. A naturalist's wanderings in the Eastern archipelago; a narrative of travel and exploration from 1878 to 1883. at slabs raised on endand remains of circular paved areas, set round with uprightblocks of stone. Specially noteworthy was a pillar, erectwithin a square marked out with stones on the ground, round IN JAVA, 99 which the worshippers had plaited a fringe of Areng palmleaves. This same stone is thus decorated at every visitmade by the worshippers to the sacred grove. At the base of two of the stones, where perhaps they havelain for unknown time, I found an earthenware jar, both ofthem
. A naturalist's wanderings in the Eastern archipelago; a narrative of travel and exploration from 1878 to 1883. at slabs raised on endand remains of circular paved areas, set round with uprightblocks of stone. Specially noteworthy was a pillar, erectwithin a square marked out with stones on the ground, round IN JAVA, 99 which the worshippers had plaited a fringe of Areng palmleaves. This same stone is thus decorated at every visitmade by the worshippers to the sacred grove. At the base of two of the stones, where perhaps they havelain for unknown time, I found an earthenware jar, both ofthem somewhat broken, but of elegant shape and artisticdesign, not of ordinary native pattern or workmanship; but,besides these jars, the egg-shaped stones and the image, allthe monuments were of rough stone and without inscription orsign of handicraft. At the base of all the principal moundsand pillars I found remains of their offerings. I learnt that the worshippers belonged to the tribe calledthe Karangs or Kalangs, who lived in a village lying severaldays journey to the southward. Four times a year a proces-. EARTHENWARE POT FROM THE EARANG S GROVE. sion of old men and youths repairs, by paths known onlyto themselves, through the dense intervening forest in a diiectcourse by valley and mountain, to this sacred grove; the oldmen to worship and make offering, the youths to see andlearn the mysterious litany of their fathers. The old men leadthe way; the rest follow in single file, no one breaking thesilence of their journey. Should any one be encountered bythem on the way their pilgrimage is considered for that timeunpropitious, and they return to their village to wait for amore favourable occasion. On their arrival with earlymorning at the grove they camp in a small hut, cleanse theground about the sacred mounds, and perform during thenight or on the following day the rites known to them-selves alone; in the evening they take their departure to an 100 A NATURALISTS WANDERINGS. ad
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1880, booksubjectnaturalhistory, booky
