THE TAWARAN AND PUTATAN RIVERS. 267 



the delta of the f Putatan) is a large Bajau kampong contain- 

 ing some hundreds of inhabitants. Directly above this the 

 Dusun country begins. The hea:l of this village is Datu 

 Setia. On landing some two miles further up, I found Gaya 

 island bearing about due North. A cursory survey shewed a 

 fine open cultivated country, bounded some two miles off to 

 the eastward by the foot-hills of the coast range, and dotted 

 here and there with wooded knolls. The river maintains 

 an average width of some seventy or eighty yards, with a 

 winding course, whose main axis lies about East and West. It 

 carries a good volume of water with a considerable amount 

 of matter held in solution. From native report, it is not .sub- 

 ject to severe floods, which may perhaps be attributed to its 

 having two mouths to discharge by. Passing at 2 p.m. a con- 

 siderable Dusun village,, in which the very large house of 

 Datu Barukis, the headman, is conspicuous, we fixed our 

 head -quarters half an hour later, at the house of one Kawan, 

 a Dusun, at a small hamlet named Kandayan. From this 

 point " Castle Peak" (of the Admiralty Chart) bore S by W., 

 while the right hand flank of Kina Balu bore 80° E. of 1ST. 

 After a pleasant walk across a fine open country to the house 

 of a Chinaman named Ah Kong, whose occupation is that 

 of distilling arrack from rice, we were glad on our return to 

 settle down for the night. A daughter of our host being ill 

 with fever, I administered some medicine to her, and a regu- 

 lar smoking divan was then formed, all the men, and the 

 ladies also, joining the circle. The Dusun in this respect 

 presents a favourable contrast to the sedate, if not "dour - " 

 Malay. He and all his belongings, male and female, after 

 doing the honours, will freely sit down with you and join 

 in the conversation. These Putatan Dusuns are by far the 

 best type of their race that I have met. They are tall, well- 

 developed, clean-skinned, bright and intelligent looking peo- 

 ple, who look what they are— well-fed and well-to-do. 

 Among the bevy of damsels that sat around, were some by no 

 means unprepossessing in appearance, with bright dark 

 eyes, open laughing countenances, clean limbs and well- 

 turned figures. A chorus of laughter was evoked by my 

 desperate endeavours to explain to an intelligent young Du- 



