NEW GUINEA AND AUSTRALASIAN DEFENCE.* BOTH of these books are
interesting and valuable ; both are incomplete, and therefore unsatisfactory, though in different ways and for different reasons. Death has brought the emiuently promising career of Sir Peter Scratehley to a premature close ; and, in consequence, the volume which Mr. Kinloch Cooke has published oannot be said to give his hero's full and final views on the important subjects of which it treats. Mr. Chalmers, on the other hand, has deliberately refrained from book-making. "He is more at home," he tells us, writing in the third person, "in his whale-boat off the New Guinea coast than in his study, and his hand takes more readily to the tiller than to the pen. Hence the balk of this volume is made up of journals somewhat hastily written while sitting on the platforms of New Guinea houses, surrounded by cannibals, or while resting after a laborious day's tramp, under a fly-tent on some outlying spur of the Owen Stanley Mountains, or while sailing along the South-Eastern Coast in the 'Ellangowan.' Writing thus, liable to manifold interruptions, the author has sought to preserve only what was essential to his purpose, viz., to record exactly what he saw and did ; how the natives look and speak, and think and act; what, in his judgment, New Guinea needs, and how her needs can be beat supplied." No doubt this method—or want of method—has its advantages. At the same time, Mr. Chalmers's volume would have been none the worse for judicious editing. "Roughing it," as even Living- stoae's last letters showed, has a tendency to roughen language, if not to coarsen ideas. There are one or two weeds in Mr. Chalmers's garden that it would have been the better without.
Pioneering in New Guinea. By James Chalmers. London Religious Tract Bader/. 1887.—Austra5en Defences and Nan, Guinea. Compiled from the Papers of the late Major•General Sir Peter Scratcbley, RE.. R-C.M.a. Bye. Hinlook Cooke, B.A., LL.11, Loudon, Macmillan and CO. 1687. " Swell " is not a pretty word, and "swell masher" is surely condemnable iteration in every respect. Here is, too, the sort of' passage in Mr. Chalmers's book that should have been improved,, if not struck out, before publication :-- " Alas! alas! I cannot say I like this-noes-rubbing; and having no looking-glass, I cannot ten the state of my face. Promiscuous kissing with white folks, male and female, is mightily insipid—bat this ! Ab, say you well; but this! When your nose is flattened, or at a peculiar angle, and your face one matted pigment: Cover it oven and. say no more. . . . . bet me go, A.vea ; this huggieg business on al& empty stomach is bad."
Mr. Chalmers is a muscular Christian ; b could hardly have travelled up and down all the accessible district* of New. Guinea. hail he been anything else. Yet even muscular Christiana need not always appear with their shirtcsleeves rolled up pad thes elbow.
These two volumes to a certain extent overlap, but they do, not contradict each other. Mr. Chalmers writes of hie experiences in New Guinea from 1878 to 1886. Ia. the end of 1884, Sir Peter Scratehley was appointed Com- missioner of New Guinea and the Western Pacific, and continued discharging the duties of this post with assiduity and success till his death in December, 1885. He found Mr. Chalmers—who, along with, Mr. Lames, represents missionary effort in New Guinea—of great assistance to him, and Mr. Chalmers, in turn, thought him "a grand man." Sir Peter kept a diary of his doings in New Guinea, and this, thougb. intended originally for the perusal of his family, is published by Mr. Kinloch Cooke. Then Mr. Askwith, a companion of Sir. Peter's, also wrote New Guinea notes, which are now published. From these three essentially independent accounts of New Guinea, one gathers a very hopeful view of that portion of the island which is under British influence, provided it be not handed over too soon to Queensland, as Mr. Chalmers dreads. The natives, whether cannibals or not, are intelligent and teachable. Christianity is making satisfactory progress, and producing good results. If settlers and traders can keep clear of the regions that are practically fever-belts, they may live and thrive. Nor need massacres by natives be greatly dreaded. Mr. Chalmers thinks that the summary punishment of the authors of the famous "Kalo massacre" which he described in a previous. volume, has produced salutary results. It was Sir Peter Scratobley's duty to investigate into certain " murders " of white men which had happened previous to his arrival, and he resolved several of these into "justifiable homicides." Most whites who have been murdered in the past have, in fact, been either bad managers or unscrupulous adventurers. It is but fair to Mr. Chalmers to quote what Mr. Askwith says of his work, regarded from the secular point of view :— " Peace is one great result of the mission teaching in New Guinea. Wherever teachers have been placed, traders can safely go, and travellers meet with hospitality. When the Rev. James Chalmers arrived, Mr. Lawes had formed a mission at Port Moresby; but little was known of the inland tribes, and the coast tribes were engaged in perpetual warfare. Mr. Chalmers went amongst them everywhere with a walking-stick, preaching always maino (peace). In a short time his influence was felt, and now is paramount along the coast and far inland. Strangers are asked if they know ' Tamato,' and if so, are treated with kindoesa. Tribes that have never seen a white man inquire for him, and are anxious to hear if he is quite well. He is regarded as a 'mighty sorcerer' in many districts, the native belief generally being reverence for an unseen power whom it is dangerous. to provoke."
Mr. Chalmers's own volume is interesting in every way, historical, geographical, religious, and social. In his sixth chapter he gives an account of two tramps into the interior of New Guinea, one of which is the longest undertaken up to the present time, more than 500 miles having been covered and 48,000 feet ascended. The eighth chapter is perhaps the most interesting in Mr. Chalmers's work. It shows, in the form of answers to a series of questions, what are the ideas of the natives themselves on their most important habits, customs, and beliefs in the two leading districts of New Guinea,—viz., Motu, or the district round Port Moresby ; and Motomotn, or the Elema region. These answers disclose superstition and scep- ticism existing side by side even in New Guinea. Thus, in, answer to the question, "What is an echo P " the Motu answer is : "A spirit. It lives in various places. They are very frightened at it, and will ran away when it is heard." But the Blotomotn answer simply is : "it is merely the answering back because of the thick bush."' In 1876, Sir Peter Scratchley was appointed to set along with Sir William 7ervois, to advise the Australasian Colonies on the beat means of defending them against possible foreign aggression. Subsequently he was appointed Commissioner of Defence, and finally Adviser on Defences for New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, Tasmania, and South Australia. Altogether, he was engaged for eight years in discovering the weak places in the harness of the Colonies, and Mr. Kinloch Cooke's volume con- sists to a very large extent of Sir Peter's recommendations, both general and detailed, for Australasian defence. These are extremely interesting, but they are also eminently technical. But the seriousness of the work of defending the Colonies, both by land and sea, is fully demonstrated ; it seems to be perfectly clear that all the links in the chain of defence must be equally strong. If one is weak, the whole may give way. It follows, therefore, that the work which has to be done, and which includes the establishment all over Australia of a genuine mili- tary force, and a portentous development of the torpedo idea, can only be successfully accomplished through the Colonies coming to a definite agreement with each other. Of the many points which are presented for consideration in this book, we give the following :—
"No doubt some little advantage might result from the presence of Imperial troops in the Colonies ; but under a proper organisation for the local forces, there is no reason to doubt the praotioability of in- suring the requisite military efficiency for dealing sneoeasfally with the problem of self-defence, due regard being had to local circum- stances and requirements. The principle of short service and deferred pay, with ultimate employment in the Civil departments of the State, will be the best organisation for the permanent force, and if effectively worked out, it will lead to the formation of a trained reserve available in time of war. The police force in the towns near the seaboard should also be drilled to act as a military body in sup- port of the other land forces, their place being supplied for the time by special constables. If the requisite number of Volunteers cannot be obtained, resort should be had to a Militia; and although a general impression appears to prevail that the Volunteer forces of the different Colonies are not as efficient as they should be, this may be traced to
defeats in organisation rather than in principle An Imperial officer to act as inspecting officer and military adviser should be appointed."
Mr. Kin]och Cooke prefaces his work with a short and simple memoir of Sir Peter Scratchley, who was born in Paris on August 24th, 1835, being the youngest son of Dr. James Scratchley, of the Royal Artillery. Educated at Woolwich Academy, young Scratchley made the friendship of Charles Gordon, and served in the Crimea and India before he was associated with Australia and New Guinea. He was orderly officer in India to Sir Robert Napier—afterwards Lord Napier of Magdala—who considered him not only reliable, but "able and clever;" and in a letter written after Scratchley's death, spoke of his "characteristic self-control." His portrait, indeed, gives an idea of what he was,—a man of a singularly well- balanced mind. By his early death the British Army lost a good officer and an upright man.
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