Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1921-08-16
Blue Laws at
the Equator
ny Frederic J. Haskin


OF communism in existence In some
of the islands OF the Pacific. mixed
with the enforcement Of poiynerian
bfue laws and n retirement system for
the aged. All OF this takes place in
the Gilbert Islands. n group lying
north and south Of the equator. The
group comprises sixteen Islands. iy-
Ing almost exnctiy half way around
the globe from England. The Islands
we're annexed by Great Britain in 1892.
Sailors recently from the islands are
authority for the reports OF conditions
now existing there. The laws are
rigidiy enforced by native policemen
the British oyerlords apparently fol-
lowing the practice of permitting the
native population the largest possiblel
share in it's own government.
Practically the only Industry in the
islands is the raising Of cocoanuts.
The islands arc coral atolls. the soil
formed by the deoomposed coral being
fit only for the one industry. Every
native man " allotted space Of FIVE
acres OF land on wbich/o grow cocoa
nuts II the native fakes unto him
self a wife. two additional acres are
given 10 him. Every child blessing
the union gives the family grant
of an additional acre. A real Koose
veitian family, with a dozen children,
would have a grant OF eocoanut land
l.amounting TO 10 acres.
A hard and fast wage scale Is fixed
/ for those natives who choose TO work
on the plantations of the British or
I of other natives. For their labor. they
receive four ehillings a day. At the
present rate of exchange. this Is the
equivalent Of about ~ cents.
The fenoiniam movement has not
made much headnay in The islands,
women being disorinlinated against IN
the matter Of liquor allowance. Every
nan in the islands is allowed daily
allowance Of a goblet Of rum, with no
mention made Of any allowance for
hfs sisters and his cousins and his
Iannts. The size Of the goblet is not
specified. but If half a coeoanut shell
is taken as a goblet measurement the
daily allowance is not stinted one
i BY any means.
No Rum on Sunday.
However. the missionaries are fore
ling Sunday observance TO some ex-
tent. AOn this day alone the rum
treasury is closed up no man being
issued ration. Also, on Sunday the
whole population is forbidden to do
lany work The women are forbidden
even 70 attempt to do the family
washing on Sunday. trifing though
the job is. The men must not work
among the streets, and cannot even
fish ether for pleasure or 10 stock
the family larder.
Crews os visiting ships are not al
lowed to purchase rum. The thirsty
! mariner must depend on slipping tht
supply Of friendly and generous oI
! abstemious native. This rule is hare
and fast. and the natives are reported
10 look upon it with favor. as il pre-
! vents great inroads into the publi'
: supply OF liquor. Also, the natives
: are forbidden to give away any Cocoa
nuts to visitors. They must be sol'
at the retail rate. and the prodAlct Q
| the island is parted with at a shiiiini
per cocoanut This is not done witt
the idea OF disposing OF many cocoa
nuts in this way. but apparently z
discourage the selling Of them.
? The inhabitants of the STAND sr'
: taxed in cocoanuts. The details o
3 the taxing scheme have not been re
r cefyed here. but II is believed TO b
e somewhat on the order Of the Ameri
2 can income tax. a single man pro
e ducinz a thousand cocoanuts wouis
have more of them taken from hin
e as a tax levy than would a married
man, and an additional exemption :
allowed for each child.
Every man must retire from m
business of raising cocoanuts wnei
he is sixty years old, no matter wna
] his physical condition may be. AiIel
that he is supported by the community
] md has no tax 70 pay. Despite IN
4 fact that the islands are not as al
S yantageously situated as many of th'
: other Pacific groups, the population
& lis fairly dense for that part OF IN
5 world. The natives once were inn
tported to Hawaii as laborers, but dit
2 rot do well at all, and the idea wa:
: Abandoned.
The sunday blue laws in effect IN
the islands are the result of the WORK
: of missionaries, both British and
American. No native would ever de-
wise a plan whereby he would be de-
prived of a rum allowance on any one
: day out of the seven. At that they
2 are not very severe, merely cutting
; off the rum supply and forbidding any
) kind of work. There is no report made
{ of compulsory attendance at any sort
! of religious gathering on the Sab
bath
Blue law agitators in the United
: States would carry the system much
/, beyond the simple code in effect IN
; the Gilbert Islands. The amelierating
effect of a rum allowance is impos-
sible now in this country, and when
the agitation for blue laws was at It's
7 height in the States. not many months
: ago. il was proposed 10 go Tar beyond
: anything which ever existed before,
even in the Puritan days in New
: England. Operation of automobiles
z was to be forbidden on Sundays, at
tendance at church was TO be conf
PEELED, and a host of other stringent
rules applied.
Naturally any such program as this
was bound to fail. II was sponsored
for the most part by a fanatical crowd
endowed with only sparce amount Of
reasoning power. The more intelh-
gent of the reformers realized that
he enactment and enforcement OF
such rules would tend greatly toward
bringing about a reaction in public
Sc ntiment, @nlSn might ten0 sH
not only the Sunday blue laws,
but the recent great accomplishment
ot The reform element. the dry amend
n1ent to the Constitution. On that ac-
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