TWELVE SQUARE MILES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20969, 4 September 1931, Page 10

TWELVE SQUARE MILES.

EXTENT OE THE SEARCH. GATHERING IN THE WILDS. A STUDY IN GARMENTS. USE ,'OF OLD SURVEY CAMP. i [BY TELEGRAPH.—SPECIAL REPORTER.] THE CHATEAU, Thursday. The class of country in which Mr. Warwick Stanton is lost is extraordinarily inaccessible. When strong men traverse it with misgivings one does not wonder how the inexperienced may become hopelessly lost. Something of its dangerous character was learned by a Herald representative, who penetrated six miles through the bush to-day to. the base camp established at the junction of two arms of the Makatote River, on the southern ;side of Hauhungatahi Mountain. Here search parties numbering many men, concentrated for a renewed onslaught on the ground where the missing man is believed to be located. The bald statement that these men searched over an area 12 square miles in extent conveys no idea of the superhuman feat it involved. It is a feat which no one but expert bushmen versed in forest tactics could possibly hope to accomplish. All of course were not bushmien and some did not possess the stamina and gait which eats up the miles. On occasions the inexperience of some members of a party occasionally brought them down to single file, instead of extended order. A Strange Scene. It was a strange scene at the confluence of the Makatote tributaries. Upon the decaying skeleton of an old survey camp a few sacks had been spread to cover the food and alongside was a fire, upon which kerosene tins of tea were boiled. About 2 p.m. a heavy fall of hail and then snow fell. The garments of the men drinking tea out of jam tins and pannikins were a •study. One recognised a constable's overcoat beneath which grey trousers terminated iii sacking tied round ankles—a common device. Here was the uniform of a fire brigade man with the regulation tomahawk at the side. A business man's suit sadly dilapidated was alongside the excellent waterproof coat of the bushman, and here and there were the gay caps of an alpine club.

The saddest outfit was a golf suit with stockings fallen over muddy boots, and the pants with buckles broken at three-quarter-mast. Zeal to Save Life. And in the heart of the bush were then 200 men inspired with the zeal to save life. The six-mile track to this point is not a track. Where Mr. Addis was found it was a blazed trail for survey men. For the passage of Mr. Addis' stretcher saplings were removed on the ope-cut principle, the cutters working as fast as the stretcher bearers could walk. Many feet since then have churned into the appalling quagmire in which at times one sinks knee dee]) and lias to pull out the foot with effort. Many fallen trees form barriers. It is a dreadful track, and because of that, the bushmen make merry. The free to which Mr. Addis was holding when rescued is marked by a deep blaze—a real milestone in the search. SYMPATHY OF CITY. EXPRESSION BY MAYOR. RECOGNITION OF SEARCHERS. Reference to the anxious time through which thm people of the Dominion have passed as a result of the tramping party being lost, on Ruapehu was made by the Mayor, Mr. G. W. Hutchison, at a meeting of the City Council last evening. Mr. Hutchison said that earlier in the week he sent a message to the manager of the Chateau, on behalf of the council, expressing concern at the occurrence. Yesterday he forwarded to the city solicitor, Mr. J. Stanton, and Mrs. Stanton, the council's sympathy with them in the ordeal, they have experienced and expressing the hope' that their son would be restored to them. It seemed to him, said the Mayor, that no praise was too high for the manager of the Chateau and all those instrumental in searching for the missing climbers. He suggested that some tangible effort should be made to show appreciation for their work. If: was perhaps too early as yet to name the amount of money the council might contribute. In,moving that the action of the Mayor be approved, Mr. A. J. Entrican suggested that the amount of the council's contribution be left to the Mayor. Mr. Entrican's resolution waß adopted.