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John F. Kennedy: Biuku Gasa

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles / Autographs Start Price:NA Estimated At:5,000.00 - 6,000.00 USD
John F. Kennedy: Biuku Gasa

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Auction Date:2015 Mar 11 @ 18:00 (UTC-05:00 : EST/CDT)
Location:236 Commercial St., Suite 100, Boston, Massachusetts, 02109, United States
ALS - Autograph Letter Signed
ANS - Autograph Note Signed
AQS - Autograph Quotation Signed
AMQS - Autograph Musical Quotation Signed
DS - Document Signed
FDC - First Day Cover
Inscribed - “Personalized”
ISP - Inscribed Signed Photograph
LS - Letter Signed
SP - Signed Photograph
TLS - Typed Letter Signed
Important dictated manuscript in the Melanesian dialect of Roviana, five pages, 7.75 x 9.75, no date but circa 1961. Biuku Gasa's own account of his efforts to save John F. Kennedy and his crew who had been stranded on a small island for six days after their PT-109 torpedo boat was rammed and cut in two by a Japanese destroyer on the night of August 2, 1943. Gasa dictated his account to the Rev. E. C. Leadley, a longtime Methodist missionary who had sought out Gasa in February 1961, and includes a typed translation of the manuscript signed by Reverend Leadley. In part: “I was a scout at Gizo Island…we came back to Naru Island, and saw a Japanese vessel, and we went over to look at it. While we were getting these things from this (wrecked) ship, we saw a man walking on Naru Island. We thought he was a Japanese, so we ran away and come to Olosana Island…But when we drew near I saw a white man, who called out, so we kept away a bit. I said to my friend, 'We are dead men; that is a Japanese.' But the man heard the word 'Japan.' and he quickly said, 'I am not a Japanese, but an American.' But I said, 'No, you are Japanese.' But the man called again, 'Look at my skin; it is white; I am not a Jap.' But I said, 'True, his skin is whitish, but he is a Jap.' He was speaking in English and I was speaking in pidgin…‘Are you two scouts?' 'No,' I said. 'Where do you come from?' he said, and I replied, 'We come from Vella Lavella.' 'Can you help us?' he said, and I replied, 'No, we can't.' It was because we were afraid to die that I spoke falsely, for we were sure that he was Japanese…It is rather funny now to think of what we said because we were very frightened. But soon the man said, 'Do you know John Kari? Man from Rendova?'…By this we knew that all was well, and we were very glad. We went ashore…Many of them had burns on their bodies and were in great distress. I was very sorry for them, and wanted to try to get them quickly to Rendova, but the trouble was, that our canoe was very small. So I said to Eroini, 'We must not leave them; if they die, let us die with them.' Perhaps it was after midnight that Captain Kennedy swam across with a piece of canoe and a tin of fresh water which he wanted for his crew. So they told him, 'Captain Kennedy, we are saved. There are two men here, Biuku and Eroni'…As soon as morning came, he wanted to swim back to Naru, for he wanted to try to signal a ship. So I said, 'Why not have us carry you across in our canoe?' 'Good,' he said. So we covered him with coconut fronds and paddled him across to Naru. We came to another man [George H. R. 'Barney' Ross] who was swimming and we wanted to pick him up, but he swam away. So I told the captain, that the man was afraid. 'Tell him my name' he said. So I called out, 'Captain Kennedy inside long canoe here.' So he waited for us and we took him also to Naru Island. When we arrived at Naru, Captain Kennedy said, 'I want to get to Rendova quickly but I can't. And I have no paper to write a letter to send to Rendova. What do you think I ought to do, Biuku?' Well, we sat down and suddenly I thought, even though there is no paper, he could write on the skin of a coconut. So I called Eroni, and he climbed up and got a coconut. I called to Captain Kennedy and said, ‘All right, you write your letter' And he said, 'Can I write on this?' and I replied, 'yes, you can.' So he got out his pocket knife and wrote, and then tried to rub it out but could not. He was very surprised that I had invented a new thing to write on! What he wrote was, 'THESE TWO NATIVES KNOW WE ELEVEN ARE.' And he said, 'Try hard to rescue me from my enemies.' And this is what has happened; we rescued Captain Kennedy and his crew from their enemies." In fine condition, with overall toning from previous display. Originally sold by Charles Hamilton, New York, December 13, 1966, and accompanied by the catalog for the sale.