Tvkess. 
257 
These gather themselves together to the number of five or six fami¬ 
lies, they choose a place in the thickest of the forest, and there they 
clear a circle of about thirty feet in diameter ; having cleared this 
space they surround it with the branches of the trees they have just 
cut; to this they joiti other thorny branches they collect from other 
parts, and so make a sort of bulwark against tigers, bears and pan¬ 
thers, which are there in good number. Having done this they pro¬ 
ceed to establish their dewlling in this enclosure, in the fallowing way : 
each family works to construct what will serve for a bed during the 
night, a seat in the day time, a table for the repast, and a dwelling or 
shelter in bad weather; it consists of about fifteen or twenty sticks 
of six feet long, laid one beside the other, supported at the two ex¬ 
tremities by two other transverse sticks which are set upon four 
wooden posts; the whole being about two feet in height, four feet 
broad and six feet long. One dozen Chucho leaves gathered by 
their ends, tied at the head of the bed, extend themselves and cover 
it until the other extremity: these beds are placed around the en¬ 
closure, in such a way that when all the persons are sleeping every 
one has his feet towards the centre of the habitation which is left 
vacant, to be used as a cook room, or for any other purpose. 
DRESS. 
The cloths of the Jakuns (when they use any) are ordinarily the 
same as those used by the Malays, but poor, miserable, and above 
all very unclean; many of them use cloths without washing, from the 
day they receive or buy them, until they become rotten by use and 
dirt; and they are obliged to throw them away : If some vermin are 
foundf which is often the case, principally upon the women who are 
more dressed, they are immediatly eaten with delight as in Cochin- 
China. If many of them are badly dressed, and some nearly naked, it 
is more from a want of clothes than in accordance to their own wish¬ 
es, chiefly amongst women; for all desire to be clothed, and the most 
agreeable presents which can be offered to them are some trows ers, 
sarongs, bajus, or some handkerchiefs to put round their head, as is 
the Malay fashion. Those of them who go habitually nearly naked, 
