There's Something Out There!
The Caronia was home to a few quirky characters, with one or two of them rather fond of a drink, or three. One regular Great World Cruise traveller could easily be found, just by the time of day. Just as soon as the Observation Bar opened in the morning, there she would be, enjoying her double-brandy.
After luncheon, she'd stagger her way aft along Main Deck to perch herself in the Raleigh Room. At around 4pm she'd make her way to the Main Lounge for afternoon tea, followed by a second trip up to the Observation Bar. It was while the ship was heading to Singapore that she spied something out to sea.
Mentioning this to the barman, he assured her that: “There's nothing out there, ma'am”. A little later, she repeated her claim so the barman telephoned the Bridge. It turned out, that even through her part stupour, she'd been the only person aboard to notice a de-masted sampan adrift with several Malayan fishermen aboard, all close to death from thirst.
Subsequent to recording this story elsewhere on the Timeline, and as shown below, within the 1958 Great World Cruise folder, up has popped an Extract of Log for this event. I'm thrilled to confirm that this story actually unfolded on Thursday, 17 March 1955.
