French Ships

May Cease Dunkirk- Noumea Service

Protest From Tahiti

From Our Own Correspondent

Papeete, June 8.

Telegraphic news from Paris indicates the probable discontinu ance at the expiration of the pre sent contract, of the subsidised steam ship service between France and New Caledonia, via Panama and Tahiti, car ried on at present by the Messageries Maritimes Company. Financial con siderations are given as the reason for this decision.

The exact terms of the contract do not appear to be available here, but the local public have always under stood that any monetary losses result ing to the company from the operation of this service would be borne by the French Government. No doubt the deficiency between income and expen diture has been considerable, and in all probability shows a constant tendency to increase, owing to downward trend of copra values, which means decreased imports and therefore less freights for the Messageries Maritimes.

Needless to say, the community in general is greatly perturbed over this situation, for the ships of the Messag eries Maritimes have provided Tahiti with a regular means of sending copra to Marseilles, an alternative market, where prices are generally somewhat better than in San Francisco.

In addition to this, they have afforded for through passengers to Europe a very much cheaper route than the alternative one across the United States.

It is to be hoped that the represen tations which are being made to the French Government by the Tahiti Chamber of Commerce will meet with success, and that it may be yet pos sible to make some arrangement whereby this valuable means of com munication will be preserved for the Colony, even though in a modified form.