Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1905-07-15
EDIBLE BIRDS NESTS.
The Way They Are Gathered by the
Dya1Ss In Borneo.

Edible birds nests are found in the
clcfts of rocks or in underground caves
which are frequently of great extent
John MacGregor in writing of Il bird
nesting experience he had in Borneo
says: or we went with about dozen
Dyaks, as the little bronze aborigines
Df this part of BorneO are called, for
guides. The entrance to the cave was
so small and 80 elevated that / had
some little difficulty in reaching it.
After we had Travelled for some dis
lance we came across the inevitable
stream. The ground. which was 10 Il
great extent composed of the bed of
tn" stream, was rough and irregular.
We were lighted OF our way by torches
carried by our Dyak guides. At last
we came TO passage that seemed Il
verltable eye of Il needle. so hard it
was to enter. for it looked SO narrow
and confined that | deSpaired of ever
getting through it. When I fairly got
squeezed into the breach 1 could force
myself neither upward nor downward
- for that was the direction of the pas
saGe-and there l was, suspended like
Mohammcd's coffin or a trussed fowl.
BY dint of wriggling. however, l at
last found myself on the top of the
passage. minus Il certain amount of
skin and some buttons from my tight
fitting Khaki coat
Still on we logged for the best part
of mile, when, 10 and behold, the
caves in which the birds were breeding
and which We're to be the limits of our
underground wanderings, A faint glim-
mer of light could be seen through
rift in the rocks far above us. and it
was through this small rift, which was
r sealed passage even TO the DyakS
themselves. that the birds passed in
their Journeys TO and from their nest
ing grounds. Our arrival, of course.
disturbed whatever birds were there.
and they disappeared as best they
could. And there. for time. we watch
ed the Dyaks going through their gym
nastics of robbing the birds nests.
with their ropes and long poles creep
Ing along the high ridges and lodges in
the lurid light of the torches like I'M
earthly specters.
These peculiar nests are built by
species OF swallow. The nests consist
Of shallow. cup shaped cavities. trun-
Gated at one side. where they are at
taChed TO the rocks like brackets to
wall. and forming something like
twO-thirdS segment OF Il circle 1t is
not always easy to get at them, as
they are sometimes glued to the per-
pendicular sides of the solid rocks high
overhead. so that the nest hunters have
to scale these Crags with ropes and
poles to get at them. In substance
they consist of an elastic. semitrans-
parent. mucila Ginous material. which is
said to be 4 secretion. or maccrated
food. from the crops of the birds them
selves.
AS robbing these nests for CONNER
Cial purposes forms part of the by
axis means of livelihood. the birds
have frequently TO build twice or even
three times during the season before
they are able to hatch their offspring,
and 1t is noted that each successive
crop Of nests deteriorates in both con
strUctiOn and composition. The nests
built ut the beginning of the season
are bright and transparent and are
consequently known on the market as
white nests but when they are rob
bed the next crop is not nearly so
pure in substance"