My Friends the Savages

e guests?-?Hereditary antipathy?-?The five senses reduced to two?-?Food and drink?-?Tranquil life?-?Intolerance o

a, the scientif

answered questions: Where did our species fi

n; he is but one imperceptible moment enclosed by a Past which he does not know and a Future which he will never see. But

clination for metaphysical reflections, but about the Sakais who have unconscious

only fall back upon mere hypothesis, more or less probable, until an accurate investigatio

ive Sakai never abandons his native forest and to have a dead one for the purpose would be next to impossible, as he who attempted to carry away a corpse would expose himself t

any near chance of arriving at a d

vanced through Indo-China till they reached the Malay Peninsula. Here also they found themselves pursued and surrounded by civilization, so, instead of settling round the rich and smiling shores, they turned

ey had chosen as a refuge, they concealed themselves in the jungl

ammedism but the only result was fire and bloodshed and after each conflict the surviving Sakais fled further into the

hat a very remote intercourse existed between these and Hindostan, and although there is no substantial proof, no analogies of language, customs or creed upon which to base such a conjecture, neither, as

to that people, once grand, but now broken up and dispersed. In fact, even at the present time, th

haracteristics and habits of the Kurumbus, inhabiting the forest, wh

tive mode of cultivating corn, the choice of food, and the improvidence s

hat the two peoples are of the same origin but they

o the contact the latter have with each other, the result being a modification of customs, traditions and purity of blood. I find, however, many traits which c

those of the plains who have in a great measure lost the characteristics which sho

bound to mention (not the least of which being perhaps the need we all feel of investigat

g away of nineteen or more centuries beca

sufficiently hardy and well-formed, except in th

abit they have, from their earliest childhood, of sitting up

frequently seen Italians in the same position, but the latter lean their shoulde

ests them the Sakai men and women will remain for whole h

ly arched. The big toe is well separat

r hands are also very long and slender. The chest muscles, on the contrary, are very well developed owing probably to the continual h

eats and the cold he suffers during the night, but he is much more robust and taller (the average height of an adult is a little past one metre and a half)[7] than the other tribes

p certain clefts that we should judge impossible of ascent and also when they spring fr

to which they are well accustomed as every day they walk about 20 miles, carrying upon their shoulders the by no means light product of th

they will eat at once, be it animal or vegetable food, and when they cannot finish it up by themselves they invite people from another villa

ave them to starve and when there is no more rice, durian, mangosteen etc., it i

talian operas their favouri

mo l'ince

ggi n'è dat

where else could the Borgias be so well rem

lder (in consequence of their long exposure to the sun), at which period the whole body becomes rough

ot

1

m the man. She is rather shorter as is the ca

considered a beauty.... in the forest, but she soon gets faded because of the fatiguing life she leads and al

ally healthy, stur

ngolian race; the cheek-bones, however, are less prominent than

s enough. The nose is large and slightly flattened at the root. The

e beautified by two rows of sound regular teeth if the latter were not

in is

le projecting but the countenance is not an unpleasant one and wea

the face or body. Those rare ones, whose appearance would be rapturously hailed by our youths as

ally has, but whilst amongst us an artistic arrangement of the hair is an attraction which often makes us

and dishevelled upon their shoulders they just tie it up badly with a strip of many-coloured upas bark (a remedy against migraine)

lowers there is a tiny world of restless inhabitants and the poor p

h more pains over his hair, combing and smoothing it in order to divide

ly pounded root of a plant to which they attribute the virtue of so

etimes wear comb

The bath, as a pleasure or a necessity, is quite unknown to them, and those who dwell amongst the mountains have the greatest fear of water. The foaming torrents and noisy cascades that dash down the ravines have in

ai be

1

no canoes of any kind and when they want to cross from one shore to the other they either throw a huge tree into the river to serve as

o me asking for soap. Though not a great step towards progress this is always better than nothing. The old people, of course, do not regard the bathing innovation with kindly eyes. They are alw

ever washed themselves and so it is their

two for whilst they are very quick in hearing and seeing,

have, in the forest, of keeping the ear and the eye open. To be

oo stick, which they wear, partly for ornament, and partly as a charm, against I do not exactly know what danger. And not only this, but they are in the habit of playing a

dew which makes it as weather-beaten as that of any old salt's; besides this they are accustomed from childhood to be stung by insects and nettles, to

aste results from the prac

Sakai

1

not require much

bulbs and tubers that they find in the forest like we do truffles, many edible leaves and all sorts of fruit,

s and potatoes that are cooked under the hot ashes, the whole lot is put, with a little water, into cooking-pots made out of large bamboo canes,

e caught in traps they just burn at the fire without taking t

that sets your mouth on fire. The use of this capsicum, and the continual chewing of tobacco

tive that they have no fishing tackle and their fear of the water makes them avoid it as much as possible. Nevertheless when there is a dearth of other food they

ponds the still greater simplicity of the

h. Should it not be perfectly pure in colour and taste they will not drink it. They always

over a torrent or stream to drink some water but my companions prot

o touch their bamboo bottles and glasses with their lips. They are very clever in pouring the contents down their throats without lettin

s hygienic custom of the savages. How many infections the less! Ho

culty in obtaining it but also from a strange prejudi

they never swallow

s for the simple reason that they have n

and procure them easily will they not

s finished he fills his mouth with t

g from

1

ue-smeared with lime and rolled up round a little tobacco and a piece of areca nut. Both

impossible, put the ingredients into a bamboo and pound them u

which he has a brief stationary period, followed by a rapid falling off that I thi

ife and in two years from that date she is but the ghost of her former self. Thin, and with a wrinkled

trike chords upon her krob, modulate a plaintive ditty on her ciniloi and sing whilst she beats on her bamboo sticks an accompaniment that tortures well-tuned ears. For the res

liest of the female sex are the

aking in

ripes and hieroglyphics, in imitation of medicinal plants, the principal colours

hat they are also made to frighten away the Evil Spirit you may well imagine how they each try to ara

to adopt such a mode of winning the admiration

nnot last more than a day. It is c

forest in search of game and vegetable food. He is accompanied by his boys who either practise with their blow-pipe or with a poi

s in other villages, he remains quietly in his hut sleeping, smokin

se savages beating his wife or children, or of ill-treating them in any way and neither of using violenc

answered me impertinently with a curt neay (no). I turned to his mother

rritation, then said: "You are a bad man if you

t and respectful to their parents and the old; they are affectionate in their family and, poor savages! are still a long way off from such a degree of civilization as to cut u

nly the decisive affirmation of that indomitable spirit of freedom that anim

way without interfering at all. He will rest, eat, smoke, and walk on just as he chooses and if you

in consequence of the difference in their characters no tragic scenes or petty quarrels occur; the young couple merely take up their scanty belongings, destro

when settling some particular question unless they are all

well enough and viceversa, and they all respect each other and can live peacea

an and woman cannot exactly agree as husband and wife? They cheerfully divorce themselves instead of poisoni

ilized people have yet to learn from sa

s is an error, for their so-called laziness is nothing b

r them to do in the depth of the forest, where there is no thirst for riches (because unknown to them), for

ing poison

1

o struggle for life which amongst us is the inexhaustible sourc

of his subjects might boil his own fowl in his

ery strange case) somebody should be without, he goes to the nearest hut, enters without speaking, and sits down without being greeted. Some food is placed before him that he devours without being invited to do

ork together, the head of the family, the elder, the young men, the boys, everyone gives a hand to the best of his capacity. When they have finished, the oldest of the company lie down to doze

these savages might be used with the same force in spea

or the other has been satisfied, or the necessity for such continual effort no longer seems imperative, or either the desired

work begins and finishes with the day. Give him some tobacco and i

own to rest upon the ground, because beds and chairs are unknown to him, and it is

d consequently has no honest fatigue to rest from, lies upon a soft feather bed, there to restore his strength wasted

make haste to return to his own forest and if he were obliged or knew how to write his impr

alize for they are Western men

hese poor creatures sleeping on the cold ground, huddled together to ke

n the morning their bones ached so much that they gave me ba

not blame th

ctising

1

tno

than five feet.

orrow take c

is ours

d for a long time. When pounded into an oily past