lyS PAGAN TRIBES OF BORNEO chap. 



Klemantans and I bans use in place of the long 

 beam a strong basket-work in the shape of a cone, 

 the apex being attached to the roof beams, and the 

 heads tied in two or three tiers in the wall of the 

 cone. In either case the heads hang some five or 

 six feet above the floor, where they are out of 

 reach of the dogs. 



Defence 



Since every Bornean long - house is, or until 

 recently was, liable at almost any time to a night 

 attack of the kind described above, the situation of 

 the house is chosen with an eye to defence. The 

 site chosen is in nearly all cases on the bank of a 

 river or stream large enough for the navigation of 

 small boats; a high and steep river-bank is commonly 

 preferred ; and spits of land between two converging 

 streams or peninsulas formed by sharp bends of the 

 rivers are favoured spots. 



Beside the natural situation, the prime defence 

 of the house is its elevation some lo to 30 feet 

 above the level of the ground, joined with the diffi- 

 culty of access to the house by means of narrow 

 ladders easily drawn up or thrown down. This 

 elevation of the house serves also to secure its 

 contents against sudden risings of the river, and 

 also against the invasion of evil odours from the 

 refuse which accumulates below it ; but its primary 

 purpose is undoubtedly defence against human 

 enemies. The interval between the low outer wall 

 of the gallery and the lower edge of the roof is 

 the only aperture through which missiles can be 

 hurled into the house, and this is so narrow as to 

 render the entry of any missiles well-nigh impossible. 



When a household gets wind of an intended 

 attack, they generally put the house into a state 

 of defence by erecting a fence of vertical stakes 

 around it, some three yards outside the posts on which 



