Suwarrow

Little Shell Found At

MR. D. C. BROWN, of Rarotonga; who, together with Mr. Pin.

Maoate, has a license to test! dive for MOP shell in the long§ abandoned Suwarrow lagoon, res ported in September that result had been disappointing.

Only four tons of shell had beeis fished by two teams using one diw ing suit each.

After three weeks the men haj3 abandoned work claiming that thee were unable to locate further shell; The shell found was of heavi© and better quality than ManihiM. shell, Mr. Brown said, and it conn tained a percentage of gold-liii There was also much young shea seen, which seemed to indicate thssj the older shell must also be them unless the beds were badly damages by the 1942 hurricane and have noi recovered.

Mr, Brown intends to take anothei picked diving team there fronc Manihiki to carry out a mom thorough investigation. It had bees: hoped that Suwarrow would prov/r as rich a dollar earner for Ne'o Zealand as Manihiki, which las£ years exported 256 tons of shes: valued at about 35 cents per pound weight, FOB Rarotonga.

The Administration will collect : small Royalty on shell fished frorc Suwarrow which is owned direct!!: by the Government, being withouc any indigenous population.

Mr. Brown said that stories o sharks infesting the lagoon had non so far proved correct. If there are sharks in Suwarrow lagoon, ther certainly had not bothered tM! divers. if A daughter was born in Augun at Tarawa to Mr. and Mrs. I Richards. Mr. Richards of Suvv is employed by the Gilbert & Ellidl Colony Wholesale Society, at Betit!; Tarawa. His wife, Pauline, is tHJ daughter of Mr. W. Schutz, mam. ager of the Gilbertese Co-operati T ij Society.