Ill 



THE PEOPLES OF BORNEO 39 



His features are less regular and rather coarser and 

 heavier ; his expression is serious, reserved, and 

 cautious. 



The Murut is nearly as fair skinned as the 

 Kenyah, perhaps a little ruddier in tone. His most 

 characteristic feature is the length of his leg and 

 lack of calf, in both of which respects he contrasts 

 strongly with the Kenyah. The length of his leg 

 raises his stature above the average. His intona- 

 tion is characteristic, namely, somewhat whining ; 

 whereas the Kenyah's speech is crisp and staccato. 



The Klemantans present a greater variety of 

 physical types, being a less homogeneous group. 

 Roughly they may be said to present all transitions 

 from the Kenyah to the Murut type. In the main 

 they are less muscular and active than the Kenyah. 

 It is amongst them that the upward and forward 

 direction of the plane of the nostrils is most marked. 



The Punan presents, again, a well-marked type. 

 His skin is even fairer than the Kenyah's, and is 

 distinguished by a distinctly greenish tinge. He 

 is well proportioned, graceful, and muscular, and 

 his features are in many cases very regular and 

 pleasing. His expression is habitually melancholy 

 and strikingly wary and timid. In spite of his 

 homeless nomadic life he generally appears well 

 nourished and clean, and he seems less subject 

 to sores and to the skin diseases which so often 

 disfigure the other peoples, especially the Muruts, 

 Kayans, and Sea Dayaks.^ 



All these peoples, with the exception of the 

 Punans and similar nomads, live in village com- 

 munities situated with few exceptions on the banks 

 of the rivers. The populations of these villages 

 vary from 20 or 30 persons only in the smallest, to 



^ It seems not unreasonable to conjecture that the uniformly high physical 

 standard of the Punans and their seemingly exceptional immunity from disease 

 are due to their exposed mode of life, and to the consequently severe selection 

 exercised upon them by their environment. 



