Remonstrantie 4.11

4.11

In the indigo market they behave just like that, making as if they would buy up the whole stock, raising prices, losing a little themselves, and causing great injury to us and to other buyers who have to purchase large quantities. Now the Hindus have first of all the advantage of the profit they make in buying, and they get it through generous weighing, to which they persuade the peasants by wrangling and cajolery. There used to be a custom that in weighing indigo a bag of doubled cloth containing 152 pice was reckoned as 5 ser, giving an excess of quite one ser in the maund. Again, when the indigo was moist, they kept from 20 to 30 balls ready behind each balance, which dried quite 5 ser in the maund; while by an old custom the maund was reckoned at 41 ser, so that altogether there was overweight of 7 ser or more in the maund, which greatly reduced the cost of buying; for in those days indigo was so plentiful that the peasants were sometimes confounded, and the middlemen might have to hold over perhaps 100 bales for want of buyers. Since, however, the crop was washed away in 1621, the whole of the produce is marketed promptly, and there is little or no surplus. They have nearly brought it to this that the balls are made smaller by one-half, the weighing is done with tens instead of with pice or 5-sers, in order to give less excess, and in places only 10 or 15 balls are kept ready, so that there is very little overweight, and this can be of little advantage in buying.