Polynesian Population?

Do We Want A Chinese

Pan Pacific Union Secretary Defends Hawaiian Half-castes.

We have received, prom Mr. A. Y. Satterthwaite, secretary of the Pan-Pacific Union, Honolulu, a friendly letter, dated January 25, 1932, dealing with a subject of great and growing importance to all Pacific territories. The letter is as follows.

“IN your August number (writes Mr.

Satterthwaite) there is an edi torial entitled, ‘Chinese in Samoa.’

“Perhaps we have misunderstood this editorial but, as it stands, Hawaii takes exception to the sentence: “It may be a desirable and neces sary thing that Chinese labour be in troduced temporarily, for the economic development of the Polynesian terri tories; but if the practice is to be at tended by social consequences of the kind described elsewhere in this issue, and which have been only too tragic ally illustrated in Hawaii and Tahiti, then the economic advantage is im measurably outweighed by the sin against the Polynesian race.’

“We object especially to the reference to Hawaii. We are not prepared to dis cuss the situation in Tahiti, “Chinese and Hawaiian mixtures in Hawaii have produced some of our most brilliant and desirable citizens.

The following paragraph appeared in a brochure called ‘Every Child,’ dealing with primary and preparatory educa tion throughout the world, and written by George William Gerwig, eminent educator on the staff of the Frick Foundation at Pittsburgh; “'Outside of United States, on the continent, the best thing surveyed educationally was the McKinley High School, at Honolulu, together with its related primary schools.

This is the most successful ap proach to the problem of really and wisely helping a cosmopolitan group of people toward self-develop ment and self-control, in the world.

We were told on good authority that the blend in Hawaii between Chinese thoroughness and stability and Hawaiian alertness and adapt ability was producing a genuinely fine stock of people. The American Model School is working better in Hawaii than anywhere else off the continent.’

“McKinley High School has nearly 3,000 students and is a very interesting institution. The same could probably be said of the University of Hawaii, which many of the McKinley High School graduates attend.

“Just now, Hawaii has a pretty bad record all over the world, but do not allow anyone to think even for one moment that our present trouble is a result of racial antagonism, despite the fact that the Hearst papers are ridicu lously publishing right and left the statement that our trouble is due to Japanese propaganda. It is entirely the result of lax law observance on the part of the majority of us.

“I trust that this information will be of interest to your paper, which we find valuable and interesting.”

Editorial Note:

The foregoing communication raises issues of some concern to all residents of the Pacific Islands; and they may be summarised in the following ques tions:— Is it necessary, for the future econo mic development of the Pacific Islands, that an Asiatic population be in troduced?

If it is necessary, which race should be introduced to the British territory— Japanese, Chinese, Indians, or Tonk inese?

In considering- the relative desirable ness of these races as immigrants, should we give greater weight to their social rather than their economic value —that is, is the incoming race expected to blend with the indigenous race, and which mixture is likely to give the best citizens? Or is it to be regarded sim ply as a race of workers and peasants?

Are the British right, in officially op posing miscegenation in these Pacific Islands; or is it a sounder policy to permit a mixture of foreign blood? In this connection, would the same policy be applicable to both Polynesian and Melanesian races?

The foregoing points give some indi cation of the ramifications of the sub ject. The New Zealand administrators of Western Samoa are now vigorously active in preventing cohabitation be tween Chinese immigrants and Samoan women, which had been going on at a startling rate. The British adminis trators of Fiji, on the other hand, have found it unnecessary to interfere be tween the Fijian and the Hindu immi grants —there is practically no mis cegenation. Thousands of Japanese are settling down in the Caroline, Marshall and Mariana groups, and are not mix ing with the indigenous natives. But there is a large and growing population of Chinese-Polynesian half-castes in Tahiti and Hawaii.

Two further questions naturally arise: Are Chinese and Polynesians natur ally attracted towards one another?

Is the resulting half-caste population desirable from the point of view of citi zenship?

It is in that connection that our Hawaiian friend’s contribution to the discussion is so valuable. He is em phatically in favour of the Chinese- Hawaiian mixture.

When we wrote, in August, of the “tragic” results of Chinese immigration in Hawaii and Tahiti, we did not intend to condemn the half-castes. As a mat ter of fact, we have met, in Rarotonga and Tahiti, Chinese-Polynesians of great physical attractiveness and men tal ability. But, as a matter of policy, we do advocate the maintenance of

racial purity in the Pacific, and we do regard it as a tragedy that the pure Polynesian stock of Tahiti and Hawaii is so rapidly disappearing.

The great god Progress must be served, we suppose; but why should it be necessary, in the process, to sacrifice the Polynesian peoples, who have con tributed so much of charm and romance to the Pacific isles —and really made of them the place “where life is different”?

Life in Polynesia without the Poly nesians will not be “different” —no mat ter how desirable Chinese-Polynesians may be.