Coastwatchers

With The New Britain

Australian readers in September will have some more full-length Coastwatching adventures when Lansdowne publishes “If I Die ”, the story of a group of Coastwatchers on New Britain between March, 1943, and April, 1944. Author of the first-person account is Malcolm Wright, now of Melbourne.

IF I DIE reports the exploits of Wright, Leslie Williams (now DC at Popondetta), Peter Figgis, a 2/22nd officer who escaped from Rabaul, Sgt/Major Simogen, who is now a P-NG MHA and Under Secretary for Police, and three New Britain villagers who deserted from Japanese carrier lines on the Kokoda Trail.

The party was landed by submarine for intelligence work, which was carried out with the aid of the famous paramount luluai Golpak.

But when US forces later landed on

the coast the Coastwatcher party turned itself into a guerilla force and armed 300 villagers with shot guns, rifles and captured weapons.

Jn (wo months , he band had ac . counted for more than 250 Japs for the ]oss of only two guerillas. They had b this time be 6 en joined b ’

Coastwatcher reinforcements.

Malcolm Wright lives in Caul field these days, not far from old timers Geoffrey Bliss, Dal Chambers and John Milligan, and all of them get together regularly.