154 SPORT, TRAVEL, AND ADVENTURE 



out and leads the bride in by the hand. When she 

 comes to the hut of her parents a strap is tied around 

 her, and by this she is let down into the underground 

 house. The fish-head is laid on the floor, at the 

 foot of the ladder, and the bride and all who follow 

 step on it, after which it is thrown into the fire. The 

 bride is stripped of all her superfluous ornaments, and 

 the company take their places about the room. The 

 bridegroom builds a fire and prepares the food, which 

 has been brought for the purpose, and entertains the 

 people of the village. The next day the host enter- 

 tains the visiting company, after which every one goes 

 home except the bride and groom, who remain to 

 serve her father for a time." 



Captain Cayley Webster had the good fortune to 

 be present at the wedding of the present Sultan of 

 Jahore. He gives an account of the interesting Malay 

 wedding customs in his book of travel and explora- 

 tion in New Guinea * : "I was fortunate enough to 

 be in Jahore at the time when the Crown Prince, who, 

 since his father's death, has been crowned Sultan, was 

 married to, his cousin. The ceremony, which, of course, 

 being Eastern, was of a most gorgeous nature, took 

 about three weeks to accomplish. The preliminary 

 ceremony, performed on the 2ist of September, was 

 principally noteworthy for the absence of the bride. 

 Various passages from the Koran were read over by 

 the high priest to the bridegroom, who stood upon 

 the dais in the Bali Besar, surrounded by an enormous 

 retinue and numerous guests. 



A few minutes sufficed for this portion of the pro- 

 ceedings, and after prostrating himself and a great 

 1 See Bibliography, 27. 



