56 BRITISH BORNEO. 
Austrian Service, who subsequently lost his life while explor- 
ing in the interior, and by balancing one tribe against 
another, managed to retain his position without com- 
ing to blows, and, on his relinquishing the service a few 
months afterwards, the arduous task of representing the Gov- 
ernment without the command of any force to back up his au- 
thority developed on Mr. WitTI. In the case of the Pappar 
River, the former Chief, Datu BAHAR, declined to relinquish his 
position, and assumed a very defiant attitude. I was at that 
time in the Labuan service, and I remember proceeding to 
Pappar in an English man- of-war, in consequence of the dis- 
quieting rumours which had reached us, and finding the Resi- 
dent, Mr. A. H. EVERETT, on one side of the small river with 
his house strongly blockaded and guns mounted in all availa- 
ble positions, and the Datu on the other side of the stream, 
immediately opposite to him, similarly armed to the teeth. 
But not a shot was fired, and Datu BAHAR is nowa peaceable 
subject of the Company. 
The most difficult problem, however, which these officers 
had to solve was that of keeping order, or trying to do so, 
amongst a lawless people, with whom for years past might had 
been right, and who considered kidnapping and cattle- lifting 
the occupations of honourable and high spirited gentlemen. 
That they effected what they did, that they kept the new 
flag flying and prepared the way for the Government of the 
Company, reflects the highest credit upon their pluck and 
diplomatic ingenuity, for they had neither police nor steam 
launches, nor the prestige which would have attached to them 
had they been representatives of the British Government, 
and under the well known British flag. They commenced 
their work with none of the éc/a¢t which surrounded Sir JAMES 
BROOKE in Sarawak, where he found the people in successful 
rebellion against the Sultan of Brunai, and was himseif recog- 
nised as an agent of the British Government, so powerful 
that he could get the Queen’s ships to attack the head hunt- 
ing pirates, killing such numbers of them that, as I have said, 
the Head money claimed and awarded by the British Govern- 
ment reached the sum of £20,000. On the other hand, it is 
but fair to add that the fame of Sir JAMES’ exploits and the 
