The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1871-05-06
h Fiji Islands.

Wilkes, in his account of the American Ex-
ploring Expedition in 1923, devOtes a large
space to a description of the FIJI Islands and the
manners and customs of their inhabitants, whom
be termed 50 the gentlemen of the South Seas, -
in spite of their well known cannibal propensities.
Since Wilkes time, until quite recently, the
islands have received but little attention from the
outside world, being only known as a remote
group, where a few vessels trade GoT 6iche de mer
and tortoise shell, and extra hazardous to visit,
on account of the numerous reefs by which the
islands are surrounded and intersected, and the
savage character of the people. But missionaries
OF the Wesleyan denomination had been settled
there, even then, bad reduced the singularly
copious language to writing, and printed the
New Testament.
The selection of the Fijis as a coaling station
Tor the California and Australian steamers. is
now directing public attention to them, and we
will here undertake to give some account of the
natural resources and cond ton of affairs at those
hitherto almost unknown islnnds of tho 500.
which are destined at no distant period, to become
OF great Importance to commerce.
The FIJI group consists of no less than two
hundred and fifty islands of all sizes, from Viii
Lew, the largest, which is about the size of
Hawaii, down to mere islets. They are situated
between 170 and 200 south latitude, and extend
in longitude from 17s0 west to I770 cast, the
line where west ends and east begins, running
near the centre of the group. The land is high,
but never exceeding seven or eight thousand feet
on the principal island, is covered with verdure and
timber from the mountain tops to the seashore, and
is wcll-watered with running streams, eyidencing
a very ancient formation. The four principal
islands are estimated to contain about s 900 square
miles, the larger portion of which is arabic land.
The richness of the soil is represented to be
wonderful. Every product of the vegetable king
dom grows there in superiuous abundance and
with marvellous rapidity, but so far the article
of cotton, of the Sea Island variety, has monop-
olized the attention OF the settlers. Sugar-cane
grows wild, of large size. tender and juicy.
Coffee and tobacco, particularly the latter, grow
luxuriously when cultivated. Rice, of the dry
land sort, is grown to some extent, and three
crops a year have been raised. Vans of excellent
quality are raised extensively, being the principal
article of food of the natives. Taro is also
grown, and sweet potatoes are abundant.
Bananas and various kinds of tropical fruits,
unknown elsewhere, are in profusion. Hogs are
plentiful, and the sea swarms with innumerable
varieties Of fish.
During the past ten or fifteen years. a consid-
number of foreigners have settled in FIJI,
mostly from Australia and New Zealand and
they now number about $780,, generally engaged
in the planting of cotton. This has been found
very remunerative, the produce being shipped to
and thence to Europe, where it readily
brings from one dollar to one and a quarter, per
pound. Mr.. G. Rodney Burt, an American,
has resided on the islands some fifteen years,
visited Honolulu on his way to the
United States, and from him we obtained some
acts and figures respecting the cost of a cotton
at FIJI, which We give here. Mr..
Burt has a claim against the chiefs of the islands,
which the United States Government have under
AIKEN to enforce, amounting to some $50. 900, for
plantation, destroyed in 1869. The following
S a rough draft of the cost of opening a cotton
of 1000 acres and expenses for one
ear