*rttE Bi.VUA OF johobeV 
271 
file neck of the infant as a charm. In the third month of pregnancy 
the Poyang visits the mother, performs some ceremonies and binds 
a charm round her waist in order that all may go well with her and 
the child. On the birth of the first child a feast is generally given by 
the Binuas. 
Circumcision is not practised. A single incision or slit is made by 
the Binuas, but not by the Berinun tribes. A similar custom ap¬ 
pears to prevail amongst some of the Dyaks, although a more ex¬ 
traordinary fashion is adopted by other tribes. 
Names are sometimes given at birth, but these are changed at 
the age of puberty. They tile the teeth like the Malays and the 
Bermun tribes. 
On the day succeeding a death the body is wrapped in doth and 
deposited in a grave dug near the hut, together with some of the 
clothing of the deceased, and his parang if he possesses one. No 
ceremony is observed. Above the grave a frame work of wood re¬ 
sembling a box without top or bottom is placed. This is tilled with 
earth, a piece of carved wood is stuck at each end, and frequently the 
whole is protected by a roof. I did not learn whether, like the Ber- 
jnun aborigines, they burn a tire above the grave for three or seven 
nights to prevent the hantu or spirit of the deceased from crying in 
the grave. A still more singular custom of the latter does not appear 
to be followed. This consists in placing the end of a bambu elose to 
the nose of the corpse, the other end projecting above the grave. 
This practise is said to be confined to the graves of children who die 
young, and the reason given for it is that the gases accumulating in 
the body, anti having no outlet, would cause it to swell and burst, 
and that by some sympathy between it and the body of the living 
mother, the latter would he affected in the same way. 
Additional Remarks on Agriculture, Arts &c. —The only 
kinds of cultivation in which the Binuas engage have already been 
noticed. They have no agricultural implements. A stick sharp¬ 
ened at one end serves as a dibble, and the parang assists in dig¬ 
ging roots, cutting sugar cane &c. Paddy is reaped by the hand. 
Canoes are used for transporting produce, fishing, and visiting, the 
rivers and their branches serving as highways. The canoes vary in 
length from eight to fifteen feet and are always hollowed outof one 
piece of wood. The most durable timber is selected, the kayu pinak 
being preferred as it will last for twenty years and longer. A canoe 
from 12 to 10 feet in length, which will carry from 400 to 000 
