The average rainfall is heavy, especially at the eastern end, where there is no decided wet season. At Port Moresby, on the other hand, the annual rains generally commence in January continuing until the end of March. The remainder of the year is exceedingly dry, so much so that nothing can be cultivated.
The heat of New Guinea is a moist one, and at times very great. The mean temperature in the shade during the summer months is 85°; were it not for the trade winds, the heat would be overpowering. Winter is unknown in these latitudes. In June and July the mornings and evenings are fresh and comparatively cool. With this exception, it is impossible to distinguish winter from summer.
The tides are very strong, and most irregular. Occasionally there will be only one tide in 24 hours. I have studied the tides for many days, but they remain an enigma to me. No doubt the irregularity is partly caused by the numerous islands which would naturally cause a deviation. Therefore, the irregularity is, maybe, only an apparent one. I do not pretend to be learned in the laws of tides, but older and wiser heads than mine have been hopelessly puzzled by them. At full and change it is high water at 8 a.m., once a year there is an unusually high tide, called in consequence, a "king tide."
The strongest wind blows from the westward and is known to the natives as an "Arras." It occurs in the months of February and March, and as a rule lasts for a couple of days, when there is a lull. It blows with great force, causing a nasty sea, so when anchored it is wise to "pay out" plenty of chain, or you may find your vessel has dragged and is being drifted away by the tide at the rate of six or seven knots an hour. The tide runs parallel with the coast. This is comforting, as, should you drift away in the night unawares, you run no risk of being stranded on a coral shore.
Some friends of mine were fast asleep on board their craft and awoke to find they had drifted ten miles from home and it took them the whole of the next day to beat back again to their anchorage.
The native population is estimated at 300,000. This is, however, a very rough estimate, as no census has ever been taken; also the interior is a terra incognita. The population of the coast can be fairly gauged, but who can tell what number of inhabitants the interior contains? There is every reason for believing that parts of the interior carry a dense population. Great valleys have been seen in the distance; immense tracts of grass land have been cleared, evidently for the purposes of cultivation.
There are, I am aware, certain districts along the coast where the population is sparse. This can always be accounted for by the poverty of the soil. Likewise parts of the interior may be unfit for cultivation, and therefore would be thinly inhabited.
Nevertheless, treating the interior as an unknown quantity, I consider the estimate given, viz., 300,000, to be well under the mark. Regarding the vitality of the race, there are no signs of decay. Generally speaking, the natives are a healthy and vigorous people, and are more likely to increase in numbers than die out. They are well-housed and well-fed, very different from the nomadic tribes of Australia. The mountain tribes of New Guinea live principally by the chase, but have also plantations on which they cultivate large quantities of vegetables. The natives of the coast live on the products of their gardens and by fishing. They have no knowledge of any intoxicating drinks, not even of "Kava," the Fijian beverage, which is made from a palm. Therefore if they do not imbibe the vicious tastes of civilization there is no reason why they should not perpetuate their race for many centuries to come. The chief products of the country are mother-of-pearl shell, Bêche-de-mer (or trepang), copra, and tortoise-shell.
The pearl shell is a big oyster, and is found in from fifteen to twenty fathoms of water. It is obtained by divers in a diving dress. The best dresses and pumps are made by Heincke & Co., of London. The cost of a pump, including two double dresses, gear, etc., is £185, and if looked after it will keep in good order for a number of years. The diver receives £3 10s. per 100 shells, and is found in victuals. At times he makes as much as £25 per week, but the amount varies greatly. They are a most improvident class of men and reckless in the extreme. They spend their money as fast as they earn it, and in many instances before they have done so. Their occupation entails great risk, hence their recklessness.
The boats used for the purpose are small luggers, from eight to fifteen tons register; the pump is worked by natives, and the crew consists of the diver, who acts as skipper, and a couple of South Sea Islanders or Malays, one of whom has charge of the plumb-line, and the other acts as "tender" to the diver and has charge of the life-line.