Haydon To Leave Pago 'With Love

And Affection For Samoans'

From a Pago Pago correspondent

After five years of controversy, ohn M. Haydon has resigned as iovernor of American Samoa. Hayon, who was sworn in as governor n August 5, 1969, sent his resignaon to Secretary of the Interior :ogers C. B. Morton on August 5 larking five years to the day as the ead of the territory. . . tt j • . Wntmg to Morton, Haydon said, [t has been a source of real satisiction to serve tne American amoan people for the past five ears ’

Although Haydon did not go into etails, he did indicate that he hoped ) return to his native Seattle, Washington, for “family and business masons”. tt • i i j* , , • i ::j". imea aown a cnance io elect ineir

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m, “that I would have the honour ' serving as American Samoa’s last 3 pointed governor but this possiility has been negated by the :ople’s rejection of the election, for le third time in less than two years.” „ . . . . , .

Haydon said his decision had st h,mgl whatsoever to do with last ;ars Hatch Act hearings in which was charged with interfering with cal elections. Haydon was cleared

of those charges by Civil Service Commission Judge John McCarthy.

“We will leave American Samoa,” said Haydon, “with a great deal of love and affection for the Samoan people.”

TTie Haydons plan to leave in mid-October.

Haydon has not always been popular. He has been a colourful, uniquely-dedicated, demanding gover nor. He has also been an abrupt, iconoclastic governor, who has not hesitated to overpower those who stood in his way.

Haydon’s primary intent during his tenure has been to “get things done” and to “do a job”. He has been single-minded in his efforts.

Shortly after arriving in American Samoa, he shocked the local Samoan leaders when he dumped a load of rubbish on the desk of a village chief.

The point that Haydon had in mind was to show that the area was covered with the rubbish. The point the Samoans got was that he lacked re spect for the village chief.

For various reasons, Haydon had his local detractors, including news paper editor Jake King, of the Samoa News. King filed numerous suits against Haydon, none of which was successful. Haydon, for his part, has seemed to be somewhat paranoiac with regard to the Press and has been accused of attempting to manipulate the local Press.

These charges were particularly brought up when Haydon was charged with violations of the Hatch Act last year and had to appear be fore a Civil Service hearing. The charges grew mainly out of a tele vision programme done by Haydon, and radio tapes made by several local Samoan leaders. The prosecution contended that Haydon used the Press to achieve surety that he would stay in office, while Haydon con tended that he had no such intentions and that he did not interfere with the government Press.

In typical Haydon fashion, during the hearings, he managed to get into a rather vocal argument with the KVZK television news director over who could and who couW not be interviewed.

Oddly enough, although Haydon’s opponents have seemed convinced that he actually did not want an elected Samoan governor, he has seemed to be consistent in his attempts to be the last appointed gov ernor.

A bit of historical parallel is that Commander Tilley, who was the first appointed governor of American Samoa, was acquitted before a United States Navy Court Martial Board for much the same charges that Haydon faced in the Hatch Act hearings.

Haydon was surely aware of this tidy

Continued p 101

A front row seat at one of nature's fire works displays—the volcano on Karkar (Dampier) island off the New Guinea main land which, in common with her sisters, Manam and Long Island, has been giving mere humans a display of what nature can do when she tries. The three vol canoes have been ejecting lava, rocks, ash and dust at intervals since July, but there has been no immediate danger to villagers living near the volcanoes. The present eruption on Karkar, 55 km north of Madang, is coming from a cone that is almost centrally situated within an older crater about three kilometres across and 300 metres deep. Since the height of the cone is about 300 metres also, the centre of the activity is level with the rim of the old crater, and this makes a perfect vantage point. It is at this point that vulcanologist Chris McKee has been camped observing the volcano since early this year.

; of historical data, which would ve made for interesting writing th future historians of the territory.

His accomplishments have been my. The budget for the territory s grown considerably during his veraorship, but so has local infla n. The legislature has grown, es cially after becoming a full-time v-making body under Haydon. blic services and facilities have en expanded, but are still not able keep pace with demands. Much >re private enterprise has entered t territory, but the ranks of the vemment have grown also.

Haydon’s two most outstanding :omplishments are probably the nation of the Community College American Samoa and the fact that > people of American Samoa are wly moving towards more internal f-government.

Haydon, single-handed, created the mmunity College, even after con tants said that there was no local iire for such. Today it has almost ►OO students and will open at its vly-acquired Mapusaga campus in ffember.

Haydon’s insistence that Samoans put into top positions wherever

possible has not always been for the best. However, a number of very good administrators have come out of this, including Public Safety Com missioner Tufele Li’a, the new Director of Education Mere Betham and others.

This has helped build faith in the Samoan’s ability to govern and has helped lead to more willingness to be more responsible for internal govern ment. Although the idea has yet to be fully accepted, a beginning has been made.

“I’m only human,” Haydon said recently, “and I hate to leave things undone, but I feel that a good start has been made on many projects during my administration.”

Haydon, in his five years, has been only human, and he has made begin nings. For that he will be remem bered.

His wife Jean will also be remem bered, not for anything controversial, but because of the leading part she played in Samoan affairs. To her must go most of the credit for the Museum of American Samoa, fast becoming a repository of Samoan culture and history. She was also active in social and sociological circles but in all her activities she was careful never to stray into her husband’s domain and kept herself aloof from the political scene.