Then it was Andrew’s turn to meet them and shake hands He found himself tongue tied and could only mumble his name. Thankfully he stepped back to let Blake and Carmen move forward.
The group were expected and were settled into chairs with the Murchisons. Andrew made sure he was seated beside Muriel but did not make any overt displays of friendship or affection. Grandma Murchison and Mrs Murchison went off with Muriel to bring out cold drinks: cordial and fruit juice. Andrew found he was feeling very shy and anxious and could only mutter and point when Muriel’s mother asked him what he would like. He sat back and sipped at a fruit punch.
The adults began talking about what they did for a living. Andrew learned that Muriel’s father was an accountant, which seemed to look right somehow. While the cadet staff talked to the adults Andrew settled and looked around. He found it very pleasant on the patio. A cool breeze was wafting in around the end of the building. Beyond that was a rocky ridge covered with dry savannah woodland and grass trees. On the other side of the house, beyond the driveway and just visible through the trees, was the roof of another house.
The view from the patio was enough to hold Andrew’s attention for several minutes. Just visible below was the beach and the little bay with its rocky headlands. The headlands were grey granite covered with mottled black lichen. The water looked fairly clear and he could clearly see the bottom for some distance out, even to being able to see the dark shadows which denoted the small fringing reef they had been diving on, and outlying rocks.
Beyond that the sea shaded off into green, then to a dark blue, speckled with a shimmering pattern of sunlight on the waves. Far off, at least a dozen kilometres away, was the other side of Trinity Inlet. The city of Cairns, where Andrew and the other cadets lived, was out of sight to his left, hidden by the trees on the next ridge. The dark blue shapes of the coastal mountains north of Cairns were clearly visible, although hazy in the distance. The distinct shapes of Yorkeys Knob, Earl Hill, Buchans Point and Double Island were all easily identified.
To Andrew’s right the faint glimmer of a flat, white disc was just visible. It was, he knew, one of the sand cays out on the Great Barrier Reef. He searched his memory to try to sort out which one it was. ‘Upolo Cay or Michaelmas Cay,’ he thought, and was mildly nettled that he could not remember which it was.
A passing ‘Big Cat’ ferry on its way out to Green Island, somewhere off to his right but hidden by the hillside, held his attention for some time. Then a motor launch came into view closer in and heading for Cairns.
Sub Lt Sheldon was speaking to Old Mr Murchison. “Are you still working sir?” he asked. Andrew shifted his attention back to the conversation.
Old Mr Murchison shook his head. “No, thank heavens. I'm comfortably retired and can get on with my reading.”
“What did you do sir?” Sub Lt Sheldon enquired politely.
“I was a gold miner mostly,” Old Mr Murchison replied.
Muriel then cut in. “And a diver. You were a diver for a long time weren’t you Grandad?”
Old Mr Murchison gave her a smile but looked mildly annoyed. “Yes, but that was a long time ago.”
“When was that sir?” PO Walker asked.
“Oh before the Second World War and during it,” Old Mr Murchison replied, “When I was young and fit.”
“Were you in that war sir?” Sub Lt Sheldon asked. It was over sixty years since that great event but it still roused Andrew’s attention.
Grandfather Murchison made a face but nodded. “Yes, I was in the navy.”
Andrew leaned forward. “What ship were you on sir?” he asked. He was particularly interested because his own grandfather had been in the navy during the war.
Old Mr Murchison glanced at him and seemed to scowl momentarily. Andrew feared he had intruded onto a delicate subject but the old man then replied, “On the cruiser HMAS Hobart till 1941, then I was promoted to Petty Officer and transferred to the boom defence vessel Kowrowa.”
Muriel again interrupted. “Grandad was in Sydney when the Japanese midget submarines attacked. He was one of the divers who helped salvage one of the wrecks, weren’t you Grandad?”
“Yes,” Old Mr Murchison nodded.
Andrew was very interested now. He had read about the Japanese midget submarine attack on Sydney in 1942 and had even seen one of the recovered subs at the War Memorial in Canberra.
Sub Lt Sheldon leaned forward. “That must have been very interesting. I imagine diving was very different in those days from what it is now?”
“Yes, much tougher I reckon,” Old Mr Murchison grunted, but he did not elaborate.
Muriel said, “Grandad has lots of photos from then. Would you like to see them? Is that alright Grandad?”
For a second Andrew thought that Old Mr Murchison was going to say no, as he frowned, but then he smiled at Muriel. She hurried off into the house and the conversation went on, Sub Lt Sheldon and PO Walker asking about the submarines, and then about other events in Old Mr Murchison’s career. By listening Andrew learned that Old Mr Murchison had spent the last few years of the war doing salvage work, mostly around New Guinea. That interested him as his own grandfather had been involved in similar work.
‘I wonder if they knew each other?’ he thought. He was about to ask when Muriel returned, carrying a large, black covered photo album. This was placed on the coffee table in front of them and Muriel knelt to turn the pages. Old Mr Murchison took a pair of glasses out of his shirt pocket and put them carefully on, then leaned forward to squint at the pictures. Andrew was fascinated to note the black pages and tiny photos, now yellowing with age.
The group crowded round to look. Andrew found it hard to imagine that the lean, fit young man in the photos was the grey-haired old man seated opposite him but was still intensely interested. There were dozens of photos of ships, some famous, like the cruiser HMAS Australia , or the British Battleship HMS King George V, many small and unknown to him: launches, boom defence vessels, tugs and similar small work craft.
There were quite a number of photos of Old Mr Murchison in his diving gear. The diving gear was the old-fashioned type with brass helmet, a rubberised canvas suit and huge lead boots, all festooned with lifelines and air hoses. In several photos Old Mr Murchison was seated or standing with the helmet off. In others he was climbing up or down ladders with his helmet on.
Some of the photos had handwritten captions, now faded but just legible. One said: ‘Recovering bodies from crashed RAAF Beaufighter- Oro Bay- New Guinea- 1943’.
‘That would be horrible!’ Andrew thought, but he knew that divers were often called on to carry out such gruesome tasks.
Muriel kept turning the pages. There were a lot of wrecks and small craft on beaches around Bougainville in 1945. Then there was a large studio photo of Old Mr Murchison in his dress whites. Andrew stared at the row of medal ribbons and was impressed.
Muriel pointed to the photo. “Gee, you were handsome Grandad!” she cried.
The old man flushed with pleasure. “What do you mean were? I still am,” he replied.
They all laughed at this and Muriel turned to give the old man a hug. Andrew was amazed at the transformation of the craggy, lined face. It softened and his eyes twinkled, then watered. He patted Muriel’s back, then suggested she get on with it so they could have lunch.
Muriel turned back to the photo album. Most of the photos were larger now, post-card size, and the dates were after World War 2: 1946, 1947. Old Mr Murchison had stayed in the navy after the war, being a regular naval man, and had retired after 12 years in 1953. Andrew noted that he was a Chief Petty Officer by then and that caused him not to ask about his own grandfather and father as both had been officers. Andrew had never known his own grandfather as he had been lost at sea, but he had seen photos of him, his own family having several similar photo albums.
Thus it was with some surprise that he found himself staring at a photo which he had seen in his own family album. His pulse quickened
and he leaned forward, stopping Muriel from turning the page.
“What is it?” Muriel asked.
“This photo,” Andrew indicated, pointing to one which showed five men: two white divers and three black Torres Strait Islanders, on the deck of a small sailing ship. The handwritten caption read: ‘Lugger PEARL REEF - diving for trochas shell off Cape Grenville- 12 Sep 1956’
“What about it?” Muriel asked.
Andrew leaned forward to check, then nodded. It was definitely the same photo. “That man there,” he said, pointing to one of the two white men in diver’s suits. “He is my grandfather.”
Old Mr Murchison let out a gasp. “What’s that? What did you say?” he cried.
Andrew looked up in surprise, afraid he had startled or offended the old man. “We have a copy of this photo at home. This man here is my grandfather.”
“Are you sure? What.... what did you say your name was?” Old Mr Murchison asked, gripping Andrew by the wrist and staring hard at him.
“Andrew Collins,” Andrew replied, feeling quite frightened by the intensity of the old man’s reaction. “My grandfather was Herbert Collins.”
Old Mr Murchison peered intently at him. Andrew stared back, his heart beginning to beat with anxiety. To his dismay he noted the old man’s eyes widen and his face go pale.
“No! No! It.. it can’t be true.. I....” Old Mr Murchison gasped. Then he fainted and slid back into his seat.
CHAPTER 2
FADED MEMORIES
Andrew stared at Old Mr Murchison’s pale, waxy face in dismay, worried that he had caused the old man to have a heart attack. “Is he alright?” he asked.
Muriel moved to hold the old man’s head and Carmen helped her keep him in the chair. Grandma Murchison stood up and went pale, making Andrew wonder if she was also going to have some sort of attack. PO Walker then took charge and shoved the boys aside to kneel and feel the old man’s pulse.
“I think he has just fainted,” he said. “His heart seems to be beating strongly.”
That was a relief. Andrew looked around at the faces of Muriel’s mother and father and felt an irrational feeling of guilt. This flared into anger when Muriel turned on him.
“Oh Andrew!” she cried. “Look what you’ve done!”
The accusation was so unexpected and seemed to Andrew to be so unjust that he snapped back, “I didn’t do anything! He was just looking at the old photograph.”
For a moment he and Muriel stared hard at each other. Andrew was at a loss for words but now did feel guilty. He was saved from the necessity of a reply by Old Mr Murchison uttering a loud groan and opening his eyes. Mrs Murchison and Grandma Murchison both moved in to help sit him up. As Mr Murchison arrived with a glass of water Andrew stepped back, to join Blake and Shona on the edge of the group.
Helped by Mr Murchison and PO Walker Old Mr Murchison was lifted to his feet and assisted to walk into the house through the nearby double doors. Only when the group, including Grandma Murchison and Mrs Murchison, had gone from view did the remaining people speak. An anxious babble broke out as they discussed the old man’s collapse.
“He just fainted,” Sub Lt Sheldon offered.
Shona frowned. “But why?” she asked.
Carmen answered. “Andrew showed him this photo,” she said. She turned to Andrew, even as he experienced another wave of guilt. “Is this really our grandad?” she asked.
Andrew nodded and pointed to the diver on the left in the photo. “I’m sure it is. We have a copy of this in that old photo album that dad has. See, you can make out the name of the lugger on this lifebuoy behind them.”
Carmen bent to study the photo. “Pearl Reef,” she read. She nodded. “I seem to remember dad telling us that grandad was a pearl diver for a while.”
The others also moved to study the photo and Andrew found himself looking into Muriel’s eyes. She looked upset but also puzzled. He said, “I’m sorry Muriel, I didn’t mean to cause any harm. I was just curious.”
Muriel shrugged. “If it really is your grandad then I suppose your curiosity was justified.”
Mr Murchison and PO Walker came back out, followed a few minutes later by Grandma Murchison and Mrs Murchison.
“He is alright now,” Grandma Murchison said. “He is resting. I wanted to phone the ambulance but he assures me that it was just the shock of seeing young Collins here that caused him to have a bad turn.”
Andrew felt deeply embarrassed. “I’m sorry Mrs Murchison,” he replied.
“That’s alright. Not your fault. You weren’t to know.”
Carmen cut in. “Know what Mrs Murchison?”
Grandma Murchison looked at her, “That Joshua and Bert Collins worked together.”
“I’m Carmen Collins Mrs Murchison. Herbert Collins was our grandfather.” She gestured to include Andrew.
Andrew was puzzled. “But even if they did work together, why should seeing me cause Mr Murchison to.... to faint?”
“You don’t know?” Grandma Murchison asked.
They both shook their heads. Grandma Murchison shook her head sadly, then said, “Because they were both working on the same ship, as partners, when your grandfather died.”
Andrew knew that his grandfather had died at sea but had never really been interested enough to enquire into the details. Now he was seized by a desire to know. “How Mrs Murchison? What happened?”
Grandma Murchison settled herself in her chair and took a sip of fruit juice before answering. “It was very sad,” she said, staring off over the balcony towards the ocean. For a minute she was silent then she went on. “It was a long time ago- nearly fifty years. Joshua had just retired from the navy when Basil here was born. Joshua teamed up with Bert Collins. They had met during the war. Between them they managed to put up the money to buy a pearl lugger, a little sailing schooner thing, called the ‘Pearl Reef’. It wasn’t much but they had great hopes.”
Grandma Murchison paused and gave a wry smile. “They were going to make their fortune with pearl shell. It was much in demand then, but that was before the days of plastic buttons and cultured pearls of course. But I wasn’t very happy as it took a lot of our money and we had four young sons to look after.”
“Buttons?” Blake interjected.
“Yes buttons. They used pearl shell to make them for fashionable attire. Divers went down and picked the pearl shells off the seabed and sent it up in baskets. The shells were then cut open and the meat scooped out. The shells were then cleaned and stacked for sale. Of course they always hoped they would find a pearl and make a lot of money.”
“Did they?” Carmen asked.
Grandma Murchison gave a dry laugh and shook her head. “No. I think they only found a few tiny pearls. Anyway it all ended when a cyclone sank the lugger. That was in nineteen fifty six. They were wrecked on the beach at Bathurst Bay and were lucky to survive.”
“But you said grandad died at sea,” Andrew said.
“No, not then,” Grandma Murchison replied. “They went and used the insurance money and raised a loan to form a diving and salvage company. They bought two boats. One was a worn out old harbour tug named the Wallaman Falls. The other was some sort of little workboat named the Deeral. They fitted them for diving and salvage. There should be a picture of the tug somewhere there.” She indicated the photo album.
Andrew nodded “Yes, the Wallaman Falls. We have several photos of it at home. What happened Mrs Murchison?”
“Blasted boat!” Grandma Murchison said, shaking her head in annoyance. “Here I was with four children, young Basil only three years old, and your father has to throw all our money away in a wild scheme to try to salvage some gold.”
“Gold?” Mr Murchison echoed.
“Yes, gold. A coastal steamer named the Merinda had struck a rock or a reef or something during a storm and she was supposed to be carrying a load of gold from Cooktown. Josh and Bert worked out where they thought she might be and went sailing off to try to find her.”
/>
“When did this ship, the Merinda, sink Mrs Murchison?” Andrew asked.
“Only a few days before,” Grandma Murchison replied.
Andrew frowned. “So how come they did not know where she was?” he questioned.
“She went down in a storm at night and there were only a couple of survivors, and they had only a rough idea of where the ship sank,” Grandma Murchison replied. “I think there were six or seven men in her crew, plus five or six passengers. It was very sad as some of them were young girls on their way to boarding school.”
“Did they find the gold Mrs Murchison?” Carmen asked.
Grandma Murchison shook her head. “No. All they got was more bad luck. Their boat struck a reef at night in bad weather and sank. All the others on board were drowned. Grandad only survived by sheer good fortune. He drifted in a lifebuoy for four days before he was washed ashore. He landed on Hayman Island, that’s down in the Whitsundays I think, and crawled to the tourist resort.”
Sone nodded. “I’ve been there,” she added.
Grandma Murchison went on, “Anyway it was such a cruel blow that Joshua never went back to sea again. I don’t think he ever went diving again either.”
Muriel looked puzzled. “What did he do instead Gran?” she asked.
“It was terrible hard for a few years,” Grandma Murchison replied. “Joshua worked as a storeman, then as a surveyor’s offsider. Finally he took a job with a tin mining company for a few years. During that time Joshua became interested in prospecting. He went tin scratching in his spare time, and wandered around looking for garnets and opals and such like. Found some nice ones too. There are some in that brooch of mine you like so much dearie.” She looked at Muriel, who nodded happily.
Grandma Murchison went on, “Then Josh went off up Cape York Peninsula with an old crony from the war days, crocodile shooting and fossicking. They found a bit of gold and Josh got the gold bug bad. From then on he would go away for weeks at a time up into the Cape and usually came back with enough gold to pay our bills.”
Davey Jones's Locker Page 2