and her young ones.
In preparing the skins and skeletons of these animals, I was much troubled by
the Dyak dogs, which, being always kept in a state of semi-starvation, are
ravenous for animal food. I had a great iron pan, in which I boiled the bones to
make skeletons, and at night I covered this over with boards, and put heavy
stones upon it; but the dogs managed to remove these and carried away the
greater part of one of my specimens. On another occasion they gnawed away a
good deal of the upper leather of my strong boots, and even ate a piece of my
mosquito-curtain, where some lamp-oil had been spilt over it some weeks
before.
On our return down the stream, we had the fortune to fall in with a very old
male Mias, feeding on some low trees growing in the water. The country was
flooded for a long distance, but so full of trees and stumps that the laden boat
could not be got in among them, and if it could have been we should only have
frightened the Mias away. I therefore got into the water, which was nearly up to
my waist, and waded on until I was near enough for a shot. The difficulty then
was to load my gun again, for I was so deep in the water that I could not hold the
gun sloping enough to pour the powder in. I therefore had to search for a shallow
place, and after several shots under these trying circumstances, I was delighted
to see the monstrous animal roll over into the water. I now towed him after me to
the stream, but the Malays objected to having the animal put into the boat, and
he was so heavy that I could not do it without their help. I looked about for a
place to skin him, but not a bit of dry ground was to be seen, until at last I found
a clump of two or three old trees and stumps, between which a few feet of soil
had collected just above the water, which was just large enough for us to drag
the animal upon it. I first measured him, and found him to be by far the largest I
had yet seen, for, though the standing height was the same as the others (4 feet 2
inches), the outstretched arms were 7 feet 9 inches, which was six inches more
than the previous one, and the immense broad face was 13 1/2 inches wide,
whereas the widest I had hitherto seen was only 11 1/2 inches. The girth of the
body was 3 feet 7 1/2 inches. I am inclined to believe, therefore, that the length
and strength of the arms, and the width of the face continues increasing to a very
great age, while the standing height, from the sole of the foot to the crown of the
head, rarely if ever exceeds 4 feet 2 inches.