A.—3

34

the Solomon Islands the great object of the expedition would be speedily attained. The friends of the whites would be strengthened, and their enemies would be overawed. The savages would not soon forget so memorable an occasion, and in future there would be less trouble with them. In judging of the conduct of the Commodore and the captains of the men-of-war it should be borne in mind that according to recent regulations that have been issued they are precluded from taking the law into their own hands. They must send home to England for instructions. If this is so, one need not wonder that the British flag is regarded with indifference, if not with contempt, in the Western Pacific. But i3 this the case? Has Sir Arthur Gordon, the High Commissioner, no powers intrusted to him to instruct vessels of war to suppress outrages and punish the guilty, whether white or black f Have the captains of war vessels no discretion at all allowed them to take measures for the preservation of the lives of British subjects engaged in lawful trade ? We refuse to believe any such absurdity. Mr. Gladstone's administration of affairs in Ireland has not been a success, and the policy of his Government in the South Seas has been disastrous. The coincidence is curious, and is suggestive of some radical defect. In the latter case a policy of kindness and consideration for the natives has, without vigour and firmness in repressing outrage, proved anything but a kind and considerate policy for the white traders.

[Extract from the Sydney Daily Telegraph, 13lh December, 1880.] The subject of the late frequent massacres at the South Sea Islands has formed the subject of comment by the Melbourne Argus, and our contemporary cannot understand why these atrocities are tolerated, without any effort being made to punish the perpetrators. The interest of our Victorian neighbours in this subject is of course much less than our own, seeing that the massacres have almost all been of the crews of Sydney vessels. Melbourne does very little, if any, trade at all with the Solomon Islands, and the public there feel less keenly on the subject than do the public of Sydney; but they cannot avoid condemning the miserable policy which permits murders of white traders without any attempt to interfere even, far less to punish. The Argus quotes 'from a letter published in its columns, written by Mr. Walter Coote, who has recently visited the islands, "and is acquainted with the feelings prevailing amongst their inhabitants." Mr. Coote says that the natives of many of the islands consider white men " all same woman," and that the boasted men-of-war are " myths." After hearing a great deal about these formidable men-of-war, they view with contempt such an insignificant little vessel as the " Sandfly," and her class of vessels. Mr. Coote goes on to remark, " I admit that the so-called ' Exeter Hall' feeling is very strong with a certain section of the authorities in these matters, but I know that it is really a mistaken policy, for the only lesson these people will understand is the lesson that superior force can teach. Had our men-of-war been even moderately active in their island cruises, had they merely hovered about now and again in the neighbourhood of these places, their presence would have been known everywhere, and their power felt." Mr. Coote seems to have forgotten the visit of the "Cormorant," and the feats performed by her captain and crew in shelling some villages, and the terrible retribution exacted by Commodore Wilson, in the " Wolverene," for the massacre of the crew of the " Mystery," in the shape of pigs and yams. The natives have seen English men-of-war, and "big fellow King Hailey " expressed his contemptuous opinion of them by challenging them to come, so that more heads could be obtained. Men-of-war whose fighting men would not venture on shore, but which kept off at a safe distance, and fired big guns with little injury to anybody, were not likely to inspire respect. If the natives of the Solomon Islands have any burlesque poets, they have had a capital chance of amusing their brown brethren with the valorous deeds of the whites. The captain of the naval force will figure as a kind of General Boom, exclaiming " The enemy, the enemy, let me get at the enemy!" but expending all his valour in a harmless cannonade —all sound and fury, signifying nothing. The remarks of Mr. Coote about the pernicious effects of the Exeter Hall policy bear us out in our strictures upon it. That policy has left the white man at the mercy of the natives of the South Sea Islands. He dares not resent any injustice or an attack upon him, for fear of the consequences. He carries his life in his hands when he goes to these islands. If he is not the victim of a massacre, he may be tried for his life because he defended himself against attack. There is no attempt made to punish the perpetrators of any atrocity upon him. Eepeated massacres of traders have not caused any effort to be made to punish those concerned in them. It was only when the captain and some of the crew of one of Her Majesty's war schooners were treacherously murdered that the apathy and indifference of the High Commissioner and of the Commodore were dispelled. The interesting savages of the Solomon Islands might have gone on for an indefinite period in their career of atrocity had they not been so silly as to interfere with the crew of one of the lilliputian men-of-war. On the principle that, as Sydney Smith observed, it required the sacrifice of a bishop to get rid of a crying evil, so nothing less than the massacre of an officer and several men of Her Majesty's navy was sufficient to rouse up the authorities to action. But who are the authorities? It is difficult to find out. It lias generally been understood that the High Commissioner, subject to the British Government, was the chief authority, and that the Commodore received instructions from him, or, in cases of emergency, acted on his own discretion. We have been under the impression, too, that His Excellency the Governor of New South Wales had some voice in the matter, when the persons massacred were citizens of New South Wales, and their vessels were Sydney traders. But we have no certainty who are the responsible authorities in this case, or if there are any at all. There certainly seems to be no system at all. We understand that the " Emerald " has been ordered to the Solomon Islands by the Commodore on his own responsibility. In this case, therefore, the High Commissioner has taken no action any more than he took in reference to the previous massacres. Is it his duty to preserve order at the islands, and has he neglected his duty, or is it nobody's duty ? We understand that the Commodore must send to England for instructions in any given case; but we think there must be some mistake here. Once on a time authorities in England have attempted to carry out a campaign by orders from the Foreign Office. But surely that era of stupidity is past, and the policy is not repeated.