Rajah Brooke

Download or read book RAJAH BROOKE THE ENGLISHMAN AS RULER OF AN EASTERN STATE written by SIR SPENSER ST. JOHN and published by BEYOND BOOKS HUB. This book was released on 2023-05-06 with total page 188 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: I have undertaken to write the life of the old Rajah, Sir James Brooke, my first and only chief, as one of the Builders of Greater Britain. In his case the expression must be used in its widest sense, as, in fact, he added but an inappreciable fragment to the Empire, whilst at the same time he was the cause of large territories being included within our sphere of influence. And if his advice had been followed, we should not now be troubled with the restless ambition of France in the Hindu-Chinese regions, as his policy was to secure, by well defined treaties, the independence of those Asiatic States, subject, however, to the beneficent influence of England as the Paramount Power, an influence to be used for the good of the governed. Sir James thoroughly understood that Eastern princes and chiefs are at first only influenced by fear; the fear of the consequences which might follow the neglect of the counsels of the protecting State. The plan which the Rajah endeavoured to persuade the English Government to adopt was to make treaties with all the independent princes of the Eastern Archipelago, including those States whose shores are washed by the China Sea, as Siam, Cambodia and Annam, by which they could cede no territory to any foreign power without the previous consent of England, and to establish at the capitals of the larger States well-chosen diplomatic agents, to encourage the native rulers not only to improve the internal condition of their countries, but to inculcate justice in their treatment of foreigners, and thus avoid complications with other powers. Sir James Brooke first attempted to carry out this enlightened policy by concluding treaties with the Sultans of Borneo and Sulu, to secure these States from extinction; the latter treaty was not ratified, however, owing to the timidity of a naval officer, foolishly influenced by a clever Spanish Consul in Singapore, who took advantage of the absence of the Rajah. In the forties and fifties the expansion of Great Britain, as is well known, was looked upon with genuine alarm by many of our leading statesmen. Sir James Brooke, however, was not destined to see the fufilment of his ideas, as a ministry came into power in 1853 which cared nothing for the Further East, and in the hope of consolidating their majority in Parliament sacrificed their noble officer to appease the clamour raised by Joseph Hume and his followers, who, like other zealots, pursued their objects regardless of all the evidence which could be brought to refute their unfounded accusations. Joseph Hume may be called a libeller by profession, who began his career by making his fortune in the East India Company’s service in a very few years—a remarkable achievement; and who afterwards, when in Parliament, brought himself into notoriety by attacking first Sir Thomas Maitland, secondly Lord Torrington, and ultimately Sir James Brooke, whose shoe latchets he was unworthy to unloose. Sir James had thus but a short career as an English official. He was named Confidential Agent in 1845, Commissioner and Consul-General in 1846, Governor of Labuan in 1847, and his return to England in 1851 practically closed his active political connection with England, though he did not resign all his offices until 1854. But the Rajah did not thus conclude his own career; he returned to Sarawak and devoted all his energies to the development of his adopted country, and of the neighbouring districts. I shall have to relate what extraordinary vicissitudes of fortune he had to encounter, and how after many years of conflict he emerged triumphant, to leave to his successor, Sir Charles Brooke, a small kingdom, well organised as far as Sarawak was concerned, with strongly established positions reaching to Bintulu, which have but increased in influence and in power to further the well-being of the natives of every race and class; and to prove to all who care to interest themselves in the subject, what a gain to humanity has resulted from the old Rajah having had the courage and the forethought to found his rule in a wild country, whose inhabitants, with few exceptions, were till then inimical to Europeans, and mostly tainted by piracy. But he argued truly that these people knew very imperfectly what Englishmen were, and he determined to show them that some, at all events, were worthy of their confidence, and could devote themselves without reserve to their welfare. The peculiarity of the Rajah’s system was to treat the natives, as far as possible, as equals; not only equals before the law, but in society. All his followers endeavoured to imitate their chief, and succeeded in a greater or less degree, thus producing a state of good feeling in the country which was probably found nowhere else in the East, except in Perak, one of the Protected States in the Malay Peninsula, into which one of his most able assistants introduced his method of government. I am told that this good feeling, if not the old friendly intimacy between native and European, still exists to a considerable degree throughout the possessions of the present Rajah, which is highly honourable to him and to his officers. I have not attempted to re-write my account of the Chinese Insurrection (see Chapter VI.). I wrote it when all the events were fresh in my mind, and no subsequent information has rendered it necessary to make any changes. It was a most interesting and important incident[Pg xvi] in the Rajah’s career, and it fixed for ever in the minds of his countrymen how wise and beneficent must have been his rule of the Malays and Dyaks, that they should have stood by him as they did when he appeared before them as a defeated fugitive. How far-seeing were the Rajah’s views and plans is proved by the fact that his successor has found it unnecessary to change any phase of his policy, whether political or commercial, whether financial, agricultural or judicial; with the growth of the country in population and wealth all has been of course considerably augmented, but the lines on which this great advance has been made were laid by the first Rajah, and that this honour is due to him no one should deny. As there was but one Nelson, so there has been but one Sir James Brooke. How admirable was the simplicity of his character! So kind and gentle was he in manner, that the poorest, most down-trodden native would approach him without fear, confident that his story would be heard with benevolent attention, and that any wrong would, if possible, be righted. And as for the purity of his private life, he was a bright example to all those around him. It may be thought that I have exaggerated the grandeur of the Rajah’s personality, and the great benefits he conferred on the natives, and that I have been influenced in my views by the warm friendship which existed between us. If there be any who hold this opinion, I would refer them to Mr Alfred Wallace’s work, The Malay Archipelago, in which, after dwelling in a most appreciative manner on the Rajah’s rule in Sarawak, he adds these eloquent words, ‘Since these lines were written his noble spirit has passed away. But though by those who knew him not he may be sneered at as an enthusiastic adventurer, or abused as a hard-hearted despot, the universal testimony of everyone who came in contact with him in his adopted country, whether European, Malay or Dyak, will be that Rajah Brooke was a great, a wise and a good ruler, a true and faithful friend, a man to be admired for his talents, respected for his honesty and courage, and loved for his genuine hospitality, his kindness of disposition and his tenderness of heart.’ The portrait of Rajah Brooke facing the title page is taken from the picture by Sir Francis Grant, which is one of his best works. It is a most speaking likeness, and I have left it in my will to the Trustees of the National Portrait Gallery, if they will accept it.from the books