The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1902-01-07
DECLINE OF REUNION
Famous Sugar Island Has Lost All
Former Prosperity.
Main Industry Ruined by Successful
Introduction of Beet Sugar und
Many Abandon the
Island.

When a region sends its products to
an exposition it usually puts its best
loot foremost and tries TO convince the
rest of the world of it's great value and
desirability. Reunion, formerly one
of the great sugarcane raising islands
of the Indian ocean, was a conspicuous
and perhaps a solitary exception to
this rule at the Paris exposition last
year. The islanders availed them
selves of the great fair for the unusual
purpose of advertising their adversely
and the duty of France to do some
thing to better the condition of its
colony and restore prosperity to the
islanders.
Most of the officials of the island
contributed to the volume compiled
by j. Andre, in which the grewsome
condition of Reunion was described.
All the rags and tatters of the poor lit
tie island were Haunted in the hope to
attract public attention. 1t was not
the fault of the island colony that il
appeared in the light of a suppliant for
aims. Even when the distress of a beg
gar is genuine his troubles are often
the result of his own folly. But Re-
union could not help it's growing pow.
erty nor smother its sharp cry of dis
tress, says the New York Sun.
The visitors to the exposition ad-
mired the products of the naturally
rich island; they were displayed to the
best advantage and were well worth
seeing. Then his attention was called
by the persons in charge of the exhib-
its to this printed story of the loss Of
prosperity and the present era of com
plete ~stagnation and suffering.
In the first place the %triumphal
progress of the beet sugar industry
and the consequent fall in the price of
cane sugar had entirely ruined the
main industry of the island. The peo-
pie had lost faith in their ability to
earn a good living in the colony and
the result was that a large part of the
labor had abandoned the island.
1--WE have not labor enough" said
the islanders, Ito develop other
industries to take the place of the
sugar interest which now scarce
ly exists. Unless steps are taken
to bring in a supply of foreign la
borers we r irretrievably ruined,
for the labor at our command is who'll
ly inadequate for our needs"
Next to the scarcity of labor the
yellow danger" was most threatening
to the interests of the white colonists.
The people of Asia were absorbing the
activities of the island. Nearly all the
retail trade and a large part of the
wholesale trade were in the hands of
the Chinese. French planters were
raising only one-third of the tobacco.
Chinese and Indian planters producing
most of the crop. The largest tobacco
planter in the colony was a Chinese.
So the little book goes on to describe
almost complete stagnation in all di-
rections. There are only so miles of
railroad and not a mile has been added
since 1882. OF the 100 miles of tele-
graph lines only 40 miles have been
built in the past ten years. Forests
nominally cover a third of the island.
but scarcity of timber suitable for
building and other purposes is one of
the greatest causes of distress. The
forests have been recklessly despoiled
by all who desired timber, and the gov
eminent has made no effort to pre-
serve them. No cable yet unites the
island with the outside world, and
since the ruin of the sugar industry
steam communications have not been
adequate.
The fact is hat Reunion has Joined
the list of the smaller colonies of
France which have more or less reason
to complain of the neglect of the moth
er country. A year before this cry of
distress came from the Indian ocean,
the French colony of Tahiti in the Pa
cifc drew up a list of grievances and
protested against the failure of
France. to supply them with sea con
munication or good roads in the in
terror. There are other small colonies
which think they are Entitled to a
share of the interest which France
bestows upon Algeria, Tunis and
Madagascar.