Trader's Brush With Jap.

Poacher

WRITING to a friend in Sydney by the last mail, a resident of the Southern Solomon Islands tells of a recent en counter with a Japanese poacher when he came upon the vessel with its divers out working along the shore reef off Tanni Billi village in the lagoon of Utupua Is land, near Vanikoro.

The poacher slipped away quickly but was cornered in the lagoon and had to go back past the trader’s schooner. Disre garding shouts and signals to halt, the Japanese rammed the other ship, smash ing her bowsprit. Incensed, the white man fired eight rounds at the raider from a Webley, but without effect. The poacher made off, leaving behind a 20 ft. diving boat which had been cut loose when the ships collided.

The trader described the Japanese ves sel as “a fairly new ship of about 40 tons,

painted grey, and with a slow running engine, probably semi-diesel”. He added that several other Japanese poaching boats have been seen recently in the vicinity of Vanikoro and Santa Cruz. On one occasion the D.O. gave chase but was soon left behind as his quarry did nine or ten knots_ Miss Margaret Parkin, who since 1894 had been associated with the Kwato Mis sion, died recently in Eastern Papua, at the age of 73. In addition to being an accomplished musician she was a remark ably keen business woman and something of an authority on coconuts and their diseases.