Tropcalities

Magazine Section

Crocodiles—Hides Or

Hoofs?

TEW Guinea crocodile hid e - % hunters might check whether there’s more money in the limals “on the hoof”.

Big money was paid by a Louisiana 0 in September for a shipment 25 fully-grown crocodiles all the ly from Rhodesia.

They were shipped in steel water nks with slatted tops.

New Guinea, with plenty of crocs, is direct shipping connection with e United States—and the film rhts of the loading operation ould be worth something.

Iji Has A Manned “Thing”

rmiLE Australians in early f October watched the Russian Sputnik (or its rocket) sail ajestically across the night sky, ji was having its own adventures th space-men, etc. —and in day :ht.

The Fiji Times, of October 11, scribed the experiences of two jian couples who were journeying >m Nabouwalu to Nawaca (Bua evince) in a boat equipped with 1 outboard motor. The Times goes .: When close to Nawaca they were amazed see an object descending, apparently from > sky.

They described the object as being white colour and circular in shape.

One of the men, Paula, suggested that they ght to investigate as he thought that an craft was in difficulty and might need distance.

When the boat got closer they found that

the object was hovering about 20 feet above the sea.

It seemed stationary but appeared to be revolving and as they drew near they saw what looked to be the figure of a man stand ing outside the object.

The ''man'' saw the boat approaching and shone a very bright light on to the boat and its occupants—a light so powerful that they were completely dazzled and felt weak.

When the boat was about five chains from the object the figure disappeared Paula said the light seemed to come from a disc about the size of a saucer.

None of the occupants of the boat heard any sound of an engine.

The Fiji Times remarks that they were staid, sensible middle-aged folks and that they lived remote from access to comic strips and references to fiying-saucers.

A couple of years ago some other Fijians reported that they had seen a flying saucer (with “square port holes”) in the Ovalau area.

Fun In Gaol

A PPARENTLY Tonga is not the J\ only place where gaol can be fun ( PIM, September). The fol lowing piece appeared in our favourite Mission redding, Church Gazette, of the Diocese of Polynesia, written by the Rev. A. C. Hobson, who recently has been relieving the Rev. C. W. Whonsbon-Aston, in Western Samoa: • Our prison here in Samoa is a large plantation about six miles out of the town. Some years ago on one of my previous ministries here, I went out there to visit an Australian gentleman who was doing a twelve-month for getting

muddled in some accounts he was responsible for.

What a surprise to find him re siding in his own bungalow within the enclosure. He whistled for his servant and told him to get some tea and scones for his guest. He was a war veteran in not too good health and this is the way our paternal government treated him.

So if any of you should have any trouble in this way, try to arrange things so that you can do some time in Samoa and not in some gloomy place like Dartmoor or Wormwood Scrubbs.

Or even Long Bay or Pentridge.

Should Fan-Dancers Become

Missionaries?

MORE mission intelligence: The more “popular” of the Aus tralian newspapers have re cently been splurging the story of Mrs. Margaret Gadd, London fan dancer, who says that at the end of the year she will join her brother in New Guinea as a missionary.

She took up fan-dancing when her husband died suddenly. It offended the strong religious prin ciples of her family but she thinks it is alright. Her family, including her brother —who is stationed in NG “around Airome” —don’t think much of her becoming a missionary, either.

Photographs of Margaret, mit fan, have also appeared. Not bad, either.

But we don’t think that anyone ‘around Airome” should gpt ex cited, yet. Somehow we feel that this is one fan-dancer that the missions will not get.

One Day’S Labour Equals

One Egg

A MONG the long list of offenders who had been charged with “manufacturing intoxicating liquor” or consuming intoxicating liquor “without the approval of a Medical Officer”, Moo Kae Tangi teina’s crime stood out like a monu

ment in a recent issue of the Cook Islands news-sheet.

He had stolen 20 eggs valued at 6/8 and the Court had given him a month inside, or the same period outside in lieu thereof—“labouring on a public work”, in this case, the Sanatorium.

It seems a heck of a price for 20 eggs, but made a pleasant change in the monotony of the “crimes” arising out of the bush-beer in dustry.

These fines (with an occasional imprisonment) for making and/or drinking the brew go on ad in finitum and certainly must be re garded as revenue-producing and not as a deterrent.

One wonders why the free men of the Cook Islands do not revolt against the whole silly business. But maybe the fact that it is illegal gives a bush-beer jag a flavour that it would otherwise lack.

frr^n^Q^iict^f^ 611 E 6 selected

SO P e 200 . applicants rhlmi o? b ’ - for f student ’s exexcursion from New Zealand to New Caledoma in December.

The escorting teachers will be Miss A - R - Allum, principal of New Plymouth Girls’ High School, and Mr. M. V. Hutchison, of Auckland Grammar School staff.

Although, in these dismal days, flying-fishes no longer disport themselves on the road to Mandalay, you may still, if, when in N. Guinea, [?]ou travel to Angoram (on the Mighty Sepik), lave a porpoise close behind you nearly heading on your tail. As witness this hand some fellow doing an elegant pas seul on [?]is tail-plane just six feet abeam (or should t be abaft?) of the good ship "Winburra".

Photograph is by courtesy of skipper "Blue" [?]ockery.

The Reverend Ben Chenoweth, Of The

A Methodist Mission in New Ireland, is a man who gains the immediate and last ing respect and affection of Europeans and native alike. He comes of dark, Cornish stock, and has since been tanned by 30 years in New Guinea.

He was born at Sellick's Hill, 30 miles south of Adelaide in 1893. After working for some years on the land he was accepted for training for the Ministry in 1919. His pro bation was served in South Australia, mostly near the Great Australian Bight and the middle North. Before leaving for New Guinea he married Miss Ruby Williams of Blyth, who has proved a staunch helpmate through good times and bad. Their only son, born in Rabaul in 1924, was lost over Germany, serving in the RAAF during the last war.

Mr Chenoweth spent six years in the Namatanai district, from 1923, after which he was stationed in the Kavieng district, which included New Hannover. When the Japanese arrived in 1942 the Chenoweths were on leave in Australia, but returned to the Kavieng district as soon as possible after the war The mam mission school there is at three miles out of Kavieng, just past the limestone grotto which is called Liga by the natives. Mr. Chenoweth is due to retire at the age of three score years and ten, which gives turn another seven years of fruitful mission service—BßETT HILDER.