SAMOAN TROUBLE-MAKERS

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LIII, Issue 16374, 23 June 1927, Page 2

SAMOAN TROUBLE-MAKERS

MR. HOLLAND CRITICISES MR. NOSWORTHY Speaking at Greymouth with reference to Mr. Nosworthy 's statement made at Suva affecting Samoa, Mr. H. E. Holland, M.P., leader of the Oposition, said the Samoan position was altogether unsatisfactory, and would have to be seriously discussed by Parliament. It seemed to him that in our administration we were copying some of the worst features of the German pre-war control. Parliamentary representation of both the Samoans and the whites was rendered farcial by reason of the fact that in the former case the faipules were appointed by the Administration, and in the latter case the electoral qualification was on a property and income basis. Mr. Nosworthy had omitted to mention that leading members of the deputation referred to by himself as agitators were members of the Legislative Council, elected by the white population with substantial majorities over the Government candidates. Notwithstanding that all the dice were loaded in favor of the latter, Mr. Nelson, stigmatised by Mr. Nosworthy, was the senior Legislative Councillor amf, so far as he (Mr.. Holland) knew, was born in Samoa. The ranking of an Order-imCouncil empowering the Administrator to order a native-born citizen or a naturalised subject to leave Samoa because he persisted in opposing the Government's policy there, was an outrage which could not be permitted to go unchallenged. Mr. Nosworthy's attack on those who sought, to make constitutional changes was strangely similar to some of the attacks on Robert Lmiis Stevenson when he was engaged in demanding justice for Samoa and the Samoans some 4$ years ago.