458 
y 
upon all classes of the community and upon all forms of business 
interests. I have the honour to ask Your Excellency to declare the 
Show open. 
Speech by High Commissioned. 
In declaring the Show open, His Excellency the High Commis- 
sioner said that Mr. Beltield had been unkind enough to remind him 
that he had been more than four years in this part of the world, and 
that, in the ordinary course of circumstances his time as High Com- 
missioner was more than half finished. Mr. Beltield had also re- 
minded them that this was the second time the Show had been held 
in Kuala Lumpor, and he was sure that those who saw it would agree 
that the present one showed an enormous advance, not only in the 
number, variety and quality of the exhibits, but also a great advance 
in the manner and method of arrangements which the Committee had 
shown. It was a great advantage to those who had come to the Show 
that it had been so well laid out, and in consequence they had not to 
double on their tracks and waste time going from one end to the other 
in search of particular exhibits. At each succeeding stage they would 
find something as interesting as where they had gone before. The 
exhibits of native industries were most interesting. He was sure, 
that those who looked as the basket work, and not only the basket 
work but the silver work, and the other varieties of native craft, 
would see what great strides had been made in the last few years. 
Not only was Malacca to the front again, but Perak had begun to 
progress in this direction. Ladies, he was sure would find the Perak, 
work far more useful than the Malacca basket work, which was, after 
all, rather a curiosity, whereas the Perak was very useful. 
Bad Times. 
As the Resident had said, they had been passing through a time 
of commercial depression. Some prophets said they had got to the 
bottom and were now on the up-grade. He was sure everyone hoped 
it was so. But as far as the planting industry was concerned he was 
not sure they had not been a little in need of a had time. Everything 
was so prosperous and prices were so high that there was a disposition 
oil the part of planters to think they had fallen into a fortune and had 
only to sit still and reap it. It was one of the advantages of bad 
times that it made people study economy as use their brains to devise 
improved methods of production and of handling the product. If the 
bad times through which they had been passing had that result with 
the planting industry of the Federated Malay States, he felt sure, 
instead of coonsidering it a bad time, they would all look upon it as 
a blessing in disguise. Whether or not, all cordially wished the had 
times at an end. Towards the end of last year, the planting industry 
was not only feeling the stress of bad times, but also there was not 
quite so much harmony among themselves as they ought to expect in 
such a happy family. Usually, the only enemy of the planting com- 
munity was the Government ; perhaps he should say the industry had 
now two enemies, the Government and the white ant. (Laughter). He 
scarcely knew which was the worst. Perhaps on the whole the white 
ant left a more permanent mark on the industry than the Government}. 
I 
