Drom the Islands Press

THE incredibly rapid increase in population of Western Samoa emphasises the great urgency for action in meeting the problems of feeding, finding work and providing a rising standard of living for the inhabitants of Samoa who could number more than a million in another hundred years.

The fact that over the next 10 years for every male retiring from active work through old age there will be nine young men to replace him shows that the problem is not one of the distant future but is at our very doorstep. Editorial, Samoana.

WHAT has happened to the un attached males of Moresby?

What do they do when the grog has run out? Don’t they believe in mix ing with the opposite sex or are they more interested in their own company?

A bit more sociability towards the fairer sex would be appreciated.

Heard a whisper that the men sit around at night and wait for the girls to ring them! How true is this?— Letter from “Curious 21-30” in “South Pacific Post”, Port Moresby.

THE Titikaveka cinema, always fairly well run, has undergone latterly a very great improvement.

It seems that village elders, local schoolteachers and police are co operating in this matter. Young hoodlums who disturb the entire audience are pounced on and flung outside by an unusually vigilant policeman. One can enjoy a cinema programme without interruptions.

I only wish that I could make reference to some improvement at the other cinema in this district. Up to the present there has been none, nor do I expect there ever will be.

The children of Muri-Matavera

appear to be utterly beyond control Ronald Syme in letter to “Co Islands News”.

IDO not see any reason why Hindustani section of the !

Broadcasting Commission and members of the Indian Advise Committee are silent about criticisms which appear regularly the correspondence columns of 2 Fiji Times].

Eighty per cent, of the fune announcements are either followed preceded by birthday calls and rest are followed by a rock ‘n’ : vocal or instrumental. What a ! idea to cheer up the bereaved fanr —Letter from “ZJV”, in “The Times”.

THE greatest evil in Samoa toda;j fa’amafu (home brew). Che to make, it is brewed in practic;: every village or village precirr usually under most unsanitary o ditions and with only the fainr knowledge of the principles of bn ing. Often adulterated with goodnr knows-what, it is not only bad, ii dangerous and poisonous certainly, taken in quantity, inflau the passions of the drinker to s? an extent that the gravest crimes violence—even murder—are o: mitted.

The trial that is proceeding of tH youths for the murder of a cle living, good citizen is only example of the awful consequent that arise out of fa’amafu pam Not only are these youths on t for their lives, the whole of til village suffers the shame broughtl them and the chiefs must face so; of the blame for allowing excess drinking to take place. —Editor “Samoa Bulletin”.

AT times, owning to rush on be days, letters are placed in wrong letter boxes, and I would to apologise for this. However: must be understood that such a i take happens in every couu throughout the world.

Some intelligent box-holders, wa they discover that a letter is i placed in their own letter boo immediately return it to the I Office. But some of you who reoo this missorted mail hold on to till for as long as one to two weeks.?

Such a habit in a civilised co munity is considered wrong. —Sift ment by Posmaster, “Niue No\ letter”.