Little except bad weather fs allowed to interfere with the punctual sailing a Japanese vessel" and. yet. when the Koluryw Mary. left Dairen for JSopan on December'? it was not until he ship had. been hela up for 25 minutes. And ithe weather Nad no-hing to do with it, "The delay was feaused by 30 Australians who had formed 2 scratch crew on the Britis ship Sitkaivorth,. Sydney to the. Far East, she had refused definitely to {raver back to their country in third class accommodation which had European facilities, The trouble all started in Sydney when the cargo boat Silksworth, loaded for Far Eastern ports could Jobtain no Chinese crew. The Chinese, maintaining that there was cargo on board which was destined as material {for the use of the Japanese troops China, refused point-blank to Ho. board, Nothing could convince. them that the vessel was taking ordinary cargo to the Orient, Impassively they held out The steam: of British roxistry, is chartered to the Yamashita Steamship Ca, and when their ordin= tary crew could not be mustered the agents in Sydney had to set about finding some sort of a crow to take the vessel North. Eventually this was gathered up to the number of 30 with a regular and fully. nceredited jchiet steward as wel, The scratch crew was yarnered from all walks of Life, According to Jone of the men themselves a major from the army, a station hand, a baker jand'a policeman were among this varied crew. Few had ever done any sailing. None had been on a vessel to work for many years, Most of them had had no experience in ship's work at all, Anyway the boat at last ott Sydney' and in due course arrived in Dairen which was the destination or the crow.
Objected to Hate! Rooms When the Silksworth arrived this port the crew came ashore, [Shown a lesser form of hotel they. declared they would have nothing to with it and they were transferred to one of better calibre, The chief steward took a room at the local Yamato Hotel and there remained luntit the day of departure.
While they were ashore thei penses were pald by the Yamashita Ca. their pay which was £20 per month went" on steadily" which would do until they landed back in Australia, 'They were dissatisfied, however,' with the third-class quar ters on the Kokuryu Mara and ited that they should travel second= class. After some negotiation this twas arranged and they eft. after holding the boat up for 26 minutes, Meanwhile there was the question jof the chief steward who ranked as Jan amicer of the ship. His conten tion was that "it the' crew. could travel second-class he should natural= ly go first. Negotiations began and while the hullabaloo on the ship was Being on he came ashore to take the matter up at the local agent's acc.
When he got back to the docks the Kokuryu Mana had already" pulled out but some thoughtful person had put hig baggage ashore. 'The boat twas chased out beyond the break-leater but remained clusive and the chief steward then spent another fight at the Yamato Hotel to leave the following day by {rain through Korea for Kobe where he would Join the bot arranged for' the rest Jor the Australians, Dairen the Silksworth took on frosh crew of Japanese and sailed for Shimizu and Yokohama un. the first part of her voyage.
As to the Australians they declared that they were, during such times as these, in luck." A" trip to the Far East and the voyage back again with the pay moving ahead all the white, they said was "bonzer." As one of them Pil land back in Aussie with 50 or 60 quid—and that's not 30 lad nowadays!
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.