GOVERNMENT LUNCHEON

Evening Post, Volume CVIII, Issue 145, 16 December 1924, Page 9

GOVERNMENT LUNCHEON

THE /VISITORS ENTERTAINED,

The official Government luncheon in honour of the visit of the Samoan. Faipule was held at :the Parliament Buildings, yesterday. The Minister of External Affairs (the Hon. !-Sir; Francis Bell) presided, the visitors being associated'with him'at the head table,',and the gathering included-Ministers of the. Crown, members of; the Legislature, and'officers of State Departments. y , -/. •', .-'".' After the toast :of loyalty tad been honoured, Sir Francis Bell pro-p---osed the toast of "The. Faipule of Samoa." •... The faipule, he said fc were little more than 30 in number,' and their hereditary rights were wholly recognised ;by the people of Samoa. New Zealanders jwere. not unfamiliar with the rights of •'chiefs of a native race. "The Samoan people were very closely kin to our own Maoris, and they shared >vith the Maoris the undis-

puted fact of being far in advance' of other members of the Polynesian race. j'A good many believed that Savaii arid ! Samoa were the Hawaiiki of: tradition. Sir, Francis referred to ths equal footing of the Maoris with the Europeans in New Zealand, and bespoke for the visitors a hearty welcome. Our relations with .Samoa, he said, did not begin with.the Mandate, nor even .with bur memorable occupation on behalf of His Majesty in 1914. There; were trading, relations long/ before that, and many'present that'day would remember.the desire,of the Ballance ■ Government to send the Hinemoa-

, there. He recalled that, throughout the occupation there was no dissatisfaction i\yith the.administration under British officers, and New Zealand was very much indebted to Colonel Logan for the services rendered at that time. ' After alluding to events that took place after the war, Sir. Francis said 'that the undoubted success of. our Government in Samoa was > due to Sir' James Allen and Mr. Lee. New Zealand, had; no. selfish interest in Samoa, and could'in no circumstances receive;any .monetary profit'from •■. the duty 'it•: had undertaken in Samoa, Referring to the progress 'of New' Zealand administration in Samoa Sir Francis pointed out that under our control •the hospital system had been practically, created, wljile the ravages of tropical diseases had been reduced to a minimum. . We were educating the Samoans—not teaching them to be English, but teaching them, to read and write in their own' language. Our destiny was to govern the islands between the Sandwich Islands and New Zealand except those which belonged to France Sir -Francis appealed, to the people of New Zealand of all parties not to make our rule of the Islands of the Pacific' the subject of party quarrel. In our administration of the islands we were subject to criticism by all the races of the world, and-if there must be party criticism, let it be for the ■improvement of the islands, and not for the sake of a vwl.» -attack, upon the administration in power. _ I ■.--. ... ■ •. . : SHIPPING FACILITIES. .;

Sir Francis -said he wished to express the gratitude of the Government and ot the people of New Zealand to the present Administrator, General Richardson, who. had gained' the conadence of the Samoans, and : had , enabled the fono of fajpules to administer the native law, and observe the : native customs to an 1 extent which at first seemed impossible. In one respect New Zealand must adnut failure, the fact that no regular transport service had been established to remove the enormous difficulties under which the islands were labouring in ™g j-i0 ,?? liPmen<< of their produce. The difficulties of the Treasuryfin that respect were now practically ended; and he believed it would not be long before Parliament approved of a scheme for regular communication, which was absolutely necessary. The remarks made by Toelupe in renlv ■ are reported elsewhere. ' , _ The function concluded with the singing of the National Anthem .