The festivities thus interrupted, were not, however, abandoned. The besieged partook of the banquet in divisions, one part feasting while the other stood ready to defend the fort against a renewed attack. All, however, celebrated their victory by partaking of a bowl of toeak, though they carefully kept within the bounds of sobriety. Faithful to his reverend character the Walloon abstained from all such food and drinks as are prohibited by the Prophet. With holy indifference he saw the tidbits disappear down almost insatiable throats, and he remained perfectly calm when Johannes held a delicious pork chop under his nose. As for the toeak, he could only sigh deeply at the smell of it. He was, however, comforted by a promise conveyed by Johannes to reserve for him his fair share to be enjoyed after leaving the circle of these profane ones. While our Europeans were partaking of the numerous delicacies a Poenan entered and threw a couple of skulls in the midst of the company. A deafening applause greeted this action. Two of them grasped the skulls, severed the remaining cervical vertebræ and with a bamboo knife began to empty the substance of the brain into a dish through the spinal opening. Another Poenan severed large locks from the heads, cut the hair into pieces of about one and a half inches and added them with some powdered Spanish pepper to this bloody mass of brain. The deserters viewed all this in silent horror. When every particle of brain had been removed from the skulls and the dish was properly prepared, a Poenan took it up, placed an earthenware spoon in the mixture and offered it to Johannes who refused it politely. When it was presented to Wienersdorf he glanced at it, became suddenly over-powered by a feeling of nausea and fell down senseless. The other Europeans in their consternation took no notice of Wienersdorf’s faint, and the Dayaks, though a little surprised at the refusal of the foreigners to taste of this delicacy, were but too delighted to see it all left to themselves. The one who carried the dish grasped the spoon, filled it, threw his head back and closing his eyes allowed a fair quantity to glide down his throat, his features all the while beaming with the utmost delight. He then handed the dish to one of his companions who went through the same manœuvre and then passed the delicacy further. Slowly and with ecstatic happiness they sucked at the hairs which are included in the mixture for the express purpose of compelling them to enjoy it deliberately. This loathsome feast was too much for the Europeans. The scene turned their very souls, and jumping up to fly from this terrible drama, they noticed for the first time that Wienersdorf had fainted and was lying senseless. They carried him away with them to the open air where, assisted by draughts of cold water, they all soon regained their composure.