298 Miscellaneous. 
other eastern islands, tortoise-shell holds one of the first places. The 
quantity imported into Singapore sometimes rises above 13,000 and 
sometimes sinks below 7000 lbs., but the average, one year with 
another, is about 10,000lbs. The following account by Mr. 
Vosmaer of its collection by the Orang Bajo of the south-eastern 
peninsula of Celebes will interest our readers. 
The Orang Bajo distinguish four principal kinds of Tortoise, and 
name them Kulitan, Akung, Boko, and Ratu. The first-named is 
the kind which, on account of its costly shell, is the most prized. It 
is the so-named Karet tortoise. The shell or back of this creature 
is covered with thirteen shields or blades, which lie regularly on each 
other in the manner of scales, five on the middle of the back and four 
on the sides ; these are the plates which furnish such costly tortoise- 
shell to art. The edge of the scale or of the back is further covered 
with twenty-five thin pieces joined to each other, which in commerce 
are known under the appellation of feet or noses of the tortoise. ‘The 
value of the tortoise-shell depends on the weight and quality of each 
head, under which expression is understood the collective tortoise- 
shell belonging to one and the same animal, which is the article of 
commerce so much in request both for the Chinese and European 
markets. 
Tortoise-shells which have white and black spots that touch each 
other, and are as much as possible similar on both sides of the blade, 
are, in the eyes of the Chinese, much finer, and are on that account 
more greedily monopolized by them, than those which want this pecu- 
liarity, and are on the contrary reddish, more damasked than spotted, 
possess little white, or whose colours, according to their taste, are 
badly distributed. ‘The caprice of the Chinese makes them some- 
times value single heads at unheard-of prices, namely such as pass 
under the name of white heads, which they also distinguish by pe- 
culiar names. It is almost impossible to give an accurate descrip- 
tion of these kinds, and of their subdivisions, for these depend on 
many circumstances which remain inappreciable to our eyes. It is 
therefore enough for me to remark on this subject, that such heads 
as, possessing the above-named qualities, are very white on the 
blades, and have the outer rim of each blade to the breadth of two 
or three fingers wholly white, and the weight of which amounts to 
24 catties (qualities which are seldom found united), may be valued 
at one thousand guilders and upwards. The feet of the tortoise-shell 
are only destined for the Chinese market ; whenever the two hinder 
pieces are sound and have the weight of + catty or thereabouts, 
which is very seldom the case, they may reach the value of fifty 
guilders and more. The whole shell of a tortoise seldom weighs 
more than three catties, notwithstanding it is asserted that there 
sometimes occur heads of four and five catties. Tortoise-shells are 
also sometimes found, of which the shell, instead of thirteen blades, 
consists of a single undivided blade ; the Orang Bajos call this kind, 
which very seldom occurs, Lojong. 
The Akung alsq; furnishes tortoise- shell (Karet), but the shell 
being thin, and of a poor quality, much less value is attached to it. 
