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[Page 28]
1914.
flying everywhere. The harbour proper is fairly small and the deep water is rather limited. There is a reef enclosing a very large area of water outside the harbour proper. The roads on the outskirts of the town are bad. Nearly all the large private houses have good gardens, with, generally, several cocoanut trees. Shops are of a mediocre kind. The jetties for shipping are fairly extensive. The surrounding country appears to be exremely mountainous, and of volcanic orogin. One of the transports had the misfortune to ground on a mudbank in the inner harbour, but the following day she was successfully towed off without having sustained any damage. The incident, however, delayed our departure 24 hours. Noumea was a large convict settlement until a few years ago, but the French have now given it up. There still remain in the colony many of the old convicts. I got the impression that the place was not particularly prosperous, for one searched in vain for evidence of wealth. Several lines of steamships communicate with Sydney. All ships having now completed coaling,
Aug. 23.
we left Noumea on Sunday morning about noon. The French cruiser "Montcalm", which was to have preceeded us out of harbour, had some difficulty in getting away, for we were compelled to to leave her behind. The fleet waited for her when we had gained the open sea. Several motor boats