ABSTRACT
The new colonial state had precisely delineated boundaries, a new style of administration, and institutional and legislative structures to oversee the various aspects of government. In the mining sector the colonial administration introduced a series of mining regulations, including titles and leases to mining land, and codified the 'mutual rights and obligation of the State and miners'. Workers in the tin mining industry in Malaya were normally employed under two categories of remuneration. These were a system of wages and a tribute system. Turning to mining methods, the Chinese introduced the chain-pump, adapted the Malay method of ground-sluicing, and subsequently embraced European mechanical technologies, including hydraulic mining and gravel pump mining. European dominance has been attributed to both political and economic factors. No explanation of the differentiation of men's and women's economic roles and the peripheral role of women in mining would be complete without an examination of production structures and labour systems.
