El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-03-05

| state connected with them and there
! are separate offices for the secretary
| of Chinese affairs, for lands, mines,
| revenue, treasury and public works
! The English clerks number several
! hundred, and in addition there are
other foreigners engaged in mining
and exporting
The town has a park, a native bazaar
| and a gambling farm licensed by the
state. The British claim that the Chi
nese will gamble anyhow, anG that the
| best way to restrict the vice and TO
make money out OF it is TO tax it.
Gambling and Opium.
Sir Frank Swettennam, who was the
| resident general of the country for a
| long while, claims that the gambling
| habit is ineradicable among both Malays
| and Chinese, and that it would take one
| policeman to every Chinese to stop it.
| He says the Malay rulers object to hav-
| ing public gam bling forbidden, and that
| they refuse to give up the revenues
| which come from it. According to law,
| gambling is now licensed only in places
and in buildings approved by the police,
| and that within certain hours 1t is
provided that it must be for ready
money and in the halls open to all. The
players are nearly all miners. me
men who own the gambling houses aid
In the suppression of lotteries.
The opium curse is handled in about
the same way as the gambling. 1t is
farmed out to the highest bidder and
he alone has the right TO deal in raw
opium and to make 1t into the chandu
in which it is used for smoking With
the consent of the government he gives
out licenses for the sale of this stuff
and sells it at the price fixed by his
contract. A chest of Indian opium
costs about $3.50 and upward. When
ii is turned into chandu it is worth
$500 and perhaps $4,000 So, you see,
there is a big profit in the business.
The selling of liquors is farmed out the
same way, as is also pawnbroking- 1t
may be questionable whether such
things are creditable to Christian gov
eminent. They seem a blot on the
British administration, which is other
wise almost beyond criticism.
States without Debts.
These fedora ted states are among the
few colonies of the world which have
no public debt. They take in more than
they spend every year and none OF
them owes a cent The revenue of
Perak amounts to something like 49,
100000 and its expenditures are less
than ten millions. Selangor takes
in over ten millions per annum and
il costs only about seven millions TO
run the state Nigri Sambilan has re-
ceipts of S2,200.OO0 and spends about
two millions. The only state which
runs at all behind is Pahang, and ii is
yet on the edge of its development.
The governments are managed for the
people and the money raised goes back
20 them
The new railways are almost self
supporting. Their receipts last year
were S5,2OO,0OO and their expenditures
just about one hundred thousand dollars
more. This, in connection with the new
tracks which are building and the fact
that railroads are practically new 10
the country, is surprising. The GUS
toms receipts last year brought in over
twelve million dollars and licenses al
most five millions, the latter being
largely made up from gambling, opium,
and pawnbroking receipts The gov
eminent spent last year over five
million dollars on public works, and it
IS encoura Eing the development Of the
country along the lines of agriculture.
In all the colonies plantations are be-
ing set out and large agricultural es-
tates started. L have before me list
of those now under operation in Sc
Iangor. They embrace such crops :
rubber, coffee, cOcOanuts. cloves and
pepper, and they are largely owned by
syndicates and other associations. Many
of the estates are of a thousand acres,
and some OF ten thousand and twenty
thousand each
Among the chief crops of the Malays
are rice and cocoanuts. The Chinese
grow sugar and the government has
started pepper plantations. and there
are many good pepper farms. The
British have also introduced silk worms
and have expended large sums on the
Introduction of Arabian coffee, rubber
and tea, as well as cinchOna. The GIN
chona failed. but the tea and coffee
succeeded, and eventually plantations or
this kind will be set out. l have al
ready written as TO rubber Many of .
the new plantations are of para trees,
which begin to yield a profit of 800 per
acre per annum at seven years anu
which should produce 5000 per acre al
If years. II is estimated that when the
trees are 90 years old the profits VIII
be $3.50 per acre Per annum. The trees
grow well and yield abundantly- At II
years old one recently gave % pounds
of rubber at a single tapping That |
tree was 80 feet high, and at three feet
from the ground it had girth or IS
feet.
At present the planters find II hard !
TO get laborers. The Malays are MOI |
anxious 20 work the Chinese are !
go to India to find wOrkmen for the !
plantations. These are brought here III /
large numbers, and seem to thrive.
The DrOnes of the Orient.
Indeed. l doubt whether any clVlllZa- !
ton viii make the fuli-bloOded Malay
an industrious man. This is true OF the |
Philippines, and you Will find few steady |
workers among the Malays of the Straits |
Settlements or the Dutch East lndleS- |
These people do not believe in laying up |
money where moth and rust VIII cor
rupt. They want only enough to support !
life to dress in good style and to give
feast when their children are marrleu-
Their needs are few and when suppIleo
they lay off until want comes. Some OF
the rulers tell me they cannot get ther
own subjects TO work their plantations
and the sultan of JohOre. who governs
the state on the mainland opposite SIN
gapore, says that ne has TO get Chlhese
coolies to do his work, for his own men
will not labor.
How the Malays Live.
have visited some of the Malay VII
lagos. Their houses are scattered ABOUT
under the trees near the roads. They are
nSnal1v hrrtc al I fol SOuHTo, W3UR |