ASIATIC LABOUR IN THE TRANSVAAL
[To THE EDITOR OF TEE "SPECTATOR."] Bra,—In the Spectator of October 31st I notice a letter on the subject of "Asiatic Labour in the Transvaal," in which the writer instances a mine in Australia milling 10 dwt. and paying large dividends, and asks why what is possible with white labour in Australia is impossible in the Transvaal. The answer is not difficult. In the first place, very much depends on the width of the reef. I am told that many mines in Australia have reefs many feet in thickness ; in the Transvaal they are usually narrow, often only a few inches ; hence the amount of underground labour is very large in proportion to the results secured. Then in the Transvaal we should con- sider a mine milling 10 dwt. an unusually wealthy one. Some few there are giving a better return, but very many will not mill more than 4 to 8 dwt. Add to these two factors a third—the extremely high cost of living for Europeans, higher, perhaps, at the present time than elsewhere in the world—and it will be seen that what is possible in the Australian Colonies may be, and is, impossible in the
Previous page
