The “Two-Mile Limit”

A Trading Regulation in New Guinea

From Our Own Correspondent

Rabaul, June 18,

ALTHOUGH no actual regulation amending the Licensing Ordinance has been gazetted, it is officially under stood that the abolition of the “two-mile limit,” in respect to the location of trad ing sites, has been seriously considered by the Executive Council. Planters and traders have received an intimation to this effect from the Administration.

In the past, a protective regulation gave the holder of a trading station an exclusive right to purchase the coconuts or copra within a two-mile radius of his station. Lately, however, monopolies have come into existence in certain areas, and it is claimed by the Administration that in such instances the natives have not been receiving the benefit of the improv ed market conditions when disposing of their produce.

With so many interests in the Territory —especially around Rabaul—that have become self-appointed guardians of the “down-trodden” black any semblance of exploiting the native is availed of for two reasons: To curry favour with the natives; and to criticise the Administra tion in seeming dilatoriness in safeguard ing native interests. When such allega tions as neglecting the “sacred trust” are directed against the local authorities it forces their hand either to take action or prepare a defence of such charges for the perusal of the Permanent Mandates Com mission.

The Administration, in this instance, has decided to take action in order to eliminate any possibility of the existence of monopolies and to establish free trade among the copra-buyers. This decision has naturally been met unfavourably by planters and traders.

One of the main arguments put for ward by the 6 ona fide planter for the re tention of the protective area is that it obviates the likelihood of plantation pro duce being stolen and sold to nearby trad ing ventures. The establishment of a two-mile protective zone around planta tions was the idea originally put forward by the Expropriation Board in 1923, when, early in 1924, the old German trading sta tions were put up for tender. It is pro posed in the new regulations still to main tain this protective zone around planta tions, but the area has been reduced and the suggested zone will now, in all proba bility, be 1,000 metres.

The proposed regulations, however, will allow traders to operate at any point, ex cluding those areas situated within 1,000 metres of any plantation.

What effect exactly these innovations will have on trading is difficult to pro phesy. It would seem that it will encour age a price war for the purchase of native copra. Providing the overseas price is maintained and competition among buyers does not become too keen, traders should

be able to show a profit. The general price around Rabaul now being paid for coconuts is one stick of trade tobacco for 15 nuts. This works out at approximately 60 nuts for 1/- or £5 a ton; added to the purchase price is the cost of bags, curing and transport to place of shipment.

Another innovation affecting trade copra in the Rabaul neighbourhood is the erection by natives of hot air kilns, which turn out a No. 1 grade of Rabaul hot air copra and is sold direct to the overseas shippers by the native, eliminating the middle man—the small trader. The native owners of these kilns cure the copra of other natives and market the produce, presumably on commission. Natives, as yet, are not allowed to buy copra, though with the present rate of progress of native evolution it is not unlikely that this privi lege will be extended to them in the not distant future.

It is merely a matter of the effluxion of time when native kiln-owners will be handling the greater bulk of trade copra.

This will defeat one of the objects of the abolition of the “two-mile limit,” which is to create an avenue for the absorption of the unemployed Asiatic population which has already reached alarming dimensions.

Eliminate the middle-man trader and employment for the Asiatic buyer of copra is eliminated also. He will have to depend solely on the turnover from his mercantile store. This in time no doubt will meet the same fate as copra-buying, for natives in the next decade will probably be trade store owners as well as kiln-owners.

The wheels of evolution in New Guinea are turning very quickly—too quickly!