NOTES. 213 
in the Sri Bhoja country and other islands of the Archipelago 
for chewing with nutmegs, cloves and Barus camphor, for the 
purpose of rendering the mouth fragrant. Pin-lang is of course 
the Malay word pinang, areca nut. 
In I Tsing’s time, it seems therefore that the Malay country 
par excellence was in Central Sumatra, a fact agreeing very well 
with native Malay tradition on the subject, which derives the 
origin of many of the Malays of the Peninsula from the old Cen- 
tral Sumatran State of Menangkabau. 
The etymological signification of the national name Ma/uyu 
has been a subject of much dispute. I Tsing does not throw 
any additional light upon it; but he makes it quite clear that 
the word had in his time a locai significance, and denoted the 
particular region from which a large part of the Malays of the 
modern Tenah Malayu love to trace their origin. 
C. O. Blagden. 
The Putri Gunong Ledang. 
(Fatry Princess or Mr, Orarr.) * 
The following extract from an essay written by a Malacca 
Chinese boy may be of interest to readers of the Journal of the 
Straits Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society. I give the boy’s 
own words. ~ 
The aborigines of Malacca used.to believe that Mt. Ophir 
was a sacred mountain. Mt. Ophir is also believed to be so 
by the Malays, as well as by most of the Strait-born Chinese. 
since many years ago, neither Malays nor Chinese have ever 
reached the top of the mountain, where, as our ancestors say, 
there is plenty of gold strewn along the floor. Although some 
of the Europeans have been there, yet the natives have not 
believed it. It is said that there is a fairy who takes charge of 
the sacred mountaiv. Inthe morning, as the sun rises, the 
fairy isa beautiful girl playing near her well-built hut. At 
noon, as the sun is right ever our head, the girl changes into a 
maiden ; and in the evening, as the sun sels, the maiden becomes 
an old woman. The same thing happens every day. 
