49- 
Aprii 14 - At sea 
All dry long loafing along on the Van Irahof f , cool and pleasant. 
Have made friends with two German couples, the Stlllers and the Ahrs, 
both of whom have their own islands off the New Guinea coast, and raise 
coconuts. They are miles and miles from any other Europeans , and 
lead what must be a lonely life. Everything they have comes off the 
plantation, and they have been living this way for nearly thirty years. 
In the evening we pa ssed miles of lighted shore-line, and thought 
there must be so e big city there that we had never heard of. But it 
was not an electric-lighted main street: it was an almost endless 
line of fishing boats, each one with a kerosene lantern hung on the 
mast. The shore line of Moena and of But an took three hours to pass, 
and was illuminated the whole way. 
April 15 - Amboina 
We came into the beautiful bay of Ambon at daybreak. The harbor 
runs deep into the mainland, almost cutting the island in half, and the 
forested mountain sides rise steeply on both sides. About eight o'clock 
we went ashore, and walked through the town to the Esplanade Hotel. It 
is a funny little town, with a big market, and any number of barber shops. 
The natives must live by cutting each others 1 hair. IK Next to the market 
there were ten barber shops in a row, each advertising a different kind 
of hair-cut - Ambonese, Celebes, Japanese, etc. 
The Hotel is built on the same plan as all these Dutch East Indian 
Hotels, but is run in what seems like a very casual manner. There is no 
manager in sight, and everything is left to the boys. The head boy is 
a young Javanese, and there is an elderly Ambonese hovering about. No 
telephone and no bar give an added distinction. However, the Club next 
door is apparently always open to strangers, and we get drinks there and 
sign chits (only they are Bons here) just as though we were members in 
good standing. And why have a telephone, when one can always ? 'send a boyS 
Our first duty was to call on the Resident, ftr, B. X* Haga, who 
was very pleasant and anxious to be helpful, although he did not know 
just how he could be of service to us. He did tell us about a rest 
house up in the mountains where we could stay, and Bill quoted Wallace 
to the effect that "the Resident secured for me a house not far from 
the city Tf . He had three crowned pigeons in his garden, and a paddock 
containing a number of Molucca deer. 
From the Residency we went to the the little library, where 
the works of Rump hi us and Valentine are preserved in the original 
editions - 1724 and 1750 respectively. Rumphius is buried in Ambon , 
and we visited his grave, in a private garden. 
We had sent out a request for an Ambonese who spoke English 
and would like to join the expedition for the next week or two, as 
Coenraad, who has been a tower of strength, is leaving us here, while he 
goes on to New Guinea to collect birds of Paradise. In answer to our _ 
broadcast, a young Dut ch- Ambone s e , Fritz Buitenbos, came scurrying up } 
to the hotel, and we engaged him. He seems like a bright young chap 
and speaks excellent English in addition to Malay and Dutch. He is 
of dark complexion, with freckles and blue eyes that were inherited 
from his Dutch ancestor. 
k heavy rain began at one r clock and lasted all afternoon. 
