NEW GUINEA

Evening Star, Issue 12900, 24 August 1906, Page 6

NEW GUINEA

MR WATSON CRITICAL. A ROYAL COMMISSION TO BE SENT. Press Association—By Telegraph—Copyright. MELBOURNE, August 24. (Received August 24, at 10.3 a.m.), Mr Watson attacked the Government over the appointment of a Royal Commission to investigate the affairs of New Guinea, He action of the Government, he said, was hardly such as could give public satisfaction. The possession had been slowly drifting m the wrong direction. In Sir William Macgregor’s time a policy of development bad been carried on, and the natives were looked after. Since then there had been a policy of drift. The white settlers had been consistently blocked. The responsibility for this failure in administration rested first with Sir George Le Hunie and then with Captain Barton. He latter had treated the natives weU, but he had not the knack of managing men and affairs. Mr Dcakin said that the whole history of the possession was marked by ill-fortune. He territory had been thrust on the Commonwealth by the Colonial Office at a time when other responsibilities prevented this Parliament from giving that attention to New Guinea, which it merited. Now. however, a constitution for the territory was proclaimed, and would come into force in September. No Minister could spare the time to go to Now Guinea for three or four months to investigate affairs there, although an investigation was necessary and information needed. The Government therefore proposed te get it by sending a Royal Commission. When the report of the Commission was received an energetic policy could be initiated.