JUST IN TIME.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 28, 23 June 1914, Page 6

JUST IN TIME.

A SOUTH SEA 1 INCIDENT, i THE G'OVJiUXOIt TO TIIE MSOUffi. <■,. . 'Km'otonga, June I], ■-uii.atiou is one of (ho dread.-, 0 f t be lacilK even to this day, and His JCxeelwitlf t'h 10 oo *' L ' n T cume '■» to face ~ . «PfC-Li-u (luring hi.s visit to hit l,v 'T At Atil \°"° of the JUL ly the January hurricane, it was ound that the French missionary was ill. Ine (lik-Lor on IJ.M.S. i'liiloiiiel iva» r that the man mis . leally starving. Needless to say „ , / of wholesome food was nt ' i .shoie at once for the, relief of the - Trr Jt Was at tl,e small isiancl oi Mitiara that the viceregal party ■■ n f,n' with il -Wfc'ger proi « l '"'n ] \ hc ' n ,. il "' T »tmiekai ciime oppo- , * l ° the landing place it was ;. e en that l mtl "»sd l>»it a kind of couch ( 111-011 a iplatiorm of polos. This tliev earned down to the water's edge and ; tai'i led I'l'i'd and Lady Liverpool and m'r 7 * , Pim,ar P a« r osa the coral . ~C J lO s '' ; ore. As soon as t'lie bovern'or landed lie saw that the village was de.ightfiilly clean, nffact one of tlie most attractive that lie had seen, wit lie soon learned that the natives n<-rc tfhovit of food. The iliurrioane 'liati i destroyed their crops and it would bo S tiliiee months 'before the next crop was ! leady. With little or nothing to sell i and no means of purchasing food the islanders faced a period of gw»t want ! and possibly of starvation. ; As soon as lie. -had wised the position • the Governor acted very pl-omptly. He went back to the beacili and sent a ! message oil' to the Tiitamekai nskin" ; that any fj)are stores should ba sent ashore. A message was signalled to t'lie war.-ilup making a .similar" request, and before the vice-regal party left the island it 'had the plea-tire of seeing the natives carrying to their village a°cood supply of wholesome food. There'are . no white residents oil Atitinra, and tlu* ( of goveniKK'iit are held by the j Ariki Tsui, a flu: iliyiiilic 1 man and one J capable of influencing the people far (good. Needless to say, the hurricane had made it impossible for the people to arrange any large reception, but they I ,ia d made some mats and garments o'f j tapa cloth and these -were presented ! with graceful speeches. And then came 5 an incident which allowed clearly the splendid hospitality of the islanders. They brought and presented to inwtnI I>cts of t'lie party what few cocoanuts . tliev could lin.l and practically all the j live stock of the islands—a few chickens.' Tint the (lovemor rose to the occasion. '"Tell tlieni," he said to the i interpreter, Mr. Fnvage. "that T eat them with my eyes, but that 1 Im-ve much food oil the ship, and that, as it is the King'* Birthday, I sha.l! nsk t'hom to accept these gifts for the sake of tlie children." The interpreter ex--1 plained and for a moment things 'hung j in the. balance, for they are a very I sensitive race, but. then they smiled j and nodded to indicate that they unI denstood. Dr. I'omare, speaking in the . native tongue, evidently explained matters diplomatically, and soon the ,'elm-ken*, were back a.gain in th" hands, of t'lwir native owners. As. the viceregal party left the shove the last haajload of food cani'o a?hore »<IM tlu* spectre of want 'had been driven 'aiwny - for a time at le-a'st.