April 1. 19\\.] 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



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Stkam Launch at Plantauo.n Lamum,. 



in Dutch Guiana costs 40 cents a day. This is, of course, 

 the coohe labor, English and Javanese, brought here under the 

 indenture system from India and Java. The English or I'amil 

 coolies are brought in under the familiar tive year inden- 

 ture contract and inake excellent workers, many of them remain- 

 ing at the expiry of their contract as permanent settlers. They are 

 industrious, saving, and become in a small way property owners 

 in a short time. Tliey live simply, contented with rice and cass- 

 ava, never abandoning their native dress of turban, tunic, and 

 loin cloth, regularly spattering the white of the tunic with ma- 

 genta stain during festival seasons. Their women wear the 

 heavy silver bracelets, .anklets, and gold nose rings just as they 

 •do at home. They are wonderfully polite and their dignified 

 Salaam, Solub is very grateful as contrasted with the often stupid 

 stare of the negro who has grown up on the soil. 



The Javanese coolies are also very polite, invariably greeting 

 the stranger with the soft intonation that makes the coolie speech 

 so grateful to the ear. their greeting being Tabu Tuan. Tliey 



are not. however, so desirable either as laborers or colonists as 

 the Tamils. They are perhaps brighter and more active, but have 

 no care for the morrow. The best of them will spend their week- 

 ly wage for one meal and then live on scraps and stolen ban- 

 anas until the next pay day conies around. They are fiercely 

 jealous, and when a neighbor, either black or white, steals one 

 of their women, are quite likely to kill him. These summary ven- 

 geances are often accomplished before the crowd of stolid coolies, 

 who not only will not lift a hand to interfere, but who display a 

 lack of memory on the witness stand that would make an Ameri- 

 can Sugar Trust official green with envy. Aside from this they 

 are very law abiding and the most willing and courteous people 

 in the world. Their indenture system is about the same as that 

 under which the Tamil coolies are employed. 



Close by the city and jutting out into the river is the fine 

 pier of the Balata Co., where there is 26 feet of water at low 

 tide. Back of it are warehouses for balata and supplies and a lit- 

 tle further upstream a miniature shipyard, where the company 

 build their own boats for the river traffic of the interior. To 

 this pier we came one evening, accompanied by the Balata Man 

 and his wife and a high government official and his wife, to 

 view a Javanese coolie festival. The giver of the feast had 

 .secured a great warehouse, reserved a space for the orchestra 

 and dancers, and filled the rest of the space with long tables 

 upon which were displayed viands most esteemed by the Javan- 

 ese. The feast giver also collected from each guest enough 

 money to pay for what he consumed in meat and drink, with a 

 good margin of profit for himself. I believe the charge was 

 about 5 guilders per plate, or two American dollars. 



We arrived in the midst of the feasting. Men only were 

 seated at the tables; the women and children squatted on the 

 ground licliind tlie orchestra and watched the proceedings with 



COdi.lt: (JU.\U 1 l-.K.-i ON .-\ IVPILAL 1>1 ICII (.Li-\N-A J'L.\iv i A i lu.\. 



