119 



9. Labour Enactment I9II. 



The Secretary reads the following correspondence : 



Kuala Lumpur, 



6th February, 1912. 



H. E. Sir Arthur Young, K.C.M.c, High Comm., F.M.S. 



Singapore. 

 Your Excellency, 



I have the honour to inform Your Excellency that at a Meeting of 

 this Association held on January 7th the following resolution was 

 unanimously passed : 



" That this Association strongly deprecates the precipitancy 

 with which the Labour Enactment 1911 was passed through the 

 Federal Council". 



I have the honour to enclose copy of our Minutes and to refer 

 Your Excellency to Section 9. 



I have etc., 

 (Sd.) H. C. E. ZACHARL\S, 



Secretary. 



Misc. 179-1912. Singapore, 



The Secretary, 2nd March, 1912. 



Planters' Association of Malaya, 



Kuala Lumpur. 



Sir, — I have the honour to acknowledge receipt of your letter of 

 6th February and to inform you that the delay in replying thereto is 

 due to His Excellency the High Commissioner's desire to send you a 

 copy of the Minutes of the Federal Council. This copy has only just 

 been received and is forwarded herewith, ^v. Appendix.) 



2. I am to say that His Excellency is confident that on a peru- 

 sal of these Minutes those members who considered that the Govern- 

 ment passed this bill after pecfunctory deliberation or who thought 

 that the provisions of the bill were too drastic will agree that the 

 measure was one which in the circumstances it was necessary to 

 carry out not only in the interests of the coolies themselves but also 

 in the interests of the whole planting community. 



3. I am to add that it is the firm conviction of His Excellency 

 that if the condition of the labourers on this estate had been brought 

 to the notice of the Indian Government and if no efficient action had 

 been taken by the Federated Malay States Government to remedy 

 the state of affairs it might have led to the Indian Government seri- 

 ously considering whether restrictions should not be placed on the 

 immigration of coolies into the Federated Malay States. 



I have etc., 

 (Sd.) H. MARRIOTT, 

 Secretary to Hiuh Commissioner for the Malay States. 



