Page 1 Advertisements Column 8

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 88, Issue 7, 10 January 1944, Page 1

Bemt (Soiii Cigarettes STILL GOOD VALII At M for I®. Touted and No Cough.

MANY OPERATIONS NEW ZEALAND AIRMEN IN ITALY (Special Correspondent—N.Z.P.A.) London, Jan. 5. The tactical bomber force in Italy lias several New Zealanders serving in its squadron. They include FlyingOfficer E. F. Edwards, Whangarei, Flight-Sergeants H. S. McClullum, Opunake, C. Parkin, of Dunsandeb who are in the same squadron flying Mitchells, and a former Aucklander, now of Suva, Flying-Officer R. H. Crook, who is flying Baltimores. Others who are now resting from operations include N. Dumont, D.F.C., Gisborne, who has completed 63 operations, Warrant-Officer W. Petrie, Ashburton, who has completed 65 operations. Edwards, who has done 65 raids, was in the Tunisian campaign. He did 15 operations in Bisleys, attacking aerodromes, also bombing and machine-gunning road transport. He I was transferred to Bostons after the I Tunisian fighting and helped bomb ' Pantellaria and Lampedusa? In Sicily | these medium bombers had the same role is in Tunis—hitting airfields and I strafing road transport. His squadron ■ moved from Tunis to Malta, Comiso, ; Gerbini and Brindisi, later going further north. Edwards has done several raids in the vicinity of Naples, more recently operating in support of the Eighth Army. McCullum, who spent a short time with the New Zealand Ventura squadiron before going to North Africa, has [now done 51 raids. He also began operating in Tunis, fighting in Bisleys. He helped bomb Kasserine Pass when the Americans were being pushed back. Later, he did 23 operations in Bostons, sometimes as many as three “trips” daily, two in the morning and one in the afternoon during the final stages of Tunis. His experiences in | Sicily are similar to those of Edwards, but he was also in a raid on a railway junction near the ancient city of Pompei. He once returned with 36 bullet holes in his aircraft. Parkin, who joined the squadron at Geroini, has done 12 operations, including a visit to Yugoslavia. Crook, who is in a different squadron, is one of the few members of the R.A.F. wearing the Suva shoulder-flash. He began operations at. the Mareth Line and also took part in the Pantellaria, Sicilian and Italian operations. He has now carried out 59 raids. He was trained in Rhodesia and is proud of the fact that he has visited 24 countries since he joined the R.A.F. Recently, while Crook was bombing near Sangro, a piece of flak which shattered the perspexhood, but fortunately did little more, nearly knocked him out. Some New Zealanders are also at Malta, including Flying-Officers H. J. Burrett, Auckland. G. Simmonds, Whangarei, Pilot-Officer D. Stewart, Hawke’s Bay; also G. M. Buchanan, Warrant-Officer G. Pallisher, FlightSergeant Osborne. They are flying Spitfires, but complain of having little action these days. THE WEATHER (Special). Wellington, Jan. 9. Moderate to fresh westerly winds; weather fair, apart from some light local showers in the hills; temperatures mild. Further outlook: Becoming unsettled Tuesday or Wednesday. Time of Sunset To-day.—7.57 pjn. Time of Sunrise To-morrow.— s.s a.m. Phases of the Moon for January.— First Quarter, January 3; Full Moon, January 10; Last Quarter, January 19; New Moon, January 28, WORLD’S LONELIEST OUTPOST ABORIGINES HELPED BY MISSIONARIES At one of the world’s loneliest outposts, two missionaries, Father R. Dockerty and Brother John Pye, with some help from the military authorities, have prevented a native tribe from bleeding to death, writes an Australian correspondent. The aborigines were pacific river people who were srurounded by warlike tribes wnich systematically raided them, stealing most of the young lubras. With no babies being born Into the tribe, it seemed inevitable that this black community would die out, and ■ the process was accelerated by the old i men of the tribe, who devised laws • and superstitions which gave them ' power over what lubras had escaped ’, the raiders. j The establishment of the mission ; rapidly reversed the process. Although i'generally the advent of civilisation i i causes native populations to decline, babies began to be born again under the peaceful mission regime. Surrounding tribes sent spies to the ; mission settlement to ascertain the lie ; of the land, preparatory to attacking, but spies reported that the tribe was now too well organised and concentrated. [ When war came to Australia, mili--1 tary authorities enabled the mission to j carry on by guaranteeing it at least , ' basic food supplies. : | Catholic fathers established their ; authority by debunking native magic, formulated by aboriginal sorcerers, by I ridiculing t[ie totem superstition that r it was death for a lubra to see a bullroarei\ and by breaking publicly • spears of native trouble-makers who : were disposed to defy them. - | The breaking of spears, especially ■ I before lubras. is a great disgrace, • I which causes the native to lose face in • tribe. ’ i These natives are also great talkers, land the missionaries assured the 'maintenance of their ascendancy by < out-talking the greatest of the tribe s •’ talkers in public. e ; “We learned to lx>at the trouble-d-makers in eloquence.” Father Dockjjerty declared. “We didn't give them e an opportunity to speak, and we .alk- - ed them out in front of the women; . but we have to keep straight faces. If i the natives see a twinkle in your eye, the whole case is lost.” I I The bull-rearer is a thin slab of f 'wood. a foot or 18 inches in length, q and three or four inches in greatest e width, near to one end which is -'.rounded. The other end is truncate, I 'with a square hole in it, through which a string is threaded. The string ‘ i usually made of human hair, and is about three or four xavds in length. ,As the .oarer is wh.rled through tha air the str ng twists i ■ - . taut, and then the slab of wood . vibrates, pro hicm the characteristic sound which gives it its name ’ Tribal practices vary, but the bulle i roarer plays an important part in the initiation ccremon c< of the aborigin d xouth. \\ « :v.’n and ch . iron believe 1 ) w hieh -I To reveal r:ermation to w omen is L iforbidden under ponaltx of death.