The 1954 Japan & South Pacific Cruise
Unique Visit to Pitcairn Island - 09 February 1954
For many people the 1954 Japan & South Pacific Cruise rises above all others in popularity amongst
those associated with the Caronia. Not least of these is Brenton Jenkins who was Senior Assistant Purser
on this cruise.
Brenton says…
I was fortunate in making the Japan/South Pacific Cruise, lasting 99 days, and I consider this to be the most rewarding
of all my sea going days. My job as Senior Assistant Purser was to prepare all the entry and clearance papers for the
ship, deal with the boarding Customs and Immigration Officials and to see that our passengers were never bothered in
having to present themselves for any passport inspections etc. Bribery played a big part!
09 February 1954
Pitcairn Island Visit
Brenton continues…
Caronia dropped anchor late morning off Pitcairn and soon the Islanders were boarding from their rowing craft called
“longboats”.
There were approximately 120 people living on Pitcairn in 1954 and except for a school teacher from New
Zealand and a Church Pastor, all were direct descendants from Fletcher Christian and his eight mutineers
and the eighteen Polynesians (12 women and 6 men) who landed on Pitcairn in 1789. After 4 months of wandering
the ocean in search of a safe refuge, they had at last found a home.
All the Islanders, except the very old and the very young, had come out to visit the Caronia. They all
presented a most agreeable looking group, very nicely clad, the young men mostly tall and lanky.
[Left:]
The tall man in the centre of the photograph is Mr. Christian, the Headman on the Island and a direct
descendant of Fletcher Christian who led the “Bounty” mutineers.
The young man behind him on the right is one of the young Islanders. The ladies on either side are two of our
passengers, not identified.
[Photo: Caronia: Courtesy of Brenton Jenkins]
Polynesian traits in some, but all of very pleasant demeanour and speaking good English. A relief from the previous
Caronia visitors at Easter Island.
The prepared reception deck was soon alive with our passengers and the Islanders socialising and happily
enjoying themselves. We were all impressed with the very natural charm of the Islanders and they quickly
captivated our passengers with their kindly manners and friendliness.
They entertained us in the afternoon with almost an hour long concert and seating was quickly made ready
for the show. The Islanders are Seventh Day Adventists and have very strong and serious religious convictions,
no smoking or alcohol on the Island.
The Islanders’ strong religious ties could be traced back to Young and Adams, two of the mutineers, who
suddenly gave themselves up to the Christian faith and it's propagation with the zeal of missionaries.
Shame of past deeds it was said was one reason for their conversion.
The concert of singing and dance numbers was to their own accompaniment of guitar playing and included a
number of their hymns. All with a somewhat partial Polynesian style about it, especially with the guitar
sounds.
The ladies of the group wore grass skirts and colourful leis around their necks, as you can see in the photograph.
The one hymn that stands out in my memory was sung in an Hawaiian style and beat:-
The first line went…
“When I ring my Lord on the royal telephone”.
Then the singers would made the hand movements, as if dialling-up an old fashioned telephone.
Singing…
“Burr Burr” - “Burr Burr” - “Burr
Burr”
“Hello Lord, are you there?”
All sung to their own beat and guitar sounds. It certainly was something different and new. The concert
was a success with our passengers as was the visit by these gracious Islanders.
In fact, the passengers were so delighted with the Pitcairn Islanders that they collected $40,000 to pay
for a new roof on their church, which had been blown away by a storm. The amount collected would fully cover
the cost, though building supplies would need to be brought from New Zealand, 3,300 miles away.
