Economic Development In New

Guinea

Administration Charged with Indifference and Delay

Letter To The Editor

YV/tTH great astonishment we read in your last issue a paragraph which stated that the Administration at Rabaul was now investigationg the pulping possi bilities of kunai grass; that test areas had been planted, and that comparisons were now being made between kunai and esparto.

We have for the past seven years been carrying out investigations into the poten tial possibilities of the raw materials of this Territory. We were led to an investi gation of kunai grass owing to what we already knew of the value of the in digenous esparto, in Spain and North Africa. Early in 1929 we succeeded in producing a very high grade cellulose pulp from kunai, and on completion of our own tests we had check analyses made in Australia, and by the world’s greatest cellulose users, the Du Pont Co., of Dela

ware, U.S.A. Du Font’s analysis may be of interest. It is as follows: “We received after some delay the sample of pulp submitted to this Company and re ferred to in your letters of October 27th, 1930, and March 6th, 1931. Our analysis, given below, confirms your statement of cellulose content.

Following this, we investigated, at our own considerable cost, the facilities this country could offer for the erection of pulping factories and the possibility of markets. We found that the Mandated Territory could easily become as great a pulp producing country as Norway, and that cellulose pulp could be produced here at a very low figure. As is customary, we had our figures checked and confirmed by overseas experts. In 1930, we put the whole of our figures and information before the Wisdom-Page Administration in Rabaul, and asked whether, as there was a strong likelihood that oversea paper-making firms would be prepared to erect plants here, the Administration would make available areas - of waste kunai land on reasonable tenure and at a reasonable rental per annum. After fighting for nine months for a reply to our report, we were curtly informed that nothing could be done.

In February, 1935, we wrote to our new Administrator, Mr. McNicoll, and repeated our request for areas of waste land. On the 31st July, 1935, an Ordinance to amend the Land Ordinance, 1922-1935, was passed by the Legislative Council, nominally in order to make areas of kunai land avail able for cutting. However, the whole value of the Ordinance was destroyed by the inclusion of Section 3, which states: “The Administrator may, by giving twelve months’ notice in writing to the holder of a licence granted under this section, cancel the licence either absolutely or to the extent to which it relates to any area specified in the notice.”

This speaks for itself. No reputable company will erect a £200,000 factory if, at a year’s notice, the Administration may, at its discretion, without the neces sity of giving any reasons and without hope of appeal, deprive the company of the areas from which it draws its raw material. Before the Governor-General’s assent to this Ordinance was given, we wrote in protesting against this clause and urging that it be recast or omitted.

Its inclusion is quite unnecessary, as a clause could easily be inserted in the Or dinance which would obviate the danger of any Company locking up big areas of land without making use of them. We re ceived the old and characteristic reply from the McNicoll-Page Administration that “the strongest possible exception” was taken to our objection.

That is where the matter stands at pre sent. In our opinion no reputable com pany would dream of touching kunai

Test. % Dry Basis.

Ash 3.98% Ether Extract .70% 95% H„S04 Insoluble 7.29% 72% H..S04 Insoluble 10.52% Approximate Cellulose 88.03% Soda Soluble (7.14% NaOH) 25.25% Alpha Cellulose 83.01% Beta Cellulose 1.36% Gamma Cellulose 3.66% VISCOSITY (2.5gm.) very heavy.

grass on the above terms, although the Ordinance may be useful to “wildcatters.

This treatment is what we have been taught to expect from our bureaucratic Administration during the past eight rears that we have spent in research work here We discovered the presence m this Territory of an indigenous hemp, which has successfully competed in the London market with Manila hemp. Again, areas cannot be secured for its commer cial exploitation.

Since 1928, we have been urging, on the Administration* and the Federal Govern ment, the installation here of coir fibre spinning and weaving factories, pointing out that their operation would more than double the value of the ex-German plan tations. Furthermore, we have proved the correctness of our figures; but again nothing has been done here.

The whole of our work has been carried out entirely at our own cost. All our information has been placed regularly be fore the Administration; but, during al most the whole of the period, not only have we been denied any reasonable assis tance in our research, but an official clique, by no means representing the bulk of the Public Service, has done its utmost to discredit all the work we have carried out. The reason for this is perfectly well known in Rabaul.

In conclusion, we would like to point out re kunai pulp that it is quite un necessary for the Administration at this period to carry out any tests of this raw material. Many years ago the most care ful and comprehensive field and labora ■ tory tests were made by us. Our results were checked by men of international authority, as the Administrator knows very well. And the full results are, or should be, on file both at Central Adminis

tration and at the Agricultural Depart ment, Rabaul.

We are, etc.,

Thomas V. And J. T. Wallace.

Valaur, Rabaul, T.N.G., 27/1/36.

This is a copy of the letter which Mr. T. V.

Wallace addressed to General McNicoll, Adminis trator, on February 22, 1935: In going through my papers I came across .some correspondence in reference to kunai pulp which, J think, may be of interest to you. I am attaching it hereto. This is by no means the complete scheme that we placed before General Wisdom and the Federal Government some years ago; but this may be sufficient to show you the value of some of the work we have carried out on behalf of the Territory. .

We were first led to investigate the possibilities of kunai grass by what we had seen of the esparto industry abroad. Without being too technical, I might say that for the production of a good class paper, wood pulp is unsuitable. The high class journals published in England, use, in stead, a pulp made from esparto grass, which grows prolifically in Spain and North Africa. The grass is harvested by hand, transported many miles by camels to the sea, and shipped in bales to British factories.

When we first began our investigations, some of the alleged “experts” informed us that kunai was unsuitable for pulping purposes because it contained too much “pith.” A very brief test convinced us that kunai contained no pith, and that it was capable of producing a cellulose pulp even superior to esparto. We had our figures checked by Dadswell, of Canberra, and by the world’s greatest users of cellulose pulp, the Du Pont Com pany of U.S.A. We then seriously investigated the possibility of erecting pulping mills in New Guinea, and after carrying out exhaustive field and other tests, we definitely proved that the Mandated Territory could become as great a pulp producing country as Norway. Nowhere else in the world could similar facilities be found. There is a great and never failing supply of raw material contiguous to fresh water, with hydro-electric facilities and cheap labour. We devised processes for the cheap production in this Territory of the necessary lime, carbonate of soda, sizing, chlorine.

and other bleaching agents, and we found that an enormous market exists in both Australasia and in the Far East for the pulp produced.

As to costs. After making ample provision for working expenses, interest on capital, insurance, depreciation and amortization of loans, we proved that a very high nett profit per ton could be shown on all pulp produced. Our figures were checked and confirmed by paper-making and arti ficial silk manufacturing countries overseas.

Had the scheme gone forward, at least a quarter of a million pounds’ worth of pulp would now be exported annually from this Territory, and there is no reason why eventually exports of cellulose pulp and paper should not far exceed in value the ex ports of copra. Australia would be securing paper pulp at a cheaper rate, and the money now being paid for pulp and paper imports would not have gone outside Australian Territory.

Unfortunately, as in all big undertakings, out side capital had to study the reaction of the Ad ministration to the proposed new industry, and as was at that time to be expected the whole thing was howled down.

It is perhaps just a happy coincidence that, since getting out of this Territory, General Wisdom is now actively engaged in furthering a precisely similar scheme in Papua.

If you are at all interested and would like fur ther particulars I shall do my best to supply them.