Perth Amboy evening news., 1921-09-30
BLUE LAWS AT THE
EQUATOR
By Frederic j. Haskin.

this country of a curious kind of communism
in existence in some of the islands of the PACING,
Mixed with the enforcement of Polynesian blue
laws and a retirement system for the aged. All
OF this takes place in the Gilbert Islands a group
living north and south of the equator. The
from comprises sixteen islands, lying almost
exactly half way around the globe from Eng
and. The islands were annexed by Great BTU
ain in 1892.
Sailors recently from the islands are authority
for the reports of conditions now existing there.
The laws are rigidly enforced by native ponce
M tbe British oyerlords apparently following
the practice of permitting the native population
the largest possible share in It's own govern
Practically the only industry in the islands is
the raising of cocoanuts. The islands are coral
atolls, the soil formed by the decomposed CORA
being fit only for the one industry. Every nause
man is allotted a space of five acres OF land on
which to grow cocoanuts. II the native taxes
unto himself a wife, two additlonai acres g. nu
given to him. Every child blessing the union
gives the family a grant of an addltionaI aSIe'
a real Rooseveltian family, with a dozen emu,
dren, would have a grant OF cocoahu' i"""
amounting to nineteen acres.
A hard and fast wage scale Is nxeu Ior tHoso
natives who choose to work on tne Fan their
OF the British or of other natives. for tlIu
labor. they receive four shillings q day. Atthe
present rate of exchange, this IS the equi'aieh'
The feminism movement has not made much
beadway in the islands, women being ulsclimI
mated against in the matter OF hquor anoWaHoI'
EVERY mar in the islands is allowed q oaiy a-
ioryanca of rum. with no mention made or any
allowance for his sisters and his cousins anu
aunts. The size of the goblet Is 0 ! gobIet
mt if half a cocoanut shell is taken as d suotds
measurement. the daily allowance Is not a i"'
one by any means. ~
ovever the missionaries are forcing SUNDAY
observance to some extent. On TINS DAY alVns
the rum treasury is closed up, no man 81
issned a ration. Also, on Sunday the wnoie ply
MIatior ia forbidden to do any work. the WON.
ON are forbidden even to attempI ~ ~ ~
family washing on Sunday, trltlng sno u the
ioh is. The men. must not work aIhohs sur
JUu ond cannot even fish, either for pleasure
or to- stock the family larder. ou,od 70
Crews Of visiting ships are aine y must depend
on Shipping the supply Of a friendly ana s1 hard
ons or abstemious native. This RUE > IaaI
and fast, and the natives are nepo great inroads
ITO the public supply of liquor. Also, tne a
tives are forbidden to give away any t.;I rate'
to visitors. They must be sold at the felai narted
80 the product of the island Is parteMu
with at a shilling per cocoanu. - many
not done with the IDEA OF a,s pporenf,v to dis
cocoanuts in this way, but apparently
The inhabitants of the island are taAIu 40
cocoanuts. The details , OF 'h hit it t. is believed
To he somewhat on the order OF tne u thou
income tax. A single man prooucins q taIsn
sand cocoanuts would have more OF m e man.
49,, him as a levy than would a married a
and an additional exemption Is alio"eu ii eNNN
child. ..Auo From, the business of
So cocoanuts when he is sixty years old' ~
matter what his physical condltlon ma u ~ ard
ter that he is support9 pes ny the fact that the
lands a are not as advantageously sltuateu ~o
MANY of the other Pacific groups the Tbe
is fairly dense for that part OF the Wot ns ahor-
natives once were imported to Hawai- as az aa
RS. but did not do well at all, ana the ioe" ""0
abandoned. .eeoot il, the islands
= - The result of the work of missionaries, 90
british and American. NO na,ive Monriuad Of
devise a plan whereby ne wouia aa y ont of the
a rum allowance on any one DAY u MERELY
ssven' At that, they are not very severe, mercy e.
cutting off the rum supply ana oiD Of com.
Wind of work. There is no report maui :. a IN
hiiu - attendance at any sort of religious gain
ering on the Sabbath. 1r,;+od States would
Blue law ~agitators in the onlteu .as 49,, code
o.rrv the system much beyond the slIlpie ~
in effect in the Gilbert Islands. The ameholatiHS
effect of a rum allowance is lmposslpie far hlne
this country, and when the az not many
laws was at its height in the states, ~ havanS
,nonths ago, it was proposed to go Tar ~ W
anvthing which ever existed petore, even - -
puritan days of New England. CPeraeon
autom obiles was to be forbidden on sundays, az. y,
tendance at church was to be compelleu' WV -
host Of other stringent rules appileu. hound
Naturally any such program as TINS was pouuu
10 fail 1t was sponsored for the most PAT "
a fanatical crowd endowed with only d Sp aii.
amount Of reasoning power, IL hn anactment
gent of the reformers realized that the nand
End enforcement of such rules would teHu
greatly toward bringing about a reactom - ~
nubIic sentiment, which might tend TO s"eSe
p,uav not only the Sunday blue laws, put the
recent great accomplishment OF the reform tu
ment, the dry amendment 10 Ine aiJnS ~ get
on tnaL dCCOulb tio ut
much support, and is about to die OF ihahi'ioh'
One Result of a Blue Law. us
Even today, though, there are rigid plue W.
l., existence in parts of the United STATES SUM
If which are enforced to the letter OF tue iam,
The country was shocked about a year ago Whes
in a little community on the Eastern onore ~
Marylana. a rather inaccessible spot . II AZ
neninsular between Chesapeake Bay ana the ~,
Ia ntie Ocean, a law enforcement officer sho ri, q
Nov who violated one of the indigo rules. M
oase 6nallv got into the papers, ana pages W.
devoted to- the exposition of what had nappenTSa
II seems that there is a rule In eHect III oM
community chat everyone beyond tenuer Sea.S
nnnst attend church, or remain within them W.
houses during the hours set aside ior pv
oxercises. The boy was sent to the drusstoIe ~
his father. doing the errand one SUNDAY no
TIC 1T the time that church services were uhdsa
uvav when he returned the boy stayed o "a
~ his fathers house, but, within his yaro; st'dne
On the norch. He was admonished by a Jaw en-,
forcement officer, who presumably old not :.
~ on To church, and shot in the leg by TINS nlan'
yyhen news OF the affair reached otner conn
uunities it caused a great furore IN tne 1--WE
napers for a time. but the thing orageea a hord
and az the little Maryland community was naro
20 roach by wires or in any other way, the eaS1
soon dropped out of the news, ana the ana
o,,tcome il still a. mystery. At the time tne iooa,
ro;nister. a certain Reverend Mr.. Godwln' Wa
Interviewed. but side-stepped giving any ha
md fast opinion as to whether the shootng Wa
~ a = Al.% &troe ha wanted to learn HOIS