Stories from Deli

Deli Courant 11-04-0885

Given the extensive coverage of the Chinese unrest in Deli and its probable causes, which has led many to view the future of this rapidly developing region with pessimism, it may not be unwelcome to some to hear a few remarks on this matter. We therefore propose to highlight some conditions that, in our opinion, are the main causes of the recurring unrest.

First, we believe that if not all, then most of the uprisings stem from the hatred that exists between the different Chinese clans. We will return to this later. However, many other causes are also influential. For example, when seeing the vast profits that various enterprises yield, the thought inevitably arises whether the Chinese could not and should not be paid better. Few Chinese in Deli today can achieve their goal, namely, to save a small sum with which they can start some business in their homeland and thus spend their old age in beloved China. Although the “struggle for life” and the political situation drive many Chinese to leave their homeland, they all long to return. This desire is evident, for instance, in the well-known Chinese proverb: “He who achieves prominence or wealth and never returns to his birthplace is like a well-dressed person walking in darkness; it is of no use to him.” The Chinese writer Tcheng-ki-tong also states in his book Les Chinois peints par eux-mêmes: “Exile is a cruel pain for the Chinese people.”

Many Chinese, however, upon arriving in Deli, find that it is not the El Dorado portrayed to them by brokers and overseers. While wages may be relatively high compared to Java, one must not forget that everything in Deli is much more expensive than on the aforementioned island. If the shareholders were content with a few percentage points less in dividends, much could already be gained. Increasing wages would not only make the Chinese work harder, as they could then save—something nearly impossible now without severe cutbacks—but it would also have other positive effects. In our opinion, the laborers would then commit fewer police offenses, for which they are punished with forced labor. It is well known that those subjected to forced labor have an easier life and better food than free laborers. For example, the forced laborer has one day off per week, while free laborers only have two days off per month, and even those mornings are often lost waiting for wages, which are paid on those days.

Many Chinese therefore view the only punishment as the forced abstinence from opium; they do not see dishonor in the punishment and often call it masoek kerdja koempenie, i.e., entering the service of the government. Indeed, one often hears recidivists say: saja soedah tjoba kerdja di loewar, tapi tida senang, lebi baik di sini, i.e., “I have tried working outside (the shackles), but it did not suit me; it is better here!” However, if the laborers see that they can avoid the shackles without much disadvantage—in other words, if they receive higher wages—many will remain calm. Nowadays, when almost everything goes to the most basic necessities, they care little. As punished individuals, they find better food and easier work. Moreover, it is already sometimes difficult to obtain the necessary labor force; another reason why wages must be increased, especially in regions where profit is proportional to the number of planters, and the lack of labor is one of the main obstacles to the expansion of enterprises.

Furthermore, many disturbances arise from the complete unfamiliarity of the Europeans in charge of the laborers with the Chinese language and customs, so that they must rely almost entirely on the Chinese overseers (tandils), who, often driven by self-interest, are not trustworthy. Since the laborers are also financially dependent on them (for example, they play a significant role in the grading of tobacco), the laborers must remain on good terms with the tandils and sometimes buy goods from them at high prices or borrow money. Some employers deem it necessary to issue prohibitions against these practices, a clear indication of their existence, while sometimes even during payment, the tandil receives the loaned amount (without high interest?), and the laborer gets the rest.

Generally, the Europeans in Deli make every effort to protect the laborers and the Chinese kedgis on the plantations from exploitation by posting price lists of various goods in the shops, but it is difficult to guard against fraud as mentioned above. It is also known that some uprisings were caused by the machinations of tandils, which are particularly dangerous when they have laborers from another clan under their supervision. Only caution in the selection of tandils, close supervision, and a focus on learning the Chinese language and customs can eliminate this evil. As it stands, the tandil has too much power; on many plantations, the head tandil is one of the highest-paid, and the Europeans are somewhat dependent on him, so that many employers would rather do without a European than without him. One point we wish to highlight: most tandils become rich.

We will now move on to a superficial examination of the aforementioned clan hatred as the main cause of many disturbances. That one must think here of the offshoots of the secret societies in China, such as the Heaven and Earth Society, is not significant, as the severed tail, a mark of membership, is almost nonexistent in Deli, and moreover, the current aim of this society is solely the overthrow of the ruling Manchu dynasty. We therefore see in the often-mentioned Gi-hing and Ho-sing societies nothing more than entirely independent associations that have mutual aid as their goal and thus become dangerous to their enemies, who must also unite and thus form a counter-society. And who are these enemies? If we consider the situation in China and note the hostile relations between many clans there, we must also think of the same cause in Deli. This suspicion is further strengthened by experience; it is known that many uprisings in Deli were nothing more than brawls between Keh-Chinese and Hailo-hongs, while it has recently been reported that in the Western Division of Borneo, the Kehs stood against the Holclos, with the Hok-kieus positioned between them.

That these uprisings are very harmful to the cultivation is self-evident, especially in the tobacco plantations of Deli, where a standstill of a week can sometimes lead to significant losses and even the complete failure of the harvest. If one considers clan hatred as the cause, many riots can be curtailed by, for example, only hiring Chinese from one clan on the same plantations, or rather, to prevent the formation of different camps, by engaging only Chinese of one ethnicity as laborers in a specific area. Recently, efforts have been made in Deli to have only clan members live together, and there are even plantations that only want to hire one clan as laborers, a sign that many planters do not underestimate this cause.

That various hostile clans have emigrated to Deli is shown by the following list of clans, all of which have their representatives in Deli. In Deli, one finds:

1. The so-called Keh-Chinese or Hakkas. Both names mean “guests,” “strangers,” or “immigrants,” as they are called by the inhabitants of Fujian and Canton because they settled later in the border regions of Fujian and Canton. They live mainly in and around Kiajing (northeast of Canton province). They originate from the more northern provinces of China and differ greatly in language, etc., from the darker southern Chinese, and are, for example, much blunter in facial expression. In Fujian, they are called K’ehlang (guests), in Canton Huk-ka-yan, i.e., people from the clan of guests.
2. The Hailohongs, originating from the place of the same name in the north of Canton. These are somewhat similar in language, etc., to the Chinese from Fujian.
3. The Ho-Tsioe or Hoklo-Chinese, originating from Chaozhou in the northeast of Canton. These also closely resemble in language, etc., the
4. Hokkiens, i.e., Chinese from the province of Fujian (called Hok-kièn in the local language). They are also called Emoy-Chinese, as most of them embark there, although they mainly come from the department of Zhangzhou.

The four aforementioned clans make up the majority of the Chinese laborers. For completeness, we must also mention:

5. The Macau-Chinese, embarked in Macau and originating from that place and the south of Canton province. Few laborers are from this clan, but almost all Chinese prostitutes come from the aforementioned place. There are also some Hokkien women, who are much more finely formed than their Cantonese sisters. In total, the number of women here is at most 2% of the entire population.
6. The Hainam-Chinese, originating from the island of Hainan (called Hai-lam in the dialect). These Chinese are also rare and are mostly domestic servants.

Not only do the Kehs often stand against the other clans, but the relationship between Canton and Fujian Chinese is not always peaceful. (As was once evident in Riouw, for example.) In India, the latter have a better reputation than the former, and they also seem more likely to settle permanently abroad. From the above, it is clear that by separating the different clans or allowing only one clan, many disturbances can be prevented, and if the other causes of dissatisfaction (already pointed out) are removed, by higher wages and a focus on understanding the Chinese people, one can achieve a healthy state, on which the entire future of the rapidly advancing Deli depends.

For the time being, no other labor force than the Chinese can be obtained in sufficient numbers. The emigration of Klingalese to East India is prohibited, and moreover, those who are in Deli are nowhere involved in actual cultivation but serve as ditch diggers, cart drivers, caretakers, etc. The Javanese, even those from the Javanese tobacco regions, are not suitable here for planting and are mainly employed in building houses, while they are sometimes involved in sorting. Malays, Bataks, Alas, Gajos, Siamese, etc., are far too few in number and mostly too lazy. They are only employed as forest cutters, ditch diggers, house builders, thatch makers, or rattan cutters; usually for a predetermined wage. Only the Chinese are suitable for the actual cultivation, in which they are very skilled, and for which they are paid according to tariffs, varying by the quality of tobacco, the first or second harvest, or the sorted quantity.

In short, we consider the entire cultivation of Deli dependent on the industrious Chinese, who now, for a relatively low wage, work daily for 10 hours in the fields. Therefore, Deli must, in our opinion, maintain a good reputation if it does not want to perish due to a lack of labor.

We read the above article, which we found in the Nieuws van den Dag of March 2, with great interest. Although we plan to return to various points discussed therein in detail later, we must make the observation to the esteemed author, who seems excellently acquainted with the local situation, that where he believes that wage increases will bring improvement to the laborers’ condition, we respectfully differ in opinion. As long as opium and gambling are two necessary evils, without which the existence of the Dutch East Indies colonies is unthinkable, opium and gambling will have to occupy a privileged position in the Deli situation, and the higher wages that the planters would pay their laborers—assuming this were done—would still end up in the hands of the tax farmers. We leave the question of whether increasing production costs is advisable entirely out of the discussion for now, but it seems to us that labor cannot rest on a healthier basis than supply and demand. If one ventures onto the winding paths of philanthropy, business discussion ceases, but the question that may be asked, in our opinion, is this: does the laborer here receive a wage commensurate with the work he performs, and is that wage sufficient to provide for his livelihood? And Deli can face that question with confidence.

Whether higher wages and greater earnings would lead to a decrease in police offenses, we also doubt. On the contrary, we believe that more money would also bring more fighting and scandal in the public houses, and as long as saving to return to China one day cannot be impressed upon the laborers, the remedy will prove worse than the disease. No, only when a laborer understands that opium and gambling stand in the way of his prosperity will there be a change for the better, and a general prohibition against gambling on the estates, for example, after the general settlement, would, in our opinion, already be a step in the right direction.