THE UNITED STATES AND SAMOA 243 



be made worse by a continuation of the war " ; that Mr. 

 Sewall has been instructed to " preserve a strict neutrality " ; 

 and suggests the " advisability of the immediate election of 

 a king and a vice-king, as agreed to in the conference." The 

 reply that " all the important chiefs who had assembled had 

 formally recognized Tamasese as king," indicates a miscon- 

 ception in Berlin of the true situation in Samoa. "The 

 conduct of Malietoa," said Bismarck, " had become unbear- 

 able, maltreating the Germans, and finally permitting out- 

 rages upon those who were properly celebrating the birthday 

 of the emperor [the prince referred to the bar-room brawl 

 before mentioned] ; that the German Government had deter- 

 mined to deal with him personally." On January 17, 1888, 

 Mr. Bayard forwarded to the United States Minister in 

 Berlin a long communication, reviewing in detail the events 

 in Samoa following the adjournment of the commission, and 

 complaining of the course of the German representative in 

 Apia. This unwarranted course consisted in forcibly creat- 

 ing Tamasese king, in abrogating the neutrality of the port, 

 and in ignoring the protests of the American Consul all 

 alleged to be in derogation of the understanding of the three 

 powers to leave the situation in statu quo until a final 

 settlement. Mr. Bayard continued : 



The conclusion at which I am forced to arrive from the review 

 of recent events in Samoa is that the present unfortunate situation 

 there is due not to any action on the part of the representative 

 of the United States, but to the fomentation by interested for- 

 eigners of native dissensions, and to the desire exhibited in a 

 marked degree by those in charge of local German interests to ob- 

 tain personal and commercial advantages and political supremacy. 



Closing the despatch, he said : 



Owing, doubtless, to her commercial preponderance in the 

 islands, to Germany the primary object has seemed to be the 

 establishment of a stronger government. To the United States, 

 the object first in importance has seemed to be the preservation 

 of native independence and autonomy. And so regarding the 

 matter, this Government, while not questioning Germany's assur- 



