Do You Remember ?

From PIM of 20 Years ago.

BY July, 1935, the crisis of gold fever was passing, but progress reports from both Fiji and New Guinea continued to occupy many columns in PIM.

Here are extracts from that issue 20 years ago: PIM editorial asked whether the British Solomon Islands Protectorate could be ad ministered from New Guinea. It claimed that there were “a dozen sound, practical reasons for the change”, and added that the chief arguments against Australian control “appeared to be mostly of an academic or selfish character”. (The only administrative change in the British Solomons has been the prising loose of the Western Pacific High Commission from Suva and its establishment of HQ at Honiara). * * * Fanning and Washington Islands had been offered for sale in London on July 1.

Both islands had been operated by Fan ning Islands, Ltd., for 20 years. (To-day most of Fanning and all Washington is worked by Fanning Island Plantations, Ltd., a subsidiary of Burns Philp. Both islands are part of the WPHC’s Line Islands).

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PIM lamented that although in June it had said that copra prices “should rise soon”, they had continued to drop in July. Sydney merchants, it was reported, “do not know of one substantial reason why prices should have fallen 40/- in a

few weeks. They are inclined to blamei the all-powerful Unilever combine”,' (London prices on July 12, 1935: £9/12/6 a ton sun-dried; £lO/5/- kiln-dried). I * * * Western Samoa, according; to a con-i tributor, was anxiously awaiting; an an-i nouncement from New Zealand about the.

Administrator to succeed Sir Hubert Hart,) who, it was said, had had a peaceful reigm by pursuing “a policy of masterly in-i activity”. * * * “Fashion Hints for Islands Women” were shattering: “For the divinely tall and) most divinely beautiful comes the classical! toga of old Greece and Rome. Beautiful! and gracefully flowing draperies metamor phose the wearer into a goddess”. (Thiai sort of thing went on for two columns).( * * * Indian clerks of Suva solicitors, agitated) by a resounding condemnation by Fiji's Chief Justice (Sir Maxwell Maxwell-1 Anderson) of the actions of some of them,r were contemplating libel claims for £5,000 against him. It had been pointed out; that the only place in which such actions: could be brought was the Supreme Court' —His Honour’s own court. (In 1934, in a sequel to the trial of an Indian money*!’ lender for perjury, the Chief Justice had given instructions that no documents interpreted by these clerks were to be accepted at the Supreme Court Registries.a Consequently no solicitor would employe the clerks. The projected libel action was dropped when the ban was lifted).