Around the World with a King

by William N. Armstrong

  The Maharajah of Johore (1881).

  His Highness Sri Abu Bakar, the Maharajah of Johore, a kingdom under the British protectorate, invited the King to visit him, and we left in his steam yacht, the "Pantie," for his domain, distant fourteen miles from Singapore, and divided from it by the Straits of Salat-Jabras. Breakfast was served on the upper deck of the yacht, under a broad awning. In this equatorial region the cocoanut palms have their most luxurious growth; forests of these, close to the margin of the sea, stretched for many miles, with villages of native huts grouped on the shore. A royal salute was fired as we touched the stone landing, from which the ground rose in broad terraces to the summit of a hill on which the grand palace of the Maharajah stood. The Sultan's brothers, Turkus Abdul Medjid and Abdulla, received us, and led us over the pier, upon which a lofty and graceful bamboo structure had been raised and covered with flowers and flags. The long flight of wide stone steps rising gradually to the istana, or palace, was lined with carpets; on either side native troops were ranged in line. In front of our party marched a body of Malays in brilliant native costumes, bearing long spears and swords, and wearing red fezzes on their heads. In front of all, striding alone, was the bearer of an enormous sword sheathed in a gold-mounted scabbard; and directly behind us another bore an immense red umbrella of state, trimmed heavily with gold lace. At the grand entrance to the dewan or reception-room the Maharajah received us, taking the King's hand cordially; the Sikh guards presented arms; the courtiers bowed; and the Kings stepped on a daYs, where they sat and talked. The King's suite was presented to the Maharajah; and the principal Malay chiefs, the high government officers, were then presented to the King. Outside of the palace, on the wide lawns, crowds of natives, in their gay sarongs, chewing betel-nut, sat on their heels, watching for a sight of the foreign King of their own colour.

  From the dewan we were led to the palace itself, which was a new and magnificent building with a frontage of three hundred feet. Adjoining the reception-room was a large ball-room. The ceilings of both were lofty; and the architecture of the whole was a contrivance to avoid the use of glass, but with shades to exclude the hot air. The furniture of these imposing rooms was chiefly French, English, and Japanese, but without that delicate arrangement which a more highly civilised people than the Malayans usually make.

  From the reception-room led broad, high, and airy corridors which opened into many suites of apartments. Mine were three large rooms, twenty feet above the ground. In the corner of the sleeping-chamber there was a gilded spiral stairway leading to a large bath-room underneath it, with tiled floors, in the centre of which stood an enormous marble bath-tub; each apartment had a similar bath-room beneath it. The water, pure as crystal, did not flow through faucets, but gushed through marble troughs, bubbling and dashing in the great marble basins, in which one could almost swim.

  Malay servants, in yellow livery and picturesque hats, stood at the door of each apartment; the clapping of the hands brought them to us, but our communications were mainly in pantomime. Here, as everywhere in the Orient, if the servant does not understand you, he is confident that you wish brandy and soda, or champagne, and promptly brings it.

  The King was now visiting the monarch of a kindred race, and he once more tried to get an "effect" through the Feather Cloak. He did not consult the suite, but again warned his titled valet against the sin of intemperance and directed him to carry the cloak with dignity and sobriety. As we stepped from the Maharajah's yacht the valet appeared in evening dress, white gloves, a white helmet, and the gorgeous cloak over his shoulders. The display was effective, but the Maharajah's officers at once assumed that he was a person of high rank and placed him in the royal procession. The King had forgotten this probable complication and directed the valet to follow in the rear. He fell back some distance, but the Malay attendants, believing still that he held some superior position, made up a procession of minor officials, and the valet stalked in the centre of them up to the grand reception-room; in the mean time the luggage with which he was charged remained on the yacht.

  The bright and unique cloak caught the eye of the Maharajah; he asked to have it brought to him. After admiring it, he inquired about the rank of persons entitled to wear it in the King's country. The King replied, "Only the highest chiefs." The Maharajah then asked the rank of the white man who now wore it. The King was again in trouble, but, after hesitating a moment, replied that on certain State occasions a servant carried it for his chief. The Maharajah asked the King if his people did not make beautiful articles, and were they as skilled as the Japanese. The King modestly said that his subjects were an agricultural people, who had made little progress in the arts.

  At tiffin the Maharajah, placing the King on his right and myself on his left, asked about the origin of the Polynesians; he had heard that they were originally Malays, and if so there should be words common to both languages. We thereupon entered into comparisons, which were striking, such as Malayan, api, for fire; in Hawaiian, ahi: Malayan, muta, for eye; in Hawaiian, muka: Malayan, alima, for five; in Hawaiian, lima: in Malayan, dua, for two; in Hawaiian, alua. The similarity of many words suggests a common origin for the two peoples; but the ethnologists hold that this is not conclusive,—that it may be only an indication of mutual commerce in past ages.

  These ethnological "strawberry marks" placed the rulers on good terms with each other, and they were not unwilling to assume that this meeting was one of "long-lost brothers."

  During the afternoon we were driven about the superb grounds of the palace, through groves of the many-rooted banyan-trees, the holy waringham, long rows of the brilliant Victoria regia, past innumerable palms and ferns, and through a profusion of orchids.

  In the evening the Maharajah's yacht returned from Singapore with about seventy guests invited to a State banquet,—consuls, British colonial officers, merchants, and naval commanders.

  The Maharajah wore a small fez cap, on the front of which was a crescent in diamonds, and an enormous diamond star in its dip; he also wore a collar of diamonds, and diamond bracelets, while his breast was covered with jewelled Orders; even the buttons of his coat were large diamonds, and the handle and scabbard of his sword were jewelled with precious stones. My own humble diplomatic sword was a poor relation beside his magnificent weapon.

  The table service was heavy gold-plated ware. Arabic characters were engraved on each piece; their cost was surely enormous.

  Although there was a large variety of European wines, and the Europeans drank freely, the Maharajah, who was a Mohammedan, did not taste them. When he drank to the health of his royal guest he merely touched the glass with his lips. Our King said to him, "You do not drink wine?" He replied, "No, our faith forbids; it is bad to drink; the Europeans do not live long in our climate when they drink too much." Then he added, "You must eat our curry; we Malays are fond of it." It was brought in golden bowls filled with rice, followed by more golden bowls with varieties of meats and vegetables, and thirty different condiments served in lacquer dishes.

  The Maharajah, at the close of the banquet, rose. He spoke the English language with hesitation, and occasionally used an interpreter. Turning to the King, he took his hand and said he would propose his health; he was glad to welcome a King from a land very distant, but one who ruled over the same kind of people as those ruled by himself; he was sorry that he did not speak the English language as well as the King of Hawaii; and he hoped that his royal guest would reach his home in safety and not forget the little kingdom of Johore. The royal Hawaiian replied that he had now discovered that his own people were Asiatics, and he hoped the Asiatic nations would become powerful and stand by one another.

  We were then led to the wide marble balcony of the palace, which overlooked the gardens, and the dark forests of the mainland. Over all shone a bright moonlight. A band of Malay voices concealed in the dark foliage sang their plaintive songs; behind us was the vast marble palace with its great corridors filled with light. The Sikh sent
ries in white turbans paced the avenues, with their polished gun-barrels flashing in the moonlight through the dense foliage. The scene was that which rose before the poet, before alluded to, who had visions of his residence in halls of marble.

  The two sovereigns, after repeating some of the legends of what they believed were their common inheritance, became sleepy, and retired to sleep in these marble halls, but not to dream about them. The guests disappeared in the splendid chambers. Guards with drawn swords moved to and fro before the monarchs' chambers,—Malay angels guarding the royal sleepers.

  At daybreak the King called his suite to the grand balcony in front of his apartments. Dressed only in pajamas, we rested on soft rugs after bathing in the immense marble fountains. Malay servants, who much resembled our own people, served coffee and mangosteens. As the sun rose, the air was fresh, soft, and tranquil; birds of rich plumage flitted through the dense foliage of the banyan-trees; and beyond the straits were the vast forests of the feathery-headed cocoanut palms. This grand palace, of all we visited in the Orient, was the most conspicuous in its combinations of art and nature, for it stood alone upon high ground, with wide views of water, forests, and gardens.

  The Maharajah joined us at tiffin, and after the ceremony of parting in the audience-hall he led the King, through lines of native troops, to the pier, which was still dressed in vines and flowers. He bade his royal guests good-bye, and his yacht carried us over to the main island of Singapore. The Maharajah's drag took us from the landing across the island, over fine roads and past many jungles, upon which the King kept a close eye lest some epicurean tiger, with a depraved taste for dark meat, should bound out of the woods and swallow the Hawaiian dynasty.

  On reaching Singapore we called at the Government House and took leave of the Governor.

  While we were thus crossing the island in the drag, Robert had been directed to return with the Feather Cloak in the yacht. Left for a time out of his master's sight, he had resolved to magnify his office. On the yacht were several Europeans, who told us that he had greatly impressed the lower Malay officials and servants by occasionally lifting up the cloak and bowing to it, as if it were a sacred emblem. A special guard on the yacht was detailed to protect this precious treasure. Moreover he informed several of the European guests who were on the yacht that he was the Baron von O——He despised the Mohammedan precepts regarding abstinence, and by the time he reached the city he forgot the cloak and returned to the hotel without it. When the King discovered the loss he directed search to be made, and it was found on the yacht, strictly guarded by two Malay officers of the Maharajah's household. Robert was again deposed from his high office.

  We now embarked on the steamship "Mecca" for Calcutta and way ports. Sir Frederick Weld, with his staff, and many of the Consular Corps, attended the King to the wharf, and he left with the usual royal salutes from warships and forts. The Maharajah of Johore had kindly supplied the steamer with an abundance of tropical fruits, and by his orders the cabins were decorated with wreaths of flowers.

  CHAPTER XVII

  Brief Visit to Malacca — Reception at Penang by the Lieutenant — Governor — A Rich Chinaman's House — A Nautch Dancer's Performance — Hindu Caste — Maulmain — Eiephants in the Lumber Yards — Animal Intelligence — A Burmese Wedding — Rangoon — Buddhist Pagodas — Women's Emancipation in Burmah — The Queen's Birthday in the East — The British Power Everywhere — A Mohammedan at His Prayers — Entering the Hooghly — "Ganga! Ganga!".

  STEAMING toward Malacca, Mount Ophir, which the legends say was the source of King Solomon's riches, loomed up on the right, its flanks covered, as we approached it, with the glory of an Eastern sky.

  The British Resident in Malacca boarded the steamer, and during her brief stay took us to the old cathedral, built by the Portuguese in 1520, taken from them by the Dutch, and again taken from the Dutch by the English, but now abandoned. In a large school building was a mixture of Malay, Chinese, Indian, and European children; all of them learning to read and write the English language; this virile seed of civilisation which the British Power is scattering widely in the Orient. It is the knowledge of this language which, more than any religious propaganda, acts like poison on the superstitions of the races.

  At Penang the Lieutenant-Governor, Colonel McNair, received us, drove us to the Government House for tiffin, and, on returning through the avenues of palms and Victoria regias, called at the residence of a wealthy Chinaman, whose house, of great size, was so arranged without glass, that, with the turning of lightly made shutters, admirably adjusted, the walls seemed to disappear, and it became a huge birdcage through which the air passed without hindrance. It was fitted with rich furniture, and filled with odours of precious woods.

  Into this settlement the Chinese in vast numbers have drifted. They make themselves the masters of trade, and their ties of ancestral worship, which once bound them closely to China, gradually rot with age. They are evidently the coming race of this part of Asia. They need no national flag or gunboats for protection, for above them is British law and order, and the fighting tribes keep the peace. Even the British merchant cannot compete with them, but finds his profit in the carrying-trade and in wholesale commerce. There is no more piracy on the high seas; British warships patrol them, and with blood and iron, if need be, carry the gospel of order wherever a vessel can float. It is said that if a savage pulls a Briton's nose a gun-boat appears the next day and avenges the insult.

  After a delay of six hours our course was laid for Maulmain. Among the forward passengers was a nautch-dancer with her company. She sent a note to the King by one of the stewards, asking for the honour of dancing before him. A part of this note reads:—

  "With due respect and submission I have the honour most respectfully to state that it is my good fortune, and by the mutual Providence of the Almighty, your, arrival took place here. I therefore most respectfully do offer myself as a candidate to show my dance, under your Honour."

  "EMAMSU JAHU,

  "Dancer Lady."

  Her attendants arranged a floor by covering the main hatch with embroidered carpets; lanterns were hung in the rigging, and a screen of flags was drawn behind the hatch. The "dancer lady" stepped forward, dressed in a trailing underskirt, over which was a jacket of spangled cloth, with scarfs crossing her breast and silver bells encircling her bare feet. Raising her arms, she moved only her elbows and fingers; stepping forward, she began to posture with the jingling of the bells and her body undulated as in the Hawaiian dances. Her orchestra of four bare-legged Hindus beat a drum with the forefinger and tapped a one-stringed violin. She then prostrated herself before the "Sultan," as she called the King, and concluded with that rite which is common to all nations, of "passing around the hat."

  Looking from the saloon deck down upon the forward passengers, one saw the rigid observance of caste among the Hindus; the forms of a stagnant civilisation. One people of one caste ate nothing which was cooked on the steamer, and refused the excellent water provided for the passengers. Rice cakes for another caste, prepared on shore, are carefully kept from profane touch, and water is brought in jars, so that it may not be polluted. One captain said that even the Hindu monkeys observed caste and drank only from certain vessels. Monkeys, he said, were useful labourers; he had seen them gathering cocoanuts from lofty trees inaccessible to man; the master held the end of a long cord, the other end of which was fastened about the monkey's waist; when he reached the bunches of nuts he was guided in his selection by the pulls of the string.

  As we steamed into the harbour of Maulmain, for a brief stay, we noticed sawmills on the river bank, and elephants moving the lumber. Here was an opportunity to verify the stories of our childhood's geographies; did the elephant do intelligent work? We asked the captain to send no notice of the King's presence to the British magistrate, so that our brief time might be given to the study of animal intelligence. We quietly landed on the river bank and went to the sawmills, where in a most unregal
fashion we sat on a pile of lumber and watched the elephants in the lumber-yard. Upon a working elephant is a saddle occupied by his keeper and driver, who handles a short iron prod. The traces of the harness are heavy chains; with them the elephant draws a log to the platform of the mill; he then turns, places his tusks under one end of it, and raises it to the platform; turning to the other end, he lifts it to its place, using his trunk to prevent its slipping. If the log is not in a correct position, he apparently notes the error, stoops down, places his head or tusks against it, and moves it into its proper place. After the log is sawn, he takes up the slabs with his tusks, and, holding them down with his trunk as if it were a finger, carries them to a rubbish-heap. The sawn lumber or boards he places side by side until he has a load; under it he places his tusks and takes it to a pile, where he deposits it, and squares it into place. He apparently runs his eye over it, and if it is not straight he adjusts it. This execution of his task apparently shows extraordinary intelligence. But he is always under the direction of his driver, who sits behind his ears and freely uses his prod. The action of the driver may therefore be the real source of the animal's intelligence.

  In another instance, however, we noticed that the elephant seemed to employ reason. One of them, while waiting for a job, was irritated by flies on his belly and legs. Reaching out with his trunk, he collected a number of small pebbles. These he threw with dexterity at the flies. Again, taking a long stick, he placed the end of it under his foot and broke off a portion. Grasping the shorter part with his trunk, as one would hold a dagger, he scratched the irritated leg.