for Christmas?
pp. 70-71 · Read in the full issue
A new lease for Christmas?
News that an effort will b( made to plant an extra 3,00( acres of coconuts on Christina: Island gives hope that the lane of this massive atoll can b( better utilised than in recen years.
Set in the mid-Pacific, Christma is one of the Line Islands and is nc to be confused with the phosphat island of the Indian Ocean, althoug] many people still do.
About 100 miles in circumference it boasts a land area of 222 squar miles—nearly double the total lan area of the 25 Gilbert and Ellic Islands (125 square miles).
Currently there is no central cocc nut plantation on Christmas Islanc but there are several big groves nort and south of its extensive lagoor Only about 6,000 acres —or 10 squar miles—are planted with coconuts an production is roughly 400 tons c copra annually.
Drawback to large-scale plantatio development remains the unpredic: able rainfall, which is usually to low, a factor which has made th quality of its soils suspect for turr ing out big, healthy nuts.
However, copra production froi its two wealthier Line Island sister?
Fanning and Washington islands, w£ well up last year.
Fanning success
Fanning Islands Plantations Ltd a subsidiary of Burns Philp an Company Ltd., has recently reporte that 834 tons of copra were pre duced at Fanning and 967 tons cam from Washington, totalling 1,80 This total figure is not far belo 1 the record for these two islands just over 2,000 tons.
BP’s continued success with Fai ning and Washington may ha\ prompted Christmas’ current owne the Gilbert and Ellice Islands Colom to try to put its plantings on a con mercial footing, but anyway th colony has this year appointed European manager to supervise tl 80 to 90 labourers on the islan and hopes to overcome Christma lack of rain by planting all ne coconuts deeper into the soil.
Expansion on the island woul
ilso offer more employment to the Jilbertese, and they need it.
Copra has now been produced rom Christmas Island for 66 years, "hree different owners have planted Lever’s Pacific Plantations Ltd, ;ased the island from Britain for 9 years in June, 1902.
This company planted 70,000 oconut seedlings over 1,457 acres nd also introduced “silver lip” pearl hells into Christmas’ lagoon.
Rougier's interest
Eleven years later, the famous lissionary-turned-planter, Fat h er manuel Rougier, bought the lease om Levers. Less than a year later, s resold the lease to Central Pacific oconut Plantations. CPCP produced bout 400 tons of copra annually om Christmas for the next 30-odd jars, and when the company left the land after World War II well over 30,000 coconut trees were bearing.
During its ownership, the GEIC is not been able to boost production luch over 400 tons, but for a time : ter 1956 Britain used the island ; an on-again, off-again nuclear sting base and the colony could irdly put its best foot forward.
Late last year the GEIC’s Whole le Society vessel Moana Raoi ansferred very big quantities of luipment associated with the tests om Christmas to Tarawa, and with e “bomb business” now safety jhind it and an ambitious replant g project on hand, Christmas land may perhaps look forward at st to a brighter future.