340 TWO TEARS ITT THE JUNGLE. 



the door and the swarthy sentry in the doorway, gives to the edi« 

 fice the air of a feudal castle. But it is a very modest residence 

 for a man who is absolute monarch over such a large territory, and 

 who, were he avariciously disposed, could plunder his subjects suf- 

 ficiently to enable him to maintain his position in truly regal style. 



The river is well filled with craft, including decent schooners 

 of modern type, Malay trading praus, Malay and Dyak "sampans" 

 — every small canoe is a " sampan " in Malayana — Chinese junks, 

 clumsy coasting vessels, a number of large sailing ships, and the 

 steam vessels Aline and Firefly of H. H.'s Navy. 



As soon as we touched the wharf, my fellow-passenger was sur- 

 rounded by a crowd of good-looking young Englishmen, in corded 

 white imiform coats and cork helmets, who welcomed him back 

 with enthusiasm. Meanwhile, I was busy with my two servants, 

 and in a very short time we hired a cart and loaded it with the 

 boxes, bags, and parcels containing our jungle outfit, which in- 

 cluded canned provisions, kitchenware, guns, ammunition in great 

 variety, preservatives, tools, alcohol cans, bedding, clothing, and 

 books, and — last but not least — two bags of Spanish dollars. 



We took our way up a broad street which leads from the 

 handsome new jail, passed the south side of the bazaar, the court- 

 house and public offices in the centre of a square, the hospital, the 

 government dispensary, the library, European residences in plenty, 

 and at last came to the hotel of the place, the Eajah's Arms, Just 

 above this hotel, on a pretty knoll, stands the handsome residence 

 and grounds of the Resident of Sarawak proper, an office fiUed at 

 that time by Mr. William M. Crocker. 



In front of the court-house I noticed nearly a dozen extremely 

 long and wide-mouthed brass cannons, all of small calibre, however, 

 but each had a history. Some had been taken from pu-ates, others 

 from the stockades of rebellious rajahs in early days, while others 

 represented fines imposed by the government and paid by native 

 chiefs who had violated the laws. It sounds oddly enough to be 

 told that "Nipah Tuah, of Tatu, has confessed to having murdered 

 a Mukah Dyak, supposing him to be under arms against the gov- 

 ernment, and had been fined six piculs " (about eight hundred 

 pounds of brass guns) ! 



A tour of observation through the bazaars and the town is fulj 

 of interest. One first notices that the streets are scrupulously 

 clean, the drainage good, and that the town has been laid out with 

 European regularity. There is nothing slip-shod or loose-jointed 



