Kaindi Monday, May 18. An overcast, gloomy day; brief spells of sun in late after- noon. Local men are remarking on the rainy weather in this, usually the driest month of the year. Botanized along the Mt. Kaindi road to about the 2200 m. level. Most of the way in Nothofagus grandis forest, badly knocked about by road building operations, but near my terminal point the country levelled somewhat, the forest was little disturbed, and a small-leaved Nothofagus replaced grandis. This second species may be the same as the species of the summit of the mountain, but the material of this latter species has been dried and put away and I can not compare the two. Phyllocladus is a common big tree (even bigger than the beeches) all through both zones of the Nothofagus forest. Several occasional tree species could not be recognized from the ground. Collected a small-leaved Ilex of the subcanopy layer. Poor visibility made spotting difficult, but I collected about 20 spp. all told. Nothing in traps except a Rattus niobe which has been gnawing at the boys' biscuits in the kitchen for more than one night. However, three good mammals were brought in late in the day by mining boys who perhaps got them yesterday: Phalanger gymnotis, Pseudocheirus forbesi (very small pale brown), and another P. corinnae. Were visited during the afternoon by Bert (A.E.) Jentzsch and Horrie Clisold. Bert owns an apparently prosperous mining show up Meari Creek not as yet visited by me; a big, clean, elderly man with open face, good presence, and an accent English if anything. He is leaving Wednesday for a two-months holiday in Australia. Clisold will run the mine in his absence. Heavyset, blustery, ginger headed man of perhaps 40; says he is collecting birds for Alan Keast of the Australian Museum; claims wide knowledge of the local fauna; to be taken with reservations, I feel. Called a conference in the evening to discuss final arrangements for Mt. Wilhelm. Have spent a lot of time in figuring weights, but can not get the total below 4100 pounds and the plane will lift only 4000 pounds in two flights. The best solution I have been able to arrive at was 1) fire the cook's helper, who is useless, anyhow, and thus reduce boys to five, 2) plan two comfortable loads for the plane (most weights can only be estimated in advance) and carry in the remainder from either Kundiawa (Chimbu) or the head of the Asaro Valley. Van and John agree to this. Kundiawa is two carrier days from Keglsugl by a good patrol road which will be made trafficable for jeeps in the near future. John says Keglsugl can be reached from a mission at the head of the jeep road in the Asaro Valley above Goroka in one day of walking, but he is not sure about it. He offered some time back to walk some of the boys in by the Asaro route, but I am very reluctant to split the party at that phase of the approach to the mountain. There would be too much opportunity for things to go wrong. The carrying in of some of the supplies will eliminate anxiety about loads for the plane, and allow our paring of weights to be a little less fine. A big batch of mail sent up from Wau contained, at last, a bill for the Land Rover and trailer which we bought from Burns Philp on March 25th. We seem to be trusted in that quarter.