SIAM. (SAYAM, OR MUANG-THAÏ.) Reigning King. Chulalongkorn I. (Somdetch Phra Paramindr Maha), born September 21, 1853; the eldest son of the late King, Maha Mongkut, and of Queen Ramphüy (Krom Somdetch Pratape Sirindr); succeeded to the throne on the death of his father, October 1, 1868. Children of the King. Children of the ex-Queen. I. Princess Walai-alongkorn, born April 1883. II. Princess Sirapornsophon, born July 9, 1887. Children of the Queen. I. Prince Chowfa Maha Vajiravudh, January 1, 1880 (proclaimed Crown Prince, January 17, 1895). II. Prince Chowfa Chakrapongse Poowanarth, March 3, 1881. Brother of the King. Somdetch Chowfa Bhanurangsi Swangwongse, born January 13, 1860. Title: Krom Pra Bhanupandhwongse Woradej. There are also twenty half-brothers of the king. The royal dignity is nominally hereditary, but does not descend always from the father to the eldest son, each sovereign being invested with the privilege of nominating his own successor. Government. The executive power is exercised by the King advised by a Cabinet (Senabodi) consisting of the heads of the various departments of the Government Foreign Affairs, Interior, Justice, Finance, Public Instruction, Public Works, War, Marine, Police, &c. Most of the portfolios are held by the King's half-brothers and sons. The law of May 8, 1874, constituting a Council of State, has now been superseded by the Royal Decree of January 10, 1895, creating a Legislative Council. The latter is composed of the Ministers of State and others, not less than 12 in number, appointed by the Crown. The total membership is now 51. In the preamble of the Royal Decree it is stated that the object of this body is to revise, amend, and complete the legislation of the kingdom. It is to meet at least once a week, and it may appoint committees of 3 or 4 members, with the addition of competent outsiders who must not outnumber the members. An important article gives the Legislative Council power to promulgate laws without the Royal assent in the event of any temporary disability of the Crown. other times the Royal signature is indispensable. This Council has shown considerable legislative activity. At The Siamese Malay States are administered by the Rajahs mostly under the control of Commissioners sent from Bangkok. The Laos (Shan) States of Chiengmai, Lakon, Lampoonchi, Nan, Preë, and others are similarly administered. The State of Kelantan is governed by the Rajah, assisted by an English Adviser and Assistant Adviser. The trans-Mekong portion of the State of Luang Prabang is now under French protection. The remainder is still Siamese. The Siamese dominions are divided into 41 provinces or districts, each having a Commissioner, deriving authority direct from the King, and having under him subordinate governors over the various parts of his district. Until 1895 the administration of the country was divided between the Ministers of the North, South, and Foreign Affairs. It was then brought under the single authority of Prince Damrong, as Minister of the Interior, under whose administration great improvements have been already made. Official buildings, such as court-houses and gaols, are being erected all over the country, and the system of provincial gendarmerie is being extended. There is, however, an insufficient supply of suitable officials to carry out reforms. Several of the tributary districts are administered by their own princes; but of late years centralisation has greatly increased. The Malay States retain, however, a certain measure of independence. Commissioners, chosen by the King, are now regularly sent from Bangkok to most of these tributary provinces, both to those in the north, as Chiengmai, and those in the south, as Singora, and others, with very full powers. Area and Population. The limits of the Kingdom of Siam have varied much at different periods of its history, most of the border lands being occupied by tribes more or less independent. The boundary between Burma and Ñ. W. Šiam was delimited in 1891. By the Anglo-French Convention of April, 1904, the agreement of 1896 was confirmed, and its provisions more clearly defined, the territories to the west of the Menam and the Gulf of Siam being recognised as in the British sphere, and those to the east in the French. At the same time the integrity of Siamese territory is guaranteed. To take the place of the unratified treaty of October 7, 1902, a new treaty was signed by the representatives of Siam and France on February 13, and ratified December 7, 1904. The frontier between Siam and Cambodia, formerly (by treaty of 1893) lying along the Mekong River (exclusive of a neutral strip on the western bank), will now be altered so that a territory of 8,000 square miles, including the provinces of Maluprey and Barsak, will be transferred to French rule, and the Siamese Government abandons all claim to the Luang Prabang territory on the western side of the Mekong. There are rigid stipulations as to the troops which Siam may keep in the Mekong valley, and as to the improvement of waterways and construction of railways, neither foreign officers nor foreign capital being permitted in that region without special agreement with France, which now evacuates Chantabun. The area of Siam is about 220,000 square miles, about 60,000 being in the Malay Peninsula. The numbers of the population are even more imperfectly known than the extent of territory, and the difficulty of any correct result is the greater on account of the Oriental custom of numbering only the men. The latest foreign estimates give the population of the Kingdom as follows:-1,500,000 Siamese; 600,000 Chinese; 600,000 Malays; immigrant Burmese, Indians, and Cambodians bringing the total up to 5,000,000, but this estimate is probably too low. The population may be reckoned at about 9,000,000. In 1901, 29,709 Chinese coolies entered Siam, and 19,266 departed. Bangkok has a population of between 300,000 and 400,000, about 100,000 being Chinese. Siam is called by its inhabitants Thaï, or Muang-Thai, which means 'free,' or 'the kingdom of the free.' The word Siam is probably identical with Shan, applied in Burma to the Lao race, as well as to the Shan proper and the Siamese. In recent years the results of Western civilisation have to some extent been introduced, and with the assistance of a British Adviser to the Ministry of Justice, several English and Belgian, one Japanese, and one French Assistant Adviser, some advance has been made in the administration of justice in the native courts and in the International Court which tries suits of foreigners against natives. The Legal Code has been to a great extent revised. The Consular Courts exercise jurisdiction over their nationals. great improvement has taken place in the police force under the superintendence of several English police officers lent by the Government of India. Religion and Instruction. A The prevailing religion is Buddhism, and throughout the country education is chiefly in the hands of the priests, of whose services the Government intend to make more effective use. In the whole country there are some 5,000 temples, containing 60,000 priests. Of these priests 3,336 are recorded as being teachers of Siamese, with a total of 23,189 pupils. The Siamese language is now firmly established as the official language over the whole country. The Minister of Public Instruction and Ecclesiastical Affairs has also under his charge several Government hospitals, which have been established by the King, besides a public museum, and all the royal monasteries in the capital. The capital possesses the following Government schools: For boys, 1 residential English school with 30 pupils, 1 secondary English school with 160 pupils, 1 primary English school with 100 pupils, 7 secondary schools (teaching English) with 900 pupils, 76 primary schools with 10,000 pupils, 2 training colleges for teachers with 70 and 140 pupils respectively, 1 practising school with 250 pupils, 1 medical college, and 1 Civil Service college; for girls, 1 secondary school, 4 primary schools with 500 pupils. Schools not under the Education Department are military, naval, and survey residential colleges, and Law, Gendarmerie, and Police non-residential schools. Sericulture and railway schools have been formed. Finance. The revenue and expenditure for the last five years (estimates for the last two years) were given as follows (about 18 ticals = £1) : The principal sources of revenue are the opium tax, 7,000,000 ticals; the spirit tax, 3,700,000 ticals; lottery and gambling, 4,500,000 ticals (the opium, spirit, and gambling revenue being farmed); land tax and fisheries, 4,300,000 ticals; customs, 4,800,000 ticals; forests and mines, 2,000,000 ticals; posts, telegraphs, and railways, 1,600,000 ticals; capitation tax, 4,000,000 ticals. The deficit anticipated in 1904-05 is caused by extraordinary expenditure, including 6,000,000 ticals for railway construction. On April 1, 1904, the cash balance in Treasury amounted to 6,000,000 ticals, while the investments and bank balances amounted to 16,000,000 ticals. A British officer occupies the position of Financial Adviser, and there various are numerous other British officers holding high positions under the Government, more especially in the Finance and Audit, Revenue, Forests, Survey, Police, Justice, Customs, and Mining departments. There are also several Europeans of other nationalities in Departments. The financial position of the kingdom is extremely favourable, the revenue is steadily increasing, and the expenditure is less than the revenue, and well under control. There is absolutely no public debt, and the actual cash balance in the Treasury on April 1, 1902, was about 36,000,000 ticals, including a sum of 450,000l. invested in British Consols (nominal value). Defence. The standing army does not exceed 5,000 men actually under arms, but is generally reckoned as consisting of 10,000 or 12,000 men who would be available in a short time. The people generally are liable to be called out as required, but there is no armed militia. Every male from the age of 18 to 21 years is obliged to serve as a recruit for three years, and afterwards to serve for three months after every twelve. The following individuals are, however, exempted:-Members of the priesthood, the Chinese settlers who pay a commutation tax, slaves, public functionaries, the fathers of one or more sons liable to service, and those who purchase exemption by a fine of six ticals a year, or by furnishing a slave or some other person not subject to the conscription as a substitute. It is stated that the Government possesses upwards of 80,000 stand of arms, besides a considerable stock of cannon. Great efforts are being made to improve and drill the army, and a general improvement may be expected. Considerable reliance is now placed upon the newly constituted force of marine infantry mentioned below. The navy list contains the names of 22 vessels over 100 tons, 10 of these being over 500 tons. The largest is the cruiser yacht Maha Chakrkri, of 3,000 tons, 300 feet long and 40 feet beam, 15 knots, 4 quick-firing 4.7 Armstrongs, 8 quick-firing 6-pounders, launched in Scotland, 1892. The small cruiser Makut Rachakumar, 14 knots, 650 tons, was bought at Hong Kong in 1891. Besides these there are 4 gunboats, 1 training ship, 1 torpedo store ship, 3 transports, 4 despatch boats, and yachts. Some of the vessels are mere hulks, one or two having had their engines taken out. A gunboat built at Hong Kong is called Muratha. Her tonnage is 500, speed 12 knots; armament, 1 quick-firing 4.72 in. gun; 4 quick-firing 6-pounder guns, and 5 machine guns. Two new gunboats, likewise built in Hong Kong, the Bhali and the Sugrib, each 545 tons, and armed like the Muratha, but having 5 instead of 4 quick-firing 6-pounder guns. In the navy list 40 steamers and launches from 100 tons downwards, for Government service on the river and along the coast, are not included. There are 10,000 men available in five shifts for service afloat, besides a reserve of 2,000. The marine infantry, recruited from the inhabitants of the maritime provinces, between 22 and 40 years of age, numbers 15,000 in six shifts, besides a 1st and 2nd reserve of 3,000 and 2,000 respectively. The bar At the mouth of the Menam River are the Paknam forts. prevents ships of more than 13 feet draught from ascending to Bangkok. Production and Industry. The economic development of the country has been retarded by the institutions of forced labour and slavery, but these hindrances are now being removed by the substitution of a poll-tax for the corvée and by the gradual abolition of slavery, hastened by royal decree of 1900 which liberated all slaves born after December 16, 1897, and reduced the redemption fee of all others. The cost of labour is probably higher than in any other Oriental country. Chinese coolies do the chief part of both skilled and unskilled labour in the south, especially in the mills and in mining; while in the north forest work is confined almost entirely to Burmese, Karens, and Khamus. To the north of Bangkok, large tracts of land, formerly lying waste, have been opened up by an Irrigation Company, which has connected by a canal the Menam and Bangpakong rivers, and is constructing numbers of smaller canals. The chief produce of the country is rice, which forms the national food and the staple article of export. The rice exports in 1902 amounted to 798,487 tons, valued at 3,623,9857.; in 1903, 585,287 tons, valued at 3,010,3507. In Bangkok there are 26 large rice mills, of which 2 are British, 2 German, and 22 Chinese, 6 of these Chinese firms being nominally British, i.e. from Hong Kong or the Straits Settlements. There are also many smaller rice mills. The number and capacity of the mills is now more than sufficient for a full rice crop. Other produce is pepper, salt, dried fish, cattle, and sesame; while, for local consumption only, hemp, tobacco, cotton, and coffee are grown. Fruits are abundant, including the durian, mangosteen, and mango. Much of Upper Siam is dense forest, and the cutting of teak is an important industry, almost entirely in British hands. In 1898, 22,692 tons were exported; in 1899, 36,616 tons; in 1900, 45,261 tons; in 1901, 43,735 tons; in 1902, 56,649 tons; in 1903, 58,146 tons. The forests are under the control of an English conservator, aided by several English officers, all lent by the Indian Government. Gold is found in many of the provinces, and concessions have been granted to mining companies. The Kabin gold mine, where work has recently been suspended, is now the property of an English company, which has also taken over the ruby and sapphire mines in Chantabun. The rubies exported from Bangkok in 1902 were valued at 2,7077.; in 1903, 9,9087.; sapphires in 1902, 9947. ; in 1903, 3661. There is a French gold mine at Wattana and a Danish copper mine at Chantuk. The mineral resources of Siam are extensive and varied, including tin, coal and iron, zinc, manganese, antimony, probably quicksilver. Commerce. Nearly the whole of the trade is in the hands of foreigners, and in recent years many Chinese, not subject like the natives to forced labour, have settled in the country. The foreign trade of Siam centres in Bangkok, the capital. The total value and the principal articles of import and export at Bangkok in two years are shown in the subjoined table— |