Fugitives: Evading and Escaping the Japanese

9. To Australia

TOAU5TRALIA 5etore we left this Shangri-la, we made a trolling jig, using some feathers from Charlie's birds. We "drug" that lure from there to Australia-with nary a strike. That probably sets a record for distance trolled without a bite. With Charlie Smith at the helm, we headed southeast from Labangan toward the Moro Gulf. It soon became evident that the molave plank was a barely adequate substitute for a keel, for the Or Else tended to heel over quite far, even if the wind was moderate. Chick and I busied ourselves shifting cargo from place to place to give the boat better balance. The adjusting of the load helped-but not much. What little favorable breeze we had was soon lost, so we cranked up the engine. Within a few hours it began to sputter. The sputtering soon became a consumptive cough, followed by what might be termed a merciful death. To conserve our fuel supply we had tested the engine for only a short time soon after it was installed and had decided that an overhaul was not necessary. Having barely begun ourjourney, we were still friends and we shared the blame for this lack of foresight . Had this occurred two weeks later, we would have been at each other's throats. Chick Smith awaited daylight before dismantling the engine. He tried a minor tuneup to no avail. After removing the head, the oil pan, the piston, he pronounced his dismal diagnosis-followed by his optimistic prognosis. The engine was so clogged with carbon, To Australia 101 gum, and miscellaneous goo that it needed a thorough cleaning. After a cleaning it would work fine. Soon the parts ofthe engine were strewn across the deck and we all set to soaking and scraping. We spent our first full day at sea working without shade under an excruciatingly hot sun-so hot that when the sun set the mild night temperature felt uncomfortably chilly. It was noon of the next day when A.Y. poured our precious half-gallon ofengine oil into the reassembled power plant and we heard the pleasant sound of the engine's chug and the splash of the half-submerged propeller as it churned us on our way. We had been drifting with the current and the breeze-we had not lowered the sail-and were now out ofsight ofland. None ofus had paid much attention to our location, but by consensus we decided that our destination, the Sarangani Islands, was to the southeast. A following wind allowed us to cut the engine as we headed in that direction. I've heard of prisoners putting marks on their cell walls to keep track of the time spent in incarceration. Ours, too, quickly became endless days with each being the same as the one before. We didn't note the passage of time. We weren't sure if we had spent three days or four days covering the 250 miles to the Saranganis. Notches in the gunwales would have solved this problem. Whether we had traveled three days or four days made no difference . We had barely made a dent in our supplies except for the lubricating oil, so we decided not to waste time landing at one of the Saranganis. Besides, we realized that at every island group along our route choosing an island to visit would be akin to playing Russian roulette. There would always be the risk oflanding at an island populated by unfriendly natives or, worse, Japanese forces. The latter was a distinct possibility here since the Saranganis are located at the mouth of Davao Gulf, the access route to the Japanese stronghold at Davao City, Mindanao. We sailed along, well offshore, while we pondered our next course. On the horizon some distance away and due south was an island . We guessed that it was Kawio Island, large enough to be named on our map. We headed directly toward that landmass, keeping it in sight over the bow all day. Darkness set in long before we arrived there, but as night fell we noticed a light on the island. The light now replaced the landmass as a target over the bow. Celebes Sea @ ~ () '., ftj ~. . Philippine Sea N w~. s Molucca Sea .... To Australia 103 The following wind gradually shifted to port, and since our trusty craft did not make for successful tacking, we decided to lower the sail and...