Samoans, Now

Lost Navy Rule Seems Good To Samoans, Now

j mid-October the Governor of American Samoa, Mr. Phelps Phelps, returned to Pago Pago er two months in the US where had gone to attempt to have the rritory’s annual grant increased, lether he was successful or not do not know, mien the US Navy pulled out of moa in June this year the income most of the local Samoans went bh it. The Department of the In •ior, who took over, is now looking ■ some way to bridge this financial p.

Fhe reason why the Navy left go Pago appears to be the result overall US strategy, plus a hank ng, in the past, by some indivi als for the blessings and benefits a civil administration.

Even those once loudest in their sire for this so-called “freedom” e now thinking nostalgically of e affluence of the days when what e Navy said, went.

The political intrigues that ap rently have surrounded much of is period of change-over from ivy to civilian control, are hard to iderstand by anyone not nurtured American politics. But the re- It is that American Samoa is at esent having a lean time and that it were not for the energy, enter ise and plain generosity of Gov nor Phelps Phelps—who has ined the respect of every section the community during his brief riod of office —it would be a great ial leaner.

Pago Pago has been a naval and aling station for the US since 72; the whole Territory became nerican in 1899.

This fortuitous happening must ive been regarded as a God-given >portunity to these, the tradi- Dnally poor relations of the imoan group—with 76 square iles of land in the entire area and tat mostly in the perpendicular, ad, in plain fact, the Navy there :ter became the chief means of /elihood for the majority of these jopie—l3,ooo of them to-day. Their ily other means of income was the [port of, at most, about 1,000 tons : copra annually.

Now, apparently without much lought as to the consequences, or i the theory that if you pitch them i, they’ll swim, this Navy economy as been scrapped and the inhabi ints thrown back on their own re lurces.

CHE Territory has been plagued by various theorists all striving to find the answer, but there ppears to have been too many lanners and not enough plans, and

the problem remains—just what are they going to do to replace the in come lost through the Navy with drawal?

The fish-cannery, which was to have resulted from the tuna fishing industry in Fiji came to nothing because the Fiji tuna refused to be caught.

Some one has suggested the can ning of pineapples, but Hawaii can do all that is necessary in this line for the American market.

Banana production could be in creased, probably—but the only likely avenue of export is New Zea land, which is perpetually banana hungry, but at the same time, so sensitive on the point of dollar purchases that this appears to be quite abortive.

Cocoa, coffee? remember that 76 square miles of total land area and the mountainous terrain.

The best all-round possibility lies in the establishment of a tourist in dustry—for which the Americans have a particular genius—and in this respect the first blow has already been struck by the appli cation of Pan American Airways for

emission to run a service to the erritory.

It might be said that the Group too far from America and that ustralian and NZ tourists would )t have the necessary dollars; that tere is nothing to do; or that the imate —usually wet—is against it. ut the kind of publicity that made •apefruit America’s most popular ■eakfast dish would find the selling : tourism in American Samoa a ishover.

It is a fallacy to suppose that a iccessful tourist industry depends i location; or that a tourist wants i see the “real South Seas” if it cans bodily discomfort.

The first requirement of a tourist a top grade hotel witti every Lodern amenity, a good oar and place to play bridge. An occa onal game of golf, local-colour and ght-seeing is secondary to that.

It matters little to the average jurist whether the native trim dngs presented for his entertain ent are authentic or simple iurist-bait, so long as it is nusing.

Nor is the Territory without lurist assets. A native handicrafts idustry has already been developed id some of the best work in the acific is executed there; in Pago icy have the most spectacular irbour outside of Rio; and by tem srament and their last 50 years of istory the people seem more fitted i cope with this kind of business tan most of the natives of adjacent 'oups who are completely apathetic lout tourists and their require

lents.

JT.