Pagan Races of the Malay Peninsula, Volume 1

INTRODUCTION (Environment)

Onk of the most important of th il aspects of the Malay

Peninsula (winch we may take as running fi »m Tavoy to Singapore)

i| its shape, which is that of a Kin.; nocked bottle 01 an Indian dub,

narrow towards the upper extremity, bulging at the centre, and tapering again at the lower extremity, The neck of the bottle or club at

LtS narrowest point in the north (the Isthmus of Kraw) measures but thirty live miles from sea to sea ; at its broadest (the belly of the bottle), it is still under two hundred miles across ; hence, in spite of its great length of roughly about a thousand miles from north to south, there is no spot, even in the far interior of the Peninsula, which is as much as a hundred miles from the sea. The result is that the Malay Peninsula, though distinctly forming a part of the Asiatic mainland, takes on the characteristics of an island rather than those of the continent to which it incidentally coheres, and in most respects should be properly regarded as forming an integral part of the Malay Archipelago. Regarded from another aspect, the Malay Peninsula is at once a causeway of colossal proportions, and a breakwater. In the former capacity it connects the land forms of the fauna and the flora (and even the geological strata) of the Asiatic mainland with forms occurring in the islands of the Malayan Archipelago, with several of which, including Rio and Lingga, Banka, Billiton, and Sumatra, it is known to have been once geologically connected. In the latter, it deflects what might be the normal course of the trade of the Far East, some hundreds of miles to the south-eastward, towards the equator and the cluster of great tropical islands of which the Malay Archipelago consists. The actual course of trade therefore follows the coast-line of the Malay Peninsula through the Straits by way of Penang, Malacca, and Singapore, the first and last of which certainly appear to be as convenient spots for vessels proceeding by this route as any that could have been chosen. At the same time the descriptions of the ancient glories of Malacca, even if we allow for considerable exaggeration on the part of the chroniclers, leave no doubt as to the reality of its former importance, and but for the silting up of its harbour there appears but little reason why the former Queen of those seas should now sit brooding over her ancient fame. But apart from these three ports, which, after all, VOL. I B

INTRODUCTION

are to a great extent more of the nature of ports of call than termini, and apart, too, from the fast-growing commercial importance of the Federated Malay States, by far the greater portion of the Peninsula is still much cut off from the world, and knows as little of it as, to quote the homely Malay simile, the " frog under a coconut-shell." Hence, in spite of the recent great developments both of planting and mining, perhaps two-thirds of the entire country is still " unopened," and remains covered with the tropical growth of centuries, forced to its utmost development by the hot and humid climate resulting from its insular character and equatorial position.

With regard to the character of the country itself, a glance at the map will showr that the backbone of the Peninsula consists of a range, or rather system of ranges, the source of the innumerable small rivers and streams which drain and irrigate the country from end to end, and the chief of which give their names to the several States of Kedah, Perak, and Selangor on the west coast, to Patani, Kelantan, and Trengganu on the east, and to Johor at the southernmost extremity. The hills, which are steep and savage, being clad with jungle to the very sky-line, terminate in not a few places in rugged and precipitous peaks, several of the highest of which are upwards of 7000 to 8000 feet high. Their formation is chiefly of a granitic character, with quartz and quartzose veins, wrhich on decomposition yield the extensive stanniferous, and to a minor extent auriferous deposits that have been worked with such conspicuous success in the alluvial plains. It is chiefly on the foothills, where these are unoccupied, that the wild aborigines make their home. They are, however, also found in small scattered communities on the hills of the main ranges, up to a height of even 3000 feet and more. Though caves are fairly common, especially in isolated limestone masses in the northern part of the Peninsula, the aborigines do not as a rule frequent these, preferring the rock-shelters, which are not infrequently the haunt of the Semang. The alluvial land, which lies at the foot of the hills and in stretches along the coast, has every appearance of having been formerly covered by the sea, and indeed in this respect the observations of science are at one with aboriginal tradition, which asserts that the sea in former times washed right up to the base of the mountains. The alteration of the coast-line itself is continuous and extraordinarily rapid. On the eastern coast, which is subject to an annual bombardment from the rollers of the China Sea, hurled against it by the full sledge-hammer force of the north-easterly monsoon, the fierce tides that race up and down the coast are continually forming long, narrow bars of sand parallel to the coast, each end of which keeps growing till it reaches a point at which the coast-line curves to meet it, when a narrow mouth perhaps is all that is left. The result is an extraordinary phenomenon like the Inland Sea of Singora, which has

/ NV1R0N Ml

been formed exact]} in the mannei described, and measun i about sixty miles in length by about twenty in the broadesl pan ; the u] pari "i ii is fresh watei and the lowei part alt, and in motl parti ii is 10 shallow as to be difficult of navigation, except foi the nat canoes 01 boats specially constructed. The Cape ol Patani is another example ol oneoi these long landy peninsulas. It mi about four miles in length.

The western coast is protected from the full force ol the southwestern monsoon by the Island of Sumatra, whi< h forms a natural breakwater, and gives to the Straits ol Malacca the character ol i vast river or lake. With every tide the straits fill from the open sea, the tides rising to a height ol between twenty and thirty feet

Here and there, at intervals along the western (oast, <.-. for many miles along the CO&St of the Malacca I hstrict, as well as at the northern and southern extremities of the coast-line of Selangor, extend magnificent expanses Of sandy beach, fringed here and there by coconut palms, but more generally by what looks at first sight something like a row of larches, in reality the Casuarina% or "sheoak " tree of Australia. Here, more especially on the shore of Kuala Langat, their favourite haunt, wander from time to time rare scattered parties of the Sea-Jakun, the women fishing for the small fry in the hot and shallow waters, the men spearing razorshells, or digging out mussels with a quick twist of their jungle-knife from among the roots of the " api-api " trees, or collecting cockles and other bivalves whose tracks and haunts revealed themselves to the initiated eye alone in the bright and smoking sands.

In spite of these and other most welcome breaks in the monotony of the mangrove, however, there is less open coast on this side of the Peninsula than there is on the eastern, and almost anywhere the serried ranks of mangrove trees can be seen, working their way out from the river-mouths into the sea, their network of prong- like roots checking the dispersion of the soil continually eroded and carried down by the wash of the tidal rivers, and building it up with continual accretions and by sensible gradations into higher and firmer banks. One of the chief causes of this alteration of the coast-line, which although it is gaining on the sea in places, is in others losing ground writh equal rapidity, is undoubtedly the velocity of the tides and the continual alteration in the set of the marine currents. For the alteration of the geographical character of the interior, however, the chief factor is undoubtedly the climate, which has a temperature varying from about 68c to a little above 900 in the shade in the plains, and the torrential rainfall (varying from about 90 inches to 130 inches per annum) — a combination which naturally tends to turn the greater part of the country into a forcing-house calculated to promote the most rapid development conceivable of every form of vegetation.

INTRODUCTION

What is this vegetation like, and what is its effect upon the various forms of life that depend upon it ? This is a question which has been answered in many different ways, in accordance with the temperament of the questioner. To one the very name of the tropical jungle implies something horrible, haunting, monstrous, the oppressive darkness of a perpetual smothering gloom, teeming with pestiferous disease and death. To another it implies everything luxuriant, gorgeous, glowingly beautiful, a feast of form and colour ; to a third it brings the absorbing interest which attends every fresh self-revelation of nature, every new half-glimpse into the region of her awful mysteries. At all events the jungle is not, when taken as a whole, a sort of improved botanical or zoological garden. Its trees (even the largest) are not invariably curtained about and festooned with a fantastically twisted network of serpentine creepers and parasites, nor is it even invariably difficult to penetrate. Brilliant plumaged birds and butterflies of all the hues of the rainbow do not flit in myriads from tree to tree. No carpet of the choicest and gayest hot-house flowers is spread under foot. On the other hand, the country is not a mere collection of malarial swamps, exhaling mephitic and poisonous vapours ; there is not at least one tiger behind every tree, at least one snake in every clump of grass. Splendours such as we read of are certainly not wanting, and their beauty is not exaggerated, but their occurrence is occasional, sporadic, isolated, and irregular, and hence (but for the rare exception of a chance encounter with a wild beast) they come upon the traveller with the sense of a delightful surprise and relief which may occur at any moment, and which is never long absent. But the colour scheme of it is on the whole sombre, and even monotonous, with rare splashes of bright colour, usually from some gaily-marked treestem, or from light shining through an opening in the forest. It is on the topmost branches that the flowers, buds, fruits are generally displayed, and therefore the butterflies and the birds congregate ; it is but rarely that these can be seen from below, though in the underwood and brushwood the case is often different. The most densely matted, and as a rule the gayest, part of the jungle is always at the edge of a clearing or along the banks of the rivers. In such places and in the underwood it is often all but impenetrable, and if a mile a day be taken for the cutting of a jungle-trace, it may be put down as very good progress. But throughout by far the greater part of the Peninsula no great trouble will be experienced in penetrating the undergrowth, if the approved method be adopted of following the Malay forest-paths, which are often those of wild beasts, and of the races of which we write, who are scarcely less wild than they.

The tropical vegetation of the Peninsula is of many kinds, and each region (whatever its area) has its own often highly specialised character. Inland the deep primeval or virgin forest (" rimba "), the

/ VVIRONMENT 5

underwood w "sa ondary growth' ("bfclu rally th<

abandoned plantationi ol rice oi othei products, the bamboo inn

the " mahang M-tree swamp, the tamarisks and the iubtropi<

tion oi the highest mountain peak , the "dusun 01 half-wild fi

on hard of the abori rim a m ith its ton durian I

with their great green globes ol prickly fruit, that look fox .'ill the

world like Brobdingnagian chestnuts, and the less stately, but not ■

welcome fruit trees that cluster to eth< r about the durian'i foot,

mangostin, the "rambutan" with the blood-red hairy fruit-clusters

that give it its name, the smooth white < reamy "1 the "rambai,"

"duku," mango, jack, and many others), the low scrub or brushwood

("s£makM), the man-rove BWamp and the sandy stretches along the sea-coast that are fringed by the ( 'asuarinOy one and all have their own distinctive herbs and plants and to some extent their distinctive fauna The same remark may in fact be made of the relatively small area where the jungle lias been completely outrooted and killed, such as that in the neighbourhood of deserted tin-mines, to which the heaped-up overburden gives the air of a burial-place of giants, the Malacca hills, where tapioca once flourished, now clad with tall jungle-grass, the wide rice-plains of Kedah and Perak and Province YVellesley, and the pasture- lands kept for the ploughbuffaloes in and near the villages of the rice-cultivators themselves.

One and all of these regions reveal emphatically the working of the law of development in correspondence with environment. In the deep forest, for instance, where the vast tree-trunks, impelled by the universal struggle for light and life, rise to about four times the height of our ordinary English oaks, the eye is at once attracted by the fact that so many stems rise bare and branchless for a hundred feet (and upwards) from the soil. These are most frequently, perhaps, the hardwood timber-trees that depend upon the depth of their roots for safe anchorage against the tropical tempests. Others, whose roots strike less deeply, or which for some special reason require additional support, are buttressed about with huge " struts " (the bane of the woodcutter), that taper and converge upwards continuously till they merge in the mighty bole at a height of some twelve yards or more from the tree-foot. In either case the branches, flowers, and fruit are mostly developed as near the crown of the tree as may be, since it is there, and there only, that they can obtain the necessary amount of air and light and warmth, and even of rain, that they require for their self-nourishment. The rush of the trees towards the light, in fact, is a struggle for life, a contest a ontrance^ in which the defeated have scant chance of surviving, for beneath the thick branch-canopy of the big jungle there is dim twilight even at broad noontide. This life-and-death struggle, moreover, produces yet greater modifications in the structure of plants other than trees ; it is to this that we may ascribe the interminable array of parasites,

INTRODUCTION

orchids, ferns, fungi, mosses, lichens, and of plants that climb (guttas, rattans, peppers, ficuses, to mention a few that are obvious), some by utilising their stems (serpent-fashion) for twining round their sturdier neighbours, others by use of their leaf-stalks, by modification of the leaves themselves, by adventitious roots, tendrils, " suctionpads," suckers, curved hooks, and all other imaginable grappling devices and developments of which the botanical world is capable.

Next to this struggle for light, heat, and moisture, which is terrible in its almost passionate intensity, comes the need for self-protection, and to some extent, perhaps, as a corollary of this, the need for the efficient propagation of the species. To the first of these two causes we owe the huge number of prickly, thorny plants, shrubs, and trees that seem in places to turn the forest into a vast natural vegetable armoury (the rattans, a great number of palms, many creepers, and trees with prickly fruits, such as the durian, belong to these) ; the plants with bitter or poisonous sap, the glass-like spicules of the leaf- cases of the bamboo, and the stings of the giant tree-nettle, the terror of man and beast, under the branches of one of which I have myself ridden on elephant-back. To the second cause we owe such curiosities in the history of dispersion as the " fillcup "-fruit, whose " sail " gives it a rotatory motion that enables it to bore into the ground at the tree's foot, and the great pincushion-like (albeit barbed) heads of the spinifex grass on the east coast of the Peninsula, which goes bowling over the sand at the rate of an express train, till it catches against a fallen branch or log or similar obstruction, where it is most likely to find the depressions that collect the moisture.

In the animal kingdom of the Peninsula this specialising tendency is not less distinctly marked. For instance, the colour of the black leopard (or panther, as it is variously called), which is an exclusively nocturnal animal, furnishes it with a most effective means of concealment, and when we observe how cunningly its sable hue (which might otherwise become conspicuous, as a mass, from its very uniformity) is in one species at least mottled and diversified by greyish rosettes, which produce, with an almost startling fidelity to nature, the effect of moonlight shining through leaves, it becomes impossible to withhold our admiration of the design. The striped colouring of the tiger and civet, the mottled skin of the yellow, spotted panther and tiger-cat, are undoubtedly due to the same instinctive selection for stalking, or what may be called "strategic" purposes. So too in the colour of the crocodile, which has no enemies to fear in its own domain, we have an admirable example of " strategic " colouring, for it is the exact counterpart of the tidal mudbanks, and especially of the slime-covered logs that lie scattered about them, the "deception" being so complete that even the mousedeer, monkeys, and other small game which go down to the water

ENVIRONMENT

eithei to drink, or to feed on shell-fish, at ebb-tide in th oi

the day, are completely deceived, and not infrequently pay the

penalty foi then want oi care in adventuring I i theii lurl

enemy, by being iwepl into the water after the mannei

in the Besisi jungle songs, l>y one swoop oi the crocodiL ling

tail

On tin- other hand, the grey blue "slaty" coloui oi the elephant, buffalo, rhinoceros, adult tapir, and wild boar, which (with the possible exception of the elephant, though it too may at lea I be described as being to a large extent a water-animal) very closely matches the colour of the forest mud in winch they disport them

solves during the heat of the tropical noonday, is clearly intended to

afford them whatever protection may be possible when they are

immersed in their wallow, and lor the time being, therefore, entirely defenceless, and is therefore protective. Similarly the piebald colouring oH what is called the striped squirrel, and (as Ridley has pointed out) the striped and spotted skin of the young tapir, roe-deer, and wild hoar, with the prevalence of russets and chestnut browns, browns and greys, among many species of deer, squirrels, smaller monkeys, and wild dogs, are in various ways admirably adapted for the protection of the species, the browner shades in particular being very difficult to see in the dusk of the evening, which is the time when the majority of these animals seek their food. A still more interesting case is that of the white fauna of the immense limestone caves of the Peninsula, of which the Batu caves in Selangor, and the Biserat caves of Ulu Patani, are well-known examples. These caves are frequented by myriads of bats, which produce deep deposits of guano, and among the fauna which live either upon the bats or the guano, are a white snake, a white rat, and even a white cockroach ! Among the apes and monkeys (especially the larger ones) which, owing to their extreme agility and strength are in little need of any specially protective colouring, the correspondence of colour to environment is less marked ; it may, however, be worth pointing out that the spectacled monkey (Semnopithecus obscurus) is called " lotong " by the Malays, who have evidently observed the close correspondence of its colour to the bark of the immense forest-tree called " jelotong " (Dyera Maingayi, D. costulata), which abounds in the forest where it lives.

In the cases we have mentioned the protective or " strategic " colouring of the animal, when once modified, has been permanent ; but the Peninsula yields more than one example of an animal which can change its colouring from time to time for the purpose of still more effective concealment. Such are the " sumpah-sumpah " (Ca/ofes), wrhich, though not a true chamaeleon, has yet received that name from its sharing the chameleon's most remarkable characteristic, and in a lesser degree, certain tree-lizards and tree-

8 INTRODUCTION

frogs, which latter I have seen turn an almost milky white when exposed to full sunlight.

In all the foregoing cases, as indeed in all of which we have hitherto any record, the specialisation of the animal, whether of an aggressive or prophylactic character, takes the form of a modification of colouring in conformity with its most usual surroundings for the purpose of concealment, and the principle of the importance of colouring thus developed is, of course, very marked among the lower orders of creation, among the birds, snakes, and various forms of the insect world (more especially the well-known leaf and stick insects), with the all - important modification that among all these latter classes the influence of an additional purpose is observable, viz. that of colouring for sexual attraction — a feature of which no example whatever is known among the higher animals of the Peninsula. But colour-modification is, of course, by no means the only form of specialisation that occurs, for formmodification, combined with that of colour, is found in a host of Malay insects, of which the leaf-insect and stick-insect are the best known examples ; while the shield of the many varieties of tortoise, the scaly mail of the manis, and the lance-like quills or cJievatix de /rise of the porcupine, all afford notable examples of animals provided with special forms of armour because they are ground animals and have no other way of escape.

But we approach what is still far the most significant and characteristic section of the fauna of the Peninsula when we consider the immense proportion of the denizens of the jungle that have learnt to live in trees. Among these are the bear, the leopard, and panther, and all other representatives of the cat kind (with the sole exception of the tiger), the bear-cat and the civet, and an uncounted army of squirrels, apes, monkeys, snakes, and lizards. By far the most numerous part of the sylvan population of the Peninsula is, in fact, distinctively arboreal, and the most interesting section of these are those bizarre creatures — half-animal, half-bird — which in the Malayan jungles continually afford some fresh and delightful surprise. These are the flying-foxes and fruit-bats, flying squirrels, flying lemurs, flying lizards, flying frogs.

Some of these, of course, such as the flying-foxes, which owe their name to the vulpine character of their head, are true bats, and really fly, but many of them progress on the principle of the aeroplane, by taking off from the trunk of a tree at a considerable height from the ground, gliding downwards to the next, and then climbing up from the point at which they alight, and repeating the glide as before. The flying squirrels and flying lemurs, which travel by this method, make use of a fold of skin between the fore and hind leg on each side of the body, the membrane when tightly stretched performing the work of a parachute. Of the large flying lemur, or " kubong,"

V1R0NMI V7

which ii locally plentiful, there are at leasi two varieties, oro

win. i) ii.i . .1 soft, moil beautifully deli< ate sitoi being ol ■ reddish brown < olour. 'I hew

squirrel, which is very much small* r, if ■ body being little bigger than .i rather large mouse. The flying lizard, 01 1 which

brilliantly coloured, has the membranes with which it Hii ened

by slight processes, which enable it to use them to s hunted extent as wings, its flight producing an impression similar to the " buzzing " of the wings of some large insect ba flj ing it inflates the gorgeous golden pouch beneath its throat (l>y means, as it appeared to me, of a spine which it erected and depressed at pleasure), and in

full BUnlight produces the Strangest and at the same time HI

fascinating effect imaginable.

'The flying frog, which is said to glide through the air by means of an abnormal development of the webs of its feet, is well known from the description given by Wallace, but I think it is worth while adding that there are other tree fro^s in the Peninsula, which do not appear to be flying frogs, their feet being merely provided with suction pads, resembling those of the Malayan house-lizard.

In another department of animal life, that of the fishes, there are in the Malay Peninsula many good examples of specialisation that should not be passed over : these are (to take some of the most conspicuous) the frog-fish called " tembakul," which may be seen in great numbers skipping over the sloping banks of tidal rivers at the passing of a boat or steamer; the "aruan" or " snakehead " {Ophiocephalus), a kind of walking mud-fish resembling a perch, which may be seen progressing over dry land towards a pool by the opening and shutting of its gill-cases; and a small fish called Toxotes jaculator, which is able to shoot a fly off a leaf above the stream by means of a drop of water forcibly expelled from its mouth, a remarkable fact, which, as I have ventured to suggest in a later part of this book, is necessarily a matter of common knowledge to the aboriginal inhabitants of the Peninsula, to whom it may not inconceivably have suggested the blowrpipe.

We have seen how powerful has been the effect of the joint insular and climatic conditions upon the fauna and flora of the Peninsula, and how the peculiar character of the vegetation has affected the fauna. This latter idea leads us naturally to the question, in what way and to what extent have the indigenous races of the Peninsula been themselves affected by the climate and the character of the country ? Throughout the world this physical specialisation is far less marked in man than in the lower animals. This, however, is probably not due to the fact that he is incapable of such development, nor is it due to his being, comparatively speaking, a late arrival on the earth, but simply to the fact of his possessing mechanical ability to a degree that lifts him far above the

io INTRODUCTION

other members of the brute creation, above the orang-outang, for example, a comparison worth making because, according to native tradition, a variety of it, called the " mawas," once inhabited the Peninsula, as it still inhabits the neighbouring islands of Borneo and Sumatra, to the latter of which at least the Malay Peninsula was once (as already pointed out) geologically united. That it is not due to any incapacity for such development, is clear from the immense number and variety of ways, as in the blind, deaf and dumb (or in special trades for instance), in which one or other of his senses becomes quite abnormally developed through constant use, to say nothing of isolated phenomena, such as the cases of web-foot connected with East Anglia since the days of the Gyrvii. That it is not due to his late arrival will appear when we reflect that the most wonderful development does continually occur in the life-history even of a single individual. Probably we should be quite safe in saying that of all animals man is best able to accommodate himself to new or strange surroundings, even to those which appear most certain to threaten his very existence. But since he is able to obtain this end by the use of special implements and devices, we shall find that (as might almost be expected) it is these mechanical appliances that he improves rather than his own members. Hence even in the Malay Peninsula, which must certainly be one of the most densely wooded countries in the world, although the Sakai has been driven by the dangers that threaten him to build his huts in trees, he shows no tendency to develop into a really arboreal type ; and although he is quite capable of walking up the stem which forms the approach to his aerial abode, he still prefers to make use of some rude kind of ladder to go up and down by (just as, in Les Landes, the French fenlander has kept to his stilts). So too the Orang Laut, although he has lived in his boats from the cradle to the grave, as far back as history will carry us, has never developed, however expert in diving he may be, anything remotely approaching amphibious characteristics. It is therefore not so much in the sphere of physical development, great as in certain ways this undoubtedly is, that we must expect to find the full effect of the wild man's geographical surroundings, but in the use that he makes of those surroundings, and the development of his character.

In what relationship, then, does the wild man of the Peninsula stand to, and what use does he make of the flora and fauna that have been described ? It is certainly owing to the dangerous proximity of wild beasts, such as elephants and tigers, that he has taken to living in the high tree-huts just referred to. For the wild elephant of the Peninsula in particular is very rascally, and will pull even a tree-hut to pieces if he can reach it (as, in one case that I remember, an elephant in the Langat river demolished, for sheer mischiefs sake, a Malay dug-out canoe). But nevertheless

ENVIRONMES 1 n

both tigei and elephant arc hunted] killed, and eaten at time . and there ii hardly any animal, bird, 01 reptile in tl e jungle perhaps tin- toad, scorpion, and .1 few snakes and insects) that d not at some time or other, and in some district 01 other, form part of the aboriginal menu. Monkeys, wild pig, deei oi all Icii squirrels, porcupines, flying foxes and flying lemurs, argus pheasi

and peacocks, blue herons and hombills, tortoises, li/aids, rats, and

snakes, these provide some of their favourite dishes, and it one 01

two concessions are made tO the prejudices of civilisation, there would perhaps not be much to which we should he inclined to take exception. Hut the catholicity of their tastes necessitates at once a most thorough and accurate knowledge of the habits of the varied denizens of the jungle, and a considerable amount of ingenuity and mechanical skill in the contrivance of traps, pitfalls, springes, and nooses for securing their quarry, and this knowledge, skill, and ingenuity the wild races certainly possess in a very marked degree.

The Itesisi method of securing the argus pheasant, described in the text, is the outcome of close observation, as is their method of " splashing " with the tip of their rod in the water to catch the "sembilang" fish; their springes and traps for monkeys, wild pigs, and other small mammals and birds, are frequently most complicated devices. But, cleverly designed as these are, they will catch nothing unless the trappers have a sufficiently intimate knowledge of the haunts and habits of their intended victim to foresee the exact spot at which the latter will inevitably pass, and in passing release the catch that starts the mechanism : their knowledge of the presence and movements of game, even at a considerable distance away in the jungle, amounts to an instinct : their lungs (though this is a matter that has not yet been investigated) must be enormously developed and improved to enable them, at (comparatively) great distances, to exhibit such skill with the blowpipe, as they are known to possess : their sight, whether longer or not than that of the average European, is unquestionably so much better trained, that they can instantaneously distinguish quite small birds or squirrels even when partially screened by thick foliage, where a European would, for some time at all events, be totally unable to perceive anything at all : their sense of smell, by which they are able even to track snakes, is unquestionably keener, and certainly far better trained, than that of an European, or even than that of an ordinary town-bred (and therefore as a rule in every way degenerate) Malay, though it may not be materially better than that of the Malay who has been bred to the jungle.

With regard to the vegetation of the Peninsula, it may be safely said that the wild races make use of everything that can in any way be regarded as even remotely edible and capable of sustaining life, for they not only employ every edible fruit, seed, root, tuber, stem, bark,

12 INTRODUCTION

leaf, young shoot, bud (not to mention ferns and fungi) that comes their way, but even make use of plants that are highly poisonous, until they have been treated, such as the fruit of the " perah "-tree, which is poisonous unless cooked, and some of the wild yams, which they eat after washing out the poison. Of the number of edible fruits in the jungle, the lists of their names given in the text will give some faint idea, though even these lists must not be taken as in any sense complete, and if they should (to take a very rare contingency) be in any manner of doubt as to the edibility of any particular fruit, the birds and the monkeys will be their guide. Even the despised mangrove swamp, regarded by Europeans as the ne plus ultra of all impenetrable and unproductive forms of vegetation, contributes its quota of edible fruits, such, for instance, as the " pisang-pisang " and " berembang," of both of which I myself have eaten. Water is obtained by tapping the " kait-kait " and other wild creepers, and from the stems of certain large bamboos, which not infrequently hold water in their hollow internodes. But the most important plants and trees, from an ethnological point of view7, are undoubtedly (after mere food-producers), the upas tree, the upas creeper, the tuba or fish-poison creeper, and a species of bamboo called Bambusa Wrayi. Of these it will be sufficient to remark (since they have been treated very fully in the text) that the first three are the main ingredients of the famous dart-poison of the aborigines, which, like the wourali poison of the South American Indians, is in some of its compounds, at all events, almost immediately fatal, whether to man, bird, or beast. The fish-poison (so called because it was formerly much used for poisoning the small streams in the Peninsula and thereby stupefying the fish) is used in combination with both of the other two main ingredients of the dart-poison, whether tree or creeper. And the last of the category, Bambusa Wrayi ox longinodis, is an extremely rare bamboo, which has exceedingly slender internodes that grow to quite six feet in length, and which, though only known to growT on two or three mountains in the Peninsula, has been nevertheless singled out by the aborigines to serve in the production of their jointless blowrpipe.

In the foregoing pages we have glanced at that inexhaustible (and after all indescribable) profusion of nature by which the ancestors of these races found themselves surrounded in that dim and unrecorded past, when first their toilsome wanderings, prolonged through generations, brought them face to face within the narrow confines of the Malay Peninsula. At whatever period this was, and in whatever order they may have arrived, we can now recognise with sufficient clearness the Semang, Sakai, and Jakun as three distinct and separate races ; the Negritos or Semang, with their woolly hair and round bright eyes, the darkest, the best-developed, and at the same time the most markedly nomadic of all the races in the

ENVIROA :// A /

Peninsula ; the Sakai, who arc the lightest, with then often intert

features, reminiscent nut) be "i theii old Dravidian ancestry, though modified b) the effeci ol theii somewhat narrow-lidded h closed eyes, hair oi i distinctly wavy character, and their generally -Mimwli.it emaciated appearance; and the Jakun or aboriginal Malayans, with their smooth blue-black bail race bard to dii tinguish, because of its admixture with the other two main stocks, but who must nevertheless be accepted as a type, it the physical ei of skull and skull features, skin colour and bail < bara< tes are not to be utterly denied, [n each case the Gate of thru- scanty hands must have been very similar a never-ending Btruggle tor existent against the forces of nature, against hunger, disease, and a hundred forms of death, and later against the persecutions of man, thus faithfully mirroring the battle of the gigantic vegetation and dangerous 1 teasts among which they lived. The shadow, the hall-mark of the primeval forest — at once their protector, their sustainer, and their grave — is burned into them, and shows itself in the restless motion and hunted expression of their eyes, and even in their very gait, for the great height to which they raise the foot in walking (a habit acquired in circumventing the continual obstacles that meet them in the undergrowth), and the careful deliberation with which they plant it on the ground, remain even when they come out into open country, and expose them to much ridicule and cheap witticisms on the part of the Malays. It was the forest that supplied them with food, shelter, clothing, ornaments, implements of every description, with drugs and simples when they were sick, with materials and subjects for their dances, feasts, songs, instruments of music. Their strongest asseveration was to say, " May a tree fall on me,'' — an expression that fully brings out the extent to which this particular terror dominated their lives. It was the forest that received their dead into its kindly bosom ; indeed, to be laid to rest in the cool outstretched arms of the great forest-trees was the highest honour that could be paid to their departed chiefs, wrhose spirits they so pathetically prayed to ' pay heed only to their dead ancestors, for their living friends would find food/ Their simple idea of the delights of a future state was after all but a glorified " Avilion," an " Island of Fruits," from which all that was noxious and distressing to man (and therefore to man's soul) had been eliminated, and the very entrance to which lay over the natural bridge formed by the trunk of a fallen tree.

Yet, surrounded as they were by possibilities of harm, they quitted themselves like men, and as iron is welded into steel, the very hardships of their life only served to throw into relief their higher qualities — their ingenuity, dexterity, open-heartedness, sincerity, and well-developed common sense — qualities which, I must confess, I never yet met so generally diffused in any other tropical

i4 INTRODUCTION

race of which I have had experience, and had never expected to meet outside the fabled frontiers of Arcadia. Yet this is the universal testimony of all who have known them well, and I need only add to my own a single testimony, that of a Malay (who was of all men best qualified to speak), who himself once remarked to me in tones of deep disdain, " What stupid animals these Sakai are, they don't know how to tell a lie ! "

It is a fact that, as a natural consequence of their inherent honesty, unselfishness, and single-mindedness — the undoubted result of their natural and unluxurious mode of life — these despised, persecuted, and (in a worldly sense) ignorant savages, without the guiding star of even the most rudimentary form of letters, philosophy, or history, have yet given us a practical example of the ideal social state in which liberty, equality, and fraternity are not mere names but real and living forces, and in which, since a moderately communistic system of property prevails, there is no room — so simple is their form of life — for the disintegrating influences of theft, murder, fraud, greed, or any other of the grosser sins that plague the conscience of civilised humanity, influences which, whenever the experiment has been tried among Europeans of establishing a community on the same lines, have been (and are long likely to remain) the inevitable causes of its failure. The facts, viewed in this light, are striking, and perhaps mortifying, but probably all that they mean is that the stage of development reached by those races is a rudimentary one, the exact counterpart of that golden age of innocence to which all civilised and semicivilised races regretfully look back, and which ceases when once the golden apple of commerce is thrown into their midst. "Why rushed the discords in but that harmony should be prized ? " Yet surely, if for no other reason than for their possession of these high qualities, the needs of these rude, uncultured, but not all-unenlightened tribes now subject to our sway, should stir the real and ready sympathy of all who believe in our manhood, and in our imperial worth as champions of the weak.

The most important factor that remains to be mentioned in the development of these races, is the subject of the relations between them and the Peninsular Malays. Which of the three races was the first to arrive in the Peninsula, is a point that in the nature of things cannot be decided. As an equatorial race we may perhaps suppose that it was the Negritos. All that we can say for certain is, that in the mediaeval period, when all three races were already established there, the Peninsula appears to have been occupied in some force, first by some old Indo-Chinese race1 of

1 It is of interest to note the fact Prince Damrong, a keen and prothat when I was in Bangkok H.R.H. gressive ruler, drew my attention in

.' \ I fR( \ ,.'/ \ /

, omparativel) high i h ili lation, irho ic li on

the aboriginal dialects (but oi whose domination there i record in history), and latei by colonies ol Malay imn rom

Sumatra a people also ol Borne civilisation (ol fl Eiinduised type) whose immigration has continued i<> the presenl day, and influence on the abori turally much more marked i

conversion of these lattei Bettlei from theii more toleranl Hindu beliefs to the militant and missionary faith ol [slam (which took place less than ooo years ago), was b most critical event foi the aborigines, its ultimate effect being to drive these unfortunate tribesmen into the hills of the interior and redui e them to the condition

of hunted outlaws, to he enslaved, plundered, and murdered by the

Malay chiefs at their tyrannous will and pleasure.

This condition of things lasted some five 'cnturies, and naturally

enough branded itself, in unforgetable fashion, deep into the memory

oi' the victims. The Portuguese domination of Malacca (which commenced with the taking of that city in 151 1 and lasted for 130

years), and that of the Dutch, who became their successors on the capture of Malacca in 1641 and held it till 1795 (an(J who were able besides to establish trading factories in several parts of the Peninsula), did nothing to rescue the aborigines from their state of serfdom. It was not indeed until the establishment of the British Protectorate, which raised them to an equality with their oppressors, and thereby righted an historic wrong, that they regained the right and the power to live as men. Indeed, even in the earlier days of that protectorate itself, and so long as the power of the Malay pirate in these seas remained unbroken, their condition improved but slowly, and indeed for many years after they had acquired some measure of security for life and property, they were still most outrageously imposed on by the Malay, who traded upon their naive simplicity, and at the same time upon their unrivalled knowledge of the jungle, to acquire for his own purposes immense quantities of gutta, camphor, eagle-wood, rattan, damar, and other valuable jungle products, for which he paid the collectors the merest fraction of their real value. These methods and many other forms of oppression have since been almost completely suppressed by the strong arm, but we are now confronted by the yet graver question, whether our system of protection is to become more fatal to our proteges than even the Malay slave-raids that we so strenuously put down, the effect of which was, after all, though individual members might be lost to the community, to keep them a race apart, whereas

particular to the words of command were neither Siamese nor Malay. The

addressed by the mahouts, in the north answer to this suggestive inquiry of

of the Malay Peninsula, to the elephants Prince Damrong has been given at the

under their charge, and pointed out end of vol ii. , in the chapter devoted

that some of these words at all events to " Language."

16 INTRODUCTION

to-day (though there is as yet no marked decline in their numb' they are fast tending to become assimilated and absorbed, losing their language, their customs, their purity of blood and (worst loss of all) their natural truthfulness and honesty. Probably at the present stage it is too late to avert wholly the natural trend of events, and the only palliative appears to be (in the best interest of the aborigines themselves as well as of their former oppressors) to encourage and develop the systematic study by our own officials of native thought, law, and custom, and to encourage and develop the ideas of the natives themselves through the means (some of which I am glad to say have already been tried) of their own industries and culture (barbarisms and babuisms, of course, excluded). By thus giving them an assured status and the stimulus of a new and higher form of self-respect, we may at least develop and improve that most important class of the race (as distinct from his degenerate fellow-countryman of the towns), the genuine Malay peasant, inured to the hard vicissitudes of the jungle or the sea. Whatever can be achieved in this direction, be it little or much — and the writer is one of those whom experience has convinced that much can be done — will be in its ultimate result of immeasurably greater benefit to the unsophisticated alien races over whom the Malay genius for assimilation is so soon destined to prevail, than any system of forest reservation or even the most paternal vigilance over their affairs.

RACE,

PART I

VOL. I

RACIAL CHARACTERS.

The N vmes of the Tribes.

In discussing the affinities of the various races and tribes of wild men in the Malay Peninsula, it is important to get a clear idea of the exact meaning of the names which the Malays apply to them, and which are taken, for the most part, either from the natural (geographical) features of the country in which the particular race of " wild men" in question live, or from the stage of civilisation at which they happen to have arrived.

The commonest of these names, with their English equivalents, are as follows : —

Malay Name.

Translation.

Remarks.

Orang Utan .

Men of the Forest

Used of all the tribes.

,, Bukit . .

Men of the Hills . . .

Of Inland Tribes only.

Paya .

Men of the Swamps.

Darat . .

Men of the Dry Land .

Land Jakun.

,, Laut .

Men of the Sea .

Jakun of the coast, especially the Besisi of the Selangor coast, and the Johor and Singapore tribes, sometimes called " Sea-gypsies."

,, Dalam

Men of the Interior.

„ Ulu . .

Men of the Head-waters.

Tanjong .

Men of the Capes

I.e. Men of the " river-bends."

,, Liar .

"Wild "Men . . .

Of wholly nomadic tribes who are rarely met with.

RACIAL CHARACTERS

PART

Malay Name.

Translation.

Remarks.

Orang Jinak .

Lit. "Tame" Men . .

Of all tribes either settled or less absolutely nomadic.

JJ'la . .

" Kept " or " Domesti-

! especially of slaves and

cated " Men

dependants ( = " Bila " of some old writers, e.g. Logan).

Sabbat .

From Arabic "Sahabat" = " Friend."

, , Rayat .

Subjects or Serfs .

From Arabic " Ra'iyat. " Used especially of the sea tribes (Rayat Laut).

Of the foregoing names, the term " Orang Utan" (or " Hutan ") is perhaps the one which is most generally used in the Peninsula. The correct meaning of "orang" in Malay is "man" {homo), and "utan" means "jungle." Hence " Orang Utan " simply means "Man of the Jungle," i.e. "Wild Man," and the phrase has (in modern Peninsular Malay) no other meaning. The application of the name " orang-outang " in Europe to a kind of ape was probably due to the mistake, or the jest, of some early traveller. It goes back to 1 63 1, when it occurs in a passage in Bontius, quoted by Yule, s.v. " orang utan." The mistake was repeated, as has since been pointed out, in 1652, when Tulpius, in giving a representation of the ape (not the man) wrote underneath it "Homo Sylvestris, Orang utang."1 The term "orang utan," as has just been said, has practically come to mean nothing more than "Wild Man" (or " Men") in Malay, and hence it is even used of the sea tribes, as in the case of the Orang Utan S'letar (the "Jungle-men of the S'letar" river), who form a branch of the Orang Laut.2

1 V. B. G. A. xxiii. 831 ; and Nic. Tulpii Observ. Med. Amsterdam, 1652, p. 284. The original specimen of the Homo Sylvestris of Tulpius is now in

the British Museum. We must note that Malay "Orang utang" (net "utan") = " debtor " ; v. H Homme, iii. 43. 2 It seems, however, that in Sumatra

//// NAMES <>/■ /■///■ //://:/■

i

On the other hand, the following names are applied to definite local groups or hordes of wild men, with, in some cases, a vague amount oi racial connotation, this being especially the case with " Seman and "Sakai":

Mum oi ( rroup.

i.il ( !onno( <>y).

I. SfiMANG

Negi ito tribes oi tii<- Mai j

Al to called M< uik, Mi ni', "i

Peninsula generally (also

]< ndi' by tti'in | 1 \ < ( =

especially "i w est ( loast

Martin's " Mendi ").

Negritos)

Pangan

I'.i • ( loast Negritos {i.t\

V.-Si vcd li i " Panggang "

" l'.asi Semang '')

passitHf erroneously. '

1 i . Sakai .

Dr.i vido* A usi i .1 1 i.i n (?)

rionally used by mistake

tribes of the Malay Ten

for Semang. The "Blandas"

insula generally

ofV.-Sl.; "S.noi "of Martin.

Scnoi .

" Central Sakai " tribes

The term used by some pur sang Sakai of themseh It is said to mean " Man " in Sakai. -

III. Jakun

Aboriginal Malayan tribes

Formerlyspelt Jacoon( Raffles,

generally

Jokong), etc.

Hill Jakun or

Aboriginal Malayan Land

Including the Benua (Logan)

Orang Bukit

tribes

ssBenai (V. -Stevens).

Sea Jakun or

Aboriginal Malayan Sea

S'letar, Sabimba, Bed. Kallang,

Orang Laut

tiibes

Muka Kuning, Akik, etc.

Blandas . .

Certain mixed tribes of the

Wrongly used as synonymous

Interior of Selangor and

with Sakai by V. -Stevens.

S. Ujong

Called Landas by themselves.

i'.ksisi . . .-

Certain (Malayan ?) Sea

Also called Bersisi(V. -Stevens),

tribes of the Selangor

and 'Sisi (by themselves).

and Malacca Coast

Mantra . .

Certain (Malayan?) tribes

Also Mentera' and Mintira

of Interior of Malacca

(Logan).

Udai .

A certain mixed tribe (? Semi-Negrito) of Johor

Unidentified.

the expression is actually used to denote the anthropoid apes. In Borneo the word "Maias"is used to denote the "orang-outang," of which the " Mawas " of the Peninsula is probably a tradition. In a letter of November 3rd, 1 90 1, Mr. Hale informs me that the term " Orang alas" (an old Malay phrase for "jungle-men ") is used in the Kinta valley as the equivalent of " Mawas."

1 The word is properly spelt Pangan, and has nothing to do with Malay

"panggang," "to roast, "as V. -St. oddly imagined, the two words being pronounced quite differently. Mr. Charles Hose has suggested that it may be akin to a North Bornean word " pangan," which means "friendly" — a much more likely suggestion.

2 De Morgan (viii. 225) mentions a hill called "Gunong Senoi" ("Sonoi"), a place-name, but this probably means " Hill of the Senoi*' or " Wild-men's Hill." Cp. Luering's Vocabulary of the "Ulu Kampar" Dialect, s.v. " Man."

22 RACIAL CHARACTERS i-akt

The term " Semang" has never been satisfactorily explained. The term " Sakai," on the other hand, has been (unjustifiably, as I think) explained as meaning "dog"; a more possible derivation, as Griinwedel points out,1 being from the Sanskrit " Sakhi " = " Friend," in which case its use would be paralleled by the alternative Malay name " Sahbat" or "Sabat" (from Arab. " Sahabat " = " Friend " or " Friendly "), though even this is hardly a likely explanation.

The word " Sakai " is also used in Malay (as is " Semang ") in the sense of retainer or follower of a native chief. It is thus more or less analogous to Rayat or subject. This last term is commonly applied by the Malays to the Mantra and Besisi ; but these last two tribes prefer to speak of themselves as " Hill Men" (Orang Bukit), or " Men of the Interior" (Orang Dalam), and " Men of the Sea " (Orang Laut) respectively, or else simply as " Jakun."

Finally, the term " Sakai " has not unfrequently been used, like the expression " Orang Utan," as a generic term for all the wild men of the peninsula. It is also frequently used by the Malays in combination with many of the terms given above (e.g. Sakai Liar, Sakai Jinak, Sakai Bukit, Sakai Rawang, Sakai Laut, Sakai Ulu, Sakai Dalam, Sakai Bla), but not as a rule with the other words mentioned in the list. The word " Semang " is also occasionally used in a similar way. But the majority of the names applied to these tribes by the Malays are purely place-names, e.g. Orang Kinta (from the Kinta valley in Perak) ; Orang Klang and Orang Rawang (from places in the " Klang " and " Langat " districts of Selangor), and the numerous tribal names of the Orang Laut, such

1 V. B. G. A. xxiii. 830. " Sakei " is an alternative spelling.

THE NA Ml S OF THE TRIh

as the " S&bimba," "S'letar," u Muka Kuning," and many similar title

In the following work the name " Semang" will be used principally for .ill Negrito tribes, whether tho dwelling on the West Coast <>r those on the East, the latter <>f whom arc generally called (as has already been explained) M Pangan."

It will also be used (culturally) of the mixed

Semang-Sakai tribes amongst whom, cither on account

of their use of the bow or for other reasons, the Semang element has been assumed on the whole to preponderate.

The name c< Sakai " will be similarly ear-marked for the second ethnical group ( Dravido- Australian .J), whether pure or only preponderatingly Sakai.

The name " Jakun " will, in the same way, be applied to the southern tribes, composing the third ethnical group, for which the name " Benua" (Orang Benua = Men of the Country or " Aborigines," as opposed to the immigrant Malays) was used by European writers at least as far back as 1613, although it does not now appear to be used by the natives themselves.1

Finally, I may say that the names of the fabulous tribes, e.g. Orang Ekor or "Tailed" People, Orang Gergasi or Giants, Orang Mawas or "Orangoutang" People, referred to by Vaughan - Stevens,2 Orang Peri or Fairies, etc., etc., will be treated of in the chapter on Religion, to which they more properly belong.

Vaughan -Stevens asserts that the term " Udei "

1 At the same time it should be Goudinho de Eredia (JZa/aca,

observed that certain modern writers Brussels, 1882) mentions the Benua

(among whom is Logan) apply the in a work written in 161 3.

name "Benua'' to a particular Jakun 2 Vide Grunwedel in V. B. G. A.

tribe in Johor, who will be here called xxxiii. 830, and elsewhere. "Benua-Jakun.;'

( "Udai") is used by the Orang Pangan as an expression of contempt for the tribes dwelling near Belum in Perak, and that its meaning is equivalent to " bastard." He also alleges it to be applied by the Malays in the north to the Orang Jinak, i.e. the more settled (" Tame ") Semang. His explanation of the word, however, is certainly incorrect.1

RACIAL AFFINITIES— GENERAL.

The Older Views.

The descriptions of these tribes by the older writers were based on very inadequate knowledge, and were often extremely speculative and misleading. De Quatrefages, De Morgan, M.-Maclay, Vaughan- Stevens, and others held what may be called the Pan- Negrito theory, i.e. the belief that all the wild tribes were of Negrito origin, and attempted to account for the anthropological difficulties involved by premising the intermixture of these tribes with Malays and certain other races, selected apparently at random, such as Siamese, Papuans, and African negroes, to account for the presence of whom the " wrecked slave-dhow " theory was introduced, without the slightest regard to the obvious geographical objections, or to the remarkable racial discrepancies between the races compared. We have it, for instance, on the authority of Mr. H. N. Ridley, that Vaughan -Stevens at one time regarded the Semang as descendants of ''escaped negro slaves brought over by Alexander the Great " !

1 Vaughan-Stevens, iii. Heft. 3-4, p. 100.

in I \NG PROBLL Vt 2s

Even some ol those sounder authorities who re-

nised the fact that the identit) ol origin ol .ill th< tribes could not be maintained, spoilt their by

attempting t<> identif) the Semang with the African negro, an attempt which the marked diversity <>i type between the two races concerned would alone render little- short ol absurd.

An allied theory (that of the Papuan origin ol the Semang) has been completely confuted by a succession of modern anthropologists, among whom it will be sufficient to mention Wallace, Wait/, Hamy, and others, whose researches may be considered to have fairly established the following pro- positions : ] —

(i) That there were not less than two clearly distinguishable, if not contrasted, racial types among the wild aborigines of the Peninsula.

(2) That the characteristics of the Negrito type found among the Semang showed no more trace of derivation from the true negro than they did from that...^h ** of the Papuan. ) f&\ \

• '■&$?+    **i
  

A.— The Semang Problem. iDiimim

As regards the former (Pan-Negrito) theory, it should be noticed that even Vaughan-Stevens and his followers unconsciously divide the Semang from the Sakai.

Thus Vaughan-Stevens, while strongly postulating

1 Wallace, for instance, clearly dis- Malays ' of Wallace) . . . relient For-

tinguishes between the Semang as mosa a Malacca."

Negritos, and the Jakun as "savage Waitz distinguishes two clearly sepa-

Malays." rate types — the Semang whom he de-

Hamy, after admitting the existence clines even to call Negritos — apparently

of Negritos in the Peninsula, goes on for fear of implying Negro affinities —

to say, " Les Indonesiens (the 'savage and the Benua or savage Malays.

26 RACIAL AFFINITIES i-akt

their common Negrito origin (according to the " Pan- Negrito " theory), divides the tribes into two wellmarked main groups — (i) The Sakai or "Blandas" (including the " Tembeh," the " Keni," the "Senoi," "Besisi," and "Kenaboi"); (2) the Orang Menik, whom he subdivides correctly into Pangan and Semang, the latter comprising the tribes of Kinta, Kensiu, Belum, and Bong Districts.

In the first of these two groups the names Tembeh, Keni, and Kenaboi are probably nothing but place-names ; 1 Tembeh, which Vaughan-Stevens spells Tumior or Tummeor, and which he would derive from Timor — the name of an island at the opposite end of the Malay archipelago ! — is certainly identical with the Tembe of Clifford, in spite of Vaughan-Stevens' description of them as being "dark of colour " and "tattooed,"2 two facts which would, if established, appear to indicate a proportion of Semang blood, though no doubt much mixed with Sakai.

In the second group the names of the subdivisions are mostly names of places, Kensiu being in the north of Kedah ; the Kinta, a tributary of the Perak river ; Belum in Ulu Perak ; and Bukit Bong, a hill in Ligeh. All the tribes in this second group belong to the Negrito stock, and Vaughan-Stevens, in spite of his preconceived theories, could not help noticing the difference between them and the Sakai tribes.

The third (Malayan) element Vaughan-Stevens

1 "Kenaboi" is the name of a stream beh " at Sepang, south of Klang,

in Jelebu. " Tembeh ": other spellings upon the same coast. I may add that

are "Tembir" and "Tembe," the form there is, in N. Selangor and Perak, a

employed by Clifford. For a parallel strong tendency to pronounce this

compare the word "gambier," which same word as "gambiok," or even

is (correctly) pronounced "gambir"at "gamiok," a form which accounts

Klang in the central part of the Se- for the form "Temiok," which is also

langor coast-line, " gambior " at Kwala found (Martin).

Selangor (north of Klang), and "gam- 2 V. B. G. A. xxiii. 831.

THE SI MA VG PROBLEM

apparently attributes exclusively to modem (civilised)

Malay admixture.

So, too, De la Croix,1 though professing his ad herence to the " Pan- Negrito " theory, nevertheless distinguishes to a great extent the Semang from the Sakai.

De Morgan distinguishes between the "Sakai1 peoples to the south of the river Plus, a large tributary of the Perak river, and the Semang who live to the north, and remarks that these two tribes are hostile to eaeh other ; but yet concludes that all the wild men of the Peninsula belong to a single race which he identifies with the " Negritos of New Guinea" !

It is not, I think, necessary to deal at length with the statements of all the writers who hold this view, though mention should certainly be made of the work of Miklucho-Maclay," who states that both the " Orang Sakai" and " Orang Semang" (two radically different types) are "pur sang Melanesians " ! 3

1 Rev. (FEthn. vol. i. No. 4, 1882.

2 /. R. A. S., S. B., No. 2, p. 208.

3 On the other hand, it is only fair to point out that both Miklucho-Maclay and Meyer (following M.-Maclay) regarded both Negritos and Papuans as one stock, and were apparently unable to see the difference of type between them, in which connection Keane writes, " It will be enough to insist, with Wallace and Flower, on the fundamental differences (between the Papuan and the Negrito type) . . . the two have in fact little in common except their dark colour and frizzly or woolly hair, features which they share also with the African Negro " (Keane in J. A. J. ix. p. 285).

The only kind of ultimate connection between these races that appears, anthropologically speaking, at all possible, would be that outlined in a suggestion put forward by the late Sir William Flower, who thought

that the Negrito might represent the undeveloped type of an aboriginal race, of which both Negro and Papuan might be the highly specialised derivatives.

For an opposite opinion, see A. B. Meyer's Negritos, p. 83. It may, however, be still taken as true that no satisfactory proof of the connection of the two races has yet been formulated, and that Sir William Flower's brilliant hypothesis still remains an hypothesis.

It should be noted that the existence of the Negritos was definitely known early in the nineteenth century (Crawfurd, Raffles, Anderson, circa 1810- 1825), and at the same time it was distinctly understood that they were distinct from the Orang Benua of the South. These early writers had no opportunity of seeing the central (Sakai) tribes, because, until the year 1875, the Northern States were practically a terra incognita.

Relationship of tJic Semang to other Races.

In the Appendix will be found a table which is, perhaps, the most compendious way of enabling some comparison to be made between the various branches of the undoubtedly pure and allied Negrito races now known to us, though the number of measurements in most cases is far too small to be at all conclusive, and the intention is not to prove the connection, but merely to show the nature of the unsolved problem.

The net result is to show that the African pygmies (Bambute, etc.) observed by Sir H. Johnston may be rather shorter than either the Andamanese or the Negritos of the Philippines and of the Malay Peninsula, whereas these last three races are practically of the same height. All four are brachycephalic,1 and have actually woolly hair, and their skin-colour varies from a dark copper or chocolate to a glossy black.

A curious point about this group is that it still remains a moot question — as our most recent authorities declare — whether any Negritos occur in Borneo, which would naturally be the connecting link between the Malay Peninsula and the Philippines.

B. — The Sakai Problem.

According to the older writers, all traces of non- Negrito blood among the wild tribes of the Peninsula were due to admixture between these tribes and civilised Malays. The types of those two races (Semang and Sakai) are, however, fortunately so

1 The Semang are said to vary brachy- or mesaticephalic, their head-

from brachy- to dolichocephalism, length increasing in Perak and

but the writer believes it will elsewhere through admixture with

ultimately be found that the purer their dolichocephalic Sakai neigh -

Semang {e.g. in Kedah) are mainly bours.

I 1 1 1 \h,riln I » K ( ) II I

Man.

"l GR1 TO '\ l'l Andam \i se.

/ 'ol. I. p. 28.

Negrito Type — Semang of Perak.

(See al-o Appendix.)

II? ay.

i III. S \K.\I PROBLEM.

Mat tin.

Aboriginal Dravidian Type — Veddas of Ceylon.

Suggested Aboriginal Dravidian Type — Sakai of Perak.

(See also p. 55, Appendix, etc.)

Cerruti.

/'('/. /. />. 20.

///. I h M

1 1 ■« mgly ( ontrasted thai their separal ion i > not very difficult matter. The existence ol a separate

kai type had long been suspected, and tin to this effect had been more than once promulgated (first, I believe, by Clifford)* but the honour proving the fact by scientific demonstration and measurements has fallen to Germany in the person of Professor Rudolf Martin, oi Zurich, who has made .1 careful study of the Senoi tribe, and in his recent pamphlet on the relationship of these tribes has pointed out the need for isolating the second dement in this complex racial problem.1 With this fact well established, the Sakai problem has entered upon a new phase, the most burning question connected with it at present being that of the probable relationship of the Sakai to certain races in the same region who are to some extent of a similar habitus.

Briefly, it may be said that two alternative theories now hold the field. One of these theories, which has recently been advanced by P. W. Schmidt in his brilliant paper in the Bijdragen, seeks to identify the Sakai with certain tribes of Mon - Annam origin. L His argument is based partly upon the admitted linguistic affinity between the Sakai dialects and those of the Mon -Annam family, and partly upon an old description by Thorel 3 — (i) of the Annamese ;4 (2) of the Cambojans or Khmers;5 and (3) of the wild tribes of the interior of Camboja (Stieng, Bahnar, Sedang, etc.). Linguistic evidence, how-

1 The scientific proof of the state- - Bi;'drageni etc., 1901. No. '2

merits made in the pamphlet has ap- (6 Volgr. deel 8), pp. 399-5S3. peared in Professor Martin's larger work, 3 Voyage a Exploration en Indo-

which was published by Gustav Fischer Chine: Gamier, Paris, 1S73, vol. ii.

at Jena in the course of the current year p. 2S9 seqq. (1905), and which is entitled Die Inland- 4 L.c. p. 290 se?q.

stdmme der malayischcn Halbinsel. ~° L.c. p. 294 seqq.

3o RACIAL AFFINITIES part

ever, when taken by itself, is notoriously an unsafe guide, and though of the three races described by Thorel the third group mentioned certainly approach the nearest to the Sakai type, the points of divergence between the two are nevertheless much too great to allow of an unhesitating assent to this identification. The tribes-folk (of Thorel's third group), for instance, are described as being " above the middle height," whereas the Sakai, as proved by the measurements to hand, do not in the least correspond to Thorel's description. The second difference is in their skin-colour, which is described by Thorel as darker than that of the Malays, whereas the colour of the Sakai, though very variable, is in fact, as a rule, except when mixed with Semang blood, a good deal lighter.1

Again, the eyes of the Stieng, Bahnar, Sedang, etc., are described as being very rarely a trifle oblique, whereas the eyes of the Sakai are certainly horizontal.

None of these difficulties taken separately would, perhaps, appear insuperable, but when taken together they must be sufficient to cause us at least to suspend our judgment, and to regard the Sakai problem as still awaiting solution.

The alternative theory comes to us on the high authority of Virchow, who puts it forward, however, in a somewhat tentative manner.2 It consists in regarding the Sakai as an outlying branch of a racial group formed by the Vedda, Tamil, Korumba, and Australian 3 races, to show the nature of the connexion between which a table (for which see Appendix) of

1 It is unfortunate that Schmidt omits 3 Assuming the Australian Blacks mentioning these first two important to be a non-homogeneous group, it is points in quoting Thorel. the type which approaches the Dra-

2 Virchow in V.B.G.A. xxviii. 152 vidian that is, of course, alluded to seqq., and elsewhere. here.

I III. \I \I..\YA\ PROBLEM.

• £^> $ I

1 4 Wray

Aboriginal Malayan or Jakun Type— "Savage Malays" of Pekan,

in Pahang i Heathen).

Xos. i and 4 are the best types.

■r ■ r • 1 . •

Lent by Hale.

Civilised Malay Type— Chiefs of Negri Sembilan (Mohammedan).

, //// /./a i \ PROBLEM

comparative measurements has been drawn up by the

v\ rit<T.

Relationship <>/ the Sakai to <>///</■ Roa

The possibility oi there being some ultimate re lationship (such as has just been referred to) between the Veddas, Tamils, Australians, and Sakai was foreshadowed l>y Virchow in [896, ' the main points ol comparison being the height, skull character, skin

colour, and hair-character. ( )f these, to go by the comparative table, the height is variable, but in all tour of the races compared it is certainly greater than tli.it of the Negrito races. The skin-colour, again, it is true, varies to a remarkable degree, but the general hair- character appears to be uniformly long, black, and wavy, and the skull -index, on the other hand, appears to indicate consistently a dolichocephalic or long-shaped head.

C. — The Jakun Problem.

The third of the three great problems which confront us in dealing with the wild tribes of the Peninsula is that of the relationship between the Malays and the Benua or mixed tribes in the southern portion of the Malay Peninsula.

By the Pan- Negrito theorists the Jakun were regarded as tribes of Negrito origin, more or less modified by admixture with the civilised (Mohammedan) Malays. Both Crawfurd, however, and, more particularly, Favre long ago pointed out the reasons which oblige us to regard the Jakun as aboriginal tribes, and as having been settled in the Peninsula since

1 V. B. G. A. xxviii. 152 seqq., and elsewhere.

a period long anterior to the conversion of the Peninsular Malays to Mohammedanism. " In course of time the early Arab trading vessels brought over priests from Arabia, who made a number of converts to Islam ; those of the Benua (i.e. Jakun) who declined to abjure the customs of their forefathers, in consequence of the persecutions to which they were exposed, fled to the fastnesses of the interior, where they have since continued in a savage state."1 In other words, part of them remained wild, and part adopted the civilisation of the immigrant Malays. So, moreover, Logan, following Newbold, goes a step further, and comes to the conclusion that the physiognomy of the Jakun of Johor (with some exceptions) points to a " Tartar" extraction— an expression for which I think we are justified in reading Mongol or Mongoloid.2 In this sense it has certainly been accepted by later writers, such as, for example, Waitz and A. R. Wallace, the former of whom describes the Benua (i.e. Jakun) as "primitive Malays," while the latter explicitly describes the Jakun as "savage Malays"; moreover, many writers (e.g. Miklucho-Maclay, in writing of the Mantra, etc.) describe their remarkably close resemblance to the Malays, whilst attributing it solely to (civilised) Malay admixture. The view taken by the present writer is to a great extent in accordance with these writers, with the proviso that the isolation of the " savage Malay " element is not the key to the whole of the mystery with which we are here confronted. The Jakun, in fact, as will appear in this work, form a composite group, consisting of tribes which, though largely Jakun or aboriginal Malayan,

1 Favre in J. I. A. vol. ii. p. 240. 2 Besides this, Logan talks of their " strong family likeness to the Malays."

rill JAKUN PROBL EM

are also in some cases partly Semang and partly Sakai, the crossing between these various elements making it impossible .it present to adopt an) prop \t

classification beyond specifying both Land and Sea fakun as for the most part aboriginal heathen Malays.1

Relationship of the fakun to other Races, Our statistics unfortunately at present are far too incomplete even to admit of such a comparison being made between the two types specially concerned, as was possible in dealing with the Semang and Sakai. The difficulty is, moreover, largely increased by the fact that the influence of the civilised Malays has in this part of the world been very widely spread, and hence it has hitherto been the custom to label as Malay many non- Malayan crania. It must not be forgotten that the true Malay should always bear some relationship to the Mongolian or " Tartar" type, and that it is only on measurements obtained from countries where the Malay stock is relatively pure (e.g. in the centre of Sumatra and the Malay Peninsula) that a table of statistics of any practical value can be founded. Meanwhile the most important evidence of aboriginal Malayan influence in the Peninsula consists in the aboriginal Malayan dialects still spoken by the Jakun, though even in the case of the Jakun the matter has been complicated by the uncritical practice of attributing their Malayan vocabulary, as well as their physical characteristics, to admixture with civilised Peninsular Malays. Whereas, as a matter of fact, both the dialects and the general characteristics of the Jakun may perhaps rather be

1 Cf. Hamy, p. 2$n.3ante. Though no Jakun tribe exists which does not contain

single Jakun tribe may now consist solely some such individuals, and I believe that

of aboriginal Malayans, I doubt if any in many cases they amount to over 50 %. VOL. I D

compared to those of the Malay Archipelago than to those of the civilised Peninsular Malay. The table in the Appendix, incomplete as it is, will, however, perhaps be of some use here as showing the kind of information which is required to clear up this part of the still unsolved Malayan problem.

At present all that can be said is that we might expect the civilised Malays to be at least as tall as, if not taller than, the Jakun, their uncivilised cousins. This condition of things does not appear to be borne out by the table, but we must wait for fuller information before this point can be decided. The skull-index of both races is as nearly as possible identical (brachycephalic). The hair-character, moreover, is absolutely identical, but the skin of the Jakun, doubtless through exposure to the weather, is a shade darker, as a rule, than that of the Malays.

General Results.

The synoptical table to be found in the Appendix will, it is hoped, provide certain standards by which to test and classify the three main ethnical groups of the Peninsula. It need perhaps scarcely be added that although many individuals are to be found in the Peninsula who conform pretty closely to one or other of the three types indicated, the least degree of intermixture (either as between themselves or as between them and their civilised neighbours) will tend immediately to produce some divergence from these standards.

Generally speaking, however, and bearing in mind these necessary qualifications, the three types may be roughly described as follows : —

A. Semang Type. — Height of men about 1491 mm. ; of women, 1408 mm. ; skull- index brachy-

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cephalic (or bullet headed) to me iati< ephalic ; skin ol .1 dark copper or rather chocolate-brown colour p into a " shiny black " ; x hair (which is generally shaved off) woolly, like that of the Negro and the Papuan; forehead low and rounded; nose remarkably broad and flat or "spreading"; cheeks full, but with the cheek-bones not very prominent ; eyes round, wide

open, and Straight (f.*. not "oblique" like those of

Mongolian races); chin feebly developed {i,e. rounded off, and frequently almost unmarked); mouth variable,

but rather large as a rule, the lips, which are also variable, being generally well formed, but sometimes

turned outwards or "everted"; beard, none to speak of, as a rule, but when found, thin and straggling, or, occasionally, woolly, like the hair itself.

B. Sakai Type. — In height the Sakai are, I think, without doubt, a slightly taller race than the Semang or Negritos. The shape of their head, on the other hand, is in marked contrast to that of the Negritos, as they belong in type to the dolichocephalic, or long-headed, races. Their skin-colour varies more remarkably than that of any of these tribes, being in some extremely dark brown, in others a remarkably light yellowish-brown, much lighter than that of the Malays. Their hair, too, is long, black, and wavy in character, sometimes with a slight reddish tinge in reflected light. Their forehead is flat, and projects remarkably over the root of the nose, which latter is, as a rule, somewhat fine and small, and often slightly tilted at the tip. The cheek-bones are very broad, especially when considered in relation to the rest of the features. Their eyes are a very dark brown, small, horizontal, and often half-closed, as different as

1 Seey. /. A. vol. iv. p. 428.

36 RACIAL AFFINITIES i-art

can be from those of the Semang. Their chin is lonor and somewhat sharp and pointed. Their mouth is of small size, with lower lip full, loose, and often conspicuously projecting. Their beard is, as a rule, almost non-existent, but a few individuals occur who are fairly well covered with hair.

C. fakun Type. — In height the Jakun appear to be, if anything, a little taller than the Sakai (in which case they would be the tallest of the three aboriginal races). Their head is brachycephalic, or " bullet "- shaped. Their skin is generally of a dark coppery colour, not unlike that of the Malays, but with a tendency to darker shades, which are, doubtless, due partly to exposure and partly to their manner of living. Their hair is long and straight, or "smooth," and of a dark bluish-black tint, such as is invariably found in the hair of Mongolian races. Their forehead is usually well developed. Their nose is, as a rule, thick, flattish, and short, with wide-open nostrils, though it must be noted here that a more developed type occurs. Their cheek-bones are very high and well marked, like those of the Mongolian type. The face, as a rule, is inclined to be flattish. Their eyes are dark brown, of moderate size, and rarely with some slight tendency to obliquity. They have, as a rule, a strong chin and somewhat square jaws. Their mouth, as a rule, is large and broad, though frequently moderate and with well-formed lips. Their beard is of the scantiest.

The establishment of these types may, I think, be considered to justify the classification based on haircharacter which Martin proposes. The Semang he describes as Ulotrichi, or woolly-haired tribes, who are to be clearly distinguished from the Sakai, who are wavy-haired (Cymotrichi). In the third (composite)

\ t 1//.7 A'. .

\7

group, for which I propose to retain the generall) used native name oi [akun, I have merely to si the

recognition (for our present purposes) o( the J akun (or aboriginal Malayan) type as Lissotrichi, or smooth

haired individuals, in the place O) Martins mixed tril

that cannot be classed. Willi this slight modification, I may say that the present work is based entirely on Martin's plan of classification, which in this modified form may now be given as follow

t iroup.

1 l.iii -th. ii.

Name <>f 1 1 ibe.

Know, n i.'.

present wort

I.

Ulotrichi, or Woolly-

Si man •. M< nik, or

S< mang.

haired tribes.

Pangan.

II.

Cymotrichi, or Wavyhaired tribes.

Senoi or SakaL

Sak.ii.

III.

Lissotrichi, or Smooth-

(a) Land Jakun

Jakun.

haired tribes.

or (). Bukit

(b) Sea Jakun or

Orang Laut.

O. Laut.

This list is, as I have just said, merely a classification of racial types or standards, and does not include mixed tribes such as the Kenaboi, Blandas, Besisi, and Mantra, which will be included culturally under the general title of Jakun, the Malayan aborigines, who form a sub-group of the Jakun, being divided into the Hill or Land Jakun (Orang Bukit) and Sea Jakun (Orang Laut) respectively.

Numbers.

It is extremely difficult to form any idea of what the real numbers of the aboriginal population of the Peninsula may be. What Favre remarks of the Jakun applies equally to all the wild races of the Peninsula, whose number, as he says, is very difficult to ascertain, because part of them are a nomadic

RACIAL AFFINITIES

PART

people, so that the same family, and in fact the same individuals, appear to-day in one place and next week some two or three miles further on ; next month they will remove again, to roam the forest or to come hack to their first habitation, so that those who perceive them here and there imagine that they are fresh persons, and in their calculation they count the same individuals two or three times over. Their number, as reported to him, was always much more considerable than the number he found upon visiting the places themselves.1

The most recent (1901) census report of the Federated Malay States, though containing at least one clerical error,2 and often doubtless falling far short of the truth, is yet our sole guide to the real numbers of the aborigines : —

Aborigines of Perak.

Larut Matang K. Kangsar . Upper Perak Kinta . Lower Perak Batang Padang Krian Selama . New Territory

Total

173*

Aborigines of Selangor.

Kuala Lumpur . . . 219

Ulu Selangor . . . 470

Klang 172

K. Langat .... 899

K. Selangor .... I

Ulu Langat . . . . 114

Total. . . . 1875

Aborigines of Negri Sembilan.

Aborigines of Pahang Ulu Pahang -J

Seremban Coast . Jelebu . Kuala Pilah Tampin

Total . Grand Total

Temerloh Pekan .

Kuan tan

K. Lipis .

Raub and Bentong 669

• 1593

• 2391 . 215

Total

18,574

1 See Favre in J. I. A. vol. ii. pp. 253-255. Against this statement must, however, be set the inveterate tendency of these tribes to hide themselves in the

forest upon the approach of a European.

• In one of the Perak districts immigrants from India are included as aborigines.

MIXTURE OF RACl

Allowing 25,000 as a probable minimum for I "F.M.S.," the Straits Settlements, Kedah, I ast States, and fohor should swell the total to at

least ;>5,ooo or 40,000.'

Mixture 01 Races.

According to Vaughan-Stevens, the Sakai (" Senoi ' or "Blandas," as he calls them, giving a quite unwarranted extension to the term Blandas)3 are a Negrito tribe with a very large admixture of civilised Malay blood, which he supposes to have obscured the original characteristics of the tribe. This view (the Pan-Negrito theory) is, however, as has already been said, quite untenable, since it is obvious that whatever else may happen anthropologically, the fusion of two brachycephalic tribes, or even two mesaticephalic tribes, could not possibly produce a mixed tribe which was mainly dolichocephalic.

Vaughan-Stevens leaves out of sight, moreover, the extremely potent cultural and religious barrier which divides the civilised Mohammedan Malays from the rude heathen tribes of the jungle. In the case of a Malay mating with one of these heathen women, the children as a rule follow the religion of the father,3 and become merged in his race, the only important exception being the case of Malay traders living with Sakai women in the Sakai country, and then deserting them and their children, in which case the children remain with the tribe. Hence it is the civilised Malay, and not the uncivilised aboriginal race, that is most

1 For fuller details, showing dis- neighbourhood.

tribution of the sexes, see Appendix. 3 Among the jungle tribes themselves

2 Blandas or Belandas. It is probably it seems that the tribal name follows the a mere coincidence that Ptolemy speaks male line ; sons-in-law join their fatherof ariverPalandas (apparently the river in-law'ssettlement. — Vaughan-Stevens, Muar) and a town Palanda in the same ii. 90, 94.

4Q RACIAL AFFINITIES part

affected when the two live in close proximity (as indeed has been observed in Kedah by Logan, and elsewhere). On the other hand, unions between Malay women and heathen tribesmen, although they are certainly known to occur,1 are nevertheless of the rarest description ; and whereas in former days a woman who so disgraced her family as to mate with one who was regarded as little better than the brutes that perish, would have paid the penalty with her life, she still has to undergo an extreme form of social ostracism, which must inevitably act as a strong deterrent. Hence the most appreciable admixture of blood is only as between one wild tribe and another.

This, which I believe to be the normal state of things, has one very important exception, for in various parts of what is known as the Negri Sembilan, but especially in Johol, a number of small groups of Sumatran Malays (principally of Menangkabau origin) have amalgamated with the local groups of aboriginal tribes on what were (nominally at least) honourable and equal terms, under which the Batins or chiefs of the Jakun even retained, for a time at least, their full share of authority in the mixed government thus established.2

The late Martin Lister, in writing of the Rembau

1 Mr. C. O. Blagden informed me had previously been the mistress of

of a case at Malacca which was re- more than one white man, she died

ported to him by the woman's family. suddenly soon after. And such ca^es

Mr. Hale supports the view expressed have not been uncommon. The fact

in the text by writing, that in his that there is the same objection to an

many years' experience he has never alliance between a Malay woman and

met with a case of the kind {i.e. of a a Chinese or a Tamil, clearly shows

Malay woman marrying a Sakai man). that this prejudice is based on religious

He explains this by saying that the scruples.

Mohammedan naturally does not like 2 Thus Mr. Hale writes me that the

his women, who are virtually his slaves, " Waris " tribe in Rembau was divided

to get out of his control, and that into two sections, called "Beduanda

when the daughter of a well-known Jawa" and "Beduanda Jakun !; respec-

S. Ujong chief went to live with a tively ; and that the paramount chief of

Chinaman at Malacca, although she Rembau (called " Penghulu " or " Un-

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Caught when young in Ulu Lipis, and now in the To' Raja of Jelai's household. The other two are Malay children.

MIXTURE OF RACES 41

Malays,1 gives reasons for this remarkable divergent e, pointing out that whereas the rest of the Peninsular Malays at the time of the Menangkabau immigration

were, speaking generally, mere piratical freebooters

bent on conquest and rapine, the Menangkabau people,

on the other hand, were peaceful agriculturalists who had been forced to emigrate through the pressure of population in their own country. Hence all that the

latter desired was land for cultivation, and this they were quite satisfied to obtain by peaceful means. And hence in the case of these Menangkabau colonies there has been a true amalgamation between them and the J akun of Rembau, which has not been the case elsewhere.

It must not be forgotten, as I have already said, that large masses of the soi-disant Malay population in many parts of the Malay States from Kedah to Singapore are undoubtedly the descendants of savage tribesmen who, by intermarriage with the civilised Malays and by the adoption of the higher level of culture which in these parts accompanies conversion to the Mohammedan religion, have in the course of a few generations become barely distinguishable from the ordinary Malay inhabitants, of the western and southern portions of the Peninsula.

Traces of such absorption, in which the metamorphosis is not quite complete, are certainly to be found, for instance, in the State of Kedah, in which, some years back, it was noticed by Logan that the Malayan population approximated in their general appearance to the wild Negrito tribes of the interior.

dang ") was chosen from each of these Negri Sembilan, aboriginal descent is

sections alternately. " Originally the claimed, in order to prove the owner-

Batins {i.e. the Jakun chiefs) had a say ship of land."

in the matter, but now they are squeezed l In J. R. A. S.t S. B., Xo. 32,

out of it." And yet "all over the p. 300.

The descendants of aboriginal slaves would, of course, form a large factor in the problem.

This process of absorption is, moreover, still proceeding with quite as much rapidity as in the past, and where it appears that the numbers of the aborigines are dwindling, we may rest convinced that, in the majority of cases at all events, their gradual disappearance is rather due to conversion and absorption than to the proximity of civilisation, which in the case of these tribes does not appear to have produced such deleterious effects as it is said to have done in other parts of the world.1

In spite of this important exception, however, the amount of admixture of Malay blood, even in the Jakun group (to say nothing of the Sakai or Semang groups, where the mixture is admittedly less), has been undoubtedly very much exaggerated, especially by writers who failed to recognise the " savage Malay" element, and regarded every approach to the Malay type of features as evidence of civilised Malay admixture.

In conclusion we may say that, except in the northern and some of the central states, where the circumstances were different, the "civilised Malay" element has not appreciably affected the racial purity of the wild tribes of the Peninsula, the main admixture (which in many places is obvious enough) having been among themselves. Hence the chief forms of admixture that are worth considering are as follows :■ —

1 See p. 30, par. 35, of the recent 18,574 persons. (190 1) Federated Malay States Census Mr. Hale writes me that the point

Report, where we are told that the of religion often means nothing but the

returns show that there is little tend- ceremony of circumcision, and that

ency on the part of the aborigines to converted slaves of this kind often

decrease, and that they now number reverted to the jungle (on emancipa-

(in the Federated Malay States alone) tion).

JAKUN WITH MARKED SAKAI STRAIN, SELANGOR.

Gre°vr.

Takun of Mixed Type, Bukit. Prual, Selangok

I rol. I. p. 43-

i RAt 'A CHARACTERS < >/■ A /■ 1 7RJ 1 < 43

(i) Semang + Sakai, or "Semang Sakai,"

(2) Semang 1 -Jakun, or "Semang Jakun,"

(3) Sakai + Jakun, or " Sakai- Jakun,"

and further crosses arising From the various mixed races thus produced.1

I. — Race-Characters of Semang.

The Semang country runs (roughly speaking) from Chaiya'2 and Ulu Patani (Singora and Patalung) to Kedah in the north of the Peninsula, and thence to mid-Perak and Northern Pahang.

Wallace3 states that the height of the Semang varies between 1266 mm. and 14 16 mm. This latter figure is, however, certainly too low.

Martin lays stress on the fact that the sexual difference in height is actually greater in tribes of small stature (i.e. Semang and Senoi) than it is amongst taller tribes of the wild races, especially, e.g., among the Blandas. His rough estimate of the average height of a male Semang is about the same as that of a Sakai (1500 mm.). De Morgan says the Semang are the taller, but the fact is doubtful.4

The following account of the physical characters of the Peninsular Negritos includes measurements' taken by Mr. Laidlaw and myself in the Ulu Lebih district of Kelantan, and by myself at Jarum : —

1 That the foregoing statement of that any stranger who, while staying

the case is the true one, appears even in a Jakun house, was able to talk the

from the remarks of Vaughan-Stevens husband off to sleep, acquired thereby

himself, when he says that " Half- an acknowledged right to usurp his

bloods, with Malay or Chinese fathers, marital privileges for the time being, are quite unknown among the wild - W. Smyth's Five Years in Siam,

tribes, but that such admixture is per- ii. 76.

mitted, although not liked, by those :; Quoted by Lane- Fox, y. A. I. vii.

clans who live in close contact with 437 ; cp. J. R. A. S., S. B., No. 7. the Malays" ( V. B. G. A. xxiii. 833). 4 For measurements, see U Homme,

Mr. Hale, on the other hand, in- ii. 552 ; and Wray, Per. Mus. N. iii.

forms me that among the Malays in pp. 33-35. N. Sembilan it was an accepted belief 5 Given in extenso in Appendix.

44 RACIAL AFFINITIES tart

The average height of five adult males that we measured was 1491 mm. (about 4 feet 9 inches), that of three women 1408 mm., or some 3! inches less.

The face was round, the forehead low, rounded, narrow, and projecting, or, as it were, " swollen." The nose was short and flattened, the nostrils much distended, and the breadth of the nose was remarkably great, five adult males having an average of 10 1.2, and three adult females an average of 97.4. The cheekbones were broad, and the lips were sometimes full and turned outwards, or "everted," but not as a rule thick.

The jaws often protruded slightly, but I did not see any case of marked prognathism. The ears were small. The six front teeth in the upper jaw were often filed so as to present a concave surface anteriorly, in imitation of the common Malay practice. The teeth as a rule were white and good, except in advanced age. In one or two cases only they were dis- coloured with betel -juice, and in one case caries was present. The milk-teeth of a child when examined were perfectly normal and regular. The shoulders were comparatively broad. The forearms, with two exceptions, appeared not to be so long relatively as they are in the Andamanese. The exceptions were two Pangan at Jarum, whose arms were so long as to present a pithekoid character. But the number of persons observed is too small to separate them from the Pangan of Kelantan. The person was usually well developed.

The head measurements taken by ourselves give a mesaticephalic index as an average ; for five men the average was 78.9, for three women 81. 1. This feature, however, is clearly variable, as one of the men (Pandak) had an index of 73.8, and a Pangan at Jarum one of 74.4, as against an index of 85 in the skull

Machado. Sakai Girl (showing Negrito Strain- i.

Living at Batu Pahat Johor but originally from Ulu Lipis Pahang. Carrying a bamboo

cylinder fur water.

RACl CHARAi TERS OJ VE( R/T(

collected by Grubauer, which means an index of about 87 in the living person*1

Martin again states tli.it -ill the Mendi' ( Semar measured by him were mesaticephalic, with a str< tendency to dolichocephaly.

The following notes on a male skeleton found by myself in Kedah, and averages oi measurements taken from living Semang (Pangan) in Kelantanand Patani, may be of interest I am indebted for them to Dr. \Y. L. 11. Duckworth, of Jesus Col!- 1 imbridge, who has also described .1 Semang skull recently collected by Dr. Grubauer.8

The skull viewed in norma \ crticalis i.-, ellipsoid and mesaticephalic. The

glabellar prominences are fery moderate in amount. Muscular ridges are feebly developed, and the zygomatic arch is slender. The nasal profile is comparatively

flat, Imt the nasal spine is large. Prognathism of the subnasal and dental typeis well marked. The nasal hones are large and rather flat, the aperture pyri- formis is cordate in outline. The palate is hypsiloid, the teeth large and blackened. The anterior surfaces of the upper incisors and canines have been filed. Chin-prominence slight, ascending ramus of mandible short. The skull should be described as mesaticephalic, metriocephalic, mesognathous, chamieprosopic, microsemic, platyrhine, mesoprosopic, and mesocephalic, and on the whole probably represents an intermediate form between the dolichocephalic and brachycephalic types.

The vertebral column shows no particular marks of inferiority. The scapulae are small and relatively very broad, the coracoid is large, and the upper border very straight. The clavicles show signs of disease, but have a very remarkable form which can hardly be altogether pathological. The peculiarity consists in the exaggeration of the normal curve (with concavity directed forward) of the outer part of the bone ; the two portions of the bone meet at about a quarter of its length from the outer end, at an angle which in the right clavicle is nearly 900.

The pelvis affords the best indication of the sex of the skeleton. The crests of the ilia are not so much incurved anteriorly as in the European pelvis. The femurs are rather straight in the shaft, with distinct accessory adductor tubercles.

Generally speaking, the characters of the skull are not such as to enable us to refer it to any well -recognised type without hesitation. Certain marks of inferiority, which may be regarded not as racial peculiarities, but as constituting retentions of conditions normal in infancy, should be noticed. These, which often occur in lower or primitive races, and are spoken of, with others, as "infantile" features, are the rotund contour of norma occipitalis, and the shortness of the ascending ramus of the mandible. The conditions of the cranial suture leave no doubt as to the skull having reached maturity.

The conformation of the skeleton of the nose, and the type of prognathism, constitute resemblances to skulls met with not unfrequently amongst the negro races, especially the races of Central Africa, rather than amongst Oceanic negroes.

1 In mesaticephalic subjects the possibility of Sakai admixture should, I think, be discounted. a See Appendix.

46 RACIAL AFFINITIES i-art

The lack of characters usually determining sex in '.he skull is also in favour of this view. On tin- other hand, no definite resemblance in respect of the cranium can

be traced to the Bush natives of South Africa, whereas the facial features resemble certain crania from Sumatra, Java, Borneo, and one from the Andamans. Again, the size and proportions of the scapula are not unlike those of the Bushman of Africa ; an accessory adductor tubercle appears on the femurs in both, and in both the lower ends of the femurs are slender. Differences, however, obtain in the sacra, and on the whole the Semang's bones are the larger. The great length of the forearm said to characterise the Andamanese is absent in the Semang.1

Sir William Turner describes a skeleton from Pahang," which differs notably from the above. It is microcephalic and brachycephalic. There is, however, no precise evidence as to whether this skeleton belonged to an undoubted Semang, and as brachycephaly is a mark of certain tribes belonging to the third group of Martin's classification, it might perhaps equally be referred to one of these. Another skeleton described by Virchow (quoted by Turner, loc. cit.) shows also differences in other directions.3

Hair.

The hair of the Semang that we observed was in most cases characteristically Negrito — crisp, short, and very curly, in fact, actually woolly in the purer types of the tribe. In colour it was of a brownishblack, not a bluish -black like that of Malays (and other Mongoloid races). In section it varied from an oval or ellipse at the thicker or basal end, to almost a circle near the tip. In other words, it possessed a Negrito character in respect of section ; 4 and the measurement of the spirals was about 15 mm. The chin-hairs were few and straggling, and in only two

1 For a fuller description of this end of Part I. and also the Appendix

skeleton see W. L. H. Duckworth in of this book.

J. A. I. vol. xxxii. (1902), p. 142^^. ; 2 Trans. R. S. Edin. vol. xl. part

and for his description of a brachy- i. No. 6. cephalic Semang skull purchased by 3 See Appendix,

the Royal College of Surgeons, see Ap- 4 For a detailed description of this

pendix ; and for other Semang measure- hair kindly supplied by Dr. W. L. H.

ments, see note by Dr. Duckworth at Duckworth, see Appendix.

i RACE CHARACTERS <>/■ VEGR/Ti i,

( ises did we see a Semang with even the sli beard,1 which in <>n<' <>i the two c.i'.c, w.i i - ,«-ly curled and x\ < >< > 1 1 - , in the <>i her I bin and »l raj lii

In anollui |>;i Ayr Yaii<;haii St« i hat 'In- half

breed Semangi are the only membei i "i thi le tribei \i><> could I

imparativel] well provided with hair, and thai even in theii case il"- haii standi in almost direel relation i>» the mixture ol blood I I (Pangan) when ol pure blood hai v" little beard "i whisken thai h< foi in-, little icrubby beard to be Been( and therefore plucli il out, Ye\ h< to retain the moustache, 10 thai il may "di tingui li him from i woman" [sic).

Elsewhere we are told thai " The haii ol the Semang (Menik) i le im lined to turn grey in <>ld age than that <>i the Malays, gn \ hall k> in as quite exceptional." ■'

Skin-colour.

The skin was of a dark chocolate-brown in the Semang that we measured in K el an tan, approximating

in the case of some of the Kedah Negritos to the glossy black mentioned by Anderson.4 In the old people it was much scarred and sometimes diseased, the disease most prevalent being that called " kurap " by the Malays, but of a mild type. The colour of No. 3 of Topinard's scale corresponded very closely with the colour of most of the Eastern Semang measured by myself. In the younger individuals the skin was smooth and clean and the body physically well de-

I For a fuller account see J. A. J. tendency towards it that the source canxxxii. 151. For hair-sections see not be mistaken, although the hair of Montano, PI. xxxi. In another place the rest of the family may more nearly Yaughan-Stevens remarks as follows : — approach the Sakai (Blandas) type.

II The peculiar spirally tufted (' pep- The pure types of either kind are very per-corn ') hair of the E. Semang (Pan- seldom seen there ; but rather they overgan) has kept its influence up to the lap and produce intermediate groups, present day in that district in Pahang which show in some cases more and in where the half-breed descendants of the others less of a tendency to possess the E. Semang (Pangan), Tembeh (Temia), curly hair referred to."

and Sakai (Blandas) were settled as 2 In other words, the hairiness is

prisoners of the Rawa Malays ever due to the presence of the Sakai ele-

since their pure-blooded forefathers ment.

were first sold to the Malays of Pahang. 3 Z.f. E. xxix. 178.

In a family of this mixed type it often 4 J. Anderson, quoted by Col. James

happens that one or several of the Low, states that the Semang of Treng-

children show in this respect either a ganu were not of such a ' ' jet-black and

complete reversion to the E. Semang glossy appearance " as those of Kedah

(Pangan) type, or at least so decided a {J. I. A. vol. iv. p. 428).

48 RACIAL AFFINITIES pari

vcloped, but in older individuals it was often much scarred, and in two or three cases slightly diseased.

With regard to the skin-colour of the Negritos, Vaughan-Stevens remarks that amonij the wilder Semang, or " Menik " (the men of which tribe wear nothing but a cord or girdle and the women a waist-fringe that lets the light through), the colour of the skin is very uniform. The W. Semang (? Semang-Sakai tribes), however, offer nearly as great a variety as the Malays. The Semang (Menik) did not regard the lighter - coloured Sakai (Blandas) as superiors (!). Their god Pie was dark like themselves. Although the Semang is of darker colour than the Sakai (Blandas), and appears to be less influenced by heat, he (V. -St.) was still of opinion that this capacity for bearing heat arises rather from his constitution, than from the darker colour of his skin {vide remarks on this subject as affecting the Sakai, infra).

The pronounced nomadic character of all these tribes makes it impossible to arrive at any conclusions as to the effect produced by altitude, soil, shade, dust, or clothes upon the texture and colour of the skin. The family or tribe lives perhaps for a month upon a hill at an elevation of some thousands of feet above the sea, next month at the foot of the same hill ; at one time in the thick, dark jungle, and at another in the hot, open plains.

According to the Malays, the Negritos never wash themselves, and therefore possess as a rule a powerful odour, and the statement is certainly a true one. When, for instance, for the sake of the experiment, he (V.-St.) had induced the E. Semang (Pangan) to wash themselves with soap, they did not appear to retain any particular smell afterwards. But when, immediately afterwards, he accompanied them on a rapid march, and after going some distance from them had again returned to their company, the odour was distinctly noticeable.1

Sight. The eyes of the Semang that we examined, which were round, wide-open, and horizontal, were uniformly of a very rich deep brown in colour ; in one case only, that of an old man, they were of a greyish-brown tint. The Semang as a race were far from being unpleasantlooking people, the most striking peculiarity in their appearance being a certain wild look about the region of the eyes, probably due, in part, to the great width between them, and to the curious depression of the upper part of the nose, as well as to a natural restlessness of the eyes themselves, which these tribes possess in common with wild animals. Their eyesight appeared to be good of its kind, and in the few cases that we tested the colour-vision was normal.2

1 Z.f. E. xxix. 174-176. are given by Wray, Per. Mits. N.

2 A few sight-statistics of Semang iii. p. 38.

RACE CHARACTERS 0/ NEGRITi

1 1„ tyi "i th< i 1 1 '. ul,r" ,l" i"'"' l,!

i ii<- i onjum ii. > -I i da i1 yellow i oloui i wh tm tin

iiu- E, Semang (Pangan) how no traces ol ihorl ighl and the

top of thi call ' in quickm i oi observation) thii quality, however, itandin Invei ■<• ratio to the progn mack by thi ii trik> In civil!

Hearing, The cars of the Semang that we observed were

distinctly small, and their hearing appeared ordinarily acute. In one case, however, that of a youngish man,

slight deafness was noticeable.

The sense of hearing among t > * < - v. Semang (Pangan), though not so acute .1. among the fakun, is nevertheless .sharper than among the more civil \v. Semang, Sakai (Blandas), or Tembeh (Temia).

Ow the other hand, exceptional sharpness of hearing occurred more frequently among the W. Semang than among any of the other tribes mentioned.3

Hands and Feet.

There is no doubt that these wild nomadic tribes frequently meet with accidents. Out of the few men that we measured, one suffered from a deformed finger, and another had lost the little toe of his left foot.

It is very difficult to answer the question concerning the usual position of the palm of the hand, i.e. whether it is directed forwards, or backwards, or sideways. The hands are so constantly occupied in the case of both sexes that they are very seldom at rest. So far, however, as he (V.-St.) had been able to observe it, the palm was held sideways by the Negritos, i.e. directed towards the leg or a little towards the front, whereas by the Sakai (Blandas) and Jakun it was directed backwards.

The aborigines were at first much perplexed by being asked whether when their fist was closed they could still stretch out one finger of the hand without unclosing the others. Both the Semang and Sakai (Blandas) could, however, do this very easily when it was explained to them.

In measuring the width of the span between the thumb and the little or middle finger, he (V.-St.) was struck by their inability to open their fingers freely.4

The most noticeable point about the feet of the Semang is the remarkable inward curve of the hallux,

1 Z.f.E. xxix. 176. 3 lb. p. 182.

2 lb. p. 181. 4 lb. pp. 190, 191, 194.

VOL I E

5o RACIAL AFFINITIES part

as shown in the tracings of Pangan feet which we took in Ulu Kelantan.

The following passage from Vaughan-Stevens about the walk of the aborigines in general (" Orang Utan ") applies perfectly to the Semang : —

11 I have tried to obtain some data on the walk of the Orang Utan, but I find that this is scarcely possible, from reasons related to the great variability of their environment. In the first place, it is very rare to find a man who is free from cuts, cracks, or thorn-pricks ; for according to their custom they go barefoot in spite of the roughness of the land and of the obstacles and dangers with which the thick vegetation threatens them. This influences their walk in one respect. In the second place, they are appreciably influenced by the character of the jungle through which they have been wandering for some weeks previously. From habit they adapt their walk to the peculiarities of the way by which they have to travel. A path (for instance) where thorns that have fallen from the trees and creeping plants surround him causes the man to walk carefully and slowly, and at each step to delay a moment before he trusts the whole weight of the body to the foot ; and this method of walking is retained some days from mere habit, even when the thorny jungle is left and the path is once more smooth and level.

" After observing a man for a whole day, I found that he employed no fewer than eight different ways of walking, which varied with the nature of the ground to be traversed. And the ground to be traversed suffers such constant changes throughout the life of the Orang Utan that I really do not know which of these ways of walking I should describe as his most usual method. Contrary to the European in general, he has few or no level paths to go by, and hence the gait which he adopts on such a path would not be his usual way of walking, but would be precisely the method which he employs most rarely.

" The footsteps of the Negritos, I am prepared to maintain, are almost straight in the majority of cases, whereas all those of the Orang Utan (?) turn outwards. In all races, however, there is so great a difference in the [usual] angles that it is impossible to say which angle is the real standard."1

Locomotion.'1

With regard to strength and endurance in walking, the wild E. Semang (Pangan) stand in the front rank. Then come the Jakun and the civilised (W. ) Semang ; and, last of all, the various tribes of Sakai (Blandas and Tembeh).

The Semang are bad runners, but they are as quick as an eel or a snake in getting through marshy swamps or forest, their small bodies being very pliant and supple. In getting fast through bushes or mangrove jungle they are better than the Sakai (Blandas), although the latter have the better sense of direction in unknown forest.

Cfanbing.

The following remarks, from the dialectal forms, evidently refer to the Semang : —

1 Z.f.E.xxix. 191, 192. 2 Id. pp. 193, 194.

RAi / CHARACTERS OJ VI GRITi 51

Climbing! irhi( h In general I • « ailed " i- I by

three different nun. , i ling to the method employed i

i. "( iihiu.ni " (" < Ihidward "), hi which the fool ily a. m

the position "i the SakaJ (Blandas) in the photograph I lenl jrou.

2. ■• Tinbon" (" Tinhorn M), In a hi< ii th< • I p the tree iHth the innei

.hi. . .1 the ■■' 'I*'-

■• 1 1 Nangan ' I " ree Nun u n "), in wln< h .1 i"]-- 1 1 used (pi in Ceylon), >" In winch the item I embraced by the arm and l< I 1 time (European fashion)* The grasp "' 1 1 » « - hand ■ 1 • 1 ailed " Ma-4 neb."

A specimen of rope sent to Berlin by Vaughan-

Stevens was labelled as follows : —

'*Nangan ('Nungarn'), the rope used in climbing, for fastening the ankles together, whilst tin- inside oi c.uh fool is pressed against the tret-."

In the same passage Vaughan-Stevens speaks very contemptuously of the Semang as climbers —

"The Semang arc bad climbers; an ordinary school -girl would excel the best of them. For climbing a straight, high stem, the Sakai (Blandas) is the better. The Semang is nervous when high up in the air, especially if the wind blows a little. The winds are for him the messengers of diseases ; he does not like to be unprotected in their domain at the top of a high tree." *

This description, however, is most unfair to the Semang, many of whom, at least, can climb almost like monkeys. I myself once saw two of the Kedah Semang run several yards up trees by putting the flat of their feet against the trunk and their arms round it.

Swimming.2

The Semang are very bad swimmers, but the majority of them know how to swim, which is called "Kijuaij" (" Keejooije "), and in water which only reaches up to the breast they splash merrily about. They swim exactly in the same way as the Northern Malays, swimming on the breast and paddling with the hands like dogs, and drawing the legs vertically upwards from the knees, and then straightening them vigorously, thus making a great splashing. Of deep or rushing turbid water they have superstitious fears ; they are afraid, as a child is afraid of the dark, as they "do not know what their god Kari (' Kee,' sic) may send to draw them down into the depths."

Throwing. 3

In throwing the [" tame "] Semang is as clumsy as a European woman. The action is the same, i.e. with the shoulder instead of with the wrist and elbow.

1 Z.f. E. xxix. 199. 2 lb. p. 198. 3 lb. p. 200.

Sensitiveness to Pain. The Semang appear to be less sensitive to pain than the Sakai (Blandas).1

Physiognomy.

The open mouth is sometimes covered l>y the hand, or the latter is carried up to some part of the head.

When a man is indignant or defiant he frowns. He does not, however, at the same time clench his fists.

In "simple" people the corners of the mouth are very slightly depressed, and the adjacent extremities of the eyebrows raised, by the muscle that the French call the " grief muscle."

In the more intelligent the eyes sparkle, the skin round and under them being wrinkled, and the mouth slightly drawn back at the corners.

When one man sneers or jeers at another it rarely happens that the corners of the upper lip over the canine or eye teeth are raised on the side facing the man whom he addresses.

A dogged or obstinate expression can be very easily recognised among the Semang.

It is uncertain whether any gesture of contempt exists.

Disgust is expressed by a sudden expiration of the breath, something like incipient vomiting.

In the case of extreme fear the Semang children remain quite quiet. The met sit down quietly and frequently utter a sharp hissing noise. Both men and women open their mouths and eyes.

To show that he cannot prevent something being done, or cannot himself do something, he slightly raises his eyebrows, and keeps his mouth somewhat open.

The children pout markedly when they are sulky, and run away quietly.

To express affirmation the head is thrust forwards, whereas to express negation the eyes are cast down.2

Physical Endurance.

Vaughan-Stevens remarks that he did not observe any difference between these races in the power of enduring heat, e.g. when they had been exposed through the whole day to the sun on a journey, except as regards their general [sic, ? individual] power of enduring fatigue. Elsewhere he remarks that in the sensitiveness of the head to the sun's heat very little difference (between the three races) at first probably existed. [This point, however, is a difficult one to establish, since] the Semang (Menik) wear nothing as a rule but a head-band, and hence scarcely feel any special increase of the sun's heat.

There is never any appreciable degree of cold in the plains of the Peninsula, and even such falls of temperature as occur are never of long duration. The cold wet winds of the mountains are, however, felt more by the E. Semang (Pangan) and Tembeh (Temia)3 than the Sakai. The wild E. Semang (Pangan), however, can bear such low temperatures as occasionally occur without the least sign of discomfort, when the more civilised tribes are reduced to cowering over a fire with chattering teeth.

1 Z.f.E. xxix. 203. omitted. Even the answers given by

2 Answers to questions drawn up by Vaughan-Stevens with regard to the Darwin, collected by V.-St., and pub- Semang are sometimes inconsistent, lished in V. B. G. A. xxviii. 270-272. 3 Vaughan-Stevens ascribes this The answers referring to' the Sakai greater sensitiveness of the Tembeh to and Jakun are valueless, the two races the fact of their constitution having being confused by V.-St., and are hence been enfeebled by disease !

. SUMMARY "/■ v/ GRITO CI LTURE S3

I lie i< ■••! ilo lln in f-1 vi lh.it lli< S( mm;; ( • liild

■ rally iuflf< i tnon when In want ol food than to (Blandt ) and [akan

children. '

Summary oj Si hang ( i u\ ure, The Semang arc the most nomadii ol ill tin

tribes, the wilder ones never Staying, it is alleged, more than throe days ill one place. But lew ol them have taken to agriculture, and they obtain their livelihood 1))' hunting, fishing, and trapping, by digging up

wild roots and tubers, and by gathering the various jungle fruits as they come into season.

They are fond of tobacco, but very seldom indulge in betel-chewing, of which, in fact, I never saw an instance among the Semang of Kedah and Ulu Patani. They wear to some extent the loin-cloth of tree-bark (the bark selected being in some cases that of the upas or poison-tree), but their distinctive costume appears to be a mere girdle of leaves, or, as especially on festal occasions, a peculiar girdle manufactured from the long black shiny strings (really the rhizomorph) of a toad-stool !

The wildest of the Semang do not appear as a race to tattoo, or scarify, either the face or the body, though in some cases they may have learnt the custom (of scarification) from the Sakai. They (the men especially) often shave the head, and not unfrequently about half a dozen of their front teeth will be seen to have been filed, though this is not necessarily a Semang custom. The women wear in their hair a magic comb which is believed to avert disease and danger. The Semang do not circumcise. Their distinctive weapon is the bow with poisoned arrows,

1 Z.f. E. xxix. 202, 203. 2 For Col. Temple's comparison of Semang with Andamanese v. Appendix.

54 RACIAL AFFINITIES pari

though many of them have now adopted the blowpipe of the Sakai and Jakun.

Their habitations are of the most primitive description, generally consisting of natural shelters under overhanging rocks, or of the simplest form of leafshelters, erected either on the ground or between the branches of trees. The most advanced type of these leaf-shelters was a shelter made long enough to accommodate the entire tribe and furnished with their re- markable bamboo bed-places. They have no boats, but occasionally use rough bamboo rafts for drifting down stream. Their musical instruments are all of bamboo, and consist of simple kinds of " stamping " instruments (intended for beating time rather than for making music), the nose-flute and the Jew's-harp. They have no drums.

They barter jungle produce with the Malays, but do not work for the latter to so great an extent as the Jakun. Their religious ideas are of great interest. They have a kind of deities called Kari and Pie, but these appear, like some of the " high gods " of the Australian " Blackfellows," to be rather of the nature of mythological personages or otiose gods than real divinities, as, although they have many divine attributes, there is practically no trace of an actual cult. The Semang marriage rite is of the slightest, but they are strict monogamists, and both sexes are faithful to the marriage tie. It is said by Malays that they formerly devoured their dead, burying the head only ; this assertion may rest on some old Semang practice of disinterring the corpse, but they now invariably bury the deceased entire. They have no great fear of the ghosts of the deceased, such as is shown so strongly by the Sakai and the Jakun.

^

Sakai of s. Perak.

Vol. /./>. 55.

RACE CHARACTERS OF SAA AJ

1 1. — Racb-( iiai- < i i i oi Sakai.

The Sakai appear to have their racial focui in the mountain ranges of S.E. Perak and N.W. Pa hang. Their district marches on the north (in Perak) with that of the Semang, th<- dividing line being

stated l>y some observers to be the Perak river, and by Others (De Morgan, Hale, and others) to be the Plus river already referred to. Then' can be no doubt, however, that there has been a considerable admixture ; witness the photographs of some so-called "Semang" tribes of Perak and elsewhere, which frequently include types that are distinctly Sakai ; certainly no really distinct geographical boundary can be drawn between the two races, and on the whole it would seem that the much-talked-of line of demarcation between the Semang and Sakai is (as far as race and culture go) no line at all, but a belt of mixed tribes which run, e.g., through mid-Perak and N. Pahang.1

On the east coast the Sakai do not appear to extend far into either Kelantan or Trengganu, though they are found in Pahang, their admixture with Pangans commencing somewhere near Clifford's line, e.g., in the district of Ulu Jelai. Westward of the central chain, on the other hand, they appear to extend through the interior of Selangor, and thence, in the form of a narrowing wedge (and with a rapidly increasing admixture of Jakun blood), through the inland districts of Negri Sembilan, at least as far south as Malacca, and almost certainly as far south as Johor.

1 For further notes on their distribu- fortunately no clear proof that the

tion, see, for instance, De la Croix's writer is always able to distinguish

article in Rev. d"* Ethnogr. vol. i. No. between Semang and Sakai. 4 (1882), p. 320; though there is un-

As, however, the exact racial limits of the Sakai have not yet been defined (if, indeed, they will ever be definable), it has been thought best to draw the line between the Sakai and the Jakun at the point where the influence of the latter commences to be fairly certain and appreciable, i.e. at Southern Selangor and mid-Pahang.

Passing to the general physical characters of this second group, the Senoi ' (or Cymotrichi of Martin), I am indebted to Professor Martin for much of my information concerning them. Owing to the fact that their headquarters are in S.E. Perak and N.W. Pahang, no member of our exploring party came across any individuals. Consequently the following account is drawn chiefly from published notes and other material kindly supplied by Martin.2

In height the Sakai does not appreciably differ from the Semang.

The average height of the men is 1504 mm., 85 per cent of the individuals measured ranging from 1460 to 1580 mm. Some few individuals were as low as 1380 mm.

The average height of the women is 1437 mm., 53 per cent ranging from 1390 to 1450 mm., and 17 per cent below 1390 mm. The smallest individuals, two adult married women, possessed a height of 1320 mm. only.

The head is chiefly dolichocephalic, whereas the Semang measured by Martin are described as mesaticephalic, with, however, a strong tendency to the dolichocephalic condition.

1 Senoi = Orang Halas of Newbold. pines' quills therein.

Cp.y. /. A. vol. iv. p. 429, where the 2 To this should be added the

O. Alas of Ulu Kantu (? Kinta) are measurements of Wray {Per. Mus.

described by Col. Low as a tribe of Notes, iii. pp. 33, 34). Those in Fasc.

Perak Sakai, who pierce the cartilage Mai. are taken account of at p. 96

of the nose and ears and insert porcu- sea., infra.

RACt i n IRAi TER OJ

The fa< e is fairl) long and broad, but pointed towards the chin, The forehead is, in the male, flat, often far overshadowing the < and « the root

o! the nos'- to rcircit far back. ()i the men 93 per cent, and J3 per cent ol the women, are mesopro lopu . rhe lips are thick ; the under lip often hangs down and maybe described as "swollen." The Sakai are distinctly lighter in complexion than the Semanj The hair is black, but never deep black ; in most cases it shows a brownish shimmer, especially in the young, and differs widely from that of the Semang and the Malax.

From the remarks of other travellers who ha met with Sakai, as well as from photographs, we m picture the Sakai as a slenderly built race, and as often presenting an emaciated appearance, which is increased by their long, unkempt wavy hair hanging down to the shoulders, and by their large restless eyes.

In evidence of their striking resemblance to the \ eddas, it is perhaps worth remarking that one of the brothers Sarasin, who had lived among the Veddas and knew them well, when shown a photograph of a typical Sakai, at first supposed it to be a photograph of a Vedda.1

Without wishing to definitely commit myself as to the affinities of this race, I think that it is fairly clear even from the existing evidence that they are at any rate quite distinct from the Semang or Ulotrichi of Martin, as they are also from the Jakun (Lissotrichi) type found among the southern tribes.

A number of other measurements concerning this type are taken from the writings of Rudolf Virchow,

1 This information was given me by quite as emphatically remarked to me Professor Martin, who himself showed upon the resemblance of my Sakai the photograph. Mr. Shrubsall once photographs to Tamils.

who, in discussing the height of individuals measured by Vaughan- Stevens, gives the figures which are quoted in the Appendix.

In another volume of the VerJiandlungen x Virchow refers to the skull of a Sakai (Senoi) woman, which he describes as orthodolichocephalic, and the full description of which will be found in the Appendix.

The most interesting point about this skull, apart from its dolichocephalic character and certain structural anomalies, is the formation of the nose, which is depressed to such an extent that Virchow was tempted to regard it as pithekoid. Another no less important point in Virchow's paper is the description he gives of the Sakai hair-character, concerning which he says : —

" On the other hand, I must also point to a very pronounced Sakai (Blandas) characteristic. In a recent consignment sent by H. Vaughan-Stevens was found the lock of hair of a Sakai {Senoi) man from the north of the Peninsula. The memorandum sent with it was to the effect that ' the clan to which the man belongs does not cut the hair.' At the meeting of 21st November 1891 ( Verh. p. 844), I treated the Sakai (Blandas) hair in detail from a large number of specimens of hair sent by Vaughan-Stevens. As compared with those specimens, I may briefly state that the lock of hair now before us exactly corresponds to them. Its wavy structure distinguishes it completely from the spirally curled structure of the E. Sernang {Pangan) hair (Verh. 1892, p. 443). Its length amounts to rather more than 20 cm., but we cannot decide exactly how long the hair was when entire, as it is not stated at what distance from the scalp the lock was cut off. It is of a blackish appearance, and in reflected light of a slightly brownish and glossy colour ; seen under the microscope in thin sections it is light brown, with a dark and often interrupted medulla. The ends, as is the case with the uncut hair, are pointed, broken at the sides, and frequently split into two or more fragments.

' ' The contrast between the two races cannot be more sharply expressed. Unfortunately Vaughan-Stevens has neglected to take advantage of his opportunities, and to send us a larger number of specimens of hair from his Semang friends, of which measurements would also be highly desirable. We hope the opportunity will be given him to fill up these gaps." 2

Elsewhere Vaughan-Stevens, writing apparently of the body-hair of the Sakai (Blandas) tribes, says : —

" The natural growth of the hair is thin and scattered, and in both sexes the direction of growth of the hair (of the body), as well as that at the back of the head and under the arms, is slightly upwards."

1 V. B. G. A. xxviii. 154 (cp. /. c, 2 lb. xxvi. 359. See also Montano,

1894, for further particulars). PI. xxxi.

Old Sakai Man, ' The Father of all the Sakais," Ulu Berang, Eight Milks from Tanjong Malim, South Perak.

Vol I. /. 59.

/ ( HARACTER i Oh akai

Tin- bail ..i iiir , in !., | in old if ..!<. In lined to

tli. in that ol thC Mini. i > . .ni.| < ..mplrtr baldness I. .kIii. illy - lial it i.

,-,! u|m,ii ;i . .1 i. -in aikahle < -m eption whil li "ill) ii. illy.1

The more detailed account of the Sakai (Blandas)

hair referred to above as collected by V.iii'.di.m-

Stevens is as follows, the description oi the specimen - being in Vaughan-Stevens' own words:

''No. 39. Specimen >>t hail ehoeen i"i nc by an old Batin, a> a typical example of Sakai (Blandas) hair ; tradition declared it to be the original form. The Sakai themaelvei nnanimooaly declare that the straight) sir lometimei found

among them comei from cross-breeding vritfa the Malays, and themselves call it

COane [* kasar'). The Supposed original type, of which they arc very proud,

died Watei hail (' Rambut Ayer'Jj it is still to be leen occasionally and

has a distinct reddish tinge. Moreover, it does not as a rule turn white, as the COarsei hair does. The present specimen is from a Sakai woman 35 year-, old, and has been cut offaS close to the scalp as possible."

No. 40. From a 75-year-old Sakai man, wizened and bent with age. No. 41. From a 37-year-old Sakai man.

No. 43. From children. The shortest specimen is from a 4-months-old boy j the next longest from a 2-year-old girl ; the longest from a 6-year-old boy.-

To the foregoing may be added Virchow's description of a remarkable specimen of hair (No. 105) sent by

Vaughan-Stevens :-

It is an immense shock (Schopf) reaching 30 cm. in length, and consists of thick glossy black hairs, which display a somewhat reddish tinge towards the tips.

A fourth specimen of hair (No. 104) sent by Vaughan-Stevens consisted of a beautifully wavy lock of 36 cm. in length, which, taken as a whole, was of a splendid black, with a reddish shimmer in reflected light, especially towards the tips, though otherwise it is coarse but glossy. I find no noticeable difference from the Sakai hair which I have already fully described at the meeting of 21st November 189 1 {Verh. pp. 844-846).

Not only from these statements of Vaughan-Stevens, but still more from inspection of the hair-specimens sent by him, it is clear that the Sakai (Blandas) cannot be at all nearly related either to Negritos or Papuans. Moreover, the difference of this hair from that of the " Orang Sakai " described by Miklucho-Maclay is abundantly clear.3

With regard to the above-mentioned specimens of hair Virchow adds a few remarks of his own, concluding as follows : —

The net results of this investigation lead me to a conclusion similar to the one to which I came at the meeting of the 16th February 1889 ( Verh. p. 158),

1 Z.f.E. xxix. 178, 179.

2 Vaughan-Stevens, quoted by Virchow in V. B. G. A. xxiii. 844, 845.

3 V. B. G. A. xxviii. (Virchow) 149,150.

6o RACIAL AFFINITIES part

with respect to the more ancient races of the Southern and South- Eastern Islands of the Malay Sea. Just as in these islands I could point out a broad /one of wavy-haired people between the spiral -haired Melanesians and the straighthaired Malays, so, too, in Malacca the wavy -haired Sakai race (Blandas) appears to have established itself between the spiral-haired Negritos (Semang) of the North and the lank- {straff) haired [Jakuns and] Malays of the South and of most of the coast districts. For the islanders I have again adopted for this race the old and certainly much-misused name of Alfuros. It follows that the near relationship of the Sakai (Blandas) to the Alfuros might be inferred from this evidence.

Of the insular Alfuros I remarked that, in respect of their hair-character, they connect up with the Australians on the one hand and the Veddas of Ceylon on the other. Perhaps, therefore, the Sakai (" wild men ") of Malacca might be regarded as Dravidians. However, we are precluded from regarding them as entirely identical, owing to the fact that the Sakai (Blandas) are inclined to be brachycephalic, whereas these other races are dolichocephalic.1 This raises new questions, which can only be decided by further information.2

The Colour of the Skin.z

According to Vaughan- Stevens, the Sakai (Blandas) of the present time (like the western or domesticated (" tame " Semang) offer nearly as great a diversity of colour as the Malays.

The Sakai is lighter than the Semang, and seems to be more affected by heat than the latter (v., however, supra).

Among the Sakai (Blandas), whose colour varies, he (V.-St.) saw nothing that could support the theory that, among a number of individuals, those with darker skins stood exposure better on the march. On the other hand, in this thickly wooded country one cannot walk far without coming into the protection of the shade of the forest.

The Sakai (Blandas) prefer the lighter colour, and are proud of faircoloured children, in which they possibly follow the Malay view. But in olden times the light colour was not an attribute of their chiefs.4

He could not find that there was any relation between a coarse or fine skin texture and its colour, when the coarseness of the skin is not the result of special exposure, or of a disease.

He found among the Sakai (Blandas), when no skin disease was present, no other smell than that which is ever to be observed in cases wdiere the activity of the skin is suppressed, and no cleansing material, such as soap, etc., is employed ; for the splashing of water over the body rather answers the purpose of refreshing, than that of cleansing, the skin.

Sight.

The eyes of the Sakai (Blandas) are all alike, and Vaughan-Stevens observed no deviation from shades Nos. I or 2.5

1 There can, however, now be little in small numbers between brachy-

doubt arising from this particular cephalic Negritos as well as brachy-

difficulty, in view of the fact that cephalic Malayan tribes. in the purest strain of Sakai blood 2 V. B. G. A. xxiii. (Virchow) 847.

dolichocephaly has been shown to 3 Z.f.E. xxix. (V.-St.) 174-176.

obtain. The original dolichocephalic 4 This statement of Vaughan-Stevens

character of the Sakai appears to have is, I believe, without foundation, been modified owing to their isolation 6 Virchow in V. B. G. A. xxiii. 840.

A'

t V ; '*

• r

&

T

• '

M G

Mixed Sakai-Semang Type, Ulu Batu, Sei.an.gor.

Vol. I. /• 60.

w*

McGrezor.

Mixed Sakai-Semang Type, Ulu Batu, Selangob.

;w. /. /. 61.

RAi I CHARACTERS ■ /• Ai Al

in , oloui the - < • ••! all do not have the conjunctiva coloured deep jrellom u th< Negritos do.

ilu- eyi "i theii children are extremel) well formed, and with t) blai hes add much to the beauty of their ap|>carancc. There i no ti

,,i id, " \ 1 . •ii-.. - 1 1 . i n fold," in which the ikin "i the tnnei coraei ol tl ovei the eyi il ieli ; the edge o! the upp i i velid >• alwaj i well formed.'

Squinting is certainl) known to them, tince they arc much afraid of the endangering ol theii padi harvi il by -i demon (Hantu), whom they i " iquinting." Hie Sakai (Blandaa) believe that the visual field ol i i who squints Is widei than oi .i pei on whose tighl ^ normal.1

Among the Sakai (Blandas) he (V.*St.) only met with thi 4 ihort ^ight,

two oi which were men and one ■ woman. < >n the othei hand, however, the i.u sightedness oi the eye cannot In- well estimated in the jungle, thickly stmt in as it is by trees and 1< Much depends on practice and general acquaint

with the objects in the jungle, to which Vaughan-Steven ively

tpeaking, much less accustomed. But the jungle nun oi women would • show him the points oi an animal's horns anion;; the surrounding foliage, a thing which it is naturally very difficult to discover, whereas he, with normally sight (foi an European), had to search vainly for ■ long time before he observed them. Again, everything which was in motion they >aw at < nee, however inaignificant it might be in point of size.

The Sakai (Blandas) had, in general, decidedly weak i In their

earliest youth, if no accident attacked them, they had good sight for any object moving in the jungle. But, as might be expected in the case of a forest -people, their eyes soon tired in a strong light. On the few opportunities which Vaughan- Stevens had of finding himself with Sakai (Blandas) in a wide, open space, he observed that he could distinguish far-distant objects much better than they could.

He adds that among the Sakai (Blandas), who wore Malay clothing, and were acquainted with the use of needle and thread, he never met with an old Sakai (Blandas) woman who could not thread an ordinary needle without difficulty.3

On the subject of sight, Mr. L. Wray,4 during his travels in Perak, came to the following conclusions : —

" Seven Sakais from Cheroh came up to carry down baggage, so ... in the afternoon I measured them and tested their eyesight. I have now tested the sight of between thirty and forty of both sexes, and there seems to be no doubt that they have very good sight as a race. Of those tested in Batang Padang, the shortest distance that the Army test-spots could be seen was 32 feet, and the longest 91 feet. In testing recruits for the British Army 20 feet is considered an average distance for these spots to be read, and a man reading at over that distance is classed as long-sighted, and under as short-sighted. In measuring the women there was great difficulty, as they did not know Malay and could not count. ... I got over it by giving the subject a handful of matches, and explaining by signs that I wanted a match for each spot on the card held up."

Hearing^

The sense of hearing of the Sakai (Blandas) and Tembeh, though not so acute as that of the Takun, was about equal to that of the W. Semang.

1 Z.f.E. xxix. (V.-St.) 176, 177. ± J. R. A. S., S.B., No. 21, pp.

2 Grlinwedel in Vaughan-Stevens, ii. 148, 149. For fuller statistics and I52- details, v. Perak Mus. ATofes, iii. p. 36.

3 Z.f.E. xxix. (V.-St) 180, 181. 5 Z.f. E. xxix. 181.

62 RACIAL AFFINITIES

Hands and Feet. ]

The Sakai (Wandas), like the Semang, experienced no difficulty whatever in stretching out one finger when the rest of the fingers were closed.

The little toe of the Sakai (Blandas) is much less straight than that of the Jakun, although they never wear boots as we do to deform their feet, but the tip of the little toe is nevertheless bent like ours, and is either comparatively small in proportion or differs in direction from the other toes.

After remarking that the footsteps of the Orang Utan are usually turned outwards, Vaughan-Stevens adds : —

One thing, however, is worthy of remark among all Sakai (Blandas), the setting down of the foot is done with the middle of the foot. The heel does not touch the ground first. But in nine cases out of ten which came under observation the foot was injured by thorns, stones, etc., so that from time to time a more or less unnatural gait was caused.

It is, therefore, very difficult to give an exact description of the walk of the Sakai (Blandas). The body is held upright and very straight, while the whole movement proceeds from the ankles, knees, and hips. At the same time there is only a very slight, rhythmical swing of the arms.2

One hand usually carries the blow-gun (Sumpitan), the other being armed with the parang, i.e. jungle-knife or chopper, and is always in readiness to give a quick blow to a prickly rattan or other obstacle half hidden among the foliage through which the path of the Sakai leads. This custom has to such an extent become second nature that, even when he walks without a weapon in the open plains, the Sakai holds his arms in the accustomed position. It is difficult to say what is the usual carriage of the head.

In the matter of strength and physical endurance the Sakai (Blandas) and Tembeh (Temia) are at the bottom of the scale.

The Sakai (Blandas) are not so clever as the Semang in getting through bush or jungle, though the Sakai have the better sense of direction.3

Climbing.

In climbing a straight high stem the Sakai (Blandas) are better than the more civilised Semang. This, however, is not saying much, since the Western Semang are (according to Vaughan-Stevens) very bad climbers4 — an opinion already combated (p. 51).

When the Sakai (Blandas) want to climb a small tree only, they climb it like the Central Sakai (Senoi). The larger trees usually have climbing-plants and runners hanging down from their branches, or smaller trees in their immediate

1 Z.f. E. xxix. (V.-St.) 190. arms are not swung in walking.

2 On the very next page (193), how- 3 Z.f. E. xxix. (V.-St.) 192, 193. ever, Vaughan-Stevens remarks that the 4 lb. p. 199.

•**-

Cerruti.

Sakai Boy with Blowpipe, 1'i.r Sungkai, S. Perak.

Vol. /. A 62.

Cerruti.

Sakai Boy (probably of Ulu Slim).

I ~ol. I. p 6--

/ CHARACTERS OF SAKAI

neighbourhood] from the branches ol which the Sakai i I up into

the branches ol the target ones. The Sakai, hou cul nofc he* in the bark fbi the purpo e '>i climl I

.\ i tin present day they practise every method ol climbing which thi Irani from tneii neighbours.

\ en i" the high raised huti ol the Tembeh (l emia) i afforded by i trunk placed diagonally, similar to the ihortei tree-trunk utilised by tip- .v (Blandas) of Kuantan, who are much mixed with Tembeh (Temia) blood. They allege thai as their huti have do doors, the dogi and fowli which are wandering about everywhere might otherwise g<-t into the huts and do mischief there when

the men were away.

Among the Tembeh (Temia) the objed is solely to keep intruders out, especially the black panther and the python. For this reason ■ smooth and

slippery bamboo IS carefully freed from all projections at the nodes, with the exception of a few thin twigs, by which the feet may he supported in climbing, and set up in a sloping position. No special grip of the toes is used in climbing

them, and the toes of the Tembeh (Temia), especially the great toe, are not more strongly developed for gripping than the toes of other Sakai Very small children are often left for hours in those airy huts, on account of their safety, as they are here safe from the great cats and snakes, and prevented from falling down by the low parapet.1

Swimming,

The Sakai (Blandas) swim but little, in fact they only do so when they are obliged to cross a river, or when they are bathing. They then swim like dogs. They throw out their arms forwards in a swinging, circular stroke, while the body turns towards the side away from the stroke. Both the breast-stroke and side-stroke, as well as swimming on the back, are unknown to them.

Among the Sakai (Blandas) the Central tribes (Senoi) are always considered the best swimmers ; this is probably due to the fact that the big Pahang river has afforded them more practice.

The Tembeh (Temia) cannot swim at all.'2

Sleeping.*

The Sakai (Blandas) women do not, as a rule, sleep on the side, but on the back, and try to raise the head a little by some sort of pillow. They give as their reason for this that, if they lie on the side, the hip has to bear the weight of the body, in which case they would get " latah,"4 and suffer from cramp in their sleep !

The Sakai (Blandas) men often sleep on the back, at the same time drawing the legs up towards the body, so that the sole of the foot rests fiat upon the ground. But the side-long position is also not unfrequently adopted by the men when they first lie down, in fact sometimes one side and sometimes the other is chosen indifferently. Sakai (Blandas) men told Vaughan-Stevens that when they lay upon their side such vermin as ants, scorpions, and centipedes would crawl over the sleeping-mats and enter their eyes, nostrils, and mouth, whereas by lying on the back they could feel their approach. Others, however, declare that by sleeping on the back they can hear a noise or alarm-signal better.

Among the Sakai (Blandas), as among the Semang (Pangan), the bachelors inhabited the verandah (when there was one) or else the external portion of the

1 Z.f. E. xxix. 200. 2 lb. p. 198. 4 A strange hysterical affection

3 Z.f.E. xxix. 186-198. common among Malays.

huts. Among the Tembeh the only difference was that the bedroom of the married people was separated off by a low partition.1

Physical Endurance.*

Sakai tribes which have adopted Malay clothing generally experience discomfort in the absence of headgear to protect them from the sun. On the other hand, the Sakai (Blandas) appear to suffer more from the cold, wet winds of the mountains than the Jakun.

If this power of withstanding change of temperature depended upon the relatively greater abundance and regularity of their food, the Sakai should be less sensitive to such changes than any other tribe. But whether their sensitiveness to such changes was originally greater than that of other tribes or not, the fact that they are now accustomed to clothes and to the protection of betterbuilt houses has rendered them more susceptible to every change of temperature.

The Sakai children endure want of food better than the Semang children [v. supra).

The younger men of the Sakai have a game called " K'lupent," which is usually played when they are sitting round the fire in the evening while their womenfolk are plaiting mats and baskets. Each player who is a candidate for the favour of a girl, endeavours to heap disgrace on his opponent and raise himself in the esteem of the women. The game is played with short slivers of rattan, which can by a particular knack be made to draw blood at every stroke, a rapid backward motion of the arm and wrist causing the sharp edge of the rattan to strike the skin like a knife, and cutting it easily. When I asked for its application in earnest, the force of the blow from the knot made me writhe with pain. The instrument is also made from string. The ring (of rattan slivers) is twisted round the hand, the knot at the end of the strips being held between the thumb and forefinger. The arm is then lifted, and as it is brought down the knot is released and descends with a swingeing blow on the forearm of the opponent, whilst at the same moment the arm is drawn rapidly in to the body.

The men sit opposite one another with bare arms. A small stake is deposited by each. He who first acts as striker asks the other how many blows of the rattan he will bear on his forearm without crying out. If he receives the stipulated number without wavering, he puts his opponent's wager into his pocket, and then in turn takes the rattan slivers and challenges the other to name the number of blows he will endure ; should any one who receives the blows call out for them to cease, he loses his bet and is loaded by his opponent and the spectators with scorn and jeers (which is the true purpose of the game when, as usual, it is inspired by malice).

The Sakai (Blandas) children are acquainted with a form of the tug-of-war in which one or more children on each side pull a rope in opposite directions. They have probably borrowed the idea from Malay children, who may be frequently seen playing at it.

Summary of Sakai Culture.

The Sakai, though still largely nomadic, and at first extremely shy, are perhaps the most sociable and talkative of the three races, when once their confidence is

1 Z. f. E. xxix. 190. - lb. pp. 201-203.

i SUMMARY OJ / \i CUL1 URL

gained. Like the Semang they not unfrequently live in tree-huts or other temporary forms ol shelter Their men weir the tree bark loin cloth, and their women a tree-bark wrapper, except, of course, where

they have borrowed Malay clothing. They tattoo

the face, the design commonly taking the form of four gradually converging lines drawn from the region of the ear to the root of the nose, with perhaps a sort of pitchfork design incised upon the chin. These designs are sometimes marked out in rows of black and white dots (in lieu of scarification) ; with these may be connected their black and white bead- necklaces. Both scarification and body-painting take, however, various forms, the latter having been developed into a regular system. They do not circumcise, and seldom file the teeth, but they not unfrequently wear a metal ring or a porcupine quill inserted through the septum of the nose.

Their distinctive weapon, like that of the Jakun, is the bamboo blowpipe, which they have brought to great perfection.

They have no form of boat, nor do they even as a rule use rafts.1

Their musical instruments are very fairly similar to those of the Semang, and, like the latter, they not unfrequently engage in the barter of jungle products. Their agriculture is of the most primitive description, their chief implement (for breaking-up the soil) being a pointed stick.

Of their religion very little is at present known — less even than of that of the Semang. There is, however, a kind of deity whom they call Tuhan, and who appears somewhat analogous to the Kari of the Semang. Their alleged totemism is quite unproved.

1 Hale, p. 286. VOL. I F

Like the Semang they are strict in their observance of the marriage tie, but unlike them they have the greatest possible fear of death, or rather, perhaps, of the ghost of the deceased, and will frequently burn down or desert an encampment in which a death has occurred.

III. — Race-Characters of Jakun.

There remains for consideration the third group of tribes which inhabit the southern portion of the Peninsula. These are the mixed tribes of Martin, and include the Jakun or "savage Malays" of Wallace. They fall into three main and two subordinate groups, the latter of which are without doubt closely allied.

i. Tribes mainly of Semang origin, e.g. the Kenaboi (?) and perhaps the Udai.

2. Tribes mainly of Sakai origin, e.g. the Blandas and Berembuns (?).

3. The Jakun or Malayan aborigines, comprising — (a) The Orang Bukit, or Land (lit. " Hill") Jakun. (6) The Orang Laut, or Sea Jakun.

Although it is not possible at present to make a proper classification of all the tribes of the Jakun group, it may yet be useful to attempt a rough and general identification of them so far as the very scanty information we possess will take us.

The Blandas properly so called, whose home is in Southern Selangor, have been described by Martin as dolichocephalic, and hence are most likely to prove largely of Sakai extraction.1 Their exact affinities,

1 For the "Blandas," see also Lenggeng, Singa Kuasa, and Pakat,

Newbold, ii. 393, where we are told and four Jinangs or chiefs of the

that they had (in 1839) four Batins second rank, viz. Pawang Padiching

or chiefs of the first rank, viz. Baning, (" Pawampa de Cheyng" !), Ampu

WV

at

&"»

o

^

Mixed Jakun I'v 1*1 . lu kit Pruai . Selang

5gw.

OR

i A-./. / < // \RACTERS Oh I /' f(7f ■ '/.// ./ r.v 67

however, have not hitherto been traced, and in ipitc ol their dolichocephalii skull-character, it would not h safe, id the absent e oi moi 1 1 act informal ion as to their hair character^ etc., to attempt to bo ident them as such. They have, therefore, been retained in the group oi mixed tribes to which the name ol fakun has been given in this book. It may be noted that although their district is conterminous with that ..i the Besisi, they present a marked contrast to the latter tribe, both in respect of their head-index, which is dolichocephalic as contrasted with the brachycephaly oi the Besisi, and also in their language and their customs.1 No exact measurements ol the Blandas have v<t been published, pending the appearance of

Martin's forthcoming work, and hence they will not

be referred to again in the present chapter.

The Kenaboi (or "Sakai" of S. Ujong) may perhaps prove to be a mixed tribe mainly of Semang

type (though with some Sakai admixture), as the few facts we possess would lead us to expect.2 The Berembun, or Birmun, and Pago tribes cannot yet be safely classified. The Udai appear to have a stronger Semang admixture than the tribes surrounding them.

The Besisi and Mantra of Selangor and Malacca are brachiocephalic (Martin), and are most probably a mixed branch of the Sea-Jakun — in spite of the fact that the Besisi dialect presents a close connection with

Manis, Patau (? IV Lcsai), and Ram* ] For further remarks re admixture,

bong("Rumbong"). Vaughan-Stevens v. conclusions, infra,

gives a quite unwarranted extension to - The Kenaboi is a stream injelebu.

the t<rm which lie generally uses as In a letter of 3rd November 1902,

the equivalent of Sakai. He also Mr. Hale writes that the " O. Kena-

st:iw:s (obviously as a pure guess) that boi " had so harmful a reputation that

the amount of Malay blood in them is it was believed that any one who ac-

" not less than 2 per cent, and prob- cidentally trod upon their expectora-

ahly more" (V. -St. ii. 94), but the tion would suffer severely from boils

entire passage wants correction. and blains, if he did not die of it.

68 RACIAL AFFINITIES

PART

the dialect of the Sakai. They have certainly some Semang, and probably a little Sakai admixture, but appear nevertheless to be largely Malayan.

The Beduanda of Naning and Rembau are, as is locally known, mixed with a strong Menangkabau Malay element. The term " Beduanda" is to be applied —

(i) To Mohammedan Malays descended, it is alleged, from Menangkabau men and aboriginal women.

(2) To aborigines (heathen). These latter probably have no right to be considered as descended from Menangkabau, although they do sometimes claim it.

" Beduanda" appears to be a title introduced from without (through Hinduised Malay influence) among these tribes. The Malay Beduanda1 are the premier " Suku " or clan in their own estimation, and are " sons of the soil," because of their (partial) aboriginal descent. They recognise the aboriginal Beduanda 2 as distant kinsmen who have been left behind in the march of civilisation. The Mantra are Beduanda, but the Jakun are not so recognised.

The Benua of Logan and other early writers, here called Benua -Jakun, cannot yet be classed, but the Jakun and the Orang Laut have a comparatively large Malayan element, though both have in some parts a strong infusion of Semang and Sakai blood.

Labu Tribes.

Reliable accounts of the tribes in the Labu district of Sungei Ujong are so rare that I make no excuse for the following quotation : —

1 " Beduanda J awa." 2 '; Beduanda Jakun."

i RAi i CHARACTERS OF SAVAGE mm ay

"The tribe settled here (i.*. on I'erhcntian I of twelve

men, seven women, ds oldei and fiv( mall children, ii l>< tribe <»r about two hundred loul ■■, which ii ettled In Batang Labu, Sungci

l 'j«»ii}'v, ii 11 « It i .i I '..ilm.

"The Batin, who might have been able to give information on the j >< >i 1 1 ' not here, and from the lomewhal indefinite itatementi of the oldei men I conclude thai thii tribe belongi to one ol the Com greet Sakai families, which (according to Martin Lister), coming from the mountains ol Skudei, have si ttled in the States ol Johol, Jelebu, Klang, and Sungei LJjong, and, indeed, la that ol s. Ujong, as from all that I could heai they have nothing in common with the Sakais (sic, [?] Besisi tribes) ol Klang,

"According to the observations made up to the present, the height of the men is on the average 1580 nun., of the women 1470 nun. The trunk is long, the legs slmrt and sturdy, the arms longi The ihoulderi an- broad, and th<- head

normal ; the face at the temples and lower jaw narrow, but broad in the middle. The colour Of the skin is usually 43/44 of Broca's scale j the colour of the

hair 41, Broca. Tin- quantity <>i hair on the head is considerable, in the I moderate, on the body scanty. The hair is certainly not generally crimped or curly, as many report ; for although among the women it is usually so, among the

men I found it very variable, i.r. both wavy and curly, and yet again straight, as amongSl the Malays.

" The colour of the iris is 2/5, according to Broca. The slits of the eyes are somewhat crooked. The nose is small and pointed ; the root broad, as are also the nostrils and the bridge. Seen from the side, the bridge of the nose is slightly convex, the root deep, the point slightly bent to the side.

"The lips are thick; the ear small and somewhat prominent; the helix is incurved ; the lobule adhesive to the head ; Darwin's tip very insignificant.

"The men are generally well formed ; the women are remarkably small and slender as a rule. In physical strength they appear to resemble the Malays, though they may perhaps be somewhat tougher ; in the handling of the chopper (parang) and adze (bliong) they are acknowledged to be the Malays' superior, though this may perhaps depend upon agility and practice rather than on actual strength. In the felling of trees they always strike the same point with the greatest precision with their heavy narrow axes. It is one of their special characteristics that they do not use the hoe in the same way as other people ; instead of making the stroke and bringing back the hoe in the same direction for the next blow, they bring it back to its original position by raising it in both hands over the left temple and over the head, so that every blow gains considerably in force.

" The carriage of the body is, in general, negligent ; the shoulders are drawn inwards, the knees and feet turned inwards ; in fact, even the strongest men afford an unedifying spectacle. In the jungle, however, they appear to greater advantage, as they are evidently more at home there. They do not strike about them with the chopping-knife (parang) so much as the Malays in clearing a way for themselves, but turn and wind about with much agility in all directions, and in this way move from one spot to another very noiselessly and quickly.

" In physiognomy they generally resemble the Malays so closely ( !) that one only recognises them by their look, which is invariably one of surprise and timidity ; they have besides a somewhat wilder expression than the Malays.

"Their power of sight was throughout very well developed ; but without having taken exact tests, nothing abnormal in this respect has struck me. The same remark applies to their sense of hearing.

" I have not been able to notice any artificial deformities among them ; but as natural abnormalities I might mention the unusually broad and inward-turned feet of most of the men, and the quite remarkable pigmentation of the breasts of the women. Of the seven multiparas which I had the opportunity of observing, two were already quite old and shapeless ; the other five, however, were all under twenty-three, and in each of them the extraordinarily light-coloured

areola (Broca, about 40) 'covered the nipple and the greater part of the mamma like a broad flat cover.' The diameter of the areola was never below 5 cm., and in some almost 10 cm." l

Kenaboi Tribes.

One of the tribes mentioned by Logan consists of the "Sakai," said to frequent the neighbourhood of Mount (Gunong) Kenaboi. These are doubtless identical with the Orang Kenaboi of Vaughan- Stevens.2 If it is possible to locate this " tribe," and at present there is hardly any information concerning them, the latter name, i.e. " Kenaboi," is obviously preferable to that loosely used by Logan.

Vaughan -Stevens considered them, as already stated, to be a subdivision of the parent-stock of the Sakai (Blandas). This classification, however, requires confirmation, the measurements taken showing a brachycephalic as well as a dolichocephalic element.

Further measurements taken by Vaughan-Stevens will be found in the Appendix.3

Berembun and Udai Tribes.

Logan4 further mentions certain tribes living to the north of the Benua-Jakun, whom he calls the Berembun (" Birmun ") tribes, because they have their headquarters about Gunong Berembun and the neighbouring mountains.5

The upper reaches of the rivers rising in the Berembun mountains are occupied by the tribe called Udai.

The Udai (who appear to be the same people who are known to the Benua-Jakun of Johor under

1 W. Rowland in Mitt. Geog. Ges. 4 Loc. at.

Wien. xli. 706, 707. 5 Gunong Bermun appears to be

2 Vaughan-Stevens, iii. 97. identical with Gunong Berembun,

3 Virchow in V. B. G. A. xxiii. 842- which is situated in Sungei Ujong, 844. 1020 2' E. by 2° 55' N.

RACE CHARACTERS OF SAVAGE MALA 71

the name of Orang Pago) are found on someol the tributaries oi the Muar. This tribe has less approximated to Malayan habits than the others.1

Newbold," on the other hand, makes the following

remarks about this tribe : —

The Udai tribe1 is little known. The Tuanku Putih of Rembau once informed me that the Uclai were a race of savages thinly scattered over the slates of Jelebu, Pahang, Trengganu, and Kedah, and that they resembled in features the darker variety of Jakun.3 Their size is represented as smaller, and their habits more savage.

Newbold regards them as distinct from the Benua, under which title he groups the following tribes : — Jakun, Orang Bukit, Rayat, Utan, Sakai, Alas,4 Blandas, Besisi, and Akik.

Vaughan-Stevens 5 has the following note on the Udai :—

"The term Udai is applied by the Pangan to —

" (1) The pygmy tribes of Belum in Perak.

"(2) By the Malays to the Orang Jinak or

• Tame ' Semang.

" (3) And also to a species of demon (Hantu), who was sometimes identified with the whole jungle race, whom many Patani Malays call ' Hantu Pari,' or 'Udai Pari.'"

Belum, as already noted, is in the extreme north of Perak, but the people referred to are Semang, as may also be the Udai of Newbold and Logan. The latter live on the Muar, which rises in the Negri

1 Logan, vol. i. /. c. Perak " (Newbold, ii. 383). It should

2 Newbold, ii. 381, 382 be noted that such names as "Orang

3 I.e. the Negrito element among Bukit," " Rayat," and " Orang Utan " the Jakuns. or " Alas," can hardly be considered as

4 The " Alas are said to be a tribal names, tattooed race, living in the interior of 6 P. 10 1.

Sembilan and in Sungei Ujong. Their alternative name Pago is taken from a tributary of the Muar in Johor which bears that name.

So little is definitely known of these Orang Pago or Udai, however, that it is very difficult to ascertain what is their exact relationship to the other wild people. On the whole, they are probably a race somewhat mixed with the Semang, dwelling in N.W. Johor, the Negri Sembilan, Sungei Ujong, and Jelebu ; or they may even perhaps be chiefly of Negrito origin, an outlier, as it were, of the main groups of that race whose principal home is farther to the north. For the present, and until more definite information is forthcoming, the question must remain open.

Besisi.

One of the most important of the tribes living on the southern extremity of the Peninsula are the Besisi. The name always used by themselves is " Sisi '' ; the Malay explanation (Besisi = Bersisik) 1 is certainly due entirely to Malay popular etymology.

According to Logan (/. c), the Mantra on the northwest " march with the Besisi, one of the most numerous tribes, who occupy all the streams flowing in that direction from Gunong Berembun. It is this tribe which occupies the Sungei Ujong and Linggi, and the lower part of the Langat, with their feeders."

Martin says of the Besisi that they are essentially brachycephalic, whilst the Blandas, like the Sakai (Senoi), are chiefly dolichocephalic. He adds that whilst the Sakai (Senoi) are amongst the shortest of the wild tribes, the Blandas and Besisi show a larger percentage of relatively taller individuals. With them,

1 I.e. the " scaly M people.

i RACE-CHARACTERS 01 SAVAG1 MALAYS 73

curiously enoughj the women also are 'all (1510 mm.), .md the sexual difference sink', with them to 2.4 cm.1

Mantra ok MlNTERA.

The Mantra (Mcntra or Mintera),1 the largest tribe, dwell about Gunong Berembun and the adjacent

mountains. They possess the higher part of both the western and eastern streams. On the south they frequent the upper part of the Langat, etc. The follow- ing notes on the physical characters of the " Mantra " are given by Logan,3 who gives figures : —

The remarks respecting the Benua physiognomy (v. infra) are, on the whole, applicable to the "Mantra." The face of the woman (figured), in particular, although grave, is not dull and sullen. In the case of the most intelligent of the party, the head preserves the general Benua characteristics. The forehead is fine, but as usual the cheek-bones swell out laterally beyond it. The faces of all the Mantra seem to be formed of two parts, separated by a line across the eyes. The upper (part) is the forehead, rising from a base considerably narrower than the line connecting the zygomatic projections. The great bulk of the lower part is horizontally oblong, the external lines having a slight inclination inwards from the zygomatic arches to the angles of the lower jaw opposite the mouth, after which they converge towards the chin, which forms an angle much more obtuse than in the Beduanda

1 For further measurements see App. 2 Often derived from Mai. "Mantra"

According to Newbold (ii. 393) the (a " charm "), I believe wrongly, the

chiefs of the Besisi included one Batin word being pronounced Mentcra' by

or chief of the first rank only, viz. Pa' the Mantra themselves. " Men-

Limpei, who succeeded his uncle Breh dera' " ( = a "man" in Semang) seems

(" Breyk ! "), a Jinang called Mumin, a a better derivation, though the " d " is

Jukrah named Sak£nal, and a Poyang certainly a difficulty, named Manan. 3 J. I. A. vol. i. p. 294.

Kallang.1 This form is given by the lower jaw not proceeding directly to the ear, but forming an angle below it. The vertical elongation of the upper part of the face is a striking feature. The nose in all is small and slightly turned up, and the mouth large. The hair falls over the shoulders ; and, in one of the men, showed a profusion of curls. The toes of the Mantra tribes, like those of all the tribes of the interior with which I have any acquaintance, are spreading, so that the foot is very broad anteriorly in proportion to its length. Other characteristics may be gathered from an inspection of the annexed table.2

Elsewhere3 the lips of the Mantra are said to be ''gross and loose," and the profile prognathous.

M. Borie 4 stated that the tribes from Selangor up to Mount Ophir are known as Mantra, and that " the number of Mantra " did not appear to him to exceed 2000, although it was one of the most numerous tribes. To many authors even this estimate appears too great. It is indeed doubtful if M. Borie was right in stating that the Mantra were the most numerous tribe. They distinguish themselves both from the Besisi and the Jakun. M. Borie speaks of the Mantra as extending from Selangor to Mount Ophir, in which case he has evidently included with them the Besisi.

The Catholic mission to the Mantra near Malacca was visited by Miklucho-Maclay, who gives the headindex of the Mantra (15) as between 74 and 89/

Further measurements will be found in the Appendix.

1 See under O. Laut. 3 J. I. A. vol. i. p. 301. The

2 See Appendix. The "profusion " loose " lips are a Sakai feature, of curls" may be due to Semang ad- 4 (Trans. Bourien), p. 72. mixture ; in other respects the features ° Virchow in V. B. G. A. xxiii. described are Sakai. 843.

/»v/r/.; ciiAKAcri'.KS or sai\>,/ ma/. a 7$

M-Maclay strongly supports the Malayan < hara tcr stipulated for the M.mti.i, although as he believed that element t<> be due to admixture with civili led Malays, he fails to sec the full force of his fa< 1 ,

He layi that the Ortng Mantra, new Mala - malt tribe bettei known

than the othei Orang Utan, from the bet that, so ion}.; ago ai the year 1848, Catholic missionaries settled down anion;; them.' He visited 1 numbei of them at the Ayci Salak Mission neai Milan a, and found them, in consequence oi the influence oi the school and their constant Intercourse with the missionaries, "the most uninteresting of all the Orang Utan tribes foi the purpose-, of Mis particulai studies." Their language had been forgotten and had been replaced by Malay, in which all their school-books and religious works were written. The mission' .iiu 1 had done nothing to collect the remains of the old language.

The Mantras whom he saw (most of them children and women) were almost without exception of a Malay type; if he had come to see them without knowing that they were Mantras, he would probably have taken them for a number of Malays, badly led, and brought up in a miserable condition, and he should have doubted the possibility of any mixture of Melanesian blood.-

According to Logan, the Mantra were chary of bathing, and their only plaything was a kind of top called "gasing kunde."3

Beduanda.

The Jakun of the Rembau and Negri Sembilan states are said to bear the closest resemblance, however, to the Malays of those states. " But we cannot infer from this that they descend from these Malays, as we know by history and tradition that they were in the Peninsula before them ; and that the Rembau Malays descend from the Jakun by their mother's side, as we have seen when speaking of the arrival of To' Peter (Tu Puttair), which explains sufficiently the resemblance wre perceive in the [Rembau] Malays to the Jakun."4

Favre states that the Jakun — of these states {i.e.

1 The founder of the mission, M. mission in 1878. Borie, has written a short paper upon 2 J. R. A. S., S. B., No. 2, pp.

them, since printed in Misc. Essays 218, 219. on Indo- China, series ii. vol. i. pp. 3 J. I. A. vol. i. p. 330*.

286-307. Herr F. Jagor visited the 4 Favre in^. /. A. vol. ii. p. 245.

of Rembau, Negri Sembilan, etc.) — were very short, their physiognomy was low, and seemed to announce great simplicity ; many of them were ugly and badly made — they had the inferior part of the nose much depressed — but though their lips projected a little they were generally well formed. To the foregoing Favre adds that he had already observed that this class of Jakun bore a great resemblance to the Malay ; or at least to many of the Malays.1

Johor Land-Tribes — Distribution.

The Jakun of Johor were spoken of by Logan as being a taller race than those of Malacca. He found several of them with hawked or aquiline noses2 — the men were healthy but generally thin; the women, on the contrary, were plump, and though healthy too, were not particularly " stout " (?).

Logan has given the fullest account of the wild folk that inhabit Johor. He divided them into several distinct tribes, the first of which he called the Orang Benua of Johor. These occupied all the interior of Johor properly so called. They also possessed the interior of the most southerly portion of Pahang. The most definite description of their territory, however, was that they occupied the upper branches of the most southern system of rivers in the Malay Peninsula.3 These rivers, from west to east, were the Batu Pahat, the Pontian, the Johor river, and the Endau. This latter communicates in its upper reaches with the Batu Pahat by a branch called the Sembrong, so that the

1 /. /. A. vol. ii. p. 246. may be due. It does not, moreover,

2 This, coupled with the greater appear to be so common as to be height, points to some sort of admixture, typical of the tribe, much less of the but it is impossible in the absence of race.

further details to say to what race it 3 J. I. A. vol. i. p. 246 seq.

i RACE-CHARACTERS OB SAVAGE MALAYS 77

communities living to the west could communicate

with those of the east, and vice versa*

All these rivers except the Pontian rise in a group of mountains known as Gunong Blumut

Two rivers in this neighbourhood do not app to be inhabited by the Jakun ; these are the Pulai in

the south-west of Johor, and the Setlili, lying just to the north of the Johor river. Logan found no Benua on the Johor river below the junction of the Sayong and Lenggiu (branches of the Johor river). On the north-west they did not extend beyond the Simpang Kiri — a branch of the Batu Pahat. Whether the Pahang tribes— to the north of the Endau — are similar to the Benua, he had no opportunity of ascertaining, but the Benua inhabiting the country indicated undoubtedly formed a separate tribe in themselves — they had no connection with any other tribe and scarcely any knowledge of such.1

Race-Characters of Johor Land-Tribes.

Speaking of the personal appearance of the Benua- Jakun (or " Benua of Johor," as he calls them), Logan says 2 that in personal appearance they bore a strong family resemblance to the Malays, and he remarked of many of them, as he had previously done of the Besisi, that the difference was scarcely appreciable so long as they remained at rest and silent. But the great majority were at first glance distinguishable from Malays. The most constant and obvious characteristic was the eye, which, as in the Berembun tribes (noticed below), was soft, mild, and with a liquid brilliancy, very different from the dark, cloudy aspect of that of the Malay. He

1 Logan, J. I. A. vol. i. p. 246 seq. 2 lb. p. 249 seq.

only noticed in two or three of the men that habitually wild expression which occurs more frequently amongst the Berembun tribes. The mouth varies greatly, but in all is open and entirely devoid of that degree of firmness which generally characterises that of the Malay, but which is sometimes wanting in them also. In a considerable number the lips are thick and projecting, and this is sometimes carried so far that they are as prominent as the nose. The lips do not form an acute angle but are often in a line. The forehead has a moderate slope, and in itself is well formed, though small. But it is disproportionate to the face, the middle part of which, between the posterior part of the lower jaw and the upper part of the cheek-bones, expands laterally much beyond the base of the forehead. The nose is always low, whereas in the Malay, although it is frequently of the same description, it is sometimes seen higher and more shapely. The general shape of the head and features of the Benua assimilates to the Malayan, although it is decidedly smaller ; but it is not clear whether more examples might not be obtained of approximation to Bugis faces than to Malayan. In many cases the Benua - Jakun face is fat and fleshy and all the features heavy, but in general it is not fat. The greatest breadth is commonly across the cheek-bones, but in several instances where the jaws were prominent the lower part of the face was broadest. Viewed in profile, the jaw-bones are seen to advance more than in the Malays in general, so that the chin, lips, and extremity of the nose are in one line, approaching to the vertical, which forms an obtuse angle with that on which the nose and forehead are placed. Physically they may be considered a link between the Negrito (" negro") and brown races

i RACh CHARACTERS OF SAVAGE MALA\

of the Archipelago. The general expression ol the

lace denotes good nature, mildness, inna en< e, i ontent, want of mental energy and reflectiveness, and a pre dominance of the senses over the intellei t. The complexion is generally similar to that of the Malays, but he noticed several who were much fairer than any

Malays. The hair is black and in general smooth and lank, and in all somewhat more dry and tangled than in the Malays, arising from the little oil which they use. The children were often dull and fat, and very timid, yet many were lively, bold, and engaging, and his Malay followers everywhere remarked that in appearance they could not be distinguished from Malayan children. The body is smaller and in general shorter than that of a Malay, but it is handsomer and less heavy ; the great length of the trunk in proportion to the limbs sometimes destroys the effect of the slighter and neater build. The chest is generally broad and full, and the shoulders narrower and less sloping than is the case with Malays. The pelvis is not so broad, and the limbs in particular are lighter, neater, and often well shaped. They are almost always in excellent condition, without being too fat, although the softer sex has often a tendency to obesity. The comparative shortness of stature, and the smooth, rounded surfaces which the person presents throughout, in a large majority of the Benua-Jakun, add to the Bugis aspect which is often observable among them.1

Most of the preceding remarks may be extended to the Berembun tribes.

Miklucho-Maclay, in a brief account of an excursion made long after Logan, in 1875, through Johor, comes to the conclusion that there can be no doubt of the

1 Logan in J. I. A. vol. i. p. 250.

existence in Johor of an aboriginal non- Malayan population, not only not of Malay origin, " but probably related to the Papuans " (!).

Here and there l he came across individuals whom he could not consider otherwise than as retrogrades to the main aboriginal type. In most of these cases the hair, though not absolutely identical with that of the pure Papuan type, resembled in texture and growth that of the Malayo-Papuan (mixed race) of the West Coast of New Guinea, who are by no means inconsiderable in number. In these individual cases the hair was quite different from the curled hair of the other Jakun ("Orang Utans ").2

The chief reasons for his decision on this point were deduced from the existence of these reversions from the present to the aboriginal type ; the fact that the Jakun ("Orang Utans") were not easily distinguishable from the Malays inhabiting the interior of Johor did not diminish this decision, because these Malays had "by intermarriage partly inherited the Jakun (' Orang Utan ') type."

This system of intermarriage had, in M.-Maclay s opinion, been "in practice for centuries," and was likely to have been occasioned " by the flight into the interior of those of the coast Malays who preferred retirement into the jungle to embracing the doctrines of Islam " at the time of the conversion of the country to Mohammedanism.

1 The italics are mine. The net consciously selected Negritos to figure result of M. -Maclay's remarks is to and observe, without paying any reestablish the presence of a small gard to the perhaps somewhat less Negrito element among some, at all striking characteristics of the Malayan events, of the Jakun tribes of Johor. type so general in the tribes through Unfortunately M.-Maclay could not get whom he passed. But this weakness, rid of his preconceived ideas, and as unfortunately, is a very general one. he was hunting for what he believed 2 M.-Maclay, Journ. East Asia, i. to be the Papuan (!) element, he un- 97.

i RACL CHARACTERS OF SAVAGE MALAYS I

Miklucho Macla) figures a woman of the river Leba, a tributary of t li < - Endau, age about [8 /ears, and mother of two children ; height 1420 mm.;1 head brachycephalic ; index 81. The hair was frizzled, and

for this reason Miklucko- Maclay selected her to figure. She cannot then be regarded as a typical example of

the Wild Tribes ("Orang Liar") of that neighbourhood— who are in all probability identical with Logan's Benua-Jakun, — as Maclay speaks of meeting with individuals with frizzled hair only " here and there."

A male Jakun (" Orang Utan") from Garib, on a tributary of the Endau, is also figured by the! same author. His height is 1500 mm. ;*J cephalic index 79 ; age about 18. "The face is remarkable owing to the small forehead, a broad, slightly projecting nose, thick lips, narrow under-jaw, and receding chin. The hair is of Malayan type."

The third person figured, a woman of the Jakun ("Orang Utan") Sletar, belongs to a branch of the Orang Laut.3

It is difficult to form any estimate of the numbers of the Benua-Jakun of Johor.

Maclay remarks that these tribes are gradually becoming extinct, and attributes it to the constant advance of the Malay and Chinese population, and to frequent intermarriage between the Malays and the Jakun (" Utan ") women ; the latter race is becoming intermixed into the former, and this mixed race is fast increasing.

But it would have been more consistent had he said

J In orig. 1.42 inches (sic). O. Sletar see Lapicque, Tour du

2 In orig. 1.50 inches (sic). M., N.S. ii. (1896), liere sem. pp.

3 For other illustrations of the 58, 59.

VOL. I G

that the " aboriginal non-Malayan population" was being swamped by intermixture with Malay blood, assuming his view to be correct, for the "aboriginal population," according to his own theory, already largely consists of individuals of mixed parentage.

Hervey, writing six or seven years after Miklucho- Maclay, states that the settlements of the tribe under discussion, whom he calls Jakun, on the Sayong and Lenggiu, on the Benut, Pontian, and Batu Pahat, as well as those on the Madek, a tributary of the Sembrong, and the upper Endau (Indau), may be described as Orang Ulu Jinak, or "tame tribes of the interior." He believes that there are within the limits of Johor a few representatives of the Orang Liar, or wild men, amongst the Segamat hills, near the source of the Endau.1

The " Madek tribe " was visited by Hervey, who says that their numbers are very limited, comprising no more than thirty souls. They are not uniform in type, even their limited community presenting several varieties, which is accounted for by the intermarriage with Malays ; the Chinese have, he believes, had little, if any, intercourse with them.

In the Appendix will be found Virchow's remarks on the Jakun material (measurements, etc.) collected by Vaughan-Stevens.

Under the same reference will be found Virchow's description of three Jakun skulls sent home by the same collector, the main points of interest in which are as follows : —

The first of these skulls was that of a young woman, and was very light, the second, that of an old man ; yet both, in fact, were characterised by

1/.R.A.S.,S.B., No. 8, p. ioo seg.

i RACE-CHARACTERS OF SAVAGE MALAl «3

Virchow as being, in point of size( it dwari skull (nannocephalic). The skull shown in Figi 3 belonged

in shape to the bullet - head type, 1>UL was high ill

proportion (hypsi-brachycephalic). The nose was

very broad, the bridge being deeply incurved and short, its position, together with that of the teeth

(which were thickly encrusted with betel), agreeing very well with the extreme prognathism of this specimen. The second skull (that of the old man) was a little broader in proportion than that of the* young woman (ortho-mesaticephalic). The features were large and heavy, the orbits very large, and the nose broad and flat (platyrhine).

The third (which was stated to be that of a male, but appeared to Virchow to be that of a female) was of yet broader and flatter appearance (eurycephalic). The cheek-bones, as a whole, were depressed, the orbits of moderate size, and the nose resembled that of No. 2. In this skull, again, as in No. 2, prognathism of a pronounced type was present. The pro- portions of the face in all three skulls were much more constant than those of the cerebral portion of the skull. Nevertheless, in spite of a certain amount of marked variation in the latter, "the racial unity of the tribe cannot be doubted, as the similarities are greater and more numerous than the differences." Virchowr proceeds to describe the limb-bones of a female skeleton sent home by the same collector, and in this connection remarks that, although they undoubtedly come from an adult individual, '" they are small and delicate like children's bones."

From this Professor Virchow drew the conclusion that "'in any case we can congratulate ourselves on seeing before us the most unmistakable dwarf

bones offered by ethnology." If, however, by this expression he intends to convey — which appears to be the only interpretation possible — that the Jakun are a dwarf race, one can only reply that any such conclusion, especially when based upon measurements taken from a single individual, even if it were otherwise well founded, would be altogether premature, and furnishes an example of one of the curious lapses to which even great intellects appear occasionally liable. We shall have to await, there is very little doubt, a considerable body of fresh evidence before any such conclusion can be either definitely established or refuted.

On the important subject of the hair-character of the Jakun, Virchow remarks that in his opinion the hair of all the Jakuns examined (by Vaughan-Stevens) belonged to the same type, and that the contrast with that of the Semang and Sakai was " as sharp as can be imagined." This was a matter of the more importance " as the relationship of the Jakun to the other tribes has always been a matter of dispute."

The Jakun hair, then, appears to have been, generally speaking, black ("glossy black" in the case of a specimen sent) and straight, and the percentage of Jakuns with wavy or curly hair seems to have been extremely small. There can at all events be no doubt whatever, in spite of the exceptions that admittedly occur, that the former is the real hair-type of the Jakun race.

The skin -colour in general was a yellowish or greyish tint of brown (No. 37 of the Parisian colourplate being the commonest shade).

The eyes of the Jakun were usually a dark shade of brown (Nos. 2-3), and the conjunctiva

RACE-CHARACTERS Oh SAVAGE MALAY. 85

frequently more or less bloodshot. The teeth were good, often slightly projecting, l>nt free from cart< the lips well formed and thin ; the ear lobes invariably

perforated and much distended.

1 1 car 1 tig. The sense of hearing was certainly sharper among the Jakun ' [tlian among

either the Semang or the Sakai].

Hands and 1 in the case of the Jakun, especially with the children, it is possible to

ascertain pretty exactly, by observing the feet, whether any kind of mixture with Malay or other blood, at least of recent date, has taken place. The little toe of the Jakun, especially in childhood, is very Straight in comparison with that

ol the Sakai (Blandas), and quite especially so in comparison with that of the Malays and Chinese. It has much less ol the talon-like crook which is so usual in our own feet. I have, in fact, seen little toes in Jakun children which were as straight and well-formed as any of the other toes of the foot.

When, moreover, the Jakun arrives at manhood, and especially by the time he is upwards of thirty years old, his feet become covered all over with knobs and knots, are stiff, ugly, scarred and diseased. The Jakun never wash, and although their hands and feet are often in water, it is usually dirty, marshy, and unhealthy water, which penetrates into the cracks of the skin, scratches and pricks caused by thorns, etc., and causes the limbs to swell and stiffens them, until they look like the work-worn hands of an old labourer in England who has had to be out in all sorts of weather.

This is one result of the hardships of their life ; for the infants and children have small, well-formed hands and feet. The contrast between those of the father and of the youngest child is very great. The hands of the women, however, are beautiful and soft.

The half-blooded Orang Laut are skilful at thieving, especially with the toes. I have been robbed of small objects which lay on the ground, while I have been talking with a man, face to face, and never noticed that he took them off. I have also seen from the corner of the eye how the toes of the foot slowly slid over the desired object and dragged it along with them, till the foot could be raised to the hand, when the thing could be grasped in the fingers and hidden.2

Climbing.

The oldest (!) method of climbing employed by the Jakun (or " Benua ") consists in binding the ankles with a head-rope {Kopf-seil) as the Sinhalese do.3

Swimming.

The Jakun (Benua) swim well, and are good divers. They use the Malay method. The Orang Laut is an excellent swimmer. He swims, like the Malay, on the breast, so that his body is in a somewhat sidelong position. He stretches the left and right arm alternately out of the water, and brings them back to the side of the body, like the spokes of a wheel from the hub. The hands are

1 Z.J\ E. xxix. 182. 2 lb. p. 190. 3 lb. p. 200.

thus directed backwards with open palms, and the legs are struck outwards at each motion of the body, like those of a frog. The children swim as well as adults, even before they can walk. The Orang Laut are also excellent divers.1

Among the Jakuns, two children at a time will take the end of a rattan-rope between the teeth and tug till one has conquered the other ; but they have not the Malay tug-of-war.

It amused me very much to see how a small Jakun boy one day diverted his comrades by sitting down in the well-known Indian fashion, with the soles of his feet placed flat on the floor, his legs bent at the knees, and drawn up close to the body, and his body depressed till it almost touched the ground. While he was in this position a short stick of bamboo was placed through his elbows behind his back. Thus handicapped, the fat, tubby little fellow had to bend forward till he touched the ground with his forehead, without letting the bamboo slip out of position. All made the attempt, but this little fellow was the most expert and agile of all.2

Sleeping.

The Jakun, whether lying on one side or the other, usually rolls himself together into a "ball" for sleeping. If the night is hot, he soon begins to unroll himself a bit, but in the early or colder hours of the morning one can be quite sure of finding both sexes with knees drawn up to the body. The children sleep from earliest childhood on a mat which is laid upon the ground. Their place is at their mother's breast, between her and the smouldering fire, and enclosed more or less in her arms.3

As soon as signs of approaching puberty appear in their children, the Jakuns arrange for them to sleep apart. On land, the boy slept in a separate part of the hut, or in the front part of the boat if he was on water. In the covered platforms on the coast the girls slept with the married people. In the temporary huts with covered platforms used in former times, which the Jakuns visited in their well-known places of assembly on the coast, the bachelors, when they passed the night there, always slept in huts which were separate from the married people.4

Physical Endurance.

In illustration of the fortitude of the Jakun, Yaughan- Stevens tells of one who had deep-seated ulcers. " I gave him sulphate of copper [Blaustein) and zincoid, showed him how to use it, and expressly warned him to be careful. But as I feared a misunderstanding, I followed him soon after he had left me, and came upon my patient just as he had made use of the Blaustein. That had been done very freely, as the earlier neglect of the ulcer prevented him from feeling it at once, although the whole surface of about four square inches was touched with it." The patient squatted on the ulcered leg, and Vaughan Stevens saw the muscles of the leg quiver and contract into knots in consequence of the pain which the patient felt after a few minutes ; but not a movement, not a sound, nor any other sign except a deep breathing was to be observed. "He began to speak in firmly measured tones, and when I remarked that that was called medicine ('ubat'), he calmly replied that the doctor (' bomor ') had told him so. He had shown endurance with a vengeance, but as there was no reason to put him to a further test, I gave him a morphia injection, for which he was very grateful."0

The question of the Jakun's sensitiveness to heat is difficult to answer, since

1 Z.f.E. xxix. 198. - lb. p. 201. a /*. 186.

• Id. p. 190. 5 Id. pp. 205, 206.

i MALA YAA SEA G YP ?/i I7

he v. 1 1 1 1 1 «-, nothing l>nl .1 h'-.nl li.iml t.> l.r. j, In. loflg bftil '" <<nliT,

hence n<( . •«> .11 < 11 .loiiicd Id tli'- mi . i.i). 1l1.it In- scarcely I- •< I . any |

incic r.r 111 lli<- .nil's licit.

Ill,- [ftkUfl ttppt'UI to illllci less It- .in the u<:, cnlcl wnuls <>f tin- mountain » ill. 111 my n| llic otlici liilics. The Jul. tm .i|>|><-.n . !•■ >w> In, p0WC1 "I I ffldtU

t>> thi reUtive robustness i>"tii "i hii ph) leal -i".i mentftl !"">'•• 1 , doe to his '.•K fttei tendency t<> iftvagery.

lie h. is, moreover, long carried on ft rude i>ut persistent form ol agriculture, cultivating rice and tubers, though h<- alio consumes much more bah than thr others.

The Jftkuo children endure vrant o( i<><><1 bettei thftn those ol the Semftng*'

Sea-Jakun or Orang Laut -Distribution.

Orang Laut is the name applied to wandering coast tribes whose permanent dwelling is usually in their boats. They are spoken of as Rayat Laut, or Sea-subjects — subjects, that is, of the kings of Johor or Malacca. According to Crawfurd,2 they are sometimes called Sika, Orang Akik ("Akkye"), or more frequently Bajau or pirates. Their headquarters are the narrow straits between the islands of the Johor archipelago.3 The same wrriter says that from this neighbourhood they have spread to the shores of Banca, Billiton, some of the islands of the coast of Borneo, and even as far as the Celebes and Buru, from whence they make voyages to the north coast of Australia. Prior to the introduction of steam-vessels by the English and Dutch Governments these " Seafolk " are said to have been formidable pirates.4

The Johor archipelago is thinly peopled by a number of " tribes " of Orang Laut, known collectively as the Orang Pe-suku-an,5 a name meaning the people divided into tribes. A list of some twelve of these tribes is also given, and we are told that besides these

1 Z.f. E. xxix. 202, 203. Singapore and Billiton (see J. I, A.

2 Descr. Diet., s.v. "Orang Laut." vol. i. p. 336*). 4 V. p. 570 infra.

3 The Johor archipelago consists of 5 Seef. I. A. vol. i. p. 336*, " Eththe innumerable islands lying between nology of the Johor Archipelago."

there are some wild tribes in the interior of the larger islands.

The Sabimba river has not yet been traced, but the Orang Sletar take their name from Sungei Sletar, a creek of the island of Singapore, only 8 miles distant from the modern town. According to Thomson,1 they numbered in all 200 people, or 40 boats, and were subject to a Batin or petty chief, under the sovereignty of the Sultan of Johor.

At the time of the first landing of Sir Stamford Raffles at Singapore about thirty families of Orang Laut lived a little way up the Singapore river, about half of them on shore and half in boats.2 This settlement had been in existence since 181 1 or thereabouts.3

At the present time there are still a few of the Orang Laut to be found in the island of Singapore.

Amongst other branches of the same race one or two may be mentioned as having been described by various writers. Such are the Beduanda Kallang 4 of the Pulai river in Johor. These folk formerly haunted the " Kallang " creek to the east of the town of Singapore, but when the island was ceded to the British they were removed by the Temenggong (or raja) of Johor to the Pulai river in that state, where they have since dwelt. From about 100 families they have been reduced by the ravages of small-pox to eight. They were, beyond a doubt, very closely allied to the Orang Sletar of Singapore, as well as to the Orang Laut who formerly inhabited the Singapore river, and the few survivors now living in the island.

The Orang M Muka Kuning," also described by

1 J. I. A. vol. i. p. 342* (1847). bimbangs, Muka Kunings, and Bidu-

2 J. R. A. S., S.B. No. 10, p. 285. andas," then settled near Cape Romania,

3 Crawfurd, Desc. Diet., s.v. "Singa- at the mouth of the Johor river, pore." Borie (1861) mentions the " Sa- 4 J. I. A. vol. i. p. 299 (Logan).

RACE CHARACTERS Oh MALAYAh SEA-GYP, u

the same writer, inhabit the foresti on the banks ol the Sa-raya and its tributary the Muka Kuning.

Pulau Tinggi, ofl the east coast of fohor, wra i .1 favourite lurking-place for the ( >rang Laut in the da when they practised pirac; .

We may conclude then that the almost innumerable creeks, inlets, and islands lying along the coast of Johor and to the south of it, as far as Billiton at any rate, are — or perhaps it is necessary to say were — peopled by wild men of Malayan origin, who spent most of their time on the water, and that almost every community of these people was called by a different name, the name of the locality that it occupied for the time being.

And finally we are told by Anderson that in the upper coasts of the Malay Peninsula, from " Poongha " to Trang (in the neighbourhood of Junk Ceylon), including a coast of 16 or 18 leagues and a number of islands, there were no inhabitants except the Orang Laut who navigated from island to island.1

Race-Characters of the Orang Laut.

The physical characters of members of this race have been described by Logan 2 and Thomson.3

The former gives an account of three men of the Beduanda Kallang. The chief features of the face appear to be the great width of the forehead, which is at the same time unusually low, the absence of prognathism, and the thinness of the lips. The face is flat and the eye-brows horizontal. The general character of the face is between that of the Malay and Siamese,

1 App. to Anderson's Considerations, " Cellates '' or "Men of the Straits." p. liv. (1824). The O. Laut are first 2 J. I. A. vol. i. p. 301 seq.

mentioned by De Barros, who calls them 3 lb. p. 347*.

9o RACIAL AFFINITIES part

but perhaps nearer the latter. The features of Saweng and Sango (two of the men described) had a pinched or compressed look. He had never seen any men who resembled them. The Orang Sletar are closely allied to the Beduanda Kallang(both indeed appear to be branches of one tribe, the aborigines of Singapore).

In the same paper the height of three individuals of the Beduanda Kallang is given as respectively 5 ft., 5 ft. 4^- in., 5 ft. 5 in.1 Other measurements of interest are — circumference of the head, average 21 in. ; height of forehead, 2 in. ; breadth of forehead, $\ in.2

Thomson," remarking on the physical characters of the Sletar tribe, says that they are closely allied to the Beduanda Kallang. This, coupled with the fact that the Sletar and Kallang are both creeks of the island of Singapore, the original locality of each, and that sampans (canoes) can approach the navigable part of either creek within two miles, there need not be any hesitation in proclaiming their identity of origin, although they now live as separate tribes. The most distinctive features of these tribes are the lowness of the brow, retreating backwards from the superciliary ridge ; a protrusion of the lower part of the face, not in the manner of prognathous tribes, but by the acuteness of the facial angle. When viewed from the front they are found to possess an obliquity of eyes and eyebrows, the eyelids being much closed and only showing half the pupil. The general contour of the face obtains a decided character by great breadth of forehead, expansion of zygoma, and rapid tapering to the chin, which is lengthy and narrow. The nose is depressed and mouth moderate. Such may be considered the

1 1.523 m., 1.638 m., 1.657 m. a 532 mm., 5 cm., 13 cm. 3 Loc. cit.

.1/-Y7;

Group of Jakun (Aboriginal Malayans) from Klang

ORANG I. \l"I" or SEA- J \KI.W.

A\ //. Yapp.

Orang Laut of Kalang, Singapore.

R. H. Va/>/>.

Orang Laut of Kalang, Singapore.

^

«•*-

'

^J

V

\vm

-v ■--■'

A'. //. J '«#.

Orang Laut of Kalang, Singapore.

A'. //. Yap !>{Skeat Expedition).

Orang Laut of Kalang, Singapore.

RACE CHARACTERS OF MAI. A VAN SEA <> YPSIBS gi

distinctive features of the race, though many wrerc

seen possessing the Malayan type Strongly marked.1

In a previous passage Thomson states that in his own opinion this tribe of Orang Laut may be

said, with little fear of contradiction, to be merely unconverted Malays in the; general acceptation of the term, though a distinct class from the Malays properly so called who poured their hordes over the Archipelago (sic})'1 prior to 1200 of the Christian era, from the great river Malayu ("Malayoo"), in Sumatra. While all the tribes of Malays on the coast of the Malayan Peninsula and adjoining islands have embraced the tenets of Mahomet, they have remained unaffected by the movement.

Taking into consideration Logan's view as to the "Tartar" characters of the Jakun quoted above in dealing with that race, and the close relationship existing between the Jakun and the Orang Laut,3 it seems safe to conclude that both are branches of a Mongoloid stock which probably inhabited the Peninsula before the irruption of the more civilised Malays, who in this case are to be regarded as a specialised branch of the same stock.

A distinguishing feature of the Orang Laut appears to be their height, which is about 5 ft. 3 in.4 on an average, to judge from the scanty measurements available. That of the Besisi and Blandas appears to be about 5 ft. 1 in.5 according to Dr. Martin's statement. But an extensive series of measurements is necessary before it is justifiable to make a definite statement on the subject. I venture, however, to suggest that the

1 Thomson, loc. cit. 5, p. 325 ; also Crawfurd, Descr. Did.

2 The interrogation is mine. under " Benua."

3 See Newbold, ii. 410, 411, 413, 4 1.6 m. 414; and Skeat,/. A\ A. S. , S. B. , No. 5 1. 548 m.

greater height of the Orang Laut may depend, at any rate, partly on the smaller amount of intermixture with Semang (and Sakai) tribes. The more inland Jakun of Johor and Selangor sometimes show considerable traces of a Negrito strain. Had this been noticeably present in the Orang Laut, I think Logan and Thomson and other good observers would have noticed it, especially if it had affected the hair.1

It is impossible to form an estimate of the number of Orang Laut existing at the present time. Certain it is that the number is much less than it was a century ago, largely owing, no doubt, to the ravages of smallpox as well as to their conversion to Islam and con- sequent absorption among the Malays.

Walking.

The children of the Orang Laut very soon become tired on land, and walk with legs bent outwards ; the half-breeds are straighter and stronger.

The adult Orang Laut soon becomes tired in walking, and the walk of the entire race is, in fact, very clumsy on the land, because they squat down so much together in their little boats ; they can, in fact, be recognised at once from this characteristic.2

Climbing.

The Orang Laut climb well, when obliged to do so. As the trees on the coast are usually of small circumference, they can clasp the round trunk more than half-way round with their arms, and use the inside of the foot in climbing up. They do not appear to be acquainted with the idea of climbing by help of a rope or noose. If, therefore, they wish to climb a larger tree, which they cannot climb up by the help of the arms and legs alone, they are obliged to make a ladder. For this purpose bamboo pegs are driven into the tree one above the other, at distances of about two feet. To the ends of these pegs a bamboo pole is lashed so that it stands out from the tree about six inches. By means of these pegs, which serve in place of the rungs of a ladder, the man climbs up, and as he climbs drives fresh pegs into the tree above those already driven ; when he has reached the end of the first pole, he fastens a second pole to the tree in continuation of the first, and so on till he reaches the branches. Bark-fibre is used for lashings, and the ladder thus constructed is left in its place till it falls to pieces.3

Throwing.

The Orang Laut are very sure and strong throwers, and far excel all the other tribes in this respect. They are, for instance, very clever at throwing the

1 There are, however, to be seen though there are straight-haired ones curly-haired Orang Laut boys in Singa- as well, pore. In fact they are fairly common, 2 Z.f. E. xxix. 194. 3 lb. p. 198.

i SUMMARY OF SAVAGE MALA\ CULTURE ■>;

ihelli <>i ii.it bivalvei (" Mum ihel "), mch u thai "i tin pearl oystei i hold it .u the edge between one fingi i end the thunb( •<> thai the ihell lii i back flat over the wrist, and jerk It at a crab or a bird upon the lands, t ln-ii target with the iharp edge, a lump oi hard coral with ■< natural bole, through which a line woven from willowi I • threaded, ami hound into the form o(

a ring, is thrown hy help of this line with great forCC and certainty fd tin

crabs on the ihore, and so forth.'

Summary ok Jakun CULTURE.1

The Jakun, no less than the Semang and Sakai, are largely nomadic tribes, and though the Land Jakun for the most part practise some form of agriculture, they also live to a great extent by hunting, trapping, and fishing, and keep both dogs and fowls.

Some of the Jakun of Johor cultivate rice, others plant yams, plantains, water-melons, sugar-cane, and sometimes also, on a very small scale, tobacco. In particular, however, they plant durian trees, on which they set a high value on account of the fruit.3 The Mantra and Besisi hold a marriage-carnival at harvesttime.4 They smoke tobacco and chew betel, or, as a substitute, cassia- leaves, together with gambir and lime, which they obtain by barter from the Malays of the coast.5 Their clothing is like that of the Malays but scantier, that of the men only a linen apron {e.g. among the Mantra and Udai), that of the women a sarong.6 They are accustomed to file their teeth to a point ; they do not practise circumcision, but a form of incision has been recorded.7 The universal weapon of the northern Jakun (Besisi, Mantra, and others) is the blowpipe with poisoned arrows. Bows and arrows are known to them, but

1 Z.f. E. xxix. (V.-St.) 200. 3 Logan in J. I. A. i. 254, 255 ;

2 This account is re-written from the Favre, ib. ii. 259. summary of Benua Culture by Waitz 4 Logan, loc. cit. p. 260.

(who uses Benua as the equivalent of 5 Logan, loc. cit.; Newbold, ii. 406.

11 Savage Malay," in which sense 6 Logan, loc. cit. p. 252.

Jakun is used here). ~ Ib. p. 271.

94 RACIAL AFFINITIES iakt

are not employed ; they do not engage in tribal fights.1 The blowpipe is often fitted with a spearpoint at the muzzle, as is frequently the case among the Dayaks. That of the Sabimba is said to have been introduced to them from Sambas in Borneo by the Malays of the sea-board, from whom they also obtain other objects, especially rice.2 The ten-foot blowpipe of the Benua, and the preparation of their arrow-poison, has been described by Newbold.3 The Jakun, who do not invariably poison their arrows, carry spears and long knives 4 in addition to the blowpipe ; the Mantra use the sword and kris of the Malays, as well as the blowpipe and spear.5 The huts of the Benua-Jakun vary in point of size and fittings ; they have usually only one room in the centre, are built on piles, and are reached by means of a ladder ; many of them are not altogether without such comforts as Chinese curtains for dividing the rooms, and perhaps a few Chinese dishes ; 6 for the most part, however, they are but poorly built and furnished, the sides being only constructed of leaves or tree -bark, and they are forsaken by the inhabitants when a death occurs.7 The Jakun of Malacca build their huts only two feet high, four feet broad, and six feet long, but raise them on piles and surround them with a bulwark of thorns for protection against tigers.8 For river voyages (with the exception of the Sabimba) they employ boats constructed out of a hollow treetrunk, but they do not venture on the open sea, which they are said to dread.9 Of musical instruments the

1 Logan, i. 272, 273, iii. 405, 406, 6 lb. p. 253, 254.

iv. 429. 7 Newbold, ii. 404 ; Borie in

2 Thomson in/. 1. A. i. 337*, 338*. Tijdschr. Deel x. 420 ; Netscher, ib.

3 n- 395, 396. Deel ii. 138 ; Moor, 242.

4 Favre in/. 7. A. ii. 262. 8 Favre, loc. cit. 257.

6 Logan, i. 330. ■ Logan in /. LA. i. 271, 284,

SI MMARY <>/■' S A VAGI MAI A Y CULTl

Maiuni emploj a bamboo flute and a kind ol guitar,

though others are recorded. From their position it

follows that all the trade oi the Jakun is in the hands ol the Malays, who give them cloth, pots, dishes, ironware, etc., iii exchange lor jungle produce, hut who .it the

same lime greatly oppress them hy means of the debt i into which they lead them, as well as by their treat hery and unjust dealing,' this treatment being in din contrast to that which they receive from the Chinese.

At their tribal leasts they chant songs and perform mimetic dances in imitation of the various denizens <>t the jungle, the performer, who is dressed in leaves, carrying a peculiar dance-wand, and the performances themselves being apparently a form of productive magic. They have a more advanced social organisation than the Sakai and Semang, and in some cases their Batin or chief has a peculiar and unknown object as part of his regalia.

They also practise peculiar marriage and burial rites (e.g. the mound-ceremony, a species of marriagecarnival at harvest-time, and the erection of a miniature hut for the soul of the deceased), and have many magic ceremonies and traditions which point to the prevalence of ancestor- worship and Shamanism as ingredients in their religion.

297> 332 > Thomson, ibid. 347* ; cp. men " for pirates, or in some similar

also Logan in /. /. A. vol. i. p. 388, motive. But these Benua may have

where he remarks that "like the been Land Jakun after all.

northern tribes, the Benua have a l Borie, he. cit. p. 424.

great dread of the sea," a characteristic 2 Logan, he. cit. pp. 261, 285.

which he attributes to "exaggerated 3 Waitz, pp. 176, 177. As Col.

ideas respecting waves, sea -sickness, R. C. Temple points out, what such

and pirates." On this it may be re- tribes get by barter may be of value to

marked that it is hard to believe that themselves ; what they give is of none,

any true Sea Jakun really dread the sea, But though the bargaining of the

and that formerly when fluty professed Chinese may perhaps thus be defended,

themselves afraid of it, the reason might that of the Malays, who go far beyond

perhaps be sought in a fear of their the Chinese, can not. — Temple in

being themselves taken by the "white /. A.I. vol. xxix. p. 101.

Note by W. L. H. Duckworth on " Fasciculi Malayenses," Vol. I.

Messrs. Annandale and Robinson,1 whose expedition to the Malay Peninsula followed that of Mr. Skeat (of whose party Mr. Annandale was a member), have provided abundant data which will yield much information when fully worked out. At present the chief results that have come to hand appear to me to be the following. Firstly, as regards the living inhabitants of the Malay Peninsula, we are presented with observations whence the average colour of skin and eyes, the hair -characters, the stature, and the cephalic index of Semang, Sakai, people of the Trang coast, and South Perak Malays are obtainable, founded on a much broader basis than has hitherto been accessible. As regards the South Perak Malays, the data are probably entirely new. The foregoing results have been tabulated in the Appendix'2 (i) for purposes of general comparison in the comparative table, and (2) separately for purposes of comparison inter se. In the second place, the craniological collection comprises some extraordinarily valuable specimens, though unfortunately the number is not very large. Special mention must be made of the collection of skulls of the Orang Laut formed by Mr. Annandale. The appended table 3 gives concisely the results of the

1 Authors of Fasciculi Malayenses. 2 For this table see Appendix. 3 lb.

part i NOTE ON i ASi ICUU MAI A I ENS1

craniometrical study oi the It will be noted thai the Orang Laut and Orang Bukit, although separated by Mi-. Annandale, are \ el < loeely associated physically. When the general results of the expedition are reviewed, it heroines evident, in the first place, that the Semang

and the Sakai types are connected by transitional forms so numerous that it is only Irom the examination

oi very large numbers of individuals that the two

extreme forms can be differentiated. It is particularly to be noted that the cephalic index fails con- spicuously to differentiate the two, whereas the stature is a more- reliable characteristic, and it is from this, with the skin-colour and hair-characters, that evidence upon which the distinction is based is to be obtained. In the second place, the Samsams of the Trang coast (as is also the case with the South Perak Malays) stand, as indeed might have been expected, quite apart from the Semang and Sakai. Thirdly, as regards the results of the Skeat expedition, the characters of the Pangans measured by Messrs. Skeat and Laidlaw fall within the range of variation established by the more numerous observations in the Fasciculi Malayenses. When we turn to the craniological side we find that the Pangan skull provided by Mr. Skeat possesses characters which bring it also into line with the Semang and Sakai group of Messrs. Annandale and Robinson in everything except cranial capacity, which in the former example is greater than in any case observed by the authors of Fasciculi Malayenses.

Then comes the extraordinary case of Grubauer's Semang skull.1 This, although microcephalic, provides the unusually high cephalic index-figure of 85, which carries it far beyond the range of indices otherwise

1 Cf. Man, No. 18, 1903. VOL. I H

98 NOTE BY W. L. H. DUCKWORTH part

available for comparison. This unusual index need not be regarded as ruling out the skull from the ranks of the Semang-Sakai group, as the total number of skulls known is but fifteen or so, and in the living the index may, as is seen from the table, reach the figure of 85.5 ( = 83.5 on the skull).

Three more remarks may be made on the results of the authors of the Fasciculi Malayenses.

In the first place, they have obtained extraordinarily high figures for the radio-humeral index in the living Semang : results which do not accord with those obtained from the data of the Skeat expedition (whether from living Pangan or Semang or skeletons of the same), nor with Messrs. Annandale and Robinson's own results in the case of the skeletons collected by them. This is evidently due to their method of measurement, for their results for the living Semang are consistent throughout inter se. But the final effect is to give an incorrect idea of the preponderance of forearm length, which, though present, is not nearly so marked as the figures suggest.

Secondly, and regarding the craniological results detailed in the Fasciculi Malayenses, the skulls represented in photographs afford but slight material for comparisons, partly owing to the fact that two of them are skulls of aged women. The Semang skull, Plate xvi. Figs. 4, 5, 6, has a much flatter nasal skeleton than that of the Pangan in the Cambridge Museum ; and also presents less subnasal prognathism than the latter skull.

Finally, Plate xviii. Figs. 4, 5, 6, gives photographs of the skull of an " Orang Laut Kapir" {i.e. "Kafir" or "unconverted" Orang Laut) of the Trang coast : were the provenance of this specimen

i <>x « FASCICUl i MALA I

not precisely known, its dimensions, as given in the cable, and its proportions and appearance would lead to its being regarded as a good example ol the < >< eanu negro type as met with in New Guinea, New Britain, and neighbouring islands. Caution must therefore be exercised in basing conclusions on skulls taken from

ancient cemeteries of the kind whence this skull was obtained.

Note on Diseases of the Aborigim.-.

Very little has been observed about the diseases to which the wild aboriginal tribes are subject, and on the whole it appears that they are not much troubled by sickness, the reason being doubtless that as they live in a state of nature only the hardiest of their children survive. All of them are, however, in mortal terror of one disease in particular, viz. small-pox, from which many of their tribes have greatly suffered from time to time.

I. — Semang.

Fever does not appear to trouble the Semang so much as a malignant sort of ulcers and various minor forms of cutaneous disease (Mai. "kurap") which are very prevalent locally. The wife of the Semang chief (Pelima) at Siong was afflicted with an ulcer which was one of the worst I have seen in the East, and which had eaten deeply into the left leg.

Both Semang and Sakai are generally well formed, and are not unfrequently described as showing a magnificent physique. Deformed people and dwarfs are extremely rare, probably for the reason already given. One of the Semang (Pa' Gelugor) whom I observed at Jarum may, however, have approximated to a dwarf type, all of his measurements proving to be under the average. On the other hand, his back was

IOO

PAfti i Nl GR1T0S or KEDAH ioj

slightly bowed, but as he had arrived at an advanced age, this is perhaps more likely to have been due to physical infirmity than to congenital deformity.

Some form ol acute rheumatism, or more probably

sciatica, appeals occasionally to attack them,

in the case of a woman belonging to the Kedah Semang, of whose temporary "cure" I myseli w

witness.1 From the woman's own account, the pain, which was extremely acute and caused her great suffering, was situated in the hones of the leg*. The pain caused her to break out openly into weeping and loud crying, but nevertheless she was able to make her way into the forest for some thirty yards till she reached the site of her former house, in which she was presently M doctored " by the chief of the tribe.

The teeth of the Semang, like those of most other savages on a similar plane of culture, were extremely good, and were seldom attacked by caries.

Delivery, as a rule, was attended by very little difficulty, the woman usually resuming her ordinary avocations after three or four days' seclusion.

It could not be determined what sickness was meant by a ''great death" or plague that was traditionary among the Semang, but the symptoms were described to Vauehan-Stevens as follows : those who were attacked by the disease about noon, died before sunset, by which time the body had turned black in colour. It was evidently also much swollen up, since it was described by the Semang as looking "like a leech, when it falls off."

That the Semang (" Menik ") had no name for the disease seems to show that it was formerly unknown to them, and that they had no other tradi-

1 Cp. vol. ii. p. 230.

io2 NOTE ON DISEASES OE THE ABORIGINES part

tion about it than that "it had only come twice." The only thing that could be found out about it, besides, was that nobody attacked by it escaped with his life. It was further stated that it had arisen in consequence of the neglect of Pie's command never to stay more than five days in one place. This command, however, only applied to the men.1

Vaughan-Stevens gives Semang names for many other diseases, but in almost every case fails to translate or identify them.

II. — Sakai.

The foregoing remarks appear to be as applicable, generally speaking, to the Sakai as to the Semang. At all events, the Sakai have the same dread of smallpox and the same liability to ulcers and skin diseases, of which latter Hale (p. 288) distinguishes three kinds (" Kurap," " Kurap ayam," and " Kudis "), the prevalence of which he ascribes to the fact that the Sakai "very seldom bathe."2 He also mentions3 headache and stomach-ache as being diseases which are prayed against by the Sakai. De Morgan (ii. 717) mentions fevers (which are cured by the use of crushed " langsat " stones), colic, diarrhoea (for which calcined bones are used), dysentery, " kurab," and "wounds," which latter are dressed with sugar-cane pulp, bound with a strip of bark-cloth.

III. — Jakun.

Blandas. — There are no very special remarks to be made with regard to the diseases of the Blandas tribe. Some individuals suffered greatly both from

1 Sic Vaughan-Stevens, iii. 102. ii. 717; Brau de Saint - Pol Lias,

2 The two latter are ringworm and and other writers, itch. Cp. De Morgan in E Homme, 3 Hale, p. 301.

■roj/i/i ii

•/.

SAVAGE MAI A YS OF SELANGOR ioj

cutaneous disorders and ulcers, but this was probably, as with the Semang and Sakai, the result of the food thai they lived on, more especially ol some of the

yams and roots. Fevers were also very prevalent at

Certain seasons, btit small-pox was the one disease that

they most greatly dreaded, and on the appearance of

which they would llee from the district.

Besisi. — Owing to their way of life, it was not uncommon to meet amongst them individuals who had been accidentally maimed or wounded, and on one occasion, whilst driving along the Langat road at Klang, I encountered a Jakun who had been badly lamed by the injury and contraction of the muscles of the knee. After considerable persuasion, I induced him to return to Klang and enter the hospital, which was then in charge of the late Mr. W. M. Little. Mr. Little kindly interested himself in the case, and succeeded in affording the man a good deal of relief; but when the man had been a few days in hospital he returned to the jungle, saying before he left that he could not live in a place which was so shut in and devoid of trees. I never knew a case of mental disease among any of these tribes.

Jakun of Negri Sembilan. — The chief diseases are more or less malignant kinds of skin-disease — in part inherited, in part brought on themselves, for the hillmen of Negri Sembilan never indulge in the luxury of a bath.

They do not appear to possess much stamina for resisting fever and other internal ailments. When they had been living in the house assigned to them by Rowland for a short time, they became dissatisfied, and all developed a dry, painful cough, and moved about very despondingly ; scarcely an hour passed without

104 NOTE ON DISEASES OF THE ABORIGINES part

one of them coming to Rowland and saying that he was about to die, until at last Rowland had huts built for them after their own manner, when they at once recovered. Rowland adds that he heard nothing of mental diseases among them, though there are many such among the Malays.1

Jakun of Johor. — The Jakun were not much subject to sickness ; though none the less, for want of proper care, few of them reach to an advanced age. The sickness of which they have the greatest dread, and from which they suffer most, is the small-pox. If any one is attacked by it, he is at once entirely abandoned ; parents, relations, friends, and neighbours all fly from him alike, and the poor sick man, left without any assistance, of course dies miserably. In the case of other diseases, the sick are not so entirely uncared for ; some sort of physic, which consists ordinarily of an infusion or decoction of wild plants, being given according to the rude prescription of a Pawang, though usually without any success. The Jakun die for the most part of fever caused by the dampness and insalubrity of the places they inhabit.2

Like the people of India, they are also generally very subject to ulcers. Many of them have very troublesome skin diseases, though as a rule these are not dangerous. If the missionaries succeed in gathering the Jakun into villages, as they intend to do, and to make their habitations more salubrious, ulcers will certainly be much more scarce amongst them ; and it may be hoped that the cure of their skin diseases will not present any great difficulty. A small provision of quinine or other remedies

1 Rowland, p. 707. 2 Favre \r\J. I. A. vol. ii. p. 265.

SAVAG1 MALA KS Ob J<>iH)i<

for Fever would also doubtless preserve the life ol

in. my.1

Benua-Jakun. Of the Benua «»! [ohor we are told that, like all these tribes, they have an ex< i fear ol the small-pox. The explanation they giverof thi isthat in former times their tribe was severely visited, and

greatly thinned, l>y it, and that a vow was then mad'' that they and their descendants in all time to < om<- should flee from its presence whenever and wherever it appeared. If it should again break out, they would necessarily abandon both the victim and the locality. "

The Henna of the Lenggiu and Sayong are said to close their rivers by felling trees across them whene\ r they hear that this disease prevails at Johor Lama (t,e. "Old Johor") or elsewhere in the country. Vaccination would prove a great boon:'

Orang Laut ok Sea-Jakun.

0. Laut, Beduanda Kallang. — The Beduanda Kallang of Singapore formerly consisted of about a hundred families occupying as many boats, but the ravages of the small-pox have reduced the number to eight.4

0. Laut, Sletar. — Several of the men and women of the Sletar tribe were subject to deformity in hands and limbs, a rather unusual circumstance for these parts, and the disease most prevalent among them was a cutaneous scaly eruption (Mai. u Kurap ") that covered the whole body. To this disease whole families were subject, from the mother to the infant at the breast, nearly every second person appearing to be afflicted with it. The feet of the old people were also

1 Favre in_/. /. A. vol. ii. p. 265. 3 lb.

2 /. /. A. vol. i. p. 284. 4 lb. p. 300.

io6 NOTE ON DISEASES OF THE ABORIGINES part i

attacked by a sort of disease resembling leprosy, and the features of the face in one or two cases were found to be contracted from some such cause,1 its victims being naturally rendered hideous to look upon.2

1 From the description this might be suffered from a disease of the skin of

attributed to some disease of syphilitic the feet and hands, named " Kedal,"

origin, which is not impossible, seeing which had, however, no affinity with

the propinquity of the Sletar to Singa- leprosy properly so called,

pore. On the other hand, it may be 2 J. I. A. vol. i. p. 345*. remarked that the Malays themselves

MANNERS AND CUSTOMS.

PART II

CHAPTER I.

I r00D — Sti M 1 1 1 .A NTS N ARCOTICS.

Although food is always (naturally) a burning question among the wild tribes that are still nomadic, it apparently becomes, strange as it may seem, of even greater importance among those that are just entering the path of civilisation, who are frequently rendered, to a pitiable extent, dependent upon the Malays for their verv existence, a circumstance which the latter are not slow to turn to their own advantage. The wildest tribes, who are thoroughgoing nomads, seldom stay more than three or four days in one place, but as soon as they have exhausted the sources of food in one neighbourhood, move on to the next, and hence are as a rule fairly, though not liberally, supplied.

The staple food of these tribes does not consist so much of the flesh of animals as of such wild vegetable food as may happen to fall from time to time in season. When this fails, the men engage in hunting, trapping, and fishing excursions in order to eke out their dwindling stock of vegetable supplies, which consist mainly of wild yams,1 roots, and fruits of the jungle.

The less wild tribes who have learnt the use of

1 According to H. N. Ridley the of the wild tribes is Dioscorea pentayam most sought after by all branches phylla.

no FOOD PART II

rice are forced to obtain their supplies of it by the barter of jungle produce at ruinous rates, as they seldom succeed in obtaining a crop of their own which will last for more than a small portion of the year.

As will readily be expected, not only the knife and fork of civilisation, but even such objects as chopsticks, are completely unknown, the flesh of the animal which has been killed being broken up into pieces of convenient size, which are picked up from the dish (which often consists of nothing more elaborate than a large banana-leaf obtained from the neighbouring forest) and conveyed to the mouth by hand. In the case of a leg or wing of a small mammal or bird the bone is held in the hand in primitive fashion, and the flesh gnawed off it sans cdrdmonie and sans gene. For drinking purposes bamboo vessels, gourds, and coconut-shells are used, though a mere leaf, or the hand itself, are used at convenience.

In eating, the women and girls of all three wild races wait until the men have finished.

For drinking purposes the " tamer " tribes generally keep in their huts earthenware water-pots, for which a half coconut-shell is, as among the Malays, the most generally accepted " bailer." In drinking from running water, however, the water is thrown into the mouth by hand, unless a big leaf happens to be available.

In this connexion it may be of interest to note a statement to the effect that the Orang Laut, when they wished to drink, threw the water up into the mouth with the hand with unerring aim, and instead of splashing the entire face (as a European would), they were able to throw water into the mouth at about the distance of a foot from the palm of the hand without wetting their faces to speak of. Even

chap, i GENERAL REMAR in

the children employed this method. On the other

hand, when a mot her wished to give her infant BOme

water tO drink, she let it drip from her hand into the child's open mouth.1

With regard to rice, the wildest tribes of the Peninsula (Pangan, etc.) do not cat it, although it is the Staple food of the Malays and all the later immigrants to the country.

The first step towards the adoption of a grain diet would seem to be taken when the wild people take to cultivating and eating a species of millet ("sekoi ")."

For this, at a later period, a more or less scanty diet of rice (obtained from the Malays by barter) is gradually substituted by the less nomadic tribes (generally by tribes who have learned to grow a few light u catch " crops, in which rice is not included), and eventually we find the first beginnings of rice culture among tribes who cultivate for themselves not only bananas, maize, tapioca (and in a few cases even tobacco), but also a scanty stock of half-wild rice.

The wilder tribes of Semang and Sakai, and even perhaps a few of the Jakuns, practise methods of obtaining fire by friction. The Malayising tribes appear, however, for a long time past to have known the use of flint and steel, which is perhaps the method still most generally in vogue. A few of the more advanced have, however, learnt the use of "trade" matches, which they call by their Malay names ("tarek api " = pull-fire, or "gesek api " = scratch-fire). The tinder used consists of the downy substance or fluff which collects round the leaf-bases of certain palms.3

1 Z.f. E. xxix. 184. 3 It is chiefly obtained from Caryota

2 De la Croix, p. 340. It is Panic tint mitis, Lour. — Ridley. italicum. — Ridley.

I 12 FOOD PART II

This fluff is also used as a kind of wad to prevent windage in shooting with the blowpipe.

A simple form of torch, consisting of lumps of 11 dammar " (Mai. " damar ") wrapped round with palmleaves and tied with vegetable fibres, is also pretty generally employed.

Among the Semang, cooking is the duty of the women, and among the more nomadic tribes usually consists in slightly roasting the flesh of the small mammals and birds killed by the men, though it is certain that, in some cases at all events, the definition of man as a " cooking animal " breaks down, for the meat is eaten absolutely raw. Flesh-meat is inserted in a cleft stick, which is made to lean at an angle over the fire. Rice, if obtainable, is fire-dried in green bamboos, which are carried about and broken open as circumstances may require. Yams and roots are grated and wrapped up in strips of banana-leaf for baking. Fish are usually baked in the same way as the flesh of birds and animals.

The methods of the Sakai are very similar, and both they and the Semang have several ingenious methods of treating poisonous yams, etc., in order to make them fit for consumption.

Among the Jakun of the coast, and to some extent among the inland Sakai and Semang, iron cooking utensils (Malay rice-pots, etc.) have been introduced, and with these the difficulties of cooking largely disappear.

I. — Semang.

Food and its Preparation.

Kedah Semang. — The food of the Western Semang, when I visited them in Kedah, consisted of rice eked

chap i NEGRITOS Of KEDAH \ \

out with a little sugar cane, both of which were < ultivated l>y themselves, together with a little tapioca and the

wild roots .tiul fruits of the jungle, Their flesh food consisted of small birds and animals, but more often of

fish and turtle, etc., which they caught or harpooned

in the river at the loot of the hill. A few of th<

Negrito tribes still hum with the how, but the blowpipe has also made some Converts, especially towards the south. They are unlettered by religious restrictions in their search for food,1 and are averse to nothing which can be converted into a means of sustenance. We often encountered the holes made by them in digging for roots in the deepest recesses of the forest.

Pangan. — The food of the Eastern Semang (Pangan) does not differ from that of their western kindred. In a small rock -shelter which I visited in the hills of Patalung near Singora, and which was deserted by the Pangan just before we got there, we found the remains of a fire, the ribs of a small tortoise on which they had been feeding, and a half-smoked (native) cigarette. In the deserted semicircular huts of the Pangans at Ulu Aring, in Kelantan, we found the remains of fires, short bamboo vessels which had been used for carrying dried rice (" nasi lemang"), and a half coconut-shell, which had, no doubt, been used for drinking. These Pangan when in the neighbourhood used to come down to the Malay hamlet at Kampong Buntal for rice and tobacco.

Kedah Semang- and Pang-an. — Fire - making by friction is the simplest method practised by both Eastern and Western Semang. It usually takes the form of rubbing together short blocks of wood,

1 For rules as to eating the " soul-bird " (an alleged exception), v. vol. ii. pp. 4-6. VOL. I I

I 14 FOOD PART II

bamboo, or cane. A common method consists in passing a rattan line round the portion of a dried branch (that of certain kinds of trees can alone be used), and holding the branch down by the foot, whilst the line is rapidly worked to and fro with the hands, until the friction ignites the dust which falls from the wood.

The Semang also not unfrequently supply themselves with fragments of flint and tool-iron, which they carry about with them.

They use as tinder the down-like substance or fluff which gathers about the leaf-bases of palms, and which they also, as has been said, use as a wad in shooting with the blowpipe.

This complete fire apparatus is generally carried on the person, not unfrequently in a small bamboo cylinder.

Perak Semang". — The same remarks apply to the Semang of Perak. De Morgan adds that the bamboo tube in which the fire apparatus is carried is often beautifully decorated (by incised lines). He also states that the Perak Semang obtain their tinder from the sugar-palm1 ("kabong").2

Semang* and Pang^n. — The Semang hearth consists of a few short logs or sticks, whose ends converge to a common centre. They are laid upon a clear spot of ground, and the fires are allowed to smoulder away gradually, being only "made up" when a bigger fire is required for cooking, though they are kept burning night and day until the encampment changes its ground.

Kedah Semang. — Of roots and fruits it is not only the innocuous kinds that are employed ; even poison-

1 Arenga saccharifera. — Ridley. 2 De Morgan, vii. 414.

. n\r. i NEGRITOS <>/■ a / DAH 1 1 |

ous yams unci roots .ire '.]«•< tally treated by the Semang to render them fit lor food, lor this purpose they arc rasped against .1 prickly stick (a son "I natural "nutmeg grater "J,1 the raspings being mixed

with a little, lime (slaked with water in .1 CO< Ollllt shell]

and worked up with a small spatula ol "txrtam"' palm. Finally they are kneaded 1))' hand into a SOll of dough, which is wrapped up in a Strip of fresh banana -leal, slipped into a cleft stick, and slowly roasted over the fire. The yams thus treated .ire called "kleb" by the Semang, and "ubi kapor " by the Malays. The Semang informed me they were highly poisonous, unless treated as here described.3

I noticed a number of these yams (4< ubi kapor ") in the Semang shelter at Siong in Kedah, where they were inserted between the slats of the roof. Other kinds of yams employed by the tribe in question were the "ubi takob," which is baked; the "ubi tanjong," which is boiled; and "kense" or tapiocaroot, which was no doubt obtained by barter from the Malays, as none was grown in the clearing at Siong.

Perak Semang. — The Perak Semang render the roots of the wild yam edible by means of prolonged fermentation (in the earth ?) and by culinary treatment extending over six days.

But the roots of the amorphophallus cannot, it appears, be made edible by any sort of treatment, this latter plant being regarded as furnishing, wThen mixed with Ipoh, the most deadly kind of poison known to

1 The prickly stem of a kind of (or "gadong"), ^that requires to be -rattan {Calamus). 2 Eugeissona tristis. prepared in this way. The other 3 It is only Dioscorea dcemona, Roxb. species are harmless. — Ridley.

u6 FOOD part ii

the tribe*, whilst even the contact of the sap with the skin produces considerable irritation.1

Meals.

Kedah Semangr. — Among the Semang of Kedah the women and girls, after cooking the food, were not allowed to eat any of it until the men and boys of the tribe had finished their repast. At Siong on one occasion I photographed a number of Semang in the middle of a meal. Their food, which they eagerly devoured and obviously enjoyed, consisted of a quantity of rice and some small fowls that I had brought with me, — a sufficient reply to the assertion which has often been made that these tribes are afraid to eat the flesh of any domestic creature. These materials, after cooking, were deposited in separate heaps upon large banana- leaves, and were partaken of first by all the males of the tribe sitting together.

The women could be seen inside the hut waiting quite patiently when their work was done until their lords and masters should have finished their repast.

[Stimulants and Narcotics.

Kedah Semang*. — Betel -chewing appeared to be very sparingly indulged in by all the Semang tribes that I came across. Occasional instances certainly occur, but the custom is certainly very much more rarely found among the Semang than among the more southern tribes, and their teeth were, as a rule, entirely

1 De la Croix (quoting Sir H. Low), same as that of the Semang of Kedah, p. 334. From Mr. L. Wray I learn that with the addition of gourds, pumpkins, in other respects their diet is much the chillies, maize, and sweet potatoes.

Skcat. A. Semang of Kedah rasping yams with prickly />'. Pouring lime upon the raspings pr» \

stem of young rattan. mixii g '►.in.;.

Semangs preparing Poisonous Vams for Food.

Semang or Kedah having a Meal.

Vol. I. /. 116.

■

u

<MM- i NEGRITOS "/■ KEDAH 1.7

free from the discolo ration which nr< rv„inl\ .,

panics 1 1 1 < ~ custom referred to.'

Semang and Pangnn Perak Semang". — On the Other hand, both Semang and Pangan (East Semang) are

(like all the wild tribes of the Peninsula) inordinately foml of tobacco. They carry it in a small hut beautifully decorated bamboo tube, a Specimen of which I

obtained in IMu Kelantan. Someofthe more civilised tribes are said to grow their own tobacco. Almost invariably, however, they obtain it by barter from the Malays, as do also the Semang of Perak.2

1 1. — Sakai.

Food and its Prepai'ation.

Perak Sakai. — The wilder Sakai tribes (Sakai Bukit), like the Semang, live upon wild tubers, roots, and fruits, together with the flesh of animals and birds that fall victims to the darts shot from their blowpipe. They do not as a rule search for game until everything else fails.3 They will, however, eat almost any sort of animal food, and the land tortoise is as acceptable to them as to the Karens of Martaban.4

To both these classes of food must be added, among the more settled tribes, the produce of their gardens, which includes maize, sugar-cane, tapioca, sweet potatoes, yams, rice, and many plants which can be cultivated as catch crops. A curious fact recorded of them is that they do not make use of salt.5 This

1 Mr. L. Wray tells me that in 3 Hale, p. 295 ; see also De la Croix, Upper Perak he saw some Semang- p. 340.

Sakai (from the Plus) burning fresh- 4 J. I. A. vol. iv. p. 430.

water shells to make lime for their betel. 5 lb. vol. iv. p. 429. To this list

2 J. /. A. vol. iv. pp. 425, 426. of plants millet must be added.

n8 FOOD

PART II

has been contradicted by other writers,1 though it is quite possible that salt, owing to the difficulty of obtaining it, may not be used by some of the wilder tribes, who fear the risks attendant upon barter. The young growing shoots of the giant bamboo ("buluh betong ") are eaten both cooked and raw.2

According to M. Lias, the food of the Perak Sakai consists mainly of tapioca-root, yams, sweet potatoes, maize, bananas, poultry, eggs, fish, and game killed by the blowpipe.

"They also," he continues, "eat rats, snakes, monkeys . . .," a Malay said to me, laughing.

But To' Lela denies it.

" It is not we, the Sakai of Kerbu, who eat that, it is the Ulu Burong people."8

De Morgan says that they eat the shoots of ferns, palms, bamboos, p'rah-fruit, certain fungi that grow on rotten trees, and yams of every description, together with tapioca (which has been imported in recent times, but the use of which has spread everywhere), sugarcane, maize, gourds, and water-melons, turmeric, millet, and (half- wild) bananas which have big seeds in them. Kulim leaves are used as seasoning.4

Both these accounts, curiously enough, omit to mention the wild fruits which grow in great profusion at certain seasons of the year in the forests of the Peninsula. It would be interesting to know whether the Sakai are less markedly frugivorous than the Semang

1 L. Wray, Cave-dwellers, p. 39. 2 J. R. A. S., S. B., No. 21, p. 154.

Mr. Wray tells me that the food of 3 Brau de S. P. Lias, pp. 279, 280.

the Batang Padang Sakai (and those of 4 De Morgan, viii. 1 57 ; cf.

the Hills between Kinta and Pahang) L* Homme, ii. 713. The Sakai are

agrees with that of the Perak Semang, also said to eat the tuberous roots

except that millet is substituted for of Smilax megacarpa, De C. Its

rice. Frogs and snakes are also eaten, Malay names are " Akar banau,"

as well as some insects, e.g., the " Rabanu," " Rabana," " K'luna," and

"Buprestes" beetles, which are roasted. " Lampau Bukit." — Ridley.

c .i m i SAKAI OF PERAK no

or [akun. But there is no reason to think bo, and mi probably, like the others, thej will eal anything that i 1 not actually poisonous. Thus Mr. L. Wray writes thai once, in an evil moment, he was induced by assuram

and example of some of the Sakai to eat Some pretty

apple like fruit with which .1 tree growing I>y the af 1< •

of the river was laden. The fruit, though pleasant at

first, left a very disagreeable after -taste, and he

suffered for the remainder of the day with sore month and lips. It was a species' of the genus ( iannua, of

which the " gfilugor " fruit ' is a well-known and closely

allied example.

Mr. Wray first saw, on Gunong Chunam Prah, at a height of 3350 feet (1021 m.), a blackberry which grows amongst the nnderwood (" blukar ") on the old Sakai clearings (" ladang "). The berry was red and long, and had something of the flavour of its English ally. The leaf and method of growth were also very similar. Raspberries 3 were common in the same situations, but the fruit was small and nearly tasteless.4

The methods employed by the Sakai for obtaining fire are similar to those used by the Negritos. To procure fire the hill Sakai (Orang Bukit) rub two dry pieces of bamboo together.5

In Kinta, according to Hale, every Sakai carries a tinder-box, which, however, he does not use more than he is obliged to do, as the fire of each family is always kept smouldering to prevent its extinction.6

Hale's description of the Sakai hearth deserves full quotation. Each family (he writes) and wife . . . had a separate hearth. These hearths are very

1 Probably Garcinia Castafa, Hensl. 6 De la Croix, p. 340.

2 Mai. " gelugor," i.e. Garcinia 6 Hale, p. 294. The Batang Padang atroviridis. 3 Rubus rosafolius. Sakai are said to use the fire-drill. —

4 /. R. A. S. , S.B., No. 21, p. 155. Fasc. Mai. 41.

120 FOOD I'AKI II

simple constructions ; a mat of leaves is spread on the floor, and over this is spread about three inches of earth, and a fire lighted, which once lighted is not allowed to got out. For although every Sakai carries a tinder-box, it is much easier to blow up a smouldering log into a blaze than to rekindle it. Three or four long logs of suitable wood, each about nine inches in diameter, are arranged so that their ends approach the middle of the hearth. A small fire of sticks is lighted in the centre, and the logs keep the fire up for weeks, and as they burn away are drawn gradually into the fire. The burning ends serve to support the saucepans, and the accumulated ashes below to roast tapioca and sweet potatoes in. As there are always several other logs lying about the floor drying so as to be ready for use, it is not very easy to get about without knocking one's shins.1

The Sakai generally use earthen cooking vessels, but prefer iron ones when they can get them. Like the Negritos, they have many ingenious methods for the preparation of their food. The wild yam and the "kapayang" fruit2 ("piyung") are cut into small pieces, cooked, and laid in running water for twenty-four hours to draw the poison out of them.3

A similar process is employed in the preparation of the bitter cassava 4 (Manihot utilissima).

A yet more curious process described by Hale is to bury such poisonous tubers for days together in one of the swamps in the jungle. After being steeped in this way till they are sodden, they are dug up again and rasped with a prickly shoot of rattan (already

1 Hale, p. 294. * Sic Vaughan - Stevens (/#.), but

2 Pangiumedule. The husk of the nut according to Mr. H. N. Ridley the is used as a receptacle. — VH. ii. 619. bitter cassava is not cultivated in the

3 Vaughan-Stevens, ii. 112. Peninsula!

I KAF, i /A .// <>/ PERAK

described). The raspings are put into a matwork bag, and the foul- smelling, unwholesome moisture

squeezed out of them with .1 kind of primitive lever.

They arc then dried over the fire in a green lMinl.no, and put aside till required lor food.1

This preparation is said l>y Hale to be Called " koyi " (" koyee "), and will keep good for a month."

The seeds of some trees (such as the "p'rah")'5 are similarly treated ; they are put into a matwork bag and buried in swamps sometimes for months together before they are touched. Eventually, however, they are lifted out of the swamp by means of a cord attached to the bag, and are then pounded and squeezed into a bamboo, when they are ready for use. The result is a highly flavoured kind of preserve called by the Malays "serum p'rah," or " p'rah paste," which in spite of its strong odour is yet greatly prized.4

The Sakai use rude wooden spice-blocks ("sengkalan ") for grinding their spices. Not unfrequently part of a bamboo internode is used for the purpose when they are travelling in the jungle. In this way they grind up their salt, chillies, and the other seasonings5 which they eat with their rice, the latter of which is boiled in an internode of bamboo.6

Meals.

Perak Sakai. — Hale says of the Sakai that they have only two regular meals, an early morning breakfast and a midnight supper, but that they were con- tinually having slight snacks of some kind of vegetable

1 Hale, p. 298. 3 De M. figures a wooden plate

2 lb. p. 295. (probably used for this purpose) and a

3 Mezzettia leptopoda, Oliver (Ano- bamboo water-vessel. — VH. ii. 619. nacea?). 4 Hale, p. 298. 0 L. Wray, Cave-dwellers, p. 39.

FOOD

PART II

food (sugar-cane, tapioca, or sweet potatoes) when they happened to be indoors during the daytime.1

Stimulants and Narcotics.

Perak Sakai. — Of tobacco and betel the Sakai are exceedingly fond, the leaf of a wild betel (" chambai ") 2 being freely taken when no other is obtainable. Both of these habits are probably acquired from the Malays, from whom a Sakai will also occasionally learn to smoke or eat opium.3

III. — Jakun.

Food,

Blandas. — There is nothing requiring special comment about the diet of the Blandas, except that it contains less animal food and a larger proportion of

1 Hale, p. 295.

Yaughan- Stevens states that he had often read that the aborigines (Orang Hutan) relieve themselves from flatulence in any way that they please, without the least notice being taken of it by any of those present, but that this habit is condemned and regarded as " vulgar." Vaughan - Stevens often heard one Sakai reprove another when such a breach of decorum was made, although men only were present. On one occasion an excuse was offered by one of those present on behalf of his comrade, the offender "looking ashamed as he went out." Whenever Vaughan - Stevens asked the Sakai what was their opinion in such a case, they always condemned it very strongly, but suggested that it might have occurred accidentally and unintentionally, by way of apology. The idea that this habit might be regarded (as among the Chinese) as a compliment

to the host cannot be entertained, as among the aborigines it would be an insult rather than a compliment. Accidents of the kind may happen from their greedy manner of eating, and if the men appear to take no notice, it is only because they do not wish to attract attention to the mistake which has been made (Z.f. E. xxix. 184).

2 Mr. Ridley writes me that several wild pepper leavesare used as substitutes for the betel-leaf. He has seen Selangor Sakai near Kuala Lumpor cut off long strips of bark from Piper argent 'earn, with the object of chewing them. A portion only of the bark was taken in each case, so that the plant might not be killed.

3 L. Wray, Cave-dwellers, p. 39. Mr. Wray tells me further that the Batang Padang Sakai grow tobacco, drying and cutting but not fermenting the leaves, and wrapping the product in young " palas " leaves.

< hap. i SAVAGE MAI 1 KS OF Si I >A

rice than that of the Semang and Sakai, the Sclangor tribe being rather more advanced in matters ol cultivation. In Kuala Langat, I have myseli fre

quently seen the latter at their meals (vvhi< h I have

also occasionally shared), when their only i<><>d consisted

of boiled rice, seasoned with acid iruits ("asain k'lubi "

= Zalacca conferta) obtained from the jungle.

/unni and its Preparation*

Besisi. — A favourite kind of preserve not yet mentioned consists of a paste obtained from the pulp of the durian, which the Besisi bury in the ground for months together until long after it has fermented.

A curious but firmly held belief of the Besisi is that acid fruits must not be eaten with the game killed by their poisoned darts, as to do so will, they imagine, bring out the full symptoms of the poison in those who partake of it.

When cooking such game they generally cut out the part surrounding the puncture caused by the dart.

In some of the songs improvised by the Besisi the various processes employed in the preparation of their game for food are described in detail. The game (if an animal) first has its fur removed by singeing, when the skin is "poked" off, and the carcase quartered and cooked.

The seasonings used are " kulim " l leaves, turmeric, and (wild) ginger, leaves of the "kayu k'lat,"2

1 Sorodocarpus bortieensis (Olacinece), 2 A name applied to many species of

a large tree, every part of which smells Eugenia of the section "syzygium," strongly of onions. — Ridley. and other trees somewhat resembling

them (Myrtaceae). — Ridley.

124 FOOD PART II

"Spices" (the precise kind is not mentioned), and " kesom." l

Different kinds of seasoning are mentioned in other songs, especially various kinds of wild pepper, "pedas chanchang"2 and "pedas jintan."3 "Asam k'lubi"4 is excluded as a seasoning for animals killed with the blowpipe, for the reasons stated above.

The most usual method of making fire among all the branches of the Jakun race (including the Besisi) is by means of flint and steel. Logan, however, mentions a case in which some Jakun produced fire by circular friction, exactly as it is sometimes produced by civilised Malays.5 The steel consists of a fragment of tool-iron, and is generally wrapped up together with the flint in a piece of cloth and left in the hut during short absences of the owner, or carried on the person (in his " bujam " or matwork pouch) together with the usual palm-fluff tinder.

The commonest type of hearth is the Malay boxhearth, which consists of a shallow box filled with earth, upon which are usually laid, in a triangle, the Malayan firestones, between which a fire of sticks is kindled. Fire-logs, such as are used by the inland Sakai, are, however, often to be seen.

Meals.

Besisi. — As in the case of all the wild tribes, the Besisi men eat before the women. Morning and evening are their special meal-times, but they con-

1 Probably = " kasum," Polygonum 3 Cummin, also used by the Malays flaccidum, Meissn. (Polygonaceae), a in making curries. — Ridley.

common weed, also called " kalima 4 The fruit of Zalacca conferta,

paya "or " swamp " kalima. — Ridley. Griff.

2 Unidentified. 6 J. I. A. vol. i. p. 255.

, map. i SAVAGE MAL A I A' i

Btantly chew sugar cane, etc., throughout the day, and they do not hesitate to accept an extra meal whenei the opportunity offers. They gorge, in fact, lil pythons whenever they get the chance, and are only too willing to sleep it off afterwards. It is, however only fair to them to say that the) do not often get the opportunity of eating toex< ept in the fruit season

or at harvest-time. They eat monkej i, rats, sua!

and even crocodiles.

One of their more elaborate banquets, at which I was present, will be described in detail in a later chapter.

11 etc I- leaf and Tobacco.

Besisi. -The chewing of the betel-leaf is a favourite occupation of the Besisi, who especially affects the wild betel-leaf called " chambai " and the bark from the stem of a creeper called " kalong," ' which is, I was told, identical with the stem of the "chambai." I have tasted both, and found that both possessed equally the pungent aromatic flavour of the betel-leaf, and left behind them a sort of roughness of the palate for at least a few minutes after they had been chewed. The Besisi are also extremely fond of tobacco, which is generally smoked in the form of small cigarettes, rolled up in thin coverings of palm-leaf after the Malay fashion, but which is also occasionally chewed.2

Food and its Preparation.

Mantra. — Of the Mantra we are told that no kind of food comes amiss, so long as it does not " intoxicate " or poison them.3

1 Piper caninnm. 2 Skeat in Sel. Jonrn. vol. v. p. 381.

3 /. /. A. vol. i. p. 254.

FOOD

PART II

According to Logan, the Mantra never eat the flesh of the elephant.1 The same writer gives a list of no fewer than forty different jungle fruits, all of which the Mantra are in the habit of eating.2

Father Barbe has said that if the flesh of monkeys, to which the Mantra are very partial, were not prohibited by the Koran, there is no doubt that the generality of them would have been converted to Islam.3

Meals arid Tobacco}

The Mantra have three meals — morning, mid-day, and evening.

The Mantra women were much addicted to tobacco, but they did not smoke it.

1 Borie (tr. Bourien) says they "eat all that falls into their hands — bears, monkeys, squirrels, rats, deer, birds, and the roots and bulbs which the earth produces in abundance, such as the kaledek, or sweet potato ('kledek'); fruits such as the banana, and the sugarcane, which serves to satisfy their thirst as well as to nourish them. The maize and rice which they cultivate can only support them four months in the year. To cultivate rice on the mountains it is necessary to cut down the forest, to burn it, and then to sow, which demands more labour than is required for hunting in the forest, where perhaps, too, they may find roots or other vegetable food. The hunting of monkeys and squirrels pleases them more than anything else, and they give themselves up to it with ardour ; their labour and fatigue they count as nothing if they can but capture their prey, which they distribute part to their parents, part to their relations, and part to their friends who attend the feast. If they are joined by no one, they first of all burn off {i.e. singe) the hair, and then cut up the carcase, and throw the portions

into a frying-pan to cook them, when each person proceeds to devour his share silently in the shade" (Borie, pp. 76, 77). Later, M. Borie adds, the Mantra "do not give themselves the trouble of cutting out that part of the flesh which has been pierced by the arrow, and which has a slightly bluish appearance " (p. 78). This is contrary to the usual statements of the Besisi, who maintain that the flesh surrounding the wound ought always to be cut out.

2 " The fruits used are the tampui, takaro, lari, kandim, kimok, kledang, tampune, kleres, pulasan, rambutan, ramnian, lerang, prah, jireh, kingong, kadumpal, kumpal, binnong, tangkoi, redan, sikrang, ampadil, bangkong, puteh, lonah, kamalun, didalin, mangkapas, jangkang, bombong, luen, kamui, sop, chittong, sippam, lanjut, klissa, lalam, kimoh, sirlang, rumang." — -J. I. A. vol. i. p. 331*. For identifications, v. Ridley's Plant-List [l.c.)t and other parts of this book.

3 Barbe, J. I. A. vol. v. pp. 487, 488.

4y. /. A. vol. i. p. 254, 255.

. hap. i WAGE MALA YS 0/ JOHOR \r)

Food and i/s Preparation,

Benua-Jakun. Much oi their [the Benua .| food according to Logan, derived from fishing, snaring, and hunting, no sorts ol flesh being rejected. The ungka, kra, and probably some other spei ie oi

monkeys, an;, according to Logan, used by them

as food, hut he believes not frequently so, and

"although the Malays asserted that snakes were

eaten," he could find no corroboration of the statement while amongst the Henna.1

According to the same authority, the Benua-Jakun tribes of Johor also make use of a considerable number of fruits and seeds, which they obtain from the forest, and eat either in their raw state or after boiling or roasting them. He mentions the names of no less than sixty-nine of these trees.2

In dealing with the subject of fire-making among the Benua-Jakun, Logan remarked that the means of obtaining a light were so simple that there was no occasion to carry fire on their journeys. On his way

1 Logan, J. R. A. S. No. 7, p. 87. Cp. one with fleshless seeds ; the rambutan,

Newbold : " In eating, no dish adorns ther.gading, r.uban,r.kasumba, rambei,

their table, save occasionally the leaf of duku, two kindsof manggis (mangostin),

the 'sayak' tree, and that of the Biro bangke, bidara, tampui, marki, lunko-

(? Birah) furnishes their usual drinking- koyo,klueng, bokobaka,bahkon, katian,

cup. A vessel of clay called ' Tam- chaminoi, rampinoi, saun, kampong,

mumong ' is applied to the purposes of sundeh, taban, merpadi, kes, garop,

cooking, differing in shape from that chabet, rameng, palas, gippu, kadun-

used by Malays. The entrails of wild dong, kulem, saloi, hukam, tampanoi,

animals are taken out and the hair petai, kerdas, bluru, blatong, malai,

scraped or singed off before the flesh mindaleng, kapas, ridan, ramampas,

is boiled. Instead of betel-leaf, they ramun, jila, ujol, kerabu, pahet, kich-

cften chew the leaf of a tree called ipo, tikaet, kikai, pinjeng, jiring, kika,

' kassi,' together with the areca-nut and buntol, jilibom, mayong, machang,

gambier, but seldom mix them with kachang, kirpol, kawe, pakop, tayo,

lime. Tobacco, whenever it can be timambun, gungang, dumpa, merlilin,

had, is used to excess, even by women kansil, pilampi. — J. I. A. vol. i. pp.

and children." — Newbold, ii. 405, 258, 259. For identifications, see

406 ; cp. /. /. A. vol. i. p. 257. Ridley's Plant-List, and other parts of

2 Including several kinds of durian, this book.

128 FOOD PART II

from Pines to the Lenggiu his two guides asked him to allow them to go for a little while to a small deserted gutta-collector's ("taban") hut not far from the path. As their absence was prolonged, and a heavy rain was falling, he went to the hut, and there found them comfortably extended and smoking native cigarettes (" roko' "), and it was only with great difficulty that he could induce them to resume the journey. They had procured a light by making the end of a piece of drystick revolve rapidly in a small depression which they had made in another stick.1

There were usually two fireplaces among the Benua, and they were furnished with the ordinary pots and pans used by the Malays, and had also small supplies of the coarsest Chinese plates and saucers. Water was carried and kept in the shell of a peculiar species of large melon which they cultivate, and which forms a very neat and serviceable, though not durable, jar. The bamboo is converted to the same purpose, but not often. The stem of an " onak " 2 with the [tips of the] thorns broken off formed a strong and very effective grater. This was also used by the northern (?) tribes. Platters made of hard wood, cut into neat shapes and slightly curved, served, in conjunction with a half coconut - shell, to bruise chillies and other condiments. Malays have generally adopted for this purpose a pestle and shallow stone mortar. Most of the condiments were supplied by the Malays, such as

1 J. I. A. vol. i. pp. 254, 255. up which it climbs in the jungle.

2 " Onak " is the whip-like structure There may be some doubt, however, (or " flagellum ") which forms the con- as to whether this "whip" is ever tinuation of the midrib of a rattan (or strong enough to be used for the calamus) leaf. It is armed, as a rule, purpose described, and as "onak" is with most formidable (recurved) thorns, often mistakenly used for the creeper and serves as a species of grapnel by itself, it is possible that the stem which this gigantic creeper hooks itself of the rattan is all that is here inon to the higher branches of the trees tended.

, kap. i WAGk '/ \LA V < '/■ /<>!/<>/<

onions and turmeric, etc. The roots ol i cultivated plant were variously prepared In the time between me. ils, or when a person came in hungry, they were roasted amongst the embers. For regular meals thej were grated down or simply boiled with the addition of hog's grease or vegetable oil.1

Meats.

Benua-Jakun. — The whole household ate together, the wife sitting near the fireplace, SO as to have the smoking pots and pans within reach. From these she replenished the plates from time to time. From the activity, relish, and high good-humour with which the viands were discussed, it was very apparent that the Benua is blessed with a strong appetite, and looks upon the satisfying of it as the main end of life. The children were in general overfed, and even those who were naturally vivacious seemed with difficulty to resist the lethargic influence consequent on their cramming themselves with potatoes boiled in hog's grease, a kind of food with which their natural nutriment is eked out from the third or fourth day of their existence.*2

Stimulants and Narcotics. Benua-Jakun. — The Benua use betel -leaf, but not to excess like the Malays. The gambier, betel-nut, and lime which are eaten with it they, like other aborigines, obtain from the Malays. Their favourite luxury was tobacco, in which both sexes freely indulged. The women were often to be seen seated together and weaving mats, each with a native cigarette (" roko' ") in her mouth. While they were speaking it was trans-

1 J. I. A. vol. i. p. 254. 2 lb. pp. 266, 267.

VOL. I K

130 FOOD I' ART II

ferred to the perforation in the ear. When they were met paddling their canoes, the " roko' ' was seldom wanting.1

Articles of Diet.

Berembun Tribes. — Snakes (as well as the ungka, kra, and some other species of monkeys)2 were used as food by the Berembun tribes, who employed dogs to discover them. Those principally sought were pythons (e.g. the ular sawa and u. sawa rendam, cobra (u. tedong), and others which are unidentified, e.g. u. ipong, u. naga, u. gasing, u. ripung, u. ulabat, u. ringkup, u. siu, u. manan, and u. kamong. The pythons (sawa) and ripung were the best flavoured. They all possessed "a fishy taste." Several kinds of snakes, even if the teeth are carefully removed, like those of the preceding species, cannot be used, the aborigines asserting that their flesh is poisonous.3

The Berembun tribes use wooden platters and coconut-shells (for grinding their condiments) like the Benua (and the Javanese). They also employ either large bamboos or the shell of a particular species of large melon for carrying water.4

Food and its Preparation.

Jakun of Johor. — The food of the Jakun differs in no way from that of the other semi -civilised tribes already referred to. I may mention, however, that they have grown so used to rice that they cannot do without it, and probably first began to cultivate it more than forty years ago.5

Tapioca-root appears, however, to be the staple

1 /. /. A. vol. i. pp. 254, 255. 4 lb. p. 254.

2 Cp. p. 127 (of the Benua-Jakun). 6 See Hervey in/. R. A. S.t S. B.,

3 J. I. A. vol. i. p. 257. No. 8, p. 122.

i hap, i WAGl MALA \ S 0/ JOHOR i n

diet <>i the fakun living near Batu Gajah in fohor, for, according to II. W. Lake, although they also eat fruits and fish, with a little rice which they obtain, together with salt and tobacco, from Malay trad< rs in

exchange lor rattan ("rotnn"), resin Or "(laminar," glltta ("gfttah"), and camphor wood, they n<-vnt li<i< mainly subsist on the rOOt of the tapioca He was

further informed by the Batin that during the greater

part of the year, when they disperse in search of jungle fruits, these people live entirely on tapioca-root ("ula kayti ") and fruit.1

On the other hand, bavre, writing of the food eaten by the Jakun in general, emphasised the fact that they had no regular diet. They liked good food, but when they were deprived of it they eat with satisfaction any other, even such food as would be an object of horror to civilised people. They lived upon the flesh of every kind of animal — snakes, monkeys, bears, tigers, birds, etc., whilst yams, plantains, wild fruits, the leaves of trees, and certain roots furnished the principal part of their ordinary food. Those of them who cultivated rice sold a part of it to the Malays, or exchanged it for cloth, and upon the remainder they lived for a few months in the year. They did not dislike the flesh of domestic animals, fowls, etc., but, on the contrary, they preferred it to that of wild animals. At several of their houses there was a good quantity of fowls. Sometimes they cooked the flesh before they ate it, but at other times they ate it raw ; some merely put the animal upon the fire till the hairs were singed, when they considered it " cooked." Favre saw some large monkeys which, after having been " cooked" in this very fashion, were

1 H. W. Lake in/. R. A. S., S. B., No. 25, p. 3.

132 FOOD PART II

dished up upon a kind of mat as a meal to some seven or eight persons, who speedily devoured the whole in a few minutes, leaving only the skeleton. In eating they used no dish; an iron frying-pan served for cooking, plantain leaves served as plates, and some coconut-shells formed their usual drinking-cups. Some Jakun tribes1 refused to eat the flesh of elephants, under the pretext that it would occasion sickness, but many others were " not so scrupulous." When an elephant was killed either by themselves or by the Malays, they called together their friends and relatives to partake of the large entertainment which was prepared ; and then built huts in which to lodge their guests until the animal which furnished the feast was entirely finished, when every one decamped and returned to his usual way of living. When the durian season was come, a good number of Jakun families left their houses, both men and women as well as children repairing to the places where the durian trees grew. They then cleared the ground in order to find the fruit more easily when it ripened and fell, and, dwelling in a small shelter built of leaves, "prepared themselves to enjoy the treat that nature presented to them." For six weeks or two months they ate nothing but durians. When the season was over the place was deserted till the proper season next year.2

Favre further observes that " one of their most prized dishes is a honeycomb," and "let it be said with due respect to the opinion of our European cooks, the time when the honey is in the comb is not (amongst these epicures of nature) considered the

1 Favre writes : " Plusieurs tribus de a J. I. A. vol. ii. pp. 260, 261 ; cp.

Benuas" [A. P. F. xxii. 303); but also vol. i. pp. 254-260. totemism need not be hence inferred.

(map i SAVAGE MALA I - >FJOHOR 133

proper moment t<> take the 1 1 i < • ; but they wait until

the small bees .ire well formed in the Cells, and .1 few

days before they ate ready to fly away, the honeycomb is taken with great (arc, and, wrapped up in a plantain leal, IS put upon the tire lor a lew minul'

when wax and animals are devoured together, .and

considered as an uncommon treat!" '

Jakun (unspecified). — According to Vaughan- Stevens, the |akun were in the habit of using tor drinking purposes either "some sort of cup" or a leaf if nothing else were obtainable."

The same authority informs us that the Jakun on their wanderings always carried the smouldering end of a rope made of tree-bark fibre.3

The ceremonial method used by the Jakun for kindling fire will be described in detail in a latei chapter.

Stimulants and Narcotics.

Finally Favre states of the Jakun that they were in the habit of chewing betel-leaf together with its usual accompaniment of areca-nut and gambier, and that when they were unable to procure the betel-leaf they used the leaf of a tree called "kasi."4 Tobacco, when it was procurable, was much used, even by women and children, both for smoking and chewing.5

Udai. — Of the Udai our information is of the scantiest, all we are told being contained in a sentence by Newbold, to the effect that "they (the Udai) subsist on the flesh of the animals they catch, on wild roots, and on fruits of the forest."6

1 J. I. A. vol. ii. p. 261. 5 J. I. A. vol. ii. p. 261 ; see also

2 Z.f. E. xxix. 184. vol. i. p. 255.

3 lb. xxviii. 168. 6 Newbold, ii. 381, 382.

4 Gomphia Hookeri, Planch.

134 FOOD part ii

Orang Laut or Sea-Jakun.

Orang" Laut, Sletar. — The food of the Orang Laut or sea tribes appears to have differed very little from that of the land tribes (Orang Bukit), though doubtless it included much more fish than that of the latter. We are told of the O. Sletar that the satisfying of hunger was their only pursuit, of water they had abundance without having to search for it; with the "serkap" or fishspear, and the " parang " or chopper as their only imple- ments, they eked out their existence from the stores of the river and forest. To them the staple of life in the East, rice, was a luxury ; tobacco they procured by the barter of fish and a few marketable products collected from the forests and coral reefs. Of esculent roots they had the " prioh " and " kalana," 1 both bulbous and not unlike coarse yams ; of fruits they ate the "tampoi,"2 "kledang,"3 and " buroh," when they came in season ; and of animals they hunted the wild hog, but refrained from snakes, dogs, "iguanas," and monkeys. This formed their principal food, for many minor products of the forests and creeks must be left unmentioned.4

0. Laut, Sabimba. — The Sabimba, when visited by Logan, planted no vegetables of any kind, but used such leaves, roots, and fruits as the forest afforded.5 They ate the flesh of every forest animal which they could

1 Dioscorea deflexa, Hook. The palm [Oncosperma Tigillarid], and the "akar kakap " {Dioscorea orbiculata) fruit of the " tampoi," " maneling," is also eaten. — Ridley. " pancho," "kabes," " ridan " [Ne-

2 Baccaurea Malay ana. phelium glabrum, Noronh.], " ka-

3 Artocarpus lanceizfolius. dumpa " [? " kadampang " = Sterculia

4 J. I. A. vol. i. p. 343*. parviflora, Roxb.], "ranjas," "mangos 6 E.g. the "akar kalana" [Diosc. utan " [Mangifera spp.], "kledang,"

deflexd], " simapo " [? Simpoh Dillenia " pasal " [Ardisia odontophylla\ " dur-

spp., of which the acid fruit is eaten], ian " [Durio zibet hinusy L.], "lakup,"

"ajas," " anpiro," "katapa" [? " ka- "pakala," "tore." — J. I. A. vol. i.

tapang " = Terminalia catappa, L.], p. 296. the cabbage ("umut") of the nibong

chap, > MALA YAh \ PS/1

kill, .Mid when brought in contact from time to time with more civilised people, showed no objection to any

kind of food, s.tvr the fowl, whirl) they '>< rupuloir.ly

avoided. The wild animals and birds eaten were the

wild i )!*<_;, ' mouse-deer or chrvrntain ' ('' plandok "), the

monkeys called "k'ra" and "lotong/M the civet cat ("musang"), the squirrel (" tupai "), "kubong,"1 monitor lizard7 ("bewak"), " malok," imperial pigeon ("pergam"), " kalongkang," "koko,M mynah bird ("tiong"), green

pigeon '' (" punai "), the oil of snakes, and many kinds of fish. The roe-deer ln (" kijang "), the samhhur deer (" rusa '), elephant, and bear are not found in Battam. Flesh of all kinds was cooked by the men, vegetables by the women.11

Another observer of the Sabimba (Thomson), who visited them shortly after Logan, tells us that their food consisted of rice as the staple article, but that they added to this the flesh of the hog, monkey, snake, and ape, and birds of all kinds excepting that of the fowl, for the reasons stated in Logan's paper. Their vegetables consisted of the wild fruits of the jungle. This tribe was much more helpless than the Orang Sletar, being entirely dependent on the Malays for their arms and for the greater part of their food. They were unacquainted with the brewing of inebriating liquors, though they informed Thomson that their tribe formerly possessed the art. In their habits they were, therefore, as temperate as the Malays.1'2

0. Laut, Muka Kuning-. — Of the diet of the Orang

1 Sus indicus. 7 Hydrosaurus salvator.

2 Tragulus napu and Traguhts 8 Mainatus javantnsis. kanchil. 9 Osmatreron vtr)ians.

3 Macacus cynomolgus. 10 Cenmlus /mtntjac.

4 Semnopit heats. n J. I. A. vol. i. p. 296. 6 Paradoxurus and Viverra. 12 lb. p. 347.

• Galeopithtcus — the flying squirrel.

136 FOOD i'aki 11

Muka Kuning all that we know is contained in the following passage : "The articles of food which they derive from the forest are the same animals and vegetables that are used by the Orang Sabimba (see pp. 134, 135). As with the Sabimba, the fowl is forbidden food."1

0. Laut (tribe unspecified). — Thomson found, at Pulau Tinggi (off the east coast of Johor), a number of O. Laut who had been attracted thither by a plentiful crop of durians. Six boats from Mora, an island of the Johor Archipelago (about 50 miles N. lat), he found on their way to P. Tinggi ; they had travelled by sea one hundred and eighty miles to partake of this fascinating fruit.2

1 J. I. A. vol. i. p. 337*. 2 Ibid. vol. v. p. 140.

CHAPTER II

I )ki.ss.

Although it has been more than once asserted ' that the wild people of the Peninsula are accustomed to go entirely nude, I have hitherto failed to get any satisfactory first-hand proof of this. On the other hand, the fact that any such custom is invariably denied by the wild people themselves, is by no means conclusive, and the matter must, at least, await further investigation. The Semang of Kedah, for instance, strenuously denied it, and it was not alleged of them even by the neighbouring Malays. There is no more proof of the practice obtaining in the case of the Sakai than there is in that of the Semang, and with regard to the Jakun of the south, the opposite view has been strongly set forth by Logan. The fact that the children, up to the age of puberty, are allowed to run about un-

1 Cp., e.g., Bradley, pp. 294, 295 : "The pitiable objects before us were completely naked, both men and women ." [Bradley, however, was a bad observer from a scientific point of view.] But see Logan's remark in J. 1. A. vol. i. pp. 252, 253: "With the exception of one house, where the mistress lay in a corner and appeared to be, like her husband, totally destitute of clothes, I found the women everywhere wearing a short 'sarong.'" It

does not appear from this statement that there was anything amounting to a custom among the Benua of going totally nude, and it is possible that the impression may have got about from a few similarly isolated instances, for which there was, doubtless, some special reason. See Favre in J. I. A. vol. ii. p. 258, where this view is advocated. Cp., on the other hand, Swettenham, p. 228 : " Their clothing, when they wear any, consists," etc.

133 DRESS part ii

dressed does not of course imply that the grown-up people do so.

Before entering upon a description of the dress worn by the various tribes, I should like to point out the remarkable fact that none of the wild tribes of the Peninsula, so far as has been observed, are in the habit of dressing themselves in the skins of animals, or of decorating themselves with the feathers of birds. In both respects they appear to obey what seems to have been an ancient and general prejudice (possibly of religious origin) on the part of the tribes of South-East Asia, and in this regard they present a strong contrast to the bulk of the inhabitants of the Malay Archipelago. This neglect is certainly not due to the lack of opportunity, since the Malay Peninsula is probably little, if at all, worse off from a zoological point of view than any of the islands of Netherlands India.

The Girdle.

In the matter of dress, the girdles worn by the three main races form one of the most interesting subjects of inquiry. It is not easy to determine for certain which of the various forms of girdle are of Sakai and which of Semang origin, but there certainly appears to be a strong affinity of type between the Semang fungus-string girdle 1 and some forms of girdle worn by the Andamanese. Moreover, this form of girdle appears only to be found among fairly pure Semang, and amonor such tribes as the N. Perak Sakai (who are neighbours to the Semang, and have a strong infusion

1 Professor M. Ward, who has kindly structure this so-called " Rock- vein examined my specimens under the Creeper " can only be the rhizomorph microscope, informed me that from its of a kind of fungus.

Negrito Dress and Articles of Apparel.

De Morgan.

i, 2, 3. '• Bouquets" worn in the hair hy Sakai (sic) woman (No. 1 is wrapped in a painted leaf). 4. Headcirclet or "diadem." 5, 6, 9, 10, 22, 24. Necklaces with pendants of shells, etc. (Xo. 6 of " buprestes "-legs threaded like beads : No. 10 with squirrels' tails, etc.; the shells so used are Hybocy, t usseaumei,

Cyclophorus Malay antes, C. semisulcatus, etc.). 7, 8. Bracelets of coiled wire. 14. 15. $0. Two rings of ■ oiled brass wire, and one [No. 30] of woven rattan. 16. Girdle. 11. Loin-cloth. 12. 13. Nose-quills (or "nose-pins"). iS, 19, 28, 29. Combs (Nos. 18, 28 used for pinning flowers, etc.. into the hair : Nos. 19, 29 of wood). 17,25,26,27. Bamboo hair-pins. 20,23. Knives. 21,31. Vessels of bone and of wild-goat's horn.

olleciion.

Semang Drk».

i, 2. Two Pangan leaf-ornaments (Ulu Aring, Kelantan).

3. One Pangan ear-ornament of rolled strips of palm-leaf (Ulu Aring).

4. Pangan woman's leaf-ornament worn as bandolier (Ulu Aring) — leaves and Stsi

palm leaf strung upon black fungus-strings.

J 'ol. /. /. 139.

CIIAI'. N

GENERAL REMAl

of Semang Mood), whereas il is not recorded amo pur-sang Sakai in other parts ol the country remote from Negrito influence. I lence there < an be no reasonable doubt that tins form of girdle should I"- a (signed to tli«' Semang tribes rather than to the Sakai.1

Another form oi' waist belt whieh seems possibly

derived from Negrito sources is that consisting ol a fringe1of leaves suspended from a string, such as is

said to be worn by the wilder Negritos {e.g* the

Pangan).1 It occurs, sporadically, among the Perak Sakai (of G. Bujang Malaka), and also among the

Mantra of Malacca, in both of which cases it might consequently be regarded as an interesting survival of

Negrito culture among the more southern tribes.

The original Sakai type of girdle has not yet been identified, and in the present state of our knowledge it is probably not identifiable with any certainty. There only remain, in fact, for us to choose between the girdle of coiled cane4 and the bark-cloth girdle. But both of these girdle-types reappear among the

1 Cp. Man's And., I.e. p. 181 : "Garenpeta, the ornamental waist-belt of Dtnialium octagon urn which is worn occasionally by both sexes " (cp. ib. Plate vii. Fig. 35).

2 Or fringes (v. infra) ; it would appear that a string with the leaves attached is considered sufficient in the case of men, but that several rows of these fringes are worn by the women.

3 Mail's And., I.e. 109 : "The males of this tribe (Jarawa) wear round their heads, waists, knees, and arms, fringes of string attached to a cord or cane." And cp. ib. p. no (note): "The Jarawa women have hitherto been seen with only armlets and cinctures of string, to which a few short fibres were attached, obviously only for ornamental purposes."

4 The late Mr. J. E. Peall, F.R.G.S., in the course of some notes on the Malayo-Polynesian theory {J. R. G. S. vol. iv. p. 241), says : " At page 293, note 100, of the Journal (vol. iv. ?), I see the waist-girdle, 'rua-rua,' mentioned. Coiled cane waist-girdles are common among most of our ultra- Indian races, for men and also for women. Baupa Nogas (sic ?) call them ru-pak, usually a long split cane [is used], coiled eight or ten times round the waist ; chiefs have very ornamental ones, with patterns in coloured seeds and trade beads ; an exceptionally rare kind has thin plates of brass on, and is called a ra rong ru-pak. A monograph of the cane-girdle as seen from the Himalayas to Eastern Polynesia would reveal some startling affinities."

140 DRESS part 11

Jakun, and indeed among other aboriginal tribes with Malayan affinities, e.g. among those of Sumatra and Borneo. This question, therefore, must also await further inquiry.

The girdle of bark-cloth is so well-known and so widely spread throughout S.E. Asia, the Malay Archipelago, and the Pacific Islands, that a very few words about it should here suffice. The finest and bestknown variety of this cloth is the " tapa " cloth of Polynesia. The cloth made by the tribes of the Malay Peninsula is, as a rule, more roughly manufactured, though some very good cloth, decorated with zigzag patterns, is made in Perak. An interesting point is that the grooving or toothing of the bark-cloth mallet used by some of the Jakun runs longitudinally instead of transversely as in specimens from Rotuma.1

Ligatures.

The bands or ligatures worn by the aborigines round the upper part of the arm, the wrist, and just below the knee, were doubtless originally employed, as in other parts of the world, for a practical object, viz. to strengthen the muscles and prevent strains, the risk of which must be constantly present to the mind of a jungle people. It would appear just possible that even the use of the girdle, more especially that of coiled cane, may perhaps, in some cases, have had an equally utilitarian origin. On the other hand, this explanation can hardly apply to the necklace, or to rings, so that one key will certainly not fit all the locks. The necklaces worn by these Peninsular tribes, and I think also the rings, are certainly worn for

1 Cp. p. 389, infra. I have to thank Mr. J. Stanley Gardiner for pointing this out.

okap. ii GENL RAl RE MAR i \

medical, or rather for magico-medical reasons, as the combs <>i the Semang and ol tin- Semang Sal women. I mysell \.ii> definitely told this on several occasions both by the Semangand [akun, and itagn with the observations ol other travellers in the same region.

Thus, for instance, the Sakai of Kampong Langkor (S. Kerbu) believed in the ubiquitous presence ol evil spirits (Ilantu), against whose evil intentions they protected themselves by means of charms worn, in the forms referred to, upon their persons. Their bracelets, rings, and copper ornaments were, in fact, nothing but talismans, as De la Croix discovered in the following way : — A young girl who had disposed of her seed necklace to him came back in a hurry to ask for it to be returned. He thought she was not satisfied with her bargain, and was about to give her some knick-knack or other in addition, when she informed him that all she wanted back was the set of small spirals of copper-wire attached to the necklace. In spite of the most extravagant offers of tobacco, which certainly ought to have persuaded her, she would not allow him to retain the spirals, and evidently attributed a far greater value to them than could be accounted for by the mere worth of the copper. De la Croix subsequently asked the chief of the tribe (Bah Itam) about it, and the latter told him, with evident conviction, that the girl would certainly fall ill if she ceased to wear these metal

rin^s.1

o

1 De la Croix, p. 338. See, too, use of necklaces and other ligatures the necklace described by Vaughan- may also apply to the girdle. Stevens, p. 153, infra. This magical

M2 DRESS I'art ii

I. — Semang.

The Girdle.

Kedah Semang'. — By far the most remarkable and becoming form of girdle worn by any of these tribes, and one which appears, as has been said, to be of typically Semang origin (though occasionally found among the Sakai and even the Malays of Perak), was the girdle made from the long black glossy strings of a fungus (called in Malay the "Rock-vein Creeper").1 These fungus girdles were of elaborate workmanship, the strings of the rhizomorph being most beautifully woven into a long narrow plait which was coiled round and round until it formed a girdle of the requisite shape and size, the loose ends forming a handsome fringe. This girdle was rarely worn by men, but more frequently by women, and it was from these latter that I obtained the specimens now in the Cambridge Museum.

A yet simpler form of personal attire worn by the men of these Semang tribes as well as by the Sakai consists of a simple waist-cord or string into which leaves are inserted to form a fringe. The leaves generally used are those of the " chalong " tree or the 11 kelawe."

Even when the Semang were wearing the Malay " sarong" they still frequently retained this string underneath it, either from the mere force of habit or for reasons connected with their belief in Magic. In such a case, however, the leaves were more conveniently omitted, and the string alone retained.

A similar leaf-belt was also sometimes worn by

1 Mai. "akar"or " urat batu," i.e. "Rock-creeper"' or "Rock-vein Creeper."

Skeat Collection.

Semang and Pangan Girdles.

i. Man's girdle of tree bark {Artocarpus) (Ulu Aring). 2. Black fungus-string woman's girdle, bought from owner (Siong). 3. Girdle of Pangan woman (Kuala Sam. Kelantan river). 4. Woman's string-girdle of jungle fibre (Siong).

Vol I. />. 14:

Sicca: Collection.

Fungus-String Girdle of Semang Woman (Kedah).

Bought from the wearer.

Skeat Collection.

Seed and Tooth Necklace of Semang Woman (Kedah).

Bought from the wearer.

Vol. I. />. 143.

, ha?, ii NEGRITOS 0/ KEDAH 143

the women, whilst the boys, aa .1 rule, wore th

or cord in all its simplicity, h was made, .is a rule,

either of twisted strips of palm-fibre ( Eugeu sona tristx

or " l>ertain "), or of the long l)la< L String I Ol the R<* k

vein fungUS ("akar batu") already mentioned.

The, Semang of Kedah, however, most commonly

wore the ordinary (Malayan?) loin-eloth. which consists, in its most primitive form, of a lone/ narrow

strip of beaten tree-bark or cloth, one end of which is wrapped round the waist, the other (loose) end being passed between the legs and tucked in through the part which serves as a girdle, with the free part hanging down in front. This bark loin-cloth, however, was not at all common among the Kedah tribes, the men preferring to use the cloth variety, which they obtained by barter from the Malays. In default they occasionally utilised the bark of the Artocarpus or, preferably, a finer cloth manufactured from the bark of young saplings of the Antiaris or " upas " tree.1 The most usual attire of these Kedah women was a cloth waistwrap reaching to the knee.

Pangan. — The Pangan of the Belimbing district in Ulu Kelantan were said to make their loin-cloths from the bark of a species of Ficus ("ara"), as well as from that of the " upas " tree and the Artocarpus. A girdle of coiled cane with a fringe of leaves was also worn by the Pangan women,'2 if not by the men, in the Ulu Kelantan (S. Sam) district.

1 De M.'s unnecessarily vehement {Calamus), which form a girdle round

dimenti is due, no doubt, to his not the waist as thick as the arm. They

having seen it. also wear a piece of bast or cotton stuff,

• I give the following in a foot- fastened in front, drawn through Denote as, though it is certainly Pangan, tween the legs, and then tied to the girdle there is nothing to show its locality : — behind. Fig. 2 (Plate ii.) shows a Sakai " The remainder of the costume of the (sic, recte Pangan) lady in her daily coswomen consists of a number of thin tume, drawn from nature." — M.-Mac- and sometimes red - coloured rattans lay in^. R. A. S., S. B.t No. 2, p. 214.

144 DRESS paki n

Perak Semang. — The clothing of the Perak Semang is similar to that of the Negritos of Kedah.1

As they have no manufactures of their own, their clothing consists chiefly of the inner bark of trees. A few, however, who venture to approach the Malayan villages obtain a little cloth in exchange for various kinds of jungle produce.2

Necklaces.

Kedah Semang. — The simplest form of necklace worn by the Semang in Kedah took the form of a simple neck-string or ligature either of the " Rockvein " fungus or of fibre of the " bertam " palm (Eiigeissona), and was sometimes further embellished by stringing upon it the leaves of certain trees in alternation with knots of palm-leaf (Licuala). It was therefore, in fact, made on the same principle as the simplest form of girdle.

More elaborate necklaces were, however, frequently worn. These consisted of two or more strings which were fastened together at a single point, and on which were threaded various small trophies of the chase, small wild roots, fruits, seeds, and other objects, all of which appear to be commonly worn for magical reasons.

One of these more elaborate necklaces, which I obtained from the Semang of Kedah, consisted of a double string on which were threaded the teeth of an ape (Siamang), a number of minute bundles of fragrant grass, a couple of bear's (?) teeth, a number of small flat beans, and a couple of small buttons of

1 De Morgan, vii. 412 ; cp. Swett. p. 228. 2 J. I. A. vol. iv. pp. 425, 426.

chap, n NEGRITOS <>/■ PERAK

European manufacture, the latter being evidentlj regarded as objects oi no small i alue I

Perak Semang-. I he necklaces (ol the IY-rak Negritos) consist ol a series oi chains ol black and w bite seeds, alternately arranged and fastened together in a hunch. Some ol these are very small, others as big as the closed list.1

To these strings are attached hunting and fishing trophies consisting of the teeth or bones oi animals,

tufts of squirrels' tails, big fish-scales, and so forth, together with shells of the genus BuliflUlS and Ilybo-

cystis, or sea-shells of various sorts (but not I [elix nor Cyclophorus, which are common in these iorests). These shells are tilled with a perfume extracted from trees."

Ihe green legs of a beetle (Jruprestes) are sometimes but very rarely inserted between the seeds.3 Whenever they can get coins, the Negritos wear them on their necklaces. De Morgan saw them wearing dollars, copper coins, and even Dutch coins of the seventeenth century.4

Ligatures (Armlets and Bracelets).

Kedah Semang. — In addition to girdles and neck laces, the Semang of Kedah almost all wore armlets, bracelets, and knee-bands, which were usually made, like their girdles and necklaces, from jungle-fibre, and very much upon the same principle.

These ligatures were usually made, in Kedah, of

1 De Morgan, vii. 413. It must be doubtless Sakai. 2 Ibid.

remembered that he is writing of mixed 3 Ibid.

Semang - Sakai tribes, and does not 4 De Morgan, vii. 414. Cp. Swett.

apparently distinguish between Sakai p. 228 : " The women (Semang) wear

and Semang necklaces. The black and strings of brass rings, boars' or squirrels'

white arrangement is not found among teeth, beads or beetles' legs, and coins

the purer Semang or Jakun, and is when they can get them."

VOL. I L

146 DRESS i'art 11

twisted fibre obtained from the " bertam " palm {Eugeissona). Sometimes, however, they were made of finely plaited strips of rattan (Calamus), or of the strings of the " Rock-vein " fungus. Metal armlets and rings were, however, worn in a few cases, but these are more commonly found among tribes who mix more freely with the Malays. I never saw any armlets with European beads among the Semang of Kedah.

The foregoing remarks apply equally to the Pangan of Kelantan.

Perak Semang. — The bead - armlets or ligatures worn by the Semang of Perak were frequently made on the same plan as their necklaces {i.e. of black and white seeds strung alternately). Ordinarily they were very narrow, but in some cases they were very broad and covered a large portion of the arm.1

Semang* (of Perak ?). — The women wore, by way of a charm, bracelets made from the leaves of the " palas " {Licuala peltata), the men bracelets of the Rock-vein Creeper (the plant called "Tam-tum") fitting tightly to the left wrist. These bracelets are called " Chin-ing-neng." 2

Head-dress — Men }s.

Kedah Semang. — Among the Semang at Siong some of the men were wearing short woolly hair forming small spiral clusters close to the scalp. Most, however, had adopted the fashion of shaving the head, which is found among other branches of the Negrito race {e.g. the Andamanese), as well as, frequently, among the local Malays.

None of the men that I saw were in the habit of

1 De Morgan, vii. 413. 2 Vaughan- Stevens, iii. 126.

« ma.-, ii NEGRITOS <>/■ a /■/>./// i47

wearing anything on their heads, though several made a rough kind of turban out of some strips ol bright red cloth that I had given them, and in this guise strutted about lor all the world like great turkey-cocks I

On special occasions thry hound their heads with fillets of palm leaf, and for protection against various diseases special head dresses were used, which will be described later. Flowers are also worn "for dandy."

The (Malayan ?) top-knot was worn by some of the boys, but not by any of the men that I saw, though Vaughan- Stevens says that he saw men wearing it.

Perak Semang. — Vaughan-Stevens'1 account of the top- knot worn by the Perak Semang is as follows : —

Some of the Perak men leave a tuft — at the frontal end of the scalp, — but this is adopted from the B&ttaks (.v/V), who cut their hair into all sorts of shapes. Nothing is known why this tuft is left. " Pie's orders " [Pie, a deity of the Semang tribes, brother of Karih] is the only reply they give. Each of the tufts was taken from a man of about thirty years of age, whose hair had never been cut before, and had ceased growing. They were not tied in any way while on the head and were cut off for me readily without demur. . . . When the hair of the rest of the scalp has been left for a long time without cutting, the tuft cannot be distinguished from the rest of the hair. The exact position of the tuft varies slightly in different men, by about 20 or 25 mm. either to the front or back, but always in the median line.

When the hair (as a whole) is not cut for a long time, the tuft shows the " pepper-corn " character with increased distinctness, it being in that case less disturbed by the leaves and twigs through which the Semang passes. The tuft, when left to itself, gets more or less combed out from its isolated position.

The Beard. Kedah Semang. — In one or two cases only did I see Kedah Semang with anything approaching a

1 In the same passage we are told that much-mixed Perak Semang (No. 55).

the E. Semang (Pangan) men cut off ... The ' pepper-corn ' character is

their hair as close to the scalp as the best shown some six months [sic) after

jungle-knife (parang) will allow, partly cutting, when the spirals lie only from

for coolness' sake and partly for cleanli- 5 to 10 mm. above the scalp. I gave

ness. But they left a small tuft, at each of the men furnishing specimens

the top of the occiput, which they did 55 and 56 a high cap which I made

not cut. Vaughan-Stevens continues : them wear for a week, so as to allow

"Two of these little tufts — called the hair to assume its normal shape

' Bag-i ' — I now send cut off close to before cutting it. And I kept both

the skin, complete. One belonged to an men near me for that time." (From

Eastern Semang (Pangan) of unmixed Fasc. A. fol. 29 ; Vaughan-Stevens in

blood (No. 56), and the other to the V. B. G. A. vol. xxiv. pp. 440, 441.)

148 DRESS pari 11

beard, their chin-hairs as a rule being few, straggling, and scanty. Yet in one case I saw a Semang with a real beard, which, though very short, grew in closely curled spirals, presenting a woolly appearance, exactly like the owner's hair. On the other hand, most of the grown men had slight black moustaches.

Pangan. — The wild pure-blood Eastern Semang (Pangan) " plucks out his scrubby little beard, but tries to retain the moustache," in order, we are told, that he may be " distinguished from a woman " (!) l

Head-dress — Women s.

Kedah Semang*. — The women's hair usually grew longer than the men's, and was in some cases allowed to grow (apparently uncared for) in a species of curly mop.2 This, however, was probably in the case of women who had some proportion of Sakai blood in their veins. In several cases the women, as well as the men, had partially shaved the head, the women always leaving, however, a circular patch at the back of the head, and a thin fringe on the forehead untouched.

Several of them were wearing the magic combs which they employ as a safeguard against diseases, and several of them too, probably with a view to receiving 4 'company," had bound their heads with the Licualaleaf fillets usually reserved for special occasions.

The following were some of the forms of headdress employed by the Semang women : —

a. An oval shaven patch on top of head.

b. A rectangular shaven patch on top of head.

c. Quill-like plant shoots worn like horns in the hair.

1 Z. f. E. xxix. 179. The ab- the waist, is so obvious as to scarcely

surdity of the explanation given by need pointing out. Vaughan-Stevens, as purporting to come 2 Among these was the chief's

from a race who habitually go bare to wife.

Wray.

Semang with Gird] es of Malay Cloth.

Vol. I. />. i43-

^r-

Semang Combs.

Skeat Collection.

i, 2. Two Wot Negrito (Semang of Kedah), said to be worn as charms— old well-worn specimens bought off the head of the wearer>.

3. One E. Negrito (Pangan) obtained from Ulu Aring, Kelantan.

4, 5. Two obtained by Grubauer in Upper Perak.— Presented to Cambridge Museum by

Ridgeway.

Vol. I. /. 149.

i hap, n NEGRITOS (>/■ KEDAH

In the method oi dressing the hair represented by ,/, three fillets of Lima/a leal weic used. One o( these was carried from ear to ear over the top oi

the head, and the other two from ear to ear over the

back of the head, the one just above and the other

just helow the clump of untouched hair covering the back of the head.

In b% a single fillet was used, which was carried all round the edges of the clump at the back of the head only. In c, the horns consisted of the quill-like growing shoots of the Lowia grandiflora ("sulur lobak "), and were worn for magical purposes. Another woman had bound her head with a fishing line, using the hook as a fastening.

Magic Combs.

Kedah Semang". — In addition to the various forms of head-dress mentioned, some of which are common to both sexes, the Semang women wore in their hair a remarkable kind of comb, which appears to be worn entirely as a charm against diseases.

These combs were almost invariably made of bamboo (an average specimen measuring perhaps three inches by five), and were decorated with an infinite variety of designs, no two of which ever entirely agreed. It was said that each disease had its appropriate pattern, and hence in some cases several combs were worn simultaneously, apparently to protect the wearer against several diseases at once.

Similar combs are worn by the Pangan, the Semang and Sakai of Perak, and most of the mixed (Semang- Sakai) tribes, e.g. the O. Jelei of Pahang.

Their patterns and magical significance will be fully described in a later chapter.

150 DRESS part ii

Nose-sticks and Earrings.

Kedah Semang. — The custom of wearing a stick through the septum of the nose was not practised in Kedah. It is also unknown to the Andamanese, and as it is common among the Perak Sakai and the Sakai of Pahang, it is no doubt a practice of Sakai origin.1

Earrings of rolled-up leaf (banana and "licuala") are worn by both sexes.2

Perak Semang-. — It is quite possible that some of the Perak Semang may have learnt nose-boring from the Sakai, but I have not met with any record of its employment among the purer Semang tribes, though they do wear earrings ; it is quite unknown to the Jakun.

II. — Sakai. The Girdle.

Perak Sakai. — The fringed waist-cord sometimes worn by the Semang is also found among the Sakai and Jakun. Thus De la Croix says that, in the neighbourhood of Mt. Bujang Malaka, the Sakai women that he saw wore, instead of the tree -bark girdle, a row of small grass-bundles attached to a cord which went around the waist. And in 1869 (?) M. Alfred Marche observed the same form of girdle among the Mantra women north of Malacca.3

On the other hand, we are told that the waistwrap or "loin-cloth' of tree - bark, which is most probably of Malayan origin, appears to be very

1 Cp. Man's And. p. 115: "No differ greatly from their neighbours the

attempt is made to alter the shape of Nicobarese." - See p. 526, infra.

the nose by flattening or pinching it, 3 De la Croix, p. 330. Another

nor is the cartilaginous septum ever form (of coiled jungle-fibre with leaves

perforated for the purpose of inserting attached) is sometimes seen among

ornamental bars or rings. In this, as mixed Semang-Sakai {e.g. the O. Jelei

in many other respects, the Andamanese of Pahang).

okap. M SAKAI OF PERAK 1)1

generally worn by all Sakai iribes who have not yet

adopted the Malay "sarong."1

It varies from about 3 or 4 inches (7.5 cm. to 10 cm.) to about 1 inch (2.5 cm.) in width. "

The fullest description of this girdle is that given

by I )e la Croix, who tells us that the dress of the Sakai consists of a mere strip of tree bark rolled round them, which is passed between the legs and carried round the waist, tucked through at the belt, and then allowed to fall down in front in the shape of a fan. This garment, which is called "selampit," measures from 3 to 4 metres in length, and is manufactured either from the bark of the Ipoh tree (Anti- aris toxicaria) or from that of the wild bread-fruit tree {Artocarpus). It is prepared by spreading the bark upon a tree-trunk and striking it with a wooden mallet. The sap is thus driven out of it, but the cloth has then to be washed and dried several times before it attains the requisite suppleness.3

The best and finest cloth is that made from the Ipoh tree.4

Both men and women wore this garment, which De la Croix took to be " the national costume of the Sakai."5

The use of the black fungus girdle, which undoubtedly originated among the Semang, has also been observed among the Perak Sakai,6 but not, so far

1 Cp. J. I. A. vol. iv. p. 429 (of 6 lb. See figure 136.

the Perak Sakai), and also Hale, 6 Hale, I.e., describes this girdle as

p. 292 (of the same). made from "a black, leafless, aquatic

2 75-100 mm. by 25 mm. Mr. Ridley creeper called ' akar batu' ('area battu') tells me that the "chawats" worn by found growing on stones under water the Sakai of the " Batu Caves" (near in mountain streams." " Akar batu," Kuala Lumpur in Selangor) were cer- or more properly "urat batu" {i.e. tainly not more than an inch in width, " Rock-creeper" or " Rock- veins"), is and if anything a little less. the Malay name of this rhizomorph, for

3 De la Croix, p. 330. 4 lb. which v. p. i^8,snj>ra. Hale describes

152 DRESS pari ii

as I am aware, among other sections of the race more remote from the Semanof.

Necklaces, Armlets, Bracelets, Rings.

Perak Sakai. — De Morgan speaks of the necklaces and bracelets of the Perak Sakai as in no way differing from those worn by the Perak Semang (p. 146).

According to Hale, the men appeared to wear no ornaments except very small bracelets and waist-belts made of the M Rock-vein " fungus (already mentioned).1 The women, on the other hand, wore bracelets and necklaces made of seeds, shells, certain sweet-smelling roots, and anything they could get from the Malays that could be strung on. A necklace, purchased from an old woman, contained nine strings of black and white seeds differently arranged, a string of old Malay copper coins, a few glass beads, the tip of a squirrel's tail, two tufts of monkeys' hair, a spiral of brass wire, five snail shells, and the brass support of the ribs of an umbrella. This was about the average of a Sakai necklace.2

The Sakai of " Changkat Riam" (in Perak), according to De Morgan, strung upon their necklaces and bracelets not only seeds but small bones as well.3

These necklaces and bracelets were very similar to those of Sungei Raya, but at Changkat Riam brass ornaments were conspicuous by their absence, probably owing to the great distance of the latter settle- ment from any of the Malay villages.4

On the arm a thickish string, or series of strings, is

it as being worn by the Sakai men (of x Hale, p. 292.

Kinta in Perak), as well as by the local 2 lb. See also De la Croix, p. 330.

Malays, who in this case are clearly 3 Sic, ? " Riang. " — De Morgan, viii.

borrowers. 211. 4 lb.

Co ruli.

Sakai Girl of South PeraKj

showing hark cloth dress, headband, necklace, armlet, ring, and bracelets.

Vol. I. p. is--.

Wray.

Sakai Women in Malay "Sarongs," showing Necklaces, Armlets, and Bracelets.

Ulu Hertang, Perak.

I'oi. i:p. i53.

chap, ii SAKAJ ('/■ PBRAK

also occasionally worn by the Sakai. The women

(very rarely) wear anklets as well ;r, bracelets and armlets.1 Moreover, whenever they are able to do bo, the Perak Sakai substitute metal rings, spirals, and

beads obtained lrom the Malays for the Strings Of natural objects just described. Their favourite piece of jeweller\r is undoubtedly the brass bracelet or finger-ring, both of which are in the form of spirals, which they fit on to their arm or finger.1

Vaughan-Stevens' states that necklaces ("dokoh") among the Sakai were worn by persons of both sexes and of all ages, whereas among the Jakun or Benua (" Benar- Benar ") they were only occasionally worn. Attached to them were amulets ("tangkal") made from the "bunglei," the fresh roots of which were cut "diagonally" into small slices. When the necklace is ready its maker lays it upon his palm, and facing eastwards, touches it with his lips, and repeats the following invocation addressed to the Evil Spirit (Hantu) : —

Necklace Charm.

OM ! Die, O Mati-anak, buried under the earth heaped up for the Roadway.

What is the origin of thy existence ?

Demon of the blood of a person dead in childbirth,

That is the origin of thy existence.

Mati-anak of the River-banks, return to the River-banks ;

Mati-anak of the " outcrop," return to the outcrop ;

Pluck out with spells and neutralise again and again the demon Mati-anak.

Descend, O poison of the Mati-anak ;

Rise, O Neutraliser of mine.

As soon as the words have been spoken, the speaker spits twice upon the necklace and the ceremony is ended. The plants of which the necklace is

1 De Morgan, vii. 413. black and white seeds with glass

2 De Morgan, viii. 150 and vii. 413. beads. 3 De Morgan, vii. 413. Cp. also Hale, p. 293. Their great 4 V.-St. ii. 144. The original has ambition seems to be to replace the been corrected.

154 DRESS part ii

made must, like officinal plants, be pulled up, and not cut or dug up.1

Selangor Sakai. — The foregoing remarks as to the dress of the Perak Sakai apply equally to the Sakai of Selangor, amongst whom, however, copper, brass, and even iron arm -rings (spiral or otherwise) and bracelets are perhaps rather more commonly worn, as most of these Selangor tribes live somewhere in the neighbourhood of Malay civilisation.

The same is true of finger-rings, which are still occasionally manufactured from various products of the jungle (bone, horn, tortoiseshell, the crest of the Rhinoplax, etc.), though metal rings are much preferred, and are usually obtainable.

The Head-dress.

Perak Sakai. — The method of wearing the hair is for the men (whose hair is long and wavy) to wear it just down to the shoulders in a wild and unkempt condition ; and the women are also said, among the wilder tribes, to wear it in a mop, which " stands out all round from the head." When, however, they have intercourse with the Malays they tie it back in a knot like the latter.2

According to Bartels, Vaughan - Stevens heard (among the Sakai) that iron may not be used for cutting either the hair or finger-nails, this being the reason why the wilder tribes of them (Orang Liar)

1 Vaughan - Stevens, ii. 144, 145. sion of "batu ampat" ("four boulders")

Vaughan - Stevens' account contains with "batu am par " ("outcrop of

several errors (due to his ignorance of rock "), and his building up of a pretty

Malay), which have here been corrected. little theory on the mistaken version. The worst of these is perhaps his confu- 2 Hale, p. 293.

< map. ii SAKA1 OF PERAK

would never have their h.iir rut.1 Both men and women left untouched the hair OJ tlie body."

We are further told that the Sakai ( lilanda-,), for thoroughly washing the head and hair, employed the

scrapings of the inner part of the hark of a particular creeper (M kletterrebe "), of which the young stems and shoots were armed with an abundant quantity ol

sharp thorns, like those of the rose. 1 he leaf was like that of an acacia, dark green and smooth, and of great circumference. A handful of freshly scraped bark was applied to the head, together with water, somewhat like a sponge, when it produced a thick lather.3

This creeper may well be the "b'luru," a climber used by the Malays as a substitute for soap.

By way of head-dress the men, however, sometimes wore a mere cord, furnished with two small knots or rosettes, whereas the women preferred merely to wear in their hair the flowers of the field.4

Elsewhere, speaking of some (fifteen) Sakai women whom he saw at Kampong Langkor (on S. Kerbu), De la Croix remarks that one of them who had charming features, and was indeed actually pretty, wore in each ear a small white flower which she had picked at the side of the path ; another wore a simple tuft of grass in her hair, and (passed through her ears) some kind of plant which hung down as far as her back. An old woman, again, wore in her hair (or ''chignon") nothing but a tall plant, which oscillated with every movement of her body.5

The women also occasionally wear the combs of

1 Z.f. E. xxix. 178. 4 De la Croix, p. 330.

• lb. p. 179. S lb. 5 lb. p. 336.

156 DRESS FART II

the Negrito women.1 According to De Morgan, these combs are made of decorated bamboo, or else of small wooden teeth bound together by means of an exceedingly tight string. These latter are used by the Sakai of G. Bujang Malaka and of S. Kampar - (both of which places are in Perak).

In addition to these combs the Sakai women, when they wear their hair long, adorn their heads with fillets and bouquets, which they keep in place by means of a comb or a long dagger-shaped bamboo pin, covered with (incised) patterns.3

The fillets and bouquets are generally gathered in the forest and worn fresh, though the Sakai not unfrequently also wear dried plants cleverly plaited.4

According to Hale, the Sakai women also wear porcupines' quills, etc., through the lobe of the ear, rolls of cloth and other materials being also worn, not for the purpose of ornament, but in order to enlarge the orifice.5 Short bamboo tubes with flowers in them are then inserted.6

For the quills, earrings were not unfrequently substituted — probably owing to their greater convenience. According to De Morgan, the women also wore earrings consisting of copper rings, a small string of beads, or a mere flower, whose stalk is inserted into the perforation of the lobe.7

Nose-sticks or Nose-quills.

Perak Sakai. — But one of the most distinctive ornaments is the nose-quill, which appears to be originally

1 Hale, p. 295 (and Plate xiii. id.). * De Morgan, vii. 413, 414.

2 De Morgan, vii. 413, 414. 5 Hale, p. 293 : cp. vol. ii. 39.

3 This pin is also used (Hale, p. 6 E.g. among the Semang-Sakai of 295) for disentangling the hair. For U. Jelei, Pahang.

patterns, v. Fasc. Mai. 35, 36. 7 De Morgan, vii. 413, 414.

/

2 o

X

Cerruti.

Sakai Family, showing Nose-quills, Ne< ki.ac es, Armlets, and

Leaf-Ornaments.

Ulu Bikum, near Bidor, South I'erak

chaf. ii SAKAJ OF PERAK 157

a Sakai ornament, and is worn by both Some

tribes le.g* those <>l S. Kinta) wore porcupines1 quills passed through a perforation made for the purpose in the septum of th<: nose.1 The men wore them with the ends passed between the hair and the top ol the ear. The women passed them through the lobe itself.2 A long bone of a fish, bird, or monkey ' (and among the Sakai ol" Pahang a nose-ring l) is sometime substituted for the quill.

Occasionally for the porcupine's quill a piece of wood, about a quarter of an inch (6 mm.) in diameter and about six inches (15 cm.) long, was substituted.

A few who affected to be dandies used to ornament their nose-sticks."

An occasional substitute for the quill is a rolled-up piece of banana-leaf.7

Selangor Sakai. — The nose-quill is also occasionally worn by the Selangor Sakai {e.g. in the district of Ulu Langat).8

III. — Jakun.

Blandas of Selang-or. — The Blandas of the Kuala Langat district have now largely adopted the Malay dress, though when at work in the jungle they still frequently revert to the bark loin-cloth, which forms a more convenient working dress. The women more usually wear a sort of short skirt or kilt of bark-

1 According to Colonel Low, the of porcupines (J. I. A. vol. iv. p. 429).

Malays divided the Sakai of Perak 2 De Morgan, vii. 414.

into three classes — the "Tame" Sakai, 3 Hale, p. 293.

the " Hill" Sakai of Ulu Birtang (sic, 4 As in a photograph by R. Martin.

qtucre "Bertang"), and the Alas of 5 15 cm. by 6.2 mm. Cp.y. K. A. S.,

Ulu Kantu (sic, qucere "Kinta"). S. B., No. 4, p. 30.

This last tribe differed from the other G lb. This applies also to the

two in having adopted the custom of Semang-Sakai of Ulu Jelei, Pahang.

piercing the cartilage of the nose and 7 Swettenham, p. 228.

ears, and inserting therein the quills 8 J. A. G. Campbell, p. 243.

158 DRESS part 11

cloth, the ends of which, though usually unsewn, are sometimes roughly stitched together with jungle fibres. The " feel " of the bark-cloth made by these people is not unlike a sort of rough leather.

The above remarks are equally true of the Besisi tribes of Selangor, who were pretty generally in the habit of wearing Malay dress.

Besisi. — The everyday dress of the Besisi differed very little from that of the Malays, the men wearing for the most part a loose cotton jacket and trousers, and the women a jacket and a Malay sarong. In the jungle, however, the more convenient " chawat " ' still lingered on, and shy as the Besisi might be of wearing it before strangers, they had no such scruples when by themselves. Red "sarongs" were preferred.

Bracelets and armlets, rings, necklaces, etc., were, on the other hand, worn most profusely, a good scrap necklace, with plenty of coins on it, being highly valued, as the wearing of coins was believed to be especially good for the eyes.

The rings worn by the Besisi were made of various natural products of the jungle, bone, horn, tortoiseshell, etc. ; from chips of coconut-shell ; from black coral ("akar bahar") ; from "batu akik," a species of stone ; from various kinds of shell ; and from the red crest of the solid-crested Hornbill or Rhinoplax. This latter was valued by the Besisi, as by the Malays, on account of the belief that it would turn green whenever poison approached the wearer. Finely woven matwork pouches (" bujam ") were also commonly carried for holding betel-leaf, etc.

Nose-boring and tattooing of all kinds (or rather scarification), if ever practised, had, however, long

1 Cp. vol. ii. p. 144, n. I.

McGregor.

Sakai Group, Ulu Lui, Ulu Langat, showing Women and Girls in Malay Dress.

.map. ii SAVAGE MALA )'.l> Ob SI LANGO) i S'>

disappeared, and though face - painting wz (till occasionally to be seen, it was only on special occasions (such as the tribal [feasts) that the ancient methods oi persona] adornment were still in evidence.

Mantra.--- The Mantra, with the ption ol

their young children, never go absolutely nude, the

men always wearing at least some "covering round the waist," and'the women always wearing the "sarong" of the Malays, " which covers the entire body from the knee to above the breast." The "holiday garb "of the men is the ordinary wear of the local Malays (a loose jacket, a "sarong," or perhaps short trousers, and a coloured handkerchief wrapped round the head).1

Many of the Mantra around Gunong Berembun still wear the bark of the Artocarpus (" t'rap "), the men using the " chawat," and the women a piece of rude cloth, formed by simply beating the bark, which they wrap round their persons, and which, like the " sarong " of the Johor females, reaches only from the waist to the knees. They have no description of shoe, sandal, or slipper, and no articles of the toilet.2

The women " take considerable care of their hair, which they gather up on the top of their heads, and plait in the shape of a crown," fastening it with pins, and on special occasions inserting round it flowers and leaves.3

The Mantra females have wider ear-perlorations (than the Benua of Johor). They are enlarged to the diameter of about half an inch by inserting a wooden pin or roll of Licuala- (" palas ") leaf, which is gradually increased till the desired width is acquired. Pendants are not worn, but many have ear-studs (" subang "),

1 Logan in/". /. A. vol. i. pp. 252, 253. 2 lb, 3 lb.

160 DRESS part ii

about the size of a Company's rupee, made by Malays, and similar to those worn by Javanese females. Silver rings are also worn. They bind the hair in the same way as the Johor Benua.1

The " little girls " have their ears pierced by their parents for the reception of earrings ; in the absence of earrings, these holes are filled with small rolled-up strips of banana-leaf or a large stud of wood."

They also wear large Malay waist-buckles (of the kind called "pinding") and Malay bracelets.3

The children wear necklaces consisting of strings of monkeys' bones, teeth of bears or tigers, coins, and shells ; these necklaces, however, are not worn for mere ornament, but as a talisman against disease.4

The only other point that calls for remark with regard to the dress of the Mantra, lies in the close resemblance between the form of girdle worn by the Sakai women in the neighbourhood of G. Bujang Malaka (which consisted of a row of small grassbundles fastened to a cord which went round the waist), and that observed in 1869, by Marche, among the Mantra women north of Malacca.5

Benua - Jakun of Johor. — According to Logan, the original dress of the males, to which a few individuals whom he met were still restricted, was the " chawat " — a narrow strip of cloth passing between the legs and fastened round the waist. With these exceptions all were provided with the Malay short trousers (" seluar "), jacket (" baju "), plaid skirt, or wrapper (" sarong "), and headkerchief (" saputangan "), or some of them, but often in so ragged a condition as

1 Logan in/. /. A. vol. i. pp. 252, 253. 2 Borie (tr. Bourien), pp. 75, 76.

3 lb. 4 lb. 5 De la Croix, p. 330.

i map. ii \A\ AGl M* \LA\ I '/ fOHOR

to show that the) carried their wardrobes on their persons, and \ci< seldom able to renew them. With the exception of one house, where the mistress lay in a

corner and appeared to be, like her husband, tOtall) destitute o! clothes, Logan lound the women everywhere wearing a short "sarong," Fastened at the

waist or a little below it, and barely reaching to the knees it was, in fact, only the hall of an ordinary Malay "sarong." This was the only garment that they possessed, hut in a few families, such as that oi the Hcntara o\ Boko, some of the Females wore the Malay jacket ("baju"), The hair was bound in a knot behind. From the great desire universally expressed forprettx " sarongs," jackets (" bajus "), handkerchiefs, and ornaments, we must do the Benua ladies the justice to believe that they would willingly deck themselves in the full Malayan costume if they had the means.1 The only ornaments that they possess are plain brass rings and bracelets. Their ears were pierced, hut the orifice, which is of the diameter of a quill, was more often occupied by the native cigarette or "roko'," or a piece of cloth, than an earring. -

The hair was black and in general smooth and lank, but in some it was frizzled, and in all somewhat more dry and tangled than in the Malay, arising from the little oil that they use. It is worn long or

1 " Both men and women go nearly to appear more decently clad. The

naked whilst near their own haunts ; women particularly lake great pleasure

they wear nothing but a strip of the in silver bracelets, rings, and other orna-

fibrous bark of the 'terap' tree, beaten ments. I do not recollect that I have seen

into a sort of cloth of a reddish-brown any instance of the Benua wearing the

colour, called a 'sabaring,' round their skins of wild beasts, as has been alleged,

loins ; part of this comes down in They carry about with them little mat

front, is drawn between the legs, and pouches, containing generally a small

fastened behind. The men sometimes portion of tobacco, a flint and steel, a

encircle their heads with a string of knife, and a rude bamboo call or whistle''

I.icuala- (' palas ') leaves. On visits to (Newbold, ii. 398): 7: p. 137, ante Malay villages they generally contrive - J. /. A. vol. i. pp. 252, 253.

VOL. I M

1 62 DRESS part n

cropped short, as with the Malays, according to the taste of the individual. Some old women had long discontinued the use of oil, and their dry, rusty, unkempt locks, aiding the effect of their piercing, sinister eyes, wrhich almost seemed to be touched by insanity, frightened some of Logan's Malays not a little ; and so persuaded were they that the old ladies had the " evil eye," that they felt greatly relieved when he left the house.1

The clothes of the Jakun (when they used any) were ordinarily the same as those used by the Malays, but poor, miserable, and, above all, very dirty ; many of them used clothes without washing, from the day they received or bought them until they became rotten by use and dirt, when they were obliged to throw them away ; if vermin were found, which was often the case, principally upon the women who were more dressed up, they were immediately eaten with delight, as in Cochin-China. If many of them were badly dressed, and some nearly naked, it was more from a lack of clothing than in accordance with their own wishes, especially amongst the women ; for all desired to be clothed, and the most agreeable presents which could be offered to them were the short (Malayan) trousers, " sarongs," jackets, or handkerchiefs to put round their heads, according to the Malay fashion. Those of them who went habitually nearly naked never appeared in that condition before strangers, except when they actually had no clothes. The Jakun of Johor, who were superior to the others in many respects, as can be inferred from what has been said, were also the best dressed ; their women wore much the same as Malay

1 J. I. A. vol. i. pp. 251, 252.

chap, ii SAVAGl MAI / KS I '/ JOHOR

women, both .is to dress and the order ol their appear .mcc ; they had, moreover, a great number of rings on

their fingers, some of which were crystal, some ol copper, and some ol tin, hut also a good many of silver; they took a peculiar pleasure in these ornaments, well as in silver bracelets.1 The men had at least the trousers, a small jacket or " baju," and a handkerchief

tor the* head. The Jakun of the Negri Sembilan

and Rembau had the same dress as was used by the Jakun of Johor, and the women the same ornaments, hut they were not so well clothed, many of them going nearly naked, at least near their houses ; and those who used clothes often showed an embarrassment which proved that they were not accustomed to their use. The Jakun of Malacca were badly dressed, many of the women had only a " sarong," and, if they were married, a ring, the necessary present of the husband at marriage. The greater part of the men had nothing but a strip of the fibrous bark of the 44t'rap" tree, beaten into a sort of cloth of a reddishbrown colour, called a M sabaring," round their loins ; part of this came down in front, was drawn between the legs, and fastened behind.2

As regards the hair, some of them left the whole to grow and turned it round the head, like the Cochin-Chinese ; others, as for instance many of those of Malacca, cut theirs off entirely;3 yet others,

1 J. I. A. vol. ii. p. 258. hair, however, is allowed to grow as

2 lb. long as possible. The Jakun custom

3 "Formerly the Jakun did not cut of binding the fringe of hair with a the hair, but let it grow (from child- band of tree-bark, to keep it out of hood to age) down to their neck and the eyes, is imitated by the Oran<* shoulders. The hair of the boys is at Laut " (Z. f. E. xxix. 177). "The the present day cut to a fringe over Jakun girls stick flowers in their hair, the forehead, or else it is all cut off instead of the brightly coloured shells with the exception of a scalp-lock, as used by the Orang Laut " {ib. p. among Malay children. The girls' 178).

164 DRESS lAiti 11

chiefly those of the Negri Sembilan and Rembau and Johor, shaved the head, leaving unshaven only, on the crown, a space about three inches in diameter, where they never cut it, just in the same way as the Chinese ; and to prevent this head of hair from being hooked by the branches of trees in the jungle, they tied it up in the form of a top- knot. They had scarcely any beard, and many of them had none at all. The women left their hair to grow, and then tied it up in the same way as the Malay women ; but as they had but little occasion to care much for appearance, it will be easily imagined that they were not very particular in this respect. Some of them are said to treat their hair with lime.1

It does not yet seem to have been recorded whether the Jakun are in the habit of eradicating their beard, but there is, I believe, very little doubt upon the point. Vaughan - Stevens does not actually state that the Jakun men pull out the hair of the face, though he clearly implies it in saying that the beard and whiskers (of the Jakun) are scarcely ever present, even if they are not intentionally pulled out.2

Orang Laut or Sea-Jakun.

Necklaces and Arm lets.

Name of Tribe unspecified. — The Orang Laut have now all taken to the Malay dress. The desire to adorn the person exists among their women despite

1 Logan in J. I . . I. vol. ii. p. 248. people, to which I called their attention

Cp., however, the statement of V.- a long time before, ever treated their

Stevens— -"I could not learn whether the hair with lime, as some of the New

Takun, although they perceived the Guinea men do " {Z.f. E. x.\ix. 178). reddish colour of the hair of the young - Z.f. E. xxix. 179.

« i,M'. ii MALA YA \ S£ / G YPSI1

their usuall) degraded condition. I he girls will take

any object that glitters tO wear upon their arm-,, neck, or breast. Nowadays these objects are nearl
always the products of civilisation obtained from

Malays and Chinese, but formerly coloured bi

valves, seed-grains, etc., were employed. Vaughan- Stevens saw a prettily composed necklace, with which

the woman who possessed it positively refused to

part. It was made up of variously coloured plantseeds growing on the coast, small variegated marine bivalves gathered from the sands, and short segments of crabs' legs (like one of our own coral necklaces).1

The Hair.

The " turned in " (cingekangte) part of the claw of a crawfish is often used by the Orang Laut as a head-scratcher, and for this purpose is stuck in the hair or kept in the girdle. If the claw is short, a little piece of stick is stuck in it, in order to lengthen it sufficiently. Half of the lower jaw of fishes which have " needle-teeth " is frequently, even to the present day, used in place of a comb."

As might be expected from people who are so much on the sea, the Orang Laut girls use brightly coloured shells for hair ornaments, instead of the Mowers which are used by the Jakun.3

Up to manhood the boys do the same, but no later, unless there is some special reason (besides mere decoration of the person) for their doing so.4

At the present day the Orang Laut bind the hair back to keep it out of their eyes either with a band

1 Z.f.E. xxviii. 170. 2 lb. xxix. 178. 3 lb. 4 lb.

1 66 DRESS

PART II

of cotton stuff, or else, in imitation of the Jakun, with a similar band of tree-bark. They do not, however, like to wear any sort of covering for the (top of the) head, even in the sun.1

Among the Orang Laut both sexes use fat or oil for their body and hair, because, as they say, the seawater irritates the unprotected skin, if it is later exposed to the sun. At the present time coconutoil and other oils are easy to get, but formerly fish-fat was used.2

In the following accounts the name of the tribe is specified : —

0. Laut, Sletar. — The middle of both men and women was generally covered by a coarse wrapper made from the bark of the Artocarpus, and extending from the navel to the knee. The women affected a slight degree of modesty at first approach, but this soon disappeared. Instead of the wrapper of " t'rap," they frequently put on instead an old patched-up Malay " sarong." The locks of the men were bound up with a tie of cloth, and sometimes by the Malay headkerchief or " saputangan " ; those of the women fell in wild luxuriance over their face and shoulders. Their children went entirely naked until the age of puberty.3

0. Laut, Sabimba. — Their close relations with the Malays have given them a taste for dress, as they were wearing cloth instead of the bark of trees. The women were dressed in " sarongs," after the manner of Malay women, but the men wore only a strip of cloth of scanty dimensions round the middle and passing between the thighs.4

1 Z.f. E. xxix. 177. 3 /. /. A. vol. i. p. 345*.

2 lb. p. 185. 4 lb. p. 350*.

' mai. ii mm .1 \ .1 \ ,/■ A C VPS/1 167

0. Laut, Muka Knnlnff. The males (ol the Ora Muk;i Kuning) mostly wear the "chawat " ol Arte carpus ("t'rap") bark, and the females short "sarong

of cloth.1

0. Laut, Akik. Their dress resembled that <>i the Malay, but was coarser and poorer, and when they were engaged in ordinary pursuits seldom extended beyond a waist-cloth or " chawat."

1 /. /. /. vol. i. p. 337*. ' Newbold, ii. 113, |i|

CHAPTER III.

Habitations.

The two first and most obvious forms of shelter would, to a wild jungle-dwelling race, naturally be the large umbrella-like palm-leaves growing in the forest, and natural caves or holes in the ground. In the case of the latter, however, it appears that certain preferences exist, for "the caves which have been inhabited (in Perak) are those which are formed by the overhanging of the cliffs [i.e. ' rock-shelters '), and not those caverns that have been hollowed out in the rock. The same class of cave was inhabited by many of the cavedwellers of Europe, as well as by the early New Zealanders." ! Mr. Wray further informs me that he could find no trace of human remains in the caves themselves, but that in some rock-shelters near the "dark caves" there were some thick deposits. For an exception to this rule, however, it ought to be pointed out that the well-known "limestone caves" at Batu (six miles from Kuala Lumpor in Selangor) were certainly at times inhabited by some of these jungle -folk, as was stated by W. T. Hornaday in his account of his discovery of the caves, in the company of the late Captain Syers, and confirmed by

1 L. Wray, Cave-dwellers^ p. 37.

i hap. ill <■/ w RAl REMAR

later visitors. The reason for this L18C <>! ill' moreover, is in this instance known, viz. : the fai I that they afforded protection against wild elephant

At the same time it LS only lair to add that lln . i I tinonly exception I know of.

Although, however, the practice of utilising such natural refuges as are afforded by the geographical

features (such as trees and rock-shelters) of the country they live in appears to be common to all the wilder

members of the three* races alike, and although it may be possible to trace certain similarities in the methods by which their more settled fellow-tribesmen succeeded in evolving a hut-type which, at first of the pile-hut type common in S.E. Asia, became gradually assimilated to that of the Peninsular Malays, it is neverthe- less quite possible in certain respects to differentiate the various types of hut, and even to specify with almost complete certainty to which of the three races these types should be assigned.

The Semang huts, for instance, frequently resemble (as might almost be expected) the huts built by the Andamanese, and the circular (and semicircular) huts formed by planting a number of palm-leaves upright in the ground, with their tops drooping over to a common centre, appear also to be only recorded in districts where Negrito influence is either certain or to be suspected. The long leaf-shelter, too, that I visited in Kedah was certainly of a type apparently confined exclusively to the Semang or Negrito. It may be added, moreover, that the Semang appear (speaking broadly and generally) to be on the whole more given to the use of tree-shelters and huts on ground-level than the average Sakai or the Jakun, and that both of the latter races seem especially fond

1 70 HA BIT A T10NS part i i

oi building their huts upon very lofty house-posts. Mr. Wray informs me that he has never seen in Perak a "bee-hive" hut, or even a tree-hut, made either by the Semang or by the Sakai, although at Kuala Dipang and elsewhere he has seen very tall tree-huts built by the Malays.

The most interesting question, however, connected with this subject is undoubtedly that concerned with the successive steps by means of which the hut-type is evolved.

Among the Semang its evolution is perhaps on the whole the clearest, the various stages being, as they appear to me, the following : —

1. Natural shelters — rock -shelters, caves, tree

buttresses, branches, etc.

2. Artificial shelters or weather-screens — a single

large palm-leaf, either planted in the ground or fixed across the fork of a tree.

3. A number of such palm-leaves, planted in a

straight row, or in a semicircle or circle, their tops drooping over towards a common centre, thus forming a "round" or "bee-hive" hut — if in the fork of a tree, the hut's shape is naturally adapted to suit its branches.1

1 For one of the earliest ac- neighbourhood of this river, through

COUntS Of these tree -dwellings our glasses, our notice was attracted by

. . c , ° what seemed to be some enormous

(treated from a somewhat sensa- birds, nests in the trees The size of

tional Standpoint), see Travel and these nests was prodigious, yet they

Sport in Burmah^ Siam} and were not placed at a very great height

Malay \sic\ by Capt. J Bradley, from the ground> ™ "» the tallest trees.

/o_*-rTr_j i-i i.u The number of them was seven, but we (1876). Unfortunately the ac- , A A f, .- ' . .. ,

\ ' " J concluded there were others not visible

count is only of general interest, from our position. We were puzzled

as no means are afforded of to think what bird could construct nests

even approximately identifying of this size> for they appeared from our

the locality point of view to be as big as toIeraDl.v'

^" sized huts, and much the shape of

" While searching the country in the roughly constructed wigwams. While

< II \l\ III

GENERAL Hh MARKS

.|. The " long " or " communal " shelter, which is nothing more than .1 round or"bee-hii hut extended to form an ellipse or oval.

5, Small granaries or store Inns on high po

and perhaps also huts which commence to

approach for the first time the Malayan hul

type, but arc still built on the level of the

ground.1

6. A hut similar to the last, but with floor raised

on posts (which makes it still more conformable with the common Malayan hut-type).

we wore still speculating, the difficulty was solved. A large ape was observed to leave one of the nests and descend to the ground ; and he was soon followed by eight or nine others, who all walked about erect like men. We watched them for a long time, and saw them picking berries, or something else of a similar kind, from the bushes. Their actions were most humandike. They walked about exactly like men, and even appeared to be talking to each other. Several of them climbed the cocoa-palms in search of the nuts ; but they did not display that activity in ascending which distinguishes most of the ape tribe. Their every motion was human in the extreme" (p. 292). Later, he discovers that the supposed " apes " are men.

[The mention of " cocoa-palms" (!) is a strange 'circumstance requiring explanation, as none of these wild tribes plant coconuts, at least until they are a good deal more advanced in civilisation than these tribes otherwise appear to have been. It may of course have been that they were living in or near an abandoned Malay clearing, or that they were less wild than was supposed, or, most probably, I think, that the trees were not really coconut-palms. — W. S.]

In a later passage we read : "They [the tree-huts] were from 30 to 50 feet [9-15 m.] from the ground, built in the lower branches of a species of large,

wide-spreading tree, in general appeal ance very much like the oak. Access to them was gained by a number of notches cut in the tree-trunk, . . . and when we got amongst the branches we had to crawl out snake - fashion, to get at the huts, which were the shape of a bee -hive, though rather more pointed at the apex. They were constructed entirely of small branches and twigs tied together at the top, and bent round to form the hollow space in the interior. The height of each hut was about 6 ft. [180 cm.], the internal diameter about the same. The entrance was a hole in the side, so small that we could scarcely force our way in. The cordage with which the huts were constructed was made of some tough creeper, and the strands were so loosely twisted together that the least touch parted them." — Bradley, pp. 297, 298.

Elsewhere (J. B. pp. 319, 320) Capt. Bradley mentions a settlement of fifteen huts, "one or two" (he says) "in a tree." On pp. 330, 331 he mentions another of these tree-villages. "It" (the village) " consisted of five huts built in the trees, and seven hovels erected on the ground." "They were" (he continues) " built of branches like those described in a former chapter ; but were overlaid with deer - skins." Another settlement (described on p. 315) had four tree - huts only in number.

1 De Morgan, viii. 296.

i72 HABITATIONS PART n

The last type of dwelling — and by no means the least interesting one — to find a place in these pages is that of the old " Orang Laut " of Singapore and Johor. These once most formidable pirates (who at that time dwelt exclusively in their boats) were the only inhabitants of the island of Singapore (which has now a population of over 200,000) on the memorable day of February ( 1 8 19) when Sir Stamford Raffles landed to make a city out of what was then a mere desolate mangrove swamp. Contemporary and more recent writers give us a picture of the " Orang Laut," and the extraordinarily restricted quarters in which they lived. Huddled up in a small boat, measuring scarcely twenty feet in length, they found all the domestic comfort of which they were in need. At one end was the hearth, in the centre their few utensils, and at the other end, beneath a matwork awning, not exceeding six feet in length, was the sleeping apartment of a family that often counted five or six, together with a cat and a dog. Under this awning they found shelter from the tropical rains and heats alike, from the time of their birth to the grave.1

I. — Semang.

The Rock-shelter.

Kedah Semang. — The Semang are almost ineradicably nomadic, have no fixed habitations, and rove about like the beasts of the forest.2 The wilder ones seldom stay more (they informed me) than three days

1 See Crawfurd, Descr. Diet., s.v. "Malay Peninsula." 2 J. /. ./. vol. iv. pp. 425. 426.

( HAT. Ill

NEGRITOS <>/ KEDAH

in one place1 Rock-shelters are also commonl) used l>\ them.

Pangan. At Ban Tun, in the province ol I' lung on the north-western shore of th<- Inland Sea (Singora), I visited one of these small rock

shelters which had been inhabited, up tO the night oi our arrival, 1))' nine Pangans, who had only deserted

it on hearing our approach. It was formed by a large

Overhanging rock under the brow of a Very steep and

lofty hill. Its size was very small, measuring only

from about 9 to 1 2 feet (2.7 m. to 3.6 m.) in length by 6 to 8 feet ( 1.8 m, to 2.4 m.) in width, and from about 4 to 5 feet (1.2 m. to 1.5 m.) in height. Its position on a shoulder of the hill was very well chosen, as the ground fell away precipitously in front of it, and the only way to reach it was to go round by the back of the overhanging rock itself. The mouth of the cave was, moreover, further concealed and protected by a thicket of thorny bamboo, which grew at the more precipitous end. Altogether it was as difficult a spot to find without a guide as. any which could have been selected. The sole article of furniture was one of the rough bamboo sleeping-stages, or "barbicans," which are to be seen in most Semang encampments," and which are made by lashing half a dozen thick bamboo poles together. This particular bed, however, could not have accommodated more than one or two

1 Among the E. Semang (Pangan) it is an established custom to break up the existing encampment on the fifth clay at the latest. This custom is called "J°g>" ar*d is attributed to the commands of Pie ; indeed, the days are counted on the fingers, and it is believed that if this custom be seriously infringed, a severe form of plague will attack the guilty parties. The W,

Semang are less particular than the Pangan (Vaughan-Stevens, iii. 103).

2 See a valuable note on this subject by Mr. L. Wray [Cave-dwellers, p. 37).

3 These most peculiar platforms or "bedsteads'' are found also in the Andamans, and (according to my friend Mr. Lorimer Fison) in Fiji ! I should be glad to know of other examples.

74 HABITATIONS PART II

persons at most, and the other members of the family had evidently been sleeping on beds of heaped-up leaves, which were still quite green and fresh on our arrival. There were also the ashes of four separate fires, one at least of which had been extinguished by water ; and there were fragments of the ribs of a small tortoise on which they had been feeding, as well as a half-smoked (native) cigarette, an indication that they had probably had some traffic, either direct or through the medium of "tamer" fellow-tribesmen, with the Malays or Siamese of the locality.

Tree-shelters.

Perak Semangf. — Another obvious kind of " natural shelter " is that afforded by the branches of trees, the scanty protection thus obtained being speedily improved by the building of a weather-screen, out of which is easily and naturally developed the tree-built hut. The exact purpose served by those arboreal dwellings has been much disputed, but the most reasonable explanation — and I think undoubtedly the correct one — is that they are built for protection from wild beasts. In most cases the proximity of wild beasts is certainly their raison detre. We are told,1 for instance, in so many words, that some of the Semang 11 in the thicker parts of the forest, where the elephants, tigers, and other zvild animals are most abundant, make their temporary dwellings upon the cliffs and branches of large trees." 2 The simplest form of the tree-shelter

1 J. I. A. vol. iv. 425, 426. their houses on the level of the ground.

2 Another possible cause (inunda- When, however, safeguarding against tions) is certainly suggested by the tigers is necessary, they build between following note (for which see Bastian, the branches of the trees, just as the Reisen in Birma. Leipzig, 1886, p. Puleahs build their nests in their 432): — "The inhabitants of the hills forests." But in the Malay Peninin Pegu, who are insured [by their sula this first reason would rarely if ever position] against inundations, build apply.

, hap. m NEGRITOS <>/■ PBRAK 175

consists oi . 1 screen oi leaves fixed across the branch of the tree a little above the fork to serve a a roof. U ally, however, side screens are added, for comfort • take. 1 am told by Mr. Wray thai he once visited a Semang house in the Piah valley, in Upper Perak. It measured about 50 feet (15.2 m.x6m.)in length

by 20 feet in width, and Was built On posts oi such

a height that the floor was 15 feet (4.5 m.) above

the ground. There were three ladders on one side oi the house to give access to it, and it appeared to have been inhabited by at least three families. Underneath it Mr. Wray found the bones of the wild pig, deer, and " seladang " (Bos gaums, the wild bull or " bison "), as well as the horn of one of these latter animals.

Pangan. — The Pangan tree -huts observed by Messrs. Ridley and Kelsall on the banks of the Ulu Tahan river in Pahang (in 1 891) were "small roofed platforms, raised about 15 or 20 feet (4.5 m. to 6 m.) from the ground,"1 and were reached (as Mr. Ridley tells me) by a ladder formed of sticks lashed across two neighbouring trees.

Ground- screens of Leaves. Semang* and Pang-an. — Yet another kind of shelter used by the Semang is the palm-leaf ground-screen,2 which is intended simply as a protection against rain and wind. It is constructed by planting three or four stout sticks or poles in a row in the ground at an angle of about 6o° to 750, and lashing palm-leaves across them so closely that the rain cannot penetrate.3

1 J. R. A. S., S. B., No. 25, p. will frequently content himself with the

45- shelter of a single palm-leaf planted in

• It goes without saying that these the ground, screens vary in size and construction 3 Cp. ~Loga.n{J.R.A.S., S.B.,No. 7,

according to the needs of the party. p. 85): The "temporary lairs" (of the

When a Semang is travelling alone, he Semang) are " only protected from the

17 HABITATIONS part n

Shelters of this type are also largely used by the Malays for temporary purposes, especially in the eastern states of the Peninsula.

Pangran. — The next stage would appear to be that of the round or bee-hive hut. In the interior of Kelantan (near Kampong Buntal in Ulu Aring), Mr. Laidlaw and I visited several of these curious habitations. One that we photographed was a hemispherical leafshelter, very slenderly constructed, the materials em- ployed being leaves of the "bertam" palm {Engeissona) and a Rattan or Calamus called " Rotan Dudok." The bases of the leaf-stalks were firmly planted in the ground, the upper ends of the leaves bending naturally over so as to protect about one-half of the hut-floor from the rain. The leaves planted round the circumference of the semicircle at the back of the shelter were of full length, but a slight fence of shorter leaves, about 2 feet (60 cm.) high, completed the circumference. At the back of the hut was the usual big abattis or chevaux-de-frise of felled trees, which is very generally formed by these people for protection against wild beasts.

A slightly different type of hut was seen on the banks of the Tahan river by Mr. Ridley in 1891. The huts themselves consisted of a bee-hive-shaped structure of palm-leaves about 4 feet (1.2 m.) high, the bases of the leaves planted in the ground and their upper parts interwoven together. So far the structure was similar to those already described, but these particular huts " were completely filled with palm-leaves, in the midst of which could be seen the depression caused by the occupant when he curled himself up in them " either for

weather by a few branches or leaves stuck in the ground, with a small crosshung over two or three sticks." And piece, and a few leaves or branches of cp. z\so J. I. A. vol. iv. pp. 425, 426 : trees laid over to secure them from the " Their huts . . . consist of two posts weather."

A'. //. Yapp(Skeat Expedition).

Pangan Weather Screen 01 Palm Leaves (Ulu Kelantan).

R. //. Yapp{Skeat Expedition).

Interior of Round Leaf-Shelter of Pangan (Ulu Kelantan).

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chap, in VEGRITO& o/ KEDAH 177

rest or warmth. " Thm- were altogether seven ol these ' nesta ' on the river bank/' ' and the occupant i,

who were, I think, undoubtedly Pangan, had only {us!

left them before fit's and his companion's arrival.

( ommunal Shelter r,

Semang* of Kedah. From an ordinary round hut

which will shelter one or two small families the transition to an elongated shelter which will hold a greater number is not very difficult. The Semang shelter at Siong in Kedah accommodated all the members of the tribe who were living in the neighbourhood, and contained no fewer than eleven (?) sleeping-places arranged in two long rows ; it may therefore be described as being of the " barrack " or "long-house" type. The upright timbers of this shelter consisted of young saplings planted in two opposite rows, across them being lashed the leaves of the " chencham," a low-growing palm not unlike the well-known " bertam " palm (Eugeissona tristis) in appearance, but which was declared by the Semang to be a different tree. The uprights of the shelter were called "pengkong," and the leaves lashed across them "hapoi." There were, besides, two central posts or pillars ("jehu"), each about a third of the distance from either end of the shelter, and a dozen poles placed, as props or "wind-braces," in various positions and at various angles, in order to strengthen the structure and keep it from being blown over in a high wind.2 In front of the shelter at the upper end was a big opening which served as the main entrance, but there were in addition several

• J.R.A.S., S.B., No. 25, p. 45. 2 " Tenungked," Plus dialect ; or " chenidel,*' Kedah.

VOL. I N

178 HABITATIONS i-artii

smoke-holes1 which were also used for ingress or egress as occasion might serve. The two slopes of the roof were not united over a ridge-pole, as in the ordinary (Malay) house, but a longitudinal aperture was left between them for about two-thirds of the entire length of the roof, and through the gap thus caused the greater part of the smoke from the many fireplaces issued.

All round the walls were ranged a number of bamboo sleeping-platforms, consisting of a framework of split bamboos, each end of which was supported by a horizontal slat or rod.2 These latter were in turn supported on low forked wooden trestles called "jongka." These bed-platforms were between 5-6 ft. (1.5 m. to 1.8 m.) in length by about 3 ft. (.91 m.) in breadth ; and their exact position was as shown in the accompanying diagram. Young men of the tribe slept near the main opening or door, and the chief at the upper end as shown.

I may add that the owner of each sleeping-platform or family unit possessed a separate fire or hearth, over which he used to sit and warm himself when the nights were cold. On the other hand, I never saw any kind of pillow, either in the houses of the Semang of Kedah or in those of the Pangan.

Huts.

Kedah Semang. — We now come to the last class of Semang dwellings in which they begin to build huts of a rather more substantial character than those hitherto described, apparently, in the first instance, to serve as store-houses. An excellent example of this was to be seen in the Semang encampment at Siong

1 "Karop?" Plus; or "pemong?" Kedah. 2 "Keding," Plus dialect ; or "pelayen," Kedah.

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Semang at I'll- Jelentoh, Gopeng, Kinta, with Nipah-Palms {Nipa frutic in Background, newly cut for Thatchwork.

/ ol. I, /. i78.

Wwy.

U'rav.

Semang standing at side of Hut (at Sungei Tapah), near Batu Gajah, Kinta, Pekak.

The hut shows one of the methods of interweaving palm leaves.

chap, in NEGRITOS <>/■ KEDAH

in Kedah, where, side by side with the long "communal11

shelter in which the tribe lived, stood a tiny granary in which their scanty stores o! rice wen- preserved.

This little granary stood on six thin posts, the floor being raised about -i-5 ft. (1.2 m. to 1.5 m.) from the ground, lor the purpose of protecting its contents

from small marauders. It measured about 4 ft. in length by about 3 ft. (1.2 m. x.91 m.) in width, and was little more in fact than a large box on posts. Its walls were made of tree-bark, and the roof was thatched with the leaf of the " bertam " palm, and it was entered by a tiny doorway to which access was aitorded by a long inclined pole. From the stage in which these tiny huts were used solely for the purposes of storage, to one in which they could be used as dwellings, the transition would be as easy and as natural as possible.

On the other hand, it must here be remarked that although in this way they may sometimes come to dwelling — in Malayan fashion — in a hut with raised flooring, the Semang nevertheless appear to retain a strong predilection for building their huts either altogether aloft in trees, or else upon the level of the ground itself.1

Perak Semang. — Direct evidence of huts with raised Mooring being inhabited by pure Semang is very scanty. The Semang village mentioned by De Morgan probably belonged to this latter (more developed) class, especially as he describes it as standing in the midst

1 The huts built by the Pangan seem carry about with them when they move to

rather intended for the purpose of their next camping-place. These huts

storing supplies {e.g. rice) than for are always set up in the thickest part of

regular occupation. Five or six of the jungle, and by way of further precau-

these huts are usually built in one place, tion the articles left behind are frequently

and the Pangan leave such articles of marked with special signs. — V.-St. iii.

property there as they do not wish to 102, 103.

r 80 HA HIT A TJONS r \ W 11

of an immense plantation (" tin vaste jardin "), which seems to imply some degree of permanence. All he says of the houses, however, is that they " were constructed on a level with the ground," and " were open to all the winds that blow," and that the Semang protected themselves at night against the attacks of wild beasts by means of great "braziers" (sic) which they light up under their roof.1 On the whole, it seems that the Semang take much less readily than the Sakai to the Malayan custom of building their huts on piles. Among the Semang of Perak (Menik) no one uses any special kind of pillow, whether of wood or of any other material. Often they use no pillow at all, and if they do, the first thing that comes to hand (such as a bundle of grass or twigs), or the arm will be used."

II. — Sakai. Shelters and Tree-huts.

Perak Sakai. — The wild tribes of the Perak Hills (Sakai Bukit), according to what De la Croix was told by the tame Sakai of S. Kerbu, are seldom met with, as they do not live in villages, and build no houses, but when night arrives they either sleep in the shade of a tree, or (at the most) hurriedly erect a shelter of leaves.3

Selangor Sakai. — The Sakai, like the Semang, make use of caves as well as trees to dwell in. Mr. Ridley informs me that he once saw an excellent example consisting of a rock-shelter which he visited

1 De Morgan, viii. 296. ever, seems to have been hearsay, and

2 Z.f.E. xxix. 186. Elsewhere (p. Mr. Wray informs me that the Sakai 187), V. -St. says that the wild Semang of the Perak Hills build very good (Pangan)alonedonot use thepillowcon- houses (cp. VH. ii. 646), which probsisting of a cloth bag stuffed with cotton. ably accounts for De M.'s much too

3 De la Croix, p. 340. This, how- sweeping dtmenti {VH. iii. 43).

McGregor.

Sakai Tree Hut, Sungei Berang, Perak, Seven Miles from Tanjong Malim.

< II W. I I i

SAKAI OF PERAK 181

.it the Batu caves seven miles from Kuala Lumpur in Selangor. I [ere, as in the Semang rock shelters, were the remains oi a bamboo bed place, and in addition then- were screens <>i palm leaves which had been put up as a protection against the weather, In this rockshelter, as in others in the same district, the walls were decorated with rough charcoal sketches of wellknown objects, eg* boats, etc. Excavations were made in the lloor of this rock-shelter on the chance of finding traces of earlier occupation, but nothing was found except a round stone evidently brought from the river to support a cooking-pot.

In spite of the foregoing, however, both rockshelters and palm-leaf wind-screens appear to be less popular with the Sakai than with the Semang, and there are few records, if any, of their employment of the bee-hive type of hut, at all events beyond the limits of Negrito influence. So far as I have been able to discover, the huts of the pure-bred Sakai are, as a rule, rectangular in plan.

Tree-huts, on the other hand, analogous to those already described as used by the Semang, are certainly to be seen among the Inland (Sakai) Tribes of Selangor at least. On an expedition to Ulu Kali in the interior of Selangor in 1893, I myself saw two of these Sakai tree-huts, one of which must have been from 30-40 ft. (9 m. to 12 m.) from the ground. Both must have been very nearly the same size, about 6 ft. by 4 ft. (1.8 m. x 1.2 m.), and not more than 4 ft. in height.1

1 Of the same district Mr. William huts high up against the trees, usually

T. Hornaday says : " We were at Batu tifteen to twenty feet from the ground,

in the durian season, and often visited to get out of the way of wild beasts,

the trees in the forest when the Malays But the rascally elephants often take

were collecting the fruit as fast as it the trouble to pull down even those

fell. Like the Jakun, they build little high platforms and frighten the in-

HABITATIONS

PART II

Huts and Houses.

Perak Sakai. — The Sakai in commencing to build their huts with rather more reference to Malay models still retain the communal idea. One of these Sakai communal houses, described by Hale,1 was built on a slope, close to the summit of a lofty hill. The thatching of the roof (with leaves of the bertam palm) was a clumsy imitation of Malayan methods. The floor of the house, which was raised above the ground, rested upon nine posts, eight of inconsiderable and one of very great diameter, which was, in fact, the trunk of a large tree. Every other part of the house was entirely built of bamboo.2 The walls consisted of long screens of sheet-thatch, which were suspended loosely at their upper ends under the eaves, so that the lower ends could be pushed open outwards. The

habitants half out of their wits. The herds to which we paid our respects had just the night before visited several durian camps, and had torn down the highest platform of all, as if to show the Malays that it was of no use trying to build a hut out of their reach. Of course the Malays fled to the jungle. There are several large caves in the vicinity, and the Jakun are in the habit of taking refuge in them when the elephants become too neighbourly " (J.R.A.S., S.B., No. 3, p. 128). Batu is a small village six miles from Kuala Lumpur in Selangor. Mr. Hornaday is probably here writing of the Inland or Hill Sakai. The Jakun are really the savage Malayan tribes, but the word is often used loosely, especially by Malays (as here).

1 P. 249. So too, according to De Morgan, the entire tribe of Sakai at Changak (? Changkat) Kerbu (in Ulu Perak) lived in a big house which they shared in common.

The house was divided into compartments, where the various families

were separately installed, the hearths, however, being shared in common, and placed in the centre of the building. The room of the chief (Penghulu) was much better kept than the others, the sleeping - places of flattened bamboo being covered with mats decorated with yellow patterns ; all the blowpipes of the tribe were suspended from the rafters, and big bamboos covered with decoration were deposited in the corners to supply him with water (De Morgan,

i- 43)-

2 Mr. Hale, however, very rightly points out that the Sakai are very ready to adapt themselves to circumstances in the matter of material. Thus elsewhere Mr. Wray remarks that the leaves of fan -palms are used by the Sakai to thatch their houses, and that, owing to the extreme hardness of the stems, they are not in the habit of cutting the palms down when felling the jungle for their clearings, which probably accounts for their great abundance {J. R. A. S., S. B., No. 21, p. i55)-

McGregor.

Tree Hut, Ulu Batu, about Twelve Miles from Kuala Lumpur, Selangor.

Vol. [.*. 18^5.

chap, m SAA AJ OF PERAK

house in question was more than an hour's climb from

water. It was surrounded by a clearing ol about two acres in extent, where tapioca, m.ii/.e, sugar < ui<\ and tobacco were grown. The house contained sixteen inhabitants, divided into six distinct family units, each of which had its own hearth. In the cast! ol a man having two wives, each wile had her own hearth, marked out by means of a low partition of split bamboos. There was a door in the (Mid-wall, and also an outlet in the slope of the roof.1

On the other hand, the Sakai huts observed in Ulu Kinta by De Morgan are described as being built very far apart from each other, and sittiated in the midst of immense plantations of tapioca, " sorgho " (?) and maize, from which it may possibly be deduced that they were on rather less strictly communal principles. De Morgan was invited to enter the Penghulu's hut, which was, like those at S. Raya, built at a height of about 1.50 m. from the ground. It was very small, but very clean. Blowpipes, arrows, and a spear hung from the roof, and it contained many betelleaf-wallets, necklaces, nets, lines, and a small but highly decorated piece of bamboo, the use of which was for carrying the worms used in rod-fishing.2

In another place, De la Croix, in describing the Sakai village of Kampong Chabang, in the upper reaches of S. Kerbu (a tributary of the Plus river in Perak, wahich is a few miles further north than Ulu Kinta), remarks that the village consisted of a dozen huts, erected in the midst of a clearing, on the banks of the river. The chiefs hut (the largest) was built upon piles, and measured ten metres in length by fiv^

1 Hale, p. 294. ii. 645, for illustrations showing ground-

• De Morgan, viii. 167. Cp. L'H. plan and elevations of a Sakai hut.

184 HABITATIOXS pari ii

metres in breadth. The flooring, consisting of tlattened tree-bark, was raised about a metre above the ground. Both the walls and the roof with its double slope were constructed alike of broad strips of bark, which afforded an excellent shelter from the floods of rain that fell in the wet season. A notched tree-trunk served as houseladder for giving access to the interior of the building.1

In the middle of the only room was placed a hearth consisting of a thick layer of clay deposited in a (square) wooden frame. This was the hearth ("dapor") of Malay houses. A few pots and receptacles of various kinds containing provisions were hung upon the walls. The remaining huts were all of the same type, except two or three whose side-walls were made of matwork, in imitation of the Malays. -

Pahang Sakai. — A graphic description of the mountain hut of a Sakai by Mr. L. Wray is interesting from the fact that the locality referred to is in the far interior of Pahang.

Mr. Wray wrote3 that the house (in the Tahan valley) in which he passed the night was a large and well-built one, and seemed to be occupied by two families. It was at an elevation of about 4000 feet (1225 m.), and being perched on the top of a cleared hill fully exposed to the winds, he found it very cold.

Hanging up in the house were strings of the lower jaws of monkeys, musangs, and other animals, and in another house he saw bunches of hornbill skulls. These were kept hanging up in the smoke as trophies, in the same way as the Dayaks keep human heads in their houses. Another custom which seemed to point

1 De la Croix, pp. 322, 323. Brau fifteen families in the same place (pp.

de S. P. Lias, in writing of the Sakai 279, 280). of Sungei Kerbu, adds that they 2 Ibid.

always lived in groups of from ten to z J. R. A. S., S. £?., No. 21, p. 162.

Transverse S

'

I itudirtal S<

^^

■ ■ ■ - ■ ■

I

! — — ~ ' -

Elevation Sakai House at Changkat Kerbu or Korbu,

; <! \\f, c

A ■.' il.l III I

■ \ tv--- 9

PI:

J* Dc Morgan.

House of Aborigines at Kuala Seleh, Ulu Klang.

McGregor.

McGregor. Huts at Durian Chandong, Via: Langat, about Three Milks above Klubi, rut ox

a Tributary of the Langat. Men absent Hunting. Vol. I. />. 185.

omap. in S i/CAJ <>/■' PAHA V6

to a connection between the two races was that they kepi large fires burning in the centre ol their hou during 1 1 1< - night, and thai it was only during the first part of the night that they slept, after that they sat up round the fire and talked till morning.1

Hut Furniture Pillows,

Perak Sakai. It appears that pillows were much more generally used by the Sakai than by the Semang.

The pillow of the Central Sakai (Senoi) men was always an ink-mode of bamboo, through each extremity of which four small round pegs were driven. The pillows of the women were the same, but they were usually fitted with a pair of pegs or " feet " pointed at both ends, so that by a blow they could be driven into the hole at the end or taken out. For this purpose part of the node was cut away, in order to allow the inside of the tube to be reached. Small objects that the women used for their toilet or for other purposes were kept in the interior of these bamboo pillows ; and by means of the " feet " they were prevented from falling out again. - These pillows were of various patterns, which differed with the tribe. The Central Sakai (Senoi), who always appear to have had a somewhat more artistic feeling than the other Sakai (Blandas), say that their bamboo pillows were formerly ornamented with incised lines or " painted " emblems,3 but that these are all now forgotten, and the form of pillow now universally employed is a kind of stuff-bag or pillow filled with cotton. This new form of pillow, however, could only be used when the tribe became more settled. So long as they remained entirely

1 Wray in /. R. A. S., S. B., No. 2 Z.f. E. xxix. (V.-St.) 186.

21, p. 162. 3 In original, ''painted totems"!

1 86 HAR1TATIUNS

I'ART II

nomadic, bulky things, such as these pillows, could not be carried with them ; and if the present cottonfilled pillows were left a week in a house uncared for, termites and other vermin would injure them, even if damp and mould did not do so.1

The bamboo pillows referred to formed part of the furniture of the house, and when not being used lay together in a corner.2

III. — Jakun.

Blandas. — As far as I was able to discover, the Blandas (Hill Tribes of the Kuala Langat district in Selangor) seldom if ever dwelt in leaf-shelters, and the only important difference between their houses and those of the Besisi — which will presently be described— lay in the far greater relative height of the wooden posts on which the Blandas house was built. These high-built huts of the Blandas were frequently entered by means of a movable ladder, which was removed when they went abroad into the forest. Their traditional pillow was a block of " pulai " (alstonia, a soft, cork-like wood).

Besisi. — On the other hand, although I never came across an instance of a Blandas family living in a tree-hut, I think there is practically no doubt that the Besisi, who had a relatively larger proportion of Semang blood in them, did occasionally do so. At S. Nipah (in the very same district of Selangor) I once knew a soi-disant Malay family (in reality they were Besisi converts) who lived in a tree-hut some 20 ft. to 30 ft. (6 m. to 9 m.) from the ground, and on one occasion I climbed up to have a look at it. The "hut" itself was a tiny shelter about 6 ft. (1.8 m.) in length,

1 Z.f. E. xxix. (V.-St.) 187, 188. 2 lb.

Sakai House, Lui River, Ulu Langat, Selangor.

Notice the height of the house-posts.

Aft Gregor.

y^„ -v tt McGregor.

Ground Hut with thatched Roof, Ulu Kuang, about Three Miles from

Vol. I. p. i J

Kuang Station, Selangor.

F. M. Elliot.

Besisi Huts about One and a Half Miles from Sepang,

showing abattis of trees felled as a protection against wild beasts.

-~„.-;^

/■'. M. Elliot.

Besisi Hut about One and a Half Miles from Sepang (Kuala Langat District of Selangor); showing overlapping Gablk-Ridgi-:.

1 was myself inside this hut when it was taken.

Vol. 1. p. 187.

chap, m SAVAGE MALAYS OF SELANGOR

by 4 ft, (i.a m.) in width, and was not more than three or tour feet high. The walls and root were made ol the Malay palm-leaf awning ("kajang"), and it contained a small sleeping-mat and mosquito-curtain (an unlookedfor luxury in SO poor an abode), and a few cooking and Other utensils. A man and his wife lived then

but I cannot say whether they had any children. Both

happened to be very short, I should say not more than 41' ft* (i«37 m-)' but I should much doubt whether either of them could stand upright in it. The method of entering it was enough to try the nerves of any one that was at all inclined to be dizzy. The ascent was achieved by means of the rudest and most primitive stick-ladder imaginable, a large creeper that grew upon the tree affording some slight additional assistance. On reaching the top of this ladder, one had to rest one's elbows upon the Moor of the shelter, and swing one's self up into safety by main force. The descent was, if anything, the more trying process of the two, yet the Malays did not appear to mind it.

The actual houses of the Besisi in this same district were built of timber and palm-thatch like the houses of the local Malays, but had several peculiar points about them. The slopes of the roof-gable, for one thing, were carried much lower than in an ordinary Malay house, and in some cases at least the eaves were actually level with the floor.

Another characteristic feature was that one of the slopes of the gable was frequently carried much higher than the other, so as to overlap and leave a gap through which smoke could issue, without the rain penetrating too easily. In the Malay type of house, the upper edges oi the two roof-slopes meet at the top, and the rain is kept out by an arrangement called

i j 8 HA Bl TA TIONS part i i

44 perabong,1' which covers over the gap between the edges.

The houses are exceedingly diminutive, much more so, in proportion to their inhabitants, than Malay houses ; in fact, I saw many among the Besisi that were little more than boxes. They are usually thatched with palm-leaves loosely strung together, the kind of leaves usually employed being either those of the fan-palm or the 44 bertam " palm. A few of these houses were supported on fairly high posts, higher than those of Malay houses. The Besisi, wrho carry the eaves of their huts down to the level of the floor, generally use, however, very short house-posts.

The joists are tied together with split rattan or other strong lashings, and each settlement, however small, is as a rule defended by an abattis of fallen trees. The Besisi often, perhaps in imitation of the Malays, erect a sort of landing of split " nibong " stems in front of the door whereon to winnow their grain.

The house of one of the Batins or big chiefs of the Besisi (Batin Suntai by name) was described to me in one of their tribal songs as follows : —

Song of the Batin's Hut.

" Kepong " bark was all its roofing, "Bertam" leaves were all the side-walls, 11 Bertam " stems were all the flooring, " Loyak :' stems were all its pillars. Such the house of Batin Suntai, At "Nine-Rivers," up the Kalis, — Durian-wood did form his pillow, Leaves of " lc-mba " were his dishes, His the beaten tree-bark girdle.

The pillow generally used by the Besisi is said to have been a block of hard wood, without feet, concave on the upper side, and convex on the lower,1 and cut

1 In the original it is described as take and an impossibility, which is being convex on the upper side, and clearly due to some confusion, concave underneath, an obvious mis-

i hap. in SAVAGE MM A KS 01 1ELA VGOR

off squarely at 1 1 1 < - end It differs from the Jakun and Blandas pillow, the wood <>i which wa i very loft

The II a la i.

Besisi. Before leaving the subject ol Besisi huts I must not omit to mention the important fact that there

were among these |akun tribes trace, <>l the use of a Tribal Hall, such as is always attached to the house of a Malay chief, and is called " Balai " both by Jakun and Malays. On the occasion of a Besisi wedding,

the Besisi of Ayer ham (on the Selangor coast) had built a hall of this kind at right angles to the house of their tribal chief or Batin (thus forming a sort of" T "- shaped building in which the " Balai ' formed the downstroke of the " T "). Such Balais are frequently mentioned in Besisi songs, and I think there is very little doubt that we do not find here a simple instance of borrowing from the Malays, but rather an example of a custom sprung from their common origin. The building in question was erected by the voluntary labour of all the men of the tribe (just as would have been the case if it had been built by a Malay chief), and it was large enough to contain abotit sixty to seventy people or more (the members of the tribe itself numbering about sixty). It was opposite the door of this building that the bell-shaped mound which was explained to me as the religious emblem of the tribe2 was thrown up. And it was inside this same building that the various tribal feasts took place.

Huts. Labu Tribes. — Their dwellings are the simplest and

1 Z.f.E. xxix. 186. See p. 186, supra, and p. 195, infra. 2 Cp. vol. ii. pp. 72-74.

1 9o HA Bl TA TIONS pa rt ll

rudest that can be imagined. Rowland, in writing of the Labu tribe that he observed, mentions that when they had deserted the house built by his coolies, with its raised sleeping-platforms, he found them again in the interior of the jungle (instead of at the edge), and that every married man (or bachelor) had built for himself a small round hut on the level of the ground. Each of these huts was entirely constructed of the leaves of the " bertam " palm (Eugeissona tristis, Griff.), measuring about two or three metres in length, the stalks of which were planted close together in the ground, so as to form a circle of about two metres in diameter ; the extremities of the leaves met at the top, but gave only a scanty shelter from the rain. The people in these huts lived upon the ground itself, which is always moist in the jungle, and generally considered to be unhealthy, and in heavy rain were not protected from flooding even by a ditch round the hut. Yet in these huts they soon recovered from their fevers and coughs, and regained their usual serenity. These huts stood close together, a few steps from a brook.1

Hut Furniture.

Kenaboi. — The Kenaboi, who appear determined in this as in many other things to take a different line from the Sakai, to which race Vaughan-Stevens says he assigns them,2 made their pillows of split lengths of bamboo cut square at each end, the lengths being interwoven with one another " in and out." The interior served the women for holding small objects,

1 Rowland, p. 708. have Semang affinities.

2 This begs the entire question. It 3 An obscure and obviously inis more probable that the Kenaboi may accurate description.

chap, in SAVAGE MALAYS Of MALACi I "/'

such as combs and medicines. The exa( I patterns

were said to be lost.1

I Ints and tlnir Furniture.

Mantra. — Of the Mantra huts, M. Boric says that their dwellings scarcely kept out the rain, and were open to every wind, most frequently being without cither doors or windows. The best of them consisted of nine posts, of which three were about a third longer than the six others. These nine posts were strongly planted in the ground in three rows, with the long posts in the centre ; these posts were then united at the top by means of longitudinal and transverse timbers lashed together by means of rattans ; upon these timbers were placed rafters 2 to sustain the roof, which was made of leaves ; and the floor, which was generally raised several feet above the ground, was formed by laying laths across the longitudinal and transverse timbers and covering these laths with the bark of trees ; the sides were similarly more or less covered in either with leaves or tree-bark/5

The following articles were found in a comparatively well-furnished Mantra hut, which was occupied by two men, two women, and two children. There were two blowpipes (" sumpitan "), several choppers and axes, two torch-stands, twro iron pans, two earthenware pots, two wallets or back-baskets (" sentong "), a kind of basket termed by the Malays "garing," two plates, two cups, five small tea-cups, four earthenware spoons, seven " sarongs," three jackets ("baju"), three pairs of trousers ("seluar"), four waist-bands, four headkerchiefs, one pair of ear-

1 Z.f. E. xxix. 187. 2 In original, "shingles" [sic).

3 Borie (tr. Bourien), p. 76.

I 92 HA /VTA TIONS part 1 1

studs (" subang "), three hair-pins, and three copper rings.1

Shelters and Tree-huts.

Jakun. — Of the tree-huts of the Jakun M. Borie says, that however poor might be the huts of the Mantra, those of the Jakun were still more primitive ; it was their custom to perch their domicile on trees, sometimes at a height of from 25 ft. to 35 ft. (7.6 m. to 10.6 m.) from the ground ;2 most commonly, however, they were only about twenty feet from the ground, and were ascended by means of a ladder, which even their dogs became accustomed to climbing.3

On the other hand, some members of the tribe would construct their huts at a height of no more than 3 ft. or 4 ft. (.91 m. to 1.2 m.) from the ground. Like the Mantra, they lived, ate, and slept on the main lioor of the building. At one side of it was the hearth, on which a fire was always kept burning to drive away mosquitoes, and they used the loft for putting away their weapons, their provisions, and their cooking utensils.4

Jakun of N. Sembilan. — The best houses of the Negri Sembilan Jakun were about the same as the poorer and ruder houses belonging to the Jakun of Johor, but others were, as described by Newbold, rude edifices perched on the top of four high wooden poles ; thus elevated for fear of tigers, and entered by means of a long ladder, and presenting, when viewed through certain holes which served as doors, no very satisfactory appearance to the uninitiated. The roofs were often thatched with "chucho" leaves. There was but one room, in which the whole family was huddled together, with their dogs and the bodies of such animals

1 J. I. A. vol. i. p. 254. and even more.

• Bigandet (p. 427) says 60 feet 3 Borie (tr. Bourien), p. 76. 4 lb.

chap, in WAGl MAI i r.v <>/ .: ,s

as they mighi have caught. They were interdicted, by one of their singular rules, from using any other wood than that of the " pStaling " and " jambu k'lat " in the construction of these huts. The huts were made to l>e movable .it a moment's warning; on the appearance of small-pox, or any other contagious disorder a whole encampment would vanish in the course ol a

single night. The huts were ordinarily situated on the steep side of some forest -clad hill, or in some sequestered dale, remote from any frequented road or footpath, and with little plantations of yams, plantains, and maize about them (some also had fields of rice). The bones and hair of the animals whose flesh the inmates might have been feeding upon strewed the ground near them, whilst numbers of dogs — generally of a light brown colour — gave timely notice of the approach of strangers.1

Jakun of Malacca. — The Malacca Jakun(or"Benua"), characterised by Favre as the most ignorant, were the poorest and most miserable, their best houses being about the same as the worst of those of the Menangkabaus ;a indeed Favre found several families who lived without houses at all. These latter, gathering themselves together to the number of five or six families, would choose a place in the thickest of the forest, and there clear a circle about 25-30 ft. (7.6 m. to 9 m.) in diameter ; having cleared this space, they would surround it with the branches of trees they had just cut ; to this they would add other thorny branches collected from other parts, and so make a sort of bulwark against tigers, bears, and panthers, which were present in good numbers. Having done this, they would proceed to establish their dwelling in the enclosure thus

1 Newbold, vol. ii. p. 404. 2 I.e. Inland Malays near Malacca.

VOL. I O

1 94 HA BIT A TIONS fa r t i i

formed in the following way : each family worked to construct what would afford them a bed during the night, a seat in the day-time, a table for their repasts, and a shelter in bad weather ; it consisted of about fifteen or twenty thin poles about 6 ft. (1.8 m.) long, which were laid the one beside the other, and supported at the two extremities by two transverse sticks set upon four wooden posts ; the completed structure being about two feet in height, four feet in breadth, and six feet in length. A dozen leaves of the "chucho" gathered together by their ends, and tied up at the head of the bed, extended over it and covered it from end to end. These beds were placed all round the enclosure, in such a position that when all the occupants were sleeping every one lay with his feet directed towards the centre of the hut, which was purposely left vacant, to serve either as a place for cooking, or for any other purpose.1 Jakun of Johor. — Before Favre himself visited the Jakun, report had induced him to consider them (he says) as savage as wild beasts, and as sleeping like birds on the branches of trees. Even afterwards when he questioned the Malays on the subject, some of them answered as before ; but this was far from being the truth, as there was no Jakun without some sort of more or less well-ordered dwelling. Some of them indeed had habitations which could scarcely be called houses ; but these were very few ; and for the most part they had houses. The Jakun of Johor built houses in the Malay manner, some of them being " fine buildings." Favre found several which were much more comfortable than any Malay house he had seen in the interior of Johor; such were the houses

^Translated in/. /. A. vol. ii. pp. 250, 257. For the original, see Favre in Ann. P. F. xxii. 301.

( hap. in SAVAGE MAl.A YS <>/ /( '//<'/■"

of the Penghulu Batin on the [ohor river, and that ol a [akun chid on the Benut river. These two hou were divided into several rooms, some ol which wert

for the private accommodation ol the Jakim \om«n, and the furniture consisted ol a lew pots, plat' several other similar vessels, and a good quantity of mats. Other houses were much more ordinary, but were yet pretty comfortable and clean, and were always divided into two or three rooms at least, and furnished with an iron frying-pan for cooking rice in, a few coconut-shells for holding water, and baskets for carrying food. All these houses were raised about 6 ft. (1.8 m.) from the ground, and were entered by a ladder like the Malay houses.1

House Furniture — Pillows.

Jakun (district unspecified). — The J akun pillow was, unlike the others, made of soft wood, probably because it could in that case be made without iron tools. It was always convex at the sides and underneath, but concave at the top, and was often stained red, yellow, or black. These colours were obtained, the red from a tree-bark, the yellow from a root, and the black from a mixture of oil and charcoal. The yellow appears from the description to be the Malay " kunyit " or turmeric — a well-known root. The particular tree which gave the red is not known, although there are several trees whose bark gives a red colour.

It was the log-pillows of the women which were most carefully stained. Those of the men were used during the day for all sorts of purposes, e.g. as a float for a crocodile line, in which case their dark colour

1 /. /. A. vol. ii. pp. 255, 256.

1 96 HABITATIONS part ii

makes them easily visible, and hence soon shows where the crocodile has gone after swallowing the bait. The above type of pillow, however, is never seen now ; stuff-pillows filled with cotton having replaced it.1

Houses and House Furniture.

Benua-Jakun of Johor. — According to Logan, the houses of the Benua of Johor varied greatly in size, neatness, and finish. They were much slighter and more primitive than the huts of the Malays, the greater part consisting only of one small room raised on thin posts made of saplings, with a rough flooring of small sticks placed at irregular distances, and sometimes with such large gaps between them that children were liable to fall through. The sides were made of bark,2 and were generally enclosed all round, but sometimes they had only a piece of bark here and there, and Logan himself slept in houses three sides of which were quite open. A rude and very narrow and steep ladder led to an open doorway. The roof was covered with leaves, commonly those of the " serdang," which answer as well as the leaves of the nipah palm, but last only half as long. The leaves of the" Palas" and other palms were also occasionally used, and Logan was told that even padi-straw was sometimes collected for thatch. The floor was constructed at various heights from 5-9 ft. (1.5 m. to 2.7 m.) above the ground. In localities where elephants abounded it was generally high. Houses of greater pretensions were sometimes to be seen. On the Pau, Logan visited a house which, under one roof, had a large hall with an

1 Z.f. E. xxix. (V.-St.) p. 189. chiefly used for this purpose, both in

2 The bark of the "kepong" was Johor and by the Berembun tribes.

i ha?, m MALA YAh > VPS/1 >n

elevated recess Facing the door, where guests sat during the day and slept at night. At the sides wen two large rooms and a long narrow apartment with two fireplaces and an array ol cooking utensils. An open platform, a foot or two below the level ol the

floor, connected the liall with two other bedrooms under a separate roof. At 1'aya Sandar, near the

Sembrong, he visited another large cottage which, in addition to bedrooms which were partitioned off, had several recesses with curtains of coarse cloth hung before i hem. Sleeping mats and pillows were in every house.1

Berembun Tribes. The Berembun tribes had mats, but as a rule no pillows or curtains. Coarse Chinese curtains were general, but were often lacking, and where this was the case the whole family, with the guests, slept in one and the same open apartment, and were sometimes packed rather closely together. There were usually two fireplaces, and these, in the larger huts, were sometimes in a separate room, but they were in general at one side of the single apartment, where the floor was depressed by about a foot.2

Udai. — According to Newbold, the Udai were said rarely to construct huts. They employed the day in roaming the forest, and sank down to rest wherever fatigue or the shades of night overtook them.8

Orang Laut or Sea-Jakun.

Orang- Laut, Sletar. — The Sletar tribe of the Orang Laut, though confining their wanderings to a limit of some 30 m. sq. (7500 hectares), might still be considered highly nomadic. In boats (or " sampans") barely sufficient to float their load, they would skirt the man-

1 /. /. A. vol. i. pp. 253, 254. 2 lb. 3 Newbold, ii. 381, 382.

198 HABITATIONS part n

groves, collecting their food from the shores and forests as they proceeded, exhausting one spot and then searching for another. To one accustomed to the comforts and wants of civilisation, their life appeared to be one of extreme hardship. Huddled up in a small boat hardly measuring 20 ft. (6 m.) in length, they yet found in it all the domestic comfort they were in want of; at one end was the fireplace, in the middle the few utensils of which they might be in possession, and at the other end beneath a network awning (or " kajang "), not exceeding six feet in length, was the sleeping apartment of a family numbering as many as five or six, together with a cat and dog ; under this awning they took shelter from the dews and rains of the night, and from the heat of the day. Even the Malays in pointing out these confined quarters exclaimed "how miserable," though of any misery the objects of their commiseration were not aware. In these same quarters they found all their wants supplied ; their children would sport on the shore at low water in search of shell-fish ; and during high water they might be seen climbing the mangrove branches, and dashing from thence into the water, with all the life and energy of children of a colder clime, at once affording a proof that even they were not without their joys.1

Opang* Laut, Sabimba. — The Sabimba tribe (of the Orang Laut) erected in the forest rude temporary huts, the floors of which were on the level of the ground, and never remained long in the same spot.-'

Orang" Laut, Muka Kuning*. — The tribe consisted of about fifty families, who lived scattered in small huts beneath the trees of the forest. Their huts were

1 J. 1. A. vol. i. pp. 344*, 345*. 2 Logan in/. /. A. vol. i. p. 297.

chap, in MALA \ AN SEA GYPSIi 199

formed of a rude platform supported by lour post - about three feet in height, from which the rool oi " s£rdang " leaves rose at once without any inter vening wall. They were open at both ends, and had

no ladder or door.1

Orang: Laut, Beduanda Kalian^-. Before the British obtained possession of Singapore, the Kallang river, which may be said to bound the present suburbs of

Singapore to the eastward, was the immemorial haunt of a small tribe who lived in boats, but avoided the sea. Upon the cession of Singapore they were removed by the Temenggong2 to the Pulai, where they have remained ever since. They formerly consisted of about one hundred families, occupying as many boats, but these members were reduced to eight by the ravages of small-pox. They had so much dread of the sea3 that they did not venture to quit the river, and constantly proceeded towards the interior before night. When a strong breeze arose they would drag their boats ashore, but yet they never made huts.4

Orang Laut, Akik. — The Akik tribe of the Orang Laut, on the other hand, did build houses, erecting temporary sheds called " bagan " along the coast, whenever they had occasion to go ashore to build boats, mend nets, or collect dammar or wood-oil, etc. Otherwise they resided along with their families in their boats for months together, during which they employed themselves both in fishing and in collecting Zostera (agar-agar) and beche-de-mer (or tripang). They frequently made long voyages in their fragile vessels.5

1 J. I. A. vol. i. p. 337*. 3 But see p. 94, n. 9.

2 I.e. the Raja of Johor. 4 J. I. A. vol. i. p. 300.

5 Newbold, ii. 413, 414.

CHAPTER IV.

Hunting, Trapping, and Fishing.

Although the aboriginal tribes of the Peninsula do not usually resort to the hunting of game until their supply of vegetable food begins to give out, and they thence begin to feel the pressure of want, yet from the moment they set out on the chase they shake off their apparent apathy and appear as if transformed, showing themselves most keen, clever, and determined hunters. Their rate of progress through even the thickest parts of the jungle has already been noticed. In shooting, they are most careful and accurate, seldom wasting an arrow or a dart, and simple as their weapons may appear to us, they are able with these imperfect means to attack and destroy both the elephant and the tiger. Their powers of scent, sight, and hearing are very fully developed ; they are credited with the power of tracking snakes (which, however, have a fairly strong odour) by their smell alone. Their knowledge of the movements of game amounts to intuition ; they know better than any one the rare hot springs and " salt licks " where the wild beasts congregate, the small cleared patches on lonely mountain-heights where the argus pheasant " dances,"

or the monkey-king hunts for grubs, and the far-off

I IIAf. I\

Gl VERAl REM Ah

i

forest pools, which .in- the drinking-pla >i the

birds.1

The weapons of these tribes consist chiefly of the blowpipe and the bow, the former being the weapon of the Sakai, the latter that of the Semang. 1 <> th<

may be added a rude kind of adze and a jungle-knife

ov chopper, spears of palm-wood or bamboo, which are replaced by iron-bladed weapons among the Malayising tribes. Of the use of the "squailer" or

throwing-Stick, there is not much recorded, although these are undoubtedly used, especially by the Jakun tribes of the south. Throw ing-sticks of hard wood, some of which are sharpened at one end only whilst others are sharpened at both, are also used by the Peninsular Malays, by whom they are called (as by the Jakun) "seligi."2 They are, moreover, I believe, much used by other races of Indo-China.

In trapping and fishing they are particularly expert — some of their traps having the simplicity of

1 Of their extraordinary skill in jungle travelling, M.-Maclay wrote as follows : — Knowing the direction in which he was to go and keeping it in mind, the Sakai would try to find out the thinner patches in the jungle. The saplings which he could not avoid he would bend aside with his hand without breaking them ; the larger ones he would stoop or creep underneath. He would never tear or cut away a liana or creeper which hung in his way, preferring to hold it in his hand and crawl underneath it ; and in spite of this constant stooping and crawling, circumventing and circuitous running, he would advance with great rapidity. In following, not without trouble, these real men of the jungle, M.-Maclay had to confess that, in spite of his long experience and practice in these things, he had found his master in a fifteen -year-old boy (/. ^. A. S., S.B.,

No. 2, pp. 212, 213).

2 Capt. J. Bradley mentions seeing on several occasions in the Peninsula what he evidently took for " squailers," and though he gives no details of locality, his evidence is very circumstantial. Thus in one place he says that outside the tree-huts which they discovered, '-a number of spears were laid among the branches of the trees." These consisted merely of "long sticks of hard wood, sharpened at both ends " ; in other words, the Malay " seligi " (J. Bradley, Travel and Sport, p. 298). In yet another place he mentions that he found, "in the interior of one of the huts, a number of short thick sticks intended apparently as missile weapons. Several of them had traces of blood and feathers adhering to them, as if they had been used for knocking down birds" (id. p. 330).

202 HUNTING, TRAPPING, AND FISHING part ij

genius. Snares are perhaps the most commonly employed by them, often differing little from those in use among the Malays — in which case it is hard to say which way the borrowing went. An example of this is to be seen in the Semang rat-trap, which appears to be exactly identical with a bamboo rat-trap commonly used by the Malays [e.g. in Selangor and Perak). So, too, many of the bird-snares and monkey-traps employed by the Jakun are hardly to be distinguished from those used by the Malays, although in a few instances, such as in their method of catching fish by splashing or dabbling for them, and a peculiar method of entrapping the argus pheasant, the Langat Malays themselves informed me, probably not without good reason, that they had picked up these ideas from the Jakun in the same district.

I. — Semang.

Hunting and Trapping. Semang (locality unspecified). — The Semang handle both the bow and the spear with wonderful dexterity, and destroy even the largest and most powerful animals (such as the elephant and rhinoceros) by ingenious contrivances. They are also very expert with the blowpipe, and poison their darts with a deadly poison called Ipoh, procured from the juice of various trees. They seldom suffer from beasts of prey, as they are extremely sharp-sighted, and as agile in climbing trees as the monkeys. Their method of destroying elephants, in order to procure their flesh or their tusks, is both extraordinary and ingenious. When they have perceived any elephants ascending a hill, they lie in wait in small parties of two or three, and as the animals descend again (which

. hap. iv NEGRITi

they usually do at a slow pace, plucking the brand as they mow along), while the hind legs are lifted up, the Semang cautiously approach them from behind,

and drive, by main force, a sharp pointed and fire hardened splinter of ham boo or palm- wood (" nibong "), which has been touched with poison, into the sole ot their victim's foot.1 In this way they effectually lame

him, and not unfrequently brine him down, when the whole party rush upon him with spears and sharppointed sticks and soon despatch him. The rhinoceros they obtain with yet greater ease. This animal, which is of solitary habits, is frequently found wallowing in marshy places, with its whole body immersed in the mud and only part of its head visible. The Malays call such an animal " badak tapa," or the " recluse " rhinoceros. Especially towards the close of the rainy season they are said to seek places in which to bury themselves in this manner, and upon the dry weather setting in, through the powerful effect of the vertical sun, the mud which surrounds them forms a hard thick crust, in which the rhinoceros is imbedded, and from which it cannot effect its escape without some difficulty and exertion. The Semang thereupon collect large quantities of combustible materials which they convey to the spot, and quietly approaching, quickly build up over the animal an immense fire, which, being well fed with fresh fuel, soon completes his destruction, and renders him in a fit state to make a meal of. The projecting horn on the snout is carefully preserved, as it is supposed

1 J. /. A. vol. iv. p. 426 ; cf. infra, p. man who . . . would drive a large-bladed

207,;/.!. And cp. also Ridley,, Mam mals spear between the hind legs [of the

of the Malay Peninsula, p. 163 : "The elephant] into the abdomen, which

Aborigines known as Sakai sometimes wound was soon after fatal, and tracking

hunt it. There was recently living a the animal he would secure the ivory.''

2o4 HUNTING, TRAPPING, AND FISHING part n

to be possessed of medicinal properties, and is highly prized by the Malays, to whom the Semang generally barter it for tobacco and similar commodities.1

Kedah Semang1. — I had, unfortunately, while in the Semang country no opportunity of testing in the capacity of an eye-witness the remarkable account of their methods of big-game hunting as related above by Marsden. The weighty authority of the latter, however, should strongly support his account, even if we did not know that in other parts of the world, and even of the Malay Peninsula itself, methods quite as ingenious have been recorded." The Semang of Kedah, in addition to the bow, spear, and blowpipe, make use of all sorts of ingenious traps, pitfalls, and snares to secure their quarry. Birds are caught by means of a species of bird-lime manufactured from the viscid sap of some of the numerous "ficus" or "gutta" trees that abound in the forest, and even rats are caught by means of a peculiar snare which resembles, however, in principle, a rat-trap commonly used by the Malays. For hunting purposes a kind of semi-wild reddish-coloured dog is used, but it does not appear to have much pace.

I may add that the Semang do not appear as a rule to keep the domestic cat, but they not unfrequently make pets of young monkeys (e.g. the " lotong "), which, it is alleged, are sometimes brought up by hand.

Perak Semang. — Mr. L. Wray writes me (in a letter dated November 12, 1903) that the Semang of Upper Perak kill big game by means of their bows and arrows, the latter being poisoned, and having barbed heads and detachable fore-shafts.

1 J. I. A. vol. iv. pp. 426, 427. not credit this account, which is

2 Mr. Wray informs me that he does supported by Logan and others.

chap, i NEGRITOS Of A Bk

Kedah Semang. The wilder Negrito tribes who live on high mountains naturally depend little upon lish as an article ol diet. Those who dwell near rivers, however (<•..•;. the Semang ol Siong), no 1- naturally make use <>i fish for purpo i ol Food, and though I believe the) usually eat them in a fr< condition, the) certainly do not always do is

stated of the Sakai by Mai- The simplest instru-

ment that they employ for this purpose is ,i kind of

small basket-work scoop, which is made of bamboo,

and is used lor catching small fry in pools or sluggish waters, or in any place, from which their retreat is cut off. For angling the Semang employ the rod and line, the rod being usually a straight unpeeled stick about six feet in length, and the line — which is usually not much longer than the rod — being made from twisted strands of tree-bark (Artocarftus). The line is always made fast to the tip of the rod, and no reel is used, though the use of it is well known to the neighbouring Malays. The hooks are, as a rule, roughly manufactured from bits of brass or other wire. In addition to the foregoing the Semang are adepts in the use of fish - spears and harpoons, by means of which they kill or capture quite large fish and tortoises. The harpoon used by the Semang at Siong was of very great length (about ten feet), and was made of the leaf-stem of a kind of large palm. The river being shallow at this spot, and full of obstacles, the Semang who was to act as harpooner

1 Cp. De M. viii. 285: " Beside the the coast, whence they obtain salt, river Krian the Semang frequently de- nipah leaves, shell-fish, and fish which scend to the plain, on their way to they d)y." Cp. UHomnie, ii. 716.

206 HUNTING, TRAPPING, AND FISHING PART n

would take his stand in concealment behind a fallen tree-trunk or snag, and there wait whilst another Semang drove the fish upstream towards him. The fish in endeavouring to conceal themselves from the latter would naturally make for the snag or tree-trunk, thus affording his opportunity to the harpooner.

The harpoon-head wras of iron, obtained from the local Malays, and the shaft was the leaf- stem of a palm called " ranggam."

The temporary poisoning of the stream by means of the root of Derris elliptica (Mai. "tuba"), which is a general method of fishing among the Peninsular tribes, may also have been practised by the Semang at Siong, but I neither saw nor heard anything of it during my stay, any more than I did of the use of the casting-net.

II. — Sakai.

Hunting and Trapping.

Perak Sakai. — Their most important weapon is the bamboo blowpipe, a full account of which will appear in a later chapter. By means of the poisoned darts blown through this tube, both birds and monkeys and other small animals are brought down from quite high trees at distances varying up to 60 yds. (55 m.).1

Mr. L. Wray informs me that he knew of a well-authenticated case of a leopard being killed near Gopeng in Perak by a Sakai with a blowpipe.

To kill an elephant the Sakai stalk it from behind

1 "Almost their only weapon consists couple of minutes. They say that if

of a blowpipe about seven or eight feet they can hit an elephant or a pig

long, from which they shoot poisoned in the eye, a couple of darts will do

darts with great accuracy as much as the job" (J. R.A.S., S.B., No. 4,

thirty or even forty paces (23 m. to p. 29). Cp. De M. ii. 649 seq. for

30 m. ) ; a single dart is sufficient further notes on hunting and

to bring a bird or monkey down in a trapping.

Sakai with Spring-Trap, Perak.

Cemttu

Sakai with Trap, Perak— Boy explaining its Action.

Vol. I. /. 206.

m-s

*&•-

■

BKJmJB^B

C emit i.

Sakai Boy watching Rat-Tkai-, Gunong Urn. Ui.u Slim.

Sakai Boy watching Pig-Trap (with Spring-spear), Ulu Slim.

Cerruti.

CHAP, iv A .// (>/■ PERAh

until they arc able to drive a sharp pointed stake into the sole of its fool as th<- latter is lifted in walking. The elephant being thus effectually lamed, and unable tO pursue them, they shoot their poisoned darts

into him from behind a tree (preferably into his eye),

and thus despatch him. They are no less ready to attack the tiger and the rhinoceros.1

The Sakai of Perak, like the Semang, not unfrequently employ dogs in the chase, a custom which Mohammedanism has, no doubt (to some extent, though not entirely), brought into disuse among the Malays. -

The traps and snares used by the Sakai are of various sorts and sizes, one of the commonest being the "b'lantek" or spring-spear trap, of which there is a very good account in Hale.3 This trap is used for killing game of almost any size, from the rhinoceros to the porcupine. When used for large game the spear is either manufactured from a single piece of bamboo, or has its shaft made of a hard piece of wood, with a bamboo spike or blade firmly bound to its lower extremity. In either case the point of the weapon is generally fire-hardened. For small mammals a hardwood shaft, the end of which is similarly sharpened and fire-hardened, is employed.

The " b'lantek" described by Mr. Hale is one of the forms of a Malay spear-trap called " b'lantek parap," or the " slapping spring-spear." The different parts of it are as follows : —

1 De la Croix, p. 335. De M. held in a bent position by a bit of {V Homme, ii. 651) questions the truth jungle cord, which at a touch releases of this account. the spring, when the spike, which is

2 J. I. A, vol. iv. p. 429. eight to ten inches long, is buried in

3 Hale, pp. 289, 290. Cp. "They the animal. The existence of these generally get pigs and deer by an in- spring traps makes it advisable always genious wooden spring made of the to be accompanied by a Sakai guide branch of a tree with a bamboo spike when moving about their country." — fixed to the end of it ; the spring is J. R. A. S., S. B.> No. 4, p. 29.

2o8 HUNTING, TRAPPING, AND FISHING PART n

(i) A powerfully elastic and tapering rod or " spring " is set horizontally, with its thicker end passed between two trees, the butt-end of the spearshaft (2) being securely lashed to its thinner extremity.

Two strong uprights (3) and (4), firmly planted in the ground at right angles to the big spring, are then connected by a stout cross-bar (5) and two pairs of crossed sticks (6) and (7), the latter being planted in the ground in a line with the two uprights.

A cord is then made fast to the outside pair of cross-sticks (7) and attached to a rattan ring (8), which slides along the cross-bar (5) till the cord connecting it with (7) is drawn taut ; the smaller end of the big spring is drawn back till it touches the anterior upright (3), and set by means of a strong bamboo noose (9), which is held by a small spring (9), the other end of which is connected with the rattan ring (8) already referred to.

Any animal which passes along the path between the two sets of cross-sticks (6) and (7) and touches the taut cord, in so doing pulls away the rattan ring (8) and releases the small spring (9), which flies up, releasing the big spring in its turn, the result being that the spear is driven, with all the force that the spring is capable of giving it, straight towards the animal that touched the cord.

The next kind of spring-trap, referred to by Hale, is one in which the big wooden spring is made to strike the butt-end of a spear, causing it to fly like an arrow across the track of any passing animal.

This spring-trap is undoubtedly the " b'lantek paut," or "draw-back spring-spear," of the Peninsular Malays.

The third kind of spring-trap, which is described

f. 7

I.

i 234 De Morgan.

Types of Fish-Hooks (Natural and Artificial),

1. Natural hooks of the rattan or climbing cane {Calamus),

2. Single Malay fish-hook (iron).

3. Double hook of rattan used by aborigines.

4. Single hook of rattan used by aborigines,

■■<.-

lV ^-vJ' i' ~1

. ,fj£ ->f <aY ^

De Morgan.

Sakai Fish-Dam, for catching Fish in the Kinta River at Lubo' Kelah i " Lobou Kela").

See p. 211. {X.B. The lettering is not explained in De Morgan's text.)

(ii \i'. i\ . /A . // <>/■ /'/ /

as being worked on the bou principle, is the Mala) 11 b'lantek t fir bang," or " flying spring-spear."

I dn not, however, give Hale's description, as he states that t h< - Sakai professed " utter ignorant e of it.1

All three forms of the spring-spear-trap described are, however, certainly known to and used by the

Peninsular Malays, though it may be an open question

whether the Malays or the aboriginal tribes were the

first tO employ it.

Of ordinary snares or springes (tor animals and birds) Male says that they are made of rattan by the Sakai and variously set ; the most usual form being a simple rattan noose set taut by a stout wooden spring : with these they catch rats, squirrels, and animals as large as the porcupine. '

Bird-lime is also employed. The sap of a " guttatree " is boiled down until it attains the required consistency, when it is applied to a number of thin slips of rattan, these slips being thickly planted over the ground to catch small birds : of some gregarious sorts, like the little padi-bird, great numbers are taken.5

Fishing.

Perak Sakai. — Of the Kinta Sakai Hale says that they do not trouble themselves about fishing until their vegetable food is on the point of exhaustion. They live on the mountain -tops, and do not go down to the big rivers for fish unless forced to do so by scarcity of food.4 Once in about three months they will make a journey to one of the big rivers, and there, by means of fish-dams,' etc., obtain a large

1 Hale, p. 290. 2 lb. 3 lb. p. 291. * lb.

5 Cp. De M. in UH. ii. 653.

210 HUNTING, TRAPPING, AND PI SUING pari ii

supply of fish. They do not, however, understand the drying of it, and hence even the biggest haul only means a few days' feasting, while the fish remains good.1

De Morgan states that fishing with rod and line (lignes volantes) is practised by the Sakai, a very primitive form of hook being employed, which consists of the " curved-back " thorns of certain kinds of rattan (Calamus), the line being made from strands of treebark (the fibres of Artocarpus)?

De la Croix says they are very clever at making 11 bow-nets," etc., and that he and Mr. Brooke Low, in ascending S. Kerbu, saw many small Sakai fishinghuts on the banks.3

The Sakai also make much use of "very beautiful casting-nets," manufacturing the twine of which the net is made from the inner bark of a creeper, by twisting two strands together on the thigh in the usual way. These nets are weighted, according to Hale, with chains manufactured from tin, which are obtained from the Malays, and attached to the outside edge of the net.4

De Morgan, however, sawT some which were of still simpler construction, and weighted with stones,-' the twine of which the net was made being manufactured from strands of bark of the " t'rap," or wild breadfruit tree (Artocarptis).

1 Hale, p. 291. carrying the worms that they use as

2 L? Homme, ii. 653, 655 ; but, on bait. Cp. U Homme, ii. 619 (illustrathe other hand, Hale (p. 291) states tion).

that the Sakai "do not appear to 3 De la Croix, pp. 322-325;

know anything of angling." De M. L' Homme, ii. 655.

(HH ii. 655) also speaks of their em- 4 Hale, p. 291.

ploying small bamboo receptacles for 5 De M. vii. 418.

. HAP. iv SAKAI OF /'/■ A'. /A

Fish'dantSy Weirsy and Traps.

1 he Sakai also commonly take fish by means ol fish-dams, weirs, and traps (all ol which are constructed verj closel) in accordance with the metho o\ the Malays, from whom they are most probably to a great extent copied. In the case ol a wide

shallow river, a Y-shaped fish- fence is set across the

stream, and a lish-trap or " weel " set at the point of the V (which fronts upstream). 1 )eep narrow streams are fenced or dammed across, and the weels set in the opening.1

Hale describes in detail (p. 291) an extensive fish-trap which he saw in the Kinta river, where it was about sixty yards (54 m.) wide and rather swift.

His description is as follows : —

A is a grating of bamboo, B a platform to catch the fish. C and D are two rows of strong posts. This grating is built half-way across the river (30 yards ?), and being strongly made wall last a year. During flood-time many fish are taken, but most during the driest season of the year, when the second half of the river is dammed and all the water made to pass through the grating.

In order to assist this latter process the scrapings of a certain poisonous jungle-root 2 is thrown into the river some distance above the grating, the effect of which is to drive the fish down half-stupefied. Several hundred fish (many of a large size) are often taken by this means.

1 De Morgan relates how he passed for catching fish (De Morgan, viii. 160). a night in a deserted (Sakai) fishing- 2 Doubtless Derris ellipticay called

hut which fronted a huge dam (then "tuba" by the Malays; v. Wray,

half demolished) which had been used Per. Mies. N., No. I. pp. 19-23.

212 HUNTING, TRAPPING, AND FISHING i n

Hunting and Trapping.

Selangor Sakai. — The second form of spring-spear trap ("b'lantek paut ") appears to be identical with that described as the " p'lantek " by Letessier, among the Sakai of the Kuala Lumpor district.

Among the snares used by these Sakai, the " p'lantek " (he says) is the commonest and most dangerous, being composed of a strong springy rod furnished with a bamboo dart, which is intended to pierce any animal of sufficient size that disengages (in passing) the short cord keeping the rod in position. Before crossing the felled trees (which are always in the proximity of a Sakai habitation) for the first time, it is just as well to ascertain that there are no traps of this description along the route.1

In a graphic account of some Sakai tribes of the Ulu Langat district, the late Mr. J. A. G. Campbell remarked that it was very amusing to go out hunting with the Sakai in the jungle, and to see the stealthy way in which they went through it without breaking a twig. Although their pace seemed slow, it was very difficult to keep up with them, and they seldom failed to bring home some bird or beast for their evening meal. No other race in the Malay Peninsula could be compared with them in respect of their wonderful knowledge of the jungle. They were absolutely at home in it, and did not mind sleeping out in the rain either under a tree or up among its branches. They had a wonderful instinctive knowledge of the presence of animals, and could tell, when nobody else could, of a bird or animal moving at a great distance. They were even believed to be able to track

1 Letessier, p. ioo.

McG, SAk.M in Jungle Accoutrements, Sungei Berang, Seven Miles from Tanjong Mai.i.v

Vol. [.p. 212.

^^BC^-

« n \r. iv \ K Al OF Sh I ANGOR I J

snakes l>\ their smell, ami could at all events catch any number ol them without the slightest difficulty. The Sakai oi Ulu Langat made a good deal ol mon< l>\ selling animals and birds to the Mali I hey

hunt with blowpipes, spears, and knives ; but some

have bought guns, \ hich many of them use in common.

They seldom hope to get more than two deer a year each, hut count on about fifteen pigs. They have

many modes of trapping game, a favourite one being

to make game-fences (made of sticks planted in rows with palm-leaves tied across them), some of which are 500 yards (450 m.) long, and then to drive the game against this fence, and there shoot or spear it. They have many other snares which are well known to the Malays. They are not particularly brave. Many of them who have guns are not brave enough to hunt the elephant or bison, and are not ashamed to tell you so.1

Fishing.

Selangor Sakai. — The method of fishing which the Sakai consider the most important from their point of view, since it is also the most effective, consists in temporarily poisoning small streams and rivers in the manner already described, by means of the powerful sap obtained from the pounded root of a plant wahich the Malays call " tuba" (Derris ellipticd). By means of this poison which is thrown into the river fish are stupefied in large numbers,- and may then be caught by hand or transfixed with a sort of harpoon or gaff made for the purpose.

1 J. A. G. Campbell, p. 243. whether this method of fish-poison-

2 The fish stupefied by means of ing is borrowed from the Malays, " tuba " are in no case, I believe, killed or vice versa. It is in any case a outright by the poison. I should add, custom of exceedingly wide distribuperhaps, that it is impossible to tell tion.

2i4 HUNTING, TRAPPING, AND PISHING part n

The following descriptionof oneof the Fishing Feasts of the Selangor Sakai, which was witnessed by the writer in the interior of Selangor (Ulu Langat district), is taken from the account ] of Father Letessier. He writes that the fishing at Ulu Beranang, at which he was present, was a great festivity. Installed upon the bank under a few large leaves of the " bertam " palm, which were made to lean obliquely against a horizontal pole nine feet from the ground, each family at evening counted the fish caught, and dried them upon a large wooden grill built over the fire, where a bountiful supper was cooking.

The children, one above the other, holding on to the giant creepers which hung from the great trees, swung themselves from bank to bank or played in the water, in spite of their mothers, who feared that the poison might affect their little ones. Indeed, one of them suffered a long time from colic from having drunk the water too soon.

After supper, which was served on plates of leaves, without spoon or fork, the children recommenced their games, whilst their elders smoked cigarettes, stretched at ease upon branches or mats. The women, who had done nothing during the day, continued drying the fish far into the night.

III. — Jakun.

Htmting and Trapping.

Blandas. — The Blandas of K. Langat, like most of the tribes referred to, will eat everything that they can catch, and are very expert in the use of the blowpipe, and employ dogs to discover their quarry. They

1 Letessier, p. ioo.

M i , <

Sakai fishing \i I'm Kali, I'm Sei vngor.

«>•

Tf^-r :,\

MCG

Aborigines Fishing at 1"li~ Ki.axg.

Women in stream driving the rish, old man r>n the bank with hand-net (" bintoh ").

Voh I. p. 214.

Two Sakai Women with Pet Jungle-Pigs. Ulu Slim, Perak.

Cerrnti.

Sakai Women and Children with Pet Jungle-Pig.

The children's turn (notice face-paint of woman feeding child). Ulu Slim. Perak.

Vol. I. />■ 215.

i haf, iv WAGE '/.// AYS Of ii ANGOR 215

do not, however, in hunting trust merely to their own skill, o- to that of their dogs, as the following 1 harm which vvas given me by them as a charm oi gn efficacy in bringing down monkeys, will show: —

The Monkey Chaem.

( Inarm the lonli ol ape and Dion!

Souls oilotengi ''•,;"'i and Come ye ii«>w 11 01 feed the w Ud bes ( (imc <- di ro 11 ' 'i feed the beai -cal I 'I is the "lemp'rai" stem up-tippling, "Pis the "lnnp'iai" stem down-settling, 'Tis the "kumbang" item down-settling I Forward then, at random stoppin . Though one handmaid be short measure — Come ye down, with souls enchanted, Monkeys, by my spells enchanted. Lo, it is no dew descending, But the tears of apes and monkeys, Tears of lotong, /■></, and ivcCwcC. Maidens, 'tis your souls descending. Deem ye me some tree-stump walking, Deem ye me the lightning's shadow. Though your eyes may see me walking, Walk I hid, as one smoke-shrouded. Though I pass, may ye not see me.

The Blandas also occasionally keep wild animals for future consumption, though they cannot exactly be said to fatten them. I have seen a young wild pig kept in this way, a strong cage being built for it underneath the raised hut -floor of a Blandas man who lived on the river Langat.

Besisi. — The Besisi of K. Langat, in hunting, still as a rule use the blowpipe, though in many places it is fast becoming obsolete. Most of them also are well provided with spears and jungle-knives, but in a good many cases one meets with men who have managed to barter or buy an old Tower musket from the Malays, and this gun is then used in common by all members of the tribe.

The Besisi, like most of the aborigines, are won-

216 HUNTING, TRAPPING, AND FISHING PARI n

derful woodsmen. When I was at Sepang they frequently brought me in wild animals and birds that they had caught alive, among them being specimens of the Malayan partridge (" sorong lanting "), the " bertam " bird, the argus pheasant or " kuau," various kinds of chevrotain, and even, on one occasion, the rare and curious mammal called Gymnura (" pijatpijat "). So, too, in his account of the wild tribes of the same district, Mr J. A. G. Campbell remarked that the Besisi (" Orang Laut ") used to bring him as many as ten "mangrove" snakes (" ular bakau ") at a time, telling him they had caught them all that morning. Monkeys, birds, tiger-cats, etc., were sold by them for very small sums, and a monkey that would bring ten dollars in Singapore could be bought from them for twenty cents.1

In addition to spring-traps, such as those already described, many kinds of fall-traps and springes ol various kinds, as well as game-fences, were used by the Besisi for trapping game of different sorts and sizes.

For bird-lime many sorts of trees possessing a viscous sap were resorted to and the sap mixed in various proportions, the liquid being boiled down if necessary till a proper consistency is reached. The sticky gum thus obtained was applied to the ends of a number of short rattan sticks or slivers (from i ft. to 2 ft. in length), and these as a rule were set in notches cut for the purpose with a jungle-knife in the branches of the trees to which the birds resorted.

The bird-lime was usually kept (by the Besisi) in small bamboo tubes, which were corked with a section of the leaf-stalk of a " bertam " palm.

In order to capture the argus pheasant the follow-

1 J. A. G. Campbell, p. 243.

chap, iv SAVAGE MALA KS Ok SEl A VGOR

ing very peculiar though cruel method was pur led. The argus pheasant, which is .1 most beautiful bird, is exceedingly sh) oi man, and liv« s, a a rule, .1 long way off iii the hilly part <>i the forest, where it maj be heard calling, and sometimes (but very rarelj \ can be seen flying overhead.

Here and there these birds have regular dancinggrounds which they clear of weeds and small shrubs by seizing the roots with their beaks and twisting their necks round the steins so as to drag the latter up out of the ground.

The Besisi of Kuala Langat, being aware ol this habit, search for one of their dancing-grounds and plant in the centre of it one or two long and flexible slivers of bamboo, bent double so as to form a stiff kind of noose standing upright in the ground. The edges of these slivers are as sharp as knives, and when the birds twist their necks in the nooses (mistaking them, it is alleged, for newly-grown weeds) and try to drag them out of the ground, they generally kill or choke themselves in doing so.1

Fishing.

Besisi. — The Besisi of Langat (as their claim to be Orang Laut might lead us to expect) are very expert fishers. Their bait,- for the most part, consists of worms, especially the sand-worm (" pumpun sarang "), which they stalk and very adroitly dig up out of the sand before it has time to bury itself too deeply. They commonly also use, however, the " pumpun

1 Often, however, they are taken markable process here described, is alive in one of the many kinds of bird- contained in the Museum at Cambridge, traps used by the Jakun. A model, 2 It is described by Klinkert as remade at my request by a member of sembling a millipede, as living in the the tribe in order to exhibit the re- sand, and as affording bait for fish.

218 HUNTING, TRAPPING, AND FISHING l M

ruat," which is a mud-worm of immense length (some I have seen measured upwards of three feet) living deep down in the mud of the mangrove swamps. A good deal, perhaps most, of the angling is done by the women, whom I have often seen fishing in this way, and who become very clever in the use of the rod.1

A somewhat unusual method of rod-fishing in vogue among some of the Besisi, as well as among some of the local Malays (who are said to have learnt it from them), is extremely curious. The fisherman goes out in a dug-out canoe, at about half- tide, and paddles gently in and out among the mangrove -roots in the little salt-water creeks of the tidal rivers. On reaching a suitable spot he starts angling, using an extremely short rod (not above two feet long), and a line not more than three feet long at the most. A novice might suppose that the only chance of getting a bite at all under such circumstances from anything better than a gudgeon would be to remain as silent and still as the grave. The Besisi, however, knowing his fish better, splashes the tip of his rod vigorously in the water. This has the effect of making his quarry (big mud -fish such as the " sembilang " 2 and the " b'lukang ") go for the bait with a greedy rush which results in their immediate capture. The fisherman, however, cannot be too careful, as the " sembilang ': is furnished with very poisonous spines (one at each side and one on its back), and I have known these to cause painful wounds, the effects of which continued to be felt for several days afterwards.

1 Mr. G. C. Bellamy says : " Some throw the bait similarly to fly-fishing,

of the women are expert fishers, and whipping the fish out with great skill "

make use of a light rod and a line of (Bellamy, p. 229). about the same length as the rod. - Plotosus canias, etc. The " b'lu-

They stand in the shallow water and kang " is unidentified.

.!/• Greg Hunting Party with Blowpipes, Bukit Prual, Kepong, Selangor.

Vol. I. />. 219.

chap, iv SAVAGL M \l A YS Ob I /'

1 may add that I m\ sell hav I mbila

bj the method described. The Mala) i i all it " kachau " or " mSngachau s< mbilang " ( " splashing" or "dabbling for s€mbilang "), and it is thought that tl fish take the splashing for thai made by the crabs i which they iced, and which may often be seen flittin like small violet will-o'-the-wisps, along the edg the tidal waters, among the forked mangrove-roots.

The Besisi also make use of the Malay casting-i ("jala"),as well as of many kinds offish-traps, which they

frequently set in dams or fish-fences. They also u the fish-spear, but the method of poisoning fish by means of "tuba" [Derris ellipticd) is now little practised by them, as it is discountenanced by the Government. In addition to fish, the Besisi (as Orang Laut) live largely on shell-fish, which they collect (for the most part by hand) on the sandy fiats of the foreshore in the Kuala Langat district. I have frequently seen them collecting cockles ("krang"), " kepah," " lokan," and mussels("kijing"), whose breathing-holes are plentifully visible in places where the sand and the mud-flats meet and the Berembang and Api-api trees cover the surface with their network of surface-roots and pointed suckers. The discarded shells are thrown away near the houses, and diminutive kitchen-middens are thus occasionally to be seen in the actual process of formation.

Hunting and Trapping.

Mantra. — The Mantra use poisoned bow -traps as well as darts for killing their game. A springy rod is planted in the ground with a short spike fixed to it near the point, at right angles. The spike is poisoned with " ipoh," and the point lightly pinned to the ground with a wooden fork, so that the slightest

22o HUNTING, TRAPPING, AND FISHING part ii

touch may release it, and the spike strike its intended

victim.1

Benua-Jakun (of Johor). -According to Logan, it was in the forest that the Benua sought their principal supplies of animal food. Their favourite dish — the flesh of the wild hog — was also that which was procurable in the greatest abundance. Logan passed several tracts which seemed literally to swarm with the hog. For miles together the banks of some streams were covered with the prints of their feet, and in some moist hollows their tracks were so abundant that it was impossible to recognise the path, and his guide repeatedly lost it. In other districts, again, they seemed to be less numerous. They were particularly plentiful in some places to the southward of the Lulumut chain, and the men of the settlement called Durian-tree Village (Kampong Pohun Durian), on the river Pines, a few days before his arrival there, had killed fifteen. They were killed by the help of dogs and spears. Of the two varieties of dog which the Benua possessed, the larger one was the proper hunter of the hog, although the smaller used also to be joined in the chase. Their spear- head, wThich was of native fabrication, was broad and very thin towards the edges. It was set on a shaft about eight feet long, and formed a light and serviceable weapon, without which the Benua never ventured into the forest or went upon a journey, and in the efficiency of which, for defensive and offensive purposes, he had much confidence. Whenever he entered a house his spear was stuck, with the head upwards, into the ground in front of the doorway.2

1 Geiger, p. 29. 2 J. I. A. vol. i. pp. 256, 257 ; cp. ib. vol. ii. p. 2 58.

m

• ■■■* «v

'V

-«r

McGregor.

Jakun Women (Ulu Klau, Pahang), with Hunting Dog in Foreground.

(n\r. iv SAVAGE MALA V 01 /<>//> '// ti

Elsewhere we are t<>l<l by the same writer thai in to the hog, deer were mosi sought. The roe-deer (" kijang ") and the sambhur (" rusa ") were chased by the larger variety oi dog, and the diminutive mou .< deer (" p'landok ") by the small variety, which was generally reserved for that purpose. It had some resemblan

to the Bengal fox, and appealed to be allied to the Chinese breed. The most common mode of hunting

the mouse-deer was to send the doe; into the jungle on the hanks ot a Stream, the Benua either slowl) floating down the current, or pulling against it in his canoe, and cheering on and guiding the dog with his deep, long-drawn, monotonous cries of " oh ! oh ! oh ! ' The dog, on running down a mouse-deer, was said to be in the habit of breaking its leg, and then, by means of barking, to direct the hunter to the spot. The only domestic animals besides the dogs, of which several were to be found in every cottage, were fowls of a larger breed, and the common Malay cat.1

Trapping.

Benua-Jakun. — A formidable and effective snare was used by the Johor Benua, as well as by the Berembun tribes, for capturing or killing the deer and the hog, and even in some cases the tiger. It consisted of a slight and rude game-fence carried to a considerable length across the ground which the animals were expected to traverse. At every twenty or thirty feet openings were left, between which spears were fixed (close to and parallel with the fence), with the heads reaching across the openings. The end of the shaft was fastened to the extremity of a freshly cut,

1y. /. A. vol. i. p. 257.

222 HUNTING, TRAPPING, AND FISHING PART n

and therefore highly elastic, sapling, placed horizontally, and measuring about fifteen feet in length and two to two and a half inches in breadth. The other extremity was fastened to a strong stake driven into the ground, and within a few feet of this another stake was placed (in such a direction that when the sapling was forcibly bent back against it for two or three feet it was perpendicular to the fence). The method by which it was retained so retracted was equally simple and effective. A rough pole secured by two stakes was placed parallel to one of the poles of the fence (on the side where the spear and its other apparatus were), but at a level a little below that of the spear. A stick measuring a few feet long was then bound firmly to one extremity of the sapling so as to be parallel to, and on the same level as, the spear, while the other extremity, well smoothed, was made to pass under another stick which was fixed at right angles to it, the ends of which passed under the two poles. The sticks retained their position by their mutual pressure. To this cross-stick a black and thin, but very strong, string was fastened. The other end of the string was attached to the further side of the opening, and the portion passing across it was made to hang loosely. When an animal entered the opening the pressure of its body on this part of the string pulled the cross-stick forwards. An advance of less than an inch released it, and the instant the stick which kept the sapling bent was thus freed in its turn, the latter sprang forward with immense force to its natural position, and the spear was driven into the body of the animal, indeed in many cases probably right through it. The slightness of the pressure required to release the spring, and the rapidity and

chap, iv ; JOHOR

irresistible force with which the spear impelled

across th<i opening were admirable. The materials for every part of this contrivance were collected from the lorcsi around, Even the spear head was made of a species oi bamboo (the "buloh kasap") and v

exceedingly hard and sharp.'

The Berembun tribes also, to capture wild animals, dug pits about twelve feet in depth, which they covered over with brushwood."

Wild pigeons, wild fowl, and many other birds used for food were caught by means of bird-lime, of which they possessed several very effective kinds, prepared by mixing the viscid sap yielded by different trees.3

Fishing.

Benua-Jakun. — Many families had small huts on the bank of the nearest stream on which they kept canoes, and men, women, and children, one, as a rule, to each canoe, were everywhere met with engaged in the quiet occupation of angling. They had, however, other methods of catching fish. The most common was by means of small portable traps woven from rattan creepers (Calami). Rows of stakes or fishfences were also used. But the most elaborate form of fish-trap consisted of a large framework, like the skeleton of a bridge, which was thrown right across the stream, and at a level some feet higher than the banks, so as to be above inundations. A line of stakes was fixed across the river-bed, an opening being left in the middle. Above this the Benua took his seat on a small platform (sometimes sheltered by a roof),

1 /. /. A. vol. i. pp. 257, 258. proved fatal, v. Lake in /. A. A. S., Accidents from these traps often occur S. /?., No. 25, p. 4. to human beings. For one which 2 J, I. A. vol. i. pp. 257, 258. 3 lb.

224 HUNTING, TRAPPING, AND FISHING part ii

and suspended a small net in the opening. On this net he kept his eyes intently fixed, and as soon as a fish entered he raised the net and extracted it. The rivers and streams abounded in fresh-water fish, and there were about fifty species.1

Udai. — The Udai were described by Newbold as preferring the delights of the chase to the drudgery of agriculture ; they employed the day in roaming the forest, and subsisted on the flesh of the animals that they captured.2

Orang Laut or Sea-Jakun.

Orang* Laut, Sabimba. — To the blowpipe as their principal weapon the Sabimba owed all that they could obtain of the animals that lived in the trees of the forest, whilst with their dogs (a " species of pariah ") they hunted the wild hog.3

Orang" Laut, Beduanda Kallang\ — The Beduanda Kallang were fishermen and foresters, and divided their time between these two pursuits. They had small fishing-stakes near the mouth of the river which some of them visited in the mornings.4

Orang* Laut, Akik. — The Akik were expert divers and fishermen, and employed nets which they made themselves.5

1 /. /. A. vol. i. p. 256. 3 J. I. A. vol. i. p. 347*.

2 Newbold, ii. 381, 382. 4 lb. p. 300.

5 Newbold, ii. 413, 414.

CHAPTER V. Modes of Barter.

Moni'.v is not yet understood by any but the most civilised members of the three races, all of whom trade to a greater or less extent in jungle produce, the chid articles bartered being gutta, tree-gum or "dammar," wood-oils (camphor, benzoin, etc.), perfumed wood, e.g. eagle-wood or "gharu," and to a limited extent, minerals, more especially tin.

In return the jungle -folk get rice, tobacco, salt, areca-nuts, cloth, cooking utensils, implements, tools, and weapons, and occasionally such luxuries as beads and (very rarely) looking-glasses.

They appear to possess a decided preference (doubtless due to the fact that neither are Mussulmans) for dealings with the Chinese, who obtain for them various articles which have now become necessities of their existence, and who do not cheat them so mercilessly as the Malays.

In many Malay legends reference is made to the alleged Sakai and Semang practice of depositing the objects that they were willing to barter in a recognised spot, and then returning a few days later to take up the articles that the Malays had meanwhile deposited in the same spot by way of payment

VOL. I Q

226 MODES OF DARTER part 11

— a method allowing plenty of scope for the chicanery of which the Malays are so generally accused.

Logan's remarks upon the Benua-Jakun of Johor are, however, quite to the point here, and apply almost equally to all branches of the tribes in the Peninsula.

At all events (he says) it is to the Malays that the more civilised aborigines owe every departure from their original forest habits. If we deprive them of those articles for which the Malays have purposely infected them with a taste, and those they have themselves voluntarily sought from the desire to imitate and approximate to the habits of the more civilised appropriators of their country, there will remain hardly anything to distinguish them from their wilder compatriots. Indeed, examples may still be seen of men whom indolence alone prevents from working up to the high prices that the Malays would exact from them, and who live in a wild nomadic condition, their only clothing a loin - cloth, and their food limited during the greater part of the year to the produce of their clearings and of the forest.1

Compared with the labour that the acquisition of the necessaries of life costs them, that which is required to obtain the few luxuries and conveniences to which they are now habituated is excessive. Instead of a scanty and irregular supply of clothing and other articles, it should, in view of the fact that their industry is greater, suffice to raise them eventually to a condition of greater plenty and comfort than has been attained by the Malays themselves.2

1 /. /. A. vol. i. pp. 285, 286. ■ lb.

( ii \r. \ .\ / GRI7\

1. Semang,
   

Semang" (no district specified). In 1S35, the usual method of barter employed between the Semang

and the Malays was for the latter to deposit their commodities, consisting chiefly of coarse cloths, tobacco,

and knives, in any open space in the vicinity oi the known Semang camping-grounds, and then retire to a convenient distance. The Semang would next approach, and, having selected such articles as they fancied, bear them oft", leaving in their place whatever they might deem a fair equivalent ; this latter consisted chiefly of elephants' teeth, eagle-wood, resin, canes, rattans, and so forth, of which, through ignorance of their market value, the Semang always left an ample supply. A few, however, who had partially overcome their timidity, and occasionally ventured to approach the Malayan villages, speedily learned to profit by the superstitions and fears of their new acquaintances, and to demand a high and exorbitant rate for the vegetable preparations which they were wont to use as medicine.1

In a more detailed account we are told that a few of them who ventured to approach the Malayan villages obtained a little cloth in exchange for elephants' teeth, eagle-wood, wax, woods, gums, " dammar," and canes which they procured in the forest, but of the intrinsic value of which they possessed but little know- ledge, so that they were generally imposed upon by the crafty Malay. From the Malays also they procured their arms, knives, and tobacco, of which last they made great use. In their own turn, however,

1 Begbie, pp. 8, 9.

228 MODES OF BARTER part ii

they frequently learnt to work upon the superstitions of the Malays (when they had no products to barter, and wished to procure a supply of tobacco), by presenting them with medicines which they pretended to derive from particular shrubs and trees in the woods, and represented as efficacious for the cure of headache and other complaints.1

Pangan. — The Pangan or Eastern Semang that we saw at Ulu Aring in Kelantan used to depend upon the Malay hamlet of Kampong Buntal for their rice, as well as for their salt and their tobacco, and had come down, in fact, at the time when we were there for the purpose of obtaining this latter commodity, of which I myself was able to present them with a considerable supply. The only other articles for which they were usually indebted to the Malays were the cloths they wrapped round their waists, and the blades of their jungle-knives and spear-heads. On the other hand, one of the men that we observed was in possession of a razor which had been "given" him (doubtless in return for more than its fair equivalent in other commodities) by the Malay chief or " Penghulu " of the village.

Kedah Semang*. — The Semang of Kedah had themselves grown a small field of rice, and to the extent of their harvest were independent of the local Malays, so far as their food-supply was concerned. Nevertheless the scantiness of this stock made it quite clear that in a few months they would have come to an end of it, and would either be obliged to

1 J. I. A. vol. iv. pp. 425, 426. Similar charges are, of course, often

This account is not quite just to made by the Malays (from whom this

the Semang, who undoubtedly offered idea may have been derived), but on

to the Malays what they themselves proper investigation they prove to be

regarded as efficacious medicines. baseless.

chap, v SAKA1 i >/ /'/■ i

live again lor a while on roots and fruit .. or (more probably) to eke out the shortness ol their own supply with a Fresh store obtained from the Mala) I he knives, spear heads, and even the harpoon-heads used by this tribe were all of Mala)- manufacture, as were also all the cloths that the)- were wearing.

Perak Semang. As to the extent to which th< simple ways of trade were employed, Me Morgan says

that the Semang obtained a "considerable portion " of their livelihood by the barter of jungle produce with the Malays.1 lake the earlier authorities quoted, he adds that they were " absolutely ignorant " of the value of money."

II. — Sakai.

Perak Sakai. — The wild Sakai of the Perak Hills (Sakai Bukit) in trading with the Malays always either employ a "tame" Sakai as their intermediary, or else confine themselves to depositing their jungle products on the banks of the rivers at times and in places which are tacitly understood. They then withdraw, returning some time later to fetch the articles which the Malays offer them in exchange.3

The articles in which the Sakai usually trade are enumerated by De la Croix as including tree-gum, resin (or "dammar"), gutta, caoutchouc, wax, honey, ivory, and rhinoceros horns. These articles they dispose of to the Malays, not for ready money, but for cloth, salt, kitchen utensils, etc., the Malays being too clever to lose by the exchange.4

Selangor Sakai. — The Sakai of Selangor (Kuala Lumpor district) appear to have a decided preference

1 De Morgan, viii. 296. 3 De la Croix, p. 340.

~ I*. * lb. p. 337.

230 MODES OF BARTER part ii

for dealing with the Chinese, who supply them with tobacco, cloth-stuffs, rice, tools, and cooking utensils, in return for various articles of jungle produce, such as gutta-percha and charcoal. They do not have recourse to the Malays except when there are no Chinese, as they are frequently cheated by the former, whereas the latter treat them not only with scrupulous honesty, but even with a sort of u fraternal cordiality." l

III. — Jakun.

Blandas. — The foregoing descriptions of barter as it obtains among the Semang and the Sakai of Perak apply so closely to the Blandas of Kuala Langat that it is hardly necessary to particularise further. An interesting point, however, which is worth mentioning is that both the Blandas and the Besisi, their neighbours, make considerable use of incantations and magic in collecting their jungle produce. The following charm employed by the collectors of wild honey is a fair example : —

Honey-gatherers' Charm.

" Mung, mung, mung ! ,; the moon-white apes cry

(Apes of " rock " and " well " and "basil "),

Come ye out into the moonlight.

Hearken to me with affection,

List to me with kind affection,

Grannies, hark to me, your grandchild,

Who but begs for you to teach him

How to weave a mat — of rushes !

Grannies, o'er the seas come hasting,

O'er the hills come hasting, Grannies !

Swinging, swaying, come ye hither !

All I beg is, you should teach me

How to weave a mat — of bees-wax !

Grannies, hark to me your grandchild !

When I have explained that the moon -white "apes" in this invocation are probably intended to

1 Letessier, p. ioo.

i hap. v SAVAGE MALA vs <■/ SELANGOR

represent the Blandas honey collectors themselv< and that the word " ( rrannies " refera to the wild

who are supposed to be deceived by tin's quaint pi< of fiction, I think the purport of this (harm will be Sufficiently clear without further explanation.

Besisi. — The same remarks apply to the Besisi ; one of the charms used by whom (in collecting wild

honey) was quoted by the present writer in Malay Magic} 1 may add that the Besisi in the Kuala Langat district often raised a considerable crop of rice, and it was the object of the neighbouring Malays to cajole as much of this out of them as possible. On several occasions I was obliged to step in to protect them as far as I could from their rapacious neighbours. The latter frequently charged the Besisi with using false measures and similar methods of deception, but I never found that the charge could be fairly substantiated, and have little doubt that the real object of these charges was to discredit and rob the Jakun.

Mantra. — Of the Mantra we are told, on the high authority of Logan, that there were " no traders, shopkeepers, or artificers " among them,'2 but this does not, of course, signify that the Mantra do not engage in the ordinary trade in jungle products. In addition to this we are informed that the Mantra have no weights, but employ the (usual) coconut-shell as a measure.3

Benua-Jakun of Johor. — But by far the clearest and most circumstantial statement of the trading methods of any of those Peninsular tribes is Logan's report upon the trade of the Benua-Jakun of Johor.

The Malays (according to Logan) have taught the

1 For this, and another Blandas App. p. 611. charm of the same kind, v. Mai. Magic, - /. I. A. vol. i. p. 330*. 3 lb.

232 MODES OF BARThR pah 11

Jakun to covet things which he knows not how to procure save from them. These are cloth, and certain articles of earthenware and iron, such as coarse plates, pots, pans, chopping-knives or " parangs," and axes. Sugar and coconuts again are both much prized. The Jakun's supply of rice often fails. His tobacco is deficient in strength. Although he has both wild and cultivated betel-vines, he has neither gambier, areca-nut, nor lime. Hence the Malays often ascend the river, their canoes laden with a tempting variety of these particular articles, and the Jakun, unable to resist the desire of calling some of them his own, needs little persuasion to become indebted to the Malay trader for any amount the latter may choose to impose upon him. The Jakun now finds himself in possession of a few of those things which bring him nearer the Malay, and at the same time under an obligation to collect rattans for his creditor, various kinds of eagle -wood, ("gharu' and " chandan "), camphor, resin or "dammar," wax, and "gutta taban." l These articles, with the exception of the " dammar," of which he makes torches, are articles of no value in his own eyes, but in which his forests so abound that, if a more equitable system of exchange were established between him and the Malays, he would not only find himself in possession of a large supply of all those articles which are now sparingly doled out to him, but actually also of a growing capital. The collection of the above commodities, however, does not form a constant or regular employment for any of

1 Hervey, in/. R. A. S.,S.£., No. I was told they were too busy getting

8, pp. 103, 104, says, in writing of the rattans for the Malays, which they do

Jakun of Johor : " At this place, Kam- at a fixed price in rice and other

pong Kenalau, I found a clearing, but articles, such as clothing, crockery,

no cultivation ; on asking the reason, parangs (choppers), salt, and tobacco."

chap, v SAVAGE MALA VS 01 JOHOR

the [akun, It is only when there ia an unusual demand for any of them in Singapore that the Mala

hurry to the interior and induce the Jakun to engage

for a time in procuring ;i supply oi whatever happens to be in request. At the period of Logan's visit nearly every man in the country wa searching for "gutta taban," to which the name oi " gutta-percha/' a gum yielded by a different tree, is erroneously

applied by Europeans. This tree was one oi the commonest in the forests of Johor. It is not found in the alluvial districts, but in undulating or hilly ground (such as that which occupies the centre* of the Peninsula between the Endau and the Batu Pahat) it occurs frequently, and in some places abundantly. Wherever Logan penetrated he found that collectors of " taban " had preceded him.1

The Jakun, after felling the tree, " ringbarks " the trunk by making an incision completely round it, from which the viscous milk flows. Similar incisions are made at distances of from 6 to 18 inches throughout the entire length of the trunk. The rings are no broader than the blade of the chopper with which they are made, no bark being removed save the rough superficial coating for an inch or two on each side. Many trees felled by Malays had rings of bark to the breadth of about an inch cut right out instead of a single incision. A Malay woodman who had been employed in different places in procuring the gutta stated that this was the usual Malayan system. The bark is not stripped off the tree, as has been stated. Logan asked both the Malays and the Jakun in different parts of the country whether they could not procure the gutta in the same way as they collect the dammar,

1 J. I. A. vol. i. pp. 260, 261.

234 MODES OF BARTER part n

without destroying the tree. But the answer always was that the " taban " would not run like dammar, or like many other guttas, such as caoutchouc, and this is probably the fact. Varying statements were made as to the produce per tree, the extremes mentioned being two kati's and fifty kati's,1 but it is doubtful whether anything near the latter quantity is ever obtained from a single tree. Many of the Jakun who had been engaged for some months in collecting assured me that they had occasionally obtained as much as eighteen kati's, but never more, and that the quantity obtained is usually nearer from three to five kati's than it is to the maximum mentioned. Logan described the collection of " taban" at length, because nearly the whole of the Jakun tribes had for some time past been withdrawn by it from their usual pursuits. They were not, however, under any apprehension that it could be extirpated, as it was only full-grown, or nearly full-grown, trees that repaid the labour of felling them and extracting the gutta, and the younger trees which they were compelled to leave would be amply sufficient (they believed) to keep up the stock. They were, no doubt, to some extent correct, but the effect of thinning out the " tabans " too rapidly had already been to reduce the annual supply of seed and seedlings. The seeds were eaten by the Jakun, but they did not, like the Malays in some countries (e.g. at Siak), extract an edible vegetable tallow from them.2

Of the methods in which the other articles of traffic yielded by the jungle were procured, Logan considered it unnecessary to speak at any length, because he did not learn that they differed in any respect from

1 A "kati"=lj lbs. 2 /. /. A. vol. i. pp. 262, 263.

chap, v SAVAGE MALA )■■■ OF /<*//

those adopted by the Mala) i. 11<- mentions, ho ever, that both races had very superstitious id< regarding the collection of camphor. When engaged in searching for it they abstained from certain kinds of food, ate a little earth, and used a kind ol artifu ial language, which was called the "Camphor Languag (" bhasa kapor "). This language Logan found to be

the same on the Sedili, the Kndau, and the BatU Pahat. From specimens which he subjoined it appears that

most of the words are formed from the Malayan, in many cases by a mere periphrasis, such as "grassfruit" for "rice," ''far-sounder" for "gun," "short- legs " for " hog," " leaves" for " hair," etc.1

It was believed that if care were not taken to use this " Camphor Language," great difficulty would be experienced in finding camphor trees, and that when found the camphor would not yield itself to the collector. Whatever may have been the origin of this superstition, it was evidently based on the fact that although camphor trees were abundant, it very frequently happened that no camphor could be obtained from them. " Were it otherwise," said an old Jakun, who was singularly free from superstition, " camphor is so valuable that not a single full-grown tree would be left in the forest." Camphor was not collected by the Berembun tribes, at least on the western side of the Peninsula, and they were, therefore, unacquainted with this Camphor Language. :

But the present sketch of the Jakun trade in jungle produce would be incomplete were no reference made to the regular organisation established by the Malays for the purpose of exploiting their unsuspecting neighbours.

1 J. I. A. vol. i. pp. 263, 264. 2 lb. pp. 265, 266.

236 MODES OF BARTER pari ri

The Malayan Penghulu, Jinang,' or other headman in each river-district was also the head of the monopoly of trade with the Jakun. Hence traders entering the river most commonly visited him, and he either supplied them from his own store, or purchased what they required from the riverain Malays, or allowed them to do so themselves. This system was enforced with more or less rigour, according to the character of the Penghulu, but traffic was always to a certain extent carried on without his intervention, though strangers were absolutely prohibited from trading with the Jakun direct.2

To get a more complete understanding, however, of the system by which this monopoly was maintained and worked, it is necessary to explain the scheme a little more fully.

The Malays settled on the rivers leading into the country of the Jakun might be divided into three classes: (i) the Penghulu and his relatives and dependants ; (2) the Johor Malays (who frequently belonged to Telok Blanga, and enjoyed a certain consideration and prestige owing to their means and their Singapore connexion) ; and (3) miscellaneous settlers who did not possess these advantages. The trade with the Jakun was chiefly in the hands of the first and second classes, who acted in concert. The prices at which purchasable articles were to be valued was from time to time regulated by the Penghulu, who in this, as in all other matters, consulted the principal men of the river. The Penghulu next conferred with the Jakun chiefs or Batins, and so managed the discussion as to carry the point already agreed upon. The principle on which the sliding scale of prices was

1 Cp. J. I. A. vol. i. pp. 273, 274. 2 lb. p. 286.

chap. > SAVAG1 MALAYS OF JOHOR

managed was simply thai ol maintaining a high value for anything that was sold to the Jakun, and alou one for what was bought from them. When the [akun rice-harvest had been reaped, they were persuaded that rice was everywhere so plentiful that its price

was very small, and that, on the other hand, the price

of cloth had advanced as much above as the price of

rice was depressed below that of the Singapore market. The conclusion ol' all the inquiries made by Logan, and of numerous instances of barter of which he was a witness, was that the Malays sold the goods which they purchased in Singapore at advances of from ioo to 400 per cent, whilst they bought " taban," camphor, dammar, and other produce of the forest at from 100 to 400 per cent below the prices which they received in Singapore. Thus a voyage of two or three days enabled the Malay to double or quintuple the value of goods transferred from Singapore to Johor and from Johor to Singapore. As the trade was almost entirely carried on by barter, the Malays had a double profit on every transaction. Yet they were not satisfied with having established this vulture - like system of trade. They resorted, besides, to every indirect means of enhancing their gains that was at all consistent with the preservation of the trade. They made, for instance, advances of goods, and as their debtors were entirely unacquainted with writing and accounts, they had little difficulty in exacting far more than the stipulated return from those Jakun whose memories were not very tenacious ; for the return was made in small quantities from time to time, as the jungle produce happened to be collected. But the most certain and constant mode of defrauding the Jakun was in weighing the goods which were the

MODES OF BARTER

M

PART II

subject of the bargain. This was generally done very hurriedly, and when a pretence was made of doing it more carefully the beam was brought into a horizontal position, not by the counterpoise of the weights, but by the finger of the Malay. This method of weighing had, at the time of Logan's visit, become so general, that although the Jakun generally were aware that the Malays did not weigh fairly, and some had even acquired so much knowledge of the balance as to point out in what the fraud consisted, the Malay would laugh it off, insist that it was all right, and either deliver the article to one of his attendants, or toss it into his canoe. To show more definitely the extent to which the Malays took advantage of the ignorance of the Jakun, Logan added the following lists of prices of various articles, as ascertained in several localities : — 1

Trade on the Sembrong. Articles sold to the Jakun.

Local Price.

Singapore Price.

I c. •

$ c.

Tobacco .

per kati2

I.OO

•13

Salt

per gantang

.18J

.04

Coconuts .

. each

.04

.01 to .02

Common "sarongs" or skirts

. each

2.00

• 50

Bugis "sarongs" (inferior)

5.00 to 6.00

1.00 to 1.25

White cotton jackets (" bajus ")

. each

.38 to .75

.10

Headkerchiefs

. each

.58

.14

Common red cotton cloth

per yard

•3«i

.10

Large plate (common) .

. each

.38

. 10

Small plate (common) .

. each

.09

.04

Saucers ....

. each

•03!

.01

Cups .....

. each

.09

.01

1 J. I. A. vol. i. pp. 286, 287. But general are those of articles of the see n. to p. 95, ante. same quality. A "kati"=i^ lbs. =

2 These are the actual prices ex- T±$ pikul. A " gantang " varies, but amined, and the Singapore prices in roughly =1 gallon.

C H A I

C )'/■: ■

. \rtniis bought from the Jakun

i

i i

I tglc w od (lignum aloet) . pei kati

i amphoi ..... pei Vw\ 1 6

1 >.umnar ..... pel pikul

I

.57 and up-

U.il

Benjamin (mixed) . . . per pikul

.60 to .80

On the Lenggiu.

Articles sold to the Jakun!

i'rice.

Rice (coarse and uncleaned) per 5 gantai

1. 00

•33j

Tobacco . per kati (of about 12 tahils)

.18

.09 to . IO

Salt ..... per 13 gantangs

1. 00

•50

1 small earthenware pan or "blanga" .

.09

.04

1 small rice-pot or saucepan (" kuali ;') .

• 3»i

• 15

■77

•39

I chopper or parang .....

• 3H

.11$

.20

.08

Orang Laut or Sea-Jakun.

Sabimba. — The colony of Orang Laut who were living (arc. 1850) near the source of the Tembrau (which falls into the " Selat Tembrau" or "Old Strait " of Singapore, opposite the most northerly point of the island) consisted of twenty-five men, thirty women, and fifteen children. They were slaves of the reigning Chief of Johor (Temenggong), being under a Malay " Jinang," who employed them in collecting " taban," "dammar," rattans, eagle-wood ("gharu"), ebony, " chandan," and wax. In return he supplied them with rice, sago, and (very rarely)

J. I. A. vol. i. p. 2\

lb.

240 MODES OF BARTER part ii

with a little cloth. Other Malays were also allowed to carry on a little trade (by barter) with them,1 and by this means they obtained a supply of axes, hatchets, earthenware, cooking-pots, iron pans, salt, chillies, and tobacco."

Elsewhere we read of the Sabimba tribe as consisting of eighty individuals, young and old, and as being employed in cutting rattans for the Malays, who furnished them with rice, weapons, and utensils in return.3

Orang Muka Kuning\ — The Orang Muka Kuning (we are told) were entrusted to the care of a Malay headman or Batin, named Pajar, who lived on Pulau Loban,and was appointed by the chief (Yam-tuan Muda) of Rhio. He visited them from time to time, bringing rice and other articles, and receiving in return the jungle produce that they had collected for him. We are further expressly told that the Orang Muka Kuning were prohibited from trading with other persons " under penalty of a ducking." Rattans, dammar, and eagle-wood they barter for rice, cloth, implements, tobacco, and salt.4

For iooo rattans they received four " gantangs " of coarse rice;5 for ioo dammar torches, six "gantangs"; and for one basketful (measuring ij foot deep and broad) of eagle-wood, four " gantangs " of the same commodity.6

Beduanda Kallang*. — Similarly we are told that the Beduanda Kallang were fishermen and foresters, dividing their time equally between the two pursuits, and that they were in the habit of collecting jungle

1 Except in " taban," which they 2 /. I. A. vol. i. p. 298.

cannot dispose of to others under pain 3 lb. p. 347*. 4 lb. p. 337*.

of a ducking. 5 lb. 6 lb. p. 338*.

I HAP. \ MAI A \ A V s/-.A GYPSI1

produce for a Malay headman under the reigning chid' (Temenggong) ol [ohor, who had charge ol them.1

Orang Akik. The Orang Akik erected temporary sheds along the coast whenever they had occasion to

go ashore, to collect (laminar and wood-oil, etc., etc.

For months together, however, they resided in th< i r

boats, employed not only in fishing, but in collecting

agar-agar (Zostera), and tripang or beche-de-m<! [Holothuria)% etc. When the season or the weather did not permit of this, they employed themselves in gathering wood and pork-oil. ~

1 /. /. A. vol. i, p. 300. "hog's grease,"' the Malay for

'-' Sic in original, but I cannot l>e which (" niinyak babi ") may be so

sure what is meant by " pork -oil," translated; v. anUx p. 129. Xeu

unless, as I think most probable, it bold, ii. 413, 414.

VOL. I

CHAPTER VI.

Weapons and Implements.

Stone Implements.

Stone implements are very numerous in the Peninsula, especially in Perak and Pahang, but it is an open question whether any forms of stone implement, except possibly chips or flakes, were ever manufactured by any of the wild tribes, the weight of evidence being decidedly against it. It is necessary, however, to deal with this question here, as it is to the wild tribes that their use has perhaps been most generally attributed.1

Captain J. Bradley (a sportsman travelling in the Malay Peninsula in 1876) speaks of finding in the tree-huts of the aborigines (though without giving any details which might identify either the tribe or the district) " a curious instrument made of bone, and apparently intended to serve as a knife, together with a sort of tomahawk formed by fixing a pointed stone

1 See, for instance, the tradition cp. Swett. p. 228 : "It is believed

quoted by De Morgan, vii. 157, of a that comparatively recently some at

tribe that was " ignorant of metals, and least of these tribes used implements

employed nothing but implements of of flint or slate."

stone " ; and the same story as referred The prevalence of this tradition may,

to by Hale, p. 285 : "A Sakai chief however, easily be explained if any of

in Kinta told me of a race who did not these aborigines had previously used

know anything about iron, but used chips of flint (or other kinds of stone)

stone axes to cut down trees." And for knives.

( hap. vi GENERAL remarks

upon .1 Btick." Elsewhere (p. 331) the same writer speaks oi finding (in the same locality) " a number ol sharpened stones, serving the purpose of kniv< But both statements are far too vague to bast anj conclusions upon.

Again, we have the statement ol Vaughan-Stevens to the effect that a tribe ol Negritos (whom he terms " Orang Pangan," and assigns to the district that he calls No. 2) informed him that they had formerly been in the habit of using stone weapons ; and that they made, at his request, wooden models of these very implements. He adds, moreover, that the Pangan " recognised " some stone implements which he showed them as their "old work-tools." Unfortunately, however, it does not appear whether he showed these stone implements to the Pangan before or after the models were made ; but the former would probably have been the case, and at all events Vaughan-Stevens' own editor very properly points out that a scrutiny of these models shows them to be identical in shape with iron tools of the Malay type still in use in the Peninsula.1

Lastly, one of the facts that has been much relied upon, viz. that aboriginal (non-Malay) names exist for

1 In the passage referred to,Yaughan- stone tools, it transpired that they no

Stevens remarks that it had been especi- longer possessed any, but " from their

ally interesting to find that the Pangan traditional knowledge" they at once

knew that their ancestors had employed manufactured some wooden models,

stone weapons before they obtained Vaughan-Stevens, however, possessed

iron from the Siamese (sic). Vaughan- three or four genuine stone imple-

Stevens was not, however, able to ments, and, without saying a word,

properly establish this fact until he laid them before the Snahut, who at

had been formally received into the once exclaimed, "Those are Menik "

tribe. When he asked the Pangan (i.e. "Those belong to the Pangan ").

what tools they had used in ancient Other Pangan, moreover (later, and in

times, before they could obtain the other places), recognised these imple-

Malayan chopper ("parang") — since ments as their "old work -tools'

they themselves did not know how to (Vaughan-Stevens, iii. 99). But see

work iron — they at once replied that also p. 437, n. 2, infra, where the teeth

they had used stone. On Vaughan- of Bamboo-rats are mentioned as being

Stevens further inquiring after such used before the introduction of iron.

244 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS part ii

such articles as " axes," " spears," and " knives," ' does not, unfortunately, prove that the material of which these implements were made was necessarily any sort of stone ; whereas the fact adduced by Wray that no single stone spear-head or chopper (or, I may add, arrow-head) has ever yet been found in the Peninsula (although in several dialects aboriginal names for them occur) appears conclusive in the opposite sense. -

On the general question, Grtinwedel, in reporting the receipt of forty-nine stone implements ("batu lintar") sent home by Vaughan-Stevens from the Malay Peninsula, remarks that these implements are distributed throughout the entire Indian Archipelago, and reappear even in Further India, Burma, Cambodia, etc. Vaughan- Stevens could not say what race they were once used by, for neither the (civilised) Malays nor any of the wild tribes knew anything certain either about their origin or their use. The latter paid no attention to them when they met with them on their wanderings, and the superstitious Malays only believed them to be the missiles of evil spirits, and, when they found them, would store them away in their huts without having

i Clifford in/. R. A. S., S. B., No. (5) Skinning-knife (?). It is a "flat,

24, p. 27. thin lamina of diorite or greenstone,

2 Wray, Per. M. N. iii. p. 3. Mr. slightly concave and convex, and

H. N. Ridley informs me that he has measures about 1 foot in length by

found about seven main types of stone 2 inches wide by about j of an inch

implements in Kelantan. The seven thick in the thickest part." chief types obtained were as follows: — (6) Small knife.

(1) Stone club (or mallet?). (7) Large knife or chopper.

(2) Stone chisel or gouge (New According to Mr. Ridley, the sup- Guinea type). [It may, however, be posed agate of which these implements doubted whether these so-called chisels are often said to be made was probably are in reality chisels or axes. Of the a burnt diorite.

latter there are two types: (1) the axe Not a single specimen either of a

whose head fits into a socket ; (2) the spear-head or of an arrow-head was

one whose long and chisel - shaped found, head goes through the helve. — Ed.] For a recent rind in I'ahang, v. Swan

(3) Stone adze (ordinary Peninsular, in Man, 1904, 34 (with diagrams). i.e. Malayan type). The most curious of these specimens is

(4) Stone adze (New Guinea type). the stone ring here figured.

^

s

m -

«i

s

r

McGregor.

Jakun Max in Hunting Accoutrement-,

showing bark cloth girdle, blowpipe, and quiver, with bone fastener. Ulu Batu, Selangor.

Vol. I. /• 245.

chap, m GENERAL REMARKS

any idea oi their real use. They are Found at vari< depths below the surface, and although nothing cei tain is known .il)out them in the Peninsula, yet as the various wild tribes nevertheless assert that in former daysaraceol men, differing both from themselves and the Malays, lived in the Peninsula, it may 1 >« - assumed

that it is to them that the use of stone, implements is

tacitly attributed, though this evidence is altogether too vague to rely upon.1

By the aid of the microscope traces oi Copper and

iron may he identified on these stones. The stones showing such traces are used l>y the Malays to furnish tips for the metal spurs of their fighting-cocks, since they believe that tips thus furnished cannot be blunted. The Malay children play with them, and try to make them smoother than they were when first found.- In no case did Vaughan- Stevens discover them in situ, the specimens being all obtained from Malays during his twelve months' journey between Johor and Kelantan.3

Stone implements are numerous in Pahang, Negri Sembilan, Selangor, and South Perak, very rare in Johor and Kelantan. Sometimes they occur in Kedah and Trengganu, but are very rarely found in Patani.4

The arguments bearing upon this most difficult subject were excellently stated many years ago by Wray, who, in an article on the cave-dwellers of Perak, remarked that it had been somewhat too rashly taken for granted that the cave-dwellers (of Perak, etc.) were the makers of the stone implements which had been dis-

1 /'. B. G. A. xxiii. 832. obtained from the eastern sea-coast

2 But their most important use among of the Peninsula, and the abundance the Malays is medicinal. of those found on the western coast,

:: V. B. G. A. xxiii. 833. point to the possibility of their having

• Vaughan-Stevens, iii. 101. The been introduced from some part of comparative rarity of the specimens Sumatra.

246 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS part u

covered in such abundance in Perak and the neighbouring states. The least reflection would have served to show that these implements indicated a much higher intelligence than would be compatible with the evidences afforded by the remains discovered in the caves.1

All the stone implements were of axe or chisel blades, and not one single spear-head had ever been found. The second division of the stone age was divided from the first by the introduction of axepointed implements and all the important advances that were indicated by the use of this type of tool. If the cave people had been acquainted with the use of stone, they would almost certainly have employed spear-pointed implements of the rudest kind ; as when they had advanced as far as the making of chisels and axe-pointed tools, they would have been able to build houses and be independent of the shelter of caves, and have been in a position to cultivate the soil and raise food instead of having to subsist on shell-fish and the animals of the jungle. The multiplicity of the types of stone implements found in Perak showed that the users of them must have been in a comparatively high state of civilisation.2

The remarkable absence of all palaeolithic patterns might be explained by supposing that there had never been a period in this part of the world when the ruder implements were in use, but that the people (whoever they were) that employed them were settlers from some other locality who on arrival had reached the second stage of the stone age. There was of necessity no means of fixing, even in the most approximate manner, the date of the introduction of the use of stone in Perak, but the similarity of the types

1 L. Wray, Cave-dwellers, pp. 43, 44. Cp. E Homme, ii. 494 seq. 2 lb.

chap ?i w r. I "/ MARKS

of ih<- implements uras quite sufficient to indicate that it was a continuation erf the same wave oi progn which led to the evolution of these tools in other countries. This was, of course, far from laying that the stone age in Malaya had been contemporaneo with that of Europe. The number of the stone implements was, however, as striking here as in other parts of the world, pointing indubitably to the long continuance of the. use of these lithic tools.1

The finding of a lew implements in the cavedeposits would by no means prove that the in- habitants of these caves were the makers of them, but only that they were of the same age. For it was quite likely that there had been two races of different degrees of advancement living in the country at the same time, and that the lower might occasionally acquire either by barter or other means the weapons of the higher race. In the same way the wild tribes were now accustomed to the use of iron axes, pottery, clothes, and other things bought from the Malays, whilst the Malays themselves in turn used articles of European manufacture."

The aborigines, again, might well have been able to fashion weapons out of bamboo with knives made of the same material (especially when hardened by the application of fire), and these would be probably supplemented by the use of sharp fragments of stone [as well as of bone]. In this way it would be quite possible to make bamboo-pointed spears, blowpipes, darts, and bows and arrows. Bamboo weapons would, of course, have left no trace, in view of the long

1 L. Wray, Cave-dwellers, p. 43, 44. Bozzolo, about 150 specimens obtained Mr. Wray informs me that he purchased in Ulu Perak, and Patani. for the Perak Museum, from Mr. 2 Ibid. ; cp. Wray, Journ. F. M. S.

Mus. I. i. pp. 13-15.

248 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS j<akt 11

period that must have elapsed since they had been in use. That the aborigines used fire was abundantly evident, and this, in the hands of other savages, had been made into a most effective means of shaping wooden objects.1

In other words, the rudimentary stage of culture through which these tribes have passed, and in some cases are still passing, may perhaps be more accurately described as a " wood and bone " age than as an age of stone.

To sum up, we may conclude that the wild tribes (Sakai and Semang) were not the manufacturers of the stone axes and chisels found in the Peninsula, and the case in fact appears to be a close parallel to that of the Andaman islanders, of whom Man has recorded (p. 161) that " they never, even when iron was scarce, made arrow-heads, axes, adzes, or chisels of stone."

The following list includes, on the other hand, the stone implements which certainly are, or are at all likely to have been formerly used by the wild tribes of Malaya. They are the anvil and hammer recorded by De Morgan (consisting of an upper and a lower stone),2 the whetstone,3 chips or flakes used as knives, and cooking-stones.4 To this list, which so far agrees with the list of implements used by the Andamanese, may be added the stone rasp or file, consisting usually of a piece of sandstone,5 which is used especially for filing the teeth among the Pangan of Kelantan.

On the other hand, the wild aborigines of the Hills (Orang Bukit) of to-day, who possess no imple-

1 L. Wray, Cave-dwellers, p. 46. is used ; cp. Hale, p. 286.

2 De Morgan, vii. 415. * V, supra, p. 124, etc.

3 Sometimes a stone axe-head itself 6 V. infra, vol. ii. 55.

i haf. m GENERAL REMARKS

ments oi iron, pel) almost entirely upon wood or bone for ih<- hi. ides oi their weapon well as for

all their implements.

Knives and Spi a\ .

The most primitive form of knife, and at the same time the most natural form for the country, still to be found among the wild tribes (as also on some cere monial occasions among the Malays) consists of a sharp sliver of bamboo, which makes a very fair knife.

It is possible, and perhaps even probable, that tlakes and chips of stone may have been used in former times when the knife of Malay civilisation was not procurable, and when the work required could not be performed by a knife of bamboo,3 or bone.

The Malay "dagger" or " kris " and other kinds of Malay weapons are also occasionally used by the wild tribes, especially the Jakun, but wooden and bone awls (for boring purposes) are used to this day.4

In its earliest form the spear of the country seems to have been some form of throwing-stick or 11 squailer," the use of which has been recorded among the Jakun by Logan,' whilst at least two forms of it " are certainly still known to the Pen-

1 De la Croix, p. 340, whore this being more effective than might at first

statement is, however, confined to the be supposed. In Borneo, for instance,

Sakai. a bamboo knife is used by the exe-

"J Capt. J. Bradley, p. 298, also cutioner for cutting off heads; being

mentions finding in one of the tree- merely sharpened whenever it is used, huts which he discovered "a curious 4 For examples, see pp. 316 and

instrument made of bone, and appar- 329, infra.

ently intended to serve as a knife." ;"' For the spear, v. J. I. A. vol. i.

And on p. 331 he says : " The only p. 257, and Lake in /. R. A. S., S. B.,

other articles found were a number of No. 25, p. 3. It is pre-eminently a

sharpened stones, serving the purpose "savage Malay1" weapon, and is used

of knives." Cp. p. 269, n. 1, infra. universally by the Jakun.

3 Such cases would, however, be 6 One sharpened at one end, the

exceedingly rare, these bamboo knives other at both.

250 WEAPONS ANl> IMPLEMENTS part ii

insular Malays.1 The bamboo spear is still largely used, especially by the wilder aborigines. The metal spears, which are of several types (all of them Malayan), are used for fishing as well as hunting.

The fact that no stone spear-head has yet been lound in the Peninsula is certainly a notable one, and may point to the fact that the spear-heads used by the men of the Malay stone age were made of bamboo or of some other equally perishable material. There is little differentiation of metal spear-types as between the aborigines, doubtless owing to the fact that all have borrowed alike from the Malay. In war, spearheads are sometimes lashed to the muzzle-end of a blowpipe.

Hatchets.

The hatchets now used by the wild tribes throughout the Peninsula are obtained by barter or purchase from the Malays, except, perhaps, in a fewcases in which some sort of rude substitute is roughly forged. Even in the latter case, however, the blades are, I believe, invariably copied from Malay models, and there appears to be no record of the use of an independent axe - type among either Sakai or Semang, even though they may (and certainly do) have non- Malay names for them.'-

On the other hand, there is, I believe, a good deal still to be learnt from the nature of the rattan

1 Cp. J. Bradley, p. 298 : "Outside sticks, intended, apparently, as missile

the (tree-) huts a number of spears weapons. Several of them had traces

were laid amongst the branches of the of blood and feathers adhering to

trees. They consisted merely of long them, as if they had been used for

sticks of hard wood sharpened at both knocking down birds." ends." And cp. also ib. p. 320: "Some - Capt. J. Bradley (p. 298) alone

of them (the wild men) seized their mentions finding in a tree-hut "a sort

spears, or pointed sticks." Also p. of tomahawk, formed by fixing a

331 : "In the interior of one of the pointed stone upon a stick." huts were a number of short thick

chap, vi VI HAL REMAh

lashings l>y means o( which the adze-head is ma Fast to the helve, for I was repeatedly assured by Malays living in the Besisi and Hlandas coimtr
(on the Langat) that the difference between : lashings of a Malay and a Jakun adze-head could be detected without the least difficulty bj the expert.

Firearms,

All branches of the wild tribes now generally possess some form of firearm, which most usually

takes the shape of an old Tower mesket, and is not unfrequently owned, or at least used, in common by all the men of the tribe who claim it.

These guns are obtained by barter at extortionate rates from friendly Malays or Chinamen.

The use of firearms by the Sakai and Semang appears, however, to have been of extremely recent date, as it is only since the establishment of a strong government in the Malay States that there has been any sort of peace between them and the Malays, and before the establishment of this peace the Malays were not likely to be willing to put such dangerous weapons in the hands of their victims.1

The Bow.

The use of the bow in the Peninsula is confined to those tribes which are (wholly or partly) of Negrito origin. It is indubitably their chief tribal weapon, as the blowpipe appears to be that of the Sakai,2 and as the spear is that of certain of the Jakun tribes.

There are, it is true, several references in old writers to the use of the bow by Sakai and Jakun, but upon examination it will easily be seen that they

1 R

See_/. /. A. vol. i. p. 272. 2 Cp. De Morgan, vii. 415.

252 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS pari 11

are not of such a character as to shake the statement made in the foregoing sentence. Some of these statements, especially those of M.-Maclay,1 De la Croix,-' and perhaps even De Morgan and Maxwell, are due to the fact that none of these writers were able to distinguish between the Sakai and the Semang, and habitually applied the term " Sakai " to groups of Negritos. Pleyte, therefore, in his great monograph on " the Blowpipe and the Bow," was perfectly right in correcting M.-Maclay, who is perhaps the most typical example of this class of writer. And although it must be admitted that when all these statements (based on misnomers) have been discounted, there still remain one or two testimonies to a knowledge of the bow, on unimpeachable authority (not on the part of the Sakai, but on that of the Jakun), even these latter yield to investigation.

Logan, for instance, informs us that the bow and arrow were known to the Jakun (whom he calls " Benua ") ; but he immediately proceeds to qualify this statement by adding that though they were known they were not used, and I think there can be no very great doubt that the tradition was based on a rumour of the bows of the far-off Semang.8 Again,

1 Cp. M.-Maclay in J. J. A. S., latter point, see Pleyte, loc. cit. It

S. B., No. 2, p. 214. is also entirely incorrect (as Pleyte

Miklucho-Maclay says, "Another not points out) to describe the bow as a

so dangerous, but ethnographically a Sakai weapon, it being the distinctive

much more important weapon, is the weapon of the Negrito tribes. The

bow (' loids ;), the use of which I have alleged Sakai bow described by

only seen among the unmixed Orang Miklucho-Maclay is, as his map shows,

Sakai. It is about two metres long, is a Pangan bow, and it is very unlikely

made of bamboo, and the arrows have that the arrows, still less the bow, would

iron points." This quotation, however, be of bamboo. Lastly, for " loids " we

is a tissue of misstatements. The bow should read " loidd" or " loydd," which

of the aborigines of the Malay Peninsula is the ordinary Semang name for

can neither be described as more im- the bow. portant ethnographically nor as less 2 De la Croix, p. 331.

dangerous than the blowpipe, on which 3 Logan in /. /. A. vol. i. "p. 272.

< KAf. v. GENERAL REMAR

another observer (quoted by Pleyte1), when Btaying in Singapore, observed and described in detail some methods of arrow-release employed by the Temiang tribe (of the Orang Laut), and states that the bo*i oi which he writes was used for shooting small game and fish ; adding that the same weapon was employed in

the magic ceremonies ol the tribe.

This account, at first sight, seems clear enough, hut it has to l>c noted that the giver ()f the information had come from Sumatra, and that what he was describing was probably a Sumatran custom, and had nothing to do with the customs of the " Orang Laut.'' If correct, it is one of the interesting instances of Semang influence in the south, of which we sometimes get examples.

It cannot, therefore, be considered as yet established that the bow is employed as a tribal weapon by any tribes that are either of Sakai or Jakun extraction ; and I may add that there is very little prob- ability of its ever being so established. If, however, this should ever prove to be the case, it must certainly be in a mixed Semang-Sakai or Semang-Jakun tribe, in which the Negrito influence has remained so strong as to resist effectually the incursions of the alien culture. A survival of this kind is not impossible, even in the extreme south of the Peninsula, where the Semang influence, in small patches, is sometimes particularly strong. But apart from this remote possibility, I think that any idea of discovering the bow in use either as a Sakai or a Jakun weapon may once for all be definitely abandoned, and that, if it should ever happen to be so found among either of these two races, it will only be in the guise of a " borrowed plume."

1 f titer not. Arch. f. E. Bd. iv. S. 34 et seqq. - Doubtless as a "fleam.'"

254 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS part ii

There is not much more to add with regard to the bow, unless it be to note the fact that the bows of the Semang very closely resemble one figured by Man, who describes it as coming from the southern group of the Andamans.1 The bows from the North Andamans appear to be of a different character, and it is therefore in these South Andamans that it might be advisable to look first for evidences of connexion between Semang and Andamanese culture. Unfortunately, however, these are just the islands of which least is known, and I am therefore only able to draw attention to the subject as one that especially requires to be worked up.

The Blowpipe.

The distribution of the bamboo blowpipe or blow-gun, as Geiger, following Pleyte, has recently shown, is (with the possible exception of the Mentawai Islands) inseparably bound up with the use of Ipoh poison, the region covered being in either case limited, broadly speaking, to the confines of the Malayan region, using that word in its widest sense.

In the Malay Peninsula itself the blowrpipe is found among all tribes, from Johor, in the extreme south, to Singora, in the north.2

The blowpipe is to be seen in its highest development (as far as the Peninsula is concerned) among the Sakai, Besisi, and Mantra, whilst among the Semang (and some Jakun) it is found in its lowest and roughest form.

The Sakai and Jakun, on the other hand (as has already been shown), do not employ the bow, the use of

1 Cp. p. 280, n. 1, infra. J. R. A. S.y S.B., No. 25, p. 3, and

2 M.-Maclay W.J.R. A. S., S.B., No. No. 26, p. 14. 2, pp. 213, 214. For exceptions, v.

CHAP, vi

GENERAL REMARKS

which is confined to the Semang.1 It is in fact now quite certain that the natural weapon oi the Semai is the how, and that they only learnt the use oi the blowpipe from the Sakai. Hence even when they did take to it, they adopted it quite perfunctorily, and at no time took such trouble over its manufacture or pride

in its possession as the two other races mentioned. *J

1 11 the islands of the Malay Archipelago (in Borneo, for instance), the blowpipe consists of a long wooden barrel or tube the interior ot which has to be bored out.:: This method of manufacture is much clumsier and more laborious than that by which its bamboo fellow of the Peninsula is made, and it stands, I think, more or less to reason that if the wooden blowpipe of Borneo (or that made by some of the savage Malay tribes in the Peninsula) had had to be invented before the idea of utilising Bambusa Wrayi for the purpose had arisen, the bamboo blowpipe as we know it would never have existed. On the other hand, the sporadic existence of the wooden blowpipe may reasonably be due to the rarity or the absence of the particular species of long -jointed bamboo {Bambusa Wrayi) 4 from which the wild tribes of the Peninsula manufacture their blowpipes, for it is inconceivable that any intelligent race that had once

1 Cp. Svvett. p. 228 : "The Sakai use no other weapons than the blowpipe, but the Semang have a very powerful bow and iron -barbed arrows, with which they can kill the largest game." Cp. also De Quatrefages, pp. 230, 231.

2 This remark applies especially to the Semang tribes furthest removed from Sakai influence, e.g. to the Semang of Kedah, and perhaps in some degree to the Pangan of Ulu Patani and Ulu Kelantan. On the other hand, Mr. L. Wray writes me

that he has seen some beautifully made blowpipes among the Semang of Upper Perak and Selama.

3 H. Ling Roth, vol. ii. pp. 184-187.

4 Mr. Wray writes me that B. Wrayi is only used by the Semang of Upper Perak and Selama, and the mixed Sakai - Semang tribes of the Plus district in Perak. In other districts of Perak another species is used, of a kind not yet determined, with internodes of 3 to 4 ft. in length. Cp. Wray, Per. M. N. iii. pp. 54-58.

256 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS part ii

discovered the ready-made blowpipe of bamboo would ever again have resorted to the method of boring its tube out of wood, or to the perhaps still clumsier process of uniting a couple of wooden half-cylinders, which when fitted together do duty as a tube.

Speaking generally, it appears on the whole most reasonable to suppose that the blowpipe was introduced into the Malay Peninsula by the Sakai, upon their first advent into that region, that it has since been perfected by the same race, and that the modern blowpipe of the Malayan tribes in the Peninsula (as well as that of the Archipelago) was either an inferior imitation of the Sakai weapon, or else that the wooden blowpipe was an altogether independent invention, which appears at the best most improbable.

The only point in which the Bornean blowpipe is in any way an improvement on that of the Sakai is in its possession of a " sight," which the Sakai blowpipes are, I believe, universally without. Yet even a rifled blowpipe has been recorded from Perak,1 and although the statement is unsupported, in all other important respects — in the labour required for its construc- tion, in the important matter of weight, and in finish — the Bornean weapon is certainly inferior, not only to the Sakai blowpipe, but even to that of the Semang.

The exact distribution of the various types of blowpipe in the Malay Peninsula yet remains to be worked out. Some information on this point is, however, already forthcoming. The most highly devel- oped (and decorated) type of blowpipe is, as has already been said, found among the central Sakai

1 See De Quatrefages, p. 231 {vote). "choke-bore" blowpipe, such as is This must be a mistake of M. Lias. found among the Besisi (v. p. 308, I believe what he saw was a infra).

, hap vi ,,/• VERAl A7 MARKS

(Senoi), the Besisi, and the Mantra, To 1 1 1< ■.« • the

Blandas Of southern Selangor should, I think, ><

added, In its rarest form, that ol the jointless mix-,

this blowpipe is only found within a yet more

restricted area, i.e. in parts of Perak,1 and (according

to one writer) in the Nenggiri8 district ol Kelantan.

Outside the geographical area covered by these trib

we find, as a rule, rougher and less-finished specimens

()[ this weapon. The Semang of the north, for instance, and, as far as I am aware, the Semang alone, make use of a roughly made blowpipe which bears very little decoration, but which not unfrequently has a mouthpiece of native gutta or resin.

The most interesting type, the wooden split-tubed blowpipe, which is identical with one used in Peru, is said to be " only used south of the Pahang river in the state of that name."3 Yet the specimen now in the British Museum came from Kuantan, which is a good way north of the Pahang river. Vaughan-Stevens is, however, probably right in stating that the tree from which this wooden blowpipe is made (Calophyllum, sp., called in Malay " Penaga") is used because it is proof against warping, but that it is only of local distribution.

Quiver and Darts.

What is true of the blowpipe in general, is true of the quiver and the darts. Thus the quiver of the

1 Messrs. R. H. Yapp and Laidlaw between the old and new worlds consist

(who were with me in 1899- 1900) in stone and bronze implements, round

found the bamboo from which these towers, pyramids, coins, methods of

blowpipes are made on Mt. Inas, on the embalming and skull - deformation,

north Perak frontier, and obtained circumcision, early carvings of ele-

single-jointed blowpipes in the same phants found in Central America,

district. Mr. Yapp tells me that this and prehistoric tobacco - pipes found

bamboo closely resembles the blowpipe- in Ireland. — Wray in Per. Mus. Notes,

reed of S. America {Arundinaria vol. iii. Schomburgkii, Benth. , Bambtisece). 2 V. B. G. A. xxiii. 834.

Other proofs of prehistoric intercourse 3 \ aughan-Stevens, I.e.

VOL. I S

258 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS part m

Borneo natives presents several marked points of contrast with the quiver used by the Sakai. The device of having a separate reed for each dart has not been adopted by the Borneans, who have, however, invented the long wooden " hook " or " prong " which is attached to the quiver, and is inserted through the hunter's belt to keep the quiver in position. This appears all the more natural, since it is more likely to have been invented by a race wearing better and stronger loincloths than those of the Sakai, who may perhaps once have gone naked, and who still fasten their quivers about their waists with a cord.1

As regards the dart, Professor Tylor was, I think, the first to point out as a general distinction that the blowpipe darts of south-east Asia do not have the butt made of cotton, whereas this is commonly the case with the dart of the South American Indians.2

Iron dart-points are never employed by Sakai or Semang, though they are used by Borneo natives, the point being always (among the former) of one piece with the shaft. The Semang dart is of much coarser and clumsier construction than that of the Sakai, and that of the Bornean is clumsier still, the shaft of the dart being driven right through the butt, so that it often slides up and down, a piece of bad workmanship not found among the Semang or the Sakai.

1 For an account of the Borneo by the last-mentioned. He adds that the

weapon, v. Ling Roth (ch. xxii.). Here wooden cap is now used by the Sakai, the

perhaps maybe mentioned the somewhat rattan one by the Mantra, Besisi, and

gratuitous assumptions of Vaughan- Kenaboi (V.-St. ii. 120). Mr. Blagden

Stevens, who considers the evolution tells me that the Malacca Mantra

of the cap or cover used for the use wooden caps bound with rattan,

quiver to have been carried out as 2 For a good deal of miscellaneous

follows : — (1) cover made from cuticle information about the darts (which,

of trees, as used by the O. Kuantan however, is of small value in view of

and (formerly) by O. Kenaboi ; (2) cap the way in which the tribes have been

made of wood hollowed out by fire, as mixed up together), see Vaughan -

used by the O. Sakai ; (3) cap made Stevens, ed. Griinwedel, in V. B. G. A.

of wood hollowed out by a knife, as used xxiii. 835, 836.

' IIAI VI

GENERAL Rh MARKS

Use of Clay Pellets.

Captain 1}. J. Begbie, an old and painstaking and (for his time) fairly accurate authority on the Malay

Peninsula, records the shooting ol clay pellets (as well

as darts) from the blowpipe by the Jakun ' at Mala<

,n l$33- This statement is confirmed by Mr. L. Wray, who informs me that these pellets are often employed by bird-collect ors at Malacca, where they have been used from time immemorial. Mr. Wray himself had a Malacca bird-collector (an Eurasian Malay) who used these pellets for collecting purposes in Perak. Mr. Douglas, of Sarawak, also tells me that boys in Borneo commonly use small clay pellets for shooting small birds, and that these pellets are shot out of a small blowpipe.

Use of the Blowpipe?

In loading, the blowpipe is held vertically in one hand and the pointed end of the dart inserted with the other into the orifice in the centre of the mouthpiece.3 The latter is always fitted to the root-end of the bamboo. Into the tube of the blowpipe, and behind the butt-end of the dart, is almost invariably inserted a small wad for the prevention of " windage." This wad is made from the flocculent down that

1 Begbie, pp. 5, 6.

2 As an example of the extreme difficulty of obtaining information from the aborigines about the blowpipe, Vaughan-Stevens remarks that many Malays living near the O. Kuantan have never seen their blowpipes, though they know that they possess them. In some cases these weapons were hid in the stems of living bamboos in the jungle (the nodes being removed

for their reception), and he was only able to obtain four specimens altogether (V.-St. ii. 113).

3 So Borie (tr. Bourien), p. 78 : " Into the bore of the inner bamboo, at the mouthpiece, is placed an arrow several inches long." For an unique and questionable exception see Maxwell in/. R. A. 5., S.B., No. 4, p. 48 : "I had always regarded the blowpipe as a breechloader," etc.

26o

WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS

PART II

collects about the leaf-bases of certain palms, especially the " tukas " (Caryota Griffitkii or C. mitis), or certain kinds of rattan (Calamus geminifloris), and results from the destruction of the softer tissues.1

In shooting, the entire mouthpiece is, as a rule, taken into the mouth, the fingers being commonly crossed beneath the tube (near the mouthpiece). Sometimes, however, the edges of the mouthpiece alone are inserted between the teeth and the lips. As the dart leaves the tube, there is a sharp hollow 11 ping " like that of a pop-gun.2

Range of Dart.

The effective range of the blowpipe darts used by the best " shots " of these tribes may be put at from 50 to 60 yards as an outside limit, but in practice a range of 100 feet is seldom exceeded.3

1 Vaughan-Stevens, ii. 116. Really the fibro-vascular bundles of the leafsheaths.

2 Cp. Newbold, ii. pp. 400, 401 : "It is propelled by collecting a considerable quantity of air in the lungs, and suddenly emitting it with a sharp noise resembling that occasioned by the discharge of an air-gun."

3 Cp., for example (of the Sakai), (1) Hale, p. 289, where it is stated that the range is effective up to 60 yards (55 m.), and that at 50 yards (45 m.) a skilled performer will put five out of six darts into a playing card.

(2) De Morgan (vii. 417) says they can shoot straight up to 80 metres, but in practice do not shoot more than 30 to 35 paces (23 m. to 27 m.).

(3) Letessier puts the range at 28-30 yards (25m. to 27 m.), but he is no doubt speaking of the ordinary range of their shooting. They usually shoot at fairly short range, in order to make sure of their aim, as they do not wish to risk wasting their arrows.

(4) J. A. G. Campbell says : "I have myself seen birds and monkeys killed on high trees at a distance of 60 yards" (55 m.) ; and adds: "The Sakai seldom misses his shot " {S. J. iii. 241).

Of the Jakun — (1) Logan (iny. /. A. vol. ii. p. 262) states that the range (of the blowpipe-dart) to take proper effect is about 70 or 80 feet (21 m. to 24 m.). " Some can reach 140 or 150 feet (46 m. to 49 m.), but then there will be little chance of their inflicting a dangerous wound."

(2) Borie (tr. Bourien), p. 78, says 50-60 yards (45 m. to 54 m.).

(3) Newbold, ii. 400, 401, puts the effective range at 60-70 feet (20 m.).

(4) Vaughan-Stevens, in V. B. G. A. xxiii. 835, 836, puts it at 20-30 metres in a horizontal direction, and more in a vertical.

(5) The Kuantan blowpipe is very roughly made ; it has a range of 40 paces (30 m.) only (Vaughan-Stevens, ii. 113).

< hat. vi GENl RAl REMARKS t6i

The Use <>/ l/n>/,.

The question whether the use of Ipoh is oi Malay origin must (says Geiger, |>. 38) in all probability be answered in the negative. It is clear,

however, that he is here using the word Malay in its narrowest sense, as he subsequently points out (pp. 40, 41) that the eastern boundary-line between those who use the blowpipe (and lpoh) and those who do not does correspond to the boundary-line between the Malay and the Polynesian languages (p. 41). In this latter case he is clearly using the word Malay in its wider sense, as applied to what may be called 44 Greater Malaya " (including the countries inhabited by the " savage Malays " of Wallace). Moreover, he then proceeds to quote Brandes' remark, that " the natives who use the blowpipe form one family of languages."

The true conclusion, after all, appears to be that the use of Ipoh may be of Malay origin, but only in the wider sense of the word; and in the same way, it is just conceivable that the blowpipe may be (in its wooden form at least) of " Greater Malayan " origin. On the other hand, the wooden blowpipe is so different a weapon from the blowpipe of bamboo that it will perhaps be maintained that the two forms may have arisen independently. Even, however, if this was the case, the bamboo weapon must certainly have been invented in some country like the Malay Peninsula or Sumatra, where Bambusa Wrayi or longinodis is known to be indigenous ; and further, as has been remarked already, it is inconceivable that any intelligent race should descend to using the wooden form of blowpipe when it had once known and used the infinitely

262 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS part ii

superior blowpipe of bamboo. The only other possible alternative seems to be to accept the wooden blowpipe as the original form, and to suppose that the race which invented it failed to improve upon it, the invention of the (improved) bamboo form being conceded to a race infinitely behind the Malayan race in the matter of culture. To speak frankly, this last alternative does not appear credible, and unless on the whole we prefer to concede the possibility of the invention of at least two independent blowpipe types in the Malayan region, we are forced back upon the first of these two alternatives, viz. : the supposition that the bamboo blowpipe was introduced by the Sakai, who subsequently perfected it, and that it was then more or less roughly copied by the aboriginal tribes of Malayan origin in districts where B. Wrayi was wanting.

I have spoken mainly of the blowpipe itself, rather than of the poison that was used with its darts, partly because I think that Geiger has shown that for all practical purposes the introduction of the one meant the introduction of the other, and partly because it is easier to get at the facts about the blowpipe than it is to get at those about " Ipoh." But I will now proceed to a discussion of the poison itself.

In remarking that the various kinds of Ipoh poison are, as a rule (though not exclusively), rather used for hunting than for warlike purposes, Geiger explains that both Ipoh antiar and derrid, taken internally, are practically harmless, whereas Ipoh tieute, on account of the strychnine contained in it, " might be dangerous." Hence the latter poison is usually em- ployed for the destruction of beasts of prey such as the tiger (Newbold and Malbec and Bourgeois),

( ■ 1 1 \ I

GENERAL REMARKS

though it certainly is used for apes. And this is probably, as Geiger suggests, the reason why the part struck by a poisoned arrow is usually i ised

before the game SO killed is cooked and eaten a practice which is doubtless of far more importance in the rase of some of these poisons (eg, tieute) than it is in the case o[ the others.

The arrow and dart poison called " Ipoh ' by the Malays has obtained its native name from the fact that the two chief substances which (either separately or in combination) form its basis are derived from plants distinguished, the one as the Ipoh tree {Antiaris), and the other as the Ipoh creeper (Strycknos). Derris elliptica or " tuba," on the other hand, is but rarely used, so that the poison-mixture almost invariably contains one or other of the Ipoh's as its main ingredient. The action of these two chief poisons is very different, and the choice of one or the other is, as has already been pointed out, dictated by the circumstances of supply. Incomparably the most famous of these two ingredients is, however, the sap ol the Ipoh or Upas tree, which owes its notoriety to the inventions or exaggerations with which Foersch once " amused the credulity of Europe."

The deadly exhalations attributed to the Ipoh tree (Antiaris) certainly have, as has long been proved, no foundation whatever in fact, at all events so far as the tree itself is concerned.

But it seems, on the other hand, well worth pointing out that the sap of the " Rengas " tree certainly produces at the least contact (as is well known locally) an extraordinary inflammation of the skin. When I was residing at Klang in Selangor, there was a fine Rengas tree growing at the back of

264 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS pari ii

my house, and one day, not dreaming of the consequences, I ordered my Boyanese sais to climb the tree and lop off a few small branches which obscured the view. This he did, not knowing the tree, the result being that both his face and his hands quickly became inflamed and swollen beyond all recognition, and I was obliged to send him to hospital for treatment. This fact about the Rengas tree sap is well known in Malaya, and taking it in conjunction with the fact that Rengas sap often forms one of the ingredients of Ipoh poison, I cannot help thinking that here we have a quite possible source of the Upas-tree fable.1

Ingredients of the Poison.

The proper proportions of the ingredients used in making the dart-poison of the wild tribes have doubtless been ascertained by centuries of trial, and are now in many cases handed down from father to son. Although, however, the basis of the poison may be the same among all the members of a given tribe, the exact proportions, and even the exact ingredients, forming the " blend " vary to a very great extent with the individual and (of course) with the locality and the season, and hence any conclusions reached must be necessarily general ones.2

1 Foranactual legend of the Upas-tree got in exchange from the Malays, were type, see the Besisi tradition in vol. ii. mixed up together. It thus came to

2 According to M. - Maclay the pass that the dart-poison not only of chief ingredient of this poison was every tribe, but of every individual of the juice of the well-known Upas tree each tribe, was made up of different of the Javanese, the Antiaris toxicaria. materials, and that in consequence of With this juice a great many other sub- this the effects were very various. The stances were mixed, the number and effect on man was certainly very deadly nature of which depended partly on and very rapid : thoroughly trustworthy chance, and partly on the science of Malays in different parts of the Peninthe preparer. The poison fangs of sula told him that they knew from different kinds of snakes, the juices of actual observation that a man who had a number of trees and fruits, even been wounded by it was not able even arsenic, which the " tame " aborigines to finish his " sirih " (betel-chewing),

i kap. vi GENERAL REMARKS

EvenVaughan Stevens, who talks ol the "realaiw poison " as if it were a certain definite composition (instead of a set of compositions), states that indi viduals of the same tribe disagree as to the proper

composition of the poison, and th.it il a man dreams of killing a boast oven with some perfectly harmless

substance, he will in future add this to the ingredients

which make up his own particular " blend" of the poison in question.1

Miscellaneous Ingredients*

The employment of pepper, tobacco, capsicum, onion, and other comparatively harmless ingredients may be due (vide Geiger, p. 18) to the fact of their pungent qualities being regarded as likely to produce inflammation. According to Van Hasselt, on the other hand, they are added to give the poison the desired consistency, but this does not seem very probable. Scorpions' stings and snakes' fangs, etc., are also added to the mixture, as well as Pangium cdnle, Reinw., which contains prussic acid. In this last case, however, as well as in that of some of the other ingredients just mentioned, Geiger points out that the poisonous principle is almost certainly evaporated by boiling, and it may well be that some of the substances aforesaid are employed rather for magical than for pharmacological reasons.

Use of Mineral Poisons.

Geiger further informs us(p. 1 8)thatno single poison (of all those that he investigated) showed the slightest

but was seized with violent cramps very rapid effect, even when adminis-

and severe vomitings, and so died. In tered in very small doses {J. R. A. S.,

some experiments that M. - Maclay S. B., No. 2, pp. 213, 214).

made upon animals the poison had a l ii. 128. Cp. also ii. 108.

266 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS part ii

chemical trace of either arsenic or antimony in its composition. Hence he elects to consider them as pure plant poisons. On the other hand, the weight of native testimony (of all kinds) as to the addition of arsenic to these poisons is so universal and overwhelming, that I am inclined to think we have not yet quite got to the bottom of the matter, though in the view of Mr. L. Wray it is the use of arsenic by the Malays, in the cleaning of their kris (and other) blades, that has given rise to these reports. " As a dart-poison '' (Mr. Wray writes me), " arsenic would be useless, and it is not found in the Peninsula in a state in which even the Malays could extract it from its ores." It is sold in the bazaars, however, and may be used for special purposes ; e.g. in shooting tigers.

Durability.

As regards the durability of Ipoh poison, Geiger is doubtless right in ascribing the conflicting reports which characterise it in that respect to the variability of the ingredients composing the poison.1 There is almost certainly a great difference in durability between the poison obtained from the Upas creeper and that of the Upas tree.

Effect of the Poison.

Small birds or mammals when struck by a dart coated at the point with poison of an average strength are killed almost instantaneously, but bigger ones take, as a rule, some minutes to die. In the case of the largest and strongest monkeys the effect of the same (average) poison may take a quarter of

1 Geiger, p. 24. The chemical the scope of this book, is fully treated aspect of the question, which is beyond by Geiger, loc. cit.

i hap. vi GENERAL REMARKS

an hour or perhaps rather longer In all cases the time which elapses before the animal dies depends naturally upon the strength of the poison which has

been used.1

In the words of De Morgan, "a man or (big)

animal," struck by one of these poisoned arrows, feels for several minutes nothing but the pain oi the wound. This is followed by muscular spasms and vomiting, and death follows in a few (more) minutes, if a Strong preparation of the poison has been used. If, however, the poison is no longer fresh (or in any way too weak), the agony lasts for several hours, in the course of which the wound inflames and acquires a bluish tinge.-'

Vaughan-Stevens says that apes and gibbons when struck run a little further through the branches and then fall down in about twenty minutes — less if Upas (Ipoh) is added to the poison. Old men (of the wild tribes) say that Ipoh makes the poison spread more rapidly through the blood. Ipoh acts instantaneously even when hard and dry ; without it the poison works much more slowly.3

Antidotes.

The antidotes mentioned by Geiger (p. 26 seqq.)

consist of certain plant-roots,4 the leaf-stalks of a tree

called " pule," 5 the chewed root of Hernandia sonora,

L. ; as well as that of Ophioxylon serpentinum, L., and

1 Cp. J. A. G. Campbell (p. 241): arrows of the Semang bow, but " For a large bird (as a horn- the Upas poison is used for these bill) or a monkey it takes about a as well as for the darts of the blowquarter of an hour for the poison to pipe.

work, after which time the animal 3 ii. 1 28 ; and cp. Wray, J. A. I. I.e.

falls to the ground ; with small birds 4 E.g. those of Crinum asiaticurn,

or beasts the poison is almost in- L., or Radix toxicaria, Dutch,

stantaneous." 5 Sic ( ? sip\\ih) = A/stonia scholaris,

2 De Morgan (vii. 417; IJ Homme, Br. In Malay " pulih ?'— " return to ii. 621) is here writing of the poisoned life."

268 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS part 11

Andira Horsfieldi, Lesch. (Papilionacecz), as well as certain indescribable emetics such as that referred to by Friar Odoricus.1

To these may be added the plant called " crab'sfat " (" lemak kepiting ")2 mentioned by Newbold, and common salt, which is also (according to De Morgan) occasionally referred to as an antidote. According to the Malays, a particular kind of black maize if applied to the wound will act as a remedy. Some such substance may possibly be of use as an absorbent where a very mild preparation of poison is used, but as a rule the aborigines declare that the only remedy is to cut out the part affected immediately, whenever the strongest preparation of the poison (for which there is no known antidote) is used. This, however, is seldom possible, because even at a distance of from 20 to 30 yards the aboriginal can drive his dart into the flesh up to the butt.3

I. — Semang.

Stone Implements — Knives and Hatchets.

The attempt of Vaughan- Stevens to identify certain stone implements, of which he obtained models, with tools of East Semang or Pangan workmanship, can hardly be sustained, for the reasons already set forth, and it may, I think, be taken as a certainty that no branch of the Negrito race in the Malay Peninsula has ever arrived at a sufficiently advanced stage of civilisation to enable them to produce the highly finished neolithic implements that are so common in the Peninsula. On the other hand, it is exceedingly probable that the Semang, like their Andamanese

1 Odorici Lib. p. 21. 2 Newbold, ii. 403.

3 Vaughan-Stevens, ii. 128.

chap, vi VI GRITO i Oh h EDAM

cousins, formerly employed both chips and flakes ol stone for various cutting purposes, as well as the simple two stone apparatus which with the Anda

manese takes the place ol hammer and anvil.

Slivers of bamboo, again, were and still are undoubtedly used by the Semang as knife-blades ' and spear-heads, whilst long needles and other boring

instruments are made of bone or wood.

For filing the teeth (Malay fashion) the Pangan employ a piece of sandstone.

The iron knives ("pisau"), choppers ("parang" or " golok "), and hatchets (" b'liong "), ordinarily employed by the Semang, are undoubtedly all of Malay origin, and are usually made by Malays, or by Chinamen following the ordinary Malay patterns, and have nothing particularly distinctive about them, which probably accounts for their being omitted from the accounts given by the usual authorities. I have ventured to draw attention to them, however, because even in cases where the blade may be actually of Malay manufacture, yet both the helve (or shaft) and its rattan lashings may be, and no doubt often are, distinctive of the race, and as such would repay any attention that might be given them. Indeed, 1 have often been informed by Malays that the axe-fastenings of the aborigines could be easily distinguished from those employed by the Malays in the same neighbourhood.

The Malay dagger, or " kris," and the " Tower musket " have both found their way to some extent into the hands of the Semang, by whom they — especially the latter — are greatly prized.

1 Mr. G. C. Bellamy has sent me a of Ulu Jelei, Pahang; cp. p. 249. bone-hafted knife, from the " Pangan " ante, n. 2.

270 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS part 11

The Spear.

Kedah Semang'. — Hardly any writer, except De Morgan, mentions the use of the spear by the Negritos (Semang), though many talk of their bows and blowpipes. It is, however, interesting to find that the Semang of Kedah have a word of their own for the spear, and that their name for it 1 is totally different both from the word used by the Sakai 2 and that used by the Jakun and Malays.3

A spear which was collected among the Semang tribes of Upper Perak (Gunong Sapi) by Grubauer, and which is now in the Ethnographical Museum at Cambridge, measured 53^ in. ( 1 307 mm., over-all length) by about 1 in. (25 mm.) in diameter at the thickest part.

Its shaft was made of some tough and heavy wood, and had received a certain amount of polishing. The upper end of the shaft tapered to a point, which its owner had evidently been in the habit of planting in the ground. Its blade, which was of iron, measured 6\ inches (153 mm.) from point to shoulder, and a little less than an inch (ca. 20 mm.) in width.

The Bow. Kedah Semang'. — The Semang living at Siong were evidently quite familiar with the bow, as they described it to me minutely in every detail, but they told me that they had now given up using it. It is quite possible, on the other hand, that they were concealing their bows, as they are known not unfrequently to do. The bow (" loydd ") that they once used (and of which

1 "Ad." For De Morgan's account support the view that the Sakai learnt cp. U H. ii. 618. the use of the spear from the aboriginal

2 " Tarok " (Senoi dialect); "be- Malayan tribes.

lush " (Tembeh dialect) : both of which 3 " Lembing " or " bolos " — con-

words are of Malayan origin, and thus nected with Mai. " buloh " = bamboo.

;t=

Jficjelel,

i. Semang bow.

Semang Implements.

.'/Organ*.

De Morgan. Arrowhead with two barbs.

3. Arrows. 3 a. Transverse section of shaft.
4. Butt-end of arrow showing vanes and notch. 6. Arrows in their quiver. 7,8. Bamboo tubes used as poison receptacles. 9,10. Spears with bamboo heads. 11,12. Spears with iron heads. 13. Cane. \a, 146. Bamboo fishing receptacles. 15. Large bamboo water-tube with arm. 16, 16a. Wooden plate. 17. Small box or receptacle made from the hard outer part of the " kapayang " fruit. 18. Bamboo whistle. 19,20. Flutes. 21. Bamboo " guitar " with strings made by raising the skin of the bamboo itself, and inserting wedges beneath them. 22. Drum with wooden barrel, and headed with skin tightened by wooden wedges. 23. Bamboo Jew's-harp. 24, 24 a, b. Flint and steel, with bamboo receptacle.— De .Morgan in L'H. 25th October 1885, p. 619.

, hap. vi NEGRITOS 01 KEDAH 271

they made iu.m model) was, ( I id, roughly Bpeaking,

".1 fathom and a half " in height (probably 2.1 m. to

in.), and was made ot a kind OJ wood (ailed, in

the Semang dialect, "tfcmakih." I he string was oi twisted jungle-fibre and the arrows ("wong loydd ")

were of bamboo with barbed iron heads.

I was further informed that the String was made from

carefully twisted st rands of tree-bark, greased and waxed,1

and the arrow-shafts from an internode ofbamboo.

The same informants told me that the shafts of the arrows are often decorated with incised patterns, and have barbed-iron points which fit into a socket at the end of the shaft. This part of the shaft is bound round with a thin sliver of rattan, and the point is so fitted into it that any wounded animal that tries to rid itself of the arrow (by rubbing itself against the brushwood) may succeed in breaking off the shaft, but will leave the point sticking in the wound. A wound from this point, moreover (which is crusted with several coatings of Upas poison), soon kills its victim. The arrow is usually winged with feathers of the hornbill, and the point is rudely forged by pounding a red-hot piece of iron between two large stones.

Perak Semang. — The Semang (of Perak) have a very powerful bow and iron-barbed arrows, with which they kill the largest game.2 It is usually about 7 ft. (2.1 m.) in length, and the iron heads of the arrows, which are given a high finish, are of good workmanship, and poisoned.3 Mr. L. Wray writes me that the arrowT-heads (of the Perak Semang) are made of

1 De M., who confirms this {L'H. ii. = feathers or "vane"; and " go " = 618), adds that sinews of wild animals quiver. The bow is of "ibul" wood, and (deer or bull) are also used for the cord. 2 metres in length, with a curvature of

2 Swett. p. 228. According to 0.30 m. The arrow is 90 cm. in De M. "ak" = bow; "yao" = bow- length. For further details, cp. string; " loi " = arrow-point ; "preg" L'H. ii. 618. 3 Hale, p. 290.

272 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS part ii

hard wood, of thin sheet-iron cut from meat-tins, etc. (mounted in wood), and also of forged iron, and that he has sent specimens of all these kinds to the British Museum from Selama and Upper Perak.

Mr. Wray further states that, besides the blowpipedarts, the Semang used bows with poisoned arrows. These arrows had detachable fore-shafts, with either barbed-iron or hard wooden heads. The heads are about 2 in. in length by \ in. in breadth (50 mm. by 19 mm.), and are thickly coated, except near the point, with poison. Mr. Wray had not seen the effect of one of these arrows on an animal, but the Semang amongst whom he lived for about three months on one occasion said that they were able to kill pig, sambhur deer, wild oxen, and even rhinoceros with them, and as he saw bones of these animals at their camps, there appeared to be no reason to doubt the truth of the statement. It was asserted that a deer would drop in from 30 to 40 yards (27 m. to 36 m.) after being struck by an arrow, the rapidity of the action of the poison depending on the vascularity of the portion of the body pierced by the arrow.1

But the best idea of the Semang bow can be formed from the description of two specimens which were collected in Perak by Grubauer on his recent expedition to the Malay Peninsula, and which were purchased from him by me on behalf of the Cambridge University Museum.

The first of these two bows, the stock of which was made of a light-coloured but tough kind of wood, measured Jj in. (over-all length) by 1 in. (1957 mm. by 25 mm.) in thickness at the handle, and the shoulders, which took the knots at each extremity of

1 J. A. /. vol. xxi. (1892), pp. 477, 478. Cp. L Homme y ii. 618.

chap, vi VBGRITOS OF PERAK

the bow cord, were 3 in, (76 mm.) From the tip ol the stock at the lower end, and \ in. (38 mm.) from the tip at the other. The length ol the cord, which was made of stout twisted jungle-fibre (probably manufactured from 1 h<* bark ol the atrtocarpus or "t'rap" tree), w

about OS in, (1007 mm.) from knot to knot.

The second bow was made of a dill- rent kind ol wood, which was of a dark brown colour, and polished. Its over-all length was yi in. (1983 mm.), and it was rather thicker at the handle (i.1, in. = 38 mm.); the distance from the extreme upper tip to the shoulder taking the upper knot of the bow-cord was i£ in. (38 mm.) ; the corresponding measurement at the lower extremity being 2 in. (5 cm.), and the length of the cord itself, from knot to knot, 63 in. (160 cm.).

Together with the bows just described were a couple of quivers containing poisoned arrows. Each of these quivers was made from a bamboo internode, the lower knot of which formed the bottom of the quiver, but neither had any sort of cover or lid, the projecting butt-ends of the arrows preventing it.

The body of the first quiver was made from a particular kind of bamboo which appeared to me to resemble the kind called " buluh kasap." It bore no decoration of any description, and its diameter was 1^ in. (t,S mm.), its length being 19I in. (484 mm.). In this latter measurement, however, is not included a projecting spike which served as a foot when planted in the ground, and which, in the present case, measured 5 in. (126 mm.) in. addition; so that its over-all length was 24^ in. (611 mm.).

Its contents were a couple of arrows and one long hornbill feather measuring 14^ in. (344 mm.) in length.

The length of the first arrow (over-all) was 40 in. vol. 1 t

274 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS part ii

( ioi cm.), and its diameter two-fifths of an inch ( i cm.). The shaft was of bamboo, and the arrow was made on the harpoon principle; that is to say, its head was fitted into a short wooden socket-piece with a sharp upper end which fitted into the hollow at the lower extremity of the shaft or " stele," so that the head could be drawn out without difficulty when required. The head itself was of iron, and was thickly coated with a dark brown (almost black) incrustation of Upas poison. It had only a single barb, which before it was caked over wTith the crust of poison must have been about an inch in length, and had been fitted into the socketpiece by a whipping of some strong but fine jungle- fibre (probably the strong thread-like fibres of the " langkap " palm, or some allied material). The entire length of the head (including the socket-piece) was ii in. (28 cm.), and the latter was nicked all round at the point where it joined the shaft.1

At the butt-end of the shaft was the rounded nock, about a fifth of an inch (5 mm.) deep, and just below this nock was the outermost of the two fastenings of the feathers, the precise object of which latter is not very clear. The feathers used are those of the hornbill, and only two are used at a time. The quill having been split, the feather is divided, half being attached to one side of the shaft and half to the other, by means of two lashings, one close to the nock (as described) and the other about a quarter of the way down the shaft, the exact length of the feathering being 8^ in. (204 mm.). But the extraordinary part about the feathering of these arrows is that the web of each

1 For a Semang quiver, v. VII. ii. could not be ascertained in the case

618. of these first two arrows, since the

• The exact method by which the juncture was entirely concealed by

head was fitted into the socket -piece the lashing.

chaf. vi NEGRITOS OF PERAK

Feather is dipped right up to the quill, bo that it can have only the verj slightest effect upon the flight oi the arrow. Moreover, the two webs are affixed (.ill that is left of them) at a convergent angle, and the question which at once suggests itself, in view of this peculiar method of fastening them, is whether the Semang

really understand the principle of feathering, and whether they do not rather employ it either as the mutilated survival of more intelligent methods, or perhaps make use of it for solely magical reasons. At all events, the probability that they do not understand the principle is borne out by the independent observations of Vaughan-Stevens, in con- tinuation of the passage quoted below ; and the (apparently inevitable) conclusion that in the Semang we have a race of archers who employ feathering, but do not understand its elementary principles, is a sufficiently remarkable fact, and one which may perhaps be taken as showing the extreme simplicity of the civilisation that we find among them. I should add that the only part of this arrow which is decorated is the part covered by the feathering, which has a large number of incised rings cut round it.

The second arrow (of the first quiver) was like to the first, from which it only differed slightly in respect of its measurements. Its shaft, for instance,. was T)7i m- (&97 mm.), over-all length, and twofifths of an inch (1 cm.) in diameter. The length of the feathering, including the lashings, was 83% in. (210 mm.), and the web was clipped off as above described. The iron head, which was single-barbed, like that of the first arrow, was, however, a trifle shorter.

The second quiver, — which is decorated with a number of concentric rings and a bold geometrical

276 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS pari ii

design consisting of two rows of triangles, with converging points (called " puchok rebong " or the " bam- boo-shoot " pattern), and below this with a pattern consisting of a number of the concentric and conterminal curves, known to the Semang as the " hawk's-eye pattern" (" mata lang "), — measured 24^ in. (611 mm.) over-all, the projecting spike or foot being 8^ in. (204 mm.), and 1? in. (35 mm.) in diameter.

There were no loose feathers inside it, but four arrows, whose over-all lengths were 32* in. (814 mm.), 34^ in. (864 mm.), 33I in. (834 mm.), and, again, 32! in. respectively, with a length of feathering varying from 7 to y\ in. (177 mm. to 200 mm.). In diameter they were a fraction less than the arrows contained in the first quiver, but the only important respect in which they differed consisted in the treatment of the head.

Two of these arrows were of the same type (roughly speaking) as those in the first quiver ; i.e. their iron points were spliced into a short wooden socket-piece, which latter in its turn was inserted into the hollow end of the bamboo shaft. Between these two the only noticeable difference lay in the manner in which the juncture had been effected between the wooden socket-piece and the iron point ; in the first case the spike of the iron point had been driven into the socket-piece (which latter had been bored out on purpose to take it), the two parts of the head being bound very firmly together at the point of junction with a lashing of split rattan coated with resin ; in the second case the juncture was effected by setting the spike of the iron arrow-head between two short prong-like projections (of the socket-piece), somewhat on the w rat's-tail " principle, and binding the two parts round as before.

chap, vi NEGRITOS <>/■ PERAK 277

Both these two arrows arc single barbed, and are decorated, like those contained in the first quiver, with a number o( incised rings between the two extremities of the feathered portion ol the shaft.

The remaining two arrows <>i the second quiver, which have not yet been described, arc much more

roughly made, and make no pretension to any skill of workmanship. In both of them the iron spike of the arrow-head is inserted into the; hollow at the bottom of the shaft direct, and they are entirely unprovided with the wooden socket -piece or holder present in all the other specimens. Also, they are quite undecorated.

I think there can be no doubt that these last two arrows have been hurriedly made, for use, perhaps, in an emergency, and that they are less typical of the arrows ordinarily used by the Semang than those which have received the greater care and finish.

According to Vaughan - Stevens, the feathers of the rhinoceros bird (" tekub ") are used as a charm to make the arrow fatal when it is employed against the tiger, and only tiger-arrows are so equipped.1

Vaughan-Stevens further remarks that this feathering is not adopted to make " the arrow fly straight as in Europe," or at least that the Semang does not understand the principle involved in it. " The feather is stuck in the middle of the shaft, and its vane may point either forwards or backwards, and it does not matter how* it happens to be fastened on." When Vaughan-Stevens pointed out that the arrow, when released (if the vane pointed forwards), would offer resistance to the wind and flutter sharply towards the left, the Semang replied that if the

1 Vaughan-Stevens, iii. 135.

278 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS part ii

" wing " of the feather pointed backwards, it would be " compressed " (?) when in actual use. Vaughan- Stevens further remarks, somewhat naively, that, " at all events, as a tiger is always attacked at a distance of a few yards only, an exact aim is of little consequence " ! '

The feathers are of five types, which are considered to be of varying values. In one the full breadth of the wing is cut down whenever it is required for use. The least valuable kind is only used if the better sorts are rare or unobtainable. In one sort the feather is split with a chopper (" parang "), an operation which requires the greatest care and precision.2

In order to make the feathers more effective, the Putto is said in ancient times to have pronounced a charm over them, but nobody now knows this charm, for the Puttos are long ago dead and gone.3

The illustrations which accompany the foregoing account represent the following objects : — (a) quiver as used by the Semang, not for hunting but on his travels through the jungle. It does not contain more than ten arrows, which are, however, of different sorts, two being tiger-arrows ; (b) quiver with magic rings ; (c) obsolete tiger-arrow, headed with bamboo ; (d) and (e) other types of arrows.4

The decorated bamboo quiver, which holds onlythree or four arrows, terminates in a point which enables it to be planted in the ground, and is either simply carried in the hand, or passed through the back of the wearer's belt.5

1 Vaughan-Stevens, iii. 135. 2345 Ibid.

diAi'. vi NEGRITOS OF PERAK

Preparation <>/ the /'< Perak Semang-. The methods employed in pre paring the arrow-poison of the Perak Semang a identical with those used for the manufacture ol poison

for their Mow pipe-darts.

I )c Morgan states that a coating oi poison is

applied directly to the arrow-head, which is dried over the fire like the wooden spatula, when it is covered with the dart-poison. A considerable number ot coatings (of poison) are applied, so that the arrowhead gets thickly encrusted with it.1

The same writer's account of the effects of the poison, which of course vary considerably with its strength and that of the victim, has already been given, and so need not here be repeated."

The ordinary range at which the Semang bow is used is from 30 to 40 paces (23 m. to 30 m.) — no greater than that of the blowpipe. The actual distance, however, to which the arrows will carry is something much greater ; De Morgan, in fact, places it at about 150 metres.3

This same authority states, and here he is in complete accordance with what I have heard from the Negritos myself, that these arrows are employed by the Semang for attacking all kinds of animals, not only monkeys and birds, but big and dangerous game such as the elephant, rhinoceros, and the tiger. And although Vaughan - Stevens alleges that they are employed for tigers only, the statement of De Morgan is undoubtedly, I think, the right one.4

Patani Semang-. — Of the bow used by the Eastern

1 De Morgan, vii. 417. 3 De Morgan, vii. 415.

• Supra, p. 267. 4 Ibid,

28o

WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS

J' ART II

Semang, or Pangan, we know little more than what is contained in the account given by De la Croix. The Semang of Patani employ instead of the blowpipe an immense bow of about 6 to 7 ft. (1.8 m. to 2.1 m.) in length, which is made either of bamboo or of ironwood, the bow-string being a cord of twisted rattan.1 The arrow, which is 0.70 m. in length, is made of bamboo, and carries at the butt-end a couple of feathers, clipped and fitted to it longitudinally, and at the point an iron blade sharpened and furnished either with one or with two barbs.'2

These arrows, like the darts of the blowpipe, are always poisoned with " Ipoh." 3

The Blowpipe and Darts.

Kedah Semang". — In addition to their national weapon, the bow, the Negritos also very frequently make use of the bamboo blowpipe, which they have undoubtedly borrowed from some of their wild neighbours, either Sakai or Jakun.

The blowpipe has received but little elaboration among the Semang. It consists of a long and delicate inner tube (which is the actual blowpipe), protected by an outer tube or casing, which serves the double purpose of preserving the fragile inner tube from damage and of keeping it from warping as the sap dries out of it.4

1 De M. (iii. 42) declares, and I agree with him, that bamboo is not used for bows. It is too weak. If the illustration given by De la Croix on p. 341 of the article here quoted be compared with those of Negrito bows in Man's Andamanese (Plate VI. pp. 174, I75)> it will be seen that this Semang bow is exactly similarto thatof the Little

Andaman Negritos (which differs widely from that used by the natives of Great Andaman) ; and that even the arrows (though the similarity is less marked than in the case of the bow) nevertheless show a general resemblance.

2 De la Croix, p. 331. 3 Ibid.

4 Cp. De Morgan, vii. 415, and Begbie, pp. 5, 6.

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. ii mv vi NEGRITi ' > 0/ A '/■ n.Ml 281

I he inner pipe or blow-tube naturall) requires to be absolutel) free from any roughness or inequalit such as might in the lea \ interfere with the propul >ion of the dart, Hence it is manufactured when possible from a single internode ol a particular species <>i bamboo, whose stem combines the two essentials ol eat length ol internode with an extremely small

diameter.1 This plant, however, is verv rare, and has only been recorded hitherto from one or two mountains in the Peninsula (e,gt (i. Inasand Other and bamboos whose internodes are of sufficient length to form a single jointless tube are rarer still ; ' though even these are occasionally met with.

Most usually, therefore, the inner tube is composed of two internodes. The node or joint is excised, and the two extremities brought carefully together and clamped by means of a closely-fitting sheath (usually o{ palm-wood), which is slipped over the two abutting ends on what may perhaps be called a sort of fishplate system.

Up to this point the method of manufacturing the Semang blowpipe does not differ in any essential from that employed by the Sakai. The Semang, however, apparently finds it too much trouble to poke out the central node of the blowpipe case, and to polish it within (Sakai fashion) by drawing through it the prickly whip-ends of the rattan. Hence he simply cuts the outer tube through at the central knot, and having excised the latter, slips the two portions of the now bisected casing over the inner tube, and unites them by a mere splice of the roughest description. Again, he seldom takes any great

1 Bambusa Wrayi or longinodis. are also made by the Senoi and Tembeh

-' Cp. Hale, p. 288: such weapons (see Vaughan-Stevens, ii. 112).

282 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS part u

trouble in decorating or giving a " finish " to the completed weapon.

Perak Semang. — Another peculiarity about the Negrito blowpipe is that its mouthpiece is frequently made of gutta-percha or resin.1

One of the blowpipes that was brought back by Grubauer from the same district possessed a jointless inner tube of Bambusa Wrayi, and measured 85^ in. (217 cm.), over-all length.2 It had a round wooden mouthpiece of the type found among the Semang in the northern frontier of Perak and in Kedah. This specimen is now in the Cambridge Ethnographical Museum, together with another blowpipe, collected at the same place and time, the peculiarity of which is that its mouthpiece is made of a solid lump of resin, apparently as a substitute for gutta-percha, which is more frequently used for the mouthpiece by Semang tribes.

The over-all length of this latter specimen is 80 .1 in. (204 cm.). It has a spliced inner tube, joined in the usual way, and it also has what one hardly expects to find in a Semang blowpipe, viz. the short cylindrical bamboo block inside the muzzle-end, which is so commonly used by Sakai tribes, though its exact raison cCetre is not very clear.

Pangan or East Semang". — Among the Eastern Semang (Pangan) the shaft of the blowTpipe-dart is generally of rougher workmanship than it is among the Sakai. The former manufacture it from the leafstalk of the " bertam " palm (Eugeissona tristis), the shaft being simply pared down with a knife until it reaches the dimensions of a rather thick knittingneedle or "crow quill," when it is generally polished with

1 De Morgan, vii. 416 ; L?H. ii. 613, 614. '2 See p. 255, n. 4, supra.

f

fokfjt.

Semang Blowpipe Apparatus.

De Mi reatt.

i, 2. Negrito blowpipes. 3. Dart. 4. Poison-spatula. 5. Section of mouth-end

of a blowpipe, showing dart in position in centre of inner tube, with wad (£) behind the butt-end (.V) of the dart, /'. R, S, being the arrangement for splicing the

inner tube, and L, L\ that for joining when necessary the mouthpiece-end on to the outer tube (6, 7). 3. Semang dart-quiver. / W. /. /. 282.

T. oo

i kaf. vi / \S i i OAS i NEGRIT\

" tiger's- tongue" leaves ("m£mplas rimau"), lightl) touched with resin, and fitted into a small cone-shaped butt-end. It is then .sharpened to a fine point, and has .1 slight incision or nick cut all round the shaft ai the commencement of the point. This nick enables the point (whenev \x the shaft collides with anything) to break oil short, and thus, bee-like, the dart l< its

sting- in the wound when the quarry tries to escape through the jungle. It is not, perhaps, going too far to describe the dart as a sort of human bee-sting,

and it is not impossible that this feature of the wild man's armoury may have been copied from nature. It is of course only the point, below the nick, that is coated with poison.

The point itself is as long and fine as a needle, but is nevertheless as a rule wonderfully strong, though this strength naturally depends upon the qualities of the stem from which it is made. The conical butt, which steadies the dart in its flight and assists its momentum, is fitted on to the thicker end of the dart-shaft, and is made of a species of rattan (" rotan 'lang "), which is pared down with a knife just sufficiently to allow it to pass with freedom through the tube.

As regards the length of the darts, a Semang named Chintok told me that the Pangan of Ligeh make use of the foot (from heel to toe) as the recognised standard of length for a blowpipe-dart, but that longer darts carried both further and truer than the shorter ones. Another standard which was said to be in use was the bone of the forearm measured from the elbow to the little finger-joint.

The quiver in which the Semang kept their new-made darts was of the simplest possible type,

284 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS part n

consisting of nothing but an internode ("joint") of bamboo, which was, however, often highly ornamented exteriorly,' but was nevertheless entirely devoid of the elaborate fittings which are to be found in the quivers used by the Sakai.

Preparation of the Poison.

Kedah Semang". — The following is a detailed account of the method employed by the Semang for tapping the Upas tree. During my stay at Siong (in the interior of Kedah), a Semang named Padang went out one morning to collect Upas poison for his darts, and I was allowed to accompany him. He took with him a poison receptacle made out of a bamboo internode (it was about one foot long, and just big enough in diameter to admit a man's thumb), a jungleknife or chopper (" golok "), and a small lump of wax obtained from the comb of a small wild bee.2 A few yards away from the hut, in heavy jungle, he stopped in front of a fine tree from 40 to 60 ft. (12 m. to 18 m.) high, and with smooth bark not unlike an English beech. This was a specimen of the Upas tree. Picking a leaflet of the low-growing " bertam " palm,3 he cut off a part of it, taking a strip of leaf about 9 inches long. This strip he affixed by means of the wax to the stem of the tree. He then vigorously slashed the bark of the tree with the chopper, cutting a succession of large V-shaped marks, one above the other, in the bark. This process, he declared, was dangerous, from the liability of the sap to spurt into and blind the operator's eyes. The poison, however, is a blood poison, and there does not appear

1 Cp. EH. ii. 617 (illustration). 2 Mai. "kelulut."

:; Etigeissona t?-istis, Griff. (Pa/mtc).

< IIAI\ \ I

NEGRITOS Ob KEDAH

to be any real danger, as even the practice ol cutti out the flesh surrounding the wound, before eati .in animal which has been killed vrith a blowpip*

(I Hi, docs not appear to be prai tised universally,1 and there is probably no great harm in the poison unl< (as stated) when it gets into the blood.*

To return to the subject, another Semang (named Chintok) showed me how to apply the poison to the

darts. This process was usually performed over one oi the numerous hearth-fires within the palm-leaf shelter, but On the present occasion it was performed outside. Chintok took the bamboo containing the poison, and borrowing a fire-log from his own hearth, settled down quietly to the work. Having first poured the poison into the bamboo tray (formed from a diagonal section of a big stem of bamboo), he next took up a little of the liquid in a primitive kind of bamboo ladle, and pouring it out upon a broad wooden spatula, commenced to toast the latter at the fire, working up the poison with a small bamboo spatula. When first deposited on the spatula, the poison was very fairly liquid, and of a light brown, liver, or coffee colour, but Chintok continued to heat it until it became of a very rich, dark " Vandyke " brown, little (if at all) lighter than the dried poison which is still to be seen on the darts. As soon as it had sufficiently thickened and browned, Chintok rolled the tip of each of the

1 For an exception see Borie (tr. Bourien), p. 78 (of the Mantra).

2 The wild tribes certainly appear, or pretend to be, very much afraid of the tree, but on this point Vaughan-Stevens says : "I have myself felled four, have spent three to four hours sitting on the trunk, and waited till the sap flowed out of the cut rings, have had my hands and arms quite sticky with the

sap, and for experiment have lain along the trunk, sleeping there for a whole night, without its having the slightest effect on me. I have held my head close over the boiling sap and breathed the strongly - smelling steam for an hour together without getting even a headache, and I never felt a burning if I put the juice on my skin or any irritation in the eyes" (V. -St. ii. 112 .

286 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMEA TS i-akt ii

darts in turn in it until they acquired a thick, coagulated clot about the point, which extended as high as the nick already referred to. The darts, thus poisoned, were dried in the sun, being made to lean against a stick or log, with the points directed upwards.

It was alleged by the Semang that the "blackening" of the dart would render it less visible when in use, but even if the assertion were true, it seems hardly necessary. Yet some of the Semang maintained that the dart-point (when coated with the poison) is regularly " blackened " by being smoked either over a fire or in torch-smoke. Possibly, however, the reason of the popularity of the black tint may be merely that it shows that the dart has been well dried.

The poison used is of several strengths, which vary according to the kind of quarry which it is designed to kill. Chintok informed me that when it was used in its full strength a thin line was burnt across the butt-end thus, 0 ; but that when the poison used is of inferior strength (as it would be if designed for small game or birds), no mark was made on it.

None of the Kedah Semang were in the habit of mixing anything with the Upas poison. This, however, was due (they said) to the fact that they used poison derived direct from the Upas tree (Antiaris), which can be utilised without any further admixture, whereas other Semang tribes, e.g. those north of the Plus, employed the Upas creeper (" ipoh akar," or " ipoh gunong "), which has been identified with Strychnos tieute (Bl. Loganiacece)}

The cuticle or bark of this latter plant is (by the Semang north of the Plus) shredded and boiled till it

1 See Ridley's Plant-List, s.v. "Ipoh." Cp. also J. A. G. Campbell, p. 241.

« hat, \i NEGRITOS <>/ h I DAM 287

becomes sufficiently thii kened for use, but they belie the Fumes ol the boiling liquor to be so poi they sit yards awaj From the pot during the operation.1 According to Vaughan Stevens, the Ipoh by itself does not kill in twentj five cases out <>f thirty, and, in the other five, does so only through the pier dug of an artery or other vital part. This statement, however, must be received with caution, as the poison is not required to kill, but merely to bring down the

quarry, which is usually followed up and despatched by hand, the strength oi the poison used naturally varying greatly according to the resisting power of the object struck. If the quarry, eg. a small bird, were

allowed to fall dead in thick jungle, it would certainly be hard to retrieve, whereas when it is wounded and trying to escape through the jungle, it can be tracked more easily (from a native point of view) by the rustling it makes. Moreover, the aborigines naturally husband their scanty stock of poison as far as possible, and seldom if ever waste their ammunition.3

The question of antidotes has been much debated, but the only one that the Semang of Kedah could suggest was the eating of earth mixed with " asam

1 For a similar instance of the based not on the Ipoh creeper {Strychnos) use of the tree-Ipoh poison alone, see but on the tree Ipoh ; and as no men- Hale, p. 289. See also De Morgan tion is made of Strychnos ("Blay") (L'H. ii. 620), who is perfectly clear on being added to it, and Vaughanthe point, and bears out what I my- Stevens himself adds that even for large self independently observed. De birds the " Ipoh " itself was sufficient, Morgan remarks that "if they require the conclusion is obvious. Moreover, a less - powerful poison, they employ on p. 107 he distinctly implies that in the sap of the Ipoh tree, with the some cases only Antiaris poison is emaddition of the sap of certain small ployed.

roots (' tubercules '), or even the sap 2 Cp. Z. f. E. xxvi. 169, where

of the Ipoh by itself." monkeys wounded by one of these darts

But the most conclusive evidence on are described as being despatched by

this point is that of Vaughan-Stevens the chopper ("parang"),

himself, according to whose account the 3 Cp. VH. ii. 617, where we are told

poison of the Benua-Jakun tribes is they never shoot at a moving object.

288 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS iart ii

k'lubi " (an acid jungle fruit), but this does not seem to agree with the Sakai and Jakun prejudice, which is directed against the eating of acid fruit with the flesh of animals killed by the dart. On the other hand, the eating of the earth would no doubt in itself be good.

Perak Semang-. — De la Croix quotes ■ from Sir Hugh Low's journal the results of some experiments with Ipoh poison which Sir H. Low had carried out. He quotes, inter alia, Sir Hugh Low's remark to the effect that the Semang informed him that in preparing their poison they mixed the sap of the tree- Ipoh with that of a particular kind of climbing plant, and that they then dried it immediately on a spatula over the fire, no further preparation being required.2

Sir Hugh Low is further quoted as writing that on a particular day one Lela Perkasa had just brought him some fresh sap from an Ipoh tree growing nearby, the trunk of which had been cut down, and that in view of previous experiences, he (Sir H. Low) had the poison prepared in his own presence.3

The man began by making a small wooden spatula, on which he spread successive layers of the poison. This he dried gradually over a slow fire, or rather over hot embers, the substance immediately turning a nutbrown colour. He assured Sir Hugh that the poison was thus carried on the spatula, and that when it was required for use it was only necessary to moisten the point of the arrow and rub it over the poison.4

The tree which furnished the sap had been cut down, but young branches had sprouted since, and those that he brought in proved that it was essentially the same as an artocarpus, from which Sir H. had obtained

1 Sir H. Low, quoted by De la Croix, p. 331. 234 Ibid. Cp. V Homme, ii. 620-622.

• II VI". \ I

,w GK1T0 "/■ /'/-.A'.

some poison some time bad on the banks <>t the

Plus.1

Alter describing Further experiments with tin

poison, Sir II. I .e>\ remarks that Lela I'erLi >a had assured him that the sap of the Ipoh Creeper, when

not quite fresh (as in the previous day's experiments),

Could not produce so rapid an ef!--< | as that which had been prepared the same morning.

Lela Perkasa further stated that the sap of th<

Ipoh was absolutely innocuous until it had been heated as above described. When a Stronger poison is required, the sap of the Ipoh is mixed with sap obtained from the roots of a plant called " lekir " (" lekyer " — a common Amorphophallus), A tenth part of this latter added to the mixture will make the poison strong enough to kill a rhinoceros or a tiger ; if it merely touches the skin it will raise a blister, and hence they are afraid to keep it ready-made for fear of accidents. There is another plant called "gadong," which is described as a species of wild yam, and whose sap increases the activity of the poisonous principle of Ipoh ; yet Lela Perkasa declared that none of these saps is poisonous in the state in which it is gathered from the tree, but requires admixture and heating over a slow fire. This operation, he said, should only be performed in the jungle, and in the presence of not more than two persons.4

The " lekir " has a stem about 9 feet high. The leaves, which branch into three separate parts, are from 4-5 feet long. The stem of the biggest, though not yet quite full grown, was 4 inches (" pouces ") in

1 Sir H. Low, quoted by De la meant. For Vaughan-Stevens' experi-

Croix, p. 331. - lb. merits with the sap, see p. 287, ;;. 1.

3 Probably the Ipoh tree is here 4 Sir H. Low, be. cit. p. 333.

VOL. I U

290 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS part ii

diameter, and was variously coloured with shades of brown, green, and grey. The blossom is white, and only appears when the leaf and stem are already dead. At the moment of expansion it emits an intolerable odour, resembling that of putrefying matter. The lower part of the blossom continues to shoot up as the ends ripen. Sir Hugh had seen it reach a height of 4 feet and with pericarps (?) more than a foot long. He had also had brought him a specimen of "gadong," which was a thorny creeper with trefoil leaves, growing out of a bunch of slightly flattened roots.1

Yet another excellent account of the methods of poisoning the dart-points, as practised by the Perak Semang, is that given by Mr. Wray, who states that he once visited Ulu Selama, where some of the Semang lived, and was taken by them to a place called Kuala Jah, at about five hundred feet of elevation, where he was shown, growing in the virgin forest, within a hundred yards of one another, two large Ipoh trees. The larger was about five feet in diameter at a height of five feet from the ground, and had a trunk full a hundred feet in height at the first branch. It had been tapped many times, the bark being deeply scored up to a height of twenty-five feet from the ground ; the smaller tree was also scored all over. The bark externally was white, and internally orange-brown, and was very thick and fibrous. On fresh scores being cut into the bark, the dirty whitybrown sap ran very sparingly out, and was conducted down palm leaves, stuck on to the trunk of the tree with clay, into bamboos. The scores weie cut slanting alternately right and left, like what is known as

1 Sir H. Low, quoted by De la Croix, p. 333.

CHAP, vi \v GRITOS <>/ PI K I A

herring-bone stitching, with the lower ends oi the pointing inwards. At the bottom <>t tau h

riea ol scores was put a leaf, Fastened to the bark with clay, to lead the sap which trickled down into a bamboo. Only about three ounces of sap was got the first clay; but two clays afterwards, by erecting a

iffolding around the tree and extending the score i up the trunk, about one pint was obtained, Three

Ounces Of sap, the Semang declared, was enough to poison a hundred blowpipe-darts.1

The sap having been collected from the trees, a spatula-shaped piece of wood was taken and heated over a clear wood fire, and a small quantity of the sap poured on to it and spread out with another but smaller wooden spatula, and held over the fire till nearly dry, and the process repeated till all the sap was evaporated. There remained on the spatula a dark brown gummy substance, on which the points of the darts were rubbed three times, being dried over the fire between each application of the poison. This simple process completed the preparation of the poison, with the exception of the other things that are sometimes mixed with the Ipoh.

The sap, which proved to be bitter and biting in taste, and decidedly acid to test-paper, on exposure to the air quickly darkened to a brown colour, and yielded, when dried on a water-bath, twenty-nine per cent of solid Ipoh. This substance, if put thinly on a slip of glass and examined by a microscope, is seen to contain numerous crystals of antiarin.

In the course of the same account Mr. Wray further observes that what Griffith says about the poisonous properties of the Ipoh being derived from

1 L. Wray in/. A. I. vol. xxi. (1892), pp. 476, 477.

292 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS part u

admixture of arsenic was information probably derived irom the Malays, for the aborigines are quite ignorant of that poison ; and, as Professor Ringer pointed out, the action of arsenic is very different from that of Ipoh, besides which animals killed with arsenic would be quite unfit for food.1

Mr. Wray here observes that it is the aborigines alone who use poisoned weapons in the Peninsula. The Malays put arsenic on their krises and spears, but it is employed solely with the view of bringing out the damascening of the blades, and not as a poison."

Mr. Wray once had the opportunity of noticing the effects of Ipoh poison on a human being. It occurred while he was descending a river in Upper Perak in 1889, and he made at the time a note to the effect that, while unloading and carrying the baggage over the rocks, a poisoned blowpipe-dart fell out of a quiver and stuck into the upper part of one of the men's feet. It was at once pulled out, and a Semang squeezed the wound to get as much blood as possible, then tied a tight ligature round the leg and put limejuice on to the wound. The man complained of great pain in the foot, of cramp in the stomach, and vomited, but these symptoms soon passed off. The point only went into the foot about one-third of an inch, and the dart was instantly pulled out. The Semang said that had it gone deep into a fleshy part of the body it would have caused death.3

As stated above, the Semang sometimes mix other poisons with the Ipoh. The plants from which these are derived are known to the Malays as " lekir " and " gadong." In both cases it is the expressed juice

1 L. Wray in/. A. I. vol. xxi. (1892), p. 477. - lb. 3 lb.

i hap, vi w GRITO& 0/ PER \h

of the tubers chat is employed, The "l< -l. an Aroid

belonging to the genus \morphophallusy and th( 11 gadong " is a thorn} climbing yam belonging to the order Dtosconacea. Botanical specimens ol both

these plants had l»een sent t<> i In - Calcutta Botanical Gardens, but identifications had not (when writing) been received. It was probable thai the specimens ol "lekir" had been transmitted to K<w by Dr, King, in which case they would be found numbered 3327.1

The tubers are rasped up fine with a knile, and the soft mass put into a piece' of cloth, which is then

forcibly pulled through two pieces of stick tied firmly

together .1 short distance apart, SO that the juice, which is very acrid, is expressed without coming in contact with the hands. The juice of the lt lekir " and "gadong" tubers so obtained is mixed with the Ipoh sap, and the mixture dried on a wooden spatula over a fire, and the darts poisoned in the way that has already been described.2

The tubers of both these plants, which contain starch in large quantities, are cut up into thin slices and suspended in a basket in running water and allowed to steep until the poison contained in them has been dissolved out. They are then cooked and eaten by the aborigines, and also occasionally by the Malays.1'

The acrid juices of these plants are said not to be fatal by themselves, and the part they play when mixed with the arrow-poison is to cause local irritation, which hinders wounded animals from escaping before the antiarin has time to act ; but all the Semang and Sakai encountered declared that the pure Ipoh was more deadly than the mixture.4

1 L. Wray in/. A. 1. vol. xxi. (1S92), pp. 47S, 479. - 3 4 lb.

294 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS part 11

The juice of the tubers of the "gadong" is decidedlyacid when fresh. It smells somewhat like raw potatoes, and is bitter and astringent, producing a stinging sensation on the tongue, and a very unpleasant dry feeling in the mouth, which persists for a considerable time. The acidulated juice yields a yellowish-brown precipitate to a solution of iodine in iodide of potassium. The precipitate redissolved in sulphurous acid and evaporated yields long, branching, needle-like crystals. The juice mixed with spirits, filtered and evaporated to dryness and redissolved in dilute sulphuric acid, filtered and evaporated again, also yields long branching crystals, which have an astringent taste like the juice, and are possibly the poisonous principle.1

The freshly expressed juice of the " lekir " tubers is faintly acid to test-paper. It smells somewhat like beetroot, and is acrid and causes irritation when applied to the skin. It appears not to contain alkaloid, as it affords no precipitate when a solution of iodine in iodide of potassium is added to the filtered and acidulated juice, nor when the juice is just rendered alkaline by potash. When distilled, the distillate smells like the juice, and is slightly opalescent, but it does not cause irritation when applied to the skin, or even to a wound. It tastes the same as it smells, and does not injuriously affect the tongue.2

Antidotes.

The only antidote for Ipoh poison (said Lela Perkasa) was to eat earth. Any sort of earth will do, and the patient, however ill, will always end by getting

! L. Wray in/. A. I. vol. xxi. (1892), p. 479. 2 lb. pp. 479, 480.

chap, yi EAST COA GRITO

better. 1 le learned ol this antidote by Beeing a < n that be had wounded fly down to the ground, swall<

some earth, and resume its flight.1

Pang'an or E. Semang. The following is a summary of Vaughan-Stevens' description of the preparation ol I poh poison by the Pangan. The sap ol the u (obtained by shaving the stem and bruising it with

tile hack of a " parang ") is poured into a vessel made ol twisted palm-leaf. It is stirred till it turns bright yellow, when it is poured into a pot for boiling. The

hark of " perghoo," " choichoi," " kre<" " lendou ," and " garsung " is put into a bamboo with the leaves c>\ " rumpi " (sic, ? " rami ") and " jelatang " ~ ; water is added, and the mixture heated for about ten minutes. The liquor is then added to the pot, the lees of wet bark being wrapped in a leaf and wrung out to extract the remainder of the liquid. Meanwhile the bark of " Blay kechil," " Blay besar," " Blay hitam," and " Bhoi " is similarly boiled and added to the liquor. The tubers of "gadong" and "kepayang" fruits are cut up small and boiled for four hours, when they too are added to the mixture. The fruit of "s'lowung" and "chow" and the roots of " bal," " sedudo'," and " begung " are boiled in yet another bamboo and put into the pot with the rest. The sap of two rattans (Riong and Butong) follows, and the heads of centipedes and snakes and scorpions' tails are smoked between two knife-blades and added also. Fresh Rengut (" ringhut ") fruits may now be added if procurable, and the pot containing the mixture is boiled till its contents are reduced bv one-half.3

The contents are then poured through a palm-leaf funnel into a clean bamboo, the pot washed, the

1 Sir H. Low, quoted by De la The account is probably (as usual with Croix, p. 333. - V.-St. "jelatung." V.-St.) eclectic. For identifications, :; Vaughan - Stevens, ii. 1 1 1 seqq. v. App.

296 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS PA*] n

44 filtered " liquor poured back and the Ipoh (Upas) sap added, the pot being then boiled till the mixture becomes a golden-yellow syrup. When sufficiently thickened it is poured off into bamboo tubes, and is ready for use. Its preparation takes about 2\ hours.1

II. — Sakai. Stone Implements.

Perak Sakai. — The remarks already made with regard to the use of stone implements by the Semang apply with no less force to the Sakai tribes, none of which, any more than the Semang, has ever yet reached a stage of civilisation at which such implements might have been produced, though they may nevertheless have quite well been in the habit of using chips and flakes of stone to do their cutting.

On the other hand, they are, like the Semang, undoubtedly acquainted with the use of cutting and boring instruments made of bamboo or bone, and like them too they now obtain their axes and spear-heads and choppers from the neighbouring Malays.

The Spear.

Perak Sakai. — Of the Sakai of Perak Hale 2 says, in fact, that they purchase spears and other implements from the Malays, but that though he also saw spears which they made for themselves, and which were furnished with fire-hardened bamboo blades, the Sakai told him the latter were only used for setting in springtraps. This statement on the part of the Sakai was doubtless true as far as the specimens that Mr. Hale saw were concerned, but in those parts of the country

1 Vaughan-Stevens, ii. in seqq. 2 Hale, p. 288.

Sakai of South Perak, with Blowpipes.

Vol. /. r- -^

•fir$i{tt,JC

De Morgan.

Sakai Quivers.

i. Sakai dart-quiver (S. Kinta. Perak).

2. Sakai dart-quiver (S. Bernam) : section showing darts (A") carried in small bamboo tubes or reeds (A) \ also tbe node (Z)) forming the bottom of the (bamboo) quiver: a rattan ring (C) for holding back the wadding ; and the recess (E) in which the wadding is carried.— De Morgan in L II. 25th October 1885, p. 616.

Vol. I. />. 297.

. MAP. \l SAh -// I '/ I'l ./A

where iron Made, are scarce, pear bladi i made ol bamboo with palm wood shafts are neverthele i em ployed as the most natural and usual substitute.

The />'<'.

Perak Sakai. There .ire only two cases known to me in which the use of the how has been attributed to

the Sakai.

According to De la Croix, the Sakai ol Kenering possessed a bow1 which was similar to that used by

the Semang of Patani ; and a similar statement was made by Miklucho-Maclay, who was, however, quite

rightly corrected by Pleyte. In both cases, however, there can be no doubt that the error arose entirely from applying the name " Sakai " to Negritos, and that these so-called Kenering Sakai of De la Croix, no less than Miklucho-Maclay's Sakai, were in reality of Semang (or, at least, Semang-Sakai) origin.5

The Blowpipe.

Perak Sakai. — The Sakai blowpipe has the same arrangement of an outer and an inner tube, and is constructed of the same material as that of the Semang. The inner tube is closely fitted into the outer tube or casing, which (unlike the casing of the Semang weapon) is made in one piece, the central node (should a jointless tube be unobtainable) being knocked out with a wooden spike, and the jagged edges rasped away by means of the prickly 'Teaf-wThips " of a kind of rattan, and finally polished so as to allow the inner tube or blowpipe to be fitted into it without

1 De Morgan, vii. 417: viii. 225, 3 The4' Hill Kreans "(.. i4 Karens'"),

and elsewhere. whose " long bows and arrows " are

• De la Croix, p. 331 : cp. H Homme, referred to in /. I. A. (vol. iv. pp. 429,

iii. 4~- 430), must certainly have been so too.

298 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS fart 11

injury. This doubling of the tube, as has been said, is intended to keep it straight and to prevent warping, and generally to protect the blowpipe, which would be otherwise too frail to sustain its own weight.1

The Sakai blowpipe is, as a rule, far more highly decorated (with incised rectilinear designs) than that of the Semang, and has a wooden mouthpiece which, for shooting purposes, is either placed between the lips and the teeth or taken directly into the mouth itself.2

The darts, which are not of bamboo but of the hard leaf-rib of the "bertam," are of the usual " knitting-needle " type, and have butt-ends not of rattan but of " bertam " wood, but are more delicately finished and symmetrical than those of the Semang, which in comparison are very roughly made. They are from 8-1 1 in. (20 cm. to 28 cm.) long. The usual wad of flocculent palm-down is inserted in the tube behind them to prevent windage.3

This down is obtained from the cuticle of a tree, fined down with a knife, sun-dried, and rolled in the hand in order to eliminate the harder tissues.4

The quivers of the Sakai are much more elaborate than those of the Semang. They are made from a bamboo (internode), which is highly decorated, and which contains small bamboo tubes or reeds in which the darts are kept ; they further contain all the requisites for making new darts and for poisoning them.J

1 For descriptions and illustrations, 5 De Morgan, L'H. ii. 616, and sec De Morgan, vii. 416 ; L' Homme, vii. /. c. Hale (p. 289) adds, "At ii. 614 ; and Male (who gives measure- the bottom of the quiver a supply of ments), pp. 288, 289 ; cp. also^. /. A. bees-wax is always kept, with which to vol. iv. pp. 429, 430, where, however, polish the quiver as well as the blowbamboo (!) darts are spoken of. pipe, exteriorly ; this polishing, com-

2 3 De M. and Hale, loc. cit. bined with the fact that they are always 4 De M. loc. cit. Hale (p. 289) suspended over the fire, where the

says it is composed of the natural fluff smoke can get at them, helps to give or down obtained from the leaf-bases them the rich red colour that the of certain rattans {Calami). Sakai admire."

Cerruti.

Sakai of South Perak, carrying Blowpipe.

Vol. I. /. 29E.

SAKAi Men, One (standing) \vr

'• /• 299.

with Blowpipe and Quiver, the Other with Back-Basket.

Wray.

(seated)

< II \l\ \l

/A // OF PERAK

A ring of woven cane (em ircling the quiver) affords the means <>f attaching the quiver to the waist « ord, a similar ring being used for Fastening the hinge oi the lid, which latter isol basket work,1 and is fitted interiorl) with a ring of bent cane for holding the wadding, and preventing it from falling out when the lid is opened.1

The girdle is made from the cuticle of the Arto carpus finely plaited, and is fastened about the waist with a buckle made of bone.

The range of a blowpipe-dart is about So metres, according to the strength of the operator. But the usual range actually employed is never more than 30 to 35 paces (23 m. to 27 m.). At this distance, however, they are marvellously clever, and a Sakai has been seen to hit w-ith his first shot a dollar deposited on the trunk of a fallen tree at about 30 paces (23 m.) distance.4

M. Brau de Saint-Pol Lias declared ' that he had seen a blowpipe wrhich was rifled, but he gives no details, and until some confirmation comes to hand, his statement, which is entirely unsupported, cannot be received with too much caution.

When the Sakai require a very powerful poison they mix together in a bamboo tube the sap of a tree called Ipoh and the sap of a small root. They then gently dry the mixture over a slow fire, adding moisture from time to time in order to dry it afresh.

1 Or of wood hollowed out by fire and knife, that of the Kenaboi being of basket-work. — V.-St. ii. 120, 121.

• De M. loc. cit. ; l? Homme, ii. 620.

3 Cp. Hale, p. 289, where we are told that the quiver is "supported round the waist by a cord of native manufacture, and fastened with a buckle made from the bone of a monkey, the upper mandible of a hornbill,'' etc.

4 De M. UH. ii. 617. Cp. Hale, p. 289. The blowpipe is a very deadlyweapon for any animal up to the size of a siamang, and up to a distance of 60 yards (55 m.), whereas at 50 yards (45 m.) distance "a Sakai, clever in the use of it, will put five darts out of six into a common playing card." Cp. De la Croix, p. 334.

5 Lias, pp. 25S, 259 : cp. p. 256, attti.

300 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS pari ii

The boiling is completed in four processes ; and just before the last boiling a little poison obtained from the poison glands of snakes, scorpions, and centipedes is added. A little of the poison is then applied to a small spatula, which is dried slowly over a smouldering fire ; a fresh layer is then applied and the spatula moved slowly to and fro over the fire. The poison thus prepared is dark brown, and is very soluble in water. If a less powerful poison is required, the sap of the Ipoh and the root is alone employed, or else the Ipoh by itself; in either case the methods of preparation are identical. The poison is now ready for immediate use, the point of the dart being slightly wetted and rubbed upon the small spatula which is covered with the poison.1

To complete his inquiry into the sources of the arrow-poisons of the aborigines, Mr. Wray visited the district of Batang Padang, to ascertain how the Sakai prepared their poison. As previously mentioned, they only used it on their blowpipe - darts, as bows and arrows are not employed by them."

Mr. Wray visited two Ipoh trees, both of which were deeply scored like those in Selama. The scoring of the bark was not, however, so regular as with the Semang, and no sign of the herring-bone method was to be seen. The usual plan was to cut detached V-shaped incisions, and the method of collecting the sap differed also from that already described.3

Several pieces of bamboo were taken, and to each was fixed a piece of wood, which was ingeniously cut,

1 De M. /. c. Cp. Hale, 289. The for use, it is put on a spatula moistened

sap of the Ipoh tree is * ; boiled down to and warmed over the fire, and then

the consistency of thick treacle, a large applied to the dart." Cp. also De la

quantity at a time. It will then, in a Croix, p. 334, as to the varying strengths

properly stoppered bamboo, keep for of the Sakai poison (even on the darts

any length of time. When required of the same quiver). 2 3 Wray, /. e.

. MAP. VI SAKAJ ' '/■ !

so that when its chisel-shaped upper end was app to the bark ol the tree below a icore the Bap flowed

first down its upper surface till ii met with a i channel which conducted it round to the under surfao and then into the bamboo receptacle.

The sap being collected, two wooden spatulas w< prepared, and a piece ol large bamboo split in hall

as to form a small trough, and the sap poured into it.

The larger spatula was heated over a fire and the sap

ladled out of the bamboo and spread on its heated surface by means ol tin- smaller spatula, and dried b
being held with the uncoated side over the tire ; it was then reversed and sap spread on its upper or uncoated side, and when that was in its turn nearh dry, again reversed and a fresh supply of sap applied to the surface first coated. This was repeated until all the sap had been inspissated. -

The darts are coated in the manner before mentioned, and when the poison is very hard and dry and will not soften by being heated, a few drops ot water are put on to the spatula and mixed, by means of a smaller spatula, with the poison until it acquires the right consistency to apply to the points of the darts/

The Sakai and Semang methods of collecting and preparing the poison are really the same, only differing in details. The Sakai, however, do not mix "lekir" juice with the Ipoh,and the way they mix the "gadong * juice with it is not the same as that employed by the Semang. For this purpose the Ipoh sap is prepared as just described, and a piece of the " gadong " tuber is peeled and sliced up fine and placed in a joint of a bamboo, and ground up with water by means of a wooden pestle. The fluid is then poured off and

1 /. A. J. vol. xxi. (1892). pp. 479, 4S0. - lb. 3 /^

3o2 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS part ii

fresh water added and the process repeated. The fluid is then boiled and filtered through leaves in which some fine scrapings of bamboo are put. It is then evaporated in an open vessel over a fire to the consistency of a thick syrup, and mixed with the Ipoh in the proportion of three parts of Ipoh to one of " gadong." 1

The Sakai living in the plains employ the Antiaris poison, as a rule, since the plants from which it is prepared are low-country forms ; but the Sakai of the hills use a poison prepared from three hill plants known as " Ipoh akar," or root Ipoh — in contradistinction to the Antiaris or "Ipoh kayu" (tree Ipoh) — "prual," and "lampong."2

" Ipoh akar " is a large climbing Strychnos, with a stem often as much as three inches in diameter. It has dark green glabrous, opposite leaves, with three prominent longitudinal veins. The fruit is said to be large and round, and to contain seeds about half an inch in diameter, and the flower is stated to be reddish. It grows on the hills, and is to be seen at over 4000 feet elevation. The specimens procured were collected on Gunong Batu Putih in Batang Padang. The portion of this plant from which the poison is extracted is the bark of the roots and lower part of the stem. It is often employed without admixture, and is then prepared 3 as follows : —

The bark, which is burnt sienna coloured, is scraped with knives from the roots ; the scrapings are put into a pan with water and boiled, the water is poured off and filtered. Fresh water is added to the bark, which is again boiled for some minutes, and the water poured off a second time. The exhausted

1 /. A. I. vol. xxi. (1892), p. 480. 2 lb. 3 lb.

, hap. vi SAKA1 <>/ PERAK

shavings of bark are then thrown away, and the

filtered infusion, which is bright burnt sienna coloured,

is reduced hy boiling in an open pan to a syrup. It

is then poured while hot into a bamboo, where it

solidifies. It is applied to the darts in the manner

already explained, and is said to he more powerful than the Antiaris, but is rendered quicker in its action when mixed with the poison derived from the other two plants above mentioned.1

Of these " prual" ' is also a climber, growing on the hills. The largest stem Mr. Wray had seen was one and a half inches in diameter. It has opposite bright green entire leaves, but of its flowers and fruit he had neither seen nor been able to get any description. The young shoots contain a very fine strong white silky fibre. His specimens were also collected on Gunong Batu Putih. The bark of the roots, which is rather pale yellow in colour, is the part of the plant which is employed in making the poison. This arrow-poison is said not to be so strong as Antiaris, but to be quite capable of killing when used by itself.3

The third plant is called " lampong," and is also a climbing species of Strycknos.* It has opposite threeveined leaves like " Ipoh akar" (only they are consider- ably smaller), and it is stated to have similar fruit, but grows lower down on the hills, Mr. Wray's specimens being collected on the Cheroh hills. Like the two preceding plants, the bark of the roots, which is white, is the part from which the poison is extracted. It is said to be not so powerful as "prual," but is often employed by itself.5

In making the mixed poison six parts of scraped

, lJ.A.I. vol. xxi. (1892), p. 481. 2 Coptosapella flavescens.

3 WTray, /. c. 4 Str, Maingayi, Clarke. 6 Wray, /. c.

304 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS part ii

M Ipoh akar " bark are taken, to which is added one part of each of "prual" and "lampong" bark, and the mixture is exhausted with boiling water, filtered and evaporated in the same way as has already been described when simple " Ipoh akar" is treated.1

It was stated by the Sakai that Antiaris and " Ipoh akar " are rarely if ever mixed with one another. The latter poison is said to retain its virulence, in the form of an extract, for years.2

III. — Jakun.

Weapons and Implements.

The same remarks that have been made with regard to stone implements in the case of the Semang and the Sakai apply with at least equal force to the third branch of these aboriginal tribes, and need not therefore be recapitulated here. The weapons and implements of the Jakun at present are the "parang" or chopping-knife, the "seligi " or "squailer," the spear (originally of bamboo), the blowpipe, and (finally) the adze, although knowledge of this latter appears to have been merely borrowed by the Jakun from their more progressive neighbours. As has already been recorded, an old writer declares that he met a Jakun at Malacca in 1833, who claimed to have killed a man at the distance of 40 yards (36.5 m.) with a clay pellet that he had discharged from his blowpipe.3

The Spear.

Of the Jakun spear, we are told that it consists

of an iron blade of about 1 ft. long (30 cm.) and 1 in.

(2.5 cm.) broad in the middle, attached to a thick, rudely

worked shaft about five or six feet long, and sharp at

1 Wray in/. A. I. vol. xxi. (1892), p. 481. a lb. 3 Begbie, pp. 5, 6.

MfGrego*.

Man ufing Blowphe, Bukit Prual, Selangor ; at his left Side is the open

Quiver with Darts.

McGregor.

akin using Blowpipe, Lubo' K'lubi, Ulu Langat,

Selangor.

V oh I. />.'y,o^.

chap, vi SAl IG1 MALAYS OF NEGRI SEMB I LAN

the inferior extremity, in order to enter easily into the ground ; for before the [akun enter a house they stri the end of the spear into the ground, where it remains until they go away, It is scarcelj possible to meet a single Jakun without his spear,1 which is both ;i sti to walk with and an offensive or defensive weapon i i occasion may require. The " parang " is an iron Made

of about 1 ft. (30 Cm.) long, and 2-3 in. (5 Cm. to 7.5

cm.) broad, with a shall like that of a large knife ; they

use it to cut trees employed in the building of their houses ; and to cut branches to open a passage when journeying through thick jungle; as well as for a defensive weapon against wild beasts. On one occasion Logan heard of a Jakun who, being attacked by a tiger, defended himself with a ''parang" (the only weapon he had with him at that time). Nearly half an hour was spent in this singular combat ; the Jakun lost an eye and was seriously wounded in the head ; but the tiger paid the forfeit with his life.2

Jakun, N. Sembilan. — Of the weapons of the Negri Sembilan tribes scarcely any records have been published. Rowland, however (Joe. cit.), cannot help expressing his astonishment at the certainty with which they could hit a target measuring only 1 ft. (30 cm.) square at distances ranging up to 80 m. At the same time he describes in detail their method of discharging the blowTpipe, which was to take the mouthpiece partially into the mouth (so that the mouthpiece for at least 2 cm. was covered by the upper lip, and to a lesser extent by the under one). And the same wTriter has also remarked that instead of the arms being

1 J. I. A. vol. ii. p. 262. Cp. , how- parang, the sumpitan with poisoned

ever, Wray, who states that "the Jakun arrows, and a few of them the spear." of the Menangkabau States use the 2 Cp. vol. i. p. 272.

VOL. I X

3o6 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS part if

stretched far forward to support the shaft of the blowpipe (as it might be expected would be the case), it is the mouthpiece itself that is held (firmly and in both hands) immediately in front of the operator's mouth.

Blandas. — The Blandas (Langat) blowpipe is hardly distinguishable from the Besisi weapon, and will be described more fully under that head. The dart was of the midrib of a fan-palm leaf (" serdang " or " kepau "), its butt-end ("basong") of " akar menitan," and the leaf carried- inside the lid of the " tabong tela," or " dart-quiver," as a squirrel-charm, was " salerik tupei."

The Spear.

Besisi. — The Besisi, like the Blandas, get their spears from the Malays. A favourite form of spear among the Besisi is the fish-spear, of which there are several varieties ; most of these types, however, have been borrowed from the Malays, as was their Besisi name " tiruk."

The Blowpipe.

The inner tube of the Besisi blowpipe is made (as among all the tribes already referred to) from a couple of internodes of the long -jointed bamboo (Bambusa Wrayi). The middle node having been excised, the abutting ends of the two pieces are brought together again, coated with a little resin to make them adhere better, and spliced, as among the Sakai of Perak, by means of a connecting cylinder or jacket, which is fitted over their abutting ends.

One of these pieces of the blowpipe is invariably longer than the other, and is called by the Besisi the 11 man-piece," the shorter one being called the 11 woman-piece," the Besisi women being, as a rule,

chap, vi // AGE MAI A KS 01 Si LANGOR

markedly shorter than the men ol the tril >> i ;i ;ion

ally, however, these pieces are tailed the "mother piece" ,iiid "child-piece respectively. The connecting-piece is called " cheinal " (as among the

Mantra).

For making the mouthpiece, which is always ol wood, a hole is bored right through the piece oi wood

selected lor the purpose ; it is then fitted by hand into the butt-end of the inner tube, the end of which is cut off Hush with it. In order to make the tit a tight one, the lips of the mouthpiece; (which are made long and thin to facilitate their introduction between the inner and the outer tube) are in many cases cut or broken at one side, thus enabling a fine slip of cane to be pushed into the interstice, so as to act as a delicate wedge. In some cases leaves are used as a wedge (instead of this slip of cane), and some of these bear traces of fire at their edges, as if it had been intended to dry or harden them. Thin strips of cloth are also sometimes similarly used by the more civilised tribes.

The mouthpiece when complete is fitted on to one end of the inner tube, which then only requires to be fitted carefully to the bigger tube that forms the case or sheathing. The latter, on account of the connectingpiece or jacket that unites the two inner parts, has naturally to be rather larger than would otherwise be necessary.

The outer Tube or Casing.

The casing is manufactured either from Bambusa Wrayiox some similar kind of long-jointed bamboo, by poking out the central node with a sharpened spike or boring-rod ( " jengroh " or "jengrok " ) made of a hard

308 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS part ii

kind of palm - wood. The ragged portions of the internode which still remain are rasped down with the formidably armed leaf-whip ("onak") of a rattan (or " Wait-a-bit Thorn "), which is thrust down into the tube and worked to and fro until the jagged remains of the node have been entirely removed.

Both the inner tube and its case having thus been prepared and cut to the same length, it only remains to push the former with great care into its casing.

Treatment of the Muzzle-end.

But in order to obviate the inconvenience and risk of a " loose fit," several narrow and long wedgeshaped strips about a foot and a half long (like the " gores " in the waist of a lady's skirt) are excised at the muzzle-end of the case, and the inner tube, which is now cut shorter than the case (by about 3 inches), is pushed down into it as far as it will go (i.e. to within 3 in. (7.5 cm.) of the muzzle-end of the case).

The split ends of the case are now drawn together till they fit the blowrpipe tightly, and a short thick cylinder, of a woody kind of bamboo, and measuring about 3 in. (7.5 cm.) long, having been fitted into the vacant space inside the muzzle -end (to which the blowpipe does not reach), the whole affair is bound round either by a single long strip of cane, or by numerous rings of plaited cane, and coated over with a thick crust of tree-gum or resin in order to keep these lashings from working loose, this elaborate arrangement being finished off by a small ring-shaped piece of coconut- or tortoise-shell which is imbedded in the resin at the muzzle-end of the blowpipe in order to protect the muzzle from fraying or from similar

chap, vi SAVAGE MAI A KS Of i I i VGOR yoq

injury.1 The blowpipe is 1 1 < > \ ready for use, and if only remains to decorate it with the customary patterns or magic emblems employed by the tribe.

( Ornamentation. The question of ornamentation will be treated

more conveniently elsewhere, but I ma)- remark in

passing that although the patterns of the Besisi

blowpipes were, with few exceptions, of the highly conventionalised rectilinear incision type, I nevertheless more than once noticed the delineation ol some animal or reptile (e.g. a lizard) upon their polished shafts. The ordinary motive in the blowpipe and quiver patterns of this tribe — at least as the matter was explained to me by the Besisi themselves — consisted of the representation (in an extremely rudimentary form) of the limbs and body of the spectacled monkey or " lotong " (Scmnoftithecus).

The outer case of the Besisi blowpipe was divided, as a rule, into two approximate halves by the central node or knot. Subdividing it further, roughly speaking, into quarters, the second quarter (counting from the muzzle-end) was almost invariably left undecorated, except perhaps by one or two rings or zigzags, this being the part by which it was, I understood, most

1 There can be little doubt that the of blowpipes in the Peninsula are with-

object of this device is simply to out this device, yet the quarry is so

strengthen the blowpipe. Vaughan- little disturbed by their " tone " that a

Stevens, in describing a similar device bird sitting on a tree may be shot at

among the Mantra, supposes it to be and missed several times before it will

due to a wish on the part of the move. Moreover, the sharper tone

Mantra to obtain a sharper tone or would necessarily be heard further.

note from the dart as it leaves the At the same time this device un-

tube, probably (he thinks) because the doubtedly improves the weapon by

sharper tone would be less audible to rendering it less liable to warp

the quarry. There does not, however, interiorly, and by weighting it better,

appear to be the slightest foundation It also has the advantage of keeping

for any such supposition. The majority out insects.

3io WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS part ii

generally held when it was being carried on a hunting expedition. I cannot say for certain whether this explanation is of wider application, but if so it would explain why this part of the bamboo is so frequently stripped of its outer cuticle and polished with wax.

The Cleaning-rod.

A primitive kind of cleaning - rod which was frequently used by the Besisi was called "jenghek." It was made on the ramrod principle, a long rod of palm-wood being perforated at one end, and strips of palm -leaf threaded through the perforation. This rod, when worked up and down the tube, made the cleaning of the interior of the blowpipe an easy matter. The muzzle of the blowpipe was in addition, not unfrequently, stoppered with leaves in order to keep out white ants, the small wild bees called " kelulut," and many other kinds of insect — a precaution which is of no small importance in the Malay Peninsula.

The Dart.

The following are the names given by the Besisi to the different parts of their blowpipe-dart ("damak"). The shaft is called " huyang," the butt-end " bentol," the point "chen," and the nick above the point "gret."

The conical butt-end (also called " torn bentol ") is only made of what is called in Besisi "long angkau," — which is the stem of a kind of creeper called in Malay " akar lada luan," — or of some light wood such as " pulai."

The stem or shaft of the dart is made from the leaf- ribs of various kinds of palm, especially the " serdang," " ranggam," " kepau," " kumung " (?), and

i hap. m AVAGh MAI iv i LANGOR

" Ix-rtain," though a shaft made ol the last named material is generally considered tobeoi inferior qualit

The shaft ol the dart with the point broken ofl i • railed " pandong d£m&k."

The polishing proa ;s, which is carried out very carefully by the Besisi (with "metnplas" leaves), is

called " ehengat."

The Poison.

We now come to the Besisi dart -poison, the ordinary ingredients of which were given me as follows : —

(i) " Ipoh batang " (in Besisi, " ch€s")= Antiaris toxicaria, the Upas tree (the Poison-tree of Java).

(2) " Malai.'"J

(3) "Tenet."3

(4) " Jenu" or " tuba," the well-known Malay fishpoison similarly used by the Besisi.

According to another account that I received, the ingredients of the Besisi poison 4 were : —

(1) " Chong ches " (root of the "ipoh" creeper = Strychuos tieute).

(2) " Ches (i.e. " ipoh ") malai."

(3) " Ches {i.e. " ipoh ") tenet."

(4) "Ches (i.e. "ipoh") kroi."

(5) "Jenu " (Mai. "tuba").

(6) " Pedas," or pepper.5

(7) " Warang," or arsenic.

1 Occasionally we meet with the being used at all requires corrobora-

statement that these darts are made of tion.

bamboo. Darts made of this material, 2 = "Blay" (V. -St.). For identifi-

however, would be of inferior quality, cations, v. App.

and where the report of its use is not 3 = " Kannet " (V.-St.).

due to careless observation, its employ- 4 For identifications, and a similar

ment is doubtless due to some tem- receipt given by Bellamy (p. 229), v.

porary difficulty of obtaining a better App.

material. This employment of bamboo 5 For a suggested reason (for the emis not at all usual, and the fact of its ployment of pepper), see p. 319, n. 7.

3 1 2 WE A PONS A ND IMPLEMENTS part i i

(8) " Gengang" — a kind of large millipede.

(9) The "teeth" ("lemoyn") of tigers, centipedes, and snakes.

When the sap of the Upas creeper was used instead of, or in conjunction with, that of the tree Upas, the roots of the creeper were simply grubbed up and shredded. When the sap of the tree Upas was used, the collector, using his jungle-knife (" parang "), would slash the outer bark of the Upas (a tall forest tree growing sometimes to 100 feet in height), making V-shaped incisions, at the lowest point of each of which the sap would naturally accumulate, which was accordingly drawn off at will. When the scar was healed (but not before) a fresh supply of sap may be obtained by slashing the bark in a fresh place. Each new incision was generally made a little higher up than the last, and I have seen a tree covered with the scars, the highest of which perhaps reached a distance of at least 30 or 40 feet from the ground.

The sap thus collected was gradually reduced by long and patient boiling, as among the Sakai, to the consistency of treacle, and when sufficiently inspissated, was poured off into a small bamboo poison-tube called "jelok," which is carefully stoppered with a wooden stopper until required for use. Bellamy (I.e.) says that prepared opium (" chandu ") is also sometimes added.

Poisoning the Dart.

When the time arrived, the poison was applied to the dart -point as usual, forming a thick clot about the point, and an entire quiverful of darts having been poisoned, they were at once deposited upon a highly ingenious drying rack or stand, and placed in

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the sun to dry, the stand being designed not only to hold them in position, but also to prevent them from being accidentally knocked against, or perhap

blown away in a high wind.

When the drying was completed the darts

were fitted into the r<<d-l)imdle of the quiver, and their butt-ends branded or marked with lime and water, in order to distinguish the various strengths of the poison, the designs consisting of bars, crosses, and dots.

The usual nick (as has been said) was made round the dart, but there was a belief among the Besisi that no acid fruit should be eaten with the flesh of animals killed by these darts, as they believed this would bring out the full effects of the poison in the eater.

In addition to the above must be noticed the belief, which was related to me by the Besisi, to the effect that even the branch struck by a poisonous dart dies, not immediately, but slowly and surely.1

The Quiver.

The Besisi quiver (like that of the Sakai) was carried on the left hip, and fastened about the waist with a cord of twisted tree-bark, secured by a buckle of bone or tortoiseshell.

The interior of the quiver is fitted with a rolledup bundle of small tubes or reeds made of young bamboo twigs, about as big as an ordinary leadpencil. These reeds are united by lashings inside the body of the quiver, each reed holding a single dart, the butt-end of which fits closely into its own individual reed at the upper extremity.

1 I may also mention that the Besisi, maize was the only antidote for this like many other aborigines, asserted that Upas poison.

3M WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS paki ii

The cover or cap of the quiver, which was made of finely woven basket-work (of rattan), was fitted on to its upper end or top.1 It consisted of three triangular sections of basket-work, the edges of which overlapped, and were so brought together as to make a kind of peaked lid. Inside this cap was kept a supply of the usual palm-down (or tinder),*2 the interiorly projecting edges of the cap-sections being left free to hold this down or fluff in its place.3 An additional supply, together with the complete apparatus required for poisoning fresh darts when the supply runs short, is sometimes pushed down into the centre of the spiral formed by the rolled-up reed-bundle. It was also the rule among the Besisi to carry in the quiver a little beeswax for polishing the points of their darts, so as to prevent them from adhering to the sides of the reeds. To effect this polishing they wax a rectangular panel on the front of the quiver, after scraping off the surface of the cuticle, and work up the points of their darts by rolling them upon it.

The quiver is called " lok " in Besisi ( = " telak " elsewhere), and its cover (Mai. " tudong ") was called " tebong lok." Inside this cover, which was hollowed out of a soft wood resembling "pulai," was carried the tinder or palm-fluff (the " rabok tukas " of the Malays = Bes. " barok "), which was used, as has been said, as a sort of wadding for preventing windage in shooting with the blowpipe.

In addition to this tinder, two or three leaves of a creeper called the " Bringer-down of squirrels"4 ("akar penurun tupei "), or of another creeper called

1 Cp. V.-St. ii. 121. 4 ?=" Penurun lotong " ("Bringer-

2 Seep. 260, ante, n. 1. down of monkeys "), Galearia subulata,

3 In the wooden cap a slight bamboo Muell. It is called by the Blandas bar takes their place. " salerik tupei."

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Skccit Collection.

Besisi Apparatus for brewing Dart-Poison.

i. Pestle for pounding "ipoh." 2. Cloth strainer. 3,4, 5. Receptacles for the poison. 6. Poison-holder or tuhe fur carrying "ipoh."

Brit. Mux.

Kuantan Darts with Poison Spatula.

Presented by Mr. Douglas to the British Museum. (See p. 326.)

chap, vi VA MALA ) 01 MAI

Makar samQg&V' are carried by way oi a charm Ibf success in hunting, like the "siyap" ol the Dayaks. fhe reeds (ol the reed-bundle in the quiver) are

railed "plet."

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Mantra. The weapons of the Mantra are the blowpipe, spear, the Malay dagger or "kris," and a kind of (Malay) sword called " ch£nangkas."

There is no important difference between the

Mantra methods of manufacturing the blowpipe, ami those practised by the Besisi. A few words with regard to the polishing and other processes may, however, here be added. The polishing of the interior of the blowpipe-tube is begun by means of bamboo shavings fixed to the end of a cleaning-rod."

The process is then repeated a second time with " polishing- leaves " (of "akar simplas "), and again a third time with a small strip of bark-cloth, which is used merely to give it a " finish." 8

The two portions of the blowTpipe-tube are then spliced in the usual way (as among the Besisi). The only difference lies in the nomenclature used by

1 J. /. A. vol. i. p. 330*. die, but they are generally lost to the

23 Vaughan-Stevens, ii. 114. For sportsman, as they are able to run

the Mantra blowpipe, see Barbe : "To (after having been wounded) to a great

procure (their food) they use the sumpi- distance. These savages seldom miss

tan, which is a bamboo from 6 to S feet their aim. I have seen them thus

long ; the arrows are slips of bamboo shoot with their arrows monkeys seated

10 inches long, with a piece of light on trees of 70 or So feet high, when

wood at the bottom, shaped to the the wounded animal, after jumping on

bore of the tube, which they propel some other branches, and throwing

by blowing hard. The point of the away what he was eating, immediately

arrow being anointed with a prepared after fell down, if the ' ipoh ' had

poison called 'ipoh,' communicates it been well prepared"' (Rev. M. Barbe,

to the blood, and after two or three in the Bengal Cathclic Herald, 12th

minutes the animal vomits and falls June 1850; quoted in J.I. A. vol. v.

dead. Should the arrow penetrate the pp. 487, 4S8). Cp. also Borie. ante. skin of large animals, many of them

3 1 6 WE A PONS A ND IMPLEMENTS part i i

the Mantra, who call the longer portion of the inner tube "sulu" ("sooloo"), and the shorter one "tongkat," the outer shaft or case being called "tagu" ("targoo"). As among the Besisi, the connecting-piece or "jacket" (of " rappen " bamboo) is called " chemat." '

The hollow in the mouthpiece of this blowpipe, which is made of "jelotong" wood, is bored with 11 a wooden awl " — "jelotong " being a very soft wood, which lends itself readily to this treatment.2

The knots of the outer shaft are pierced in the ordinary way, and the hole enlarged as usual with the prickly leaf- whips or " onak " of the " Rotan tunggal." Next the leaves of the " Rotan riong " (?) are substituted and the process continued, until the enlarging process is complete, when the interior is polished in the usual way (as among the Besisi). The bamboos are often dried and kept for a considerable time before they are made into a blowpipe.3

The external cuticle is next scraped or shaved off at the muzzle- end for a distance of a short span (measured from the tip of the thumb to the tip of the forefinger) to enable the resin to adhere more securely. This portion of the tube is then split into the desired number of subdivisions, one of which is again split to take the end of a "rattan" lashing, which is pushed home. A small hole is made at the upper end of one of the splits, and the end (of the lashing) pushed through it and fastened off there.4

A quantity of resin is then melted and coloured with black from the cooking-pots, and poured round the whole of the split part. Before the binding process

1 Vaughan - Stevens, ii. 114 seqq. of it ; the sheath from tip of index-finger The "sulu" measures the maker's to the opposite thumb. Both tube and "full arm-stretch," the " tongkat " half case are of "temiang" bamboo. 234.#.

< II M\ VI

// | U 1 J'-.' OF MAI I' I ./

has been completed, howe> ei , a imall (tubular) pi< of another kind ol woody bamboo c pagai ") ol small calibre is inserted into the aperture ol the muzzle. I his rves as an internal block c tunglork engl&k")

for supporting and protecting this portion ol the tube, and for keeping the splits in their proper (relative) p< tion. It forms part of the case, not of the inner tub

The longer portion ol the blowpipe-tube is fitted to this block, and a ring of coconut-shell called ''lfcngait" ("linghite") is imbedded in the resin it the muzzle-end, which is heated to receive it."

This " muzzle-block " produces an especially sharp

note as the dart passes out at the muzzle. It is difficult to describe this note, which, however, is much less audible than the note produced when no muzzleblock is used, and Vaughan-Stevens supposes it to be the result of an effort to weaken the note and make it less audible to the quarry.3

The outer cuticle of the case is also scraped or shaved off in several places, part being polished and rubbed with bees-wax, which latter substance is also used for rubbing that part of the case which is neither shaved nor polished.4

The Dart.

The darts are of the thick outer rind of the "kredok" palm, the butts of the soft inner wood of

1 V. -St. ii. 1 19. See the Besisi blowpipe, p. 308, supra. The description in the original (p. 119) is very involved and muddled, owing to a confusion of the muzzle-end and the mouthpiece. The diagrams, too, in the original passage, have evidently got mixed. The description of the" sunglork "(probably "seng- lak") as being placed in position "where

the curve of the mouthpiece begins " should be corrected to "at the extremity of the muzzle-end," where the " sunglork " is invariably placed, and indeed if it were not so how could the darts pass out of the blowpipe ? The muzzleend, too, has no curve as the mouth- piece has. These errors have been corrected in the present text, 2 3 4 lb.

/

318 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS part II

11 habong," or of " tarentong." ' The butt-end is fixed on with resin, and the shaft of the dart is rubbed with beeswax ; warped darts are straightened over the fire by hand, and marks are only added to the buttend when it is necessary to distinguish two strengths of poison in one quiver ; in which case it is (as might be expected) the darts tipped with the stronger poison that receive the marks.2 Various standards of measurement3 for the darts are given, a dart of the longest standard being always used first at the trial of a blowpipe, and then the next and the next longest, until the one which appears most suitable is selected.4

The Poison.

Vaughan-Stevens' account 5 of the Mantra poison appears to be a jumble of several receipts, but is given here as the details may be worth verifying.

To make a spoonful of poison fiv& strips of "kroie"6 bark are pounded with a pestle (" pomonong," sic) in an iron pot which has first been prepared by waxing. Water is added, and the liquor boiled about ten minutes. The pot is then taken off the fire and deposited on a stand consisting of a wooden fork which has a crosspiece, intended to hold the pot, fastened across the bifurcated portion. The fork-ends rest on the ground, and the upper end or shaft is supported at a sharp angle of about 45 degrees. The pot is then tipped up

1 Or of bamboo, see p. 315, n. 1, "[arm] -bone," from elbow to wrist. supra. '* Habong " is unidentified ; Length of the butt-end : shortest little " kredok" is Cyrtostachis lecca; " taren- finger-joint ; thumb or thumb-nail (?) ; tong " is Campnosperma auriculaia. thumb-joint ; breadth of forefinger, or See p. 331, 1. 2. " tampong k'ladi " (yam-calix), about

2 Vaughan-Stevens, ii. 123. half of the first-mentioned.

3 E.g. " ukor susu," i.e. breast to 4 Vaughan-Stevens, ii. 124. breast, or elbow to nearest breast (of '° Ibid. p. 125 seqq.

the maker); and " satu tulang," an 6 Lophopetahun pallidum. — Ridley.

c map. m |l AGl MAI AYS 0/ MALAi < A

till the liquor Is < lose to the brim, and one end ol .1 roll of bamboo shavings (about 1 inches loi in

serted in the liquor, the other end being placed ii special receptacle made oi bark, so as to draw ofl the poison l>y suction. I he liquor thus drawn ofl is put hark into the pot and root shavings of the "umpas

padi," " koopur, prachek," : " mundess," " chantong

badak," and "gadong " are added. The pot is then