iMiAHiTiMG thh: Malayan pkivinsola. 21 



from thai, lliat they descend from these 

 MaJa\s; as we know by history and tradi- 

 tion tliat liiey \vere in the Peninsula before 

 them, and that tlie Meuangkal>aw Maiays 

 descend from Jakunsby iheir mothers side, 

 as we have seen when speakinjj of tfie ar- 

 rival of Tu Pultair: whicli explains sufli- 

 ciently the resenililancc wc perceive in the 

 Malays to tlie Jakiins. 



It is l eaJiy very diniciiit to discover wliat 

 occuretl many centuries ago among a peo- 

 ple so entirely ij^iiorant that eacli indivi- 

 dual knnws scarcely what occiired (luring 

 the life of his own lather; and where there 

 is no writing or any memorial to record 

 the facts of the time past. 



In such an incertitude, 1 will beware lo 

 combat any opinion; but I will say, at ieast, 

 that if we consider tliese Jakuns as descen- 

 dants of Tartars, we must admit too. that 

 tl]e\ ai e much degenerated. 



W hen Dr. Ivan, physician lo the French 



a. 



