Fijian Legislative

Council.

AN optimistic note was sounded in the address of the Governor of Fiji, Sir Murchison Fletcher, to the Fiji Legislative Council, when it opened its new session on Thursday, June 2.

His Excellency declared that in the main centres of the Colony’s principal industry—namely, sugar—the spirit of optimism is in marked contrast to the pessimism one encounters in Suva.

The pressure that has been brought upon the Governor to further reduce the salaries of the Fiji public servants was referred to by his Excellency, who made it quite clear that he does not agree with the course suggested.

His view, apparently, is that, as there is a distinct possibility that the Colony’s economic conditions will improve, it is not fair at this stage to impose further burdens upon the civil servants.

It was announced that, owing to the world depression having caused a great shrinkage in the market for canned pineapples, the Hawaiian Pineapple Co., which had formulated plans for im portant operations in Fiji, has termin ated its plantation experiments there for the present.

It was announced that the Indian population has considerably increased its cultivation of rice, with the result that it is estimated that the need for further importation of this commodity will disappear during the coming year.

This is an important development, as there has been in the past a consider able market in Fiji for rice grown in Burma and Java, and in recent months a considerable quantity of Australian grown rice has found purchasers there.