Bigger Crops and

Better Shipping What Cook Is. Fruit Industry Needs

From Our Own Correspondent

Rarotonga, Sept. 19.

THE Resident Commissioner (Mr. S. J.

Smith) is losing no opportunity of seeing for himself the workings of “fruit control.” Accompanied by Mr. W. T.

Goodwin (Director of Agriculture) he was a passenger on the Tiare Taporo which last week visited all Lower Group islands.

With the first orange season barely over, it is still premature either to judge the success of Government control of the industry or to hazard a guess as to its duration. In Rarotonga the crop has steadily been diminishing for many years and little over 12,000 cases were exported this season. In the outer islands, and on Aitutaki particularly, where the crop was late, the position is the reverse and a considerable percentage has been lost through lack of shipping.

Unquestionably, there has been more fluid money about: growers, if they have not actually gained much extra cash, have literally had it jingling in their pockets. The main beneficiaries of this have been the independent retail stores, whose low prices, made possible by small overhead and other costs, are in a favour able position to attract ready money.

Apart from the necessity for a better and an increased citrus production, the paramount need of the fruit industry is for improved shipping facilities. The Matua service has unfortunately fallen a good deal short of expectation, and coupled to this the trans-Pacific cargo steamers which were formerly guaranteed a cargo by the Auckland fruit merchants, now seldom call.

In this connection, unofficial sugges tions have been made to the effect that the £35,000 recently offered by the N.Z.

Government as a loan free of interest for the purpose of erecting a cold storage in Rarotonga, would be better employed and be of greater service to the whole Group if devoted to subsidising a small refrigerated motor vessel which could serve the Cook Islands exclusively.

Mr. C. Cheney, 0 f Kavieng, New Guinea, married Miss Phyllis Waugh at

St. George’s Anglican Church, Rabaul,

early in September,