yesterday

“Today we go into the

fourth year of war with hope\

and confidence undimmed, but\

chastened by memories of\

many recent defeats and\

disasters,” said an editorial in\

“PIM” of September, 1942..

Other items in that issue of\

20 years ago were: — On the night of September 12„ the Japanese, using reinforced in fantry, aircraft and warships,, began a heavy attack to try toe recapture parts of Guadalcanal,, which the Americans took fromx the Japanese in August, 1942. ♦ ♦ ♦ The official prices for copra,, fixed in Suva, ranged from £l6/15/- to £lB/5/- a ton Fijiarr currency, but New Caledonianc copra was selling in Sydney for as much as £3O a ton. Planters in Fiji were bitter that, after manyj lean years, their chances of mak ing substantial profits were being spoiled because labour was being drawn away to Suva and othei districts for governmental ano defence works. * * * Australians were fighting thej Japanese on the southern slopes o:x the Owen Stanley Range, follows ing a Jap landing at Milne Ba;, where the Japanese had been heavily defeated. * * • A marine “monster”, thaf seemed to be a war casualty, wai washed up on a New Caledoniaij beach. It was 50 feet long, 111 feet wide, and higher than au ordinary doorway. It was of thr colour of chamois leather and hau what seemed like ivory tusks oo bones, eight or nine feet long sticking out from its jaws. Thr monster was believed to be species of whale. ♦ • • Eric Ramsden, founder o Sydney’s Pacific Islands Societjc left Sydney for Christchurch; NZ, to join the editorial staff o “The Press”. He was farewelles at a meeting of the society s History House, Sydney, on Augusi 26. • * • The mongoose, which came t Fiji from India with the Indiann had become so serious a pest i the main island of Viti Levu thsx the Government, through tH; Department of Agriculture, decide! to offer a substantial bonus fol mongoose tails. Country dwelleie were upset because the bomrx applied only to mongoose caugEj on the Suva peninsula.