A Footnote to History Robert Louis Stevenson

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A Footnote to History, by Robert Louis Stevenson

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Tit!e' A Footnote to History

(ight $ears of Troub!e in Sa"oa

Author' Robert Louis Stevenson

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Transcribed from the 1912 Swanston edition by David Price, email

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A FOOTNOTE TO HISTORY

EIGHT YEARS OF TROUBLE IN

SAMOA

by Robert Louis Stevenson

PREFACE

$n affair which mi%ht be deemed worthy of a note of a few lines in any %eneralhistory has been here ex&anded to the si'e of a vol"me or lar%e &am&hlet! Thesmallness of the scale, and the sin%"larity of the manners and events and many of thecharacters, considered, it is ho&ed that, in s&ite of its o"tlandish s"b(ect, the s#etchmay find readers! )t has been a tas# of diffic"lty! S&eed was essential, or it mi%htcome too late to be of any service to a distracted co"ntry! Tr"th, in the midst ofconflictin% r"mo"rs and in the dearth of &rinted material, was often hard to ascertain,and since most of those en%a%ed were of my &ersonal ac*"aintance, it was often more

than delicate to ex&ress! ) m"st certainly have erred often and m"ch+ it is not for want
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of tro"ble ta#en nor of an im&artial tem&er! $nd if my &lain s&ea#in% shall cost meany of the friends that ) still co"nt, ) shall be sorry, b"t ) need not be ashamed!

)n one &artic"lar the s&ellin% of Samoan words has been altered+ and the characteristicnasal nof the lan%"a%e written thro"%ho"t nginstead ofg! Th"s ) &"t Pan%oPan%o,

instead of Pa%oPa%o+ the so"nd bein% that of soft ngin -n%lish, as insinger, not as infinger!

.! /! S!$)/)$,P3/,S$3$!

CHAPTER ITHE ELEMENTS OF !ISCOR!"

NATI#E

The story ) have to tell is still %oin% on as ) write+ the characters are alive and active+it is a &iece of contem&orary history in the most exact sense! $nd yet, for all itsact"ality and the &art &layed in it by mails and tele%ra&hs and iron warshi&s, the ideasand the manners of the native actors date bac# before the .oman -m&ire! They arehristians, ch"rch%oers, sin%ers of hymns at family worshi&, hardy cric#eters+ their

boo#s are &rinted in /ondon by S&ottiswoode, Tr5bner, or the Tract Society+ b"t inmost other &oints they are the contem&oraries of o"r tattooed ancestors who drovetheir chariots on the wron% side of the .oman wall! 6e have &assed the fe"dalsystem+ they are not yet clear of the &atriarchal! 6e are in the thic# of the a%e offinance+ they are in a &eriod of comm"nism! $nd this ma#es them hard to"nderstand!

To "s, with o"r fe"dal ideas, Samoa has the first a&&earance of a land of des&otism!$n elaborate co"rtliness mar#s the race alone amon% Polynesians+ terms of ceremonyfly thic# as oaths on board a shi&+ commoners mylord each other when they meetand "rchins as they &lay marbles! $nd for the real noble a whole &rivate dialect is seta&art! The common names for an axe, for blood, for bamboo, a bamboo #nife, a &i%,food, entrails, and an oven are taboo in his &resence, as the common names for a b"%and for many offices and members of the body are taboo in the drawin%rooms of-n%lish ladies! S&ecial words are set a&art for his le%, his face, his hair, his belly, his

eyelids, his son, his da"%hter, his wife, his wife8s &re%nancy, his wife8s ad"ltery,ad"ltery with his wife, his dwellin%, his s&ear, his comb, his slee&, his dreams, hisan%er, the m"t"al an%er of several chiefs, his food, his &leas"re in eatin%, the food andeatin% of his &i%eons, his "lcers, his co"%h, his sic#ness, his recovery, his death, his

bein% carried on a bier, the exh"mation of his bones, and his s#"ll after death! Toaddress these demi%ods is *"ite a branch of #nowled%e, and he who %oes to visit ahi%h chief does well to ma#e s"re of the com&etence of his inter&reter! To com&letethe &ict"re, the same word si%nifies the watchin% of a vir%in and the wardin% of achief+ and the same word means to cherish a chief and to fondle a favo"rite child!

en li#e "s, f"ll of memories of fe"dalism, hear of a man so addressed, so flattered,

and we lea& at once to the concl"sion that he is hereditary and absol"te! ereditaryhe is+ born of a %reat family, he m"st always be a man of mar#+ b"t yet his office is


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elective and :in a wea# sense; is held on %ood behavio"r! om&are the case of ai%hland chief< born one of the %reat ones of his clan, he was sometimes a&&ointed itschief officer and conventional father+ was loved, and res&ected, and served, and fed,and died for im&licitly, if he %ave loyalty a chance+ and yet if he s"fficiently o"tra%edclan sentiment, was liable to de&osition! $s to a"thority, the &arallel is not so close!

Do"btless the Samoan chief, if he be &o&"lar, wields a %reat infl"ence+ b"t it islimited! )m&ortant matters are debated in a fono, or native &arliament, with itsfeastin% and &arade, its endless s&eeches and &olite %enealo%ical all"sions! Debated, )saynot decided+ for even a small minority will often stri#e a clan or a &rovinceim&otent! )n the midst of these ineffective co"ncils the chief sits "s"ally silent< a #indof a %a%%ed a"dience for villa%e orators! $nd the deliverance of the fono seems :forthe moment; to be final! The absol"te chiefs of Tahiti and awaii were addressed as

&lain =ohn and Thomas+ the chiefs of Samoa are s"rfeited with li&hono"r, b"t the seatand extent of their act"al a"thority is hard to find!

)t is so in the members of the state, and worse in the belly! The idea of a soverei%n

&ervades the air+ the name we have+ the thin% we are not so s"re of! $nd the &rocessof election to the chief &ower is a mystery! ertain &rovinces have in their %ift certainhi%h titles, or names, as they are called! These can only be attrib"ted to thedescendants of &artic"lar lines! 3nce %ranted, each name conveys at once the

&rinci&ality :whatever that be worth; of the &rovince which bestows it, and co"nts asone s"ffra%e towards the %eneral soverei%nty of Samoa! To be ind"bitable #in%, theysay, or some of them say,) find few in &erfect harmony,a man sho"ld res"me fiveof these names in his own &erson! >"t the case is &"rely hy&othetical+ local (ealo"syforbids its occ"rrence! There are rival &rovinces, far more concerned in the

&rosec"tion of their rivalry than in the choice of a ri%ht man for #in%! )f one of theseshall have bestowed its name on com&etitor $, it will be the si%nal and the s"fficientreason for the other to bestow its name on com&etitor > or ! The ma(ority of Savaiiand that of $ana are th"s in &erennial o&&osition! ?or is this all! )n 1@@1, /a"&e&a,the &resent #in%, held the three names of alietoa, ?atoaitele, and Tamasoalii+Tamasese held that of T"iaana+ and ataafa that of T"iat"a! /a"&e&a had th"s ama(ority of s"ffra%es+ he held &erha&s as hi%h a &ro&ortion as can be ho&ed in thesedistracted islands+ and he co"nted amon% the n"mber the &re&onderant name ofalietoa! ere, if ever, was an election! ere, if a #in% were at all &ossible, was the#in%! $nd yet the natives were not satisfied! /a"&e&a was crowned, arch 19th+ andnext month, the &rovinces of $ana and $t"a met in (oint &arliament, and elected theirown two &rinces, Tamasese and ataafa, to an alternate monarchy, Tamasese ta#in%

the first tric# of two years! 6ar was imminent, when the cons"ls interfered, and anywar were &referable to the terms of the &eace which they &roc"red! >y the/ac#awanna treaty, /a"&e&a was confirmed #in%, and Tamasese set by his side in thenondescri&t office of vice#in%! The com&romise was not, ) am told, witho"t

&recedent+ b"t it lac#ed all a&&earance of s"ccess! To the constit"tion of Samoa,which was already all wheels and no horses, the cons"ls had added a fifth wheel! )naddition to the old con"ndr"m, A6ho is the #in%BC they had s"&&lied a new one,A6hat is the vice#in%BC

Two royal lines+ some clo"dy idea of alternation between the two+ an electorate inwhich the vote of each &rovince is immediately effect"al, as re%ards itself, so that

every candidate who attains one name becomes a &er&et"al and dan%ero"s com&etitorfor the other fo"r< s"ch are a few of the more trenchant abs"rdities! any ar%"e that


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the whole idea of soverei%nty is modern and im&orted+ b"t it seems im&ossible thatanythin% so foolish sho"ld have been s"ddenly devised, and the constit"tion bears onits front the mar#s of dota%e!

>"t the #in%, once elected and nominated, what does he becomeB )t may be said he

remains &recisely as he was! -lection to one of the five names is si%nificant+ it brin%snot only di%nity b"t &ower, and the holder is sec"re, from that moment, of a certainfollowin% in war! >"t ) cannot find that the f"rther ste& of election to the #in%shi&im&lies anythin% worth mention! The s"ccessf"l candidate is now the Tupu o Samoa

m"ch %ood may it do him e can so si%n himself on &roclamations, which it doesnot follow that any one will heed! e can s"mmon &arliaments+ it does not followthey will assemble! )f he be too fla%rantly disobeyed, he can %o to war! >"t so heco"ld before, when he was only the chief of certain &rovinces! is own &rovinceswill s"&&ort him, the &rovinces of his rivals will ta#e the field "&on the other &art+ ("stas before! )n so far as he is the holder of any of the five names, in short, he is a manto be rec#oned with+ in so far as he is #in% of Samoa, ) cannot find b"t what the

&resident of a colle%e debatin% society is a far more formidable officer! $nd"nfort"nately, altho"%h the credit side of the acco"nt &roves th"s ima%inary, the debitside is act"al and heavy! Eor he is now set "& to be the mar# of cons"ls+ he will be

bad%ered to raise taxes, to ma#e roads, to &"nish crime, to *"ell rebellion< and how heis to do it is not as#ed!

)f ) am in the least ri%ht in my &resentation of this obsc"re matter, no one need bes"r&rised to hear that the land is f"ll of war and r"mo"rs of war! Scarce a year %oes

by b"t what some &rovince is in arms, or sits s"l#y and menacin%, holdin%&arliaments, disre%ardin% the #in%8s &roclamations and &lantin% food in the b"sh, thefirst ste& of military &re&aration! The reli%io"s sentiment of the &eo&le is indeed for

&eace at any &rice+ no &astor can bear arms+ and even the layman who does so isdenied the sacraments! )n the last war the colle%e of Fl"a, where the &ic#ed yo"thare &re&ared for the ministry, lost b"t a sin%le st"dent+ the rest, in the bosom of a

bleedin% co"ntry, and deaf to the voices of vanity and hono"r, &eacef"lly &"rs"edtheir st"dies! >"t if the ch"rch loo#s as#ance on war, the warrior in no extremity ofneed or &assion for%ets his consideration for the ch"rch! The ho"ses and %ardens ofher ministers stand safe in the midst of armies+ a way is reserved for themselves alon%the beach, where they may be seen in their white #ilts and (ac#ets o&enly &assin% thelines, while not a h"ndred yards behind the s#irmishers will be exchan%in% the "selessvolleys of barbaric warfare! 6omen are also res&ected+ they are not fired "&on+ and

they are s"ffered to &ass between the hostile cam&s, exchan%in% %ossi&, s&readin%r"mo"r, and div"l%in% to either army the secret co"ncils of the other! This is &lainlyno sava%e war+ it has all the &"nctilio of the barbarian, and all his &arade+ feasts

&recede battles, fine dresses and son%s decorate and enliven the field+ and the yo"n%soldier comes to cam& b"rnin% :on the one hand; to distin%"ish himself by acts ofvalo"r, and :on the other; to dis&lay his ac*"aintance with field eti*"ette! Th"s afterataafa became involved in hostilities a%ainst the Germans, and had another code toobserve beside his own, he was always as#in% his white advisers if Athin%s were donecorrectly!C /et "s try to be as wise as ataafa, and to conceive that eti*"ette andmorals differ in one co"ntry and another! 6e shall be the less s"r&rised to findSamoan war defaced with some "n&alatable c"stoms! The childish destr"ction of

fr"ittrees in an enemy8s co"ntry cri&&les the reso"rces of Samoa+ and the habit ofheadh"ntin% not only revolts forei%ners, b"t has be%"n to exercise the minds of the


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natives themselves! Soon after the German heads were ta#en, r! arne, 6esleyanmissionary, had occasion to visit ataafa8s cam&, and s&o#e of the &ractice withabhorrence! Aisi HFne,C said one chief, Awe have ("st been &"''lin% o"rselves to%"ess where that c"stom came from! >"t, isi, is it not so that when David #illedGoliath, he c"t off his head and carried it before the #in%BC

6ith the civil life of the inhabitants we have far less to do+ and yet even here a wordof &re&aration is inevitable! They are easy, merry, and &leas"relovin%+ the %ayest,tho"%h by far from either the most ca&able or the most bea"tif"l of Polynesians! Einedress is a &assion, and ma#es a Samoan festival a thin% of bea"ty! Son% is almostceaseless! The boatman sin%s at the oar, the family at evenin% worshi&, the %irls atni%ht in the %"estho"se, sometimes the wor#man at his toil! ?o occasion is too smallfor the &oets and m"sicians+ a death, a visit, the day8s news, the day8s &leasantry, will

be set to rhyme and harmony! -ven half%rown %irls, the occasion arisin%, fashionwords and train chor"ses of children for its celebration! Son%, as with all Pacificislanders, %oes hand in hand with the dance, and both shade into the drama! Some of

the &erformances are indecent and "%ly, some only d"ll+ others are &retty, f"nny, andattractive! Games are &o&"lar! ric#etmatches, where a h"ndred &layed "&on a side,end"red at times for wee#s, and ate "& the co"ntry li#e the &resence of an army!Eishin%, the daily bath, flirtation+ co"rtshi&, which is %one "&on by &roxy+conversation, which is lar%ely &olitical+ and the deli%hts of &"blic oratory, fill in thelon% ho"rs!

>"t the s&ecial deli%ht of the Samoan is the malanga! 6hen &eo&le form a &arty and%o from villa%e to villa%e, ("n#etin% and %ossi&in%, they are said to %o on a malanga!Their son%s have anno"nced their a&&roach ere they arrive+ the %"estho"se is

&re&ared for their rece&tion+ the vir%ins of the villa%e attend to &re&are the #ava bowland entertain them with the dance+ time flies in the en(oyment of every &leas"re whichan islander conceives+ and when the malangasets forth, the same welcome and thesame (oys ex&ect them beyond the next ca&e, where the nearest villa%e nestles in its%rove of &alms! To the visitors it is all %olden+ for the hosts, it has another side! )none or two words of the lan%"a%e the fact &ee&s slyly o"t! The same word:afemoeina; ex&resses Aa lon% callC and Ato come as a calamityC+ the same word:lesolosolou; si%nifies Ato have no intermission of &ainC and Ato have no cessation, asin the arrival of visitorsC+ andsoua, "sed of e&idemics, bears the sense of bein%overcome as with Afire, flood, or visitors!C >"t the %em of the dictionary is the verbalovao, which ill"strates its &a%es li#e a h"moro"s woodc"t! )t is "sed in the sense of

Ato avoid visitors,C b"t it means literally Ahide in the wood!C So, by the s"re hand of&o&"lar s&eech, we have the &ict"re of the ho"se deserted, the malangadisa&&ointed,and the host that sho"ld have been *"a#in% in the b"sh!

6e are th"s bro"%ht to the be%innin% of a series of traits of manners, hi%hly c"rio"s inthemselves, and essential to an "nderstandin% of the war! )n Samoa a"thority sits onthe one hand entranced+ on the other, &ro&erty stands bo"nd in the midst of charteredmara"ders! 6hat &ro&erty exists is vested in the family, not in the individ"al+ and ofthe loose comm"nism in which a family dwells, the dictionary may yet a%ain hel& "sto some idea! ) find a strin% of verbs with the followin% senses< to deal leniently with,as in hel&in% oneself from a family &lantation+ to %ive away witho"t cons"ltin% other

members of the family+ to %o to stran%ers for hel& instead of to relatives+ to ta#e fromrelatives witho"t &ermission+ to steal from relatives+ to have &lantations robbed by


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relatives! The ideal of cond"ct in the family, and some of its de&ravations, a&&earhere very &lainly! The man who :in a native word of &raise; is mata-ainga, a racere%arder, has his hand always o&en to his #indred+ the man who is not :in a nativeterm of contem&t; noa, #nows always where to t"rn in any &inch of want or extremityof la'iness! >e%%ary within the familyand by the less selfres&ectin%, witho"t it

has th"s %rown into a c"stom and a sco"r%e, and the dictionary teems with evidenceof its ab"se! S&ecial words si%nify the be%%in% of food, of "ncoo#ed food, of fish, of

&i%s, of &i%s for travellers, of &i%s for stoc#, of taro, of taroto&s, of taroto&s for&lantin%, of tools, of flyhoo#s, of im&lements for nettin% &i%eons, and of mats! )t istr"e the be%%ar was s"&&osed in time to ma#e a ret"rn, somewhat as by the .omancontract of mutuum! >"t the obli%ation was only moral+ it co"ld not be, or was not,enforced+ as a matter of fact, it was disre%arded! The lan%"a%e had recently to borrowfrom the Tahitians a word for debt+ while by a si%nificant excidence, it &ossessed anative ex&ression for the fail"re to &ayAto omit to ma#e a ret"rn for &ro&erty

be%%ed!C onceive now the &osition of the ho"seholder besie%ed by har&ies, and alldefence denied him by the laws of hono"r! The sacramental %est"re of ref"sal, his

last and sin%le reso"rce, was s"&&osed to si%nify Amy ho"se is destit"te!C ntil that&oint was reached, in other words, the cond"ct &rescribed for a Samoan was to %iveand to contin"e %ivin%! >"t it does not a&&ear he was at all ex&ected to %ive with a%ood %race! The dictionary is well stoc#ed with ex&ressions standin% ready, li#emissiles, to be dischar%ed "&on the loc"stsAtroo& of shamefaced ones,C Ayo" drawin yo"r head li#e a tern,C Ayo" ma#e yo"r voice small li#e a whistle&i&e,C Ayo" be%li#e one delirio"sC+ and the verbpongitai, Ato loo# cross,C is e*"i&&ed with the

&re%nant rider, Aas at the si%ht of be%%ars!C

This insolence of be%%ars and the wea#ness of &ro&rietors can only be ill"strated byexam&les! 6e have a %irl in o"r service to whom we had %iven some finery, that shemi%ht wait at table, and :at her own re*"est; some warm clothin% a%ainst the coldmornin%s of the b"sh! She went on a visit to her family, and ret"rned in an oldtablecloth, her whole wardrobe havin% been divided o"t amon% relatives in the co"rseof twentyfo"r ho"rs! $ &astor in the &rovince of $t"a, bein% a handy, b"sy man,

bo"%ht a boat for a h"ndred dollars, fifty of which he &aid down! Presently after,relatives came to him "&on a visit and too# a fancy to his new &ossession! A6e havelon% been wantin% a boat,C said they! AGive "s this one!C So, when the visit wasdone, they de&arted in the boat! The &astor, meanwhile, travelled into Savaii the bestway he co"ld, sold a &arcel of land, and be%%ed mats amon% his other relatives, to &aythe remainder of the &rice of the boat which was no lon%er his! Io" mi%ht thin# this

was eno"%h+ b"t some months later, the har&ies, havin% bro#en a thwart, bro"%ht bac#the boat to be re&aired and re&ainted by the ori%inal owner!

S"ch c"stoms, it mi%ht be ar%"ed, bein% do"bleed%ed, will "ltimately ri%htthemselves! >"t it is otherwise in &ractice! S"ch fol# as the &astor8s har&y relativeswill %enerally have a boat, and will never have &aid for it+ s"ch men as the &astor mayhave sometimes &aid for a boat, b"t they will never have one! )t is there as it is with"s at home< the meas"re of the ab"se of either system is the blac#ness of theindivid"al heart! The same man, who wo"ld drive his &oor relatives from his owndoor in -n%land, wo"ld besie%e in Samoa the doors of the rich+ and the essence of thedishonesty in either case is to &"rs"e one8s own advanta%e and to be indifferent to the

losses of one8s nei%hbo"r! >"t the &artic"lar drawbac# of the Polynesian system is tode&ress and sta%%er ind"stry! To wor# more is there only to be more &illa%ed+ to save


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is im&ossible! The family has then made a %ood day of it when all are filled andnothin% remains over for the crew of freebooters+ and the in("stice of the system

be%ins to be reco%nised even in Samoa! 3ne native is said to have amassed a certainfort"ne+ two clever lads have individ"ally ex&ressed to "s their discontent with asystem which taxes ind"stry to &am&er idleness+ and ) hear that in one villa%e of

Savaii a law has been &assed forbiddin% %ifts "nder the &enalty of a shar& fine!

nder this economic re%imen, the "n&o&"larity of taxes, which stri#e all at the sametime, which ex&ose the ind"strio"s to a &erfect sie%e of mendicancy, and the la'y to

be act"ally condemned to a day8s labo"r, may be ima%ined witho"t words! )t is moreim&ortant to note the conc"rrent relaxation of all sense of &ro&erty! Erom a&&lyin%for hel& to #insmen who are scarce &ermitted to ref"se, it is b"t a ste& to ta#in% fromthem :in the dictionary &hrase; Awitho"t &ermissionC+ from that to theft at lar%e is b"ta hair8sbreadth!

CHAPTER IITHE ELEMENTS OF !ISCOR!"FOREIGN

The h"%e ma(ority of Samoans, li#e other Godfearin% fol# in other co"ntries, are&erfectly content with their own manners! $nd "&on one condition, it is &lain theymi%ht en(oy themselves far beyond the avera%e of man! Seated in islands very rich infood, the idleness of the many idle wo"ld scarce matter+ and the &rovinces mi%htcontin"e to bestow their names amon% rival &retenders, and fall into war and en(oythat a while, and dro& into &eace and en(oy that, in a manner hi%hly to be envied! >"tthe conditionthat they sho"ld be let aloneis now no lon%er &ossible! ore than ah"ndred years a%o, and followin% closely on the heels of oo#, an irre%"lar invasionof advent"rers be%an to swarm abo"t the isles of the Pacific! The seven slee&ers ofPolynesia stand, still b"t half aro"sed, in the midst of the cent"ry of com&etition! $ndthe island races, com&arable to a sho&f"l of croc#ery la"nched "&on the stream oftime, now fall to ma#e their des&erate voya%e amon% &ots of brass and adamant!

$&ia, the &ort and mart, is the seat of the &olitical sic#ness of Samoa! $t the foot of a&ea#ed, woody mo"ntain, the coast ma#es a dee& indent, ro"%hly semicirc"lar! )nfront the barrier reef is bro#en by the fresh water of the streams+ if the swell be fromthe north, it enters almost witho"t dimin"tion+ and the warshi&s roll di''ily at theirmoorin%s, and alon% the frin%in% coral which follows the confi%"ration of the beach,

the s"rf brea#s with a contin"o"s "&roar! )n wild weather, as the world #nows, theroads are "ntenable! $lon% the whole shore, which is everywhere %reen and level andoverloo#ed by inland mo"ntainto&s, the town lies drawn o"t in strin%s and cl"sters!The western horn is "lin"", the eastern, ata"t"+ and from one to the other of theseextremes, ) as# the reader to wal#! e will find more of the history of Samoa s&read

before his eyes in that exc"rsion, than has yet been collected in the bl"eboo#s or thewhiteboo#s of the world! "lin"" :where the wal# is to be%in; is a flat, windswe&t

&romontory, &lanted with &alms, bac#ed a%ainst a swam& of man%roves, and occ"&iedby a rather miserable villa%e! The reader is informed that this is the &ro&er residenceof the Samoan #in%s+ he will be the more s"r&rised to observe a board set "&, and toread that this historic villa%e is the &ro&erty of the German firm! >"t these boards,

which are amon% the commonest feat"res of the landsca&e, may be rather ta#en toim&ly that the claim has been dis&"ted! $ little farther east he s#irts the stores,


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offices, and barrac#s of the firm itself! Thence he will &ass thro"%h atafele, the onereally townli#e &ortion of this lon% strin% of villa%es, by German bars and stores andthe German cons"late+ and reach the atholic mission and cathedral standin% by themo"th of a small river! The brid%e which crosses here :brid%e of "livai; is afrontier+ behind is atafele+ beyond, $&ia &ro&er+ behind, Germans are s"&reme+

beyond, with b"t few exce&tions, all is $n%loSaxon! ere the reader will %o forward&ast the stores of r! oors :$merican; and essrs! ac$rth"r :-n%lish;+ &ast the-n%lish mission, the office of the -n%lish news&a&er, the -n%lish ch"rch, and the old$merican cons"late, till he reaches the mo"th of a lar%er river, the aisin%ano!>eyond, in ata"t", his way ta#es him in the shade of many trees and by scattereddwellin%s, and &resently brin%s him beside a %reat ran%e of offices, the &lace and themon"ment of a German who fo"%ht the German firm d"rin% his life! is ho"se :nowhe is dead; remains &ointed li#e a dischar%ed cannon at the citadel of his old enemies!Eitly eno"%h, it is at &resent leased and occ"&ied by -n%lishmen! $ little farther, andthe reader %ains the eastern flan#in% an%le of the bay, where stands the &ilotho"seand si%nal&ost, and whence he can see, on the line of the main coast of the island, the

>ritish and the new $merican cons"lates!

The co"rse of his wal# will have been enlivened by a considerable to and fro of&leas"re and b"siness! e will have enco"ntered many varieties of whites,sailors,merchants, cler#s, &riests, Protestant missionaries in their &ith helmets, and thenondescri&t han%erson of any island beach! $nd the sailors are sometimes inconsiderable force+ b"t not the residents! e will thin# at times there are moresi%nboards than men to own them! )t may chance it is a f"ll day in the harbo"r+ hewill then have seen all manner of shi&s, from menofwar and dee&sea &ac#ets to thelabo"r vessels of the German firm and the coc#boat island schooner+ and if he be ofan arithmetical t"rn, he may calc"late that there are more whites afloat in $&ia baythan whites ashore in the whole $rchi&ela%o! 3n the other hand, he will haveenco"ntered all ran#s of natives, chiefs and &astors in their scr"&"lo"s white clothes+

&erha&s the #in% himself, attended by %"ards in "niform+ smilin% &olicemen with their&ewter stars+ %irls, women, crowds of cheerf"l children! $nd he will have as#edhimself with some s"r&rise where these reside! ere and there, in the bac# yards of-"ro&ean establishments, he may have had a %lim&se of a native ho"se elbowed in acorner+ b"t since he left "lin"", none on the beach where islanders &refer to live,scarce one on the line of street! The handf"l of whites have everythin%+ the nativeswal# in a forei%n town! $ year a%o, on a #noll behind a barroom, he mi%ht haveobserved a native ho"se %"arded by sentries and flown over by the standard of

Samoa! e wo"ld then have been told it was the seat of %overnment, driven :as )have to relate; over the "livai and from beyond the German town into the $n%loSaxon! Today, he will learn it has been carted bac# a%ain to its old *"arters! $nd hewill thin# it si%nificant that the #in% of the islands sho"ld be th"s sh"ttled to and fro inhis chief city at the nod of aliens! $nd then he will observe a feat"re more si%nificantstill< a ho"se with some conco"rse of affairs, &olicemen and idlers han%in% by, a manat a ban#co"nter overha"lin% manifests, &erha&s a trial &roceedin% in the frontverandah, or &erha&s the co"ncil brea#in% "& in #nots after a stormy sittin%! $nd hewill remember that he is in theEleele Sa, the AEorbidden Soil,C or ?e"tral Territory ofthe treaties+ that the ma%istrate whom he has ("st seen tryin% native criminals is noofficer of the native #in%8s+ and that this, the only &ort and &lace of b"siness in the

#in%dom, collects and administers its own reven"e for its own behoof by the hands ofwhite co"ncillors and "nder the s"&ervision of white cons"ls! /et him %o f"rther


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afield! e will find the roads almost everywhere to cease or to be made im&assableby native &i%fences, brid%es to be *"ite "n#nown, and ho"ses of the whites tobecome at once a rare exce&tion! Set aside the German &lantations, and the frontier isshar&! $t the bo"ndary of theEleele Sa, -"ro&e ends, Samoa be%ins! ere, then, is asin%"lar state of affairs< all the money, l"x"ry, and b"siness of the #in%dom centred in

one &lace+ that &lace exce&ted from the native %overnment and administered by whitesfor whites+ and the whites themselves holdin% it not in common b"t in hostile cam&s,so that it lies between them li#e a bone between two do%s, each %rowlin%, eachcl"tchin% his own end!

Sho"ld $&ia ever choose a coat of arms, ) have a motto ready< A-nter ."mo"r &aintedf"ll of ton%"es!C The ma(ority of the natives do extremely little+ the ma(ority of thewhites are merchants with some fo"r mails in the month, shoee&ers with some tenor twenty c"stomers a day, and %ossi& is the common reso"rce of all! The town h"msto the day8s news, and the bars are crowded with amate"r &oliticians! Some areofficesee#ers, and earwi% #in% and cons"l, and com&ass the fall of officials, with an

eye to salary! Some are h"morists, deli%hted with the &leas"re of faction for itself! A)never saw so %ood a &lace as this $&ia,C said one of these+ Ayo" can be in a newcons&iracy every dayC any, on the other hand, are sincerely concerned for thef"t"re of the co"ntry! The *"arters are so close and the scale is so small, that &erha&snot any one can be tr"sted always to &reserve his tem&er! -very one tells everythin%he #nows+ that is o"r co"ntry sic#ness! ?early every one has been betrayed at times,and told a trifle more+ the way o"r sic#ness ta#es the &redis&osed! $nd the news flies,and the ton%"es wa%, and fists are sha#en! Pot boil and caldron b"bble

6ithin the memory of man, the white &eo&le of $&ia lay in the worst s*"alor ofde%radation! They are now "ns&ea#ably im&roved, both men and women! Todaythey m"st be called a more than fairly res&ectable &o&"lation, and a m"ch more thanfairly intelli%ent! The whole wo"ld &robably not fill the ran#s of even an -n%lishhalfbattalion, yet there are a s"r&risin% n"mber above the avera%e in sense,#nowled%e, and manners! The tro"ble :for Samoa; is that they are all here after alivelihood! Some are shar& &ractitioners, some are famo"s :("stly or not; for fo"l &layin b"siness! Tales fly! 3ne merchant warns yo" a%ainst his nei%hbo"r+ the nei%hbo"ron the first occasion is fo"nd to ret"rn the com&liment< each with a %oodcirc"mstantial story to the &roof! There is so m"ch co&ra in the islands, and no more+a man8s share of it is his share of bread+ and commerce, li#e &olitics, is here narrowedto a foc"s, shows its "%ly side, and becomes as &ersonal as fistic"ffs! lose at their

elbows, in all this contention, stands the native loo#in% on! /i#e a child, his tr"eanalo%"e, he observes, a&&rehends, misa&&rehends, and is "s"ally silent! $s in achild, a considerable intem&erance of s&eech is accom&anied by some &ower ofsecrecy! ?ews he &"blishes+ his tho"%hts have often to be d"% for! e loo#s on at ther"de career of the dollarh"nt, and wonders! e sees these men rollin% in a l"x"ry

beyond the ambition of native #in%s+ he hears them acc"sed by each other of themeanest tric#ery+ he #nows some of them to be %"ilty+ and what is he to thin#B e isstron%ly conscio"s of his own &osition as the common mil#cow+ and what is he todoB AS"rely these white men on the beach are not %reat chiefsBC is a common*"estion, &erha&s as#ed with some desi%n of flatterin% the &erson *"estioned! $ndone, st"n% by the last incident into an "n"s"al flow of -n%lish, remar#ed to me< A)

be%in to be weary of white men on the beach!C


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>"t the tr"e centre of tro"ble, the head of the boil of which Samoa lan%"ishes, is theGerman firm! Erom the conditions of b"siness, a %reat island ho"se m"st ever be aninheritance of care+ and it chances that the %reatest still afoot has its chief seat in $&ia

bay, and has s"n# the main &art of its ca&ital in the island of &ol"! 6hen itsfo"nder, =ohn Jsar Godeffroy, went ban#r"&t over ."ssian &a&er and 6est&halian

iron, his most considerable asset was fo"nd to be the So"th Sea b"siness! This &assed:) "nderstand; thro"%h the hands of >arin% >rothers in /ondon, and is now r"n by acom&any re(oicin% in the Gar%ant"an name of theDeutsche Handels und PlantagenGesellschaft fr Sd-See Inseln zu Hamburg! This &iece of literat"re is :in &ractice;shortened to the D! ! and P! G!, the 3ld Eirm, the German Eirm, the Eirm, and:amon% h"morists; the /on% andle Eirm! -ven from the dec# of an a&&roachin%shi&, the island is seen to bear its si%nat"re'ones of c"ltivation showin% in a morevivid tint of %reen on the dar# vest of forest! The total area in "se is near ten tho"sandacres! ed%es of fra%rant lime enclose, broad aven"es intersect them! Io" shall wal#for ho"rs in &ar#s of &almtree alleys, re%"lar, li#e soldiers on &arade+ in the recessesof the hills yo" may st"mble on a millho"se, toilin% and tremblin% there, fathoms

dee& in s"&erinc"mbent forest! 3n the car&et of clean sward, troo&s of horses andherds of handsome cattle may be seen to browse+ and to one acc"stomed to the ro"%hl"x"riance of the tro&ics, the a&&earance is of fairyland! The mana%ers, many of themGerman seaca&tains, are enth"siastic in their new em&loyment! -x&eriment iscontin"ally afoot< coffee and cacao, both of excellent *"ality, are amon% the morerecent o"t&"ts+ and from one &lantation *"antities of &inea&&les are sent at a &artic"larseason to the Sydney mar#ets! $ h"ndred and fifty tho"sand &o"nds of -n%lishmoney, &erha&s two h"ndred tho"sand, lie s"n# in these ma%nificent estates! )nestimatin% the ex&ense of maintenance *"ite a fleet of shi&s m"st be remembered, anda stron% staff of ca&tains, s"&ercar%oes, overseers, and cler#s! These last messto%ether at a liberal board+ the wa%es are hi%h, and the staff is ins&ired with a stron%and &leasin% sentiment of loyalty to their em&loyers!

Seven or ei%ht h"ndred im&orted men and women toil for the com&any on contracts ofthree or of five years, and at a hy&othetical wa%e of a few dollars in the month! ) amnow on a b"rnin% *"estion< the labo"r traffic+ and ) shall as# &ermission in this &laceonly to to"ch it with the ton%s! S"ffice it to say that in K"eensland, Ei(i, ?ewaledonia, and awaii it has been either s"&&ressed or &laced "nder close &"blics"&ervision! )n Samoa, where it still flo"rishes, there is no re%"lation of which the

&"blic receives any evidence+ and the dirty linen of the firm, if there be any dirty, andif it be ever washed at all, is washed in &rivate! This is "nfort"nate, if Germans wo"ld

believe it! >"t they have no idea of &"blicity, #ee& their b"siness to themselves,rather affect to Amove in a mysterio"s way,C and are nat"rally incensed by criticisms,which they consider hy&ocritical, from men who wo"ld im&ort Alabo"rC forthemselves, if they co"ld afford it, and wo"ld &robably maltreat them if they dared! )tis said the whi& is very b"sy on some of the &lantations+ it is said that &"nitive extralabo"r, by which the thrall8s term of service is extended, has %rown to be an ab"se+and it is com&lained that, even where that term is o"t, m"ch irre%"larity occ"rs in there&atriation of the dischar%ed! To all this ) can say nothin%, %ood or bad! $ certainn"mber of the thralls, many of them wild ne%ritos from the west, have ta#en to the

b"sh, harbo"r there in a state &artly bestial, or cree& into the bac# *"arters of the townto do a day8s stealthy labo"r "nder the nose of their &ro&rietors! Twelve were arrested

one mornin% in my own boys8 #itchen! Earther in the b"sh, h"ts, small &atches ofc"ltivation, and smo#in% ovens, have been fo"nd by h"nters! There are still three


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r"naways in the woods of T"t"ila, whither they esca&ed "&on a raft! $nd theSamoans re%ard these dar#s#inned ran%ers with extreme alarm+ the fo"rth ref"%ee inT"t"ila was shot down :as ) was told in that island; while carryin% off the vir%in of avilla%e+ and tales of cannibalism r"n ro"nd the co"ntry, and the natives sh"dder abo"tthe evenin% fire! Eor the Samoans are not cannibals, do not seem to remember when

they were, and re%ard the &ractice with a disfavo"r e*"al to o"r own!

The firm is G"lliver amon% the /illi&"ts+ and it m"st not be for%otten, that while thesmall, inde&endent traders are fi%htin% for their own hand, and inflamed with the"s"al (ealo"sy a%ainst cor&orations, the Germans are ins&ired with a sense of the%reatness of their affairs and interests! The tho"%ht of the money s"n#, the si%ht ofthese costly and bea"tif"l &lantations, menaced yearly by the ret"rnin% forest, and theres&onsibility of administerin% with one hand so many con("nct fort"nes, mi%ht wellnerve the mana%er of s"ch a com&any for des&erate and *"estionable deeds! &onthis scale, commercial shar&ness has an air of &atriotism+ and ) can ima%ine the man,so far from ha%%lin% over the sco"r%e for a few Solomon islanders, &re&ared to

o&&ress rival firms, overthrow inconvenient monarchs, and let loose the do%s of war!6hatever he may decide, he will not want for bac#in%! -very cler# will be ea%er to

be "& and stri#e a blow+ and most Germans in the %ro"&, whatever they may babble ofthe firm over the waln"ts and the wine, will rally ro"nd the national concern at thea&&roach of diffic"lty! They are so few) am ashamed to %ive their n"mber, it wereto challen%e contradictionthey are so few, and the amo"nt of national ca&ital b"riedat their feet is so vast, that we m"st not wonder if they seem o&&ressed with %reatnessand the sense of em&ire! 3ther whites ta#e &art in o"r brabbles, while tem&er holdso"t, with a certain schoolboy entertainment! )n the Germans alone, no trace ofh"mo"r is to be observed, and their solemnity is accom&anied by a to"chiness often

beyond belief! Patriotism flies in arms abo"t a hen+ and if yo" comment "&on thecolo"r of a D"tch "mbrella, yo" have cast a stone a%ainst the German -m&eror! )%ive one instance, ty&ical altho"%h extreme! 3ne who had ret"rned from T"t"ila onthe mail c"tter com&lained of the vermin with which she is infested! e was s"ddenlyand shar&ly bro"%ht to a stand! The shi& of which he s&o#e, he was reminded, was aGerman shi&!

=ohn Jsar Godeffroy himself had never visited the islands+ his sons and ne&hewscame, indeed, b"t scarcely to rea& la"rels+ and the mains&rin% and head&iece of this%reat concern, "ntil death too# him, was a certain remar#able man of the name ofTheodor 6eber! e was of an artf"l and commandin% character+ in the smallest thin%

or the %reatest, witho"t fear or scr"&le+ e*"ally able to affect, e*"ally ready to ado&t,the most en%a%in% &oliteness or the most im&erio"s airs of domination! )t was he whodid most dama%e to rival traders+ it was he who most harried the Samoans+ and yet )never met any one, white or native, who did not res&ect his memory! $ll felt it was a%allant battle, and the man a %reat fi%hter+ and now when he is dead, and the warseems to have %one a%ainst him, many can scarce remember, witho"t a #ind of re%ret,how m"ch devotion and a"dacity have been s&ent in vain! is name still lives in theson%s of Samoa! 3ne, that ) have heard, tells ofisi !ebaand a bisc"itboxthes"%%estin% incident bein% lon% since for%otten! $nother sin%s &laintively how allthin%s, land and food and &ro&erty, &ass &ro%ressively, as by a law of nat"re, into thehands ofisi !eba, and soon nothin% will be left for Samoans! This is an e&ita&h the

man wo"ld have en(oyed!


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$t one &eriod of his career, 6eber combined the offices of director of the firm andcons"l for the ity of amb"r%! ?o *"estion b"t he then drove very hard! Germansadmit that the combination was "nfort"nate+ and it was a German who &roc"red itsoverthrow! a&tain Lembsch s"&erseded him with an im&erial a&&ointment, one stillremembered in Samoa as Athe %entleman who acted ("stly!C There was no ho"se to be

fo"nd, and the new cons"l m"st ta#e "& his *"arters at first "nder the same roof with6eber! 3n several *"estions, in which the firm was vitally interested, Lembschembraced the contrary o&inion! .idin% one day with an -n%lishman in ailele

&lantation, he was startled by a b"rst of screamin%, lea&ed from the saddle, ran ro"nda ho"se, and fo"nd an overseer beatin% one of the thralls! e &"nished the overseer,and, bein% a #indly and &erha&s not a very di&lomatic man, tal#ed hi%h of what he feltand what he mi%ht consider it his d"ty to forbid or to enforce! The firm be%an to loo#as#ance at s"ch a cons"l+ and worse was behind! $ n"mber of deeds bein% bro"%ht tothe cons"late for re%istration, Lembsch detected certain transfers of land in which thedate, the bo"ndaries, the meas"re, and the consideration were all blan#! e ref"sedthem with an indi%nation which he does not seem to have been able to #ee& to

himself+ and, whether or not by his fa"lt, some of these "nfort"nate doc"mentsbecame &"blic! )t was &lain that the relations between the two flan#s of the Germaninvasion, the di&lomatic and the commercial, were strained to b"rstin%! >"t 6eberwas a man ill to con*"er! Lembsch was recalled+ and from that time forth, whetherthro"%h infl"ence at home, or by the solicitations of 6eber on the s&ot, the Germancons"late has shown itself very a&t to &lay the %ame of the German firm! That %ame,we may say, was twofold,the first &art even &raiseworthy, the second at leastnat"ral! 3n the one &art, they desired an efficient native administration, to o&en "&the co"ntry and &"nish crime+ they wished, on the other, to extend their own

&rovinces and to c"rtail the dealin%s of their rivals! )n the first, they had the (ealo"sand diffident sym&athy of all whites+ in the second, they had all whites bandedto%ether a%ainst them for their lives and livelihoods! )t was th"s a %ame of"eggarm# $eighbourbetween a lar%e merchant and some small ones! ad it so remained, itwo"ld still have been a c"tthroat *"arrel! >"t when the cons"late a&&eared to beconcerned, when the warshi&s of the German -m&ire were tho"%ht to fetch and carryfor the firm, the ra%e of the inde&endent traders bro#e beyond restraint! $nd, lar%elyfrom the national to"chiness and the intem&erate s&eech of German cler#s, thisscramble amon% dollarh"nters ass"med the a&&earance of an interracial war!

The firm, with the indomitable 6eber at its head and the cons"late at its bac#therehas been the chief enemy at Samoa! ?o -n%lish reader can fail to be reminded of

=ohn om&any+ and if the Germans a&&ear to have been not so s"ccessf"l, we canonly wonder that o"r own bl"nders and br"talities were less severely &"nished! -venon the field of Samoa, tho"%h German fa"lts and a%%ressors ma#e "& the b"rthen ofmy story, they have been nowise alone! Three nations were en%a%ed in thisinfinitesimal affray, and not one a&&ears with credit! They fi%"re b"t as the threer"ffians of the elder &laywri%hts! The nited States have the cleanest hands, andeven theirs are not immac"late! )t was an ambi%"o"s b"siness when a &rivate$merican advent"rer was landed with his &ieces of artillery from an $merican warshi&, and became &rime minister to the #in%! )t is tr"e :even if he were ever reallys"&&orted; that he was soon dro&&ed and had soon sold himself for money to theGerman firm! ) will leave it to the reader whether this trait di%nifies or not the

wretched story! $nd the end of it s&attered the credit ali#e of -n%land and the States,when this man :the &remier of a friendly soverei%n; was #idna&&ed and de&orted, on


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an one troo& o"t, abo"t the dinner ho"r, wreathed with flowers and in their holidaybest, to &icnic with their #insman on the &"blic wayside! The a&&lication of theseo"tlandish &enalties, in fact, transfers the sym&athy to the offender! .emember,

besides, that the clan system, and that im&erfect idea of ("stice which is its worstfeat"re, are still lively in Samoa+ that it is held the d"ty of a ("d%e to favo"r #insmen,

of a #in% to &rotect his vassals+ and the diffic"lty of %ettin% a &lantation thief firstca"%ht, then convicted, and last of all &"nished, will a&&ear!

D"rin% the early 8ei%hties, the Germans loo#ed "&on this system with %rowin%irritation! They mi%ht see their convict thr"st in %aol by the front door+ they co"ldnever tell how soon he was enfranchised by the bac#+ and they need not be the leasts"r&rised if they met him, a few days after, en(oyin% the deli%hts of a malanga! )t wasa banded cons&iracy, from the #in% and the vice#in% downward, to evade the law andde&rive the Germans of their &rofits! )n 1@@N, accordin%ly, the cons"l, Dr! St"ebel,extorted a convention on the s"b(ect, in terms of which Samoans convicted ofoffences a%ainst German s"b(ects were to be confined in a &rivate %aol belon%in% to

the German firm! To Dr! St"ebel it seemed sim&le eno"%h< the offenders were to beeffect"ally &"nished, the s"fferers &artially indemnified! To the Samoans, the thin%a&&eared no less sim&le, b"t *"ite different< Aalietoa was sellin% Samoans to isieba!C 6hat else co"ld be ex&ectedB ere was a &rivate cor&oration en%a%ed inma#in% money+ to it was dele%ated, "&on a *"estion of &rofit and loss, one of thef"nctions of the Samoan crown+ and those who ma#e anomalies m"st loo# forcomments! P"blic feelin% ran "nanimo"s and hi%h! Prisoners who esca&ed from the

&rivate %aol were not reca&t"red or not ret"rned and alietoa hastened to b"ild a new&rison of his own, whither he conveyed, or &retended to convey, the f"%itives! )n3ctober 1@@O a trenchant state &a&er iss"ed from the German cons"late! Twenty

&risoners, the cons"l wrote, had now been at lar%e for ei%ht months from 6eber8s&rison! )t was &retended they had since then com&leted their term of &"nishmentelsewhere! Dr! St"ebel did not see# to conceal his incred"lity+ b"t he too# %ro"nd

beyond+ he declared the &oint irrelevant! The law was to be enforced! The men werecondemned to a certain &eriod in 6eber8s &rison+ they had r"n away+ they m"st now

be bro"%ht bac# and :whatever had become of them in the interval; wor# o"t thesentence! Do"btless Dr! St"ebel8s demands were s"bstantially ("st+ b"t do"btless alsothey bore from the o"tside a %reat a&&earance of harshness+ and when the #in%s"bmitted, the m"rm"rs of the &eo&le increased!

>"t 6eber was not yet content! The law had to be enforced+ &ro&erty, or at least the

&ro&erty of the firm, m"st be res&ected! $nd d"rin% an absence of the cons"l8s, heseems to have drawn "& with his own hand, and certainly first showed to the #in%, inhis own ho"se, a new convention! 6eber here and 6eber there! $s an able man, hewas &erha&s in the ri%ht to &re&are and &ro&ose conventions! $s the head of a tradin%com&any, he seems far o"t of his &art to be comm"nicatin% state &a&ers to asoverei%n! The administration of ("stice was the colo"r, and ) am willin% to believethe &"r&ose, of the new &a&er+ b"t its effect was to de&ose the existin% %overnment! $co"ncil of two Germans and two Samoans were to be invested with the ri%ht to ma#elaws and im&ose taxes as mi%ht be Adesirable for the common interest of the Samoan%overnment and the German residents!C The &rovisions of this co"ncil the #in% andvice#in% were to si%n blindfold! $nd by a last hardshi&, the Germans, who received

all the benefit, reserved a ri%ht to recede from the a%reement on six months8 notice+the Samoans, who s"ffered all the loss, were bo"nd by it in &er&et"ity! ) can never


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believe that my friend Dr! St"ebel had a hand in draftin% these &ro&osals+ ) am onlys"r&rised he sho"ld have been a &arty to enforcin% them, &erha&s the chief error inthese islands of a man who has made few! $nd they were enforced with a ri%o"r thatseems in("dicio"s! The Samoans :accordin% to their own acco"nt; were denied a co&yof the doc"ment+ they were certainly rated and threatened+ their deliberation was

treated as cont"macy+ two German warshi&s lay in &ort, and it was hinted that thesewo"ld shortly intervene!

S"cceed in fri%htenin% a child, and he ta#es ref"%e in d"&licity! Aalietoa,C one ofthe chiefs had written, Awe #now well we are in bonda%e to the %reat %overnments!C)t was now tho"%ht one tyrant mi%ht be better than three, and any one &referable toGermany! 3n the Oth ?ovember 1@@O, accordin%ly, /a"&e&a, Tamasese, and fortyei%ht hi%h chiefs met in secret, and the s"&remacy of Samoa was secretly offered toGreat >ritain for the second time in history! /a"&e&a and Tamasese still fi%"red as#in% and vice#in% in the eyes of Dr! St"ebel+ in their own, they had secretlyabdicated, were become &rivate &ersons, and mi%ht do what they &leased witho"t

bindin% or dishono"rin% their co"ntry! 3n the morrow, accordin%ly, they did &"blich"miliation in the d"st before the cons"late, and five days later si%ned theconvention! The last was done, it is claimed, "&on an im&"lse! The h"miliation,which it a&&eared to the Samoans so %reat a thin% to offer, to the &ractical mind of Dr!St"ebel seemed a trifle to receive+ and the &ress"re was contin"ed and increased!/a"&e&a and Tamasese were both heavy, wellmeanin%, inconcl"sive men! /a"&e&a,ed"cated for the ministry, still bears some mar#s of it in character and a&&earance+Tamasese was in &rivate of an amoro"s and sentimental t"rn, b"t no one wo"ld have%"essed it from his solemn and d"ll co"ntenance! )m&ossible to conceive two lessdashin% cham&ions for a threatened race+ and there is no do"bt they were red"ced tothe extremity of m"ddlement and childish fear! )t was drawin% towards ni%ht on the10th, when this l"c#less &air and a chief of the name of T"iataf", set o"t for theGerman cons"late, still minded to tem&orise! $s they went, they disc"ssed their casewith a%itation! They co"ld see the li%hts of the German warshi&s as they wal#edanelo*"ent reminder! $nd it was then that Tamasese &ro&osed to si%n the convention!A)t will %ive "s &eace for the day,C said /a"&e&a, Aand afterwards Great >ritain m"stdecide!CA>etter fi%ht Germany than thatC cried T"iataf", s&ea#in% words ofwisdom, and de&arted in an%er! >"t the two others &roceeded on their fatal errand+si%ned the convention, writin% themselves #in% and vice#in%, as they now believedthemselves to be no lon%er+ and with childish &erfidy too# &art in a scene ofAreconciliationC at the German cons"late!

alietoa s"&&osed himself betrayed by Tamasese! ons"l h"rchward states with&recision that the doc"ment was sold by a scribe for thirtysix dollars! Twelve dayslater at least, ?ovember 22nd, the text of the address to Great >ritain came into thehands of Dr! St"ebel! The Germans may have been wron% before+ they were now inthe ri%ht to be an%ry! They had been &"blicly, solemnly, and elaborately fooled+ thetreaty and the reconciliation were both fra"d"lent, with the broad, farcical fra"d"lencyof children and barbarians! This history is m"ch from the o"tside+ it is the di%estedre&ort of eyewitnesses+ it can be rarely corrected from state &a&ers+ and as to whatcons"ls felt and tho"%ht, or what instr"ctions they acted "nder, ) m"st still be silent or

&roceed by %"ess! )t is my %"ess that St"ebel now decided alietoa /a"&e&a to be a

man im&ossible to tr"st and "nworthy to be dealt with! $nd it is certain that theb"siness of his de&osition was &"t in hand at once! The &osition of 6eber, with his


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#nowled%e of thin%s native, his &resti%e, and his enter&risin% intellect, m"st havealways made him infl"ential with the cons"l< at this ("nct"re he was indis&ensable!ere was the deed to be done+ here the man of action! Ar! 6eber rested not,C says/a"&e&a! )t was Ali#e the old days of his own cons"late,C writes h"rchward! ismessen%ers filled the isle+ his ho"se was thron%ed with chiefs and orators+ he sat close

over his loom, deli%htedly weavin% the f"t"re! There was one thin% re*"isite to theintri%"e,a native &retender+ and the very man, yo" wo"ld have said, stood waitin%ritish law, wo"ld have

been the >ritish+ for wherever there is a so"nd of battle, there will the traders be%athered to%ether sellin% arms! $ little lon%er, and we find Tamasese visited andaddressed as #in% and ma(esty by a German commodore! eanwhile, for the"nha&&y alietoa, the road led downward! e was ref"sed a body%"ard! e wast"rned o"t of "lin"", the seat of his royalty, on a land claim of 6eber8s, fled acrossthe "livai, and Ahad the coolnessC :German ex&ression; to hoist his fla% in $&ia! ewas as#ed Ain the most &olite manner,C says the same acco"ntAin the most delicatemanner in the world,C a reader of arryat mi%ht be tem&ted to amend the &hrase,tostri#e his fla% in his own ca&ital+ and on his Aref"sal to accede to this re*"est,C Dr!St"ebel a&&eared himself with ten men and an officer from the cr"iser,lbatross+ asailor climbed into the tree and bro"%ht down the fla% of Samoa, which was caref"llyfolded, and sent, Ain the most &olite manner,C to its owner! The cons"ls of -n%landand the States were there :the excellent %entlemen; to &rotest! /ast, and yet more

ex&licit, the German commodore who visited the betitled Tamasese, addressed the#in%we may s"rely say the late #in%as Athe i%h hief alietoa!C

ad he no &arty, thenB $t that time, it is &robable, he mi%ht have called some fivesevenths of Samoa to his standard! $nd yet he sat there, hel&less monarch, li#e a fowltr"ssed for roastin%! The blame lies with himself, beca"se he was a hel&less creat"re+it lies also with -n%land and the States! Their a%ents on the s&ot &reached &eace:where there was no &eace, and no &retence of it; with elo*"ence and iteration!Secretary >ayard seems to have felt a call to (oin &ersonally in the solemn farce, andwas at the ex&ense of a tele%ram in which he ass"red the sin#in% monarch it was Aforthe hi%her interests of SamoaC he sho"ld do nothin%! There was no man better at

doin% that+ the advice came strai%ht home, and was devo"tly followed! $nd to be ("stto the %reat Powers, somethin% was done in -"ro&e+ a conference was called, it was


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a%reed to send commissioners to Samoa, and the dec#s had to be hastily cleareda%ainst their visit! Dr! St"ebel had attached the m"nici&ality of $&ia and hoisted theGerman warfla% over "lin""+ the $merican cons"l :in a s"dden access of %oodservice; had flown the stars and stri&es over Samoan colo"rs+ on either side theseste&s were solemnly retracted! The Germans ex&ressly disowned Tamasese+ and the

islands fell into a &eriod of s"s&ense, of some twelve months8 d"ration, d"rin% whichthe seat of the history was transferred to other co"ntries and esca&es my &"rview!ere on the s&ot, ) select three incidents< the arrival on the scene of a new actor, thevisit of the awaiian embassy, and the riot on the -m&eror8s birthday! The rest shall

be silence+ only it m"st be borne in view that Tamasese all the while contin"ed tostren%then himself in /e"l"moen%a, and /a"&e&a sat inactive listenin% to the son% ofcons"ls!

aptain "randeis! The new actor was >randeis, a >avarian ca&tain of artillery, of aromantic and advent"ro"s character! e had served with credit in war+ b"t soonwearied of %arrison life, resi%ned his battery, came to the States, fo"nd em&loyment as

a civil en%ineer, visited "ba, too# a s"bcontract on the Panama canal, ca"%ht thefever, and came :for the sa#e of the sea voya%e; to $"stralia! e had that nat"ral lovefor the tro&ics which lies so often latent in &ersons of a northern birth+ diffic"lty anddan%er attracted him+ and when he was &ic#ed o"t for secret d"ty, to be the hand ofGermany in Samoa, there is no do"bt b"t he acce&ted the &ost with exhilaration! )t isdo"btf"l if a better choice co"ld have been made! e had co"ra%e, inte%rity, ideas ofhis own, and loved the em&loyment, the &eo&le, and the &lace! Iet there was a fly inthe ointment! The do"ble error of "nnecessary stealth and of the immixt"re of atradin% com&any in &olitical affairs, has vitiated, and in the end defeated, m"chGerman &olicy! $nd >randeis was introd"ced to the islands as a cler#, and sent downto /e"l"moen%a :where he was soon drillin% the troo&s and fortifyin% the &osition ofthe rebel #in%; as an a%ent of the German firm! 6hat this mystification cost in theend ) shall tell in another &lace+ and even in the be%innin%, it deceived no one!>randeis is a man of notable &ersonal a&&earance+ he loo#s the &art allotted him+ andthe military cler# was soon the centre of observation and r"mo"r! alietoa wrote andcom&lained of his &resence to >ec#er, who had s"cceeded Dr! St"ebel in thecons"late! >ec#er re&lied, A) have nothin% to do with the %entleman >randeis! >e itwell #nown that the %entleman >randeis has no a&&ointment in a military character,

b"t resides &eaceably assistin% the %overnment of /e"l"moen%a in their wor#, for>randeis is a *"iet, sensible %entleman!C $nd then he &romised to send the vicecons"l to A%et information of the ca&tain8s doin%sC< s"rely s"&erero%ation of deceit!

The Ha.aiian Embass#! The &rime minister of the awaiian #in%dom was, at this&eriod, an advent"rer of the name of Gibson! e claimed, on the stren%th of aromantic story, to be the heir of a %reat -n%lish ho"se! e had &layed a &art in arevolt in =ava, had lan%"ished in D"tch fetters, and had risen to be a tr"sted a%ent of>ri%ham Io"n%, the tah &resident! )t was in this character of a ormon emissarythat he first came to the islands of awaii, where he collected a lar%e s"m of moneyfor the h"rch of the /atter Day Saints! $t a %iven moment, he dro&&ed his saintshi&and a&&eared as a hristian and the owner of a &art of the island of /anai! The ste&sof the transformation are obsc"re+ they seem, at least, to have been illreceived at Salt/a#e+ and there is evidence to the effect that he was followed to the islands by

ormon assassins! is first attem&t on &olitics was made "nder the a"s&ices of whatis called the missionary &arty, and the canvass cond"cted lar%ely :it is said with tears;


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on the &latform at &rayermeetin%s! )t res"lted in defeat! 6itho"t any decency ofdelay he chan%ed his colo"rs, ab("red the errors of reform, and, with the s"&&ort ofthe atholics, rose to the chief &ower! )n a very brief interval he had th"s r"n thro"%hthe %am"t of reli%ions in the So"th Seas! )t does not a&&ear that he was any more

&artic"lar in &olitics, b"t he was caref"l to cons"lt the character and &re("dices of the

late #in%, Hala#a"a! That amiable, far from "naccom&lished, b"t too convivialsoverei%n, had a contin"ed "se for money< Gibson was observant to #ee& him wells"&&lied! Hala#a"a :one of the most theoretical of men; was filled with visionaryschemes for the &rotection and develo&ment of the Polynesian race< Gibson fell inste& with him+ it is even tho"%ht he may have shared in his ill"sions! The #in% andminister at least conceived between them a scheme of island confederationthe mostobvio"s fa"lt of which was that it came too lateand armed and fitted o"t the cr"iser

/aimiloa, neste%% of the f"t"re navy of awaii! Samoa, the most im&ortant %ro"&still inde&endent, and one immediately threatened with a%%ression, was chosen for thescene of action! The on! =ohn -! >"sh, a halfcaste awaiian, sailed :December1@@7; for $&ia as minister&leni&otentiary, accom&anied by a secretary of le%ation,

enry E! Poor+ and as soon as she was ready for sea, the warshi& followed ins"&&ort! The ex&edition was f"tile in its co"rse, almost tra%ic in res"lt! The/aimiloawas from the first a scene of disaster and dila&idation< the stores were sold+ the crewrevolted+ for a %reat &art of a ni%ht she was in the hands of m"tineers, and thesecretary lay bo"nd "&on the dec#! The mission, installin% itself at first withextrava%ance in ata"t", was hel&ed at last o"t of the island by the advances of a

&rivate citi'en! $nd they ret"rned from dreams of Polynesian inde&endence to findtheir own city in the hands of a cli*"e of white shoee&ers, and the %reat Gibsononce a%ain in %aol! Iet the farce had not been *"ite witho"t effect! )t had enco"ra%edthe natives for the moment, and it seems to have r"ffled &ermanently the tem&er of theGermans! So mi%ht a fly irritate Jsar!

The arrival of a mission from awaii wo"ld scarce affect the com&os"re of the co"rtsof -"ro&e! >"t in the eyes of Polynesians the little #in%dom occ"&ies a &lace a&art! )tis there alone that men of their race en(oy most of the advanta%es and all the &om& ofinde&endence+ news of awaii and descri&tions of onol"l" are %ratef"l to&ics in all

&arts of the So"th Seas+ and there is no better introd"ction than a &hoto%ra&h in whichthe bearer shall be re&resented in com&any with Hala#a"a! /a"&e&a was, besides,s"n# to the &oint at which an "nfort"nate be%ins to cl"tch at straws, and he receivedthe mission with deli%ht! /etters were exchan%ed between him and Hala#a"a+ a deedof confederation was si%ned, 17th Eebr"ary 1@@7, and the si%nat"re celebrated in the

new ho"se of the awaiian embassy with some ori%inal ceremonies! alietoa/a"&e&a came, attended by his ministry, several h"ndred chiefs, two %"ards, and six&olicemen! $lways decent, he withdrew at an early ho"r+ by those that remained, alldecency a&&ears to have been for%otten+ hi%h chiefs were seen to dance+ and dayfo"nd the ho"se car&eted with sl"mberin% %randees, who m"st be ro"sed, doctoredwith coffee, and sent home! $s a first cha&ter in the history of Polynesianonfederation, it was hardly cheerin%, and /a"&e&a remar#ed to one of the embassy,with e*"al di%nity and sense< A)f yo" have come here to teach my &eo&le to drin#, )wish yo" had stayed away!C

The Germans loo#ed on from the first with nat"ral irritation that a &ower of the

&owerlessness of awaii sho"ld th"s &rofit by its "ndeniable footin% in the family ofnations, and send embassies, and ma#e believe to have a navy, and bar# and sna& at


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the heels of the %reat German -m&ire! >"t >ec#er co"ld not &revent the h"nted/a"&e&a from ta#in% ref"%e in any hole that offered, and he co"ld afford to smile atthe fantastic or%ie in the embassy! )t was another matter when the awaiiansa&&roached the intractable ataafa, sittin% still in his $t"a %overnment li#e $chillesin his tent, hel&in% neither side, and :as the Germans s"s&ected; #ee&in% the e%%s

warm for himself! 6hen the/aimiloasteamed o"t of $&ia on this visit, the Germanwarshi&,dlerfollowed at her heels+ and ataafa was no sooner set down with theembassy than he was s"mmoned and ordered on board by two German officers! Theste& is one of those tri"m&hs of tem&er which can only be admired! ataafa isentertainin% the &leni&otentiary of a soverei%n &ower in treaty with his own #in%, andthe ca&tain of a German corvette orders him to *"it his %"ests!

>"t there was worse to come! ) %ather that Tamasese was at the time in the s"l#s! ehad do"btless been &romised &rom&t aid and a &rom&t s"ccess+ he had seen himselfs"rre&titio"sly hel&ed, &rivately ordered abo"t, and &"blicly disowned+ and he wasstill the #in% of nothin% more than his own &rovince, and already the second in

command of a&tain >randeis! 6ith the adhesion of some &art of his native cabinet,and behind the bac# of his white minister, he fo"nd means to comm"nicate with theawaiians! $ &assa%e on the/aimiloa, a &ension, and a home in onol"l" were the

bribes &ro&osed+ and he seems to have been tem&ted! $ day was set for a secretinterview! Poor, the awaiian secretary, and =! D! Stron%, an $merican &ainterattached to the embassy in the s"r&risin% *"ality of AGovernment $rtist,C landed witha Samoan boat8screw in $ana+ and while the secretary hid himself, accordin% toa%reement, in the o"tlyin% home of an -n%lish settler, the artist :ostensibly bent on

&hoto%ra&hy; entered the head*"arters of the rebel #in%! )t was a %reat day in/e"l"moen%a+ three h"ndred recr"its had come in, a feast was coo#in%+ and the

&hoto%ra&her, in view of the native love of bein% &hoto%ra&hed, was made entirelywelcome! >"t beneath the friendly s"rface all were on the alert! The secret hadlea#ed o"t< 6eber beheld his &lans threatened in the root+ >randeis trembled for the

&ossession of his slave and soverei%n+ and the German vicecons"l, r!Sonnenschein, had been sent or s"mmoned to the scene of dan%er!

)t was after dar#, &rayers had been said and the hymns s"n% thro"%h all the villa%e,and Stron% and the German sat to%ether on the mats in the ho"se of Tamasese, whenthe events be%an! Stron% s&ea#s German freely, a fact which he had not disclosed,and he was scarce more am"sed than embarrassed to be able to follow all the evenin%the dissension and the chan%in% co"nsels of his nei%hbo"rs! Eirst the #in% himself

was missin%, and there was a false alarm that he had esca&ed and was already closetedwith Poor! ?ext came certain intelli%ence that some of the ministry had r"n thebloc#ade, and were on their way to the ho"se of the -n%lish settler! There"&on, ins&ite of some &rotests from Tamasese, who tried to defend the inde&endence of hiscabinet, >randeis %athered a &osse of warriors, marched o"t of the villa%e, bro"%ht

bac# the f"%itives, and cla&&ed them in the corr"%ated iron shanty which served as%aol! $lon% with these he seems to have sei'ed >illy oe, inter&reter to theawaiians+ and Poor, seein% his cons&iracy &"blic, b"rst with his boat8screw into thetown, made his way to the ho"se of the native &rime minister, and demanded oe8srelease! >randeis hastened to the s&ot, with Stron% at his heels+ and the two &rinci&als

bein% both incensed, and Stron% serio"sly alarmed for his friend8s safety, there be%an

amon% them a scene of %reat intem&erance! $t one &oint, when Stron% s"ddenlydisclosed his ac*"aintance with German, it attained a hi%h style of comedy+ at


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another, when a &istol was most foolishly drawn, it bordered on drama+ and it may besaid to have ended in a mixed %en"s, when Poor was finally &ac#ed into thecorr"%ated iron %aol alon% with the forfeited ministers! eanwhile the ca&tain of his

boat, Siteoni, of whom ) shall have to tell a%ain, had cleverly withdrawn the boat8screw at an early sta%e of the *"arrel! $mon% the &o&"lation beyond Tamasese8s

marches, he collected a body of armed men, ret"rned before dawn to /e"l"moen%a,demolished the corr"%ated iron %aol, and liberated the awaiian secretary and ther"m& of the rebel cabinet! ?o o&&osition was shown+ and do"btless the resc"e wasconnived at by >randeis, who had %ained his &oint! Poor had the face to com&lain thenext day to >ec#er+ b"t to com&ete with >ec#er in effrontery was labo"r lost! AIo"have been re&eatedly warned, r! Poor, not to ex&ose yo"rself amon% these sava%es,Csaid he!

?ot lon% after, the &resence of the/aimiloawas made a casus belliby the Germans+and the ro"%handt"mble embassy withdrew, on borrowed money, to find their own%overnment in hot water to the nec#!

The Emperor*s "irthda#! )t is &ossible, and it is alle%ed, that the Germans enteredinto the conference with ho&e! >"t it is certain they were resolved to remain &re&aredfor either fate! $nd ) ta#e the liberty of believin% that /a"&e&a was not for%iven hisd"&licity+ that, d"rin% this interval, he stood mar#ed li#e a tree for fellin%+ and that hiscond"ct was daily scr"tinised for f"rther &retexts of offence! 3n the evenin% of the-m&eror8s birthday, arch 22nd, 1@@7, certain Germans were con%re%ated in a &"blic

bar! The season and the &lace considered, it is scarce cynical to ass"me they had beendrin#in%+ nor, so m"ch bein% %ranted, can it be tho"%ht exorbitant to s"&&ose them

&ossibly in fa"lt for the s*"abble that too# &lace! $ s*"abble, ) say+ b"t ) am willin%to call it a riot! $nd this was the new fa"lt of /a"&e&a+ this it is that was described bya German commodore as Athe tram&lin% "&on by alietoa of the German -m&eror!C) &ass the rhetoric by to examine the &oint of liability! Eo"r natives were bro"%ht totrial for this horrid fact< not before a native ("d%e, b"t before the German ma%istrateof the tri&artite m"nici&ality of $&ia! 3ne was ac*"itted, one condemned for theft,and two for assa"lt! 3n a&&eal, not to alietoa, b"t to the three cons"ls, the case was

by a ma(ority of two to one ret"rned to the ma%istrate and :as far as ) can learn; wasthen allowed to dro&! ons"l >ec#er himself laid the chief blame on one of the

&olicemen of the m"nici&ality, a halfwhite of the name of Scanlon! im he so"%ht to

have dischar%ed, b"t was a%ain baffled by his brother cons"ls! 6here, in all this, arewe to find a corner of res&onsibility for the #in% of SamoaB Scanlon, the alle%eda"thor of the o"tra%e, was a halfwhite+ as >ec#er was to learn to his cost, he claimedto be an $merican s"b(ect+ and he was not even in the #in%8s em&loyment! $&ia, thescene of the o"tra%e, was o"tside the #in%8s ("risdiction by treaty+ by the choice ofGermany, he was not so m"ch as allowed to fly his fla% there! $nd the denial of

("stice :if ("stice were denied; rested with the cons"ls of >ritain and the States!

>"t when a do% is to be beaten, any stic# will serve! )n the meanwhile, on the&ro&osition of r! >ayard, the 6ashin%ton conference on Samoan affairs wasad(o"rned till a"t"mn, so that Athe ministers of Germany and Great >ritain mi%ht

s"bmit the &rotocols to their res&ective Governments!C AIo" &ro&ose that theconference is to ad(o"rn and not to be bro#en "&BC as#ed Sir /ionel 6est! ATo


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ad(o"rn for the reasons stated,C re&lied >ayard! This was on ="ly 2Mth+ and, twentynine days later, by 6ednesday the 24th of $"%"st, Germany had &ractically sei'edSamoa! Eor this fla%rant breach of faith one exc"se is o&enly alle%ed+ anotherwhis&ered! )t is o&enly alle%ed that >ayard had shown himself im&racticable+ it iswhis&ered that the awaiian embassy was an ex&ression of $merican intri%"e, and

that the Germans only did as they were done by! The s"fficiency of these exc"sesmay be left to the discretion of the reader! >"t, however exc"sed, the breach of faithwas &"blic and ex&ress+ it m"st have been deliberately &redetermined and it wasresented in the States as a deliberate ins"lt!

>y the middle of $"%"st 1@@7 there were five sail of German warshi&s in $&ia bayec#er o&ened his%"ns! The &olicy was too c"nnin% to seem di%nified+ it %ave to cond"ct which wo"ldotherwise have seemed bold and even br"tally strai%htforward, the a&&earance of atimid amb"scade+ and hel&ed to sha#e men8s reliance on the word of Germany! 3nthe day named, an "ltimat"m reached alietoa at $fen%a, whither he had retiredmonths before to avoid friction! $ fine of one tho"sand dollars and an ifo, or &"blich"miliation, were demanded for the affair of the -m&eror8s birthday! Twelvetho"sand dollars were to be A&aid *"ic#lyC for thefts from German &lantations in theco"rse of the last fo"r years! A)t is my o&inion that there is nothin% ("st or correct inSamoa while yo" are at the head of the %overnment,C concl"ded >ec#er! A) shall be at$fen%a in the mornin% of tomorrow, 6ednesday, at 11 $!!C The blow fell on/a"&e&a :in his own ex&ression; Ao"t of the b"shC+ the dilatory fellow had seen thin%shan% over so lon%, he had &erha&s be%"n to s"&&ose they mi%ht han% over for ever+and here was r"in at the door! e rode at once to $&ia, and s"mmoned his chiefs!The co"ncil lasted all ni%ht lon%! any voices were for defiance! >"t /a"&e&a had%rown in"red to a &olicy of &rocrastination+ and the answer "ltimately drawn only

be%%ed for delay till Sat"rday, the 27th! So soon as it was si%ned, the #in% too# horseand fled in the early mornin% to $fen%a+ the co"ncil hastily dis&ersed+ and only threechiefs, Sel", Se"man", and /e Fmea, remained by the %overnment b"ildin%,trem"lo"sly ex&ectant of the res"lt!

>y seven the letter was received! >y 7!N0 >ec#er arrived in &erson, in*"ired for/a"&e&a, was evasively answered, and declared war on the s&ot! >efore ei%ht, theGermans :seven h"ndred men and six %"ns; came ashore and sei'ed and hoistedGerman colo"rs on the %overnment b"ildin%! The three chiefs had made %ood hasteto esca&e+ b"t a considerable booty was made of %overnment &a&ers, firearms, andsome seventeen tho"sand cartrid%es! Then followed a scene which lon% ran#led in theminds of the white inhabitants, when the German marines raided the town in search ofalietoa, b"rst into &rivate ho"ses, and were acc"sed :) am willin% to believe onslender %ro"nds; of violence to &rivate &ersons!

3n the morrow, the 2Oth, one of the German warshi&s, which had been des&atched to

/e"l"moen%a over ni%ht reentered the bay, flyin% the Tamasese colo"rs at the fore!The new #in% was %iven a royal sal"te of twentyone %"ns, marched thro"%h the town


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by the commodore and a German %"ard of hono"r, and established on "lin"" withtwo or three h"ndred warriors! >ec#er anno"nced his reco%nition to the othercons"ls! These re&lied by &roclaimin% alietoa, and in the "s"al mealymo"thedmanner advised Samoans to do nothin%! 3n the 27th martial law was declared+ andon the 1st Se&tember the German s*"adron dis&ersed abo"t the %ro"&, bearin% alon%

with them the &roclamations of the new #in%! Tamasese was now a %reat man, tohave five iron warshi&s for his &ostr"nners! >"t the moment was critical! Therevol"tion had to be ex&lained, the chiefs &ers"aded to assemble at a fono s"mmonedfor the 1Oth+ and the shi&s carried not only a store of &rinted doc"ments, b"t a s*"adof Tamasese orators "&on their ro"nd!

S"ch was the German coup d*+tat! They had declared war with a s*"adron of fiveshi&s "&on a sin%le man+ that man, late #in% of the %ro"&, was in hidin% on themo"ntains+ and their own nominee, bac#ed by German %"ns and bayonets, sat in hisstead in "lin""!

3ne of the first acts of alietoa, on fleein% to the b"sh, was to send for ataafatwice< A) am alone in the b"sh+ if yo" do not come *"ic#ly yo" will find me bo"nd!C)t is to be "nderstood the men were near #insmen, and had :if they had nothin% else; acommon (ealo"sy! $t the "r%ent cry, ataafa set forth from EalefQ, and came to"lin"" to Tamasese! A6hat is this that yo" and the German commodore havedecided on doin%BC he in*"ired! A) am %oin% to obey the German cons"l,C re&liedTamasese, Awhose wish it is that ) sho"ld be the #in% and that all Samoa sho"ldassemble here!C ADo not &"rs"e in wrath a%ainst alietoa,C said ataafa Ab"t try to

brin% abo"t a com&romise, and form a "nited %overnment!C Aery well,C saidTamasese, Aleave it to me, and ) will try!C Erom "lin"", ataafa went on board the

"ismarc0, and was %racio"sly received! AProbably,C said the commodore, Awe shallbrin% abo"t a reconciliation of all Samoa thro"%h yo"C+ and then as#ed his visitor ifhe bore any affection to alietoa! AIes,C said ataafa! A$nd to TamaseseBC ATohim also+ and if yo" desire the weal of Samoa, yo" will allow either him or me to

brin% abo"t a reconciliation!C A)f it were my will,C said the commodore, A) wo"ld doas yo" say! >"t ) have no will in the matter! ) have instr"ctions from the Haiser, and) cannot %o bac# a%ain from what ) have been sent to do!C A) tho"%ht yo" wo"ld becommanded,C said ataafa, Aif yo" bro"%ht abo"t the weal of Samoa!C A) will tellyo",C said the commodore! A$ll shall %o *"ietly! >"t there is one thin% that m"st bedone< alietoa m"st be de&osed! ) will do nothin% to him beyond+ he will only be#e&t on board for a co"&le of months and be well treated, ("st as we Germans did to

the Erench chief R?a&oleon )))! some time a%o, whom we #e&t a while and cared forwell!C >ec#er was no less ex&licit< war, he told Sewall, sho"ld not cease till theGermans had c"stody of alietoa and Tamasese sho"ld be reco%nised!

eantime, in the alietoa &rovinces, a &rofo"nd im&ression was received! Peo&letroo&ed to their f"%itive soverei%n in the b"sh! any natives in $&ia bro"%ht theirtreas"res, and stored them in the ho"ses of white friends! The Tamasese orators weresometimes ill received! 3ver in Savaii, they fo"nd the villa%e of Sat"&aitea deserted,save for a few lads at cric#et! These they haran%"ed, and were rewarded with ironicala&&la"se+ and the &roclamation, as soon as they had de&arted, was torn down! Eor thisoffence the villa%e was "ltimately b"rned by German sailors, in a very decent and

orderly style, on the Nrd Se&tember! This was the dinnerbell of the fono on the 1Oth!The threat conveyed in the terms of the s"mmonsA)f any %overnment district does


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not *"ic#ly obey this direction, ) will ma#e war on that %overnment districtCwasth"s commented on and reinforced! $nd the meetin% was in conse*"ence wellattended by chiefs of all &arties! They fo"nd themselves "narmed amon% the armedwarriors of Tamasese and the marines of the German s*"adron, and "nder the %"ns offive stron% shi&s! >randeis rose+ it was his first o&en a&&earance, the German firm

si%nin% its revol"tionary wor#! is words were few and "ncom&romisin%< AGreat aremy than#s that the chiefs and heads of families of the whole of Samoa are assembledhere this day! )t is strictly forbidden that any disc"ssion sho"ld ta#e &lace as towhether it is %ood or not that Tamasese is #in% of Samoa, whether at this fono or atany f"t"re fono! ) &lace for yo"r si%nat"re the followin%< 2e inform all the people ofSamoa of .hat follo.s3 456 The government of Samoa has been assumed b# /ing

Tuiaana Tamasese7 486 "# order of the 0ing% it .as directed that a fono should ta0e

place to-da#% composed of the chiefs and heads of families% and .e have obe#ed the

summons7 2e have signed our names under this% 59th September1@@7!C ?eeds m"st"nder all these %"ns+ and the &a&er was si%ned, b"t not witho"t o&en s"llenness! The

bearin% of ataafa in &artic"lar was lon% remembered a%ainst him by the Germans!

ADo yo" not see the #in%BC said the commodore re&rovin%ly! Ais father was no#in%,C was the bold answer! $ bolder still has been &rinted, b"t this is ataafa8s ownrecollection of the &assa%e! 3n the next day, the chiefs were all ordered bac# to sha#ehands with Tamasese! $%ain they obeyed+ b"t a%ain their attit"de was menacin%, andsome, it is said, a"dibly m"rm"red as they %ave their hands!

)t is time to follow the &oor Sheet of Pa&er :literal meanin% of:aupepa;, who wasnow to be blown so broadly over the face of earth! $s soon as news reached him ofthe declaration of war, he fled from $fen%a to Tan"n%amanono, a hamlet in the b"sh,abo"t a mile and a half behind $&ia, where he l"r#ed some days! 3n the 24th, Sel",his secretary, des&atched to the $merican cons"l an anxio"s a&&eal, his ma(esty8sAcry and &rayerC in behalf of Athis wea# &eo&le!C >y $"%"st N0th, the Germans hadword of his l"r#in%&lace, s"rro"nded the hamlet "nder clo"d of ni%ht, and in theearly mornin% b"rst with a force of sailors on the ho"ses! The &eo&le fled on all sides,and were fired "&on! 3ne boy was shot in the hand, the first blood of the war! >"tthe #in% was nowhere to be fo"nd+ he had wandered farther, over the woodymo"ntains, the bac#bone of the land, towards Si"m" and Safata! ere, in a safe &lace,he b"ilt himself a town in the forest, where he received a contin"al stream of visitorsand messen%ers! Day after day the German bl"e(ac#ets were em&loyed in theho&eless enter&rise of beatin% the forests for the f"%itive+ day after day they weres"ffered to &ass "nh"rt "nder the %"ns of amb"shed Samoans+ day after day they

ret"rned, exha"sted and disa&&ointed, to $&ia! Se"man" Tafa, hi%h chief of $&ia,was #nown to be in the forest with the #in%+ his wife, Eat"ila, was sei'ed, im&risonedin the German hos&ital, and when it was tho"%ht her s&irit was s"fficiently red"ced,

bro"%ht "& for crossexamination! The wise lady confined herself in answer to asin%le word! A)s yo"r h"sband near $&iaBC AIes!C A)s he far from $&iaBC AIes!CA)s he with the #in%BC AIes!C A$re he and the #in% in different &lacesBC AIes!C6here"&on the witness was dischar%ed! $bo"t the 10th of Se&tember, /a"&e&a wassecretly in $&ia at the $merican cons"late with two com&anions! The German

&ic#ets were close set and visited by a stron% &atrol+ and on his ret"rn, his &arty wasobserved and hailed and fired on by a sentry! They ran away on all fo"rs in the dar#,and so doin% &l"m&ed "&on another sentry, whom /a"&e&a %ra&&led and fl"n% in a

ditch+ for the Sheet of Pa&er, altho"%h infirm of character, is, li#e most Samoans, ofan able body! The second sentry :li#e the first; fired after his assailants at random in


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the dar#+ and the two shots awo#e the c"riosity of $&ia! 3n the afternoon of the 1Mth,the day of the handsha#in%s, S"atele, a hi%h chief, des&atched two boys across theisland with a letter! They were most of the ni%ht "&on the road+ it was near three inthe mornin% before the sentries in the cam& of alietoa beheld their lantern drawin%near o"t of the wood+ b"t the #in% was at once awa#ened! The news was decisive and

the letter &erem&tory+ if alietoa did not %ive himself "& before ten on the morrow,he was told that %reat sorrows m"st befall his co"ntry! ) have not been able to draw/a"&e&a as a hero+ b"t he is a man of certain virt"es, which the Germans had now%iven him an occasion to dis&lay! 6itho"t hesitation he sacrificed himself, &ennedhis to"chin% farewell to Samoa, and ma#in% more ex&edition than the messen%ers,

&assed early behind $&ia to the ban#s of the aisin%ano! $s he &assed, he detached amessen%er to ataafa at the atholic mission! ataafa followed by the same road,and the &air met at the riverside and went and sat to%ether in a ho"se! $ll &resentwere in tears! ADo not let "s wee&,C said the tal#in% man, /a"ati! A6e have no ca"sefor shame! 6e do not yield to Tamasese, b"t to the invincible stran%ers!C Thede&artin% #in% be*"eathed the care of his co"ntry to ataafa+ and when the latter

so"%ht to console him with the commodore8s &romises, he shoo# his head, anddeclared his ass"rance that he was %oin% to a life of exile, and &erha&s to death!$bo"t two o8cloc# the meetin% bro#e "&+ ataafa ret"rned to the atholic mission bythe bac# of the town+ and alietoa &roceeded by the beach road to the German navalhos&ital, where h

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