Pagan races of the Malay Peninsula - Sabrizain.org

IlABlTAriONS
Htits and Houses.
Perak Sakai.—The Sakai in commencing to build
their huts with rather more reference to Malay
models still retain the communal idea. One of these
Sakai communal houses, described by Hale,^ was built
on a slope, close to the summit of a lofty hill. The
thatching of the roof (with leaves of the bertam palm)
was a clumsy imitation of Malayan methods. The
floor of the house, which was raised above the ground,
rested upon nine posts, eight of inconsiderable and
one of very great diameter, which was, in fact, the
trunk of a large tree. Every other part of the house
was entirely built of bamboo.- The walls consisted of
long screens of sheet-thatch, which were suspended
loosely at their upper ends under the eaves, so that
the lower ends could be pushed open outwards. The
habitants half out of their wits. The
herds to which we paid our respects
had just the night before visited several
durian camps, and had torn down the
highest platform of all, as if to show
the Malays that it was of no use trying
to build a hut out of their reach. Of
course the Malays fled to the jungle.
There are several large caves in the
vicinity, and the Jakun are in the
habit of taking refuge in them when
the elephants become too neighbourly "
(J.R.A.S., S.B., No. 3, p. 128).
Batu is a small village six miles from
Kuala Lumpur in Selangor. Mr.
Hornaday is probably here writing of
the Inland or Hill Sakai. The
Jakun are really the savage Malayan
tribes, but the word is often used
loosely, especially by Malays (as here).
' P. 249. So too, according to De
Morgan, the entire tribe of Sakai at
Changak (PChangkat) Kerbu (in Ulu
Perak) lived in a big house which they
shared in common.
The house was divided into compartments,
where the various families
were separately installed, the hearths,
however, being shared in common, and
placed in the centre of the building.
The room of the chief (Penghulu) was
much better kept than the others, the
sleeping - places of flattened bamboo
being covered with mats decorated with
yellow patterns ; all the blowpipes of
the tribe were suspended from the
rafters, and big bamboos covered with
decoration were deposited in the corners
to supply him with water (De Morgan,
i- 43)-
'^ Mr. Hale, however, very rightly
points out that the Sakai are very
ready to adapt themselves to circumstances
in the matter of material. Thus
elsewhere Mr. Wray remarks that the
leaves of fan -palms are used by the
Sakai to thatch their houses, and that,
owing to the extreme hardness of the
stems, they are not in the habit of
cutting the palms down when felling
the jungle for their clearings, which
probably accounts for their great abundance
(/. R. A. S., S. B., No. 21, p.
155)-