S O L O O. 3S3 



well as others, by interdicting communication. In consequence, 

 except through indirect channels, there has been no information 

 obtained of the singular and unknown inhabitants of its interior. 

 This, however, is not long destined to be the case. 



Mr. Brooke, an English gentleman of fortune, has, since our pas- 

 sage through these seas, from philanthropic motives, made an agree- 

 ment with the rajah of Sarawack, on the northern and western side 

 of Borneo, to cede to him the administration of that portion of the 

 island. This arrangement it is believed the British government will 

 confirm, in which event Sarawack will at once obtain an importance 

 among the foreign colonies, in the Eastern seas, second only to that of 

 Singapore. 



The principal inducement that has influenced Mr. Brooke in this 

 undertaking is the interest he feels in the benighted people of the 

 interior, who are known under the name of Dyack, and of whom 

 some extraordinary accounts have been given. 



A few of these, which I have procured from reputable sources, I 

 will now relate, in order that it may be seen among what kind of 

 people this gentleman has undertaken to introduce the arts of civili- 

 zation. 



The Dyacks are, by all accounts, a fine race, and much the most 

 numerous of any inhabiting Borneo. They are almost exclusively 

 confined to the interior, where they enjoy a fine climate, and all the 

 spontaneous productions of the tropics. They are believed to be the 

 aborigines of the island. The name of Dyack seems to be more 

 particularly applied to those who live in the southern section of 

 Borneo. To the north they are called Idaan or Tirun, and those so 

 termed are best known to the Sooloos, or the inhabitants of that part 

 of the coast of Borneo over which the Sooloos rule. In personal 

 appearance, the Dyacks are slender, have higher foreheads than the 

 Malays, and are a finer and much better-looking people. Their hair 

 is long, straight, and coarse, though it is generally cropped short 

 round the head. The females are spoken of as being fair and hand- 

 some, and many of those who have been made slaves are to be seen 

 among the Malays. 



In manners the Dyacks are described as simple and mild, yet they 

 are characterized by some of the most uncommon and revolting 

 customs of barbarians. Their government is very simple ; the elders 

 in each village for the most part rule; but they are said to have 

 chiefs that do not differ from the Malay rajahs. They wear no 



