“ Though they have practically all become Christians, the European and later American colonization has not been altogether to their benefit. In matter of population they seem to be about holding their own. Beneath the acquired new religion and borrowed culture survive many old traits and habits. The ancient arts and inventions of the natives are, however, disappearing before the labor-saving devices of the whites.
History. The Samoan Islands are probably identical with the Baumann's Islands, discovered by the Dutch navigator Roggoveen in 1722. ”

“ Like many other Polynesian peoples, the Samoans are often quite good-looking and are generally well-formed. Tradition and legend make the Samoan Archipelago the centre from which a large portion of the island-world of the Pacific was peopled. The Samoans have always been noted as sailors and boat-builders. ”

“ The only indigenous mammal is a species of rat, but there are several reptiles, including four species of snake. Among the birds the most remarkable is a species of ground pigeon, the Didunculus strigirostris, which is interesting as being a link between the African Treroninæ and the dodo. It is, however, becoming extinct.
The wealth of the islands consists principally in their rich vegetation. The soil is of extraordinary fertility and well watered. ”