Plea for Manuscripts

Old Records Of Papua And

N. Guinea

Letter to the Editor HAVING recently spent some time in the Mitchell Library, Sydney, in vestigating source material on the Terri tory of Papua, I should like to bring several matters to the attention of your readers.

An important part of the historian’s craft involves the collection of evidence; and. generally, the most valuable evidence is that which is contemporary with the period the historian wishes to study.

For the historian interested in Paouan history, there is now a good deal of in valuable material ireadily accessible in Australia. The Mitchell Library, particu larly, has a rich collection of printed works dating from the very beginnings of European penetration of Papua. The Melbourne Public Library also has an im pressive collection, especially of nine teenth-century publications.

Printed publications are not the only useful historical sources, however. Manu script letters, diaries, account-books, and unpublished materials of other kinds, have often proved invaluable to historians working in many fields. Unfortunately, not as much of this sort of material has been preserved from past centuries as his torians would wish.

European penetration of Papua and New Guinea has been so recent, comparatively, and the temptation to record experiences has been so much stronger in a strange environment, that there must certainly be a large amount of manuscript material, relevant to the history of Papua and New Guinea, which has not so far been acces sible to historians.

The Mitchell Library has some richly rewarding manuscript material. The copious diaries of Dr. Lawes, of the Lon don Missionary Society, have proved especially valuable to myself. These diaries of Dr. Lawes, however, form a high percentage of the total manuscript material in the collection.

There must be many other documents, just as valuable, in the possession of Government officials, missionaries, plan ters, commercial men, etc., or in the pos session of their descendants. I should therefore like to stress the usefulness of such materials for the historian —in the hope that those who possess manuscripts of this sort will be persuaded to make them available to the Mitchell Library, where they may be accessible to those whose chosen task is the reconstruction of the past.

The stage has been reached when his torians can profitably attempt to build up a full and accurate account of Papuan history since the coming of the white man. Australian historians are now be ginning to interest themselves in this work. Much material is already available.

It seems obvious, moreover, that those who are concerned with Papua’s present could be greatly assisted by the provision of full and accurate accounts of Papua’s past.

In conclusion, then, may I again point out that any manuscript material in the possession of Territories’ residents could greatly assist historians in this task.

Those who believe that the task is worth while may like to assist by offering manu scripts to the Trustees of the Mitchell Library, Sydney, or by making provision for the disposal of their papers in this way after their death.

I am, etc.,

Murray C. Groves.

History Department, University of Melbourne.