JAPAN’S PEARLERS

Taranaki Daily News, 28 December 1934, Page 6

JAPAN’S PEARLERS

RIVALS OF AUSTRALIANS. SCIENTIFIC PARTY’S VISIT. Mr. Mark Aitken, a pearler of Thursday Island, stated at Darwin on December 5 that the Japanese were increasing their pearling boats operating off the coast of Northern Australia. Mr. Aitken said that recently, while he was on the new pearling grounds to the north-west of Bathurst Island, a Japanese motor vessel of about 300 tons visited the grounds, with a party of scientists and Japanese Government officials on board, and made investigations. The Japanese on the grounds were operating about 16 ketches. These were much larger than the Australian boats, which numbered nearly 20. The Japanese officials conversed with the Japanese pearling ketches and watched them bringing up the shell. The Japanese scientists were equally interested and sent down several divers. After staying two days, the motor vessel left. He heard afterwards that it was a patrol boat from the Pellew group of islands, near the Philippines, over which the Japanese exercise a mandate. It was opinion of pearlers, Mr. Aitken said, that the Japanese Government was investigating the pearl-shell industry from the commercial point of view, and was looking into the reports that Japanese vessels had been poaching in Australian waters. The Japanese ketches had a perfect right to be on the new grounds, as they were well off the coast on the high seas.

Mr. Aitken said that Australian pearlers still had the major share of the pearlshell industry, but the Japanese were placing new boats on the grounds every year. The Japanese boats operated with a mother ship, generally, an auxiliary of about 100 tons, which brought stores from Japan and took the shell to the Japanese market. Australian pearlers employed Japanese divers mostly.