CO129-488 - Governor Sir Stubbs - 1925 [1-7] — Page 263

Copy.

.8 in C.S.0.200/1925.

Sir,

252

Chief Secretary's Office,

Sarawak, 17th April, 1925.

I have the honour to acknowledge receipt of

your letter No.922/1919 dated the 7th April, 1925, stating the main objections of the Hongkong Goverment to the conditions specified in the letter from the Labour Association Limited, at Singapore in regard to the recruit- ment of Singkehs for Sarawak.

(2)

The following details are extracted from the contract form at present in force as mentioned in paragraph

5 of my letter to you of the 4th April, 1925:-

(i)

On signing contract the following articles are supplied free to the labourer:- One mosquito

curtain, one sun-hat, one coat, two pair trousers,

two bathing clothes, one pair of clogs, one

blanket and one mat, and the original set of mining tools to work with. No deduction from the labourer's pay is made for these articles. (i) The cost of the passage from Singapore to Sarawak

and return on completion of contract is borne entirely by this Government.

(iii) The cost of the recruiting fee, which includes

the cost of the passage from China to Singapore, has hitherto been halved between this Goverment

and the labourer. As objection is raised to this,

the whole cost will in future be borne by this

Government, so that the labourer will start work

under his contract without any debt at all, on

the following terms:-

(a)

Term of contract, three years, or 900 working

days. (300 days constituting one year's work)