A Lethal Verb List

You see both good and evil in life. You are encouraged to be good but...don't be ignorant of the evil elements. Wan was browsing the archives of historical personalities and stumbled across the murderous episode of J.W.W.Birch and the Malay Chieftains of Perak

I must say the whole affair boils down to a verb list of lethal acts...sigh!

Tetak	To pierce with arrow
Libas	To stab with weapon of your choice
Cencang	To attack with a machete
Pancung	To asphyxiate
Memanah	To choke
Menggantung	Decapitate
Melembing	To shoot with a gun
Tikam	To hang
Meracun	To pierce with spear
Melemaskan	To bomb
Bunuh	To cast a spell
Mencekik	To kill
Menembak	To cut into small pieces
Mengebom	To poison
Mengenakan sihir	Slash

Oh, you might notice you need to match the Bahasa Malaysia verb list with their respective meanings. Exercise your brain a bit and you know as usual there's the answers at the bottom of this web page. Back to our story...

He Knew They Were Coming

J.W.W.Birch foiled a plot to poison him at the end of 1874. A Malay woman hired as his cook added poison to his food. I had no idea how Birch found out about it. After this incident, Birch dismissed all Malay workers. He appointed Britons assisted by Sikhs instead. Not less than seven assassination attempts were recorded between 1874-1875 until Birch was killed in Pasir Salak.

Dato' Maharaja Lela

Actually Dato' Maharaja Lela wasn't his name. Dato' Maharaja Lela was a post in the Perak royal court believed to be created since the time of Sultan Shahabuddin ( 1830 - 1851 ). The first chief to hold this post was from Kedah and his name was Tuk Pati. The 6th Maharaja Lela's name was Pandak Lam bin Lela Tuk Maulud whom the British hanged for spearing Birch.

The British paid money and food supplies to some Malays in Pasir Salak to betray this Dato' Maharaja Lela to Frank Swettenham and Captain Speedy, the Police Chief of Larut. The British burnt Dato' Maharaja Lela's home, forcing him to retreat and led the life of a fugitive until he surrendered himself to them --and subsequently to his death by the noose.

Bahasa Malaysia Note: Maharajalela is the chief executioner of a Sultan, his job is to chop heads! Bermaharajalela is a person who does whatever that pleases himself regardless of the law Both definitions are according to Kamus Dewan. Gambar: Perempuan bermaharajalela di rumah. Can you think of a word from the verb list that fits this situation? :-) In the Spirit of Nationalism? Is it true that Dato' Maharaja Lela and his company initiated the noble fight against colonialism? I bet Birch's death is equally heroic to the English side. School textbooks said that Birch lost his life for disrespecting Malay customs and traditions. However, there is another version: Dato' Maharaja Lela was involved in slave trade. Birch abolished slave trade and cut off his income. Then there is this story of Birch keeping women slaves in his house. Whatever the reasons buried in history, the fact was, hatred between these two men culminated to murder and bloodshed. Wan's little brain wonders though: Why Birch's enemies never resort to going to a bomoh to put maggots or needles in his body, this way, no one ever finds out. Evil chuckle* Answers to the Lethallll Verb List Tetak=To attack with a machete|Libas=To slash, with a machete usually this happens in Malaysia|Cencang=To cut into small pieces|Pancung=decapitate|Memanah=To pierce with arrow|Menggantung=To hang|Melembing= To pierce with spear|Tikam=To stab|Meracun=To poison|Melemaskan=To asphyxiate|Bunuh=To kill|Mencekik=To choke|Menembak=To shoot with a gun|Mengebom=To bomb|Mengenakan sihir= To cast a spell Top of Lethal Verb List Back to Crash Course Homepage