Late F. R. Jolley

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if the best known person es of New Guinea’s pioneer days has gone—on August erick Reidy Jolley died in id been living in retirement he early thirties; first at Gardens and latterly at le. He was one of the few ag Australians who had with the Queen Emma com- German New Guinea over ; ago and, to my knowledge, the only individual ever id British Consul in the man colony. rived in New Britain in 1905 kkeeper for the E. E. i firm and later became int at the headquarters at He had a natural gift for trative work and was en rith a pleasing personality.

War I broke out he was itely interned by the Ger nd taken to New Ireland 5 Australian troops occupied linea. Later he enlisted in a in the AIF and saw ser- France, where he attained k of Captain. 11 meeting him at Candabar t Tidworth, when he was his training and, phlegmatic , he remarked: “I’ll see you Guinea after the piece,” i he did. When I returned ul, in October, 1920, he was Secretary to the Admin- General Griffiths, and had taken over —part time —the Business Manager of the Lation Board, which had ly been formed with W. H. s Chairman.

Jolley concentrated all his on the Board and eventu ime Deputy Chairman. The s I remember it most vividly, i of Lucas, chairman: J. T. (later Public Service Com r in Canberra) as Finance : Jolley as Business Man d Cliff Judd as Chief In -all of them now gone West. 5, Jolley left the Board and •ecame interested in the >n of the Melanesia Com rhich controlled a number NG plantations. In previ rs he had had interests in it plantation and various ventures on the North Coast Britain. ; early thirties he retired to and took no further active in NG affairs.

Jolley was a man with a )wledge of New Guinea, and

a born executive; he alone was re sponsible for much of the easy run ning of the Board in its early days.

The years he had spent with the Forsayth firm and his association with the German residents before War I, his thorough knowledge of the German language, his practical plantation and trading experience were all qualities which made him particularly suitable for the difficult task of dealing with the expropri ated Germans in a tactful, common sense manner; while his own war service in France gave him common ground in his handling of the Aus tralian personnel (nearly all Diggers) who constituted the Board’s staff.

He was the first President of the Returned Soldiers’ Association when it was formed in Rabaul.

A widow, a son, two step-sons and a brother survive him.—G.T. t An indication of the interest be ing shown by Japan in New Caledonia’s nickel is that between July 21 and 23, three ships left the Colony for Japan laden with ore.

Our Noumea correspondent writes that many familiar faces —Japanese —are being seen in New Caledonia for the first time since the war.

Many of the Japanese have families there and there have been “many joyous reunions.” It certainly has been a long war for some people.