Suva Memories
p. 25 · Read in the full issue
From W. E. Hancock, Melbourne— formerly manager of Union SS Co. in
Suva, Fiji:
I WAS very, interested in the articles ' under the heading of “Recollections of a Decade in Fiji,” by Na Matani vanua; a good deal of this occurred dur ing the time I was resident in the Colony, The reference in the September issue to the opening the Union SS Co. office, and the popping of champagne corks, is quite correct. I was responsible for the con struction of the building, and I was given carte blanche by our chairman of directors, who opened the building, to see that the ceremony was carried out properly.
As a matter of fact, the ceremony had been set down for a certain time, and the “Aorangi,” on her voyage, had experi enced bad weather and was late in arriving. As the chairman (on board the ship proceeding to London) had been in vited to open the building, ways and means had to be secured to get him off the steamer before she berthed and rush him ashore in a launch to a function which had been delayed for an hour.
The reference to the Yacht Club is ap preciated, because the Suva Yacht Club was very dear to my heart—l was Com modore from 1934 to 1938, and was one of the founders.
The story of the two bank boys who went for a dip in a horse-trough is correct, but can be elaborated. I was in the car with the then manager of the Bank of New Zealand, Mr. Athol Matthews; and it was two of his staff who were disport ing themselves in the horse-trough out side the old Bank of NSW. Unfortunately, they thought the car was drawing up at my office, which adjoined the Bank of
NSW. One tall lad had put a smaller one into the trough, in the role of a baby, to bathe him; and, at the psychological moment, as the car drew up, the lad was slapping the water and yelling out “Bath, Daddy!” Unhappily, the manager of the bank was known by his staff as “Daddy”; but the youth was quite unconscious of the fact that his principal was in the car, and there was really no offence meant.
Time has marched on. Both of those young men who were responsible for the incident have laid down their lives in this World War, and their names appear in your Roll of Honour.