Deaths Of Islands People

Mr. Thomas Lloyd Armitage

Mr. Thomas Lloyd Armitage, well known planter in Papua for 23 years, and for the past three years a director of Steamships Trading Co. Ltd., died in Port Moresby of a heart attack on February 13.

He was 46.

Mr. Armitage, whose family had a sheep station near Dubbo, New South Wales, arrived in Papua in early 1946 to work as a plantation assistant for the British New Guinea Development Company.

He became an expert on copra, rubber and cocoa during the next 20 years, working at Daru, Kerema, Abau, and Milne Bay.

He joined Steamships in the early 1960’s as a plantation inspector.

Mr. Armitage is survived by his wife, Muriel, and daughter, Bronwyn, 17, of Port Moresby.

Mr. J. E. Bish Mr. John Edward Bish, who died at Lami, Fiji, on January 29, aged 78, had a long maritime career.

He was born in New Zealand, and served his indentures as an engineer with W. H. Terry and Sons and Bish Engineering Works, Suva.

He became a USS Co. engineer in 1913, and worked his way up to be come chief engineer.

In World War II he was a member of the FRNVR, and supervised the repair of US Navy ships in Suva.

After the war he joined the Fiji Government as a mechanical en gineer, and retired in 1952.

Mr. Bish, in World War I, served in the USS Co.’s cargo ship Wairuna, which was captured by the German raider, Wolf.

Mr. Norman Marchant An Australian master builder, Mr.

Norman Marchant, who helped build the new government offices in Fiji during World War 11, died in Sydney on February 28, aged 73.

He left a widow and three sons.

Mr. B. M. Sellers Mr. Basil Sellers, formerly Super intendent of Prisons in Fiji, died on February 7.

He was a kindly man who intro duced several reforms in the Fiji Prison Service. The major one was the establishment of a prison farm at Naboro, a few miles out of Suva.

He was born in London in 1903 and trained as a mechanical engineer before migrating to New Zealand.

He went to Fiji during World War

11, and commanded the 2nd Dock Company, FMF, in the Solomons.

From 1946 to 1948 he was aide-de camp to the then Governors, Sir Alexander Grantham and Sir Brian Freeston.

Mr. Sellers entered the Fiji Prison service in 1948 as Assistant Super intendent of Prisons, and became Superintendent in 1956. He retired in 1964.

Mr. Sellers was a prominent bowler and wrote a weekly column on bowling for The Fiji Times.

He was a member of the Transport Control Board.

Mr. Sellers leaves a widow.

Mrs. Rose Blair Mrs. Rose Blair, a well-known Fiji resident, died at Suva in mid- February, aged 83.

She was born on the island of Taveuni, the only daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John Wall, who owned a plantation.

Mrs. Blair lived in Sydney for a number of years, and in 1911 re turned to Fiji to marry Mr. A. M. B.

Blair.

When Mr. Blair retired—he was with the Government Printer and later with the Fiji Times and Herald Ltd. —Mr. and Mrs. Blair lived on the island of Namuka.

They returned to Suva in 1946, after Mr. Blair sold his Namuka in terests. Mr. Blair died some years ago.

Mrs. Blair is survived by a son and a daughter.

Mr. A. V. Ram Narayan Mr. A .V. Ram Narayan, who died at Lautoka, Fiji, in January, aged 62, was a well-known teacher and ad ministrator in Fiji.

After his retirement from school teaching he became Assistant District Officer, Lautoka, a post he held at his death.

He leaves a widow and two sons.

Mr. P. L. Jackson The death occurred in Sydney on January 19 of Mr. Peter Lewis Jack son (formerly Lazarus) after a short illness. He was well-known in Fiji.

Mr. Jackson was the son of Mr. and Mrs. Lewis Lazarus, and was born in Suva on November 3, 1913.

He was educated in Suva and at Kings College, Auckland.

During World War II he held the post of Major OC, 4th Fiji Battalion.

He left a widow Beryl, and four children.

Saravina Radrotini Saravina Radrotini, last villager from the old village of Suva, which is now the site of Suva’s Botanical Gardens, died in February. She was in her 86th year.

Captain J. C. Radley

Captain John Clifton Radley, for 32 years a Seventh-day Adventist missionary in the South-West Pacific, died at his home in Swansea, NSW, on February 19, aged 73.

Captain Radley was born at Castle Hill, NSW. He studied for mission service from 1915-17 at the Aus tralasian Missionary College (now Avondale College, Cooranbong).

Captain Radley’s first mission ap pointment was as mate on the mission ship Melanesia. He com manded several Adventist mission vessels in the South-West Pacific operating from mission bases in the Solomon Islands, the New Hebrides and New Guinea.

He leaves a widow, Rose, and two daughters.

Mrs. May James Mrs. May James, widow of the late Mr. E. A. (“Jimmy”) James, died in Brisbane in mid-February. She lived in Papua for about 40 years.

Mrs. James, formerly Mrs. F. D.

Ross, of Obu Plantation, Papua, married Mr. James in 1955. He died in 1963.

Mr. James ran the newspaper Papuan Courier for many years until 1942.

Mrs. James is survived by a daughter, Mrs. Ivan Champion, and a son, Mr. S. Ross, who works for the Australian Department of Civil Aviation.