SURVEY OF EVENTS

Evening Post, Volume CXI, Issue 73, 27 March 1931, Page 10

SURVEY OF EVENTS

DID THE ENTON SEE HER?

COMMENT AND REPLY

(To the Editor.) Sir, —The fact 3 disclosed in the letter from the Rev. W. S. Rollings published in your last Friday's issue seem to call for an investigation. As far as wo can ascertain the position appears to be as follows: — (1) The Windward left tho Chatham Islands on 6th January. (2) On 15th January she was sighted by the Enton 40 miles off Cape Palliser. (3) The captain of the Enton duly reported this fact to the Marine Department on his arrival in Wellington the following day . (4) About and subsequent to this date much anxiety was publicly displayed in the Press regarding tho yacht's fate. (5) On or about 30th January the Matai was sent by the Marine Department to the Bounty Islands to search for the yacht. Tho captain had heard of the sighting by the Enton, but was instructed by the Marine Department to take a course which must have been contrary to his own judgment. (6) Only last week did the fact of the Enton's report become known, through a casual leakage in the Department, to Mr. W. S. Rollings. Although it is impossible to say whether or not the yacht would have been saved had it been generally known that on 15th January, she was but one day's sail from Wellington, yet her nonarrival would have resulted in an immediate intensive local search being made, with at least the probability of the rescue of the crew. At, any rate, the expenditure of public money involved in the cruise of the Matai would have been avoided. As the yacht was off Cape Palliser on 15th January she would have been due on 17th January, and yet those in possession of the facts took no action. An explanation by the Department certainly should be forthcoming, but, though Mr. Rollings's letter was published in the "Evening Post" of Friday last, there has been no word from the Department. The very fact that the captain of the Matai was ordered to search the coast seems to indicate that the matter was not resting lightly on someone's conscience. The further fact that at no time did the Department make any effort to communicate this latest piece of news to any of the crew's relatives or to the Press seems to indicate that it had a nasty secret to keep. We are reluctant to ventilate matters which must result in distress to those bereaved by these tragic circumstances, but we believe that tho public should know all the facts of this regrettable bungling.—We are, etc., G. R. POWLES. J. F. GAVIN.