24 THE PIGMIES. 



The Malacca Negritos do not appear to entertain such well 

 defined ideas. Logan states that the Berinun tribes light a fire on 

 the tomb, for several consecutive nights, in order to prevent the 

 spirit from crying out. ( x ) M. Montano adds that the Manthras 

 bury their dead sufficiently far from the houses, " so that they shall 

 not be troubled by the crowing of the cocks." ( 2 ) But neither of 

 those two writers makes any mention of offerings being presented 

 to the spirit of the departed, though among the Manthras the grave 

 is evidently the object of peculiar attentions. ( 3 ) 



Chastity, Modesty. — M. Montano has given us his experience 

 regarding the chastity of the Aeta damsels. The testimony 

 of Stmes leaves no room for doubt that this virtue is found 

 among the Andamanese. Two Mincopie girls who had been taken 

 as prisoners on board an English man-of-war, were soon tran- 

 quillised in many respects, but though they had been put by 

 themselves in a separate room, they never went to sleep both at 

 the same time, but watched alternately over each other. ( 4 ) Not 

 one of the travellers who have visited the Andamans up to the pre- 

 sent time has ever reported having witnessed any of those scenes 

 and scandalous sights so often alluded to by the discoverers of the 

 Pacific Archipelagoes. In that respect, the Mincopie women are 

 unquestionably superior to the Polynesians. 



"Want of decency is the most common of all the accusations 

 which have been brought against a whole host of wild tribes. 

 But we know that travellers have often been mistaken, so far in- 

 deed as to take for the height of immodesty what, in the eyes of 

 the natives, was but an elementary act of decency. 



On this particular point, we lack information with regard to most 

 Negrito races. But as to the Andamans, wiiere the dress of the 

 women is as limited as possible, we know now, thanks to Mr. Man, 



(i) Loc. cit., p. 271. 



(2) Loc. cit., p, 49. 



(3) Montano, loc. cit., p. 50, and Fig. 52, 53, 54 and 55. [But see Mr. 

 Hervey's description of a Jakun tomb in No. 8 of this Journal.— Ed., 

 Journ. Straits Branch, R. A, S.] 



(*) Loc. cit., p. 243. 



