A Missionary Mendi

About 18 months ago, the Papua- New Guinea Administration opened up a new station at Mendi, about half way between Mt. Hagen, in the NG Central Highlands, and Lake Kutubu which is right in behind the Gulf of Papua.

This is still one of the newest and most isolated pin-points on the Ad ministration map, but shortly after the Administration officials had moved in, this hitherto unexplored area was made a sphere of Methodist Mission influence. Writing for the Missionary Review, recently, Miss Joyce Walker, a Mission nursing sis ter, gave these details of what life is like among the citizens of Mendi— and from her account we gather that it is no bed of roses.

WHEN first coming from New Britain, the land of perpetual summer, we were never warm, and at night failed to thaw out even under five or six blankets. However, we are fast becoming acclimatised and we are not only learning, like Eng land, to “take it,” but to enjoy it as well.

The people are getting used to the idea of having us amongst them and are not nearly as anxious to inspect us at every opportunity, as pre

viously.

The buildings are gradually grow ing around us, although there is so much building to be done and the timbers take such a lot of preparing that it is slow progress. Local labour is such that even the simplest tasks must be strictly supervised to ensure even passable results.

Gardening is disappointing to

those used to the rapid tropical growth in New Britain and New Ireland.

Garden pests are numerous and

seedlings disappear alarmingly under

their onslaughts. However, I have no doubt that we will learn as we go along and be able to overcome many of what, at present, seem like real set-backs.

The people, though of a happy, cheerful nature, are not easy to handle. They are arrogant and lazy, and demand payment for the slightest service rendered, or concession given.

After returning from a walk one day, a man who helped me over a few slippery patches on the hill asked what payment he would receive.

I have had men refuse to carry a bucket of water for their own use in

the dressing-room unless payment were named first. When I explained that their sores would be dressed for them they tossed their heads and walked off without carrying the water and without dressings. I feel these people must learn to help themselves and hope that they will soon do so.

I feel that the medical work is go ing to be hard and disappointing for a long time before much progress is made. Firstly, they do not realise their need of help—their attitude seems to be that they have managed

all these years without us and will continue to do so now.

Then too, those who do come or are brought for treatment, seem to think that one dose or one injection or one dressing should be a sort of magic cure-all. They object to sleep to sleeping away from their own sur roundings and rarely return for fur ther treatment.

Feeling that there is much to be done among the women and babies, I am trying to give as much help as possible to them, but here, too, it will be a long time before they begin to realise the need of help. Babies

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are brought to clinic gatherings these days, however, whereas in the begin ning mothers would flee to the hills if I happened to meet one, and at tempt to touch the baby. Such looks of terror you would have to see to believe. I imagine that they thought 1 wanted to steal the babe.

Every Friday the word is sent out and the people gather with their babies and children down at /the Government station for a clinic. I have a few busy hours, bathing, in

speeding, and generally attending to

their needs, The filth of some of those wee mites! I wash, and soap, and soak, and scratch, and scrape until 1 am hi? ld HeL Skin r iU C r e -° ff ' 1 ° U !

Pair, clean nails and give a real

beauty treatment, plus advice

(through the Government interpre-

ters, which they are good enough to lend me P A * J am not allowed to P. mto u Vlllages to do any work, but the Government officers co- ? perat f and are vei T obli g in g and helptul - • 1 have had numerous calls to extract teeth and have made many friends for life by easing toothache. £ do . not care mucb for dentistry, but ” * must extract to gain their confidence, then extract I will.

I was thrilled one day recently when a boy came down from the hill at the back of the Mission house to say that his mother was very ill and would die if I didn’t go to help b ? r - This was progress in the right direction and the sign of dawning ’ " " f heart goOd ' In spite of the fact that it was 5.30

p.m. and a thunderstorm was break ing, Mr. Barnes (who is in charge of the Mendi Mission), and I set out to investigate, and climbed and slipped, and slipped and climbed, for an hour in teeming rain to reach the patient. She was very ill and needed

hospital treatment,

After a couple of days treatment, she was able to be carried down to the station, and has progressed very well and will soon be ready for dis charge.

About a month agQ her husband broke his arm and it has mended very well, because 1 was able to see and attend to it immediately, a n who have remained for Meatmen? w jjj j bope bri b t much’ desired change neonle’s atti

tudetoward^medcine 6 and^reatment

and so give me plenty of work to do.