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

XXXI.] ARU ISLANDS.—RESIDENCE IN THE INTERIOR. 345Aru wife and family ; and as this kind of mixture has been goingon for at least three hundred years, and probably much longer,it has produced a decided effect on the physical characteristicsof a considerable portion of the population of the islands, moreespecially in Dobbo and the parts nearest to it.March 28?A.—The "Orang-kaya" being very ill with feverhad begged to go home, and had arranged with one of the menof the house to go on with me as his substitute. Now that Iwanted to move, the bugbear of the pirates was brought up,and it was pronounced unsafe to go further than the next smallriver. This would not suit me, as I had determined to traversethe channel called Watelai to the " blakang-tana " ; but myguide was firm in his dread of pirates, of which I knew therewas now no danger, as several vessels had gone in search ofthem, as well as a Dutch gunboat which had arrived since I leftDobbo. I had, fortunately, by this time heard that the Dutch"Commissie" had really arrived, and therefore threatened thatif my guide did not go with me immediately, I would appeal tothe authorities, and he would certainly be obliged to givebackthe cloth which the "Orang-kaya" had transferred to him inprepayment. This had the desired effect ; matters Avere soonarranged, and we started the next morning. The wind, however,was dead against us, and after rowing hard till middaywe put in to a small river where there were a few huts, to cookour dinners. The place did not look very promising, but as wecould not reach our destination, the Watelai river, owing to thecontrary wind, I thought we might as well wait here a day ortwo. I therefore paid a chopper for the use of a small shed, andgot my bed and some boxes on shore. In the evening,^ after"dark, we were suddenly alarmed by the cry of "Bajak !bajak !(Pirates !) The men all seized their bows and spears, and rusheddown to the beach ; we got hold of our guns and prepared foraction, but in a few minutes all came back laughing andchattering, for it had proved to be only a small boat and someof their own comrades returned from fishing. When all wasquiet again, one of the men, wh.o could speak a little INIalay,came to me and begged me not to sleep too hard. " Why 1said I. "Perhaps the pirates may really come," said he veryseriously, which made me laugh and assure him I should sleepas hard as I could.Two days were spent here, but the place was unproductive otinsects or birds of interest, so we made another attempt to geton. As soon as we got a little away from the land we had afair wind, and in six hours' sailing reached the entrance of theWatelai channel, which divides the most northerly from themiddle portion of Aru. At its mouth this wasabouthalf a milewide, but soon narrowed, and a mile or two on it assumedentirely the aspect of a river about the width of the Thames atLondon, winding among low but undulating and often hillycountry. The scene was exactly such as might be expected in"