Arizona republican., 1915-08-29
HARDY DUTCH
 MAP MAKERS
Explorations in Dutch Gui- nea Involve Great Risks. Thickly Populated Island Mapped - Hostile Head hunters Encountered
ASSOCIATED PRESS DISPATCH

tionS which have recently completed the preliminary exploration of Dutch New Guinea bring to light many sto- ries of remarkable feats of endurance and discovery. For about seven years officers of the Dutch Colonial Army with European and native soldiers and coolies have been making a com plete map of the colony and this work is now finished. Dutch New Guinea is about fourteen times as large as the Netherlands and was settled by Dutchman as long ago as 1928, but was only officially recognized as a colony late last century. It comprises the greater part of the island of Papua in the South Seas.
 In the course of the map work, which was attended by great diff culties and some loss of life, all the members of the expeditionary force underwent severe privatiOns and suf- fered considerable sickness. Their lives were in danger from hostile na- tives as they passed up unknown rivers and cut their way through all most imperetrable virgin bush or clambered high mountains covered with eternal snow and never before ascended by white men.
 The country was found to be fairly thickly populated in some parts and the natives of the interior were among the most primitive in the world. Many of them had never before come in con- tact with white men and fled at their approach. so that the explorers in some instances could not obtain data as to their customs. language, meas urements or mode of living. Nearly all were found to be in their absolute natural state and without clothing. The grown mems noses were pierced with bamboo canes and it appeared that this was done with great cere- mony after a certain age had been attained. Amid feasting and dancing. the first hole is pierced with a finely pointed sago thorn and the aperture is gradually enlarged in five opera tions until the requisite size has been reached for the insertion of the cane, which afterwards is never removed. The women of some tribes had a slight covering consisting of a short skirt of woven leaves.
 Some of the tribes were actively hostile head hunters and attacked the explorers with bows and arrows and short hardwood spears whose points were sometimes formed of bone. Others of the natives were peacefully in clined and willing in return for a few trinkets to permit the explorers to make all the necessary observations without interference.
 The natives appear to cling mostly to the banks of the many rivers, where they live in carefully construct ed habitations in the trees or on piles 20 or 30 feet high. Tn the far interior, l.cV composed of substantial buildings sup ported by thick tree trunks and cov- cred with roofs of the large dried leaves of tropical plants. In fact sev- eral of the dwellings were divided into various departments. q large one in the center for the men and boys and separate ones for each woman.
 In the coastal lands the natives con struct their huts or rather arbOrs in a long line like a street, each habita tion supported by the next one. Many of the coast people had previously be- come acquainted with white men who had come to hunt birds of paradise and they also knew that money was valuable.
 The knowledge of metals among the natives is very limited and their cut ting tools are stone axes and flint chisels. With these some of the tribesmen managed to carve orna- ments on their pirogues or canoes, their oars and little figures for the adornment of their habitations.
 Some kind of superstitious belief is prevalent in the interior, for each habitation in the settlements has it's own god usually in the shape of a huge turtle shell on which is stuck a fish head,
 Hunting and fishing are the main occupations of the natives. but in the interior many of the inhabitants are surrounded by patches for the culti- vation of root crops and sugar cane, which with fish and sago form the main food of the people. who are very fond of lobsters and mussels, which are plentiful.
 Everywhere the country is infested with snakes and the rivers swarm with alligators, but animals are not numer- l ous and comprise chiefly dogs, tame and wild hogs. and kangaroos and other marsupials as well as many | rats.
 The conformation of the country | varies from low-lying marshlands pregnant with fever. to high healthy l rI" teaus and mountains such as the |
 
 Wilhelmina Peak. which was climbed | by two Dutch officers and found to measure about 15,275 feet, nearly as | high as Mount Blanc.
 Several of the rivers flow very | swiftly and are full of rapids and | falls, so that the members of the de- tachments into which the exploring | force was divided had often to drag or carry their motorboat and native 1 pirogues over land for a long distance.
 The collections made by the ex- plorers are very valuable in connec- ton with the ethnography, zoology, botany and geology of the island colo ny, and it is generally expected that the exploitation of the natural re- sources of the island will speedily fol- low the report of the military pioneers 1f civilization who have now ended heir work.