of the Pacific

A Plea for the "Small Man" in the Future of the Pacific

'THIS is a letter written by Leslie F.

Gill, to the editor. Without fear or favour, he discusses the future of the Western Pacific Territories. He gives voice to what many men are thinking.

There are four classes of Europeans in the Pacific Territories—the ad ministrative officials, the missionaries, the large companies engaged in private enterprise, and the “small men” similarly engaged. Mr. Gill argues in favour of the “small men ”

Mr. Gill is an experienced Solomon Islands planter, and understands every aspect of life in the tropical islands. While the war raged through the Solomons (it destroyed his home and plantation, one of the show places in New Georgia) Mr. Gill was associated with the Americans, in active war service. rE major post-war problem that will face Australia is appalling in its terrible simplicity—populate or perish.

In its essentials, the same problem confronts the Islands of the Arc. The two problems—that of Australia and that of Melanesia—are interwoven and indivisible—so they must be solved together. If by some future Asiatic incursion, Australia is over run, then Melanesia is also lost to the European world—if Melanesia alone is over-run, then Australia is doomed.

Security for Australia demands that Islands policy be related to that

of the Commonwealth. Never must it be possible for a Melanesian Administration to countenance, or sponsor, policies inimical to the safety of Australia. Not so long ago, if the then Administration had had its way, the British Solomons would have been flooded with labourers swamping natives and whites alike.

Australia dare not run that risk again. Australian control of the Solomons is the obvious solution.

Failing that, the Solomons Adminis tration always must be required to orient its policy in accordance with the necessities of Australian security.

Manpower must be built up in the Islands—white manpower as well as native. The natives have done a good job in this war. So have the white men of the Islands.

The work of the New Guinea Volun teer Rifles and similar unnamed guerilla and commando units through out the Islands has been notable. The Japs hated and feared them. The Australian and American armies and navies idolised, and all but wor shipped, them.

The presence of a few white Islanders and their detachments of natives with the troops in the jungles had a tonic effect. For now the troops had eyes! No longer were they groping and feeling their way blindly. Morale arrived, and con fidence flowed in like a healing balm and energiser to weary men.

Such was the magical effect of a

few white men and their natives — Fijians, Tongans, Solomons, New Guinea, or other Islands boys. Fuzzy Wuzzies, Black Angels, Boongs, Brown and Black Brothers—these were the names bestowed upon them in admiration, affection and respect.

But there was enough of them at any time, anywhere. Nor of the all too few white men who organ ised and led them. The tragedy was that they were so few. More natives could have been organised had there been whites to train and lead them.

That must never happen again.

WHILE Melanesian will never be a white man’s country in the sense that Australia is, if we are to prevent it becoming an Asiatic country, we shall have to settle enough whites in the Islands to garrison them effectively with the help of the natives.

The natives like us and respect us, and will “play ball” with us. We have given them a fair go and they know it. Otherwise they would never have worked and fought and died for us when the Japs came.

Our greatest asset is our ability to get along with the natives. Elder and younger brothers together—white and black—with neither domineering arrogance on the one side, nor cringing, submissive servility on the other. Mutual respect and confid ence. That is the splendid foun dation upon which we shall be able to build the future. rpHE Islands would be immensely A strengthened if the small man— planter, miner, trader, tradesman— was encouraged to settle and make

his home there permanently. There is room for him, as well as for the big companies, missionaries, and officials. between the two World Wars, the effect of official policy—in the Solo mons, at any rate —was to replace the small white men with Asiatics.

The latter now almost equal the Europeans in numbers. There were less Europeans in the Solomons at the beginning of this war than there were 20 years ago, while the Asiatics increased manyfold. ♦ That policy spells national suicide for the British in the Pacific. Official policy encouraged and placed every facility at the disposal of the Asiatics to oust the white pioneer. It has succeeded admirably. There is scarcely a small, independent white man left —while the Asiatics are everywhere, and multiply. The European popu lation consists almost entirely now of missionaries, officials, and the em ployees of a few big companies.

Apparently officialdom is afraid of the small man and is much more at ease with the smooth, Asiatic Yes man.

A prominent BSI officer once voiced official antipathy by a typical out burst: “I loathe the word ‘settler’! It would be much easier for the Administration to have to deal with the representatives of a few big com panies than with a number of small settlers! ”

THE wonder of this war is not that A the natives—who have had much done for them—should have fought so well for us, but that the small Islands white man, now mostly middle-aged and militarily exempt, who has so little to fight for—so little done for him in the past, and nothing to hope for in the New Orders of the theorists in the future—should have fought at all.

Big business must also be curbed, the small man is to survive Officialdom has sat back and allowed the small man (and, incidentally, the natives) to be ruthlessly exploited by twY - big firms.

There is something radically wrong when a situation exists wherebv small settlers and small companies are wiped out, while a few semi monopolistic trading concerns (not L ™ t so from strength to strength despite two world wars and the cataclysmic Depression. These con cerns are the Big Bad Wolves of the Officialdom loves to take the lassez faire attitude of ignoring what these concerns do to the smaU man, by exclaiming: “Our job is to protect the natives ” it is too dumb to see ifcat the unfair Produce prices offered, and high prices charged for goods, are suffered by native and white producers alike. Thev are both offipifd 6 sa ? ie . boat > though both S^fiwbT sionarles affect wSge 6 between “thf natives traders by telling their native charts

and the world in general, that the traders are exploiting them. I have yet to hear an official or a missionary publicly attack the real exploiters— the big firms—though privately they will voice the opinions herein ex pressed.

SOMETHING has to be done about it—and quickly. The answer is: Better marketing; Bank finance as distinct from Big Firm finance (which usually means “tied men” and bank ruptcy) ; and freedom to ship over seas and not forced to sell locally.

The Gordian knot would be cut by first freeing shipping—i.e., by provid ing the small man with the oppor tunity of shipping his produce over seas in common carriers. Up to date, the small producer has had to accept the cramped local price of the big firms, because he cannot ship on the overseas boats, as they are under charter to the big firms only. Free shipping is the crux of the situation, for it would at once solve the market ing problem, and go a long way towards solving that of finance.

A properly managed Government Copra Pool would solve all three problems. there you have it. However much the Governments concerned may try to ignore or side-step the issue, the fact remains that in order to build up future permanent strength so as to hold Melanesia, the best class of settlers—returned soldiers etc.—must be attracted, and, once established, given a fair deal to

enable them to stay in the Islands.

The Big Company-Official-Missionary system (a completely artificial set up) has been shattered by the war.

Realism demands that to the former demands must be added the permanent white settler to garrison the country—to give weight and balance— and to be the fusing agent that will weld the community into a united whole.