The readers of the copy of Zoo (later called Animal & Zoo) Magazine—a joint venture between the Zoological Society of London and Odhams Press)—that landed on their doormats in August 1937 would have been fascinated by the accounts of travels in New Guinea by two writers whose articles appeared alongside one another. What neither article states is that the travellers, both of whom became legends in their own lifetime, actually met on location.
'Jock' Marshall
I have written before on the life of Alan John ‘Jock’ Marshall (1911-1967), the larger-than-life Australian zoologist. In 1936 he was in New Guinea scouting in order to build a proposal along with Tom Harrisson for an Oxford Exploration Club expedition. His efforts were in vain; he fell out with Harrisson and the expedition never happened, with permission to move out of heavily patrolled areas in the former German colony controlled under a mandate by the Australian government—the country was and still is a dangerous place—refused. He did, though, travel extensively in northern New Guinea, and he did publish a book describing the people and the birds-of-paradise he encountered. His memoirs, edited by his late second wife, Jane, are available online here. This is the account of his meeting a redoubtable and intrepid female collector and traveller.At Aitape there was news. Jock exulted 'There's a woman in our midst!! - Oh la la la la - probably a wizard female anthropologist!! perhaps a travelling woman writer—in a cutter!—or maybe—‘
As soon as he heard she'd come from Hollandia he knew who she was—Evelyn Cheeseman [sic], the English entomologist. Herr Stuber had told him she was coming. She made the trip in a native outrigger canoe; not at all unusual for her. For years she had been wandering about in all parts of the tropic world seeking specimens for the British Museum. Jock was delighted—‘She is intrepid & indefatigable & is that strange, unusual & wholly attractive thing—a woman with brains & charm.' In that compliment there was the usual implication of male superiority, and it was typical of Jock's attitudes at the time—indeed, there was always an element of it in his thinking, however hard he tried to be fair; and he did.
He went along to talk with her. He hoped she might have useful information about the Dutch territory, but found much of her work had been done around Hollandia at 4000 feet and at a lake nearby. They discussed boats. They both needed to travel to Wewak to connect with the mail steamer. Waiting for the boat was a game of chance; there was no radio link with Wewak—only messengers. Predictably it became a week overdue. 'How perfectly bloody typical—position becoming serious—may have to walk or canoe, & in any case will have a female on my hands. Still, I guess she's the best female in the world to be in a "crisis" with. Some consolation.' It is just as well Evelyn Cheeseman was not a party to these strutting male thoughts; but he had a great respect for her. She was thirty years older than Jock, which added to his admiration for her resource and courage.
Finally a runner arrived—the boat would not be at Aitape perhaps for weeks. As they had suspected, they must make the hundred mile journey by native canoe. So the next day they left by the big island outrigger for which they had negotiated some days before. Out to sea they found themselves under huge square sails of strapped-together patches of fibre, the thirty-foot mast creaking and straining in the wind. The outrigger, a sharpened log a foot thick, swished through the waves as a steady breeze hurried the trader eastward. They stopped only to adjust cargo; they were also carrying the mail. They ate on the sand and took off again within an hour, afraid that rough weather might spring up and delay them disastrously. Jock could not afford to miss another ship.
All through that night and the next two they sailed on, watching the stars, talking and dozing: 'The outline of the canoe picked out by sparkles of phosphorus & each paddle breaks the water to a swirling flame.' In the day the sun was high, the sea glaring. They got sunburnt, wrote and talked in a desultory fashion, worried about being becalmed, and drank coconut juice from the cargo of nuts. They had to drive the crew to work ever harder because their calculations told them they would reach Wewak with only four hours to spare.
They arrived at midnight on the fourth day. It was no surprise to discover the mailboat for Sydney, due to leave at dawn, was not leaving until the following day.
Marshall returned Sydney in October 1936.
I cannot help but wonder how the 24-year old Marshall introduced himself to the 54-year old Miss Cheesman. Surely not, ‘Miss Cheesman I presume’.
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| Marshall photographed this Cuscus which has been heavily retouched by the printer |
Lucy Evelyn Cheesman
Evelyn Cheesman’s life (1881-1969) was as remarkable as that of Jock Marshall’s. She was appointed Assistant Curator of Insects at London Zoo in 1917; in 1920 became the first female Curator. She resigned in 1926 devoting the rest of her life collecting insects, plants, reptiles and amphibians for, or working as a volunteer at, the Natural History Museum in London. She received some funding from the museum but financed her many expeditions to the Pacific islands and New Guinea from her own funds, by collecting for other museums and income from writing.
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| Evelyn Cheesman from here |
Their experiences in New Guinea were put to use in the Second World War. Evelyn Cheesman wrote of the area and of the Japanese invasion for the Geographical Journal. In one paper she described with first-hand knowledge the activities of Japanese spies on the north coast of Dutch New Guinea in 1938. They posed as botanists complete with vasculum but the Dutch administrator got a local boy to follow them covertly. They took photographs of port installations and the like and also collected some plants which where stuffed into the vasculum before they boarded the ship to move on to the next port. The boy, sharp as a tack, watched which plants were collected and himself took samples back to base. They were all common species that could be collected anywhere in New Guinea. Her second paper, in 1943, was clearly written with the knowledge and collaboration of military intelligence. My guess is her detailed knowledge of New Guinea was being put to good use against the Japanese. She had, with her good knowledge of German, worked for the Admiralty on economic intelligence during the First World War.
Jock Marshall became the ‘One-Armed Warrior’. He persuaded the Australian military that despite having shot off his arm in an accident as a boy, he should fight in New Guinea. In January 1945 as part of the Aitape-Wewak Campaign Captain Marshall led ‘Jockforce’, ten-men strong plus local carriers, behind enemy lines on a reconnaissance patrol through his old stomping ground and in so doing killed and captured some Japanese while acquiring a nasty dose of amoebic dysentery. There is a wry irony in what was used to communicate with headquarters. Pigeons were parachuted into this future leading figure in the physiological ecology of birds. A history of the use of carrier pigeons by the Australian forces reads:
During February 1945 an important Infantry patrol known as Jock Force had been out of communication with 6th Australian Division for some days when 4 Pigeon Section was ordered to drop pigeons from aircraft to the patrol for the purpose of carrying vital reports back to Division Headquarters. Shortly afterwards six birds were successfully dropped by parachute to the patrol. Despite the fact that these pigeons had only previously been used on the coastal areas over distances up to 10 miles and high features in the Torricelli Mountains had to be negotiated, the first pigeon brought back a message a distance of 45 miles in 50 minutes after being fired on by the enemy on release. From information carried by these birds many successful air strikes were made and future operational moves were planned.
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| Captain Jock Marshall (2nd left) on 6 January 1945. Aitape 'Personnel of "Jock Force" 2/2nd Infantry Battalion preparing to move out from the Australian and New Guinea Administration Unit Headquarters at the start of their 40 day patrol over the Torrocelli Ranges, through Yambe and along the Sepik River behind enemy lines' From here |
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| Aitape. 8 January 1945 'Personnel of "Jock Force" moving off for Yakamul aboard a 3 Ton Truck' From here |
From the scientific point of view Jock Marshall did not waste his time in the army. Brian Lofts (1929-2015) who worked with Jock Marshall for many years at St Bartholomew’s Hospital Medical School in London wrote in Marshall’s obituary for The Ibis:
Characteristically, even during this period he carried out scientific observations on the jungle avifauna and, many years later at Bart's, presented me with material to study which he had collected in the army and preserved in gin!
Marshall AJ. 1938. The Men and Birds of Paradise. Journeys through Equatorial New Guinea. London: Heinemann.
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