402 THROUGH CENTRAL BORNEO 



15. THE WOMAN, THE BIRD, AND THE OTTER 



(From the Saputans; kampong Data Laong) 



Many young men courted Ohing Blibiching, but she 

 was difficult to please. Finally, she favoured Anyang 

 Mokathimman because he was strong, skilful in catch- 

 ing animals, brave in head-hunting. She said : " Probably 

 you have a wife." "No, I am alone," he said, and her 

 father and mother having given consent, they then lived 

 together. 



After a while he said : " I want to go away and hunt 

 for heads." She said: "Go, but take many men with 

 you. If you should be sick, difficulties would be great." 

 She then made rice ready in a basket, calculating that 

 on a long journey they would depend more on the sago 

 found in the utan. They would also kill animals for 

 food, therefore, in addition to their parangs, the men 

 took sumpitans along. 



"If we have any mishaps," he said, "I shall be away 

 two months. If not, I shall be back in a month." She 

 remained in the kampong guarded by her father, mother, 

 and other people, and after a while many young men 

 began to pay her attention, telling her: "He has been 

 away a long time. Maybe he will not return." One 

 day at noon when she was filling her bamboo receptacles 

 in the river as usual, taking a bath at the same time, 

 she saw a fish sleeping, and caught it. She then lifted 

 on her back the big-meshed rattan bag which held the 

 bamboo receptacles, all full of water, and went home, 

 carrying the fish in her hand. Before cooking it she went 

 to husk paddi. 



