-159- Sunday, November 8, 1953: Working in the terrific heat of Buntins galvanised iron godown, we had most of the collections and gear packed and crated for shipment by 3.30 yesterday afternoon. Took from my dryers this morning the last of a considerable collection of pickled plants from the lower slopes of Goodenough and from Mapamiwa. Tomorrow should see the cargo ready, unless Van who has gone bat hunting today, has last moment collections to prepare. On Friday I radioed the Department of Agriculture, Port Moresby for permission to export 14,000 botanical specimens, 80,000 insects, 145 fishes, 1867 reptiles and amphibians, 1645 mammals and 16 birds. Have ready to send tomorrow a radio to the Government Anthropologist for permission to export the few ethnological items (35) we have collected. Geoff shows steady improvement. He and Van are to leave here by flying boat on the 12th, depart Sydney for London on the 14th, and from London for New York on the 17th. Have so radioed Miriam. I hope to be able to leave on the same plane for Port Moresby. The latest development concerning Geoff is that the Chief Medical Officer (Dr. Gunther) has ordered a nurse, carrying oxygen, needles and ice, to accompany him as far as Port Moresby. Sirko considers this unnecessary. The inference expressed locally is that the elaborate precautions are being taken as a sequence to the fairly recent death from polio of a roving U.S. reporter and the great public fuss which was made (quite unjustly, it seems) by his people back home. Gunther does not wish to have any more trouble with sick people from the United States. Monday, November 9, 1953: Started the formalities of Customs clearance this A.M. by handing Bunting's shipping men lists and valuations of imported items expended on the expedition. (We had to lodge lists and valuations of imports upon arrival in March). Legge, the shipping man, started action immediately. He soon came to report that the local Collector of Customs had instructions from his chief in Port Moresby to charge us duty on everything not being re-exported. We have never paid duty on any previous expedition and I have not heard of any scientific party being charged with their collecting materials in any country. The order of the [illegible] (illegible) who is chief of Customs is especially annoying in view of the government having asked for and been promised a share in our collections. Talked by radiophone with Claude Champion, Asst. Govt. Secretary, asking that customs duties be waived. The really maddening thing came in this radiogram from the Dept. of Agriculture this afternoon, "Export permit granted providing duplicate set botanical specimens remain in territory also of other collections if duplicates available stop if sorting insects impracticable agree export provided full set returned stop formal permit following." This from a technical department whose director claims to be a scientific man - either an economic botanist or entomologist. Apart from the utter ignorance behind the demand, it comes close to being confiscatory.