On the radiophone this morning Don Neate, acting on his own initiative, proposed to Steamship Trading Co, of Samarai (Dickie Paul, manager), that they send the Lochiel out to pick us up. Don will be short of food for his labor before a boat arrives with his father and mother), Reply was that the Lochiel would be sent on charter; Paul would not consider sending her with the needed foodstuffs, and to load copra for the return voyage. This would be very costly for us. Paul skinned us in 1955 when we got in a jam for boat transport. To dinner with the Neates. Arthur Dawkins, the other white resident of the island, was expected for the weekend, but did not arrive. Dawkins, who has a native or halfcaste woman and a family by her, refused evacuation during the war. He has lived on Woodlark for many years and is now an old man. Has a coconut plantation of about 250 acres on Lauani Creek, and I think another property on the east end of the island. Sunday Nov. 11: Another overcast day. Rain began at 10:45 am and lasted through most of the afternoon. Misty after the rain. Weather from SE. Radio news from A baleti that the weather is rainy and a bit rough there and st Nimos. Evidently a general disturbance. Botanized down the slopes by direct track to the old wireless station of World War One, a distance of about 1½ miles. Returned by the road probably about 2 miles. Got very little for my walk, and getting caught in the rain. Primary tall forest clothes the slopes, which, like the flats, are of coral limestone. But it is a poor forest, with broken canopy and much encumbered with fern undergrowth. (Nephrolepis, Selaxinella, etc.) The ground is broken in uneven little ridges and depressions which look in some places like sinkholes in the limestone. The old wireless station is in a fair-sized, long abandoned coconut plantation still owned by the Robinson River company. It is on the western plane of the island less hillocky coral limestone formation. A highly finished, reinforced concrete establishment of two buildings - powerhouse and bungalow. High walls, 15 inches thick, many architectural flourishes. Walls of the powerhouse decorated with a scroll and swastika design in well executed blue paint. No sloppy war job, this. The builders and designers must have reckoned on it lasting a hundred years. Buildings now hidden in a thicket of guava and lime trees, from which a few mangroves protrude. Around this is a large grassy area still open Did not see a few cattle which are said to grass here. Rus returned in the rain about 4:30pm with his boy Isulele and one local carrier. They found no caves at Dekoias. They were told there were none at Mt. Kabat. This morning they walked from Kaurai village (they camped there last night in a very dilapidated rest-house) to the south-east side of to the south-east side of Kaurai Lagoon. Lionel took a canoe from there to examine a cave on the north coast. Rus returned to Kaurai village and camp. Walking distances: camp to Dekolias, Lionel 1¼ hours, Rus 1½ hours; Dekoias to Kaurai 1½ hours Lionel, 1 3/4 hours Rus. They did a bit of jacking last night but got nothing; a big Miniopterus shot at dusk. Lionel will return tomorrow. Don talked with the Osbornes this morning. They leave Abaleti for Port Moresby on Monday 19th, via Nimoa, with the women and children on board. They offer to come to Woodlark to pick us up if we have no other way of getting off. I don't want to ask them to do that. It would be a great inconvenience for them. The ship would be badly overcrowded with us all (5 men, two women, two children) on board. Don insists that there are caves - burial caves - at Mt. Kab t, although he has not seen them. Monday, Nov. 12: Dull day with little sun. Rain - light this time, but with thunder - began before noon and lasted until about three. Sent my boys out to collect while I went on the radiophone to make arrangements for our transportation back to Samarai. Spoke with Dusty Miller in Samarai He seems to think the arrangement most to our advantage a charter of the "Kedeluma", owned by Buntings. Don, who is only managing Kulumadeu affairs in the absence of his grandfather, has left it up to Steamships it up to Steamships to decide how much copra will be loaded on the "Lochiel" if that vessel is chartered to us. Steamships are unlikely to be liberal. So it looks like Kedeluma. I have spoken of Nov. 21 as departure date.