SAMOA

Press, Volume LXXIII, Issue 21989, 13 January 1937, Page 7

SAMOA

TO I'HB EDITOB Or THE PBESS. Sir,—Once again I enter my emphatic protest against the way you handle the subject of Samoa. In your .article of January 8, you suggest that delay in the appointment of an administrator hinders the commencement of a better era in the administration of our mandate. It has done nothing of the sort, as everyone, including yourself, should know. The goodwill mission, which visited Samoa some months ago, reversed practically all ordinances which had caused dissatisfaction in the islands and gave assurance to the people of just and humane treatment in the future. You further suggest that the before-mentioned delay may be interpreted by the Samoans as an indication that the Government lacks a policy. The retention of an acting administrator is obviously part of the Government policy for the time being and appears to be eminently successful if we are to judge by statements published recently in the press. The Acting-Ad-ministrator is a capable man and quite as able to look after the interests of, both New Zealand and the Samoans 1 as well as if he bore a different title; it is the man that matters, not the name. I contend that you are doing now what you severely deprecated in years gone by when criticising Labour's attitude to the Samoan question, namely, putting into the minds of Samoans ideas of maladministration detrimental to order and good government, in the territory. You speak of the appearance of sudden crises as a danger to be anticipated. The treatment of sudden crises in the past by administrators totally incapable of

dealing with them caused incalculable damage—almost irreparable, the effects of which our present Government has, I believe, successfully overcome; and it is extremely unfair to say anything which may make the difficult task of the Government more burdonsome than it is. You have a perfect right to express the opinion that the appointment of an administrator would be in the interests of good government, but to suggest lack of policy on the part of our Government and disaffection in Samoa is unjustifiable, and indefensible.—Yours, C. R. N. MACKIE. . January 12, 1937.