THE SAMOA JAUNT

Hokitika Guardian, 19 March 1920, Page 3

THE SAMOA JAUNT

— OPINIONS OF MEMBERS.

. / MR SIDEY’S VIEWS. * (Received This Day at 10.35. a.in.) ,1 (Wireless from Mokoia.) d WELLINGTON, This Day. s The Parliamentary Party, .has now completed its tour of the territory under New Zealand control. Interviewed by the United Press Asosciation’s representative, Mr Sidey, senior member of tlie Liberal Party aboard, giving , a personal non-party view, said there was ample justification for the trip. - It was an earnest to the League of Nations of our desire to understand the . conditions and faithfully discharge the . -obligations under . ouir mandate. He thought it a question of whether we .acted wisely in taking over the administration, when we depended on borrow- : ed money to develop onr own New Zealand resources. It was clear from ■ 1 tliei Ministerial utterances that the Islands to some extent would be a bur- ' den on the New Zealand taxpayer, i Referring to indentured labour, he said no doubt the ultimate provision of ! five thousand laborers asked for would enormously increase the trade and on- ; sure the islands being self-supporting. ; There was not more than sufficient Samoans to-day to work in their own, lands. Thle, consensus of opinion is , that 'Europeans are capable of only light manual labour, but despite this, he was unable to give an unqualified j support to indentured labour. I Liberalism a.s one of its' cardinal factors, took into consideration not j Only the material aspect, but the hu- j tnan factor. The influx of male Chinese and their inevitable cohabitation with ! Samoan women, meant the fostering of , a half breed race whose sympathies

would lie less with us than were those of purebred Polynesians. He expressed the opinion that every effort should be made to obtain tlie services of married men, remunerating the wife for light employment, the term of the indenture to be five years, instead of three, to compensate for the cfditional expense of transport. The indenture scheme should be regarded as temporary in . character. He continued that tlie problems of the island were doubtless bound up with the land ques tion. He was inclined to think they might learn something from Tonga, where titles v-’-e practically individualised. The Tongan Constitution prohibits the employment of Chinese manual labour. t Ho thought Otago medical school might give special attention to tropical diseases. the Government assisting in the research. He favoured the repatriation of the Germans now in Samoa and added that an investigation should be made with ,i view to adopting more scientific; methods of destroying the Rhiuoceros beetle 1 . HON. °C'AUNCROSS’S VIEWS.

Hon. Carncross said, speaking broadly, be regretted it had fallen to New Zealand to govern Snanolf. Ho.wcvcr the die had been east and if eyas MOW every politician’s duty to put party aside and loyally aid the Government in the difficult task of administering the Islands. 'life re were many problems which would test the statesmanship of our New Zealand administration. Hon. Carncross continued that he was firmly of the opinion that there must bo indentured labour, plenty of it and quickly as possible, otherwise Samoa would quickly go back to :i state of jungle and years of labour and thousands of pounds of capital would have been expended in vain. The education problem presented difficulties. In all native schools, education for piany years line} been seiui-re-liffious. If religious education were abandoned and New Zealand’s purely secular svs, tepi were substituted, it would shock the feelings of the natives, yet to give religious teaching in Samoa and purely secular teaching in New Zealand, would lie anomalous and probably create future difficulties in New Zealand. This question called for serious consideration In appointing administrators, 'the greatest tact and judgment was called for It was absolutely necessary that thev must be men of the highest moral character if they were to maintain the rosnect of the natives and uphold the white man’s prestige. Referring to Samoa he believed Mr Tate had high ideals, and was doing well, endeavouring to administer justice to the white man. The brown people were easily led in the right paths, when once assured of absolute justice, but they were suspicious and easily led into wrong paths by designing men. MR. YIKITCH’S VIEWS. ilr W.’A. Veitch on behalf of Independent Labour, said—l am satisfied that in administering New Zealand Is-

land territories, wherein almost the entire population are simple untutored natives, our chief concern should by to take a loug distance human view of the situation, in determining our policy of the mandate over {*>am°a. The danger is that we magnify problems of to-day and thus ‘ obscure issues, determination whereof may vitally affect tlie native life and liberties for generations. Tho wholesale importation of Chinese indentured labour -s advocated as the only means of snlvaj tion .for the big plantations. Whilst recognising from a purely commercial j standpoint the desirability thereof, I am convinced that under the mandate j there devolved on us a fundamental, • graver responsibility —the safeguarding jof 'the Samoan race. Moreover the proposition of halfbreed Chinese people i within Samoa, might ultimately add a menace to us in the Pacific. Our duty in Samoa is to systematicaliv odu- ; cute the Samoan people, to provide medical and hospital facilities to assist in the sanitation of the villages, to

encourage flic .Samoans in the fullest cultivation oF their own lands, by Government taking over the entire output of produce and selling it in the best available markets. Already the I natives produce seventy five per cent of tlio copra exported. Regarding finance it is primarily important that- we teach fho natives to become self reliant and In develop their own resources. Sufficient taxation is needed to prevent the islands from liecoining a burden on the Now Zealand taxpayers. T hope Parliament will not approve of the proposal to lend money to Samoa free of interest. Mr Veitcli concluded—Samoa is a fertile country and~if properly administered, with sufficient shipping, is able

to bear the cost of its own government and development. I MR HOLLAND SILENT. I Mr Holland declined to give an interview. He said that official Labour would not make a statement .ntil he had reported to the National Council of New Zealand, j SIR JAMES ALLEN. 1 Sir James Allen said the reports by Mr Bird on the education system, by Mr Vickerman os public works, by Dir Gibbs on wireless; by Air McCiystell on departmental organisation in Samoa and Mr Black on tropical horticulture, would be of the greatest importance in deciding the policy of external affairs;' also Mr Marsden’s report on an observatory at Samoa where most vlualile observtion and data are in the course of completion, which, >n the immediate future, is likely to add to the world’s knowledge in weather forecasts, navigation wireless transmission predictions of earthquakes. The question of allocation, Cost and upkeep must he settled. Undoubtedly upon the labour supply, depended the solution of the difficulties in Samoa. Without labour there could be no plantations, no white population and no revenue. Without revenue it would be impossible to embark on a programme i of education and other undertakings for | the benefit of tre Samoan people. Tne . examination of the sources of supply showed that Chinese were the only labour .available for indenture. Three attempts*were made to secure Japanese, but were unsuccessful. If “Free” Asiatic labour were introduced, it would soon result in wiping out the Samoan race,. As far as was known, the Chinese Government declined to allow wives to accompany indentured men. He thought that the limiting of the indenture to throe years would largely end the trouble and prove most satisfactory. Questioned as to the duration of the semi-military administration of Samoa,

Sir J. Allen, said it was impossible to revert entirely to civil administration, until the Imperial order in council in reference to the mandate was received. Government had good reasons which it was unwise to announce, for retaining the civil constabulary in Samoa at present. Wireless correction—Sir J. Allen speaking at Mnngnia, said he hoped it would lie possible to exchange teachers of Cook group State schools, with teachers of New Zealand native schools, and to some extent to co-ordinate the two systems.