A DISMAL PICTURE OF FIJI. Warning to New Zealanders.

Te Aroha News, Volume III, Issue 138, 23 January 1886, Page 4

A DISMAL PICTURE OF FIJI. Warning to New Zealanders.

A correspondent, writing, from Fiji on December 24th, says : —Ib is only fair, especially while Auckland is suffering from bad times, to warn working men from coming here. Unless a man is specially engaged in any one of the colonies for a specific job, it is sheer madness to come here looking for work. Every steamer brings a few; it is verily a case of "out of the frying-pan into the fire." There is no work attainable here of any sort, neither for mechanics nor clerks. First-rate mechanics are idle here, having been without a job for months at a stretch ; and a8 to clerks, I know one who was getting hie £5 per week in New Zealand, and who coining here was eventually compelled by necessity to take his £1 a week and find himself for nine hours' work a day. Old hands cannot obtain work here at any price. Carpenters, boat-builders, sailmakers, and mechanics in general are all idle. A hundred of them would leave to-day if they had the means, and every steamer takes those who are able to leave. It is not that the countiy is overstocked with Europeans, or its natural resources played out, but simply that the Government have systematically set themselves to ruin the country, whether through ignorance of their duties or for the actual carrying out of the Gordonian statement, that this is no "white man's country," is a moot point amongst residents here. I, with many others, incline to the latter view. By their " Labour Regulations," and various repressive measures on all local industries, they certainly made the country other than climatically hot for the small planter, and. in fact, for the European in general. I will instance cases for you as follows: — The native (whether Polynesian or Fijian) labour ordinances are so crushing aud prohibitive as to render it utterly impoesible for the man of small means to do anything on a plantation. While the native is so strictly protected that he cannot be ill-used in any way, the planter or employer has no redress except that of taking his refractory servants, at great loss of time and expense, before a magistrate, and getting them im prisoned for a week or two at nominal hard labour, the result of it being the loss of the services of his servant, and his emergence from durance light much worse than when he went in. A boatbuilder is not allowed to build and sell a boat to a native chief unless he receives a contract from the Native Office, or unless he, at great loss of time and expense, can induce the Government to pass his boat and take the price they choose to allow him. No white man can recover any debt from a Fijian under any circumstances. No cash transaction over the amount of £5 is allowed between a white man and Fijian (British subject), save the mark, unless such transaction be carried out through the said Native Office. No white man (at present) is allowed to fish the beche le-raer so abundant on these reefs. This industry a few years ago was on a rapid increase at the time the Government set its embargo thereon, the whites only had raised it to the value of £5,000 per annum. The following year it fell to £700, and has remained at that since, this being the amount collected by natives under forced taxation. I have enumerated a few of the disabilities under which the whites labour in this " land of the free." The worst of it is, we can see no possible relief, no silver lining, no turning to the long lane, without the aid of three contingencies, each possible, but each unlikely. Gordon and Dcs Voux are each blamed — the one for originating the existing governmental policies, the latter for giving them a Rehoboamic effect. They were undoubtedly to blame for much, very much of it, but the thinking among the community see underlying the whole policy of the present administrator. There can be little doubt that the native policy, with its grand fiasco, the garden taxation scheme, waß purely and Bimply the elaboration of the above - mentioned gentleman. Knowing that it had been a total failure in that every article produced was raised through bad management and ignorance to a cost of double it market value, he yet had the audacity to praise up the system and hold forth as to the glorious results therefrom to a verdant London audience on his recent visit. Still more recently he met a deputation of the leading men here, and after firfet trying to ignore the dangerous financial position of the country, actually endeavoured to foist the onus of the present state of affairs, not on the Government, of whom he was the chief, but upon the planters who had vainly struggled for years against crushing disabilities imposed, or at any rate instigated, by himself. The earnest expostulations of men thoroughly conversant with the actual financial position of the country, fully imbued with a sense of the danger of the present total collapse of trade, are met by sneers upon their habits ; they are accused of gross ignorance of the businesses and oc cupations of their lives -of wasteful and npendthrift habits. Such is the conduct of the politician at the head of our affairs, nor is he unsupported by his lieutenant. At a recent Council meeting, while Dr. McGregor was acting as administrator during Mr Thurston's absence, the question of reducing the salary of the Governor from £4,000 per annum was introduced. It would have been laughable, only that it was weepable, to see the wily Scot twist his Verdant Greens round his fingers. ■ He sug gested that a low salary would only, in fact, could only, produce a "low-class Governor "—that if we wanted good men (Lord help us !) we must pay for them. 5 The inference was as broad as the Scot's humour, and nearly as broad as his inward guffaw. Our representatives went up for the especial purpose of reducing the salaries of such inefficient Governors as. we had had previously. - Dr. McGregor* in their teeth, persuaded them that they had the very best men, and must pay the usual previous .salary for like inoapables. VIV I sincerely .hope that New Zealand, before fooling with Samoa, will "give this country a chance of gathering, under her wing. "' • - - ■