OUR TONGA LETTER.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIII, Issue 13114, 1 March 1906, Page 6

OUR TONGA LETTER.

[pit it oi'R OWN" COniiESrONDKM.j

1 Nukualofa. February- 23. j j Quits an unwonted scftno of biistle end acI tin is presented by the Tongan Wharf at the present- time. The Fcirro-Conere.e | Company of Australia. Limited, have under- ; taken the contract for erecting a new wharf | to replace the present structure, and, In , the last steamer from Auckland, a stall 02 j men came down 10 commence work. About ! 300 tons of material were also landed, and I the work of making the piles was begun at | ftneo. The shingle of which the concrete J is composed is brought from the volcanic j island of Tofna. in the Haapai Group, and : i the Toucan t Tovernniej.. have tour small j vessels actively engaged in carrying it. i lie ji:T.-e:u w n-.i « iou»isi> of a long stone ! pier (m a lair state oi rep.ur) which extends . ironi the shore to the edge of the reef. ■ Where the reef Lenn mates inert- is a sheer : drop to a depth of about 30lt of water, and ! a small wooden tee is built on piles, alongi yide which vessel? are berthed. These i piles are. 111 a po> v state, at- prefetit. a.nd the viii.-l<» structure is shaky, so much >•> : that the storage of goods on the wooden ; portion has been forbidden by the Govern- , merit. When the new wharf is completed j there is to oe a large shed on the outward ! tee, for the storage of cargo. Hi is will ' be a boon to the lruit shippers. n> there is : , at pro-sent no shelter available tor the pro- J i duce awaiting shipment. | There lias been no heavy or continuous . rain in the island of jongatabu for the last , • seven months, and the crops are beginning , to suffer trom the drought. ' llie new vams are not coining 011 at aIL , well, and the natives have to fail back or, ! the bananas for their staple article of diet. ; This, of course. reduces tne (quantity mailable tor shipment, which means less money coming "into the country. The dry weather . is also" affecting the cocoanut crop, the clus- : , ters of young nuts on the trees being very : snta-ll and scanty. The effect of this will j ! be seen later, when the output of copra will j •be seriously diminished. During tne last | : week there have be*m several heavy showers J ! in various parts of the island, which have ! , provided a welcome addition I*l the supplies i ;of tank water. There* has not been enough | 1 rain yet to do much good to the plantations. I I and we could do with a week of February in j ! the (/!<]-! style, when the rain came down • | in sheets for a week"* at a time, the real j | "rainy season." However, the clouds are j j banking up now, and we hope to see the j ; end of the drought before very long. Fruit j ' shipments for t-his steamer will not be very , large. only some 2000 cases of bananas being stacked up for shipment at the present•ime.