160 IN MALAY FORESTS. 



less sky of purest blue set our skins a-tingle. But 

 just as the faint-hearted began to weary, a whisper 

 went round of rice and curry. Soon dug-outs with 

 steaming bowls were seen to leave the datoh's boat 

 for the men with the drag-line, and then of a sudden 

 the house-boats converged with one accord. Alang 

 Abdullah only let go his hold of the line for a few 

 minutes, and as soon as he had finished his bowl 

 resumed his careful handling of the glittering line. 

 The Englishmen put their nets aside, and, all dripping 

 with water, devoted themselves to huge platters of 

 piled up rice and innumerable little saucers and 

 bowls of sambal and curry. 



By the time that the meal was finished the flotilla 

 turned a bend of the river, and we found ourselves 

 within a mile of the enclosure. We saw that the 

 head of the island was thronged with Malays, and 

 their gongs rang back a challenge to ours. " Who is 

 for the water?" shouted our host the datoh. As 

 he called he plunged in, and before he had wiped 

 the water from his eyes the river was full of Malays. 

 A long line of men, leaping, yelling, splashing, ex- 

 tended from bank to bank. In the deeper places 

 they had to swim, but for the most part the stream 

 was not more than breast-high. 



By this time Alang Abdullah saw that the drive 

 would not be a success. Had it been in proper 

 condition, we should have been able by now to see 

 the masses of fish that we were driving in front of 

 us. We should have seen them racing through the 

 clear water just before us, or else leaping in mad 

 fright in the distance. The Jin of the Water has 



