THREE STOWAWAYS DISCOVERED

Dominion, Volume 27, Issue 69, 14 December 1933, Page 9

THREE STOWAWAYS DISCOVERED

Byrd Expedition Ship

HID THEMSELVES ON BOAT ON EVE OF SAILING (Received December 13, 7 p.m.) Special to the United Press Association from the Byrd Expedition—By Radio. ( The Jacob Ruppert, at Sea, Dec. 13. At 7 o’clock on Tuesday afternoon the Jacob Ruppert was about eight hours from Wellington cruising at ten knots forty miles south of Cape Palliser. During boat drill three stowaways were found hidden in a boat, to the consternation of the officers, as the ship is already heavily manned. Turning back to Wellington was out of the question, so Rear-Admiral Byrd was forced to put them to work as deck hands. The stowaways identified themselves as Robert Christian, Geoffrey Wrey, and Michael Pilcher, all -Auckland youths, the eldest of whom is 23. One explained that they tried to enlist as expedition members, and when they were refused they hid in the boat the night before sailing. “We would like to have a go at the South Pole,” said one. .

As the vessel approaches the roaring forties, preparations are being made for a stormy passage. The decks have been cleared for action. The extra cylindrical water tanks mounted in the forecastle head have been moved to the well deck and secured to the bulwark forward. The well deck has been swept clear of miscellaneous cargo. ’ SEEKING ADVENTURE Ex-Gold Prospectors DETAILS OF STOWAWAYS By Telegraph.—Press Association. Auckland, December 13. Geoffrey Wray, who will be 22 years old next month, is a son of Mr. and Mrs. W. G. Wray, Remuera and a brother of Mr. J. W. Wray, an engineering student, who has built a yacht in the garden of his home. The yacht will be launched next week. Pilcher is 27 years old and the son of Mr. William Pilcher, Otahuhu. It is understood that Christian has relatives at Karori, Wellington, although of recent months he has been gold prospecting at Coromandel in company with the other two. It was known that the three men are seeking adventure and they had expressed their intention of going to Wellington to see if they could join the crew of a boat that would take them overseas. The news that they had joined the Byrd Expedition, however, came as a dramatic surprise ’to their relatives. ■ “Geoffrey was always looking for adventure,” said Mr. Wray io-night. ‘‘But we had not the faintest idea that he would try to go to the South Pole.” After leaving Auckland Grammar School Geoffrey Wray was employed on the Auckland staff of Wright, Stephenson and Co., Ltd., and was then transferred to the firm’s Hamilton branch. He was at Hamilton for about nine months and then six or seven months ago went to Coromandel gold prospecting with Christian and Pilcher. He was formerly a member of the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve at Auckland and was a keen yachtsman. At one time he was part owner.of the yacht Oringi. He had endeavoured to join the crews of various sailing ships which had visited AucklanJ but the terms offered were not sufficiently attractive.