The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1892-06-29
About Samoa.

Commissioner Ormsbee, who is now
resident on the Samoan Islands. has
written letter descriptive of the peo-
pie, climate, etc., which has been pub.
lished in the Burlington Free Press.
From it we take the following extract,
which would seem TO show what the
missions of the American Board for
forty years have done for the morals
and religious condition of that people.
Mr.. Ormsbee says:
There are about $4,000 natives on
the entire group of islands. Something
over three-fourths are Protestants,
and the remainder Roman Catholics.
They have the Bible, hymn books,
book of Scripture selections, a die
tionary and grammar, and some other
books and papers, in their language.
They require that all of the children
shall attend school, and all learn to
read and write and something more;
and in the line of religious training,
and practice, too, they, as people, are
exemplary beyond any have before
seen.
The Sabbath is more rigidly and truly
observed, even in this town of Apia,
where they can gain little to their ad-
vantage in that regard from the exam
pie of the foreign population, than in
any town in New England, venture to
say. 1t is said, and from what have
seen and heard l have no reason to
doubt it, that there is scarcely a native
house or family in all these islands
where family religious devotions are
not held at least once day every day
in the year. Still in material things,
and worldly affairs, business, etc., so
far as l can judge, they have made no
very valuable progress. They are a
very clearly people; they do not seem
to have any besetting sin, unless, as it
is claimed by some, they have weak
ness in the direction of recognizing the
property rights of others. But in refer
ence to this alleged characteristic l am
not satisfied that they will not average
fairly well with mankind in general.
But if the charge be true, as claimed,
then | should be inclined to attribute it
not to wickedness, but to the fact that
among themselves they have no indi-
vidual property rights, as a general
proposition. The head of the family
or of the village is supposed to own
everything that every member of the
family or village has. They have &C.
casional war between the ruling king
and some aspiring chief who wants to
change places with the king, and they
still adhere to at least one of the prac-
tees of barbarism, that is, to decapitate
the vanquished, and carry his head on
pike or staff to the victorious chief.
Hence it is that as part of this tattoo.
ing process every male is so marked
that he may be recognized even if
minus his head.
The Samoans are happy and con-
tented beyond any people ] have ever
seen. Nature provides beautifully for
their every want with the aid of very
little labor. All needed labor they
seem to perform almost as a pleasure,
and in fact work and pleasure are so in
termingled that it is difficult to sepa-
rate one from the other. 1t is said
that in war the men are very brave, but
as we see these people they are not even
quarrelsome. / have met thousands of
them and the street is crowded with
them almost constantly except Sundays,
and have yet 10 see any acts or indi-
cations of quarrel among them. AS
TO the women they are seemingly happy
and contented, and many of them are
even fine looking, and would be quite
noticeable anywhere by reason of their
fine physique. True they dress little
scantily, measured by New England
customs, many of them wearing only
the " lava lava" which extends from
just above the hips to the knees; still
they are unconscious of any impropri-
ETY., and / can say that on no occasion or
even in a single instance have / seen
an act or any indication pointing in
the least towards immodest behavior
among the hundreds of women l see al
most daily on the street. The men APP
pear to be very kind to the women,
carry the heavier burdens and very
often the baby. l might go on without
limit, as to place and people, but l am
Qura Won baua anita apnnUh for tbia |