THE SEA DYAKS. 463 



parison with the warlike, and once piratical propensities of the 

 people. Their arms are neither numerous in kind nor elaborate in 

 design, and it is surprising that such redoubtable warriors have not 

 developed weapons of better fashion, more elaborate ornamentation, 

 and greater variety. In the matter of both weapons and shields of 

 all kinds, the Kyans far surpass both the Hill and the Sea Dyaks. 

 The arms of the latter consist ordinarily of a common parong or 

 chopper, in shape, size, and weight closely resembling a farmer's 

 corn-knife. It is not so hea\y as the parong latok, nor so long ; but 

 in good hands it is enough. Like the latter weapon it is carried in 

 a wooden sheath on the left side. Those to be seen now among 

 the Sea Dyaks are very rough, common-looking instruments, not 

 worth keeping as curiosities, and their sole use now is in the never- 

 ending, but wholly bloodless, conflict which the Dyak wages with 

 the jungle. 



As before stated, the Sea Dyaks never use the samjDitan and 

 poisoned arrows. Their spears are as cheap-looking and destitute 

 of all ornament as then- parongs, being simply a piece of steel ham- 

 mered into a rough-looking blade, 8^ inches long by 1^ wide ; set 

 into a stout handle of rattan five feet lone. 



I did not see any genuine war boats, and for a full description 

 of them I must refer the reader to Low's " Sarawak," p. 216. It is 

 there stated that "their war-boats, which are called 'bankongs,' 

 are generally of great length, frequently as much as seventy feet. 

 They are built very high abaft, and high forward, . . . from a flat 

 keel, without timbers of any sort, the j)lanks being raerely sewn one 

 to the other, or rather tied by rattans, through holes about eighteen 

 inches apart, calked with the soft bark of a tree of the tribe Myrta- 



ceoe, and paj'ed with a preparation of dammar and oils 



They are sometimes steered with a rudder, but more frequently by 

 paddles, and from the assistance the men paddling them are able 

 to give, they turn as on a pivot." The planks from which these 

 boats are made are all hewn out, Crusoe fashion, with " biliongs," 

 two only being obtained from a large tree and that only with infi- 

 nite labor, it being very necessary that all the planks should be of 

 the same length as the "bankong." "These boats, according to 

 their size, carry crews of from thirty to ninety men, . . and I 

 should think it probable that no boats in the world could equal 

 them in speed."* 



* Written in 1847. 



