Yesterday

Two leading citizens of Fiji "made the headlines" in the Sydney newspapers around Easter 20 years ago according to PIM of that time. Journalists and Broadcasters were happy to meet with [Ratu Sir La.'a Sukuna and Lady Maraia Sukuna (joining the Stratheden in 'Sydney en route for Queen Elizabeth's coronation in London), and the genial Fijian knight made friends in all directions.

The Daily Telegraph found a lively story in Ratu Sir Lala's tobacco. The reporter was intrigued by the queer cigarettes, made of some ferocious local tobacco rolled in a banana leaf.

He discovered the secret of Ratu Sir Lala's apparently inexhaustible supply of tobacco. fhere was an agriculturalist of Lau, who grew good leaf and yearned after l certain maiden, apparently unattainable. >o the farmer told the High Chief Ratu Sukuna) that if he could change he lady's mind, he could have his tobacco free for 20 years, latu Sir Lala "fixed" it. The marriage was a success; the farmer paid up gladly; ind Sir Lala was taking 15 lb of the toul-smelling weed to London with him. iix years later, Ratu Sir Lala was igain on his way to London. He lied during the voyage.

he other leading citizen was Sir Henry lilne Scott. He was attending the annual orse sales while in Sydney and was tting listening patiently while the uctioneer acclaimed the merits of blood ock. Bids came slowly, and the uctioneer commented sourly upon the divities of the Commissioner of Taxa on, who absorbed all Australia's irplus cash. "Be kind to him lad," ►lied out Sir Henry, "he's

>ur sleeping partner!"

nd that was about all the humorous uff PIM was able to find that month hich wasn't a very exciting one for the lands —heavy rains ruining Rabaul's ads, a losing battle in the Suva area lainst the rhinoceros beetle, dis issions on a new constitution for estern Samoa and the tardiness of land gislation in the New Hebrides being e only incidents of note. ie bit about the land in the ■w Hebrides strikes a familiar note day. "Very few of the French and

British people in NH hold legal title to the land they occupy," PIM said.

"There are many very slow things in the South Pacific, but probably there is nothing slower than the operations of the machinery provided by the Condominium for the survey of lands and the grant ing of titles. Nearly all land claims now are based on incidents from 30 to 60 years ago. As time and the generations of men pass on, conditions are obviously created which open the way to dishonest practices."

In April, 1953, the captain of a Japanese ship and his crew were arrested and charged with fishing in Rabaul territorial waters without a licence.

Mr Dudley Jones, defending counsel said the captain did not know he was in forbidden waters, and the crew merely obeyed orders. The 24 Japanese were escorted to the court by police-boys.

They seemed carefree and happy.

The court fined the ship 500,000 yen ($A 1,000) and the captain $lO. The charge against the rest of the crew was dis missed. In another part of PIM somebody suggested that the courts, instead of fining the illegal fishers, should compel them to show the locals how to catch fish.

When it was learned in Fiji that Patriotic Fund parcels were being sent from New Zealand to the Fiji Battalion in the war against the terrorists in Malaya because the Fijian soldiers were not getting much in the way of comforts, there were some acid comments in Suva. It was pointed out that the Fijian community had provided the battalion, and had regularly sent supplies of mats, yaqona or kava and so on; and that the non-Fijians of Fiji had done practically nothing.

It was only thoughtlessness though.

When Lady Garvey, the Governor's wife, launched an appeal to non-Fijians for funds to send parcels to the soldiers, the response was very good. The fund reached £l,OOO within a few days.

The first lot of parcels were sent as part of the Coronation celebrations.

Under the will of the late Jules Joseph Verhaege, who died at Onehunga, New Zealand, in January, 1953, the whole of his estate of about SNZIOO,OOO was left to the Tongan Government, for the improvement of medical services and the health of the Tongan people, and for the education in New Zealand of boys of Tongan blood. Mr Verhaege, a Belgian, was in business as a general trader in Tonga for many years before going to New Zealand 70 years ago.

The political pot was still boiling in French Polynesia, PIM reporting that tension had been created through the

success in the elections of Pouvanaa A Oopa and his party described as "leftist, nationalist and somewhat anti- European". At the Assembly's inaugural meeting Pouvanaa A Oopa's men got the top jobs, Jerusalem Jean-Baptiste Ceran being elected president (chairman), Mari Noel and Amaru Terii Tepa vice-presidents and Rene Raphael secretary. The majority group, on the second day of the Assembly meeting, started it without waiting for the arrival of Secretary-General M. Sully.

When he arrived and expressed surprise that they'd started without him, Jean-Baptiste Ceran told him he should arrive on time. French Polynesia's politics are still involved and likely to be even more involved when the reverberations from the Paris elections reach Papeete.

"It smells like old rope" is what is some times said to a pipe-smoker but what looks like rope in this picture of a woman of the Morehead River district of Papua is tobacco. PIM featured her 20 years ago when it pondered over the origins of Papua's local tobacco.