Cook Islands Party Rescued
p. 54 · Read in the full issue
At Sea
THE New Zealand judge in the Cook Islands, and other important offl cials, were aboard a converted Fair mile (an ex-RAAF speed boat) when she broke down away to the north of Raro tonga. The USS Co’s “Waitamara” res cued the passengers and crew. Captain Olm Ostenfeld of the “Waitamara” writing to a friend in Melbourne, describes the incident. He says he received the Fairmile’s call for help on March 14.
“She was 450 miles away, but we found her,” he stated. “She was about 100 miles from the nearest island. She was broken down, short of food and water, and had 33 persons aboard.”
Included among the 33, he continued, were a judge, a chief of police, a Roman Catholic padre and natives with children.
Most of the people were transferred to his ship by net.
“ ‘The church’ was underneath and narrowly escaped a second baptism,” said Captain Ostenfeld. “They all insisted up on sitting in the net, but the pasture was mostly in reverse when the net was lifted.”
Captain Ostenfeld said that a meal for all survivors was prepared in the saloon of his ship. The natives. Cook Islanders, who had been used to eating out of leaves with their fingers were so scared that they almost had to be forced to eat. After that there was no trouble, and the food disappeared by bucketsful. No wonder, be cause they had had no food for 24 hours.
Mr. and Mrs. W. E. Goodsir, of Nadari vatu, Fiji, arrived in Sydney in March, and Mrs. Goodsir underwent a serious operation in St. Vincent’s Private Hospi tal, Sydney, on March 21. It was reported soon afterwards that she was making a satisfactory recovery. Mr. Goodsir is re maining in Sydney for the present.