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SEVENTEEN YEARS AMONG THE SEA DYAKS OF BORNEO
* * * * * *
_NEW AND RECENT BOOKS_
Cliff Castles and Cave Dwellings of Europe.
By S. BARING-GOULD, M.A., Author of “Family Names and their
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8vo., 12s. 6d. net.
Seventeen Years Among the Sea Dyaks of Borneo.
A Record of Intimate Association with the Natives of the
Bornean Jungles. By EDWIN H. GOMES, M.A., Author of “The Sea
Dyaks of Borneo,” &c. With an Introduction by the Rev. JOHN
PERHAM, formerly Archdeacon of Singapore. With 40 Illustrations
and a Map. Demy 8vo., 16s.
Among the Rajahs and Ryots of Northern India.
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* * * * * *
[Illustration: A DYAK GIRL DRESSED IN ALL HER FINERY TO ATTEND A FEAST
She has in her hair a comb decorated with silver filigree work. Round her
neck is a necklace of beads. The rings round her body are made of hoops
of cane, round which little brass rings are arranged close together so
that none of the cane is visible. These hoops are worn next to the body
above the waist, and over the petticoat below. The silver coins fastened
to this brass corset, and worn as belts round it, are the silver coins of
the country. The petticoat is a broad strip of cloth, sewn together at
the ends and having an opening at the top and bottom. It is fastened at
the waist with a piece of string.]
SEVENTEEN YEARS AMONG THE SEA DYAKS OF BORNEO
A Record of Intimate Association with
the Natives of the Bornean Jungles
by
EDWIN H. GOMES, M.A.
And an Introduction by the Reverend John Perham
Formerly Archdeacon of Singapore
With 40 Illustrations & a Map
London
Seeley & Co. Limited
38 Great Russell Street
1911
TO MY WIFE TO WHOSE HELPFUL ENCOURAGEMENT I OWE MUCH
INTRODUCTION
With the establishment of Rajah Brooke’s government in Sarawak, the
different races of its native population gradually became known to
English people, and at length the Dyakland of Borneo has found a definite
place and shape in the English mind, much as the Zululand of Africa
has done. The Sea Dyak soon appeared in print; travellers mentioned
him, sometimes only as a simple savage; men who have spent some time
in the country, like the late Sir Hugh Low and the late Sir Spenser
St. John, described something of his life; missionary reports had him
in their pages; European residents and civil administrators and others
wrote of him in various papers and periodicals. But most, if not all,
of these accounts were unavoidably brief, partial, and sketchy, for it
did not come within the scope of their purpose to set forth a full and
systematic statement of all things Dyak. Mr. Ling Roth collected all the
notes about Dyaks he could find, from various sources, and published
his harvest of accumulations in two large volumes. It is a monument of
industrious collecting; but his work is that of the scissors rather than
of the pen, a compilation rather than a writing; and in the extracts,
being the productions of various writers at different periods, we see
much overlapping and repetition, and some confusion; and, necessarily,
such a book was too bulky to obtain a general circulation. More recently
Miss Eda Green has given to English readers a little book about Borneo,
wonderful in its general accuracy, and vivid in its descriptions; but
it is meant especially for missionary circles and missionary reading—in
fact, it was written expressly for the Borneo Mission Association, whose
objects it has done much to promote. But it is a book about the Mission
rather than about the Dyaks, and it does not profess to give a complete
account of the entire field of Sea Dyak life.
This is Mr. Gomes’s object, and he attains it. His book is not a mere
personal narrative of life in Sarawak. We have in it a very full,
systematic, and comprehensive description of Sea Dyak life—its works,
thoughts, sentiments, superstitions, customs, religion, beliefs, and
ideals. Our attention is not directed to the magnificent beauties of
Bornean tropical scenery and luxuriant flora, nor to the wonders of the
insect life with which the land simply abounds. Mr. Gomes sees Dyaks,
and Dyaks only, in his mind. The “brown humanity” of the country, not
its natural history, occupies his attention. He knows that humanity
intimately, and writes from the storehouse which he has accumulated
in long years of experience and observation. And he puts all within
manageable compass and volume. His book is, I believe, the first which
contains a complete picture of Sea Dyak life in all its phases, yet in
moderate dimensions. And from my own experience of some twenty years in
Sarawak, I can testify to the truthfulness of every page.
Possibly it is sometimes thought that the missionary is not the best
man to write about the people to whom he appeals; that he may be easily
biassed in one direction or another, and may think too ill or too well
of them, and may allow his judgment to be overcoloured by his religious
purpose. A _little_ experience among the people of any race, especially
where the language is not well known, may easily result in limited
views and imperfect conceptions. But when his residence has extended
over many years, and he knows the language as well as his own; when he
has had constant opportunities of observing their tone and conduct in
every relation of life, and of hearing how they talk and think on every
imaginable subject, and of seeing how they behave at home as well as
abroad—how they bear themselves, not only to an occasional white man whom
they meet, but also to each other in social dealings—when he thus lives
in close touch with them at every point, he cannot but obtain a thorough
understanding of the realities of their lives.
And the Sea Dyaks are generally a very communicative people. They will
willingly give information about every belief and custom, and will
quietly discuss every practice and every event, good or bad; and it needs
only a little patience and sympathy to enable one to get an insight into
the working of their minds, and to realize the true character of their
actions in the struggles, the comedies, or the tragedies of their lives.
Mr. Gomes is thus able to make the Sea Dyak live before us in genuine
colours. We can see this dusky son of the jungle in his beliefs and
fears, which are many, in his work and in his play, in his ugly faults
and amiable virtues, in his weaknesses and in his abilities. And I think
that everyone who reads his pages will feel that henceforth he knows the
Sea Dyak of Sarawak better than he ever knew him before, and will come to
the conclusion that, in spite of his faults, he is a very likeable man.
The Sea Dyaks, then, are worth knowing. They constitute a very valuable
element in the population of Sarawak, not only from their numbers, but
also from their force of character. They are active, hardworking,
industrious, ready to earn an honest penny when they have the chance; and
in their domestic relations are amiable and hospitable towards strangers,
and when treated with civility and sympathy, all their good points come
to the surface. They work hard at rice-planting, which, it is true, is
of a very primitive sort, but it is the best they know, and as good
as that practised by their Mohammedan neighbours, the Malays. If some
simple system of irrigation could be introduced among them, especially
in lowland cultivation, this, their main industry, would be far more
productive than it is, and it would be a real boon to the country at
large. They have adventured upon the cultivation of other products when
the way has been made clear to them, which is an evidence of their
capacity for progress. They penetrate and traverse far-off jungles in
search of indiarubber and gutta-percha to add to their earnings. An
increasing number of them are keen upon book-learning, as Mr. Gomes
points out. They form the Rajah’s soldiers and guards, and are capable
of useful service in subordinate positions as officers. And thus these
people, who were once only known as fighters, pirates, and head-takers,
are now a real influence in the evolution of a better civilization and a
more fruitful era to come in those lands. The civilizing, Christianizing
force no doubt works slowly; but there it is, and, comparing present with
past, we can see it. A large influx of white people of the usual colonist
class would doubtless be too strong for them, and would push them out of
the way; but with a favourable chance, which they now have, of working
out a salvation for themselves, I think the Sea Dyaks have a better
future before them than Mr. Gomes appears to anticipate.
It is interesting to watch the process of a gradual enlightening going
on among such a race when brought into contact with higher civilization
and better religion. Mr. Gomes mentions some instances of its expression.
Perhaps I may add an illustrative instance which occurred in my own
experiences, many years ago. One night I was at anchor with a Dyak crew
on the Saribas River, waiting for the turn of the tide. About 3 a.m. I
was awakened by a frightened cry from one of the crew: “Antu! antu!”
(A spirit, a spirit!). Thinking myself lucky at last in a chance of
actually seeing one of those invisible beings whom Dyaks dread so much,
I pushed my head from under the mosquito-curtain, and looked out, and
beheld a comet brightly shining not far above the horizon. Presently I
heard a school-lad say: “That’s not a spirit; it’s only a star with a
tail. I have learnt about it.” There was the old superstition and the
new knowledge struggling together, a symbol of what is going on in other
departments of Dyak thought and belief—the working of that which, it is
to be hoped, will issue in a higher and an improved life for the race.
Our Author’s book will evoke a lively interest in such an improvement
in Dyakland, and will inspire a deeper sympathy with every progressive
effort towards it.
In going over Mr. Gomes’s pages my thoughts have often gone back to days,
now long past, when he and I were workers together among the people of
whom he writes so sympathetically, and many a long-forgotten incident has
come back to mind; and it is a pleasure to write a simple word of welcome
to this product of his pen, and to express a conviction that his book is
just what was wanted to give the public a clear and adequate conception
of one of the leading races which have been ruled over by the “Two White
Rajahs” of Sarawak.
JOHN PERHAM.
CHARD, _December, 1910_.
AUTHOR’S NOTE
I wish to express my thanks to Sir Clement Kinloch-Cooke, M.P., for
the preface which he has kindly contributed to this volume, and for
allowing me to reproduce my translations of Sea Dyak legends which
appeared in the _Empire Review_; to Bishop Hose, under whom I worked for
seventeen years among the Sea Dyaks of Sarawak, for allowing me to use
his excellent article on “The Contents of a Dyak Medicine-chest”; to the
Rev. John Perham, formerly Archdeacon of Singapore, with whom I worked
in Sarawak for some years, for his introduction, and also for allowing
me to make use of the scholarly papers which he wrote for the _Journal
of the Straits Branch of the Asiatic Society_, on Sea Dyak Religion and
Folklore; and to the Rev. David Steele-Morris for going through the
manuscript and making many useful suggestions.
I am indebted to His Highness the Rajah of Sarawak for permission to
insert his portrait; to Dr. Charles Hose for his great kindness in
allowing me to use his excellent photographs, and also to the Society
for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts for lending me one
of their blocks; to Messrs. Bassano, of Bond Street, and Messrs. G. R.
Lambert and Co., of Singapore, whose photographs I am kindly permitted
to reproduce; to Mr. Hewitt, formerly curator of the Sarawak Museum; and
Mr. Ha Buey Hon, of Kuching, who have also been so good as to lend me
photographs.
To all these, as well as to many unmentioned friends who have helped me
to write this book, I offer my sincere thanks.
EDWIN H. GOMES.
UPPER NORWOOD, _December, 1910_.
CONTENTS
PAGES
CHAPTER I
SARAWAK—SIR JAMES BROOKE
Bornean jungles—A picture from the past—Unsettled life—Sudden
attacks—Head-hunting—Pirates—Malay pirates—Dyak pirates—Sir
James Brooke—the _Royalist_—Rajah Muda Hassim—Rajah of
Sarawak—Suppression of piracy and head-hunting—Captain
Keppel—Visit to England, 1847—Introduction of Christian
mission—Sir Charles Brooke 21-32