In Apia Bay in 1889 and again
in Manila Bay in 1898 an American fleet faced a German fleet ready for
action while a British warship lay between. So we rescued the
Philippines and Samoa from German rule and in 1914 German power was
eliminated from the Pacific. During the ten years before the war, the
production of copra in the German islands more than doubled and this was
only the beginning of the business. Now these islands have been divided
up among Australia, New Zealand and Japan, and these countries are
planning to take care of the copra.
But although we get no extension of territory from the war we still
have the Philippines and some of the Samoan Islands, and these are
capable of great development. From her share of the Samoan Islands
Germany got a million dollars' worth of copra and we might get more from
ours. The Philippines now lead the world in the production of copra, but
Java is a close second and Ceylon not far behind. If we do not look out
we will be beaten both by the Dutch and the British, for they are
undertaking the cultivation of the coconut on a larger scale and in a
more systematic way.
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