Chapter 15 Businesses Failures

Ten beautiful years drifted by in that plantation,some times success working for others can led one astray.Wild imaginations can easily give rise to false impressions.Working for others the risks involved were never his own either gain or lost,but going all out on his own capacities the risk were more venerable greater and bad decision devastating.

Having done well working for others does mean that on his own can be similar successful that Alex soon learned.That time rubber wood timber was an upcoming industry with promises.Alex having some capital soon was drawn into it.He a made a joint venture into it with a contractor friend.There was also another partner interested in the operation.The supposed paid up capital was only sixty thousand ringgit.

Armed with that they began operation in a movable mini-saw mill in Sg Tinggi Estate.As it was running smoothly Alex resigned from his position at St.Andrew Estate.As he resigned controversial issues were encountered at the raged of the Boss.The point was while attached to it Alex was the best Manager but on resigning overnight he was being condemned as the worst and corrupted Manager.Now where was the justice in these precepts,worked for them excellent but leaving them you were a rascal.Anyway that was life.The decision to leave such an employer was undoubtedly correct,perhaps a blessing in disguised.

The fact that I had stayed for so long was job satisfaction.Working in a place where you had the freedom to plant and changed a almost a whole plantation from an establishment not churning out much profits into a money earning concern was my greatest achievement definitely self gratifying and job satisfaction - for a job well done.The feelings were enormous beyond descriptions.Thus how much they valued him was never important.Being able to perform as you wished to extract out the best profit. .

Nevertheless he had it coming and had to face it and within that last month he was harassed by the unscrupulous Boss who had exploited him all those ten years with low wages and allowances doing massive jobs for him - jobs were always well done.Minor issues were stacked upon him and there was nothing he could do to defend himself accept to drag on till the very end.

At the end Alex shifted out off that wonderful bungalow to a new shop lot in town.The mini-mill was running smoothly and future looked promising.Production was also good with prompt deliveries ,full filing the orders of buyers.Initially they sold their timber to timber dealer in rubber wood but later sold to UMW furniture.Everything were fabulously in order.

However,suddenly their business took an abrupt turned,and everything seem to go wrong.First the timber they delivered were rejected or had their length reduced tremendously because according to the buyer did not meet their spec of requirements.Slight splits or minor tearing were cut off.Timber with black pigments were also rejected.Coupling with this came the question of mouldiness due to improper treatments with chemicals and whitening agents plus insufficient air drying,etc.What a set back?

The lost was very bad and ates up all the profits, in reductions of prices plus retreatments of all the rejected timber and air drying.At the end the mill was running at a lost.Wages of sawers had to be paid every week ends and timder logs supplied had also to be paid.In the end it was difficult to make ends meet.

As if insufficient troubles, the forestry set in to shut the mills claiming that operation was illegal.Various attempts to verify things with them were futile as no one seem to know what to do, accept to stop our operation.Rubber wood accordingly was never their jurisdictions but the mill was.What logic they definitely do not understand.There again precious time and money were wasted traveling from Rawang then redirected to Shah Alam.Further was a ding dong battle as they made to travel, to and fro from departments to departments ending with no valuable results.

Although chained they broke them and changed several avenues for mill from time to time,escaping their pursuit but to no avail,in the end all were lost out ultimately and had to call it off.Financially they were led down with so many commitments,wages for workers plus miscellaneous payments etc.,etc.,and the extremely late payments for timber supplied did little to make the running of the mill viable.The mill was thus abandoned and the business finally terminated with complete lost.

While operating the Mill he and his partner also started an Estate supply shop.Business was not good and the other partner left the join venture,leaving Alex to run it on its own.There was some business but insufficient to cover expenses .Nevertheless Alex struggled on going to get the business going.A bank loan was secured to a brother-in-law to lift up the business a little.The shop lot was also purchased. through loans from the bank.

He had valuable support from some planter friends and the local farmers also gave their valuable business.As the over head charges were low with his wife tendering the shop and he doing all the out door promotions and deliveries etc..He toiled on until 1985 where he finally surrendered all these endeavor.

His businesses were a total flopped due the following reasons. (1) Poor selection of business partners.Partners must be co-operative and worked for each other,sharing the same ideas.(2)Should have full knowledge in what business was all about,from raw timber to the finish product Inclusive of its treatments etc..(3)All accounts and monies spend should be clear to all partners.On the whole should the business be small better go it alone.Alex' s failures were lacking all those simple facts.

That was the whole story after he left the plantation and with that estate supply business his heart adhered to it all the same because he was constantly in touched with it.Now within those time while performing business many things happened within that period.

As he and his partners went about their business they had to entertain certain people of importance to their ventures.They entertained the plantation Managers for their contract on rubber wood.Taking them out for dinners and thereafter to the night lives of Kuala Lumpur.This was where Alex met many beautiful hostesses and bargirls.Getting drunk was a common affair but for business sake this had to go on and on.Valualble time and money were also lost throufh such activities.

They also entertained many Government officers in view of their sawing licence but to no avail and achieved nothing but foolishly lost unnecessary cash.There was a time some even demanded for money but with no promises attached,in such cases no money was paid out.Money spent here ate deeply into their capital.Thus another failure.

Alex in secret also went a step too far in playing around with a beautiful bar girl.She was very attractive with a lovely charming smile.Soft spoken.In a number of outings he subsequently was very attached to her as a mistress.While it lasted they had a wonderful time but due the poor performance of the business ventures as this were soon terminated.Alex soon learned that when doing business must concentrate fully in it.Full involvement was utmost important one misstep like this can lead to desacter.Well it a lesson well learned and paying a high price too.

Fortunately he had the present of mind not to look for Annie along the way.There was ample time each time he passed that village Ijok.Had he involved her on his route there will surely be more trouble installed but he held back,fearing the worst,A lucky move I presumed,.

With that Business coming to an end he was forced to sell that shop lot to pay up all the creditors but that still did not made ends met.There was no one to turn to but forced to leave without satisfying certain creditors.
With the closing of their business Alex had no where to go but retreated into Bentong town,hoping from there they struck out his next move.Subsequently Alex rented a house in a housing estate in Bentong.

Looking back,there was something spooky about the oil palm field opposite that shop lot.Alex many a times noticed some figures moving around,odd whitish apparitions.At a distance he could hear them crying out .those eerie and shrieking sounds,echoing in his ears,putting his hairs on ends -there were no mistakes those noises made by ghosts.Surprisingly they never did hurt anyone.Could be people slaughtered by the Japanese during their occupations.That piece of land belong to Stratmore Estate.

Now that I am on ghosts,let me tell about more ghosts in that plantation.At its entrance was the Group Hospital with only two wards and behind that was the burial ground.Many of the dead were buried there and that place was near to a river.Many a times especially on rainy seasons the burial ground was flooded and that was the time when after midnight you hear the cries of ghosts .White apparition drenching wet woul come out off their graves wielling.Many patients have seen them walking aroundand that was why the ward nearest were never occupied.For one not so many patients.No.2 patients dared not sleep there alone.

Somehow the dressers emplopyed there never sem to know anythings about them,so damn queered.Either they were acared and dared not talk about them or had no idea that existed.Strangers driving along that road had noticed white figures drenched wet walking on the road.They passed them without noticing much but when looking back they could see those figures floating above the ground not walking.On seeing this the pressed on their accelerator and drove ahead at great haste and speed.That really took the guts out of them

Stories like this were never widely circulated and I as a long time planter there have good knowledge of it.Traveling back from Kuala Lumpur can be very frightening especially when coming to the big bend before the grave yard of the Chinese Cemetery.Many terrible and fatal accidents had happened there,with most of the travelers killed instantly on the spot due serious crushed.Many atime head long collisions between vehicles.That was a notorious haunt.Alex was alawys very alert when passing that bend..

Old timers had seen ghosts along that bend and after that near towards the graveyard.This was where many saw a n xetremely beautful girl in white fluttering clothes walking along that lonely road.She had made many attempts to stop motorists for a lift,many on meeting this speeded awy in fright,but there were some kind hearts who woud out of curiosity gave her a lift.Only to be horrified to find her missing along the way.Should that happened to you what would you do?

Pressed on the accerlerator and speed on in fear or stop your vehicle to find ot where she had gone?My heaven,oh no never,most properly you or I would have frantcally speeded away.Those were the tales.Of course at that cemetery there were many more stories to tell.A short distance away in front of the cemetery was anold rilaway track.that was an area where the Japanese commited a lot of atrocities there.SCary tales of headless ghosts can be found there and loads of them there.

Coming back late at night nearing Batanbg Berjuntai was another plantation namely Java Selangor Estate
especailly at about 2.00 a.m.,Alex once noticed lights floating about.Drifting from tree to tree.He told his friend Ranny,"Look!!!!!! Ghosts".On clearing and nearer observations,"No,no not ghosts,but rubber tappers tapping in the fields near the main road"."What,tapping at 2.00 a.m.?".,said Ranny."Dass must be mad (Dass the Manger,their friend)"." He is trying to get more crop,he surly know how to drive his force out to work at the hour",said Alex.