ABOUT SAMOA

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 159, 31 March 1919, Page 8

ABOUT SAMOA

RUMOURS FROM THE ISLAND STATEMENT BY DEFENCE MINISTER Stories about tho administration of Samoa by New Zealand have been filtering into this country for some little timo, but, probably owing to the existence of a censorship, little publicity has been given to them? The Defence Minister replied to a number of inquiries made of him about Samoa.

Some people may have heard of a certain petition by a number of Samoan chiefs in which the. prayer was made that the administration of that i><irt of Samoa now held by Now Zealand should be handed over to Amprica (which controls alrekly the rest df Samoa) or to Britain. Sir James Allen said that since Colonel Tate has been at Samoa the petition had been withdrawn by tho chiefs, including the chief who presented the petition in "the first instance, and who was mainly responsible for it. Another story lias been circulated that •Colonel Logan has been relieved of tho command, and that he is not to return to tho island. Sir James Alien said that this was nuito incorrect. Colonel Logan was in New Zealand on holiday and nt tho expiry of his leavo he would resumo the Samoan command. For soipo time Colonel Logan has been anxious to have a holiday, and a holiday had been due to him. At first Colonel Patterson was. to ■ have relieved, him, but, unfortunately, Colonel l'atterson died, and another , officer had to bo sent. Tho choico' had fallen on Colonel Tait.

A good deal has boen said also about the labour difficulty on the island. It should be understood that the manual work in the plantations cannot be done by white men. The natives do not work, and tho custom has been to indent Chin-ese-or Solomon Islanders to work in the plantations. In the four years of military occupation by New Zealand the supply of labour has been short, and blame on this account has been laid upon the administration. Sir James Alien said that the .Imperial Government had refused to allow the Administration to bring any labour from China or from tiie Solomon Islands. In tho meantime, 6ome of "the Chinese and Solomon Islanders, whose time of service with the planters had expired, had to be repatriated. Tho administration had been allowed to romdenture the time-expired workers only for a short period. The result wis-that the supply of labour had decreased considerably, ]>ut ho was informed that notwithstanding this handicap tho plantations'had been kept going fairly -well.

When the fate of Samoa is,settled definitely by treaty it will be for New Zealand to withdraw the military Administration. If New Zealand should etill be entwsted with the duty of governing the island, a civil Administration will have to be provided for to tnko control of the territory. Sir James Allen said that he presumed that the military occupation would not be continued after peace had been concluded, bat the ultimate future of Samoa and its administration could not be diecu6sed by the New Zealand Government until then.