THE STRAITS SETTLEMENTS.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1682, 25 May 1904, Page 80 (Supplement)

THE STRAITS SETTLEMENTS.

CHINESE DOMINATE EVERY INDUSTRY.

When the opinions of Sir Alexander Swettenham, of the Straits Settlements, upon Australian intervention in connection with the importation of Chinese to the Transvaal were cabled to Australia it was not generally known how terrible an economic revolution the yellow man had wrought in the affairs of the colony over whose destinies the pro-consul once presided. Those who read his denunciations of the attempt of the people of the Commonwealth to save South Africa as a whole, and particularly the Band, from being overrun by the Chinese little knew how entirely the Malay Peninsula is at the mercy of Ah Sin. The veil has, however, been torn away by a correspondent of the London “Morning Leader" in the following account of the situation in the Straits Set-tlexnents-i

The Crown colony of the Straits .Settlements provides an object lesson which aptly illustrates how the Chinaman can spread himself once he is admitted into a country unrestricted. The Settlement of Singapore was founded in the year 1819; that of Penang some years earlier, and in both instances the Chinose were at once freely admitted into the colony, at that time peopled only by a few Malay fisher-folk. The country was greatly in need of development. The Chinaman was invited, and he came in, at first in hundreds, later in thousands, and now at the rate of over 200,000 yearly. Ho has not confined himself to Singapore and Penang. He is as firmly istablished in Malacca, the Bindings and the Federated Malay States; in fact, he lias overrun the whole of the Malay Peninsula. The first Chinese settlers were poor, ignorant coolies, men of the lowest classes in China, who landed in herds, like gangs of unfettered slaves. They were set to work on the land, tilling the soil for the production of ganibier, sago, tapioca and fruits; in cocoanut plantations, in the jungle, clearing, and collecting gutta, rattans and other valuable jungle produce. Then came the discovery of tin, in paying quantities, in many parts, and in their thousands they were sent down into the mines to extract the rich tin ore. All this they did willingly, and by those ra authority it was thought that they would always be content to remain “hewers of wood and drawers of water.” But the Chinaman laughed up his sleeve, and set himself to save and accumulate capital against a time when he might blossom forth as a trader on his own account. True, the pay he received was poor, but a Chinaman waxes fat on food that would not keep a dog alive in this country, and he managed to save, cent by cent, until at length, in each of his callings, he was enabled to redeean himself from servitude and to start in business for himself.

There sprang up a class or small Chinese traders, agriculturists, and tin mine owners, and whilst Europeans lost fortunes in the Jand, the Chinese made them. After a score of years or so, Chinamen, now merchant princes, holders of large shipping and mining interests, and owners or enormous plantations, no longer content with a subsidiary position in the land, built for themselves palatial houses in the heart of the select European residential district, kept racehorses, sported broughams, with unsightly armorial bearings, and maintained liveried coachmen and footmen. Formerly they had been content to do business through intermediary European firms; now they sent their orders direct, chartered their own line of steamers, outright, and sailed them under their own house-flags! They obtained control of the liquor, spirit and opium farms—to their great delight. They secured all the large labour contracts, Government and private.

In both Singapore and Penang it is a hopeless struggle for the British merchant who seeks to establish a new business of practically any sort, unless he Bubmits to terms dictated to him by Chinamen. If he endeavours to enter into competition with Chinese merchants he may as well shut up shop to-morrow; if he enters into a compromise the Chinaman takes good care to reduce the margin of profit to the minimum. In the matter of land and house property, all the best building sites are in the hands of the Chinese, who are allowed by an inert Government to erect their hideous “shop houses”—i.e., half shop, half house —in any choice spots which, happen to strike their particular fancies. Many of the most desirable bungalows and villas are owned by Chinese landlords, whose rapacity would excite the compassion of a slum owner. When the Chinaman entered the Straits Settlements he brought a host of vims with him. Inveterate gamblers, the vain attempt to repress the gambling evil costs the Government a large sum annually. Hardened opium smokers, this vice has been liberally pandered to. As for sanitation, the word is unknown among the lower orders of Chinese. Serious riots have occurred on many occasions owing, to the enforcement by the authorities or the most simple sanitary regulations. It is onlv by playing oft' one class against the other,* Ilailam against liokkien, Klen against Cantonese and Tischeu against Macau, that the authorities are able to hold them partly in check. Of other vices we need not speak. They are known in Australia, in California, wherever the yellow emigrant has set his foot.