Governor-General At Atiu And Mauke

Chronicle (Levin), 12 July 1948, Page 3

Governor-General At Atiu And Mauke

• Recoived Sunday., 7 p.m. BELLONA, Juiy 10. Twiee today Sir 'Bernard and Lady Preyberg again made hazardous surfboat crossings of coral reefs to visit Mauke and Atiu, small and .isolated Pacific dependencies of New kealand. Exeept for anxious and exeiting inoments as the boat hung below th'e reet awaiting a wqve to toss it into the safety of the shallows, 'their Excellencies niadfe uneventful landings. How.ever, the risks of this operation were illustrated at Atiu when a second native cutter carrying 25 chief petty officers and petty offieers of the Beilona, capsized in the surf a few minutes after the Viee-Begal party , had been put ashore. All the occupants swain or scrambled on to the reef unhurt except for painful coral cuts and scratches. From the heaving gangway of the Beltona their Exceilencies embarked into a boat manned by Mauke 's best cutter crew, at 7 o 'elock thig morning. As they neared the shore they couJd see keen-eyed guides on the foaming edge of the reef, signalling instructions to the boat's Maori coxswain, witli decisive sweepiug gestures of batmen guiding in pJanes to the deck of an aircraft carrier. As each twelve-foot ocean swell subsided' the cutter seemed dwarfed below the tall dripping wall ofK coral which barred the approach. Theu, with cool, precise judgmeut, the coxswain made a decision, the crew gave wav to their heavy oars, and thfi boat swept ovex the danger point on the crest of a huge rollcr. Successive waves carried the craft to the beach where their Exceilencies were lifted on to a massive litter and carried shoulder liigh to the meeting ground in the centre of the village on a plateau beyond. Curtseying Maori girls in grass skirts and shell adomed bodiccs, garlanded the visitors with flowers and sang a specially composed welcome as the guard of honour was inspected. Chanting and cheering children dressed like the boys and gii'ls of the island's European civilisation, then escorted . the Governor and Lady Freyberg to the schoolgrounds where an official welcome and Maori feast were presented in their honour. The thrills of the landing experienced at Mauke were repeated 50 miles away when the Bellona reaehed Atiu tliis after noon. Their Exceilencies we re again borne in a litter aeross the shal-. lows of the reef while the remainder of their party were carried on the backs or in the arms of the muscular islanders. Erom the back of an open motor truek which transported them aeross the thickly wooded atoll, twelve of the principal visitors were transferred as a body to another huge litter. Borue on this occasion by 30 men they made au impressive ceremonial entrance to the marae. Practically the whole population of the island listened to speeches which emphasised that Atiu people had -been enthusiastically inspired by the Vice-Regal visit. It was recalled that .Atiu was the first island in the Cook Group at which Captain James Cook landed 200 years ago and speakers described his discovury of the islands as ' ' the first link in the great chain of friendship and loyalty to Britain." Athough the Athi community realised it was a very small and very remote part of the Empire, it was proud to call itself part of the great family of democratic nations. The programme of entertainments was still uncompleted when their Exceilencies had to leave the marae to rejoin the eruiser before dark. It was early duslc when they hastily reaehed the island's crude landing raiup to be carried bodily to a surfboat tossing at the edge of the reef, and ferried to the waiting Bellona.