24 THE FLORA OF LOWER SIAM. 



about half-a-dozen, three of which I have sent to Kew. Of 

 the balsam I dried a good series of specimens, and collected 

 a nice lot of seeds, and of the arum tubers. 



In one place I saw enormous clumps of cypripediam, 

 but quite out of reach, and also a small growing cerides 

 (JErides affine). For miles round Kasum the virgin forest 

 has all been destroyed by the paddy planters, and the 

 present vegetation is composed largely of bamboos, of which 

 three or four species are so abundant that they may be said 

 to be the prevailing feature of the vegetation on all the low 

 hills. In spite of this great destruction of forest, only suffi- 

 cient rice for local consumption is produced, and the present 

 price is about the same as in Penang. Fowls are abundant 

 and cheap, costing only 6 or 7 cents each; but then these 

 do not require much labour to raise. 



A lazier lot of men it would be difficult to find, and the 

 only thing that really livens them up is a cock-fight, then the 

 village turns up like one man. Before going across to Pongah, 

 I asked the Governor of Kasum to lend me a boat to return to 

 Tongkah, but he said he had no suitable boat and that he 

 always went in one of the Chinese tongkangs that come for 

 fire-wood. He promised to arrange for me to go back in the 

 same way, but when the time for starting came, the China- 

 man said he had not enough wood yet, but perhaps he might 

 go to-morrow or next day. To remain another day meant 

 probably missing the Petrel and having to remain a week in 

 Tongkah, so I begged them to find me a prauli of some sort, 

 which they eventually did, and we got away on the ebb tide 

 about 2 p.m. At about 7 p.m., we stopped at one of the 

 islands for the men to eat, and they were inclined to stay 

 there all night, but we got them on board and hoisted sail to 

 a fair wind ; one of the two men I took from Penang steering, 

 and the other looking after the sail. None of the three men 

 I got from Kasum were boatmen, and they did not understand 

 sailing a boat. By 3 a.m., we had rounded Pulau Sirih, and 

 were in sight of the Tongkah light, so that in returning with a 

 fair wind, we did in 13 hours what it took 19 to do in going. 



Jour. Straits Branch 



