CO882-(3-4) — Page 5

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :--

། ། ། ། །

C.O.

بائيسيا

882

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PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC-

COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH—NOT TO

SIR,

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Head Quarters, Kinta, December 29, 1875.

I HAVE the honour to enclose, for the information of my Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty, a rough sketch showing the position of the troops and ships occupying and blocking the Peninsula of Perak. It shows how completely the country is now in the possession of the British Government.

The natives are gradually gaining confidence at the different stations where the troops are quartered, and are returning to their homes, bringing in fresh supplies for the force.

The Punglemi, or chief of the village, has promised to report himself to-day at head- quarters, and we hope to gain some valuable information from him.

Ex-Sultan Ismail and Maharajah Lela are in the jungle, but their exact position is not

known.

The Naval Brigade is distributed as follows :-

At Banga, 60 men and officers; at Kinta, 48 men and officers; at Quetta Kanza, 25 officers and men.

As soon as the feeling of the country towards the British Government is more fully understood I propose, with the concurrence of the Major-General Commanding, to re-embark the men in their respective ships.

I have, &c. (Signed) ALEX. BULLER,

Captain and Senior Officer,

Straits Division.

RETURN OF OFFICERS and MEN forming NAVAL BRIGADE employed on the PERAK RIVER,

and in the MARCH to Kinta (vide Captain BULLER's letter of this date)

"

At Kinta. Captain Alexander Buller, H.M.S. "Modeste;" Commander U. C. Single- ton, H.M.S." Ringdove; " Lieutenant John P. Pipon, and Mr. John Grant, Gunner, H.M.S." Modeste;" Dr. A. Gonham, Surgeon, Ringdove," Mr. W. C. Gillies, Assistant-Payinaster; Mr. G. Smith Midshipman, and 28 petty officers and seamen, H.M.S. " Modeste;" 13 petty officers and seamen H.M.S. "Ringdove." Total-7

officers, 41 seamen.

At Blanga. Mr. Walter T. Warren, Sub-Lieutenant, H.M.S. "Modeste "; Mr. T. B. Hughes, Navigating Sub-Lieutenant, Her Majesty's ship "Ringdove"; Dr. Charles C. Gedding, Surgeon, and six petty officers and seamen, Her Majesty's ship" Modeste "; 11 petty officers and men, Her Majesty's ship "Ringdove "; two petty officers and men, Grand total-10 officers, Her Majesty's ship "Thistle." Total 3 officers, 19 seamen. 60 seamen.

No. 153.

FOREIGN OFFICE to COLONIAL OFFICE.

Foreign Office, February 22, 1876.

SIR,

I AM directed by the Earl of Derby to transmit to you, to be laid before the Earl of Carnarvon, for such action as his Lordship may think fit to take thereupon, the accompanying extract of a private letter from Her Majesty's Agent and Consul General at Bangkok, together with its enclosures, on the subject of the rendition by the Siamese authorities of certain persons implicated in the murder of Mr. Birch at Perak.

The Under Secretary of State, Colonial Office.

DEAR SIR WILLIAM,

*

I am, &c. (Signed)

TENTERDEN.

Bangkok, January 6, 1876.

Br the last mail I received a despatch from your Colonial Secretary, in which he states that "the rendition to your Government of the Rajahs Ismail and Lela together with the regalia could not fail to have a most important effect towards bringing the "disturbances at Perak to a satisfactory conclusion," and should it be the case an reported that they are making their way into Patani, the Siamese authorities, it is to be

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hoped, will find it in their power to discover and arrest them. Mr. Irving has also written to the Kalahome to the same effect. Now, writing such a letter is, it appears to me, a very irregular proceeding, and is certainly a step that has never yet been taken by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs or the Indian Government.

Similar requests when necessary are always made through me. matter of no great importance, and one I am sure you will set right. The real question However, this is a I wish you to take into consideration is this: Have we any right to ask for the rendition of these people? It may be true, probably is, that both one and the other may have been more or less concerned in poor Birch's murder; still, I think they would only be looked on as political enemies over whom the British Government never had any juris- diction. If they have offended against any Government it is their own, not ours.

Even

if you had them in your power, could you punish them? It is true the Siamese have promised to prevent any of those concerned in the murder from taking refuge in their tributaries, but I doubt their ability to act up to it. The frontier is an open one on all sides, and any refugees would probably arrive at the chief town before the Rajah of the Province knew anything about it. If they do so arrive, I much doubt any decent Malay Rajah giving them up to us, for they have high ideas of the rights of hospitality for which we should be the last to blame them.

What I propose to do is this: To take no notice of Mr. Irving's communication, but to request the Siamese Government, in case these Rajahs come into their Malay States, to have them brought to Singora, where, as the inhabitants are Siamese, they can do no harm, and will be at some distance from Perak, and kept under surveillance, until the British Government decides what is to be done with them. This appears to me to be the best way to avoid all difficulties; I trust you will agree with me.

In any case I shall wait for your answer to this before taking any other steps. In the meantime, I have addressed copies of these letters to the Chief of my Depart- ment at the Foreign Office, and asked him to telegraph to me as to whether or not I am to ask for their rendition.

I have taken this course instead of the usual one, to write to Lord Derby direct, in order to prevent blame being cast on Mr. Irving, in case there is some mistake, and he has exceeded your instructions.

(Signed) T. G. KNOX. P.S.-I have written to Mr. Irving requesting him to take no further proceedings until he hears from you.

SIR,

Colonial Secretary's Office,

December 27, 1875.

In the absence of Governor Sir W. Jervois from Singapore, and by bis Excellency's directions, I have the bonour to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 29th ult. transmitting a letter from the minister for the western provinces of Siam, and to request that you will be so good as to forward to his Excellency the accompanying letter in reply. I should feel much obliged if you would at the same time explain to his Excellency that the delay in replying to his letter, which is much regretted, has been caused by the Governor's absence from Singapore.

I take this opportunity of informing you, that according to the last advices received from Perak the village of Kinta, which was the residence of the ex-Sultan Ismail and to which the disaffected Malays appeared to be falling back as the troops advanced into the country, was taken without loss of life on the 17th; Ismail himself and the Maharajah Lela fleeing as was reported in the direction of Patani. The Maharajah Lela is believed to have been the immediate instigator of the murder of the late Mr. Birch, while the attitude taken by Ismail since the commencement of the operations, has strengthened the suspicion which previously existed that he also was implicated in the outrage. The arrest of these two persons and their rendition to this Government, together with the regalia, which is believed to be in their possession, would not fail to have a most important effect towards bringing the disturbances in Perak to a satisfactory conclusion, and should it be the case that as reported they are making their way into Patani, the Siamese authorities, it is to be hoped, will find it in their power to discover and arrest them.

I have, &c. (Signed)

S. 3

C. J. IRVING, Acting Colonial Secretary.