Singapore Arrival

A.M.S…
On another sunny, but hot, humid day, we steamed into Singapore harbour. From here we were to go on our most ambitious overland trip. That day, after an aggravating delay of five hours, we flew in a Viscount for about 3½ hours to Bangkok, arriving there about 10pm.

A Disappointment

A.M.S…
We had always thought of Singapore as one of the world's most important and glamorous ports; a sort of a bastion of British invincibility, at least as far as naval power was concerned. Additionally, we could conjure a movie version of international intrigue, smuggling, opium dens, and dark dives where shady characters were shanghaied.

We thought too it was a place where British pomp was to be in evidence at swank clubs; we imagined the famed Raffles Hotel would somehow fit into this latter picture. Perhaps this picture was quite correct at one time. Perhaps there may still be some or much of the Singapore left which we had so visualised.

To us though, despite the anticipation, or maybe on account of it, Singapore seemed dull and uninteresting. Maybe we felt that way because the heat here, only a degree removed from the Equator (about 60 miles we are told) was oppressively stifling, or because we had to sit around for five hours waiting for the plane to Bangkok.

Since neither of us really likes to fly, each waiting hour added to the rising tension and apprehension especially as huge black storm clouds came up and strangely, but fortunately, disappeared.

Still Key to the U.S.A.

A.M.S…
Actually Singapore is still one of the world's ten greatest ports from the standpoint of volume of trade; it is still a British naval base and army garrison (the latter are much in evidence); it has one and three quarter million population, mostly Chinese, but we saw in addition Hindus, Sikhs, English, and others.

In no previous port had we seen such a variety of clothing; Indian saris and the Chinese changshan, mingled with Western coats, trousers, blouses and skirts. Here is a city, a big city, with virtually no history or tradition since it has risen from a swamp within a period of 140 years.

It is still a British Crown colony, jutting out at the very tip of Malaya, which is no longer a British colony, but which is important to us because…

1. it is friendly to the U.S.
2. produces about one third of the world's rubber and tin
3. has never received a penny of U.S. foreign aid.

Singapore has been given self government so far as internal affairs are concerned. It is under the leadership of an able Chinese, Lee Kuan Yew, though the British retain control of external operations.

Singapore to Bangkok by Air

A.M.S…
(Written on an Aeroplane Over Malaya)
At the moment, 7.30pm on 22nd March, we are on a flight, about a quarter of the way to Bangkok from hot, steaming Singapore. We were supposed to arrive there at about 5pm, but as seems frequently to be the case, planes are delayed for one reason or another.

Ernie's Challenge

A.M.S…
These notes are inspired by a thoughtful letter received this morning from our good friend Ernie Burwell. He said, in response to my tour notes: “Keep your perspective; colonialism wasn't all bad”.

This suggested to us that we may have given a wrong impression by our frequent reference to the many countries seeking, or having succeeded in gaining so-called “freedom” from colonialism.

Ernie is so right; colonialism has probably done more in the past to help the millions who lived in colonised countries than all the foreign aid the U.S. is likely to be able to give in the future. To India, for example, it brought about a fairly unified country where only a conglomeration of “princely states” existed that had no common objective; indeed they fought one another.

Some Benefits For Example…

A.M.S…
The British gave India…

1. a common language to provide a means of communication among a considerable number of people across a vast country
2. provided a basic legal system
3. provided many utilities such as railways
4. much irrigation
5. medical enlightenment and facilities, at least for some
6. the basis of an educational system

These are only a few considerations that come to mind 16,000 feet in the air. We've felt that not one single country we visited was at the moment one whit better off through “freedom” than they had been under colonialism. In fact, economically they were far worse off!

What Are the Limits?

A.M.S…
What the long range picture may be, who knows? However, I presume that most of us would feel that if we and others can help to make “freedom” work it would be preferable for them and for us than if they fall into the black abyss of communism.

My notes on India were strongly in favour of continued, effective U.S. aid. As we wrote in the “lead” of the India notes, we still feel that this is a crucial test. As our travels extend further among these “under-privileged” peoples we do wonder: just how far can we go?

There must be a limit somewhere. One wonders too if we couldn't cut some fat off wasteful expenditures in the home budget and fight communism more successfully on the foreign economic front without endangering our own economy.

No Claim to Factual Accuracy

A.M.S…
Whether one believes colonialism was good or bad, the fact: the hard, cold reality is that nationalism is rampant the World over and nothing at this moment can controvert that irresistible tide.

At the very beginning of these sets of notes we declared that they were intended primarily to give our impressions of the time. They cannot be more than that. They cannot be factual so far as opinion or information given to us is concerned because so much of it, especially from “guides”, is either wrong or plain propaganda.

Because the impressions are bound to be coloured, much as we might try to avoid being biased by these “facts”, our impressions are subject to revision. Really, these are our own impressions of the trip, so we take pleasure both in recording them and in sharing them with our family and a few friends.

To them we have, so to speak, rather exposed our thoughts and probably our ignorance as well as a certain tendency to idealism. Heaven forbid though, we aren't “do-gooders”. We ask for your indulgence in exchange.