DISCOVERY OF INTERESTING DOCUMENTS.

Auckland Star, Volume VII, Issue 1894, 13 March 1876, Page 2

DISCOVERY OF INTERESTING DOCUMENTS.

COWTIUCr STKINBTffiGER - GQDTWT.BOY BASED EJJ 0* LMJDALH AOT HOMAOT NEUTRALITY

(From otir own Correspondent.)

Samoa, Feb. 25. j Whes in March last Steinter was landed o he" with quite an extraordinary show, a SlStag M own, good, honest and . aWe Kingrlom. Presents, consisting of some Small brass pieces of cannon and a gathng . ™ w^Vientea to the S.mowjby^jnbereer in tbfi name of the U.S. President, ?J everything went on quite pleaSaSome time after * Steinbereer'a landing, a JXJ&9+* held ** Mohjean when ■■ bis credrotiaifl werfi; to be read, the new W Star Flag to be hoisted, and other festivities to come off. , < Captain Irvin, of the TuaearOMl, « the ' said meeting read a letter from the U.b. Resident to the Samoan Government, which the .natives took to be all right, and to contain less than the promised American protectorate. However, the here-residing foreigners who were present' thought that inut this little requisite was missing m the said letter, and at once put down Steinber<rer as an adventurer, and what is worse they bavo never since had a chance of altering their opinion about the noble motives that brought him here.s. , • , The Tuscarora remained here for about two months, and Captain Irvin did his best to uphold a good reputation of Steinberger; even a notice was stuck up sirred by Gapt. Trvin, in which he declared .that Steinberger had enme here as a friend of the Ramoans, and that nothing was more distant from his views than mercenary purposes. Even after this soft-solder the refractory foreigners could or would not believe m Steinberger's philanthropy, and only the natives/iwbo thought if Steinberger were not the man, the big U. S. steamer Tuscorora never would hive wasted ro much time nor such a sumptuous display in landing merely a Mr. Nobody. . ' After the festivities had passed Steinberger persuaded the natives to believe him to be a good friend and a well-wisher of theirs, and finally managed to be appointed by them ' their Premier for life, arid in this quality a . constitution, according to contract and his own convenience was published and the contractors considered themselves fairly embarked in their laudable and humane enterprise. Steinberger was so self-denying that he refused to accept from the Samoans any salary for the first year, by which the Ramoans were confirmed again in believing they had found the right man in the right place. However, as Steinberger did not wish to keep all his good luck to himself he persuaded some of his former " chums" to come here from the U. S. and bo accept a billet. Several of them came, and as they came not provided with fnndß, they soon commenced to pump the Treasury, and- as this institution is generally empty, a disagreeable feeling commenced crowing between Steinherper a*d his officials. Steinberger persuaded the King and hia chiefs to raise a little cash for them. These good harmless people have never been in the habit to work their Government with money, at least not with money to any extent. They however provided for him a few hundred dollars, and when these were given and gone as soon as they had bsen received, and the Samoans were asked again for more, they commenced thinking to what the|luxiiry of white men in a Samoau Government/ ipisht bring them ; they consulted with one ind^'the other of the old white residents here without yet being able to come to any conclusion. ' In December last the B.M. steamer Barracouta arrived here. Her captain, Stevens, heard what was going on with Steinberger. The U.S. Consul accused Steinberger of a breach of neutrality, and as no U.S. man-of-war ship was in port, solicited assistance from the Barracouta, and had Steinberger's schooner Peerless, armed in war and under American colours, seized and sold. The natives, seeing these things going on," now began to doubt in good earnest Steinberger's reality, and they came to the conclusion the best for them would be to get rid of their Premier. However, they did not know of any means how to dispose of the man, until at last they came to do the right step in the right direction. King Malietoa, 1., wrote a lettef to the U.S. Consul, requesting him to relieve the Samoans of Steinberger, whom by his own acts they were now convinced was only a low adventurer, and bo the U.S. Consul applied again for assistance to the chivalrous Captain Stevens, and one fine morning English marines were sent on shore, and removed the " Premier" from his humble palace to on board the Barracoutaj where he has been detained ever since. » Most of hi 3 helpmates imported from the U.S., on seeing their meagre allowance here, left again almost as soon as> they arrived. The only man here now.is Major Latrobe, who perhaps remains waiting for his share in the expected profits of his contract. From whatever little people have seen of Steinberger and his doiDgs, they all came to the conclusion aa the natural resources of thsse, in reality, only pg6r islands, would not allow the " Premier " in an ordinary way to coin money, that something extraordinary must be at the bottom of his enterprise, and as he came from the land where the great "Barnum" is at home, it was often suspected that some great American scheme would be heard of ere long, and so, when only a few days ago, the above-given contracts became known, people were not at all surprised at the philanthropical tenor of the document, but they were greatly puzzled about the quarters from where the enterprise emanated. On reading the contract by disinterested parties, it sonuds, perhaps not so harsh as it does to a Samoan native, a settler or people engaged in business on these islands, for them it will show at once how merciless the scheme aims at nothing less than at the destruction of all of them. The whole contents of the contract maybe impressed more or less into the following items viz. :— Ist. Steinberger under the title of U. S. Commissioner, sneaks himself into the Samoan Goverment, and in this position and by his home endorsement pledges himself to work out his laudable and humane purposes expressly and solely for the benefit of and to oppress all other business connections etc., etc. Colonel Steinberger is to use all his influence to have the Samoan Government recognised by the United States, and the German firm oblige themselves to exercise all the influence they possess, direct and through the Imperial German Consul, who is the salaried manager of their establishment at Apia, to have Steinberger's Government acknowledged by the Germans. This precaution is very likely uiost desirable to substantiate the landable and humane contents of the contract for the ruin of so many old foieign residents here, and the reducing of a bo far free native people to slavery, can certainly not be any odds against the execution of such noble and philanhrophical notions as the contractors have manifested in their laudable aad human enterprise. If the recognition of the Samoan Government by the foreign powers had been obtained, the said contract would have caused grief to the white

residents here who do not TJartafcTTTir contractors benefit, they might have it ' R perhaps a way and means to work awTi IP the contract, and the contractors deem <? • SP convenient to insert in the document a * of damper for such an emergency and M? the circulating medium was got up ChV P ian gold and Bolivian silver coin a"1 latter the so-called iron money, imao,*'j , m the* establishment of GodeftW? ? L; circulating here now at about 20* W cent above its standard value, i?? shrewd innovation would Dot only v fet, enabled the contractors to do a prtf9 '■fit extensive aud remunerative businesu withn ■ \ m the outlay of a dollar, but also to draw or the country the present solid silver eire ing medium, and besides disenableaUtheTi I outsiders of the contract to do any hw at all, for they never could nor would h/' for money, y/hich would be reckoned 1 I valueless' to them, and thus neoesßtv p wftols trade of this group would V ', into the laudable and lmmane^to*' Steinbergef'-Gc>deffrqy. B£=2 § .;> manoeuvres, tkc SJwnoan Gfc==; 5 have established sh« feyatenfE j article C makes it 3 corf==j§ < t fl contractors could say. TK« seft,mentoj f| land property enable Godeffroy's, 1 own some land on these islands, to1 '"'-' 11 get good titles and have an old I' and tiresome question without trouble I arranged. However, after this item be settled 1'! then, of course, all further land sales shallbe! W transacted under strict control of the Govern- '' ment. The article for the introduction of >! foreign labour^epeaks for itself GodeffroVj 1 are the only labour-holders in the Samoa* Group, and so this article is moulded fo r '•' them as easy as possible. It has been fortunate for the foreign residents as well aa forthe Datives that this great enterprise was ■ kno^'n Wore it took anyteffect, as this great : : trouble io the foreigners, and perhaps a war -f I'; amongst the uatiyes, have, most likely, been I avoided. . I