SAMOAN QUESTIONS.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XLVII, Issue 15274, 23 July 1920, Page 8

SAMOAN QUESTIONS.

•■' " —— •»• —• TRADE COMMISSION'S. lIEPOUT. TMPOKTED LABOR A NECESSITY." WELLINGTON, last night. The Hon. E. P. Lee, Minister of External Affairs, presented to Pailiam=nv jresterday the import of tlie Commission set upi to investigate trade matters iii Pncinc Islands, it.is probable that' Parliament, will be asked "to O.eciuc <lefinitely the important po/iit as to whether Samoa is .to be developed with th£ aid of im»oited. labor. .. . ' ' The .opinion of the ' Commissioners '(Messrs. ticorse Elliott/W. R. Pearson .and Thomas Wilson) on the labor question Is delinitely m, favor -Of importations- ' When, if eVer, Samoa increases' her native population," IJicy <ay, 'when th,e Samoans lea'm the science or agriculture, and acquire the hab'U of work, then the importation of labor may be 'happily dispensed, 'wirtt. Uutir that time arrive? iihported labor is, In bur opinion, a necessity. ' • "lt'haii been suggested that the islands should be handed over entirely to 'xlie Samoans, ami that, they should* work out their'own. destiny', as the Tongans are . doing. This also is a dream, and a dream Hot m the best interests of the Samoans, for it would leave their country an easy prey to antf aggressive Power. While-their methods 'may not be perfect, . Gioat Britain and New Zealand will at least, deal honestly with the, Samoans and govern them .fairly." , . .' The (yonimrssion declares ; that overshadowing.the- whole trade development of. Samoa '. is, this labor problem. No one, tlioy stale,' would deny that Sampan labor would be. better than ■ Chinese if' the Sampai\ would work, but he will hot wQik'as an employee. Tfterc is a 'growing demand foi; tropical protlnee, and so' fur as Samoa is concernpd, that demand cannot b 2 satisfied except by^,,tile use of imported 1 labor. The communistic views of life held' by the Samo'an^discourage individual enterprise, be'eauso. tlie man who has is expected" tp''support' the man Why has not. This principle, ■■ rather than any physical' untttness, is at the root of the Samoan disability to work. Samoans m t Tp6lo arid Savaiiv hold 580,500 acres of 'laud,'- .and an ■ ai«a of loS.fiOo acres\ has been alienated. Of tlio latter, '18,386 acres arc m coconut, coco.a, and rubber plantations, lor which there is little Samoah labor available. Prior to the war^iliere were about two thousand contract laborers employed, but o\ving 16 extensive' repatriation there are nqw ■'Use. The commission understands t that the first military administratoiY Col. • Logan, believed tliat Samoan labor coulcl bo.- ffliod- on for the whole Ayprk. pf the Islands, and- subsequently made ho effort to replace the repatriated laborers, but "results proved that his idea was a mistake, which he admitted and tried to yndo before' he. resigned his' position." Tlie Commission declares that shortage of labor will ,result 1 In failure to 'keep down ' the rhino.cijfous beetle'pest,", will not only destroy the 10'6bO acres of European "plantations if unchecktd,. but ! will destroy the far greater acreage own--cd by the Samoans. It is untrue, they say, that tlie introduction of Chuaese laJ>ore'rsis reducing the Samoan w:omen to a state «f prostitution- Unfortunately, during the war "period, owing .to slipping shortage, the Chinese were kept longer than usual m the country, and were thus afforded an opportunity to learn the language and become more acquainted with samoan women, but when shipping is normally enforced repatriation at the end of three years should result m little trouble, it accompanied by rigorous inspection of Chinese' quarters,. ; and' strict 'regulations. • '■ Solomon Islanders we|e snid^by witnesM's to be mOro suitable -.Mia'n Chijjese, but the Commission Hnderstauds that tn» whole question has been carefully, considered, "and that certain steps have al- , ready lieeiv ■ taken m regard to tlie mat' 1 ter.," The last woi'tV of the Commission .:on -this' subject is that until the labor : qnostion"is :>''!settled, there is ho chance ,of .• development ■''of tlie arfcas held by ; Europeans;' Unil '^.Jiat the. whole-future, of the tradU, bptli European and native, is dependent- o# the 'resujt of such settlement.— parliamentary Reporter.