ABSTRACT
THE part played by the mining industries in the economic progress of South East Asia was second in importance only to that of plantation agriculture. To the growth of these industries contributions were made by men of many nations and races; leadership, though exercised in modern times mainly by Westerners, has by no means been confined to them; and while private enterprise has predominated, governments also have had an indispensable role not merely in regulating development but at times in promoting it. In both Malaya and Indonesia mining operations have been conducted for many centuries. At various periods gold, silver, tin, iron ore, coal, oil, bauxite and several other minerals have been produced. In both countries, however, the product of outstanding importance during the last century is tin, and it is to this that the greater part of our survey will be devoted.
