f 1 NEN KY SAMOAN TREATY I 1 0 I 1 i S what the commission pro I 1 poses for the islands I 1 t T I 1 i PEACE RESTORED AT ONCE all to this end the kingship is abolished 4 permanently the authority 14 of chiefs Is limited system of 0 it native government created administration tor for the islands Is to it it ie be appointed by the three signatory rowers Po an executive counell council six is to be appointed I 1 san r francisco I 1 july 30 30 the call publishes I 1 I 1 th the re report ri of the tripartite commission 11 sent to samoa making varl vari 41 ous recommendations ada I 1 ions i guarding the k new form orm of 0 government decided upon t by them as most sul suitable table for the A andera these recommendations ate 1 based upon the best of 0 tile the berlin treaty and include the principal 9 features of it elie proposed new treaty 11 as amended and modified by the commissioners ners the official report of the 1 commissi commissioners and the draft of ili the 1 proposed amended treaty ale aie said to bo be now on the way may to theia respective e governments the of the ahe commissioners L misi loners ners is as follows we have the honor to submit herewith ath to the consideration of our three I 1 cove governments r the e d draft of a 1 mod modified fled and amended v version of the iho 1 I act of berlin in preparing these moil mod and amendments our method 1 I has been to consider first it nhat hat are the evils ells which have hae caused the recent troubles in samoa and the generally unsatisfactory condition of the islands a and secondly ft hat are the measures most likely to remove or minimize these vile the chief evils may be in our opinion pinto n grouped under four heads stably first those naich appear to inevitably attend the election of a king in samoa arid and his subsequent efforts to exert his authority I 1 second those which are due to the it rivalry of the foreign nationalities between li them themselves seles and the disposition 1 to take sides in tho the native politics and I 1 thus increase the importance and bitterness berness of the disputes which arise q third A large part of the evils hac their origin in the fact that tor for many a years there has bee been n no law or order in samoa other than native natie customs I 1 outside the limits of the municipality murder and other serious at crimes have remained unpunished when hen I 1 committed by persons persona of lank und and the I 1 supreme court and the nominal gas government at been equally powerless to exert any controlling st force fourth the enforcement of the customs regulations hoe has allowed unscrupulous traders to distribute large I 1 numbers of arms among a natlie nathe population rent by political factions and ready to fight both one another and Eum europeans REMEDYING THE EVILS I 1 to T meet the first of these re evils we have hall temporarily abolished the kingship and recommend that it be permanently abolished the action u which we it e 1 have taken in the matter does not appear to have aroused any hostile feeling among the natives no doubt many great chiefs regret that mat they mill III no longer have an opportunity of gratifying their ambitions and indulging that passion for tank lank and ceremony which Is innate in the breast of every samoan but even the chiefs have acquiesced in the change chance some me of the be most important have stated slated that they think it I 1 Is I 1 for the good of samoa and we be ba lieve aleve that the population unless worked upon by extraneous influences 1 which h ich is unhappily not impossible will assent to the abolition without murmur and without It bout regret f every violte man german english and american alike ft okho ho has glen given evidence before the with the exception of one or t two 0 lawyers nho w ho had bad private interests teresta in in the ce has hag recommended recommend od the commission to do away avay with the kingship and we ie may also refer to the opinion of sir E malet recorded in the protocols of the conference of berlin and of mr ir bates in his report on samoa KING A USELESS OFFICIAL it seems impossible to say of the office any good whatever hat ever it Is comparatively modern as an institution it served no useful purpose in recent years at tiny any rate the king had no aut authority bority or practical power to evert even collect taxes belond the limits 0 of f the municipality and within those limits his authority was superfluous the greater reater fr part of the population was to a all 1 intents and purposes in permanent re rebellion against him and the mere fact that orders were issued through him was liable able to provoke disobedience 1 in many districts further it seems impossible to de I 1 it vh tile e any plan by which an undisputed or even peaceful succession can he be secured 1 4 the kingship kingsb ip depends on the grant of certain titles by certain districts disi they are in the gift not net of the whole population but of small bodies I 1 of elec electris tois who owe their positions to I 1 their rank even among these electors the principle that the majority of the vote vole bilows bestows the title is not accepted f and the gist of all the laws and customs of samoa Is that there it Is nothing bomil ng to prevent two candidates from being fatime I 1 time ng duy duly elected king at tile the same i formerly the claims of such rivals I 1 mere vi ere decided by force of arms but the framers of the elie act of berlin who evidently e thoroughly understood samoan custom and practices in tills matter laid down that quest lura respecting the th rightful appointment of king shall L riot not lead to war ar but shall bo be presented ted I 1 ford for cllon to the chief justice of samoa 1 enoel recent experience ha has a unhappily proved that art an attempt to settle th the question in this way also beads to it vi ar arand and we ive are stron strongly gly ct cf the Or opinion liniOn that tha adit the e only chance of 7 preventing ting such ten slona in the future is to abolish the olnee office which A aich provoked 1 them OF A KING 1 in the place of the kingship we propose to create a estern of native government analogous to that aich which works successfully in FIJI the islands vill be divided into certain ad administrative mills I 1 distal acts corresponding corresponds ng as nearly as possible with those recognized by Samo Samoan uns fl for which of e each ach a chief will be responsible and chiefs will aill meet annually at A abia apia pl a in a native council to discuss such ma matters t t e ra as an interest them and make recommendations a to the administrator and council oun C IL native courts it fiill ill be alloi aliened ed to punish IW h minor crimes according to I 1 lair and customs and every provision slOn has been made to secure to the sa population complete independence and 1 sait government we fear hov however I 1 that hat the same causes which aich produced d to pro due rival chiefs mho will claim the bloat of provincial governor and choate I 1 dIss slon HARD TO perhaps tile the evils N aich it il la Is the least ir apt easy any to cure are ar tho the fi cond class clas those chich alch arise from the rivalry and mutual Itil lity or f the th different national A wes theft risibly ri sibly alt all ac 1 of life the traders on on one aide combine against those on theother ted the mun municipal leapal cou council n c JI is Is d divided av ad into two patties pint les each determined to t its own pro gramme and defeat that ot of the other proposed celori s and measures are arc ju judged d ged not on their merits but by party co considerations ysidera t ions and officials he however impartial they may be are considered eldeir d to 0 belong to one olle side or the other according c arding to their heir nationality I 1 and invariably end by becoming more mor or fell alefs partisans no NOT nor r A i NATIVE QUARREL front from tife the very commencement of 1 the I alite lit contest for or the kingship it was no mere quarrel between mairata and tanu on the one side apap one foreign nationality and its officials and on the other eldr two eno nationalities still with their officials and the conrest I 1 rest was visa prolonged and not allowed to reach lla its natural avo vo lie do not think it v will III ever lie be pos sible to do a away w ay with this state of things thing 3 under a tr tripartite I 1 partite administration and we ue take ebli ot of J recording our opinion that thai the 0 only n ay natural and normal plan of government I 1 for or those islands and the only system dyste n I 1 which can assure a permanent prosperity and tranquillity Is a government by one bouer we regard it bo however weer as beyond our province pro inco Nince to make any but a general statement on such a subject and we ite have endeavored to amend exist existing 1 ng arrangements in such a mannar that they may prove tt if not entirely satisfactory at least N voik of kable abl WHAT IS PROPOSED we prop propose to introduce an element of unity and centralization central 17 atlon into this the government by the appointment of 0 an administrator who mill doubtless be chosen from some gome distinguished power he mill bo be assisted by a council ot of delegates from rom the three governments who he might I 1 ht e such consular fenc tunc I 1 thonsa tl i nig a aie a necessary in samoa we propose r 0 p ob e tc to give this administrator a I 1 gargu measure e os u re of 0 authority naich it b by y a just and capable man should enable him to put an end to miny many disputes we propose that the administrator anti and the three delegates should form onn a ILI legislative coonc council 11 and alid we have introduced produced trod trod into the act several clauses giving them to modify existing ordinances we are of the opinion that the original n ill act of berlin darlin was drafted and has boon been construed lit in too rigid a manner and that greater elasticity in its provisions bould have a bene licini effect we have there therefore f ore empowered the C council oune I 1 1 to make such alterations as it 11 nay may t think b fit in the boundaries of districts tho abe details ot of natlae native government and other ether matters enumerated in tho the proposed act HARMONY AMONG WHITES thirdly we me hope to create a giester gi eater harmony among the w hite bile residents bv abolishing consular jurisdiction we believe that in other parts pans of the world moria such jurisdiction prevails only nhen the laws of a country tire arc for religious or other reasons not suitable for application in foreigners but the chiet chief justice of samoa Is an american or Europ european can and adain admin administers aisters ai american or european I 1 law a w it would appear therefore that there Is no reason why he should not take lake cognizance of all suits brought against foreigners nor w A hy by foreigners should enjoy loKes of extra except that of 0 not being amenable to the jurisdiction of native natine courts abich will deal only nith such melters as are decided according to native custom hitherto consular jurisdiction ha haa been a powerful means of em international strife in aria each nationality has had its ita own law and the consul who administered that law was mas popularly reg regarded crded not as in an impartial judge baat butas the tha protector of his own nationality as tiona lity we bel believe iee that by abolishing this outward sign of separate national institutions and by submitting all n nationalities a to one court and one la law w a great advance will avill be made in the direction of removing potty petty rivalries and jealousies and restating good relations between the various N M bile colonies ENLARGING POWERS OF COURT the third class of evils eils arises arise from the lawlessness now prevailing in samoa outside the municipality rori fort many years there has abeen been no law in these and na native IV in institutions s permitted chirrs hars to commit crimes with ith imp tilty murder theft and other of fences were left unpunished and trado suffered owing to the ty of affording planters adequate legal pro lection in their dealings with mith the abo il gines we hope to improve this state of things by giving the chief justice an enlarged over all the islands so po aa 88 to include all cases between natives and foreigners as viell mell as aa the higher grades of crimes committed by natives against each other to lighten tile the work of the court we tie hse hive made the municipal magistrate a court of first instance stanco In within the limits of the municipality IMPORTING OF ARMS fourthly ve ue have felt it our duty to deal so somewhat severely with the importation Import allon of arms find and am ammunition into samoa the prohibition existing in the treaty has become FL a dead letter the management of the cu customs has been exceedingly lax having been largely in the hands bands of merchants r who be naturally ly found it convenient to have easy cay regulations private commercial houses havo have been allowed to discharge goods direct into their own rec receiving eiNing sheds without any examination and though vo io make no spec specific ItIc accusations it Is clear that there can have been no difficulty dah alty in introducing large quantities of a ama mill and traducing thill hat arms arm were so introduced we therefore there fole feel it essential that the th customs regulations should be stringently enforced under the supervision of tilt tile administrator and that adequate customs accommodations a fth an ail adequate staff shall be provided with mith as aa little delay as ble BARTLETT TRIPP high commissioner of the united states c 14 E ELLIO ELLIOTT rr r r her britannic commas Com stoner mm 11 STURN sternberger BERGER high commissioner of germany