A.—s

49

civilization there Whatever representations they had to make should bo made to the Administrator, and they would, always receive favourable consideration. They were going from New Zealand with a very special mission. " My message to you is this, concluded Sir James : I look to you specially to uphold the honour of New Zealand and lay the foundation of civil administration there with great success. " He wished them a pleasant voyage, and hoped the people of New Zealand, when they welcomed them back, would be able to say ' Well done.' " Major General Robin also addressed the men. He wished them, as " the first act in civil administration," every success, and themselves individually every success also. We think, after reading that reported speech, we cannot be blamed for feeling that £30,000 of the revenue of Samoa was being ruthlessly wasted, as no normal mind with any experionco in the affairs of Samoa under civil administration could sanction such an excessive and unwarranted expenditure out of a known revenue of £88,295, and which revenue for 1918-19 was exceeded by expenditure by £1,500. This enormous expenditure, added to the loss in revenue to follow the issue of Proclamation 65 —some £4,000 per annum—was, we contend, sufficient to make the minds of residents very uneasy when contemplating what further possible acts might take place under the new order of rule. Regarding projected expenditure, we are very alarmed to hear of a proposed expenditure totalling, according to report, between two and throo hundred thousand pounds sterling, and can only hope that not only will very grave consideration be given by New Zealand before finally consenting to the expenditure of such large amounts, but that such consent be backed up by the very best expert evidence New Zealand can procure, under the different proposed headings of expenditure. For instance, we hear of a proposed expenditure of £20,000 for ships' moorings for our harbour, and £85,000 for roads, being only part of the public-works proposed vote, and a very heavy expenditure for buildings and salaries under the head of " Education," and further heavy expenditure in connection with the long-talkcd-of water-supply. We are not for a moment suggesting that under each and every head mentioned there should not be a considerable expenditure, but what we maintain is that before this small community becomes pledged to so large a programme of expenditure it is only reasonable that the proposals of the local Administration should bear tho heat of the closest expert scrutiny. As far as we as citizens can learn in respect to the Mandate and proposed Constitution, New Zealand becomes responsible for any deficit in the cost of governing Samoa, also that she has the right to make advances for public works, &c, and to charge interest upon the same, and take security over such loans, and also to make certain payments on account of expenditure in Samoa, out of the New Zealand public revenues. This being so, we would greatly appreciate, if it can be given, information regarding the final disposal of'any deficit paid—whether it becomes the subject of a loan chargeable with interest, and" repayable in the thirty-years period provided in the proposed Constitution, or from future surpluses of revenue in Samoa ; what is the nature of the security to be taken ; and are the allocations from tho New Zealand revenue free-will offerings, or do they also later become converted into loans or a public debt on Samoa, for which we, the taxable residents, become responsible ? These and other matters that will no doubt arise during your control of Samoa arc of very keen interest to the residents, who, after all, are not, as popularly depicted by the visiting novelist, dissolute beachcombers and degenerates, but keen agricultural, pastoral, and commercial people, mostly with every stake they have in tho world firmly planted in Samoa, and whom New Zealand can very easily hold to herself by open, fair-minded rule and dealings, and whose good will is every whit as essential to a successful administration as the good will of tho Native race which so greatly outnumbers us. But to secure this confidence of the Europeans the " Hush " and " Shrouded in mystery " policy of the past five years must be totally eradicated or dropped overboard. Given labour for cultivation as required, capital will come in. Given wise rule, sane expenditure, and tactful handling of many complex Native and European matters that will undoubtedly arise from time to time, Samoa has a future second to none in the South Pacific ; given normal seasons, her exports should almost invariably exceed her imports, which places her in the favoured position desired of all countries, and makes her finance easy and successful; and it is with a whole-hearted desire to assist New Zealand towards successful control, and to protect ourselves as well, that we have approached you, stating our fears, and praying that it is not yet too late to amend some of the proposed acts of expenditure. Leoislative Council. Tho Samoa Constitution Order states (paragraph 48) :—. " The Legislative Council shall consist of— " (a.) Official members (not less than four in number), being the holders for the time being of such offices in tho Samoan Public Service as the Governor-General from time to time appoints as entitling the holders thereof to sit in the Legislative Council: " (b.) Unofficial members (not more in number than the official members), being such other persons (if any) as the Governor-General appoints to hold office during his pleasure as members of the Legislative Council." We interpret these clauses to mean that the Legislative Council may be complete without any unofficial members; that there is a minimum of four official members gives no guarantee that tho latter may ever be equal in number to the former ; that unofficial members, instead of being elected by the people whom they are supposed to represont, only hold office at the pleasure of the Governor-General of New Zealand. Wo now respectfully request: Unofficial members be elected by the people and not nominated; and that the unofficial members should in number equal tho official members, tho Administrator or Chairman reserving the right of a castimg vote. One of the principal reasons for desiring elected unofficial members is to prevent the anomaly in Samoa of taxation without representation, which would be the result if the Legislative Council were all nominatod. We do not know of a single instance where a nominated Council has proved satisfactory to the public. Wo feel sure that whoever is nominated would have preferred accepting office on the voice of the people. Cost of Samoa Constabulary. Some two months ago a strong Force of picked officers and men arrived from New Zealand to act as police, consisting of four officers, five_sergeants, and forty-eight constables, and the military garrison was, as far as Samoa was concerned, disbanded from the date of the arrival of the constabulary. From information very kindly supplied by the Inspector-General of the Samoan Constabulary we find that the approximate amount of salaries and allowances for the present Force is £18,500 per annum, and the amount of the proposed vote for buildings and housing of the Force is unknown; also that forty horses in all are employed by the Constabulary. Beyond this information we have to fall back on the newspapers of New Zealand for the knowledge that it was originally intended to send down a total Force of seventy-one men. We arc; unable to givo exact figures, but it is very generally admitted that had tho original number been sent and a proper housing scheme undertaken (as about six-sevenths of the strength are reported to be married, and some with considerable families), the estimated cost would approach £30,000 per annum—a rather alarming total for the simple policing of Samoa. We are now very pleased to be verbally advised by Sir Alfred Robin, the Acting-Administrator, that it is not contemplated the balance of the Force will come to Samoa, also that the cost of the body now here will not be a charge on the finances of Samoa, and, further, that the men now here will not remain long in Samoa as constables. This is very satisfactory information, as we feel that a constabulary of this nature, besides not being warranted, might at any moment, quite unintentionally, cause friction between the Europeans and Samoans, mainly through want of knowledge on the part of the Force of Samoan customs, traditions, and etiquette, and which friction or trouble would reflect on New Zealand generally, and particularly on those directly responsible for the sending of the men to Samoa ; also the cost, even of the present Force, would go a long way towards crippling our finances.

7—A. 5.