modified plans. He was on the point of executing these, when he was
again frustrated by a telegram from England which necessitated his
immediate return. It was a sad blow to him to have his long-cherished
schemes thus thwarted and rendered abortive, but, undaunted, he set
about to plan another expedition. Accordingly, in January, 1910, he
once more set sail for Australia as a starting place for the Solomon
Islands and British New Guinea, and this time achieved success; the
book which he now offers to the public is the result of this plucky
enterprise. In justice to the author it should be known that, owing
to climatic and other conditions, he was unwell during the whole of
his time in New Guinea, and had an injured foot and leg that hurt him
every step he took. The only wonder is that he was able to accomplish
so large and so thorough a piece of work as he has done.

It is interesting to note the different ways by which various
investigators have entered the field of Ethnology. Some have approached
it from the literary or classical side, but very few indeed of
these have ever had any experience in the field. The majority of
field workers have had a previous training in science--zoology not
unnaturally has sent more recruits than any other branch of science. A
few students have been lawyers, but so far as I am aware Mr. Williamson
is the first British lawyer who has gone into the field, and he has
proved that legal training may be a very good preliminary discipline
for ethnological investigation in the field, as it gives invaluable
practice in the best methods of acquiring and sifting of evidence. A
lawyer must also necessarily have a wide knowledge of human nature
and an appreciation of varied ways of thought and action.

It was with such an equipment and fortified by extensive reading in
Ethnology, that Mr. Williamson was prepared for his self-imposed
task. Proof of his powers of observation will be found in the
excellent descriptions of objects of material culture with which he
has presented us.

I now turn to some of the scientific aspects of his
book. Mr. Williamson especially set before himself the work of
investigating some tribes in the mountainous hinterland of the Mekeo
district. This was a most happy selection, though no one could have
foreseen the especial interest of these people.

Thanks mainly to the systematic investigations of Dr. Seligmann and to
the sporadic observations of missionaries, government