Colonial states lacked tools to discipline destitute Europeans despite mastering control of natives

Evidence

The late-colonial state was well versed in dealing with recalcitrant civil servants and with the native population. It was far less adept at doing so with Europeans veering off racial course— impoverished widows of “good name,” tradesmen who fell on hard times, retired clerks, discharged soldiers—and the descendants of each. — Ann Laura Stoler, Along the Archival Grain_ Epistemic…, 881

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the reader’s broader colonial archival interest: the administrative taxonomy distinguishing Europeans, natives, and mixed categories mirrors settler-coloniality readings elsewhere.
• QUESTION: Why was the state adept at disciplining native subjects but not impoverished Europeans? Possibly because European ‘race’ carried legal privileges that constrained administrative action.