ISLANDS ANNEXED

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 56, Issue 96, 4 February 1936, Page 5

ISLANDS ANNEXED

UNITED STATES IN PACIFIC. “COLONISATION” CLAIMED. USE IN THE AIR SERVICE. (United Press Association—Copyright) LONDON, February 2. A report has reached London, through the Hawaiian Publicity Bureau, that the United States has annexed Baker, Howland and Jarvis Islands for use in a trans-Pacific air service, says the “Sun-Herald” News Service, but no official statement is available. The moving figure is said to be Mr Samuel Wilder King, Hawaiian delegate to the United States Congress. The American claim is reported to be based on an assertion that British ownership of the islands is not legally recognisable because it is not “occupational ownership.” It is stated that Mr King has “colonised” the islands by settling small groups of American citizens of Hawaiian birth on each island. The “Sunday Express’-’ says that MiWaiter Doyle (Collector of Customs at Honolulu) recently made a gesture intended to emphasise American ownership, by refusing to have his luggage examined on returning from the islands, claiming that they were American territory. It is also reported that Mr King has “colonised” Christmas Island for America, stating that the island was “generally considered British, but may be the next South Seas atoll under the American flag.” Mr King adds: “If Fanning and Washington Islands could be acquired from Britain, everything in the midPacific round Hawaii would be completely American-owned.” The “Sunday Express” draws attention to the possibility of complications through the controlling interest of Burns, Philp and Company in Fanning Island.