Journal of the Straits Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society/Volume 14/Jelebu
JELEBU.
The following Notes, regarding the history of the constitution of Jelebu have been compiled from information gleaned from the headmen of the State.[1]
The four following countries—(1) Jelebu, (2) Sungei Ujong, (3) Rembau, and (4) Johol—were in former days governed by Penghulus subject to the suzerainty of Johor.
On one occasion the Raja of Johor was guilty of an act of gross oppression towards the Penghulu of Rembau entitled Orang Kaya Kĕchil. The Raja of Johor wished to obtain in marriage this Penghulu's daughter, but the Penghulu refused and married her to another. The Raja's auger was roused at this, and the Penghulu, hearing of his indignation sent his own son Siâmat (sic) to explain matters to the Raja and to endeavour to appease his wrath.
The Raja, however, would not listen to Siâmat, but ordered him to be put to death.
After this the Penghulus of the four States were afraid to go to the Court of the Raja, owing to this unjust act.
After some time, however, the headman of Jelebu took courage to appear before him. Now this headman's name was Munyong Salih, and his title was Orang Kaya of Sungci Lumut. The name of Jelebu was as yet unknown: and it was not until some time later that the country was so called after a man of that name who was drowned in the river (Triang). This headman of Jelebu, then, went to the Court of the Raja of Johor, who presented him with a chop bearing the following inscription :–
- "The Sultan Ma‘aḍam Shah confers upon the Mandelika Mantri supreme authority to be the Sultan of Jelebu for ever."
And this is the form of words that has been used from generation to generation by the Penghulus who have governed the country of Jelebu.
The Raja of Johor further issued instructions to the Penghulu, that from that time forth the Penghulus of Jelebu and of the other three States were not to bring their complaints before Johor.
Thereupon the four Penghulus made an arrangement to create a Raja of their own, and chose a man of the royal blood of Menangkaban, who on his election abode in the country of Sri Menanti.
The place where the election of this Raja occurred was Pětâjeh, and hence arises the old Malay saying: "The source of royal power is Pětâjeh; the place where it dwells is Sri Menanti." A Yam Tuan Muda in Rembau, and a Yam Tuan Besar in Sri Menanti, such was the (new) order of things, and the four Penghulus no longer took their complaints to Johor, but to Sri Menanti, and had thus a Menangkabau man as their ruler.
At that time there was no Yam Tuan in Jelebu, but the Penghulu held sway in that country, and this state of things continued for a long time.
At length the Yam Tuan of Sri Menanti, who had a number of sons, sent one of them to Jelebu, merely to take up his abode there and to till the ground. His conduct was long watched by all the officers of Jelebu, and they saw that it was very good. His behaviour towards the people was good, and he seemed to be a man capable of supporting and sustaining the country. He was also a man of considerable mental ability, and his personal character was beyond reproach.
Accordingly all the officers met together and notified to the Penghulu their intention[2] of making the Yam Tuan's (Sri Menanti) son their supreme ruler.
He was accordingly elected with the title of Yam Tuan of Jelebu, with the duties of protector of the inhabitants of that country. He did not, however, receive any jurisdiction in the country, and the Penghulu and the officers contributed to his support, each man as much as he could afford.
The district within which the Yam Tuan's authority extended was from Bandar Berangan up to Sungei Melentang, that is to say, to Batu Gominting (in other words, a portion of what is now Klawang).
Such was the limit of his private and direct rule from that time down to the time of his descendant at the present day.
And should he violate this understanding or the customs of the country he may be deposed by his officers.
"If a king be just he is reverenced if unjust checked."[3]
Such was the order of things in former times, and the boundary of Jelebu with Pahang is the place called Meranti Sembilan,[4] while the boundary with Sungei Ujong is Bukit Tangga.
Now Klawang is said to belong to Sungei Ujong for the following reasons.
Some time ago a son of the Datu Penghulu of Jelebu violated a daughter of the Penghulu of Klambu, and was compelled to marry her. Sufficient money to pay the fine exacted was not forthcoming, and so in place of a money payment the Penghulu of Jelebu gave Klawang (to Sungei Ujong), that is to say, so much of it as is on the right as one goes up stream to Sungei Ujong and down stream so far as Lubok Kerbau Balir. For any measure that the Yam Tuan wishes to take in the district thus defined, he must first obtain the sanction of the Government of Sungei Ujong.
Such is the account of the origin of the present Government which obtains in Jelebu, taken from the lips of those who are most likely to be informed on the subject and who are unanimous in their story.
I may append a short account of the constitution of Jelebu as I found it when I visited it about the middle of the present year (1881) and in what follows, for the purposes of simplicity, I venture to leave out of consideration the recent arrangements made with the rulers of Jelebu.
There is still a Yam Tuan of Jelebu[5] although practically he may be regarded as a cipher. He arrogated to himself powers of interference in the internal government of the country, which the Penghulu and the Waris considered to be a violation of the conditions under which the office of Yam Tuan was established, and he was ordered by them in 1880 to leave Jelebu and reside in Sri Menanti. A composition was, however, effected in his behalf, and he now resides in Klawang near the Jelebu frontier. Theoretically he still continues to be the Protector of the people, but I have not learnt that any point has been referred to him since his removal from the country, except in the case of an informal grant of land recently made to an European company in Jelebu, and again in the case of the Pahang boundary question, when he expressed his opinion to the Government at my request.
The Penghulu, therefore, Syed Ali bin Zin, is the ruler of the country, for all practical purposes. I may say the undisputed ruler, as the Yam Tuan signed a bond in January of the present year undertaking not again to interfere in the government of the State.
The Penghulu is assisted in the conduct of affairs by nine officers, or perhaps it would be more correct to describe his jurisdiction as limited by them. They are entitled Lembagas, of whom there are five, and Waris, who are four in number. The Lembagas have each a separate title :—
- —Datu Mantri.
- —Datu Ngiang.
- —Datu Chinchang.
- —Datu Sendara.
- —Datu Lela Angsa.
These officers are all entitled to a vote in every act of State, and any act done without their concurrence is illegal. At the State Council, however, they may, in case of illness and so on, be represented by authenticated Wakils. The entire land of Jelebu is considered to be vested in them and the Waris, but under no circumstances can a Lembaga rise to the office of Penghulu.
The Waris are entitled as follows:—
- —Raja Balang.
- —Maharaja Indah.
- —Raja Penghulu.
- —Datu Umbei.
They also have a vote in the State Council, and the Penghulu is elected from their body with two reservations.
The Datu Umbei cannot become Penghulu, nor can the Raja Penghulu. A member of the family of the latter officer may, however, become a candidate for election.
The succession would appear to follow a fixed rule, viz., that on the death of a Penghulu who has been of the family of a Raja Penghulu, the Raja Balang of the day is elected. At his death the Maharaja Indah of the day succeeds, and is again succeeded as Penghulu by a member of the family of the Raja Penghulu.
This rule is theoretically absolute, but has often been broken through, and in all cases the appointment must be ratified by the unanimous vote of the Lembagas.
The Datu Mantri is the head of the Lembagas, with the full title of "Datu Mantri Shah Memangku Alam." The full title of the Datu Umbei (father of the Waris) is "Datu Umbei Pangkal Maharaja Lela."
According to old custom, the Datu Lela Angsa was appointed by the Penghulu to protect the Yam Tuan, and the Penghulu when he wished to obtain an audience of the Yam Tuan applied to do so to the Datu Mantri, who laid the request before the Datu Lela Angsa.
The Yam Tuan has, however, no followers now, with the exception of an ex-Maharaja Indah, who was deposed for supporting him in acts of oppression, and who resides with him in Klawang. Similarly in former days the Yam Tuan had four officers attached to his household, who now exist no longer. Their titles were :—
- —Bruang Sati who was chosen by the Datu Sendara.
- —Penglima Prang, chosen by the... Datu Mantri.
- —Penglima Mamat, chosen by the... Datu Chinchang.
- —Penglima Prang No. 2, chosen by the... Datu Ngiang.
The Lembagas had thus a direct control over the internal affairs of the Yam Tuan's household, but, as I have said, all this is at an end now.
The Penghulu has four officers attached to his person, who are in like manner appointed and removed by the Waris.
- —Penglima Garang is chosen by the Datu Mantri,
- —Penglima Hitam, chosen by the... Datu Ngiang.
- —Penglima Sutan No. 1, chosen by the... Datu Chinchang.
- —Penglima Sutan No. 2, chosen by the... Datu Sendara.
The Penghulu, though in theory above control, is in reality entirely under the direction of the Lembagas and Waris, who, if unanimous, can obtain any constitutional change in the country they may desire by observing the following routine.
If a measure is originated at the unanimous desire of the Lembagas, it is submitted by them to the Waris, and vice versa. Should it obtain the concurrence of the party which is not its originator, it is submitted in due form to the Penghulu, who has the power of veto, but who in practice accepts what is laid before him with but little discussion. After this step has been taken, the measure (until recently) is transmitted to the Yam Tuan for final ratification, and when this has been obtained, the measure becomes law, binding upon the inhabitants of the country generally.
This process may appear to be rather too involved to work without friction in a Malay State, but there can be no doubt but that it contains elements of safety for the ryot from its very complexity.
The ex-Raja Balang left Jelebu and has reappeared with the Pahang envoy supporting his theory that Jelebu has always been Pahang territory, and that Jelebu as a separate State is non-existent.[6]
Whatever may be the real status of Jelebu, the present condition of the country is truly deplorable. It bears marks of having been, at no very distant period, fairly prosperous and sufficiently peopled, but now, speaking generally, the whole land is waste.
I passed the other day through mile after mile of deserted kampongs with fine padi land all round in abundance and with fruit-trees still in bearing.
The only sign of work or prosperity I came across was at some tin mines at Jělûndong, which have been worked on a small scale for 17 years by a Sungei Ujong Chinaman.
The tin deposit at this spot is the richest I have seen, being quite 100 per cent. better than in any mine at present working in Sungei Ujong, but even with this natural advantage the miner's struggle for existence is a very hard one. He is dependent for every mouthful of food upon Pahang or Sungei Ujong, and rice delivered at the mines is costly food indeed. When I was there, a dollar purchased only 2 3/4 gantangs of rice, as against 7 gantangs in Sungei Ujong, and 10 gantangs at Kuala Triang.
An arrangement has been entered into by which a bridle-track will be constructed from Pantei in Sungei Ujong to these mines early in the coming year, and other roads will be made later on. A shop in connection with the mines will be opened next year, so that I hope that they may progress as they ought to do.
With regard to the country generally, I see nothing in the way of its prosperity but the absence of population, and people are sure to come in when the proposed roads have become an established fact.
P. S.—At the present tine (September, 1885) the road alluded to above has been completed, and a Collector (Mr. E P. Gueritz) has been appointed, who took up his duties in June last. I understand that the old residents are gradually returning to the country, and that there is every prospect of an early development of the mineral resources of the State.
The Pahang boundary has been definitely fixed at Sungei Dua on the Triang, and the Collector's quarters, together with a Custom House, Court, and Police Station, have been erected at Kuâla Klawang.
- ↑ The first division of this paper is, I need hardly point out, a literal translation of the story verbally communicated to me by Malays.—H. A. O'B.
- ↑ This account of the attitude of the Waris and Lembagas in these early times is noteworthy as bearing upon the present constitution of the country.
- ↑ The headmen hold that the present Yam Tuan has violated the constitution, and he now resides in Klawang, with an allowance from the British Government contingent upon his non-interference in the government of Jelebu.
- ↑ This appears to have been the old Jakun boundary. It is low down on the Triang river, is decidedly Pahang in its tendencies, and does not acknowedge the Penghulu.
- ↑ Since deceased—13th December, 1884.—Ed.
- ↑ See the postscript.