SLAVERY IN THE SOUTH SEAS. (From the Oamaru Times, 20th October.)

North Otago Times, Volume XI, Issue 359, 30 October 1868, Page 3

SLAVERY IN THE SOUTH SEAS. (From the Oamaru Times, 20th October.)

The correspondence on the South Sea Islanders traffic, which we republished from the "Brisbane Courier" in our last issue, must arouse .the honest indignation of every true Briton, as\it reveals a state of things which ccailcl scarcely have been imagined possible in the present day. It demonstrates nothing less than the existence of a system of downright kidnapping, and reminds us of the accounts we have often read of the African slave traffic of a century ago. The Britisher is fond of ~ proclaiming his nation as the palladium of liberty, and the countrymen of Wilberforce take no small pride in boasting that The flag that waves o'er every sea Shall ne'er float o'er a slave ; but it would appear that in these southern offshoots of the old land the practice is widely different from the theory ; and if such proceedings as are now going on for the importation of cheap labor into Queensland, are not put a stop to, who could wonder if the leading Continental Powers should forra an Anti-South-Seat. Slave Trade Convention, and dispatch armed cruisers to seize and destroy any craft engaged in the unholy traffic. That such a traffic, exists does not rest upon the single instance reported in the paper from which we extracted the details given in our last, for we have before us a copy of the (i Sydney Morning Herald," of the 28th nit., in which appears a long letter, signed by a Mr J. P. Sundekland, with reference to Polynesian labor in Queensland, which goes to show the existence of what can only be described as a regular slave trade. Shameful as the account of the steward of the Syren and the further particulars supplied by Mr Brooke are — the decoying of natives on board at Lefu under a gross misrepresentation of the wages they were to receive, the purchase bf six Tannese from their chief for a rrmshet and a piece of red, calico, the fastening down in the hold of twenty-ono more poor fello^ws at Mallicoll^, the sailing away of the slave^hip with the wives of many of the kidnapped men swimming after her for miles, crying for the restoration of their husbands — the firing of muskets and revolvers upon the natives of one of the islands, even although women were in the canoes, all because the natives would not submit to be carried away by the white pirates — the brutal conduct of the captain in standing over the seasick islanders with a big stick and threatening to beat the poor fellows becaxise they refused to eat — the death of 24 out of 100 of the human cargo on the passage — the burial of these (it would appear) without any rites of religion — all this, bad as it is, would seem to be only one out of many instances in which the unfortunate Polynesians have been most grossly treated. Mr Sunderland's letter before referred to reveals the existence of a thorough system of slavery, as the following extracts will show : — The natives of Mare (about twenty-one out of the fifty. islanders working on a large sugar plantation) say "their work is "very haid, and their clothing insufficient." They begin work at; half -past six o'clock, a.m., and continue to labor until half-past 5 in the evening. They are allowed an hour in the middle of the day for dinner. They are lodged in one large shed about 70 feet long and 25 or 30 feet wide. They are employed under European supervision, in preparing the land for the sugar cane. They use the spade, the pick, and the axe. They are without shoes, and the bare foot is used to force the spade into the ground. * * * The Government scale of allowance for clothing is inadequate, for if an islander keeps a shirt and pair of tiousers for Sunday wear, the kind of labor in which many of them are employed will soon destroy the pair of trousers and shirt which, are reserved for daily use for twelve months. The islanders we saw were some of them almost naked, and looked worse than they do on their own islands, for a girdle of leaves does afford some protection, and gives a more respectable appearance to the South Sea islander than an old shirt, as the whole of a laborer's dress in a civilized country. The islanders, from partially civilized groups, say they have no time for reading except on Sundays. Many of them appeared very young. They all say they had no idea of the sort of life they were coming to when they left their own lands, and they declared that when their term of labor «xpired they should return with gladness, and would not again enter upon a second engagement. ,The MareTnen, in the neighborhood of Ipswich, declare that they were told on board ship before they left the islands.Hhft'they were to serve for one year only, and that they Would have ple'nty of food, and clothing, but 'when they arrived in' Moreton Bay, then they were injformed that they were engaged for three years. This 'was a deception : 'and had they^ undeistood that they "were to be thirty-six .moons in Queensland, they would never have" left home. Five Islanders, from a station not far from Brisbane, left their employment, and they, were wandering about the streets. These stated that they had up work ! because they did not get enough to eat, and that they 1 had not sufficient clothing. These men had been before the Immigration. Agent, and their case was investigated, ; and the impression of that officer was that the laborers had no just ground of complaint ; but these men said

in reply to the statement that they had received two or three days* rations and' consumed them in one day. Sir, that may be true, but hunger was' so sharp, they had been driven to do so ; and they also remarked if we work hard our stomachs should not be, measured, and when we have consumed all our food told to go away -we should go without for a day qr two. These men declared that they only came for a. year. They complain ,of the treatment they receive fronvwhite men. They were looked' down uppn as inferior "beings. They said, 1 too, our skins are,b'lack, but our feelings are those, of white people. They % are discouraged ,in working from month to month without receiving any of their wages. Could! they have their -wages, at certain short intervals, and have these wages paid over to a third party on their behalf, they would b'e more contented. Three years seem a very long time to wait for pay day. In urging these , natives to return to their masters, whom they had served for thirteen months, they declared they would rather go' to prison than resume their work. Their' idea was it would be much better to be their own masters, and g'ec 2s. a day in and around Brisbane, than to be bound for threo ( years at 2s. 6d. per week, and see no wages until their" term of engagement had expired. They complain of being misunderstood, and that when they come before the magistrate or Government officer they are filled with fear, and scarcely know what is the right thing to say ****** The present rage in Queensland, Fiji, and Tahiti for this CHEAP labor must be regarded with anxiety, and be carefully watched. It is such an easy thing to be blinded by self-interest, and to imagine that the nigger can be compelled to do what the white man ,will refuse to do, and that therefore such labor is far better than European labor mdre managable. ***** The demand for laborers will lead men to visit the islands and secure a cargo by any and every means in their power. It appears that already very questionable, means have been employed, and' the islanders have been induced to come under false pretences. Who is to test the worth of the agreements when the strange motley groups of islanders are mustered ! Who is to stand up for the right treatment of the strangers ! Humane masters may wish to do what is just, but is it not well-known that these islanders fall into the hands of overseers' and servants who think the only way to keep the " niggers" in order is a free exhibition of the revolver and a liberal administration of the stock-whip, with a good supply of irons. Were this traffic in human "beings in the hands of honoiable men (if such could be found to engage hi it) it would soon appear a difficult thing to get a ship load of natives to leave their homes for three years, work hard every day, and at the end of their term receive the sum of L18 each. * # #_# * #* * The defects of the " Polynesian Laborers, Act" are many, and will at an early date force themselves upon the Queensland Government. There is no proper inspection of the islanders— no adequate medical attendance. The laborers may be subjected to tough surgery and worse medical treatment in times of sickness. The transference of laborers from one master to another is often done without much consideration of the "WILL of the islander, and the reconveyance of these people to their respective islands will be a matter of difficulty, unless proper pesons are appointed to see the law carried out. Now, to call this system of importing laborers without any reference to their own inclination, or at the best decoying them away from their homes undei the basest misrepresentations, their subsequent treatment, short rations, and unreasonably long working ho\irs, the transfer of laborers from one employer to another without their consent being so much as asked, the " free exhibition of the revolver, and liberal administration of the stockwhip" — to call such a system as this, we say, anything short of slavery in one of its worst aspects, is to make a distinction in name where there is no difference in reality. It is incredible that such disgraceful proceedings should be tolerated in any country under British rule, and we are glad to see that in Sydney public indignation has been excited, and a meeting held, at which a committee was appointed "to consider the best means of opposing' the .present system of importing South Sea Island laboreib iaLcr^ueensland and Fiji j" the committee being also instructed if they deemed a memorial to the Queensland or to the British Government necessary, to draw up the same and submit it to the public meeting. Attention having been called to the evil, we trust that not time will be lost in putting a stop to these disgraceful proceedings, and it would be well that all persons found guilty of taking part in them or of complicity therein, should be fined in very heavy amounts, and where cruelty is pi'oved, sentenced to long terms, of imprisonment, or, if death result from their cruelty or neglect, to the extreme penalty of the law. It seems from the following extract as if the Institution recently quenched in blood in South America has found a new home in the Southern seas, slavery, or something very much like it, existing not only in Queensland but also in the New Hebrides. In a recent issue the " Sydney Morning Herald" says : — We have information from the New Hebrides to the effect that transactions are being carried on which could only be described as slavery. It is said that complaints have been made to the Consul, who has promised to take the matter in hand and bring it before the captain of the next ship of war which shall visit the place. Cases have been reported where natives have been flogged, and an instance of a "cat" with wire knots bemg made use of on one of the plantations. If this sort of tiling is to be permitted to grow up unchecked tinder the British flag, or within a few miles of a British Colony, then indeed we shall have to acknowledge with shame and sorrow that with us Tempora mutantur et nob tnuta/mur in illis..