80 RUBBER 



is a " kangany," an enterprising native who serves 

 the planter in the double role of recruiting sergeant 

 and overseer. He makes periodical journeys to India 

 to arrange for new batches of Tamils to emigrate to 

 the rubber-growing districts ; he brings his recruits 

 to the particular district which is his headquarters, 

 and sees them settled on this estate or that ; and until 

 he is again wanted to go off recruiting, he joins the staff 

 of some plantation, and takes up the duties of teaching 

 the new hands their work, and of seeing that a certain 

 gang of the old ones are kept up to the mark. 



Evidently the kangany overseers cannot be wholly 

 relied on as teachers. For the one over yonder, who 

 is showing a little Tamil girl how to tap a rubber-tree, 

 has a white man standing by his side and superintending 

 the lesson. 



By about eleven o'clock most of the trees are ceasing 

 for this day to yield milk. The coolies now make their 

 rounds again for the pui-pose of collecting the day's 

 supply. The contents of the little cups are poured 

 into pails and cans, which, as they are filled, are taken 

 to the factory. Some of the carriers balance their 

 load on their head, others hang a vessel at either end 

 of a pole, scale-fashion, and balance the burden on 

 one shoulder. 



CHAPTER XVII 



WE VISIT A RAW-RUBBER FACTORY 



It is time for us, too, to leave the plantation, since 

 we want to see the milk made into rubber. A short 

 walk brings us to one of the Linggi factories, which 

 is the rubber-making centre for a neighbouring portion 



