no.1631. VOCABULARY OF MALAYSIA* BASKETWORK MASON. 3 



The structural parts — bottom, body, framework, border, cover, car- 

 rying and other added .portions, have relation lo peoples who by rea- 

 son of climate wear little clothing and to whom the saving of an 

 ounce in load is an advantage. 



The principal claim to attention and interest, however, is the in- 

 finite variety of technical processes and their combinations, including 

 rootwork, stemwork, and Leafwork; barkwork, bast work, skinwork, 

 and spathework; loomless weaving under many names; coiling in 

 great varieties; besides winding, lacing, plaiting, braiding, netting, 

 knotwork, and joinerwork, in bewildering technic. These for the 

 purposes of proper classification should be examined carefully and 

 described in unmistakable terms, which may be employed in a com- 

 parative study of the Abbott specimens with others from neighboring 

 peoples and from the world at large. While many of the processes 

 have a general resemblance in the two hemispheres, the special prob- 

 lems are quite different. The American woman in each piece of 

 work follows one general plan throughout. To borrow a word from 

 natural history, her work is not so highly organized, although the 

 manipulation is quite as skilful. 



In the American examples, bottoms and borders are indeed some- 

 what varied. The Porno woman does know several ways of starting 

 her work, and she gets at it sooner and more gracefully. The Tlinkil 

 weaver is a genius in borders, and yet her materials restrict her in 

 her motifs." The Abbott baskets, made of rattan, bamboo, and other 

 woody substances, have the foot, if present, made in all sorts of 

 ways — a part of the bottom and separate from it. The bottom in 

 such a basket is conspicuously distinct from the body, has not the 

 same outline, and is definitely bounded. The outline of the body is 

 round, or at least curved. When the active textile elements of the 

 bottom pass up to the warp, or passive part of the body, the technic 

 changes and also the name. With the softer elements, the same 

 holds true. The Malaysian has greater variety. The checkers, twills, 

 rhomboid, hexagon, and octagon work greatly excel the American in 

 their development and elaboration. 



Among the special peoples visited by Doctor Abbott in making the 

 collections here described are the following: 



Andamanese. (See Mincopi.) 



Battaks: Natives of Sumatra. 



Chowpal: Negritos of Trong, Lower Siam. 



Dyaks: Various Malay tribes of Borneo. 



Enganese: Of Engano Island, west of Sumatra. 



Jakuns: Of Rumpin River, Pahang, Malay Peninsula. 



"See G. T. Emmons, The Basketry of the Tlinkit. .Mem. Amer. Mus. Nat. 

 Hist., .New York. U>03, III, Pt. 2. 



