Highest Jobs Withheld

From Trained Men

Letter to the Editor IWAS strucK by your article “Why Sir Chanes Rosenthal V ’ in your July issue.

Personally, I think that the Common wealth made a mistake in taking over control of these islands. We have our hands full in governing and developing Australia without going abroad to look tor further trouble; and we should, I think, have been well advised if we had left Papua and New Guinea to the care of the Imperial Colonial Office, which has the organisation and the men ready to hand.

But, as we did take over these islands, it is surely our duty to administer their governments as well as we can; and one thing essential to their good government is to attract the best men we can to join the Islands services. And to attract these, we must offer sufficient inducement.

However, in examining these services, we see that there are few positions that would sufficiently attract ambitious young men. It seems that the settled pol icy of the Commonwealth is to appoint Administrators from outside the Islands services. The last three Administrators appointed to the Mandated Territory of

New Guinea, were all returned soldiers and politicians—doubtless very deserving gentlemen, with claims upon the grati tude of their party and of Australians in general, but the moral effect of these appointments was most unfortunate. (Our correspondent is wrong. General Griffiths was never a politician—he was a soldier who had risen from the ranks by outstanding merit. He hated politic ians—and he was, in fact, driven out of the Administratorship by the interfer ence and intrigues of politicians.—Ed., P.1.M. ) At present, there is no great induce ment for highly qualified young men to enter the service of either Territory. The utmost that any officer now can aspire to is a position of say £9OO a year, and that only after 25 or 30 years’ service in a tropical climate.

I venture to say that neither in the Commonwealth service, nor in the ser vice of any of the States, nor in any of the banks or larger business establish ments, is so little inducement held out to officers. Probably the Islands govern ments cannot afford to pay higher salar ies; but surely it is unwise to render these services more unattractive by with holding the highest positions from the trained men.

I am, etc.,

Papua, 24/9/37.

Disgruntled.