aton:

"What he says is true".

Nothing availed to get other words than these out of the poor wretches'
mouths, nor the magistrate's clever cross-questioning, nor my entreaties
to tell the whole truth. I re-called to their memory the pitiful state
they had been in when they ran into my house, crying and invoking
justice. It was all in vain; but fortunately for them the legal officer
himself was convinced that the Chinese--who stood by with a sarcastic
smile upon his lips--was guilty, and closed the process by condemning
him to six months' imprisonment.

[Illustration: A forest shooting-box.

_p._ 54.]

I made up my mind to go to the bottom of the affair if only to discover
why the Sakais, by nature so far removed from falsehood, had denied the
truth.

My investigations proved that the Chinese had threatened to revenge
himself by utterly destroying the whole family if they made any
complaint about his way of proceeding, and had also terrified them by
stories of the inhuman tortures to which they would be subjected by the
British magistrate if they spoke against him.

The confession came too late because, if they had spoken in time the
scoundrel would have had a much heavier sentence.

From this simple episode one can understand what an amount of energy,
boldness, and resolution the English Authorities need in order to
liberate the poor Sakais from the moral tyranny that still oppresses
them. But the British Government is quite equal to the task it has
undertaken, and there is no reason to doubt that before long it will
have reduced to impotency these dregs of Society who creep in amongst
the Sakai tribes, that are far removed from civilization and justice,
there to work out their wicked schemes and practise their crafty wiles.

I have written the word "dregs" on purpose, as of course peoples in a
collective sense cannot be held responsible for the bad-doings of a
small number of their countrymen, and I wish it here to be distinctly
understood that when I speak of the villainous acts and thievish
propensities of these latter (who being too well-known and despised in
their own place, to be able to succeed in their base tricks go elsewhere
in search of victims) I do not mean to offend, or cast a slight upon
Malays, Chinese, or Indians in general.

On the contrary, I have the highest esteem and respect for all three,
especially those who faithfully follow the ways of Progress, and have
certain virtues peculiarly