148 TRAPPING WILD ANIMALS 
as possible before starting back for Singapore. 
Munshee said that the orang-outangs were in good 
health and that Omar’s men, working with Ali, had 
made many captures. Dr. Van Erman cashed a 
draft for me, so that I should have silver money to 
distribute to the natives who had helped me, and 
I started up the river, promising to stop on my 
way down so that the docter could see the animals. 
At Munshee’s request, I stopped overnight in his 
village. The people gave me a royal welcome and 
we had a fine celebration. The news of my coming 
went ahead of us, and Omar and Ali came down 
the river, meeting us two hours’ distance below the 
kampong. They gave me an enthusiastic reception 
and I was touched by their affection. We rowed 
on up the river and, when we reached Omar’s vil- 
lage, I found that the people had been busy for 
days, preparing the festivities in honor of my 
return. 
After greeting the people, I went directly to 
the cage of the orang-outangs. They showed little 
fight, and I was encouraged to find that they were 
not too despondent. I did not want to risk trans- 
porting them until they had become thoroughly 
accustomed to captivity—or at least as much accus- 
tomed to it as is possible for orang-outangs. For 
homesickness grips them just as it grips human 
beings, and they become pitiable objects. If they 
refuse to eat, it is scarcely worth while to spend 
time and money in transporting them, for seasick- 
