THE LABOUR-SUPPLY 55 



abnormally high prices for the provisions and merchan- 

 dise they purchase from the estate store carries very 

 little weight with them, provided they are allowed to 

 obtain what they desire without any restriction of 

 credit. The life appeals to them on account of the 

 freedom from restraint and obligation to regular hours 

 of work. So long as a collector delivers a fair weight 

 of rubber during the month, there is practically no 

 interference with his mode of life, and he can, and does, 

 take holidays whenever he is so inclined, without asking 

 the consent of the employer. The present crisis is 

 changing these conditions in many respects; but the 

 old-established habits are hard to suppress, and it 

 will be some time yet before property owners will be in 

 a position to exact regularity of service from the men 

 they employ. 



For the most part the housing accommodation for 

 the labourers on the rubber properties, especially those 

 situated on the upper rivers, is of a primitive and tem- 

 porary character, and consists of huts with walls of 

 reeds, a floor of split palm stems, and the roof thatched 

 with grass or palm leaves. A man may build a hut for 

 himself if he chooses to do so, but no compensation is 

 allowed for the time occupied for this purpose. No 

 attempt is made to enforce hygienic regulations of any 

 description, with the result that the conditions in the 

 vicinity of these dwellings are always offensive. The 

 labourers are not encouraged to cultivate any plots of 

 land in their spare time, the reason being that any food- 

 stuffs produced would mean a proportionate decrease in 

 the quantity of provisions purchased at the store, and a 

 corresponding loss of profit to the owner. 



