People

• New Zealand pharmacist Mr.

Ralph Eades left for Tonga recently to advise and supervise the Tongan Medical Department’s dispensaries, pharmacy and medical stores sections.

He will work at Vaiola Hospital, Nukualofa, as a VSA member. • Mr. Bertram Charles Ballard, who was sent to New Caledonia dur ing the war years as official repre sentative of the Australian Govern ment, made what he termed a “sentimental journey” of return to the territory in January.

Mr. Ballard also visited the New Hebrides, where he had spent the early days of his career as a lawyer for the Commonwealth in the land claims issue. He was happy to meet again with old associates of 1934-40.

Friends such as Maitre G.

Desgranges, Mr. Louis Page and Mr.

Buteri. • A Solomons girl, Salome Kaleia, of Suagi Village, lost a foot in a shark attack on Guadalcanal recently and was reported in Feb ruary making a satisfactory recovery at Central Hospital, Honiara. She was washing clothes at the mouth of Balesuna River, near Henderson Airfield when attacked.

About the same time, on Santo, New Hebrides, a Hebridean called Jimmy, a medical dresser on his way to visit patients by canoe, was speared by a swordfish which re portedly jumped out of the water into his leg. He managed to remove the fish and paddled one-handed to shore where friends found him weak through loss of blood. In February he was in the French base hospital at Santo, recovering. • A New Zealander, Dr. Euan C.

Young, has been appointed head of the South Pacific Rhinoceros Beetle Project. He was due to take up his post at Apia headquarters, Western Samoa, at the beginning of February.

For the past seven years, Dr.

Young has been Senior Lecturer in Zoology at the University of Canter bury. He has led the university’s Antarctic research expedition each year since 1964.

Dr. Young succeeds Australian entomologist Mr. A. (Mick) Catley as Project Manager of the Rhinoceros Beetle campaign. This joint UNDP/ SPC protect was begun five years ago, with its current budget con tinuing until mid-1972.

• Mr. Pierre Hery, an inter national labour organisation adviser in hotel and catering trades training, arrived in Vila recently on a four week mission financed by the UN Development Programme. A con siderable investment is being made in tourist facilities in the New Hebrides—an estimated 156 hotel rooms requiring a staff of 138 by 1971—and at present there is only trained staff of 43.

Mr. Hery considered the establish ment of training courses in hotel and catering, and, subject to his recom mendations, further assistance from UNDP may come in the form of instructors and equipment. • Usaia Sotutu and Saimoni Tamani, Fiji’s two top runners, were due to leave for New Zealand in February. They aim to spend some months in Auckland, competing and training with some of NZ’s track stars. • Captain Ron Gillies, an Airlines of NSW pilot who has been flying flving-boats from Sydney to Lord Howe Island for the past 16 years, was recently given a farewell buffet tea bv islanders. He left the airline to pilot flying-boats for another firm in the West Indies. • Australian Commissioner in Fiji, Mr. R. N. Birch, made one of his periodic visits to Tonga recently to discuss matters of common in terest between the two countries. He

revealed that a report had been submitted to Tonga on the introduc tion of a probation service there and that a further report would soon be available on the upgrading of tele phone services in the area. Australian aid to the kingdom is believed to be in the region of $278,000 in equip ment of various kinds in the past five years ending June. • Although he has now been living in Sydney for a couple of years, John Grover’s faith in finding rich deposits of some kind of mineral in the British Solomons has never diminished.

He gave a two-part talk on ABC radio at the end of January in which he predicted that the BSIP was on the verge of an extracted-mineral in dustry undreamed of 20 years ago.

The Protectorate, he said, was rich in nickel, copper, bauxite, manganese, gold and silver. Mitsui, Utah De velopment and Conzinc Riotinto were all interested.

Mr. Grover left the BSIP in 1967 to become Director of Geological Surveys, Fiji, for over a year. He is now general manager of Kathleen Investments, in Sydney. • Manager of Rarawai sugar mill, Fiji, Mr. G. F. Adams, retired on January 15 and was due to leave Fiji shortly afterwards to take up per manent residence in New South Wales.

Mr. Adams was born at Nausori where his father was an accountant with the Colonial Sugar Refining Company Ltd. He joined CSR in 1926 as a sugar chemist and was first stationed at the head office laboratory in Sydney.

He spent two years in Fiji—at both the Penang and Nausori mills—from 1929 to 1931, returned then to Aus tralia and was back again as a shift chemist at Penang mill from 1938 until 1948.

After fulfilling superintending positions at Labasa, Rarawai and Lautoka mills, Mr. Adams was promoted manager of the Rarawai mill in 1958. He held the position until his retirement in January. • Princess Pilolevu, 18-year-old daughter of King Taufa’ahau of Tonga arrived in Auckland on Feb ruary 11 to attend Auckland Kinder garten Training College.

She will live in the royal residence in Epsom, and will attend the college for two years.

The princess, sister of 21-year-old Princess Siuilikutanu, was educated at Diocesan High School, where her cousin, Princess Ose'ina. the daughter of the Tongan Prime Minister, Prince Tuipelehake, is now at school.

Mr. Ernie Forde, newest travel manager for Burns Philp in Los Angeles, is a travel man from way back, having operated his own agency in Hawaii for many years until selling out several months ago and joining BP's.