358 TWO YEARS IN THE JUNGLE. 



in, and we afterward saw a beautiful collection of forty-two skulls 

 in the first village of Hill D^'aks we visited on the upper Sarawak. 



As I bad abundant opportunity later on to study the Dyaks 

 themselves, I will not attempt here a description of the inhabitants 

 of this village. At the termination of our call two of the women 

 came and offered me half a dozen fresh eggs, which I accepted, 

 and gave them in return what their souls longed for — tobacco. 

 As we returned to the boat, all the women and children of the 

 house trooped along after us, respectful and well-behaved to the 

 last, to see us off — and to modestly request a little more tobacco. 

 1 duly stood treat all round with leaves from the bundles I had laid 

 in store for this purpose, and we parted on good terms. 



Just before sunset we passed the last Dyak village and clearing, 

 and came to where the large trees and dense undergrowth clothed 

 the banks to the water's edge and even beyond. Then we began 

 to see monkeys by the score, and as evening approached their num- 

 bers seemed to increase as they began to perch in the branches that 

 overhung the river, and settle themselves for the night. Some- 

 times as many as five or six would be seen sociably huddled to- 

 gether on a single bough, and often one small tree-top contained 

 from fifteen to twenty of the little animals. They were all of one 

 species, Macacus cynomolgus, the commonest in Borneo, if not of 

 the neighboring islands as well, and by the natives it is called the 

 krah. They are about the color of a gray squirrel, and three times 

 as large. I think I never elsewhere saw so many monkeys in the 

 same length of time. I counted them as we paddled along until in a 

 few minutes I ran the number up into the eighties, and was obliged 

 to give up the attempt. They showed not the sUghtest fear of us, 

 and I could easily have killed a great many. As it was, I shot two, 

 which was all I cared to preserve just then. 



Just as darkness set in we came to a large band of proboscis 

 monkej's (Nasalis larvatus), and, although we could only distin- 

 guish their moving forms for a moment now and then, their pecu- 

 liar nasal cry told us what they were. 



Fifteen minutes after sunset the last gleam of twilight faded 

 out, and darkness closed over the forest. The river had narrowed 

 rapidly, and was then not over forty yards wide. On either side a 

 wall of green leaves rose from the surface of the stream, and the 

 banks were quite hidden behiiid the leafy screen. 



Just here we wei'e treated to the most glorious exhibition of 

 fin'e-flies I ever beheld. They congregated on certain trees in bun- 



