19 Highlands-Lae Weather looked very doubtful when we took off from Mt. Hagen at 3:39 but we flew into better conditions and had fair visibility to near Goroka, where we landed at 4:17. Weather rapidly closing in there and at 4:30 we made a hurried departure for Lae. Circled in rain over the Goroka Valley to gain altitude to clear Asiloka Pass to the north. Flew blind over this, then dropped down into the Ramu Valley. Weather bad here, too, and we went down low to get under most of the clouds. Flew over Dumpu airstrip in the Upper Ramu Valley, near which are some remarkable patterns of gully erosion on broad grass flats. Gusap, on the Ramu-Markham Divide, was a wartime aifield and has a paved strip and roads. Nadzab, in the lower Markham Valley, was the principal wartime airfield, or group of airfields, and must have been a tremendous installation. The main bomber strip, paved and with Marsden matting at the ends, is kept in repair and is the best landing place in the Territory. The Lower Markham natives grow bananas as their staple food. Very big plantings on the alluvial fans of streams flowing down across the grass plains from the Saruwaged. Landed at Lae 5:30 pm. The sun shining there, and streets dry. But the rain came to within a few miles in the Markham Valley. Thursday, April 2. Got a rude shock when I went around to Buntings this morning. At first, Martin the manager assured me that our cargo was on the Shansi, due to arrive Lae on the 16th. Checking with Davis, the customs agent, I found that this was not so and instead, the stuff would be loaded on the Bulolo due to leave Sydney on April 10 and arrive here April 23rd. Feeling that the runaround had gone far enough, I got hold of Bob Bunting and we spent the whole morning on action to ensure that the cargo arrives on the Shansi. Davis, it developed had only been telling me half the story on arrangements he was supposed to have made last week. Instead of taking action himself, he put the matter into the hands of Burns Philp & Co., who own the Bulolo and other Islands ships. BP's in their well known octopus way (they are dubbed the "Octopus of the Pacific") promptly by passed the Shansi and booked the cargo for their own ship. Further, they refused in Sydney to hand over the bill of lading to Colyer Watson & Co., the Shansi agents. Urgent radiograms changed this. Finally, at about noon, Bob got through to a friend who is acting manager of Colyer Watson in Sydney and we have assurance that the cargo will leave Sydney on the Shansi tomorrow. Afternoon spent on paper work. Dr. Bill and Mrs. Smythe came in for drinks before dinner, also the Gunns. Was impressed with the good behavior of the three children of the two couples. Bill is a remarkably brilliant and unconventional man: an M.D., pathologist, anthropologist, and linguist. Perhaps two years ago he was called upon to study the language of the Okapu people, where a mysterious "disease" called "kuru" ("Laughing Death" of the journalistic profession) has been under investigation for several years. After two months of field work he was ready to publish his results, but was refused the time to do the writing job and prepare his vocabulary. He says that politics have entered into the kuru investigation. The first phase of the work was done by an American named Gajdusek and a refugee European doctor named Zigas (in Australian or P-NG medical service). An effort was made in Australia to have Gajdusek excluded from work now in progress, and for men of their Walter & Eliza Hall Institute of Australia to take over. Gajdusek won the fight. Friday, April 3. Van shot a small Pipistrellus at dusk last night. Nothing in traps in new sets some miles out along the Markham Road.