64 



often the coalks are paid) cash at the end of each day's 

 work — a feature which many planters in Ceylon might 

 ponder over. 



My view is that Java has a labour force which for 

 numbers cannot be beaten. It is also cheap in the 

 majority of the planting districts. If ever the pinch for 

 labour is felt, when all the present planted acreages are 

 in bearing, Java will be one of the last islands in the East 

 to suffer; Malay, Sumatra and Borneo will feel the want 

 of labour much more than Java, or even Ceylon. 



Land and Soil. 



Everybody knows how fertile the soil of Java is. Its 

 richness is due mainly to its volcanic origin. The ranges 

 of volcanic hills are very conspicuous in the Kederi and 

 Pasoeroean Residencies. Some of the old volcanoes are 

 rugged and steep, whilst others have a gentle slope many 

 miles in length. They formed the interesting feature of 

 the country in most of the districts I passed through. 

 There are several well-known companies who have their 

 estates along the sides of volcanic mountains. Their crops 

 are good, and dividends high. In contrast with these 

 are the estates in the Langen district, where 

 rubber is planted on land as flat as a billiard table. 

 Most of the rubber estates are planted on gently undu- 

 lating or flat land. The water level is usually many yard's 

 below the surface, and in this respect differs from Malaya. 

 I have only seen two estates which for their steep slopes 

 approach much of the rubber land in Ceylon. The Java 

 rubber estates I have seen are notable for the absence of 

 stony, rocky slopes, such as one meets with in Ceylon; 

 and for the scarcity of swamps so abundant in Malay. 



The soil is, almost without exception, of first-class 

 quality. It usually consists of a dark-red, finely divided 

 loam; sometimes light and sandy, at other times a trifle 

 clayey. It is a volcanic soil on which luxuriant vegeta- 

 tion has been grown for many years. Physically -it is 

 often perfect, and chemically nearly so. I have not yet 

 met its equal in Ceylon or Malay. Java has every reason 

 to feel satisfied with its labour and soil conditions; on 

 these two features rests the prosperity of most agricul- 

 tural developments. 



