The death of the usurper opened the way to his nephew's possession of the throne. It was in this reign that the barriers which had divided Europe from the Kingdom of Siam were broken down. The welcome that Chao Narai extended to foreigners, drew them from all parts of the world in the hopes of gaining wealth which in reality did not exist or which at least had been much exaggerated by the reports of untrustworthy travellers. This Prince, endowed by nature with all the qualifications necessary for kingship would have been the creator of this nation, had not the intractable nature of his subjects been opposed to all the good he wished to do for them. They however invariably preferred the old customs to useful innovations. Abuses founded on prejudice and custom are rarely capable of being reformed. Chao, desirous of glory, and carried away by his energetic nature did not, like other Kings of the Indies, seclude himself in the gloom of a harem, there to grow weak in debauch and to forget his duties. His throne shaken by the turbulence of the nobles needed a firm hand to keep it secure. His first victories were those over his subjects, and all premonitory symptoms of internal dissensions were promptly repressed by the death of the rebels. Though naturally of a kindly disposition yet severe in his methods of government, he clearly understood that it was always necessary to be ready for all emergencies when dealing with a people who were ready to renounce their allegiance if not intimidated by fear. A chief priest, proud of his authority took upon himself the onus of reading him a lecture. He dared to tell the King that the whole nation was grumbling in secret at his great severity. The Prince listened to what he had to say without appearing to be annoyed by his indiscretion. Some days later in order to make him see the folly of his remarks, the King sent a monkey (an animal which is intensely disliked by the Siamese) to the priest and told him to take great care of it and to let it play about without hindrance.