MORTALITY AMONG NATIVES

Otago Witness, Issue 3397, 23 April 1919, Page 6

MORTALITY AMONG NATIVES

WHY THE PACIFIC ISLANDERS ARE DYLNG (JUT.

The natives of the Pacific (recently stated the Times Sydney correspondent) a.re rapidly dying out, and a Government official in the Gilbert Islands attributes the decay to the introduction of European clothing, which undermines the native's constitution. He declares that the missionaries are doing wonderful work, but that they are making a, grievous mistake in insisting on the wearing of clothes in these remote islands.

A different complexion was put upon the matter by Mr Basil Matthews, editorial seorotary of the London Missionary Society, who was interviewed by a representative of the London Observer. "The main cause of the reduction of the population in the South Sea Islands," said Mr Matthews, " is the sterility amongst tho women, caused by venereal disease introduced from Europe and America by the lower type of traders and sailors. lam afraid that in the South Seas civilisation means .syphilisation. It is true that in the earlier part of the mreteenth century the missionaries encouraged the natives to adopt European dress, as being essential to morality, but gradually, as their experience developed and their views broadened, they saw how mistaken this policy was from both the moral and physical points of view. The policy has, therefore, been reversed gradually during the past quarter of a century, until to-day tho missionaries are unanimous in their encouragement of the natives living on healthy, natural lines dictated by the climate. It is the traders who are encouraging them to dress, and, by a curious parar dox, the missionaries are now combating the 'attempts of the traders, who carry British and American goods, to press their wares on the natives. There is not an island in the South Seas to-day at which trading vesself do not stop to sell goods and to take on board cargoes of copra and other product* of the coooanut." Mr Matthews mentioned that the heayy death-roll of the South Sea Islands from the above causes had beei added to enormously by the influenza. Letters just received snowed that the mortality had been ; te*« rible, and on one group of islands, out of • population of 30,000, no fewer than 600$ natives were found dead, and they were being cremated in large numbers at a time.