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which ought to help matters considerably. 1 he scheme had been 
adopted unanimously and he would ask the Secretary to read the 
resolution which had been passed. 
The Secretary then read the proposals. 
Sir John Anderson, who was greeted with applause on rising to 
address the meeting, then said that he was very glad to have an 
opportunity of meeting the members of the Planters’ Association of 
Malaya to discuss this matter, because it was recognised as one 
affecting the whole community of the Federated Malay States and the 
Colony. The Government was interested in the question of labour 
for two reasons, not only because the matter was one affecting the 
whole community but also because the Government was itself a large 
employer of labour. Therefore they had to regard the matter from 
two points of view. The resolution which had been read out was one 
which required a very great deal of consideration. It was proposed 
to have a recruiting allowance of $15 per head, but he had been told 
that the average time a cooly stayed in this country was two years, 
therefore, it would be necessary to get back $7.50 pei^ear. Further 
the assessment was based on the day’s work which reduced it to sixty 
cents in the dollar so that it would be necessary to recover not only 
$7.50 but eleven or twelve dollars. He thought that, if the money 
was going to be recovered in the ordinary time a cooly remained in 
the country, it would be necessary to make the assessment very much 
higher. It would be no good making a large loan and then having to 
take some drastic measure to recover it. He had discussed the 
matter with his colleagues, the Residents and the Chief Secretary, and 
they had come to the conclusion that, unless the assessment was in- 
creased beyond $2.50, the scheme would not be feasible. The Tamil 
Immigration Fund, if it was to meet its liabilities, could not pay more 
than $5 recruiting allowance. Where was the other $10 to come from ? 
It was proposed that the Immigration Fund should pay $15 but it 
would only recover two or three dollars and there was the difference 
of $12 to be found somewhere. As far as the Government was con- 
cerned, it would, as an employer, paj r any increased assessment. As 
regards the proposed loan, it must be possible to see a way, sooner or 
later, to replace what had been taken out of the Government’s purse. 
If the Immigration Fund paid $15 he could not see, on the figures sup- 
plied to him of the average stay of coolies in the country and the 
average day’s work performed by the coolies, that it would ever get 
back anything more than $4. There was, however, an alternative 
suggestion, made by the Resident of Negri Sembilan, and he should 
like, with the permission of his audience, to ask Mr. Wilkinson to put 
it before the meeting. 
Mr. Wilkinson, Resident of Negri Sembilan, said that the scheme 
which he was about to delail was one of two alternatives. There 
were two courses open to them. One was to raise the assessment all 
round and use the money to pay bonuses to those who recruited 
jabour. The alternative was not to raise the assessment all round 
