life on the “fish-line"
pp. 88-89 · Read in the full issue
Hurricane’S Wake
life on the “fish-line" at Palmerston
HOW much does a “balanced” diet!; matter? The answer—in as fan as it affects Pacific Islanders in times of emergency—appears to be “nott< very much”.
An interesting article dealing withl this matter of subsistence —on as hurricane devastated atoll —appears' in the South Pacific Commission’s quarterly Bulletin, issued im January. It is written by Mr. Ron-i aid Powell, well-known Rarotonga resident, who spent some years on Palmerston atoll, home of the celeb-( rated Marsters family.
When Mr. Powell went to Palmer-' ston to stay he subscribed to thei popular belief that a balanced diet is essential to health, and, with thu aid of a little volcanic soil from Rarotonga, humus from stands oc Tamanu trees on Palmerston, pigi manure, wood ashes, etc., he had considerable success in an excavates pit wherein his sweet corn, tomatoes; beans, pineapples, onions, etc., din well, irrigated by tidal moisture bea low the soil.
Then the hurricane struck anti within 24 hours the sea had dea stroyed almost everything on thr atoll. When the fallen coconut! were consumed resort was had ti the Kamuka, or millionaire’s salao in the crowns of the fallen coconm palms, and later a somewhat similas food from the hearts of the uprootea pandanus trees.
When the above sources wen exhausted, only fish remained, anr on this unrelieved diet (fortunatell; in ample supply) the people r© mained healthy, but the pigs—thi few that survived the hurricane died.
Some months after the devag tation, a schooner from Rarotonga was able to furnish six sacks o maniota starch, a welcome break o which the net result was a crop o boils (nutritionists please notes which vanished only when the fim nuts of the new coconut crop wen: large enough for consumption, mon( than a year later.
To Mr. Powell the experience ws 1 an adventure in elemental!: economics. He was impressed witti the ability of people of Polynesias stock to continue healthy and hapn under such adverse conditions.
The fear of death from starvatioo or disaster from malnutrition ws* never considered. They were uo. hampered, he points out, “from tri frustation of being without tn myriad of trivialities which we nm essential to carry on the patten 1 which life in cities imposes upm us.”
Having been impressed over soim fifty years with the Christian do?c
trine that “clothes maketh the man”, the Masters’ only worry was the maintenance of basic respec tability by European standards. As
tvoven remnants disintegrated, girls
vere to be seen clad in fragments >f old tarpaulins, sugar bags, and ;ven medical lint.
Although renowned for the jeautiful hats that they weave from loconut fibre, the people were not mpressed with Mr. Powell’s sugges ion that they could provide body :arments in the same manner. “The tep of going backwards, as they elt, to the grass skirt, was a bigger tep than they were prepared to ake. Had the depression lasted mger,” he adds, “it would have been iteresting to see what dire neces ity might have brought about.”
Palmerston island has been de asted by hurricanes quite a number f times since first settled by Wil am Marsters and some Polynesian omen in 1863.
A Qantas Super-Constellation and PAA Stratocruiser were delayed at ascot, Sydney, on January 31 for hours because of cyclonic weather Nadi, Fiji. One Qantas Super mstellation, which was already on ; way had to by-pass Nadi and fly l to Canton. Ten Fiji passengers ;re carried on and later flown back Nadi at the company’s expense.