A.—3.

materials, with a concrete foundation. The work of construction was a voluntary effort on the part of the Native people of Aitutaki, and is an evidence of their appreciation of the medical services being provided by the Administration. Trade. Imports —General, 118f tons ; sawn timber, 2| tons ; fruit cases, 86 tons : total, 206§ tons. Exports—Fruit: 9,310 cases oranges ; copra, 282 tons ; arrowroot, 6 tons. The highest price paid to growers for oranges—fruit alone—was 2s. 3d. ; and the average price was 25., per case. Planting of Lands.—AW inhabitants planted food crops steadily during the year and had sufficient foodstuffs for their needs until same were destroyed by the hurricane. Immediately after the hurricane, replanting commenced and is still being vigorously carried on, but it will be several months before supplies are back to normal. A considerable amount of work was carried out in connection with the pruning and clean ing-up of orange trees and plantations. Members of the Island Council, and the Police, made regular inspections of plantations. School— As the appointment of a new European headmaster was postponed for some fifteen months, the work of the Araura School was conducted by a committee of three of the senior Native teachers. The number of children on the roll is now 421, which is a small decrease from last year, due to the fact that the new school rules have reduced school-age by one year. High Court.—On the criminal side 298 cases were dealt with, as against 252 cases during the previous year. As usual, most of the cases were of a minor nature. Public Works.— Owing to the financial shortage, only necessary repair works have been undertaken. Roads have been maintained in good order. The railway wharf trucks have been overhauled and repaired. The damage to the wharf caused by the hurricane is being repaired, but this will take some considerable time, as approximately 300 ft. has to be rebuilt and the whole of the main deck requires concreting. At the school the damage caused by the hurricane is being gradually repaired, but there still remains a large amount of reconstruction and repair work to be done. During the last week in February the people of the island erected four new open-air class-rooms to replace those demolished by the hurricane. These are of native timbers, with nikau roofs. Island Council— -There were five meetings of the Island Council, four ordinary and one special, held during the year. No new Ordinances were passed. The meeting held on 22nd October coincided with a visit of the Resident Commissioner, and this gave the Council an opportunity of bringing matters of importance before him. A special meeting held on the 6th March was on the occasion of the visit of the Secretary for the Cook Islands and the Resident Commissioner, by the " Matai," bringing the island relief supplies of food. The Arikis, Members of Council, and people of the Island placed on record their heartfelt thanks to the Government of New Zealand for the ready response and generous gift of food-supplies to relieve immediate wants of the people caused by the loss of practically all native food-supplies in the hurricane. Meteorological. —Barometer: Highest for year (calendar), 30-090, August, 1934 ; lowest for year (calendar), 29-629, March, 1934. Temperature: Highest maximum, 87-J, January, 1934; lowest minimum, 63-3, November, 1934. Total rainfall for year, 37-15 in. Maximum rainfall in one day, 2-10 in. on 10th December, 1934. MANGAIA. The following are extracts from the report of the Resident Agent: — Health.— Health conditions generally have remained good throughout the year. For the year, 9,225 cases were treated, and in addition 161 injections were given for yaws. Trade. There was a marked improvement in the trade for the year. Thirteen thousand cases of oranges were shipped, and realized 3s. Id. per case for fruit alone. There were 78 tons of copra exported, and 900 lb. of coffee. Schools. —The new year was commenced under the new Education Rules. The work in the three schools has gone along satisfactorily. The following are the school rolls : Oneroa, 148 : Tamarua, 47 ; Ivirua, 105 ; total, 300. Public Works. —A new tank was erected at Tavaenga in August. Tavaenga is the largest village in the Island, and this second tank is very much appreciated. Soil Sanitation : This is a service for which whole-hearted appreciation and willing co-operation has been shown by the people, being a gratifying change from the general attitude towards Government help of taking everything for granted. The scheme on this island is an unqualified success.

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