Item 02: Fred Hamilton-Kenny letter diary, 5 December 1914-26 February 1915 - Page 137
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[Page 137]
of some 12-13 summers – Several of the lads were good at diving – They swim straight down. This particular lad was the smallest of the lot – a little bigger than Rawdon – He jumped off his catamaran & swam down – He picked up a tin of meat from the bottom in at least 9 fathoms [equal to] 54 feet of water - Our anchor is down to the 12 fathom mark & has slanted a bit no doubt – It was questioned on board the other day when I mentioned a white man who had done 7 fathoms – a great feat – Here's a boy does it easy – He came up like a cork – The pressure on his ear drums at that depth must have been very great – Very few men care to dive more than 3 fathoms.
Well we went back to Rabaul – Got some clean clothes – I had a swim in the ditch with the men & then out we went to sea – We weren't in much over an hour – Ajax came off with a fresh leg of pork – for me – I'd been his doctor