THE SEARCHERS RELEASED

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Volume 58, Issue 70, 24 April 1929, Page 7

THE SEARCHERS RELEASED

By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright.

(Australian Press Association—Received This Day, Noon).

i IS MOUND IN DESERT A ROUGH GRAVE ?

A MONUMENT SUGGESTED

FRANTIC EFFORTS TO FIND .WATER.

KOOKABUMSA DISASTER

SYDNEY, This day. I'ilot E.aton's packhorse parly has lei't \Yave Hill, with ihe objeet of intcrring the remains of the avialors at Ihe spot of their forced Janding. Pilof Eatun will fly Ihe Kockaburra back lo Wave Ilill if possible. Aeroplanes wliicli visited Ihe arca again, confivmcd ihe (giinion that the mound near the Kookaburra was a roughly-made grave. Howevcr, in view of Ihe message from tho Southcrn ('ross, that tliere was no iraee of Ylcchanie Ilitchcock, when it fiew over ihe late Keith Anderson's plane, tlie Air Eorce officials are inclincd to believe tbat tbe mound might come from a bole wliicb tbe men dug for water. Several other bolcs were dug, and sbow the desperatc efforts the ainnen made to find water. Several wheel tracks on tbe ground indicate tbat tbe airmen tricd to take off. Tbe Southcrn Cross, Canberra and the Atlanta leave Ncwcastle Wuters to-day for their respective bomes, liaving been releascd froni tbe seavcb . Tbc Air Eorce macbincs talcc over tbe responsibility of the aerial reconnaissance over the Ivookaburra from to-day. Tbe lYime IMinister said tbat tbe Federal Government was considering tbe advisabilitv of asking tbe Air Accidcnts Board to mvcstigate Ihe circumstances of the forccd landing of tbe Kookaburra. Mr Bruce added tbat it would be fitting to ercct a memorial near tlie scene of tbe trngedv to perpctuate tbe sacrifice of Captain Anderson and Ylccbanie Hitcbcock.