History of Equatorial
pp. 44-45 · Read in the full issue
Islands Invaluable New Book Published in Honolulu
SO many of the endless romantic stories of the Pacific are based upon the little-known Line (or Equatorial) Islands that one greets, with almost a whoop of joy, a new book, “American Polynesia”, by Edwin H. Bryan, of the staff of the Bishop Museum, Honolulu.
This is a book of facts —one is given the exact position, size, condition, topo graphical features, and history of each island, taken carefully from official records.
The title is a little challenging. One assumes that “American Polynesia” is Hawaii; but in reading Mr, Bryan’s book, one discovers that American Polynesia comprises the Line Islands, and one learns the real basis of the United States' claim to so many equatorial is lands—a development which has puzzled many people in recent years.
Between 1830 and 1850, it was dis covered that vast deposits of guano on many of these islands were valuable; and American interests became very active.
US Congress, on August 18, 1856, passed the Guano Act, which authorised Ameri cans to claim unoccupied islands for the United States for the purpose of removing the guano. Accordingly, claims were made for 48 islands, under the Guano Act, and a list of these was published in the “New York Tribune” on March 5, 1858. The list was reprinted in “The Friend”, Hono lulu, on April 20, 1859; also by a German writer, E. Behm, in 1859; and in “Ameri can Journal of Science”, September, 1859.
Only 18 of those 48 islands are now known by the names then given; 12 are known by different names; and 15 are to-day not known at all.
Early in 1857, representatives of the American Guano Company, of New York, took possession of Howland, Jarvis and Baker Islands. The Phoenix Guano Co. (American) took possession of McKean and Phoenix Islands in 1859 and of Enderbury in 1862. The industry was active in the seventies.
The Americans withdrew when the rich deposits were worked out and, from about 1879 to 1891, John T. Arundel & Co.
''British), with supplies from Apia, and labourers from Niue and the Cooks, car ried on guano digging on the islands named above, and also on the islands of Sydney, Canton, Flint and Starbuck.
Mr. Bryan’s researches show that, after 1879, the United States officially mani fested no interest whatever in these “guano islands”. In 1889, at Mr. Arundel’s request, Britain annexed the Phoenix group: and guano-digging was continued sporadically by British and Australian concerns. An American whaler found the rich deposits on Malden Island in 1848, and sold his find to a Sydney company.
A few natives and a handful of Euro peans continued, for the next 50 years, to take guano and copra from this coral “no-man’s-land”. Britain did not particu larly want the islands; but someone had to police the law of the white man, and so gradually they all came under British jurisdiction. All maps, from about the ’nineties, showed the following as British; Howland Baker Palmyra Washington Fanning Christmas Jarvis Malden Starbuck Caroline Vostock Flint Six islands in Phoenix group None argued or cared who owned the little islands. The guano was all worked out, they had only a few coconuts, and
there was not a harbour worthy of the name among the lot of them. rEN, in 1928, the great Australian airman, Kingsford Smith, flew from San Francisco to Sydney, across the Pacific, and directed attention to the im portance of those Line Islands as landing grounds, on the direct route from Hawaii to Fiji and New Zealand. Officialdom took little notice.
By 1934, people were beginning to rea lise that trans-Pacific aviation services were possible, and a few people displayed interest in islands that, hitherto, were regarded as worthless. Official American “colonists” were landed on Jarvis on March 26, 1935; on Howland, March 30; and on Baker, April 3. The islands were officiallv annexed bv the United States.
In 1936 and 1937, there was a great scurrying to and fro among the other Line Islands named above, by British official parties. Britain’s long and un challenged title to the various little bits of uninteresting and depressing coral and sand was re-affirmed by flying flags, erecting notices and beacons and. finally, by landing colonists and administrators.
Anglo-American competition came to a head at Canton Island. USA wanted it; Britain showed a good title. Both occu pied it. But the two parties didn’t fight over it. They sat down together in the only bit of shade in the god-forsaken snot, and shared their cold beer, and left Washington and London to argue it out.
The result was that America and Britain decided that they have equal occupational aviation rights there.
Canton Island is now an important PAA station. It seems certain that other Line Islands, hitherto worthless, will be needed in the future for aviation pur poses. If disputes should arise, the pre cedent set bv Canton Island, and the publication of Mr. Bryan's invaluable book, should show the way to a simple settlement.
MR. Bryan gives a detailed geo granhical. historical, botanical and zoological description, not only of what we have called the Line Islands, but also of the Tokelau or Union groun (north of Samoa, administered bv New Zealand). Samoa, and the Northern Cooks. There is a carefully-drawn map of practically every island described, no matter how small and insignificant it is —priceless material for any reference library.
The book contains accounts of some of the most romantic and colourful episodes of early Polynesia—for instance, the early history of Olosenga (Swains Island), “one of the most beautiful and pic turesque under the American flag”, and the romantic home of the Jennings family (related to the T. H. Carruthers family, of Samoa); the strange story of Suwarrow Island, where there is more than a tradition of buried treasure * the colonisation of Palmerston Island by William Marsters and his three Poly nesian wives; and so on.
There is evidence everywhere of the pains taken by the author to ensure the accuracy of his compilation—a huge bibliography is quoted in detail. Everyone interested in Pacific Islands research will be grateful to Mr. Brvan for this unique, invaluable and fascinating volume.
“AMERICAN POLYNESIA,” a popular geo graphy, history, and natural history of the coral islands of the Central Pacific, by E. H.
Bryan, Jr., Curator, B.P. Bishop Museum. 1.00 dollar, paper bound; 1.50 dollar cloth. Add 10 cents postage to Australia. E. H. Bryan, Jr., 2721 Ferdinand Ave., Honolulu, Hawaii.
Miss E, A, Downs, of the Papauta Girls’ School Apia. Western Samoa, will return to the Territory shortly, after furlough and deputation work for the LMS in Australia and New Zealand.