: NO MORE SMELLING FLOWERS By Ken Wright

People over impressed by spies and espionage are fond of quoting the observation attributed to the Napoleon Bonaparte when he estimated that a spy in the right place was worth twenty thousand troops. Perhaps he didn’t pay his spies enough as he won the Battle of Wagram then lost the battle of Waterloo, lost his attempt to take Moscow, lost his position as Emperor of France and was finally exiled to the island of Elba. However, his observation about the worth of spies was certainly correct when applied to the Coastwatching organisation in the Pacific during World War II. The original Australian model began in 1919 when selected personnel in coastal areas were organised on a voluntary basis to report in time of war any unusual or suspicious events along the Australian coastline. The concept was quickly extended to include Australian as well as Papua and the . In 1939 when World War II commenced, approximately 800 Coastwatchers came under the control of the Intelligence Division. Lieutenant Commander had operational control of the Coastwatchers in the north-eastern area of defence which encompassed Australian Mandated New Guinea, Papua, the Solomon Islands and . Eric Feldt was previously a navy man but resigned to work for the Australian government in New Guinea. He grew to know and understand the island people, plantation managers and assorted government officials and they in turn came to know and trust him. Because of their trust in Feldt, when the war with Japan began many civilians opted to stay in New Guinea rather than be evacuated as the Japanese war machine advanced through the Pacific. They became Coastwatchers who, if caught, would receive no mercy from the Japanese and be executed. As part of the administration process, Lt Commander Feldt decided that the organisation needed a generic code name to distinguish the Coastwatchers activities from other naval intelligence activities that he also controlled within the Naval Intelligence Division. He chose ‘Ferdinand’ from a popular children’s book of the time about a Spanish bull that refused to fight and only wanted to sit quietly under his favourite tree and smell the flowers.1 ‘It was meant as a reminder to Coastwatchers that it was not their duty to fight and so draw attention to themselves, but to sit circumspectly and unobtrusively, gathering information.’ 2 One of those remarkable men who became a Coastwatcher was Malcolm Hugh Wright. He had been a patrol officer in New Guinea prior to World War Two and was described as a dark, cheerful young man with a soft voice, fluent in Pidgin English, with a flair for meticulous planning. He had a good sense of humour and was seen as a considerate and racially non

discriminatory. In 1939, he resigned from the civil service and joined the Royal Australian Naval Volunteer Reserve [RANVR.] with the rank of Sub-Lieutenant for training in the Anti- Branch. When in New Britain fell to the Japanese in January 1942, Wright applied to the Royal Australian Naval Intelligence Division expecting to be used in some capacity that would make use of his knowledge of the islands, the natives, their customs and his proficiency in Pidgin. Wright deliberately failed the anti–submarine course so he would have a greater chance of a transfer. His pleas were heard and he was ordered to report to Melbourne to meet Feldt who offered him a chance to return to New Britain as a Coastwatcher. Wright’s first covert assignment was to Adler Bay in New Britain where he was to gather intelligence on the Japanese build-up at Rabaul and to assess the attitude of the natives towards the Japanese which at the time was unknown. Reliance on the good will of the native population was essential for the planning and operation of any future covert landings and was to play a big part in all operations in the New Guinea and Solomon Islands campaigns. During the moonless night of 12 July 1942, a rubber dinghy was shoved off into the rough seas by two sailors from the United States submarine S42 about two miles off the north coast of Japanese occupied New Britain. ‘We’ll meet you next Saturday night for sure,’ called Lieutenant Commander Oliver Kirk from the conning tower as the dinghy’s only occupant began paddling in what he hoped was the right direction towards the distant shore. The plan was for a landing north of Adler Bay but the heavy sea was making the going tough. As he got closer to land, the sound of pounding surf could be heard in the distance which he heard waves crashing against the cliffs at the northern end of the bay. Wright pulled hard on the oars to change direction away from potential disaster but the waves breaking over the dinghy made it unmanoeuvrable and swept the flimsy rubber craft ashore onto the rocky beach. Luckily, the dinghy wasn’t damaged and Wright was able to haul it to shore. Removing his rifle he quickly checked the area in case he had landed in the middle of a Japanese camp. Satisfied it was safe, and completely exhausted after his long hours of constant rowing, Wright found a suitable spot and slept for a few hours awakening as the first streaks of dawn began to appear across the dark sky. Making his way to the nearest village at Merai, Wright established contact with the elders. He gave them gifts of tobacco and paper, explained why he was there and asked if they could hide him for a few days. He warned the natives that if they did hide him, not a word of his presence should be spread, as the Japanese, if they learned of his presence, would take revenge for aiding an enemy spy. The headman was well aware of the ‘men of Japon’ and their cruelty as many natives had been tortured to death in Rabaul and the Masta was welcome to stay.3 Wright stayed a week in the village and established a firm relationship with many of the natives. The information he was seeking about the Japanese forces in Rabaul needed to be obtained from the Chinese in a nearby settlement at Adler Bay. The Chinese were hostile to Wright when they met as they felt they had been abandoned by the Australian Government during the time of the evacuations and refused to help him unless they too were

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evacuated, which he could not arrange. Fortunately, one of the Chinese met Wright just before he left and gave him valuable information about the disposition of Japanese forces in Rabaul. When it came time to go, Wright returned at night to where he had hidden the dinghy and inflated it with an air cylinder. At the appropriate time, he flashed seaward a prearranged series of dots and dashes from his torch. Seconds later, the dim shape of S42 surfaced. Saying goodbye to the two natives who had accompanied him to the rendezvous point, Wright only had to row about three hundred yards in flat calm sea to the submarine and begin the twelve day return journey to Australia to submit his report to Naval Intelligence. Wright’s first mission was just the beginning of his extremely valuable contribution to the war in the Pacific as a member of the small but extraordinary group of men who were Coastwatchers. The value of having spies in the right place was ably demonstrated by two groups of Coastwatchers led by WJ Read, an assistant district officer at Buka Passage,4 and by PE Mason, a Bougainville plantation manager. By the end of October 1942, Japanese forces had assembled in the Carolines and began moving to launch a great attack on to retake the island from the Americans. On the southern coast of Bougainville, Read and Mason both radioed early warnings of a number of Japanese warship and aircraft en route possibly towards Guadalcanal. Read from his position inland reported twelve large passenger ships, each over 10,000 tons headed south-east. Mason, on 10 November 1942, reported the passage of 61 ships comprising six assorted class cruisers, two sloops, 33 , 17 cargo, two tankers and one 8,000 ton passenger liner. These reports enabled US forces to launch air and sea strikes against the enemy shipping resulting in a major defeat for the Japanese and shattering their plans to retake Guadalcanal. Unable to resupply their forces, Japanese High Command ordered the evacuation of their remaining troops from the island which they completed by early February 1943.5 Both Coastwatchers and were later credited by US Admiral William Halsey Jr as having saved Guadalcanal. The loss of the island was the turning point of the war and even some high ranking Japanese realised the war was lost from this point. In December 1943, the US Navy had requested that Australian Naval Intelligence establish a Coastwatching outpost in New Britain to cover the southwest seaway from Rabaul. Feldt asked Wright to look at the possibilities of the operation. Wright spent time in Port Moresby evaluating plans and locations and was joined by Peter Figgis, an Intelligence Officer in the 2/22 Battalion AIF, and Les Williams who was a corporal in the Armoured Division of the AIF. Williams had been a member of [] and had volunteered for service with the Coastwatchers. His good working knowledge of radios and motors was to prove very useful during their time in enemy held territory. The three men decided that Cape Orford was the most advantageous place to set up a Coastwatching post but native help carrying supplies and information on enemy movement was vital. Wright went to see Sergeant Simogan of the

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New Guinea Native Constabulary who was a great friend of Wright’s during his days as a patrol officer. He was in the police barracks at Hanuabada just outside Port Moresby and eagerly agreed to join the group. The other native members of the team, Sanga, Arumei and Sama were recruited as they were locals from the planned area of operations, had valuable contacts and wanted to return home. Figgis, Williams, Wright and the four natives boarded the USN submarine Greenling commanded by Lt Cmd J.Grant just after dawn on 21 February 1943 and departed from for their journey northward to Baien Bay at Cape Orford.6 It was agreed that for the first night, Peter Figgis and Sama, whose village was closest to the landing point go ashore in one Folboat.7 Malcolm Wright and Simogan went in another to establish contact with the Baien villagers to ensure the coast was clear and no enemy were in the area. If everything went to plan, two fires would be lit by the Coastwatchers on either side of the bay to enable the submarine to get as close to shore as possible and unload the supplies using the Folboats, any native canoes available and a small boat with an outboard motor. No fires meant that Japanese forces were in the village or were nearby. On 1 March, the men went ashore at Baien Bay just before dawn and established contact with the villagers. Fortunately, no enemy forces were in the area and the villagers were prepared to help. One of those who became invaluable to the coast watchers was Aiyan, a native teacher in the village. The following night, the two fires were lit and with Aiyan’s influence, the natives helped land two tons of supplies from the submarine, enough to last six months. They hid most of the supplies and relying on local knowledge, established a camp in the mountains about three miles from the nearest shore line where they could see miles out to sea as well as inland with the added advantage of running water near to the camp site. Aiyan assured the group that they would be warned well in advance of any Japanese forces in the area. With the help of some of the area’s tribesmen who brought building materials, a proper camp was established with the emphasis on camouflage to avoid detection from patrolling enemy aircraft as Rabaul was only eighty miles away. A second ‘emergency’ camp was built further inland and stocked with supplies in case the first camp was discovered. An observation platform was constructed in a large tree on the top of a bluff. The wireless, the most important part of their equipment was an AWA 3 BZ teleradio. It was simple to use, could take considerable punishment and was suited to tropical conditions. The teleradio’s ‘Rhombic’ aerial not only gave the signal direction but make it difficult for the enemy’s directional finding equipment to pinpoint their location. Using the call sign, ‘B-U-M’ the first transmission to GHQ via Port Moresby was made on April 1. Consolidated PBY Catalina flying boats of the Royal Australian Air Force or regularly dropped supplies on nights of a full moon. One spot regularly used as a drop zone was a large disused garden near Cape Orford. Apart for their own requirements, the Coastwatchers used some of their supplies to trade with the natives or pay for their labour. Medicines were used to treat where possible, the various health problems within the native

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communities. With the cooperation of the two paramount luluais in the area, Golpak and Piranis, the native tribesmen gave assistance and remained vigilant, which enabled the Coastwatchers to remain undetected for five months virtually under the Japanese noses. In June, Wright received a transmission that due to reorganisation of Coastwatching in New Britain, a group from the Independent company and additional native volunteers would be arriving on 28 September and were assigned to his party. The commandos were to set up their own Coastwatching operations independent of Wright’s team while Wright was ordered to take up a new position to cover the Talasea area on the north coast of central New Britain. Until the arrival of the submarine in September it was business as usual. When not on duty watching sea and sky for enemy movement, the Coastwatchers read, played cards, treated various native ailments and learned a great deal about the natives and their customs. Most importantly, they were able to spread their influence even to the point where they had valuable contacts within the Japanese fortress of Rabaul. Rain, inactivity, little variety in food, the constant need to stay under cover and even the card games began to negatively affect the men. Fortunately there were no clashes of personalities amongst the group. Any problems were openly discussed before a decision was made. Peter Figgis was responsible for communications and intelligence. Les Williams was camp commandant and medical officer and Malcolm Wright was overall leader and responsible for liaison with the natives. It was a very successful team. In July two natives brought Captain Art Post, a pilot from the United States Eighth Photo Squadron into the camp. Post had been flying a P38 Lightning on a photo- mission over Rabaul but a Japanese Zero caught him unawares and shot him down. Fortunately, he was able to bail out of his burning aircraft and had wandered for days in the jungle surviving on his emergency rations and any water he could find. Eventually he walked into a village of friendly natives and they were happy to feed him. Word of his presence eventually reached the Coastwatchers who asked that he be brought to their camp. Although the group were glad to have Captain Post with them, he was inclined to annoy them at times especially when he voiced his opinion about the British war effort. One day he was describing how easy it was to seduce Australian women at first meeting despite his claim that they were all virgins. This irritated the Australians and when asked where he met all these ‘easy’ women, he named a certain Sydney hotel. The Australians burst into laughter and explained to Post that it was well known that the foyer of this particular hotel was the greatest ‘pick up joint’ in all of Australia for good time girls. In the Canadian province of Quebec between August 17 and 24 a top secret military conference code named Quadrant was held between Canadian Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King, US President Franklin Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. One of the items agreed was that Rabaul should be bypassed and not attacked. If men and supplies could be stopped from reaching the Japanese occupied town it could be left to wither

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and die on the vine with out the loss of any Allied troops.8 Coast Watching operations were still as valuable as ever possibly even more so as the Allies put into motion their next operation. From the time of their arrival in New Britain, 70 Japanese submarines, numerous barges and aircraft had been observed and reported to GHQ via Moresby. It was thought the sea traffic making regular runs were supplying Lae and it was frustrating to the Coastwatchers that GHQ never told them of any action that was taken on their reports. Confirmation of ship’ sunk or aircraft shot down would have lifted the group’s morale. One event that did brighten the situation took place in mid July. About 7am one day, a small 300 ton Japanese freighter entered Baien Bay and a signal was immediately sent. Two hours later three US Army Air Force Mitchell B-25 bombers appeared and sank the freighter. The Coastwatchers prestige went up amongst the natives as it was everyone’s first visual victory. The night of 28 September was stormy with heavy seas but the American submarine, USS Grouper arrived on schedule with 16 Europeans and 27 natives who came ashore without mishap. Unfortunately most of the supplies were ruined by seawater. The radios had not been waterproofed and only one of five was working. With handshakes all round, Captain Post was taken out to the submarine and then it disappeared into the darkness.9 All the groups were under orders to be in position by 1 November. The group that had to be at Nakanai had to leave almost straight away but the other three couldn’t leave until replacement supplies arrived. In the meantime, the change in command was not very welcome as the group had worked very hard to establish the camp, successfully operated the observation post and spread their influence with the natives over a large area. It also meant breaking up the great seven-month partnership between Wright, Figgis and Williams. Peter Figgis stayed to operate the existing observation post under the command of Major Allan Roberts. Lt Wright’s party which now included Lou Searle was assigned to an area around Talasea. To reach their destination the team had to march 150 miles. The replacement supplies arrived and the long trek began. The remaining two commando groups accompanying Wright left his party at various locations en route to establish their own positions. It was almost a month later that Wright, Williams, Simogun and the native bearers arrived at their destination. All along the route, they established friendly relations with the local natives who, to the best of their ability, fed and accommodated the weary travellers. The Coastwatchers established a new position on a spur at the western end of the mountains overlooking the valley of the Kapiura River near the village of Kupi. From this spot they had an excellent view of sea traffic in the Bismarck Sea. In addition, they could observe aircraft movements from the Japanese airstrip near Cape Hoskins. The first signal was transmitted on schedule and the Coastwatchers settled down to their duty. The Coastwatchers may or may not have been aware of the Allies plans to land at Cape Gloucester 120 miles west of their location on 26 December. Operation Cartwheel was designed to contribute to the increased isolation and harassment of Rabaul and to give the Allies free access through the

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Straits separating New Britain and New Guinea. To ensure the Japanese could not send reinforcements and supplies to their forces at Cape Gloucester, the American 112th Cavalry Regiment began operations against the Japanese forces at Arawe on the island of Bougainville. While the campaign against the enemy in Arawe was taking place, the fortunes of Wright’s Coastwatching operation was about to take a turn for the worst. Since landing in New Britain, they had been extremely lucky not to have been bothered by the Japanese or by any collaborators amongst the native population. The attitude of the natives to the Coastwatchers and their own meticulous planning and experience was a successful combination. But it was only a matter of time. In a routine search by pro-Japanese natives, some of the tobacco handed out by the Australians as payment was found in a village. The Japanese were alerted that Australians were about somewhere. A little later, two young boys were handed over to the Japanese by a renegade tribal chief. The boys knew all about Wright’s party from the time of its arrival at Baien to their new position and after the Japanese had beaten the boys almost to death, they obtained the information they required. Lt Wright got word through the native grapevine that a party of approximately 50 Japanese soldiers and some renegade natives were on their way towards his camp. Japanese troops were often terrified of moving into the jungle except in large numbers as they had no idea who or what awaited them, so they relied mainly on native guides. For the first time, the Coastwatchers could no longer rely on native assistance for fear of reprisals. Hiding as much as they could, the group moved their base with what supplies they could carry and re-established camp two miles away. On 22 December, the Japanese, after searching the nearby village of Kupi, began moving up the track towards their old position. The Japanese found the abandoned camp, burned it and the village of Kupi as well as executing some villagers on the way back. Once the Japanese had left the area, the Coastwatchers returned to their old camp and salvaged a surprising amount of intact gear and were back in business almost straight away. Four days after the Coastwatchers close call with the Japanese patrol, the Allies began their invasion of Cape Gloucester 10 with an intense naval bombardment by Australian and American warships as well as bombing by the Royal Australian Air Force and United States Army Air Force. This was followed by a beach landing by Marines from the US 1st Division on December 26. Japanese and Americans fought each other in pouring rain, glutenous mud, disease ridden swamps, and thick jungle. Japanese sea communications were under constant attack from the air and sea and their losses were heavy. It was on New Years Day that the last sighting of any importance was transmitted from Wright’s position. It was dawn when they observed two enemy destroyers standing off the coast just near the village at Malalia with khaki clad figures streaming aboard. Once the loading was complete, the destroyers raced off in the direction of Rabaul. GHQ was informed immediately. They learned later that the Japanese General Officers Commanding and staff from both Arawe and Cape Gloucester were

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evacuated by these destroyers. Wright’s group was furious that no follow up action was taken on their signal of the destroyers’ position. The burning of the village and the deaths of some of the villagers in late December ignited a tribal war between the Nakanais tribes of the central mountains and the village of Kokiso closer to the coast which supplied the men who had helped the Japanese. Wright felt it prudent to move his operation into the village of Kotou which was more or less protected by the neighbouring Nakanais natives. While the fighting at Cape Gloucester was raging, the big question was whether the Japanese would fight to the death or retreat to Rabaul. If they did choose to retreat, then they would have to pass through the Coastwatchers area of control. It was now obvious the usefulness of the Coastwatchers had run its course, so all team members agreed the time had come to take the fight to the Japanese rather that keep trying to evade them. It was time for ‘Ferdinand’ to stop smelling flowers. While the natives were in fighting mood, a meeting of the local chiefs was arranged by the Coastwatchers and it was explained that they were no longer going to avoid the Japanese but were going to stand and fight. Wright explained that the Americans were fighting at Arawe and Cape Gloucester [Kilingi to the natives] and that many retreating Japanese would be attempting to get to the safety of Rabaul. Some might come into the mountains and take food from the native villages and gardens or they might send patrols to search for the Australians. All the chiefs agreed to join in the fight against the common enemy. Throughout the war in New Guinea, there was a general unwillingness at all levels of Allied Command to use the natives as combatants. Tens of thousands were however conscripted as carriers where they earned the enduring nickname Fuzzy Wuzzy Angels. Many were used for scouting and patrol duties. When Wright’s message arrived at GHQ, explaining that the natives were prepared to join the Australians there was considerable debate as to the best course of action. Although it was against Lieutenant Commander Eric Feldt’s ‘Ferdinand’ principal, it was thought it was time to hit the Japanese while they were still reeling from Allied attacks and Wright’s party was given permission to engage. Wright requested a delivery of 100 twelve-gauge repeating shotguns, ammunition in the form of buckshot cartridges, hand grenades and additional rations to help feed the families of the natives while away fighting.11 A few days later the requested supplies arrived. There was keen interest in the new supply delivery method. A US Army Air Force Liberator had been modified for the new ‘biscuit bombing’ method. This entailed the delivery aircraft to literally bomb those on the ground with the supplies. It was accurate and quick and rarely need two runs to complete the drop. Ten chutes and half a ton of rice could be delivered right on target in a single run and the aircraft could be gone in minutes. Wright, Williams and Simogan were now in the business of and began training selected teams from various Nakanais villages.

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With Japanese forces slowly disintegrating under the relentless American onslaught and sickness undermining any determination to resist, the 400 mile trek to the safety of Rabaul became the preferred option for thousands of Japanese. As the word ‘retreat’ was not in the Japanese language, Emperor Hirohito’s troops only knew ‘forward’ or ‘fight to the death’. When it was militarily expedient, retreat was ‘changing direction’ or ‘advancing to the rear.’ In this case, the Japanese began to advance to the rear towards Rabaul via Cape Hoskins. It took four months for the fighting to cease and once the Cape Gloucester airstrip was made operational, General MacArthur was free to continue his campaign of island hopping north towards Tokyo. The first indication that the Japanese were still interested in the Coastwatchers’ operations was a report from the guerrilla scouts that a force of about 100 Japanese troops were at the village of Kokiso arranging guides and bearers for a patrol into the mountains.. Another report on 7 February said that 20 Japanese and 30 natives had arrived in one of the friendly villages. Simogun planned an ambush for the following day. The attack was over in minutes and it was Simogun who claimed the three enemy lives lost in the engagement. The rest of the Japanese decided it was not the time to stand and fight and returned to the coast. The guerrillas had just taken on and beaten a detachment of the much vaunted Imperial Marines. Before long 50 Japanese Imperial Marines were reported by friendly natives to be camped in the hamlet of Umu and a call to GHQ resulted in Boston Bombers from RAAF 22 Squadron attacking the Japanese position. Native scouts began reporting large enemy troop movements along the road towards Rabaul. The Japanese had initially begun their advance to the rear in an orderly and controlled fashion without stragglers for the guerrillas to use their hit and run tactics. The RAAF carried out strafing attacks along the road and any staging camps the enemy had set up. These attacks were made within prearranged zones so the guerrillas would not be accidentally strafed as well. For the moment, the natives had to be content with a kill or two here and there if the opportunity presented itself. Over time the road became a killing ground when better picking were to be had. The daily tally of Japanese deaths averaged 20 a day. In the middle of March, a transmission had been received that the group was being relieved on April 8 and repatriated to Australia. Captain Alister McLean, a former New Britain planter was to replace Wright and was bringing with him a complete party. This would allow Wright and Williams to take Simogun, Aiyan and Godamin and six locals to Australia. By the beginning of April, ‘Ferdinand’ guerrillas had killed more than 200 Japanese and controlled the mountains of central New Britain. They were well supplied and could call in air support if necessary. The group even had their own flag. A blue ensign with a yellow ‘F’ for Ferdinand superimposed upon it. The Nakanais were greatly impressed by this flag. It was an emblem of honour only to be flown in times of great occasion and that time was April 7. The day before Wright’s group were due to leave, Lou Searle had arranged a going away party at one of the small ‘Ferdinand’ bases. A big crowd had assembled. It was a day none of the Coast Watchers would ever forget. Great quantities of food had been prepared, skin drums were tested for tone as the

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natives dressed in costumes of mixed Australian and Japanese uniforms with rifles and shotguns slung over their shoulders. Before the party began, the Australians in heartfelt speeches thanked the people for their efforts in the Allied cause. The singsing got underway with the leader draped in the ‘Ferdinand’ flag while the Australians opened a bottle of rum and joined in the festivities. While celebrations were in full swing and continuing long into the night, security was still maintained with perimeter guards ready to tackle any Japanese troops the might be foolish enough to leave the road and investigate the noise. The natives had every reason to celebrate. In less than two months they had killed 256 Japanese with the lost of only one of their own. The success of the 300 guerrillas may not have been much compared to the trained soldiers of the Allied forces but it was extremely important that the Nakanais had kept the enemy out of the food–rich mountains at very little cost either in manpower or war material. Had the Japanese been able to have established themselves in the mountains, it would have been very costly for the Allied forces to remove them. The following day strict orders were issued by Wright that there were to be no attacks on the Japanese, no matter how tempting until the next day. It was a precaution so as not to draw attention to the group of men making their way to the coast and the rendezvous timed for 0630, an hour after sunset. After an exchange of signals, a small fast raced to the beach and figures began disembarking. As time was of the essence, there were just quick handshakes and whispered goodbyes. Major McLean, who was in charge of the new party, was informed that Lou Seale would remain behind to make sure everyone was fully instructed on all aspects of the ‘Ferdinand’ organisation and the Coastwatchers situation. Wright, Williams, the natives and four Allied airmen who had been brought to the Coastwatchers base a few weeks earlier were quickly ferried out to board two American PT boats for the journey to Cape Cretin near Finschhafen and the onward journey to Australia. After a few days back in Australia, Lt Wright was summoned to GHQ in Brisbane for what he thought was to be an official commendation for having commanded a party that spent thirteen months and one week in enemy occupied territory and waged a successful guerrilla war against the enemy for much of that time. A senior Officer greeted him with a toothy grin and said, ‘Oh, hello Wright. You had a complaint about something. I remember! Onions wasn’t it?’

Epilogue Australia’s ‘cloak and dagger’ men, who operated behind Japanese lines during the war, were honoured on 15 August 1959 when Minister for the Navy Senator John Gorton officially dedicated and lit the Coastwatchers Memorial Light at Kalibobo Point at Madang Harbour in New Guinea. The memorial was dedicated not only to Coastwatchers living and dead but to the Europeans and natives who took part in the war’s most hazardous spying operation. Altogether, 36 Coastwatchers lost their lives. At the base of the memorial light, one of the three plaques lists the names of the fallen. The inscription

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beneath their names reads; ‘They watched and warned and died that we might live.’13 The Coastwatchers and similar groups contributed to the successful outcome of the . To quote Rear Admiral WT Wilson USN [Ret]: ‘The achievements of all the Coastwatchers were outstanding during the war in the Southern Pacific. Their accomplishments were out of all proportion to the small numbers engaged in the work.’ Sadly, military historians especially Americans writing about the war in the Pacific, tend to overlook the importance of local native contribution to the Allied war effort. They supplied guides, porters, stretcher bearers and, in some cases, fought the Japanese in armed resistance. It would be impossible to estimate how many Allied soldiers, sailors and airmen owe their lives to the native participation on the Allied side. Equally, it would also be impossible to estimate how many natives died at the hands of the Japanese for the Allied cause. Australian military historians tend to give them a little more credit as Australian troops had more involvement with them. The native stretchers bearers dubbed the ‘Fuzzy Wuzzy Angels’ is a case in point. Lieutenant Malcolm Wright RANVR, the man who raised the possibility that there was to be no more smelling flowers, was on 8 March 1946 awarded the Distinguished Service Cross at Parliament House, Brisbane, by the Governor of for great daring and enterprise. On 27 October 1998 he passed away aged 86.

Footnotes 1- ‘The Story of Ferdinand.’ First published in 1936.Written by Munro Leaf and illustrated by Robert Lawson 2- Eric Feldt, ‘The Coast Watchers’, Australian War Classic Giant. Melbourne, 1975. p-95. 3- In Pidgin English, ‘master’ is the native version of ‘mister white man.’ 4- Narrow sea passage between the islands of Bougainville and Buka. 5- ‘The Coast Watchers.’ Eric Feldt. p-170-171. 6- Papua New Guinea. 7-Two man foldable canoe/kayak approximately 16 feet long with a plywood frame covered with several layers of rubberised skin. 8- Rabaul remained in Japanese hands until the end of the war. 9- Captain Post was killed several months later when he crashed into the sea on a test flight. 10-Cape Gloucester was ‘Tuluvu’ to the Japanese. 11-The native men when fighting take their women and children into the bush for protection.

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12-Lou Searle returned to Australia a month later. 13- South Pacific Post, Port Moresby, 1959.

Author’s note On 25 March 1944, PT boats brought in new teams and extracted Peter Figgis and seven Allied airmen. Figgis had been in New Britain just over a year. Leslie Williams, Peter Figgis and Lou Searle were all awarded the Military Cross. Simogun was awarded the British Empire Medal and retired from the police force and became one of three New Guineans to be elected to the Territory’s Legislative Council and in 1965, was the Under-Secretary for Police in his government. There are so many others whose equally valuable contributions to the Coast Watching operations in New Britain that should, but have not been mentioned. It is hoped the reader will go on to read further on the subject. The author would also like to thank Christopher Wright for permission to use material from his father’s book, ‘If I Die.’ Lansdowne Press, Melbourne, Australia, 1965.

©Ken Wright. 2009.

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