They Are Called
p. 112 · Read in the full issue
Cricket Instead
Of Booze
They Are Called 'Fanatics'!
From Our Noumea Correspondent A RECORD line-up (48) of native “drunks”, in the police court in Noumea, on September 6, directed attention to a fact worthy of wider circulation —namely, that in the isolated French islands of the Loyalty group there are “cricket fanatics”.
It was stated—to balance the distressing news about the Noumea “drunks”—that the people of the large native centre of Canala are taking a much greater interest in sports and athletics and that cases of natives being drunk are becoming rare.
The first missionaries in the Loyalty islands, Englishmen, under stood the importance of channelling the native mind into the avenues of sports. They taught them the game of cricket and other sports.
To this day the Loyalty natives— women as well as men—are cricket fanatics.
Cricket has never been adopted by natives of New Caledonia, as the English missionaries never were permanently on the large island.
However, the large number of Loyalty islanders working in Noumea always stage their cricket matches over the week-ends.
New Caledonian natives play mostly soccer football, nearly always in bare feet. One wonders why an effort is not made to teach them tennis. They should excel.
t Catholic Bishop A. F. Blanc, DI SM, formerly Vicar Apostolic ( Tonga, and now living in retire ment,. is at 85 reported still to t living an active life in mission woi there. He is in his 46th year as bishop and 62nd year in the priesi hood.