Remember ?

Do You Remember ?

A letter from a Port Mores man, 'published in 20 yec ago, spoke feelingly about alarmi reports that Canberra was co

templating the introduction of i

come tax in Papua because of t war. Said the correspondent, i

dignantly: “Papuan residents ha

for many years been staggeri'i under a load far heavier and mo unwieldly than their envious neig] hours in Australialt took 20 yeai but it happened.

Here are some extracts from the issue February, 1940: The copra producer today is worse ( than he was just before the war—ai then he was not enjoying even a bres and butter existence,” said a ‘‘PITk editorial, which asked, ‘‘How long w copra producers sit quiet under th exploitation?” The trouble was that copi ?> r |n e /no / had x risen since the war fro £!0/l 2/ - a ton to £l3/SA. but the who of the rise had been absorbed by highi freight and marketing price. * * • In Western Samoa the United Pr< gressive Party sharply criticised the polk of the NZ Government in appointing your men from the NZ public service 1 vacancies in the West Samoa Publi service. it was stated there were number of positions in Samoa whic could be quite adequately filled b Euronesians. “PiM” remarked edltoriall that there was justice in the claim, tha m intelligence, industry and appearanc tne Euronesians compared favourably wit] Europeans, and as Samoans in their ow: country they had every justification fo asking that as many public servic positions as possible be made available to them. However, NZ so far had blandb ‘TIM” d thC Euronesians ’ requests, saij * * • From Rabaul, threatened with extinctioi because of the proposal that Lae be mad< the capital of the Mandated Territory it was reported that business was nov up s * nce the announcement that headquarters would remain in Rabaul I* * eas * for the duration of the war.

Said a PIM correspondent: ‘‘Those who profess to know are confident now that the capital will not be moved elsewhere —that the new observatory will gwe the community sufficient warning of impending eruption . The first portion of that prophecy has been proved right. * * ♦ There was big talk that a cocoa in- Stry 1J c ?i* ld be sount *ly established in the old Mandated Territory of NG—and possibly even give copra a run for its money (it took longer than they thought but it s certainly happening.) * * * The Banabans of Ocean Island—a native community then 500 strong—handed the sum of £lO,OOO to the Colonial Office to be passed on to King George as a contri bution to the British War Fund. The High Commissioner for the Western Pacific had suggested to the Banabans that £2,000 would be regarded as a generous gift, but the Banabans had deeded it was going to be “£lO,OOO or nc thing”.