By Tung Oil Mills

Candle-Nuts Bought

TT is reported that a new concern called 1 Empire Tung Oil Products Limited, of 66 King-street, Sydney, has made arrange ments to purchase from Fiji about 500 tons per annum of candle-nuts, to be crushed in its mills in Sydney.

If it is so, it is an interesting develop ment. The planting of Tung oil trees proved a failure in the Pacific Islands and other countries where the climate is oceanic; but planting has proceeded with apparent success, though in a haphazard manner, in the eastern districts of Austra lia, where the climate is continental. It will be remembered that experiments were made with the Fordii variety of Tung oil (which is the heavy fruiting variety) in the Islands, but these experiments failed. It is believed that the Montana variety, which is a small, light-fruiting tree, would grow successfully in the Pacific Islands, but it, of course, is not so profitable.

There is a world-wide and increasing demand for Tung oil, for use in high-class varnish, and it is believed tht very soon there will be enough nuts grown in East ern Australia to keep the Sydney mills going and meet the Australian demand.

The candle-nut, well-known in most of the Pacific Islands, really is a variety of the Tung tree, but it is said that the oil it contains is not as good as the Fordii variety of Tung. If, however, a use can be found for it and it can be profitaly mar keted, the news will be of interest to many Islands traders.

Mr. Percy Oakden Cakobau Cuthbert, the first European born in Suva, Fiji, died in the Colonial War Memorial Hospital on October 12, after a long illness. He was 65 years of age. Educated in Suva, he was for some years in the office of the Union S.S. Company’s agent in Fiji, be fore taking up a sea-faring career. Dur ing recent years he was on the Suva staff of Burns Philp (S.S.) Co. Ltd.