The record-union., 1899-04-08
Forced to Ahdicate by American and
British Authorities.
IanumafiII MaIietoa Crowned King Of tho
Samoan Islands.

Commander of the Warship
Fake a Lesson, Compelling Him
to Remain in Port With His
Vessel During Hostilities.
Francisco, April There have been
lively times in Samoa during the past
few days. The United States and
British warships have shelled Mataafa' :
forces repeatedly, and sailors have been
landed in Apia to protect property
Numerous casualties have resulted on
both sides Admiral Kautz and the
commanders of the British ships are
anxiously awaiting advices from their
Governments, and in the meantime the
shelling process proceeds daily.
When Admiral Kautz arrived on the
Philadelphia he spent two days in
making inquiries, and then called a
meeting of all the Consuls and the
senior officers of all the warships in
the harbor. AS a result of the meet
ing, a proclamation was issued by the
Admiral, declaring that the so-calieG
provisional Government under Mataafa
can have no legal status under the Ber-
lin treaty, and therefore cannot be rec
ognized by the Consular and naval rep
resentatives, and ordering Mahaafa and
his supporters to quietly go to their
homes and respect the laws Of the Ber-
lin treaty. 1t was further ordered
that the people elected from their
homes be returned, and the power of
the naval force, it was stated, would
be used against all who disregarded the
rights of peaceably disposed people.
The authority of the Chief Justice was
upheld by the proclamation and the
Admiral closed by saying that he trusts
that there may be no occasion to use
military powers.
Following is the proclamation of Ad-
mir'al Kautz in full:
ITO High Chief Mataafa and the thir-
teen chiefs associated with him, IN par
ticular, and TO all the people of Samoa,
both foreign and native, in general:
'1-Whereas, At meeting held this
day ON board the United States flag
ship Philadelphia, at anchor in the
harbor at Apia, at which were pres
ent the Consular representatives of ths
three signatory Powers of. the Berlin
treaty of 1889 and the three senior
naval officers of the same Powers, II
was agreed that the so-called provis-
ional Government, High Chief Mataafa
and thirteen other chiefs. can have nc
legal status under the Berlin treaty, and
can therefore not be recognized by the
Consular and naval representatives II
is hereby ordered that the High Chief
and the thirteen other chiefs afore-
said go quietly to their respective homes
and obey the laws of Samoa, and re-
spect the Berlin treaty
1T is further ordered that all the
chiefs. and their people who have been
elected from their homes, and who
have been sent to different points in the
Samoan Islands, return quietly to their
aforesaid homes without molestation.
1.-THE guarantee of protection as
far as lies within the power Of the naval
force now in this harbor, is given to all
who quietly obey this order; on the
other hard, it will be used against all
who disregard it or the rights of quiet
and peaceably disposed people
1.-THE treaty of Berlin recognizea
the Chief Justice of Samoa as the high
est officer under the existing govern.
ment. and as long as he holds mis- Of
flee his authority must be respected and
the decree of the court must be carried
out.
@Trusting that all residents of Sa-
moa will have the good sense to OBJ
serve the provisions of this proclama-
tion, which is issued in the interest of
peace, with an earnest regard for the
rights of all, both foreign and native,
and that there may be no occasion 10
use military power to enforce it,
i am respectfully,
ALBERT KAUTZ.
Rear Admiral United States Navy.
Commander in Chief Naval Force on
Pacific Station"
This was taken to Mataafa and read
to him by Flag Lieutenant Miller. I,
was received in silence and no answer
was made. Mataafa and his chiefs
quietly left and went to the western
portion of the municipality. and II
seemed as if they were about to obey
the commands to return to their homes
The German Consul, however. issued A
counter proclamation in the Samoan
language, which was distributed among
the Mataafans. The proclamation reads
as follows:
Notice to all Sfamoans: BY the pro-
elamation of the Admiral of the Unit.
ed States, dated March 11th, was made
known that the three Consuls of the
signatory Powers of the Berlin treaty
as Well as the three commanders OF
men-of-war, had been unanimous to ne
more recognize the provisional Govern
m mt CON pcs d of Mata ia and the thi
teen chiefs. / therefore make known
to you that this proclamation is quite
false l, the German Consul Genera
continue to recognize the provisional
Government of Samoa until | have re.
ceived contrary Instructions from my
Government. ROSE,
German Consul General"
"Apia. 18th March, 1899"
The immediate result of this act was
that the rebels blackened their faces
and prepared for war, declaring that
they would not obey the Admiral's ord
er, and would prevent any food sup
plies from being brought into Samoa for
the Malietoa natives. The next day
Apia was surrounded by Mataafa's
Warriors. Forces from the Philadel-
phia and Porpoise, under Lieutenants
Brown and Cave. were landed to pro-
teet the loyal natives
On Tuesday, Mataafa having failed
to answer the AdmiraIs proclamation
Flag Lieutenant Miller was sent to de-