The New Guinea

Volunteers

Tribute to Good Work

The following was published in Mel bourne “Herald” on October 17:— TRIBUTES to Australian volunteers in New Guinea who fought the “first offensive action in the Pacific” at Salamaua were paid by Capt. D. H.

Umphelby, who is on leave at his home in Toorak.

Australia owed a great deal to these men, drawn from all walks of life, and including solicitors, doctors, planters, mining executives and business men, who had been on the job constantly against the Japanese since January, Captain Umphelby said.

When Captain Umphelby’s company was driven from Salamaua by the land ing Japanese on March 8, it took up another position in the hills, and waited.

On June 29, in the darkness, the com pany raided Salamaua. Seventy-four men took part, and every man had thor oughly planned and practised his indi vidual job—even to the number of steps to be taken to reach a particular house with which he had to deal.

The Japanese were taken completely by surprise. Armed lightly with tommy guns, grenades and stick bombs, and with mortars for support, the Australians crept out of the jungle and struck. The Japanese did not know from where they would be hit next.

Lieui. W. Drysdale, of the AIF, a mor tars officer who has since been killed, did a particularly courageous and successful job.

In their trek across country after the raid, Capt. Umphelby and his men had to scale peaks up to 8000 feet high.

CAPT. Umphelby said the New Guinea Volunteer Rifles was formed before the Japanese landing at Rabaul and every small settlement had its own con tingent. They were never out of con tact with the enemy. Their scouts and patrols were always shadowing them, and, in addition to the important infor mation they obtained, they were able by their actions to make the enemy jittery and uncertain.

He and another AIC man trained the New Guinea Volunteer Rifles whose part in the defence of Australia would form an important page in war history when it came to be written, he said.

Although their numbers were small, at one time they had an “air force” and a “navy” at one station. The “air force” consisted of one plane belonging to the padre, and the “navy” was an outrigger on which a Vickers machine-gun was mounted.