The Indiscriminate Gutting

Of Coconut Leaves

WE have a letter from a young man —a Tongan—who has some sug gestions to make as to the possible cause of the fall in copra pro duction in Tonga. His name is Loloma Mataele, and he says that he wrote first to the Tongan Copra Board but had not received a reply from them after two months.

Perhaps some other authority on coconuts will be able to tell him whether there is anything in his idea or not. Mr. J. Cottrell-Dormer, now

Director of Agriculture in Papua-New Guinea, was, we understand, responsible for putting the Tongan copra industry on its feet.

Loloma Mataele writes: 1 WOULD like to draw attention to the fact that there has been a marked deterioration in the production of copra in the Kingdom of Tonga over the last three years.

It is my belief that one of the things that has affected the seasonal yield of for copra is the cutting of coconut leaves' for making baskets for copra. Thousands of these precious leaves are cut daily through the Group

for this useless purpose—a matter which could be averted by the importation of copra sacks, as in other Pacific territories.

There has been a world shortage of sacks of all kinds, of course, but as Fiji and Samoa are now receiving a fairly adequate supply we too, in Tonga, should have our quota to be distributed, in whatever way suitable, to the copra pro ducers. Instead, we are displaying great short-sightedness and are giving a hand

to the other natural parasites that destroy coconuts by wantonly cutting leaves and fronds for copra baskets.

It should be taken into consideration, also, that these are in addition to the thousands of other fronds that are cut daily for building and other purposes.

The Rev. R. A. Donne, formerly of Suva, Fiji, has been appointed to the Parish of Portland, Victoria.