GILBERT ISLANDS

Hokitika Guardian, 11 February 1929, Page 7

GILBERT ISLANDS

“LIFE IS SANITY.” AN (INCORRUPTE'!> PEOPLE. SYDNEY, Jan. 31. Interesting particulars of life in flu little known Gilbert Islands were given in Sydney the other day by a youin "'iiclass operator. Air Ivor Johnson, when he arrived on time months’ leave from his post at Tarawa. Alre;idy he is anxious in return, “for.” he says, “life in the cities is madness; life in the Gilberts is sanity.” For the Gilbert Islanders lie has nothing but praise. They are still comparatively uneorrupted by white civilisation. Ihe population is increasin' in the Gilbert group, he says, whin in other groups it is decreasing at sin'll a rate that extinction of the islands is within measiirenble distance. The only menace, according to this observer, comes from the half-caste who learns to road Australian newspapers; absorbs the theory and practice of strikes; and deems it his duty to spread disaffection among the natives. Again, according to the same observer, the missions, by persuading the natives to adopt European ideas, are virtually tempting the natives into committing suicide on masse.

Copra is the chief commercial product of the islands. Two companies operate—one is Chinese and the other Australian. The natives work for about £2 a month, which is not cheap labour, as about a dozen natives do the work of one white man. It is useless to attempt speeding up, for any ignorant white guilty of doing so would be told gently by any native whom be chided : “ff you do not like my way of working there are coconuts in the trees and fish in the sea. I can live without you, so 1 shall now leave you,” Taxer are levied in the form of copra. A Government ship calls at the various islands, and the natives pay their tributes in kind. A missionary ship comes along and collects donations in the form of copra, hut the natives are gradually becoming less willing to pay what they regard as a second lax.

The chief sport among the islanders is canoe-racing. Recently the northern men of Taputeouon (a Gilbert Island! raced the southerners. As all racing crews are equally skilful, the races depend almost entirely upon the construction of the canoes. All the accumulated knowledge of centuries is packed into the making of a racing canoe. In the race the northerners heat the southerners, and the tribal poet of the northerners made a song, of which the following is a rough translation:--You southerners can’t build canoes. You can drink coconut milk, But when it comes to a race, X'ou cannot build canoes!

The soil)' was so maddeningly roititrated by the winners tliat tlie southcrners became seriously annoyed, collected knives and other weapons (guns are taboo by Government decree), and a rough-and-tumble war began. All the women and children took refuge in the mission stations. The war was just becoming interesting and a few drops of blood .had been shed, when the Government boat arrived for the tax copra. 'Pile war was immediately abandoned. Northerners and southerners fraternised in order to hurry enough copra on board to satisfy the tax collectors, and the schooner was hardly out of sight when tlu war began all over again. Before that little difference of opinion was settled an armed force had to bo sent from the wireless station. Mr Johnson added: “The keenness of tlieso fellows in sport is almost as great as what \. used to see in Mel1 1'luviie. at corta/in football matches, when squads of police had to be rushed on to the ground to quell the fighting.”