This study of hierarchy and universality in the languages of New Guinea seeks to describe and place the run-on surface structures found in those languages. In the process, traditional stereotypes of "sentence" and "paragraph" are questioned and revised, while hierarchy -- a fundamental characteristic of language -- is shown to give rise to varied and particular arrangements in different languages. Questions of universality are also considered, and the author contends that both deep and surface structure are prime concerns of the student of language and that meaning is found in both. The chapters in the book cover clause chaining in New Guinea structures, clause chaining and hierarchical structure, taxonomy of the deep structure propositions, sentence and paragraph structures in three New Guinea languages, and discourse. For sample texts of discourse in several New Guinea languages used in this discussion, see FL 003 512. (Author/VM)