THE FULL STATEMENT

Evening Post, Volume CIX, Issue 41, 18 February 1930, Page 12

THE FULL STATEMENT

The following is the full text of Commodore Blake's statement, which w,as handed to the special representative of the "Auckland Star" just before he left the cruiser to return to Auckland by the Tofua, which arrived last evening:— • "The Dunedin was sent to Samoa in order to assist the Administrator and the police under his orders in an deavour to compel a certain number of ■'wanted' incn to come before itho Court for trial upon serious.- charges, and also to endeavour to persuade the Mau chiefs to meet the Administrator to discuss the situation. These demands ' ver y legitimate demands —had been -- put forward by the Administrator in a proclamation previous to the arrival 1 of the Dunedin. They were not complied with. A situation therefore arose where law and order were being aci tively opposed, and if the Administration was to continue to function it was quite obvious that something had got ■ to be done. It is not very profitable at the present moment to go too far back as to the cause of the present situation, but tho facts have got to bo faced, and before any discussion can take place the demands of the Administrator have, got 'o be obeyed. This appears to be a matter the Mau fail to understand." NO ALTERNATIVE. ■'' It ■ has been > said—and it is true within certain limits—that tho Samoan is, very childlike and can bo easily led. On. the other hand, .at tho present moment he is in tho position of a sulky and; insubordinate child who has deliberately disobeyed his father, as the Administrator is generally termed, and no peaceful persuasion will induce him tosubmit. There is no alternative, thereforej:b'ut to treat' hini roughly, and my own opinion is that the present policy is the only possiblo one at the present moment. When the Administrator's demands have been fulfilled, .there will be no- need for harsh treatment or retaliation,' but until that time forco is tho only thing which will appeal to him. We have endeavoured to apply as much force as is possiblo with the limited number of men, which is available. Tho number is entirely insufficient. "' I am confident, so far as the • operations carried out by tho force's . ashore are concerned, thati nothing ' more than "has been done could possibly bavo been. done. ■ r DIFFICULT OPERATIONS. "Over a period of four weeks, the sailors and marin.es ashore have worked continuously, day and night, under the .most trying conditions. My own opinion from the outset has been that nothing but a large force could possibly bring sufficient pressure to bear on the Mau, who are now in the bush and shelter in the villages, so as to induce them to realise that the game is not worth the candle. In this opinion ■ I have not been supported until quite recently, when' at the suggestion of the New Zealand Government additional forces wero proposed. The difficulty is _qiiite simple. In operating in. the bush ."• itJs.only by greater good fortune that any"-large number of natives can be rounded up, however great the force. You have only, to visit the bush to realise this. We have no information from maps or local sources, and the bush is so thick that- thousands of natives could hide themselves quite easily without ■ achauce of being discovered. We are therefore thrown back on exerting indirect pressure. Indirect pressure can be exerted by cutting off the food supplies to the natives who are in the bush „ and- preventing them from coining into the villages for shelter and food. This ' can only be achieved by a very large number of men operating in villages and cutting off the villages from access to the bush. This necessitates small patrols right round the coast. With these patrols the Mau in the bush can be defi- ■ nitely isolated, and ultimately forced to • . come in. j. In conjunction with this, "' strong raiding parties could,go into the bush in order to destroy their temporary shelters and thus make it so uncomfortable for them that they must come in. •"Our operations for the past four ' weeks have consisted of day and night raids on villages, "excursions into the bush, chasing parties of the .Mau right round.the island, and generally breaking up their concentrations. This b.as been provedto be insufficient, because the ■ force is not strong enough to establish 'p?trol» in the villages through wbicli .they piss .and thus prevent small V bodies, who have broken off,. from re- :: turning to those villages and getting ' sSelter and food. v "MAGNIFICENT WORK." "I would like to express, and express Tery forcibly,-that the work which has been carried out by the forces ashore has been, magnificent. Stung all over by mosquitoes, either drenched to the skin or, scorched by the sun, their boots falling, to pieces over the rough bush tracks, they have continued operating . cheerfully and hopefully. There is. however,- a certain limit to human endurance, arid these continuous operations cannot be kept up indefinitely. The men must have rest, and during their period of rest the situation automatically slips back to what it was before. Additional pressure has lately been made possible by more control of traffic'and by an improvement in the intelligence service. These things are not enough', and only slow progress can be recorded. . It may happen, and all ■' optimists consider that it will happen, ' and, rquite• soon,, that the Mau will be-

come distrustful of ttie advice which is given and the hopes which are raised by disloyal white and half-caato agitators. These are people who are very difficult to get at. They will riot'eomo out into the open; they work secretly through native sources, and there is no doubt that their propaganda is effective. Why it should be I cannot imagine, except that the Mau are ready to receive advice which fits in with their viewa without regard to any facts they cannot see.. . The matter has got to be settled now; there'is no alternative. When it is settled, and the demands of tho Administrator are fulfilled; then we cau get back to looking into the causes of all the trouble, finding out exactly what the grievances are, and endeavouring to meet them in the spirit of goodwill, while at the same time upholding law and order, which ths. Administrator must be able to exert if any Government is to exist in Samoa." '