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SIRI PAKEJAN MAKLUMAT BANGUNANBERSEJARAH :

CARCOSA SERINEGARA

SAHAGIAN PAKAR MAKLUMATPERPUSTAKAAN NEGARA MALAYSIA

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Carcosa Seri Negara offersEuropean gourmet foodthat is on par with thoseat any five-star restaurantin KL in elegant andsophisticated surroundings.

traditional French cuisine.Colin is an award -winning

chef who learnt his art insome of the best restaurantsin France.

Talking with him makesone aware of how hphas fine tuned Frenchcuisine to suit local tastes.~llIch of French hau tecuisine. especial ly from theBurgundy region, tendsto use a IOl of butter andcream. which in a tropicalclimate can make the food alillie heavv,

Colin reduces the amountof butter and cream inhis dishes. and tries whereeve r possible tu use lighteringred ients such as olive oil.

He also favours disheswhich are lighter. mureMedi terra nean or southe rnFrench in style. Having alsoworked in Saudi Arabia rurfour vears as an executivechef in charge of pre paringfine rood for royal banquets.he has mastered the art of

Historical senseof splendour

luxurv asserts itself. All themateria ls and furnishingshave been carefull v selected.and the colours and stylesper fectly matched.

And what of therestaurant and food? I thinkone shou ld refe r to it as thedining room rathe r than th..res taur an t. It gives one afeeling of walking into thedining room of a stalelymansion rather than that ofa hotel.

The room oozes a sense ofhushed sophistication . andsets the 10l1r for fine dining.

However as manyconnoisseurs of fine foodhave discovered, an elegantdining room clopsnotguarantee good cuisi ne.A hrief conversatio n withthe chef leads one to theconclusion that Carcosa'sdining room is indeed aplace for fine dining.

French chef Laurent Colinpresides OH'r a kitchen thatcreates the most beautiful

GRAND:Careosa SeriNegara wasoriginallybuilt in1904as theresidence ofthe Britishrepresentativeto the MalayStates.

the years. depend ing unthe compa nies th at havemanaged it.

Current lv under tilPmanagement or GIIMHotels, Carcosa Seri Negaraappears to haH' goodfortune smiling upon itagain.

It has been refurbishedand renovated and therestaura nt and rooms havenever luoked more elegant.

It w as revealed to methat the es ta blishme nt isnow considered to hI' aflop. restaurant with a hotelattac hed to it, rathe r than ahotel which happens to havea fine restaurant.

As une enters the lobby.the feeling of traditional

Carcosa Seri Negara is now considered to be a finerestaurant with a hotel attached, rather than a hotelwith a fi ne restaurant, writes JAMES HIP KI SS.

REFINED ELEGANCE: The interiors as defined byJaya Ibrahim, renowned design maven

~.MOST anyone with

an inter est in fineining and history will

be familiar with CarcosaScri Ncgara in KualaLumpur.

Originally buill in 1'104 asthe residence or the Britishrepresentative to the MalayStates the building. buth interms of its location andarchitecture, has a senseof presence and gra ndeurwith its large lofty ceilingrooms and tall windowsoverlooking the well

... manicured gardens outs ide.In more recent years it

has become a boutiquehotel. with a fine restaurant.However its fortunes han'ebbed and flowed o'er

NEW STRAITS TIMES SATURDAY,JULY 21 , 2007

+

STREETS ., 07

producing European disheswith an authentic flavour,but without the use of anvpork products. .

Not an easy tas k as thekitchen of Carcosa SeriNegara is certified halal,

The menu that Colinproduces has two sides to it.

There is a small a lacarte menu, which changesinfrequen tly an d is set todisappear completely afterAugust.

Then there are setmenus which chang e ona weekly basis accordingto the availability of fres hingredients, much of whichare imported weekly fromFra nce and other part s ofEurope.

The weekly lunchtimemenu is available as a twocourse at RM80 or a threecourse at RMIIO.

Other offerings include thesix-course Decouvert menuat RM245 and the eight- tolO-course Degustati on menuat R.\1295.

There is a carle desvins car efully selected tocomplement the food, andpriced between RM160 andRM2,500 per bottle.

As a dish is placed infront of one, Laurent 's visualartistry is immediatelyapparent.

Both the chour braise a .la queue de boeuf.. sauce ',;:,... ,."au Porto et romarm, ;" : '. ,1\puree de topinamb our -au 'f ois gras (oxta il "T app edin cabbage leaf andaccompanied by sauce tha tcan only be described asluxuriously decad ent ) andthe grosses crevett es a latap enade de truffe noire.puree de pomme de terrea la ciboulette (jumboshr imps with a hlack truffletap enad e on a bed of potat opuree with chives) lookedlike works of art.

The prawns were veryfresh. succulent an d notovercooked as is oftenthe case. and the blacktruffle ta penade, whichcomplemented themperfectly, was a delight.

I shall not forget theasparagus soup either. Madefrom fresh white as paragusand chervil coulis, it againserved to emphasise theculinary skills of the chef,with its velvety textur e andcreamy subtl e flavour.

Carcosa Seri Negara offers. European gourm et food that

is on par with those at anyfive-star restaurant in KLin elegant and sophisticatedsurroundings.

For details, call 03-2295­0888 .

~______-~/ HEAVENLY: Jumbo_ _ __ . shrimps with

- - truffle tapenade.

MASTER OF FRENCH CUISINE: Colin is an award-winningchef,

II,I

:1II

Ir:IIII.r;r

SUMBERJURNAL

Malaysian Immigra tionby Khoo Kay Kim

A Dominion of Southeast Asiaby D. S. Ranjit Singh

Imported 1 chnologyby Goh Chor Boon

The Malaysia Plan and Bruneiby Mohamad Yusop

Malay Politics & Birch's Murderby Cheah Boon Kheng

Melaka Malays in Makassarby W:'Cumrnings

Governors' Housesby J . M. Gullick

BOOK REVIEWS

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES

Volume LXXI Part 11998

KDN PP 1841/ 3/98 MITA CP) No 352/03 /98 -ISSN 0128-5483Published in June 1998

Kuala LumpurWhen Kuala Lumpur became the administrative capital of Selangor in 1880, the mostsenior official present was the Resident, for whom the Klang Residency (built 1877) wasre-erected:H As with the other 'Protected states' , when the governor made a visit hestayed at the Residency . The situation changed however in 1896, when the creation of apost of Resident-General FMS (later Chief Secretary) interposed an official who, thoughnot governor, required a large official residence. Swettenham, the first holder (1896-99)of the post was not a man to hide his light under a bushel!. The construction of the newhouse took time, and meanwhile, for a year or two while the new house was being built,Swettenham, who was often away, had the use of a house which was later retrospectivelyknown as 'Old Carcosa ' .43

The site of the R-G 's new house was on high ground overlooking the LakeGardens. Some twenty four acres of sloping land was excised from the Lake Gardens tobecome the private grounds of the new o fficial mansion. Four acres were developed asgardens and the remainder became 'open park land where sambhur deer could be seenamidst the bushes.' The ground floor of the interior was planned to accommodate majorsocial gatherings. There were 'large and open reception rooms, running one off the other'and so capable of use for a single large function . Upstairs there were seven main

41 SSD 18 February 1889 on the south wing evoked a CO minute referring to the earlier expenditure on thenorth wing. The repairs o f 1949 app ear to have come close to complete rebuilding, and only a few pillars

now remain of the 19th century house. The name ' Be l Retiro' seems to have come into more general useafter the major works of the 1890 's . E.g . see A Wright and H A Cartwright , Twentieth Century ImpressionsofBritish Malaya. Lond on. Llo yds Publi shing, 1908, p.252 ( 'a Government house called "Bel Retiro'") and

Guillernard quoted at Note 21.42 J M Gullick , 'The Growth of Kuala Lumpur and of the Malay Community in Selangor before 1880,'

JMBRAS 63(1), 1990, pp.27-28. H S Barlow. 'The Early History of the Residency Kuala Lumpur,'

JMBRAS 65(2). 1992 . p.28 .43 In a report iSelangor Journal 5, p.69 . 1896) of a dance given by Swettenham on 5 November, 1896 , his

residence (ie 'Old Carcosa') is described as a two-storey house with a large central room on each floor, and

a porch/verandah in front. II was in the Lake Gardens and near the Lake Club. It was probably one of a

number of quarters built for senior officers whi ch reverted to thar use when Swettenham moved to the newCarcosa. For some years after 1945 it wa s the Kuala Lumpur residence of HH the Yang di Pertuan Besar,

Negri SembiIan. R Hawley, 'Carcosa - an Outline of its History,' MIH. See also H S Barlow, Swettenluun,Kuala Lumpur, Southdene, 1995, p.460. on 'Old Carcosa' in Swettenham's time . II is likely that it was thehou se known as 2 Clifford Road until its demolition , after 1957 , to clear the site for the National

Monument.

132

JMBRAS VOL. LXXI

bedrooms, each with its own stretch of verandah, and a 'main breakfast verandah' overthe porch, with a private sitting room and study. The outbuildings included stables, andthere were several tennis courts.v'

The Public Works Department was fully extended at the time with a largeprogramme of government offices in the 'neo-saracenic' style. Swettenham may havedecided that this was not a suitable style for a domestic dwelling, however large, and sothe building contract was let to a private firm, Nicholas and Walsh, who may well haveundertaken the design which was a conventional colonial mansion on an unusually largescale.45

If he felt frustrated by the lack of architectural pretensions, Swettenham was ableto compensate by the choice of a name for the new mansion. 'Residency' or'Government House' would have been inappropriate; Swettenham perplexed his officialworld by adopting the name 'Carcosa' .46 When, forty years later, he publicly confirmedwhat had long been suspected, it was found that Swettenham, who had considerableambitions to secure recognition as a literary man (in the 1890's he had contributed tofashionable journals associated with Oscar Wilde and Aubrey Beardsley), had beenmaking a poetic allusion.

To celebrate the opening of the new mansion in August 1898 there was a lavishfancy dress ball. 47 Swettenham himself was now in the full flood tide of his career andsoon moved on to the governorship in Singapore." The less mannered senior officialswho followed him in the control of the FMS government did not change the name ­'Federal House' would have fallen rather flat. So Carcosa it remains.i?

It might have been expected that, in designing such a spacious house, a separatewing or suite of rooms would have been included for the exclusive use of the highcommissioner (governor) when he came to Kuala Lumpur. However it did not suit

44 Hawley and Barlow. loc .cit. Lady Hawley . the wife of a UK High Commissioner, lived in Carcosa forseveral years from 1977 . and her affectionate and informative history of the house provides manyinteresting details .

45 Inevitably A C Norman, PWD Government Architect , included Carcosa in the list of buildings for whosedesign he made vague and often unjustified claims . See J M Gullick, 'Bangunan Sultan Abdul Samad,JMBRAS 65(1), 1992, and A Ghafar Ahmad, 'A C A Norman', JMBRAS 70(1), 1997. As the work wascontracted out in this case any such claims are particularly suspect.

46 Swettenham himself, in a letter to the monthly magazine, British Malaya, in May 1936, eventually laid themystery to rest. Barlow. Swettentuuu. pp 479-480, quotes the verses from which 'Carcosa' is taken , notingSwertenham's fascination with 'the macabre and the supernatural.'

47 Barlow, loc.cit. , gives some interesting details of the guests and their costumes. Sultan Sulaiman ofSelangor was not among the three Asian guests. but he may have been in mourning for his grandfather, andpredecessor, who had dicd a few months before.

48 He was in occupation from early 1898 to October 1900. F A Swettenharn, Footprints ill Malaya. London,Hutchinson, 1942, p.124 . When he returned to Malaya in 190 I it was to act (later substantive) as Governorin Singapore.

49 At most times until 1942 the R-G (later CS FMS) occupied Carcosa as his official quarters, and the BritishResident, Selangor. lived in the Residency. In the late 1930's a reorganisation of the FMS downgraded thesenior administrator from CS to Federal Secretary, junior to the Residents, including Selangor, and therewas a 'swap' . In the period 1946-1957 Carcosa was the official residence of the CS MU/FoM. In theeuphoria of )957 the government made over Carcosa to HMG as the official residence of its (diplomat)High Commissioner. The two governments later agreed that such an arrangement was no longerappropriate, and in 1986 Carcosa reverted to the Malaysian government. As the European lifestyle changed,stables became garages. room s were air-conditioned and en- suite bathrooms with modern plumbinginstalled . lillie change was made to the main structure.

133

PART I, 1998

Carcosa (Courtesy of Badan Warisan Malaysia)

JMBRAS VOL. LXXI

Swettenham to recognise in this fashion that he was subject to external control. When hebecame governor in 190I he sang from a different hymn sheet, but by then it was too lateto give architectural recognition to gubernatorial interventions in the FMS. There was ofcourse ample space in 'Carcosa' for the accommodation of the high commissioner andhis suite. For some years this arrangem ent worked more smoothly than might have beenexpected.

In 1904 however Swetrenham was succeeded in Singapore by Anderson (1904­1910), who was minded to cut down to si ze the Resident-General and limit hisauthority .l" To demonstrate the ch ange (and incidentally to bear witness to thesignificance of official residences in the power structure) Anderson decided that Carcosashould become the excusive preserve of the high commissioner, and that the R-G (nowrestyled chief secretary FMS) should be accommodated in a smaller, but substantial , newhouse to be built in the Lake Gardens alongside Carcosa. "

The price or rubber had fallen since 1910; the pastures were no longer so green inthe construction industry. The contractors for the new residence went bankrupt, and theproject eventually took three years ( 19 10- 19 13) to complete. 52 By that time newprotagonists were in the field. Anderson had been recalled to London in 1910, and thenew high commissi oner was Young ( 19 11- 1920) who was content to leave theadministration of the FMS in the hands of a new CS, E L (later Sir Edward) Brockman(1912-1920). Brockman was an old hand and by temperament ' the strongest head of theFMS government since Swettcnham., 5:1 Brockman argued that, as his duties requiredhim to work and give official entertainments throughout the year in Kuala Lumpur (andthe Iacilites of Carcosa had been provided with that in view) it was appropriate that theCS FMS should continue in occupation of Carcosa, leaving the new house for the highcommissioner during his comparatively brief visits. Young agreed to this.54

Initially the new house for the high commissioner was called 'GovernmentHouse '., but it was soon reali sed that thi s term was inappropriate in a nominally

50 E Thio, British Polin' in (he Maloy Peninsula 1880-1 910. Singapore, Uni versity of Malaya Pres s, t 969,

Pan 2. Ironically . it was William Taylor who had been transferred from CS SS to be R-G FMS (t905­19tO) on Anderson ' s recommendation who thwarted Anderson's plans. Taylor was the only holder of his

post who lacked previous service in the Mala y states; he had been transferred from Ceylon and profe ssed toregard Malay states as equivalent in co nstitutional status to the admini strative provinces of Ceylon .

Anderson proposed that the high commi ssion er should preside over an Administrative Council of the FMSRulers and Resident s, Thi o op.c it. . pp . t 95 and t 98 . but the Col onial Office vetoed thi s part of hi sprogramme as a duplication of the new Federal Legi slative Council. Anderson, and after him Guillemard( 1920- 1927) then made Kuala Kangsar a key point in nece ssary contact with the FMS Rulers, for whom theSultan of Perak acted - informall y - as spokesman in their time . Hence King's House and King ' s Pavilionwere nodal point s in the new structure.

5 I SSD 27 July 1910 . Anderson eased Taylor into retirement (to become head of the FMS Information Agencyin London) but was himself recall ed to become PUS at the CO in 19tO.

52 The high commissioner opened the November sess ion of the FMS Council with a review of administrative

and financial matters. with bri ef referenc e to the con struction of the new house in Kuala Lumpur.Proceedings of the FMS Federal Council. I November 1910,25 October 1911, 12 November 1912 and 25

November 1913 .53 R Heussler, 1981 , op. cit.. p. 233.54 SSD 5 February 1913. Thio , op.cit ., p.22 I. Young was by no mean s an inactive high commissioner, but he

left the FMS and SS to go their ow n way under able admini strato rs (Brockman and R J Wilkinson), and

concerned himself more with the problems incidental to the transfer of the northern UMS from Siamese toBriti sh ' suzerainty '.

135

PA RT J. 1998

independent Malay state, and so it became - between the wars - King 's House, since thehigh comm issioner represented the British Crown in its relationship (by treaty) with theMalay ruler. 55

SUMBER MAJALAH

'r:n: 0111' hou se in Malay a thatco uld he said to reflect the con­

st itut iona l changes in the Federationin the past half-century is Carcosa,now the horn e of the High Commis­sioner for the Un ited Kingd om.

Since it was built 6 1 yea rs ago, ithas been occ up ied by a su ccession oftop Mala yan Civil Servants who seti tles hefore the war ran ged fr omHesid ent -Gen eral to Ch ie f Secreta rydown to a Fed eral Sec re ta rv whooave way to the British Hesident o fSelango r.

l.Iuri ng the Jap an ese occupa tion.Carcosa became the hom e of agc ne ra l an d lat er a se nio r officer s'nil";:;. Wh en th e British MilitaryAdministrati on took over, Ca rcosaacce plcd th e con tinua tion of itsca reer as a senior officers' mess, andthen welcom ed th e return of theChief Secr etary. It resumed its pla cein thc order o f p receden ce as th ehom e of th e ch ief executive officer.

Th e first Mala yan Civil Se rvant toca ll it horn e was the legenda ry SirFrank Swettenh am , who ende d his

ca ree r as Go vernor of the S tra itsSe ttleme nt. and II i ~h Comm iss ione rfor the lal a y S tate: .

Th e last 1\1.C.S. occ upa nt was S irDavid Wath er ston who retired a fort­night a fte r he had witn essed th eso lemn ceremo ny th at cha nge d theFed er at ion o f 1\lala va int o an ind e-pendent St ate. .

Wh at a wealth o f histor y ther e wasin the years between these two men ­the one wat ching th e eme rge nce o fmedi aeva l Mala y S ta tes from anarch yto orde r"d demucrut ic developmentand tlu- oth" r Iwlp ing to imp leme ntwit h the max imum of stnoothuess thoco nstitutio na l p rocesses th at led toind epend en ce.

Carcosa sta nds on a rid ge a mil eout of the Federal Ca pita l a nd over­looks a panorama that beg ins fr omthe well-ordered road s and paths andman-fashi on ed lake o f the bot anicalga rde ns j ust belo w and ex tends tothe ragged outline of the ma in ran ge.

This is not , by the way, the g ra nd.es t view in Kuala Lumpur. "TheHesid ency," hom e of the Prime

14 SEY 1995Peroustaua n Ncgart

Min ister, has perhaps a better oneand th e hilltop hom es of some ofMalaya' s tin a nd rubber magnatesvie closel y for th e hon our.

But before the turn of the century,when lif e was more gracious an dstanda rds were measured by greathou ses and sweep ing lawn s, the de­sig ne rs of Carcosa , in the M.C.S. andth e P.\V.D., chose good h igh groun d- which lat er p rove d a few feethigh er than its nearest neighbour.Kin g's Hou se, bu ilt e ight yea rs lat er.

Kin g's H ouse was aloo f andiso la ted in th ose far-ofT da ys. T rad i­tional home of the H igh' Commis­sioner of th e Feder ated Malay Sta tes,it welcomed him a t least four tim esa yea r when he left GovernmentHouse, S inga po re, for officia l tou rs" up-coun try ."

Becau se the Resid ent-Gen er al wasth e ch ief executive officer of the Hi ghCo mmissio ner in the F .1\I.S. theybui lt h im a g rea t hou se with highce ilings , a bath room to eac h hed­room , lounges, a dining ro om , and ab illi ard r0'1,!,11 whi ch in these mod ern

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Small lounge. top left. is to Itdf o( mainentrance to Ca rcos a , Behind coucb un righti s billiards room . where hl alo!! w om en gu utshave played th e game. Th e last ChidSenelary. S ir /Jav;tI »' alhust un and I"ad"n 'alherdun in C lU e-U S U'" s p" C'iOflS purr/, .

da ys has seen a s ight at which someof the old-time rs might have beenastonished - that of gracef ul 1\lalaywomen handl ing hilli a rd cues II ithhilari uus deli ght.

Th ose spac ious da ys. " you sign~"

a visitor's book and you were invitedto dinner, pahits, recepti ons or gar ·den parties - in str ict accord ancewith a nice grada tion of social andpublic importance. After dinner, youdrank the Kin g's health in port.

But why the nam e "Carcosa"?Mysterious word and name whichyou will not find in any anthologyor di ctionary.

The men, and the women, whohave come to Malaya sin ce the warhav e been just as cur ious about theorigin of "Carcosa" as pre·warMalayan s.

Many th eori es were adva nced longaft er Swettenham's departure. Onewas somewha t ribald. The suggestionwas that the name was an adaptati onof a Dut ch -Mala y word applied to amean struc ture whi ch need not hespec ified here.

Som eone else put forward a morecredible explanation: the name wasa combination of "karkun," secre­tary, chief of the scri bes, and"ka-asa" or "kasa, " the first one, thechi ef one. But then, these l\Ialavwords were familiar only in wll<itwas then the Netherlands Indies.

In desperation, an appeal went outto Sir Frank Sweltenham, living in

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"

t'

III

I

fin d an o ther name. !\ - a re sident o fth e dav re m a rke .l. " It wa s ratherdiffi eult to think u f a su ita b le t i tle : 'b ut thc wits fouud a n o u tle t for th eirimag ina t io .i through a s trang e co in­c ide nce.

T he firs t Fcd cral Sccre tarv wasMr. C. D. Ahearne. an Ir isl lllH;n . H chad been promoted from Con trollerof La bo u r to Chief Scc rc ta r y. \Vh e nhc wa s demoted to Fedcral Sccretar y.he al so su ffe re d a loss of emolumentof S50 a m onth .

S o wh at more a p t n ame when h em oved to th c Hesidcn cy than " Iri sh ­m an ' s Hisc." Aftcr a ll. it al so st o o do n a wonderful hilltop. ".. . .

Thus Carcosa lap sed into m em ory.hut with head unbow ed . for so me o fth e g re a tes t names in illala yan his­tory had been a m o ng its occupants .There w as S ir \Villi an~ Ta ylo ~. . irn:;veren tly kn own as . lkun Kring.who. th e y sa y. kept a ti 1-\h t 1-\rip onth c "ountry' s bnd;:et and wonld snnc­t io n no " xlwnditnre th at did notre tu rn a go, ,,1 dividend .

There was th e abk ::iir t;"ol;:el\ laxwcll. s t ill living. wh o t luove ona working day of I ;' huurs and k ne wthe coun trv in sid,' out , ,\ nd - ,\l ·11.it is ,I gl)(;ll list ... . ,.

(Jn e s p,'(' ies r..grl'l lf·d tlu - fad ..-o u tof Carcu-u . TI ll' Y " .. r.. t lu - s a t i r ic..1versifie rs .un o n u th e 1\ la la va n CivilService. Carcos~1 h ad provided ,h emw ith a tant ali sing hut fru stratin ggamc bec ause it did not rhymerea d il y. F o r th em the a ge had ' n o tarrived which produced s uc h a usef ullas t-w o rd for cy n ics as "hull-dozer."

Throu gh th e years of th e jupancscoccupation and th e m on th s of th eBritish militarv administration . Car­cos a ran g to ' th e bo ot s of senioro ffice rs. It s floors and rafters musthave s ig hed for th ose "good o lddavs. " when its sta hles were full (Ifwhinny ing ho rses a n d th e park bel owred ol ent w ith bl o om s a nd hush esamon g which cou ld be s p ie d sa m h h u rd eer.

WH EN th e c iv il " O\'e rn men t wa src su :u .. ,1 o n April]. )lJ !G. it wa s­

not April Fool's l Iu v for Carco sa fo rl hcn it rai sed ils Il<'ad again. It he­"an I<' on('( : nlor.. IIII' honll' of th "Chief ::-i,'cn:lary. and a IIl 'W individn alnanl<'d Ih it is h' Ad\'i sIT went b.wk tot ill' H,'s id,·," ·} .

TIll' fir st ,,,'('upan l wa s :-iii i\l ,'"New boult. an d cvru tho ug ll t lu: luru i-

1'/". ,-;t'f(' frmu Iht , fi r st fl uor IHll C'ony of( ' (IJ-,.II.'W . lIufI _''' ' l uuk ." Oller 'h e Lake Garden st a ionrds 'ht, UUlUfH' of lir e main range.

ture and furni shing wer e utilitari anand no t quit e what th e y a re today,Carcosa ca me in to its own ag ain arulIcn t i tse lf handsomely tu gay partiesand b ill ia rd s fives a n t! do gs andhorses.

It s occupants s ince th en hav e beenSir i\loroboe del Tufo . S ir Donaldi\laeGillina v, who after two vears.moved d ow'n a few fec t low e; int oKing 's H o use. and finallv S ir Dav idWath erst on , Il l' closed ' thc cha p te rof Carcosa' s pr e-ind ep end ence h is­tor y by a cting as h ost to th c Duke o fGl ouecst cr. who ca m e as representa ­rive o f lI e r i\l aj est y the Qu ecn top resent th e co ns t i tu t io na l instrumentso f fre ed om \0 th c Pr im e illin ist cr o f~I alaya.

And. as a sa lu te \0 th e Iriendsh ip\\'ith Gre at Bri tain. th e new Govern·m en t presented CarC0 5:1 to Br itain toI,,: used I,y her as th e home o f herII igh Connllission er.

So Car('o~a. by thi s lllagnaniinou s;:e stII rr-. will not " Die th ou . un sung,as 1 , ' a ~ "S n n sh~;d s ha ll dr y and di e inLlI:-, l La rcusa .

OKTObER 1997

.""t .

SEMENANJUNG MAlAYSIA RM3.00

kikal

'KNS, ;11 111

iesar: I

ak

:i l d I I

n l' f , I

)) 1 ',,1,111

\\'; I" III

I. ,f ttl - -,_ _­"

AE

AMAI ya n g tidak tahubahawa Talnan TasikPerdana, Kuala Lumpur dan

Bukit Carcosa m e rupakanmo m e n t o p ercintaan seorangResiden British yang bernama SirFrank Swettenham dan isterinyaSyd ney Swettenham sewaktukedua-dua m ereka b erada diMalaya di zaman penjajahan.

Hal yan g d e m i kian telahdisahkan oleh sarjana sejarahtanah air Prof. Datuk Khoo Kay

37

.. iIIii ....z"""'''''.,.,&,..... .:.:.:.

j-"teri~~"-" a

::&

,

"Carcosa ini kubina istimewa sebagai mahligai buatmu Sydney. "

jDan nIan s san bat

rkan

ti yang bersiar\ amtel akan te l.usan ekar Iadan19 jalan . Ladaneli tarikan peladari negara ji r:Jerman, PeraBelgium. Di k;melimpah-ru

allan d un l

antikan bung:kepacl a bl i l l

nai para pel ardi ru ang U I I I

bunga. S<'II:tyang d ip<' 1l 11rang sentiuxa Ibunga 111<' 111

~ . pe rse ki t«

I

; I

beliau baru-bam ini.Profesor itu menjelaskan

Swettenham telah me rnb inakediaman di Bukit Carcosa seba­gai lambang kasih dan sayangnyaterhadap isteri yang amar dicintaiyang disifatkannya 'berkorban jiwadan raga derni suami tercinta'.

Kediaman di Bukit Carcosaitu dianggap sebagai Inahligaikecintaannya yang tidak bertepiterhadap Sydney. Malah TasikPerdana juga telah diberi namaSydney Lake, sempena n arnaisterinya.

Pada suatu petang ketikasedang berpirnpin tangan Ineng­himp kedamaian di tasik berke­naan, Swettenham membisikkanke telinga Sydney:

"Sydneyku sayang, alangkahindahnya tasik ini," jelas Swetten­ham.

Sambi! Inenghela nafasnya,Swettenham meneruskan kata­katanya terhadap Sydney: "KalanCarcosa ini kubina isti mewasebagai mahligai buatmu, tapitasik ini pula dinamakan SydneyLake sebagai lam bang kasihsayang kita berdua yang tidakbertepi," sambil kedua sejoli itumemadu cinta di situ.

Sejak itu Frank Swettenhamdan Sydney semakin intim danakhirnya mencapai kata sepakatuntuk berkahwin di England.Namun selepas berkahwin dan

38

__ _ .............. ......, ................. "" '-" .... . .... .... 4. ........,, ) "' '' , . , '- l 1t.") J('''61'

yang d iimp ik an SydnC'y tickesampaian.

Dia sentiasa kesepian eli Ccosa. Kehidupan se lepas berlcwin dengan Swettenham meu]hambar dan men ekan jiwa n'Hidupnya terasa kosong'. S)'<l1selalu ditinggalkan keseoranu.uCarcosa. Sydn ey bagai s(' (1 1

merpati yang tin ggal el i <lalsangkar emas. Terkurung. T I

ternan untuk berbicara.Swettenham pula terlalu

sub dengan kerja-kerj anya. ~'Il

nya yang mendalam terh .«1:,,"ehwal orang-orang rvl(,h\"hingga mengabaikan s\'d I

wanita yang sangat di ciut .uketika dulu.

Ketika kes epi uu . ~ , ,sering menyusuri S('ril id 1 Ipercintaan ketika 11 1<' 1"1 ,1\ .1 1

mula tiba di Tanah ~kl:l '" dMalah tempat yang S( 'l' i I I ' IIjunginya ialah Sycll l('.\ 1,1situlah telnpat m f'J"( ,k:, 1111

kasih asmara.Namun bayallg-II :1 V I

seolah-olah diren g,~ I II I

hidupnya. Dia ball \':d I

perasaan di pin ggir :ll l I

Selepas puas dia :d I I Isewaktu senja mr-njvlu I

Begitulah k.,I, Itseharian sehingg; I I f' I.fikirannya mula I( 't I'sering meracau S( ' I ll

nya ketidakacl i 11111

mastika OKTOB£ R ! ()i) .

habiskan masanya menjelajah danmempelajari adat resam budayaorang-orang Melayu.

Sehingga Swettenham akhir­nya fasih berbahasa Melayu. Kefa­sihannya berbahasa Melayu ter­masuk boleh Inenggunakan loghatdaerah Negeri-negeri Melayu.

Ketika menjelajah, Swetten­ham kelihatan membawa sebuahbuku catatan dan menulis tempat­tempat yang dilawatinya. Kepeka­annya terhadap orang-orang Me­layu menyebabkan dia dihonnatidi mana sahaja berada.

Keberanian Swettenham jugasukar ditandingi pegawai Inggerislain. Dia sanggup m enjelajahNegeri-negeri Melayu sehingga kekawasan pe.dalaman. Semasa

39

I I, I 11./111 ." ;Lng terkenal sebagai\ . l l i g penyayang dan

" I ,II (lrang-orang Melayur l 1\ " I i hu-t iba berubah

I I ' ri IIya. Dia bersikap, II ll ,~i s terhadap Sydney.

,I , I, II i Swettenham ber-d I I IIl1'nghalnburkan

II t.rhadap Sydney:I Ld, ,l.!; lI na. Kau tidak

II. 1\ 1111i ixt eriku. Wanita" I 11 tak perlukan

I I ' I I i iu i, " tempiknyaI. 111.1 '111 dan mence-

.ke ~alaya, kebahagi'.mpIkan Sy cl ney tiIan.

; ~ntiasa kesepian diIdupan se lepas bed;n Swettenham me nan men ekan j iw;,terasa kosong. Sy<ggalkan keseorall(fl, I ,""'yc ney bagai S( 't'

ng tin ggal eli (In~s . Terkurung. "( berbicara.\ham pula t('rI:IIIIerja-kel:;any;1. t\ Ildalam (('1"'/1:1<1;11

-oran g IVf(./;I \ I ..&~ , .11e ini fTasik Perdana) kunamakan Sydney Lake sebagai lambang kasih sayanggab a i ka II .') \ d ft II It''IIIg tidak bertepi."

~nga( di('jll l:/l

40 ·

KeberanianSwettenham jugasukar ditandingipegawai lnggerislain. Dia sanggup

menjelajah. .negen-negen

Melayu sehinggake kawasanpedalaman ~

laman dalam buku catata: II

Swettenjiam kernud! \I

menghilir dari Kuala Lipis II

ke Sega, Raub dan seteru: I

Pulau Tawar. Semasa sill 'Pulau Tawar Swettenhaiurima sebagai sahabat btl IGajah iaitu ayah kepacla pallPahang, Mat Kilau.

Ketika di Pulau Tawa I ,

tenham mencatatkan peril,Gajah S(' I

sahabat haiIsangat dill"tinya. (; :1

Swettenhalllbunyi: "Tok (berumur -IIBadannya s:gelnpal clan \kulitnya hitallselalu saha]«tawa apabila SI

berkata-kat .i .Cajah Inel1lp'empat isterianak, semhilacu. Ayall Tok (orang Melayi

matera. Terkenal sebagai Ibalang perang. Tok G ajaIrnam Perang Rasu setaraf CBesar Empat di Pahang. Bsangat kuat dan ditakuti di ]Pahang."

Jelas Prof. Khoo , ap:British mula cam pur tallS\\Tettenham dihantar m CI

pembantu Residen Britis

menjelajah Pahang misalnya, diaterpaksa mengikut [alan darat dariPerak ke Hulu Pahang sebelumberakit dan berperahu InenghilirSungai Pahang.

Dalam perjalanan yang jauhdan memenatkan itu Swettenhamakhirnya sampai ke Kuala Lipis ,Sega di Raub, Pulau Tawar danKuala Kerau sebelum menghilirke Pekan m ene m u i SultanAhmad.

Sernasa di Kua-la Lipis , Swetten­ham begitu tertarikhati melihat kesi­bukan pasar tempatberjual beli di suatutempat bernamaPenJOIn be rh am­piran Kuala Lipis.

Di Penjom,Swettenham men­dapati baranganyang dijual adalahbarangan makanandan keperluan ha­rian dengan hargayang Inurah sertaharganya cuma seringgit.

"H arga minyak tanah satu tinseringgit, tembakau sekati har­ganya seringgit , garaln enamgantang dijual seringgit, canduseketul bulat juga seringgitmanakala beras yang paling baiksebanyak 12 gantang juga ber­harga seringgit ," de m ikianSwettenham mencatatkan penga-

mastika OKTOBER 1997

dari sudut dia, bukan daripadasudut saya."

Swettenham banyak m e­mainkan peranan lnembangun­kan negeri Melayu yang padamasa itu tiada memiliki apa-apainfrastruktur termasuk mem­bina jalan kereta api. Antaranyajalan kereta api dari Gemas keJohor Bahru.

"D ia pegawai pertama naikpangkat dari pegawai tadbir mudahingga menjadi Residen, ResidenJeneral dan Gabenor merangkapPesuruhjaya Tinggi British.

Pada tahun 1901 Sir FrankSwettenham diangkat m enjadiGabenor Negeri-negeri Selat danPesuruhjaya Tinggi Negeri-negeriMelayu Bersekutu menggantikanSir Charles Mitchell.

"Ketika mula-mula datangSwettenham hanyalah sebagaipegmvai awam, masa itu Bristishbelum campur tangan. Dia datangkira-kira tiga tahun sebelumBritish campur tangan . Malahpejabat kolonial sudah lamamenganggap Swettenham sebagaipakar orang Melayu, " kata Prof.Khoo.

Sir Frank Swettenhambersara pada tahun 1903. Diapulang ke England pada tahun1906 dan meninggal dunia padatahun 1946 ketika berumur 90tahun selepas mengabdikansebahagian hidupnya di TanahMelayu. - Sahidan Jaafar. 0

41

11111 ror. Semasa di SelangorI II nham bersahabat dengan

1111 In Abdul Samad yangII III .rintah Selangor. Ketika itu

I'( t nham tinggal di KualaI II rat berhampiran dengan

I inn Sultan Abdul Samad... Dia paling rapat dengan

ullun Selangor, Sultan Abdultillad. Dia puji Sultan Abdul«nad. Pada masa yang samaullun Abdul Samad juga puji

I ttenham," kata Prof. Khoo.ultan Abdul Samad berkata:

vettenham ini orang yangIllIdai, kata-katanya selalu

. "I III IS.

Swettenham pula berkata:ultan Abdul Samad juga cerdik

I III pintar."Semasa perang saudara

I" rlaku di Selangor, Sultan Abdulmad tidak memihak kepada

I II Ilia-mana kumpulan antaraIII mpulan Raja Mahadi danI Jlgku Kudin.

" Bila orang-orang RajaIuhadi dan Tengku Kudin datang

dill cerita sesuatu kepada Sultanbdul Samad, Sultan Abdulunad berkata: "Benar, benar!"

Swettenham yang hairani1/ 'lIgan sikap sultan kemudianlurtanya kepada Sultan Abdul

unad kenapa dua-dua pihak yangh.-rtanya dijawab benar tanpauu-nyalahkan mana-mana pihak.

Sultan Abdul Samad berkataI r-pada Swettenham: "Benar itu

mnyl.ian ('/; mr-m

.isnva.'

199ah f

.m ditlaik '1ahla«

sanv»......

rr; S \ V(

ihal 'Ieo r.nik V;II

'io r ru

:ata lllmill '~ Caj'l40-;11

Jabilingall~ nj ad

sh <II

. W ; I I"II

lin (!:tit

j a klse ll's.,a. Topuny I

ri , 2Ian ('II

:Gajalyu .)11

huluiah la]O raneBeli ;1. HlIII