90 The Gardens of the Sim. [ch. v. 



to be made into toddy, a drink of which the hill villagers 

 are very fond. At last a couple of young nuts were forth- 

 coming, and a dash of brandy in each gave us a most 

 refreshing draught. As the rain ceased, we decided to 

 proceed to Bungol, the next village along our route. To 

 this one of our guides, Pangeran Raman of Labuan, — 

 an artful old sweep — loudly objected, urging that the 

 Tawaran would be flooded — that we should not reach 

 Bungol at all that night, as it would be dark long ere we 

 could do so — adding, that there was no intervening rest- 

 ing-place. I was used to these excuses, and determined 

 to go on, to which Mr. Veitch also agreed. Our guides, 

 who had come here from Si Nilau, refused to go further, 

 nor would any of the Kalawat people go to Bungol with 

 us as guides, but at last one of them pointed out the 

 right road for us to take, and I and Mr. Veitch set out 

 along the rocky path alone. We rested on the hill above 

 the village, and then Pangeran Raman and our two ser- 

 vants, or "boys," joined us, and said the men refused to 

 come on. This did not deter us, and we plunged down 

 the hill-path and through one or two clearings, in which 

 sweet potatoes, maize, and tobacco grew luxuriantly. 

 Then down a greasy cla}^ path, embowered with bamboos, 

 tall canes and jungle, until at last the Tawaran was 

 reached in the valley below, rushing and boiling among 

 the smooth boulders in its bed. 



We sat on the banks of the stream to rest. Here a 

 pretty little palm about a yard high formed strong tufts 

 and patches, its roots being laved by the stream below. 

 Its pinnate leaves were graceful, and had a distinct 

 grassy appearance. Draping trees close by the river 

 also we found a species of vanilla in bloom. It had 

 large waxy flowers of a creamy white colour, the lip 

 having a five-lobed hairy crest of a dark purple-brown 



