The Malay archipelago : the land of the orang-utan ... - Wallace Online

322 THE MALAY ARCHIPELAGO, [chap.left, standing up three or four inches, about the same width, anda foot long ; these are of great importance in the constructionof the vessel. When a sufficient number of planks have beenmade, they are laboriously dragged through- the forest by threeor four men each to the beach, where the boat is to be built.A foundation piece, broad in the middle and rising considerablyat each end, is first laid on blocks and properly shored up. Theedges of this are worked true and smooth with tlie adze, and aplank, properly curved and tapering at each end, is held firmlyup against it, while a line is struck along it whicli allows it tobe cut so as to fit exactly. A series of auger holes, about aslarge as one's finger, are then bored along the opposite edges,and pins of very hard wood are fitted to these, so that the twoplanks ai'e held firmly, and can be driven into the closest contact; and difiicult as tliis seems to do without any other aidthan rude practical skill in forming each edge to the truecorresponding curves, and in boring the holes so as exactly tomatch both in position and direction, yet so well is it done tliatthe best Euroj^eau shipwright cannot produce sounder or closerfittingjoints. The boat is built up in tliis way by fitting plankto plank till the proper lieight and widtli are obtained. Wehave now a skin held together entirely by the hard-wood pinsconnecting the edges of tlie planks, very strong and elastic, buthaving nothing but the adhesion of these pins to prevent tlieplanks gaping. In the smaller boats seats, in the larger onescross-beams are now fixed. Tiiey are sjDrung into slight notchescut to receive them, and are further secured to the projectingpieces of the plank below by a strong lasliing of rattan. Eibsare now formed of single pieces of tough wood chosen andtrimmed so as exactly to tit on to the projections from eachplank, being slightly notched to receive them, and securelybound to them by rattans passed through a hole in each projectingpiece close to the surface of the plank. The ends areclosed against the vertical prow and stern posts, and furthersecured with pegs and rattans, and then the boat is complete ;and when fitted with rudders, masts, and thatched covering, isready to do battle with the waAes. A careful consideration ofthe principle of this mode of construction, and allowing for thestrength and binding qualities of rattan (which resembles inthese respects wire rather than cordage), makes me believe thata vessel carefully built in this manner is actuallj'' stronger andsafer than one fastened in the ordinary way with nails.During our stay here we were all very busy. Our captain wasdaily superintending the completion of his two small praus. Allday long native boats were coming with fish, cocoa-nuts, parrotsand lories, earthen pans, sirih leaf, wooden bowls, and trays, Szc.&c., which every one of the fifty inhabitants of our prau seemedto be buying on his own account, till all available and most unavailaljlespace of our vessel was occupied with these miscellaneousarticles : for every man on board a prau considers