Postcard showing groups gambling in close proximity to mine dumps

Postcard showing groups gambling in close proximity to mine dumps; note the description given to the Chinese miners as “Rand slaves”, suggesting public sympathy for their lot

Since many miners lost money gambling, and sometimes even their lives as a result of gambling, they were forced to work for longer contract periods to achieve their income targets or simply to redeem their debt. Other redemption routes were suicide, theft and absconding from the workplace.