Pagan races of the Malay Peninsula - Sabrizain.org

542 DEALINGS WITH OTHER RACES i'art ii
much sense and firmness in his character, and a slight
degree of pride and reserve in his manner. He was
looked up to by his companions as a man of superior
ability and knowledge, and his reputed skill in natural
and supernatural medicines made him an object of
much attention to the Malays in the neighbourhood,
who invited him to their houses and visited him, to
solicit herbs and charms. The women in particular
regarded him as a magician of undoubted art, and
many, on first approaching him, threw themselves at
his feet. His head was decidedly intellectual in its
formation.
Parut was a picture of indolence, good-nature, and
contentedness. He seemed to enjoy what the passing
moment brought, without any intrusion of thought or
care.
Tala was also good-natured and indolent, but more
lively, and not without a little humour. He was
exceedingly fond of raw brandy, and, when slightly
elevated, danced, sang, and played on his flute—
mere piece of bamboo with some holes in it. On the
third evening he was seized with melancholy, his
thoughts reverted to his absent wife, and he sat for
some hours by himself drawing plaintive notes from
his flute, and singing of her, by turns, while the tears
coursed down his cheeks. His temperament was
much more excitable than that of the others, J|
The women were good-natured, and one of them,
Pawang's wife, was even lively. Whilst their conversation
was characterised by an Old Testament
simplicity and unreserve, their manners were in every
respect modest.
The impression which they made upon every one
who saw much of them was very favourable. In
a