Gallagher was gathering up other bottles that may be used by a castaway, but did not find
the Tighar artifacts. Or was not interested in them.
Read the material. Gallagher did not gather up any bottles. A work party found a Benedictine bottle near the skull. That happened, as closely as we can figure, in April 1940. Gallagher arrived in September. By the time he heard about the discovery and burial of the skull, the Native Magistrate, Buakee Koata, had a departed for Tarawa with the bottle. Gallagher never saw it.
I have read the material. I do not claim to know it as well as all, but probably better than some.
The point I was making was not about bottles per se, but Gallagher's search efforts in general as they relate to Kada's post. Gallagher mentions Carefully searching the area for items belonging to the castaway. He also mentions a benedictine bottle found, and in one telegram, "a bottle" found.
Is it the same bottle he speaks of in both telegrams? Because as Tighar has documented in one telegram he doesn't mention a bottle at all.
So I was speaking of the general search and how things could be missed, however, now that you mentioned specifically bottles, since Gallagher attached such importance to the Benedictine bottle, a bottle you say he never saw or touched, and sent a telegram asking for it or to hold it, he was obviously interested in bottles to be found at the seven site.
So I don't think it out of turn to say he was also searching for bottles as well. He obviously did not see or recover the ones Tighar brought back. Were they not there? If they were there why were they not seen during this "careful search" of the area in 1940, for items as small as rings and keys?
I can understand missing a zipper or a button, Tighar's grids are much more effective. But the fact Gallagher tried to search for items like small rings and yet missed a whole firepit with melted bottles is troublesome.
That is the point Kada was making and a good one.
Gallagher was interested in recovering a benedictine bottle he had only heard about, but his own search not only missed the second firepit and burnt bottles, but also the fragmented freckle cream shards that were used as a Castaway tool, a mirror that would have looked nice 75 years ago, a metal makeup case was missed as well. Given that the site in 1940 did not have corrugated tin roofing and WWII junk and 75 years of time, it is not out of line to think Gallagher had a much more pristine "crime scene" to search, with items not so badly deteriorated. Those items should have been easier to see than today.
Yet he missed a lot if Tighar is correct. I would think it should be the other way around, the guys first on the scene should find the most evidence.
Now in fairness to Mr.Gallagher, how much of the actual work Gallagher did in searching, if he touched an artifact personally or not, cannot be determined from these telegrams. The British did like to delegate duties. So while he talks of a careful search, he himself may have given it but a cursory look, and had others do the dirty work.