82 SEA-DYAK LEGEND. 



Then Pulang-Gana spoke : 



" I have good reason for doing what I did. You have no 

 right to cut down this jungle or to plant on this land. You 

 have, not paid me the price of the land. Not long ago, you, 

 Bui-JYasi, gave me a clod of earth as my share of the property 

 of our father, and so I have now the right of preventing any 

 from planting on the earth. It is no use your attempting to 

 kill me. Though you are many in numbers, it is impossible for 

 you to kill me because I am now the god of .the earth, and 

 am assisted by Rajah Skua and Seregendah whose power you 

 know." 



There was silence for a short time, and then Bai-Nasi said, 

 " No doubt what you say is true, for no one without supernatural 

 aide have could made the trees that were cut down stand 

 upright and grow. What do you wish us to do in order to 

 obtain your leave to plant on the land ? " 



Pulang-Gana told them to gather all the people togethe 

 the next day and he would tell them what all must do in order 

 to insure their getting good crops of paddy. 



That same night messengers were sent in all directions to 

 tell the people in the neighbouring villages to come together 

 so that Pulang-Gana might teach them what they were to do 

 before cutting down the jungle and planting paddy. 



The next morning a very large crowd gathered together 

 and Pulang-Gana said to them : 



" You must, before cutting down the jungle, make invoca- 

 tions to me, as well as to Rajah Shua and Seregendah, and you 

 must ask me for leave to plant on the piece of land you have 

 decided on, and you must make sacrifices to me of two kinds, 

 some animal — a pig or a fowl — must be killed, and a lso there 

 must be some offering of food-rice, or eggs, or potatoes, or 

 fruit. Then some offering must be taken and buried in the 

 ground to be planted. That is the rent you pay to me for the 

 use of the land that year, for all the land belongs to me and I 

 expect rent to be paid by all who use it. 



" And if anything goes wrong in your paddy fields, and the 

 crops are poor, or, being good, are attacked by insects or 



Jour, Straits Branch 



