Pagan races of the Malay Peninsula - Sabrizain.org

164 DRESS PART II
chiefly those of the Negri Sembilan and Rembau and
Johor, shaved the head, leaving unshaven only, on
the crown, a space about three inches in diameter,
where they never cut it, just in the same way as the
Chinese ; and to prevent this head of hair from being
hooked by the branches of trees in the jungle, they
tied it up in the form of a top -knot. They had
scarcely any beard, and many of them had none at
all. The women left their hair to grow, and then tied
it up in the same way as the Malay women ; but as
they had but little occasion to care much for appearance,
it will be easily imagined that they were not very
particular in this respect. Some of them are said to
treat their hair with lime.'
It does not yet seem to have been recorded
whether the Jakun are in the habit of eradicat-
ing their beard, but there is, I believe, very little
doubt upon the point. Vaughan - Stevens does
not actually state that the Jakun men pull out the
hair of the face, though he clearly implies it in
saying that the beard and whiskers (of the Jakun)
are scarcely ever present, even if they are not in-
tentionally pulled out.-
Oranct Laut or Ska-Jakun.
Necklaces and Armlets.
Name of Tribe unspecified.—The Orang Laut have
now all taken to the Malay dress. The desire to
adorn the person exists among their women despite
' Logan in J. I. A. vol. ii. p. 248. people, to wliich I called their attention
Cp., however, the statement of \'.- a long time before, ever treated their
Stevens— -"I could not learn whether the hair with lime, as some of the New
Jakun, although they perceived the Guinea men do " (Z./ i?. xsix. 178).
reddish colour of the hair of the young - Z.f. E. xxix. 1 79.