At The Helm

Men Who Deal With Island Affairs

From Our Canberra Correspondent THE Pacific Island territories, which come under the jurisdiction of the Commonwealth, are those of New Guinea, Papua, Nauru, and Norfolk Is.

Colonel A. J. Bennett is Norfolk’s Ad ministrator, whilst Mr. W. A. Newman presides over the destinies of Nauru.

The Islands were under the control of the Department of Home and Territor ies until a couple of years ago. Then a special department was made of Home Affairs (including the Northern Terri tory), and the Pacific territories were tacked on to the Prime Minister’s De partment, of which Mr. J. G. McLaren, C.M.G., 8.A., is the permanent Secre tary, with Mr. J. Strahan, C.B.E., B.A., LL.B., and Mr. J. H. Starling, C.M.G., O.B.E., as Assistant Secretaries. It is Mr. Starling who devotes his attention specially to the Islands, under the di rection of Mr. J. A. Beasley, Assistant- Minister for Industry and External Af fairs.

These are the “heads.” But the men who are probably the best-known to island residents are Messrs. J. R. Hal ligan, C. G. Garrioch and J. Brack, who spend their days (and very often their nights) in wrestling with administra tive and other problems connected with the Islands.

Mr. Halligan spent a considerable time with General Wisdom in New Guinea, and he has visited the Islands once or twice since then, travelling ex tensively through both New Guinea and Papua. Mr. Garrioch also has a first hand acquaintance with Islands set tlers and native problems, having spent some years with Sir Hubert Murray.