-130- forest in the heads of gullies on the steep slopes. At camp I collected the one palm species of the area apart from a Calamus which is sterile. This palm is a big species with striking purple inflorescence and red fruits. It could be a new genus. The hunter and his dogs not so successful today. Only one cuscus and 2 Dobsonias. On check and recheck of what the hunter says of its habits, it appears that the cuscus lives in the ground in holes under the mossy roots of trees. The Dobsonia lives in hollow tree-trunks and in holes under trees of the kind inhabited by the cuscus during its resting hours. The hunter, Vilaubala, is a broad-faced cheerful little fellow. In temperatures never above the 60's he wears only a pereneal band. Today after his hunt I found him bathing in the brook (temperature _), then applying coconut scrapings to oil his skin and hair. He needs one wallaby of four he contracted to get for a 5-gal. drum of salt. In addition he has about L3 coming to him in cash for other mammals. He is probably feeling on top of the world. Wednesday, October 21, 1953: Max. ___, min. 14 C. First clear dawn for some days. Waking about 1 A.M. I saw a glow on my tent and thought Van had gone to sleep and left his lamp burning. It was the moon, 2 days off full, and almost forgotten about. General high overcast today; drift from SW. Light rain about 1 P.M. and 6:30 P.M. Forest drippy again tonight. Descended to the bed of the creek with the long name, then followed it up perhaps 1/4 mile to a waterfall dropping 70-80 ft. in a lower step and cascading probably 20-30 visable feet in an upper step. Set my camera for shots but could not get sunshine. From the waterfall I cut track back along the slopes directly to camp. Slopes generally not overly steep, but for the most part a tangle of small-leaved bamboo with tree ferns and scattering of flowering trees rising out of it. On a small ram bench at about camp level were two splendid beech trees and a number of smaller ones. The largest beech - a gnarly old tree fully 6 ft. in diameter but not more than 80 ft. high. The extensive bamboo and treefern tangles on the slopes here- abouts must, I think, have become established after destruction of ofiginal forest by fire. The forest is very heavily mossed. In an abnormally dry year the forest would carry fire. Perhaps a fairly recent dry cycle was accountable for the destruction of so much of the forest. Have not seen beeches below 1100 m. The hunter contributed today a cuscus and 2 or 3 Dobsonia. His small-boy assistant spent the day on a trip down to Garuwata and back bringing betel-nut. The boys very chattery this evening and singing hymns and "Clementine", in their own language. Thursday, October 22, 1953: Max. 20.5, Min. 15 C. High overcast at dawn; dull and misty most of day, but no rain; strong gusts of wind from SW late afternoon. My last field day in this locality was spent within 1/4 mile