Tulagi Gossip.

From Our Own Correspondent.

Tulagi, Aug. 20.

OF the 53 passengers who arrived by the “Mataram” on August 13 from south, six were Government officials, as follows: Mr. J.

C. Barley (Acting Resident Commissioner), Dr.

Crichlow, Mr. Hubbard (Judicial Commissioner), and Mrs. Hubbard, Captain Middenway (D. O., Gizo), Mrs. Middenway and son, Mr. A. Dickes (Chief Customs Clerk) and Mrs. Dickes and children, and Mr. Shearwin (Govt. Storekeeper).

Mr. R. F. Thompson, who was retired on a pension a few months ago, when his office of Labor Inspector was abolished, is now man aging one of Lever’s plantations. He says that, as a result of starting work at 5 a.m.

and working hard all day, he has reduced from a Governmental 20-stone odd to a planter’s 15, and considers that he is now quite qualified to institute a correspondence course of “Weight Reduction.’’ But, as far as the Islands are concerned, as there are no longer any fat planters, and Government officials would rather shoot him than pay him for such advice, one is inclined to advise him against the venture.

Mr. P. S. Palmer, senr., is nearly ready to leave Tulagi Hospital, where he was carried many months ago in a frightful state of health.

A leg which appeared to be one huge sore was only part of his ailments. He now cannot say enough for Dr. Hetherington, C.M.O., and the nursing staff, who literally patched him up by grafting. The common idea is that such work is not feasible in this climate, but Dr. Hether ington has pretty conclusively dispelled the notion in this case, and Palmer has reason to be thankful to him.

On January 31, 1932, our finances showed an excess of assets over liabilities of £65,649/14/3, which is only a slight reduction on last figures published, so we are doing “fairly nicely, thank you.” Of course, as is natural to suppose, we have the taint of Australian politics in our midst and here are "statesmen” who consider that the sixty-five thou’, together with a heap of borrowed money, ought to be broadcast in the air to be scrambled for ad libitum.

Gold-mining activities do not appear to be booking freight-space ahead for the transport of their bullion. A mining engineer returned from an inspection of the most likely field the other day, but unless the connections have "poker faces,” his report did not create any undue excitement. It really looks as though we shall have to work hard for our bread and margarine after all.

Strange that nobody has thought of starting a lottery, so far! Of course, we have no money to put into such a venture, but we have heaps of coconuts, and a sweep made up of 500 tickets at ten coconuts each would pan out about a ton of copra, which, after cooking exes, were deducted, might net enough to buy a pac ket of cigarettes! Not very much, it is true, but every little helps to lift us out of the depression. Of course, as we only have about 500 white inhabitants, there might be some difficulty in filling each sweep; but we could get over this by allowing natives to take part; and, if missionaries did not care about coming in, we might call it a charitable affair by donating, say, ten coconuts from each lottery towards 'upkeep of hospitals.”