A ROMANCE OF THE EAST.

Otago Witness, Issue 2804, 11 December 1907, Page 90

A ROMANCE OF THE EAST.

The dead dumb fog hath wrapped it — the frozen dews have kissed — The naked stars have seen it, a fellow star in the mist. , What is the Flag of England? Ye have but my breath to dare, Ye have but my waves to conquer. Go forth, for it is there! Though well over a. century of yeara have now passed since Sir Robert Clive and later Warren Hastings laid the foundations of our British rule in India, and although the hand of the Britisher has since stretched out and taken the neighj bouring country of Burmah under its alli~ conquering sway, it is apparent to the reader who has made a study of the map of Asia that there are still plenty of unknown lands in this vast continent waiting the advent of the explorer to open to the exploitation of Western nations^ And that "Britishers are still imbued with that spirit of adventure which made our forefathers venture forth to strange lands — counting the risks as naught — in search of adventure and to lav under tribute the foreign possessions which are now such treasured gems in the British crown is evidenced by the following story of what one Englishman, by his own unaided effort, pluck, and endurance, accomplished. Some 10 years ago there "was stationed in Pahang, in the Malay Peninsula, an inspector of Dolice named Duff, whose duty it was, aided by his native subordinates, to exercise a restraining hand on the •predatory instincts of marauding tribes, and generally keep order in his particular district. Duff was recognised as an able administrator and disciplinarian by the whites and natives alike, and there came a call for His official services in the adjoining State of Kelantan, which lies to the south of Siam, and whose coastline faces the China Sea. And as showing how small events change the tenor of a man's career and lay the foundations' of what in this case is a large fortune, it is interesting to read of what arose from tli is visit into the neighbouring province of Kelantan to put down a small rising of the natives. Kelantan had up to this time been practically unknown to the white man, but its numerous rivers, heavy jungle, and splendid coil caused Flic inspector oi police to think that here indeed was .a veritable land of Goshen. Rough prospecting in the rivers showed unmistakable signs of gold in plenty, and, as it has done since time immemorial, the sight of the precious metal proved a lodestone which ultimately " drew Duft back again to this little-known land. Completing the mission he then had in hand, he hurried back to Pahang. and at once set about formulating a scheme to get into touch the Rajah of Kelantan to

obtain the right "to exploit a -part of tiiik rajah's province. The Kelantan natives, however, hearing of Duffs intention, and having the usual native distrust of the white man, put all sorts of difficulties in the way of the Englishman getting an. interview with the rajah, and here the indomitable pluck of Duff came to- the surface. Once ia the Kelantan country, accompanied by only a few faithful natives, numerous attempts were made on his- life, the deadly poison cup being- one of several artifices used to end Duffs endeavour. But after experiencing many months of desperate hardships and danger c. — a few only of which would have been sucient to turn a lees dogged native back to the safety of civilisation — the inspector of police got his interview*.. Then his strong personality showed itself, and his persistency and pluck were rewarded by the rajah, in a generous moment, granting him a concession over an enormous tract of country approximating 3500 square miles of practically unexplored territory. Duff seems to hava recognised that his "tide in the affairs of man" was at hand, and immediately hied himself off to London, where he floated a company to work his big concession, under the, title of the Duff Development Com* pany, and has never once looked backy* This company, after being but seven years in existence, can now lay claim to being one of the largest dredging concerns in the world — that is so far as extent otdredg,able country is concerned. It 'has now four dredges at work on the easily-dredged! rivers flowing through the concession, each of which at the present time is returning an average^ of 50oz to 70oz per week, and in addition hundreds of Chinese are cradling on the banks of the the rivers*, and paying a royalty to the company on their returns. In fact, all traders carrying their products through the Duff country have to pay tribute to the company. A large sawmill is also working, turning out timber for the uses of. the different works, and the cultivation of rubber ia now being entered on. The largeness of the venture which has been Etarted by the enterprise and perseverance of on* man is shown by a glance at the map of Kelantan, as it is seen that the con* cession embraces nearly a half of the whole province. The value of the company's machinery alone ie valued at some £100,000, while the value of duplicate parts carried for the upkeep of the machinery runs into £10,000. Over 1000 men are at present employed in the different branches of the development work. ' A feature of interest in this company to Otago people lies in the fact that a Kaitangata native and old Dunedin resident in Mr J. F. Bell — who was well known on local cycling tracks some few yearß hack — has occupied a responsible position on the engineering ataff of this -big concern for the past few years: Mr Bell is an present back in Dunedin for the purpose of floating a company to go into the rubber-growing industry over a tract of 2000 acres of land which he has secured in Kelantan.

It may be , of interest to remark that the Rajah of Kelantan is a suzerain othe King of Siam, and has two British advisers, and in the opinion of those qualified to speak on the political aspect, of Kelantan' s affairs it is but a matter of a very few years when the British flag will wave over this province, adding one more country to the vast territory already comprising Britain Across the Seas.