SECOND EDITION Wairarapa Daily Times. [Established 1874.] MONDAY, NOV. 19, 1894. SAMOA.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XV, Issue 4880, 19 November 1894, Page 2

SECOND EDITION Wairarapa Daily Times. [Established 1874.] MONDAY, NOV. 19, 1894. SAMOA.

Pun Samoan Islands,in the Western 'acific, lie ditenorth of New Zealand, 'ight in the tropics and in the ■; iinuediate neighbourhood of Fiji, tall gives the population at 36,000 if whom not more than 400 are Jritish born. Great Britain, Gcrnanyand tho United States have ointly guaranteed the neutrality of ho group, In 1803 wo heard a greit leal about a native rumpus in that egion, and in 1894 Samoa has been irouglit again under our notice byjf nild Seddonian rumpus. Wc sliouli lavo thought that tho combine! Powers of three great Empires weisnough to regulate Samoa withou ill* Seddon chipping in, but it ma; )o said of our Premier in the word )f the latest popular ditty, "'1 lon't know wliero 'care." It ap iears that in this matter Mr Seddo: las been inspired by ,Mr Oolenifl: Phillips, of the Knoll, Featherstoi: lud without the slightest knowledg jn ln's own part of an Imperial ques iion of considerable magnitude, h lias, under the guidance of his Wait irripa mentor attempted to achiev iho impossible. In ;Juno last it JolemanPhillips forwaVded.to th Premier, a paper on Samoa compile! in the mainfrom the somewhatnmst handbooks of a former genera tior flio paper in question is qf.considei ible interest »sa general descriptioi of the Islands, but we question whether it would not havebeon mor suitablo for a critical bod; like the Wellington; Philosophicii Society, Some of tho more ptomi nent statements in it appear to us t be a little inexact. For example, M: Coleman Phillips quotes tho import to the islands at £120,000, wlierea Hazell, who is considered:.trust worthy, gives them at £67,000. ,\V fancy Mr PhillipS'acquaiiitaiicewitl the islands dates'hack' a good man; years,, and that his paper on '.then can hardly bo regarded as an- up-to date document,' Probably some o tho. Auckland merchants who do i direct trade with Samoa would be ii a better position to describe wlm tho islands really are at the presen day, Mr Seddon's action in publish ing Mr Phillips' sketch as a stat paper,and suggesting the expediency of annexing these pearls of th tropics, of course creates a new in terest in them,: oven at the cost o making, the polony ridiculous, Thvei great have; jointly settle) the fate of.Samoa, and the hcusdam of a'Mr Seddon,is .scarcely, periiep tiblo, Ho has 110 more right to .pro pose the annexation than has M Phillips, anditt pommonprudbneoii ought to have allowed his Wajramp mentor to make the astounding offej It iB evident, that Mr Seddon's re ferences to Samoa liavo caused con siderable annoyance to Lon Rosebery,- iand that' this, Colon; has' 1 'probably- earuedwft'i. : j'epi

tation. in Europe for .unparalleled! effro'nteiy.•, Any' proposal fori Now Zealand to: Efoyorn islands where Germany.' anil tho United States havi) claim's, is^kurd ; in the extreme. The following descriptive sentences appear in Mi' Coleman Phillips'paper, "Ahappier nice of people could not be found than the Samoans, A scowling or discontented face is seldom seen; want bi'yp'oirertyi; fa .unknown," Now : if this be true we think Samoa ought to rule Now Zealand and not New Zealand to govern Samoa, Are there no discontented faces in New Zealand ; iSjihcre not want, is there not poverty ? Then why not pack Mr Seddon oif 'to Samoa tp learn, how to make .■people v contented! nnd'v wellarid;.' get* ;-a.:' N Maliotoa or fa Miitattfft 'We;iiavo to thank.Mr' Golemaja'Phillips for '.exhteresi? ing island'group, i: ;but;' the political turn which has been , given to his paper is, we foar, calculated to injure tho Colony.