450 THE RACES OF 2IAN [chap. xl. 



people are said to be great thieves, and the tribes are 

 always at war with each other, but they are not very 

 courageous or bloodthirsty. The custom of " tabu," called 

 here " pomali," is very general, fruit trees, houses, crops, 

 and property of all kinds being protected from depre- 

 dation by this ceremony, the reverence for which is very 

 great. A palm branch stuck across an open door, showing 

 tliat the house is tabooed, is a more effectual guard against 

 robbery than any amount of locks and bars. The houses 

 in Timor are different from those of most of the other 

 islands ; they seem all roof, the thatch overhanging the 

 low walls and reaching the ground, except where it is cut 

 away for an entrance. In some parts of the west end of 

 Timor, and on the little island of Semau, the houses more 

 resemble those of the Hottentots, being egg-shaped, very 

 small, and with a door only about three feet high. These 

 are built on the ground, while those of the eastern districts 

 are raised a few feet on posts. In their excitable disposi- 

 tion, loud voices, and fearless demeanour, the Timorese 

 closely resemble the people of N'ew Guinea. 



In the islands west of Timor, as far as Flores and 

 Sandalwood Island, a very similar .race is found, which 

 also extends eastward to Timor-laut, where the true 

 Papuan race begins to appear. The small islands of 

 .^avu and Eotti, however, to the west of Timor, are very 

 remarkable in possessing a different and, in some respects, 



