The Tia Kau. 
F 'OUR miles north-west from Nanomaga, 
a tiny isle of the lately annexed Ellice 
Group in the South Pacific, lies a great “ patch ” 
of submerged coral, called Tia Kau—the best 
fishing ground in all the wide South Sea, except, 
perhaps, the atolls of Arrecifos and Christmas 
Island, in the North Pacific. Thirty years ago, 
when the smoke and glare from many a whaler’s 
try-pots lit up the darkness of the ocean night 
from the Kermadecs to the far Pelews, the Tia 
Kau was known to many a sailor and wandering 
trader. But now, since the whaling industry 
died, and the trading vessels are few and far 
between, the place is scarcely even known by 
name. 
• • • • • 
A hot, steamy mist lies low upon the glassy 
surface of the sleeping sea encompassing Nano- 
