During the Second World War, Durban harbour was a busy way station for troopships. Soldiers and airmen from New Zealand, Australia, Great Britain and elsewhere, as well as training bases in South Africa, all spent a brief period of leave here before sailing for the jungles of Burma and British Malaya or the battlegrounds of Europe.
As the ships entered the harbour, the men would crowd along the landward rails to watch a woman dressed in white and wearing a red hat welcoming them with songs.
“She sang for hours all the songs we knew,” wrote one soldier. “Songs we learnt as kids; songs we’d heard at the cinema, over the radio and in the dance hall; popular tunes we’d sung many a time; and songs one usually hears in semiclassical surroundings with the appurtenances of spotlights and soft accompaniments.
“Yet they lost nothing by lacking these attributes; rather they gained in meaning and eloquence, coming from this lone white figure picking her way to and fro along the quay.”
Perla Gibson’s custom of singing to the ships appears to have started when she was seeing off a young Irish seaman whom her family had entertained the day before. As he embarked, he asked her to sing something ‘Irish’ for him. Gibson, a trained soprano, responded with ‘When Irish eyes are smiling’, and received tumultuous applause from the troops.
Seeing this reaction, she made a commitment to drive down from her home on the Berea and sing to the troops whenever a convoy entered the harbour.
A TALENTED SINGER
Gibson was born in Durban in 1888, the daughter of Otto Siedle, a prominent shipping agent of German extraction. She studied music and art in the US and Europe and gave recitals as a soprano in New York and London.
Esta historia es de la edición January 31, 2020 de Farmer's Weekly.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición January 31, 2020 de Farmer's Weekly.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
Review: the Toyota Hilux 2.8GD-6 DC 4×4 GR-Sport III
The third iteration of the Hilux GR-Sport has finally achieved a sense of presence and style befitting its raceinspired branding. But is this the ultimate modern Hilux? Car Magazine takes a closer look.
Why maize prices soar in Kenya and Malawi but not Tanzania
Namhla Landani, an economist at the Centre for Competition, Regulation and Economic Development, University of Johannesburg, and Arthur Khomotso Mahuma, economist and researcher at the Centre for Competition, Regulation and Economic Development, University of Johannesburg, analyse the issue.
Wet carcass syndrome: a scourge in SA sheep farming
Wet carcass syndrome continues to take a huge financial toll on South African sheep farmers. Octavia Avesca Spandiel spoke to two experts about the ongoing genetic research aimed at addressing this issue.
Pollination innovation
Bee-Tech Group is transforming South African agriculture with pollination technologies that boost crop yields and enhance sustainability. Founder Michiel Bruggeman spoke to Octavia Avesca Spandiel.
The valuable addition that makes this farm tick
Owning the value chain provides farmers with far more control over their produce. However, it requires a fine balance between production and ensuring there is a strong and steady market. Lindi Botha visited Rosemary Hill to find out how this essential oil producer leverages hospitality to make the farm viable.
The benefits of recirculating aquaculture systems
A powerful set of attributes has established recirculating aquaculture systems as a cornerstone of global temperate fish farming, writes Leslie Ter Morshuizen, owner of Aquaculture Solutions.
Minister has big plans for emerging and commercial farmers
DA leader and Minister of Agriculture John Steenhuisen spoke to Glenneis Kriel about his priorities for his department over the next five years, including an increased focus on biosecurity.
New study aims to make wheat more disease resistant
A recent international study explains how bread wheat has helped to transform the ancient world on its path to becoming the iconic crop that today helps sustain a global population of eight billion.
Conservation farming and biodiversity boost soil health and sustainability
A recent academic event focused on research into the links between soil biodiversity, soil health and sustainable agriculture
What has led to the unparalleled rice shortage in Japan?
Japan is facing a rice shortage amid concerns about a potential 'megaquake', several typhoons and an annual week-long holiday, which has led to an increase in panic buying.