Deaths Of Islands People

Mr. Alexander Donald

Cameron

Mr. Alexander Donald Cameron, ,vho died in the Royal North Shore Hospital, Sydney, on January 23, at the age of 83, lived in Tonga for more than 40 years.

He was a son of the headmaster at the Tottenham Road Public School, and a brother of Captain E. P. Cameron, who was com nodore of the Orient Line.

In 1901, he set out for Tonga, where he took up a position as manager of Burns Philp, in Nukuilofa. Nine years later he started out on his own by founding the Firm of Toga Maa Toga Kautaha, which exported copra, and also engaged in importing.

This organisation was ordered to dose down, and lengthy litigation followed. Mr. Cameron, who had completed his autobiography shortly before his death, has given full details of events which led to the closing down of his company.

Mr. Cameron engaged in various business activities in Tonga until 1926, when he went to Sydney. He remained in Sydney for seven years, and then retired to live in Tonga.

In 1950, he returned to Sydney to live with a married daughter.

He married Miss Clare Elizabeth Cocker, grand-daughter of the first

British Representative in Tonga, in Launceston, Tasmania, in 1903.

Mr. Cameron is survived by his widow, four sons, all of whom served with the forces in the Second World War, and four daughters.

The sons are Marshal (Tully, Queensland), Alexander Donald (England), Evan Cameron (Bell Bay, North Tasmania), and Dougall (Broad Beach, Queensland). The daughters are Mrs. Winton McDaid (Canada), Mrs. Margaret Mackay (Sydney), Mrs. Evelyn Dalton (Lee ton, New South Wales), and Mrs, Trudie Stairman (Sydney).

Mr. Norman Wilde

The death has occurred suddenly in Wau, New Guinea, of Mr.

Norman Wilde, one of the best known residents of Morobe District.

He was in his mid-50’s.

For years he was engaged in mining and was one of the few in the Territory to indulge in private aviation. It was in this latter capacity that he took part in a phase of the Pacific War that, in the main, has gone unrecorded: the part played by civilian flyers in the evacuation of people caught by the Japanese invasion of New Guinea.

Wilde, in a Fox Moth, alone, and with another pre-war aviation pioneer, Eric Stephens, in an old monoplane which had belonged to

the late C. T. Ulm, repeatedly ran the gauntlet of Jap planes to get in to Wau and Salamaua and out again to Moresby to carry, in all, about 200 people to safety.

If it had not been for men like Wilde, who did not wait on Gov ernment permission or instructions but went ahead with the material at hand, regardless of personal safety, many hundreds of New Guinea civilians would have fallen into the hands of the Japs.

Not long before his death, he had returned with his wife from a trip to Europe. Mr Wilde was a brother of Mrs. Doris Booth, MLC, and in partnership with her worked the mining properties around “Cliff side,” on the Upper Bulolo, for many years.

Mr. Robert Craig

The death occurred on January 5, at the Royal Albert Hospital, Melbourne, of Mr. Robert Craig, a well-known resident of Fiji.

Mr. Craig was born in Scotland and retained much of the accent of his homeland up to the time of his death.

For several years he farmed at Tailevu and later at Navua. He then went to Suva and entered the Government service in the Economy Warfare Office during World War 11, and afterwards in the Depart ment of Agriculture.

He had been in ill-health for some time and retired in mid-1956.

[e was on a visit to his daughter, s Jean Maunder, in Melbourne, the time of his death.

Mr. George Grant

very popular chief steward in service of the Union Steam p Co. Ltd., Mr. George Grant, 1 at Auckland Hospital of a rt ailment on January 16. [r. Grant was chief steward of Matua and was very well known residents of Samoa. Fiji and iga who had travelled on the »el. e was previously in the Eastern le to India, and before that was many years a crew member of old Tofua.

Mr. C. F. Gamson

he death occurred in Sydney on uary 17 of Mr. Claude Frederick nson, a former resident of Fiji 36 years. :r. Gamson was born in Mel rne in 1898 and went first to in 1913, where he joined Henry •ks and Company. About 1919 joined the Colonial Sugar Re ng Co. and remained with this ipany until 1949 when he retired Sydney because of ill-health. He i the CSR’s first field officer ;heir pineapple venture at Lega a and remained there in that acity until retirement, i his younger days he was a -known horseman and rode at 1 race meetings. He was a good t (winning the Governor’s lal), an athlete of note and a r good good tennis player, i 1928, he was married to Miss Riley, daughter of a well-known toka resident. e is survived by his wife and sons —David, who is a Sydney irtered Accountant, and lan, > is a master at The King’s 001.

Mr. F. Isom

[r. Frederick Isom, printer for Melanesian Mission, died at liara, in the BSIP, on December Mr. Isom went to the Islands as sionary printer in 1913, and ked there until his death, ex t for a period of 10 years, ew had given such long and hful service to the mission as Isom and his wife. He toiled in heat and against all sorts of iculties to provide the diocese h very necessary books in the nacular.

Ir. Isom was born in Colchester, jland. When he completed his ►renticeship as a printer he went the South Pacific to operate the ision press at Norfolk Island.

Le remained at Norfolk until the ision headquarters transferred to Solomons. When the Japs in led the Solomons, in 1942, Mr. m left for Sydney, where he re ined for 10 years. He settled at ifield, and set up a printing press Summer Hill, where he con-

tinued his work of printing for the mission.

He then returned to the Solomons and re-established the Mission Press at Taroaniara in the Florida Group.

Shortly before his death he wrote a long article on printing for the missions in Melanesia. This was printed in the Australian Board of Missions Review.

Mr. Isom was 65 years of age when he died. He is survived by

his widow, and one daughter, Mrs.

R. Ayers, of Taroaniara, BSIP.

Mr. Albert Firth Jagger

Mr. Albert Firth Jagger died in Auckland on January 12, at an advanced age.

Through the firm of Jagger hi Harvey Ltd., Mr. Jagger maintained a long business association with the Cook Islands (where the firm has a branch at Rarotonga), and with Niue.

Mr. Jagger was associated with the early shipping history of New Zealand, and was partner in a whaling company in northern New Zealand waters in the early days.

He actively headed the present Island trading firm until very re cently.

Mr. Hong Kong Sang

The death occurred in Papeete, Tahiti, on January 4, of Mr. Hong Kong Sang, well-known Chinese merchant.

He had been found some days previously lying at the side of the road near a motor-cycle with head injuries. He was taken to hospital but did not regain consciousness.

Mr. R. D. Bagnall

The death occurred in Auckland on January 22 of a very well-known

Mr. and Mrs. Isom with their grand-daughter.

lawyer who practised in Fiji ar] who until recently acted as magi! trate.

Mr. Reginald Douglas Bagnell, i addition to being a very capab lawyer, had in the 20 years spei in Fiji gained useful experien which he put to good use when i was asked by the Government serve as a magistrate in 1952, 191 and 1954.

He practised at Labasa and in I and then retired to live in Sig, toka, eventually going to Suv after which he became a relievh magistrate.

Graduating in England, i practised in Palmerston North, Ne Zealand and later joined the Aud land legal firm of Russell, Campb< and McVeagh, and became partner.

He served in the Royal Navy du ing World War I.

When the news of his dea reached Suva the Magistrate’s Col adjourned for the day.

Mr. David Collins

A well known and very popul Fiji civil servant, Mr. David Collii lost his life at Kadavu, on January Mr. Collins, Registrar of C operative Societies, was land! from the Adi Maopa, at Dravu: Kadavu, and while going ashore the ship’s boat it capsized in rou seas.

He was not found until minutes later. He was taken asho where artificial respiration v applied, without result.

His body was flown back to Su by the RNZAF.

Mr. Collins was born in Surr England, in 1915, and after gradm ing at Oxford joined the Colon Service and went to Fiji in 1938 He served as a District Officer District Commissioner in alrm every part of the Colony and be up a wide circle of friends.

His extensive knowledge of I led to his appointment as Registi of Co-operative Societies in 1955 He was married and had fc children, the youngest only a f weeks old.

Major C. V. Phillips

Major C. V. Phillips, Distr Officer, Suva, died suddenly in : office on January 9.

He was born in Devonshire, Er land, in 1894. In 1916, he joir the Army, retiring in 1923.

He held commercial appou ments in India until the Seco World War, when he rejoined 1 army.

He went to Fiji in 1948.

He took a keen interest in 1 native race, and was the princi] organiser of the resettlement Nabua of Fijians displaced by 1 1952 hurricane.

Constable Beni

Unstable Beni, a well known sonality in the Cook Islands, 1 at Pukapuka, on January 11, the age of 68. leni was one of the branch of Pilato Ariki family and was me time an Island Councillor of capuka. On June 30, 1955, he red from the Force at the age 36, having given 20 years of ex ent service. erious trouble broke out in :apuka during the latter end of 5 and again in 1949, when the 'A preached open sedition inst the NZ Government and violence to the Resident mt and any who assisted him carrying out the law. Constable li was one of the five Pukapukan cemen who showed their loyalty the Administration during this ibled period, and on his retire it he was granted an annuity 320.