372 



No. P. 15/396. 



Negapatam, 13th March, 1909. 

 The Superintendent of Immigrants, 



f. m. s;, 



Penang. 



Sir, — We have the honour to acknowledge receipt of 

 your No. P.0.L. 270/09 of 3rd instant and note that the 

 possibility of reducing the initial cost to employers in the 

 Federated Malay States of recruiting labourers by means 

 of Kanganies in India has recently engaged the attention 

 of the Immigration Committee. 



2. We are surprised to hear that the scale of charges 

 for the services we rendered to Planters has been made the 

 subject of some comment as your letter under reply is the 

 first we have heard of it. 



3. The charges are as enumerated by you. 



-L We cannot at all agree with you that these services 

 do not differ in any considerable degree from those of an 

 agent to a commercial undertaking. 



The work we do for the planters cannot in any way be 

 compared with ordinary agency services. They are on an 

 entirely different plane and involve a great amount of work, 

 which does not appear on the surface, but which has had the 

 result of building up to the position it now occupies, the 

 Kangany labour force in the F. M. S. and Straits Settle- 

 ments, and we must say we consider it a little unfair to us 

 after the exertions we have made in this direction to wish to 

 reduce our remuneration. 



5. We are glad to know that there is no disposition to 

 criticise the manner in which our services to the Planters 

 are carried out but are very much surprised to learn that 

 there appears to be a feeling that the work could and should 

 be done on other terms. 



When the present scale of charges was fixed they were 

 fully explained to all the Planters with whom we have deal- 

 ings and one and all unhesitatingly agreed to them, and the 

 question of reducing these charges has never been raised 

 by the Planters. On the other hand we have many letters 

 from Planters thanking us for the attention we give to their 

 interests. 



We have, etc., 

 (Sgd.) Madura Co., Ltd. 



