IN THE MOLUCCAS. 2!i5 



no special dress except on Sundays. To-day avg liud the 

 honour of seeing the Potoutate of AVui proceed to church in 

 state, in his Hack trousers — wliich, being rather short, disphiyed 

 a good deal of white cotton stocking — black ^swaHow-tail * 

 coat made for a stouter and taller mdividual than hlinsi^lf, 

 probably his father, and a beaver hat, tall and narrow, of an 



ancient pattern, Mliilo over his head a youth carried his 

 gilded state umbrella. The whole population attended the 

 service, all of them in black calico attire ; but their reliirion 

 seems to lie on them like an awesome thraldom. 



June 8th. Began packing up in order to return to Amboina 

 in time for the Timor-laut steamer of the IGth. We have had 



a delightful sojourn here notwithstanding the heavy rains that 

 set in soon after our arrival, Mhicli j)revented me much to my 



regret, from reaching the summit of Silahutu. Thu later hours 

 of every afternoon have been looked forward to by us both as 

 the most pleasant of the day, when the hunters' spoils were 

 displayed to be admired, examined and labelled. Among but- 

 terflies we have added a few more of the fine Omiiliopfera 

 found at Paso, numbers of "Swallow-tails," chief among them 

 the deep blue Papdio iihjsses, species of Ilehomoia and Pieris, 

 Charades euryohis^ and many *^ Blues"; among beetles we 

 have added to our collection many species of all the finest 

 families, Longicorns, Eose-chafers, Tiger-beetles and golden 

 Biiprestiilse ; among birds may be mentioned the beautiful 

 raquet-tailed Kingfishers of the genus TanT/sijotera, which I 

 w^as rather surprised to find in large chattering cunubories in 

 the tops of high trees ; Maleos, whose terra-cotta eggs are 

 eagerly hunted for by the natives as a table luxury; Mega- 

 lurus amboinensh^ an isabelline Keed-warbkr found chirping 

 among the tall Kussu grass; bright orange Thi^^kdieads 

 {Pachjceplictla), Lories, and among our favourite j)igeon8 num- 

 bers of the beautiful black and cream-white nutn^og-eatera 

 Qll/ristickora licoJor) of which the little islet of Pulu Pumbo, 

 lying a few miles off the coast, is a densely populated colum- 

 barium. The most interesting of the plants are species of 

 Myrmecodia, on which I have been able to continue the observa- 

 tions begun at ivosala in Java (see pages 79-82). 



To-day I had a long talk witli the rajah and some of the 

 people of the neighbouring Mahomedan village, from Mhom I 



