33 
(Mangifera), Jamba (Eugenia), and Averrhoa are all more or less 
prized, and the Barangan, a kind of Chestnut, and the Pomegra- 
nate are cultivated. 
Generally speaking, the natives of Borneo pay little attention 
to the fruit-trees: they grow in the jungle, no pains are taken 
to cultivate them. In Penang and Malacca, where they are 
more valued, ‘they yield fruit regularly twice a year, and the 
produce is in greater quantity and of superior quality. 
A few remarks may be made upon the system of Agriculture 
pursued by the Dyaks. It would naturally be supposed that 
where the main subsistence of the population is derived from 
grain, considerable care and labour would be bestowed upon 
rearing it. Such is far from being the case. ‘The soil 
is So productive, that it yields heavy crops with hardly any more 
trouble than that of sowing the seed. It is, however, necessary 
to clear the ground first.from the dense forests, and in this work 
the Dyak is assisted by all his family, the females clearing the 
brushwood, the slaves and boys felling the large trees. A few 
dry days suffice to parch the prostrate trunks, and then they are 
set on fire, and continue to blaze till all is consumed; and the 
frequent rains which visit Borneo, soon quench the flames and 
cool the soil. The charred portions of wood are used for 
making the Pagar or fence, which is always needful to protect 
the future crop from the attacks of deer and wild hogs ; while 
the ashes of the wood are highly valuable in fertilizing the soil. 
It is customary to select the Padi which is to be sown, from the 
very finest and largest grains of the preceeding season. Three 
or four seeds are dropped into each hole by the women and 
children ; who dig the holes with a blunt stick, at distances of 
fifteen to eighteen inches apart every way, and who then cover 
the grain by scraping over a little earth or ashes with their feet. 
Indian Corn (or maize) is often sown sparingly at the same time, 
and in the same ground, with the rice; and as it shoots and 
ripens and is harvested in three months, it causes no injury to 
the main crop. So, likewise, Gourds, Melons, and Cucumbers 
are often grown with the Padi. 
After the field is planted, a hut is always built close by; 
where the owners may live while the crop requires weeding and 
during the period of harvest, a 
Six or seven months from sowing, the Padi is fit to be 
gathered; but as all the ears do not ripen together, as m a 
European corn-field, so they are severally cut off, day by day, 
till the whole are gathered; and the process of rubbing out the 
grain proceeds continually, till all is secured. In small fields, 
