NATURAL HISTORY. 
S2 
as a "three-year-old child, has a very long tail, and a fleshy nose, longer than that of the biggest-nosed 
•man. The further we went on the narrower and more winding the stream became ; fallen trees 
sometimes blocked up our passage, and sometimes tangled branches and creepers met completely 
across it, and had to be cut away before we could get on. It took us two days to reach Semabanga, 
and we hardly saw a bit of dry land all the way. In the latter part of the journey I could touch the 
'bushes on each side for miles ; and we were often delayed by the screw-pines (Pandonas) which grew 
abundantly in the water, falling across the stream. In other places dense rafts of floating grass 
-completely filled up the channel, making our journey a constant succession of difficulties. The 
mountain or hill was close by, covered with a complete forest of fruit-trees, among which the 
GDurion and Mangosteen were very abundant ; but the fruit was not yet quite ripe, except a little 
here and there. I spent a week at this place, going out every day in various directions about the 
mountain, accompanied by a Malay, who had stayed with me while the other boatmen returned. 
For three days we found no Orangs, but shot a Deer and several Monkeys. On the fourth day, however, 
we found a Mias feeding on a very lofty Durion tree, and succeeded in killing it, after eight shots. 
Unfortunately it remained in the tree, hanging by its hands, and we were obliged to leave it and return 
’home, as it was several miles off. As I felt pretty sure it would fall during the night, I returned to 
the place early the next morning, and found it on the ground beneath the tree. To my astonishment 
and pleasure, it appeared to be a different kind from any I had yet seen; for although a full-grown 
male, by its fully- developed teeth and very large canines, it had no sign of the lateral protuberance on 
ithe face, and was about one-tenth smaller than the other adult males. The upper incisors, however, 
appeared to be broader than in the larger species, a character distinguishing the Simia -mono of Pro- 
fessor Owen, which he has described from the skull of a female specimen. As it was too far to 
carry the animal home, I set to work and skinned the body on the spot, leaving the head, hands, and 
feet attached, to be finished at home. This specimen is now in the British Museum.” 
The Mias, as stated by Rajah Brooke, will turn upon an antagonist when hard pressed, and 
with no small bravery and ferocity; and this was satisfactorily proved by Mr. Wallace, who tells the 
following story : — 
“ About ten days after this, on June 4th, some Dyaks came to tell me that the day before a Mias 
had nearly killed one of their companions. A few miles down the river there is a Dyak house, and 
the inhabitants saw a large Orang feeding on the young shoots of a palm by the river side. On bemg 
alarmed he retreated towards the jungle, which was close by, and a number of the men, armed with 
spears and choppers, ran out to intercept him. The man who was in front tried to run his spear 
through the animal’s body, but the Mias seized it in his hands, and in an instant got hold of the man’s 
arm, which he seized in his mouth, making his teeth meet in the flesh above the elbow, which he tore 
and lacerated in a dreadful manner. Had not the others been close behind, the man would have been 
more seriously injured, if not killed, as he was quite powerless ; but they soon destroyed the creature 
with tlieir spears and choppers. The man remained ill for a long time, and never fully recovered the 
use of his arm. They told me the dead Mias was still lying where it had been killed, so I offered 
them a reward to bring it up to our landing-place immediately, which they promised to do. They 
did not come, however, till the next day, and then decomposition had commenced, and great patches 
of the ham came off, so that it was useless to skin it. This I regretted much, as it was a very fine 
full-grown male. I cut off the head and took it home to clean, while I got my men to -make a close 
fence, about five feet high, round the rest of the body, which would soon he devoured by maggots, small 
lizards, and ants, leaving me tbe skeleton.” 
On another occasion Mr. Wallace had an opportunity of observing the nest, or rather nest-making, 
which is performed by these animals when severely wounded. “ He was called by a Chinaman working 
in Borneo to shoot a Mias which, he said, was on a tree close by liis house at the coal-mines. Arriving 
at the place, we had some difficulty in finding the animal, as he had gone off into the jungle, which 
was very rocky and difficult to traverse. At last we found him up a very high tree, and could see 
chat he was a male of the largest size. As soon as I had fired, lie moved higher up the tree, and 
while he was doing so I fired again ; and we then saw that one arm was broken. He liad now 
reached the very highest part of an immense tree, and immediately began breaking off houghs all 
around, and laying them across and across to make a nest. It was very interesting to see how well 
