Yesterday

It was war in the Pacific. Thej issue of "PIM" 20 years ago this; month had the facts blazonedct across its opening pages. "Becauses Japan," said "PIM", "under thes direction of Nazis and militaristioi lunatics, has gone to war, thes tempo and character of life hasi changed for every European resi-i dent in the Pacific Islands. Thes change at the moment of thissi writing, December 9, is bewilders ing and the whole Pacific situations is obscure and confused."

Meanwhile, “PlM’s” issue ofti December, 1941, continued to report*' that life had gone on almost as, usual in the Pacific the previous month. Some details: * * * There were grumblings im Western Samoa over what was, called “misplaced humanitarianisra’*' in NZ, which had again commutedb to life imprisonment a deathri penalty imposed on a Samoann murderer. There had been a larges number of murders committed ina a brutal manner for trivial reasons and Samoans believed the deathri sentence would prevent any more. * * * The election of two Europeann members to the Western Samoas Legislative Council resulted inn victory for sitting member O. P.

Nelson and of a Samoan Labour!

Party member, Mr. A. Stowers...

To everybody’s surprise Mr. A. G.

Smythe missed out by only a few/, votes. A correspondent said twoo features of the election were thes absence of any reference to wan in any of the speeches and ann absence of a large number ofl electors who were working at thes US Naval Base at Pago Pagoo (Western Samoa was benefitingg substantially from increased USS expenditure in American Samoa). * • ♦ In Suva, the use of hoses wasa forbidden. This was caused by as lower-than-usual rainfall and thes small reservoir. Meanwhile, another* area suffering from drought wasa Samarai where the position wasa more serious. Nearly every house hold was carting water. Nativesa: along the north-east coast of thea mainland had lost their gardensa for 1941 and all their seed fori 1942. * ♦ * A young New Caledonian natives was stricken by bubonic plague at as village 10 miles from Noumea, .j Health authorities took precautionsa. and the locality was Isolated the military. PAA clippers fori several trips did not stay over—■ night at Noumea.