Anyone In N. Britain 63

Years Ago?

(A Letter to the Editor) MR. J. O. MOUTON, who died lately in Sydney, was one of the four re maining members of the ill-fated Marquis de le Rays expedition whom I met in New Britain in 1884—63 years ago.

They were Mr. Mouton, a Belgian, who then was trading for Ml’s. Farrell (“Queen Emma’’); Dupre, a Frenchman, and Behrens, a German, both trading for the DH & PG; and a young woman known as Anita, who lived at Matupi.

At that time there were only about 50 Europeans in New Britain —all living on the Gazelle Peninsula, or on the Duke of York and Mioko Islands nearby. In the New Ireland district there were only two stations, on Nusa, New Hanover. One was owned by Mrs. Farrell, and the other was run by a Tongan half-caste, Johnny Nolans, trading for a recruiter, Captain Levinson.

Johnny Nolans killed Levinson in self defence during a dispute over a trade transaction. A German gunboat took Nolans to Tonga and handed him over to the Tongan Government, and he was exiled to Narnuka Iki, in Haapai.

The British Consul at Nukualofa in terested himself on behalf of Nolans, and he was able to prove that the blame for the killing lav entirely with Captain Lev inson, and that Nolans was a British subject over whom Tonga had no auth ority. Nolans then was released, and he died in Nukualofa in 1890.

I should very much like to know if any European is still living who was in New Britain in 1884 or 1885. If so, I should like to correspond with him.

I am, etc.,

J. T. Goedicke.

Haapai, Tonga. Nov., 1946.