The international geography . of whomthe tribes known as Bajans still live by piracy. Some of the southerndistricts seem at one time to have been occupied by Hindus. Inthe north-west of Borneo, the Sulus predominate. The Dyaks~are lesscivilised than the Sumatrans ; they have no literature, and no script. Theylive in large communal pile dwellings, and are spoken of as likeablesavages by those who have lived among them. Their head-hunting—thesign amongst them of manhood—is practised, not from bloodthirstiness,so much as from conformity to inexorable custom which demands it as anessential to matr
The international geography . of whomthe tribes known as Bajans still live by piracy. Some of the southerndistricts seem at one time to have been occupied by Hindus. Inthe north-west of Borneo, the Sulus predominate. The Dyaks~are lesscivilised than the Sumatrans ; they have no literature, and no script. Theylive in large communal pile dwellings, and are spoken of as likeablesavages by those who have lived among them. Their head-hunting—thesign amongst them of manhood—is practised, not from bloodthirstiness,so much as from conformity to inexorable custom which demands it as anessential to matrimonial success. They have no manufactures beyond thefabrication of a few krises, ornaments of gold, or silk sarongs—all of highrepute—for their own use or barter. Rice, sugar, and a little tobacco areall the products the people cultivate, and those mainly for their own use. • The export trade of Dutch Borneo consists of Chinese or Europeancultivated tobacco, sugar and pepper, and the native-collected forest produce. Fig. 2S-J.—Borneo. 5^8 The International Geography of edible birds nests, bees-wax, dammar, and gutta-perclia, with somebeche-de-mer and tortoise-shell. The natural resources of the island are,however, still almost entirely undeveloped. Vast fields of coal of Tertiaryage, composed mainly of large dicotyledonous trees, occur in the south,near IMartapura; and though there are abundant deposits of the morevaluable minerals and metals, gold and diamonds are alone extensivelyworked. Ludovic Varthema was the first European to visit Borneo, early in thesixteenth century; the Spanish squadron which put into Brunei on itsway from the Philippines in 1521 next reached the island. Then some tenyears later the Portuguese, who had touched in 1526 on their way to theMoluccas, established a few ports from which they carried on trade forover 150 years. It was not till the close of the sixteenth century, however,that the Dutch reached Borneo, where they also settled and
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, booksubjectgeography, bookyear19
