the Pangeran and his Officers is the beauty of the _krises_ with
which they are armed, the handles being of carved ivory
ornamented with gold, and the sheaths of beautifully polished
wood, resembling satin wood. Cigars and coffee are produced, and
a _bichara_ ensues. A Quakers' meeting is no bad metaphor to
describe a Malay _bichara_. The Pangerans sit round in a circle
smoking solemnly for some time, until a question is put to them,
to which a brief reply is given, followed by another prolonged
pause.

"In this way the business on which they have come is gradually
approached.

"Their manners are as polished as their faces are immobile, and
the way to a Malay's heart lies through his pocket.

"To the outsider, Brunai is a city of hideous old women, for such
alone are met with in the thronged market place where some
hundreds of market boats jostle each other, while their inmates
shriek and haggle over their bargains, or during a water
promenade while threading the labyrinths of this Oriental
Venice; but if acquainted with its intricacies, or if paying a
ceremonial visit to any of the leading Pangerans, many a glimpse
may be had of some fair skinned beauty peeping through some
handy crevice in the _kajang_ wall, or, in the latter case, a
crowd of light-skinned, dark-eyed houris may be seen looking
with all their might out of a window in the harem behind, from
which they are privileged to peep into the hall of audience.

"The present population of Brunai cannot exceed 12,000 to 15,000
souls, a great number having succumbed to the terrible epidemic
of cholera a year ago. The exports consist of sago, gutta
percha, camphor, india-rubber, edible birds' nests, gum dammar,
etc., and what money there is in the city is almost entirely in
the hands of the Chinese traders. * * *

"In the old days, when it enjoyed a numerous Chinese population,
the surrounding hills were covered with pepper plantations, and
there was a large junk trade with China. At present Brunai lives
on her exports of jungle produce and sago, furnished by a noble
river--the Limbang, whose valley lies but a short distance to
the Eastward. One great advantage the city enjoys is a copious
supply of pure water, drawn from springs at the base of the
hills below the town on the left bank of the river. * * *