THE ISLAND TRIP.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XL, Issue 12272, 16 May 1903, Page 1 (Supplement)

THE ISLAND TRIP.

UNDER THE TRIENNIAL PARLIAMENT

CONCLUSIONS OF ONE OF THE

PARTY.

[BY MB. E. G. B. MOSS, M.H.B.]

s.s. Mapourika,, Aitutaki, April 30. To-NTGHT the Mapourika leaves Aitutaki for Tahiti, after having visited Rarotonga, Mangaia, Mauke, Atiu, and this, the last island of importance in the Cook Group. The trip has been exceedingly pleasant so far, although at times the weather has been warm and close. We have experienced a heavy gale in Rarotonga and the excitements incident to landing on exposed coral islands. I gladly, as you asked me, send the conclusions which I have formed, and hope the information will be sufficiently clear and of some public utility. THE INCORPORATION OF THE ISLANDS.

What first strikes one is the serious blunder made by incorporating these islands with the rest of New Zealand. We are only a colony, not a Sovereign Power. Hence we cannot have "possessions" or legislate for

them as we think desirable. Our boundaries have been extended. The people so incorporated become, in law and in fact, simply our fellow-colonists under the same Imperial Act which we call our Constitution, and entitled to share all our privileges and responsibilities. It is important that we should keep this in mind, as we have been landed already in difficulties through looking upon it as annexation and not incorporation. Their people pay the same taxes that are paid in the rest of New Zealand, and also owe a proportionate part of our public debt, We for our part have accepted the burden irrevocably, and must set our faces to make the best of it. THE TERRAIN.

If "terrain" can be a proper term for the 16 petty and in many cases absolutely insignificant islands and islets, our first exclamation must be one of astonishment. How did we ever come to covet such a small area of land scattered over such an immense area of ocean? Including Niue, which we have not yet seen, there are only 180,000 acres of land of varying quality scattered over 400,000,000 acres of ocean.

Not an island is in sight from its nearest neighbour. The nearest island to New Zealand is 1650 miles from Auckland, and the most distant is 750 miles further away. There are no harbours in the Cook Group. The little inlets in Rarotonga are suitable only for the smallest craft, but seem large after our wanderings among the surf-beaten coral-bound islands which we have been visiting-. FIELDS FOR IMMIGRATION. As fields for immigration these islands are practically useless. In the first place there is very little land available. In the second place the products are entirely tropical, and require chiefly hand labour, which must be low-priced in order to compete in external markets with the tropical products of similar character with which the world is over-supplied. Immigrants' must be content to depend largely on their own labour. We cannot allow alien workers to be introduced, and the native cannot be depended upon. NATIVE POPULATION. Wo have added some 13,000 natives to our population. They are still too ignorant to justify our giying them the right to elect a fifth native member to the House of Representatives. We must do our best to fit these natives for an intelligent use of the ; franchise. If successful, well and good; if not, we shall at least have done our duty. In this light, education and the teaching of English are of great importance, and the Government should long ago have sent an inspector to report fully on the subject. Resides the franchise and schools there are the questions of charitable aid, hospitals, public works, old age pensions, etc., to be considered. LEGISLATIVE AND JUDICIAL. I have been paying special attention to the present position of the legislative and judicial questions. From time immemorial each island had governed itself entirely. In 1891 they were induced to federate solely for a joint revenue, a post office, and a few other matters, but each island jealously retained full internal government by its own local chiefs and arikis. On August 22, 1899, these local governments were abruptly and arbitrarily abolished, and the whole power of legislation was seized by the Federal Parliament, which at the same time (although elected for one year) created itself triennial. The people acquiesced in this usurpation, partly because they were too ignorant to see its full bearing and partly because there was neither press nor public opinion, but mainly because its new High Court of Justice was held in terror by open and continued arbitrary breach of law. Cruel and wanton cases of persecution, such as that which ended in the conviction of Makea Daniela for alleged embezzlement, made it hazardous to express opinions hostile to the ruling powers.

a series of Acts was passed under the guise of Amendments. They have no preamble nor explanation of any kind. They altered the whole system, and no one appears now to know what the law is. The

islands are governed by so-called Statutes, of which there is one for each island. Our arrival in Rarotonga was made the excuse for a general holiday. I did not expect it would be easy for a visitor to obtain reliable information, but was not prepared for having difficulties actually placed in my way. I have to thank Mr. Harman, M.H.R. for Invercargiil, for assistance which he then gave me. There seem to be too many officials in Rarotonga. The simple plan of referring an inquirer from one to another is well understood, and eery effectual when a visitor's time is limited. For instance, I wished to search the title to our so-called penal settlement of Manuae in the Cook Group. One official showed me the record of a recent decision of the Land Court about it, but could not show me that of a lease referred to in the same decision. It took some hours to hunt up the other official. Yet both occupied the same official room. THE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE. No confidence is felt in the High Court of Justice; but that may be due to the conviction of Makea Daniela. and other outrageous acts, only explicable in the absence of opportunity for appeal. Among them were the attempted deportation in 1899 of seven persons, including some of the most respected settlers whose sole crime was disapproval of the acts of the new British Resident and of the persons into whose hands he had thrown himself, and also tire illegal imprisonment of a European for a fortnight in an old, insanitary copra-house for alleged contempt of Court. Their petitions to Lord Ranfurly and to the New Zealand Parliament did not even procure an inquiry. This Hight Court was at first a Court of Anpeal to keep the ancient Arikis' Courts in order, but eventually became a Court of first instance itself. There is no preliminary investigation, the same person acts frequently as prosecutor and judge, and the judgment's of the Court are too often only a voluminous medley of wild inferences. It is probable that the High Court will have to be abolished and the administration of justice attached to the Department in New Zealand. A magistrate in Rarotonga and another in Niue, to whom appeals from the Arikis' Court could be taken, may suffice for the present. Reform is imperative without delay, and the administrative powers must be detached at once from the judicial. THE LIQUOR QUESTION. This seems unnecessarily complicated, but I cannot speak positively as to what the law is. Apparently prohibition is the rule in all the islands except Rarotonga. The law there provides a penalty of £40 under the Statute of Rarotonga, 1899, Sec. 25, for

any person, native or European who sells or gives liquor to any other person, native or European. This law is never enforced and is only a dead law so far as I could learn. The latest law was passed only last year, and will give a monopoly to some persons who have the reputation of being able to pull the wires, but, it has not yet been approved! by New ■ Zealand, and I sincerely trust never will be. I have touched upon education, legislation, the administration of justice, and liquor as requiring prompt action. On the question of GENERAL POLICY we have to consider carefully whether wo can permit the centralisation of everything in Rarotonga. The Mangaia people complain of their imports having first to .go to Rarotonga, as those at Niue have done. We will certainly remedy this injustice to Niue, but the mere fact of regulations compelling vessels for Niue to come first to Rarotonga, 560 miles away, shows woeful ignorance or incompetence. In the 1 interests of economy and justice a return, [ to the ancient practice of allowing each island to govern itself appears the only solui tion. The attempt to centralise everything in Rarotonga and create a petty imperium in imperio must break down if through the expense alone. A conveniently - fitted oilschooner, of, say, 60 or 70 tons, is necessary to facilitate communication between these widely-scattered islands. The present absurdly large white elephant, Countess of Ranfurly, had better be sold. No one seems to know the exact figures, but most shipping men estimate that, including depreciation, she is costing £100 a month more than her receipts. With the two Magistrates' Courts, with a proper system of public, instruction, with laws reduced to order and made intelligible, we may at least have done part of our duty to the 13,000 natives whom we have amalgamated with New Zealand. The Europeans can be attached to Auckland City and be represented by three members. A policy of decentralisation, a return to the ancient system of the islands, appears to' be the key to this question, of the magnitude of which we are only just becoming aware. What the lesson may cost us no one can estimate, but it is becoming plain to most of tu on board the Mapourika that under no pretext should we add any more ignorant and alien peoples to our population. I regard with dismay the vain talk about a Greater 'New Zealand and the aspiration of adding sum places as Fiji and Tonga to our population, The last Parliamentary paper (A3, 1902, page 38) seriously proposes that we should still add to our responsibilities by taking over from the Imperial Parliament a further number of scattered islands and islets, some of which are actually north of the Equator, 1500 miles from Rarotonga, and over 3000 miles from New Zealand. The cost of the Mapourika trip will be recouped many times over if it saves us from this further contemplated sin, and from the conceit, ignorance, and infatuation shown by its suggestion.

We still have Penrhyn and Niue to see After that I may be able to speak with more certainty on some other subjects' connected with the question.