A.—4b.

this time there was a great attendance of Natives in and around Apia, partly because of the festivities connected with the King's Birthday, but mainly by reason of the meeting with the Minister which was about to take place. It is impossible to obtain any satisfactory estimate of the number of Samoans in Apia at this time, but they amounted to a considerable number. The adherents of the Mau by this time formed an important proportion of the Samoan inhabitants. The population of the islands of pure Samoan race in June, 1927, was 38,624, and it is difficult to say what proportion of the population were members of the Mau. The word mau in Samoan means "an opinion." It is certain, however, that somewhere in the region of about one-half of the adult male members of Samoa were adherents of the Mau. For example, it was said that the whole of Aleipata, a somewhat populous district in Upolu, were in the Mau. It is probable that the witnesses who gave this evidence —namely, Polo'a'ali'i and Maui'a—were exaggerating. Mr. Baxter informed us that the population of Aleipata, according to the 1926 census, was 1,978 people, but this, of course, includes men, women, and children. In the district of Safata, according to the witness Lau'ifata, the great majority of the people belong to the Mau. In a district known as Solo Solo, on the eastern coast of Upolu, one witness named Leota Seiuli said that the whole district had joined the Mau, and that the only supporter of the Government there was the Faipule. There is, of course, a great deal of conscious and unconscious exaggeration as to the number of the Mau adherents, but we have said enough to make it clear that a very substantial proportion of Samoans had joined the Mau, a number quite sufficient, if they determined to resist and thwart the activities of the Administration, to paralyse the functions of government. It is necessary to state what, in our opinion, were the purposes and designs of the organization. We are satisfied that the organization had two purposes. The first was the intention to secure practically self-government for the Samoans. For example, Tamasese, who was the successor to a kingly title, gave the following evidence: — You told us that you were a member of the Mau ?—Yes. Were you aware that one of the purposes of the Mau is to secure certain political reforms in favour of the Samoans ? —I am aware of that. Were you told that the object of the Mau was to secure practical self-government for the Samoans ? —That is also my opinion. That is not quite an answer. Were you aware that the object of the Mau was to advocate selfgovernment for the Samoans ? —Yes, that is a true object of the Mau. Did the Mau desire to have New Zealand removed from the government of the country V — Yes ; it is the wish of the Mau that Samoa should be controlled by the Samoans. The Mau desire that the Samoans should control the government of Samoa, and not New Zealand ?—That is the true desire, with the condition that Samoa should be under the protection of the British flag —to protect this country by the British flag if they were attacked by other nations. Did you understand from the papalagi members of the Mau that these were some of the purposes of the Mau ? —That was my true opinion, and also the opinion of the other Samoans. Did the papalagi members of the Mau know what was in the minds of the Samoan members of the Mau about the control by the Samoans of Samoa ? —I do not know about that. Do you regard the members of the Citizens Committee as members of the Mau ? —They also have grievances as well as the Samoans. You have not yet answered my question. Do you regard the members of the Citizens Committee as members of the Mau ? —-They are, but there are different grievances. Have you great confidence in the papalagi members of the Citizens Committee ? —No, I have confidence in only myself and my own people. Do you say you have no confidence in the European members of the Citizens Committee ? —No. I have no confidence in the papalagi members of the committee. Do not the papalagi members of the committee guide the work of the Mau ? —That is the fact when the two sides join together. When the two sides join together would not the Samoan members of the Mau naturally defer to the opinion of the papalagi members ? —They have their own different inspirations. Did the Mau ever work for the removal of the present Administrator ? —-No. That was not, then, an object of the Mau ? —No. Are you sure that it was not [the purpose of the Mau to secure the removal of the present Administrator —Yes or No ?—No. The following chiefs, adherents of the Mau, agreed in this view as to the purposes of Mau —namely, Alipia (page 99), Tu'u (page 102), Umaga (page 103), Molio'o Saoletai (page 111), Tialavea (page 115), Fuataga (page 126),

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