Manawatu Evening Standard. TUESDAY, AUG. 27, 1935 SAMOA’S PROGRESS.

Manawatu Standard, Volume LV, Issue 230, 27 August 1935, Page 6

Manawatu Evening Standard. TUESDAY, AUG. 27, 1935 SAMOA’S PROGRESS.

In the immediate future the Government will be required to appoint a successor to BrigadierGeneral Sir Herbert Hart, who lias retired from the position of Administrator of Western Samoa. Since the occupation of this former German territory in 1914, the tendency has been for the Government to adhere rather strictly to appointments of a military nature, so that it may be regarded as significant of the mind of Samoa to-day that it is petitioning for the appointment of Mr A. (J. Turnbull (Secretary and De-puty-Administrator of Western Samoa). The matter is one to which the Government will give serious thought, for it is most essential that the very good work that has been done by Sir Herbert Hart should be consolidated, and the era of improvement and peace upon which • the islands have entered should be continued. He commenced his task as Administrator at a time when the Mau were causing serious political unrest in their own country and uneasiness in the Dominion, while members of the Permanent Mandates Commission, far removed from the scene, were expressing anxiety regarding the system of administration. But Sir Herbert Hart has proved such a wise and sympathetic Administrator, tactful and judicious, yet withal firm in his dealings with the native people, that he is able to leave Samoa with the natives co-operating with the Administration, the Mau no longer giving trouble, and with a greatly improved and _ very peaceful state of affairs in the islands. Co-operation is most evident in the Health Department which in recent years has been extending its service. There are, Sir Herbert says, eight native medical practitioners who received their training at the Central Medical School in Eiji, while four more are undergoing training. The service these native doctors can render to their own people cannot be adequately measured. They are stationed in different parts of the territory, and not only attend to the sick but also act as public health officers. In ten years the population has increased by 15,000, a tribute to the sociological progress that has been gratifyingl.v made.

In the economic sphere the improvement has been impressive. The control of the export of bananas by the Government of New Zealand has led to increased shipments, with “prices both satisfactory and payable that have proved of inestimable benefit to the natives during the bad times.” Both exports and imports generally are rising, and since 1931 there has been an annual Budgetary surplus, giving an accumulated sum of £15,755. It is anticipated that the public debt, which provided Samoa with water works, hydro-electricity, wharves, roads and bridges, will be extinguished in 15 years, while a reserve fund will then be available to meet national emergencies without recourse to taxation. Another factor of note in the general situation is that copra is being exported in larger quantities, and the area under cultivation for cocoa is increasing as values have improved. It is" this happier outlook and greatly improved position of the native" people that must be preserved. Lord Dugard, the British authority on mandates, at. the meeting of' the Mandates Commission last year, asked whether New Zealand had ever “considered the advisability pi sending a trained anthropologist or psychologist to Samoa to report on the situation from the point of view of the Samoan chiefs and people, to study their customs and find out wluit cxnetly was the cause of the trouble

which had continued under successive Administrators for so many years.” He suggested that the British Colonial Service might provide the type of Administrator he had in mind—one who would study the people and the best aspects of their culture and make a career in Samoa. It is now the Government’s duty to appoint another Administrator, and in doing so it has a task simplified by the excellent progress of Samoa under its late Administrator. It should therefore be in the position to give serious thought to the wish of the people as expressed in their petition.