The Goeffroys

Information Sought About Early German Trader

mHERE has been an interesting sequel 1 to an article written by Mrs. Eliza beth Hennings, of the Lau Group, Fiji, and published in the November “PIM.” Mrs. Hennings had been examin ing some old correspondence of 70 or 80 years ago, kept by her grandfather, Mr. William Hennings, and she compiled some interesting history, in the course of which she made several references to a German-Samoan trader, Mr. August Godeffroy.

This has brought, to the editor of the “PIM.” a letter from Mr. Carl Alfred Godeffroy, of Hamburg, wherein Mr.

Godeffroy eagerly seeks more details con cerning the references to Mr. August Godeffroy. It appears that August was the younger brother of Mr. C. A. Godde ffroy’s famous grandfather, J. Cesar Godeffroy, who founded the great world wide trading firm (Cesar Godeffroy and Sons) that entered the South Seas about 1855 and later became the DH and PG (the ‘‘long handle tan”). Mr C A. ?o°ve e r th£ e necfallvtheSoiTth 0 Pacific teanchof C ft All hif record! we?e foTtfn the war, how ever, and he now is building them up again. He says he knows very little about August Godeffroy, who went away into the Pacific and who appears to have been a “black sheep”; and he appeals to Mrs.

Hennings, and anyone else who is in terested, for materials (old letters, photo graphs, etc.) about the early days of the Godeffroys in the Pacific. There is no evidence that J. Cesar Godeffroy himself ever came to the Pacific.

August Godeffroy married in Sydney, in 1881, a Mrs. Wigger, widow of an Englishman: August died in Capetown in 1900; and his wif ’ e in Mexico City in 1892 ; Their only son> August> was killed In World War I.

The correspondence has been sent to S, 1 ® 6 Feldbounnenstrasse, Hamburg,