I90 PAGAN TRIBES OF BORNEO chap. 



heads, and of the tradition that the taking of a head 

 is necessary for the termination of a period of 

 mourning. This second suggestion is strongly- 

 supported by the fact that Kayans, Kenyahs, and 

 Klemantans occasionally, on returning home from a 

 successful raid, will carry one of the newly taken 

 heads to the tomb of the chief for whom they are 

 mourning, and will hang it upon, or deposit it within, 

 the tomb beside the coffin. The head used for this 

 purpose is thickly covered with leaves (daun isang) 

 tied tightly about it. It is possible that this thick 

 covering was first applied in order to disguise the 

 fact that the head is that of an enemy, and that the 

 sacrifice of the life of a domestic slave, originally 

 demanded by custom and piety, has been avoided 

 by this process of substitution. 



We have suggested above two different origins 

 of the custom of taking the heads of enemies. These 

 two possibilities are by no means mutually exclusive, 

 and we are inclined to think that both substitutive 

 processes may have co-operated in bringing about 

 this custom. 



It seems probable that the taking of heads was 

 introduced to Borneo by Kayans when they entered 

 the island, probably some few centuries ago, and 

 that the Klemantans and other tribes, like the Ibans, 

 have adopted the custom from their example. 



We will conclude this chapter by questioning 

 yet another of the stories, the frequent repetition 

 of which has given the tribes of the interior the 

 reputation of being savages of the worst type, 

 namely, the story that it is the practice of Kayans 

 to torture the captives taken in battle. This evil 

 repute is, we have no doubt, largely due to the 

 fact that very few Europeans have acquired any 

 intimate first-hand acquaintance with the Kayans 

 or Kenyahs ; and that too often the stories told by 

 Sea Dayaks have been uncritically accepted ; for 



