Exploiting N. Britain’S
p. 43 · Read in the full issue
Sulphur
Prom A Special Correspondent IN the course of his search for sulphur, as a commercial proposition, Mr. lan MacDougall, a young Sydney scientist, has climbed every volcano on the island of New Britain. If Mr. MacDougall can discover sulphur in sufficient quantities, he will save the Australian Common wealth Government thousands of dollars.
One volcano, Welcker (3,625 ft.) on Wilhelm’s Peninsula, has been climbed only once before, he believes, by another European, in 1934. He was intrigued to find, at two to three thousand feet, coco nuts growing among the rain forests.
The oldest natives in this area say they remember a race of big men, who wore no clothes, once living there before they were all wiped out by a disease.
Father Schweiger, of the local Catholic Mission, showed the young scientist a strange cooking pot, which he had dis covered. It was exactly similar to that used by the stone-age men of Europe.
Welcker is visible 80 miles away, f v om the sea, and has sulphur glistening on it’s slopes. Inside Mr. MacDougall re ports, it is a mass of sulphur fumeroles, and bubbling mud geysers.
Having climbed every volcano on the island, he stated that although still ac tive, most show signs of a gradual cool ing off. This process, of course, may take countless years to complete. (It was suggested in April by a NG reader of PIM that Australia exploit the many sulphur deposits in New Britain instead of importing £2,650,000 worth from Italy. In May, Tolala reminded us that
assays had shown that sulphur from Tavurvur (Matupi), Rabaul, and from Lolabau Is. off New Britain coast was of excellent quality. He said that he re membered at least two pre-war companies that were floated to work it.)