Directory_and_Chronicle_1924 — Page 1383

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FEDERATED MALAY STATES

and paths; and the wire mileage of telegraphs and telephones is 17,297 (of which 5,196 miles of wire is in underground cables). Waterworks, wharves, hsopitals, prisons, schools, and many other public buildings have been constructed, while the Govern ment of Perak has carried out an important scheme of irrigation which will benefit about 60,000 acres of land and cost about £200,000. The principal sources of revenue and prosperity are the alluvial tin deposits, which, at the present price of the metal, can be worked at considerable profit, and the plantation rubber industry, the country producing one-third of the world's supply of rubber. Tin has been worked in the Malay Peninsula for centuries, and it is believed it will still be produced three centuries hence. The industry has grown in recent years to very large proportions, but it would take a long time to work out the alluvial deposits in the lands already alienated, and these comprise but a fraction of the unexplored lands which still remain, where there is every reason to believe the mineral will be found in payable qunatities. This only applies to alluvial deposits. No one can guess what are the reserves of ore in underground rock formations, as at Kuantan in Pahang, Slim in Perak, and Jelebu in the Negri Sembilan

The annual export of tin from these States is valued at over $60,000,000. As a matter of fact, the value of 579,433 piculs exported in 1921 was $49,957,476, against 586,905 piculs valued at $88,429,179 in 1920. The Government has not overlooked the fact that in the export of tin its capital is being reduced, and it has made an effort to supply another and more useful investment by the construction of railways with part, at least, of the revenue. The Federated States have expended over $173,983,371 in the construction or purchase of railways. The profits give a return of 0.29 per cent, on the capital expended.

Planting enterprise in the Federated Malay States for many years had not proved very successful, but the introduction of rubber cultivation completely transformed the agricultural prospects of the country. The area now in possession in estates of 100 acres and over is 1,167,043 acres, of which 736,742 acres were under cultivation for rubber at the end of 1919. About 94,522 tons of rubber were exported from these States in 1921, valued at, approximately, £7,867,135, against 101,327 tons in 1920 valued at £20,850,850. Owing to the slump in the rubber industry, production was restricted in 1921. Sugar has practically gone out of cultivation, but the Government is endeav- ouring to revive the industry by offering land on special terms. Over 150,000 acres of land are under coconuts, for which the soil and climate of these States are peculiarly well suited; and the cultivation of rice is only a question of irrigation and labour. In 1921, 608,342 piculs of copra, valued at £883,132, were exported, against 419,988 piculs of copra, valued at £1,075,285, in 1920. The success of every form of agriculture and of all the efforts of the Government to develop the country by means of railways, irrigation, and other great public works, depends upon an adequate supply of labour. The Governments of the Colony and of the Federated Malay States, supported by the planters, have succeeded in securing an adequate supply of Indian labour, by a new system of recruiting and by offering higher wages and other advantages. An agricultural department to foster agricultural interests, to encourage the cultivation of new products, to conduct experiments and to be a general source of information for planters, is doing useful work.

It is estimated that there are in the Federated Malay States about 70,000 children of school-going age, but only about 32,000 of these attend any recognised school; while many live in places far removed from any school-house, it is a fact that education has no great attraction for Malay parents, or Malay children, who might contribute by far the largest number of scholars. The Government offers every reasonable encouragement, and there is even a law in force in Selangor, the Negri Sem- bilan and Perak for compelling the attendance of children who live within reasonable distance of a school, while scholars are allowed to travel free of charge on the railways. The population of the Federated Malay States was ascertained at the census of 1921 to be 1,324,890, compared with 1,036,999 in 1911. The male population increased in the 10 years by 27.7 per cent. and the female population by 53.4 per cent. Of the total 5,686 were Europeans, 3,188 Eurasians, 510,821 Malays, 494,548 Chinese and 305,219 Indians. The returns for the bigger towns are as follows, the figures in parenthesis relating to 1911:-Kuala Lumpur, 80,356 (46,718); Ipoh, 36,872 (23,478); Taiping, 21,839 (19,556); Seremban, 17,264 (8,667); Kampar, 12,335 (11,604); Klang, 11,656 (7,657); Telok Anson, 10,858 (6,927).

The imports into the States in 1922 were valued at $78,666,032, while exports amounted to $135,116,634. The total of imports and exports combined (excluding bullion) was $213,782,666, against a total of $237,870,426 in 1921.