Next morning our adventurers started gold digging operations. Before setting out Harimaoung Boekit made them promise to observe all the usual formalities in order to evade the vengeance of the sarok boelau, especially, as he personally did hot wish for a second attack of fever. The customs prescribed were as follows: During the time that they were employed in gold digging they must never approach a coal fire—must never seat themselves with legs hanging down—but always cross-legged—must scrupulously abstain from touching iron or steel, and finally must never, when bathing, turn against the stream. To all these instructions our friends promised to conform and they started on their new enterprise. They sailed down soengei Miri on a raft for a short distance and soon arrived at their destination. The raft was then moored by means of a ladder let down to the bottom of the river and there secured by means of heavy stones. Provided with wooden basins they went down into the stream, descended to the bed of the river and filled their bowls with auriferous sand, which they immediately conveyed to the raft for examination. The bowls were of the size of a large plate, about fifteen-inch diameter, scooped out in the centre. The work, being strange to the Europeans, was at first awkwardly executed. There was many a laugh and joke at their expense when through some clumsy movement they suffered the stream to sweep away the entire contents of their bowls. They gradually became more expert and after their first success became infected with gold fever. Thus they labored all the day without cessation and when at nightfall they were forced to suspend their operations, Harimaoung proceeded to weigh the day’s collection. He found that they had gathered half a thaël, which he valued at about thirty guilders. “That is not much,” said the Poenan, “but when my brothers are a little handier at the work the result will be more satisfactory.” Nevertheless, the result was sufficiently remunerative to make the adventurers enchanted with gold washing. La Cueille especially was awfully excited. He talked of nothing but gold-seeking, and even in his sleep was haunted with the wildest dreams about the precious metal. The labor was continued for several days consecutively, and as predicted by Harimaoung Boekit with constantly increasing success. There were days when the collections amounted to five thaëls. The gold was generally found in the shape of a fine, soft powder, but occasionally it was met with in the form of scales, threads or small nuggets. The larger nuggets, never exceeding the size of large peas, were rarely found, though Harimaoung Boekit informed them that some time ago nuggets one inch in diameter had been taken. La Cueille as a professional miner was naturally more observant than his companions. He noticed that gold dust was invariably found in proximity to a glittering white sand.