They left us
for their homes when we got near the Okeina country. We landed in the
early morning on the beach, where we had breakfast, and then rowed on,
followed by the Kaili-kaili and Arifamu canoes, and eventually landed
again at the station at Tufi, Cape Nelson, about two p.m.
In conclusion I should mention that Mr. Oelrechs, Monckton's assistant,
had heard rumours that we had all been massacred, and he told me that
he had been seriously thinking of gathering together a large army of
friendly natives to go down and avenge us, though I think he would
have found it no easy matter, but, as can be seen, we saved him the
trouble, and so our expedition ended.
Wanderings and Wonders in Borneo.
CHAPTER 12
On the War-Path in Borneo.
The "Orang-utan" and the "Man of the Jungle" - Voyage to Sarawak
- The Borneo Company, Limited - Kuching, a Picturesque Capital -
Independence of Sarawak - I meet the Rajah and the Chief Officials
- Etiquette of the Sarawak Court - The "Club" - The "Rangers" of
Sarawak and their Trophies - Execution by means of the Long Kris -
Degeneracy of the Land Dayaks - Ascent of the Rejang River - Mud
Banks and Crocodiles - Dr. Hose at his Sarawak Home - The Fort at
Sibu - Enormous length of Dayak Canoes - A Brush with Head-Hunters
- Dayak Vengeance on Chinamen - First Impressions of the Sea Dayak,
"picturesque and interesting" - A Head-Hunting raid, Dayaks attack
the Punans - I accompany the Punitive Expedition - Voyage Upstream
- A Clever "Bird Scare" - Houses on the top of Tree-stumps - The
Kelamantans - Kanawit Village - The Fort at Kapit - Capture of a
notorious Head-Hunting Chief - I inspect the "Heads" of the Victims
- Cause of Head-Hunting - Savage Revenge of a Dayak Lover and its
Sequel - Hose's stem Ultimatum - Accepted by the Head-Hunters -
I return to Sibu - A Fatal Misconception.
I had spent about seven months in the forests of British North
Borneo, going many days' journey into the heart of the country, had
made fine natural-history collections and had come across a great
deal of game, including elephant, rhinoceros, bear, and "tembadu" or
wild cattle, huge wild pig and deer of three species being especially
plentiful. But above all I had come across a great many "orang-utan"
(Malay for "jungle-man") and had been able to study their habits. One
of these great apes has the strength of eight men and possesses an
extraordinary amount of vitality. One that I shot lived for nearly
three hours with five soft-nosed Mauser bullets in its body.
But I had not yet seen the REAL jungle-man in his native haunts -
the head-hunting Dayak, as the Dayaks are rarely to be found in North
Borneo, whereas the people on the Kinabatangan River (where I spent
most of my time) were a sort of Malay termed "Orang Sungei" (River
People). So, as I was anxious to see the real head-hunting Dayak,
I determined to go to Sarawak, which is in quite a different part of
Borneo.
