BY MOTOR THROUGH THE EAST COAST OF SUMATRA 



73 



THESE FEMALE PORTERS ARE NOT AS HEAVILY BURDENED AS THEY APPEAR TO BE J 

 THEIR HEAD PACKS CONSIST OE FINE MATTING 



They were a picturesque lot in their 

 gay-colored clothes. Most of the women 

 were bareheaded, their black hair brushed 

 back and knotted behind, with strings of 

 coral beads hanging around their necks 

 and big buttons of gold and silver, jade, 

 amber, or ebony extending their pierced 

 ear-lobes. Brilliant scarves half-con- 

 cealed their fresh white corsages, and 

 leather belts with massive silver buckles 

 encircled sarongs of many hues. 



Around the heads of nearly all the men 

 w r ere twisted the universal brown ker- 

 chiefs of Java flaunting starched corners ; 

 and, in addition to their sarongs and a 

 few short coats and pajama tops, there 

 was a noticeable partiality for white un- 

 dershirts and long pink drawers. 



Following the others came a tall Pun- 

 jabi Mohammedan with a long gray 

 beard. His dignified bearing and the 

 striking eyes of the Indian Mussulman, 

 which looked straight out from under an 

 enormous turban, marked him at once as 

 a very different type from his casual Ma- 

 lay brethren. 



Two hours more elapsed before the 



next landing party, ourselves and the car, 

 finally left the ship. The dock was many 

 feet below the deck and the spaces in 

 which the car had to be turned were all 

 shorter than its length. 



A mathematician might have amused 

 himself by figuring out the possible com- 

 binations in which that car could have 

 been jammed — I am sure we missed 

 none — and when finally it was disentan- 

 gled from the forest of stanchions, rail- 

 ings, projecting corners, and other checks 

 to its progress, the crew and I breathed 

 deep sighs of relief. 



But as Belawan is isolated in the man- 

 grove swamps, except for the long new 

 bridge of the Deli Railway, one further 

 struggle was necessary before the motor 

 was really "landed" in Sumatra, and we 

 toilsomely manipulated it onto an under- 

 sized railway truck. Then I relaxed into 

 a seat and made faces back at the silver- 

 gray monkeys which derided me from the 

 trees, as the train took us up to Medan, 

 fourteen miles inland. 



The capital of the Government of the 

 East Coast of Sumatra and headquarters 



