Stories from Deli

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“It is much easier loving the souls of the heathen in the abstract in America than it is here in the concrete, encompassed as they are with such dirty bodies, speaking forth their foul language and vile natures, and exhibiting every evidence of their depravity.”

This lament, written in one of his letters by the late great sinologist and missionary Dr. S. Wells Williams, explains the difference in judgment and approach regarding the handling of Eastern labor forces between employers in the Dutch East Indies and the proponents of ethical principles in Holland.

One party, constantly relying on inferior individuals from morning till night for labor, whose actions often test the patience of even the most composed person, tends to see only the darker side. The other party, seated calmly and safely behind a desk, tries to downplay as many objections and difficulties as possible and prefers to highlight only the bright side of things. To what extent the proverb “the truth usually lies in the middle” applies in this case, we will try to determine in the following lines with respect to the Chinese. Physically, undoubtedly the strongest race of the East and moreover full of zeal and eager for profit, the Chinese possess almost ideal qualities as workers.

One objection, however, is that they can be difficult to govern abroad, especially without strict discipline, as they often quickly get out of hand. They combine an ingrained contempt for everything Western with a pronounced democratic nature, and unless they know that a wrong action will be or at least can be strictly punished, they show little respect for those above them. It is almost unbelievable how familiar and free even the lowest Chinese become as soon as they think they can have their way. Respect for Europeans, even if it were the Governor-General himself, is foreign to the Chinese, and if they act submissive, it is either out of fear or self-interest.

If you speak a few times in Chinese with a rickshaw coolie, you can be sure that the next time he will start shouting and adopt a tone as if he were addressing his equal from ten paces away. Such people say whatever comes to their mind and preferably aim to make someone the laughingstock of the public.

The fact that the various Chinese languages all have in common that they are monosyllabic and the meaning of a word entirely depends on the tone in which it is spoken, making puns and similar witticisms easy, works to their advantage in this regard. With a face as if they were talking about the most innocent things in the world, they sometimes make the craziest remarks and ask the most impudent questions. The rickshaw coolies here and in the Straits come from the dregs of the nation and belong to the class of unmarried individuals in China, who, disconnected from all family ties, earn a meager piece of bread at the cost of tremendous effort by carrying heavy baskets full of goods from the coast to the inland and from the inland to the coast. Unless they turn to begging, life for them is a toil and a slave from early morning until late at night, a burden that only an early death can end. They form with their comrades “the myriads of ragged, poverty-stricken desperadoes swarming in the streets and suburbs of every town and city of China.” As Professor de Groot has said, from their ranks come not only the rickshaw coolies but also those subjects, who were once referred to in the Dutch East Indies with the less honorable name of “stinkards,” the kongsi-kangs without illusions and aspirations, who doze and sleep during the day at work, and in the evening carry a load of firewood, chopped in the forest, to the main town to get money for opium.

Alongside these thousands and thousands of godless and lawless Chinese, one must distinguish the rest of the population in China, who, by their sense of family life and many other qualities, have earned the honorary title of being “the most peaceable and law-abiding people in the world,” especially under wise governance and just laws. For centuries, China has recognized four classes: scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants. Officials are chosen from the scholar class, and generally speaking, the highest officials are also the best connoisseurs of literature and the finest stylists. Except for the children of brothel keepers, barbers, and actors, the exams are open to everyone, and even the poorest families make desperate efforts to provide a son with the means to devote ten to twenty years continuously to the study of language, the only requirement, to compete for literary degrees and titles. Whole days and half nights, they toil year in and year out with a perseverance beyond our comprehension, memorizing all the classics and constantly practicing writing in a style that only becomes somewhat clear through intense thought. Only a certain percentage becomes an official; many never pass an exam, and most must be supported by their families or find a way to earn a living as teachers, clerks in a yamen, etc.

The other three classes together, forming the actual population, receive much attention on paper but little in reality. Officials rarely appear outside their yamens, and as long as the farmer stays on his fields, the carpenter or silversmith at his work, and the merchant with his business, all is well, and they stick to their own hobbies. Governing in China usually means abstaining. However, when there are too many complaints about theft and robbers, or the population becomes troublesome and restless, the sword of justice descends upon the masses, and by plundering and burning down a region, order is restored for as long as it lasts. The good suffer with the bad, and officials rarely take the time to separate the wheat from the chaff. Moreover, the good are also guilty because their behavior should have brought the wrongdoers back on the right path. Through their moral conduct, fathers should lead their children, and one person should guide another. Therefore, the Chinese have little regard for officials and their entourage—they always get worse, never better—and most matters are decided within their own circles.

In China, the proverb “it is best to wash one’s dirty linen at home” applies more than anywhere else. This is facilitated by the patriarchal nature of their customs and institutions, where the father holds authority in the family, the eldest in the extended family, and a strong sense of solidarity often repels any outside interference. Passive but determined resistance is a weapon the Chinese masterfully wield when necessary. A measure from higher authority that is poorly received can lead to all shops suddenly closing in a large city, bringing all traffic to a halt as if by magic. In such cases, officials have no choice but to concede. The influence of secret societies in China is well known. Here too, the basis is solidarity, with members feeling bound by a sacred oath never to betray each other. They fully understand Longfellow’s words: “All your strength is in your union, All your danger is in discord.” The revenge of officials is terrible, and they eagerly use the right to apply torture in such cases to unwilling individuals, not as punishment but as a means to extract the truth.

Ordinary crimes, including murders, are adjudicated in the usual legal manner, but resistance that threatens the state is a pastime that costs many dearly, especially if the perpetrators or suspected perpetrators continue to deny their involvement. In villages, most residents usually share the same family name, and internal disputes are resolved in the family temple by the village elders based on their age and experience. On the enterprises in the Dutch East Indies, one can often deduce from the family names which coolies come from the same village. The fact that in China, the individual has little value on their own makes everyone abroad seek unity, either based on being born in the same village, belonging to the same clan, or other common grounds. The principle of mutual help and support runs like a red thread through all Chinese actions, and the first questions two Chinese ask each other upon meeting are, “What is your name? Where were you born?”

Most coolies on the enterprises in the Dutch East Indies come from agricultural regions and consist of family members who must emigrate to lighten the household burden and support their families through remittances. Most of these people are diligent and industrious, and if treated properly, they are calm and peaceful, although they would not be Orientals if the human head did not unexpectedly emerge under certain circumstances. “Whether it is a devil or an angel, I do not know. Precisely with women, one never knows where the angel ends, and the devil begins.” We do not wish to debate here to what extent Heine was right when he expressed his opinion about women in Atta Troll. Love of truth might compel us to call the poet’s words accurate, but a sense of domestic peace advises us to remain silent. However, everyone who knows John Chinaman closely will agree that the lower-class Chinese is not only an angel but also a devil, often more the latter. Even the educated Chinese can be cruel, extremely cruel. This was proven by the late Li-Hung-Tsang, the Bismarck of the East, when he had a few thousand prisoners of war, temporarily under the supervision of General Gordon, pulled apart in groups of twenty and thirty with ropes because he found the supervision boring.

Yet, Chinese people can also be kind, show a strong sense of justice and fairness, and are particularly gentle towards children. Besides the village-originated Chinese coolies, there is also a certain contingent of former sedan chair carriers and similar subjects, as well as a third category: ex-members of roaming robber bands. These individuals sometimes find it too risky in China and then move to the Dutch East Indies and the Straits to either stay there or wait for a safer time to return. Often Hay-Lok-Hongs, these are the ones who act as leaders of rampas-parties during turbulent times. They are used to living in forests and finding their way at night, and another Chinese person can often tell from their manner of walking and other peculiarities that they are trained in boxing and weightlifting. Despite their past of robbery and murder, they are generally diligent coolies who do not stand out due to an unfavorable appearance, difficult character, or irregular behavior. This is precisely what is hard to imagine in Europe. There, robbers and murderers are grim, sinister types unfit for regular work. Here, they work calmly in the fields or sit day in and day out with job patience sorting tobacco, and no one in a barn with four or five hundred Chinese can point out the criminals among them. Often, these villains work the hardest and return to China after a few years with a certain amount of money to settle as respectable petty bourgeois in a village.

The actions of officials, unjust verdicts, endless extortions by a hyena-like yamen personnel, and especially the arbitrary extermination of a village, often separating and scattering fleeing families, also breed criminals in China and turn peaceful citizens into robbers. China, with its industrious, intelligent, and physically strong population, would be a magnificent country under orderly governance. However, as long as all requests and complaints must be submitted in writing, as long as no one who possesses something today knows if they will still own it tomorrow, and as long as no official in South China can speak with the population due to language differences, the situation is bleak, and one must wonder that, in general, everything runs so smoothly. This speaks well for the people.

Outside of China, people generally have a wrong impression regarding the relationship between officials and subjects in that empire, and it is hard to imagine that of the hundred coolies in the Dutch East Indies, at least ninety have never been inside the walls of a yamen or seen a mandarin. An equally wrong impression is made about the so-called overpopulation of China. In a country with such administrative conditions, without traffic routes in the Western sense, without mining or industry, and with highly primitive agriculture, overpopulation is a very relative concept. In ten or twenty years, people will likely speak very differently. Already, workers are being sought and brought from the South for the construction of railways in the North. The provinces of Fujian and Guangdong are actually the only ones from which emigration occurs. Both in Bangka and Belitung, in the Straits and Australia, in Sumatra and Java, only Southern Chinese are found, never Chinese from other parts of China. Even in the two mentioned provinces, one can walk for hours without seeing a house or any sign of human life. When assessing emigration, one must consider not only the number of Chinese leaving Amoy, Swatow, and Hong Kong annually but also the number returning to those ports. A large part of the emigrants move back and forth with shorter or longer intervals.

And with this, we conclude our topic, convinced that readers of “the Sumatra-Post” will seek something more interesting in the newspaper than these superficial and hastily written observations. We admire the Chinese in many respects, we have respect for the many special qualities of this people, but we are also not blind to their faults, which include among the lower classes: contempt for the value of human life, lack of forms and manners, shamelessness in sexual matters, and a familiarity bordering on insolence. Give a Chinese person a finger, and they will take the whole hand, if possible both hands, unless one prevents it. We maintain our assertion that the conditions on the East Coast of Sumatra cannot and should not be compared with the conditions in China, because the Chinese here suddenly find themselves in an entirely different environment and in entirely different relationships, but there are causes there that have an effect here and govern the behavior of the Chinese.

Knowledge of the nature and character of a people is necessary to deal with them, but it is also essential for drafting proper laws. One may regard a Chinese worker in some respects higher than a Dutch worker, another lower, but that they differ significantly as people is certain. Legislation suitable for one will be difficult to apply to the other.

A. G. de Bruin.

De Sumatra Post 13-10-1910

(2) That torture does take place in China will be known to most readers of pictures and illustrations. Not only defendants but also witnesses can be forced to confess on the rack. Horrible attempts must be applied to rebels in prisons. How often or seldom this occurs no European can explain. Very little of what happens in the yamens and prisons on such occasions leaks out. In Japan, where the laws are now entirely based on European models, extortion of testimonies seems to be still possible. Anyone who has been in a yamen once and has been treated in that way will never come out again.

(3) The extent of cooperation in China between groups of people with common interests is evident from the organization of beggars. These gentlemen practice their trade under a permanent head, who determines how much each shop has to pay per year to be exempted from constant visits.

(4) There is often an unmistakable animosity between the tribes, especially the Hakkas (khehs). who are usually somewhat less crude and better educated, have little time for Tau-Tjoes. One of their usual sayings about Tau-Tjoes is: ‘They are not people, but animals. (Em hee njin hee njoe.) As the custom of tying the feet does not exist among the Hakkas, a large part of the women move about early in the streets and along the roads, which undoubtedly has an influence on the customs. The Hakkas always wear trousers as boatmen and outside in the fields, the Tav-Tjoes often appear in dozens of people, similarly in what the English call; “he Hakkas, as boatmen and outside in the fields, always wear trousers, the Tau-Tjoes often appear in dozens of them, similarly in what the English call; “the garb of Nature unadorned”

(5) We witnessed a remarkable example of inhumanity at an execution near Ka-Yin-Tsoe in Kwangtung province. The criminal stood in the middle of the flat field while five times a blunt sword was struck at him before the head was severed from the torso. When he fell, he was set upright again. As he was a notorious criminal, the remains had to be left unburied, and the next day – the place was far from the main road – the pigs were seen sniffing and pulling at the body and the head.