J. H. L Waterhouse

Death Removes a Pacific Education Expert

AN expert on native education, Mr. J.

H. L. Waterhouse —a man whose whole life was dominated by a spirit of altruism, expressed in terms of inter est in, and eagerness to help, the native peoples of the Pacific —died at Lindfield, Sydney, on August 20. With his passing, we lose one of those too-rare personali ties who, in contrast with muddling poli ticians and insular busy-bodies, do much to raise European prestige among those whom they rule.

Son of the late John Waterhouse, MA, former headmaster of Sydney Boys’ High School and great-grandson of that John Waterhouse who landed in Hobart in 1839, to become first General Superin tendent of the Wesleyan Mission in Aus tralia, he carried on the family tradition of public service. From 1908 to 1917 he was in Fiji with the Methodist Mission, and was headmaster of the Boys’ High School; in 1918, he joined the staff of the mission in Rabaul, TNG. There he was officially an accountant, but his dominant interest lay in the natives themselves. He made a study of their languages, and in 1920 published a “New Britain Phrase Book.” Later, he trans ferred to the New Zealand branch of the Society and spent some years at Roviana, New Georgia, Solomon Islands, where his work was mainly in the mission schools.

Here, too, he continued his language study and compiled and published a “Roviana Phrase Book” and, in 1928, a “Roviana-English Dictionary.” Radio began to interest him at this period and, for some time, he was in charge of the mission’s wireless station.

Much valuable scientific and linguistic material was lost in March, 1923, when the SS “Mindini” went up on Mellish Reef and he, with other passengers, spent 24 hours on a sand cay.

During the depression, mission work was curtailed, making it necessary for Mr. Waterhouse to give up his teaching position. But grants were made him by Kew Gardens, London, and Yale Uni versity, USA, and thus he was able to spend the years between 1930 and 1933 collecting botanical specimens in Bou gainville, studying native languages and culture, and doing other anthropological work.

As a result of a chance meeting with Brig.-General Griffiths, then Adminis trator of New Guinea, in 1933, he was offered and accepted a post as headmas ter of the Administration’s school for native boys at Nodup, near Rabaul, and here he remained until evacuated to Aus tralia in December, 1941. Here he did most valuable work, to which he devoted all his knowledge, skill and industry; and it is with this part of his life that present-generation Pacific residents are most familiar.

Mr. Waterhouse kept a remarkable visitors’ book covering this period—which his widow has made available to us Between the first entrv (of General Griffiths, on December 12, 1933) to the last (that of Sir Walter McNicoll, on December 18, 1941) there is a veritable pageant of people from the four corners of the earth, as well as from the Pacific Territories.

Authors', journalists and wanderers, missionaries and teachers, paid warm, spontaneous tribute to the work to which Mr - Waterhouse devoted himself so un selfishly, But the surest proof of his success came from Territory residents.

Dyed-in-wool Territorians planters, miners, policemen—totally unsentimental, and knowing the, native from hard experience—and not always loving him as a brother —they yet, in scores of instances, expressed their admiration for the work that was being done for him in this school.

Natives who attended the school, while being encouraged to retain their own native crafts and cultures, were given a broad “general knowledge” education in English and special subjects; and, at the time of the invasion, “old boys” were scattered all over the Territory as wire less operators, native teachers or work ing in the Native Police Force, the Dis trict Services or Medical Departments.

Cricket and football were played with all the natives’ enthusiasm for snort. A rela tion of some past nupils had made land available for a garden, where native and European vegetables were grown. An elderlv native had been nersuaded to give a series of weeklv talks on native house-building, canoe-building, garden ing. fishing, etc.

In 1938 Mr, Waterhouse published yet another language book—“A New Guinea Language Book (Blanche Bay Dialect).”

In a foreword, Sir Walter Ramsay Mc- Nicoll expresses his appreciation and admiration for the work—which would lighten the Administration’s burden when going amongst new peoples—and for the labour it had entailed over a period of ten years. Noduo School. Sir Walter said was valued highlv by both the authori ties and the public, and it was recog nised that much of its success was due to Mr. Waterhouse’s knowledge of the local language, which enabled him to eet behind the thoughts of the natives, to understand their point of view and, therefore, to enjoy their complete confi dence.

Mr. Waterhouse suffered a long period of ill-health. He was a sick man when

he and Mrs. Waterhouse went south at the beginning of the year, just prior to the Japanese invasion.

Private H. G. Turner, of the AIP, has returned to Australia after two years in the Middle East, during which he was wounded at the Battle of Bardia, Janu ary, 1941. His father, Mr. Jack Turner, of Samarai, Papua, died not long ago; and his mother now resides at Elizabeth Bay, Sydney.