Where Do The Manihiki
p. 31 · Read in the full issue
"Panamas" Go?
From Our Own Correspondent MANGAIA, Cook Islands.
THE Australian or NZ city-dweller who, in the hot days of summer, wishes to obtain a panama hat, finds the article hal’d to get, and often of very poor quality. Pre-war exports from Japan to this end of the world have ceased; and a genuine South American panama was rare even before Hitler put on warpaint and went off the reserva tion. One wonders why the finely woven hats of Manihiki Island (Nor thern Cooks) are not exploited, to fill this market vacuum. The prices would surely be good in Auckland and Sydney.
Every well-dressed Cl-er wears one of these Manihiki hats, which are made from palm-frond material whitened to the appearance of small quills, recalling the famous peacock-quill headgear of King Kamehameha of Hawaii. They are long-lasting, with reasonable care, and have been bought, at the island where they are made, at prices as low as eight or ten shillings.
Surely this Cl industry deserves en couragement, and a wider market than mere inter-island custom? It is a con stant source of wonder to observers that so little use is made of marketable Cl products other than fruit, copra, and
Mop.
Editorial Note:
SO-CALLED “Panama” hats have reached epidemic proportions this year amongst Australian men. We are told that demand is at least as great as supply; that the unblocked straw “hoods” come from Central China (that is what the salesman will tell you, any way) ; that they are blocked and trimmed in Australia and sell at from 35/- to 45/- each. The only way to find out if Manihiki hats could compete against this type of hat would be to send a shipment to interested manufacturers. The cur rent crop of “Panamas” are feather-light, but in qualitv bear little resemblance to the original Central American product.