Tropicalities

Written for The Pacific Islands Monthly by "Sea-Serpent”

WHEN A. J. Vogan, scientist and Pacific Islands wanderer, was look ing for the remains of an ancient civilisation in New Caledonia in 1922, he found huge forests of kauri. Think ing his fortune made, he personally called upon every big timber firm in Sydney and Auckland. The timber merchants laughed at him. “If there are such quantities of this priceless timber available,” they said, “why are they not worked?” And they would not even send a representative to in quire, although Mr. Vogan offered that if his statement was proved wrong, he would pay the cost of the inquiry.

“To-day,” says the disgusted and cyni cal Mr. Vogan, “those forests of kauri are in the hands of American syndi cates, and Australians and New Zea landers are paying for the timber about three times as much as they should.” * * * THE Fiji Government, by what it considers a necessary act of econ omy, has decided to discontinue, for the present, the subsidy of the Inter Islands air service, established a few months ago, and since operated very satisfactorily. The Colony’s income is down, and something must go; but it is a thousand pities that the air ser vice should be classed as a “luxury” and chopped out. Because it is new, it is in no sense a luxury—no more than the motor car, which superseded trains and horses, and radio, which superseded wire telegraph, are luxur ies. Radio and seaplanes will com pletely revolutionise life in the islands.

These utilities, by establishing regular and easy communications and remov ing the terrors of isolation, are going to promote developments and estab lish European communities in the Pacific territories in a manner never dreamed of 25 years ago. Within a Couple of decades every group will have its regular seaplane services. Fiji, which provides an example to the world in Pacific Islands progress and development, should not take a retro grade step. * * * TWO or three people have written to The Pacific Islands Monthly asking if it is a fact that the New Guinea ad ministration officials exercise a secret censorshio over correspondence leaving the Territory, and giving instances of alleged interference with private mail.

We have no knowledge of any such censorship; and, so far as the New Guinea mail services are concerned, we have not only found them efficient, but we have been treated with much cour

tesy and consideration in connection with the distribution of this journal.

It should be noted, however, that an Administrator in charge of a Mandated Territory has wider powers than are usually held by a Governor. Within the limitations imposed by the govern ment which appoints him, he is prac tically an autocrat.

As against that, the Administrator is constantly subject to irresponsible, carping criticism, which may gravely prejudice the relationship of himself or his Government with the League of Nations, and against which he has neither recourse nor remedy. In these circumstances, it would not be surpris ing if an administrator were in favour of some form of censorship—although any interference with private mail would be intolerable, and is most un likely, anyway. * * * THERE is a good deal of similarity be tween the problems of British North Borneo and those of the Mandated Territory of New Guinea. It is an in teresting fact that the Administration of North Borneo is controlled by a De velopment Company. All officials are included in that one organisation, and the whole Territory is governed and developed by the company. The coal industry has been receiving much at tention in North Borneo, and, as a re sult of cheap cost of production, it is considered possible that coal from there will capture the Eastern market. * * * A RESIDENT of Townsville sends me more lively examples of “pid gin.” This is how a New Guinea boy says: “You’re bald!” : “Grass belong coconut he no more stop.” “Piccaninny” is a “baby”; “deewhy” is a tree —“pic caninny belong deewhy,” therefore is “fruit.” “Copper” is a covering, such as a roof; therefore “copper belong ’and,” for fingernail, is quite ingenious.

“Lik lik” is “small”; “lik lik too much” is “smaller”; “lik lik plenty too much” is “very small.” * * * A SWEDISH LINER, en route to Sydney, called recently at the island of Nuie; and a description of Nuie, obtained from a passenger by a reporter, which appeared in a Sydney newspaper, is typical of the utter rub bish about the Pacific Islands so often published in Australia and New Zea land. We are told, for instance, that the people are “mostly of Maori and Hawaiian descent”; that only a mere handful can be induced to work on the plantations; that those who do work for 1/- per week consider them selves so rich that they do not mix with those who are content merely “to idle on the sands.” Anyone who has ever visited “Savage Island,” or who has ever met the hard-working Nuiean labourers in Samoa and Tonga, will recognise how funny this is. * * * AS a result of the readjustment of the payments of reparations by Germany to France, the port of Nou mea is “taking it in the neck.” The New Caledonian administration had planned to spend considerable sums in the improvement of port facilities, and in the deepening of the port itself.

But, as pointed out by the Bulletin du Commerce, in consequence of the easing of the terms imposed on Ger many, the grant from France to New Caledonia for oublic works has fallen from 14 to 15 million francs. The French authorities, however, insist that Noumea shall have attention. It is, they point out, France’s best har bour in the South Seas and for naval and military reasons, as well as for the stimulation of commerce, must be constantly improved.