Nutshell

In A Nutshell

• Line honours in the 1969 Auckland-Suva Yacht Race went to the biggest craft in the 27-yacht fleet, 62 ft Auckland cutter Kahurangi. She entered Suva just before 4 a.m. on April 27 setting a new record for the 1,200-mile journey in a time of seven days, 17 hours.

Corrected times seemed likely to give the outright win to Castanet, with six days, six hours, 17 mins and 18 secs. She was the smallest in the race.

In the last race—in 1966—line honours went to Fidelis which took eight days 16 hours.

Having experienced the course as a crewmember of Fidelis then un doubtedly helped Bill Wilson, skipper of Kahurangi.

Crewing on her were Wally Stuhl man, Bill Sunde, Scott Colville, Dave Johnson, Bruce Allen, John Jamie son, Dave Moselem, and Dave Scott.

Second over the line was the 46 ft sloop Myth of Arran skippered by Don Reid of Auckland.

Concord, 36 ft sloop, skippered by Mark Williams, finished fourth just behind the 53 ft yawl Kochab 11, skippered by John Franklin-Evans.

The favourite, Roulette 11, crossed the line in 11th place on April 28.

By then 16 yachts had arrived. ® Mr. Mick Lloyd, a principal in Higgin, Lloyd and Partners, Port Moresby engineers and architects, a popular citizen of the town for more than 15 years, and the son of Major- General H. W. Lloyd, crashed to his death from his office on the eighth floor af ANG House, Port Moresby, on April 27. This tragic end to his life stunned Port Moresby, and there was to be an inquiry. • For some months work has been proceeding on Aitutaki airstrip, Cook Is., to bring it into line with inter national specifications for DC4 air craft. The airstrip will be used while Rarotonga’s new jet airport is being built. In late March about 12,000 cubic yards of soil had been cleared from the side of the main strip, and 1,000 coconut palms cut down. The old control building was dismantled and rebuilt outside the clearance area, and 60 ft radio masts re-sited.

Accommodation for up to 75 over

night visitors will be provided in buildings, mainly of local materials, yet to be erected. But it now seems unlikely that DC4’s will be used; the RNZAF will probably supply Hercules. • In the Cook Islands’ hurricane season, which lasts from November to April, Rarotonga usually ex periences heavy rains and floods.

But this year there have been no really high winds, and practically no rain. The lack of rain on Rarotonga was beginning to be felt in March, as were the unusually high daily temperatures, ranging from the mid 80’s to 90.3 degrees.

The use of water for agriculture was prohibited as there was barely enough for domestic use. By late March very little water remained in the ring mains and most of the water intakes and streams had dried up.

Chinese cabbage, beans, and other green foods disappeared from Raro tonga’s market, and the growth of export citrus appeared to be retarded.

In Aitutaki by late March the water shortage had become serious and the supply from the main water catchment to the biggest village of Arutanga was cut off so that the hospital could still get water. A road was closed to> prevent dust drifting into the hospital and the operating theatre. 9 An announcement on April 10 that the Duke and Duchess of Kent will be visiting the Solomon Islands and the New Hebrides in September caused some excitement. The last British royal visitor in the Solomons was Prince Philip, who was there in 1958.

The Duke and Duchess will spend about a week in the two territories after opening the Third South Pacific Games in Port Moresby in August. • The Anglican Church in Papua- New Guinea in March took its next step towards independence with the approval of a new constitution for the diocese.

The proposed constitution was drawn up and presented to the Stand ing Committee of the Diocesan Con ference by the territory’s former Administrator, Sir Donald Cleland who is chancellor of the diocese.

Now the proposed constitution will be sent to the Diocesan Conference in June. If it is passed there it will go on for final approval to the Gen eral Synod of the Anglican Church in September.

The new constitution sets up a form of synodical government, giv ing the Anglican Church in Papua- New Guinea independence in admin istrative matters. It also reduces the

power of the bishop and gives clergy and laity a much bigger say in run ning the diocese. • Good progress is being made on the reconstruction and extension work at Henderson Field, near Honiara, and the final stages of work on the runway have already begun.

The project also includes improve ments to the terminal buildings.

The work, which began last May, has involved adding five to 12 inches of coral to the runway surface in a programme of regrading and com pacting the surface, which has in cluded a seal coat of bitumen.

The final stage of the work, which has just begun, necessitates the add ing of a two-course surface dress ing of bitumen and crushed stone, which will provide a runway capable of carrying aircraft up to DC6 size.

The extension work has added more than 1,000 ft to the original airfield and the final length is now 6,100 ft plus 600 ft of overrun. The project is expected to be completed by about September or October. • Delay on the start of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands’ $500,000, two mile causeway to link the two main government centres Betio and Bairiki on the administrative atoll of Tarawa is causing concern among residents of the colony. Britain has yet to pledge a cent for the cause way but the US charity, the Founda tion for the Peoples of the South Pacific, has offered about $lOO,OOO worth of help, in the form of a dredge. Only trouble is, the dredge was due to arrive in Tarawa from the US on April 1. It didn’t, and no one knows now when it will turn up.

Meanwhile Rosme Curtis has lost her job with the Foundation of the Peoples of the South Pacific—see p. 32. 9 The Cook Islands Government "'on April 21 issued an $8 definitive stamp. According to the government printer: “. . . with supplies exhausted of the $4 stamps, and rapidly de pleting quantities of the $2 and $6 stamps, it has been decided to also add this $8 denomination to the definitive series”.

The government printer explains further that there is a need in the Cooks for stamps of a high denomina tion because of indefinite mail services.

Well, mail services to and from the Cooks are indefinite. Nonetheless, it is hard to imagine anyone in the Cooks really needing an $8 stamp.

Is the Cook Islands Government issuing stamps for the sake of issuing stamps? Philatelists feel so. (See also “The Answer’s a Lemon,” p. 20).