Nuhou, Volume II, Number 11, 19 August 1873 — The Protectorate of Fiji. THE BRITISH PREMIER ON ANNEXATION. [ARTICLE]

The Protectorate of Fiji.

THE BRITISH PREMIER ON ANNEXATION.

I Id llie Housc of CommoDS 3 June 13th, Mr. j MeArfchur, 6econded by Sir Charles Wingfield,j urged! the annexation of Fiji. Thej said that such a measurc would suppress coolieism. or . "slavc trade in thc Paeiiie," and controct lahoi'; j | and that conßidering thcir important "fitrateglCj position thc Fiji [slandc? were n* important to us ! (Great Britain) in the Pacific Oeean, as Malta ! -was in thc Mcditerrancan, , ' , } -An&'now mark the reply of the gveat statesman jofEngland: | | Mri Gladstone kt very mueh vegrctted " that> J Fyian; officials had been described as " generallj j | engaged iu what was virtually a slave ii'aAAe,*"* j * *■ 4< It \vas a very serious matter that at thlsj sidc of the world, in thls Ilouse, where thej j could not bc hcard, ehould bc deseribedasi fitter to stand in the dock of a criminal court, than to be "'with the £ovemment of a O O O country.-' ! (And that's the way we have been talked about; and somc members of Congress might be willing to annes us, in order to break up ouv u slavc traffic. v )- 45 Mr. "Thurston and j Mr. St. J.ulian had cnjoyed general respect; and j lie did not waut to go bcyond tliat whieh he , knew." * " Tiie arguments used werc terI ritorhil. eommcrcial, eeonomieal, andjncidentallj fjuancial. Ile did not follow the Hon. member f in thc territoria.l part-'of hib t>peech. Nothing I was move popular iu the llouse," (o'f RcpresentaI tive» a§ well-as Comijioils, he might have said,) i u or ,with that portion of thc llouse who felt a . livclv ii)tcrest 111 this class of questions, than ; speeclics tendmg to iucite and cucourage the I govermuciit t'»wavds the annexation of new tervi- : tory: nothing \va> ca?iev than to make out a ! plaublblc c*ate for appropviations uf tliis kind, j anel nothing was moie acccptable. The Ilon. | member T s heavt miw have been chccred by tlie | wanu cxpreseion' of npproval, whieh accumpanicd ! those porfcions of his speechc in whieli iie insisted : 011 the advantages of enlarging thc territory of i thc country; but, he would add, nothing in thc, i wurld, so mueh excited suspicion and disapproval , iu the llouse as the manifestation in any other I countvy of a similar disposition." (One would ehe Premiev was lecturiug a lot of Ameriean anncsationists.) u lt was desirable that we i should have one measiue of justiee fov ourselvcs i and fbr othcr people in this important particular ! as well in cvery s»t3)cr, It luul pleaeeel the i Almighty to endow riehly with tervitory, aud when Jic considered how the llouse labored in vaiu to iuliill its arduou? duties, and to ovcrtakc, thc eonstantly aceuuiulathi«» arrears of its eu<rairej v ; w . O O ; ments, he did not ieel elatcd at the prospcct of ; plaeing additional territory uudev our cave/\ (So mtght Congve>s say in respect to us.) * * * rt dtn?lared ov implied, that in thc event of a e/f or/(/ (jprt*sa?fnv ar!f wis/i for annexation Kngland ou the piirt of the whitc aud native population of Fiji, llev Majesty % s govevnment wouUl proeced to annex the iiauds. The conditions had not been fulfilled, llis lloiu fviend said that there was now ou ib way to | Knglaud a to tlus eftect, tiyn< J by iht • nafirrs." * * * " With rejjard to thk pctiI tion, it was uot known by icho.>n it uas ! and iu thc al>senee of intormatiou ou thc sulyeet j he did not tliink the Ilouse ehoutd bc asked to ' adopt a proposa.l of so dcfuutive and conelushe a ' oh;tvaetev. a< ihat uow '*efore thc Ilou>o." " * — : 1 - - : -H- -

Tbc religious fricndh of; thc mea?urc bad urgrd on|account of the growth of Christianityj whkannexation was to prornote *rtill Hiore amoijg t!v. naiives; but " he hardly knew how to tW sentiment witli whieh he heard the stateDjer,': that a pōpulation of about 140,000 natives an some 2,000 whites produeed 107,000 attendaf'«~ upbn Divine worship. k ' (" Īlear, hean" :*.r. verv Hkelv some *aid, wliat a wbopper. But : doiibt the statement that dumbfoimded Premier go mueh, had i l eferencc to church aeeoa - mcklation, and not to c|iurch attendanee ; and II i thafc eaee we ean astoniki the British Premier l; : telling him, that with a population of 50,000 i people, we have churc!j-room for 100 } 000 squls.) \ Mr. Gladstone did not dispute the |"of the statement t v (by'saying it was a lie) 1 • I only felt Burpr?eed to hear that the Fijians firI nished a larger propbrtion of « I ī)ivine worship than ariy other }>eople iu Chrl4: - endom. <19 (" llear, hcar, and a laugh.• , ) 1W th6nght the Premiev Was a move serious mv I than to indulge in a slieptieat ineinuatidfc, ii! r ■ | spect to a re!igious matter. But hear aga!it — |" There was no connby in whieh miseionar- ! labor had been so zealous. prolonged and i ful as New Zealand when we lt,.y--m?iny of the difficulties! whieh had since oeeunee in New Zealand might :have been avoided if Home Government had|inetituted a more carefV' j investigation, and not to have trusted i representation before |t committcd Itself to a T - j nei:ation. le \ps wisc and prudent thcrcfort ' | en#eavor to profit byj the expcrience of Nv v j Zealand, and uot commit ihe same errors iu tL j Fiji lslands." ■ # |* (Lct Secrctary Fi-1 | what Premier <JJadstone says» when Le liai the Siindwicli īslands ynder coasideration.) .1:. ! coifisidering the questio|i of anncxation the Pre: - I ieri said, *• if these islands were to be ancexc ; they would pvesent to us in thc most aggravat\ j for|m, the difficulties arjsing from marked diSlr- | on< 4 cs of raee. \Vlierc the supcrior race w. - | vevy large in , and the less dcvclupk : j and less civilized race were small ? thc diEeui v |wa;s lcss fact. In Por|to Kieo, for esauiplc, f - j though tliere was a very largc numl*cr of ncgvoe.* j yet the number of whites was extrcmcly iargv : eojnparison, and thc slave cmaucipation had bcc: e%cted without difficulty. Jamaica wa< uu j like Porto Kieo. The;whitcs were very small j nuniber in Jamaiea eompared with ehe J v j velpped racc, Thcrc | liad bccn a str uggle : j uio|iutuiu iree aistitutiop frem ISo4 to 1864. y v : j the Imperiai Pariiamout had bccu i'cluct«ut h | eompelleil to give up attcmpt and .. iu Jamaica whieli was no , j iouuded on the priueip!os of libcrty aud j atipn,*' ls uot t!us a sad admiseiou for you fn j 6uitogiets everywheie ? Mi\ Sumncr tliought | |wheu he opposc\l Domiugo auuexativ ' j Ho| kuew tlcrc eould bp uo govcrumcut iu si;eL j country exeept in thc hands of a v carpet ba£ objarc!iy; aud he was uot williug to otljer pavt of tiic woi|ld wiUi such a statej: thijngs, exeept thc Southein States of Ameno, ( he opposed the laud grav. Ai!' 4>o t jior »omewhat similar rcasous, he» iuid tua-, wUo iliiuk like him> be iucliucd te oppoek; . IlatfUium epwulative kiud Above aii,' sai|l tlic Prcmiev, ** we kuow Mothiu£ of Uia» H uestion, the and oeeupaueu gf iand, lt was defeetive. kuowlcdge ou tiic sulyect wliieli UiTolvc\l us iu au oux iu 2v«pv j Zealjji\d * 4 A "Au& it k such iguorar.v\j thot \\ould ci\\\tc &ißku\ties iu tbe Peail liarb ..

«}'U-estion. The interested promoters of the eeheme say it is a u uscless waste s ,# and yct we know it repreßeiits a iarge property value in the hands of pi'ivatc parties, and the lagoon furnisbes subsistenee to four or five hundred inhabitantH, who have rights i'n the fisfieries and the shbres, that eannot he taken a\vay from them without gross Injustiee, Look into this Mr. Seeretar}' Fish. as Premier Gladstone is ]ooking into the Fiji queseion, and pevhaps you may eoneiiKle to do as he did« ailviiSc iegislatovs ti> decline*theacq»ißitioii of Paeifie territory for the present, iu whieh adviee they ae(|uieseed/'