Tropicalities

FTtHE days of South Seas treasure are JL not yet over. Dr. George Mackaness told members of the Pacific Islands Society in Sydney recently that, some where, in Tahiti is “a collector’s piece” worth a small fortune.

Eleven years after Captain Cook left Tahiti, following his third and final visit, the “Lady Penrhyn”, commanded by Lieutenant Watts (who had sailed with Cook) arrived. Watts was identified by a chief at Matavai on his arrival on July 10, 1788. A few days later Tu (Pomare) appeared with a portrait of Cook, which had been painted by Webber, painter to the last Cook expedition.

The portrait was again nroduced during Bligh’s visit with the “Bounty”. Its frame was mended, and Bligh inscribed upon the back of the picture the date of his ship’s arrival. For some years this practice was carefully followed (in ac

cordance with Cook’s wishes) by visiting commanders. Captain Weatherhead, of the British whaler “Matilda”, who called at Tahiti early in 1792, is believed to have been the last captain to have signed his name on the portrait.

At any rate, at about that time the portrait disappeared; and, since then, no one appears to know where it is. It is pre sumed, however, that it is still in the possession of a certain family on the is land.

“This is an article for which an Ameri can collector w r ould give a good deal’ , said Dr. Mackaness. ‘T have an idea where it is, but efforts of searchers to discover it have failed, so far. A fortune is await ing the lucky man who can secure it!” * * * TINY Palmerston Island, in the north ern Cook Group, came into the radio network on July 17; and, now,

we may send radiograms to or receive messages from the community there.

It was about 1862 that William Marsters, with a number of Polynesian wives, decided to find an unknown, fer tile island somewhere in the Pacific and there establish his own community. He settled upon Palmerston Island, and the history of what happened there in the following half century would provide material for an interesting book. To-day, about 100 persons, the descendants of William Marsters, constitute a healthy, happy, self-contained community in the Central Pacific. It is understood that the radio station has been placed there for meteorological purposes. * * *

Mr. Ivan Champion, A.R.M., And

Mr. C. T. J. Adamson, A.R.M., of the public service of Papua, who got leave of absence recently in order to join the A.1.F., found the gates closed when they reached Sydney. Recruiting had ceased, temporarily and they wandered dismally about Victoria Barracks wondering what to do. However, an explanatory introduc tion to a discerning D.A A.G. changed the outlook. "Recruiting has ceased—but these are the kind of men whom Australia wants” said the officer; and the two famous young explorers were accepted as members of the A.I.F. early in September, subject to a medical O.K. There then was some prospect that they would enter a unit with some of “the gang from New Guinea”. * * * NOW that a Makea Takau is again to rule in Rarotonga, old residents are wondering whether the new holder of the office has also inherited the former Takau’s mana. Mana must des cend with such an ancient office. There fore, if Makea Takau Ariki-nui II does not possess it just now, the chances are that she will eventually.

Though she was much loved, old Queen Makea was also much feared It was said that she had what the Europeans call “the evil eye”. The old lady never went into a rage, and denounced someone who offended her. She merely §ent for the culprit, and remarked: “Go! I do not wish to see your face again!” That was sufficient for the wrong-doer to curl up and die.

The late Clement Wragge, the meteor ologist, who investigated this power in Rarotonga, called it hypnotic influence over the native mind. The Maoris call it makutu. Whatever one may call it, it exists, allright. Queen Makea was specially devoted to the ironwood trees on her is land, and her edict was that none was to be cut without her special permission.

None of her subjects dared defy h°r— though many a canoe builder looked with longing eyes in their direction.—Vakatini. * * * TALL, athletic Errol Flynn, the Aus tralian-born film star, who once lived and worked in New Guinea and Papua, has had a mountain in Alaska called after him so Hollywood press agents announce. It appears that he invested a “fortune” (no self-respect ing cinema idol would ever dream of in vesting anything less!) in an Alaskan gold-mine, no doubt with memories of the millions won from Morobe. But the mine turned out such a dud that tne sympathetic people in them thar parts renamed the nearby mountain “FlymTs Folly”!

On the screen nowadays, Flynn invari ably plays the part of a handsome, two fisted, devil-may-care hero, and Ameri can film magazines never tire of relating his life’s story. Particularly, the red blooded titbits that claim to reveal he is a direct descendant of Fletcher Christian, leader of the famous “Bounty” mutiny; how he made an adventurous trip in the small sailing-boat “Sirocco”

to New Guinea, where he struck a “spot of gold”; how to-day he wears around his neck a lucky thin gold chain given to him by a dying missionary in the interior; the ugly scar he bears on his shin bone, mark of a poisoned arrow shot from ambush in the “jungle” country; how his coast-wise schooner struck a hidden coral reef and he nearly lost his life swimming ashore in a sea infested with sharks; how he returned to Sydney and convinced Charles Chauvel, then preparing to shoot an Australian film version of “Mutiny on the Bounty”, that only he could play the

leading role of Christian; and his rapid rise to fame when a Warners Studio exe cutive “discovered” him on the English stage. The stories make lovely “copy” for thrill-hungry shop-girls and their boy friends; but quite a number of Islands people who knew the irrepressible Errol in the Territories are more than ever con vinced that bluff old Barnum was right. * * * A FIJI correspondent writes: “I walked into an Indian tailor’s shop the other day and found two of the younger ‘locals’ in a heated discussion on the war.

“I was just in time to catch the tail end of the conversation: ‘But, man, think of the thousands of poor devils in the constipation camps’ * * * 11THEN philatelists learned last year TT that Pan American Airways would commence a regular air-mail service between U.S.A. and New Zealand, they gave a whoop of joy and rushed to post self-addressed first-flight .covers. By the time the actual inauguration date was fixed, some 29,000 letters were ready to be carried on the “American Clipper”.

Alteration of the departure point from San Francisco to Los Angeles, almost at the last moment, led to the posting of thousands more. The Clipper picked up 26,000 covers waiting for it at Honolulu, a further 19,000 at Canton Island, and 30,000 at Noumea. The N.Z. consignment, for the return trip, consisted of 35,000 letters, many of which had been waiting since last October because of delays in the start of the service.

Covers taken aboard at Canton Is land were sent by P.A.A. supply ships, which make voyages at interval's between the island and Hawaii, There was dis may when it was learned that P.A.A.’s

managei* at Canton, Mr. H. Graves, was not legally entitled to perform the duties of postmaster; but a way out was found, under American law, by getting Captain Tilton, of the “American Clipper”, who ranked as captain in a U.S. vessel, to administer the oath of service. All the covers had to be date-stamped before the Clipper left Canton and. as only three hand stamps had been provided, three Airways officials perspired all night over the job. * * ■* SOME quaint little stories of the R.A.A.F., are told by Flying-Officer Clive Brewster of the Administrative and Special Duties branch of the R.A.A.F., now attached to No. 1 Bombing and Gun nery School, at Evans Head, in N.S.W.

Flying-Officer Brewster (better known as Major Clive Brewster, for many long years head of Messrs. Brown and Joske, Ltd., Suva) appears to have enjoyed every moment of the special training which he has undergone in recent months to fit him for his new admini strative job.

One of his funniest stories concerns a model court martial, when all the mach inery was carefully prepared and lined up, so that the officers in training might study the varieties of evidence and procedure. “It was a fit subject for a Bateman cartoon”, says Mr. Brewster.

“The accused, of course, was to plead not guilty and we then were to have laid before us the whole machinery of the elaborate procedure of prosecution and defence. But alas, the accused let the side down badly by pleading guilty. The show was a complete flop. One can almost imagine the High Command shuddering at such an unprecedented occurrence and, perhaps, murmuring ‘What a dread ful war—we do hope that it will soon be

over and we can get back to real soldier ing’.”

Flying-Officer Brewster says that among the first batch of trainees at Evans Head are three men from Fiji—O’Connor, Mackay and Dearman. * * * FINDS of La Perouse relics on Vani koro (Santa Cruz Group) are becom ing increasingly rare. Even the lead shot balls from the old muskets turn up only rarely nowadays. However, not long ago a native dreamt on two occasions that he dug up something valuable in the vicinity of a certain tree; he infected some of the others with his enthusiasm and, as a result, considerable trenching was done, though there was no sign of any Spanish money. Some years ago a Chinaman working on Vanikoro showed a Spanish real to a trader, who tried to obtain it from him. After the Chinese had departed, it was learned that he had made a haul of about 80 or 90. The coins were taken back to China, and probably melted down, the owner not realising that he could have secured more for them as curios. When Dr.

Raymond Firth (now Reader in Anthro pology at London University) was on Tikopia Island (southwards of Vanikoro) he recognised a glass decanter as un doubtedly being a La Perouse relic. Still preserved in a temple of the Taumako clan, it is dedicated to the Eel God. The anthropologist offered a soda-water bottle (the only glass he had with him) for it. With some reluctance the priest declined. The god, he explained, was summoned only on special occasions, by shaking the decanter, and if summoned without sufficient reason there was no knowing how angry he would be.—E.R. * *. *

Captain “Blue” Allen, Of Wau,

New Guinea, was in Sydney early in September. He now holds an im portant post in an Australian unit which hopes to be going overseas at no distant date. He is looking particularly well, brown and fit. and when one notices the straight line where formerly there was a pronounced convex, one accepts his statement that he has taken off a couple of stone. He was with the troops which recently marched from their camo, near Sydney, over the Blue Mountains to Bathurst, and he states, with grim satis faction, that he saw many of them more or less under the table. “It was a long, hard walk”, he says, “but I had got used to that in New Guinea.” * * * WHEN the Polynesian Vikings of old voyaged across the Pacific, ever to wards the rising sun, they carried with them passengers to whom they paid little attention. However, it now looks as if the descendants of the flies that also made those sea trips may throw some light on those early journeyings.

Insect fauna in Hawaii, it has been proved, has definite examples of Indian origin. Both the Hawaiian house-fly and the rat, being closely associated with the lives of the early travellers, are now be ing studied with particular attention. All the evidence goes to show that they also, must have travelled in the canoes. These species have been found by Bishop Museum investigators on the southern Asiatic coast, as well as on most of the Polynesian islands, and suggest two main lines of migration—one from the south, designated as India, and the other from the north, which is possibly Siberian in origin. The two lines converge, roughly, along the Yangtze River in China, and at Yokohama, in Japan.

New species now are being investigated, and, when they have been identified, it is believed that many gaps in present day charts of Pacific migrations will be filled.