AT CAMPBELL ISLAND

Hokitika Guardian, 7 August 1931, Page 2

AT CAMPBELL ISLAND

A TWO YEAR EXILE. ‘ TIMELY ARRIVAL OF TAMA I'EA. . PLIGHT OF MAROONED MEN. A vivid story .of island life and the hardships caused by lack ot proper lood was given to a Daily Finns reporter or Monday night by Messrs John and Arthur Warren, who, with Messrs ITaiay Warren and A. Spence, were, brought to ■Bluff on Sunday night by the steamer Tnmatea after a lonely exile of two years on Campbell Island, more than 400 miles south-east of New Zealand. Messrs John arid Arthur Warren, who hold the lease of the island, travelled to Dunedin the day before. It was expected that a steamer would call at the island 12 months ago, but the visit did not eventuate, as months passed without prospect of relief for the men, concern was feifc lor their safety An arrangement was therefore made with Captain R. J. Hamilton, with tho result that ft week ago the men were taken off th? island. iWr J. 'Warren and his nephew Arthur took over the island from a syndicate jn ,1026. Mr A. Warren travelling there in December of that year. Air J. Warren followed a year later in the whale-chaser Star VI. Regular yearly steamer visits were made until 'August, 19A3. Since that time, however, the four men, until the Tamatea’s visit, had been completely cut off from the outside world. In 1926 there, wore 3000 she'p on the island, but the number has now Increased to over 4000, What their fate and that of the 16 head of cattle on the island is to be is at the moment uncerta'n. At present the island is completely deserted, and it is probable that it will rema-,r so unless lUT.ingenv nts can be made foi regular steamer visits. 1 he i am a tea brought back 121 bales of wool and skins, as well as over 100 seal skins which are stated to be worth not a great deal at the present time. RATIONING OF ,STORES. When the last steamer callul at the islaitd it brought .stores for a year, but before that period had elapsed the party realised that rationing might be ad vis, able. As time went on it became necessary to.mix tapioca, rice, sago, and s p|jt peas, which were ground as finely as with the flour, and til’s mixture was used for the making ol bread. Gradually the proportion o! flour was .reduced until in November last the supplies of flour ran out. As time passed the stores of food, which for months had provided no variety, became less and less, and from April until relief arrived—a period of over threemonths—the men lived entirely on tea. mutton, fish and the- flesh of a variety of shag found on the island. There was no fresh milk on the island, and the supplies of condensed milk exhausted over a year ago. In the early stages of lb" c.u'omug period the men's health was sei’iously affected, Mr Harry Warren being the worst sufferer. According to Air Arthur Warren it was “touch and go” for some time, and it was only due to the nun’s wisdom in imposing upon themselves a gradual system of rationing that They were able to accustom themselves to their sparse diet. Aleals on the island had never been elaborate f but the last few months provided hardships which severely taxed the men’s strength and good .spirits. They realised that there was no escape from their position, until a vessel arrived, and, by adopting a cheerful outlook, they lived a more or less contented life. In fact, they became so used to their diet that Mr John Warren considers that they could have lived without serious impairment of their health for a considerable time longer. For a time in the early years of the Warrens’ -occupancy of the island vegetables were .successfully grown, but swarms of water rats began to invade the garden, and only small quantities were subsequently cultivated. Lack of food, however, was not the party’s only difficulty, Messrs 'H. Warren and 'Spence had brought with them sufficient clothing for only a year } and the men had to share what they had left, Air Spence’s boots began to wear out, and for months his feet were never dry. In the end he realised that he would have to make his own boots. By a fortunate coincidence there happened to be a handbook dealing with bootmaking among the large store of reading matter on the island, and with its aid Air Spence was able to make from somt raw hide a pair of boots which served for the remainder of his stay. Lighting caused another difficulty wly’n the supoljes of kerosene became exhausted in June last, but by a series of experiments

means were found by which candles could be made from tallow. LIFE ON THE ISLAND. In narrating their experiences the men made no complaint of the loneliness of their life. Darning and mending occupied a large proportion of their spare tune, and for the remainder there was no lack of leading matter. In addition, they possessed a gramophone and 8d records. 'lhe only two packs of cards which they possessed wire usid until their values could no longer be recognised. lhty were replaced by a “scallyway’’ game, which the party made from odd pieces of wood, and tournaments were regularly held, lhe balls, it may be added, were made from a mixture consisting mainly of tar. Fortunately, at no time was there any illness, and the party escap'd injury of any kind, with the exception of a lew cuts. The common cold, they stated, was unknown on the island. riecni'o the duration of their stay on the island, the men were enabled to rv.<-..p .themselves acquainted with the days of the week by means of a rough diary in which records of the farming operations conducted by the party were entered by Mr Arthur Warren. An interesting testimony of the 1 accuracy with which this diary was kept is afforded by the fact that on the arrival of the Tamatea at the island the date and day of the week were known to the exiles, Moreover, the time was so accurately estimated by means of a compass that the time-pieces which still functioned were within five minutes of correct time. On one occasion Mr John Warren saw whaling vessels anchored in a small bay, and s n t out to meet them. When he peached the brew of the last hill on h’s journey, however, he found that they had gone,

ARRIVAL OF RELIEF, It was in April, of 1930, that the men expected a boat to call, and they had made all preparation for its visit. Sheep had been mustered and were held for six weeks before they were again turned out. Two of the members were on a hilltop mustering sheep for food when they obtained their first sight of tile Tamatea emerging from under a thick bank of mist, A few minutes later she had disappeared round a headland, and the men rush'd to Perseverance Harbour to meet the vess-J. They were taken on board and given a very welcome meal. They stated that- the island was their home and in spite of these hardships which they had experienced they would be quite wiling to go back. The news of the economic depression came as a severe blow to the party, for it was realised that the return for their two years’ work would be greatly reduced. DESCRIPTION OF THE ISLAND. The island ? the men stated, had a mild climate and, though the weather was cold in the winter and there were occasional severe storms, the conditions were much less trying than on the mainland. A large area of the island was covered with scrub, which made excellent firewood. Among the birds were starFngs, blackbird?, thrush??,. h-‘dge sparrows, house sparrows, goldflnche-s, chaffinches, lark?, wax*eyes, and red polls. Nearly all the minerals ip the world, including gold, could he found on-the island, but not in payable quantities. Tho island was the nesting place of the’ royal albatross, and the smoky albatross was also quite frequently seen. There were large rookeries of rock-hopper and cape penguins, and king penguins made occasional visits. Sea elephants, averaging 20 feet ’n length, were there n thousands, and other wild life consisted of seals, sea lions, and sea leopards. In the spring large numbers of whales were seen in the vicinity of the island. In February last four icebergs were sighted only three miles oft’ the land, one remaining for a week. The island is 28,000 acres ! n extent. There are 14 hilltops, the highest Being Mount Honey (1867 feet), and the lowe’st ) Beeman Hill '(640 feet). There is one lake, 200 acres in extent. TAMATEA’S ROUGH PASSAGE. The Tamatea’s voyage, which was not without perils, was described by Mr W. J, Stafford, of Messrs Wright, Stephenson’s staff, who was a passenger on the vessel, Bluff was left on the night of July 11, he stated, and there was every prospect of a good voyage. Soon strong winds sprang up, and Captain Hamilton was compelled to seek shelter at Port Pegasus. Eleven days passed before the steamer could venture out, and during that time the men on Campbell Island, he afterwards found, experenced the worst weather during their stay, the ground being covered with snow for a week. Pegasus wasJeft on a Thursday, and the following afternoon was spent at the Auckland 'lslands. On Saturday, July 25, the trip to Campbell Island was begun. Rough coud tions and fog were experienced, the vessel at first sailing past the island to the north. sighted, however, at 1 o’clock on Sunday afternoon. At first no s ; g» of life could be discerned, and as the Warrens’ launch rould not be seen it was feared that they had put to sea in an endeavour to reach the mainland and had been lost. Later, it was found however, that the launch had been lost from her moorings in a sudden storm nearly two years previously. The first welcome sign of life was a dog. Mr Stafford and a member of the crew landed and, going into the house, found the range warm, thus effectively dispelling any fears of disaster. On the return voyage the vessel ran into extremely rough weather, which, Mr Stafford stated, Capta'in Hamilton described as the worst in his 37 years' experience at sea. Mr Stafford paid a warm tribute to the seamanship of Captain Hamilton and to the seaworthiness of the Tamatea.