty concluded at
Pangkor on the 20th January, 1874. The first British
Resident, Mr. J. W. W. Birch, was murdered by the Malays
while bathing at Pasir Salak, on the Perak River on the
44 Handbook of the
2nd November, 1875. A force sent to apprehend the
murderers was resisted, and it became necessary to bring troops
from India and China to obtain redress and secure order in
the State. All the murderers were arrested and punished ;
but, as it was found that many of the principal chiefs had
instigated or been privy to the crime, it was found necessary
to banish the Sultan (Abdullah), and three chiefs to the
Seychelles, while the ex-Sultan (Ismail) was sent as a State
prisoner to Johor.
Eaja Muda Yusuf, son of a previous Sultan, was then
created Regent of Perak, and in February, 1877, Mr. Hugh
Low (now Sir Hugh Low, g.c.m.g.) was appointed British
Resident of Perak, a post which he held until May, 1889,
when he retired and was succeeded by Mr. F. A. Swettenham,
c.M.G. (now Sir F. A. Swettenham, k.c.m.g.).
H.H. Raja Muda Yusof, was installed as Sultan of Perak
in May, 1887, and died in July of the same year. He was
succeeded by H. H. Raja Muda Idris, c.m.g., son of Raja
Bendahara Iskandar, and was formally installed as Sultan
of Perak on the 5th April, 1889.
His Royal Highness the Duke of Cornwall and York
conferred upon the Sultan of Perak the honour of the
G.C.M.Gr. upon the occasion of his visit to Singapore in
April, 1901.
Native Races. The Aborigines of Perak consist of two tribes known as
Sakai and Semang.
The Sakais are short, but the men are strongly built, and
in colouring they are rather lighter than the Malay. When
not artificially coloured a yellowish brown their hair is black,
rather long and wavy, and stands out from the head. They
can hardly be said to wear any clothes, a strip of bark cloth
and a few rude ornaments being all that they consider
necessary.
The blow-pipe, or sumpitan, with its small poisoned darts
and rude bamboo pointed spears constitute their weapons.
They have considerable taste in decorating these and the few
simple utensils that suffice for their wants. Even bamboos
in which they cook rice, and which are only used once, are
sometimes elaborately decorated with incised patterns.
Nearly every tribe (and they are broken up in many) has a
dialect of its own, showing that intertribal communication
is rare.
In some parts of Perak the general appearance of the
Sakais in not much unlike that of the Malays of the interior
for the latter people had been, up to the time of the arrival
Federated Malay States. 45
of the English in Perak, in the habit of making raids on
these aborigines, and the captives taken became the slaves,
and in the case of females the concubines, of their Malay
captors. This custom carried on for a long series of years,
introduced a large admixture of Sakai blood into the Malay
population.
In consequence of the ill-treatment which these people
have suffered from the Malays they are very shy, and avoid
strangers with the instinct of wild animals. Malays are
Muhammadans and it was not considered a crime to kill an
unbelieving Sakai, any more than it was to kill a dog, or
other animal ; this state of things existed down to about
the year 1874 or 1875.
The Semangs inhabit the country to the west of the Perak
Eiver, and are smaller than the Sakais, but are rather
darker and more negroid in appearance, with close curly
black hair. They use bows and arrows in addition to the
blow-pipe. Many of them have no permanent abodes and
do not plant any rice or other grain, but lead a purely
nomadic life in the jungles, living on what they can kill
with their weapons, and on wild fruits, leaves and roots.
They chew the green leaves of tobacco, but prefer cured
tobacco when they can get it. Neither Sakais or Semangs
have any idea of a divinity, but they have a strong belief in
good and evil spirits.
Malays. — Into the much contested question of the origin
of Malays it is needless to enter, but it may be safely
affirmed that they are only colonists, who, at no very remote
period, settled along the shores of the Malay Peninsula, and
on the banks of its rivers.
They are an indolent, contented, thriftless, unambitious,
polite and peaceful race, mainly the reverse of the sulJen
revengeful, silent, and bloodthirsty Malay commonly
portrayed in books of travel. That there are bad characters
amongst them is not to be doubted, but that they are more
frequent among Malays than other nations is certainly not a
fact.
It seems to be doubtful whether the Malays as a race are
susceptible of much improvement in their own country.
Certain it is, that they have not taken a leading part in
commercial and other pursuits, but have allowed, both here
and in other parts of the Straits, the Chinese, Tamils, and
other foreigners to become the leading shopkeepers, merchants,
miners, and agriculturists. The lower classes are content
with a bare subsistence, while the well-born Malay is too proud
(and often, it must be confessed, too indolent) to work ; he
4
46
Handbook of the
Revenue and
Expenditure.
has not the commercial astuteness of the Chinaman, but
prefers to live by taxing his labour, while he despises the
Tamils and mixed races.
At the census taken in 1901, there were only 73 Malay
prisoners in the State, or one to every 1,794, while of Tamils
there were one to every 476, of Chinese one to every 296,
and of Bengalis one to every 281. The Malays occupied
the same favourable position at the census of 1891, when
the proportion of prisoners of that nationality was one to
every 1,343. Taking the figures of the 1891 census, the
proportion of prisoners to population in England and Wales
works out at one to 1,585, which very closely approximates
to the ratio found to exist amongst the Malays of Perak.
The Chinese, who now form nearly one-half of the entire
population, are the real workers in the State. Nearly all
the mining, and most of the trade, is in their hands. The
customs, or, as they are called, the revenue farms, are also
held by them.
Boat, cart, carriage and house building and most other
trades are carried on almost exclusively by the Chinese. But
it is a mistake to suppose that they are good workmen. If
the climate would permit the employment of European
artisans, there is no doubt that there would be a good field
in the Straits for really skilled workmen.
Considering that the Chinese immigrants are, as a rule, of
the lowest class, it is surprising with what ease they are kept
in order, and what a small proportion of crime is committed.
Life and property are as safe, perhaps safer, than in England.
A comparison of revenue and expenditure since 1875 is
shown in the following table : —
Year.
Revenue.
Expenditure.
Year.
Revenue.
Expenditure.
$ c.
$ c.
% 0-
$ c.
1875
226,333 00
256,831 00
1888
2,016,240 33
1,709,260 50
1876
273,043 00
289,476 00
1889
2,776,583 71
2,090,116 97
1877
312,872 43
292,711 64
1890
2,504,116 99
2,555,793 38
1878
328,608 80
291,473 59
1891
2,324,981 58
3,146,129 37
1879
388,372 84
369,707 33
1892
2,689,565 63
3,094,855 34
1880
582,496 18
621,995 70
1893
3,034,093 90
3,401,086 67
1881
692,861 41
652,938 35
1894
3,542,114 75
3,587,224 04
1882
905,385 92
918,914 50
1895
4,033,611 94
3,757,007 83
1883
1,474,330 11
1,350,610 69
1896
3,960,871 23
3,989,376 26
1884
1,532,497 22
1,481,470 10
1897
3,837,558 61
4,178,238 03
1885
1,522,084 84
1,316,625 86
1898
4,575,842 35
5,560,529 70
1886
1,688,276 22
1,465,325 08
1899
6,580,305 97
5,441,691 83
1887
1,827,476 80
1,550,489 29
1900
7,636,126 76
6,144,774 21
Federated Malay States. 47
On the 1st January, 1900, the excess of assets over liabili-
ties amounted to $406,811, and on the 1st January, 1901, to
$1,898,164. The principal sources of revenue are an export
duty on tin, the spirit, opium, and other forms, railway
receipts, land rents, municipal taxes, forest fees, post
and telegraph receipts, and fines and fees of court.
The imports for the year 1900 were valued at $14,741,148, Trade.
and the exports for the same year at $29,190,66)3, giving a
total trade of nearly forty-four millions of dollars.
The principal export is tin. The value of this exported in
1900 amounted to $26,032,343.
Other important articles of trade are rice, opium, cotton
goods, machinery, hardware, sugar, tobacco, live stock and
poultry, firewood, fish, oils, and railway materials.
The whole of the trade of the State is carried between the
ports of the State and Singapore, Penang, and Malacca.
Agriculture has not made any great progress in the State, Agriculture
and at the present time a comparatively small area of land onlv <^^^^^^9fM^
is under cultivation This may be accounted for by the
thinness of the population and the ease with which the
natives can get the necessaries of Life, either by working
occasionally in the mines, or cultivating a small patch of
garden and rice land. The cost of living to a Malay is only
about three to four pence a day ; and wages, which are
governed in a great measure by the proximity to the chief
mining districts, range from one to two shilHngs per diem.
Bice. — Eice is at present the staple agricultural product,
and is planted in two ways ; it is called either hill, or wet,
padi, according to its situation. The growing of hill padi is
now prohibited by the Grovernment, because it leads to the
destruction of large quantities of valuable timber and spoils
the land for any other purpose for seven or more years after-
wards. Only one crop is taken from the land, and then it is
allowed to grow up in jungle again.
Wet padi is grown on the plains, and by means of artificial
irrigation the fields are kept flooded with water while the
rice is growing. The ground is prepared by cutting the
weeds on it, letting them dry in the sun, and then burning
them off ; the ground is next turned by rude wooden ploughs
drawn by buffaloes, and the young rice plants (which have
been raised in a nursery) are planted out in the fields by
women and children.
Manure is quite unknown in rice culture in Perak, and
after several years' cultivation, fields have hitherto been
4a
48 Handbook of the
allowed to lie fallow for several seasons before they are
planted up again.
A padi crop does not really take much out of the soil,
because only the ears are cut, all the straw being left standing
in the fields to rot and so manure the ground.
In 1901 $3,521,287 worth of rice was imported into Perak,
against an export of the same valued at $541,668.
The State is therefore spending nearly three million
dollars a year on rice, which ought to be grown on the
thousands of acres of waste land now lying idle. The
encouragement of the culture of rice is therefore one of
the most important subjects to which attention can be drawn
and is now occupying the earnest attention of Government.
Indian Corn. — This grain is grown in considerable quan-
tities, but it does not flourish to the same extent as in
colder climates. It is rarely that more than two cobs are
borne by one plant, and very often only one is produced.
The corn is mostly eaten by the Malays before it is ripe,
the whole cob being boiled for that purpose.
Root Crops and Vegetables. — The former comprise sweet
potatoes, yams, caladium bulbs, cassava, and several others..
They are only produced in sufficient quantity to supply
the local demands. Potatoes will not grow, except on the
mountains, but the market is weU supplied by those im-
ported from India and Australia. Other vegetables, such
as onions, lettuce, beans, egg-fruit, cucumbers, vegetable-
marrows, and pumpkins, grow freely, but cabbages, radishes,
carrots, French beans, tomatoes, asparagus, and other
European vegetables can only be raised with care from
imported seeds, and usually at a considerable elevation.
The natives eat many leaves and plants that they find in
the jungle, but Europeans, with the prejudices which they
have to unknown and unfamiliar dishes, rarely taste these
vegetables, and nothing has been done in the way of trying
to improve by cultivation the most promising and delicate
flavoured of the plants ; but there seems to be a fair field
for investigation in this line.
Fruits. — Owing to the highly coloured descriptions that
travellers have given, tropical fruits are supposed by the
great majority of English people to be far finer, richer and
better in every way than those grown in colder climates ;
but such is not the case ; and though Malayan fruits exceed
English fruits in size and often in strength of flavour and
odour, a strawberry, pear or peach is, in the judgment of
Europeans, quite unequalled by anything grown in Malaya.
Federated Malay States, 49
The two Malayan fruits that stand out prominently are the
Mangosteen and the Durian. The latter has often been
described, but its smell and taste are not be put into words.
Many people can never bring themselves to taste it, but
when once this repugnance, which is caused by the over-
poweringly offensive odour, is overcome, a liking for it is
almost sure to follow. Among Easterns of all nationalities,
an insatiable craving for it seems to exist, and during the
season those who own many trees live almost entirely upon
the sale of durians. The owners build themselves little
houses perched on high poles near the trees, and arrange
strings with wooden clappers and other noise-producing
instruments attached to them to drive away the various
animals which would otherwise strip the trees.
Bears and squirrels are the chief thieves, but Malays say
that tigers are also very fond of the fruit. Whether this is
a fact or not remains to be proved, but certain it is that
elephants, cattle, goats, horses, dogs and monkeys eat them
whenever they get a chance.
The price of the durian varies from Is. 6d., in Singapore,
at the beginning of the season, to 2d. or 3d. each in the
country. In Mandalay and Burmah, as much as two or
three rupees is paid for a durian.
The mangosteen is a pleasant fruit, slightly acid, and
with a delicate but characteristic flavour. When opened,
the contrast, between the snow white of the fruit and the
dark red or purple of the rind is striking and beautiful. The
price is about a half -penny each.
Mangoes, langsat, machang, tampuni, rambei, shaddocks,
rambutan, pulsasan, papaya, guavas, pineapples, duku,
tampoi, bananas and plaintains, water-melons, hmes, oranges,
jackfruit, custard apples, sweet and sour sops, are the
principal remaining kinds of fruits that may be mentioned.
The mangoes are not to be compared with those of Bombay,
Siam, or Manila.
One great want is a fruit that will cook well, and make
tarts and preserves. The pine, sour sop, banana, rambutan,
the guava and the mango alone are available for this purpose,
and Europeans have to fall back on tinned and bottled
English fruits. The large sale of these last is a convincing
proof of the inferiority of tropical fruit.
Bai'k used for Tanning. — Considerable quantities of bark
are exported from the mangrove swamps that line the sea
coast of Perak. The trees which produce it are species of
the genus rhizophora. The mangrove forests which cover
these sea swamps are called hdkau by the Malays.
50 Handbook of the
There are many other harks which are used for the same
purposes, but they are not exported at present.
Rattans. — Canes are collected and exported to a moderate
extent; $7,967 worth was exported in 1900. They grow
wild, and no attempt has ever, as far as is known, been made
to cultivate them, though there seems to be no reason why
they should not be planted and give good returns.
Rotan Semambu {calamus seipionuni) is known as the
Malacca cane, and is exported in considerable quantity for
the purpose of being made into walking sticks. It is used
locally for the handles of the baskets used in tin mines, and
the frames of rattan chairs. Many other kinds of rotan
are used as walking sticks, among others j^otan manoh and
rotan dudok may be mentioned. For other purposes, such
as baskets, mat and chair making, house building, and the
thousand and one uses that the natives put this plant to,
rotan sega, rotan ayer, rotan battc, rotan sindek, rotan dahan,
rotan tiga sagi, and many others are used.
Rotan sega, before the introduction of matches, was in
great request, from the comparative ease with which fire
may be obtained from a strip of it by rapid friction round a
piece of dry wood. The dye, " dragon's blood," is obtained
from the fruit of calamus draco, called by the natives rotan
jerning, and is used by them in staining articles, such as the
rushes used in mat making of a bright red colour.
Bamboo. — This gigantic grass grows luxuriantly throughout
the State. There are about twelve varieties cultivated, or
rather planted, by the Malays, and about an equal number
growing wild in the forests. Its uses, like those of the
rattan, are so numerous that it is impossible to enumerate
them all. They range from house-building materials to the
principal ingredient in a bamboo curry, and the young
tender shoots thus treated make an excellent dish.
Cotton. — The tree-cotton (gossypium arbor eum) is grown to
a hmited extent in Perak, but nothing like systematic
cultivation has ever yet been attempted here.
Silk-cotton, the produce of eriodendron aufractuosicm, is
also grown in Malaya, and is largely used for stuffing
mattresses and pillows.
A species of the genus bombax, also yielding silk-cotton,
grows wild in the jungles and attains vast dimensions. If
produced in sufficient quantity, silk-cotton seems well adapted
to form an ingredient in the better class paper, and the seeds,
which contain a very large percentage of sweet, pleasant
tasting oil, might be turned to some account.
Federated Malay States. 51
Sugar. — Sugar to the value of $1,315,974 was exported
from the Krian district of Perak in 1900. Its cultivation is
now being extended to the remainder of the State, but there
is still a quantity of land suitable for its growth on the
mangrove swamps bordering the sea, and on the slightly
undulating lands adjoining.
The sugar is produced by the Chinese who, in some cases,
employ European engineers in the works, but a European
company has successfully opened a large estate on the Grula
river, and several more are now opening land in Kurau and
Lower Perak.
Palm sugar is made in small quantities from the arenga
saccharifera, the coconut, and other palms.
Spirits. — The amount exported was 49,400 gallons, valued
at $22,880. This spirit is made from the refuse of the sugar
mills and is mostly exported. That made for local con-
sumption is distilled from a mixture of brown sugar or
molasses and rice.
Coffee. — In the gardens of the Malays native coffee is
produced, and on the experimental hill gardens, opened by
the Government of Perak, and the estates opened by private
enterprise, the cultivation of Liberian coffee is an assured
success, but the present low price has induced some of the
planters to turn their attention to other products.
Only $82,446 worth of coffee was exported in 1900, but
then the local market was also supplied, as none was im-
ported.
The berry is not always used by the Malays, but a sort of
tea made from the roasted leaves of the coffee bush is often
preferred by them for their own drinking.
Tea. — This has only been grown experimentally as yet.
There were about 50 acres of Assam Hybrid in the Grovern-
ment hill gardens, at elevations varying from 1,600 to 3,000
feet, and this was pronounced by competent authorities to be
doing as well as any in Ceylon. The tea made from the
leaves is also of good quality, and has been sold on the
London market at satisfactory prices There is fine land in
the low country suited to tea cultivation, and what has been
planted on the plains has grown most luxuriantly.
Coconuts and Betelnuts. — Many young plantations of coco-
nuts will soon be coming into bearing in various parts of the
State. Copra valued at $30,513 was exported from Lower
Perak in 1900.
Betelnuts [areca catechu) are not produced in sufficient
quantity to supply the wants of the State, except in Krian and
52 Handbook of the
Lower Perak, from which $28,338 worth were exported
in 1900, but they can he grown to any extent.
Indigo is cultivated and manufactured by the Chinese in
Krian, and in 1900 $5,990 worth was exported. It is used
locally in dyeing the dark blue cloth that is almost universally
worn by the labouring classes of Chinese.
Tobacco and Gamhier. — These products are grown to a
small extent by the natives and in sufficient quantities to
show the suitability of the soil and climate to their cultiva-
tion.
Tapioca. — There is one large tapioca estate in the Trong
district, and $42,544 worth of tapioca was exported in 1900.
Pepper has of late years been planted to a considerable
extent, and the gardens which have come into bearing look
most promising, and the pepper produced is of excellent
quality. The export for 1900 was valued at $25,322.
Nutmegs, cardamoms, patchouli, citronella, khus-khus,
and lemon grass, flourish wherever planted. Several kinds
of nutmegs and cardamoms grow wild in the jungle and
are collected by the natives for sale.
Incense, Camphor and Damar. — Incense trees are plentiful
in some parts of the jungle. Large nurseries have been
made of these trees, and many thousands of plants will soon
be ready for planting out on the waste lands of Larut.
The camphor tree is also said still to grow in some parts
of Perak. Formerly it was abundant but it has been almost
exterminated by the collectors in the more accessible parts of
the country.
G-haru, or Eagle Wood, is also occasionally met with.
Eesin, known here and in the market as damar is produced
by many kinds of trees. The principal are Damar mata
kuching, D. Meranti, D. Laut, D. Degon, Damar Batu.
The stone-resin is found in the beds of tidal rivers.
India-Rubber. — There are to be found growing in the
forests of the State, besides the well-known Ficus elastica, a
tree which attains immense dimensions, several creepers
belonging to or nearly alhed to the genius Wilioughbeia, which
produce india-rubber of excellent quahty.
The South American Caoutchouc-producing trees, TTevea
Braziliensis and Manihot Glazovu, were introduced into Perak
many years ago and the former have grown into large
trees. The latter, however, after attaining a size of 30 feet
or so dies out from some unexplained cause. Large quanti-
ties of Para Eubber have recently been planted in several
Federated Malay States, 53
districts and much more would have been put in but for the
difficulty of obtaining seed.
Gutfa-Percha. — The trees which produce this gum are to
be found throughout the jungle ; but nearly all those of a
size to yield sufficient gutta to repay the trouble of felling,
have been destroyed. The trees from which gutta is
extracted are as follows, arranged in the order of the quahty
of the gum they produce : — Gretah taban merah (Dichopsis
gutta), getah taban sutra [Dichopsis sp), Gretah sundek
{Tayena leerii), Getah taban puteh {Dichopsis sp.), Gretah
taban chaier {Dichopsis pustuiata), Gretah taban simpor
{Dichopsis maingayi). The export of Grutta-percha for 1898
was valued at 33,809 dollars.
These are not important at the present time, the natives Animal
having little or no idea of raising or improving stock. The -P»'«*^^*'«-
cattle are, as a consequence, few in number, of inferior quality,
and for the most part imported.
Birds' Nests. — In the cases of the hmestone hills, the
swallow {collocalia linchi, Hors.) builds its much sought after
edible nests. Up to the present time, however, these nests
have not been collected in the State, except by the Semangs
in Upper Perak, to a small extent. This neglect seems to be
attributable to the apathetic indolence of the Malays, and
possibly to the fact that the nests are but few in number and
of inferior quahty.
Bats' Guano {tahi klaicer). — To the same caves, enormous
hosts of bats resort in the day time to sleep and, as a
consequence, the floors of these caverns are lined many feet
thick with their excrement. As yet these stores of manure
have been almost untouched ; though the guano is rich in
nutritive properties.
Bfics^-icax, Honpy and Lac or Lak, are collected in small
quantities. Bees have not yet been domesticated in Perak,
nor has any attempt been made to cultivate the trees on
which the lac insect is found in the jungle, though both
subjects seem well worthy of attention.
Silk. — The rearing of silk worms was carried on for some
time in Larut, and the results obtained seemed very
encouraging, but disease shewed itself and, as in other places,
caused the death of most of the worms.
Tin. — The principal product of Perak is tin, and it was Economic
the presence of this metal which first attracted Chinese to the ^^^^rals.
State. Disputes with reference to the possession of mines
ensued followed by bloodshed and failure of the Malay chief
54 Handbook oj the
to preserve his authority. An appeal was then made to the
British Grovernment for assistance, and the present system of
Protection estahlished by treaty. Since that time (January,
1874) the revenue had increased twenty-fold: the export
duty on tin contributing most largely to that result. The
ore is found in the form of " stream tin."
Almost all the tin has been raised by Chinese miners with
the most primitive appliances, and although, no doubt, much
metal has been and is still lost by the imperfection of their
methods of working, yet at the same time, owing to their
inexpensive system, land which would not pay Europeans
to work, has given Chinese a profitable return.
The tin fields of Larut, which may be taken as typical of
those of the rest of Perak, form a strip of land of from two
to three miles broad along the base of a range of granite
mountains.
These alluvial flats are composed of layers of clays, sands,
and gravels, with beds of peat, containing the stumps of trees
and fallen tree trunks, marking former swamps and levels of
the plain.
The tin-bearing stratum rests on a stiff grey or white clay
bottom, and varies in thickness from a few inches to six or
eight feet, and even more. Sometimes the stratum is divided
by a layer of clay.
The whole of the plains are composed of the detritus of
the granite and the plseozoic slates and sandstones which form,
or have formed, the ranges of hills. The tin is not evenly
distributed over the plains, but is found to follow the lowest
parts of the clay bed or, in other words, the beds of the
ancient rivers. The tin-sand is, as a rule coarse-grained near
the hills and finer as it recedes from them.
The method of working the mines is to remove the earth
covering the tin-bearing stratum. This is what is called the
" over-burden " or " stripping," and varies from three or four
to 30 feet in thickness.
The work is usually done by contract in the Chinese mines.
The tin-bearing layer called the " wash dirt " is then raised
to the surface and washed with a stream of water in long
wooden cofiin-shaped boxes. The tin-sand being more than
twice as heavy as the clay and gravel with which it is mixed,
stops in the upper part of th box, while the lighter parts are
carried away by the stream of water.
The tin-sand is re-washed by hand in large wooden dishes,
and is then sold to the smelters or exported.
Federated Malay States. 55
The wash contains about one or two per cent, of ore as an
average. There are portions of it which contain sometimes
as much as twenty-five per cent, and on the other hand, very
poor parts which hardly pay for the trouble of washing.
The shifting and raising of the earth in the mines is all
done by digging with large hoes called Changkols, and the
earth is then filled into baskets, two of which are carried by
each man by means of a yoke or stick over his shoulder.
The water is pumped from most of the mines by Chinese
overshot water-wheels, and endless chain pumps. In the
larger mines steam engines are used in conjunction with
centrifugal pumps.
Mining by means of small vertical shafts is carried on to
a considerable extent by the Chinese. It is only possible on
dry hilly ground. A deep mine is at work at Tronoh with
both vertical and inclined shafts, with steam pumps, winding
apparatus and buddies, but it is doubtful if it is alluvium
which is being mined.
In the year 1892 the first hydraulic mining plant was put
up at Changkat Pari, but owing to there being an insufiicient
fall below the sluice the tailings could not get away and it
was abandoned. The next installation was erected at
Gropeng, in the same year, and has been in successful
operation ever since. Other plants have been worked at
Bruseh and Bentong in Batang Padang. At the present
time a number of hydraulic sluices are being laid down. In
this method a jet of water at high pressure is directed
against the tin-bearing earth, which is washed down by it
into a long sluice furnished with devices for retaining the
tin sand ; with a properly made sluice like those at Bruseh,
about eight men at a shift are sufficient to work it and it
does the work of about 200 to 250 men.
The Chinese mines are worked on the truck system, all
food and other necessaries being supplied by the mine
owners or money advancers. Some mines are carried on
which could not pay if the profits from the sale of food to
the coolies did not come into the advancers' hands. The
commonest arrangement is called the co-operative system,
where all the coolies have a share in whatever profit is made
after repaying the advancers' loans, and settling with him
for the value of food and other supplies.
The tin-sand after being re-washed, is smelted in rude
blast furnaces, charcoal being used as fuel. The loss of tin
is rather high in the poorer class of ores when treated in
these Chinese furnaces, and the slag is several times re-
smelted. A very large proportion of Perak tin is now
56 Handbook of the
smelted at the Pulau Brani (Singapore) Smelting Works of
the Straits Trading Company. The amount so treated in
1898 was 153,529 pikuls.
Two reverberatory smelting-houses have been built in
Larut, one in Kinta, and another in Teluk Anson but none
of them have succeeded in working so as to cover expenses.
The difficulty of buying a sufficiency of ore at paying prices,
to keep the furnaces going, and the refractory nature of the
highly siKcious slag produced, with consequent serious loss of
tin, appear to have been the chief causes of these failures.
Tin lodes have been discovered, and prospecting work has
been done on several of them ; but it was not until October,
1889, that the first mine was started at Selama. This mine
unfortunately proved unsuccessful, as the ore which was
found in the first instance (and on the strength of which
work on an extensive scale was undertaken) proved to be a
mere patch in a piece of rock which had, in ages long past,
shifted from its original position.
The rock in the upper part of the Kinta valley is mostly
limestone, and about twenty lodes have, up to the present
time, been reported to occur in it.
The Chinese are working in many places in Kinta the
upper oxidized portions of lodes, in some cases using steam
stamps to crush the ore. These mines are each worked by
several small parties of men, each party with their own
shaft independent of the others ; the shafts are sometimes
not more than 12 feet from each other. As soon, however,
as they come to the undecomposed ore they abandon the work
and, as usual with Chinese, cover it all up.
Gold. — Upper Perak, Batang Padang and Kuala Kangsar
produce a limited quantity of gold. It is associated with
the tin-sand in the alluvial drifts, as a rule, and the tin-sand
is re-washed to separate it. There are no statistics to show
the amount of gold that has been raised up to the present
time ; some of the tin-sand gives as much as 6 ozs. to the ton,
and some " wash " recently examined gave 7 dwts. per ton.
Some quartz leaders showed as much as 132 ozs. of gold per
ton of rock, but nothing has been done to prove the extent
of the lode.
Near Tapah, in Batang Padang, a gold quartz lode has
been worked to a considerable extent. This mine, known as
Bukit Mas, had an out-put for 1897 of 1,100 ozs. of gold
from about 5,250 tons of ore but has since been abandoned,
the lode on the higher levels proving too poor to work.
Federated Malay States. 57
Lead. — Gralena of very good quality has been found. Car-
bonate and phosphate of lead are also found in considerable
quantities. The galena is said to carry a paying percentage
of silver.
At Asam Kumbang, in Larut, a vein of this mineral has
been brought to light ; and quite recently it has also been
found at Plang, at Lahat in Kinta, and Ulu Sa'petang
in Larut.
Iron. — Ores of this metal are to be had in many parts of
the State, but would not pay to work as there is no coal,
notwithstanding what has been stated to the contrary by
writers of books of travel.
Copper. — In the limestone of Kinta, ores of this metal
have been discovered, as well as at Plang and Selama. In
Batang Padang native copper occurs in the alluvium
associated with tin and gold.
Bismuth. — Native bismuth has been met with in two places
in Kinta and in Batang Padang.
Mercury has been found in small quantities in Upper
Perak and Batang Padang. There is doubt, however, as to
its origin at the latter place. Native amalgam, that is gold
and mercury, has been found at Changkat Mamot. This
place is also in Batang Padang.
Arsenic. — This metal also exists in Kinta and other
places associated with tin and lead, and will doubtless pay to
work as a secondary product.
Manganese has been found at Sorakai, Talang and Ayer
Daun Sang, in Kinta.
Flumlago occurs in Batang Padang and Kinta, but is of
inferior quality.
Silver. — All the lead ore is argentiferous, and that of Ulu
Sa'petang contains from 100 to 200 ozs. of silver per ton.
Tungsten. — An ore of this metal, called wolfram, has been
found in many parts of the State, and with the increasing
demand for it, caused by its use in making the alloy known
as tungsten-steel, employed for heavy ordnance and other
purposes, it is possible that some of the deposits of wolfram
might be worked at a profit. Scheelite, a tungstate of lime,
has also been found in the Kuala Kangsar district and is
reported to be plentiful. Wolfram is being exported in
small quantities from Batang Padang.
Zinc. — Sulphide of zinc has been recognised in the Ulu
Sa'petang ore, associated with sulphide of lead, tin and
mundic, also in Kinta.
58 Handbook of the
Sapphires, garnets, and topaz have been discovered in
Batang Padang, Kinta, and Upper Perak.
Marble. — There is an abundance of fine marble scattered
over the State, some of it very handsomely veined with grey,
red, and black, some again is nearly black, veined with white,
while other kinds are mottled with different shades of greys
and olive greens, and in Kinta there is some pure white
marble.
A company has been formed to work the marble at
Gunong Cheroh near Ipoh in Kinta. Large works have
been erected and steam machinery is being employed to cut
it up and polish it. As far as can be seen now there seems
to be every prospect of this industry being a success, as the
marble is pronounced by the ItaHan foreman to be of
excellent quality.
Granite. — The granitic ranges of which so large a portion
of Perak consists afford an unlimited store of this useful
stone. The granite that is worked near Taipeng and at
Bukit Gantang is of a grey colour, and rather large grained.
It is quarried for roadmakiDg, Blake's crusher being used to
reduce it ; blocks are also cut for building purposes, culverts
and landmarks. The work is principally carried on by
convicts, a quarry having been opened near the gaol at
Taipeng with a tramway running into the gaol yard, where
the rough blocks of stone are dressed. Some handsome red
and green granite occurs in Batang Pedang.
China Clay. — In most of the tin fields of Perak the stratum
underlying the " wash " or tin-bearing deposit, is pure white
China clay or kaolin.
There must be many millions of tons of this material in
Perak, but it is doubtful if it could be worked with profit, on
account of the cost of transport to Europe. If Chinese
potters could be induced to start works here, a large trade
might be carried on with such fine material to work upon,
and white firebricks could be made of the refuse.
Bricks are made from the same stuff in Cornwall, in the
China clay works, and sell for a high price, being used both
as fire and as ornamental building bricks.
Brick Earth. — Plenty of good brick clay is scattered over
the country, and the material for making fire-bricks is also
to be had in abundance, as mentioned above.
Very fair bricks are now made in Perak, and sell for about
$7 per 1,000 ; but they are small, and like everything of
Chinese manufacture, they are susceptible of great improve-
ment ; and when the clay is weathered, well mixed, and
Federated Malaij States,
moulded, and the bricks are equally burned, they will be of
excellent quality.
Tiles are now being made at Chenderiang in Batang
Padang, and are of much better quality than the Malacca tiles,
being harder, less absorbent, and of a better shape. Very
good tiles are also being made at Batu Grajah, Kinta.
The railway contractors have been turning out excellent
machine-made bricks in Batang Padang, Kinta, and Larut,
and a Chinaman in Krian makes good machine-moulded tiles.
Pottery. — The manufacture of pottery is nearly confined to
the Malays, and is only carried on in a small way in two or
three districts. It is unglazed, or only glazed with damar on
the lower part. Some of the shapes are very graceful. The
patterns are pressed into the work by means of stamps, and
tools are used to produce dots and lines. Eaised work is also
employed in decorating the ware, being put on in strips after
the vessels are formed. Stamped raised work does not seem
to be employed, and the potters wheel has not yet been
introduced amongst the Malays.
Coarse earthenware cooking pots are made to a limited
extent in Larut by Indian and Chinese potters.
Posts and Telegraphs. — The following return of the covers Posts and
which passed through the post offices in Perak since 1881 TeUgraphs.
show what rapid strides the country is making : —
1881
17,327
1883
102,963
1886
202,646
1891
536,115
1893
1,027,166
1895
2,057,023
1900
4,600,904
Nineteen thousand four hundred and sixty-five Money
Orders were issued from Perak post offices, to the amount of
$583,743 in 1900, payable in Perak, India, Ceylon, the
Straits, other Native States, China, Japan, etc., while 8,090
Money Orders, to the amount of $174,312, were paid in the
State. Postal orders are also issued for payment in England.
Until the year 1884 the only telegraph lines in existence
in the State were those running between Matang, Taiping,
and Kuala Kangsar, a total distance of 26 miles. Since then
new lines have been erected, until now (1900) the total length
of telegraph and telephone wires in use is 680 miles, exclusive
of the railway lines, connection with the outside world being
made through Penang on the north side and through
60
Sandhook 0/ the
Uoads.
Buildings.
Selangor, Negri Sembilan, and Malacca to the south. There
are 19 post and telegraph offices, and nine where ordinary
postal work is transacted by railway station-masters and
district office clerks. During 1900, over 800,000 telegrams
were sent over the Perak lines.
Roads. — There is a metalled cart-road from Selama, in the
north of the State, to Sungkai in the south. It passes
through Kamunting, Taiping, Kuala Kangsar, over the
Enggor pontoon bridge, through Ipoh, Sungei Baia, Gropeng,
Kuala Dipang, Kampar, and Tapah. The principal branches
of this main road are that at Bukit Putus, which connects
Krian and Province Wellesley, the old Matang road, the road
from near Ohangkat Jering to Trong and the Bindings, from
near Padang Pengas to Kota Tampan in Upper Perak, from
Ipoh to Batu Grajah through Lahat, with a branch to Tronoh
and Blanja ; from Gopeng to Kota Bharu, from Tapah to
Chanderiang, and another up the Oheroh valley, and lastly,
one to connect the town of Tapah with the Kinta Yalley
Eailway. There is also a metalled cart-road from Tanjong
Malim to Slim. In all, there are 482 miles of metalled cart-
roads, 104 miles of unmetalled cart-roads, and 548 J miles of
bridle-paths, making a total mileage of 1,234J.
These roads are surfaced with granite or limestone, and
are for the most part always in excellent order.
A large number of important public buildings have been
constructed in the various district headquarters, but the
principal buildings are erected at Taiping, the capital of the
State, and Batu Gajah, the chief town of Kinta. Of these
the following may be mentioned : the Prison (where perma-
nent wards on the separate system have been constructed).
Hospitals (with accommodation for 2,000 patients). Barracks,
Markets, Police Stations, Court-house, Treasury, Post and
other Grovernment Offices. At Taiping there is a handsome
and replete Museum of which the State is justly proud.
Water- works supply the town of Taiping, the gaol, hospitals
and other buildings with excellent water in ample quantity.
Water-works have also been constructed in Lower Perak for
the supply of the port of Teluk Anson, in Krian for the
supply of Parit Bun tar, and in Kinta for the supply of Ipoh.
The line, which is of metre gauge, was commenced in 1881,
when a trial trace was made between Port Weld (then known
as Sa'petang) and Taiping, the chief town of Larut, where
the headquarters are. The jungle was felled and the line
was commenced in the following year. Owing to the
unstable character of the ground, which is very swampy,
Federated Malay States, 61
large quantities of earth had to be taken from Taiping to
form the embankment. The line was opened for traffic on
the 1st of June, 1885, the port being now only half-an-hour's
distance from Taiping. A week-day service of steamer
communication is kept between Port Weld and Penang, the
journey occupying about six hours.
An extension from Taiping to Kamunting was opened in
May, 1890, and to Ulu Sa'petang in June, 1892, a further
section being opened for traffic in September, 1899, to
Pondok Tanjong ; construction is in progress towards
Bagan Serai. Prom Bagan Serai the line was opened to the
Krian river on the 1st November, 1899, a distance of
11 miles, passing Parit Buntar ; north of Parit Buntar is
the Province Wellesley Section, an extension of 23 miles,
which has been constructed by the Perak Grovernment :
seven miles of this was opened for traffic in July, 1899, by
His Excellency the late Grovernor, Sir Charles BuUen Hugh
Mitchell, between Prai and Bukit Mertajam. The remaining
portion of this section has since been completed.
A service of Eailway Ferry Steamers plies between Penang
and the railway terminus at Prai.
The lower portion of the Kinta Yalley line between
Teluk Anson and Batang Padang was opened by the
Governor, Sir Cecil Smith, on the 18th of May, 1893, and
was completed as far as Chemor in 1896, a further extension
to Enggor being opened for traffic in 1898. This line starts
from the port of Teluk Anson in Lower Perak and passes
through Batang Padang to Batu Grajah, and thence to Ipoh,
Chemor, Enggor, and Padang Pengas, the portion open for
traffic being 87 miles in length. The survey has been
completed between TapaliEoad and Tanjong Malim, passing
Bidor, Sungkai and Slim, the junction with the Selangor
Government Railway being at Tanjong Malim ; the con-
struction of this line is in progress and is about 44 miles
in length.
From Padang Rengas to Taiping the work of construction
is in progress. The bridge over the Perak Eiver, which was
opened in 1900, has seven spans of 150 feet in length, at a
height of 40 feet from the river bed ; from thence the line
passes to Kuala Kangsar, Padang Rengas, Bukit Grantang,
Changkat Larut, and Ayer Kuning, to Taiping ; the whole
of this section is under construction. The section over the
Gapis Pass is exceptionally heavy, it being necessary to
make four tunnels ; very hard granite has been met
with throughout.
5
62
Handbook of the
When the lines now under construction have been com-
pleted, there will be a trunk line running from the
Prai terminus in Province Wellesley, through the entire
length of the State, connecting with the Selangor Govern-
ment Railway at Tanjong Mahm on the Inter-State
boundary. Connected with this line there will be two
branches, namely, the present sections of line from Taiping
to Port Weld and from Tapah Road to Teluk Anson. The
two ports of the State will thus be in touch by railway with
the main trunk line.
The Education both of European and native children is
well cared for by the Grovernment of Perak. At Taiping
there is an excellent English school, under the charge of an
English headmaster and a competent staff of assistants. Also
a school for girls, maintained and managed by the members
of the American Episcopal Mission.
Yernacular schools for Malay boys are established in every
town and village of the State, and also at other country centres
where it is possible to get together thirty or forty pupils from
the neighbourhood. The Malays most readily avail them-
selves of these facilities for the education of their boys, but it
is a matter of greater difficulty to obtain their consent to the
attendance of their girls at school. Grirls' schools have
however been established at one or two centres, where sewing,
weaving, and other feminine accomplishments are taught,
but it is unlikely that the attendance of native girls at
Glovernment schools will ever become general.
Nor has the Grovernment been unmindful of the needs of
the children of immigrant nationahties, Chinese and Tamils,
although they have no such claim upon the State as the
children of the Malay. There are schools in which such
children can obtain elementary education in their own
language from a teacher of their own nationality.
All the districts of the State have been furnished by the
Grovernment with very efficient hospitals in the charge of
resident European surgeons and an adequate staff of Eurasian
assistants. In these establishments all members of the
community, of whatever nationality, are received and treated,
and additionally there is in Taiping a hospital specially
maintained for the accommodation of European patients.
The surgeons on the hospital staff are well up in all the latest
developments of medical science, and all patients receive most
skilled and careful treatment, in most cases free of charge.
The State is well provided with the means of recruiting
health by a change to cool air from the torrid atmosphere of
Federated Malay States. 63
the plains. Upon the range of mountains which overlooks
Taiping there are situated two bungalows known as "Maxwell's
Hill " and " The Tea Grardens," at approximate elevations of
4,000 feet and 3,000 feet respectively. These buildings are
the property of the Grovernment and are maintained for the
accommodation of Europeans for prescribed periods at
reasonable charges. Accommodation of the same description
is provided for the community of the southern portion of the
State upon Grunong Kledang, one of the range of hills which
divides the valleys of the Perak and Kinta rivers. These
Sanitaria are all approached by good bridle paths, constructed
at convenient gradients and very efficiently upkept, which
permit of the use of riding horses, or of chairs carried
by coolies for the benefit of those for whom active exercise is
undesirable. In addition to the above-mentioned buildings,
the Resident-Greneral and the British Resident of Perak have
private bungalows provided for their use by Grovernment,
upon the Taiping Hills, but these are, of course, not available
for other persons.
The conservancy of the towns and villages in the State is Conservancy.
entrusted to Sanitary Boards, the members of which are
nominated by the Grovernment. A certain number are
Grovernment officers, and the remainder are selected from
among the principal members of the European and native
communities.
The prisons of the State are constructed upon the most Prisons.
modern lines, with separate cell accommodation for a large
number of convicts, and are administered in accordance with
the most efficient rules of prison discipline by an experienced
staff of European gaolers and warders, assisted by a body of
native assistant warders. Many useful forms of industrial
work are undertaken in the prisons. The articles manu-
factured are of uniformly excellent quality, and command a
ready sale to the public at remunerative prices.
Escapes from the prisons of the State are of comparatively
rare occurrence.
All the principal industrial and social centres of the State Districts and
are now approachable by good roads, and in most instances also Towns.
by railway, and whether the traveller chooses to enter Perak
by way of Penang from the north, Teluk Anson from the
south, or Port Weld in the centre, he will find facilities for
passing rapidly and easily to almost any part of the State
which he may desire to visit. Communication between
Penang and the Perak ports is maintained by daily trips of
5a
64 Handbook of the
local steamers, and the vessels of the Straits Steamship
Company run between Teluk Anson and Singapore about
three times a week, touching en route at the ports of the
Southern States.
The commerce of the State is not centralised in any one
principal town, but is distributed in different localities.
Taiping, the capital, which is reached most easily by railway
from Port Weld, is the headquarters of the Grovernment, and
is also the centre of what was once the most important
mining district in the State, but is now in this respect of
very secondary importance.
The town of Kuala Kangsar, which is situated upon a most
picturesque stretch of the Perak River, is the place of
residence of His Highness the Sultan, for whom an Astana
or palace of imposing appearance and dimensions was erected
there a few years ago at the cost of the State.
The district of Kinta is by far the most important in the
State. It may be roughly described as being comprised in
the valley of the Kinta Eiver, a tributary of the Perak Eiver.
It includes within its limits the important mining and com-
mercial towns of Ipoh, Batu Gajah and Kampar, besides
others of less note, and it is here that the greater portion of
the tin exported from the State is obtained.
It is quite possible that the stanniferous prosperity of
Kinta may at no distant date be emulated by the adjoining
district of Batang Padang, of which no such thorough
exploitation has been made as has been accomplished in
Kinta. These two districts, together with the more remote
and untried area of Upper Perak, comprise the source from
which the principal supplies of Perak tin are and will be
drawn.
The seaboard districts of Lower Perak, Matang and Krian
have few or no temptations to offer to the miner, and it is
here that agriculture appears as the prominent industry.
The rice fields of Krian have been noted for many years,
and are of very extensive area. The Malay cultivators have
usually macaged to obtain excellent crops in spite of their
dependence upon atmospheric conditions. The Grovernment
have, however, now included a large portion of the rice-
bearing area in a complete and comprehensive scheme of
irrigation, and a proportionate improvement in the crops may
be expected.
In addition to rice fields there are large sugar estates and
coconut plantations in these coast districts. Some of the
Federated Malay States. 65
most important of these are the results of recent enterprise,
and may be expected to add materially to the prosperity of
the State.
Perak presents opportunities of sport to the gunner, second Sport.
only in the Federated States to those offered by the State of
Pahang, and obtainable at the cost of less time, and probably
of less money, than in the Eastern State.
The district of Krian has long been noted for its excellent
snipe shooting, the season for which is usually from about
the middle of September to the middle of December. It is
true that in recent years the bags made have not attained
the plethoric proportions of those made five or six years ago,
but the number which can now be procured upon a
favourable day will be sufficient to satisfy all but the most
insatiable. The decline in numbers is probably attributable
in part to the better drainage of the land, and in part to the
increase in the number of sportsmen, for which the new
railway is responsible.
In Matang and Lower Perak also very fair snipe shooting
is to be had in favourable weather, but success depends in no
small measure in all these districts upon an accurate know-
ledge of locality upon the part of the sportsman or his
attendant. A stranger trusting to his own unaided
intelligence will almost certainly return empty-handed.
Later in the year, about Christmas time, a very pretty
mixed bag may be made in a trip down the Perak Eiver from
Kuala Kangsar to Teluk Anson. Shooting on the islands
and river banks may result in a bag including snipe, teal,
golden plover, and two or three varieties of pigeons.
Those who seek for elephants or bison must go further
afield into the jungles of Batang Padang or Upper Perak,
but the distances are usually not great, and a two days^
journey will, as a rule, be ample to bring the sportsman
within the neighbourhood of their haunts. As, however^
these animals seldom remain for any length of time in the
same place, it is essential that every trip should be preceded
by enquiry from the most reliable native sources as to their
present whereabouts.
There are excellent cricket grounds at Taiping and Ipoh,
which are periodically the scenes of most interesting local
matches. Grrounds of minor excellence, but of practical value,
are to be found in most of the towns which form the head-
quarters of the various districts. The game is played with
66 Sandhook of the
enthusiasm, in no way lessened by the heat of the
mid-day sun.
Association football has taken very firm hold throughoul
the Peninsula, the natives being particularly enthusiastic
about it, both as performers and spectators. There are ver;^
few stations in which the game may not be indulged ir
once or twice a week.
Grolf and lawn tennis are played at most stations, and
there is no part of the State in which the well-kept roadj
are not a temptation to the bicyclist.
Grentlemen whose inclinations do not tend towards active
exercise will find the usual indoor games in the station clubs
which are a general rendezvous from six to eight in the
evenings.
Federated Malay States. 67
PAET III.
SELANGOR.
His Highness the Sultan :
Raja Suleiman bin Almerhom Raja Musa
British Resident : Henry Conway Belfield.
Secretary to the Resident . . Douglas Gordon Campbell.
Senior Magistrate . . . F. Duberley.
State Auditor . . . . F. W. Talbot.
State Engineer. . . . Patrick B. McGlasiian.
THE COUNCIL OF STATE.
His Highness Suleiman bin Almerhom Raja Musa, Sultan
OF Selangor, President.
The British Resident : Henry Conway Belfield.
The Secretary to the Resident : Douglas Gordon Campbell.
His Highness the Raja Muda : Raja Laut.
Raja Hassan.
Raja Haji Bot.
Saiyid Mashor.
George Gumming, Esq.
The Capitan China of Selangor.
Clerk of Council : The Assistant Secretary to the Resident
BRITISH RESIDENTS.
1. J. Guthrie Davidson January 20th, 1875.
2. Capt. Bloomfield Douglas November 20th, 1875.
3. F. A. Swettenham, CM G. October 2nd, 1882.
J. P. Rodger (acting) February 8th, 1884, to Jan-
uar7 8th, 1888.
68
Sandhooh of the
4. W. E. Maxwell, C.M.G.
J. P. Rodger (acting)
F. G. Penney (acting)
5. W. H. Treacher, C.M.G.
E. W. Birch (acting)
6. J. P. Rodger (acting)
H. Conway Belpield (acting)
J. P. Rodger (resumed appoint-
ment)
H. Conway Belpield (acting)
LiEUT.-CoL. F. R. S. Walker,
C.M.G. (acting)
H. Conway Belpield (acting)
Hugh Clippord, C.M.G. (acting)
7. E. M. Merewether
8. H. Conway Belpield
June 1st, 1889.
April to December, 1891.
April 3rd, 1892.
March 17th, 1892.
May 9th, 1892, to January
10th, 1893.
October 7th, 1894 ; con-
firmed July, 1896.
April 5th to July 4th, 1897,
and from October 4th,
1897, to April 21st, 1898.
April 22nd, 1898.
April 5th, 1899, to Sep-
tember 28th, 1899.
September 29th, 1899, to
January 1st, 1901.
January 2nd, 1900, to Sep
tember 24th, 1901.
September 25th, 1901.
December 13th, 1901, to
August 17th, 1902.
August 18th, 1902.
Geographical Selangor, the second in importance of the four Federated
description. Malay States, is situated on the western side of the Malay
Peninsula, in the central and broadest part.
The total area is estimated at about 3,200 square miles,
extending from north latitude 2°33'52" to 3°48'46", and
from east longitude 100°46'57" to 102°0'53".
The coast line extends for about 125 miles along the
Straits of Malacca.
Selangor is bounded on the north by Perak, on the east
and south-east by Pahang and Negri Sembilan, and on the
west and south-west by the Straits of Malacca.
Physical
The rivers of the State are the Bernam River, which forms
the boundary between Perak and Selangor, and the Selangor,
Klang, and Langat Rivers. All these streams have their
origin in the hilly country adjoining the main range of
mountains, and puriiue a westerly course until they fall into
the Straits of Malacca. The mouths of all except the Klang
River are rendered difficult of access from the sea by the
Federated Malay States. 69
existence of sand bars, and entrance can only be effected by
vessels of shallow draft handled by men of local experience.
Once inside the bar, however, vessels can ascend for some
miles. In the case of the Klang Eiver, the islands situated
at its mouth have kept the waterway clear, and vessels of
ocean-going calibre can go alongside the wharves at Port
Swettenham, which is situated at the mouth of the river.
With the exception of the mountains on the backbone range
of the Peninsula, which forms the eastern boundary of the
State, there are no hills of great magnitude. The peaks on
the range, however, attain in some instances an altitude of
over 5,000 feet.
Geologically the surface of Selangor is made up of five (Geology.
distinct formations.
The most prominent of these is granite, which constitutes
the main range of hills forming the eastern boundary of the
State. This formation is also indicated by isolated outcrops,
notably at Jugra and Kuala Selangor on the coast, wliere in
each case a solitary granite hill stands out from the extended
alluvial deposit. Occasional outcrops of granite also occur
between the main range and the coast.
Moving westerly from the main granite hills this forma-
tion gives place to quartzite, the result of induration by the
granite of older sandstones.
The remains of what was once an extensive limestone
formation exist in a few limestone crags at the foot of the
granite range, and in places in the inland districts beneath
the alluvial granite drifts, at depths of from 1 to 100 feet,
between the granite and quartzite belts. The limestone hills
are generally cavernous, and in some instances the caves are
of considerable size and beauty.
Lying above the quartzite are found clayslates and schists
of great age, occurring extensively on low rolling hills
throughout the middle third of the State.
Nearer the coast these give place to sandstones and clay-
slates.
The greater part of the coastal area consists of recent
alluvial flats and swamps with overlying patches of peat of
varying depth from I to 10 feet. When cleared of jungle
and drained the peat is slowly converted into a rich loamy
soil. In these alluvial deposits beds of crumbling bivalve
shells, similar to those now occurring on the sea beach, have
70
Handbook of the
been found, and also evidences of former mangrove swamps
at a distance of several miles from the sea shore, and at a
depth of from 3 to 10 feet, indicating former positions of the
coast line.
In the tin-bearing drift in the inland districts a bed of
black loamy clay is found at a depth of 10 to 20 feet, carry-
ing fossils of leaves, twigs, and branches of trees, and
appears to be of recent formation.
Other than these no fossil remains have been found in
Selangor.
At the mouth of the Klang River, in sinking cylinder
foundations for wharves, large pieces of well-preserved wood
have been found at a depth of 100 feet.
Near the coast the banks of rivers are generally mangrove
mud swamps, which at the mouth are being gradually
extended seawards. At other parts the beach consists of a
clean sand. In places there is evidence of an appreciable
erosion of the above line where the beach is sandy.
The surface of the lower undulating country throughout
the State is generally of a soft loamy nature, well adapted for
agricultural purposes. Grenerally masses of ferruginous rock
occur disseminated throughout the surface loam at a depth of
about 5 to 30 feet, varying in size from gravel to masses of
several tons weight. In composition it varies from coarse
sandstone through argillaceous ironstone to almost pure
limonite and haematite. In general it may be classed as
laterite. It forms a very rich source of iron, but, owing to
the entire absence of coal, could not be worked economically.
What has been written on this subject in Part II., con-
cerning Perak, may be taken as equally applicable to
Selangor.
1. The total population of the State in 1891 and 1901 was
as follows : —
Population.
1891.
1901.
Males
67,051
136,823
Females
14,541
131,966
Total..
81,592
\
168,789
2. The total increase in population since 1891 is 87,197 or
106-8 %. This increase in males is 69,772 or 104 % and in
female?. 17,425 or 119%.
Federated Malay States. 71
3. The increases amongst Europeans, Americans and other
nationalities are as follows : —
Europeans and Americans ... ... 321
Malays and other Natives of the
Archipelago 14,062
Chinese ^ ... 58,754
Tamils and other Natives of India . . . 13,255
Eurasians ... ... ... ... 413
Other Nationalities ... ... ... 392
4. The following tahle gives the figures of comparison with
the Census of 1891 :—
Increase
Nationality. 1891. 1902. per cent.
Europeans and Americans .. . 190 511 168'9
Malays and other Natives
of the Archipelago . . .26,578 40,640 52-9
Chinese 50,844 109,598 115-5
Tamils and other Natives of
India 3,592 16,847 369
Eurasians 167 580 247-3
Other NationaHties 221 613 177-3
The increases amongst the European and Eurasian popu-
lation are worthy of comment in that they point to the great
prosperity of the State in the last ten years, and in view of
that prosperity they are by no means abnormal.
Amongst the two great immigrant races enormous increases
are noticeable. Tamils have increased fourfold and the
Chinese have doubled themselves, and this is, in each case,
due to the balance of immigration over emigration, for the
few children of these two races who have been born in the
State are comparatively negHgible.
During the past ten years the cultivation of coffee, rubber,
etc., has greatly increased and caused an increased demand
for Tamil labour and the extension of the railway system has
also had a great influence on Tamil immigration.
Klang was one of the nine States, or Negri Sembilan, a con- mstory.
federation of little settlements formed by Sumatra Malays who
intermarried with the aborigines. The Sakei element is, to
this day, strong in this part of the Peninsula. The chief of
Klang was called the To'Ungku Klang, and appears to have
been independent until the Bugis established themselves at the
mouth of the Selangor Eiver in the beginning of the 18th
entu^-y. Since then, Klang has gradually been absorbed in
72 Handbook of the
the State of Selangor, under the Chiefs of Bugis origin who
created a Sultanate there.
{Extract from Residents Report for 1889.)
" It is related in native chronicles that Upu Tanderi Burong,
a Bugis Raja in the Island of Celebes (the third son of the first
Bugis Raja who embraced Mohammedanism) had five
sons : —
" (1). — Daing Perani, from whom (by his marriage in Sian-
tan) the reigning family of Siak in Sumatra are descended.
He also married princesses of the reigning Malay families in
Johore, Selangor, and Kedah.
" (2). — Daing Menimbun, from whom the Rajas of Ponti-
anak, Matan and Brunei are descended.
'* (3). — Kalana Faya Putra alias Daing Merewah, first
Yan-di-per-Tuan Muda of Riouw. He married a daughter
of Tumonggong Abdul Jalil, of Johore His son, Klana
Inche IJnak, married in Selangor, and his daughter became
the wife of her cousin Daing Kamoja, the son of Daing
Perani (No. 1), and third Tang-di-per-Tuan Muda of
Riouw.
" (4). — Daing Chela or Daing Palai second Yang-di-per-
Tuan Muda of Riouw. He married a daughter of Sultan
Abdul Jalil (sister of Sultan Suleiman Badr-alam Shah) of
Johore, and from the female issue of this marriage. Sultan
Hussein of Singapore (1819) was descended. One of the
sons of Daing Chela, Raja Lumu, became the first Yang-di-
per-Tuan of Selangor. From him the reigning family of
Selangor is descended. Another, Raja Haji, was the fourth
Yang-di-per-Tuan Muda of Riouw, and fell in battle at
Malacca, fighting against the Dutch in 1784.
" (5). — Diang Kamasi married the sister of the Sultan of
Sambas (Borneo), and his descendants have remained there.
" Of these five Chiefs, Nos. 1, 3, and 4, established them-
selves in Selangor about 1718, and Raja Lumu, the son of
No. 4, was left there as ruler of the country. The principal
head-quarters of the Bugis was Riouw, and about this time
they made piratical raids upon all the Western Malay States,
one after another. Raja Lumu of Selangor, on the occasion
of a visit to Perak, about 1743, was formally invested by the
Sultan of Perak (Mahmud Shah) with the dignity ■^of Sultan,
Federated Malay States, 73
and took the title of Sultan Salaeddin Shah. His successor
Sultan Ibrahim (in 1783) joined with his brother Eaja Haji,
the Yang-di-per-Tuan Muda of Eiouw, in an attack upon the
Dutch in Malacca. They were repulsed, and Raja Haji
was killed. The Dutch under Admiral Yan Braam then
attacked Selangor and the Sultan fled inland and escaped to
Pahang.
" Ibrahim, aided by the Dato Bandahara of Pahang, re-
conquered his fort from the Dutch in 1785, but the latter
immediately blockaded Kwala Selangor with two ships-of-war,
and after this blockade had lasted more than a year, the Sultan
accepted a treaty by which he acknowledged their sovereignty
and agreed to hold his kingdom of them.
*' British political relations with Selangor commenced in
1818, when a commercial treaty was concluded with this
State by a British Commissioner, Mr. Cracroft, on behalf of
the Grovernor of Penang, and this was followed by ' an agree-
ment of peace and friendship ' concluded with Sultan Ibrahim
Shah, who was still reigning.
" Sultan Mohammed succeeded Sultan Ibrahim about the
year 1826, and reigned until 1856. He was succeeded in
the following year by Sultan Abdul Samad, the present
Euler.
" Sultan Abdul Samad, is the son of Paja Dolah, a younger
brother of Sultan Mohammed, and, at the time of the death
of the latter, held the rank and office of Tunku Panglima
Besar (Commander-in-Chief). His election to the sovereignty
was chiefly the work of Paja Juma'at, of Lukut, then a
flourishing mining settlement, now decayed and abandoned,
who feared the exactions of the late Sultan's family. Sultan
Mohammed had no less than 19 children, many of them
illegitimate, and one of them, Paja Mahmud (now Penghulu of
Ulu Semonieh, a village in Selangor), had been recognised as
Paja Muda in his father's lifetime. He was only eight years
old when Sultan Mohammed died. There were other claimants
in the persons of various nephews of the late Sultan, sons of
Paja IJsup and Paja Abdurrahman, who thought their rights
stronger than those of the sons of Paja Dolah. But the
influence of Paja Juma'at prevented a war of succession.
" The strong Bugis element in Selangor earned for the
people of the State, in early days, the reputation of being the
most daring and formidable of all the Malays on the West
coast of the Peninsula. Their fleets were successful in Perak
and Kedah (Alor Star in Kedah was taken and burned in
74 Handbook of the
1770), and in a work published fifty years ago, Selangor is
quaintly described as follows : — ' of all the Malayan States
on the Peninsula, it labours under the heaviest mala fama on
the score of piracy, man-stealing, manslaughter, and similar
peccadilloes of the code of Malayan morals.'
" Of the Malay population of the State at the present date
there is little to say, except to emphasize the contrast noted
by an eminent authority between ' the frank simplicity and
humour, harmonising well with a certain grave dignified
self-possession and genuine politeness, which characterise
the manner of the Malays of Kedah, and the sinister and
impudent bearing of the maritime and semi-piratical Malay
of the South.'
" There is now a large population of settlers from Sumatra
and Java, who are influencing materially the character of the
Mohammedan population."
The series of struggles between various native chiefs which
brought the State under the more immediate notice of the
British Grovernment at Singapore, commenced in the year
1867, when Tunku Ziya-ed-Din, a brother of the Sultan of
Kedah, married a daughter of the Sultan of Selangor, and
was appointed by him to be his viceroy. The authority of
Tunku Ziya-ed-Din was not recognised by Eaja Mahdi, a
grandson of the late Sultan of Selangor, and a fierce contest
was waged between these two Chiefs from 1867 to 1873. The
Sultan was powerless to put an end to this prolonged strife,
in which not only Malay Rajas, but even Chinese miners took
an active part, and the struggle was carried on, with varying
success, until 1873, when the Bendahara of Pahang, at the
instance of the Grovernment of the Straits Settlements, sent
assistance to Tunku Ziya-ed-Din, by means of which he was
enabled to obtain a complete victory over the rebels, and at
least a temporary cessation of hostilities.
The occurrence of an atrocious case of piracy off the Langat
River in the following year led to the direct intervention of
the British Government, and shortly afterwards, at the
request of the Sultan, Sir Andrew Clarke, then Governor of
the Straits Settlements, sent Mr. J. Guthrie Davidson, first
Resident of Selangor, and Mr. F. A. Swettenham (the
present Governor of the Straits Settlements and High
Commissioner for the Federated Malay States), an officer
of the Straits Settlements, to assist the Sultan in the
administration of the Government, since which time (1874)
the peace of the State has not been disturbed, and its pros-
perity has steadily increased.
Federated Malay States.
75
The total revenue for the years 1899 and 1900 amounted Revenue and
to $6,692,830 and $6,303,165 respectively. The principal ^^penditure
sources of revenue being Customs, Excise, Railways and
Land. The expenditure for the same periods was $3,414,551
and $4,944,160, the principal items being Estabhshments,
Public Works and Railways.
The balance to the credit of the State on January 1st,
1901, amounted to $6,663,316, including a loan of $3,000,000
to the State of Pahang.
The following trade values were recorded in 1899 and
1900 :—
1899. 1900.
Exports
Imports
20,615,597
17,719,773
21,798,443
18,406,570
The chief exports in 1900, exclusive of tin, of which men-
tion is made elsewhere, were : — ■
Coffee
... 689,309
Grambier
50,150
Pepper
89,468
Blachan and Salt Fish
... 154,887
The chief imports were :
Opium
... 1,680,910
Rice
... 3,527,206
Live Stock
... 492,722
SaltEish
... 282,138
Specie and Notes
... 4,833,830
The only import duties charged are those upon opium and
spirituous Hquors.
The export duty on tin varies from 10'94 per cent, when
tin is at $96 per bhara to 13"33 per cent, with tin at $210
per bhara. This duty is payable on alluvial tin only, the
duty on lode tin being fixed at half the above rates in con-
sideration of the greater expense in working a lode.
The duty is reckoned on the price telegraphed daily from
Singapore —
One pikul=100 catties=:133i lbs.
One bhara=:=3 pikuls=400 lbs.
76 Handbook of the
Tin is usually exported from Selangor to the smelting
works in Singapore in the form of unsmelted tin ore, and,
for the purposes of calculating the duty, is considered to con-
tain 68 per cent, of tin.
The export duty upon other natural products, such as
timber, rattans, gutta, and ivory is fixed at 10 per cent.
ad valorem. Upon cultivated products, such as coffee, pepper,
copra, sugar, tapioca, and rubber, the maximum duty charged
is 2J per cent, ad valorem.
It varies with the market price, and is usually less than
this figure.
Every encouragement is offered to planters, and the
greatest care is taken to prevent the export duty weighing
too heavily. No duty is charged upon coffee when the
market price is less than $19 per pikul.
Agnmiture. As illustrating the increase in production of Liberian
coffee during the last seven years, the following export
returns may be of interest : —
1894.
2,588 ]
pikul (1 pikul =
= 133 lbs.)
1895.
4,532
?j
1896.
7,046
1897.
12,491
5
1898.
22,948
1899.
26,407
1900.
34,295
Unhappily, however, this enormous increase in production
does not mean in any way proportionate prosperity. The
over production of the Brazils has brought down the price
of coffee to a point which, except on a few favoured estates,
renders its profitable cultivation almost an impossibility.
Planters have, therefore, almost without exception, intro-
duced at varying distances apart, coconuts and Para rubber,
the cultivation of the former, however, being confined almost
entirely to the rich alluvial flats of the coast district.
Pecognizing the difficulties under which planters are now
labouring, the Grovernment, who have the right to exact an
export duty of 2J per cent, ad valorem on all cultivated
produce, waive their claim in the case of coffee to this
tribute, if the price be less than $19 per pikul ; in this and
many kindred ways planters may always count upon the
support and sympathy of the Grovernment.
Federated Malay States. 77
The systematic cultivation of coconuts by Europeans has
only of recent years been taken up, and there is a growing
feeling that with the care and attention which the white man
bestows upon his estate, existing statistics will ere long be
shown to be by no means illustrative of the capabilities of
the Federated Malay States under the most favourable con-
ditions. There are numbers of instances of coconuts com-
mencing to blossom when about three years old, and of
actually bearing fruit before they are four.
Para Rubber (Hevea Braziliemis). — Several millions of
these trees have been planted in the States during the
last three years, when the growing demand for rubber, and
the success which had attended the planting of a few
specimens some ten years ago, began to attract the attention
of planters. Experimental tapping of these older trees has
proved satisfactory in the extreme ; as much as 12 J- lbs.
of rubber, worth from 3s. 6d. to 4s. per lb., has been
extracted in two years from a thirteen year old tree in the
Penang gardens, without any injury resulting, although this
particular tree is admittedly a poor specimen and growing on
wretched soil.
Gutta Ranibong {Mens Elastica).— This rubber, which is
indigenous to various parts of the Peninsula, though of
slightly less value than Para, has also been largely planted,
and a recent experiment in Perak showed that two 19 year
old trees, upon which no particular attention had ever
been bestowed, were capable of yielding 25 lbs. of dry
marketable rubber each, at a single tapping, and without by
any means exhausting the trees themselves.
So far it is to coconuts and the two varieties of rubber
that planters look to reimburse them for their heavy outlay
on coffee, but although statistics show that the world's stocks
of coffee largely exceed demand at present, there are many
who think that the largely increased sterling value of the
milrai, in Brazil, must soon bring about a reaction, when the
cycle of prosperity will again set in ; coffee is therefore being
for the most part as carefully cultivated still as it was in the
days when the enterprise was full of promise.
As a means of reducing expenditure in opening coconut
and rubber properties, planters are in many cases utilizing
the land between their young trees by putting in various
subsidiary cultivations such as bananas, the Chinese yam
(for which there is always a great demand), vegetables, &c.
The enterprise and industry of the Chinaman who is always
ready to take up anything which promises to pay, is now of
6
78
Handbook of the
great value to tlie planter who desires to make the most of
his money, for he is able to sublet his land at prices ranging
from $3 to $10 per acre per annum, whilst upon the China-
man devolves the duty of keeping the estate free of weeds,
and the drains in good working order. With the possibility
of such an arrangement in view, the methodical planter will
take care that as much of the dead wood remaining on his
ground as possible after the burn is piled and burnt again
before he commences to lay out his estate, the ashes of course
greatly enriching the ground, and the chances of white ants
and coconut beetles, which breed in rotting timber, and are
the planters' most deadly enemies, being thus at the same
time reduced to a minimum.
Mining. Large quantities of tin continue to be exported annually
from S clangor.
The mining revenue for 1900 amounted to $2,806,928 as
compared with $2,556,765 for 1899.
There are now some 70,000 Chinese employed exclusively
in tin mining, each of whom wins an average of 5 cwt. of tin
per annum, of the gross value of $292. After various
deductions for taxation, commission, &c., the net earnings
amount to $160 per coolie per annum. The amount and
value of tin exported during the last three years is as
under : —
1898.
1899.
1900.
Amount
16,350 tons
16,000 tons
15,900 tons
Value
$11,916,418
$17,950,866
$19,434,562
Average value per
Ton
$724
$1,178
$1,246
The greatest amount exported was in the year 1896,
amounting to 20,700 tons, valued at $10,824,077, the average
price of tin being then only $555 per ton. The average tin
duty for 1900 amounted to 13*47 per cent, ad valorem.
The tin-ore is found in the form of cassiterite, or oxide of tin.
It occurs in every conceivable formation, in the stiffest of
clays to the lightest of sands, from the roots of the grass to
depths of 250 feet, on the tops of mountains, and in the lowest
valleys. There are two general methods employed for
Federated Malay States. 79
the winning of the tin-ore. When the tin-hearing strata
occur at any depth up to about 30 feet in the flat valleys it
is worked open cast, the whole of the over-burden having to
be removed before the wash dirt is reached.
At greater depths than 30 feet, except when the tin-bearing
strata are very regular, the general method employed is to
sink shafts, and block out the wash dirt.
There are twelve post offices in Selangor, distributed Posts and
among the towns and principal villages of the State. At all Telegraphs.
of these ordinary postal business can be transacted, and
money orders are obtainable at most of them.
The telegraph system extends all over the State. There
are 515 miles of wire.
Telephones are worked over 196 miles of line, and a tele-
phone exchange is in operation in Kuala Lumpur, which is
now to be extended to some of the more populous country
districts.
Selangor possesses 570 miles of roads and bridle-paths, of ^oc^ds.
which 257 miles are first-class metalled roads. The State is
connected with the Capital towns o£ Pahang and the Negri
Sembilan, and with the Perak boundary at Tanjong Mahm,
by roads respectively 120 miles, 57 miles, and ^b miles in
length. The former of these roads passes over the main
range of the Peninsula at a height of 2,700 feet.
The metalled roads have been constructed at an average
cost of $4,600 per mile, while the annual maintenance
amounts to some $800 per mile.
The principal public buildings of the State are situated in Buildings.
the Capital, Kuala Lumpur, and form striking features in the
views of the town. The Grovernment Offices are contained in
an imposing building, erected in the style of the Arabesque
Eenaissance, with a frontage of 480 feet facing the public
recreation ground. The Clock Tower in the centre is 130
feet high. Other important buildings are the Official
Eesidence of the Eesident-Greneral, the Prison, and the Rail-
way Station and Offices.
The town of Kuala Lumpur is supplied with water from an Waterworks.
impounding reservoir seven miles distant, and estimated to
6a
80
Handbook of the
be capable of supplying tbe wants of twenty-five thousand
people. Another set of waterworks is being constructed for
the purpose of supplying the town of Klang and the
harbour at Port Swettenham.
Railways. There are 97 miles of open railway line, and 29 miles
under construction. The open system connects with Perak
at Tanjong Malim on the Bernam Piver, and passing south-
wards through Kuala Lumpur, terminates at present at
Kajang, whence 29 miles of extension are now being con-
structed to Seremban, the capital town of the Negri Sembilan.
A branch line 27 miles in length connects Kuala Lumpur
with Port Swettenham.
The depot and goods sheds at Kuala Lumpur are large
and commodious, and are lighted throughout with electrie
light.
Education. Selangor possesses 41 vernacular schools and five English
schools, the chief of which is the Victoria Institution at Kuala
Lumpur with a daily attendance of 400 boys. The Institu-
tion, possessing a staff of qualified English Masters, offers
every opportunity for acquiring a sound commercial education.
It is supported by an annual Grovernment Grant and a
contribution from the rates.
There are two English girls' schools in Kuala Lumpur
founded by the enterprise of the Roman Catholic and
Methodist Missions. No charge is made at the Vernacular
Schools, but attendance is compulsory for any boy living
within two miles. At the English Schools a small monthly
fee is charged.
A Settlement exclusively for Malays has been started in
Kuala Lumpur, with the object of collecting in one place an
exclusively Malay population and to provide technical educa-
tion in wood-carving, silver work, weaving, tailoring and
agriculture.
There are now about 50 families, to each of which a free
grant of half an acre has been given, but no other assistance.
The Settlement has a large recreation ground, a mosque,
houses for the technical education classes and a boarding
house for Malay boys attending the Victoria Institution.
Vernacular Schools for boys and girls are in course of
construction within the grounds of the Settlement.
Federated Malay States. 81
There are five surgeons with British qualifications, assisted Hospitals.
by 53 apothecaries and dressers, in charge of the 17 hospitals,
providing accommodation for 1,800 patients. All coolies of
every nationahty are treated free of charge, nearly two-thirds
of the patients being Chinese mining coolies. 17,963 patients
were treated during 1900, the death rate being 13*46 per
cent., or approximately 46 per thousand of the total
population.
There is a European ward in Kuala Lumpur, containing
six beds in charge of two certificated nurses ; a charge of
$3 per diem is made.
A Bungalow has been erected at Bukit Kutu, nine miles Sanitaria.
from Kuala Kubu at an elevation of 3,200 feet.
It is fully furnished and can be hired for specified periods,
at a moderate charge.
There is also a Eest House at the highest point of the
pass on the road to Pahang (2,700 feet) and two furnished
Bungalows at the hot springs at Dusun Tua, at all of which
a beneficial change may be enjoyed at moderate cost.
Each district possesses a Sanitary Board, composed of Conservancy.
official and non-official members, to whom the superintendence
of waterworks, streets, lighting, scavenging, drainage, and
collection of rates and taxes is entrusted ; careful attention is
paid to the sanitary arrangements of all the principal towns.
The State prison, situated at Kuala Lumpur, has been Prisons.
constructed upon the most modern principles, and is super-
vised by a staff of experienced European officers.
Accommodation for 540 prisoners is provided in separate
cells, and the hospital within the prison walls will contain 40
patients.
The town of Kuala Lumpur possesses a most picturesque Public gardens
public garden, laid out with much taste. Its area exceeds
170 acres, and it is maintained by Grovernment at a cost of
about five thousand dollars per annum.
English flowers and shrubs, as well as the products of
tropical and sub-tropical countries other than the Malay
Peninsula, are to be seen in the gardens, in addition to a
variety of indigenous plants.
S^ tiandhook of the
Selangor is divided into six districts, as follows : —
(i.) Kuala Lumpur, with the town of the same name as its
principal centre, and the capital of the State. This town is
the largest in the Federated Malay States, and is the head-
qfuarters of the Administration of the States as well as of
that of Selangor. Practically, the whole of the commercial
industry of this State is centralised in Kuala Lumpur, as
most of the firms which do business in other districts have
located their principal offices in the capital.
This district occupies a conveniently central position in the
State, the other districts being grouped round it. It con-
tains within its area a considerable number of the more
important mining fields, and also of the agricultural estates
opened by European planters.
The mining centre of Sungei Besi is the only other im-
portant town in the district.
(ii.) Klang, lying to the west of Kuala Lumpur, occupies
the area between that district and the sea. Its head-quarters
are situated at the town of the same name, which was, until
recently, the principal port of the State. Its place as a
harbour has now been taken by Port Swettenham, situated in
the same district, but at the mouth of the river, where
wharves have recently been erected at considerable cost, which
are capable of accommodating ocean-going steamers. There
is no mining in Klang worth mentioning, but a large
proportion of the district is occupied by the coffee and rubber
estates of European owners.
(iii.) Ulu Selangor, situated to the north of Kuala Lumpur,
lies between that district and the Perak and Pahang
boundaries. It ranks in importance next to the central dis-
trict, and is the principal centre of the tin mining industry of
the State. Its principal towns are Kuala Kubu, the head-
quarters of the local administration, Serendah, Easa and
Pawang. These are all busy mining towns.
(iv.) Ulu Langat embraces the country to the south of the
central district, and extends to the boundaries of the Negri
Sembilan and Pahang. It is also a mining district of some
importance. Local head-quarters are situated at the town
of Kajang.
(v.) Kuala Langat is a coast district^ occupying the
southern portion of the coast line of the State. There is
no mining done here, the principal industries being agri-
culture and fisheries. Head-quarters are at Jugra, on the
federated Malay States. 83
Langat River, which has been for many years past the place
of residence of His Highness the Sultan.
(vi.) Kuala Selangor is an extensive district on the
northern portion of the Selangor coast, lying between the
district of Klang and the Bernam River. It is only being
partially opened up at present, and local industry is, as in
Kuala Langat, confined to agriculture and fishing. There
are very extensive areas of swampy land, at present almost
valueless, and capable of improvement only by drainage
operations of considerable magnitude.
Headquarters are situated near the mouth of the Selangor
river. A European company has a coconut oil mill established
here, which is doing much to promote the planting of this
excellent palm in this and the neighbouring districts.
From the town of Kuala Lumpur excellent roads radiate
into all the districts, supplemented in most cases by the
railway, so that the facilities for commercial intercourse
between the capital and all parts of the country leave little
to be desired.
The sports obtainable in Selangor are generally similar to Spw-i,
those which have been described in Part II., but there is
no snipe shooting here to compare with that obtainable in
Perak. Other forms of recreation are, however, as eagerly
and successfully pursued in Selangor as in the northern
State.
84 Handhooh of the
PART IV.
NEGRI SEMBILAN.
His Highness The Yang-di-per-Tuan.
Raja Mohamed, C.M.G., bin Almerhom Yam Tuan Arutah.
British Resident . . . W. Egerton, C.M.G.
Senior Magistrate . . . F. Duberley.
State Auditor . . • . . W. P. Thorpe.
Superintendent of Public Works H. Caldicott, A.M.I.C.E.
THE COUNCIL OF STATE.
His Highness the Yang-di-per-Tuan : President.
The British Resident : W. Egerton, C.M.G.
Tunku Muda Chik :
The Datoh Klana of Sungei Ujong :
The Datoh Penghulu of Jelehu :
The Datoh Penghulu of Johol :
The Datoh Penghulu of Remhau :
The Datoh Bandar of Sungei Ujong :
Tunku Dewa, Tampin :
The Datoh Muda, Linggi :
Capitan China Lee Sam, :
Towkay Lam Yong :
BRITISH RESIDENTS OF SUNGEI UJONG.
1. Captain P. J. Murray, R.N. ... 1874 to 1881.
2. W. F. B. Paul 1881 to 1893.
ileal
m.
xxut; UCJ.US in ine v^aiieyo cw-t/
cuii iwhido ^™';
\
REFERENCE oj
.
B
idUFaths ..,..=.-
R
Ilway ,>, Eri„mc.
R
a„,ayu«d«Cm.truMm ^^_
Propoted Railway to Pahang. ___^
Proposed Railway to Pahang.
Johore
1. v^aPTAIN r. J. iViURRAY, n,.i> .
2. W. F. B, Paul
ie; I t v*J i^^
1881 to 1893.
Federated Malay States. 85
BRITISH RESIDENTS OF THE NEGRI SEMBILAN.
1. Hon. Martin Lister January 1st, 1895.
2. Ernest Woodford Birch ... June 4th, 1897, to April
7th, 1901.
3. Henry Conway Belfield ... April 8th, 1901, to August
17th, 1902.
4. Walter Egerton, C.M.G. ... August 1902.
The nine small States, which together form the territory Geographical
known as the Negri Sembilan, comprise an area of about d6s<'^'^ption.
2,600 square miles extending from longitude 101° 50^ E. to
longitude 102« 45' E., and from latitude 2" 24' N. to
latitude 3° 11' N.
It is bounded on the north and north-west by the States
of Selangor and Pahang, on the east by Johore, and on the
south by the settlement of Malacca. On the south-west the
coast line on the straits of Malacca is thirty miles in length.
The country is generally undulating and broken by small physical
hills. The principal mountain range starts in the Jelebu Geography.
district and runs in a southerly direction for 20 miles to
Grunong Angsi (3,200 feet), thence S.E., and ends in Grunong
Tampin (1,800 feet) near the Malacca boundary. The
highest point of the range is Q-unong Resan, or Telapang
Burok a little under 4,000 feet.
The Muar Eiver, which is augmented by the Jelei, Jempol,
Johol, Gremencheh, and Gremas Rivers, flows through the town
of Kwala Pilah, and thence through the territory of Muar
into the Straits of Malacca. The distance from Kwala
Pilah to the mouth is 120 miles, most of which is navigable
for small boats.
There are several smaller rivers, e.g., the Sungei Linggi,
Sungei Sepang, and Sungei Lukut ; these all flow into the
Straits of Malacca and are navigable for a few miles for
small vessels, as is also the Sungei Rembau, a confluent of
the Sungei Linggi.
The watershed in the Jelebu district divides the State into
two bases ; the rivers rising on the South side flow into the
Straits of Malacca, while the Sungei Triang rises on the
North side, and after being augmented by several small
streams (Kenaboi, Pertang, Jeram), flows into the Pahang
River and so into the China Sea on the East side of the
Peninsula. Besides these mentioned there are numerous
small streams by which the rice fields in the valleys are
irrigated.
86^ Sandhook of the
1. The total population of the State in 1891 and 1901 was
as follows : —
Population. 1891. 1901.
Males 40,561 ... 64,565
Females 24,658 ... 31,463
Total ... 65,219 ... 96,028
2. The total increase since 1891 is 30,809 or 47*24 per
cent. This increase in males is 24,004 or 59*18 per cent.,
and in females 6,805 or 27*6 per cent.
3. The total increases amongst Europeans, Americans and
other nationalities are as follows : —
Europeans, Americans
Malays and other Natives of the Archi-
pelago
Chinese
Tamils and other Natives of India
Eurasians ...
Other Nationalities. . .
81
8,455
17,540
4,409
241
83
4. The following table gives the figures of comparison
with the Census of 1891 : —
Increase
Nationality.
1891.
1901.
per cent
Europeans and Ameri-
cans
61 ..
142 .
. 132*79
Malays and other Na-
tives of the Archi-
pelago
48,480 .
. 56,935 .
. 17-44
Chinese
15,391 .
. 32,931 .
. 113*96
Tamils and other Na-
tives of India
1,117 .
. 5,526 .
. 394*72
Eurasians
68 .
309 .
. 354*41
Other Nationalities . . .
102 .
185 .
. 81-38
The territory now known as the Negri Sembilan was
originally peopled by the descent of numbers of Sakais from
the hills, and about the year 1773 a Prince of the true
Menangkabau blood was obtained to rule over them with
the title of Yang-di-per-Tuan of Sri Menanti Each State
still retained its own Datoh or hereditary Chief, but referred
to the Yam Tuan in all matters of importance.
The nine States originally consisted of Klang, Sungei
Ujong, Jelebu, Sri Menanti, Eembau, Johol, Jempol, Inas
and G-emencheh.
federated Malay States. S7
Klailg was the first to leave, being incorporated into the
State of Selangor, and Simgei Ujong was (1874) separated
from the others, Jelebu joining Sungei Ujong shortly
afterwards.
In 1874 the first Eesident was appointed to Sungei Ujong ;
this appointment followed a series of disturbances.
At the close of 1875 there were further disturbances,
during which the Eesidency was menaced, but since that date
there has been no further attempt at a rising or inter-state
fighting.
In 1883 British protection was extended to Eembau, a
district lying along the Malacca boundary, to Johol in 1884,
and to Sri Menanti in 1885. In 1886 a Superintendent was
appointed to administer Eembau, Tampin, Johol and Sri
Menanti, together with the small States which went with
Johol. In 1889 this Officer's title was changed to Eesident
of the Negri Sembilan, in distinction to the Eesident of
Sungei Ujong, where a Eesidency had already been estab-
lished. In 1895 the two Eesidencies were combined under
an agreement of Confederation between the various States ;
by this agreement the independence of the ruler of each
State is guaranteed in respect of the others. The Yang-di-
per-Tuan of Sri Menanti is, however, regarded as the head
of the Confederation and was finally installed in this position
in May, 1898.
The text of the Agreement of Confederation is as
follows : —
"Agreement between the Governor of the Straits
Settlements, acting on behalf of Her Majesty's Government,
and the Eulers of certain Malay States hereinafter called the
Negri Sembilan.
" In confirmation of various previous written and unwritten
agreements the Yam Tuan Besar of Sri Menanti, together
with the Euler of Johol, the Eulers of Sungei Ujong, Jelebu,
Eembau and Tampin, hereby severally place themselves and
their States under the protection of the British Government.
"2. The above-mentioned Eulers of the respective States
hereby agree to constitute their countries into a Confederation
of States to be known as the Negri Sembilan, and they desire
that they may have the assistance of a British Eesident in
the administration of the Government of the said
Confederation, and they undertake to follow his advice in all
matters of administration other than those touching the
Mohammedan religion.
88
Mandhook of the
" It is to be understood that such arrangement as is now
agreed upon does not imply that any one Ruler shall
exercise any other power or authority in respect of any State
than that which he now possesses.
" In witness whereof the said Grovernor, Lieutenant-Colonel
Sir Charles Bijllen Hugh Mitchell, g.c.m.g., and the said
Yam Tuan Besar of Sri Menanti, together with the Ruler of
Johol and the Rulers of Sungei Ujong, Jelebu, Remhau and
Tampin, have signed this Agreement dated the eighth day of
August the year of Christ One thousand eight hundred and
ninety-five, and answering to the sixteenth day of Safarthe year
of the Hedjira One thousand three hundred and twelve."
The Revenue of the State in 1900 amounted to $1,251,366,
of this $125,169 was derived from the various items included
under Land Revenue, while §,803,451 represents customs.
The latter item of Revenue is derived chiefly from the duty
on export of tin and tin-ore.
The Revenue figures for 1900 compared with those for the
previous three years, show a remarkable increase : —
1897
1898
1899
1900
$572,546.
$701,334.
$1,085,015.
$1,251,366.
The total expenditure for 1900 amounted to $1,009,318,
as compared with $851,704 for 1899.
Exports in 1900 amounted to $7,048,988, of which tin
and tin-ore accounts for $5,338,424, and tapioca $946,507.
Imports were of the value of $4,281,457, foodstuffs
amounting to $1,346,623, (rice $794,613), and opium
$411,184.
The main agricultural product of the State is rice. The
rice fields, especially in parts of the Kwala Pilah district and
in Rembau in the Tampin district, are extensive and fertile.
Rice cultivation is entirely in the hands of the Malays, who
do not aim at anything beyond the supply of their own
needs. There is little trade in home-grown rice, large
quantities being imported to feed the Chinese and other
foreigners. Simultaneous transplanting of the young padi
from the nurseries to the fields is insisted on by Grovern-
ment, as a safeguard against the destructive attacks of rats
and other vermin; breaches of the rules controlling padi
Federated Malay States. 89
planting are punishable by fine. In the Kwala Pilah
district alone it is estimated that there are 16,500 acres under
padi cultivation.
Tapioca planting has during the last few years been a
profitable industry, owing to the high prices ruling. In 1900
126,201 pikuls were exported, the value of which is estimated
at $946,507. The industry is in the hands of the Chinese
and is carried on in Kwala Pilah, Tampin and Coast districts.
Most of the planters hold their land under permits by which
they are empowered to take three crops, paying duty on
exportation in lieu of rent. New land, now given out, will
carry a rent per acre and no duty will be charged on
exportation. The soil is soon exhausted by tapioca, and
after three crops have been taken is practically valueless for
several years : it is then abandoned by owners of permits.
To prevent this undesirable result in the future it is probable
that Grovernment will insist on some permanent form of
cultivation being introduced simultaneously with the plant-
ing of the tapioca.
There is now a considerable acreage under coffee : most of
the estates are in bearing. The large estates are all owned
or managed by Europeans, and are situated in the Coast,
Seremban and Tampin districts. The labour consists mainly
of Tamils from Southern India, but Chinese, Malays and
Javanese are also employed.
A coffee-curing factory, the property of a syndicate, has
been put up at the Port Dickson terminus of the Sungei
Ujong Eailway. Here the all important process of curing
is carefully carried out. The interests of the planters are
watched by the Negri Sembilan Planters Association, which
meets periodically for the discussion of questions affecting
the industry.
The export of coffee in 1900 was 6,207 pikuls ; this amount
is valued at $117,944, from which it will be seen that the
prices ruling during that year were very low.
The climate and soil are well suited for the cultivation of
Para Rubber {Hevea Braziliensis). There are over 2,000
acres at present under cultivation, the age of the trees
varying from 1 to 13 years. The oldest trees (12 to 13 years
old) have given yields of from 10 to 15 lbs. per tree per
annum of pure coagulated rubber : these trees are also giving
large crops of seed annually.
Getah Ramhong [Ficus Elastiea) is also easily grown from
cuttings and springs up quickly. There are about 200 acres
90
Handbook of the
under cultivation in the State, age from 1 to 3 years. There
are as yet no particulars to be had as to yields.
Gutta Percha (Getah Tahan) the native name for the several
varieties of Bichopsis from which Grutta is extracted, is the
most valuable getah known here and is indigenous. The
trees have been sadly wasted by Malays and Sakais whose
method of obtaining the getah is by cutting down the whole
tree. Most of the crop-yielding trees have been thus
destroyed, but many young trees from 1 to 6 years old are
growing up in their place. Measures are now being taken to
prevent further waste of this valuable product.
Mining. The export of tin-ore in 1900 amounted to pikuls 57,407,
and of smelted tin to pikuls 14,844, the total value being
estimated at $5,338,424.
Mining land alienated in 1900 amounted to acres 3,670,
the total extent of land alienated for mining in the State
being acres 15,630.
The mining is almost entirely in the hands of the
Chinese, but of recent years several European companies
have commenced operations.
In Jelebu there are two European companies which have
been established for some years. The Jelebu Mining and
Trading Company are the owners of the Ehin lode mine
near Kwala Klawang. This mine has been considerably
developed during recent years, and crushing stamps and
other machinery have been erected. The Jelebu Mining
Company, with head-quarters also in Kwala Klawang, does
an extensive business both in mining and in buying tin-ore
from small mines. In Seremban there is a branch office
of the Straits Trading Company, through which passes most
of the ore produced in the State. There is also in this
district one European company (The Seremban Tin Mining
Company) working on the hydrauKc system ; two other
companies will shortly start operations on the same system.
In Kwala Pilah district there has been of recent years
great activity in mining, and a considerable area of new land
has been exploited.
Posts and Ample facilities for postal and telegraphic communication
Telegraphs. are provided throughout the State, offices being open for the
dispatch of such business in every district town.
:Roads. The State is well provided with cart roads connecting the
centres of each district with head-q^uarters and with each
Federated Malay States. 91
other. These metalled roads are supplemented in the inland
districts by good bridle-paths connecting the outlying portions
of the districts.
Considerable extension of the road system is now being
undertaken, and substantial improvement is being made to
those portions of existing roads which are in need of
amelioration.
The public buildings of the Negri Sembilan are of less Buildings.
ambitious proportions than those in the larger and more
opulent States of the Federation. There are none which
demand any special mention.
There are at present only 25 miles of open railway in the Railways.
State, viz. : the line between Seremban and Port Dickson
opened in 1891. The railway is the property of the Sungei
Ujong Eailway Company Limited, and is worked by them
under a guarantee from the Grovernment. The station at
Port Dickson adjoins the landing stage. Four passenger
trains (two up, and two down), are run daily.
Between Seremban and Kajang (the present terminus of
the Selangor Grovernment Eailway) a line is now in course of
construction, which will shortly be open for traffic. When
this extension is completed Seremban will be connected by
rail with Selangor and later with Perak and Province
Wellesley.
Education is carried on upon the same lines as in the other Education.
States. There are twenty-five vernacular schools, attend-
ance at which is compulsory for boys residing within a
certain radius from the school house.
In Seremban an English school under the management of
the Eoman Catholic Mission receives a salary grant from
the G-overnment. The teaching at this school is purely
secular.
Hospitals under the management of qualified Officers Hospitals.
have been established at the head-quarters of each district.
They are all controlled by the State Surgeon in Seremban.
Although there is not at present any hill resort at a high Sanitaria.
elevation in the Negri Sembilan, the G-overnment has erected
an excellent and commodious bungalow upon the Coast at
Port Dickson, close to the sea beach, which is open to the
92
Handbook of the
European public upon mach the same terms as those
prescribed for the hill bungalows in Perak and Selangor.
The air at Port Dickson is peculiarly dry and salubrious,
and the facilities for sea bathing are excellent. The place
is therefore a very popular resort, and persons in delicate
health usually derive much benefit from a period of residence
there.
Advantage has been taken of the salubrity of the climate
on this portion of the Coast to erect a Convalescent Hospital
upon the sea beach in the neighbourhood of Port Dickson,
for the accommodation of natives suffering from beri-beri.
Patients are removed there from the inland hospitals when
in a fair condition to travel, and rapidly recover strength
under the influence of the fine dry air and the sea bathing.
Conservancy. The care and maintenance of the streets, markets and other
public conveniences of the District Towns is confided by the
Government to the hands of Sanitary Boards as in the
neighbouring States.
Prisons. There is not as yet in the Negri Sembilan a prison designed
upon recognised modern principles, and long sentence
prisoners have hitherto therefore been received in the gaol
at Kuala Lumpur. A prison of modern design to meet
the needs of the whole State is now being erected at
Seremban .
Districts and
Towns.
The Negri Sembilan is divided into five districts for
administrative purposes, as follows : —
(i.) The Coast District,
(ii.) The Seremban District.
(iii.) The Jelebu District.
(iv.) The Kwala Pilah District.
(v.) The Tampin District.
The three former comprise the State of Sungei Ujong, but
the name Negri Sembilan formerly applied inaccurately to
Nos. (iv.) and (v.; only, is now adopted for the whole
group.
The town of Seremban is the capital of the State, the
head-quarters of the British Eesident and the heads of the
various Grovernment Departments. It is connected with the
sea by railway.
Federated Malay States.
Seremban is a prosperous little town, it has grown
considerabl}^ in the last few years with the rising prosperity
of the country, and its importance as a centre will be increased
upon the completion of the new railways which are now
projected or in course of construction.
Port Dickson, the head-quarters of the Coast District is
25 miles by railway from Seremban, and is practically the
only port in the State.
The district extends from the Sepang Eiver, which is the
boundary with S clangor, to the Linggi River, which forms
the boundary with Malacca.
Jelebu, the head-quarters of which are at Kuala Klawang,
is connected with Seremban by a cart road, twenty-four
miles in length. The district adjoins the Pahang boundary
and supphes a considerable portion of the tin exported from
the State.
Kuala Pilah, which gives its name to the district lying to
the South of Sungei Ujong, is the principal village of Ulu
Muar. Within the area of this district are comprised the
minor territories of Ulu Muar, Johol, Jempol, Terachi,
Gunong Pasir, and Inas.
Tampin, 32 miles from Seremban, and adjoining the
settlement of Malacca, contains VN^ithin its district jurisdiction
the territories of Rembau, Tampin, and Gremencheh. The
tin producing area, is principally situated within the districts
of Seremban and Jelebu, which were for some years the only
portions of the State to export their mineral. Later
exploitation in the Kuala Pilah district has resulted in the
production of payable tin, and in this division also the
important agricultural areas of the State are situated, in the
districts of Kuala Pilah and Tampin, where the Malay
population has for many years past been engaged in
cultivation of a far more regular, systematic and successful
description than is found elsewhere among the States of the
Federation.
The estates owned and cultivated by Europeans are for the
most part situated in the Seremban and Coast districts.
The Negri Sembilan has few attractions to offer to the Spoi-i.
sportsman in pursuit of game, large or small — certainly none
which would tempt a visitor to proceed to the State for the
purpose. Elephants and Seladang (Bison) are occasionally to
7
Handbook of the
jQ met with in the more inland portions of the State, and a
few snipe and pigeons in the lower country, hut the amount
of shooting to he ohtained is so small as to he hardly worth
mentioning.
Other forms of recreation, which have heen mentioned in
those portions of this hook which deal with Perak and
Selangor, also have their place in the Negri Semhilan. The
opportunities for indulging in the different forms of out-
door sport are less frequent here than in the States ahove
mentioned, because the European community is smaller, and
it is more difficult to get men together for the purpose.
TRENGrGANU
MAP OF
PAHANG.
Federated Malay States.
(,«/<■ 20 Milts ■ 1 Imh.
s
XIX
^'
Federated Malay States. 95
PART y.
PAHANG.
His Highness The Sultan :
Raja Ahmad Maatham Shah bin Almerhom Raja All
British Resident . . . Hugh Clifford, C.M.G.
Senior Magistrate . . Warren D. Barnes,
State Auditor . . . C. B. Mills.
State Engineer , , . E. R. Stokoe.
THE COUNCIL OF STATE.
His Highness Ahmad Maatham Shah, Sultan of Pahang,
President.
The British Resident : Hugh Clifford, C.M.G.
The Tungku Besar :
The Ungku Muda :
The Tungku Muda :
The Datoh Bendahara:
The Shah Bandar :
The Datoh Maharaja Perha of Jelai :
Imam Prang Indera Stia Raja :
Imam, Prang Indera Mahkota :
Tuan Mandak :
BRITISH RESIDENTS.
1. John Pickersgill Rodger ... October, 1888, to Sep-
tember, 1890.
Hugh Clifford (acting) ... October, 1890, to Decem-
ber, 1891.
7a
96
Handbook of the
Geographical
description.
Fhysical
Geography.
John Pickersgill Rodger
Hugh Clifford (acting)
Walter Egerton (acting)
Hugh Clifford (acting)
D. H. Wise (acting) ...
2. Hugh Clifford
Arthur Butler (acting)
3. Arthur Butler
D. H. Wise (acting) ...
4. Hugh Clifford, C.M.G.
F. Duberley (acting) ...
January, 1892, to Feb-
ruary, 1893.
March, 1893, to May,
1894.
June, 1894.
July, 1894, to September,
1895.
October, 1895, to June,
1896.
July, 1896, to March,
1899.
April, 1899, to December,
1899.
January, 1900, to January,
1901.
February and March,
1901.
April, 1901, to September,
1901.
October, 1901.
Pahang occupies a large portion of that part of the Malay
Peninsula which lies on the eastern side of the central
mountain range. It is bounded on the north by the States
of Kelantan and Trengganu, on the south by the territory of
Johore, on the west and south-west b}^ Perak, Selangor and the
Negri Sembilan, and on the east by the China Sea. It is the
largest of the States of the Federation, having an estimated
area of some 14,000 square miles, and a line of greater
length approaching 200 miles. Besides the territory on the
mainland, Pahang includes two chains of islets running
parallel to its coast, generally at a distance of about 25 miles.
The chief of them is Pulau Tioman, ten miles by five, and
attaining a height of about 3,500 feet. The State lies
between latitudes 2° 30'' and 4° 50'^ and longitudes 101° 30''
and 103° 40'', and has a coast line of about 130 miles in
length.
Pahang contains several high mountains and fine water-
ways. Almost all the places in the State inhabited by Malays,
and many of the more easily accessible Sakai districts, have,
since the introduction of the Eesidential System, been visited
by Europeans, and though there yet remain large tracts of
uninhabited jungle which have not been penetrated, still the
geography of Pahang may now be said to be comparatively
well known.
Federated Malay Statef<. 97
Among the principal mountains of the State, Gunong
Tahan, situated at the sources of the Kechau and Tahan
Eivers, far up in the highlands near the Pahang — Kelantan
boundary, easily ranks first, besides being beheved to be the
highest summit in the Peninsula. It has never yet been
ascended by man, although its base was approached, some
years ago, by a European scientific expedition to within
ten miles. The mountain is isolated, and does not appear to
be a portion of the range which divides Pahang from the
northern States of Kelmtan and Dungun. Its height is
estimated at anything from 8 to 10,000 feet above the level
of the sea.
With characteristic superstition, Malays invest this moun-
tain with much mystery, and speak with awe of the stores
of treasure said to be lying, from time immemorial, on the
top of Grunong Tahan, jealously guarded by demons and
other unearthly beings, whose common object would appear
to be to prevent the wealth of the summit from falling into
human hands. Eightly or wrongly, most Malays believe
that Grunong Tahan will never be ascended by man. They
attach a strange fatality to this wonderful mountain, and the
fact that a European, while exploring that part of the country,
met with an accident and was drowned in the Tahan river,
tends but to confirm them in the belief that Grunong Tahan,
which may be translated to mean " The Mountain of
Opposition," can never be explored.
The next highest summit is to be found on the opposite
side of the Pahang valley, in the neighbourhood of Grunong
Raja, at the head of the Semantan River near the Selangor
boundary. Then there are Grunong Benom (6,900 feet)
near Raub, and Bukit Raka (2,050 feet), beyond Bentong,
both these mountains being trigonometrical survey stations.
Other high hills are found in the eastern chain from which
flow the river Cherating (called the Sereting near its source),
the Trengganu River Dungun and the Lebir, an important
tributary of the Kelantan River. Further, a range of
mountains, nearly as formidable as that which divides
Pahang from Selangor, separates the districts of Temerloh
in the centre and Kuantan on the east of the State. Then
again, to the south of the River Pahang, there is Grunong
Cheni, an isolated mountain, not, however, very remarkable
for its size ; while, still further south there rises Grunong
Grayong, a high hill from which the River Rompin flows, and
on the Pahang itself, a few days' journey from the coast,
one meets Grunong Senyum ("The Hill of Smiles "), some
3,000 feet in height.
98 Mandhooh of the
The State is well watered by numero-us rivers and streams,
of which the Pahang Eiver is the most important. Curiously
enough, this magnificent waterway, which, though of
considerable size, is, however, inferior in volume, breadth,
and length, to the Perak Piver, has its source, according to
native ideas, in an insignificant ditch, almost in the centre
of the State, into which the considerable waters of the
Tembeling from the north-west, and of the Jelai from the
north empty themselves, thus together forming, from that
point downwards, the broad and picturesque river called the
Pahang, which thenceforth becomes quite distinct as a main
stream. This river drains a great length of country, and,
in its course, receives numerous important feeders from the
most opposite directions — from the mountains to the north,
the south, and the west. In its lower reaches, below Kuala
Bera, it flows for nearly 100 miles due east, through a
country covered with low-lying hills and valleys, until it
empties itself into the China Sea. This country, for the
most part, is not marshy.
Of the other principal rivers, the Eompin, Endau, Kuantan,
Semantan, Triang, Bera, Tembeling, Lipis, and Jelai, may
be mentioned. Of these, the Pompin is a fine river, wider
and longer than many of the others. In marked contrast
to the Pahang, which is much shallower, it has about six
feet of water on the bar at the lowest tide, and there is deep
water for nearly a hundred miles up, whilst the Kuala, or
mouth, lies in a wide bay, protected to some extent, from the
north-east monsoon. The Endau forms the Pahang boundary
with Johore ; the Kuantan has its source in the hills of
Kemaman, a, district of Trengganu, and flows into the China
Sea. The others mentioned above are inland rivers, by
following one or another of which the other States of the
Federation may be entered at their interior stations.
The shallowness of the principal river of the State renders
it navigable for shallow-draught steamers only ; but certain
others, e.g.^ the Pompin and the Kuantan, are free from this
disadvantage. Unlike the Pahang, which, owing to its
sandy bed and absence of rapids, is a safe river for boats of
any description and for small steamers, the Tembeling, Lipis,
and Jelai are rock infested streams, abounding in rapids, and
are, therefore, impracticable, except for sampans (small
native skifls or " dug-outs " holding not more than three
men), for more than a few miles from their mouths.
The rivers of the State are subject to annual floods during
the months of December and January, and when these in-
undations occur certain portions of the country lie under
Federated Malay States. 99
water for several days, sometimes for weeks, invariably
causing damage to standing crops, and often loss of property.
The banks of most Pabang rivers are sandy, often high
and, unlike those on the western slope of the Peninsula, are
nearly always free from the mangrove which flourishes
luxuriantly only in marshy surroundings.
The whole coast of Pabang is, like most of the east coast
of the Peninsula, an almost uninhabited forest ; but it has the
advantage of a fine sandy shore, fringed with numerous Ru
trees [Casuarina littorea), so that it is possible, and, in the
north-east monsoon, not uncommon, for long journeys to be
undertaken along this natural road. Such a thing is no-
where possible on the west coast, with its matted jungle of
mangrove, and its muddy foreshore.
Not much is as yet known about the geology of Pabang, Geology.
such information as is available having reference only to
particular localities where mining is, or has been, in progress,
rather than to the whole State in general.
Greologists who have visited Pabang appear to agree in
thinking that the geological formation on the eastern side of
the main range is such as to render it improbable that large
tracts of alluvial tin will be found in this State. The moun-
tain range is largely composed of granite, which, all the
world over, is the characteristic feature of stanniferous
deposits, and, so far as the granite extends^ the tin is also
found. At the foot of the hills, however, at the points which
correspond to those on the Selangor side of the range, where
the richest alluvial tin fields are found, the granite is
intersected by a slate formation which carries no tin and cuts
the granite off. It is stated that, in Australia, it is at the
junction of two similar formations that the best gold lodes
are found, and it is possible that this may also prove to be
the case in Pabang.
Of the "Mineral" States in the Peninsula, Pabang is
placed first by the Malays ; Kelantan next to Pabang ; and
then Patani ; all these have galena as well as gold and tin.
Grold is found in Pabang almost exclusively in the central
line of the State, at Pasoh on the Bera, at Luit, the Jelai,
the Lipis, Eaub, Penjum, Selensing, and Kechau. What-
ever the explanation may be, it is worth noticing here, as it
has been noticed before, that the principal gold workings of
the Peninsula lie almost entirely along a not very wide
line drawn from Mount Ophir and Segamat — (the southern
100 Handbook of the
limit of the auriferous chain) through the very heart of the
Peninsula, to the Klian Mas or gold diggings of Petani
and Telepin in the north.
The best allavial tin workings of Pahang lie near the
Selangor hills on the Piver Bentong ; at Sempam, Tras, and
Liang ; and near the gold workings of the Jelai. The
deepest underground tin mines in the Peninsula are situated
in the Kuantan District, where there are extensive and well
defined lodes, and where ttlso copper is found. Pahang tin
is said to he the only tin on the East Coast which can rival
that of Perak and Selangor in whiteness and pliancy. Some
years ago, antimony was found near Selensing on the Jelai
river, and lodes of that mineral are believed to exist in that
part of the State.
At Penjum, gold is found in quartz leaders traversing
masses of clay slate, of which the country rock is there
mainly composed, and a good proportion of free gold is
present in the ore which appears to be fairly tractable. It is
said that the geological formations at Eaub and Selensing,
(which are two important gold localities), are similar to that
at Penjum.
Generally speaking, the geological formation of Pahang
hills consists, so far as is at present known, of granite,
sandstone, shale, and clay. Some of the islands, such as
Tioman and Tinggi, consist partly or entirely of trap rock.
Grold is found in the streams of the rivers and in quartz
lodes in the slate. The rock in which tin is found in Kuan-
tan, (the only place in which lodes have hitherto been
discovered), is a species of laterite, and the alluvial tin mines
in that and in others districts of the State, are similar to
those in Selangor, but the tin-bearing stratum is met with at
relatively shallower depths.
In the Tui river, a tributary of the Jelai, gold has been
found in the limestone, which is said to be surprising as there
is no record of gold having occurred in a limestone formation
elsewhere. That part of P;^hang consists mainly of highly-
tilted beds of clay, slates, and shales; while interbedded
with them, occasionally but rarely, conglomerates and lime-
stones appear. The stratified rocks there are traversed by
numerous intrusions of granites and greenstones, which take
the form of lenses and dykes, the strike and dip of the latter
being always parallel to those of the stratified rocks. All
the known rich concentrations of gold in Pahang are said to
be associated with intrusive rocks, and wherever streams are
Federated Malay States. 101
found crossing the contact of the intrusive and stratified
rocks, gold can always be detected.
In Pahang, tin seems to be confined to the granites of the
central range and to the Kuantan granites. Grenerally, the
central range has undergone much less denudation on its
eastern than on its western side. For instance the slates still
extend half way up the mountains at Tras and are not visible
on the western side until Kuala Kubu, in Selangor, is
approached. Consequently, much less stream tin has been
shed into Pahang than into the Western States. There
seem, however, to be some points where the granite ridge has
weathered more quickly than usual on the eastern side and
where tin is likely to be found, as also in the Kuantan line of
country. The southern extension of this line, south of the
Pahang Eiver, seems to be but little known.
The climate of Pahang is, as a rule, warm, moist, and soft. Climate.
It is cooler and more agreeable on the coast than in the
interior stations.
The year is divided into two monsoon seasons - the dry
and the wet. The former, the south-west, lasts from April
to September, and the latter, the north-east, from October to
March. Various localities differ in minor points, but
malarious miasma, in a greater or less degree, is never absent,
though it is, of course, present to a greater extent in unopened
and more remote parts of the country than in the towns.
Pahang is, on the whole, generally supposed to be an
unhealthy State, but this belief may safely be characterised
as a somewhat biassed one, for there can be no doubt that
the climate of Pahang is fairly healthy and not peculiarly
prejudicial to the European constitution, while it certainly
cannot be said with truth that the country is unfit for
Europeans and others to hve in.
Provided that the usual rules of hygiene in tropical
countries are observed, and all excesses avoided in eating and
drinking, Europeans can, as a rule, remain in Pahang for at
least four or five years at a stretch before the necessity for a
change of climate becomes apparent.
The stations in Pahang in which meteorological observations
are taken are few in number, and the distances which divide
one part of the State from another are so great that obser-
vations recorded at one place cannot serve as any indication
of what may be expected even throughout the district of
which that place is the head-quarters ; and it may, there-
102 Sandhook of the
fore, be confidently asserted that it is only by chance that
annual extremes of temperature for a given year are
registered, as it is probable that these are also to be
observed in some place or places within the State other
than in the few in which meteorological stations have been
established.
A mean annual temperature of between 75° F. and 80°
F. is the rule. Grreat extremes are rare. A continuance
of cloudy weather is practically unknown. There is not
much difference between the temperatures of the seasons.
The rainfall is always large, and is fairly evenly distri-
buted throughout the State. An average annual fall of
from 150 to 175 inches may be depended upon. The average
number of rainy days is high, viz : — about 200 a year, or
about 17 wet days each month.
It must, however, be noted that a considerable difference
always exists between the rainfalls of the seasons, that of the
north-east monsoon being about twice as much as that of the
south-west.
During the months of November to February the fall is
comparatively much greater than in any other given four
months. When the wet season is on, rain generally falls
with violence and lasts long, while passing storms of wind
and rain are frequent during the same period.
Heavy rain in Pahang is invariably the precursor of floods,
which annually occur in this State with great regularity and
which are caused by the enormous amount of rain that falls
in the mountains of the upper country.
For a State of the size of Pabang, the population is very
sparse. Since the introduction of the Residential system in
1899, the Census has been taken twice — in 1891 and in 1901.
The returns of the former year were admittedly incomplete
and are not, therefore, useful for purposes of comparison.
The following were the figures returned on 1st March,
1901 :—
Malays and other natives of the
Archi-
pelago ...
Chinese
Tamils and other natives of India
73,462
8,695
1,227
Europeans and Eurasians...
180
Other Nationalities
:
549
Total
84,113
Federated Malay States. 103
Taking the area of the State at an estimated 14,000 square
miles, it will be seen that the average population to the
square mile is only six, or one person to about every hundred
acres, which serves to show how small a portion of the whole
country is owned or occupied. In some parts of the State
one can travel continuously for a week on end without
seeing a single human habitation. Pahang is thus far from
being a populous country, even according to the low standard
of the Peninsula ; but there are a good many prosperous
Malay settlements, and not least in the extreme interior.
The most thickly populated portions of the country are the
Lipis Valley in the Ulu Pahang, the Pahang Eiver banks
near Temerloh, and the banks of the river from the mouth
at Kuala Pahang to ten miles above Pekan.
In addition to the nationalities given above, large numbers
of Sakai (which is the generic name for the Aborigines)
inhabit the wilder and less accessible parts of the State.
No accurate estimate of their numbers is at present possible,
but they are certainly far more numerous than was formerly
supposed, and 7,500 to 8,000 souls for all Pahang would not
be above the mark.
Some years ago. Professor Yaughan Stevens travelled
through the Endau and Pompin Districts, pursuing anthro-
pological enquiries among the Sakai tribes of the coast, and
later the same gentleman made a few short trips to the edges
of some of the Ulu Pahang Sakai districts, the Jelai and
the Telom, but he did not penetrate to those parts of the
country which are inhabited by the Tem-be, or wild Sakai,
the Semang, and the Pangan, or Negrit, tribes, mentioned by
Baron Miklaho-Maklay as living on the Kelantan frontier.
The country on both sides of the mountain range, which
forms the watershed of the Pahang rivers Jelai and Telom
and of the Perak rivers Bidor and Kampar, is thickly
inhabited by Sakai who, although a few large villages exist,
live for the most part in groups of from two to three families.
These Sakai are divided into two distinct tribes, called by
themselves Sen-oi and Tem-be, respectively, the former being
the more civilized and more accessible clan, while the latter
are but little known to the Malays. It is worthy of note
that the Sen-oi dialect is practically identical with that in use
among the Sakai tribes of Kinta and the Lengkuas tribe near
Blanja in Perak, while the Tem-be tribe speak a dialect
equally similar to that in use among the Sakai tribes of Legap
and Korbu in the Plus district of the same State. Both the
Tem-be and Sen-oi dialects, however, resemble one another
so closely that it would seem to be evident that they originally
104 Handbook of the
sprang from the same source. Words to express any
numerals higher than three are are not found in either of
these dialects.
The Sakai used not to love the Malay, and with good
reason. Countless years of tyranny and ruthless oppression
on the part of the Malays would seem to have entirely
broken the spirit of the jungle-dwellers, who, in consequence
of the ill-treatment which they been obliged to passively
suffer, are still very shy, and avoid strangers with the
instinct of wild animals. Of recent years, however, these
people, hitherto enslaved and trampled upon to an extent
that baffles description, are beginning to realise the fact that
even a Sakai cannot, under the existing regime, be in any
way ill-treated with impunity.
The real Sakais wear no clothes, a strip of bark being all
that they consider necessary.
Their weapons are bows and arrow and blowpipes with
poisoned darts. The bow used is about six feet long, made
of " Penaga " wood, and strung with twisted strips of the
same " Terap " bark as is used for their waist-cloths, whilst
the arrows are about two feet six inches in length, made of
bamboo, tipped with barbed iron, poisoned with " Ipoh, "
and feathered with the tailfeathers of the " Enggang, " or
larger horn-bill. Sakais are seldom or never seen in the
vicinity of towns or villages and live entirely in the jungle.
They are not Muhammadans and such religion as they
possess is a rude kind of pantheism, but they behove in an
after-life and in the power of good and evil spirits.
As regards the general condition of the Malays of Pahang,
it has vastly improved and they are infinitely better off in
every way now than they were under the Grovernment of the
Sultan and his Chiefs prior to 1889. They are, in fact, on
the whole, so well-to-do that even the high rate of wages
that now obtains in this State seldom serves as a sufficient
inducement to them to accept any but temporary employ-
ment, and that only at intervals. The Pahang Malay does
not differ to any marked degree from his fellows in the other
States of the Federation, and all that has been written about
the natives of the Peninsula in the First Part of this Pland-
book, can be held to apply to the natives of this State as well.
Of the 180 Europeans and Eurasians returned at the
recent Census, 134 are Europeans and the remainder
Eurasians. About a hundred of the former a.re in the
employ of the mining companies in the State, the remainder
being Grovernment officers. Practically all the Eurasians are
Federated Malay States. 105
subordinate members of the Grovernment service. Of the
Tamils and other Indians, about a thousand are road coolies,
with a few petty shop-keepers and money-lenders. Included
in " Other Nationalities," but not shown separately, are
about 400 Arabs most of whom are traders in a small way.
The remaining 149 are principally Japanese and Singhalese,
and call for no special remark.
The history of Pahang is obscure, and was chiefly con- History
cerned in olden days with invasions and threats from Siam,
and it is said, Malacca. To a great extent Pahang escaped
the troubles which Johore suffered, directly and indirectly,
through its European neighbours — the Portuguese and the
Dutch.
The first Euler of Pahang, of whom there is any record,
was a son of the Sultan Mahmud, who fled to Pahang from
Malacca after the capture of that town by the Portuguese in
1511. A reputed descendant of his was Bendahara Ali, who
died in the year 1850 or thereabouts. He had ten children,
only two of whom are of any historical importance. The
names of these two Eajas were Che' Wan Muhammad Tahir
and Che' Wan Ahmad. The former, who was the elder of
the twain, ascended the throne on his father's death and
forced his brother to fly from the country. Che' Wan
Ahmad then went to Singapore and took refuge in the Kota
of Sultan Ali. Later, Che' Wan Muhammad Tahir died,
and his eldest son, Che' Wan Korish, succeeded him.
Che' Wan Ahmad, meanwhile, made many attempts to
seize the country, first from his brother, and subsequently
from his nephew, Che' Wan Korish, who, thinking his
position insecure, sought an alliance with the Tumenggong
of Johore. In 1862, a treaty was signed between Bendahara
Che' Wan Korish of Pahang and the Tumenggong Abubakar
(afterwards Maharaja and subsequently Sultan) of Johore.
This was an offensive and defensive alliance between the two
States, and, in accordance with the provisions of this treaty,
the Tumenggong of Johore aided Bendahara Korish with
men and money when, in 1865, Che' Wan Ahmad made his
final, and, as it proved, successful, invasion of Pahang. In
return for the assistance promised in the treaty referred to,
Pahang ceded to Johore certain tracts of territory in the
interior of its coast districts. Che' Wan Korish died during
the war which followed his uncle's invasion, and the former's
brothers, Che' Wan Ahmad and Che' Wan Da, were driven
into the sea in spite of the efforts of Johore to resist the
invaders.
106 Handbook of the
The Che' Wan Ahmad frequently referred to above is the
present Ruler of Pahang — Sultan Ahmad Muatham Shah
Ebini Al Merhum Ali.
When Che' Wan Ahmad seized the Pahang throne in
1865, he forthwith, as was but natural, repudiated the treaty
into which his nephew, Bendahara Che' Wan Korish, had
entered with the Tumenggong of Johore three years earlier.
This repudiation, with its attendant rival claims to those
portions of Pahang territory which Che' Wan Korish had
ceded to Johore, caused considerable ill-feeling between the
Courts of the two States. Three years later, however, that
is, in 1868, a rectification of the boundaries between Pahang
and Johore, at the River Endau, was settled by the arbitra-
tion of the then Grovernor of the Straits Settlements, Sir
Harry Ord, K.C.B. There was thus created some dependence
on the part of Pahang, and on the part of the Colony some
obligation of protection and recognition.
For many years after the events narrated above, Pahang
was left alone, and, as a result, the State gradually became
notorious for cruel mis-government, even among other
independent Malay States, and strong representations on this
subject were made to the Sultan by Sir Frederick Weld, then
Grovernor of the Straits Settlements, during the years 1885
and 1886.
It is difficult for those who are acquainted only with the
Protected States on the western side of the Malay Peninsula,
to realise the state of affairs which prevailed in Pahang prior
to the appointment of the first British Resident in 1888.
A system of taxation under which every necessary as well
as every luxury of life was heavily taxed ; law courts in
which the procedure was the merest mockery of justice,
the decisions depending solely on the relative wealth or
influence of the litigants, and where the punishments meted
out were utterly barbarous ; a system of debt-slavery under
which not only the debtor but his wife and their most remote
descendants were condemned to hopeless bondage ; an
unlimited corvee, or forced labour (" Krah " as it is termed
by Malays), for indefinite periods, and entirely without
remuneration ; such were some of the more striking examples,
although the list is by no means exhaustive, of administrative
misrule in a State within less than twenty-four hours of
Singapore, and immediately adjoining the two Protected
States of Perak and Selangor. The condition of the Pahang
rwiat, or peasant, during the period in question, may be
briefly expressed by stating that he had absolutely no rights,
Federated Malay States. 107
whether of person or property, not merely in his relations
with the Kaja, but even in those with his immediate District
Chief.
This most deplorable state of affairs has, as already
mentioned, since been happily changed for the better.
In October, 1887, a Political and Commercial Treaty was
concluded between Sir Frederick Weld and the Sultan of
Pahang, similar to that entered into with the Sultan of
Johore in December, 1895, and Mr. Hugh Clifford was
appointed to act as the Grovernor's Agent at the Pahang
Court, having functions similar to those of a Consular
Officer.
In February, 1888, a Chinese British subject was
murdered at Pekan, then the capital of Pahang, under very
aggravated circumstances, and His Excellency Sir Cecil C.
Smith, Grovernor of the Straits Settlements, called on the
Sultan to make reparation for this murder.
For some time this was refused, but after protracted
negotiations, the Sultan asked that the past might be condoned
and that a British Pesident might be appointed to assist him
in the administration of his country, on the same system as
that in force in the Protected Malay States. This request
was complied with, and Mr. J. P. Rodger was appointed the
first Resident in October, 1888.
The following is a copy of the correspondence which led to
Pahang being brought under British protection : —
Translation
of a letter from His Highness the Sultan Ahmad Muatham, Shah of
Pahang, to His Excellency Sir Cecil Clementi Smith, k.c.m.g., Governor
of the Straits Settlements.
(After compliments.)
We make known to our friend, -with reference to the correspondence hetween
ourself and our friend, that we have considered our friend's words, and all
that our friend has written. We have also had time to consult with our
relation. His Highness the Sultan of Johore. Our friend will remember that
we have already acknowledged our responsibility for the murder of Jo Hui
(Go Hui), a British subject. We hope that no more will be said about this
matter, and that Her Majesty the Queen will be satisfied with our expression
of regret for what has occurred, and with our giving a guarantee for the future,
that is to say, that Her Majesty the Queen should send us a British Officer
in order that he may assist us in matters relating to the Government of our
country, on a similar system to that existing in the Malay States under
English protection. We now ask for such an Officer. In asking this, we
trust that the British Government will assure to us and our successors all our
proper privileges and powers according to our system of government, and will
108 Handbook of the
undertake that they will not interfere with the old customs of our country
which have good and proper reasons, and also with all matters relating
to our Eeligion. There is nothing more but our best respects to our friend.
Written on the 16th of Zil Hejah, 1305. (24th August, 1888.)
Eeply to the above.
His Excellency, Governor Sir Cecil C. Smith, k.c.m.g., to His Highness
the Sultan of Pahang.
(After Compliments.)
I inform my friend that the Sultan of Johore duly delivered to me my
friend's letter of 24th August. The contents of this letter I forwarded by
telegraph to England to be laid before the Great Queen, and i prayed that
Her Majesty would accept the expression of my friend's deep regret at what
had taken place in regard to the murder of British subjects, and would
approve of the proposed request of my friend that a British Resident should
be placed in Pahang, who would assist my friend in the administration of
the Government of the country, which would be taken as a guarantee
against all future similar and other troubles.
To-day I have received the commands of the Great Queen authorising
me to carry out the arrangement which my friend has set out in his letter of
the 24th ultimo, and I will therefore soon send a British Resident to my
friend — an ofl&cer of experience, who knows Malay manners and customs,
and who is well-intentioned towards my friend personally, and desirous of
promoting the interests of my friend's country. I rely on my friend treating
the British Resident with entire frankness, taking him into full confidence
as regards all public matters, and loyally carrying out the arrangement
which has now been finally made.
In conclusion, I send my best wishes for my friend's health and for the
prosperity of my friend's country.
Singapore, %th September, 1888.
Though the first British Eesident was, as already stated,
appointed in 1888, full administration of the State was not
taken over until July, 1889. Even then, however, having
regard to the past history and peculiar circumstances of
Pahang, it was not expected that the Sultan and his Chiefs
would at the commencement give to the new Grovernment
the same cordial support and assistance which is rendered by
the Native Rulers of the other protected States ; but the
Sultan has never failed to recognise his treaty obligations, and
the provisions of the liberal Civil List have, in some measure,
tended to compensate the Chiefs for the loss of their former
oppressive powers.
The great territorial Chiefs have never viewed with favour
the changes then and since introduced into the administration
of Pahang — changes which have considerabty diminished
their former almost absolute authority in their respective
districts. The relations of these Chiefs, whose titles were
Federated Malay States. 109
hereditary, and who had the power of appointing subsidiary
headmen to their followers, were very similar to those
formerly existing between a Highland Chief and the members
of his clan in Scotland, and the fiction of a blood relationship
is still to some extent maintained among them, the followers
of a Chief being called his " Anak Buah," i.e., " the children
of his loins." Time has, however, made the great Chiefs
more or less reconciled to the new order of things.
On the other hand, the Penghulus and petty Headmen
have, from the first, gladly accepted the new administration,
since the advantages accruing to them from the introduction
of the Residential system, under which they obtain fixed
allowances, and complete protection of life and property are
almost as important as the security and justice now enjoyed
by the general body of native miats and Chinese and Malay
settlers.
Any account of the history of the State would be some-
what incomplete if it omitted all reference to the Pahang
disturbances of 1891-2 and 1894. These internal troubles
may therefore be briefly alluded to here.
From the date of the declaration of British protection,
one Chief, Bahman, the (ex) Orang Kaya Pahlawan of
Semantan, was, more than all the rest, violently opposed to
the new system, and until December 1891, when he broke
out into open rebellion against the Grovernment, he was
never tired of proclaiming that he would not tamely submit
to the British. The only thing which he said would ensure
his loyalty and obedience to Government regulations, was a
pension of $6,000 a year, and permission to do as he liked
within the borders of his own district. The Grovernment
declined to negotiate on this basis, and the Orang Kaya
sullenly retreated into the jungles of the Semantan and
commenced raising his own revenue in a fashion characteristic
of independent Malay rule.
Affairs came to a crisis when one day he fired upon an
European Officer in the Semantan district, killed sundry
Sikhs, and, with his victorious band of about 200 followers,
marched downstream and sacked the unprotected village of
Temerloh, causing the Officer in charge to retreat to Pekan,
the capital.
Sikh Police were afterwards brought in from th3 neigh-
bouring States of Perak and Selangor, and also from the
Colony, and a protracted guerilla warfare ensued. This
continued till late in 1892, when the Orang Kaya wa©
8
110 Handbook of the
forced to flee and take refuge in the northern States of
Kelantan and Trengganu, where he was received with open
arms. His followers had hy that time considerably
dwindled in numbers, and in his retreat he was attended by
only a handful of faithful retainers. The result of the
operations was the escape of the rebel and much misery
among his people.
Bahman remained in Kelantan till June, 1894, when he
re-entered Pahang by way of the Tembeling river. He had
a following of about 150 men, chiefly Kelantanese bent on
loot. The Police Station at Kuala Tembeling was cleverly
surprised by the rebels, and out of the small garrison of
eleven men, six were killed, the remainder succeeded in
escaping, though one of them was wounded with knives and
kris in more than thirty places. After looting all the
trading boats in the vicinity, the rebels retreated up the
Tembeling river and stockaded themselves at Jeram Ampai.
They were victors for the moment. In due course, Sikh
troops were again brought in and took the field under the
command of Colonel E S. Prowd Walker, O.M.Gr. An
action was fought at Jeram Ampai and the rebels, utterly
routed, fled in all directions leaving forty killed. Bahman
again escaped into Kelantan, his unrivalled knowledge of
Malay jungles again serving him in good stead. Our loss
in this engagement was one European (Mr. E. A. Wise) and
four Sikhs killed, and Captain H. L. Talbot, and four Sikhs
wounded.
After Bahman made good his escape into Kelantan,
negotiations were opened between the British and Siamese
Grovernments, as a result of which the ex-Orang Kay a of
Semantan and his more important assistants have been
sentenced to perpetual banishment at Chieng Mai in Siam.
Since the disturbances of 1894, Pahang has enjoyed peace,
and there is now, in the opinion of those best able to judge,
no further likelihood of any internal troubles again breaking
out. The moral lesson of the past rebellion has been to the
Malays a most salutary one.
The State has now been under British protection for
twelve years, and the record during this period is a
sufiiciently satisfactory one. The condition of the native
population has been enormously improved ; property, owing
to the added security afforded by the Administration to
all classes of the community, has greatly increased in value ;
a great deal of money has found its way into the country,
Federated Malay States. Ill
and the wealth of the Malays has been very materially
increased. Above all, a just and humane rule has replaced
that of the old regime^ and the happiness of the bulk of
the inhabitants of Pahang has in a great measure been
secured. To adequately reahse all that has been effected
during the past decade, one must remember that Pahang
was, prior to 1889, the wildest and most lawless of all the
States in the Malay Peninsula.
In so far as cash balances are concerned, Pahang {^ ih.Q Revenue and
poorest State in the Federation, and is heavily in debt. The "^^^^
total liabilities on the 1st January, 1901, amounted to
$3,566,237, or £356,623 sterling, and, for some time to
come, will have to be added to yearly. Fortunately, the
State debt is only a paper one, the repayment of which
depends upon the extent to which the future development of
the country will be pushed. All money required by Pahang
for expenses of administration is generously advanced by the
State of Selangor, which does not, happily, lay down any
hard-and-fast rules as to period of repayment.
Since 1889 and up to the end of 1900, over half a million
dollars has been debited against Pahang on account of
interest on loans received. The disturbances of 1891-2 and
1894 accounted for over $300,000. Towards this latter
expenditure, however, the Sultan contributed $57,600 out of
his own pocket.
The Eevenue of the State advanced from $375,350 in
1899 to $419,150 in 1900. The principal collections were
made under the headings of Licenses, Customs, and Land
and Forest Eevenue. The first item is mainly derived from
the Chinese population and includes duty on opium, spirits,
and tobacco imported. " Customs," chiefly represents the
export royalty paid on gold and tin won in and sent out of
the State. Land and forest revenue is contributed principally
by the Malays, the former item being on account of rent
paid by them for their agricul ural holdings, and the latter
comprising export duty on jungle produce worked by
them.
The expenditure of the State has always been greatly in
excess of the revenue. In 1900 it amounted to $630,678,
the principal disbursements appearing under Personal
Emoluments; Departmental Charges; Salaries and Allow-
ances to Chiefs ; Eoads, Streets, Eivers, and Bridges ;
Works and Buildings; Interest on Loans; and Federal
Charges.
8a
112
Handbook of the
The following table shows the Eevenue and Expenditure
of the State since the establishment of British protection : —
Year.
1889 (half-year)
1890
1891
1892
1893
1894
1895
1896
1897
1898
1899
1900
Total
Revenue.
$30,390
$62,077
$77,386
$50,044
$83,688
$100,220
$106,744
$160,947
$198,193
$224,856
$375,350
$419,150
$1,889,045
Expenditure.
$142,621
$297,702
$238,174
$271,393
$282,236
$249,121
$231,914
$462,619
$441,918
$372,719
$1,814,030
$630,678
$5,435,125
Trade.
It will thus be seen that the expenditure has, during the
past eleven and a half years, exceeded the revenue by over
three and a half million dollars, that being, therefore, the
amount of the State debt at the end of 1900.
Almost the whole of the trade is carried on between the
ports of the State and Singapore. The values for the past
nine years are shown in the subjoined table : —
Year.
Imports.
Exports.
1892
$341,673
$331,196
1893
$363,834
$367,555
1894
$787,859
$659,653
1895
$946,497
$775,313
1896
.. $1,180,188
$865,280
1897
.. $1,226,059
$1,652,607
1898
.. $1,147,054
$1,559,349
1899
.. $1,531,661
$2,062,241
1900
$973,405
$2,322,950
The principal imports are opium, spirits, rice, tinned
provisions and miscellaneous food stuffs, cotton goods,
tobacco, machinery, kerosine and other oils, hardware,
sugar. About $200,000 worth of specie is brought into the
State annually. The principal articles of export are tin,
gold, salted fish, rattans, gutta and rubber, timber,
buffalo hides, and various kinds of jungle produce, &c.
During the past five years the export of gold, tin, and
gutta and rubber has been : — 105,475 ounces valued at
$4,219,000 ; 3,392 tons valued at $3,200,793 ; and 156 tons
valued at $573,237, respectively.
Federated Malay States. 113
The customs duties in force in Pahang vary to some extent
as compared with the royalties levied in the other Federated
States. In addition to the import duty on opium and spirits,
all kinds of Asiatic tobaccos brought into the country pay a tax
of $10 a pikul (133J- lbs.). The right to collect this is farmed
out to a Chinese syndicate, as is also the opium and spirits
monopoly. These are the only import duties at present in
force.
In the other States the export duty on tin is calculated on
a sliding scale, as explained in Part I. of this Hand-book,
and the royalty on gold is there 10% of its value. In
Pahang, tin pays a fixed duty of 10% (in a few special cases
it is 8%) ad valorem, calculated on the daily market price of
the metal ; while the royalty on gold exported is fixed at
5%, or half of what it is elsewhere.
Passengers and Fares. — Passengers for Pahang from the Pas^^engers
West can book their passages either to Penang or Singapore. ^^^<^Fare.s.
If entry into the State by way of any of the coast ports
is desired, tickets should be procured for Singapore. Thence
by local steamers to Kuala Pahang or Kuala Kuantan.
If, on the other hand, one wishes to enter the State by road,
then book to Penang and thence tranship to Port Swettenham
in Selangor. From Port Swettenham to Kuala Lumpur and
then to Kuala Kubu, both by rail. From the latter town,
one either travels by pony or bullock cart for 88 miles along
a well-made road until Kuala Lipis, the present capital of
Pahang, is reached.
Full information as to fares from England to Pahang and
Singapore is given in Appendix A, in which are also included
several details that it would be useful for travellers to know.
The cost of a first class passage from Singapore to Kuala
Pahang by local steamer varies from $10 to $15 in the calm
season to $20 to $25 in the rough season. A deck passage
costs from $2 to $5.
Steamer communication between Singapore and Pahang is,
however, somewhat uncertain and unreliable, the more so
during the north-east monsoon (October to March). During
these months vessels arrive and leave at fortnightly intervals.
During the south-west monsoon (April to September), three
or four steamers are usually on the run, but their movements
are erratic.
There is a daily mail service by bullock cart between Posts and
Kuala Lipis and Selangor, touching at Eaub en route^ leUgraphs.
114 Sandhook of the
Time in transit one day between Kuala Lipis and Eaub, and
four to five days between Selangor and Singapore and Kuala
Lipis.
Mails from Europe arrive in Pahang about once a week or
ten days. It takes about a month for a letter to reach
Pahang from England.
There is also a regular postal service within the State,
maintained by Glovernment river boats which ply between
Kuala Lipis, Temerloh, and Pekan, three times a month to
and from.
Postal communication between Singapore and the coast
ports of Pekan and Kuantan is by means of local steamers
which, as already stated, are uncertain in their time-tables.
Between Pekan and Kuantan mails are sent by boat and
runner, as may be most convenient at the time.
Postal charges are as follows : —
Postcards. —
Within the State \
To the other Federated Malay States / ^ , i
To the Colony of the Straits I
Settlements and Johore ...)
To all other parts of the world ... 3 cents each. .
Letters —
Within the State \
Tothe other Federated Malay States / per J oz. 3
The Colony of the Straits Settle- i cents.
ments and Johore ... ... )
To England and all other places j
which have accepted Imperial > 4 cents.
Penny Postage ... ... . . . )
To places other than those ) o i.
^. J 1 > o cents,
mentioned above ... ... )
Parcel Rates —
For British Dependencies and for other countries
the rates vary. Information can be obtained
from the Postal Gruide which can be seen at any
Post Ofiice. For the Straits Settlements, the
Federated Malay States, and Johore- -
Under 3 lbs 25 cents.
„ 7 lbs 45 cents.
11 lbs 65 cents.
Federated Malay States. 115
The rates for books, patterns, and printed papers are very
low.
Eegistration can be effected in all the Post Offices of the
State at a uniform charge of five cents.
Stout cloth-lined envelopes can be purchased in large and
small sizes for seven cents and six cents each, respectively.
This includes the registration fee of five cents which is
embossed on the cover.
Money orders in dollar currency are issued at Kuala
Lipis and Pekan on the Federated Malay States, the Straits
Settlements and Johore. Those for other countries are
issued through Singapore in the respective currencies of the
places on which they are drawn. British Postal Orders are
also obtainable, the charges for sterling varying according to
current rates of exchange.
Commission on Money Orders is as follows : —
Local ... ... ... 1 per cent, of value, with
a minimum of 5 cents.
East of Singapore ... 3 per cent, of value, with
a minimum of 15 cents.
India and Ceylon ... 2 J per cent, of value, with
a minimum of 15 cents.
G-reat Britain ... 3 per cent, of value, with
a minimum of 15 cents.
Other countries ... 3 per cent, of value, with
a minimum of 15 cents.
British Postal Orders, 2 cents each, in addition to the cost
price at Singapore.
The telegraph mileage in Pahang is 53, the line being an
extension of the Selangor system. The stations are at Raub
and Kuala Lipis.
Direct communication is always open to the Federated
Malay States and the Straits Settlements over Government
hnes. All messages to other parts of the world are
transmitted over the cables of the Eastern Extension,
Australasia and China Telegraph Company.
The rates are, per word : —
To Europe $1-98 to $2-58.
To India and Ceylon 98 cents to $1'08.
To China and Japan $1*08 to $2*83.
To America $278 to $5-38.
To Australia $218 to $2*68.
116
Sandhook of ike
To Singapore
Local, ordinary
„ deferred
„ urgent
13 cents to 28 cents.
3 cents, with a minimum
of 21 cents.
1 J cents, with a minimum
of 21 cents.
9 cents.
There are several ports along the Pahang coast, but only
two of these are frequented by shipping — Kuala Pahang
and Kuala Kuantan. The former is 18 to 20 hours' steam
from Singapore, and the latter 20 to 24.
No vessel drawing over 10 feet of water can enter the
mouths of the Pahang and Kuantan rivers, and even when
these small ships come in they have to so time their arrival
and departure as to take advantage of the high tide. Other-
wise they run the risk of grounding, and, in rough weather,
of possible destruction.
During the south-west monsoon, however, there is, pro-
vided ordinary care is exercised, practically no danger to be
encountered at the bars of Pahang rivers that flow into the
China Sea. On the other hand, the crossing of Pahang bars
in the north-east monsoon is fraught with some danger,
owing to the heavy surf and to the shifting nature of the
channels.
Prior to 1889, the Pahang coast was entirely closed to
sea traffic during the north-east monsoon — about six months.
In that year, however, for the first time in the history of the
State, the bars of the Pahang and Kuantan rivers were
successfully crossed by a steamer brought in by the late
Captain Habekost, Since then, until 1898, the Pahang
river has been entered without disaster during what is known
as the " close " season. In December of that year, a new
ship, the " Perdana," the most comfortable of all the vessels
that used to run to the east coast of the Peninsula, foundered
at Kuala Pahang while trying to cross the bar in bad
weather, and became a total wreck.
Excepting at Kuala Kuantan, there is no wharf
accommodation at any Pahang port. Vessels unload into
and load from boats that go alongside. For the present
small volume of trade this system answers well. Accidents
are rare.
There are twelve vernacular schools in Pahang, situated in
the most populous villages. Malay reading and writing and
arithmetic are taught, and the daily attendance averages
Pederated Malay States. 117
only about 250 boys for the whole State. All these schools
are maintained entirely at Grovernment expense.
Unlike the case in the more advanced States of the
Federation, education in Pahang has many difficulties and
prejudices to contend against. A couple of instances may be
cited. At many villages there are local holy men who warn
parents that schooling interferes with the boys' study of the
Koran. Besides, most parents here prefer that their children
should work in the padi fields instead of spending most of their
time in school. The Malays of the State have, therefore, ever
shown but slight disposition to send their children to school.
This reluctance, however, is being gradually overcome
through the influence of the District Officers.
There are no EngHsh schools nor are there any girls'
schools in Pahang, An English class for Pajas used to be
maintained a few years ago at Pekan, but proved a failure
and had to be abolished. Only three pupils (the Sultan's
sons) attended, but after a space the novelty wore off and
they took no further interest in their studies. One of the
difficulties in teaching English to Malays in a place such as
Pahang is that they have no inducement and but few oppor-
tunities of speaking the language out of school hours.
As far as is possible, the health of the natives is well cared Hospitals
for by Grovernment. The hospitals are practically free to all
comers. Sulphate of quinine is dispensed freely and
vaccination is carried out gratuitously on a fairly large scale.
The bulk of the population is thus well protected against
small-pox. The principles of modern sanitation are enforced
in the towns as far as is practicable.
There are four well-equipped hospitals in the State, con-
taining accommodation for 128 patients. The hospitals at
Kuala Lipis and Pekan (42 beds and 18 beds respectively)
are in charge of qualified European surgeons who are
assisted by dressers. The hospital at Eaub, the principal
mining centre, contains 20 beds, and that at Bentong
provides for 48 patients ; both these hospitals are in charge
of dressers. There are also Graol hospitals at Kuala Lipis
and Pekan. In addition to the above, there are private
hospitals and dispensaries in the different mining centres,
and these are supported by the mining companies imme-
diately concerned.
One thousand one hundred and seventy two cases were
admitted to the State hospitals in 1900, and 15,200 visits
lis B^andhook of the
were recorded at the out-patient departments. These figures
show a great increase as compared to former years, and
point to the fact that natives of all classes show an increasing
disposition to profit by the European medical facilities which
G-overnment has placed within their reach.
The principal road in the State is the Pahang Trunk Road,
which has been constructed by the Public Works Department
of Selangor at a cost of over a million and a quarter dollars.
It is an excellent metalled cart road running from Kuala
Kubu, on the Railway in Selangor, over the main chain of
mountains to Kuala Lipis ; it is 83 miles in length, of which
62 miles are in Pahang territory and the rest in Selangor ;
it passes through the principal mining centres of Ulu
Pahang ; and, since its completion, has been maintained in
a high state of efficiency. The mountain range is crossed at
an elevation of 2,700 feet, and the summit is reached from
each side by a continuous gradient of one in thirty.
Another important metalled cart road in Pahang is one
that connects Tras, a rising town seven miles from Raub and
47 from Kuala Lipis, with Bentong, where alluvial tin
mining has recently been started on an extensive scale. Its
length is 21 miles.
Among unmetalled earth roads, the chief is the one from
Raub to Batu Talam in the Lipis valley, a distance of 16
miles. Another earth road is in course of construction from
Kuala Lipis along the Jelai river to Kuala Tui, a gold-
mining village. The old bridle path, which used to be the
only means of communication between Pahang and Selangor
prior to the completion of the Trunk Road, is still unkept
for 27 miles between Penjum and Grali and for short lengths
between Raub and the Selangor boundary. A bridle path
is also maintained between Bentong and Grinting Bidai, the
other junction with the boundary of Selangor, 29 miles in
length. There are altogether about 75 miles of bridle paths
in the State, and but a few miles of metalled town streets.
Rivers and native paths, form the chief and only means of
internal communication. The approximate length of water-
ways in Pahang navigable for ordinary river cargo boats is
about 400 miles.
But an insiornificant fraction of the total area of the State
is either owned or occupied.
There has never been any great outside demand for land
for permanent occupation in this State, except, perhaps, in
Federated Malay States. 119
the immediate vicinity of a few of the more prosperous towns
and mining centres.
As in the other States of the Federation, the alienation of
mining and agricultural land is regulated by the Land and
Mining Enactments, which can be either obtained locally or
seen in the Library of the Colonial Office in London. In
the case of large areas, the efficient working of which would
necessitate a considerable outlay, special terms are usually
granted to bond fide investors and settlers.
As in the other States, all manual labour in Pahang is labour
performed by Asiatics, chiefly Chinese and Tamils. The
Pahang Malay does not believe in working to the extent
which is customary among most races. If what he earns in
a week will keep him in food for a fortnight, as it usually
does, he will not leave his village until his money is nearly
over. Almost all the labour, therefore, has to be performed
by alien immigrants.
Compared with the ruling rates in the more advanced
States of the Federation, wages in Pahang are high, and
labour is as scarce on the spot here as it is abundant else-
where.
In the tin and gold mines the coolies employed are almost
exclusively Chinese. For road and earth work the labour
force is composed almost entirely of Indian Tamils. Cart
and carriage owners and drivers are chiefly Bengalis. The
few Javanese in the State work as gardeners and syces, and
sometimes make spasmodic attempts at mining or planting.
Domestic servants are almost all Chinese, though a few
Singhalese are also employed as such. The work on which
the bulk of the Malays are engaged is planting and tending
their rice fields, searching for jungle produce when money is
scarce, boat-building, and acting as boatmen on Pahang rivers.
With the exception of the majority of Chinese working in
mines, all labourers come under the category of free labour,
i.e. men who have come into the State at their own expense
in search of work. The imported Chinese coolie under
indentures is called a Sinkeh. His transport is paid by the
employer, and, including advances to the coolie, it costs, on
the average, about $60 to bring a Sinkeh to Pahang from
Singapore. In the interior districts the cost is as high as $75
a man. This initial outlay is generally repaid by the
labourer by small monthly instalments, and he then becomes
a Laukeh, free to work or not as he pleases. The Sinkeh
120 Handbook of the
system has, in the past, unfortunately proved somewhat of a
failure in some mines in this State, as the mortality among
the coolies has, of recent years, heen high. Care has there-
fore to he exercised in selecting coolies of good physique, so
as to enahle them to withstand the attacks of heri-heri, fever,
dysentery, and other climatic diseases to which men working
in hitherto unopened jungle country are liahle to fall victims
long before they have repaid the expense incurred in their
importation.
The ruling rates of pay for coolie labour in Pahang vary
in the different districts, being higher in the upper country
than in the lower, as the following table will show : —
Chinese Sinkehs
Chinese Laukehs
Free Tamils . . .
Boatmen
Upper Pahang.
$7 to §9 per mensem.
1 1 2 to ^ 1 5 per mensem.
45 to Qb cts. per diora.
40 to 50 cts. per diem.
Lower Pahang.
|5 to |7 per mensem.
1 10 to §12 per mensem.
30 to 40 cts. per diem.
30 to 40 cts. per diem.
In the case of Chinese and Tamils, these rates are usually
paid in addition to house accommodation. Tlie boatmen,
who are all Malays, find their own quarters when ashore if
they happen to be hired for a limited period or for any
specified trip or work. When a boatman is paid a monthly
salary, his employer provides him with free quarters. In the
central districts of Pahang, Chinese and Tamil coohes are
not available as there is no demand for them there. In case
they are required, they have to be brought from other places
and special terms have to be made as to wages.
Skilled native labour, such as carpenters, brick-layers and
masons, boat-builders, fitters, engine-drivers, etc., is scarce,
and commands rates of pay ranging from $1 to $3 a day.
The material obtainable is inferior and is probably not worth
the money demanded.
The agricultural resources of the State have been very
slightly developed. This is due partly to the thinness of the
population (6 per square mile) ; partly to the ease with which
natives can obtain profitable employment in the mines, on
the roads, as boatmen, &c. ; and partly to the natural
indolence of the Malays, which prevents their turning their
attention to the cultivation of any produce, other than what
is actually sufficient for the supply of their own immediate
wants.
Federated Malay States. 121
On the establishment of British Protection in 1888,
practically the whole of Pahang had been parcelled out by
the Sultan in large concessions, almost all of which conferred
exclusive mining as well as planting rights. The latter were
never utilized to any appreciable extent, and the result is
that no agricultural progress has to be recorded. Less than
56 square miles are under permanent cultivation in a State
14,000 square miles in area.
European planting enterprise, as it exists in Ceylon and
India, is unknown on the east coast of the Malay Peninsula.
In past years small areas of coffee were opened up by one or
two Europeans in Pahang, but were soon abandoned. At the
present time, the only European-owned plantation in this
State is at Kuala Pahang, where 2,000 acres of land are being
planted with coconuts.
In spite of the fact that but little is at present known of the
suitability or otherwise of land in Pahang for the cultivation
of products usually grown in the tropics, such as coffee, tea,
sugar, pepjDer, gambier, rice, etc., there is no reason to suppose
that the soil is not suitable for the cultivation of these and
other tropical products. The obstacles to planting enterprise
on a large scale in this State are at present numerous.
Labour is scarce and expensive ; transport facilities are few
and transport expenses are high ; means of communication
are defective and slow ; the country is practically unknown
to the outside world ; these are some of the drawbacks which
have hindered progress in the past.
In the appendices to this handbook, full information,
supplied by planters of experience, is given as to the method
and cost of opening estates in the Malay Peninsula, and on
kindred matters. It should, however, be noted that all this
refers only to the States of Perak, Selangor and Negri
Sembilan. In Pahang, conditions are different and adverse ;
and the estimates of expenditure supplied should be increased
before they can be held to apply to this State under present
circumstances.
The chief products of native cultivation in Pahang
are rice, betel-nuts, coconuts, sugar-cane, maize, bananas
and fruit of many kinds. Little of these products, with the
exception of a small quantity of betel-nuts, is exported, and
the State is largely dependent on imported rice for its
annual food supply.
The natives only plant one crop of rice in twelve months,
although each crop comes to maturity in little over half that
time. It is the object of the Malay to obtain sufficient rice
122 Handbook of the
for his own immediate requirements, and possibly a small
quantity for sale, the proceeds of which will he sufficient to
defray the small cost of his raiment and other personal
expenses. When, as is often the case, the rice is insufficient,
he ekes out a living by working rattan, gutta and other
jungle produce. Never does it occur to him to grow
sufficient to repay the trouble of export.
Eoughly speaking, each adult male Malay consumes from
four to five pikuls (532 to 665 lbs.) of rice per annum. An
average Malay family will consume from 18 to 22 pikuls
(2,400 to 3,000 lbs.) of rice per annum. In favourable
seasons, which are unfortunately rare, the average rice
planter in Pahang obtains from 800 to 1,000 gantangs
(5,400 to 6,750 lbs.) of padi, or unhusked rice, yielding from
20 to 25 pikuls (2,660 to 3,325 lbs.) of husked rice, thus
leaving a small margin for sale. During bad years, the
average planter's crop sinks to betvs^een 250 and 400
gantangs (1,500 to 2,400 lbs.) of padi, yielding from six to ten
pikuls (800 to 1,300 lbs.) of rice. The natives then have
resort to maize, or to rice purchased from their more
fortunate neighbours or from the Chinese traders who ply
their boats on the rivers. From these figures it will be seen
that even under favourable circumstances only a small
margin remains over and above the requirements of the
individual cultivator, and when it is remembered that a large
portion of the population of the State are consumers, and not
planters, of rice, it will at once be seen that under the present
system Pahang cannot grow a supply of rice sufficient for its
wants.
The continued poorness of the rice crops in Pahang is in
a great measure due to the primitive modes of cultivation
employed by the Malays, to the inefficient implements used,
and to their persistent disregard of some of the first princi-
ples of agriculture. Yarious other causes also contribute to
the same result.
There are three descriptions of rice or padi land in this
State, viz : —
(i.) Wet or swamp land, known locally as bendang^paya,
or sawah.
(ii.) Plough land, or tanah tenggala.
(iii.) Hill land, known as ladang, tanah tugal, or huma.
Wet padi land, which alone of the three kinds can be
planted annually without giving the fields a rest, is often
Federated Malay States. 123
irrigated rudely by artificial means, a combination of local
land owners being formed to defray the expenses of the
undertaking, and it is curious to note that Malays from the
neighbouring State of Kelantan are frequently hired by the
natives of Pahang to do the necessary manual labour of
digging trenches, the natural indolence of the latter
rendering them disinclined to undertake this work. In
several parts of Pahang, padi fields are situated in natural
swamps, and these are, of course, much easier to plant in than
irrigated areas.
Plough land consists chiefly of flat alluvial tracts, many of
which are situated near the lower reaches of the Pahang
river. This land is not irrigated, the crop being entirely
dependent for such moisture as is provided by rain and dew.
Owing to the uncertainty of the seasons, this sometimes
proves insufficient, while at others the crops are destroyed by
floods. Plough land cannot be continuously cultivated year
after year. It is usually planted for four or five seasons, and
is then allowed to lie fallow for the same period before it is
used again.
Hill padi is generally grown along the sides of low hills,
but often on flat land above flood level. In former years
this mode of planting entailed the destruction of valuable
timber, but as ladang cultivation is discouraged by Grovern-
ment, new fields are now nearly always made in secondary
jungle.
Hill or dry rice gives the smallest return, but as it
requires little care after the padi is sown, it is therefore a
favourite method of planting among Pahang Malays.
Swamp rice yields the best crop, but it also entails the most
labour and is proportionately unpopular. The yield of
tanah tenggala, or plough land, is somewhat more than that
obtained from ladang^ or dry fields.
Manure is quite unknown in rice culture in Pahang, but
owing to the large quantities of vegetable matter left to rot
upon the land every year, the impoverishment of the soil is
not so marked as might have been expected.
The implements employed in planting and harvesting are
most primitive and inefficient. The plough used is a clumsy
wooden instrument which barely succeeds in scratching the
surface of the soil ; no harrow is used ; and the tuei, which
is almost universally employed for the purposes of reaping,
is a small semi-circular blade which is only capable of cutting
one ear of ripe grain at a time, thus rendering the process
124 Handbook of the
of gathering the padi peculiarly slow and painful. Half-a-
dozen reapers with this instrument will only reap one igii of
land in 15 days, (an igu is as much land as a single yoke of
oxen can plough in a season), whereas with the sabit, a kind
of reaping-hook, which, in some places, has heen introduced
by natives of Sumatra, the same amount of work can be
done by two persons in three days. In some districts the
use of the salit is being adopted by the natives of
Pahang, but, in most places, they, while admitting the
superiority of the Rawa tool, are too true to their
conservative instincts to be willing to accept the innovation.
The work of cultvation is shared by men and women, the
latter planting out the young padi grown in the swamps and
reaping the crop and preparing it for use.
The most serious obstacle to the cultivation of Pahang rice
fields lies in the frequent attacks of rinderpest among
buffaloes. The Pahang Malay, who does not believe in
manual labour, is entirely dependent upon his cattle for the
cultivation of both wet and plough land, and in districts
which have been visited by the disease the crops have
naturally suffered. Another reason exists for the paucity
of the rice supply in this State. The crops are often very
insecurely fenced in, the natives often being satisfied with
a charm or tangkal bahi, which consists of a line hung upon
uprights, under which it is piously hoped that no pig will pass.
Against rats, mice, and bats, noted enemies of the padi crops,
no precautions are taken other than certain incantations and
magic ceremonies which are supposed to protect the crops
from the ravages of these vermin.
Legislation for regulating padi cultivation has recently
been introduced and has already had a beneficial effect.
Grovernment has, by passing a law under which the dates
for the various stages of planting are fixed by local authority,
attempted to prevent, as far as possible, the destruction of
crops by flood or drought, and the damage by pigs, rats,
and mice is also reduced by this means owing to the fields
being cleared and planted simultaneously. Efforts have
also been made by the introduction of new seed from the
Western States, to improve the crops and increase the
production of rice. It is generally admitted, however, that
the only way of largely increasing the area of land under
padi cultivation in Pahang is by the introduction of foreign
settlers, but the prospect of rice planters from other parts of
the Peninsula coming to Pahang to settle permanently is
unfortunately, owing to various reasons, remote.
Federated Malay States.
125
The following table shows the quantity of rice imported
into Pahang every year during the past eleven years : —
1890
33,461 pikuls.
1891
21,526 „
1892
26,249 „
1893
20,000 „
1894
.. 43,418 „
1895
24,923 „
1896
31,984 „
1897
57,864 „
1898
32,300 „
1899
58,897 „
1900
.. 48,226 „
Tot
al
. 398,848 pikuls.
This gives an average of 36,259 pikuls, equivalent to
2,153 tons of rice brought into the State annually. The
imported grain is considerably more than is required for the
consumption of the non-agricultural classes of the population,
and it is thus apparent that a large quantity of it goes to
feed the Pahang rice planters themselves. The State is
spending, on a moderate computation, about $200,000 a year
in rice, which ought to be grown on the hundreds of
thousands of acres of waste land now lying idle. The
encouragement of the culture of rice is, therefore, one of the
most important subjects to which attention can be drawn.
In the Tembeling district gambler is planted on a small
scale and appears to thrive. None of it is exported, but the
quantity produced is sufficient to supply the planters with
all necessaries. In Johore and other places, this product is
generally grown in connection with pepper, because the
refuse gambler is a good manure for the pepper vine ; but in
Pahang gambler is planted alone, and that solely by Malays.
No expenditure is incurred in this State other than the
actual labour — which is done, in his leisure hours, by the
planter himself and by the members of his family — required
for keeping the plantation fairly clean, picking the leaves,
and preparing the article for use. The average profit earned
by a gambler planter in Pahang is from $25 to $30 per year
per acre.
Other products cultivated by natives in Pahang are tapioca
and coconuts. Chinese have taken up comparatively large
areas for the former in the Kuantan district, and a few
small blocks of the latter are planted on the coast.
9
126 Handbook of the
Mining. Prior to 1888, Pahang mines, such as they were, had been
developed solely by Malays and Chinese, working with the
most primitive appliances, their pumping machinery consist-
ing either of buckets attached to long poles, or of Chinese
water-wheels, and their crushing apparatus of rice-stampers
tipped with iron. All native mines are merely open workings,
very ineffectively developed. As an instance of this may
be mentioned the old Raub mine where the result of ten
years' continuous working (1879 to 1888) was, in the latter
year, a hole about 40 feet square at the surface, with a depth
of about 20 feet.
On the introduction of the Residential system into Pahang
in 1889, it was found that all the land in the country of any
known value had already been parcelled out by the Sultan
by means of " concessions " for mining and planting. There
were thirty-nine of them in all, varying considerably in area,
ranging from two to several hundred, or even thousand,
square miles. They were very indefinite in terms, but, in
all of them, a royalty of ten per cent, on minerals was
reserved to the Sultan, and the import duty on opium was
fixed at a nominal figure.
By virtue of a Proclamation which had been issued in
1885, these concessions were modified by the new Grovern-
ment, and were recognised on the following terms : —
[a.) Five years were allowed for prospecting purposes,
so as to enable the concessionaires to test the
value of their properties. On the expiration of
this period, leases were promised for such areas
of land as the concession-holders could then show
their ability of working, or causing to be worked,
effectively and continuously, during the terms of
their concessions.
{h.) The preferential opium royalty was abolished, and
duty was levied on the drug in accordance with
the rate in force throughout the State. The
royalty on minerals was reduced from 10% to 5%
in the case of gold and from 10% to 8% in the
case of tin.
These terms were intended to give every encouragement
and assistance to bond fide enterprise ; whilst, by providing
for effective and continuous working, they would prevent rich
mining districts from being anproductively locked up for
indefinite periods. Much was naturally expected from these
concessions, but, beyond a little prospecting and considerable
Federated Malay States. 127
share-dealing, the results were exceedingly disappointing.
Luckily, however, almost all of these concessions which had
not heen worked have since been cancelled, thus throwing
open to the public the areas hitherto comprised in them.
Most of the European companies now working in Pahang
are engaged in the development of mines originally opened
by natives. The chief of these are Raub, Penjum, Selensing,
Tui, and Kechau. Of these, the Selensing gold mine is
perhaps the most curious. It is situated in a small valley
surrounded by low hills, which in some forgotten period must
have been the scene of very extensive mining operations.
The surfaces of these hills are honeycombed with perpen-
dicular shafts, circular in shape, which in some instances
penetrate to the water level below the surface of the valley, a
depth of considerably over 100 feet. Many of these pits are
placed so close together that a wall of rock not more than
two feet thick separates them one from another. The
antiquity of these workings is attested by the apparently
virgin forest which clothes the hills in which they are situated,
large slow-growiT7g trees being in some instances found with
their roots centred in the sides of the shafts. Though more
or less choked with debris^ the pits are, for the most part, in
a wonderful state of preservation. The operations of these
ancient miners were not, however, wholly confined to the
sinking of circular shafts, for levels and stopes, similar in
character to those used by the European miner of to-day,
also formed part of their scheme of excavation- The depart-
ment of mining in which the chief weakness of these people
would appear to have lain, was evidently that of their pump-
ing appliances, since none of these excavations are found to
extend far below the level of the valley where the miners
would first have had to contend with any considerable influx
of water.
No clue has as yet been obtained which might serve to
indicate the race to which these miners belonged. The mode
of mining employed by them differs radically from that in
use among the Chinese, and the Malays possess no tradition
on the subject, though they commonly speak of the miners
as having been of Siamese origin. It must be remembered,
however, that the Malays of the Peninsula are wont to
attribute to Siam anything which is clearly neither the work
of themselves nor of the Chinese. Whatever the race may
have been, it is evident that it must have attained to a
considerable degree of mechanical skill, and presumably to
a fairly high state of civilisation ; and yet, from an examina-
tion of the excavations, one is led to believe that the race
9a
128 Sandhook of the
which mined them must have been of a somewhat more
diminutive stature than either the modern Malay or Siamese.
From the appearance of many portions of these workings, it
would seem probable that the work of mining was suspended
suddenly and never resumed, possibly on account of war, an
epidemic, or some other public calamity. In many places
rich stone had been broken down, stacked ready for trans-
port, and then suddenly abandoned, and in some of the
levels and stopes chutes of ore had been partially worked and
left in a manner which can only be explained by the
hypothesis of a sudden interruption.
Pahang admittedly possesses great internal resources and
considerable mineral wealth, but the proper development of
these is beset with many difficulties. Surrounded as the
State is by some of the richest and most easily worked tin
fields in the world, the mineral wealth of Pahang would
need to be well nigh fabulous to enable her to compete
successfully with her neighbours, so long as she continues to
labour under the many and heavy disadvantages which at
present cripple her.
The principal gold mines in Pahang are situated at Eaub,
Penjum, Selensing, Tui, and Kechau. In all these places
gold had been profitably worked by natives, in a primitive
fashion, long before the British entered the State. Since
1889, however, these localities have been worked by European
companies. The average export of gold from Pahang
between 1895 and 1900 has been about 20,000 ounces a
year.
In Pahang the tin mining industry, which has played so
prominent a part in the development of Perak and Selangor,
is still in its infancy. The principal alluvial tin mines in
the State are situated in Bentong, Tras, Batu Talam, and
the Lipis valley. Nearly all the ore hitherto won in these
places is from the alluvial washings, technically termed
tampan workings as opposed to the lombong^ or large alluvial
mines, which are the most usual modes of mining among
the Chinese. The average output between 1895 and 1900
has been about 10,000 pikuls per annum.
The principal lode tin mines in Pahang are those situated
at the head-waters of the Kuantan River, which falls into
the China Sea some miles to the north of the mouth of the
Pahang Eiver. These workings are the only extensive lode
tin mines in the Peninsula. The results obtained from them
have been satisfactory.
Federated Malay States.
129
The expenses attendant on mining in Pahang are great,
and this fact presents a marked contrast to conditions in the
States on the West Coast. The vast alluvial deposits of tin
which have heen the source of the prosperity of Perak and
Selangor are exactly suited to the requirements of Chinese
capitalists. They can be worked with comparatively small
quantities of machinery, and do not, therefore, call for the
expenditure, as an initial step, of large capital sums. The
working of gold and tin reefs, however, more especially in
a country where the huge quantities of water with which
the miner has to contend make heavy pumping appliances
indispensable for even prospecting operations, entails the
sinking of considerable sums before any return can be looked
for, and this is a prospect which few Chinese capitalists are
in a position to face. Pahang must therefore look principally
to European capital for its development.
Prospecting and mining for gold and tin in this State
should not be undertaken by poor men, but it certainly offers
a good probability of a profitable result to individuals
corporations with sufficient means who will vigorously under
take it.
or
follow
ing table shows the quantity
of gold and tin
3d from
L Pahang since 1800 : —
Year.
Gold.
Tin.
Ounces.
Pikuls.
1890
930
1,522
1891
1,227
2,451
1892
3,509
2,765
1893
9,616
3,026
1894
11,805
7,435
1895
15,099
8,348
1896
21,300
6,759
1897
26,420
6,597
1898
22,200
11,730
1899
18,507
13,465
1900
Total
17,048
15,728
147,661
79,826
The forests of Pahang are of vast extent, practically Economic
untouched, and both in the coast and interior districts ^''^^^'^^*-
130 Handbook of the
abundant supplies of excellent timber are available. The
best hard woods are Chengal, Merbau, Tembusu, Bilian,
Griam, and Medang Tandok, all very valuable and command-
ing good prices in the market. Other good woods are Balau,
Klat, Petaling, Meranti, Perawan, Kulim, and Penaga. A
great many other kinds are to be had in abundance. Of the
woods mentioned, Chengal {Daphniphyllopsis capitata) is the
most valuable and always finds a ready market. It is hard,
heavy, dark and close grained, and resembles Teak. It is
the most durable of aU native woods. A pretty wood obtain-
able here is called Kamuning. It is a timber de luxe^
resembles satin-wood, and is chiefly used for ornamental and
fancy work, such as kris sheaths, sireh boxes, &c.
Pahang woods are most suitable and are much used for
timbering mining shafts, buildings, bridges, and boats. All
the timber required in the State for these purposes is cut
locally. A few years ago the timber industry was in a
flourishing condition and an export trade was carried on.
Recently, however, the industry has declined.
Various kinds of jungle produce are to be had in great
abundance all over the State. Among those most
energetically worked may be mentioned gutta, rattans,
gharu or eaglewood, and resins.
A considerable quantity of different kinds of gutta has in
the past been exported from Pahang. There are several
varieties obtainable, but the most valuable is called Taban
[Dirhopsis GiiUeri), which is an essential material in the
construction of submarine cables, and is only to be found in
the southern part of the Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, and
Borneo. It is a very slow-growing tree, and, when it
has attained a girth of three feet in circumference, which it
takes about thirty years to do, it yields about two catties, or
2f lbs. of gutta. Pure Pahang taban commands a high
price in the Singapore market, and the inducement for its
collection is consequently great. But gutta-hunters, especially
in a densely wooded country like Pahang, do not, as a rule,
scruple about the destruction of immature trees in order to
obtain a few ounces of the gum from each, and their action
in this respect has compelled the Grovernment to endeavour
to protect its rubber-bearing forests by prohibiting, under
pain of heavy penalties, the collection of the taban variety
of gutta.
The following kinds of gutta are at present being worked
in Pahang : — percha, putch, grep, rambong, sondik,
Federated Malay States,
131
jelelong, and palan. The first of these should not be
confounded with taban, to which it is much inferior in
quality. The prices obtained for these varieties are
considerably smaller than that paid for taban.
Considerable quantities of rattans are exported annually,
no less than a dozen different kinds being regularly
collected. They grow wild and in great profusion through-
out the State. No attempt has ever been made to cultivate
them, though there seems to be no reason why they should
not be planted and give good returns. In this connection it
should be noted that " JJalacca canes," which are made into
walking sticks, is somewhat of a misnomer. This cane
grows wild throughout the Peninsula, and is by no means,
as its name would seem to imply, a product the growth of
which is confined to Malacca. The local name for it is rotan
semambu.
Appended is a table giving the approximate values of all
kinds of jungle produce exported through the coast ports of
Pahang during the past seven years : —
Year.
Timber and
Firewood.
Gutta.
Rattans, Gharu or
Eaglewood, Resins,
&c., &c.
1894
1895
1896
1897
1898
1899
1900
11,884
11,413
12,622
75,592
46,487
33,051
43,249
112,732
42,720
17*
73,041
108,280
196,229
195,670
66,621
78,202
98,938
133,945
55,407
61,069
93,005
Total
234,298
728,689
587,187
* Gutta working prohibited.
Fruits that are indigenous to the Malay Peninsula are as Fruit.
abundant in Pahang as in the other States, and the variety
is equally great. They are cheap.
The two most prominent Malayan fruits are the Durian
and the Mangosteen. The former is a large fruit
about the size of a man's head, with a strong thorny
132 Eandhook of the
covering, and is a great favourite with all natives and with
many Europeans. Its smell is offensive, hut with this there
is strangely associated a delicious flavour which gives it, not-
withstanding the odour, a foremost place among tropical
fruits. The durian is also much liked hy other animals
hesides man. Bears, squirrels, tigers, elephants, cattle,
horses, goats, monkeys, and dogs all eat it when they get
the chance. The mangosteen is a delicious and wholesome
fruit, ahout the size of an orange, and, in the opinion of
many, is preferable to the durian. But natives much prefer
the durian.
During the seasons owners of orchards hve entirely upon
the sale of their fruits. In many cases the produce of the
gardens is farmed out, and this brings in an income to the
owner without any trouble or labour on his part to collect the
fruit for the market.
Grood vegetables are rarely obtainable in Pahang. A little
gardening is done by Chinese in the vicinity of one or two
towns, but the produce they sell is not of high quality.
European vegetables are not grown, but they may be pur-
chased in limited variety preserved in tins.
The number of buffaloes in Pahang is small; 17,576
according to a cattle census taken at the end of 1900.
Almost all these animals belong to Malays who use them
during the planting season for ploughing their padi fields.
When not so employed, that is, for about nine months in the
year, the buffaloes are left to their own devices and spend
most of their time in the jungle. A few of these animals
belong to Chinese who use them for dragging timber from
the jungle.
The number of bullocks in the State is returned at 388",
while of horses there are probably not more than a score.
Groats and sheep are almost as rare. Pigs are reared in the
vicinity of towns by a few Chinese for the butcher, and
poultry is as scarce as it is poorly fed and of inferior quality.
This exhausts the list of live stock in Pahang, which is a
country that is not well adapted to the breeding of any kind
of stock.
Einderpest frequently plays great havoc among cattle in
Pahang. During 1900, over 5,000 buffaloes and many
bullocks succumbed to the disease.
levies.
Federated Malay States, 133
Fishing is an important soiirce of livelihood to East Coast Fish and
Malays in general. No restrictions in the shape of taxes are Ftshe--
placed on river fisheries in Pahang, because the fish caught
is primarily intended for the consumption of the peasants
themselves, and, except in a few instances, is not meant for
sale. In the interior villages, most of the fishing is done by
women who are satisfied with sufficient for their own imme-
diate requirements. The fishing class of natives in places
such as Penang, Singapore, Ceylon, Burmah, and India, is
notoriously a turbulent one, and disputes, often amounting
to serious disturbances, are by no means uncommon among
them. But, in Pahang, the reverse is the case, and there is
no instance on record in river fisheries in this State in which
any dispute or trouble has been caused over questions con-
nected with fisheries. All Malays in Pahang have an equal
right to fish in rivers, and each owner of a swamp or pond
has the exclusive right of fishing in his property, and thus,
by the observance of these simple and primitive rules, no
trouble is ever caused.
There are four modes of river fishing practised in
Pahang : —
(i) nets, (ii) traps, (iii) stakes, (iv) lines. Of the
first, there are five kinds of nets used, called, respectively,
anggoh or doran, chendek, Jala, Jaring, and pukat. These
are all worked each in a different manner, but, in point of
general acceptance and popularity, the pukat comes first and
the jaring next, a considerably larger quantity of fish being
caught by means of these two nets than is the case when any
of the others are used. Of traps, there are no less than
eleven kinds employed in different parts of the State,
viz. : — bubu or liikah, ranggas, singgit, sukap, timr, setapu,
temilan or pengilan, terubin, sibar, tanggok, and Jut. Most
of these traps are made of rattan, or some specially light
wood, such as bembau or kerdau, and those most fancied by
the people who use them are bubu or lickah, ranggaa, setapu,
and sukap. There are four kinds of fishing stakes used,
named, blat, Jerernal, langgai, and merian, and of these blat
finds most favour. With regard to line-fishing, the term
Joran is applied to the rods, and the reels are called variously,
pupal, kekili, pret, and ampoyan. Hooks, in general, are
termed kail, but kail rendang is applied to a hook baited
with vegetable matter, and kail pepas is a hook used in the
way in which a fly-fisher uses his rod.
River fish is obtainable in great variety, there being no
fewer than 43 different kinds in Pahang waters. They are
134 Handbook of the
not, however, wholesome eating. Several kinds of fish are
also found in swamps and ponds, these being mostly caught
for food by the poorer classes of Malays. Every one in
Malaya has either seen or heard of the pugnacious Httle fish
called Karin. Malays rear these tiny things and have sport
out of them by matching them to fight each other, laying
bets on the result, which always means the death of one of
the tiny combatants if they are allowed to fight to a finish.
The drugging of fish by means of the tuba root, and then
spearing them as they fioated stupefied on the surface of the
water, used to be a common practice in Pahang, but is now
seldom had recourse to. A tuba fish is a stock entertainment
among Malay Eajas whenever they are visited by a Grovernor
or other exalted official. The use of both tuba and dynamite
for taking fish is now forbidden in this State.
The sea fisheries are, of course, more lucrative than the
fresh water ones, but the industry is one that only a few
Pahang Malays engage in. In fact, one can seldom see a
boat going out to sea with a crew composed solely of natives
of the country. The men employed in the sea fisheries are
principally Kelantan and Trengganu Malays, numbers of
whom enter Pahang at the beginning of the season, and
who, in many cases, settle here permanently.
The sea fishery brings in a fair revenue to Government,
as the boats are licensed, a sliding scale of dues being in
force. There is also an export duty of 12J cents per pikul
payable on all fish sent out of the country. In cases where
fishing stakes are used at sea, a small monthly charge is
levied. A fairly large quantity of salted and dried fish is
exported annually from the coast districts of Pahang, but
this branch of the fishing industry has not yet reached such
proportions as is the case in Trengganu and Kelantan, from
which States a considerable business is done in this line.
The principal fishing settlements in Pahang are at
E/ompin, Kuala Pahang, Penoh, Berserah and Grebing —
all on the coast. Of these the most important is Berserah,
in the Kuantan district. The Kuala Pahang fishermen are
almost entirely occupied in supplying fresh fish to Pekan, the
former capital of the State and still the Sultan's Seat, and
the rapidity with which boatloads of fish are there bought
up for local consumption is remarkable. At Kuala Pahang,
both nets and lines are the methods employed, the boats used
being the koleh., a small boat with a crew of three, and,
during rough weather, the jalak^ a large seaworthy boat
measuring about 30 feet long by 10 feet beam. There are
Federated Malay States. 135
other kinds of boats used iu the different settlements, and
their Malay names are : — pukat chang, puhnt dalam^ pukat
tancjkul and inikat tancjgoli. The first named is an
expensive boat, costing about $250 with net complete, and
the pukat da lam is also dear, as it costs about $200 to buy
one with all the tackle complete.
Sea fish is obtainable in large quantities and in great
variety, there being nearly a hundred different kinds sold on
the Pahang coast. It is, however, impossible to keep them
fresh for more than a few hours. The inhabitants of inland
districts, therefore, can never get a bit of sea fish unless they
go to the coast. The price has risen enormously during the
past few years, quite one hundred per cent, over and above
the rates ruling in 1889. All along the Pahang coast, sea
turtles abound, and their eggs, found in the sand in large
quantities, are much prized by the natives for food.
The only diving fishery in Pahang is that carried on,
on a small scale, at and near the Island of Tioman, and
the various islets belonging to this State on that part of
the coast. Diving is carried on entirely by the Orang
hersuku, or Sakai Laut^ who are natives of the Aor and
Tinggi Islands, and who are capable of diving, without
artificial means, to a considerable depth. They obtain a
certain quantity of heche-de-mer^ and also a shell known
as gewang, from which the common pearl buttons are made.
They are timid and inoffensive, and are now so far under
control that they take out yearly licenses for fishing,
returning, however, during the north-east monsoon, to their
homes on the Aor and Tinggi Islands. During the calm
weather these people live almost entirely in boats, and
may then be frequently met with in the small bays and
inlets of Tioman, Sri Buat, and the other neighbouring
Islands. It is believed that these ISaka/ Laut occasionally
bring up pearl oysters, and it is probable that there may be
pearl beds round these Islands.
Fresh water fisheries in Pahang are of no account, but the
sea fisheries, though still in their infancy, form an important
industry. The people engaged in them are peaceful and
law-abiding, and disputes among them are of very rare
occurrence. In every fishing community in Pahang the
fishermen elect a headman whom they obey and depend
upon in all matters concerning their welfare. There have
been cases on record in which, simply because they wish to
follow their headmen, whole villages have removed from one
part of the coast to another. Similarly, the reason for their
136 Handbook of the
arrival in Pahang often given by new comers from Kelantan
and Trengganu, is that their former headman has removed to
this State, and they want to be with him. The fishing
population along the Pahang coast is increasing.
Water supplies. Grenerally in Pahang it is not at all difficult to find
abundant water, rivers being numerous, but in some towns,
notably at Kuala Lipis, it is not always easy to obtain a
sufficient supply.
At Raub, a scheme for a proper public water supply,
brought in from hill springs, stored in reservoirs, and
distributed by means of stand-pipes, has just been completed,
and is a great boon.
A somewhat similar scheme for Kuala Lipis is now under
consideration, but the water will be obtained from the Jelai
Piver which is swift and not appreciably polluted by the
few scattered villages up-stream.
At Pekan, Kuantan, and elsewhere in Pahang, water is
obtained from rivers which answer present requirements.
The use of surface wells is discouraged in the towns.
Cost of living. The cost of living in Pahang is heavy. In the coast
districts of Pekan and Kuantan it is less expensive than in
the upper country, but even in those places the general rise
in the cost of everything in the east has made living more
expensive than it used to be some years ago.
The domestic servants in Pahang are almost entirely
Chinese, but it is often difficult to get satisfactory men.
The following are the ruling rates of monthly wages for
native servants : —
Cooks $15 to $20.
[It is impossible to get a man for less than $15.j
House Boys $12 to $18.
Gardeners $12 to $15.
Water Carriers - ... $10 to $12.
Ayahs $15 to $20.
A bachelor living by himself can engage a man who will
act both as boy and cook on the wages of a cook.
Federated Malay States. 137
Means of transport are at present somewhat limited . Means of
From Selangor to Pahang the Trunk Eoad,^ 83 miles in i^'^^'port-
length, is maintained in good condition and is suitable for
gharries, bicycles, and bullock carts These conveyances,
with the exception of bicycles, can be hired at both ends of
the road, but the gharries obtainable are of an inferior
description. Eickshaws, which are plentiful in the other
States, and which are convenient for short distances, are not
available in Pahang.
At the time of writing, an English company is making
arrangements to place motor cars on the Pahang Trunk
Eoad. This means of conveyance will supply a long felt
want, and will be much appreciated by the travelling public.
The journey from Singapore to Upper Pahang, by steamer
to Pekan, and from there up river by boat to Kuala Lipis, at
present occupies about a fortnight. The Pahang Piver is
navigable for shallow-draft steam launches, but there are none
at present in the State. Boats for the river journey can
easily be hired at Pekan, where also crews can be engaged.
The average rates of transport, which are high, are as Itates of
follows:— transport
For Passengers :
By gharry ... ... 35 cents a mile.
By bullock cart ... 20 „ „ „
In both these cases the passenger has the whole gharry or
cart to himself. Except in the case of natives, however, it is
seldom that more than one person travels in a cart or gharry.
The charge for a single seat in a bullock 'bus is 5 cents a
mile. If one engages the whole 'bus then 50 cents a mile is
the fare usually paid.
G-oods over the trunk road are transported for short
distances by arrangement with the cart-owner. The fare is
usually 50 cents a mile for a fully laden cart. If a cart is
engaged for a long distance, the rate is the same as for
passengers, i.e., 20 cents a mile. Forwarding agents in
Kuala Kubu charge at the rate of $3 a pikul for goods sent
from there to Kuala Lipis, a distance of 83 miles.
Eiver freight from Pekan to Kuala Lipis costs about
$1*50 a pikul. As an alternative, boats can be hired, but
there is no fixed rate of payment, though a fairly large boat
138 Handbook of the
can always be hired for from $20 to $30 for the trip. In
that case, a crew has to be specially engaged. A boatman
can be hired for $10 for the trip, with $15 for the steersman.
If time is of no moment, from six to eight polers will bring
a large boat, fully laden, from Pekan to Kuala Lipis in
anything between three weeks and a month. That would
cost about a hundred dollars for a boat capable of holding
about 125 pikuls of goods. If despatch is desired, the
journey can be done in about five days by poling both night
and day, but then the crew will have to be doubled, thus
doubling the expense. It should be remembered that in
hiring a whole boat for a specified trip, the hirer is responsible
that the boat is safely returned to the owner within a given
time.
Aecommoda- There are Grovernment rest-houses at Eaub, Kuala Lipis,
uonfor Pekan, and Kuala Pahanar. These are furnished and are
Travellers. . , ' „ , , *=•
m charge oi caretakers.
The charge for occupation and use of bedroom is one
dollar per head per diem. The rest-house keepers at Paub
and Kuala Lipis will board visitors at a charge of $2' 50
a day, or at proportionate rates for single meals. At Pekan
and Kuala Pahang there is no fixed charge, but the cost of
a day's board will not exceed $1*50 a head.
Should travellers prefer it, they can board themselves
at any of the rest-houses, but in that case their own servants
will have to cook.
Liquor is provided at current local prices.
Government Officers on duty take precedence of ordinary
travellers in the matter of accommodation at Grovernment
rest-houses. A time limit of occupation is fixed for visitors,
but they may continue their stay, provided sanction is
obtained from the local authorities.
Stables are attached to the rest-houses at Eaub and
Kuala Lipis, and no additional charge is made for their
use, but the visitor's horse must be attended to by his own
syce.
In addition to the rest-houses, halting bungalows, in
charge of caretakers, are situated at convenient intervals
along the trunk road. Passing travellers may use these
bungalows without charge. Food and refreshment can be
obtained by arrangement with the caretakers.
men.
Federated Malay States. 139
Compared with the Western States, people in Pahang Sanitaria.
are in an unfortunate position in not having a place
conveniently situated to which they can go for the sake of
their health. At present, whenever a change is required,
one has to go to one of the sanitaria in the other States or
the Colony.
There are no openings in Pahang for professional men, Openings for
nor are there any for European artisans. The only -^'''^Z^***^*^^^
professions represented in the State are the Medical, the """
Surveying and the Engineering, and these are represented
by only a few gentlemen, almost all of whom are in the
G-overnment Service.
The few mining companies working gold and tin in the
State usually get their assistants from England, America,
or Australia, or engage them in Singapore.
There are at present no clerical openings in Pahang for Clerks.
Europeans.
European domestic servants, both male and female, are Domestic
unknown in this State. servants.
There are not many inducements for individual planters Tianters and
or miners to start business in Pahang on their own account. -^*^^»'«-
It must not be forgotten that this State is not a country for
persons with small capital. Planting or mining enterprise, to
be eventually successful in Pahang, demands large sums as
preliminary outlay.
It is strongly recommended that Europeans should not
come to Pahang in search of employment.
Pahang is divided, for administrative purposes, into five Districts and
districts (Pekan, Kuantan, Temerloh, Lipis, and Eaub), Towns.
under the charge of European ofiicers who are directly
subordinate to the Eesident.
The present capital of the State is Kuala Lipis, at the
mouth of the river of that name. It is situated in the most
prosperous and populous district in Pahang ; is about 200
miles by river from the port of Kuala Pahang ; is connected
with Kuala Kubu, in the adjoining State of Selangor, by an
excellent metalled cart-road 83 miles in length, and is
practically in the centre of the Malay Peninsula.
140 Handbook of the
As a place of residence, however, Kuala Lipis has its
drawbacks. It is at times unhealthy ; it is expensive ; it is
an interior station ; its climate is not so good as that of the
coast : and, lastly, it does not present many attractions to
those who live in it.
The former capital of Pahang was Pekan, ahout seven
miles by river from the port of Kuala Pahang. It is healthy ;
it is cheap ; it is near the sea ; it is within easy reach of
Singapore ; it is the seat of the Sultan and his Court ; its
climate is good ; and, therefore, it is a desirable place to live
in.
Other chief places in Pahang are : — Eaub, a thriving town,
the centre of the gold and alluvial tin mining industry of
the State ; Kuantan on the coast, the head-quarters of the
district of that name in which the principal deep lode tin
mines of the Peninsula are worked ; Chenor, Temerloh,
Pulau Tawar, agricultural centres situated on the Pahang
Eiver ; Tras, Tranum, Bentong, rising towns in Ulu Pahang ;
Selensing, Tui, and Kechau, important gold localities in the
Jelai valley; Tembeling, as noted for its earthenware as
Pekan is for its mats and silk sarotigs (the latter the national
garment), finally, Tanjong Besar and Budu in the Lipis, two
of the largest native kampongs^ or villages, in the interior.
Means of inland communication throughout Pahang, which
are at present defective, are confined chiefly to the wide
spreading river system. TravelHng from place to place in
the State still involves delay and discomfort, though matters
have improved of recent years.
In the interior there are numerous native paths threading
the jungles in every direction, and there are also jungle tracks
which form inland connections with Kelantan, Trengganu,
Perak, Selangor, and the Negri Sembilan. In Ulu Pahang
there are paths from Pulai, a Chinese gold-mining settlement
of some importance in Ulu Kelantan, to the Serau, Tanom,
and Kechau districts ; also from the Lebir in Kelantan to Ulu
Sat, and from Dun gun to Janing in Ulu Tembeling. There
is a way from Grelating to Budu on the Lipis, used by Malays
passing between Perak and Pahang, and there are paths
connecting Pekan and Kuantan, Eompin and Johore, and
also numberless other tracks leading to comparatively little
known villages.
The Pahang Eiver is the principal one in the State. From
Kuala Pahang on the coast to Kuala Lipis, the present
Federated Malay States. 141
capital, the journey is done by boat and usually occupies
about a fortnight. The distance is about 200 miles, and the
boat is poled against the stream. Groing down river, however,
Pekan can easily be reached in five days. Other navigable
rivers are the Lipis^ the Jelai, the Semantan, and the Tem-
beling. The first named is rock-bound and impassable
beyond 17 miles from its mouth ; and so is the Jelai beyond
Kuala Medang, three days' poling up river from Kuala Lipis.
The Semantan leads to Raub through the Bilute, and the
Tembeling is the interior route to Ulu Kelantan. These are
main streams. There are several minor rivers navigable for
small craft only.
Sport. — There are practically no amusements in Pahang, Sport.
and social attractions are nil.
Pahang is well stocked with big game of almost every
description to be met with in the East, but its pursuit can
only be undertaken by men with plenty of means and an
abundance of time. Under the heading of " Sports," Part
I. of this Handbook gives useful information as to the arms
and ammunition required for big and small game shooting.
Some of the best snipe-shooting in the Peninsula is to be
had in Pahang.
10
APPENDICES,
144
Handbook of the
APPEN
England to Penang
No.
10
Ports of Arrival.
Penang
Penan?
Penang
Penanc
Penang
Penang'
Penan>
Singapore.
Singapore .
Singapore .
Singapore .
Singapore. .
Name of Company.
P. & O. S.S. Company
Port and Date
OF Sailing.
Compagnie des Messa-
geries Maritimes.
North German Lloyd
(N or d deutsc her
Lloyds).
Nippon Yusen Kaisha
(Japan Mail Steam-
ship Company).
Austrian Lloyds S.N.C
Singapore.
Singapore.
Singapore .
Singapore. ,
Singapore.
Glen Line
Shire Line
Mutual S.S. Company.
Ben Line
lloyal Danish Line,
D e t Ostasialiske
Kompagni.
London, Marseilles,
Every week. Mail and
Intermediate boats
alternately.
Marseilles, connecting
with London by rail.
Every 28 days by
direct, and every 28
days by indirect route.
Antwerp, Southampton,
and Bremen. Every
month.
London, Southampton,"
and Marseilles. Every
fortnight.
Trieste and Brindisi.
Once a month on the
20th.
London.
Loiidon.
London and Marseilles.
Copenhagen, Antwerp,
Gothenburg, and Port
Said.
Federated Malay States.
145
DIX A
AND Singapore.
Fares.
MaU—
1st class, £61.
2nd class, £38.
Intermediate —
1st class, £50.
2nd class, £35.
Local passage, Penang
to Singapore, ^25.
From London(byRail) —
1st class, £61.
2nd class, £41 4s.
From Marseilles—
1st class, £56.
2nd class, £37 4s.
3rd class, £20 8s.
Singapore —
1st class, l,420marks.
2nd class, 700 marks.
3rd class, 320 marks.
Singapore —
1st class, £35.
2nd class, £25.
2nd class, £30, and
deck with food, £13.
1st class, £35.
No second class.
1st class, £35.
No second class.
1st class, £30.
Duration of
Voyage.
Mail—
25 to 26 days.
Intermediate —
30 to 35 days.
22 and 23 days.
About 1 month.
31 to 40 days.
About 34 days.
35 to 40 days.
Remarks.
By Mail, Passengers change at
Colombo, but come direct by
Intermediate. Overland fares,
London to Marseilles, 1st class, £5;
2nd class, £4 ; above fares from
London.
Calling at Marseilles, Port Said,
Suez, Aden, Bombay, and Co-
lombo. Table wine and certain
other privileges are included.
The mark is at 20i to the £
Also sail from Antwerp.
All direct to Singapore.
2nd class only, mostly cargo. Tran-
shipping at Bombay. An accele-
rated service with 1st class is run
as far as Bombay, leaving Trieste
on the 3rd, and Brindisi on the
4th of each month.
Good accommodation, but
irregularly.
sail
No regular service, and special
arrangements must be made.
Only three steamers on the line.
Very good accommodation.
146
Handbook of the
England to Penang
No.
London Agents.
Penang Agents.
yP. & 0. 8.S. Co.)
1
P. & 0. Company,
122, Leadenhall Street, London, E.G.
{Compagnie Messageiies Maritimes.)
Gilfillan, Wood & Co
2
West End Branch,
51, Pall Mall, S.W ;
C. Bertrand, Agent-Genet al ; also
GeUatly, Hankey & Co.,
33, Gordon Street, Glasgow ; and
Fletcher & Co.,
Mersey Buildings, James Street, Liverpool.
[North German Lloyd.)
Bouatead & Co.
3
KeUer, Wallis <fe Co.,
32, Cockspnr Street, Charing Cross, S.W.
Phillips & Graves,
Botolph House, Eastcheap. E.C.
{Japan Mail Steamship Co.)
Behn, Meyer & Co
4
Nippon Yusen Kaisha,
9 & 11, Fenchurch Avenue, E.C. ;
also at Glasgow, A. R. Brown,
24, George Square.
{Austrian Lloyds S.N. Co.)
E. Boustead & Co
5
Hickie, Borman & Co.,
Billiter Street and Waterloo Place ; and
Thos. Cook & Son,
Ludgate Circus.
[Glen Line.)
Schmidt, Kustermau & Co.
6
38, Leadenhall Street, London ;
MacGregor, Gow & Co., .
1, East India Avenue, E.C.
{Shire Line.)
E. Boustead & Co
7
Messrs. Jenkins & Co.,
38, Leadenhall Street, London.
{31utual S.S. Co.)
Sandilands, Buttery & Co.
8
{Ben Line.)
Behn, Meyer & Co. . . : .
9
{Jioyal Banish Line.)
Sandilands, Buttery & Co. . .
10
Federated Malay States.
147
AND Singapore.
Singapore Agents.
P. & 0. Offices.
Collyer Quay.
New Harbour.
De Bure, Agent.
BeLn, Meyer & Co. . .
Paterson, Simons & Co.
Austrian Lloyd's Agents.
Rantenberg, Schmidt & Co.
Boustfad & Co.,
16, Collyer Quay,
Singapore.
Boustead & Co.
Boustead & Co.
Paterson, Simons & Co.
Guthrie & Co.,
Singapore .
Various.
Full details in free P. & O. handbook. Luggage
allowed, fii'st class, 33 > lbs. ; second class, 168 lbs.
Children from 8 to 12 years of age, half fare ; one
under 3 years free.
Steamers touch at Marseilles, Port Said, Aden, and
Colombo.
Similar fares and sailings on homeward voyage.
There are two routes —
1st. Direct, without transhipment, via Colombo,
Suez, Port Said, and Marseilles, takes 23 days.
2nd. Transhipment at Colombo to Australian Line,
20 days.
Tickets from Marseilles to London are issued at : —
first class, £5 ; second class, £4 ; if booked at
London Office, 3 cwts. of baggage free and heavy
luggage conveyed Jree from Marseilles to London by
steamer every week.
Touching at Genoa, Naples, Port Said, Suez, Aden,
and Colombo.
The second class accommodation is particularly good
on this line. Children under 3 years of age, free.
40 cubic feet of baggage, free.
No transhipment necessary for Singapore. First class
allowed 40 cubic feet of baggage; second class, 30
cubiefeet.
Steamers call at Colombo, Suez, Port Said, and Mar-
seilles.
Reduction of £10 for embarking at Port Said.
Children 4 to 12, half-fare ; one under 4, free.
Free handbook issued. Baggage, 3 cwt. for first class,
and 2 cwt. for second clats is conveyed free from
London to Port Said. If passengers travel by the
ordinary boat, thfty have to supply their own food
and lodging during the stay at Bombay.
Tickets are interchangeable with the Messageries
Maritimes Company.
Call at Port Said, Suez, Aden, Karachi, Bombay, and
Colombo.
No second class. Other regulations similar to (4).
No second class. Other regulations similar to (4).
No regular service is maintained.
148
Handbook of the
\ Move-
Straits Steamship Co.,
Out-
steamers.
S.S. "Penang"
S.S."HyeLeong'
S.S. " Malacca "
S.S. "BanWhatt
Hin."
S.S. "Sappho"
Leave
Singapore.
Monday,
5 p.m.
Tuesday,
4 p.m.
Wednesday,
5 p.m.
Friday.
5 p.m.
Satiirday
5 p.m.
Arrive
Malacca.
Tuesday
6 a.m.
Thursday
Sam.
Saturday,
6 a.m.
Sun day
5 a.m.
Leave
Malacca.
Tuesday,
6.15ra.m.
Thursday,
5.15 a.m.
Saturday,
6.15 a.m.
Sunday,
6 a.m.
Arrive Leave
Port Port
Dickson. Dickson.
Thursday
9 a.m.
Sunday
10 a.m.
Thursday,
10.30 a.m.
Sunday,
10.30 a.m.
Home-
Steamers.
S.S. "Penang"
S.S."HyeLeong"
S.S. "Malacca"
S.S. "BanWhatt
Hin."
S.S. "Sappho"
Leave
Teluk Anson,
Thursday,
5.3iJ p.m.
Saturday,
Arrive
Port
Swettenham.
Friday,
6 a.m.
Sunday,
6 a.m.
Leave
Port
Swettenham.
Friday,
8.30 a.m.
Friday,
5 p.m.
Sunday,
8.3U a.m.
Monday,
5 p.m.
Tuesday,
5 p.m.
Arrive
Port
Dickson.
Friday,
2 p.m.
Sunday,
2 p.m.
Tuesday,
5 a.m.
Leave
Port
Dickson.
Friday,
3.30 p.m.
Sunday,
3.30 p.m.
Tuesday
"Lady Weld" leaves Teluk Auson on Wednesdays and Saturdays for Penang,
the " Malacca."
Only the " Lady Weld " and " Hye Leong " carry second class passengers. Deck
excess, 20 cents per cuhic foot.
Extra boats are sometimes run.
S.S. " Sappho," 532 tons, 18 first class berths;
S.S. " Malacca," 653 tons, 24 first class berths ;
S.S. "Hye Leong," 492 tons, 12 first class berths
Federated Malay States,
149
MENTS.
Limited. — Steamers.
ward.
Ari'ive
Port
Swettenham.
Leave
Port
Swettenham.
Arrive
Teluk Anson.
Remarks.
Tuesday,
4.15 p.m.
Tuesday,
3 p.m.
Thursday,
4.15 p.m.
Saturday,
4.15 p.m.
Sunday,
4 p.m.
Tuesday,
4.30 p.m.
Thursday,
4.30 p.m.
Saturday,
4.30 p.m.
Wednesday,
7 a.m.
Friday,
7 a.m.
Sunday,
7 a.m.
1st and 2nd class passages.
Port Dickson, mails and passengers only.
ward.
Arrive
Malacca.
Leave
Malacca.
Arrive
Singapore.
Remarks.
Friday,
8 p.m.
Friday,
8.30 p.m.
Satm-day,
8.30 a.m.
1st and 2nd Class passages.
Saturday
Saturday
Sunday
Sunday,
8 p.m.
Sundav,
8.30 p.m.
Monday,
8.30 a.m.
Tuesday,
5 a.m.
Tuesday,
5 p.m.
Wednesday,
7 a.m.
Wednesday,
5 a.m.
Wednesday,
6 a.m.
Wednesday,
5 p.m.
Malacca, mails and passengers only.
returning thence on Tuesdays and Fridays, connecting with the "Penang" and
1st January, 1899.
passages by " Sappho " only. First class passengers are allowed half a ton of luggage ;
passenger licence, 385.
passenger licence, 240.
and 4 second class ; passenger licence, 230.
150
Mandhook of the
Straits Steamship Co., Ltd. — Eates of Passage
FOR 1898.
\st Glass.
Singapore to
Malacca „
P. Dickson „
Port Swettenham to
T. Anson to
Penang „
Ind Class.
Singapore to
Malacca „
P. Dickson „
Port Swettenham to
T. Anson „
Penang „
Upper Deck
Singapore to
Malacca „
P. Dickson „
Port Swettenham to
1
1
1
o
i
i
$
$
■
1
«
—
8
12
15
16
20
8
—
6
10
12
18
12
6
—
8
11
16
15
10
8
—
10
15
16
12
11
10
—
6
20
18
16
15
5
—
—
4
6
^
8
10
4
—
3
5
6
9
3
—
4
'H
8
n
5
4
—
5
n
8
6
5i
5
—
H
10
9
8
n
2^
—
_
2
3
4
—
2
—
1.50
2
—
—
—
^
—
1|
-
—
4
2
H
—
—
—
Remarks
Second Class passage per S.S. " Hye Leong " and " Lady Weld " only.
Upper Deck passage per S.S. " Sappho " only.
Leaving Singapore, S.S. "Penang "on Mondays, and S S. ''Malacca" on
Wednesdays, connect with the S.S. " Lady Weld " for Penang, for passengers
and cargo.
For further particulars, see time-table.
1st June, 1900.
Federated Malay States. 151
APPENDIX B.
The following hints on planting, and estimates of cost of
opening estates for different descriptions of produce, have
been compiled for this handbook by English planters of
experience now resident in the Federated Malay States.
Estimate No. 2 provides money to meet the cost of survey
fees, purchase money and rent, but it should be noted that
in No. 1 nothing has been allowed for purchase of the land,
and in No. 3 none of the expenses above mentioned have
been included. These figures can, however, be gathered
from estimate No. 2.
Mints on Planting.
The cultivation of such products as tea, coffee, cocoa,
pepper, gambler, tapioca, sago, rice, rubber, ramie, sugar,
coconuts, nutmegs, is well suited to the soil and climate of
the Federated Malay States, and all of these have been
successfully grown, some experimentally only. Both the
initial expense and the cost of production will be found to
vary materially according to the district and the style of land
fixed on, for instance, the nearer to a town the greater in-
ducements as a rule are there to your coolies who work on
the estate, consequently labour all round is in all probability
cheaper.
G-ranted that the land chosen is virgin jungle, the first
thing to do is to fix upon a suitable time of the year for the
felling and clearing of it. For this it is generally con-
sidered that there are two seasons, i.e., November and
December — and April and May, which as nearly as possible
represent the close of the rainy season, so that following
these, good dry weather for burning may, as a rule, be relied
152 Handbook of the
on. Felling and clearing work is usually given out on
contracts, the price varying from $2 to glO according to the
nature of the work, and the position of the land.
While this is going on it is usual to fix upon a site for the
bungalow and coolie lines. The latter should be done very
carefully, as so much depends upon the health of the coolies,
to whom it is essential that there should be close at hand
good water for both drinking and bathing.
Should dry weather set in after the block of jungle has
been felled for, say, a month to six weeks, it will be advisable
to take the opportunity of burning (should there have been
no rain registered for three or four days).
This operation over, one should be enabled immediately to
commence the work of lining and cutting holes.
The stumps and burnt logs are not removed, as these by
their decay furnish a considerable amount of plant food.
If the product for which the land is being thus prepared
happens to be coffee, coconuts, cocoa, pepper, nutmegs or
rubber, it is necessary that a nursery full of young plants
should now be ready to be taken out — thus it is taken for
granted that the seed has been germinated some time pre-
viously with a view to the plants being ready and of a suit-
able age to stand the transplanting during the next favour-
able spell of rainy weather. (Pepper is planted from cuttings
taken from young vines, and to commence with require the
greatest care.)
Young plants of the above nature are considered to be
hardy enough to stand the moving in about six months from
the time the seed has commenced to germinate.
If it is decided to keep the clearing entirely clean from
weeds, this should be commenced and the work carried on
and repeated at least once a month, when the cost will be,
comparatively speaking, small.
It is by no means considered always necessary to do this,
and after planting many of the above products, attention is
paid only to the weeding immediately round the tree, the
rest being allowed to grow up in grass and cut down only
when it has commenced to get to a troublesome height. All
young plants require very careful shading.
Fed prated Malay States. 153
In places Avhere products such as rubber and nutmegs
have been planted these have usually been tried in con-
junction with some other plant, and it would appear desirable
to follow this plan in view of the fact that by so utilising
the land, returns from the other products may be expected
for at least tliree or four years, during which time the larger
trees are coming into bearing. Both the rubber and the
nutmegs assume at their full height considerable proportions
(the former, say, 60 feet at least), and are for this reason
planted at a distance of 30 to 40 feet apart. In this manner
50 trees can be planted to each acre.
Results with regard to Para rubber have shown that a tree^
at six to seven years old can be tapped and a return at the
rate of 10 oz. may be expected. This at the present price,
viz., 3s. M. to 4s., would show an exceedingly good profit.
The return from nutmegs is most variable, and at least
50 per cent, more trees should be planted than those from
which a return is estimated, as the proportion of male trees
is very large as a rule, and these cannot be detected until
nearly bearing time, when sometimes whole rows will be
fouud useless as far as bearing fruit is concerned. A return,
however, may be looked for in the sixth year.
Large areas are under pepper cultivation and doing very
well. G-reat care should be taken to ascertain that the
cuttings are taken from healthy vines.
Small holes only are necessary, l^hese are usually cut
about nine feet apart. The vine is trained to grow up a post,
which should be made of hard jungle wood, well limed and
tarred at the bottom to resist the ravages of white ants.
These permanent posts should be about 11 J feet long, thus
giving about nine feet above ground. It is most important
to ascertain whether the immediate neighbourhood can give
a large enough supply of hard wood. If this be the case a
good supply may be split and brought on to the clearing for
four or five cents, whereas if they have to be carried any
distance the cost may be increased to 15 cents, this making
a difference of over ;^50 per acre.
The vines should not be allowed to bear until they have
reached the top of the posts, which, under favourable cir-
cumstances, should be in about 3J years after planting —
4 years for backward trees. Pepper thrives well in a soil
that contains a large proportion of laterite stone, more so
154 Handbook of the
than on loose soil, but the working is more expensive on the
former, on account of the extra cost of digging and cleaning
the soil for turning down the vines. Grood pepper on
suitable soil should yield at least 8 pikuls per acre, or
even 10, after the vines have come into bearing. The cost
of curing is comparatively small. Expensive buildings and
machinery are not necessary, and the cost of bringing the
vines into bearing should be about $180 per acre. This
does not include bungalow and superintendence.
The Federated Malay States are in many ways more
suitable even than Ceylon and Southern India for successful
cultivation, the reasons being that : —
1st. There is a large area of forest land at favourable
altitudes.
2nd. A more equally distributed rainfall, thus ensuring
a greater regularity and certainty of blossom.
3rd Better transport facilities by road, rail, and water.
4th. Better facilities for manuring with salt, lime, wood
ashes, jungle soil, and cattle manure.
5th. The suitability of the country for growing valuable
fodder grasses, and thus the possibility of keep-
ing stock both for sale and manuring purposes.
Heavily timbered forest land in either Ceylon or
India suitable for cultivation is not now plentiful,
and as it is a very important consideration in the
selection of land that in the selected acreage there
should be sufficient area of forest to allow of a
timber reserve, the selector has in the Federated
States the greatest advantage.
The rainfall in both Southern India and Ceylon is entirely
regulated by the monsoons, and in consequence there is an
annual drought which is prejudicial to successful blossoming.
In the Federated States there are no regular monsoon
influences, and the more regular rainfall is attributable to
the close proximity of the high mountain ranges with the
Straits of Malacca and the China Sea.
The general features of the States afford facilities for cheap
transport. The sea to the eastward and westward forms the
main highway, and the feeders thereto are the navigable
rivers, the numerous backwaters, the railway, and the
magnificent system of main roads which permeate the States.
Federated Malay States. 155
In both Ceylon and India there is a heavy duty on salt,
as a consequence both in Ceylon and India the cost of salt
makes it prohibitory for manuring purposes.
In the Federated States there is no duty on salt, the supply
is abundant and cheap, therefore this valuable fertiliser can
be largely used.
The supply of limestone is practically inexhaustible, and
as there is also a plentiful supply of firewood, lime can be
easily and cheaply procured.
From the forest reserve, to which I have previously
referred, an ample supply of jungle soil and wood ashes can
be obtained, both of which are valuable as manures.
Lastly, the suitability of the country for the production of
good fodder grasses is of the greatest importance. In Ceylon,
and India there are no such facilities.
In the Federated States a well organised and systematically
conducted stock establishment should pay the planter in two
ways : firstly, by profit on sale of stock ; and secondly, by
the large supply of cattle manure which can be obtained at
a minimum cost.
156
Handbook of the
No. 1.
Estimate for Opening 100 Acres (Coffee) to
6th Year.
Land—
1 cts.
$ cts.
Survey fees on 320 acres jungle, say
300 00
Prospecting expenses
250 00
Land rent at 50 cts. per acre
160 00
710 00
Nurseries —
Estate to be planted 12'X10'=363 plants
to 1 acre = 36,300 plants + 20^ for
failures = 7,260. Say, total plants re-
quired = 45,000. Includes felling,
clearing, digging, cutting, attaps for
shade, pricking out seeds 6"X6"
500 00
Felling and clearing —
Felling and lopping at |9, burning and
clearing up at |6 per acre = $15
—
1,500 00
Lining —
36,000 pegs at $1 per 1000
36 00
Lining at 7 5cts. per acre
75 00
111 00
Holing —
363 holes per acre, 18X18, at 1 ct. per
hole
__
363 00
Filling in —
363 holes with surface soil only at 1| cts.
per hole, or, say, $4 50 cts. per acre
450 00
Carried forward
$3,634 00
Federated Malay States. 157
Estimate for Opening 100 Acres (Coffee) to 6th Year. — cont.
Brought forward
Planting-
Includes transport from nursery, cutting,
attaps for shading, planting and shading
in clearing at 2 cts. per plant, or say,
$7 per acre
Weeding —
Jungle cleared in August, September,
planting in November, requires 2 months,
at $1 per acre
Eoads and Drains —
1 path, 3 feet wide all round, clearing
includes clearing away fallen trees,
130 chains at $1 50 cts., say
Drains and roads where necessary, say . . .
Tools, ^c—
5 doz. chankols, 2 doz. axes, 2 doz. peng-
kalis, 2 doz. billhooks, nursery tools . . .
1 bullock cart
Buildings-
1 bungalow of hard wood posts, weather
boarding walls. Nipah attap roof
includes clearing site for same and
kitchen attached ...
A set of lines (temporary) for 60 coolies.
arried forward
$ cts.
$ cts.
,634 00
700 00
200 00
11
200 00
200 00
400 00
250 00
30 00
280 00
600 00
120 00
720 00
—
$5,934 00
158 Sandhook of the
Estimate for Opening 100 Acres (Coffee) to 6th Year — cont.
$ cts.
$ cts.
Brought forward
—
5,934 00
Coiitingeneies —
1 house coolie at 1 9 per month
108 00
Stationery, stamps, telegrams, &c
150 00
Medicines, &c., for coolies
100 00
Unforeseen contingencies
100 00
^'is no
Transport —
too VK)
1 Tapal coolie for fetching letters, &c., at
^9
—
108 00
Superintendence —
1 European Superintendent at $150
—
1,800 00
Stock—
1 pair bullocks
—
170 00
Total
$8,470 00
Federated Malay States.
2nd Year.
159
Land—
^ cts.
% cts.
One year's rent at 50 cts. per acre
—
160 00
Superintendence —
European Superintendent at $150
—
1,800 00
Weeding —
100 acres at PO per month
—
960 00
Supplying —
Filling in any vacancies in clearing with
surplus plants from nurseries at
$1 20 cts. per acre
—
120 00
Handling —
Clearing off surplus suckers where neces-
sary
—
50 00
Roads and Drains —
Upkeep of all roads and drains, say 75 cts.
per acre
—
75 00
Buildings —
Upkeep of bungalow and coolie lines
—
50 00
Contingencies — •
As in the first year
—
458 00
Tools—
New mamolies and axes
—
50 00
Transport —
Tapal coolies at 1 9
—
108 00
-S^oc^—
One carman at §9 ..
108 00
—
Shoeing bullocks and cattle meal
50 00
158 00
—
Total
p,989 00
160
Handbook of the
3rd Year.
Land —
^cts.
1 cts.
Rent at 50 els. per acre
—
160 00
Superintendence —
Superintendent at $150 per month
—
1,800 00
Weeding —
100 acres at $75 per month
—
900 00
Fruning and Handling —
100 acres at p.25
—
125 00
Supplying —
Say
—
50 00
Eoads and Brains —
General upkeep
—
75 00
Buildings —
General upkeep
—
75 00
Contingencies —
As in the previous year
—
458 00
Tools—
1 doz. pruning knives, |10 ; extras, |15 ...
—
25 00
Transport —
1 Tapal coolie at $9
—
108 00
Stock— ^
lCartmanat|9
108 00
—
Shoeing bullocks and cattle meal
50 00
158 00
—
Total
p,934 00
Federated Malay States.
4th Year.
161
Current Expenditure.
Land —
1 cts.
1 cts.
Rent at 50 cts. per acre
—
160 00
Superintendence —
As in previous year
—
1,800 00
Weeding—
As in last year at $75
—
900 00
Fruning —
100 acres at p per acre
—
400 00
Roads and Brains —
Upkeeps
—
75 00
ConHngencies —
1 House coolie at $9
108 00
Stationery, &c.
150 00
Medicines, &c., for coolies
150 00
Unforeseen contingencies
150 00
558 00
Transport —
Tapal coolie at |9
—
108 00
Buildings —
1 Permanent set of lines for 75 coolies
350 00
1 Brick well
75 00
Upkeeps
50 00
...
475 00
Carried forward
—
$4,476 00
162
Handbook of the
4th Year — continued.
CuRHENT ExPENDiTDBE — continued.
Brouffht forward
Tools-
Tools for curing sacks for picking, &c.
Ft eking —
200 pikuls at $3 20 cts. per pikul
Curing —
200 pikuls at $2 per pikul
Stock—
As last year ...
Transport of Crop —
200 pikuls at $1
Duty, say 40 cts.
Selling expenses, commission, «&;c., say
65 cts. per pikul
Capital Expenditure.
1 Coffee store and pulping house, 30 feet
by 30 ft. : — Brick pillars and cisterns ;
galvanised iron roof ; upper fl,oor of
2 in. by 2 in. reepers ; lower storey
surrounded by trellis, upper storey
weather boarding ; includes excavation
for site
3,000 superficial feet of concrete barbecue
at 15 cts. per foot ...
1 Pulper
1 Smout's peeler, 18 ft. barrel
300 00
1-6 H.P. engine
1,500 00
Belting, oil, shafting &c.
:: :
500 00
5,250 00
Total
|11,484 00
cts.
200 00
80 OO
130 00
2,000 00
450 00
500 00
I cts.
4,476 00
150 00
640 00
400 00
158 00
410 00
Federated Malay States.
163
5th Year.
Zand — Rent at 50 cts.
Superintendence, at 1 150 ...
Weeding, at §70
Pruning, at $6 ...
Roads and Drains — Upkeeps
Contingencies
Transport ...
Tools
Buildings — Upkeeps
Picking — 400 pikuls at |3 per pikul
Gurmg — 400 pikuls at §1 75cts. ...
Transport of Crop —
Commission, &c., at §2 per pikul ...
Stock (as before) ... ...
Manuring where necessary, thatching, &c.
Total
cts.
$ (
3ts.
160
00
1,800
00
840
00
600
00
50
00
600
00
108
00
100
00
50
00
1,200
00
700 00
800 00
158 00
250 00
§7,416 00
164
Handbook of the
6th Year.
Land- — Eent at 50 cts. ...
Superintendence
Weeding, qX %Q6
Fruninff, at |6
Roads and Drains
Contingencies
Transport, say |20...
Tools
Buildings ...
Picking — 500 pikuls at $3
Curing — 500 pikuls at §1 75cts.... ...
Transport Crop — Commission, &c.
Stock ._
Manuring all Estate, at a cost of $10 per acre
Total
$ cts.
I cts
160 00
1,800 00
780 00
600 00
50 00
600 00
240 00
75 00
50 00
Federated Malay States.
165
Summary.
Expenditure —
$ cts.
1 cts.
1st Year
—
8,470 00
2nd „
—
3,989 00
3rd „
—
3,934 00
4th „
—
11,484 00
5th „
—
7,416 00
6th „
—
8,888 00
Total
—
$44,181 00
Receipts —
4th Year, 200 pkls. of Coffee at p5 per pkl.
—
5,000 00
5th „ 400 „
—
10,000 00
6th „ 500 „
—
12,500 00
Total
—
$27,500 00
Notes on Estimate No. 1.
This estimate is based on the supposition that the nurseries
will be commenced in January, when it is dry. The seasons
are, — January, February, dry ; March, April, May, wet ;
June, July, August and September, dry ; October, November,
and part December, wet.
The nurseries should be felled and burned off by middle
of February, and all seedlings should be put out in nursery
from the germinating beds before the 1st April. Felling
jungle should commence in the middle of May and finished
by beginning of July. Burn off in middle of September, and
from then till beginning of November, lining, holing, and
filling is carried on ready for planting, should all be finished
by the end of December. It is important that the plants
should be put out during wet weather. But still if put out
with the transplanters and well shaded and weU watered
before being taken from the nursery it does not matter so
much.
166
Handbool- of the
As the clearing is only holed and filled in October there
are only two months' weeding in the first year. A great deal
depends on the burn off. A good burn means clearing up
costing only $1 to $1.50 per acre. Again, if Sakei (aboriginal)
labour for felling can be procured, felling will only cost
$6 to $7 an acre. The estimate is made out to allow for
Malay labour and a bad bui'n, and the first year weeding at
^1 per acre per month is for the same reason. Holing is
done by contract. Filling in is not, as only the top surface
soil can be used. The road expenditure would consist of
clearing a path and cutting a drain all round the clearing to
prevent any seeds, &c., being carried into the clearing by
heavy rain and becoming weeds.
The general labour would be Tamil ; put the daily rate of
pay at 30 cents.
Glerminating beds should be made when the nurseries are
felled, six weeks being the general time of seed to germinate
No. 2.
Estimate for Opening-tjp and Planting 500 Acres of
Coconuts in Selangor (Coast District).
First Year.
§ cts.
Survey §500, quit rent $250, premium §500 ...
1,250 00
Felling and clearing
4,000 00
Lining and holing
750 00
Cost of seed
2,000 00
Planting and fencing
2,000 00
Weeding
3,000 00
Roads and drains
5,000 00
Coolie lines and tools
350 00
Bungalow
600 00
Superintendence
•
3,000 00
Doctor §100, medicine and stationery §100
200 00
Contingencies
••
150 GO
Carried forward
§22,300 00
Federated Malay States.
167
No. 2 — continued.
$ cts.
Brought forward
22,300 00
Second Year's E.^penditure
7,500 00
Third „
„
6,000 00
Fourth „
„
5,000 00
Fifth
„
7,000 00
Sixth
„
8,000 00
Seventh „
„
6,500 00
Eighth „
7,000 GO
Total
$69,300 00
In the Sixth Year a return of 20 nuts (at 2 cents) per tree
may be looked for.
In the Seventh Year a return of 30 nuts (at 2 cents) per tree
may be looked for.
In the Eighth Year a return of 50 nuts (at 2 cents) per tree
may be looked for.
Thus, Total Expenditure to end of Eighth Year
Crop Eeturns
p9,000 00
§64,000 00
§5,000 GO
In some coast districts the natives count on a return during the fifth
year from planting, but it is not generally considered safe to estimate any-
thing until the sixth year.
168
Handbook of the
No. 3.
Estimate to Open 500 Acres with Para Eubber, doing
250 Acres per Annum.
Felling and dealing 250 acres at $10 per acre
Lining 250 acres at §2 per acre
Holing and filling 250 acres at $5 per acre
Nurseries
Seed for same, planting 14" x 14" — 222 per acre, say 250 per
acre — 187,500 seeds at 1 ct. each
Planting and shading at $ 3 per acre
Eoads and drains, 250 acres at $ 1 per acre
Weeding 250 acres for 6 months at £>\ per acre per month ...
Supervision at $300 per month. ...
Buildings. — House for superintendent ... ... ...$1,000
House for assistant ... ... ... ... 500
House for overseer ... ... ... ... 100
Coolie Lines .. .
Tools
Contingencies, Hospital, &c.
Second Year :—
Opening 250 acres, as above $18,500
Less buildings $1,500
Coolie lines ... ... ... 500
Upkeep on first 250 acres at $30
Third year, upkeep on 500 acres at $30 per acre
Fourth year ,. 500 „ „ $30 „
Fifth year „ 500 „ „ $30 „
Total Cost to Fifth Year ...
2,000 = 16,500
... 7,500
$ cts.
2,500 00
600 00
1,250 00
400 00
1,875 00
750 00
2,500 00
1,500 00
3,600 00
1,600 00
500 00
500 00
1,025 00
$18,500 00
24,000 00
15,000 00
15,000 00
15,000 00
$87,500 00
Federated Malay States.
169
Estimate of Returns from Para Rubber.
I believe a good return of at least J lb. per tree could be
got from five year old trees, but I do not calculate on any-
thing until the sixth year, when I feel certain that rubber
planted on good alluvial land will yield at least 1 lb. per tree.
Planting 14'' X 14'', there should be 222 trees per acre, but
calculate only on 200 trees per acre.
Returns.
Sixth Year.
£
s.
d.
250 acres or 50,000 at 1 lb. per tree ...
50,000 lbs. at 3s. per lb
Stg.
7,500
Seventh Year.
250 acres at 1 lb. per tree
£ 7,500
250 „ 2 lbs. „
15,000
22,500
Eighth Year.
500 acres at 2 lbs. per tree
Stg. &
30,000
60,000
This estimate of returns up to the eighth year may look
too good, but if I were to calculate on returns given to me by
most reliable men in Selangor and Sungei Ujong, these
returns would still more astonish readers if I went on up to
the twelfth year. I have given my estimate of all cost of
opening up to the fifth year to be $87,500.
170 Handbook of the Federated Malay States.
After the 5th Year the Cost will be per Annum :-
6th Year.
$ cts.
§ cts.
500 acres at §30 per acre
—
15,000 00
Good house for Superintendent
—
3,500 00
„ „ „ Assistant
—
1,500 00
„ „ „ Overseer
—
500 00
New coolie lines
—
1,000 00
Store and sheds
—
5,000 00
Collecting and curing 50,000 lbs. of rubber at
20cts. perlb
—
10,000 00
7th Year.
36,500 00
500 acres at pO per-acre
15,000 00
Collecting and curing 150,000 lbs. rubber at
20 cts. per lb
30,000 00
45,000 00
8th Year.
500 acres at pO per acre ,
15,000 00
Collecting and curing 200,000 lbs. of rubber at
20 cts. per lb
40,000 00
55,000 00
$136,500 00
Total
Ob £> Sterling
—
£13,650
! ii>S'27
