yesterday

The Japanese made a blunder, second only to their failure to follow up Pearl Harbour, when they did not attack Fiji early in the Pacific war, said Sir Maynard Redstrom in an interview with American United Press, m New York. The Japanese had stopped at the Solomons and the Gilberts when a few boatloads of soldiers certainly could have taken, and prob-

ably held, Fiji. PIM in April,

1943, gave Sir Maynard’s , • „ 4.u view. Here are some other events reported in that same issue of 20 years ago: Mr. A. C. Turnbull, who had been Acting Administrator of Western Samoa, was at long

last appointed Administrator. In the eight years before his sub stantive appointment Western Samoa went through some dif ficult times. Samoan products were practically unsaleable in 1941 —Mr. Turnbull tried to steer the Administration and the country through the economic crisis with a minimum of trouble and suffer ing. * * * A cyclone at Rarotonga and other islands in the Cooks de molished many buildings. Orange, banana and other food crops suf fered heavily. The loss of much exportable fruit was expected to affect the New Zealand market.

The increased value of house property in Noumea was shown by the sale of a small hotel restaurant known as the Cafe de Paris in the Latin Quarter. A few months earlier it found no buyer at 200,000 fr., but it was sold for 450,000 fr. * * * Having responded promptly to the invitation extended by the Australian Minister for External Territories to evacuated residents of Papua to make application to return to their copra and rubber plantations, many scores of plant ation owners were waiting im patiently for some answer to their letters. * * * Fourteen months had elapsed since Japan entered the war and not until then was a marked food shortage noticeable in Fiji.

Meat and bread were the two principal foodstuffs which were in short supply. Worse, stocks of Scotch whisky were very low.

Drapery and general lines were short, and cigarettes had been out of stock for over a month. * * * Pacific Islands could expect an influx of young men who, seeing many of the groups for the first time as servicemen, would return as new colonists when the war ended, wrote a Fiji correspondent commenting on the engagement of Miss Jenny Bryce, of Navua, Fiji, to Harry Whitford, of New Zea land. * * * The Queen of Tonga’s second son. Prince Jione Gu, enrolled for a two-year course at the Gatton Agricultural College, Queensland.

This was in conformity with custom which compelled all chil dren to do an agricultural course at school—agriculture being the basis of Tongan life. * * * The social event of the year in Tahiti was the marriage of Elvina, eldest daughter of Prince and Princess Ariipaea Pomare, and M.

Maurice Bouchard,, at the Bethel Chapel, Papeete. The bride, whose Tahitian name, Hina Arii, is of great antiquity, was the great great granddaughter of Queen Pomare IV, of Tahiti.

Looking through our files at the "Pacifi c Islands Monthly" office recently we came across this "me photo graph of a Tahitian fish erman with his nets, taken about 25 years ago.

The photo graph was used as a cover picture in the issue of PIM for November, 1939.