This paper deals with the ways of life obtaining in the western half of the Central Highlands of western New Guinea at the eve of the colonial era. It analyses headmanship and the disposal of the fruits of intensive agriculture making use of the Great Men – Leader – Big Man typology conceptualised by Godelier and Lemonnier in their analyses of east New Guinea Highlands ways of life. While Ekagi-me, living near the Paniai lakes, conformed to a Big-Man type social formation, the way of life of the Grand Valley Dani did not fit the typology.