REPORTED TROUBLE IN FIJI.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume VX, Issue 7101, 25 January 1901, Page 4

REPORTED TROUBLE IN FIJI.

MR SEDDON'S OPINION.

and educating the people to ultimately I'xerciae more powers of self-government Of course there are always abuses arising not always from want of heart, but from lack of judgment, and the trouble is that the natives invariably suffer."

"Do you think federation with New Zealand would do away with this ?" "lam inclined to think not, and I fancy this opinion is shared by most of the foreign residents in Fiji. When the question of federation with New Zealand was first mooted a great many of the foreign residents were in favor of it, but as time went on the general impression was that if Fiji were to federate it should be with the Commonwealth."

" Do you favour that?"

" Well, no, I do not, because I am afraid that some restrictions which, in my opinion, ' are for the good of the native race might be removed. It would, in my opinion, be a fearful ourse to Fiji if natives were supplied with grog, and I am very much afraid that the Government would be compelled to yield to those who desired to make money out of the liquor traffic. Ido not, however, phare the fears of some that the natives would be deprived of their landß. No Government of New Zealand," concluded Dr. Brown, " would ever perpetrate such an act of injustice upon the native raoe."

Mr R. Seddon, Premier of New Zealand, was asked by a representative of the Sydney Morning Herald if he knew whufc authority Mr Humphrey Berkley had for the statement that His Excellency Sir G. M. O'Brien, Governor of Fiji, had threatened to deport a missionary from Fiji for advocating the federation of that colony with New Zealand. It will be remembered that during the social function on board the Tutanekai Mr Seddon read a cablegram from New Zealand conveying a report of the alleged threat.

Mr Seddon said that he had no further information on the matter. To understand the position of affairs in Fiji one would have to hear the whole question, commencing with the circumstances which led up to the present position. The trouble had evidently arisen over a letter which one of the missionaries, Mr Slade, had written to the Fiji newspaper on the system of Government. Having only a moment or two to spare, he had no time to go into a general exposition of the question. In Sydney he found there was great apathy in regard to the matter, but the people did not understand how closely the general question lay to the Commonwealth of Australia.

" How do you regard the alleged threat of the Governor of Fiji ?"

" I scarcely can believe," replied Mr Seddon, " that the Governor could go to the extreme course ind ; cated, because the Act under which he is working is obsolete. It was passed at a time when conditions in Fiji were altogether different from what they are now. It is an ordinance passed in 1875, when there were no doubt agitators using the natives for ulterior purposes. Since that period is has never been exercised. To apply it now to a man like Mr Slade is absolutely improper." "1 suppose you intend to assist Mr Slade, as he championed your cause ?" "Yes," said Mr Seddon, as he hurried off to keep an appointment, " I intend to send a remonstrance."

INTERVIEW WITH DR. BROWN.

Dr Brown, general secretary of the Australasian Wesleyan Methodist Missionary Society, who recently made a special visit to Fiji, was also questioned by a representative of the Herald with regard to political affairs in Fiji, and the circumstances which had probably led to the reported threat of the Governor.

" The question of federation with New Zealand," said Dr Brown, "is a very important one, but there will be plenty of time to discuss that. What interests us most at the present time is whether our missionary is going to be deported or not."

" What do you think about it ?"

" I think that the situation is very much exaggerated, I saw His Excellency Sir G. M. O'Brien several times on my visit to Fiji some time after the article in question which Kir Slade wrote had been published, and certainly there was no indication that any such extreme step as deportation was even thought about. I cannot think that it is at all probable that His Excellency contemplates any such extreme measure. The gentleman in question has very strong views upon the native question, views, I may say, which are shared by some of the brethren, but he has a large amount of good common sense, and I have confidence enough in htm to believe that he would not make any disloyal statements. I cannot see how he could be deported for anything short of this. " No ; we have no intimation in the office about tins matter. All that we know ie from the daily press, and I certainly think bad there been any such danger as Mr Humphrey Berkley's cablegram mdi cates we also would have received a cablegram at the mission office from the head of the mission in Fiji." " What is your opinion about the subjects mentioned in Mr Slade's letter, which was also printed in the November number of the Review of Reviews?"

" Well, that is such a wide and important matter that I do not feel competent to answer it at present. The present Governor of Fiji is not the originator of the present native policy of Fiji j he has simply inherited the regime instituted by his predecessor, with improved conditions of his own, which, I am bound to say, have been for the ultimate good of the native races, though there is no doubt that some of them for the time being caused some hardship. The taxation from Customs, so far as it affects articles used by natives, has been materially increased, but the Governor oontends, and I think with justice, that nearly the whole of this, in addition to that raised by the poll tax, has been expended for the good of the Fijians. Large sums of money have been spent during the past year in providing a good system of water supply for the numerous native inhabitants in the Eewa Delta. Three provincial hospitals have been established, and many of the to\yns thoroughly renovated under the direction of the Government inspectors, bo that at least two-thirds of the native taxation has been expended in what may be termed public works for the benefit of the people. Still I think that the Fijian is heavily taxed, though the refund taxation has been greater during the past year than it has ever been before."

" What do you mean by that ?" " Well, it is difficult to explain satisfactorily, but 1 may say that each district is assessed for a certain amount. This has to be provided in kind, not in cash. All who are able to work, with a few exceptions, have to do ther share of this communal work. The produce obtained by this work is sold by the Government, and after deducting the amount of assessed taxation the balance is returned to the districts and amongbt the people according to their contribution. The government is probably the best for the Fijians at the present time, but in my opinion some steps should be taken towards training