Labour Shortages

Agents Are Snooping Around Polynesia

SOME people in New Zealand are urg ing that the New Zealand labour shortage should be countered, to some extent, by introducing Cook Island labourers. It is to be hoped that the social, economic and industrial balance in the Cook Islands will not be upset by anything so absurd. The removal of Polynesians from their homelands in order to supply labour in distant places always has been attended with disaster for the Polynesians.

The plan is on all fours with a project put forward, at length, in a recent issue of the Honolulu “News Advertiser”. It appears that there are people in Hawaii who now cannot get sufficient labour to work their plantations—despite the fact that there are literally scores of thous ands of Japanese and Portuguese people in that territory—and some bright lad has conceived the ridiculous idea that

fche la bour problem could be solved by getting permission from the British Colonial Office to convey shiploads of Fijian natives from Fiji to Honolulu. It * s ar S ue d that, as there is close kinship between the Hawaiians and the Fijians, the latter would be quite happy in Hawaii.

Apart from anything else, the fact apparently is overlooked that the Fijians are born land-holders, and actually there is no need for any of them to work as labourers. Industrial enterprises in Fiji itself cannot depend upon the Fiji ans for a labour supply—they must go to the Chinese, to the Euronesians, and to the Indians. A certain amount of Fiji labour has been organised by the Emperor and Loloma gold-mines, but this has been made possible only by the fact that the mining companies have been very careful to organise very com fortable and attractive conditions for the Fijian workers, -- - ■ Mr. C. Flemich, on secondment from Malaya, arrived in Suva, Fiji, recently, to take up duties as Conservator of Forests.