, 1963-04-08
LEGISLATIVE RECORD
THE PRESIDENT The CT
Continued from April 2nd)

phone system was sold, GeveEnor Merwin John D Mer-
VIM and the attorneys connected with his Admnlstra-
ton, worked the contractup 1t was the same procedure
that this Administration used as when the previous Ad-
ministration sold the telephone system. A contract was
made and it came before the Legislature for subsequent
approval. Prior to the contract being made. the Legls-
lature requested Of the Administration certain safe
guards to be made in it. The Legislature did not SIT
down and write a contract with the Telephone company
Because of the importance of this piece of legislation
that we are going to discuss today, and because OF the
clouding of the issue by the press and the radio, in some
cases, / think it is necessary that we should try to have.
the record set straight. First OF all, it is a known tact
that each and every witness that participated in a public
hearing against Harvey Aluminium, and each and every
person that spoke out on the radio leach and every res
ponSble person that spoke on the radio against the es-
Establishment Of this aluminium company, is against low
wages. But their purpose is not against low wages; it is
against high wages. They are for low wages. But their
purpose is not only that. Their purpose is a political one,
stretched and looked into ten or fifteen years from now.
It is known that the people of the Virgin Islands are
a proud people. The people of the Virgin Islands do make
sacrifices to educate their children. What is the purpose
Of educating these children and giving them high
school education, and making SACRIFICES to further send
them on to college to have them return to be. servants IN
a tourist economy as WE are having in StCroix-an eco
nomy with no basic Jobs for ambitious young people.
What has been the result of this? The result OF this is
that many Of our young native Cruclans are leaving the
Virgin Islands and leaving St. Croix in particular, to
seek employment IN the OnlLeQ OCdCeS Oh America. HS
a result of this, we are bringing in cheap labor from a
poorer econony-the British Islands-while we are.
having population and we are bringing people from
the British Islands into ST. Croix, the local people or tho
native peoples political power is %dWindling, because the
people from the British Islands do not have the right of
American Citizens to vote. Andi if we keep the economy
as a tourist economy, where the people must depend en-
tirely on hotels, and stores upon which to live, and the
only workers in these hotels and n these stores would
be aliens or people from the British Islands, it would
simply mean that more and more of these segregatonists
would come to St. Croix and take the political power
away from the local people~And l believe it is necessary
that we have a basic industry in order 0 keep our local
people on the Island of ST. Croix.
would like to further state that during this discus
sion, this Legislature received-on more than one occa-
sion-insulting letters and cablegrams transgressing
upon the rights and the dignity of this Legislative Body,
asking this Legislative Body to give away the right to
approve or disapprove or negotiatefa contract with the
Harvey Aluminium people. The letters directed to ussby
the Chamber of Commerce est. Croix) implied in no I'M
oorfo;n orroc tbo+ 4boIf yx1an+oI 10 1nncn4iofo q nfron