The Hawaiian gazette., 1901-11-01
SAMOAN SOLDIERS.
(From Thursdays daily.)

United States Navy, recently pro-
~ NOTED from the rank of com
mander. arrived yesterday on the So |
mona. en- route to Page Page, island of
Tutuila the American possession in the |
Samoan group. Mrs. Tilley accom-
panics her husband on the present trip |
He is on his way to answer to the |
charges preferred against him for al |
LEGGED misconduct while in command of
| the naval station at Page Pago. The !
battleship Wisconsin with members of
! the court-martial board has already |
! PASSED through Honolulu on her way to |
| Samoa and the naval transport Solace |
with Admirals Bob" Evans and Henry |
Glass will proceed to Page Page this
lafternoon. The Sonoma will reach that
port at about the same time. capt. |
|Tilley was stationed at Honolulu about
nine years ago as executive officer of
the cruiser san Francisco, but left the
| islands before the overthrow of the
monarchy.
CAPTAIN Tilley stated to an Advertiser
reporter last evening at the Hawaiian
Hotel that no matter what was the re-
suit of the proceedings at Page Page,
he would in all probability pass through
Honolulu within short time, as he has
seen two and half years of service in
Samoa. and is anxious to make
change.
II was ambitious to get much of the
work mapped out for the Improvement
Of Page Page harbOr, completed be-
fore ! gave up the station" said the
officer. but much remains to be done.
The harbor of Page Pago is a fine one,
with an entrance about half a mile wide
and clear of distractions with the ex
lception of rock which is buoyed and
plainly marked There is room in the
harbor for four or five vessels to swing
at their anchorages, but only one vessel
at a time can go alongside the new
wharf, which is $50 feet long. The
wharf and coal sheds have been com
pleted and Engineer Tibbitts and the
men who worked under him have re-
turned to the States. There is yet about
$3.50 900 worth of work to be done at the
station. The harbor is finely protected
from the elements by the mountain
ranges and it is generally as smooth as
a mill-pond. There are fortitioatons
, needed as protection against an
: enemy and these will come in time. ,,
"Tutuila is about the best island in
1.-THE group from all physical aspects TAX
en- into consideration, and ! think the
United States got decidedly the best of
the bargain. Pago Page may never
be a large place, and the island is not
. one that can be cultivated to the ex-
tent that it will yield much revenue in
plantation products but as a strategic
acquisition to the government it is eX-
tremely valuable.
"One of the outcomes of the annexa-
L.
been the enrolment of sixty Samoans
as the native guard, These men are
Timely proportional, are natural born
> soldiers, and about the handiest men
= with modern rifles | have ever seen.
: They have always been IA warike peo-
q pie and the possession of a rifle was
Z prizeu above all things. The men are
drillcu by naval officers and the guard
lis, OF course, a part of the naval force
stationed at Page Page, the army not
, being represented there. In this com
pany of Samoan soldiers are a number
of young chiefs, who gave up their RICH,
J. to rule in the villages that they might
accept service in this guard, as they
, receive SIG a month and rations, and
. this to them is a princely income. Such
an amount of money coming regularly
organization of the guard and they are
pow looked up to as men to be envied
= rhey have an odd uniform, probably
i the oldest in the United states service
u giving them the appearance of the ma
$ tive soldiery Of some of the European
. nations in their African or Asiatic pos
!, sessions. They wear a skirt, a singlet
a and a turban of red and make a very
Il imposing appearance. They have been
II III service about "A year and from -
= ports of them they are among the best
!. drilled men in the navy. In the bayonet
8 drill they excel, and they go through
. the entire drill without an order. and
= all in perfect unison. They are a re-
" markable body of men.
n Honolulu has changed much since
S. was here as executive officer on the
l. cruiser San Francisco, and l can see
y that some magnificent buildings are be-
u ing erected Honolulu was not so active
e before the overthrow and the suburbs
:, We're not so we'll built up. | have no.
% had time to go to Pearl Harbor .oday
e but remember it very we'll as | Went
2, all over it when was here before. 1t Is
= a magnificent site for n naval station
y and with the bar dredged out and the
s. channel cleared OF Instructions the navy
:, will be in possession OF something worth
y while"
l. Captain Tilley was reticent on the
= subject of his coming court martial al
TX Page Page. He met the officers OF the
ID court-martial at the Moana Hotel yes
+ terday afternoon while driving about
the city.