"John Bolton" On B.S.I. Reef

From Our Own Correspondent

Tulagi, Feb. 14.

SHORTLY after the departure of the Malaita for Sydney, the so-called “Nor-West season” set in. For practically a fortnight shipping and most other ac tivities were held up, the breeze coming, with ample rain, chiefly from the sou west and west.

So far as is known, the bad weather was merciful to shipping, or perhaps ow ners were more careful or luckier than usual. The only incident approaching disaster was the grounding on January 28 of the M.S. John Boston at Hamerai, one of Messrs. W. R. Carpenter and Co.’s plantations in the Morovo Lagoon.

The vessel was on the reef for 17 hours and several hundred bags of copra had to be landed to enable the ship to be refloated. However, no harm was done except to the false keel, which is a de vice to take the brunt of these occur rences, inevitable in Solomon Islands navigation.

After she got off the reef, having been assisted by her own pinnace and the Marovo Estates’ auxiliary vessel, Annie, she carried on her scheduled trip to Roviana and Tulagi.

For the six months ended December 31, 1936, gold production from the Morobe district, New Guinea, was ap proximately 192,345 ounces, valued at £A1,057,122.