20 PAGAN TRIBES OF BORNEO chap. 



married his daughter. Thus the present royal 

 house of Bruni is derived from three sources — Arab, 

 Bisaya, and Chinese. The coronation ceremony as 

 still maintained affords an interesting confirmation 

 of this account. On that occasion the principal 

 minister wears a turban and Haji outfit, the two next 

 in rank are dressed in Chinese and Hindu fashion, 

 while the fourth wears a chawat over his trousers 

 to represent the Bisayas; and each of these ministers 

 declares the Sultan to be divinely appointed. Then 

 after the demonstration of loyalty the two gongs — 

 one from Menangkabau, the other from Johore — 

 are beaten, and the Moslem high priest proclaims 

 the Sultan and preaches a sermon, declaring him to 

 be a descendant of Sri Turi Buana, the Palembang 

 chief who founded the early kingdom of Singapore 

 in 1160 A.D., who reigned in that island for forty- 

 eight years, and whose descendants became the royal 

 family of Malacca. 



The Arab Sultan who succeeded Akhmed as- 

 sumed the name Berkat and ruled the country with 

 vigour. He built a mosque and converted many 

 of his subjects, so that from his reign Bruni may 

 be considered a Mohammedan town. To defend 

 the capital he sank forty junks filled with stone in 

 the river, and thus formed the breakwater which 

 still bars the entrance to large ships. This work 

 rose above the water level, and in former times 

 bristled with cannon. Sultan Berkat was succeeded 

 by his son Suleiman, whose reign was of little 

 consequence. 



Neglecting Suleiman, we come now to the most 

 heroic figure in Bruni history. Sultan Bulkiah, better 

 known by his earlier name, Nakoda Ragam. The 

 prowess of this prince has been celebrated in prose 

 and verse. He journeyed to distant lands, and 

 conquered the Sulu islands and eastern Borneo. 

 Over the throne of Sambas he set a weak-minded 



