Altering for the Worse
Conduct of Papuans Attitude Towards White Women
“One heard on all sides the ex pressed opinion that the Papuan is altering, and not for the better.
From my short four years among them, I know it to be true. It seems as though a legislation and education, originally designed for their protection and uplift, is pro ducing merely arrogance and con ceit, as well as a tendency to re gard the white race with contempt, if not absolute disrespect, and thinly-veiled hostility.”
This is how Alice J. Keelan sums up the Papuan in her very readable book, “In the Land of Dohori.” It describes life in Papua, where her husband was a public official.
“To support these opinions,” she says, “many occurrences were quoted to me, but the most irrefutable of all were the shocking happenings between native boys and white women, or small white girls, of three, four and five years of age, that at times set the white com munity seething with indignation.
These are not of as frequent occurrence as may be imagined, but the fact of their occurring at all, when in former years they were unknown, is regarded as indicative of the trend of native opinion and proof of anything but im provement in the native outlook. The sentences imposed for such offences were frequently considered inadequate by the majority of the white popula tion, and at times fanned their resent ment to fever heat.
“The adoption of a sort of ‘hush” policy regarding matters did not tend to improve things in that respect, since was considered that, by the stifling of publicity, a shelter was provided for a wrongdoer. But an atmosphere of dif fidence—or is it self-interest? —seemed to preclude any public expression of outspoken thought on the subject.
“Without desiring to hold a brief for the native, justice compels the theory that, knowing many white men regard the native woman as their legitimate prey, the Papuan, apparently coming to regard himself as the white man’s equal, may possibly feel justified in re garding the white woman from the same point of view.”
The book is entertaining and instruc tive, and contains many character sketches and anecdotes of both the white and coloured communities, as well as sidelights on the Administra tion. It gives a somewhat startling in dication of the conditions with which-, white women have to contend in the remoter administrative stations.
“In the Land of Dohori” is published by Messrs. Angus and Robertson, at