THE SOLOMONS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20235, 21 October 1927, Page 6

THE SOLOMONS

A UTTLE-KNOWN LOCALITY. PRIMITIVE INHABITANTS. WORK OF THE MISSIONARIES. In an interview with a Daily Times reporter, Major H. S. N. Robinson, late of the New Zealand Staff Corps, and now general secretary of the Melanesian Anglican Mission, gave some interesting information yesterday about the Solomon Islands—a locality, it must be admitted, of which the great number of people in the Dominion know very little. There are seven large islands in the group—of which Malaita is one—and many hundreds of small islands. Many of the smaller islands are merely little coral reefs and volcano cones. The islands are situated approximately 1000 miles from the north-east coast of Queensland, and it may be added that the seat of Government, in Tulagi, is 1700 odd miles from Sydney. The shores are largely com posed of coral, and it is difficult in many places to effect a landing. The vegetation grows practically down to the seashore, and in many of the islands -he land rises precipitately from the sea. Major Robinson said that many of the tribes living on the sea coasts of the islands were now Christianised. He could only speak of these tribes, because one did not take walks into the back country — if he’considered his personal safety The interiors of the longer islands had not, so far as he knew, been explored. A British protectorate had been declared over the greater portion of the Solomons in 1893, and the extreme north-west of the islands, which had been German property until the war, were now mandated to Aus tralia. The protectorate area formed the northern port of Melanesia. The population of the Solomons was approximately 150,000. The natives ;rew their own foods—fruits, taro, yams, coco nuts, and so on. Captain Robinson said he did no* think there were any known instances of cannibalism in very recent years. The natives could be •divided into two sectons—those who had been Christianised by the various missions and those who lived in the interiors and the high mountains, and who still lived under the most primitive conditiono Some of the mountains/ in the large islands rose to a height of 8000 ft, but they were never snowolad. The climate was most enervating—a damp, muggy heat that sapped one’s energy. The plac e was also infested with malaria. The Solomon Islanders are not a particularly big race physically, hut as a result of the conditions under which they had been forced to live for many generations they were very warlike. Until comparatively recent years they had lived in a state of constant warfare—bloodshed and head-hunting, with a considerable amount of cannibalism. The tribes became so broken up that there were known to be at least 40 different languages on the islands. It was a fact that the natives at one end of an island could not hold an understandable conversation with those at the other end. This great diversity in the languages was one of the difficulties which the missionaries hrtl to contend with. The Solomon Islands -were, in fact, one of the most primitive places in the world to-day. The attraction to the white man is the trading in copra, and the connection with the outer world was maintained by the Burns, Philp Company of Australia, which ran a t. B service to the islands. Apart from the trading in copra, there were few other avenues for industry, but there was a little export of trochns shell, which was used for the manufacture of buttons, etc., The white traders had plantations of their own to secure them supplies of copra, and

they also purchased copra from the natives. The Guadalcanar Island is the 1 rgest of the group. It is approximately 120 miles long and about 60 to 80 miles wide. In this island there is a chain of mountains running throughout its length, and in places they rise to a height of 8000 ft. The mountains in the island of Malaita rise to only some 4000 ft, The natives living near the coast are visited periodically in their villages by the missionaries. At the southern end of Melanesia, there are the New Hebrides. These islands are not in the Solomon Group, but they are part of the area covered by the Melanesian i Mission. The Banks Islands are also included in the Melanesian Grpm As regarded the New Hebrides Islands and the Banks Islands, they were under the Condominium of Britain and France. It was an unsatisfactory form of government. The subject of the Government had recently been considered by a commission, but its report had not yet been published by the Home authorities. Where the natives have come uler the control of the missions they are very tractable and very likeable. Speaking as layman, Major Robinson said that he had been very much impressed A’ith the difference in the physical and mental attributes of- these natives, who had been -rained, and had come under the influcn- of the missions, as compared with their heathen brethren. The influence of 'he missions was getting farther and farther back into the interiors. Slowly and gradually new fields in the islands were being open.d up for the mission work. Pealing with the work if the Anglican Mission, he said it had stations at L he islands of Raza, Mae./o, Aoba, Vanua Lava, and on many of the smaller islands. On several of the larger islands central schools had been established. In these schools the nativ boys were trai ed for a period of from three to four years. They then returned to their respective island homes. The teaching was necessarily quite elementary, and scriptural work formed a considerable portion of the syllabus. Captain Robinson said he would like to pay a tribute to the work of the Preaby terian Mission. He had been very uch .impressed with the Presbyterian Mission Hospital. Dr Heriot was in charge of the station, which was situated at Vila on the Sandwich Island. For many years past the Presbyterian Mission Hospital had extended many kindnesses to the members of the Anglican Mission. He added that the other missions were also doing excellent work. Mr Robinson, in conclusion, said he did not think the British man-o’-war, the Adelaide, would adopt extremfe measures in its expedition to Malaita, following on the murder of Commissioner Bell, ■ cadet, and sorm natives. In his own view, he did not think any good purpose would really be served by shelling the nal ' £ villages as an act of retaliation, Thev had to visualise, if possible, the primitive native mind. He thought justice might be really meted out by some other method. He also paid a tribute to the salt sacrificing work of many of the missionaries in the depressing atmosphere of the islands over long periods of years. In their lonely outnnsts, without the company of any other white men, they worked for their ideals year in and vear out in a spirit which was truly based on the teachings of the Great Father.