124 
o 
Mr. Gibson says he was convinced that the question he had 
raised was one of great importance. Coolies that were being re- 
cruited by kanganies for estates paying small advances were not 
reaching these estates. Some planters had been trying to keep down 
advances to the ordinary rate of about Rs. 10, but other Superinten- 
dents were giving their kanganies Rs. 20, Rs. 30 and even Rs. 40. 
The result was that when the coolies recruited up country on the low 
advances were brought to the depots in India they were simply 
bought up by the kanganies who were paid bigger advances and who 
stuck at the depot doing no real recruiting on their own account. 
There were many evils arising out of this Coolies came down from 
the villages believing that they were going to rejoin friends on par- 
ticular estates, but, being transferred to another kangany, not the 
original recruiter, found themselves on different and often remotely 
situated estates. That conduced to a great amount of dissatisfaction. 
If the Immigration Department fixed a uniform rate, some of the 
represent anomalies would be removed. He recognised that there 
were objections to extended powers being given to the Department 
but this course was the lesser evil and would tend to improve the 
conditions of recruiting. The present system did not add an addi- 
tional coolie to the labour forces of the Country, but it demoralised 
the kanganies and put money in their hands which might be better 
devoted to other purposes. The time had come for controlling the 
advances in some way, 
Mr. Skinner agrees that advances should be kept down, but he 
thought it rather early to ask for legislation. Latterly a certain 
number of recruiters’ licences had been stopped in India because the 
kanganies had been discovered buying coolies from others. Power 
was given to the Immigration Committee, on finding such a thing 
going on, to caneel the licence. But the kangany thus treated often 
did not care : he simply went to another licensed kangany and work- 
ed the business through him, the coolies coming over under the 
latter’s protection. Further steps had been taken to deal with this 
move on the part of the kanganies and it was advisable to see how the 
new system operated to stop the buyers of coolies before advocating 
fresh legislation. 
Mr. Gibson was glad to get this information and was quite pre- 
pared to leave the matter in abeyance for a time, seeing that the 
Immigration Committee were awake to the evils to which he had 
drawn attention. 
14. Indian Labour. 
DISCHARGE OF COOLIES. 
Mr. W. G. Dobson reads the following opinion given by him on 
the point raised at the last Meeting: 
'‘As we understand it, the point on which our opinion is des- 
ired is as to whether the Superintendents of Immigrants can 
require an employer to discharge a coolie provided a month’s 
