About Islands People

Dr. Felix M. Keesing and Mrs. Keesing, of Auckland, New Zealand, will leave London in June to join the staff of the University of Hawaii. They have been doing research work for the Institute of Pacific Relations for the last four years, travelling widely in the Orient and South Seas, and finally spending a period in England and Europe. A part of their observations has been published in two books this year, “Modern Samoa,” and “Taming Philippine Headhunters.”

Archdeacon R. Godfrey, of the Melan esian Mission, Lolowai Bay, Aoba, New Hebrides, arrived in Sydney by the La perouse on April 19, on a health visit. He returned to the New Heb rides on April 26, by the Morinda. He has been in the New Hebrides 16 years doing missionary, medical, and educa tional work. He is the principal of the teachers’ training college at Lolowai.

Captain Charles Frilet, who relin quished command of the French steamer Laperouse in 1930, arrived in Sydney dur ing April in command of the Ville d’Amiens, from Marseilles. Captain Rene Vigier, who was last in Sydney ten years ago, was a passenger by the Ville d’Amiens, to join the Laperouse as com mander, in the Noumea-Sydney service.

His wife and two children will live in Sydney.

Rev. Susie Rankin, wife of. Rev. Robert Rankin, of Saroa, Papua, is progressing favourably after a long illness in a Mel bourne hospital. She is the only or dained woman missionary in Papua, and went out to the London Missionary So ciety’s station at Saroa in 1925. Mr.

Rankin, who is at present in Victoria on furlough, will return to Papua shortly, but Mrs. Rankin will not join him until later in the year.

Mr. Richard Archbold, mammalogist of the American Museum of Natural History, arrived in Sydney by the Van Rees on April 17, after com pleting a successful natural his tory expedition in Papua. Mr. Arch bold said that the party camped for a month on Mount Albert Edward (13,000 ft.) at an altitude of 12,500 ft., and found a large plateau of an area of about 30 miles long and 12 miles wide. His com panions, Dr. A. L. Rand, a Canadian orni thologist, and Mr. L. J. Brass, of Queens land, also arrived by the Van Rees.

Miss Hilda Taylor, who was recently appointed to the Jasper Williams Metho dist Boarding School at Lautoka, Fiji, left Sydney for Suva by the Mariposa on April 4.

Rev. T. Watt Leggart, Presbyterian Minister of Victoria, has announced his intention of retiring after 48 years in the Ministry. He will be remembered by many old residents of the New Hebrides, where he was a missionary for over 20 years.

Mr. H. F. Pearson, who was formerly Inspector of Mines at Broken Hill, New South Wales, has been appointed Assist ant Mining Warden at Wau, Mandated Territory of New Guinea.

Brother Herman, a well-known teacher at the Marist Brothers school, Apia, has left via Pago Pago, in American Samoa, on a visit to his people in Germany.

Mr. P. Cruyl, president of the Condo minium Court, New Hebrides, and Judge

A. de J. Carey, British member of the Court, left Sydney on April 26 for Vila by the Morinda.

The Administrator of Samoa (Brig.- General Hart) is spending a short fur lough in New Zealand. Mr. A. C. Turn bull, Secretary to the Administration, is Acting-Administrator during General Hart’s absence.

Miss L. E. Cheesman, who has been in Papua doing research work on behalf of the British Museum, arrived in Sydney by the Montoro on April 19. She has been in the interior of Papua for a year studying insect life, and has secured about 42,000 specimens of insects, and many varieties of frogs and snakes. Most of the specimens are new, and should create much interest among English en tomologists when she returns to London shortly.

Mr. Alfred Guthman, of the Argentine, arrived in Sydney by the Ville d’Amiens on April 20, en route to the New Heb rides. He left later for Malekula and Santo, where he will study native cus toms and collect specimens and curios for the National Geographic Museum, Paris. Mr. Guthman was in the New Hebrides some time ago, and had many interesting experiences while exploring Malekula. Travel in the Group, he said is dangerous, because of the continual inter-tribal warfare; but if strangers did not interfere they were fairly safe.

Dr. G. H. Vernon, formerly the well known and highly esteemed medical offi cer at Thursday Island, and now engaged in planting and trading at Daru, Western Papua, arrived in Sydney by the Van Rees at the end of April and since then has been looking up old friends and undergoing a medical overhaul. He went into St. Luke’s Hospital, Sydney, for brief attention early in May; but a few days later was energetically making prepara tions to return to the Territory, via

Thursday Island, at the end of this month.

Mrs. Leek, wife of Rev. Robert Leek, Anglican missionary at Samarai, Papua, is spending a three months’ holiday in Mel bourne, Victoria.

Mr. John Paul Tarby, of Fiji, died, after a long illness, at his residence in Suva on April 1, at the age of 67. Mr. Tarby was born in Mauritius in 1867 and at the age of 17 went to Fiji with his brother, who was a sugar boiler at the Holmhurst mill.

Fiji. After some years there he was en gaged by the Fiji Sugar Co. at Navua, and in 1894 was appointed plantation manager.

When the company w r as sold to American interests, Mr. Tarby entered the Fiji Public Service and in 1917 became In spector of Plantations in the Agricultural Department. The following year he was engaged in special work in connection with the Government rice mill and was appoint ed manager of the mill in 1919. Last year he retired from the Public Service owing to ill-health.

Rev. M. Leonard Hurst, of Manchester, England, has been appointed to succeed Rev. G. J. Williams as Secretary for Aus tralia and New Zealand of the London Missionary Society. Mr. Hurst will leave England for Australia next September. In future the Melbourne and Sydney offices of the Society will be amalgamated and the mission work controlled from Sydney.

Mr. W. Dupain, manager of the Port Moresby branch of Burns, Philp and Co., Ltd., is at present in Melbourne. He is combining business with pleasure during his short stay, and will return to Papua on May 17 by the Macdhui.

Mr. R. E. P. Dwyer, an officer of the New South Wales Agricultural Depart ment, has been appointed by the Federal Government to the post of economic bota nist in New Guinea. Mr. Dwyer will in vestigate cro problems in the territory.

Mr. A. J. Vogan, F.R.G.S., who left for a northern island in the Fiji group some months ago, with the intention of taking casts of some ancient Asiatic inscriptions he discovered in a cave there, has radio’d that he got back safely to Lautoka with his casts, and is returning soon to Sydney.

Mrs. Bowring, of Edie Creek, New Guinea, entertained a large dinner party at the Hotel Metropole, Sydney, during her holiday South. She sails by the “Macdhui,” taking with her a real bath, which will be the envy of the many “bush shower” and wash-basin artists on the goldfields. It will be the second bath at Edie Creek, the first being in the Euro pean hospital of New Guinea Goldfields Limited.

Mr. “Bob” Gurney, of New Guinea Air ways, Lae, who has performed some re markable feats in aviation towards help ing the rapid progress of the New Guinea goldfields, is at present on his annual leave. Mr. Gurney is just as popular South as he is up North, so that he has been already a guest at some of Sydney’s brightest parties.

Mr. Wally Digby flew to Brisbane to catch the April “Montoro,” en route to Samarai, where he will stay three months investigating a new “find.” Mr. Digby is one of those fortunate people who seem to be born with a gold spoon in their mouths —everything he touches turns to gold. He is a director of Day Dawn Ltd., Edie Creek.

Mr. W. Edwards, formerly of N.G.G.

Ltd., is now to be found at New Guinea Airways Ltd., Lae. He is apparently under the spell of the tropics, for all the fingers on both hands do not add up to the number of years he has been in New Guinea without coming South for a holi day. Mr. Edwards is a recognised authority on “pidgin English.”

Mr. W. Philpotts, of Burns, Philp and Co., Rabaul, has been made Tourist Manager for the cruise of the “Otranto” in June. Bookings are heavy. One of the “early birds” was Mr. Philpotts’ fiancee, Miss Gwen Newbery, of Newport, Sydney.

With Mr, Philpotts in charge of the social activities, “Otranto” passengers can be assured of a very good time ashore in Rabaul.

News comes from Edie Creek, New Guinea, of the sudden death of Mr. D.

Lyall, Snr., from pneumonia. Mr. Lyall with his son, Dave, were among the first in the “gold rush” to Edie Creek in the early days. Dave was in Sydney prepar ing for a world tour when the news came and he hastened to catch the “Montoro,” and returned to the “El Dorado” at Kaindi.

Mr. H. Hemas, well known throughout the Eastern Pacific in connection with the Auckland firm of Messrs. A. B. Donald Ltd., arrived in Tahiti by the S.S. Makura recently on one of his periodical tours of inspection. He probably will remain there for several months.