The New Orleans bulletin. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1874-1876, 1874-11-18
THE NEW BRITISH COLONY.


Pacific, within the tropics, between the meri
dams Of ITO degrees east and l78 west lonei
tude, (Greenwich), and tho parallels of Is ane
~ degrees south latitude The islands ar
about 800 in number, and are, in the gross
estimated at an area of 74OO acres, equal to the
whole extent of the province of Wales, o.
which area, $500 acres fall to the share Of
VIII Levu and Vanua Levu, the two principal
and only large islands Of the group. They
are beautiful in aspect, surrounded BY coral
beds, being Of volcanic formation, and thei,
soil is surprisingly rich.
Their natural products, besides abundant mi.
nerals, include cotton, coffee, tobacco indigo,
arrow-root and various spices, affording, as it
is considered, and as recent experience has
proved, ample opportunity for the investment
of capital and labor. The climate, though
averaging IS to 80 degrees throughout
the years. delightful and salubrious. The
Islands present natural harbors capable of
holding the largest fleets, and their positions,
both strategically and for general navigation
purposes, are hardly to be surpassed.
For some years the Australian Colonies have
desired to establish British authority in these
islands. Looking to the future of human in
tercourse, it is evident that in another genera
ton the route between the western coast of
the United States and the great Australian
territory is likely to be frequented by multi
tudes of vessels. Steam navigation is rapidly
IN Siv,nvi I'M ha M
steamers from San Francisco to Sidney and
Melbourne, and it is said the French purpose
establishing line which will take New Gale
donia on its way to Tahiti.
It cannot be doubted that with the extension
Of commercial enterprise, other lines will fol-
low. in which British subjects will be largely
interested This being the case, the advocates
of annexation pointed to the fact that England
possessed no station in the vast expanse of
ocean that lies between Australia and the Pa
ci6c coast of America. From the settlement
Of British Columbia to the coast of New South
Wales, over 1000 miles of sea, there is no
British depot or coaling station, no place of
refuge or to refit in time Of war or peace.
Islands may be looked upon as belonging to
this country; the French are established in
New Caledonia, while the British, who hold
the grandest possessions of the Southern
Hemisphere-a new world, with an incalcula-
BILE future-could not be content to allow their
growing colonies to communicate with the
American Continent, to say nothing of the
countless islands of the ocean, through the
medium of rude savages over whom they could
exercise no real control. Now, of all the groups
in the South Pacific, Fiji is marked out by ma |
ture - the most desirable for maritime sta
ton. It is to Australia what the Sandwich |
Islands are to California and Oregon. From
Melbourne to FIJI, from Hawai- to San Fran
cisco, are about equal distances.
The way the annexation Of the Fiji Archi-
pelago was brought about, is as follows
Some twenty years since, number Of Euro
oeans, principally British, and now amount
ng to over 1000 souls, settled into the islands.
These people soon desired protection against
he native tribes, about 10000 of whom are
mountainous savages, and are supposed to be
and repeated applications were
made to the British Government to take pos
ession Of the islands. These requests were
refused until 1872, when the Brit
sh Secretary of State sent out commission
those report was presented at the last session
Parliament.
In the meanwhile the white settlers had
ctnh1 had l
3 its nominal head, and q Parliament and I
linistry composed almost entirely of the
European element. After the fashion of all
ivilized Governments, the first thing they
id was to run into debt to the full extent of !
heir credit, and they insisted that the British
government should assume their debt as
ondition ofannexation. Finding, however, that
,esVarious Colonial Ministers to whom they {
i'd applied, uniformly refused to accept those {
rms, they finally consented to make an un- '
additional cession of their "rghts" to the e
lands. At least this is the inference We G
raw from the official announcement that t
ritish naval officer, Sir Hercules Robinson, &
IS Just taken possession Of the Archipelago f
ID placed it under the British flag
The validity Of the title whereby this new !
quisiion of Great Britain was made is not :
ny clear, but as the same objection would ap- =
y to every other European settlement in the =
,cifc Ocean OF, for the matter Of that, in this =
,misphere, we do not think it will be ques- :
med, and it is certainly better for the natives
at they should come under the civilizing in \
fence of Christian nation than to go on eat
2 each other after the fashion of their an :,
stors. O.
The Grant victory in South Carolina, SO r
IDLY applauded in the Grant organs, only =
owes, if proof were needed, that Grantism el
d corruption are identical. The ignorant p
gro majority were ind uced by the Patterson
ng to reject Delany, the ablest member Of 4
Dir race, and accept Chamberlain, the Re- II