A Comparison Between Taro
p. 38 · Read in the full issue
And Rice
A PLANTER at Talasea, New Britain, Mr. J. Guy Lowe, although 150 miles away from Rabaul in a direct line, felt the earth tremors of the Rabaul eruption on May 28, and heard loud reports.
In the course of an interesting letter, Mr. Lowe says that he assumed that Rabaul would be in chaotic condition, and that he could not depend on the usual shipping service; and, as he has a big labour line to maintain, he immediately commenced shooting fish and trading it for taro, which might take the place of his usual supplies of rice.
His rice supplies were interrupted
though not seriously, but he actually saved money on the development, ft worked out like this: The cost of suf ficient taro to feed his boys for six days was about 2 Bd. worth of dynamite; whereas rice for six days for his 40 men costs about 20/-.
Incidentally, Mr. Lowe is one of the New Guinea planters who are making experiments with the Cebu-European cross of cattle. He has 260 animals on his plantation and he has been shipping working bullocks to Rondo. He says that he sent off recently a bullock team of 10, with a boy in charge, armed with a real bullock-whip plaited from a half- Cebu hide. But he says nothing about the native bullocky’s lingual equipment— which is the most important item of bullock driving.