Island

Plea For Rennell

Danger of New Sicknesses

From a Special Correspondent.

Tulagi, Dec. 3.

WITHIN the last nine months, strong efforts have been made by the Mela nesian Mission, the South Sea Evangelical Mission, and the Seventh Day Adventists to evangelise Rennell Island.

No native teachers can be landed there.

Rennell Island natives have been taken away, usually for about two or three months at a time, and then landed back there. These natives are shown around the different mission stations and some are given a trip to Tulagi, and also given a small amount of schooling. There is nothing to complain of in these proceed ings. The Rennell Islander is anxious to see some new sights and takes advan tage of the mission offers.

Since these happenings, Rennell Island has become a place of sick people. New sickness has been introduced by the mis sions—all with the best of intentions, no doubt, but the results remain.

About five months ago the French schooner La Korrigane called at Rennell and stayed there for about a week; one of the people on board reported that in a village of about sixty people, ten new graves were counted.

None of the missions will deny that at the present time Rennell is full of coughs

and colds, and sore legs; and any islander knows that coughs and colds mean deaths, especially to Polynesian people. The Rennell Islanders are not meat-eaters, and live on a vegetable diet, with fish.

The Government should try to protect the Rennell Islanders as it does the Bel lona natives, and control the missions.

The missions are doing the things the recruiters and traders did in the old days —introducing disease.

At Tulagi recently one of the commer cial people spoke to one of the mission aries whose mission ship often goes to Rennell, and remonstrated with him con cerning his mission and others causing sickness to Rennell Islanders. His reply was typical of the old-time missionaries.

He said, “Better for many to die that a few may be saved.”

Without exaggeration, it can be said that if things go on as at present at Ren nell Island, in 20 years there will only be a quarter of the population left.