Tropicalities

Written for The Pacific Islands Monthly by “Sea Serpent.’’

A NORTHERN correspondent writes: I was in Papua for three weeks and visited the Oriomo and Fly River districts. It was rather distressing to note how the oil-boring enterprise at Oriomo failed; and one cannot help but think that the con siderable expenditure undertaken there should have been on a smaller scale, until justified by definite oil in dications. Decay is setting in very rapidly among the buildings, and the remains of part of the plant —but the caretaker is very active, and is doing his best to repel the inroads of the jungle. * * * THE finest yams in the Pacific are sold in the Trobriands at 15/per ton,” says Mr. A. J. Vogan, who has just returned from that little visited group. “They can be landed in Sydney at £7 per ton. The food of yams is four times that of potatoes, and there is no waste. If Sydney wants to find new wealth and regain true prosperity, let it give up horse-gambling and State lotteries for real things, and develop some of the enormous wealth that lies neglected in the Pacific Islands, only a few hundred miles away.” * * * THE Pacific Islands Year Book is now being printed and will be issued to subscribers and for gen eral sale, about the end of this month.

The work of compilation has been very heavy and has involved inquir ies in many parts of the world. This has somewhat delayed publication, which was originally fixed for the end of October, 1931. However, the slight delay has allowed us to include later statistics and general data, and the book will be entitled The Pacific Islands Year Book, 1932, instead of 1931. The 1933 edition will be pub lished a year hence, at the end of 1932. This Year Book will be found to be one of the most useful and inter esting publications of the kind yet issued in Australia. Pacific Publica tions Ltd., 247 George Street, Sydney, are the publishers. * * * THE Lae correspondent of The Rabaul Times, referring to the recent attack on A. D. O. Down ing, by natives, in the New Guinea goldfields hinterland, says: The murder of our old friend Baum is still green in our memory, and Mick and Paddy Leahy have not forgotten their little adventure with our black brother, who left quite an impression on them. Mr. Downing is so far the latest victim, and we are glad to hear he is well again. Someone has sug gested that our present-day politicians should take a run out to the Ramu and Watut Dis tricts for a bit of a spell, and if ever they were lucky enough to get back —well, they sure would have something to remember.

The suggestion anent politicians will will receive strong support in Aus tralia.

CORRESPONDENTS in Samoa have sent us particulars, taken from official documents, of the hideous cruelty displayed by Administration officials towards three Chinese who were condemned to death about the middle of 1928 —Ah Mau, Wong See and Chu Fook. This matter was ven tilated in the New Zealand Parlia ment, and an inquiry promised; but nothing (say our correspondents) was ever done, and the officials re sponsible for the brutalities remain ed in authority and were the same officials who were implicated in the riots in which Tamasese and others were killed. There seems to be some thing here demanding investigation— officials are always ready to “let has beens be by-gones,” and so save themselves trouble —but this probably, is not the time to raise the question.

A new Administrator is now in Sa moa, trying to induce the natives to forget past unpleasantnesses and settle down peacefully; and such an agitation would only embarrass him in his difficult wokk. Time enough to make a row about this three-years old matter when General Hart’s efforts have failed.

“FUR cryin' out loud!” Somehow, the dreadful, intriguing Ameri canism came to my mind on November 6, when I saw how a sec tion of the Sydney press dealt with the recent tribal clash in Papua. The facts are given elsewhere —simply that a raiding party of Sukis came down the Fly River, attacked some tidal-water villages, killed a couple of score of natives and returned up stream with their spoils. They have done it thousands of times in the past, and they will do it many times in the future, until the white man’s rule is completely asserted. At pre sent, white influence in Western Papua is slight, and in the North west it is practically non-existent.

The fact that raiding and head-hunt ing, in certain districts where white supervision is only nominal, have al most disappeared, is a great tribute to the Papuan Administration.

A raid from the completely un tamed region by natives like the Sukis, into the semi-tamed districts, is not a bit surprising. Probably in the isolated, untamed districts such raids and killings are of very frequent occurrence. But the Sydney news papers published headlines about “massacres” and “uprisings in Papua” and generally bawled their silly heads off. They published photographs from the Papuan central districts and des cribed the village scenes as “Fly River natives”! Only a few days before a Sunday newspaper published, as “a Papuan,” a photograph of a typical Fijian, Which is the frontispiece of the Fijian Government’s Handbook.

Is it any wonder that Islands people complain of Australian indifference, when leading newspapers display such abysmal ignorance of Pacific Islands life and conditions? * * * IT seems to me that the point which needs clearing up in relation to Chinese settlement in Samoa, is hot whether the N.Z. Government is discouraging Chinese immigration but whether that Mandatory is sufficiently strict in preventing cohabitation be tween the Chinese Coolies and Samoan women. A recent statement by our Samoan correspondent that there are now 1,500 Chinese halfcastes, in a population of 40,000 Samoans, seems to us to indicate an appalling condition. Mr. Rowe, in his recent book on Samoa, declares that any close association between Chinese and native Samoans was “rigorously disallowed” by the Ger mans and by the N.Z. military admin istration under Colonel Bogan. This seems to throw the responsibility directly upon the N.Z. civil adminis tration. More information on this point would be welcomed. * * * “BULOLO BILL” speaks his piece

bitterly:

Who gave you the fool report, Mr. Editor, that there are lots of festivities and money in Wau? I have quite enough trouble in my house in ordinary times, with out having my wife following me round, waving your confounded paper, and charging me with keeping her in the dark regarding local festivities and social activities.

We used to have a pretty good time, in the old days, but now its too darned civil ised to be pleasant. People have become class-conscious and stuck-up, and we all sit at home at nights and read the papers.

There was a dance two months ago. I took my wife to the dance and she took me home from the dance. My goodness, how that woman can talk! Certainly, I had some beer.

Who wouldn’t, when beer and I make res pectful greetings once in a blue moon.

There won’t be another dance till Christmas, so there won’t be any more beer. Beer needs money up here, and the missus has all the money in our house. I would like to know who told you there was lots of money in Wau.

Women are scarce up here, so all the young bucks make a fuss over them and we old blokes have a pretty henpecked sort of time.

And then you go and write rot about festi vities in Wau. If you doubt me, come on up here and have a look. You would go back to Sydney and call at the morgue, so as to give yourself a bright and happy time.

And money—it’s as scarce as this social life we’ve been reading about. Some of you folk may think that life in the Islands is pretty nice. You can have all my share, for just one hour of Sydney and a real mug of Tooth’s best. Gripes, she’s bawling again!

Goodbye.