The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-07-31

tahate Of Johore, the only independent
Malay state. II history does not fall
to repeat itself Johore may one day
become one Of the Federated Malay
States, and the Sultan hgurehead
with a much reduced income. Wnether
the annexation will take place In the
near future depends to q great extent
upon the personal conduct OF the pres
emit occupant Of the throne OF IGNORE,
who came into public notice sometime
ago when he scattered the revenues OF
his country about European capitals
and made q decided reputation As
good fellow"
Al present Sultan Ibrahim 10 beins
comparatively good and somewnat
lonesome, no doubt. upon his own SOIL
and his crown IS temporarily safe.
However. inyidious comparisons be-
tween the progress of Johore and the
Federated States are being made py
British administrators and writer's. ana
the way Is paved for the taking over OF
the country, for its own good, II tne
Sultan does not take advantage OF MS
undeniably great opportunity TO devei-
op Johore and improse the condiaon OF
his subjects.
Johore 10 the only State In the Pen
insula which boasts q coast line upon
three Of It's four sides. It Is separated
from Singapore by me straits Of Jo-
hore, about Q half mile wide, ana con-
nected by q ferry that meets the trains
of the Singapore railway at the termi-
nus of the line. The capital city, Jo-
hore Bharu, In q neat little town fac
ing the strait. The chief building Is
the Sultan's palace, which presents the
exterior appearance OF commodious
but cheaply built country house. IN
its interior II reflects the love OF an
Ea stern King for splendid decoration
tempered by the good taste Of a man
educated In Europe and capable OF dis
crimination between the impressive ana
the tawdry.
sultan Ibraf,im IL not fond OF living
in his palace, and when he IL In Johore
he prefers his country seat two miles
from his capital. The palace was hos
pitably open to inspection until il-
bred tourists Incurred the displeasure
Of His Hishness by cutting slivers
from his gildsd throne with their jack
knives to take home az souvenirs.
Nowadays q polite but opsn-eyed at
tendant accompanies q visitor through
the cioistered GOODNESS of the closed
palace and sees to II that the tourist
does not remove anything not tightly
nailed down. The throne OF His High
ness and that Of his sultana sit side ot
side In an unfurniBhed room with their
phckb 10 INC "eAi a. ~ ~s~
vandal.
Johore Bharu IL "wide open town"
In all that this expressive American
term implies. 1t 10 more candidly wide
open than most Municipalities. In
good plain English ana In letters sew
eral inches high. the sign Gambling
House" directs the devotee OF chance
to the places where he may lose his
money at Fan Tan. roulette and other
games And money is lost In the 10.
hore gambling houses with an ease ana
resuia rity somewhat mystifying to the
newly arrived. All along the streets
there are signs, equally an candid as
that at the fan tan and roulette par
lora" inviting the lover OF the opium
pipe to tarry q while and dream
These and other "conveniences" make
the capital of Johore a favorite resort
for persons from the comparatively
cody city of Singapore where. upon
the Sabbath, the lid Is more or less
0rmiy screwed down by the church CO.
ing British. Whether the conveniences
of Johore, and Its proximity to Singa-
pore, will tend e. create sentiment
against It's continued independence is
a question upon which loyal subjects OF
Great Britain divide according to their
tastes and their opinions as reformers
There are not few who say that as q
safety valve for the release OF SINFUL
ness that would otherwise be pent up
in SINGAPORE the Mohammedan capital
OF His Highness Ibrahim the Tolerant
has its uses. Therefore its wickedness
may be the means of safeguarding Its
political integrity.
The Sultan is an up-to-date prince.
He drives q high power French racing
car, and has q love of sports equal
to that Of any of his British acquaint-
ances. He Is a monogamist despite the
fact that his religion allows him to
contract plural marriages. He wears
European clothes and lives like
wealthy gentleman Of the Occident. He
is especially fond Of racing and OF
backing his Judgment at the track.
but he has settled down" considerably
under the wise advice OF persons VINO
have pointed out the dangers that lie
In sowing oats while occupying the
itself, and which is desirable az tin
mine and rubber plantation.
One evidence Of the willingness OF
the Sultan of Johore to encourage the
Industrial development Of his country
lies in the feet that he Is permitting
the Federated Malay States to build
a railroad through his dominions. He
has also undertaken rubber growing
upon a large scale, and may become
rubber king as well as Sultan. II
he should now turn his attention to
road building and construct feeders for
the railroad, Johore might move along
in the procession with the other Malay
states.
At present the revenues of Johore
are derived chiefly from the Chinese
who have settled there, and go mostly
into the pockets of the Sultan. The
country has never been accurately sur
veyed and its actual area and popula-
ton are unknown, but roughly speak
ing 1t is about as large as three or
four counties of average size in the
Middle West. 1t Is sparsely populated
and most of 1t Is Jungle, yet the Sui
tan's official income Is more than twice
the salary of the President OF the
United States. As there are no roads
in Johore, save in the vicinity Of the
principal city. the few farms upon
which the Chinese produce pepper,
gambir, and other crops are situated
on the coast or along the rivers so that
transportation to market Is possible.
Tracts that would readily be settled II
there were roads are lying idle be-
meath the primeval jungle.
Johore maintains treaty relations
with the British Government and a
the country A few European officers
and a number OF Malays assist in the
OF the Sultan's govern
mental affairs. but there is little sys-
tenn in the routine work OF the Gov
eminent, and no vigorous effort to i'm
prove the country has been made. In
the Federated States. where native
Sultans still sit upon their thrones,
hut have little to do with the conduct