KUALA LUMPUR.

Oamaru Mail, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 10595, 26 October 1910, Page 1

KUALA LUMPUR.

(By James W. Barrett)

"Pn +.V»n«<» • whp Htivp. "wit.- snon T* •■ Lumpur, and who arc informed that it s m the Federated Malay"States, it will suggest tigers, elephants, amok-running Malays, and malaria. Yet it- is a monument of-British good sense and llidustry; a city -where life and property are eyen more 'secure than in Melbourne, and a place where : sblid wealth-'and prdsp'erifcy • are : most- obvious; - Between Pending and Singapore _li<?s ,<,tho ( greater part: of the Malayan Peninsula-, all under British protectant." r Next to Singapore-? li& the 1 nonlmally independent State of Johore.," 1 follow four BtaieV>Undcr/;r ! sultaliates, viz., Negri 3femlsilan--(capital' Seramlian); Selangor (Sapital.Taipmg),- and Pedang. These t6rm tlie-Federated Malay States. Each is gbvemed-by a sultan in council, with tlie aid Qf- a" State'rßritisli Resident, and oyer-alHs a'British ■' -Resident General. 3o "-it' comes iiliout- tliiit Kuala Lumpur is tlie- capital of the-State of Selangor, ilid' tlie federated capital as well. So far no one lias-proposed to build a fede--dl'capital vin the jungle amongst the iVild'monkeys. : From Singapore to Peihng is an excellent railway service, vliich-links up the: capitals; Side railways join l each of'the capitals to ports, ind'thus Port , Swettenham harbours jtiean liners some 27 miles, from Kuala Liiihipur. - Rubber is grown within a ew-miles'of-Port Swettenham itself. !The roads in Malaya rire-magnihccnt, hfade : of latente and gravels, liid constructed (tell it not 111 "Victoria) >y professional engineers. After these •oads those of Victoria- are an abominalbni- -Telephone,and 'telegraph ' are ■verywhere ill use', &nd motor-cars are ri abundartcfr. " 'YetJ-itf iis possible, quite >asily"i if- it bo-desired;, to hunt tigers 'lfepiiants, and crocodiles, and wild monceys abound. -But these creatures must )e sought, just as our kangaroo and ■mu-require to be looked for further ifield than the Albert Park. Kuala jiimpur ■is a city probably of 20,000 to 10,000 'peoplej- possessing broad, white lean streets. 'Electric light imd power ire' distributed, and ' generally well-or-lered • arrangements. ■ v The population ids a, European (English) backbone, and s f otherwise ~composed - of, Malays, . Chinese, Tamils,- odds and ends, and what may-be best-termed "mixtures."- The government of the* State is by a nominated Council appointed to-represent mi terests;- ■ It is silent, effective, and: ; possesses a most salutary .power,-m that , undesirables may bcf invited to bring . some' totlier country under their. 'n<itice:. ; Thus it happens that,-.- with this quiet arid-sensible'authority, and-the practical , absence of- driuikenness, there- is lessr ; Task- of- personal /vjol6nce-.-in .Kuala. . Lumpur than Hi Melbourne. < ?Tlie architectural feature of the', 6ity;- * lsftfie Padang/or recreation ground: i Thiols a very large rectangular lawn or cricket ground. Oil. one side are the commodious public: - offices:'-covered by -a beautiful Byzantine facade in w.lute.- At ; one' end is another line wlute building, the-Chartered Bank ; at the-other tlifi . Eiighsh Church.. On .the remaining, side lsithe long low. bungalow of the Selangor ; Club, backed bv a tree-covered lull, on , which are- creeled.- the pMncipal hotels. The climate is-peculiar. The tempeia-? : tiire at -night falls to 70deg. . .F.,-..-and , rises at midday to about Sodeg. F., and tile wet bulb mean is 76deg. i\ There are no seasons, and and nights ar.c i nearly the same- in length .--throughout tlie-year. .It rains either every day or eVety'few days,- and- the only variation is!that-sometimes the day is cloudy,, and consequently very pleasant. -Tlie. cli-, i mjvte'is not oppressive, and/from 6*a.nl., ; td 9 -a.m. and from; :o p.m; till- dark. (6*30 p.m.) it is very agreeable; :It is at these times that 1 one: sees the European children,; with their Malay or Chinese nurses, taking their.' daily walks. The climate is, of course, very moist, and a tramp ;.tlirough a. plantati6n at midday ends in one emerging very much m the ".wet rag" condition. . The Englishman, works here, as at home, from 9 a.m. till 4.30 p.m. 'ln Java the Dutch officials.cease work at 2 p.m. The traders take a siesta from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., whilst the business people work the same., hours as the Englishmen m . Kuala Lumpur. The break in the middle of the, day is far he. most efficient arrangement, from the illyaiologiCal standpoint,- but if it were idopted • m Euala Lumpur, tlie social liibjts would require remodellmg. Social lfe largely- centres round the Padnng md the Selangor Club, which is for both adies and gentlemen. From- half-past L!pVm. till lialfrpast 6. pim.- cricket, ;enms, and football are played. All locial- entertainments practicallj' take jlace-betweeni-4 p.m ; , and 8 p.m., and hhner at 8-or half-past 8-p.m., or even ater, is tlie, end of tlie. day-, and is folofved almost at- once by bed. [Football (Rugby or Association) has -.aken an amazing 'hold,- and' is:.replacing :obk-figliting and bull-baiting. The nost interesting- afternoon, spent, by the vriter : was'.witnessing tile final football niitch of -tlie .series —one- can't, say. seaion, as there is iione—Selangor ;Casuals '.[the "Recreation Club;; :• The Casuals vere {Europeans; - their. . -opponents idrasians, Europeans, and two Chinese. 3otli Chinese wore the queue. ; and a red iash; one wore boots, and "one did not. . The Chinese with the: bare-feet; was a inle player, and kicked, with the dorsum >f!the foot. It rained liard throughout ••hfe match. Consequently ;tlie balconies >f l the public .officeswere filled- with : and the .verandahs ,-and-wm-lows of the Selangor Club were,packed. : Sven the Clijnese waiters lef o'|see the match.; ,On tlie ground .were ;everal hundred people, "of :all nationaliiekj mostlv with Japanese .or,, Chinese inibrellas. The Casuals kicked the wmlirig goal ''just before -time; amid cheers, lowls, whistles,' and the! projection 'into th& air. of the circular part of the umbrellas. In fact, the uproar reminded md of.'Wagner's stage -directions at tlie end of . the "Melstersmger," wliere> everyone on the stage passes into a condition of - "universaLjubdaums." Apart from the/humor of'tlie "business, it was a Jine and healthy spectacle—no gate motley—no '■ professionalism—sport pure and .simple'. . / -■ > . ■; •• : , ■ The pubhc-gardens_are very fine.: Iliey '•are on .Itdly-. grouriff, ; arid provided with a stream",t aiid ~a lake.', -1-11 ~l andscape besjuty. they . rival the. - Melbourne -gardens; "b 4 ut"they'lack .the ma&es: of-floral icolbr 7 and variegated .leaf- with., wliicjti Mrj Guilfoylo has our, gardens. But' gardening is .fairly easy at.'Kuala Lumpur, 1 where palms grow naturally; wlifere the Victoria Rcgma grows in: the open, and where - caladiums - require weeding from the paths. Furthermore, Srdctically no watering' requires to be oiie. .The lack of coloir as/ how-ever, rei markable, and apart from the crotons i and tlie scarlet hibiscus, and ,a, few otlijer flowering shrubs, tlie color is varied green. • To what is tlus' ordered,civilisation due-? Of course, -"primarily, to the' existence'of enormous wealth; Capi-; taljhas been poured -into -this, country, vast returns-are leaving at, and men.-of-, character and training,, are wanted to takb positions of great responsibihty and trust. So we'find the average Englishman here on a high plane. • There.has. been m - all probability- less rascality than in any similar sudden development of wealth anywhere else. One leaves the Malav States with tlie deepened conviction that when decent Englishmen arc given their heads, • and are not worried by political theorists, they can govern Easterns excellently. So far, no one has been mad enough to propose to give Tamils, Chinese, and Malay coolies the government of the country, for that is what representative! government would mean, so far as the 'States are concerned. The British administration is to an extent indirect, sincfe the Sultan's Councils are composed of Malays and Chinese, as well as the British Resident and his secretary. Itmay be that this association will prove of much value. But in substance, the government of tlie country is a model of sensible, orderly, and just British rule.