Leaving the coast of New Guinea, the _Dugong_ stood across to the Aru
Islands, which Mr Hooker was anxious to visit. I may as well say that
the dugong is a large fish found in these waters, from ten to twelve
feet in length, of the whale species. They swim in flocks, often coming
into shallow water.
The natives prize them for food. We speared one, and got it on board;
and we all agreed, when the fish was cooked, that we had seldom tasted a
more delicate dish. However, the look of the dugong is not attractive.
Mr Hooker told me that the female dugong is remarkable for the
affection which she has for her young, of which she produces only one at
a time. If the young dugong is speared, she will never leave it, but is
sure to be taken also.
We approached the Aru Islands from the southward. The sea between them
and New Guinea is very shallow, considerably under fifty fathoms in many
places. There are about eighty of them, mostly very low, and forming a
chain about a hundred miles in length, and half that distance in width.
They belong to the Dutch. The inhabitants are very mixed. There is a
larger number of Papuans than any other race among the population. Two
or three native Christian schoolmasters have been sent over from Amboyna
to teach the inhabitants. We could just see these islands in the far
distance, when we found ourselves approaching a fleet of large native
boats at anchor. Two or three vessels were also at anchor near them.
With our glasses we could see a number of figures standing up in the
boats, and then suddenly disappearing overboard. Others were seen
climbing up over the sides. What they could be about I could not at
first guess. On pointing them out to Mr Hooker, however, he said at
once that they must be pearl-divers; and as the wind was very light, and
we passed close to them, we had an opportunity of observing their
proceedings. There appeared to be about a dozen men in each boat, half
of whom were evidently, from their want of dress, the divers, while two
other men we took to be the chief and an assistant. A large sugar-loaf
stone was let down overboard by a thick rope. A diver stepped on the
gunwale, holding on by the rope, and apparently placing his toe in a
loop or hole to keep his foot in its place. On the other foot a net was
fastened. With this apparatus the diver began to descend. Before,
however, his head reached the water I saw that he held his nose very
tightly with his hand. This was, I understood, to prevent the water
getting into his nostrils. We calculated that about four from each boat
were down at a time, and we judged that each man remained from two to
three minutes below the water. Up he came again at the end of that
time, apparently very little exhausted, although he must have been
making active exertions to collect the shells. After he had come to the
top, the net containing the oysters was drawn up, and in that time he
had collected from a hundred to a hundred and fifty.
We watched them with great interest, and were anxious to procure some of
the oysters, but the chiefs would not sell them; indeed, they all belong
to merchants who have rented the fishing for the season. Some of the
men, we observed, suffered far more than others, and discharged water
from their mouths and ears and nostrils, and some even blood; but,
notwithstanding this, the same men were ready to go down again when
their turn came. We learned that most of them will make from forty to
fifty plunges in one day, and that a few of the most experienced and
strongest remain down nearly five minutes. Their greatest danger is
from the ground shark, which lies in wait at the bottom. However, some
of these men will face even the shark, with knives in their hands, and
come off victorious. To secure themselves still further, some of the
boats carry conjurers or priests on board, who, by their incantations,
are supposed to preserve them from the attacks of the shark. Of course,
if a diver is picked off by a shark, the conjurer asserts that he has
not properly obeyed his directions, and thus does not lose his credit.
The saw-fish is another of the diver's foes, more dangerous, because
more difficult to attack than the shark.
The merchants have to keep a very strict look-out on the divers on their
return to the shore, as frequently when the oyster is in the boat, and
left alive undisturbed for some time, it opens its shell. A pearl may
then easily be discovered, and, by means of a piece of wood, the shell
be prevented from again closing till the diver has an opportunity of
picking out the prize. Sometimes they will even swallow the pearls to
conceal them. As soon as the boats arrive on the shore the oysters are
put in holes or pits dug in the ground to the depth of about two feet,
fenced carefully round to guard them from depredation. Mats are first
spread below them to prevent them touching the earth. Here the oysters
are left to die and rot. As soon as they have passed through a state of
putrefaction and become dry, they can be easily opened without the
danger of injuring the pearl, which might be the case if they were
opened when fresh. The shell is then carefully examined for pearls.
Sometimes one is found in the body of the mollusc itself, but it is
generally in the shell. We afterwards, on going on shore, had a
specimen of the horrid odour which arises from these pits, but the
people who are accustomed to it do not appear to suffer; indeed, we saw
people groping about on the sands where the oyster pits had existed, and
learned that they were seeking for stray oysters, frequently pearls of
some value being thus discovered.
Emily and Grace, as well as Oliver and I, took great interest in
watching the proceedings I have described. I asked Mr Hooker how
pearls come to exist.
"Oh, I have read somewhere," exclaimed Emily, "that they are produced by
a kind of dew which falls from heaven into the salt water, where the
oyster swallows it, when it hardens and forms the beautiful white object
we call a pearl."
"A very poetical notion, Miss Emily," observed Mr Hooker; "but in
reality pearls are identical with the substance which we call
mother-of-pearl, which lines the shell of the oyster. It is, indeed,
the result of disease. When any substance intrudes into the shell the
animal puts forth a viscous liquor, which agglomerates and hardens till
the pearl is formed. It is said, indeed, in some places, that the
divers pierce the shells of the oysters, and thus increase the number of
pearls. It has also been discovered that oysters which have been
pierced by a certain small marine worm have invariably pearls within
them. The oyster, to defend itself from the worm, covers the hole with
a substance which becomes as hard as the shell, and brilliant as
mother-of-pearl."
A breeze springing up towards evening, we proceeded on our voyage,
followed by the boats, which also shaped a course for the Aru Islands.
In the course of the next day we came in sight of a small rocky island
with high cliffs, off which we espied a couple of Chinese junks at
anchor. As the island was not much out of our course, we stood towards
it, keeping the lead going for fear of reefs. The water, however, was
deep close up to the rocks. The cliffs completely overhung the sea, and
we observed within them numerous hollows and caverns. On getting
nearer, we saw that several boats belonging to the junks were lying
directly under the cliffs. As the wind fell, we came to an anchor, for
the sea over which we were now sailing was so shallow, that we could
anchor in calm weather in almost any part of it.
A boat was lowered, and Mr Hooker invited us to accompany him. As we
passed near the Chinese junk the crew hailed us, and Mr Hooker, who
understood a little Chinese, remarked that they seemed very angry with
us.
"They think, probably, that we have come to search for edible birds'
nests, which they themselves are now collecting," he observed.
"Edible birds' nests?" exclaimed Emily and Grace together. "Do you mean
to say, Mr Hooker, by that, that there are birds' nests fit to eat?"
"The Chinese not only think them fit to eat, but esteem them great
delicacies," observed Mr Hooker. "These junks have come all the way
from China to collect them, and if they manage to get back without being
plundered by pirates, or sent to the bottom by storms, they will make an
enormous profit by the voyage."
Mr Hooker hailed the junk in return, and told the men that they need
not be alarmed; that we did not come to interfere with them, but only
prompted by curiosity to see what they were about. As we got nearer we
saw the entrance to a cavern, into which we pulled. A far from pleasant
odour issued from it, while ahead there was an inky darkness, which the
keenest eye could not penetrate. As we proceeded, however, we observed
a bright light coming from the interior, which showed us a boat with a
couple of Chinese in her, one of whom was holding a torch; while another
man, by means of a ladder, was mounting up a narrow ledge of rock on the
side. Overhead huge bats flitted round us, while on every side the tiny
chirp of innumerable birds was taken up and echoed from seemingly a
thousand voices throughout the cavern. Above the head of the Chinese
appeared a number of nests, something in the shape of large deep spoons
without handles, split in half longitudinally, smaller than the ordinary
swallow's nest. They were placed, without any order apparently, on
every spot where a slight projection of the rock afforded a foundation.
The Chinese, like their friends on board the junk, began to abuse us for
coming to interfere with their occupation. Mr Hooker, however, soon
pacified them, and offered them some money for a few of the nests, that
we might examine them. This brought them at once into good humour, and
they very readily sold us a dozen or more of the nests, though I thought
the price for birds' nests a very high one. A number of birds like
swallows were flying in and out of the cavern. They had the flight of
swallows; indeed, Mr Hooker said they were a species of swallow. They
were about the size of robins or sparrows; their breasts white, their
wings grey, and their backs and the feathers of their tails shining
black. On examining the nests which we had purchased, we found that
they were composed of a gelatinous substance something like isinglass.
"This is the substance," Mr Hooker told us, "that the Chinese make into
broth. They are packed, however, just as they are cut from the rock,
and carried to China. There they are cleansed from all extraneous
substances, and are then boiled or stewed, every particle of dirt being
thus more completely removed; and then, with a mixture of spices, they
make a transparent, delicate-looking jelly, although, without the
spices, they have little or no flavour."
"But where can they obtain this jelly-like substance?" asked Emily.
"I believe it is produced from a mollusc of some sort, on which the
birds feed. When they require to build their nests, they disgorge the
gelatinous portion for the purpose; and as this substance possesses the
nutritive qualities of animal matter, I have little doubt that it is
produced from these molluscs," said Mr Hooker.
Not only within the cavern, but on all available and tolerably sheltered
spots outside, we saw a number of the sea-swallows' nests. We pulled
close under one cliff, where we could distinguish clearly a bird sitting
in its nest--we concluded on its eggs--and looking very much at its
ease. Another little bird was standing watching its nest. We supposed
therefore that its young had been hatched; and as they were in an
inaccessible part of the cliff, we hoped they would escape the
Chinaman's grasp.
As we had given a good price for the first nests, the Chinese willingly
sold us another dozen, with which, wishing them a successful
bird's-nesting expedition, we returned on board the _Dugong_. The
Malays assert that the bird feeds upon insects and other minute
creatures floating on the surface of the sea; and on further examining
the nests, we perceived long filaments resembling very fine vermicelli,
coiled one part over the other, without any regularity, and glued
together by transverse rows of the same material. Mr Hooker told us
that the trade in birds' nests employs a large amount of capital and
men. However, the loss of life arising from accidents and exposure is
very great. It has been asserted that, on an average, two out of every
five men employed in bird's-nesting meet with a violent death. In China
a "_catty_" or one pound and a quarter English, of the best nests, sells
at about 9 pounds sterling. Their value depends chiefly upon their
translucent whiteness. Those which have not been lined or used by the
birds obtain the highest prices.
Frau Ursula made a small dish of a few of the birds' nests, which, when
first put before us, were perfectly tasteless. When, however, she had
added certain seasoning, it was pronounced as delicate as any food could
be. The Chinese use them chiefly for thickening their soups and
ragouts.
The sea-swallow is found along the northern coast of Australia, as well
as on the rocks and islands of the sea which we were now navigating. A
large number of Chinese junks come every year to procure the nests,
which are greatly prized in China.
As we neared the Aru Islands we passed close to a number of boats at
anchor, the people from which were continually jumping overboard,
diving, and returning to the surface with some creatures in their hands.
As on the previous day, the wind was light, and we were able to
accompany Mr Hooker, and pulled off in the boat to see what they were
about.
"What can they be getting?" I asked.
"The creatures the natives are collecting are the _holothurians_, or
sea-cucumbers," answered the naturalist. "There are a great many
species of these creatures; but, I believe, those found on banks of
coral sand are the most valued."
Emily and Grace, however, when they saw the creatures, could not help
expressing exclamations of disgust at their appearance. They were like
gigantic slugs, or long black bags with frills at the top. Mr Hooker
purchased a basket full of the creatures, which he wished to examine
more at his leisure.
"But of what use can those ugly things be?" asked Emily, as we pulled
back to the vessel.
"Our omnivorous friends the Chinese would be very much surprised at your
asking the question," answered Mr Hooker. "They look upon them as one
of their most delicate articles of food, though greatly inferior to the
birds' nests we found yesterday. I see it stated that from Macassar
alone these creatures are shipped to China to the value of 150,000
pounds; and this is only a very small portion of those used, not only by
the Chinese, but the natives of many other parts of the shores of those
seas. When taken on shore, their intestines are removed, and they are
then boiled in sea-water: in some places with the leaves of the papaw,
and in others with the bark of the mangrove-tree, which gives them a
bright red colour. After they have been boiled, they are buried in the
ground till the next day, when they are spread out to dry in the sun.
They are now considered fit for shipment to China, to which the larger
number are sent. In some places, however, they are not buried, but
smoked over the fire on a framework formed of bamboo. The Chinese make
them into soups, sometimes boiling pieces of sugar-cane with them, which
is said to neutralise their rank flavour."
Sailing round the north end of the group, we approached its capital, or
chief trading settlement, situated off the north-west end. It is called
Dobbo. Just as we came off it we sighted a Dutch man-of-war brig, and
stood towards her. The wind was light, and she had, apparently,
fishing-lines overboard. Mr Hooker hailed her, and asked her where she
was bound for. Her commander, who spoke English, replied, "For
Ternate."
"How fortunate!" I exclaimed. "We can then write to Captain Davenport,
and tell him of our safety."
The commander at once politely offered to convey a letter. "He might
however," he observed, "be some little time on the passage, as he was in
search of pirates, whose vessels had lately been heard of in those seas,
and had committed depredations on the islands under protection of the
Dutch."
We all hurried down into the cabin to write our letters, as, of course,
I was anxious to give an account of what had occurred to my kind friend.
Emily wished to write to Mrs Davenport, as did also Grace to her
mother. As there was not much time, we described our adventures as
briefly as possible. Mr Hooker had proposed to proceed through the
Java Seas to Singapore; while Captain Davenport had arranged, should he
be able to obtain a vessel, to go there by way of the Sooloo
Archipelago, round the north of Borneo. On returning on deck we saw a
great commotion on board the brig--all the sailors rushing aft, and
hauling away at a rope overboard. In a short time the snout of a huge
fish appeared above the water, struggling violently, and it seemed very
likely he would break away. "A shark! a shark!" cried our men. I had
scarcely supposed so enormous a creature existed. He was fully
twenty-six feet long, and looked capable of swallowing not only a man's
leg, but the whole of his body at a gulp. It made me shudder at the
thought of falling overboard, and I felt thankful that while struggling
in the water no such monster had found me out. "O Walter! how
terrible!" exclaimed Emily. The same idea seemed to have crossed her
mind. One of the officers stood, harpoon in hand, ready to strike the
creature as he was drawn up under the vessel's counter. A "whip" was
immediately rigged, and the crew hauling away, the shark, in spite of
his struggles, was hoisted up on deck. Scarcely had he reached it,
however, than we saw the crew scattering right and left; and it looked
as if he had taken the deck from them, so violent were the lashes he
gave with his tail as he floundered up and down, and turned and twisted
on every side. At length the most daring of the men returned aft, armed
with capstan bars and hatchets; but it was not till after many blows,
and jumping and leaping to get out of the way of the monster's tail,
that he was seen to lie quiet on the deck.
I then went in the boat with our despatches on board the brig. The
commander received me very politely, and undertook to deliver them. He
warned us to keep a sharp look-out for pirates, as our brig being only
slightly armed, they were very likely to attack us should we meet them.
He kindly offered me some slices of the shark; but I laughingly declined
the gift, saying that we were going on shore, where we might find plenty
of beef and mutton. He laughed, however, at that notion, and observed
that we were more likely to find pig and kangaroo, as beef and mutton
were articles unknown in that region. I bid him and his officers
farewell, and returned to the _Dugong_, I felt greatly relieved at the
thought that Captain Davenport would now hear of our safety, and hoped
before long to meet him and his kind wife at Singapore. I told Mr
Hooker that I had been offered some of the shark's flesh, but had
declined receiving it.
"Had he presented a Chinese with the fins, he would have been
overwhelmed with gratitude, as they are considered almost as delicate
morsels as the edible birds' nests," said Mr Hooker. "The creature in
many parts is caught for the sake of his fins alone, which are sent to
China in large quantities, where they are used in the same way that the
birds' nests and tripang are employed, though they rank next to birds'
nests in value. They are of the same gelatinous consistency, and are
made into soups and ragouts."
Dobbo, being exposed, to the sea-breezes, is healthy, and a good
anchorage is found close to it. The place presented an animated
appearance, as traders from all parts of the archipelago assemble there.
The buildings they inhabited were not, however, pretentious, being
composed of bamboo and reeds; while many of the traders considered
clothes somewhat superfluous. On the shore a number of prows were
hauled up and being refitted for sea. Caulkers were at work on some;
painters on others, who were covering them with a thick white lime
plaster, making them look very clean and bright. Sailmakers, who
looked, however, more like mat-makers, were at work in some places. The
tripang--black ugly lumps--was being exposed to the sun to be prepared
for loading. In another spot people were busy tying up bundles of
mother-of-pearl shell. Carpenters were engaged in squaring timber for
repairing vessels; while boats from the islands of Goram and Ceram were
unloading their cargoes of sago-cake, with which the traders supply
themselves for their homeward voyage. We were amused with the vast
number of different cockatoos, lories, and parrots, which were secured
by strings on bamboo perches in front of the numerous reed huts, all
chattering and talking together, as if carrying on some important
consultation; while beautiful metallic-green or white fruit-pigeons were
uttering their pleasing coos in all directions. These people are
evidently fond of tame creatures, for we saw several beautiful little
kangaroos hopping about, quite as tame and as elegant as fawns. Young
cassowaries also, striped with black and brown, ran about as tame as
barn-door fowls. This is a wingless bird, the body of which is about
double the size of that of a large turkey, but its long legs make it
five or six feet in height. It is covered with long, coarse, black,
hair-like feathers. The skin of the neck is bare, and is of a bright
blue and red. Instead of wings it has a group of horny black spines,
like porcupine quills. The species I have described is found in the
neighbourhood of the island of Ceram. Mr Hooker told us that it feeds
chiefly on fallen fruits, and on insects or Crustacea. The female lays
from three to five large eggs of a shagreen-green colour, upon a bed of
leaves. The male and female sit alternately for about a month upon
them. The articles we saw exposed for sale in the fair were chiefly
pearl shell and the tripang, known also as the _beche-de-mer_; as also
tortoise-shell, edible birds' nests, pearls, and birds of paradise, or
rather their stuffed skins. The Malay traders had brought for sale, or
to exchange with these articles, guns, swords, knives, choppers,
tobacco, plates and basins, handkerchiefs, _sarongs_, calicoes, and
arrack in bottles. Tea, coffee, sugar, and wine, were also to be seen;
and even fancy goods, such as china ornaments, pipes and purses;
umbrellas, razors, and looking-glasses; indeed, it is curious what a
number of articles are found in this out-of-the-way spot, and many of
them costing no more than they did in England.
These articles are exchanged for English calico, crockery, cutlery,
fire-arms, gunpowder, gongs, and elephants' tusks. They not only buy
muskets, but small brass guns, on which they set a high value. They
also prize tobacco for chewing. We always slept on board, and the sound
of the Malays' songs came across the water to a late hour of the night.
The musical instruments we heard were tom-toms, Jews'-harps, and
frequently fiddles. The Malays are a merry, vivacious people, and fond
of several games. The most interesting was a game at football, which
was generally played in the evening. The ball is small, made of ratan,
hollow, elastic, and light. One of the players dances it for a short
time on his foot, sometimes on his arm or thigh, and then striking it
with the hollow of his foot, sends it flying high into the air. A
player from the opposite side rushes forward, catches it on his foot in
the same way, and returns it. The rule appeared to be that the ball
should never be touched by the hand, but that the arms, shoulder, or
knee may be employed. Far less satisfactory was their custom of
cock-fighting. Steel spurs are used, as they were formerly in civilised
England; and the spectators, who stand round in a ring, show their
savage character by their fearful yells and leaps as they see their
cocks likely to win or lose.
We saw shells used here for every purpose. Some of the magnificent
volute shells were employed as baskets; while gigantic helmet shells,
suspended by ratan handles, formed the vessels in which fresh water was
brought from house to house.
I was delighted to find that Mr Hooker had resolved to make an
excursion into the interior of the mainland for the sake of obtaining
some birds of paradise. As the fatigue might be too great for the young
ladies, they remained on board under charge of Frau Ursula; Oliver and I
only accompanying him, with two native hunters, a trustworthy guide, and
an interpreter who spoke Dutch. The natives of these islands, I should
say, are Papuans, and in some parts are said to be very savage. They
are expert archers, and are never seen without their bows and arrows.
They shoot pigs and kangaroos with them, as well as all sorts of birds.
We met some of the natives who came from the south islands, who were
even more savage in appearance and manners than the rest. They wore a
number of rude ornaments--one of comb, shaped like a horse-shoe, on
their foreheads, the ends resting on the temples. The end of this
ornament is fastened into a piece of wood, plated in front with tin;
above it waves a plume of feathers of a cock's tail.
In the Aru Islands are found a number of birds of paradise, some,
indeed, of the most beautiful, which I will describe shortly.