428 



A NATURALTSrS WANDERINGS 



identify, and in many places broad areas of Sdaria and Pas- 

 palum grass took the place of all other vegetation. 



No such thing as a road exists anywhere in Timor. All 

 the paths follow the knife ridges of the hills, or slcirt along 

 the face of precipitous slopes, invariably in deep ditch-like 

 trenches, out of which a stumble would fatally land either 

 horse or man hundreds of feet below. The Timor horses are 

 wonderfully sure- footed, and seem quite accustomed to these 

 difficult ways. 



Having started late in the forenoon, it was found impossible 

 to reach, before sunset, the hut where w© had intended to 

 camp. As we had no food with us for the men, we were com- 

 pelled to practise the highwayman*s art on the numerous 

 natives loaded with maize, whom we met going towards 

 Diily. From each of them, the rajah's officer— an official of 

 their oira king — demanded a few heads, which after some 

 display of authority, were generally given up. After several 

 acts of this kind, I was surprised to see that those meeting 

 us even an hour later, on catching sight of us a long distance 

 off, darteii aside down the first declivity out of our way, and, 

 laden though they were, generally managed to escape. The 

 intelligence of our coming had been conveyed to them from 

 the nearest hill-top the first mulct^^d. people had reached. 

 It is astonishing with what ease and accuracy the Timorese 

 can convey intelligence from one mountain crest to another. 

 Nearly every man carries in his wallet (which he never 

 travels without) a short wooden pipe, by whose curions notes 

 he can convey signal sounds to a long distance ; but by the 

 unaided voice they are able, in a series of what seem only 

 demoniacal howls, to hold long dialogues from peak t-o peak 

 across \vide valleys. It was in this way doubtless that our 

 men were nearly done out of their supper, which according to 

 the laws of their kingdom the officer was within his right in 

 demanding. 



Reaching about five o'clock a little plateau, known as 

 Erlura, at 3.500 feet above the sea, where we found a well and 

 several tall gum-trees with their stems hollowed out by fire, 

 y/Q camped for the night After seeing the baggage stowed 

 inside the tret-s. I wcnpied the time till dark in assiduously 

 collecting the herbaceous plants which dotted the ground. The 



