"  July  2%th.  The  day  after  I  last  wrote  was
very  wet,  so  I  remained  at  home  and  transacted
business  all  day.  Some  Sakais  (aborigines)  came  to
see  me,  and  shot  at  a  mark  with  their  sumpitans,
i.e.  blow-pipes  with  arrows,  which  are  poisoned  when
they  are  in  pursuit  of  game  or  their  enemies.  The
following  day  (2ist),  we  started  at  about  8.30  in
seven  fine  boats,  the  decks  protected  from  the  sun
by  palm-leaves,  and  my  crew  dressed  in  yellow  and
black — the  latter  came  from  the  village  which  belongs
to  my  friend  the  Robber  chief,  and  seemed  very  good
fellows.  The  Dragon  (my  boat)  was  formerly
owned  by  Birch,  the  Resident  whose  murder  was
the  cause  of  the  Perak  War.  I  have  just  finished  a
sketch  of  the  river  and  of  some  Malay  boats.  The
river  is  most  beautiful  ;  it  narrows  a  little  when  one
gets  below  Kuala  Kangsa,  and  hills  rise  to  either
side.  In  the  evening  we  went  ashore  and  I  held  an
audience  in  a  hut  on  piles  at  a  place  called  Blanja.
We  slept  on  board  the  boats,  and  with  a  mattress
and  a  mosquito-net  we  were  very  comfortable.
