710 
THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE 
DYAK GIRLS POUNDING RICE 
After the paddy has been passed through the husking mill it is pounded out in wooden 
mortars. 
mortar to kick back any grains of paddy that may be likely to fall out. 
Here are two girls at work. Each has her right foot in the upper part of the 
From “Seventeen 
Years Among the Sea Dyaks of Borneo,” by Edwin H. Gomes. J. B. Lippincott Co. 
randa are often adorned with the horns 
of deer and the tusks of wild boars— 
trophies of the chase. The empty sheaths 
of swords are suspended on these horns 
or from wooden hooks, while the naked 
blades are placed in racks overhead. 
On one side of this long public hall is 
a row of doors. Each of these leads into 
a separate room, or bilik, which is occu- 
pied by a family. The doors open out- 
wards, and each is closed by means of a 
heavy weight secured to a thong fastened 
to the inside. If the room be unusually 
large, it may have two doors for the sake 
of convenience. 
This room serves several purposes. It 
serves aS a kitchen, and in one corner 
there is a fireplace where the food is 
cooked. This fireplace is set against the 
wall of the veranda and resembles an 
open cupboard. ‘The lowest shelf rests 
on the floor, and is boarded all round 
and filled with clay. This forms the fire- 
place, and is furnished with a few stones 
upon which the pots are set for cooking. 
The shelf immediately above the fire- 
place is set apart for smoking fish. The 
shelves above are filled with firewood, 
which is thoroughly dried by the smoke 
and ready for use. As the smoke from 
the wood fire 1s not conducted through 
the roof by any kind of chimney, it 
spreads itself through the loft and 
blackens the beams and rafters of the 
roof. 
This room also serves as a dining- 
room. When the food is cooked, mats 
are spread here, and the inmates squat 
on the floor to eat their meal. There is 
no furniture, the floor serving the double 
purpose of table and chairs. 
This bilik also serves as a bedroom. 
At night the mats for sleeping on are 
spread out here and the mosquito cur- 
tains hun: up. 
There is no window to let in the air 
and light, but a portion of the roof is so 
constructed that it can be raised a foot 
or two and kept open by means of a 
stick. 
Round the three sides of this room 
are ranged the treasured valuables of the 
Dyaks—old jars, some of which are of 
great value, and brass gongs, and guns. 
Their cups and plates are hung up in 
rows flat against the walls. The flooring 
