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SINGAPORE (Malay, Singapiira, i.e. " ...

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Originally appearing in Volume V25, Page 148 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.
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SINGAPORE (See also:Malay, Singapiira, i.e. " The See also:City of the See also:Lion") , a See also:town and See also:island situated at the S. extremity of the Malay See also:Peninsula in 1° 20' N., 103° 50' E. Singapore is the Singapore most important See also:part of the See also:crown See also:colony of the Straits town. Settlements, which consists with it of See also:Penang, See also:Province See also:Wellesley and the Dindings, and Malacca. The See also:port is one of the most valuable of the See also:minor possessions of See also:Great See also:Britain, as it lies midway between See also:India and See also:China, and thus forms the most important halting-See also:place on the great trading-route to the Far See also:East. It is strongly fortified by forts and guns of See also:modern type upon which large sums have been expended by the imperial See also:government, aided by a heavy See also:annual military contribution payable by the colony and fixed at 20% o of its See also:gross See also:revenue. Its See also:geographical position gives it strategic value as a See also:naval See also:base; and as a commercial centre it is without a See also:rival in this part of See also:Asia. Its prosperity has been greatly enhanced by the rapid development of the Federated Malay States on the mainland. It possesses a See also:good See also:harbour; docks and extensive coaling-wharves, which have been acquired by government from the Tanjong Pagar See also:Dock See also:Company, and are undergoing considerable extensions; an See also:admiralty dockyard; and many facilities for See also:shipping. It is also resorted to by native sailing See also:craft from all parts of the Malay See also:Archipelago. On the island of Palau Brani stand the largest See also:tin-smelting See also:works in existence, which for many years have annually passed through their furnaces more than See also:half the See also:total tin output of the See also:world. Singapore has also establishments for tinning pineapples, and a large See also:biscuit factory.

The town possesses few buildings of any See also:

note, but governmenthouse, the See also:law-courts, the See also:gaol, the lunatic See also:asylum and the Hong-See also:Kong and See also:Shanghai See also:Bank are exceptions, as also is the See also:cathedral of St See also:Andrew. There are three See also:Roman See also:Catholic churches, a See also:Free See also:Kirk, an See also:American See also:mission, and several chapels belonging to See also:Nonconformist sects. The mosques and See also:Chinese and See also:Hindu temples are numerous. There are extensive military See also:barracks at Tanglin. There is a good See also:race-course and See also:polo-ground, a See also:fine See also:cricket-ground on the esplanade, three See also:golf courses, and several clubs. The island is 27 M. See also:long by 14 M. broad, and is separated from the native See also:state of See also:Johor, situated on the mainland of the Malay Peninsula, by a strait which, at its narrowest point, is less than 1 m. in width. A See also:line of railway connects the is/ slagaandpore 2 town of Singapore with the spot on the strait opposite to the town of Johor Bharu. The strait which divides the island from the Dutch islands of Bintang, Rhin, &c., bears the name of the Singapore Strait. The See also:surface of the island is undulating and diversified by See also:low hills, the highest point being Bukit Timah, on the N.W. of the town, which is a little over 500 ft. in See also:altitude. Geologically, the core of the island consists of crystalline rocksl but in the W. there are shales, conglomerates and sandstones; and all See also:round the island the valleys are filled with alluvial deposits on a much more extensive See also:scale than might have been looked for seeing that no See also:river in the island has a course longer than some 6 m. The S.W. shores are fringed with See also:coral reefs, and living coral See also:fields are found in many parts of the straits. Being composed largely of red See also:clays and See also:laterite, the See also:soil is not generally See also:rich, and calls for the patient cultivation of the Chinese gardener to make it really productive.

There is a See also:

forest reserve near the centre of the island, but the forest is of a mean type. The humid See also:climate causes the foliage here, as in other parts of Malaya, to be very luxuriant, and the contrast presented by the See also:bright See also:green on every See also:side and the rich red laterite of the roads is striking, When it was first occupied by See also:Sir See also:Stanford See also:Raffles, on behalf of the East India Company, the island was covered by See also:jungle, but now all the See also:land not reserved by government has been taken up, principally by Chinese, who plant vegetables in large quantities, See also:indigo and other tropical products. There are fine botanical gardens at Tanglin on the outskirts of the town. Climate.—The climate of Singapore is always humid and usually very hot. There is hardly any seasonal See also:change to be observed, and the dampness of the climate causes the See also:heat to be more oppressive than are higher temperatures in drier climates. The mean atmospheric pressure in Singapore during 1906 was 29.908 in. The highest shade temperature for the See also:year was 92° F. registered in See also:March; the lowest 72.5° F., registered in See also:November. The mean was 80.3° F. The range for the year was 14.5° F. The temperature of See also:solar See also:radiation was in 1906: highest in the See also:sun 153.8°, recorded in March; the lowest 143.4°, recorded in See also:June. The highest temperature of nocturnal radiation on grass was 73.1°, recorded in May, and the lowest 67.2°, recorded in See also:January. The mean for 1906 was 71 °.

Relative humidity: highest 92, recorded in See also:

December; lowest, 72, recorded in See also:April; mean for 1906, 81. N. and N.E. winds prevail from the See also:middle of See also:October to the end of April, and S. and S.W. winds from the middle of May to the end of See also:September. The mean velocity of winds for 1906 was no m.; the maximum recorded being 148 in May, the minimum velocity recorded being 76 in December. The rainfall of Singapore for 1906 was 129.64 in.; the heaviest rainfall for any one See also:month being 15.23 in. recorded in January, the smallest being 4.98 in. recorded in May. There were 182 See also:rainy days during the year, the See also:average annual number of the past See also:decade being 176. See also:Population.—The following shows the See also:composition of the population, which numbered in all 228,555 in 1901: Europeans 3824, Eurasians 4120, Chinese 164,041, See also:Malays 36,080, See also:Indians, 17,823, other nationalities 2667. The births registered in Singapore during 1898 numbered 3751, namely, 196o See also:males and 1791 See also:females, being a ratio of 16.55 per mille. The deaths registered during the same See also:period numbered 7602, namely, 5894 males and 1708 females, a ratio of 33.54 per mille. The excess of deaths over births is due to the fact that there are comparatively few See also:women among the Chinese; the steady increase of the population in the See also:face of this fact is to be attributed entirely to See also:immigration, mainly from China, but to a minor extent from India also. The persons classed above under " other nationalities " are representatives of almost every See also:Asiatic nation of importance, and of many See also:African races, Singapore being one of the most See also:cosmopolitan cities in the world. See also:Administration and See also:Trade.—As Singapore is the See also:chief administrative centre of the colony, the See also:governor, who is also ex officio high See also:commissioner of the Federated Malay States, See also:British See also:North See also:Borneo, See also:Brunei, See also:Sarawak and governor of See also:Labuan, has his See also:principal See also:residence here. Here also are chief offices of the various heads of the government departments, and here the legislative See also:council of the colony holds its sessions.

The town is governed by a See also:

municipality composed partly of ex officio, nominated and elected members. See also:Finance.—The revenue of Singapore for 1906 amounted to $5,942,661, exclusive of $26,65o received on See also:account of land sales. The chief See also:sources of revenue were licences (which include the farms let for the collection of import duties in See also:opium, See also:wine and See also:spirits) $4,248,856, nearly half the revenue of the See also:settlement; See also:post and telegraphs $424,645; railway receipts $196,683; and land revenue $I04,482. The See also:expenditure of the settlement during 1906 amounted to $5,392,380. Of this $1,416,392 was expended on See also:personal emoluments, and $1,116,548 on other charges connected with the administrative establishments; $1,763,488 was spent on military services, exclusive of expenses connected with the volunteer force; $183,075 on the upkeep and See also:maintenance of existing public works; and $569,884 on new public works. Trade.—The trade of Singapore is chiefly dependent upon the position which the port occupies as the principal See also:emporium of the Federated Malay States and of the Malayan archipelago, and as the great port of See also:call for See also:ships passing to and from the Far East, The total value of the imports into Singapore in 1906 was $234,701,760, and the exports in the same year were valued at $202,210,849. The ships using the port during 1906 numbered 1886 with an aggregate See also:tonnage of 3,805,566 tons, of which 1261 were British with an aggregate tonnage of 2,498,968 tons. The See also:retail trade of the place is largely in the hands of Chinese, See also:Indian and Arab traders, but there are some good See also:European stores. The port is a free port, import duties being payable only on opium, wines and spirits. See also:History.—A tradition is extant to the effect that Singapore was an important trading centre in the 12th and 13th centuries, but neither Marco Polo nor See also:Ibn Batuta, both of whom wintered in See also:Sumatra on their way back to See also:Europe from China, have See also:left anything on See also:record confirmatory of this. It is said to have been attacked and devastated by the Javanese in 1252, and at the See also:time when it passed by treaty to the East India Company in 1819, Sir See also:Stamford Raffles persuading the See also:sultan and tumenggong of Johor to cede it to him, it was wholly uninhabited See also:save by a few fisherfolk living along its shores. It was at first subordinate to Benkulen, the company's principal station in Sumatra, but in 1823 it was placed under the administraticn of See also:Bengal.

It was incorporated in the colony of the Straits Settlements when that colony was established in 1826. See See also:

Life of Sir Stamford Raffles; See also:Logan's See also:Journal of the Malay Archipelago; the Journal of the Straits See also:Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society (Singapore) ; Sir See also:Frank Swettenham, British Malaya (See also:London, 1906); See also:Blue-See also:Book of the Straits Settlements (1906); The Straits See also:Directory, zpo8 (Singapore, 19o8). (H.

End of Article: SINGAPORE (Malay, Singapiira, i.e. " The City of the Lion")

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