VII

During May 1926, Samoa was visited by Sir Charles Fergusson, the Governor-General of New Zealand. In 1925, I have not mentioned, plain sheets of foolscap paper were sent to every village in Western Samoa for every chief to sign; signatures were to be attached to an address of welcome, for the Governor-General's arrival had been anticipated that year. Certain chiefs who refused to sign the blank sheet were, it is alleged, deprived of their titles and banished to distant places. One of the charges brought against a certain Molio'o, prior to his banishment, it will be seen in the evidence of the Royal Commission, was "Refusal to sign the papers with the other Samoan chiefs."

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These addresses of welcome were not worth the paper they were written on. I remember when, about the end of 1923, Sir Charles Fergusson first took office, an address of welcome was circulated to be sent to him in New Zealand. The Samoans remarked at the time, sardonically, that they did not know if they were supposed to sign because they were glad that a new Governor-General had come to New Zealand, or because the old one had gone away. In some cases one man signed for a whole village.

After his return to New Zealand, Sir Charles Fergusson, according to the Samoa Times of July 30, 1926, in the course of an address to the New Zealand Club at Wellington, said:

"'I suppose that two of the most difficult problems to be faced in the Island are marriage customs and land tenure. Of their own initiative the Samoans have asked for legislation to be brought in altering their long-established marriage customs. There used to be polygamy¹ and many irregular marriages, but they have now asked that a single marriage in church should alone be recognized.'

"His Excellency referred to the fact that the Samoans had asked that they should have the right to own their land instead of all the land being owned by the chiefs. It was extraordinary that the people should ask for legislation that would have the effect of breaking down long-established customs…. In conclusion His Excellency spoke of the necessity of developing a spirit of individuality among the people of Samoa, although they had to be very careful what steps they took to break down the communal system…. Every Samoan was taught to say, 'Samoa is a great country—I am going to make it a better one.' It was a most inspiring thing to hear many thousands of people reciting that in one voice. The Governor-General believed General Richardson, if he was spared, was going to make Samoa one of the most wonderful countries in the world."