Approaching Mount Hagen Area

Progress of Papuan Expedition Under Jack Hides

IN the middle of December last Mr. Jack Hides, A.R.M. of the Papuan Adminis tration, and Patrol Officer J. O’Malley left Port Moresby by the “Vailala” with native police and carriers in an attempt to penetrate the unexplored country be tween the headwaters of the Strickland River and the great Purari River which rises in the Mandated Territory of New Guinea and flows southwards across Papua to the Gulf.

The expedition sailed across the Gulf of Papua to Daru, in the Western Division, and from thence journeyed up the Fly River to Everill’s Junction. In the “Vai lala” they proceeded up the Strickland River to Douglas Bend, over 100 miles from the junction with the Fly. The party with their stores and equipment were then transferred to canoes and slowly made their way up the Strickland. After several weeks’ journey by canoe the party discovered a large river flowing into the Strickland from the east. This was named the Rentoul, presumably after Mr. Alex Rentoul, who was Resident Magistrate at Misima Island when Jack Hides was A.R.M. there.

As this river flowed from the direction in which their course lay, Mr. Hides de cided to follow it. After 40 miles by

water, hampered greatly by floods and rapids, the party disembarked, and at the middle of February were about to make a long trek overland through absolutely unexplored territory to reach the lago River, north-east Delta Division, and

later journey down the Purarl River to the coast. The party appeared then to be making satisfactory progress, and if all continues to go well news should be re ceived at the end of May that the expe dition have attained their objective, thus bringing credit to the Papuan Adminis tration, and fresh laurels to the intrepid young leader for his daring feat.

The following letter written by Jack Hides on February 19, when he was camp ed on the eastern watershed of the Ren toul River, was received by a resident of Port Moresby early in April, This was Mr. Hides’ last communication with civil isation before he made the dash inland for the Mount Hagen-Purari area: “Forty days have elapsed since the

Mr. Jack Hides, leader of the Papuan Government’s expedition, was born in Papua and knows the country and natives like a book. Before being given the job of leading this important expedition across unknown Papua, he was A.R.M. at Misima Island, south-eastern Papua. Previously he was a very successful Patrol Officer in the Administration service.

‘Vailala’ landed our party on an island above Douglas Bend, and in that period we have transported 50 men and about 8 tons of stores and equipment over 84 miles of water, most of the time con tending with floods. It was a terrific task: the fact that our camp is 4750 ft. above sea level will convey some idea of what was achieved. I have never seen the Gulf coast natives to better advantage than when they literally carried the loaded canoes over difficult rapids. At one stage we hauled them by ropes over a roaring cataract.

“On February 6, a river was discovered entering the Strickland from the east. It was a large river with its mouth partly concealed, and as it seemed to lead to the north I decided to follow it. For reference it has been named the Rentoul River.

“We have advanced 41 miles up the Rentoul, the last 20 miles being over rapids. Further progress by water is Im possible: high mountains are now crowd ing upon us, and the rapids are really cataracts. Three canoes have been de stroyed to remove all temptation from the carriers to desert, and the fourth will leave here in the morning with four police boys and two sick carriers. This leaves us with 10 police boys and 28 carriers. We are camped on the eastern watershed of the Rentoul, at approximately latitude 6 degrees 16.5 minutes and two miles west of meridian 142 degrees 30 minutes—or, roughly speaking, about 85 miles south west of Mount Hagen (in the Mandated Territory).

“The Rentoul appears to drain a large area of country. One confluent strikes N.N.E., draining high mountains near the Carrington River, as far east as 50 miles from the Cecilia Junction (where the Carrington joins the Strickland): and along this north-east line of mountains there rises a gigantic precipice—a huge wall of rock 10 to 12 miles in length and with a sheer drop of over a mile. These high mountains appear to be all of lime stone.

“A second arm of the Rentoul extends eastwards from our camp for a distance of 30 miles or so, losing itself in some high mountains that probably form the top watershed of the Kikori River (which eventually flows into the centre of the Gulf of Papua). In this direction there appears to be a large basin, flanked by these mountains and still higher ones to the north.

“I cannot quite make out this country yet: there are parts where I can see as far as the eye can reach, without a lofty mountain on the horizon. The main Ren toul —that which we are now following— seems to disappear into the north-east between mountains 8,000 and 9,000 feet high. I am inclined to believe that the country which lies ahead of us is of open grass valleys, densely populated. I may be wrong: but it is certainly inhabited.

“To the north and east of our present base the country is fringed with gardens —the first we have seen to date, though the territory we have passed through is all populated. As one looks back down the Rentoul, the hills soon disappear and the country in the vicinity of the Strick land assumes the character of an enor mous plain. This lower region, from the Carrington River in the north to the Dupotata Creek in the south —an area of approximately 1,000 square miles—is in habited for the most part by nomadic tribes, thinly scattered over swamp and forest. They are brown-skinned natives, wearing the grass sporan of the Gulf Kukukuku, and having a ring of dried human entrail as an ornament in the nose septum. The Strickland headhunters ob tain their heads from these primitive people.

“I saw some small areas cleared with stone axes, upon which the natives have

with difficulty raised banana and sugar cane crops, but of villages there were none. The people have accepted presents of steel from us, which we left at a dis tance, and they appear to be friendly. One day I came upon a sago encampment where a number of men, women, and children were making sago. They did not attempt to run away nor did they try to molest me, but when one of our armed constables got himself into a helpless condition in the mud, the men tried to murder him.

“It is difficult to estimate the number of these nomads, and I think it will always be difficult, because they are all wanderers and the whole forest is their playground.

There is probably no other part of Papua so full of game as this huge area of un dulating forestlands, and it is on account of this fact, I suppose, that these primi tive people are here, living to-day as they did probably before corn was discovered in Egypt. They are surely a part of the oldest inhabitant of this great island.

“We have three months’ stores left, and I expect it will take us fully that time to reach, the laro River (which crosses into Papua from the Mandated Territory of New Guinea and flows in a south-westerly direction, eventually to reach the Purari River and on into the Papuan Gulf). Once

we reach the Iaro River our journey to the coast should not be very difficult.

“We now start relaying into the moun tains. This will be slow—painfully slow —for some time, but once the rice is down to just that amount which we can carry off at once as a mobile force, then we shall move quickly, making a wide swing to the north and south and covering a large area of country in our last dash.

“I do not expect that we shall have any of our own food left by the time that we reach the Purari. In that area, however, I know what is ahead of us, and we shall be able to live, however, uncomfortably, on the country.

“O’Malley and I are fit and well and have flowing beards, like corsairs.”