Evening star., 1943-12-17
Flying Dutchn1on Survivor
Tells of BottIinq JunqIe

|g Jungle
were far from their gardens and
short of food. We spent the 28th
there with them and on the 18th
started out with the two young men,
while the travellers went slowly OIL
up the mountains.
Put Up at Village.
That night we put up at the first
place with q name which we'd met.
1t was called Badfga- -Badiga, the two
youths said. 1t was a kind of in
termediate village and consisted of
two huts. The two Papuns built q
f1re by saving thong between
forked sticks, and cooked us green
bananas and half q pawpaw. Then
they tried to show us the way to go
and left us.
I'VE wasted day finding we had
set out the wrong way, then worked
sack, very hungry again. to an old
native garden. On the morning of
December l we climbed mountain
and by luck found a large garden
We got enough food there for two
days and built fire that night.
Over on the next mountain we could
see couple OF huts, and that looked
hopeful.
"All day December we spent 60
ing down and climbing up ravines
and at evening we walked into a vii
lage Of IS huts. But it was sealed
up and had been deserted q long
time. The gardens were all gone to
pieces, and there was just one strug-
Cling palm tree that had happened
to have its seed lodged way UP here.
That palm tree had been the whole
reason for the existence of the Is
huts, but now it looked like Gold
smiths Deserted Village
Walks Back to VILLAGE.
1T simply made our hearts sink
to have wasted all that effort. On
December we decided to walk back
through the valley and reach the
old storehouse. All the next day we
spent trying to get Mr.. Mobley in
shape to move. He was shaking with
fever and said he felt cold. In all
we finally spent a week there in the
deserted village until December 7.
hoping that natives might come
pack and show us the way, and
meantime busy nursing Mr.. Mobley.
That day Floyd August and Sergt.
Edward Holleman, who were still
the strongest and doing all the lead
ing, went to get water for Mr..
Mobley and heard choppinp
sound and voices. But whoever it
was heard us and fed. They knew
we had been at their gardens.
They'll give you anything, but they
don't like your taking it.
Around sunset a Boong stuck his
fuzzy head into our camp, but when
we spoke he turned and ran. We
kept watch all night, but he did not
come back. We felt We must move.
but were SO weary that even to 20
down to the brook was hard, Mr.,
Mobley was in bad shape, too.
On December 8 we saw two dogs,
and 1 was frightened that some
thing was going to happen. But
they just wandered through our
camp and little while later there
approached tiny old man with two
boys.
Boys Return With Food.
We offered him some of our
food, and things began to get better
right on. l saw round medallion
on his neck on chain and asked
to look on the other side. It said
Territory OF Papua' on the edge and
in the middle village councillor
That evening the little BOYS went
away and came back with a green
bundle about the size of a cottage
ham, wrapped in leaves. They made
a fire and began throwing stones on
1t. Then they undid the leaves.
1t was a 'possum. They cooked 1t
intact and we ate everything. The
eyes, ears and entrails. For green's
we had leaves of squash. It was in
toxicating. When the old man came
back we did not forget to share
with him. We were learning the
ways of food in society.
On December 10 we rested and
then set out again, much stronger
We moved all day until noon and
then came to our first real village,
kind Of duplex village built in
two layers. They gave us a two
foot length OF sugar cane, and we
chewed on it till dark,
First Policeman Met.
The next day we met our first
policeman, and the day after that
we got the stun we needed most
OF all: Salt. The salt fatigue began
to go away. We had given the old
man with the 'possum six forms.
about II shillings, and now we
found two younger councillors and
raised our fees, giving them more.
Their guide got a half-quid, too.
Finally we came to q place called
Wiga where there was a mission bow
who had actually been to the United
States-a dizzy jump ahead of our
selves. We wrapped a note in a
gasmask tin and sent it ahead to
gas-mask, which was three carries
away
AT the foot OF the mountain
carry boys met us. We got to Kuki-
bago on December Is, and to Mores-
by on December 20, thanks largely
to four Australians, a Mr.. Norris
and his wife, an Australian warrant
oHcer and his medical aide.
AT Moresby we met two of the
four men who had gone ahead for
help. A search party was already
out after the plane. Duane Butler,
OF Homer, Mich. and Frank A.
Thomas, jr., of Oakdale, Nebr. had
got through, and told how Gerald
M. Grove, Scranton, Iowa and Carlos
D. Failing, Big Rapids, Mich. had
drowned crossing stream. They
had travelled only days down be-
fore reaching the edge of native
life and finding garden. After they
lost Grove and Failing, they met
two Australian officers of the Aus
tralian New Guinea administrative
unit, usually called Angau, and they
were already m fhoir NOV IN 3n%o