News Of The Small-Ships

It Happened In This Month;

-It was in January, 1867, that the nission ship John Williams II was wrecked on Niue Island. The wreck pas sold to the infamous Bully layes, who happened to be there ,t the time. Hayes transported the rew of the wrecked ship to Samoa n his vessel, Rona. Also in January here was the wreck of the brig Chatham on Penrhyn Island—that ras in 1854; and in January, 1806, he vessel Argo was lost on the reef rhich now bears its name, east of lakemba, Fiji, the crew reaching ’ongatabu, where all but two were illed, the survivors being rescued everal years later.

Vatulele Light:—This New

iji light is now in full operation, teact position is given as 18 deg. 5 min. 26 sec. South, 177 deg. 36 lin. 59 sec. East. The light is 136 ;. above sea-level and has a range f 16i miles. It flashes white every ;n seconds and is visible from 051 egrees through east and south to )4 degrees. It is partly obscured ■om 304-317 degrees and from 355- )7 degrees, and obscured on other Barings.

Port Moresby Lead:—A New

1,000 candle-power rear leading ght will come into operation at ort Moresby on about February 8. ocated about 100 ft distant from le existing rear light on a bearing

of 234 deg., the new light will have a range of 24 miles, being located 294 feet high.

The light will bear 054 deg. from the front lead and will be visible from 309 deg. through north and east to 101 deg. and at short range to 116 deg. except where obscured by land. It will give a one-second white flash followed by a three second eclipse.

Gaualofa Sunk:—O. F. Nel

son & Go’s small motor vessel Gaualofa, of Apia, struck a sub merged rock between Lata and Salailua on the south coast of Savaii, W. Samoa, early December, later sinking at anchorage at Salailua. Only six feet of her mast is showing. The vessel was empty at the time. It is hoped to salvage her.

Le Phoque For Fiji:—The

well-known Noumea coaster Le Phoque (The Whale ) has been pur chased for use in the Fiji inter island trade by Morris Hedstrom & Co., Suva. Built in 1937, at Gendt, Le Phoque, of 188 gross tons, was brought but to Sydney on the deck of the German heavy-lift vessel Stassfurt, which was well known in Ausralian and New Zealand waters pre-war. Le Phoque was lifted into the water at Sydney by a floating crane in one of the heaviest lifts ever to have been made there

up to that time. The vessel was stranded but successfully refloated again several years ago. Lloyds gives the dimensions as 104.2 ft by 21.1 ft by 6.2 ft, with a 34-ft poop and 14 ft fo’csle. Displacement 117 tons, nett tonnage 99. She has accommodation for nine cabin pas sengers. A 200 HP Deutz diesel

drives her at about 9 knots. The vendors are Societe des lies Loyaute of Noumea. She should be a useful addition to the Fiji fleet.

Stanley Angwin Moves On:

—The cable ship Stanley Angwin, completing repairs to the earth quake-damaged cables in the vicinity of Fiji, moved south in December to carry out work in the vicinity of Norfolk Island.

GEIC SHIPPING:—Captain Stan Brown, with his wife and child, arrived in Suva aboard Kia Kia early December. He is on leave from the Gilberts vessel Tungaru, and will holiday in New Zealand.

Captain Tom Milner was to take over the command of Tungaru. The Colony vessels Nareau, Maureen and Tuvalu were expected to undergo refit in January-February. Nareau was to go to Ballina, NSW, the others to Suva. It is understood that Nareau has had certain trouble with her engine bed recently. Tungaru will head south to Suva for her oyerhau! in February. Kia Kia, after bringing leper patients to Makogai, returned to the Colony during December.

Navigational Changes •

Recent developments of interest to Island navigators are summarised herewith. Details should be ob tained from the relative Admiralty Notice to Mariners, the num ber in each case being given; l nl?/i S QIl tab l ished at Honi ara; 1045/1054/1353, changes to sound ings in Fiji waters: 1603, Vila

Harbour light altered and buoy established: 1602, New Caledonia— Port de Goro light alteration, and He Amedee light buoy established; 1769, New Caledonia, Baie du Prony, pier and buoy established; 1772, Fiji, shoal west of Moturiki; 1874, Canton Island, Ught estab lished; 1875, Tonga, bank NNE of Fonualei; 2083, Dutch NG, Hum

boldt Bay mooring buoys removed 3410, Lae, wharf lights; 2142 Palmyra Island, alterations t e lights; 3348, Fak Fak, NG, Ugh; aleration; 3402, Madang, NG wharf lights; 34Q0, Hollandia, D-NG light established; 4772, Ocean Island, light and beacon; 2494, Nev Hebrides, volcanic disturbance neai Epi; 2511, Noumea, leading light.

altered; 2606, Austral Is., Raivaevae flagstaff beacon removed; 2663, Marquesas, breakers reported northward , , .. .

Earlier this year we reported that a light was to be established on Mama islet, Aitutaki, The light was expected to be ready for ser- Vice by the end of 1953 A light was established at the back beacon, Avarua leads, Rarotonga, early this year and has not previously been reported here. ™ VT

Service

FROM HOLLANDIA: Hollandia, D-NG, has established a radio telephone service for smallships. JZS

listens on weekdays only from 0100-0200 GMT on the frequency band 8195-8265 kc/s, and replies on 8776 kc/s. Power is 150 watts.

Lae R/T Changes:—Lae, Ng,

call-sign formerly VJY is now MIL, and times of service have been re cently changed: Monday to Friday,

2200-0200 Gmt, 0400-0615 Gmt;

Saturday, 2215-0300 GMT; Holidays (except Sunday, no service) 2230- 2330 GMT. Lae listens on 6280 and replies 6405 kc/s as previously, J

Ng Government Fleet

SOLD:—Thirteen small vessels owned by the Australian Common wealth Government and operating in New Guinea waters were put up

[?]rohn Bolton (left) and skipper Bob [?]rcy and son Mark at the stern of [?]lei, first of two 18-footers to arrive Auckland. [?]hree yachts in Papeete, mentioned last [?]nth: the revolutionary Beatrix of [?]tnp-backed design, Venturer from the [?]States, and Anna Elizabeth like [?]itrix from Holland.

or tender in October as part of the government’s policy of disposing of ts war-time built fleet and 11 of hem have now been disposed of. The r essels involved were Daria, Duali, taru, Kulu, Kelaua, Katika, Kokoda, Vtaimuna, Mainiro, M alak au, Marova, Matoka and Nusa. It will >e recalled that seven others, doturina, M uniar a, Manugora, turra, Kina, Kano and Doma were old a year ago by private treaty o Steamships Trading Co. The ale caused some comment at the ime as the ships were not put up or tender, as is usual. Those essels were a standard type of 300onner built during the w a r— ientical to Rannah and Charlotte )onald operating at present in the took Islands. The vessels recently old by tender are 300-tonners and 5-footers.

The eleven vessels have been sold o six different purchasers and the otal purchase price received was 147,705. This is regarded by the rovernment as being highly satis actory, having regard to an in ependent valuation received some ime ago. The vessels sold range in ize from 112 tons gross to 308 tons ross. They are all being used in tie coastal trade of the Territory nd the contracts of sale provide tiat the vessels shall not, without tie consent of the Commonwealth, e used other than in the Tern ary trade.

The sale means that private nterprise will, in future, operate all

except two of the vessels formerly owned by the Government Inter- Island Shipping Service, and condi tions of sale should ensure that the requirements of the coastal and inter-island trade of Papua and New Guinea are efficiently served.

Santa Teretia Breaks

DOWN:—When the Catholic Mission vessel Santa Teretia had a serious breakdown in the Gilberts during No vember she had to be towed 200 miles from Tabiteuea to Tarawa by the RCS Maureen (Capt. Gerry Douglas) for repairs. Santa Teretia was last in the news when she stranded on Vuna Reef, Fiji, August, 1952. She was salvaged and repaired in Suva and has been in continuous service under the command of Rev. Brother Gautier ever since.

Narea U Drydocking: —The

GEIC’s RCS Nareau was dry docked at Ballina, NSW, in January.

While the vessel is on survey, Cap tain Farrell is to go on leave.

Captain Eric Lindstrom, lately of the BSIP vessel Kurimarau, is to take command of Nareau for the time being.

GEIC FLEET:—We have occa sional inquiries as to just what vessels operate in the Gilbert and Ellice Islands inter-island services.

So far as we know there are no vessels operated by private trading concerns. The Colony Government operates two moderately large and four small vessels under the Trade Scheme co-operative. Tungaru and Tuvalu, square-bilge steel converted

barges, wartime built in Australia, each carry some 200 tons of cargo. Maureen is a standard war time-built 66-footer, Kia Kia, Hong kong-built as a medical patrol vessel, is a 75-foot auxiliary ketch, Nareau is about the same size. These three each carry only ten tons or so of cargo and are mainly personnel transports. Te Matapula, new

Suva-built auxiliary ketch 86-feet overall, recently described here, completes the Government fleet.

The Tangitang, another co-oper ative, based on Tarawa, owns two small auxiliary vessels, Ara Toha and Ara Karimoa, each carrying 10- 20 tons.

Only other craft of any size in the Colony are Santa Teretia, owned by the Catholic Mission, Fetu Ao owned by the Seventh Day Adventist Mission, and the 419 GT John Williams VI of the London Missionary Society. These mission craft are used to transport mission personnel and cargo but also carry Government officials when required.

John Williams VI, though spending a large part of her time in the Colony’s waters, is based on Suva and makes circuits to New Guinea, Samoa and the Cooks at regular in tervals.

Shipping headquarters for the Colony, repair facilities, and Club for personnel, is at Betio islet, Tarawa.

Medical Patrol Craft:—

Further details were made available in December of the four vessels which will soon be built in New Zealand primarily for use as leper relief vessels, but also as general medical craft in the Western Pacific Estimated to cost £NZIS,OOO each, they will be 55-foot wooden, ketch rigged craft carrying sufficient sail area to make reasonable speed under sail alone, though they will of course, be powered. They will have a beam of 16 feet, slightly raked stems and eliptical sterns. As

previously reported, they will be made available by Lepers Trust Board funds to Anglican, Methodist and Catholic missions in the Solomons and the Presbyterian mission in the New Hebrides.

NEW NAVUA: —Reintroducing a name well remembered in the Eastern Pacific, the Union Steam Ship Co. has decided to name its new freighter (which will be built for the Islands banana trade)

Navua. The old Navua ran for years on the Sydney-Fiji-Tonga- Samoa-Auckland run, together with Atua and the first Tofua.

Salvage At Canton:—The

140-foot diesel motor-yacht Caronia, owned by three Americans from Portland, Oregon, is the base vessel from which salvage operations have recently been proceeding at Canton Island on the war-time wreck of the President Taylor. A Honolulu

newspaper reports that the men spent four years in preparing Caronia for the task. They hope to refloat and sell the big trooper.

Work has been under way since mid-September.

Families of the salvage team are living aboard Caronia.

Pml Vessel For Fiji:—To

bring Micronesian medical students to the Central Medical School and take others back home, Pacific Micronesian Line’s vessel Baker was expected in Suva from the Marshalls via Tarawa during January. Shipping connections be tween the American Trust Terri tory of Micronesia and the South Pacific are very rare, though several voyages have been made since Micronesian students have been at tending the Suva medical school.

PERSONAL: Professor Hans Pettersson, leader of the Swedish oceanographic expedition that made ocean soundings through the Pacific m Albatross several years ago, paid a, 10-day visit to Suva during De cember.

Captain E. K. Anderson, formerly of the China Coast, who took com nand of Morris Hedstrom’s Fiji ;rader Altair in August, resigned the position early December.

Mr. W. E. Smith, recently chief engineer in W. R. Carpenter & Go’s Ai Sokula in the Fiji trade, left he company in November and made i relieving voyage out of Auckland is fourth engineer in Maui Pomare ;o the Cook Islands. Unknown to lim, Captain Simpson, former naster of of Ai Sokula, was also on i voyage to the Cooks as a deck )fiicer in Rannah. They had a sur mise meeting in Rarotonga.

Out Of Bounds:—Though

Japanese fishing vessels have, in ;he main, kept outside territorial vaters since they commenced post var fishing activities in the Pacific, iome skippers have taken a chance.

Uong with reports of recent land ngs in the New Guinea-Solomons irea, come others from Micronesia, rhe US Navy recently announced hat it intends to strictly enforce ion-violation of territorial waters.

Most violations have occurred in he Bonin and Palau groups. Gener

Left to right: GEIC’s RCS Kia Kia with her shortened rig mentioned in recent notes. Morris Hedstrom’s latest acquisition Le Phoque, formerly of Noumea. Stanley Angwin, cable ship, completed a lengthy repair job in Fiji waters following the earthquake.

lly, reef-fishing is done for bait Lirposes after the bait carried on le fishing vessel has become ex austed. To speed up the job, pnamite has been used by the Jap shermen. This itself is an offence i most areas.

Bigger Whaling Fleet:—

ighteen whaling expeditions are fading south this January for the tmmencement of the current ntarctic season—as compared with ' last year, even though the total srmisslble catch has been reduced om 16,000 to 15,500 blue wiiale fits.

R ANN AH:— Mr. D. C. Brown’s a mnah seems likely to remain in e Cook Islands. Some of her iropean personnel have been re rned to New Zealand. En route om Auckland in November a ;xible coupling on the port reduc m gear sheared when the vessel is 850 miles out of Auckland. No mage was done and the motor was rviceable but repairs could not be fected until arrival at Rarotonga, le voyage took 12 days from Auck od.

Tarawa Port Facilities:—

le Betio wharf has been declared usafe and has been closed until pairs can be made. Betio is the adquarters in the Gilberts for the )lony’s shipping, staff club and lited repair facilities being located ere.

MG CO-OP VESSEL:—Typical of

number of native co-operative ned coastal vessels in New Guinea

waters is the 60-foot Moutuana, a motor vessel with a carrying capacity of 34 tons, which a Papua corre spondent reports as busy, in mid- December, running Christmas cargo to outports. Moutuana is skippered and manned entirely by native Papuans. Operating out of Samarai the vessel runs general cargo out to the owner-Societies and brings back their copra and trochus.

Nukulau At Last:—South

Pacific Shipping Co’s Nukulau (Capt. McKenzie Arnot) called at Port Moresby just before Christmas and was expected at Suva, her ultimate destination, on January 7, thus completing a lengthy delivery voyage from Cyprus, which began in September, after delays in trans ferring to British registry.

LOSS OF MON IQ UE : —Our Tahiti Corespondent, referring to the loss with all hands of the coaster Monique, of Noumea, some months ago, suggests that the cause might have been a freak sea due to some submarine upheaval. He recalls that, in perfectly calm weather, the liner Sonoma, in which he was serv ing, struck such a sea in the vicinity of Tonga in 1913. The ship took a terrific roll, shipping a sea from bow to stern, but righted her self without major damage. He suggests that the same could have happened to Monique.

There are many volcanoes and submarine disturbances in the general New Hebrides-New Cale donia-Banks Is. area, but there is

no record of such a sea having swept up on the beach in this area at that time.

News of Cruising Yachts

• COONGOOLA, 74 ft., 63-ton twin screw Brisbane ketch, arrived at Papeete December 6, in the coarse of a round the-world voyage. Owned by Mr. G. H.

Griffiths (owner of the Toowoomba Foundry) and with nine other persons

aboard, the yacht left Brisbane November 22, 1952, journeying by way of Torres Strait, Dili, Singapore, Colombo, Aden, Suez, Alexandria, Cyprus, Rhodes, Athens, Messina, Naples, Genoa, Marseilles, Gibraltar, Las Palmas, Trinidad, Curacao, Panama, the Galapagos, Nukuhiva, and Ahe. Skippered by Terry Hammond, well known Auckland yachtsman, the big ketch has made a comparatively smart circumnavigation to date. From Papeete she will head for Borabora, Rarotonga, Nukualofa. Rabaul, Auckland, and Lord Howe back to her home port.

Terry Hammond, her skipper, has been radio operator and navigator in a number of craft round the Islands in recent years. • XARIFA (Dr. Hans Hass) which left Hamburg last August and has lately been in the West Indies area, is expected soon to be in the Panama Canal and head for the Galapagos, where Dr. Haas, well known under-sea protographer, will spend some time working. Other details lack ing, but she is equipped with an amateur radio station (see radio notes). The yacht is understood to be heading for Australia so is likely to be seen in Pacific Islands. • Following last winter’s successful Island cruising by some Auckland yachts, others are expected to venture forth next Autumn. Two probable starters are a new yacht being built by Mr. Mark Anthony, who, with companions last year delivered two mission vessels to the New Hebrides from Auckland; and IMATRA, 54-year-old, 72-foot Auckland ketch which came out from England via Panama and

Eastern Pacific Groups several years ago, but has since changed hands twice. e After a lengthy sojourn in Tahiti waters NOVIA (Lee and Anne Gregg) and CALYPSO (John and Gene Litton) cleared Papeete for Honolulu via Island ports November 38. NOVIA had been in Papeete since May 6, 1953, CALYPSO since July 30, 1953. Both yachts fly the

American flag. The Greggs have them five-year-old daughter with them. • STORTEBECKER 111 (Dr. Franklin- EVans) of England is edging south down the Canadian coast for & return voyage to Auckland next year. Norwegian FranU Jensen remains in Canada this year, his place being taken by Donald Tififin. The German-built 33-foot yawl, which we re

rted frequently last year, should reach w Zealand waters next December. » NELLIE BRUSH (Forrest Nelson and b Kingett), Miami ketch, after heading stward as far as the Galapagos went rth to San Diego, where she safely ■ived some time ago. This yacht was K>rted last year to be heading for hiti. » FLAMINGO (Warren McCarthy and upanions) of Auckland, reached Coil’s rbour, NSW, December 15, after a 15r passage from Russell, NZ. The 30ter may be entered in the Sydney bart Race —and possibly the Trans iman late January. » TE RAPUNGA (Capt. George Dibbern 1 all-woman vrew) cleared Hobart jember 12, for Auckland via south of v Zealand and the East Coast, and I enter the Trans Tasman Race which ibern won in 1934 in the now-30-years ketch. Dibbern, now 64, hopes to re all the work to his three-woman w on the east-bound passage, and for race will add a further two Welling girls. Dibbern, Eileen Morris and Id, are well known in the Eastern sific, their last ocean voyage having n to the Cooks three years ago. » A Fijian sailing canoe race was to e place on Suva Harbour December 20, t such race since 1911, the event that r being won by the canoe of the n Governor, Sir Everard im Thurn. b contestants this year are canoes ch were specially built or re ditioned and sailed from the outer nds to welcome the Queen on her Ival at Suva. It is hoped that the at might become an annual one again, i In Rarotonga an attempt is being ie to revive the activities of the ling Club there. All craft sailing there Ngatangiia Harbour are European-type rigger canoes. Centre-board yachts, to the very shallow water, would be :ricted to a very small area of the hour.

CHELAN, owned by Vera Hideout, i to clear a California port during ember on commencement of a world Ise. Vera is said to have been prepar for eleven years to make the voyage the 25-foot ketch. If all goes well should be seen in the Islands this r.

LANDFALL II (Dr. William F. combe) is heading for the Islands in from the States. Itinerary for the 'oot schooner is said to be Marquesas, motu, Gambler, Pitcairn, Societies, 10a, Fiji and Auckland. The doctor ully equipped with dental forceps and is to pull his way through the Islands ch he last visited several years ago.

TALEI, one of two Suva repre iatives to contest the J. J. Giltfnan rnational 18-footer yacht title, arrived Auckland in mid-December aboard ''UA, accompanied by skipper R. :y. The other entrant, TARUA, and aining crews of both boats will arrive January before the event. Fourteen its are expected to cross the starting —three each from Sydney and bane, two from Suva and the re nder from New Zealand clubs.

GESTURE, a Wangarei, NZ, yacht a past Trans-Tasman Race com

petitor, left that port December 23, on an extended cruise—first port Lord Howe Island. The yacht was recently acquired by Mr. R. Mcllvide, who has crewed in several Trans-Tasman races. With him is his wife and three crew men. W. Sirl, B. Barnaby and B. Bruce. • COONGOOLA, mentioned page 109, evidently wasting no time at ports of call, cleared Rarotonga December 23, for Nukualofa. She left Tahiti December 12. • TONGA, a 30-ft. Colin Archer ketch, dropped in to Samarai, Papua, in mid- December, and is likely to remain in that area for a while. Owner W. A. Crack, of Sydney, is a diver by profession and plans to engage in trochus fishing. The ■voyage from Sydney was made by way of Queensland ports and Port Moresby where a native crew boy was signed on.

En route to Samara! Mr. Crack did «■little coastwise copra trading. name may be incorrectly spelt here—we suspect TONKA.) • CARIAD I, A. W. Flitton’s big 89foot schooner yacht from Cape Town, which passed through the Pacific last year in the course of her second cruise round the world, was in Sydney in December. • NAITAMBA, owned by a former US navy man, R. K. Smith, is still in Los Angeles after several attempts to get her to New Zealand where her owner has now lived for six years.

In December, Mr. Smith was calling for volunteers to sail her across the Pacific. He wanted New Zealanders— three of them—because he believed that they were less likely to leave the ship

n route—a fateful habit of crews of mallships.

NAITAMBA is a 34-ft. ketch, and is quipped with everything from a deep reeze unit to a radio-telephone and an lectric winch.

Mr. Smith left the ketch in Los Angeles rhen he began his wartime service. All ttempts to sail her to NZ have so far een abortive although he has visited be States three times in the last six ears for that purpose.

We wonder how the ketch got her ame. Naitamba is the island in the au Group of Fiji owned by Mr. Gus [ennings and family. • Our Norfolk Island correspondent sports an unusual sight from Emily Bay d that Island where the NZ yacht [ERERU managed to get through the ery narrow entrance to the reef at full de on New Year’s Day and is now safe t anchorage. Very few boats larger tan a row-boat get through Norfolk •land’s reef.

Air Cadet Flight Sergeant J. A.

Vhitehead of Wau, New Guinea, ras one of the 11 who graduated >ilot Officer from the RAAF !ollege, Point Cook, Victoria, on

lecember 9. The graduation

larked the end of four years’ in snsive academic, service and flying

raining.

Miss P. Brokenshire, now living i New Zealand, but a pioneer in re Methodist educational field in iji paid a visit to the Colony re

mtly.

ti Mr. D. J. McDonald, formerly postmaster at Port Moresby, has oeen transferred to Lae. Mr. R. W.

Forrest, who arrived recently from Australia, has taken over in Port Moresby.

For A Good

Girl!

P-NG Director of Education, Mr. W.

C. Groves, hands a book to a small pnpil at the annual break - up concert and prize - giving of the European School, Port Moresby, at the Red Cross Hail, on December 9. —Photo by Papuan Prints.