36. Friday, Jan. 30 Mr. R. D. Gallop, Divisional Engineer, Main Roads Commission, drove me out to his headquarters some 3 miles out of town, and we spent most of the morning talking of the Peninsula and studying maps. Gallop a very fine type of middle aged man, with large experience in surveying and building roads in the North. Drove from Laura to Coen and Portland Roads late last year in an army weapon carrier (= military version of Dodge Power Wagon), which he swears by for bush travel. Main Roads will spend L.20,000 this year on roads between Portland Roads and Coen (or Laura). Using surplus military materials, permanent bridges will be built over creeks, and the road paved with bitumen, from P.R. to Iron Range air dome. A Main Roads party of about 20 men, with equipment, will leave Cairns by boat for Portland Roads February 10. They will spend the wet season working between P.R. and Iron Range, then move inland across the Pascoe. Fresh food, including butter, will be flown to them from Cairns; beef from Coen. Gallop, on instructions from Kemp, offers to transport us from P.R. to wherever we decide to camp in the Iron Range area. Very glad of the transportation offer, as Gallop tells me that Doug. Fisher, on whom I was more or less relying to move us to Iron Range, is quite unreliable and of not too good reputation in business dealings. Fisher a World War I air pilot, who married the widow of a Portland Roads miner (Mrs. Fisher a trained nurse). Keeps a store and is Shell agent at P.R., and has two trucks (in poor repair). Charges exhorbi- tant prices at his store. Most unpopular with local miners and road construction men. It appears that some of the lonely miners around there had stills, until the police closed them down on Fisher's complaint. Now Fisher sells grog, to blacks as well as whites; for three pounds per bottle. So much for Fisher. "A weak reed," says Gallop. Gallop says Fisher has several ex-military buildings at P.R. which would be suitable for storage of our stuff. Some former army buildings, bought by Fisher, are still standing at Iron Range. Gallop thought of renting some for his roads camp, but has decided to have no part of Fisher. G. assures me that when he was at Iron Range recently part of the military hospital was still standing. Pierce, of the RAAF, told me Monday that all military buildings in the area had been removed by purchasers. From information I have the hospital would make an excellent base camp for our work. It stands near the Claudie River in a savanna-forest patch amid rainforest. In Bate's company, visited the Lands Office in afternoon to see Mr. E.C.J. Muir, Land Commissioner. Man of strong, open character and great experience in the North. As a military officer, on special service, he walked or drove over the whole tip of the Peninsula during the war. Visited Thursday Is. and the Tip only a few weeks ago. Says we should be able to travel over any of the roads on the Tip during the wet season. M多r says the former American Army sawmill formerly at Mutee Head has been moved elease Lockerbie. Mill owned by Tom Holland, one of whose sons married Sharret Cowling of New Guinea. Holland has owned Lockerbie for 40 years; knows country well. Lockerbie is on western edge of biggest body of rain-forest on the Tip. Looks like the best place for our main base on the Tip. Timber from mill is shipped to T.I. from Red Is. Point. Beef for T.I. is killed at Red Island Point, and there is a weekly boat between the two places. Muir says the rainforests of the Tip look "younger" than those of the Cairns district, are composed of mainly small trees, and there is not much under- growth. "Pacific Maple" (Flindersia sp.) a common large tree. Jetty Joe McLaughlin, who recently gave up his job as wharfkeeper at Portland Rds. d and applied for job as our cook, is now barman at a Thursday Is. pub. A regular booze hound according to Gallop. We will look for another cook. Met Mr. Harold Armstrongstrong, local manager of of C.O.D.,, a voluntary cooperative of fruit and vegetable growers operating with the blessing of the Qld. government. Has been