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[Page 144]
GENERAL INFORMATION.
The Pacific Phosphate Company has five British and three German Directors - a stipulation made by the Rt. Hon. Joseph Chamberlain when granting the concession on Ocean Island. Germans, however, hold a great many shares in the Company, having paid as much as 10/- and more above the then market value to secure same.
The quantity of phosphate was, speaking from memory, not less than 60,000,000 tons, according to estimate. On Ocean Island the estimated return for an acre was 10,890 tons.while the actual yield in 1909 was 13,122 tons, so there is good reason to believe the estimate for Nauru will also be considerably exceeded.
The Royalty payable to the British or Australian Government at only 2/6 per ton on 150,000 tons per annum is very considerable.
The value to Australia of this Phosphate is enormous, and need not be enlarged on here.
Phosphate is obtained from Florida, Tunis, Christmas Island (in the Indian Ocean), Angaur (in the Pellew Group, also belonging to Germany), Ocean Island, and Makatea under French control near Tahiti. The supply at Florida is diminishing rather rapidly. Florida phosphate contains about 70% phosphate of lime; Tunis about 36%; Ocean Island and Nauru 86/88%.
There were no defences whatever in 1910 and, so far as is known, nothing has been done since, except perhaps to form a rifle club.
The world's supply of phosphate is decreasing rapidly, and there are no deposits so large or so rich as those on Ocean Island and Nauru. Ocean Island is of course under British rule under a resident Commissioner, who in turn is responsible to the High Commissioner for the Western Pacific at Fiji.
It will be remembered that in 1904 the German Government - or as it was then, the Jaluit Gesellschaft - imposed very restrictive conditions on "foreign" shipping in the Marshall Islands. This caused a very great stir at the time, being aimed at Burns, Philp & Coy. Ltd., of Sydney; and after a lot of trouble the conditions were removed, or at any rate considerably modified.