New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1899-11-11
THE IALEE OE TUTUILA.

Tutuila. then. is to be added to the possessions
Of the United States That. at any rate, Is what
our partners in Samoa desire and expect The
Government Of the United States Is yet to be
heard on the matter and II Is just as well not TO
try TO anticipate its decision. This. however,
NAV pretty safely be taken as granted, that II
Samoa shall be partitioned at least nothing less
than Tutuila and the isets at the east thereof
will fall to our share There will be objections
raised to such partition, some OF them worthy
of consideration. but II seems doubtful II they
will outweigh or come anywhere near to out
weighing the objections to the tripartite control
which for years has been costly and so pro-
life n source OF trouble. 1t will be a relief to
get rid Of that foreign ENHANCEMENT" And we
have no doubt that we shall get along with our
German cousins as neighbors at distance OF
fifty miles across seas rather more amicaby
than we have with them as political partners
and rivals on the same islands
In point Of size and population Tutuila is not
so great as to give us any cause TO be pulled up
over the possession of it, With an area Of be-
tween fifty and sixty square miles and popu-
lation of less than four thousand. 1t would not
make more than n township In one OF our
States Neither would Gibraltar or Hong Kong
make a very big spot on the map Of Great Brit
aln yet they are highly priced We shall find
Tutula likewise valuable far beyond the prom
Use Of It's size 1t is to he regarded strategicaly,
and that not for military purposes solely, nor
indeed chiefly, but with reference TO the develop
ment Of our lines of communication and com
merce across the Pacific Ocean. In that view OF
the case Tutuila, with its fine harbor of Pago
Page, will be possession Of substantial i'm
portance.
We have hitherto spoken Of the urgent desira-
bility of laying Geographic cable across the
Pacific from California by way of Hawaii,
Wake and Guam to the Philippines. That would
place us I'm communication with the entire Asian
coast. and indeed with the Australasian com
monwealths. 1t may be that such system will
prove sufficient for all purposes without more
direct line to New Zealand and Australia. But
II the latter shall ever be needed, then Tutuila
will furnish an ideal midsea landing station, ~
ing as 1t does almost exactly on the line from
Honolulu to Auckland. And however that may
be, ii Is indlsputabe that PagO Pago Will be
highly convenient port Of call and refuge for
vessels plyIne ON It line Between the United
States of America and the new United States Of
Australia there should be much commerce. There
should be numerous lines Of passenger and
freight vessels from the one to the other. Such
of these as are British Will naturally go by way
Of VIII Lew, in the Fiji group. But such as are
American-and that should mean most Of them
will naturally make the trip by way OF Tutuila.
1t has often been remarked that steam and
electricity are vastly lessening space. The same
thing is being done by the acquisition and i'm
provement Of these outlying stations. Once the
vast expanse of the Pacific Ocean-more than
twice the width of the Atantic-was deemed an
almost insuperable barrier to intimacy between
the nations dwelling on its opposite shores. To-
day the Pacific does not require on any impor-
tant line of travel as long run between ports
as does the Atlantic. That is literally true. a
vessel setting out from San Francisco for any
port of Asia or Australasia will not have to run
as far without entering a coaling port as the
distance from Sandy Hook to Fastnet. From
San Francisco TO Honolulu il only 2,Os9 miles,
thence to Pago Page 2,263 and thence to Auck-
land 1000. or to Sydney 1884 miles. 1t is MS
stepping stones for thus breaking up a long
stride into short and easy and safe steps that
these islands of the are greatly TO be prized.
And few of them thus to be more highly
priced than Tutuila.