The Early Promise of Penang Pepper
By Dato' Dr. Ooi Kee Beng
December 2018 WINDOW INTO HISTORY
In A Short Account of the Settlement, Produce, and Commerce, of Prince of Wales Island, in the Straits of Malacca, written by Sir George Leith, 2nd Baronet (1766-January 25, 1842), and published in London in 1804 are some interesting notes about the importance of pepper to the newly founded colony (see pp. 49-50). Sir George was the first Lieutenant-Governor of Prince of Wales Island (1800-1803), and it was he who successfully negotiated with the Sultan of Kedah for the cession...
Dato' Dr. Ooi Kee Beng
is the Executive Director of Penang Institute. His latest book is Signals in the Noise: Notes on Penang, Malaysia and the World (Singapore: Faction Press) Homepage: wikibeng.com.
