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Otago Witness, Issue 4039, 11 August 1931, Page 67

BACK TO CIVILISATION

TWO YEARS’ EXILE ENDED CAMPBELL ISLAND PARTY. PLIGHT OF MAROONED MEN. A vivid story of island life and the nai dships caused* by lack of proper food was given to our representative last week by Messrs John and Arthur Warren, who, with Messrs Harry Warren and A bpence, were brought to Bluff on Sunday night by the steamer Tamatea after a lonely exile of two years on Campbell Is.and more .than 400 miles south-east of New Zealand. Messrs John and Arthur ” arren, who hold the lease of the island, travelled to Dunedin on Monday of last week. It was expected that a steamer would call at the island 12 months ago, but the visit did not eventuate, and, as months passed without prospect of relief for the men, concern was ielt for their safety An arrangement was therefore made with Captain R. J Hamilton, with the result that a fortnight ago the men were taken off the island. Mr J. Warren and his nephew Arthur t?,, ° v « sr the island from a syndicate m 192 b, Mr A. Warren .ravelling there in December of that year. Mr J. Warren followed a year later in the whale-chaser Star VI. Regular yearly steamer visits were made until August, 1929. Since that time, however, the four men, until the lamatea s visit, had been completely ent off from the outside world. In 1920 there were 3000 sheep on the island, but the number has now increased to over 4000. What their fate and that of the 10 head of cattle on the island is to be is at the moment uncertain. At present the island is completely deserted, and it is probable that it will remain so unless arrangements can be made for regular steamer visits. The Tamatea brought back 124 bales of wool and skins, as well, as over 100 seal skins, which are stated to be worth not a great deal at the present time. RATIONING OF STORES When the last steamer called at the island it bi ought stores for a year, but before that period had elapsed the party realised that rationing might be advisable. As time went on it became necessary to mix tapioca rice, sago, and split peas, which were ground as finely as possible, with the Hour, and this mixture was used for the making of bread. Gradually the proportion of flour was reduced until in November last the supplies of flour ran out. As time passed the stores of food, which for months had provided no variety, became less and less, and from April until relief arrived —a period of over three months—the men lived entirely on tea, mutton, fish and the flesh of a variety of shag found on the island. There was no fresh milk on the island, and the supplies of condensed milk were exhausted over a year ago. In the early stages of the rationing period the men’s health was seriously affected, Mr Harry Warren being the worst sufferer. According to Mr Arthur Warren it was “ touch and go ” for some time, and it was only due to the men’s wisdom in imposing upon themselves a gradual system of rationing that they were able to accustom themselves to their sparse diet. Aleals on the island had never been elaborate, but tne * a ®t ew months provided hardships which severely taxed the men’s strength and good spirits. They realised that there was no escape from their position until a vessel arrived, and, by adopting a cheerful outlook, they lived a more or less contented life. In fact, they became so used to their diet that Mr John Warren considers that they could have lived without serious impairment of their health for a considerable time longer. For a time in the early yetrts : 'i the W arrens’ occupancy of the island vegetables were successfully grown, but. swarms of water rats began to invade the garden, and only small quantities were subsequently cultivated.

Lack of food, however, was not the party s only difficulty. Messrs H. Warre” Spence had brought with them sufficient clothing for only a year, and the men had to share what thev had left. Air Spence s boots began to wear out, and for months his.feet were never dry. In the end he realised that lie would have to make his own boots. By a fortunate coincidence there happened to be a handbook dealing with bootmaking among the large store of reading matter on the island, and with its aid Mr Snence was able to make from some raw hide a pair °! boots which served for the remainder j. “is stay. Lighting paused another difficulty when the supplies of kerosene became exhausted in June last, but by a series of experiments means were found by which candles could be made from tallow. LIFE ON THE ISLAND In narrating their experiences the men made no complaint of the loneliness of their life. Darning and mending occupied a large proportion of their spare time, and for the remainder there was no lack of reading matter. In addition, they possessed a gramophone and 80 records. The only two packs of cards which they possessed were used until,their values could no longer be recognised. They were replaced by a “ scallywag ” game, which the party made from odd pieces of wood, and tournaments were regularly held. The balls, it may be added, were made from a mixture consisting mainly of tar. Fortunately, at no time was there any illness, and the party escaped injury of any kind, with the exception of a few cuts. The common cold, they stated, was unknown on the island. Despite the duration of their stay on the island, the men were enabled to keep themselves acquainted with the days of the. week by means of a rough diary in which records of the farming operations conducted by the party were entered by Mr Arthur Warren. An-interesting testimony of the accuracy with which this diary was kept is afforded by the fact that on the arrival of the Tamatea at the island the date and day of the week ■were known by the exiles. Moreover, ".he time was so accurately estimated by means of a compass that the time-pieces which

still functioned -were within five minutes of correct time.

On one occasion Mr John Warren saw whaling vessels anchored in a small bay, and set out to meet them. When he reached the brow of the last hill on his journey, however, he found that they had gone. ARRIVAL OF RELIEF It was in April, of 1930, that the men expected a boat to call, and they had made all preparation for its visit. Sheep had been mustered and were held for six weeks before they were again turned out. Two of the members were on a hilltop mustering sheep for food when they obtained their first sight of th . e , e . mc, 'fling from under a thick bank of mist. A few minutes later she had disappeared round a headland, and the men rushed to Perseverance Harbour to meet the vessel. They were taken on board and given a very welcome meal. They stated that the island was their home and in spite of these hardships which they had experienced they would be quite willing to go back. The news of the economic depression came as a severe blow to the party, for it was realised that the return for their two years work would be greatly reduced. DESCRIPTION OF THE ISLAND 'Die island, the men stated, had a mild climate and. though the weather was cold in the winter and there were occasional severe storms, the conditions were much less trying than on the mainland. A latge area of the island was covered with scrub, which made excellent firewood. Among the birds were starlings, blackbirds. thrushes, hedge sparrows, house sparrows, goldfinches, chaffinches, larks wax-eyes, and red polls. Nearly all the minerals in the world, including gold could be found on the island, but not in payable quantities. The island was the nesting place of the royal albatross, and the smoky albatross was also quite frequently seen. There were large rookeries of rock-hopper and cape penguins, and king penguins made occasional visits. Sea elephants, averaging 20 feet in length, were there in thousands, and other wild life consisted v sea Hons, and sea leopards. In the spring large numbers of whales were seen in the vicinity of the island. In February last four icebergs were sighted only three miles off the land, one remaining for a week. Die island is 28,000 acres in extent. There are 14 hilltops, the highest being Mount Honey (1867 feet), and the lowest, Beeman Hill (640 feet). There is one lake, 200 acres in extent, TAMATEA'S ROUGH PASSAGE The Tamatea’s voyage, which was not without perils, was described by Mr W. J. Stafford, of Messrs Wright, Stephenson’s stiff, who was a passenger on the. vessel. Bluff was left on the night of July 11, he stated, and there was every prospect of a good voyage. Soon strong winds sprang up. and Captain Hamilton was compelled to eeek shelter at Port Pegasus. Eleven days passed before the steamer could venture out, and during that time the men on Campbell Island, he afterwards found, experienced the worst weather during their stay, the ground being covered with snow for a week. Pegasus was left on a Thursday, and the following afternoon was spent at the Auckland Islands. On Saturday. July 25, the trip to Campbell Island was begun. Rough conditions and fog were experienced, the vessel at first sailing past tile island to the north. Land was sighted, however, at 1 o’clock on Sunday afternoom At first no sign of life could be discerned, and as the Warrens’ launch could not be seen it was feared that they had put to sea in an endeavour to reach the mainland and had been lost. Later, it was found, however, that the launch had been lost from her moorings in a sudden storm nearly two years previously. The first welcome sign of life was a dog Mr Stafford and a member of the crew landed and, going into the house, found the range warm, thus effectively dispelling any fears of disaster. On the return voyage the vessel ran into extremely rough weather, which, Mr Stafford stated, Captain Hamilton described as the worst in his 37 years’ experience at sea. Mr Stafford paid a warm tribute to the seamanship of Captain Hamilton and to the seaworthiness of the Tamatea.