Three Plague Cases In

N. Caledonia

From Our Own Correspondent

Noumea, Dec. 13.

THE bubonic plague outbreak has up to now been successfully confined to the Catholic mission village of St.

Louis, 14 kilometres from Noumea.

Three cases have been recorded, one on November 19 (fatal), and two other cases, one on November 21 and the other on November 20—both expected to recover. No new case since then has been reported.

Plague seems to be endemic in this country, and is usually confined to native villages. Although precautions are taken in Noumea, including the pulling down of old tenements, there is usually no cause for alarm for white people.

Dr. Dorothy Delbridge, who is in charge of the Methodist Mission’s Indian Hos pital at Ba. Fiji, arrived in Sydney re cently to obtain special medical treat ment. With her came her small daughter Christine: her two other young daughters remained in Fiji with Mr. Delbridge.

After visiting her mother in Tasmania, Dr. Delbridge returned to Fiji early in December.

Mrs. Eva Standen, who, with her husband, conducts a mission station in the Delta country, near Daru, Western Papua —one of the most unattractive places in the tropics—had to make a hurried visit to Port Moresby recently to receive urgent medical attention. A serious illness followed repeated Httaeks of rnalaria p ea ted attacks of malaria.

Mr. Lewis Lett, of Port Moresby, author of several books dealing with Papua, recently completed the manuscripts of two further volumes—“ The Papuan Achievement” and “Rainbow Gold”. The former is an historical survey of the Territory’s administrative policy during the regime cf the late Sir Hubert Murray and will be published by the Commonwealth Literary Fund Committee. “Rainbow Gold” tells the story of the Yodda Goldfield (which lies in the Northern Division over the Owen Stanley Range, at the back of Port Moresby); it will be issued shortly by Angus & Robertson Ltd., Sydney.