house, and asked for food and shelter. The treatment they received was horrible in the extreme. The Kayans bound the young men, and after breaking their arms and legs, handed them over to the women, who slowly despatched them by hacking them to pieces with little knives.
The Muruts inhabit the Limbang and Trusan Rivers. Their language and customs differ entirely from those of the Sea Dyaks.
The Ukits, Bukitans (name probably derived from Malay bukit, “a hill”), and Punans are races which inhabit the far interior, and lead a wandering life in the Kayan country. They do not build houses, but only make temporary shelters for themselves between the buttresses of large forest trees. They live by hunting, and are expert in the use of the sumpit, or blow-pipe.
The Seru are a small and fast dying out race. There used to be a little village of the Seru near my house in Kalaka, where some forty of them lived in a long house, similar to that built by the Dyaks. The men wore the Dyak dress, but the women were dressed like the Malays, and wore a long petticoat reaching to the ankles (sarong), and a long jacket (kabayah). They planted paddy, but did not depend entirely on this for their livelihood. The men were great hunters, and would salt and sell the wild pig they killed. They were a very secluded people, and kept very much to themselves. They were not Mohammedans, and did not seem to have any of the religious rites peculiar to the Dyaks. They told me they believed in a good Spirit and a bad one, but their religious ideas were very vague.
Besides the tribes already mentioned, there are two distinct races of Dyaks in Borneo—the Sea Dyaks and the Land Dyaks. The former live by the sea and on the banks of the rivers, though many of them may be found far inland. The Land Dyaks inhabit the interior of the country, and are not so numerous or energetic as the Sea Dyaks. The language and traditions of these two divisions of the Dyak race are quite distinct.
The Dyaks spoken of in this work are the Sea Dyaks. Their home is in Sarawak—the country governed by Rajah Brooke—though they often travel far afield, and they are to be found in large numbers on the banks of the rivers of Sarawak—the Batang, Lupar, Saribas, Krian, and Rejang.
The Dyak is of rather greater stature than that of the Malay, though he is considerably shorter than the average European. The men are well-proportioned, but slightly built. Their form suggests activity, speed, and endurance rather than great strength, and these are the qualities most required by dwellers in the jungle. Their movements are easy and graceful, and their carriage erect. The women are generally smaller than the men. They have neat figures, and are bright, cheerful, and good-looking in their youth, but they age very soon.
The colour of their skin varies considerably, not so much between one tribe and another as in different parts of the country. Generally speaking, those who reside in the interior of the country, on the banks of the upper reaches of the rivers, are fairer than those who live nearer the sea. This may be due to the deeper shade afforded by old jungle, and the bathing in and drinking of the water of the clear, gravel-bedded streams. Their colour varies from a dark bronze to a light brown, with a tinge of yellow. Their eyes are black or dark brown, clear and bright, with quick intelligence and good temper. Their mouths are generally ill-shapen and disfigured by excessive chewing of sireh and betel-nut, a habit much indulged in by both men and women.
In dress great alterations have resulted from foreign influence, and the Dyaks who live near the towns wear the trousers and coat of civilized races, but the original style still prevails in the up-country villages.
Three Typical Dyaks
The man on the right is using a seat mat made of the skin of an animal. Sometimes these mats are made of split cane. The Dyak, in his wanderings in the jungle, has often to sit on prickly grass or sharp stones, and a seat mat is a useful part of his attire.
Love of finery is inherent in the young Dyak. The old men are often very shabbily dressed, but the young are more particular. The ordinary male attire consists of a sirat, or waist-cloth, a labong, or headkerchief, and a tikai buret, or seat-mat. The waist-cloth is made of the soft inner bark of a tree, or more frequently of some red or blue cotton cloth. This is one yard wide, and from eight to eighteen feet long, and is twisted round and round their waists, and pulled up tight between the thighs, one end hanging down in front and the other behind. Sometimes this waist-cloth is woven by the Dyak women, and then the end that hangs down in front has an elaborate pattern woven into it. Their head-dress is either a bright-coloured headkerchief, or else a small cap of woven cane, in which feathers and other ornaments are often stuck. The tikai buret, or seat-mat, is made either of the skin of some animal or of cane matting. Its edges are decorated with red and white cloth, and with beads or buttons.
Besides these articles of apparel the men sometimes wear a sleeveless jacket, or klambi. These are often woven by the Dyak women, either from yarn spun from cotton of their own growing or from imported yarn of a finer texture. More often in the present day they are made of cloth of European manufacture. The patterns of the Dyak-woven klambi are various, but those of a particular type can only be worn by men who have succeeded in securing a human head when on the warpath. The lower edge of this jacket is ornamented with beads, shells, and buttons, and bordered by a fringe.
In addition to the attire already mentioned, the men have sometimes a dandong, or shawl, which is thrown over the shoulders. The ornaments worn on the arms and legs are brass rings, which vary among the Dyaks of different districts. Armlets made from sea-shells are very much in favour among some inland tribes. The young men generally wear their hair long, cut in a fringe in front, and either hanging down loose behind, or tucked into their caps.
Tattooing is practised by most of the Dyaks in a greater or less degree. It is confined to the male sex, who often have little patterns tattooed on the forehead, throat-apple, shoulders, or chest.
The dress of the women consists of a petticoat (kain), drawn tightly round the waist and reaching to the knee, and in addition a klambi, or jacket, worn when out of doors. For ornaments the women wear finger-rings, necklaces, earrings, and bracelets, and often a girdle formed of silver coins, or of silver or brass chain. Round the stomach are wound long strips of coloured cane. Among some tribes a peculiar corset, called the rawai, is worn by the women. This is made of small brass rings strung closely together on hoops of rattan, which are connected with one another inside by a network of cane. A few of these hoops are made larger so as to hang loose over the hips. The series that encase the waist, stomach, and chest fit very close. This corset must be very uncomfortable, as the wearer can hardly bend the body at all, especially when it is worn right up to and covering the breasts, as it is done by some young women who can afford such extravagance.
The hair is worn long, and tied in a knot at the back of the head. Some of the women have beautiful raven black hair of great length. Wavy or curly hair is seldom seen.
The teeth are often blackened, as black teeth are considered a sign of beauty. The blackening is done by taking a piece of old cocoanut-shell or of certain woods, and holding it over a hot fire until a black resinous juice exudes. This juice is collected, and while still warm the teeth are coated with it. The front teeth are also frequently filed to a point, and this gives their face a curious dog-like appearance. Sometimes the teeth are filed concavely in front, or else the front teeth are filed down till almost level with the gums. Another curious way of treating the front teeth is to drill a hole in the middle of each tooth, and fix in it a brass stud. I was once present when this operation was in progress. The man lay down with a piece of soft wood between his teeth, and the “dentist” bored a hole in one of his front teeth. The agony the patient endured must have been very great, judging by the look on his face and his occasional bodily contortions. The next thing was to insert the end of a pointed brass wire, which was
