172 THE INDEPENDENT NATIVE STATES 



difference, Eaja Mahdi, however, refused to acknowledge Tunku 

 Dia Udin's right to interfere, and thus Tunku Dia Udin deter- 

 mined to bring him to reason, and invited the sons of Eaja Dol vh 

 to assist, which they did, and Mahdi was driven from Klang, which 

 was taken and has ever since been occupied by Tunku Dia Udin:* 



But the war, if so it may be called, was carried into Selaugor 

 and Bernam, Eaja Mahdi obtaining at different times the assist- 

 ance of Eaja It am of Bernam, Syed Mashoe, a Selangor man of 

 Arab extraction, Eaja Asul, a Mandeling of Sumatra and a rene- 

 gade to Tunku Dia. Udin, — and chiefest of all Eaja Maiimud, a 

 son of one Eaja Berkat, a man who ranked second in Sclangor ; 

 whilst the sons of the Sultan, though they appear to have taken 

 no active part against Tunku Dia Udin, are believed to have 

 sympathised with, if not assisted, Mahdi and his party. 



It may be wondered how it was that during all these years, 

 from 1867 to 1873, the Sultan did nothing personally to put an 

 end to these disturbances which were depopulating his country 

 and driving out all honest men, indeed that he rather seemed 

 to encourage the strife. 



To those intimately acquainted with the Sultan and with these 

 turbulent Rajas there seems to be an easy explanation of his con- 

 duct. In the first place his character is eminently of the laissez 

 /aire type ; he had sympathies on both sides, on one his son-in-law 

 and his cousin's son, and on the other several men distantly related 

 to him, and, perhaps in a degree, his own sons. But the real reason 

 of his apparent indifference was his fear of Mahdi, and the 

 equally desperate characters associated with him, should he by 

 violent measures (and none other would have availed) attempt to 

 punish their contempt for the authority of, and personal hatred 

 to, his Viceroy. 



And those best acquainted with the facts aver that he had 

 cause for fear, that it was even at one time proposed to murder 

 the Sultan, get rid of 'his Viceroy, and parcel out the country 

 amongst these rebellious Eajas. 



* Tunku Dia Udin has now returned to Kedab, where he is joint- Regent 

 with his brother Tunku Yakub. (1880.) 



