They told Dubi that they thought that the white people who
could make such things as I possessed could do anything. So much of
my property seemed to amuse and astonish them, that it was a treat to
show them such things as my looking-glass, hair-brush, socks, guns,
umbrella, watch, etc. I showed them that child's trick of making the
lid of my watch fly open, and they were delighted.
The Dayak women can hardly be considered good-looking. I saw one or two
that were rather pretty, but they were very young and unmarried. Dubi
fell madly in love with one of them and she with him, and when I left
there were two broken hearts. Many of the little girls of about five
and six years old would have been regular pictures if they had only
been cleaner. I made the discovery that some of my Dayak friends were
addicted to the horrible habit of eating clay, and actually found
a regular little digging in the side of a hill where they worked
to get these lumps of reddish grey clay, and soon caught some of
the old men eating it. They declared that they enjoyed it. All my
empty tins (from tinned meats, etc.) were in great demand, and so
to save jealousy I actually demoralized the Dayaks to the extent of
introducing the raffling system among them.
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