GENERAL REPORT ON THE RESIDENCY OF SINGAPORE, 748 
are good workers if they choose to exert themselves, but they 
are the most wretched eye servants, and seem to delight in chicanery 
of all sorts.” They are nevertheless useful in many of the branches 
of the operations of agriculture, particularly where duties whose 
neglect would be easily discoverable, can be assigned to them— 
such as syces, cattle drivers, grass cutters, nutmeg gatherers, &c. 
In these capacities they earn the same wages as Chinese labourers, 
viz,, 3 to 3| dollars a month. The employment of this class in 
hard manual labour—such as on Sugar Estates, to be at all profitable 
to the employer, would require to be under the direct eye of an 
European overseer, such as is the case in the West Indies, other¬ 
wise their complete want of honesty and total disregard to his 
interest renders their employment utterly useless. The last class 
worthy of mention are the Malays, and they may Be divided into 
those who come from Malacca, and the original inhabitants of the 
Island and the Johore Archipelago ; neither partake much of the 
labours of the field;—to labour that, requires restraint, they are pe¬ 
culiarly averse, indeed with regard to the latter race, it can hardly 
be expected that only 80 years subjection to the gentle rule of a 
British government, could yet have done much to wean them from 
the habits of ^piracy, to which under the direct connivance and 
approbation of their chiefs, they were well known to be addicted. 
This predilection to their favorite pursuit which they considered 
not only a manly, but an honorable one, can yet be only said to 
have been curbed, but not extinguished. The Malays are therefore 
but only partial assistants to the agriculturist, and are principally 
employed in job-work, such as cutting fire-wood—in searching 
for the various products of the forest, dammer, rattans, &c., or in 
the erection of temporary buildings constructed of attaps, and other 
leaves. In wielding the bliong (a peculiar hatchet) or the parang 
(chopper) they stand unrivalled,—for cutting down the forests, an 
operation for which they show great partiality, they are extremely 
useful, and in this they exercise great skill, and dexterity. On 
daily labour they earn 13 to 14 cents, and in clearing the primeval 
forest they are paid 4 to 5 dollars per acre. 
An interesting subject next presents itself for consideration, in the 
investigation of the work of Asiatics in comparison with Europeans, 
in order to come to correct conclusions, as to their relative physical 
powers. I am sorry that I can offer but few data to assist in 
elucidating the point. Few opportunities offer themselves here, 
owing to the light desultory employments, in which all races except 
Chinese engage. The three following comparisons of the work 
done by English and Chinese are all that I can at present offer: 
Building with brick. 
A rod of brick work or 306 cubic feet costs in laying £2 or 9 
W 23 
