BEAUTIFUL BORNEO.
Borneo--Wild animals--the Malays--Poetry--Romances--Dewa Indra
--Native government--Pile dwellings--Intermarriage--Language--
Clothing--Courtship--Marriage--Inland tribes--Land culture--
Native villages--Food products--Textile fabrics--Bark cloth
--Native women--Climate--Native produce--Kayan weapon--Rivers
--Gambling--Opium smoking.
Borneo, the beautiful--the "garden of the sun"--is the third
largest island in the world, and boasts a much larger area than
that occupied by the British Isles. The equator divides it, and
the climate is, perhaps, that most suitable for vegetation of any
other, being uniformly hot and humid all the year round. There are
no volcanoes, the tiger is unknown, and it is the only habitat of the
wild elephant in the Malay Archipelago. It is also remarkable as being
the home of the wild man of the forests, or the "orang utan" of the
Malays. Alligators abound in the rivers, and are the most dangerous
of the wild animals. Snakes exist plentifully, and in great variety,
but death from snake-bites is very rare. The two-horned rhinoceros,
wild cattle, pigs in abundance, and several species of deer are known.
The human inhabitants may be roughly divided into two races, the
Malays and the Borneans, or aboriginals. The origin of both types
is obscure. The Malays, however, are immigrants who inhabit the
coasts of all the large Malay islands where, as here in Borneo,
they have long held the dominant power. Some believe them to have
originally been the descendants of Arabs who settled in the Celebes
long before the Dutch became rulers in these seas, and this view
gains some support from the fact of the Arabic character being used
in writing, and their titles as Sultan, hadji, and sherrif, are of
Arabic origin. They all profess Islam. The Bornean Malays may be said
to have but little literature: the Koran, a few MS. poems, prayers,
and tales are the only books generally seen in the island; but the
people possess a vast amount of traditional lore, and many of their
songs refer to the history of the country, the beauty of their women,
or to the personal attributes and prowess of their former rulers.
The following may be taken as a fair sample of Malayan poetry, and
was originally published in the Asiatic Journal. Many of the tales and
legends of the Malays are in blank verse, with a good many repetitions;
and choruses are extremely popular, as also are extemporaneous vocal
performances:--
"Cold is the wind, the rain falls fast,
I linger, though the hour is past.
Why come you not? whence this delay!
Have I offended--say?
"My heart is sad and sinking too;
Oh! break it not! it loves but you!
Come, then, and end this long delay,
Why keep you thus away?
"The wind is cold, fast falls the rain,
Yet weeping, chiding, I remain,
You come not still--you still delay!
Oh, wherefore can you stay!"
Malayan romances and minstrelsy are alike rich in imagery, as the
following examples from Marsden's Malay Grammar will suffice to show:--
PASSAGES EXTRACTED FROM A ROMANCE, CONTAINING THE ADVENTURES OF INDRA
LAKSANA, MAHADEWA, AND DEWA INDRA.
"The prince then smiling (at the defiance sent by the enemy) went
to soothe the affliction of his wife, and addressed her thus:
'O my love, thou who art to me the soul of my body, farewell! If
perchance it should be thy husband's doom to fall (in the approaching
battle), wilt thou cherish the memory of him with some degree of fond
concern? Wilt thou wrap him in the scarf that binds thy waist? Wilt
thou bathe his corpse with thy tears pure as the dew that hangs at
the extremity of the grass? Wilt thou bestrew it with the flowers
which now adorn the folds of thy hair?' The princess upon this wept
the more abundantly, and embraced the neck of Indra Laksana, her arm
enfolding it as the muskscented epidendrum entwines the angsuka tree
(Pavetta indica). Such was the picture she exhibited, whilst Indra
wiped away the tears from her eyes."
"Upon the arrival of Indra Mahadewa at the palace, he seated himself
by the side of the princess (his bride) and said to her, smiling, 'My
love, my soul, what manner is it your intention to dispose of yourself,
as I am obliged to proceed in the search of my brother? If it be your
design to accompany me, you should lose no time in giving orders for
the necessary preparations, as my departure must be immediate.' When
the princess Seganda Ratna heard these words, she held down her head,
and with glances sweet as the blue lotos flower in the sea of honey,
replied, 'What plans, my love, am I, a young female, to pursue
but those of my lord alone? For is not a wife under the guidance
of her husband?' Indra Mahadewa showed his satisfaction at hearing
these expressions from the princess, embraced and kissed her saying,
'Thy good sense adds grace to thy lovely features; thou shalt be the
soother of my cares, my comforter, my companion.'"
"Having spoken thus, Indra Mahadewa bent his course wherever his
uncertain steps might lead. With an anxious heart and suffering from
hunger and thirst, he penetrated into forests of great extent, ascended
high mountains, and crossed wide plains. The sun was now set, and the
moon rose in all her splendour as if to serve him for a torch. The
prince, although fatigued, proceeded towards the hills of Indra Kila,
and as he passed, the tender branches of the climbing plants waved with
the wind and seemed inclined to follow the beautiful youth. As the dawn
gradually arose, the clouds in the border of the sky assumed a variety
of shapes, some having the form of trees, and some resembling animals;
but the trees of the forest were still obscured from sight by the dense
vapour rising from the dew. The light of the sun now began to appear,
glancing from the interstices of the mountains like the countenance
of a lovely virgin, whilst its beams shooting upwards exhibited the
appearance of flags and banners waving in front of an army marching
to battle."
"The king was highly pleased with the manners and disposition
of Dewa Indra, as well as with his graceful person and superior
understanding. He said to him, 'Partake of betel, my son.' Dewa Indra
having accordingly partaken, returned the betel-stand to the king,
who thus addressed him: 'I have sent for you, my son, in order to
make known to you a resolution taken by me some time since; that to
the person who having counted out ten large measures of sesame seed
and as many measures of sand, thoroughly blended together, should
be able to separate the grains of the one from the grains of the
other, and to complete the performance of the task in the course of
a day; to such person alone should I give the hand of my daughter in
marriage.' Dewa Indra smiled on hearing the king's words, knowing them
to proceed from the artful suggestion of the princes (his rivals),
and bowing replied, 'whatever may be your majesty's injunctions,
your servant is ready to execute them.' The sand and the sesame seed
being then provided and mixed together in the court before the palace,
Dewa Indra made his obeisance, descended to the spot, and as he stood
beside the heap, silently wished for aid from the king of the ants;
when instantly the monarch made his appearance, followed by his whole
army, consisting of the population of nine hillocks. Upon receiving
the directions of Dewa Indra for separating the grains, each individual
ant took one seed in his mouth, and in this manner the separation was
presently effected and the grains laid in distinct heaps, not one being
wanting. This done, the king of the ants and all his train disappeared,
and returned to the place from whence they came. Dewa Indra reascended
the steps of the palace, and having taken his seat and made obeisance,
said, 'Your Majesty's commands for the separation of the sand and the
sesame seed have been obeyed by your mean and humble slave.' The king
expressed his amazement, and all the ministers of state, the warriors,
and the people in general were astonished at witnessing this proof of
the supernatural power of Dewa Indra; but with respect to the princes,
some of them shook their heads, some bent them down, and others turned
them aside, being unable to support his looks."
PUNGUTIB SAGALA REMAH DERIPADA HIKAYAT INDRA LAKSANA, DAN INDRA
MAHADEWA DAN DEWA INDRA.
"Maka baginda pun tursunyum suraya purgi mumbujok istrinya itu,
katanya, 'adoh adinda tinggallah tuan nyawa dan badan kakunda, jikalau
kakunda mati kulak, maka tuan kunangkanlah kasih sayang kakunda yang
sudikit itu, dan tuan slimutilah kakunda dungan kain yang dipinggang
tuan itu, dan tuan mandikanlah mayat kakunda dungan ayer mata tuan
yang sa'purti umbon yang dihujong rumpot juga adanya. Dan taborilah
mayat kakunda dungan bunga yang dalam sangol tuan itu.' Maka tuan
putri itupon makin sangatalah iya munangis suraya mumulok leher Indra
Laksana. Adapun tangan tuan putri mumulok itu sapurti gadong kasturi
yang mulilit pohon angsuka itu dumkianlah rupanya, maka sugralah
disapunya ulih Indra Laksana ayer matanya tuan putri itu."
"Adapun Indra Mahadewa sutlah iya datang kamahligie itu, maka lalu
iya dudok dukat tuan putri suraya tursunyum katanya, 'ya adinda tuan
nyawa kakunda, apatah bichari tuan skarang ini, kurna kakunda ini akau
purgi munchari saudara kakunda? Dan jikalau tuan akan purgi bursama
sama dungan kakunda, maka baiklah tuan munyurohkan orang bursimpan
simpan, skarang ini juga kakunda ini akan burjalan.' Sutlah tuan
putri Seganda Ratna munung ar kata Indra Mahadewa itu, maka tuan putri
itupon tundok, maka ekor matanya spurti sruja biru yang didalam laut
mudu, rupanya manis bukan barang barang, suraya burkata, 'ya kakunda
apatah bichara kapada anak prumpuan, mulainkan lebih bichara kakunda
juga? Kurna prumpuan itu didalam maalum lakinya?' Maka Indra Mahadewa
pun tursunyum munungar kata tuan putri itu, maka lalu dipulok dan
chiyumnya sluroh tubohnya, suraya katanya, 'Pandienya orang yang baik
paras ini burkata kata,' dan tuanlah akan pumadam hati kakunda yang
mushgol dan yang munjadi panglipur lara hati, dan tuman kakunda."
"Sutlah sudah iya burkata dumkian itu, maka Indra Mahadewa itupun
burjalanlah dungan sapambawa kakinya, dungan rawan hatinya, dungan
lapar dahaganya, masok hutan rimba yang busar busar, dan mulalui
gunong yang tinggi tinggi, dan masok padang yang luas luas. Maka mata
hari pun masoklah, maka bulan pun turbitlah spurti orang munyulohkan
Indra Mahadewa itu, chayanya pun turlalu trang tumarang. Maka baginda
pun lalu munuju gunong Indra Kila dungan lulahnya, maka sagala puchok
kayu yang mulata ditiup angin mulambie rupanya, spurti handak mungikot
orang baik paras lakunya. Maka fajar pun munyensenglah burpangkat
pangkat, maka awan ditupi langit itu burbagie rupanya, ada yang spurti
pohon kayu, dan ada yang spurti binatang rupanya, maka sagala pohon
rimba itu pun tiadalah klihatan kurna kabot ulih umbun. Maka chaya
matahari pun turbitlah mumanchar manchar deri chulah chulah gunong,
spurti muka anak darah yang elok rupanya, dan rupa sinarnya yang
mumanchar kaatas spurti tunggol dan mega dihadapan lawan akan prang."
"Maka baginda pun turlalu sangat burkunan mulihat lakunya dan
pukurtinya Dewa Indra itu, tambahan pula dungan baik rupanya, dungan
arif bijaksananya. Suraya katanya, 'Makanlah sireh, ya anakku.' Maka
Dewa Indra itupun lalu makan sireh sa'kapor, maka dipursumbahkaneya
kapada Dewa Indra, katanya: 'hie anakku, adapun ayahanda munyuroh
mumanggil tuan kamari ini, kurna ayahanda ini sudah burtitah dahulu;
shahadan barang siapa dapat mumbilang biji lang yang sa'puloh koyan,
dan pasir sapuloh koyan juga, maka dichamporkan antara kaduanya
itu, kumdian maka dipilehnya pasir dan biji lang itu, shahadan maka
habislah dungan sa 'hari itu juga, atau kapada malam, maka iyalah
akan suami tuan putri.' Maka Dewa Indra Kayangan itupun tursunyum,
dan taulah iya akan tipu itu deripada anak rajah rajah itu juga, maka
Dewa Indra itupun munyumbah suraya kaatanya, 'mana titah deri bawa duli
tuanku, patik junjong.' Maka pasir dan biji lang itupun sudah sudialah
dichamporkan orang ditungah miedan itu dibalerong itu, maka Dewa Indra
itupun munyumbah, lalu turon burdiri dihampir lang dan pasir itu,
maka dichitanya rajah sumut; maka dungan skutika itu juga rajah sumut
itupun datang dungan sagala blantuntaranya, yang sambilan timbunan
itu. Maka disurohnya ulih Dewa Indra mumilih pasir dan biji lang itu,
maka ulih sagala tuntara sumut lalu digigitnyalah sa'orang satu biji
lang, itupun dilainkannya, maka dungan skutika itu juga pasir dan
biji lang itupun masing masing dungan timbunannya, maka barang sa'biji
juga pun tiadalah kurang. Maka rajah sumut dan sagala blantuntaranya
itupun raiblah kumbali katumpatnya, maka Dewa Indra itupun naiklah
ka'atas balerong itu lalu dudok munyumbah baginda suraya katanya,
'Sudah tuanku turpilih biji lang dan pasir itu ulih patik yang
hina papa ini.' Maka baginda pun hieran dan turchungang chungang,
turmangau mangau dungan sagala purmantri, hulubalang, pahlauan dan
rayat skalian, itupun hieranlah iya mulihat kasaktian itu, maka akan
anak rajah itu ada yang munggrakkan kapalanya dan ada yang tundok,
dan ada yang burpaling, tiada mau mulihat muka Dewa Indra kayangan."
The Malays of Borneo acknowledge the rule of a Sultan, who is
assisted by various Ministers of State, who are principally his own
relations. The Court at Brunei is kept up by taxes imposed on the few
Chinese merchants, and on the native Borneans who live inland beside
the rivers on the north-west coast from the Baram to Kimanis. A yearly
payment is also made to the Sultan by the Rajah of Sarawak. Many of
the Malays are traders. The poorer classes are sailors, fishermen,
or engaged in simple domestic industries.
The true bred Malay has a penchant for building his pile dwelling
over the shallow water near the mouth of or beside a river wherever
such a site is procurable. The Borneans, on the other hand, prefer
a clearing near the streams, and some tribes, especially the Dusan,
build their huts high up in the hills.
Intermarriages with native women have helped to identify the Malays
with the Borneans, and especially with the Kadyans, a tribe who live
near the capital, and who long ago embraced the faith of Mahomet. The
language of the Malays is soft and pleasing in sound--the "Italian of
the East"--and very expressive. It is readily acquired by strangers,
and forms the medium of commercial communication throughout the
Straits Settlements and Malay Archipelago. Like our own tongue,
Malay seems to be a conventional blending of several other languages,
Arabic, Sanscrit, and the languages of the aboriginals with whom
the Malays were first thrown into contact. At the present day many
English and Portuguese words find their way into it but little
disguised by pronunciation. Malay is the Court language at Brunei,
but the inhabitants generally use a dialect similar to that of the
aboriginals who live near the capital.
The clothing of the Malays of high rank is often very lavish and
showy, consisting of fancy head-cloths and short jackets, often highly
embroidered with gold buttons and wire or lace. White trowsers, similar
to those worn by Europeans, and patent leather slippers are also
affected by the rich Malays, and all, rich or poor, wear the national
"sarong," a sort of chequered petticoat wound around the waist, and
allowed to fall to the feet in graceful folds. When trowsers are worn
a shorter "sarong" is worn kilt-fashion, barely reaching as low as
the knees. The Malay Hadjis or priests wear long green Arab coats,
and green or white turbans around their shaven heads. The women
when engaged in their household duties wear nothing but a "sarong"
reaching from the breasts to the feet. When abroad, however, neat
print sacques reaching as low as the knees are worn, having long and
tight sleeves. This dress opens in front, and is fastened by a set of
three silver or gold brooches. Below this a chequered, or Javanese
sarong reaches from the waist to the ankles. Beautiful sarongs are
made by the Brunei ladies. They are richly embroidered with gold wire,
and are worn by the well-to-do women along the coast.
Slippers of European or Chinese manufacture are sometimes worn. Their
black hair is oiled profusely, and secured behind with silver pins. It
is often perfumed by tying up in it flowers of the champaca, jasmine,
gardenia, or other scented blossoms over night. Both men and women
bathe at least twice daily, morning and evening, and the women dye
their nails with a mixture made of the red stems of a common balsam,
mixed with lime juice, as a substitute for the henna so largely used
in Persia and Egypt.
There are some very singular liberties allowed to loving swains in out
of the way places in Wales and Cornwall, but those allowed by the Malay
and native girls of Borneo to their favourite lovers are of a yet more
faithful kind. A Bornean youth may enter the house of his loved one's
parents and awaken her if she be really sleeping, to sit and talk with
him in the dark, or to eat betel-nut and the finest of sirih-leaves
from his garden. A similar custom, so far as nocturnal visits are
concerned, formerly existed in the country districts of Scotland. It
is but seldom that immorality results from this custom in Borneo, even
according to European ideas on the subject, and the parents think no
more of putting a stop to these nightly meetings than do those of our
own fair daughters in the case of the "morning call" of an eligible
suitor at home. There was a grand wedding at the capital during one
of my visits there, the bride being a relation of his Highness the
Sultan. There was a grand procession of boats on the river, and a large
lighter had been decorated with parti-coloured flags and streamers,
and in the centre a raised daïs and a canopy overhead of red cloth
had been erected for the parties mainly concerned. In the case of the
Malays there is the usual religious ceremony, at which the "hadjis"
appear and chant the prayers in gorgeous apparel of green Arabic coat
and ample turban. There was much firing of cannon throughout the town,
the whole event lasting nearly a week, and there was a grand reception,
the bride and bridegroom being seated in state on a raised daïs,
and covered with finery and gold ornaments, mostly borrowed for the
occasion. In the interior, where nearly all enjoy "liberty, equality,
and fraternity," in a way one can only dream of in civilised "society,"
marriage is very simple, and monogamy the rule. The celebration of a
marriage consists of a notification of the fact, and it is acknowledged
by all in the village, who meet for feasting. A couple of fowls or
a goat is killed, and the appearances presented by these after death
furnish auguries of good or ill fortune for the newly married pair.
The native Borneans proper are sparsely scattered over the whole
country, and are divided into various tribes, each inhabiting a
particular district, and speaking a dialect peculiar to itself. These
tribes have been compared with the natives of our English counties,
but they are much more distinct, each having its own customs, dress,
mode of life, weapons, and in many cases a language unknown to the
tribes only a few miles distant. The Dyaks, Kayans, Muruts, Kadyans,
Dusun, and Lanun, are a few only of these tribes. Another peculiar race
are the Badjows, or "Sea Gipsies," common to all the islands of these
seas. They are nomadic--water rovers--and engaged in diving for pearls,
or pearl shell, fishing, or in petty trade. They rarely settle down on
shore, or remain long in one place, but live in their boats. Indeed
they are the gipsies of the sea in every sense of the word, and
given to pilfering like their namesakes on shore. The Badjows, Lanun,
Balagnini, and Sulus, who inhabit the north of Borneo and the islands
to the north-east are an adventurous people given to piracy, and,
of course, excellent sailors. The Muruts are the only existing race
of head-hunters north of the capital. The Dusun and Kadyans, although
formerly head-hunters, have now taken to agricultural pursuits, and
are well fed and prosperous compared to the Muruts, who, although they
clear and plant the land around their immensely long pile dwellings,
still depend much on their skill in hunting wild pig, deer, and other
game for food. The Dyaks of Sarawak, although formerly fierce and
warlike, are now peaceful and industriously engaged in seafaring or
agricultural pursuits. The Kayans are still warlike, and a fine race
of straight-limbed powerful people. They formerly inhabited the country
inland near the Limbang and used to plunder the villages of the Muruts
and Sabayans, killing the men, and taking the women and children into
slavery. Of late years, however, they have migrated further south, and
their head-quarters are now on the Baram river. The Lanuns live on the
coasts north of Menkabong, and are petty traders or cultivators. Like
the Badjows, however, they have a lingering affection for the sea. The
Dusun, who live in the hills further from the coast, give them a bad
character and assert that formerly they used to steal their children.
Land culture is becoming much more general among the natives
inland than formerly, security of life and property having also
increased. Rice, kaladi, sweet potatoes, and Indian corn and sago are
the principal food products cultivated. Tobacco, cotton, sugar-cane,
tapioca, and fruit are also grown here.
The implements used for purposes of land culture in the island
are of the most rude description. On the plains of Menkabong,
Tawaran, and Tampassuk, near the coast, ploughs and harrows drawn
by buffaloes are employed, and their produce is carried to market in
light bamboo sledges. Further inland, however, the implements are yet
more primitive, nearly all the necessary labour of cultivation being
performed with a blunt-pointed iron chopper, or a sharp-pointed bamboo.
The hoe, another implement used, may be taken as the type of that
adopted by the Chinese emigrants in the Straits Settlements and Eastern
Archipelago generally; indeed, wherever a Chinaman sets his foot in
a new locality for cultural purposes, a chopper and a blade or two
of his national "chunkal" or spade-hoe are sure to form a part of
his extremely small belonging. He sets to work cutting the brushwood
and small timber on his future clearing, and piling this at the base
of the large trees, he fires the whole until only a few great black
stumps, and here and there a gaunt leafless durian or dryobalanops
remains of the old forest. Now, the "chunkal" is used to stir the
virgin soil by chopping it up, a much quicker process than digging;
indeed, a spade would have no chance in a competition where, as in
this case, the soil is full of roots. If desirable, the soil can be
thus chopped up to a depth of 12 in. or 14 in., the only drawback
being that the operator stands on the freshly cultivated land. Armed
with a chopper and one of these spade-hoes, a solitary Chinaman
will not unfrequently build a miserable little palm-leaf hut on a
well-watered bit of forest near a river, and in a month or two he
will have cleared several acres, to which, when planted with gambier
or pepper, he looks for a fair return. Here, alone in the forest,
or at the best with a companion or two equally poor as himself, he
subsists on a little boiled rice, until his crops of sweet potatoes,
bananas, sugar-cane, egg fruit, maize, and yams, are fit for use; for
one of his first cares has been to clear the bit of land around his
hut, on which to plant the few roots and seeds which he has brought
with him, most probably the gift of one of his richer countrymen,
perchance of the trader of whom he bought the bag of rice, which with
a little freshly caught fish from the river, are the only "stores"
which stand between him and starvation, until his garden produce is
available. I have often come across these clearings right in the
heart of the forest, miles away from any other human habitation,
and have been as much astonished at the amount of labour performed
with such a simple tool, as the thrifty labourer himself was to see me.
The Dusun villagers keep bees and export wax in quantity, and most
of the tribes collect the varied natural products of the sea or
of the forests in their respective districts. The Sulus were until
quite recently a warlike race inhabiting the large island of Sulu,
between Borneo and the Philippines. They were independent and ruled
by a Sultan, who held Sulu, Tawi Tawi, and the north of Borneo,
including the fine harbour of Sandakan. The Sulus, however, are now
practically under the Manilla Government. Slavery, although not yet
abolished in Borneo, is not nearly so common as was formerly the
case. The native government at Brunei is practically under the eye
of the British governor of Labuan, and thus many former abuses have
become mitigated merely by the moral influence of a British colony
being located thus near to the capital.
It must not be imagined that either the Malays or the native Borneans
are the bloodthirsty savages they are sometimes made out to be. The
Malays generally are courteous, dignified, and hospitable. Many
of them have made long journeys for purposes of trade, and have a
tolerably good idea of the manners and customs of Europeans. Others
have taken to the use of European commodities after observing them
used by the Chinese traders and settlers, and one can rarely visit
a native of any consideration without finding him the hospitable
possessor of a chair or two, plates, dishes, water bottles and glasses,
and very often of excellent brandy and cigars. They are most sensitive,
innately polite and gentle in manners, and very quick to understand and
appreciate any little courtesies or civilities one may offer them. All
but the poorest carry their national weapon, "the murderous crease,"
a sort of long sinuous-edged dagger, generally as sharp as a razor,
and most deadly when wielded by a skilful hand. In many cases where
the owners are rich or of high rank these weapons are beautifully
finished--rarely damascened--and the handles of ivory or gold set
with pearls, diamonds, and other precious stones. The running "amok,"
so often cited as an instance of their savage bloodthirsty nature
is really a very rare occurrence, and is generally attributed to the
excessive use of opium, or to some great disappointment or dishonour
having befallen the frantic creature who, drawing his kriss, rushes
at friend and foe alike until either shot down like a mad dog or
run through the body with a spear. Jealousy is the main cause of
all the bloodshed of which the Malays are guilty. The co-respondent
in Borneo must either have a tacit understanding with the husband
or rather proprietor of the frail one, or his adventures may end
very suddenly. I saw one man in the hospital at Labuan who paid the
penalty of his indiscretion. One night a kriss or spear had been driven
into his thigh through the interstices of the floor of the house in
which he was sleeping with his Helen, and with such force that the
bone was completely severed. It is possible the weapon was poisoned,
at any rate he died some little time afterwards, notwithstanding all
that surgical skill could suggest. In the case of the Malays their
women are, as a rule, secluded from the gaze of strangers in private
apartments, but in the interior the women of the aboriginal tribes
enjoy equal freedom with the men, and often join in discussions and
trading difficulties with great tact. Monogamy is the rule with the
Borneans and polygamy with the Malays. In Borneo, as in Europe, the
female exceeds the male population, and here, too, the women do a large
proportion of the field labour in addition to their domestic duties.
Some of the little villages of the native tribes inland present a
pleasant and prosperous exterior. Little palm-leaf houses stand here
and there beneath groves of cocoa-nut trees, betel-palms, tree-ferns,
or graceful willow-like bamboo. Breadths of fresh greensward occur
among the clumps of low brush or scrubby vegetations, the remains
of the old jungle, and here buffaloes or goats, and occasionally
other cattle, browse around the houses. Pigs, bees, and poultry are
domesticated, and are often very abundant. The houses are built on
piles, and a sloping hill-side or knoll is generally selected as a
site, so that all superfluous surface water may readily escape. The
fowls are caught every evening and placed in open-work baskets
of either rattan or bamboo, suspended beneath the eaves of the
houses. This care is essential in order to guard them from the attacks
of large snakes and iguanas, or other poultry-stealing saurians.
The main food product is rice, of which two distinct races are
grown. One kind only prospers in the rich alluvial deposits of the
valleys near the streams, where it can be irrigated at particular
stages of its growth. The other kind, or "hill-rice," will grow on the
hills up to 3000 feet elevation, and prospers in dry red earth, and
when growing it closely resembles a barley-field at home. One of the
most important of the women's duties is to clean and prepare daily the
"padi" or rice in the husk, which, with fish and fruit, forms the main
food supply of these islanders. The "padi" is placed in large wooden
mortars and beaten with wooden pestles a yard or more in length. This
beating or pounding separates the husk from the white grain within. It
is a very pretty sight to see the girls of the villages inland thus
engaged. As many as three may sometimes be seen beating the rice in
one of these large wooden mortars. With one hand they grasp the pestle
about the centre, while the other hand is rested on the hip. One woman
commences to beat the rice with a steady, regular stroke, then another
one joins her, and then a third. Of course, the most exact time has to
be observed, and the graceful motions of their slightly-draped figures,
the dancing pestles, and the regular thudding sounds produced, are
very interesting to a stranger. After the rice has been sufficiently
beaten, one of the girls scoops it out of the mortar with her little
hands into a shallow tray of closely-woven rattan work of circular
form and about two feet in diameter. Standing on the verandah or
platform between the houses so as to catch the breeze, the rice is
sifted, and now and then dexterously thrown up into the air so that
the chaff and refuse is blown away, but the rice falls back into
the tray. When finished the rice is as clean and as white as that
dressed by the finest machinery in England. Two or three girls will
soon clean the day's supply, and by the laughing and gossip indulged
in one may infer that the task is not a very unpleasant one to them.
The farther one proceeds inland the more extensive are the clearings
devoted to rice culture. This is accounted for by the fact that near
the coast rice is often imported in exchange for jungle produce, but
far inland the natives are obliged to grow all the food they require,
and in some cases as in the district to the south of Kina Balu most
of the hills up to 3000 feet are either under rice culture, or are
lying fallow, covered with low brushwood or jungle. Virgin land or
old forests are rare here, unless on the slopes of the great mountain
itself. The clothing of the aboriginals is in most cases very scanty,
now and then "sarongs" and white calico are obtained from the coast
in return for wax, gutta, tobacco, or other produce of the hills,
but, as a rule, the clothing of the native tribes of the north of
Borneo inland is a short "sarong" made of a strong indigo-dyed cloth,
which is woven by the women from the strong fibres of the "Lamba"
(Curculigo latifolia), a yellow-flowered broad-leaved weed, often
seen in great abundance on old cultivated plots near the houses. Many
of the men, especially those of the Murut tribes, who are perhaps
the most primitive of all the northern Borneans, wear nothing but a
strip of bark-cloth or "chawat" around the loins, and I have no doubt
but that this was the first clothing ever worn by the natives of the
island. This bark-cloth is the produce of Artocarpus elastica, a tall
tree with a trunk two feet in diameter, and leaves closely resembling
those of the bread-fruit, but rough instead of glossy. The inner bark
is stripped off and soaked in water, being afterwards beaten to render
it soft and pliable. Of this "chawats" or loin-cloths and jackets
are commonly made by the Muruts on the Lawas and the Limbang rivers,
and it is also still used by the Dusan villagers on the Tampassuk,
notwithstanding their skill in preparing, weaving, and dyeing the
"Lamba" fibre.
The native women inland wear short "sarongs" of "Lamba" cloth reaching
from the waist nearly to their knees, and a profusion of stained
rattan coils, brass wire, coloured beads, and other trinkets around
their waists, and heavy rings of brass on their legs, or coils of
brass wire on their plump and dusky arms. The younger ones wear a
strip of dark cloth across the breast. All have glossy black hair and
dark eyes. Some of the Murut women are fine muscular creatures, and
either in boats or afield they appear to be as strong and active as the
men. Their hair is often very gracefully wreathed up with a string of
red or amber-coloured beads, sometimes with a strip of the pale yellow
nipa leaf in its young state, and the colour contrast is then very
effective. The physique of the inland tribes, especially of the Dyaks,
Kayans, and Muruts, is superior to that of the Malays. The Kayans
and Muruts are especially lithe and active--bronzy, straight-limbed,
and statuesque. This is the result of an active life spent hunting in
the forest, climbing after gutta, rubber, jungle-fruit, or beeswax,
or in cultivating the clearings around their dwellings, or in fishing
in the rivers. The aboriginals are active, while, as a class, the
Malays are lethargic and luxurious, and rarely exert themselves or
make long foot journeys unless actually compelled to do so, and the
richer ones spend much of their time in opium smoking or with their
women instead of trying to ameliorate the condition of their poorer
neighbours, who in one way or another have to "pay the piper."
It is sad to see such a lovely and fertile island impoverished to
a great extent by the avaricious Malays, who ought to encourage
the natives to improve themselves and the country in which they
live, instead of which they wring their property from them whenever
possible under all manner of pretences. The harsh treatment to which
the aboriginals, and even the poorer of the Malays, were formerly
subjected by the petty chiefs and Pangerans, is now much moderated,
as many natives have visited Labuan, and it has now become known as
a sanctuary from their unjust oppressors.
The climate of Borneo although hot and wet, is fairly healthy,
especially on the hills inland, where the air is much fresher and
cooler than on the lowlands near the coast; the mean annual temperature
is about 84°. The hot and dry monsoon lasts from December to May,
and the cool and wet one from June to November; the rainfall is very
heavy, especially on the hills. The economic products for which the
soil and climate are suitable are coffee, cinchona, cocoa, cotton,
tobacco, sugar-cane, indigo, gambier, cocoa-nuts for oil, and manilla
hemp. Fine timber, gutta, caoutchouc, rattans, and camphor, are the
indigenous products of the forests primæval. Among the introduced
fruits which succeed well are oranges, limes, pomoloes, mangoes,
pine-apples, and bananas. The animal products are edible swallows'
nests, ivory, sea-slug or beche de mer, (Holothuria), fine fish of
many kinds, pearls, and pearl-shell. Among minerals, coal, antimony,
cinnabar, and gold seem the most promising; diamonds, tin, copper,
plumbago, and iron are reported; and if one may judge of the iron by
the old weapons, such as krisses, parongs, and spears as made by the
Bruneis and the Kayans, it must be of excellent quality.
I made a pen and ink sketch of a Kayan war knife which I saw in
the collection of native weapons in the possession of Mr. Treacher
at Government House, Labuan. Of this sketch Mr. Cooper has made me
this careful fac-simile on wood. It had a finely-tempered blade,
ornamented along the back for about half its length. One side of
the blade was flat, the other rounded; the sheath was elaborately
carved and, as is generally the case in Borneo, made of two flat
pieces of wood bound tightly together by neatly worked rattan cane;
the hilt was ornamented with tufts of red and black hair, and it was
furnished with a girdle of rattan plaited--altogether a most handy
and formidable implement in the paw of a lusty naked savage.
Gold, diamonds, and antimony have been obtained in remunerative
quantities at the Sarawak mines, which were originally worked by
the Chinese settlers, but are now in the hands of a company. Mining
operations are very difficult owing to the enormous rainfall; and it
is only the abundance of cheap Chinese or native labour which renders
it possible in such a climate. Coolies from Hong Kong may be obtained
for seven to eight dollars per month, or for less if their food is
provided; and natives will work sometimes for five to seven dollars
per month. A good Chinaman as a labourer, is however worth two Malays.
The largest rivers in the island are supposed to be the Kinabatangan
and the Pontianak; the former is said to be navigable over two hundred
miles from its mouth, and at the farthest point reached it was fifty
yards wide, and there was seven fathoms of water. Dutch steamers
have ascended a long way inland up the Pontianak which lies south of
Sarawak. Most of the rivers on the north-west coast are very shallow,
having dangerous bars at their mouths; and that at the mouth of the
Brunei was partly blocked by large rocks about the time of the siege
of that city by the English.
Gambling and opium smoking are the bane of the Chinese settlers and
of many of the well-to-do Malays; and of all forms of intemperance
surely this last must be the most degrading and otherwise hurtful
in its effects. The manufactured drug as imported from Benares and
other opium producing districts, is in the form of balls six inches in
diameter, covered with the dried petals of poppy flowers. This product
is the inspissated juice of the opium poppy (Papaver somniferum),
and is of a dark brown or black colour. Before it is used for smoking,
however, it has to be still further prepared by boiling and stirring
in shallow pans over a bright fire; and as the pure product is very
high in price, it is often subjected to adulteration. In our eastern
colonies it is usual to let or farm out the right to prepare and
sell or export opium to an enterprising native or Chinese merchant,
and the revenue thus obtained is often enormous as compared with that
on spirits and tobacco, or other duty-paying goods.
An opium-smoking establishment consists of a few gloomy rooms furnished
with cane-bottomed couches, and on little stands are the pipes,
tiny lamps, and other implements used by the smokers. The smell is
generally sufficient to deter Europeans entering an opium-smoker's
haunt from motives of curiosity; or if under guidance one does venture
into the ill-ventilated and malodorous apartments behind, it is with
feelings of relief that the sweet outer air is again gained. The
smokers lie on the bamboo couches, and a little stand is brought, on
which are one or two flute-like pipes, a pill or two of the drug, and
a little glass lamp. In some cases an attendant manipulates the drug
and fills the pipes; as a rule, however, this is done by the smokers
themselves. There is no mistaking an habitual opium smoker; his eyes
are dull, his complexion sallow, and in general a listless bearing,
with a frame more or less emaciated, betokens his being a degraded
victim. Without a supply of his favourite drug he is miserable;
and when under its influence he is useless. Here he lies holding
a morsel of the black drug on a needle over the flame of the lamp,
twirling it round and round, and toasting it in the flame until the
proper consistence is attained. It is then introduced into the pipe,
and the needle, on being withdrawn, leaves a tiny air-hole through
the mass as it fits like a plug in the bowl. The smoker now holds the
bowl to the lamp, and obtains a light, and then he draws a long whiff
or two as the burning morsel of opium rapidly decreases in the bowl.