Trade and Travel in the Far East / or Recollections of twenty-one years passed in Java, / Singapore, Australia and China.

by G. F. Davidson

I found no lack of agreeable society, both male and female, in any part of New South Wales that I visited. In many instances, the conversation certainly turned rather too much upon sheep and cattle; but this ought to be excused, where ninety-nine hundredths earn their daily bread by means of those animals. In Sydney, we found the dinner and evening parties highly agreeable, and composed of elegant, accomplished, and intelligent persons of both sexes. What more can be said of any community? During the government of Sir Richard Bourke, an attempt was made by him to introduce into his own parties some emancipist families; and on one occasion, the grand-daughter of a late Sydney hangman actually made her appearance at a ball at Government-house. This fact being found out by the heads of families present, a representation was made to His Excellency through his aide-de-camp, and, after some show of opposition on the part of the Governor, a stop was put to it. I do not mean to say that, among the class called emancipists, consisting of persons who have been convicts, there may not be found men and women who have become thoroughly reformed and fit to adorn society. This, however, is the exception, not the rule. A large majority of the class in question are quite unfit for any company but that of a low pot-house.

Some of the most stylish equipages in Sydney are the property of men who came to the Colony with fetters on their legs. In them may be seen, any and every day, gayly-dressed women, driving about the town, shopping and lounging away their idle mornings. Whether they are the wives, daughters, or mistresses of the owners of the carriages, it is difficult to tell; but the conclusion that every second one contains a mistress, would not be far from the truth. Such is the society the unwary stranger sometimes falls into, before he knows what he is about; nor does he become fully aware of the evil consequences of his imprudence, till he finds out with whom he has been associating, and that all access to the really respectable society of the place is closed against him. It is quite as requisite for a stranger arriving in Sydney to be on his guard as to his associates, as it is for residents to be careful whom they may admit into their families.

There are many wealthy families in and near Sydney, whose heads came as convicts to the Colony. The days when such men could make rapid fortunes, are gone by; and the convict who looks for any thing of the kind now-a-days, will find himself wofully mistaken. There are too many respectable tradesmen in Sydney for ex-felons to have much chance; and the time when a shopkeeper would not condescend to take a piece of cloth off his shelf to satisfy a customer, but would point to a lot with his stick, and ask, "Which will you have?" has also gone by. Every attention is now shewn to customers by Sydney shopkeepers, some of whom are not a whit behind their London brethren in the art of recommending their wares.

New South Wales had been for many years a British Colony, before any Israelites found their way thither as free men; and I have heard, that it was the return of a Jewish convict with well-lined pockets, that first attracted their attention to his place of exile. Be this as it may, there are more Jews than enough in Sydney now; they are to be found in every quarter of the town; and certainly, they keep up their ancient character for perseverance in search of their idol, money. I do not think, however, that I ever came across a Jewish settler: why they seem to avoid that occupation, I know not.

It is common, in Australia, to hear persons talk of the Colony as their adopted country, and so forth. No faith ought to be put in these declarations; nor do I believe there is a family in the Colony, who do not entertain some hope of once more seeing their native land. During the time that high prices were obtainable for stock, hundreds of settlers who were wont to talk of their adopted country, used every exertion to realize their property in order to return to England. Many succeeded, and actually left the Colony, rejoicing in the idea of once more planting their foot on British ground. The exceptions to this general rule, are to be found in the emancipist class; in the persons of notorious scamps who could not shew their face in respectable society in England, and who have sense enough to know that they are better off in the southern, than, by any chance, they could be in the northern hemisphere.

From extensive experience, I am convinced, that a very large majority of emigrants are lamentably disappointed on reaching the shores of Australia. Not that I think they have cause for half the complaints they make; but they have received, before leaving home, such flattering representations of the good fortune that is in store for them, that their expectations are raised to a pitch far beyond the probable, and disappointment is the natural consequence. The tales told them prior to their embarkation, render them difficult to please on their arrival; they demand exorbitant wages, and more rations than they could possibly consume without waste; and the consequence of this is, that many of them remain weeks and months in Sydney, out of employment, living upon the little money brought from home, although, in the meantime, eligible offers may have been made them. This stay in Sydney not only empties the emigrant's pocket, but breeds idle habits, leading him to the public-house, where his last penny is soon extracted from him. Then comes want, with all the horrors of a starving wife and family; grown-up daughters are driven to prostitution; and the emigrant himself is ultimately compelled to accept any offer made him in his degraded state. This is no overdrawn or rare picture, as any one acquainted with the subject can testify. Emigrants that come to the Colony in what are called Government ships, and who are brought out at the public expense, are provided for on their arrival, till employment offers for them; but, the moment they are known to have refused a fair offer, Government aid ceases. Even that circumstance, however, has little or no effect upon the more stubborn of them, who abate or yield in their demands only when compelled by necessity. Many emigrants, from their fondness for a town life, refuse good offers of employment in the country. Great evils arise from this: one is, that it frequently happens, that Sydney is overrun with idle labourers in search of employment, while the settlers in the country are all crying out for help. To such a height had this evil risen, and to such distress were numbers of infatuated men reduced by remaining idle in town, that Government was recently applied to for its interference, and actually paid the expense of sending hundreds of men into the country, where they got immediate employment, which they might have had many months before, had they been reasonable in their demands.

It is remarked all over the Colony, that the emigrants generally are very difficult to satisfy in the matter of rations; and that the man who had been the worst fed at home, was the most difficult to please abroad. An Irishman is generally found the chief grumbler here; a Scotchman ranks second; while an English peasant, who has all his life fared better than either, is found, in Australia, to be most easily satisfied. I do not attempt to explain or account for this; I have, however, not only frequently observed it, but have heard my neighbours make the same remark. I hired an Irish labourer and his wife, to whom I gave the following pay and rations:—22l. a year to the man; 12l. a year to his wife; weekly between the two, 14 lbs. of beef, 20 lbs. of flour, 3 lbs. of sugar, 6 oz. of tea, and 4 oz. of tobacco. With this allowance, for half of which thousands of families in England would be thankful, the couple were not satisfied, and actually complained that they had not enough to eat. It was summer time when they came to my farm; and they were warned, that the blow-flies would destroy their meat, if it was not covered up: they were too lazy, however, to take the slightest care of it; and, as I saw their second week's allowance lying on a table the day after it was served out, covered with a mass of blow-flies, I took them severely to task for their wanton waste and neglect. But it was of no avail. And this couple had lived upon potatoes and butter-milk all their lives! It is but just to add, that, on mentioning to a major in an Irish regiment, whom I subsequently met in China, the difficulty usually found in satisfying his countrymen in New South Wales, he expressed his astonishment, and remarked that the reverse was generally found to be the case with Irishmen in the army.

Several ships with emigrants from the Highlands and Islands of Scotland, arrived at Sydney during the years 1838 and 1839. These people were, in general, unwilling to accept of employment in any shape, but preferred taking clearing-leases of small patches of land on their own account. This plan, many of them succeeded in carrying into execution, much to the disappointment and annoyance of the community at whose expense they had been brought to the Colony; and it was reasonably complained, that these men, in place of supplying the labour-market, as was intended, actually created an increased demand for labour, by requiring aid in their own operations before the first twelvemonth had passed over them. Be this as it may, they are a hard-working, industrious set of men; and whether their plans raise or depress wages, they have added materially to the quantity of grain grown in the colony.

Now that we have a footing in China, I would draw the attention of the inhabitants of New South Wales to Hong Kong for an unlimited supply of cheap labour. There, by means of an agent on the spot, they may procure thousands of able-bodied labourers, who will go to Australia for five dollars (22s. 6d.) per month, with their food. This rate of pay is much lower than what is paid to European labourers; and the ration of rice for the China-man might be procured from Java, Bally, or Lombak, and laid down in Sydney at (or under) three halfpence per pound; which is as cheap as No. 3 flour in the most abundant seasons, and much cheaper than that article usually is. For field-work, the China-man is fully equal to the European labourer. I speak advisedly, having tried them together, side by side, for months at a time. In a recent Singapore paper I find it stated, that the Home Authorities have authorised an agent to treat for the transmission of Chinese labourers from the Straits' settlements to the West Indies; and, from my knowledge of those places, I have no doubt that thousands of men will be induced to avail themselves of this new market for their labour. Had New South Wales the same permission from Government, she might be equally, and probably more successful, because China-men always prefer emigrating to a country having frequent communication with their own. This advantage, New South Wales possesses over the West Indies, for as many as twenty or thirty vessels annually leave Sydney for China. There would be no difficulty in getting the Chinese labourer bound for five years, his pay to begin from the day he landed in Sydney, and his passage down to be paid by his employer. This last charge would add 30s. per annum to his wages; but even then, he would be the cheapest labourer within reach of the Australian farmer. Many gentlemen have turned their attention to Bengal for a supply of labour. The men procurable from that country, are not equal in physical strength to the China-men, nor are they to be had for lower pay. I had six Bengal Coolies in my employ in the Bush, and have no hesitation in saying, that three China-men would have done their work. The proper immigrant to obtain from Bengal, if the Colonists choose to apply to that part of the world, is the Pariah, the man of no caste, who will eat any thing, apply himself to any kind of work, even to the killing, curing, or eating a pig, and give far less trouble than any of the high-caste men. The best season for despatching ships with emigrants from China to New South Wales, is from November till February, both inclusive.

A source of vast wealth will open to Australia on the expiration of the Agricultural Company's coal-monopoly. That body, on its establishment in the Colony, obtained the privilege of working coal for thirty years, to the exclusion of all others. The injustice of granting such a privilege to a Company who do not work more than one coal-mine, when there are literally thousands on the eastern coast of this Continent, is too obvious to require comment. Many landed proprietors who have rich veins of coal on their estates, are, under the present regulation, actually compelled to purchase the Agricultural Company's coal for the use of their own kitchens. It may well be imagined, that the money is paid with a very bad grace. Up to the time I left Sydney, the only coal-pit in operation was one at Newcastle, at the mouth of the river Hunter. From this source, an abundant supply of very fair quality was obtained, for which, if I mistake not, 12s. per ton was demanded at the pit's mouth. The Company's coal waggons descend the hill from the pit, by an inclined plane, on iron rails, the descending waggon dragging up the empty one. At the foot of this inclined plane, a wharf or jetty runs a little way into the sea, so that vessels of four or five hundred tons burthen can haul alongside, and have their cargoes shot by waggon-loads down their hatches. All this is as it should be; and when forty or fifty such pits are in full work, Australia may expect to reap some benefit from her mineral riches. The importance of a never-failing supply of coal in these days of steam travelling, is too evident to require a single word of remark.