Through Central Borneo An Account Of Two Years' Travel In The Land Of The Head-Hunters Between The Years 1913 And 1917 By Carl Lumholtz
- Page 45 of 489 - First - Home
They Are Shy, But Become
Very Tame In Confinement And Show Much Affection.
A wah-wah, as the animal
is called in this part of the world, will throw his arms around the neck
of his master, and is even more human in his behaviour than the orang-utan,
from which he differs in temperament, being more vivacious and inclined to
mischief.
In a kampong I once saw a young gibbon repeatedly descend into a
narrow inclosure to tease a large pig confined there. The latter, although
three or four times as large, seemed entirely at his mercy and was
submissive and frightened, even when his ears were pulled by the wah-wah.
During my travels in the jungle of Borneo, few were the days in which I was
not summoned to rise by the call of the wah-wah, well-nigh as reliable as
an alarm clock.
My stay here was protracted much longer than I expected on account of rain
and fog, which rendered photographing difficult; one or the other
prevailed almost continuously. Frequently sunlight seemed approaching, but
before I could procure and arrange my camera it had vanished, and light
splashes of rain sounded on my tent. This was trying, but one cannot
expect every advantage in the tropics, which are so beautiful most of the
year that I, for one, gladly put up with the discomforts of a wet season.
Rain-storms came from the north and northeast; from our high point of
view, one could see them approaching and hear the noise of the rain on the
top of the jungle many minutes before they arrived.
Enter page number
PreviousNext
Page 45 of 489
Words from 12048 to 12318
of 132281