THE FORCE AT SAMOA

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2343, 28 December 1914, Page 7

THE FORCE AT SAMOA

, tWELLINGTONIANS LOST. 'A. member of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force" in Samoa writee as follows: —Last Sunday, -November 29, produced two incidents of note. Colonel Harcourfc Turner and Captain Roache, the new A.Q.M.G., were driving in the direction of Malua, when the horse came down, and both of them were _thrown out. Captain Turner escaped uninjured, but Colonel Turner had the misfortune ,to break his leg. ; A motor-oyclist happened to .be.at the mission house, and he was sent back at once to procure a doctor while they made Colonel Turner as comfortable as. possible-by the side of the road. He had only been there a few minutes when a coconut came down within 6in. of, his head, so the natives climbed the tree and picked the rost to prevent any further accidents, while thov.also erected a boat-awning to keep o& the sun. Captain Stout soon arrived in a motor, and after setting the broken limb took the colonel _to the hospital, where ho is progressing as favourably ae possible. The Bame day two sergeants of the sth (Wellington) Regiment went out explor-' ing the bush on the high ground above Vailima, and when night fell they had not returned. (Jn Monday search parties went looking for them, but without success, and by the evening everyone was getting really anxious. ' Next'morning at daybreak Captain Put tick and 40 men started up the Vaisangano River, exploring in all direotiona along its course. Other parties went out under Mr. Macdonald and Mr. Mooro,' local residents well acquainted with the bush, and tive police wore also dispatched in all directions,' whilst the wireless garrison sent out a party too. Luckily these expeditions were successful, and at midday the native police brought baok the wanderers, whom they had found in the bush. Except that they were exhausted, no damage was done.' But this shows that, although the island is small, it is very easy to get lost in it, as the tropical bush is much thicker and more confusing than that of New Zealand.