4-12 TRAVELS IN THE EAST LVDIAN ARCHIPELAGO. 



that this place is called Liibu Sikeping. Tliey now 

 build houses like those of other Malays. They are 

 better-formed people than the Javanese, and closely 

 resemble in their features the Oranglaut^ or common 

 Malays of the coast regions. Their favorite holiday- 

 dress is chiefly a bright scarlet. Half an hour after 

 I arrived here the inspector came. He had found the 

 road so narrow in one or two places that the natives 

 had to push out planks beyond the outer edge of the 

 road to support the outside wheels of the carriage, 

 and I was glad that I came on horseback, though, 

 when I led the vicious brute, I had to keep a constant 

 watch to prevent him from seizing my wrist in his 

 teeth. 



At 5 p. M. we walked out to enjoy the grand 

 scenery in the vicinity. The level plateau here, which 

 is one thousand five hundred feet above the sea, is 

 bounded on the northeast side by an exceedingly 

 steep, almost overhanging range of mountains, whose 

 several crests appear to be five thousand feet above 

 us. It was one of the most imposing sights I wit- 

 nessed on that island of high mountains. Mount 

 Ophir is just west of this place, and at sunset we 

 saw it through a gap in the mountains near us, rest- 

 ing its lofty purple summit against the golden sky. 



Felyriiary '2'^th. — I find it much more agreeable to 

 ride on horseback most of the time, because I can stop 

 or turn round when I please, and the opziener has 

 therefore given me a horse to go the next ten paals. 

 For all that distance the scenery was much like that 

 described last night, except that the valley kept widen- 

 ing as we progressed northward, and, therefore, the 



