Territories Talk-Talk

By Tololo

THERE should have been plenty of B 4 folk around Rabaul to have given information to the correspondent (PIM, Oct. p. 13) re garding the grave of Phoebe Horgren, located between the house and beach at Dawaun, on the old Kokopo road.

Phoebe was the youngest daughter of Mary Ann Horgren, and died rather suddenly while her mother was on a trip to Bougainville, visit ing another daughter, Mrs. Doel linger, the wife of the German DO at Kieta. Mrs. Horgren was a sister of Queen Emma, and died shortly after her daughter’s death —it is said of a broken heart at the loss of Phoebe. As far as I can remember the mother was buried beside Phoebe, and there should be traces of the headstone, unless bombs from the last war have obliterated it.

Phoebe was an Islands beauty and a well-known and popular belle of Rabaul in her time. * * * Many a God’s Acre is dotted here and there throughout NG and a particularly historical one is at Kuradui—the old Parkinson home, not so far from Queen Emma’s old headquarters at Ralum. It is on the quiet hillside cemetery at Kuradui that the ashes of Queen Emma were laid. Whether the remains of Mrs.

Parkinson, who died in the Nama tanai district during the Jap in vasion, were eventually placed be side those of her family at Kuradui I know not. She would have liked it so.

The most imposing individual memorial I remember seeing in the Territory was one at Bogadjim, south of Madang, to a German naval officer and explorer. I forget his name. And the most isolated collection of graves was on Tas man Islands; that lonely atoll group way east of Bougainville, where for some years Death stalked with

alarming regularity.

* * * Headstones and cemeteries make i gruesome topic; nevertheless, they tiold great historical interest and ralue, and their locations should be nearly recorded for future refer ences and will make a useful task or the proposed historical society

it Moresby.

* * * NZ correspondent enquiring for lata on Pacific shell money (PIM, Jet. p. 95) should consult any of he works of anthropologists like

Jalmowski, Thurnwald, Hogbin or

Raymond Firth to name but a few. le refers to the word “itambu” £ having possible connection with he Fiji “tambua.” I think it has, •ut only in the general sense of omething being sacred or precious.

The small shell money used in New Britain Blanche Bay area is called “diwara” and the shells are —or used to be—obtained from the Talasea district. All native money requires effort to obtain hence, naturally, its value: the white cowrie shells so highly valued by the inland natives of the NG main land, and the gold-lip half-moons.

In Buka, the old native money con sisted of flying-fox teeth strung on fathom lengths of fibrous rope— and that would take some collect ing in the bow and arrow days! * * * New Britain’s first missionary, Dr. George Brown, brought Fijian teachers with him and they were responsible for introducing words into the Blanche Bay dialect when that vocabulary was found to be inadequate of expressing needs of advancing civilisation. “Lotu” (the Christian religion) was one; the Bible became “A Buk Tabu” (pro nounced tambu because “b” has the qualities of “mb”) and Holy Ghost Tulugien Tabu.” I have an idea that “Talatala,” or Protestant missionary, also comes from Fiji. ♦ * * A reader from New Ireland asks:

In your opinion, who is the sur viving European in NG with the longest territorial residence, not in cluding missionaries?” This is a bit of a poser, as I am not sure whether some of the older residents are still up in the Territory, or have re tired to other lands. Until more or less recently I would say that Karkar” Schmidt was, but now he is living near Gosford, in NSW.

There is Dr. Kroenig still down at Toboroi, near Kieta. And there is Rudie Diercke, who was born in the Territory before War I, but spent some time in Germany dur ing his youth. His father was the owner of Tinputz in Bougainville his mother a niece of Queen Emma Possible qualifiers could be H L.

Schultze (lately come to Australia permanently), and Paul Parkinson.

Any other nominations for the Long Residence Stakes? * ♦ * I see where the Rabaul TAG has been discussing the need for a town water supply—once more. In B 4 days that was a subject receiv ing attention at periodic intervals and sources such as the Keravat and Warangoi were often mentioned.

But that was all.

During the War when Jap forces in Rabaul numbered anything from 50,000 to 80,000, the problem was solved in short time by wells sunk all over the town, and the Botanic Gardens reservoir being put

to good use. In war-time, of course, one is not so fussy, but I don’t remember hearing of the Nips suf fering from any outbreak of disease as a result of bad water. Anyway, it’s only used to wash and cook with. Unless, of course, tastes have changed since pre-war days. * * * Gone are the days in Rabaul of the good old “kick cross,” which often acted as a timely safety valve amongst the vari-tribal native labourers when they couldn’t see eye to eye over some domestic or social question.

The Rabaul Soccer Assn, has now trained Rabaul natives to play soccer without bloodshed, accord ing to SP Post report. No mention is made of an alternative method of settling tribal differences. Per haps it means more work for the local courts, a greater expenditure of prison rations and even then the grievance still remains between the principals. It’s no good forcing primitive emotions to go under ground. * * * Perhaps someone might start a boxing ring as a means to supply ing a new safety valve. This was the method used for settling such arguments amongst the natives em ployed in the Engineers’ section of the Military druing War 1 in Rabaul, much to the disgust of local non-military residents. It was introduced by a farrier, named Lyons. He had a flair for organ

ising. He is now known to the world as Don Athaldo, the strong man! * * * In reading through statements appearing in both the PNG and Australian press one cannot but notice that the thought uppermost in the minds of politicians is the defensive value of PNG to Aus tralia. “Our Northern bastion.” It is all a reaction to global jitters and one wonders how much considera tion PNG would receive if there were no threat from the “have-nots” or Reds from our Near North. .

On the other hand, officialdom in PNG appears to be obsessed with the one idea of putting on a good show for the hyper-critical members of UNO, an attitude well described not so long ago by N. H. White to the Wau-Bulolo TAG when he re ferred to the “decadent policy of appeasement for the satisfaction of the UN General Assembly.” * * * Some such expressions of opinion were voiced recently in an ABC Forum of the Air broadcast from Moresby (October 28) when the question, “Can we produce all Aus tralian Tropical Needs?” was dis cussed by Messrs. Henderson and Foley (for the affirmative) and James and Sefton (for the negative).

Each speaker rode his own par ticular hobby horse, which rather clouded the main issue and made listeners realise, more than ever, that unity of purpose and co-opera tion are the principal attributes

for the successful development of

Png..

* * * Australia has been granted a “waiver” by the International set up GATT (General Agreement on Trade and Tariffs) which, it is stated, “allows Australia to help the economic development of PNG” by admitting primary products duty free or to reduce tariffs. It will be Interesting to see what benefits, if any, PNG derives from this “waiver,” especially the old TNG as compared with pre-war tariffs. I never heard any complaints of the old tariff which placed all member countries of the League of Nations on the one footing insofar as tariffs were concerned, and enabled many European goods to be landed in TNG far cheaper than in Australia. ♦ * ♦ High Commissioner for Pakistan, Habibur Rahman, who attended the unveiling ceremony recently in PNG, hit the nail on the head when he returned to Sydney, by saying that education would give the natives a higher aim in life. He added: “They don’t work to their full capacity because their needs are simple.

They have no worries and plenty of food and sunshine.”

I am inclined to ask: “Why force them to a ‘higher aim in life’ which only complicates their needs, brings economic confusion, im measurable worry and atomic tension which is exactly where our

own western civilisation has landed us all to-day?”

I have an idea that the Carpenter from Nazareth plugged for simplicity as one of the keystones when He laid the foundation for the Christian Religion. But simplicity now, 1953 years after His birth, is considered a near-crime. Surely it is as much a Human Right to be simple as it is to be educated. * * * Latest PMG trade figures give cause for thought. Papuan imports exceeded exports by £2.57 million, while New Guinea exports exceeded imports by £1.31 million. Little wonder NG producers are not too happy with the merger of the two territories. * * * I see where a Works Department employee complains of having to get a clearance from certain Admin istration Depts. in Rabaul before obtaining his permit to leave the country. This has been the custom for many years and the reason is simple; To prevent people slipping away without paying their telephone bill, rent and such-like and ensur ing that native-labour matters have been properly finalised. It is an old NG custom and, providing the departing person is not trying to make a flit and avoid his creditors, there is no reason to complain. * * * Latest reversal of economic form in the sale of PNG beer in Bris bane at 4/- a bottle, and more stocks anticipated to be available in Syd ney and Melbourne before Christ mas. What next? * * * Applicants for the Civilian In ternees’ Trust Fund grant should take heart at long last. Latest tip is that payments will commence this month —November.