Friday 4 September 1953 Peria River (cont) though Ken says that Baiawa is very hot. Losima and I went jacking up the dry river bed for quite a distance. Coming back on the old Awani track we found 2 bandicoots on the trail--small Giant Bandicoots. This gives us an excellent series from this camp. Shot 1 Hipposideros before dinner. Read all of Kay's letters from #8 on. It's about time another mail arrived. Wrote to Joyce, Robert and Donald. Saturday 5 September End of our 24th week. 1592 specimens. And tonight l of the best specimens of the expedition was added to the list--the feather-tailed possum! Have been looking for this little marsupial all trip. Niko, Billy, Isilele and I went down the Kwagira track and just as I was about to head for camp Billy spotted eyes in the top of a tall slender tree (Barringtonia). What luck I am having! S.hot 1 Hipposideros and LikLik a Uromys. L.L. had a Melomys and Isilele found 2 tiny sheath-tail bats under a palm leaf. Collected them with .410. Just as we finished breakfast a police runner came in with a big mail and 5 issues of "Time". Letters from: Kay (#21) Aug. 7; 2 from Mother Aug. 3 & 16; Janet M. Aug.19; Dr. Lord, Aug. 13; A. Dickinson, July 20; & a statement from Royal Bank, Medellin dated May 2. Ken arrived here from Baiawa at 9:30 A.M.--good time. Brought me some candy from the Army ration pack. Tomorrow we pack. Sunday 6 September The morning was spent making up specimens and being needled by Ken to hurry my final packing. He calls himself a "panic merchant"--wants to get everything done a day ahead of time. The Feather-tail made up well. Dried skulls & wrapped all except 3 trays of skins which went into the collecting trunk. By mid-afternoon camp was all wrapped up for breaking camp. Biniguni carriers came in about dinner time to spend the night on the river sands. We gave them a big feed of rice, and we are distributing all of our salt to the 4 villages (B., Awani, Opaiwari, & Budumaga) that have been so helpful to us. Caught up on my world news in the 5 issues of "Time" that arrived in the mail. Finished up our kerosene soon after dinner so I went to bed and read with my flashlight for a while and then dropped off to sleep with the frog and cricket chorus in my ears for the last time. This has been a good camp. Monday 7 September Peria River to Baiawa. Up before 6; breakfast over by 6:30. The boys know just what our routine of camp breaking is by now and all went smoothly. More carriers showed up including about 8 women; some of whom carried up to 40 pounds in their head sling bags. We left at 7:55 and followed the carrier pace which is surprisingly fast. Passed thru Kwagira where we could get our first real vista of Maneau--it looked very remote in the sun haze. Arrived at the landing on Moi Biri Creek at 11 A.M. The tide was creeping slowly over the mud flats & up the mangrove roots. It was 3:00 P.M. before we could load the canoes & start poling down the narrow channel. In the meantime we had morning tea & lunch. Ken paid off the carriers & we shook hands all around, women included. It was a most friendly ending to a good show. Bought a lime gourd (eat lime when they chew betel nut) from the Opaiwari counselor--for the Museum collection. Took a few pictures of the canoes but the creek is arched over by mangrove branches & the light was not too good. As we poled across shallow Moi Biri Bay a fresh S.E. breeze was blowing but not enough to ship water. In places we were only 2 or 3 feet above the coral heads, and a shark surfaced near our canoe for the only excitement. Arrived at the Baiawa