Savaii

Mr. R. Williams Of

Death of Former British Official In German Samoan Service

From Our Own Correspondent.

APIA, January 24.

THE advice that Mr. R. Williams, for merly of Western Samoa, died on January 4 at his residence, Devonport, Auckland, N.Z., has been received with sincere sympathy and deep regret by his large circle of friends in Samoa. Mr.

Williams, who had reached the ripe age of 76 years, occupied for 15 years the

important office of Deputy Administrator of the large island of Savaii.

He was appointed “Amtmann” under German Administration in 1905 by Governor Solf. This, in itself, was a very remarkable occurrence, as not only was Mr. Williams a British subject (his father was a British naval officer of Irish descent), but, in addition, he could not speak a word of the German lan guage. In spite of this and the numer ous attacks that Dr. Solf and the Im perial Administration were exposed to in the German Press and the Reichstag, Governor Solf, who knew and valued the efficient work and the ability of the Amtmann, retained Mr. Williams in his responsible position.

He remained there also under Dr. Solf’s successor, Governor Schultz, and it was only after the outbreak of the Great War that Amtmann Williams, or “Viliamu” as his friends called him, was replaced by a German official. He was reinstalled again by the New Zealand Military Ad ministration after the occupation of the former German Colony by N.Z. military forces.

The great influence Williams wielded over the Savaii natives and his popu larity among them enabled him to per form public works, build roads, bridges,

water tanks, etc., with a minimum of expense to the Government. His rule was, in fact, an example of strong and efficient administration. Personally he was a lovable little man of somewhat Falstaffian appearance, with a short, well rounded body surmounted by a bald head from which his bright eyes twinkled merrily. He possessed a well-developed sense of humour and was the object of numerous anecdotes, which at the time amused Apia Beach immensely.

When he went on a lengthy vacation he visited Berlin and called at the Ger man Imperial Colonial Office. The German officials were horrified to find that he could not talk a word of their lan guage. On returning to Samoa he laugh ingly told of his experiences in the Ger man capital, pointing out that the only German word he knew and frequently used was the word “Prosit.”

On one occasion he received a lengthy letter in German from the Central Office in Apia, asking for various information of an ethnological and scientific charac ter. Williams, well knowing that some subordinate official wanted to take ad vantage of his lack of knowledge of the German language, returned the letter with the remark pencilled on it, “Savaii is O.K.”

After 15 years of faithful service, Mr.

Williams retired in 1920 and went to New Zealand, where he married and lived quietly and contentedly.

Late Mr. Williams.