LOST IN THE BUSH.

Hokitika Guardian, 26 January 1924, Page 4

LOST IN THE BUSH.

TKRRIBLE SUFFERING

SYDNEY. Jan. 17

The story of the wonderful fidelity of a. dog. and the fortitude of a woman in surviving terrible privations whilst lost in the bush have been revealed bv the details of her sufferings related in the liundaborg Hospital, by Mrs John Williams.

Mrs Williams lives near Wallum. in a lonely and wild part of Queensland, and it transpires that while letelling a bucket full of water from the creek she temporarily lost her memory—supposedly the effect of the terrible heat that has recently been experienced—and wandered olf into the* bush. When the settlers learnt that she was missing they turned out to a man. as they always do in such emergencies, and scoured the district for miles round. Days passed, and it was thought that it was impossible that without toed sin' could have survived the blazing heat. Still they persevred. the police and black trackers partiepating in the search. Sometimes the trackers would pick up the scent, and fellow it for a while, hut over the rough parched ground, and through the thick scrub it was continually being lost. llicii rain fell, and this, as it turned out. probably saved the woman’s life, lor it; providentially enabled her to gel some water when the pangs of thirst had become unbearable. Heartened by the conjecture that this might lie the case, th.e searchers persevered, and at the end of a week from the time she was first missing, when all hut forlorn hope has been given up. a poor, miserable little dug. emaciated and bedraggled, limpi’d up to a black tracker and poll,.ennui. following the dog through the dense scrub they came upon the woman sheltering trom the rain in a hollow stump. Almost 100 exhausted to ~peak. she asked the black tracker if he had been looking for her, and when lie answered ill I lie affirmative she answered: "I am glad you found me alive. (toil bless you all. and practically collapsed. It was with difficulty that she was carried over the rough country to the township, but on reaching the ho-pital the doctor was surprise'll to find that in spite of having lmen a full week without food and several (lays without water until the rnin fell, she was in a fairly good state of health. Her clothes were torn, her feet terribly sure, and her face burnt by th(> sun. but she quickly re-

sponded' to the careful treatment, and when sin eould tell Imr story, her principal theme was the devotion ol the little dog. which had refused steadfastly to leave her. though suffering eiiqallv front the waul ot loud and exposure to the sun. “Thin and limping,’’ she said, “it would jump up and follow me whenever I made another effort to find my way to some habitation. 1 tried to induce it to return home, thinking it might find it mi c own. but ii- would cower and "hi.iu " | did anything which made it think that I was angry. I think it was its self-sacrifice, and bravery, mid its company, which helped me to keep up and live through all those nights with nothing to look forward u> but another of those awful burning days.