8 Mr. de Roepstorff on the Nicobar ene. [Jan - . 



as that found south, and also the same bark-made cloth. His height was 

 5 ft. 8i in., which showed clearly that no " ito" could be added to his name. 

 From 1876 until the present day, I have always wished to make further 

 enquiries into the question, because I found that the different tribes were 

 described very differently by the Nancowry men who had seen them or 

 had heard of them. 



When the settlement at Nancowry was opened in 1870, Okpank 

 (Capt. Johnson), a Nancowry man, went on a visit to Calcutta. On return- 

 ing he stayed some time at Port Blair with Major Protheroe, and when he saw 

 an Andamanese for the first time, he at once said to Major Protheroe in 

 Malay, that the Andamanese was like a tribe that lived in the interior of 

 Shambelong (Great Nicobar), and seemed afraid of him. Since that time 

 parties of Andamanese have at different times been at Nancowry, but the 

 people there now deny that they resemble at all the Great Nicobar inland 

 tribe. Yet that Okpank who is a sharp observer, should have shown such a 

 fright on seeing the Andamanese seems very peculiar, for it could not have 

 been acting on his part, as he did not know that we had any knowledge of the 

 Shom-Bengs of Great Nicobar, or that he had seen them. To me it seemed 

 probable, that there was some resemblance which at first sight reminded him 

 of them, but which on nearer acquaintance might not be so very striking. 



Since then the theory of an inland tribe in the Andamans has been com- 

 pletely explored and exploded, for several expeditions have been made, and the 

 unknown tribes, so called, are found to be a few migratory clusters of men 

 with free access to the sea, and occupying the seacoast and creeks without 

 making any attempt at cultivation. No boats of any description have been 

 found, and in their camping places no sea shells of salt-water-food were seen, 

 but this does not preclude, in my opinion, other encampments existing where 

 such and other produce of the sea would be found. 



On the 26th October last, I again started to Great Nicobar. The plan 

 was to go to Pulo Milo, and to take one man and a little canoe on board to land 

 in. On the morning of the 27th we, however, found ourselves set too easterly, 

 so we proceeded straight to Galathea Bay. The weather was very boiste- 

 rous and we could not effect a landing, and the morning of the 29th found 

 us again at the N. E. end of Great Nicobar. It was now our intention to 

 anchor off Pulo Condul, and I would from thence have made an attempt to 

 get to their villages by the help of my friends at Condul, but a canoe that 

 came off warned us, that there had been ten deaths among the little popula- 

 tion of Condul (Lamongshe), and that all the inhabitants had fled. 



The two men that had come off said that we should be able to meet 

 Shom-Bengs not very far off, and they showed us a good anchorage off the 

 village Laful (Trinent). This village lies about four or five miles south of the 

 N. E. Point of Great Nicobar. The wind died away, and we had to anchor 



