256 THROUGH CENTRAL BORNEO 



again, three to five being placed together in a rattan 

 basket, with leaves around them. At the triennial festi- 

 val, tasa, blood of pig or fowl mixed with uncooked rice, 

 is offered to the heads. 



Usually the head-hunting raids were, and are still to a 

 limited extent, carried far away into distant regions and 

 may occupy several months. The Saputans, who were 

 devotees to the custom, would go as far as the river Melawi 

 in the southwest to Sarawak in the north, as well as to 

 the Murung or Upper Barito River in the east. Some- 

 times only two to five men would go, but usually there 

 were about ten — an equal number remaining behind in 

 the kampong. Controleur W. J. Michielsen, quoted be- 

 fore, relates an instance of a Dayak from Serayan, whose 

 daughter had been killed by a Katingan head-hunter, 

 who pursued the marauders to their homes, and, on the 

 occasion of the festivities incident to the return of the 

 members of the raid, he cut the head from the murderer 

 of his child while the celebration was in progress. His 

 action was so sudden that they were totally unprepared, 

 and no attempt was made to prevent his escape with the 

 head. 



In times gone by when a Saputan man, woman, or 

 child died it was the custom for a member of the family 

 to go forth to look for a head. In the case of an ordinary 

 person one was deemed sufficient, but for a chief five to 

 ten were necessary. When taking a head a cut was made 

 in the slain man's chest with a parang; into the wound 

 the raiders then put their forefingers and sucked the blood 

 from them. 



