Sunday Island

Condition of Little Settlement in Lonely Kermadec Group

IN the middle of last year three young New Zealanders, Alfred Bacon, Bruce Robertson and Reginald Randall, settled on Sunday Island, the largest of the un inhabited Kermadec Group, in the South Pacific. Solemnly they had renounced civilisation and declared that they would spend the remainder of their lives cul tivating oranges in an isolated settlement far removed from worldly cares.

Six months passed and the N.Z. yacht Ngataki, which left the party on Sunday Island, called again with provisions. Mr.

J. W. Wray, owner of the Ngataki found that the settlement scheme had not pro gressed quite according to plan, and that Randall, disillusioned and sick, was anxious to take passage to New Zealand.

On his return to Auckland, Randall told the story of the three settlers’ hardships.

“Setting out from Auckland on May 18, the Ngataki experienced a rough passage to the island, and was hove-to for several days in heavy seas,” said Mr. Randall.

“The yacht passed the island during the night and had to beat back for about 50 miles, eventually arriving on May 28.

“The island looked bleak and desolate, just one peak after another, and we had a hard job landing, as the only landing ground was covered most of the time with foam and huge breakers. Our first attempt at landing was hardly a success, the boat being washed ashore bottom up some time after its occupants. The first night was spent in buffalo grass near the beach.”

Soon the party set to to build a house with an iron roof and nikau sides. The first meal of goat flesh was described by Mr. Randall as being better than he had hoped for. There were about 3,000 goats on the island, and a great number of cats. Although some Alsatian dogs were taken to exterminate a large species of rats, it was found that most of the rats had died.

“The temperature was much lower than

we had expected, the thermometer often reaching 50 degrees from June to Novem ber,” continued Mr. Randall. “The island was over-run with pohutukawa trees, buffalo grass and a type of arum lily.

Fish were fairly plentiful, while a num ber of wild grey duck were seen on the lakes.

“There was a little thermal activity in a large crater, which is surrounded by an almost perpendicular wall of rock about 500 ft. high. There were many birds, some of which are well-known in New Zealand, occasionally seen. Though the island has an area of about 7,000 acres, only about 1,000 acres of this is suitable for cultivation.”

The principal difficulty encountered was the supply of food. Maize, beans, peas, pumpkins, potatoes and kumaras were planted from the seeds brought from Auckland. The diet for the first few weeks consisted principally of goat flesh, taro, bread, oatmeal and orange juice.

After a time, however, the party was forced to fall back on goat flesh, taro and fish. Once the monotony was relieved

by the capture of a large turtle, on which the company dined for a week.

In August a vessel visited the settle ment and left some provisions, which were particularly welcome. However, these did not last long and for a con siderable time the men lived on boiled, roasted and fried goat and lentils.

The goats had played havoc with both trees and plants, destroying all the bananas, on which they had counted.

The orange trees also had fared badly, all being ringbarked. Altogether there

were only about 30 orange trees, 12 lemon trees and eight peach trees on the island, and the party considered that their ven ture had been a failure.

While on the island Mr. Randall had an accident which deprived him of the use of two fingers of his right hand. He was cutting up a fish when the knife slipped and almost severed his fingers.

He was treated from a medicine chest which the party had brought. The best his companions could do was to bind up the fingers, and fortunately they healed rapidly.

“My two companions intend to remain on Sunday Island for all time,” concluded Mr. Randall, “but I doubt whether Sun day Island will ever be a successful com mercial proposition. The reading, clear ing and bridge building would involve enormous expense and a few settlers could not hope for success.”

Mrs. James Russell, wife of the Direc tor of Education in Fiji, was appointed in the New Year Honours a Member of the Civil Division of the British Empire.