Melanesians?
pp. 41-42 · Read in the full issue
Are British too Kind to Melanesians?
(A British resident of the New Heb rides, in a private letter to the Editor, is outspoken on the subject of British Pacific Administration.) I HAVE read some of your articles, in which you argue that the so-called trained officials of the British Col onial Service, are well qualified to ad minister the affairs of the Pacific Is lands.
Judging by the samples hereabouts that training needs some revising and bring ing up to date. I will quote at random some of our little happenings, just to give you an idea of what the British portion of this group has to put up with.
This one happened on Tongoa. a neighbouring isle. A high official paid a formal visit, so the white population turn ed up en masse, in their “glad rags”, to welcome, and pay their respects to him.
The high official practically ignored them, but singled out a . well-known “half wit", a very cheeky native, to whom he bowed and saluted, and plied with questions as to the welfare of the island the people, etc. All this rather amused the whites, but thoroughly disgusted the village chiefs.
The natives here have a wholesale re spect for and fear of French official dom; but the British. I am sorry to say. are more or less a joke! I have heard natives say on many occasions, to put it
into “Beche-la-Mer”: “French calabush ’e no good too much, makem man ’e savvy. But English ’e all same nothing no more”. Remarks of that kind, from natives tend to show that namby-pamby ism does not go down with them.
All that our local officials do not know of the native, or native mind, apart from official routine, would fill a couple of books.
I hear things are even worse in the Solomons. Here, they have the French to set the pace, as it were; but they have the Solomons on their own!
The article by Gordon Thomas, “Was There Cruelty in German Colonies”, pub lished in your February issue, is, in my opinion, a masterpiece—well put, and to the point, and above all brimful of facts. A few men of the Gordon Thomas type in the Civil Service might do much to regain and retain the respect of our coloured race.
Sir Hubert Murray, K.C.M.G., returned to Port Moresby from leave by the “Bu lolo” in May, and resumed duty as Lieut.- Governor.
Mr. and Mrs. Karius returned to Pa pua by the last “Tasman” from Java and the East. Mr. Karius has resumed duty at Kikori, as Resident Magistrate of the Delta Division.