QUESTIONED!

Grey River Argus, 17 April 1929, Page 5

QUESTIONED!

FLIGHT AND LANDING Of Southern Cross (Australian & N.Z. Cable Assn.) (Received April 16 at 9.45 p.m.) SYDNEY, April 16. Wilts claiimjing £2<>,ooo damages were to-day issued on behalf of Squadron-Leader Kingsford Smith, and Lieutenant Ulm against Smith’s Newspapers, Limited. The writs are owing to the publication in the “Daily Guardian,” both yesterday and to-day, of statements and comments reflecting upon the Southern Cross flight and upon its landing.

NO ENQUIRY TO *E ' SYDNEY, April 16. The Air Accidents’ Investigation Committee which was created by the Federal Government in. 1927, to inquire into tho Masons for all forced landings, has intimated that it does no intend to hold «,ay inquiry regarding the Southern Cross, unless directed to do so by the Federal Government!. Still No Tidings OF ANDERSON’S PLANE. (Reed. April 16 at 9 10 p.m.) ' SYDNEY, April 10. SSvejml aerpjpUanes, (including Air Force machines, are now engaged in the search for Anderson and Hitch cock. So far there are no tidings of them whatever. Missing Moth Located BADLY DAMAGED. DARWIN, April 16. Th?i Moth aeroplane in which Captain Murray and his wife were travelling south, was badly damaged, follow ’’WW -f° rce d landing near Warloch. A laSQg was safely effected, but in at tempting to rise again, the plane struck the scrub ,and was damag 4 'd boyond repair. The occupants were unhurt.

; ULM‘S STORY Just About To Starve ! WHEN CANBERRA CAME. to Sun, Sydney.) (Received April 16 at 7.30 p.m.) SYDNEY, April 16. In a further dispatch, Lieutenan 1 . Ulm says:— Th e hour that the Canberra flew ov ** Coffee Royal was one of ihe most memorable in our lives, for, wlthou : exaggeration, we were ju t on the point of complete starvation, and were utterly exhausted. Spring tides had covered the mudflats to the south, com pletely cutting off our main food sup ply of mud snails. The few adjacent waterholes in the foothills were dried up, and we were far too weak to climb to our best water supply—half way up Darlinghurst Hill; and even this fast drying up. We h,ad a supply of beanweeds han dy, but the sun was fa-t drying even them. Our faces, arms and legs were lacerated by grass and bramble cu s f and the flies were poisoning these sores’ rapidly. A painful death by starva tion and thirst was not more than three days away. It can be relised, in view of the condition wo were in, and the awful twelve days we had been through, that we were literally

Almostln?ane with excitement on that memorable Friday morning. Before Les Holden flew away, he dropped a note saying that he probably would return the fol lowing day with more food. We then settled down to some steady eating To me., several outstanding features ol this experience are left. Firstly is the knowledge of how much abuse the hu man frame will stand up to without breaking down altogether; and here I pay a tribute to my comrades’ won derful efforts. None of us ar e by any means physically perfect. Three of us nominally weigh about ten and a half stone each. Yet, at the end of twelve days of almost total starvation, one (Litchfield) is still capable of hard physical work under the most trying conditions, though even ho could not have lasted more than another two days- Smithy, the smallest of stature and the lighter of us all. .caved in only on the night of the eleventh day. Prior to .bis, he certainly worked the most stenuou-ly of all. His energy was truly abounding. Mac and I were practically on a level. We lasted well UP to the ninth day, bur thereafter we were physically incapable of further real hand work. If we ever have to go through such trying tunes again, Smithy and I could dsire no better comrades than Litch and Mac. They were splendid. Mac is A Born Humorist.

Ho was always cheerful, a.ol he kcp. u , amused all the time. Some people aav that the mouth organ is not wor thv of the name of a musical in’tru Lent Well, they have not heard Mac one. When things wer c blackest he would strike up a lively tune, and brighten us all up greatly. b g THE RADIO. The radio was' our greatest boon Fvery night, after Mae got our emer aency aerial fixed. w e received Sydglv Less news about the search fo' ”7 It was heart-breaking sometimes ? note how far away the searchers ° If we had had the means to

WRITE TO MINSONS, CHRISTCHURCH. S'! •" •••“V p “ 11 "‘ •“* carvers . Advr