PEPPER GROWING IN UPPER SARAWAK.—BY G. DALTON. 53 
Turning now to the history of the pepper industry 
in Sarawak proper, of which the land drained by the 
Sarawak River forms the central and most important 
district, Messrs. Baring-Gould and Bampfylde write 
that:—“ After many previous failures the foundations of 
this large industry, which is entirely in the hands of the 
Chinese, were laid in 1876 by the Rajah in conjunction 
with certain local Chinese merchants.”* 
After that date the industry steadily prospered and 
eventually Sarawak Pepper gained for itself the name of 
being superior to any grown elsewhere. The Keh. 
Chinese, who are the principal growers, found it extreme¬ 
ly profitable, and numbers flocked into the country to 
cultivate the article; the gold workers in the same dis¬ 
trict gave up their uncertain work in favour of this surer 
road to riches, and when the highest prices were reached 
some six years ago, many of them wisely took the 
opportunity to sell out and return home to China with 
their fortunes made. With prices of $60 and more per 
pikul for white pepper and about $30 for black to be 
obtained in those days at an expenditure of about $10 
to $15 per pikul, it will at once be seen that as a profitable 
undertaking, that of pepper-growing left little to be 
desired. However, such is the way of “ booms,” after a 
big rise, there comes a heavy fall, and this pepper boom 
was no exception to the rule; so the prices dropped 
lower and lower, and a great many of the smaller plan¬ 
ters, spoiled by the high prices previously reigning and 
unable to give up their acquired luxurious ways of living, 
were completely ruined; some go so far as to say that 
the Sarawak pepper industry was killed. During the 
last two or three years, however, there has been a slow 
but steady recovery, confidence is returning, more gardens 
are being taken up again, and as if in sympathy with the 
unfortunate planters, the price of pepper has slowly 
risen. And with the present price of $30 odd per pikul for 
white pepper, and $15 for black, quite a good profit can 
even now be made. 
The following tablet shows the growth and decline 
of the Pepper Industry in Sarawak. 
* Op. cit. p. 436. 
f Obtained from statistics published in the Sarawak Gazette, 1901— 
1909, and the Sarawak Government Gazette, 1910-1911. 
