38 



had to be consulted in some form or other the position of govern- 

 ment would be strengthened; the public would be given the security 

 it has a right to demand and it is more than probable that in most 

 cases a resort to extreme measures would be rendered unnecessary 

 by the pressure which might in this way be brought to bear. Some 

 such machinery would have been elaborated, I feel sure, had even 48 

 hours been allowed on deliberation: and that this could not have 

 been granted, it is impossible to believe, seeing that eight days were 

 allowed to elapse before the powers conferred were made use of 

 I move "that this Association strongly deprecates the precipitancy 

 with wliich the Labour Enactment, 1911, was passed through Federal 

 Council." 



The Chairman thinks every member of that Association would 

 have voted for the Bill after having heard the guarantee ol the 

 Government, who were about to redraft the Bill. The conditions of 

 the Tamil labour force on the estate referred to were an absolute 

 disgrace. All the unofficial members of the council objected to the 

 procedure, but it was felt it was not right to vote against the 

 measure after receiving the Government's guarantee that the enact- 

 ment would only be applied to one group of estates, and that a fresh 

 Bill would be submitted to them at the next Federal Council. He 

 felt confident from what Sir Arthur Young and the Chief Secretary 

 to Government had said that they had every intention of consulting 

 the planting community on the steps they proposed to take in this 

 direction in future. 



Mr. Gibson regarded the Government's actions from another 

 standpoint. If this Enactment went home, the man in the street, 

 who had invested his money and did not know exactly the position 

 or conditions of the country where his investmen was, but got to know 

 the Government of that country could turn round and take away the 

 labour of the estates he had invested his money in, it might be the 

 means of bringing about a panic and doing tremendous harm to the 

 rubber industry. Those were the far reaching effects of such an 

 action on the part of the Government and it was ihe bounden duty of 

 the Association to impress on the Government that such high- 

 handed legislation was intolerable. 



He had great pleasure in seconding Mr. Macfadyen's motion. 



Mr. Macfadyen's motion is then put to the meeting and carried 

 unanimously. 



10. Honorary Members. 



The Secretary reports that Mr. A. C. Corbetta has applied for 

 Honorary Membership and explains that the present rules do not 

 provide for this. 



Mr. F. G. Harvey proposes. Mr. A. J. Fox seconds, and it is 

 agreed to, that a new rule to that effect be drafted and submitted 

 to the forthcoming Annual General Meeting. 



