Native Prisoner

Two Years’ Gaol for Holding N.G.

Native Prisoner Lutheran Missionary’s Version of the Crime

From Our Own Correspondent

Rabaud, June 17.

TTENRY POBGB, an American Lutheran missionary stationed in the uncontrolled” area of Wahgi-Mt Hagen, in the Morobe District, appeared before His Honour the Chief Judge in the Supreme Court on June 3 charged with unlawfully depriving a native of his liberty. , The accused pleaded guilty. He made an unsworn statement from the box in which he related how three of his native mission helpers had been assaulted and robbed by natives in the Danga district « h ho rr r> w - s • beyond . th< k ar<^ T in which he ! had permission, under the Uncontrolled” Areas Ordinance, to reside and carry on mission work.

According to the accused, he and his workers decided to recover the stolen goods and for this purpose preparations were made. In his statement, he explained how on receiving news of the assault he and his colleagues carefully went into the matter and decided that the Danga attitude of boldness and avariciousness must be stopped. . , , . J „ Continuing With his statement Foege said: — “On the morning of January 10, I started for the Danga territory with 10 helpers in compliance

with previous instructions that if we should have to leave our station to carry with us five or six guns and about 10 civilised natives. We took six guns. Arriving at the Dagal mission two of the helpers remained there, whilst the rest climbed up a ridge towards the Danga territory. We came upon some Damba natives who are a clan of the larger Danga tribe, but were not of the clan that had committed the robbery. These continued with us to the first house of the guilty clan.

“Upon our arrival some members of the guilty clan were fleeing; we called to them to bring back the articles they had stolen. There was no re sponse. We then asked the Damba natives to call them in their own dialect. Soon the Danga na tives appeared with some of the stolen articles.

They deposited them within 200 yds. of us, and thereupon beat a hasty retreat.

“Since it was already late in the afternoon, we returned to the Danga mission post, with the retrieved articles. As we had not recovered all the stolen goods and had not talked with the Danga natives we went back the following morn ing. Upon arriving at the first house of the guilty tribe we found it deserted. We called, but there was no response. We left three helpers there to intercept any of the Danga natives. The rest of us continued some distance further to see if we could meet the Danga people. After a short time the helpers who had remained at the house called out that they had taken a native.

“Upon our arrival one of the three helpers who had been pursued identified this native as one of the pursuers, although not one of the actual per petrators of the robbery. After having tied his hands behind his back we asked him where the rest of his clan were. He said they had fled.

We told him to call out to his people to return the remainder of the stolen goods and a pig each as an expiatory gift for having pursued and pounded the three mission helpers. This he did.

“After waiting some time rain threatened and we retreated some distance to a house of the Damba clan, taking the native lad with us. We waited some hours for the Danga people. At first we were stern towards the captive and told him that he and his people were bad. He asked us to take off the adornments he was wearing as they were inconveniencing him while he was tied.

Thereafter I sat with him and took down words of his dialect, which he gave me. Towards evening some of the Damba clan, acting as intermediaries for the guilty Danga tribe, returned more of the stolen articles, as well as two pigs. However, no representative of the Danga tribe itself came along.

“We told these intermediaries that we would not accept the pigs since we had not been able to speak with the guilty clan, and that we would now go down to the Dagal mission post, taking the boy with us. We said we would return the following morning with the lad. We then went down to the mission station at Dagal, taking the tied Danga native with us.

“At Dagal there were some natives around and since these Dagals are more or less hostile to the Dangas we took special precaution in keeping the prisoner tied lest he escape during the night and possibly come to grief at the hands of the Dagals; especially since these Dagals had intimated that we might kill him, as it was their custom to kill.

“We trussed his legs with rope, and the helpers put mats down near the fire for him to sleep on.

The end of the rope, with which his hands were tied, was fastened to a post supporting the plat form. There was ample length of rope to permit him to change his position. We conversed with the boy for some time during the evening, and he showed no fear.

“The following morning we again started out for the Danga country, taking the boy with us. As we drew near the house, where we had captured him the previous day, we stopped upon the sug gestion of some Damba natives who had come with us. The Damba representatives said they would go ahead and convince the Danga people they need not be afraid to meet us. Later these Damba people told us that the Dangas had brought pigs, but that they were unable to retrieve the remainder of the stolen goods. The Dangas were therefore afraid to come up to us.

“We called back that if it were true they could not recover the goods they should bring a pig or

something else in lieu of this. The Damba inter mediary came and told us that they had brought another pig, but were still reluctant to come di rectly to us. Noticing that it was only fear that kept them away we conclusively demonstrated to them that we had no evil intention, by tying our guns in a bundle and laying them aside. Slowly the first Dangas came up to us and shook hands.

They then also laid their bows and arrows aside.

“Meanwhile some of our helpers killed and dis sected a pig, one half of which they put before the Danga natives and we kept the other half. We then asked the Dangas what this meant, and they said we wanted to eat a peace meal. We told them we had not come to take revenge like they would in such a case, that we wished to be their friends.

“I asked them whether they had mistreated the mission helpers for a valid reason; whether those mission helpers had ever trampled over their fields, or misused their women. Thereupon the Chiefs said that the helpers had never done any thing like that, and that their people who had pursued and robbed them were bad. We said that two helpers who were pursued and attacked were still suffering from their injuries at Kerewa. The Dangas reiterated that their boys who committed the misdeeds were bad, and that they wished to have mission helpers stationed in their midst.

“We then untied their boy and I put a small handful of gire gire (native money) into his hand.

He then asked us to come to his house where he would give us his younger brother to take back to our mission station, so that we might learn the Danga dialect. We refused to take the boy alone since the Parau tribe was hostile towards these Dangas and this boy might be harmed while at the station. The Danga Chiefs then pointed out a site to build a helpers’ station. We were unable to comply with their wishes, as this was beyond the ‘closed area’ regulations.

“After conversing with them for awhile longer, we demonstrated to them that our relations in the future would be peaceful by breaking an arrow in two, giving one half of the broken arrow to the Dangas, and keeping the other half ourselves. We told them that this broken arrow was to remind them that whenever Europeans passed through their country they should treat them well by sup plying them with food, and not stealing from them. We then parted after shaking hands.”

On June 10, the Chief Judge, after carefully reviewing the regulations re garding “Uncontrolled” Areas and the evi dence which had been placed before the Court expressed the opinion that Foege’s evidence had been highly coloured regard ing some matters.

“You say you feel humiliated,” said His Honour, “but you have brought shame on us efforts and hindering the Administra tor in its work. Your Counsel has ably said all that could be said on your behalf but I cannot vindicate the law without punishing you.”

His Honour then sentenced the accused to two years’ imprisonment with hard labour.

Cniu-i ®f P i ica ! io 7. for le ® v ? to appeal to the High of thl R A n raha was l°Jged in Sydney on behalf Thnn,/ on July 16. Messrs. Reginald r™™? 31 ? i S w ’ 8 °i Icl !? rs > h ave briefed a King’s F«ge“' bThalf, M " J - W - Sh “* “> »»Pe.r S .„ Mr. F. W. Eggleston, of Victoria, who is Australia’s representative on the Executive Council of the Institute of Pacific Relations, will lead a delegation of six prominent Australians to attend the Institute’s sixth conference shortly to be held in California, U.S.A. The conference win discuss problems relating to the South Seas and the Far East, giving special notice to the changing balance of political forces in the Pacific.