The
importation of South Sea Islanders to the colony to work as indentured
labourers, mainly in the sugar industry, had long been controversial.[1]
In 1863, Captain Robert
Towns first brought Pacific Islanders
to Queensland
as indentured coloured labourers.[2] Queensland,
a nascent colony extending into the tropics, was considered ripe for
development and exploitation, with plentiful land and a government keen to
develop agriculture. However, it was
generally believed at the time that outdoor work in the tropics could only be
performed by non-white labour. There
were numerous examples elsewhere in the British Empire - such as Mauritius, Jamaica
and British Guiana - where cotton and sugar
were grown on plantations using non-white labour. Once sugar and cotton were shown to grow well
in Queensland,
the rush was on.[3]
The growing
demand for Pacific Islander labour led to their importation on a large scale,
including the kidnapping or “blackbirding” men from the Pacific islands. While 67 Islanders arrived in 1863, in 1867
the number of arrivals was 1,237, and over 900 arrived in the first four months
of 1868.[4] In that year the government attempted to
regulate this trade though the Polynesian Laborers Act.[5] However, this failed to halt the worst
excesses, and following ongoing criticism from England
and other Australian colonies, Queensland
belatedly appointed government agents to supervise and regulate Island recruitment,[6] while
the British government passed the Pacific Islanders’ Protection Act with
the avowed object of preventing kidnapping.[7]
Pastoralists
also relied heavily on Pacific Islander labour and by the beginning of 1868
employed 697 of the 2,017 Islanders in the colony.[8] In the 1860s and early 1870s, the
pastoralists and planters who controlled the Queensland Parliament encouraged
the importation of Pacific Islander labour, but opposition in parliament by the
liberal side of politics to this traffic steadily increased. An editorial in the Brisbane Courier articulated
the reasons why:
Queenslanders are, indeed, placed in a very unpleasant
position by the maintenance of the Polynesian labor system at the present
time. A considerable portion of the western
world looks upon them as slaves, and persists in attaching to us the odium of
being connected to a system of slavery, whilst we feel to our cost that the
presence of the slaves is anything but beneficial to the majority of us, and is
even a danger, as well as a pecuniary loss, to many of our people.[9]
Workers
in the colony believed that Pacific Islander labourers, by accepting lower
wages and inferior conditions, unfairly competed against them in the labour
market.[10] They demanded a halt to continued islander
recruitment, in order to prevent a “partial displacement of the working classes
of European descent by the substitution of an inferior race.”[11] As
well, there was also widespread concern, particularly in Douglas’s Maryborough
electorate, over sporadic ‘rampages’ and outbreaks of violence, leading to
calls for all Pacific Islanders to be disarmed.[12]
In
1876 Thorn promised to restrict Pacific Islander immigration but lost power
before introducing any legislation and it was left to Douglas
to act. What were his feelings on this
matter? As a man who espoused a liberal
philosophy, Douglas had grave misgivings about the way Pacific Islanders were
brought into the colony, their treatment, especially on pastoral properties in
the interior of the colony and the obvious and odious comparisons to slavery, a
practice that had been outlawed and abolished throughout the British
Empire by 1840.[13]
His concerns
were shared by many others in the colony, people who were deeply ambivalent
about its value, and acutely aware of the iniquities of the system and the
growing foreign disapproval of the trade.[14]
On coming to
power, Douglas therefore moved quickly to
restrict Pacific Islander immigration while protecting those Pacific Islanders
already residing in the colony. In a
government gazette notice, it was promulgated that henceforth,
no licences for the introduction of Polynesians will be
granted to any persons except those engaged in tropical or semi-tropical
agriculture, nor will any transfer of islanders to persons engaged in other
occupations be permitted.[15]
In taking
this action, Douglas acted in an unorthodox
manner, for parliament had yet to reconvene.[16] Instead of waiting for the legislature to
repeal or amend the Polynesian Laborers Act, he modified the Act’s administration.[17] There was strong support for the way Douglas had acted, the Brisbane Courier noting
that by his actions he had cut “the Gordian knot.”[18] Others were not as convinced of its efficacy,
one commentator wryly observing: “this will smite the squatters hip and thigh,
and will open the door for a little fancy farming.”[19]
While Douglas was determined to halt all Pacific Islander
immigration, there was widespread concern that the prohibition would lead to
the imminent collapse of the colony’s burgeoning sugar industry. The sugar plantation owners demanded the
continued importation of Pacific Islander labour, albeit for their industry
only,[20] and the
conservative opposition in parliament eagerly championed their cause.[21]
Many South
Sea Islanders were employed in the Maryborough district. Douglas was well-known for his opposition to
the way they were recruited and employed and was forced to defend his actions
to the district’s sugar planters, who were the major employers of indentured
South Sea Islander labour, and also to the islanders themselves. Both groups were upset over a government
decision, issued via proclamation, to prohibit the exportation of arms and
ammunition by Pacific Islanders.[22]
Douglas had
acted following a letter from Bishop George Selwyn, of the Anglican Melanesian
Mission, who was concerned that one of the main reasons for Pacific Islanders
coming to work in Queensland
was their desire to purchase firearms.[23] Kay Saunders has recounted how one islander
“candidly confessed his object to be a gun to shoot at his neighbour” and that
new recruits departing the Spunkie in 1872 stated they had come to Queensland “to get a gun
and a tomahawk.” It was also recognised
that “Guns and ammunition form [a] very large, if not the chief proportion of
articles of trade to the islands … more highly prized by the natives than any
other.” [24]
Many parties
opposed this proclamation. The Brisbane
Courier preferred to have the problem addressed through legislation rather
than by ad hoc regulation.[25] Others believed the proclamation would not
stop the trade in arms and ammunition because Pacific Islanders would simply
buy them elsewhere to the detriment of Queensland
traders and the Queensland
economy.[26] Despite these objections, Douglas
refused to rescind the proclamation. He
consistently put humanitarian concerns first, even if, as was the case here,
they clashed with powerful economic and conservative interests.[27] Indeed, the Brisbane Courier, while
disagreeing with his actions in regards to Pacific Islanders, noted that he was
“animated by the highest and most honorable motives.”[28]
The planters
were also upset by a recent government circular that imposed on employers a
payment of 15 shillings a quarter for each Pacific Islander employed from the
time of his original agreement.[29] It was no surprise, therefore, that when Douglas met by a delegation of planters, they complained
bitterly over the imposition of the new tax and its financial impact on their
businesses.[30] Douglas informed the deputation that, while
he was not opposed to the sugar industry, his government was concerned for the
welfare of Pacific Islanders, and he admonished them over the high mortality
rate suffered by Pacific Islanders in the Maryborough district, “it was quite
impossible to permit such a thing as that 25 per cent of islanders who come
here should not return.”[31]
The Brisbane
Courier was less than impressed by Douglas’s
approach, observing that he was using “sensational arguments” against the
employment of Pacific Islanders.[32] Nevertheless, the figures were appalling,
with the average mortality on plantations in the Maryborough district for the
five years ending March 1880 being 92 per thousand, compared to 13 per thousand
for the rest of the colony.[33] To Douglas and other like-minded men opposed
to the trade on humanitarian grounds, this was unacceptable and ample
justification for restricting or eliminating this trade in human traffic.
While
visiting the Magnolia plantation in Maryborough, Douglas
was confronted by 200 Pacific Islanders, wishing to speak to the “big fellow
master,” and wanting to know “what for no let him boy take him gun along of
island?” Again, Douglas
was resolute, informing them that while those who already possessed firearms
would be allowed to retain them, no new weapons could be purchased. This announcement was met with general
displeasure, a Pacific Islander spokesman declaring that, “No more boys come
along of Queensland. Boys altogether go Fiji. Plenty of guns along of Fiji.”[34]
Douglas’s
position on these matters, while popular with white workers, liberals and
concerned citizens, was received with anger and dismay by conservatives, sugar
planters and Pacific Islander labourers and was vividly reflected in a
contemporary shanty, sung to the tune of “The fine old English gentleman,”
about a visit to the Mackay district in the north of the colony by the
Maryborough immigration agent investigating alleged ill-treatment of Pacific
Islander labourers there.[35]
Severe and grave of aspect, from Maryborough town
He came, with book and pencil, and with dark official frown.
He shuddered as he dwelt upon the horrors of Mackay,
And when he met a coloured gent, in dulcet tones would
say-
“Have you got your ki-ki?
Do you like him tea?
Suppose him overseer fight, just talk alonga me
Do you like him hard work, or plenty walk about;
Big massa
Johnny Douglas, he plenty good, look out.”[36]
He wandered through plantations, and he fossicked through
the cane,
With tales of dread atrocities still flitting through his
brain.
At last he met a sable youth from Tongoa’s sunny isle,
Who greeted his inspector with a mild fraternal smile-
“Yes, me got me ki-ki.
What for you no can see?
Overseer bery good; no fight alonga me
But wine, blancmange, and oyster sauce me nebber yet
enjoy:
Big Massa Johnny Douglas, plenty gammon, longa boy.”[37]
The stern official closed his book and shed a silent
tear,
And thought of rosy billets with six hundred pounds a
year.
Then, rolling up his humble swag, he quickly sped away,
And standing on the steamer’s deck he warbled forth this
lay-
“Yes they’ve got their ki-ki, as I can plainly see;
Election times are drawing nigh – the game is up with me
From the Logan
to the Pioneer the cry is still the same-
Big Massa Johnny Douglas must try some other game!”[38]
[1] South Sea Islanders were also known as Polynesians, and I will
therefore use the term Pacific Islander to avoid confusion. The term Kanaka, which was also used, is now
considered derogatory. The preferred
contemporary term is Australian South Sea Islanders.
[2] Willard, pp. 138-39
[3] Ibid., p. 135
[4] Ibid., p. 141
[5] This Act attempted to secure fair recruiting in the islands,
adequate accommodation on the voyage, humane treatment in Queensland, and certainty of return. It also required that no Islanders could be
introduced into the colony except under government licence. There had to be a certificate from a consul, missionary
or other known person, in the island from which they came, to the effect that
they had come voluntarily after thoroughly understanding the agreement. Nevertheless, the Act was inadequately
enforced, thereby encouraging abuses.
(Willard, pp. 145-47 & p.153)
[6] Willard, p. 137. Government
agents were appointed in December 1870 to all vessels recruiting and returning
Islanders to their homes.
[7] Ibid. For details of this
Act, which was passed in 1872, see Willard, pp. 157-60. Douglas
strongly supported the Act. (Douglas to F. W. Chesson, 27 November 1872 . Aborigines Protection Society. Australian Joint Copying Project (AJCP),
M2427, C133/15)
[8] Willard, p. 141
[9] Brisbane
Courier, 5 May 1877 ,
p. 2
[10] Willard, p. 161
[11] Brisbane
Courier, 11 April 1877 ,
p. 2
[12] Brisbane
Courier, 5 May 1877 ,
p. 2
[13] “Summary
for Europe.”
Brisbane
Courier, 21 June 1877 ,
p. 6; Douglas (1902), p. 46; John Douglas to Thomas Phillips, 26 December 1871 , Aborigines
Protection Society. Australian Joint
Copying Project (AJCP), M2426, C39/103; F. W. Chesson. “The South-sea Island
Slave Trade.” The Times, 2 December 1871 , p. 5
[14] Douglas also had strong support within his party, for Griffith’s objection to
the South Sea Islander trade was easily as strong as his own. (Fitzgerald, p. 247)
[15] Brisbane
Courier, 17 April 1877 ,
p. 2
[16] Parliament reconvened on the 15 May 1877
[17] Brisbane
Courier, 5 May 1877 ,
p. 2
[18] Ibid. As the paper noted,
“when the interests of the colony required prompt and vigorous action, they
have not hesitated to assume an unusual responsibility.”
[19] “From the Pavement.” Brisbane Courier,
21 June 1877 , p.
6
[20] Brisbane
Courier, 18 June 1877 ,
p. 2 & 20 June 1877 ,
p. 5. Douglas
made his position very clear, demanding in parliament that: “Polynesian labor
should be done away with altogether.”
[21] For a detailed account of the differing attitudes, including Douglas’s, on this matter, see Patricia Mercer. An Analysis of Racial Attitudes towards
Melanesians Expressed in the Queensland
Legislative Assembly and Newspapers, 1877-92.
BA Hons thesis. James Cook University, 1972, pp. 47-61
[22] Brisbane
Courier, 25 January 1878 ,
p. 2; “Deputation to the Colonial Secretary.”
Brisbane Courier, 22 January 1878, p. 3; Queensland
Evangelical Standard, 12 January 1878, p. 332; Queensland Government
Gazette, vol 32 no 5, 8 January 1878, p. 69
[23] Willard, p. 160. For a copy
of the Bishop’s letter, see “Prohibition of Firearms to the South
Seas.” Bundaberg Star,
26 January 1878 ,
p. 2
[24] Kay Saunders. Workers in
Bondage: The Origins and Bases of Unfree
Labour in Queensland,
1824-1916. Brisbane, University of Queensland Press, 1982, p. 33. See also
John Kerr. Sugar at Maryborough: 120 Years of Challenge. Maryborough,
The Maryborough Sugar Factory Ltd., 1987, p. 68
[25] Brisbane
Courier, 25 January 1878 , p. 2
[26] “Metropolitan Jottings.” Queensland
Times, 31 January 1878 . There was concern that Sydney or Fijian
traders would then supply the ‘trade.’
(Saunders (1982), p.33.) For more
contemporary accounts, see Willard, p. 160
[27] Douglas informed a deputation on
this matter “in reference to ‘trade,’ that so long as he was in office, he
should not countenance it."
(“Deputation to the Colonial Secretary.”
Brisbane
Courier, 22 January 1878 ,
p. 3)
[28] Brisbane
Courier, 2 April 1878 ,
p. 2. The circular was dated 28 February 1871 .
[29] Ibid. The circular was
issued after the sub-immigration agent at Mackay drew to Douglas’s
attention alleged irregularities in the importation of Pacific Islanders. (William T. Wawn. The South
Sea Islanders and the Queensland Labour
Trade: A Record of Voyages and
Experiences in the Western Pacific from 1875 to 1891. London: Sonnenschein, 1893. Reprinted edition. Pacific History Series no.
5. Canberra,
Australian National University
Press, 1973, pp. 152-53.) In protesting
this impost, planters in Mackay presented a memorial to Douglas
stating that the enforcement of these regulations would cost them £10,800. (Brisbane
Courier, 2 April 1878 ,
p. 2; R. Newman. “The Sugar Planters and
Government by Regulation.” Brisbane Courier,
25 March 1878 , p.
3)
[30] “Deputation to the Premier.”
Brisbane
Courier, 27 March 1878 ,
p. 4
[31] Ibid.
[32] Brisbane
Courier, 2 April 1878 ,
p. 2
[33] Willard, p. 167
[34] Warwick
Argus, 11 April 1878 ,
p. 2
[35] Wawn, pp. 153-54
[36] A rough translation of this stanza is; Have you food, is it
good? Tell me if your boss is
mistreating you. Are you a hard worker
or a laggard? The premier, John Douglas,
is a good man who will protect your interests.
[37] A rough translation of this stanza is; Yes, I have my food, can’t
you see? My boss is very good, and
treats me well. However, fine food I do
not enjoy, for John Douglas has deceived us with false promises.
[38] A rough translation of this stanza is; I can see they have their
food. Throughout Queensland,
the belief is that Douglas should retire from
politics. I am indebted to Dr Anna Shnukal for her assistance in translating these
verses. Another example of this
opposition was a letter to the Brisbane Courier penned by a planter, Mr.
B, on behalf of a Polynesian worker, Oma-Tika, that included this memorable
assessment of Douglas; “That big man Mr.
Douglas no good for thinkie. He only
good for grow sugar. Overseer on
plantation make Mr. Douglas workie workie.
That very good.” (Oma-Tika. “New Kanaka Bill.” Brisbane
Courier, 29 June 1878 ,
p. 6)
