Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-03-03
L. S. Isles of DELIGHT

existing in them is that derived. medi-
ately or Immediately, from the PreSt-
dent of the United States as Command
er-in-Chief of the Army and Navy
An order was issued by President Nc
kinley comforting upon the Navy the
authority to govern American Samoa.
The Commandant of tho coaling sta-
ton was made governor ard the head
of the high court He delegates mucG
of his authority To three native chiefs
each of whom administers the Amer
can laws and those derived from abO-
riginal customs and traditions.
Describes Navy Pooh Bah"
Rear Admiral j. L. Jayne, U. S. N.
several years ago wrote an article for
the Naval Institute III which he de-
scribes his own experiences at Page
Pago as young officer in 1901 shortly
after the United States took forma.
charge.
BY an odd combination Of cireum-
stances he found himself the COM
mander of a cruiser. the commandment
of the station. the governor OF the
island. the chief judge OF the high
court and few other things. AL OF
which he sums up under the title, "A
Naval Pooh BAH
When the World War occurred. In
1914 an expedition from New Zealand
landed at Apia and took possession OF
all German, o. Western Samoa. in the
name of the British crown. All that
territory has been held by England ever
since, its present status being that OF
being ruled by New Zealand under
mandate.
Meanwhile. the United States con-
tinued to govern her part without In
terruption under the rule Of the ad-
miralty Of Page Page.
Population Is 800.
The Navy is the dominant factor in
American Samoa. The population is
under American rule. Of which there
are 1870 whites and 300 half-castes. The
1000 or so natives are of the pure
Polynesian strain They have a COM
plexion like that of gold and copper
combined. Their features are fine and
regular and among them are both men
and women Of singular beauty. They
are unusually tall for inhabitants OF
the South Seas. Their hair IS straight
and far from coarse and they creSs b.
comingy.
Samoans have a graceful poisc and
many of the older men have stately
dignity which gives them that noble
aspect seen in the North American In
dian. In their disposition. these now
, duly recognized Samoan cousins of ours
are light hearted, agreeable and affec-
| tionate.
When a new ship of the United States
| Navy arrives in port. the natives go out
to meet 1t in canoes and greet those on
deck in the most cordial fashion. Their
| first inquiry ml lie in their own tongue
/ t,S mt. fVfO To,
me. what?" Being assured such is the
case. they board the vessel with many
| presents of island delicacies. such as
bananas. pineapples and other fruits,
and remain on board as long as the
| discipline Of the vessel will permit.
Children Of nature as they are. the
/ American-SamoanS have good stand
ards of morals. Their family life is
| idealistic and probably equal in its
standards to that of people who make
more elaborate pretensions to observing
| the amenities.
The Island of Tutuila is only about
| 81 square miles in area. and all there
| is of American Samoa is rs miles of
| territory. The natives live mostly along
the coast. as the interior Is noun
famous. Here they have their plan
| tations, their groves and their small
villages. in which the houses are COM
posed of branches and dried grasses.
They come to Page Page to their
market places to sell their fruits and
vegetables and also such wares as tapa
cloth. grass skirts. fans. beads and
| deliberately decorated kava bowls. There
are some settlements. however. further
| in the interior. which may be reached
! by automobile over very excellent roads.
Have Village Police.
Here are native villages in which the
| life is more primitive. Here the young
men and women decked with crowns
| of flowers and wreaths of the bright
colored blooms. such as the hibiscus,
| perform the native dances in which
! Stevenson found so much poetry.
| The men wear loin cloths OF tapa
cloth in bright colors. and the women
have short skirts of the same material.
knee-high and bound to the waist by
bright-colored girdles. This with the
floral decorations constitutes their en-
tire costume.
Civil ordering of things in Ameri-
can Samoa is largely In the hands Of
the native police force Of 40 persons,
who are lavishly attired, as far as the
climate will permit.
| Now that these dwellers about the
harbor of Page Page are likely to be-
come citizens Of the United States, and
send delegates to our national political
conventions. the relations of Samoa
with continental United States are likely
| to increase So far commercial inter-
course has not been extensive. as
| s150,000 in imports and exports each
! way would about cover the present
| transactions. The principal commodity
that American Samoa has to sell so
! far is copra. as coconuts are plentiful
on all the islands
Islands Still Unspoiled.
| Many tourists who like to get away
| from the conventions of civilizations
and to enjoy the charm of lolling under
| tropic skies are already visiting these
| islands. unspoiled as yet by the artifi-.
cialities of other lands. OF course,
many go there to see where Stevenson
| lived, just as they would go on q pill
grimage to a shrine.
Their itinerary generally includes
Hawaii and the Fiji Islands, where there
are several good hotels. There are
inn accommodation at Apia, about
hours steaming from Page Page. Page
Pago has boarding houses kept by
Americans and Europeans for those who
would make a prolonged stay there.
The steamships usually remain a day
or so in the harbor, thus permitting
the tourists to have their quarters on
board to which they can return after
making their tour about the island
itself.
American Samoa seems likely to be
rediscovered now that 1t is to be soon
ofnc1ally welcomed into the family Of
the United States.