More Lamps

Cook Islands Need

Australian Manufacturers Should Be Interested

Prom Our Own Correspondent

Mangaia, Cl.

THE annoying scarcity of lamp-glasses, burners, wicks, and the complete oil-lamps themselves, is giving Cook Islanders cause to wish that these use ful items might be imported from non- British sources —Makatea Island, for ex ample, where they are plentiful.

For 10 years now it has been next to hopeless to attempt to purchase a mantle or a wick for Aladdin-type lamps, or a wick and burner for the “fish-tail,” com mon glass oil-lamp, once sold for six shillings, complete.

If such an item were to be had now, nobody would object to paying a pound for it; but there are none to be had. while lamps bought before the war, still in use, blacken the hut roofs because there are no chimneys for them.

Germany turned out in pre-war days uncountable numbers of hurricane-lamps (tin) and glass table-lamps, at prices suited to the Polynesian buyer. This quasi-monopoly of lighting looks like be ing resumed, unless British manufactu rers realise that a fine opportunity awaits them in the Pacific islands, where more modern devices than the humble oil lamp have not yet penetrated. (EDITORIAL NOTE: Australia is manufacturing more kerosene, spirit and

petrol appliances than ever before in historv. They range in price from a few shillings to many pounds. But it is doubtful if there are any over for export once the home demand is satisfied, Before the war such devices were found only in country stores. Now whole departments in the cities’ largest stores are

devoted to them. No modern house is complete without an electric (or gas) refrigerator, stove, hot water service, fire, washing-machine—and a whole series of primus stoves, kerosene lamps, oil room heaters and pressure lanterns to take care of gas and electricity blackouts, power shortages, miners’ strikes, and what not.)