The pagan tribes of Borneo - Get a Free Blog Here

134 PAGAN TRIBES OF BORNEO chap.
as they resume their seats, all paddle with might
and main until the boat takes the leap. Occasionally
a boat is upset during such an attempt, and rarely
one or two of the crew are lost through being hurled
against rocks and drowned while stunned.
In making a long journey the nights are passed
if possible in friendly villages. When no such
village can be reached, the night is passed either in
the boats moored to the bank or on the river-bank.
In the former case the leaf mats, of which each man
carries at least one in his basket, are used to roof
the boat ; in the latter case a rude hut is quickly
built, a framework of saplings lashed together, roofed
with the mats, and floored at a level of some feet
above the ground with bamboos or slender saplings.
On camping in the evening and before starting in
the morning, rice is cooked and eaten ; and about
mid-day the journey is interrupted for about an hour
while the party lands on the bank, or, if possible, on
a bed of pebbles, to rest and to cook and eat the midday
meal.
Fishing
Fish are caught in the rivers in several ways,
and form an important part of the diet of most of
the peoples. Perhaps the cast net is most commonly
used. This is a net which, when fully extended in
the water, covers a circular patch about six yards in
diameter, while its central part rises in a steep cone,
to the peak of which a strong cord is tied. The
main strands run radially from this central point,
increasing in number towards the periphery. They
are crossed by concentric strands. The periphery
is weighted with bits of metal or stone. This net is
used both in deep and in shallow water. In the
former case one man steers and paddles a boat,
while the other stands at the prow with the cord of
the net wound about the right hand. The bulk of