Severe Drought in N

N. Guinea

THE severe drought which has parched all Eastern Australia has been severely felt also in the Pacific Ter ritories to the northwards —especially the mainland of New Guinea, and New Britain.

Records taken in Rabaul (New Britain) show that October, 1940, was the driest month on record. In October only 29 points of rain were recorded in Rabaul —thus taking the record from October, 1914, which had onlv 62 points.

But the drought broke in Rabaul on November 1, and 208 points were recorded in that afternoon.

On latest advices, however, the drought still was serious in Papua—especially in Port Moresby district, where household ers were suffering severe inconvenience owing to lack of water. The Public Works Department, there, is now bring ing in a supply of mountain water from the Laloki River—but that pipe-line and reticulation will not be completed for several months.

Mr. Leo Tracey, a popular member of the Commonwealth Audit staff at Rabaul, for some years, who recently left there to join up with the AIF, is at present a corporal with an anti-aircraft artillery unit in training. No doubt due to the Spartan training of the Army, he has lost most of his New Guinea embonpoint.

Like his former Audit chief at Rabaul, Walford King, now a Major in the AIF Pay Corps abroad, Mr. Tracey was in the 1914-18 war, with the artillery. He was recently married in Melbourne.