Pitcairn's Island  Notes  Source  Whalesite

Pitcairn Island
A General Report based on seven
months residence in the island during
1940-41; with suggestions for the future
welfare of the community.
(June 6, 1941)

      1. I left Fiji on the 13th July, 1940, accompanied by my wire, child, and nurse, and arrived in Pitcairn, via New Zealand, on the 20th August. Throughout our stay in the island we lived in a small but comfortable house which was lent to us by the family of the late Chief Magistrate, Mr. Richard Edgar Christian. Owing to shipping difficulties I was not able to leave the island until the 7th April, when I obtained a passage to Panama on a United States cargo vessel, returning to Fiji on the 13th May.

      2. Within a few weeks of my arrival it became apparent that the state of affairs in he island was not satisfactory. The local government had little control over the people and law enforcement was conspicuous by its almost total absence. Thieving, in particular, was very prevalent and no serious attempt was being made to catch the culprits. Even when the names of law-breakers were known cases were seldom brought before the local Court, as many islanders were frightened to take legal action to protect their property and it was, in any case, difficult to persuade witnesses to give

evidence. The fact that the community was divided into antagonistic cliques and factions made it doubly hard for local officials to control the situation, and both the Chief Magistrate and the members of the Island Council are continually being accused of partiality by one side or another.

      3. The unsatisfactory, and at times almost lawless, state of the Pitcairn community was concealed during the first few weeks of my visit by the natural charm and hospitality of the islanders and their engrained habit of, to use their own term, "hypocriting" the stranger. There were, furthermore, several individuals of a fine and deeply-religious character in the island and it was naturally with these people that I was most in contact. The longer I stayed in Pitcairn, however, the more I became convinced that the primary need of the community is a period of firm but sympathetic administration, during which the islanders can become used to standards of law enforcement such as are usual in other parts of the Empire and the local officials can be trained to govern the island without fear or favour.

      4. During the first part of my stay in the island I was not unnaturally regarded with a certain amount of suspicion by the inhabitants, who believed that I had been sent to punish the community and, in all probability, to take away their much prized independence. My wife and I, therefore, devoted our time to

winning their confidence and in this endeavour I believe that we had the good fortune to be successful and that many of the islanders were as sorry to see us go as we were to leave them. As regards the official side of my mission, he first three months were mainly spent in revising the Constitution and legal code and the remaining period in the reorganization and training of the local government. Commencing with the new year, an excellent government was formed in accordance with the provisions of the revised constitution, and thanks to their strenuous efforts, under the able leadership of the new Chief Magistrate, Mr. Fred Christian, the island settled down to a period of 1aw—abiding calm such as had not been experienced for several years. Though the war had deprived the Pitcairners of many or the simp1e amenities of life to which they had become accustomed, the community was nevertheless a very happy one during the last few months of our visit and their main anxiety was lest local affairs should degenerate after our departure to their former chaotic state. On all sides the hope was expressed that the British Government would send an outside official to direct the activities of the local administration and act as an organizer and leader for the community.

      5. Before proceeding with the preparation of the regulations, I called a General Meeting of the islanders

on the 28th August in which the reasons for my visit were fully explained. The meeting thereupon elected four representatives, all of whom had previously held office in the local government, who formed, together with the five members of the Island Council, an Advisory Committee to assist me in the compilation of the new code.

      6. Meetings of the Advisory committee were held at irregular intervals throughout the following month and the draft regulations were discussed clause by clause in detail, complete unanimity being obtained on each point at issue before the next clause was dealt with. As a result of the discussions the final draft was ready for reading to the islanders by the end of the first week in October and a General Assembly of all adult inhabitants was accordingly held in the Court House on the 7th October. At this meeting each regulation was read and fully explained to the people and every opportunity afforded them for discussion and criticism. Owing to the thorough manner in which the advisory Committee had performed their work, however, there was little criticism of the provisions of the regulations, and remarks were almost entirely confined to requests for additional explanation.

      7. At the conclusion of the reading a resolution was unanimously carried thanking His Excellency the High Commissioner for having caused such a suitable constitution and code of laws to be framed. A further

resolution was carried declaring that it vas the wish of the island that the code should be brought into force forthwith.

      8. As directed by the Secretary of State in his telegram No. 92 of the 7th June, the new code was based on the draft King's regulation forwarded to him under cover of the Assistant High Commissioner's confidential despatch of the 11th July, 1939. This draft had been already revised by His Honour the Chief Judicial Commissioner, In accordance with the instructions contained in paragraph 3 (a) of the Secretary of State's telegram. The further changes made by me, in conjunction with the local Advisory Committee, are detailed in my separate report on the regulations, but in general it may be stated that no alterations were made unless —

(a) owing to the legal phraseology employed, the meaning of the regulation was not clear to the Committee and it was consequently desirable to use more colloquial expressions;

(b) the regulation an not based on any previous law or custom and was regarded as unnecessary or undesirable by the Committee; or

(c) the Committee were of the unanimous opinion that the regulation, while not included in the draft code, should be inserted as being either in conformity with some existing law or custom or else a definite improvement on present practice.

No alteration, other than in wording, was made until I was satisfied that it was in accordance with the wishes of the islanders themselves.

      9. The main amendments made to the draft regulation brought to the island may be summarized as follows: —

(a) ru1es made by the Island Council are to come into force on public notification, the High Commissioner having the right to amend or revoke the them at his discretion;

(b) voting at the annual election of government officers has been made compulsory;

(c) the system of voting has been changed from open to secret ballot;

(d) elections for each office are to be conducted separately;

(e) judgments of the local Court, may be reviewed by the Supreme Court of Fiji;

(f) al1 clauses requiring the issuing of summonses and warrants have been deleted;

(g) the clause instituting a system of Court fees has been similarly omitted;

(h) provision has been made for the registration of births, deaths, and marriages; and

(i) a regulation has been inserted making it an offence to have carnal knowledge of a girl under 14.

      10. I am confident that the new code will enable the islanders to maintain and preserve their traditional system of local self-government in the difficult period of social transition which lies immediately ahead; a period in which the present tendency to change the social organization from a community basis to one dependant on individualism and a money economy will become accentuated. Essentially based on existing island custom, the regulations leave the whole social and administrative structure of the island intact, while at the same time they have been framed as far as possible in accordance with modern legal requirements, differing in this particular from the constitution,

framed by Mr. R.T. Simons in 1904, which they supersede. In all other respects Mr. Simons's code proved excellently adapted to local needs and, despite its loose wording and the consequent uncertainty as to its meaning, it served the needs of the community for nearly forty years.

      11. As directed by the High Commissioner the new regulations have been framed by me, in my capacity as a Deputy Commissioner for the Western Pacific with jurisdiction in the Pitcairn Islands District, as "Instructions" for the guidance of the local government. A typewritten copy was handed to the Chief Magistrate, who was informed that the text is subject to the eventual revision and approval of His Excellency.

      12. In order to make the regulations as legally valid as possible, a declaration was prepared and signed by all the adult resident native born inhabitants of the island in which they formally declared their desire that the new code should be fully binding on them and that it should supersede all other laws and regulations hitherto in force. It is suggested that this declaration confers on the regulations the most authoritative sanction possible: the free and unanimous consent of the entire population.

      13. Once the main legal code had been completed, work was commenced on revising the various bye-laws and minor regulations in force in the island. The whole

mass of subsidiary legislation which had grown up in the course of time to meet the varying problems of the local Council was sifted through, with the aid of the Advisory Committee. It was found that many of the regulations had become obsolete and could now be despensed with, while others had to be added to deal with new probelms[sic] facing the community. The revised body of minor laws, as agreed upon by the Advisory Committee, were finally enacted by the Island Council as Rules made under Regulation 6 of the main code.

      14. The new rules have been divided, for conVenience, into seven sections, dealing with the following subjects: —

(1) the public boats, boat houses, and public trading;

(2) the use of public boats for visiting ships;

(3) the use of public property;

(4) the control of livestock;

(5) sanitation;

(6) the island prison; and

(7) the public school.

Simple and straight forward though the rules appear when set out in their final form, the actual wording of several of them caused more discussion and controversy than the entire code of regulations. In the case of four of them, it required meetings spread over a period of over two months for the text to be reduced to a form acceptable to the

majority, while several of the other rules gave almost as much trouble. The reason for this peculiar situation appeared to be that, while the main code of laws were of interest principally to members of the local government and prospective wrongdoers, the rules affected every member of the community in their ordinary everyday life. Copies of all the rules have been submitted under cover of separate reports.

      15. Copies of the Constitution, code of laws, and subsidiary rules having been handed to the Chief Magistrate, it was possible to concentrate on the intensive training of the local officials. Meetings were held at which the problems of local administration were discussed and demonstration trials were held in the Court House to illustrate judicial procedure. With so much that was entirely novel to them it was not to be expected that the islanders could remember all the points dealt with, so a series of written instructions was prepared covering the following subjects: —

(a) Instructions to the island Secretary with regard to the keeping of Government records and correspondence;

(b) Instructions for the guidance of the Government Treasurer;

(c) Hints and instructions to the Chief Magistrate with regard to the procedure to be observed in hearing cases before the Island Court; and the

(d) Procedure with regard to the handling of wireless messages by the Pitcairn Island Government Wireless Station.

Similar instructions for the guidance of the Island Postmaster are prepared by Mr. A.E. Fuller, who was in charge of the new stamp issue. Copies of all these instructions have been forwarded under cover of separate reports.

      16. All Government correspondence in the island, which had hitherto been kept in an old sugar bag, was sorted and filed in jackets under appropriate subject headings. Specimen pages of each of the 12 Books of Record which it is considered necessary to keep have been forwarded to the High Commissioner in order that properly printed and bound Record Books can be prepared. The island secretary has been trained in the method of drafting correspondence and coding telegrams, while a copy of the Government Telegraph Code, 1933, as been left in the care of the Chief Magistrate. A typewriter and two safes have been provided for the joint use of the secretary and Postmaster; these are kept in the up-to-date new Government office built by the islanders during our visit.

      17. One of the principle problems which had to be faced, if the islanders were to retain their system of government, was the increasing difficulty which was being experienced in persuading any reputable and competent man in the community to take office. There were no privileges and little honour attached to government work and every action of the officials was

subject to a barrage of criticism from one section or other of the community; at the same time the Pitcairners were steadily becoming more conscious of the value of money and very few were now willing to undertake the really thankless task of local administration from purely altruistic motives. The election meetings held the previous year had to be prolonged for days before a few reluctant individuals agreed to "give it a try".

      18. On the High Commissioner's recommendation, therefore, the Secretary of State agreed to the payment of small salaries to each local official, the rate approved being as follows: —

The announcement of the new principle, a novel one to the islanders, was received with mixed feelings, but there can be no doubt that it has proved a great success in actual practice. At the elections held in December there were anything from five to nineteen candidates for each post and it was possible, probably for the first time in the present century, to select a government team consisting of the most competent and trustworthy leaders in the community. Sanction has since been sought or the payment of the only officials left out of the first

scheme, i.e: —

Warder or Wardress (when required) at £1 per mensem.

Policemen (2) at 10s. 0d. per mensem.

      On the assumption that the services of a warder or wardress will not be required for more than 3 months in an average year, the total personal emoluments payable will amount to £135 per annum, which compares favourably with those paid to the local native governments in the Gilbert and Ellice islands Colony and cannot, I think, be regarded as an excessive premium for a certain measure of good administration.

      19. Owing to the dislocation caused by the war it was not possible to prepare itemized estimates of the annually recurrent expenditure on the upkeep of government buildings, maintenance of the public boats, roads and bridges, etc. As far an I could judge, an annual expenditure of approximately £60 will be required to meet local expenditure on community services of this nature in peace time and I feel that the revenue necessary should be entirely provided by the islanders themselves by an annual Poll Tax of 10s. 0d. per head on each resident, male or female, between the ages of 16 and 60. The tax should bring in about £70 in an average year, a sum which the islanders, under normal conditions, could well afford. I do not recommend the imposition of a tax on dwelling-houses, as suggested by Mr. J.S. Neill in his 1937 report, as it

would, I believe, accentuate the present tendency to crowd more than one family into a house.

      20. While the war lasts, however, it is not possible to impose any taxation on the Pitcairners, whose income has dwindled to almost vanishing point through the cessation of shipping calls. As it is necessary nevertheless for the administration to have a few pounds available for the purchase of necessities I have recommended that the Chief Magistrate should be authorized to spend not more than £10 a year on Government requirements, any expenditure in excess of that amount to receive the prior sanction of the High Commissioner, which can be obtained by telegraph.

      21. The establishment of the new post office and the payment of officials necessitated a reorganization of the local financial system. With the High Commissioner's approval, the posts of Island Secretary (who is also the Government Treasurer) and Postmaster were declared technical positions and as such subject to appointment and not election. Suitable holders for both positions were thereupon chosen and trained. The usual government system of accounting has been instituted and all transactions are now supported by revenue receipts or vouchers; copies of the main cash book are sent monthly to the High Commissioner, together with any cash paid in by the Postmaster in excess of local requirements. The Postmaster audits

the Secretary's, books monthly, and vice versa.

      22. Although the health of the Pitcairners remained fairly good throughout our visit, there were several cases of serious illnesses from time to time and it was obvious that there were many who required medical and dental attention at the first opportunity. After a careful investigation of the medical situation I consider that the minimum medical requirements of Pitcairn are &mdash:

(a) an Island Medical Practitioner;

(b) a Public Health Nurse.

Fortunately there are in the Island two young persons of suitable age, education and character for training for the two posts, though their parents are unwilling to let them leave until the shipping situation has improved. Both Clarence Young and Irma Warren, the two se1ected trainees, are in Grade VI. In the local school; aged 15 and 13½ respectively, they compare more than favourably with candidates from other parts of the Pacific.

      23. I recommend that, directly the difficulty with regard to shipping has been overcome, both Clarence and Irma should be brought to Fiji, where they can complete their education at a suitable local school until, at the age of 17, they are eligible to enter the Central Medical School and the Nurses Training School respectively. I am confident that both these young

persons will prove to be exceptional pupils and that by their eventual qualification and return to their island the medical needs of community will be satisfactorily provided for.

      24. I would have suggested that, in the meantime, an experienced Native Medical Practitioner from some other part of the Pacific should be seconded for duty on Pitcairn, but I fear that unless he had the authority of a European officer behind him he would be able to do little good. Conditions in the island are unsatisfactory from a medica1 point of view; most of the people have an engrained faith in their own methods of treatment, and many have a prejudice against natives which is curiously common amongst half—castes. I am urging elsewhere, however, that an Administrative Official should proceed to the island as soon as possible to follow up my visit, and I recommend that he should be accompanied by the most capable and experienced Native Medical Practitioner available. This officer should treat all exiting cases of sickness, inoculate the population against typhoid and organize a small dispensary.

      25. A detailed report has already been forwarded on the Pitcairn Island Public School, the following being a recapitulation of the main points mentioned. When Mr. Neill visited the school in 1937 it had for many year been conducted by the islanders without outside assistance; as a consequence the general standard was described as limited and the discipline us lax. In response to representations made by the Government, the Seventh-day adventist Church sent a qualified Australian teacher, Mr. F.P. Ward, to the island in June, 1938. Mr. Ward reorganized the school along lines similar to the Australian schools run by the Seventh-day Adventist Church and thanks to his painstaking efforts, the general academic standard has been raised out of all recognition; I am satisfied that a few more years of such work will result in the Pitcairn children being as advanced in school work as children of the same age in Australia or New Zealand. The curriculum, however, is insufficiently adapted to the specialized needs or the community and it is suggested that more attention should be paid to subjects of practical importance to the islanders, such as gardening and carpentry for the boys and domestic science for the girls. A further point which seems to me or considerable importance is the fact that little attention is paid to organized games. The moral tone of the school is not good and I attribute this largely to the boys and girls having

no competitive games or properly organized recreation. If such a thing is possible, I would suggest that Mr. Ward's successor should be a man of the scoutmaster type, who would organize local troops of boy scouts or even girl guides, give instruction in cricket, football, and other sports, and endeavour in this manner to wean the children from their present abnormal preoccupation with sex.

      26. With regard to the financial side of the school, the Seventh-day Adventist Church pays Mr. Ward's salary, which amounts to £261, and makes an allowance of £10 for general school expenses. The total grant of £271 thus made is probably balanced, during a normal year, by the tithes and other subscriptions received from the islanders. I consider that the grant for general school expenses is quite inadequate and, in view of the fact that the whole future of the community depends largely on local educational progress, I recommend that the government should make an immediate annual grant of 10-, or if possible £1, per pupil for the purchase of writing materials, books, and school equipment and that, should additional funds be available, a further grant should be made in aid of the salary of the head teacher. I should like to pay a brief tribute here to the splendid work being done in Pitcairn by Mr. F. P. Ward, whether as headmaster of the public school, as teacher of the adult night school, as elder of the local church, or a general

consultant in times of trouble, his influence is altogether for the good and his advice sane and practical.

      27. There are at present two wireless transmitting stations in Pitcairn: —

(a) an 80 watt telegraphy and telephony transmitter of American make owned by the government and operated by an islander, Mr. Andrew Young. His station was closed soon after the outbreak of war; and

(b) a home constructed transmitter owned and operated by Mr. Nelson Dyett, a New Zealander married to a Pitcairn Islander.

Mr. Dyett maintains daily communication with Suva, Wellington, and Christmas Island, for which service he receives free fuel and lubricating oil and an allowance of £200 per annum; he also performs certain duties for the Navy Office, Wellington, and the New Zealand Meteorological Office.

      28. While the arrangement with Mr. Dyett appears an unduly generous one, I recommend that it should be continued until the end of the war. Mr. Dyett is undoubtedly the best operator and technician in the island and the only man who can be trusted to maintain rapid, accurate, and secret daily communication with the outside world. It is suggested, however, that his services should be terminated at the end of the war and wireless communication maintained by the islanders themselves

under government supervision. Mr. Andrew Young is an operator of i8 years experience and capable of handling all the island traffic under normal conditions; he is little use, however, as a radio mechanic. I recommend, therefore, that an islander should be sent to Suva for training in radio servicing and operating technique, at the same time as the two trainees for medical work. A suitable man for training is available in Mr. Anderson Warren, aged 24, who has already had some experience in operating. It is suggested that, on his return, Mr. Warren should be given a salary of £30 per annum as wireless operator and that the government wireless installation should be brought up to date and maintained at government expense.

      29. There are at present 13 non-islanders residing in the community; while a number of others anxious to live in Pitcairn are apparently deterred by the complicated requirements imposed under the Closed Districts (Pitcairn Group) Regulation, 1938. Taken as a whole the strangers represent the best element in the island; law-abiding, progressive, and mentally alert, they set a valuable standard for the islanders. I am in complete agreement with the viewpoint of the majority of Pitcairners that, as the influence of strangers is advantageous to the community, they should be encouraged to come. There are only tw0 possible methods by which the skills of a community can be augmented — by

introduction from elsewhere or by independent invention. By discouraging strangers from visiting the island the operation of the first methoo will be largely prevented, and as to the second it can be readily imagined how seldom anything is independently evolved in such a small community. As virtually nothing is read in Pitcairn except religious literature, the meagre store of liberal and technical knowledge circulates round and round the community but only increases when some stranger casts in his lot with the islanders and adds his independently acquired knowledge to the common stock. It is scarcely an exaggeraidon to state that every improvement in the islanders mode of life over the last half century nas been introduced by some visitor to the Island. To mention a few examples only: the whole wood-worK curio industry, which has brought thousands of pounds to the islanders, is due to the efforts of an Austrian named Laeffler; the recent improvements in gardening Lechnique are similarly due to Edward Grant; while such medical knowledge an the islanders now possess, together with the remarkable surgical skill of Elwyn Christian, can be credited to the work of one American visitor, and the wireless training of Andrew Young and Anderson Warren to another.

      30. The importance of having some control on the visits of strangers to Pitcairn is fully realized but it is suggested that once the government is satisfied that there is no good reason why a particular

stranger should be prohibited from visiting the island, his visit should be facilitated, on general grounds, by the waiving of any conditions which are not considered absolutely essential. A comparatively large number of islanders are married to New Zealanders and Australians and it would seem particularly hard that the husbands and wives of these should be prevented from visiting the island owing to their inability to deposit the £50 required by the government. Detailed recommendations concerning the whole question of the immigration of strangers has, however, been forwarded in a separate report.

      31. As one would expect in a community long noted for its loyalty and attachment to the Mother Country, one of the main topics of conversation in Pitcairn is how the people can best make a contribution to the Empire war effort. Two young men, Boyd Christian and Clement Coffin, have already joined the New Zealand expeditionary forces; the first of Pitcairn's sons to fight for their country in any war.

      32. The Pitcairn community, though remote and at present virtually without financial resources, is fortunate in having food in comparative abundance and houses to spare. In view of this twenty-one families volunteered to provide homes and food for thirty-five refugee children for the duration of the war and as long afterwards as desired. This

offer had unfortunately to be declined by the British Government, owing to the suspension of the evacuation scheme, but the islanders, not to be dismayed, thereupon turned their energies to the manufacture of walking sticks for the use of wounded soldiers in British hospitals. Over three hundred of those sticks have already been sent to Great Britain and more could be provided at short notice. More recently still the Pitcairners nave donated 50 cases of oranges to war charities, and several of the island youths have signified their willingness to serve in any branch of the fighting services if called upon to volunteer.

      33. A few years in the Navy or Merchant Service would be the salvation of more than one of the local young men, at present leading discontented and undisciplined lives without hope of marrying and setting up homes of their own, and it is suggested that every youth who volunteers might be given an opportunity of enlisting, if only because he will thus best be serving the interests of his own island by returning a trained, resourceful, and disciplined asset to the community. It is possibly worth considering, therefore, whether it would not be possible as an experiment for one or two picked young men to be sent, to the nearest recruiting centre to enlist, the expenses of their passages being met, in the first instance, from the Pitcairn Island Fund, on the understanding that, should they be eventually accepted by the government, the

expenditure would be returned. The youths I have in mind are particularly fine physical specimens, and the possibility of their being rejected on medical grounds is consequently small.

      34. The following is a brief summary of my recommendations as to the action necessary if the remaining articles of historic importance in the island, as well as the adzes and other prehistoric implements found there, are to be preserved for the benefit of future generations; for further information reference is invited to the report forwarded separately on each point: —

(a) As the rudder of the "Bounty" cannot be looked after properly in Pitcairn, it should be removed to Suva for the duration of the war, after which the Admiralty will, no doubt, make their own arrangements for its care. In return for salvaging the rudder, it is suggested that the community should be presented with a first class broadcast receiver, with amplifier, to be set up in the Court house;

(b) the £50 received from Captain Irving Johnson in connexion with the sale of the gudgeon of the rudder should be expended in obtaining a new headstone for the grave of John Adams, the only one of the mutineers whose grave is definitely known;

(c) steps should be taken to preserve the prehistoric rock carvings et Rope and St. Paul's by enclosing the sites in a wire-netting fence; and

(d) the few remaining articles of historical or archaeological interest should be protected from the rapacity of tourists end curio hunters by legislation prohibiting their export except under licence. Similar legislatiOn is already in force in the Gilbert and Ellice Groups and other islands in the Western Pacific.

      35. The first issue of Pitcairn Island postage stamps, consisting of eight denominations, came into use on the 15th October, 1940. When allowances have been made for the effect of the war, the difficulty of communication with the island, and the comparatively small publicity given to the issue, the stamps have sold remarkably well. In sterling currency and round numbers, the sales in the five and a half months between the opening day and the 31st March, 1941, have been as follows:  

As no mail has reached the island since last November there are certainly a large number of orders not yet received and the total sales should exceed £15,000 before the new issue and first-day cover market has become saturated. The future annual sales of Pitcairn stamps will, of course, depend on world conditions, but it is estimated that a fair average, during Peace time, would be between £300 and £500 a year. This steady annual income, added to the interest on the investment of the capital sum detailed above and the revenue from proposed taxation, should provide sufficient funds to finance the more ambitious government undertakings mentioned in this report.

      36. The whole work of bringing out the new stamp issue was successfully undertaken single-handed by Mr. A.E. Fuller, of the Fiji Postal Department. This officer spent several months in Pitcairn during which he filled the overseas stamp orders, supervised the building of an excellent little post office, and trained a local resident, Mr.Roy P. Clark, as Island. Postmaster. Although Mr. Clark is the best possible choice for such a position and has been very carefully trained, the accounting and office work connected with the sale of Pitcairn stamps is necessarily somewhat complicated, involving several different currencies, and his work will have to be carefully supervised for some time to come.

      37. Meetings were held in the island at which

the object of the new stamp issue was explained to the people. I advised the islanders to post as many first-day covers to themselves as they could, for future re-sale to collectors at a premium. Once the principle had been grasped, the community entered into the work of preparing and addressing first-day covers with great enthusiasm and on the opening day no less than 5,800 envelopes were posted by local residents, as compared with 6,210 posted in response to orders received from outside the island.

      38. During recent years the income of the islanders, which is estimated to amount to about £2,000 per annum, has been largely derived from the sale of their orange crop in the New Zealand market. The only vessels now calling at the island are, however, United States cargo steamers en route from Australia to Panama and it is therefore imperative to find a market for the oranges in Panama or, if the ships can be induced to call on their return voyages, in Australia. The orange crop lasts from May until the end of August and is estimated to exceed 2,000 cases during a good year. It would be most unfortunate if the Pitcairn community, through inability to export its fruit, were to become dependent on outside charity.

      39. As a result of my recent visit I am convinced, not only that the orange exports can be

considerably increased, but that a great deal can be done to develop other island exports. In particular I would suggest that. —

(a) There are comparatively unlimited possibilities in the export of island curios, both wood-work and basket-work. At present these are sold practically entirely to passengers and crews on passing ships, but anything with a Pitcairn Island label and a "Bounty" flavour can be marketed at good prices in most countries, and particularly in the United States.

(b) Pitcairn island coffee has been pronounced among the beet in the Pacific area. The coffee plant grows prolifically in the island and there is a good market for coffee beans in New Zealand.

(c) Market Gardeners, Limited, in Wellington state that the Pitcairn Kumara is the best entering the New Zealand market and is readily saleable.

(d) The bottling of "Pitcairn," citrus cordials could be made a profitable industry.

      (e) Commissions on the sale of used Pitcairn stamps should provide a steady income, if properly advertised.

The development of Pitcairn's industries end exports, depends, however, on two factors: the re-commencement of shipping calls and the presence of a European official to organize the marketing. It is not much use to encourage Pitcairn industries until someone is put on the island who can arrange all the business side of marketing, obtain buyers and agents in various foreign countries, fix prices, shipments, labels, advertising and the hundred and one details that no islander can conceivably undertake. I was forcibly struck during my visit to Pitcairn by the way in which the Pitcairners were losing money through their inability to develop and market the resources of their own island and their

need of a resident officer whO could be their business agent. With a good marketing organization the income of the islanders could, I submit, be doubled.

      40. A farther important need of the Pitcairners is the establishment of a co-operative store where the simple necessities of their life can be purchased at a seasonable price. I was surprised to find that, unlike most other island communities in the Pacific, everything one required had to be specially ordered from New Zealand or Panama. On discussing the matter with several people in the island I was satisfied that the institution of a co-operative store would meet great need but that it would have to be started, and probably run, by an outside government official. The only person at present in Pitcairn capable of managing a co-operative society is Mr. Nelson Dyettt and he is not anxious to undertake the responsibility. If a store was started, however, by a visiting officer Mr. Dyett might be persuaded to keep it going, in return for a small allowance.

      41. In the first section of this report it has been indicated briefly that Pitcairn Island is in need of more continuous and effective government assistance than has been afforded in the past. When consulting the old High Commission files in Pitcairn, in connexion with the preparation of an

historical survey of the local administration, I was impressed by the long series of reports from about 1890 onwards emphasizing, often in strong terms, the unsatisfactory state into which the island's affairs had been permitted to get and urging, for the most part, the appointment of a resident administrative official as the only solution. The former obstacle to the institution of any real measures to assist the islanders was the lack of any funds which could be devoted to the purpose; this reason, however, no longer holds good as there is now a steady revenue from stamp sales. The island is, furthermore, becoming increasingly important every year and visiting overseas shipping during the five years immediately preceding the war averaged nearly one a week. The islanders are now travelling more than ever before in their history and nearly a quarter of the population is at present residing in New Zealand, while marriages between New Zealanders and Pitcairn islanders have been increasingly frequent during recent years.

      42. Provided machinery can be set up in Pitcairn for the development of the island's economic resources and the organization of exports, the islanders would, I believe, become a relatively prosperous community. Even now, I consider that they are able, under peace time conditions, to pay a hut or poll tax which could be scaled to bring in any sum up to about £100 a year, but if their

marketing was properly organized this figure could be considerably increased by the imposition of customs duties and other forms of revenue.

      43. It is unfortunately impossible to commence any serious development work to help the Pitcairn Islanders during the present war, but one can still assist them to keep their social and administrative affairs in order. It is recommended, therefore, that: —

(a) the Pitcairn Groups of islands (Pitcairn, Henderson, Oeno, and Ducie) be in future regarded as a regular Administrative District, with headquarters in Pitcairn Island itself;

(b) the District should not be incorporated in any of the other administrative groups but should be regarded as an independent unit under the direct control of the High Commissioner for the Western Pacific; and

(c) while war conditions last an effort should be made to send a visiting administrative official, accompanied by a Native Medical Practitioner, to the island at least once a year, the duration of their stay to be about a month.

      44. Once the Empire is again organized on a peace time footing, I would suggest that a more permanent organization should be set up in the island, to act in conjunction with the present local administration. Subject to the necessary funds being available, the ideal administrative personnel of the Pitcairn Islands District would, in my submission, consist, of: —

(a) an Officer in Charge (whether a member of the Colonial Administrative Service or

not), who would act as Administrative Officer Deputy Commissioner for the Western Pacific, District Sub-accountant, Postmaster, Savings Bank Officer, Manager of the Island Co-operative Society, and island Exports Agent;

(b) a Native Medical Practitioner, who would be in charge of a small dispensary and also act as island Sanitary Inspector.

Both these officials could be provided on secondment from the personnel of the Fiji and Western Pacific services, but it is suggested that their term of secondment should not, under normal circumstances, exceed a period of 18 months. The Native Medical Practitioner would, of course, no longer be required once the local medical trainee had completed his course at the Centrn1 Medical School.

      45. The present system by which a visiting officer either lives with an island family or else rents an empty house is not satisfactory, for a variety of reasons, and I recommend that immediate steps be taken to erect suitable permanent quarters for visiting administrative officials and that, to expedite the construction: —

(a) the Fiji Public Works Department should be asked to submit plans for a suitable building; and

(b) the materials required should be ordered through Messrs. Burns, Philp and company, Sydney, and shipped to the island by American cargo boat.

A good site for a house has already been tentatively selected and skilled building artisans are available in the island.

      46. With regard to quarters for the Native Medical Practitioner, it i recommended, that the islanders should be invited, as a condition of Native Medical Officer visiting or being stationed in Pitcairn, to build a suitable houser for his accommodation. A model plan for such a house could no doubt be provided by the Fiji Medical Department and should include: —

(a) a bedroom, living room, and kitchen;

(b) a small dispensary; and

(c) a. spare bedroom where any serious case could, if necessary, be placed.

      Henry Evans Maude, OBE (1906 – 2006) was a British Colonial Service administrator, historian and anthropologist. Between 1940 and 1941, Maude was sent to the Pitcairn Islands by the Western Pacific High Commission, to modernise the government, and to establish a post office and issue stamps in order to generate revenue for the people of the island. [Wikipedia]

Document no. 204. June 6, 1941. H. E. Maude."Pitcairn Island: A General Report based on seven months residence in the island during 1940-41; with suggestions for the future welfare of the community." Pages 2198 to 2229.

Pitcairn's Island  Notes  Source  Whalesite