'Nightmare Voyage'

February, 1880, Romilly took , chained, aboard a small cutter, Thistle, under a Captain Evans, said he was on his way to Fiji Wallis Island and Futuna—a *e lasting three weeks. But, it 3d out, the voyage took nearly i months. e first day at sea Romilly dis ed that Evans was one of the notorious characters in Fiji, s could not navigate, and had ertificate, and he had a crew few Hebrideans and Solomon ders whom he punished for the test mistake in an entirely lal manner. would assemble the ship’s iany, the culprit had a rope put id his neck, while the other of it was passed through a in the rigging.

Incredible Voyage

e man was then hoisted from deck, Evans by long practice ig ascertained the exact amount rangulation that a man could without producing death, ring an incredible voyage, the was short of food and water, hot Wallis and ended up in »a—where Evans refused to despite their plight. They went to Wallis, where Tom escaped had to be recaptured, len finally the Thistle sailed Levuka harbour —there were developments. First, only a after arrival, Evans died of a poisoning. Secondly, it was 1 impossible to try Tom be ; of the lack of witnesses and lad to be sent back again, apanied by the Chief Justice, ,e, for trial. The death sentence passed on Tom in Rotuma in 1880 —and was later commuted . years’ gaol. The motive for aurder, it turned out, was that

Tom had stolen money from Gordon and hidden it in Kimueli’s house.

Kimueli had apparently found out about this and was the victim of his knowledge

Rotuma Annexed

But Tom’s conviction wasn’t the end of the adventure.

The Queen agreed to annexation, and Romilly was sent back to Rotuma as Deputy Commissioner to arrange for the hoisting of the flag by the Governor.

Two days before Christmas that year the natives of Rotuma, includ ing chief Alipati, made it clear to Romilly that they were frightened.

“Dead man he walks,” said Alipati.

“What dead man?” asked Romilly.

“Kimueli —the man Tom killed.”

Romilly laughed, for it was a regular occurrence for natives who had been out late at night to come home saying they had seen ghosts.

But the reports grew. People said that Kimueli had been seen in a number of houses —his head tied up with banana leaves and his face covered with blood. No one had heard him speak.

“I thought it possible that some madman was impersonating Kimueli,” wrote Romilly later. “But it seemed almost impossible that anyone could do so without being found out.

“I announced my determination to sit outside Alipati’s house that night—Christmas Eve and watch for him. I also told Alipati that I would bring a rifle and have a shot, if I saw the ghost.”

That day all the natives came in very early from the bush. Alipati was very nervous.

For about two hours, Alipati, Romilly and another white man,

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ed Allardyce, who was in ima to study the language, sat the verandah watching. Then, enly, Alipati clutched Romilly’s 0 w and pointed, whispering lueli”.

He Had Seen It unilly certainly saw the figure native advancing towards them 1 the bush. They sat and waited. recollection of having seen that e was forcing itself upon lily’s mind more strongly every tent when, suddenly, the exact e, when he had gone with ion to visit the murdered man, 3 back to his mind with great Iness. lere was the same man in front im—his face covered with blood a dirty cloth over his head, kept s place by banana leaves. There the same man, and there was bandage around his head, leaf leaf, and tie for tie, identical the picture already in Romilly’s 1. ly jove, it is Kimueli!” exclaimed Lilly to Allardyce. The two men ped up from the verandah and i chase, but the figure had :ed into bush before they hed it. Though only a few Is ahead of them and a bright nlight night, they lost all trace t. The figure had disappeared all that was left with Romilly

was a feeling of consternation and annoyance.

Romilly waited in the same spot the following night but the figure did not appear.

Romilly wrote later, “I’m not a believer in ghosts. I believe a natural explanation of the story to exist . . . but I am unable to supply one”.