W. Samoa

News Notes From W. Samoa

From Our Own Correspondent APIA, September 10.

ASPORTSDAY for the Samoan schools of the North Coast of Upolu, Manono and Apolima was held on September 1 and 2 at the Malifa (Apia) school grounds and attracted large crowds of interested onlookers. Thirty-eight Gov ernment and village schools and 2,000 pupils took part in a display of dancing, marching, singing, handicraft, drawing, etc., during the two-day period.

Mr. J. R. Corston, formerly of Tau ranga, New Zealand, recently arrived by plane to take over the position of Super intendent of Police for the Samoan Gov ernment. He was accompanied by Mrs.

Croston. Mr. M. McLeod, the former In spector of Police, left with Mrs. McLeod for New Zealand in the last Matua. He has retired on pension.

The mysterious murder of a Samoan, Solofa, on August 19 in the centre of Apia, has so far not been solved. A burglary was committed during the night of Sep tember 4 to September 5. Thieves entered by drilling through the floor of Messrs.

O. F. Nelson & Co. Ltd.’s main store at Matafele, Apia, and stole some Swiss watches and also rifled the tills. Their haul, however, was insignificant.

As a result of Samoan prosperity, build ing activity in Apia and the outside dis tricts is continuing. The Church of Lat ter Day Saints, has set aside the sum of $lO,OOO for the building of a large school at Pesega, Apia.

The London Missionary Society is build ing a new school building and 22 con crete family dwellings for teachers at the old-established LMS College at Malua, 12 miles west of Apia.

Messrs. Morns, Hedstrom's new busi ness premises at Matafele, Apia are near ing completion while the new Methodist Church on Apia Main Beach near the Post Office is also well on its way to being finished.

Apart from these larger building pro jects, additions to existing buildings and new structures are going up everywhere, a visible sign of the continuing prosperity of European and Samoan residents of Western Samoa.