Some Of Norfolk’s Cracks

In Need Of Attention

• Well-known Sydney journalist Ken Murchison recently spent a fortnight’s f holiday on Norfolk Island—and enjoyed every day of it. Back in Sydney [ he wrote this piece for PIM, outlining Norfolk’s strengths and weaknesses as a visitor sees them.

By Ken Murchison

The crumbling walls of Norfolk Island’s old convict settle ment are being restored; the cracks in its present-day economy are in more urgent need of attention.

fEITHER job is likely to be I carried out with complete :cess, nor can be expected to be dertaken without criticism.

Fhe old stone walls are being taired and covered with cement, this looks incongruous now, no übt the restored walls will weather time and there is evidence of an ginal plaster coating on the old 11s anyway.

Perhaps the least successful piece work seen in progress recently is it on a gateway to the outer walls the main prison, where symmetry ; been sacrificed to expediency by icking up one of two smaller

entrances on either side—“instant ruins”, as they say locally.

Although this gateway on the seaward side of the prison is marked by a yellow notice, “Gallows Gate”, some old residents claim that the gate used by the hangman in the convict days of early last century was actually that known as the main entrance, further round. The question is one for an expert; but a cynical view is that the gate look ing out to sea with Phillip Island in the background is a better spot for amateur photographers.

Which are the convicts and which the gaolers on present-day Norfolk depends on the point of view; the hardly-popular opinion expressed there is that the tourist—who scarcely penetrates into Norfolk society, let alone into its thinking—-is the island’s future p incipal source of income.

For various reasons, native born islanders are apathetic about this; “mainlanders” (except from the narrow viewpoint of the shop keepers) are indifferent; and officials apparently unconcerned.

Dwindling Opportunities

Yet in the course of this tourist’s short stay on the island recently, the whaling season failed and the cable station closed. Whaling now seems to have packed up altogether; the cable station certainly has—being by passed by the new Pacific cable route.

This seems to leave the growing of beans for seed as the main local in dustry.

There is talk of new industries and new trading links with Aus tralia and New Zealand; but the casual visitor hears more of failures in both in the past, and sees evidence of dwindling opportunities in the future.

Even in the last financial year, ac cording to the official gazette, the total value of imports rose by

St tourists come by air, and is was a [?]at day recently when the "Wanga [?]a", here seen through Norfolk's [?]ous pines, made a special cruise from Sydney. She will visit again soon.

Photo: Ken Mullen.

£79,000 (mostly in tourist goods) to £360,000, while exports fell by £13,000 to £198,000.

Cows and bulls roam at random over the Kingston common and on most of the roads, and—quite alarmingly—are left wild and un claimed in the more remote parts of the island.

Meanwhile the average tourist’s attention is confined to the shops selling duty-free goods, when so much could be done to establish an all-round tourist industry.

The Qantas (Australia) and TEAL (New Zealand) air services to Norfolk are of their established good standard; but the limited number of comparatively old aircraft, the limitations imposed by local weather conditions and landing facilities, plus a singular incidence of “gremlins”

once the planes (and their crews) reach the island, combine to upset the schedules rather often.

Another feature of the Australian service is the week-end importation of “over-nighters”, travelling very chea P!y on the airline’s doubtless excellent staff travel scheme. Many of t h ese fly 9 qq mi i es tQ descend on “the shops” on Saturday and leave again next day loaded with goods and without even the memory of a hibiscus bloom. Some are no credit to the airline or to tourism.

The small local tourist bureau certainly does what it can, and some private services take visitors to the more accessible coastal lookouts and places of interest; but the poor roads and the rapid run-off from the steep hills put bus tours at the mercy of a heavy shower.

Norfolk Island needs mi reliable air services, a first-cl hotel, a “popular” guest house young people, improved roads i better tourist services, and snr shops to cater for ordinary every* needs.

"Enterprise"

The special shopkeepers criticised by the locals, and no dot their enterprise has brought b( profit and loss to the island; but. is noticeable that the islanders the selves have no stalls for local han crafts or bowls of fruit salad the Lord Howe Island pattern. TT could learn from others.

The Administration, surely, cot provide a large, clear-coloured rr of the island. The shops sell a lii black and white paper map, ano coloured scarf on which the n is wrong; the Registrar’s office s< a small coloured map, and a lat surveyor’s dyeline print which is qi unsuitable.

The island needs, and is gettf some better presentation and list of its historical buildings and convict era, and the colourful stl of its Bounty mutineers’ descendaj A remarkable improvement is be made to the old cemetery, and iij attracting genuine interest, travesty of a museum should made into something worthwhl and the contents possibly transfen to the reputed Wentworth cottt when it is restored.

Above all, the island needs so imaginative planning for tourf without descending to the wr features of “tourism”. It coc consider brightly-painted pony caa boats on the lagoon and round island, and a hire-service of dr: yourself VW or other small stvi cars. In these and many other wr sporting and social entertainment the tourist could be improved.

But the tourist, too, needs to Norfolk Island with eyes other tJ those looking for bargains; make some effort himself to seas for the island’s many attractions;; fact, to repair some of the cracks his own walls.

See also: • Threats to Norfolk Tout Trade? p. 35. • Britain's First South Seas CoM is 175 Years Old, p. 83. • Photographs of restoration Norfolk Ruins, p. 84.