Federated Malay States Railways : pamphlet of ... - Sabrizain.org

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on the right again, the Birch Memorial Clock
Tower, recently erected to the memory of James
Wheeler Woodford Birch, first British Resident of
Perak, who was assassinated by Malays. Continuing
past this along Hugh Low Street, named
after the second British Resident, we go right
through to the bridge over the Kinta river, passing,
on the right, the pretty People's Park, with its
decorative Chinese temple on the edge, and noting
the Malay mosque opposite it across the river.
Crossing the bridge we continue through the new
town, and when the shop-houses end we swing to
the left down a side street and keep straight on at
right angles to our previous course until we reach
a main road running parallel to Hugh Low
Street. Here we turn left-handed and again cross
the Kinta river, this time by the Birch bridge,
named after the murdered Resident's son, Sir
E. W. Birch, who, thirty years after that crime,
in turn became Resident of Perak. From this
bridge we run straight to the recreation ground,
and, bearing to the right to go round it, pass the
Indian Muhammadan mosque, climb the rise to
the English Church, turn left-handed again, pass
the Club and so arrive back at the railway station.
This round in a rikisha (25 cents, jd.) will give a
very good idea of Ipoh and enable the visitor to
realise that it is by no means necessary that an
Eastern town should be a crazy congeries of filthy
and dilapidated rookeries as so many are. A
pleasant evening's run, also in a rikisha, is along
Hugh Low Street, across the bridge and on until
the road forks. Take the left hand fork and go on
as far as the turn to the racecourse, turn down
this, past the Golf Club, and so bearing left-
handed come back on the same road, but before
reaching the fork branch off lo the right and
re-enter Ipoh by way of Birch bridge and
the Padang. The view from the racecourse
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towards the limestone cliffs and the higher hills
of the main range behind them is at all times
beautiful, but perhaps most impressive when a
distant evening thunderstorm majestically proceeds
along them, its black-blue clouds lowering above
the white-splashed rocks, and its whole scheme of
colour shot through and through with those violet
vapours into which darkness at length melts the
dying light of day.
IPOH ROCK TEMPLES.
The nearest rock temples, but by no means
the finest, are at Gunong Chiroh. To reach these,
leave the railway station by the Kuala Kangsar
road and continue right along it till you reach the
level crossing. Do not cross but keep to the right,
and, leaving the marble works on the left, make for
the limestone rock. Nature has so obligingly
disposed the approach that a rikisha can pass along
the track between the rock on the left and
stalactite dropping to meet the rising stalagmite on
the right. But motors must keep to the road
which runs a few yards below, between the pen-
dant white rocks and the yellow Kinta river, bearer
of silt washed out of mines. The first little shrine
is Tamil. Its exterior is not impressive, but
looking behind the outer altar one sees with a little
shock of surprise a tiny glimmering flame set afar
off down the mouth of a black passage in the rock.
Entering the passage, or ever you come to the
bottom thereof, you reach a second altar appar-
ently closing the way, but just enough space has
been left for slim people to slip past and go,
tripping over chance stalagmites, avoiding chance
stalactites, along a dark, gloomy and narrow run
way in the rock, breathing a heavy smell of incense,
and at last arriving at the tiny glimmering flame
which you find fitfully illuminating two tiny gods,
glistening with votive oil, decked with while and
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