Comment By An Experienced Observer

Native Conditions In New Guinea

By F. W. Eggleston, who was Chairman of the Recent Committee of Inquiry on Amalgamation

I HAVE been asked to comment on the article of the Editor, in the Septem ber number, about the Mandated Terri tory.

With a good many of the details of this article I agree, but I do not think the main contentions of the article are proved by the facts quoted in support of them.

It is easy to allege a lack of economic or agricultural policy if you do not take into account the economic inhibitions.

It does not do to assume that New Guinea has great potential riches. It is an exceedingly poor country, and the amount of good agricultural land is ex ceedingly limited. This fact, coupled with the low price of copra and the poor mar ket for other crops, explains a great deal of stagnation.

It is easy, also, to criticise the lack of education policy by assuming, con trary to the facts, that other countries are doing more.

The statement as to the condition of the natives either says too much or too little. I am at a loss to know whether the writer thinks that the Native La bour Ordinance is broken in practice, and the natives are badly treated; whether he thinks that the natives are under paid; or that the proportion of recruit ed labour is too high in relation to the total population: or that the period of enlistment is too long. His statement may cover a score of different matters for complaint.

The rates of pay in New Guinea and the period of enlistment are deliberate ly provided for in the Native Labour Ordinance and are therefore matters of policy which have been canvassed. The pay is considerably less than in Papua and in the British Colonies in the Paci fic, but I have made full investigations in other colonial systems, and it is not be low the rates paid for unskilled labour in several cases, and it will certainly go up as the supply diminishes.

Apart from other considerations which I shall mention later, I think the native labourer benefits from his period of ser vice. Employers say that the labour is not cheap, even at this price. In Papua, where the pay is higher, the copra in dustry has been stagnant for nearly 20 years, rE proportion of recruitment to the population is undoubtedly too high, and the Administration is getting into a serious difficulty in this aspect. Some years ago, the Mandates Commission was informed that recruitment was stopped whenever the proportion of females of child-bearing age exceeded that of adult males by over 5 per cent. This propor tion is now largely exceeded, and the records show that closing of areas for recruiting always results in increased population.

The chief difficulty is that the mining industry expects a short life, and is not averse to a policy which means rapid depopulation and a drying up of the supply. The period of indenture in New Guinea is three years, as against one year or eighteen months in Papua, and this lengthy period accentuates the toll im posed by the high recruitment on the labour supply.

SO far as the treatment of the natives is concerned, I do not believe there

is much ill-treatment. I have no doubt that on lonely plantations there is a certain amount of cuffing and kicking, but I saw evidence that the native is quick to resent this. Is it suggested that native complaints are ignored or ill treatment condoled? On these points I cannot pretend to speak with any de finite first-hand knowledge, but I should say that there is nothing in the nature of enslavement or consistent ill-treat ment. I never saw a native looking sull en or discontented.

I have always regarded missionaries as the unofficial protectors of the natives, and I made enquiries of practically every missionary I spoke to in New Guinea, and I never heard any complaint of Gov ernment policy or of ill-treatment. In deed, there was generally positive appro val of the way in which they were treated. Only on one or two occasions, so far as I have been able to ascertain, have missionaries complained to the Mandates Commission. The one I re member was as to a particular phase of the system, and not as to general ill treatment.

I FOUND, indeed, that the missionaries in Papua were averse to amalga mation because they did not want to have any change in what they called the Murray system. But I asked them if they knew anything in the New Guinea system which they were afraid of being introduced, and they were unable to give any details. Tiie missionaries had evid ently not heard of any ill-treatment or scandals.

One thing which may be said to dis count the evidence of the missionaries in New Guinea is the fact that practic ally all the German missions are deeply involved in economic activities for which a labour supply is needed. I have not the slightest doubt that this fact affects their view on labour matters; and, in deed, I found some of them saying that the Government system was not strict

enough, and advocating compulsory la-

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taSly iV a e Sf' ter managed in Paom bS p ,™ rr r managed in Papua. But m Papua the missions were willing to educate the natives in English, and up to a definite standard, and subject to inspection; in return, they get a small capitation grant.

In New Guinea, the missions were not willing to adopt this system. They do a certain amount of education, but mainly for the purpose of training mission helpers. There is, however, quite a false idea as to the amount of native education in other parts of the world.

I was shocked at the small amount paid by the Administration in New Guinea, but on checking up a large number of other Administrations I found that New Guinea was on a par with a good many others. The fact is that the problem of native education is unsolved. The best educational authorities cannot give

a confident pronouncement on the sub ject.

My sympathy for an Administrator who has to put up with the eccentricities of Ministerial control from Canberra is pro found.

Mr. W. Horton, manager at Madang for Burns, Philp and Co., Ltd., New Guinea, has been transferred to the Wau branch.

With the exception of a short spell at Manus, Mr. Horton has been in charge at Madang since 1926, and has now been relieved by Mr. J. A. Buston. B.P.’s store at Madang recently has been renovated and remodelled.

Nursing Sister Christine Woods ar rived in England recently to spend fur lough at her home, which she has not visited for 14 years. Miss Woods is a member of the Melanesian Mission staff, stationed at Kerepei Hospital, Ugi Is land, in the Solomons,