152 



THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE 



MT. MULU, A 9,000-FOOT PEAK, SEEN FROM A CAMP ON THE MILANAU RIVER 



One of the chief difficulties encountered in climbing this mountain is to persuade any 

 natives to accompany the explorer; they believe that such heights are the abodes of the most 

 malignant evil spirits. 



game is protected, and the naturalist may 

 take a license to collect only two speci- 

 mens of anything, be it birds, butterflies, 

 or plants. 



JUNGLE ORCHIDS NEED PROTECTION FROM 

 RUTHLESS COLLECTORS 



It may appear surprising that plants 

 should need protection, but the occasion 

 arose when a collector, having discovered 

 a new species of orchid, gathered all he 

 could and then attempted to burn the 

 jungle in the small region where alone 

 the species had been found ! 



So much time had been consumed in 

 the trip up river that I was able to remain 

 only two days at this delightful spot, 

 where I would gladly have remained a 

 month. One of the days was employed 

 in a walk through the jungle to a point 

 on the Milanau River where the stream 

 comes rushing down, a mountain torrent, 



through a gorge between the mountains 

 Mulu and Lobong Rimau, the latter 

 meaning "Tiger Cave Mountain," being 

 so named from an inaccessible cave on 

 the side of the mountain. 



Tama Saging expressed much concern 

 about my undertaking the walk, telling 

 me of the last Titan who went there, and 

 the very long time he required for the 

 walk. He said so much about it the 

 evening before that I became somewhat 

 annoyed and started off the next morning 

 stripped down for a warm tramp. 



I fear now that I was a little inconsid- 

 erate of my short-legged friends, and I 

 learned later that Tama Saging was suf- 

 fering from rheumatism, although he 

 never mentioned it the whole day. But 

 he was a "good sport," remarking on our 

 return that the Tuan was a strong walker. 



The charm of the old jungle is to be 

 found in the comparative absence of un- 



