LIFE SAVED BY DEW

Grey River Argus, 11 September 1940, Page 3

LIFE SAVED BY DEW

MAN LOST IN BUSH. SYDNEY, August 15. Heavy dew which he found on leaves after he had been for 60 hours without water, saved the life of Frank Wilmer, an employee at Dunmarra cattle station, near Daly Waters, North Australia. Wilmer left a water hole and got into heavily-timbered country, where he lost his saddle horse and his way. For- two nights he made dry ca'mps, and, foodless, went to sleep in the scrub. “I woke to find the leaves covered with dew,” he said, “and sucking them, I eased my parched mouth and throat. Then I shook the branches to scatter drops all over me.” Tramping all that day he came at sundown to a small water hole. “I shouted for joy—but the water was thick and scummy,” he said. “A dead kangaroo was in it; so all I could do was to rinse my mouth and soak my handkerchief. That night I had another dry camp, but the next day 1 came on the dry bed of a creek, which eventually proved my salvation. There was moisture, but no water, in the sand, so I followed it until, eight miles farther on, I dug r.' hole into which water soaked. r had a tobacco tin which I filled again and again.” The weary trek continued for live days in all during which Wilmer covered 80 miles, was without water for two days and a half, and without food, except for a scrap of corned beef he picked up at a recently-va-cated musterers’ camp, for five days. Ultimately he reached Nutwood Downs station. The leader of a search party described Wilmer as being “all in” when he reached the station.