JUDGE AYSON.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVIII, Issue 200, 24 August 1937, Page 11

JUDGE AYSON.

WORK IN RAROTONGA. "CLAIM TO REMEMBRANCE." admtntstrathtb abiutt. - i A tribute to the ability of Judge H. Y. Ayson, CM.G, who returned to New Zealand recently, after occupying for five consecutive terms, with marked success, the important and delicate administrative position of Resident Commissioner in the Cook Islands, appears in the "Pacific Islands. Monthly," under the signature of Julian Hillae. Fifty-two yeaTS of age last November, the article proceeds, Judge Ayson was educated at Wellington College and Victoria University, New Zealand, whence, scarcely out of Wβ teens, he -entered the law, practising as a barrister end solicitor in Wellington from 1905 until his appointment, as Judge of the Native Lend Court in 1916, in which year he first joined the Cook Islands service. In October, 1922, Judge Ayson was appointed to the triple poet of Resident Commissioner, Judge of the High Court and Judge of the Native Land Court at Rarotonge, thus taking upon his shoulders duties formerly borne by two separata officials, and which he has successfully carried out single-handed for 15 years. In May last Judge Ayson announced that, in view of impending changes in the personnel of the New Zealand Land Court, it would be necessary in his own interests to return to the Dominion and the Department from which he had been on loan" to C.L. , t Any attempt to estimate the work and i influence of Judge Ayson in Rarotonga t must take into account the fact that the 1 administration of a small territory, con- j taining many diverse interests, is a far ] inore hazardous undertaking than a < •imilar office in a larger area, where \ the conflicting elemente are widely dif- ] lUged. In Rarotonga, where every j ( third European is connected with the administration, the "Government" ia virtually o n people's doorsteps, with the inevitable Tesult that official actions are liable to be regarded as biased, eo that '. tinlese the commissioner is prepared to • forgo the common privilege of friend- - *Mp, he is certain to incur the charge , of heving his policies influenced by his friends. In such circumstances no small degree of ekill is required to combat the prejudices, the petty jealousies and the ambitions of constantly warring factions, each seeking to advance its own interests at the expense of the others. And behind these is the great eenriinarticulate, yet by no means unintek ligent, body of native opinion, easily offended and still more easily persuaded that its welfare is taking second place. Party Politire Eschewed. A natural tactician, Judge Ayson has sedulously eschewed party politics, and with enviable dexterity has eet his course so that each political commercial or social breeze has combined to blow him along in the direction he wished to go, and which was often quite contrary to where it was hoped they would carry him.

In 1922 there were four Government' schools in Rarotonga and four in the, Lowcer Group Islands, with, a total of 1300 pupils, functioning at an annual cost of approximately £9000. By 1935 a new eyllabus had been introduced, all That this course has led to the betterment of the group is plain from the briefest? perusal of the improvements effected during his administration, deepite the fact that almost half his term of office has been spent under "the depression" with ite slashing reductions in Dominion subsidies.

existing schools enlarged and improved, „' and others established in the Northern* - Group, bringing the attendance) roll up ' to 2816 children, with a "teaching staff, of 71, 12 of whom are qualified Euro- ' peans, the whole operating ail an annual ; expenditure of a little over £6000. ! In the medical realm extensions have ' been added to the hospital, including the installation of an X-ray plant. Soil sanitation, too, has been undertaken on a : large scale, and the Government, in conjunction with the Rockefeller Institute, have erected over 2000 fly-proof closets of cement construction, thereby substantially reducing disease from groundborne infection. In 1926 a school dental clinic was inaugurated, with the parttime services of a professional dentiet. Progressive Community. Radio communication in 1922 was! limited to the single station ,at Raro- j tonga. To-day there are sub-s-tations on ' the four main Lower Group islands, and a fifth on Munihiki, 650 miles to the north. Excellent as these improvements and innovations are, one feels that Judge i Ayson's claim to remembrance will prob- J ably rest less on his material achievements than on his administrative policy, which has successfully, kept the group from any of the undesirable sort of j front-page publicity, such as has been j so marked in the case of Western | Samoa. With almost uncanny- intuition j he has always been at least one jump , ahead of those who might have desired to throw sand in the machinery, i In so rtany-sided a personality it is I difficult to specify any one aspect as ; representative of the whole, although, I perhaps, 'characteristic of Judge Ayeon r is; the unswerving loyalty and support » which he accords to hie subordinates— t en which can only be apprer dated to the full by those who have actually served under him.