8 On the Move Remigration in the Indian Ocean, 1850–1906 * Yoshina Hurgobin On 21 September 1909, the acting protector of immigrants in Mauritius wrote to the inspector general of police of the colony the following about Boodhun, who was now living in Seychelles: I am informed by the bearer of the letter that an old immigrant named Boodhun who had left the colony [Mauritius] for Seychelles has returned & was on board the French Mail and that is considered as an undesirable & prevented from landing. It is to my knowledge that his son is a labourer in the service of the Beau Bassin & Rose Hill Board [in Mauritius] & he has asked me to interfere to get his father’s [repeal] … as he is willing to receive & to maintain him at his expense. In these circumstances, I hope you will issue orders accordingly. 1 The aforementioned story is an illustration of remigration – that is, mobility 2 – between supposedly minor colonies without returning to India. Boodhun, an indentured worker from India, had completed his contract of five years, had probably spent many more years in Mauritius and had eventually become an ‘old immigrant’. Time and familiarity in Mauritius had shaped his information networks in such a way that he was aware of the populations in neighboring 1 National Archives of Mauritius (NAM), PA 295, Acting Protector to Inspector General of Police, 21 September 1909, 300 (in pencil). 2 By mobility, I mean how oceans facilitated movement of persons. I am not referring to ‘absence as well as presence’ as understood by E. Ho (2006, p. 10). * Archival records used for this chapter were consulted at the National Archives of Mauritius (NAM) in Coromandel, Mauritius, and at the Mahatma Gandhi Institute (MGI) in Moka, Mauritius. I am deeply grateful to Crispin Bates for his numerous insights and kind support. I could not have completed this chapter without the precious support of Sheela Hurgobin. At the NAM, Sangeeta Mohun provided me with much support. Dharmendra Mukool’s demise was unexpected. He was most helpful and encouraging during my archival trips at Coromandel. All translations are mine.