JOHORE
1367
The revenue for 1915 amounted to $5,790,393 against $1,352,893 in 1914, and the expenditure to $3,645,121 in 1915 against $3,899,698 in 1914. Improved methods of collection and administration, and the expansion of agricultural and the tin mining industries are factors in the increase of revenue. The public debt is now $6,750,000, represent- ing capital outlay on the construction and equipment of the State Railway. The money was lent by the F.M.S. The railway, which connects Singapore with the F.M.S, system, was completed in 1909, and its construction has already given a great impetus to the opening up of this fertile State. Along its 120 miles it provides access to the extensive areas of valuable forest land not conveniently reached by the natural waterways. It is operated and leased by the F.M.S. Railway Department, which now controls the whole of the railways in the Malay Peninsula. The State owns a light railway in Muar; it carried 361,224 passengers in 1915 and 7,622 tons of goods, and the receipts were $86,702 compared with $79,044 in 1914.
Seventy-nine schools are maintained by the Government, and at five of these English is taught.
The capital is the town of Johore Bahru, or new Johore, as distinguished from Johore Lâma, or old Johore, the former seat of the Sultans of Johore, which was situated a few miles up the wide estuary of the Johore river. The new town is a flourishing little place on the nearest point of the mainland to Singapore island, and lying about 14 miles to the north-east of Singapore city, in 1° 26' N. It contains some 20,000 inhabitants, mostly Chinese. Amongst the Government buildings are the Istana, court and police stations, barracks, gaol, hospital, market, railway station and a mosque.
A plentiful supply of water, by means of pipes from a stream in the hills about 12 miles distant, has been provided since March, 1890. Good roads are being made, and public works, such as the construction of waterworks and bridges and the establishment of an electric light and power station at Johore Bahru, are receiving a good deal of attention. The Public Works Department spent $1,116,419
in 1915.
The population of the State at the census in 1911 was ascertained to be 180,412, of whom 161 were British, 71,315 Malays, 63,405 Chinese, 30,904 Javanese, and 5,659 Indians. The Chinese are chiefly found as cultivators of gambier and pepper, and are spread over the range of country in the extreme southern end of the peninsula, nearest to Singapore, but there is also a large Chinese population on the Jemaluang tin field near Mersing. Appended is a comparison of the exports and imports for the past two years :-
1915
Imports Exports
.....
Total.....
1914 $ 8,692,734 16,535,450
$25,228,184
$11,479,494
28,917,800
$40,397,294
European pioneers have, in the last few years, taken up large areas for planting, chiefly rubber and coconuts. Gambier, and pepper cultivation is on the decline, but in 1915 tapioca showed an increased output of 50 per cent. over the previous year and the export was valued at $565,000. The area under rubber at the end of 1915 was over 130,000 acres, and the export of rubber in that year amounted to 9,167 tons, against 5,270 tons in 1914. The total area leased for rubber is 322,817 acres, and a remarkable feature of the rubber industry in this State is the large amount of land taken up by Japanese. The value of exported rubber was $18,000,000 against $8,250,000
in 1914.
At the present time the principal exports of Johore are the carefully cultivated rubber, copra, gambier, pepper and sago, and the natural products of tin, timber, rattans and damar. For almost all such produce Singapore is the port of shipment.
Johore is stated to be rich in iron-ore; but while it is found almost everywhere it is worked nowhere. The year 1915 will be memorable as that of the opening up of what is probably an entirely new tin field on the East Coast. The first valuable discoveries were made in the valley of Jemaluang, a small river flowing into the China Sea near Mersing, and there are indications of the presence of tin-ore that may be worked at a profit at various places between Jemalung and the Sedili. The East Coast tin-field produced during the year 2,015 tons of tin-ore, approximately equivalent to 1,410 tons of tin. The quality of the ore, as deduce l from the prices realised, was the same as that produced from the Kata Tinggi field. The export of tin-ore from Kata Tinggi was 827 tons against 795 tons in 1914. Small quantities of tin-ore were also exported from Muar and Batu. Pahat, and 32 piculs of wolfram from Muar. The value of exported minerals was $2,588,00) against $720,000 in 1914.