116 MR H. MEAD ON THE 



and of the facilities for collecting them ; and lastly, the knowledge of the 

 merchant was requisite, as to the value of the articles in the world's 

 markets. Those chief obstacles in the way of forming right conclusions 

 were enchanced, in the case of Ceylon, by the incorrigible idleness of the 

 Singhalese population. Their knowledge of jungle growths was ex- 

 traordinary ; and if they would only turn it to account, their incomes 

 would be largely increased. Oils and gums, which abounded, were always 

 saleable even in small quantities, but they would not take the trouble to 

 gather them. Their condition was that happy state as pictured by certain 

 writers, where each man raised his own food and sat under the shade of 

 his own trees. They were not troubled with the hatreds of religion, the 

 passion of politics, or the disturbing influence of literature. They had 

 faith only in the utility of cock-fighting, and the pleasures of the grog- 

 shop. In those localities where they formed the sole population, it was 

 idle to attempt the development of forest resources. 



The impulse and the power to open up new fields of industry must 

 come from the European, and it was a painful but curious study to note 

 the character and consequences of the numerous efforts which had 

 already been made in that direction. When one thought of the docility 

 of Eastern races, their ingenuity and cheapness as workmen, the almost 

 total absence of machinery, and the paucity of capital amongst them, it 

 seemed impossible to adopt any other conclusion than this — that the wealth, 

 the energy, and the mechanical skill of our countrymen must of necessity 

 achieve a brilliant success. Yet scores of enterprises, starting with every 

 apparent advantage in their favour, had failed, and that so utterly, that if a 

 balance coidd be struck between the fortunes lost and fortunes won in the 

 East, it was doubtful which would outweigh the other. In all such cases 

 there was some element needful to prosperity wanting, which no one had 

 thought of, and the absence of which was fatal. It was of the utmost im- 

 portance that the nature of these chronic defeats should be examined, and 

 laid bare, so as to deter such speculations for the future. 



Mr Mead proceeded to illustrate the position of foreign industrial 

 enterprise in the East. Whenever machinery took the place of manual 

 labour, the work was done quicker and better ; but these advantages were 

 •often found not sufficient to compensate for the cost entailed in purchasing 

 expensive plant and maintaining skilled workmen in all seasons. The 

 manufacture of coco-nut fibre and coco-nut oil were examples in point. 

 The native methods of producing both were the simplest imaginable. 

 Women and children buried the husks of the nut in water or mud ; and 

 when the pulp was thoroughly decomposed, they dug them up and beat 

 out the fibre with a few blows given with a stick. Where ordinary atten- 

 tion was paid, the product was scarcely inferior to that of the fibre 

 machines, and would realise nearly the same price at home, whilst the cost 

 of making it bore no comparison to the expense entailed in producing 

 the same quantity by machinery. In the case of oil-making there was no 

 comparison between the working power of the checkoo, and that of the 



