A.—4,

2

group is a burden to the parent colony or not is now happily solved." From this it would appear that the ordinary revenue of the group is sufficient to meet its expenditure without assistance from the Mauritius. In further relation to this question it may be worthy of consideration whether the plan which is adopted in Ceylon for the government of the native races inhabiting that island would not furnish a useful model for framing a system of government for the Polynesian Islands. Whatever may be done with regard to the occupation of those islands, it is certain that one of-=-the main questions to be considered in connection with that occupation will bo, '.' How are the natives to be governed? " I have been led to refer to the case of Ceylon because, in the course of looking up the information appended hereto, I came across a copy of the Governor's Address on opening the session of the Legislative Council of that colony in September, 1872, in which reference is made to a " Village Communities Ordinance," and to an amendment which it was proposed to make in that Ordinance for the purpose of empowering Police Courts to try breaches of rules made by village communities where no village tribunals exist. The object of this Ordinance is stated to be, "To enabje village communities to frame their own administrative regulations, and to enforce them in Police Courts in districts where it may be inexpedient to establish the village tribunals created by the Ordinance of 1871." The importance of the occupation of some of the Pacific Islands by Great Britain cannot be better set forth than by quoting the following passage from the letter addressed by the late Admiral Washington to the Colonial Office in 1859, on the occasion of his being called upon by that department to furnish some information regarding the Hjis. He remarked, "But on looking into the subject I have been struck by the entire want, by Great Britain, of any advanced position in the Pacific Ocean. We have valuable possessions on either' side, as at Vancouver's and Sydney, but not an islet or a rock in the 7,000 miles of ocean that separate them. The Panama and Sydney mail communication is likely to be established, yet we have no island on which to place a coaling station, and where we could insure fresh supplies . ... and it may hereafter be found very inconvenient that England should be shut out from any station in the Pacific, and that an enemy should have possession of Tongatabu, where there is a good harbour within a few hundred miles of the track of our homeward-bound gold ships from Sydney and Melbourne. Neither forts nor batteries would be necessary to hold the ground. A single cruising ship should suffice for all the wants of the islands. Coral reefs and the hearty good-will of the natives would do the rest." 23rd September, 1873. W. Seed.

I.—The Islands generally: Mr. Seed.

Table showing the Position of the Principal Groups of Islands in the Pacific Ocean.

ISLANDsTlN THE NoKTH PACIFIC. Bet TEN, Names of Gboups. Latitude. Longitude. Latitude. Longitude. Sandwich Islands Ladrone or Mariana Island Pelow Island Marshall Archipelago Gilbert Island .. Galapago Island i. Caroline Islands 18° 54' 12° 24' 6° 53' 4° 45' 3° 0' 1° 42' 1° 0' 154° 50' W. 144° 24' E. 134° 21' E. 165° 22' E. 172° 65' E. 89° 30' W. 137° 33' E. 23° 34' 20° 30' 8° 9' 11° 40' 1° 33' S. 1° 23' S. 11° 21' 164° 32' W. 146° 3' E. 134° 55' E. 172° 30' E. 177° 45' E. 91° 34' W. 162° 52' E. Islands i: the Sout: Pacific. Admiralty Islands Phcenix Islands New Ireland New Britain Solomon Islands Ellice Islands Marquesas Islands Charlotte or Santa Cruz Islands Louisade Archipelago Navigators Islands New Hebrides Islands Low Archipelago Fiji Islands Society Islands New Caledonia Tonga Islands .. 5 .. Cook's Islands Loyalty Islands 1° 57' 2° 41' 2° 46' 4° 4' 4° 3G' 5° 29' 7° 53' 9° 57' 10° 58' 12° 53' 13° 36' 14° 9' 15° 42' 16° 11' 17° 59' 18° 2' 18° 5' 20° 25' 146° 49' E. 171° 8' W. 150° 33' E. 148° 17' E. 151° 55' E. 179° 15' W. 138° 43' W. 105° 41' E. 151° 3' E. 108° 6' W. 1C6° 40' E. 124° 48' W. 176° 51' E. 148° 5' W. 102° 55' E. 173° 40' W. 157° 11' W. 166° 25' E. 2° 55' 4° 37' 4° 51' 6° 30' 12° 20' 10° 41' 10° 30' 12° 15' 11° 30' 15° 57' 20° 15' 25° 3' 19° 48' 17° 53' 22° 46' 22° 52' 24° 26' 22° 32' 147° 48' E. 174° 40' W. 153° 2' E. 152° 15' E. 162° 30' E. • 176° 6' W. 140° 44' W. 167° 11' E. 154° 26' E. 178° 21' W. 170° 11' E. 148° 44' W. 178° 12' W. 152° 12' W, 167° 35' E. 179° 24' W. 171° 48' W. 168° 5' E.