# Journal of the Indian Archipelago and Eastern Asia/Series 1/Volume 1/The Orang Sabimba of the Extremity of the Malay peninsula
### THE ORANG SABIMBA OF THE EXTREMITY OF THE MALAY PENINSULA.THE ORANG SABIMBA OF THE EXTREMITY OF THE MALAY PENINSULA.

Allusion having been made in the preceding paper to the in- sular tribe who were recently transferred from the island of Battam to the southern coast of Johore by the Tamungong, and also to the race who frequent the creeks of the same coast, a short comparison of them with the Binuá may not be without interest.
Being desirous of assembling individuals of as many of the wild tribes as possible under one roof, so as to compare them carefully with each other and with the Binuá, while my impressions of the latter remained fresh, the honorable the Governor, with his wonted readiness to encourage and aid enquiries of the kind, procured me through the Tamungong a visit from two of the Sabimba and four of the Beduandá Kalláng.
The Sabimba previous to their exportation to Johore by the Ta-. mungong inhabited that portion of the island of Battam which is traversed by the stream called the Sungie Sabimba and its feeders.
They are entirely a forest people, having no ladangs or cultiva- tion of any kind, and no boats. They are consequently barbar- . ​ous in their condition compared with the Binua. According to their own traditions, however, they have not always been of habits so rude. They declare that they are of Malayan race, and give the following account of their advent in Battam. Their forefathers lived in the land of the Bugis, and were of agricultural and ma- itime habits like other Malays. In the course of a voyage from Celebes to the westward, a vessel containing a party of them and a Rájá Bugis, was lost off the coast of Battám. Some of them reached the shore, and, having no means of returning to their native country, remained on the island. After a few generations their numbers had increased, and they lived in comfort making ladangs, and gradually regaining the condition in which their ship- wrecked ancestors had lived in their native land. At this stage they unfortunately attracted the notice of pirates and their kampongs were ravaged. New ladangs and houses were made, but again they were visited by pirates. They removed to another locality, but their merciless and persevering assailants found them, and continued to repeat their attacks every few years. At last when their kampongs were destroyed for the seventh time, they gave themselves up to despair, abandoned their ancient habits, and sought safety by wandering in the forest and restricting themselves to the materials of food which it spontaneously yields. To prevent any longing to return to the comforts of civilization from again exposing them to plunder, slavery, or death, the whole tribe made a vow that they should never again form ladangs, live a settled life, or even eat the domestic fowl, the crowing of the cock having sometimes betrayed their dwellings to the pirates.
Whatever be the foundation of this tradition, it expresses their present condition. They plant no vegetables of any kind, but use the leaves, roots and fruits which the forest affords, such as the akar kaluna, a. simápo, a. ajas, a. ánprio, a. katápá, the umut nibong, u. báyás, u. sirdáng, u. lángkap, the buah tamidak, b. bálok, b. tampui, b. mâneling, b. páncho, b. kábes, b. ridan, b. kadumpa, b. ránjas, b. mángos után, b. kaladáng, b. pássál, b. durian, b. lakup, b. pakalá, b. toré. They eat the flesh of every forest animal which they can kill, and when occasionally brought in contact with more civilized people, shew no objection to any kind of food save, the fowl which they scrupulously avoid. The wild ​animals nsed are the hog, palando, korá, lutong, musáng, tupái kubong, bewak, málok, pirgam, kalongkéng, koko, tíong, punai, the oil of snakes, and many kinds of fish. The kijang, rusa, elephant, and bear are not found in Battam. Flesh of all kinds is cooked by the inen, vegetables by the women. They use a Dyak sumpitan which is also armed with a spear head after the manner of the musket and bayonet. It is curious that this weapon has been imported for them from time immemorial, and that they have not acquired the art of forming sumpitàns of bambus like the Bermúns. The Bor- nean sumpitan is artificially bored.
They make rude temporary huts in the forest with the floors on the ground, and never remain long at the same spot.
Before marriage the bridegroom prepares a hut of his own to which he carries the bride on the day of marriage from the house of the Batin where they are united. 12 histas of white cloth, and some sírí and pínáng are delivered by the bridegroom into the Batin's hands for the bride's parents.
The children of brothers cannot intermarry, but those of sis- ters and of a brother and sister may.
When one of the family dies, the body is washed, wrapped in cloth and buried in a grave, an excavation being made into one side to receive it. Above the grave they place rice, a pot, an axe, a hatchet, a knife, sírí and pinang, praying the deceased not to call on them or require anything from them in future. A fire is kindled at the side. On the third and seventh days they visit the grave, and after a month abandon the house and seek a new locality for their residence. The goods descend to sons. Adultery is punished by a fine of 1,000 rattans, seduction of a virgin by being compelled to marry her and give the customary present to her parents.
Their ancestors were warned in dreams that if the race bathed tempests would visit them. Hence they abstain as religiously from bathing as they do from eating the fowl. The only punishment which the Malays threaten them with, or ever inflict, is to duck them in water, of which they have so great a horror that they say they would prefer being killed at once.
Dreams are greatly dreaded, and, if bad, keep the dreamer ​in a state of uneasiness for some days. A Sabimba of old dreamt that he would be killed by a tiger, and within two days his dream was fulfilled.
The colony at present living towards the head of the Sungie Támráu (which falls into the Salat Tamráu or old Strait of Singapore opposite the most northerly point of the island) consists of 25 men, 30 women, and 15 childrem. They are serfs of the Tamtingong being under a Malay Jennang who employs them in collecting tábàn, dammar, rattans, kayu gharu, ebony, chándán and wax. In return he gives them rice, sago, and very rarely a little cloth. Other Malays are also allowed to carry on a little trade by barter with them, by which means they are supplied with axes, hatchets, earthenware, cooking pots, iron pans, salt, chilis, and tobacco.
To describe them further would be scarcely anything more than a succession of negatives. Thus they do not circumcise or in- cise, they do not file the teeth, they do not perforate the lobe of the car. They have no religion, no hantus or other supernatu- ral beings that have names, hardly any medicines, no Poyángs. The husband alone assists at births. To aid parturition a decoc- tion of dáun Saluso is administered, and they also samboran like the Malays. A fire is kindled near the mother to scare away evil spirits. A decoction of the branch of the Mankurus is also given to the mother. The umbilical cord is cut with a sambilu rotán (or rattan knife) and kunyet powder applied. On the third day the mother bathes in water mixed witha decoction of the dáun kamáso followed by an application of lime juice. She then resumes her wandering in the jungle in search of food, her child being tied closely under her arm with its mouth to the breast. It does not receive a name till it is a few months old. The children are never beaten.
I have only seen two individuals of flie race. One is an old man and the other a middle aged woman. Both are at once seen to be- long to a different race from the Binua. The head in particular is much larger, and formed on a different type. The face is very long, arising from the length and inclination of the lower jaws. The lips ​are firm but thick. The jaws a little prognathous, but the firmness of the lips diminishes the effect. When viewed in profile the fea- tures seem to be arranged on a curve. The man has a beard of straggling and coarse white hairs, which is stronger than that which Malays generally possess who allow the beard to grow. Each shoulder has a band of similar hair, but that upon his person generally is not remarkable.
His shoulders are narrow and arms fleshless, approaching in this respect to the Australians. The woman's face is very broad across the check bones, so as to present the most Mangolian of all the heads.
Both individuals at first seemed without ideas, and averse to conversation. The man when questioned answered, and to a certain extent overcame his reserve. In the evening of the second day he became very loquacious under the influence of a glass of cherry brandy, and has since been communicative. The woman sits with her eyes fixed on the ground, and her face wearing an expression of hopeless stupidity. No smile, no glance or mo- tion betraying the presence of thought or feeling, has once lighted up her settled look of dulness. Her person is loaded with flabby fat, and clothed from the waist to the knees with a dirty sarong. A rag scantily covers her bosom. The curved gittá tábán handle of a páráng, which projects above the folds of her sarong tells the occupation from which the poor woman has been summoned.
I reserve my remarks on the language of this tribe and of the Beduandá Kálláng.
* ↑ They only use the ipoh to poison the darts. They take the bark of the tree (which is a common one) bruize it, and boil it, till the juice is of the consistence of chandu (opium prepared for smoking.)
* ↑ Except in tabán, which they cannot dispose of to others under pain of a ducking.
* ↑ In the lithograph, (profile No. 8) which is very good in other respects, the lips are not sufficiently thick, the general curve too slight, and the lower part of the face not sufficiently prominent.