SITUATION IN SAMOA.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXV, Issue 19897, 16 March 1928, Page 11

SITUATION IN SAMOA.

DISPERSAL OF MAU MEN. LOYAL NATIVES AGGRESSIVE. A. and N.Z. v APIA, March 14. Apia is quiet to-day. Large numbers of the Mau men appear to be dispersing—probably partly on account of the difficulty in feeding such large numbers who have lately bpen in Apia—but the Mau Committeo remains in the town. Loyal natives around the town are becoming very aggressive, but the dispersal of the Mau should assist in avoiding a clash for the present. MAU POLICE UNIFORMS. ADMINISTRATOR'S STATEMENT. In the course of his recent appeal to the Mau internees assembled at Mulinuu to accept a pardon and to act in a proper way, the Administrator of Samoa, Sir George Richardson, said: — "You have done many wrong things, but one act you have committed is a very serious one in the eyes of the law, viz., setting up a body of police in Apia to interfere with the liberties of others —to prevent them buying from stores, and even preventing persons from buying their daily bread. No Government would tolerate this, and as this was a challenge to the small and unarmed police of this territory, it was necessary for me to bring a force here—not to fight—not to do anyone bodily harm; but to preserve law and order. "The danger of a Mau police in uniform was foreseen by mo before Mr. Nelson left the territory, and the Government Inspector of Police, Mr. Braisby, called upon Mr. Nelson and asked him not to issue the uniform that his firm had made for this purpose. Mr. Nelson said that he realised that if these uniforms were issued it would create trouble and would be wrong, and that he had given instructions for them not to be issued. Nevertheless, they were issued before Mr. Nelson left, and you used them as a means of intimidation and interfering with the liberties of others—and so caused your present trouble."