In my reading of some of W. Somerset Maugham’s short stories, I get the impression that a “remittance man” is someone who has disgraced his family back in England. In the absence of an ability to have him quietly put away, he is shipped out to the far reaches of the British Empire, and provided a stipend, or remittance, to stay away from his home. I get the impression that the label carried only a slight taint of embarrassment in the eyes of the British expatriates who had productive roles in these outposts.
Have I got that about right?If I do, how common was the practice in actuality?
Yes, that’s pretty much it. The “black sheep” of the family was sent to the colonies, with some sort of allowance sent to him on a regular basis. He was then expected to sink or swim under his own steam. Some did well. Some didn’t.
I’ve only ever come across the concept in literature. I have no idea how common it was in practice.
In the little Saskatchewan town I grew up in, there was a particular family of ne-er do wells. My mother mentioned that the grandfather who had emigrated from the U.K. was a “remittance man” who never got into the habit of working hard because of the steady payments from the old country, and passed the inability on to his family. Don’t know how accurate Mum’s impression was.
Under English law, the eldest son inherited everything. Younger sons were encouragerd to enter the military or were sent to far distant colonies with a remittance, thus becoming “remittance men”.
This helped increase the life expectancy of eldest sons, among other factors.