SORROWS OF SAMOA.

Auckland Star, Volume LVII, Issue 110, 11 May 1926, Page 8

SORROWS OF SAMOA.

WHY TRADE HAS FALLEN OFF.

COSTLY ADMINISTRATION. A FRANK CRfTICISM. " During my stay in Auckland, several of the merchants T have met have complained that to-day they do far less business with Samoa than in the prewar days, when the Islands were under German rule, and in spite of the fact that to-day our only direct communication is with Auckland, and there is no boat running from Sydney as there used to be," said Mr. G. E. L. Westbrook to a " Star" reporter this morning. Mr. Westbrook is a very old resident of Samoa, and is elected member of the Legislative Council. He has been on a visit to England, after an absence of 40 years, and is just now finishing up a trip through New Zealand before returning to his island home. People who follow the news of the day will be aware of the fact that Mr. Westbrook criticises the conduct of affairs since Samoa was taken over by New Zealand. He says the public hears, or rather reads, a lot about the wonderful way Samoa is being administered, and about the wonderfully contented stato of the natives, but there is another side to tha question, and it is only right that that other side should be voiced.

" This matter of the falling off in trade, of which the Auckland merchants complain," continued Mr. Westbrook, "can be readily explained. In the first place there is no building going on in Samoa, as was the case before the war. Then we have the fact that our white population has been greatly reduced by the deportation of the German resident, without any attempt being made to fill their places with the same class of pioneers. Still another factor is the state of bankruptcy of many of tlie planting concerns, in addition to which we have seen some of the small German holdings abandoned since the occupation. Then, finally, we have the fact that the imposition of prohibition of liquor has squashed our tourist traffic, for no tourists will think of staying over for a month or so in a country which treats strangers as Samoa does. Perhaps you are not aware that when a ship arrives she has to anchor half a mile or so off; she is immediately boarded by Customs officers and police as scon as the anchor is down, the ship's bar is sealed, and often the cabins are searched, so that passengers cannot have even a glass of beer with their lunch, or a glass of wine with their dinner. Under these circumstances is it any wonder that the tourists go on to islands under the protection of the British flag and more tolerant rule, such as Fiji; or that they even prefer Tonga? Where the Trade Goes. " Since the war a big Australian company has established itself firmly in Samoa, and naturally does more of its business with Australia than New Zealand. The failure of .a company floated in Auckland with Xew Zealand capital shows the trend of trade in Samoa at the present time. " Outsiders don's seem to understand what a help to tlje country the German officials were under the old regime. The officials came out for a term of five years, and. being a long way from the Fatherland, they found it more profitable to lend their savings to a struggling planter or invest them in a plantation, than to send them to Germany, where interest was proportionally lower. These officials thus became stake-holders in the country, and were personally interested in the development of the place. the occupation, the officials have naturally received higher P a J". there are more of them, they receive extra tropical allowances, and, as they have no stake in the country, there is more money going out than formerly. As I said before, the amount of building is not going on as formerly, there are no fresh settlers coming in to take the place of those who have left, and the result is that in> many instances landed property which was paying well under the former administration, is nowrendered valueless a-nd is an incumbrance. As a matter of fact, it is impossible to-day to sell land, lease it, or give it away, as there are no purchasers. "To my mind, the worst feature of the present state of things in Samoa is the continued publication of letters and communications from administrative sources in praise of the present regime and what, it is doing for the country, while the other side does not get a hearing. There are many people in Samoa who ace of the same opinion as myself, but they are afraid of stating their grievances for fear of incurring the displeasure of those in the Government who will naturally not do business with those who feel they have just cause for criticising officialdom." Island Confederation. Mr. Westbrook, summing up the difficulties under which Samoa was labouring at the present time, said the native population was smaller, owing to the influenza epidemic of 1018 carrying off about a quarter of the best and healthiest: there were to-day about 300 less Europeans; practically no bush had been felled for new plantations: some plantations had gone hack to nature, including a fine pineapple plantation and a rubber plantation; imported labour had been reduced by some 2000: the tourist traffic had been lost, and to-day the territory owed New Zealand a sum of £100.000, as against the £20,000 which it was in credit when under the German Colonial Office. Asked if he would like the Germans back. Mr. W r estbrook said as a Britisher he would, of course, prefer Samoa to be under the British flag, but for all that he does not deny the fact that lie felt better off under the German flag as far as his personal liberty was concerned. His solution of Island difficulties is an island confederation, under the British flag, in which every island would have a certain amount of self-govern-ment, so that they could legislate according to their own special requirements and problems.