II.—People, Soil, and Products.

Though rarely accumulating wealth, the natives are all well-fed and comfortable, and pauperism is unknown. There are no public-houses in the kingdom, and the people have not acquired the taste for the white man's fire-water. Many of the native settlers around Nukualofa own a horse and cart, and occasionally a cow. The people are very devout in their religious observances. They have frequent services on week-days, and on Sundays the first public religious exercise lakes place at 5 a.m., and these are continued at short intermissions all day, until the "curfew drum" at 10 p.m. gives the signal for retiring. The soil of Tonga is in some parts volcanic and in others rich vegetable loam. Everywhere it is most fertile, and every inch of Tongatabu, for example, is a deep loam suited for any purpose. There is not a single fresh water stream in the whole of Tongatabu, but water for domestic use is obtained by digging wells. Private property in land is not allowed in the kingdom; but though land nationalization is the rule, the nobles hold considerable territory on a system allied to ancient feudalism. Thus the nobles draw rents from their lands, though the sovereignty of them is vested in the king; they cannot lease any part of the lands to Europeans until all the natives of the district have sufficient for their support, and when leased each chief has to pay a certain royalty from the rents to the Government. The area of the group has not been accurately ascertained, but it is probably about 8oo square miles. Leases are granted for a maximum of 99 years at a rent of 1s. 6d. per acre per annum and upwards, but no lease is valid unless registered at the Government offices at Nukualofa, and each is subject to the approval of Mr. Baker as Minister of Lands. Township sections are of course dearer. Copra (dried cocoanut) is the chief product of Tonga. The cocoa palms grow by hundreds of thousands in great luxuriance, from the most remote point of the interior down to high water mark on the shores, and yield nearly everything that the natives require. Oranges, bananas, pine-apples, bread-fruit, etc., are largely cultivated by the natives, but hitherto the export of fruits has been inconsiderable, never reaching to more than £1,000 worth in any year. Coffee and cotton planting is carried on by the "Deutsche Plantagen and Handels Gesellschaft der Sud See Inseln zu Hamburg," and the natives cultivate quantities of arrowroot, yams, sweet potatoes, etc. The European plantations extend from 700 to 1,000 acres. On the plantations of the German company above-named there are 100 imported labourers employed, and the company last year exported to Germany 30 tons of cotton and 50 tons of coffee, besides smaller quantities of coffee to Sydney. Next year, when more plants come to maturity, they expect to send away 400 tons of cotton. Though Mr. Treskow made no mention of the circumstance, I learned from another source that a disease has attacked the coffee plants page 13 in Tongatabu, and the industry is threatened with extinction. Most European vegetables grow well, but will not reproduce, so that all seed has to be imported. Nearly all tropical products could be grown, but cotton would probably be found to thrive best, it being a well-understood rule that where the cocoa palm grows spontaneously cotton will grow luxuriantly. A most profitable venture would be the introduction of Sea Island cotton from Fiji, for which there is a steady and remunerative demand. Mr. Baker having had his attention drawn to this subject will probably introduce the cultivation of this cotton in the Government penal plantations. There are no useful indigenous animals, and horses and cows do not thrive well. The island of Eoa, in the Tongatabu group, is one of the few places in the South Seas where sheep-farming can be lucratively pursued. Some years ago sheep were introduced to this island by Messrs. Owen and Graham, of Auckland, but they have now disposed of their interest in the "run." The breed of sheep has been improved and the enterprise extended of late years, there being now 40,000 sheep on the island, belonging to Messrs. Parker Brothers and two other firms. From this island wool is exported to Auckland, and mutton is supplied to the European residents at Nukualofa.