Tropicaoties

NEW dignities are sometimes expen sive. Men offered a peerage have been known to refuse, on the ground that they did not care to expend the necessary money on their robes and patent. No such restraint is necessary when the taxpayer’s purse is behind you.

When Fiji Government yacht “Viti” was recently given naval status her launch automatically became a naval barge, and as such had to be graced with the pair of dolphins customary on such craft—dolphins, presumably, of ornament and distinction, but hardly of much practical use. Dolphins could be cast in Suva. But, alas, their full bril liance would not be revealed without chromium-plating, so they were des patched to Sydney to acquire the neces sary lustre. The bill is understood to be a little under £lOO. Still, perhaps this has brought us a little nearer to win ning the war.

AN act of simple and sincere good comradeship is reported from Wau, New Guinea. In that tropical town, isolated in the mountains, they have found some very good dramatic talent, and Major Ayris regularly produces some first-class plays. Recently, “It Pays to Advertise” ran for a short, successful season.

After the last performance, the players went in a body to the cemetery and placed a wreath upon the grave of Miss Jean Wilson, whose brutal murder is one of the unsolved mysteries of the Territory. Jean Wilson, a charming and popular girl, was cast for one of the chief parts in “It Pays to Advertise”, and had rehearsed regularly up to the time of her tragic death on June 23.

Her associates, in the moment of their success, thought first of her. * AREAL gesture of goodwill! The popular American authors, Nordhoff and Hall, of Tahiti, have produced another book of the Bligh series, entitled “Botany Bay”, The others —all out standing successes—were “Mutiny”, “Men Against the Sea”, and “Pitcairn’s Island”.

Chapman and Hall, of London, will pub lish the British Empire edition of “Bot any Bay”, and the authors have arranged that the whole of the profits therefrom shall go to British war funds, as an expression of their admiration of the behaviour of the British people, under Blitzkrieg. Nordhoff and Hall were aviators in the last war—that, in fact, is where they first met. They were In the French Air Force, and, in 1917, trans ferred to the United States organisation.

After the war, they went off together to seek some quiet place, away from the hateful, warring world —and they found Tahiti. * THE ever-murmuring “coconut wire less” can be a boon or a bane in an Islands community. At one Central Pacific port recently it received more round cursing from local residents than the Gestapo has bestowed on Europe’s hidden “freedom radios”.

A few months ago “coconut wireless” whispered that a party of Free French soldiers would call at the island on their way overseas. Old residents scoffed; but, within a day or two, a vessel put into port and, sure enough, ashore came the Frenchmen. There was a hectic scramble among the locals to give the contingent happy memories of their visit.

Quite recently, when “coconut wire less” let it be known that another batch

of men would pass through, nothing was left to chance. Each village killed pigs and chickens and gathered ever y v^ ri ety of fresh produce, to ensure that the Frenchmen would have to be carried b ack their Natives lined the beach when a steamer arrived on the due date; but great was the disappomt ment, and loud the cursing, when it was found that s °ldiers were aboard, There was only one thing to do tuck away the fine food before it went rotten, m tro Pte al fa s hlo ?J- An< ? , the local epi " cures did that, with gusto, * A T the recent term examinations at Newington College, Sydney, the name of Prince Jione Gu, young est son of Queen Salote of Tonga, headed the list in wool-classing. Until he went to New Zealand a couple of years ago, to study with a tutor, Prince Jione had never seen a sheep. This is certainly a new departure for a Poly nesian.

This young Tongan noble, who does not aspire to the notable scholarship of his brother, the Crown Prince, has definite agricultural leanings. Prince Jione, by the way, seems to carry all

before him on the football field—as one or two casualties during the recent sea son proved. As he weighs nearly 20 stone, he is certainly a formidable oppo nent. He spells his name Gu—not Ngu as sometimes printed.—“Eriki”.

Messrs. Alan Dickinson and Chris.

Wordsworth, of Bulolo Gold Dredging Ltd.’s No. 5 camp, New Guinea, arrived in Australia recently to join the AIF.