Chapter 10 Lost Without A Shouder To Reliable Shouder to Cling On

In July 1966 Alex joined Kumpulan Good Tree Sdn Bhd.,to be stationed at Sengkang Estate,Port Dickson.He was to be its Probationary Assistant Manager and told to report at the Second Division's office.

He arrived at that Office at about 2.00 p.m.It was a very hot day indeed with the blazing sun shinning mercilessly. The office had about three staffs within,there he was directed to met the Senior Assistant in another room. He met the Senior Assistant,Mr.Chew,a funny short guy in his forties.He was soft spoken like a woman with some English slang,some guy?.Well.like all Senior Assistant he put on quite a bit of air with nose jetting upwards towards the sky .

He send for another Assistant Manager to send Alex to the 2nd.Division, Alex was supposed to be in charged.This man also a Senior Assistant but slightly junior in rank to the former.This gentle man was quite a jovial fellow and he introduced himself as Mr.Leow.

Alex was taken to a bungalow a few miles away in his car. The bungalow was very beautiful in fact with a huge and well maintained garden.Apparently that was the bungalow he was to reside in.Alex came to that plantation with only a bag of clothing that all.They have expected him to shift in with many house hold items but sadly none.

The bungalow was well furnished with furnitures splendily placed and absolutely cleaned,well equipped with kitchen and cabinets.According to this Mr.Leow those occupying that house must be prepared to kept it tidy at all times.So it was inevitable Alex employed a maid with immediate effect.A maid to maintain the bungalow and to cook for him.As for the garden there was a gardener to maintain it.

Anyway the Mr.Leow was very accommodating for as he saw that Alex had nothing else,he immediately went home and secured some cups for Alex to use,
before he acquire all the necessary later.Mr.Leow even supplied him with dinner that evening.

After a long chat Alex suddenly recognized this gentleman as one of the teacher from Anglo Chinese School,Teluk Intan where he was an ex -student.However Mr.Leow was never his form teacher nor had he taught him in any other subjects.Thus they became more friendly.That night for the first time Alex slept alone in semi-raised bungalow.

He took over the master bedroom and as the bungalow was slightly raised two feet or so from the ground level,he had all the windows opened while he slept.Anyway all the rooms were mosquitoes proof with wire netting.Those days the bungalow were never fenced up and security were excellent because those days the Managers and Assistants were well respected by the workers. Most European Managers and Assistants were mostly armed with either pistol or shot guns.Workers never dared venture around the bungalows.

That night Alex slept nicely without any disturbances accept for the cries of insects coming from the nearby rubber fields.It was slightly windy and he could felt it from his bed.The light was witched off after twelve midnight by an engine driver .the generator was at the back of the bungalow.However,the light came back about 5.00 a.m. the next morning.

Early next morning he attended muster to the surprised of all present.There he met the Sr.conductor and three cadet planters.Later he was shown round the fields by the Conductor.Work was seemingly easy as the fields were all matured areas.In the afternoon he met the Manager,an English man with a very lean and hungry look,at the main office..

Finding that Alex had no transport gave him an old motor cycle.A gigantic motor cycle and very heavy machine indeed.He had no choice but to use it.His first meeting with the Manager apparently was never impressive,what a setback?. So after a month or so he transferred Alex to another Division,the Sungai Raya Division,a very interior Division.

He was shifted to another newer,amazing, adorable and contemporary bungalow also well equipped with furniture and kitchen.This bungalow was situated in the middle of the Division and the water supply here was very much better.His nearest neighbor was his Senior Conductor who lived about 100 meters away or so.Workers were from outside that Division.

All the rubber in that Division were immature rubber.His first tasks was to censor the the fields which will be due to be brought into tapping and the maintenance of all other fields.On going job was to pruned all heavy branches of a wind prone clone in a field and the spraying of weeds.It appeared to be very simple but the pressure was on him to impress the Manager who was bias and prejudice against him as a planter from orientated companies.

But his residence in that contemporary bungalow was short lived as he was told to surrender his bungalow to a Training Manager after about a month stay. So he shifted away to stay with another Assistant in the main Division.The bungalow another lovely brick building only with two bedrooms,a baby's room attached to the master bedroom.The building was situated half way mark of a hill with the Manager's bungalow on the hill top.Of course the Manager had his own road towards his mansion but his other outlet road ran beside this Assistant's bungalow.

Alex was given the smallest room,in fact a Baby's room with bathroom attached,one thing this room had was only one entrance and that was his only exist..That Assistant refused to allow him to stay in the other rooms.However this room had a bathroom attached with the other entrance into the master bedroom locked from the other side.

Anyway it was absolutely fine with Alex as he was a bachelor and for food they shared the expenses with him employing his cook but the cook was a witch looking woman who immediately showed her displeasure of her boss sharing meals with Alex.Just like a lover would to her master,very possessive.Alex just have to ignore her hawk eyes watching his every moves.Imagine having to live within such environment he too had to share her wages she acted so rude.How ridiculous?

Every morning Alex had to push his motor cycle down a slope to ignite the engine at ease without making a racket so as to cause any unnecessary disturbances to the Manager who was on that very hilltop.On top of that he had to travel at least 10 miles on the main road,passing a small town and traveled another five into his Division at 5.30 a.m..He had a tough time adjusting his daily working scheduled.

Alex attended a dinner hosted by a big Contractor in honor of the Manager who was due to go on leave.Just imagine he going on leave a dinner party was thrown for him.There was a lavish dinner followed by dancing at a night club with beautiful dance hostesses. What a wonderful evening? What an outing which made all of them, his accomplices of corrupted practices.Thereafter what else who knows between him and the Contractor but the Assistants were all told to go home.The Contractor must be making very handsome profits from his contracts with the plantation,otherwise where can he afford such luxuries on so many present.

The Senior Assistant acted on his behalf when he went on leave.Alex also shared many happy moments with all these Assistants as they ventured out to town,Seremban to be exact, to have fun.All on a pro rata basis,have a dinner followed by a hair cut or wash at a Girlie barber shop a popular item those days.

A lady barber eyed the young and available Alex,all were teasing him,yes,she was undoubtedly very beautiful,very desirable, tall with height of about 5'6' and slim..Well Alex was encouraged to make an acquaintance with her securing her phone number at the end of the session.As the night was still young they all adjourned to a private joint.So they went hunting along Jalan Rasa looking out for a bungalow with red lanterns.

It was not much of a problem locating it as such places were easy to find as houses with red lanterns were really rare,whenever private houses were lighted with red lanterns signifying red area-a private joint.No sooner had they reached the doorsteps a "Mamie"came out to welcome them in.Having ushered them in she began to inquire what sort of girls they have in mind.Alex being the youngest,shy and inexperienced in what was transpiring kept quiet.

There were five of them and each made their bookings accept for Alex who was reluctant to join in." Mamie,this young man very raw what do you think we do with him?",said one of them."Oh,yeah?",said the Mamie."I will recommend him a special girl.you all go into your rooms first".

With them away Alex thought he could evade from all this but the Mamie was very persistent as she brought out a very young and cute looking girl, what looked like a Thai girl to him."Look,what I have for you,a very special girl,she just came in to-day,very fresh.Take her,she is just eighteen years old ",said the Mamie.Without any more formalities she pushed the girl and Alex into a room at the far end of the house.

All his friends were already waiting for him at the sitting place and he was the last one out."Wah,say don't want lah,this lah but go into the room for so long.Want to make babies,eh?",said one."Very nice,eh?"said another."Ya!very good but cost me $50/=,so good?",replied Alex.Thereafter they had supper and returned to their respective bungalows in the plantation.

Alex ,however,still kept in touched with Carol and returned every forthnight visiting her i.e.on a Saturday evening in Bentong and returning the next day,but this time he had a slightly different program in hand as he called that lady barber on his returning trip in Seremban.That lady barber was very well equipped and quickly had a date with her.

Going for a late show and before returning to the plantation went for a walk in the lake garden.They had a pleasant time strolling and talking, he kissed her goodnight before leaving.What a hectic day?.Killing two birds with one stone.Was he toying with them?No,never he was trying to select one that could match his first admiration in Teluk Anson to be his life partner in future..Totally no harm in befriending more lovely girls.

His courtship of those girls went on marvelously for sometime but things began to change unexpectedly.The Manager returned from his long leave to U.K.and immediately went round to all the plantation.Alex was on hand to be tested by him.He instructed Alex to propagate some Triloba cuttings stating clearly with one node.What was Triloba anyway?I reserved my doubts, many planters have the slightest idea what was this Triloba plant.

Adhering closely as per instruction he established a small nursery of Triloba Cuttings.Unfortunately all the cuttings never survived.not even one.What went wrong?.The Manager on seeing this jumped like a Chimpenzee,so furious was he that he immediately issued a letter demoting Alex to the Cadet Training Centre.

This astonished poor Alex as he was following instruction of the Boss,he was perplexed at what went absolutely wrong?.Later he learned that the instruction given was wrong,it should have been to transplant cuttings with at least two nodes never one,if that was the instruction nothing would have gone wrong.He tried to see the "Old Man"but was rebuked by him and cut him short.So outrageous was he,thus Alex was never given a chance to explain.

Yes the Manager had erred terribly but being the Manager refused to admit his own fault,what justice was there?There was no denial that he was bias and prejudice against poor Alex.Of course Alex had failed to satisfy him with proper answers to a question poised by him on a particular weed which Alex could not identify,a Tetasera Scandan very simple but the nervous Alex could not remember at that spurred of moment.Is it a shame in not being able to identify a weed? What so serious?

The rough bottom surfaces of its leaves which could be utilized in place of sand paper.His failures to go the site before the Manager first thing in the morning at the supplying of "a" stump budding in the field by a worker was another stumbling block for him,just simply because he attended to some other more important jobs in other part of the field first.All these proved its fatalities against Alex as the Manager refused to be reasonable.

Of course his dressing did not go well with the Manager,collarless T-shirt and very short pants plus his awkward ways of expression when talking to the Manager.Being a frist timer talking to a European he slurred,shivered and sounded odd ,too funny for the Manager's liking.Neither did the Acting Manager talked well of him.

He should not have been demoted.As a Probationary Assistant should his assessments of Alex be adverse and he totally unfit,he should have sacked him instantly or should be kind enough extended his probation inline with his terms of Contract,but sadly he choose to ignored those terms by demoting him.The humiliated Alex had no choice and with no where to go, had to abide by those monstrous injustice and embarrassing decision to join the Training Centre.

Wearing a thick skin he thus joined the Training Centre,fortunately they did not reduced his remunerations.At the Centre were three other cadets whom he had met earlier in that plantation.He had to put up a bold front there.The Training Manger showed his disgust with Alex, he was for no apparent reasons showed his bias and prejudice against poor Alex from the very beginning.It was so glaring in his actions and words as he spoke.Some ducks he was?

This Manager was K.G.Nair,a former chief clerk who walked like a duck,keeping some moustche like Hilter,obviously a fan of that tyrant.Alex proved that he was no walk over by passing the "Estate Practice (Rubber)"examination of the I.S.P..That passing was futile as it was valueless and meaningless to all those above no need to mention the duck.Only a congratulatory letter from the Personnel Manager that was about all.This very examinations where many of the senior Assistants who participated ,failed this examination.

Their refusal to recognize that examination proved that they do not accept Alex meaning he has to go away somehow.So no matter how hard he tried it was no use,it would have been better had they sacked him in the first place,it is very discriminating to place him in that wretched position with humilation,lost of dignity and due respect.Alex should have sued them.

Somehow Alex struck at it till the end where he funbled at the final exmination due to minor nervous breakdown.What a bloody shame to fail in the last moment,not that he does know the answers to all the examination questions posed but he was suffering from that breakdown and could hardly moved his hands to write properly,let alone answer those questions.Had he produced a good result, would that be any difference? And what be installed for him next?

Absolutely nothing as they would get rid of him anyway.In a way his failures to impress those above was a sort of blessing in disguised.Agreed?So he nevertheless was a flop in that company.He might have escaped those torturous moments had he been in the correct frame of mind to expose the sole secret of the Training Centre.

What was the secret?In fact it was one of the cadets who found out a secret of all secrets.It was by accident that he found out that another cadet was having a duplicate key to the Manager's drawer.With that all his answers papers were rewritten,little wander he did extremely well in all his weekly test papers.Alex happened to be friendly with them did exposed them but he abstained from getting involved with the culprit.The key was apparently handed down to him, by previous batch of cadets.

In any case the whole training was almost over and therefore to expose him would not changed anyting as those above already had a bad report regarding him.Exposing him might caused an uproar within that company and should they reinstate him back to its foe will nevertheless meaningless other than teaching every one a lesson.But this fellow was a friend or was he really a friend???.Exposing the Manager's corrupt practises will be much better at least they clinged to each other and can die together,that corrupted "Old man".

Now that he had lost his job he had to return home.The duck was very apprehensive and happy when he recieved the news that Alex was to leave and amazing released him on that spurred of moment.Poor Alex had to leave without anyone to say goodbye to accept the young female cook.

He traveled straight home- a very sad and troubled young man with no one to confide in or worst a kind shoulder to lean on.That evening he went to the river side and looked beyond its water,it was high tide then and the water seemingly dancing to the rhyme of the slight breeze.He stood there watching blankly and pondered about himself and his future.He needed someone to console and to confide in,yes,he now realized that it was imperative that a man requires a woman to support him,in sucesses and in failures. All sucessful men requires the support of the women they loved, and he was no different.Yes,he was now a matured young man.

He pondered over the list of ladies he knew wandering which would fit in his plan most.
Carol?No.no she was too young,about seventeen,definitely too young for him.That lady barber named Charlie,sweet,charming and beautiful,but she hardly knew her well enough to consider her.He ran through many other names,none seem suitable for his agenda,and that name Queenie cropped up.Ah, yes!!! Queenie,and he knew she loved him very much,but where was she presently?

She was badly hurt when she left Bentong, now after almost two years where could she be now,that was the question? Can she be located? Will she forgive him and return to his arms?What if she by now had someone else? He had to act fast before it was too late.