Arrival Time

The RMS Caronia is due to reach the port of Suva at 7am, and will be berthed at King's Wharf, which is adjacent to the shopping centre of Suva.

Departure Time

The CARONIA will sail at 7pm. sharp.

Luncheon…

Will be served aboard the CARONIA from 1pm.

Afternoon

Members of Excursion S-9 are guests at a special Hibiscus Show at the Church of England Parish Hall on Macarthur Street off Victoria Parade near the Town Hall, which will continue until 4pm., where a hundred varieties of hibiscus blooms will be on display.

The balance of the afternoon is free for shopping in Suva.

What the Islands Produce

Sugar, copra, gold, pineapples and bananas, in the order of their export value.

The Indians

Native Fijians are outnumbered by settlers from India, who were brought in to work on the sugar estates. They now have become the principal shopkeepers, tradesmen, transport workers, and copra producers. The Fijian natives disdain commercial labour, and remain tribally organised.

Money and Stamps

Fijian pound notes and coins, as well as British and Australian coins, circulate in Suva. Fiji has its own stamps in shilling and pence denominations. The Fijian Pound is worth $2.60.

Population

The latest (1948) census reports the population of the Fiji Islands as 277,572. Of these, 123,995 are Fijians, 129,761 Indians, 6,159 Europeans, 2,804 Chinese, and the remainder a mixture of different bloods. Suva itself has a population of 26,000.

A Bit of History

Fiji's people were cannibals down to less than a century ago. Missionaries and sailors were often boiled and eaten, although “white meat” was not usually relished, being regarded as too salty. However, the Fijian chiefs slowly abated their savage practices after contact with missionaries coming from other Islands.

King Thakombau accepted Christianity in 1854, but his rule left incoming traders and settlers unsatisfied, and led to his decision to hand over his “war club” to Great Britain. Once rejected, this offer was later accepted in 1874. Suva was made the capital in 1882.

Fiji has since grown into the business and communications centre of the South-West Pacific. When World War II broke out in the Pacific, Fiji became the first line of defence against the advancing Japanese. American troops were landed on June 10, 1942, and they held the islands in force for ten months to beat off a Japanese attack which never came. When the danger lessened, these American forces were transferred to the Solomon Islands.

Fiji is a British Crown Colony, with its Legislative Council made up of European and Indian members elected and appointed, and Fijian members nominated by the native chiefs.