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Pagan races of the Malay Peninsula - Sabrizain.org

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I RACE-CHARACTERS OF MALAYAN SEA-GYPSIES 69<br />

<strong>the</strong> same writer, inhabit <strong>the</strong> forests on <strong>the</strong> banks <strong>of</strong><br />

<strong>the</strong> Sa-raya and its tributary <strong>the</strong> Muka Kuning.<br />

Pulau Tinggi, <strong>of</strong>f <strong>the</strong> east coast <strong>of</strong> Johor, was a<br />

favourite lurking-place for <strong>the</strong> Orang Laut in <strong>the</strong> days<br />

when <strong>the</strong>y practised piracy.<br />

We may conclude <strong>the</strong>n that <strong>the</strong> almost innumer-<br />

able creeks, inlets, and islands lying along <strong>the</strong> coast<br />

<strong>of</strong> Johor and to <strong>the</strong> south <strong>of</strong> it, as far as Billiton at any<br />

rate, are—or perhaps it is necessary to say were<br />

peopled by wild men <strong>of</strong> <strong>Malay</strong>an origin, who spent<br />

most <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir time on <strong>the</strong> water, and that almost every<br />

community <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>se people was called by a different<br />

name, <strong>the</strong> name <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> locality that it occupied for <strong>the</strong><br />

time being.<br />

And finally we are told by Anderson that in <strong>the</strong><br />

upper coasts <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Malay</strong> <strong>Peninsula</strong>, from " Poongha"<br />

to Trang (in <strong>the</strong> neighbourhood <strong>of</strong> Junk Ceylon), in-<br />

cluding a coast <strong>of</strong> 16 or 18 leagues and a number <strong>of</strong><br />

islands, <strong>the</strong>re were no inhabitants except <strong>the</strong> Orang<br />

Laut who navigated from island to island.^<br />

Race-Characters <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Orang Laut.<br />

The physical characters <strong>of</strong> members <strong>of</strong> this race<br />

have been described by Logan - and Thomson.''<br />

The former gives an account <strong>of</strong> three men <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong><br />

Beduanda Kallang. The chief features <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> face<br />

appear to be <strong>the</strong> great width <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> forehead, which is<br />

at <strong>the</strong> same time unusually low, <strong>the</strong> absence <strong>of</strong> prog-<br />

nathism, and <strong>the</strong> thinness <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> lips. The face is flat<br />

and <strong>the</strong> eye-brows horizontal. The general character<br />

<strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> face is between that <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Malay</strong> and Siamese,<br />

• App. to Anderson's CotisideraliouSy '* Cellates "or " Men <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Straits."<br />

p. liv. (1824). The O. Laut are first I. -J. A. vol. i. p. 301 seg.<br />

mentioned by l)e Barros, who calls <strong>the</strong>m ^ fh. p. 34/*-<br />

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