LATEST FROM SAMOA.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXIV, Issue 8073, 14 October 1887, Page 6

LATEST FROM SAMOA.

MORE GERMAN OUTRAGES.

THE USURPERS AND MoARTfIUR AND CO.

[FROM OCR OWN CORRE£PONDENT.I Apia, Samoa, Ootobor 4, ISS7. The German squadron is still here, and so far. there are no signs of their leaving. Neither a British nor American man,-o'-war have yet pat in an appearance. We expected the Opal would have oeen here before this, and doubtless she would had the whole matter not been previously arranged between England and Germany.

, BURNING A NATIVE TOWN. T. am now in a position to verify what I stated in a former letter regarding the burning of the native town of Satapaitea by an armed force from the German warship Sophie. The principal facts yon had before, but there are certain details in connection with this disgraceful affair that 1 think ought to be exposed to the world. I have it from a reliable party who has since visited the place where the town stood, that not only did the German soldiers barn down the houses, cut down the bread fruit trees, shoot and carry off the pigs, but they actually desecrated the last resting places of the dead. My informant saw the graves that had thus been desecrated. The one was the grave of a child, and the other that of a chief lately buried. They could not possibly have been mistaken for anything else but what they were, there being hundreds of similar tombs all over the Islands. They were built above the ground of stone and lime, and large enough to admit the box containing the body. After the body is deposited the whole is built over and plastered up. In this case fat Satapaitea the child's grave was broken into, the little box containing what was once the body broken in pieces, and the bones strewed .bout on the ground. The mother had afterwards so perform the melancholy task of gathering up the bones of her dead ohild and putting them back into the grave from which i theso ruthless hands had torn them. The other grave broken into was that of a chief that had only been dead a few weeks. In this as in the other case the box containing the body was broken open, the body dragged half out and there left in that position. My informant personally saw the graves in their dilapidated condition, and the other details he had from natives who were witnesses of the disgraceful scene. But the worst feature of the whole of this barbarous business was the mistake that was made in the ultimatum sent to these poor people on the morning on which, the burning took place. The notice sent was:—" If four of your chiefs (naming them) come on board the man-of-war quickly I will burn down your town." What was evidently intended to be said was :—" If four of your chiefs, etc., do not come on board quickly I shall burn down your town." According to this notice of the German captain he was going to burn down the town if these men came on board, and of course they did not come. Whether this mistake was intentional or unintentional I do not know, but in a matter of such serious consequence to the poor people whose houses, pigs, and trees were destroyed, it was culpable negligence not to see that the Samoan translation of the ultimatum was correct. I may mention that the town burnt down was mortgaged to McArthur and Co. for amounts owing to them by the people. This firm intend, 1 believe, to send in a claim for damages to their securities. There is an impression here that had the mortgagee been a German the property would not have been destroyed.

HOW THE WORK 13 MANAGED. In looking over the names of all the chiefs and rulers in Samoa published by command of Tamasese, I find from pretty reliable information that out of some 275 chiefs ISO of them belong to Malietoa's party, and only about 95 to that of Tamasese. A German called Brandiai is Tamasese's Prime Minister. He works Tamasese, and the big German firm and the German Consulate work him. By this nice arrangement the Germans have all the power without any of the responsibility. They will compel Tamasese and his Government to do what they want, and when complaints are made they will shield themselves behind what they are leased to call the Samoan Government, hey do not want to annex because that mean l ) expense and responsibility, and then if Samoa was a German colony, all their large interests here would be liable to seizure in the event of a war with France. On the other hand, if through the supine* ness of England they can secure control here they obtain their object without any present expense or any future risk. A LAND DISPUTE. The following occurrence that took place recently will show how the Germans obtain land in Samoa: Sumanatafu, Governor of the Apia district, and one of the chiefs that went to New Zealand a little over twelve months ago, owns some valuable land in Apia. When the Germans drove the Malietoa Government away from .Mulinuu, Su» mana built a Government House for them on bis land in Apia, and there they continued until the late declaration of war by the Emperor of Germany. The Germans being apparently much annoyed at seeing the Malietoa Government located.in Apia, and their flag flying on their flagstaff there, set about trying to get possession of the land on which the Government House stands. It was of coarse useless for them to approach Snmana, the real owner, for such

an object, bo it appears Mr. Weber adopted the expedient of getting ajSamoan chief, who has no claim to the Jand whatever, to take the responsibility of selling it to him. This same chief, after completing the sale, made a sworn declaration that he had 00 claim or titla whatsoever to Sumana's land, and that he went through the form of selling it, because if he refused he was afraid that the German support would be withdrawn from Tamasese's party, with which he was associated. No farther action was taken by the Germans until war was declared, and the German force took possession of the Government House. They locked it up, and it was supposed handed the key over to the German consulate. Fearing that the Germans would take the present opportunity of jumping his land Sumana sold all his property to McArthnr and Co., who are now the legal owners of the same. After the deeds had been properly executed McArthur and Co. put up notices on the land stating that it was their property and warning trespassers off. These notices were left unmolested and unprotested against for over a fortnight, then McArthnr and Co. thought it was time they obtained possession of the key, and applied for it through the British Consul. The German Consul, when applied to, replied that the land in question was | claimed by Mr. Weber, and that no definite action could be taken on either side until an international court had been established. The British Consul agreed that no farther steps should be taken by either party until such a court could sit and decide, and left the German Consulate expecting this, agreement to be adhered to. lie was mistaken, however, for next day Mr. Weber sent a lot of men, and put up a fence round the house and land in dispute. The British Consul remonstrated with the German Consul on thin breach of faith after the verbal agreement of yesterday, but that gentleman considered that Mr. Weber had done what was perfeotly right, and when McArthur's solicia tor, Vr'ho was present at the interviews, hinted that it might be necessary to hare recourse to force to remove the fence that bad be?i» pot on his client's land, the German Consul replied that if force was attempted he would see who was the strongest, thereby leading them to suppose that he would call in the assistance of the marine* to sustain Mr. Weber in possession. In the meantime Mr. Weber's employed had stack up a large notice board in the centre of the ground, stating that "this land is the property of Thos. Weber." When MoArthur and Co. saw this they put up a notice board j alongside of Weber's one, stating that the j land was theirs, and over this notice they hoisted the British flag, where it has been floating night and day ever since. This last move has rather nonplussed the Germans, because whatever liberties they may attempt with Britishers and their property while their four men-of-war are in the harbour, they are not game to pull down a British flag, especi« ally in a case of this kind, where they must know their claim is a bogus one. Sumanatai would stand a poor chance of retaining this property if he had not MoArthur and Co* between him and the Germans. If there is any truth in current rumour, this is just a sample of how lands have been obtained in th<9 past, and will be obtained in the future, '! Germany in to have the control here, i

OMINOUS OF BLOODSHED. A large " talolo," or presentation of food, took place at Lulumuiga, Tamasese'a capital, on the 2Sth September. All the principal natives in the island were supposed to go there and take a present of food to Tamasese, and the commodore and officers of the German squadron. There were about 5000 Samoane present, and of these nearly the half were Malietoa's followers, and all were capable of bearing arms, The numbers on the other side were largely augmented with women and children. Malietoa's people marched sullen and silent, and instead of going up and presenting their offering in front of Tamasese and the German officers, they halted some distance from them, and tossed their offerings on the ground in the moat contemptuous manner. Those who know Samoans well say that the whole thing had an ominous look, and that as soon as the protection of the German squadron has been withdrawn from Tamasese he and his German Prime Minister are not likely to have a pleasant time of it Tamasese's own chiefs are thoroughly sick of the thraldom in which they are kept by Germans. I have talked with several of them and they have told me that they have just to do as they are told by Brandisi and be, of course, is nnder the directions of the German Consulate, or a greater power, the Big Gorman Firm. According to a notice that was issued to the Samoana the other day, they are strictly forbidden to hold any political meeting or have any discussions whatever on political subjects without first obtaining permiasionsion of King Tamaaese. Of course this is not Tamasese's doings, for any one who has been in Samoa for any length of time knows that free discussion is a privilege the Samoans have enjoyed for generations, and' no king baa ever dared to prevent it. The Samoans are great orators, and i'ondof talking, and it is entirely contrary to their nature and the custom of ages to prevent them freely discussing anything that affects them.

WHAT THE SAMOANS WANT. From reliable information, I am convinced that what nearly all the people—Tamasese's included—want is that Malietoa be brought back to Samoa, and matters restored to their former state, and then that the whole people in their own way decide who is to be king. When they have made their selection, then let the Powers interested strongly support whoever is chosen. Were such a course adopted, there would belittle or no difficulty in electing a king or in governing the country. The Samoans know perfectly well that they are not qualified to conduct trials in which white men are concerned, and they are therefore moat anxious to have international land courts established that would settle once for all their much disputed land claims. I am sure they would willingly submit their own disputes about land to an international court. They are afraid to take land oases into the German Courts because they have a suspicion that there they will not get justice, and certainly such action as that taken with Sumanatafa's land does not tend to increase their confidence in German justice. The late tyrannical action of Germany here, in attempting to compel the stronger party to submit to the weaker, can only end in failure, and I am afraid in bloodshed. Anything that had resulted from the Conference and had the sanction of the three Powers, the natives would have complied with, but they cannot see what right Germany has. to come in single-handed and make and unmake Kings and Governments for them.

CHAOS IN APIA. Municipal matters are in a state of chaos. We hardly know whether martial law still exists or not. No notification of its withdrawal has yet been published. Thf> Municipal Board cannot meet, because the German Consul will not sit under Malietoa's flag, and the British and American Consuls will not ait under Tamasese's. Another difficulty is, the United States Consul-General has the right to the presidency of the Municipal Board, and the German Consul will not give it up. I believe that both the British and American taxpayers will refuse to pay any more taxes until the municipality is placed on a legal footing, and until they have some say in the expenditure of their money.

BEHAVIOUR OF OFFICERS, Two of the officers of the German squadron have gained rather an unenviable notoriety here lately. It appears that one of them, a doctor, went into a hotel in this town, and while sitting with the fair Hebe who presides there, addressed some very obscene and insulting remarks to her. She naturally resented this, and told him that no British officer would speak to her in that way. The fellow then asked her if she dared to compare him with an English officer, and struck her on the face, and knocked ber off the chair on which she was sitting. The other officers presant being inferior in rank, did not dare to interfere. They begged her not to say anything about the affair, especially to any of the Britishers. The officer came in next day and humbly apologised. The German Consul's sister also called upon her, all for the purpose evidently of hushing the matter up. It, however, got wind, and is now the talk of the town. I had the facts as related from the girl's own statement. In the other case, the officer made use of some nasty remarks to the same young lady, and she took the riding whip from him that he had in his hand and horsewhipped him in the bar. I hope they behave better when they are in the colonies than they have done here.