Many Of The Women And
Children Had Never Seen A White Man Before, And Were Very
Sceptical As To My
Being the same colour all over, as my face.
They begged me to show them my arms and body, and
They were so
kind and good-tempered that I felt bound to give them some
satisfaction, so I turned up my trousers and let them see the
colour of my leg, which they examined with great interest.
In the morning early we continued our descent along a fine
valley, with mountains rising 2,000 or 3,000 feet in every
direction. The little river rapidly increased in size until we
reached Serma, when it had become a fine pebbly stream navigable
for small canoes. Here again the upheaved slatey rock appeared,
with the same dip and direction as in the Sadong River. On
inquiring for a boat to take me down the stream, I was told that
the Senna Dyaks, although living on the river-banks, never made
or used boats. They were mountaineers who had only come down into
the valley about twenty years before, and had not yet got into
new habits. They are of the same tribe as the people of Menyerry
and Sodos. They make good paths and bridges, and cultivate much
mountain land, and thus give a more pleasing and civilized aspect
to the country than where the people move about only in boats,
and confine their cultivation to the banks of the streams.
After some trouble I hired a boat from a Malay trader, and found
three Dyaks who had been several times with Malays to Sarawak,
and thought they could manage it very well. They turned out very
awkward, constantly running aground, striking against rocks, and
losing their balance so as almost to upset themselves and the
boat - offering a striking contrast to the skill of the Sea Dyaks.
At length we came to a really dangerous rapid where boats were
often swamped, and my men were afraid to pass it. Some Malays
with a boatload of rice here overtook us, and after safely
passing down kindly sent back one of their men to assist me. As
it was, my Dyaks lost their balance in the critical part of the
passage, and had they been alone would certainly have upset the
boat. The river now became exceedingly picturesque, the ground on
each side being partially cleared for ricefields, affording a
good view of the country. Numerous little granaries were built
high up in trees overhanging the river, and having a bamboo
bridge sloping up to them from the bank; and here and there
bamboo suspension bridge crossed the stream, where overhanging
trees favoured their construction.
I slept that night in the village of the Sebungow Dyaks, and the
next day reached Sarawak, passing through a most beautiful
country where limestone mountains with their fantastic forms and
white precipices slot up on every side, draped and festooned with
a luxuriant vegetation. The banks of the Sarawak River are
everywhere covered with fruit trees, which supply the Dyaks with
a great deal of their food.
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