About Islands People

Mr, H. H. Vaskess, Secretary to the High Commission for the Western Pacific, arrived in Sydney by the May “Mon terey”. He later went on to Melbourne, Captain Jerry Pentland, well-known New Guinea airman, has joined the in structional staff of the R.A.A.F. He was an aviator in the Great War and was a famous “ace”.

Captain William Robert Holmes, who commanded the New Zealand cable-ship “Iris” (now the “Recorder”) which re captured Count Von Luckner and his party in the Kermadec Islands after their escape from Motuihi Island in 1917, died recently in N.Z., aged 78.

Miss Giotti Nancye Miller, only daughter of Mr. and Mrs. G. K. Miller, well-known residents of Port Moresby, Papua, was married in Port Moresby on May 29 to Mr. S. G. Hardyman, a member of the Port Moresby Garrison. Miss Carogene White was bridesmaid and Mr.

R. Connor was best man. Over 80 resi dents of Port Moresby attended the recep tion after the ceremony.

Dr. V. W. T. McGusty, Secretary for Indian Affairs and Chief Inspecting Medical Officer in Fiji, sailed from Suva with his wife at the end of May to spend leave in the United Kingdom.

Mr. G. Toogood, Patrol Officer in the Papuan Administration, who has been stationed at the Goilala Police Camp, arrived in Australia in May to seek ex pert treatment for his eyes, which were affected by a recent accident with a gun.

Mr. R. H. Garvey, of the staff of the Western Pacific Commission at Suva, left Fiji with Mrs. Garvey and family on leave late in May.

News was received in Port Moresby, during May, of the death in Brisbane of Mrs. Middleton, wife of Mr. S. G.

Middleton. A.R.M. in the Papuan Public Service. Mrs. Middleton had been in ill health for some time, and left the Ter ritory to seek further medical treatment.

The news of her death came as a shock to her many friends in the Territory.

She had been a resident of Papua for seven years, and she leaves two young children.

Mr. J. Hinks, well-known in the New Guinea gold mining industry for his connection with the Sandy Creek and Golden Power Company was involved in an accident at the Watut, about the middle of May, and had both his legs broken. He was brought to Australia for medical attention.

Sir Walter Carpenter, head of the W.

R. Carpenter group of companies, left for the United States on a business visit in May. He expects to be absent from Aus tralia for 10 or 12 weeks.

Mr. Peter A. C. Luke, eldest son of the Governor of Fiji, was married at Wen dover Church, England, recently, to Miss Carola Peyton-Jones, of Wendover Dean Farm, Wendover, Buckinghamshire.

Miss Eleanor Walker, one of the first women missionaries sent to Papua by the Methodist Mission, died recently in N.S.W. She was stationed at Dobu Island for 10 years and subsequently returned to Australia to take up educational work among the aborigines.

Mr. Ronald F. Farquhar, eldest son of Mr. and Mrs. R. C. Farquhar, of Suva,

Fiji, has joined the 24th Infantry Bat talion of the N.Z. Forces for service over seas.

Mr. R. V. Vance, of the South Sea Evangelical Mission, Makwanu, Malaita Island, 8.5.1., is at present spending leave in New Zealand. He will return to the Solomons in July.

A new member of the Pacific Islands Society (Sydney), is Mrs. E. Marie Irvine, the well-known Australian journalist and writer. Mrs. Irvine recently visited Rarotonga and Tonga. In the latter kingdom she was afforded special facili ties by Queen Salote to collect bio graphical material for her forthcoming book on the Friendly Islands.

Mr. W. H. (“Tavua”) Johnson, one of the best-known and highly-esteemed of the “old hands” in Fiji, recently attained his 78th birth day. He has been in the Colony since 1892 and is popularly known as “Tavua”, through his many years of residence in that district, where he held 15,000 acres of land, which were sub sequently acquired by the C.S.R. Co.