Letters

Return To The Islands

Sir, —I have pleasure in returning for your interest the reader survey questionnaire from the December issue of PIM. I am not entering any competition, but my reaction stems from genuine interest. In the main, my interest is mercenary. As a member of the largest cablemaking group in the world I recognise the growing potential in the South Pacific basin, and find the odd snippets of information in your publication most useful. In one or two instances a “follow through” has resulted in business, albeit of a modest nature, but business.

And, I find in your pages, a certain nostalgia which essentially must be crazy. Such an emotion is created for me in your December issue, in your report on the Tarawa an niversary ceremonies. On that Nov ember day in 1943 I found myself a very junior 21-year-old officer of the Royal Navy, along with elements of your Australian forces, and the larger majority of US Marines, all exercising a bit of mayhem on Tarawa. I was not so calm then as I am now, nor was I so grey-haired, but having left the odd bit of skin and the minute drop of blood to add to the GEIC “fertilisation pro gramme” on Tarawa, you can perhaps appreciate my crazy feeling of nostalgia.

Additionally, while recognising the healing properties of time, I must confess to the tiniest feeling of satisfaction at the [Japanese casualty] statistics in the final paragraph of that article. Except that it doesn’t prove a thing in face of various social engagements I enter into with Japanese businessmen these days!

But, at least, in sporting parlance it was an “away win”.

Well, if for one reason or another the names of Tarawa, Eniwetok, Okinawa and Iwo Jima are stuck in my brain, I equally enjoy reading simple but heart-warming stories of the shortage of back-combs on Rarotonga, the problems of fryer rabbits on Norfolk Island, and the voracious appetites of West Samoan women.

The article on the “Amorous Tongans of 300 Years Ago” leaves me wondering—did I join the Royal Navy too late —or, alternatively, why

did we not set up a base in Tonga rather than Manus?

Keep up the high standard of your magazine, which will mean that if my fates decide I am never to have another drink in Aggie Greys, at least I can read of Aggie’s progress —may her bottles never run dry!

Without being too presumptious, if you should think of this as a reader’s letter, I would prefer to remain anonymous. I wish to remain friendly with the Tongans, what with oil popping up all over the place, etc.!

Crazy Nostalgia.

London.

Sir, —This letter is late with the subject, but I just received my December issue yesterday, and I was interested in the letter from Victor Chapman ( PIM, Dec., p. 11) about “the Missing Zero”. It brought to mind one Japanese aircraft I visited during my search work with the US War Graves unit. On checking my work book I find that on March 10, 1947, we were working in the Wide Bay area of New Britain and checked out a downed single engine Japan ese fighter plane to verify that it wasn’t a New Zealand plane which was reported to be down in this area. According to my memory this aircraft was due south from the Kalai Plantation. We stopped at the plantation after the day’s work and stuffed ourselves on pomelos which were plentiful at the time.

Our ship had tied up at the former Tol dock in the Henry Reid Bay corner of Wide Bay, on March 7.

The T-shaped jetty completely col lapsed the afternoon of the Bth.

With eight natives we went inland through the Kalai plantation to investigate the Japanese aircraft.

So if anyone still knows this air craft and its present condition they might sing out, and inform those of us interested, I never get tired of looking through that old work book and reliving those fond memories.

Robert T. Smith.

Sierra Vista, Arizona, USA.

The Cost Of Shipping

Sir, —I recently had occasion to ship, from Auckland to Honiara via Santo, a 22-ft run-about launch, com plete with its trailer, total weight 33 cwt. Ocean freight for the entire journey was $4lB. Trans-shipment

charges at Santo: SEVEN HUNDRED

And Seventy-Five Dollars.

This astonishing charge is made up as follows: The condominium, which owns the wharf, charged wharfage (each way) $162.80, i.e., $325.60.

Societe Portuaire, which runs the wharf, charged: (a) For unloading from the first ship on to the wharf, and re-loading on to the second ship, that is to say, for wharfingers and winchmen per haps 40 minutes’ work, $198.64. (b) For “cartage”, $250.40. The launch was already mobile on its cradle, so this latter figure is for towing or pushing it about 50 yards to a vacant (and unsheltered) spot on the wharf, and subsequently back again to ship’s side—perhaps half an hour’s work for six or seven Mel anesians. (One wonders how much of it they received in wages).

When I complained, I was allowed as a concession to carry out the second part of the towing operation with my own labour, thus reducing the total charges to $650. I was very grateful.

I was told that Societe Portuaire’s contract had already expired, and the condominium is undecided whether to renew it. Perhaps it is time they made a change? Would “Madame X” care to comment?

Tom Hep Worth.

Reef Islands, Santa Cruz,

Bstp.

Prices Needed

Sir, We enjoy and appreciate your publication very much, and find the contents both valuable and interesting.

The purpose of this letter is to offer a single suggestion which we feel would be of value to all readers.

In the course of reading each issue we pay considerable attention to the advertisements and note quite often that where a price of a product is indicated that there is no distinction as to whether or not the figure quoted is in Australian dollars, US dollars, New Zealand dollars, or other currencies.

We feel therefore that it would be of value to readers throughout the Pacific if your advertisers were to indicate their respective monies.

William C. Brown Jr.,

Pago Builders and Engineers, Pago, American Samoa. • Advertisers might note Mr.

Brown’s letter. It is not the first similar request.