ABSTRACT
The quality of the labour supply is most variable. The Annamites, who form the largest ethnic group, are generally first-class workers, though if they are to perform good work care must be taken to observe as far as possible their customs and traditions (see p. 139). The Cambodians are quiet and hospitable people, indolent and lacking in initiative which lays them open to domination by more enterprising groups such as the Chinese and the Annamites. Although sometimes apathetic and indolent like the Cambodians, the Thai and other mountain peoples, if sympathetically treated, prove willing to work in the service of the European. Finally, there are the Chinese, who specialize in money -lending and act as commercial middlemen between the native farmer and the European.
