The St. Johns herald., 1900-12-29
THE BRITISH RULE.
Have a Knack of Getting Into
 Power in Other Lands.
Notable Instances of Such Rsigns in semisavage COuntries-DsspOtie
 Control Exercised by Self Made Kings.


 peoples on her own accoEnt, but Eng
 lishmen seem to have the faculty of
 ingratiating themselves with still
 other nations and practically running
 them. The most conspicuous of these
 Britons just now is Sir Robert Hart,
 who controls the customs service of
 China. His name and the story of
 his rise and achievements have been
 in the newspapers so much recently
 that it is all familiar to the public,
 says the New York Press. In his po-
 sition Sir Robert has nothing to do
 with England, yet he has contrived
 to do good turn to his native land
 many times. One time when Russia
 wanted to advance China a loan and
 thus get China in her power, Sir Rob-
 ert checkmated the game of Adam
 zad, the Bear That Walks Life Man"
 Corea. the peninsular country that juts out of China, has been managed for years by McLeavy Brown. who holds immense power in the land. He is private Briton, like Sir Robert Hart, and has the customs, finances, government and practically the na- tion in his hands. He rescued the country from bankruptcy, showed the king how to reform the army, swept away official swindlers and leeches and made happy and prosperous nation of country that had been in bad state.
 For case of despotic power wielded by Briton, there is an instance near CT home. John Finlayson, who died a short time ago, ruled a large part of Morocco and was by a long way the most useful ruler the country ever had. He was a Scotchman, and had a knowledge of the Moors and the Arabic language that was unequaled by any man who ever lived-except, perhaps, the traveller Burton.
 He was originally a mining expert, and he opened and worked some tin mines in the back country for the benefit of the sultan. He became a close friend of the monarch, who made hiin practically ruling viceroy, who did the work and took the credit, leav- ing the sultan to amuse himself with out the anxiety of governing.
 Finlayson remodeled the army, re- formed the revenues, and soon Mo1 rocco began to flourish. He did what no sultan had ever been able to doL kept the wild tribes of the interior in something approaching order Piracy and robbery he weeded out to large extent, but it was impossi- ble to stop them altogether. He paid off the national debt of S10,OOO.OO and increased the nations revenues from $75O,OOO to $2 ,5O0, ,OOO.
 He lived the life of an Arab chief, but kept to the Christian religion. He was obliged, however, to conform to the ceremonies of Mohammedanism. for he was too tactful to excite preju- dice. The nation at large really thought him an Arab by birth. He was always travelling about the coun- try with his suite, turning up unex- He held the chief post of justice, and was feared and esteemed as no native subject ever was. When some of his unruly subjects raided Spanish territory and nearly caused a war. he pulled his adopted nation through the fix and paid a small in demnity. Once every year he visited his native town of Aberdeen for a week. Morocco misses him sorely, now that he is gone, and the coun- try's prosperity is not what it was He died of fever caught in the Tetuan Swamps, and his funeral was honored even more than a sultan's. Morocco lid not know he was the son of a Scotch tailor, but so he was, and a great man into the bargain. He re- nained subject of Victoria up to lis death.
 Kipling's famous story, "The Man Who Would Be King" is founded on | act. An ex-civil servant, Cowper, who | lad come to grief in his profession, obtained the powers of monarch in : zafristan. This is wild and daK- yerous country at the back of Az chanistan, north of India, and, as a 'ule, it is certain death for any Flu 'opean who is found there. The Iafris are one of the cruelest and most turbulent races on earth. Yet his man. who went there without fol- overs or money, was actually in- tailed as king for a shor. time. He vas master of the Kafri language and manners. and managed tosget himself ccepted as sort of godL
 While he was king he did the thing thoroughly and governed we'll; also himself with money, orses and servants. His reign, which 7as popular while it lasted, gained for i'm the reverence of the people, for hey believed him to be a genuine city, and worshiped at a temple he ad erected to himself He estab- shed the beginning of great horse rade with Afghanistan, which has ourished ever since. and the coun- ry certainly prospered under his rule. Ie held the throne only year, for rival chief aroused faction against i'm and had him murdered
 Eof a Wife Raa1a.