EXPLORATION

Southland Times, Issue 20979, 11 January 1930, Page 11

EXPLORATION

THROUGH TAHITI AN ARDUOUS UNDERTAKING. This is the conclusion of an article on an explorer’s experience in Tahiti. The first part appeared in the Southland Times Magazine of Saturday last. Marooned in a Cave. “Ono of the bearers dragged the trunk of n tree into the oave and said that it was dry orange wood and would burn very well but it did not burn well anil the smoke from it made my eyes smart a great deal. We were all glad to see the dawn although tho heavy rain continued to fall. I sent the men to examine the river and they returned to say that it was in high flood and impassable and likely to remain so for several days unless the rain ceased. The tributary was also impassable and in any case we would have gained nothing by crossing it for there was no trail on the other side of it. “I got the natives to work and we improved conditions somewhat by building a lean-to shelter inside the cave but it was still very damp and I was nearly worried to death by Bolton’s condition. The sun peeped out occasionally during the day and the rain ceased for short intervals and the river fell a few inches but we could not cross. I spent another miserable night and my misery was increased by the state of my eyes which were very sore and inflamed and discharging a sticky fluid, which had a tendency to stick my eylids together. I lay awake thinking about our position and worried lest Bolton should die. He just lay under the lean-to and groaned and took no interest in anything. You can imagine ray position better than I can describe it. I was there with three sulky natives and a very sick man. Our rations were almost gone for the natives had gorged themselves on them during the first three days. We could not go forward and we could not go back, for the river had risen behind us, and I was almost blind with the effects of the smoke of the orange wood. “I asked the natives to make an attempt to reach Papenu, and so bring us food and assistance, but they would not attempt it. I offered to make the attempt myself if one of them would acompany me but they would not tackle it. “Bolton had bucked up a good deal on Friday and said that he felt equal to tackling the trail as soon as the river was passable. We discussed the position during the day and came to the conclusion tnat our friends would set out in search of us not later than on the Sunday for we were expected to return on the Wednesday. I cheeked our provisions and found that we had about 40 hard biscuits, two bunches of feiis, one tin of sardines and one tin of pate (paste). The bearers had eaten 12 loaves of bread and 10 tins of beef during the first three days but they were far from pleased when I. told them that we might be there for another three or four days and would have to live on two biscuits per man per day. Fortunately we had sufficient sugar and enough tea to see us through if we infused the same lot three times a day. “I asked the men to go back along our trail and get some oranges from the groves to help us out but they would not do so and said that the orange groves were a long way back, and to reach them they would have to cross tho river which was impassable. However, after some argument, Tenea picked up a sack and went off up the valley, at the mouth of which we were camped, and, after being absent for some hours, returned with about 40 oranges. These made a very welcome addition to our larder and we sampled them without delay. “On Saturday morning I was all but blind, but the natives had a look at the river and said they Would risk the crossing. I did not feel equal to the ordeal of travelling, particularly through a flooded rivet 1 , but I felt that anything would be better than the incessant worry of remaining in that miserable place with insufficient food, a sick companion and helpless natives. Earlier in our stay in the cave I had found some interest in hunting a rat, which lived on the river bank and which came out at intervals probably to attempt to rob our scanty provisions. I had several attempts at catching him and that helped to take my mind off our condition, but my eyes would no longer permit me to indulge in a rat hunt. A Perilous Journey. “We broke camp at 8 a.m. and went down to the river, but when we arrived

there Tehea would net tackle it. Tainoa called him a coward and other uncomplimentary names and he retaliated in kind, and finally Tainoa entered the river and after a struggle reached the other side. That evidently put Tehea on his mettle for he then crossed over, and then they both returned to our assistance. We made that crossing somehow, but I do not know how. The current was very strong and the water was up to our necks, so you can imagine our relief when we reached the other shore. But that was only the first of about 30 crossings between the cave and the coast and that day stands out in my memory like a particularly vivid nightmare. Fortunately Bolton made steady and sure progress and where the trail was at all clear he got along very well indeed. The conduct of the natives on the trail could only be described as wonderful for they were heavily laden with food and thought nothing of adding to their burdens. I refer of course to the early part of the trip, for their bundles were unhappily reduced when we left the cave. They each added two bunches of feiis to their loads before crossing the divide, for they did not grow on the Papenu side and when we started down the valley to the Papenu river each man added three or four roots of the orea (a kind of i native banana) to his load because the orea did not grow on the coast and they wanted to transplant them. I was fearfully handicapped on that Saturday on account of my eyes. I could not see more than a few yards in front of me, and the natural result of travelling under such conditions was a rapid sapping of my strength. “The crossing of the river was the worst feature of the trip, for in many instances the current was so deep and swift that we ' had to be roped together to cross at all and then we went out of our depth on many occasion and had to swim for it. Bearers and burdens would disappear together and I would think that a man had gone but he would bob up again and continue on his ' way as if nothing had happened. Some of the ! crossings were between two and three hun- i dred yards wide and some of them were ! made diagonally to get the advantage of : shallower water on the gravel bars,' but they ' were all very trying and I could not re- : member clearly how we made them, in fact I could not bear to think of them for many - weeks after we were safe home again. The ! weather on the last day of our trip was much better although ’ there were fre-1' quent heavy showers and the natives be- j J came more cheerful and Tehea even be- : gan to go along the gravel bars on the look | 1 out for fish. He finally sighted an eel in a ( back-water and the natives resolved to 5 catch it and we joined in the chase. After 1 a great deal of splashing and stone-throw- ‘ ing they secured the eel, but I did not I like the look of it for it was bluish-green I about the mouth and along the belly. The ' natives called it pohue and said that it ‘ was very good to eat, so they added it to s their bundles and took it along with them. < “At about 4 p.m. we reached a small I deserted hut on the banks of the river and, 1

as the natives said the hut was only about one hour (they measure distances by time) from Papenu, with only four more crossings of the river, we ate the remainder of our rations (a few biscuit crumbs) and went on our way rejoicing and came out into the open near the Papenu bridge at 5 p.m. The Journey Ended.

“We did not take long to get to the village of Papenu and when we arrived there we went straight to the house of the chief, Teriieroo, and asked permission to use a room to change our sodden clothing for other garments not quite so wet. The chief received us very kindly and gave us a drink of whisky, the use of a room, towels and other conveniences. By the time we had changed he had had a meal prepared for us and the bearers joined in that, although they had not been troubled with such minor details as changes of raiment. When we had finished the meal, which I need hardly say was a most enjoyable one, the chief took us into Papeete in his car and we reached our homes about 7 p.m. “The natives had their eel placed in ice as soon as they reached Papeete and took it with them to their village on the following day and I presume they had quite a feast off it when they got home. “I suppose you would like to hear some of the minor details of the trip, but the difficulties we encountered prevented me from noting much. I wore out two pairs of shoes on the trip in spite of the fact that I bandaged them with strips of cloth and purau bark, and my feet were terribly cut and bruised from contact with stones on the trail and in the river.

“Bolton actually finished up much fitter than I did, probably because he had been assisted by the natives and had lain in the cave doing nothing while I had all the worries of the party on my mind and was worn out through having to travel on the last day when I could scarcely see. My eyes troubled me for some weeks and I was 1 unable to move from my bed for some days after reaching Papeete. Bolton came round to see me and crowed over me because he was up and about, but a few days later he was attacked with a plague of boils and I was up and about before he was properly down with his affliction. "The place where we camped in the cave appears to be marked on the map as Mariuti but I am not certain if that is the same place. As we came down the valley we could see Mount Orohena, the highest peak in Tahiti (2252 metres or about 7,321 feet) on our left. We saw several hawks resembling the New Zealand barrier, two small black birds resembling swallows, a white heron and several birds similar to, but larger than a New Zealand kingfisher. Bolton said that he saw a green parroquet on the last day of the journey, but I did not see it, which, of course, was hardly to be wondered at. “We saw a number of plants resembling varieties seen in New Zealand, amongst these being an orchid with grass-like leaves and a small cream flower; ieie, which is similar to our kiekie, but it is not always a climbing plant for we found it trailing about the ground in the swamps; a tree resembling taraire, and a large edition of our king fern or para called nahe, with roots sometimes three or four feet round and 10 or 12 fronds with stems as thick as a man’s arm.

"My chief disappointment when the trip was over was that I had been unable to. take any ’ photographs, for the extremely wet weather that prevailed throughout the trip prevented any photographic work. I was also disappointed at not being able to give more time to the observation of plant and bird life. From the time we left the road near Mataiea until we reached Papenu there was no sign of a human being or an occupied habitation, nor any sign of cultivation although it is said that before the advent of the white man there were villages right up the Papenu Valley. “Very few people make the complete crossing of the island. The natives from thp coastal villages on each side occasionally work into the mountains in search of feiis or wild pigs and cattle, but they rarely make the complete crossing nowadays. It was unfortunate that Bolton was off colour during the trip for he was a good walker and a keen explorer and would never have complained if he had been in his Usual health. A 3 it was he showed remarkable spirit in making the journey on the last day when he was far from fit and it was something of a feat for a man of his age to make the journey under such wretched conditions.”

Captain McComish concluded by saying that he did not think that the journey across the island would be a very difficult one if the weather was good and the difficulties to be encountered were known and prepared for. He expressed the intention of making another trip at some future date with better equipment and more precautions regarding the weather and, if he does so, he should be able to discover much of interest to prospective travellers.