TRAGEDY IN SAMOA.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXIX, Issue 8170, 28 June 1906, Page 7

TRAGEDY IN SAMOA.

OONVIOT MURDERER AT LARGE. SHOOTS A WHITE SETTLER. ATTEMPT'S TO MURDEK OTHERS. SAMOA, June 6. A shocking outrage happened in Samoa on May 30th. A young German planter, Mr Hirsoh, was atj tacked and shot after a short struggle by a native whilst oat hunting in his plantation. The following events led to the ijrime. A young Samoan, Sitivi, tried to shoot his wife throagh jea-\ lousy, about Augnst, 1905 with a •gun* stolen, besides other things, from a white trader. After some trouble he was u&ugbt and put in gaol. He was kept in confinement « few days. But then the judge, who bad recently come from Germany, without any experience whatever, 5 ordered the hsndouffs to be taken off the man. The criminal was even allowed to sleep in a native hut inside the prison yard. The result of this neglect was that he walked away at the" first opportunity. Sitivi's first desire was to get h Tifle. He went down the coast, and ■on Sunday, November 4th, 1905, he broke into the house of a planter, who had gone on a visit, aad stole a double-barreledf gan, cartridges, food, eto. He had told people that he was going to shoot Several white people. Fortunately •some natives saw him in the bush a few days afterwards, took the rifle whilst be was away from his camp, and delivered it in Apia. A short time afterwards the orimiaal was •secured, too, and for a "good number of different crimes senienced to years imprisonment. People would expect that the officials would take better oare of him now, beoause they might be sure that he would be desperate if he got free again. A few months afterwards the same judge ordered Sitivi'a handcuffs to be taken off again. Besides this be was allowed to worK ■with other natives on the public roads. He managed to secure some tools, and because the native policemen who bad to watch him at night time neglected their duty again, he was able to bacon the irons off bis feet, break through the floor, v and escape again. His first outrage was that he tiled to assault a white woman living with her husband on a plantation near Apiß. The poor lady was seriously knocked about. The settlers expeoted that the authorities would take immediate step to readpture the convict. Nothing of the kind happened. Only a few native polioemen were sent out to hunt foi him; but these were afraid. Most oi them must have sympathised with him. The manager of the D.H. and P.G., seeing the danger of the white uet"tiers offerei to send 200 black boys into the bosh to capture the criminal, but the authorities did not aooept this offer, beoause they oould not let him be pursued under the condition of taking him dead or alive. The Government surveyor, Mr Haidlen, passing over the island met Sitivi by himself. The criminal wounded him with a spear, and hit him with stohes. The official, though badly wounded, ,managed to walk close to Apia, and was taken to the hospital. j On Sunday morning Sitivi stole j a fowling-pieoe from a Nuie native. 11l the evening he tried tp shoot Mr Shaffhausen, the Government architect. The bullet grazed his neck and lodged in the bed. Then Sitivi was not heard of for a short time, and the Government took no stens to pursue him. They only sent a personal description in German with a badly printed face on it to some of the settlers. In this description it was stated that Sitivi had a very dark complexion. Contrary to this the policemen had told Mr Hiisch several days before that Sitivi was very light--coloured. Meeting a very dark- . oolnured native in his plantation, he did not arrest him. A short time afterwards he talked with his brother about it, but both thought that it could not have been; Siviti. Near the same spot Mr Hirsch was shot a few hoars afterwards. The brother was pursued, too, by the murderer, but managed to tun to the coast unharmed. He brought the corpse to Apia to bury it there. The judge told him for condolenoa that suoh a thing happened in Europe every day. Even now no effective measures were adopted to pursue the murderer. Only an official was sent out to tell the natives to catch Sitivi. Being told by him that he would not do th«m any # harm, but that he unly wanted to shoot the white people, they took no notioe of it. Witivi, as he had done befoie, c,ame down to villages, and got food and tobacco from , the natives, telling them all about his crimes* The writer even heard them laugh about the Government and the consternation r of the white people. On June Ist the German man-of-war arrived in Samoa, but there have been no steps taken to bunt for Sitivi, as far as I know to the present day. Most of the white planters, who bad been working in the bush, left their plantations and are now in Apia, or in the villages on the coasts. Who is to pay them damages for loss of time and work on the plantations? Sitivi has been free a fortnight, and nearly all plantation work is at a standstill. There is a very strong feeling amongst the settlers against the Government, and talk of appointing a vigilance committee. The whole deplorable affair shows again how the German officials negleot their duty and private people have to suffer for it.