Cattle Thrive in Papua
p. 46 · Read in the full issue
From Our Own Correspondent
Pt. Moresby, Aug. 1.
CATTLE do well in Papua—not only near Port Moresby and in the hills, but along the coastline where the country is free from swampy conditions.
It is interesting to note that the Hon.
John Douglas, when Special Commission er, took much interest in the establish ment of the first herd of cattle introduced in 1887. The six cows and one Short horn bull did remarkably well, in spite of the climate and dry nature of the soil in Port Moresby. Two years later, in Sir William MacGregor’s time, the herd consisted of 13 head, while the Government possessed 15 horses, three at Rigo and the remainder at Pt. Mores by. Several of these were reared in the country. According to reports “they
thrived tolerably, well, but seemed weak and anaemic and not of much use for travelling on account of the rough na ture of the country”.
To-day, several hundred head of cat tle thrive in the Territory. Though ex port of cattle from Papua to Australia is prohibited, a considerable demand has sprung up in Papua for meat and dairy produce, which, to some extent, is sup plied from local herds and those on out lying plantations.
Horses are not in great demand ow ing to their limited usefulness here; though both horses and mules do well and are likely to be needed for many years to come in the remote districts for transport work. Many horses run wild in the hills behind Port Moresby and their numbers increase each year. These are the offspring of the Government Stud Farm which was abandoned over 20 years ago.