Section 86: The story of Ladang Geddes

Ladang Geddes (Chinese: 榕吉) was a Malaysian rubber estate. It was the world's largest estate for 'experimental block budded rubber planting' in conjunction with the Rubber Research Institute in Malaysia around 1930. It later became the largest area of new village settlement in Malaysia.

History

The estate was founded by Dunlop Malayan Estates, Ltd, Mr Fred Ascoli was the head of Dunlop Malayan Estates office in London at that time. In 1935, the plantation manager in charge was Mr E M Hawes and assistants were: V Bolton, W. Wall, J N Huges and T McAlpine.

Ladang Geddes Rubber Estate was about 22,035 acres (8917 ha) of which 13,247 acres (5361 ha) were planted (22 blocks planting × 800 acres (3.2 km2) per block) in the area and was situated between 10 and 12 miles (19 km) from Bahau, Negeri Sembilan. It was next to the Bahau, Rompin Malay and Sealing estates.

Design

At its centre was ‘Centre Village’ (or Kongsi in Chinese) containing the main administrative office. It had 15 plantation managers' houses, a clubhouse with swimming pool for senior managers and another for middle management. Three of the plantation manager houses have been destroyed since it was sold in 1966. The senior management clubhouse has been used as a shooting club since 1970.

The estate had a rubber collection factory and a DC electric power -house half a mile (800 m) from the office. Along the way from centre administration office to E Village were 80 to 100 houses for factory and clerical workers, a hospital with three doctors and five nursing quarters. The estate hospital provided a standard of care broadly in line with British hospitals. Clean water was supplied by a power plant in "C3 Village". A few sundry shops were available for provisions, along with laundry, bus and lorry company depot, Chinese school (primary Chung Hua) established in 1937. Some of the Chinese students extended their tertiary education and qualified as Engineers, accountants etc.) A Tamil school operated at the Centre Village. A football field was placed in front of the small police station.

At the peak of the production, from the 1930s to 1966, the plantation was divided into 10 villages. Each village housed 200 to 300 workers who were mostly Chinese except in Centre Village where Indian workers lived. Sungai Tebu (river) ran through the plantation and its source was South Village.

Each village produced about 6,000 to 8,000 kg of latex/day or about three million kilogrammes of rubber a year from 1930 to 1966.

The plantation was sold in 1966.

The state chief minister Dr Said and Minister of Labour Tun Sambanthan were activity the disagreement. What were the outcomes? The atmosphere was tense. Much sympathy was the poor worker who would be losing their jobs afters the estate was sold. Police was called in to be on the standby as the actively suspected the likelihood of civil unrest. The dust finally settled as the politician managed to convince the Dunlop to give priority to estate workers to buy the property. The sale of ladang Geddes in away marked the beginning of the end to the neo-colonial interest in Malaysia.

In 1966, when Dunlop Malaysia Estates Ltd, the British owner of Ladang Geddes, decided to sell the 13,000 acres of the estate by subdividing it into smaller plots, immediately, it received a tumultuous reaction from the estate workers. They were fearful of losing their jobs. Nevertheless, unforeseen at the time, it transformed a foreign owned plantation into a new village years later.

After 57 years, what has changed in Ladang Geddes? The workers have become smallholders, so how have their lives changed?

During the storting period, what kind of conflicts and distrust were there between those who were to and those against the sale?

The labour dispute over the sales of the estate has also created a rift between local politicians. Mr. Tam Jian Seng, an MCA state assemblyman from Rompin was very much behind the workers in their appeal to Dunlop not to sell the property. He resigned from the party subsequently when the MCA leadership did not agree with his stand.

At the same time another MCA member Yee Kok Chen was assisting with the sale. Finally, the two had a show down in the 1969 general election. It was Yee that who prevailed. He succusses fully won the next 3 term and was appointed as an executive member by the state legislative in 1978.

The 13,000 acres estate was the single largest estate in Malaysia at that time. The sale by sub division was the first ever commercial attempt by in plantation history. Though the worker’s union was strongly against the move alternately the owner managed to sell all the acres divided plots from the 13,000 acres.

Nonetheless, it was only in the 1990’s that the subdivided land titles were finally issued to the buyers. Most buyers were Chinese working class in the neighbourhood and businessmen from Bahau. Looking at what it is now today, a Chinese new village in the midst of oil palm estate, it is hard to imagine it was once the larges rubber estate owned by Dunlop.

During the process of segmenting and selling the large plantation, MCA (Malaysian Chinese Association) also experienced a significant shake-up. Wong Chengjiu(王成就), who was highly anticipated, was initially designated as the candidate for the Rompin constituency. However, after an internal party election, the political landscape of MCA changed, altering the history of the Rompin constituency. According to the recollections of MCA elder Rao Jinjian（饶进见）, Wong Chengjiu (王成就)was appointed as the Chairman of the Negeri Sembilan state after the party election, followed by his appointment as a senator and Deputy Minister of Transport. As a result, a new candidate needed to be selected for the Rompin constituency.

With this change, Chua Tek Fu(蔡德富), who held influence in MCA Bahau, immediately emerged as a prominent figure. They unanimously believed that he should become the candidate for Rompin. If Chua Tek Fu had successfully contested in Rompin, it would have rewritten the history of the Rompin election. According to Rao Jinjian, the grassroots of MCA Bahau also strongly supported Chua Tek Fu. However, due to the unpredictable political situation within MCA, Yu Guozhen(余振国), who was serving as the Inspector of the Department of Education, received a directive from the higher-ups to represent MCA in the Rompin constituency, leading to a confrontation with Tan Kian Sang（谭建生）, the former Rompin state assemblyman who had previously left MCA.

The national general election was held on May 10, 1969, while the segmentation and sale of Ladang Geddes occurred two years earlier in 1967. Despite the lack of direct connection between these two events, it added a special historical significance to the Ladang Geddes incident. Rao Jinjian stated that the segmentation and sale of Ladang Geddes had a significant impact on the Ladang Geddes election, although the number of voters in Ladang Geddes was small, so despite significant fluctuations, it could not affect the overall situation.

Throughout the entire event, the main faction supporting Yu Guozhen in the Rompin constituency consisted of the Lai brothers, Lai Rongmei（赖荣美） and Lai Rongchao（赖荣朝）, and Lin Jinwang（林金旺）, who confronted Tan Kian Sang（谭建生）, who stood against the segmentation and sale of Ladang Geddes. These two factions campaigned using the segmentation of the plantation as their focal point, and ultimately, Ladang Geddes was successfully segmented and sold, leading to Yu Guozhen's ultimate victory.

Subsequently, Yu Guozhen was elected as the Rompin state assemblyman for four consecutive terms in 1974, 1978, and 1982. In 1978, he was appointed as the Negeri Sembilanr state executive council member in charge of the Water and Electricity Commission, making positive contributions to the gradual transformation of Ladang Geddes into new villages and the efforts to secure water and electricity supply.

Although the segmentation and sale of Ladang Geddes happened a long time ago, the villagers still enthusiastically discuss the political rivalry between Tan Kian Sang and Yu Guozhen. Tan Kian Sang, who is now in his late seventies, recalled that the segmentation and sale of Ladang Geddes involved the lives of thousands of rubber tappers, so they naturally sought help from the opposition party to oppose the sale and restore the original state. He stood on the side of the rubber tappers and confronted those who supported the sale. Despite his efforts, he couldn't reverse the situation due to the overwhelming circumstances, and Ladang Geddes was ultimately segmented and sold in 1967.

Tan Kian Sang recalled that there was a proposal to offer him 30 acres of rubber plantation in exchange for his withdrawal from the dispute, but he remained unmoved by it. This secret is still revealed by him personally to this day.

Reflecting the turbulent situation during the Ladang Geddes incident, Bahau also experienced an impact, with many businesses entering Ladang Geddes to purchase rubber plantations. The buyers had two mindsets: some were engaging in mild investment, buying a few dozen or few acres of rubber plantations for leisure, while others had a more adventurous spirit, purchasing over a hundred acres or even more to take a daring risk.

Since the segmentation and sale of Ladang Geddes was the first event of its kind in Malaysian history, it was an unknown risk for small plantation owners whether they would obtain individual land titles after purchasing the rubber plantations. Additionally, society was relatively simple at the time, and many people adopted a wait-and-see attitude. However, for the large group of people who had been diligently tapping rubber on the plantations, this was a golden opportunity. Many people were willing to use all their savings, and even withdraw from their provident funds, to purchase three to five acres of rubber plantations, even if the risks were high, they were willing to take the risk.

These people had been working on the plantations, earning low wages, and lacking freedom. Now they had this opportunity, and even though the future was uncertain, they entered the real estate market with an optimistic mindset. Today, Ladang Geddes has transformed into a new village, and individual land titles have been successfully delineated, confirming the legal status of the small plantation owners. After 47 years of struggle, they finally see the results.

instruction manual：All English names are translated in Chinese pinyin, and everything in Chinese shall prevail.（所有英文姓名以汉语拼音翻译，一切以中文为准）。

Early stage Rubber Tappers Buying Chicken Congee and Later stage Small Estate Owners Cutting Sugarcane The Ladang Geddes region is vast, and the environment in many places is generally similar. There were once traveling salesmen from other areas who entered the hills and got lost when leaving the village at night, needing to seek help and guidance from the local villagers.

During the era of rubber plantations, in order to facilitate management, the British openly allowed contractors to lease the rubber plantations and hired rubber tappers. Each contractor had dozens of people working for them. Once a contractor hired rubber tappers, they would arrange for them to live in the village. Ladang Geddes had more than ten villages, all built for the convenience of rubber tappers.

C3 Village was the farthest from the central area, about 6 kilometers away. During the era of rubber plantations, the contractor for this village was first Yap Jin(叶金), and later Lee Bo（李波）. The village bordered the primary forest, and before the segmented sale, Galadong Highway(加拉东大道) had not been opened, so wild elephants frequently appeared.

Qiu Yao hua（邱耀华）, now 88 years old, has lived in Ladang Geddes for 81 years. He recalls moving from Malacca to Ladang Geddes when he was 7 years old. At that time, there was only one row of old shops on Main Street, and it wasn't until the Japanese occupation that the second row of shops was built across the street.

He pointed out that some villages in Ladang Geddes are still named after the contractors because of the relationship between the contractors, rubber plantations, and villages. For example, Company D is also called "Chen Xiang," (陈祥) which was the name of the contractor in that village at that time.

He remembers that the contractor for C1 Village was Liao Mei（廖美）, C2 Village was initially Chai Biao（蔡标）, and later Du Jin（杜进） and Datuk Lee Xin hua（拿督李信华）; Shao Company was Ho Ping（何炳）, Lan Yan（蓝彦）, and Xie Tan（谢谭）; Company A was Zeng Qi and Xie Jian（谢鹸）; Company B was Xie Fa（谢发）, previously a contractor surnamed Huang（黄）. As for Company E, it was several people including Lan He（蓝和）. For coconut plantations, Hua xiang（华祥） and Lee Xin hua（李信华） served as contractors; they were all well-known figures in Ladang Geddes back then.

He recalled that at that time, Ladang Geddes's population was not large. Mountain 49 was adjacent to Citrus Garden, but the rubber plantation contractors were different, and there was a clear boundary. Rubber tappers were not allowed to cross the boundary.

During the era of rubber plantations, the lives of rubber tappers were relatively simple. After work, they would play a few rounds of mahjong or go to the field to play ball. Occasionally, there would be outdoor movie screenings at night, which were free during the era of rubber plantations, but after the segmented sale, fees had to be paid.

He mentioned that the only place for the rubber tappers to spend money was Bahau, which was 28 kilometers away. They usually traveled by bus, and whenever the plantations needed food supplies or borrowed food, the bus business would be booming. Especially during the food distribution period when there was a water limit (rest day on rainy days), there were good movies showing in Bahau, and the buses were packed with people, even the front bumper was filled with passengers.

In the 1950s and 1960s, the population of Ladang Geddes reached its peak. The residential areas of Companies A, B, and Shao were all filled with people. At that time, the Chinese primary schools in Ladang Geddes had over 600 students. However, today, these three companies are part of history, and the student population has decreased to just over 100.

One 76-year-old Xu Hongwen(徐鸿文), who was born in Ladang Geddes, recalled that the basic wages of rubber workers back then were only RM2.35, while rubber income was calculated separately, resulting in a monthly salary ranging from RM60 to RM100.

In late 1966, rumors of demolition and sale began to circulate in Ladang Geddes, but they were not confirmed. The British manager of Garden Hill at that time was furious and warned the rubber workers that anyone spreading rumors would be expelled from the estate. The following year, a broker named JD appeared in Ladang Geddes to buy and sell estates, and the estate manager accompanied him to survey various locations.

During the demolition and sale period, the rubber workers strongly opposed the process. Some workers set up barriers at road intersections and escalated their protests, preventing outsiders from entering Ladang Geddes. Despite the intense emotions, fortunately, there were no incidents of bloodshed.

Xie Dexing（谢德兴）, a small plantation owner, recalled the scene when he first set foot in the Ladang Geddes rubber plantation. What he could never forget was the overwhelming number of mosquitoes at that time, attacking like swarms of locusts when they saw rice plants. Even if only an inch of skin was exposed, it would be swarmed by mosquitoes. As Ladang Geddes was preparing for the demolition and sale, the rubber workers had already stopped working and patrolled, and it took nearly a year to successfully demolish the estate.

As a result, the plantation had become barren. With rainwater accumulating in rubber cups for a long time without being cleaned, mosquitoes bred in large numbers. He recalled that the small plantation owners would make a smoke pipe and place it aside while tapping rubber to drive away mosquitoes. However, mosquito coils were ineffective against the swarms during the period of scarcity, and only billowing smoke could combat them.

Another unforgettable memory for Ladang Geddes residents was the sugarcane harvesting season in the 1970s. At that time, Malaysia and the Indian government jointly operated a sugar factory near Ladang Geddes (now known as the Ayer Hitam Police Training Center). They cleared a large area of land to grow sugarcane for the factory, leading to a drop in rubber prices. This provided an opportunity for small plantation owners to earn extra income. Xie Dexing(谢德兴) recalled that many Ladang Geddes residents participated in the work in the large sugarcane plantation, especially in cutting sugarcane. Every day, he and his colleagues rode motorcycles to the sugarcane plantation for harvesting. Although it was hard work, there was also some fun. Since the sugarcane plantation was obstructed by dense cane leaves, it was necessary to set it on fire before cutting. When the sugarcane plantation caught fire, flames soared into the sky, sometimes even burning large pythons to death, but the most common victims were rats.

The burned sugarcane plantation was covered in ashes, and after cutting the sugarcane, the workers would be covered in a layer of ash, making them look like African people. At the end of the work shift, everyone would look at each other and burst into laughter, unable to contain their amusement. This experience became a memorable memory for them that they could never forget.

Ladang Geddes 57-year series of staged demolitions and sales (Part Four):

Public Bathing, Collective Bathing; Public Kitchen 10 Stoves Simultaneously Cooking

The joys and hardships of Ladang Geddes dismantling and sale, as the saying goes, "Only those within the circle know the warmth and chill when drinking water in winter." After a span of 57 years, looking back at the past, there is an endless sense of sentimentality. Many past memories are truly nostalgic.

Xie Dexing（谢德兴）, the small estate owner in Ladang Geddes, reminisces that back in the day, the rubber trees planted in Ladang Geddes were mostly of the 600 series, with abundant and thick latex. Unfortunately, the market conditions were bleak, and prices were dismal. People increasingly felt the difficulties and frustrations. He remembers that during the lowest period of rubber prices, a pound of rubber was sold for only 20 cents. For those who borrowed money to purchase rubber plantations, their monthly income was insufficient to repay their debts, making life incredibly tough.

When they first arrived, Ladang Geddes had no water or electricity supply. Drinking water was sourced from the river in C3 Village during the era of Yuanqiu, with a pumping station by the river that extracted and filtered the water for distribution to the villages. This was a remnant of the Dunlop era. Villagers used large lamps and oil lamps for lighting. In the 1980s, the villagers jointly purchased a generator for electricity supply. Television programs were only available for a brief three hours each night, starting from 7 p.m. and ending at 10 p.m., without any room for negotiation.

He mentioned that sometimes, just when watching an exciting program, the TV would suddenly go black, causing distress to everyone.

It is said that in 1900, Dunlop opened up Ladang Geddes, and at that time, the workers drank river water. In the 1930s, a pumping station was built, and since then Ladang Geddes had tap water.

Xie Dexing, the owner of Xiaoyuan, reminisced that the tap water from the C3 River only reached the sub-stations in each village, as well as the public bathhouses and communal kitchens. Some individual households did not have tap water and had to fetch water on their own. After Ladang Geddes was dismantled and sold, most of the public facilities were in a dilapidated state, and the wooden doors of the public bathhouses or toilets were also damaged. People who came here never tasted the sweetness of being a "small estate owner," but they first experienced the hardships of pioneering.

As for the public toilets, they were all built in secluded areas outside the houses. It was fine to use them during the day, but it would be more troublesome if you had to use them in the middle of the night due to a stomachache. At that time, there was no electricity, and it was pitch black around, so you couldn't see anything. You could only rely on lighting a kerosene lamp or candle to complete your business. A row of public toilets were spaced four or five toilets apart. If there were familiar people using the toilets at the same time, two people in adjacent stalls could chat with each other, but every time they came out of the narrow toilet, there would be a distinct smell.

The public kitchen was quite interesting. There were more than ten stoves inside, with one pot per stove, corresponding to each family. Every morning and evening, the kitchen would be lit up, and there would be the sounds of chopping vegetables, washing rice, and the hustle and bustle of the small estate owners, making it very lively.

He said that in the 1960s, there was a popular trend of gambling on "Zi Hua" (a form of lottery) in Ladang Geddes. Every day, two men would enter the village to set up the Zi Hua puzzles for the villagers to guess. Although the odds were 10 cents for a payout of 3 Ringgit, it still fascinated the villagers. He said that while the small estate owners were cooking, they would study the Zi Hua puzzles, each with their own opinions, not giving in to each other. When the Zi Hua puzzles were revealed, those who guessed correctly would be ecstatic, and the whole public kitchen would be as lively as a market, becoming one of the characteristics of Ladang Geddes after its dismantlement and sale.

XXiao Wensheng (萧文生) spent his childhood in Ladang Geddes, and he said the most unforgettable experience was when he was taking a bath. He would connect a water pipe from the public tap to his self-built bathroom. However, halfway through the bath, covered in soap suds, the water supply would suddenly stop because someone had disconnected the water pipe outside to use it for cooking. He said this situation was very common. Sometimes, he had to catch the school bus to go to school and was already very anxious. His eyes were stinging and uncomfortable from the soap suds in the bathroom, and then the water pipe was disconnected. He could only shout loudly for the people outside to quickly reconnect the water pipe. However, there was no response from outside, only the sound of empty buckets being filled with water. He waited in agony for two or three minutes before the water supply was restored, but by then, he had already shouted himself hoarse. He said that sometimes, during heavy rain, the river water would become muddy, and even after being filtered and delivered to the villages, the drinking water would still be tea-colored. Many people would rather go to nearby rivers to fetch water for drinking.

Xiao Wensheng (萧文生) later became the former county councilor of Jempol. He remembers that when he attended Hua Xiao in Ladang Geddes, the school bus ride to and from school would turn his white clothes yellow. The reason was that the roads in Ladang Geddes were all made of yellow mud, and as the school bus passed by, it would kick up rolling yellow dust. When the students returned home, their mothers couldn't help but nag about it.

Chen Shuimu,( 陈水木)the owner of Ladang Geddes, stated that the public bathhouses were somewhat inconvenient for women, especially if the wooden doors of the bathhouses were damaged. However, if there was no bathroom at home, there was nowhere else to take a bath. He said that when the small estate owners returned from tapping rubber, they would each carry a water bucket and head straight to the public bathhouse. When there were many people, it was very common for several people to squeeze together to take a bath. After bathing, they would each use a large towel or sarong to change clothes.

The public restroom is divided into four sections, allowing up to four people to use it simultaneously.

Over the past 57 years, Ladang Gaddes has made significant progress, including access to clean water and electricity, successful land division, and infrastructure improvements. According to the provided information, Ladang Gaddes obtained a water supply in 1981, gained access to electricity in 1987, and established the land titles Division Group in 1992 to initiate land division work.

The smallholders expressed their joy when the first drop of clean water flowed into Ladang Gaddes, finally freeing them from years of water scarcity issues. Every face was filled with a sense of surprise and delight. By the end of 1987, electricity reached the village, and Ladang Gaddes transitioned from a chaotic world to a civilized era. Light dispelled darkness, and the world became vibrant and colorful.

The supply of electricity brought various household appliances into Ladang Gaddes, leading to a transformative change in Ladang Gaddes New Village. Refrigerators and color televisions flooded the village, and local appliance merchants were all smiles. Ladang Gaddes development history reached a new milestone. The smallholders openly admitted that their biggest concern when purchasing properties in Ladang Gaddes was whether they would obtain land ownership. Many people hesitated to buy rubber plantations due to concerns about future land ownership. In such a situation, real estate agents conducted large-scale promotional activities to sell their vast land holdings. Some offered to sell at a price of 300 Malaysian Ringgit per acre, or even with attractive deals, but no one was willing to buy until the situation became clearer, and such favorable offers were no longer available.

The Dunlop era has become history. Villagers say that the Ladang Gaddes division group was led by the then senator, Chong Chi Siong, who successfully carried out land title division using this advantage, bringing many conveniences to Ladang Gaddes. During the Dunlop era, Ladang Gaddes had two large land titles, one covering an area of 5,000 acres and the other over 8,000 acres. After seven to eight years of effort, the group eventually divided the two large land titles into smaller ones according to the size of each smallholder's land, fulfilling its historical mission.

After the smallholders obtained individual land titles, the legal status of their land was confirmed, strengthening their determination to settle and thrive in Ladang Gaddes, truly making the Dunlop era a part of history. Ladang Gaddes transitioned from darkness to light, but for some longtime residents, the ups and downs of the development process still evoke a mix of emotions.

Arrogant British Manager & Rubber Workers

"Lee Fu, an 85-year-old retired food stall owner, recalled that the arrogant demeanor of the British manager during the estate era left a lasting impression on him. His most unforgettable experience was when the manager accused him of having a dirty drainage ditch in front of his shop and fined him 50 Ringgit. He emphasized that at that time, 50 Ringgit was equivalent to almost one month's salary for a rubber worker. Reluctantly, he paid the fine. However, to his surprise, the manager, in front of his father, lit the money on fire after receiving it.

According to Lee Fu's recollections, the rubber workers were subjected to the high-handedness of the British manager. Even their subordinates were threatened and intimidated, enduring constant verbal berating from the manager. To add to their distress, the manager would hurl half-understood Malay insults at the workers, regardless of their accuracy. The mere sight of this British manager struck terror in the hearts of the workers, evoking a ghostly presence. As he approached, they would instinctively lower their heads and avoid his gaze. Shockingly, Li Fu himself witnessed an Indian manager of the same ethnicity using a whip to lash a woman.

Lee Fu vividly described the British manager during his inspections, donning a cowboy hat, wielding a cane, and puffing on a cigar. His conversations were punctuated by dramatic gestures with his cane, emanating an aura of wealth and authority. Following the dismantling of the rubber plantations in Singapore, some of the rubber workers had acquired land in the area to settle down. However, they still had to traverse estate hill, which retained remnants of the British colonial era.

At that time, there was a toll fee to pass through the estate hill, with a charge of 50 cents for small vehicles and 1 Malaysian Ringgit for large vehicles, Lee Fu recalled an incident where he was driving plantation contractor. Surprisingly, instead of a loud reprimand, the

manager simply advised him to drive more cautiously in the future, through the area and was halted by the British deputy manager, who chastised him for speeding. In a swift retort, Lee Fu asserted, "I now have a house, land, and a car. I am no longer your worker. If you want to insult someone, go back to your own country and do it." On another occasion, Lee Fu overtook the manager's vehicle, leading to a meeting with the manager summoned by the rubber.

Epilogue: In the 1930s, when Chinese rubber workers arrived in this place, due to their low level of education and lack of knowledge in English, they referred to the British manager as "guilao jingli"(鬼佬经理) when communicating with their fellow countrymen. Even today, we still use the term "laowai"("老外") to refer to foreigners.

The treasury during that time is now referred to as the cái kù (财库/书记). In that era, holding the position of cái kù represented authority, and the role of the treasury was to assist the British manager in handling documents and distributing wages. The term "yalan" referred to land deeds or land titles. (Interpretation: Ho Mui Moi)

1. In the past, rubber trees were planted, but now they have been replaced with oil palm trees. 2. The houses where the British manager resided during the period include houses numbered 2 and 3.

Some say that if Ladang Gaddes cannot be successfully segmented and sold in sections, today's young plantation owners would not know where they would be, and their life trajectories would be rewritten. However, more people believe that the successful segmentation and sale of Ladang Gaddes has more benefits for the public, with relatively few drawbacks.

Old Ladang Gaddes residents admit that although there were oppositions to the segmentation and sale in the past, many people also supported it because only through the sale could they have a chance to own their own land."

Over the course of 57 years, aside from some new streets and personnel changes, the scenery in various villages of Ladang Gaddes has not changed significantly, especially the buildings left from the plantation era, many of which are still well-preserved.

The most shocking discovery was the finding of a British tomb. This tombstone was found behind a resident's house along the path near the Durian Orchard. The villagers excavated a tombstone engraved with the English word "General." However, no coffins or remains were found when the tombstone was dug up, leaving the mystery unsolved as to why the tombstone appeared there.

Ladang Gaddes brought astonishment to people, but also brought hope. Over the course of 57 years, many people have worked hard on this land, chasing their dreams and hoping for a better future. History has given them many lessons, just as the small plantation owners know they need water in a cold winter, they deeply understand the ups and downs of life.

Pan Baqing, the village head of Zone D in Ladang Gaddes, stated that the public facilities in Ladang Gaddes have improved. Almost 100% of the roads are paved with asphalt, and there are complete water, electricity, and telephone communication facilities. The village is well-lit with streetlights, and the rivers are regularly cleared, greatly reducing the risk of flooding.

He pointed out that the major flood in 1971 had a tremendous impact on Village C3 in Ladang Gaddes. The river overflowed, and houses near the river were barely visible with their rooftops showing, almost the entire village was submerged by the flood. The pumping station was flooded, and villagers were trapped in the water, facing a shortage of food. This was a significant event in the development history of Ladang Gaddes.

He said that the segmentation and sale of Ladang Gaddes have a milestone significance in Malaysian history. If Ladang Gaddes had been acquired by a large conglomerate at that time, history would have been rewritten, and Ladang Gaddes would not be in its present state. The fate of every small plantation owner would have changed.

He recalled that he used to live in Johor's Omali, and when he heard the news of the segmentation and sale of Ladang Gaddes, he made a special trip to learn about the situation. At the time, he dared not mention buying a rubber plantation for fear of causing unpleasant incidents.

Leong Kwong Yan, the village head of Zone B in Ladang Gaddes, stated that from another perspective, the segmentation and sale of Ladang Gaddes had a huge impact on the group of workers who relied on plantations for their livelihoods in the past. Many workers lost their jobs. Leong mentioned that according to labor laws, strictly speaking, plantations should not be segmented and sold arbitrarily, otherwise these workers would be forced into unemployment."

Policies should be fair, and governance should be equitable in order to achieve balance. We must not forget that the majority of people in society are poor, and society cannot ignore this group of people." He expressed that although society needs to develop, a more balanced approach is needed in the development process, while also paying attention to those less fortunate. Otherwise, if the imbalance leads to social unrest, the meaning of development will be lost.

He pointed out that the segmentation and sale of Ladang Gaddes is a historically significant event. It not only involves the rise and fall of the British colonial government in the development of Malaysia but also the living conditions of the Chinese immigrants in this land and their contributions to the social development, which are obvious.

He expressed his appreciation for the people of Ladang Gaddes, regardless of their occupations, acknowledging their hard work. Because in the development of Ladang Gaddes, everyone has contributed in their own way.

Every step leaves a trace, remembering the past glory of Ladang Geddes New Village

The name Ladang Geddes carries the collective memories of those involved in the rubber tapping industry!

The milky latex was the hard-earned result of the diligent labor of rubber plantation workers who started working before daybreak. It fed generations of descendants of rubber workers while fattened the coffers of the colonial powers.

The ‘grand rubber house’ of Ladang Geddes was an important economic tool of Dunlop Malayan Estate Ltd during the era of British colonialism. It not only witnessed the century-long development history of rubber plantations in Malaysia, even in the declined landscape of the rubber industry today, this significant historical landmark continues to astound the younger generation with the greatness of their ancestors and the once-mighty dominance of the British Empire.

The ‘grand rubber house’, a collective memory of the rubber tappers and their family members of Ladang Geddes, resonates with the nostalgic sound of "ding-ding-dong-dong" as they rode the "iron horses" carrying rubber buckets. However, those memories have soared far beyond the clouds.

Every single day, rubber tappers faced the risks of mosquito and ant bites and the danger of snakes and scorpions to begin their task of tapping rubber trees in the rubber plantation before dawn. They were required to 'tap' around 500 rubber trees each day. Rubber tappers depend on the weather for their livelihood; they have to stop working on rainy days. If it rains before they started work, it was considered a day off for them. But if it started raining after they had already begun, not only did they get drenched like wet chickens, but the rain also washed away the latex, rendering their efforts futile. They also worried about catching a cold. Rainy days are the biggest concern for rubber tappers because they have to make up for the lost work afterwards. During such times, they set off to the gloomy and tranquil rubber plantation in the middle of the night or even earlier, braving the cold winds, to start their day's work. The life of a rubber tapper is indescribable and incomprehensible because the emotions and experiences cannot be easily replaced。 Even the act of measuring the purity of latex collected by each tapper carried with sorrow and bitterness, along with the memories one dare not revisit. All those experiences are beyond the grasp or comprehension of contemporary individuals.

At that time, the managers and other superiors of the estate was addressed as “ghost”. The fear and trepidation of encountering the “big ghost”, “second ghost”, “third ghost” or even the supervisors outside the ‘grand rubber house’ are not easily understood or comprehended by modern individuals today.

Ladang Geddes Estate carries great weight and significance in the history of the nation, and the elderly residents of the estate hold onto indelible memories of their days as rubber tappers. Undoubtedly, the experiences they have gone through will leave lasting imprints that cannot be erased.

More than 80 years ago, the powerful conglomerate Dunlop Malaysia Estates Ltd, which was controlled by the British colonial government, took over the renowned Ladang Geddes Rubber Estate. In that time, Ladang Geddes was known as the golden production site in Malaya. It was at the same time; many Chinese laborers were brought from China to various parts of Malaya to pioneer new opportunities. Around 10 years later, in 1937, these ancestors and their descendants were recruited as rubber tappers in this biggest estate. Since then, Ladang Geddes flourished, producing countless liters of milky-white latex, nurturing generations of its inhabitants, and was transformed into a prosperous community.

Today, we can still find in the downloadable Wikipedia information that "Ladang Geddes" was documented as the largest rubber plantation in the world at that time. What a place that makes people of Jempol District and even Malaysians proud.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ladang_Geddes Ladang Geddes Estate was established by the British Dunlop Group, and one of the chairmen of the company was Mr. Eric Geddes. Therefore, it is speculated that the name ‘Ladang Geddes’ was named after Mr. Eric Geddes. However, the origin of the name is still a topic of interest. In Chinese, Ladang Geddes is known as ‘Rongji’. Whether the name of the estate was named after Eric Geddes or not, according to the local folklore, it is believed that the ancestors who migrated to Malaya at that time predominantly spoke Cantonese, and they pronounced rubber trees as "Shu Yong" and back then, Eric Geddes named the estate as "吉" (pronounced as "Ji" in Mandarin) for transliteration purposes. This led to the origin of the name "榕吉" (pronounced as "Rong Ji" in Mandarin).

The former Ladang Geddes rubber estate covered an area of approximately 22,035 acres (8,917 hectares), with 13,247 acres (5,361 hectares) of that area encompassing the districts of Bahau, Malay Rompin Estate, and Sungei Sebaling, spanning a circular distance of nearly 19 kilometers.

In an interview, Mr. Xie Zhang Lai, the village chairman, revealed that at its peak, Ladang Geddes had a population of nearly 10,000 people. At that time, the estate was divided into approximately 12 divisions (or Kongsi in Chinese), each of which employed around 300 rubber-tappers. Adding in the general workers and the factory workers, there were at least 600 to 700 residents in a division, total to approximately 10,000 people.

The 12 divisions of Ladang Geddes rubber estate included A gonsi, B gonsi, C1 gonsi, C gonsi, C2 gonsi, C3 gonsi, D gonsi, E gonsi, South gonsi , Central Zone, Ye yuan, Chen Village, and the Grand Rubber House Zone.

Ladang Geddes Rubber Estate under Dunlop Group, was recorded as the largest rubber estate in the world. The main function of the grand rubber house was to receive latex from various estates of the Dunlop Group and to produce dried rubber sheets.

The rubber sheets produced in the grand rubber house were classified into three grades: A, B, and C. Grade A sheets were sent to England, while grades B and C were used locally. This once again highlights how the British not only colonized our country but also extracted and shipped back our country's important and best resources to their homeland.

Among other facilities, Ladang Geddes Estate had several shops, a small medical center, a swimming pool club, a rubber sheet smoke room in the large rubber house factory, and a water filtration plant.

Xie Zhang（谢樟来）, the Chairman of the C Village (formerly known as C gongsi) in Ladang Geddes New Village Management Committee, pointed out that in the past, the lives of rubber tappers were simple. There was no water or electricity supply in the estate. Hence, the rubber tappers would play mahjong during their free time. It was only in the 1960s, when two cinemas were built in Bahau which is 19 Km away, that they would venture out to Bahau to go shopping and watch movies on the monthly payday or the mid-month loan day.

Back then, After Ladang Geddes Estate was sold in plots, Ladang Geddes Estate no longer exists, and it was renamed Ladang Geddes New Village. Ultimately, only a little over 1,000 small owners who managed their own rubber plantations remained. The number of students in the Chinese primary school has also declined significantly year by year due to the decline of the rubber estate.

One of the most unforgettable aspects of Ladang Geddes Estate was in 1958 during the period of the Emergency Regulations when people relied heavily on communal cooking. During meal times, representatives from each household went to the communal cooking area to buy cooked food for their families, and the corresponding expenses were deducted directly from their monthly salaries.

Regarding the electricity supply in the village, Ladang Geddes Village did not have electricity supply. It was in the early 1980s that residents successfully lobbied the government for electricity supply. Before the 1980s, when night fell, one could only see kerosene lamps flickering in every household or the dim light from oil lamps. The hardships endured during that time are difficult for modern people to comprehend.

Chairman He Jing Da and Chairman Lin De Hua pointed out during the interview that they also learned about the history of their village from online Wiki historical records. In the past, Ladang Geddes had several administration offices in Central Zone. There were 15 plantation manager houses, a clubhouse with a swimming pool for senior management, and another one for middle-level management. Since the sale in 1966, three of the plantation manager houses have been demolished and the senior management clubhouse served as a shooting club since 1970.

In those days, besides the grand rubber house (for collecting latex and manufacturing rubber sheets), there was also a power plant here. From the central administrative office to E gongsi, there were a total of 80 to 100 houses for factory workers and administrative staff. Ladang Geddes Estate also had a hospital, staffed with three doctors and five nursing rooms. Remarkably, the service standards provided by this hospital were roughly on par with those of hospitals in the United Kingdom.

The water supply for Ladang Geddes Estate was provided by a power plant in "C3 Village." There were grocery stores, laundry shops, and warehouses for bus and truck companies. Chung Hwa Chinese Primary School was established in 1937 to provide Chinese education to the next generation of those overseas Chinese who crossed the seas from impoverished China to work as laborers. According to historical records, the school was established by some engineers or accountants. These professionals had also done the same to other plantation estates nationwide.

Historical records also recorded that from the 1930s to the 1960s, it was the peak period of rubber production. The estate was divided into 12 villages (gongsi), each with 200 to 300 workers, with the majority being Chinese and a small portion being Indian.

During that time, each village produced approximately 6,000 to 8,000 kilograms of latex per day, totaling around 3 million kilograms of rubber per year. Dunlop Estate was sold in plots in 1966, marking the end of its reputation as the world's largest rubber estate.

Despite not having the grandeur of being the world's largest estate, Ladang Geddes New Village continued to nurture the rubber tappers from the 12 villages with its pure white latex. Each individual village has its own village chief, including the late Leong Sian Wing, the late Tan Ju Chong, Leong Loo Sang, Leong Kong Yan, Liu Nan Chang, and others.

Today, a new generation of village management committee, comprising four young and capable chairmen, take care of Ladang Geddes New Village. They are Chairman Lin De Hua for Village A, Chairman Murugan for Village B, Chairman Chey Kum Loy for Village C, and Chairman He Jing Da for Village D. They have pledge to nurture make Ladang Geddes New Village cleaner and more beautiful place for the residents.