Page:Scented isles and coral gardens- Torres Straits, German New Guinea and the Dutch East Indies, by C.D. Mackellar, 1912.pdf/128

96 dinner, though it was a topsy-turvy meal and the “cully and lice” went everywhere but down our throats.

In the Duke of York group is Mioko, a beautiful spot and the oldest settlement of the Germans. The island is one mile long by three-quarters broad, and has a very good station on it. It con- tains a graveyard full of the graves of murdered white men. A notable feature is a huge tree, 150 feet high, which is a landmark for miles. On an adjacent isle is an English Wesleyan mission station. It is said there is a small fish here you may prick yourself with, and if you do you may die with symptoms like snake bite. Sounds nice, doesn’t it? It is probably the stone fish. Now I will tell you a story.

Once when Captain Niedermayer was in the throes of a monsoon or typhoon he sighted a raft bearing some Chinese. They seemed doomed to destruction, but somehow he managed to rescue them, and took them to Singapore, the port he was bound for, and he thought no more of the incident. One day, whilst in dock at Singapore, he saw a number of Chinese come on board and begin decorating the Stettin with lanterns, coloured strips of paper, tinsel, and other Chinese frivolities accompanied by the firing of squibs. Naturally he asked what it meant, and found that the Chinese of Singapore were so honouring him because he had saved the lives of their compatriots, and they forthwith presented him with an address expressing their thanks and deep gratitude—yet people say they have no gratitude, just as they malign them in many other ways. People never take the Chinese seriously, so Captain Niedermayer was more amused than touched.

What was his surprise, however, a few weeks after this, to receive suddenly an autograph letter