UNKNOWN AUSTRALIA.

Auckland Star, Volume LV, Issue 250, 21 October 1924, Page 4

UNKNOWN AUSTRALIA.

| There are two points of interest in the I extraordinary story of the captivity of white women in Northern Australia and ! what has followed. The human side of j the story naturally makes the 'strongest appeal. If there arc such captives Australians cannot rest until they are 'released. The expedition sent out by | the Federal Government, however, did not find them, and the Government has come to the conclusion that the story, which it is said rests on the word of one native, arose from the presence of women missionaries in the Far North. It is worth noting that this explanation was put forward by a Sydney paper before the expedition returned, and apparently a full report from the searchers has not yet been received. The Port Darwin people are not satisfied. Fresh evidence has come to light, and they are sending two expeditions to Arnhcim Land. It is like looking for a moving needle in a haystack, for Arnbeim Land is no man's land, and the aborigines do not show themselves wlun a expedition goes through. If they hold white women captive they can easily hide them. The second point that the whole business emphasises is the limited nature of the hold Australians have on the Northern Territory. From Port Darwin eastward across Arnheim Land to the Gulf of Carpentaria is 400 miles, and over tho greater part of this territory there is no Government authority. It is therefore possible for white persons to be captured by blacks in Australia and held indefinitely. This is an indication of the small progress that settlement has made in the North, which is the part of Australia nearest to the teeming populations of Asia and the East Indies.