“However, in the event of an opponent using a shield, I feel convinced that an European could not stand against them, as they are able to crouch their bodies entirely behind it, and can spring immediately from such an attitude behind it without losing their balance. But without a shield a man with a rapier would be more than a match for any of them, unless, as is possible, a heavy Dyak weapon were to cut a light sword in two. This, however, no dexterous fencer would be likely to allow, and, after the first blow from a heavy weapon had fallen, the opponent would be at the mercy of a light swordsman.”
With due respect to the opinion of so competent an authority, I cannot but think that, even when furnished with this shield, the Dyak ought not to overcome a good fencer. The very fact that he is obliged to hold his shield before him, and consequently to stand either with his left side or at least his breast fronting his adversary, shows that he can have but a very short reach with his weapon, while his opponent, armed with a small sword, and using only the point, can remain entirely out of reach of the parang’s edge, while he himself is within easy distance of the Dyak, and ready to bring in the fatal point of his weapon at the slightest opening made by his opponent.
The reader may remember that the parang described on [page 1125] has attached to it, among other ornaments, a single feather. This feather has been taken from the rhinoceros hornbill, a bird which the Dyaks hold in much respect, and which they will not eat, however hungry they may be. The quill feathers of the wing and tail are black, with a band of white, and by both Malays and Dyaks they are thought to possess certain virtues, and are used as talismans. The bird is considered to be an emblem of war, and for this reason the sword sheaths, shields, and cloaks worn in war time are decorated with its feathers; and the huge horny beak of the bird is scraped thin, polished, and made into earrings.
(1.) DYAK KRIS
(See [page 1126].)
(2.) BORNESE SHIELD.
(See [page 1131].)
(3.) PARANG WITH CHARMS.
(See [page 1125].)