Page:History of the Indian Archipelago Vol 3.djvu/445

 ARTICLES OF EXPORTATION. 4^9 dance of cattle, the number of hides available for exportation is diminished by the singular practice among the inhabitants of that island of using the fresh hide as an article of food, — nay, even esteem- ing it a dainty beyond any other part of the ani- mal. A steady demand for hides as an article of commerce would probably put an end to this taste. In Java, from the low price of salt, it may be sug- gested, that pickling the hides, a practice never yet resorted to in that part of the world, might an- swer. Hides and horns, from their bulky nature, will probably be always a fitter article for the neigh- bouring market of China than for the more distant one of Europe. The Malay Peninsula and Sumatra, the only countries of the Archipelago where the elephant is found, are also, of course, the only countries that aflPord much ivory. From these two countries, and more especially from the neighbouring country of Siam, ivory forms a considerable article of exporta- tion, principally, of course, to China, where the manufacture of this beautiful commodity is better understood than any where else. The birds of the Indian Islands, like t'hose of other warm countries, are more remarkable for the gay and brilliant tints of their plumage than for England." — Voyage to Borneo, p. 168. — From my own ex- perience I can speak to the same eftcct.