Loyal Banabans
p. 43 · Read in the full issue
Gave Thousands
The Ocean Island people donated big sums to the British war effort in both World Wars.
Sir Harry Luke, former High Commissioner for the Western Pacific, in his memoirs tells how he received in 1940 a message from the 750 people on Ocean Island to say they were making a gift of £lO,OOO to the British Government. He had replied that the figure was too much for such a small population.
Their reply was to increase the sum to £12,500, “as a token of their loyalty”.