Conditions are pleasant when moving around underground but, if you are motionless for any length of time, coldness comes quickly. When trying to sleep, every so often Bob and I had to get up to exercise to keep warm – running on the spot, slapping ourselves to restore circulation, jumping up and down. But any warmth we gained soon disappeared. Once I slept continuously for a six-hour period and on awakening was practically frozen stiff.

With the darkness, the cold, the hunger and the doubt as to how long before we would be found, the whole incident had developed into a nightmare. When our luminous watches showed that it was 6 am, we made yet another attempt to get out. In the darkness our efforts were futile. We would move a short distance and sit down for a lengthy period. Why? I can’t say for sure. I was feeling rather ill and it seemed that we had plenty of time. I have never before felt so helpless and discouraged.

At one pause, we heard a bat circling the cavern. Bob suggested we wait around as it was probably going outside for food. If the bat found the exit we would have some idea of in which direction it was. After an uneventful 10 minutes, we moved on a few yards and suddenly the creature was gone. Now realising our only hope lay with a search party, we returned to our cave. I slept restlessly for a couple more hours.

At a quarter to eleven, we moved to the floor of the main chamber and began to whistle, yodel and shout. Bob whistled S-O-S until he was dry as a bone. Our signals hardly seemed to travel 10 feet. Then a few minutes before 11 Bob noticed a glow. “I think they’re here,” he said. “Here we are!” I shouted. Bob and I cheered and shouted as the searchers yelled to us.

I was never so glad to see the face of Terry Shelley.

It didn’t take us long to get back to the search centre at the entrance to the cave system. I drank two mugs of a hot liquid and a little after 11.30 emerged from the cave a few minutes before Bob Orreill. We had been underground for more than 24 hours, most of the time in total darkness.

Looking back on the experience now, it seems difficult to believe that such a short time in darkness can be so frightening. The things you think can be unreasonable and illogical. There are plenty of things to be imagined. On sympathises with miners trapped underground for days and days.

Thanks must go to all the European and Indigenous volunteers who made up the search party. The efficiency of the search reflects great credit on those who organised it. A team of professionals could not have done a better job.

30 YEAR LAND DISPUTE SETTLED: LAND TITLES COMMISSION AT KUNDIAWA

A land dispute which had its background in the days of early penetration of the Upper Chimbu area 30 years ago has been settled by Land Titles Commissioner Mr MB Orken after a hearing that lasted three days. The dispute was between the Maguagu and Kukane people.

Until the first European penetration, the Kukane occupied an area of land known as Bendam. However after a section of the group murdered a missionary in early 1934, the Kukane were somewhat dispersed and the Maguagu occupied their former land in ever-increasing numbers.

By 1954, relations between the two groups had become so strained that the then Assistant District Officer, Mr Kelly, had to send a policeman into the area to settle the dispute. The policeman favoured the Maguagu in his decision  and fixed a boundary which gave all of the Bendam area to them.

Three months ago, the ADO Gembogl, Mr WH Biscoe, assisted by Cadet patrol Officer Orriell, did a thorough investigation of the situation – traversing the entire Bendam area, preparing genealogies of both groups and taking statements from spokesmen. At the hearing last week, Mr Biscoe appeared on behalf of the Director of District Administration.

At the conclusion of the hearing, conducted in the Waiye Council Chambers, the Commissioner decided in favour of the Kukane and re-designated the boundary which restored to the Kukane part of the land they had formerly occupied.

ONLOOKER REPORTS

The Kundiawa News will have its 24thand last issue for 1964 on sale in another fortnight. The first year of publication has been one of ups and downs for the newspaper. It has probably been criticised more than any other single person or institution in Kundiawa – and in many cases rightfully so.

This very column, because of its tendency towards outspokenness, has been reprimanded, chastised, castigated, censured, reproached, disparaged, denounced, abused, condemned and vilified by citizens who normally would refrain from entering any public discussion. This is good.

Have you noticed the amount of publicity on the news and ion the press that Kundiawa has been getting lately? All started with Ray Anderson’s Moresby trip with some Grade 6 schoolboys – well covered in the South Pacific Post and over the regional news. Then the exploits of Orriell and Jackson in the Yonggamugl came in for an extremely vivid news report over the ABC. This was followed the next day by a comprehensive broadcast of the Gembogl area land rights dispute, reported fully in this issue. Meanwhile our Minj correspondent bitterly comments that his area is getting no news prominence, You people should do something exciting or interesting or something.

It seems as though we are going to be in for a very quiet Christmas. The next few weeks will see many people taking off for the big smoke. Let’s hope most of them will come back. And congratulations to those town residents who have enough ‘oomph’ to get on with building the cricket pitch. With the interest now being shown in cricket it will certainly be an asset. Let’s hope also that the annual general meeting of the Club will inject some life into that institution. Things seem to be coming to a standstill socially. A social secretary is a necessity to push things along – we must have someone.