CO882-(3-4) — Page 25

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

C.O.

Reference :-

882

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PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC-

COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO

:c.GATE

Inc.

92 Jau 1-7/

Enecopura N 9 in Denpa

$34

to Enclosures

Deepateb N

354

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business, we dare not remove the money from Penang so many thousands, this is what wwe inform our ¡riend "

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In another letter purporting to be written by Haji Ali to Rajah Yahyah, the following occurs :

..

Your slave informs you that, regarding the arrangement of what we are going to do, to not be late about it; come down quickly with the money, you must get them and ne down as soon as possible.

About Haji Mohained Saleh, he has gone to Penang. Now Mr. Birch has had the power given by Rajah Abdullah, this is what your slave informs your Highness, do not Your Highness trust the money which is sent for by Hap Mahomed Saleh, your Highness knows better Do not your Highness fail of what your slave informs.

+

Your slave hopes to God and his messenger that you will come down as soon as possible."

There is no date given to this letter, but from the reference made to Hap Mohamed Saleh, who was in Penang about the end of July or beginning of August, it would seem to have been written about the same time, viz., August 1875.

2. Another paper was found in Hap Alis boat. This was a draft letter apparently coming from several people, whose names are not mentioned, to Mr. Birch tion of this by Mr. Swettenham is enclosed.

A transla-

This paper is undated, but, as will be gathered therefrom, would seem to have been written shortly after Mr. Birch first went to reside in Perak, consequent on the Pangkore engagement.

443 From another paper found in Haji Ali's possession it would appear that he had made an agreement with Tunku Panghina Besar Abdo Galul (Rajah Ngah) and Haji Mobamed Yassim for mutual support and assistance in the strongest terms, and, pur- suance of their arrangement it would appear that while the Panghina Besar resided with Ismail, and Haji Mohamed Yassim with Abdullah, Haji Ali went from one to the other, and was constantly at the Resideney with Mr. Birch. This document throws light upon Haji Ali's position, and will account for his possession of the papers referred to.

84. Since I last wrote, Mr. Swettenham has taken down a statement made by Syed Masahore who joined Mr. Swettenham immediately upon the commencement of hostilities, and has been employed in our service since, copy of which I enclose. From this state- ment it will be observed that, about 21st September, Maharajah Lela was engaged in placing a stockade round his house (in Major Dunlop's Report, the stockade he found round Maharajah Lela's house will be found fully described), and that on that day he held the conversations therein reported, and produced the paper which, if it contained the chops therein mentioned, must have been written some time previously.

If there is any truth in this statement, then it would appear that long before any action was taken by me preparation for resistance was made.

85

I left Perak on 16th September

The letter of Rajah Yusuf and Rajah Drie, before referred to, was dated the 19th September. Abdullah's letter was dated 1st October. The Proclamation was sent to Perak on the 23rd October, and the first copy was posted at the Residency, on the 26th. The dates are important, as from the state- ment last referred to, the Maharajah Lela was building his stockade on the 21st September, and had then the paper with the chops referred to.

86. Between the 28th October and 4th November, copies were given to Rajaha Ismail, Yusuf, and Usman (the Bandabara), and posted at Blanja, Senggang, Sayung, Qualls Kangsa, and Kota Lama, up the river by Mr. Swettenham, and the bearers were nowhere molested in any way,

Mr. Birch had also distributed the Proclamations without molestation from the mouthb of the Perak River up to Passir Sala.

87. The statement of Syed Masahore is to some considerable extent borne out by statement of reports already forwarded to your Lordship and if true, as in the main I believe it to be, I think I am justified in drawing this deduction that the attack on Mr. Birch, at that time at Passir Sala, was unpremeditated; that the Maharajah Lela was exasperated and prepared to protect his follower who stabbed Arshad, and that he

Sub Bact himself relied for assistance upon the leading men of Perak. Apart from the statement,

it

appears from the draft letter found in his house, and which there can be no doubt now was intended for Ismail, Ismail himself having acknowledged the Maharajah Lela as one of his great men, that he fully relied upon Ismail's assistance with men and money.

RN. I think I may also safely draw this deduction, that, even had no proclamation been Issued, Mr. Birch could not have exposed himself at Passir Sala with safety, and it is quite possible that had Mr. Birch not been murdered at Passir Sala, an attack might have been made upon the Residency, which might have been only too successful, and led

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to a much greater loss of life than any we have yet had to deplore, and to a combination and confederacy which would probably have caused an obstinate war and still greater

ss of life

9. True, I erred, in common with all concerned, in supposing we could have intervened in the affairs of Perak without a display of military force. I now see that if the advice of The Resident was to be acted upon and the Sultan and Chiefs held strictly bound to the engagements which they had made, military force must, sooner or later, in greater or less degree, have become necessary to support the position which had been assumed.

90 When the proclamations which had been issued by Abdullah and by me were of be posted in Perak it was considered whether it was advisable to station a small body of troops there, to give material support to the Resident, in case any refractory Chief pposed this scheme for bringing the system to a workable footing. It was then decided that the Resident's Sikh Guard would be sufficient to meet with such a contingency.

It was in reference to this question of sending a small body of troops that Mr. Birch telegraphed to me that all was well, and that the proclamations had been posted without

ncident all the way down the river.

9. I trust that your Lordship will consider that I have now fully replied to your Lordship's Despatch under acknowledgment. I trust that the explanations which I have supplied will be satisfactory to your Lordship and to Her Majesty's Government, but I would beg most respectfully to submit that it would have been more consistent with justice had your Lordship refrained from expressing strong opinions upon my pro- ceedings until after my explanations had been received.

92. It remains for me now to consider briefly what, in my opinion, should be the policy to be pursued, in respect of this State of Perak. Doubtless, Her Majesty's Government have come to a decision on this point, but I shall not be fulfilling my duty if I did not acquaint your Lordship with my views on the subject at the present time.

93. In paragraph 69 of this Despatch I have stated that I now consider it impossible to recede from the policy which has been adopted in Perak. The effect of such a step would be to induce the people in all the protected territories, as well as in our own settle- ments, to imagine that, if they wanted to get rid of us, all that they would have to do would be to kill one of our officers and resist our troops, when we should immediately withdraw, after inflicting some punishment on those upon whom we could lay our hands. The Chiefs and those who have been implicated in the murder of our Resident and in the subsequent outrages must be captured or prevented from returning to the country, and this could not be effected if we receded from the position we occupy. If we did so, again, all those natives who have been friendly to us and affording us assistance during the outbreak, or at least have maintained a neutral attitude, would probably be murdered, and anarchy and civil war would once more ensue.

94. The only question, as it seems to me, with regard to Perak is, whether we should adhere to the policy of governing by a British Officer in the name of the Sultan, or whether we should annex the country as a portion of Her Majesty's Dominions. As stated in paragraphs 25 and 26 of my Despatch No. 335 of the 2nd December,* I am of opinion that, under present circumstances, complete annexation will now be the course to adopt. The other alternative is, I still think, workable, but, instead of a purely Malay Council, I should propose a mixed council, consisting of such British officers, Malays and Chinese, as may from time to time be thought desirable.

95. Recent events, however, have so altered and strengthened our position that I believe we could take over and govern the country with a comparatively small establishment, and with perfect facility. We can indemnify the Chiefs who would be entitled to such con- sideration at our hands, and thus get rid of the conflicting interests with which we should have to deal if we allowed the chiefs to retain their power. We could modify the Malay laws and customs, and still keep them in harmony with their religious ideas. A great opportunity would be presented for abolishing upon equitable principles the existing system of debt-slavery, and we should also not only secure the repayment of the advances of money made by the Government of the Straits Settlements, but hold a material quarantee for such portion of the expenditure as may be fairly charged against the State of Perak, that has been incurred in consequence of the outrage that has been committed upon our Representative.

96. I know well all that can be urged that we should take no further responsibilities pon ourselves, in respect to acquiring new territory, and that even where our subjects have been wronged that they have only themselves to thank, for going into a country where its rulers are unable or unwilling to afford them protection. I know that it has

• No. 101 of Confidential Paper," Eastern, No. 17."

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