THE FORMER GOVERNOR IN LEAGUE WITH DACOITS—TROUBLE ON THE
FRONTIER—DACOITING BOATS—ADVICE TO A MISSIONARY—THE GOVERNOR OF
PETCHABURI—A PETITION TO THE KING—ROBBING THE PEOPLE—MISGOVERNMENT
OF A SIAMESE PROVINCE—MISSIONARY’S OPINION OF THE KING—EXTRAORDINARY
FLOODS IN SIAM—THE SEASONS—FLOOD OF 1878: VILLAGES WASHED AWAY—FLOOD
OF 1831—ENTERING THE PALACE IN BOATS—BOAT-JOURNEYS FROM AND TO
BANGKOK.
As soon as the boats were made fast to the bank, I called on Mr Stevens,
and fortunately found him at home. He proved a highly intelligent man,
well acquainted with the people and their manners and customs. He said
the governor of Raheng was the pick of the flock of Siamese officials,
and one of the few that was allowed an adequate salary, which had been
granted him by the king so that he might not be induced to take to the
evil practices of his predecessor, which had given rise to frequent
complaints on the part of the British Government.
The late governor was a bandit in disguise. He was notoriously in league
with the dacoits who infested his province, which neighbours our
frontier, and his proceedings had been laid bare in a police case which
was reported in the English newspaper at Bangkok. In the issue for March
1873 it was related that two men, Tah and Nai Ruan, whilst at a theatre
near the governor of Raheng’s residence, seeing the servants of one of
the new governor’s deputies loading a boat with goods, learned that the
deputy was going to Bangkok. They then proceeded to a rest-house in a
neighbouring village, and informed five others of their crew, one of
whom was named Chi. Whilst conversing on the matter, Chi remarked to
Tah: “When Pra Intakeeree [the former governor] was still in Taht
[Raheng] we were in the habit of committing robberies, selling the
plunder, and dividing the money thus acquired with Pra Intakeeree. If at
any time complaints were made against us, Pra Intakeeree assisted us,
and exonerated us from criminality. This ally of ours is now under
accusation at Bangkok; we have no protector; we cannot enter the town,
and must wander hither and thither in concealment: we must commit and
multiply daring robberies, and thus make it manifestly true that Pra
Intakeeree was not the patron of thieves. This will be the cause of his
return to Taht, to be again our patron and protector.” They accordingly
waylaid the boat, fired into it, wounded the deputy and one of his
children and killed a slave, and afterwards plundered the boat.
I heard many similar stories of the governors of the Siamese provinces.
For instance, one of the missionaries whom I met in Bangkok was loud in
his complaints about the evil doings of the governor of Petchaburi, a
missionary station to the west of the Gulf of Siam, who was a brother of
the Foreign Minister. He told me that when talking with the abbot of the
monastery at that place about the power of Christianity in inducing men
to lead virtuous lives, the abbot turned smilingly to him and begged him
to concentrate all his labours upon the governor, because that personage
was the perpetrator, by himself or by his crew, of most of the ill deeds
in the province.
Four petitions had been thrown into the Mission-house by the people, one
of which had been forwarded by my friend to the king, who despatched
three commissioners to inquire into the case, the head one being reputed
to be the honestest and most fearless man in Siam.
The commissioners stayed about six months, investigating various
charges, and convicted 70 criminals, 27 of whom were the jailers,
constables, and slaves of the governor. One of the men, named “Chat,”
had been convicted of murder by the governor, and should have been sent
to Bangkok for execution, but having bribed the governor with seven
catties (£56 sterling), he was allowed to roam about in chains, the
anklets of which he could remove at will, as they were made of lead
instead of iron. The complaints against the governor and Chat are summed
up in the following petition, which was translated for me by the
missionary:—
“_April 6, 1883._
“We, Siamese, Laos, and Peguans, have consulted together as to our
troubles. We believe the missionaries are wise, and are able to bring
happiness to us. The Chinese tax-collectors receive but small
salaries, therefore squeeze sums from the poor people. We complained
to the governor of this province, but the tax-collectors had already
bribed his Excellency, who therefore replied to his subjects: ‘You
must pay according to the demands of the tax-collectors
[monopolists].’ Thus they have great gain to send to China, and no
benefit occurs to our country. The missionaries have never been known
to impose upon any one, but desire all may be happy; teaching all to
be wise, and freely caring for the sick and needy. Because of this we
have had some happiness. We therefore beg you to help us now.
“At this time there is great trouble among the citizens of Petchaburi.
Thieves and robbers are shooting many men and women. Liberated
prisoners in chains, and some whose chains have been loosed, are
plundering houses. Some of them are slaves of the governor. One named
Chat, a notorious robber, freed from prison and now a slave of the
governor, is prowling about, daily committing highway robberies all
the way from the large bridge to Ta Ching, both from boats and on
shore, never ceasing.
“Morning and evening the slaves of the governor, having been
liberated, go to the temple Bandi It, the temple Chap Prie, the temple
Poue, the temple Chan, and the temple Yai, and plunder various things,
gold and jewels from the women, and as the women are bringing their
sugar to market they seize it. The owners of the sugar recognise the
thieves as slaves of the governor, and complained to the governor’s
head-wife, who brought out the parties not concerned. The sugar-women
said these are not the parties. Then the governor’s mother charged the
sugar-women with making false accusations, and threw them into prison,
compelling them to pay seven and a half dollars before liberating
them.
“Thieves have stolen our cattle. The governor’s mother received the
said cattle. They were found in her possession, and proved to be ours.
Notwithstanding this, we had to pay large sums to secure them. She is
also accustomed to take bribes from litigants. The case then enters
the court, and if not decided according to the bribe, she exercises
her authority and sees that it is so decided.
“Litigants in his Excellency’s courts, where cases are as yet pending,
are required to render his Excellency service; if they refuse, wages
equal to the service are exacted from them. His Excellency sends
prisoners to cut bamboos belonging to citizens in the province, and
sells or uses the same. They also go to bridges, halls, and temples to
steal boards and timber to be used as fuel at his Excellency’s place.
If you doubt this, we beg you to go and inquire at Temple Chang. The
slaves of the governor’s head-wife have stolen from this temple, and
even defiantly cursed the monks, and thrown stones against the
monasteries. Her slaves have also stolen cattle, and placed them at
her fields, Na Kok Sanook. The owners have traced their cattle to the
said fields, but dare not take them, and sought to redeem them and
failed. At these fields cattle are constantly butchered.
“Again, when the season arrives for flooding the rice-fields, the
head-wife shuts off the canals so as to secure the water to her
fields. Thus the farmers cannot secure water for their fields until
hers are all worked. She is also accustomed to send out officers and
draft farmers to till and harvest her fields. She has no mercy on the
farmers. Her cattle are permitted to go over the rice-fields adjoining
hers and graze upon the growing rice. On the owners complaining, she
told them to drive the cattle away, and on their doing so, had them
thrown into prison until they paid money to gain their liberty. Many
persons have been thus arrested, oppressed, and hindered from work.
“We can no longer send our children to herd our cattle. Cattle have
been forced from our children in as many as three or four different
places in a day. They even come and steal our cattle from under our
houses at night. These cattle-thieves are the governor’s slaves and
prisoners. Even a prisoner guilty of murder, plunder, and highway
robbery has, for a consideration, been released by the governor, and
is now plundering boats and houses along the markets. His name is
Chat; he is now a slave of the head-wife.
“The cattle-thieves have been caught by the owners and handed over to
the governor, their only punishment being four or five days’
imprisonment. The chains were then taken off, the thieves were posted
to deny the theft to the last, and the suit was decided according to
his Excellency’s interest. The informers have at such times been held
at the governor’s place, and been compelled to work night and day as
though they were prisoners.
“At times we have been compelled to watch the prisoners, the prisoners
having been previously advised to flee; this being done, the
complainants have been thrown into prison instead of the prisoners.
This being the case, who can dare to seize the governor’s slaves on
charge of theft? Whilst the owners were thus wrongfully in prison, the
stolen cattle were sold. The owners have then gone to the buyers and
proved their cattle, and begged to be allowed to redeem them, but the
buyers refused. The owners have wept over their loss, not knowing what
to do. Cattle-boats have taken away our cattle, one and two boat-loads
a day. How can we be happy? We beg to take you as our refuge. Give us
peace, we pray; our hearts are filled with sorrow. It is of no use to
cry to his Excellency!
“There is no one to catch the robbers and bring them to justice. Tow
Poo Chow (the governor’s son) sends out police at night. But these
police are simply litigants, who work all day for his Excellency. The
litigants bring the cases before Tow Poo Chow, but he is indifferent,
and uses the litigants for his own purposes. The day police are
instructed to arrest all persons carrying knives, and fine each
offender two and a half dollars. If we carry our tool knives (for
cutting bamboos, &c.) we are arrested. But the governor’s people are
allowed to carry knives, swords, and guns, and none dare arrest them.
“They go about oppressing the people. If we have meetings for
merit-making, weddings, and hair-cuttings, they attend to curse us,
and act like rowdies. These days are not like those of his Excellency
the Kromatah [the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the former governor of
the province]. It is beyond all endurance. We are but common people;
we cannot write well, and beg you to put this in good form. We of the
three languages [Siamese, Laos, and Peguans] have been greatly
oppressed. We beg to take you as our refuge. We beg you to hear our
words that we may have peace.”
In sending me the translation of the petition, the missionary stated
that “the petition was much longer than this, but with similar charges.
It contains the request that it may be placed before his Majesty.” And
he says: “I sent the enclosed document to his Majesty. The king replied
through his private secretary, expressing approval of my action, and
determination to send a commission to root out the matter. The
commissioners came, and were successful, finding things worse even than
the petition stated. They also captured about seventy of the most
notorious murderers and robbers. These are at present enjoying prison
fare in Bangkok; but, strange to say, the governor is free, or at least
virtually free. He is on trial, but at the same time in his place as
governor. I fully believe his Majesty desires the peace and prosperity
of his subjects; but much is concealed from H.M.’s eyes, and underlings
are greedy for filthy lucre, and at the same time inefficient.”
While conversing about the country, Mr Stevens told me that in making
railways in the plains of Siam, the occasional extraordinary rise of the
rivers, and the consequent inundation of the country, would necessitate
high embankments. At Raheng, in November 1878, he had the opportunity of
observing the highest flood that had happened during the lifetime of the
inhabitants. In the plains of Siam, from November to May, scarcely a
cloud obscures the sky, and no rain falls except in January, when the
Siamese look for a shower, which is necessary for certain kinds of fruit
which are then forming. From November to February the weather is
delightful, being the cool season; but the thermometer is seldom lower
than 64°. Even in March and April, the hottest months, the thermometer
in Bangkok seldom rises above 98°. From November to May the north-east
monsoon blows constantly; and from May to November is the wet season,
when the south-west monsoon occurs, and showers fall almost every day.
The rainfall in Bangkok during ten years’ observations was found to vary
between 39 and 73¼ inches, giving an average of less than 56 inches
against 182 inches on the parallel coast of Burmah.
Rain being an unusual occurrence in Siam in November, Mr Stevens noted
in his diary that on the 6th inst. it rained heavily throughout the day,
many logs of timber were drifting down the river, and that the water,
topping the banks, inundated the city. During the night the river rose
three feet, and rain continuing throughout the next day, the inundation
increased, and the elephants were removed to the high ground. On Friday
the 7th, the heavy rain continued, and there was a great rush of water
from the hills at the back of his house, carrying everything before it;
fruit-trees and the slab palisade, besides 40 of his teak-logs, being
washed away, and the floating grass drifted off the lake at the back of
his house; and the house, although built on posts well rooted in the
ground, was in great danger. In the evening he removed what he could
into boats, and left for the night. Several of the villages in the
neighbourhood were swept away, the houses floating down the river with
the people in them. There had never been such a rise since Raheng was
founded.
Some of the governor’s buildings were destroyed; rafts of timber were
drifting past from Lakon; and the inhabitants of Raheng and the
neighbouring villages all took refuge in their boats. The river rose two
feet above the floor of his house, or 8½ feet above the river-bank.
Several rafts broke up below the city, and 140 houses were washed away.
The next morning was fine, and the people returned to their houses, as
the water was falling rapidly. The flood rose seven feet in twenty
hours, and on its fall left a creek three feet deep on each side of his
house. There was a great loss of property. Rice was not to be had, and
many of the people found themselves starving on the Monday. The flood
continued right down to Bangkok, and rose 10½ feet on the fields a
gunshot distance to the west of the river at Kamphang Pet, 4½ feet on
the fields to the east, and the same height under the governor’s house
at that place.
In the ‘Siam Repository’ for July 1873, there is a description of the
great inundation which occurred in 1831, which, like the flood described
by Mr Stevens, was due to heavy rainfall in the north. The flood lay
from three-quarters of a fathom to one and a half fathom on the
rice-fields of the northern provinces, varying with the height of the
land. Plowing southwards, it swamped the low lands in the neighbourhood
of Ayuthia, the former capital of Siam, to the varying depths of one and
three fathoms, and the rice-fields and orchards of Bangkok to from
three-quarters to one and a quarter fathom.
Within Bangkok the surface of the ground was covered to the depths of
half and three-quarters of a fathom; and noblemen, great and small,
whose duties required them to visit the king, paddled their boats to the
doors of the inner palace buildings. Between Bangkok and Ayuthia, as the
flood rose above the floors, which are raised several feet from the
ground, the people elevated a temporary floor, and made egress and
ingress through the windows. Some were obliged to erect the floor upon
the roof-beams of their houses, and to enter and leave by the
gable-ends. The great plains looked like a sea; and one night during a
storm the drifting masses of floating plants, gathering against some
houses, swept them away, many of the sleeping occupants perishing.
Boats from Raheng to Bangkok take from 6 to 8 days in the rains, and
from 12 to 15 days in the dry season. Returning from Bangkok, boats take
20 days in the rains, and from 30 to 35 days in the dry season. They are
longer proceeding up-stream in the dry season than in the rains, owing
to the shallowness of the stream, and the numerous sandbanks in its bed.