igi6.] Ri'Ihnson: Vertebrates of Pulau Panjang. fii 



obtaining for us tin in cessar) permits from the local Dutch 

 authorities. We are also indebted to the Resident of Rhiow, 

 who instructed Ins local officers to afford us all the assistance 

 in then power. 



GEOGRAPHICAL. 



Pulau Panjang or Mapor, as it is more generally known 

 by its inhabitants is an island of roughly triangular shape 

 with a greatest length and breadth of about three and a 

 half to four miles, situated in Lat. 104 .50' E. and Long. 

 1 \. about 10 miles from the east coast of Bintang, the 

 straits separating it from that island carrying about twelve 

 fathoms, though a hank with only 6 to 8 fathoms running 

 from the S.E. of Mapor very nearly joins it to the larger 

 island. 



I.\« ept on the north and N.E. corner it is surrounded by 

 a fringing reef of coral of varying breadth, with many 

 outlying "mushrooms." and must therefore he approached 

 with the greatest caution by those not in possession of local 

 knowledge. A b iv on the N.E. corner however, afforded good 

 anchorage in about six fathoms mud and is free from dangers, 

 though the swell that frequently sets in from the East even 

 in the S.W. monsoon m ikes il inconvenient tor small vessels. 

 The surface of the island i- undulating and even rugged 

 on the eastern side, tin: maximum elevation being about 

 [40 ii t. On this side there is -till a good deal of old jungle 

 though much of the bettei timber has been felled by Chinese 

 f.>r exportation to Singapore. In the remaining parts of 

 tin- island most of the available land has in times past been 

 cleared for the planting of gambier and on those plantations 

 being abandoned has relapsed into thickets of Stiaits Rho- 

 dodendron an 1 resam Melastoma and Gleichcnia) very difficult 

 to penetrate. In parts, however, the original forest, which 

 consisted largely of a valuable timber tree {tembusu) [Fngraea 

 fragrans) is taking hold again, the tree mentioned springing 

 up again readily from sti ioIs. 



On the we, tern shore there are. in places, considerable 

 flat areas, largely overgrown with lalang, and it is here, where 

 they art sheltered from the violence of the N.E. monsoon, 

 that the villages of the native inhabitants are found. These 

 people are Orang L ant or Jakun, who under different tribal 

 names are widely spread through the southern portion of 

 the Malayan Peninsula and throughout the Rhio-Lingga 

 Archipelago and portions of the adjacent low lying parts of 

 Sumatra. They are of Proto-Malayan stock, at one time 

 -poke a somewhat peculiar dialect and have only, in compa- 

 ratively recent times, become 1 onv< its to Islam, thpugh they 

 are now loathe to confess that they are othei than Malays 

 proper. In Mapor. where there are probably not more than 

 a hundred individuals at the outside, the) '.una precarious 

 livelihood by fishing during the S.W. monsoon and by 



