[Pacific Content] – Luke, Harry Charles / Queen of Tonga [Salote Tupou III (born Salote Mafile‘o Pilolevu)]

Islands Of The South Pacific. [With ten (10) letters loosely inserted among which is a wonderful, signed letter to Sir Harry Luke, by the Queen of Tonga, Salote Tupou / (Also included are four (4) items of Ephemera)]. With the printed dedication: “To Leander McCormick-Goodhart – Who knows some of these Islands – Pignus amicitiae per annos LXIII”.

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. London / Toronto / Sydney, etc., George G. Harrap & Co. Ltd., 1962. 21,5 cm x 15 cm. 285 pages, 61 illustrations (Many Photographs and some Woodcuts from Robert Gibbings). Original Hardcover with original dustjacket in protective Mylar. Harry Luke’s (Lukach) personal copy. With one annotation by Harry Luke. Some tearing to dustjacket, tanning to spine. Otherwise in good condition. See below a full list of manuscript letters and typed letters which were loosely inserted by Sir Harry Luke in this personal copy of his book on the “Islands of the South Pacific”.

Includes the following Letters and Ephemera:

1. A Typed Letter Signed (TLS) from Salote Tupou, Queen of Tonga, dated August 9th, 1962, thanking Harry Luke for sending her an autographed version of the “Islands of the South Pacific”. The letter is still in its original envelope with a stunning set of Anniversary Stamps, celebrating 75 years of Tongan Postal Service (1886 – 1961) and an additional stamp “The Royal Palace – with a portrait of Queen Salote of the Stamp-Design. The letter on the Tongan Royal Stationery. “My dear Sir Harry, It is with very great pleasure that I have renewed my acquaintance withh your writing and your knowledge of the countries of the Pacific so delightfully contained in “Islands of the South Pacific” which I have read and greatly enjoyed. Your thoughtfulness in sending to me an autographed copy is most kind. Yours sincerely – Salote Tupou – The Palace, Nuku’alofa, Tonga – 9th August, 1962”.

2. An article from “Daily Telegraph”, dated March 9th, 1962, about Harry Luke’s “Islands of the South Pacific”.
The article is titled: “South Sea Island Memories” and was written by E.H.Bailey – here a few excerpts from this review: “Sir Harry Luke’s latest book “Islands of the South Pacific” contains an amazing amount of factual information on such varied subjects as the discovery of the group of islands: the forms of government and the characteristics of the natives who inhabit them: Flora and Dauna : the Statues on Easter Island and the one-time home of Robert Louis Stevenson in Samoa” / “This is really a book of essays, a chapter each being given to certain groups or single islands. Much is told in extracts from the Diary Sir Harry Luke kept during his term as Governor of Fiji. “One moving extract deals with the beautiful island of Makongai where lepers are treated and often cured” / E.H.Bailey goes on and offers one section of the book which deals with the leper colony: “I do not think there can be another Leper Hospital in the world where the patients not only sing and dance, not only cultivate their own fruit trees and vegetables but build their own speed-boats and go in actively for such games as cricket and football.” / “Of Tonga and Queen Salote Sir Harry writes in glowing terms: “The Tongans are typical Polynesians and among the most robust and attractive Pacific Islanders and Queen Salote, who succeeded her father in 1918, has displayed throughout her reign sagacity and sound judgment and has made herself a widely respected figure in both hemispheres.” / “There are plenty of good illustrations, including photographs of the fire-walkers of Mbengga, the ceremonial making of yanggona; the Tortoise ‘Tui Malila’ given by Captain Cook to the Tui Tonga in 1777 and still roaming about the garden of the Palace in Nukualofa; and the rudder (now in the Fiji Museum) of the ‘Bounty’.″

3. (Letter) & 4. (photograph) An additional Manuscript Letter Signed / Autographed Letter Signed (MLS/ALS) from Dione Gibson to Sir Harry Luke on her stationery from “Parham Park, Pulborough, Sussex”. The letter is dated to 27th June, 1967 and she writes: “Dear Sir Harry, I am staying with my mother for a few days and have found the enclosed photograph of the new picture of Omai [″Omai was a young Ra’iatean man who became the second Pacific Islander to visit Europe” (Wikipedia)]. I have put the details on the back – my parents bought it at auction in I think 1964. New Zealand was very disappointed in not getting the picture, and asked if they could have a copy made * (* since done).The picture is illustrated in Mr.Cameron’s book about Sir Joseph Banks…..” [The photograph shows the painting on which (from left to right) we see “Omai – Sir Joseph Banks – Dr.Solander”. On the vintage photograph, with the copyright stamp of C.Cooper, Mayfair”, Dione Gibson has noted: “Picture painted by William Parry, sold by General John Vaughan of Nannau, Dolgelley [Dolgellau], Wales”.
[Luke added in his own hand: “now at Parham Park since c. 1964.”]

5. A Manuscript Letter Signed / Autographed Letter Signed (MLS/ALS) from Dione Gibson, [a member of the Pearson PLC dynasty and granddaughter of Weetman Pearson, 1st Viscount Cowdray and of 1st Baron Brabourne as well as wife of Richard Patrick Tallentyre Gibson, Baron Gibson] In her letter, dated July 3rd, 1967 and on Stationery stating “Penns in the Rocks, Withyham, Sussex”, Dione Gibson writes: “Dear Sir Harry, thank you so very much for sending me your book. I am simply delighted to have it….I shall probably save it for our next visit to Pasina : I love reading there – where immediate problems and duties seem to press less heavily….I am so glad that the twins arrived safely. They sound marvellously substantial, in spite of poor weight comparison with the Tonga brothers……Yours very sincerely, Dione Gibson”.

6. Important and long Manuscript Letter Signed / Autographed Letter Signed (MLS/ALS) from A.C. Reid, then Secretary for Fijian Affairs. Written shortly after “general elections were held in Fiji between 17 April and 4 May 1963. For the first time, women and indigenous Fijians were given the right to vote alongside the male European and Indo-Fijian population” (Wikipedia).

In this Air Letter from Fiji to Sir Harry Luke in London, dated June 21st, 1963 Reid is thanking Luke for the welcoming letter and then goes into talking about their mutual friends and former colleagues in the colonial service and then closes by talking about the dramatical constitutional changes in Fiji: “My dear Sir Harry, it was so nice to see your well remembered handwriting & to receive your congratulations. For me they were something special, as my beginnings her coincided with your tenure as Governor & High Commissioner and you have ever since taken such a kindly interest in your rater dour élève, not to mention his wife and offspring……We do hope you are fit after your wanderings…..In case you have not otherwise heard, an old friend of our joint experiences has passed away – Henri Sautot [that was Henri Camille Sautot (5 May 1885 – 23 March 1963) French colonial governor] – also quite recently Sir Hugh Ragg [Sir Hugh Hall Ragg (26 January 1882 – 24 May 1963) was a Fijian businessman and politician. He served as a member of the Legislative Council between 1926 and 1950], predeceased by his former political rival, G.P.Bailey. I heard from Harry Maude [Henry Evans Maude, OBE (1 October 1906 – 4 November 2006) British Colonial Service administrator, historian and anthropologist who spent the years 1929–48 working as a civil servant and administrator in various Pacific Islands. 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)] the other day…..Also heard from Martin Clemens (of the Solomons and Cyprus).

You would be interested in our April Elections based on the constitutional changes bringing the Fijian constituencies and the female franchise. Some years back there was a lot of talk about the Council of Chiefs not reflecting Fijian opinion : well we have now the same bench of Fijian members, returned by direct voting in the constituencies, as we had before, when they were returned by the Council of Chiefs. Although the ladies voted for the first time, there was no candidate from their ranks : it looks as though we’ll have to wait another 5 years for a woman M.L.C. !

Now we hear that this wretched “Committee of 24” in U.N. will shortly be turning its attention to Fiji in spite of there being no desire on the part of the latter for independence….Love from us both Archibald”.

7. Manuscript Letter Signed / Autographed Letter Signed (MLS/ALS) from Malia Apikotoa, dated May 7th, 1963, thanking Harry Luke for sending her the book, mentioning her in the Preface and asking if he’ll come back to be the Governor of Fiji again: “Dear Sir Harry Luke, many thanks for your most welcome letter…I also want to thank you for mentioning my name in the preface [Luke wrote in the preface “I wish likewise to thank Miss Malia Apikotoa of Tonga for her help in the preparation of the manuscript”]…..I guess you know that H.R.H. Prince Tungi is in London now on a business trip. He is going to make arrangement regarding a new vessel which the Tongan Government intends to buy. ……Sir Kenneth Maddocks and Lady Maddocks are due to leave Fiji sometime in September this year. I wonder who will be the next Governor. I only wish you could come back and be the Governor here. Do you think you will ever come over to this part of the world or not ? I hope you do. It is very amazing how I would not like to go out of Fiji. I suppose its because the world is not at its best at the moment….Your sincerely, Malia”.

8. Manuscript Letter Signed / Autographed Letter Signed (MLS/ALS) from New Zealand zoologist & ethnologist, Sir Gilbert Edward Archey, dated July 29th, 1963, thanking Harry Luke for congratulating him on the honour he has received [He was appointed a Knight Bachelor in the 1963 Queen’s Birthday Honours], and appreciating Harry Luke’s book: “Dear Sir Harry, it was a pleasure indeed to read your kind letter of congratulaions on the honour I received…I have your book on my desk. Our library copy has been well read and was continuing to be until I asked the Director and bespoke it for myself…Your descriptions and comments are a valuable contribution as well as a most enjoyable one….” [Archey went on to write some significant publications on Maori Culture and Oceanic Ethnology].

9. Typed Letter Signed (TLS) from Monica Baldwin, thanking Harry Luke for his letter and for giving her permission to quote from him. She is also mentioning Harry Luke’s review of her yet unpublished book (possibly “Goose in the jungle. A flight round the world with digressions”) in The Economist: “Dear Sir Harry, thank you so much for your most kind and charming letter….as for the idea of you reviewing my rather ridiculous book in The Economist, I feel quite unworthy of such an honour. I have told Hamish Hamilton, my publisher, I expect you know im, he has a way of knowing EVERYBODY; he will be delighted….I intended to send you a copy anyhow, though I must admit I feel rather “shy” to do so, you being so erudire and full of wisdom and I so very much the opposite……Since reading your autobiography I have so often thought of you and of your rich and intensely interesting life. One of the things I so admire is your positive genius for selection. There is not a dull paragraph…..″

10. A Typed letter signed (TLS) from Sir Guy Powles, [Sir Guy Richardson Powles ONZ KBE CMG ED (5 April 1905 – 24 October 1994) was a New Zealand diplomat, the last Governor of Western Samoa and architect of Samoan independence, and New Zealand’s first Ombudsman (Wikipedia)] dated April 10th, 1962, thanking Harry Luke for the book and also remembering Harry Lukes visit in 1958.

11. A Typed letter signed (TLS) from Isoa Toribau, on Stationery of Government House and stating “Colony of Fiji”, Suva, Fiji, dated June 7th, 1966, telling Harry Luke how happy she is to know he is still alive: “Dear Sir, I was very pleased to see today, from a letter addressed to you, that you are still alive ! I have just been telling the Private Secretary about the day you left, and the good advice you gave me, and how much I cried when you left…..″

12. Review from The Times, dated December 13th, 1962, mentioning Harry Luke’s book “Islands of the South Pacific: “Public servants have written nostalgically of their spheres of duty like ir Harry Luke in ‘Islands of the South Pacific’″

13. Another long Manuscript Letter Signed / Autographed Letter Signed (MLS/ALS) from A.C. Reid, then British Consul in Tonga, written from his new home in Saint Fillans, Coranour, Perthshire, Scotland, dated on 11th of July, 1962:

″My dear Sir Harry, you will no doubt be surprised to receive a letter from me with the above address ! I am now on a 2 1/2 year tour & have been on leave for the past 3 months or so. With all my family concentrated in this area, I am naturally loathing to spend time anywhere else – apart from the fact that Scotland appeals to me infinitely more than the South ! ….I was very glad – and honoured – to receive a complimentary copy of “Islands of the South Pacific” from your publishers…..″From a South Seas Diary” suffered from the exigencies of the immediate postwar period in its production & finish. You have every reason to be proud of this new volume. I do admire your attention to detail – a small but nevertheless important example is the excellent map of Tonga. I have found from experience that such maps are nearly always incmplete (either Ata in the South of the Niuas in the North are missed out). Yours is not only complete but it is artistic as well with its arrangement of the group titles. And I greatly relished your reference, deftly phrased, in the last chapter to Tuna & old Ulukalala…..Yours aye, Archibald″

14. Newspaper – clippings announcing the death of Captain Cook’s Tortoise: “Captain Cook’s Tortoise Dies – Auckland, Thuirsday [20/5/66] ‘Tu’imalila, a tortoise said to have been given by Capt. Cook to the King of Tonga during a visit in 1722, died in Tonga this week. Special keepers were appointed from generation to generation to look after ‘Tu’imalila’, whose name meant “King of the Palace Grounds” – The Tortoise was blinmded in a bush fire. He often strayed but was led back by the Tongans” [Sir Harry Luke made a note on page 183 of his book “Islands of the South Pacific”, where the Tortoise is discussed; – his manuscript annotation simply reads: He died May 1966”.

• Keywords: Autograph – British History · Autograph – History Rare · Autograph – Rare · British Colonial Administration · British Colonial History · British Foreign Office · British Foreign Policy · British Western Pacific Material / Sir Harry Luke Collection · British Western Pacific Territories · Colonial administrators · Colonial History · Colonial History – Rare · Fiji · Harry Luke – Pacific (1938 – 1947) · Luke, Sir Harry · Manuscript / Autograph – Rare · Manuscript Letter Rare · Manuscript Letter Signed · Queen Salote · Sir Harry Luke · Sir Harry Luke – Personal Archive of Books and Correspondence · Sir Harry Luke Collection · Tonga
• Language: English
• Inventory Number: 30152AB

EUR 275.000,-- 

We ship per DHL Express