TWO SAMOAN YOUTHS.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 21241, 23 January 1931, Page 7

TWO SAMOAN YOUTHS.

VISIT TO NEW ZEALAND. THE MARVELS OF CIVILISATION. ( Special to Daily Times.) AUCKLAND, January 22. After spending a month in New Zealand at the persona] expense of the Administrator of Western Samoa (Mr S. S. Allen) two Samoan youths,, Atigi and losefa, are now in Auckland. Both have enjoyed immensely their first visit to New Zealand. They talk enthusiastically of the beauties of the country, the kindness of the people in every city and town they have visited, and some of the marvels of civilisation that have not yet spread to their island metropolis of Apia. One gathers that they will not be sorry to return to the warmer climate. Even a hot Auckland day is cool for them. They will return to Samoa by the Tofua on Saturday, ready to give their friends glowing accounts of the crowded month’s holiday. Both boys are sons of chieftains. Atigi is 22 years old and is in the service of the Native Department at Apia. His visit, he says, will help him immensely in his work. losefa, who is 21, is still at school, but hopes to enter the service of the Administration at the end of the year. “ I think New Zealand must be the finest country in he world,” said Atigi. “A man from England told me in Wellington that that was so, and although I had only seen Samoa _ before I came here I think he must be right.” _ The two boys came to New Zealand in the Maui Pomare and landed at Lyttelton. Christchurch afforded them their first glimpse of a modern city, and they still speak excitedly of their trip by train from Lyttelton to the city and the dash through the tunnel en route. In Christchurch they saw their first traracar. Later they saw and. heard their first talking picture. After a short stay in Christchurch, the two boys spent several days in Wellington, and then visited New Plymouth, Palmerston North, Napier, the Ruakura State farm,- the farm of Mr R. M. Allen (brother of the Administrator at Morrinsville), and Rotorua. At the various towns they visited they were taken through the factories, and also shown spots of scenic interest. “ It has all been so interesting that I do not know how to describe it,” Atigi said. “We had heard about Rotorua, but even then we were not prepared for what we saw.. We met Maoris there, and in some ways they reminded us of our own people. Some of the words in their language are the same as in ours, but we could not_ understand them when they spoke Maori to us. But Rotorua is not the only interesting place. All the country is clean and beautiful, and everywhere the people are kind.” Train travel provided the boys with one of the niijst novel sensations of the trip. “Travelling in fast trains is fine,” Atigi said. “It is all right in trains like that which brought us from Rotorua, but in the slow trains it is no good.” The boys, who are staying at the Y.M.C.A., were taken to various places of interest in the city to-day. Further trips have been arranged for them.