Sew Hebrides Condominium

Presents A Dismal Picture

What is to be the future of the New Hebrides? . . . Neither Britain nor France, who administer it as a Condominium, will surrender its share to the other. . . . Australia, legal owner of some 100,000 good acres there, apparently will take no administrative authority in partnership with France —although Australia is so close to the group that the economy there is pre-dominantly Australian. . . .

New Hebrides is the fourth largest territory (5,700 square miles) in the South Pacific, and capable of carrying a very much larger European and native population. But, like the British-controlled Solomon Islands (14,000 square miles) it is a Cinderella country, without present develop ment or future hope.

i USTRALIA’S interest in the New L Hebrides originated through the sandalwood trade in the irly 1840’s. Australian “black rders” came next, but their opera 3ns were slight until 1863-1870.

About the same time, Christian issions became established—not om Australia, but by the late 60’s they were receiving their incipal support from Australia, ■om that time on it was the Pres terian Mission—with its strong, e-World War I influence in the istralian political and business ene, its fears of being expelled 3m the Group should the French in the upper hand, and its natu lly keen desire to continue its )rk unopposed in a field where me of its workers had suffered irtyrdom—which kept alive what er interest Australia maintained these islands.

Because “blackbirding”, arms and ,uor trading, and other malprac es had their adverse effect on ssion work—the natives often king vengeance on the mlssion ies for the misdeeds of others— became the primary concern of e Presbyterian Mission to have b islands annexed by Britain or one of the Australian States, in b years between 1840 and 1914. mexation it was felt, would bring system of law enforcement. But * a variety of reasons those ef 'ts were not successful.

PART from the missions—the l London Missionary Society and the Wesleyan Mission were io there in a small way at that le —some individual Australians d acquired land from the natives the late 1860’s —mainly at Tan , apparently and at Havannah irbour, on Efate not far from la. The firm of Scott, Render i and Co. owned 1,800 acres at J latter place in 1870 and had a am cotton-gin, and machinery 1 processing coconut fibre. The >h price of cotton occasioned by i American Civil War encouraged ne cotton cultivation, which was ; first use. to which Australian ned land in this Group was put. wever, by 1872 the cotton market

had collapsed and much of this land was abandoned.

In 1878 the British and French Governments came to an agreement whereby the status quo would be maintained and neither would at tempt to annex these islands. At that time there were more Aus tralians than French there, though the numbers were small.

The Presbyterian Mission con tinued however, to press for annex ation and the matter was kept very much before the Australian public by several politicians who were strong supporters of the Mission.

In 1885 France, seeking new areas for convict colonies, or settlement of discharged convicts, offered Rapa Island, southernmost outlier of

French Oceania, in exchange for British interests in the New Heb rides. New Zealand was in favour, is Rapa then promised to become in important coaling-station on the •oute from Britain via Cape Horn.

But this suggestion and a later sug jestion of partition, was of course, itrongly opposed by the Presby erian Mission and its Australian upporters. r BLOWING the landing of French troops at various points in the Group in 1886 “to pro ect French interests”—and the nmediate outcry from the Presby “rian Mission that French annexa ion appeared imminent—further iscussions took place between ondon and Paris; and in the fol >wing year an Anglo-French Naval bmmission was set up to maintain iw and order in the islands.

Freed French convicts from bumea were now settling in the ■roup and by 1893, the French aimed that their nationals owned million acres, as compared with 15,000 acres owned by Australian iterests. Almost all of this land, hich had been owned by Scott, enderson & Co. and others, was squired by a company known as le Australasian New Hebrides rnipany in 1889.

The formation of this company by number of very influential Aus alian Presbyterian business men id politicians had, as its primary

interest, not commerce, but protec tion of the Presbyterian Mission in the New Hebrides. It was thought that its formation might force the hand of Britain or one of the Aus tralian States in favour of annexa tion but this result was not achieved; and in 1893 its interests were purchased by Burns Philp & Co., of Sydney. Mr. (later Sir) James Burns was one of the founders and shareholders of the Australasian New Hebrides Com pany. He also was a very pro minent and active member of the Presbyterian Church.

THE records show that 41,000 acres actually were taken over from ANHC by BF’s. But BP’s seem also to have acquired other lands at the same time, and their holdings were said to -total about 125,000 acres at that time. Only a very small portion of this land was ever worked, and its boundaries were in many cases only vaguely defined, with no clear legal titles.

BP’s then established a Branch in the archipelago at Vila, and operated a regular monthly vessel from Sydney under a New South Wales subsidy. Their trade business there, with both British and French settlers, prospered; but Australia’s prohibitive tariffs against produce from the Islands, and labour laws restricting the employment of non-

European seamen in vessels owned in Australia, not only prevented any effective development of the New Hebrides land but also placed HP’s shipping operations at a great dis advantage as compared with French vessels.

In 1901, in an attempt to counter the increasing French settlement in the group, HP’s made an important

proposition to the newly-established

Commonwealth Government. Sub ject to the Commonwealth taking active measures to settle the land, the Company said it would hand over to the Australian Common wealth Government its entire land interests in the Group. For an in creased shipping subsidy—£6,ooo per annum —it would provide an ad ditional vessel to operate within the Group, and it would also provide free transport from Sydney for all settlers and their families.

The offer was accepted by the Government in 1902, HP’s maintain ing administrative control of the land and advertising for settlers on the Government’s behalf. In a short time at least 30 replies had been re ceived from suitable individuals or families, and by late that year a fair number had been settled, mainly on south Santo, near Tangoa and Belsiki. In 1903, it was reported that there were 214 British and 255 French settlers in the New Heb rides.

BUT the British settlement effort faded away. First crops grown

by the Australians were maize, bananas, and coffee, but they were kept out of the only available mar ket in Australia. Maize and banana growers in Australia were opposed to the removal of the prohibitive tariffs on produce produced by “cheap black labour.” There were also severe restrictions on the em ployment of such labour by the set

tiers —restrictions which did apply to the French settlers.

By 1905 many of the Australi had left or were trying despera, to leave. For some years thereabi Burns Philp and other British terests were trying to buy Fre land, still with the idea of foro the Australian or British Gove ment to annex the Group or to

ablish conditions favourable to ettlement. riOR some years after the estab ? lishment of the Commonwealth in 1901, the Australian Gov mment was in frequent communi ation with the British Colonial »ffice, trying to induce the British k)vernment to take a strong line > end the confused situation in the ew Hebrides, and establish ;ronger official ties between New :ebrides and Australia.

There were numerous land owner lip disputes between natives, rench, British, Australians and ;her nationals; a great deal of il gal trading, and ill-treatment of atives and, finally, a sensational iport that German interests — ten thrusting most aggressively trough the South Pacific Islands — sre negotiating for the purchase land facing Vila harbour. Aus alia appealed on innumerable oc sions for action by Britain, in as ciation with Austraila.

But, by what was afterwards re rded as political sharp practice, e British Secretary of State for e Colonies (an inconspicuous per n named Lord Elgin) signed a mvention with France on October , 1906, under which the Condo inium Government was estab hed. The Australian Govern ;nt did not approve the Conven m and knew nothing of the sign y until it was formally advised the fait accompli.

Australia, indignant and dis araged, took a dwindling amount official interest in the new set until 1914; and after the end World War I, New Hebrides ght have been Labrador or Tim ctoo, for all Australia cared out it.

Little progress was made in the ocation of land titles. A Land urt was set up under the juris ;tion of the Condominium in 1910, t its deliberations were so slow it it seemed it could not deal with j accumulated applications with a hundred years. For years, in >ociation with Burns Philp and “ Presbyterian Mission, the Aus lian Government maintained, in rt Vila, a solicitor and a surveyor, guard their land interests; but, ice World War 11, even this safe ard has been abandoned, :t is apparent that fundamental ferences between French and itish laws and procedures have ‘vented, and will prevent, the es )lishment of a workable Land urt.

HERE has been no development of New Hebrides’ natural re sources since World War I; : the political, social and econo : conditions there have been af ted by the following: ► French interests and French tlement have increased slightly, ile the British have remained sta nary. In 1927 there were 720

French and 200 British there; today, the respective numbers are about 800 and 230. • Durine World War II while the

Americans*

ese out of the Solomons, the group was a military naval and air base, and the whole population—indigenous and non-indigenous—was affected. • After World War 11, only a skeletonised administration was maintained, and the machinery of Joint Court has scarcely functioned. Nothing has been done in relation to land titles. The Australian Government has ceased to maintain a solicitor there to pro-

tect its land interests—in fact, Can berra is exceedingly coy on the sub ject of its land interests in New Hebrides, and has made no official £ e ar I ? T atter since the end of World War n • A community of some thous ands of Tokinese has become estab lished in New Hebrides, as a result of the breakdown, during the last War, of the repatriation provisions of their labour contracts. They have not solved the labour prob lem but, instead, they engage in petty industry and trade, and are regarded as a social menace. New Hebrides employers are seeking des perately for labour.