Just south of Sungei Tenang, and east of the Rejang country is Labun, a mountain district; whilst north of Palembang, and south of the River Jambi, on the eastern coast, is a flat country covered with wood and but thinly inhabited. Now, for those who look for the wildest varieties of the Sumatran tribes, these are the most likely localities. Accordingly, when Marsden made his inquiries as to the aborigines of the island, he heard of the Orang Gugu, and the Orang[51] Kubu.
Of these the Orang Gugu, from the parts about Labun, are the wildest and scarcest, being described as having their bodies covered with hair, and as being more orang utan than human beings.
The Orang Kubu are said to be pretty numerous, belonging to the other district; i.e. the parts between the Jambi and Palembang. The worst that is said of these is, that they have a peculiar and unintelligible language, and that they feed indifferently on elephants, rhinoceroses, snakes, and monkeys.
A few small islands on the further side of Sumatra require notice.
Enganho Island.—Natives described by Mr. Miller, in 1771, A.D., as taller and fairer than the Malays.
Poggi Islanders, or people of Si Porah and Si Biru.—The manners of these people are those of the Battas, except that they are more rude; and that their custom of disposing of the dead is different. The Poggi Islanders deposit the corpse on a sort of stage in a place appropriated for the purpose, and strewing a few leaves over it, leave it to decay. Tattooing is common.
The Pulo Batu, or Nias Islanders.—These are lighter in complexion and smaller in stature than the Malays. The custom of stretching the ears so as even to flap upon the shoulders, is general here. Every district, and there are upwards of fifty of them, is at war with its neighbour, and the export of slaves is the consequence.
Orang Maruwi.—The small islands of Pulo Nako, close upon the western side of Nias, also Pulo Babi, and Pulo Baniak.—These are merely noticed for the sake of saying that their dialect is said to be unintelligible to the Nias and Poggi people, and that a minute distinction between them has been recognized.
We may now consider some of the moral attributes of the Malay race; and in doing this there is no better a division of the different forms of their civilization than the one indicated and illustrated by Dr. Prichard. The two areas which we have just considered—the peninsula of Malacca, and the Island of Sumatra—have sufficiently shown that there are, at least, two degrees in the civilization of their occupants.
The civilization of the kingdom of Atchin, and of the proper Mahometan Malays in general, is a derived civilization, introduced by the conquerors, the traders, or the missionaries of Mahometan Arabia; in which we have a literature consisting, to a great extent, of annals, an Arabic alphabet, and no very prominent traces of any original paganism.