STEVENSON’S GRAVE

Press, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22305, 20 January 1938, Page 1 (Supplement)

STEVENSON’S GRAVE

Vandalism and Neglect

It is reported from London that complaints have been made of the neglect of Robert Louis Stevenson’s grave at Apia on the island of Upolu in the Samoan group. The Scottish writer died near Apia on December 3, 1894, and was buried at the top of a hill near the town. At the foot of the hill is a memorial tablet in low-relief showing Stevenson lying on _ his couch and writing a prayer of goodwill and 'cheer. The words are: “Give us grace and. strength to forbear and to persevere; give us courage and gaiety and the quiet mind; spare to us our friends, soften to us our enemies, bless us if it may be in all our innocent endeavours; if it may not give us the strength to encounter that which is to come that we may be brave in peril, constant in tribulation, temperate in wrath, and in all changes of fortune and down to the gates of death, loyal and loving to one another.”; Now travellers to Samoa have reported the vandalism and neglect suffered by the grave. Names have been‘scratched on the surface, chunks of the concrete slab have been removed and the site has fallen into a neglected state. The Robert Louis Stevenson Club in Edinburgh and other persons interested have suggested that a curator might be appointed to care for the grave and to prevent vandalism. More than one offer has been made for money to cover the cost of restoring the grave and keeping it in repair. It is added in the report that the approach to the grave, by the beautiful bridle path, had become in places impassable, blocked with tropical undergrowth. But the Administration has provided labour in recent months to keep the path clear. Apia is the chief town and seaport of the Samoan island group and the chief town of the territory of Western Samoa, the former German territory which has been administered by New Zealand since the. war of 1914-18. The group consists also of the part known as the Samoan Islands, to the east of the maL. group, a possession of the United States of America since 1872. The only port is Pago Pago. t Beef Cattle Imported Thirty-two head of Polled Shorthorn beef cattle, said to be the largest and most valuable shipment ever to enter Australia, arrived at Sydney on Monday from the United States. The cattle are consigned to Mr E. L. Killen, owner of the Antrim Shorthorn stud at Mumbil, New South Wales. Mr Killen believes that these cattle will ultimately be the type to provide the beef for the Australian export trade. Dutch Vessel Sunk The 3730 ton Dutch merchant ship, Hannah, was sunk by a torpedo from a submarine off Gape San Antonio, on the Spanish Mediterranean coast. The crew was rescued. • >,

Jugoslav Peasant 137 Years Old A peasant named Bozo Labowitsch, who claimed to be 137 years old, died at Nisch this week. He took part in seven wars and served as a volunteer in 1914, though more than 100 years old. He won 25 medals.