The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1894-06-25

Arrival In Seattle OF . Resident fol
Twenfy-One Years.

Arrival In Seattle OF . Resident for
Twenty-Five Years
H ]. Moors, who has for the past
twenty-one years been q resident Of Apia.
Samoa, is visiting in the city, and speak
ing upon the subject Of the islands and
their inhabitants. says:
The Samoa group consists OF nine
islands, Of which the ISLAND of Upolu. on
which is located the city OF Apia. IS the
second island in size, but the most i'm
porrant in wealth. This island is forty
seven miles long and twenty-seven miles
wide. and has about II, 600 inhabitants. out
of $500 upon the whole nine islands.
There are as yet but very few white peo-
ple living there, 200 in Apia and about 100
more scattered over the balance of this and
the other islands.
.sOur chief product Is copra, which is
nothing more or less than the dried meat
of the cocoanut, which is shipped 10
America and other countries and is used
for making oils such as is used in making
soap. About 5000 tons of this copra are
exported each year. Cotton is also pro-
duced in considerable quantities, and very
excellent coffee is also raised, but lately
we have turned our attention to the rails
ing of cocoa, which has proved very
profitable business so far. Robert Louis
Stevenson, the novelist. who Is next
door neighbor of mine, has gone into the
cocoa-raising business Co a considerable
extent. and thinks he will put more of his
4. 0)0-acre farm under the same kind of
cultivation next year.
sour timber, which grows mostly in the
mountains, is very fine for use IN making
furniture and the like. being very hard
and much resembling mahogany; in fact.
some of 1t is so very hard that lt IS impos-
sible TO drive q nail into ii al all.
Speaking of climate. know of no
place in the world where the temperstur
is more even the year around than 1t is
there, never going above So degrees and
never falling below 20 degrees. The an
nual rainfall at Apia is about $50 inches
and in the mountains. which rise TO a
height of 1000 feet. It sometimes rains 500
inches in year. As heavy as this may
seem, 1t Is, nevertheless. none too much,
and is in nowise an inconvenience to the
people, as the rain most always falls dur
ing the night (and nearly every night in
the year, and as the soil is very porous it
is never muddy. There are no poisonous
reptiles there, which is sometimes the
great drawback in Southern islands, and
no beasts Of prey to make ones life bur-
den for fear OF being devoured, it being
perfectly safe 10 lie outdoors all night with
out thought of danger.
'sfhere is great cry about the natives
fighting among themselves, which is TO
certain extent true, the whole trouble be-
ing caused by the interference in the af-
fairs of the country by the Germans IN
the year 1857. In 1889 these troubles were
aiiayed by the Berlin general act, this be-
ing tri-party act between Great Britain,
Germany and America, which had 10 have
the assent of the Samoa government. This
it received. and the provisions of the act
became operative. In difference TO requests
and representations of Germany, both En-
gland and America allowed certain pro-
visions of that act to be totally disre-
garded, -ithout the consent of the Samo-
ans, who were the most vitality interested
parties concerned. The principal cause of
complaint of the Samoa people was that
article of the treaty provided for the IN
dependence of the country and the free
right of the people to choose their own
form of government and elect their
own ruler The election was OBJ
structed by the powers or their
representatives, and never took place.
The man who was temporarily
appointed king until the election could
take place, has been continued in office,
and the election deferred from time to
time, and il was finally declared that no
election should take place, much TO the
disgust of the Samoans.
1.-THE state department at Washington
City assured me that they had no idea of
Withdrawing totally the treaty, but that it
might be modified and in a short time
proposition TO this effect will emanate from
that department. There will be no sur
render of American interests or any relax
alton in favor of Germany or any other
power, and we may see the day that
America will yet De the possessor of the
Samoan islands,"