IN BORNEAN FORESTS [chap. 



Next morning we were up before daylight, and cooked our rice 

 for the day, wishing to waste no time later on over that operation. 

 At dawn, bellowings had been heard far off in the forest, and Atzon 

 assured me that they were produced by Mayas. We started 

 before sunrise, and descended the hill on the slope towards the 

 Undup, stumbling at every step, for it was not easy to keep looking 

 straight up into the air above one's head, and at the same time note 

 where one had to step. We soon reached a stream called Sungei 

 Pajang. The forest here, to an inexperienced eye, would have had 

 the characters of a primeval one ; but it was largely formed of mag- 

 nificent durians and other fruit-bearing trees. Had we not known 

 from our guides that in this spot had once stood a village of the 

 Undup Dyaks, we might have thought we had discovered the Durio 

 zibetinus growing wild. I also noticed several tall tapangs loaded 

 with nests of the honey bee. 



Crossing several low hills, we came to another stream, the 

 Sungei Pakit, which we followed for a while. Even here the forest 

 was not a primeval one, but from its wild aspect must have been 

 for years abandoned. The muddy ground showed everywhere 

 the tracks of wild boar and deer. Traces of the presence of wild 

 oxen (Bos banteng) were also to be seen in the mud adherent to 

 some tree trunks at a man's height from the ground, where these 

 animals had rubbed themselves clean. Atzon told me that although 

 for about ten years he had frequently visited this forest, only twice 

 had he met with the banteng. He had, however, shot the wild 

 dog, " Anjinutan " (Cyon rutilans), which I had as yet been unable 

 to meet with, living or dead. We had been five hours on the tramp 

 without seeing a single beast. Wishing to return to Lanko Labok 

 by a different route, we went round the hill which we had come down 

 to ascend it on the other side. We soon found ourselves in an old 

 forest in which the Mayas nests abundantly ; some looked, indeed, 

 as if they had just been made. The orangs could not be very far 

 off, yet no sound or movement betrayed their presence. At last, 

 however, I perceived something reddish moving on the top of a big 

 tree. I fired at once almost at random, and, to my surprise, a very 

 small Mayas fell to the ground nearly at rrty feet. Immediately 

 after, a second one, of much larger size, appeared, and climbed up the 

 very same tree. It was soon hidden amongst the branches, and 

 although I fired twice when I caught glimpses of the creature, yet 

 both shots missed. Presently we saw him higher up on a big branch, 

 looking down at us. This time my bullet took effect, and the animal 

 fell, mortally wounded. 



The small orang first killed was a male ; the second, an adult 

 female of medium size, probably its mother. Its hair was longer 

 than in any I had had before, and my Dyaks assured me that it was 

 a Mayas Rambei. I was, therefore, anxious to preserve both speci- 



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