120 THEIR TREATMENT AND 



bracing the Mahometan religion that, should they by 

 any chance return to their tribe, they soon throw it off, 

 and, without the least thought on the subject, embrace 

 their old habits of life. This, however, rarely happens. 

 Those Dyaks who have long resided with the Malays, 

 appear to fall into their ways of life, and the women 

 particularly, to whom the finer clothes and less hard 

 work are great temptations, seldom return to their 

 tribes, even when opportunities are afforded them. 



The slaves generally in Sarawak belong to the Dat- 

 tus and merchants, and are treated with great libe- 

 rality. Their duties consist in assisting their master, 

 who always works with them, in his house or boat- 

 building occupations, accompanying him on his trading 

 expeditions, assisting in the navigation of his boats, &c. 

 Their masters generally allot them wives from amongst 

 their female domestics, and in this respect, where wives 

 are not to be obtained without money, and where love 

 is seldom a cherished and pure natural affection, they 

 are much better off than their free but poorer neigh- 

 bours, who are often obliged to pledge their own per- 

 sons to obtain the object of their choice. Many slaves 

 acquire so much of the confidence of their masters as 

 almost to turn the scale, and become the masters of 

 their lords ; but amongst a people so naturally saga- 

 cious and clever as the Malays, this undue inflftence 

 less frequently occurs than amongst the more enervated 

 Asiatics of the continent. 



When the male slaves are not wanted by their 

 masters, they are at liberty to hire themselves by the 



