THE COLONIST. Published Every Morning. Saturday, March 11, 1911. NEW CALEDONIA.

Colonist, Volume LIII, Issue 13052, 11 March 1911, Page 2

THE COLONIST. Published Every Morning. Saturday, March 11, 1911. NEW CALEDONIA.

The Japanese are paying extraordinary attention to emigration to New Caledonia, and the- influx of brown men lias become so great that theEuropean settlers are manifesting increased concern for the future of tho island. There are no restrictions upon their entry, though there is a system of registration with regard to other coloured immigrants. A writer in the "New Zealand Herald," who knows New Caledonia well, enlai-ges upon its strategic importance, and declares there is no scaremongering about the talk of a Japaneee rising against the present occupants of the island. "If Japan does not want the island," he says, "then she has a very quaint way of dissembling. The islanders, I believe, would not be a tiny bit surprised if they woka up one morning to sec the red Rising Sun of Japan floating over the Government buildings." An old resident of the islands told the writer that it would be the easiest tiling possible for any force of 1000 or so trained men to start on a raid in the north-west end of New Caledonia, march victoriously down—taking everything on the way—to Noumea, with its paltry handful of .soldiers, and wipe out all semblance of white rule. The telegraph system of the island is fairly satisfactory between certain points, but to smash up this means of contact between north and south and east and west would be a simple matter, and so would the cut ting of the cabla, which is never guarded. There is as yet no wireless system there, although the French Government is considering an installation. There cannot be any doubt, says tho "Herald" writer, that 50 odd years ago England should havo been first in the field when Now Caledonia was going bogging. But England did not know the.n that the place was ono of the richest little spots on the whole earth's surface, a sort of tiny outcrop into which samples of practically all the precious metals of tho world had been squeezed—a land, as it wore, theproduce of some ugly shaped melting pot into which all good a.ud valuable things had fallen. For Now Caledonia has gold and silver in appreciable quantities, copper richer than any Australia knows within its own borders, tin and antimony, and lead and several other metaJs in plenty, and any amount of coal. Railways would cost a good deal of money to build, it is true. The mountainous nature of the country would place many obstacles in thai way of the best engineers. But French capital usually passes its own colonies by on the other side, and it is not surprising that nothing has been done yet by the Gauls themsalves. Probably noUi'np; ever will be done by them. New Caledonia possesses great areas of fertile land sparsely peopled. In the fortilu valleys that nestle between tho spurs of the mountains that stretch outwa/nl from the central range towards the coasts, many of which are eimpty today except for bounding herds of rv deer, an army of Japanese, we are told, might peacefully settle down in agricultural pursuits, and there bids thctir time. There are many Japanese settlers engaged in' this way to-day. They are men who have come over to the mines under the usual agreement with tho Emigration Society of Tokio, which is the channel by which most, i! not all, of the Japanese aro shipped to New Caledonia. A strong naval and military nation, holding New Caledonia, fortifying it properly, and guarding it well, would find it an excellent base for operations against Australia. Already a peaceful in/asion by Japanese of the Commo'i wealth via New Caledonia has commenced. "It would be a hard task," said one of the officials of the port at Noumea, "to tell how many Japanese have gone from this place across to Queensland You see there are so many small ketches and other sailing vessels dodging backwards and forwards across the 900 miles of sea, and many of these leave Noumea, travel up betvoci the reef and the shores to other sinnll ports, and then, when they ha/s got all sorts of cargoes, set sail for Australia." Tlie present position of affairs iv New Caledonia is extremely unsatisfactory. The country is languishing undor non-progressive government, and it offers a tempting vau'-a^a ground to any Power which would strike at Australia.