New Guinea

nu-gin'e, or Papua, a large island in the southern Pacific. Its area is over 300,000 square miles, making it next to Australia in size among the islands of the world. It lies to the north of Australia. The coast is for the most part precipitous. The interior rises to a height of 20,000 feet. In 1885 the northeastern portion was assigned to Germany, the western portion to the Netherlands, and the southeastern portion to Great Britain. British New Guinea is annexed to Australia for governmental purposes. The Germans and British agree in forbidding the sale of firearms, gunpowder, and intoxicating spirits. The natives are still in the stone age of savagery. Their arms and utensils are the crudest known, and the social ideas of the natives are low. The total population is reckoned at half a million. The animals, too, are not highly developed. A wild pig, some mice and pouched animals, like the kangaroo, and animals of the duckbill order complete the list of mammals. The birds are peculiar. Parrots, pigeons, kingfishers, bower birds, and the showy birds of paradise abound. The vegetation is that of rainy, semi-torrid regions. Gigantic camphor trees and palms are conspicuous. The natives cultivate yams, rice, and sugar-cane, and collect bananas, sago, and cocoanuts. Shell pearl is exported by British Guinea. The island has boundless natural resources and will some day be a source of wealth.