Page:Life in Java Volume 1.djvu/324

306 in tremulous silence for some minutes, until roused to action by the sensation that the child was going from her side. Instinctively she grasped it in her arms, and approaching the window, poured forth a string of abusive incantation which silenced the Poontiana for that night. Still, so terrified was the woman, and so frequently was this nightly visit repeated, that, in her superstitious fear for herself and the child, she insisted on the destruction of the Cuppootree, which accordingly was cut down.

It is seldom you see one of these trees without a tuft of hair nailed to the bark, as a charm against the evil effects of the Poontiana.

After Balongchoap—the last post before reaching the town of Madioen—we turned southward, skirting a branch of the river Solo; and, passing through a pretty country, entered a neat avenue leading to the town whither we were bound.