was to be had, and the sensation of thirst was unknown. It came about in this way: One day To’ ′Ĕntah shot a monkey with a blow-pipe,[1] and made a fire, and cooked and ate the monkey; after which he became sensible of a desire to imbibe something, and went about in search of something to drink, but could find nothing, not even an "ákar"[2] (water-giving liane, or monkey-rope). The "ákar" did not produce water then. At last he came upon an old "jĕlôtong"[3] stump, and through a hole in it heard the sound of something trickling down below: he fastened a rôtan mânau[4] above outside, and then let himself down into the hole by it till he reached what he found to be flowing water, and there he slaked his thirst.
He made his way out again by the rôtan, and when leaving the spot he saw a large white lĕlâbi, or labi-lâbi (a sort of fresh-water turtle), issue from the hole, with a vast body of water, and begin chasing him; he ran for his life, and called to the elephants for help, but they were driven away by the water. To’ ′Ĕntah then met a tiger, whose help he begged, and the tiger attacked the head of the lĕlâbi, but could do it no harm. To’ ′Ĕntah continued his flight till he met a sĕlâdang,[5] whom he implored to come to his rescue, and the sĕlâdang trampled on the lĕlâbi, but to no purpose.
He next begged the aid of the rhinoceros, but with no better result, and they had to fly before the lĕlâbi.
- ↑ Usually about seven feet long.
- ↑ There are considerable numbers of these water-producing creepers; of a few the water is very good, delicious in fact; of others, though not so pleasant, it is quite drinkable; while some are only safe as long as spirits are abstained from. Witness a painful case which occurred in South America a few years ago, where a traveller suffered an agonizing death from drinking alcohol, in the shape of whisky, shortly after a draught from one of these creepers, the alcohol having solidified the sap of the creeper, which was probably one of the gutta-bearers.
- ↑ There are two or three varieties of this tree which is used medicinally, and for its timber, and also produces a sap which is mixed with marketable kinds of "gutta." (Alstonia eximia, Filet.)
- ↑ "Rôtan," Anglicé, "rattan," from Malay, "ráut," to split, pare; "manau," the name of a variety from which excellent walking-canes are made.
- ↑ Wild ox of the peninsula, a large animal, short close hair; several specimens of heads and horns were exhibited in the Malay Court (Straits Settlements) at the Colonial and Indian Exhibition in 1886.
