NOT OVERDUE

Gisborne Times, Volume LXX, Issue 11196, 3 May 1930, Page 5

NOT OVERDUE

FINNISH BARQUE OLIVE BANK GISBORNE LAD ABOARD United Press Assn, by El TeV Conyright MELBOURNE', May 2. The Finnish four-masted barque Olivo Bank is long overdue. The vessel left Sweden, nearly six months ago, and was last reported north' of the Equator in December. The above cable message from Melbourne is not correct, according to news received lately in Gisborne. The whole of the crew are Finns, with the exception of a Gisborne lad, formerly a well-known Poverty Bay rep cricketer and an ex-student of the Gisborne High School. A letter was received by., his parents in Gisborne a few weeks ago, written on December 14, from Tlandksvall, in the.; Gulf of Bosnia, and the ship was then on the eve of sailing for Melbourne. That was only four and a-half months ago, so that the statement that the ship has been nearly six months out is obviously 'incorrect. The Olive Bank is a four-masted barque, of about, 2000 tons, owned in Finland. Last year she left Port Lincoln (South Australia), for Queenstown (Ireland), and sailing via, Gape Horn took .120 days on the trip. From Queenstown she went to Belfast and /there discharged 56,000 hags of wheat.' On completion of discharge, she left in ballast for Sunsvall, Sweden, in the Gulf of Bosnia, where she commenced to load Baltic pine for Melbourne. After some weeks there she sailed for Hudksvall, to complete loading, and was to leave there on December 14. via. the Cape of Good Hope, for Melbourne. The letter was'written to the Gisborne lad's parents from Hudksvall, and the ship had then been eight weeks in the Gulf of Bosnia, with the temperature below zero practically all the time. If the Olive Bank left on her due date, December 14, she would have been only 159 days out to-day, and in /view of the fact that it was reported some weeks ago that she had not crossed the line, it is considered by those interested that the ship cannot he said to he. overdue at present. The Gisborne lad on hoard is seeing, the world for experience in navigation, rightly considering that life In a. windjammer gives-an experience. never' afforded on a. steamer. He is the only foreigner aboard the Finnish ship, hut has now learned the Finnish language, and is quite a fluent speaker. Incidentally his- first experience of seafaring life was thrilling for he was one of the crew of the Maroro some three or four years ago, when that well-known scow was oo days out-from Gisborne to Svdnov. The Maroro it may be recalled.. now lies on the beach between Wairoa and Napier.